The final edition! It’s been TONS of fun going on this journey with you all! Thanks so much for your participation and your reviews; it’s been so enjoyable going through them all. Before I get to the final review roundup there’s a few items of business.

Finishers since last week are: Bridget, Cheryl, Eva, Kristi, Katrina Callista, Trisha, Kim and Grilsgood.

And for the prizes…

The grand prize of a book from Powells is: Beth F!

And the two finisher prizes (of nuts or chocolate) go to: Lucia and Sandra!

Congrats!!

And now, to the last of the reviews:

Eva did all three reviews and wrap-up in the same post. She had the novel idea of focusing all her reading around one country, and chose Burma/Myanmar. She read From the Land of Green Ghosts, by Pscal Khoo Thwe, of which she writes, “It’s a compelling story, written with an idiosyncratic and appealing voice, about a place most of us will never visit (I know I won’t, until the junta loses power-I don’t want to help their cash flow.). And while it isn’t always happy, in the balance it’s certainly much more positive than negative. Thwe allows the reader to really enter into his life and world, and I am profoundly grateful to have been able to spend time with him.” She also read Burmese Days, by George Orwell and Finding George Orwell in Burma, by Emma Larkin. Click through to read her reviews; suffice to say, she spoke highly of them all.

Frances read Michael Pollan’s In Defense of Food, saying “Some of this may sound like things you have heard or read before, but much of it is different, and the material is transformed into a page-turner by Pollan’s precise journalistic prose. No extra fat in the book, so to speak.”

Heather read Last of the Angels, by Fadhil Al Azzawi. She writes, “When I finished the book, I was left confused and disappointed but as time has passed, I’ve come to like it more and more. This is not a book to pick up lightly and some research should be done beforehand. It reads like a much longer book than it actually is (only 276 pages) and it is not easy to follow the entire time, but I really think it is a worthwhile chance to explore a culture so incredibly different from our own but that is now so closely linked with our fate.”

Tiny Librarian read Queen of the Road, by Doreen Orion. The end verdict: “A fun, funny, interesting book that may make you think about your own priorities in life.”

For her final selection, Katrina read Baghdad Diaries, by Nuha al-Radi. She wasn’t impressed, writing, “I was expecting a lot from The Bagdhad Diaries by Nuha Al-Radi and was very disappointed. I had seen this book talked about a lot a few years ago and was expecting a moving account of life in the war…Yes she does also describe the lack of food, the extreme poverty and the increase in cancer as a result of the war but I never really felt fo/ her.”

And it wouldn’t be a week without Amira checking in, this time with Happy Nowruz: Cooking with Children to Celebrate the Persian New Year, by Najmieh Batmangli. She writes, “There are plenty of recipes, but it’s a lot more than a cookbook. I think a better subtitle might have been something along the lines of celebrating Nowruz with your children. Now, I know that many Americans don’t know what Nowruz is, but if you do and are interested in celebrating it, this is an excellent book to explain all aspects of Nowruz, for the entire 4 weeks.”

Kim read one of my all-time favorites for her final book: My Name is Asher Lev, by Chaiam Potok. She wrote, “I was just fascinated by the characters, the culture and religion, and especially Asher and his relationships with his family and others whom he cares about.”

Callista read The Bit of the Mango, by Maritu Kamara, of which, she writes, “The book doesn’t only address the war that went on in Sierra Leone and the casulaties of that war. It also addresses what little has happened to help those still in the country. Mariatu wrote this book to get the word out about what was happening and to clear up some misconceptions that were in some articles about her.” She also read The Flavor Bible, by Karen Page. She writes, “This isn’t your average cookbook. Instead of recipes to follow to the letter, this book contains charts to help you find flavor combinations. As you can see, this book truly is a FLAVOR BIBLE. This book is recommended for those who don’t want to follow ready-made recipes anymore but create their OWN recipes.”

And, finally, Tricia linked to four more books: The Geography of Bliss, by Eric Wegner; The House on Tradd Street, by Karen White; Galway Bay, by Mary Pat Kelley; and Banker to the Poor, by Muhammad Yunus. I liked what Tricia wrote about The House on Tradd Street, “I think Karen White is a great storyteller. However, the writing was repetitive in parts and the typos were inexcusable. But, the plot was gripping and I’ll definitely read the next one in this series when it comes out in November.”

Thanks again to everyone who made this challenge so great!

by Sarah Dessen
ages: 13+
First sentence: “And finally,” Jamie said as he pushed the door open, “we’ve come to the main event. Your room.”

Like with Elizabeth Scott, I’ve been feeling a need to read some Sarah Dessen, especially since she’s so beloved. So, again, I randomly plucked a book of hers off the library shelf, one that they just recently received, and went with it.

And, as with Elizabeth Scott, I wasn’t disappointed.

For the past 10 years has been moving around with her mom from place to place, never really quite making it, never really settling in. Now that Ruby’s nearly 18, all she can think about is getting out, being free. However, shortly in to the start of her senior year, Ruby’s mom disappears. No problem, Ruby thinks: she can get by until she’s 18. But things slowly break down, and her landlords find out and turn her in to social services, and she ends up with her sister, Cora, whom she hasn’t seen since Cora left for college 10 years ago.

