FINISHED:

Lee, Harper. (1960). To kill a mockingbird. New York: Warner Books.

[.]

STARTED:
Laser, Michael. (2008). Cheater: a novel. New York: Dutton Books/Penguin.

[Reviewing for ACL.]

*

STARTED & FINISHED:

McCarty, Peter. (2007). Fabian escapes. New York: Henry Holt and Company.

[Ugh. How many times and ways can I say that I LOVE this guy's illustrations? This is his latest and I'm already WAITING IMPATIENTLY for the next one. The story here is a bit disjointed, with the dog (Hondo) going out for a walk and the cat (Fabian) going for an adventure by jumping out the window, but the look is just so soft yet textured. Hondo and Fabian themselves are so darned adorable, and I dare any cat owner not to go "Awww!" when looking at the picture of Fabian rolling in the dirt. Oh, and the illustration of the three dogs "playing" chase with Fabian - with the dogs smiling and Fabian looking a bit terrified. Super cute. Nice, simple language and situations make this one a great potential read-aloud.]



Shulevitz, Uri. (1995). The golden goose (the Brothers Grimm). New York: Farrar Straus and Giroux.

[Love Shulevitz and his illustrations, but the story in this one isn't a particularly "happening" one to me. So, a fool goes to cut down a tree and a golden goose appears. Everyone that touches him inexplicably becomes stuck to him, and then, inexplicably, gets unattached. Um, ok. What's the point here? Not sure if it's the fault of the Brothers Grimm, or Shulevitz's retelling. Should probably consult the source material before making too much of a judgement...]



Cate, Annette LeBlanc. (2007). The magic rabbit. Cambridge, MA: Candlewick Press.

[Heard such good things about this one a few months ago when someone reviewed it at ACL, but I found it kind of bland. Again, nothing really happens here: magician loses his rabbit - rabbit is all alone - rabbit eventually finds his way home by following a trail of stars. Am I missing something? Sure, the illustrations are great, and there may not be anything cuter than the picture of the magician and the rabbit watching a movie on the couch together (look at the rabbit's adorable little feet!), but even the way that the two get separated seems forced and too easy. Now, this isn't all to say that I would never use this in a storytime or recommend it to a parent looking for a sweet story about friendship, but it just didn't do so much for me personally as a reader.]

*

FINISHED:

Dowd, Siobhan. (2007). The London Eye mystery. New York: David Fickling/Random House.

[.]


STARTED:
Lee, Harper. (1960). To kill a mockingbird. New York: Warner Books.

[An old favorite that I've been wanting to reread. Had it on BART this morning and a former co-worker saw it and commented, "So, I see that you've graduated to 6th GRADE books." Ha ha...]

*

FINISHED:

Clements, Andrew. (2004). The report card. New York: Aladdin/Simon & Schuster.

[Clements is the master of writing books about kids in school. Not only that, his kids end up becoming empowered by what they see as inconsistencies in the adult world and living by the motto that I've had since high school: QUESTION AUTHORITY. In this one, Nora pretends that she's just an average student at school and at home in an effort to fit in, even though she knows that she's a genius. She, with the assistance her best friend Stephen, stage a rebellion in their grade by having everyone get zeros on their next tests as a protest against grades and "high stakes" testing. VERY timely and a worthwhile primer for any youngster. The only thing that I didn't like was that it just kind of... ended... I kept waiting for Nora's ideas to actually cause major examination and shifts in the educational status quo, but we never get that far.]

STARTED:
Dowd, Siobhan. (2007). The London Eye mystery. New York: David Fickling/Random House.

[Somewhere I saw this one got some great reviews.]

*

FINISHED:

Fleischman, Sid. (2008). The entertainer and the dybbuk. New York: Greenwillow/HarperCollins.

