Picture Book Reviews: Art and Max, Redwoods, and Lousy Stinkin' Grapes

  All of the picture books that I have reviewed today are listed either on the Monarch Book Award list or the Bluestem Book Award list where books are selected by librarians, teachers, and readers themselves. I find these lists useful, particularly when I'm not sure where to start with such a huge selection of picture books. Today I've got a mixture of folktale retelling and a just plain.

Description: A young city boy, riding the subway, finds an abandoned book about redwoods. He finds himself in the very forest described in the book. After finishing the book, he leaves it for someone else to read.

Review: Out of the three picture books that I'm reviewing today, Redwoods surprised me the most. With a lackluster description, I was prepared for a snoozeworthy read and I was pleasantly wrong. Redwoods effortlessly captures a reader's absorbation in a book, where the rest of the world fades into the background. A young city boy riding the subway finds an abandoned book to read. The book happens to be about redwood trees. Soon, he transports himself into a fantastical forest surrounded by redwoods. As he wanders into the forest, he learns exciting details about the trees. The illustrations are wonderful and the little facts sprinkled, not just dumped into long, verbose paragraphs, within the book holds our attention. I actually learned a lot from this book. I would highly recommend it to kids who show an interest in nature or who just want to be awed about learning something new.

Rating: 4 stars

Words of Caution: None. Recommended for Grades 1 and up.

If you like this book try: The Red Book by Barbara Lehman


Description: Retells the fable of a frustrated fox that, after many tries to reach a high bunch of grapes, decides they must be sour anyway.

Review: I guess you're never to young to develop a snarky attitude. Palatini and Moser have taken a dry Aesop fable and gave it a entertaining make-over that delights the eyes and ears of the reader while still retaining the purpose of the story. The proud and clever Fox eyes the grapes hanging from a vine high in a tree and thinks that he can get them easily. He repeatedly chants: "I am sly. Clever. Smart. After all, I am a fox." So, armed with paper and pencil, he draws his master plan filled with complex equations and recruits various animals around the tree to get the grapes. After repeated failed attempts and refusing to hear his recruits advice, the fox loses interests in the grapes and declares them "lousy, rotten, stinkin' grapes." Moser's wonderful watercolor illustrations of the doubting animals executing Fox's convoluted plans are rich in humor. My favorite illustrations involve Bear, especially with him napping in the background. The animals are silhouetted against plenty of white space, with the grapevines and tree dominating each large spread. Many reviewers have commented on the fox's plan being too complex and the story deviating from the story, but I would argue that this retelling of the story would invite active participation from the readers and storyteller. Kids are much more perceptive than we give them credit for and I'm sure they would immediately pick up on Fox's flaws.

Rating: 4 stars

Words of Caution: None. Recommended for Grades for K and up.

If you like this book try: Clever Beatrice by Margaret Willey, Cowboy and Octopus by Jon Scieszka


Description: Max wants to be an artist like Arthur, but his first attempt at using a paintbrush sends the two friends on a whirlwind trip through various media, with unexpected consequences.

Review: The story revolves around a rocky friendship between Art and Max.  When we first meet Arthur, he is creating a formal portrait of a stately reptile, one of several reacting to the unfolding drama in the desert. Frenetic Max dashes into the scene; he also wants to paint, but doesn't know where to start. Art suggests Max to start with painting a picture of his friend, "Well.you could paint me." Max's literal response yields a more colorful Art, but the master's outrage causes his acrylic armor to shatter. His texture falls in fragments, leaving an undercoating of dusty pastels vulnerable to passing breezes. Each of Max's attempts to solve Art's problems leads to unexpected outcomes, someof them humorous and others thought provoking about what one would define as art. 
  I have mixed feelings about Art and Max. I really enjoyed reading the thought provoking exploration of the meaning of art and the creative process, but without some substantial art background or knowledge, the book isn't as nearly entertaining. I know I missed out on a lot of references to several important artists while I did pick up on a few like Jackson Pollock, but that being said I think the book will resonate with some kids who are confused when some mistakes or marvels are judged differently by others. I would like to revisit Art and Max and give it another shot since there is so much to uncover in the book. I think in order to full appreciate this picture book is to closely read it and absorb all the little details.  

Rating: 3 stars

Words of Caution: None. Recommended for Grades 1 and up.

If you like this book try: Harold and the Purple Crayon by Crockett Johnson, The pencil by Allen Ahlberg, The dot by Peter Reynolds

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Mini Childrens Reviews: Strange Case of Origami Yoda, Familiars, and Dark Life

  School registration is currently in full force. Thankfully, I survived the first day.  I've read and finished quite a number of children's books. My reviews of these books are starting to pile up so I thought I would do a few pithy mini-reviews for you. All of these books are found on this year's Illinois School Library Media Association's (ISLMA) Bluestem Reading Award and Rebecca Caudill. For the full list of books nominated by school librarians, teachers, and students, click here for Bluestem Awards and click here for Rebecca Caudill Awards. Today I'll be reviewing The Strange Case of Origami Yoda by Tom Angleberger, Familiars by Adam Jay Epstein, and Dark Life by Kat Falls.

Description (from the Publisher): Sixth-grader Tommy and his friends describe their interactions with a paper finger puppet of Yoda, worn by their weird classmate Dwight, as they try to figure out whether or not the puppet can really predict the future. Includes instructions for making Origami Yoda.

Review:  Tommy and his friends think that Dwight is a weirdo who's always talking about robots or spiders or something. In true Dwight fashion, he shows up at school one day with his latest creation, a little origami Yoda finger puppet. Origami Yoda is not like Dwight at all as it doles out bits of wisdom to Tommy and his friends. The mystery of the book is whether the Yoda is just Dwight talking in a funny voice or if it actually has mystical powers. Told from a collection of stories gathered by Tommy and told by kids who either believe or don't in Origami Yoda. The Strange Case of Origami Yoda is a quirky, fast paced book that sure to please many Star War fans.

