Friday, July 22, 2011
Emily the Strange: Stranger and Stranger
by Rob Reger and Buzz Parker
I've always kind of loved Emily the Strange... but until not that long ago, she was mostly a vague character to me. The new series of half-graph novels/diaries are delving further into the world and mind of Emily, and giving me a whole new appreciation. Being based on an already-successful character, these didn't have to be great to sell - but they are pretty darn good, to be honest. Way better than they have to be, which is a real treat to find!
This second installment is not quite as great as the first (my review of The Lost Days here), but still interesting and as amusingly twisted as you could hope for. This time, Emily successfully duplicates herself, only to find her mother initially unreceptive to this new twin, and soon enough, she isn't feeling so keen on the idea anymore either, as she discovers that this twin is more EvilMe than Emily, and has not only stolen her dark side, but her skating skills! She seeks help from her neighbour, a former spy trainer, and eventually hatches a plan to get rid of the twin and regain what she's lost...
As with The Lost Days, the book is funny, and Emily has unexpected cool little quirks that make her even more awesome. Definitely a worthwhile read, even for those who are not hardcore fans of the Strange!
Labels: 2010, family, friendship, siblings, slightly weird stuff, teen
Friday, September 24, 2010
Knucklehead:
Tall Tales & Mostly True Stories About Growing Up Scieszka
by Jon Scieszka
Jon Scieszka, as you likely know, is one of the funnier authors around, and is also a huge proponent of finding the right books for boys to read. His own books have massive boy appeal, and he highlight a lot of others, as well as giving advice, on his website, Guys Read.
Like Gary Paulsen, whose hilarious How Angel Peterson Got His Name had me literally guffawing (and I don't do that often), Scieszka has been moved to write about what it was like growing up a rowdy boy among other rowdy boys. Thank goodness, because this book is funny - and explains a lot about how he became such a funny guy, himself.
The family stories and photos are, as those commercials like to put it, "priceless," being funny, revealing, and wonderful snapshots of the era he grew up in. The stories are full of humour, horseplay, and sometimes pain, with physical comedy looming large. It's not all slapstick, though, because these stories of his boyhood are also full of heart, reflecting the full range of chaos and love that coexist in a big family.
by Jon Scieszka
Jon Scieszka, as you likely know, is one of the funnier authors around, and is also a huge proponent of finding the right books for boys to read. His own books have massive boy appeal, and he highlight a lot of others, as well as giving advice, on his website, Guys Read.
Like Gary Paulsen, whose hilarious How Angel Peterson Got His Name had me literally guffawing (and I don't do that often), Scieszka has been moved to write about what it was like growing up a rowdy boy among other rowdy boys. Thank goodness, because this book is funny - and explains a lot about how he became such a funny guy, himself.
The family stories and photos are, as those commercials like to put it, "priceless," being funny, revealing, and wonderful snapshots of the era he grew up in. The stories are full of humour, horseplay, and sometimes pain, with physical comedy looming large. It's not all slapstick, though, because these stories of his boyhood are also full of heart, reflecting the full range of chaos and love that coexist in a big family.
Labels: 2008, family, good stuff, growing up, humour, middle grades, non-fiction, siblings
Tuesday, July 27, 2010
Publisher Review: Wave
by Eric Walters
Eric Walters, it seems, is finding his niche in writing sensitive takes on major disasters and making a plausible story of one family's experience in that setting. He takes that same direction here, writing the story of a family vacation in Phuket, Thailand, that is turned quite literally on its head with the massive tsunami that wreaked havoc on the Indian Ocean in December 2004.
The writing is believable, and while he does take on some difficult moments, he carefully treads the line between allowing some of the tragedy to occur, making the story truer to life, versus bringing too much to his main characters, which the reader has come to know. It's a balance, and mostly he does it well, though I do sometimes think the happy ending is not always the best for the story.
Walters' level of detail is strong, and he has clearly done his research, both in how tsunamis happen and in what it was like that day, as he writes compelling description that meshes with what video and photos of the day show, as well.
