About those "Book Reviews"

A recent article suggests that female book bloggers are Faking It--making nice with the reviews for whatever reason one would like to throw out there. I hope you're aware that's not the case here. It's true that I tend to only bother writing up blog reviews for books I've enjoyed--and LibraryThing Early Reviewers--but that's more a personal choice. If I'm not enjoying a book these days, I stop reading at 50 pages--I don't finish it and write up a snotty review. I don't get to read enough as it is, let alone want to read books I don't like. My library basket is overflowing, there are unread book piles all over the apartment and we won't talk about how long the Google Spreadsheet of "To Read" is. I also have a draft box full of posts I want to finish--why would I add "Books I Didn't Enjoy" to that pile? Y'all have enough other things to read in your inboxes and RSS feeds I trust. So while you may wish to discount these posts insofar as being formal book reviews, I hope you'll continue to enjoy insight to what I've been reading. I'm still using the Book Review tag so you can find all of the posts together. A Chair, A Fireplace and a Tea Cozy has a much more thoughtful look at and response to the faking it article. As for me? This is my blog, if I choose to say nice things, that's my prerogative.

Book Review: Eye of the Red Tsar by Sam Eastland

Disclosure: I received an Advanced Reader's Copy of this book via LibraryThing's Early Reviewer program in exchange for reviewing it on LibraryThing.

Eye of the Red Tsar
Sam Eastland

What if what we know about the Romanov's death was wrong? What if the government itself didn't know the truth? Who would they ask? Who could they trust? And if you found the most trusted and most feared adviser to the Tsar back from Siberia, what might he uncover?


The good:

Eastland creates and interesting premise of a top advisor/spy/investigator to the Tsar who, after the Revolution, was exiled to Siberia and is brought back to solve the mystery of what happened when the Romanovs disappeared. Told in a blend of flashbacks and present day, it gives a humanity to the Tsar and his family, a glimpse inside times just prior to the Revolution. 

There's a decent level of intensity that keeps one going through the book--it was a surprisingly quick read. I got through it in an evening. I was slightly disappointed by the ending, though I could comprehend it. 


The bad:

I had an ARC so I won't comment on the layout other than there were a lot of errors hopefully corrected before final print.

The history was imaginative. There was enough historically inaccurate that I was unsure how much to actually believe, and would err on the side of fiction rather than fact.

It could easily stand alone as a book, and I was disappointed to see that the author intends for it to be a series. A lot of what I enjoyed were the flashback sequences and I don't think those would successfully hold up through more books. We've explored them, we understand the main character's angst and what he's been through. Reliving them over in future books would be less effective.

 Final Thoughts: If you're up for suspense and willing to set aside the blatant historical inaccuracies, it's an interesting read.  

Book Review: Elvis and the Grateful Dead by Peggy Webb

Disclosure: I received a copy of this book via LibraryThing's Early Reviewer program in exchange for reviewing it on LibraryThing.

Elvis and the Grateful Dead
A Southern Cousins Mystery
by Peggy Webb

An Elvis impersonator festival and contest should be full of sequins, crooners, good music and food--especially when it's being held in the King's hometown. But when someone starts picking off the impersonators, it's up to Callie Jones, her estranged mystery man ex-husband, and her basset hound Elvis (who IS the reincarnation of the King) to solve the mystery and keep cooking cousin Lovie out of the Jailhouse.

The good:
The story is told by both Callie and Elvis (the dog). Their voices are very distinct and amusing. Elvis spends a lot of time "singing" references, which can be a little distracting but I can imagine a friend of mine's basset hound doing this. 

Well developed secondary characters. Though I never really felt for the Elvis's who were being killed, I could completely recognize some of the other town characters. Callie's Mom was delightfully outrageous and many will be able to identify a beloved Uncle who is ready to lend an ear, helping hand, and sage advice. 

I didn't figure the mystery out until the end. That's always a challenge for me, because very often one sees it coming and then you have to decide whether or not to slog on through. 


The bad:
Webb occasionally switches narration mid-chapter. That was a little confusing the first time as usually you got a fresh chapter.

Callie is obsessed with having children and a "good father" to go with that. Certainly that's a big part of her character but the dwelling on having babies and how her ex isn't good father material makes her less dynamic.