Rating: 3 stars

Words of Caution: Mild boy humor, but otherwise relatively clean. Recommended for Grades 3-6.

If you like this book try: Diary of a Wimpy Kid by Jeff Kinney, Darth Paper Strikes Back by Tom Angleberger


Description (from the Publisher): When a scrappy alley cat named Aldwyn passes himself off as a magical animal companion to Jack, a young wizard in training, Aldwyn and his fellow "familiars," a know-it-all blue jay and bumbling tree frog, must save the kingdom after the evil queen of Vastia kidnaps Jack and two other wizards.

Review: The Familiars is a great choice for young readers who may be too young for Harry Potter. Just imagine Harry Potter and other popular fantasy series where the animals or familiars take center stage. The book contains your usual trope of a children's fantasy book. Characters who are trying to prove themselves and gaining self confidence as well as coming together to fit a big evil.  The consistently suspenseful narrative moves quickly and is full of twists and turns. The great combination of action and humor will keep readers' attention. For me, I don't really take an interest in animal driven stories, but I do several kids who would eagerly line up and read this one.

Rating: 3.5 stars

Words of Caution: None. Recommended for Grades 3 to 7.

If you like this book try: Secrets of the Crown (Familiars #2) by Adam Jay Epstein, Warriors series by Erin Hunter


Description (from the Publisher): When fifteen-year-old Ty, who has always lived on the ocean floor, joins Topside girl Gemma in the frontier's underworld to seek and stop outlaws who threaten his home, they learn that the government may pose an even greater threat.

Review: Dark Life is essentially your typical western that takes place in the ocean. Sixteen-year-old Ty is the first child born to the pioneers who live in the depths of the ocean. He has little to no patience for topsiders (aka land dwellers) until he meets feisty Gemma, who immediately enlists his help to locate her missing older brother. The heroes and villains are fairly easy to detect and the plot was too predictable for me, but those who are interested in marine life and what would it be like living under the sea would find this book worthwhile.

Words of Caution: PG violence otherwise pretty clean. Recommended for strong Grade 5 readers and up.  

If you like this book try: Riptide by Kat Falls, Ship Breaker by Paolo Bacigalupi, Drowned Cities by Paolo Bacigalupi, Stuck on Earth by David Klass

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revealing

Well, the only person to say a word to me about the election results was Mr. D.  And I didn't even hole up at home all day.  It pleased me that civility rules the day up in this part of Wisconsin.

We're moving a compost pile because snakes are inclined to live in the current location and our neighbor lady is terrified of snakes.  Digging out the compost revealed a few interesting things:
1.  We have a TON of worms, busily digesting all of our waste and they do great work.
2.  We have a LOT of really nice compost.  Thanks, worms.
3.  Mr. G really loves worms--he made sure they all got transplanted safe and sound to their new compost pile spot.
4.  Mr. B really hates to work too hard.  He mostly wandered around while his brothers and I put our backs into this project.
5.  Someone threw out a kitchen spoon.  I'd suspected we were short a couple spoons for a while now, so it was nice to find one in the pile.
6.  Those "biodegradable" compost bags?  Are. Not. Biodegradable.  Not by my definition of the word, anyway.

We also moved the sandbox out of the back yard.  Team Testosterone refused to pull out the weeds, so I pulled out the sand and now I have a nice frame filled in with those extra pumpkin seedlings I enthusiastically planted.

Standing in the grocery store the other day with Mr. B I learned that all my "eco-awesomeness" isn't all that effective: 
GG:  Buddy, what are you hungry for this week?  Whatever you want for dinner or lunch, let's grab it.

Mr. B: No, they don't have anything I like to eat here.

GG:  What do you mean?

Mr. B:  I like gas station food.

GG:  Gas station food?

Mr. B:  Yeah.  The stuff you can buy at gas stations.

GG: Dude!  That's like all sugar and chemicals.  That's not FOOD.

Mr. B: Well, I can put it in my mouth and chew it, so it IS food.

GG: All right, then I'm feeding you grass for dinner.  You can put that in your mouth and chew it. 


T-4 days until I leave for Baltimore for the 2012 Screw Iowa Writers Workshop. 

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zen moments in the great outdoors

I spent some quiet time yesterday reflecting on the courage and sacrifice people have made for me and my family.  We sure don't deserve it, but I am thankful soldiers put their life on the line to protect us. 

In my puttering around I found FOUR baby oak trees growing in various flower beds.  I've no idea how they got started in such random spots, but what a great surprise.

While walking along the path by the prairie at night I was dazzled by the fireflies.  So many, so early.  Between the fireflies in the fields and the stars in the sky my evening walk was well-lit.

All new stuff blooms right now, I have to get outside with my camera.  Irises, various shrubs, daisies, columbine and coral bells.  I am pleased to finally have fresh blooms all growing season.  Back when I started gardening, I was a dolt about bloom seasons and had "dead" weeks in my flower beds. 

We've got the most diversity ever in our yard since moving here.  When we built our house, we built on an alfalfa field, so we had prolific amounts of alfalfa and flies.  Now we have butterflies, fireflies, crickets, moths, beetles, worms and spiders.  Robins, sparrows, finches, hummingbirds, cardinals, doves, crows, blackbirds and hawks circle and dart overhead.  We've got so many snakes and frogs and toads--even a bullfrog the size of my fist lives by the sump pump hose on the side of the house.  It's wicked loud outside this time of year, buzzing, chirping, humming.  The catalog of species is enormous and it pleases me--a diverse ecosystem is strong and healthy.  I'm proud to have helped replenish this corner of the planet.  We steer clear of most chemicals, put out bird seed in the winter months, plant native species and have a "live and let live" attitude about nature. 

