Over the summer I made some floral hair pins. They turned out fairly well but I wasn't completely happy with the look. They are tidy but not very dynamic. So I tried a different design, gathering the petals more. And this is the result.
Doctor Who (Doctor Baer even sort of resembles the Doctor as portrayed by David Tenant) meets Jackaby in this offbeat adventure. Doctor Baer is a fastidious character with a deep understanding of cursed objects who finds himself thrown into an adventure with an overly-eager pair of sidekicks. The stakes are high but the tone is light. The art is incredibly detailed but never takes itself too seriously. That makes this a great deal of fun to race-through or linger on an individual page and lends itself well to re-reading.
Author: A. S. King
Genre: realistic fiction-ish (it's sort of hard to define)
Similar books: Where Things Come Back by John Corey Whaley
Feed by M. T. Anderson
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Summary (provided by publisher): Jane Vandermaker-Cook would like her mother back. As Jane's mother tours the world to support the family, Jane lives and goes to school in a Victorian mansion with her younger brother and their mendacious father who confines Jane’s mother to a system of pneumatic tubes whenever she’s at home. And then there's weirdly ever-present Aunt Finch, Milorad the gardener, and his rat, Brutus. For Jane, this all seems normal until she suddenly gains access to the files for a lifetime of security-camera videos—her lifetime.
My opinion: I thought I might find this book entirely too strange to enjoy. It is, after all, highly strange. There's a strong sense of unreality to every aspect of the plot. And yet it works. Not unlike watching a Jordan Peale film, we quickly accept the strange elements of the story as part of how this world works. The details are parceled out with excellent timing. Even as we get a complete plot there are plenty of questions left unanswered. This is a book that would be well suited to a book club setting.
Advanced Reader Copy provided by NetGalley
If you were to judge this book solely by the cover you might expect a simple list of familiar holidays. Don't be fooled. Clocking in at nearly two hundred pages, we get a relatively comprehensive exploration of holidays and festivals. Broken up by intent, rather than calendar date, each celebration gets a full treatment. We learn about the culture it comes from, how it is celebrated, and approximately when it happens during the year. This is a book you can read all at once or revisit periodically as the festivals occur. As such it's a solid choice for a child or a strong resource for adults working with children.
Advanced Reader Copy provided by NetGalley
What are you currently reading?
The Hysterical Girls of St Bernadette's by Hanna Alkaf - St Bernadette's School for girls has a sterling reputation. But the girls have started screaming. Separately Khadijah and Rachel investigate the screaming and the secrets of the school
What did you recently finish reading?
Pick the Lock by A S King - Ever since the COVID lockdown Jane has not been allowed to leave the house. Her world has been narrowed to her father, brother, and household staff. Her mother is either on tour as a popular punk musician or locked into a series of pneumatic tubes in the house. Through the punk rock opera she is writing and secret access to the house security system, Jane attempts to understand the strange world of her family.
What do you think you'll read next?
Movies Showing Nowhere by Yorick Goldewijk
Author: Suzanne Selfors
Genre: magical realism
Similar books: The Tale of Despereaux by Kate DiCamillo
The Curse of Eelgrass Bog by Mary Averling
Rating:
.JPG)
Summary (provided by publisher): Ratty Barclay wasn't supposed to be born a four-foot-tall, walking, talking rodent, but thanks to the Barclay family curse, he's had to live in hiding from the rest of the world. All he wants for his thirteenth birthday is to return to his family's abandoned estate on Fairweather Island to somehow break the curse. Then he'll finally get to live his life as a four-foot-tall, walking, talking, human boy.
Edweena Gup, the granddaughter of the Barclays' groundskeeper, has dedicated her life to being a Rat-Catcher Extraordinaire like her great-great-great grandmother before her. It doesn't matter that Fairweather Island has been rat-free for over a hundred years—she's determined to make sure everyone is prepared for their imminent return. And when she spots a human-sized rat lurking on the Barclay grounds, her worst fears are confirmed.
Though it seems like Ratty and Edweena are destined to be enemies, they have a lot in common—they're both lonely and misunderstood. But will they be able to overcome their fears of each other and maybe even become . . . friends?
My opinion: The concept here sounds a bit strange and we quickly develop expectations for the direction of the plot. In some ways it matches those expectations but there are enough variations to make it surprising and pleasant. The pacing is strong, moving the action rapidly while leaving just enough space for reflection to allow the characters to have some depth. Ultimately, this is a pleasant read with enough depth to satisfy a young reader.
Advanced Reader Copy provided by NetGalley
Author: Tina Cane
Genre: verse novel/realistic fiction
Similar books: With Just One Wing by Brenda Woods
Every Shiny Thing by Cordelia Jensen
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Summary (provided by publisher): After a year of distance-learning, Emily Sofer finds her world turned upside down: she has to leave the only school she's ever known to attend a public school in Chinatown. For the first time, Emily isn't the only Chinese student around...but looking like everyone else doesn't mean that understanding them will be easy--especially with an intimidating group of cool girls Emily calls The Five.
When Emily discovers that her adoptive parents have been keeping a secret, she feels even more uncertain about who she is. A chance discovery of Emily Dickinson's poetry helps her finally feel seen. . . but can the words of a writer from 200 years ago help her open up again, and find common ground with the Five?
My opinion: There's a lot going on in this book. Emily feels undefined. She's changed schools and doesn't feel like she belongs. She's realizing how different she is from her parents and how her background marks here as different. And she hasn't felt "normal" since the lockdown for the pandemic. She's looking for belonging and doesn't know how to find it. Her sense of isolation rings through every word as she tries to find herself through poetry.
Advanced Reader Copy provided by NetGalley
