March is Women’s History Month, but we at Kidsmomo say, “Why should grown-ups get all the glory?” (It has nothing to do with the fact that we still act like children. Really.) So in honor of females of ALL ages, we’ve gathered a group of great girls — from the younger sister of Sherlock Holmes, to a psychic investigator, to a bunch of gals who may remind you of… yourself! Meet them all in these series starring girls (in no particular order):

1. Alice series by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor (Karen’s pick)
2. Anne of Green Gables books by L.M. Montgomery (Nancy’s pick)
3. Anastasia Krupnik by Lois Lowry
4. Ramona books by Beverly Cleary
5. Amber Brown series by Paula Danziger
6. Dear Dumb Diary by Jim Benton
7. Sammy Keyes by Wendelin Van Draanen
8. Theodosia series by R.L. LaFevers
9. Judy Moody, written by Megan McDonald and illustrated by Peter Reynolds
10. Gilda Joyce series by Jennifer Allison
11. Katie Kazoo Switcheroo by Nancy E. Krulik
12. Enola Holmes series by Nancy Springer
13. Kiki Strike books by Kristen Miller
14. Amelia Rules! (graphic novel series) by Jimmy Gownley

(Also, here’s a printable version of our Series Starring Girls booklist, for you to take to the library or bookstore — or share with all your amazing gal pals.)

If you’ve read any of these, send in your book review. Or send in a review of your favorite series starring a girl.

UPDATE 3/22/11: We revealed the answer to our Series Starring Girls Mystery Book Theater in the “About a Girl” Podcast, so take a listen if you want to know the answer. Or just tune in if you want to learn something new about Nancy — that you may wish you could unlearn afterward…

You’ve heard the saying, “There’s two sides to every story.” Well, some books take that idea really literally. From siblings who don’t quite see eye to eye, to a group of schoolmates coming together for a competition, to long-distance best friends trying to stay in touch — check out these tales told from multiple points of view (in no particular order):

1. Never Mind!: A Twin Novel by Avi and Rachel Vail (Karen’s pick)
2. The View from Saturday by E. L. Konigsburg (Nancy’s pick)
3. The Strange Case of Origami Yoda by Tom Angleberger
4. When My Name Was Keoko by Linda Sue Park
5. A Week in the Woods by Andrew Clements
6. Flipped by Wendelin van Draanen
7. The Candymakers by Wendy Mass
8. P.S. Longer Letter Later by Paula Danziger and Ann M. Martin
9. The Wanderer by Sharon Creech
10. Criss Cross by Lynne Rae Perkins
11. Nim’s Island by Wendy Orr
12. Morning Girl by Michael Dorris

(Also, here’s a printable version of our One Story, Multiple Perspectives booklist, for you to take to the library or bookstore — or share with a friend and then argue over from your different points of view.)

If you’ve read any of these, send in your book review. Or send in a review of your favorite book told from alternating viewpoints.

UPDATE 3/8/11: We revealed the answer to our One Story, Multiple Narrators Mystery Book Theater in the “Look Who’s Talking!” Podcast, so take a listen if you want to know the answer. Or just tune in if you want to hear about one time Nancy embarrassed her older sisters when they were kids!

Slavery. Sharecropping. Civil rights. Broken barriers. Marvelous music. Timeless tales. Emancipation, integration, and celebration. February is Black History Month — and what a long and storied history it is! Check out some of those stories in our Black History Month booklist (in no particular order):

Fiction:

1. One Crazy Summer by Rita Williams-Garcia (Karen’s pick)
2. Chains by Laurie Halse Anderson
3. The People Could Fly written by Virginia Hamilton, illustrated by Diane Dillon and Leo Dillon
4. Zora and Me by Victoria Bond and T. R. Simon
5. Witness by Karen Hesse
6. True North: A Novel of the Underground Railroad by Kathryn Lasky
7. The Road to Paris by Nikki Grimes
8. Locomotion by Jacqueline Woodson
9. Day of Tears: A Novel in Dialogue by Julius Lester
10. The Land by Mildred D. Taylor
11. A Friendship For Today by Patricia C. McKissack
12. Sounder by William H. Armstrong
13. Dave at Night by Gail Carson Levine
14. Meet Addy (American Girl series) by Connie Porter

Nonfiction:

1. Freedom Train: The Story of Harriet Tubman by Dorothy Sterling (Nancy’s pick)
2. Rosa Parks: My Story by Rosa Parks
3. Jackie’s Nine: Jackie Robinson’s Values to Live By by Sharon Robinson
4. Malcolm X: By Any Means Necessaryby Walter Dean Myers
5. Through My Eyes by Ruby Bridges
6. Remember: The Journey to School Integration by Toni Morrison
7. Who Was Martin Luther King, Jr.? by Bonnie Bader and Nancy Harrison
8. Sojourner Truth: Ain’t I A Woman by Patricia C. McKissack

If you’ve read any of these, send in your book review. Or send in a review of your favorite book in honor of Black History Month.

