September 2025 - B is for Book Reporting Thread

[Jayme, Moderator]

This is where you will report the children's or YA book that you read for September's monthly challenge. Remember that the main character in your book must be 16 or younger.

Reporting:

- WOF name
- What you chose to read
- Why did you choose to read it?
- What rough age group do you think it is for? This is obviously subjective, but gives us an idea.
- What did you think of it? Not just I liked it, give us a few sentences so we know what it’s about/what happens in case we want to recommend it on too.
- Would you recommend it to a smaller someone in your orbit?

[Jayme, Moderator]

WoF Jayme

I decided on reading The Book of Three by Lloyd Alexander. I chose it because it has been on my TBR for well forever and has such great reviews. I think that the age group is 7th - 10th grade or 13 - 16. I came to that conclusion because the MC does like the lead girl, but there isn't any hanky panky or kissy face stuff - just banter that you know will develop into something when they are older.

I really liked this book and put this series down as one that I will continue. You can see the influence of Tolkien with the band of misfit characters who are on a quest (and you can also see where JK Rowling may have borrowed a character - I'm looking at you Dobby). I would definitely recommend this to one of my smaller people, but may I suggest that this would be a great one to read aloud together.

[Marnie]

WoF Marnie

I read Ella Enchanted. It has been on my shelf for many moons and this was the perfect time. It was a retelling of Cinderella with a lot of girl power themes. I think it’s meant for 8-12 ish year olds.

I enjoyed the whimsicalness of the story. I listened to the audiobook and think I would have liked the written version a tad better.

I would recommend it for sure and then probably stand over their shoulder asking them where they are and what do they think? Maybe even have them read it aloud to me.

[Sharon]

WoFSharonBiskit

I read One of Us Is Lying. This book is rated Young Adult on MPG. However, this book takes place in high school and is appropriate for high school students. The main characters are all high school seniors. I would recommend the book. It is a good book to discuss with your own middle schooler if they are mature. There is premarital sex although not graphic. It happens “off stage” so to speak. It does involve a student’s “murder” but most of the story revolves around the effects of gossiping and the stresses of being a teenager.

[Ayacchi]

WoF Aya

I read Thirst, which tagged as middle grade and young adult. I think it's appropriate for 12~ year olds. I don't remember how it ended up on my shelf, but I guess the title and cover attracted me.

I'd definitely recommend this book to the younger readers, because it's an easy read and we can learn about how it feels like to be a girl living in Mumbai, India with the fact that not everyone has running water and a bathroom in their house. How she overcame the adversities in her early years, managing her time to study and work, while keep on dreaming higher. I like how the story made me realize that we live with a lot of privileges, be grateful of the easy life we are living, and remind us not to waste our resources. That no matter what people think about us, we are free to have a dream and a better future, and that we have to work hard and not giving up when face with obstacles.

[Karin]

WoF - Karin

The Moffat Museum by Eleanor Estes
4 delightful stars

Lexile score 700, which is high grade 4 in the US, so children around those ages (the one prior is a grade higher in lexile score.)

This is for children of all ages, and I nominated it for a group read in a children's classics group I'm in because we've been enjoying the series there. (256 pages)

This is the final book in the Moffat series. It begins when Jane looks at the family's unused barn and decides they should turn it into a museum, because their town doesn't have one. The book isn't only about the museum, of course, because in it the oldest Moffat, Sylvie, gets married, and both Jane and Rufus have other adventures, most of which tie directly or indirectly into the museum or the wedding. I enjoyed this and am only sorry that this is the last installment. I'm quite pleased Estes went back and wrote this decades after she wrote the first three books.

[Grainne]

WoF Grainne

I read Charlie Bone and the Red Knight because I was curious about this series and I enjoy reading books about good v evil that are set in schools.

The book itself is recommended for middle school children and the age range is 8-13 year olds.

