Avi reader's workshop book talks

Avi Reader’s Workshop

S.O.R. Losers

The South Orange River (S.O.R.) School is big on sports and famous for not losing a game all season. That all changes when the school insists that some seventh-grade, non-jocks form a soccer team. The new team is sure that losing their first game 32-0 will put an end to their athletic adventure, but no such luck; their parents insist they try harder. When the whole school cheers them on, they finally score...for the other team. Only the eleven members of the S.O.R. Losers team know the secret of their outstanding "success."

Who Stole the Wizard of Oz?

Becky is in trouble! The Checkertown librarian has accused her of stealing a rare children’s book, The Wizard Of Oz. Becky has to clear her name, but the only way is by tracking down the real culprit. With the help of her twin brother, she investigates a string of bizarre crimes in that town—including the disappearance of four other children's books. The twins soon find clues in the stories themselves that point the way to a secret treasure. Want to know what happens in the end? Can they figure out the treasure map before the thief does? .

Windcatcher

While learning to sail during a visit to his grandmother's at the Connecticut shore, eleven-year-old Tony becomes excited about the rumors of sunken treasure in the area and starts following a couple who seem to be making a mysterious search for something.

Tony can hardly believe it. He's sailing with the wind, maneuvering through the narrow channels between the offshore islands with amazing skill. And he's just learned to sail! But suddenly Tony is confused. Which way had he come? Which way is he headed? And who are the mysterious couple with the high powered motor boat who are too busy searching beneath the water to answer his call for help?

Tony does some searching on his own. What he discovers leads him on a daring hunt for a 200-year-old shipwreck . . . and a dangerous confrontation with treasure hunters who will stop at nothing to keep Tony from learning their secret.

Poppy

Poppy the deer mouse urges her family to move next to a field of corn big enough to feed them all forever, but Mr. Ocax, a terrifying owl, has other ideas.

King of the Night

At the very edge of Dimwood Forest stood an old charred oak where, silhouetted by the moon, a great horned owl sat waiting. The owl’s name was Mr. Ocax, and he looked like death himself. With his piercing gaze, he surveyed the lands he called his own, watching for the creatures he considered his subjects. Not one of them ever dared to cross his path. . .until the terrible night when two little mice went dancing in the moonlight. . .

The Barn

The BarnIn this brief novel set in 1855, Ben's father has been felled by palsey -- what we call today a stroke. Ben, nine years old and the youngest child, has been called home to Oregon Territory from the boarding school he's been attending. More gifted intellectually than his siblings and, perhaps, with a stronger sense of family, Ben quickly becomes the leader, dividing the labor as efficiently as possible. This leaves him with the care of his father.First finding a way to communicate at least minimally, and desperately needing to re-establish contact with the dying man, Ben determines that, if they build the barn his father had planned, the man will recover. His sister, Nettie, anxious to marry, delays her plans to help with the barn and the three set about the nearly impossible task. The barn becomes a symbol for achievement, acceptance and love. It is also, quite obviously, the object of the boy's obsession which he questions himself, but only after the barn is completed.

Bright Shadow

Bright Shadow As assistant to the king's chambermaid, 12-year-old Morwenna is hardly a likely candidate for wizardly inheritance. Yet there's something to be said for being in the right place at the right time--or is that the wrong place at the wrong time? Either way, with no warning, Morwenna suddenly becomes the recipient of five wishes when a 1,000-year-old ailing wizard, desperate to pass on his magical legacy, finds Morwenna at hand the moment before his dusty demise. Unfortunately, no guidance or advice accompanies this mysterious gift. Morwenna soon flounders in confusion and danger, as her best friend Swen, through a series of mishaps, comes to believe he is the new wizard, and all the kingdom awaits liberation from a despotic ruler. This tense, moving tale raises painful questions about altruism and selfishness, as a mere child is asked to grant wishes, secretly and judiciously.

Captain Grey

Captain Grey

Following the Revolution, an eleven-year-old boy – young Kevin Cartwright – becomes the captive of a ruthless pirate king who has set up his own "nation," supported by piracy, on a remote part of the New Jersey coast.

"I shall find a way to get free."

"Free!" he shouted. "You are here, with us now. You can forget about your father and your sister, or anybody else you may have known. You belong to no nation but this nation. Put him back where he was and don't feed him. Tomorrow we shall talk again about freedom!"

Blue Heron

Blue Heron

While spending the month of August on the Massachusetts shore with her father, stepmother, and their new baby, almost thirteen-year-old Maggie finds beauty in and draws strength from a great blue heron, even as the family around her unravels.

As Maggie approaches her thirteenth birthday, she wants to believe that some kind of magic can stop the changes all around her. Her visit with her father and his new family at a lakeside cabin makes her wonder. Will he still love her as much, now that he has a new family, or will he love her baby half-sister more? Her father seems troubled and withdrawn and, while he insists nothing is wrong, she worries.

Alone with her own secret thoughts, Maggie finds comfort in the beautiful blue heron she visits at the lake every morning. With each visit, she grows more attached to the bird, and she becomes aware that someone else is watching, too -- someone who's putting the bird in great danger. Through her determination to protect the bird, Maggie begins to understand the magic of change in her own life, and in the constantly changing world around her.

