Review: The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon

The strength of this book lies in Christopher’s first-person voice. The reader is able to see the world through the eyes of one with Autism. I understood Christopher’s strange actions better because he explained his reasoning. But the point of view was also a weakness for me. The repetition became tiresome. I already know he doesn’t like yellow or brown. I don’t need to be reminded of it over and over. Christopher’s story is not the only one being told. The Curious Incident examines what it is like living with and caring for someone with Autism. I found myself more interested in Christopher’s parents as the story continued. Professionals are trained and choose to work with special needs populations. Parents are not usually trained nor do they choose the child they get. Christopher’s parents are flawed, make mistakes, and I really felt for them. They want what is best for their son but are people with needs, too. I’ve known autistic kids and while I saw some similarities to Christopher there were significant differences. The term autism covers a wide spectrum with vastly different manifestations. No one voice can even remotely represent it. If you’re looking to educate yourself on this disorder you’ll need to go beyond reading this book because truly, it does not represent the spectrum.

Summary: "Christopher John Francis Boone knows all the countries of the world and their capitals and every prime number up to 7,057. He relates well to animals but has no understanding of human emotions. He cannot stand to be touched. And he detests the colours yellow and brown. This improbable story of Christopher’s quest to investigate the suspicious death of a neighborhood dog makes for one of the most captivating, unusual, and widely heralded novels in recent years. Mark Haddon make this an excellent book for children and adults alike." "

I enjoyed the charts and diagrams which Christopher uses to explain things. Some readers find them distracting. I think they added to the story and helped me follow along. The humor is dark. It is funny but is tempered by Christopher’s serious situation. Overall, the book didn’t do much for me. However, I think it is an important text. It discusses a serious disorder that is increasing in our population and manages to make the reader laugh while making him aware.

Publisher: Vintage, 2004     Pages: 226
Rating: 3 Stars     Source: IC Public Library

Review: Bad News for Outlaws by Vaunda Micheaux Nelson

This book was awesome! Gun fights, chases, escapes! Indians, cowboys and slaves. Hardship, justice and honor. It’s the Wild West folks and this is the true story of a slave who became a U.S. deputy Marshal. His name is Reeves. Bass Reeves. And he is Bad News for Outlaws!

This is nonfiction done right. I loved the art work (looks like oil paintings) and the story was fascinating. Both totally captured the spirit of the old West. Many of the text blocks look like they are printed on yellowed paper. The font looks Western, too, big and bold. R. Gregory Christie’s illustrations capture the emotion of each moment being described. Bass’ gaze is piercing. There’s no messing with that man. 

This is well researched book and it shows. There are many amazing anecdotes pieced together from historical records. There are extra resources in the back including a glossary of Western terms used in the book, a timeline, a further reading list and much more.

I was completely captivated with Bass’ story. Although it’s aimed at 2nd-5th grade readers, if you know anyone who enjoys all things Western I urge you to put this book in their hands. This title counts towards the POC Reading Challenge! Well, this was a hard review to write. I just wanted to use the word "awesome" over and over! 

Publisher: Carolrhoda, 2009     Pages: 40     Illustrator: R. Gregory Christie
Full Title: Bad News for Outlaws: The Remarkable Life of Bass Reeves, Deputy U.S. Marshal
Rating: 5 Stars     Source: IC Public Library

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Review: Exposure by Mal Peet

When I picked up Exposure at the library I internally groaned and several fears cropped up before I got past the book jacket blurb. First of all, it has sports in it and I don’t “do” sports. And not just any sport but soccer (yeah, I'm American =) of which I know nothing about. Then I made the connection to Shakespeare’s Othello and worried about having not read the play. Then there was a celeb chick on the cover in a strappy dress and dangly earrings.  Exposure was nothing I expected and I thoroughly enjoyed it. At every chapter I expected the themes to shallow or the prose to deteriorate. The prose was excellent throughout. The themes were dealt with realistically despite the unusual and extravagant lifestyles of the characters. Celebrity is an unusual phenomenon, especially when popular individuals do not seek fame or do nothing particularly excellent to warrant huge fan bases. The novel explores the phenomenon of fame and how people come into it and how they deal with it. Dezi and Otello seemed like real people coping as best they could in situations they never expected to be in.

