Was able to get a last minute airfare deal and flew up to Green Bay Saturday a.m. and came home yesterday afternoon. Blame the photographer (me) for the blurriness of this pic. Actually none of the kids sat or stood still long enough for me to take a decent picture of them! They were whirling dervishes all weekend. This is 6-month McKinley getting a smack from her mom, my "baby girl" Mary. No matter how old she gets she will always be my "baby"!

It was only minutes after my arrival that McKinley reached out her little arms to me and she had my heart at hello! She has the most wonderful disposition and is always looking around with interest or is laughing at the antics of her older brothers. She and I were making faces at each other and she started giggling - it was the most wonderful laugh I have heard since my own were babies. Let's just say she was in my arm a lot of the time. :-)

I didn't even get a pic of 18 month old Kegan - he never slowed down! He also decided Gramma was a good elbow and knee cushion and climbed on and off of me at will! He has the most infectious smile and would eat from the moment he got up until bedtime if he could. One never gets a whole piece of anything with him around. I had a great time pushing him in his swing and playing pat-a-cake. Gramma is a new word in his vocabulary that he used regularly. He has got the cutest toddler swagger - he is going to be a heart breaker with that smile.

Five year old Michael wore me out playing hide-n-seek around the huge maple and oak trees on our evening walk on Saturday. I had forgotten how beautiful the old neighborhood trees are in the Midwest. They are just starting to turn colors and the houses were decorated for Halloween - what a delightful reminder of autumns as a child. He is still into Thomas the Train so a trip to Toys R Us was in order - of course! He now has a new bridge and was not too happy when he couldn't take it to school Monday morning.

It was hard to walk away from day care Monday a.m. when we dropped them off before Mary took me to the airport but a part of me was also happy to be going home to my own quiet house. I had forgotten how loud a house full of kids is and I admit I was glad when bedtime came Sunday night and we had a few moment of silence before the adults crashed too.

I did a little reading on the plane and chuckled my way through How to Raise Your Parents: A Teen Survival Guide by Sarah O'Leary Burningham. http://search.barnesandnoble.com/How-to-Raise-Your-Parents/Sarah-OLeary-Burningham/e/9780811856966/?itm=1 Although intended for teen readers, this is the perfect book to give to friends and relatives whose children have turned into the dreaded teenager - angst and all! O'Leary shares a few of her own adolescent stunts and subsequent consequences as well as incidents that teens shared with her online. Mostly certainly a chick book, but teenage guys could learn a thing or two about raising their parents from reading this as well. The line drawings by Bella Pilar supplement the low-key text well and even cause a smile or two. This over sized paperback will be popular with the younger teenage girls as they learn how to maneuver the minefield of being a teen in a household with parents who just "don't get it"!

We actually stood on the Grand Ole Opry stage on Saturday. :-) The backstage tour was very interesting, especially about the circle on the stage that was cut out from the old Wyman Theater and added to the new stage in Opry House. The house seats about 4400 and we were in the nose-bleed section but with the big screens there isn't a bad seat in the house. Was interesting to watch the stage hands doing their thing between acts as this is live radio show. Lots or Pro Bass Shop commercials! Although I am a very big Alan Jackson fan and he was wonderful, my favorite act was Darius Rucker. You may know him from his Hootie and the Blowfish days. This guy can sing and his "Don't Think I Don't Think About It" is such a cool, but sad song. I am going to buy his CD Learn to Live: http://music.barnesandnoble.com/Learn-to-Live/Darius-Rucker/e/094638550624/?itm=1 We also got to listen to Charlie Daniels and he can still play that fiddle to beat the devil as his song states, even though his beard and hair are as white as snow.

Saturday was our "Opry Day" and we wandered through the Gaylord Opryland Hotel - talk about huge and easy to get lost in. The other pic above is of a what I would call a Green Woman, based on the Green Man myth. I have always been fascinated with this mythical creature who stands for nature in its most wild and natural form. The woman's face was painted green and she had stilts attached to her legs and arms making her a long supple green bough. I stood as mesmerized watching her as the little kids. Thank goodness Steve had the camera to take a pic of her. There is a really great YA collection of short stories and poetry about the Green Man called The Green Man: Tales from the Mythic Forest edited by Ellen Datlow: http://search.barnesandnoble.com/booksearch/isbninquiry.asp?EAN=9780142400296&x=19152209 I need to order a new copy. Mine went missing when I let students borrow from me so who knows where my previous copy is. Hopefully in some teen's hand who is as enamoured with this myth as I am.

Sunday was our Texans' day and then got creamed by the Titans. We were up in the nose-bleed section and the sun was merciless. I have a farmer's tan neckline and very red face today. But, it was worth it, even though they lost. First time I have seen them play in person since we moved from the Houston area. Nashvillians from around us in the stadium were asking about Houston and were a great group, putting up with both my screams of delight and moans of despair. All it all it was a wonderful weekend away from home for both of us. Steve didn't even take his laptop. I admit I did take mine and checked email both mornings and answered a few students' emails before I felt comfortable to just enjoy the time off. To my students who are reading this - thanks for keeping my inbox relatively bare this weekend and for the "have fun in Nashville" emails. :-)

Since I already wrote about a YA title, my children's book for today is a hilarious picture book about how lazy babies are - from the viewpoint of the primary school aged older sister. Susan Orlean's Lazy Little Loafers is an absolute hoot. G. Brian Karas caught the frustration of the older sister and the sassiness of the diaper set beautifully. http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Lazy-Little-Loafers/Susan-Orlean/e/9780810970274/?itm=1 I can't wait to read this one to my grandsons in relation to their infant age little sister. I thought of all the pics of the movie stars' babies when the older sister spouts - "And as far as model superbabies go, I'm not sure they're real - after all, you can just about do anything with digital photography." After watching several babies studiously not working, older sister decides as she arrives at school, "...I figured out the answer to my question. You want to know why babies don't work?" You turn to the last page where the baby, in stroller, turns his head and sticks out his tongue at her. "She deadpans in defeat, "They're too smart." This is the perfect shower or baby gift for anyone you know who is having a second, third, fourth..... baby. Also, a must have in any preschool or primary age library collection. The tongue in cheek humor makes this a superb read aloud.

That's it for today.

Now I really feel guilty when I see how long it has been since I posted an entry! And, I am very glad I included a weekly posting in my 2008-09 academic year goals. I am one of those people who is easily controlled by email - I could spend my whole day responding to email as I get so many of them work and listserv wise. It is almost noon and I have been responding to emails all morning. Granted, some of the responses require me to create documents beyond the actual body of the email answer, which takes more time, but still - email eats up tons of time. Sometimes I long for the time we communicated via phone or snail mail. No one expected an immediate response back then.

Funny how this is on my mind since I just sent in the manuscript of the cell phone article. I love to write, but I am not sure how well I'd do at 140 characters at a time and have to integrate the immediate feedback from readers who respond to the text as it is posted to the web site. Could I write a cell phone novel? I am seriously thinking about, but not until I get some other things off my plate. I admit, time management is my big downfall. I get bogged down in the daily duties, like email, and don't get to the part of my profession I like best - writing about youth literature.

I spent last week in Greenville so I had 18 hours of novel listening with the round trip. I listened to James Patterson and Howard Roughan's Honeymoon. http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Honeymoon/James-Patterson/e/9781586217273. I could certainly fantasize about having so much money that I had to choose between driving my Porsche or Bentley, but I wouldn't want to be Nora Sinclair, the main character in this murder mystery. You know from the start that she is killing off her rich husbands after she cleans out their Swiss bank accounts, but she is still a fascinating character. Nora is a beautiful woman and she uses her looks and her amoral intellect to get what she wants, even in the bedroom. This doesn't get too steamy but there were a few times I was glad I was in a car zipping down the highway with the windows closed! The Feds are on to her, but the agent they send to trip her up gets caught in her mouse trap instead. Lots of plot twists and turns and good "road read" for the trip.

Finished listening to The Accidental by Ali Smith. http://search.barnesandnoble.com/The-Accidental/Ali-Smith/e/9781598870138. I really didn't like this book, but I kept listening as it is grossly fascinating in its own way. You feel like you are caught in the closet watching all the things a family wants to keep hidden. There are multiple narrators, from the acerbic tongued 12-year-old Astrid, her suicidal teenage brother, her aging sleazy professorial stepfather, and her mother who is a writer. Into their summer home walks barefoot, 30-something Amber who enthralls the whole family in her own way. She seduces the son, befriends the daughter, frustrates the mother, and ignores the seduction techniques of the father. No one really addresses who invited her - actually no one did - but in the time she is there she changes each of them, whether in a good or bad way - that's the reader's decision. It is beautifully written, no doubt about that, but I may have been better off reading this one as the seduction scenes with the teenage boy, in the little village church, creeped me out as I listened to them.

