Blue Ethel

Blue Ethel. Jennifer Black Reinhardt. 2017. 40 pages. [Source: Library]

First sentence: Ethel was old. She was fat. She was black. She was white. And she was very set in her ways.

Premise/plot: Love cats? You should meet Ethel. I loved her at hello. She's a creature of routine, and, I can certainly appreciate that!

Every day Ethel went outside to survey the land, monitor the weather, chase villains, and explore her favorite sidewalk square, where she liked to roll before taking a nap after her long day. It wasn't easy being Ethel, but she was good at it.

Blue Ethel is the story of what happens to shake up Ethel's routine. One day Ethel's sidewalk square has been colored on with sidewalk chalk. And Ethel, well, she's not quite the same cat as before once she's done rolling around on HER square.

My thoughts: I ADORED the text of this one. I absolutely adored it. I loved how Ethel made friends with Fluffy. And the ending was FABULOUS. I couldn't imagine a better ending for this one. That being said, I'm not sure I adored the illustrations as much as I did the text. A few pages I loved however. (For example, the page with the sidewalk. A child has been BUSY. And the art on the sidewalk is definitely KID ART.) I loved the end papers as well!

Text: 5 out of 5
Illustrations: 4 out of 5
Total: 9 out of 10



© 2017 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

Wish

Wish. Barbara O'Connor. 2016. FSG. 240 pages. [Source: Library]

First sentence: I looked down at the paper on my desk. The "getting to know you" paper.

Premise/plot: Charlie Reese is a wish-maker. She's made the same wish--in hundreds of ways--for at least the past year. Her dad is in jail; her mom is checked out from reality; her oldest sister is staying with a friend. Charlie? She's moved to Colby to stay with an aunt and uncle she's never met. She's been assigned a backpack buddy named Howard, an easygoing friend with a large family. Adjusting to her new life will take time and courage, will Charlie's wish come true?

My thoughts: I want more Howard. I love him. I do. Maybe it's silly to get so attached to a fictional character, but seriously a Howard in real life would be a girl's dream come true. I love the book. I love the characters. Bertha and Gus, Howard, Wishbone, the whole Odom family. This is a middle grade novel with heart! No wonder the author is getting fan letters from kids saying that she's the best author ever!


© 2017 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

Emperors of the Ice

Emperors of the Ice. Richard Farr. 2008. FSG. [Source: Review copy]

I have mixed feelings on Emperors of the Ice: A True Story of Disaster and Survival in the Antarctic, 1910-13. On the one hand, it is a fictional memoir based on an actual memoir. Much research was done to write this one. Perhaps just as much research as if it was a traditional nonfiction book. The author's love of the subject was evident throughout. The book is told primarily if not exclusively through the eyes of one of the men on the expedition, Apsley Cherry-Garrard. The exception being the few places where readers learn what happened to other members of the expedition. On the other hand, was it absolutely necessary to fictionalize a memoir in order to tell the story? I think there were things to be gained by such a decision, and, perhaps a few things lost.

Aside from the fact that this one doesn't really quite fit in as fiction or nonfiction, Emperors of the Ice was an interesting read. It was not quite as depressing as you might expect. I've read more depressing books on this subject certainly. The focus of this book is more on science and exploration than on the race to be first to the South Pole. This book argues that it was never about being first or being best. This book tells the basic story, but, it includes plenty of details. For example, I learned that one of the teams--science teams--went to the Antarctic to study emperor penguins. Their goal was to learn about the penguins and their eggs. It wasn't exactly learning by observation. Cherry was part of that team. I learned quite a few things.

© 2014 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

Reread #22 Greetings From Nowhere

Greetings from Nowhere. Barbara O'Connor. 2008. FSG. 208 pages. [Source: Library]

Greetings From Nowhere is a charming book that I just love! It centers around Sleepy Time Motel in the Great Smoky Mountains. Aggie, the owner, is a widow. She is finding it difficult--really difficult--to keep the motel going. Sometimes months go by between guests. And the last time a guest came, it was by chance they stayed even one night. Financially, it makes sense for Aggie to consider selling. It is what she "needs" to do practically. But is her heart ready to let go of her dream? But this isn't Aggie's story. She is not the protagonist. This book has multiple young narrators. All end up at the Sleepy Time Motel. There is Kirby, the "troubled" boy, who is on his way to reform school; Loretta who is traveling in the Smoky Mountains with her parents; and Willow who has come with her Dad to inspect the motel before buying it. None of the guests are particularly happy-happy-cheerful. Not everyone is equally gloomy either. Every single person in the novel has recently undergone change or is about to undergo change.