This brings me to the frogs.  For a week now a few frogs have been belting out their songs all night long and it's incredible how LOUD they are for such small critters.  Truly miraculous how something barely two inches long requires us to shut our windows at night to get some sleep.  Last night while I rambled, I peeked out a window where the frogs' song sounded the loudest.  A tiny movement caught my eye.  "I think I see it!" I exclaimed to Mr. D and I shuffled outside in bare feet down to the pool.  Sure enough, by the light of the stars, moon and fireflies I saw two frogs, amplified by several decibels by their spot beside the pool, backed by a brick retaining wall and concrete floor.  No wonder they sounded so loud--they'd picked the best spot for their song to carry.  I tiptoed up to the first with a skimming net and captured it.  The other frog jumped plop! into the pool.

I carried the first frog to safety beside my garden where a swamp of sump pump water would provide a good habitat--greenery, moisture, bugs and other frogs.  Then I returned to the pool to find the other frog.  Staring at the water's surface, I tried to spot any movement.  Suddenly a ripple and I went after it with the net.  He dove below the surface, a shadow of frog darting out of reach.  Sure, I could let this frog spend the night in the pool, but the chlorine would kill him.  I patiently waited for his froggy face to peek out of the water and each time he surfaced, I'd approach with the net.  I played hide-and-seek with that darn frog for almost 7 minutes before I finally scooped him into the net and carried him to the vegetable garden/sump pump water swamp where I'd gently set down his froggy pal.

They spent the rest of the night echoing each other--croak!  croak! but it was kind of quieter. 

Nature sure is loud and busy.  I'm loath to kill any of it, including frogs.  Except for the tick crawling on Mr. G's arm this morning and the giant horsefly that flew into our house.  I killed them without remorse.

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facelift and face project

We have this wonderful back porch where we keep the windows open all summer to enjoy the sound of birds and crickets.  The screens keep the breezes in and the mosquitoes out.  It's a great room, but I've always hated the concrete floor.  It's practical, but ugly and hard to keep clean.

 

 I finally got around to staining it yesterday and WOW what a difference a little color made!  The facelift this room needed.  Now the room looks warmer, finished and the stain sealed the floor enough that it should be much easier to keep clean.  I can hardly wait until Thursday when I can put the furniture back in and enjoy morning coffee there again!



Speaking of faces, fellow Derfs know about Mrs. G's Face Project over at The Manor, an effort similar to Jen's SMILE challenge.  In short, real women take real pictures of themselves without apology.  This morning I'm uploading porch photos off my camera and pre-shower, pre-teeth brushing I snapped this photo of myself.  It's about as "just rolled out of bed" as you can get, I guess.  Green Girl, without airbrushing or cosmetic improvements, just au naturale the way God made me:



And this is just lovely, all the bright green of springtime during last week's rain.  Look at that pile of dirt I have to lug over to the potager--you bet I'm waiting for it to dry out before I start digging around in it again.  I want to plant this week, so I better face it sooner than later.



As evidenced in these photos, we are at the tail end of dandelion season.  We don't spray here, which I'm sure makes our neighbors positively ITCHY, but that's a chemical battle hardly worth waging.  Let's face the facts on the dandelion issue, it only lasts for 2 weeks of spring and it's inevitable, whether you wage chemical warfare or not, those dandelions are going to invade your lawn. For a week our lawn is yellow, then for another week our lawn is white and floaty--all kinds of dandelion wishes ready to take flight at the faintest puff of a breeze.  And then the dandelions are mostly gone and our yard looks pretty much like everybody else's until the clover begins to bloom, which is about the best smell of summertime next to charcoal grills and phlox.

 

In other news, I'm going to vote today--big primary faceoff in our fair state.  Frankly, I'd be happy with either Falk or Barrett, but even Mr. G (at age 7, freckled, funny and sassy) would make less of a clusterf*ck of things than the Current Administration. 

Spill it, reader.  What are you facing in your neck of the woods?

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one good citizen

It's cold and damp and I have 75 tree seedlings to plant.  Really, it's perfect weather for tree-planting, but I'm not convicted since I'm cozy inside right now.  Perhaps this afternoon, after I mop the floors and start dinner.  I'll pull on the green Wellies, bundle up in an extra jacket, grab gloves and get going. 

Tonight I'm slated to present A History of the Constitution & The Importance of Being a Good Citizen to a group of Boy Scouts.  I have about an hour.  I'm supposed to touch on Reconstruction, The Emancipation Proclamation, Civil Rights Movement, Respecting the Flag and Patriotism.   I know what you're thinking:  this oughta be good...   But I actually have a decent opener--I thought I'd give groups of scouts a newspaper and scissors and tell them to cut out any article that wouldn't exist without our Constitution. Imagine what would remain--mainly the advertisements.

Team Testosterone and I cleaned the ditches this weekend.  They were the cleanest they've ever been since we've moved out here.  It is noteworthy that a guy drove past and flicked out his cigarette butt while we were picking up garbage.  I thought Mr. T would run after his car, he was so outraged.  But the trash on our property has reduced over the years, in part, I think, because we keep things clean.   The weirdest things we found were a mangled pair of surgical scissors and a deer leg (which really isn't that weird after last week's skull discovery.  It's actually weirder NOT to find a deer carcass on our property).

Friday night we saw West Side Story and I was so relieved that they stuck to Jerome Robbins' original choreography.  I imagine it's tempting to modernize it, but they didn't.  The understudy for Tony was pretty mediocre, but other than that it was a great performance.  The sets and costumes were noteworthy. Beforehand we had a really nice dinner at Flanagan's and felt like we were all that in our private booth, and then the head chef, who we know, came out to visit a bit with us after our meal.  Yeah, that's how Mr. D and I roll...a few times a year.  We drank a bottle of Hob Nob Pinot Noir.  I highly recommend it--a very bright wine.