Haven't had much time to read, but I did have fun picture reading a Kids Can Press title - Robots from Everyday to Out of This World by the editors of YES Mag. http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Robots/Yes-Magazine-Editors/e/9781554532032/?itm=1It will be out at the end of the month and is a gotta have in every elementary level library. It "had me at hello" as on the first page there is a robot, Albert Hubo, that has the face of Albert Einstein on a white robotic body. He was never that "buff" in real life! A very basic time line of robot history is included - from da Vinc's mechanical lion to Stanford's robot called Shakey. I am going to sound sexist here when I state that the boys are going to love this, but they are. And, there are some girls who will get into it as well. The color pictures are superb, match well with a quick and easy to read text. The short text and side bars give just enough information for a good subject over view that might entice readers to seek out in depth information on specific robotic subjects, such as Kevin Warwick who considers himself a cyborg! The creepiest tidbit of robotic trivia - in Japan, researchers have replaced cockroach's antennae with electrodes, adding little backpacks and cameras. Theory is - the roaches can be used to search through the rubble of collapsed buildings. Oh yeah - and as sneaky creepy spies. Think about that the next time you turn and see a cockroach - your scream might be heard and seen by someone else!

Sorry - no YA title today. I haven't had time to actually read a book with my eyes these days.

Okay - on to the next task on my to-do today list. This was a fun one.

It is already 1:30 and I just finished getting through my email inbox for the last few days. I spent most of the weekend working on an article about the cell phone novel phenomena in Japan. Can you imagine writing a novel via a cell phone keypad, 140 characters at a time? One of the authors said her thumbs were bleeding from how much writing she was doing. I am considering trying it myself but I'd have to get a new phone for sure! On the other hand I don't get to blog as often as I'd like, adding one more venue of writing would probably do me in right now.

I had a wonderful time in Greenville as always. It is going to be a really good Fall semester. I hit the road again for meetings the second week in September so I'll get a lot of "reading" done on the road. Have to see what I have in my bag of audio "goodies" I pick up at Half Price Books and stash in my car.

This past trip, I finished listening to Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen. http://search.barnesandnoble.com/booksearch/results.asp?ATH=Sara+Gruen The use of two male narrators made for very enjoyable listening. The chapters alternate between Jacob as a young man and as an elderly resident anxious to attend the circus that is set up down the street from the nursing home. The elderly Jacob is feisty, ornery and concerned he is losing his mental acuity as he spends more time in his past than the present. Who can blame him when considering his present situation vs. the wild times he had while working as a circus veterinarian for the Benzini Brothers' Most Spectacular Show on Earth, a traveling circus during the Depression. The chapters told from Jacob's first hand point of view, as a young man in his early 20s, after his parents are killed in a car accident his last semester of college, are touching in their sincerity and innocence. Jacob loses his innocence due to the harshness of life in a circus and his virginity to the show's stripper. His heart, he loses to Marlena, the equestrian rider and the wife of the brutal animal trainer, whose vicious temper is often directed toward Rosie, the recently purchased elephant that doesn't do much besides eat. Rosie is thought of as useless until Jacob discovers she will only respond to commands in Polish. She also has a taste for lemonade and gin. At times quite humorous, this is as much a love story as it is a circus tale, drawing the reader into the big top and into the lives of Jacob and Marlena as they try to hide their love. Most certainly a novel written for the adult readership, but older teens will relish this coming of age story in a time when a man's virginity isn't lost in his teens. The Depression Era starkly comes to life as do the violent and harsh conditions both men and women endure to eat regularly, even if their salary is held back by the unscrupulous Uncle Al, who own the show. Thoroughly enjoyed this book. Gruen's knowledge of horses is very evident and I was not surprised to see on B&N that she had previously written two books specifically about horses, the first, Riding Lessons http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Riding-Lessons/Sara-Gruen/e/9780060580278/?itm=5, about a woman who had been an equestrian and an Olympic contender until an accident ended her riding career. Fast forward and she is now returning home to the family horse farm with her troubled teenage daughter. This is also a love story with a veterinarian. :-) The sequel Flying Chances http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Flying-Changes/Sara-Gruen/e/9780060790950/?itm=2 has her daughter in the same spot she was at eighteen, an equestrian contender for the Olympics. I haven't read/listened to them yet, but I think these would appeal to the teenage girls. I'll let y'all know.

My children's book for the day is a September 2008 Abrams title that has a political slant to it - Ballots for Belva: The True Story of a Woman's Race for the Presidency by Sudipta Bardhan-Quallen and beautifully illustrated by Courtney A. Martin. http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Ballots-for-Belva/Sudipta-Bardhan-Quallen/e/9780810971103/?itm=1 A very appropriate book to dovetail current events with historical ones. The time line in the back of the book is a quick synopsis of the women's suffrage movement in the U.S. We have come a long way, baby! Many folks had high hopes of a female president in the current election. It isn't going to happen this time, but I am sure we will see more women running in the future. Females running for president is not a new - in 1884, fifty-four year old Belva Lockwood became the first woman to officially run for president. Even though women could not vote at this point in time, there were no laws restricting them from running for office. Some men were not very happy with her and held "Belva Lockwood Parades" where they dressed up as women and pretended to be her. We all know she didn't win the election, Grover Cleveland did, but she won 4,711 popular votes. No one knows how many other votes for Belva were not counted, as many were thrown out as no one could believe anyone would actually vote for a woman. Sounds a bit like the Florida fiasco. Although a picture book, Ballots for Belva is one I'd offer to the high school U.S. History teacher. Picture books are a wonderful way to open up a classroom discussion. The illustrations add depth to the era, including what the tricycle Belva rode around Washington D.C. looked like. Belva was one feisty woman! Superb book for any school or public library.

That's it for today. Time to find the top of my desk again. My goal is to do that every other day - we shall see how well that works!

Where has this week gone to? It is already Thursday and I seem to have lost Monday - Wednesday. Actually Monday and Tuesday were spent bringing live the Fall Children's and YA Lit courses. I have students already selecting books for assignments. Our grad students in the LS Program at ECU are incredible go-getters and fantastic to work with. I couldn't have found a better group of students and faculty to call my professional family. Looking forward to seeing everyone on Monday. I am bringing brownies (rich and chocolaty and you absorb calories just by smelling them!) - but they are worth the splurge for our lunch get together. We'll all be zinging for the afternoon meeting.

I think Fall weather is approaching already. It has been cool at night and only in the mid 80s during the day. I am not complaining. I am not one for the heat anymore. When I first moved to Texas in the early 90s I couldn't get enough of it. Now, give me a book and a shade tree if I have to be outside. I can't wait for the trees to change color. This is one of the most beautiful areas I have ever seen for color, especially along the Kentucky River. We found a home for sale that backs up to the river - there is no back yard to speak of, just a steep bank down to the river. I could go for that! The sound of the river, maybe some deer around, etc. Can't wait to see the house as it has a screened in back porch. They say you can't go home, but I think I am trying to recreate the quietness of home. I remember as a child sitting in the swing for hours reading and not hearing anything but the birds and an occasional car going by. I didn't realize how blessed I was to grow up in the rural environment I did. At the time I hated it as there was no one to play with so I found my friends in books. What I wouldn't give for one of those leisurely walks with Mom on the back road over to the neighboring farm. And with Dad, to find the first lilacs in the spring. Guess I have had enough time being a "city girl" that I am ready to go back to my country girl roots, but with access to the mall, of course. :-) But, if I want that house in the country I have to get my act together and get things packed up around here so we can put this house on the market.

The top of the front cover of the ARC for Ruby's Imagine by Kim Antieau http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Rubys-Imagine/Kim-Antieau/e/9780618997671/?itm=1 was peeking out of the top of my purse when I went in for my fibro massage and the therapist saw the deep purple butterfly and said, "Rebirth". I smiled and responded that yes, this book indeed is about rebirth, but the "labor pains" were horrendous - Hurricane Katrina. The eco/world centered language and speaking style of the main character, Ruby, is melodic and sweet as the nectar the hummingbirds Ruby speaks to. Ruby does not find it strange that she can speak to the trees, the birds, and other wild creatures. She remembers the white ally gator in the swamp but her grandmother, Mamaloose, abruptly tells her that is just her imagines, just like the two sisters she imagines. Ruby's innocence makes it difficult to see her as a young woman finishing up high school and accepted into Tulane to study swamp biology, but she is much smarter than most folks around her realize. She keeps it to herself. JayEl, her best friend since they were in elementary school, has feelings deeper than the baby-fingering hooking affection they show each other but he knows to wait. But, the hurricane isn't waiting for anyone and Ruby knows that - the Root People have told her so. At first no one believes her and many of them - Ruby and Mamaloose included, ride the storm out in their flooded houses, seeking refuge in attics which offer little shelter as the roofs are blown off. This is a beautiful book that touch at the heart strings and also causes us to ponder the travesty of how poorly our country responded to the devastation of a beloved city and its people. A book that, once read, will not be forgotten. Ruby never did like to call the area she lived in a ward, she referred to it this way - "I lives in the place where the wisteria dips over the fence to hold hands with the magnolia that dips down to say hello to the Place Where My Vegetables Grow". Ruby will plant again and New Orleans will rise out the dirt just like Ruby's garden. The rebirth will happen, is happening - folks like Ruby who know the city, different perhaps but still there, are the ones who will bring about the rebirth.

