February's Pick

This month we will be reading The Lemonade Crime chosen by Ava. This is a follow up book to The Lemonade War  which the girls really liked last month. 

Here is a brief description from Amazon.com:

Just as The Lemonade War, which sold more than 260,000 copies, put business into the
hands of Evan and his younger sister, Jessie, this equally exciting follow-up puts the
law into their hands. Using the rules of our legal system as a guide, they turn the playground
into a courtroom and put Scott Spencer, alleged thief, on trial, with fourthgraders
serving as judge and jury.

Release date: April 3, 2012 | Age Level: 9 and up | Grade Level: 4 and up | Series: The Lemonade War Series (Book 2)

The Lemonade War Book Review

This month we read The Lemonade War written by Jacqueline Davies.

Jordyn was really glad she picked this book. She had never heard about this book before she stumbled upon it on the library shelves at our last meeting. 

The book is about a brother and sister named Evan and Jesse. They got along really well. Evan is going into fourth grade. Jesse is supposed to be going into third grade but skipped a grade and is now going into fourth grade too. Evan is disappointed that Jesse is going to be in his class.  Jesse wonders what's wrong... why is Evan being so mean to her all of a sudden? And now Evan isn't interested in doing a lemonade stand with her anymore either.

The trouble started when Evan had a lemonade stand with Scott Spencer and didn't include Jesse. The boys were doing really well and then they realized that the customers stopped coming. When they went around the corner they saw Jesse having a lemonade stand with a fourth grade girl named Meghan. He told Jesse that by the end of the week he would have enough money to buy an iPod. Still upset that Evan wasn't playing with her Jesse said she would have one hundred dollars by the end of the week too. That stared the Lemonade War. 

The rest of the book tells us about their crazy competition.

What is your favorite part?

Ava:  My favorite part is when Jesse tried to sabotage Evan's lemonade by adding a few surprises to it...

Jordyn: I don't really have a favorite part, I liked the whole book.

Cooper: I liked when the girls were doing their best to sell their lemonade by giving away free stuff. It didn't worked out the way they planned and the boys sold more.

Grace: I liked the part when the Lemonade War got started. It sounds like an friendly competition but it becomes more than that. 

Who do you think will like this book?

We think that both boys and girls would like this. It's the perfect age for us because we are in fourth grade. 

January's Book Choice

Next month we will be discussing The Lemonade War  as chosen by Jordyn.

Here is a brief description:

 

For a full hour, he poured lemonade. The world is a thirsty place, he thought as he nearly emptied his fourth pitcher of the day. And I am the Lemonade King.

 

Fourth-grader Evan Treski is people-smart. He’s good at talking with people, even grownups. His younger sister, Jessie, on the other hand, is math-smart, but not especially good with people. So when the siblings’ lemonade stand war begins, there really is no telling who will win—or even if their fight will ever end. Brimming with savvy marketing tips for making money at any business, definitions of business terms, charts, diagrams, and even math problems, this fresh, funny, emotionally charged novel subtly explores how arguments can escalate beyond anyone’s intent.

Age Level: 9 and up | Grade Level: 3 and up | Series: The Lemonade War Series

Turtle in Paradise

The story takes place in Key West in 1935. All of the girls in our group have been to Florida but only Cooper has been to Key West.  She told us about the amazing bridge that is super long and super tall bridge that takes you there.
Each girl took a turn giving us one sentence to describe what the story was about... 
We thought it would be scary to move from away from our moms.  We would miss them very much just like Turtle missed her mom. 

The story is about a 11 year old girl named Turtle that moves from New Jersey to the Florida Keys. Turtle's mom would love to get a big house and live together but because they are poor Turtle goes to live with here aunt. She is creative and finds ways to entertain herself in the new place.  This includes hanging out with her 3 boy cousins and their 2 friends.  She discovers things about here family she never knew and surprises herself with her how much she fits in and loves her new life.

What are your favorite parts of the story?

Cooper: I like when they were stranded on the island discussing what they would do with the treasure they found... one of them was going to by ice cream and lots of it.

Ava: On the island they really wanted to give up looking for lost treasure but they didn't.

Jordyn: When a hurricane  blew onto the island I didn't want to put the book down. It was so interesting. I couldn't wait to find out what came next.

Grace: Turtle discovers she has a family member she didn't know about it and then made a special connection with them.  The connection had to do with what they thought about Shirley Temple. 

This is a chapter book and was very easy to read. 

We thought this book could be read by boys and girls. The main character is a girl but there are boys in the book and they go on adventures together.  After talking about it a bit though we think the boys we know in the 4th grade would probably like to read other books more. 

Our Next Book

Next book club we will be talking about Turtle in Paradise picked out by Copper.

Here is desciption of the book from Amazon:

Life isn't like the movies and 11-year-old Turtle is no Shirley Temple. She's smart and tough and has seen enough of the world not to expect a Hollywood ending. After all, it's 1935 and money and sometimes even dreams are scarce. So when Turtle's mother gets a job housekeeping for a lady who doesn't like kids, Turtle says goodbye and heads off to Florida to live with relatives. Florida's like nothing Turtle's ever seen before though. It's full of rag tag boy cousins, family secrets to unravel . . . and even a little bit of fun. Before she knows what's happened, Turtle finds herself coming out of her shell and as she does, her world opens up in the most unexpected ways. Inspired by family stories, three-time Newbery Honor winner Jennifer L. Holm blends family lore with America's past, in this charming, gem of a novel rich in history, humor, and the unique flavors of Key West. 

Read it with us and tell us what you think.

Reading rascals Review is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com.

Tuesdays at the Castle by Jessica Day George

Today we are talking about Tuesdays at the Castle by Jessica Day George.

The story is about a young girl named Celie you has to save her castle. The castle is special, it is magical and has feelings and it's own personality. The three siblings that live in a castle, Celie, Rolf and Lilah, have to save the castle after their parents go missing. Their parents get sabotaged and a prince tries to take over. The kids will do anything they can to save the castle.  

Ava: My favorite part was when the kids played pranks on the grown ups in the council for betraying them and their parents.
Cooper: My favorite part was when the Celie discovered the the secret room with the spy glasses. The castle created it and only the kids knew it was there. 
Grace: I also loved when they pulled pranks on the council especially when manure was involved.  I thought that was really funny. 

It was a chapter book. It is a fantasy book because it includes a castle that is alive and has feelings. It is made up story with magic in it too. The main character is a girl but we think a boy would enjoy it because it has evil grown-ups, sabotage, a young prince who becomes king.

Ava

Grace

Cooper

To read more about this book and the author click here.

Reading rascals Review is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com.

Ruby Lu Empress of Everything by: Lenor Look

What was the book about?

A girl named Ruby Lu and her cousin flying ducks and their adventures together.

Who is/are the main characters? Tell us something about them.

Ruby Lu is in second grade. She is the main character. Other characters are Flying Duck, she is deaf. She is Ruby's cousin and moved in with Ruby from china.

What sort of book was it? Was it a picture book, a chapter book, a fantasy book, a nonfiction book for sport fans?

It was a chapter book. This book is a series of stories of the fun and not so fun things the girls do together.
If there are illustrations, how did they help tell the story?

Yes, the pictures help to understand the story a little better than the words.

Did you like the book? Why or why not? What was good about it?

Ava

Grace

Cooper

Did any parts make you laugh? Which ones?

Yes, this is a funny book.

What sort of people would like this book?

Even though the main character was a second grader and we are in fourth grade we enjoyed the book. Grace says that it mainly is a book for girls but Ava says both boys and girls may like it.

It is a short book and easy to read. It took us 3-5 days to read it.