Today is dedicated to packing (mostly basic foods as groceries are expensive in the VI) and loading books onto the iPod and the Kindle. I think I have enough to last me for the week. In between shuffling CDs and putting out the stuff to be packed, I finished reading Tracie Vaughn Zimmer's slim yet powerful novel in verse, 42 MILES.




Loved this novel of JoEllen who lives two separate lives. During the week, she lives with her Mom in their apartment in the city. Weekends are Dad's out on the farm. Different parents, different names, different set of friends, different routines. And it seems never the twin shall meet. As JoEllen writes:

"They try to split me
like an apple's pale heart
on either side of the blade
pretending
my life is like
Mr. Howard's hexagon,
equal parts
no matter
how many times they cut it." (p. 7)

Spare poems. Sharp images. Piercing emotions. While this slim bok will take no time at all to read, it will be one, I think, that readers will revisit. I could see this one paired with Joan Bauer's STAND TALL for Lit Circles.

In case you missed this:

Top Ten Challenged Books, 2007


1. “And Tango Makes Three,” by Justin Richardson/Peter Parnell
Reasons: Anti-Ethnic, Sexism, Homosexuality, Anti-Family, Religious Viewpoint, Unsuited to Age Group

2. “The Chocolate War,” by Robert Cormier
Reasons: Sexually Explicit, Offensive Language, Violence

3. “Olive’s Ocean,” by Kevin Henkes
Reasons: Sexually Explicit, Offensive Language

4. “The Golden Compass,” by Philip Pullman
Reasons: Religious Viewpoint

5. “The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn,” by Mark Twain
Reasons: Racism

6. “The Color Purple,” by Alice Walker
Reasons: Homosexuality, Sexually Explicit, Offensive Language,

7. “TTYL,” by Lauren Myracle
Reasons: Sexually Explicit, Offensive Language, Unsuited to Age Group

8. “I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings,” by Maya Angelou
Reasons: Sexually Explicit

9. “It’s Perfectly Normal,” by Robie Harris
Reasons: Sex Education, Sexually Explicit

10. “The Perks of Being A Wallflower,” by Stephen Chbosky
Reasons: Homosexuality, Sexually Explicit, Offensive Language, Unsuited to Age Group

With the last box unpacked, the last of our "stuff" put into the new cabinets, and the house beginning to look "normal" again, I took some time this afternoon to read the latest offering from the Center for Cartoon Studies, THOREAU AT WALDEN by John Porcellino (Hyperion, 2008, already released). Despite the fact that I was an English major, I never read much Thoreau that I can recall. Now I am thinking that I probably did read it but that, because of my youth, it did not speak its clarion call as clearly as it did today. Pursue your own way, march to the beat of your own drummer, sit and watch: all these are "lessons" that come with some experience, I think. They certainly resonate with me now as I sat and watched a line of thunderstorms move across the lake this morning, creating white caps on the usually glassily smooth water. Trees thrashed for a while. Rain rattled the windows making Scout (who shares my hatred of thunder) cuddle up next to me. It was a lovely thing to sit and watch.

Back to the book.




Illustrations take on the tone of Thoreau's texts with muted colors and spare line drawings. Somehow these enhance the simplicity of Thoreau's observations. If teachers wish to take classics such as Thoreau's essays into the classroom, I can think of no better way to do so.

I am in the process of deciding which books accompany me on the week long trip to St. Thomas at the end of the week. I downloaded one book to the Kindle, but there is little in YA that I have not read or that I care to read available in Kindle right now. But I lub me my Kindle and will use it for adult fare for now.

Ninth grade is a year of change for Will Tuppence. His friend Mi-Su is suddenly more than a friend. But his other friend, BT, keeps getting in the way. Now summer looms, and with it looms all the possibilities to move from being a friend to being a boyfriend. There will be complications, of course. Not the least of these complications is Will's pest of a sister, Tabby.