Antieau also wrote two other YA novels - Mercy Unbound http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Mercy-Unbound/Kim-Antieau/e/9781416908937/?itm=1 and Broken Moon http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Broken-Moon/Kim-Antieau/e/9781416917670/?itm=2. She is not an author to shy away from controversial issues. She is also a blogger - check it out at: http://www.kimantieau.com/

In one of the scenes in Ruby's Imagines she is soothing a scared little girl by telling her about the Milky Way and notes that in Finland it is called the Pathway of Birds. Well, that intrigued me, of course, and I thought would fun it would be to write a folk tale about this pathway. But, time for writing folk tales I do not have, but I did have time to read a hilarious one. Such A Prince by Dan Bar-el and illustrated by John Manders http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Such-a-Prince/Dan-Bar-el/e/9780618714681/?itm=1 is a delightful take on the story of the three brothers who set out to "cure" the princess so they can marry her. In this version, the cure is 3 perfect peaches. And, of course there has to be a fairy godmother - whose name is Libby Gaborchik. The Gabor sisters would be chuckling over this name, as am I. She is there to help the youngest, scrawniest 3rd brother win the hand of the princess, of course. His peaches do indeed have the princess dancing and she is more than willing to marry this peasant but her father isn't keen on the idea. Remember - things often happen in 3s in folk tales, and this one is no exception. It takes the magic silver whistle Gaborchik gave Marvin to herd 100 rabbits (kind of like the Pied Piper of Hamlin, but not rats) into the castle. But the king determines they re not plump enough for the stew so they must go outside the castle gates to graze. The king and the queen both try to trick Marvin by showing up in disguise and asking for a rabbit, but in the end, as a good folk tale always does, the "littlest brother wins." Marvin weds the princess. A perfect read aloud for older elementary students, JH & HS as the humor is quirky and even a bit risque. Let's just say the King being tricked by Marvin into kissing his donkey 3 times comes back to bite him in the ... But, oh what fun. Manders' illustrations are delightfully comical. This one stays in my personal collection.

Now to pack up some more books for storage!

It may be hot outside, but it is chilly in my office with the air on so I am drinking hot coffee, thanks to the new flavored beans I found next to my pot when I got up this morning. I was barely keeping my eyes open until Steve got home last night. I crashed night right after so I didn't even see the groceries he unpacked or the first pre-season football game. I can't believe Brett Farve, the "old guy" from Green Bay, is with the Jets. Guess he just couldn't do without the "glory". Should be an interesting year of football. I am still a Texans fan at heart.

I had to stay awake because Sophie was still very shaky on her back legs, which kept slipping out from under her on the tile and hardwood floors after I picked her up from the vet. If she didn't look so befuddled over why her hind end wouldn't work it might have been funny. Sore gums or not from having her teeth cleaned she chowed down as soon as she got home, even if it was from a lying down position. She is doing great today and not even embarrassed by her bald spots where mats were shaved out on her back. She's outside surveying the world from the deck. Just wait until we have a new home with a larger yard - if we end up in Boones Trace there will be deer in the yard. Will feel like back home in Upper Michigan with critters around again. Not many here in Hamburg, but a few bunnies and one possum when we first moved in.

I have been cleaning off my desk and came across the NY Times article I saved - "Electronic Papyrus: The Digital Book Unfurled" - about the pocket-sized Readius made by Polymer Vision. You can actually roll it up - the screen is so flexible you can wrap it around your finger. Now, this is an ebook reader I might be willing to buy. It uses the same ELink technology that the Kindle does. We won't see this baby in the U.S. until the beginning of 2009. No price set yet but they anticipate it to be more expensive than the Kindle at $359. Hmmm. Guess I will have to wait for it to go down in price. Want to know more? Go to: http://www.readius.com/ I may register in case they are going to give a few away in the U.S. market. :-)

I guess I am on a NF kick for the moment, but my YA book for today is a Watson-Guptill publication that came out last month - Kyle Baker's How to Draw Stupid and Other Essentials of Cartooning. http://search.barnesandnoble.com/How-to-Draw-Stupid-and-Other-Essentials-of-Cartooning/Kyle-Baker/e/9780823001439/?itm=1 Anyone who knows me knows I cannot draw at all. When I taught First grade my kiddos would come up and draw things for me as they couldn't tell what mine were when I drew them. Pretty bad when a 6-year-old can draw better than you can, but that's life. So, because I can't draw, I am totally impressed by folks who can. And Baker can draw, and draw stupid as he states it - so stupid that his cartoons make you snort laugh. We have a lot of teens out there who are budding artists/cartoonists and this is the book for them. Heck, Baker dedicates it "to the future cartoonists of the universe." My favorite chapter is Chapter 8: Use Reference Material. He writes about needing to know how an x-ray machine is set up in a dentist's office for a cartoon - he went to the Internet for photographs to work from. Great advice: "Don't try to fake stuff, or try to guess what something looks like, or work from memory. That's not only lazy, but lots of people looking at your drawing won't know what it's supposed to be." The chapters are short and filled with cartoons, some of them full page. This book is a browser's delight and then you can settle down and enjoy his enlightening and very humorous text on how to become a great cartoonist. Baker should know - he's won 8 Eisner Awards http://www.comic-con.org/cci/cci_eisners_08win.shtml and 5 Harvey Awards http://www.harveyawards.org/. Although I would still prefer to curl up with a narrative style novel, I am getting more and more into graphic novels and cartoon books. But, when I think about it - that's no surprise as Mic was collecting Garfield books long before they were referred to as graphic novels. :-) He was watching Japanese anime back in the 1980s too - I had no idea it would become so popular, but liked the big eyed characters too. Wish I could remember the one he rented over and over again - even I could recite the dialogue!

My children's book for the day is a Barefoot Books title that was originally published in Britain, Motherbridge of Love illustrated by Josee Masse, but will have as wide of an audience in the U.S. http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Motherbridge-of-Love/Anonymous/e/9781846860478/?itm=1 Although a 2007 title, I have an ARC of it - loose pages - and I started to read it because of the beautiful cover - a little girl doing a handstand in the heart shaped opening made by two hands touching at thumb and fingers. Immediately a page fell out and as I picked it up I realized it was in Chinese. Though I cannot read it, I recognized it from things I have around my own home purchased in China when I visited as a leader of a People to People Ambassador Program visit of librarians. The text of this book - a poem written by an adoptive mother and sent in to the charity Mother Bridge of Love - will fill every mother, adoptive or not, with warmth. To hear this poem beautifully read visit: http://www.motherbridge.org/. Do not skip the intro - this is the poem. Don't stop there - this organization is of interest to more than parents who adopted children from China. It does any mother's heart good to visit. I write this with a lump in my throat.

As much as I would like to spend more time talking about books and web sites I love, it is time to do some more packing and working on Fall semester courses.

Well, it may be the Hilton on Tobago instead of the gorgeous Marriott on St. Thomas, but I could go for sitting in one of those chairs right now with a cold drink. A bit ironic as I never even put my foot in the pool the entire time we were on vacation on Tobago, but as they say hindsight is 20/20 and that chair in the pool looks really good about right now.

Been up since a little after 5 a.m. thinking about all the things I have to get done in the next 2 weeks before I head out for Greenville on the 17th. A friend our ours who used to live on a sailboat when we all lived in St. Thomas has sold his boat and is back on the Mainland looking for a new one and is spending a few days with us that weekend. Will be fun to catch up on on the news about friends who are still down there. Jeff knows them all as he has lived in the islands for years. I couldn't live on a sailboat like he does, but more power to him if he can live with that little room. Heck, my shoes would fill up his boat just on their own. First thing I look at in the houses we are checking out to buy is the size of the walk in closet in the master bedroom! I need to get the books boxed up in the extra bedroom and things cleaned up in there so Jeff can find the bed!

Am supposed to be going down to a friend's wedding next summer, but haven't made up my mind yet if I will or not. I don't plan on teaching summer school next year so a trip to STT with Janna to attend Roxanne's wedding might just be the break I need. Janna and I will spend hours catching up with each other and I'll get little sleep, but isn't that part of a girls' vacation together? Matter of fact, need to touch base with both of them soon. Seem to have the islands on my mind these days - guess I could use a vacation!

