Fizzwhizzing Flushbunker

Cheers

2012-01-16T11:17:00.000-08:00

Having just returned from the winter residency of the Northwest Institute of Literary Arts, feeling energized and focused, I'm going to drop everything that doesn't fuel my writing, which is to say that Fizzwhizzing Flushbunker is going on hiatus for the winter while I get my writing butt in gear.

When I return, it will be a whole new look and new focus as I plant my feet firmly in the world of playfully dark literature for kids.

In the meantime, you can find me taking small bites of twitter and facebook.

Judge Not Lest You Be A Judge

2012-01-12T12:26:00.000-08:00

Having recently finished my duties as first round panelist for the 2011 Cybils, I vow to never again be such a harsh judge of literary award omissions (my apologies to past Newbery judges...sort of). The funny thing about awards is that they aren't all about me. As nice as it would be to have the Grier Jewell Award for children's literature, I have a feeling that's not going to gain much traction.

There were books in my category (realistic middle grade fiction) that didn't make the finalist list that broke my heart to omit, but the fact is...just about every panelist had to sacrifice a baby or two (or ten). Without taking anything away from those hearty warriors who made it to the final round, and with permission of the Cybils overlords, I'd like to give a shout out to the following fabulous reads:

Hound Dog True, by Linda Urban
Dead End in Norvelt, by Jack Gantos
The Trouble with May Amelia, by Jennifer Holm
The Luck of the Buttons, by Anne Ylvisaker
Close to Famous, by Joan Bauer
The Map of Me, by Tami Lewis Brown
Horton Halfpot, by Tom Angleberger
With a Name Like Love, by Tess Hilmo

Since Cybils separates realistic fiction from fantasy/science fiction, there were many more great books in other categories (A Monster Calls, for example, which I think is just about one of the best books of the year, was categorized as fantasy/science fiction for some reason, even though an argument could be made that it's realistic as life gets. I'm thrilled that it was selected as a finalist for the fantasy/science fiction category).

One of the lessons I learned throughout this process is that what Nancy Pearl says is absolutely true: There are 50 books each person should read. But it's not the same 50 books for each person.

I could not have said it better myself, except to add the list of books above (as well as the Cybils finalists) to everyone's lists.

Here and There

2012-01-09T15:47:00.000-08:00

I've been here on Whidbey Island for the past several days, finishing up my methods in teaching creative writing course here:


Northwest Institute of Literary Arts MFA Residency Captain Whidbey Inn

Lagoon view from the classroom (Penn Cove in the distance)

And, thanks to Morganti Writes, I am also here...

Morganti Writes on Writing: The good, the bad & the absurd

...where Charlotte Morganti has created a lovely summary of my teaching practicum on mining your childhood for story gems.

Meanwhile, this is where I go to unwind after class:

Popeye at Ebey's Landing

Ebey's Landing
End of the Line

Celebrating Cybils

2012-01-01T12:54:00.000-08:00

The Cybils Award finalists were announced at the sort-of stroke of midnight (depending on your time zone). Later in the week, I may do a little write up on some of my favorites that you don't see on the middle grade fiction list (we panelists all shared the pain). The fact is, there are just too many good books to fit onto that little tiny finalist stage.

Right now, it's all about celebrating those who earned a spot in the final round, so get on over there and show them some love!

Thank You, 2011

2011-12-31T16:04:00.000-08:00

As a kid, my big dream was to get hot chocolate at a downtown diner that I thought was ultra swanky because it was inside a hotel and had gold and red velvety decor. It's what my mom promised we'd do when we're flush...or...when our ship comes in. For a long time, I thought it was a real possibility. Needless to say, the only thing flush was our septic tank's oozing leach field. Our ship never did come in. I'm pretty sure it saw us waving desperately from a distance and sank on the spot. It was such a little thing, too, that cup of hot chocolate. But when there's no money, there's no money.

I'm not complaining, but I do sometimes wonder if I'd feel differently if we'd gone through with that small acknowledgment of success. The problem was, I think we never defined success and never knew what flush looked like. Maybe, in some way, it's one reason I find it hard to celebrate the good things. Unless I count a fishing boat that ferried my sick, barfing carcass from Jamaica to Cuba when I was fifteen, nothing even resembling a ship has come my way.

For some reason, 2011 caught me off guard. Just the other day, I was gearing up to be very glad this year was almost over (as per usual) so that I could hope for better days ahead. Something happened, however, when I tried to dredge up my list of 2011 horribles. There really weren't any. In fact, I had to admit that it's been a very good year. I received my MFA degree after three years of struggle and fear that it would never happen, and I had good friends there to celebrate with me. I had nine stories accepted for publication and found rich, rewarding freelance work. My time as a Cybils panelist was challenging (grueling at times), but I discovered books I would have never come across otherwise and made new blogger friends in the process. I've been blessed with friends and mentors, allies and angels. And I've got the most loving, perfect dog in the world. Who needs hot chocolate from some chintzy, low rent diner to celebrate, when life is flush with so many blessings?

Cheers to 2011 and whatever comes next!

Saving the Best for Last: A Monster Calls

2011-12-28T14:17:00.000-08:00

A MONSTER CALLS
by Patrick Ness
Inspired by an idea of Siobhan Dowd
Candlewick Press (September 2011)
Ages 12 and up

I've waited months to read this book. I even pre-ordered it last July when I first saw the cover and thought, oh yeah, this one does not deceive. I was wrong. It does deceive. But in the very best way possible. A Monster Calls is not a horror story (as the title and cover suggest) so much as a haunting story of grief and denial, clinging and letting go, love and fear. There are so many layers to this book—stories within stories, the collision of the natural with the supernatural, truth and self-deception—it is stunning in its blend of ordinary and unhinged reality.

A Monster Calls unfolds slowly, seeping onto the pages with hypnotic cadence and shadowy, shapeshifting illustrations (beautifully imagined by Jim Kay). The truth of what's happening is revealed over a short span of weeks in the life of thirteen-year-old Conor O'Malley whose mother is nearing the end of her battle with cancer. Bullied and alienated at school, abandoned by his father who left England to start a new life and new family, and forced into the reluctant care of his very ungrandmotherly grandmother, Conor has nightmares. The monster is not one of them. The monster, which takes the shape of a yew tree, doesn't frighten Conor, but it does challenge him.

At last, said the monster. To the matter at hand. The reason I have come walking.
Conor tensed, suddenly dreading what was coming.
Here is what will happen, Conor O'Malley, the monster continued, I will come to you again on further nights.
Conor felt his stomach clench, like he was preparing for a blow.
And I will tell you three stories. Three tales from when I walked before.

The monster goes on to explain that the fourth tale will be told by Conor. And it will be the truth. The stage is set and the story unfolds, layers deep, alternating between everyday reality and the shadow world of grief, fear and denial. The tales told by the monster have unexpected endings, twisted meanings. Good and evil are not as clear cut as they seem. It's smart, sophisticated writing that does not cheat the reader by spelling everything out.

The language of the monster echoes the ancestral drumbeat of fireside storytelling. It's the perfect vehicle for this sort of tale, where the truth of real life is just too blinding and unacceptable to acknowledge. Instead, it pulses with words and smoldering images that bring to mind the way things look like other (more menacing) things in the dark. The ending is what every writer should be lucky enough to achieve: inevitable, but surprising. Knowing what's coming does nothing to lessen the blow of its impact.

A Monster Calls is self-identified as being for readers aged 12 and up. Many reviewers have categorized it as Young Adult, a strong contender for the Printz; however, I wouldn't be surprised to see it on the Newbery announcement next month. Regardless of where it lands on the shelf, it's a winner through and through.

Source: I cashed in a gift card through mumbletysomethingazon and ordered my copy there because I wasn't going to let it go to waste and fill their coffers with an unused certificate. Otherwise, I would have purchased it from an independent bookseller, which is what I recommend to you.

Wishing You A

2011-12-24T06:56:00.001-08:00

From Millan.Net

Nerdies is the New Hip

2011-12-20T07:00:00.000-08:00

It's the inaugural Nerdie awards season, so what are you doing here? Dash over to the Nerdy Book Club, where book is not a four letter word (well, it is, but you know...). Graphic Novel Nerdies are being announced today. Hurry up and get over there!

Move Over, Scrooge

2011-12-17T12:30:00.000-08:00

My story, Move Over, Scrooge, is now live and online at the Los Angeles Times Kids' Reading Room. Check it out!

The Nerdwurld Strikes Back

2011-12-16T08:17:00.000-08:00

While the longstanding Star Trek v. Star Wars debate may never be settled (too bad because, duh, Star Trek: TOS is the clear winner), George Takei unites the nerdwurld in a battle against the true storytelling evil of our time:

Review: Warp Speed

2011-12-13T08:52:00.000-08:00

WARP SPEED
by Lisa Yee
Arthur A. Levine Books (March 2011)
Ages 9 and Up

Just when I thought I couldn't take another book that deals with bullying, up pops Lisa Yee's fresh, fast and witty take on one of the most insidious social cancers of our times. In Warp Speed, Yee pulls no punches when it comes to looking at life through the eyes of seventh grade lunch meat, Marley Sandelsky, a self-proclaimed AV nerd and Trekkie targeted by middle school neanderthals he nicknames the Gorn.

Marley's humorous first-person narration—present tense no less (kudos to Yee for pulling that off with ease)—absorbs the harsh blows of his sickening reality, as do his Captain's Log entries that cloak his emotional pain in Trekkie-esque lingo ("The enemy Gorn have infiltrated a satellite substation. Damage was minimal. However, the stigma of the attack remains.")

