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Malley, Gemma. 2008. The Resistance. (September 2008 Release) This book is the sequel to The Declaration.

Overhead lighting, harsh, bleak and uncompromising, shone from the ceiling down into the small room like a prison guard's searchlight, picking out every speck of dust, every mark on the cheap carpet, every smudged finger on the window sill. It was a room which, Peter suspected, had been used for many purposes; the ghosts of its former inhabitants clung to it like cobwebs.
'Tell me how Peter is. Tell me what he's been thinking about lately.'
Peter looked into the eyes of the woman sitting in front of him and sat back in his chair, circling his ring around his finger, the only possession he'd been found with as a baby.
The chair was padded, obviously intended to make him feel comfortable, to put him at ease, but it wasn't working. He rarely felt comfortable; Anna said it was because he liked to make things difficult for himself, but he wasn't sure. He figured that it just wasn't in his nature to feel too comfortable. Comfort made you lazy. Comfort was the easy option. (1)

Peter, Anna, and Ben are all technically legal now. All technically allowed to exist in society. All potentially eligible to sign The Declaration and begin taking the wonder-drug Longevity when they come of age. But will they? Could they? Ben is just a baby. His thoughts don't enter into the book at all. But for Anna and Peter there is a great dilemma. Do they become part of the society they hate? Do they assimilate with their former enemies? Do they turn their back on who they once were? Forget all they know about what it is really and truly like to be illegal, to be "a burden." To be a Surplus.

Peter and Anna are living as a couple. Young as they are, they seem to be more than just playing house with one another. There's Ben to look out for. And children of their own to start planning for. This need to procreate, to produce offspring of their own, is fundamental to who they are, to their cause. At least to Anna's cause. (If having a baby is a slap in the face to the powers-that-be, then Anna wants a dozen.) Each want to resist. Each want to play a role in the ongoing struggle between the current authority and the underground resistance movement.

Peter is getting ready to try something risky. Very risky. He's going to join the workforce, join the enemy--Pincent Pharma. He's going to accept the job his grandfather offered him. His goal is to learn how things work and leak that information back to the Underground.

We meet new characters in The Resistance. And we learn more about this world and how it operates. We learn more secrets. I won't go into all that here. It's best not to know too much going into it after all. What fun would it be to have the mystery out in the open too soon?

Anna's character seems a bit unbelievable to me. She seems a bit too certain, a bit too mature. A bit too comfortable at her new role. She's young--fifteen maybe sixteen--and she has the responsibilities of keeping her own house (cleaning, cooking, washing, etc), of having a husband (relationship issues, sex), and of being a mother to her brother who is only a year old. That plus the emotional/mental baggage she should be carrying around from her days as a Surplus. Anna seems a bit too put together to come from this reality. Granted, all of this know-how could have been drilled into her at Grange Hall so that it is in fact easy for her to manage it all and then some. Maybe this no-stress, no-pressure, no-complaining has been a part of her brain's programming. Could be. But there is no whining about how hard life is. How difficult it is to do it all...and on her own for most of the time since Peter is at work so much. Ben must be the best behaved baby in the world not to cause any stress or worry or frustration.

320 pages.

The quote is from the ARC, so there might be some differences between this and the final edition.

© Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

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Ardelius, Gunnar. 2008. (November release). I Need You More Than I Love You And I Love You To Bits. Translated by Tara Chace. Frontstreet Books.

Not quite poetry, not quite a novel, I NEED YOU MORE THAN I LOVE YOU... is a verse novel of sorts about the joys and sorrows, ups and downs, of young love, of first love. Told from both the male and female perspective, it has a little bit of everything emotionally speaking. It does share quite a bit of the couple's intimate moments, and because of this 'adult nature' of the work, it may not be appropriate for younger teens. But for older teens, it has its rightful place.

Here is the first piece,

Her foot slides over and then back, cautiously
stroking the toes of his left foot. His head quivers
when he glances up and catches her gleaming
eyes, as wide as fie kronor coins. He blushes,
noting the soft tug at his heart.

And here is another a bit further on (p. 37)

My taste has changed. The love songs on the
radio have started describing how everything
really is. I'm not sure I can deal with being
happy, it feels like I'm made out of play dough.
I don't want to be in love like that, like all the
other boring people. Our love is different. It's
about us.

Anyway, it's a nice enough book. These two young lovers are ordinary folks who do ordinary things. They're in and out of love and confused at times. Sometimes they're fighting with their parents. Sometimes they're at odds with the world around them. Sometimes nothing seems to be going right. Sometimes it does.

© Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

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Lewis, C.S. 1955. The Magician's Nephew.

As long as folks don't erroneously place this one first in the series, I have no problems with this one at all. It's an interesting story of a young boy, Digory, and a young girl, Polly, and their adventures and misadventures in and out of this world, this reality.

