Book Lists

Life’s Too Short

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by Abby Jimenez
First sentence: “Wailing.”
Support your local independent bookstore: buy it there!
Content:There is lots of swearing, including multiple f-bombs. There is also on-screen sex and talk of penis size. It’s in the romance section of the bookstore.

Vanessa Price is a pretty famous travel blogger, and so when she landed in St. Paul to help her sister give birth (its an unplanned an unwanted pregnancy), the last thing she expected was to end up taking care of the baby full time. But, here she is, without content, not having showered for ages. Coming to the rescue is Adrian Copeland, defense attorney, eligible bachelor, and surprising baby whisperer. As the weeks go on, Vanessa and Adrian grow closer together, figuring out life and babies and family and ultimately how to live your life to the fullest.

I absolutely devoured this one. It’s fluffy and fun, but it’s also got depth as Vanessa is dealing with a family history of ALS as well as a parent who is a hoarder and a half-sister (the baby’s mom) who is a drug addict. Mostly, though, it’s a lot of flirting and will they/won’t they and a lot of spending huge amounts of money on wine and home furnishings (Jimnez knows that a man cleaning is sexy!) and ultimately a very satisfying romance. I read it in a weekend afternoon, and then found out it was part of a “series”, so I picked up the first one.

I can’t wait to devour that one, too.

Three Authors to Read This Summer

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This month, for my teacher newsletter, I recommended three books that I thought would make good summer reading. But, since I don’t read a lot of adult fiction, I mostly took recommendations from other staff members. Which leads me to my list: three authors I’d like to give a try this summer.

13221570_10209714641681558_763693187109588805_nRoald Dahl — Well, this one is actually an “I have to read”, because I’m running a book group for 8-12 year olds reading his books this summer. But, it been a million years since I’ve read his work and so I’m looking forward to it. (I, unfortunately, will miss one for BFG due to a conference, but I’m still going to read it.)

9780062132581Dorthea Benton Frank – She’s coming to Wichita, and seeing her books around the store has got me curious. Seems like a good, light, beachy read. The question is: I don’t know where to start. Any of you read her? Any suggestions?

9780452296299Lev Grossman – The Magicians has been on my radar for years, but I just haven’t gotten around to it. I’ve heard a number of good things, and it seems right up my alley, so I don’t know why. Maybe this summer is a good time to start.

I don’t have a lot of extra time to read extra things (I wish I read faster/had more time!), but are there any other authors I should give a try?

Three Books for National Poetry Month

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This month’s list was obvious: it’s an easy grab to find a few poetry books for teachers. I did pull the Cybils poetry winner because it’s such a great book. For the other two, I picked a novel in verse (which I’ve read and liked) and a poetry collection that I read had good crossover appeal. How did I do? What else could I have picked?

Here’s the list:

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Flutter & Hum by Julie Paschkis

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Full Cicada Moon by Marilyn Hilton

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Aimless Love by Billy Collins

Three Books for Women’s History Month

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In other news, before I begin: we’ve got a date, a theme, a logo, AND a hotel for KidlitCon. This being in charge thing isn’t half-bad. 99% of that reason is because I’ve got an excellent team cheering me on, giving me (indispensable) advice and basically helping me manage this. Now, if only I had someone to do the dishes.. (Wait a minute…)

You can check out all the KidlitCon goodies at the website.  I hope to see you there! (Or here…)

I centered this month’s three books (no surprise) on Women’s History month. And even though I didn’t have a choice for older teens, I really like these three books. A lot.

9780786851423Elizabeth Started All the Trouble by Doreen Rappaport, illustrated by Matt Faulkner- A history of Elizabeth Cady Stanton and the suffrage movement. It’s not only fascinating, it’s fun to read! (It helps that Matt Faulkner illustrated my favorite Thanksgiving book: Thank You, Sarah!)

9780872866836Rad American Women by Kate Schatz and Miriam Klein Stahl – When I met the authors (and illustrator? I don’t remember) at KidlitCon back in Sacramento, I thought that this would be a good book. Now, it’s my go-to when people come in looking for a good feminist read for their kids (and surprisingly enough there are a few here in Wichita!). Nominally an alphabet book (“C is for Carol Burnett”), this book also has brief biographies as well as single-sentence statements on each woman, so it can be enjoyed by varying age levels. Be sure to check out the website as well!
978014751812550 Unbelievable Women and Their Fascinating (and True!) Stories by Saundra Mitchell – This one’s not out until the end of the month, but it’s an excellent collection of facts, art and biographies of 50 women from Catherine the Great to Ruth Bader Ginsberg and more. Great for upper elementary through middle school.
There are a ton of great books out there for women’s history month. What would you have chosen?

