Steve is in second heaven as the football preseason has begun. He's watching the Kansas City-Atlanta game that he taped. There may be late night football but neither or us are night owls so we watch a lot of our favorite shows, including football games, the next weekend. My knee is going nuts from too much standing on it so I'm "kinda" watching football as I blog. I always watch a Texans' game closely, but I listen more than watch the others games. Will have to learn the Miami Dolphins' players this year. :-) No longer a Vikings fan as I thoroughly dislike Brett Favre as he would not get involved in community or philathopic activities when he was in Green Bay. The other players give back to the communities in which they play. Maybe he'll finally retire for real, but I doubt it.

Speaking of football, I just got a box of Holiday House books and the first one I reah for is Gunner, Football Hero by James E. Ransome http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Gunner-Football-Hero/James-Ransome/e/9780823420537/?itm=1&USRI=gunner+football+hero Sadly the reason I grabbed it immediately because my initial glimpse at the cover art, I thought it looked like Pinocchico in a football helmit. Closer examination shows that what looks like a long narrow nose is actually part of the face protector on the helmet as the picture is a profile of Gunner about to make a pass. "Mistaken identity" aside, this is a very cool book as Gunner is the round, short son of parents who are not into sports, but they are into their son and support him as he becomes the 3rd string quarterback on the Tigers PeeWee team. It's the PeeWee County Championship - the Mighty Bowl - and the first and second string quarterbacks are injured and in goes Gunner. No one is shouting their support but his parents - that is until he throws two touchdown passes. The final pass is knocked down and the Tigers lost the game but Gunner is still a hero, delightfully holding his rookie of the year trophy. Ransome adds frosting to this delightful underdog tale by concluding with an excerpt from the newspaper article noting that the player who intercepted Gunner's pass with a girl who finally got a chance to play. :-) There aren't a lot of picture books about football so this one is a gotta have for primary level libraries.

I am sorting through older books again and came across a copy of David Macaulay's Motel of the Mysteries. http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Motel-of-the-Mysteries/David-Macaulay/e/9780395284254/?itm=1&USRI=motel+of+the+mysteries. Hard to believe it was published in 1979. I had forgotten the setting as November 29, 1985 when an unexpected reduction in the postal rates causes an inundation of junk mail that pulled the impurities down from the air and buried North America - "In less than a day, the most advanced civilization in the ancient world had perished." Fast forward to 4022 and the discovery of a motel room. The interpretations of what the TV was is cute but the toilet being the sacred urn is hilarious as is the line drawing of the explorer with the "sacred collar around his neck" - the toilet seat, held on by the sacred headband (the paper sanitized strip found on motel toilets) - as he "worships the sacred urn". He does look a lot like he is "worshiping the porcelain goddess" - maybe he drank some of the alcohol left in the sacred chamber! The treasures are even more delightful - the sacred pendant is the bathtub stopper! Give this to the tweens and teens who are enjoying the popular futuristic/dystopian series such as Suzanne Collins' The Hunger Games series http://productsearch.barnesandnoble.com/search/results.aspx?store=BOOK&WRD=suzanne+collins+hungar+games+series&box=suzanne%20collins%20hungar%20games%20series&pos=-1 and Susan Beth Pfeffer's Life As We Knew It series http://productsearch.barnesandnoble.com/search/results.aspx?store=BOOK&WRD=life+as+we+knew+it+series&box=life%20as%20we%20knew%20it%20series&pos=-1 Or, to the ones who love graphic novels as Macaulay's illustrations are incredibly detailed. Sometimes we forget about the wonderful books that were published decades ago.

Speaking of old stuff - I am always delighted to see picture books that are based on the classic nursery songs. Jane Caberera adds another title to her set of tune based picture books with Here We Go Round the Mulberry Bush http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Here-We-Go-Round-the-Mulberry-Bush/Jane-Cabrera/e/9780823422883/?itm=1&USRI=here+we+go+round+the+mulberry+bush It is either late autumn or early winter (no snow) and two puppies' day begins with "This is the way we all wake up. All wake up, all wake up. This is the way we all wake up, on a cold and frosty morning." Their activities can all be sung to the well known tune. If the sparkling text of Mulberry Bush on the cover does not catch preschoolers' attention, just start singing/reading the book and they will be hooked. A great title for a toddler/preschool storytime at a public library or in a Kindergarten classroom. Share it with the music teacher too.

Now I am treating myself to a Low Carb ice cream bar. I have no idea why but I appear to be no longer lactose intolerant. I am enjoying all the things I missed out on for years, especially ice cream and yogurt. I am pretty pleased with myself as I've lost 12 pounds so far on this limited carb diet. I am not starving and not even missing bagels or fatty foods. I've been tracking my calories and carbs on www.sparkspeople.com. What a great site for anyone trying to lose weight in healthy manner. You can even check on calorie count and add foods via your cell phone. I am hoping to lose as much as I can before the next knee surgery as I know I will be pretty much immoble for awhile after the surgery and the pain pills give me the munchies and I crave chocolate!

Grading in is! Yahoo!! I am taking the weekend off before I start preparing Fall semester course materials. I am sure I will hear from the students who want reading lists so I know I can't let it go too long.

So, I'm going to enjoy the rest of the day by going through new books. I love Kitten's Autumn by Eugenie Fernandes. http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Kittens-Autumn/Eugenie-Fernandes/e/9781554533411/?itm=3. The illustrations have a 3D feel as the critters and other elements in the illustrations are made out of clay. Laying them on top of collages made from paper, yarn and other materials results in illustrations kids and parents will pour over time and time again as little ones listen to, and soon join along with, the simple rhyming text. "Leaves tumble, Kitten mews. Porcupine snacks, Chipmunk chews." What a delightful way to introduce forest animals and what they eat. I love the "Skunk slurps" illustration - he is eating a wiggly worm. Make sure you also get Kitten's Spring
http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Kittens-Spring/Eugenie-Fernandes/e/9781554533404/?itm=1&USRI=kittens%27+spring to help little ones learn farm animals. These two Kids Can Press are a fun way to introduce animals.

The latest in Frank Serafini's Looking Closely nonfiction series, Looking Closely in the Rain Forest
http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Looking-Closely-in-the-Rain-Forest/Frank-Serafini/e/9781553375432/?itm=1 draws you in with both the stunning color up-close photographs as well as the text - "Look very closely. What do you see? A spaceship? A sea slug? What could it be?" The "spyglass illustrations" certainly looks like a green slug but when you turn the page and see the full photograph, it is the toe of a web-toed red-eyed tree frog. The text accompanying the full-page photographs offers basic details about the rain forest animals and plants. A stunning book for any children's collection.

You know how sometimes you fall in love with a book, but there is one "little" discrepancy that bugs the heck out of you? That is my problem with Pirate's Guide to the First Grade by James Preller and illustrated by Greg Ruth. http://search.barnesandnoble.com/A-Pirates-Guide-to-First-Grade/James-Preller/e/9780312369286/?itm=1&USRI=james+preller+pirate B&N has the title just as First Grade so it didn't immediately come up when I searched for it. What pirate fan wouldn't be intrigued with a first page that states - "Arrr! Shiver me timbers, what a slobberin' moist mornin'!" The illustration shows just the top of a red-haired boy's head with his eyes squeezed closed. Of course, the "slobberin' moist" comes from his bulldog licking his face. In the background are the ghostly figures of "real pirates" who accompany the boy to school. When he gets to school, this is where my problem begins. The boy looks too old for first grade and is putting his backpack in a HS looking locker and the books piled on desks in the classroom room are much thicker than we would see in a first grade classroom - they look the size of a NYC phonebook! The teacher gives him what appears to be a hall pass (treasure map) and the last picture shows him with "me treasure!" The boy, who truly looks at the youngest upper elementary, is sitting reading a copy of Treasure Island with stacks of very large books around him. Had this been a guide to third grade even I would have been a little less jarred out of the story but the illustrations, as gorgeous as they are, just don't work for me. It has to be difficult for picture book authors who are not also illustrators as their text is interpreted by an illustrator the publisher has chosen to visually bring the story to life.

Steve Jenkins has done it again - a nonfiction title children won't be able to put down. This time his subject matter is the skeleton of humans and animals - Bones http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Bones/Steve-Jenkins/e/9780545046510/?itm=1&USRI=bones+jenkins As always, concise text accompanies the intricate cut paper collage illustrations that beg the reader to start at the beginning. I love the fold out spread of a smiling skeleton with text that reads: "Congratulations! You are the proud owner of a complete human skeleton!" Additional bone facts will appeal to the older reader, including a discussion of how the Cyclops, the one-eyed giant of Greek mythology, may have come about from the skull of the now extinct dwarf elephant as the hole where the trunk had passed through looked like a single eye socket of a giant.