Summary:"This is the third "Paul Faustino" novel by multi-award-winning Mal Peet. A massive soccer star has it all, but someone is plotting his downfall...Revered as a national hero...married to the desirable Desmerelda...cherished by the media...soccer star, Otello, has it all. But a sensational club transfer sparks a media frenzy, and when he is wrongly implicated in a scandal, the footballer's life turns into a tragic spiral of destruction. South America's top sports journalist, Paul Faustino, witnesses the power of the media in making and breaking people's lives." "

Teenagers, much like Bianca (a teenage street rat), become enamored with celebrities. They look up to these fashionable trend setters with expensive toys who appear to have the world at their fingertips. With reality T.V. we do get a glimpse at some celebrities’ lives. But we know that they know we are watching and that they are being paid to perform a role that may or may not be who they are. Exposure shows a negative reality that accompanies fame which is often masked or overlooked in the media. By changing perspectives in the novel, seeing celebrities through the eyes of several characters from different walks of life, Peet shows the three dimensional lives of the rich and famous and the many people affected by their fame.

There are so many aspects of this book – the racial issues, the class divides, the consuming quest for success, balancing family relationships and literary comparisons – that make Exposure one I want teens to read. Luckily, I won’t feel like I’m pushing an “issue” book. Exposure is a mix of mystery, pop culture and foreign culture which was interesting to me. Being fun to read is the icing on the cake. There is great substance to the story but I still had fun reading it. Actually, I think Exposure is an excellent adult read, too. I'm looking forward to reading more by Peet!

This title counts towards the POC Reading Challenge!

Publisher: Candlewick, 2009     Pages: 448

Rating: 5 Stars     Source: IC Public Library

Review: Snowflake Bentley by Jacqueline Briggs Martin

From gently falling flakes and flurries, to swirling gusts and mounting drifts, snow-falls always look beautiful. One of the first crafts I remember doing in school is creating cut-out snowflakes. Sometimes a flake will stick to a window and you can see it’s sort of pokey looking. But then it blows away, or worse, melts.

This beautifully illustrated children’s book chronicles the work of Willie Bentley, the man who showed us the snowflake. Bentley loved snow so much he dedicated his free time to studying it. He perfected the photographic technique needed to capture snowflakes on film so that the whole world could see how beautiful they are. He knew that seeing a single flake under a microscope wasn’t good enough. He wanted their crystal-like beauty to last and be enjoyed by all.

Illustrator Mary Azarian’s woodcuts set a perfect tone for Martin’s text. Together, they remind me a time gone by. A time my grandparents knew. A time that can still be found in the quiet of a gentle snow-fall. I enjoyed how the text was displayed with more biographical or technical details in sidebars and the general story-line at the bottom. As a reluctant reader in my youth, I really liked books like this (thinking Magic School Bus) where the text was broken up. I could choose what to read and keep moving on if I thought it was “too much text.” I enjoyed going back later and discovering more parts to the story.

As winter comes to a close and the last of the snow is melting remember Snowflake Bentley’s passionate efforts. I know snow can seem a bother. But if you didn’t this year, remember next winter to take a moment to enjoy the beauty that is a snowflake. 

Publisher: Houghton Mifflin, 1998     Pages: 32
Rating: 4.5 Stars     Source: Christmas gift! Thanks, Mom!

Review: One Crazy Summer by Rita Williams-Garcia

Imagine this is you: Eleven years old. Alone. In charge of two younger sisters. A girl. African American. 1968. Flying for the first time on an airplane. Meeting your mother years after she’s abandoned you – who still ignores you while you stay in her house.

This is Delphine’s life. Her father is crazy for shipping her and her sisters across the country to spend their summer in Oakland with her crazy mother. Delphine and her sisters attend a summer school run by the Blank Panthers. Things get crazy as Delphine finds herself drawn into a world she fears could lead to trouble.

Delphine narrates One Crazy Summer in an immensely introspective voice. It surprised me. I loved her, and I loved her sisters Vonetta and Fern. I loved how they stuck together and how Delphine looked out for them. I even loved their fights (that poor doll). But so much introspection makes me suggest this book is for advanced young readers or tweens. One Crazy Summer reminds me of a book adults want kids to read but kids find difficult to get through. There are a lot of historical figures and the writing utilizes dialect which slows the pace for me as a reader. I imagine some kids may have a similar experience. I think it will take the right kid to appreciate the narrative since there isn’t a whole lot of action. The action did pick up a bit in the last third and I felt rewarded for having made it through the slower parts. I enjoyed the conclusion and am glad I read the book.

This book counts towards the POC Reading Challenge.

