Picture books for everyone

Larf by Ashley Spires

Larf is a fairly straightforward story about taking a chance and making a new friend. Two things broaden it's appeal
1.) It's about a Sasquatch. A vegetarian Sasquatch who wears a scarf, makes snarky comments about movies, and carries his pet bunny in a baby carrier.
2.) There are loads of little details to notice on each page. I've read this to 3rd graders and they love to find little hints about the plot.
The writing is clever, great details without becoming clumsy and cluttered. This book is a favorite among the youth department staff at my library and is a general hit with the kids who hear it.

WWW Wednesday

What are you currently reading?
Genuine Sweet by Faith Harkey
Genuine has just learned that she has the ability to fetch wishes for people, a skill her Gram warns her to only use to help other people. She quickly learns that wishes can really improve people's lives and she enjoys helping as many people as she can. Life finally begins to seem better, until she starts to encounter problems that wishes can't fix.

What I've read of this book so far reminds me of Savvy by Ingrid Law, a book that I really enjoyed.I look forward to finishing this book and seeing if that resemblance remains.
 
What did you recently finish reading?
Kissing Ted Callahan (and Other Guys) by Amy Spalding
Neither Riley nor Reid has ever been in a relationship so when they discover their bandmates in a compromising position, they make a pact to help each other out. They will record their interactions with the opposite sex in a notebook and give each other dating hints. As they go to increasingly great lengths to catch their crushes, the information in the notebook becomes more sensitive and their relationships with other people become more strained.

I don't think anyone could read that description and not predict disaster. It's a rather predictable plot built on a somewhat shaky foundation. Definitely not my favorite book this week.
 
What do you think you will read next?
The Queen of Bright and Shiny Things by Ann Aguirre
The description of this teen romance hints at some emotional complexity and painful pasts for the main characters. 

Book review - The Lost Prince

Title: Seaborne #1: The Lost Prince
Author: Matt Myklusch
Genre: adventure, mild fantasy
Similar books: Peter and the Starcatchers by Dave Barry
                     The School for S.P.I.E.S by Bruce Hale
Rating:

clever, better than I expected

Summary: For as long as he can remember, Dean has been a spy for the pirate king One-Eyed Jack. An assignment to spy on captain Gentleman Jim gets complicated when they cross paths with men who claim to be Seekers from the hidden country of Zenhala. These men think Dean is their lost prince. He goes along with them to gather treasure for One-Eyed Jack, but as the trials go on Dean begins to question his mission.

My Opinion: This is one of those books that I could easily imagine as a movie. Loads of action, death defying stunts, treachery, plots, and other assorted adventurous doings. It began to lose me a little when they arrived at the island. There was a little too much description without enough payoff. And things seemed a little too exotic for no particular reason. If you can set aside disbelief, both in setting and some slightly logic defying plot points, this is a fun read. Additionally, the ending is far more successful than I expected, taking a somewhat surprising turn. Great for fans of secrets and pirates.

More Information: The Lost Prince releases April 14th.
Advance Reader Copy provided by NetGalley

Slightly nerdy pendants

Perhaps five years ago I was a big fan of the cartoon Avatar: the Last Airbender. It had an epic storyline, a complex mythology, and serious messages all combined with a delightful sense of play. It's one of those shows that you watch all the way through and then immediately want to start all over again. For some time now I've had this idea to make some pendants inspired by the emblems of the four nations on the show. This is what I came up with. They're somewhere between a quarter and a half-dollar in size, all made from polymer clay.

Zippety Day!

Today was Zippety Day at my library, a day to celebrate our mascot. And what better way to celebrate than with a party? With games, crafts, a specially written story, and a craft, Zippety Day is one of our favorite events to plan.

One of four posters featuring zippety

Playing Feed Zippety a Cookie

fishing - photo by Nicholas Navarre

Playing Musical Statues - photo by Nicholas Navarre

Wearing our Zippety hats with Zippety!

 

Book review - Black Dove, White Raven

Title: Black Dove, White Raven
Author: Elizabeth Wein
Genre: historical fiction
Similar books: Listening for Lions by Gloria Whelan
                     Flygirl by Sherri L. Smith
 Rating:

Pretty epic

Summary: Rhoda, Emilia, and Teo moved to Ethiopia from the United States in the 1930s. They wanted to escape the racial tensions and judgement that came along with a white woman raising a black child. They fell in love with their new country. When war with Italy threatens, they find themselves caught up in a new conflict. Will their new country save them or tear them apart?

My Opinion: Dual perspective, journal style writing can be hard to pull off but Wein is more than up to the task. The sheer scope of this novel may be off-putting for some but it is well worth the effort. This novel is a great source of cultural and historical education. It gives the reader a great deal to think about and discuss. The issues at play here (slavery, racial equality, colonialism, etc) are complex and have no simple resolution. It portrays each character's perspective not as "right" but as emphatic. And I like that the ending isn't a simply happy-ever-after but a sense of growth and ongoing change.
More information: Black Dove, White Raven releases March 31.
Advanced Reader Copy provided by NetGalley.

Books on screen

The Watsons Go to Birmingham - 1963

If you've read this book (and if you haven't you really ought to) you know that the first 3/4 of this book center around family humor. Its only in the final chapters, once they arrive in Alabama, that the serious political issues come into play. The movie version eliminates most of those early scenes and incorporates far more scenes of racial tension. It adds a scene where Byron and Kenny try to eat at a southern lunch counter and adds in cousins who talk about marching in a protest. While these things are important historically they entirely change the tone of the story. The original story shows us kids who have their eyes opened to injustice by as moment of intense violence. The movie makes it more of a process. More about a political situation and less about the individual. So, while both have merit, I personally prefer the novel. And if you enjoy audio books, this one is read by Levar Burton.