Speaking of bones, well not plural, but singular - Bone, the wonderful fantasy graphic novel series by Jeff Smith has a new title Tall Tales http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Tall-Tales/Tom-Sniegoski/e/9780545140966/?itm=1&USRI=bone+tall+tales This one of the few graphic series that appeal to all ages. Ten books in the series, but the fun isn't over. A new graphic novel series set in the world of Bone will arrive in 2011 - Quest for the Spark: Book One. So don't despair, more fun and fear is coming your way Bone fans.

Well, now I know it was a Thursday night that I did the vampire entry as I'm watching The Vampire Diaries as I type this. I am finally feeling a bit better. Steve thought it was something he ate at Bella Notte that made him so sick. I think it was the sliced ham we bought as I've spent the last couple of days dealing with the same symptoms. Yuck!! All that sounds good right now is Fresca. Stomach cramps woke me at 5 a.m. so I slept for quite awhile this afternoon. I was running a fever and exhausted - talk about weird dreams!!

Summer semester is just about over and I couldn't be happier. I am waiting for the books I added to children's lit for the Fall semester to come in so I can start working on updating course content. The one thing I love about teaching youth literature/materials courses is also what makes teaching them so time consuming - reading new titles as well as revisiting older titles so that I am up to date.

I don't know how many of you ever heard of Mutual of Omaha's AHA Moment website but I certainly had not before I was contacted by them. The rep. emailed me that she had read my blog and that she was sure I had an AHA moment to share. So, I agreed to be interviewed and filmed talking about an important point in my career. http://www.ahamoment.com/pg/moments/view/15737

I talked about how the challenge to Judy Blume's Forever http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Forever/Judy-Blume/e/9781416934004/?itm=1&USRI=judy+blume+forever resulted in the completion of my PhD in Library Science and focusing on young adult literature. Sometimes I still chuckle when I remember how the principal,who attempted to remove the book from a HS library, couldn't figure out why he was getting so many letters and phone calls about how wrong he was in trying to remove this well known and beloved young adult novel that had been in the library since it was initially published in hardback format in the mid 1970s. This was the early 90s and I had replaced the falling apart hardback with a bound paperback edition - the one that has a locket on the front.

What he didn't know is that I knew who to contact for support. Being able to handle a challenge to a book effectively is being prepared. It is all about being active in your professional associations. I had been a member of the American Library Association and the youth divisions - American Association of School Librarians http://www.ala.org/ , Association of Library Services to Children www.ala.org/alsc and the Young Adult Library Association www.ala.org/yalsa since the 1980s so I knew to contact the Office of Intellectual Freedom http://www.ala.org/ala/aboutala/offices/oif/index.cfm Since Forever had been on the list of challenged books many times and Judy Blume is one of the most challenged authors of the 21st Century http://www.ala.org/ala/issuesadvocacy/banned/frequentlychallenged/challengedauthors/index.cfm
they sent me a packet of articles and other materials addressing the book. Too bad the folks supportive of removing the book wouldn't read them. Many never read the book - they just knew about the selective excerpts the principal shared with them. That is a technique of censors - focusing on excerpts out of context.

I was also active in the Wisconsin Library Association and librarians from around the state were contacting the principal with their concerns. I was not alone in standing up against this censorship attempt. It wasn't just my colleagues around the state, it was also many of the teens themselves. Attempting to censor a book often has the opposite impact the censor intends - the very people who the censor doesn't want to read the book hear about it and wonder what the big deal is and read it. Almost every teen in the small high school had read the book by the time the school board decided to put it on a newly created reserve shelf for it - requiring a signature for teens younger than 18. The censors make a whole lot of money for the authors of books they want removed from libraries!

I don't wish a challenge on any librarian but it is important to remember that most people who challenge a particular title are concerned parents. And, when the librarian explains the selection policy and the reconsideration process, the potential challenge stops right there. Most parents just want confirmation that they do indeed have the right to control what their children/teens read. The true censors falsely believe that is also their right to control what other parents' children read.

Someday I'll write about that experience and how it impacted my life as I have all the letters to the editor, the newspaper articles and my journal from that very difficult time, but not yet. Off my soap box for today. :-)

I wrote this on June 3rd and it never got posted. I just found it on the desktop of my laptop. I was certainly "on a roll" that night! I haven't watched any of the vampire shows since then. Just hasn't been time. I rarely ever watch a show when it is actually airing as we TiVo it and we can delete the commercials. I watch NCIS in real time once in while but we often catch up on favorite shows when on the weekend. Steve doesn't like the way Gibbs slaps the agents on the back of the head in NCIS so he isn't as keen on the show as I am. I think he is just "jealous" as I like "old gray haired guys" and he is now beginning to resemble that description! :-)

June 3rd
Guess it is my night for vampires. I'm on my second vampire TV show for the night. Was sitting on the bed going through cards and play bills from the Broadway shows we've seen since we moved to Lexington. Mama Mia is my favorite. Time to do some cleaning and sorting again so I don't look as much like a pack rat as I am. All women walk into the walk in closet to see how big it is and when it is stuffed with "stuff" and clothes it doesn't look as big as it is. Boy did I do a weeding of clothes. If I actually do lose the weight I've gained I am going to be so excited I will want new clothes anyway. But, it was sad to set aside all of the beautiful dress suits I bought for conferences and realize it may be a long time, if ever, that I can do the kind of conference traveling I did for so long. Most of me misses it, but there is part of me that does not. I've become a major home body unless I am traveling with Steve to watch out for me.

Back to vampires. I caught an episode of Vampire Diaries based on the series by L. J. Smith. Very interesting. I think I am hooked as I was a major Buffy and Angel fan. Went onto B&N and saw that the books have been reissued in paperback format with the actors on the cover. Smart marketing move for those teens who watch the show first. Or, for collectors. The Awakening http://search.barnesandnoble.com/The-Awakening/L-J-Smith/e/9780061963865/?itm=5 is the first in the series. Will have to see if I can find some of them at Half Price Books.

Right afterward came Moonlight. http://video.barnesandnoble.com/DVD/Moonlight-The-Complete-Series/Alex-OLoughlin/e/883929047598/?itm=4&USRI=moonlight I think I have seen an episode of this before as I recognize the blonde reporter. The TV listing shows this as the very first episode "There's No Such Thing as Vampires". Maybe I can catch the whole set of episodes if CW is running reruns of it. Sixteen episodes during 2007-8. Guess that may be why I remember it - I probably saw an episode back then. Oh man - the reporter is the little girl he saved 20 years ago. Okay, I'm more hooked on this one!! No book, though initially it was conceived as a book http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moonlight_(TV_series) Isn't it amazing what you can find on Wikipedia. And no - I am not going to debate the accuracy of Wikipedia entries!

I have more than my share of problems with insomnia so I relate to little Sylvie in The Sleep Sheep by Anna McQuinn and Hannah Shaw. http://search.barnesandnoble.com/The-Sleep-Sheep/Anna-McQuinn/e/9780545231459/?itm=2&USRI=sleep+sheep Sylvia had gone through all of the usual rituals - even three bedtime stories and she still can't sleep. Mom tells her to count sheep but they just aren't following her "orders" - they are all over! How is she supposed to count them at that. She needs them in a line - oh now, now they are dancing - no way to count "rumbaaa-ing" sheep. Cute! Then they hit the sleep sheet equipment rental and headed out on bikes, skateboards, scooters, etc. Sylvia is having trouble keeping up with them, let alone count them. They end up at the beach and engage in all kinds of activities - playing cards and game called Sheep and Adders! You have to look closely at the illustrations to catch some of the really humorous stuff. I love illustrators that add these wonderful details that the kids might not catch but the parent who has read the book a hundred times does. The sheep eventually fall asleep and that really frustrates poor Sylvia as she's the one who is supposed to fall asleep, which she eventually does so the oldest ewe covers her up and comments on how exhausted she is as she thought Sylvia would never nod off. A very cute book. There are book covers showing in Sylvie's room like Good Night Moon by Margaret Wise Brown http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Goodnight-Moon/Margaret-Wise-Brown/e/9780694003617/?itm=1&USRI=goodnight+moon which makes sense as it is a classic bedtime story, but not Tom's Midnight Garden. It's a middle grade mystery by Philippa Pierce http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Toms-Midnight-Garden/Philippa-Pearce/e/9780064404457/?itm=1&USRI=tom%27s+midnight+garden about a young boy who is sent off to stay at his aunt's when he gets the measles and discovers a playmate when the clock strikes thirteen. Mattie ensures Tom's summer away from home is adventurous but he isn't sure he wants to be her "forever" friend. I wonder how many other librarians will notice this title on the last page of The Sleep Sheep and it jars him/her out of the story as it did me. Would this stop me from sharing this delightful book with little ones - nope! I wouldn't say a word about it.

