Children's Literature Book Club

Literary Pumpkins

2011-10-13T16:43:00.000-05:00

We recently moved to a new city, and I always like to head the our local library as soon as possible to sign up for a new library card. It's just part of settling in. I don't feel at home until I have that card in hand and a stack of new library books waiting to be read.

This particular library has several display cases as you walk into the children's section. My four year-old loves to see what the latest is. Today I fell in love with this display of pumpkins turned into some of my favorite characters!

Seriously, who can resist Olivia or Origami Yoda the pumpkin?

Now I can wait to attempt my own literary pumpkin!

ALA 2010 Winners!

2010-01-20T01:29:00.003-05:00

oh yes, I'm a day late with this news, but for anyone who missed it, The American Library Association has announced their award winners for 2010. I am SOOOOOOO happy because my favorite middle grade fiction novel from this last year actually won! That never happens! Here's a brief rundown:

Newbery Medal

"When You Reach Me," written by Rebecca Stead, published by Wendy Lamb Books, an imprint of Random House Children's Books

Newbery Honor Books

"Claudette Colvin: Twice Toward Justice" written by Phillip Hoose, published by Melanie Kroupa Books/Farrar Straus Giroux, an imprint of Macmillan Children's Publishing Group

"The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate" written by Jacqueline Kelly, published by Henry Holt and Company

"Where the Mountain Meets the Moon" written by Grace Lin, published by Little Brown and Company Books for Young Readers

"The Mostly True Adventures of Homer P. Figg" written by Rodman Philbrick, published by The Blue Sky Press, an imprint of Scholastic Inc.

Caldecott Medal

"The Lion and the Mouse" illustrated and written by Jerry Pinkney, published by Little, Brown and Company Books for Young Readers

Caldecott Honor Books

"All the World" illustrated by Marla Frazee, written by Liz Garton Scanlon, published by Beach Lane Books

"Red Sings from Treetops: A Year in Colors" illustrated by Pamela Zagarenski, written by Joyce Sidman, puslished by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt

2011 Arbuthnot Honor Lecture

Lois Lowry

Batchelder Award

"A Faraway Island" written by Annika Thor, translated by Linda Schenck, published by Delacorte Press, an imprint of Random House Children's Books

Batchelder Honor Books

"Big Wolf and Little Wolf" written by Nadine Brun-Cosme, illustrated by Olivier Tallee, translated by Claudia Bedrick, published by Enchanted Lion Books

"Eidi" written by Bodil Bredsdorff, translated by Kathryn Mahaffy, published by Farrar Straus Giroux

"Moritito II: Guardian of the Darkness" Written by Nahoko Uehashi, illustrated by Yuko Shimizu, translated by Cathy Hirano, published by Arthur A. Levine Books, an imprint of Scholastic Inc.

Belpre (Illustrator) Award

"Book Fiesta!: Celebrate Children's Day/Book Day; Celebremos El día de los niños/El día de los libros" illustrated by Rafael López, written by Pat Mora, published by Rayo, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers

Belpre (Illustrator) Honor Books

"Diego: Bigger Than Life" illustrated by David Diaz, written by Carmen T. Bernier-Grand, published by Marshall Cavendish Children

"My Abuelita" illustrated by Yuyi Morales, written by Tony Johnston, published by Harcourt Children's Books, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt

"Gracia Thanks" illustrated by John Parra, written Pat Mora, published by Lee and Low Books Inc.

Belpre (Author) Award

"Return to Sender" written by Julie Alvarez, published by Alfred A. Knopf

Belpre (Author) Honor Books

"Diego: Bigger Than Life" written by Carmen T. Bernier-Grand, illustrated by David Diaz, published by Marshall Cavendish Children

"Federico García Lorca" written by Georgina Lázaro, illustrated by Enrique S. Moreiro, published by Lectorum Publications Inc.

Carnegie Award

"Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus!" produced by Paul R. Gagne, Weston Woods Studios, and Mo Willems

Geisel Award

"Benny and Penny in the Big No-No!" written and illustrated by Geoffrey Hayes, published by ToON BOOKS, a division of RAW Junior, LLC

Geisel Honor Books

"I Spy Fly Guy!" written and illustrated by Tedd Arnold, published by Scholastic Inc.

"Little Mouse Gets Ready" written and illustrated by Jeff Smith, published by published by ToON BOOKS, a division of RAW Junior, LLC

"Mouse and Mole: Fine Feathered Friends" written and illustrated by Wong Herbert Yee, published by Houghton Mifflin Books for Children, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt

"Pearl and Wagner: One Funny Day" written by Kate McMullan, illustrated by R.W. Alley, published by Dial Books for Young Readers, a division of Penguin Young Readers Group

Odyssey Award

"Louise, the Adventures of a Chicken" produced by Live Oak Media

Odyssey Honor Audio Books

"In the Belly of the Bloodhound: Being an Account of a Particularly Peculiar Adventure in the Life of Jacky Faber" produced by Listen & Live Audio, Inc.

"Peace, Locomotion" produced by Brilliance Audio

"We Are the Ship: The Story of Negro League Baseball" produced by Brilliance Audio

Sibert Medal

"Almost Astronauts: 13 Women Who Dared to Dream" written by Tanya Lee Stone, published by Candlewick Press

Sibert Honor Books

"The Day-Glo Brothers: The True Story of Bob and Joe Switzer's Bright Ideas and Brand-New Colors" written by Chris Barton, illustrated by Tony Persiani, published by Charlesbridge

"Moonshot: The Flight of Apollo 11" written and illustrated by Brian Floca, published by Richard Jackson/Atheneum Books for Young Readers

"Claudette Colvin: Twice Toward Justice" written by Phillip Hoose, published by Melanie Kroupa Books/Farrar Straus Giroux, an imprint of Macmillan Children's Publishing Group

Congratulations to all of the winners! I need to get reading because I have yet to read quite a few of them.

January -Favorites From Our Youth

2010-01-04T19:36:00.003-05:00

WE're reading favorite books from our youth at January's meeting and everyone is welcome to bring along other old favorites to chat about.

The Westing Game - Ellen Raskin

The Mixed Up Files of Basil E. Frankweiler - E.L. Konigsburg

Sideways Stories from Wayside School - Louis Sachar

Summer of the Monkeys - Wilson Rawls

December - Holiday meeting

2009-12-04T19:45:00.000-05:00

For our December meeting, we decided to keep simple and just read one book, Richard Peck's A Season of Gifts. You can find a free printable discussion guide here.

Instead of our tradition book swap, we collected children's books to donate to Eliza's Library.

November - Novels in Verse

2009-11-04T19:49:00.000-05:00

We focused on Novels in Verse at our November meeting, and I was happy to hear how many members loved the books, even when they thought they might not. Here are the books that we discussed.

*SOLD by Patricia McCormick (SL county library has two entries for this. Lots of copies available under 2nd)

*BECAUSE I AM FURNITURE by Thalia Chaltas

Both the above YA books deal with sexual abuse although Natasha doesn't consider them graphic. Just a fair warning.

*WHERE I LIVE by Eileen Spinelli (short, younger crowd) (Oh, I wish I could draw like Matt Phelan!)

*LOCOMOTION by Jacqueline Woodson (beautiful book)

October 2009 - Mysteries

2009-10-04T20:20:00.000-05:00

I decided to make one book mandatory for discussion and I recommend reading the rest if you have time. The book I most wanted to discuss was When you Reach Me by Rebecca Stead

Then we also discuss the first book in the 39 Clues series: The Maze of Bones by Rick Riordan
and Skeleton Creek by Patrick Carman (we all thought the way this book is integrated with videoclips online was really interesting, but we were all mad about the abrupt ending!)
Then if you want to read more mysteries I added two bonus books: Masterpiece by Elise Broach
And Jellicoe Road by Melina Marchetta (This one has A LOT of bad language, but it will suck you in!)

September 2009 - Beehive Book Award Nominees

2009-09-04T22:51:00.000-05:00

For September Book Club picks, Sharon decided to choose one book from each of the five categories from the Beehive Nominees. (Optional: Feel free to read any of the other nominees!)
Picture Book:
The Black Book of Colors by Menena Cottin illustrated by Rosana Faria

Chapter Book:
Someone Named Eva by Joan M. Wolf
Poetry:Frankenstein Takes the Cake by Adam Rex
Young Adult Fiction
Climbing the Stairs by Padma Venkatraman
Informational
Sisters & Brothers: Sibling relationships in the animal World by Steven Jenkins & Robin Page

July 2009 - Science Fiction

2009-07-04T23:29:00.001-05:00

Here's the reading list from Whitney and Scott:The Hunger Games by Suzanne CollinsElsewhere by Gabrielle Zevin (I LOVED the audio version, but you might need to edit a bit if you have little kids around)Interworld by Neil Gaiman and Michael Reaves
and maybe My Teacher is an Alien by Bruce Coville (this was Whitney's favorite book in elementary school)

Terrible Yellow Eyes

2009-06-15T18:00:00.006-05:00

Am I the last one to hear of the blog Terrible Yellow Eyes? Illustrator Cory Godbey says Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak has always been tremendously important to him. He decided to contact many of his favorite artist in hopes to curate a collection of paintings as a tribute to the book and he displays them all on the blog

All I can say is, "Wow!" You have to go straight to the blog to see it for yourself. I want a copy of each and everyone. And many more are still coming! Here are a few of my favorites to prove to you that you need to go straight to the site. Godbey says it's like a visual love letter to the book and I have to agree.

Crowned by Jared Chapman

The King of All Wild Things by Jake Parker

Poster Thing by Tad Carpenter (and I already was in love with his work)

June 2009 - A.E. Cannon author study

2009-05-27T23:23:00.003-05:00

Before you read this post, be warned that no matter how many times I change it, Blogger keeps doing crazy things to the text size and spacing in the post. Sorry!

We're trying something new this June we will be meeting with local author Ann Cannon to discuss some of her books! I first heard Ann speak years ago when I was in college and she was just toying with the idea to write a book about a boy working in a video shop with wearing an old employees exotic name tag. I never imagined that years later I would be hosting a book club to discuss that very book (The Loser's guide to Love and Life: A Novel). I'm excited and also a little bit nervous about how to run things (any advice?)

For our selection of Ann's books, I chose:

Charlotte's Rose

The Loser's Guide to Life and Love: A Novel

The Pirate Pete and Pirate Joe easy-to-read series

Ann's other books are really great, but they are a little bit difficult to get your hands on because most are sadly out of print and our local library doesn't have many copies so I couldn't choose them. Hopefully each book clubber will come with a question or two for Ann. You can get to know more about A.E. Cannon on her website http://www.aecannon.com/main.html and on her blog http://anncannon.blogspot.com/ or you can read her column in the Deseret News. Let me know if you have any questions you'd like me to ask her.

May 2009 - Historical Fiction, WWII

2009-05-27T23:19:00.003-05:00

Natasha Maw hosted our meeting in May to discuss historical fiction. This year we focused on WWII and Natasha selected books to cover different parts of WWII.

World War II: On the Homefront
Jimmy's Stars by Mary Ann Rodman (middle grade)
On the Wings of Heroes by Richard Peck (middle grade)

World War II: Japanese Internment Camps
Journey to Topaz by Yoshicko Uchidac (middle grade)
Baseball Saved Us by Dom Lee (picture book)
*Weedflower by Cynthia Kadohata (young adult)

World War II: Nazi Germany
T4 by Ann Clare Le Zotte (free verse novel)
The Boy in the Striped Pajamas by John Boyne (young adult)
*The Boy Who Dared by Susan Campbell Bartoletti (based on a true story - LDS in Germany)
*Hitler Youth: Growing Up in Hitler’s Shadow by Susan Campbell Bartoletti (non-fiction)

*The Book Thief by Markus Zusak (young adult)

*World War II: Japan
*Hana’s Suitcase by Karen Levine (non-fiction)

The starred books are options for further reading, but highly recommended.

Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs

2009-05-22T10:08:00.002-05:00

I remember being enchanted by the Land of Chewandswallow when I was little. I'm a little sad the movie preview looks so different than the original illustrations by Ron Barrett, but I'm still curious to see the movie this fall.

April 2009 - Fairy Tales

2009-04-27T23:59:00.000-05:00

We had so much fun reading fairy tales in April. We didn't have a lot of time to read so we kept the list short and sweet and asked each book club member to bring along another Fairy Tale that they would recommend to the rest of the group.

The Sisters Grimm: The Fairytale Detectives, Book one by Michael Buckley

The Princess and the Hound by Mette Ivie Harrison

The Palace of Mirrors by Margaret Peterson Haddix

Other recommended reads if you make it through our selections and want more

Princess Ben by Catherine Murdock

Into the Wild by Sarah Beth Durst

Princess of the Midnight Ball by Jessica Day George

Happy Reading!

March 2009 - 2009 Newbery & Caldecott Winners

2009-03-27T23:55:00.000-05:00

For our meeting in March we read the newest Newbery and Caldecott award winners. Here's the reading list:

2009 Newbery Medal Winner

The 2009 Newbery Medal winner is The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman, illustrated by Dave McKean, and published by HarperCollins Children's Books.

A delicious mix of murder, fantasy, humor and human longing, the tale of Nobody Owens is told in magical, haunting prose. A child marked for death by an ancient league of assassins escapes into an abandoned graveyard, where he is reared and protected by its spirit denizens.

"A child named Nobody, an assassin, a graveyard and the dead are the perfect combination in this deliciously creepy tale, which is sometimes humorous, sometimes haunting and sometimes surprising," said Newbery Committee Chair Rose V. Treviño.

2009 Honor Books

The Underneath by Kathi Appelt, illustrated by David Small (Atheneum Books for Young Readers, an imprint of Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing)

Underneath the canopy of the loblolly pines, amid the pulsating sounds of the swamp, there lies a tale. Intertwining stories of an embittered man, a loyal hound, an abandoned cat and a vengeful lamia sing of love, loss, loneliness and hope. Appelt's lyrical storytelling heightens the distinguished characteristics of this work.

Savvy by Ingrid Law (Dial Books for Young Readers, a division of Penguin Young Readers Group in partnership with Walden Media, LLC

This rich first-person narrative draws readers into a wild bus ride, winding through the countryside on a journey of self-discovery for Mibs Beaumont and her companions. Newcomer Law weaves a magical tall tale, using vivid language and lively personalities, all bouncing their way to a warm, satisfying conclusion.

and....

2009 Caldecott Medal Winner

The 2009 Caldecott Medal winner is The House in the Night, illustrated by Beth Krommes, written by Susan Marie Swanson (Houghton Mifflin Company)

Richly detailed black-and-white scratchboard illustrations expand this timeless bedtime verse, offering reassurance to young children that there is always light in the darkness. Krommes' elegant line, illuminated with touches of golden watercolor, evoke the warmth and comfort of home and family, as well as the joys of exploring the wider world.

2009 Honor Books

A Couple of Boys Have the Best Week Ever, written and illustrated by Marla Frazee (Harcourt, Inc.)

In lively, detailed, subtly retro cartoons, Frazee gently pokes fun at adult expectations and captures the unbounded joy of two friends experiencing a parent-free summer adventure.

How I Learned Geography, written and illustrated by Uri Shulevitz (Farrar Straus Giroux)

Recounting memories of his family's flight from the Warsaw Blitz and his years as a refugee during World War II, Shulevitz employs watercolor and ink to depict a boy liberated from his dreary existence through flights of fancy inspired by the map his father buys in the village market.

A River of Words: The Story of William Carlos Williams, illustrated by Melissa Sweet, written by Jen Bryant (Eerdmans Books for Young Readers, an imprint of Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co.)

Sweet's mixed-media collage and primitive watercolors flow seamlessly with Bryant's prose to reveal the important bits and pieces of Williams' ordinary, yet extraordinary, life as a doctor and poet.

Thank you ala.org!!

That means we're leaving off a few of the Newbery honor books, The Surrender Tree: Poem's of Cuba's Struggle for Freedom by Margarita Engle and After Tupac and D Foster by Jacqueline Woodson, so the reading list won't be too long, but if you have a chance to read them, we'd love to hear your opinion on them.

February 2009 - Cybils Award Finalists

2009-02-27T23:48:00.000-05:00

In February we discussed Cybils award finalists To narrow things down (because as much as we'd like too, we couldn't discuss ALL the Cybil's finalists in one night), we decided to stick with books with illustrations so we selected the finalists for fiction picture books, non-fiction picture books, and graphic novels for early/middle grade readers.

Here's the complete list:

Fiction Picture Book

Abe Lincoln Crosses a Creek: A Tall Thin Tale by Deborah Hopkinson, illustrated by John Hendrix

Big Bad Bunny by Franny Billingsley, illustrated by G. Brian Karas

Chester's Beck by Melanie Watt

How to Heal a Broken Wing by Bob GRaham

Katie Loves the Kittens by John Himmelman

The Sea Serpent and Me by Dashka Slater, illustrated by Catia Chien

A Visitor for Bear by Bonny Becker, illustrated by Kady Denton

Wabi Sabi by Mark Reibstein, illustrated by Ed Young

Non-Fiction Picture Book

A River of Words: The story of William Carlos Williams by Jen Bryant, illustrated by Melissa Sweet

Astronaut Handbook by Meghan McCarthy

Duel! Burr and Hamilton's Deadly War of Words by Dennis Brindell Fradin, illustrated by Larry Day

Fabulous Fishes by Susan Stockdale

Nic Bishop Frogs by Nic Bishop

Wanda Gag: The Girl Who Loved to Draw by Deborah Kogan Ray

Wangari's Trees of Peace: A True Story from Africa by Jeanette Winter

Elementary/Middle Grade Graphic Novels

Chiggers by Hope Larson

Into the Volcano by Don Wood

Jellaby, Vol. 1 by Kean Soo

Rapunzel's Revenge by Shannon and Dean Hale, Illustrated by Nathan Hale

The Savage by David Almond, illustrated by Dave McKean

There's a Wolf at the Door: Five Classic Tales by Zoe Alley, illustrated by R.W. Alley

Don't be too overwhelmed, they are all quick reads.

We were surprised by some of the actual winners. Were you?

The Underneath by Kathi Appelt

2009-02-05T17:40:00.004-05:00

Oh Underneath, people have such nice things to say about you, and yet, I can't seem to finish you! On first attempt I only lasted a few pages, but months later, after all the buzz from Mock Newbery contests, I made a second attempt. I HAD to quit halfway through because you were so dark and depressing and you bored me to tears!

Oh yes, just as everyone says, your language is beautiful and lyrical, but you are about abused animals and a mean man without even an ounce of good in him. I just could not take anymore.

And thus we must part ways. It's not you, it's me. I mean, you are beloved by many; do I have bad taste?

Dear readers, have there been any books beloved by many that you just can't stand? Please tell me I'm not the only one!

I want Jarrett Krosoczka to be my best friend

2009-02-03T17:25:00.003-05:00

Jarrett Krosoczka, the author/illustrator of awesome books like Punk Farm, recently put together a video for a SCBWI presentation in NY. If you love children's literature, you HAVE to watch it because you're sure to see a couple of your favorite author/illustrtors costarring and it will make you laugh.

BOOK BY BOOK: the making of a monkey man from Jarrett Krosoczka on Vimeo.

You can watch other funny videos by Jarrett here.

Yep, now you pretty much want to be Jarrett's best friend too, don't you?

Jellicoe Road by Melina Marchetta

2009-01-28T15:57:00.005-05:00

Taylor Markam was ditched at a gas station at the age of eleven. Hannah, the woman who found her was a volunteer at Jellicoe School and that's how Taylor found herself gearing up to lead the annual territory war with the military cadets and Townies during her senior year. She wasn't elected unanimously by her fellow students so she's determined to do her job well and keep her power until Hannah disappears without a word. Hannah was the only adult Taylor relied on and she can't get over her sense of abandonment enough to concentrate of the games. It doesn't help that the leader of the cadets, Jonah Griggs, is the very same boy who turned her in when they ran away together years ago. The other students fear him because he's rumored to have killed his own father, but Taylor hates him for his betrayal.

As Hannah's disappearance continues, Taylor begins to suspect that the story she learned from Hannah of five kids who started the territory wars eighteen years ago, is actually true. She knows she must find Hannah and she must know the whole truth about what happened to those five students and how they are connected to her.

It reminded me of a modern-day Australian Dead Poets' Society, where a group of school kids are having secret meetings and learning the harsh realities of life at a tragic young age. The comparison doesn't quite do it justice though because Jellicoe Road is more complex and multi-layered (but Dead Poets Society definitely got the better title).

I'm not sure that I would have picked this book up based on the blurb alone, because it seems a little too I'm-trying-to-be edgy-and-shock-teenagers (and the boring cover wouldn't tempt me either), but I picked it up after it was announced as a Cybils Young Adult finalist along with The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau Banks (possibly my favorite book of the year), and what higher recommendation could it get?

If someone told me that Melina Marchetta wrote this book for adults and then was directed by an agent or publisher to publish it in the young adult field, I wouldn't have been surprised because the only thing about it that makes it seem young adult it Taylor's age (although I must note that Marchetta always intended it for young adults). I don't mean that as an insult. This books is extremely complex and full of poetic moments, and I think it would succeed just as well with an adult audience.

Then there is the issue with language. Many parents will object to this novel based on its frequent use of the F word. Normally it would bother me so much that I wouldn't have finished the book, but this plot had me and I tried to keep in mind that the F word is not seen as the ultimate swear word in Australia as it is here.

OK, now some of that may have put you off the book, but I must admit that I picked this book up in bed, judging by it's cover that it would quickly put me to sleep and found myself frantic to finish at 5:30 a.m. when my husband's alarm went off. It's intriguing and you will not be able to put it down. And when you finish it, it will haunt you.

ALA winners!

2009-01-26T15:56:00.003-05:00

This morning the American Library Association announced the award winners for 2009. You can see the whole list here (and I highly recommend checking it out because they are other really amazing awards), but for those dying to know who won the Caldecott, Newbery, and Printz, here they are:

Caldecott winner:

The House in the Night illustrated by Beth Krommes, written by Susan Marie Swanson

Caldecott Honor Books:

A Couple of Boys Have the Best Week Ever written and illustrated by Marla Frazee

How I Learned Geography written and illustrated by Uri Shulevitz

A River of Words: The Story of William Carlos Williams illustrated by Melissa Sweet, written by Jen Bryant

Newbery Winner:

The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman

Newbery Honor Books:

The Underneath by Kathi Appelt, illustrated by David Small

The Surrender Tree: Poems of Cuba’s Struggle for Freedom by Margarita Engle

Savvy by Ingrid Law

After Tupac & D Foster by Jacqueline Woodson

Printz Winner:

Jellicoe Road by Melina Marchetta

Printz Honor Books:

The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation, Volume II, The Kingdom on the Waves by M.T. Anderson

The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks by E. Lockhart

Nation by Terry Pratchett

Tender Morsels by Margo Lanagan

Many seem surprised by Jellicoe Road's win, but I read it after it was announced as a Cybils YA finalist and it's riveting (as long as lots of F-words don't disturb you and that's never seemed to bother the Printz committee). The only book I might have wanted to win more was poor Frankie Landau Banks, but at least it got the honor.

As for the Newbery, this was the first year that I couldn't think of a book published this year that I was dying to see win. I'm glad to see Savvy with an honor, and sadly I have to admit that I have yet to read The Graveyard Book so I better rush out and pick it up before it's impossible to find.

Last week I was flipping through my copy of BYU Magazine and saw an article featuring one of the Newbery judges, Michael Tunnell, a BYU Professor. When asked what he was looking for in a Newbery winner, Tunnell said, "You've got to have a good strong plot on which to hang character development, on which to hang your beautiful language. It's the tree on which you hang the other ornaments. And I think we're not getting that as consistently and we used to." He also said his favorites from 2008 include Masterpiece by Elise Broach, Climbing the Stairs by Padma Venkatraman, When the Sergeant Came Marching Home by Don Lemna, and The Willowbys by Lois Lowry.

I've never known a Newbery judge to name some of their favorites from the year before the official announcement is made, have you? In fact, I remember the year Betsy Bird served on the Newbery committee, she was asked to remove her reviews of eligible books from her blog so I thought it was kind of forbidden, but maybe I'm wrong.

So were you happy with the ALA award results? What were you rooting for?

The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

2009-01-24T14:30:00.001-05:00

Twilight has been deemed the Vampire book for people who don't like Vampire books, and Stephenie Meyer said that The Host was a science fiction book for people who don't like science fiction books, but it wasn't. No, the book I would hand that title to is The Hunger Games. I wasn't going to review it here because what could I say that hadn't already been said, but I've recently run into a few child lit lovers who haven't picked up, and I couldn't let that happen, could I?

Here's the blurb from the publisher:

In the ruins of a place once known as North America lies the nation of Panem, a shining Capitol surrounded by twelve outlying districts. The Capitol is harsh and cruel and keeps the districts in line by forcing them all to send one boy and one girl between the ages of twelve and eighteen to participate in the annual Hunger Games, a fight to the death on live TV. Sixteen-year-old Katniss Everdeen, who lives alone with her mother and younger sister, regards it as a death sentence when she is forced to represent her district in the Games. But Katniss has been close to dead before-and survived.

After I described the book to a friend she said it sounded too gory and depressing for her, and I insisted that it wasn't. She countered with, "How could a book not be gory and disturbing if the main character has to kill 23 other teenagers in order to survive to the end of the book?" I know it sounds crazy, but Collins does just that. This is partially due to the fact that Katniss doesn't have to kill all 23 other kids to win, they can attack each other and the reader doesn't necessarily have to know what happened, Katniss just has to try to be the last one left standing. The reader gets to know Katniss and the goodness of her heart so well that no matter what she ends up doing, they will still love her in the end.

That said, yes, this is a book where kids kill each other, and I wonder how that effects its Newbery chances. I probably wouldn't recommend this book to kids twelve and under (because the end has some especially upsetting scenes that would scare the heck out of most younger kids), but that still leaves it within the age range of the Newbery award; however, I wouldn't be surprised if it was pushed into the Printz category. I just hope that it doesn't get lost between them.

I can think of several books set in futuristic societies where the government has gone awry and readers discover some atrocity committed against the youth (think The Giver, The Shadow Children Series, Uglies, Ender's Game etc.), but The Hunger Games still seems so original.

Teachers everywhere will love it because it will probably interest boys and girls equally. The main character is female and studies show that while many girls will pick up books with male main characters, most boys will not pick up books with female main characters; however, a male protagonist emerges within the story. The story is about a gruesome battle, which will entertain guys but it has a little romance and even fashion mixed in that will be just enough to pull in readers who do not like war stories.

What I think you must know before picking up this book, is that the last line is, "End of Book One" which I promise will make you groan if you had no warning. There are so many things I still wanted to know about so I'm eagerly awaiting book two. The good news is, according to Publishers Weekly, Book Two, titled Catching Fire is due out September 8th so you won't have to wait too long. The final book in the trilogy is tentatively scheduled for 2010.

Sammy Keyes and the Cold Hard Cash by Wendelin Van Draanen

2009-01-18T16:11:00.003-05:00

Hi, I'm Stephanie Ford, I'm an adult, and I'm addicted to Sammy Keyes mysteries. There, I said it. There are so many middle grade fiction series unraveling out there, but this is the one I'm most addicted too. Sure, I'm always in a hurry to find out how things with Percy Jackson will wrap up, and I NEED to know what happens to Charlie Bone next, oh, and who isn't looking forward to checking on the Goose Girl's characters in Shannon Hale's upcoming Forest Born? But I must say I most look forward to the release of each Sammy Keyes book.

For those of you who may not be familiar (gasp!), Sammy Keyes is a junior high school age sleuth that could kick Nancy Drew's butt (although I enjoy Nancy too, of course). Sammy's mom dumped her with her grandmother (grams) and whisked off to seek her stardom in Hollywood. Meanwhile Sammy is forced to sneak out of her Grams' senior high rise, where kids are only allowed to visit, and she sleeps on the couch and hides in the closet when unexpected visitors stop by. It doesn't sound like the life of luxury, yet Sammy never seems down about it. Unlike Nancy, Sammy has been known to get her hands dirty as she struggles to keep her quick fists and tongue in cheque.

In Cold Hard Cash, Sammy runs into an elderly man on the fire escape and she's sneaking into Grams and causes him to have a heart attack. He shocks wads of money into Sammy's hands and he last words are a plea to her to get rid of it. For the first time in Sammy's life, her curiosity isn't peaked. She doesn't want to know anything about the money, she wants to keep it, but she can't get rid of the bad feelings surrounding the money and ultimate can't resist solving the mystery.

Some of the Sammy Keyes books seem like they could be after school specials when you read the summaries about issues like drugs, the environment, homelessness etc., but the books never come off that way. Sammy is funny, and although her mom isn't much of a mom and her dad is out of the picture, she's surrounded by a community of people that care about her. She's anything but perfect, but I promise, you'll learn to love her.

The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie

2009-01-16T18:19:00.003-05:00

For those of you who don't know, the official title of my MA is a Master of Arts in Language, Literacy, and Culture with an emphasis in Children's literature; which basically comes down to the fact that along with all my classes on children's literature and Literacy, I took a lot of classes about culture and race in the classroom and multicultural literature. I am by no means an expert, but I have been trained to examine the ways different cultures are portrayed in literature and to question what the portrayal teaches children. I really had trouble with this novel. I wanted to love it, but I did not.

The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian follows the Freshman year of Arnold Spirit AKA Junior, a Spokane Indian living on a reservation in Wellpinit, WA. After a teacher begs Arnold leave behind life on the reservation before he loses hope like everyone else there, Arnold transfers to an all-white high school 22 miles from his home on the reservation. His parents support his decision, but he's shunned by many on the reservation including his best friend, for his betrayal.

Arnold's wry sense of humor and entertaining cartoons keep the novel going and have caused a few critics to call this book Diary of a Wimpy Kid for the young adult set.

If I could get past all the language and all of Arnold's talk of spending hours in the bathroom pleasing himself (which is hard to do because Arnold likes to talk about it a lot, and I can't ignore because I've heard a lot of sites mention how this book is being used in classrooms and I'd like to know what teacher could get away with that in his/her classroom? No teacher I know would attempt it.), anyway, if I could get past that, I still couldn't get past the way American Indians are portrayed in this book. I mean, talk about feeding right into stereotypes, almost every American Indian adult in the novel is described as a drunk, some are nice, some are abusive, but they are all drunks. Many a book has drawn criticism among American Indians for perpetuating that stereotype.

I hate the way Alexie seems to support the idea that for Arnold to be successful or happy, he has to leave his culture and the reservation behind and go to a white school or he will be doomed to live a life as a poor alcoholic. It also bothers me that Arnold tries to duke it out with white kids at his new school because that's how he says all American Indians deal with their problems. They are not SAVAGES incapable of talking things out, and many a white kid still would have fought back when a kid much smaller than him punches him in the face, but Alexie portrays them as civilized and unwilling to result to physical violence, completely shocked at Arnold's behavior.

Now, I know the book is loosely based on Alexie's youth, but that doesn't make it right, does it? I searched some reviews by American Indians to see what they thought, and I was surprised to find his book has received very little criticism. In fact, it's recommended by Oyate, an organization that works to establish literature that teaches respect for Native peoples. On Her blog American Indians in Children's literature, Debbie Reese did say that on first impression she, "wished the depiction of Native life wasn't so bleak. It feeds stereotypical notions of the tragic victim. For that reason, many will keep reading, because it feels familiar to them, and in that save-the-Indian way some adopt, it nourishes that impulse." But in later posts she applauds the book and says she often gifts it to others.

Now I'm not saying this book belongs on Oyate's list of books to avoid, it does in fact dispel the stereotype that all American Indians are rich from Casinos on reservations, but it was such a hopeless portrayal of American Indians that still perpetuated many other hurtful stereotypes.

January - Books being turned into movies

2009-01-14T18:40:00.004-05:00

At least once a year our book club reads current books being turned into movies. Here are the picks for this month:

The Tale of Despereaux by Kate DiCamillo

The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan

Diary of a Wimpy Kid by Jeff Kinney

Fantastic Mr. Fox by Roald Dahl

Not enough reading for you? Or maybe you're curious about other movies in the works? Here's a list with links for more info that club member Scott Knopf helped me put togther:

Where the Wild Things Are

Eddie Dickens and the Awful End

Coraline

Cloudy with a Chance of meatballs

The Fantastic Mr. Fox

How to Train Your Dragon

39 Clues got picked up by Dreamworks, Steven Spielberg is rumored to direct! Should be out in 2011.

Chocky by John Wyndham (Spielberg acquired film rights in September) Should be out in 2010.
Eloise in Paris by Kay Thompson
The Giver by Lois Lowry (A lot of you might have already read this one but it's a classic) (Should be out in 2011)
Magic Kingdom for Sale/SOLD by Terry Brooks
Ollie the Otter by Kelly Alan Williamson
Pattington Bear by Michael Bond
Punk Farm by Jarrett J Krosoczka
The Wee Free Men by Terry Pratchett

South by Patrick McDonnell

2009-01-09T17:45:00.005-05:00

It's not easy to tell a moving story without words, but that's exactly what Patrick McDonnell does in his wordless picture book South.

I am not a connoisseur of comics so I was completely oblivious to the fact that McDonnell is the creator of the comic strip Mutts. I was familiar with his other books, but I found Hug Time a little too cute and sentimental for me, and while I enjoyed The Gift of Nothing it didn't stick with me. Not so with South.

South begins with a little, yellow bird who wakes up from a nap to find the rest of his flock has gone south without him. Mooch the Cat notices the bird's distress and extends his paw in an offer to help. Soon they are off on a journey to find the rest of the flock.

McDonnell's strength has always been his illustrations and here they carry the story without need of words. I think words could have made this sweet story a bit too sappy, but instead it stands a quiet tale of friendship.

Back to Life, Back to Reality

2009-01-09T17:41:00.003-05:00

Now that my part in this year's Cybils are over and done with, it's back to our regularly featured program around here. I'll be featuring several of the nominees for the fiction picture book category that I enjoyed and I will also get around to reviewing some of the 50 kajillion other books I have been meaning to review. Like have you read the Hunger Game yet? How about the first book in the 39 Clues series? Oh, and what about the finalists in the other Cybils categories? Get my take on them very soon!

Walt Disney's Alice in Wonderland retold by Jon Scieszka, illustrated by Mary Blair

2009-01-09T17:21:00.002-05:00

With a title like Walt Disney's Alice in Wonderland, you might be expecting a watered down version of the Disney movie accompanied by illustrations ripped straight from the screen, but that's not what you will find when you pick it this book up.

Mary Blair was the concept designer behind the Disney movies Cinderella, Alice in Wonderland, and Peter Pan. Her was was never intended to be passed along to an audience, it was a semi-rustic design to shape the movies she worked on. Blair was visionary, and I'm so glad Disney decided to showcase her original works. Last year, they published Blair's Cinderella artwork with a retelling by Cynthia Rylant. Who do you hire to follow that one up? Who could possible capture Lewis Caroll's clever sense of humor and world of wonder? No one but Jon Scieszka, of course, and lucky Disney signed him up!

There was some debate over whether or not this fit into the fiction picture book category because it's so much longer than your average picture book, but I'm so glad we got to keep it in our category and even happier that the publisher didn't attempt to cut it down to the length of a regular picture book. Since the artwork was designed for the Disney movie, the text closely follows the plot of the Disney movie and not Carroll's original works.

It had me from the beginning when Scieszka started with, "Have you ever tried to listen to a long schoolbook on a warm, lazy day? And have you ever wondered why anyone would make a book so boring? Then you are just like Alice." Scieszka manages a retelling of Alice that most will find much more approachable than the original.

Now I just hope that 2009 will bring Walt Disney/Mary Blair's Peter Pan! Who would you choose to author that retelling?

All's Well That Ends Well

2009-01-06T16:20:00.005-05:00

I know I've mentioned it a few times, but I absolutely love serving on a Cybils Committee and I know a few of you are curious about the whole process so here's my update. After some reshuffling to get a few books into the categories where they properly belonged, we ended up with a total list of 186 books in the fiction picture book category (most of our additions came from books nominated for the non-fiction category that didn't actually belong in the non-fiction category). Of those 186 books, I read 159 and my committee members all did about the same. I would have loved to read all of them, but there were several independent or self-published titles that could not be located. Believe me, we made valiant efforts to find each and everyone that we could. We searched our libraries and local bookshops, where I'm sure we became familiar faces. Sheila from Wands and Worlds did a fantastic job contacting publishers and self-published authors for review copies and maintaining the database so we could see what was coming and what others on the committee were able to read or found.

My book shelf of Cybils review copies ended up looking like this (minus a few that might have been on my desk at the moment). That's over a 100 titles there! Thanks to the publishers who sent review copies because it made discussions a lot easier when we could pull a copy off the shelf and refresh our minds. I also kept a large stack of all the library copies I could get my hands on so I had direct access to most of the books during discussion.