The daily abuse of being shoved in his locker, spit on and beat up is something Marley has come to expect, but it's also an ugly truth he hides from his parents and teachers. I initially had a hard time with the fact that he treats his situation lightly, but then I realized, duh, I was looking at this through an unrealistic adult's viewpoint and needed to get over myself. From Marley's perspective, humor is the best way to cope. So is running....really fast...to avoid the Gorn. It's his running away, which turns into running for the joy of it, that's his saving grace.

As a writer, it's incredibly difficult to place your character in a situation that no one has figured out a way to resolve in real life and, well, figure out a way to resolve it. Then, to do it in a way that puts the power in the hands of the main character and not some intervening authority figure. Although, to his credit, Marley tries to enlist the help of an outside force—the Star Trek action figures from whom he draws strength to face his tormentors. The crew of the Enterprise isn't much help, however, when it comes to wooing Emily Ebers, the girl he's beginning to think likes him for more than his garbage gown modeling skills. Honestly, the scenes with Emily in which Marley spontaneously erupts in Klingon are about as painful to read as the ones in which he's being pummeled by the Gorn. In spite of all he has going against him, however, Marley has guts when it comes to surviving love and war at Rancho Rosetta Middle School.

A nice subplot to Marley's story is his family's struggle to maintain their historic movie house, the Rialto, which Marley fears his parents will have to sell. They're kind people, his folks, and their love for each other and Marley offers a solid anchor to what could have become a lopsided bullied nerd saga.

Warp Speed is a well-rounded novel with great pacing, humor and appeal for kids in the upper range of middle grade readers. The best part is that it picks up where three of Yee's previous Rancho Rosetta Middle School novels left off. It reads just as well without ever having read the other books, and will make readers want to go check them out to see what they've been missing.

The Misadventures of Writing

2011-12-12T07:36:00.000-08:00

I'm guest blogging over at Morganti Writes today. Read all about the stages of pre-publication grief here.

Bonds of Friendship

2011-12-09T09:38:00.000-08:00

The other day, I came across this handmade "Friendship Bond" at my mom's house. It belonged to her mother, and I'm guessing dates to the mid 1920's, before my grandmother's death and the stock market crash that depleted their rather large fortune.

Unlike the financial market, these were the kind of bonds that withstood the volatility of greed. Each bond has the photo of a friend with these words:

Bonds of Friendship
Callable whenever needed
Interest--personal
It is hereby certified that the within bond may always be depended upon under any circumstances by the holder.

The bonds were stored with a 1926 Harper's Monthly Magazine article by Albert J. Nock called "The Decline of Conversation." It laments the loss of civilized society in a nation that values expansion (more money, higher status, accumulation of things) without a balance of intellect, art, beauty (not the marketable kind) and morals.

Why am I posting this on a blog related to children's literature? Because the art of storytelling is the one glimmer of hope I hold for the future. Like the Bonds of Friendship, stories put stock in the value of humanity.

Great Friendship Books for 2011:

Bird in a Box, by Andrea Davis Pinkney
Hound Dog True, by Linda Urban
The Friendship Doll, by Kirby Larson
The Luck of the Buttons, by Anne Ylvisaker
Wild Wings, by Gill Lewis
With a Name Like Love, by Tess Hilmo

Nuff Said

2011-12-08T07:34:00.000-08:00

Most refreshing reading initiative of the year, offered by Ryan Gosling's Hey girl, I like the library, too.

Review: Lucky Cap

2011-12-05T10:46:00.000-08:00

LUCKY CAP
by Patrick Jennings
EgmontUSA (April 2011)
Ages 8-12

Patrick Jennings has got to be one of my favorite writers, not just because he writes in such an easy going carefree style, delivered with engaging humor and peppered with pathos, but because he takes risks. He does his own thing, regardless of conventional expectations. Case in point: Lucky Cap, his latest novel for middle grade readers.

In Lucky Cap, eleven-year old Enzo Harpold goes from average to amazingest in the blink of an eye when his father takes a management position with the ultimate sporting goods company, Kap, and off they go on a summer tour of Kap outlets, complete with personal lessons by sports legends and an all around can't-be-topped experience. The story opens just as Enzo's fantasy summer is coming to an end and he's faced with the horror of starting sixth grade. His biggest fear is that he'll go from top of world to bottom of the heap just as quickly as he ascended to glory.

Except for one thing: Enzo has a special prototype cap given to him by his dad's boss at Kap. Enzo is convinced that this cap has imbued him with some sort of magical middle school mojo. Given the phenomenal good luck he has on his first day of sixth grade (being nominated class president, attracting girls left and right, getting in with the cool kids), Enzo's confidence runs amok. Read: this kid has an out-of-control, over-the-top ego. And this is where Jennings takes his biggest risk. Creating a character/narrator that's, well, rather hard to love.

If Enzo's ego and good fortune hadn't been so over-the-top, it would be difficult to justify an entire novel in his defense. But since it is over the top, and there's no defending the way Enzo treats his best friend from elementary school (not to mention girls and kids who get in his way), by the time he loses his cap and spirals out of control, it all starts to come together.

In a way, Enzo's story reads like a deal with the devil, in which the devil's abode looks and functions a lot like middle school and survival of the best-dressed/most-glib/social climbers—in fact, a microcosm of the larger world we all live in. His dad's boss at Kap behaves a lot like a silver-tongued emissary from corporate Hades, plying young Enzo with a philosophy of accumulation and egocentrism. This kid goes completely off the rails, thanks to the fine makers of athletic wear and cold-hearted competition. Some readers might miss this, thinking Enzo is just a jerk, but I've read enough of Jenning's work to know he's not one to promote the slope-headed mentality of commercialism and convention.

The proof is in the ending, which I won't give away. You'll just have to read it to find out. Lucky Cap is not for readers expecting to cheer for a beleaguered underdog, but it shines as a tale of middle school madness.

Source: Copy provided by the publisher.

In the Mood

2011-12-02T08:33:00.000-08:00

When I was doing my practice teaching to a group of teens, I liked to start off with a video to get everyone into the creative spirit or to introduce a topic that we'd be working on. This one was particularly well received. (Note: if an ad pops up, wait a few seconds and click on the x to remove it so that you can enjoy the full effect of the video):

Advice to New Writers

2011-11-29T09:41:00.000-08:00

I don't think this really needs much introduction. If you're a writer, this applies to you.

Excerpt from The Talent in the Room, by Michael Ventura:

Writing is something you do alone in a room. Copy that sentence and put it on your wall because there’s no way to exaggerate or overemphasize this fact. It’s the most important thing to remember if you want to be a writer. Writing is something you do alone in a room.

Before any issues of style, content or form can be addressed, the fundamental questions are: How long can you stay in that room? How many hours a day? How do you behave in that room? How often can you go back to it? How much fear (and, for that matter, how much elation) can you endure by yourself? How many years — how many years — can you remain alone in a room?

Read the entire article...

Oh Boy, Canada: Three Great Reads

2011-11-28T06:00:00.000-08:00

I AM CANADA: DEADLY VOYAGE
by Hugh Brewster
Scholastic Canada (September 2011)
Ages 9-12

This recent release of I Am Canada tells the fictionalized account of a fourteen year old boy, Jamie Laidlaw, who travels with his parents on the Titanic's maiden (and well, let's face it, final) voyage. It's rich with detail, but not one bit pedantic or boring as Jamie recounts his excitement and wonder at seeing the ship for the first time, and being a curious boy, it's through his eyes that much of what's known about the real life passengers and their lifestyle aboard ship is conveyed. Jamie's father is a banker whose trip is courtesy of the Imperial Bank, a benefit that positions Jamie in the midst of first class luxury.

While his parents hobnob with power brokers of the time, Jamie befriends another boy and off they go exploring, giving the reader a top notch tour mixed with little dramas to personalize the story (Jamie's dog is in the kennels, his friend's pet rat gets loose). Of course, the reader knows what's coming, but that knowledge doesn't diminish the suspense one bit. Once the ship hit the iceberg and people are told to go above out of caution, I could not put the book down. Brewster relates the details of those hours— the mounting confusion and Jamie's dawning awareness of the trouble they're in—to maximum effect. I've always had a fear of ships at night (having been passenger on one and employee on another), and reading this just about gave me flop sweat. The chronicling of the lifeboat shortage is pretty disturbing, knowing that half the passengers are doomed, but witnessing it through the eyes of a boy who's only just beginning to understand this heightens the horror even more.

I could go on and on, but I don't want to give away the ending. If readers who love adventure based on real life can get their hands on Deadly Voyage, I don't think they will be disappointed.

DEAR CANADA: THAT FATAL NIGHT
by Sarah Ellis
Scholastic Canada (September 2011)
Ages 9-12

That Fatal Night takes a different kind of dramatic approach to the Titanic saga. Instead of telling about her story of survival, twelve year old Dorothy Wilton's diary avoids talking about what happened when she traveled alone (with an escort) aboard the doomed ship. It's the avoidance, with haunting clues (needing to have her shoes by her at night, the obsessive desire for neatness), that creates the dramatic tension in this fictionalized account.

Dorothy talks around the tragedy—writing in her diary that she will record everything but that event. Instead, she focuses on the good times she had visiting her grandparents in England and the days after her return. These accounts are incredibly well done, with Dorothy inventing a script to describe scenes that shed light on her internal struggles (she plays the rold of CG—Canadian Girl, other cast members include her grandparents, cousins and the dog).