Loretta, for example, perhaps the most "happy" of the bunch, has learned that her birth mother has died. She received a charm bracelet in the mail. She still knows so very little about her birth mother. Just the mystery of a bracelet, she's trying to puzzle together who her mother was, what she was like, what she liked, what she did, based on these charms. That is what has fueled this family vacation. They are following the trail of her birth mother.

Willow is perhaps the saddest. Her mother left her and her Dad. Nothing has been the same since she left. Her mother's name isn't allowed to be mentioned. There is something broken about her family. The Dad decides the family needs a HUGE change. Willow doesn't want a huge change; she doesn't even want a tiny change.

Kirby is perhaps the angriest or most hurt depending on your perspective. Does Kirby do bad things for attention? Yes. His mother. His father. His stepfather all seem to reject him, to want to be rid of him, to think that he's a big hopeless mess instead of a growing boy.

I liked this community-focused novel. I definitely recommend it!




I first reviewed Greetings From Nowhere in May 2008.

© 2014 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

Two Picture Books Turning Ten

This is The Baby. Candace Fleming. Illustrated by Maggie Smith. 2004. FSG. 40 pages. [Source: Book I Own]

This is the baby who hates to be dressed.
"No! No! Nooo!"
This is the diaper, often a mess, that goes on the baby who hates to be dressed.
"No! No! Nooo!"
This is the T-shirt, wrinkled a lot, that snaps over the diaper, often a mess, that goes on the baby who hates to be dressed.
"No! No! Nooo!"
This is the sweater, itchy and hot, that covers the T-shirt, wrinkled a lot, that snaps over the diaper, often a mess, that goes on the baby who hates to be dressed.
"No! No! Nooo!"
These are the jeans, stiff in the knee....

I love this one. I do. I like true picture books. Stories that reflect every day situations and struggles, stories that look at life realistically. The book is also fun and playful. I also like picture books that are repetitive or that have refrains, making it easy for little ones to join in during the reading.

In This is the Baby, readers meet one stubborn mother and one just-as-stubborn baby. Who will win the battle?!

This one has a good twist on it, a bit predictable perhaps, but still fun! I would definitely recommend this one to parents who have little ones who like to wiggle and giggle free and undressed...

Text: 5 out of 5
Illustrations: 4 out of 5
Total: 9 out of 10

Dig! Andrea Zimmerman and David Clemesha. Illustrated by Marc Rosenthal. 2004. Harcourt. 32 pages. [Source: Book I Own]

Mr. Rally drives a big yellow backhoe. It has a scooper and a pusher. Mr. Rally loves to dig in the dirt. So does his dog, Lightning. Mr. Rally buckles his overalls and pulls on his boots. He has five big digging jobs to do today. He counts them. One. Two. Three. Four. Five. Job #1 up ahead. One is a bridge on the ridge. 

Dig is a fun picture book that I really enjoy. Readers meet Mr. Rally and his dog, Lightning.

Readers see the two get excited about digging in the dirt. This one has a repeating refrain: "Dig up rock and dig up clay! Dig up dirt and dig all day!" This refrain is repeated at all five jobs, as is the congratulating refrain of "Good job, Mr. Rally! Good job, Lighting!" 

After a long day of work, you might think Mr. Rally would want to go home and relax. And he does, in his own way, I suppose. But at the end of his day, Mr. Rally can still be found digging alongside Lightning. He loves to dig for work and play, of course. He loves to dig at home in his garden.

Text: 4 out of 5
Illustrations: 4 out of 5
Total: 8 out of 10

© 2014 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

Salt: A Story of Friendship in Time of War

Salt: A Story of Friendship in a Time of War. Helen Frost. 2013. FSG. 160 pages. [Source: Library]

I definitely liked this verse novel set in the Indiana Territory during the War of 1812. I liked the dual narration. I liked reading about the times from the perspective of the Native Americans (Anikwa, is our young hero) and from the perspective of the white settlers (James, our second young hero). These two boys can be on the best of terms: doing plenty of things side by side, learning from each other, laughing at each other, too. But their are forces pulling these two cultures apart. There are people in James life telling him that the Indians are NOT their friends, that the peaceful coexistence is done with, the Indians will join with the British any day now, and then there will be trouble, then there will be blood. But James is unsure. He knows what he knows, what he has experienced, and he feels that Anikwa and his family could never really be their enemies. Misunderstandings do occur in the novel, and the danger is real on both sides. But there is a theme of friendship and trust in the novel which I enjoyed.

