Beautiful Creatures

Beautiful Creatures by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl. Little Brown. Publication Date December 2009. Reviewed from ARC supplied by publisher. Official Book Website.

The Plot:

Ethan Wate wants out of his small, sleepy, South Carolina town, where nothing ever changes and only "the stupid and the stuck" stay. It's a town where any "new girl" is the subject of much attention. All the more so when the new girl is Lena Duchannes, niece of Old Man Ravenwood, the town recluse who lives in a run-down plantation house. She is pale in a town where the girls are tan; wears black; and has numbers scrawled on her hands. Weird; but Ethan cannot stop thinking about her, even dreaming about her.

Odd thing is; the dreams started even before she moved to town.

The Good:

There are family trees. More than one. There are certain types of readers who, just knowing this, will put this on their TBR list.

The tricky thing about reviewing a book like this -- a book that is about secrets -- is figuring out just how much, if any, of the secrets to reveal. On the one hand, readers like to discover things for themselves as they read the book; on the other hand, one or two of those secrets may need to be told up front, because they could be the reason a reader wants to read the book. For example, in my review of Carrie Ryan's The Forest of Hands and Teeth, I said "zombies". So here I will say "supernatural" and "witches" (er, "casters" is the preferred term in Beautiful Creatures.)

Now that I've given that away, this is a lushly written Southern Gothic tale, with family and town secrets, and teens discovering that the world is not what they thought it was. It's not just finding out that the supernatural is real; it's learning that trusted adults have kept secrets. And then trying to figure out what to do about it; and trying to take charge of your future when everyone is telling you that future is set in stone.

I won't say this is the next Twilight (because I'm scared of Carlie and she hates reviews that do that.). I will say that this has several elements that will appeal to those who liked Twilight: an against-the-odds, everything-is-working-at-keeping-them-apart romantic pairing; a unique author(s) created supernatural mythology built around "casters"; a setting (Gatlin, SC) that is as much a character as any of the people in the book; it's long, with a lot of details and description for readers to sink their teeth into; and plenty of teasers for a next book. (Yes, this book isn't technically published yet and I already want to read the next one.)

What else to say about the book without giving anything important away?

I kept on wanting to call this Dangerous Creatures.

I read it on vacation in North Carolina, so the southern Carolina town atmosphere made a huge impact on me.

Beautiful Creatures stuck with me; after reading it, I'm still thinking about Lena, Ethan, their family and friends, the casters, and other details.

It's two authors! The narrator is Ethan, so it's not like they did the old "you pick one person to write, I pick the other." Not that I know either author's writing styles, but the writing was seamless. You never thought, hm, I distinctly hear one voice here, another style there. I imagine they did what Sophie and I did in writing our book; pass chapters back and forth with so much revisions that it became truly a joint project.

Links:
Caster Girls Blog. Best read after you read the book.
Joint Author Site.
My Twitter Review.
Teaser

© Elizabeth Burns of A Chair, A Fireplace & A Tea Cozy

This Blog's For You

School Library Journal continues it's coverage of book blogs with This Blog's For You: Ten of the best blogs for folks who take kids' lit seriously (but not too seriously) by Elizabeth Bird (aka Fuse #8 Production, a SLJ blog). As Bird's article notes, SLJ covered blogs as early as August 2005, with a cover story, Blogomania! Every day 12,000 new blogs are created. Here's how you can get in on the action. Two years later, in February 2007, I wrote Curl Up With a Cup of Tea and a Good Blog for SLJ.

So now it's 2009; how do things look in the blog world?

Bird's article is fabulous; it conveys much of what I think and believe about book blogging, especially blogging about children's and young adult literature.

Disclaimer: not only do I appear in photos for the article, I also am quoted. But -- and this is important -- I am not one of the "ten of the best blogs" listed. It's important because it shows that those ten are independently judged; are best; and that Bird isn't defining "best" as "my friends, the people I know and talk with." Bird scores additional points by not saying "the ten best blogs"; saying ten of the best infers that there are more best blogs, this is ten of them.

Back to the article. Bird addresses why people blog (and read blogs) and the role of book bloggers in the universe of authors, bloggers, publishers, librarians, etc. Bird wonders if this is all just an internal "you're so pretty" "no you're so pretty" group, i.e., an insular group. And explains why the answer to that is "no." There's talk of the usual to us bloggers -- transparency. Ethics. Just why one is blogging. But those who read SLJ may not be aware that in the "wild west" no rules of blogging, we ask those questions, and apply the answers to what we do.