Negotiating the beginnings of what could be his first romance, negotiating the perils of losing a friend over a girl, negotiating the demands of a stubborn little sister: Will is becoming quite the negotiator. In Spinelli's capable hands, this coming-of-age story should resonate with many readers who will share Will's frustrations and joys, his heartaches and headaches, his insights and his fumblings.

Scheduled to launch from Little Brown in August of this year, Ghostgirl is certain to find a ready adn eager audience. Charlotte is psyched about the first day of school. She is determined to join the popular crowd, try out for cheerleader, and win the affections of hottie Damen. Just one thing gets in her way: she chokes to death on a gummy bear right after being assigned as Damen's lab partner. Now she is in Dead Ed (textbook, Deadiquette) with other dead teens. And Damen is still out there at Hawthorne High, the puppet of the most popular teen in school. Well, she might be dead, but Charlotte is not going to let that get in her way.

Funny, dark, insightful are all apt adjectives for this book. I took the packaging (a coffin filled with pink confetti and a copy of the book) to Alief with me this week. I brought the book home to read. So, I spent Mother's Day reading. Not bad. It is not simply the packaging that will set this book apart. The cut size is unusual, a cross between a YA novel and a picture book. Add to this the cut out on the cover, a coffin shape that contains the silhouette of a young woman with a pink banner running across it reading REST IN POPULARITY. Of course all the packaging and design in the world will not be enough to keep kids reading the book. It need a book to deliver the goods, and this one does. Pair it up with GENERATION DEAD for those readers who want another one like it.

Visit www.ghostgirl.com for more fun (Charlotte even has a My Space page). Thanks to the lovely Victoria Stapleton for the cool mailing.

Despite the young-looking cover, I think this is a book (and the first in a new series) that will appeal beyond intermediate grades to readers who love Harry Potter, Jonathan Stroud, and Angie Sage. THE MAGIC THIEF tells of young Conn's attempts to pick the pockets of Nevery, a disgraced wizard returned to Wellmet. Touching the magical stone (locus magicalicus) of another wizard generally results in death. Nevery is amazed that Conn is not only alive but able to withstand the revenge of the stone. He hires Conn as a servant though Conn thinks he will become the wizard's apprentice. Magic is seeping out of Wellmet and Nevery is back home to see if he can uncover the reason for the drainage of magic. Nice, quick read with short chapters, interesting characters, a few minor plot twists, and some comic relief to boot.

I love book trailers. I love Kathi's new book. So, here is a lovely confluence. Kathi Appelt's book trailer for THE UNDERNEATH with music by her talented son, Cooper.

I spent a few minutes yesterday at Elsik High School talking to the kids in the book groups from the Alief ISD high schools. It was a return engagement, and I was thrilled to be a part of the fun once again. A talented group of girls did a Readers' Theater presentation of HOORAY FOR DIFFERNDOOFER DAY! to open the meeting. I followed with book talks. Then, there was food and door prizes.

I started my piece of the program by showing them the packaging for a new book from Little Brown, GHOSTGIRL (www.ghostgirl.com). The book arrived in a black coffin. I left the coffin behind but not the book as I have not finished reading it yet. The kids loved that and the Kindle I passed around next. (I LOVE LOVE LOVE the Kindle but more about that in a later post). Finally, I launched into booktalks. It was so invigorating to see them try to write down all the titles and authors even though I told them they would get a list from their librarians. One of the books I showed them was FOUND by Margaret Peterson Haddix (Simon and Schuster, 2008, already published).




This is the first bok in her new series The Missing. I suspect some of the kids had read her Among the Missing books in junior high and are ready for a new series. FOUND opens with a mystery, a great place to begin. A plane appears at a gate unannounced and unexpected. Aboard the plane are babies, just babies. The FBI are on the scene shortly and all traces of the plane (which vanishes as mysteriously as it appeared) and the arrival and the babies are buried or erased. Fast forward 13 years later as two begin receiving cryptic messages. It turns out the boys are adopted. And perhaps they were two of the babies on board that fateful flight? The first book sets up the premise for the series and introduces readers to a couple of the key players including "janitor boy." It is a nifty page turner that is bound to be one of those we recommend to kids who are already fans of Haddix and her other series and her books. It will also appeal to kids looking for a good mystery with lots of intrigue and perhaps some sci-fi elements, too.