Publisher: Amistad, 2010     Pages: 218

Rating: 3.5 stars     Source: IC Public Library

Review: The Little Prince Graphic Novel adaped by Joann Sfar

The classic tale by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry gets a face-lift in this graphic novel adaptation. The water colors found in the original have been replaced by Sfar's more whimsical style. The little prince's big eyes give him a slightly alien look, something akin to those found in manga. The text is very close to the original with only minor changes keeping the spirit of the original story intact. I found myself partial to the original text and art-work but the graphic novel was still fun to read. The new format may appeal to wider audience as well. It's interesting to note that Sfar's work was approved by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry's family. Though at first not my style of art, I find the more I look at these pages the more I like them.

Summary:"After being stranded in a desert after a crash, a pilot comes in contact with a captivating little prince who recounts his journey from planet to planet and his search for what is most important in life. For more than sixty-five years Antoine de Saint-Exupery's The Little Prince has captured the hearts and minds of its readers."

Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2010 (first published in the U.S.)     
Translator: Sarah Ardizzone     Pages: 110     Rating: 3 Stars     Source: Purchased

Review: Enthusiasm by Polly Shulman

Attention Jane Austen fans: this is a book for you! Even if you haven’t read any Austen novels you can still enjoy this story. But if you have any experience with Austen’s novels you will see elements of then throughout Polly Shulman’s Enthusiasm. I had fun identifying plot elements from Pride and Prejudice, Northanger Abbey and Persuasion (the three Austen novels I’ve read). But there are allusions to all of them. The characters, Ashleigh and Julie, reference Austen’s heroines and try, sometimes successfully and other times not successfully, to imitate them. I enjoyed this novel so I’m having a hard to telling what it was that was so great. You see, this book might be called a feel-good novel. It doesn’t push the envelope and is a sweet story with a happy ending. But I liked it! Yes, it was a tad predictable (at least for me). But that did not keep me from enjoying the story at all. Julie and Ashleigh’s relationship was my favorite part. They seemed like a couple average girls. They are having their first serious crushes and dealing with boys for the first time. They’re not sure how exactly to act. What do you do when a boy obviously likes you but you don’t like him? You don’t want to be mean. How do you show a boy that you do like him? Without feeling like an idiot? The girls are

Summary: Julie’s best friend, Ashleigh, is an enthusiast. Julie never knows what new obsession will catch Ashleigh’s fancy, but she does know she’s likely to be drawn into the madness. Ashleigh’s latest craze is Julie’s own passion, Pride and Prejudice. But Ashleigh can’t just appreciate it as a great read; she insists on emulating the novel’s heroines, in speech, dress, and the most important element of all—finding True Love. And so Julie finds herself with Ashleigh, dressed in vintage frocks, sneaking into a dance at the local all-boys prep school, where they discover some likely candidates. The problem with Ashleigh’s craze this time, however, is that there is only one Mr. Darcy. So when the girls get a part in the boys’ school musical, what follows is naturally equal parts comedy and romance, as a series of misinterpreted—and missed—signals, dating mishaps, and awkward incidents make Julie wonder if she has the heart for True Love.

at a tender and vulnerable age. They know it and try to be good to each other. Not all girls are “mean girls” who harbour jealousies and constantly criticize. Julie and Ashleigh are regular teens with regular issues - school, boys, parents. And I liked them for it. 

Publisher: Speak, 2006     Pages: 208
Rating: 4 Stars     Source: Amazon Storefront

Musings of a Grad Student: Courses and Assignments

The U of Iowa Pentacrest. Click image for source.

The fourth week of spring classes is coming to a close and I have yet to post on school (for you newbies, I'm getting an M.A. in Library and Information Science).

Going into the program I had little context and very little exposure to the literature of the field. It was information overload all semester long. Now that I've got a bit of background knowledge I feel more prepared for classes and confident that I'm in the right field.

Here's the skinny on what a second semester LIS student is doing.

Class Schedule:

Monday: Database Systems - learning a little PHP and SQL. Two weeks ago I knew nothing about the creation of databases. This week I am creating my own modest database.

Wednesday: Research Methods - learning about qualitative and quantitative methods and reading theory on the subject. We will be doing our own research at some point about...something. In a few weeks.

Thursday: Resources for Young Adults - reading articles and books about young adults, their emotional/developmental needs, while reading an array of YA books. Yeah, this class is fun! There will be several reviews of books I'm reading for this class.

Work: I'm working a few hours at a library reference desk, too.

Assignments with due dates closing in on me:

-Class facilitation about (how did I get so lucky?) book reviewing and what it means for librarians. This requires reading outside of assigned texts and collaborating with teammates.

-Creating a database - it's scary because making computers do what I want is always tricky.