Calling all 10 year-olds who love to read...

For those of you with kids (especially boys) who love series:

Nate Rocks is at it again!

The highly anticipated third installment of the Nate Rocks series is here! 

According to Nathan Rockledge, fifth grade has plenty of perks. Oh sure, there is more work and that know-it-all, Lisa Crane, is still around but, there is a lot to look forward to as well: a laser tag birthday party, baseball at recess, and even a cool Halloween dance. Of course, all of that means nothing without the biggest perk of all . . . the class trip to New York City in the spring. If Nathanís class can raise enough money to go, that is.

Give Nathan paper and a pencil and watch as his imagination turns him into Nate Rocks, hero and fifth grade super star. With adventures abound, Nate saves the day time and again. But will Nate be able to save the fifth grade trip?

Join Nathan, his hilarious family, and his friends, as he rocks the school in another fun Nate Rocks adventure.

Pick up your copy at Amazon and B&N!

Chat with Karen Pokras Toz today at 10:30 am  EST and then follow the Nate Rocks the School Tour for appearances by the author and characters, reviews, and swag pack giveaways!

 
 
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A Book that Makes Me Sad

Some books, alas, make readers teary. Anne of Green Gables had a great riff on this; the red-headed orphan's saddest story was called "My Graves."

But in the real world some fiction is so gritty and realistic, or so poignant that it brings me to the point of Mush when I read it. After the last page of A Thousand Splendid Suns, for example, I had to go and hug my four-year old daughter. HAD TO. By the way, it was two in the morning, since the book was so good I couldn't stop reading. Couldn't stop sniffling, either. Mush Factor - 3 out of 5. 

Another was The Road. This dystopian chiller is beautifully written. It was a compelling read - I had to find out what happened. The last few paragraphs are the most lyrical, and they are also the saddest. I have never seen the movie, and I don't know if I want to - the book was bad enough. Mush Factor - 4 out of 5.

But the saddest book I've read yet was The God of Small Things, which earns a perfect 5 out of 5 Mush Factor points. What happens is so bad, for so many people, and yet again - the language and descriptions are really lovely and lyrical, and I could not put it down.

So I suppose the last is my true choice for a book that makes me sad. I call the three books above "The greatest books I'll never read again."

As for my Indie choice, I'd have to pick Losing Beauty. What happens is certainly sad, although again it has that compelling factor that drove me to my Kindle in the wee hours to read "only a few more pages." And the writing is lovely - and there is a bit more hope in this one than in the others. 

If you enjoy a good, sniffly read, I'd certainly recommend any of the above. But if you want at  thehint of possible happiness, I'd offer the last.