From high heels at the theater to mucking in the ditches in Wellies.  My range is better than Tony's understudy.

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Under the Never Sky (Under the Never Sky #1)

 I've been in a post-apocalyptic and dystopian slump for quite some time. After reading a slew of books in this genre, where every story and characters felt the same. I figured I was just burnt out from the genre and took a break. After reading several rave reviews, I was glad I took a chance on Veronica Rossi's debut novel, Under the Never Sky, to help me get out of my genre rut. Thank you to Harper Collins and Netgalley for an advanced reader's copy of the book.

Description (from Goodreads): Since she'd been on the outside, she'd survived an Aether storm, she'd had a knife held to her throat, and she'd seen men murdered. This was worse. Exiled from her home, the enclosed city of Reverie, Aria knows her chances of surviving in the outer wasteland - known as The Death Shop - are slim. If the cannibals don't get her, the violent, electrified energy storms will. She's been taught that the very air she breathes can kill her. Then Aria meets an Outsider named Perry. He's wild - a savage - and her only hope of staying alive.
   A hunter for his tribe in a merciless landscape, Perry views Aria as sheltered and fragile - everything he would expect from a Dweller. But he needs Aria's help too; she alone holds the key to his redemption. Opposites in nearly every way, Aria and Perry must accept each other to survive. Their unlikely alliance forges a bond that will determine the fate of all who live under the never sky.

Review: I'm not exactly sure which genre fits Under the Never Sky the best, but from what I've learned about the book's world I'm leaning towards post-apocalyptic. Regardless, it is a compelling account of characters searching for truth, love, and identity in two separate worlds. Aria has grown up in a Pod, where every aspect of life is highly regulated by technology and things can immediately happen just by thinking about it. Dwellers such as Aria lead sheltered, insulated lives in the Pod, enjoying protection from the often treacherous, unpredictable weather. They live their lives vicariously through their devices and really reminded me of the people glued to their chairs in the movie Wall-E. Peregrine lives outside of a Pod, an Outsider, in what the Dwellers consider perilous wastelands where humans live without the technology the Dwellers depend upon. The Outside world is very similar to what we would call the Stone Age where hunting, using ones survival skills are the only ways to guarantee your will survive.
  Aria and Peregerine's world intersects when ruling authorities banish Aria from the Pod and Peregrine loses something very valuable to the Dwellers. The two characters struck up an unlikely alliance as they help one another on separate quests that turn out to have unexpected connections. While the plot of Under the Never Sky isn't groundbreaking and uses common tropes of the genre, I really liked the characters and the traditional use of an epic journey that entails action, romance, and humor.
 Using alternating points of views, we are able to get to know the main characters intimately. I thought Aria's chapters were cold, whiny, and removed at first, which exemplifies her Dwelling lifestyle. She has grown accustomed to getting what she wants immediately just by voicing her desires and quickly moves into a fetal position when she's thrown out of her comfy home (not that I don't blame her). I loved her development from a passive to a strong girl who can fend for herself and roll with the punches. Her transition isn't immediate and does mess up but her determination is admirable. Unlike Aria's chapters, I instantly connected to Peregrine's as his voice was filled with real, raw, emotions. While he may be commonly seen as a 'cave man' to Aria, we quickly learn how much he cares about his family and his fears of becoming the leader of his tribe. Aria and Peregrine not only strike up a rocky friendship, but they slowly dispel their stereotypes of one another, gain mutual respect and admiration. Their romance slowly burns and for the most part a bonus to their story as they never lose sight of their original mission.
  Rossi establishes her world building in creating a unique language for her characters, which add texture to their respective regions. As a reader you plunge head first into the action with very little explanation. Thankfully, I was aware of this before reading the book and it didn't hinder my enjoyment too much as I expected it. I did, however, grow a bit frustrated in trying to figure out what exactly are the Aether storms and how the weather helped mutate the Outsider's genetics as they are known to have special powers, which are repeatedly mentioned. I also didn't like the book's abrupt ending. I hope these issues are addressed in the next book, which I'll definitely will be reading. Rossi has got me hooked and I can't wait to see what happens next in her offbeat and mesmerizing series.

Rating: 4 stars

Words of Caution: There is some strong violence, a few scenes of underage drinking, and a few allusions to sex. Recommended for Grades 8 and up.

If you like this book try: Blood Red Road by Moira Young, Graceling by Kristin Cashore

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The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate

  The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate by Jacqueline Kelly was nominated for the Newberry Award in 2010. It has received several glowing reviews from a variety of book review journals. It also has been in my to be read pile for quite some time. Luckily for me, the book was also listed in the Rebecca Caudill booklist. After finishing, the book deserves all of its accolades.


Description (from Goodreads): Calpurnia Virginia Tate is eleven years old in 1899 when she wonders why the yellow grasshoppers in her Texas backyard are so much bigger than the green ones.With a little help from her notoriously cantankerous grandfather, an avid naturalist, she figures out that the green grasshoppers are easier to see against the yellow grass, so they are eaten before they can get any larger. As Callie explores the natural world around her, she develops a close relationship with her grandfather, navigates the dangers of living with six brothers, and comes up against just what it means to be a girl at the turn of the century.

Review: The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate is a delightful book that crosses a wide variety of genres: coming of age, historical fiction, and even feminism. Calpurnia, more commonly called Callie by friends and family, is a spunky, adventurous, and curious girl. You would most likely find her out in the fields with her journal detailing the insects and other species she'd encounter rather than hosting parties at home. Growing up with six brothers in rural Texas in 1899,  Callie realizes that her aversion to needlework and cooking disappoints her mother. Still, she prefers to spend her time exploring the river, observing animals, and keeping notes on what she sees. Callie’s growing interest in nature creates a bond with her previously distant grandfather, an amateur naturalist of some distinction. I absolutely loved Callie's grandfather who is incredibly funny with his one liners and has impeccable comedic timing.
  After they discover an unknown species of vetch, he attempts to have it officially recognized. This process creates a dramatic focus for the novel, especially with how Callie mother inspects her to grow up to be: a woman who is to be married and uphold her own family. While the scientific observations are interwoven with the daily life of Callie, the main focus of the book is Callie’s gradual self-discovery as revealed in her vivid first-person narrative. While some become bored with the book's lack of a plotline, I was immediately taken by Callie's family and friends. Her bonds with her siblings, the conversations she overhears, and the meddlings that Callie gets herself into are all told wry humor, warmth that allows the characters and its setting come to life. While the book doesn't dismiss domestic work as unnecessary or demeaning, it allows young girls to realize that they should not restrict their talents and dreams to society's expectations. Callie is admirable and a role model that I think many young girls would like. I, for one, would love to have her as my friend.

Rating: 4.5 stars

Curriculum Connection: Science 

Words of Caution: There is some discussion on evolution and Charles Darwin, an incident where Callie drinks an alcoholic beverage without knowing what it is, other than that, it is very clean. Recommended for Grades 4 and up.

If you like this book try: Charles and Emma by Deborah Heiligman, Evolution: The Story of Life on Earth by Jay Hosler, Kevin Cannon, and Xander Cannon

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Savannah Grey

  Blogger was down yesterday and much of this morning. My blog post from yesterday disappeared. I apologize in advance if you've read this review already but I wanted to re-post it for those who missed it. I recently finished Savannah Grey by Cliff McNish. This review is based on an advanced reader's copy that I received from Netgalley for an honest review.

Description (from backcover): Savannah Grey needs to keep moving. She doesn't know why, but she can't let herself get tied down by too many people. It’s almost like she's being chased by something. And now something strange is happening with her neck—with her throat. Then she meets Reece—a guy who seems to understand her needs. He even knows about her neck. The same thing is happening to him. It's as if their voices are becoming weapons, warming up for some kind of attack. Nature has been preparing for battle with the universe's ultimate monster for millennia. The time to fight is almost here. The weapon is Savannah Grey.

Review: Savannah Grey is the strangest book I've read this year. Cliff McNish has a knack for combining elements of the supernatural, horror, and mystery into his story while creating characters who go through disturbing and weird transformations in order to combat evil. Savannah Grey is always uneasy. She is constantly moving from one foster home to another, not really finding a niche for herself. Her throat is perpetually sore and starts to make weird noises or even some sort of music whenever someone gets near it, which means she can’t get close to anyone. Savannah meets a boy named Reece at a party, who’s experiencing the same things. They discover strange growths in their throats; while Reece’s aren’t functional nor seem threatening, Savannah’s looks as if its a weapon created to fight a monster that seems to be creeping about in their neightborhood.
  Savannah Grey has two different narratives. In alternating chapters, Savannah details her discovery of her powers in the present tense meanwhile we get to know the ecological monsters that are hunting her in the third person. The alternating narration builds the tension between the prey and the predator, making us wonder when the two will meet.
  Savannah’s transformation is fascinating and strange, but requires a lot of suspension of disbelief, which I couldn't do and found it to be pretty silly. There is a small subplot of a love story between Savannah and Reece which drives the story well and gives weight to a surprising plot twist. I found the ending to be abrupt. Personally, I'm not the right reader for this book, however, I will recommend to middle grade and reluctant YA readers looking for strange stories.

Rating: 2 stars

Words of Caution: There are some disturbing scenes and some minor language. Suitable for Grades 6 and up.

If you like this book try: Silver sequence series by Savannah Grey

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Everything I Was

 With our economy in peril, many of us are readjusting and reevaluating our needs. Most of the time these changes are not easy and we miss living our lives in luxury. Other times these transitions help us distinguish what is really necessary and important. This idea is explored in Corrine Demas's timely middle grade novel called Everything I Was.

Description: After Irene’s father loses his high-paying job in the city, her family leaves their penthouse apartment and elegant life to spend the summer on Irene’s grandfather’s upstate New York farm, where she helps in her grandfather's plant nursery, makes new friends, and begins to learn what she really wants and needs.

Review: I was pleasantly surprised how much I enjoyed reading Everything I Was. I was afraid that I was going to meet your stereotypical spoiled rich girl who is forced to "step down" when she lives with the poor folks in the country. Thankfully, Irene doesn't fall into this predicament and which made me really like her. Irene's life seems to be a slice of our daily lives in today's tough economic times. Her father, a vice president of a large company, lost his job as company is downsized. Irene is pulled out of her luxurious life in New York City and forced to almost start her life over from scratch. Of course she is at first appalled by the change, but slowly warms up to the country lifestyle of working in the nursery, riding her bike as she wishes and making new friends, which allows her to appreciate her new freedom that she might never have if she lived in the city. Irene's desire to have a close family and become a real family member is palpable and rings true.
  Demas's storytelling is solid and never too sweet. Her adult characters are multidimensional. Irene's once powerful father who supported his family financially struggles with depression. Her mother refuses to accept her reality and fights to retain her pride with purchasing expensive items to cover up her new social status. Irene's grandfather, one of my favorite characters in the book, advises his granddaughter yet allows her to make her own decisions.
  Irene's new found friends are also delightful and very down-to-earth. Their family lifestyle is a great comparison of a working family that supports and loves one another. It's no surprise how Irene is so taken with them. In addition to Irene's self discovery, there is a also a sweet and budding romance. Everything I Was is a delightful coming of age story that offers hope to those in harsh financial times and reminds us that money isn't everything.

Rating: 4 stars

Words of Caution: There is a handful of profanity in the book. Recommended to Grades 6 and up.

If you like this book try: Where I Belong by Gwendolyn Heasley

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eco-holiday

Three years ago this week Jen on the Edge and I started a little eco-blog called Eco Women: Protectors of the Planet. We shared a vision of a website that could teach people how to behave friendlier to the environment. We aren't super-crunchy-granola (what with liking to shave our armpits and eat the occasional Hostess Twinkie), but we aren't greenwashing the topic by encouraging people to buy more stuff or do nothing and feel good about it. We're those environmental activists in the middle, teaching people how to do right by Earth without spending money or totally uprooting their lifestyles. Since then we've added to the legions of Eco Women (and a couple Eco Men), steering people away from single-use plastic products like shopping bags and water bottles, encouraging people to dig deep and plant their own food, calling out the polluting industries and applauding the companies committed to shrinking their carbon footprints. We've covered "green sex" and "eco-friendly tourism." We've addressed what to eat, wear, buy (or, more likely, NOT buy), smear, spray, unplug and pour--all in the name of saving the environment from pollution.

To celebrate our three year blogiversary over at Eco Women, we're giving away THREE Eco Women canvas shopping bags. To enter to win, you've only got to visit the site and leave a comment.
I do hope none of my readers need this shopping bag--y'all already gave up plastic shopping bags eons ago, right? RIGHT?

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screening

Before rumors start that I hopped on the back of a Harley Davidson roaring through my po-dunk farm town in a leather-clad moment of Bridges of Madison County desperation to follow my heart's desire of romance and excitement and passion, I figured I better post something.

"Something."

*Collective groan*

No, the truth is much more boring than that. I didn't meet a scruffy, muscle-bound, charming stranger with haunting blue eyes. Instead I've racked up over 7 hours of volunteer time this week and I've still got 5 to go--namely, I agreed to help replant a garden at Happyland Elementary. I'd grossly underestimated how much time that project would take. You'd think that I, of all people, would know better, wouldn't you?

I've learned a few other things this week. This morning I discovered that applying hand lotion before practicing yoga is a Very Bad Idea. Particularly when moving into Downward Dog. With slippery hands on a yoga mat that position quickly becomes Face Plant.

Ahem.

I've also been researching various topics for a New! Top-Secret Book Project! Did you know that according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the U.S. National Resources Defense Council (NRDC) there is no such thing as a safe air freshener or spray? Not only did I discover ALL! CAPITALIZED! WARNINGS! telling pregnant women to avoid these products, there's consensus that they're quite dangerous. Whether you're using a Glade Plug-In, Ferbreeze or some store-brand can of spray in your bathroom, they're all made with the same chemicals used in paints, paint thinner, fuel and varnish--terrifying things like formaldehyde and phthalates. The chemicals in these products are linked to cancer, respiratory and cardiovascular problems, hormone disruption and dizziness. Pretty darn scary if you ask me. Reader, I'm begging you to rid your house of these products STAT. For your health and for your family's. Here's a link to one of the articles if you'd like to read more.

I've never bought any of these products because a) they're unnecessary, and b) I've always been suspicious of their effectiveness. I've got asthma and I'm sensitive to smells and airborne particles, so I avoid fragrances, chemicals, sprays and cheap perfumes as a general rule. But it's astonishing that these products are even allowed to be manufactured and sold.

Now it's your turn to share some information with me. I finally finished washing all my windows and screens and I'm keeping the screens off the windows this winter until springtime. I figure I can mend the holes more easily over the winter months, they'll stay cleaner, it'll make it easier to wash the storm windows again come springtime if they're off, and without the screens we'll have less obstructed daylight coming in--especially with the long winter ahead. I've never done this before, so I'm asking seasoned window-washers what is the established screen protocol.

Spill it, reader. Screens on or off? And do you use air sprays and air fresheners?

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the sky has changed

Fall always feels so wide and empty after the busy humming and buzzing of summer. Sure, the colors are gorgeous, but they crescendo and abruptly wilt away, drifting to to the ground in crunchy piles. The box elder bugs attack me on the front porch, the Asian beetles crawl their way into every crack and crevice, anxious to escape the cooling temperatures. The only flower blooming now are the asters. Brave and showy, they glow in the midst of empty stems and stalks.The happy chirp of crickets has been replaced by the frantic shouts of geese moving south.


So many geese.


Some hunters on the Back Forty take aim and the still air explodes.

Fall empties my spirit, loss replaces all the joy and abundance filling summertime. While most folks swoon over the colors of the leaves, cheer wildly for football teams, savor the smell of burning leaves and mulled cider, I paste a smile on my face and try to appreciate it. But I'm really mourning summer and itching for spring to come again.

Even so, there is apple picking this time of year.

And that helps.

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freedom to hang

You already know about Green Girl's affection for her clotheslines. Besides being handcrafted by her grandpa, who was a welder by trade, she loves that hanging out her family's laundry costs her nothing but a little time. It makes their clothes smell fabulous, it reduces their energy use. Hanging out her wash is totally retro, like how she buys milk in glass bottles. It gets her outside, it slows her down, it's convenient. She can hang out the wash in the morning and leave it until sunset--without worrying about shrinkage or her electric bill.

So when people make a documentary about clotheslines? You know she's interested.




Spill it, reader. Do you hang? Would you consider it?

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earth day fun

Apparently asthma combined with pneumonia can get a little Complicated. An x-ray, oxygen test and puff test in the doctor's office yesterday resulted in all new drug prescriptions. The potential side effects from the combination is staggering. I chucked one of the new antibiotic pills down the hatch while driving Mr. T to his module test. When we arrived at the karate school I read through the drug sheet. "You might have to drive us home," I told him.

