***GUEST POST BY SIXTH GRADE DARLA***

Darla read this story as a part of her social studies/literature class. She wrote this review after reading only a part of the book. She later finished it and loved it.

In the story, Mara, Daughter of the Nile, there are quite a few main characters – Mara, Sheftu, Nekonkh, the new master, and maybe Zasha. Mara is the main character. She was a slave, but was just bought to be a spy for Pharaoh Hatshepsut. She is boarding a ship called the Silver Beetle, and has just met Sheftu and Nekonkh. Mara has her own personality and really doesn’t seem to be like anyone else.

If anything, I think she and Sheftu both have adventure in their veins. Nekonkh is the captain of the ship and does not like Hatshepsut at all. He is a bit suspicious about Sheftu, and maybe a little about Mara. Nekonkh adds suspicion to the book and a more interesting ride to Thebes, but we don’t know what yet. Sheftu is a man on the ride to Thebes on the Silver beetle. He seems to be hiding something, but we don’t know what. Nekonkh and Sheftu are both sailor-type people and that is how they are alike.

Zasha is Mara’s old master. He is terribly mean and seems to be a bit afraid of her. Zasha helps the fact that Mara was a slave and how terrible that masters can be. Zasha and the new owner are alike because they are both slave owners of Mara. The new master is very mysterious. He will probably be a very confusing character. In my opinion, he doesn’t seem very nice. I think between him and Sheftu, they will add much confusion to the book. Mara has her own personality and really doesn’t seem like anyone else. She and Sheftu have adventure in their veins.

There is a lot of action that has happened in the story. One of the main events so far is that Mara got a new owner and that she met Sheftu on the boat. The problem so far is that she is working for two “masters” at the same time, and that one master has her against Hatshepsut and for Thutmose, and the other is against Thutmose and for Hatshepsut.

In my opinion, the story is very exciting. I really like the character Mara, she is clever and adventurous, and like many of the characters in the books I have read. I think Sheftu is a very confusing character, and is a bit challenging to read about. I think the new master is very reserved and secret, with many secrets and opinions- just like a spy would be.

I have a few predictions. First of all I think Mara will come into huge trouble with the double masters because they will probably find out about each other and will be very angry, although I also think that Thutmose will end up becoming king, after some fatal death of Hatshepsut. I think that because Hatshepsut is older and is spending money like crazy, and that is a reason not to like her, where Thutmose hasn’t done any thing to get on anyone’s bad side. The only reason not to like him is if you only like Hatshepsut.

This review is a part of the Carnival of Kids Book Reviews.

***GUEST POST BY 10-YEAR-OLD CRAIG***

I never thought a trip to the Sear’s Tower would be so hard.

One day we went to the Sear’s Tower in Chicago. We could look out binoculars and Darla and I could not figure out who would go first and then we started to argue.

So Mom set us on a time out until we figured out who would go first and we figured out that whoever went first paid the person who went second a quarter. I went second, so I earned a quarter.

I never thought going to the top of the Sear’s Tower would be such a hassle, but it was fun too.

Mom’s note: Craig wrote this as an assignment in school. I remember this day vividly because I was mortified when my kids started arguing in such a public place. We travel a lot, and normally they’re very well-behaved. After I put them in a time-out, I walked away to look at the exhibit about the historic Chicago fire. I never knew how they worked it out, they just did. Two years later, I find out the whole story.

Our Chicago Series from 2007:
Museum of Science and Industry
Medieval Times Dinner and Tournament
Children’s Museum
Our fancy schmancy room from Hotwire
Millenium Park
Streets and buildings

***SIXTH-GRADE GUEST REVIEW BY DARLA***

This Place Has No Atmosphere
By Paula Danziger

The book “This Place Has No Atmosphere” is about a girl from the year 2057, where people live in malls and whose teachers are robots. But since her parents are amazing doctors and dentists, they got the opportunity of moving to the moon for five years to make it livable, and also get practice when they humanize Mars. Of course all of this is happening when Aurora starts high School, is in the most popular group, and is going out with the cutest boy in her grade. Right now she is in C.A.M.P., learning about the moon. Aurora doesn’t want to go, but her parents and younger sister, Starr, think that it’s a great opportunity.