"This is a story about something that happened long ago when your grandfather was a child. It is a very important story because it shows how all the comings and goings between our own world and the land of Narnia first began."

It assumes--presumes--a familiarity of sorts with Narnia, with Aslan, with the White Witch, with the Lamp Post, with the Wardrobe, with the Professor. (And it's just a bit silly to think this one should come first.)

Digory, the young boy, grows up to be the Professor from The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe. And this story is one of creation. How the world of Narnia came to be. How it was created. How evil was introduced into it. And how a promise of a savior was introduced as well. Hope. Promise. This one is rich in meaning.

The story for this one? Digory has a sick mother. Him and his mother are living with the Ketterleys. Mr. Ketterley is the boy's uncle. And he is mad, crazy, out-of-touch with reality, obsessed. He feels as the last person (in his reckoning at least) who had a godmother with a touch of real fairy blood in her that he is destined for great things, great discoveries. His dreams are of being a powerful and great magician. He loves power; he uses it as a front to his own weakness both physical and mental. He's really an overgrown baby. Very fearful. Very immature. He tricks Polly so he can use her in an experiment, and then using Polly as incentive, he has Digory as a human guinea pig as well.

Polly and Digory travel to another reality--several different realities--in fact. The book is full of their adventures and misadventures as they keep trying to set things right.

Aslan plays a big role in this one. And I love those scenes. I do.

© Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

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Lewis, C.S. 1954. The Horse and His Boy.

"This is the story of an adventure that happened in Narnia and Calormen and the lands between, in the Golden Age when Peter was High King in Narnia and his brother and his two sisters were King and Queens under him."

Our hero is a young boy named Shasta. He meets two talking horses, Bree and Hwin, and a young girl, Aravis. Together--all for various reasons--are traveling secretly to the North, to Narnia. Shasta, for example, is running away because his 'father' wants to sell him into slavery. Bree, one of the horses, is a talking horse that has been "owned" too long for his liking by a foreign soldier. He dreams of Narnia and of freedom. Aravis is running away from an arranged marriage. And Hwin, like Bree, is a horse Narnia-bound. Their journey isn't as easy and as smooth as they'd like. There are a few bumps along the way. Unexpected detours and delays. A few scares. A few close calls. Great danger that they always seem to be one step ahead of. But they soon discover that there is a purpose--strange as it seems to them--behind everything.

One of my favorite things about The Horse and His Boy is that it illustrates Romans 8. Aslan the lion is behind everything. Though silent and unrecognized, unacknowledged, he is traveling with these four on their way. And he has a plan and a purpose.

"Don't you think it was bad luck to meet so many lions?" said Shasta.
"There was only one lion," said the Voice.
"What on earth do you mean? I've just told you there were at least two the first night, and--"
"There was only one: but he was swift of foot."
"How do you know?"
"I was the lion." And as Shasta gaped with open mouth and said nothing, the Voice continued. "I was the lion who forced you to join with Aravis. I was the cat who comforted you among the houses of the dead. I was the lion who drove the jackals from you while you slept. I was the lion who gave the Horses the new strength of fear for the last mile so that you should reach King Lune in time. And I was the lion you do not remember who pushed the boat in which you lay, a child near death, so that it came to shore where a man sat, wakeful at midnight, to receive you."
"Then it was you who wounded Aravis?"
"It was I."
"But what for?"
"Child," said the Voice, "I am telling you your story, not hers. I tell no one any story but his own."
"Who are you?" asked Shasta.
"Myself," said the voice, very deep and low so that the earth shook: and again, "Myself", loud and clear and gay: and then the third time "Myself", whispered so softly you could hardly hear it, and yet it seemed to come from all round you as if the leaves rustled with it.
Shasta was no longer afraid that the Voice belonged to something that would eat him, nor that it was the voice of a ghost. But a new and different sort of trembling came over him. Yet he felt glad too. (281)

So perhaps if this one has a spiritual message it is one of God's providence and sovereignty.

As a child reader, I didn't get this one at all. I didn't get the theme. It wasn't an obvious one to me then. Not even as a teen. It was only in this past reading that I saw some inkling of a spiritual message within the pages. I thought, growing up, that it was a rather dinky story about horses. And I'm not really a horse-loving person. But this time I seem to see just a bit more.

© Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

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We're Off To Look For Aliens by Colin McNaughton boasts that it's "two books in one!" Personally, I wasn't all that impressed. It could have been an off day for me, of course, I haven't really seen what others think of this one. It was one of those books that was "just okay" for me. I didn't hate it. Didn't dislike it. But I didn't love it. I just am indifferent to it really. The first book, the framework story, is about an author-dad who is excited that his book has arrived in the mail. He's anxious to pass the book to his kids and see what they think of his book. Dad is too "nervous" to watch his kids read the book, so he takes the dog for a walk. The second book, found in the middle of the book, is WE'RE OFF TO LOOK FOR ALIENS. That book is about a young boy, or possibly young man, who goes off with his dog into outer space. He goes exploring here and there and whatnot. I *don't* want to offer any spoilers so I won't say much more about that. The rest of the book is just their response to their dad's book. Again I don't want to spoil it because there's a bit of a twist.

The text of the second book is fun and light and playful. It was rhythmic. It was repetitive. It was enjoyable.



So you might enjoy this one. You might really love it. You might have an enthusiastic response to this one. I didn't. But picture books are super-subjective. And an interest in aliens would be a big bonus. And I think being a kid would be too. Sometimes adults just are too grown up to really "get" a kid's book.

© Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

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Looking for something that is purely silly and giggle-worthy? Giggle-worthy that is if you're a young child or a playful adult! Look no further than No! That's Wrong! by Zhaohua Ji and Cui Xu. This picture book comes to us from China. It is published by Kane/Miller.

I'm not a complete expert on what "funny" looks like. But I do know this: kids and books featuring underpants/underwear get along really really well together. When the wind blows a pair of red underpants off the clothes line and onto the head of a white rabbit...well, let's just say it's the beginning of a comical adventure.

It's a story told in multiple voices. On one side, we've got rabbit and friends discussing and debating what this red garment is...and on the other side, we've got the narrator clearly clinging to reality.

For example:

"What's This? It's a hat!"

The narrator really has a fit trying to talk sense into this bunny character.

Anyway, I'm not sure that this one will delight each and every reader. But I thought it was fun and playful. And I think kids will like it.

A review by Fuse #8, Kids Lit, The Well-Read Child, and Books & Other Thoughts

© Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

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Manga Shakespeare: Romeo & Juliet. Originally published in UK. Illustrated by Sonia Leong.

I'll be honest with you from the start, I have zero experience with Manga. The drawing factor for me wasn't the Manga--it was the Shakespeare. I like anything (and everything) that makes Shakespeare accessible for readers. That essentially translates into me liking Manga Shakespeare: Romeo and Juliet. I'm not sure how typical or untypical Manga Shakespeare compares to other Manga out there--as far as text or graphics or design goes. So I'm just gonna leave it for others to decide.

Open up Manga Shakespeare and what do you find? "Present day Tokyo. Two teenagers, Romeo and Juliet, fall in love. But their rival Yakuza families are at war." That makes it appear--at first glance--like they've changed Shakespeare, doesn't it? That the text is going to be really off base. But while the illustrations follow that story, the text is about as true to the bard as you can get. It does take some getting used to (for me and maybe only me) to realize that the text and the illustrations aren't really in sync with one another. The graphics show people emailing and texting and using cell phones and what not, but the text is true to the original. (That doesn't mean it's line for line, word for word, unabridged and unadapted, but it's close enough that dare I say it--you could probably maybe get away with reading this instead. As long as you don't give yourself away by saying it's set in Tokyo and that it was Romeo's lack of signal on his cell phone that led to the tragic deaths of two young lovers. (His cell phone was "no signal" and he missed the message that Juliet was faking her death.)

At first, I thought that I would have a hard time following the story. It's not that I'm UNfamiliar with the original. I've read it at least three times. It's just that with graphic novels, I don't always recognize who everyone is supposed to be. Small details--color and length of hair, shapes of eyes, small fashion details that distinguish characters from one another--can be hard to pick up if you're graphically challenged. Call me a newbie. But surprisingly enough, I soon had it down. Part of me wishes that it had all been in color. But I don't know the rules of Manga--if it's mainly black and white or if it's mainly color, or if just depends. That's why I'm not going to try to sound like I know what I'm talking about here.

The only other slight issue I had with the book is the fact that for a few pages, the characters shrunk. I don't know if that's the best description. I think the best word would be everyone and everything became squatty. They became instead of tall and lean and normal, they became short and fat and stocky and odd. I don't know if this is typical or not. It could be. But it was just weird for me.

I did think the format worked well. It definitely made Shakespeare more reader-friendly. The good stuff was kept sacred, and you'll probably recognize most of the quotes. That is if you're familiar with the play or with the movies that stayed true to the play or if you've watched Shakespeare in Love repeatedly. (Not that I'm judging!)

You can read more about the series here.

JULIET

Wilt thou be gone? it is not yet near day:
It was the nightingale, and not the lark,
That pierced the fearful hollow of thine ear;
Nightly she sings on yon pomegranate-tree:
Believe me, love, it was the nightingale.

