Library Loot 2010-10

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It is well known on my my love for British men. What is less well known is a long-time crush on Andre Agassi. Loved him when I was a teenager, something which continued until his retirement four years ago. Sigh. So, I was incredibly excited when Open showed up at the library for me today. I don’t care if it’s a good book (though it’d be nice if it was, kind of like Sting’s was…). I just want to enjoy Andre for a little bit longer. I’m shameless. 😀

This week’s loot:

Picture Books:
The Goblin and the Empty Chair, by Mem Fox/Illus by Leo and Diane Dillon
Don’t Worry Bear, by Greg Foley
Supersister, by Beth Cadena/Illus by Frank W. Dormer
Have You Ever Seen a Sneep?, by Tasha Pym/Illus by Joel Stewart
Surprise Soup, by Mary Ann Rodman/Illus. by G. Brian Karas

Non-Fiction books:
Open: An Autobiography, by Andre Agassi

Middle Grade Fiction:
Scones and Sensibility, by Lindsay Eland

YA books:
Heist Society, by Ally Carter

Audiobooks:
I don’t often get audiobooks, but we’re going to Oklahoma for a couple of days over spring break, and our new mother-daughter book group is reading The Penderwicks. I thought it’d be a good way to enjoy the drive and get the reread out of the way. Then Hubby complained; he hasn’t read the second book, and wants to. Now we get to duke it out: which one to listen to while driving?!

The Penderwicks: A Summer Tale of Four Sisters, Two Rabbits, and a Very Interesting Boy, by Jeanne Birdsall
The Penderwicks on Gardam Street, by Jeanne Birdsall

The roundup is either at Reading Adventures or A Striped Armchair. Obligatory FTC note: the links are provided through my Amazon Associates account. If you click through and actually purchase one of these books, I’ll get a teeny, tiny payment. But, since no one ever does, and it’s SO much easier using the associates account to put up these links, I’m going to keep doing it.

Sugar

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by Bernice L. McFadden
ages: adult
First sentence: “Jude was dead.”
Support your local independent bookstore: buy it there!

I don’t quite know what to say about this.

On the one hand, it’s a really well written story about acceptance and redemption (of sorts), of prejudice in a small Southern town, of friendship.

On the other hand, it’s about sex. All kinds of sex. Violent sex. Prostitute sex. Married sex. Lustful sex. How women react to sex. How men need sex. How sex drives so much of what we do.

Sure, the book’s about a prostitute, and it starts with a violent murder/rape. But, I’ve read other books about prostitutes that were less about the sex and more about the person than this book was. It was a bit heavy on the sex for me. Perhaps McFadden meant for it to be this way; perhaps the story couldn’t have been told any other way, but I often felt that the sex was weighing down the story, not allowing the real story — the relationship between our two main characters, Pearl and Sugar, and their respective needs to heal — to come through.

And so, being distracted by all the sex, I wasn’t really able to appreciate what McFadden was attempting to say. Attempting, because I’m not sure she even succeeded without all the sex. The story was well-written — there was some beautiful descriptive language, and sometimes even the vulgarity was used effectively — but meandering. At first, I liked the flashbacks and back story, but by the end, when I as a reader knew more than the characters in the book, it felt wearisome. I wanted more of a redemptive story, and I was given the hopes of one. Then, at the last minute, it was taken away from me; Pearl was sent back into mourning, Sugar went back to her old lifestyle, and Pearl’s husband, Joe, was thrown into the metaphorical fire. Not a happy or even hopeful ending.

However, I’m sure you can chalk this one up to it being just me, for whatever reason.

Shine, Coconut Moon

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by Neesha Meminger

ages: 14+
First sentence: “There is a man wearing a turban ringing our doorbell.”
Support your local independent bookstore: buy it there!

One would expect, in the aftermath of 9/11, a lot more books dealing with the reactions of teens to that event. Perhaps there are a lot out there, but this one was the first one I’ve read that dealt with the attacks on the World Trade Center and the aftermath — not so much the aftermath of loss, but the aftermath of suspicion and racism that was pretty strong for a while (some would argue still is) immediately following the attacks.

Seventeen-year-old Samar — Sammy as her mom and friends call her — is Indian (her family hails from Punjab), but she doesn’t have any connection with her heritage at all. She was raised by a single mom — her father left when she was two — who has severed connections with her uber-strict Sikh family. Her mother has raised Sammy to be an “American” through and through; your typical white, middle class American, that is, with no real sense of her Indian heritage.