Anyway, enough about me and why I like it. Go, read it, think about it, and post, tweet, and comment away. People are already adding other "must read" blogs in the comment section.

Links:

Last week, I gave a behind the scenes look at the photoshoot.

In More Meta, Roger Sutton at the Horn Book Blog considers what Bird wrote about blogs and collection development.

Jen Robinson's Book Page points out how articles like Betsy's reach a broader, non-blogging audience.



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© Elizabeth Burns of A Chair, A Fireplace & A Tea Cozy

Mayflower 1620 A New Look At A Pilgrim Voyage

Mayflower 1620 A New Look At A Pilgrim Voyage by Plimoth Plantation with Peter Arenstram, John Kemp and Catherine O'Neill Grace; Photographs by Sisse Brimberg and Cotton Coulson. National Geographic. Library copy.

The Plot: A look at the myths and legends of the Mayflower voyage and founding of Plymouth. Full of gorgeous photos from some of the sailing done by the Mayflower II.

The Good: How do you bring to life a time in the past that existed before photography, let alone color photography? By well done recreations, including the ones done by the Plimoth Plantation organization that are based not on wish fulfilment, myths, or legends, but on research. And the actual journey wasn't redone in the new ship; but the Mayflower II has traveled up and down the East Coast of the US.

This book is full of interesting details, and always sticks to the facts. It explains, simply, that "history is complicated. People sailed on the Mayflower for different reasons." A list of provisions is included, but it's clearly noted that the list is from a 1629 ship making a similar voyage with a similar number of passengers and mariners. It sorts myths from reality; and yes, it clearly states that the corn was stolen. The chronology starts 4,000 to 1,000 years before 1620.

Thanksgiving is one of my favorite holidays, as I've mentioned before in My 2006 Thanksgiving Post. I like the turkey; I like the history. But even with a favorite, one has to acknowledge its faults and consider the whole picture; the bigger picture; and what it means to people besides me.

So, must-reads for keeping attitudes and teaching about Thanksgiving real are American Indian Perspectives on Thanksgiving (10/2009) from Debbie Reese (aka the blog American Indians in Children's Literature); American Indian Perspectives on Thanksgiving, PDF, from National Museum of the American Indian (link from Reese); for use year round, Teacher and Librarian Resources for Children's and YA Books with Native Themes from Cynthia Leitich Smith; and Native Youth Literature widget from JacketFlap; thanks to Cynthia Leitich Smith for reminding me of this widget, which is on my sidebar for the month of November.

Nonfiction Monday is at Abby (the) Librarian.

Shiver

Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater. Scholastic Press. 2009. ARC copy either from BEA or ALA.

The Plot: It's a story as old as time. Girl meets Wolf. Wolf meets Girl. Wolf turns into Boy. Girl and Boy fall in love. But Boy has to turn back into Wolf, eventually.

The Good: Shiver is a beautifully written, lyrical love story. As early as page 8, I was marking passages: "...the afternoon sunlight bleached all the books on the shelves to pale, gilded versions of themselves and warmed the paper and ink inside the covers so that the smell of unread words hung in the air."

This is a romance; and yes, it's supernatural, also -- werewolves -- but it's not about drawing out the reveal. The jacket copy tells us that Sam is also a werewolf; and as early as page twelve, Grace lets us know that she knows: "I didn't realize that the wolves in the wood were all werewolves until Jack Culpeper was killed."

The supernatural element is given full attention by Stiefvater. She has created an intriguing explanation, where wolves don't shift from the phases of the moon but rather from the temperature. The body reacts to cold, becoming a wolf; once it gets warmer, it becomes human. Grace and Sam's romance is a race against the autumn days growing cooler. To make it that much worse, eventually a werewolf stops turning back to human; and, wouldn't you know it, even though most werewolves have decades of change, Sam -- bitten as a child, now eighteen -- is facing his final change into wolf. Adding to the drama? Each chapter heading (which is told either by Sam or Grace) contains the temperature. We can worry along with Sam and Grace as it gets colder and colder.

The romance is hot -- despite the couple's battle against the cold. They are star-crossed, with the intensity and angst ramped up by Sam's wolfish state. From the moment Sam meets Grace in his human form, they are together, except when something like school interferes. He stays at her house; they share meals, hopes, dreams, a bed, and because this is an intense first love great love romance, all this just deepens how attracted to each other they are, how "cannot be apart" they are. They cynical part of me cannot help but wonder, can this intensity be maintained beyond the few short months that Shiver covers?