ROMEO

It was the lark, the herald of the morn,
No nightingale: look, love, what envious streaks
Do lace the severing clouds in yonder east:
Night's candles are burnt out, and jocund day
Stands tiptoe on the misty mountain tops.
I must be gone and live, or stay and die.

JULIET

Yon light is not day-light, I know it, I:
It is some meteor that the sun exhales,
To be to thee this night a torch-bearer,
And light thee on thy way to Mantua:
Therefore stay yet; thou need'st not to be gone.

ROMEO

Let me be ta'en, let me be put to death;
I am content, so thou wilt have it so.
I'll say yon grey is not the morning's eye,
'Tis but the pale reflex of Cynthia's brow;
Nor that is not the lark, whose notes do beat
The vaulty heaven so high above our heads:
I have more care to stay than will to go:
Come, death, and welcome! Juliet wills it so.
How is't, my soul? let's talk; it is not day.

JULIET

It is, it is: hie hence, be gone, away!
It is the lark that sings so out of tune,
Straining harsh discords and unpleasing sharps.
Some say the lark makes sweet division;
This doth not so, for she divideth us:
Some say the lark and loathed toad change eyes,
O, now I would they had changed voices too!
Since arm from arm that voice doth us affray,
Hunting thee hence with hunt's-up to the day,
O, now be gone; more light and light it grows.

ROMEO

More light and light; more dark and dark our woes!

Now on to the story itself. Call me contrary, but Romeo & Juliet just doesn't do it for me. I don't see Romeo & Juliet as this marvelously romantic couple. I think Romeo is as silly as silly can be. I can't judge Juliet's heart as easily. But Romeo? How can I trust a guy who can be head-over-heels madly, deeply, truly in love with a girl one minute, to the point of depression and distraction and good old-fashioned moodiness, and then at the drop of a hat, in just one glance fall madly, truly, deeply, head-over-heels in love with another girl having completely forgotten his former love and heart's desire. Romantic? I think not. Add in the fact that these young lovers--at least Juliet is, I'm not sure of Romeo's exact age--are way too young to even think about making life-time commitments. (She's either 13 or 14.) The fact that this was considered marriageable is a bit stomach-turning to me. When you think about it, their bodies, their minds, their souls are just beginning to develop. They're still growing and changing. True love? Probably not.... Textbook case of stupidity of both teens and adults? Definitely! It's hard to find a character that isn't stupid in Romeo & Juliet. The parents of each child? Stupid! The friends of both families with their I-must-fight-for-the-fun-of-it attitude? Stupid! The fact that people were being killed just for the thrill of it? for the sake of some stupid family feud? Beyond stupid.

So the text is beautiful. I won't deny that. But the motivation that leads to this tragedy is just plain old-fashioned stupidity only romanticized and idolized to last forever and ever and ever.

© Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

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The Voyage of the Dawn Treader by C.S. Lewis is the third novel in the seven-book series The Chronicles of Narnia. I loved both of these books--both Prince Caspian and The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe. Loved. Yet I'm at a loss of words when it comes to the Voyage of the Dawn Treader. The Lion, the Witch, and The Wardrobe is the start of the magic. It is the first. It could arguably be the best. Prince Caspian has a charm all its own. It's consise; it's action-packed. It's thoroughly enjoyable. Yet The Voyage of the Dawn Treader--for me--has a certain magic all its own that I can't really explain. There are times when I feel it is my favorite. But at the same exact time I'm feeling that it's my favorite, I feel guilty for thinking that anything could be better than The Lion, the Witch, and The Wardrobe. I guess I feel I need permission to love another just as much--however differently--as I do my first love.

This is a book that had me at hello. Say what you will about the first two books, neither have a first sentence that pops or sparks with magic. "There was a boy called Eustace Clarence Scrubb, and he almost deserved it." This sentence has to be one of my favorite, favorites of all time.

It goes on to say, "His parents called him Eustace Clarence and masters called him Scrubb. I can't tell you how friends spoke to him for he had none. He didn't call his Father and Mother "Father" and "Mother", but Harold and Alberta. They were very up-to-date and advanced people. They were vegetarians, non-smokers and tee-totallers, and wore a special kind of underclothes. In their house there was very little furniture and very few clothes on beds and the windows were always open."

This is our first description of Eustace, "Eustace Clarence liked animals, especially beetles, if they were dead and pinned on a card. He liked books if they were books of information and had pictures of grain elevators or of fat foreign children doing exercises in modern schools."

Can you tell already that The Voyage of the Dawn Treader is unique but uniquely wonderful? Eustace, as the reader soon learns, is the cousin of Peter, Susan, Edmund, and Lucy. And The Voyage of the Dawn Treader is the story of what happens when Lucy and Edmund go to visit their most unpleasant cousin. You'll find that magic follows the Pevensies wherever they go. This time the magic doesn't come from a wardrobe or the blowing of a magical horn. This time it's a painting--a portrait of a ship sailing the ocean that "calls" or "invites" the children to an unforgettable but dangerous thoroughly adventurous journey.

