One of the Best Things About Being a Book Blogger

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Is the Book Blogger Holiday Swap.

This is my third year participating, and I have to say that I’ve loved getting the presents over the years. It not only introduces me to bloggers I’ve never heard of before — on both the giving and the receiving end — but it’s fun to both choose something for someone else and to see what they chose for me.

I got my package in the mail today and unlike past years, I got to open it right away (since it wasn’t wrapped!). My Santa was Nise at Under the Boardwalk (from my home state of Michigan, too!), and she went all out for me:

I can’t wait to read the books (after Christmas and my part in the Cybils is wrapped up!), and the chocolate was quite yummy (and already gone — and I got it all to myself). And the gift card to Panera? Squee! I’ll have to find an excuse to use it.

Thanks so much, Nise. And happy holidays, everyone!

The Small Adventure of Popeye and Elvis

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by Barbara O’Connor
ages: 9+
First sentence: “DRIP.”
Support your local independent bookstore, buy it there!

This book is about boredom. About finding something to do, something unusual, something small, something… well adventurous. I’d like to hand it to all the plugged-in kids and say, “Here! Read. Be inspired. Go out and have a small adventure. You might find it changes things, even if it doesn’t really change things.”

Popeye — formerly Henry until his Uncle Dooley accidentally shot his eye out when he was three — is bored. There is absolutely nothing to do in Fayette, South Carolina except sit and listen to Velma — that’s his grandma — recite the kings of England (in order) and write down her vocabulary words in chalk on the porch. Until one day an RV, a Holiday Rambler, full of a family with rambunctious kids, gets stuck in the mud by Popeye’s house. The oldest is Elvis, and Popeye is immediately entranced. Elvis is everything Popeye is not: loud, rowdy, the Royal Rule Breaker, someone who can say “So what?” and actually mean it. And so, when Elvis suggests that he and Popeye have an adventure, Popeye can’t help but go along with it.

Remember, now, that the title is “Small Adventure”. There is no grand discovery, even if there’s a bit of a mystery. There is no angst. There is no death (though there is missing parents; thankfully, it’s just accepted as a fact and not something that Popeye has to Deal With). There is no drama, though there is wrath. What there is, is a perfectly simple, small adventure that changes one boy’s life.

And was something that completely mesmerized and entranced me.

(Just for the record: because this is a Cybils nominee, I’ve been asked to make sure y’all know this is my opinion only, and not that of the panel.)

Library Loot #48

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It’s COLD outside today — for us here in southern Kansas, anyway — but that can’t stop me from a quick trip to the library. Story time is over, and the library was quiet, which means we found a lot of good books. Here’s some of the new ones (that we haven’t checked out before!):

For A/K:
Come to the Fairies’ Ball, by Jane Yolen/Illus. by Gary Lippincott
Firefighter Ted, by Andrea Beaty and Pascal Lemaitre
Thanks a LOT, Emily Post!, by Jennifer LaRue Huget/Illus. by Alexandra Boiger
Looking Like Me, by Walter Dean Myers/Illus. by Christopher Myers
The Frogs and Toads All Sang, by Arnold Lobel/Color by Adrianne Lobel

For C:
Illustrated Encyclopedia of Ancient Greece, by Sean Sheehan
The Extra-Ordinary Princess, by Carolyn Q. Ebbitt

For M:
Sorcery Rising, by Jude Fisher

For me:
The Small Adventure of Popeye and Elvis, by Barbara O’Connor
Mudville, by Kurtis Scaletta
Dream Girl, by Lauren Mechling

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.

*Ones that M eventually read.
**Picture books we really liked.

The Girl Who Threw Butterflies

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by Mick Cochrane
ages: 9+
First sentence: “On Monday, after band rehearsal and intramurals, when Molly got home from school, her mother was sitting at the kitchen table going through the day’s mail.”
Support your local independent bookstore: buy it there!

Molly loves baseball. It’s a holdover from when her father — who died six months ago in a freak car accident — was alive, but it’s the only thread of connection she has to his memory. It’s not just watching baseball, though, or even playing catch that Molly likes. No, she wants to play, really play, the game. Her father taught her how to throw that most unpredictable of all pitches, the knuckleball, and Molly knows she can compete with the boys. So, she tries out for the baseball team.