© 2014 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

Two Graphic Novels (Ray Bradbury)

Ray Bradbury's Something Wicked This Way Comes, The Authorized Adaptation. Ron Wimberly. Introduction by Ray Bradbury. 2011. FSG. 144 pages.

First of all, it was October. A rare month for boys. Not that all months aren't rare. But there be bad and good, as the pirates say. Take September, a bad month: school begins. Consider August, a good month: school hasn't begun yet. July, well, July's really fine: there's no chance in the world for school. June, no doubting it, June's best of all, for the school doors spring wide and September's a billion years away. But you take October, now. School's been on a month and you're riding easier in the reins, jogging along. 

What makes a graphic novel adaptation work? I'm not sure I could say. For graphic novels are not in my comfort zone at all. I rarely pick up graphic novels to "review," for I don't feel qualified to comment. The graphic novels I tend to read are adaptations of novels that I've already read--for better or worse.

I recently read the official adaptation of Ray Bradbury's Something Wicked This Way Comes. What did I think of it? Well, it made me WANT to read the book, the "real" book. This story, in its adaptation, in its abridgment, just wasn't enough to satisfy me. I wanted more, needed more. That's not a bad thing at all. If every single reader of this graphic novel responds the same way I did--with the NEED or DESIRE to pick up the original Ray Bradbury novel, that wouldn't be a bad thing. Indeed, you might say it was a GOOD thing. For there is no replacing, no improving the original novel.

The magical wonder--the horror, the terror, the suspense--of this story is in the words, the phrases, the sentences. And this graphic novel adaptation is able to only capture a part of that wonder. Every reader will have to decide for himself (or herself) if the addition of the illustrations is worth losing a little something of the original. (For the record, only the cover has colored illustrations, the rest of the graphic novel is in black and white.) For me, the graphic novel just doesn't have that magical something of the original.

Read Ray Bradbury's Something Wicked This Way Comes, The Authorized Adaptation

• If you're a fan of graphic novels
• If you're a fan of dark fantasy, horror, and suspense
• If you're looking for a dark(er) coming of age story
• If you're a participant of the R.I.P. challenge and are looking for an easy read you could finish in just an afternoon
• If you're a fan of Ray Bradbury

Ray Bradbury's The Martian Chronicles, The Authorized Adaptation. Dennis Calero. Introduced by Ray Bradbury. 2011. FSG. 160 pages.

One minute it was Ohio winter, with doors closed, windows locked, the panes blind with frost, icicles fringing every roof, children skiing on slopes, housewives lumbering like great black bears in their furs along the icy streets.

Compared to the adaptation of Ray Bradbury's Something Wicked This Way Comes, the official adaptation which I reviewed above, this adaptation of The Martian Chronicles is very satisfying indeed! Now, here's where it becomes tricky, compared to the original novel by Ray Bradbury, it still is second best at most. (I haven't listened to it on audio, or any radio dramas of it, and I definitely didn't make it past the twenty minute mark on the made-for-TV adaptation of it.) I definitely liked the cover and thought it well done! And the illustrations in this graphic novel are full color!!!

If this adaptation was a FULL adaptation, I wouldn't hesitate to give it my highest recommendation. But. Readers do not get the full collection of stories. Readers get just fourteen out of 27 stories. Here are the stories readers do get:

• Rocket Summer
• Ylla
• The Summer Night
• The Earth Men
• The Third Expedition
• --And the Men Be Still As Bright
• The Green Morning
• Night Meeting
• Interim
• The Musicians
• The Martian
• The Off Season
• The Watchers
• The Million-Year Picnic

Here are the stories, readers will be missing out on:

• The Taxpayer
• The Settlers
• The Locusts
• The Shore
• The Fire Balloons
• The Wilderness (*I believe The Wilderness replaced "Way In the Middle of the Air" in some editions. I don't know how other readers feel about the change, but I'm all for it. The Wilderness is a much better story in my opinion.) 
• The Naming of Names
• Usher II
• The Old Ones
• The Luggage Store
• The Silent Towns
• The Long Years
• There Will Come Soft Rains

It is just wrong, wrong, WRONG that this adaptation does not include "Usher II" and "There Will Come Soft Rains."

