The Ever-Intimidating TBR List

The very long (and very intimidating) list of books I've currently got out on my library card:

due 3/28/07

• The Sisters Grimm: The Fairy Tale Detectives by Michael Buckley
  
• The Sisters Grimm: The Unusual Suspects by Michael Buckley
  
• The Sisters Grimm: The Problem Child by Michael Buckley
  
• Toys Go Out by Emily Jenkins, illustrated by Paul O. Zelinsky
  
• Ptolemy's Gate (Book Three in Bartimaeus Trilogy) by Jonathan Stroud
  
• Clay by David Almond
  
• What Happened to Cass McBride by Gail Giles
  
• Maude March On the Run by Audrey Couloumbis
  
• Prom Anonymous by Blake Nelson
  
• Wintersmith by Terry Pratchett
  
• The Cupid Chronicles by Coleen Murtagh Paratore
  
• Kiki Strike Inside the Shadow City by Kirsten Miller
  
• Pucker by Melanie Gideon
  
• Bella At Midnight by Diane Stanley
  
• Dark Water Rising by Marian Hale
  
• Samurai Shortstop by Alan Gratz
  
• Cathy's Book If Found Call (650) 266-8233 by Sean Stewart and Jordan Weisman
  
• Dragon Rider by Cornelia Funke
  
• If I Have A Wicked Stepmother, Where's My Prince? by Melissa Kantor
  
• The Truth About Sparrows by Marian Hale
  
• Bloodline by Kate Cary
  
• Millions by Frank Cottell Boyce
  
• Hole in the Sky by Pete Hautman
  
• Godless by Pete Hautman
  
• Confessions of A Not It Girl by Melissa Kantor
  
• Sunshine by Robin McKinley
  
• Dunk by David Lubar
  
• The Seven Wonders of Sassafras Springs by Betty G. Birney
  
• Drums, Girls & Dangerous Pie by Jordan Sonnenblick
  
• The Black Canary by Jane Louise Curry
  
• Playing In Traffic by Gail Giles
  
• Midnighters # 2: Touching Darkness by Scott Westerfeld
  
• Artemis Fowl by Eoin Colfer
  
• At the Sign of the Star by Katherine Sturtevant
  
• Dreamland by Sarah Dessen
  
• Flipped by Wendelin Van Draanen
  
• Keys to the Kingdom: Mister Monday by Garth Nix
  

due 4/04/07

• The City of Ember by Jeanne DuPrau
  
• The People of Sparks by Jeanne DuPrau
  
• What I Call Life by Jill Wolfson
  
• Jeremy Fink and the Meaning of Life by Wendy Mass
  
• Sloppy Firsts by Megan McCafferty
  
• Second Helpings by Megan McCafferty
  
• Midnighters: Blue Noon # 3 in series by Scott Westerfeld
  

Princess For A Week

Wright, Betty Ren. 2006. Princess for a Week. Illustrated by Jacqueline Rogers.

When Roddy Hall overhears his mother saying that "Princess" is coming to visit, he is excited--he's always wanted a dog. But then he finds out that--ick--Princess is a girl and--yuck--she'll be staying for a whole week.

Roddy is a young boy who has no use for girls and a lot of uses for a dog. When his mom's friend, Linda--who shows dogs for rich people--goes out of town she asks her friend to watch over Princess. Roddy is so excited he's practically speechless. In fact, he starts planning to rebuild a broken-down doghouse with his friend, Jacob. But the two best friends are in for quite a surprise when Princess turns out to be none other than "Princess Thornberry. My stepmother Linda dropped me off an hour ago. And if you think I'm going to sleep in a broken-down doghouse, you're crazy. Your mom said I get the bedroom with all the dinosaur posters" (5-6). That is only the beginning of Roddy's miserable adventures as Princess gets him in and out of trouble. It's bad enough, in his opinion, that Princess is a girl. But what really drives him crazy is that she's a girl who thinks she's a detective. A detective that is going to solve the mystery of the neighborhood's haunted house. How can he protect her when the place gives him the creeps. How can a girl have more courage and determination than a boy? And why is she so intent on proving herself to everybody???

Meet Babymouse

I did not have a chance to review all of the Babymouse titles by Jennifer L. Holm & Matthew Holm. I believe my library had the first one checked out. But I did read the subsequent four in the series:

Holm, Jennifer L & Matthew. 2005. Babymouse: Our Hero.
Holm, Jennifer L. & Matthew. 2006. Babymouse: Beach Babe.
Holm, Jennifer L. & Matthew. 2006. Babymouse: Rock Star.
Holm, Jennifer L. & Matthew. 2006 (2007). Babymouse: Heartbreaker.