The Man Who Was Poe

The Old City Lay Dark And Cold...It is night. And Edmund is alone. His mother is gone. His aunt, who went in search of her, is dead. His sister has disappeared. Edmund has no one – except for a stranger of the night. A dark, mysterious stranger who flees from demons of his own... who follows him through the cold and shadowy city with offers of help. But who is this stranger who gives Edmund refuge? He has a mission of his own and he needs Edmund, but he tells him nothing of his purpose. Yet the stranger is Edmund's only hope of discovering the dark secrets that surround the disappearance of his family...In Providence, R.I., in 1848, Edgar Allan Poe reluctantly investigates the problems of eleven-year-old Edmund, whose family has mysteriously disappeared and whose story suggests a new Poe tale with a ghastly final twist.

The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle

A vicious captain, a mutinous crew – and a young girl caught in the middle…

As the only passenger, and the only female, on a transatlantic voyage in 1832, thirteen-year-old Charlotte finds herself caught between a murderous captain and a mutinous crew.

“Not every thirteen-year-old girl is accused of murder, brought to trial, and found guilty. But I was just such a girl, and my story is worth relating even if it did happen years ago. Be warned, however: If strong ideas and action offend you, read no more. Find another companion to share your idle hours. For my part I intend to tell the truth as I lived it.”

Midnight Magic

Midnight MagicIn 15th century Pergamontio, twelve-year-old Fabrizio plays with some tarot cards against the advice of his master, Mangus the Magician. Mangus is trying to get out of magic and devote himself to being a good Christian. However, Fabrizio and Mangus are soon involved in a request by King Claudio to free his daughter, ten-year-old Princess Teresina, of a ghost who visits her. The Princess suspects it is her murdered brother, heir to the throne of their father, King Claudio. Lurking in the shadows, though, is Count Scarazoni--who also wants to be king. So, young Fabrizio and Mangus must use magic to thwart Count Scarazoni, free the Princess, and save the throne. Early adolescents will revel in this story filled with secret passages, mysterious mishaps, and eerie moments. Chapters ending in cliff hangers and a parade of characters with strange names embellish a story where truth is revealed and good prevails. A fun read for younger readers.

Nothing But The Truth

Heroism, hoax, or mistake, what happened at Harrison High changes everything for everyone in ways no one -- least of all Philip -- could have ever predicted. Structured as a series of journal entries, memos, letters and dialogues, this highly original novel emerges as a witty satire of high school politics, revealing how truth can easily become distorted. After Philip Malloy, a clownish, rather unmotivated freshman, is punished for causing a disturbance (humming ``The Star Spangled Banner''), facts about the incident become exaggerated until a minor school infraction turns into a national scandal. Philip's parents, several reporters and a neighbor (who happens to be running for the school board) accuse the school of being unpatriotic. Philip gains fame as a martyr for freedom; his homeroom teacher, Miss Narwin, however, faces dismissal from her job.

A Place Called Ugly

There's no reasoning with Owen. The island cottage where he and his family have spent the last ten summers must be preserved. And he's going to do it. Never mind that bulldozers stand outside, ready to move in and level the place for a modern hotel. Never mind that summer's over and Owen's family is hurrying to catch the last ferry -- or that school is starting -- or that nobody sees it his way. Alone, fourteen-year-old Owen is going to stay and save the beautiful place others call ugly.

Crispin: The Cross of Lead

"Asta's son" is all he's ever been called. The lack of name is appropriate, because he and his mother are but poor peasants in fourteenth-century medieval England. But this thirteen-year-old boy who thought he had little to lose soon finds himself with even less — no home, family, or possessions. Accused of a crime he did not commit, he has been declared a "wolf's head." That means he may be killed on sight, by anyone. If he wishes to remain alive, he must flee his tiny village. All the boy takes with him is a newly revealed name — Crispin — and his mother's cross of lead. His journey through the English countryside is amazing and terrifying.

City of Light, City of Dark

Complications abound in a graphic novel related in brief narrative boxes plus dialogue (some of it in both Spanish and English) in hundreds of b&w comic-book frames. Sarah has been told (falsely) that her mother died; Carlos can't understand why an old blind man is so interested in a subway token he's found. The two kids team up and eventually learn the truth: the evil Mr. Underton was blinded by Sarah's mother 11 years ago when he tried to steal the token that's the source of power for the metropolis (N.Y.C.), which will freeze if the token isn't delivered to safekeeping each December 21 by Sarah's mother (and, someday, by Sarah). Robust spirits run appealingly amok until the expected triumph of good.

The Titles for this Avi

Reader’s Workshop:

1. S.O.R. Losers2. Who Stole the Wizard

of Oz?3. Windcatcher4. Poppy5. The Barn6. Bright Shadow7. Captain Grey8. Blue Heron9. The Man Who Was

Poe10. The True Confessions

of Charlotte Doyle11. Midnight Magic12. Nothing But The

Truth13. A Place Called Ugly14. Crispin: The Cross of

Lead15. City of Light, City of

Dark