I received a box of ARCs from Disney/Hyperion and found myself with tears in my eyes as I read Jack's Path of Courage: The Life of John F. Kennedy by Doreen Rappaport and illustrated by Matt Tavares. http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Jacks-Path-of-Courage/Doreen-Rappaport/e/9781423122722/?itm=1&USRI=jack%27s+path+of+courage It won't hit bookstores until October and there isn't even a picture yet on B&N and what a wonderful headshot of a smiling Kennedy. Rappaport covers his life from birth to his death and inserts Kennedy's own words to compliment her text. What a beautifully done picture book biography. Tavares' Illustrator Notes share his visit to John F. Kennedy Presidential Library to find photographs he would work from for the illustrations. Although he did not use them, other than one with the note, he was touched by the informal photographs that were clearly taken by the Kennedy family. They helped remind him that the Kennedy family was "normal" - like any other family and not the bigger-than-life "royalty" of the Boston area. An absolutely beautifully done biography, but this is no surprise as Rappaport is known for her well researched, picture book biographies including Martin's Big Words: The Life of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Martins-Big-Words/Doreen-Rappaport/e/9781423106357/?itm=1 and Abe's Honest Words: The Life of Abraham Lincoln http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Abes-Honest-Words/Doreen-Rappaport/e/9781423104087/?itm=2. See a pattern here? Although a unique biography, Rappaport and Tavares have teamed up before with the excellent Lady Liberty http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Lady-Liberty/Doreen-Rappaport/e/9780763625306/?itm=3 which I would assume can be found in every children's collection. Basically, there isn't anything Rappaport has written that I wouldn't consider a "gotta have" in every elementary school library. I would also consider them for middle and high school collections as excellent ways to introduce these historical figures and their important words.

Speaking of authors who write nonfiction for children whose name you should recognize is Ken Robbins. He has written over 25 books for children and you should find a good many of them in your nonfiction children's section. I have his newest title - For Good Measure: The Ways We Say How Much, How Far, How Heavy, How Big, How Old http://search.barnesandnoble.com/For-Good-Measure/Ken-Robbins/e/9781596433441/?itm=1&USRI=robbins+how+we+measure in front of me. I don't like math or working with measurement but this is a very visually attractive book and even I enjoyed paging through it and seeing what he used from "real life" to help define the terms. His superb photographs visually define the measurement terms along with the concise defining text. Did you know that the gem measurement of a carat comes from the term carob? A carob seed was supposedly so uniform that they were considered a good standard of weight. The diamond ring laying on top of pile of carob seeds sure makes it clear to this jewelry lover which one I'd choose! :-) The kids who grow up in the northern states will know what a cord of wood is but I wonder how many kids who live in warmer climates even know what how much a cord of wood is. Just ask my older brothers - they would all know after splitting more than their share of wood for our wood stove and furnace growing up.

Even though the fact that the beret in Bridget's Beret by Tom Lichtenheld http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Bridgets-Beret/Tom-Lichtenheld/e/9780805087758/?itm=1&USRI=bridget%27s+beret is not black as the text says it is, it is a very cute book and one to share with the art teacher. I really dislike when a color is stated and the item supposedly that color is a muted tone and could, as I did with the beret, be considered a grayish purple instead of black. Bridget loves to draw but when she loses her beret, she has artist's block. It isn't until she unwittingly begins to draw again a she helps with a lemonade stand sign she is back in the flow and soon the neighborhood is covered with her art. While the neighbors enjoy the art show Bridget is where you'd expect her to be - back drawing on her own. There is a really cool concluding double page spread with advice on how to start your own art. I love that he used O'Keefe for the short section on Looking at Things Differently. She certainly did!

Well, I made it through 2 1/2 days without Steve and I haven't fallen on my face! The knee brace is on when I'm not in bed and the cane is in my left hand. He's calling to check on me in the a.m. and p.m. and via email so I think I am going to be okay. I don't know who is more disconcerted by being alone, Sophie or me! It is going to be an early night as I am exhausted. Who knew a person sleeps better when someone is snoring next to you? :-)

Since we will most likely be moving to Plantation, Florida soon (near Ft. Lauderdale) I couldn't resist the debut novel, Candor, by Pam Bachorz which is set in a fictitious Florida town. http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Candor/Pam-Bachorz/e/9781606840122/?itm=1&USRI=candor#TABS The plot came from the author's time in a "model" small town in Florida. I've always found Florida towns to be very unique, but it may be the ones we love to spend our time in as Steve and I are both quite unique if I do say so myself! :-)

Candor is a dystopian tale set in current day Florida. The town has been created for families who want to control their wayward children. Oscar's father created the town and controls/micro-manages everything - including how much orange juice Oscar drinks for breakfast by marking the level of fluid with a pencil. For some reason that one really made the hair on my arms stand up. But, it is a little thing compared to the Messages - the subliminal messages that flow from every nook and crannie of Candor, especially the schools. Residents who must leave Candor take subliminal tapes with them. If they don't - suicide. What Oscar's father doesn't know is that his son is blocking the Messages with his own subliminal messages and if he catches a new teen resident before the programming is set, he can give them his tapes and stop the process long enough to secret them out of town. Oscar is making a lot of money with his scheme and then Nia shows up. He knows he should get her out of Candor before she loses her uniqueness and her artistic ability but, selfishly, he wants her near him. I am about 1/3 of the way through and I am intrigued and then some. The Publishers Weekly review hints at a chilling ending - I can't wait!! Egmont has really cool books!! Offer this one to the teens who liked M.T. Anderson's Feed http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Feed/M-T-Anderson/e/9780763622596/?itm=2&USRI=feed+anderson.

On a much lighter tone is Elizabeth Eulberg's debut The Lonely Hearts Club http://search.barnesandnoble.com/The-Lonely-Hearts-Club/Elizabeth-Eulberg/e/9780545140317/?itm=1&USRI=lonely+hearts+club+eulberg Offer this one to every Beatles' fan you know as well as the females who are dealing with a broken heart and swearing to give up guys forever. It doesn't matter if you are a teen, like 16-year-old Penny, or an adult woman, the feelings Penny is dealing with are all too real. But, Eulberg knows how to add just the right amount of humor so this is not a teen angst fest. I found myself laughing out loud at her parents - rabid Beatles fans who name their children after Beatles' songs - hence Penny Lane. Their doorbell is even a Beatles song! Don't know when it will be published but I wrote a review for this book for VOYA. Check out the cover art - if you are a Beatles fan you will recognize the album cover that is supposed to come to mind! :-) Adults will recognize it but I am not sure how many teens will. Albums? What are those?

Certainly not a debut author, but one I always pay attention to when a new book comes out is Leslea Newman. Can you believe there is a 20th anniversary edition of Heather Has Two Mommies rch.barnesandnoble.com/Heather-Has-Two-Mommies/Leslea-Newman/e/9781593501365/?itm=1&USRI=heather%27s+two+mommies now available? You would think this wonderful book about a loving family would not still be causing controversy but it is.

When the Abrams' review books arrived I immediately opened up Newman's Miss Tutu's Star http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Miss-Tutus-Star/Lesle-Newman/e/9780810983960/?itm=1&USRI=miss+tutu%27s+star and found my laughing out loud at Carey Armstrong Ellis' illustrations that tell their own sub-story about the moms and dads who attend their children's ballet lessons. In rhyming text, Newman shares the story of Selena who doesn't walk, she prances, so Mom puts her in ballet classes. Selena ends up on her tush more than a few times but she keeps at it and finally she has her debut stage performance. The parents are in the audience including the mom who was busy knitting a scarf at lessons that now went around the neck of more than a few parents in the audience. :-) As a cat lover I delighted in Miss Tutu's cat who was an active participant in the ballet lessons but hooted over the final illustration - it shows Selena taking a bow - from behind. This is a must have for all primary level collections and for any mom/daughter pair who just have to dance. I say to Selena - Dance like no one is watching!!

Did you have an imaginary friend as a child? I don't remember having one as I had all my "book friends" as I read so much. But lots of kids do and their sidekicks become a bit of a problem in school. Erica S. Perl's Dotty http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Dotty/Erica-S-Perl/e/9780810989627/?itm=1&USRI=dotty+perl is the perfect first day at school book for story time in Preschool or Kindergarten. Julia Denos' illustrations bring the imaginary friends of the kids to life. Oh yeah - and even the teacher's sidekick! Ida starts her first day at school with confidence, a new lunch box and her blue string that connects to Dotty, her imaginary (perhaps more real than we realize) friend. The other kids come back after the holiday break and there are less buddies along with them, but not Ida - Dotty is still there. The next year of school starts and Ida arrives with a new lunchbox and the blue string. No one else has a buddy anymore and they are teasing Ida about hers. But, not the teacher who walks out with Gert, on a red string. I wish I had Ms. Raymond had been my teacher!

That's it for today.

