Hmmm

So I was unaware there was a blog equivalent for that blank stare I get sometimes from kids when teaching.

But apparently there is.

And I'll say now what I say to them-- Blank stares tell me nothing!

So I still don't know what readers would like to see, except for Mrs. B Roth, who has some excellent ideas.

Give me something to work with. That's all I ask.
:D:D:D

Gentle Elegance

That's how Library Journal describes this book... My thought is-- maybe a little too gentle.

The Bell at Sealey Head by Patricia A. McKillip
4.5 Stars... ETA: no, make that 5 stars
R- 0

Here's what I mean by a little too gentle-- the book felt.... shallow... to me. I found myself wanting more depth of character, more description, more explanation.

Now, this may just be a symptom of my lack of sleep.... not to mention the migraine from.... well, you get the idea.

Or it could be a symptom of a much larger problem. Are we becoming lazy readers? Do we want (or worse, need) the author to solve every little problem, wrap up every little string, and deliver it all explicitly?

What in heaven's name happened to using ones imagination? Because there is a lot left to the imagination in this book. A wonderfully rich feast for the imagination.

And I'm whining about lack of depth. Hmm.

It is a beautiful story. Real world crossing paths with fantasy world, mystery, disguise, betrayal.

This is a ridiculous post.

Oh well.

I need a nap.

(Hey, if you haven't yet, check out yesterday's post- A Question For You, The Reader- and leave me a note!)

Questions for You, The Reader

Yes, that's right, you.

I would like to add some sort of weekly feature or something.... or two.

For example, my friends over at Bookscoops do "nonfiction Mondays". That kind of thing.

Now, I don't want every day scheduled, but I thought it would be nice to have a couple of things I do every week.

So, I'd love to know what you would like to see.

Some ideas I've thought of-- picture books, book-based movies, random quotes from whatever I'm currently reading....

As you can see, I need lots of help!

Leave me a comment. Let me know what you'd like to see as a weekly feature. Let me know what day(s) I should put it (them) on. If you think it's a rotten idea altogether, let me know that too!

Birds Of A Feather.....

Or.... something.

Every Last Cuckoo by Kate Maloy
2.5 Stars
R- 3.75

This book was... okay. Actually I'd give part 2 more stars all by itself, but part 1 really dragged it down. The style was choppy and it took too long.

I mean, really, in a book that's less than 300 pages long, spending more than 100 just setting things up.... is a bit much. You don't really get to the point of the book until like half-way through.

I guess maybe the journey is the point, but still. It dragged. Pretty bad.

Part 1 is also where a great majority of the risqueity resides. Between that and the style... I skimmed a lot of part 1. Okay, I skimmed all of part 1.

Part 2 kind of has a Roommates Wanted vibe. People start filling Sarah's home and life after the loss of her husband. Little by little, she comes into her own among this group of castaways. A good story, it just could have been told better.

Hmm... what a blah post. Maybe I'll have to go find something amusing to conteract it. :D

The Cat That Made Me Cry

Dewey Readmore Books... Which is officially a fabulous name for a cat.

Dewey: The Small-Town Library Cat Who Touched the World by Vicki Myron
5 Stars
nonfiction

Okay, tears did not actually fall, but came blasted close. And I rarely cry. Very very rarely.

But who could remain untouched by the story of the sweet kitten found in the book drop on the coldest morning of the year?

Dewey's story was well-written and powerful, entertaining and sweet. A wonderful read. I recommend it to anyone, even if you're not a huge cat fan.

This endearing cat makes me wish that our local library had a kitty. Even though I'm allergic. And even though a book I read a few weeks ago had cat hair on every page. (*Shudder*)

Dewey's story isn't just the story of a cat. It's the story of a woman, a town, a region... that would never be the same.

The Mark

The Mark by Jason Pinter
4.5 stars
R- 2.5
Language

This was a Reader's Choice from last fall. I'm just now getting to it. What can you do?

Henry Parker has laned his dream job-- reporting for the New York Gazette. And then it all goes terribly wrong-- and he becomes the story.

No reporter wants to be his own sotry.

Now on the run, Henry must gather some sort of evidence to clear his name, because even the cops want him dead...

I enjoyed this book. It was fun. Lot of language, though.