This story is a quiet one, a meditation on loss, on baseball, on healing and moving on. It’s not flashy, it’s not over-the-top: not for a minute do you disbelieve Molly’s ability to throw a good game. Cochrane gives us both Molly’s ups — the perfect pitch, the game won — as well as her many downs — for, as he writes at one point, baseball is a game of failures. There’s a softness, a gentleness to the story, for even though there is conflicts — with her mother, with teammates who don’t like the idea of a girl on the team — the tension never reaches a boiling point. There’s a lot of musing going on, a lot of reflection, a lot of thought.

Which isn’t to say that it’s a boring book: it’s not. Cochrane is a good enough writer that he can pull off a book where the action is mostly internal and keep one turning pages. It’s a good book, an interesting story, and as far as books about girls doing boy things go, it’s worth reading.

(Just for the record: because this is a Cybils nominee, I’ve been asked to make sure y’all know this is my opinion only, and not that of the panel.)

Leviathan

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by Scott Westerfield
ages: 12+
First sentence: “The Austrian horses glinted in the moonlight, their riders standing tall in the saddle, swords raised.”
Support your local independent bookstore, buy it there!

First, a disclaimer: I have never, ever heard of steam punk before this book, let alone read it. I had no idea what it entails, what makes a good steam punk book, or what even to expect.

But if this is even remotely typical of the genre, I’m hooked. It was an awesome, wild and weird ride, a fabulous adventure — no one writes nail-biting action like Westerfield — and a grand beginning to a story that has the potential to be absolutely amazing.

It’s 1914, on the eve of the Great War. Alek is a prince of the Austro-Hungarian empire and it’s the murder of his parents that sets off the war, as well as sends Alek on the run for his life. All he has with him is a few loyal men, and a Stormwalker in order to fend off the Germans. Deryn is a commoner, a girl, who desperately wants to fly in the British Air Service. Mind you, they’re not flying planes, but rather Darwinist living creatures — huge ecosystems of creatures that work together to get off the ground. Deryn disguises herself as a boy, and by a fluke or two of nature (ha!), ends up as part of the crew of Britain’s newest airship, the Leviathan.

Told in alternating chapters, the book details not Alek’s escape from his palace and Deryn’s entry into the air service, but their eventual meeting and the results of that meeting. As I mentioned before, there’s tons of nail-biting action from Alek’s initial escape to a couple of attacks by the Germans. But what I found most fascinating (and wild and weird) was the combination of historical fiction and futuristic elements, as well as a re-imagining of science. I loved the Clankers versus Darwinist feud, as well as each individual science. The clanker machines were awesome, powerful, and captivating to read about. But the Darwinist inventions — the wild cross-breeds, the machinations to keep them up in the air, the things (like flechette bats, for instance) that Westerfield created — were the things that kept me turning pages and shaking my head in amazement. What kind of imagination dreams this stuff up? (Well, Westerfield’s, of course.)

The book ends somewhat abruptly, but I’m totally sold: I want to know what happens next. I want to know what adventure Deryn and Alek are going to go on, and I want to know about the small mystery that’s part of the larger story.

The problem — like all books with sequels — is being patient until the next one comes out.

Heart of a Shepherd

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by Rosanne Parry
ages: 10+
First sentence: “Grandpa frowns when he plays chess, like he does when he prays.”
Support your local independent bookstore: buy it there!

There are obviously powerful books, books about Problems or Trials or Oppression, books where the main character has something obviously Moving happen to them. And then there are books that are quietly powerful. Ones that seem simple on the surface, but then work their way under your skin and move you in ways that you totally didn’t expect.

This is one of those books.

Twelve-year-old Ignatius — Brother to everyone, since he has four older brothers — part of the east Oregon ranching community. Even though he’s small, and he doesn’t like killing the animals, he — along with his father, grandfather and brothers — does the work: take the cows to the mountains, raise and shear the sheep, mend and tend the ranch. Except, all the brothers are away, at school, in the army. And then, when Brother’s dad’s National Guard gets called up for a fourteen-month tour in Iraq, Brother is left with Grandpa to manage the the ranch by themselves. It’s up to him to prove that he can be what he doesn’t think he can: a rancher. Except, over the course of the year that his father is gone, that’s not what Brother finds out, about himself or his family.

It’s a deeply religious book — Brother and his family are Irish Catholics, though his Grandpa is a Quaker — but not overly preachy. There’s a lot of references to God and His will, but it’s a quiet religion, one that’s open, accepting and fluid in ways that are unexpected and ultimately beautiful and movie. It’s a harsh reality, east Oregon ranching life, but Parry writes about it in ways that will keep you thinking about Brother and his family long after you close the book.

(Just for the record: because this is a Cybils nominee, I’ve been asked to make sure y’all know this is my opinion only, and not that of the panel.)

