What We Found in the Sofa and How it Saved the World

What We Found in the Sofa and How it Saved the World 

By: Henry Clark 

The Story 

While waiting for their bus to come, Freak, River, and Fiona find a mysterious couch. As they sit down on the couch to relax before their bus comes, they find a crayon and a sock in the couch cushions. The next day, Fiona reports that she looked the crayon up online, and it is worth a lot of money! The kids agree to sell it online & split the money. As they post this ad up online, the kids unknowingly become involved in a plot to take over the world. Freak, River, and Fiona, must now try to stop invaders from another world from taking over the world before it is too late.

My Thoughts for Reader's Advisory 

This science fiction novel is one of a kind. One thing that sets this book apart is its political humor. It has a little bit of everything for both kids and adults. If you do pick it up, I would recommend going into it with an open mind. Like the title, this story line is a bit over the top. I had trouble with some of these outlandish plot lines, but I do see many of my tween boys enjoying this book. 

Discussion Questions 

What We Found in the Sofa and How it Saved the World

Discussion Questions

1. What is significant about the crayon? Even though the crayon is small, it caused a lot to happen! Has there ever been a time when something big happened over something small in your life?

2. Do you think River, Freak, and Fiona would be friends even if they did not go on this adventure? How did their friendship change over the course of the book?

3. Cell phones were used to control characters in the book. What message do you think the author is trying to send with this? Do you think that cell phones control us?

4. There is a lot of futuristic technologies in this book. If you could have any of the technologies from this book, which one would it be and why?

5. In this book, a parallel world exists. If you could create a world of your own, what would be in it?  

6. Who is the leader of this group? Describe some characteristics of a good leader. Can everyone be a leader in their own way?

7. Why doesn’t Alf tell the kids everything when he first meets them? Should the kids have trusted him? Would you? Why or why not?

8. At the end of the story, River sees his parents, who died several years before. Do you think he really saw them?

9. What will happen to River, Freak, and Fiona now? Do you think that Edward Disin is really gone?

10. In the book, the couch can teleport. If you could teleport anywhere, where would you go?

More Books Like This One 

Until next time, 

Pamela

Jinx by Sage Blackwood

Mark Twain Nominee Monday! 

Jinx 

By Sage Blackwood 

The Story

The Urwald is the only place Jinx has ever known. Dark and mysterious, the tall trees of the Urwald are home to menacing werewolves, werebears and trolls, devious witches, and sinister wizards. Even as a young boy, Jinx knows about the Truce of the Path: You are protected as long as you remain on the path. But one day his cruel stepfather takes Jinx off the path, intending to leave Jinx to fend for himself. 

Just as Jinx is about to give up hope, he’s saved by a wizard named Simon.  As the years pass, Jinx begins to trust the wizard. 

 Although Jinx is kept safe and well-fed, he longs to explore the world. So after a terrible fight with Simon, Jinx sets out on a quest. Jinx’s life-changing journey takes him from the safety of Simon’s castle to ominous  home to the evil, bloodthirsty Bonemaster.  Jinx must now find a way home all while battling the most feared wizard of all. 

 Summary based off of : Chapter Book Explorer Blog

My Thoughts

I had a really hard time with this one. I usually enjoy fantasies, and I was really excited to try this one out. Sadly, I felt like this book was really slow!  I kept having flash backs to Disney's The Sword & the Stone. Does anyone else see Simon as Merlin? Or am I just crazy?



I know this is a series, but I didn't feel like this book had much of a climax. There was a lot of lead up to this adventure that Jinx goes on, but it takes more then half of the book to go on it. Once it got there, I felt like the book just flopped for me. I felt like nothing was resolved.

By the end of the book, he was off on another adventure. I just felt like there were so many plot holes that I fell through as a reader.

Even though I personally did not enjoy this book, I do think that it would be a fun fantasy book to recommend to young fantasy lovers.

Discussion Questions 

Jinx’s stepfather said Jinx was cursed.  Do you think Jinx is cursed? Did he bring misfortune to Simon & Sophie?

Why does Sophie live in Samara and not with Simon and Jinx?

In the book, Simon does many good and bad things. Is he a good person? Or is he an evil wizard?

Jinx thinks that it is important to travel to learn. What can you learn by traveling? What are some things you learned while traveling to a different place?