The confusing not-quite-ex-husband thing. Personally, I can't say I'd let my soon-to-be-ex wash my back (literally) if it was serious enough that we were divorcing. It's clear that he doesn't want the divorce, but Callie's a confused bundle of nerves. She vacillates from sleeping with her ex husband in Chapter 2 to a possible new love interest by the end of the book, which was a little overdone for me.

There's some definite male as heroic rescuer that gets a little old. The whole idea of always needing a big strong man to rescue one grated a bit.  

Elvis' constant singing could certainly get old after a while if one isn't a fan of the King.

Slightly over-referenced book one of the series. I felt like I almost didn't need to read it because everything was rehashed in book two.

What I'd like to see more of:
The relationship between Callie and her mother. It reminded me a bit of Donna Andrews' style, which I adore, and I'd like to see more of that.

Overall?
A very cute addition to the cozy mystery section. Book one is going on the hold list at work.  Share with your animal and cozy mystery lovers.  

Book Review: Dusted to Death by Barbara Colley

Disclosure: I received a copy of this book via LibraryThing's Early Reviewer program in exchange for reviewing it on LibraryThing.

 Dusted to Death
Barbara Colley

The plot:  Charlotte's been called in to keep an eye on the house of one of her more difficult clients while they shoot a movie there. Amid the drama queen leading lady, her intimidating bodyguard, an attractive older male actor and the chaos of filming in an older New Orleans home, there is a messy murder. Not only does it ruin a rug, it might ruin the movie. 

Charlotte is a multi-faceted character, what with some romance with her next door neighbor, problems with her son, and the realities of not being a twenty something who spends all of her money on shoes, handbags, and fancy dates. Brought in to mind the movie set and make sure none of her client's "treasures" are destroyed, she gets an interesting look behind the scenes of film-making. She has a crush on the leading man, an older actor whose heartthrob status has lasted and his gentlemanly nature only wins him more brownie points.

The book focuses behind the scenes on not only the actors but the people whose names only fly past up on the credits: prop masters etc and the creepy paparazzi that orbit that world. It's nice to get a sense of their frenzy, frustration, and planning.  

Though I could tell I'd dropped into the middle of the series and probably wasn't fully grasping the implications of all of the references, the book was able to stand by itself without a lot of filler backlog giving me history of books I hadn't and might not ever read. I really liked that. The romantic aspect was really obvious, but it didn't detract from the book. I got the sense that it would have been more well rounded had I read other books in the series. 

The biggest issue I had with the book was the film's leading lady Angel's, whose "real life" presented some confusion insofar as her age and personality. She  is supposed to be in the role of a young engenue, playing a younger girl, but the various descriptions given of her background seemed to add up to someone closer to 30. It seemed like too much had happened to her for her still to be playing a Catholic schoolgirl.That jarred me out of the story a bit. She also was fluxtuating a little too fast between being a sweet girl under pressure and being a royal Hollywood party girl diva. Her secret past required just a little too much abandoning of reality--particularly in this day and age where it's hard to keep ones past buried.  

An enjoyable cozy mystery and, from the ending, one where I would be interested in going back and finding out some of the previous events leading up to it. Just as soon as I wade through my reading basket.   

Book Review: Cart Before the Corpse by Carloyn McSparren

**I received an e-book version of this book as part of my participation in LibraryThing's Early Reviewers program.**

The Cart Before the Corpse
by Carolyn McSparren

Cart Before the Corpse is a cozy mystery, with Merry Abbott trying to figure out who killed the father who she was estranged from for the majority of her life. It comes as the first spin off of a collectively written series called the Mossy Creek Hometown Series. I've not read the latter, but they're floating around the system, so I might try to get through at least the first one.

Merry, a horse/carriage trainer and show manager who won't herself drive, learns at the end of a show that her father has been murdered. She drives down to where she had planned to meet her father on his new horse training farm in rural Georgia and, as the heir, must sort out who did it along with deciding whether or not to stay on the farm she now owns.