It's clear that she carries guilt about something related to Miss Pugh, the woman who accompanied Dorothy on the voyage but didn't survive. There's enough anticipation created through this device of avoidance to pull the reader along, with revelations that are both heartening and heartrending. I could say that girls will love this book, but I'd like to think that boys would pick it up, too.

I AM CANADA: SHOT AT DAWN
by John Wilson
Scholastic Canada (February 2011)
Ages 9-12

Here's a revolting little fact about World War I that was news to me (granted, much of WWI is news to me, overshadowed as it is by part II): Deserters from several countries were court marshalled and shot, Canada included. Shot at Dawn is the fictionalized account of one whose been arrested and is awaiting dawn where he expects to be executed, a young soldier by the name of Allan McBride.

There's not much I can say about the details of this account that won't be utterly disturbing—the appalling conditions under which they fought, the brutal treatment of the army's own soldiers to keep them from deserting, not to mention the horrors on the battlefield and all the ways a body and mind can be destroyed. The most compelling, in this case, is the mental stress and trauma that unravels so many soldiers. Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome is a condition that's recognized and treated today, but back then it was just not understood. In Shot at Dawn, Allan interprets the behavior of his commanding officer (and friend from back home) as cowardice. It's only later that Allan's account takes us right into the mind of someone who's broken by the wickedness of war.

There is no glamorization of war going on here, and the futility of it rings loud and clear. For young readers of war history, this book is well worth the journey.

Source: Review copies provided by the publisher

Rearranging Lifeboats on the Titanic

2011-11-25T12:43:00.000-08:00

I recently read two compelling middle grade books about the Titanic. My reviews will come in a couple days, but in the meantime, I wanted to mention a factoid that struck me as I read the back matter of one of the books:

63% of first class passengers were saved
43% of second class passengers were saved
25% percent of third class passengers were saved

It occurred to me that this would never happen today.

First, there wouldn't really be any second class passengers, and those that were in first class would be a very small percentage of the overall manifest (let's say, oh, 1%).

Second, instead of women and children first, there would be a democratic election in which it would be pointed out to the third class passengers that it makes more sense for 100% of first class passengers to be saved because only they can create jobs so that all those suffering third class passengers have some hope of improving their circumstances--otherwise, what's the point in surviving if you haven't got something to look forward to? Let's face it, no one wants to be in third class forever. The first class is offering a different kind of life boat. It will just take a little longer to arrive.

Third, first class passengers need more room for their valuables, which are necessary to fuel the economy so that they can create jobs for the people sinking into the frigid deep blue.

Fourth, there might be some third class hooligans who object to this arrangement, but they are so poorly dressed and LOUD, it's almost hard to understand what they're saying. In fact, their message is deemed too unclear and, well, not very credible.

It's decided that the obvious choice is to allow first class passengers full use of the lifeboats so that they can go home and make life better for everyone. Besides which, they are already inside the boats and it would take too much time to roust them out, leaving everyone to perish.

It occurs to leaders of the first class passengers, however, that it might look bad if they are the only ones to survive, so they decide to take on some of the third class passengers. Actually, they are crew members, but it's getting dark and hard to tell all the screaming people apart. It works out to be useful because now they have someone to row the lifeboats and get them out of there.

Meanwhile, as the third class passengers are swallowed up by the sea, the survivors hone their message for the folks back home. It's important to present a united, unyielding front, unlike the drowning masses whose voices are all garbled...

Anyway, it's just a thought that occurred to me.

Review: The Underwear Dare

2011-11-25T07:12:00.000-08:00

THE UNDERWEAR DARE
by the Nardini Sisters
Sorelle Publishing (February 2011)
Ages 8-12

Caution: Adults are not likely to be charmed by The Underwear Dare, with its heavy doses of gross out humor and bully vs nerd well trod trope; however, this adult found herself laughing in spite of herself, and there's no doubt kids will be entertained as two step brothers square off in a series of dares that has them each doing the unthinkable—acting in ways they each want each other to behave.

The story starts off with painfully tired stereotypes—nerdy Josh suffers from his stepbrother Eddie's cruel pranks. They share a room. They fight. The situation seems unchangeable, until Josh's dad announces that he's turning the attic into a bedroom. The catch: the boys have to decide, without fighting, who gets the coveted room. Thus, the dares. Each boy has a week to complete his dare. If they both complete their dares by Friday, they move into a new dare the following week and the week after that, culminating in the ultimate dare: the first one to run through the cafeteria during lunchtime wins.

Josh dares Eddie to stop bullying kids (i.e., taking protection money) and to do something nice for everyone he's been mean to. And Eddie dares Josh to produce an earsplitting belch in class. Both are challenging enough to turn the first week into a fun drama of failures and mishaps, resulting in both of them being brought in for weekly sessions with an earnest school counselor.

As the dares progress, tidbits emerge that shed light on Eddie's behavior and the boys' relationship slowly transforms. The Nardini Sisters do a really nice job of not being preachy. Instead, Josh's insights are lightly tossed and always secondary to his main occupation: winning the dare by being more disgusting than his step brother. The ending is perfect and well earned.

My only real quibble is with the typesetting (of all things). Funny that I would even notice this, but it's off just enough to have distracted me in the beginning, especially the large first line indentations. The story and writing grabbed me soon enough to get past that, though. It's such a fun read, with surprisingly touching revelations, I'd definitely recommend this one to reluctant readers, especially those who love to be grossed out.

Source: Review copy provided by the publisher.

Review: True (...sort of)

2011-11-23T08:16:00.000-08:00

TRUE (...SORT OF)
by Katherine Hannigan
HarperCollins (April 2011)
Ages 8-12

Delly Pattison is about as likeable a troublemaker as they come. She's irrepressibly curious, passionate and, unfortunately, a bit lacking in self control. (Naturally, I took to this kid right away.) She's got a plan to stay out of trouble by attaching herself to the new girl, Ferris Boyd, as it seems that the air doesn't stir much around Ferris.

In fact, Ferris, who doesn't speak and cannot be touched, is such a mystery to Delly that she decides to take the new girl on as a project, following her into the woods to see where she disappears and, ultimately, devoting herself to protecting Ferris from unknown peril. Ferris also draws the interest of a Brud Kinney who mistakes Ferris for a boy and is enamored of "his" deft basketball skills.

There's clearly something wrong with Ferris and her home situation, but what happens there is not revealed until the very end. Delly's story is so lighthearted and entertaining, and Ferris is carrying such a dark secret, that the shift at the end felt almost too much. I wish it had been integrated earlier.

There's a whole community feel to Hannigan's novel, with lives intermingling, separating and colliding. For the most part, she pulls this off quite nicely; however, the shifts in point-of-view are often so sudden and random that, for me, it sometimes becomes a jumble of head hopping. I wish the story had kept to Delly's point of view, and maybe Brud's, but the others' thoughts intruded on the flow just enough to be a distraction.

Even with my quibbles, this story has stayed with me, and that tells me there's a lot to recommend here. It's worth reading for the voice of Delly alone, and the lovely way Hannigan introduces readers to a character who, without saying a word, says a lot more than most.

Source: I received a review copy from the publisher.

Review: Charlie Joe Jackson's Guide to Not Reading

2011-11-19T14:36:00.000-08:00

CHARLIE JOE JACKSON'S GUIDE TO NOT READING
by Tommy Greenwald
Roaring Brook Press (July 2011)
Ages 9-12

If there's one topic that makes my blood boil, it's the issue of boys who hate reading, the reason being that this is usually followed by the need to write more books that boys like—in other words, books that don't have girls for main characters. Before I launch into a mini rant, I need to state first that Charlie Joe Jackson's Guide to Not Reading does not perpetuate that heinous cultural bias.

Once I realized this, my ire had no where to go. In fact, one of Charlie's tips is: If you have to read, read about girls. What's not to love about that? Tommy Greenwald created such a likeable character in Charlie—a boy whose sole aim is to get through school without ever reading a book—I simply gave up looking to be irritated and went along for the ride. Sure, he's a cheater and a schemer, but he's a fundamentally good kid with a great sense of humor.

The premise of the book is, of course, ironic. Here's a boy who hates to read so much he's written a slew of tips to get out of the dreaded task. He even makes an agreement to keep his chapters short and his syllables mono—promises he can't keep, given that it turns out he's actually got a good story to tell. So, while on the face of it, this appears to be a fluffy little book of tips, it's actually a fluffy-esque little book with great pacing and a narrative arc that's satisfying.

(Now for the rant.)

Although Charlie's reason for not wanting to read has nothing to do with girl characters—the book he's currently avoiding is about a boy and it involves baseball, so there goes that theory—in real life, it's a reason that many people seem to accept as valid. Why is that? Can't boys be encouraged to broaden their gender-centric horizons? Unfortunately, the answer to that is no, at least not enough of them. It's a deep societal bias. (The Institute on Gender in the Media states that only 28% of speaking characters in film and television--both real and animated--are female. This, despite the fact that girls and women compose 51% of the population.)

A case in point: I was volunteering at the book van one day, and we had a stack of Powerpuff Girls books. Two little boys came along at different times of the day and each grabbed a Powerpuff Girls. One mother told her son to put it back. "That's for girls," she said. Her tone was so harsh, he dropped it immediately. The other mother didn't object to her son's choice, at least not at the time (who knows if it ended up being discarded). I might have suggested a better book, but not because of gender.

It's far from a scientific study, but the reaction of the mother who objected to the girl book gave me the chills. She was teaching her son that reading about girls is bad. Her tone was shaming. Girls, on the other hand, read all sorts of books regardless of the main character's gender.

