The Genius Files: Mission Unstoppable by Dan Gutman

Meet Coke and Pepsi!  Twins who were chosen to be members of the Young American Geniuses, a special division of the Genius Files.  The only problem is--they didn’t know they were chosen to be members and now someone is out to kill them.  

In the course of several days and several hundred miles, Coke and Pepsi have had to jump off of a cliff wearing wing suits, escape from a burning school, climb their way out of a sand dune pit where they were left to die, and visit the largest ball of twine to save it from an attack.  

The first in a series, Mission Unstoppable, is an action packed book perfect for any reader who loves adventure.  Follow along with Coke and Pepsi as they make their way cross country to save themselves and other members of the Young American Geniuses division.

Wild Life by Cynthia DeFelice

On the day that twelve-year old Erik Carlson passed his Hunter Safety course, his life changed dramatically. Instead of going hunting with his best friend, Erik learned that his parents, who were both in the Army Reserve, were being deployed to Iraq. Erik was sent to stay with his grandparents in North Dakota. Erik had never been to North Dakota and he hadn't seen his grandparents since he was three-years-old. Now he was flying there alone, unhappy, and slightly scared.

When Erik arrives his grandfather, Big Darrell, seems very angry at something and he doesn't treat Erik with any love or warmth. Upstairs in the house, there is a mysterious, locked bedroom that he is forbidden to enter. Things change when Erik finds a lost and injured bird dog that needs his help. The poor dog has been attacked by a porcupine. Erik and a local veterinarian remove the quills and treat the dog. Big Darrell says the dog can only stay one night but Erik can't bear to give her up.

So Erik and Quill, as he has named the dog, decides to run away from the farm to the surrounding prairie. Looking for supplies he enters the closed bedroom, discovering that it belonged to his grandparents' son, who was a soldier killed in action. Erik takes the shotgun he finds there and he and Quill set off. Erik is determined to life off the land but he is not quite prepared for all the dangers and weather he and Quill find.

Wild Life is a very powerful story about a boy and his family caught up in loss, grief and sacrifice for their country. This is a situation faced by many military families today. The author, Cynthia DeFelice, has written a great adventure story of a boy and a dog; but also reminds us of the challenges faced by soldiers and their families.

Around the World in 100 Days by Gary Blackwood

You might be familiar with the famous story Around the World in 80 Days by Jules Verne. The main character, Phileas Fogg, was challenged to travel around the entire world in 80 days or less. Today we could fly around the world in less than two hours on the space shuttle, but in 1873, Fogg had to use railroads, ships and the Suez Canal.

This story begins in 1891, when Harry Fogg, son of the famous adventurer and traveler, also accepts a bet. Harry and his good friend, Johnny Shaugnessey, have built their very own steam-powered automobile called The Flash. Harry's father keeps hoping his son will get serious about his future and stop fooling around with ridiculous ideas like motorcars. But Phileas backs his son when members of his Gentleman's Club make fun of Harry when he insists that automobiles are the future of transportation. Soon Harry and Johnny set off on their own around the world journey, accompanied by two other young adults: Charles, who is supposed to serve as an impartial observer but is really a spoiled brat and the mysterious Elizabeth, who wants to prove herself as a journalist. They are allowed to put The Flash on a ship to cross oceans but otherwise they have to drive the car across all continents. Not only must they deal with the natural obstacles, bandits and other dangers they encounter, but someone is also trying to sabotage their attempt.

Author Gary Blackwood was inspired to write this story by a real event - the Great Auto Race of 1908. After researching and writing a nonfiction book about this famous race, he began to imagine a similar fictional story. Around the World in 100 Days is an exciting historical adventure story, spiced with humor and colorful characters.

Missing on Superstitio Mountain by Elise Broach

Elise Broach is one of our favorite mystery writers. We love Masterpiece and Shakespeare's Secret. When I saw this brand new mystery, I had to read it all in one day!

Superstition Mountain is not only a real place, it is a very famous place. Many people have disappeared here in strange ways much like the Bermuda Triangle. The Lost Dutchman Mine is also here and many explorers have tried to find it over the past one hundred years. They are all hoping to find the valuable gold hidden long ago.

When the Barker brothers - Simon, Henry and Jack - move to Superstition, Arizona, everyone warns them NOT to go exploring the mountain. But it is summer, they are bored, and then their cat runs away so they just have to find her. Instead of their cat, they discover three skulls lined up in a row on the edge of a cliff. Along with their new friend, Delilah, they just can't let this mystery go unsolved so they begin to research. Unfortunately they soon find themselves caught up in even more strange and creepy mysteries from the past!

