FINISHED:
Appelt, Kathi, and Alison McGhee. (2016). Maybe a Fox. New York: Atheneum/Simon & Schuster.

[Pretty moving, with a solid mood.  Vaguely reminiscent of one of my personal favorites from last year, MOONPENNY ISLAND.  Imagine that this year's Newbery committee will be talking about this one...]

STARTED:
Hardinge, Frances. (2016). The Lie Tree. New York: Amulet/Abrams.

[Starred Reviews from pretty much EVERYBODY.]

*

FINISHED:
Dougherty, Michael. (2015). Trick 'r Treat: Days of the Dead. Burbank, CA: Legendary Comics.

[.]

STARTED:
Appelt, Kathi, and Alison McGhee. (2016). Maybe a Fox. New York: Atheneum/Simon & Schuster.

[.]

*

FINISHED:
Wolk, Lauren. (2016). Wolf Hollow. New York: Dutton/Penguin/Random House.

[.]

STARTED:
Dougherty, Michael. (2015). Trick 'r Treat: Days of the Dead. Burbank, CA: Legendary Comics.

[You may not know this, but TRICK 'R TREAT has become one of my favorite films.  May have even surpassed HALLOWEEN as my favorite film to watch during that season...]

*

FINISHED:
Albertalli, Becky. (2015). Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda. New York: Balzer + Bray/HarperCollins.

[Finally got around to reading this one after getting a free copy at the Morris Awards while at ALA Midwinter.  FANTASTIC read.  This is another case of "why wasn't this book around when I was a teenager?" envy.  Great voice.  Cleverly has every other chapter be emails between Simon's secret identity and Blue (another student at school who is keeping his identity under wraps).  A fun coming out story with a sweet romance that builds slowly, and virtually!]

STARTED:
Wolk, Lauren. (2016). Wolf Hollow. New York: Dutton/Penguin/Random House.

[4 starred reviews (from all of the majors) - and having fun trying to pick what might be up for the 2017 Newbery.]

*

FINISHED: 
Brown, Peter. (2016). The Wild Robot. New York: Little, Brown.

[.]

STARTED:
Albertalli, Becky. (2015). Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda. New York: Balzer + Bray/HarperCollins.

[.]

*

FINISHED:

Joyce, William. (2016). Ollie's Odyssey. New York: Atheneum/Simon & Schuster.

[.]

STARTED:
Brown, Peter. (2016). The Wild Robot. New York: Little, Brown.

[.]

*

FINISHED:
Cossanteli, Veronica. (2016). The Extincts. New York: Henry Holt/MacMillan.

[Hoping to help his single mother out financially, George answers an ad for help at a local farm, only finding out when he gets there that its owner is taking care of a menagerie of extinct and mythological creatures.  With the help of a girl named Prudence, George is on a mission to find a basilisk from the farm who is on the loose and turning the town’s animals (and a few humans) to stone, hoping to catch it before it can fall into the hands of Prudence’s taxidermist stepmother.  Dry humor abounds, and George learns that “real men aren’t afraid of pink” and that it’s ok to be friends with a girl, though Prudence’s evil, taxidermist stepmother and her henchmen come across as villainous caricatures.  Originally published in the UK, there are a few “British-isms” that may confound some (Mum, redundancy money, rugby tackle, cherry stone, fancy-dress party), but shrewd readers should be able to discern their meaning through context clues.  Digitally-created, spot illustrations that read somewhat flat are scattered throughout, while a glossary at the end provides a bit of information about some of the creatures featured in the story.  Readers eager for a more sophisticated story about a sanctuary for fanciful creatures are best to try out Brandon Mull’s far superior Fablehaven series (Shadow Mountain, 2006-).  Review based on ARC.]

STARTED:
Joyce, William. (2016). Ollie's Odyssey. New York: Atheneum/Simon & Schuster.

[New William Joyce!  New William Joyce!  And it's an illustrated novel!]

*