My Christmas Top 10

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This year, for reasons unfathomable to me, I found that the holidays snuck up on me. (Then again, I think I’ve been a bit off since April…) I’ve been wracking my brain trying to come up with something witty, or interesting, or sentimental, or just plain fun, and I’m coming up short. It’s not that I don’t have any memories to share, it’s just that I lack faith in my ability to adequately share them. (At least to my satisfaction.)

So, to add one more list to what has become a year of lists, I’m sharing my top ten things I love about Christmastime. Since — even though they were sneaky this year — I do love the holiday season. It really is, as that song says, the most wonderful time of the year!

10. Shopping. Okay, so I’m crazy, but I love Christmas shopping. In December. Sure, the crowds are nuts, and the stores are crowded, but it’s so much fun choosing gifts and being part of all the excitement.

9. The advent calendar. Not just this book blogger one (which I do look forward to), but our own family one. When I was little, my mom had a calendar and every day there was a note with what we were going to do that day. Sometimes is was simple like “get out the pine cone wreath”, others more adventuresome, like “Tonight we will go to the Nutcracker.” I’ve kept this tradition with my girls. It’s a lot of fun for them, and (honestly) it keeps me organized!

8. The Nutcracker. It’s the first ballet I remember seeing. It’s the ballet that I share with my girls every holiday season: when they turn four, they get to go and see all the wonders that the Nutcracker has for them. We’re blessed to have a halfway decent one in town (I’ve been to some pretty lame ones), but the best, if you’re ever in Salt Lake City at Christmas time, is Ballet West‘s. I know I’m biased, because it’s the one I remember best from my childhood, but, really, it’s perfect.

7. Christmas lights. I love driving around, as the world slowly turns to the darkest time (at least here in the U.S.) and seeing all the light displays in the neighborhoods. Bonus points if they’re glowing in the snow. There really is nothing prettier than Christmas lights on the snow.

6. The music. I whine and moan and complain about Christmas songs being played before Thanksgiving, but honestly, I love the stuff. Whether it’s carols, or classic songs, or the poppy songs, I love it. And I love singing along. Which brings me to…

5. Caroling. Love it. Yeah, it’s cold. But, really, the most fun I’ve had at Christmas time is going around with a group singing carols at random (or not so random) houses.

4. The goodies. I’ve mentioned I love to cook, haven’t I? Well, Christmas brings out the best in my cooking. I’m pretty sure that when my friends see me coming with my plates of cookies, they groan and moan… but you want to know a secret? I give away the food because I want to make it for myself, and I don’t want to eat it all. And what’s on the plates? Sugar cookies (lovingly cut and decorated by the girls), fudge, Christmas Bark, mint bars, Divinity, toffee, Lizner cookies, lemon bars, and whatever else I can think of. (What do you want a recipe of?)

3. The decorations. I go all out at Christmas time: the house gets a makeover. On November 30th we get out the boxes (all dozen or so of them) and unpack all the Christmas decorations (except the tree). Perhaps the best part is being surprised at what is in the boxes (“Oh, I bought that last year?!”) and telling the stories about the items and how they ended up in the boxes. We film the tradition for the grandparents, so they can share in with the chaos and the silliness of it all. Then, on December 6th, we put up our 9 foot, artificial (M has allergies) tree. Again, there’s silliness and chaos, but the end result — of it all — is wonderful. One of my favorite things to do during the holidays is sit in the living room with the lights off, except for the tree, and the candles lit. It’s peaceful.

2. Christmas Eve. When I was in high school, I had several friends who were Catholic, and they went to Midnight Mass. This idea intrigued me — my church doesn’t have any Christmas Eve services at all — and so when I got married, I told Hubby that was what I wanted to do on Christmas. We don’t always go to a mass (though we have been to a couple over the years), but we do drag the girls to a service. We have a small, simple, candlelit dinner beforehand, and we always watch It’s A Wonderful Life after. It really is a perfect way — for us — to celebrate the holiday.

1. My girls faces on Christmas morning. There really is nothing more special than seeing the wonder and excitement in a child’s eyes on Christmas morning. It really is the best part. 😀

What’s your favorite part of the season?

I’m not the only stop on the calendar today. Be sure to check out the others:
Chris @ Stuff As Dreams Are…
Stephanie @ Stephanie’s Confessions of a Book-a-holic
Lilly @ Reading Extravaganza

Captain Nobody

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by Dean Pitchford
ages: 9-13
First sentence: “Uh-oh.”
Support your local independent bookstore: buy it there!

