Chasing Vermeer

by Blue Balliett, illustrated by Brett Helquist

254 pages, paperback, CMSW

I've heard kids raving about this book for two years, so I had to read it! It's a mystery story with lots of clues - in the text and in pictures. I need to get this copy to a student, so I'll have to look at the pictures and check the website - I think there's a lot I missed!

Spoiler alert!

It took me a while to translate the secret messages using the code, so here they are for anyone too lazy to figure it out themselves (below the code):

Chapter 6

Calder - Name of kid next door is Frog. Vanished last week. I think kidnapped. have to stay inside. Mom afraid. New York stinks. - Tommy

Tommy, so sorry about Frog. Maybe you can solve mystery and be hero. Be careful. - Calder

Chapter 12

Calder - Fred caught me looking for clues on Frog. Got mean. Took my bike. Mom and Fred fighting. - Tommy

Chapter 14

Calder - Fred moved out. We want to come home but no money. - Tommy

There's so much more in this book than just a mystery story! Lots of extras at the end, too. My favorite part was when Petra found Calder in the tree house with the painting. The kids' names are cool, too!

Not sure if / when I'll read the sequel. I also really liked the pentiminoes and how Calder used them.

The Sisters Grimm: the Fairy-Tale Detectives

By Michael Buckley
Carver County Library, 284 pages

Okay. So I checked this book out for the usual three-week stint. Last night, when I was checking all my library accounts online (Carver, Scott, Hennepin) I saw that I already owed 10 cents late fees on this. Crud! So I renewed it for another three weeks and started to read it last night. Um. I just read this book a few months ago . . . Yeah. It was actually pretty good. Apparently not good enough for me to register "Wow! Gotta buy this for school." But maybe I'm just going senile . . . I've probably also blogged about it already, but I'm not going to go back and check. I DO recommend this book - it's delightful.

The Seems: The Glitch in Sleep

by John Hulme and Michael Wexler
275 pages, CMSW

What it reminded me of:
Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy and The Phantom Tollbooth

What I liked:
Some clever plays on words

What I didn't like:
The minutia, the plethora of characters, the jerkiness of the plot

What surprises me:
That it has been lauded so much by so many readers. Peggy Sharp made special note of it, it's had good reviews, and it sounded like a "must read" but I think this book is more for a niche reader of weird SciFi type stuff. Plus, the protagonist is 12. Not many 12 year olds are into the fairly sophisticated thinking this book espouses about the nature of reality.

Israel, My Beloved by Kay Arthur

444 pages, Hennepin County Library

I'm not sure why, but it felt as though it took me an eternity to read this book. We'll meet to discuss it tomorrow night (so I really should be cleaning my house and baking treats!) and it will be interesting to hear other people' s opinions. Basically, Sarah is the main character and she represents Israel. Her beloved husband is God Almighty. The story journeys with Sarah throughout all of Israel's history and into the future (endtimes).

I liked some of the Bible stories brought so vividly to life. I enjoy it when reading a book makes me want to dig into Scripture to see what it REALLY says. Samuel and Levi and their friendship were probably my favorites.

I also liked the way this book made me think about God's chosen people. Why have the Israelites suffered so much over the millenia? It would be interesting to hear a Jewish reader's reaction to the book.

Mostly, though, I found myself reading this as though it were a textbook and I simply had to force myself through the chapters. It was just not that engaging of a book. It didn't help that it took my brain a while to adjust to all the characters, eras, and situations that this one woman was going through.

The View from Mount Joy by Lorna Landvik

Landvik usually mixes humor and tragedy in a very unique manner and this book is no exception. It's interesting that she chose a male protagonist, though. That's different from her other books. Joe Andreson is a typical teenager in the 1970s - and his hormones dominate the first part of the book pretty heavily. My favorite parts were the ones with Darva and Flora and when Joe finally puts Kristi in her place. I love the way Joe was willing to look at situations and people and make loving decisions, as with his aunt Beth. Overall, a very enjoyable story.

Above is from 1/26/2008.

by Lorna Landvik
Hennepin County Library audiobook 10 discs
read by Robertson Dean
genre: realistic fiction

I got the audiobook again because I love Landvik. I listened to at least two discs before I *knew* I had read it before. Notes:

Describing grandma (Carol's, Roger's and Beth's mom) as a woman "pickled in a brine of hurt and bitterness" . . . wow. So evocative of her unhappiness.

I strongly dislike the Kristi-as-evangelist (and total fake) and her relationship with Buck Drake. But I love Joe's story and his relationships. This is not my favorite Landvik book, but I do enjoy her storytelling style. I've also heard her do stand-up comedy. This woman has mad skills!