My book for today is not a YA novel, but a NF title that will appeal to older teens. I am working on the syllabus for my YA Lit course and have been focusing on adult titles that will appeal to the teens who are focused on life after HS. I have been laughing out loud over a book of words that came out last month - The DailyCandy Lexicon: Words and Phrases for the New Generation http://search.barnesandnoble.com/The-DailyCandy-Lexicon/Editors-of-Dailycandycom/e/9780753513064/?itm=1by the editors of Daily Candy - http://www.dailycandy.com/everywhere/ This is most certainly a chic blog, but it is lots of fun! Here is my favorite definition -
Teenile: adj. Used to describe someone who is way too old for what she is wearing. (“That 45-year-old woman is wearing low-cut jeans. Is she crazy or just teenile?”)
There are just some things I don't want to see and that is some woman my age with her baby belly hanging over those jeans. I wear "gramma jeans" as my daughter calls them, but at least it is all tucked in where it should be!
Older female teens will also love the first book as well: Daily Candy A to Z: An Insider's Guide to the Sweet Life. http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Daily-Candy-A-to-Z/Dailycandy-Press/e/9781401302184/?itm=2
Give these to the older teens who have their noses buried in the edgy chic lit and woman's fashion magazines. Oh what fun!

My children's book for the day is a new Holiday House title by Nancy Poydar - Zip, zip... Homework. http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Zip-ZipHomework/Nancy-Poydar/e/9780823420902/?itm=1 Poydar was an elementary teacher for many years before she became a full time creator of wonderful picture books and her knowledge of the younger students is very evident in both her style of writing and her humorous illustrations. I thught of this book as I was checking out the Sunday paper sales fliers and saw all the school supplies on sale, including backpacks. Violet is sure that this year she is going to get tons of homework and she is going to need a backpack that can handle the load - a rolling one with lots of pockets, snaps, and zippers. She is so excited about it, she practices filling it with the homework she imagines she will get. The big day comes when the teacher gives a sheet of homework. Violet is sure she put it in her backpack, but "Ziip, no. Riipp, no. Unclick, no. Unsnap, no." (Love the use of repetitive sounds) The homework was no where to be found, but the next day Violet tells her teacher that she couldn't find it in her backpack, but Ms. Patience is holding the offending empty piece of homework in her face. Violet has homework that night and it isn't going to be easy - she has to tell her parents the truth about her homework. A delightful beginning of the year read aloud in any primary level classroom where little ones come in with backpacks almost as big as they are! I miss those days, but not enough to go back to teaching in the primary classroom again! I love my grad students too much to do that.

On to more packing of books and finding the table in my office. I have most the desk exposed at least!

No, I haven't fallen off the face of the earth - Summer Session swallowed me whole and just spit me out! Grades had to be in by 8 a.m. this morning and I submitted mine before I called it a day last night. The one fun thing I did this summer was go to a concert here in Lexington at the Legends' baseball park. Had really good seats on the field for the LeeAnn Womack and Alan Jackson concert. I was able to get a few good pics of Womack as her pre-show was not lights and big screens and flash. It was just her on the stage with that incredible voice. She was superb. Jackson was fantastic as well but there were so many lights directed at the audience and on the stage that I couldn't get a decent picture of him. He sang all his hits and everyone was on their feet singing along with him. I was surprised he played such a small venue but I was very glad he did as that is the closest I'd get to the stage for one his concerts. I haven't read it yet, but his wife Denise wrote a book called It's All About Him: Finding the Love of My Life http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Its-All-About-Him/Denise-Jackson/e/9780785227762/?itm=2about her faith and dealing with her husband's infidelities and still keeping their family together. Many of the videos playing behind him as he sang were of his wife and girls. I'd like to read this, but like so many non YA or children's titles, I don't get to them.

Made it through another August 4th, Mic's birthday. He would have been 31 yesterday. Very hard to believe he has been gone for 11 years as of April. I can close my eyes and hear his voice and the feel of his hug when he walked through the door after his marathon drives from LaCrosse, WI to Arlington, TX and said, "Hi Mom" like he hadn't been away from me for weeks, if not months. We talked on the phone at all hours of the day and night and he never let me forget how blessed I was, and still am, to have a son like him. Mary called to check on me as she was missing him too. Those two were like two peas in the pod when they were little, but battled like crazy as tweens and drew close again as they entered their late teens. I was glad they were together when my mom died, but devastated they could not be with me at the funeral. She too has been gone for 11 years, a few months before Mic. I am sure they are playing rummy in heaven and mom is still cheating. :-)

Taught two sections of children's lit and one of YA lit this summer and all of the grading and responding to student emails took most of my time. That and dealing with doctor's appointments. I am happy to say I am at a tolerable level of pain and know I can deal with having fibromyalgia. I have my bad days now and then, but if I control myself on the days I am feeling good and don't over do it, I have more of those than bad days. If I could just get a bit more sleep I would be very happy. I have become very intolerant of noise, especially anything high pitched so we are looking to buy a new house out of town on an acre or so if we can so that I don't have to deal with little kids squealing next door, less than 6 feet from my office window, or the sound of the recess bell and kids playing on the playground in the new school that will open up across the green space from us. Hamburg is a wonderful area of the city to live in but not for someone like me who needs quiet and a bit of seclusion. So, my next chore is to find the top of my desk and floor in my office so we can put the house on the market. Never a dull moment in the Clark household!

With all that has been going on this summer I haven't had much time to read but finally read Randa Abdel-Fattah's Does My Head Look Big in This? http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Does-My-Head-Look-Big-in-This/Randa-Abdel-Fattah/e/9780439919470/?itm=1 I found myself laughing out loud at some of things the main character, 16-year-old Amal, comes up with. She is an Australian-Palestinian teen who lives in Melbourne, the daughter of a wealthy family, and attends an exclusive, and very snobbish, prep school. So when she decides to wear the hijab full-time, not just on a bad hair day, she knows she is going to be putting herself in the limelight for taunts of "towel-head" and much worse. Amal is a delight, as she is really a typical teenage girl with the typical teenage girl feeling and fears, such as how will the boy she likes respond to her decision? With her wit, her wicked sense of humor, and her Jewish and Japanese best friends rallying around her, Amal stands up for her beliefs and her right to express her faith as she wishes. This book is a real eye-opener for those of us who have not thought very much about how Muslims are being viewed outside the U.S. after 9/11. Amal states it like this - "It feels like I'm drowning in it all." A must have book for every JH-HS level collection.

On the children's front, I loved Nancy Viau's Samantha Hansen Has Rocks in Her Head http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Samantha-Hansen-Has-Rocks-in-Her-Head/Nancy-Viau/e/9780810972995/?itm=1 which is a new Amulet/Abrams title coming out in September. What a fantastic book for the middle grades. Ten-year-old Samantha Hansen is not a girly-girly by any means of the word. She has loved rocks since she was a toddler and as a tween she has taken her scientific mind to new heights. Now if she could just remember to bring her rock collection to school as her example of what she collects. No way is she letting Ling, who had remembered to bring her rock collection on the right day, show her up! Sam also has a very big voice and a bad tendency to lose her temper - when she does the voice gets even bigger. Mom is as understanding as she can be, quietly telling Sam to count to 10 under her breath. I guess that kind of patience is to be expected out of a mom who sings birthday card jingles in the kitchen and serves cake for just about every meal. It is not unheard of for the three Hansen gals to have cake for dinner and meat loaf for dessert. Sam's dad died when she was three, but she still thinks about him and all the things she'd like to talk with him about - like bedtime stories and piggyback rides. When out of the blue Mom decides that it is time for the three of them - Mom, Sam, and teenage sister Jen - to do some bonding on a trip to the Grand Canyon, Sam is in for more than just a visit to one of the best rock formations in the world. A great read aloud in the elementary classroom during science fair time.

Now to find the top of my desk and start packing up some of my books!

This is a picture of the Margaret A. Edwards Committee and our award winning author, Orson Scott Card. The entire committee is dressed in blue, but we didn't talk about this before hand so I guess we are like-minded in color choices as well as award winning YA authors. :) I am going to miss working with Brenna, Kimberly, Erin, and Patty. Three redheads, one brunette and me, the blonde - our personalities are as different as our hair, but we worked well together. Being on this committee was one of the major highlights of my 20 year involvement in YALSA.

I am already busy with my YALSA Board duties. The emails are flying fast and furious and I am busy printing out documents to read and keep in folders. I can see I am going to have more than a few 3 ring binders full of documents and messages to keep me on track. I am going to enjoy every moment of the next 3 years on the Board.