Charlie Bone is descended from the Red King along with numerous other descendants. The book includes a family tree which is a great reference for the reader. It is a series comprised of 8 books. I read book 8. It was completely accessible to the first time reader. There are good and evil characters in this book as some families have chosen the to use their powers positively while others have become devil's helpers. Each descendent has a gift that is bestowed on them from the Red King. In any event, there are some magical tales of how each child uses his/her/their gift. I enjoyed the character development and the learning that takes place as they each explore their individual gifts. There's magic aplenty, a knight in shining armor, some highly intuitive cats, and a broken mirror. I think that it is a wonderful book. If I was younger, I might read the series from the beginning because the hero's journey is complete in this book and the story mountain is well-developed. The characters are very interesting and relatable. There's a very nice page design at the beginning of each chapter that adds magic to it too. Overall, I would recommend it and I think it's perfectly fine to read book 8 only because it is so well written.

[Pragya]

WoF Pragya

I read The Magician’s Nephew because this series has been in my bookshelf since 2 decades now. :p

I think it's perfect for age group 10-15.

Unfortunately I am not a fan of fantasy so it doesn't appeal to me as an adult. I am sure I would have been fascinated as a child. I think I have seen one of the Narnia movies at some point. Maybe this might help me finally finish off the series and gift it to my 10 year old niece who might enjoy it more than me.

[Janice, Moderator]

WoF Janice

I read The Girl Who Fell Beneath the Sea because it is tagged as Young Adult and has a 16 year old protagonist, and because I could double dip with the annual challenge. LOL!

It took until the end of the book to figure out what was going on. I wasn't sure if the disconnect came from the Korean mythology (of which I know nothing) or if it was the YA tone.

I'd recommend it to an older teen for several reasons. Learning about other culture's mythology is good. There were themes of sacrificing for the good of others, and also that of forging your own destiny instead of what is planned for you. Plus, there is a romance which would appeal to an older teen.

[Kristie, Moderator]

WoF: Kristie

I read Chomp. I haven't read any Carl Hiaasen books, but thought they looked funny and I knew he'd written adult books as well so I thought I'd give it a try.

I didn’t enjoy a lot of this one, but I’m also not the target audience. I’m not sure who I’d recommend this one to. It was much more serious than I expected it to be. The humor was childish, but there were also some heavy topics including child abuse, running away from home, assault with a gun, alcohol abuse, etc. I feel like if you’re ready for those heavy topics you probably won’t find the humor included very funny.

[Lanelle]

WoFame Name - Lanelle

I read The Bronze Bow by Elizabeth George Speare. The book won the Newbery Award in 1962. It's an amazing story.

I read it because it's my IRL book club selection this month.

I feel that the target audience for this book is probably 10 - 14. Old enough to understand family issues, religious situations, and an awareness of geography and history.

I love this book. I truly came to appreciate the author's ability to help the reader emphasize with the MC, his anger, his frustrations, and his feelings of being trapped. We also saw the MC grow in maturity, wisdom, and love.

I would definitely recommend this book to anyone, much less a child.

[Katrisa]

WoF Katrisa

I went with one of the best YA series of all time (a reread) and read Catching Fire. It is aimed at teenagers and is published by Scholastic Press. The first time I read the series was when my daughter was a teenager and made me read it. I was skeptical, but liked to connect with her through books and was surprised ay how much I loved the series! I think they did a pretty good job with the movies, but the books are so much better. I wanted to reread the series after Sunrise on the Reaping which was also awesome. One of the best dystopian series ever - for adults or YA

[Marie (UK)]

WOF Marie UK
Bridge to Terabithia 191 Pages

I have 9 Grandchildren with an age range from 3 to 23 (although the older 2 are my son's partner's children from a previous marriage)

Hannah At 16 is the only reader of the older children and she has moved onto Adult fiction being a romance / Chick Lit fan.

James 10 and Arianna 7 are avid readers and I chose this book as it was unlikely to be one they had come across. Sebastian 11 and Ada-Rose 6 are not big readers and thinking of them I thought this was perhaps not too long for them to lose interest. Louis (3) is too busy being bad to do any reading and really doesn't need a book to encourage him any further in this badness.