Oh! I also had to capture this quote (from disc 8, track 12):
"I had heard from enough parents at PTA meetings and along the sidelines at soccer games how their sweet and easygoing daughters had suddenly turned into - as one mother put it - teenzillas. It was as if fourteen was a foreign country with evil powers, changing those who entered into snotty, sullen girls who if they deigned to speak to you at all would just as soon lie as tell the truth."

Another scrap of paper I just found said, "end of chapter 12 / part 1" - Mount Joy is looking at the Northern Lights by the North Shore of Lake Superior. I love seeing where the title of a book comes from! But the Mount Joy references become a part of her fake evangelism, and I like that aspect of the story a lot less. Kristi is an unpleasant character throughout the story, but Joe's relationship to her changes (yet in some ways, stays the same) throughout the book. He grows and changes; she does not.

Eldest by Christopher Paolini

668 pages

Well, I finally read book two in the Inheritance series. I hope #3 comes out soon, so I don't lose the thread of characters and storylines. I did a combo of listening to this on CD (Carver County libraries) and the hardcover book from CMSW. There were some surprises and some very predictable plot "twists," but I don't want to include any spoilers. As with the first book, I found the story engaging. In some ways, I dislike Paolini's style - it still seems somewhat stilted - but am impressed with his creativity. It is easy to believe that he spent his childhood reading fantasy extensively. I look forward to the conclusion of his trilogy and hope for a happy ending! Angela and Solembum are still my favorite characters.

Mrs. Pollifax and the Whirling Dervish by Dorothy Gilman

Another re-read. In this one, Emily Polifax goes to Morocco with seven photographs. Her job is to keep an eye on "agent" Max Janko while he checks the identity of the seven people. Only this Max is not her ally. . . I'm not sure why I like these books so much (or why I continue to re-read spy stories three or four times - not for the suspense factor, obviously). I think I like her mix of naivety & cleverness. She's one of my favorite protagonists. This story is missing the denouement with Carstairs' and Bishops' amazement, though. Still, a delightful read.

Meanwhile, I'm in my second month of reading Israel, My Beloved. I've also started Paolini's Eldest on CD. And of course, reading my Bible and various other printed matters!

London Calling by Edward Bloor

book on CD / Carver County / 7 hours, 30 minutes

Things I loved about this story: Martin's / Johnny's transformation over the course of the story, the immersion in history, the references to cultural and historical phenomena, the resolution at the end.

Things I didn't like: the Catholicism, the non-Scriptural views expressed on the afterlife, the way the Hank / Martin situation resolved.

Narrator Roberston Dean did a nice job of creating the different characters, though the women's voices seemed a stretch. The hard part with listening to a story rather than reading the text is that some of the names of characters and places seem unclear.

All in all, a very enjoyable book. I really like some of Bloor's other work, especially Tangerine. Crusader was intriguing and would be a great discussion book on religious intolerance. I don't think I'll buy this one for CMSW, though. Historical fiction isn't a super popular genre.

Snow Flower and the Secret Fan by Lisa See

I just glanced back over my entries and didn't see this one! Hmmm. . . I read it about a month ago and was very engaged by the story. The Chinese custom of foot-binding fascinates me. It seems so brutal and horrifying, yet it was very important to their culture at one time. We'll discuss it at book club (CMSW) in a few weeks. I hope I remember enough of the details to be able to talk intelligently about it!

The secret writing and messages sent back and forth on the fan really tie the entire story together. I was so glad that the servant girl had taken those items and prevented their destruction. Though I was dismayed by the main character's treatment of her friend Snow Flower, I could understand where her reactions came from.

The Dead Man in Indian Creek by Mary Downing Hahn

I got this off our home bookshelf. I remember reading it a while back and thinking it was a pretty good story. The cover looks pretty dopey (and young), which is too bad since the story is about a couple of seventh grade boys. I might add it to the CMSW collection (second copy) because it fits so well with the mystery unit. It's pretty far-fetched (drug dealer / murderer threatens one boy's mom and her boss / boyfriend, but they all get away okay). I loved the character of the dog, though! Otis saves the day (and is a German shepherd - bonus). Here's a picture of our Pepper at the lake:

Eragon by Christopher Paolini

I re-read this one because it's been at least five years since I first read it and I didn't really remember it very well. Now I'm ready to tackle book two, The Eldest. I hope it doesn't take him too long to finish writing book three. I don't think I want to re-read them again just to keep the flow of the story line. Though it's amazing that a teen author produced such a high quality story, there are times when his youth and inexperience are all too clear.

I like the earnestness of Eragon as a character. Murtagh is intriguing - it will be interesting to see what develops with him in the next book. All in all, a delightful fantasy adventure story. I'm not sure I'll have time for the next one - good thing I picked it up on CD from the library today!

Too Cool!

Here's where I'll stay when I go to NYC and can afford it: the Library Hotel! I saw it on someone else's blog (except they didn't have a functional link) and I had to Google it and read all about it. I've placed the link down with my other reading links on this blog. Sweet!