UPDATE 2/22/11: We revealed the answer to our One Story, Multiple Narrators Mystery Book Theater in the “I Have a Dream” Podcast, so take a listen if you want to know the answer. Or just tune in if you want to hear our version of a weather report. No, really!

A budding musician’s first piano recital. A local competition for expert violinists. A kid’s introduction to jazz during the Harlem Renaissance. And the inside scoop behind the lives of The Beatles. Like a medley of different songs, this booklist covers a variety of tunes — from classical composers to contemporary RAWK. Pump up the volume with these books about music (in no particular order):

Fiction:

1. Lemonade Mouth by Mark Peter Hughes (Karen’s pick)
2. A Crooked Kind of Perfect by Linda Urban
3. Dave at Night by Gail Carson Levine
4. The Mozart Season by Virginia Euwer Wolff
5. Fame School series by Mariah Fredericks
6. Fiddle Fever by Sharon Arms Doucet
7. Mountain Solo by Jeanette Ingold
8. The Facts and Fictions of Minna Pratt by Patricia MacLachlan

Nonfiction:

1. Yeah! Yeah! Yeah!: The Beatles, Beatlemania, and the Music that Changed the World by Bob Spitz (Nancy’s pick)
2. All Shook Up: The Life and Death of Elvis Presley by Barry Denenberg
3. The Rock ‘n’ Roll Camp for Girls: How to Start a Band, Write Songs, Record an Album, and Rock Out!!
4. Lives of the Musicians: Good Times, Bad Times (and What the Neighbors Thought), written by Kathleen Krull, illustrated by Kathryn Hewitt

(Also, here’s a printable version of our Music booklist, for you to take to the library or bookstore — or keep by the computer while you surf iTunes!)

If you’ve read any of these, send in your book review. Or send in a review of your favorite book about music.

UPDATE 2/8/11: We revealed the answer to our Music Mystery Book Theater in the “Face the Music” Podcast, so take a listen if you want to know the answer. Or just tune in if you want to hear Karen and Nancy make fun of one of their friends — always a delight!

It’s a bird! It’s a plane! It’s… a flying pickle? Or wait, it’s a crime-fighting cafeteria worker? No, I’m mistaken — it’s clearly a kid with technologically-endowed braces. Or is it Captain Nobody?

Given this booklist, it could be any of the above! Because these aren’t books about legends like Superman, Spiderman, or Wonder Woman; these are stories of superheroes… of sorts. From a sixth-grader who has a run-in with space plasma to a kid who’s the only “normal” person in Superopolis, meet these unconventional superheroes (in no particular order):

1. Magic Pickle (graphic novel series) by Scott Morse (Karen’s pick)
2. Powerless by Matthew Cody (Nancy’s pick)
3. NERDS: National Espionage, Rescue, and Defense Society by Michael Buckley
4. Captain Nobody by Dean Pitchford
5. Shredderman series by Wendelin van Draanen
6. Lunch Lady series by Jarrett J. Krosoczka
7. The Extraordinary Adventures of Ordinary Boy series by William Boniface
8. Melvin Beederman Superhero series by Greg Trine and illustrated by Rhode Montijo
9. Hero by Mike Lupica
10. Archvillain by Barry Lyga

(Also, here’s a printable version of our Superheroes (Kinda) booklist, for you to take to the library or bookstore — or just use for scratch paper as you sketch out the power-boosting machine that will turn you into a genuine superhero yourself.)

If you’ve read any of these, send in your book review. Or send in a review of your favorite book about a superhero (of sorts).

UPDATE 1/25/11: We revealed the answer to our Superheroes (of Sorts) Mystery Book Theater in the “Up, Up, and Away!” Podcast, so take a listen if you want to know the answer. Or just tune in if you want to hear lots of terrible puns and our new silly names, care of Professor Poopypants. (Confused? Just listen to the podcast. All will be revealed.)

