Phineas and Ferb

Phineas and Ferb, produced by Walt Disney Company

Plot: Phineas and his stepbrother, Ferb, want to experience the ultimate summer vacation. To accomplish their goal, they plan elaborate adventures and create unbelievable inventions. However, their older sister, Candace, is determined to expose their behavior to their mother. Meanwhile, Perry, the boys' pet platypus, works as a secret agent to stop the evil Dr. Doofenshmirtz from causing havoc. The climax of the Dr. and platypus' fights inevitably prevent Candace from busting the boys, leaving her stunned and stuttering at the end of every episode.

Genre: Cartoon

Reading Level: Rated G

Similar Titles: Spongebob Squarepants, Penguins of Madagascar

Personal Thoughts: While some reviewers complain about the show's repetitive nature, most viewers easily understand the cartoon's appeal. It is just a goofy, over-the-top, funny show. It does not try to take itself seriously. It does not discuss the horrors of being a tween or teen. It does not try to teach kids trivia. It simply focuses on entertaining its audience, and it does so very well.

P.S. Dreamworks dragon does not approve of your viewing of Disney Channel shows (you can just barely see him glaring at you over the computer screen).

Matilda

Dahl, Roald. Matilda. New York: Viking, 1988.

Plot: Matilda is extraordinary. At five and a half years old, she can read novels and multiply double-digit numbers. However, her parents think she is stupid, and they take every opportunity they can to tell her so. She eventually decides to discipline her parents through a series of pranks. The efforts seem rewarded, but they do not prepare her for Miss Tunchbull, her school headmistress. Unlike Miss Honey, Matilda's kindly teacher, the headmistress demands fearful submission through threats and violence. Faced with an injustice almost beyond her imagination, Matilda realizes she must use one of her unusual gifts to bring down Miss Tunchbull.

Genere: Fiction

Reading Level: Ages 9-12

Similar Titles: James and the Giant Peach, Fantastic Mr. Fox,  The Twits

Personal Thoughts: While the context is, perhaps, unusual, the novel follows some of Dahl's favorite themes. An unlikely hero manages to overpower strong opponents to bring justice. Apparently, the novel was banned by several libraries, presumably for its reference to psychic power. It also became a basis for a movie in 1996. The film differs greatly from the novel and received mediocre reviews. However, some favor the movie, so it has become a minor cult classic.

The Indian in the Cupboard

Banks, Lynne Reid. The Indian in the Cupboard. Garden City, NY: Doubleday, 1980.

Plot: Omri does not especially care for his brother's birthday gift. The gift, found in a rubbish heap in an alley, is a white, mirrored cupboard. Still, he likes playing with plastic figures, so he places a small Indian in the cupboard and locks it with a key of his mother's. When he opens the cupboard the next day, he is shocked to discover the toy has become a tiny, real, live Indian. While Omri treasures his discovery, the world of full-sized people is no place for a toy-sized one. Such a world becomes more complicated when Patrick, Omri's best friend, uses the cupboard on a plastic cowboy...

Genre: Fantasy

Reading Level: Ages 9-12

Similar Titles: Return of the Indian in the Cupboard, The Borrowers, James and the Giant Peach

Personal Thoughts: I was really surprised by the positive response I got from this title at work (I read during my breaks). Apparently, both tween boys and tween girls enjoy the novel. I am also a little surprised, given the stress on political correctness, that the book continues to gain favor. Granted, the book is (in my opinion) not racist, but it seems like whenever a question of race arises, books tend to get blacklisted quickly. Anyway, the novel is apparently still used in middle school lessons throughout the country. It provided the basis for a movie in 1995 (with mixed reviews) and launched a series of sequels.