Oh my - over a month since I blogged last. I was doing really well for awhile with the occipital headache going from feeling like I had been hit in the back of the head with a 2x4 to being hit with a small branch due to the occipital nerve injections. It wasn't touching the headache around my eye but I was in good spirits as any relief was a blessing. Steve even noted I had more energy and was more upbeat. Then I landed flat on my face and left knee on the hardwood floor. The short bookcase I normally use for balance coming out of my office and into the living room had been removed to make the living room look bigger and there was nothing to grab onto when my left knee gave out. I didn't even get my hands out. I hit so hard I flattened my glasses and when my head bounced they flew off. I thought I had broke my nose but I "just" made a hole in my upper lip with my front teeth. I had the Goldie Hawn Death Becomes Her plump upper lip without having to pay a penny for it! Since Steve was home I didn't have my cell phone on my hip but he was out mowing the lawn. So I lay there and cried until he came in and helped me up and to bed with frozen veggie bags on my face and knee. What a mess! So, I took two steps forward and then four back as the doc said I had re-injured the occipital nerves and the whiplash damage from the fall in Denver. So now I'm wearing my knee brace more and using a cane and waiting for the Worker's Comp. approval to buy a walker to use on the really bad days and when Steve isn't home. Thank goodness he works from home! Boy is this all making me feel old but I now admit how helpful the cane actually is for balance.

And, teaching three sections of Children's Lit this summer has "eaten my cookies" and then some. Grading assignments for that many students is more than a bit time consuming as I spend a lot of time offering input as I want my students to leave my youth materials courses with a strong skills set for how to locate both award winning and "just fun" reading for youth. And, they read - a lot!!

I treated myself to a day off - today - as I actually caught up with the assignments turned in as of last night. It is so different to sit at a computer and grade papers via the Word track changes option so I can "talk" to them as I grade. No more carrying around a briefcase full of papers but I feel like I am attached to the computer or cell phone that checks email 24/7.

I made good use of my day off - I wallowed in the NY Times and chuckled over an old b/w Cary Grant movie and sat down to go through the 14 paperbacks in Christine Feehan's Dark series from Half Price Books. Of course, I am missing the first book - Dark Prince http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Dark-Prince/Christine-Feehan/e/9780505523723/?itm=5 which is no longer available from Barnes and Noble and back ordered on Amazon and Borders. I found it on http://www.deepdiscounts.com/. Boy could I spend a lot of money on that site as shipping is free even if you are buying one paperback. :-) I did end up buying the 6th in the series too but I don't think I will get these Carpathian vampire books read anytime soon. Mary has read them all and is working her way through my favorite Drake Sisters series http://productsearch.barnesandnoble.com/search/results.aspx?store=BOOK&WRD=drake+sisters+series by Feehan. Feehan is a wonderful beach read author but I wouldn't give these to a teen as they are quite racy!

Speaking of vampire series, I read the first 6 titles in the YA level House of the Night series http://productsearch.barnesandnoble.com/search/results.aspx?store=BOOK&WRD=house+of+the+night+series&box=house%20of%20the%20night%20series&pos=-1 They are written by a mother/daughter team, P.C. and Kristen Cast. I ordered the 7th title, Burned http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Burned/P-C-Cast/e/9780312606169/?pwb=2 today and it will be my treat when I get the final grades in for the summer session. I read all of the Twilight series but I didn't think they were very well written as they dragged, really draaaaggggged, for me. I just wanted Edward to bite whiny Bella and be done with it! I am devouring the Cast titles as they focus on a strong female protagonist - Zoey Redbird, a Native American from Tulsa, Oklahoma, who is in the process of becoming a vampire. She is progressing faster than the other fledglings but she has a great group of friends who are there for her. Stevie Rae is her roommate, best friend and the first red fledgling. Then there is Aphrodite who started out as Zoey's archenemy and is now one of her strongest supporters. And the other "insiders" are a kick - a gay guy and his guy pal and "twins" (one white and one black who grew up no where near each other) who finish each other sentences. Lots of teen angst, romance, and a really great storyline that I am happy to follow for as many more books the mother/daughter team want to write about the inhabitants of the House of Night.

There was no way I could not dive into Lisa Desrocher's debut Personal Demons http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Personal-Demons/Lisa-DesRochers/e/9781441882356/?itm=1&USRI=personal+demons+descrochers It is a page turner and then some! Imagine an angel and a demon fighting over your soul, but somehow both have fallen for you. That is exactly what happens to 17-year-old Frannie, a "good" Catholic girl who have never forgiven herself for her twin brother's death when he fell out a tree when they were seven. She blames herself for his death and doesn't believe she deserves to go to heaven. So in steps Luc, a sexy looking demon, who Frannie falls for. The feelings are reciprocated. Frannie has the ability to "sway" people's (demons and angels too) minds and emotions and Luc has no defenses against what she doesn't even know she possesses but both God and the devil do. Who should arrive next in Frannie's high school and work his way into her heart as well? Gabe, the angel who is to tag her for heaven. One would never believe an angel and demon would work together to save Frannie from herself, but they do. And, in the process Luc is becoming human and that isn't going over well with his boss. What a wild ride! I laughed, I cried, and I gasped - all of the emotions an author wants to elicit in a reader and Descrochers sure accomplished that as far as I am concerned. She may be a physical therapist in her "real life" but she is one hell of an author and I think Luc would agree! If this is what she can do in a debut novel, I can't wait to read her next book.

I'm not a big nonfiction reader but I could not resist the chilling photograph of the KKK hood on the front of Susan Campbell Bartoletti's They Called Themselves the K.K.K.: The Birth of An American Terrorist Group http://search.barnesandnoble.com/They-Called-Themselves-the-KKK/Susan-Campbell-Bartoletti/e/9780618440337/?itm=10 The subtitle took my breath away as I realized we are so intent on foreign terrorists that we often forget that our own South is the birthplace of a vicious group of men who terrorized and murdered African Americans. The realization that these men would ride through garden parties in the South and the attendees would chuckle over their costumes made me shiver. I'd like to think they didn't know what occurred in the dark of the night but I am sure many did. The time period illustrations and Bartoletti's impeccable research make this a must have title in any level library, but more importantly, she doesn't shy away from making the dark side of U.S. and world history accessible to young people. She is also the author of Hitler Youth http://search.barnesandnoble.com/HitlerYouth/Bartoletti/e/9780439353793/?itm=1&USRI=hitler+youth+bartoletti and Black Potatoes: The Story of the Great Irish Famine, 1845 -1850 http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Black-Potatoes/Susan-Campbell-Bartoletti/e/9780618548835/?itm=1&USRI=bartoletti+black+potatoes which won the Sibert Award for nonfiction. Like Russell Freedman, Bartoletti is a nonfiction author who not only is an excellent writer, but a superb researcher.

That's it for me today. I still have the local Sunday paper to enjoy. Please excuse my typos - I seem to be making a lot of those these days.

Trying to clean out some of the emails in my inbox this a.m. and came across the info. on the Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award. The exciting news is that this is the first year they have included a prize for "best young adult novel" with the author receiving a $15,000 publishing contract from Penguin. This annual award opens doors to debut writers. I can't wait to read Amy Ackland's Sign Language which will be published by Viking Children's Books. The book addresses a 12 year old girl dealing with her father's cancer so this is more of tween book than true YA but keep your eyes open for it when it hits bookstores.

What a gorgeous morning with the sun shining and birds twittering. Won't be long and the birds will be finding cool places to hide out as it will be in the 90s today with a heat index of over 100. I hope it has cooled down before we head out for an Alzheimer's benefit this evening. We haven't missed one of them since we moved to Lexington. Steve stepped down from the Board when we thought we were moving to Florida quickly but we keep attending events and benefits. The auction was dangerous - I "donated" a lot of money that way! We will be driving up in high style in a gorgeous Saab SUV. Steve's little convertible is in the shop again within a week of picking it up. Something wrong with the electronics and it won't accelerate. Last time he didn't get a car to use and we regretted it as it was over two weeks before the part came from Sweden. Same thing this time. I haven't ridden in it yet but Steve says it rides like a car. Guess my Hyundai Santa Fe doesn't compare! Duh!!

I finished up Donald Spoto's biography Enchantment: The Life of Audrey Hepburn.
http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Enchantment/Donald-Spoto/e/9780307352064/?itm=1&USRI=spoto+enchantment I have been a Hepburn fan since I was a little girl but didn't know much about her life. It wasn't an easy one as she was a young teen during the Nazi occupation of Holland and was malnourished and weak when the American soldiers arrived. A soldier gave her 5 chocolate bars and she scarfed them down only to throw them back up again as she had no real food for weeks - just weak broth made from a few potatoes. She noted it was UNICEF that had come in to assist and she spent the last years of her life as an Ambassador for UNICEF, traveling all over the world but mostly in Africa. She was a real draw at fund raisers. She always seemed so calm and serene in her movies and interviews but she was very nervous and scared of talking to groups of people. She also was a chain smoker but what killed her was abdominal cancer that started in her appendix. Raised by a domineering mother who could not show affection and an absent father who showed little warmth toward her even when she tried to resume a relationship with him in his later years. A lonely little girl seeking love and finding it in two very wrong men for her - Mel Ferrer and an Italian aristocrat several years younger than her. But, she had two sons by her two husbands and loved being a mother. She quit acting to raise her boys. A fascinating woman and now that I know a bit more I'd like to read the biography her oldest son, Sean, wrote: Audrey Hepburn, An Elegant Spirit: A Son Remembers http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Audrey-Hepburn-An-Elegant-Spirit/Sean-Hepburn-Ferrer/e/9780671024796/?itm=1&USRI=sean+ferrer+audrey+hepburn it was reissued in 2005 and since her son is donating a portion of the royalties to UNICEF is a doubly good buy for me.