If you have a child who is fascinated by disasters or wants something with a little true-to-life action and danger, this would fit the bill nicely.
Eric Walters, it seems, is finding his niche in writing sensitive takes on major disasters and making a plausible story of one family's experience in that setting. He takes that same direction here, writing the story of a family vacation in Phuket, Thailand, that is turned quite literally on its head with the massive tsunami that wreaked havoc on the Indian Ocean in December 2004.
The writing is believable, and while he does take on some difficult moments, he carefully treads the line between allowing some of the tragedy to occur, making the story truer to life, versus bringing too much to his main characters, which the reader has come to know. It's a balance, and mostly he does it well, though I do sometimes think the happy ending is not always the best for the story.
Walters' level of detail is strong, and he has clearly done his research, both in how tsunamis happen and in what it was like that day, as he writes compelling description that meshes with what video and photos of the day show, as well.
If you have a child who is fascinated by disasters or wants something with a little true-to-life action and danger, this would fit the bill nicely.
Labels: 2009, action/adventure, Canadian, family, growing up, lukewarm, middle grades, Publisher Reviews, set abroad, siblings
Saturday, January 23, 2010
Publisher Review: The Magician's Elephant
by Kate DiCamillo
Kate DiCamillo is almost a sure-fire winner when it comes to middle-grade fiction, but having been a few years since I last read her, I could only remember general impressions about what was so special about her writing when I picked this up. I knew I enjoyed her, recalled that she was really good at creating a mood, and it seemed to me that there was something old-fashioned about her storytelling. And so, like most people in the kidslit world, I was eager to read this latest offering.
When I started, I remembered immediately what makes her writing amazing - she uses language gorgeously, reveling unabashedly in words, and never shying away from using a word that a child will need to ask about. a strong or confident reader will usually pick up the meaning from context, but a reader-aloud may have to explain a word or two, or there may be some looking up, but with her stories being so magical, I don't think it's off-putting, and find it rather a great thing that she may be good enough to entice kids to do that just to stay with her when they need to! Talk about your vocab booster.
The language is not the whole of the story, of course, but one of the ways she helps create an overall atmosphere, which she does beautifully. In this case, there is magic in the air, magic strong enough the swirl through an otherwise depressingly heavy winter. This magic in the town begins with a magician's incredible but unfortunate trick, and gives way to a sense that anything is possible.
Dreams, prophetic dreams, start to bloom in the sleeping minds of the populace, drawing many of them into being part of an unfolding story. it is a strange story, an impossible story, but with the help of the dreams, with the help of a new sense of wonder, the people follow along with it and help it come true.
It's a slightly odd book, this one, but for a child who is willing to dream, who loves a good ending, who loves a beautifully told tale, it's just a lovely book to share and immerse yourself in.
Kate DiCamillo is almost a sure-fire winner when it comes to middle-grade fiction, but having been a few years since I last read her, I could only remember general impressions about what was so special about her writing when I picked this up. I knew I enjoyed her, recalled that she was really good at creating a mood, and it seemed to me that there was something old-fashioned about her storytelling. And so, like most people in the kidslit world, I was eager to read this latest offering.
When I started, I remembered immediately what makes her writing amazing - she uses language gorgeously, reveling unabashedly in words, and never shying away from using a word that a child will need to ask about. a strong or confident reader will usually pick up the meaning from context, but a reader-aloud may have to explain a word or two, or there may be some looking up, but with her stories being so magical, I don't think it's off-putting, and find it rather a great thing that she may be good enough to entice kids to do that just to stay with her when they need to! Talk about your vocab booster.
The language is not the whole of the story, of course, but one of the ways she helps create an overall atmosphere, which she does beautifully. In this case, there is magic in the air, magic strong enough the swirl through an otherwise depressingly heavy winter. This magic in the town begins with a magician's incredible but unfortunate trick, and gives way to a sense that anything is possible.
Dreams, prophetic dreams, start to bloom in the sleeping minds of the populace, drawing many of them into being part of an unfolding story. it is a strange story, an impossible story, but with the help of the dreams, with the help of a new sense of wonder, the people follow along with it and help it come true.
