The Tripods: classic science fiction from the 1960s that’s still enjoyable for today’s young teens. The Tripods Series by John Christopher: The White Mountains, The City of Gold and Lead, The Pool of Fire, When the Tripods Came. Aladdin, 2014. (boxed set; the first book was originally published in 1967) Reading Level: Young Adult, ages 12-15 Recommended For: Young Adult, ages 12-15 Retro dystopian sci-fi: Metalic aliens called Tripods rule over the land. At great risk just before he transitions from boyhood to manhood, a boy named Will escapes the Tripods’ control and joins a resistance group hiding out in the mountains. The rest of the series chronicles their desperate…

This morning, doing devotions, I was reflecting on the resurrection. The phrase Deeper magic, before the dawn of time drifted unbidden into my reflections. I smiled as other images and words rushed after it. A great emperor beyond the sea. Dawn. A cracked stone. Mice. Two joyful British girls playing tag with a mighty golden lion. They say Aslan is on the move, perhaps has already landed. Image Credit:  Marion E. Wade Center How fitting to be thinking of Narnia, today, 70 years to the day since it was published. Thank you, C. S. Lewis. Thank you for helping me understand the wonder of the resurrection, through the wonder of…

Skunk and Badger are a delightful new odd couple in chapter book format, perfect for newly independent readers. *Skunk and Badger by Amy Timberlake and illustrated by Jon Klassen. Alonquin, 2020. 136 pages. Reading Level: Chapter Books, ages 6-10 Recommended For: Ages 6-10 (all, as a read aloud) Badger is a geologist who lives in his aunt’s house and does Important Rock Work. A classic introvert, he loves his quiet, deliberate work. He does not like to be interrupted. When Skunk arrives, he tells Badger that Aunt Lula has offered him a place, too! She is sure Skunk and Badger will be best friends! Skunk cannot wait to move in!…

“Green Magic” lurks in an ivy-covered house, in this delightful MG fantasy. The Time of Green Magic by Hilary McKay. Simon & Shuster (Margart McEldery Books), 2020, 229 pages. Reading Level: Middle Grades, ages 10-12 Recommended for: ages 10-14 Since the death of her mother, when Abi was too young to remember, the 12-year-old and her father and grandmother have lived comfortably in their London flat. Since the abandonment of their father, Max and Louis have gotten along fine with their mom in a rented house on the other side of town. But then their parents met, sparks flew, and the kids found themselves mashed into an uncomfortable family crammed…

Jason, an ordinary American boy, is summoned into a world that needs a hero. Original, highly imaginative, full of action and characters who are ready to give their lives for a worthy cause. The Beyonders Trilogy by Brandon Mull. Aladdin Books. (paperback) A World Without HeroesSeeds of RebellionChasing the Prophecy Reading Level: Teen/YA, Ages 12-15 Recommended For: Teen/YA, Ages 12-15 Jason is an ordinary American kid who is swallowed by a hippopotamus and pulled into Lyrian, a world that needs a hero. Before long he is sent on a quest to find the scattered secret syllables of a magic word that will destroy the evil wizard Maldor. Others who have…