Life is majorly crazy right now. I leave for Greenville in the a.m. for the COLRS workshop. COLRS is an IMLS grant that Drs. Harer and White co-coordinate and it includes a workshop each summer for the scholarship students as well as other students who wish to attend. I am doing booktalk presentations again since all my YA literature students have to present booktalks and this gives them a chance to see me in action. So, I need to get my books together along with all the other packing done for the trip. Will be longer than normal as I am meeting Mary in Greensboro for a couple of days. She is at a training workshop there so I'll go stay with her, work during the day, and we can go out to dinner and catch up in the evening. Michael's 5th birthday was Thursday and I missed his party on Saturday. I miss him and can't wait to see McKinley. Pictures are great, but not the real thing. And Kegan has grown so much and from the sounds of his voice behind Mary on the phone he is a rambunctious one.

My book for the day is Marc Aronson and Patty Campbell's (fellow MAE committee member) compilation of interviews, letters, essays, journal entries, short stories about war - War Is... A Hard Look at Warfare by Soldier, Survivors and Storytellers. http://search.barnesandnoble.com/War-Is/Marc-Aronson/e/9780763636258/?itm=2 - a Candlewick publication that will come out in September. Thanks to Patty, I had the opportunity to read the ARC. What a poignant mix of entries chosen by Patty, who is adamantly anti-war and Marc, who takes the opposite stand on war as being a necessary evil in the world. Their introductory essays would be wonderful read alouds in a secondary World or U.S. History classroom, or any other for that matter. Excellent classroom discussion starters. A great resource for debate teams as well. The entries by the soldiers, men and women, in Iraq brought tears to my eyes. This collection spans entries from letters written by a WWI soldier to a futuristic short story. A must have for every YA collection.

Now to get back to preparing for my trip. Can't wait to see the other LS faculty members. I am so fortunate to work with great colleagues.

A very humid early morning here in Lexington. Going to be 90 degrees by the weekend. I envy Steve spending the week in Redmond, WA where I am sure the weather is much nicer. He called a bit before 10:00 last night from Houston, anticipating getting in a 1 a.m. WA time. I never did get used to the 3 hour earlier time change while at ALA so I hope he does better.

Had a great time yesterday at the Kentucky School Library Media Association Summer Refresher Workshop in Louisville. I presented two booktalking sessions in the a.m. - a HS and a MS level one. Wrote 33 booktalks to prepare for the sessions so books were piled everywhere on my office floor before they were put in order and into the rolling suitcase. Also attended Teri Kirk's session on all the books she had read - what a wealth of titles. Also attended a session on blogs, podcasting, and wikis. Now to find time to play with the new web sites, etc. I learned about.

Just received the big box of books I sent home from ALA in Anaheim. I wish it has come in yesterday as my advanced reading copy of The Big Splash by Jack D. Ferraiolo was in it. http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Big-Splash/Jack-D-Ferraiolo/e/9780810970670/?itm=2
I did include it on my list of MS level titles for my booktalking session yesterday, but I wanted to hold it up so they could see the cool, bold cover art. This is one of the most delightfully funny books for MS that I have read in quite some time. Ferraiolo, in his debut YA novel, uses the writing style found in the old hardball noir pulp fiction detective novels. Seventh grade private detective, Matt Stevens, "tough as a steak from the school cafeteria," accepts a job from Vinny Biggs, the head of the MS crime syndicate that includes everything from forged hall passes to black market candy. Matt is to retrieve the good luck charm - a hula girl statue - that Vinny had given Nicky Fingers. But, it gets more complicated when Nicky Fingers, who wanted out of the "life", is taken out. She has left behind the life of being an assassin before her little sister enters middle school. She couldn't stay in the "life" with Jenny in school. "It would be like a butcher trying to raise his kid vegetarian." But, now Nicole (no longer Nicky) is in the Outs. Once a kid's crotch is soaked by a squirt gun shooter where all can see his/her humiliation, there is no chance of getting back into the popular crowd. Who shot Nicky Fingers and can Matt figure out which of the two females showing interest in him is the right one? Matt will soon learn one of them is involved in Nicky's downfall. A laugh out loud funny mystery that would be a hoot to read aloud. I can just hear middle schoolers groaning in delight over the one liners. I have the squirt gun Abrams sent with the ARC in my office, but I haven't sent anyone into the "Outs" with it. :-)

Another humorous read aloud, but for the little ones, is Ping Pong Pig by Caroline Jayne Church. http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Ping-Pong-Pig/Caroline-Jayne-Church/e/9780823421763/?itm=1 I picked it up because I love the cover art - Ping Pong, in mid-air, looks so much like the Clorox bottle pig Mic and I made together. I wonder whatever happened to that pig. Ping Pong is also reminiscent of the pink ceramic piggy bank that you must smash open to get to the change inside. Or, spend hours with a butter knife trying to slide the change out through the slot! Anyway, Ping Pong wants to fly, but all of his attempts are making more work for the other farm animals so they make him a trampoline. Even while he is in mid air, shouting, "I can fly!" the other animals remind him that pigs can't fly. Ping Pong uses his new trampoline to help around the farm. But then Ping Pong decides to fly higher than ever and jumps out of the apple tree onto his trampoline. Over the barn and straight into the pond! Ping Pong is delighted to learn that fish can fly too. :-) A perfect read aloud for the farm animal unit in preschool or kindergarten.

Now I am going for a morning walk before I start grading. Been up for 2 hours already and it is only 8 a.m.

I have so much to do to catch up from ALA that I don't know where to begin, so I'll start with the fun stuff first - this blog. Got back home late last night but our oldest granddaughter, Allyson, was up waiting to see me before she went to bed. What a smile on her face when I asked her if she enjoyed riding the horse. Steve took them out to the horse farm so the girls could see horses up close and personal. One of them almost munched some curls off of the top of Kadynce's head. Steve said her eyes were as big as saucers when she looked up and saw that big head coming at her through the fence. Wish I could have been there to see that, and her walking over the glass tank at the aquarium and seeing the crocs below her. I woke up this morning to Kady's voice and Monica shushing her but I got up and came out to see them for a bit before Steve took them all down to Mammoth Cave so I could have some peace and quiet to try and catch up with mail and work stuff.

ALA was wonderful as it always is. The best part is listening to the authors. Orson Scott Card is the most gentle and delightful man. The Margaret A. Edwards committee members got to sit and chat with him and his wife for a bit before the luncheon. He is a wealth of funny stories. An excellent speech as well. Like some of the other authors who have won this literary award for YA literature, he didn't realize he was writing for young adults. Teens do have a way of finding the books that speak to them, no matter which division of a publishing house they come out of. Ender's Game has several different reprints, with different covers, on the market. One of them is very tween friendly as this is a popular title in MS - http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Enders-Game/Orson-Scott-Card/e/9780765342294/?itm=2 However, I am not keen on this cover as it is so childish looking. An upper elementary age student may enjoy it as a SF adventure but there is so much more to this book in relation to mature themes that I'd hate to see it read too young. As Card stated, it is hard to determine the market for this book if using the old theory that kids like to read about other kids 2 years older than they are. Well, Ender is only 6 at the beginning of the book and addresses events that happened to him as a toddler, events that push the sense of disbelief to the boundaries of the reader's ability, but Card makes Ender's amazing intelligence believable. It works for me and pulls me into the books.

I am actually a bigger fan of Bean than I am of Ender. We get to meet him in more detail in Ender's Shadow http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Enders-Shadow/Orson-Scott-Card/e/9780765342409/?itm=7 , the other title honored by the award. This book takes him from his early years to his time in Ender's Dragon squad at Battle School. For more about Bean as he ages read Shadow of the Giant http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Shadow-of-the-Giant/Orson-Scott-Card/e/9780812571394/?itm=4 He has matured into an incredible young man with heartbreaking life events to deal with. I found that I preferred to listen to these books rather than read them as I felt more connected this way. Not sure why, but listening allowed me to absorb more of the background material that I missed when I read them. All I can say is that meeting and listening to Card given his acceptance speech was the highlight of the conference for me.

Lots more to talk about too, but that will have to wait until the next posting.

Am loving the meds in relation to sleeping. :-) Woke up wide awake at 5:45 and have been on the computer working since 6:00. It wasn't that long ago that it took me a good hour with a heating pad on my back to loosen up enough to get out of bed. And, my new doctor, Dr. Boomershine, at Vanderbilt Clinic in Nashville - what a dream doc! He called me yesterday, himself - not a nurse, to let me know that my blood work had come back and he was calling in a supplement for me to the pharmacy as I am vitamin D deficient (all these hours on the computer I guess). I was in pleasant shock as I am accustomed to having to call, repeatedly, to find out what the results are, or get a generic phone message or postcard.

