Title: The Sixty-Eight Rooms
Author: Marianne Malone
Published: 2010
My edition: Random House Hardcover 2010
Purchased From: Barnes and Noble Greenwich Village
Pages: 269

Synopsis (from Strand): Every Chicagoan knows about the Thorne Rooms in the Art Institute of Chicago. Sixty-eight miniature rooms, depicting rooms from European homes throughout the centuries, in immaculate detail, precise right down to the tiny rugs and doorknobs. Sixty-eight rooms so marvelously real that they seem magic. And for Ruthie, they are. Because she has found a key that allows her to shrink down to a size where she can explore the rooms, and discover their secrets. Small enough to find that someone has been in the rooms before her, and left important clues behind.

I read this because: I love the Thorne Rooms, they are my favorite part of the Art Institute of Chicago. Combining these lovely rooms with children’s literature is a perfect fit. Also – if ever one was to judge a book by its cover, this one pretty much takes the cake. I have Kelly to thank for giving me a heads up that this book was about to be released, and you can read her review here. Thanks Kelly!

My thoughts: What a magical book. There’s a lot to love about it: likable characters, unique setting, good writing, magic, adventure, mystery, and tiny things. A great read and a wonderful escape into a magical world.

If you don’t enjoy reading children’s books yourself, first of all take a moment and think about when exactly it was that you lost your soul. :) Seriously though, if you’re not interested in this for yourself, it would make a great gift for any child in your life.

Book club worthy? For book clubs interested in children’s literature, definitely yes.

Follow up required: Reading this really makes me want to go back and visit the Thorne Rooms again soon. I also really hope there will be a sequel.

You might like this book if you like: From the Mixed Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler by E. L. Konigsburg, The Penderwicks by Jeanne Birdsall 

Links to purchase: IndieBound, Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Book Depository, Strand

My favorite passage:

It was the feeling you sometimes get when leaving the darkness of a theatre after a really exciting movie – you notice how the world around you is exactly the same as when you went in, only you feel different. (page 45)

Extras: Excerpt from the book, Marianne Malone’s Website

Title: Saffy’s Angel
Author: Hilary McKay
Published: 2002
My edition: Margaret K. McElderry Hardcover 2002
Borrowed From: Hoboken Public Library
Pages: 152

Synopsis (from Publisher’s Weekly): McKay’s sparkling novel once again introduces an eccentric, entirely engaging British family whose members readers will immediately embrace. The Casson parents, both artists delightfully distracted Eve paints in her backyard shed and comically distant Bill spends weekdays painting in his London studio named their children from a paint color chart: Caddy (for Cadmium), Indigo and Rose. All but Saffron, “so fierce and alone,” who learns at the start of the story that she is actually the Italian-born daughter of Eve’s twin sister, who died in a car crash when Saffy was three. Eve explains that Grandfather had been visiting Saffy and Saffy’s mother in Siena at the time of the accident, and delivered the girl to the Cassons, who adopted her. Now elderly and catatonic after two heart attacks, beloved Grandfather sits in silence when he visits the family, as the children hover around him, endearingly sharing news of their lives. When Grandfather dies, “They felt as if they had lost a battle they might have won if only they had tried a bit harder.”The man leaves something to each of the children: Caddy receives his crumbling cottage on a cliff in Wales; Indigo his aged Bentley (which Bill dismisses as an “absolute wreck”); Rose his remaining cash (L144). Attached to the will by a rusty pin is a note scrawled in a shaky hand, “For Saffron. Her angel in the garden. The stone angel.” As McKay shapes an intriguing plot around Saffy’s angel, the Cassons’ capricious capers and understated, droll dialogue will keep readers chuckling. Especially entertaining subplots include: reckless Caddy’s driving lessons with her patient instructor (who fabricates a girlfriend to keep his flirtatious student in check), aspiring polar explorer Indigo’s sessions sitting on his bedroom windowsill, hoping to cure his vertigo, and Rose’s efforts to create works of art using such unlikely materials as “the entire contents of the refrigerator” and the pound coins that constitute her inheritance. An unlikely friendship with Sarah (“the wheelchair girl”), a neighbor, brings out another side of Saffy as the two attempt to find her angel in Siena, and Saffy makes all kinds of discoveries, including her love for the Cassons. The author blends a generous heaping of humor and joy with a dose of pain in a memorable portrait of a vastly human family.The only disappointment for readers may be that McKay’s affecting conclusion arrives too soon. They’ll close this book hoping for the Casson clan’s swift return.