 

Three Books for African American History Month

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I wrote this in my introduction to my newsletter:

I saw this video on Facebook a while back, and it got me thinking. Especially the part where they say that black history begins with slavery and ends with Martin Luther King, Jr. It helped that it came on the heels of the scandal surrounding A Birthday Cake for George Washington. I especially appreciated this post by author Mitali Perkins is definitely worth checking out. Both things together have made me more aware of the importance of diversity in children’s books, and made me more determined to search out more honest portrayals of black life.

I think that’s true, and as a result, I tried to find books that reflected the African American experience but didn’t have anything to do with slavery or civil rights. The three I came up with are these:

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Gordon Parks: How the Photographer Captured Black and White America by Carolyn Boston Weatherford, illustrated by Jamey Cristoph

The Magnificent Mya Tibbs: Spirit Week Showdown by Crystal Allen

When I Was the Greatest by Jason Reynolds

A confession: I haven’t read any of these. But I think it’s definitely something I can rectify.

What would you have picked?

Three Books for National Mentoring Month

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One of the things I do as part of my job is write a newsletter for teachers and librarians. It’s the thing I feel the most inadequately prepared for, not being a librarian OR an educator, so I did some asking around to find out what would be most helpful. One of the things was lists of books on a theme. That, I can do.  So, I started a new part of the newsletter where I highlight three books (new or backlist) on a certain theme. This month was Mentors, since I needed a place to start. If you have any theme ideas, I’d love to hear them as well!

I figured it would be a good idea to feature them here as well. Lists are always fun, anyway.

9780399257629 Thank You, Mr. Falker, Patricia Polacco. Believe it or not, I’ve never actually read this one. I do know it is loosely autobiographical and that people love it. But that’s all I know. What have I missed?

 

 

 

9780399162596Fish in a Tree, Lynda Mullaly Hunt. This one is like so many others: brilliant (male) teacher discovers previously unknown learning disability in a student and makes her shine. But, I enjoyed it anyway.
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A Wrinkle in Time, by Madeline L’Engle. I’ll admit that this one didn’t readily come up when I was thinking about this list. But, doing some internet digging I came across two things: first, that there aren’t enough books with women mentors (no surprise) and second, that this was an excellent example of strong women mentors. From Meg’s mom to Mrs. Whatsit, Mrs. Who, and Mrs. Which, there are strong women guiding Meg in her journey. No, they’re not traditional teachers, but they count.

 

Any other books with good mentor/teacher figures that I forgot? Particularly ones with women?

The 2015 Cybils EMGSF Panel: The Ones That Got Away

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One of the best things about the Cybils is that we have to agree on a shortlist. Sometimes this comes easily — like it did for our panel this year — sometimes, not so much. Even so, there are always ones that we really like (both individually and collectively) that don’t quite make it on to the list.

Here are five books that I really loved but that didn’t make the cut:

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Circus Mirandus

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Unusual Chickens for the Exceptional Poultry Farmer

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The Forgotten Sisters

The Hollow Boy

The Hollow Boy

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MiNRS

The Cybils: Why I Keep Coming Back

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As I’ve been puttering along on my blog here for nearly 11 years, I’ve seen a lot of blogging communities come and go. I’ve been involved in quite a few of them as well. But none has captured my heart the way the Cybils has. I don’t remember how I became aware that a group of bloggers, many of whom I followed, were banding together to create this award. But, I did, and so when the call for judges came out in 2006, I applied. No one knew who I was, and my blog was super scattered back then, so I was turned down. I became determined then: I wanted to be a part of this. And so I worked hard connecting with the community so when the 2007 call went out, I was actually picked.

Over the years that I’ve been involved, I’ve often thought about what it is with the Cybils that keeps me coming back, year after year, to volunteer my time for this award. There are lots of reasons, but I’m going to try and just pick a few.

The people are fantastic. Some of my best blogger friends have come through the Cybils. I’ve served as both a (first-round) panelist and a (second-round) judge, and both offer unique opportunities to connect with other bloggers. Think of it as the best book group ever. It’s short-lived (2 1/2 months for first round, 6 weeks for second), but you’ll have in-depth discussions about great books, you’ll disagree, you’ll be passionate about books with other people who are passionate about books, and you will come out friends on the other end. (Then you need to come to KidlitCon to put faces to the names!)

It’s a unique opportunity to be really well-read in one area of Kidlit. For me, over the years, that has been middle grade books. I was on the Middle Grade Fiction panel for years before leaping over to Speculative Fiction. I’m not as “expert” in those areas as some others, but I am pretty dang knowledgeable. And it’s all because I read a whole bunch every year for the Cybils.