The werewolf backstory and hierarchy is disturbing. We see people turned into werewolves, sometimes willingly, other times, not so much. Sam is a werewolf because he was attacked and bitten as a child; Grace herself was attacked by werewolves as a child, but wasn't turned into one. That attack is when the two first really meet, but Sam is in his wolf form. Oddly, despite the traumatic attack, described at the beginning of the book in chilling detail, Grace doesn't grow up fearing wolves. She grows up almost obsessed with them.

The family dynamics have been pointed out in other reviews; Grace's parents are so involved with their jobs and with each other that they leave Grace on her own most of the time. Sam is basically living with Grace, in her room, sleeping in her bed, but her parents are the type who don't come into her room to check on her when they return home late so they never notice.

Oddly, Grace's biological family is portrayed as cold and self-involved, while Sam's adoptive wolf family is portrayed as loving and warm. Yet Sam's family is created by a series of violent acts, because a werewolf bite is needed to turn one into a werewolf. So that violence -- that almost tearing away or destroying of the original, human family -- is excused because the adoptive family cares for each other. Say what you will of Grace's parents, at least they haven't killed anyone.

There are no cliffhangers at the end of Shiver; we get an ending. Yet, we also have the promise of more as Stiefvater's site reveals that there will be a sequel, called Linger. I am hoping some of my questions (and speculation) will be addressed in that book.

Shiver would make an excellent book discussion book; I have tons of questions. The following may be viewed as spoilers, I guess, so stop reading now if that bothers you.

Was Grace deliberately attacked as a child?

How much about the wolves do her parents really know? And does that explain some of how she is (and isn't) treated by them?

How much of Grace's own personality was shaped by the werewolf attack?

Is Grace replicating her parents relationship in her own intense bonding with Sam?

And, finally, more an observation than a question --- raise your hand if you don't trust Beck.


Must watch, via Booklist: Interview with Maggie Stiefvater; the booktrailers for Shiver.



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© Elizabeth Burns of A Chair, A Fireplace & A Tea Cozy

Please Come To Boston

Come January, I'll be attending American Library Association Midwinter Meeting 2010 in Boston, aka Midwinter. I'm on the Schneider Family Book Award Committee; the books will be announced, with the other awards, on Monday January 18. As we get closer, I'll post more about my schedule at Midwinter.

In the meanwhile -- Tweet up, for all you kidlit and YA bloggers who will either be at Midwinter or are in the Boston area! Mitali Perkins and Deborah Sloan have made all the arrangements, as explained at Mitali Perkins' blog, Mitali's Fire Escape: ALA Midwinter Kid/YA Lit Tweetup. I expect it to be very, very fun!

As Mitali's blog explains, the Tweet up is January 16, 2010 from 4-6 in the Birch Bar at Boston's Westin Waterfront Hotel. Mitali explains it all, so please click through the links above.
Space is limited, so sign up now (and check out the other people who will be there!)





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© Elizabeth Burns of A Chair, A Fireplace & A Tea Cozy

November: American Indian Heritage Month

(image from 2009 Indian Health Service Heritage Site)

November is American Indian Heritage Month.

Various links of interest, in no particular order:

The Creation of National American Indian and Alaska Native Heritage Month (via Indian Health Services)

The National Museum of the American Indian, especially its Education page.

American Indians in Children's Literature by Debbie Reese, which should be read all year round, but November is a good time to remind you to add it to your must-read lists.

Teacher and Librarian Resources for Children's and YA Books with Native Themes (again, an all year not just November resource) from Cynthia Leitich Smith

Native Youth Literature widget from JacketFlap; thanks to Cynthia Leitich Smith for reminding me of this widget, which is on my sidebar for the month of November.

Native American Heritage Month resources from the Library of Congress.

Readergirlz is also celebrating; they are spotlighting Sweetgrass Basket by Marlene Carvell.



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© Elizabeth Burns of A Chair, A Fireplace & A Tea Cozy

Get It Now: November 2009

The following books were reviewed from ARCs and are being published in November:

Letters to Anyone and Everyone by Toon Tellegen


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© Elizabeth Burns of A Chair, A Fireplace & A Tea Cozy

JOMB; Thank You, Mark & Andrea!

JOMB - or Just One More Book! is the premiere children's book podcast. American Library Association/Association for Library Services for Children named it one of its Best Web Sites for Kids. Others have dipped their toe into podcasting; but not plunged in.