I think this is a very interesting book, it is cool to imagine what it will be like in fifty years, and this is absolutely amazing. It is a little like when I moved from town to town, because I missed my friends a lot. I had gone to that school for four years, but eventually ZI got over it and made new friends. I think Aurora is a very interesting person, and her takes on things are different, since I guess it is future and she is older than me, but I still think she would be a cool person to know. Then her best friend, Juna, has half pink, half purple hair, with silver streaks and light bulbs that blink. Awesome!

I think once Aurora gets past the freeze dried hamburgers, she will start to enjoy living on the moon, I mean, what an experience! She will find a high-tech way to talk to her friends, and learn to love it, and then when five years is up, they will maybe agree to live there forever.

One question I have, is what do they drive? They said they got in the car, and I know it runs on little pellet thinks, but what does it look like? Second, Is there time travel? Just wondering, but with all that high-tech stuff, you’d think there would be, but they never mention it.

***GUEST POST BY 4TH GRADE CRAIG***

In September, when Darla reviewed the excellent book, The Secret of Wellington’s Map, the PR folks for Planet of the Dogs contacted us and asked if Craig would be interested in reviewing it, since he’s the perfect age for the series. This is Craig’s first book review. I hope you’ll enjoy reading it, as much as I enjoyed the fact he finally got his nose in a book.

Planet of the Dogs, by Robert McCarty is a great book. This book is about two people from planet Earth helping the dogs on Planet of the Dogs to harvest their food. Then the dogs on Planet of the Dogs decide to help make peace on planet Earth when the Stone City warriors attacked Green Meadow on Earth.

My favorite character was a man named BIK (pronounced B-I-K.) I liked him because he was very active and caring for his friends and family.

My favorite part was at the end when they were in the woods and then the dogs started barking and then troops started chopping down trees and BIK told BIC — another captain — that he was in charge. Then BIK ran out to his children and he saw a crash site over a hill into water. BIK knew they could not swim, so he jumped down and saw two vicious dogs. He thought they killed Nikki and Nik, then he took a sword out of his picket and heard a deep voice say they did not kill your children they saved your children. He turned around and saw troops armed and then he booked across the river.

His children were there and they said, “We will give them back if you declare peace.” BIK reached in his pocket and took out a horn and blew it and then he said, “I declare peace.”

People my age who dogs would love this book. I recommend it!

Read about how Barking Planet supports therapy dog programs in Sheboygan, Wisconsin.

What does passing the torch mean to you? Is it teaching? Passing traditions? Or good news about youth? Join us each week for Pass the Torch Tuesday.Former PTT posts.

My sixth-grade daughter is periodically asked by PR professionals to review books for children and teens. I can personally attest to the fact her nose was glued to this one! I hope you enjoy Darla’s review.

The Secret of Wellington’s Map is an outstanding book, one of my new favorites actually.

If you were looking at your friend, covered in red splotches, struggling to breathe surrounded by furry animals with wide dog-like noses and long tails, what would you do?

The Secret of Wellington’s Map is an exciting mystery of two teenage girls named Jamie and Nicole who find a magical map. With one touch, they can walk into any time, anywhere, as long as they have a picture in their minds.

When their friend Charlie — an antique-pawn shop owner — is kidnapped, they leave on a mission to find their lost friend. They end up enjoying an amazing journey testing their friendship, revealing family secrets of the past, and having an experience like no other.

I love the mystery in the story, with the magical map. It really makes you think as you read it. The “time-keeper” part was confusing at the beginning, as were the strange names, but when as you go deeper into the story, it all comes together.

You want to be Jamie, bouncing around time in places you can only imagine in this book. It is exhilarating when she discovers the map, and scary every time Nicole almost dies. You have to guess friends and enemies, so almost every one in the book is what I would call a “frienemy,” including the cat.

With so many amazing things going on in the story, in my everyday real life, I couldn’t stop thinking about everything that was happening to these two (almost) normal teenage girls. I asked myself, if I were Jamie, would I have enough courage and curiosity to keep jumping through an old piece of paper to another time, and not be sure if I would still be able to get out?

If you’re like me, when your parents physically take away the book so I will talk to them, you’ll still be sitting there (or hiding from your book-stealing parents,) wondering what will happen next, and wondering what you would feel and do if you were Jamie.

This is an awesome story that I would definitely recommend if you want some adventure. Mollie Kehl Penrod was very successful at writing a great book.

Other torch-passers:
A Man Named Ted

What does passing the torch mean to you? Is it teaching? Passing traditions? Doing the right thing? Or good news about youth?

Join us each week for Pass the Torch Tuesday.

Former PTT posts.