Some of what is 'missing' are just vignettes or preludes, but, I think some of the preludes help transition between stories. For example, reading "The Luggage Store" before "The Off Season" helps. As does reading "The Old Ones" before "The Martian." And I think something is lost by not including "The Silent Towns" and "The Long Years" which reflect the absence of life on Mars, and "There Will Come Soft Rains" is the perfect, perfect story for setting up "The Million Year Picnic". Something important, something vital is missing--in terms of tone, of message--if you don't have the full sequence.

So the full-length stories that are missing are: The Fire Balloons, The Wilderness, Way In the Middle of the Air, Usher II, The Silent Towns, The Long Years, There Will Come Soft Rains.

How do I feel about the adaptations? Well, I thought some of them were well done. Probably my favorite adaptation was "Night Meeting."

Is the original novel still best? Yes!!! I won't lie. This collection of short stories is so wonderful, so amazing, so incredible, so thoughtful, so soulful, so beautiful, so practically perfect in every way that I have to say that the original is better than any adaptation.

Read Ray Bradbury's The Martian Chronicles, The Authorized Adaptation

• If you're a fan of science fiction
• If you're a fan of Ray Bradbury
• If you're a fan of graphic novels
• If you love short stories, Ray Bradbury's are among the BEST.

© 2012 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

Dead End in Norvelt (MG)

Dead End in Norvelt. Jack Gantos. 2011. FSG. 352 pages.

School was finally out and I was standing on a picnic table in our backyard getting ready for a great summer vacation when my mother walked up to me and ruined it.

Chances are you'll like this one more than I did. Many people have, after all, it did win the Newbery this year. But. For me. Dead End in Norvelt wasn't that great a book. It wasn't that funny--at least I didn't find bloody noses and dead bodies to be all that hilarious. (Jack Gantos is NOT Richard Peck. And Dead End in Norvelt isn't A Long Way From Chicago or A Year Down Yonder.)

So, the hero of this novel, Jack Gantos, spends most of his summer vacation grounded. Put into a difficult place by both parents. His mother is keeping secret an incident involving Jack and his father's Japanese gun. As long as he stays on her good side, he may live to see the summer through. His father wants Jack to mow down his mother's corn fields. He plans to build a runway for a plane he just bought, and he's also working on a bomb shelter. Both projects, of course, just have to be right where his mother planted corn. His father doesn't want his mother to know about the plane, at least not yet. What's a boy to do?

So. Even before the family drama gets a chance to begin, his mother volunteers him to help out Miss Volker. He'll be writing/typing out obituaries for the newspaper. Each obituary features something about the life of the deceased--as is only right and proper--and something of a historical aside. Miss Volker has some strange, strange ideas on what historical facts, what historical figures, are relevant. The summer Jack's grounded, Miss Volker keeps him very, very, very busy. For SO MANY old people are dying this year. Miss Volker is the medical examiner, I believe, as well as the person writing the obituary, so she's always interested in who's going to be next. She seems a little too excited about her job...

I just didn't like the characters all that much. And the story, well, it just didn't thrill me. All the history lessons felt odd to me. It reminded me of Arsenic and Old Lace. How that film was supposed to be funny too.

Read Dead End in Norvelt

• If you're a fan of Jack Gantos
• If you're a fan of historical fiction set in the 1960s
• If you're a fan of boy stories, boy humor
• If you're reading Newbery books

© 2012 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

My Brother's Shadow (MG)

My Brother's Shadow. Monika Schroder. 2011. FSG. 224 pages.

I definitely enjoyed this one. It was so emotional, so intense. This historical novel is set in Germany--in 1918--during the last few months of the war. The narrator, Moritz, is sixteen and working as a printer at the Berliner Daily. Moritz struggles with many, many things throughout the novel. For example, he loves his older brother, Hans, so much. Yet he can't quite be okay with some of his older brother's friends--his brother was part of a gang. And he feels horribly guilty wanting the war to be over--no matter who wins or loses--because his brother is a soldier. And he's more embarrassed than impressed by his mother's socialist leanings. Why does his mother have to be a LEADER in the Socialist/Democrat party?! Why must she call for such radical changes?! So what does he believe to be best for Germany? Will he side with his mother, his sister, his aunt? Or will he side with his older brother who returns home from war a changed man--very angry, very cruel, very bitter?

I liked this one. I thought it was very well-written. I liked the characterization. I liked the powerful story. It was interesting to see the German perspective of the war.




