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Yes, indeed, guys, this is a great day for our blog because we have an interview with the one-and-only Lenore Look, author of those split-your-sides-funny Alvin Ho books. (if you haven't read them yet, rush out right away and get one!!) So let's not waste any more time; here's Lenore Look:

I’ve heard this nasty rumor that it’s uncool for boys to read. I bet you disagree. Could you tell us why?

An awful rumor, indeed! In many parts of the world, it’s uncool for girls to read, and it’s not a rumor, it’s the law. Reading is considered masculine. Reading is power. Reading means you’re educated. Reading gives you privileges. You can pass a driver’s test. You can vote. You can travel. You can tell people what to do. Most importantly, you can tell yourself what to do. You are male, and it’s your birthright to be free and powerful. But if you’re female, you’re out of luck. You’ll always be a second-class citizen because you can’t read. You have no power. You are not free.

It wasn’t so long ago that it was uncool (and illegal) for black people in our country to read, and we all know why – a reading person could never be enslaved. Worse, a reading slave had the ability to undermine the power structure altogether – by teaching another slave to read, then another, and another . . . .

So why is there a rumor that it’s uncool for boys to read? It’s all part of a top-secret plan by girls to take over the world, of course! Once you guys stop reading and can’t read (because it’s considered feminine), then we will RULE!

Reading changes everything.

You are so right—reading is power and it does change everything for the better. So keep reading, guys! (and you girls, too!)

What made you think of writing stories about a second-grade boy who’s afraid of everything? And how did you decide what to put in Alvin’s Personal Disaster Kit?

My editor ask

I know it's not even summer yet, but I'm already looking forward to the fall and the latest installment in the Alvin Ho series. Alvin in September is the best thing since back-to-school shopping. And not nearly as scary. (You can read more about this upcoming release here)

Hey, guys, 'tis I, the Great and Powerful CARLMAN, back and blogging after a week away from the library. I had to take a week off because my wife fell and broke an ankle last Monday defending the city against a crime wave. She's OK now--or as well as you can be with a broken ankle!

Well, Labor Day is coming up soon (a welcome relief after the start of school!) and a lot of you will probably go somewhere over the long weekend. Here are some good audiobooks for the trip:

The Alvin Ho Collection: Books 1 and 2

These books are really funny and the audio version is just as good. In fact, you'll laugh out loud. Alvin Ho is a second-grade kid who's scared of everything--school, piano teachers, wild animals in the woods, tornadoes on camping trips, and more. This audiobook is especially funny because it's read by a real kid, a guy probably about the same age as you! It's extra funny when the boy tries to sound like Alvin's dad!

The Silver Chair by C. S. Lewis

All the Narnia books have a lot of action, but this one has more than most. Two school kids, trying to escape from bullies, find a door that leads into Narnia. Aslan, the great Lion, gives them the assignment to find the lost prince who was enchanted and stolen from Narnia ten years before. The actor who reads it is very good and holds your attention from beginning to end.

The Door in the Wall by Marguerite de Angeli

A fascinating look at what life was really like in the Middle Ages. A young boy, whose father is off at the wars and mother is in London attending to the Queen, contracts the plague and is crippled. The servants leave him by himself, alone in bed and unable to walk! Does he ever get rescued? Does he ever recover? And what happens when the hostile Welsh surround the castle? You've got to listen to find out!

Ramona the Pest by Beverly Cleary

I'm cheating a little bit here because I've listened only to the first disc but it's alrerady funny! Ramona Quimby is one of the greatest pains you'll ever meet and here she starts kindergarten. You'll laugh when tries to "sit here for the present" or asks a question about Mike Mulligan.

These books are great for the car or if you have a personal CD player. Nothing better to make the miles fly by! Hit the "audiobooks" tab below if you want to find out about more good reads--I mean "listens"!

Our good friend and faithful follower Jana has written and told us about a good and funny book:

My older son seems to only love funny books (Diary of a Wimpy Kid...) so to get him reading something I pulled out an oldie but a goodie, Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing. He whipped through it and is on to Superfudge! Yay Fudge!!

Yay, Jana! We alsways appreciate hearing about funny stuff. I heard the audiobook version of Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing and enjoyed it a lot. If you want to read more funny stuff, try the Alvin Ho books by Lenore Look, How to Eat Fried Worms by Thomas Rockwell, or Science Fair by Dave Barry. If you want to see reviews, click on the tags below this post.

Keep laughing, guys!

Carl

Look, Lenore. Alvin Ho: Allergic to Camping, Hiking, and Other Natural Disasters. Ill. by LeUyen Pham. Random House, June 2009.

After a misadventure during which Alvin is strapped (voluntarily, mind you) into a homemade straitjacket and taped into a box, Alvin’s dad decides that he and Alvin need some special time alone. Unfortunately for the cowardly Alvin, his dad figures that a weekend spent camping and hiking would be just the ticket. Alvin, his confident big brother Calvin, and his peppy little Sister Anibelly have lots of fun preparing for this big event – and when the time comes to leave, Anibelly manages to cajole her way into the car.

The camping trip itself is almost a disaster thanks to Alvin’s dad having forgot much of the food as well as a can opener, but luckily a fellow camper and his odd son save the day with some Italian sandwiches. Despite a few setbacks (a lost Batman Ring, a case of poison oak after Alvin’s dad uses the wrong leaf as toilet paper), the camping trip ends up being a big success so far as Alvin and Anibelly are concerned.

For the first few pages, during which Alvin over-explains himself and all his friends and family, I was perturbed (as with the first book) by Alvin’s too-knowing, too-old tone. As soon as the story proper began, however, Alvin’s breathless, nerdy, endearing narration won me over. We see his extremely vivid family (all except his mom, who barely figures in this story) through his nervous yet admiring eyes; Alvin’s dad and uncle, although less than perfect, are depicted with an especially loving and admiring touch.

The only jarring element is the entrapment of Alvin’s dad in a dangle trap made by Alvin and his new camping friend. This completely unbelievable and slapstick situation (the illustration depicts Alvin’s dad dangling by one leg high above the ground) is out of place in this tale, being more the sort of misadventure that would befall Homer Simpson. Poison oak on Alvin’s dad’s bottom – sure. Gravity-defying cartoon gags – no thanks. Still, that’s only a small quibble in an otherwise sweet and funny tale, which is perfectly complemented by Pham's sassy, piquant illustrations.

Highly recommended for readers in grades 2 to 4, or as a read-aloud to slightly younger kids.

If you haven’t already found your way to the Cybils shortlists, then head on over there and check them out.

The pannelists had a huge number of books to read this year - word is definitely getting round! - and now the judges have some tough choices to make.

I’m delighted to see that Wabi Sabi made it through to the finals - now we’ll just have to wait and see!

Meanwhile, there are lots of books there that we haven’t read yet, and several are going straight on to our books-waiting-to-be-read lists - such as Wangari’s Trees of Peace: A True Story from Africa by Jeanette Winter (non-fiction picture-books); and Alvin Ho by Lenore Look and The London Eye Mystery by Siobhan Dowd (both in the Middle Grade Fiction category).

Happy reading, everyone - especially if you’re a Cybils judge!