I Feel Better with a Frog in My Throat

I Feel Better with a Frog in My Throat:  History's Strangest Cures
by Carlyn Beccia
HMH Books for Young Readers, 2010
2014 Bluestem Nominee
Audience:  Grades 3 to 5
ISBN:  9780547225709
Publication Date:  October 25, 2010


Don't reach for a bandaid the next time you get a cut, reach for some spider webs instead.  And forget cough syrup, just wear a necklace of worms!  History is full of strange cures, some of which are still being researched today, and all of which are gross enough to hold any young readers attention.  Each ailment is presented as a quiz:  which of these wacky, disgusting cures actually worked?  This format allows for greater interaction with the book and will be perfect for classroom use.  The cures are terrible with plenty of historical information thrown in so readers understand why on earth someone thought it was a good idea to use leeches to cure disease.  These cures will have kids squirming and squealing for more!

I love engaging information books like I Feel Better for reader's choice award lists.  If I had my way, instead of preachy, message heavy fiction there would be more information books that pique a child's curiosity and lead to further reading.  This book in particular could take readers in many directions, to studying about the bubonic plague, ancient Greeks, Native American cultures, or the Civil War.  

This book would also be a great jumping off point for a class assignment as there are so many treatments mentioned.  Each child could be given a different treatment and be asked to research it a little further.  This would make a great topic for class posters, or fiction writing as readers could invent their own wacky cures.  They could pitch these cures to the class and the most believable and unbelievable cures could win a prize - maybe some "unicorn" horn!

As for the Bluestem, I do hope that I Feel Better performs well.  I think that librarians may need to book talk it, but I think telling one class will be enough to spread the word since this is the type of book that will be traded frequently among readers.  I'm seeing a top 10 finish with this one.

If you're feeling a little sluggish this Monday, just take two maggots and call me in the morning!

Happy Reading!

Blissed Out

Have you met Harry Bliss?  He's a children's illustrator extraordinaire and cartoonist for The New Yorker (how fancy!).  Aside from his dozens of recognizable children's book characters, he does funny, strange, and thoughtful drawings and posts them on his website.  And if you're really smart, like me, you can join his email list and get new cartoons everyday straight to your inbox.  Now, I will warn you, Harry Bliss is an extremely intelligent man and sometimes I look at the cartoon and go:  okay, maybe someone else finds that hilarious but I don't get it.

But, there are some absolute gems, for a geek like me!  Take last Friday's cartoon.

I'm a book nerd so I find this funny.  It's currently posted on my bulletin board, and my Pinterest.  

If you only know Harry Bliss for his children's illustrations, I suggest you check out his other work too, and if you don't know Harry Bliss, I suggest you two get acquainted.  What better way to spend your Friday than having a good chuckle while searching through harrybliss.com!

Happy Reading!

P.S.  Harry Bliss has no idea who I am, but I just love this stuff, so I'm passing that love on to you.  Think of it as a book review, but with a website instead!

Favorite Things: Fall

I've got the back-to-school blues pretty bad.  I always hated back to school time, except maybe when I was a librarian and the school year meant a brief reprieve from the screaming.  Now that I work at a university, the school year again fills me with dread.  But, the school year brings fall, and that's a good thing, so in true Sound of Music fashion (you know-raindrops on roses and whiskers on kittens-Julie Andrews just sang that in your head, didn't she?), I'm going to list my favorite things about fall.

1.  Fashion!

Aren't sweaters everyone's favorite part of fall?  After a summer of sweltering, we are all ready for cozy, comfy sweaters.  And this foxy sweater from Old Navy is just too funny!  Plus, I love tall riding boots in fall and winter because, again, my toes are ready to go unseen after a whole summer on display.  I personally love scarves and wear them year round, but they are more necessary in fall.  I usually end up hiding behind mine at least once a day.  And those loafers!  I might be buying those.  They are casual enough to wear with jeans, but much nicer than my beat-up Pumas.  By the way, all of these things are available at Old Navy.  

2.  Food!

I'm dreaming of yummy chili, hot chocolate, and fresh s'mores!  Fall means more time out by the fire pit, and fire pits are only good for one thing to me-roasting marshmallows.  Or setting them on fire and then pealing back that charred layer and roasting them again.  Seeing how many times you could burn one marshmallow used to be a game when I was little.

3.  Football!  

I participated in the Ladies Leatherneck Football Academy again this year and loved it!  I am definitely looking forward to tailgating, but if I'm going to be happy at the game, I better remember blankets.

4.  Books!

Fall is a big time for new book releases and while it's true that I was able to score some previews at ALA this summer, there are a few that I am still waiting for, like Allegiant by Veronica Roth and The House of Hades by Rick Riordan.  

So while it's not quite fall yet, I can at least appreciate all the lovely things it will bring, even as I'm stuck in the grip of another back-to-school season.  

Happy  Reading!

Batting Out of Order

When I came back from ALA, I carefully sorted all of the galleys I received by publication date and told myself that I would read them in order of publication date.

I lied.  Like my plans ever hash out.

I batted out of order.  I'm currently reading a sequel that doesn't come out until November when I have several very exciting September releases, a couple of galleys for books that have already been published, three Bluestems sitting on my table, and of course, like always, review books.  This time a middle grade fiction, three series non-fiction books about different musics styles, including Hip-Hop because I'm so street, and an audiobook about recovering from drug addiction.  An 8 CD long audiobook about recovering from drug addiction.

Can you see why I batted out of order?