And then, the Saturday after 9/11, a turbaned man shows up at Sammy’s house. He turns out to be Sammy’s Uncle Sandeep — her mother’s younger brother — and he sets off a chain of events that lead to Sammy finally question the way her mother’s brought her up, and awakens a desire for her to learn about her heritage, the religion that goes along with that heritage, and her family.

It was an interesting book, taking the issues of assimilation, family and racism head on. Sometimes too head-on; I felt that it had a tendency to get a bit preachy and over-earnest in parts. But, even with that, it was a good story. Sammy’s journey to discover herself — and the conflict that is created by that– is an intriguing one. There’s quite a bit of material for discussion, as well: from the basic outline of Sikhism (and how to pronounce it!) to the knee-jerk reactions of people when it comes to racial stereotypes. It’s a thought-provoking book, which trumps all complaints of heavy-handedness and lack of compelling characters. Which is not something I found I minded.

Sunday Salon: Lists, Battles and Tours: Oh My!

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It’s pretty much spring here in Kansas, which means I’m reading less and spending time outside basking in the warm sun. Thankfully, my laptop has a high enough wireless reception that I can take it outside and catch up on all the fun stuff that’s going on this month.

First of all, if you haven’t been following Fuse #8’s Top 100 Children’s Fiction Book list, why not? It’s been a lot of fun to see what’s shown up. There have been lots of books that I’ve thought “Oh, man! Should have put that one on my list!”, a couple that I’ve never heard of and at least one (Order of the Phoenix?!) that I’ve said “Huh. Why that one?” Betsy’s put an amazing amount of work into this, and it shows. (Speaking of Betsy, check out the Forbes article: The Double Life of Betsy Bird. Way cool that a kidlit blogger’s made it *that* big!)

Since we’re all feeling the void that the Cybils finishing has left in our lives (well, I am), it’s a good thing that we have both School Library Journal’s Battle of the Kids Books and Nerds Heart YA coming up. You can nominated books for Nerds Heart YA (link goes directly to the nominating form; stop by the blog for guidelines). Like Liz at A Chair, A Fireplace & A Tea Cozy, I had a hard time following this last year, only catching some of the judges decision. Thankfully, they took care of the problem this year by setting up its own blog. And, for those of you on Twitter, a Twitter account. And, in a really cool difference from last year, we get to vote a book back from the dead (zombie books… oooh…) in the Battle of the Kids books. The catch is that we have to do it before the battle starts. So, go, and choose wisely my friends. (Did I mention that they’re on Twitter, too? They are!)

Finally (last but not least), there are two tours of going on this week. First, Varian Johnson’s book Saving Maddie is released this week, and he’s going on a blog tour. There’s some great stops on the tour (okay, I’m one of them… but really, it sounds like a good tour)… be sure to check it out. From They Call Me Mr. V:

Monday: I’ll be discussing religion, stereotypes and cover art with Melodye Shore in The Author’s Tent.

Tuesday: I’ll be debuting the Saving Maddie Playlist at Reading in Color with Ari. (This is also Release Day. And my birthday.)

Wednesday: I’ll be at Gwenda Bond’s Shaken and Stirred, where I’ll be talking about my writing process for Saving Maddie. (FYI–Gwenda is also a graduate of Vermont College, and is AWESOME.)

Thursday: I’ll be at Book Nut with Melissa, where I’ll be answering questions like, “What’s my favorite scene?”

Friday: I’ll be talking to a student interviewer at Crazy Quilts.

And secondly, it’s time for Share a Story – Shape a Future. The tour begins tomorrow and runs through Friday. (Shameless self-promotion: Jen Robinson asked me to be a part of her day on Friday, so do check back!) This year’s theme is It Takes a Village to Raise a Reader. Do follow along, either on the blog or on Twitter at #sas2010. I’m sure there will be many great posts and great ideas about sharing books with children.

And that’s about it for me, this week. I’m off to go outside and enjoy the day. Hope you are, too!

Howards End

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by E. M. Forester
ages: adult
First sentence: “One may as well begin with Helen’s letters to her sister.”
Support your local independent bookstore: buy it there!