All of the characters in this book are terrific and I can't wait to see what they discover next, since this book is the first is Elisa Broach's new Superstition Mountain series.

Click here to read the first chapter of Missing on Superstition Mountain by Elise Broach.

Small as an Elephant by Jennifer Richard Jacobson

Jack and his mom had spent the night at their campground in Acadia National Park in Maine. At least that's what Jack thought, but when he crawled out of his tent in the morning he found his mom, their camping gear and their car all gone. At first he tried to be logical. Maybe she found a better campsite and moved nearby. Maybe she went to buy food for breakfast. Maybe . . . Jack didn't know but he tried not to panic. After all, he had lived with his mom and her wild mood swings all his life. She would be back; he knew she would.

But she didn't come back and Jack got hungry and within a couple of days he began to seriously search for her in nearby towns. Eventually he knew he had to get himself home, from Maine to Boston, without attracting the attention of anyone who would call the child welfare authorities and take him away from his mom. With only a small plastic elephant to give him courage, Jack set off.

This is a different kind of survival story. Instead of the wilderness, Jack needs to travel the roads to home, finding food and shelter, without looking like an abandoned child. Sometimes I really wished that Jack would trust some of the adults he meets, but I knew he was too afraid of what might happen. Small as an Elephant is story that makes you care so very much about the main character that you simply can't put it down. Jack is a character you won't forget.

Click here to listen to a portion of Small as an Elephant

or watch this video book trailer.

Wildfire Run

Do you ever wonder what life is like for the son or daughter of the President of the United States? Author Dee Garretson wondered the same thing, so she wrote her first book - Wildfire Run.

Twelve-year-old Luke is the son of the President. Secret service agents follow him everywhere - even school! One of the only places he can just be a kid is at Camp David, the outdoor retreat for Presidents. It is also one of the safest places in the world, with multiple, high-tech security systems.

Luke and his friend Theo are enjoying a fun, robot-building and tree house-climbing kind of weekend when there is a national emergency. An earthquake strikes Missouri and they feel the tremors all the way to Camp David. Luke's dad has to leave for Washington D.C., but he believes Luke will be completely safe at Camp David. No one knows, however, that the earthquake has started a nearby forest fire that will threaten everyone at Camp David.

Luke, Theo and the chef's daughter, Callie, soon find themselves in lots of danger and they are the only ones who can figure out how to escape from the safest place on earth! Dee Garretson's first book is action-packed. I can't wait for her next book - Wolf Storm.

Click here to listen to an audio file from Wildfire Run by Dee Garretson.

We Are Not Eaten by Yaks by C. Alexander London

I love everything about this book! Why you ask?

1. Obnoxious and irritating and slightly lovable main characters - Celia and Oliver Navel, eleven-year-old twins, who would rather watch television ALL DAY than go on adventures. Their parents are real live adventurers! And daredevils like Indiana Jones! The entire family lives at the Explorer's Club in New York City (a real place, by the way) where they are surrounded by other real live explorers who tell great stories of their real live adventures. But what would Celia and Oliver rather do? Watch reality TV.

2. Unfortunately, their mother has gone missing on an exploration. What was she looking for? Only the greatest library of the ancient world - the wonderful, marvelous, incredible Library of Alexandria - where all of mankind's knowledge was gathered in one place. Librarians love the very thought of it. Tragically, it was burned to the ground by the Romans in 30 B.C. But Oliver and Celia's mother thinks maybe it was just . . . misplaced . . . so she sets off to find it. And she falls into a big, evil plot.

3. Oliver and Celia reluctantly - very reluctantly - are forced to set off to rescue their mother. Which means they have to do all sorts of things they hate - like travel to Tibet, climb mountains, and even ride yaks. It's all a tremendous adventure to all sorts of incredible places I would love to explore. I would love to pet a yak - they have wonderfully soft hair that you can spin into yarn. Oliver and Celia would rather watch cable.

4. The author, C. Alexander London, is a librarian! A real, certified librarian, who has the Dewey Decimal System memorized. Or at least he did, before he started working as a journalist, a writer, and a explorer himself. I am trying to solve the mystery of his real name - C. Alexander London is a pseudonym. Hmmm. He very much reminds me of another popular author, Pseudonymous Bosch, who writes The Secret Series . . . I'll keep you informed of any discoveries I make. . .