Mark Blevis and Andrea Ross plunged in and then some. From JOMB: "a thrice-weekly podcast which promotes and celebrates literacy and great children’s books. Each weekday morning, we take a few minutes out of our morning coffee ritual to discuss one of our many favourite children’s books. We also feature weekly interviews with authors, illustrators and experts and enthusiasts in the areas of children’s literature and literacy as well as listener-submitted audio reviews."

Mark and Andrea are advocates of reading; of literacy; of the pleasures of children's books. Their podcast was a labor of love, dating back to 2006. They supported the kidlitosphere conferences, where I had the privilege (and the flat-out fun) of meeting Mark and Andrea in person.

In September, 2009, Mark and Andrea shared the following disappointing news with the kidlit world: having been "pushed beyond my limits by members of the book industry’s dark side," JOMB was going silent after a handful of commitments were wrapped up.

Disappointing news.

The sad news followed in October, with Mark and Andrea's typical strength and conviction: Making Andrea a Breast Cancer Survivor. It took a second to understand what they were telling us. Mark and Andrea -- positive as usual. And the blogosphere will be there for them.

Want to share JOMB? Because there is a heck of a lot of content there. Add a widget to your sidebar! With JOMB's permission and support, The Reading Tub created a widget. You can see it at The Reading Tub's blog; as well as my sidebar.

Edited to add: in the comments, Andrea shares with us the latest updates. Yesterday, she found that she needs a second surgery. Please continue to send good vibes, prayers and warm wishes; here and at the Reading Tub or at JOMB.


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© Elizabeth Burns of A Chair, A Fireplace & A Tea Cozy

Happy Birthday, RIF!

RIF (Reading is Fundamental) is 43 today.

What is RIF? From the website, "RIF is the oldest and largest children's and family nonprofit literacy organization in the United States. RIF’s highest priority is reaching underserved children from birth to age 8. Through community volunteers in every state and U.S. territory, RIF provides 4.5 million children with 16 million new, free books and literacy resources each year."

So how to celebrate the big 43?

Have a month long party! Over at the Rasco From RIF blog (Carol Rasco is the CEO of RIF), they've been blogging up a storm.

On Mondays: Monday Memory, columns by people who have been with RIF since it started. How many times do you get to read a blog post by Lynda Johnson Robb?

On Fridays: Fallback Fridays, reminiscing about RIF programs throughout the country.

Have memories of RIF, as a kid or volunteer? Head over to Carol's blog and share, and you get a chance to win a signed book.




Photo from RIF website.

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© Elizabeth Burns of A Chair, A Fireplace & A Tea Cozy

The Story Behind the Photoshoot

Or books, blogs, and what I wore.

If you've seen the cover of the November 2009 School Library Journal, or read it, you'll have had the pleasure of seeing me not once but twice!

The first photo is the cover; the second is with the article, This Blog's For You.

Betsy Bird (aka Fuse #8 Production) emailed me asking me if I wanted to come up to NYC for the cover. As luck would have it, I had no outreach, visits, or meetings scheduled for that day; and the people at MPOW allowed me the time to do this (thanks!!).

The bloggers in the photo: Monica Edinger aka Educating Alice, Cheryl Klein aka Brooklyn Arden, Elizabeth Bird aka Fuse #8, Jennifer Hubert Swan aka Reading Rants.

Then, the big worry. What would I wear? Those of you who know me in real life know my usual uniform outside of work is jeans, Doc Martens or Dansko shoes, and a T shirt and sweater. In work, it's very J.Crew lite, with trousers and cardigans. Quickly we decided that we wanted a grown up look, something dressy, something, dare I say it, Mad Men.

In other words... I was looking for an excuse to go shopping. And I had been handed that excuse on a silver platter.

So, for you fashionistas out there, after much trying on of clothes, I went with the Wool Seamed Dress from Ann Taylor: "A flattering sheath dress in wool with stretch for a perfect fit. Jewel neckline. Sleeveless." Color: Dark Heather Gray. In addition to looking good, it was very, very comfortable, which is what I wanted for the train ride to and fro NYC, not to mention finding the photoshoot.

Wanting to add a bit of color, I indulged in the Perfect Luxe Scarf, also from Ann Taylor, color Raspberry Ice, which you can see in the cover. The sweater in the second photo is from J.Crew; last summer, maybe the summer before, so no link or details on that. Shoes are Franco Sarto, The Artist's Collection; they are black, peep toe, with a buckle decoration. I bought them this past summer, so, alas, no link to photo for you. Jewelry: the pearls I got for High School graduation (thanks, Mom!). Hair is by DeJensen, and whenever my hair looks good, it is because of them. I did my own makeup. I also bought all these clothes myself.