Has this ever happened to you?  Maybe you have books for a book club, or even assignments.  Or you are trying something ridiculous like reading biographies of all the presidents (I actually know someone who did that) and you just need a break!  Personally, I've been jumping from Bluestems to New Adult which is quite the subject change!  I desperately needed something in the middle and this sequel was just right.

What's on your to-read list?  Anything worth skipping or moving up to the front of the line?  Anyone else planning the perfect read line-up only to bat out of order?  Let me know!  I don't want to feel like a total reading failure!

Happy Reading

Binky: License to Scratch

Binky:  License to Scratch
by Ashley Spires
Kids Can Press, 2013
Previewed from Edelweiss
Audience:  Grades 2 to 4
ISBN:  9781554539635
Publication Date:  September 1, 2013

Binky the Space Cat is back with his partner Gracie and their newest recruit, Gordie.  This time they are not worried about aliens, but about the fact that their people are leaving and sending them to a pet hotel that turns out to be the vet's office!  Our resourceful heroes must escape, but not before Binky has a chance to find out what the strange shadow that has been haunting the vet's office is all about.  Then it is up to Binky and his partners to save themselves, and the vet's office!

Like other Binky the Space Cat adventures, the pictures tell most of the story.  There is actually very little reading in this book if you don't count the sound effect-type words.  But the pictures do a wonderful job of telling the story and readers will enjoy the various expressions and situations that are illustrated.

Since book awards are in the forefront of my mind, I wonder why Binky has not turned up on the Monarch or Bluestem.  I personally think he would make a great Bluestem book and I do think that graphic novels should get more attention from the award committees.  Well, there's only one way to change that.  I'll just have to infiltrate the Bluestem committee.  I wonder if Binky and Gordie could help me come up with a plan?

If you know a reader that is an animal lover, or just likes a quick graphic novel, this book is for them!

Happy Reading!

Chain Reader

I have a slight reading problem.  I think I'm a chain reader.  I just binge read one book after another, after another, after another with no time to properly digest them.  Case in point:  I finished This Is W.A.R. over the weekend and didn't know what to do with myself.  There had to be another book I could jump right into.  Anything, just a quick fix.

It's not that I lack books.  I told my husband today that I had to go to the library and he sarcastically said "because you don't have books on your shelves and you don't have books on the Kindle".  I did point out that I was returning a library book, but that didn't seem to convince him.

True, I'm not always a great reader.  There are times when I would rather do something else, but right now, that's unthinkable.  All I want to do is read--I'm like a junkie!  I'm sitting around waiting all day for that next break where I can get away and read.

But to give myself some time away from the books, I've taken up magazines.  I know that's not exactly going cold turkey or anything, but I need some time more connected to the real world and less obsessed with my fictional characters.  Also true, I am not reading The Economist or Forbes.  I'm reading Marie Claire, Real Simple, and Redbook.  Yes, Redbook.  I feel old just admitting that, but I scored a free subscription somehow and Kristen Bell was on the cover and things just happened.

While I'm not giving up my compulsive reading tendencies anytime soon, I am trying to come up for air every now and then.  The weather is turning fallish here for a minute and my dog needs to explore the world on walks, plus my house needs to be cleaned and my husband keeps thinking we should eat everyday, which is just weird.  You don't need dinner, honey, just read a book!

For the time being, I'll still have lots of book reviews to share but hopefully I'll sneak in some other fun posts too, because I really do have other interests besides books, but the books are just so good right now!

Happy Reading!

Pie

Pie
by Sarah Weeks
Scholastic Press, 2011
2014 Bluestem Nominee
Audience:  Grades 3 to 5
ISBN:  9780545270113
Publication Date:  October 1, 2011

Everyone loves Polly's pies, but no one loves Polly as much as her niece Alice.  Alice and her Aunt Polly would spend every Saturday together baking pies for the shop and talking about anything and everything.  So when Polly dies suddenly, Alice is left adrift, and the whole town is only thinking about one thing:  pie.  But when a strange item in Polly's will sets the town to talking, Alice starts to solve a mystery that will hopefully bring wealth and happiness to her family.  With sweet characters, a tasty town, delectable pie recipes, and a savory plot, this book will leave readers hungry for more than just pie.

Sarah Weeks is one of those mavens of middle grade fiction that cannot do wrong.  Like Kate DiCamillo, her books are just right for elementary readers.  Alice is a very likable character, but she is caught in the middle of her talented and famous, yet exceedingly humble, Aunt Polly and her jealous, bitter mother.  While her aunt encourages her songs and imagination, her mother wants to suppress those traits.  While baking in the kitchen is a joy with her aunt, her mother should only be in the kitchen to make cereal.  But it truly is Alice's overactive imagination that solves the mystery and brings justice to her aunt's memory.

Having grown up in a small town, I also liked the quaint town that was build around the pie shop, PIE. When the residents were describing the last time they ever had Polly's pie, it reminded me of the last time I had potato salad with my grandma's canned pickles.  It's a little thing, and it's silly, but losing that one last connection was hard for the town.  But the way they all honored Polly's memory, and how Alice helped with that was very special.

This is one of the better Bluestem books in my opinion.  It is a good length for 3rd to 5th grade readers, it has a solid plot that while a little more appealing to girls will also find some males fans as well, and the programming possibilities are great too.  Classes can make a pie, write a jingle, or sing a song to better connect with this book.

In the end, Pie is a sweet book that I would recommend for anyone looking for a light, happy read.

Happy Reading