Babymouse is a cute, imaginative heroine in the graphic novel series which began with Babymouse: Queen of the World. Even though I missed the first book, I've picked up on this mouse's nature: she has some fears; she has some dislikes; she is always imaginative; she is always opinationated. Some things she hates: lockers, dodge ball, and her nemesis Felicia Furrypaws. In OUR HERO, Babymouse must learn to conquer her fear of gym class--more specifically dodge ball--luckily she has the help of her best friend, Wilson. In BEACH BABE, Babymouse faces the last day of school and the dreaded task of cleaning out her locker. (BTW, I know how she feels.) I suppose the realfocus of Beach Babe is on her vacation at the beach with her family where she has to learn to get along (and play with) her little brother, Squeak. In ROCK STAR, Babymouse faces the challenge of a band concert. Last year she was last chair (or perhaps next to last chair). She doesn't want to be the squeakiest flute player. Can practice really make her better? In HEARTBREAKER, Babymouse faces the sentimental holiday of Valentine's Day. Will she get asked to the dance? Will anyone want to be her Valentine? Does anyone like her like her?

http://www.randomhouse.com/kids/babymouse/
http://www.randomhouse.com/kids/babymouse/homepage.htm
Interview with Matthew Holm

Shortlists for UPcoming Awards

Galaxy British Book Awards:

Children's Book of the Year

• The Boy In Striped Pajamas by John Boyne
  
• Flanimals of the Deep by Ricky Gervais
  
• Horrid Henry and the Football Fiend by Francesca Simon
  
• Peter Pan in Scarlet by Geraldine McCaughrean
  
• Wintersmith by Terry Pratchett
  
• The Incredible Book Eating Boy by Oliver Jeffers
  

http://www.britishbookawards.co.uk/pnbb_shortlist_childrens.asp?

L.A. Times Book Award

Shortlist for Young Adult Fiction

• M.T. Anderson, The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation, Volume 1: The Pox Party (Candlewick Press)
  
• Coe Booth, Tyrell (Push / Scholastic)
  
• John Green, An Abundance of Katherines (Dutton Books / Penguin Young Readers Group)
  
• Meg Rosoff, Just in Case (Wendy Lamb Books / Random House Children’s Books)
  
• Nancy Werlin, The Rules of Survival (Dial Books / Penguin Young Readers Group)
  

http://www.latimes.com/extras/bookprizes/finalists2006.html

The Loud Silence of Francine Green

For those who are wondering how I'm coming on reading my sixty library books, I've completed fifteen of them since last Wednesday. Not bad, but still am feeling overwhelmed. Today's book selection is:

Cushman, Karen. 2006. The Loud Silence of Francine Green.

Set in 1949, THE LOUD SILENCE OF FRANCINE GREEN tells the story of a young girl, Francine Green, and her best friend, Sophie Bowman, as they experience all the challenges that life throws at them while attending 8th grade at All Saints School for Girls. (For those that can remember back that far, think the NBC show American Dreams). The truth is Francine and Sophie couldn't be more different from one another. Sophie is brave, reckless, a bit stupid, always outspoken, an outcast by choice. If she thinks it, 99% of the time she can't help blurting it out. Even if it makes her the favorite torture victim of Sister Basil the Great. She believes in free speech. She believes a bit too much in her right to say and do whatever she wants. Perhaps she's like many teenagers: not wanting to obey the rules and wanting to define themselves by defiance. Francine, on the other hand, is what you would imagine a good girl to be. She is obedient. She is quiet. She doesn't talk back against authority. She is not defiant. She is afraid to speak out. Sometimes that's a bad thing, but in many ways it is a smart thing. Why make trouble for yourself at school each day of the year because you can't restrain yourself from asking the nuns what color underwear they're wearing? Francine loves Sophie because she is everything that she isn't. But this novel is more than a book about Catholic school and 8th grade. It is so much more than that. It is a book about family (again getting vibes from American Dreams). A book about fears. A book about what those fears can lead to in society. You see this book happens at the beginning of the cold war. Russia is the enemy. China is the enemy. To be a communist is to be evil incarnated. The fear of the bomb. The fear of nuclear attack isn't just in the corner of their minds. It is a daily fear. A fear that her young brother cannot cope with psychologically. So even though the war is won, even though "life goes on" nobody feels safe. Everybody worries. The book explores to some extent prejudice, racism, and discrimination. And it definitely explores the idea or has the theme of learning to think for one's self.

Discussion Guide for Loud Silence of Francine Green
Houghton Mifflin's Author Page for Karen Cushman