I read this because: I first heard of Hilary McKay while reading her interview in Funny Business. The interview included an excerpt from Saffy’s Angel, and it was so good I had to get the book right away so I could read it myself.

My thoughts: I adore children’s books with quirky families. I think they help kids realize that no family is really “normal” and that being unique is not only okay, but more fun. And the Casson family is tons of fun. Even though this book features Saffy, you get to know the three other children and their parent’s through the subplots. As an adult, I appreciated the excellent writing and style, and loved the story. This book would be a great gift to give young readers.

Other books I’ve read by Hilary McKay: None, Saffy’s Angel is the first.

Book club worthy? Not so much, just a light children’s book to read and enjoy.

Follow up required: I love the Casson family, and am reading the second book about them, Indigo’s Star.

You might like this book if you liked: The Penderwicks

Links to purchase: IndieBound, Barnes and Noble, Amazon, BookDepository.com

My favorite lines & passages:

“Why have you got all this stuff?”
“Everyone’s got stuff,” said Sarah.
“Two computers!”
“I only use one of them.”
“Two guitars, and a keyboard!”
“Well, you can’t play drums all the time!”
“TV, music center – what’s that thing for?”
“Lighting system!”
“Why’ve you got kites hanging all over the ceiling?”
“I just have. I like them.”
“Ten thousand teddy bears!”
“I used to collect them.”
“Is that a refrigerator?”
“Only a little one!”
“Why do you need two beds?”
“I get bored easily.”
“And a hammock!”
“I use that for shoving things in!”
“Have you read all those books? What do you look at with that telescope? I’ve never seen so many CDs!”
“Okay! Shut up now, Saffron!”
(page 54)

Extras: Hilary McKay’s Website

MBS & the Prisoner’s Dilemma

The Mysterious Benedict Society and the Prisoner’s Dilemma by Trenton Lee Stewart is the third book about a group of four extraordinarily gifted and adventurous children who call themselves the Mysterious Benedict Society.

Since this is the third book in the series, I won’t say much here about the plot. I’ve enjoyed all three books, and while the first will always be my favorite, I think Prisoner’s Dilemma is the second best. I enjoyed that they were back home at Mr. Benedict’s mansion for most of this one, and the action built up nicely.

The MBS books in general are fabulous – they have it all: great characters, illustrations that are a bit Gorey-esque, a formidable group of bad guys, logic puzzles, brain teasers, and pie.

This series is outstanding, and is a perfect gift for kids (boys or girls) from about 5th grade through 9th. It’s also a series that adults who enjoy YA & kid’s novels will love too; my mom and many of my friends have read and loved them.

For anyone wanting to give this series a try, I recommend starting with the first book, The Mysterious Benedict Society, which is available in paperback from The Book Depository for only $3.49.

(This post was brought over from emilyw.vox.com. Click here for the original post and comments.)

When-you-reach-me

I was *really* trying to be good and wait for this book to become available at the library. But then I read about 18 amazing reviews and, when I saw it again at Strand, it was just sitting there waiting for me to buy it and read it. So I did. And my instincts were right – it’s the sort of book I wanted to own anyway, even if I had read a library copy.

To say too much about this little amazing book would be to give away many of the surprises that are so delightful to discover as you’re reading it.

