Divergent. Veronica Roth. 2011. May 2011. HarperCollins. 496 pages. [Source: Library]
Great Tales From English History, vol. 2. Robert Lacey. 2004. Little, Brown. 288 pages. [Source: Library]
Twelfth Night. William Shakespeare. 1601-02. 272 pages. [Source: Bought]
Caroline the Queen. Jean Plaidy. 1968. 415 pages. [Source: Library]
The Last Dragonslayer. Jasper Fforde. 2012. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. 296 pages. [Source: Review copy]
Little Bear's Little Boat. Eve Bunting. Illustrated by Nancy
Carpenter. 2003/2012. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. 30 pages. [Source:
Review copy]
Big Bear's Big Boat. Eve Bunting. Illustrated by Nancy Carpenter.
2013. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. 32 pages. [Source: Review copy]
The Invisible Boy. Trudy Ludwig. Illustrated by Patrice Barton. 2013. Random House. 40 pages. [Source: Review copy]
Tiny King. Taro Miura. 2013. Candlewick Press. 32 pages. [Source: Review copy]
The Silver Button. Bob Graham. 2013. Candlewick. 32 pages. [Source: Review copy]
Mistress Pat. L.M. Montgomery. 1935. 288 pages. [Source: Bought].
Under A Blackberry Moon. Serena B. Miller. 2013. Revell. 352 pages. [Source: Review copy]
Does Prayer Change Things? (Crucial Questions) R.C. Sproul. 1998. Reformation Trust. 88 pages. [Source: Bought]
Faith of My Fathers. Lynn Austin. 2006. Bethany House. 320 pages. [Source: Bought]
Among the Gods. Lynn Austin. 2006. Bethany House. 352 pages. [Source: Bought]
Thoughts to Make Your Heart Sing. Sally Lloyd Jones. 2013 (Leather). Zonderkidz. 224 pages. [Source: Review copy]
© 2013 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews
Saturday, October 12, 2013
Armchair Cybils 2013
Picture Books (List of Nominees)
1. That Is Not A Good Idea. Mo Willems. 2013. HarperCollins. 48 pages. [Source: Library]
2. Sophie's Squash. Pat Zietlow Miller. Illustrated by Anne Wilsdorf. 2013. Random House. 40 pages. [Source: Review copy]
3. How To Train a Train. Jason Carter Eaton. Illustrated by John Rocco. 2013. Candlewick Press. 48 pages. [Source: Review Copy]
4. Ball. Mary Sullivan. 2013. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. 40 pages.
5. Ribbit. Rodrigo. Folgueira. Illustrated by Poly Bernatene. 2013. Random House. 32 pages.
6. Toys in Space. Mini Grey. 2013. Random House. 32 pages.
7. Exclamation Mark. Amy Krouse Rosenthal. Illustrated by Tom Lichtenheld. 2013. Scholastic. 56 pages.
Easy Readers and Short Chapter Books (List of Nominees)
1. I'm A Frog by Mo Willems
2. Squirrels on Skis. J. Hamilton Ray. Illustrated by Pascal Lamaitre. 2013. Random House. 64 pages. [Source: Review copy]
3. A Pet Named Sneaker. Joan Heilbroner. Illustrated by Pascal Lemaitre. 2013. Random House. 48 pages. [Source: Review Copy]
4. Dig, Scoop, Ka-Boom! Joan Holub. Illustrated by David Gordon. 2013. Random House. 24 pages. [Source: Review copy]
5. Mr. Putter & Tabby Drop the Ball. Cynthia Rylant. Illustrated by Arthur Howard. 2013. Harcourt. 44 pages. [Source: Review Copy]
6. A Big Guy Took My Ball. Mo Willems. 2013. Hyperion. 58 pages. [Source: Library]
7. Penny and Her Marble. Kevin Henkes. 2013. HarperCollins. 48 pages. [Source: Library]
8. Clementine and the Spring Trip. Sara Pennypacker. 2013. Hyperion. 160 pages.
Middle Grade Fiction (List of Nominees)
1. Al Capone Does My Homework. Gennifer Choldenko. 2013. Penguin. 224 pages.
2. Counting by 7s. Holly Goldberg Sloan. 2013. Penguin USA. 384 pages. [Review Copy]
3. Destiny, Rewritten. Kathryn Fitzmaurice. 2013. HarperCollins. 176 pages.
4. Duke. Kirby Larson. 2013. Scholastic. 240 pages. [Source: Review Copy]
5. Escape From Mr. Lemoncello's Library. Chris Grabenstein. 2013. Random House. 304 pages. [Source: Review Copy]
6. Every Day After. Laura Golden. 2013. Random House. 224 pages. [Source: Review Copy]
7. Prisoner B-3087. Alan Gratz. 2013. [March 2013] Scholastic. 260 pages.
8. The Center of Everything. Linda Urban. 2013. Harcourt. 208 pages.
9. The Fantastic Family Whipple. Matthew Ward. 2013. Penguin. 400 pages. [Source: Review Copy]
10. The Year of Billy Miller. Kevin Henkes. 2013. HarperCollins. 240 pages. [Source: Library]
11. Gingersnap. Patricia Reilly Giff. 2013. (January 2013) Random House. 160 pages.
12.
