Hi!
So, I’m behind, This is the week before my Christmas vacation. I had several book clubs, worked on Cybils, and my doctor wants me to bring my blood pressure down. Sounds like a call for a New Years Resolution.
Books Completed
Rhinos at Recess, Magic Treehouse 37, Mary Pope Osborne. For my 3-4 grade book club. I’m interested in how kids classify informative fiction and tried to get the kids to talk about how they knew where the line was. They didn’t bite though; it was again a huge group and I had trouble getting them all pointed in the same direction. Or maybe it was too meta a question, since these books make an effort to keep the distinction clear. I did like the solution to the science project in this one though.
Pokémon Journeys, Machine Gomi. My 5th grade book club was doing Pokémon books, so I wanted to read recent and older ones. Ash was very familiar and hasn’t grown or evolved much (ha!) since I last read these about twenty years ago, but he was fun to hang out with and so was Goh, the new guy. I was glad when Goh changed his mind about holding out for Mew for his first Pokémon, and I was also impressed with my inability to parse any action scene, which made the Pokémon battles rather confusing. But the text always told me who won so I was okay.
Dinosaurs Before Dark Graphic Novel, Jenny Laird (adaptation), Mary Pope Osborne. The very first Treehouse book but in a graphic novel form sets out the theory but spends more time on the set up since the kids are learning how and what the Treehouse does. I liked the sibling relationship and the dinosaur descriptions.
Prepare For Trouble, Tracey West (adaptor). This was one of the old chapter books I remember from my kids’ read-aloud days, but I had much more fun with it than I did back then. Team Rocket are such screw ups and it was fun to see their plotting and memories of former failed plots. And the bit where they are frantically covering for a friend was delicious.
Battle For the Z-Ring, no author. Poke,on battles with extra silly moves to invoke Z power! Pure goofy delight for me. Baffling.
Five Children on the Western Front, Kate Saunders. This worked really well for me. I liked the way the five kids aged and how they showed different aspects of the war effort.The stuff with the Psammead was clunkier but I went along with it. I thought Saunders did a good job of echoing the feel of Nesbit’s story without getting cloying.
Hilo 10: Rise of the Cat, Judd Winick. This series continues to appeal; by now I know there will be twists and I can feel the beats but I’m having so much fun with the characters and story that I am completely distracted and so always surprised. I like the shifts between real emotion and burp jokes. I like the art and I like the families.
The Thief of Time, Vivi Barnes, Christina Farley, Amy Christine Parker (Cybils nominee). Three writer friends joined together to write a book in the “three friends at magic boarding school” genre. Here all three are the special outsiders and the magic is librarianship! They each specialize in different branches: combat, storytelling, cataloging and make friends with a hereditary librarian who is in the research branch. (I wish more library schools emphasized the combat aspects.) There is school drama, complete with bully, good and bad teachers, and only our kids can save the day against the baddie!
It was odd how the kids didn’t blink at insta-starting magic school without even saying goodbye to their families. This made a few beats lands oddly, like when one kid is tempted by the idea of changing history to bring back his dead mom, whom he has never thought about before on page.
Beyond the Wand, Tom Felton. A celebrity autobiography from the viewpoint of a guy who was more fame adjacent that super famous. He doesn’t take himself too seriously. There is a “went to seed in LA” where his circle staged an intervention in a rather hamfisted way and his escape from it helped clarify things enough that he found a more compatible form of rehab. Mostly I was here to see if it was really him in the Easter movie with the centurion, and yep, he has some stories about how he couldn’t control his horse.
It Happens to Anna, Tehlor Kay Majia. This worked to give me a real sense of horror. Anna is the friend who died because of the jealous ghost haunting Lola, and at the new school Lola desperately tries not to bond with any kids while kind girls, her dad, and the school counselor sees this reluctance as cause for intervention. When a strange, independent girl befriends her without angering the ghost Lola has a real chance at friendship. But things get worse, and the way the ghost horror builds on real fears is chilling. There aren’t any real chapters beyond Lola and the ghosts (I mean, the ghost would kill them) so the nice friend is more a good idea than a real person.
Jaguar of Sweet Laughter, Diane Ackerman. I started reading a few poems before falling asleep, and this one was perfect. Strong images and words matched with physicality and sly science references.
Books Started
The Last Rhee Witch, Jenna Lee-Yun. Cybils nominee.
Hilo 10: Rise of the Cat, Judd Winick. Good series.
Lepunia: the Kingdom of the Gallopers, Kevin Ford. Cybils nominee.
The Thief of Time, Vivi Barnes, Christina Farley, Amy Christine Parker. Cybils nominee.
Brooms, Jasmine Walls. Cybils finalist.
Samantha Smee: a Pirate’s Life, M.C. Dingman. Cybils nominee,
Pokémon Adventures XY Vol 4, Hidnori Kusaka. Talbot Hill book club.
The Four Star Challenge, Howard Dewin (adapter). Talbot Hill book club.
Bookmarks Moved
Soma and the Golden Beasts, Rajanni LaRocca.
Poppy and Marigold, Meg Welch Dendler.
Lamplighters, D. M. Cornish.
Parable of the Talents, Octavia Butler.
Rocky Start, Jennifer Cruise and Bob Meyer.
Deal With the Devil, Kit Rocha.
Picture Books and Short Stories
I was preparing for the Foolscap Hugo Short Stories December meeting.
“How to Raise a Kraken in Your Bathtub,” P. Djeli Clark. Sometimes colonialism and misplaced confidence doesn’t work out.
“The Mausoleum’s Children,” Aliette de Boudard. Sometimes when you turn to face your dragons they are still dangerous. But you are stronger for the pivot.
Books on Slow Mode
Home Comforts, Cheryl Mendleson. I read one section, report on it to the family discord, and so improve our understanding of our home and its routine.
Renegade Love, Ann Aguirre. Another section a day book.
At the Feet of the Sun, Victoria Goddard. I read the next bit every morning before starting my day.
50 Great Poets, ed. Milton Crane (no picture). Mail bribe.
The Writer's Stance: Reading and Writing in the Disciplines, Dorothy U. Seyler. (no picture). Mail bribe.
The Road to Mars, Eric Idle. Mail bribe.
Teaching With Caldecott Books, Scholastic books. Mail bribe.
Year of Wonder, Clemency Burton-Hill. Mail bribe.