I will post the Power Point later if I get the chance. I just want to mention that here are readers who have been salvaged from the deep waters of the literary canon (I showed them I AM SCOUT and FRANKENSTEIN and talked about classics and required reading) by a dedicated group of librarians who have fought for funds to bring authors into the schools, to bring books to the kids, and to provide them with a format in which they can discuss their books and opinions.

No cover to show you until we unbox the scanner. However, this is an amazing picture book. Written by Doreen Rappaport and illustrated by Kadir Nelson, ABE'S HONEST WORDS hearkens back to MARTIN'S BIG WORDS in several ways. First, the cover is a stunning full face portrait of Abraham Lincoln. Title, author, and illustrator are on the back cover. This works for me on so many levels not the least of which is that it is only Honest Abe's eyes, his cowlickity hair, his jug ears, his gentle grin (though his eyes show some of the weariness he must have felt in his life) that peer back at the reader. Inside, the end papers are lush and each contains a separate and important quote from a man who used words sparingly but to great effect. Once again, there are two texts on each double page spread. One text tells of Lincoln's rise from log splitter to lawyer to emancipator. The other text sections are quotes from Lincoln's writings and speeches. Several appendices include a brief bibliography of other books about Lincoln, a selective research bibliography, a timeline, and the text of the Gettysburg Address.

Thanks to Angus Killick, debonair Hyperion impressario, for handing this F&G to me.


Update on the remodeling...Cali worked her tail off these last few days to hang the art, arrange the furniture, unpack some of the boxes, decorate the shelves, etc. It is not done, but it looks like a whole new place. I plan to take photos once I find the camera!

I did not blog much from IRA as I spent a lot of time there working on A) my audio column for VOYA (done); B) a resolution for NCTE from the Standing Committee against Censorship (drafted and off to the committee for comments); C) grading the final assignments from my grad classes (done); D)working on my book (finished the intro and worked on a couple of chapters). I did attend a wonderful featured author session with Carolyn Coman and Joan Bauer. Then, I hosted a panel with Sarah Aronson, Laura Ruby, Sonya Sones, and Laura Ruby. We expected about 75 as it was a ticketed event. We had about twice that count (maybe more) and it was a lovely and rollicking hour of question and answer and discussion.

I finished a book on the plane (first class, baby!). Due out in February of 2009 from Little Brown, NORTH OF BEAUTIFUL, is a stunning coming of age story of Terra. Terra is a beautiful young woman who hides her flawed face (a port wine stain covers most of one side of her face) under layers of makeup and layers of locked down emotions as well. Enter Jacob, an adopted Chinese Goth, Terra nearly kills when her car skids on some ice. Jacob and his mother, the vivacious, take charge Norah are the antithesis of Terra and her family, but somehow the two families mesh. Jacob and Terra and Norah and Lois (Terra's mother) head off to China on a trip that will certainly alter the courses of all their lives.

The lovely Victoria Stapleton has graciously offered to send ARCs to those interested (and thanks for the so cool mailing, Victoria, my darling). You can reach her at: victoria.stapleton@hbgusa.com.

I AM SCOUT (Holt, April 2008)




I will readily admit that I picked up this book because I was tickled with the title. Our lovely Bengal, Scout, is named in honor of that wonderful character from TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD. My pal Suzanne has a Bengal named Atticus and this seemed a perfect way to go even though Scout is a boy (now neutered so perhaps that works after all).