The photo shoot was at The Globe, 158 East 23rd Street, New York, NY. It was my type of bar; tons of old-school details, hard wood, tin ceilings, you know the drill.

This is actually my second photo shoot with SLJ. Back when I wrote Curl Up With a Cup of Tea and a Good Blog for SLJ (February 2007), I blogged about the Photo Shoot.

There were a few differences this time around. First, I wasn't involved in the setting up of the lights this time around! SLJ had a few people there, who were assisting with that type of thing so I got to chat with the other cover ladies. Second, this time around I had the benefit of years of viewing America's Next Top Model (thanks to Carlie and Melissa for introducing me!) Thus I could smile with my eyes and watch my elbows.




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© Elizabeth Burns of A Chair, A Fireplace & A Tea Cozy

Welcome, SLJ Readers!

Welcome, School Library Journal readers!

I was quoted in This Blog's for You: Ten of the best blogs for folks who take kids' lit seriously (but not too seriously) at SLJ, published in their November 2009 issue. So "hiya" to those who have decided to look me up based on that.

I am going to write more later about it -- the article, the ten best blogs, and the photographs. But I wanted to get a quick "howdy" up to those who may be clicking over from SLJ.


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© Elizabeth Burns of A Chair, A Fireplace & A Tea Cozy

Just Like Fandom

The November / December 2009 issue of Horn Book Magazine has an article about fanfiction:

In Defense of Fanfiction by Becca Schaffner

As you may remember, Carlie Webber and I wrote an article about Fanfic called When Harry Met Bella for School Library Journal in August. Schaffner references that article: "On the other hand, more well-intentioned efforts like School Library Journal’s August 1, 2009, article on fanfiction cover the mechanical basics of fanfic writing and culture and try to relate them to something more traditional and tangible — that is, the print world whose value we take as a given." Schaffner's piece is more of a personal essay than the SLJ article. Whatever your level of participation in fandom (not at all, "hey so that's what I was writing in High School," or you're a BNF), it's a great article to read.

On a kinda related point: Schaffner makes the point that fandom is about the community.

And I've had a few real life conversations with people about the similarities between fandom and book bloggers. And I've seen others online who see this also. At YA Fabulous, Renay wrote: A big part of the book community is that it’s still a very new fandom, and the fandom I am a part of is definitely not young anymore, so half the time I see the drama llamas flying through the tubes and I’m like, “Oh! How sweet! ALL GROWN UP AND HAVING ITS FIRST WANK!” Or I’ll watch BNFs throw hissy fits or bribe readers with giveaways because they’re not The Center of Attention and Worshiped By The Masses and I think, “Boy, this reminds me of something! Oh right, wait, I’ve seen this before….10,000 times.” It's part of a footnote at a post at YA Fabulous.

Thoughts? Is it like a fandom? Or is it just like any other community, especially a community with no real rules?





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© Elizabeth Burns of A Chair, A Fireplace & A Tea Cozy

The Haunting of Derek Stone

City of the Dead (The Haunting of Derek Stone, Book 1) by Tony Abbott. Scholastic 2009. Brilliance Audio, 2009. Read by Nick Podehl. Reviewed from audiobook donated for review.

The Plot: Derek Stone, 14, lets you know, up front. He doesn't make stuff up. It's important for you to know that, because what he's about to tell you is hard to believe.

It's about ghosts. And dead people.

It all started when Derek and his family were in a horrible train wreck; his father's and brother's bodies aren't found. Weeks later, a miracle. His brother Ronny shows up at their home in New Orleans, alive! But he's acting odd. Acting, instead, like someone else.

Derek finds out the hard way: ghosts are real. Except instead of haunting people, they take over their bodies. Ronny isn't the only one.

The Good: It was difficult writing the plot for this book because a lot happens and it's very information-heavy, explaining back-story and world-building a place where ghosts are real. This is the first in a paperback series; so far this year, four books in this series have been published. In addition to City of the Dead, they are Bayou Dogs; The Red House; and The Ghost Road. More may come.

It's one of those paperback series that kids eat up like popcorn; frequent new books, short (barely 100 pages), and action-packed. In a way, they remind me of those movie serials they used to have, pre-TV. Lots of action, barely time to breathe, ends on a cliff-hanger.

So, here, we bounce from train crash to recovery to funerals to OMG Ronny's alive to finding out that there are ghosts, and in certain situations they can enter other people's bodies and live in that other body. So, Ronny's body, someone else's spirit. And then we find out that there are a bunch of ghosts of murderers/arsonists/criminals who have also come back and are after Ronny and Derek.

