My Velma Dinkley face

Two years ago, as part of our summer reading program, we had a teen program on forensics and police procedure. For added fun, several of us on the staff dressed up as members of Mystery Inc (aka the Scooby Doo gang) So, here I am as Velma Dinkley. It's hard to see here but the outfit included orange knee socks and brown shoes.
 

Jinkies, it was fun.

Book review - Skies Like These

Title: Skies Like These
Author: Tess Hilmo
Genre: Realistic Fiction
Similar books: The Penderwicks by Jeanne Birdsall
                     Three Bird Summer by Sara St. Antoine
Rating:

A pleasing read with a lovely setting

Summary: Jade's not happy to be spending her summer in Wyoming with her Aunt Elise, a quirky character who's cooking experiments tend to end in disaster. Then she meets Roy Parker, a local boy obsessed with Butch Cassidy. Roy's dad had to close his hardware store and Roy is determined to reopen it, no matter what it takes. He takes his inspiration from his hero, Butch. And he wants Jade to be his Sundance Kid.
My opinion: There is so much to love about this book. The characters, even the dogs, are distinct and quirky. Even Roy's nemesis has a little bit of depth. The plot, while somewhat simple, does have a few twists. The real strength to this book, though, is the setting. Hilmo describes all of the setting with real depth and beauty, a love of nature which is pervasive. I particularly loved the stargazing scenes. This is a great book for middle grade readers who are starting to look at the world a little more closely.
More Information: Skies Like These releases July 15th.
Advanced Reader Copy provided by NetGalley. 

WWW Wednesdays

What are you currently reading?
Wanted: Dead or in Love by Kym Brunner
On probation, Monroe is trying to keep out of trouble. She works in her father's dinner theater and shares his fascination with gangster collectables. The trouble begins when she nicks her finger on a bullet and is possessed by the spirit of Bonnie Parker. When a boy she meets is possessed by Clyde, they have only 24 hours to free themselves.
I've only just started this one and I have to say, I'm not particularly hopeful, but I'm giving it a chance.
 
What did you recently finish reading?
The Misadventures of the Family Fletcher by Dana Alison Levy
The Fletcher family is a riotous, noisy, mess. With two dads, four sons, and two pets life is a constant adventure and each boy faces challenges navigating life. Things aren't helped by a grumpy new neighbor who seems to hate everything the Fletchers do.
Think of every book about families you ever loved as a kid. This one fits in neatly with Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing, Anastasia Krupnik, and all your favorites. Each boy is distinct and facing a different issue of growing up (new schools, friends who are changing, new interests, and girls). 
 
What do you think you will read next?
Mind Blind by Lari Don
The story of a teen psychic on the run from the mafia, this one promises to be non-stop action.

Pick 6: Horror stories

You know when that kid comes up to you and asks for a "really scary" story (and usually mom is standing a few feet away silently pleading with you to go easy on the scary)? That kid was the inspiration for this list of ghosts, monsters, and other forms of horror. 

Disclaimer: I make no guarantees as to the scare factor, age level, or other judge of appropriateness of these books. This is simply a list of six solid books written in the last six months that I qualify as horror

6 New Horror Novels
1. In the Shadows by Kiersten White (visual and text storytelling)

2. The Drowning by Rachel Ward (retelling of a classic ghost story)

3. Frenzy by Robert Lettrick (summer camp gone bad)

4. White Space by Ilsa Bick (complicated, mind-bending, Stephen King style horror)

5. The Doll Graveyard by Lois Ruby (creepy dolls - 'nuff said)

6. Followers by Anna Davies (horror movies meet social media)
 

In which I attempt to draw

I'm not really an artist. Sometimes I like to think that I can draw. That's how I end up with stuff like this.

This dragon may well be the best thing I've ever drawn. It took a shameful amount of time to complete

The hedgehog is sort of half drawn, half painted

And this one is meant to be an Orc

And the only conclusion I can come to is that I'm better off cartooning than attempting to draw anything real. To that end, I set myself a challenge. Every day for a year (I started in June), I'm drawing a cartoon llama. Why a llama? Not sure, except llamas are funny. Why a year? Yeah, I don't really know that either. A year seems like a good amount of time to learn something. I draw them with marker to keep myself from overthinking the process. So, here are some I've done so far.

This is the baseline llama, the drawing I made in May that stands as the model for the others.

I made this drawing mid-June. It's pretty representative of the drawings I've been making.

I'll probably do some updates as the year passes so you can see how my llamas change.

Book review - Perfected

Title: Perfected
Author: Kate Jarvik Birch
Genre: dystopia/alternate reality
Similar books: The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing by M T Anderson
                     Eve & Adam by Michael Grant and Katherine Applegate
Rating:

Surprisingly good at first, but kind of a let down towards the end.

Summary: In Ella's world genetically modified humans, such as herself, are kept as pets by the rich and powerful. When Ella is purchased and brought to her opulent new home her life becomes more than she'd ever imagined. As time passes, though, the perfect mask begins to slip and Ella wonders if freedom is worth giving up the privilege that comes with her life.
My opinion: It is hard to imagine a society that would allow people to be kept as pets, making this a hard sell. We read with a healthy dose of skepticism. It accomplishes its goals fairly well. W see the dichotomy of the opulence that surrounds Ella, which is is almost a part of, with her role as a pet, sort of sub-human. Ella's self-discovery and growing longing for freedom are nicely paralleled by Penn and Ruby's own unhappiness and need for fulfillment beyond what their parents expect of them. The book isn't all perfect. Penn is highly idealized and the ending isn't particularly cohesive, but over all it's a strong read.
More information: Perfected releases July 1.
Advanced Reader Copy provided by NetGalley. 

The TARDIS has landed

To kick off our teen summer reading program, we had an evening of Doctor Who related games and activities. I thought a lot about how I wanted to describe the program but I think I'll just let the photos speak for themselves. If you have any questions about details of what happened, just let me know.

Enter through the TARDIS door. It's bigger on the inside.

Assorted Doctor Who references. The clear box in front is the shadow box I've been working on.

The TARDIS console and book recommendations.

The snacks

Always take a banana to a party. Bananas are good.

Jelly babies (aka Sour Patch Kids) and crackers. Two hearts. Ha!

Jammie dodgers

 Actually, the Jammie dodgers do have a little story attached. I wanted to post this picture:

Nice, right?

 Then it would seem like I had made this big batch of almost perfect cookies. That picture is a lie. Only those two looked that good. Most of the cookies looked like this:

Broken, discolored, and weirdly shaped.

Tossing baby Adipose

Weeping angel red light, green light. Not really sure why he is karate chopping

Move the mini M&Ms with your plasmavore little straw

Flying the TARDIS

Stack up your Jelly Babies

The end of the monster name match-up game

We all loved these quotation speech bubble props

 

In case you can't read it, this one says "Would you like a jelly baby?"

Holding our Jello Ood brains

And, at last, me in my costume