[This one was GREAT! Freddie is a ventriloquist in post-WWII Europe who has trouble getting gigs because... well... his lips clearly move during his act. Suddenly, one day, a voice comes out of him that is not his own, but the ghost of a young Jewish boy who was shot dead by a Nazi officer. Freddie and the dybbuk (the ghost boy who is possessing Freddie) work out a deal where the dybbuk provides the voice for the ventriloquist dummy while Freddie astonishes audience by drinking and whistling and making the dummy talk at the same time. The dybbuk promises Freddie he'll move on once he gets his revenge on the Nazi who killed him, so Freddie travels to the U.S. where the officer is on trial for murder under an assumed identity. A startling examination of post-Nazi Europe for young people, this is certain to be one of the best books of the year. Oh, and just LOOK at that cover! A dummy with a Jewish star on his arm and a smoking (and BLEEDING!) bullet hole right through his chest. Fleischman scores again!]


STARTED:
Clements, Andrew. (2004). The report card. New York: Aladdin/Simon & Schuster.

[I've liked the other books by Clements that I've read, so I decided to pick up another one. This one intrigued me because it's supposed to be about a kid who wants grades done away with.]

*

FINISHED:

Taylor, William. (1992). Knitwits. New York: Scholastic.

[A bit of a disappointment in that it didn't really examine gender roles at all. All through the book Charlie, who, on a bet (if he wins he'll get his neighbor's skull collection) is knitting a sweater for his soon-to-be-born sibling, is worried sick about anyone finding out that he has picked up the hobby. Anti-climatically, when his two male best friends find out he's been knitting, they want to join in because it's something that they like to do as well. Plus, it kind of just... ends. He promised a couple of others that he'd knit them sweaters too, but that isn't touched on at all.]


STARTED:
Fleischman, Sid. (2008). The entertainer and the dybbuk. New York: Greenwillow/HarperCollins.

[Again, I'm a sucker for a good cover - and, I'm a fan of Fleischman - and it seems like a quick read...]

*

FINISHED:

Lowry, Lois. (2008). The Willoughbys. Boston, MA: Walter Lorraine/Houghton Mifflin.

[Lowry's take on children's classics of old has obvious shades of Lemony Snicket - or, at least, that's what any reader these days would HAVE to say. It also, in the way that the parents were completely inept freaks, reminded me of the Treehorn books - although, the parents in this one were hateful people who forgot their children's names and wished that they'd never had kids.]


STARTED:
Taylor, William. (1992). Knitwits. New York: Scholastic.

[Saw the cover (a boy knitting in the bathroom in secret) and was hooked...]

*

STARTED:
Lowry, Lois. (2008). The Willoughbys. Boston, MA: Walter Lorraine/Houghton Mifflin.

[.]

*

STARTED & FINISHED:

Kuskin, Karla. (1982). The Philharmonic gets dressed. New York: HarperCollins.

[Picked this one out because I'm becoming a BIG fan of Marc Simont's illustrations. Probably best known for doing the drawings in the Nate the Great books - well, at least the initial ones. The book itself is a great one, about - well, the title says it all, now doesn't it? Lots of great illustrations of the various Philharmonic members getting ready for a symphony performance.]




Howe, James. (1996). Pinky and Rex and the bully. New York: Aladdin/Simon & Schuster.

[I'm drawn to books that feature kids displaying behavior contrary to gender stereotypes - for reasons obvious to those who know me. Actually, I've always taken an interest in literature and films that focus on underdogs - I'm incredibly sympathetic to underdogs. This one is one in a series of "Pinky and Rex" beginning readers, and until now I had no idea that they were about the friendship between a boy and a girl. Here, Pinky (the boy) gets ridiculed for his love of all things pink (hence, the nickname...). How great to see a book for new readers that has, as a main character, a boy who likes to wear pink shoes, and whose stuffed animal collection features toys that all have pink on them somewhere! Reminds me of someone...]

*

Wordless Picture Stories

STARTED & FINISHED:

Lehman, Barbara. (2006). Museum trip. Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin.

[.]







Geisert, Arthur. (2006). Oops. Boston, MA: Walter Lorraine/Houghton Mifflin.

[.]

*

FINISHED:

Marriott, Zoe. (2008). The swan kingdom. Cambridge, MA: Candlewick Press.

