New slave and a short hiatus

Miss Ami will be taking a short break from posting our words of wisodm, while she recovers from a billion hours of labor followed by a five-minute C-section. The good news is, as soon as 'Little' Miss Thing, weighing in at 8 lbs 10 ounces, learns to type, we will have another slave to do our bidding!

NERDS by Michael Buckley, reviewed by Fegan

Jackson Jones is easily the most popular kid in fifth grade. Star football player, good looking and charming - unless you are one of those unfortunate kids with allergies, buck teeth, or a strange habit that makes you just beg for an atomic wedgie. You know, nerds, geeks, spazzes. Nobody can blame a star kid like Jackson for having a little fun with them, right?

The tables are turned, however, when Jackson is outfitted with the braces and headgear from H-E-double-toothpicks, and his social status slides so low his own father can't stand to look at him. Even the nerds won't give him the time of day - and why should they? Not only was he horrible to them before, they are too busy saving the world as a team of top secret, high-tech superspies to really bother with him.

Jackson discovers their secret, however, and is made a part of their team - a decision neither he nor his teammates are happy about. What follows is a lighthearted and engaging adventure with just enough character development to make the grown-ups happy, but plenty of action and humor to keep it fun. I'm already looking forward to the next installment!

Who Will I Be, Lord? by Vaunda Nelson, reviewed by Squirt

I just read this book for the first time, and it has immediately jumped to being my favorite of Vaunda Nelson's books. I was expecting one of those typical "I can have any career I want" books, and found so much more. As with many of Nelson's books, there is a lot of thought packed into a few short words.

A young girl wonders 'who she will be', looking back over the lives of her family living and deceased. As we get a glimpse of daily events like stretching out on the floor with Daddy when he comes home from work, we realize this question is about more than a choice of career - will she be like Grampa, whose "voice is nice and soft, but his words talk loud"? Or like Uncle, who, according to Mama, "is who he is"? Personally, I would like to be like Mama, who sees the specialness and gifts in everyone, and is making sure her daughter sees them too.

This book, with perfect illustrations by Sean Qualls, will have wide appeal for libraries, classrooms, families, and read-alouds.

I borrowed this copy from my library.

Retro Tuesday (on Wednesday - so sue me): Runaway Princess by Kate Coombs

Like Chains, this one isn't old by any means, but it is old enough to have a sequel out (The Runaway Dragon, which you also need to read). In fact, I read this one, which I had somehow missed, because I saw a review of the second and knew I had to read them both.

Definitely a 'girl book' for the most part, although boys who enjoy the Squire's Tale series by Gerald Morris might give this one a try. Meg is the spirited tomboy princess who would rather catch frogs with her friend than learn to curtsy. Her clueless father offers her hand in marriage and half the kingdom to any prince who can accomplish three tasks (all in the name of economic development), and of course Meg disapproves of the plan, and adventures ensue.

We've seen the basic plotline a million times, but Meg is a very likeable heroine with some great lines, and there are enough surprises and humorous bits in the book to make it quite an enjoyable read. Without giving too much away (I hope), I was pleased with her mother's decision, and while certain twists (like that involving a certain prince) may be a bit predictable for the fan of fractured fairy tales, they are not any less enjoyable. Great pleasure read for just about any girl over the age of 8 (I gave it to my mother to read next!)

Nonfiction Monday: Sir Francis Drake by Roy Gerrard, reviewed by Squirt

Miss Ami is working on our Summer Reading Program right now, and I have been reading over her shoulder. Apparently, one whole week is going to be devoted to pirates and shipwrecks, and she has unearthed some older treasures worth sharing for Nonfiction Monday:



Sir Francis Drake may have been knighted, but that just made him a legal sort of pirate! He mostly attacked and stole from the Spaniards, which made it politics and not piracy, you see. He also experienced his share of shipwrecks (and near wrecks), which puts him quite fairly into this category.

This book is a fun read because it is all in sing-songy poetry (in fact, you might challenge older readers to put it to a tune.) It does treat him as more of a hero than a pirate (who also captured and sold slaves), focusing on the adventurous spirit. The pictures have a lot of detail (including some bare bums in a couple scenes) that children will enjoy.

A Note on Laurie Halse Anderson from Fegan

I love me a good historical fiction novel, and a couple weeks ago Miss Ami reviewed Chains by Laurie Halse Anderson. The sequel, Forge, is due out this fall.

Any good historical fiction writer does his or her research, but some get more into it than others. As a sun (or at least heat lamp) worshipper, I am in awe of this post from her Facebook page. I don't know if you have to be on her friends list to read it, but it is not yet on her blog page. Now that's dedication! I am going to go toast my toesies under the heat lamp, because she has made me feel the chill of Valley Forge!

YA Titles that did not make one of "the lists"

As most of us are well aware, the Cybils short lists are out, and most of the other major awards for the year have been announced. Some great titles (I am currently reading Marcelo in the Real World at work and Mare's War at home, and boy does THAT make for some weird dreams), but as many others have pointed out, there are countless other books worth reading. Today, Kelly at YAnnabe (who looks just like my OB, which will no doubt also figure into tonight's crazy-pregnant-lady dreams), is hosting The Best YA Books You Haven't Read. Warning before you click there, my TBR list grew exponentially as soon as I started reading!

It's a great idea, though, and since I totally missed this week's Retro Tuesday post, I'm happy to have a chance to make up for it. In no particular order, here are some YA books I think everyone should read, but which you may not have heard of:

1. Many Waters by Madeleine L'Engle - anything by her, actually, especially for 'thinking' girls. This particular one is the fourth in the Wrinkle in Time series, and many fans of the first book don't even know this one exists.

2. Spinners by Donna Jo Napoli - we are all familiar with the author, but this is one of her lesser-known books, and it got mixed reviews. Some felt the ending wasn't up to snuff, I thought it was more realistic. Perhaps those who didn't like it felt that way because it wasn't what they were hoping for - although I'm not sure what ending could have made everyone happy.

3. Zahrah the Windseeker by Nnedi Okorafor-Mbachu - this is one of those flash-in-the-pan books that I think got a lot of attention for a brief time and then disappeared off the radar. A fascinating book, I loved it so much I even named one of my sugar gliders Zahrah (which gives you a hint as to the special talent she discovers). I also loved the Hitchhiker's Guide reference somewhere in the latter half, which no one around me got. Sigh.

Hmm...now I'm drawing a blank, and I know there are many more. Tell you what, let me head home and add more tomorrow - home is where I keep the books that are out of print, rather than bring them to the library and run the risk of them disappearing:) In the meantime, check the link above to find what others are recommending (but clear your calendar first, you're going to be busy!)