Read My Brother's Shadow

• If you're a fan of historical fiction
• If you're a fan of war stories
• If you're a fan of stories set in Germany during this time period

© 2012 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

All These Things I've Done (YA)

All These Things I've Done. Gabrielle Zevin. 2011. FSG. 354 pages.

The night before Junior year--I was sixteen, barely--Gable Arsley said he wanted to sleep with me.

 I enjoyed this one. It wasn't quite what I was expecting. Which wasn't a bad thing at all. It was different, yes, but in a good way, a unique way.

Set in the future, in 2083, our heroine, Anya, is the daughter of a mobster. Her family business? Chocolate. Yes, in Zevin's futuristic society, chocolate and caffeine are illegal substances. And just like prohibition, the ban of chocolate has led to a rise in crime and crime families. There are a handful of families--world-wide--who deal in chocolate and the like. And it can be a dangerous, dangerous game. Just ask our heroine. For she's lost her mother, her father, and in a way her brother. Her parents were both killed--murdered. And her brother has not been the same since the accident that took his mother's life. Anya knows he may never be grown up enough to take care of himself, to take care of his younger sisters, to take care of the family business. And she's accepted that. She has. She knows that even though she's not technically the oldest, it is her responsibility to take care of everyone. And that everyone includes her grandmother, Galina, who is confined to her bed and kept alive by machines. 

So what happens when she falls in love with the Assistant D.A's son...quite a bit! Because even though she's not actively in the family business, even though she's not a 'real' criminal, her life has its dangers and risks. For even if she doesn't want a part of her family legacy, there's no escaping it either.

As I said, this is an interesting read. And I am glad I read it.

© 2011 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

My Life Undecided (YA)

My Life Undecided. Jessica Brody. 2011. FSG. 320 pages.

The sirens are louder than I anticipated.

I really enjoyed My Life Undecided. It is a fun read, very light, a bit silly, a bit predictable. But there are many satisfying moments in it. And once you've started it, well, it might be difficult to be put down. Not every book has to be oh-so-serious, right?

The heroine of this one, Brooklyn Pierce, struggles with making good decisions. Her life is full of mistakes and regrets. She always thinks she's doing the 'right' thing--like having a party in her mother's model home, while her parents are out of town. But she almost always makes the wrong decision, she chooses what feels good in the moment, and, well, she usually has to face the consequences.

The novel opens with her having to face the consequences...yet again. She's sentenced to community service.

Anyway, she decides early on that since she is horrible at controlling her own life, she'd open up all her decisions to others. She'd start a blog and let readers vote on how she should live her life. Any time she needs to make a decision, she writes a post and creates a poll.


But this decision to blog may not be the best way to live her life after all...

Can Brooklyn grow up and take responsibility for her own life?

© 2011 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

Fahrenheit 451 (graphic novel)

Ray Bradbury's Fahrenheit 451: The Authorized Adaptation. Ray Bradbury. Illustrated by Tim Hamilton. 2009. July 2009. FSG. 160 pages. 

It was a pleasure to burn. 
It was a special pleasure to see things eaten...
...To see things blackened and changed.

Wow! I loved this one. I just LOVED it. It wasn't my first time reading the novel--though this is the graphic novel adaptation--but it still wowed me.

Montag, our hero, is unhappy with his life. But he hasn't a clue until he meets a young girl, Clarisse, who is 'seventeen and insane.' Through his all too brief friendship with Clarisse, he begins to really look at the world around him, to think about things clearly and deeply, to question himself. Montag is a fireman. He starts fires. He burns books. He hasn't always questioned his life, his choices, but he's questioning everything now. And it is his recent choices--to 'save' books from the fire, to keep books in his own home, to quote poetry--that put his life in danger.

Who knows who might be the target of the well-read man? Me? I won't stomach them for a minute...Remember, Montag, we're the happiness boys. We stand against the small tide of those who want to make everyone unhappy with conflicting theory and thought. (50-1)

 We've started and won two atomic wars since 1990! Is it because we're having so much fun at home we've forgotten the world? Is it because we're so rich and the rest of the world's so poor and we just don't care if they are? Is that why we're hated so much? Do you know why? I don't, that's sure! Maybe the books can get us half out of the cave. God, Millie, don't you see? An hour a day, two hours, with these books, and maybe... (62)

Do you know why books such as this are so important? They have quality. And what does the word quality mean? To me it means texture. This book has pores. It has features...."detail, fresh detail. The good writers touch life often. You see why books are hated and feared? They show the pores in the face of life." (74)

Good God, it isn't as simple as just picking up a book you laid down half a century ago. Remember, the firemen are rarely necessary. The public itself stopped reading of its own accord. (78)

Fahrenheit 451 is a great book. Very intense. Very compelling. I definitely think it's a must read.
I think it adapts quite well to graphic novel format. I enjoyed the art--it was great at helping set the tone. 

© Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

The Fantastic Secret of Owen Jester (MG)

The Fantastic Secret of Owen Jester. Barbara O'Connor. 2010. August 2010. FSG. 176 pages.

Owen Jester tiptoed across the gleaming linoleum floor and slipped the frog into the soup.

While I can't say I loved The Fantastic Secret of Owen Jester as much as The Small Adventure of Popeye and Elvis or Greetings From Nowhere, I still can't say I was disappointed. (I just happen to love, love, love The Small Adventure of Popeye And Elvis. And Greetings from Nowhere has a certain charm to it that made it memorable to me.)

Since moving in with his grandfather, life hasn't been quite the same for Owen Jester. True, he's caught a bullfrog and named him Tooley Graham. (It is this frog who stars in the practical joke of the first sentence. He's hoping to scare Earlene.) True, he loves being able to explore the land around his house--the woods, the pond, around the railroad tracks, etc. And he's even able to still see his best friends--Travis and Stumpy--even if he isn't able to see them as much. But then there's Earlene and Viola. Earlene who keeps house for his grandfather and doesn't put up with nonsense from anyone. Viola who is a bossy, nosy, know-it-all girl living next door. At least, Viola has allergies. Else Owen wouldn't ever be rid of her. Right? Wrong!

Throughout the book, Viola is nagging Owen about Tooley. Telling him again and again how bullfrogs don't want to have names, don't want to be pets, don't want to be kept in cages. How he needs to set Tooley free. How much happier and healthier Tooley will be if he's given his freedom. And Owen tries and tries and tries to ignore Viola. But. That isn't always easy to do. Especially when Tooley starts showing signs of being depressed.

So what is Owen Jester's secret? Well, I think you need to read this one and discover it yourself! I will tell you it has to do with something that has fallen off a train!

© Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

Finding My Place (MG/YA)

Finding My Place. Traci L. Jones. 2010. May 2010. FSG. 192 pages.

For most people, the big news during the fall of 1975 was the second assassination attempt on President Ford. Not for me. For me, that October was the month my father, Morris Ray Baker, and my mother, Annie Louise Baker, decided to completely ruin my life. Oh, they claimed it was not only a good move for our family, but a step forward for our race as a whole. My parents were big on doing their part to uplift the race, which meant I was expected to do my part as well.

Tiphanie, our narrator, is convinced that this move to a new neighborhood, a new school, is bad news. She'll be starting a new school where she'll be one of two black students--Bradley being the other. Tiphanie is unsure of it all. Are people staring at her because she's new? Or are they staring because she's black? Are people ignoring her because that's just the way they are? Would any new student get the same treatment? Or are her classmates racist? She doesn't want to overreact. But she can't help wishing that they'd been a warmer welcome. More people smiling, more people talking to her, asking her to be a part of their group.

Not everyone is shy. Jackie Sue is anything but shy. Some might argue she's a bit too blunt. (She tells Tiphanie her name is spelled wrong, and that none of the white guys at their school would be brave enough to date her. Even if they wanted to, they'd be too afraid of what others would think.) But Jackie Sue and Tiphanie are soon good friends. But not everyone is happy about this friendship. Clay, for example, is openly hostile. He doesn't want Jackie Sue talking to Tiphanie. And he certainly doesn't want Jackie inviting Tiphanie back to her trailer home. Tiphanie's parents aren't thrilled by the friendship either. They think their daughter could do better. Jackie Sue's mom, well, she leaves much to be desired. So while they wouldn't ever forbid Tiphanie from being friends with her, they take every opportunity to encourage Tiphanie to make other friends. Tiphanie's parents have definite opinions--on who they want their daughter to be, what they expect from her, who she should be friends with, etc.

Tiphanie is trying to discover who she is exactly. Trying to balance what she wants with what her parents' want. I liked this one. It's a universal story in many ways.

© Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

The Uncommon Reader

Uncommon Reader. Alan Bennett. 2007. FSG. 128 pages.

