Some Great Used Book Store Reading Book Finds

We stopped at our local used book store this week and I spent the last $8 of my birthday money on some used book for the kids. I love when I find the clearance rack full of good reads.

Here's what I picked up. All the books except for Inkheart were only 50 cents each, and Inkheart itself (which we've been trying to find for quite some time) was only $3.

Sword of the Rightful King, by Jane Yolen. Jaden read a few books by Jane Yolen a long time ago, but he declared that he doesn't really like King Arthur stories anymore. However, he decided he might give this one a try because the story has a twist making it quite different from the traditional version. According to the back copy on the book itself, Merlin sets up a sword-in-the-stone test to declare Authur's right to rule England, but "someone else pulls the sword out first." Interesting.

Frightful's Mountain, The Cry of the Crow, and Who Really Killed Cock Robin? by Jean Craighead George. We have several of Jean Craighead George's books already, but these were three titles that we didn't own. Jerah, being an animal lover, has really enjoyed reading all of George's books up to this point, so she's excited about reading these.

Waiting for the Rain, by Sheila Gordon. This novel is about a friendship between two boys — one white, one black. But their friendship is tested because they live in a South Africa that is still under apartheid. I've rarely seen youth novels that cover this subject before, so I was eager to grab this title for our own personal library.

The Princess Test, by Gail Carson Levine. Jerah read Ella Enchanted a couple years ago and loved it, so I'm sure she'll enjoy this short novel written by the same author.

No Promises in the Wind, by Irene Hunt. Hunt is also the author of Across Five Aprils, a very popular historical fiction narrative about the Civil War which is on Jaden's list to read this term. No Promises in the Wind is set in America in 1932 during the Great Depression.

Jump Ship to Freedom, by James Lincoln Collier and Christopher Collier. We have two other good historical fiction books already on our bookshelves by these authors — Winter Hero and My Brother Sam is Dead — both set around the time of the American Revolution. Jump Ship to Freedom follows the story of a young slave whose father fought in the Revolution and earned enough to buy his family's freedom.

Inkheart, by Cornelia Funke. Both my children love Cornelia Funke's books, but unfortunately, our local library doesn't have Inkheart in circulation anymore (apparently a patron decided he wanted to keep the book instead of return it on time). We've been unsuccessful in finding a used copy of the book until this week. Inkheart would fall under the fantasy genre, which both kids thoroughly enjoy.

Perloo the Bold, by Avi. I'll be honest and say that I've never read any books by Avi. We do have a few books on the shelf by him, but I don't think the kids have read them yet either. This story about a "scholarly, shy  member of the rabbit-like Montmers" looked like an interesting book to add to our need-to-read collection.