Okay I just finished "The Mysterious Benedict Society" by Trenton Lee Stewart. I really liked it. It's about this boy, Reynie, who responds to an ad for "special and talented kids", which is a series of obscure tests. He ends up with three other orphans and they become spys and enroll in a mysterious school.

It's a great one to read with your kids. It's been described as Lemony Snickett and Harry Potter. It is a lot like Lemony Snickett, but not nearly as dark and dreary.

The best part of the book is that it's one that you can put down and come back to again.

There is a sequel called "The Mysterious Benedict Society and the Perilous Journey." I've ordered the book and will let you know when I've finished it.

Fortune and Fate

I know I'm the major Sharon Shinn fan here, but once again I'm going to tout the awesomeness of her Twelfth House series. This is the latest book, the first one is Mystic and Rider and all of them are better than her Angels series.  I think this latest one is my favorite so far (though book one was really good)

They are fantasy in the candles&carriages sense, and there is some magic in them, but no strange creatures. It's an all human cast for those of you who are species-ist.  :)  (well, besides the horses. and a big cat in one of them. but they're just regular animals. so it's okay.)

Homesick: My Own Story

by Jean Fritz

I finished this last night.  It's autobiographical juvenile fiction about an American girl growing up in China as the communist movement takes hold.  And don't worry.  It ends happy.  I liked the story and the level it was written at--the age when you start to lose your childish innocence, but it's not gone yet.

Peter and the Starcatchers

Do you want to know how Peter Pan go the magical power to fly? Or where the mermaids or the Lost Boys originated from? This is a children's novel by Dave Barry and Ridley Pearson written as a prequel to the original Peter Pan story by J.M. Barrie. It is well written and I really enjoyed it.

Dave Barry is a humor columnist for the Miami Herald and writes articles that are hillarious! If you want a good laugh, I'd recommend reading some of his material. This book, however, departs from his outrageously crazy stuff and actually presents a great children's story. There are two others so far in the series, but I haven't finished them. I'll keep you posted on how I liked them too.