Listen with me

 

The June Boys by Court Stevens

What better way to travel into the new year than by listening to a thriller while running? With missing kids, family secrets, and complex plots this one promises to be a compelling listen.

Non-fiction book review - The ABCs of Black History

 

The ABCs of Black History by Rio Cortez

The reader will not be surprised to discover that this is far from a typical alphabet book. Really, Cortez is using the alphabet as a framework to introduce a wide variety of topics related to Black History and culture. Sometimes this is famous figures (Langston Hughes or Malcolm X). Some letters are represented by important events. More intriguing are the letters represented by concepts, things that can be hard to explain but which Cortez handles masterfully. I mean, I've never seen a picture book that uses the word "diaspora" before. Each letter gets just a few rhyming lines in the main text but is explained in more depth in the final pages of notes. The content is appropriate for young children but doesn't sugarcoat reality. This would be a great framework for a Black History Month curriculum, using each letter's concept as a focus for study.

Advanced Reader Copy provided by NetGalley

Book review - Escaping Eleven

 

Title: Escaping Eleven

Author: Jerri Chisholm

Genre: dystopia

Similar books: The City of Ember by Jeanne DuPrau 

                      The Seclusion by Jacqui Castle

Rating: 

 

a decent addition to the genre

Summary (provided by publisher): In Compound Eleven, the hierarchy of the floors is everything.
My name is Eve Hamilton, and on my floor, we fight.
Which at least is better than the bottom floor, where they toil away in misery. Only the top floor has any ease in this harsh world; they rule from their gilded offices.
Because four generations ago, Earth was rendered uninhabitable—the sun too hot, the land too barren. Those who remained were forced underground. While not a perfect life down here, I’ve learned to survive as a fighter.
Except my latest match is different. Instead of someone from the circuit, my opponent is a mysterious boy from the top floor. And the look in his eyes tells me he’s different…maybe even kind.
Right before he kicks my ass.
Still, there’s something about him—something that says he could be my salvation...or my undoing. Because I’m no longer content to just survive in Eleven. Today, I'm ready to fight for more than my next meal: I'm fighting for my freedom. And this boy may just be the edge I've been waiting on.

My opinion: We've seen a scant few dystopian teen novels in recent years. It's a shame since they were some of my favorites. Now that we're seeing more of them again, they're more innovative. Authors are finding new approaches to these worlds. Consider the world of Compound Eleven: heavily stratified by economics, limited opportunities for those in the lowest levels, a leader interested only in his own comfort and power. This is a fairly standard set-up. And Eve is a fairly standard protagonist. She's a have-not who dreams of escape. But there are some variations. For instance, Eve is not one of the lowest tier. This is important so that she has something to lose beyond her physical being and allows us to see her as compassionate. The role of fighting in the culture is an interesting twist. This is a world where fighting skills might get you a guard job or just as easily a professional fighting gig. A more interesting twist is Eve's view of her world. She begins the book plotting her escape. Most dystopias have the hero coming to a gradual realization that has them leaving on a whim. Eve plots out every step of her escape. Instead of learning reasons to leave, she's making ties with people and finding reasons to stay. With additional reflections on guilt and responsibility, I find this one well worth the read.
Advanced Reader Copy provided by NetGalley

Framed print

 Last year my brother brought me a signed print from a comic-con and I've been storing it carefully ever since, waiting for the perfect frame to hang it. Nothing ever really seemed right. And then I bought a large box of Pokemon cards and realized that the inner cardboard was a fantastic shade of teal. 

 

It was just what I've been looking for. It's the perfect frame for my print.

Crafty Christmas Countdown: 1

 Usually I draw cards for the people in my department. Of course, this is not a normal year. With people working remotely, I don't know when I'll be seeing some of them again. So I made just one more detailed card that I photographed and sent as a sort of e-card. And now I'm sending it to all of you. A very merry Christmas to all of you.

Crafty Christmas Countdown: 2

 Since I learned how to punch needle this year, I really wanted to incorporate that into this countdown. I played with a couple of different images before settling on this one (inspired by this needle felted image I saw on Pinterest). What says Merry Christmas more than a brussels sprout wearing a crown from a Christmas cracker? 

While I was adding the crown, made from felt and some tiny sequins, I went ahead and made a couple of hairpins: another cracker crown and a clutch of pompoms.

 

Crafty Christmas Countdown: 3

 Today's craft is a quick one, a velvet coloring poster. It may not be fancy, but this quirky image amuses me and I have a soft spot for these coloring kits which were fairly popular when I was a kid.

Crafty Christmas Countdown: 4

 Sometimes, I go to throw something away and am struck by it's possibility as a craft supply. That's what happened with this body wash bottle. Already a cute shape, when I looked at it I could see it's refashioned into a lady gnome.

And here it is, repainted.

Crafty Christmas Countdown: 5

 I have a small collection of decorative plaques in different shapes I've picked up to paint. These round ones are pretty universally useful.

Sometimes I go in with a plan; other times I just sort of slap paint on the plaque until it looks like something. This was more of the latter sort. Still, I'm fairly pleased with how it turned out.

Crafty Christmas Countdown: 6

 A couple of years ago, my big puppet build was a cranky fruitcake. It remains one of my favorite puppets, though this year's may give it a run for it's money.

From a simple foam tube ....

to a yule log cake.

Crafty Christmas Countdown: 7

 I'm a fan of atypical decorations. Things you won't see in every house. So when I spotted these fabric jellyfish I was inspired. I started with a circle of Christmas patterned flannel.

I gathered the edge into a dome, stuffed it, and closed the bottom with a smaller circle of fabric.