I am not a big coffee drinker but found the cover art for The Espressologist by Kristina Springer http://search.barnesandnoble.com/The-Espressologist/Kristina-Springer/e/9780374322281/?itm=1&USRI=espressologist+springer quite delightful. A closeup of a teenage girl about to take a sip of coffee that has a heart swirled into the foam. Then I flipped to the back flap to check on the author and this is a debut novel. Another reason I wanted to read it. I've been doing some research on the educational backgrounds and web presence of new YA authors and it is no surprise that Springer hold a master's degree in writing. The new talent care great credentials! She also has a very attractive web site: http://www.kristinaspringer.com/. I love when YA authors put the books they are reading now on their web sites or in their blogs as this will encourage teens who read the author's book(s) to explore the other authors and titles listed as well. I also see she has a second book coming out, My Fake Boyfriend is Better Than Yours in September and a third, Pumpkin Princess, in Fall 2011. Clearly she enjoys writing YA novels. Anyway, her first person debut novel shares the life of 17-year-old barista, Jane Turner, who has theorized that you can tell a lot about a person by the coffee they drink. She is so into this she writes the types of coffee and the personality type down in a notebook. Medium Iced Vanilla Latte Smart, sweet, and gentle. Sometimes soft-spoken but not a doormat. Loyal and trustworthy. A good friend. Decent looks and body. And before you know it Jane is hooking up her friends based on the coffees they and the other patrons of the coffee shop drink. When her boss finds out about it he decides to use Jane's "gift" as a marketing campaign. The lines are often around the corner on the night the "Espressologist" is in and Jane is feeling real pressure to match people. It isn't fun anymore, especially since she matches up her best friend with the guy she should really be with. A delightfully funny and sometimes poignant view of the world from the eyes of a very likable older teen who seems to know a lot about everyone else and little about herself. Reminds me a bit of Tucker Shaw's The Girls http://search.barnesandnoble.com/The-Girls/Tucker-Shaw/e/9780810989917/?itm=7&USRI=tucker+shaw which is also set in a coffee shop and deals with two best friends not telling each other the truth and dealing with the fallout.

Last book for today is a nonfiction title with incredible color photographs that bring to life a part of the world few of us have ever traveled to - Afghan Dreams: Young Voices of Afghanistan by Tony O'Brien and Mike Sullivan, with photographs by Tony O'Brien. http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Afghan-Dreams/Tony-OBrien/e/9781599902876/?itm=1&USRI=afghan+dreams+young+voices+from+afghanistan The duo, a photojournalist and a filmmaker, interviewed and photographed youth from varied backgrounds in their often very different daily lives. Interviewees are between 8 and 15 so this is a book for elementary through high school level libraries. When asked what they would wish for if they had a magic lamp like Aladdin, education was most often wished for. The lives these children and teens live is heartbreaking. A 15 year old boy dressed in a filthy Christmas sweatshirt with "ho-ho-ho" on the front tells of how he incenses cars or shops for good luck, but he has no luck. His stepmother would be angry if he went back to school. A 10 year old calmly states that he is a thief, stealing from people's pockets in the market. What he wants - his real father to come back. Many of the teens work as carpet makers in the morning and attend school in the afternoon when they can. In the rural area a 14-year-old girl walks 2 hours to school. She wants to become a midwife. The voices of children who will be the leaders of this country in the future and most of them address the need for education.

Can't procrastinate from grading any longer!

We are having July weather in June - ugh!! It is too darn hot for June. And, it doesn't help that I have a ton of boxes in the middle of my office which are blocking the air conditioning vents that are on the floor too. So I have a fan blowing on me. If I close my eyes I can be back in the U.S. Virgin Islands Montessori School Library with the hum of fans to keep us at least a bit cooler. Okay, with that bit of daydreaming this office is like an icebox compared to that library on a hot breezeless day on St. Thomas!

I had the first set of occipital shots last Friday and it sure felt weird to have the back of my head numb for a couple of days. It's no longer numb but it also isn't hurting like it was so the shots did work for that pain but not for the headache behind and above my left eye. That is what is so tiring. I go back in later this month for another set of shots and I hope they work more than this first set. He did say relief would not be overnight so I am optimistic.

I'm also working with a dietician at our neighborhood hospital to lose some of the weight I have gained due to being so sedentary as it will help to be lighter on my feet when recuperating from the knee surgeries. Hobbling around in a lighter body may also not be quite so tiring before the surgery as well since the knee surgery won't be scheduled until there is some relief from the occipital neuralgia pain. I have some time to work at getting down to "fighting form". I'm on a low carb diet and the first few days were a killer as I pretty much lived on bread, granola bars, and fruit with some protein. I still have bread but I do things like take the top off of a Subway turkey sandwich and eat it open face. Its been interesting trying to find low carb foods in the grocery store. I have really become a label reader. Once I got over the initial shock of it I am kind of enjoying watching what I eat. I track my meals on the Sparks People web site: http://www.sparkpeople.com/. I'll bring in the print outs to the dietician on a regular basis. I also carry a book in my purse that has the carb and calorie content for most restaurant meals so I can pick and choose when we go out. That was the one condition - I get to eat out as doing so is often my only outings from the house. There was a whole set of work out equipment at the clinic but since I can't do much besides stretching in the a.m. the physiologist gave me a pedimeter to wear. I over did it the first few days trying to get more steps in and my knee rebelled big time but it is heartening to see I am not on my behind 24/7!

Just finished the Library Media Connection http://www.librarymediaconnection.com/ review for Karen Kincy's debut paranormal novel - Other http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Other/Karen-Kincy/e/9780738719191/?itm=1&USRI=other+kincy. I am feeling really old when I think about that fact that I've been reviewing for Linworth journals since the 1980s. Started out reviewing for Book Report when I was a high school librarian and have been reviewing and writing articles and books for Linworth ever since. This is the one journal, in its various versions, that I have had a long term subscription to as it covers both my professional worlds of school librarianship and youth literature.

Back to Other by Kincy. I had to go to her web site http://www.karenkincy.com/ to check out her web presence as I am so impressed with the new YA authors meeeting teens where they hang out - online. I had to chuckle over her twitter comment - "Author Kitty Keswick stopped by my website!" When you scroll down the page, there is an interview with Keswick. I personally still love the feel and smell of books and reading print, but I realize that if we want to get teens reading books we need to pique their attention via their modes of communication. There are more paranormal romances out there for teens now than anyone can keep up with but Other is well worth logging off, putting the phone on vibrate, and settling in and getting comfortable as you won't want to put Other down after you start reading it. Imagine a world where a centaur in the frozen food section of the grocery store raises a few eyebrows and an occassional cell phone pic but that's because there aren't any living in Gwen's small Washington town. But there are plenty of Others including werewolves, vampires, dyads and shapeshifters, which is what Gwen is. Due to the prejudices about Others by some of the small town residents Gwen's mom has asked her to subdue her inclination to shift into animal form but she only feels free when she takes wing in the dead of night and flies through the forest where no one sees her. At least she thinks no one does, but when Others show up murdered Gwen realizes she hasn't been as careful as she thought. The killer knows what she is and she may be the next victim. Add a cute fox spirit dude and some nasty werewolves to contend with and this is a fun and fast read. Thank goodness there are two more titles coming!

Speaking of teens and technology - NintendoDS is now offering 100 classics with author bios and book guides to help you select a "book that fits your mood" - or so says the advertisement in Entertainment Weekly. The add shows the Nintendo being held like a book so you have text on each side. Hmmm - I wonder if this will get gamers involved in reading. Who knows! Whatever the case, it looks interesting. Check out all the titles at http://www.100classicbooks.com/digital-books.html accessed from the Nintendo site. These are all those dry and boring oldies that are often required reading in school. Perhaps they will be a bit less boring when read on a gaming device! But please, don't make me read Silas Marner again in any format. Good heavens - I had to pinch myself black and blue to get through that one! Further browsing shows that there are another 10 books that can be downloaded via wi-fi. I just found the cost of the 100 Classics on Best Buy - $19.99. It was released yesterday and already backordered via Best Buys' online store. I wish I could be there to see the English teachers' expressions when they tell their students to take out their copy of King Lear and students boot up their Nintendos!

It is thundering like crazy, the wind is blowing and the rain is coming down. I'm posting this before the Internet goes down. I am so sick of rain - we are going to float away!

The thunder woke me up about an hour ago so I laid in bed for awhile listening to it and working on the crazy alliteration alphabet book I've been working on in my head for years. Always comes to mind when I can't sleep! So I got up a wrote down a few of the ones that came to mind this a.m. as I normally forget them by the time I get up. The rain is coming down in buckets and it sounds like Thor and the other Norse gods are involved in a game of bowling up in Valhalla. At least that is what Gramma used to tell me as she was more afraid of thunderstorms than I was!



Oh good - Steve is up. I can hear him pouring food into Sophie's bowl so she will quit her morning meowing. Back to bed with the Sunday paper for a bit. Yeah - a few days late and then some in getting to it.

What a beautiful day! We've had lots of rain but the sky is blue and it isn't supposed to get above the 70s today but up to 90 by the end of the week.

Spent more time this weekend going through books so that we can get one of my double bookcases out of my office so it will look bigger. We are slowly making progress toward getting the house ready to put on the market. Steve is painting the dining room and it is going to look wonderful compared to the ugly brownish gold that was in there. Apparently the builder used whatever leftover paint around as no two rooms in the house were the same color. They all complimented each other, but there was no way to match the paint to do any fix-ups.

I read some fun picture and early chapter books in the process:
If you have a little primary grade glamour puss, which I think my granddaughter McKinley is going to be, check out the Perfectly Princess series. Purple Princess Wins the Prize by Alyssa Crowne http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Purple-Princess-Wins-the-Prize/Alyssa-Crowne/e/9780545211741/?itm=1&USRI=purple+princess+wins+the+prize+perfectly+princess caught my attention as even the pages of the book are purple. Also because she has big brothers who she wants to show she is just as good as they are. Even we adult girls who have older brothers remember that feeling! Reading level on the series is 2nd grade so these books will be as popular as the other Scholastic Little Apple series - The Rainbow Magic books. There are a lot of them as there are different types of fairies, with several books in each group include The Rainbow Fairies, The Weather Fairies, The Jewel Fairies, The Pet Fairies, The Fun Day Fairies, The Petal Fairies, The Dance Fairies and the newest – The Music Fairies. There is a really cool website for the Fairies with activities and all kinds of stuff for computer literate primary age girls would enjoy: http://www.rainbowmagiconline.com/. I could see myself sitting down with Mary when she was little and doing some of these activities together. Keep in mind that I am a fairy lover myself and no one can make me grow up enough to quit believing in them! :-) I have Danni the Drum Fairy by Daisy Meadows http://productsearch.barnesandnoble.com/search/results.aspx?store=BOOK&WRD=danni+drum+fairy in front of me and what fun – figuring out how to get the instruments back from the goblins who stole them. If they don’t, everyone will find out about Fairyland! What little girl wouldn’t love these books? Lots of white space and line drawings break up the text so even the most “chapter book” reluctant girl may find these accessible.

Although our kids go through series like the ones discussed above so fast that we feel like we are at the library or bookstore every day, this is a good thing. Are these high quality literature – of course they are not. But, it is books like these that help us ensure our kids are lifelong readers. Once they have mastered the basics of reading, novice readers need to go through a stage in reading development referred to as unconscious delight – in other words, wallowing in books that don’t require a great deal out of the young readers, but they are practicing their reading skills in a safe, known, fun environment. In other words – they discover reading is fun. It isn’t just something they have to do for homework or points. Some of us oldies went through this stage with The Bobbsey Twins by Laura Lee Hope (I was devastated when I found out she wasn’t real – these books were written by several different authors from an outline given to them.) The Bobbsey Twins of Lakeport is the first book in the series. http://search.barnesandnoble.com/The-Bobbsey-Twins-of-Lakeport/Laura-Lee-Hope/e/9780448437521/?itm=3&USRI=bobbsey+twins+series. Penguin has brought them all back along with an easy reader series as well. Nostalgia! We hope our kids love the same books we did as children, but don’t get upset if they don’t. Allow them choose their own books and then step back and watch them become lifelong readers.

We are seeing teens going through the unconscious delight stage because they spent the last 8 years of school having books picked out for them by points or reading level. Many tweens/teens don’t know how to self select books, let alone consider that reading can be an enjoyable pastime just like sports, hanging out with their friends, or talking on the phone. Basically, we have to “wallow in unconscious delight” at some point in our reading life to discover it is fun before we truly become a lifelong reader. Let your kids read whatever they want and ignore the reading levels for a change. Little guys who love dinosaurs can read nonfiction books that some middle school kids can’t because they love the subject and they figure out the big words because they want to. So what if it is the 50th manga title your middle school son reading. He’s reading! I find graphic novels more difficult to comprehend than straight text as I am not as good at visual comprehension as our kids are.

The magazine you keep seeing your son or daughter scanning in the store every time you are there, buy a subscription. Magazine reading is very similar to the short bursts of information that standardized tests use for comprehension questions.

Okay, I’ll get off my high horse on this subject but we want our kids wallowing in “unconscious delight " reading so they don't become unconscious from boredom while struggling with the required reading book that they have no interest in at all. Perhaps if they were encouraged to “wallow” in the books/magazines/online sites they want to read, they could better handle reading the “stuff” they don’t want to as they are honing their skills reading and these books become less difficult to read. Can't change the boredom factor totally but they can progress through the books more quickly so they can get back to the titles they want to read.

I talked about the girlie series, what about the ones for the guys? Scholastic has Little Apple series for the guys too. I personally am so not into Pokemon but some boys love this little critter. There are many books in Pokemon Junior Chapter Book Series. Not all of them are still in print but you can buy used ones online for a couple of bucks and even Pokemon Battle Frontier: Team Rocket Truce http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Pokemon-Battle-Frontier/Tracey-West/e/9780545000734/?itm=3&USRI=pokemon+battle+frontier is only $3.99 new.

I think the Ready, Freddy! primary level series is a delight and I’d start with volume 1: Tooth Trouble by Abby Klein. http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Tooth-Trouble/Abby-Klein/e/9780439555968/?itm=1&USRI=ready+freddy+series. There are enough line illustrations by John McKinley to break up the text. Freddy may be fascinated by sharks with their wicked looking teeth, but he’s embarrassed as he’s the only first grader who hasn’t lost a tooth yet.

For the primary age boys who love sports check out the Gym Shorts series by Betty Hicks. Henry and his buddies try out various sports, from basketball to soccer, to swimming, to baseball, to track and the latest adventure: Doubles Trouble http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Doubles-Troubles/Betty-Hicks/e/9781429944304/?itm=2&USRI=doubles+troubles. about tennis. The wonderful line drawings by Simon Gane break up the text and make this a fun book for sports minded early readers.

For the slightly older readers (7-10) who love to laugh introduce them to the Melvin Beederman, Superhero Series. Longer in length, the text is still broken up by line drawings. The latest title in the series by Greg Trine, Invasion from Planet Dork http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Invasion-from-Planet-Dork/Greg-Trine/e/9780805081671/?itm=1&USRI=melvin+beederman+invastion+from+planet+dork is hilarious. How many times have we seen movies and read books about aliens being used for experimentation. Well, what if the Evil Aliens are coming to Earth, specifically Los Angeles, to kidnap Earthlings for their own science class experiments? This ones hits the bookstores this week.

Summer is upon us and kids are out of school. Don't let them lose the progress they have made toward becoming a lifelong reader. The public libraries have fun reading programs if you child likes to be involved. As long as the programs are self competitive and don't list names and charts that clearly show ranking I am all for them. But I'd not have my own children involved in the ones that "pit" children against each other. They deal with enough competition in other areas of their life, reading should not be a competitive sport. It is like yoga or running - you work to improve your own skills not to be better than someone else. If you don't have a suitable summer reading program, make up your own. Read with your kids, read to your kids, have them read to you and talk about the books. Spend a Saturday at a used book store and let them pick out some books. Hit garage sales. There are ways to build your child's book collection without it costing you an arm and a leg.

All for today.

Sorry - had to add this post. I was chuckling aloud as I watched the trailer for Lane Smith's new book - It's a Book http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Its-a-Book/Lane-Smith/e/9781596436060/?itm=10&USRI=lane+smith+it%27s+a+bookput Click on this link and if you don't at least smile you aren't a true book-aholic like I am! http://us.macmillan.com/BookCustomPage.aspx?isbn=9781596436060&m_type=2&m_contentid=1635367#video

A beautiful breezy a.m. in Lex but it is going to be a hot one, up to the high 80s again. And very humid. Thank goodness for air conditioning and fans. You wouldn't think the northern most areas of the Upper Peninsula of Michigan would get very hot but I remember summers where sleeping was impossible in the upstairs of our house. I think Mom cooking on a wood stove also helped keep the house hotter than Hades. They'd close up the doors and close the curtains so the living room was the coolest. I remember laying on the hardwood floor that was a bit cooler due to the fans. I think living like that as a kid makes me appreciate the regulated air conditioning and heat we now have. And, we did get the gas fireplace fixed, just in time for it to heat up and not need it. It even has a remote - how cool is that? :-)

My mom was a great one for home remedies. She is most likely smiling down on me from heaven as I take my tbs. of natural apple cider vinegar mixed in with cranberry juice each morning. Apple cider vinegar has many supposed natural remedies - http://www.homeremediesweb.com/apple_cider_vinegar_health_benefits.php I am taking it to help my immune system but I wish it did all the other things listed on the Home Remedies Website.

She would also be chucking over my love of Greek yogurt since I hated her Finnish speciality called viili - basically curdled milk. She has a starter she used that she swore came over from Finland initially with my grandmother. I hated the stringy slimy stuff but she ate it every day and swore it helped her digestion. She knew what she was talking about long before yogurt became a craze in the U.S. Mom was a born naturalist long before the "back to the earth" folks
joined in on what the old Finns knew for decades.

As some of you know, I have an interest in debut novels/picture books. I am also amazed at the qualifications of the new YA authors. For example, Jessica Warman has a MA in creative writing and went to Yale. These new young authors decide they want a career in writing and go about getting the education to enhance their natural skills. Warman shows her skills in Breathless http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Breathless/Jessica-Warman/e/9780802798497/?itm=1&USRI=warman+breathless We females who have older brothers ofen idolize them. Those who don't go that far certainly look up to them and ask them for advice. I still remember my oldest brother Dan telling me the guy wasn't worth the ground I walked on when I told him about the mean things one the guys I liked in Junior High said to me. It isn't that I made great choices in men the rest of my life after that comment, but it stuck with me all these years. I thought about Warman's main character Katie and how I would have reacted if my brother Larry, who I was the closest to as a teen as he was the closest in age, suffered from schizophrenia. How would I have felt if he was sent away to a psychiatric hospital and was begging me to come get him? Could I handle the pressure? And, what would I say to my classmates if my parents sent me away to a boarding school? Would I go so far as Katie did and say my older brother was dead? It certainly would be easier than to admit the truth - her brother suffered from drug induced schizophrenia and was institutionalized. I certainly wouldn't tell them about the time he dropped the cat off our roof, expecting it to get up and walk away - cats always land on their feet, don't they? Well, not from that height. They called Katie's father, a psychiatrist, the Ghost as he was rarely around but when he was, he called family meetings and produced Ziplock baggies of drug paraphernalia he found around the house. Their artist mother is as calm as a still pond but insubstantial enough for a wind to blow her away. Katie is an innocent when it comes to the viciousness of private school girls and is often the object of their nastiness, especially when she begins to date Drew, the captain of the boys' swim team. Katie's roommate Mazzie has issues of her own over her mother's death and handles the scene at Katie's house after her grandfather's funeral when Will waves a loaded handgun between himself and their father better than Katie does. When her father apologizes as they are ready to leave for school, Mazzie responds with, "Shit happens, Sir." It sure does in this family. Katie finds solace in swimming - she can forget about everything at home and at school while she swims. But she has to surface sometime and when she does she learns an orderly at the hospital has been killed and Will is the prime suspect. Do you stop loving a brother who is criminally insane? No, you don't. Warman creates scenes so poignant and realistic between Katie and Will and Katie and Mazzie that I found myself holding my breath for fear they would know I was eavesdropping. An incredible debut.

On a lighter note: Steve says I tend to chatter too much so I had to smile to myself as I read the delightfully sweet The Quiet Book by Deborah Underwood and Renata Liwska. http://search.barnesandnoble.com/The-Quiet-Book/Deborah-Underwood/e/9780547215679/?itm=1&USRI=the+quiet+book There are many kinds of quiet from the first one awake quiet, thinking of a good reason you were drawing on the wall quiet, last one to get picked up from school quiet, first look at our new hairstyle quiet, first snowfall quiet, to “What flashlight?” quiet as little bunny is sneaking in a last few pages of his favorite book. The gentle illustrations of a variety of young animals including a little moose, bear, bunny, mouse, hedgehog, and porcupine are perfect for a bedtime story. I have to keep in mind the “Best friends don’t need to talk quiet” next time Steve and I are on the beach together as are bear and bunny as they quietly skip rocks. Sometimes there is no reason to talk when best friends are together and Steve is certainly the friend I want at my side during a quiet walk on the beach, but he had better not expect me to handle “Top of the roller coaster quiet” as I won’t be like bunny and cover my eyes and hold my breath. My breath would be coming out in a loud shriek of fear – I hate heights!

That's it for today.

Isn't the brain an amazing thing? I just got back from the eye doc's for my second contacts fitting. I have the distance correction in one eye and close up in the other. As long as I don't think about it and start trying to look at something with only one eye, it works great. I was wearing bifocals but getting eye strain from having to move between the transitions as I use two monitors and also look down at print documents in front of me. I hope this works better as I can buy cute, cheap sunglasses again. I was in second heaven once the lasik surgery settled in back in 2001. I had worn glasses since I was in primary school so seeing the depth and variety of colors of the leaves in a tree was a wonderment to me. But, lasik only lasts 5-10 years for most folks and clearly I'm one of them.

I have piles of books all over the floor after a day with my books yesterday. The time just flies by and I am happy as a kid in a candy shop - or me in a dark chocolate only candy shop. :-)

I remember when Aliki’s Digging Up Dinosaurs http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Digging-Up-Dinosaurs/Aliki/e/9780064450782/?itm=1&USRI=digging+up+dinosaurs#TABS first came out and we were all delighted to see female characters in the book and even more delighted when the second edition was published with a female paleontologist on the cover. Back in the 80s we were still seeking out the books that set aside the sexual stereotyping of only men in medical and science professions. So, when I picked up the “almost board book” (slick, thick pages to weather lots of little hands), with the attention-getting cover art, by Jonathan London and David Parkins’ I’m a Truck Driver http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Im-a-Truck-Driver/David-Parkins/e/9780805079890/?itm=1&USRI=i%27m+a+truck+driver I didn’t even question whether or not there would be female truck drivers. Of course there are! Well, maybe not truck drivers as this book addresses many types of big equipment. The pages alternate between a boy and his dog and a girl and her cat operating/driving different piece of large equipment that are all pictured on the endpapers. Perhaps the choice of pets can be seen as sexist to a degree but the girl is clearly loving being a power shovel operator, a big crane operator, a steamroller driver, a fire truck driver, a snowplow driver, and a combine operator. This one is going to my grand kids and I suspect McKinley will be as crazy about this one as will be Kegan who loves trucks.

A gotta have for every middle grade through high school library is Superstar Stats: Everything Cool About Everyone Who’s Hot! http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Superstar-Stats/Jenifer-Morse/e/9780545178211/?itm=1&USRI=superstar+stats by Jenifer Morse and the Scholastic staff. The color photographs of big names in entertainment, sports, business and money and more. A double page spread on each person with basic name/age information and some statistics about how they excel in their areas. The wide range of ages, cultures, backgrounds should pique any level reader’s attention. You may have to buy multiple copies of this one as it is paperback.

I just finished writing the Library Media Connection review for Neal Shusterman's Bruiser http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Bruiser/Neal-Shusterman/e/9780061134081/?itm=1&USRI=bruiser+neal+shusterman that will come out in later this month. I don't think there is a Shusterman book I've read that I haven't enjoyed. This one delves into the question of how far would you go to accept the physical pain of someone you love? I know as a parent I would have gladly endured the pain Mary went through having heart surgery as a toddler. I killed me emotionally to hear her scream with each vial of blood they drew. She'd start screaming as soon as we drove into our family doctor's office building parking lot for almost 2 years afterward. She was traumatized both emotionally and physically by the surgery and the events surrounding it. Today, she remembers little of it other than the scar that curves from her side up her back and the surgical steel clips used to do the repairs that mean she cannot have an MRI. But, I digress - Bruiser is a big lunk of a teen who everyone at school predicts will end up in prison. He doesn't interact with anyone as he fears doing so. He goes home to his abusive, alcoholic uncle and little brother, never complaining about the abuse his uncle inflicts on him. His world is turned upside down with "do-gooder" Bronte decides Bruiser is just misunderstood. He certainly is that but she has no idea the pain she is bringing on him by making him care about her and her family. He literally takes on their pain, bruises, and scars of those he loves. This is one of those books that makes me go back to the fact that every reader has his/her own conversation with a book based on their life experiences.

All for today. Two more late book reviews to write!

