The Seventh Wish

The Seventh Wish

by Kate Messner

Published: Bloomsbury USA Childrens

June 7, 2016

Kate Messner hits a very difficult topic out of the park!  She addresses the difficult, heart-wrenching topic of addiction in a family member of an innocent Charlie, a fifth grade girl...and it is her big sister.  I read the book straight through in a couple hours and had tears in my eyes.  With the magic of wish fish, ice fishing, and Irish dancing, the topic is dealt with an age appropriate way.  Of course!  I would expect nothing less from a Kate Messner book!

Though the stories are all different, many families deal with some form of addiction.  Maybe it is even a friend's family.  Unfortunately, this book will definitely speak to many children in this day and age. I wish it weren't true.  I wish children's lives were not affected by such things.  But, we are burying our heads in the sand if we think they aren't.  Thank you Kate Messner and Bloomsbury USA Childrens for this amazing book which addresses such a difficult topic in such a sensitive way.

Slice #2 - A Different World

My youngest son finished his sophomore year before Memorial Day.  (I had another week in the library).  We went on a quick trip with some friends to Belize.  We met this amazing 4 year old who keeps coming back to mind.  This little guy has grown up in such a different world which is so apparent by his comfort in and around the water.  It was fascinating to watch.

This little guy is the son of our snorkeling guide.  He is totally competant on the boat, helping the whole entire time.  For real help, not a parent-appeasing-his-young-son's-desire-to-be-a-part-of-things help.  He climbs up on the boats hull to untie or tie up the boat.  If it takes him 4 tries to haul himself up there, he does it 4 times.  No whining - no complaining, just grabs the rope and pulls himself up there.  Once we are moving, he hops right up on his high seat and sits there until he announces, "We almost to the reef, we almost to the reef".  His speech and size are the only things that remind you that he is only 4.

Once we are at the snorkel sight, he quietly dons his mask, snorkel, and flippers and jumps right in.  He brings new meaning to the phrase, "swims like a fish".  As he swims, he points at things and shouts under the water for his Dad to look.  He even dives down to point at things.  The water was kind of rough.  If he  needs a moments rest, he just grabs the orange life saver ring that his dad holds by a long rope in case any of us needs a break.  After about an hour, when we are back on the boat, the little guy again runs to the front hull of the boat to untie us from the buoy.  Never once asked, never once told.  

Next, we make a stop at a different section of the reef where the nurse sharks are definitely used to being fed.  The boats come in and throw in baitfish.  All of a sudden, there is a feeding frenzy of fish.  I'm thinking those nurse sharks then feed on the frenzying fish, though I didn't see that happen.  The guide, my hubby, and son all get in the water to snorkel-see this.  I was done.  I stay on the boat and so does the little guy.  He opens the baitfish tank and grabs his little net to scoop a bait fish.  Picking the fish up with his hand from his net, he throws it in to watch another feeding frenzy.  After a few times, a wise bird comes along and hovers over us, wanting to catch the bait in the air.  The little guys eyes the bird, eyes the fish, back and forth, and then whips the bait in the water for a feeding frenzy and giggles.  He beats the bird at his task.  He does it over and over giggling the whole time until we have counted down the last 5 fish.  He scrunches up his nose and asks, "You no like sharks?  Why you no like sharks?".

What a different world!  I had to get this out of me.  Thanks for listening, or ... reading.

The Blue Bath

The Blue Bath

by Mary Waters- Sayer

Published: St. Martin's Press

May 3, 2016

First, I want to thank NetGalley, Mary Waters-Sayer and St. Martin's Press for this beautiful read in exchange for an honest review.  I was drawn to this book by that gorgeous cover.  I got lost in the book by it's artistic prose about the meager starving artist beginning for Daniel and Kat paired with the later mystery and intrigue taking place in the high finance London art world.

My Review:

I think this is a fantastic first book my Mary Waters-Sayer.  There were things that I absolutely loved about it.  For one, the premise of the story flashing back from Kat's unexpected reignited affair with Daniel in London to her 19 year old romantic tryst with him in his small Paris loft/art studio when he was a starving artist.  It was done in such an artfully sensual way.  Secondly, the end was filled with mystery bordering on a psychological thriller, which I thoroughly enjoyed.  Daniel was actually pretty mysterious throughout the book.  We never really got to know his character even though he was central to the story.  That added intrigue for me.  