At Windsor it was the evening of the state banquet and as the president of France took his place beside Her Majesty, the royal family formed up behind and the procession slowly moved off and through into the Waterloo Chamber.

What if the Queen of England became an avid reader? What if she almost always had a book in her hand? What if she were to start asking those around them what they were reading, if they'd read anything good lately? What if those around her hated the new 'passion' of the Queen? How divisive is reading anyway?

I liked this one. I did. It was a quick read. I think if you like reading then you may enjoy this one. Because it is all about the power of reading.

You don't put your life into your books. You find it there. (101)

'Books are wonderful, aren't they?' she said to the vice-chancellor, who concurred.
'At the risk of sounding like a piece of steak,' she said, 'they tenderize one.' (105)

© Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

The Runaway Dragon (MG)

The Runaway Dragon by Kate Coombs. 2009. FSG. 304 pages.

At first Meg visited Laddy a lot, riding her horse from the castle through the Witch's Wood to Hookhorn Farm, where her friend Cam's sister lived. Meg would sit by the fire in the big farmhouse kitchen and talk with Janna, scratching Laddy behind his ears and then along his little scarlet-and-amber dragon back. Not that Laddy was so little anymore. He was growing quickly, feasting on sausages and stew chickens at Hookhorn Farm. If Meg's father, King Stromgard, hadn't made provision for Laddy's keep, the baby dragon would have eaten Janna out of house and home.

Runaway Dragon is the sequel to Runaway Princess. Our heroine, Meg, is back for another quest. Her baby dragon, Laddy, is all grown up. And he's escaped! He has been seen here and there. And the villagers are not happy about that! No, not at all. Even if this dragon prefers sausages to humans. Meg is determined to find her dragon, give him a proper grown-up name, and get to the bottom of why her dragon is so restless. But her father, the King, and her mother, the Queen, won't let their daughter go adventuring on her own. No, she'll need companions. Proper companions. And while a few of these are of her own choosing, her own liking--like Cam, Lex, and Dilly--there are plenty of people she'd just as soon lose in the Enchanted Forest. She is not happy that her father insisted on ten accompanying guards! This quest won't be easy, but it will be fun in a dangerous, thrilling sort of way.

There is much adventure to be had in The Runaway Dragon. And I loved it. I did. I think Coombs did a great job. I was happy to return to this fantasy world she's created. Loved the richness of it. The humor in it. Characters like Quorlock and Malison. And Spinach! (How could I forget about her!) Oh how I loved meeting these characters! I definitely recommend these two books!

© Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

Poetry Friday: Animal Poems

Animal Poems. By Valerie Worth. Illustrated by Steve Jenkins. 2007. FSG. 48 pages.

A collection of animal poems by Valerie Worth. All sorts of animals are covered within the book, everything from cockroaches to kangaroos and snails to elephants. No animal is too large or small. Each poem is complemented with illustrations by Steve Jenkins. (And these illustrations are fantastic!)


I don't know that I have a favorite poem exactly. But I'd probably go with the one about Kangaroos. Or Bears. Or Elephants. See, it can be hard to choose just one from a collection!

© Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

Nonfiction Monday: Claudette Colvin Twice Toward Justice

Claudette Colvin: Twice Toward Justice. Phillip Hoose. 2009. FSG. 144 pages.

Claudette Colvin: I was about four years old the first time I ever saw what happened when you acted up to whites.

Have you heard of Claudette Colvin? Have you heard her story? Before Rosa Parks, there was Claudette Colvin. She was arrested for refusing to give up her seat to a white passenger on a Montgomery bus. Only 15 at the time, there wasn't a consensus in the community to support her, to rally around her, to make this incident the needed catalyst to fight Jim Crow laws. Yet, even though she may not be as famous as Parks, her story is important and significant. Because she did make a significant contribution to the civil rights movement.

What I enjoyed most about this one is hearing the story in Claudette's own words. The author conducted a series of interviews with Claudette Colvin (among others) and these frame the book well. I thought it was a good balance really. We hear from Claudette Colvin (and other eyewitnesses), yet we also have strong narration by Hoose to piece it all together. We see the big picture, yet, at the same time we get an intimate behind-the-scenes look.

Winner of the National Book Award. Also a Sibert Honor. And a Newbery Honor.

© Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

The Small Adventure of Popeye and Elvis (MG)

O'Connor, Barbara. 2009. The Small Adventure of Popeye and Elvis. FSG. 150 pages.