Overall the book was okay, not something I'd have picked up otherwise and not something I'm particularly interested in continuing to read. McSparren, in my opinion, was way too hung up on the idea of reconciliation between father and daughter. Merry felt a whole lot of guilt about picking up her life and moving on after repeatedly being abandoned be her father. It felt overly forced for her to spend nearly the entire book blaming herself for not reaching out earlier to a man who had rejected her. But that could just be my cynical opinion. 

As the local law is never enough in these books, a GBI agent was brought in to provide the cop side of the story as well as being the potential love interest for Merry. The voice of the character was decent, though I didn't feel like we got enough of his story to really care about him. He seemed like a potentially interesting character.

Probably the best character was Peggy Caldwell, Merry's father's landlady and friend. She was well developed enough that it wouldn't surprise me to find that she's the character McSparren has already fleshed out in the Mossy Creek books. Her voice was very strong and she seemed like someone who would be fun to know. 

Mixed voice narrative made it occasionally confusing but it was generally clear when I'd move away from the book and return.    

If you're interested in carriage riding, it's a light fun read. I particularly struggled with trying to read it in e-book/on screen format (no, still no e-reader at Chez Hedgehog) and I can only hope someone did a final edit--as there were quite a number of errors in the text, particularly as the story progressed. I had trouble sticking with the narrative and really getting involved with the characters and overall, it wouldn't be a first recommendation.

Book Review: Oh. My. Gods.

Oh. My. Gods.
by Tera Lynn Childs

One of my coworkers has this on hold so I had to sit down and plow through it last night lest I wrack up more overdue fines. I'd been meaning to read this for somet ime, it's come home with me at least twice, been consigned to the library basket, and wistfully waited for me.

Short version of the plot: Just before her senior year of high school, Phoebe's widowed mother remarries after a shockingly short courtship and hauls her to her new husbands home on a small Greek island. Stepdad is the headmaster of a small exclusive school where everyone is descended from the Greek Gods. So now instead of just the usual trials and tribulations of high school, she's facing senior year with the major disadvantage of simply being a normal human.

The book is a nice piece of escape fantasy and has the added advantage of turning things that sound like a dream come true on their head. Moving halfway around the world to a beautiful Greek island? NOOOOOOO Being surrounded by incredibly gorgeous descendants of Gods? BAD Having the super hot guy paired with you as your running partner? extra horrible

The plot is light and fluffy and slightly predictable. The evil stepsister was a nice, classic fairytale touch. What I found most believable were Phoebe's interactions with her mother. Still mourning her father, ripped with almost no notice from everything she's grown up with, she's angry, hurt, and frustrated. Lashing out at her mother is a perfectly understandable and normal response. Phoebe's irritation at her therapist mother's attempts to "therapy" her through these major changes is incredibly realistic and is the best dialog in the book. While the other relationships in the text seem a little too convenient or contrived or happy ending--I think most girls could identify the well-scripted mother daughter relationship.

And the final revenge on the stepsister wasn't bad either...

Book Review: NERDS by Michael Buckley

N.E.R.D.S
by Michael Buckley

Buckley's pretty well known for his charming Sisters Grimm series, which brings to life the rather frightening reality that fairy tale characters live in a small town in upstate New York. So it was with high anticipation that I grabbed NERDS off the shelf.

Meet Jackson Jones, your typical super-popular star athlete at the middle school. Kids want to be like him or at least in his circle of friends, even adults emulate him. Charm and style and amazing skill at football should see him through fifth grade trials, tribulations, and time spent picking on geeks and nerds, right?

That is--until a fatal dental appointment--where Jackson learns he has an unusual number of teeth and is slapped into braces and headgear. Highly magnetized headgear. Instantly gone is his popularity

But then he begins to notice something about the classmates he picked on before. When he follows them, he stumbles upon a secret world of spies, missions, and a very unusual Lunch Lady.

Inadvertently joining the team, Jackson has to prove himself to teammates who hate him, deal with super special braces, and try not to flunk out of fifth grade--oh, and save the world from a supreme evil doer and his hired assassin (who is also in fifth grade).

Buckley provides a very realistic hero in the stereotypical popular boy who has fallen from grace. Jackson sees himself as a good kid and is startled to realize he is a bully. A little self-realization and sadness and growth comes but not one of those sudden 180 turn arounds. At random the reader does have to provide retina scans and pass other security clearances...with a typical does of tween humor.

