I’m having a hard time believing that summer vacation is almost over. A month from now we will be back in school! Thankfully, there are still plenty of carefree summer days to do lots of reading! Here are some new books coming out this week:
Books for Kids
Black Belt Bunny – A bunny who is a pro at martial arts has to make… a salad. This sounds so quirky, I have to read it. Might be a great story for the kids in your life who love martial arts.
Murphy’s Ticket (July 15) – A picture book story of the Cubs curse and their World Series win in 2016.
Mitzi Tulane, Preschool Detective in The Secret Ingredient – Two preschoolers investigate their muffins for “dodgy” ingredients. How can anyone NOT want to read this book? A preschool detective!! The book blurb uses the word “dodgy.” I have to read this book! Second book in the series.
There Is No Dragon in this Story (July 13) – I cannot wait to read this book about a dragon who can’t find a story that will take him.
Brave Batgirl – This early reader shares the backstory of one of my favorite heroes, Batgirl. For older readers, look into the Scholastic DC Backstories series. They have a Batgirl book that was well done.
Living in Egypt – An early reader about living in Egypt. Part of a series which has already covered India, Australia, China and other countries.
Disney Princess Dot-to-Dot – I’ve noticed that intricate dot-to-dot books are starting to join adult coloring books in stores.
Star Wars Dot-to-Dot
Books for Older Kids/Teens/Young Adults
A Dash of Dragon – A teen chef tries to find her way with a new restaurant, a lone shark, magic creatures, and a snooty rival chef. This sounds like the perfect blend of fantasy and cooking story.
It All Comes Down to This – The new girl in a mostly -white neighborhood – and a black girl at that – Sophie just wants to do her usual thing. She wants to write and hang out with her friends. But in 1965 Los Angeles, during the Watts riots, her life is more complicated than that. This sounds like a great addition to stories for kids that look honestly at race in America.
Kid Normal (July 13) – A normal kid is mistakenly enrolled in a school for superheroes. This sounds right up my alley – sign me up!
Land of Stories Worlds Collide – The sixth and final book in the wildly popular Land of Stories series by actor Chris Colfer about a brother and sister who fall into a fairy tale world. I read the first book in this series – The Wishing Spell – ages ago, but I think I’d like to read it again and see how the whole series comes together.
Multiple Mayhem – Book 3 in the Gabby Duran series about a girl who babysits for aliens. This sounds like a cute series. Book one is Gabby Duran and the Unsittables.
Pennybaker School Is Headed for Disaster – A beloved statue goes missing from the Pennybaker School, and Thomas is everyone’s prime suspect. I’ll be reviewing this book tomorrow.
Queen Red Riding Hood’s Guide to Royalty – Tie-in material for the Land of Stories series.
The Sands of Shark Island – Book 2 in the School Ship Tobermory series by acclaimed author, Alexander McCall Smith. The stories focus on a pair of twins who go to school on the ship, Tobermory, to learn to be sailors and about life on the sea. This action/adventure mystery sounds like a great series to share with kids!
The Wild Bunch – Three boys head off on a wilderness adventure to find a local Bigfoot-like legendary creature. Part of the MAX line from Aladdin publishing. I have read (and loved) several books from the MIX line, which focuses on female characters. I have several MAX books on my TBR list right now – including this one.
You May Already Be a Winner – A girl tries to hold things together on her own – watching her little sister, writing letters to her absent father, looking for things to do in their trailer park for entertainment – but it’s a lot for one 12-year-old to manage. This is definitely on my list for this week!
Learn to Draw Star Wars – Learn to Draw books make great gifts and terrific additions to school and classroom libraries. My students couldn’t get enough of these.
Ash and Quill – Book 3 in the Great Library series about the Library of Alexandria in an alternate reality where the Library, and those who control it, wield power over books and information. I have book one, Ink and Bone, on my library wish list.
The Carnelian Crow – Book 4 in the Stoker (as in Bram Stoker, Dracula) and Holmes (Sherlock) series about Stoker’s sister and Holmes’ niece who team up to hunt vampires and solve mysteries. I’m not much of a vampire fan, but I might have to check out book one in this series, The Clockwork Scarab, to see if the story and characters click for me. This sounds like a fun team up!
I See London, I See France – Author of the middle grade Whatever After series publishes a YA novel this week about two teens traveling through Europe and negotiating exes and romance and family drama. I’m looking forward to this one, too!
The Lake Effect – Rising college freshman is spending the summer at Lake Michigan, working as a personal assistant. And nothing goes the way he expected. This is on my list for sure!
Waste of Space – A reality show where the teens are shot into space and have to survive. Sounds great, except it is all fake. I’ll be posting a review of this one later this week.
What to Say Next – Two unexpected friends join forces to try and figure out what killed Kit’s father.
Books for Adults
30 Second Death – Book 2 in the Tobi Tobias mystery series about a woman who starts her own advertising agency and tends to stumble across dead bodies. This time, she has to find out who killed the diva before her friend goes to jail.
Hello, Sunshine – Culinary star gets hacked and the world discovers everything is a lie. Now she has to retreat and reconstruct her life.
Ten Dead Comedians – Like Agatha Christie’s And Then There Were None, a group of comedians gathers on a remote island where one by one they start to die. I’ll be reviewing this one later this week.
The Writing Desk – Two women, decades apart, share a writing desk and the stories of their lives. I requested this from the library a month ago! I can’t wait to read it.
The Darkening Web – Looks at the power and dangers of cyberspace.
I Need a Lifeguard Everywhere but the Pool – Another collection of funny and true stories from this mother and daughter team. I have yet to read any of their books, but I would like to check this one out.
Reading with Patrick – The author shares her story of working with Patrick – first as a mentor and teacher to the teenager and then a few years later as he sits in a cell awaiting trial for murder. Sounds like a powerful memoir.
Remarkable Faith – Tells the story of the people with remarkable faith that claimed Jesus’ notice. Sounds like this could be a good book for group study.
Star Trek: The Klingon Empire – A travel guide to the Klingon Empire
The Strength Switch – Advocates for a parenting model based on drawing out the strengths of your children. Sounds great. Might work in a classroom setting as well as for parents.
So, what’s going on your TBR this week?
– This is a terrific series for elementary school readers about Ranger, a dog who almost passed the service dog training (darn squirrels). Now, thanks to a magical first aid box, Ranger travels in time to disasters and helps kids. Book one is Rescue on the Oregon Trail. This is book pictured is the most recent Ranger story.
Chester and Gus – I adored Chester! Chester is adopted by a family to help their severely autistic son, Gus. You can read my review 
A Dog Like Daisy – This is a new release from June. I haven’t read it yet, but it sounds fantastic. Again, the dog gets to tell the story. This time, Daisy is working as a therapy dog for a veteran with PTSD.
Secret Service Dogs – For adults, here is a highly rated book about the dogs used in the Secret Service to protect the president and our country.