Welcome to the eighth episode of The Book Sighting: Hidden Reads! This week, Watson Mountain’s very own Lasya discusses James Riley's The Revenge of Magic. Mrs. Maxell, one of Watson's fabulous English teachers, serves as guest interviewer.

From Goodreads:

When long-dead magical creatures are discovered all around the world, each buried with a book of magic, only children can unlock the dangerous power of the books in this start to a thrilling new series from the author of the New York Times bestselling Story Thieves!

Thirteen years ago, books of magic were discovered in various sites around the world alongside the bones of dragons. Only those born after “Discovery Day” have the power to use the magic.

Now, on a vacation to Washington, DC, Fort Fitzgerald’s father is lost when a giant creature bursts through the earth, attacking the city. Fort is devastated, until an opportunity for justice arrives six months later, when a man named Dr. Opps invites Fort to a government run school, the Oppenheimer School, to learn magic from those same books.

But life’s no easier at the school, where secrets abound. What does Jia, Fort’s tutor, know about the attacks? Why does Rachel, master of destructive magic, think Fort is out to destroy the school? And why is Fort seeing memories of an expelled girl every time he goes to sleep? If Fort doesn’t find out what’s hiding within the Oppenheimer School, more attacks will come, and this time, nothing will stop them!

To celebrate our seventh episode, Watson Mountain Middle School's Gela Russell (Assistant Principal) and Adam Howells (Instructional Technology Facilitator) dive into two incredible books with the number "seven" in the title: Holly Goldberg Sloan's Counting by 7s and Shelly Pearsall's The Seven Most Important Thing. Both books' young protagonists navigate profound grief and discover their own strength through unexpected human connections. They also discuss the power of fiction and how stories can profoundly change the way you interact with others on a daily basis.

Check out some of the art that inspirated The Seventh Most Important Thing: James Hampton | Smithsonian American Art Museum.

Welcome to the sixth episode of The Book Sighting: Hidden Reads! This week, Watson Mountain’s very own Maya discusses Stuart Gibbs' Big Game from the FunJungle series. Ms. Peyton, one of Watson's fabulous English teachers, serves as guest interviewer.

From Goodreads:

When someone takes aim at Rhonda Rhino, FunJungle's pregnant (and endangered) Asian greater one-horned rhinoceros, the zoo steps up security measures in order to protect this rare animal and her baby.

But the extra security isn't enough;someone is still getting too close for comfort. Teddy and company start to suspect that whoever is after Rhonda is really after her horn, which is worth a lot of money on the black market.

For the first time ever, the head of the zoo enlists Teddy for help; for once, he doesn't have to sneak around in order to investigate, and the results are even more wacky, and even more dangerous, than ever before.