I haven’t posted in forever because I’ve been reading a grown-up book for my new book club. We just read Empire Falls by Richard Russo. It is an excellent novel about a small town in Maine and the so-called small town life happening there.

I’ve been enjoying some shorter juvenile fiction books since then. I loved The Misfits by James Howe. A group of friends, all considered misfits, form a new political party at their school to represent all those who aren’t well represented. What a great cast of characters!

Eoin Colfer’s new book, The Legend of Spud Murphy is about some boys whose parents force them to spend a couple of hours a day at the library over the summer. Oh, horror of horrors! The boys hate the idea of doing something educational, but they are even more repelled by the idea of having to spend time with the librarian, Spud Murphy. Does the evil librarian really shoot spuds at her patrons? What does she do with all those rubber stamps? Will the boys really have to sit on the one tiny rug in the children’s area while at the library? How will they go to the bathroom if they can’t move off the rug? Librarians will love this! Teachers will love this! Kids and parents will love this too. The book has funny illustrations and is perfect for reluctant readers.