Should auld acquaintance be forgot, and never brought to mind? Should auld acquaintance be forgot, and auld lang syne?

Uh, what the heck does that mean? Yeah, we don’t know either… But we DO know that it’s almost 2011, and that means a new year, a fresh start, a blank slate. To celebrate, we’ve rustled up some books about new beginnings — from starting a new school, to moving to a new town, to welcoming a new family member to the home. Ring in the new year with these reads (in no particular order):

1. The Search for WondLa by Tony DiTerlizzi (Karen’s pick)
2. Be a Perfect Person in Just Three Days! by Stephen Manes (Nancy’s pick)
3. Penny Dreadful by Laurel Snyder
4. Miracles on Maple Hill by Virginia Sorenson
5. The Four-Story Mistake by Elizabeth Enright
6. The Swiss Family Robinson by Johann Wyss
7. Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery
8. A Little Princess by Frances Hodgson Burnett
9. Ramona and Her Father by Beverly Cleary
10. Sarah, Plain and Tall by Patricia MacLachlan
11. A Friendship For Today by Patricia McKissack
12. Bud, Not Buddy by Christopher Paul Curtis
13. How Tia Lola Came to Stay by Julia Alvarez
14. Hattie Big Sky by Kirby Larson
15. Pictures of Hollis Woods by Patricia Reilly Giff
16. Olivia Kidney by Ellen Potter
17. In the Year of the Boar and Jackie Robinson by Bette Bao Lord
18. Bloomability by Sharon Creech

And don’t forgot our recommendations from our previous New Kid theme!

(Also, here’s a printable version of our New Beginnings booklist, for you to take to the library or bookstore — or that rockin’ New Year’s party you’ve got planned.)

With Deathly Hallows: Part 1 coming out this month, you’d better believe it’s time for some serious Pottermania! But as much as the new movie makes us want to dress up in robes and draw lightning bolts on our foreheads and party with other Harryheads, the upcoming release of the film is also kind of sad… because it’s the beginning of the end of an era, and a reminder that there are no more Harry Potter books for us to enjoy.

*sob*

But never fear! Kidsmomo has conjured up a list of other books for Harry Potter fans. Because Diagon Alley may be closed for business, but there are still more worlds to explore…

Fantasy Series for Harry Fans:

1. The Books of Elsewhere (Book 1: The Shadows) by Jacqueline West (Karen’s pick)
2. Percy Jackson and the Olympians by Rick Riordan (Nancy’s pick)
3. The Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel by Michael Scott
4. Artemis Fowl by Eoin Colfer
5. Ranger’s Apprentice by John Flanagan
6. Inheritance Cycle by Christopher Paolini
7. Bartimaeus Trilogy by Jonathan Stroud
8. Septimus Heap by Angie Sage
9. Molly Moon by Georgia Byng
10. Nathaniel Fludd, Beastologist by R.L. LaFevers

More Boarding School Adventures:

1. Malory Towers series by Enid Blyton
2. Boy by Roald Dahl
3. The Mysterious Benedict Society by Trenton Lee Stewart
4. Dragonfly Pool by Eva Ibbotson

(And here’s a printable version of our “Beyond Hogwarts” booklist, for you to take to the library or bookstore — or to send to Flourish and Botts as an order form.)

If you’ve read any of these, send in your book review. Or send in a review of a book or series that you would recommend to a Harry Potter fan.

UPDATE 12/7/10: We revealed the answer to our Harry Potter Withdrawal Mystery Book Theater in our “The Boy Who Lived” Podcast, so take a listen if you want to know the answer. Or just tune in if you want to hear Karen and Nancy gush over the Harry Potter series. We really could go on and on and on… and on.

Sure, Halloween means candy and apple-bobbing and funny animated specials on TV. But we all know that the really delicious part of Halloween is the scary stuff — and we’ve got plenty of bone-chilling stories to get you in the spirit!