Drip.
Drip.
Drip.
Popeye opened his eye and looked up at the heart-shaped stain on the ceiling of his bedroom. Rusty water squeezed out of the hole in the peeling plaster and dropped onto the foot of his bed.
Drip.
Drip.
Drip.
It had been raining for a week.
All day.
Every day.

Meet Popeye. He's a young boy that I just loved getting to know in The Small Adventure of Popeye and Elvis. You could say that he had a very boring life, about as unadventurous as you can possibly get. But when Popeye meets Elvis, there's promise of more.

Elvis arrives in a silver motor home. A going-nowhere-anytime-soon motor home. Because they are stuck, stuck, stuck in the mud. Which suits Popeye just fine. Because for the first time in forever, he has someone to play with! Someone his own age to get in trouble with! A friend.

Here's one of my favorite bits (and there were many!):

Elvis stopped suddenly and whirled around to face Popeye. "Let's do something," he said.
"Like what?"
"I don't know," Elvis said. "What's there to do around here?"
Popeye looked around.
Weeds. Ditch. Trees. Mailbox. House. Shed. Trailer.
He shrugged. "Not much." (26)

A few pages later, we read:

The boys watched a dragonfly flit around the weeds out by the mailbox.
They played tic-tac-toe in the dirt with a stick.
They took turns scratching Boo's stomach with the tic-tac-toe stick.
Then, out of the clear blue, Elvis grabbed Popeye by the shoulders and gave him a little shake. "Let's have an adventure," he said.
Popeye blinked. "An adventure?"
Elvis nodded. "It doesn't have to be a big adventure," Elvis said. "It can be a small adventure." He gave Popeye another little shake. "Let's have a small adventure."
A small adventure!
That was exactly what Popeye had been needing.
"Okay," he said.
Elvis ran off toward the woods behind the shed.
"Come on!" he called to Popeye over his shoulder.
Popeye jumped off the porch steps.
"Come on, Boo," he said. "Let's go have a small adventure." Then he hurried after Elvis, his stomach turning flips of excitement and his heart light and breezy as a cloud. (29)

This book is fun and charming. The writing just works. It's almost magical how right this book feels.

Popeye and Elvis spent all afternoon trying to have a small adventure.
They followed a trail that ran through the woods and ended up at a dirt road.
They followed the dirt road until it came to a dead end.
They overturned moss-covered rocks in the creek behind Popeye's house and built a dam out of branches and mud to trap minnows.
They walked to the gas station down on the main highway, where Popeye was never supposed to go without asking Velma first.
But they didn't have an adventure.
Not even a small one. (30, 31)

Will these two young boys ever have a proper adventure? Read and see for yourself! I definitely recommend this one! I think anyone who has ever felt a little bored or a little lonely can find much to appreciate in this one.

© Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

Crossing Stones

Frost, Helen. 2009. Crossing Stones. FSG. 184 pages.

You'd better straighten out your mind, Young Lady.

Loved, loved, loved this verse novel by Helen Frost. It's historical fiction. A drama following the lives of two families. The Jorgensens and The Normans. The year is 1917 (and 1918). We've got many narrators (both male and female), many stories. Emma and Frank Norman. Ollie and Muriel Jorgensen. Frank loves Muriel. (Does she love him like that though?) Ollie loves Emma.
But war has its own role to play in the lives of these two families. It changes everything. It changes what should be and what could be. It confuses everyone, taints everything. Will anyone be the same after it is all over?

Women's suffrage. World War I. Spanish influenza. Muriel, Ollie, and Emma are coming of age at a difficult time in American history. Muriel is arguably the strongest narrator of the bunch. She believes in peace, hates that American soldiers are getting involved in the war, hates the fact that the men in her life--Frank and Ollie--are wanting to go to war, enlisting. She's a suffragist--in her dreams at least. She supports the cause. Even though she's not actively involved in marches and protests and such. Like her aunt.

The book examines how war--this war in particular--shaped the men and women of that generation.

What did I love about this book? Just about everything! I loved the setting. Felt it very rich in detail. Loved the feeling of losing myself in another time and place. I loved getting a look at what life was like (or what it could have been like at the very least) during this time period. So much of what I read--when it comes to war--is set during World War II, so it was refreshing to see this one about World War I. It was interesting to me. Compelling. The poetry was great. Loved the different voices--each narrator was unique, and I appreciated all the different perspectives. I loved that it made me think, really think. It's one that I'd definitely recommend to those in my life that can't get enough historical fiction.

© Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews