Reviews written by Megan Kelly

Rick Riordan’s second novel in The Kane Chronicles series is as action-packed as all his other books. The Throne of Fire follows the adventures of Sadie and Carter Kane, descendents of Egyptian pharaohs, as they race against time to prevent the chaos serpent Apophis from destroying the world. Just a...

Arn Chorn-Pond had the typical life of a Cambodian child, until a Communist group called the Khmer Rouge took control of the government and forced all the citizens into work camps. In NEVER FALL DOWN, Patricia McCormick takes Arn's account of his life in "the Killing Fields" and writes it...

In the eight and a half months since we left them in Bumped, Harmony and Melody have become the most famous teens in the world, known as The Hotties. As twins who are pregnant with twins, they are swamped with endorsement deals for perfumes and energy bars, hounded by paparazzi,...

Viola, her mother, and her brother are doing their best in war-torn Sudan, where all the men have gone to fight and those left behind are terrorized by soldiers. Viola is not exempt from the violence; when she is raped, the family escapes to stay with an uncle in Portland,...

Eight years have passed since Leck's death and Bitterblue is now the Queen of Monsea, surrounded by her father's former advisers and burdened by paperwork and tasks she doesn't quite understand. She begins sneaking out of the castle and learns that her kingdom is not what she thought it was....

I'm always looking to add sports books to my collection, but the challenge is that I don't really enjoy reading them. There are many sports that don't interest me, and I would rather be playing the ones that do. I want to read all the books that I recommend to...

Zeeta and her mother Layla have moved to a new country every year for Zeeta's entire life. When they end up running cabanas in Mazunte, Mexico, Zeeta is determined to make it stick. After all, her beloved Wendell has an internship nearby and her long-lost father is supposedly from Mazunte....

Master of graphic novel anthologies, Kazu Kibuishi is back with "Explorer: The Mystery Boxes" which features seven stories about a mystery box. By inviting artists who are comfortable with writing short stories in graphic novel form, then providing them with a provocative theme, Kibuishi has guaranteed the reader an entertaining...

Karla's quilt is unlike any other: it comforts her as she falls asleep with stories of the squares (or "schnitz") that make it up. Through the quilt, she learns about her grandparents' love, her aunt's imagination, and her mother's adventurous childhood. When Karla's new baby sister moves into her bedroom,...

When a young girl and her mother move to a new house in a neighborhood that must be described as "Dirty-third street", the mother declares it perfect because they can afford it. She encourages her daughter to see the house through eyes of faith, then sets about creating their home....

A young boy prepares for winter by asking his pet lamb for wool, then knitting himself a whole host of cold weather gear. When he sees his his tiny wool-less friend, he surprises the lamb with his own set of wool clothing. This book could be...

Marsha Wilson Chall’s sweet new picture book, A SECRET KEEPS, follows a young boy as he visits his grandparents’ country home, imagining the secret that his grandfather promised him. Written in verse, Chall uses alliteration and gorgeous descriptive language to create a read aloud that will be requested again and...

In a plot device similar to Dickens' "A Christmas Carol", Tessa passes away in a freak dodgeball accident and is forced to relive her life, based on items from the mall where she spends all her time. I did not enjoy this book at all, unfortunately....

Seventeen-year-old Kit has her life all planned out. Between her AP classes, social life, and plans to spend the summer road tripping with her best friend, she lives a happily high-pressured life. When she learns that her younger brother has cancer, everything changes. Her family is swept up...

FAR FROM YOU is the only Lisa Schroeder book I hadn't read, and I was hesitant to check it out because I am not a fan of angels, which the cover emphasizes. I ignored my reservations and read this novel in verse, and there were hardly any references to angels...