If the idea is to write books about boys so that boys have books to read, I refuse to acquiesce. If, however, the idea is to write an engaging story that clips along, then I'm all for that. I don't write for genders, I write for readers. I do believe that boys may gravitate toward more plot-driven than character-driven stories, and I think that's a valid consideration. There are girls who also prefer similar plot-driven stories.

Fortunately, this is not an issue in Charlie Joe Jackson's Guide to Not Reading, a book for readers looking for a good story with lots of laughs. I would especially recommend this book to reluctant readers of any species or gender.

Source: I borrowed my copy from the library. Libraries are great. You could borrow this very book from one for free. However, if you decide you want a copy of your very own, I suggest buying one from an independent bookseller, or even Barnes & Noble, because they have four walls and people you can interact with. Plus, there are no shipping charges and they say nice things like, What a great choice you made. I need to read this, too! And that feels good.

Review: Pearl Versus The World

2011-11-14T06:48:00.000-08:00

PEARL VERSUS THE WORLD
by Heather Potter
Candlewick Press (August, 2011)
Ages 8-12

For a book of its size (80 slender pages), Heather Potter's Pearl Versus the World sure does create a large and lasting impression. It's got that lingering quality I look for in a good story, a feeling of fullness that lives on long after its ending.

Narrated by Pearl in spare free verse, Pearl Versus the World handles some very heavy topics with a gentle touch as Pearl comes to terms with the fading away (and, ultimately, death) of her beloved grandmother who suffers from dementia. Meanwhile, Pearl is fading away too. At school, she feels like a friendless outcast, a group of one who doesn't fit in, just like her verse doesn't fit in with her teacher's expectations to write poems that rhyme. As Pearl explains, "There is no rhyme in my life."

With few words, Potter crafts a surprisingly complete portrait of Pearl as she navigates grief, loss, love and friendship. Despite the heaviness of the topic, Potter handles Pearl's story with such easy grace, there's a feeling of completion and peace that's very reassuring. More vignette than novel, and very young in tone, Pearl Versus the World is an excellent book for young readers, especially those who, like Pearl, are coming to terms with loss and grief.

Source: I received a review copy from Candlewick Press

Review: The Luck of the Buttons

2011-11-10T08:27:00.000-08:00

THE LUCK OF THE BUTTONS
by Anne Ylvisaker
Candlewick Press (April 2011)
Ages 8 and up

It's 1929 in Goodhue, Iowa and twelve-year old Tugs Button is yearning to break free from generations of hapless Button tradition in which winning is a pompous pursuit and badge of shame. Due to the great good fortune of being the exact same height as the town's most popular girl, Aggie Millhouse, Tugs Button is a prime candidate to pair up with Aggie for the Fourth of July three legged race and maybe, just maybe, have a shot at a blue ribbon. The idea of winning something, anything, opens up a world of other possibilities for Tugs, all of which fly in the face of Button family values.

The Luck of the Buttons is an utterly delightful, delicately crafted novel of life in small town America, where Rowdies rule the road and a flim flam man is poised to fleece its residents of their life savings. Ylvisaker resists cliche's (the popular girl is actually kind and helpful and being poor isn't a shame, it's just a way of life) and offers up a subtle, yet lively, spin on shedding limitations and trusting one's instincts.

Ylvisaker shows great restraint by weaving in storylines such as the flim flam man without taking away from the primary focus, which is Tugs internal struggles to rise above the lucklessness of the Buttons. This is a character driven novel that's beautifully blended with its engaging plot, clipping along at a fast pace while still maintaining the slow sway of Goodhue's way of life.

This is one great read.

Source: I borrowed my copy from the library.

Review: The Romeo and Juliet Code

2011-11-08T09:26:00.000-08:00

THE ROMEO AND JULIET CODE
by Phoebe Stone
Arthur A. Levine Books (January 2011)
Ages 9 and up

First of all, please ignore the cover of Phoebe Stone's The Romeo and Juliet Code. Its contemporary teen love story vibe simply does not do this book justice. For one thing, the story takes place during WWII. For another thing, if it's a love story, then I completely missed this fact. What it is, however, is one heck of a well-narrated tale of family secrets and wartime intrigue. (And yes, there's a crush in there, too, but it's nothing like what the cover suggests.)

The novel opens just as eleven-year old Felicity Bathburn Budwig arrives at her grandmother's moody, broody home on the coast of Maine after having been spirited away from bomb-torn London by her American father and British mother. They leave her there to be watched over by a troubled uncle, despairing aunt, secretive grandmother and a resident known only as Captain Derek who never leaves his room. The Romeo and Juliet Code riffs on works by Frances Hodgson Burnett—The Secret Garden and A Little Princess, which Felicity becomes an authority on—and, while it has the same sort of English orphan feeling of abandonment and hidden truths going for it, it doesn't delve as deeply into matters of healing and transformation that The Secret Garden does.

More than anything, it's the voice of Felicity that makes this book work. She's smart, articulate, and wonderfully unreliable in her misinterpreted memories of Danny and Winnie (her parents). The reader, of course, suspects what Felicity's parents have been involved with long before she does, which makes the narration all the more engaging. If only her inability to recall and interpret the past had been set up a little better, I could have bought the fact that she didn't know what was going on. The fact that she assumes her parents will return soon is hard to understand, considering that she arrives in May and her mother leaves her with a letter that's to be given to her uncle at Christmastime. Trauma can explain a lot when it comes to a character's denial, but I found I had to create my own justification in order to keep believing that she was so slow to tumble.

My other issue is that the ending would have happened no matter what Felicity did or didn't do. Although her actions affected a couple sub plots (her lonely aunt and mysterious Captain Derek), she was primarily uncovering secrets that (and this may be a spoiler) would have been revealed anyway. Her growth is more of an acceptance, and that would have come in time regardless.

Despite all that, I still liked the book a lot and would recommend it to readers who love to be immersed in moody settings, secrets and wartime mysteries.

Source: I borrowed this book from the library. The real one.

Friday Twofer

2011-11-04T09:36:00.000-07:00

Two stories. Two girls. Different continents. Different lives. Great reads.

WORDS IN THE DUST
by Trent Reedy
Aurthur A. Levine Books (January 2011)
Ages 10 and up

Inspired by an encounter with an Afghani girl during his military tour of duty, author Trent Reedy offers a remarkable debut novel that's rich, satisfying and (from this outsider's viewpoint) so authentic it's hard to believe it was written by an American soldier, let alone a man. Words in the Dust is narrated with such confidence and intuitive understanding of what it means to be a girl living in an oppressive society, I was totally immersed in a world that should feel light years away in terms of geography and culture, but which Reedy crafts with such intimacy, I can practically taste the dust and disappointment as though I'm living it.

The story revolves around thirteen year-old Zulaikha who was born with a cleft palate, further isolating her from a society that already devalues her because of gender. Her mother having been killed years earlier at the hands of the Taliban, she lives in servitude to a stepmother who can't bear the sight of her. However, when American soldiers offer to correct her cleft palate, Zulaikha's hopes for a better life, free of abuse and ridicule. The question remains, however: Even with the surgery, what will life hold for a girl in a culture that denies the value of women?

Reedy handles these (and other) painfully complex issues with careful respect, not once stooping to sentimentality or simplification of unresolvable issues. Despite the inability to provide a tidy ending, he manages to produce a satisfying and realistic conclusion.

THE MAP OF ME
by Tami Lewis Brown
Farrar Straus Giroux (August, 2011)
Ages 8-12

The Map of Me, by Tami Lewis Brown, was such a treat to read, I was sorry to see it end so soon. At 150 pages long, it's short, but complete (not one bit unfinished feeling). I simply wanted to spend more time in this topsy turvy world of twelve-year old Margie Tempset and her annoyingly brilliant little sister, Peep.

Margie's first person narration is refreshingly different and, at times, laugh out loud funny, despite the fact that the story revolves around a deeply dysfunctional family and Margie's frantic search for their mother whom she believes has taken off in search of a Henny Penny Coin Canister. This is unreliable narration at its best—driven by a denial to face the truth rather than a narrator's intentional deception.

Margie is so sweetly, fabulously flawed in her thinking, Brown has the reader pulling for her in spite of the fact that she lies fairly easily, steals her father's car and takes her little sister on a road trip that's not nearly as easy as she anticipates. The characters are so fully drawn, they walk right off the page. Brown depicts the parents with small strokes of brilliance—light touches that tell the reader these two kids are pretty much on their own even when both parents are around.

As unbelievable as the story line might seem (two kids on a wild ride through the back roads of Kentucky), it's probably one of the most emotionally honest stories I've read this year.

Source: I borrowed both copies from the library. The real library, not that hideous Amazon Kindle crap.

Uninvited...

2011-11-02T07:18:00.000-07:00

I never thought I'd be too busy to blog, but there you go. It happened. There are those who say if you can't blog every day, don't do it at all. Clearly, I'm not of that mind set.

I'll be back to posting more reviews in a few days. In the meantime, the November issue of Black Lantern Publishing is now available for sale (pdf right now and full color print in two weeks). It's a gorgeous edition of macabre literature. My flash fiction, Uninvited, But Not Unwelcomed, makes its debut in there. Imagine that!

And the winner is....

2011-10-19T07:40:00.000-07:00

Congratulations, Robert! You've won an audiobook of Jack Gantos' Dead End in Norvelt.