First in a series, this is another one to keep high on the ordering list and make sure it's face out on the shelves. The guy taking my order at the sub shop the other day grabbed it off the counter for a quick perusal--so I think we can safely say the cover appeals to all ages.

Book Review: White Witch by Janet Graber

The White Witch
Janet Graber

There just aren't enough good plague books for kids. Fortunately, Graber steps up to the plate, addressing a devastating point in history and confronting the belief system of the time.

In a small English village, Gwen has a reputation of being a witch because of her pale coloring and ability to commune with animals. While she doesn't seem to be albino, she has light hair and skin and the village people both respect and fear her.

Her father, a trader, brings news of the plague from London and warns the villagers that they must not allow the refugees fleeing the city to come down the river and dock with them. Believing that God will protect them and choosing to believe the illness a sign of retribution for sinfulness, they choose to ignore his warning.

Gwen's father knows they will blame her for the illness. He hides her in a secret room in the church, formerly used to hide riches, and leaves the village, promising to return. Time passes and refugees, rats, and ultimately the plague arrive. Gwen watches as people flee or die, with deaths outpacing the rate the bodies can be buried.

Silence falls on the village, and then one of the villagers returns from hiding in the woods, a young woman who knows where Gwen is hiding.

Gwen risks getting the plague herself to help her friend, even when she knows it means losing the boy she loves to that friend. But those aren't the only villagers around, and now Gwen faces a witchcraft trial.

While not making inappropriately light of the death and the superstitions that surrounded healing and people who were different, Graber presents an interesting glimpse of a time not often addressed in children's literature. A thoughtful read.

Book Review: Sworn to Silence by Linda Castillo

Sworn to Silence
Linda Castillo

Disclosure: I received a free copy of this book as part of the LibraryThing Early Reviewers Program. Early Reviewers get copies of books from publishers in exchange for reading and providing an honest review on LibraryThing.

Castillo presents a thriller mystery when a serial killer re-appears after an absence of sixteen years to start murdering young women in a small town with a large Amish community.

Kate Burkholder has returned to her childhood hometown as the chief of police, bringing a history of growing up Amish and larger city police experience. When a serial killer returns and begins to escalate after an absence of sixteen years, Burkholder is caught between attempting to do her job and trying to deal with her own past. For, we learn, she believes she killed the Slaughterhouse Killer as a young woman, an act that caused her to leave the Amish community and become an outsider to her immediate family. Now, with a burnt out former rogue state officer sent to help out, she has to juggle local politicians, other law enforcement departments, and the unknown of whether the killer is back or if she has a new problem to deal with.

Castillo does an admirable job of setting up a town with believable politics, history and personality. I particularly liked the night dispatcher, whose obsession with current crime scene television shows is treated with a gentle humor and teasing of readers who are similarly interested. Her scenic descriptions are distinct enough to give a clear image, though she makes the ones involving the victims sparse enough to keep the stomach from churning. She provides interesting insight into the Amish community and their behavior towards Kate, showing believe instances where love for family takes precendence over cultural rules.

Tomasetti, the rogue cop in state agency sent to help, was stereotypical--rugged, good looking, has a tragic background. They never send the happily married average looking guy. And of course there was the seeming obligatory romantic angle. I was a little disappointed that two people had to fall into bed together. Yes, traumatic situation and all sparking romance and celebration of life, but it didn't add anything for me.

Overall, it was well done. I probably should have figured out the killer a little earlier, but I didn't mind that I hadn't. And it was nice to see more realistic time lines (something will take 2-3 days to get, etc). Thrillers aren't a genre I read often, but I recommend Sworn to Silence for someone who likes to watch Bones, CSI, Criminal, etc.

And it's apparently going to be part of a series, about which I feel ambivalent.

Cross posted to my account on LibraryThing.

Book Review: Forest of Hands and Teeth

The Forest of Hands and Teeth
Carrie Ryan


It will come as no surprise that this is a zombie book. And it put me in mind, a bit, of M. Night Shyamalan's "The Village."