As we read the books, there was a space in the database for each judge to leave a comment and mark whether or not they wanted the book on their shortlist of books they considered top contenders. We all ended up with about 18 titles on our shortlists and it was clear that we were not all in agreement because the compiled list of all our shortlists was anything but short. The week before our final discussion, Mother Reader asked everyone to narrow down their shortlist to 12 books. Her judging criteria that directed the discussion covered five things: Story, Illustration, Kid-Appeal, Parent-Appeal, That Something Special that makes it Unforgettable.

The final discussion took place in a group forum over IM. I think each committee does this differently, as my first time serving the discussion took place via voting over email for a few weeks. Before discussion even started, we could see from the database that there were two books that everyone shortlisted so there automatically became finalists. Oh, I wish that I could tell you what those two titles are, but we don't want to influence the judges trying to select the winner for our category! You may think it wouldn't matter, but I think it would. When I served on the middle grade fiction committee, we had an easy time agreeing on the first four finalists but really struggled to come up with a fifth title so we were all surprised when the fifth title was the book that won!

Once we were all in agreement on the first to books, we started down the shortlists starting with those most of us had listed and working our way down to those the least had shortlisted. We went through one title at a time and everyone had a chance to make their case for why a book should or should not make the list. We'd go through the criteria and argue that one book was excellent, but in all honesty would not appeal to a kid which was why the Cybils started; another had huge kid appeal, but wasn't what we'd called a literary achievement and we were trying to pick books that had both, etc. We also tried to include some diversity in culture, style, and reading level. As you might guess, there was a lot of disagreement, but it was great to get five very different perspectives.

A few short hours later, we were all relatively happy with the list. Were we all in agreement on every single book that made the list? No way, I'd be worried if we were. In the end, each of us had some favorites that we fought for that did not make the list (ahem, Patrick the Somnambulist, Little Hoot, and Dinosaur vs Bedtime, I promise, I did try!) and each of us did not absolutely love a book or two that made the final list (and again I can't tell you mine, but I wish that I could), but there were no books on that list that anyone strongly objected to and each judge had several books that they loved make it on the final list. I'm glad to say that as discussion ended, each judge seemed happy and approving of the final list. I hope that the rest of you pick them up and enjoy them too!

Now I just have to sit on my hands and wait with the rest of you to the winner to be announced on Valentine's Day

Cybils Finalists Announced!!!!!!!!

2009-01-01T15:51:00.005-05:00

I have a few more details for you on the judging side of things, but the Cybils finalists were announced today so I can finally reveal the finalists my panel chose for the fiction picture book category!

Abe Lincoln Crosses a Creek : A Tall Thin Tale by Deborah Hopkinson illustrated by John Hendrix
Big Bad Bunny by Franny Billingsley illustrated by Brian KarasChester's Back by Melanie WattHow to Heal a Broken Wing by Bob GrahamKatie Loves The Kittens by John HimmelmanThe Sea Serpent and Me by Dashka Slater illustrated by Catia ChienA Visitor For Bear by Bonny Becker illustrated by Kady MacDonald DentonWabi Sabi by Mark Reibstein illustrated by Ed Young

Congratulations to all of the finalists! I want to share more with you, but I need to make sure there's not anything I'm not supposed to say so check back for updates. In the mean time, hurry over to the Cybils site for the lists of all the other finalists. I trust my fellow bloggers so much that these lists of finalists always go straight to the top of my must read lists. I also love seeing how many I have already read and feeling smug that I have such great taste choosing books from the library ;) It's so fun to read along and root for favorites before they are announced on Valentine's Day. Happy reading!

For the Love of Oliver Jeffers

2009-01-01T15:35:00.004-05:00

Now you know that I love anything by Oliver Jeffers, but I wasn't sure what to make of the news that his picture book Lost and Found was being made into a short animated film. I mean, how could you make that a film without losing a bit of its Jeffers essence? Well, after seeing the preview I think maybe it's been done! My son asked to watch it five times in a row. I wish I could have been in London of Christmas Eve to see the whole 25 minutes on TV. I guess the rest of us will just have to wait.

You can see the preview here and more images from the film here.

Advent Calendars

2008-11-25T12:14:00.003-05:00

Have you noticed all of the cool advent Calendars based on children's books that are out right now? Here are a couple that I think are cool.24 Penguins Before Christmas by Jean-Luc Fromental

Eric Carle's Dream Snow
Olive The Other Reindeer by J. Otto Seibold
I'm tempted to buy them all!

I also think that it would be really fun to to fill a normal advent calendar with christmas book titles to read each day.

Patrick the Somnambulist - written and illustrated by Sarah Ackerly

2008-11-20T17:44:00.004-05:00

I fell in love with a penguin today. His name is Patrick. He may seem like a normal penguin because he eats normal food like spaghetti and he plays normal games like chess, but sometimes Patrick wakes up in the middle of the night to find himself doing things that are anything but normal. At first, when his parents find him in the middle of the night hiding in the mailbox or wrapped in toilet paper wearing a plunger on his head, they think Patrick is just weird, but as his antics go on, they worry there might really be something wrong with him.

After a trip to the doctor, Patrick discovers

that he is a Somnambulist (AKA a sleepwalker). Patrick is not distressed by this title, he's claims it with pride and is perfectly happy to be not-quite-normal after all. With his newfound confidence, he begins to do amazing

things. You really have to read this book to see what that clever penguin is up to.

Sarah Ackerley's beautiful pen and watercolor illustrations add so much to her witty text. I was amazed by how much emotion she was able to convey with such simple drawings of penguins. Just look how anguished Patrick's parents appear to be in this illustration.

Kids will get a big kick out of the funny things Patrick does in his sleep, while parents will be laughing out loud as the recognize penguin versions of the human world (my favorite is the Conan O'Brianesque penguin interviewing Patrick on a talkshow).

The downside to this book is that this is Sarah's first book, so you can't rush out to pick up another book about Patrick, and believe me, you will want to. To tide you over in the meantime you can check out her online portfolio or her blog.

Ducks Don't Wear Socks by John Nedwidek

2008-11-11T16:34:00.004-05:00

Emily is a serious, no-nonsense kind of a girl so one day, when she's taking a serious walk and she meets Duck riding a unicycle, dressed in a pair of socks, she feels it is her duty to inform him that ducks do NOT wear socks. Does duck get embarrassed? Does he take his socks off or try to cover them up? No! He simply replies, "Cold feet!" and continues on his way.

Day after day, Emily continues to run into duck around the city and day after day he's wearing some ridiculous item on clothing that he always has a good explanation for (of course he need a tie, he's on his way to a big meeting). The readers see Emily transform from a serious girl to one who giggles at the site of duck and find a way to make duck giggle too.

Lee White's comical illustrations add much to the text as readers see Emily dragging her cello to her lesson and duck proudly sailing in his underwear. The way duck always has one eye visible off to the side of his face enhances his comical nature. Duck's statements are always displayed in a different

font that's bold and slightly bigger than the rest of the text, which should help encourage young readers to add a little emotion when the read the book aloud.

I can't help but feeling like everyone needs a silly, confident friend like duck. My friend's second grader came home before Halloween to inform her that he could not wear his magician costume on Halloween; the other second graders told him that second-grade boys only wear scary costumes like goblins and skeletons and they would make fun of him and scare him if he came dressed as a magician. If only Duck could have been there to prove that boys CAN pick whatever they want be for Halloween, girls CAN indeed play football on the playground, and of course, ducks CAN wear socks.

Can I have Martha Stewart's job?

2008-11-07T15:47:00.003-05:00

Ok, I'm not interested in some of the things featured on her show, but I've noticed recently that Martha gets to have a lot of amazing children's authors and illustrators on her show. Have you noticed that?

Matthew Reinhardt and Robert Sabuda have been on the show multiple times. You can learn how to make Christmas cards with them here, and Valentine's Day cards with Matthew here.

Matthew Van Fleet was recently on the show making moving Dog cards.

Fancy Nancy Author Jane O'Connor made felt purses with Martha

Last week David Macaulay was on talking about his new book The Way We Work.

Jon Sciezska was on the show in August discussing some suggestions for way to make reading fun for your kids (fast forward through the video clip a little bit to see the segment with Jon).

The video clips are a fun way for kids to see some of their favorite authors, and the projects are pretty fun too.

Dinosaur Vs Bedtime - by Bob Shea

2008-11-05T01:33:00.003-05:00

Ok, I know, I alluded that I would be reviewing some of the lesser known fictional picture book Cybils nominees, but I have to start with Dinosaur Vs. Bedtime because my toddler has adopted it as his own so I've had ample opportunities to examine this book (every morning before breakfast, every morning after breakfast, every morning before we put on our shoes . . . ) Besides, I'm shocked at how many of my friends have not already snapped up this title.

You may know Bob Shea from the beautifully designed picture book No Socks or the text he wrote for Big Plans, a little book that came out this year illustrated by some guy named Lane Smith (maybe you've heard of him?). Well, Bob is at his best with his latest title Dinosaur Vs. Bedtime.

At the beginning of the book, a little dinosaur boldly declares that nothing can stop him. Readers then follow him on some of his big matches: dinosaur vs. leaves, dinosaur vs. a big slide, dinosaur vs. a bowl of spaghetti. Little dinosaur conquers them all, that is, until dinosaur vs. bedtime.The illustrations are simple, beautiful, and guaranteed to entertain preschoolers. If you mixed Mo Willems' pigeon and Lauren Child's Charlie and Lola, you would end up with dinosaur. Dinosaur is a simple character with a black crayon-like outline much like Pigeon with elements of real photos and textures mixed in to add details of the fabric of his pajamas and spaghetti, mush like Lauren Child's illustrations. Shea seems to be a master of typography. There is so much emotion behind the way the text is laid out that it's hard to resist reading aloud and I daresay you'll be roaring right along with dinosaur.

Shea also has a great website that's not to be missed, especially because you can flip through most of the book there and experience it for yourself right now. And funny that I should compare him to Mo Willems, there is an audio clip there from Mo stating how much he hates the book and it's beautiful illustrations because he didn't think of it first.

But wait there's more! Noggin featured a video of Shea sharing Dinosaur vs. Bedtime so you can actually watch it right now!

Dinosaur vs. Bedtime from bob shea on Vimeo.

Another reason to check out Shea's site is the bio that made me laugh right out loud multiple times. How can resist a bio that begins like this?

"Here's a photo of a bear I fought this one time. I totally won. Yeah, I know, I'm pretty brave."

Oh, that Bob Shea, he's one funny awesome guy!

A Day in the Life of a Cybils Judge

2008-11-04T16:07:00.004-05:00

So each committee is a little different and I'm not an expert on the subject or anything, but I know a few of you are wondering about behind the scenes of the Cybils Awards. Two years ago, I was on the middle grade fiction committee and this year, I'm on the fictional picture book committee. Both years, I opted to be a judge on the first panels that takes all of the books nominated for their category and narrows it down to a few finalists. After the finalists are announced in January, a different panel of five judges in each category will take the finalists and come up with a winner.

I like being on the first committee for several reasons. Most of all, I think it's less pressure than coming up with one winner. Debates can be very heated, and I think it's a lot easier to come up with several finalists than one winner. Plus, being the book lover that I am, that would be like choosing my favorite child (ok, I only have one child so that would be easy, but you know what I mean!). I also love the extra motivation to be up-to-date on what's out there this year. Anyone can read all the nominates, but I would probably skip several if I wasn't a judge and it's good to be forced to branch out a little and make some new discoveries.

There is a designated leader for every panel, and for the most part, they decide how they want to run that category. This year, Sheila from Wands and Worlds has set up a database for all of the Cybils judges so every judge can log in and see an organized list of all the nominees in their category. Each judge is constantly updating which books they've read and which books they've received free review copies of from publishers, as well as adding comments about them. Publishers do not have to send review copies to judges in order for their books to be considered, but it certainly makes it easier on the judges so many of them do send review copies.

I love opening my door to find this site most days (although most days, it's a padded envelope with one or two books, not a box full of several of them, and how appropriate that my little helper made it in the shot).

This year, I really wanted to get a headstart so I wouldn't feel crunched for time around the holidays so as soon as nominations closed, I started reserving as many titles as I could from the library. I make biweekly trips hauling books back and forth. I take notes on each book before I return it, and I hold on to some of my favorites as long as the library will let me. They are nestled in a pile in the corner at this very moment.

This year there are 186 nominees in the fictional picture book category (it was originally 175, but a few books were sifted over from other categories because they are a better fit in our category. It's up to the categories' leaders to make those calls so I'm not involved in those debates). After serving on the middle grade fiction committee, I feel like we have it easy. Right now there's a tally that shows up with you log into the database for Cybils judges that tells you which judges have read the most and my name is at the top of the list at 68, but I feel like a cheat because reading 68 picture books doesn't exactly take as much time as reading 68 young adult novels.

As you might imagine, in some categories it just isn't possible for all five of the judges to read each and every book, but they sure do try. In general, I think each category makes sure at least two judges have read each book, and if they think the book may be a contender then all the judges are sure to read it. That was the case when I was on the middle grade fiction committee, but on the picture book committee I would not be surprised if all five of us read each and every book on our list (at least as long as we can manage to get our hands on copies).

So far a lot of the review copies that I've received are from small publishers or even self-published books. It always makes me smile to see these packages on my doorstep because I love that the Cybils are all about helping good books get the notice they deserve, whether they are from big publishers with big budgets or books hardly anyone has seen at all (and oh yes, that means some of them are not so good, but it's worth it to come across a few lesser known gems).

My panel has been busy reading away, but soon the debates will begin. The first step is that each judge will put together short lists of their favorites so far and the debates will begin from their. I'll keep you posted on any other interesting tidbits along with reviews of some of my favorites so far that I'm excited to share. I won't be highlighting the book I don't like here because who wants to waste time on that when I could be telling you about books you must check out yourself.

Happy reading!

Steph

Happy Halloween from the Pigeon

2008-10-31T14:26:00.002-05:00

Since Mo Willems' pigeon books are cherished by my one-year-old, of course we knew what he had to be for Halloween (I based it on a photo I saw on Mo's blog last Halloween) I hope you see some of your favorite characters around town!

Have a Spooky day!

National Book Award Finalists and some interesting tidbits about the judges

2008-10-25T17:33:00.005-05:00

The National Book Award Finalists were announced last week and I forgot to mention the finalist for "Young People's Literature" (Seriously, who calls it that?). And the finalists are:

Laurie Halse Anderson, CHAINS
Kathi Appelt, THE UNDERNEATH
Judy Blundell, WHAT I SAW AND HOW I LIED
E. Lockhart, THE DISREPUTABLE HISTORY OF FRANKIE LANDAU-BANKS
Tim Tharp, THE SPECTACULAR NOW

See! I told you that you will LOVE Frankie Landau-Banks! Now you can bet I'll be reading the rest of the list.

Almost as interesting at the finalists, is the list of judges for this award: Daniel Handler AKA Lemony Snicket of the Series of Unfortunate Events, Holly Black of The Spiderwick Chronicles Fame, not to mention Angela Johnson and Cynthia Voight (ok, and Carolyn Mackler, but I can't say I've ever read any of her books). Wouldn't you love to meet with just one of them, if not all of them?

Did you know judges for the National Book Awards have to be published authors of literature in the category that they are judging? I find that interesting because that doesn't necessarily make you knowledgeable about that category. Judges are nominated by past winners, finalists and judges. Each judge is paid $2,500, which is especially odd considering that the award finalists only receive $1,000. At least the winner gets more, $10,000.

After judges select five finalists, their job is done and a jury selects the actual winner. The NBA site states, "Jury members are chosen for their literary sensibilities and their expertise in a particular genre". Each year the jury completely makes up their own criteria for the winners so there is no telling who will win. The most interesting part is that the jury meets on the day of the awards ceremony to pick the winner. Talk about pressure to come to a quick agreement! No one tells the National Book Foundation members until the ceremony to the award winner is a surprise to everyone.

2008-10-21T01:13:00.002-05:00

This month, we will be reading Young Adult action/adventure novels about some extremely talented high schoolers. Here's the reading list:
Kiki Strike: Inside the Shadow City by Kirsten Miller

The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau Banks by E. Lockhart

Little Brother by Cory Doctorow - This is the most Young Adult of the three and does have some language and a sex scene (think the latest Twilight books, not graphic, but certainly there) it should make for an interesting discussion on what age you think the book is appropriate for and the direction YA books are heading these days.

As promised, here is the info on some local Utah author signings coming up:
Laurie Keller and The Scrambled States of America Talent Show at the Kings English on Tuesday, October 21st at 7:00..More info here

James Dashner signs the 13th Reality at The King's English on Monday, November 3rd at 7:00. Info here.

Megan MacDonald will be signing Judy Moody and Stink books at The Kings English Friday, November 7th at 4 p.m. Info here.

Also coming up is the Utah Humanities Book Fesitval at the City Library downtown, Saturday October 25th, A.E. Cannon will be speaking from 11 to noon in conference room A/B. From 12:30 to 1:30, Richard Peck will be speaking in the main auditorium. From 2 to 3 p.m. Sarah Zarr and Paul Fleischman will be speaking in Conference room C, discussing "Current Trends in Adolescent and Children's Literature." Pretty amazing lineup, eh? And it's all FREE! There are also all sorts of other things going on so get all the info here

Happy reading!

Come back for discussion questions later this month.

Witch of Blackbird Pond Discussion Questions

2008-10-16T14:49:00.002-05:00

Our new Utah chapter of the book club met last night and it was so great to be together with a room of people who are excited about children's books. As previously mentioned, we read The Witch of Blackbird Pond by Elizabeth George Speare and The Widow's Broom by Chris Van Allsburg and we each shared some other books about witches. Most of the discussion focused on The Witch of Blackbird Pond. I found most of these discussion questions here.