13.
Elementary/Middle Grade Speculative Fiction (List of Nominees)
1. A Tangle of Knots. Lisa Graff. 2013. Penguin. 240 pages.
2. Fortunately, The Milk. Neil Gaiman. 2013. HarperCollins. 114 pages. [Source: Review Copy]
3. How to Make Friends and Monsters. Ron Bates. 2013. Zondervan. 224 pages. [Source: Review copy]
4. North of Nowhere. Liz Kessler. 2013. Candlewick. 272 pages. [Source: Library]
5. Platypus Police Squad: The Frog Who Croaked. Jarrett J. Krosoczka. 2013. HarperCollins. 226 pages. [Source: Library]
6. The Mouse with the Question Mark Tail. Richard Peck. 2013. Penguin. 224 pages.
7. The Runaway King. Jennifer A. Nielsen. 2013. Scholastic. 352 pages.
8. The Water Castle. Megan Frazer Blakemore. 2013. Walker. 352 pages. [Source: Review Copy]
9. The Whizz Pop Chocolate Shop. Kate Saunders. 2013. Random House. 304 pages.
10.
Young Adult Speculative Fiction (List of Nominees)
1. Captives (The Safe Lands #1) Jill Williamson. 2013. Zondervan. 400 pages. [Source: Library]
2. Dark Triumph (His Fair Assassin #2) Robin LaFevers. 2013. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. 387 pages.
3. Frozen: Heart of Dread. Melissa de la Cruz and Michael Johnston. 2013. Penguin. 336 pages. [Source: Review copy]
4. Orleans. Sherri L. Smith. 2013. Penguin. 336 pages.
5. Shades of Earth. (Across the Universe #3) Beth Revis. 2013. Penguin. 369 pages.
6. The Elite. Kiera Cass. 2013. HarperCollins. 323 pages. [Source: Library]
7. The Testing. Joelle Charbonneau. 2013. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. 344 pages.
8. William Shakespeare's Star Wars. Ian Doescher. 2013. Quirk. 176 pages. [Source: Review Copy]
Young Adult Fiction (List of Nominees)
1. All The Truth That's In Me. Julie Berry. 2013. Penguin. 288 pages. [Source: Review Copy]
2. Catherine. April Lindner. 2013. Little, Brown. 320 pages.
3. Going Vintage. Lindsey Leavitt. 2013. [March 2013] Bloomsbury USA. 320 pages.
4. Hattie Ever After. Kirby Larson. 2013. Random House. 240 pages.
5. Imperfect Spiral. Debbie Levy. 2013. Bloomsbury. 352 pages. [Source: Review copy]
6. Revenge of The Girl With The Great Personality. Elizabeth Eulberg. 2013. [March] Scholastic. 272 pages.
7. The Boy on the Bridge. Natalie Standiford. 2013. Scholastic. 256 pages. [Source: Review copy]
8. The Lightning Dreamer. Margarita Engle. 2013. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. 182 pages.
9. The Moon and More. Sarah Dessen. Penguin. 384 pages.
10. This is What Happy Looks Like. Jennifer E. Smith. 2013. Little, Brown. 404 pages.
11. Victoria Rebels. Carolyn Meyer. 2013. Simon & Schuster. 192 pages.
I may decide to seek out elementary and middle grade nonfiction or young adult nonfiction. But I probably won't have time to seek out poetry or graphic novels.
About the challenge:
This is how the Armchair Cybils challenge will work:
- Read as many or as few of the Cybils nominated titles as you care to and write up your thoughts on your blog. You can do this on a title-by-title basis or in one big ol’ post–it’s up to you!
- Come back here on the following dates to link up your Armchair Cybils posts: October 15 (your “I’m participating!” post); November 15 (reviews); December 15 (reviews); January 1 (shortlist thoughts); January 15 (reviews and thoughts);February 14 (reviews and thoughts about the winners).
© 2013 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews
Library Loot: Second Trip in October
- Don't Pigeonhole me! Two Decades of the Mo Willems Sketchbook
- The September Queen by Gillian Bagwell
- The Storybook of Legends by Shannon Hale
- The Real Jane Austen: A Life in Small Things by Paula Byrne
Leftover Loot:
- Dynasty: The Stuarts, 1560-1807 by John Macleod
- Georgette Heyer by Jennifer Kloester
- The Rose Garden by Susanna Kearsley
- Brownie and Pearl See the Sights by Cynthia Rylant
- Brownie and Pearl Hit the Hay by Cynthia Rylant
- The Big Wet Balloon by Liniers
- So Close to You by Rachel Carter
- The Year of Billy Miller by Kevin Henkes
- The Romeo and Juliet Code by Phoebe Stone
- A Life in Letters by P.G. Wodehouse
- Rebekkah's Journey by Ann Burg
- Siege and Storm by Leigh Bardugo
- Fragments by Dan Wells
- Rise by Anna Carey
- The True Blue Scouts of Sugar Man Swamp by Kathi Appelt
© 2013 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews
Friday, October 11, 2013
Twelfth Night
If music be the food of love, play on;
I've always loved that line: "If music be the food of love, play on;" but I have to admit I love it even more after falling in love with this little music video.