Small enclosed town, threat of the Unconsecrated in the forest, and a girl who dreams of freedom. A girl has three options upon coming of age: get married, stay with your family, or join the mysterious "Sisterhood" who are the governing force. Mary, orphaned and rejected by her older brother, is caught between marrying a best friend she doesn't love, suffering from unrequited love of her best friend's little brother, and not wanting to believe in God or the Sisterhood.

Yawn.

When the zombies, sorry, Unconsecrated attack, Mary, her betrothed, her brother and his wife, and her love interest and HIS betrothed and a child retreat into a path that takes them out of the village. Only, they seem to have never learned of Roman numerals and the paths lead them mostly to death and dead ends.

I couldn't empathize with Mary as she waffled between the boy she was betrothed to (who was in love with her but also her best friend) and the boy she "loved" (though he was also waffling between the two girls). The history of the Sisterhood and the development of the village was never explained, and by the end I just didn't care.

The ending sets up, of course, for a sequel, but I think I'll pass.

Book Review: Thirteenth Child by Patricia Wrede

Thirteenth Child
Patricia Wrede

Lan is the 7th son of a 7th son. Of course, he's also the 14th child in the family. And his twin, Eff, is the unlucky 13th child. In an alternative history of the United States, where steam dragons exist, magic is used for everyday chores, and Lewis and Clark never made it back, Eff is growing up with the knowledge that she is cursed and expected to become evil.

Wrede provides an interesting premise, an alternate United States where magic, but she's done this before, with the letter series she did with Carol Stevenson. And the setting, though with much potential, was lacking. I wanted to know more about the amazing creatures that were supposedly beyond the barriers and the lack of information about a steamdragon, why it was called that, what it actually looked like, etc was annoying. It felt jumbled mixing mythical creatures plus those extinct in our present day.

Eff's family relocates from their hometown to a Western post so her father can become a teacher of a magic university. All of the children learn magic at school, though mostly only a Avrupan (European) style of spell casting. An unorthodox day school teacher also introduces Eff and a few other kids to Asian and Aphrikan (African) styles. Her older sister runs off to marry into a group who believe magic is a crutch, but is shown to still be using basic spells, so there's not much of a sense of life in that community without magic.

Though I felt like I captured Wrede's intention, overall I was disappointed. Things split off in too many directions: animals, characters, and nothing felt fully developed. Years of time passed quickly and, while more realistic than total self realization in a week at the beach, the whole thing felt awkward.

It was, at best, okay.

Book Review: 10 Things Your Minister Wants to Tell You

10 Things Your Minister Wants to Tell You (But Can't Because He Needs the Job)
Rev. Oliver "Buzz" Thomas

I picked this one up on a whim, stumbling across it somewhere now long forgotten. It's short, pointed, and thoughtful and written in an approachable tone.

Thomas addresses ten familiar points/questions that are items we often see brought up in the news, from pulpits, and hotly contested among Christians.

1. How did it all begin?
2. Why are we here?
3. What is the Bible?
4. Is there really such a thing as a miracle?
5. How do I please God?
6. What about women?
7. What about homosexuality?
8. What about other faiths?
9. What happens after we die?
10. How will it all end?

Each question is thoughtfully explored, given some historical context and, where he can, Thomas points to translation of the Greek texts as we have them. (BTW--there's the new "oldest Bible" online--if the hits haven't crashed the server again) It's practically written to--not attempting to revolutionize one's opinions but answer, in the friendly pastoral way, questions that you might have.

I was intrigued by some of the points made and wish Thomas had included a) footnotes and b) a reading list. I think this will spark discussion and could spark research interest. Certainly it'd be nice to know where he got some of his information. An interesting read.

Book Review: Graceling

Graceling
Kristin Cashore

I kept hearing that this book was good. And it duly followed me home and sat in my library basket. And sat. And sat. Finally, when TeenLibrarian said "super awesome must read!" I cracked the cover.

In the kingdoms people are born with Graces, which come apparent when their eyes change to be two different colors, usually during childhood. Some Graces are very helpful (healing horses), some worrying (mind reading) and some odd (climbing trees). Those that are useful are put into the service of the King, others are left with their family, outsiders not fully accepted because of their difference.