What do you think the main themes of this book are?
What if people suddenly expected you to behave differently from what you are used to? What are some ways you, or others, might respond if the rules of acceptable behavior suddenly changed?
It is obvious that men and women play different roles in The Witch of Blackbird Pond and, by implication, in colonial society. This is a basic historical fact. But what is striking about the novel is how Elizabeth George Speare reveals two truths: how men as well as women are trapped by their roles, and the emotional implications of these strict gender roles for all characters. Can you come up with some examples from the book?
Who do you feel the most sorry for in this novel and why?
In her attempt to help both Prudence and Hannah, Kit sometimes disobeys community and family rules. Was that the right thing to do and does that make her a good friend?
When did you first suspect there might be something between Nat and Kit? How did Speare craft things so this relationship made sense?
In the end, do you think Speare is saying Keeping secrets is a good thing or a bad thing?
As Kit adjust to life in her new community, she must often ask herself whom must I be loyal to? How does that parallel our lives in this country today?
In New England, witchcraft was a crime punishable by death.The first such trial and execution took place in Connecticut in 1647. Ten other similar trials and executions took place in Connecticut in the twenty years following. Three of those "witches" were from the real town of Wethersfield. Speare said, "I do not believe a historical novel should gloss over the pain and ugliness." Do you think the novel's conclusion was realistic for that time period?
In the end, Matthew shows himself to be law-abiding, even though he is prejudiced against those with different ideas. Do you think it is possible for a good and decent person to have prejudices?
This book was written a long time ago, do you think it would still interest kids today? What books of our time might interest kids just as much on 50 years?

You can also find some really interesting points about the themes and main conflicts of the novel here.

Live, Laugh, Vote

2008-10-02T00:27:00.002-05:00

Just a reminder that nominations started for the Cybils today. Head on over to nominate your favorites or get some great recommendations.

I'm struggling to to whittle my nominations down to just one book for each category!

October book list - Witches

2008-10-02T00:20:00.002-05:00

The Utah Chapter of the Children's Literature Book Club is just getting started and Since it's the bewitching season, we're reading books about witches. We're starting things slowly so the list is short. We're reading The Witch of Blackbird Pond by Elizabeth George Speare And The Widow's Broom by Chris Van Allsburg
I've also asked each member to read at least one other book about witches and bring it to share. Here are a few titles that came to mind as possibilities:
Which Witch by Eva Ibbotson
Well Witched by Frances Hardinge
The Frog Princess Series by E.D. Baker
Witch Child by Celia Rees
The Witches of Dredmoore Hollow by Riford McKenzie
The Witches by Roald Dahl
The Lion The Witch and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis

Look for discussion questions later this month along with a list of the books members brought to share.

What's your favorite witch book?

Not so into dragons

2008-09-25T16:49:00.003-05:00

I love Robin McKinley's fairytale adaptations (as far as I'm concerned, Beauty is a must read and the Hero and the Crown and The Blue Sword deserved the recognition that they got), so I was willing to read Dragonhaven, even though it did not sound like my kind of a book. I mean, a novel about dragons in a contemporary world, no thanks, but if anyone could pull it off, it would be Robin McKinley. Unfortunately, it lacked the magical sense that captivated me in McKinley's other novels. I kept waiting to get into the story, but I never did.

14 year-old Jake grows up the son of the head of a national park designed to protect two hundred of the world's remaining dragons. On his first solo hike through the park, Jake finds a dying dragon, next to the poacher who fatally wounded her and was torched to death by the dragon in return. Even more shocking, the dragon had just given birth and only one of her dragonlets was left alive. It was clear to Jake that the dragonlet wouldn't last much longer on its own so he took it into his care even though it's a felony to help save a dragon. Jake's mother died when he was twelve so he sympathizes with the dragonlet and can't bear to let it die. He struggles home and begins the dangerous process of trying to raise a dragon, which he has to keep secret from the tourists visiting the park. The death of the poacher brought an uproar from the public against the dragons and Jake knows that if he's discovered, the park would be shut down.

It sounds exciting when you read it in one paragraph, but try 342 pages and then tell me what you think. It would have been so much better if it had been edited into a shorter novel.

It seems odd that this books is classified as a children's book at all. Jake's young in the beginning, but he's 25 at the end of the book. The last third of the novel takes place much later and seems incongruent with the rest of the story. There's a lot of language and some references to sex that surprised me. Jake is clearly an adult dealing with adult issues like whether or not he should have kids, and I don't think many kids would feel any connection to his problems.

I have much higher hopes for Chalice, McKinley's new novel just released this month. It sounds more in line with The Blue Sword and The Hero and the Crown, and is already receiving rave reviews.

Board Stiff? Not anymore!

2008-09-23T13:52:00.002-05:00

So I reviewed some board book basics the other day, but I wanted to talk about some of the innovative things happening with board books. I spotted the newest Sandra Boynton board book today and it is a great example to begin with. It's called Fifteen Animals! and it follows a boy introducing all fifteen of his pets. Boynton fans may not be surprised to note that all but one of the pets are named Bob. It may just look like a regular board book, but not so my friends! Sandra's well-known for two things really, her board books and her kids' music, and now she's found a new way to combine them. In the front of Fifteen Animals there is a link to go online and download a free copy of the song Fifteen Animals! Now some of Sandra's other board books included a hard copy version of the music in the back, but providing a link with a free copy of the song is wonderful for non-musically talented parents like myself who cannot read notes and have been forced to make up any old tune knowing someday their child will hear the real version and feel conned. So thanks Sandra, for helping keep my son out of therapy. You can check out the song and download it for free here. Next, Charley Harper's ABC's, ok so maybe vintage illustrations are not exactly innovative, but I have noticed how board books have developed and now many are illustrated beautifully? Kid absorb art in the world around them and begin to develop artistic tastes at an early age so why are there so many cheesy cartoony illustrations out there. Babies deserve real art too so I'm in love with Charley Harper's ABC's
And I'm excited for the November 1st release of Charley Harper's 123's
Gallop by Rufus Butler Seder has taken kid lit world by storm because it's something new and different. My son loves moving the pages back and forth to see the animals move and visiting adults even have a hard time putting it down. Many toddlers love the movement that pop-ups provide, but they aren't quite ready with the gentle hands pop-ups require. Gallop provides the movement in a much sturdier format (although it's not a true board book so if they really work at it, these stiff pages can be torn)
Well, on October 15th, I'm sure fans will be pleased to see a new title by Rufus Butler Seder, Swing! It's all about children moving this time. I can't wait to get my hands on a copy to see kids jump, swim, and swing.
It's nice to see board books evolving because they certainly are getting better and better.

Local book signing

2008-09-20T14:00:00.002-05:00

Yesterday, my son and I made it to Marc Brown and Judy Sierra's book signing at The Kings English. We arrived late because my son is one and had we arrived early, no one would have been able to hear the presentation. It was lovely meeting both of them and they were both as wonderful and warm as you'd expect them to be. The part that I found annoying is that to receive a ticket for a place in line for the signing, you had to purchase either Born to Read or Wild About Books. I had no problem with purchasing books there to be signed, I'm all about supporting my independent bookstore, but why those two and not others? Both books are good, but they are not my favorites by either author/illustrator so there were many others I would rather have purchased there. The salesclerk told me that they weren't happy about the policy either, but they had to agree to those publisher stipulations in order to book the signing.

Ok, rant over, at least I only had to buy one so I also picked up the extremely clever Mind Your Manners B.B. Wolf by Judy Sierra and had that signed for my son's book collection too.

The sad part was that my camera was missing so I ended up with blurry cell phone pictures. These pictures make me laugh because after waiting in a very long and hot line, my son doesn't look too impressed, does he?
We'll chalk it up to teething because, hello? Who wouldn't be thrilled to meet Marc Brown and Judy Sierra?

Alright, I totally admit that right now, we attended the book signing because I wanted to meet them, but I truly think that one day my son will think it's cool to see these pictures tucked into his signed copies. There was a little boy in front of us who could not believe he was meeting the man who could draw Arthur better than his mom, and it's moments like that that make book signings so fun.

Hip, hip, hooray!

2008-09-20T00:33:00.003-05:00

I just got word that I will be on this year's picture book judging committee for the Cybils! Yippee! What are the Cybils some of you may wonder (but I hope many of you already know)? It's the award that was started three years ago when many children's and YA lit bloggers questioned the award winners: many of the ALA (Newbery, Caldecott, etc.) didn't really seem like books kids would enjoy and the Quill winners were sort of a joke, just whatever the publisher sold the most of whether it showed literary value or not. It seemed like there should be an award out there that took the middle ground for literary books that kids would love. Thus, Kelly Herold and Anne Boles Levy gathered the kidlitosphere and started their own awards, The Cybils.

Beginning October first anyone can nominate one book for each of the Cybils categories. Then once the nominations have closed, I'll be on the committee narrowing down all the fictional picture books to five finalists. We'll pass the finalists onto another judging panel to decide the winner.

I love being on the first judging panel. Two years ago I served on the panel for middle grade fiction, and it was so fun to be in on the debate over the finalists. I never envy the final judging panel that has to choose the winner because the five finalists are always so fantastic that it would be too hard for me to decide.

I am so, so excited to be judging this year with some truly amazing people! I can't wait to get start so be sure to head over to the Cybils site on October first to start nominating!

(If you picture me prancing around right now and periodically doing my best Mary Katherine Gallagher, kneeling on one knee with both arms in the air yelling, "Cybils Judge!" I'm not saying that you'd be wrong)

Do you heart Greg Heffley?

2008-09-18T14:44:00.004-05:00

I know The Diary of a Wimpy Kid by Jeff Kinney is beloved by many, but when I read it a few months ago, I wasn't sure what to make of it. I wanted to love it because I love that it's a graphic novel/traditional novel hybrid in diary format. I think that's a new format a lot of visual readers could really get into.

My problem with the series (the first two books are out with three additional books in the works) is that I didn't like the main character, Greg Heffley. To put it bluntly, he was kind of a jerk sometimes. Greg is a middle schooler just trying to blend in, boost his popularity, and avoid bullies, but in the meantime, his own blunders and his nerdy friend Rowley hold him back. There are times in the book when Greg clearly makes the wrong decisions, which I could live with, but he is often so mean to Rowley and seems oblivious to it. It may be a realistic portrayal of a middle school boy, but does that mean that I have to like it? (I fully admit my dislike of Greg is coming from the mother in me).

I recently came across two interviews with Jeff Kinney that sort of clarified why I feel the way I do about the Greg. In "Stuck (In The) Middle" in September's Parent & Child Magazine, Kinney says, "Greg often thinks he's been redeemed when he hasn't. In the first book, [his friend] Rowley gets in trouble for something Greg does. Greg's mother tells Greg he needs to do the right thing. Greg thinks the right thing is to let Rowley take the fall this time around because it's best for both of them. He comes home and Greg's mother asks, 'Did you do the right thing?' and Greg says yes. He's rewarded with ice cream, and he's very proud of himself for having done the right thing." Not exactly a character you want your kids to look up to.

Then in an interview posted in the Wimpy Kid website, Kinney is asked if he thinks Greg is a good role model. Kinney answered, "No, not really. Greg is self-centered and can be kind of clueless. I don't think Greg is a bad kid, necessarily; but like all of us, he has his faults. Hopefully, readers will understand that Greg's imperfections are what make him funny. I think that stories with characters who always do the right thing are a little boring. I wanted to create a character who was more realistic." Now, there are a lot of books out there that I love where the main character makes huge mistakes, but later tries to make it up or take responsibility so I guess that's what really gets me; not that Greg makes mistakes, but that he doesn't regret them.

I guess it's possible to dislike the main character and still like the series, because that's the conclusion that I've come to on this one, and it makes me feel a little better to know that Kinney thinks Greg isn't role-model material. Greg's portrayal of his life is very funny and his voice reads like that of a true middle schooler without shadows of a grown-up behind it so I'm sure many a kid will treasure the series.

I've had several talks with parents who don't like certain kids books because the main characters are poor role-models. Personally, I think you have to give kids some credit that they know right from wrong and can enjoy a book like Diary of a Wimpy Kid and appreciate the humor without wanting to follow in Greg's footsteps. In fact, it's Greg's ignorance to the flaws of his moral compass that make parts of the book so funny.

The third book of the series, Diary of a Wimpy Kid: The Last Straw is due out on January 13th.

Savvy - by Ingrid Law

2008-09-16T16:47:00.003-05:00

Mibs Beaumont anxiously awaits her 13th birthday because in the Beaumont family, that's when your savvy strikes. Her brother fish caused a hurricane on his 13th birthday, which was why they had to move to Kansaska/Nebrasas (the border between Kansas and Nebraska) while Fish learned to "scumble" (control) his power over water and the weather and Mibs' brother Rocket learned to scumble his electric current savvy.

There are all sort of savvies; Mibs Grandpa creates land and ended up creating Idaho on his 13th birthday. Her mom's savvy was being perfect. Some people had a small savvy that they weren't even aware of so they could do things like make the best jam or never get splashed by mud. Mibs hoped her savvy would be something cool like x-ray vision or the gift of flight until her dad gets in an awful car accident and ends up in the hospital in a comma.

The morning of her birthday Mibs starts the day sure that her savvy is something that will wake her papa up and save his life, if only she could get to the hospital a few hours drive away. Unfortunately, Miss Rosemary, the preacher's wife left in charge of the Beaumont children while oldest brother Rocket and their Mother are at the hospital, has other plans. She drags Mibs to a makeshift party at the church, where all of Mibs despised classmates are forced to attend.

When Mibs spots that the pink-bible salesman's bus at the church is from the same town she's trying to get to, she decides it's fate and sneaks aboard, followed by the preacher's son, Will Junior, who supports her crazy idea; Rocket, who feels responsible for Mibs; and Will's sister Bobbi who doesn't want to miss out on any trouble caused; along with Mibs younger brother Samson who was hiding on the bus.

By the time the bus driver discovers the kids, he decides he cannot turn back and still make his deliveries, so he heads on, IN THE WRONG DIRECTION! It turns out Mibs and her travel companions are in for much more of an adventure than they bargained for.

Truthfully, the storyline about the magical savvies didn't really appeal to me much, but I picked up Savvy anyway based on others' recommendations, and Ingrid Law's writing just reeled me in. Her characters were wacky, but their relationships with each other seemed powerful and real and I worried about what would happen to each of them.

Ingrid Law said, "When I started Savvy, I wanted to create a different kind of magic—one that called to mind the feel of a modern American tall-tale. I wanted to break away from the traditional tales about magic and find roots in the soil around me. What would magic look like if it sprang up in the small towns of America? And what in the world would it be called if I didn't want to call that distinctive know-how magic?"

I wouldn't quite call Savvy a tall-tale, but I could see the Beaumont family in a tall-tale of their own. It turns out that Ingrid actually did write a tall-tale explaining how the Beaumont family got their savvy and you can read it here.

The official Savvy website also provides a link to a teacher's guide to Savvy with some great discussion questions like:

“Perhaps Samson’s strengthening touch was just an ordinary sort
of human magic, the kind of magic that exists in the honest, heartfelt
concern of one person for another.” (p. 113) Explain “ordinary human
magic” in your own words. Give another example of “ordinary human
magic” you find in Savvy.
Fish and Rocket have a terrible time scumbling their savvies. How does
this cause a ruckus for the Beaumont clan and others who know them?
Are there any parts of your own personality that you have a difficult time
controlling? Is it better to tone down parts of yourself so that you fit in
society or is it more important to be yourself completely?
Momma warns Mibs that, “You can’t get rid of part of what makes you you
and be happy.” (p. 186) What makes you you? How do you let that special
part shine through?

The movie is slated for 2011 so we're sure to be hearing more about Savvy from Walden Media.

Building a library for your child

2008-09-11T00:29:00.000-05:00

My friends know that I have a ridiculously huge children's book collection (as in, it warrants its own room with multiple bookshelves) so it probably seems silly that it's very important to me to start a personal children's book collection for my son. Here's my reasoning: I inherited very few of the cherished books from my childhood because I have three siblings who also loved the same books and on top of that, my mom now has four grandchildren to read to. Now that I'm thinking about it, I don't think we had any copies of my parents' childhood favorites. So many memories are tied to those books, and I would love to have a little library of them. I also would like to use my collection to read to my someday grandchildren and I have this idea that someday, I'd like to leave my own collection of children's books to a women's & children's shelter as part of their library or to be divided up and sent with families to their new homes because every child should have access to great books.

I don't neccessarily want my son to have boxes and boxes of books to lug from home to home as I do, but I do want him to have a few favorites so I did two simple things to start his collection.

I started a birthday tradition that every year I will give my son either a new book that I know he will love (like the new Mo Willems Pigeon book that comes out right after his first birthday) or his favorite book that we've enjoyed from the library that year (This year it was a tie between Dear Zoo and Where's Spot). He gets the book for his birthday and then we take a picture of him reading the book (this year, courtesy of my photographer sister Candice, it was a picture of him sitting on our laps while we read it to him). I glue a copy of the picture into the book along with a longer list of his favorite books from the year. It will be fun to interview him to create the list when he gets older. I think Kristi of Everything Pink buys her girls each a Christmas book every year and then writes brief synopsis of each child's year in their book so this is sort of a different twist on that.

I try to attend local book signings and buy copies of books to be signed for my son even if I already own my own copy. Then I take a picture of my son with the author/illustrator and tape it into the book with the signature so my son will know when he met the author/illustrator. I love to see his collection grow and I have visions of him bringing books like his signed copy of Knuffle Bunny Too to show and tell so he can tell everyone about the time he actually met Mo Willems, etc.

Two simple ideas, but hopefully that will get you thinking about your own book collections.

Who needs to picture books when you've got a computer?

2008-09-10T01:52:00.005-05:00

My son is only one. He doesn't know how to type, he hasn't figured out the mouse, but he loves to sit on my lap and play with the computer. We live in a digital age, so I don't want to discourage his explorations as he pokes the keys and watches the monitor, but I want to start the habit of using the computer in a positive way form an early age. That's when I remembered Looky Book, it's an website that lets you view picture books from cover to cover. It was featured here back when it was in beta form, and it's collection has grown quite a bit since I last saw it. Although I still prefer to hold a real book in my hand, this is a great place to be in my little one MUST spend time online. You can create your own saved shelf of bookshelves and when you finish a book, Looky Book will recommend other similar books. They don't have the most extensive collection, but who can resist a glimpse at Little Pea or ABC3D or First The Egg (and aren't you curious to see how they handle all the cutouts in First The Egg?)

And speaking of picture books online, have you seen Storyline Online? It's a program run by the Screen Actors Guild. They have recordings of actors reading picture books with some animation added to the illustrations. It's the next best things since Reading Rainbow (ok, it's not, but it could be if they keep it up and add more books and make it a little easier to access a list of all of the books offered). It's also very worth your time to check it out. You'll find some oldies but goodies like The Polar Express, A Bad Case of the Stripes, and William Steig's Brave Irene.