Quick memory: I first read this book when Hubby and I moved from Utah to Washington, DC. In one of those weird quirks of time and space (especially since I usually get very carsick if I’m not constantly looking out the window), I was able to read this while we were driving the moving truck across the country. I remember two things about my impressions the book: I liked it and I thought it wasn’t anything like the movie.

I can’t speak for the movie part anymore (though I’m going to re-watch it soon), but I still quite liked the book. If you haven’t read it, it’s the story of two sisters — Margaret and Helen Schlegel. They’re half German, middle class women in their mid- to late- twenties (old maids in Austen’s books, anyway), liberal in their thought. It’s only when they cross paths with two families — one old-school wealthy (the Wilcoxes) and one definitely lower class (the Basts) — that their ordered lives, as well as their philosophy, get thrown into a tailspin.

The thing that struck me most this time around (perhaps it struck me last time, too) was that this not only a book about the class divide in early-20th-century England, but it was also a book about the connections that are made between people. Margaret meets Mrs. Wilcox, which impresses Mrs. Wilcox enough that she wills Howards End to Margaret. This in turn sets the rest of the family off (because it’s just not “done”), which in turn leads the family to interact with the Schlegel sisters, which leads to Margaret’s falling in love with and marrying Mr. Wilcox. In turn, Leonard Bast accidentally meets the Schlegel sisters, and that in turn, eventually changes the course of his life. It’s fascinating seeing all the intricate connections that Forester weaves through the book.

And it works, I think, because Forester is such an astute writer. He doesn’t dribble on like Dickens (sorry), and he’s not as brilliantly pointed as Austen. But, he is observant about people’s characters and, perhaps most of all, their motivations. He is able to get inside a character, so much so that you understand them, even if you don’t like them all that much. And that is what really drives this story, making all the various elements in it work well together. Which is good, because I’m not sure, in the end, that this is a truly memorable story with a memorable plot and memorable characters.

That’s not to say it’s not a good book; it is. It’s just not one that I think I’ll talk about and think about for quite a while.

Angus, Thongs and Full-Frontal Snogging

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by Louise Rennison
ages: 12+
First sentence: “Dad had Uncle Eddie round, so naturally they had to come and see what I was up to.”
Support your local independent bookstore: buy it there!

Sometimes, you get everything you want out of life. But most of the time — as 14 (well, almost 15)-year-old Georgia Nicholson is finding out — your little sister just leaves her dirty nappies in your bed. Georgia’s trying to wade in the murky waters of makeup (without sticking the mascara brush in her eye), first loves (she’s crushing hard on Robbie, whom she calls the Sex God), and learning how to kiss (oh… SO funny). And, while she mostly is okay, sometimes she’s well… not.

This book, as pointed out by my dear friend Corinne at The Book Nest, is drink-spittingly funny. Snort, chortle, guffaw, too. Sure, it’s not a deep book by any means (what book where the main character spends the entire book obsessing about a boy is?), and yeah, I did get annoyed with Georgia (c’mon girl, cut your parents a break!)… but between the Britishness of it all (oh, I need to use “nuddy-pants” in a conversation now!), as well as the sheer insanity of Georgia and her friends (she shaves off her eyebrows! Had me in stitches.), I couldn’t help but really, really like this book.

Double cool with knobs, definitely.

Library Loot 2010-09

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Back to normal, and still a smallish trip. There just aren’t enough hours in the day anymore.

This week’s loot:

Picture Books:
Let’s Say Hi to Friends Who Fly! (Cat the Cat), by Mo Willems
Cat the Cat, Who Is That?, by Mo Willems
Angelina Ice Skates, by Katharine Holabird/Illus by Helen Craig
Boy Dumplings, by Ying Chang Comepstine/Illus. by James Yamasaki
Here Comes Jack Frost, by Kazuno Kohara
Princess Hyacinth (The Surprising Tale of a Girl Who Floated), by Florence Parry Heide/Illus. by Lane Smith

Middle Grade Fiction:
Kaleidoscope Eyes, by Jen Bryant
Kira (Shadow of the Dragon), by Kate O’Hearn

Adult Fiction:
Sugar: A Novel, by Bernice L. McFadden

The roundup is either at Reading Adventures or A Striped Armchair. Obligatory FTC note: the links are provided through my Amazon Associates account. If you click through and actually purchase one of these books, I’ll get a teeny, tiny payment. But, since no one ever does, and it’s SO much easier using the associates account to put up these links, I’m going to keep doing it.