On the down side, it was hard to believe Kat's professed "true love" for him because I felt like she really knew nothing about Daniel.  There was no friendship or multiple levels of relationship in this magnetic attraction - just love in Kat's words, or lust in mine?  It was sometimes a typical starving artist / innocent college girl story.  What was not typical was Mary's beautifully descriptive phrases which made me stop and think several times.  "A fine mist of rain was falling around her, obscuring the red brick buildings, blurring their hard edges so that they dissolved into pavement, melting into their own reflections on the slick streets."  Yes, there are a lot of rainy days in London, and that was quite a poetic description of them.  Other times it was too much, like a full paragraph description, though beautifully worded, for a small aside of a hung over roommate removing her necklace. 

I'm very glad I read The Blue Bath.  It is not my typical read, but it stuck with me, which is a true measure of a good book for me.   

They Summary by Goodreads:

Kat Lind, an American expatriate living in London with her entrepreneur husband and their young son, attends an opening at a prestigious Mayfair art gallery and is astonished to find her own face on the walls. The portraits are evidence of a long-ago love affair with the artist, Daniel Blake. Unbeknownst to her, he has continued to paint her ever since. Kat is seduced by her reflection on canvas and when Daniel appears in London, she finds herself drawn back into the sins and solace of a past that suddenly no longer seems so far away.

When the portraits catch the attention of the public, threatening to reveal not only her identity, but all that lies beyond the edges of the canvases, Kat comes face to face with the true price of their beauty and with all that she now could lose.

Moving between the glamour of the London art world and the sensuous days of a love affair in a dusty Paris studio, life and art bleed together as Daniel and Kat's lives spin out of control, leading to a conclusion that is anything but inevitable.

Slice #1

This is a new endeavor for me.  I'm so glad to have found this website, and I'm grateful for you all who take the time to prepare it.

I just wrote a blog post about the book Raymie Nightingale by Kate DiCamillo.  As I sit here in Texas, I was amazed at the connections I could very quickly come up with having grown up in Florida in the 1970s, the setting of Raymie Nightingale.  The book also reminded me of my old go-to books I enjoyed as a child; Betsy and Tacy, The Moffats, and Little House on the Prairie and how I really enjoy when I find a new book that takes me back there.  Some recent discoveries that fit that bill are The Penderwicks, A Snicker of Magic and The Poet's Dog.

Raymie Nightingale

Ramie Nightingale

by Kate DiCamillo

Published by Candlewick Press

Published date April 12, 2016

3 Friends
   
     3 Lives

          3 Dreams

               which all include the Little Miss Central Florida Tire competition,
               but for very different reasons.

I couldn't help but fall in love with these three girls; each having to be brave, each chasing a dream, and each becoming vulnerable as their unlikely friendships evolve.

Oh, the many connections...I had to laugh out loud at Louisiana's Granny's station wagon with the brown wooden sides falling off - we had one; central Florida in the 70s - grew up on the West Coast in Central Florida in the 70's; trying to get in the paper - my best friends and I liked to get in the paper; The Flying Elefantes - childhood friend in family circus plus lived in Ringling Brothers winter quarters town; the nursing home - candy-striper in a hospital; jar of candy corn - favorite childhood candy; dad left - so did mine; baton - orange one with green tips and glow-in-the-dark stripes on the end; green shag rug - orange shag carpet; misfit dog - misfit stuffed animals; ...just to name a few.

A big plus for me was the readability with its short chapters.  I admire Kate's ability to make magic with words.  I wish I had made notes of them!

Here are some of my favorites that I remember:
     "flex her toes and isolate her objectives"
     "Little Miss Central Florida Tire competition"
     "Very Friendly Animal Shelter"
     "swampy lungs"
     "feathers and regrets"
     "Three Rancheros"

I highly recommend this book for the elementary library and for those realistic fiction lovers.  I've seen talk about Raymie in historical fiction.  I get it - but, it isn't really about an event that happened in the 70s, so I think it reads more like realistic fiction.  Just my opinion.

And a big thank you to @Loveofxena and @MrSchuReads for my copy that I won!