Jinx has a strange power to see emotions. Do you think this was useful? Would you want this ability? If you could chose any power, what would you choose?

What do you think Reven’s curse is? Why is he called the “Great Terror?” Reven robs Jix and then asks to travel with him. Why do you think that Jinx allowed him to come with him?  

Why did Jinx see Elfwyn before he met her? How did she help or harm Jinx?

Jinx can read emotions by the color of cloud around someone’s face. Can colors represent emotions? If so what are they?

If Jinx never left Gooseberry Clearing, how would he be different?

The Bonemaster says that knowledge is meant to be free for everyone. What are some ways that you can gain knowledge for free? Is this true?

More Books Like This One 

- Pamela

Dorko the Magnificent By Andrea Beaty

Dorko the Magnificent 

By: Andrea Beaty 

• Age Range: 8 - 12 years
• Grade Level: 3 - 7
• Paperback: 240 pages
• Published: April 1, 2013

The Story 

*Based off of the Summary From BookPage*

Robbie Darko, dubbed “Dorko” by the class bully, sets out to perform the greatest magic trick his town has ever seen at the upcoming school talent show. Much to his parents’ and teachers’ dismay (and his classmates’ delight), Robbie uses every possible opportunity to practice his craft, but the arrival of Grandma Melvyn threatens to make Robbie’s grand plan disappear into thin air.

Until she moves into his room, Grandma Melvyn has just been that ill-tempered, smelly, distant elderly relative with the “Wicked Wobble Eye” who isn’t even anyone’s actual grandmother.  Little does Robbie know what tricks Grandma Melvyn, literally, has up her sleeves. 

When the classic tablecloth trick Dorko performs in front of his whole family goes hilariously wrong, Robbie is stunned when Grandma Melvyn explodes with laughter and congratulates him on a job well done. It is then that Robbie learns that Grandma Melvyn was a famous magician. After this, Grandma Melyn starts teaching Robbie her incredible magician’s secrets. 

Robbie, his friend Cat, and Grandma Melyn start to spend weeks working on a disappearing act for the school talent show that is sure to have the whole town talking for years to come, but it is Grandma Melyn who ends up disappearing. Robbie now must make the show go on without her, and learn the true meaning of magic. 

Book Trailer 

Notes for Reader's Advisory & Review

This book was filled with clever humor and relatable situations that make this book a entertaining read.  I think readers will enjoy its wit and its sweet story regarding Grandma Melyn. 

Even though I did enjoy this book , I did feel like it was not memorable to me. 

In the words of Despicable Me: 



....and very predictable, but maybe I am being too harsh. I just found it to be very similar to many other middle grade novels. 

I do think that readers who enjoy realistic fiction may enjoy this book. As I have mentioned earlier, it is relatable. For instance, the family struggles financially, and Robbie's mom has to take on a job to help support his family. Robbie must adjust to not having his mom stay at home all the time, and adjust to his dad being away a majority of the time to support the family. I think many readers will also relate to an elderly relative moving in as well. The author addresses these situations with a great deal of humor that I appreciated. 

So in that regard, I think this book does a great job & I think there is an audience for it. 

I might also recommend this book to readers who enjoy doing magic tricks.  
You could also easily pair this book with a non fiction book on how to do magic too. 

Overall, I thought this was pretty good book, and I think as educators and parents you could do a lot with it. 

Since it was not memorable to me, however, I will have to give this book three stars.

For more, here are some discussion questions

Discussion Questions

Do you like that Dorko talks to the reader? At one point  Dorko suggests that his life be made into a movie. Do you think this story would make a good movie? If your life was a movie, who would play you? Would it be a comedy, drama, or action?

Is magic real?  What is magic? Dorko says that the stage is the most important part of a magical act & that details matter. He also goes onto say that timing is everything. What does this mean? Do you agree or disagree with Dorko?

What is a stereotypical grandma like? What makes Dorko’s grandma different? Why does she call everyone “trixie?”

Dorko’s mom often gets busy and forgets to tell Dorko important things (like how his grandma is staying with them). How do you think his mom should have approached this differently?

Dorko is upset that his parents didn’t have enough to pay for cable & he had to go to the library for movies. What things does your library offer?

When Grandma Melvin visits Dorko’s class, she makes it look like he stole from her. Why does she do this? What would you have done if your grandma did this to you?