Apparently there's a sequel, but I'm not sure how I feel about Henry Parker as a series character. The story worked once, but I'm not driven by any sort of desperate need to read the next one. This book stands alone really well.

I'm not sure it works to do it again.
But as a stand alone, it was good.

(Okay, except for the random part about the one guy being in on it or something, and then suddenly we trust him again? Yeah, I didn't get that part.)

Awesome Quote

Did you notice today's quote? (The daily quotes widget is clear down at the bottom...)

"I had nothing to offer anybody except my own confusion."
Jack Kerouac

I love that. It's fabulous.

I think I need to make a sign.

:D

What quotes inspire you?

I Want a Dracling

Seriously. So I can name it Synge.

Dragon's Milk-- Book 1 of The Dragon Chronicles by Susan Fletcher
5 stars

I really loved this book. I loved the names, the characters, the story.... it was great.

I now really need to read the other two. Really. Like right now.

When Kaeldra's sister becomes ill, the only remedy is dragon's milk. And the only one who may be able to get some is Kaeldra.

She must find the mother dragon and somehow get the milk. Easier said than done, right? Actually, she doesn't have such a dreadful time finding the dragons.

And I LOVE the mother dragon's response. Sure you can have some milk, if you watch the kids for a while. Awesome. What mother can't relate to that?!

I Sooooo Need This Book

Today on Lisa Shearin's BLOG she's posted an extra snippet from The Trouble With Demons!!

I really need this book. I do. I wonder if it's available on preorder yet..... :D

Lisa's books fall under the "urban fantasy" umbrella, which is honestly not something I've read a lot of.... What are your thoughts on it? As a sub-genre? Any favorite books or authors?

More Newberry Goodness

The Perilous Gard by Elizabeth Marie Pope
5 stars

This is a Newberry Honor Book from the 70's. I LOVED it! It was excellent. A fabulous blend of history and fantasy, The Perilous Gard is the tale of Kate Sutton, exiled from exile.

Which is not the double negative = a positive that you would think. It's house arrest at the home of a man she's never met.

And eventually, mysterious events lead her to the world of the Fairy Folk.

I quite liked Kate as a character. Her sister is an idiot, but what can you do? The last chapter, especially, is hilarious. (Not a good thing to be reading at midnight when everyone is asleep... you end up having to smother yourself.)

It's Newberry Time

It's that time of year again. The time when my friend spends vast amounts of time and energy furthering her quest to read every book that has ever won a Newberry (award or honor).

And she's inspired me. She printed me off a list a couple of years ago and I dutifully marked all the ones I'd read. (No, I'm not sure where my list is at the moment.... it's here somewhere.)

And now I pay attention when the new winners are announced. And I'm pretty proud of myself, because I've finished reading the winner before her.

The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman
4 stars

Okay, so here's my problem with this book-- like Natasha at Maw Books, I hated the illustrations. I actually like the cover, but I was so not impressed by the illustrations.

Now that I've got that off my chest... I really enjoyed the book. It didn't end up being as dark as I thought it would be. I mean, okay, he grows up in a graveyard, but Bod actually has a pretty good life. Not in the conventional sense, maybe, but all-in-all, it's good. He's loved, he's protected, he's taught... what more can you give your child? I thought it was a good story.

My only bone to pick with the author-- I didn't feel like there was enough of an explanation of why his family was killed. Maybe I missed something, but I didn't see a real full, satisfying account of what was going on. Now, I'm actually not positive that that's required, but I'm a little CDO (that's obssessive/compulsive disorder, but alphabetically as it should be) and it bugged me.

Over all, I liked it. Not something I want to read to Boo, but hey. In a few years, sure, why not.

Final Theory

Final Theory by Mark Alpert
5 stars
R-2
Language

I love things like this. Very Numb3rs.

David Swift wanted to be a scientist. He got all the way to grad school before he realized that his math skills just wouldn't cut it.
So he did the next best thing. He became a Professor of the History of Science.

But when he's called to the hospital because a former mentor has been attacked, it could all be blown to bits.

Fairly literally.

Someone is after Einstein's final theory, and the results could destroy the world.

Great book. Mark Alpert writes for Scientific American and does a great job of presenting the science of it all for the average reader.

