The Hill of the Red Fox

By Allan Campbell Mclean



 Alaisdair is a thirteen-year-old living in London, who dreams of seeing Skye in Scotland, the place of his birth. His mother finally allows him to travel to Skye by himself for his summer holiday, where he is to stay with Murdo Beaton a supposed friend of Alaisdair's late father. On the train ride there, a strange man pursued by another hands him a mysterious note before jumping off the train, shattering Alaisdair's peaceful vacation! This is just the beginning of the mysterious adventure set out before Alaisdair, Involving missing persons, Russian spies, and a whole lot of danger! But he is helped and supported by the men of Achmore, old friends of his father. 

This story takes place in Scotland during the cold war. It is a high-strung mystery/adventure that will keep you flipping pages until the very end!

  This book is suitable for 9th grade and up.

Never Cry Wolf

by Farley Mowat



The true story of life among arctic wolves. Farley Mowat, the naturalist, excepts an assignment to investigate why wolves in Canada are mass killing caribou. He is dropped off in the middle of nowhere to find and examine arctic wolves. He discovers, contrary to popular belief, that wolves are not killing machines, and are unfairly blamed for the rapid decline of caribou caused by the hunters themselves.


A fascinating book filled with humor about his adventures and misadventures with the wolves. I learned a lot about wolves from this book and how Mowat himself changed from this experience.


This book is suitable for 9th grade and up.

The Roman Mysteries - The Thieves of Ostia

by Caroline Lawrence




 Flavia Gemina is a 10 year old girl who lives in the ancient Roman town of Ostia. She and her father, Marcus Flavius Geminus, a well to do sailor, live by themselves with their two slaves. Flavia has a real skill for locating lost trinkets, and that skill will come in handy as the plot of the story unfolds.
Soon after meeting her new next door neighbors and becoming fast friends with a boy her age named  Jonathon, she finds her first real mystery.
 Dogs are being beheaded!
 She needs the help of her three new friends to solve the mystery: Jonathon, her next door neighbor; Lupus, a beggar boy with no tongue; and Nubia, Flavia's slave (whom she received as a birthday present).
 Can they stop these happenings? What is the reason for this, and most importantly who is behind this?
The answers will shock you!


 This is a must read for all who love a good mystery. With a lot of factual insight on ancient Roman life mixed with the tension of a good mystery, you really can't put the book down!




This book is suitable for advanced 7th graders and up.

Julie of the Wolves

By Jean Craighead George


 Miyax, known as Julie to her American pen pal Amy, is wed at age 13 to her father's friend's son Daniel. Miyax runs away headed towards San Francisco, where her friend Amy lives. But she soon gets lost in the arctic tundra with no food and not even a compass to guide her! She manages to survive by being excepted by a pack of arctic wolves led by a wolf she names Amaroq. Miyax learns to love them like family, but the time comes when she must leave the wilderness and choose between the old Eskimo ways or the new.

    
     The seals are scarce and the whales are almost gone.
     The spirits of the animals are passing away.
     Amaroq, Amaroq, you are my adopted father
     My feet dance because of you.
     My eyes see because of you.
    My mind thinks because of you, and it thinks, on this thundering night,
    That the hour of the wolf and the Eskimo is over.


 This book is suitable for 7th grade and up. There is one "questionable" part in the book, that needs the possible review of a parent.

Otto of the Silver Hand

by Howard Pyle

Manus argenta quam manus ferrea melior est

( A silver hand is better than an iron hand)    

 

 

 

A story of the harsh life of two rival robber Barons and one young boy named Otto. 

 Otto was the son of Baron Conrad of Drachenhausen, he was raised in St. Michaelsburg with the monks. Until one day when he was nearly twelve his father came to take him home. Not long after returning home, Baron Conrad left with most his men to pay homage to the new emperor of Germany. While he is away the Baron Henry of Trutz-Drachen destroys the castle taking little Otto with him. Otto learns that he is to pay a score for the deed that his father did to Baron Henry's father. So showing no mercy, the Baron cuts the lads right hand off!


 This story is moving with an underlying thread of romance and old English narration. While you read this book it's almost as if you are there in Medieval times!


   This book is suitable for 8th grade and up.



Winterbringers

By Gill Arbuthnott



 "Queen of Summer! Queen of Summer! Hear our plea. Far from the Kingdom of Summer we call to you. Summer has bled from these lands; has fled from these lands. The Winterbringers are abroad, and all the land will soon be locked in ice. Hear our plea, Queen of Summer. Send the summer in. Send the summer in. Send the summer in."

 It was summer so Josh definitely wasn't expecting the sea to start to freeze and ice to start creeping up the beach, he wasn't expecting anything but a summer holiday in Pitmillie with his mother. But once he meets a local girl, Callie, and her enormous dog Luath strange things start happening. They find a journal of an eighteenth century girl named Agnes who writes about a Kingdom of Summer. Josh and Callie, with the help of the Winter King, need to find the Kingdom and restore to the Queen of Summer what was stolen. But the Winter bringers are abroad and determined to stop them. Can they prevent the Queen from dying, or will a permanent winter overcome the world?


 This book is suitable for 6th grade and up.

Seabiscuit , An American Legend

By Laura Hillenbrand




 In the year 1938 the biggest star, comparable to modern day Justin Bieber, was not even a person! He was a race horse named Seabiscuit. At the peak of his career he had more newspaper articles written about him then did world leaders of the time. Theodore Roosevelt ranked second, Hitler ranked third, and Mousilini fourth.
 Seabiscuit was born a 'homely' little horse. His trainer never thought that this lazy bones would ever amount to much, but a man named Smith who worked for a millionaire[named Howard] thought other wise. He saw what no other man had noticed, a glimmer of intelligence and knowledge in Seabiscuit's eyes, and a dormant desire to run.
 Seabiscuit had been over-worked as a young horse, racing in about forty races, more then most horses race in their lives! Howard and Smith bought Seabiscuit at a low price. Being over-worked had done nothing for Seabiscuit's temper. he was known to attack stable-hands!  After three months of training Seabiscuit was a completely different horse.
 Struggling through injuries that promised to be fatal, Seabiscuit fought his way to the top to become America's most legendary icon.

This book is an inspiring work that shows you: It doesn't matter who you are or what you look like. If you have a passion for what you do and believe in yourself anything can happen.

This book is recomended for 10th grade and up.