As Chimney Sweepers Come to Dust: A Flavia de Luce Novel by Alan Bradley

So, technically, this is the 8th book in the series, but you can jump in anywhere you like.  Click here to view Acoustik titles available.  Flavia is a little rascal of an 11 year old who is constantly being ignored or picked on by her two older sisters.  She will remind you of a mix of a young Marie Curie or Nancy Drew: constantly stumbling into mysterious cases and solving them with her intellect.  Charming and smart, you'll love this series.

Insatiable Appetites by Stuart Woods

This is the latest in the Stone Barrington Novels, number 31 to be exact.  He's not up to number 31 in the series by being unpopular!  Again, feel free to start anywhere in the series that you'd like.  If you prefer to start at the beginning, the first one is New York Dead.

The Empty Throne by Bernard Cornwell

Cornwell has been writing historical fiction since 1981, and has 7 different series that you may already be familiar with.  This is the latest in the Warrior Chronicles.  It's popular primarily with men, but also with middle school boys despite, or perhaps because of, the violence.

 

 

Morte by Robert Repino

The first decision that Sebastian must make after he becomes self-aware is whether or not to kill his master, who is in the process of trying to kill the rest of their family.

Sebastian is then on a quest to find his pre-change friend, Sheba.  He doesn't know if he will ever find her, but he has to try since she's the only friend he has.  Along the way Sebastian must confront the Red Sphinx, flee giant ants, battle humans, and avoid contracting EMSAH, the mysterious disease the humans have left behind.

I had so much fun reading this book, that I can't recommend it enough!  Sebastian's pre-change life was a joy to read about.  He had the purrfect life.  I can see him now, exploring the house without a care in the world.  Using animal characters to explore war, faith, love, and religion was a joy to read. The animals all grew in different ways, depending upon how they were raised, whether they were domestic or wild, whether they were large bobcats or small mice, and whether they were "fixed" or declawed. They ended up creating a society that was similar to human society, but did they make the same mistakes?  Only you can answer that.  This is for fans of Animal Farm, Brave New World, or any other dystopian fiction.  It's also a great pick for fans of any kind of adventure or fantasy.

Mr. Brown's Fantastic Hat by Ayano Imai

Mr. Brown is a chap that thinks he is perfectly fine living alone with no friends.  One day he discovers that a bird has made a nest in his top hat.  He doesn't like this too much. Soon more birds make nests in his hat.  To his suprise Mr. Brown's hat gets taller to accommodate the birds.  After some time, Mr. Brown gets used to the birds and likes to have them around.  He has all kinds of fun with them.  One cold fall day Mr. Brown wakes up and his birds are gone.  He waits and waits, he even leaves his hat outside hoping they will come back for it, but alas he can't wait any longer and must start hibernating for the winter.  I'll let you find out what will happen in the spring for your self.