5. The book trailer. Click here to watch it. Stay tuned to the end and you'll spot the most beautiful corgi puppy. Not that it influenced how much I love this book, even though I happen to own a corgi and everyone in my family owns corgis and . . . oh, just read the book!

P.S. I can't wait for the sequel - We Dine With Cannibals. And, Celia and Oliver - I'm sorry you don't get to stay home and watch TV.

Middleword by J and P Voelkel

Wow - this is the first book in the next, hot new series - the Jaguar Stones. If you loved Percy Jackson or the Kane Chronicles - you will definitely enjoy this book!

First, there is something definitely end-of-the-world spooky going on here. You may have heard about the year 2012, when the old Mayan calendar ends. Supposedly the world will end on that date - not that WE believe that!

Fourteen-year-old Max Murphy is the son of Mayan archaeologists and he is quite angry when they leave him home when they set off on a sudden expedition to Central America. Unexpectedly, he receives a ticket to join them, but when he gets to his uncle's home in Puerto Muerto, he discovers that they are missing in the jungle. And his uncle, who is supposedly in the banana business, seems to be involved with some dangerous characters buying and selling illegal Mayan artifacts.

When he first learns about the Mayan story of the Jaguar Stones, Max dismisses it as just an old legend about the long-dead Mayan gods - but then he finds a real Jaguar stone. Soon he finds himself deep in the jungle with Ix Sak Lol (who goes by the nickname Lola) and they are running for their very lives!

Book two, The End of the World Club, is already out - so now is the time to catch up in this new and very timely trilogy.

Click here to check out the super Jaguar Stones website! Lots of information on the Mayas, the mysterious Mayan calendar, Mayan glyphs, and even the ballgame played by the ancient Mayans.

Storm Runners by Roland Smith

Here's another great adventure story from one of our favorite authors - Roland Smith!

Thirteen-year-old Chase and his father are storm runners. They race around the country trying to get in the path of floods, hurricanes and tornadoes. Chase has been trained well on how to survive just about anything and his "go to" backpack is always with him - full of the supplies he would need to survive on his own. And, he is an expert at changing schools since they travel so much.

Chase's dad owns M. D. Emergency Services, which helps people before and after disasters. But something else is also affecting them both. After the tragic death of Chase's mom and sister in one storm and after Chase watched his dad actually get struck by lightning - something strange has been going on. What are they really running after?

Chase is on his way home from his new school when Hurricane Emily strikes land, causing a flash flood which sweeps his school bus off the road. This story is non-stop action from that point on!

And this is only the beginning. Storm Runners is a new series - book two will be called The Surge.

The White Gates by Bonnie Ramthun

Here's a great book for kids who like snowboarding, adventure and a mystery!

Twelve-year old Torin Sinclair has just moved to Snow Park, Colorado. All of his life he's been pretty much a surfer boy living with his dad and step-mom, but now he's come to live with his mom who is the new town doctor. His first big goal is to learn to snowboard!

But the kids in school aren't too friendly and he begins to hear about the curse that seems to follow whoever is the town doctor. Fortunately he makes a couple of friends - Raine Douglas, whose father owns the snowboard shop, and Drake Wexler, whose father is a famous snowboarder. Raine's family is of Ute Indian heritage and she eventually tells him about the sacred mountain her family seeks to protect and the origins of the mysterious Ute curse.

Is there really a curse? Is someone out to develop the protected mountain land? And what is with the kids who keep threatening Torin on the slopes?

And what are the White Gates? Well - they are a dangerous avalanche run. Plenty of snowboard action ahead!

Nick of Time by Ted Bell

Pirates, time travel, spies, a Nazi submarine, sword fights, sailing ships - Nick of Time is non-stop adventure and action!

Nick McIver is the hero of our adventure and a hero is just what Nick wants to be. The year is 1939, and war with Germany is coming closer. Nick lives with is parents, the lighthouse keepers, on Greybeard Island in the Channel Islands between England and France. Nick is a marvelous sailor and longs for the days of his ancestor Captain Nicolas McIver and his idol Lord Nelson. Things are becoming dangerous for Nick himself as he gets caught up in his father's secret work as a spy against the Nazis.

Things really spin our of control when he discovers a time travel device sent to him from his ancestor Captain McIver, who desperately needs Nick's help in the past. He also meets Captain Blood, a time traveling pirate. Then a Nazi submarine surfaces off the island and Nick finds himself needed in two places as once. Author Ted Bell also introduces us to his adult fiction character Alex Hawke, who is a British spy.

When he was a boy, author Ted Bell loved books like Treasure Island and Kidnapped. His character Nick McIver seems to spring right out of books like these old-fashioned adventures.