Last year, we got ready for Halloween with this booklist of frightening reads. This year, we’ve got even more spooky stories to terrify your toes off and make you sleep with the lights on for weeks! Including dolls that come to life to give a warning, a clock that counts down to the end of the world, and an unsolved murder that leads to an amusement park — here they are (in no particular order):

1. The Boneshaker by Kate Milford (Karen’s pick)
2. Dying to Meet You (43 Old Cemetery Road) by Kate Klise (Nancy’s pick)
3. The House with a Clock in Its Walls by John Bellairs
4. School of Fear series by Gitty Daneshvari
5. Haunted Houses (Are You Scared Yet?) by Robert D. San Souci
6. Suddenly Supernatural series by Elizabeth Cody Kimmel
7. The Halloween Tree by Ray Bradbury
8. Closed for the Season by Mary Downing Hahn
9. The Books of Elsewhere Book 1:The Shadows by Jacqueline West
10. The Dollhouse Murders by Betty Ren Wright

(And here’s a printable version of our More Spooky Stuff booklist, for you to take to the library or bookstore — or to bury deep underground so you can never be frightened by these stories.)

If you’ve read any of these, send in your book review. Or send in a review of your favorite spooky book.

UPDATE 11/9/10: We revealed the answer to our Spooky Mystery Book Theater in our “The Horror, The Horror” Podcast, so take a listen if you want to know the answer. Or just tune in if you want to hear Karen whimper over a scary story.

Did you know October is Mystery Month? And since it’s October right now, that means we’re in the middle of Mystery Month! See our powers of deduction at work? Perfect for Mystery Month! We’d be the awesomest detectives ever, don’t you think?

[awkward silence]

Uh, anyway… Even though we celebrated last October with this booklist of marvelous mysteries, we couldn’t resist dedicating another booklist to even more mysteries. From a scavenger hunt to a stolen book to murder to the meaning of life — here they are (in no particular order):

1. Mudshark by Gary Paulsen (Karen’s pick)
2. Joey Fly, Private Eye in Creepy Crawly Crime (graphic novel) by Aaron Reynolds (Nancy’s pick)
3. Baker Street Irregulars series by Tracy Mack
4. Who Stole the Wizard of Oz? by Avi
5. The House of Dies Drear by Virginia Hamilton
6. Missing series by Margaret Peterson Haddix
7. The Case of the Goblin Pearls by Laurence Yep
8. The London Eye Mystery by Siobhan Dowd
9. Eleven by Patricia Reilly Giff
10. Two-Minute Mysteries by Donald J. Sobol
11. Jeremy Fink and the Meaning of Life by Wendy Mass
12. The Puzzling World of Winston Breen by Eric Berlin

(And here’s a printable version of our More Mysteries booklist, for you to take to the library or bookstore — or to your local private investigator, if you can’t track them down yourself.)

If you’ve read any of these, send in your book review. Or send in a review of your favorite mystery book. We’ll feature the best kid-submitted reviews in our next podcast!

UPDATE 10/19/10: We revealed the answer to our Mystery Book Mystery Book Theater in the “Mysterious Forces at Work” Podcast, so take a listen if you want to know the answer. Or just tune in if you want to hear Karen and Nancy act like super scaredy cats.

Hansel and Gretel as the original problem children? Rapunzel as a kick-butt heroine rather than a damsel in distress? Cinderella and Prince Charming in a troubled marriage? That’s right! It’s the Brothers Grimm meets The Twilight Zone in these surprising fractured fairy tales (in no particular order):

1. Leaping Beauty: And Other Animal Fairy Tales by Gregory Maguire (Karen’s pick)
2. Beauty: A Retelling of the Story of Beauty and the Beast by Robin McKinley (Nancy’s pick)
3. Cinderella (As If You Didn’t Already Know the Story) by Barbara Ensor
4. Thornspell by Helen Lowe
5. Dahl’s Revolting Rhymes by Roald Dahl
6. The Prince of the Pond by Donna Jo Napoli
7. Rapunzel’s Revenge by Shannon and Dean Hale
8. Princess Tales series by Gail Carson Levine
9. Newfangled Fairy Tales by Bruce Lansky
10. Tales from the Brothers Grimm and the Sisters Weird by Vivian Vande Velde

(And here’s a printable version of our Fractured Fairy Tales booklist, for you to take to the library or bookstore — or hand off to your fairy godmother so she can pick ‘em up for you as a little gift.)

UPDATE 10/12/10: We revealed the answer to our Fractured Fairy Tale Mystery Book Theater in the “Happily Ever After” Podcast, so take a listen if you want to know the answer. Or just tune in if you want to hear Karen make some terrible jokes about broken tails. (Fractured tales? Get it? Yeah…)

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