Princess Ben - by Catherine Gilbert Murdock

2008-09-10T00:14:00.000-05:00

I must confess that I'm a sucker for a princess story, but I am picky; I don't love ALL princess stories. Luckily Princess Ben is one of the better princess novels that I've read recently, and I'm happy to recommend it to you.

With a title like Princess Ben, you might expect this story to be about a tomboy sort of princess, but it's not. Ben is just short for Princess Benevolence, but Ben is highly unusual in other ways. Her parents shielded her from court life and training as a princess and allowed her to have a simple childhood (that was maybe just a little too relaxed). After eating herself sick and catching a chill at her fifteenth birthday party, Ben is forced to stay home during the ceremonial, semi-annual visit to her grandfathers grave. Her parents and her uncle, the King of Montagne, carry on without her.

That evening, she receives terrible news that her mother and uncle were murdered at the grave and her Father has gone missing. After extensive searches, her Father cannot be found and Ben is left as a charge of her Aunt Sofia, the Queen of Montagne. Sofia has never approved of Ben's upbringing and immediately puts Ben on a strict diet to counteract her chubby frame and forces her to begin new lessons on being proper royalty as Ben is now officially set to inherit the throne as soon as she is deemed worthy.

Queen Sofia is cold and makes it very clear that she thinks little of Ben and would happily marry her off. When she discovers that Ben has been sneaking food behind her back in order not starve, she forces Ben to live in a small inhospitable tower that can only be reached through the Queen's chambers. Ben is truly miserable until she discovers a magic chamber with a spell book and beings magical training. Soon she's sneaking about the castle through secret passages by night and snoozing through her lessons by day.

Ben pays little attention to the fact that her kingdom is being threatened by a neighboring kingdom Drachensbett, until she learns that her aunt hopes to create peace by marrying her off to the prince of Drachensbett. The plan quickly goes awry when the prince dislikes sulky Ben and the king of Drachensbett declares Ben will never be fit to be queen and the kingdom should be turned over to him. Ben is left desperate for a way to help save her kingdom.

The story is told first person and I enjoyed Ben's narrative voice. I did have a few problem with the book, the first being that this is another one of those books where the princess is transformed into a much thinner beauty before she is accepted by all and happy with herself. The second is that magic plays a large part of Ben's life and is completely left behind and it doesn't seem to be a sacrifice for her.

Overall, I'd still highly recommend this book. It especially appealed to me because it's a fairytale where no one is all good or bad, we see faults and strengths of all of the well-developed characters. And rare is the princess story where the Princess realizes that much of her predicament is due to her own foibles, and she has to fix them herself. Be sure to share this one with any princess lover that you know!

What The Dickens: The Story of a Rogue Tooth Fairy by Gregory Maguire

2008-09-09T01:44:00.003-05:00

From the publisher:

A terrible storm is raging, and ten-year-old Dinah is huddled by candlelight with her brother, sister, and cousin Gage, who is telling a very unusual tale. It’s the story of What-the-Dickens, a newly hatched orphan creature who finds he has an attraction to teeth, a crush on a cat named McCavity, and a penchant for getting into trouble. One day he happens upon a feisty girl skibberee who is working as an Agent of Change — trading coins for teeth — and learns that there is a dutiful tribe of skibbereen (call them tooth fairies) to which he hopes to belong. As his tale of discovery unfolds, however, both What-the-Dickens and Dinah come to see that the world is both richer and less sure than they ever imagined.

This books has me baffled. The story-within-the story about What-The-Dickens, the rogue tooth fairy, is more or less what I would expect from Gregory Maguire, the author of Wicked; an imaginative interpretation of the tooth fairy (or fairies in this case) like we've never heard before. I have a few issues with it, which you'll her more about, but overall, the tooth fairy part of the novel I can handle. The realistic fiction part of the story has me so confused. Maguire goes out of his way to make readers aware that Dinah's parents are religious fanatics. From the first page we read:

"They kept themselves apart — literally. The Ormsbys sequestered themselves in a scrappy bungalow perched at the uphill end of the canyon, where the unpaved county road petered out into ridge rubble and scrub pine.

The Ormsbys weren’t rural castaways nor survivalists — nothing like that. They were trying the experiment of living by gospel standards, and they hoped to be surer of their faith tomorrow than they’d been yesterday.

A decent task and, around here, a lonely one. The Ormsby family made its home a citadel against the alluring nearby world of the Internet, the malls, the cable networks, and other such temptations.

The Ormsby parents called these attractions slick. They sighed and worried: dangerous. They feared cunning snares and delusions. Dinah Ormsby wished she could study such matters close-up and decide for herself.

Dinah and her big brother, Zeke, were homeschooled. This, they were frequently reminded, kept them safe, made them strong, and preserved their goodness. . . From the Ormsby’s bunker, high above the threat of contamination by modern life, [Dinah] could still love the world."

The books continues to make references to their zealous behavior, but in the end, it never plays into the story or comes to any end. And if the parents sequestered their family away from society, wouldn't you expect them to have supplies stockpiled? How did the children get left with an inept babysitter with only two jars of carrot baby food and a can of tuna fish in their whole home?

And I'm not sure what to make of the major storm that seems to have destroyed much of the United States? I guess it gives Gage plenty of time to tell What-The-Dickens' story to his charges, but couldn't that have been framed some other way if the storm seemed to have no other purpose in the story and hasn't even come to an end, by the novel's close?

And as long as I'm venting, at one point our story is interrupted by police officers/rescue workers who reiterate that it is not safe for the children to be at home and force them to evacuate to a shelter and Gage condones Dinah and Zeke's sneaky way of disobeying in order to remain in their dangerous home. Why? Seriously, why? There are never any consequences for their lies and they didn't bring any news about their parents. Why didn't Maguire just leave that out? The whole family story just doesn't make any sense to me.

Now as for What-the-Dickens' story, it starts out very slow. I wasn't surprised to read many reviews that said it was dull and they wanted to quit reading as What-the-Dickens dithers around trying to figure out what he is and what he should do. The story really picks up once he meets Pepper, and the Skibbereen society was fascinating. Again I felt like the plot failed me when the many problems with the Skibbereen society are revealed and none of them are resolved or even openly objected to (for example only senior members are deemed worthy of receiving a name, everyone bluntly tells What-the-Dickens he's a worthless idiot and feel free to mock Pepper liberally, and the leader of Pepper's colony is a bully).

All in all, it was a confusing read that I think most children will struggle to get into until about mid-novel.

Signed and Dated

2008-09-08T01:22:00.004-05:00

So I'm in a new city and I've been sulking a bit about missing my neighborhood children's book shop, Cover to Cover. They have the most knowledgeable staff and I NEVER miss their fall book review. I suppose the crisp weather this week is what keeps reminding me that I will be missing the review this year.

Friday, I decided that it's time to move on and check out the book shops around here. I was pleased to discover a wonderful independent bookstore just a few blocks away called The King's English. The best part is that they have some fantastic authors doing book signings soon. So if you're in the Salt Lake area, you might be interested in this:

Judy Sierra and Marc Brown, the team behind Wild About Books have a new book called Born to Read, which they will be signing at The King's English on Friday, September 19th at 4:00.

Jon Scieszka will be signing his new memoir Knucklehead on Monday October 6th at 3:30

And Laurie Keller will be signing her new book, the Scramble States Of America Talent Show on Tuesday, October 21st at 7:00 p.m.

Oh, I wish that I had been around last month for the Repunzel's Roundup Event featuring local authors like Shannon Hale, A.E. Cannon, James Dashner, Sara Zarr, and Mette Ivie Harrison! Wow!

I'm so happy to discover such a cool independent shop, and the part that amazes me is that a few of my neighbors, who like to read children's literature too, didn't know about any of these events. It makes me wonder how many people out there are missing out on incredible author events near them.

My husband grew up in Irvine, CA where there is a tiny children's book shop called A Whale of a Tale that holds the best signings. Every time we visit there I check ahead for any book signings so we can schedule to be there. Seriously, check out this lineup (over the next two months they have Jack Prelutsky, Tony DiTerlizzi, Graeme Base, Cornelia Funke, David Carter, T.A. Barron, Tomie DePaola, David Shannon and several others). And once again, many of my husband's friends that still live in Irvine don't even know about A Whale Of a Tale and the author events that they're missing out on. It just kills me!

I guess all this is my very long winded way of saying, check out out the events at your local bookstore because you never know who you might have the chance to meet!

Shannon Hale Teaches How To Be A Reader

2008-09-06T10:45:00.004-05:00

There's a really interesting discussion going on over at Shannon Hale's blog (author of Goose Girl and Princess Academy). Shannon was disturbed when readers were angry with author Stephenie Meyer after they read and disliked her latest novel, Breaking Dawn. This got her thinking about whether the reader or the author is responsible when someone dislikes a book. Shannon's argument is that the reader and author are equally responsible makes a lot of sense.

You can read about the first part of her discussion on readers responsibilities here and part 2 on author's responsibilities here.

To basically sum it up, she says, " So, I write to my internal reader--you read to see if my internal reader and your internal reader are kindred spirits. If they're not, we go our separate ways."

All of this reminded me of hearing Lois Lowry speak a few years ago. She was particularly touched at a book signing when a little girl walked up to her clutching a copy of one of her books. The girl told her, "I love this book. It fits me just right." Now, I think of that story often when I hear a child say that they don't like to read. They probably would like to read if someone helps them discover books that fit them just right. Shannon Hale says that we have to be responsible for our own reading experiences and if we find a book boring, put it down and find one that you like, one that fits you just right.

I think I sat through about a million discussions in graduate school on how each reader will have a unique experience when they read a book because they bring to the story their own experiences, likes, dislikes, prejudices, etc. so everyone has a different reaction. For example, I really don't like the book The Little Prince, but I know several people who say that is their favorite book (and please don't send me hate mail because I don't like it). That said, I think we've all read a book with an interesting plot, that we couldn't enjoy because of poor writing and that's a reflection of the power an author yields, not the reader.

The whole argument is pretty important to the world of kid lit blogging and reviewing, because it brings up the question of how much of your review is based on what you brought to the book as a reader and how much of it is strictly due to the author. If your review is solely based on your "internal reader"and not specifics from the book, it might misguide readers to or away from a book that they could have a completely different reaction to. When I review a book, I try to keep in mind what parts of what I liked and disliked the author is responsible for, but a lot of it is probably due to my personal preferences and experiences (or "internal reader" as Shannon calls it). Any reaction caused by my "internal reader" I try to specifically note or leave out so I'm not passing on unfair reviews, but it's really difficult to separate the two.

Picture Book Peeks

2008-09-06T02:21:00.009-05:00

Oh, I do love the fall! The school supplies, the crisp weather, and the flood of new books! This fall seems to be especially well-stocked with new picture books by some of my favorite illustrators/authors. Have you been to the bookstore or library recently? I think you'll be pleased with the new titles you see. While I love to discover new artists and authors, who doesn't get a little thrill when they see something new from a favorite? Here are some new picture books that I'm excited about.

Old Bear by Kevin Henkes - A new picture book for the pre-school set, the text is extremely simple, but I'm in awe of the beautiful illustrations (which remind me a lot of the illustrations in A Good Day).

Madam President by Lane Smith - With the presidential elections underway, political picture books abound, but this one will have parents giggling as they try to read it aloud. I think this would be great to use with fourth and fifth graders when discussing the elections.

Thump, Quack, Moo: A Whacky Adventure by Doreen Cronin - Now I get sick of some series of picture books that seem stuck in a rut, but Thump, Quack, Moo is no such book. I laughed out loud as I read it to myself in the bookstore. The end is predictable if you know duck, but still enjoyable.

Too Many Toys by David Shannon - I'm always happy to see something new from David Shannon. This title dragged on a bit for me as it went on and on about all the toys young Spencer owns, till it finally got to the punchline at the end, but I suspect kids will enjoy exploring page after page of illustrations full of toys.

The Way Back Home by Oliver Jeffers - I heart Oliver Jeffers and this book is no exception. The nameless boy in this book seems to be the same boy from Lost And Found and How To Catch A Star (you'll even be able to spot a rowboat and a penguin in the illustrations), and I'll follow him on any of his imaginative adventures.

Little Mouse's Big Book Of Fears by Emily Gravett. I've heard virtually nothing about this book except what you can gather from the cover (it's a book about a mouse who is afraid of a lot of things), but Emily Gravett is swiftly becoming on of my favorite illustrators so I can't wait to pick this book up when it's released next week.

Fanny by Holly Hobbie - I'm admittedly not a fan of the new Holly Hobbie and friends series, but I appreciate Toot & Puddle enough to be interested in her newest picture book about a girl who begs for a new doll, but doesn't get it so decides to make her own. I spotted it in a bookstore today, but I haven't had a chance to check it out yet.

Now if we only had something new from Mo Willems . . . oh wait, we will. Granted it's not a new picture book, it's part of his easy reader series about elephant and piggie, but I'm looking forward to it. Are You Ready to Play Outside? by Mo Willems is scheduled to be released October 14th, and a new picture book, Naked Mole Rat Gets Dressed, is scheduled for January so I can't complain.

Wicked Lovely by Melissa Marr

2008-09-05T00:32:00.003-05:00

Wow, the people at Harper Teen are doing their jobs because I cannot think of a more appropriate title for this book than Wicked Lovely.

High Schooler, Aislinn, has been keeping a secret her entire life. Just like her mom and her grandmother, she can see and hear faeries; magical beings the same size as humans who roam the Earth wreaking havoc unbeknownst to us. Aislinn fears what would happen to her if the secretive faeries knew she could see them so she panics when two faeries begin following her. She soon learns that one of her stalkers is Keenan the Summer King. He's convinced that Aislinn is his queen and will stop at nothing to convince her to join him

Aislinn finds solice in her best friend Seth's home. As her fear grows, she finally decides to trust in Seth's friendship and confide in him. Together they try to find a way to save Aislinn from the faeries.

Now let's be blunt, there are way too many references to sex, drinking, and drugs for me to ever recommend this to a teenager without fearing their parents might come after me, and yet, I could not stop reading! I could not relate to Aislinn because I found nothing about tattooed, pierced, sexually active Seth sexy. I mean really, it's supposed to be a romantic gesture that he went out and got tested for STDs just in case their relationship ever lead to anything (what about all of the other girls)? I know, I'm getting preachy and that's why I don't do much YA lit these days.

I thought the faery side of the story wouldn't appeal to me, but that's exactly what pulled me in. There was something Twilightesque about the way Marr changed all the beliefs I had about the faery world and made me care so much about what happened to them. There are actually A LOT of Twilight parallels here (the mythical creatures explained in a fresh way, the way our heroine should be threatened by the mythical creatures but becomes comfortable around them, the polar opposite boys dueling for our heroine's affection, the debate whether our heroine should become one of the mythical creatures . . .).

While it was sort of a guilty pleasure for me and not the sort of book I would normally recommend, Twilight fans looking for something new will enjoy this book and beg Marr for a sequel.

Board book trends

2008-09-02T17:37:00.008-05:00

Parents often ask me to recommend board books, and being the parent of a one-year-old, I'm quite interested in board books myself, but there is not a lot of scholarly work about board books. It's known that babies are attracted to pictures with bright colors and high contrast, and the simpler, the better. Complicated backgrounds make it hard for them to focus, which is why you'll see a lot of board books with plain white backgrounds. They also love to look at other babies so you'll find a lot of board books that are basically just photos of babies on white backgrounds. Now, there's nothing wrong with those books, in fact, you should be sure to have some around because they will probably be the first books that appeal to your baby. Luckily, my son moved on to books that are a little more artful and interesting. Here's the rundown of some of our favorites in different categories.

The Classics

Yes, I know Board books only began to appear in the 80's but there are some classic out there, and just as you'd expect, they are some of my son's favorite books.

First off, I consider just about any board book by Sandra Boynton a classic. She is a master of board books. There are very few authors out there known for creating board books so she's tried and true. Our favorite has been Oh my, Oh My, Oh Dinosaur with Moo, Baa, La La La as a close second.

I cannot even begin to tell you how many time I've read Where's Spot? by Eric Hill. It just celebrated its 25th anniversary and it is well loved by many, as you will see if you check it out from the library because the flaps are much lighter material then the pages and many of them will be ripped off. Because of the less than sturdy nature, I'd recommend waiting on this one until your baby is used to the idea of being gentle with books.

Dear Zoo also just celebrated its 25th anniversary. It's another lift the flap book, much like Where's Spot, so again, be careful with the flaps or they will quickly be torn off.

Activity (lift-the-flap & touch-and-feel)

As previously mentioned, Dear Zoo and Where's Spot? are our favorite lift-the-flap books, but my son will be happy to read just about any lift-the-flap or touch-and-feel book. We especially love Matthew Van Fleet's touch-and-feel books Tails, and Alphabet. They are kind of in between regular books and board books because the pages are made of cardstock that is bendable, but difficult to destroy.

Wordless

The reasoning behind wordless picture books seem sound, a child who can't read can pick up the book and enjoy it on their own, right? Well, my child still expects us to tell him a story as we turn the pages and he is unhappy if there is no commentary. That said, Trucks by Donald Crews is definitely a favorite around here.

Picture books converted to board books

In the last few years it seems there are a lot more picture books being printed in board book format. It's important to remember that board books are much shorter than picture books so the stories are adapted to the shorter length. I know a few children who have been surprised when they picked up the picture book version of their favorite board book and it had a lot more text and illustrations. When my son was really little, he tended not to be interested in these board books even though they were the board books I was most excited about. I think that's fairly normal since these books have a little more meat to them than books like "Baby's Feelings" with photos of babies and one word of text per page. Now, at 17 months, he prefers to listen to stories. Some of our favorite picture books turned board books are Olivia by Ian Falconer

The Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle

Board books that are part of popular picture book series

These are not to be confused with picture books converted to board books. These books have the same characters are some popular picture books, but they are written and formatted with the original intent to be published as a board book. Both of the last two categories are especially great to help toddlers transition from board books to picture books because they graduate to longer books about characters they are already attached to. My son is currently transitioning. In most cases he will not sit through reading a picture book, even if the text is brief, unless it's about one of the characters from his favorite board books. He loves The Pigeon Loves Things That Go by Mo Willems and will happily sit through any of the pigeon picture books now. Clever way for publishers to snag readers when they are young, eh?

Now I will admit that not all of these books have been successes. We have how Do Dinosaurs Learn Their Colors and How Do Dinosaurs Count to Ten and my son has never showed interest in either of them. In fact, they have been flung across the room during storytime more times than I care to admit. And I wonder if publishers are pushing their favorite authors/illustrators to churn out board books too. It seems like they are a becoming a bit formulaic. I know my son needs to learn colors and counting and opposites, but but come on, why can't we get a simple story now and then? Those formats just seems like an easy way to churn something out. Concept board books about counting and colors could be a whole category of their own, but I don't have much to say about them except that they abound. Admittedly, a few of them are irresistibly cute.