I am so delighted to see Carol Matas' The Burning Time back out in a new paperback edition from Orca http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Burning-Time/Carol-Matas/e/9781551436241/?itm=1 I read this book in 1994 when Delacorte published the original hardback edition and it has never left me. I can still see 15-year-old Rose hiding behind a screen, hearing her mother being tortured. These scenes are brutal as this book is written in first person from Rose's point of view. The setting is 17th century France when atypical women, like Rose's mother, are named as witches by other women being tortured until they name the other witches in their village. Rose's mother is an easy target for the lecherous priest as her father is dead and her brothers are away on business. Rose too is accused but she manages to escape, but only after she helps her mother make a difficult decision. When a teen tells me that historical fiction is boring, this is one of the books I offer him/her as an example of a historical novel that will immediately pull you in and not let you go, long after the reading is done. It has been 14 years since I first read this book and I opened it to the torture scene where her mother confesses to any and everything the priest accuses her of to stop the pain. I will start booktalking this one again.

Let's move the setting to Africa for the children's book of today - One Hen: How One Small Loan Made a Big Difference by Katie Smith Milway, illustrated by Eugenie Fernandes.
http://search.barnesandnoble.com/One-Hen/Katie-Milway/e/9781554530281/?itm=1 This is a new Kids Can Press title. I really like the books that Kids Can Press publishes as they are often nonfiction titles that fill a niche that isn't filled by the larger publishers. Kojo, a young boy from the Ashanti region of Ghana, lives in a village where the families pool their savings so that one family can buy something important. When the loan is paid back, another family uses the money, and so on. When it is Kojo's mother's turn, she buys a cart so she can transport firewood to the market. With the few coins left over Kojo walks 2 hours to the nearest poultry farm and buys a chicken. With the money he makes from selling eggs, he adds more hens until he can build a chicken coop and eventually a farm where he also raises a family. Along with the narrative text there is a running text in larger print that reads to the rhythm of "This is the House That Jack Built". Although a fictional picture book, One Hen is based on the true story of Kwabeno Darko who invested his life saving, and along with a $1000 loan, started his own poultry farm. As a thriving business owner he, in turn, makes small loans to the villagers to start their own business. A short biography of Darko as well as information on donating to small loan programs is included. A very interesting book to use with children and even teens when discussing small businesses and how many of them start with a small loan and a lot of hard work at home before expanding into something bigger.

Sophie was in second heaven - Mama spent time in bed reading this a.m. I had to finish Lauren Myracle's Bliss so getting up at 6:30 to read before getting on this computer to grade all day seemed like bliss to me! While Sophie sprawled her big ol' cat body all over my lap I devoured the last few chapters of Bliss and I sat there with tears welling up in my eyes. The ending got me right in the gut and the heart. I wasn't expecting it so it was all that more intense. This book will appeal to the girls who read both horror/supernatural and romance/chic lit. What an enticing mix of an innocent first love and an gruesome obsession. I couldn't put this book down, especially with the Tate/LaBianca murders woven into the narrative and dialogue, making Sandy, the "unnatural" needy friend of Bliss all to0 real. Sandy has lost her connection with reality and wants to join her powers with those of the dead girl who threw herself from the 3rd story window of one of the buildings on campus. This book just might have goosebumps raising on your arms - did you hear that whisper?

On the children's book side, I am still moving my body to the rhythm of The First Music as told by Dylan Pritchett. This is an 2006 August House folktale so you may already have it on your shelves. I found my copy again when I was going through my shelves last night and remembered how much I like the story as well as the bold funky illustrations by Erin Bennett Banks. This is the story of how music began for the animals in Africa. Elephant stubbed his toe on a hollow log and in his frustration and hurt he thunked on it with his foot. What a great sound it made - "BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! Padada BOOM!" Monkey started moving to the rythm and the leaves on the branch he danced on made a "Shh-ka-shh! Shh-ka-shh! Shh-ka-shh! Shh-ka-shh!" sound to add to it. Crane lost her balance as she danced and fell on crocodile's back who loved the tickling feeling on his scaly back - "Skee-de-lee! Key-key-key! Skee-de-lee! Key-key-key!" All the while the frogs watched quietly as they have short legs and cannot dance. But the frogs found their voice on the dawn of the 7th day - "Reep-reep-ree! Reep-reep-ree! Reep-reep-ree!" So, even if you have short arms or legs, you can still make music as the aimals of Africa do. I wish I had this book when I was an elementary school librarian - what fun during a primary storytime. Or, join with the music teacher to create a Reader's Theater piece with drums, shakers, etc. Oh what fun!! This one goes on my "gotta keep" shelf for when I have to read to little ones on short notice. :-)

I'll dance my way to the kitchen for another Diet Coke - Skee-de-lee!! :-)

A beautiful sunny Monday morning with joggers and walkers going by. I am going to go to the gym later this a.m. and try the elliptical machine. I have been walking but having trouble with shin pain so I'll try that instead. I want to make sure when I go back to see Dr. Boomershine in late August I can honestly say I have been following "doctor's orders." The darn medication is still making me woozy and sick to my stomach, but I am going to grin and bear it until my body adjusts to it. One of the side effects is weight loss - I am hoping that one effects me. :-)

Saw on Yahoo that George Carlin died this weekend. I was never a big fan of his, but he certainly is an icon of the 70s with his "Seven Words You Can Never Say on Television." I remember my older cousin listening to his album (yes - it was vinyl) and just hoot laughing over it. I just thought it was vulgar, but I grew up in a household where swearing just wasn't done. I got my mouth washed out with dish soap for calling an ant a bugger. I didn't know it was a bad word!

I am reading Lauren Myracle's Bliss
http://search.barnesandnoble.com/BLISS/Lauren-Myracle/e/9780810970717/?itm=1 and am loving every moment of it. It is set during the 1960s and she prefaces the chapters with quotes from the time period, many from Mayberry RFD. Bliss is the very naive daughter of hippie parents who gets dropped of with her wealthy conservative grandmother. She is attending an exclusive private school and quickly becomes caught between the friendship of the very weird and needy Sandy and a group of "normal" girls. Bliss has a gift and can hear voices from the other side and she is hearing a very creepy voice from one of the buildings, talking to her about blood and keys and how she is the answer. I can't wait to hear Lauren talk about Bliss at the Abrams' luncheon at ALA. Lauren has a wicked sense of humor and she's fun to listen to speak. Lauren's Internet Girls series is very popular. TTYL http://search.barnesandnoble.com/ttyl/Lauren-Myracle/e/9780810987883/?itm=1 was even popular with the guys at the Montessori School in the USVI. What better way for guys to understand how girls "work" than to read the books they do? Although I love these books, I adored Rhymes with Witches http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Rhymes-with-Witches/Lauren-Myracle/e/9780810992153/?itm=1 as it combines the bitchiness of cliches in schools with a very dark twist as to how these girls gain their power over the student body. Certainly will have teenage readers pondering how far they will go to be part of the most popular group of girls in school.

On the children's book front I read a very interesting occupations title - When I Grow Up: A Young Person's Guide to Interesting & Unusual Occupations by Jessica Loy. http://search.barnesandnoble.com/When-I-Grow-Up/Jessica-Loy/e/9780805077179/?itm=1
B&N lists this as a paperback, but I have the Holt hardback in front of me as I type this. Color photographs add to the textual description of unique professions that focus on a specific person working in this field. Occupations include alpaca farmers, a chocolatier, guitar makers, a pet photographer, a robotics engineer, a set designer, a kite designer, and a game designer. In other words, the occupations that may interest the students who are exploring beyond the "norm". A great addition to the occupations titles in any elementary school library.

Only 4 more days before I leave to ALA in Anaheim. I am looking forward to immersing myself in books and talking with book people. :)

Friday is here and of course, the weekend will begin with rain and wind. We are supposed to attend an Alzheimer Association event at the Keeneland race track tonight. Hope it isn't raining then. Bourbon and BBQ - only in Kentucky. :-) Steve is on the local Alzheimer's Assn. Board so we really should be there, rain or no rain. When it rains I want to curl up with a book and read. Sounds good to me right now, but too much to do.

The wonderful news is that the latest biopsy results showed the second extraction was a "clean" removal so other than the "pretty" scar I will have on my back, I can quit worrying about it. Had to chuckle when I was in today getting the stitches out and found out I am one of the few people who has skin that has an "angry" reaction to what you put on wounds to help them heal. As my friend Larry says, "Some of us were wired by non-union electricians!" :-) That would be me and then some. So poor Steve is still on bandage duty for another week.

And, the trip to Nashville went wonderfully yesterday. I cannot say enough good things about Vanderbilt's clinic, especially after the nightmare of dealing with the UK clinic. It was like night and day in how I was treated by everyone from the receptionist to Dr. Boomershine, who is wonderful. How can you not love a doc who has a wicked sense of humor and a tiny ring in his left ear? :-) He went over literally 10 years of blood work results with me, along with all the other results from tests that have been run on me. Basically, all the visits to various kinds of doctors and the tests they ran ruled everything else out. That leaves fibromyalgia. So, the initial diagnosis from a neurologist has been reconfirmed by a fibro specialist. And, I have a treatment plan to start working on and new meds. I am feeling so upbeat as to the future of being able to control this and enjoy life again that I don't mind, too much, that I am really sick to my stomach right now from the new medication. I can live with that as I know once my system gets used to it, it is going help the pain levels. Might be a couple of rough weeks as my system learns to accept it, but after 10 years of dealing with this, that is a blink of an eye in comparison.

