Flush by Carl Hiaasen

Noah's Dad is in jail and his family's reaction is, "Oh, no, not again." It seems Dad is always getting into trouble for fighting with people who destroy the environment on the Florida coast. Dad is in jail for sinking the casino boat, the Coral Queen. He suspected them of illegally dumping their bilge tanks in the basin.

Noah and his sister Abbey set out to find proof that this is true with the hopes of getting Dad out of jail. Mom seriously considers the "D" word because she is tired being married to a jailbird - not to mention that half the town thinks her husband is a lunatic.

Flush is a charming, funny story dealing with very real environmental issues and people who care about keeping the world pollution free.

This book is the One Book Crossroads selection for 2009-2010.

The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman

The Graveyard Book begins with a really gruesome event. A man savagely kills an entire family except for a baby who unwittingly crawls his way to the nearby graveyard. The baby is quickly adopted by a resident ghost, Mrs. Owens, who renames him Nobody Owens. Thus, young Bod grows up in the graveyard and is taught ghostly skills like fading, haunting and dream walking as well as reading and writing by a whole cast of ghoulish creatures.

Neil Gaiman crafts a rich story that often makes the reader stop and say, I never thought of this before. What struck me is the idea that the ghosts go back to Ancient Roman times (the story takes place in England.) Nobody is thus schooled in history and has various learning experiences from different centuries.

In spite of the horrific first few pages, the rest of the book is scary but not grotesque. It is also quite suspenseful when the killer returns to the graveyard seeking to kill the one survivor, Nobody.

Gaiman is an incredible writer!

Heat by Mike Lupica

I have wanted to read a book by Mike Lupica and Heat did not disappoint.

Star Pitcher Michael Arroyo has always had dreams of pitching in the Little League World Series. Just when it appears his dream might come true, an opposing team challenges his age. As a Cuban born immigrant, he has trouble proving his birth date. This is further complicated by a family secret which he cannot reveal.

Heat is a true baseball lover's book. Lupica, a sportswriter for the Daily News, definitely gets into the head of a pitcher in a most realistic way. This is not just a boy's book either. There is a good bit of romance with Ellie, the daughter of a very famous pitcher.

Heat is well written and entertaining, with many subplots, which make it a very quick read.