And among the Graced is Katsa, who has the Grace of killing. Now required by the King, her uncle, to be his enforcer, Katsa is not especially pleased with her role in life. When she meets another Graced fighter, though, life takes an unexpected change. There are battles, cruelty, survival tests, love, and murder.

It's one of the best written books I've read in quite a while. There's a lyrical epic-poem quality to the writing, you're easily absorbed into the story and the emotions of the characters. You feel for Katsa, a young woman required by her king to kill or maim despite she often sees that the king's actions are wrong. Supporting characters are well defined, allowing for loving family relationships, new friends, and realistic insights into how even good people at times have only their own best interests at heart.

Well done, I'm looking forward to the sequel due out this fall.

Book Review: Tumtum and Nutmeg

Tumtum and Nutmeg: Adventures Beyond Nutmouse Hall
by Emily Bearn
Illustrated by Nick Price

It always surprises people when in the midst of a serious discussion of library policies, information literacy, sustainability in the current economy, etc--I can suddenly vacillate to talking about the cute new mouse book I'm reading.

Fortunately, as they're shaking their head, I have a lot of talk about. Bearn has combined three short novels that are paired beautifully with Price's detailed drawings.

Tumtum and Nutmeg live in a broom closet long hidden behind a dresser. They live in style, with many bed and bathrooms, and a glorious ballroom that isn't often used. Their residence is part of a ramshackle cottage where an absentminded-professor father and his children Arthur and Lucy live. Having no children of their own, the mice decide to take on the human children, caring for their clothes and doing some repairs to the cottage.

In the first story we meet the mice as Nutmeg decides she'd like to help the children. When their evil aunt arrives and poisons Tumtum, Nutmeg gains assistance from the local General Marchmouse to thwart her. Nutmeg is sadly, given little credit for her various engenuity --though she writes back and forth with Lucy and Arthur, who dub her a good fairy, especially when they drive away the aunt. In their second and third tales, General Marchmouse, who obviously doesn't have enough to do, spurs the two less-adventuresome mice, into situations where they run against rats, sinking ships, pogo sticks, gerbils, and a teacher who doesn't like rodents.

The stories are a delightful and quick read. While I was a little skeptical at Tumtum spending the days reading and eating and lounging whilst Nutmeg bustles about the kitchen--one certainly feels sympathy that their tranquility is so often disrupted by their near neighbor. Bearn provides a lot of detail that brings to life how much differently things are viewed from mouse size (one pork sausage, 6" long, feeds several hundred mice).

It's a thick book, being a 3-in-1, just over 500 pages. But it will capture the heart of the readers as they cheer Nutmeg and Tumtum through their adventures and safely home. For mouse lovers everywhere.

Book Review: Wintergirls

Wintergirls
Laurie Halse Anderson

Anderson is known for her deft skill with words and this latest book packs a wallop. Lia is an anorexic, supposedly recovering, but still caught within the depths of the illness even after her best friend, a bulimic dies from the binge/purge cycle.

Narrated by Lia in a somewhat journal-entry style, the reader is drawn in and it's difficult to get out of the book and to get Lia out of your head. Her hyper-awareness of caloric intake and her obsessive focus on food and weight permeates the pages. You have crawled into the mind of a girl whose entire world is defined by the food she is not consuming. It's defining her relationship with herself, with the other members of her family, and how she perceives everyone else around her.

The book follows Lia in weeks immediately following the death of her best friend Cassie. While struggling with her weight and her attempts to continue to hide her anorexia, Lia is taunted by Cassie's ghost and gives insight via flashbacks to the relationship between the two girls. She turns to the internet and nameless other girls who seek affirmation in their quest to be super-thin. She voices the socially correct platitudes to the adults around her, hiding behind a mask of indifference and frustration.

Anderson's work is powerful in it's capture of the voice of a girl who cannot see anything beyond calories and desiring power over her own body through her ever lowering weight. Anderson has amazing insight and sympathy for girls caught in bodies they perceive as bloated, where they must inflict wounds to let out the pain and subject themselves to too much exercise and starvation to try and achieve what they feel will be beauty and strength.