All this is prelude to the book itself which is a MUST read for any self respecting English teacher, particularly one who uses TKAM as a core text in her or his classroom (and according to research, this is still one of the most often used books in secondary classrooms). It has been a while since I have read TKAM or even seen the movie starring Gregory Peck. None of that made a bit of difference in my interest in the book and the enjoyment it provided me this afternoon.

Harper Lee's work remains a staple of literature. She remains an enigma. She is in good company when you think of Salinger and others whose one book was never joined by another title. Actually, it seems to me to be sort of wrongheaded. I mean, you write one of the great American novels and all folks can ask is, "so what's next?"

Charles Shields adapted his adult biography for this one aimed at teens. I think the true audience will be English teachers who will use it, I hope, at least in part to demonstrate to students how books come to be, how life affects and influences art, how much truth and fiction dance cheek to cheek.

Got a lot of work done yesterday in the hotel room. Even managed to grab lunch with the ever lovely Victoria Stapleton and dinner with Lois and Marjie. In between stuffing my face I began work on my summer classes on Blackboard, put together a presentation for Lewisville ISD, and cleaned out my Inbox. Last night I watched the fog gather and enshroud the buildings out there. Now the sun is up, and I have one more day to work quietly without interruptions. Life is good.




I finished reading GENERATION DEAD (Hyperion, May 2008) this morning. The cover certainly garnered the attention of my two resident teens when I brought it back from TLA. I managed to hang onto the ARC for this trip with the promise they could have it when I returned from IRA.

Differently biotic teens are showing up in significant numbers in Oakvale. They attend classes with Phoebe and her friends though there is a great deal of biotism against them. Among the DB is one of Phoebe's childhood friends. However, neither she nor Marji, her best friend, quite know how to approach Collette. Is it possible to be friends with a DB? Phoebe and her friends join in a school sponsored program that will bring together the living and the not living teens. But there are those residents of Oakvale High that want nothing to do with the "zombies" and would rather see them all truly dead once and for all.

Sharply funny, this novel will attract readers because of the terrific cover. However, it will be the humor, irony, sarcasm that will keep readers moving from one cover to the other. Add to this the everyday slings and arrows of teen life in and out of school, and readers will delight in a book that both reflects the realities of peer pressure and cliques and also manages to poke fun at these things at the same time. There is a bit of a mystery here that, IMHO, is not resolved. Perhaps there will be more books???

I adore Richard Peck. Somehow he is able to write about history and make it seem alive and contemporary. That is certainly true for his award winning novel ON THE WINGS OF HEROES. I listened to this in audio format over the last few days. The episodic nature of the narrative of this novel makes it perfect for audiobook. The narrator perfectly captures the voice of a young boy whose life is idyllic until World War II changes life in his neighborhood. Davy Bowman observes the changes, sometimes with excitement, sometimes with dread. His older brother heads off to become a fighter pilot. Davy and his pal Scooter begin to scavenge for paper, rubber, and metal to support the war effort. However, all is not grim; life does manage to go on. And Davy's life allows readers to see just how war affects each and every one of us.

The skies have darkened here in Atlanta, and I suspect flights will be delayed today. But I have some more audiobooks, a book for my Kindle (and how I am loving this) and a few ARCs to carry me through. The day began with my darling granddaughter, Cali phoning before she is usually up on a Saturday to let me know her engagement is official. Her fiance asked for our blessing last week. GULP! It hardly seems possible.

I finished reading the forthcoming Nancy Werlin book, IMPOSSIBLE (Dial, September 2008), on the flight from Houston to Atlanta. We were delayed on the ground because, at the last minute, a passenger fled down the aisle demanding to be let off the plane. Either she had never flown before (doubtful) or had a premonition about the flight (also doubtful) or was having a panic attack (BINGO!). They convinced her to stay on the plane after calling back the jetway. Then, they sat her across the aisle from me where she hung over a barf bag crying that she couldn't do it. We sat on the ground while they filed an incident report (giving us a BS reason for the delay) and then she took some drugs and we took off.