More language than I like. Do people seriously talk that way in everyday life? Seriously? The vocabulary of the general public must be very appalling. (I live a sheltered life, what can I say.)

Proving the Great Detective Wrong

Sherlock Holmes Was Wrong-- Reopening the Case of The Hound of the Baskervilles
by Pierre Bayard
5 stars
nonfiction

This book was soooo interesting. A fascinating philosophical debate about writers, writing, characters, etc.
Awesome line-- "Failing to grasp his characters independence, Conan Doyle did not realize that one of them had entirely escaped his control and was amusing himself by misleading his detective."
I love the idea of the characters doing things that the author isn't aware of. I have often contended, regarding my own writing, that I just create characters and then follow them to see what they do. (Totally not comparing myself to Doyle here.)
Anyway, I'm sure it would have been better if I'd actually read Baskervilles before now, but it was still really interesting. The details Bayard point out seem like they should be amazingly obvious, and yet millions of readers have ignored them.
Bayard also has a great way of explaining the relationship between readers and the books they read-- declaring that the reader and the characters inhabit an "intermediate world" in between reality and fiction. This idea of interaction and subjective experience really resonated with my own feelings about reading.
I just wish my Analysis and Criticism professor would have read this book....
:)

My Baby

You didn't think I meant that literally, did you?
This innocuous little suitcase has been sitting around for.... well years. Since my grandma died in Oct. 2001. (2001 was a bad year.)

When she died, we started the sorting....

And I got to pick some things that I wanted to keep. I picked a bunch of books, naturally.

And this.

Because really, every writer needs a typewriter.
So, when I was cleaning up the "craft room" the other day, I pulled it out.

And cleaned it up.

And lo and behold, the ribbon I thought needed to be replaced, doesn't!


It's ALIVE!!!





Boo was enthralled. Possibly in part because I won't let her touch my laptop.

But also because she'd never seen one before. She had absolutely no idea what it was. Which is just sad, really.

So my new goal-- finish cleaning the craft room and try to find a place for this to actually be out all the time. (Boo was begging to use it today.)

Because every writer needs a typewriter.

Awesome Words

I love words.

No really, I mean it.

I'm sure you would never have guessed.

Anyway.

THIS very cool post of the week, has some really cool words-- defined.

I have a couple of other interesting tidbits for you--
HERE is a very helpful post for those who blog.
AND HERE is some good information for those of us who buy used books.

Enjoy!

AND HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY!!!!

More Picture Books

Naked Mole Rat Gets Dressed by Mo Willems

Fabulous in classic Mo Willems "fashion" (pun absolutely intended), Naked Mole Rat Gets Dressed is the story of Wilbur, the NMR who likes clothes. The others are, of course, entirely disgusted by this. NMRs do NOT wear clothes!
This is a really cute story. And if you look closely, the pigeon makes a brief appearance-- which I think may have been Boo's favorite part.

Skunks! by David T. Greenberg

I heard about this one from my friends over at BOOKSCOOPS ('cause let's face it, they have all the best picture book ideas) and we finally got it from the library. It's extraordinarily silly, and having read it, Boo came to the following conclusions-
1. Skunks smell worse than her little brother.
2. Skunks would NOT make good underwear.
3. She is afraid of skunks.

So, I guess that kind of backfired.... (You really have to read the post on Bookscoops to fully appreciate this.)

Do you have a favorite picture book?? Because we need to go to the library again, and I'm always looking for new ideas....

Another One

Just for the fun of it....



That's apparently what my blog looks like, all broken down into word frequency....

I love that "Seriously" is so prominent!

WORDLE!

(I've GOT to stop playing with this site.... I have a whole stack printed out!)

Do You Wordle?

My blog labels.

I like it.

WORDLE!

(I found out about wordle HERE )

Picture Books

We read some of the best picture books last week! So I just had to share some....

Because everybody needs a good picture book now and then.

Bats at the Library by Brian Lies

"Bored with another normal, inky evening, bats discover an open library window and fly in to enjoy the photocopier, water fountain, and especially the books and stories found there."

This was soooo cute!! Can't remember where I heard about this one... It might have been an award nominee of some sort or something. Very very fun.

And I think there are more Bats books!

365 Penguins by Jean-Luc Fromental

I LOVE penguins, so this was a great book.