Friday Review: The Great Wall of Lucy Wu

2011-10-14T16:10:00.000-07:00

THE GREAT WALL OF LUCY WU
by Wendy Shang
Scholastic Press (January 2011)
Ages 9-12

I can't think of anything better than a good book, except maybe a book that gives no indication of the surprise inside, the kind of surprise that starts off good and keeps getting better and better. Wendy Shang's The Great Wall of Lucy Wu is just that kind of book and that kind of surprise.

It opens with a traditional Chinese story about finding the fortune in misfortune, creating a certain anticipation in the reader that this will be a thoughtful journey of self-discovery, a culturally rich experience. The beauty of this book is that, in a sense, it is very much a thoughtful journey of self-discovery wrapped inside a culturally rich experience; however, it's delivered with such wonderful wit, the fact that it has meaning is almost beside the point.

Lucy Wu, who narrates the story, is a self-proclaimed banana—a derogatory term that refers someone who is yellow on the outside and white on the inside. (In other words, she's more hamburgers and fries than Chinese dumplings.) With her culturally correct sister going away to college, Lucy is primed to have the perfect year. She'll have her own room, and she's set to take sixth grade basketball by storm along with her best friend, Madison. That is, until her grandmother's long lost sister, Yi Po, settles in for a long visit from China and her parents force her to attend Chinese school during basketball practice. Lucy copes by doing what she does best—erecting barriers of all kinds to keep from being too Chinese.

The Great Wall of Lucy Wu is a refreshingly light and surprisingly deep (in a sneak-up-on-you kind of way). No dull, stereotypical dialog and tired pre-teen tropes here. Lucy's wit and originality make this one enjoyable (and memorable) read.

Source: I borrowed this book from the library.

Hey! Hey! It's a Dead End in Norvelt Audio Book Giveaway

2011-10-10T14:51:00.000-07:00

I've got one free copy of the audiobook version of Jack Gantos' brilliant novel, Dead End in Norvelt, to give away. (Narrated by Gantos himself!)

To enter, just leave a comment on this blog, with your name and email addy—you know the drill to avoid spammers: soandso(at)suchandsuch(dot)something—by midnight (PST) next Tuesday, October 18th. Or, send an email to grierjewell(at)comcast(dot)net. No need to compose anything artistic, just say Cheezus crust, sign me up for an audio book of Dead End in Norvelt! or something Jack Gantos-y like that. The winner will be chosen at random.

Friday Review: Dead End in Norvelt

2011-10-07T08:10:00.000-07:00

DEAD END IN NORVELT
by Jack Gantos
Farrar Straus Giroux (September 2011)
Ages 10 and up

I have only one thing to say about Dead End in Norvelt—Jack Gantos' "entirely true and wildly fictional" anti-memoir of young Jack Gantos—and that's this: Cheezus crust. This book is fabulous. Okay, that's two things, and one of them is a regular utterance of the story's anti-hero, so if it offends anyone to read it, don't read on.

Set in the dying town of Norvelt sometime during the 1960's, young Jack Gantos is having to spend the summer digging a faux bomb shelter as punishment for firing his father's "Jap" rifle and mowing down his mother's corn crop. If he hadn't fired that rifle, he wouldn't have had to mow down the corn to keep on his father's good side. And if the shock of the shot hadn't caused Miss Volker to drop her hearing aid into the toilet, he might not have been sent to help her write up the obituaries of notable dead Norvelters. And if he hadn't been sent to help her out, he wouldn't have gotten on the wrong side of the town's tricycle-riding geriatric vigilante who carries a torch for Miss Norvelt, even though she's a commie lovin' liberal. His love is fierce, and so is his vengeance.

While it may sound like a lot to digest, Gantos (both the current and former) delivers the narrative in laugh out loud, easy going fashion, all the while leaping effortlessly from life on a macro to micro level as he and those around him grapple with the fact that the town is evaporating before their eyes—being moved away to another state, house by house, by an unknown real estate investor—and with it, the values upon which the town was founded (thanks to the efforts of Eleanor Roosevelt who felt all people should live in dignity).

Everywhere he goes (which isn't far, since he's grounded for the summer), Jack is caught in the crossfire of warring ideologies, the greatest of which is right under his own roof.

"That night my birthday celebration continued. Mom, Dad and I had cake and ice cream and played Monopoly, which Dad declared was the greatest game ever invented. 'It is the American dream in a box,' he said, pleased with his tidy summation.

Mom disagreed. 'It teaches you how to ruin other people's lives without caring,' she countered."

The characters are so full of life and individuality they practically walk right off the page and breathe down your neck. In addition to Jack and his parents, there's the aging medical examiner, Miss Volker, who is determined to fulfill her duty to Eleanor Roosevelt by providing the final "health report" of original Norvelters (that is, she wants to make sure she outlives her eight competitors); Bunny, whose father owns the funeral parlor and who is unfazed by gore, which is a good thing because Jack has a torrential nose bleed every time he gets excited (read: often); and of course, Mr. Spizz, the giant tricycle-riding irritant who forces Jack into an agreement that has deadly consequences.

Gantos infuses so much life and laughter into this slice of small town America, I can't find a thing wrong with it. The pacing is smooth and quick, even when it takes screwy turns and plunges down the path of ancient history (Jack spends a lot of time in his room reading history books and Miss Volker ties in each death with a moment in history). The dialog is exquisite and the setting is so flawlessly crafted, it's like stepping into a 1960's television show. In fact, Dead End in Norvelt is a perfect fit for television or film. I wouldn't be surprised to see it play out that way.

With unabashed flourish, Gantos rings the warning bell of history—how we are doomed to repeat what we forget. The real controversy of the book is not the handling of death (which I think is just brilliant), it's the harkening back to the many histories of oppression by the rich through war and accumulation. Reading this, it's hard not to notice allusions to today's current affairs. Considering these polarizing times, I'm surprised this hasn't been an issue with the gatekeepers.

Would some people find the subject matter too much? Of course, there are always some people in every bunch. Thankfully, the world is a big place, with readers of every stripe. Dead End in Norvelt is listed for ages ten and up, which is just about right. There should be no upper limit to its readership.

Source: I bought my copy at Barnes & Noble.

Friday Review: Hound Dog True

2011-09-30T15:40:00.000-07:00

HOUND DOG TRUE
by Linda Urban
Harcourt Children's Division (September 2011)
Ages 9-12

"Uncle Potluck said when he talked to the moon, the moon talked back."

—Hound Dog True

Some books are so darn delicious, there’s no joy in picking them apart to see what makes them tick. Hound Dog True, by Linda Urban, is one such gem. The voice, characterization, theme and gentle rhythm of words create a symphony of fine storytelling that elevate this simple story to another level. Yes. It’s that good. Hound Dog True had me at the first sentence and held me in its enchanting grip until the very last page. (As I read this, I kept thinking, did Barbara O'Connor change her name to Linda Urban?)

Told in close third person—so close it’s nearly first person—the story follows eleven-year old Mattie several days prior to starting a new school (fifth in as many years). Deeply hurt by the betrayal of a girl at her old school, shy Mattie is haunted by memories of past humiliations. There’s a poignantly funny flashback of one of her former first days when all she could think to tell the class was that she was not a Buddhist. Urban places this scene early in the book, which does a brilliant job of showing just how painfully tongue-tied Mattie can get. This and other flashbacks also serve to establish the interior world that Mattie inhabits, as well as reveal bits and pieces of her past troubles. Flashbacks usually drag down a narrative and slow the progress, but not in this book, where Urban skillfully uses them to bring us into the emotional life of Mattie.

The narration is beautifully composed and fully grounded in the perspective of this sensitive young girl who hopes to avoid the pain of all the treacherous times of day—those “lawless” periods of arrival, lunch and recess—by being her Uncle Potluck’s janitorial assistant. Of course, things do not go as planned and her hopes unravel with the unceremonious introduction of the neighbor's niece, Quincy, who appears to be prime betrayal material. Quincy lands in Mattie’s life with a deadpan delivery that goes plunk plunk plunk right on top of Mattie’s worst fears.

Mattie’s world is small, but it's peopled with memorable characters, such as Uncle Potluck who can spin a yarn like no one’s business (it’s his phrase, Hound Dog True, that gives the novel its title); the not-so-subtle neighbor who’s got designs on him; and, of course, Quincy, who is twelve years old and seemingly weary of life.

Even though Mattie could use a friend, she struggles with the hurt caused by her former classmate in the school she left behind. Quincy, with her teenagery long legs and do-not-care attitude, feeds right into to Mattie’s worries. Although the book focuses on her fear of betrayal and humiliation, the unspoken threat (which Quincy represents) is that of growing up and losing control. Like everything else about this book, Urban handles these themes with a gentle, but assuring touch. And, mostly importantly, with a great dose of humor throughout.

Hound Dog True is a short novel, told over a very short period of time, but boy oh boy, it makes a large and lasting impression. Other than that, I don't have much to say, except this: Read it!

Source: I bought my copy at Barnes & Noble.

Something to Crow About

2011-09-28T10:28:00.000-07:00

In celebration of Halloween, CROW Magazine has created a bone-chilling read, packed full of goodies to make your skin crawl! Issue No. 2 is filled with things that go bump in the night, including a midnight ride with a headless horseman; the mystery behind Halloween and why we celebrate the holiday; and a look at what traditions our families observe on this spooky day!

The new issue of Crow Magazine is out! Crow is dedicated to literature for middle grade and young adult readers (but teachers and parents will love it, too). The other reason I'm partial to this issue of Crow is that it features my non-fiction piece on the origins of Halloween. So, you know...it's extra special that way.

(Note: subscriptions to Crow Magazine are $10 per year, for three school year issues.)

