Eat, Read, and Be Mommy

At the risk of sounding like Han Solo in “The Empire Strikes Back”, last night was NOT my fault. My computer went wonky, and when my hubby (who worked late last night) looked at it this morning, even he said Chrome had been weirdly messed up. It’s back and happy, however, and so it’s on to my review of Clean Getaway, which I finished listening to a few days ago.

Nic Stone’s first middle grade title is one of those books that was already on my radar when I saw it on my school district’s “Best Books” list for the year. Of all the titles on the 5th/6th grade list (because I have a 6th grader that was going to start asking), it was the one immediately available in audio, and so–here we are! And I really liked it, although it went in rather a different direction than I was expecting. Scoob is a thoroughly likable kid, and his inner reactions crack me up; G-ma is more of an all-over-the-map character, but there are reasons for that. I especially liked the way Stone portrays Scoob’s dad, forcing the reader (and Scoob) to acknowledge multiple sides of his character from almost the very beginning. As for where Scoob and G-ma’s road trip goes? That’s a loaded question. Just be prepared for a number of pivotal civil rights sites as WELL as more family history than Scoob ever knew existed–and then sit back and enjoy the ride.*

I will say that Stone–if anything–underdoes the poignancy at times; it’s possible that she’s restraining herself for the sake of middle graders, since her other titles are for older readers. That doesn’t mean, however, that it’s not a thoroughly good book.

I’m actually posting on both days of a 31st/1st month changeover, and I’m feeling pretty proud of myself for it! Of course, it’s partly because I hurried to finish Sea Sirens (A Trot & Cap’n Bill Adventure) last night, since it was the last day of the Goodreads Summer Reading Challenge for our library system and I needed one more fantasy title. (Once I’ve finished a graphic novel, I’d better review quickly or run for my life, by the way–my 11-year-old takes no prisoners in that department.) Still, go me, right?

Apparently Sea Sirens was inspired by L. Frank Baum’s The Sea Fairies and its sequel (which I hadn’t known existed and absolutely have not read). It’s the story of a surfing girl from Huntington Beach, her one-eyed cat, and her grandfather, who has the beginnings of dementia. How she finds the kingdom of the Sea Sirens and becomes involved with the Serpents makes for a fun under-the-sea adventure tale; the dialogue is very straightforward, but I loved the illustrations. It’s not as thought-provoking as a Jamieson or a Telgemeier, but Trot’s grandfather’s unpredictability does bring depth to the story. Fans of adventure and/or graphic novels should definitely take a look at this one.

Last night I finished reading Lois Lowry’s On the Horizon, and–wow.

I mean, wow.

So. To the best of my knowledge, Lois Lowry has never written a verse novel before, although technically this one is billed as “World War II Reflections” and listed as nonfiction, so I guess a verse memoir? Either way, this was incredible. I had no idea Lowry was born in Hawaii a few years before Pearl Harbor and then lived in Japan for two years shortly after the war ended, but her experiences enable her to speak of the wartime tragedies of both nations with a sensitivity and sorrow I found profoundly moving. More of my words aren’t going to do On the Horizon justice, however, so honestly–just read it. It’s SO short yet SO good, it’s just plain worth the time of everyone old enough to appreciate it.

Seriously, though. It’s taken me an embarrassingly long time to review Lu, the fourth (and final?) book in Reynolds’ “Track” series, but I’m pretty sure it was my favorite of them all. (I say pretty sure because I can’t SWEAR I loved it more than Ghost.) Lu’s baby-sister-to-be and his re-focusing of his relationship with his father make for a story with substance and heart, while the tales of his mother’s fruit business cracked me up; I loved every thread of Lu‘s plot.* If you have a middle grader, you should be reading this series.

It’s as simple as that.

*Okay, so I wouldn’t have chosen the ending–it still worked.

I just finished Johan Troianowski’s (that middle “i” is supposed to have two dots, by the way) The Runaway Princess, and YOWSERS. I suppose you could say that it’s rather like Alice in Wonderland, if Alice in Wonderland was a graphic novel and more of an actual children’s story (about a girl who truly ENJOYS adventures) with a happier vibe instead of a (now dated) political satire written by a likely pedophile. Or maybe Peter Pan, or The Nutcracker–or Pippi Longstocking. I guess if you mixed all of those up together you might get The Runaway Princess, with Robin as a completely likable heroine who gathers friends and followers as she goes. It’s occasionally interactive–like certain picture books in the last ten or fifteen years–and definitely episodic. Fans of graphic novels and quirky adventures should definitely give this one a try; I’ll try to remember to comment with my girlies’ opinions once they’ve read it!