But, if you’re interested, here are a few little facts about it:
-The main character, Miranda, loves the book A Wrinkle in Time. She has read it many times and carries around her well-worn paperback copy everywhere.
-There are plenty of sandwiches in this book.
-The show “The $20,000 Pyramid” is in this book.

One of the things I like best about When You Reach Me is that none of the characters are so quirky that they become unreal and unbelievable. I do like my fair share of quirky characters in literature, but it’s refreshing to read about a group of kids who are all lovable characters and also seem incredibly real – very familiar and reminiscent of people I’ve known.

Here is my absolute favorite passage from the book:

Mom closes her eyes, and I know that she is lifting a corner of her veil. She nods, and we begin.

Mom says each of us has a veil between ourselves and the rest of the world, like a bride wears on her wedding day, except this kind of veil is invisible. We walk around happily with these invisible veils hanging down over our faces. The world is kind of blurry, and we like it that way.

But sometimes our veils are pushed away for a few moments, like there’s a wind blowing it from our faces. And when the veil lifts, we can see the world as it really is, just for those few seconds before it settles down again. We see all the beauty, and cruelty, and sadness, and love. But mostly we are happy not to. Some people learn to lift the veil themselves. Then they don’t have to depend on the wind anymore.”

And here is one of the funniest quotes:

This should be good, I thought. Julia is going to explain the nature of time.”

Anyway – It all comes down to the fact that this book is fabulous. I want to buy a copy for everyone I know. I’m rooting for it to win the Newbery next year.

(This post was brought over from emilyw.vox.com. Click here for the original post and comments.)

Show us a fictional character that you have been a fan of since your childhood.
Submitted by Jack Yan.

I will show you five. :)

Betsy Ray (of the Betsy-Tacy books by Maud Hart Lovelace)

Betsyray

Ramona Quimby (of the Ramona books by Beverly Cleary)

RamonaQuimby

Alice McKinley (from the Alice books by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor)

AliceMcKinley

Anastasia  Krupnick (from the Anastasia series by Lois Lowry)

AnastasiaKrupnick

Anne Shirley (from the Anne of Green Gables series by L. M. Montgomery)

Anneshirley

Great female heroines are a must in any young girl’s reading life. These five are characters who have felt like friends my entire life, and were created with such skill they feel like real people.

(This post was brought over from emilyw.vox.com. Click here for the original post and comments.)

The Lion and the Mouse

By now most everyone has heard about the controversial New Yorker cover featuring the Obamas. But did you know that same issue has a wonderful article inside about the rise of children’s literature and children’s libraries in the US? The article centers around Anne Carroll Moore, E. B. White, Katharine White, Ursula Nordstrom, and the publication of Stuart Little.

It’s a fabulous article, and you can read it for free online here.

Ursula Nordstrom, on what qualified her to edit children’s literature:
“Well, I am a former child, and I haven’t forgotten a thing.”

(This post was brought over from emilyw.vox.com. Click here for the original post and comments.)

I’m a kid’s lit enthusiast, but an amateur one. That’s why my post about the 2008 ALA awards is over a month late. I wanted to give myself time to read a few more of the winners and honors before I posted. I read most of the books after they were announced, and I still have not read some of them. I’m in awe of the many kid’s lit superstars, who not only read most of the books before the winners are announced, but predicted many of the winners as well. The ALA awards are different from other book awards in that there’s no short list or list of nominations announced, so it’s a complete surprise the Monday morning when it’s announced.

2008 Newbery Medal Winner:
Good Masters! Sweet Ladies! Notes from a Medieval Village by Laura Amy Schlitz

2008 Newbery Honor Books:
Elijah of Buxton by Christopher Paul Curtis
The Wednesday Wars by Gary D. Schmidt
Feathers by Jacqueline Woodson

The 2008 Newbery and Me:
I read Good Masters! Sweet Ladies! right after it won (I’m a master of my library’s reserve system). I had no idea what to expect, but I loved it. It’s a collection of monologues from the point of view of different children in a Medieval Village. I imagine this will be a great book for teachers to use in their classroom, but it’s very enjoyable to just sit down and read on your own as well. I read several of the poems out loud to myself because they were so charming and had such a nice rhythm. I learned a lot about Medieval times while reading the book too, it’s not just for kids.

