The Fort

        The Fort

By Gordon Korman

The story of a middle-school "band of brothers" -- five friends who need to stick together after they set up a hideout in an abandoned bomb shelter and discover that the only way to be true friends is to reveal their secrets and help each other out.

The morning after Hurricane Leo rips through the town of Canaan, residents awaken to widespread destruction -- power outages, downed branches, uprooted trees, broken windows and damaged roofs. Four eighth-grade friends -- Evan, Jason, Mitchell, and CJ -- meet to explore the devastation. The tight-knit group is dismayed to find that Evan has brought along a stray -- Ricky, who is new to their town and school, and doesn’t have any friends yet.

Ricky is the one to find the strange trap door that’s appeared in the middle of the woods -- the door to an old bomb shelter, unearthed by the hurricane. Inside, the boys find a completely intact underground lair, complete with electricity, food, and entertainment (in the form of videocassettes). The boys vow to keep the place’s existence to themselves.

Things soon get tense. Some bad locals keep snooping around. And what started out as a fun place to escape soon becomes a serious refuge for one of the kids who is trying to avoid an abusive home situation. In order to save the shelter, the friends must keep its secret... and in order to save themselves, they’re going to have to share their individual secrets, and build the safest place they can.

After Davis got done with his virtual author visit he wanted me to preorder Gordon Korman's newest book The Fort. It came to our house this summer and we were so excited to get started on it. If you are looking for a great author for your kids to get hooked on Korman is a solid choice. Davis and I still read books together (it is the only time I get to be one on one with him). Gordon Korman likes to write from his characters' perspectives. Our bookmark usually has each character and notes about them. That way when we start the next chapter we can remember who the character is; this is especially helpful at the beginning of the book. 

If you are interested in more Gordon Korman books here is his website: https://gordonkorman.com/

Linked

 

   Linked   

By Gordon Korman

In the 2021-2022 our 4th and 5th graders did a virtual author visit with Gordon Korman. My son, Davis, came home with this book and could not wait to read it. Davis and I have read lots of books about World War II so he has a pretty good background on the Holocaust. This book ties the past with present day, making it easy for any kids to relate to. Gordon Korman once again did a fantastic job bringing his characters to life in this mystery. GREAT read!

Link, Michael, and Dana live in a quiet town. But it's woken up very quickly when someone sneaks into school and vandalizes it with a swastika. Nobody can believe it. How could such a symbol of hate end up in the middle of their school? Who would do such a thing?

Because Michael was the first person to see it, he's the first suspect. Because Link is one of the most popular guys in school, everyone's looking to him to figure it out. And because Dana's the only Jewish girl in the whole town, everyone's treating her more like an outsider than ever.

The mystery deepens as more swastikas begin to appear. Some students decide to fight back and start a project to bring people together instead of dividing them further. The closer Link, Michael, and Dana get to the truth, the more there is to face-not just the crimes of the present, but the crimes of the past. 

Hello From Renn Lake

        

 Hello From Renn Lake

By Michele Weber Hurwitz

Annalise Oliver, was abandoned as a baby in a small Wisconsin town. She has always had a special, almost mystical connection to Renn Lake. Annalise's happiest times are working alongside her adoptive parents at the cabins along the lake their family has owned and run for generations. But the summer Annalise turns 12, a small patch of algae quickly becomes a harmful bloom and Renn Lake is closed. Even worse, Annalise's connection with Renn is gone. Frustrated with the authorities' inaction, she teams up with her friends and vows to find a way to save her beloved lake. Hello From Renn Lake is a heartfelt story about community, activism, and fighting for the things you love.

Orange for the Sunsets

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 Orange for the Sunsets

By Tina Athaide

     Asha and her best friend, Yesofu, never cared about the differences between them: Indian Girl, African Boy. The Ugandan President Idi Amin announces that all Indians have 90 days to leave the country. Now their differences are the only things others can see. Soldiers start to line the streets and slowly the friends find that nothing seems sure. Will Asha and her family leave Uganda? Will Asha and Yesofu stay best friends? 

     I picked this book because it was a children's choice award book. I was excited that it was historical fiction but even more excited that it was about a time in history I wasn't familiar with. This book is easy for kids to relate to as we navigate through a time where our differences are brought to the surface.