There have been articles that suggest the book could be a trigger for some. It could. But so could watching the runway models at most of the major fashion shows or actually considering a career in modeling. (I'm on the extra-petite side of things and I know I'd have to "lose inches" as I've heard it referred to in order to model.)

It's a powerful, utterly disturbing book. A quick read but not one I'd recommend for younger teens. It's a frighteningly well done examination of illness from our nation's obsession with being thin.

Book Review: Crictor by tomi Ungerer

Do you remember reading Crictor as a child?

It was a Reading Rainbow book, back when LeVar Burton was both part of my occasional afternoon television line up and Lt. Commander Geordi when I was allowed to stay up and watch Star Trek: The Next Generation.*

It was also a favorite book of mine as a child, which probably ended up in many hours of me wandering around and subjecting the Incredibly-Patient-Mother to me saying "Crictor, Crictor, the boa constrictor"

Crictor is a pet sent to Madame by her son, who is off in the depths of Africa. The book presents a snake far more like a dog than any snake I've met, happy to go along to the shop, to school, or out for a glass of milk, which he drinks through a straw.

What probably amuses me the most about this book is when Crictor rescues Madame from a burgular. Suddenly Crictor has fangs (despite being non-venemous, which we already learned, and despite the fact that I don't see any on this real photo of a constrictor) and behaves like the natural predator that he is. How would you convince the pet constrictor to let go of burgular prey? Well, that's not really clear, but he does get a park named after him for such bravery.

And he gets to wear a knitted tube sweater in the winter. Which I have to enjoy.

* Looking back, I realize they had a number of good actors on that show: LeVar Burton, Patrick Stewart, Brent Spiner

Book Review: Blueberry Girl

I've recently started reading Neil Gaiman's blog. He's a wonderfully accessible author, very forthcoming and giving of his time if you want to follow along. And on a "just took myself to see Coraline and read The Graveyard Book" high, I was especially excited with he announced that he had a picture book coming out.




Blueberry Girl
by Neil Gaiman
Illustrated by Charles Vess



Blueberry Girl was a joint project between author and illustrator, something I'm finding is rare in the publishing world. Gaiman offers up beautiful text of a gentle poem, a prayer for a new baby girl. He blends hope and praticality, with a touch of humor and obvious love the the child for whom the poem was originally written. Vess adds charming pictures that blend fantasy, whimsy, and energy. His little girls are energetic, enthusiastic children, embracing the world and ready to engage the animals and fairy creatures alongside.

It's a book I want to share with all the little girls I know. I highly recommend you find a copy.

My Mad Skillz at Booktalking

About the only consistent group of elementary aged students I see is my knitting group, so it happens more often that I notice a book I think that one of them will enjoy. Certainly there are other regular patrons for whom I think of things, but as a group...

A couple weeks back I walked in with a pile. I usually try to talk about whatever it is I'm reading each week, knowing that that title tends to then be put on hold by a couple of people, but this time I was armed and dangerous. I talked for about 20 minutes...

Titles presented included

Dark Hills Divide by Patrick Carman

Alexa is an inquisitive only child left to her own devices during a long hot summer. She lives in a town surrounded by walls and where you can only travel to other nearby towns on walled roads. It's a very controlled place, a safe place, but Alexa wonders what might be outside those walls. I recommend the audiobook read by Aaste Vigesaa, she does an amazing squirrel voice.









Ranger's Apprentice: Ruins of Gorlan by John Flanagan

I continually hand this book out, it's a wonderful book for guys.

My full review is here.

What makes this an easy talk to parents and kids is that Will finds his own way, and that own way is not the one he grew up thinking it might be. He dreamed of being a warrior, but physically was not fit for it. Instead he was able to find a place where physically and mentally he excelled. There's probably a good sneaky lesson about not just turning to violence in here but there's enough action to keep everyone happy.


Falconer's Knot by Mary Hoffman

Again, one I've previously reviewed with favor. This historical novel tosses in art history along side daggers and intrigue and it points out some realities without being gruesome. It's a good middle grades novel, not so cutting edge that late tweens can't handle it but not too babyish for older kids. Strong male and female voice, though the female voice leads.