I guess I should just be grateful to be raising a baby when there are so many options for board books and they are some truly cute, original stories out there. I mean, who can resist Gossie by Olivier Dunrea?

Cha, cha, cha, changes!

2008-09-02T17:17:00.004-05:00

I know, I know, where have I been? Thanks to all of the loyal readers who've sent me kind words wondering what's up.

The answer is: I moved! My husband finished his residency program at The Ohio State University and we've move to Utah so he can do a fellowship at the University of Utah (he likes to say he's trying to put off making any money as long as possible). The saddest part of the news is that I've lost my book club! I feel lost without them!

Not to worry though, a few of the other original members of the Ohio chapter of the children's literature book club also live in Utah now, and we're doing our best to put together a new Utah chapter of the book club. It looks as though the Ohio chapter will be following along. I can't wait to get things going this month and I've been saving several book reviews to help celebrate so look for lost of new posts throughout the month!

The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation: Volume 1: The Pox Party by M.T. Anderson

2008-08-02T01:48:00.003-05:00

As I've mentioned before, I try to avoid reading the blurbs on the backs of books so over the last year and people have raved about The Pox Party, I've stopped listening there because I hate it when the plot of a very good book is spoiled. I know I'm a little behind in picking the book up, but wow, the wait was worth it and I was surprised by the plot in ways I wouldn't have been had I read a single review (which means maybe you want to stop reading this review now and just trust me and pick up the book).

M.T. Anderson's books seem to be all over the place, realistic fiction, vampire novels, kooky humor for younger readers so you never know what to expect. I haven't hated any of his books, but before Octavian I hadn't cherished any of them either.

I never spent a lot of time inspecting the cover of The Pox Party. It looked kind of like the man in the iron mask so I expected something set in the colonies that was dashing and daring with a bit of romance splashed in between. I am an idiot. I had no idea how deep and moving this book would be and I had no idea how much it would mean to me.

Ok, let's start at the beginning. Here's the summary from the publisher:

He is a boy dressed in silks and white wigs and given the best of classical educations. Raised by a mysterious group of rational philosophers known only by numbers, the boy and his mother–a princess in exile from a faraway land–are the only people in their household assigned names. As the boy’s regal mother, Cassiopeia, entertains the house scholars with her beauty and wit, young Octavian begins to question the purpose behind his guardians’ fanatical studies. Only after he dares to open a forbidden door does he learn the hideous nature of their experiments–and his own chilling role in them.

BIG BIG PLOT SPOILERS BEYOND THIS POINT

Now, even if I had read that description along with seeing the cover I can see how I would have missed a major part of the plot, but if I had read a single review I would have picked up that Octavian is black. His mother was an African Princess sold to the philosophers while pregnant and Octavian's upbringing, with the best possible education, is actually an experiment meant to settle arguments as to whether or not black people have the same intellectual capacity as white. The vague summary from the publisher and the omission of Octavian's face of the cover of the book were obviously intentional so the reader would be just as surprised as Octavian at his discovery.

Everything goes awry when Octavian learns that he is actually a slave being experimented on and shortly after the Philosophers lose their main benefactor and find new investors, who happened to depend on slavery as part of their commerce and are bent on proving that Octavian is indeed of a inferior race.

This is a revolutionary war story like you've never read before, but should have. In the history classes of my youth, why didn't we discuss the hypocrisy of the patriots fighting for freedom from the British while justifying slavery in their own homes? I never knew that the patriots feared the British would move their own slaves to an uprising and took precautionary measures.

As you'd expect with any realistic portrayal of slavery, heartbreak and horrific treatment abound and there are some graphic and disturbing scenes. Add to that the complex scientific terms and eighteenth-century prose, and I'd say this book should definitely be put in the hands of mature young adults. In fact, I'm not sure why this is considered a young adult book at all. Yes, it belongs in classrooms right along with To Kill A Mockingbird, but many an adult would be challenged by it. It also had a very slow start many readers will struggle through. I must admit, before I really knew what it was about, I almost put it down, but I was so caught up in the end the complex language and format didn't even phase me. I'm ready and waiting for the October 18th release of The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation, Volume II: The Kingdom on the Waves

2008-07-18T13:23:00.005-05:00

There are so many books out right now about child geniuses so we decided to focus on a few og them this month

Something to think about relating to all three books:

What is each genius's attitude toward the "non-geniuses" around him or her?

How does that attitude direct the plot?

How does it affect the relationships they have with family and friends?

Millicent Min, Girl Genius, by Lisa Yee
Lisa Yee said she wrote this book because she wanted to write about a girl who was lonely. Why is Millicent lonely and what does she do about it? Is it her intellect that makes her lonely?
What do you think is Millicent's biggest problem?
As a parent, how would you deal with a child as smart as Millicent?
Were Millicent's parents as weird as she thought they were? What about Emily's mom?

Lisa Yee has some great blogs: lisayee.livejournal.com

www.lisayee.com

www.myspace.com/lisayeeblog

There are two companion books to Millicent Min, Girl Genius, both taking place the same summer but from different perspectives: Stanford Wong Flunks Big-Time and So Totally Emily Ebers.

Since The Specialists and Evil Genius have some points in common, here are some questions that cover the two books.
What do you think of the plot device in which genius kids are "recruited" by organizations when they're very young? Do you think it could possibly happen in reality?
Not only are these kids smart, they're loners without family or friends. Do you think intelligence can isolate kids? Does isolation encourage smart kids to explore law-breaking (hacking in particular)?
In both books, the kids are genius computer hackers. Did you find the technical jargon hard to follow? If so, is there a generation gap here?

The Specialists: Model Spy, by Shannon Greenland
Did anyone else find the plot slightly ridiculous? I thought it was fluffy but still enjoyable.
Does Kelly's character change through her experiences? If so, how?
How are the specialists like a family? How are they not?
How well do you think teen readers would relate to Kelly and the other specialists?

Shannon Greenland's blogs: shannongreenland.com and shannongreenland.blogspot.com

Evil Genius, by Catherine Jinks
Can you escape your upbringing?
What is it that awakens Cadel's sense of morality?
Blogger Fuse#8 wrote that "there's a powerful message here regarding love. That villains can and do love is something not a lot of children and teen books examine." What role does love play in Cadel's life?
Characters seem to have either intense love or intense hatred for Cadel. Why?
There are elements of the science fiction and superhero genres here. Did that draw you in or drive you back?
I thought the book was pretty dark, but with odd spots of humor. Do you think any of the humor was out of place? Did you find the book too dark for teens?

There's a sequel to Evil Genius out now (Genius Squad) and more planned in the series. The Axis Institute has a fun little web site where you can take a quiz to see if you're the kind of person who could get a degree in world domination: axisinstitute.org. Also: catherinejinks.com.

Looking for more books about child geniuses? Try The Artemis Fowl series or the Mysterious Benedict Society.

Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants 2

2008-07-18T13:12:00.004-05:00

Was anyone else wondering how they were going to pull off the second Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants movie? They departed so far from some major plot points in the first movie, that I didn't see how they could stick with the storyline from the books. I figured it was going to be another Princess Diaries 2 (since Princess Diaries 1 departed so far from the books, that the second movie's plot was totally made up and had nothing to do with the book series).

Well, word is out that the second movie will borrow plot from all of the books, but will be mostly based on the fourth book, Forever in Blue, which takes place during the summer between high school and college. Sounds like a smart move to me. I was also happy to note that they kept all of the original cast even though America Ferrera and Blake Lively have both been busy with wildly popular TV series.

It will be interesting to see if the second movies sticks closely to the books series and keeps readers happier than the first movie.

The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks by E. Lockhart

2008-06-18T22:39:00.003-05:00

I haven't been really absorbed in a book in a while. Maybe it's because I've been reading new books by some of my favorite authors and my expectations are too high or maybe it's because I'm too distracted preparing for my move this week or maybe it's because they were just not as good as The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks (DHOFLB)! I picked this up this week intending to read a few pages before going to bed. Then I found myself finishing it at five a.m. Oops! I know I should say I regret it, but it was totally worth it!

DHOFLB is about Frankie, who starts out as your average 15 year-old girl at Alabaster Preparatory Academy. Frankie's freshman year she relied on her sister Zada to introduce her around campus and watch out for her. She joined the debate club, made some semi-geeky friends, ate lunch with her sister, and life was ok. Then Zada graduated and Frankie spent the summer reading, relaxing, and developing curves that caught the immediate attention of her crush, a senior named Matthew Livingston. She's thrilled when she receives an invitation to a party she discovers is being thrown by a secret society called The Loyal Order of The Bassett Hounds and she's paired with Matthew as her date.

Ok, ok, I know what you're thinking, "Ack! Bleck! Another cheesy teen romance like a million others out there," but wait, there's more! It's obvious to Frankie that Matthew is a member of the Secret Order of the Bassett Hounds, but he NEVER talks to her about it even though she gives him ample opportunity to tell her, and the secrets drive Frankie crazy! She knows a little about the Bassett Hounds because her father was a member so when Matthew is called away when they are supposed to be on a date, she follows him and eavesdrops on the meeting. It turns out Matthew and his best friend Alpha are co-presidents in the group and it's Alpha who is continually calling Matthew away.

When Alpha is called away to a yoga retreat with his mom, Frankie decides to take action to get even with Alpha. She sends all the Bassett Hounds an email supposedly from Alpha and tells them that there is a change of plans for their Halloween prank. Frankie has come up with a much more entertaining and elaborate prank that goes off without a hitch. She's can't wait for Alpha to come home and recognize the change of plans and trace it back to her. Then maybe Matthew won't just see her as his sweet little girlfriend and appreciate her for who she really is.

Alpha doesn't react the way she predicts at all. He pretends to know what everyone is talking about and takes credit for everything. This angers Frankie and she sends him anonymous emails telling him to fess up the the Bassett Hounds, but he won't. She decides to beat him at his own game and continues to plan and direct crazy pranks around campus while pretending to be Alpha, hoping he will eventually come clean.

Now the plot and pranks are a highly entertaining part of the book, but the best part is Frankie and her feminist attitude. This turned out to be a total girl power book, but not in an obnoxious way, in a Frankie rocks like Kiki Strike sort of way. I love the way she sees things, like this quote:

"As the weeks passed, Frankie began to see that although Matthew welcomed people into his world with surprising warmth--it didn't occur to him to enter into anyone else's. She had to introduce him to Trish [her roommate] three times before he recognized her on his own, and he almost never came to Frankie's dorm room. If he wanted her, he called and asked her to come out and meet him

He didn't know of any of Frankie's Debate Club friends or the sophomores she hung out with from classes. He wasn't curious about her family. He expected her to become part of his life, but he didn't expect to become part of hers.

Lots of girls don't notice when they are in this situation. They are so focused on their boyfriends that they don't remember they had a life at all before their romances, so they don't become upset that the boyfriend isn't interested."

A pretty astute observation that made me think of some of my friends' high school relationships.

Of course as in all YA novels these days, the topic of sex comes up, but Frankie is not even close to being ready to have sex and is shocked when another couple implies that they are. It was a refreshing change from the other YA novels I've read recently. There are no shocking graphic scenes that ruin the book for me.

I also loved the information gleaned form Frankie's school report on a secret society called the Suicide club that's actually a real secret society. the society got their name from a Robert Lois Stevenson short story and they aren't actually about committing suicide, but living life to the fullest.

"Club members free themselves from the sense of surveillance generated by the panopticon. The panopticon makes them feel like they are always being watched, and they are determined to 1. go where they cannot be watched, such as into the sewers. 2. do what the imaginary unseen watcher would never want them to do, such as climb to the top of a bridge; or 3. behave in such unorthodox ways as to infuriate the unseen watcher, and yet technically not break any rules at all such as by having parties in graveyards, or dressing as clowns for the morning commute. Club members refuse to abide by certain rules, and they make people aware of the existence of those rules by breaking them in public situations."

I know that I'm going on and on, but I have to mention that I also appreciated the format of the book as a history of Frankie that implies that she goes on to become powerful and do great things and this is when it all began. Do I feel a sequel coming on? I hope so.

Oh, and if you love the book go check out E. Lockhart's website and blog. did you know that she's friend with authors John Green, Maureen Johnson, and Scott Westerfeld and illustrator Paul Zelinski? Wow! I don't think I could even form a sentence if I met any of them, let alone all of them.

Well, E. Lockhart, I have judged your books by their covers and lumped them in with some of the Ya lit out there that's a little too trendy for me, but I repent and I can't wait to pick up your other books!

Children's Literature Alphabet

2008-06-05T14:10:00.000-05:00

A while ago, I put together a children's book character name game for a baby shower and it got me thinking about children's book character names. Now, I'm working on putting together a set of alphabet flashcards for my son, with a book character for each name, but I need you help. I'm having trouble coming up with characters for some letters (I don't want just any old random characters, but fairly well-known characters that I love because I'd also love to give away a few sets of these as gifts). Here's my list so far:

A

Alexander

Alice

Amelia Bedelia

Angelina

Arthur

Babar

Babymouse

Berenstain Bears

Charlie

Charlotte

Cindy Lou Who

Corduroy

Daisy

David

Dr. De Soto

Ella

Eloise

Francis

G
George (Curious)

George (& Martha)

George (Shrinks)

Gossie

Grinch

H
Harold

Harry

Horton

I
Imogene

Ira

J
Jeremy Jacob

Judy Moody

Junie B. Jones

Kipper

Knuffle Bunny

L
Leonardo

Lilly

Lyle

M
Madeline

Maisie

Max

N
Fancy Nancy

O
Olivia

Olive

P
Pepito

Peter Rabbit

Pigeon

Piggins

Pinkerton

Pippi

Q - ?

R
Ramona

Rolie Polie Olie

Rosie

S
Scaredy Squirrel

Strega Nona

Spot

Stink

Sylvester

Tacky

Time Warp Trio

Trixie

U - ?
V

Verdi

Viola Swamp

Violet

Wemberly

Wilbur

Wild Thing

Wodnet Wat

X - ?

Y - ?

Z - ?
So which character would you pick for each letter? And what do you suggest for the letters that I'm missing? I'd love to hear your ideas!

The Battle of Labyrinth by Rick Riordan

2008-06-05T12:59:00.002-05:00

Many series tend to go downhill after the first book; maybe the novelty of the premise has worn off, maybe the author is scrounging for material as they try to stretch the series out or maybe the author has to rush to meet deadlines. At any rate, there are a few new series that I'm really enjoying these days and Percy Jackson and the Olympians by Rick Riordan, just might be my favorite. I mean, come on, each book gets better and better!

The Battle of Labyrinth is the fourth book in the series, and it did not disappoint. I won't go into the plot here because if you've started the series I'm sure you're already addicted (everyone I can get to pick it up loves it, even if they are sure they won't). The books really do need to be read in order so if you haven't been reading the series yet, run out and pick up the Lightening Thief. Hey, why are you still reading this? I mean it! Go pick up the book!

Tunnels by Roderick Gordon & Brian Williams

2008-06-02T22:52:00.003-05:00

To enjoy this book, I think you have to know that it does not have much of an ending. It sort of reminds me when my husband saw the first Lord of The Rings movie; he knew nothing about the books and was shocked and dismayed when the movie ended. If it wasn't for the credits rolling, he would have been sure the film broke or something because he could not believe they would end the movie right in the middle of the plot with zero closure for any of the characters. While fans of the books left the theater excited, my husband was ticked. I can't help but think some readers are going to feel the same way about Tunnels. I can even imagine a few of them examining the binding to make sure they aren't missing a few chapters in the end because the ending is so abrupt. Maybe that tidbit will help you enjoy the book a little more than I did in the end.

It all starts out with 14 year-old Will. Will's father is an archaeologist working is a tiny museum by day, scouring the city by night, hoping to make a big discovery. Will himself has a hobby of digging holes so he assists his dad on digs around the city. Just as Will and his dad start making discoveries in one of Will's tunnels, his dad disappears. No one has heard from him and the police have no clues. After looking in on Will's couch potato mom, the police hint to Will and his sister that maybe his dad wanted to leave. Will doesn't believe a word of it, but doesn't tell anyone about his latest cave because in the past other archaeologists have swept in and claimed the dig and all of the glory and will and his father don't want to be scooped.

Instead, Will recruits his friend Chester to help with the dig to look for more clues. Just as they are making headway, someone fills a huge section of Will's tunnel with backfill, hoping to disguise it as a cave-in. Will becomes really worried about what's going on with his dad's disappearance when mysterious men start following Will and Chester around town. They persevere and discover Will's dad had his own hidden tunnel that leads to a mysterious underground world. Will gets excited and drags Chester along woefully under prepared in a search for Will's dad. Of course all sorts of craziness ensues.

It was a really interesting plot and I can see why they're making a movie of it, but it was so long!!! I think every review I've read mentions that it should have been cut to about half the length. It also had a lot of violence and was just all around creepy and dark. That said, there were some MAJOR plots twists I did not expect in the slightest that kept things exciting. I wish I could say more, but I really don't want to spoil it. If this peaked your curiosity, you'll just have to check it out yourself, and if you enjoy it, the sequel, Deeper, is due out in March of 2009.

Ever by Gail Carson Levine

2008-05-30T16:08:00.009-05:00

I know you can't judge a book by it's cover, but I did, and I was way off on this one. I saw the latest novel by Gail Carson Levine, Ever, and I assumed that it was another fairy tale version by Gail Carson Levine (not that that's bad, I was really excited about it). I mean, look at the covers of her fairy tale adaptations; the covers are deliberately designed to match. This is probably not a problem for the average reader, but I have this weird habit of avoiding the publisher's summary because I hate having any of the plot spoiled.

At any rate, just so you don't make the same mistake, Ever is not a fairy tale adaptation, it is an original mythological story. It seemed to be vaguely middle eastern, but as far as I know it has a set of totally made up Gods and Goddesses that remind me a little of the Greek Gods. The novel starts out following the youngest God, Olus, the 17 year-old Akkan God of the winds. Olus is lonely because he's so much younger than all of the other Gods. His parents hesitantly agree to let him temporarily live among Humans but warn him that he will not fit in and find happiness among them. Of course, Olus has to learn that the hard way when he makes a new friend and decides he can confide in his friend that he is actually a God, which terrifies the human and his family. Olus learns to hide who he truly is in order to live among mortals.