Head First

2011-09-22T10:27:00.000-07:00

I've been taking a post-graduate class in the methods of teaching creative writing as a way to share my love of words and writing with children and teens, as well as to continue learning and growing as a writer. One of my most influential teachers, doranne crable, never referred to herself as a teacher, but as a co-learner. She was brilliant, creative, hard working and fully present—the true embodiment of a creative, humane being. So, as I find my way down this dark alley of creative writing, it's doranne's example I'll be looking to for inspiration.

Although I have no idea where this venture will lead me, I know where it is taking me next week: A most fabulous class of teen parents enrolled in school at a local community college where my sister-in-law has arranged for me to lead a few weeks of classes on living like a creative genius, mainly through writing personal narrative. At this point, I think there will be about 30 or so students, plus a few babies--so yay!

I'm going to meet with them first, to see what they'd like to get out of the class so that I'm not totally off base, then it's away we go!

It's Tuesday!

2011-09-20T14:20:00.000-07:00

This being the most underrated day of the week, I have resolved to celebrate.

Nothing says I appreciate this day like a "thing of goop" from Eagan's Eastside Big Tom.

Hooray Tuesday!

Back on Track

2011-09-19T08:47:00.000-07:00

Thanks to Kirby Larson, who gently called me out on my procrastination, I'm back to writing. Over the summer, I'd gotten halfway through one project that was a misery to work on, so I decided to drop it for another shiny object—a risky thing to do because there are always temptations to draw one away from the work at hand; however, it was the best move I'd made in a long time. This first draft of my novel for middle grade readers—tentatively titled Missing and Presumed Undead—is based on one of my flash fiction stories, and it's a dream to write. None of that tooth pulling agony I had with that piece of crap I'd been slogging through last spring and summer.

Thanks for the nudge, Kirby!

Life Through Bobet Colored Eyes

2011-09-16T08:26:00.000-07:00

In a break from the usual programming, I am posting this urgent plea for the establishment of your greater good, inspired by the heart/mind of Bruce Holland Rogers and his expansive lover of the arts, grand envisoneer and poet of moment, Donat Bobet.

Bobet is Rogers' creation, a magnificent portrait of one who crafts a life of modest grandeur, inviting one and all into a world of benefit (a refreshing change from today's dreary headlines). He is also the lead in one of Rogers' featured stories for the month of September at ShortShortShort.com. For only $10 per year, three small gems (including, if you are lucky, one like today's Bobet story, A Patron of the Arts) will appear in your inbox, lift you out of dull, gray days and prepare a small feast for your creative soul.

If you are a writer, you will find inspiration. If you are a reader, you will find meaning. If you are both writer and reader—well, then, glorious you!

Ready. Set. Mark Your Calendars!

2011-09-14T10:30:00.000-07:00

BOOKS BY THE BAY
Literacy Fundraiser

Please help continue the good work of the South Sound Reading Foundation by attending our 11th annual Books by the Bay Literacy Fundraiser. Meet children’s book authors Brenda Guiberson, Trudy Ludwig, Margaret Lippert, Kurt Cyrus and Margaret Read MacDonald (books for sale by Barnes & Noble). Enjoy live music, refreshments and a silent auction to benefit the South Sound Reading Foundation’s many outreach programs.

Last year, SSRF gave away more than 40,000 free books to children from low-income families, and provided outreach (through presentations to families and story times to kids) at schools and community venues throughout the South Sound region.

Thursday, September 22
5:00-7:00 p.m.
Olympia Golf and Country Club
3636 Country Club Dr. NW
Olympia, WA 98502

Ticket Cost: $30*

*I'm offering free tickets to the first five SCBWI members who contact me. Since many of the attendees are educators and librarians, it's a great opportunity to introduce yourself and get to know some fabulous people.

The Chills of Fall Are Upon Us

2011-09-13T09:21:00.000-07:00

Check out the September issue of Underneath the Juniper Tree. I've got a creepy little piece in there that I read to my demented Whidbey chuckleheads last month, but there are lots of other disturbing goodies to feast on this month.

I Shall Not Have Green Eggs and Hamlet

2011-09-12T11:45:00.000-07:00

For the fun of it, I decided to create my own hybridized title game. The rules: Combine the full title of a children's book with the full (or partially full) title of a book for adults.

First up:


Shall I have them here or there?

Here are a few others:

Fun with Dick and Jane Erye
Chocolate War and Peace
The Lord of the Rings and Flies
Are You There God? It's Me, Moby Dick
Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of Kim

How about you?

Friday Review: Sidekicks

2011-09-09T10:18:00.000-07:00

Sidekicks
Written and Illustrated by Dan Santat
Aurthur A. Levine Books
Ages 9-12

There must be something in the genetic code of writer/illustrators that gives their work the sizzle and pop of eternal childhood. Whatever it is they were born with, or drank from, they've got a special spark that leaps off the page.

Dan Santat's latest release, Sidekicks, is proof positive that some writers don't just write for small people experiencing childhood—they embody it. The illustrations are as smashtastic as any follower of Santat's work would expect, but to have them in a graphic novel length work is a real treat. He's got a gift for storytelling without overtelling, letting the artwork do its work to convey the energy and emotion of a superhero in peril. Well...maybe not so much peril as allergies and age.

Santat turns tired comic tropes into graphic novel gold as the hero, Captain Amazing, announces auditions for a sidekick to help him battle the baddies without running out of breath. His pet dog, hamster and lizard want the spot, but there's one problem that stands in their way: Fluffy, aka The Claw, Captain Amazing's former sidekick. Turns out things went south some years back and Fluffy is feeling a bit bitter. Santat's ability to weave flashbacks into the storyline without disrupting the plot's forward movement shows he's earned his chops as a high ranking writer slash illustrator slash big kid with loads of talent.

This will make a great Christmas present for those looking ahead...

Source: I bought my book from Mr. Santat when he offered autographed copies on his website. I'm not sure if that offer still holds, but he's kind enough to provide a link to Indiebound as a way to encourage the support of independent booksellers.

No Reply Means No

2011-09-08T10:12:00.000-07:00

Recently, a children's agent shared on her blog that when she first opened her doors, she went a full year without selling a book for her clients. One of the things that made it so difficult for her during this drought was having to reject a lot of writers who sent queries for manuscripts that, for whatever reason, were not a good fit for her. Some writers were gracious in their replies, but not all of them. Some were upset, demanding, and drained her with follow up emails and questions.

As a result, she changed her policy regarding submissions, asking writers for a month to consider their queries—if they didn't hear back from her within that time frame, it meant she was not interested. This eliminated a lot of negativity in her life, a fact that she feels strongly resulted in a number of sales after she instituted the policy.

Unfortunately, this particular agent was hammered rather roundly for her position, and for considering closing queries to conference-goers only. It was hard to see the drubbing she took. Here she'd found a process that worked for her without causing harm to anyone else. I don't see a problem with that. There's absolutely no point in getting nasty about an agent's policy. If it upsets a writer too much, then that relationship wouldn't have worked anyway. Period. Move on. Go to Amazon. They'll offer anything for sale.

As a writer, I don't particularly care to send something into the black hole of submissions in what is an increasingly common practice of no reply means no (NRMN); however, I think a one month policy like hers is fair. At least it's transparent. I don't know how many queries she and other agents or editors receive, but I imagine it's enough for some to delete them without looking (I'm not saying that's at all the case with this agent, but I could see this as a reason why some agents or editors don't reply with a rejection). In other words, whatever the reason, it's just the way things are. Those of us who are looking for someone to invest their time and money in our works of creative genius have to accept this.

A one-month NRMN policy is generous. I've been trying for years to get a story accepted by a particular children's magazine. Each submission takes the story off the market for a full six months because they don't allow simultaneous submissions. At the end of six months, like clockwork, I'm sent a reject letter. Do I love this? No. But this is the way they do business and if I want to have a chance at publication with them, then I have to accept it.

For my part, if I'm fortunate enough to receive a rejection, then that agent or editor earns my eternal goodwill. If I receive no reply, I'm not likely to submit there again.

That's my policy.

Poetry 911: Mania Klepto Reviewed

2011-09-07T08:11:00.000-07:00

Eulene defies definition. In fact, I believe she may have punched it in the gut and downed it with a shot of hooch at the Broomcloset Speakeasy where she holds court with the nefarious Bulkington. Definitions aside (or drunk down), I can say this about Eulene: She has inspired satisfying, lively, thought provoking poems by her originator, Carolyne Wright.

Until recently, fans were forced to content themselves with glimpses of Eulene poetry in literary venues, just long enough to cause trouble and run off to her next gig. For years, many of us have been begging for a book. Now, at last, it's here. Mania Klepto: The Book of Eulene.

Because I restrict my reviews to children's literature, I've brought in Frau Mitzi Notnagel to address this poetic emergency:

Mania Klepto: Mitzi Notnagel reviews Eulene's poetic emergency from Stephanie Barbe Hammer on Vimeo.

For those curious about the origins of Eulene, Carolyne Wright sheds some greasy clean light on the subject at a recent Whidbey MFA residency:

Carolyne Wright births Eulene - Mobile from Stephanie Barbe Hammer on Vimeo.

