Summary: Cody has lived a life that many kids would think is really cool; travelling the world as his dad’s partner in undercover CIA operations. He speaks multiple languages, can defend himself whether armed or unarmed, and knows how to handle himself under pressure. Then everything changes….
The danger surrounding Cody & his dad gets to be too much and Cody is sent to stay with his Aunt Jenny, who he hardly knows, in a small town in Connecticut. Cody may know how to blend in and survive in many situations, but Junior High isn’t one of them. He’s never had a normal friendship with anyone his age, never had a crush on a girl, never had to follow a class schedule. In short, he’s never been prepared to lead a “normal life.”
After some missteps, Cody starts to make friends and even becomes a sort of mentor within his school, his love of and talent for martial arts serving as a tool to help him overcome the "new kid" stigma.
Just as he starts to feel like he is getting the hang of being a suburban teen, he begins to fear that his father’s problems have followed him – he is sure he is being watched. With the help of a disabled vet, Cody has to face this challenge to save the life he has come to enjoy and to protect the people he has come to love.
Alibi Junior High is a 2011-2012 Sunshine State Book. I really wish I had read it sooner. I truly enjoyed it. It was sometimes funny and sometimes tense, striking the balance between the two in a way that made me want to keep reading about Cody even after the story was over.
Themes:
Courage
Responsibility
Family
What is normal?
Age Appropriateness:
11 and up
Areas of concern (content):
Foul Language: none
Nudity/Adult Content: mild
Violence: moderate
Showing posts with label spy. Show all posts
Showing posts with label spy. Show all posts
Sunday, April 29, 2012
Saturday, July 9, 2011
Cross My Heart and Hope to Spy by Ally Carter
Summary: Cross My Heart and Hope to Spy is the second of the Gallagher Girls series by Ally Carter. It is just as much fun as the first in the series, and has even more of the girl-spy intrigue and drama that made the first book such a pleasure to read.
Cammie Morgan and her classmates are back for another school year at the Gallagher Academy for Exceptional Young Women. Cammie has gone through her first real mission de-briefing, including a polygraph test at the CIA’s real headquarters about her involvement Josh, her first boyfriend who was, unfortunately, a civilian without security clearance.
She is looking forward to a new school year to let her get back to normal (for her). But that is not in the cards – the Gallagher Academy is being invaded – by boys! The Blackthorne Academy is sending a few of its students to spend the year with the Gallagher girls. Cammie had enough trouble dealing with a regular boy – how will she deal with a boy who is just as well-trained in lying and covert operations as she is?
Now the school year is filled with make-up and hairstyling as well as code-breaking and martial arts. Are the Blackthorne Boys really there for innocent reasons, or is there something more sinister going on? Leave it to Cammie and her friends to find out the truth!
Themes:
Secrets
Friendship
Trust
Age Appropriateness:
10 and up
Areas of concern (content):
Foul Language: none
Nudity/Adult Content: light kissing
Violence: mild
Cammie Morgan and her classmates are back for another school year at the Gallagher Academy for Exceptional Young Women. Cammie has gone through her first real mission de-briefing, including a polygraph test at the CIA’s real headquarters about her involvement Josh, her first boyfriend who was, unfortunately, a civilian without security clearance.
She is looking forward to a new school year to let her get back to normal (for her). But that is not in the cards – the Gallagher Academy is being invaded – by boys! The Blackthorne Academy is sending a few of its students to spend the year with the Gallagher girls. Cammie had enough trouble dealing with a regular boy – how will she deal with a boy who is just as well-trained in lying and covert operations as she is?
Now the school year is filled with make-up and hairstyling as well as code-breaking and martial arts. Are the Blackthorne Boys really there for innocent reasons, or is there something more sinister going on? Leave it to Cammie and her friends to find out the truth!
Themes:
Secrets
Friendship
Trust
Age Appropriateness:
10 and up
Areas of concern (content):
Foul Language: none
Nudity/Adult Content: light kissing
Violence: mild
Friday, July 1, 2011
I’d Tell You I Love You, But Then I’d Have To Kill by Ally Carter
Summary: I’d Tell You I Love You, But Then I’d Have To Kill You is a fun girl-powered spy romance. The first of the Gallagher Girls series by Ally Carter, the story creates a plausible world in which teen girls are trained to be spies in an exclusive boarding school.
Cammie Morgan is a student at this school, the Gallagher Academy for Exceptional Young Women. To people on the outside, it is simply a private school for snooty smart rich girls. But this school offers classes in code breaking, covert operations, martial arts, and more than your usual language options. Cammie excels at Gallagher; after all, she comes from a family of spies, as do many of her classmates. But there is one thing that the Gallagher Academy has not prepared Cammie for: how to deal with boys.
When Cammie gets noticed by a local boy during a surveillance mission, she isn’t sure what to do. First of all, when doing surveillance, you are NOT supposed to be noticed. (Really, it defeats the purpose if you stick out!) And Cammie is an ace at blending in and going unnoticed. So why does Josh not only notice her, but take a real interest in her? And how can she have a relationship with a boy who can never know who she really is?
I’d Tell You I Love You, But Then I’d Have To Kill You is fun, laugh-out-loud fun at times. Cammie and her friends are easy to relate to; despite the fact that they are anything but ordinary in a lot of ways, they still have many of the same worries as any girl: fitting in, having friends, and solving the mysteries of the opposite sex. This is a series I will be recommending to students this coming school year!
Themes:
Secrets
Friendship
Age Appropriateness:
10 and up
Areas of concern (content):
Foul Language: none
Nudity/Adult Content: none
Violence: mild
Cammie Morgan is a student at this school, the Gallagher Academy for Exceptional Young Women. To people on the outside, it is simply a private school for snooty smart rich girls. But this school offers classes in code breaking, covert operations, martial arts, and more than your usual language options. Cammie excels at Gallagher; after all, she comes from a family of spies, as do many of her classmates. But there is one thing that the Gallagher Academy has not prepared Cammie for: how to deal with boys.
When Cammie gets noticed by a local boy during a surveillance mission, she isn’t sure what to do. First of all, when doing surveillance, you are NOT supposed to be noticed. (Really, it defeats the purpose if you stick out!) And Cammie is an ace at blending in and going unnoticed. So why does Josh not only notice her, but take a real interest in her? And how can she have a relationship with a boy who can never know who she really is?
I’d Tell You I Love You, But Then I’d Have To Kill You is fun, laugh-out-loud fun at times. Cammie and her friends are easy to relate to; despite the fact that they are anything but ordinary in a lot of ways, they still have many of the same worries as any girl: fitting in, having friends, and solving the mysteries of the opposite sex. This is a series I will be recommending to students this coming school year!
Themes:
Secrets
Friendship
Age Appropriateness:
10 and up
Areas of concern (content):
Foul Language: none
Nudity/Adult Content: none
Violence: mild
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