And then I landed here in Atlanta and they were playing Simon and Garfunkle's rendition of "Scarborough Fair" , the song which is the basis for Werlin's novel. Freaky day, folks. But now I am here a few days ahead of time for IRA, hoping to finish an audio column for VOYA (due tomorrow) and some work on the new book before I meet with my editor next week.

Back to the book which is the reason you are here, right? Lucy is 17 when she finds out the secret of all the Scarborough women. They become pregnant as teens, give birth to daughters, and then go mad. It happened to her mother Miranda and to generations of women before her. At first, Lucy is incredulous. A curse from an Elfin Knight? However, on the night of her prom, Lucy is raped by her date although Lucy remains convinced that Grey was not himself, literally possessed by someone or something else. She becomes pregnant and learns of the curse. The only way to end the curse is to complete three seemingly impossible tasks, all contained in Miranda's version of the song "Scarborough Fair." Will she be able to complete the tasks? Can this ancient evil be defeated?

This was a totally absorbing read, part mystery, part folklore, part coming-of-age. Werlin has proven her prowess at storytelling over and over again, most recently with RULES OF SURVIVAL. I think this is a book that will appeal to fans of Libba Bray's trilogy as odd as that might seem on the face of things. Certainly those who already love Werlin's books will find this newest offering as irresistible as the Elfin Knight's charismatic human appearance.

The cover will have to wait until I am home and we unpack the scanner. The remodeling is almost over. New furniture and the window blinds are delivered tomorrow. Cali is taking care of getting the shelves and cabinets in some sort of order. Hurray!

I seem to be striking out when it comes to book covers this month. So many of the ARCs are not yet listed at Amazon and Titlewave. Oh, well, too bad. We will struggle onward. A new Chris Lynch is always welcome. Lynch is a Jekyll-Hyde author, IMHO, as he bounces between hilariously funny coming of age YA and gritty, relentless, intense, incredible coming of age YA. INEXCUSABLE was a book that, quite frankly, deserved many more accolades and even a mention by some of the award committees. It was a masterpiece. Period.

Now, Lynch returns to the comic end of the YA novel with THE BIG GAME OF EVERYTHING. Jock, Onion Jock (aka Union Jack, but don't dare call him by that name) has a bronion named Egon and parents the boys call Peach and Leonard. Their Grumpus owns a golf course which he is still in the process of building (12 holes and counting). Jock plans to work the course for his grandfather for the summer. When two of Grumpus' old pals come for an unscheduled visit, Jock learns firsthand about the Big Game of Everything. It could be subtitled, He Who Dies with the Most Toys Wins. Jock is disturbed by these visitors and their skewed outlook on life. Can amassing points in the game be all there is to life and happiness? Jock has a summer of confrontations: confronting the bullying Noblett brothers, confronting his own brother Egon, confronting a vegetarian rodent and a massive green cat, and the worst excuse for a golf pro ever.

Lynch is at his hilarious best here. I had to watch myself carefully as I read this one on the flight in from Houston. It does not make folks comfortable to have someone laughing out loud while reading on the plane these days. Darn shame!

Seems I am having no luck with covers for the forthcoming books I scored at TLA. Once we unpack all the computer equipment, I will have to do some scanning for sure. Here is the new Sharon Creech, HATE THAT CAT. Jack is back and so is Miss Stretchberry. It is time for poetry class and this year, a cat enters into Jack's life. Skitter McKitter becomes the subject of many of Jack's poems as he and his class emulate the poets shared by their incredibly talented teacher. Alliteration, consonance, and onomatopoeia all appear in the discussion as Jack stretches his poetic wings. William Carlos Williams, Christopher Myers, and other poets make appearances in Miss Stretchberry's class and in Jack's writing as well. One thing I loved was that Jack, whenever he mentioned a poet would parenthetically ask if the writer were alive or dead. Thankfully, so many of them are with us. Thanks, Sharon Creech, for bringing back Jack and Miss Stretchberry and a love of poetry.

