The Bloodlines series from Capstone Publishing by Zachary M. Sherman is more about format than plot, although there is enough meat in these 80 page books that students who have forgotten for the last two months to get a book about war for language arts that they need for the test next week will find enough to discuss. The interesting thing is how they are formatted to reel in reluctant readers. Pages are occasionally illustrated with graphic novel style illustrations, and chapters end with debriefings that discuss causes of the war, equipment used, or events of specific days. This will please my students who like nonfiction tremendously. The writing is fine and the reading levels for Accelerated Reader unusually high (over 5.0 is high!), probably because of the technical terms. My only complaint is the use of large font in the middle of text to add things like kablamo!, fwooosh, and ratatat, which was distractingly Batman- like. Just because we can play with text doesn't mean we have to. All in all, this series (even at $17.49 each) was a good investment. All descriptions from publisher. A Time For War When his plane is shot down on June 6, 1944, D-Day, paratrooper Private Michael Donovan must find a way to survive and locate his platoon. Blood Brotherhood On December 1, 1950, Marine Captain Everett Donovan wakes up in a mortar crater behind enemy lines and is confronted by his Korean counterpart. Fighting Phantoms Shot down over Viet Nam in 1968, Marine Lieutenant Candy Man Donovan must leave his seriously injured best friend behind in enemy territory while he tries to reach their rendezvous point. Control Under Fire Lieutenant Commander Donovan has a chance to prove to himself and his elite SEAL team that he has what it takes to lead when their helicopter is shot down and some of his men captured by terrorists in the mountains of Kandahar, Afghanistan. http://msyinglingreads.blogspot.com/2011/04/bloodlines-by-zachary-sherman.html * Ms. Yingling Reads blog *
