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Cindy M
An accountant and CPA by profession, I found myself a book reviewer for Squeaky Clean Reads by happenstance. When the opportunity came to transform that website into Compass Book Ratings, I was excited to seize it and meld my business background with my love of books. As the mother of three teenage sons, I have read a large number of children and young adult books and I believe that there is great value in a content review service. As much as we would love to read everything our children read, there just isn’t enough time. I also appreciate being able to select books for myself that are really worth my precious and limited reading time. I believe there is a book out there for everyone–they just have to find it!
https://www.compassbookratings.com

The Trouble With Heroes

Author Kate Messner digs deep into heavy themes: death of a parent, substance abuse, conflicted feelings about the character's relationship to his father, and the burden of being a hero and the after…
Cindy M

Candle Island

This middle grade novel set on a small Maine island has a bit of a throwback vibe with its timeless setting and particularly non-modern activities by the young protagonists. In other words, not every…
Cindy M

If Cats Disappeared from the World

This slim tome has been gracing the New York Times Bestseller List recently. Translated from Japanese, it follows the last few days of a young man who is dying and his deal with the devil to extend h…
Cindy M

A Study in Drowning

It is easy to see how this book vaulted to the top of the young adult New York Times Bestseller list. Dark, brooding, and gothic, it is a blend of mystery, fantasy, and romance. The protagonist, Eff…
Cindy M

One Big Open Sky

This Newbery Honor book tells the story of an African American family's trip by wagon to Nebraska in 1879 to claim land in hopes of a better life for themselves away from the South. The storytellers …
Cindy M

Will’s Race for Home

Will sets out for the adventure of a lifetime with his father as they travel from Texas for the 1889 Oklahoma land rush. Both historical fiction and adventure rolled into one, the pacing of this book…
Cindy M

The First State of Being

Author Erin Entrada Kelly continues to be the darling of the Newbery Medals board. She now has two Newbery Awards and one Newbery Honor Book in her quiver. Frankly, the first two nods she received for…
Cindy M

Across So Many Seas

Across So Many Seas is a 2025 Newbery Honor Book. It is broken into four sections with each section having a different 12-year-old female protagonist in a different time period over a 500-year span. …
Cindy M

The Gorgon’s Fury

The Gorgon's Fury is a stand-alone offering in the Fablehaven Universe in which minor characters become the main characters. It is not necessary to have read any of the Fablehaven books in order to fo…
Cindy M

Magnolia Wu Unfolds It All

This contemporary book is a 2025 Newbery Honor Book. Supported by the author's illustrations, Magnolia and a new friend go on a simple quest to find the owners of the lost socks left at Magnolia's fam…
Cindy M

Sparrow Rising

This may be your middle grade reader's next favorite book. And, although it is a middle grade fantasy and the artwork on the cover may give the impression that this book is only for more juvenile rea…
Cindy M

The Menagerie

Written over a decade ago, The Menagerie still has the magic. This is spot-on middle grade fantasy from Tui T. Sutherland, best-selling author of the Wings of Fire Series, and her sister, Kari Suther…
Cindy M

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