I am wondering how Mary's family trip up to her dad's camp went this weekend. They were taking Zoey. This pic is of Mary curled up with Zoey at 13 weeks. She now is so long she takes up the whole couch and over 85 pounds. Mary was trying to figure out how to fit her in the front seat with her while Scott drives. The three kids take up the whole backseat. I can't imagine having a dog that big. I'd worry about getting knocked over.



It has been a quiet weekend. Yesterday was our 8th anniversary and we just stayed home and watched old movies. I had not seen Mr. Roberts

http://video.barnesandnoble.com/DVD/Mister-Roberts/Henry-Fonda/e/12569736351/?itm=1&USRI=mr+roberts with Henry Fonda, James Cagney and William Powell. I love William Powell as Nick in The Thin Man series of movies http://video.barnesandnoble.com/DVD/The-Complete-Thin-Man-Collection/William-Powell/e/12569673991/?itm=2 with Myrna Loy. Some folks know this movie more for the canine star, Asta. Anyway, Powell plays the older philosophical doctor on a cargo ship during WWII in Mr. Roberts. Fonda, who plays Mr. Roberts, wants to be in the action but Cagney, the tyrannical captain, won't approve his transfer to another ship. It is a delightful movie and a nice way to end our anniversary.



I've not been doing well after the 2nd episode and most of the weekend before last in the ER - first at St. Joe's and then UK Hospital's ER. Our neighborhood St. Joe's doesn't have a neurologist on call and the main St. Joe's wasn't taking ER patients as their power was out. So I was sent to UK's ER by ambulance. First time in one and I hope my last. I got to UK around 1 a.m. and was put in one of those rooms with the curtains between patients. I got to listen to a drunk UK student whine and throw up - she was found sitting in her car passed out and brought in by UK's police. What a "story" she had for her mother the next morning! Oh fun! The guy on the other side of her was waiting to be admitted and listened to a foul mouthed group of comedians roast Bob Sackett on Comedy Central that lasted all night. I've now heard the f-word more times than I ever want to. The nurses didn't ask him to turn it down and it could be heard well outside of of the room as the door was wide open. I had the bed next to the door so got to see everyone going by in the hallway and they saw me. Sleep wasn't possible. No lights out and even worse, no call button. I had to scream to get one of the nurse's attention to help me get to the bathroom, which was filthy. A male nurse, but I had to go bad enough I wasn't too worried about it. I cannot figure out how that ER area could be so dirty when I saw no less than 4 different cleaning people come through while I lay there. One of them emptied out the holder on the wall for needles and syringes and used his bare hands to pull one apart and shove it down inside. I was cringing as he did that. I lay there all night with few checks from the nurses and a couple of the neurologist docs checking in on me, giving differing opinions as to what was wrong since the CT Scan from St. Joe's didn't show stroke damage but I was experiencing partial paralysis of my legs and arms as well as slurred speech. One of them so kindly said, "Did you know your left eye is drooping?" Duh! The headache was so bad I thought my left eyeball was going to pop out and the nurse sent in one of UK EMT guys with Tylenol as the neurologist had forgotten to write an order for pain meds! They didn't do the MRI until almost noon, much too late to show any stroke damage so it was a waste of my time and money. They finally let me leave when I assured them I had gained enough use of my legs to go home. Four UK neurologists later and no clear answer to the episode that I have yet to recover from.

Thank goodness I had an appointment with a Pain Management doc set up and saw him on Friday. It didn't take him long to make a clinical diagnosis of occipital neuralgia with headache and whiplash damage to my neck from the fall down the steps in Denver. He was pretty surprised I'd been dealing with the pain for a year and 1/2. No treatment is what has resulted in the episodes and the 24/7 headache. I go back in next week for the first treatment to the occipital nerve. I am feeling like there may be light at the end of the tunnel, but it sure has been long in coming. The Worker's Comp. rep was with me at the appointment and apologized for it taking so long for her to get me in to a doc who deals with head trauma. The UK neurologists were clueless. Specialist put blinders on and can't see beyond what they are accustomed to diagnosing. It is going to take awhile but I will get back some quality of life. The WC rep. won't schedule my knee surgery until the trauma doc can give me some relief from the headache and inflamed nerves episodes that resemble strokes. She took one look at how exhausted I am and said there is no way my body could handle both the pain treatments and the surgery. So, in the meantime I'll keep hobbling around and hope for the best. What a horrible last few weeks it has been. I don't wish an ER overnight visit like I had on anyone.

So, I've been trying to take it easy and give my eyes a break from the computer screen but it hasn't been easy. I've been going through some of the picture books again and love Liz Rosenberg and Julie Downing's Nobody. http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Nobody/Liz-Rosenberg/e/9781596431201/?itm=1&USRI=nobody+rosenberg I'm sure those of you who are parents had a Nobody living in your house who enticed your kids to do the things they wouldn't do on their own. This is the case with young George whose imaginary friend, Nobody, loves to get into mischief as they do early one morning before the parents are up. Downing's grayish version of Nobody is delightful in a spotted footed sleeper and corkscrew-like curls. What expression she can add with just a few lines. And George - freckle faced, with hair standing on end. George and Nobody decide to make omelets. "It was a lot of work. Nobody called out words of encouragement. Nobody mopped up the first few mistakes. Then George sat and waited because he wasn't allowed to turn on the stove when Nobody was around." Two shocked parents arrive in the kitchen in their bathrobes to find the kitchen in shambles. "George, what were you thinking?" But, it isn't going to end in a scolding as mom sees George's face and gives him a squeeze and says, "I was really in the mood for pancakes. Do you think you could help me make some?" "But, of course," answered George. "Pancakes are my specialty." I wish I had this book when my kids were little as their invisible mischief maker was named "Not Me!"

Much less fun to read, but certainly a book I won't forget reading is David Patneaude's Epitaph Road http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Epitaph-Road/David-Patneaude/e/9781606840559/?itm=1&USRI=epitaph+road It came to mind as it is Memorial Day and I remember how my breath stuck in my chest the first time I saw all the small white crosses in a Veteran's cemetery. My dad was a WWII vet so talking about the military and the men who died during that war was part of my growing up. Dad was in the South Pacific so he didn't see the mass graves in the concentration camps but that is what I thought of when Patneaude described the mass burial memorial for the thousands of people, mostly men who died from a virus that killed 97 percent of the male population on earth. Imagine being a teenage boy, one of the few males, and the son of one of the women who worked closely with the government and monitoring the small splinter groups of men who choose to live in isolated settlements. Kellen is this 15-year-0ld teenage boy and he is furious that his mother is not going to allow him to spend the summer with his father, a fisherman who docks in a small coastal village on Washington state's coastline. When Kellen and the two new girls who have moved into his group home overhear the adults talking they figure out what is going on. The women in control have decided it is time to deal with the rebellious men and they know just how to do it - not much different than the last time. Now it is a race against time and the authorities as the three teenagers ride out on their bikes to save Kellen's dad.

That's it for today. A long post and then some.

Folks - don't throw away the publisher's catalog you receive - they are a wealth of information. I know most of us like to order things online, but the print catalog from the publishers are a delightful way to get to the know the authors and books before you receive them in your library or home. If the cover of Bloomsbury and Walker Books for Young Readers' catalog doesn't get your attention - half of a female face with a golden tear trailing down from a closed eye with a golden lid - I would be very surprised. I recognized the cover and had to flip through the catalog first to find Captivate by Carrie Jones http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Captivate/Carrie-Jones/e/9781599903422/?itm=1&USRI=captivate+jones so I could read the blurb on its sequel Need http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Need/Carrie-Jones/e/9781599903385/?itm=2 in which you find out about the trial of gold dust. Need also has an arresting cover - this time the lips are gold. For those of you who want a paranormal romance, but not focused on vampires or werewolves, Jones has offered up a pixie king who is both sexy and dangerous. Zara's world is turned upside down when he states she is fated to be his queen. Let the girls know about http://www.needpixies.com/ as they can learn about the author, watch book trailers, read reviews, and even enter a contest. Very cool! Use the Internet to pique the teens' interest in reading. Bookmark book trailers on the library computers and display the books that go with them near the computers. You'll be replacing books regularly! :)

The other thing I look for in publishers' catalogs is the debut titles. Jen Nadol's The Mark http://search.barnesandnoble.com/The-Mark/Jen-Nadol/e/9781599904313/?itm=1&USRI=the+mark+nadol caught my attention as it deals with the ability to see the glow around a person who is about to die. If you know this, should/could you stop the death from happening?

I chuckled aloud when I read the blurb for Jean Reidy and Genevieve Leloup's picture book debut - Too Purpley! http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Too-Purpley/Jean-Reidy/e/9781599903071/?itm=1&USRI=too+purpley as this little fashionista has been my daughter and is my granddaughter! What fun to watch the girly/girly clothing demands, except when you are running late! I sent McKinley a princess costume and she loves it - so does her brother Kegan, which just tickles my fancy!