Edmund and Lucy--as you can imagine--are elated, thrilled, ever-so-happy to be back in Narnia. To be reunited with their good friend, Prince Caspian. But Eustace is miserable, cranky, mean, and downright unpleasant.

The dangers they face on their journey are unique. They're not like the dangers faced in The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe or even the dangers faced in Prince Caspian. There are more dangers to be faced overall. But they're subtler. Quieter. The book has them sailing along on the seas, then occasionally stopping at various islands--some known, most unknown. Each chapter (though sometimes several chapters are related) has an adventure all its own. The novel is a handful of episodes, mini-adventures if you will. All of them unique. All of them memorable. Some episodes, I think I'll carry with me always. There's just something about this novel that just works for me.

© Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

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Shulevitz, Uri. 2008. How I Learned Geography. FSG. Review by Becky Laney.

"In this story, based on his childhood memories of World War II, Uri Shulevitz tells how a map and his imagination took him far away from his hunger and misery."

How I Learned Geography is the story of a little boy who finds the world at the tip of his fingertips when his father brings home a map instead of bread to nourish his family. With money being so scarce, and the demand for food being so great, he doesn't have enough to satisfy his family's needs. Hunger is a part of their life, unfortunately. But this young boy soon realizes that though they may have many needs, this map of the world can and does feed his soul and give him hope for a better tomorrow.

The author's note explains it all in greater detail. This would be a picture book for older kids especially.

The illustrations are wonderful.

© Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

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McBratney, Sam. 2008. One Voice, Please: Favorite Read-Aloud Stories.

One Voice, Please is a delightful gathering of stories--some familiar, some not-so-much--perfect for reading aloud to children of all ages. Family-friendly reading, if you will, that while kid-friendly is not unappealing to adults. Most stories are two to three pages, and could easily be read in a few minutes. This is a good thing. Perfect reading to fill in those gaps during the day when you don't quite have enough time to get settled into a longer book--like a novel or even a traditional picture book.

Originally published in Great Britain in 2005, the collection has recently been published in the U.S. With over fifty stories, there is sure to be something that is just right for your mood. The book would be a great edition to the classroom as well. My personal favorite was "Many Littles Make A Lot."

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IBBY (International Board on Books for Young People) has announced the 2008 winners of the 2008 Hans Christian Andersen Awards.

In awarding the 2008 Hans Christian Andersen Medal for Writing to Jürg Schubiger, the jury has recognized a very powerful narrator who fascinates the reader with playful reflection upon the creative process. His short philosophical stories are told through believable metaphors from a child's perspective and charm the reader. Humanity and universality are the most important characteristics of his works

The 2008 Hans Christian Andersen Medal for Illustration recognizes Roberto Innocenti as a masterful illustrator who powerfully depicts various genres. His historical stories of war, specifically the holocaust, invite young people to speculate about the serious problems of the world. He also portrays classic children's literature from a completely different point of view. His narrative power of the images is overwhelming.

Jürg Schubiger is from Switzerland. Roberto Innocenti is from Italy.

More about Jürg Schubiger:

Jürg Schubiger was born in Zurich in 1936 and grew up in Winterthur, Switzerland. After an apprenticeship as a cardboard cutter, he worked as a gardener and lumberjack, among other jobs, in South Africa, Corsica and southern Spain. Afterwards he worked as an advertising copywriter in Zurich before studying German, psychology and philosophy at the University of Zurich in the 1960s. Between 1969 and 1979 he was active as an editor and publisher while training as a therapist.
Although Schubiger began writing in the 1970s, he did not reach a wide readership until the publication in 1996 of his story collection "Als die Welt noch jung war". Since then he has published a number of other successful children's books.
Today Schubiger lives and works in Zurich as a freelance writer and psychotherapist.

More about Roberto Innocenti:

Roberto Innocenti was born near Florence in 1940 and first came into contact with the world of art at the age of eleven. He began experimenting with colours and paper while working as an assistant in a specialist shop and says that, although he was never able to attend art school, from this point on he was an artist with every fibre of his being. In the late 1950's Innocenti went to Rome to work in a film animation studio, as an illustrator for a magazine and as a designer of posters. At the age of 43 he dedicated himself solely to the illustration of children's books and illustrated the French version of the Cinderella fairytale, Charles Perrault's »Cendrillon« (1983; Eng. »Cinderella«, 1983). This was the starting point of an international career which continued to set standards for the illustration of classic literature. Amongst others Innocenti has illustrated the works of E.T.A Hoffmann, Charles Dickens, Oscar Wilde and Christophe Gallaz. The »New York Times« named him »one of the greatest illustrators of children's books in the world«.