I pulled this one for the boy in the group--even though it's a split protagonist. This is in the Teen section and, while I'm not sure if he's quite ready for the "problem novels," he's certainly mature enough for a little older material. He just finished all the Chronicles of Pryddian. (He also got Ranger's Apprentice)




Enola Holmes by Nancy Springer

I *heart* Nancy Springer and this series in a big way. The fact that I am the number one person on the holds list for the fifth book (cover shown here) and that my teen librarian is number two, yeah....we're into it. It's just such a pleasure to meet a strong female protagonist who, along with being gutsy, ISN'T out to get the guy. We're a full four books in and there is no love interest in site. Bravo! Not to say boys can't be introduced but it isn't Springer's focus. This series go home with the girls and comes back with rave reviews and "when is the next one?" About a month, ladies, about a month.

Third book review here.



Choose Your Own Adventure

And finally, I took a handful of these in. I grew up fully loving the one that was about Henry VIII and his various wives. Was it the best way to get my history lessons in? No...but I think it might be the first time I realized that not only did he behead two wives, he also probably killed two nephews. There are new copies available with up to date covers. Something to pass on to your adventurer.

Book Review: Casting Spells by Barbara Bretton

Casting Spells
by Barbara Bretton

Mix a centuries old spell, a knitting store, and a murder. Shake well. Add in an extra squirt of knitting/yarn knowledge and a sprinkling of romance. Serve chilled.

Bretton offers up a pleasant mystery about a pleasant small tourist town where a number of magical/mystical creatures live. It's a town under the protective spell of a sorceress, where there is no crime and no police, and the only humans are tourists. Save Chloe--the yarn store owner. Chloe, last in the line of the sorceresses, is half-human and, insofar as powers are concerned, is all human.

The town is worried that with Chloe will die without child, which would break the protective spell over the area, and evidence of the spell fading comes sharply when a tourist dies. So Chloe has to figure out how to manage the cop (the good looking male romantic lead), renew the spell, and keep her best friend's mother from whisking the town off to Faery.

Did I mention there's knitting? Bretton shows much knitting awareness--referencing yarns and techniques that appeal to the more crafty among us, but not overwhelming to the point that someone not knitting-inclined wouldn't understand. It's an added bonus.

A fun short adventure, some interesting twists, and a happy ending.

Book Review: Buy-ology by Martin Lindstrom

Buy-ology by Martin Lindstrom

Assaulted as I am all day with non-fiction in the form of a feed aggregator, sitting down to read more in book format is often a challenge. This book held my attention.

Lindstrom describes himself as an expert on brands and branding. He approaches his question: why do we buy certain things? with an interesting blend of "the old way"--"the science" and a dollop of curiosity. This works well for the reader, who knows a little about traditional advertising and has that curiosity but not the science.

Lindstrom explores the neurological results of advertisements--studying how ads, product placement, etc cause our brains to react and influence our behavior.

He brings a lot to the table and I have to give him credit for a lot of end notes. There are explorations of product placement, our desire to have what others have (how Apple has sold all those Ipods), religious influences on purchasing, sex in advertising, and a lot of interesting points about what isn't and doesn't work. It was particularly interesting to see how one advertiser is being edged out of American Idol fan brains because they use only "traditional commercials" rather than product placement as well as how one cell company's classic ring tone triggers all sorts of negative brain reactions. Oops.

Lindstrom leads you along, promising ever more information and I was kind of expecting a big reveal at the end. I didn't really feel there was one, though he does a nice job of summarizing. But I enjoyed what he was exploring.

One thing that struck me particularly was his research into warning labels on cigarette packs and anti-smoking ads. Though logically our conscious mind knows that the anti-smoking ads are meant to discourage picking up a cigarette. What was shown neurologically was that watching one such ad actually triggered a craving for a cigarette. It trigged a story I'd been told by a former smoker, who said that she was ususally fine but that anti-smoking ads started a craving.

Lindstrom looks at where advertising is headed and, while some of it is a little scary with the idea that adverstisers can read your mind and make you neurologically and unconsciously react in a positive way to purchase something--one must keep in mind, that's what they've been trying to do for years. Certainly we must continue to be skeptical of why we're purchasing things but, haven't we always?

An engaging read and a thoughtful look at what may influence your shopping cart.