It's a slightly odd book, this one, but for a child who is willing to dream, who loves a good ending, who loves a beautifully told tale, it's just a lovely book to share and immerse yourself in.
Labels: 2009, family, good stuff, middle grades, Publisher Reviews, siblings, slightly weird stuff
Wednesday, January 20, 2010
Publisher Review: Umbrella Summer
by Lisa Graff
Annie is, to put it mildly, a worrier. She has good reason, she thinks, because you just never know. They didn't know anything was wrong with her brother Jared until he died, and he was only 11. Sure, these things might be rare, but clearly they happen, and she is determined to live firmly on the safe side, even reading up on new dangers to look out for.
Annie is, to put it mildly, a worrier. She has good reason, she thinks, because you just never know. They didn't know anything was wrong with her brother Jared until he died, and he was only 11. Sure, these things might be rare, but clearly they happen, and she is determined to live firmly on the safe side, even reading up on new dangers to look out for.
Annie doesn't really realize that she is reacting, but she does know she hates the worried, pitying looks she gets from everyone, and and she knows her parents are acting strangely, her dad mostly disconnected, and her mother cleaning and refusing to talk about Jared.
It's not until her friend's hamster dies and she simply cannot be there for her and attend the rodent's funeral that things start to become both better and worse. For one thing, her friend Rebeccas is so hurt at her lack of support that she won't talk to Annie, who is miserable and blows up at a public event. On the other hand, she becomes friendly with the new neighbour, an older woman who has her own loss to face and who makes a part of that journey with Annie.
In the end, the new neighbour not only helps heal the rift between Annie and Rebecca, but points out to Annie that her healing is stalled, using the comparison that gives the book its title: Annie has been walking around with her "umbrella" open to prevent herself from getting wet, but in protecting herself, she is keeping herself from enjoying the sun. It's time, she says, to start closing the umbrella and find out about the other things around her. It's a message that Annie not only takes to heart for herself, but shares with Jared's best friend and brings home to her parents, leading her to help them with their own healing, too.
If you'd like to read a little for yourself to get a feel for this book and character, check out an excerpt, here.
Labels: 2009, family, friendship, growing up, issues, loved it, middle grades, Publisher Reviews, siblings
Saturday, June 21, 2008
The Alchemyst:
The Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel
by Michael Scott
This book drew my attention immediately because of the Nicholas Flamel connection - some may remember him as the creator of the Philosopher's Stone in the first Harry Potter book. I was curious to see what another author had done with him and this being a teen novel, I was hoping for something meaty.
This weighty novel did not disappoint. The action begins quickly, as Sophie stands on a regular summer day in the coffee shop where she works and sees chaos break out in the bookstore across the street, where her twin brother is employed. She runs to him, and the pair are drawn into a whole new world, where the unassuming bookseller Nick Fleming and his wife Perry turn out to be the ages-old alchemist and his wife, kept alive for hundreds of years through a formula he uncovered in an ancient text. Coming after them and that same text is another magician, this one from Elizabeth I's court and also immortal through magic, Dr. John Dee, who has allied himself with ancient and dark forces who wish to reclaim the world for themselves and enslave the human race.
As they flee Dee, Josh (the other twin) manages to rip two very important pages from the book - pages which Dee will want badly enough to continue hunting for the twins and Flamel, though he has captured his wife. Flamel, and later Dee, also begin to suspect that these twins are something special, something referred to in one of the book's prophecies, and that the fate of the world may well rest with them and how well they can be protected and taught along the way.