Craft Tip Monday: Creating Suspense

2011-09-05T09:57:00.000-07:00

"Suspense doesn't lie in what your readers know. It lies in what your characters don't know."
—Bonny Becker

Friday Review: My Brother's Shadow

2011-09-02T07:48:00.000-07:00

My Brother's Shadow
by Monika Schröder
Farrar Straus Giroux/Frances Foster Books (September 2011)
Age 12+

There's one thing I know I can pretty much count on when I see the names Monika Schröder and Frances Foster together in a book: I'm in for a good read. I learned about Schröder's writing from her middle grade novel, Saraswati's Way, which I reviewed last fall. Saraswati's Way was published under the Frances Foster imprint as well, and when it comes to precious reading time, I often rely on the who's behind the scene to help me navigate the book piles. It took me about, oh, zero seconds to pick Schröder's soon-to-be released young adult novel, My Brother's Shadow, for review.

In short, it does not disappoint. With skillful restraint, Schröder's crafts yet another powerful portrait of a boy caught in the crush of value systems and a world in chaos. In this case, the story unfolds through the public/private strife of Berlin during World War I and a sixteen year old boy, Moritz, whose family is politically divided between his anti-war, political activist mother on the one side and his Kaiser-supporting, soldier brother on the other.

When the story opens, Moritz doesn't question the rightness of the war, even though he and others are barely subsisting on ersatz food and government lies. Life under the Kaiser is all he's known, and he's troubled by his mother's rebellious acts. It's a refreshing and honest insight into a period of history that, when it comes down to it, is not so much World War I as it is World War II, Act I. The fact that Moritz works as a printer for the newspaper allows his story to illuminate the clash of personal and private interests, as well as integrate the conflicts at stake.

Told in first person, the narration of Moritz is as stark and sparse as the unemotional chill of war, once again demonstrating Schröder's use of emotional restraint to reflect (rather than exploit) a harsh existence. It rings true with a voice that reads like a teen of that time, and under those conditions, would view the world, which is to say that Schröder did a fine job of getting inside the psyche of another era. It is not flowery or lyrical, but blunt and, at times, as cold as Moritz's relationship with his ailing grandmother. (There's a scene in which she asks him to apply ointment on her back that is absolutely priceless in its cringe-worthy honesty.)

The fact that the narration is also told in present tense gives the story an eerie sense of real time contemporary political struggles and war. I found myself thinking that, while we have food and shelter, not much as changed in terms of political rhetoric and the fact that it's the poor and powerless who always carry the burden of the prevailing powers' success and failure.

In the end, Moritz gets his bearings and carves a place for himself with his awakening values. He even finds a girl. A Jewish girl. We all know, of course, what that implies for his future. In this regard, the downside to ending a book at the close of WWI is that, by its very nature of unrest and mounting hostilities against Jews, it cannot feel satisfying or remotely tidy. But it does feel genuine. And that, when it comes right down to it, is My Brother's Shadow greatest strength (among many).

Due out September 24th.

Source: Advanced Reader's Copy

About my reviews:
My comments and reactions to the books I read reflect my experience of the story as a writer studying the craft. I write them to examine what makes a story work, rather than sheer reader appeal.

For All The Grrrrls Out There

2011-08-31T09:52:00.000-07:00

A dear friend gave me this card as I was leaving Whidbey last week. It's a message worth sharing:


"I figure if a girl wants to be a legend, she should go ahead and be one."			Calamity Jane

Underneath It All

2011-08-30T10:48:00.000-07:00

When Crow Toes Quarterly (a deliciously macabre and playfully twisted magazine for kids) was laid to rest earlier this year, something dark and quirky rose from its ashes: Underneath the Juniper Tree. I've had the good fortune of being published in UTJT, once this past July and again this coming September, but that's not the only reason I love this little lit.

Underneath the Juniper Tree offers a refreshing break from fluffy bunnies with its dark and creepy fare, suitable for kids young and decrepitly old. Despite the uncertainties of publishing, it's not going away any time soon, thanks to its indefatigable efforts to generate an online exchange of ideas, through regular posts, contests and (most recently) a twitter challenge that produced some fabulously macabre 140 character story bites. The illustrations are gorgeous (in a delightfully disturbing way) and irresistibly inviting.

Most recently, UTJT posted advice on etiquette when submitting to an editor or agent. Check it out here.

Be on the look out for UTJT's site September issue. (Better yet, subscribe to twitter feeds here and here, as well as facebook.)

Elephants Teach, But Only to the Privileged

2011-08-28T10:36:00.000-07:00

I'm taking a post-grad course in teaching creative writing. Here's one of the texts:

The title is the only exciting thing about it. From what I gather, it's a history of privileged white males teaching privileged white males how to subsist as writers. (Okay, so there are a couple of women in there, but one gives up her Bohemian lifestyle due to breast cancer and the other offs herself with a nasty dose of cyanide).

It's my long standing beef with writing in general that only those with means (or a spouse with means) can pursue it. How different the landscape would look if those who lack the privilege and self-esteem that comes with having a place in the world could speak. I might be going out on a limb here (not really), but I bet more people would read if more people were invited to write.

A writing life requires resources; but more than that, it requires a belief in oneself. I tried to explain once to some people of means what a difference it makes to grow up with the reality of possibility. Seeing people around you succeed makes success a matter of course; seeing the people around you crying over unpaid bills, or fighting and arguing about food and rent, makes success seem more like winning the lottery. The idea of it is just too overwhelming and fickle to risk going after.

I will say this, though: those who don't grow up surrounded by the privilege of possibility, and who succeed in spite of the odds, will blow everyone else out of the water. The strength it takes to overcome the barriers of society and education is unmatched by the limitations of society and education.

My interest in teaching is not to subsist (as the history of teaching creative writing suggests is one motivation), but to open the door just enough for those who are locked out, so that they may blast it off its hinges.

It's possible that could happen.

Against Blandification

2011-08-27T10:46:00.000-07:00

Not many people know about the Northwest Institute of Literary Arts MFA program (aka Whidbey Writers Workshop). . . yet. Part of me would like to keep it that way, because there's nothing worse than blandifying something special with a deadening dose of popularity.

William Dietrich shares secrets of storytelling success

I learned the word blandifying, by the way, from someone who knows a lot about popularity—Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and NY Times bestselling author William Dietrich who generously shared his time and talent at our recent residency. (He wrote about his experience here.) I've long held the belief that artists with the greatest talent and longevity are often the most humble. (I know this from having been a maid to some legendary actors and performers when I lived in California. When you're cleaning someone's toilet or serving their Thanksgiving dinner, you learn a lot about character—yours and theirs).

Mr. Dietrich was clearly of sterling quality, and his unassuming brilliance was the perfect complement to our Whidbey family. All the visiting faculty were similarly stellar. Among them: Poet Julie Larios, whose sense of playfulness inspired me to introduce her evening reading in Is-Latin; poet/publisher Kate Gale, who gave our graduating class a three-day life-coaching session and reality check on publishing like no other; and author/playwright Marc Acito, whose genius electrified our graduation ceremony and afternoon sessions.

There's no doubt that we were blessed with the generosity of artists at the top of their game, but there was something more, something indefinable, that made it all so very Whidbey. It has to do with the character of the program, forged and shaped by Wayne Ude and a dedicated board of directors and faculty who worked hard to build a fully accredited, one of a kind, free-standing literary arts MFA program that will always remain in humble service to writing and writers.

I have a feeling Whidbey won't be flying under the radar much longer, but something tells me it will never suffer from blandification.

Popeye learns to polish his pitch in morning grad class

Life on the Other Side

2011-08-25T16:51:00.000-07:00

For the past three years, I've been toiling over the craft of writing in pursuit of my MFA in creative writing for children and young adults. Finally, after inquiring about a cash-out option and being turned down, the powers that be caved in to common sense (and probably fatigue), proclaiming that I had learned my lesson and was fit for graduation.

I thought I'd be able to rattle off a quick run down of the final residency and graduation-palooza, but nothing's ever as simple as that. It turns out that, at the Northwest Institute of Literary Arts (aka Whidbey Writers Workshop MFA), they want all graduates to get every last drop of learning on the menu. In the case of my graduating class, this meant 27 hours of life-coaching, query-writing, pitch-polishing, soul-searching labor (in addition to afternoon presentations, evening readings and homework).

Because the Whidbey program encourages breadth of learning, as well as depth in one's own genre, our morning grad sessions were led by three strong, empowering women from different corners of the writing world:


Kate Gale, Managing Editor of Red Hen Press

Andrea Brown of Andrea Brown Literary Agency

Andrea Hurst of Andrea Hurst & Associates Literary Agency

By the time we walked the ~~plank~~ aisle to receive our graduate hoods and walking sticks, I wasn't really feeling all that different. What's the saying? Before enlightenment, I was depressed. After enlightenment, I am still depressed. Well, I wasn't depressed, but I wasn't feeling all that enlightened either. I think that's because it's been such a long, gradual process of learning the craft of writing and crafting a writing life that there's no sensation of having been transformed into anything other than more of who I am. It's been happening all along and I didn't even notice it. In the end, I received my diploma and did what's been ground into my bones: honing, polishing and going to class.

There were lots of special moments during this final residency, but I think what happened after the ceremony is one I will hold most dear: spending time with friends and mentors who, without their support, I would not have found my way through the exit door. They include:


Kirby Larson and Popeye


Bonny Becker and Carmen T. Bernier Grand

Not pictured (because she lives on the other coast), but someone who I have a lot to be grateful for, is Barbara O'Connor, who read my thesis manuscript and did not die from the experience. Thank you, Barbara! Your encouragement kept me going to the finish line.

And now, for my next trick...sleep, perchance to write.

