In Charlie & Frog, Charlie goes to live with his television-obsessed grandparents in a small town that’s home to a school for the deaf. His first friend, a girl called Frog, rallies him to her side in order to solve a mystery, just like the deaf heroine in her favorite mystery series. A lower middle grade series starter. Lots of lessons in sign language for readers. And the recurring motto, “Deaf Can!” Snake is the third book in the Five Ancestors series. Since it’s a direct continuation, there’s not much I can say. Except that I really liked these books. Ivy & Bean is about two very different girls become the best of friends. A lower middle grade series. Not my favorite dynamic, but I’ll give a few more books in the series a chance. I’m the type of reader who gets attached to characters.
C. J. Milbrandt 