I read The Wednesday Wars after that, and fell head over heels for it. It completely transported back to the time when I was young and could absolutely not move until I finished a good book. Before there were so many little things to do or check on that required putting a bookmark in and pausing the story for a while. Holling Hoodhood is now one of my favorite characters in children’s literature. I wrote a little more about the plot of the book in a previous post, so I won’t go on about it here.

I have not read Elijah of Buxton or Feathers yet, but I have them on reserve from the library. I’ve read Christopher Paul Curtis’s other Newbery winner, Bud, Not Buddy, which is delightful. I have high hopes that Elijah will be as endearing as Bud is.

2008 Caldecott Winner:
The Invention of Hugo Cabret written and illustrated by Brian Selznick

2008 Caldecott Honor Books:
Henry’s Freedom Box: A True Story from the Underground Railroad by Ellen Levine, illustrated by Kadir Nelson
First the Egg written and illustrated by Laura Vaccaro Seeger
The Wall: Growing Up Behind the Iron Curtain written and illustrated by Peter Sis
Knuffle Bunny Too: A Case of Mistaken Identity written and illustrated by Mo Willems

The 2008 Caldecott and Me:
I read The Invention of Hugo Cabret shortly after it was released last year. I became a big fan and followed all the speculation about whether or not it could be a contender for either award. Because of its incredibly unique format, many thought it would not fit into either major award category. I loved the way the pictures intertwined with the novel and how turning the pages was like a camera zooming in on what we’re supposed to look at. Hopefully this work will be a bit of a groundbreaker and will encourage others to try new things with pictures and illustrations too. We live in a very visual world, and illustrations in books should not be confined to just traditional picture books or graphic novels. I wish more illustrations were used in books for adults. This Caldecott Medal was extremely well deserved.

I read Knuffle Bunny, Too last year as well. Actually, I read it and then Mo Willems read it to me! I love Mo Willems, and boy do kids ever love him too. The illustrations in both Knuffle Bunny books are unusual too, Mo takes photographs of the setting (Brooklyn) and then draws on top of them. You have to look at them for a while before you realize how unique they really are. I read KB1 and KB2 aloud to my brother’s first grade class when I was the mystery reader last year. The kid’s loved it, and after I finished reading the second one they asked me if there was a third one I could read to them. I promised to come back and read the third as soon as Mo writes it.

Everytime I saw The Wall at a bookstore last year I picked it up and looked at it and wanted to buy it. A lot of times with picture books I’ll just stand there in the store and read it to decide if I want to buy it, but The Wall is too detailed and deep for a quick bookstore reading. After it received the honor medal I went to the library and took it out, and sat down and read it one evening. I wrote a bit of a description of it in this post (the same as The Wednesday Wars post). After reading the library’s copy, it went straight on my Amazon wish list to buy soon for my own collection.

I have not read First the Egg or Henry’s Freedom Box yet, but I have my eyes open for them at the library and at bookstores.

Newbery & Caldecott medal and honor books 2008

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Whenever I post about Children’s literature, I’m always hesitant to post it to the 2 reading Vox groups that I’m in, because everyone on there seems to only read adult books. So I’ve created a Vox book group for people who love Children’s literature. There must be at least a handful of us here who enjoy children’s lit, as well as adult lit. Voxers with children who want to post about books their kids love, or ask for/read about book suggestions, are welcome too.

Additional info: There’s no restrictions on what kind of Kid’s Lit you post about – it can be picture books, children’s chapter books, Young Adult novels, or anything in between.

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