So, as far as days go - this is a good one. No cancer, and a doctor who understand fibromyalgia and is working with me to control it. :-)

Sorry - not booktalk/review today. Feeling really yucky, but wanted y'all to know I am doing okay. I owe so many of you emails and I am sorry - I will get there, eventually. :-)

I thought I came home with a lot of freebies when I go to conferences, but Steve had a whole suitcase full of stuff - two mini tambourines, a set of reindeer antlers and a whole washing machine load of IT company t-shirts. Guess I missed out on quite a bit by not going to Orlando with him - including Universal shutting down 1/2 of the park just for the Microsoft conference folks. Oh well, I was still sorting through books on the floor of my office when he came home yesterday so it was a good thing I stayed home. ALA in Anaheim is coming soon so I can't complain - I'll get my conference "fix" and then some very soon. No more taking an empty suitcase with me for books now that the airlines are charging for checked in bags. Guess I need to check if that counts for me since I made the reservations quite a while ago. It already takes "forever" to get through security and off the ground due to the over sized bags folks are taking as carry on as it is.

Open on my desk is Jan Greenberg's new poetry/art compilation, Side by Side: New Poems Inspired by Art from Around the World. http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Side-by-Side/Jan-Greenberg/e/9780810994713/?itm=3 I was on the Printz committee in 2002 when we chose Heart to Heart: New Poems Inspired by Twentieth-Century American Art as a Printz Honor book. I am a huge Georgia O'Keefe fan and I often open my copy to her art work and the accompanying poetry. Then I find myself browsing and reading others. Although the VOYA review I just read on B&N suggests a limited teen audience for Greenberg's new compilation, I beg to differ. I think teens are quite capable of enjoying ekphrasis. For more on this concept: http://www.reference.com/browse/wiki/Ecphrasis. Even young children are capable of understanding the connection between what we see and the words we put on paper - a conversation between two arts forms. We ask children to draw a picture about what we have read or they read to themselves both in school and at home. So, a teen's ability to understand and enjoy the connection of the art from around the world and poems, many of them translated, is a given, in my my opinion. I think many teens, especially those from diverse backgrounds, will savor this book, the art, the untranslated poem (even if unable to read it - the format is interesting) and the translation. Might even have a few girls writing their own poems about the good looking Florentine in the Botticelli - Portrait of a Young Man. The earnestness on his face makes me smile. Though not quite as "pretty" to look at is Memling's Portrait of a Young Woman, but what young woman doesn't dream of of a young man falling to his knees to breathlessly say, "Never have I beheld a woman like you." I can hear the sigh across America from teenage girls who wish the same. Were I her - I would indeed "permit him to touch my hand." Like her first collection for Abrams, I am smitten with Greenberg's second collection of art and poetry. And, I am positive I am not the only one. There will be teens who will be smitten as well.

On a humorous note - I also fell in love with Bruce Hale's Snoring Beauty with hilarious illustrations by Howard Fine. http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Snoring-Beauty/Bruce-Hale/e/9780152163143/?itm=1 This new Harcourt title will have you in stitches, even if you are sorely lacking of sleep as are many of us who share a bed with someone who snores. The whole kingdom has to deal with the snoring in this wacky retelling of Sleep Beauty as indeed, the princess gets run over by a pie cart and is turned into a dragon that only a quince will awaken. Let's just say the fairies in this retelling are... ummmm... unique! The princess, now a quite huge purple dragon with red ruby lips and claws, is fast a sleep in the street, snoring loud enough to send people in search of a new kingdom to sleep in. So, tonight, instead of getting angry by the snoring dragon next to me, I will get the ear plugs as Prince Quince does, and grin and bear it! :-)

Hadn't realized how it had been since I posted! Steve left for Orlando on the 6th and I have taken advantage of the time alone to catch up on work and recuperate from the surgery to have more tissue removed from my back. I went in on the 5th and Steve left the next day so they had to put a water proof bandage on the incision. Internal and external stitches so I hope they took enough tissue this time so that the second biopsy will come back negative. Been an interesting week as I still can't put a whole lot of pressure on my back so it makes sleeping difficult. I went in on Thursday to have the bandage changed and the incision checked. She put another water proof bandage on it but that came off yesterday. I got a fairly good look at it in the mirror - let's just say I won't be wearing low back dresses anymore. Luckily we have some very large bandages and I was able to, with a mirror in one hand the the bandage in the other, get it on top of the incision, but just barely. Would need an arm about 6" longer to have done it well.


Woke up at 5 a.m. as I crashed at 8 p.m. last night even though I had slept from 3:00 to 7:00. Guess I have been really over doing it. Spent from 8 a.m. until Mary called me about 2:30 working around the house. I laid down as my feet were sore while I talked to her and realized just how tired I was. I was getting sleepy while she talked so decided on a nap. Woke up at 7:00, ate a big chunk of watermelon for dinner and crawled back into bed. Sophie and I read Stephen King's Duma Key for a bit. http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Duma-Key/Stephen-King/e/9781416552512/?itm=1 I haven't read a King novel in years, but I am enjoying this one immensely. No "f word" every 2 sentences like some of them. I have listened to a couple of King's novels and although I tend to skip over all the profanity in his books when reading them, you sure can't when listening to them. The main character, Edgar, is a wealthy contractor who loses his right arm and almost dies in an accident on a building site when a crane basically smashes his truck like a tin can. He also has brain damage that results in severe anger and the inability to find the right words, especially in times of stress. His wife files for divorce and in an attempt to deal with his loss of life and the lifestyle he has known for decades he rents a house on a remote Florida key. Duma Key calls to people with certain gifts and Edgar discovers that his phantom arm can help him draw stunningly eerie, yet beautiful paintings. I am at the point where he has just met the aging Elizabeth, who owns most of the key, and the "once a lawyer" recluse who takes care of her. It is going to get creepier I am sure, but I couldn't keep my eyes open and crashed.


Rather than creepy - utterly delightful is a good descriptor - is Maryrose Wood's How I Found the Perfect Dress http://search.barnesandnoble.com/How-I-Found-the-Perfect-Dress/Maryrose-Wood/e/9780425219393/?itm=1. The covers on both of the Wood's novels about now 17-year-old Morgan are eye catching. The bike tour crush, Colin, from the first book, Why I Let My Hair Grow Out http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Why-I-Let-My-Hair-Grow-Out/Maryrose-Wood/e/9780425213803/?itm=2 has come to the U.S. to attend a robotics competion, but he is so exhausted he barely can keep his eyes open to do his part in creating a robot, let alone spend time with Morgan. Colin has made it very clear that until she is older their relationship is not going to be anything other than a friendship, but the chemistry between the two is undeniable. Morgan, on another visit to the faerie kingdom (this time to a faerie dress maker and a Leprechaun's workshop), discovers that the faeries are enchanting anyone who cares about Morgan. Poor Colin spends his nights dancing at the faerie ball and wakes up more exhausted than when he went to sleep. Colin does not believe in faeries so it is up to Morgan to fix the problem with the help of a very grouchy Leprechaun, who wants a date to the faerie ball. Problem is - there aren't any female Leprechauns. Morgan decides that a female lawn gnome (yes - she can communicate with them) is about the right size. But it isn't going to be easy to get Colin to believe he is enchanted, let alone put on the ... "interesting" looking magical boots that will break the spell. I was right there with Morgan during the whole escapade and loved every moment of it, even her walk into the fountain (gate to the faery world) at the Junior Prom.

On the children's front, I have been indulging myself with the reprint editions of Jim Arnosky's All About series. Scholastic recently reprinted these books in paperback. I have the ones on manatees, frogs, alligators, sharks, and owls in front of me. When I was working in the Montessori library on St. Thomas, in the U.S. Virgin Islands, the guy who had been the janitor/maintenance man there for a number of years told me that he would spend his free time in the library reading books from the nonfiction section. He was a fount of information on lots of things from his hours spent with the books. I agree with Gary as to the value of reading children's NF. I may not want to read an adult level books on any of the above animals, but I do enjoy reading the children's books as authors like Arnosky offer wonderful color illustrations along with a text that is easy to read. Factoids in smaller print highlight the illustrations, offering more information beyond the narrative style text . Did you know that baby manatee suckle from the mother's armpit? That was a new tidbit of information for me. I love manatees so this is the first of the series I revisited. http://search.barnesandnoble.com/All-about-Manatees/Jim-Arnosky/e/9780439903615/?itm=1 Although I would buy the hardback copies for a school library, this series is the perfect gift for elementary age boys and girls who prefer to read nonfiction over fiction. At $5.99 a piece these are affordable for home collections. Hand these to your kids on the way to the beach and they may be so busy reading and viewing Arnosky's cool illustrations that they won't be asking, "Are we there yet?"