Scarlett Fever

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by Maureen Johnson
ages: 12+
First sentence: “So let’s set the scene, shall we?”
Support your local independent bookstore: buy it there!

It’s the end of the summer, Hamlet (in the dining room) has closed, and Scarlett is nursing a broken heart. Sure, he was never her boyfriend. And, sure, he was a bit of a cad. But that doesn’t stop her obsessing over him (to the point of watching his commercial on the internet a couple… well, maybe 50… times a night).

And it seems the rest of her life is falling apart, too: she still works for the crazy Mrs. Amberson, whose latest client, Crystal, has a whack-job for a mom and a morose older brother whom Scarlett has the misfortune of being in biology with. Her older brother, Spencer (sigh; I know, he’s only 19, but still!) can’t seem to land an acting job, until he lands a part as the baddie in the TV show Crime and Punishment (a nice tribute to Law and Order). Suddenly, he’s the most hated man in New York. Her older sister Lola seems to be going off the deep end, wandering aimless through her life. And — possibly scariest of all — her younger sister, Marlene, is being… nice.

After the slowish beginning (in which I try to remember what Suite Scarlett was about without rereading it), the book picked up speed, and I fell into Maureen Johnson’s wonderful writing style: full of patter, swooning, humor and intelligent asides. About two-thirds of the way, I started wondering how on earth MJ was going to wrap the story up; there seemed to be a lot more loose threads than a book could adequately wrap up. And I was right: she doesn’t. I do have to admit I was a bit disappointed: instead of ending the book, MJ seems to just… stop it. Which, while exciting and all (can’t wait for the next book), is also frustrating. I don’t mind series and sequels, but I do like to have each individual story tidily wrapped up.

But that’s a minor quibble. It’s the Martins (who are still quirkily wonderful), it’s a fabulous portrait of New York City, it’s happiness in a purple cover. You don’t hear me complaining (much).

Frankie Pickle and the Pine Run 3000

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by Eric Wight
ages: 8-10
First sentence: “Presenting… the Prince of Peril… the Sultan of Suspense… the Duke of Danger… the Amazing Piccolini!”
Support your local independent bookstore: buy it there!
Review copy sent to me by the author.

Frankie and his super-cool imagination are back at it again. This time, however, his challenge is leveling up in Possum Scouts. He can’t seem to keep up with the badges and won’t get to level up with the rest of his troop. Unless… he can win the annual Pine Run 300.

He knows he can do it, and runs to the hobby store (which includes a hilarious diversion with a lawn gnome) to pick up supplies. He sequesters himself in his room — brushing off his dad’s offer of help — and creates… well… a creation. It’s not quite a car, and in a test run, it completely bombs. Only after his first attempt fails does he turn to his father for help. And in doing so, he discovers that not only is the impossible possible, it’s also kind of cool to do things with your dad.

Told with the same humor and creativity as the first Frankie Pickle, it’s sure to tickle the funny bone of any eight-year-old.

The Secret Science Alliance and the Copycat Crook

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by Eleanor Davis
ages: 9+
Support your local independent bookstore: buy it there!

Meet Julian Calendar, your typical nerd. He’s the smartest in the class, a closet inventor. He’s also bullied, picked on, and generally maligned. So, when his parents inform him that they’re moving to a new town, and he’s going to have to start over, he jumps at the chance.

At first, he thinks everything’s going to be exactly the same at his new school, in spite of his hilarious, yet misguided, efforts to “fit in”. It’s not until he meets Ben and Greta and gets inducted into their super-secret science club — they’re all inventors of sorts, and they name themselves the Secret Science Alliance (or S.S.A.) — that he realizes that he has a place and a purpose.

And then the fun begins.

See, there’s this dork of an inventor, famous though he is, who doesn’t like children. And yet… it seems he’s stolen the S.S.A.’s invention notebook, and is actually building and taking patents out on them. It makes the kids (rightfully) angry, and it’s up to them to stop him, since no adult will believe them. The book, which is full of sly asides and notes about science and inventors, comes to a rollicking conclusion with our three heroes saving the day.

My only complaint is that it’s a bit cluttered for me, that there was so much in there it was almost hard to follow the narrative. That said, C adored the book. And you really can’t get a higher recommendation than that.