Some rickrack and bias tape give the jellyfish tentacles.

Crafty Christmas Countdown: 8

 I don't consider myself particularly macabre. I'm not super into Halloween. But recently I've found myself rather taken with the plastic animal skeleton decorations you find in stores in the fall. I've collected a trio of them I didn't want to put away when we decorated for Christmas so I've been trying all month to think of a way to incorporate them into our decor. I started by making them a sleigh out of cardboard and construction paper.

A hat, some cord, and a couple of pompoms turned the skeletons into Santa and his team. I even suspended the bat from the ceiling with a little string.

 

Crafty Christmas Countdown: 9

 Several years ago, I used to upcycle promotional buttons with wire, sequins, and the like for craft fairs. After I ran out of buttons, I got out of the practice. I rediscovered it this week, though, when I found a random button and some Christmas fabric.

The first step is to spread glue all over the front and around the perimeter of the back of the button. Stretch your fabric tight over the glue and leave it to dry. I usually put a weight on top of it to hold the fabric in place. Once the glue is dry, trim any excess fabric and glue down any loose places. Then add your embellishments. For this button I added a couple of custom cut sequins. I prefer to use a stronger glue, either E6000 or hot glue, for this step. Once the glue is set, seal coat the button.

Crafty Christmas Countdown: 10

 I never really got the fascination with nutcrackers, but I have to admit they present a real opportunity for personalization. I purchased this nutcracker painting kit, struck by the fact that he has cymbals instead of a sword or staff.

Wanting to do something a little different with the decoration, I decided on an ice king theme for the paint, focusing on light blue, silver, and white.

Crafty Christmas Countdown: 11

 Have you ever bought those little paintable, plaster figures? They usually come six in a pack and are fairly cheap, cute, and easy to decorate. They're a favorite in our house. This year we bought a set with Santa and five reindeer and split them between the two of us. I'm fairly happy with how mine came out.

Crafty Christmas Countdown: 12

Today, I tackled my annual tradition of a Christmas farm display. This year I added some new figures and built a cardboard structure so that our little farm can put on a living nativity.

Crafty Christmas Countdown: 13

 I make no secret of my fondness for puppets. Especially for sock puppets. Every time I think I've run out of unique ideas, I come up with a new one. I'll admit, I found it a challenge this year to come up with a new Christmas themed puppet. Then, while looking for inspiration for another project, I came across this image.

Wilfred (occasional companion on Doctor Who if you're unfamiliar) was the perfect subject for a sock puppet. I was so excited for this build that I completely forgot to take any process photos.

This particular sock puppet required two socks. One serves as a base with a layer of quilt batting to add some softness to Wilfred's face. I cut the leg off of the outer sock, building the body instead from some green fabric.

 

 

Crafty Christmas Countdown: 14

 Peg dolls are one of my favorite forms of crafting these days. At Christmas, I especially enjoy painting peg versions of my favorite characters. This year, I went with Emmet from "Emmet Otter's Jug-Band Christmas". He works quite well in the peg doll form.

Crafty Christmas Countdown: 15

 Today's craft was another kit. This was a small canvas bag with a design printed on it. The bag came with a couple of washable markers but I used some fabric markers and a little bit of fabric paint instead, to give it a more complex look.

Then, while I was waiting for the paint to dry, I was messing around with some dough we had leftover from something else. On a whim, I cut out some dinosaur shapes and decided to see if they would air dry. They dried quite nicely and I turned the into ornaments with a decorative bead.

the stegosaurus makes me think of an iced animal cookie

 

Crafty Christmas Countdown: 16

 Ever bought Kinder Joy eggs? These egg shaped containers have soft chocolate candy in one side and a little toy in the other. I've always wanted to use the toy side of the egg in a craft project. And finally I had the perfect idea: the Child in his pod. I started by cutting one egg half and gluing the cut piece to another half.

Then I painted the pod grey. 

I needle felted the Child. It was my first attempt at needle felting, so I failed to take any progress photos (my bad). Honestly, needle felting seems to be a make-it-up-as-you-go-along sort of craft. Here's my completed figure.

Then I glued him into his pod and added garland to make it more festive. He hangs nicely on our tree.

Crafty Christmas Countdown: 17

 Today I'm bringing you another wreath. I like the idea of making my own wreath from scratch but I have neither the skills nor the materials. What I do have is a wire wreath frame and a bright green garland from the dollar store. A short garland is the perfect length for a small wreath frame. I just wrapped the garland loosely around the frame, securing the ends with a dab of hot glue. A quick wrap with ribbon adds just a little visual interest and makes a hanger for the wreath.

I debated the right decoration for a long time, finally settling on these pompom spiders. I made one each in red, green, and gold.

Since the green one was inclined to get lost in the garland, I hung it from the wreath with a loop of tinsel. Three spiders weren't enough so I made some flies out of small beads with tissue paper wings.

Crafty Christmas Countdown: 18

 We have a wreath that we redesign every year. If you're a regular reader, you may recognize the scarf that we use as a ribbon. 

We decided to try something different with the decorations this year, starting with a large cardboard tree (designed for a different project that didn't work out) in the center.

Once the tree was anchored, I added some paper stars I keep around and a couple of glitter reindeer.

Crafty Christmas Countdown: 19

 Today's project is a simple but effective one. I have a small string of colored lights. They're festive but there's room to punch it up. So I thought I'd make some light decorations. Since the lights are colored, the decorations needed to be simple: snowmen.

I started with some white posterboard and an led candle for a pattern.

I punched a hole in each circle and added eyes and a mouth with marker.

Then I just fitted the snowmen onto the bulbs.