First of all, I missed the 23rd because it was the first school night we’ve had since mid-March, and I had other things on my mind. (So much weirdness in 2020!) Secondly, I finished listening to An Elderly Lady Is Up to No Good yesterday, and it can go straight into the library book drop on my way to Costco this morning if I review it now, so…

Eh. That really is how I felt about this one, and I wanted to really enjoy it. Maud’s complete ammorality, however, was a bit of a turnoff. (Is “ammorality” a word? Essentially, by the end of the book I felt she was a likely sociopath.) Being a nasty sort of person doesn’t mean that someone DESERVES to die, and anyway, I’m with Hercule Poirot–I don’t approve of murder. (If you haven’t read Agatha Christie, the idea is that yes, some people DO deserve to die, but murder isn’t good for the murderer. You get to thinking that YOU get to decide whether a person deserves to live or die, and that never ends well.) Perhaps if I preferred harder crime novels to cozies, I might have enjoyed this more, but Maud isn’t particularly sympathetic. (She’s also not a cohesive or believable character for me, but that’s an entirely different issue.) Tursten’s writing–or rather, the translation thereof–is amusing, and I did enjoy a specific bit here and there, but as a whole, the book failed to resonate with me. Its best audience is probably a mystery reader who most enjoys the planning and execution of the crime over fuller insight into its characters; if that’s you, it might be a nice little read.*

*One last thing–the last story is sort of told twice, from differing points of view, and I didn’t appreciate what that did to the pacing when none of the rest of the stories were. Do with that as you will.

Sorry, folks–my parents came into town today AND the Mickey Mouse photomosaic puzzle sucked me in…even if I had to borrow my neighbor’s magnifier. (I’m officially getting old.) More next time!

Time, that is, to review the book that I finished listening to on the 15th. Megan Whalen Turner’s The Thief is a Newbery Honor book that I’ve been not choosing for years now, because it’s not really my thing; this summer’s Goodreads Library challenge, however, is for fantasy, and since The Thief qualifies, here we are.

So. Still not my thing, but the blasted book’s denouement sucked me in so far that I’m contemplating the sequels. This is the story of a thief recruited to help steal a divinely gifted stone that will cement the power of the monarch who possesses it. Plucked out of prison by the king’s advisor, Gen travels with the Magus, his apprentices, and a soldier named Pol across rivers and mountains and into a maze from which he refuses to return without the object of his quest. The dynamics of the group kept me interested through a journey across a medieval-ish (they have guns), Greek-ish world, and the conclusion was so much more satisfying than I’d anticipated. The Thief is well worth your time, but be warned–the level of description and the importance of small details made this a less-than-ideal audio experience. You’ll want the hard copy for this one.

Two days ago, I confess, I opted to finish listening to my audiobook rather than review anything; today was my second girlie’s birthday, and I’ve spent some serious time in the kitchen! I’m taking my tired self off to the shower, therefore, because the closest my new 11-year-old gets to her teenage years, the more exhausted I’m likely to get…

So. I know I’ve missed TWO posts, but I had an “I want to claw my eyes out” day, followed by an “I can’t stop sneezing and my nose is LITERALLY dripping” day, followed by a WHY IS MY ENTIRE HEAD A BOWLING BALL??? day, which is when I started drugging myself. Allergy medicine at night, a decongestant plus other helpful things during the day…also there was nasal spray. And while I certainly wasn’t incapable of writing, I really wasn’t at my best–hence the two missed posts.

Anyway! Today I took my kiddos to a water park up in Davis County and we met cousins (and one of my sisters-in-law); it was modestly sized but fun, and all of them had a blast. I did spend literally hours in the sun, however, and I managed to burn a spot on one of my legs AGAIN (I appear to have problems applying sunscreen evenly).

Sigh.

BUT–I finished listening to Mr. Terupt Falls Again last night, and not only did I very much enjoy it, but I can also pass it along to my eager-beaver almost-11-year-old, who practically salivated over it when she saw it sitting by my keyboard this morning. As far as plot goes, we have more individual glimpses into the lives of our narrators, serving as an excellent reminder that every kid, every student, every PERSON we meet has far more going on in his or her life than we generally pause to think about. We also learn more of Mr. Terupt’s story, ending the novel in a MOST satisfying way. Here are my two thoughts in a nutshell:

1. This is straight-up teacher porn. Every good teacher who has ever stood in front of a classroom dreams of teaching and reaching his/her students in the best possible ways, with lessons and projects that ALWAYS engage the class (AND make a lasting impression!). Rob Buyea taught for years, and I imagine there’s a Jane Eyrequality to his books–Jane Eyre being, in my not-terrifically-humble opinion, the daydream of how Charlotte Bronte would have liked her life to be. (I wrote a paper in college to that effect, if you’re interested; it’s a scintillating read.) Buyea’s school stories are inspiring–but too consistently inspiring to be truly realistic.

2. I don’t care. I love stories about growth and healing and ALL THE FEELS, and with all of the madness surrounding whatever back to school looks like for each of us right now, reading about kids learning and growing and sticking together and figuring out life is a perfect example of one of my mental happy places.

So. I totally recommend it, unless you’re Scrooge-y about that sort of thing. (And honestly, it’s okay if you are. We all have certain things that we’re Scrooge-y about.) Read the first one, read this one, and in a few weeks, I’ll probably tell you to read the third and fourth ones–I just haven’t gotten there yet!