[Liked it, but thought that it dragged in the middle. Lots of stunning descriptions, but not a whole lot of dialogue to move things along. Will post my ACL review when it is finished...

And here it is:

After her mother, Queen of the Kingdom, is viciously mauled to death by a mysterious beast, Alexandra’s father suddenly marries a woman who seems to have all of the Kingdom locked in a spell. Alexandra is then sent to another land to live with her aunt, all the while trying to get back and find her three older brothers who have all disappeared – most likely turned into swans. Loosely based on Hans Christian Andersen’s tale “The Wild Swans” (first published in 1838), Marriott’s take plays out as an extended fairy tale for a new generation of readers. Loaded with stunningly descriptive passages, the novel actually feels a bit heavy in this regard with very little narrative action. As Alexandra is making her way back to the Kingdom, there are whole sections without any dialogue at all to move things forward as Alexandra can not speak or else she’ll ruin a spell to save her brothers. This all serves to make the ending somewhat anticlimatic compared to all that comes before it. Still, the language is lovely, and fans of fairy tale fantasy with strong female protagonists will be delighted.]


STARTED:
Bray, Libba. (2007). The sweet far thing. New York: Delacorte/Random House.

[Reading this one to see if I deem it "outstanding" for ACL. At over 800 pages, it's a BEAST.]


STARTED & FINISHED:

Stamaty, Mark Alan. (2004). Alia's mission: Saving the books of Iraq. New York: Alfred A. Knopf.

[Read this one for obvious reasons. Such an amazing and inspiring story about a woman who feels so passionately about books and preserving history that she moves books out of the library in Basra and into her home in an effort to save them from possible bombing. Presented in a fantastic comic book/graphic novel format which ought to attract young ones to this story of bravery during wartime.]



Holm, Jennifer L., and Matthew Holm. (2007). Babymouse: puppy love. New York: Random House.

[Another great Babymouse adventure. In this one she goes through a series of pets (which all end up "lost" under her bed where they have a party together) before bringing home, caring for, and training a lost dog. FUNNY FUNNY FUNNY. The Babymouse series continues to please.]




Harper, Charise Mericle. (2005). Fashion Kitty. New York: Hyperion.

[Just couldn't resist this one - was especially drawn in by the glitter on the cover. A funny little graphic novel about a cat who realizes that she has special powers - especially the power to help people who are having a "fashion emergency". Had a bit of trouble telling one character from the other, but it was a swift little treat. Comes with mix and match panels in the middle.]

*

Spring

STARTED & FINISHED:

Newman, Leslea. (2007). Skunk's Spring surprise. Orlando, FL: Harcourt, Inc.

[I got this one because of the illustrations by Valeri Gorbachev, whom I just can't get enough of. The story itself is so-so, with skunk waking up after a long winter and going to get a drink at the lake, where his friends have staged a variety show for him. I've never really been a big fan of rhyming stories - they just generally come off as forced to me - but it's a cute little tale. As mentioned, though, the real joy in this story is in the illustrations - bright and fun. And, who knew that skunks hibernate?*]

*[Well, it appears as though the Striped Skunk - the one that we all know and love here in North America - does NOT hibernate...]



Maass, Robert. (1994). When Spring comes. New York: Henry Holt and Company.

[A photo-essay on Spring with some great images of things that mark Spring. Lots of diversity in the people shown, but it's all shot in the 'burbs. Couldn't there have been a couple shots of Spring in the city? Since moving here I've wondered if kids out here actually understand the passing of the seasons because, really, they aren't quite so obvious when the weather is the same year round. At any rate, this one is a winner because of the photos - any themed storytime on something relating to science NEEDS to have at least one book with photos.]



Carr, Jan. (2001). Splish, splash, Spring. New York: Holiday House.

[I found this one a little too "cutesy" for my taste. The illustrations are cut paper - kinda cool - and the text is rhymey with a bunch of made-up words. Might still use it in a storytime/lapsit if nothing else grabs my fancy...]

*