Book Bites

Hi! It's Miss Jo. I've just finished three books that I thought you might like to check out. Here's a little bit about each one:

• The first one is The Hand You're Dealt by Paul Volponi. It's amazing what you can do if you put your mind to it. After Huck's father dies, his world starts to come apart. His best friend isn't there for him, the girl he likes won't talk to him, and his mother is working extra shifts to make ends meet. The only thing that makes sense is poker -- Texas Hold 'Em, the game his father taught him to play. This book deals with grief, family, school, and poker -- all mixed together, and keeps you hooked until the very last page.
  
  
  
  
• The second book is Palace of Mirrors by Margaret Peterson Haddix. This book is about a young girl who, thought to be a princess, was raised in hiding to be kept out of harm's way. Was she really a princess? Or just a young woman taken from an orphanage and trained as a princess? Pick the book up and follow the twists and turns to find out! This book was very entertaining and I never expected the ending to turn out the way it did. (Don't have time to read? This title is also available as an eAudio book.)
  
  
  
• The last book is A Thousand Never Evers by Shana Burg. The setting of this book is in Mississippi in 1963, during the Civil Rights Movement. This book takes you through the good and bad times in the life of Addie Ann Pickett, a young black girl who lives with her mother, brother, and uncle in Kuckachoo, Mississippi, until things turn terribly wrong. How can something good that has happened to the people of this town turn into something bad for the black citizens, especially for Addie's uncle and brother? Check out this book to see how Addie's family and the black citizens of Kuckachoo fared through this difficult time. This book made me angry, and it made me cry. It will certainly make you stop and think. Remember, we're all in this world together.
  

All in all, these were great books. See you at the library!