Mr. T (with a huge grin on his face) "Why?"

Me (sounding like Malcolm's wheelchair-bound asthmatic buddy Stevie on Malcolm in the Middle): "According to this. (breath) I'm not supposed to drive. (breath) Or operate heavy machinery. (breath) Until I know. (breath) How the drug reacts. (breath) In my system. (breath) And I already took one."

The possibility of getting to drive the Momvan took the edge off his nerves and he passed the sword test. His joy at passing the sword test took the edge off of his disappointment that I felt well enough to drive us home. Win-win, really.

I, on the other hand. (breath) Still have to take. (breath) The sword test. (breath) After I win. (breath) The battle with my. (breath) Fluid-filled lungs.

Now, dear reader, click here and leave a comment so you have a chance to win this canvas shopping tote from the Eco Women:

Wouldn't it be awesome to carry this bag emblazoned with all of your favorite Eco Warriors? Recycla, Captain Compost, The Green Mommy, and of course, Enviro Girl can help you carry groceries, library books, all the various items from a Target run--the possibilities are endless!

Happy Earth Day! Spill it, what environmentally friendly thing will you do for our planet today? This week? Forever?

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green, mean & clean

Two years! It's been TWO YEARS since Jen on the Edge AKA Recycla and Enviro Girl started Ecowomen.net and it's amazing how the word has spread about environmental issues. We've borne witness to ordinary people becoming Eco Warriors, whether it's by biking to work or growing some of their own food or downsizing to consume less. Two years and they've taken on heavy issues like chemical additives in food, alternative energy, plastic shopping bags (boo! hiss!) and bottled water.

TWO YEARS and they've added THREE writers to the group: Amy AKA Captain Compost, Marni Graff AKA Eco Lassie, Kim Kasch AKA The Green Queen and Kirstin AKA The Green Mommy.

To celebrate TWO YEARS of Ecowomen.net, the fabulous Eco Women are running fabulous giveaways all week long. Quit stalling and follow the link to leave a comment.

And if you want to leave a comment here, share how you've become greaner and meaner in the last TWO YEARS!

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earth day '09

Happy Earth Day, everybody! Click on over to EcoWomen: Protectors of the Planet and enter our comment contest today!

The state of the planet today is a mixed bag, as it was back in 1962 when Gaylord Nelson first began the Earth Day movement (it wasn't an official holiday until 1970). Our messed-up economy has brought our planet some blessings: fewer people driving, lower bottled water sales, reduced consumerism and increased incentives for people to save money on energy costs. That said, developing nations like China are a toxic cesspool of pollution, we've got more chemicals in our water and food supply than ever before and we continue to lose our planet's biodiversity at a mind-numbing pace. To keep it in perspective, there's this. Yeah, you read that right. Plastic bag manufacturers, in a nod towards consumer backlash, are offering to develop plastic shopping bags that use 40% recycled material--in 6 years. Whatever. Thanks, but no thanks, guys. Holy green-washing, Batman!

Bottom line: more people are serious about environmentalism. Living green is no longer a profane idea. That said, plenty of people still don't get it.

A great case in point is my town. Recently we adopted a new garbage collection system--every household got a trash barrel provided by the county. The trucks sort of scoop up the barrels, reducing energy, labor and blown over trash barrels (in theory). Our new garbage bin is a whopping 65 gallons--4/5 of my family can physically fit inside this hog. (Our old trash barrel, now consigned to composting our food & yard scraps, holds 15 gallons.) Garbage collection is still weekly. Recycling collection? Reduced to every other week. So, larger garbage cans and weekly pick up came alongside reduced recycling pick up. Not environmentally friendly by any stretch in my book. People are now less encouraged than ever to recycle and more encouraged to chuck their waste in the landfill because Hey! This bad boy holds 65 gallons--plenty of room!

I'm going to hang my laundry on the clothesline now (washed in eco-friendly Seventh Generation detergent). Then I'm going to drink my homebrewed with tap water Fair Trade coffee and ponder what else I can do to live greener and leaner this year. (Don't you despise people who are all self-righteous and virtuous? They disgust me too.)

I raise my cup to everyone working on reducing their footprint this year. Cheers to you!

Green Girl & Bachelor #3 getting their hands dirty in the spirit of living greener.

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monday miscellany

First, you must stop by Eco Women: Protectors of the Planet this week--it was a year ago this week that Jen on the Edge and I launched a site for green people like us--we eat some meat and shave our legs--we're not super-crunchy granola people. We're regular folk with an awareness and consciousness about living more environmentally friendly lifestyles through doing a little more every day. And we're giving stuff away this week. If that can't convince you to drop by and leave a comment, I don't know what will.

Back already? I saw that Paul Harvey died this weekend. When I think of the "markers" of adulthood when I was a child, they included Paul Harvey telling us the news on AM radio, Readers Digest, men wearing 3-piece suits to the office and the sour chemical aroma of home permanents. I liked how he'd start a story and wrap it up at the end of his program--that phrase, "The rest of the story." I liked the wry humor in his voice and even when I later learned he was conservative, he wasn't a hate-mongering a**hole like most of AM radio's voices today. He was a gentleman, and the world is a little poorer today for his leaving it.

I'm really sorry for my friends in the South--it's one thing to get hammered by a late winter smackdown (thanks, Mrs. G, for that image) when you live in Wisconsin, but a foot of snow when you live in North Carolina? That's harsh. My senses are numb from enduring 4 months of cold and snow. I'm desensitized to the puff of my breath hitting the frigid air every time I exhale. But I do feel bad for my more delicate neighbors in the South this week.