I like being a part of something bigger than myself. This is perhaps the most important reason. There’s just something about working with a team of people, all who have volunteered their time because they are passionate about kids books and kids in general, for a larger goal. In this case: to create a list, and pick the best, kid-friendly book.

I’ve already thrown my hat into the ring, in spite of my busy schedule this fall, to be a part of the 2015 Cybils. I hope to see you there!

11 #QuietYA Books Worth Checking Out

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I was looking for an idea for a list this morning when I stumbled upon the #QuietYA hashtag. I’d seen it around, sure, but it hit me that using it might make a good list. Then I discovered that as of late, I’ve been leaning towards the books that are getting a lot of buzz. It’s the tendency in bookselling, I think, to get on whichever bandwagon (right now? Go Set a Watchman and adult coloring books) is the most current one.

But going through my backlist (nearly 11 years now!) was a good thing. It reminded me that I used to read a lot more contemporary YA (I tend to lean toward the fantasy now), and a lot more smaller books, ones that have less press behind it. Something to think about.

But for now, here’s 11 books I consider flying under the radar (at least here in Kansas) and definitely worth reading.

Kissing in America

Gabi a Girl in Pieces
OCD, the Dude, and Me
Between Shades of Gray

Trash
Bamboo People
The Chosen One
Ten Cents a Dance
Evolution, Me, and Other Freaks of Nature
Fly by Night
Jackaroo

What are some other good #QuietYA books that you’ve read?

12 Books You Should Read Instead of Seeing the Movie

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I was sitting around, trying to figure out what to do for a list this month, and C suggested bad movies. (We were talking about the new City of Bones TV show, Shadowhunters, and how we have high hopes that it’ll be better than the movie.) In the spirit of goodness (and this Tshirt, which, yes, I do own)  I give you a dozen books that you should read rather than wasting  your time on the movie. (For the record: I always try to read the book first, when I can. But that’s just me.)

In the category of Don’t Even Bother With the Movie:

Twilight – I know: we’re all over the vampires. But, given a choice between reading the books and watching the movies (I never even bothered with the last three), I’d take the books, hands down. At the very least, you can skip the annoying parts.

The Lightning Thief – When the author disses the movies you know it can’t be good. But, aside from the book, this doesn’t even hold up as a movie. Don’t bother. Especially since the book is SO good.

Inkheart – The movie isn’t terrible. I mean, Brendan Frasier is really eminently watchable. But, it’s not good either. It’s just kind of… Meh. Like everyone phoned in their performances and they were hoping to get a movie as fascinating as the book was.

The Three Musketeers – Orlando Bloom is the best thing in the most recent movie. Seriously. It’s not even remotely the book, which is really quite good.

The Hobbit – I loved Lord of the Rings, all three movies and all 12 hours of it. But, after slogging through the FIRST of three movies for this charming little book, I bailed. (That said, the TV movie from 1977 is quite good.)

The movie is okay, but it has Nothing To Do With the Book:

Ella Enchanted – It’s actually a charming movie. I love the music (always have), and there are parts of it that I think are great. But, aside from the title, the character names, and the curse on the main character, it’s not the book. Which is just as charming and fun on its own.

The Great Gatsby – It’s a gorgeous movie. Lush and beautiful. But that’s all it is. It missed the point of Gatsby, of what Fitzgerald was trying to say. If you don’t think about that, it’s a good movie, but I’d rather read the book.

The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy– the opening minutes of this were brilliant and I had high hopes for the movie, but it kind of just petered out. Alan Rickman as Marvin is brilliant, however.

Tuck Everlasting – C insisted that this one be on the list. She adored the book, and the movie is NOTHING like the book. Except for the premise, there’s really nothing in common with Babbitt’s powerful book.

I know I’m going off the trailer here, which can be misleading. (Bridge to Terabithia anyone?) But, the trailer for these books scared me so much, I haven’t seen the movie. And unless someone convinces me otherwise, I probably won’t.

The Dark is Rising  – I really didn’t think this book would translate well onto the screen, and if the trailer’s correct, it proves me right.

Ender’s Game – Yeah, there are some big blockbuster-y moments in the book, but the movie missed out (or at least the trailer implied this) on the reflective nature of this book, of the underlying themes of brutality and the means we’ll go as humans to reach the ends we want. I know I may be wrong, but I haven’t had the desire to find out.

The True Meaning of Smekday  – This is the one I’m most conflicted about. I want to see Home because of a person of color, girl main character. And because it does look charming. But, I can tell that it’s not the book. I don’t object to that, I just haven’t worked up the courage to see the movie yet.

As a side note, they really shouldn’t make any picture book into a full-length movie. There isn’t a single one (Where the Wild Things Are, How the Grinch Stole Christmas, The Cat in the Hat, Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day) that’s any good.

What are some of your worst (and best) movies from books?