This is the first adventure in the Nick McIver series. Nick of Time is followed by The Time Pirates.

Click here to read the first three chapters of Nick of Time.

The BIG 39 Clues Summer Book Club

Get ready for the BIG Maltby summer reading club - The 39 Clues. the 39 Clues books are a terrific mix of adventure, history, biography, geography and mystery. Brother and sister, Dana and Amy, are hunting the hidden 39 clues, left by their Aunt Grace, in order to inherit one million dollars. The books follow Dana and Amy as they pursue the clues. The books are also written by several of our favorite authors.

There are lots of ways to participate this summer.

1. Go to our local Barnes and Noble store beginning May 25th for our monthly book club meeting. Find all the dates and times here. Our reading therapy dog Caesar will also be there to greet you.

2. Join the Scholastic Read for the World Record Challenge. Login in here

3. Play online here.

The 39 Clues books:
Book 1: The Maze of Bones by Rick Riordan
Book 2: One False Note by Gordon Korman
Book 3: The Sword Thief by Peter Lerangis
Book 4: Beyond the Grave by Jude Watson
Book 5: The Black Circle by Patrick Carman
Book 6: In Too Deep by Jude Watson
Book 7: The Viper's Nest by Peter Lerangis
Book 8: The Emperor's Code by Gordon Korman
Book 9: (due out May 25, 2010) by Linda Sue Park
Book 10: (due ou August 31, 2010) by Margaret Peterson Haddix

Watch the Advanced Agent Training video featuring The 39 Clues authors: Rick Riordan, Gordon Korman, Peter Lerangis, Jude Watson, and Patrick Carman

Cryptid Hunters by Roland Smith

Roland Smith is one of my favorite adventure writers. He worked as a zookeeper and wildlife biologist before he became a writer. Animals still are important in most of the books he writes.

Cryptid Hunters is about the search for animals that are strange or mysterious. Some cryptids, like the Coelacanth, were thought to be extinct until they were discovered again. Other cryptids are really unbelievable - like Bigfoot or the Loch Ness Monster.

In this book thirteen-year-old twins Grace and Marty have come to live with their Uncle Wolfe, a cryptid hunter. Along with his research team, they all go in search of a living dinosaur called the Mokele-mbembe and find lots of mystery and thrilling adventure along the way.

The sequel to Cryptid Hunters has just been released. It is called Tentacles. This time the group is in search of a giant squid! If you would like to watch a short video interview with Roland Smith, just click the title link above.

Airman

Flying machines! Sword fighting! Villains! Poison! Diamonds! Princesses! Castles! Prisons! Airman by Eoin Colfer has all this and more.

Eoin (pronounced Owen) Colfer is the author of the Artemis Fowl books. This book is equally exciting and full of action. Written in the style of Jules Verne, this steampunk science fiction story is perfect for fans of 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, The Count of Monte Cristo, or The Princess Bride.

Conor Broekhart is the hero of this story. His life has been full of legendary adventures from being born in a balloon during a terrorist attack to saving the princess from a burning tower. He dreams of becoming a brilliant scientist and a daring aeronaut. Suddenly his good fortune disappears when he is imprisoned by the evil Marshall Bonvilain. Conor rises to the challenge, building an incredible flying machine in hopes of escape.

To read the first chapter for free online, click on the title Airman. I guarantee that this is a page turner you won't want to put down!

To watch a video book trailer click on this link, click here

Jake Ransom and the Skull King's Shadow

Twelve-year-old Jake Ransom's parents were archaeologists who disappeared on an expedition to find a new Mayan temple. Jake and his older sister Kady were left in the care of their kindly guardians, but they missed their parents terribly. The last gift their parents sent home to them were two halves of a gold coin, each with a mysterious symbol on it. Jake and Kady wore them every day, including the day they traveled to the British Museum for the grand opening of a collection of Mayan items collected by their parents. That evening there was an attack on the museum that threw Jake and Kady into danger and adventure beyond their imagining.

Jake Ransom and the Skull King's Shadow is the first book in an exciting new series. Although this book had a good satisfying ending, it also left me wondering where Jake would find adventure next and how Jake would continue to put the clues together about his parents' disappearance. If you are a fan of movies like The Mummy or Indiana Jones - this is the book for you!

The author, James Rollins, has written several adventure thrillers for adults. Just like his adult books, this one involves scientific curiosities and ancient civilizations. If you click on the title above, you can visit the author's website and watch short video clips about how he created the character of Jake Ransom, as well as some clues about Jake's next adventure.