The action is nonstop in this book, and as the plot twists and progresses, the author has drawn in a wide variety of historical figures and legends, weaving them together to form a background that he notes took years to piece together before he truly began writing the book. Without giving away too much detail, he incorporates myths from Egypt and the British Isles, as well as legends that have cropped up in cultures around the world, topping it off with a sprinkling of real historical figures such as Flamel and Dee. (An excerpt at the end reveals that we can look forward to Nicolo Machiavelli joining the fray in the next book, where the chase has moved to Europe.) The result is something so well-thought-out that it becomes convincing in the reading, and allows for easy suspension of disbelief - something I struggle with sometimes in reading fantasy-type fiction, and I must admit, the use of real mythology certainly helps for me. The book's construction and backstory is clever and interesting, the plot keeps you reading, and the characters sympathetic enough that even where you don't feel that you know them well (as in the enigmatic ancient warrior Scathach), you care about their fate. It all comes together to mean that I read this book in record time, sacrificing valuable evening flake-out time and nearly missing my subway stop on more than one occasion. Yes, I was riveted, and devoured it in mere days, quite a thing for a slow reader like myself to say of a 375-pager.
This book was terrific - I am handing it off to a coworker who was looking for something to read, and I am more than a touch disappointed to see that the next installment is not available in the catalogue yet, though it is to be released in hardcover later this week, according to Indigo (which I had to go and check, having just finished the book today!). Perhaps it might have to be a rare teen purchase...
by Michael Scott
This book drew my attention immediately because of the Nicholas Flamel connection - some may remember him as the creator of the Philosopher's Stone in the first Harry Potter book. I was curious to see what another author had done with him and this being a teen novel, I was hoping for something meaty.
This weighty novel did not disappoint. The action begins quickly, as Sophie stands on a regular summer day in the coffee shop where she works and sees chaos break out in the bookstore across the street, where her twin brother is employed. She runs to him, and the pair are drawn into a whole new world, where the unassuming bookseller Nick Fleming and his wife Perry turn out to be the ages-old alchemist and his wife, kept alive for hundreds of years through a formula he uncovered in an ancient text. Coming after them and that same text is another magician, this one from Elizabeth I's court and also immortal through magic, Dr. John Dee, who has allied himself with ancient and dark forces who wish to reclaim the world for themselves and enslave the human race.
As they flee Dee, Josh (the other twin) manages to rip two very important pages from the book - pages which Dee will want badly enough to continue hunting for the twins and Flamel, though he has captured his wife. Flamel, and later Dee, also begin to suspect that these twins are something special, something referred to in one of the book's prophecies, and that the fate of the world may well rest with them and how well they can be protected and taught along the way.
The action is nonstop in this book, and as the plot twists and progresses, the author has drawn in a wide variety of historical figures and legends, weaving them together to form a background that he notes took years to piece together before he truly began writing the book. Without giving away too much detail, he incorporates myths from Egypt and the British Isles, as well as legends that have cropped up in cultures around the world, topping it off with a sprinkling of real historical figures such as Flamel and Dee. (An excerpt at the end reveals that we can look forward to Nicolo Machiavelli joining the fray in the next book, where the chase has moved to Europe.) The result is something so well-thought-out that it becomes convincing in the reading, and allows for easy suspension of disbelief - something I struggle with sometimes in reading fantasy-type fiction, and I must admit, the use of real mythology certainly helps for me. The book's construction and backstory is clever and interesting, the plot keeps you reading, and the characters sympathetic enough that even where you don't feel that you know them well (as in the enigmatic ancient warrior Scathach), you care about their fate. It all comes together to mean that I read this book in record time, sacrificing valuable evening flake-out time and nearly missing my subway stop on more than one occasion. Yes, I was riveted, and devoured it in mere days, quite a thing for a slow reader like myself to say of a 375-pager.
This book was terrific - I am handing it off to a coworker who was looking for something to read, and I am more than a touch disappointed to see that the next installment is not available in the catalogue yet, though it is to be released in hardcover later this week, according to Indigo (which I had to go and check, having just finished the book today!). Perhaps it might have to be a rare teen purchase...
Labels: 2007, loved it, siblings, teen, witches and wizards
Wednesday, June 11, 2008
The Case of the Left-handed Lady
by Nancy Springer. An Enola Holmes mystery.