Suddenly, Ruby’s life is turned upside down: no longer is she scraping long with the bottom of the pack — the pot smokers, the dropouts. She’s going to a private school, living in a million-dollar house, courtesy of her entrepreneur brother-in-law. She has everything her mother couldn’t provide. Except… Ruby doesn’t trust any of it. She misses the familiarity of her old life, she doesn’t want to let anyone get close, she doesn’t trust anyone (especially her sister). All she wants to do is get out.

I was wary of the book at first: Ruby’s not a particularly sympathetic character — understandable, considering her bad mother (again with the bad mothers! Ah, I suppose it must be for the sake of conflict…). But, what was fascinating to read — as well as subtle and well-written — was the de-icing of Ruby. She meets Nate, with whom she wants NO relationship, who ends up being her friend. And whom she ends up being able to help in a very big way. (Thankfully, there’s a bad dad to balance out the bad mom.) Ruby learns the meaning of family (again, not a blantant life lesson, but one that snuck in by the end of the book) and friendship. And yes, while it has a “money can solve all your problems” Cinderella aspect to it (Ruby would still be scraping the bottom if Jamie didn’t have money), it’s not overbearing. It’s mostly a book about expectations and trust and facing the unknown. And the romance, for what it’s worth, is really quite good, too.

So, yeah, I can see what everyone is raving about with Sarah Dessen. I’ll definately be reading more of her books.

In honor of K’s third birthday tomorrow I’d thought I’d take the opportunity (or just use it as an excuse) my current favorite kid’s TV show: The Backyardigans.

We discovered them about a year or so ago, completely by accident, and were instantly smitten. When the show is on, I tend to watch it rather than read or blog or whatever it is I’m supposed to be doing, and I know I enjoy it at least as much as the girls do. Ordinarily, I love it for the music and how every episode has a different musical style. The songs are usually catchy and cute, and imminently singable. We each have our favorites: M likes Samurai Pie, C likes Scared of You and Race to the Tower of Power (it was hard to choose), A likes Whodunit — “Great Caeser’s Ghost!” — and K likes International Super Spy.

But that’s really not enough to warrant a blog post here… I’m here to talk about my favorite episode, The Masked Retriever.

Uniqua (that’s the pink polka dot one) is a librarian who loves to check out books. Except… sometimes people don’t bring the books back on time (oh, no!). Then she becomes The Masked Retriever: a Zorro-like hero to get the books back and return them to their proper place in the library. Don Austin, the most important man in Viejo, California, has checked out The Case of the Climbing Cat by Cynthia Rylant, and it’s one day overdue. However, he refuses to return the book, and decides to hightail it to Mexico. Uniqua the librarian can’t stand for that (leaving the country with an overdue library book, for shame!), and so (as The Masked Retriever) sets out to caputre him. She corners Don Austin in an abandoned church (where he’s up in the tower reading), to get the book back. In the course of the confrontation, Don Austin confesses the reason he doesn’t want to return the book because he’s not done with it. Oh, The Masked Retriever responds, You can just renew it! (novel idea!) And all ends happily ever after…

There’s so much I love about this episode. The music’s okay (not my favorite; I like the Bollywood stylings of Into the Deep best, and the bluegrass from Escape from Fairy TaleVillage second), but the plot’s fabulous. I love that they used a real book. I love the lyrics to the songs. I love the dialogue. I love Austin’s little mustache. And I love that they made librarians even cooler than they already are.

The best part, though, is the opening song that Uniqua sang:

I am a great librarian
And I’m full of information
I know every book on every shelf
and every stack

There here for you to borrow
So come on in and take them
But you better keep track
When it’s time to bring them back

Because sometimes I become
The Masked Retriever
Hunting down books that are
missing or lost or late.

The Masked Retriever
I am The Masked Retriever
I find them even if they’re hiding
in another state.

People think librarians
are glamorous and stylish.
We always look so elegant;
We aim to please.

Yes, of course, that’s true, but
It’s not the whole story.
‘Cuz I have a secret side,
A side that no one ever sees.

Yes, sometimes I become
The Masked Retriever
Hunting down borrowers
Whose books are over due.

The Masked Retriever
I am The Masked Retriever
So don’t forget your due date
Or I’m coming after you.

Yes, so I become
The Masked Retriever
Someone’s got to do it
And that somebody is me.

The Masked Retriever
I am The Masked Retriever
The bravest, boldest hero
That you’ll probably ever see.

Verdict: totally and completely charming. It’s on the Robin Hood the Clean DVD. (As well as several other literary/folklore heroes: The Three Musketeers, Robin Hood, and The Journey to the Center of the Earth.) I love this show.

In order to get your name in the pot for the finisher’s prizes, you have until Saturday, April 4th, midnight to get your finisher’s posts up — link to them in the comments of this post, or here or here, if you’re so inclined. Or, just leave a comment with the three books you’ve read. Drawings for the prizes will be held bright and early Sunday morning!