All for now - I heard the newspaper just hit the front stoop so I am headed back to bed with the newspaper and the early news on TV.

This is where I would like to be - walking on the beach in the evening with Steve. Am more than a bit stressed out right now and a walk on the beach sounds good. Yesterday afternoon the biopsy results on the mole I had removed from my back came in and they are positive. So, I have to go back in to the doc's and have a larger piece of tissue cut out. Not looking forward to it, as the initial mole removal wound (between the size of a dime and nickel) has not healed and I can't sit back on anything that pushes against it. I don't want to think about how sore it is going to be from a larger tissue removal. Right now the removal is scheduled for the 25th - only 2 days before I leave for ALA in Anaheim. Might be a miserable flight over.

The picture above was taken on our last evening on Tobago. I was not keeping up with Steve as I kept stopping to pick up shells and to look at the tiny jellyfish that were being washed in. Their "streamers" were bright blue - too pretty to be something that can leave a nasty sting. I was supposed to go to Orlando with Steve for a week while he attends a Microsoft workshop, but with my summer school work load and being on the "wait list" for any cancelled appointments with the doc I decided a week at home alone with Sophie is probably what I need to catch up a bit. Steve said he was going to take his golf clubs when I said I couldn't go - he won't miss me a bit!

The weather here in Lex is overcast, but at least I am not writing this in the middle of a nasty wind/rain/thunderstorm like yesterday morning. We didn't lose power, but we did lost the Internet connection. Steve's big gas grill was moved right across the back deck as were our rocking chairs. The wind threw the grill cover into the yard as well as the plastic table we had on the deck. So the new plants I bought are more than watered! I found two gorgeous square planters of purple and yellow pansies. ECU colors! :-)

Since the Internet was down for part of the morning yesterday I opened a big box of new books from Scholastic and I was hoping the power would stay out even longer. I was in second heaven to see several of Walter Dean Myer's older YA novels in paperback editions perfect for classroom use as they have additional information in the back of each one. Although it didn't get a lot of attention when it initially came out, one of my favorite Myers' books is The Glory Field. http://search.barnesandnoble.com/The-Glory-Field/Walter-Dean-Myers/e/9780545055758/?itm=3 It takes the Lewis family from Sierra Leone in the 18th century to present day Harlem. The title refers to the family's land in South Carolina. Myers has a way of weaving factual historical events and information into his novels that are rich in family traditions, but do not shy away from subjects as intense as drug addiction. I will admit I am not any more intrigued by the cover on the new paperback edition as I was the stark black cover of the first edition hardback when it was published in 1996. But, I hope teens continue to read about the Lewis family who began their lives in America as slaves but found their own place in both South Carolina and Harlem.

I also am delighted to see the new pbk edition of Myers' Fallen Angels http://search.barnesandnoble.com/The-Glory-Field/Walter-Dean-Myers/e/9780545055758/?itm=3. I love the cover art for this book - very realistic. This particular Myers upper level YA novel is used so often in schools that there are even SparkNotes available for it. It was required reading in my YA literature for many years. I am sure teens will be looking for it after reading Myers' newest war novel Sunrise over Fallujah. http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Sunrise-over-Fallujah/Walter-Dean-Myers/e/9780439916240/?itm=3 I had the pleasure of listening to Myers talk about the research he did for this book, including the visit he had from the government because he was asking too many questions about the war in Iraq. Myers have family members who are "lifers" in the military so his view of this war is both heartfelt and well researched. My copy is sitting next to the bed and I have yet to start reading it. I read Fallen Angels when it came out years ago and I sobbed over this book, especially when an infant was used as a bomb. I will read Myers' newest book about yet another war we shouldn't have gotten ourselves into, but it will to have to wait for just a little bit more before I am ready for it. I cannot think of a YA author I have more respect for than Walter Dean Myers. He is a brilliant writer as well as one of the most genuinely kind men, but with a wicked sense of humor that "pops out" when you least expect it. I have been known to let out a very unlady like snort laugh at his presentations at conferences. For those of you who want to know more about this wonderful YA author - visit his web site: http://www.walterdeanmyers.net/

On a much more fun note - I read Wuv Bunnies from Outers Pace by David Elliott and illustrated by Ethan Long. http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Wuv-Bunnies-from-Outers-Pace/David-Elliott/e/9780823419029/?itm=1 The cover states it is a graphic novel, but from my perspective it is a hilarious chapter book for kids with as much illustration as text. To me, graphic novel means the narrative text is limited, or in some cases, non-existent, and the dialog is in conversation balloons in "cells" of illustrations that work their way across the page and down. This book is a cross between a picture book and an early chapter book for lower elementary, but older readers will enjoy it too as it supremely ridiculous, thus making it fun for most readers, no matter their age. Two alien bunnies come from Outers Pace to warn Hercules Smith and his barking beagle Sheldon that the Funny Bunnies (not ha-ha funny, but weird funny) are coming to invade earth and turn humans into carrots. The Wuv Bunnies crack jokes continuously - real groaners, but you can't help laughing. All I can say is that I love this book and will have to purchase a copy for my grandsons as they aren't getting mine. When Steve is one of his groaner joke moods, I am going to pull out my copy of this book and give him a shot of the Wuv Bunnies jokes such as "What do crooks eat with their milk? Crookies!! GROAN!!!

That's it for today - been up since 6:00 and I am frantically trying to keep up with work and doctor's appointments, etc. I admit it may be a losing battle, but I am not giving up my time to Blog.

Not exactly the gorgeous island villa that art thief Thomas Crowne (Pierce Brosnan) takes the insurance detective Catherine Danny (Rene Russo) to in one of my all time favorite movies, The Thomas Crowne Affair http://video.barnesandnoble.com/DVD/The-Thomas-Crown-Affair/Pierce-Brosnan/e/027616745224/?itm=1, but right now even the Tobago Hilton pool sounds good as a place to relax. Another humid over cast day here. This kind of weather makes me want to curl up and watch movies all day.

I did a bit of that this a.m. - also watched Marie Antoinette with Kirstin Dunst. http://video.barnesandnoble.com/DVD/Marie-Antoinette/Kirsten-Dunst/e/043396159105/?itm=1 Very unusual revisionist style with music bordering on rock music, but it is a fun movie to watch.

Anyone who reads my blog knows I am a big Alice Hoffman fan and I couldn't resist taking some time out from children's and YA to read her adult novel The Ice Queen. http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Ice-Queen/Alice-Hoffman/e/9780641852152/?itm=1 A 30-something miserable with her life librarian is struck by lightening and survives it, but can no longer see the color red. She becomes an unwilling participant in her brother's research on lightening victims. She isn't any more willing than the rest of the participants in his group in talking about how the physical and emotional trauma of the strike has changed her sex life, let alone her soul. Talking about the physical affect with the heart doctor is one thing, but she isn't about to let her involvement with the group get personal. She just isn't a warm woman that way. But, she certainly heats up when she begins a torrid, literally and figuratively, romance with a lightening victim whose skin is burning hot to the touch. I'll just let you take it from here, when I say they need a bathtub full of ice water to be intimate! Hoffman's books are intriguing because she deftly weaves a bit of fantasy into her often starkly realistic novels, but she creates characters so intriguing that the reader is swept into their lives, holding our breath, until the end. Fantastic book and one I'll keep to re-read at a later time. Older teenage girls who have read Hoffman's YA novels like Green Angel and Incantation may well enjoy this book even though the protagonist is much older.

Summer is just around the corner and we all need a good camping picture book to share with little ones. Otis and Rae and the Grumbling Splunk http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Otis-and-Rae-and-the-Grumbling-Splunk/Laura-Espinosa/e/9780618982066/?itm=1 by Laura and Leo Espinosa, a new Houghton Mifflin title fits the bill perfectly. And don't worry it's not too scary for even the youngest listener - the Splunk looks like a friendly orange bear with too short legs. Otis and Rae's heads look a bit like white marshmallows, which may sound a bit cannibalistic as many of us roast marshmallows when we camp, but these two little ones in blue and pink hats with ears are too adorable to think about eating. Wonder if this husband and wife team thought about marshmallows when they created these two best friends. Rae is the outgoing one and tells Otis scary stories while he munches on his favorite food - PB&B (peanut butter and banana sandwich). They do run into a Splunk but he turns out not to be such a bad guy and a PB&B takes care of the loud grumble that gave him his name. A delightful book for story time, no matter where you are reading it aloud - around a bonfire or during story time.

Now to see if Blackboard is back up so I can get some work done. This is the downside to being a DE professor - I am dependent upon the system working when I need it to, which doesn't always happen.