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Lewis, C.S. Prince Caspian.

Prince Caspian, the second of the novels in the Chronicles of Narnia series, takes place one year after the close of The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe. The four children, Peter, Susan, Edmund, and Lucy, are preparing to return to school when they're instantly, magically transported (or translated) to Narnia. What they find there shocks them. Shocks them for many reasons. You see, it hasn't been a year in Narnia time. It hasn't even been just a hundred years. Their castle, their lands, unrecognizable ruins. The adventures are about to begin. Again. Many surprises, many adventures await them, along with one old friend. A friend that takes a little more faith to recognize these days.

Prince Caspian centers on a new hero. Caspian. The son of Caspian the Ninth, king of Narnia. But it is Caspian's uncle, King Miraz, that rules the land, and rules it harshly. Gone are the days of talking animals and other fantastical creatures. No the "old Narnians" must hide if they are to survive at all. Caspian may have been raised by his aunt and uncle, but his upbringing was left to an old nurse who believed in the old ways. Now, Caspian is a young man who longs to restore the golden days of the past. Who longs to restore Narnia to its former glory. Who longs to create a peaceful age where old Narnians can live and live well. But he can't do it alone. What he needs is help. Divine help.

Can a horn of old bring much-needed help from afar?

I love Prince Caspian. I do. It is exciting. It is thrilling. Again, Lewis has created memorable characters and memorable scenes.

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Kostick, Conor. 2008. Saga.

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Sturgis, Alexander. 2003. Dan's Angel: A Detective's Guide to the Language of Paintings. Illustrated by Lauren Child. (Published by Kane/Miller.)

Art appreciation. That's what this little book is all about. Mostly. Dan is a young boy who loves a good mystery. Loves being a detective. One day, by chance, he wanders into the art museum. He seems to be awed and a little overwhelmed with all the paintings he sees. He thinks they must tell stories, but he's not sure how to "read" the stories in the paintings. Luckily, he won't be alone on his journey. He first meets the angel Gabriel who steps right out of his painting--"The Annunciation" by Fra Angelico. Gabriel will act as his tour guide and together they will explore the stories of twelve paintings. (Eleven if you don't count "The Annunciation.") By having this dialogue--noting his observations out loud, asking questions, listening, etc.--he is able to grasp the stories of each painting. Other artworks examined include: Belshazzar's Feast by Rembrandt; Andromeda and Perseus by Piero di Cosimo; Madonna and Child with Saints by Campin; The Judgement of Paris by Lorrain; Devi Battles Buffalo Demon Mahisha; The Marquessa de Pontejos by de Goya; Soap Bubbles by Chardin; Venus and Mars by Botticelli; Sunflowers by van Gogh; Weeping Woman by Picasso; and Number 1, 1950 (Lavender Mist) by Pollock.

Overall, I liked it. Definitely one for older kids rather than younger.

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Porter, Tracey. 2007. Billy Creekmore.

What do orphanages, mining towns, and circuses have in common? Billy Creekmore. It's 1905, and it's not the best time in the world to be an orphan. When the reader first meets young Billy, he is an orphan living in an orphanage owned and operated by the Beadles. The only kind face the boy sees day after day is the cook/housekeeper Peggy. The "Guardian Angels Home For Boys" offers the bare basics these boys need to survive. Perhaps Mr. Beadle sums it up best, "Do you know, at first I felt quite badly about serving them the dry bread and thin soups that we do. I thought it was unchristian to keep them so hungry and thin. Time has taught me differently. Now I see them in a clearer light." (24). The aptly named Mr. Colder, who owns a glass blowing shop, takes a few orphans--as the need arises--as apprentices. The boys are often eager to go. And why shouldn't they be? They can't really imagine a worser place to live...but when one boy manages to run away from his new job--new situation--Billy learns the awful truth about what awaits them all. Yes, life can get worse. When it is his turn to go, Billy knows that he will have to run away. In fact, he starts planning it out all ahead of time even before it's his time to go. But then a day or so before Mr. Colder is due to pick him up...a stranger shows up. A stranger claiming to be the boy's uncle. Billy doesn't know anything about having an uncle. But he knows that this could be the perfect way out of town and out of reach of Mr. Colder.

Billy's journey takes him from place to place. His dream--the entire way--is to find a place to call home and people to call family. Each locale--the orphanage, the mining town, the circus--is presented in detail. Each one is presented vividly.

The story is emotional and at times intense. Billy is a well-drawn character. His thoughts, his hopes, his fears, his worries are all so real and intimate. I am so glad that I read this one. I think he will be staying with me quite a while.