This is one of the Shakespeare plays with cross-dressing. I love this Dorothy Sayers' quote in Whose Body: "I'm sure if I'd been a Shakespeare hero, the very minute I saw a slim-legged young page-boy I'd have said: "Odsbodikins! There's that girl again!"
Twelfth Night is one of the Shakespeare comedies that I am quite familiar with. I think this was my fourth time to read it. I don't love it because it's romantic or oh-so-magical. Of the couples that end up together, I'm not sure any of them are truly, deeply in love with each other. I don't doubt for one second that Viola loves the Duke (Orsino). But as for the Duke's oh-so-easy transference of love from Olivia to Viola, whom he has only known as Cesario, I'm not convinced. Same goes with Olivia's transference of her affections from Viola (dressed as Cesario) to Sebastian. Sebastian, well, he gets an instant wife, I'm not sure he's complaining though. The happy endings are rushed and superficial perhaps.
I think the reason I keep reading Twelfth Night is that it's enjoyable, entertaining, fun. It's also one of the few Shakespeare plays that I've seen performed. It's a merry little play with clever little exchanges between characters. I just like it.
Favorite quotes:
If music be the food of love, play on;
O spirit of love, how quick and fresh art thou!
If you be not mad, be gone; if you have reason, be brief:
It shall be inventoried; and every particle and utensil labeled to my will: as item, two lips indifferent red; item, two grey eyes with lids to them; item, one neck, one chin, and so forth.
Some are born great, some achieve greatness, and some have greatness thrust upon them.
Them that dally nicely with words may quickly make them wanton.
Words are very rascals.
Words are grown so false I am loath to prove reason with them.
I would you were as I would have you be!
Love sought is good, but given unsought is better.Example of banter:
Duke: I know thee well. How dost thou, my good fellow?© 2013 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews
Clown: Truly, sir, the better for my foes and the worse for my friends.
Duke: Just the contrary; the better for thy friends.
Clown: No, sir, the worse.
Duke: How can that be?
Clown: Marry, sir, they praise me and make an ass of me; now my foes tell me plainly I am an ass: so that by my foes, sir, I profit in the knowledge of myself, and by my friends I am abused; so that, conclusions to be as kisses, if your four negatives make your two affirmatives, why then, the worse for my friends and the better for my foes.
Thursday, October 10, 2013
Caroline the Queen (1968)
Caroline, The Queen was my first introduction to the historical writer Jean Plaidy. (It is the third book in the Georgian Saga.) The novel opens shortly before the Prince of Wales, George Augustus, learns that his father (whom he REALLY hated) has died and he is now king. Caroline, his Queen, may be the main character of this one, but she is not our only point of view--far from it. This novel tells many stories from many different points of view.
Husband and wife. The novel spends some amount of time with George II and his wife, Caroline. She is presented as being oh-so-clever. Readers are never allowed to forget for a moment that Caroline is smarter and wiser than her husband. George is presented as a complete fool: short, ugly, boring, bad-tempered, easily flattered. Caroline loves being married to him because she can rule through him. But she has absolutely no respect for her husband. Caroline is presented as noble because she tolerates her husband's many mistresses.
King and mistresses. The novel mentions George II having many mistresses both in England and Hanover. His mistresses are presented as a necessary, oh-so-expected habit. Kings have mistresses, he is now king, therefore, to show how kingly he is, he must have mistresses, the people will love him even more because he is acting like other kings. Future kings must have mistresses as well. To be Prince of Wales gives you freedom to gather as many mistresses as possible and put them on display. Some of George II's mistresses are quite "old" by the time he is king. He visits them on schedule not out of desire but out of habit. The last half of the novel focuses on the King acquiring much younger, much prettier mistresses.
Family. The glimpses we get of Caroline and George as parents is disturbing, at least in my opinion. Frederick, the prince of Wales, is DESPISED by both of his parents. He is their oldest son, but both of his parents HATE him and wish that he'd never been born. Neither wants him around. And he knows it. He hates them both. At one point he's shown as hating his mother even more than his father because he feels his father is just being ruled. Some time is spent on their other children. But I can't say that Caroline and George were extraordinarily good parents to any of their children. Anne, the oldest girl, is given some time in the novel.
Prince of Wales. Some time is spent with Frederick and his friends and mistresses. Readers see people trying to get close to him so they can use him, people trying to get favors. Some spy on him and tell all to the powers-that-be.
Politics. Caroline has several politician friends--notably Sir Robert Walpole and Lord Hervey. She loves power and politics and manipulating things behind the scenes so that George does precisely what they want without being wise to the fact that he's being manipulated.
The novel was quite interesting and very readable. The characters were all believably flawed; I found no one sympathetic, however. I liked this one.
© 2013 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews
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