Few things can draw a reader to a new book like a book trailer can. Each Friday I will endeavor to bring a couple to you—some new or recent, some teasers of upcoming books, and a few “classics”. Get the popcorn ready.
Lights…Camera…Action!
It started with:
In case you missed the similarity, the cover is a parody of the movie The Godfather:
Do you need something? Mac can get it for you. It’s what he does. He and his best friend and business manager, Vince. Their methods might sometimes run afoul of the law, or at least the school code of conduct, but if you have a problem, if no one else can help, and if you can pay him, Mac is on your side. His office is located in the East Wing boy’s bathroom, fourth stall from the high window. And business is booming.
Or at least it was, until this particular Monday. Because this Monday is when Mac and Vince find out that the trouble with solving everyone else’s problems is there’s no one left to solve yours.
The life of crime is good.Mac has taken down legendary high school crime boss Staples, business has been booming, and Mac and Vince are getting ready for middle school baseball tryouts. But this can’t last. Mac has always tried to keep his friends close and his enemies closer. But what happens when you can’t tell the difference?
This dilemma walks into the fourth stall in the form of Trixie Von Parkway—an eighth grader with a mean look and an even meaner predicament. The new science teacher is terrorizing her, and she needs Mac to get him off her back. Seems simple enough, but as Mac starts to dig deeper, he finds even more trouble brewing at his school, including a new administrator bent on destroying his business, and indications that Trixie isn’t who she claims to be. In the past, the worst thing that could have happened to Mac was that he might lose a little money, maybe catch a beating. In The Fourth Stall Part II, though, there’s going to be much more on the line than that.
But wait, there’s more…
OVERVIEW
The story of Mac, Vince, and middle-school organized crime comes to its thrilling conclusion in the third book of Chris Rylander’s Fourth Stall saga, a series that combines a Godfather-like tale of crime and betrayal with hilarious school comedy à la Jack Gantos.
Their business is finished, and Mac’s and Vince’s lives have become something they have never been before—simple. None of the fortune or the glory, none of the risk or the threat of juvenile prison. There’s even a new business that has stepped in to take its place (and take the heat off Mac and Vince for once). Things couldn’t be better.
But that was before things at their middle school started to go haywire. Before they found out that there’s a new crime boss at a school another town over trying to consolidate power. And before their old nemesis, Staples, came back to town begging for help after his stint in the clink. Just when Mac and Vince thought they were out, the business pulls them back in. But this time, will they be able to escape with their lives and their permanent records intact?
There are tons of great book trailers out in cyberland, and each Friday I will endeavor to bring a couple to you. Many will be new and recent books. Some trailers will preview a not-yet-released book. And others will look back a little further.
And now…
Lights…Camera…Action!
“The Eleventh Plague hits disturbingly close to home, vividly depicting a world that has nose-dived into a futuristic nightmare. Fifteen-year-old Stephen Quinn struggles to define his rules of survival in Jeff Hirsch’s excellent, taut debut novel.”–Suzanne Collins, Author of the Hunger Games Trilogy
In an America devastated by war and plague, the only way to survive is to keep moving.
In the aftermath of a World War III, America’s landscape has been ravaged and left two thirds of the population dead. Fifteen-year-old Stephen Quinn and his family were among the few that survived , roaming the country as isolated scavengers.
There are tons of great book trailers out in cyberland, and each Friday I will endeavor to bring a couple to you. Many will be new and recent books. Some trailers will preview a not-yet-released book. And others will look back a little further.
And now…
Lights…Camera…Action!
One of the most fun series I’ve read with a great, swashbuckling main character, Sage.
THE FALSE PRINCE is the thrilling first book in a brand-new trilogy filled with danger and deceit and hidden identities that will have readers rushing breathlessly to the end.
In a discontent kingdom, civil war is brewing. To unify the divided people, Conner, a nobleman of the court, devises a cunning plan to find an impersonator of the king’s long-lost son and install him as a puppet prince. Four orphans are recruited to compete for the role, including a defiant boy named Sage. Sage knows that Conner’s motives are more than questionable, yet his life balances on a sword’s point — he must be chosen to play the prince or he will certainly be killed. But Sage’s rivals have their own agendas as well.
As Sage moves from a rundown orphanage to Conner’s sumptuous palace, layer upon layer of treachery and deceit unfold, until finally, a truth is revealed that, in the end, may very well prove more dangerous than all of the lies taken together.
An extraordinary adventure filled with danger and action, lies and deadly truths that will have readers clinging to the edge of their seats.
Start here… and read the whole Ascendence Trilogy:
Jennifer Nielsen fans will be pleased to learn that there is a new series on the way, starting with:
[Birthday: February 24, 2015]
WOOT!
MARK OF THE THIEF tells the story of Nicolas Calva, a mining slave in Ancient Rome. One day he is forced by a Roman general named Radulf to enter a sealed cave believed to contain the lost treasure of Emperor Julius Caesar, seeking Caesar’s childhood bulla. All Roman boys have bullas, amulets worn around the neck to bring them good luck. But Caesar’s bulla contains the magic of the gods. Nic finds the bulla, and the griffin who guards it, and when he steals the bulla for himself, suddenly he is thrust at the center of a war to control the fall of the Roman Empire. Nic holds a magic he does not understand and cannot control. As long as he has it, he is a target. But as the weight of Rome comes upon him, he begins to realize that he cannot survive without it.
{Celebrating the books we’ve read in the past week
& the titles we are currently reading.}
This meme is originated by Jen and Kellee at TeachMentorTexts. Thanks!
This was a powerful book with an important theme: All people that look a certain way don’t fit a stereotype. All different kinds of people have many similarities.
I’m looking forward to watching the movie again.
Every time I say the name of this book I want to sing…
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My favorite part of this book is the way Telgemeier expertly flashed back to connected memories. The pages yellowed, and we suddenly were able to see why the event on the road trip was so important and how it was linked to the past. This is exactly the skill we were working on with the personal narratives.
What’s next, Mrs. T?
Here’s a fun pic of Raina from her Instagram account:
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How many books have my students read? What are they reading?
This week it’s back to the SpinCam. Click on the pictures below to see the sweet 360 degree pictures of my students and their book.
Period 1&2
18 Books
Period 5&6
17 Books
Period 9&10
17 books
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Parents are invited to participate in our journey as well.
For every parent who leaves a comment on TODAY’S POST with what you’re reading, I’ll give your child a BUSTED ticket…
{Eat the Book} 
