Apprentices…

In Ranger’s Apprentice the main character,Will, is an orphan.  He lives in the area surrounding the Castle Arulian.  On Choosing Day, a day that is special to the orphans only, the masters of each ‘job’ in the castle, such as ranger, horse master/trainer, Battle school, blacksmith, etc., come out and choose an orphan for their  apprentice.  Will is the smallest of the orphans, but he still wants to be in battle school, where all of the knights are trained.  The reason for this is that, when he appeared on the doorstep of the castle, there was a note.  The note said that his mother had died when he was born and his father had died a heroic death.  Will wanted to follow his father’s footsteps and become a knight because, to him, it was obvious that that was what his father was.  But he was slim, short, and quick on his feet.  These were the opposite of what you had to have to go to battle school.  When he is refused a chance to go to battle school, another master takes interest in him, one that was shrouded in mystery…

Stuck on Earth by David Klass

This is the story of Ketchvar III, a gastropod from the planet “Sandoval” who wiggles his way into the body of Tom Filber, a fourteen year old incoming freshman. Why? Ketchvar must decide the fate of the human race: will they be annihilated, or allowed to muddle along, barely able to conduct their own lives, let alone take care of planet earth. There’s plenty of evidence for the decision to annihilate humans. In Ketchvar’s opinion, they’ve driven their beautiful planet towards the brink of an untimely demise. They are willfully violent towards each other, misinterpreting any basic kindnesses so that they may continue on their destructive path. At least that is how Ketchvar sees it as through Tom Filber’s eyes. Ketchvar’s first experience as Tom Filber is alarming.  His mother chases Ketchvar/Tom around with a broom after finding potato chip crumbs strewn around on her porch; Tom’s doing. On another occasion, his sister accosts him with a cattle prod as he attempts to escape his mother by taking a short-cut through her room. These scenes are actually pretty funny, in spite of the serious dysfunctionality of Tom’s family. More humor comes in the form of Ketchvar attempting to access some sage advise from Tom’s consciousness, which has been enveloped in a “Ragwellian Bubble.” Tom talks to Ketchvar, dispensing sage advice like, “Duck behind the tree and make a run for it.” But when Tom’s advice is to “go for some tongue action” during a tender kissing scene with the neighbor girl, it backfires miserably. Both Ketchvar and Tom have a lot to learn. This novel explores the human spirit from the eyes of an outsider, something that many of us may have felt at one time or another.

The Adventures of Troy White in Football Genius

Troy is a normal kid who lives with his single mother in Atlanta. He’s a big  football fan, and is the backup quarterback for his youth football team the Tigers. One thing that is not normal about him is that he can predict any football play before it happens on the field. Now all he needs to do is convince the Falcons star middle linebacker, Seth Halloway that his power isn’t a fake. Can Troy help turn around the Falcons season with he help of his friends Nathen and Tate? Read to find out!