Derek has a lot on his hands - trying to figure out this ghost-business, finding out whether his brother is in Ronny somehow or if its just the ghost, realizing his place in it. There are lots of hints of other mysteries: where is Derek's mother, who is supposedly somewhere in Paris? Why did she leave ten years ago? What happened to Derek when he was four? Why does Derek hear ghosts? Why do the ghosts want Derek?

Abbott does a great job of pacing the action in this series; every now and then the information dumps are a bit much. Derek does research on his own, and discover things on his own, which is good; Derek, like the reader, is only just starting to understand things. But Ronny clearly knows more than he's telling, and it's frustrating that the action stops these two from sitting down and Ronny just spilling the beans on what is going on. But he cannot because BAM more action, running, bad guys! Derek is likable; and I want to find the rest of the books to see what happens next.

For an adult reader, it's a bit frustrating because there are no answers. Or, rather, for each question answered, two new questions pop up. But this is the type of story that isn't told in one book, but in several. It's for the readers who want that action, even want that frustration, and want the next book ASAP. It's for readers who want serial storytelling.

How does this work on audio? Excellent. I grabbed it because I wanted something short; I didn't realize it was the start of a paperback series and when it got to the end, I didn't believe it. Nick Podehl does a brilliant job with the narration, capturing Derek's voice with a slight New Orleans accent. I'm also pleased to see that books like City of the Dead are being turned into audiobooks; it's fun, escapist reading.

Audience: Whether in paperback or audio, this is a great addition to a library where you have fans of Goosebumps and other horror. Derek is fourteen, but the audience is younger than that; and while there is action and creepy gross stuff and violence (the train crash, ghosts, deaths) it's not overly explicit. The publisher's age range is 9 to 12, and I agree with that. Your middle grade and middle school readers will enjoy it. Plus, the short chapters and constant action is a plus for reluctant readers.



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© Elizabeth Burns of A Chair, A Fireplace & A Tea Cozy

Another FTC / Blogger Post; But a Must-Read

I know; there has been a flurry of posts about the FTC and Bloggers, especially about the FTC at the kidlitcon. Including my report.

Why read one more report?

Because it's the actual transcript. Olgy Gary wrote it up, and then fact-checked the contents with Mary Engle of the FTC to ensure accuracy in reporting.

So if you have questions; or wondered about how our reports varied; or just want to be on top of this matter; go to the Children Come First website for the New Federal Trade Commission Regulations Discussion.


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© Elizabeth Burns of A Chair, A Fireplace & A Tea Cozy

Cynsations

Cynsations is Cynthia Leitich Smith's blog, along with Spookycyn.

Cynsations has been around since July 2004. Five years of blogging!

If you're reading children's and young adult books; writing them; reviewing them; or just want to know more about what is going on this part of the book world? Read Cynsations. If you're not, you're ignoring one of the best children's literature blogs.

First, she has some of the best interviews in town, with authors, illustrators, agents, editors, all sorts of industry people.

Second, the in-depth posts about authors.

Third, the news. What's being published, what's been reviewed, awards, just about everything. Which sometimes includes giveaways.

Fourth, while this is an author blog and the author, of course, talks about her own work, the focus of her blog always remains true: "a source for conversations, publishing information, literacy and free speech advocacy, writer resources, inspiration, news in children's and teen literature, and author outreach" (from sidebar at Cynsations). It's not about the author, it's about the community and Leitich Smith is very embracing and open, including everyone. She highlights new and old voices; just look at this news post.

I constantly save the many posts and interviews to reread; her coverage is in-depth; and it's nice to read about book culture outside of New York City.

Leitich Smith also has an official website, Cynthia Leitich Smith, that includes must-read resources: Cynthia Leitich Smith's Children's & Young Adult Literature Resources.


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© Elizabeth Burns of A Chair, A Fireplace & A Tea Cozy

November 7. NYPL. Be There Or Be Square.

Come to the Children's Literary Cafe!

I'm doing a cut and paste from Fuse #8's post/ press release:

We've a simply magnificent gathering here at the library in November, and it's all about The Cybils. Join if you can!

The Children’s Literary Café at the new Children’s Center at 42nd Street is pleased to announce our event on Saturday, November 7th at 2:00 p.m.:

Cybils Kick-Off: Blogging in Style

Pam Coughlan of the sublime MotherReader children's literary blog (www.motherreader.com) headlines a panel of representatives from the greater Kidlitosphere. Each year the online children's literary community bestows child and teen novels their own awards: The Cybils. Pam and other bloggers will discuss the state of children's literature online today including ethics, publisher/blogger relations, transparency, influence (or lack thereof) over published titles, and what it means to represent an online community of children’s literary enthusiasts.