What do you do when penguins start arriving daily? Who's sending them? And where on earth do you PUT them all?????

From food costs to the noise level, it's quite the zany adventure!

Owen by Kevin Henkes

Found out about this one HERE
We loved it! It was so cute. Boo does NOT want her blanket cut into handkerchiefs, though. Not at all.

She was very relieved when I said I wasn't worried about her keeping her blanket.

The Toughest Cowboy by John Frank

HILARIOUS! Oh my word! Heard about this one on BOOKSCOOPS too.

When Grizz decides he needs companionship, he gets a dog.

A poodle.

I grew up with a poodle.... I really can't picture one surviving in the wild west, but hey.

Please forgive the formatting problems.....

This is why I don't usually post pictures.......

Of Mice and ..... Well, More Mice

And rats..... and the occasional person.

The Tale of Despereaux by Kate DiCamillo
5 stars
R-0

This is a fabulous little story. Absolutely fabulous.

I'd never read it, and with the movie out and all I figured I needed to. Now I really want to see it. Assuming they didn't screw it up.

Despereaux the mouse makes an adorable knight in shining armor. And of course, everyone lives happily ever after.

I'm really thinking that this might be one to try with Boo. A bit long perhaps, but really fun. I might watch the movie with her first and then read it to her....

Ah, Life in Middle School....

Because who doesn't want to relive that part of their childhood, right?

Diary of a Wimpy Kid by Jeff Kinney
5 stars
R- um, 5.... lol total 0

Very very quick read. Seriously. I started it after 11pm and was done at midnight.

It was a great book. I'm now looking forward to reading the others. Jeff Kinney combines cartoons and writing to tell the story of Greg's first year of middle school.

But it is NOT a diary. Greg is quick to point that out. Because only girls have diaries.

I think my favorite was the football game... Seriously, what's not to love about the idea of throwing a football as hard as you can at your best friend as he careens down a hill on a big wheel. That's just beautiful.

I highly recommend this one-- especially if you're dealing with kids who don't like to read much.

You can see more reviews HERE and HERE.

Check Out This Post...

And now that you have....

Check out THIS post!

I LOVE books about the Salem Witch Trials and I'm definitely going to have to read this one! Wendi's review is really good.

I Forgot!!!! Great Quote!!

Ack! I marked this quote from War of the Worlds and I didn't remember to put it in my post!

I absolutely LOVE this!

"I got food-- sour, hard, and moldy, but quite eatable-- in a baker's shop here."

Cracked me up.

Here's something else that cracked me up-- Highland Hunk Fantasy
Please note, this is a review of some romance stuff, so I'd call it R-3 ish.

War of the WORLDS???

**Warning- Spoilers below!**
I try not to, but just couldn't avoid it with this one....

War of the Worlds by H.G. Wells
4 stars
R-0

Okay, let me start by saying that, regardless of what else I say, this is a great book. If nothing else, one must acknowledge and respect its place in the history and evolution of literature. Wells was a brilliant, forward-thinking pioneer.

But really--
First of all, can it really be called War of the Worlds if the only fighting was in England and it lasted MAYBE a month?? Come on.

I LOVE the arrogance that the Martians naturally would have targeted England. It's fabulous. Personally, if I were going to invade the world, I'd spread my 10 ships out across Europe (keeping in mind the time period). But no, clearly the way to go is to send them all to England.

I also love that the very advanced, intelligent "just brains" aliens aren't smart enough to consider bacteria! It's like the aliens on Signs that are killed by water. WHY in the name of all that is... well, whatever for the aliens... would they invade a planet COVERED IN IT?!?!? Seriously.

Now, I have read this before, and I was interested in the movie, but haven't seen it yet. Now that I've reread the book, I don't see how they made a movie of it. I mean, not a whole lot really happens. The whole thing is over within a month and the narrator spent like half the time hiding in a crumbling house. Not exactly action-packed.

And what happened to the brother???? I mean, you have to assume he lived, since the narrator is telling us what happened to him.... but he's seriously never heard from again. Very weird.

But, like I said, you can't NOT respect it. At least I can't.

It's a classic for a reason.

A Little Shameless Self-Promotion....

I've talked about the Letter Game before, but I thought I'd post a snippet of letter.