Summary from Goodreads:

Raymie Clarke has come to realize that everything, absolutely everything, depends on her. And she has a plan. If Raymie can win the Little Miss Central Florida Tire competition, then her father, who left town two days ago with a dental hygienist, will see Raymie's picture in the paper and (maybe) come home. To win, not only does Raymie have to do good deeds and learn how to twirl a baton; she also has to contend with the wispy, frequently fainting Louisiana Elefante, who has a show-business background, and the fiery, stubborn Beverly Tapinski, who’s determined to sabotage the contest. But as the competition approaches, loneliness, loss, and unanswerable questions draw the three girls into an unlikely friendship — and challenge each of them to come to the rescue in unexpected ways.

The Key to Extraordinary

The Key to Extraordinary

by Natalie Lloyd

Published by: Scholastic Press

Published date: February 23, 2016

Summary from Goodreads:

Everyone in Emma's family is special. Her ancestors include Revolutionary War spies, brilliant scientists, and famous musicians--every single one of which learned of their extraordinary destiny through a dream.

For Emma, her own dream can't come soon enough. Right before her mother died, Emma promised that she'd do whatever it took to fulfill her destiny, and she doesn't want to let her mother down.

But when Emma's dream finally arrives, it points her toward an impossible task--finding a legendary treasure hidden in her town's cemetery. If Emma fails, she'll let down generations of extraordinary ancestors . . . including her own mother. But how can she find something that's been missing for centuries and might be protected by a mysterious singing ghost?

With her signature blend of lyrical writing, quirky humor, and unforgettable characters, Natalie Lloyd's The Key to Extraordinarycements her status as one of the most original voices writing for children today.

My Review:

I just love Natalie Lloyd's books. Her magical settings are so believable, I have a hard time thinking of the stories as fantasy. A Key To Extraordinary is just as sweet of a read as A Snicker of Magic, which is a book that I am always recommending to my students. I can't wait to get this new book in the hands of my kiddos.  (And - I got to meet Natalie at the Texas Library Association meeting in Houston this year!  She is just as sweet as her books.)

The phrases and names of places that Natalie Lloyd uses are extraordinary themselves (I found this to be a nice connection to the magical words from A Snicker of Magic).  I adore her world building.  First of all, Emma lives in Blackbird Hollow located by Blackbird Hollow Cemetery, where she gives tours, feels the Touch from the Great Beyond, sees  Healing Blues and hears from Telling Vines.  Her family runs the Boneyard Cafe where they cook up the best Boneyard Brew (hot chocolate - yum!)  Emma is a girl with an adventurous spirit, but she loses her mom and has to deal with the Big Empty.  (These feelings are so spot on that I wondered if Natalie Lloyd had lost a parent.  After reading her acknowledgments, I don't think so.)  For middle grade novels, I am a fan of great, happy endings despite the hardships that a character has to go through during the story.  All I will say is - Wildflower, Stars, Treasure, and Club Pancake!  I'm not about to give away the ending.

Thank you to Natalie Lloyd and Scholastic for another beautiful story...and for signing my copy!

The Poet's Dog

Written by: Patricia MacLachlan

Published by: HarperCollinsChildren

Expected Publish Date: 9/13/2016

The Poet's Dog is a beautiful story about friendship, love, and survival.  Teddy is a dog who knows words, but only poets and children can hear his words.  Teddy saves two children, Nickel and Flora, from being lost in a snowstorm.  As they work together to scrounge food and create heat to survive, Teddy keeps thinking about his lost person, Sylvan, the poet. Through flashbacks, we learn about the closeness of their relationship.  

I thoroughly enjoyed this heartwarming story.  Children of all backgrounds will be able to connect with the characters in some way.  I like the use of italics for flashbacks which will help younger readers to better understand and enjoy this story.  Beyond the story, I see it as perfectly choreographed with the right amount of words per page and white-space which is important for this age group.  

Patricia MacLachlan is a Newbery Medal winner for her book Sarah, Plain and Tall.  She is also the author of many other novels for young readers along with many picture books.

Thank you for the advanced reader's edition from HarperCollinsPublishers, Patricia MacLachlan and #TxLA16 in exchange for an honest review.  It is truly a gem of a book!

Transitions...

I took a break from this blog while teaching full time in a school library.  My time on the computer was used for my library website.  I am transitioning this blog back to blogging about books, all things bookish that I find in my travels, and writing.