Knights of Hill Country by Tim Tharp

The book that I am recommending is Knights of the Hill Country. This is written by Tim Tharp. It is about a kid named Hampton Green.He is the Knights allstar linebacker. He is in on just about evey play on defense. He feels like he can stop time. Him and his team are working on their fifth straight winning season. If they finish the season off without getting beat they will be legends. They are facing many challenges along the way including great football teams and other personal conflicts. Read to find out if they become legends or if they fall short.

I liked this book because it gave good detail and kept me wanting to read more. A quote that stuck out to me was, “Dirty gets dirty back.” I liked this quote because in football even though you think you got away with it, you might not see the next one coming. A quote from Kirkus review was, “This intriguing work demands an audience.” A quote from the Bulletin of the Center for Children’s book said,”Hamp musters the sense and confidence to muddle his way through, and for that the readers can raise a cheer.” The recomended reading age is 12 and up. Peope who bought this book also bought, Payback Time, Crackback, Heart of a Champion, and many others.

Recommended by Frank Brehm

Trash by Andy Mulligan

Trash by Andy Mulligan transports you to an unknown city in Latin America, deep in the heart of political turmoil. Although none of the students in my class have ever lived a glamour lifestyle, the simple blessings we have in our every day life were made glaringly clear after reading the first chapter and being introduced to the main characters and their home built on a dumpsite. Raphael, Gardo and Rat’s daily lifestyle includes sifting through trash in hopes of finding something worth money that can help their family buy food. They encounter a multitude of challenges after finding a mysterious item in the trash that the police are eager to recover. What follows is a fast paced, engaging story involving stolen money, brutal violence, police and government corruption, as well as many more obstacles that arise as the boys try to solve the mystery. Although I would highly recommend this book, it is not light reading. There are many heavy topics that surface; I was constantly uncomfortable while reading the book, imagining the different scenarios these young boys were thrust into in order to survive.

The School Library Journal states, “Reminiscent of Slumdog Millionaire, this unique adventure seamlessly incorporates secret codes, breathless getaways, corrupt bureaucrats, and a subtle moral about kids growing up in a town made of trash but deserving much better.” Trash is recommended for ages twelve to fifteen, but I think that many adults would have an eye opening experience reading this account of life in a Third World country. All too often we turn a blind eye to the injustices that are happening in the world. This novel challenges you not to look away, not to take for granted what you have in your life. Another novel written by Andy Mulligan is Return to Ribblestrop. A compelling quote from a letter in the novel is “I am writing this knowing that if it is in another man’s hands, then I am dead or soon to die. I took this money hoping that I would be the one to return it where it belongs, and I had my schemes for doing that. But I write as a dead man, I think: for they will not take me and let me live.” Who wrote this letter? Read this novel to discover the answer to that and many other questions brought about in the first chapter.

Recommended by Ms. Steffen