Elizabeth Burns in the Youth Services Consultant for the New Jersey State Library Talking Book & Braille Center. She blogs at A Chair, A Fireplace & A Tea Cozy (yzocaet.blogspot.com). She is the co-author of Pop Goes the Library: Using Pop Culture to Connect with your Whole Community. She blogs about children's and young adult books, television, and movies.

Susan Thomsen writes about children's books at her blog, Chicken Spaghetti (http://www.chickenspaghetti.typepad.com). A freelance writer and onetime editor, she is the mother of a fifth-grader.

Anne Boles Levy is the co-founder and director of the Cybils Awards. Her day job is as a news writer on the National Desk for Metro Networks, a radio newswire based in Scottsdale , AZ. She's married to another starving journalist and they're raising two bookworms.

The Children’s Literary Café is a monthly gathering of adults who are fans of children’s literature. Professionals, librarians, authors, illustrators, publishers, booksellers, teachers, and anyone else interested in the field are welcome to attend our meetings. The Literary Café provides free Advanced Readers galleys, a rotating series of talks with professionals in the field, and great conversation. This program is for adults only.

New York Public Library
Children's Center at 42nd Street
Room 84
42nd Street and 5th Avenue
New York, NY 10018

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I'm looking forward to November 7th!


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© Elizabeth Burns of A Chair, A Fireplace & A Tea Cozy

Genesis

Genesis by Bernard Beckett. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. 2009. Audio: Brilliance Audio, narrated by Becky Wright. 2009. Reviewed from audiobook supplied by Brilliance.

The Plot: Anax is facing an incredibly difficult examination. She wants to enter the Academy; and is now facing three examiners, in her area of choice, history. Not the far history of the 21st century and the conflict, wars, plagues; not the founding of the isolated island, the Republic, but later, as society tried to adjust to its new way of living, a new civilization. In particular, her speciality is Adam Ford. Every schoolchild knows about Ford; but Anax believes she has a new, unique viewpoint. Will the Academy accept her?

The Good: A entire book that is one character's test to get into school?

Wow, exciting.

Except -- it is. Because it's a history none of us know, even though Anax knows it fully, and we are eager for each detail of her past, our future. An eccentric millionaire who knows enough to buy, populate, and control a remote island and who is called Plato! Can society really be changed by one man? And who is Adam Ford, why is he so important? Is Anax right, to see him in an entirely new light? Why does Ford's imprisonment with a robot matter?

If Anax questions the official history, is she proving herself worthy to the Academy? As we find out about the past and present, and try to figure out what is happening in this world -- discover a past where children would be killed if they weren't going to grow up the right way -- an isolated land that killed the refugees who tried to get there -- we begin to wonder, does Anax's different viewpoint put her at risk? Can she talk her way out of the danger?

Is Adam Ford a hero? A rebel? A murderer?

The entire book is Anax talking to the examiners; weaving bits of history, and her own story, together. Using original documents and holograph recreations to show her view of history. Battling anxiety and fear as the five hour examination continues.

A science fiction book that my be set in a utopia or a dystopia. It's hard to tell, as new things emerge in Anax's story. Along the way, philosophical and ethical questions are raised.

The narration is brilliant; Wright perfectly captures Anax's mix of confidence and questioning. When Anax plays back tapes, sound effects add to the overall mood.

Watchalike: because this is about Anax talking, I was reminded of My Dinner with Andre

Possible spoiler: the ending was extremely satisfying; I had my suspicions, as time went by, as to what Ford did and his impact on Anax's world. Your SF watchers and readers will be very satisfied, not only with the world Beckett creates but also the questions he raises. Also? While chock full of wonderful things, questions answered and unanswered, it is very short, just 150 pages. Short doesn't mean easy; it means concise, and each word, thought, statement matters.






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© Elizabeth Burns of A Chair, A Fireplace & A Tea Cozy

Dollhouse

Dollhouse: Season One. Twentieth Century Fox/ Fox Broadcasting System. 2009. Via Netflix.

The Plot: Echo (Caroline) is a "doll" in the "dollhouse." High paying clients pay to hire a doll to be anything the client wants. This isn't acting or pretending; the "dolls" original personality has been removed, and depending on the assignment, a new personality is downloaded into the doll and the doll becomes -- the perfect girlfriend. Hostage negotiator. A singer. Whatever you want.