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Stewart, Trenton Lee. 2007. The Mysterious Benedict Society. 485 pages.

Loneliness. Anger. Frustration. Fear. Anxiety. Doubt. Feelings common to both children and adults. What if there was a way to eliminate fear and anxiety? What if there was a way to make everyone happy and content all the time? No worries. No problems. Sounds too good to be true, doesn't it? Meet Reynie Muldoon. Kate Wetherall. George "Sticky" Washington. Constance Contraire. These four kids make up the Mysterious Secret Benedict Society. They've been recruited by Mr. Benedict to infiltrate the elite school The Learning Institute for the Very Enlightened. L.I.V.E. for short. (Yes, spelled backwards it reads EVIL.) As a team, they must work as secret agents and uncover the evil plots of one Mr. Curtain. Mr. Curtain has an evil scheme to the rule the world, and it involves using children as pawns. It will take bravery, teamwork, and determination to succeed. Do these children have what it takes to save the world?

The Mysterious Benedict Society is not the first book of the year to feature an elite, secretive school for geniuses. But it is the first that I actually liked reading. What I liked best about the book was the writing. The style of it. The phrasing. It had a certain uniqueness about it that was just enjoyable through and through. Here are two of my favorite parts:

The first scene I'm sharing is of a classroom of students taking a test. The second test to see if they qualify for this "unique" education.

The first child to receive one was a tough-looking boy in a baseball cap who eagerly grabbed it, looked at the first question, and burst into tears. The girl behind him looked at her test, rubbed her eyes as if they weren't working properly, then looked again. Her head wobbled on her neck. "If you begin to feel faint," said the pencil woman, moving on to the next child, "place your head between your knees and take deep breaths. If you think you may vomit, please come to the front of the room, where a trash can will be provided." Down the row she went, distributing the tests. The crying boy had begun flipping through the tesst now--there appeared to be several pages--and with each new page his sobs grew louder and more desperate. When he reached the end, he began to wail. "I'm afraid loud weeping isn't permitted," said the pencil woman. "Please leave the room." The boy, greatly relieved, leaped from his desk and raced to the door, followed at once by two other children who hadn't received the test yet but were terrified now to see it. The pencil woman closed the door. "If any others flee the room in panic or dismay," she said sternly, "please remember to close the door behind you. Your sobs may disturb the other test-takers." She continued handing out the test. Child after child received it with trembling fingers, and child after child, upon looking at the questions, turned pale, or red, or a subtle shade of green. (21)

Who hasn't in their life felt some panic and anxiety about taking a test? Anyway, I just thought these were very unique instructions to give for a test.

This second passage is after the main characters arrive at the school. These are the non-rules rules they're given.

You can wear whatever you want, just so long as you have on trousers, shoes, and a shirt. You can bathe as often as you like or not at all, provided you're clean every day in class. You can eat whatever and whenever you want, so long as it's during meal hours in the cafeteria. You're allowed to keep the lights on in your rooms as late as you wish until ten o'clock each night. And you can go wherever you want around the Institute, so long as you keep to the paths and the yellow-tiled corridors. (171)

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Hopkinson, Deborah. 2006. Into The Firestorm: A Novel of San Francisco, 1906.

Nicholas Dray is a young boy, an orphan of sorts, who has been wandering around since his grandmother’s death until he comes to San Francisco. Here he feels at home...at home even though he is technically homeless. Hungry, homeless, and wanting more than anything to find a job so he can support himself without having to end up in another orphanage, his luck begins to change when he is hired days before the great quake. His new employer, Pat Patterson, entrusts him with a job of keeping his dog and store safe from burglars as he goes on a business trip. Little does he know what will happen those few days he is gone. It is a story that is exciting and terrifying. Exciting because you want to keep reading it to find out what happens next, but terrifying because you want him and his friends--and yes even the dog--to end up safe at the end. I highly recommend this book for those interested in this subject.

Into the Firestorm was inspired by a story I came across while researching the disaster. A boy named Charles Nicholas Dray had run away from a county poor farm and been taken in by a local merchant just a few days before the fire. Left alone while his new employer was away on business, Nick braved a soldier’s gun to rescue business records and his employer’s dog, a retriever named Brownie. p. 199

Deborah Hopkinson's homepage

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Currently Reading: The Brothers Grimm: Two Lives, One Legacy, Special Topics in Calamity Physics
Just Finished: Yang the Youngest and his Terrible Ear, From a Crooked Rib, Kitchen

Oh, I have a lot to talk about, I don't even know where to begin. It's like when you're writing a paper and you just become paralyzed with the enormity of the task before you and freeze up and never get started.

So... let's talk about some books, eh? I guess I'll focus on award winners and those with buzz. We'll see how far I get tonight!

