Alone By Megan E. Freeman

Alone

By Megan E. Freeman

I picked this book because it is an Iowa Children's Choice Award book. It is a novel in verse book so the 416 pages go by quickly. 

When twelve-year-old Maddie hatches a scheme for a secret sleepover with her two best friends, she ends up waking up to a nightmare. She’s alone—left behind in a town that has been mysteriously evacuated and abandoned.

With no one to rely on, no power, and no working phone lines or internet access, Maddie slowly learns to survive on her own. Her only companions are a Rottweiler named George and all the books she can read. After a rough start, Maddie learns to trust her own ingenuity and invents clever ways to survive in a place that has been deserted and forgotten.

As months pass, she escapes natural disasters, looters, and wild animals. But Maddie’s most formidable enemy is the crushing loneliness she faces every day. Can Maddie’s stubborn will to survive carry her through the most frightening experience of her life?

 

Two Degrees by Alan Gratz

Two Degrees

By Alan Gratz

    Davis and I are reading this book together right now. WOW! It is a great read!

Fire. Ice. Flood.

Three climate disasters.

Four kids fighting for their lives.

Akira is riding her horse in the California woods when a wildfire sparks--and grows scarily fast. How can she make it to safety when there are flames everywhere?

Owen and his best friend, George, are used to seeing polar bears on the snowy Canadian tundra. But when one bear gets way too close for comfort, do the boys have any chance of surviving?

Natalie hunkers down at home as a massive hurricane barrels toward Miami. When the floodwaters crash into her house, Natalie is dragged out into the storm--with nowhere to hide.

Akira, Owen, George, and Natalie are all swept up in the devastating effects of climate change. They are also connected in ways that will shock them--and could alter their destinies forever.

(Source: Publisher)

 

The End of the Wild by Nicole Helget

 The End of the Wild

By Nicole Helget

It's been a while since I have read a book without one of my kids at my side. We got this book at the book fair this fall and it turned into a quick read for me. One of the things that interested me the most about this book was that her book was inspired by an effort to protect a prairie in southern Minnesota... that is so close to us!

Eleven-year-old Fern doesn't have the easiest life. Her stepfather is without a job and Fern is responsible for making dinner and taking care of her two younger brothers. In addition to that there is a fracking company that promises jobs at the cost of losing her special grove. Can Fern save the forest?

Making Bombs for Hitler

 Making Bombs for Hitler 

By Marsha Forchuk Skrypuch

This book had just enough new details about WWII to keep Davis and I wanting to read more. It tells about a lesser known part of WWII.

Lida thought she was safe. She was not Jewish. But, nobody can escape the horrors of World War II. Lida's parents are ripped away from her and sister Larissa is separated. Then, Lida is taken to a brutal work camp, where she and other Ukrainian children are forced into backbreaking labor. Starving and scared for her life Lida forms a bond with her fellow prisoners. That's when Lida and her friends are assigned to make bombs for the German army. Help the enemy? Lida cannot stand this thought and decides to sabotage the bombs. Will she get caught? Will she ever see her sister again? 

Great read! (And there are more written by Marsha!)

Saving Zasha

 Saving Zasha

By Randi Barrow

This book was a great read for Davis and I. We both are interested in WWII and LOVE dogs! Bonus to this book is there is a second one... Finding Zasha. 

After WWII Russia is left with almost no dogs. Thirteen year old Mikhail finds a dying man and his German Shepherd, Zasha. After Germany attacked Russia it is dangerous and some would call you a traitor to own a German dog. Mikhail wants to keep this beautiful dog alive, but a pesky girl Katia is determined to find this dog she is sure Mikhail is hiding. In addition, a new neighbor, Dimitri is breeding a new Russian dog and he too is suspicious of Zasha's existence. As if this is not enough to handle, Mikhail and his family have to be careful of dangerous dog thieves. 

This book gives another perspective on life after war and how a young boy and his family find courage, hope and forgiveness when they least expect it.