It's not exactly legal; so FBI Agent Paul Ballard is investigating, looking to find Caroline with only a photograph, a first name, and rumors as a lead. How far will the Dollhouse go to stop Ballard? And does the Dollhouse have any limits in what it will -- and won't -- do to fulfill a client's wishes?

The Good: As you know, I began watching this last season with some reservations. I'll address them in a bit; first, what I liked about this show.

Dollhouse works great as a "sit down and watch all 12 episodes over 4 days" TV show. In many ways, it's stronger when you can see one episode after the other, the character development, the multi-episode story arc. Each Dollhouse episode works as a standalone; but there is also a season-long question (Who is the mysterious Alpha doll who went crazy and killed or mutilated several people before escaping the Dollhouse?) and a series question (What is the Dollhouse, really?)

As a viewer, it can be a bit hard to connect with the dolls who are a different person each week, reverting to a child-like state between jobs. For this reason, perhaps, the Dollhouse staff, despite the fact that they, well, treat people like dolls, are more sympathetic -- or at least easier to know -- than the dolls. If a person changes every week, how can I get to know them? How can I like them? Despite this limitation, or maybe because of this, Enver Gjokaj (doll Victor) and Dichen Lachman (doll Sierra) give stunning performances and show an incredible range of character. You actually look forward to them being someone different each week because they bring their A game each time.

If you read my prior posts, you'll see I'm a bit pissy at Joss for saying these shows are about yadda yadda yadda. What is the Dollhouse metaphor? Is this show about feminism? About employers wanting an unquestioning workforce? About acting, with "meat puppet" actors manipulated by directors and producers and writers? I've flirted with all ideas (well, except for the feminism one. That is Joss's idea and I don't agree). Ultimately, I think its a reflection of today's world wanting only to talk; never to listen; to say they want communication and relationships, but the truth is they only want that when it's one-sided, convenient, and easy; and ultimately, to always be in control and not have to compromise.

What didn't I like? Joss's talk before hand about the show yadda yadda yadda was a bit turn off; I much prefer discovering the truths about the show by myself, not for it to be hammered at me. Also, I'm a bit tired of Joss having his cake and eating it, too. He says he is a feminist; but the amount of short skirts and skin shown actually gets tiresome. I also have an inherent distrust of a show with a built-in rewind/eraser; i.e., when in doubt, say it's programming and a doll! It gets a bit tiring knowing that nothing can truly be trusted. But please note that sometimes I do like that type of storytelling, such as with Justine Larbalestier's Liar.

DVD Extras: there are two bonus episodes. One is an epilogue, of sorts, set ten years in the future (or, at least, one possible future). I LOVED the epilogue; and truthfully? Would have loved to see more storytelling like that. The other is the pilot that was deemed not a good pilot. What's funny is that some scenes from the pilot made it into other episodes; and an actress who was featured returned in a different role for a different episode. I do admire Joss's loyalty to actors and staff and crew.

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© Elizabeth Burns of A Chair, A Fireplace & A Tea Cozy

Betsy and the Great World and Betsy's Wedding

Betsy and the Great World/Betsy's Wedding

by Maud Hart Lovelace. Harper Perennial Modern Classics Edition, 2009. Copy supplied by publisher. My love of these books was made known via twitter & that is how these lovely volumes came into my hands.

I reviewed Betsy's twentysomething books earlier. Exploring Europe on your own, setting up your own life, focusing on career, getting married -- Betsy's life isn't so different from anyone today; tho (as we know from the excerpts from The Betsy Tacy Companion, included as backmatter in this book) Lovelace shifted the "real" timeline.

Anna Quindlen's foreword is her 1993 speech to the Betsy-Tacy Society. It focuses on the feminism in Betsy's world, where Betsy's writing, her talent, her future success is never doubted by her family or friends. Betsy gets to have her cake and eat it, too; as Quindlen points out, "the most important thing about Betsy Ray is that she has a profound sense of confidence and her own worth." Hopefully, knowing Betsy helps her readers have those things. As I watch Mad Men, set in the early 1960s, I think of these last two volumes, written in the mid 1950s. And I think, I bet Peggy Olsen read these books; I'm sure Betty Draper did not.

Once again, the backmatter contains excerpts and photographs from The Betsy Tacy Companion; along with a brief "what happened to so and so" chapter.


© Elizabeth Burns of A Chair, A Fireplace & A Tea Cozy