School's out

I hope you have already lost yourself in the pages of a book this summer. I have enjoyed some great new finds. The new series by Maryrose Wood about those wild children( I mean this literally; they were found in the woods) at Ashton Place is a parody of those melodramatic Victorian novels with an unlikely heroine. The book is a treasure trove of puns and silly references. Who could resist?
I also read Gary Schmidt's new book Okay for Now. He never fails to disappoint; I am enamoured with the characters from almost the first page. The plot of the book revolves around the works of Audubon--yes, the bird guy, and the illustrations referenced are in the book. The plot is a little far fetched, but his writing is so good that you will want to believe. A book with a similar plot is Blue Balliett's newest called The Danger Box.  This book also centers on a relationship formed at the library and involves the work of someone famous. Like the other books (Chasing Vermeer, The Wright Three) there is some sleuthing involved, but I found the characters in this story much more interesting.
Happy summertime.

library trip...

I went to the Main Library with John's class on Friday, and I was checking on the new releases bookshelf up front. There were many temptations. Kathy Appfelt (author of  The Underneath) has a new book called Keeper that is about mermaids. I also saw a wonderfully illustrated version of Randall Jarrell's story The Bat-Poet-- a favorite story of mine about a bat who can't sleep during the day and ends up observing the daytime creatures and writing poems about them.

Happy New Year!

Finally finished the Suzanne Collins trilogy and each book got more violent. I couldn't put down The Hunger Games, but I really had to force myself through the last two books. These are not for the faint of heart. Gabriel and I reread "The Blue Moose" by Daniel Pinkwater. Pinkwater is a delightful writer and who can resist a moose (with table waiting skills) who brings culture and happiness to a small town. Hope Santa brought you some new reads. Let me know about the good ones!