The White Giraffe

After the sudden death of her parents, eleven-year-old Martine Allen finds herself on an airplane to South Africa, where her Grandmother runs a wildlife reserve called Sawubona. Amost immediately she finds herself involved in several mysteries. Why is her Grandmother so cold toward her? Why didn't her mother tell her about growing up at Sawubona? Why does her Grandmother want to keep Martine from Grace, a local sangoma or traditional healer? Who is responsible for the threatening the animals? Does the rare white giraffe really exist? And is she the girl of the prophecy - the girl with the gift that was predicted so long ago?

The world of Sawubona is beautiful and amazing. Martine soons falls in love with the land, the people, and most of all - the animals. As she discovers clues to the many mysteries around her, events begin to turn dangerous. Martine also discovers the gift that lies within her.

The author of The White Giraffe, Lauren St. John, also grew up on a wildlife reserve in Africa. Her books are so full of rich details that you will think you are actually in Africa! If you click on the title above, you can listen to an audio interview with the author and to excerpts from this book and its sequels Dolphin Song and The Last Leopard.

Operation Redwood

Julian Carter Li is having a terrible time. His mother had to leave for a photographic work assignment in China. Since his father had died several years ago, Julian had to stay with his aunt and uncle until school ended for the year. Although he liked his younger cousin, his aunt and uncle were very strict with him and he began to understand that he was not welcome in their home. His suspicions proved true when he discovered their plans to send him to math camp for a month, followed by Chinese language camp.

Julian also discovered that his uncle Sibley was the CEO of an investment company that planned to cut down old growth redwood trees in northern California. Old growth trees can be thousands of years old. Julian becomes an email buddy with Robin, a girl who lives next to the threatened redwood forest. With the help of his best friend Danny Lopez, Julian forges a plan to escape from math camp to spend a month with Robin and her family in the redwoods. Julian, Danny, and Robin soon find themselves defending the redwoods from destruction and their plan takes a dangerous turn.

I really enjoyed this book because I used to live and work in California near the redwoods. There was even a redwood tree in the courtyard outside my school library! Redwood trees are so old and so tall, that other bushes and trees live high in their leaves. Like Julian, I can't understand why someone would cut down a tree that is thousands of years old. If you want to learn more about the redwoods, click on the book title to visit the website of the author S. Terrell French.

The oldest and tallest redwood trees actually haves names! Hyperion is the tallest known redwood. To look at amazing pictures of Hyperion and other champion redwood, follow this link;
http://www.mdvaden.com/grove_of_titans.shtml

Operation Redwood would be a great book to read in a tree house!

Jolted: Newton Starker's Rules for Survival

The Jeremy Potts Academy for Higher Learning and Survival is located in Moosejaw, Canada. The students wear traditional Scottish kilts and take some really unusual and dangerous classes. Newton Goddard Starker believes that this is the perfect school for him. After all, for hundreds of years every member of his mother's family has been killed by lightening.

Newton is raised in a very protective environment (and one that does not attract lightening) so it is natural that he finds himself something of an outsider. Following his mother's death (zapped, of course), Newton is determined to succeed and survive at his new school. Jeremy sets out to overcome his fears and deal with his sadness. Along the way he makes some real friends and acquires an adorable and strangely intelligent, truffle-hunting pig named Josephine.

Hang on! This is a fast-paced and funny ride with lots of unusual characters. I really hope the author, Arthur Slade, brings Newton back for Year Two.


Click on the title link to visit the author's website and listen to the Jolted podcast.
Click here to view the book trailer video.

Go Big or Go Home

Will Hobbs is certainly one of our favorite authors of good outdoor adventure books. Go Big or Go Home is his newest book and it will appeal to fans of extreme sports as well. Cousins Brady and Quinn are enjoying another summer filled with mountain biking, caving and fishing when something new comes crashing in. And it really crashes in!

Brady had crawled out his bedroom window to watch the Perseid meteor shower when an ear-shattering explosion filled the night and a flaming meteor crashed into his house and right through his bed. Underneath the wreckage Brady found the culprit - a fist-sized meteorite.

Possession of this meteorite sends Brady and Quinn off on more adventures, especially as something seriously dangerous begins to overtake their lives. Eventually the boys discover that the meteorite has brought a threat to Earth.

Go Big or Go Home is a fast, exciting read. I know you will enjoy it.

Click on the title link to read an interview with the author, Will Hobbs, and learn where he got his ideas for this book.