The first reaction I had to this book was, “Oh my gosh! FINALLY, a normal kid with a normal family.” Seriously, folks, too many of the books I’ve read are about damaged kids with damaged families, and while it’s all interesting and poignant and challenging and all that, sometimes I just wish for a normal kid with a normal(ish) family, having normal(ish) problems.

And, with this book, I got that. With a dose of humor and superheros on the side.

See, Newt Newman (yes, his parents named him Newton, poor kid) is the ten-year-old brother of Chris Newman, high school football star. Newt manages the house — making breakfast for his busy, and slightly absent-minded parents — gets good grades, and has a couple of great friends in JJ (she’s a girl) and Cecil even though he’s a tad bit shy, but is basically ignored by everybody. (“I didn’t know Chris Newman had a brother!” is a common reaction of most people.) Until, that is, a combination of events occur: Halloween, and the Big Game where Chris gets knocked out and put into a coma. And out of these disasters (well, Halloween’s only a disaster because Newt couldn’t find a decent costume) was born Captain Nobody. Newt — in his costume, made from Chris’s old clothes — suddenly finds that he’s a different person when wearing Captain Nobody. Stronger, more outgoing, more able to handle… well, everything that’s thrown his way.

And things do get thrown his way. It’s nothing out of the comic books, but Newt does happen to be in the right place at the right time to be the cause of some pretty remarkable happenings. It’s not outrageous: nothing Newt does is out of the ordinary. He’s just, well, himself. And by being himself — enhanced by the Captain Nobody costume and a frame of mind — he manages to do some small, yet pretty heroic things.

And, I have to admit, it kind of made me want to be a superhero, too.

(Just for the record: because this is a Cybils nominee, I’ve been asked to make sure y’all know this is my opinion only, and not that of the panel.)

Two Books about Loss and Healing

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All the Broken Pieces
by Ann Berg
ages: 10+
First sentence:
“My name is Matt Pin
and her name, I remember,
is Phang My.”
Support your local independent bookstore: buy it there!

This one is set right after the Vietnam War, and deals with the tensions — both in Vietnam and in America — brought on because of that war. Matt Pin is a 12 year old Vietnamese boy who was airlifted out of Vietnam two years ago — his mother sent him away — and adopted by a nice American family. He’s dealing with a lot of things: guilt (for leaving his mother and younger brother in Vietnam among other things), loneliness, hatred, uncertainty. The novel follows his growth — though baseball, through meetings with Vietnam vets, through piano lessons — to acceptance of his past and of his present.

Told through spare but lovely verse, this novel is haunting at times, yet ultimately hopeful.

Umbrella Summer
by Lisa Graff
ages: 9+
First sentence: “If you started to squeeze your brakes right in the middle of heading down Maple Hill, just as you were passing old Mr. Normore’s mailbox, you could coast into the bike rack in front of Lippy’s Market without making a single tire squeak.”
Support your local independent bookstore: buy it there!

Annie believes you can never be too careful. She’s determined that while there are lots and lots of dangerous things you can do — like fly or drive — it’s not those things that you need to worry about. No, it’s the little things that can kill you — like the undetected heart defect that killed her not-quite-12 year old brother, Jared. So, Annie has determined that if she stays perfectly, totally, completely safe then nothing bad will ever happen to her.

It’s only through a fight with her friend, and the interference of a new neighbor, who is suffering from her own loss, that Annie begins to come out of her shell — out from underneath the umbrella of her sadness — and learns how to live again.

It’s a cute book — I know that sounds weird in conjunction with the subject matter, but cute is really the first word that comes to mind — that manages to never feel either overwhelmingly sad or callous in its treatment of the death of a loved one.

(Just for the record: because these are Cybils nominees, I’ve been asked to make sure y’all know this is my opinion only, and not that of the panel.)

Library Loot #47

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Back to normal. Mostly. It is December, after all!

For A/K:
I got more than two books, but most of them are re-check-outs, so I decided to only list the “new” ones.

Barnyard Slam, by Dian Curtis Regan/Illus. by Paul Meisel
Dragon Tooth, by Cathryn Falwell

For C:
The Worst Noel , by Ilene Cooper
Out of Order, by Betty Hicks

For M:
Fire: Tales of Elemental Spirits, by Robin McKinley and Peter Dickinson*
Violet Wings, by Victoria Hanley

For me:
The Girl Who Threw Butterflies, by Mick Cochrane
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.

*Ones that M eventually read.
**Picture books we really liked.