I'll leave you with a cute kid story. Mr. G crawls in bed with me at 6:00 every morning to watch PBS Kids--we snuggle, pet Violet and watch Curious George together and every morning during the week he asks if we can go to the Rainforest Cafe (proud sponsor). Today he saw the ad for the Rainforest Cafe and pointed, yelling, "Look Violet! There's your family!" Sure enough--a couple of lions were stalking through the safari. "You have lots of people in your family, jaguars, cheetahs, tigers--they're your brothers and sisters." That's a family reunion that wouldn't end well for our girl, fierce huntress that she is.

This is Green Girl. Good day!

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Alone in the Wilderness

That's not a figurative title this morning. We'll get back to my regularly scheduled programming of Feminism, Gardening and Politics later, but this is just too cool to leave unmentioned.

Last night after a full day of NFL viewing, Mr. D came to bed and opened a book. I was already tucked in, reading Love Walked In by Marisa de los Santos (Thanks, Diane, I'm LOVING it, BTW). We lay in companionable silence, turning pages and I was grateful that Mr. D was leaving his new BFF, the TV remote, alone. But the temptation to check scores is a strong force for a man in 4 fantasty football leagues. Plus there was a baseball game on another channel. As he surfed, he came to PBS and exclaimed, "I love this show!"

I looked up and saw a man sawing logs in the woods. In simple, sparse language, Dick Proenneke narrated his life in the Alaska Wilderness. No whack-job like Chris McCandless, Mr. Porenneke retired in 1967 at the age of 50 and spent the summer finding a spot at Twin Lakes in Alaska to build a cabin. Using only hand tools, he built a log cabin. I watched with fascination as he whittled and worked his way around a log--taking an hour to fashion a wooden spoon for making hotcakes, a couple hours to build a sled which he used to carry meat across the snow-covered lake in the winter.


With only the basic necessities, Mr. Proenneke spent his days enjoying the wildlife, taking time off to hike and explore when he wasn't engrossed in the labor of making his home. (I mentioned he was not a whack-job, he commissioned a plane to bring him supplies on a regular schedule. There's a difference between living off the land and living in the wilderness.) He built an outhouse. He built a fireplace. By digging a hole in the ground, lining it and capping it with a coat of moss, he built a refrigerator. With a fishing rod, a shotgun and a small garden plot, Mr. Proenneke had daily sustenance.

I was charmed by this bachelor wilderness man--in his grey trousers and brown jacket, he climbed up mountains with the dexterity of a mountain goat. It was hard to believe he was in his sixties. I'd have loved a chance to meet him, talk to him over coffee or take a long hike with him in the mountains--he died in 2003, so that's never going to happen. Lucky for me, a film crew followed his life, taping the cabin's construction, the wildlife Mr. Proenneke encountered, the changing seasons. In glorious Technicolor, without soundtrack, stuntmen, fancy editing or script, this documentary was peaceful and inspiring.


As I battle a tendency to recluse myself, I envied this man's life. Nothing dominated his schedule except the chores essential to his survival. His calendar recorded temperatures and observations of the land and creatures around him--no meetings, appointments or other distractions. Like Thoreau, I long for a quieter place "to live deliberately, to front only the essential facts of life, and see if I could not learn what it had to teach, and not, when I came to die, discover that I had not lived." Mr. Proenneke lived that life and it was my pleasure to watch part of it.

To a greater degree than most of us ever do, Dick Proenneke checked out. The rest of us do the same thing in smaller ways, we bike a few miles along a country road, camp a few nights in a tent or RV in a state park, hike in a woods--but we return to the chaos of modern life. Alone in the Wilderness inspires me to pursue a quiet life more intentionally--a life unplugged with room for a surprise encounter with a wolverine or lengthy contemplation of spring wildflowers. (Okay, probably not going to see a wolverine in Wisconsin, but maybe a badger or woodchuck.) Check it out, Alone in the Wilderness, a one-man show that will surely amaze and astound you.

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Thank Heavens for the Food Network

Reminder: Head over to Eco Women: Protectors of the Planet to enter our 1st ever superfantastic contest!

The sand pile is half moved, the raspberry patch is groomed for the season and this morning I'll pamper the strawberry patch a bit before facing the sand pile again. (Ooooh, the blisters on my hands!)

Last night I saw Strange Days on Planet Earth on PBS and I ended up watching and extra half hour of Food Network (I love Alton Brown's Good Eats) just to get the chill off before I went to sleep. (Alton Brown always makes me happy, but I've got a more serious crush on Chef Duff.) The Great Pacific Garbage Patch was featured, as well with terrifying tales of what chemicals leach out of plastics and how they affect animal life. We have a serious problem with plastic, people. I'm ramping up my anti-plastic-shopping-bag efforts to include bottled water at the ballpark this summer, too. And at PTA-sponsored events. Check out Strange Days on PBS if you haven't. It's fascinating and terrifying (kind of like the X Files).

This morning Mr. T asked to watch a "Michael Jackson movie." Through my keen questioning, I fathomed that he wanted to watch the "Bad" video as part of his preparation for a karate demonstration he's in on Saturday. With the help of You Tube I pulled it up and Team Testosterone watched it while eating breakfast.

Mr. G danced with abandon to Michael Jackson's groovin' tune.

Mr. T smiled and then asked, "Is that a man or a woman, Mom?"

Mr. B asked,"Why does that man sing like a lady?"

Mr. T commented, "I guess they didn't have much electricity in your day, Mom, and that's why they made such short movies."

Then Mr. B asked, "Is that man a bad guy? Is that why he keeps saying he's bad?"

Oh the possible responses to that questions. Is Michael Jackson bad? Do I go there?

Hey Kids! Look at the time! We gotta go!

Momma needs to watch some Charm City Cakes!

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