He flits from one job to the next until he settles on being a goat-herd and spies Kezi, the beautiful daughter of his wealthy landlord. Altough he only watches Kezi from afar he quickly falls in love with her and he watches her dance and artfully weave her rugs. Tragedy strikes when Kezi's mother falls ill and her father Pleads to Admat (the only God Kezi's family believes in). He pledges that if Admat will heal his wife, he will sacrifice the first human who congratulates him on his wife's recovery. Kezi mother does indeed recover, and Kezi is horror struck when her beloved aunt tries to congratulate her father. She quickly intervenes and congratulates him before her aunt has a chance. Of course both parents are full of sorrow, but they fear Admat too much to betray their promise. Kezi submits herself to her destiny to be sacrficed, but she prays to Admat to let her live for 30 more days.

In the meantime Kezi, meets Olus and begins to fall in love with him. She suspects he's a magician, and has a hard time believing he is a God because she only believes in one God, Admat. Olus doesn't know if Admat is real because none of the Gods he knows have even heard of Admat, but he joins Kezi on a quest to help her overcome her parents' pledge to sacrifice her without angering Admat.

See, that was not the fairytale that I was expecting, although Kezi's father did remind me of King Midas losing his beloved daughter when he got his wish. Overall, I found the setup and plot interesting (parts of it were admittedly a little hard for me to buy into (warkis, people who slowly become covered with knitted feathers and eat dirt, etc.), but what I really struggled with was trying to figure out what Levine was trying to say about faith and religion. It really bothered me that the Gods showed no interest in humans, and Kezi's reasons for doubting her faith kept growing. In the end I'm still not sure what the point of it all was. Did anyone else feel that way?

All in all I'd rate this an interesting book, but Ella Enchanted remains my favorite Gail Carson Levine book by far!

Waiting For Normal by Leslie Connor

2008-05-30T10:54:00.002-05:00

I knew from the publisher's one sentence summary that this novel would be sad/depressing. Since becoming a mom, I have a particularly hard time with stories of child abuse or neglect, but I repeatedly heard such great things about this book that I had to pick it up, and I'm very glad that I did!

Sixth-grader Addie and her mom, Denise, are left in dire circumstances after Denise failed to make her mortgage payments with the money her Ex gave her and lost custody of Addie's two half-sisters. Ex-husband Dwight has the little girls and wants nothing to do with Denise, but offers up a trailer home he has parked downtown so that Addie (who is not his daughter) will still have a place to call home. He has his reservations about leaving Addie alone with her mom, but is left with no choice because he is not Addie's blood relation and he has no claim to custody. While Addie struggles to keep track of her mom, make new friends, and overcome her learning disabilities, Dwight and the little girls find a new family and a welcoming home.

See, sounds depressing, huh? But oddly enough, Addie carries an optimism that keeps the reader hopeful. Her mom is terribly neglectful, but Addie still has a network of people who love her and watch out for her. The book covers some heavy issues; that abuse isn't always physical, that kids shouldn't be the ones responsible for taking care of their parents, that having a learning disability doesn't mean you're not smart, and that sickness can be mental, not just physical. Yet somehow the story isn't too depressing. It has it's heartbreaking moments, but I was still able to close it with a smile.

Olivia on TV!

2008-05-30T10:51:00.003-05:00

Have you heard the news? Ian Falconer's Olivia is going to be on tv! I just heard the announcement that Nickelodeon will have 26 episodes of a 3-D half an hour cartoon starting at the beginning of 2009.

I'm interested to see how my favorite pig will look in 3-D.

Found: The Missing Book 1 - by Margaret Peterson Haddix

2008-05-29T10:08:00.003-05:00

So I admit that I'm a fan of the Shadow Children series even though it dragged out a bit. As a reader, I've been spoiled by many clearly laid out series lately; I knew Harry would be at Hogwarts for seven years and there would be a novel for each year, I knew there would be 13 unfortunate novels about the Baudelaire orphans; so it drove me nuts to read a series in the making that would obviously have a big event that would end the series (The shadow children would revolt/be discovered and either be accepted or destroyed) but I had no idea how many books would be in the series so with each new release I wondered if that book would finally end it all or leave it hanging.

Well, maybe Haddix got tired of people asking her if each new book in the Shadow Children Series would end it all because I think of Found less as a complete novel and more of an intro to the entire series. Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed the book, and I wasn't disappointed by the ending, but I'm more excited about what Haddix has mapped out next.

It begins with 13 year-old Jonah getting a mysterious letter in the mail that says, "You are one of the missing." Jonah has always known that he was adopted so he thinks the letter must be a prank from kids at school who also know Jonah's adopted. That is until his friend Chip gets an identical letter and discovers he was also adopted and his parents kept his adoption a secret. Neither boy can find any information about their birth parents except that an FBI agent's name and number is posted as a contact in each of their adoption files. By the time they each get a letter stating, "Beware! They're coming back to get you." they are both worried about what the truth might reveal and the plot only thickens as Jonah's 12 year-old sister, Katherine, helps them discover that their story involved an FBI cover up, a plane that appeared out of nowhere, 35 other kids, and people who appear and disappear.

How does Margaret Peterson Haddix do it? she can write mysterious sci-fi, historical fiction, fairy tales, even early-readers, and here she is with another series that's sure to be a another hit.

MAJOR PLOT SPOILER

I'm warning you, don't read the rest of this if you haven't read this book!

So the kids on the plane are 36 of the most famous kids missing from history and they can't stay in their modern lives with their adoptive families unless they fix the problems in history their disappearances caused. We know the group includes Virginia Dare, who vanished with the Roanoke Colony, the youngest children of Czar Nicholas II (Anastasia and Alexis), the Lindbergh baby, and we're starting off with Princes Edward and Richard, who disappeared from the Tower Of London in 1483. Wow! That is a major undertaking, and I can't even begin to imagine how much research it will take to write each of these books. Fans of this series are going to be learning a lot about history. I can't wait to learn more about each historical figure's life, and it will be interesting to see what goes wrong because of each disappearance and how Haddix will fix it.

Now when does book 2 come out?

Extras by Scott Westerfeld

2008-05-14T23:44:00.003-05:00

So, you already know that I like Scott Westerfeld's Uglies series, so I was happy to learn that he extended the trilogy and released a fourth book. I thought most people knew about it, but some bookclubbers were surprised when I mentioned it a few months ago, and I've been meaning to mention it here.

Extras takes place a few years after the first three books and is set in a modern version of Japan where citizens are valued by their fame ranking, which means Aya Fuse's rank of 451,369 makes her a complete no-one with no special privileges. The publisher describes it as, "a gigantic game of American Idol where, 'Tech-head' flaunt their latest gadgets, 'kickers' spread gossip and trends, and 'surge monkeys' are hooked on extreme plastic surgery. And it's all monitored on a bazillion different cameras. Whoever is getting the most buzz gets the most votes. Popularity rules."

Aya is convinced that if she can kick an amazing story, her rank will rocket and she'll get the life she dreams of. In a desperate effort she joins the Sly Girls (a group of girls that avoid the media as much as possible leading many people to believe they aren't even real) and sneaks footage of their dangerous fun, and she uncovers a much bigger story than she bargained for.

I know a few teenagers out there were disappointed to learn that this wasn't another novel focused on Tally, the main character in the first three books, but I thought it was so interesting and provided some good discussion points about what makes a person famous, is fame necessarily good, and what's the difference between news and gossip. Things teenagers today should be questioning as they watch Paris Hilton parade across the news, spend time surfing myspace, and tune into TV shows like Gossip Girl.

I really enjoyed this book and after discussion with friends, I have to admit that it probably helped that I speak Japanese so I didn't stumble with any of the names or placing where the story was supposed to take place. I would still start with Uglies and work my way through the series, but don't miss Extras at the end!

2007 banned book list

2008-05-13T14:44:00.002-05:00

Every year the ALA publishes the banned book list, or in more formal terms, American Library Association’s (ALA) 10 Most Challenged Books of 2007. Some books are on the list for obvious reasons, but every year it seems I'm surprised by one or two. For instance this year, Olive's Ocean made the list. What? Really? I loved that book! Do I have a selective memory? Did any of you find it offensive?

Here's the list:

1. “And Tango Makes Three,” by Justin Richardson/Peter Parnell
Reasons: Anti-Ethnic, Sexism, Homosexuality, Anti-Family, Religious Viewpoint, Unsuited to Age Group

2. “The Chocolate War,” by Robert Cormier
Reasons: Sexually Explicit, Offensive Language, Violence

3. “Olive’s Ocean,” by Kevin Henkes
Reasons: Sexually Explicit, Offensive Language

4. “The Golden Compass,” by Philip Pullman
Reasons: Religious Viewpoint

5. “The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn,” by Mark Twain
Reasons: Racism

6. “The Color Purple,” by Alice Walker
Reasons: Homosexuality, Sexually Explicit, Offensive Language,

7. “TTYL,” by Lauren Myracle
Reasons: Sexually Explicit, Offensive Language, Unsuited to Age Group

8. “I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings,” by Maya Angelou
Reasons: Sexually Explicit

9. “It’s Perfectly Normal,” by Robie Harris
Reasons: Sex Education, Sexually Explicit

10. “The Perks of Being A Wallflower,” by Stephen Chbosky
Reasons: Homosexuality, Sexually Explicit, Offensive Language, Unsuited to Age Group

May - Member Recommendations

2008-05-10T23:21:00.004-05:00

For May's meeting we met at Heather's to discuss some favorite recommended by readers. Here's the reading list along with some discussion questions that Heather put together.

Hope Was Here by Joan Bauer (recommended by Heather)

Why do you think Hope changed her name? What does the name "Hope" mean to you? How does it fit her character?
Describe Addie's character. What motivates her? Why does she move them across country?
What is Hope's relationship like with her mother?
How does her mother's brief visit effect Hope?
If a rule of waitressing is to never date the cook, why do you think Hope dates Braverman? What kind of a guy is Braverman?
Do you think G.T. is the father figure Hope is looking for in her life? How does meeting him change her?
How has Eli Millstone corrupted the mayoral election?
Why do you think G.T. decides to run for mayor? How can Hope help him win?
Over the course of the novel, how does Hope change and grow? 10. In the end, which characters in this book have hope?

Mara , Daughter of the Nile by Eloise Jarvis McGraw (recommended by Tara)

How are Mara and Hatshepsut similar? How are they different?
At what age would you introduce your children to this book, taking into account the way the main character uses her female wiles to manipulate the men? Did you feel the romance was "too passionate" for sixth graders (used as a staple in most 6th grade homeschool units)
How did the author deviate from true Egyptian political history in regards to the rulers of the day? How do you as mothers/teachers get appropriate background info to help young readers differentiate? Like in Da Vinci Code.
Who feared the gods the most in the story?
Did you like the way McGraw discussed Nuit, the great mother in the final pages of the story?
At what point does Mara really decide to stop playing the double agent and really work for Sheftu and Thutmose III?

Uglies by Scott Westerfeld (recommended by Steph)
Author's Discussion Questions

Have you ever had a friend like Peris, who abandoned your friendship after they moved away?
At first, did you hope Tally would get the operation? When did you change your mind? (Or did you?)
Have you ever found yourself trusting someone more or paying more attention to what they said not because they deserved it, but just because of their looks?
In what ways did Tally's trip through the wild prepare her for what she learned in the Smoke?
Would you give up your ability to think independently in exchange for being happy, beautiful, perpetually healthy, and rich?
How did David see Tally differently than she saw herself?
If Shay could have gone back in time and never have met Tally, do you think she would?
Other than the pretty operation, what are the main differences between the pretty society and our own? (Are there any ways in which the pretty society is healthier than ours?)
To what extent did Tally decide her own fate, and how much did other people decide it for her?
The Rusty civilization collapsed because of its dependence on oil. In what ways is your lifestyle dependent on oil and gasoline? How easily would you survive if it all disappeared one day?

April - Mormon Authors Part 2

2008-05-08T11:38:00.002-05:00

There are so many famous Mormons in the media these days including several authors. Many of you have heard of Stephenie Meyer's Twilight series, but you may be interested in reading some of these other books written by Mormon authors for children and young adults. I'm just listing either their most popular or most recent books.

Shannon Hale, Goose Girl, Princess Academy, Book of a Thousand Days
James Dashner, The 13th reality: The Journal of Curious Letters
Brandon Mull, The Candy Shop War, Fablehaven
Janette Rallison, How to Take the Ex Out of Ex-Boyfriend
Obert Skye, Levin Thumps
Jessica Day George, Dragon Slippers; Sun and Moon, Ice and Snow
Louise Plummer, Finding Daddy
AE Cannon, Loser's Guide to Life and Love, Charlotte's Rose
Mette Ivie Harrison, The Princess and the Hound
Randall Wright, The Silver Penny
Michael Tunnell, Wishing Moon, Moon Without Magic

We decided on the bold titles for April's book club because we've already read Stephenie Meyer's and Shannon Hale's book along with Wishing Moon by Michael Tunnell, The Shakeress by Kimberly Heuston, and Mississippi Trial, 1955 by Chris Crowe.

I'm not sure why there seem to be so many new Mormon YA/chldren's authors out there, but we're glad to see their success.

Book Plates

2008-05-01T21:23:00.010-05:00

Of course my favorite gifts to give are children's books and we have quite a library of our own so I'm always keeping an eye out for cool book plates, especially book plates designed with kids in mind. Lately I've seen a lot of free book plate downloads so I thought that I would share a few.

Jan Brett has a few on her site.

And this site has several to choose from by famous illustrators (although it's a British site so don't be suprised if you don't recognize a few of the illustrators). Here's one by Mike Inkpen. Another from Anita Jeram.

And one from Jez Alborough

These are from the nested blog and you can download them here.Book plates from the famous Etsy seller The Black Apple. Download them here. And last, but not least, one from Mo Willems' blog.

Jon Scieszka

2008-04-19T11:02:00.006-05:00

Oh we love us some Jon Scieszka around here (author of many fabulous books like the True Story of the Three Little Pigs as told by A. Wolf, and the Stinky Cheese Man)! We jumped at the chance to meet him at a book signing when we were in CA last fall. Every once in a while, it's a little disappointing to meet an author in person because they don't live up to the expectations of them that you've dreamed up in your head. That was not the case with Scieszka; he was EXTREMELY personable and funny in real life.

First off, how to pronounce his name; Scieszka rhymes with Fresca. At the time he was touring for his book Cowboy & Octopus so he read it aloud to the crowd. In reading this book on my own, I thought it very funny, but a little over most kids' heads, but it had all the tiny members of his audience rolling. He explained that he created this book because some of his favorite books were books about two friends like George and Martha, Frog and Toad so why not Cowboy and Octopus. An interesting fact I didn't observe the first time that I read the book is that Cowboy and Octopus are supposed to be clipped from something else so in each illustration they always look the same. It's really fun to page through the illustrations and see how Lane Smith Managed to pull that one off.

And speaking of Lane Smith, Jon pointed out that Lane Smith turns his illustrations over to his wife, Molly Leach, who is in charge of book design (end papers, where the text goes, the title page, etc.). Talented family, eh?

Other interesting tidbits? Jon grew up with five brothers who all blamed each other for everything that went wrong. he thinks if the wolf had a brother of a dog to blame, the True Story of the Three Little Pigs never would have taken place. Jon's favorite book beginning is The Frog Prince Continued.

Now Jon is working on an autobiography, but it's about his youth, not his grown-up years. He says he'll be including things like the time his big brother Ted was left to babysit and Jon and his brothers used his dad's ties to tie Ted to the bed.

A new author introduced Jon, so new in fact that his first book hasn't been released yet. Jon says to watch for Billy Twitter's Blue Whale Problem by Mac Barnett because Mac is one of the funniest people he knows.

Two big things involving Jon have happened since this book talk. First was the release of Smash! Crash! the first book in Jon Scieszka's Trucktown Series. Jon has been a big part of the movement to get more boys to enjoy reading because the statistics of how many boys give up reading for fun and flounder in their reading comprehension are dismal. He even started the site http://www.guysread.com/ and he wrote the Time Warp Trio series just to appeal to boys at that key age. Now Jon is starting younger with his new Trucktown picture book series. Studies show that both most boys prefer reading non-fiction, but most teachers want them to read literary fiction so both of Jon's series strive to meld non-fiction with literary fiction and provide kids with fun storylines chock full of interesting information. The publishing work is all abuzz about the Trucktown series, because it really is the first of it's kind. Jon has a deal for over 50 books in many different formats over the next three years so keep an eye out for picture books, board books, easy readers, and pretty much anything else that you can think of. But how will one illustrator possibly illustrate over 50 books in 3 years? Well, they won't. Three illustrators (David Shannon, Loren Long, and David Gordon) collaborated to created the car characters and their world and came up with the illustrations for the first book. Word is from here on out they will be working with a team of digital artists to create illustrations for the other books while maintaining their hand-painted appearance. Should be interesting to see how it all works out.

Oh, I said two big things, didn't I? Well, a few months ago, Jon was selected by the library on congress to be the first ever Ambassador of Young People's Literature. Fancy title, huh? Well this teacher turned author really cares about kids and works hard to help each of them harbour a love of literature so the title is well deserved.

March - Ohio Authors

2008-04-19T10:44:00.007-05:00

Local talent abounds so for the month of March, we decided to focus on some of our local Ohio Authors. Here's what we read along with some questions to inspire your own conversations:

Just Ella by Margaret Peterson Haddix
1. How does this book differ from other Cinderella re-tellings?

2. Why is Prince Charming not so charming?

3. Who is the real villain in this book?

4. In this book, Ella changes her own circumstances without the use of magic. How do you think this can encourage young readers in making their own decisions?

5. At the end, Ella does not immediately get married to live happily ever after, but rather chooses her own happily ever after. How can this empower females today?

Please Bury Me in the Library by J. Patrick Lewis (book of poetry)
1. How does this book of poetry compare with other children's books of poetry?

2. How does Lewis play on words in his poems? Do you enjoy this type of poetry?

3. Is it easier or harder to read poetry when poem after poem is written with a few illustrations, instead of one poem and many illustrations making an entire children's book?

4. How can we get children to enjoy poetry more?

The Dragon's Eye by Kaza Kingsley
1. With Harry Potter being so popular, many books with magic and a young boy as the main character are inevitably compared to Harry Potter. How is this book both similar and different?2. Who do you think Erek Rex really is?