Grandma Melvin stopped doing magic due to a tragic event.
Why did this stop  her from doing magic?

Over the course of the book, Dorko’s relationship with his Grandmother changes. How does it change? Cat also has a special relationship with Grandma Melvin.
What does Cat think of her? Are Cat and Grandma Melvin alike? *Bonus* What is   your grandmother like?

Dorko’s is passionate about magic. What are some of your interests or talents?

Dorko got his nickname from a class bully. Do you have any nicknames?  If  you do, how did you get your nickname? 

Books Like This One

What did you think of it?

Until next time,

-Pamela

The Great Trouble: A Mystery of London, the Blue Death, and a Boy Called Eel

The Great Trouble : A Mystery of London, the Blue Death, and a Boy Called Eel 

By: Deborah Hopkinson

Age Range- 10 & up 

Pages- 272 

Published - January 1, 2013

Genre- Historical Fiction 

The Story

Eel is an orphaned mudlark. He works several jobs to help support his younger brother.

A historical picture of Mudlarkers in London 

When he gets a regular job at a brewery, things are starting to look up for Eel. He finally has a place to stay and he has regular food to eat.

One day, just as things look are looking up, Eel is accused of stealing from his boss at the brewery.

 Eel is on the verge of loosing his livelihood and a place to live. His only hope is to find a kind tailor who Eel has been working odd jobs for to vouch that he did not steal from his boss.

As Eel goes to look for the tailor,  Eel comes upon something much more & it is something that will change his life forever. He finds that the tailor is dying of the terrible Blue Death. It is the beginning of an outbreak that will change history & Eel's life.

Without the tailors word, Eel can no longer live at the brewery. So Eel turns a local Dr. for help. The Dr. gives Eel a place to live in exchange for his help is solving and stopping the rapid Blue Death from spreading. It is up to the Dr. & Eel to find out what is causing this epidemic before it harms the people that Eel cares for most.

Book Trailer 

The Review 

I was not expecting much from this book. I thought it would be a flat story line that would not offer much, but I was pleasantly surprised. This book was action packed  had many different layers to the story. The main three layers of the story are:

1. Eel's survival & need to support his brother- Eel struggles to work different jobs to stay alive & to keep from living on the streets.

2. Eel vs. evil street man- I will not give away who this evil enemy is, but it is a big twist in the story

3. Mystery of the epidemic- This layer is the main component that drives the story, but it is a compelling one. What I like best about this, is that it is based off a true story. Dr. Snow was a real person who wrote a book about this epidemic that hit London.


Dr. Snow 

If you do read this book, be sure to read the true facts at the end of the book. It is a great point to spark a discussion.

I know after I read this book, all I could think about were ways we could use it with the STEM & history curriculum, I thought this book was fantastic for that! My education mind started to think of some curriculum ideas that educators could use with this book. Here are some of the links that I found to be useful.

Resources about Dr. Snow from Department of Epidemiology

Background Information for Educators

Lesson Plan

Overall I would have to give this book three stars.



I think this book will be used in the curriculum & its story line makes it easy to do so.  I look forward to including it into my Missouri Mark Twain Nominee discussion.

If you are not an educator, I think this book would be a great story for anyone who enjoys mystery, historical fiction, and plot driven novel.

Discussion Questions 

Why do you think Dr. Snow trusts Eel so much? What are some ways that Eel shows that he responsible?

Throughout the book, Eel overcomes a lot of hardships. What keeps him hopeful & keeps him moving forward?

Why wouldn’t the people believe Mr. Snow’s theory about the pump being the culprit for the spread of the Blue Death?

What is Dr. Snow’s hypothesis and how does he try to go about trying to prove it? Do you use the same method?

There were many villains in this story.  Who posed the biggest threat to Eel?

Was Eel afraid of getting Cholera? How did he avoid or expose himself to the disease?

Why did people think that Cholera was spread in the air? Are there times that people believe things just from what they have heard?

If you lived on Broad street during this epidemic, what would you have done?

Why did the people trust Reverend Whitehead more than Dr. Snow?

Dr. Snow is an exceptional scientist. What makes him a great scientist? Dr. Snow wanted to stop the spread of disease and ease pain. If you could make any scientific discovery, what would it be? What kind of new discoveries and new technologies do you think will exist in the future?

Books Like This One

Have you read this book? What did you think of it?

Until next time,

Pamela