The Rosemary Spell by Virginia Zimmerman was a very good summer read. My 10 year old daughter loved it, and my 9 year old son would pop into the room to listen too.

My daughter finished her 4th grade year with a teacher who was all about poetry. This book's entire plot revolves around Shakespeare and his prose, so it was fun for her to hear passages that referenced her recent learning.

The plot is about a girl, Rosemary, and her best friend and his sister who love to read and have a friendship founded on summer days playing on a nearby river. A famous, local poet leaves a mysterious book in a locked cupboard, which Rosemary and her friend discover. What at first appear to be blank pages, become filled with writing and the poetry within the book may not be just poetry. Suddenly, the two friends are in a race to save a life and unravel a mystery.

I would say this book was a solid 7 (out of 10, 10 being the best of the best). Somewhere in the middle if felt like it dragged a bit. We did put it down for a couple of weeks because of a trip, so perhaps it felt that way because of the break. I'd advise to push through the middle and the ending will reward you in some high drama!

Another plot point is learning about the Alzheimer's disease. I don't want to give the plot away, but it does tie in within the idea of MEMORY. I was glad we read it together because we discussed the disease and about growing older. That element of the story was sad to me, but didn't bother anyone else. Probably because I'm getting older! ;)