3. What does this book teach about self-reliance, courage, and trust?

4. Erek Rex comes to realize he can do much more than he thought he could as others rely on him. How can young readers identify with him, even though the events occurring in this book are fantastical? Do you think it is difficult or easy to identify with the main characters from fantasy books?

Mrs. Spitzer's Garden by Edith Pattou (picture book) (If you haven't read East by Edith Pattou, we highly recommend it!)
1. This book is beautifully illustrated, and demonstrates the power teachers have to influence children. What do you think of that power? Does it inspire or frighten you?

2. Did you understand immediately what the plants symbolized in this book, or did you have to read the summary to understand it?

3. Does this book encourage you to be more active in finding good teachers for your children?

4. Is this book aimed at young children, or adults?

Little Miss Spider by David Kirk (picture book)
1. This book addresses the issue of adoption; however, it implies that Little Miss Spider was abandoned and unwanted by her birth mother, even though her adoptive mother loves her. Is this a good book to share with adopted children, or not?

2. How can this book be used to teach children about adoption?

3. Did you feel that the story was complete, even though Little Miss Spider never learns anything about her mother, or did you want more information? If so, what information could Kirk have added without changing the outcome of the story?

Thanks to Tara for hosting and putting these questions together!

February - Cybils Award Finalists

2008-02-28T00:33:00.012-05:00

I wish we had to time read all of the wonderful Cybils Awards Finalists, but since we didn't we decided first to read all of the fictional picture book finalists:

Pssst! by Adam Rex

Go to Bed, Monster! by Natasha Wing

The Chicken-Chasing Queen of Lamar County by Janice N. Harrington

Leaves By David Ezra Stein

Four Feet, Two Sandals by Karen Lynn William and Khadra Mohammad

Knuffle Bunny Too by Mo Willems

The Incredible Book-Eating Boy by Oliver Jeffers

Then we also selected a few of the middle grade fiction finalists. Heather did a great job hosting, and for those of you who weren't able to attend, here are a few of her discussion questions:

Emma Jean Lazarus Fell Out of A Tree by Lauren Tarshis
How did the author use the two voices to her advantage in the telling of this story? What do we gain as readers from hearing both points of view?Did the ending seem to be missing a final chapter? Was there enough climax? Do the seemingly random subplots get tied up a little too neatly at the end?Did the short length of the book appeal to you or leave you wanting?

A Crooked Kind of Perfect by Linda Urban
Why did this win 2007's most appropriate title award? Who or what is a crooked kind of perfect in the book?How does Zoe's father cross over from home-bound to holding an actual job?Describe Zoe's relationship with her mother. How does it change over the course of the book?How did the author demonstrate Zoe's social awkwardness? Was it mirrored by the instrument she had to play?Which relationship is the most believable?What is an example of a funny part you remember from the book? Why is it so hard to write good humor?Was anyone bothered by her swapping her organ for a piano at the end?

The Wild Girls by Pat Murphy
Assign partners. Ask your partners interesting questions and be prepared to introduce something "true" about her.Which girl do you feel worse for, Newt (parents fighting and Dad leaving), or Fox (abandoning mother returning)?What did you learn about masks in this book? When and why did the characters use them?Truth was an important theme in this book. What experiences stood out as "true" to life for you in Wild Girls?Why is it often so hard for girls to get along with their own mothers, but easily relate to the mothers of their friends?

If you read these three and are looking for more to read, check out the other middle grade fiction finalists:

Cracker: The Best Dog In Vietnam by Cynthia Kadohata

Leap of Faith by Kimberly Brubaker Bradley

Leepike Ridge by Nathan D. Wilson

Louisiana's Song by Kerry Madden

Miss Spitfireby Sarah Miller

Of course discussion lead to which books we wanted to see win the Cybil awards. We wanted A Crooked Kind of Perfect to win for middle grade fiction (that's probably not a surprise to you since I've been pushing it into the hands of anyone who will read it. Good humor in middle grade fiction is so hard to come by and this book is brilliant!) but we didn't agree on a second choice. We were all in agreement that we wanted Pssst! to win in the fiction picture book category. It's so clever and I love the artful illustrations.

In case you missed it, the award winners have been announced. The Middle Grade Fiction committee saw things the way we did and selected A Crooked Kind of Perfect as the winner! The Picture book committee Chose The Chicken-Chasing Queen of Lamar County, which wasn't a favorite among our group. You were robbed, Adam Rex!!!!! Robbed I tell you! (Although he did win the Cybil Award for elementary/middle grade fantasy/science fiction for his book The True Meaning of Smekday so the Cybils did recognize his genius so everything is still good, eh?)

2008 Newbery and Caldecott Awards

2008-01-15T00:44:00.000-05:00

The 2008 ALA awards have been announced!

John Newbery Medal
Good Masters! Sweet Ladies! Voices from a Medieval Village by Laura Amy Schlitz (Candlewick)

Newbery Honor Books
Elijah of Buxton by Christopher Paul Curtis (Scholastic/Scholastic Press)
The Wednesday Wars by Gary D. Schmidt (Clarion)
Feathers by Jacqueline Woodson (Putnam/GP Putnam's Sons)

Randolph Caldecott Medal
The Invention of Hugo Cabret by Brian Selznick (Scholastic)

Caldecott Honor Books
Henry's Freedom Box: A True Story from the Underground Railroad, illustrated by Kadir Nelson, written by Ellen Levine (Scholastic/Scholastic Press)
First the Egg by Laura Vaccaro Seeger (Roaring Brook/Neal Porter)
The Wall: Growing Up Behind the Iron Curtin by Peter Sís (Farrar/Frances Foster)
Knuffle Bunny Too: A Case of Mistaken Identity by Mo Willems (Hyperion)

To see the full list, check here.

Kaza Kingsley is here today!

2008-01-12T11:17:00.000-05:00

I’d like to thank Stephanie Ford and the Children’s Literature Book Club for hosting me today! The blog tour has been a fun adventure. I hope you enjoy this installment, and new questions, as well as the picture of me as a kid! As you may know, there are pictures of me on each post growing slowly older…!

What books or authors have inspired you or influenced you the most?

I have to say, the Wizard of Oz series, by L Frank Baum. I loved these books (fourteen in the series) so much when I was a young kid. I was a really slow reader then, too. I used to picture every sentence, vividly, and it took me a month of constant reading to finish a book!

Beyond the Oz books, I think I’ve been inspired at some level by most books I’ve read. I just finished “Blink,” by Malcolm Gladwell (read it in a day!) and I know it inspired me in some way, too.

How well do the illustrations in your books capture the imagery you visualized as you wrote?

The illustrations have been fantastic. Some of them, like the trolls guarding a cave in Otherness in Book Two, floor me.

People have pointed out that the illustrations remind them of Mary Grandpre’s (The Harry Potter series.) This I find to be a double-edged sword. If you hold the books together, you can see the artists have entirely different styles. But there is a feel there, and I’m not sure if it is a good thing or not. If it helps people know what kind of book it is, what general genre, I guess that’s good. If it makes people think “Harry Potter,” that’s not so good. I’d be curious to know what you and your readers think!

Is there anything you would change about either of your books now that they are out?

Yes … and no! In one sense, having edited them so many times before I sent them to the “real” editors, it’s hard to turn the editor in me off. When I pick up my work I’m always scanning it for word choice, sentence structure. I’ll always find wording I’d change.

As far as big changes – not specifically. I plotted enough of the series out that I was able to drop the hints I needed into Book One. That was one advantage of advance planning – I knew enough going into Book One that I could do that. But I suppose as I go, and more details get worked out, it would be cool to “step back in time” and drop in even more tidbits. But, at the same time, I’m happy with what is there. The story is on track, where it’s supposed to be. Now I just have to worry about editing Book Three like crazy before I hand it over!

In Book One, where did you come up with the Lia Fail idea – a stone that screams?

Actually the Lia Fail is a real peace of ancient Celtic mythology. They believed there was a stone that screamed to confirm that the king being crowned was a rightful ruler. I loved the concept, and the Lia Fail is going to be an important concept later in the series!

Is Erec going to be tempted by the scepters or influenced by them in future books?

Yes! He’s been infected with the feeling of power the scepters gave him, and that’s really hard to shake. Erec has quests to do, and evil to conquer, but will the scepters help him or get in the way? Something to think about!

Let me know what mythological references you’ve spotted in the Erec Rex books. I look forward to hearing from you!

Love,

Kaza

Newbery Buzz

2008-01-11T01:05:00.000-05:00

Did you know that this year the American Library Association is announcing its awards like the Newbery and Caldecott early? It's happening on January 14th! I can't wait. What are your predictions?

I know Hugo Cabret its quite a mix of illustrations and text so I hope that it won't be left out because it doesn't quite fit in any category. Wednesday Wars and Elijah of Buxton seem like shoe in to me to they do like to reward newcomers and I would love to see A Crooked Kind of Perfect Win (and who knows about Elijah of buxton because there are some historical inaccuracies there causing some controversy and then there's also the Coretta Scott King Award to condsider). I also wouldn't be surprised to see Absolutely True Diary of a Part-time Indian or Emma Jean Lazarus Fell Out of a Tree make the list, but I haven't read those two so I can't add my two cents there.

So what do you think?

The Aurora County All-Stars - by Deborah Wiles

2008-01-10T16:15:00.001-05:00

Just as House Jackson has recovered from a broken elbow and begins to ready his team for their one and only game of the year, all the mamas in town sign their kids up to be in Finesse Shotz pageant to celebrate the town’s 200th anniversary, which just so happens to be the same time as the big game. Frances and House were already enemies after Frances caused the accident that broke House’s elbow, causing him to miss last year’s game. During his year without baseball, House has spent time reading to the recluse elderly man who lives next-door, and carefully keeping it a secret from the rest of the baseball team. His secret is almost spilled when House discovers the man has died and left him a copy of Walt Whitman poetry. As the publisher says, in the end, “Mysteries are revealed, friendships are healed, and everyone, from youngest to oldest, learns something about love, community . . . and baseball.”

Like Wiles other books, Love, Ruby Lavender and Each Bird Sings; this books is also set in fictional Aurora County and even has an appearance by Ruby, but this book is the first to take a boy’s point-of-view. It’s chock-full of small town stereo types like mamas who spend all of their time together at the Laundromat watch soap operas and a nosey town reporter who publishes articles on rumors she over-hears while buying produce at the Piggly Wiggly.

Kirkus reviews states that sections of this book originally appeared in serialized form in the Boston Globe, which may explain why there are some great scenes, but most of the book drags on and feels a bit pieced together. There were some parts of the plot that I really enjoyed like Ruby worming her way onto the all-boy baseball team because she’s such a good player, and a subplot involving the discrimination in early professional baseball, but the majority of the book I found humdrum as the major problem of the book (whether there will be a baseball game or a pageant) was easily solvable.

The part of the book that I found most odd was all of the literary references. Don’t get me wrong, I enjoyed picking them out, but this book is written for a child audience people!!!! The references are everywhere; there’s a dog name Eudora Welty and large part of the plot is based on the poetry of Walt Whitman so many chapter begin with a Whitman quote. Many comments like, “Don Quixote directed her Sancho Panza to take the vote.” and, “He’s as dead as beautiful, young Emily Webb in Our Town by Thornton Wilder!” will be lost on the intended audience. It makes me question why these references are there. Does Wiles think the average fifth grader who picks up this book is also reading “Death of a Traveling Salesman” in their free time or more likely is she trying to appeal to English teachers?

Kaza Kingsley blog tour

2008-01-08T17:12:00.000-05:00

Kaza Kingsley is doing a blog tour to promote her new book, The Monsters of Otherness, book two of the Eric Rex series.

Here's the schedule:
1/7 – A Fort Made of Books
1/8 – Books4Ever
1/9 – Baseballs and Bows
1/10 – Fanatic Space Blog
1/11 – Bibliophile's Retreat
1/12 – Children's Literature Book Club
1/13 – Stephanie’s Confessions of a Book-A-Holic
1/14 – A Year of Books
1/15 – Author Chris Rettstatt's blog
1/16 – Deliciously Clean Reads
1/17 – Into the Wardrobe
1/18 – Real Gurlz Magazine
1/19 – Chauceriangirl

That's right folks, Kaza will be here on Saturday, January 12th! She's a fellow Ohioan and has decided to stop by our blog for a visit! She's closely following all of the blogs on her tour so if you have any questions you can post comments here for her. Click here for an excerpt of Book Two! I can't wait to see what Kaza has to say!

January - Early/Middle Grade Fiction Series

2008-01-03T21:42:00.000-05:00

This may look like a lot, but this month we are focusing on early/middle grade series, especially fairly new ones that are popular now, so they are all very very fast reads and it won't take you long to read your way through the list.

We'll be meeting at Amy's house on the SECOND WEDNESDAY OF THE MONTH so everyone will have a chance to get back from vacation and spend some time reading. For the most part, we picked the first book in each series to give you a feel for it, but if you can't get your hands on the first book, pick any book in the series, in fact that might add to discussion.

Junie B. Jones and the Stupid Smelly Bus - by Barbara Park

Frindle - by Andrew Clements (this is not quite a series, I'll explain later)

Judy Moody - by Megan McDonald

Knights of the Kitchen Table- Time Warp Trio Series – by Jon Scieszka

Dinosaurs Before Dark, Magic Treehouse Series - by Mary Pope Osborne

Ivy and Bean - By Annie Barrows

Elephant and Piggie - by Mo Willems (choose any, there is no specific order)

Clementine - By Sara Pennypacker

Hot Hand, Come Back Kids - by Mike Lupica

Mercy Watson To The Rescue, Mercy Watson Series- By Kate Dicamillo

Welcome to Camden Falls, Main Street Series - by Ann M. Martin

December Picture Books

2008-01-03T19:54:00.001-05:00

In December we held a book exchange and we discussed some of our favorite Christmas picture books including:

Olivia Helps With Christmas - by Ian Falconer

Wombat Divine - by Mem Fox

Welcome Comfort - by Patricia Polocco

Auntie Claus - by Elise Primavera

The Trees of the Dancing Goats - by Patricia Polocco

Olive the Other Reindeer - by Vivian Walsh

The Amazing Christmas Extravaganza -by David Shannon
Too Many Tamales - by Gary Soto

Yoon and the Christmas Mitten - by Helen Recorvits

There Was No Snow on Christmas Eve - by Pam Munoz Ryan

Santa Claus, The World's Number One Toy Expert - by Marla Frazee

Harry Potter Halloween Party

2007-12-15T13:30:00.000-05:00

I just realized that I only posted about my Halloween party on my personal blog, but some of you might be interested in reading about it because this year's party theme was Harry Potter. You can read all about it here, and here are a few pictures to get you interested.

Our party invitations:

Our family costumes (I was Dolores Umbridge, Larry was both of the Weasley twins and every time he left the room and came back he alternated introducing himself as Fred or George and getting annoyed that people kept getting him mixed up with his twin, then our baby was a Mandrake)

Lookybook

2007-12-05T22:37:00.001-05:00

Have you seen LookyBook? It's a web site that lets you view whole children's books from cover to cover. The point of the site is to help you make informed purchases. The site is only in beta form, but it's pretty cool (not sure how it's legal or feasible, but it's very cool).

Check it out.

The Castle Corona - by Sharon Creech

2007-12-05T13:06:00.001-05:00

Sharon Creech is one of my favorite authors so I was prepared to fall in love with her latest book, The Castle Corona, but I just couldn’t. Creech takes a far departure from the realistic fiction in present day settings of her other novels. The Castle Corona is tale set in Midieval times, full of peasants and royalty.

The book itself has torn edges and the illustrations are made to create the feel of an illuminated manuscript, in fact, the cover even says, “Illuminated by David Diaz”. Diaz, known for his multi-cultural illustrations in books like Smokey Night and The House that Juan Built, is also trying something new with the flourishes framing his bright illustrations. Each chapter begins with a half-page illumination, but many readers have expressed their disappointment that the illustrations repeat throughout the novel so they are not getting all of the artwork that they bargained for when they purchased the book.

My disappointment was not in the illustrations, but in the storyline. The chapters alternate between the lives of the spoiled royalty, and two orphaned peasants, Enzio and Pia. Enzio & Pia spend their days working and dreaming of how wonderful it would be to be royalty, while the royal family spends their time thinking about how tough it is to have royal responsibilities. One day Enzio and Pia discover a pouch stolen from the castle, which leads to a series of events that intertwine their lives with the royal family. In the end, the puzzling mystery falls flat and the ending wasn’t satisfactory. I totally agree with one review that I read that said, “the BIG REVELATION was neither big nor a revelation nor even remotely interesting.”

The book feels a bit more like an allegory than a fairytale so of course everyone grows and learns in the end. The book is more about growing up than exciting adventures, and I suspect it will be a hard sell to many young readers.

No Talking - by Andrew Clement

2007-12-02T22:32:00.000-05:00

Andrew Clements has done it again. Those who like Frindle or the Landry News will also enjoy No Talking; in fact, they may even like it more. War of the sexes is going on among the fifth-graders at Laketon Elementary School and Dave and Lynsey suddenly become the generals when they make a bet as to whether the boys or girls can manage to say the fewest words for two days.

It all started when Dave was working in his report on India and read about Gandhi and came across the statement, “For many years, one day each week Gandhi did not speak at all. Gandhi believed this was a way to bring order to his mind.” Dave decided his mind could use a little order so he tried to go a whole day without talking, which went really well, until he had a run-in with Lynsey. Their run-in sparks the bet, and suddenly all the fifth-graders are thinking of language in a whole new way. They decide if an adult in school asks them a question they can answer, but they can only use three words and contractions will only count as one word.

I really enjoyed the unbiased, all-knowing narration that said things like, “It’s also a shame to have to report this, but Lynsey was just as proud and stubborn as Dave.”

If this book is used in a classroom, I’m sure it would inspire a lot of thought debate about language and gender.

I think it’s also going to cause some debate among teachers because it doesn’t exactly portray them favorably. The principal HATES the competition because she likes complete control so she does not appreciate that the kids she’s been trying to shush for years are quiet because she was not the one to quiet them. Another teacher, Mr. Burton fights for the kids’ right, but merely as a matter of self-interest because he thinks it will be a good topic for his thesis. Meanwhile, Mrs. Marlow fights to stop the contest from disrupting her lesson plans, but then gives up because, “demanding that they all go back to being noisy, self-absorbed chatterbrains—it simply wasn’t logical.” OUCH! While the principal comes around and learns her lesson, the other teachers don’t and I was a little disappointed by how selfish they were. On the other hand, kids will probably appreciate the portrayal of teachers who are out to get them and love the book all the more for it.