Enola has set up, since the first mystery, a reasonable semblance of an existance for herself, complete with a few different identities and associated disguises. Although set up as a "scientific perditorian," she is mostly concerned, at first anyhow, with keeping herself hidden and figuring out how much her brothers know about her whereabouts, as well as adapting herself to keeping safe on the dangerous streets of Victorian London. Her newfound passion for helping other disguised as a nun doesn't help any, as she performs this role at night, wandering among the slums.
Through the book, a strange series of events turn out to be related as she is drawn into the mystery of a missing girl, learns about some radical new political movements of the time, and set upon at night herself.
Parallel to this runs the continued avoidance of her brothers, complete with a trick message left by one to trap her, a bit of snooping on her part, and a direct run-in with the ever-so-sharp Sherlock Holmes. Thsi plot will clearly continue to push through any future volumes as well, and at the end of this book, she is determined to keep herself from their grasp, telling them via newspaper ad to 'rot.'
I like the blend of suspense from the two plotlines here, I like Enola's spunk and intelligence, and I especially like the high level of explanation as to Victorian customs that is done throughout, somehow without being overly intrusive. This is a great series for a girl who likes some adventure and some smarts in her reading, but won't leave the girlier girls behind, either.
Labels: 2007, family, girly, historical fiction, loved it, middle grades, siblings, suspense, teen
Thursday, September 27, 2007
I'll Sing You One-O
by Nan Gregory
Gemma has lived on the Anderson's farm since she was 4, so even though they are foster parents, they are her family. Until the day that her uncle, aunt, and brother arrive and take her away to their too-perfect home with their persnickety rules and try to make her belong where she thinks it's clear she doesn't. She decides that she needs an angel to help her sort things out so she can go back to the farm and the only family that she has ever known. She goes to the library to do some research (yay!) and reads about the lives of many saints, deciding that she can get an angel to help her by being generous and taking care of someone worse off than her. She befriends a woman in the park (though of course, there is plenty she doesn't know about Willow's world), and gives over her allowance, even stealing a jacket from her uncle to offer her for warmth. Though her uncle is wondering what has been happening with her allowance, he doesn't pry much. But when Christmas comes around and she is told she should be buying gifts from her savings, she panics and sells a set of old lead soldiers from the attic which, come the holidays, turn out to be precious family memories.
As she digs herself deeper into trouble, not through malice but through not understanding, I found myself getting more and more worried for her. She's a character who you care about, because all she wants is the family she loves, and she is trying to get there by doing good so she can get a miracle bestowed upon her. Poor thing. As she becomes more desperate (and I more tense), she finally confronts some of her past and has to come to terms with her new family.
It's a heart-wrenching story, but ends well in the end, when her uncle and aunt come to understand her in a whole new light, and she starts to build some loyalties to her long-lost brother. I do love a good ending, especially when I've been rooting for the main character.
Gemma has lived on the Anderson's farm since she was 4, so even though they are foster parents, they are her family. Until the day that her uncle, aunt, and brother arrive and take her away to their too-perfect home with their persnickety rules and try to make her belong where she thinks it's clear she doesn't. She decides that she needs an angel to help her sort things out so she can go back to the farm and the only family that she has ever known. She goes to the library to do some research (yay!) and reads about the lives of many saints, deciding that she can get an angel to help her by being generous and taking care of someone worse off than her. She befriends a woman in the park (though of course, there is plenty she doesn't know about Willow's world), and gives over her allowance, even stealing a jacket from her uncle to offer her for warmth. Though her uncle is wondering what has been happening with her allowance, he doesn't pry much. But when Christmas comes around and she is told she should be buying gifts from her savings, she panics and sells a set of old lead soldiers from the attic which, come the holidays, turn out to be precious family memories.
As she digs herself deeper into trouble, not through malice but through not understanding, I found myself getting more and more worried for her. She's a character who you care about, because all she wants is the family she loves, and she is trying to get there by doing good so she can get a miracle bestowed upon her. Poor thing. As she becomes more desperate (and I more tense), she finally confronts some of her past and has to come to terms with her new family.
