Thursday, April 14, 2011

Bookinistas: ALICE-MIRANDA AT SCHOOL


ALICE-MIRANDA AT SCHOOL brought me straight back to my 6th grade classroom. And it makes me miss those days, which is not always easy to do.


What the back cover has to say:
Alice-Miranda Highton-Smith-Kennigton-Jones can't wait to start boarding school. When she arrives at Winchesterfield-Downsfordvale Academy for Proper Young Ladies, the adventure begins . . . only not quite as Alice-Miranda expects. The minute she sets foot on the school's manicured grounds, she senses that something is wrong: Miss Grimm, the headmistress, is nowhere to be seen, the gardens have no flowers, and a mysterious stranger seems to be hiding out on the premises.



But that's not all. Some girls are mean and spoiled, like Alethea Goldsworthy. Can Alice-Miranda defeat Alethea in one of three difficult tests she must pass to remain at school? Will she discover Winchesterfield-Downsfordvale's big secret—and make things right? Well, if anyone can, it's spunky Alice-Miranda!

What Lila has to say:

What a wonderful start to a new series. Tweens will fall in love with Alice-Miranda (as I did) and will be lining up for the next installment. And it's a super-easy sell making me wish I was back in the classroom again so I could pass it along. Readers will be thrilled with the cast of characters--Alice-Miranda is the youngest and has the most positive outlook on life, which can't help but make you smile, there are a handful of misunderstoods, who I always enjoy because they appear to be one way and end up altogether different and then some trusty friends, which after reading a ridiculous amount of mean-girl-inspired YA, is incredibly refreshing. Add in a fun mystery and a fascinating boarding school that doesn't seem quite right and get ready for a solid middle grade read.

This is one you can recommend without hesitation as girls will be drawn right into Alice-Miranda's world. Even better? It comes complete with a series of extras in the back. Recipes featured throughout, a handy cast of characters and an epilogue that pulls it all together. There's even a sneak preview of Alice-Miranda's next adventure. So glad I had a chance to read this one! It takes everything I loved about teaching those quirky, often-awkward, middle grade students and rolls it up into one perfect package. I'll definitely be sending a few emails out to my teacher friends after this one.

In fact, this book made me so happy, we figured why not spread the love? One lucky commenter will win a copy of ALICE-MIRANDA AT SCHOOL so you can see for yourself!

Check out what the other Bookinistas are up to this week:


13 comments:

Unknown said...

This book sounds so cute!!!! I'd love to get my hands on it! Being the first commentor is usually a death wish but I'm feeling super lucky today!!!! So count me in and if you wanna throw a few brownie points in as well that would be helpful!

Off to tweet! OH and you'll see it on my sidebar even though I'd love Alice-Miranda all to myself :)

Laura Pauling said...

It does look really cute esp. with the illustrated cover!

Laura Pauling said...

It does look really cute esp. with the illustrated cover!

Tracey Neithercott said...

That sounds adorable. I especially love the title of Winchesterfield-Downsfordvale Academy for Proper Young Ladies.

Hardygirl said...

Well this just looks like the cutest thing. And, I've got a house full of tweens (well, just two--but it FEELS like a whole house full).

sf

Melody said...

Sounds adorable! And I wouldn't mind a bit getting away from all the YA mean girls. :) Count me in! :)

Christine Fonseca said...

I am so checking out this book for my youngest! I think she'd love it.

Aik said...

I'd love to read this book!

aikychien at yahoo dot com

Matthew MacNish said...

Wow, that character's name is a mouth full, but also very cute.

Jacqueline Harvey said...

Hi Lisa and Laura,

I promise I'm not writing to win a copy of the book! But I did want to say thank you for your lovely review and I'm really enjoying all the comments from your blog fans. I hope Alice-Miranda finds lots of friends in the US and your post is much appreciated. So hello to all your readers!

Best wishes,
Jacqueline Harvey

Author Joshua Hoyt said...

This looks like a very cute book.

αιѕнαн ❤ said...

Awesome contest LiLa! I actually love MG and review them ,too! :)

oceanbreeze235(at)gmail(dot)com

Stina said...

This sounds adorable. Too bad it's too old for my daughter, and I can't see it being my 8 yo and 11 yo sons thing. :(

If my TBR pile wasn't so tall, I'd be reading it myself.

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