Eek! Mice!

LIBRARY MOUSE: A MUSEUM, ADVENTURE by Daniel Kirk. Abrams, 2012.

Sam and his friend Sarah leave their home and travel to the incredible world of the museum that connects to their library dwelling place. Sam takes along his journal to record his exploits. While visiting the museum, Sam and Sarah make some new (and unexpected) friends and uncover a world of art. <363>





LOVE, MOUSERELLA by David Ezra Stein. Nancy Paulsen Books, Penguin 2012.

Mouserella writes a lengthy letter to her grandmother letting her GrandMouse know how much she misses her in the three days since she has been gone. Ingenious aspects of the book (it opens vertically and not horizontally for starters) will make this one emerging readers and writers will enjoy. <364>

Getting Graphic Again

BLOODY CHESTER by J T Petty and Hilary Florido. First Second Books 2012

The lawlessness of the Old West takes a very dark turn in this graphic novel. After he is bullied and beaten, Chester Kates is approached by Mr. Croghan. Croghan offers Chester money to head off to a town known as Whale and burn it to the ground. Chester is more than willing to do whatever it takes to survive and heads off to the town only to find it mostly abandoned. The few survivors inform Chester of an awful plague, a disease more of the spirit than the body.

There are many questions here: exactly what is the disease called "waits" is chief among those Chester wrestles with in this grim, dark novel. No stereotyped Western this. Instead this is an intense and unflinching examination of the nature of greed and power. <362>

Creation Story

EVE AND ADAM by Michael Grant and Katherine Applegate. Feiwel and Friends, October 2012.

A dynamic duo of authors, a terrific cover and an absorbing premise add up to make this book one that readers will be demanding as soon as it hits the shelves. Evening Spiker (do not call her Eve) barely survives a horrific car crash. Her recovery is due to her mother, the head honcho of Spiker Biopharmaceuticals. As Evening recovers from her injuries, her mother tries to keep her mind occupied by asking Evening to use some new software to cerate the perfact boy from the ground up. It seems rather a fanciful project, but soon Evening comes to understand that her creation is not some abstract computer image: it is the beginning of an actual creation. Espionage, betrayal, science gone amok, friendship, and a bit of a romance all combine in this page-turning examination of medicine and medical ethics. <361>


Note: Blogger is not allowing me to spell check as of late. pardon any errors. I will go back in and make corrections later.

Books read-June 2012

JUNE 2012 BOOKS READ

358. TOADS AND TESSELLATIONS
359. MONET PAINTS A DAY
360. WYATT BURP RIDES AGAIN
361. DINOS ARE FOREVER
362. SON
363. TEMPLE GRANDIN (audio)
364. LIBRARY DRAGON
365. LIBRARY MOUSE, A MUSEUM ADVENTURE
366. LOVE, MOUSERELLA
367. DADDIES DO IT DIFFERENT
368. THE DIVINERS
369. MY FRIEND DAHMER
370. KEVIN KEEPS UP
371. TOO YOUNG FOR YIDDISH
372. EIGHT DAYS GONE
373. THE HOUSE THAT GEORGE BUILT
374. MADELEINE’S LIGHT
375. BILL THE BOY WONDER
376. QUEEN OF THE TRACK
377. A DAY WITHOUT SUGAR
378. SOFIA AND THE PURPLE DRESS\
379. FREDA STOPS A BULLY
380. OUT ON THE PRAIRIE
381. SCHOOL DAY MATH
382. WUMBERS
383. OH NO NOT AGAIN
384. ALL FOR ME AND NONE FOR ALL
385. CATTY JANE WHO HATED THE RAIN
386. GOOD NEWS BAD NEWS
387. IT’S A TIGER
388. BINK AND GOLLIE, TWO FOR ONE
389. THE GREAT CAKE MYSTERY
390. REVENGE OF THE NIJA WEENIES
391. WILD ABOUT YOU
392. HARLEM’S LITTLE BLACKBIRD
393. DADDY CHRISTMAS AND HANUKKAH MAMA
394. WHO PUSHED HUMPTY DUMPTY?
395. THE CHICKEN PROBLEM
396. READY FOR PUMPKINS
397. FOLD SNAP
398. EIGHTH GRADE IS MAKING ME SICK
399. FOX AND CROW ARE NOT FRIENDS
400. ROOM FOR BABY
401. PIGS IN PAJAMAS
402. WEDGIEMAN: A HERO IS BORN
403. WHAT CAN A CRANE PICK UP?
404. RAILROAD HANK
405. HELEN AND ANNIE
406. ALEX THE PARROT
407. LEMONADE IN WINTER
408. COWBOY CHRISTMAS
409. FEEDBACK
410. WHAT BODY PART IS THAT?
411. LIAR AND SPY
412. EVE AND ADAM
413. DANCING WITH THE DEVIL
414. TALL STORY
415. NIGHT FLIGHT
416. FIESTA FIASCO
417. EDWINA THE DINOSAUR WHO DIDN’T KNOW SHE WAS EXTINCT
418. FIGHTING RUBEN WOLFE
419. MARTY MC GUIRE DIGS WORMS
420. BEAR HAS A STORY TO TELL
421. A IS FOR MUSK OX
422. MAURICE SENDAK: AUTHOR BIOGRAPHIES
423. DON’T SQUISH THE SASQUATCH
424. APPLE PIE A B C
425. WON TON
426. HOME FOR BIRD
427. TALES FOR VERY PICKY EATERS
428. PINCH AND DASH MAKE SOUP



*Some are audio, some e-Books, and others traditional texts

DANCING WITH THE DEVIL AND OTHER TALES FROM BEYOND by Rene Saldana. Pinata, 2012.

Here is a nifty collection of shivery tales in English and en Espanol from Texas author Rene Saldana. Enter La Llorona, the devil himself, and other creepy characters who will interact with young people at the school dance, a marble tournament, and other seemingly everyday places and events. Perfect for reading aloud (in the dark with flashlights), this collection just might lead readers to some other books. Tie to Alvin Schwartz' SCARY STORIES TO TELL IN THE DARK as well. <360>

What body part is that?

WHAT BODY PART IS THAT? by Andy Griffiths with illustrations by Terry Denton. Feiwel and Friends, November 2011.

How about a book with a title that purports to be about answering questions but also cries loudly from the cover that it is 99% fact-free? Andy Griffiths(author of The Day My Butt Went Psycho and others) brings his zany humor to an exploration of the parts of the body. Wacky illustrations by Denton complete the fun. <359>

Feedback: Be Very Afraid

FEEDBACK by Robison Wells. HarperTeen, October 2012.

Benson Fisher has escaped from Maxfield Academy along with a severely injured Becky. They are the fortunate ones; many others have died in their attempt to escape from the school where their lives were threatened by the staff. It seems Maxfield Academy is not a school but a front for an android "factory," a place where android clones of the students are created to be unleashed on an unsuspecting population at some point in time. Benson has a plan to get help, but first he must find medical assistance for Becks. He stumbles upon an old fort in the woods that surround Maxfield. There he discovers some familiar faces. Are they real or the android counterparts of his former acquaintances?

This follow up to VARIANT reveals a bit more of the puzzle that is Maxfield Academy and their rather sinister work. There are surprises in store, of course, and some betrayals that will shock. The book stands alone for those who have not read VARIANT. <358>