I drove over to Beaumont this afternoon so that I did not have to drive at 4 am tomorrow to arrive to give a speech for the local librarian's group conference. Took the back roads and enjoyed the high blue and the wildflowers and the lack of nasty traffic. Also gave me time to complete an audiobook and still arrive at the hotel with time to finish reading the ARC for the forthcoming John Green novel.

No cover, folks, even though the ARC indicates there will be a dual cover treatment. PAPER TOWNS is both quintessential John Green and a departure for him at the same time. I know that might not make sense. So, let me try to explain despite my lack of sleep for the past week. It is quintessential Green in that the humor is present. Not overriding the story, not HAHAHAHAHAHAHA just snorting aloud as you read funny. Example: "Chuck Parson did not participate in organized sports because to do so would distract him from the larger goal of his life, to one day be convicted of homicide." Green brings together the most unlikely cast of characters from a guy whose parents obsessively collect Black Santas to Q whose parents tend to overanalyze his motives, to Margo Roth Spiegelman, the enigmatic next door neighbor whose disappearance leads Q and his friends to cross state boundaries in a minivan on graduation night.

A recounting of plot would be counterproductive here as the story is not any more linear than the road trip undertaken by Q and company. It zigs and zags, twists and turns, juts and bends. And I do not want to ruin this read for anyone else. Suffice to say, Green has once again demonstrated that his success with LOOKING FOR ALASKA was no fluke at all. Neither was AN ABUNDANCE OF KATHERINES. PAPER TOWNS shows that this adept storyteller has flair and, more importantly, heart. His ability to get readers into the skins of his characters is incredible. I feel as if I have lived Q and Margo and Lacey and Ben and Radar (and maybe even Chuck). So, no minivan parked outside, but perhaps an adventure tomorrow in the SUV???





ETA: Snagged jpegs of the covers from fellow LJer, Mary Pearson.

Arrived home from TLA yesterday afternoon. Painters left about 6 pm and dearest husband thought we could safely spend the night breathing the fumes. Woke this morning and made reservations for us to stay elsewhere today and tonight. Painters should finish up tonight. Cough. Cough.

So, once we were safely breathing recycled air in the hotel, my headache left, and I could read again. The ever lovely Victoria Stapleton pressed this one into my hands when I was dashing through the exhibits this week. BURN is one of those books that just bores into you as you read. You have to keep reading as the story slowly, painfully unfolds.




BURN is the story of a troubled bullied young man named Cameron. Since the first day of his freshman year, Cameron has been subjected to torture from the Red Coats, the jocks who sport red athletic jackets. The attacks are mean and quick and under the radar of the adults (or the adults pretend that is true). Patterson and one of his neanderthals corner him one day in the locker room. Cameron has to let his mind go away from his body to endure this particular torment. This final straw might break more than the camel's back. Cameron is already teetering on the edge as it is.

What Phillips has done is let this story unfold at a snail's pace. Surely someone will come to Cameron's aid? you think as a reader. However, if you have read Pete Hautman's INVISIBLE or Gail Giles' RIGHT BEHIND YOU, you know somewhere in your gut that events are already spiraling out of control and that Cameron wil be one of the casualties of the bullies and those who fail to report them. The book left me shaken. And is that not the power of the written word?

Just in from a lovely day at TLA. Scored a bunch of ARCs and met lots of nice people. Attended the alumni reception for our department where we gifted our beloved (and retiring) leader, Mary Berry with a token of our love and admiration. Then it was two confusing cab rides to Avanti for the Random House dinner(thanks Tracy and Adrienne). Dinner was lovely; the authors were in rare form, and the view of the lightning strikes added to the electricity in the air. Rain might have dampened some of us (well, drowned Renee actually), but no one cared. It was the end of another terrific day. Now, as the storm pushes through, I will read one of the new books and digest all of the wonderful tastiness of the day.