I have never read this book before nor, indeed, anything by this author. I didn't particularly find the book interesting or engaging. I think it is of it's time. The Fantastical elements are more imaginary than such things would be depicted in today's books of the same genre. I did think the portrayal of Jess after Leslie's death
was well done and dome of the school scenes were very realsitically portrayed.
I think all my grandchildren of the right age group would be underwhelmed by this book

[Lori Z]

WoF Lori Z

I read Winterhouse because I work in an elementary school library and it was recommended by my friend and I'm always looking for books to recommend to our kiddos. Plus I could use it for the Yearly Challenge as well. Amazon states it for 9-13 years old.

I enjoyed this book. It had a lot of classic elements like an orphaned girl who has to travel to a new place and meet new people and not sure who's good or bad. Winterhouse is a beautiful place but has its secrets, which the main character tries to solve. There's magic and mysteries and a battle of good vs evil. Even a few scenes that give you the shivers.

I will definitely recommend this to our students, but probably at the older end of our students and ones that are fans of a little creepiness.

[Sarah]

WOF name Sarah M.
- What you chose to read The Curious Vanishing of Beatrice Willoughby by G.Z. Schmidt
- Why did you choose to read it? I actually read quite a few middle grade novels, because I'm a youth services librarian. I requested that they order a copy of this for my location just because I read the blurb and it sounded interesting. I figured it was a good time to finally read it.
- What rough age group do you think it is for? This is obviously subjective, but gives us an idea. I'd say 9-12.
- What did you think of it? Not just I liked it, give us a few sentences so we know what it’s about/what happens in case we want to recommend it on too. A group of residents from a small town are invited to a Halloween party at the Amadeus house. This is the first party they have had in several years, due to a young girl disappearing at their last party. Mort Amadeus was arrested in connection with that incident. The attendees at the current party are informed that Mort was wrongfully convicted, and that the real culprit was attending the party that night. Those guests are then charged with discovering what really happened all those years ago.
- Would you recommend it to a smaller someone in your orbit? I enjoyed it. There was a lot of tie-in to Grimm's Fairy Tales, which was charming. I liked the characters, especially the main one, a bookish boy named Dewey. The magic system wasn't fully fleshed out, but I'm not positive this is going to be a stand-alone. If it becomes a series, that might fix it. Also, I have found that middle grade readers aren't as critical about things like that as adults can be. Overall, I think middle grade readers would really like it.

[Beth]

WOF Beth
The Opal Deception
OPAL needed for the list I am working on for the Annual Challenge
Ages 9-14
I had always heard these were good kids books, but I had never read them and my kid was not obsessed with these like the Rick Riordan series, so didn't bug me to read them so we could talk about them, but I found this one to be fun and clever and not what I expected. All sorts of fantasy creatures but in a more detective fictionish context.
Defintely. I might even read another one if it fit a challenge.

[Rusalka, Moderator]

WOF Rusalka

Skulduggery Pleasant

My old housemate (a high school [yrs 7-10 here]) really got into them for a bit and recommended them as a kids book. I found one in a little library a while ago so thought I should grab it and give it a go.

I would say probably around the 10-13 age group depending on the kid. I would have probably read this around 10, but thinking about my 10 year old nephew, he personally may not be quite ready for it. Our friends' 13 year old reader I think would enjoy it and find it fun but prob would find it a little borderline.

I really enjoyed it. It was fun, had a good magic system, some interesting ideas I hadn't come across before, good amount of action, interesting story, and treated the kid in the book like a real person and extended it to the reader. Stephanie had a good amount of sass to her without being too annoying. There is a bit of death in this book, but that's what I mean about treating the kid like a real person - bad things can happen and because of that, there are consequences. Now let's go save the world!

Definitely. As I said, I would prob wait until mid next year to recommend to my 10 year old nephew (although he is 11 in a month), but that is to do more with his personality than the book. But would be very comfortable recommending to all my niblings and friends' kids at their right stage of that age group (I'm always amazed at how incredibly diverse that 4 years or so is).