First up on the block is the lovely A Drowned Maiden's Hair: A Melodrama by Laura Amy Schlitz

All Maud wants is to be adopted and to have a real family again. When the elderly Hawthorne sisters take her home, Maud is overjoyed. She has nice clothes, good food, and indoor plumbing. What Maud doesn’t have is any friends—she’s not allowed to go to school or see visitors. Maud is a secret, and when she finds out why, she has some very tough decisions to make about what’s important.

This was a very moving story about the compelling need for love and a home, versus doing what is right. At the same time, we get a good dose of spirituality and mediums and ghosts. It was wonderfully spooky without being scary.

I loved the way Maud's friendship developed with Muffet, the Hawthorne's deaf servant. I also liked the way that Maud really struggled with her decisions about what to do-- she didn't always want to do the right thing, and how Schlitz handles this conflict makes Maud so much more real and likeable.

It was getting a lot of well-deserved Newberry buzz and even though it didn't win and wasn't honored, you should still check it out.

Rules by Cynthia Lord.

This was a Newberry Honor, as well as the winner of the Schneider Family Book Award (for books about disabilities.)

Catherine is a twelve year old girl whose little brother, David, has autism. On one hand she is fiercely protective of him but on the other, she is mortified when h

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Couloumbis, Audrey. 2005. The Misadventures of Maude March or Trouble Rides A Fast Horse.

Sallie March, and her soon to be infamous sister, Maude, didn't intend to become outlaws. It all started one perfectly ordinary day when their Aunt Ruthie--their only known living relative--was shot down outside the mercantile. Joe Harden, the outlaw made famous by a series of dime novels, didn't mean to shoot Aunt Ruthie...as we come to find out. But the damage had already been done. The bank forecloses on the girls' home even before Ruthie is put in the ground. Now Sallie and Maude are dependent on the town's charity. Taken in by the preacher and his wife, all seems to be going well. True, the two work all day slaving away. But there is at least a roof over their heads and food in their mouths. But when the preacher tries to force Maude, then 15, into marrying a middle-aged man...Maude does the only thing she can think of: to run as far away as possible. While it's true that Maude and Sallie take two horses--a buggy pony and a plow horse. But they left them their milk cow. I figured we're owed the buggy pony and the plow horse, I told her. The one is gassy and the other is so old it would have died soon anyway of overwork. Aunt Ruthies cow is worth more than the two of them put together. That was only too true. I'd have happily ridden our cow if she could be counted on to run when I dug my heels in. She could be counted on in every other way that mattered, but she wasn't built to run(44). Now Maude and Sallie are on the run carrying what food and supplies they can. Their goal: Independence, the last known residence of their Uncle Arlen who disappeared when the girls were still young. They can barely remember him. They can only hope he's made it out west. What the girls don't know is that trouble will follow them all the way on their journey...and by the time they reach Independence, Maude's reputation will be lost forever.

I tell you all this to make you understand that Maude was an upright young woman who never made mock of the truth or questioned the dark ways of justice until she saw how truth could be mangled to make a shape unrecognizable. To have you know her for a rightly praised person who never complained about the awful twists of fate that made her life less comfortable than it might have been. To show you how impossible it was for her to do the things everyone claimed that she did. For this is the true story of how my sister, Maude March, came to be known far and wide as a horse thief, a bank robber, and a cold-blooded killer. (6)

Couloumbis, Audrey. 2007. Maude March on the Run: Or Trouble is Her Middle Name.

They say my sixteen-year-old sister passes for a man and shoots like an outlaw, and I cannot argue it, since she has done both in her day. Maude has been called a hardened criminal, and of this I must tell you, do not believe it. People say a great many things and only some of them are true. (1)

A year after the conclusion of The Misadventures of Maude March, Sallie and Maude are about to be in danger yet again. Although their simple life blending into the town has been successful so far, their cover--or Maude's cover--is about to be blown. When Maude is arrested, it is up to Sallie and the girls' friend Marion Hardly (aka Joe Harden) to break her out of jail and make a run for it. They succeed in their mission--although they end up freeing another outlaw as well--and Maude's reputation is once more being slandered. At each stop along the way, Sallie reads more and more about the supposed adventures of Maude March. One day in Kansas. The next in Arkansas. The next in Texas. It seems she can be in four or five states at once. One town even claimed to have killed and buried her. But rumors of her death don't last long. The girls soon figure out that there are dozens of women--ranging from young to old--who are out running about the west using her name and giving HER the bad reputation. In fact, they meet a few of these pretenders along the way. Yes, life is full of adventure and danger when you're on the trail with a bunch of outlaws.

http://www.audreycouloumbis.com/
Chapter One of Maude March on the Run
Chapter One of The Misadventures of Maude March

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