"Rough Magic--Riding the World's Loneliest Horse Race" by Lara Prior Palmer

Rough Magic by Lara Prior-Palmer is a true story.  Lara, at the age of 19, decides on a whim to enter the longest and toughest horse race there is with no formal training!  How do you think she does?  This is a pretty good book!  The best part is when she does the race.
(Gerard's review, 4 stars)

Teaser from page 22:  It didn't surprise me that no one was taking my race attempt seriously.  I was that scatterbrain who lost Oyster cards on the Underground and failed driving tests.

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"RULES" by Cynthia Lord

RULES by Cynthia Lord is about Catherine, a girl who has a younger brother who is autistic. Sometimes he embarrasses her and she feels stuck babysitting him all the time. She also feels as though her parents do things with him and ignore her. Her best friend moved to California to be with her dad for the summer, so she is very excited about a girl her age moving into the house next door. While accompanying her mom and brother to his occupational therapy, Catherine made a friend who also came for therapy. Jason was her age in a wheelchair and could hear, but could not speak.

This book is geared to kids/young teens to help them understand people with disabilities. It is very short and goes quick. I liked the guinea pigs and my favorite part was when Catherine pushed Jason fast round the parking lot so he could get a sense of what running feels like. I thought it had a pretty good message about not worrying so much what other people think. (Karen’s review, 3 stars)

Teaser from page 73: Jason laughs, a sharp bark like a Canada goose. His mother looks up from her magazine as I scan the room and see everyone watching us.


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"A Boy and His Dog at the End of the World" by C. A. Fletcher Was Disappointing

In A Boy and His Dog at the End of the World by C. A. Fletcher, not many people are left in the world.  Griz is one of them and his two dogs.  One day a stranger comes upon Griz and his family and after spending the night, Griz wakes up to find one of his dogs is gone.  Griz will stop at nothing to get his dog back!  I thought this book was going to be good, but it was not!  There was very little interaction between Griz and his dog.  There are long parts where the author just goes on and on and nothing happens.
(Gerard's review, 2.5 stars)

Teaser from page 6:  And why am I talking to a dead person?  We'll get back to that.  But first we should get on with the story.

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"The NoWhere Child" by Christian White - (a Child Abducted)

The Nowhere Child by Christian White is about a child abduction that is never solved until the brother finally tracks down his missing sister who is all grown up and lives in Australia!  Stuart was 9, his younger sister, Sammy only two when she disappeared.  Kim Leamy grew up in Australia with her mother who died of cancer, her step-dad, Dean and her younger sister, Amy.   Kim is a photographer professor but one day finds out her life is a big lie and she's really Sammy Went who went missing from her home in Kentucky!  Kim decides to go to Manson, Kentucky, her supposed hometown, to see if she can find answers.  She can't believe her mom was a kidnapper!

This was pretty good mystery, but it kept jumping from past to present just about every chapter which I found annoying.  I liked Kim and felt bad for her.  The cult stuff in this book creeped me out. 
(Karen's review, 3 stars)

Teaser from page 13:  Were Jack and Molly Went still waiting for answers?  Did every phone call or knock at the door fill them with hope or dread or some bitter mixture of both?  Did they see Sammy's face in every woman they passed on the street, or had they found a way to move on?

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Loved "Miracle Creek" by Angie Kim

In Miracle Creek by Angie Kim, an oxygen chamber explodes, killing two people.  Someone or something is to blame, but who?  If you like courtroom drama, this book has that, but not all the action takes place there.  I really enjoyed how the author brings out all the characters very well.  I also liked the interaction among the characters.  This is more of a talking action book than physical; however, in this case I was okay with that because the writing was so good!  I was surprised how it all played out. (Gerard's review, 5++ stars) 

Teaser from page 30:  Abe's eyes squinted a bit, then widened, as if he was unsure whether he should be apologetic or excited about what was to come.  "Tell us, in your words, what happened that day."

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