Teacher Man: A Memoir, by Frank McCourt. Scribner, 2005. 272 pages

Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston. Harper Perennial Modern Classics, 2008. 219 pages

People's History of Sports in the United States by Dave Zirin, Howard Zinn, Editor. New Press, 2008. 270 pages.

Diary of a Wimpy Kid: a novel in cartoons, by Jeff Kinney. Amulet Books, NY, 2007. 217 pages

Wildly popular with 6th through 8th graders, the pages of Jeff Kinney's book actually looks like a diary-- albeit a very neat one with extraordinary cartoon doodles throughout. Greg Heffley is in middle school--surrounded by morons, bullies, teachers, parents and friends-- his journal is laugh out loud funny because Heffley acts on every kids fantasy--tricking friend and foe alike without any hint of guilt. Kinney definitely understands how kids think. We cannot keep it on the shelf-- or the sequals. Always a winner.

Mudshark by Gary Paulsen. Wendy Lamb Books, 2009. 96 pages.

Mudshark, aka Lyle Williams, is the coolest kid in middle school-- He is the go-to guy for all manner of problems-- where did i leave my homework? how do i get out of band practice, my cat is lost, can you find him, etc. He's not really a genius, he just has very good powers of observation, and in order to keep his position of importance, he starts the Mudshark Detective Agency and everyone-- even the principal, come to Mudshark for help. In this book ( the first of several, i am sure) Mudshark helps the principal straighten out some problems involving a class mascot, some missing erasers, the custodian's job and the library parrot who talks too much. Light hearted and clever-- lots of funny observations about school culture-- Paulsen's new series should find lots of popularity, especially among boys.

The Old Man and The Sea by Ernest Hemingway. Scribner (1995), Paperback, 128 pages

The old man, Santiago, is at the end of his life. He is a fisherman--- a hard life, and now he is old and poor and unable to catch the fish he could in his heyday. Thinking to change his luck, he sets out --too far and all alone-- to richer but more dangerous fishing grounds and has the battle of his life with an enormous marlin-- 3 days and 3 nights. A short and thrilling and absorbing read-- truely-- i am not making this up. Full of symbolism and irony -- and so well written-- a sparseness to the text--in few, well chosen words-- this is Hemenway at his best. I will not spoil the story by saying more. A great book for all readers...especially good for book groups and guided reading because there is so much to talk about. A Classic.

Baseball Crazy; Ten short stories that cover all the bases, Nancy Mercado, editor. Dial Books for Young Readers, 2008. 191 pages.

I love short stories and Mercado's collection is a winner. Ten baseball themed short stories by wonderful authors for young people--Jerry Spinelli, Joseph Bruhac,