March 20, 2003- Arri's first letter
Dear Keish,

I think that I will never survive the dancing class. Yesterday, I borrowed an old recital book from Treany. I borrowed it because some of the verses are actually parts of very ancient spells. We’re not allowed to recite from spellbooks anymore, but Treany’s mother collects old books and this is part of her collection. Anyway, there’s a verse in their about shoes that can make a person graceful. So I borrowed the book and some sugar from Cook, and decided to make a spell. Mother used to make spells all the time, and they worked so well for her. Anyway, I sprinkled the sugar and recited the spell. Then I put the shoes on, but nothing happened, so I thought the spell didn’t work.

And I was right—sort of. That afternoon, I wore the shoes to dance class. As soon as the music started my shoes began pulsing. The high leather tops throbbed against my calves, mimicking the rhythm of the song. It was terribly uncomfortable. I only felt relief when I was moving, so I wandered around the room while Mrs. Dinette explained the dance. She thought I wasn’t paying attention and told me to stand still. Standing still was painful, but I didn’t want to say so out loud, so I endured it.

Then came the time to try out the dance. Here I thought the spell would pay off, but it didn’t. Instead the shoes jabbed at me every time I made a wrong move, which only made me stumble, which only caused more pain. By the end of the hour I could hardly stand. I followed the girls to the changing room where we all sat down to put on our street shoes. I started to untie the laces on my shoes, but when I saw the skin of my ankle, I gasped. It was bright purple with bruises! So I couldn’t change my shoes with all the other girls watching, so I had to walk home in them.

That's from the first letter, you can click the link to read the rest. And I hope you will, 'cause I want to know what y'all think!
(Again, I'll let you guess which character I write!)

Buying Books!

Inspired by Amy's Challenge and Cari's post, and armed with gift cards, I went shopping over the weekend!
Yep, I bought myself books for my birthday. (Or were the gift cards from Christmas? No, definitely birthday.)
Gotta love browsing the bookstore!

I got The Pigeon Wants a Puppy! because the library only lets you renew things so many times.... Same with Magic Lost, Trouble Found, and I popped my SIGNED BOOKPLATE from Lisa Shearin in it! I had to have them order Armed and Magical, but I should get that next week!

Deanna Raybourn's Silent in the Sanctuary was the only one of hers they had, but I do have a used copy of Silent in the Grave, so that works. For now.

And they didn't have Tasha Alexander's Fatal Waltz, so I could only get And Only to Deceive and Poisoned Season. But hey, it's all good.

And I LOVE the paperback copy of Fairy Dust and the Quest for the Egg, so I'm waiting for the paperback to get Fairy Dust and the Quest for the Wand too. Gotta love Gail Carson Levine!

:D:D

I love buying books!

One Book Meme

First of all, let me start by saying that I have no idea what the rules are for a meme, so there's a good chance that I'm not doing this right.

But.... I was entertained by THIS POST and thought I'd give it a go.

One book you're currently reading-- I am sadly between books. Who knows what I'll pick up next.

One book that changed your life-- Um.... honestly.... The Book of Mormon is all I can think of.

One book you’d want on a deserted island-- you cannot honestly expect me to choose just one! That would be cruel and unusual! I'd definitely need both of Lisa Shearin's, Deanna Raybourn's, and all of Tasha Alexander's.... At the very least.

One book you’ve read more than once-- Magic Lost, Trouble Found. But you already knew that.

One book you’ve never been able to finish-- I can actually count on one hand the books I've never finished. The Hunchback of Notre Dame is one of them. (Granted, I think I was 11 or 12 when I tried it....)

One book that made you laugh-- Eats, Shoots and Leaves.

One book that made you cry-- I very very rarely cry at books or movies, but Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince did it.

One book you keep rereading-- I reread a lot. I've read the books of The Work and the Glory at least 3 times each.

One book you’ve been meaning to read-- The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson. I've checked it out more than once....

One book you believe everyone should read-- I think everyone should read a little Dante.

Grab the nearest book. Open it to page 56. Find the fifth sentence--
"Maeve turned her head, said sharply, "Be merciful to her. You at least were loved."
-- The Bell at Sealey Head by Patricia A. McKillip

Wow, I'm really bad at picking just one for anything.....