It's a heart-wrenching story, but ends well in the end, when her uncle and aunt come to understand her in a whole new light, and she starts to build some loyalties to her long-lost brother. I do love a good ending, especially when I've been rooting for the main character.
Labels: 2006, Canadian, good stuff, issues, middle grades, siblings
Saturday, February 24, 2007
Rules
by Cynthia Lord.
Catherine is, at twelve, getting to the end of her rope. Like so many older siblings of a child like David, she has a lot of responsability and not much attention or time to herself. David is autistic, needs attention and watching, not to mention concrete rules for his behaviour. She and David share a sweet secret language in the words of Frog and Toad Together, and she is a very caring sister to him. But she is hoping to make friends with the new girl next door, Kristi. She is embarrassed by her brother's abnormal behaviours, acutely aware, as 12-year-olds are, of what others might think. She is torn by Kristi's friendship with a boy who she hates for laughing at her brother. And she if frustrated, because she wants something for herself, something will not be ruined by David. Her feelings and desires are right out there, and ring true - right up to the guilt she feels for having them in the first place.
Add on her budding friendship with Jason, a boy who is both speechless and wheelchair-bound. It's a prickly thing, growing in nice bursts and painful setbacks, all nicely centered around the interesting device of word cards she is creating and illustrating for his communication book. Ultimately, she is forced to face the fact that she is so worried about what people will think of her, she is risking both the friendships she wants - the one with Kristi and the one with Jason. He thinks she is embarrassed by him, and she has lied to Kristi.
The whole mess culminates at a community dance, when she finally lashes out at her father and insists that she "matter[s] too," then explains herself to Jason and realizes that many of the things that she has been worried about - mostly, the opinions of other people - are not as important as she had thought. Indeed, no one even seems to notice her and Jason dancing when she agrees to break her own rule and risk dancing in public.
I like this one. I like the fact that David is shown as both frustrating and a nice kid in his own right. I like the fact that Catherine clearly loves him and wants to protect him, but admits to her own frustration. The word cards and the words of Frog and Toad are nice ways to solve and talk about the communication issues in the book, and they show Catherine as caring and inventive. I think the whole things comes together into a pretty good package.
Catherine is, at twelve, getting to the end of her rope. Like so many older siblings of a child like David, she has a lot of responsability and not much attention or time to herself. David is autistic, needs attention and watching, not to mention concrete rules for his behaviour. She and David share a sweet secret language in the words of Frog and Toad Together, and she is a very caring sister to him. But she is hoping to make friends with the new girl next door, Kristi. She is embarrassed by her brother's abnormal behaviours, acutely aware, as 12-year-olds are, of what others might think. She is torn by Kristi's friendship with a boy who she hates for laughing at her brother. And she if frustrated, because she wants something for herself, something will not be ruined by David. Her feelings and desires are right out there, and ring true - right up to the guilt she feels for having them in the first place.
Add on her budding friendship with Jason, a boy who is both speechless and wheelchair-bound. It's a prickly thing, growing in nice bursts and painful setbacks, all nicely centered around the interesting device of word cards she is creating and illustrating for his communication book. Ultimately, she is forced to face the fact that she is so worried about what people will think of her, she is risking both the friendships she wants - the one with Kristi and the one with Jason. He thinks she is embarrassed by him, and she has lied to Kristi.
The whole mess culminates at a community dance, when she finally lashes out at her father and insists that she "matter[s] too," then explains herself to Jason and realizes that many of the things that she has been worried about - mostly, the opinions of other people - are not as important as she had thought. Indeed, no one even seems to notice her and Jason dancing when she agrees to break her own rule and risk dancing in public.
I like this one. I like the fact that David is shown as both frustrating and a nice kid in his own right. I like the fact that Catherine clearly loves him and wants to protect him, but admits to her own frustration. The word cards and the words of Frog and Toad are nice ways to solve and talk about the communication issues in the book, and they show Catherine as caring and inventive. I think the whole things comes together into a pretty good package.
Labels: 2006, good stuff, middle grades, siblings
