Mission: READ

Did that get your attention??? There are three books on this year’s Rebecca Caudill list that fit the “in prison” category–as long as you leave “in prison” in quotes.

The first is Al Capone Does My Shirts by Gennifer Choldenko. In this book, Moose and his family must move to Alcatraz Island during the 1930s–when it was full of the some of the most infamous lawbreakers of all time. Not only does Moose have to worry about making new friends at school and steering clear of trouble-making Piper, the warden’s daughter, he must also take increasing responsibility for his older sister, Natalie, who has disabilities. And Al Capone really does make an appearance in this book, in a most unlikely way.

In The Ravenmaster’s Secret by Elvira Wodruff, teenager Forrest lives at the Tower of London during one of the bloodiest times in English history. His father must take care of the ravens because the legend is that if the ravens leave the Tower, the British Empire will fall. When he makes friends with Maddie, who is imprisoned with her Scottish rebel father, Forrest must decide whether to help the innocent girl or to remain loyal to his father and his monarch.  

In The City of Ember by Jeanne DuPrau, Lina and Doon are “imprisoned” in a dying city. Ember’s only source of light is from lightbulbs powered by the electricity made in generators underneath the city.  There is very little fresh food, and the canned goods in the city’s storehouses are running out. Lina and Doon find an old, damaged document and must decipher it to find a way out of the city to save themselves and their community.  If you like The Giver, this is the book for you.  It also has a sequel, The People of Sparks.

Want to know more about Al Capone Does My Shirts, The Ravenmaster’s Secret, or The City of Ember?  Then check them out and read them yourself! The IMC has at least 5 copies of these Rebecca Caudill books. Look under the yellow bulletin board in the IMC.

Mission: Accomplished