Morning and Moon Over Whidbey

2011-08-17T07:54:00.000-07:00

Last Night

This Morning

Peculiarity Pays Off

2011-08-07T10:28:00.000-07:00

MISS PEREGRINE'S HOME FOR PECULIAR CHILDREN
by Ransom Riggs
Quirk Books (2011)
Young Adult

I love risk takers—in life and in art—so when I caught sight of Quirk Books' latest novel novel by Ransom Riggs, I cheered. Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children tells the reality-bending tale of a teen in search of the monsters of his grandfather's WWII youth, thanks in large part to antique photographs that ground this odd fiction in reality.

The story is told by Jacob, a privileged teen living in Florida who tries to make sense of his grandfather's childhood tales of living in a home for children with strange gifts, protected from monsters "by a bird who smokes a pipe." The tales are supported by pictures of children with peculiar abilities (a boy who has bees living inside him, a girl who levitates, another who eats out of the back of her head). When Jacob was a small child, he believed the tales and the pictures. As a teen, however, he sees the photographic tricks and comes to understand the monsters as symbolic of the Nazis who killed his grandfather's family—until his grandfather is murdered, that is, and Jacob sees the deadly monster with his own eyes.

His experience is treated as a stress reaction. The solution: visit the remote island off the coast of Wales where his grandfather took refuge during the war. Jacob plunges into the proverbial rabbit hole when he not only finds the home, but the children themselves—looking and behaving just like they did in his grandfather's pictures.

Hip hip hooray to Riggs for effortlessly blending the seemingly incongruous—an ordinary world tainted by the extraordinary—and sustaining this uncomfortable balance long enough to pull the reader in. To this end, the pictures work magic.

I think if I weren't a children's writer, I might have been able to stay the course. Unfortunately, the narration kept throwing me—part teen, part Rick Yancey (think Monstrumologist). It's the downside, I think, of a writer who hasn't been marinating in children's literature. Voice is everything. As the story progresses, it also tends to get younger in tone, maybe a result of introducing a cast of young children for this teen to interact with. The end result is a mixed bag of intriguing genius and slightly unfocused children's/YA craft. Stronger emotional/character development would have gone a long way as well.

I wanted to love this book, but I like it well enough to recommend it for an interesting read and study of well-executed liminal fantasy. No doubt, we will be hearing more from Riggs and his most peculiar children.

Source: I purchased my copy at Orca Books.

About my reviews:
My comments and reactions to the books I read reflect my experience of the story as a writer studying the craft. I write them to examine what makes a story work, rather than sheer reader appeal.

Award for the Freshest Scam Goes To....

2011-07-30T10:56:00.000-07:00

This has no business being on my blog, but it's such a delightful and refreshing break from the usual email scams, I had to post despite the warning that I must not contact persons "in any part of the world." These guys are really getting creative.

Enjoy...

ATTENTION: BENEFICIARY

WE SINCERELY APOLOGIZED FOR SENDING YOU THIS SENSITIVE INFORMATION VIA E-MAIL INSTEAD OF A CERTIFIED MAIL, POST-MAIL, PHONE OR FACE TO FACE CONVERSATION, IT IS DUE TO THE URGENCY AND IMPORTANCE OF THE SECURITY INFORMATION OF OUR CITIZENRY, I AM SPECIAL AGENT JOHN EDWARD FROM THE FEDERAL BUREAU OF INVESTIGATION (FBI) INTELLIGENCE UNIT, WE HAVE JUST INTERCEPTED AND CONFISCATED TWO (2) TRUNK BOX AT JFK AIRPORT IN NEW YORK, AND ARE ON THE VERGE OF MOVING IT TO OUR BUREAU HEAD QUARTERS.

WE SCANNED THE SAID BOX, AND FOUND IT CONTAINS TOTAL SUM OF $4.1 MILLION AND ALSO BACKUP DOCUMENT WHICH BEARS YOUR NAME AS THE RECEIVER OF THE MONEY CONTAINED IN THE BOX, INVESTIGATIONS CARRIED OUT ON THE DIPLOMAT WHICH ACCOMPANIED THE BOX INTO UNITED STATES SAID HE WAS TO DELIVER THIS FUNDS TO YOUR RESIDENCE AS PAYMENT DUE YOU FROM THE OFFICE OF FEDERAL GOVERNMENT OF NIGERIA AS UNPAID BENEFICIARY.

WE CROSS-CHECKED ALL LEGAL DOCUMENTATION IN THE BOX, AND WERE ABOUT TO RELEASE THE CONSIGNMENT TO THE DIPLOMAT WHEN WE FOUND OUT THAT THE BOX WAS LACKING ONE VERY IMPORTANT DOCUMENT WHICH MAKES US CONFISCATE THE BOX.

ACCORDING TO SECTION 229 SUBSECTION 31 OF THE 1991 CONSTITUTION IN MONEY LAUNDERING, YOUR CONSIGNMENT LACKS PROOF OF OWNERSHIP CERTIFICATE FROM THE JOINT TEAM OF THE IRS AND HOMELAND SECURITY, REPLY FOR DIRECTION ON HOW TO PROCURE THIS CERTIFICATE WHICH WILL ENABLE YOU RELIEVED OF THE CHARGES OF MONEY LAUNDERING WHICH IS A PUNISHABLE OFFENSE UNDER SECTION 12 SUBSECTION 441 OF CONSTITUTION ON MONEY LAUNDERING.

YOU ARE REQUIRED TO REPLY THIS LETTER WITHIN 72HOURS, OR YOU WILL BE ARRESTED, INTERROGATED AND PROSECUTED IN THE COURT OF LAW FOR MONEY LAUNDERING.

ALSO, YOU MUST NOT CONTACT ANY OTHER BANK OR PERSON IN NIGERIA OR UNITED KINGDOM OR ANY PART OF THE WORLD FOR ANY PAYMENT, BECAUSE YOUR PAYMENT HAVE BEEN CONFISCATED BY THIS BUREAU HERE IN THE UNITED STATES..

YOURS IN SERVICE
AGENT JOHN EDWARD
REGIONAL DIRECTOR

Heh heh. Hey—who's that knocking on my door?

Failure Is Not An Option, It's An Obligation

2011-07-28T09:18:00.000-07:00

There's a video that's been making the rounds on the internet that addresses the gap between creative vision and the ability to execute that vision, and boy did it hit home with me. It's Ira Glass, offering advice to creative beginners. If you haven't seen it, please watch. If you have, skip below it to my response.

This message came to me at just the right time. In fact, it's been such a lifeline, I think I've watched it a couple dozen times. I even went on youtube to watch the full series of Ira Glass on Storytelling (well worth it if you have the time). I've heard similar sage advice, along the lines of "it takes a long time" "just keep writing" "do your best, with what you know right now and move on." Blah blah blah.

When I entered grad school three years ago, someone mentioned the 10,000 hour rule, which is apparently how many hours it takes to master a discipline. Honestly, it's such soulless advice, it makes me want to punch the next person who says it. What I love about Ira Glass is that he puts it into real, human, heartfelt terms that it's about closing the gap between what we know is good creative work and what we are capable of producing, and that it takes a very long time to do (some longer than others).

I don't know of any other profession that requires years of drowning in the dreck of one's own awful mess with very little hope in sight, except for the lifelines thrown by those who went through it and survived. It's the worst kind of purgatory.

I've been struggling with my current WIP for a couple months or more, and it's been pure hell to forge ahead, knowing that what I'm writing isn't good, isn't what I want it to be and may, in fact, be a total waste of time. I've tried to silence these thoughts and push through, like all the good advice suggests. But then, just yesterday, it hit me that this is not the way for me to be creative. It never has been. If I'm going to spend years closing the G AP, it has got to be more interesting than this.

In researching my WIP, I came across and old advertisement that excited me, but it had nothing to do with my story so I filed it away for future use.

"Welcome to the future," my new idea said to me yesterday.

To which I replied, "Go away, you weak weasley excuse for giving up."

But my new idea said, "I have energy and your WIP is washed up piece of [expletive] that can't carry you through to lunch."

I started to tell myself I was a failure to think about switching gears and scraping my WIP for a bright and shiny new idea. Then, lo and behold, just yesterday, Emma Dryden posted a link to Nine Reasons Why Failure is Not Fatal.

One of my favorite quotes in that post comes from Sir James Dyson who created 5,127 prototypes of his vacuum before he found the one that worked. He said this:

We're taught to do things the right way. But if you want to discover something that other people haven't, you need to do things the wrong way.

This lifted me to a new understanding about my predicament. I've been trying to write something that looked familiar and that has been done before, thinking this was the path to success, when what I should be doing is making a mess and a pile of mistakes pursuing something that's sure to fail.

Since this realization, I've been able to breathe. I didn't dread waking up to face the computer this morning. I can do this another day. To mangle Stuart Smalley's motto: I'm good enough. I'm smart enough. And gosh darn it, I can fail better than anyone I know.

Ah. Sweet liberty.

Magically Real is Magnificently Intelligent

2011-07-11T09:00:00.000-07:00

My good friend and fellow Whidbeyite, Stephanie Barbé Hammer, has a brilliant blog that "investigates the unreal, the surreal and the strange in contemporary cultural literature."

You won't find a more radiant (yet humble) intellect than that of the marvelous Ms. Hammer. Check out her latest Magically Real insights into the Harry Potter craze.

The Weird Weird West

2011-06-28T07:29:00.000-07:00

My newest WIP takes place in the weird weird west, when life was strange and marvelous and filled with outrageous scams and ideologies. Okay, so maybe it's not that different from today, but the distance of a hundred or more years makes it much more entertaining.

In the meantime, as I slog through my WIP, a crazy mad legend has landed in my lap as an assignment for a children's publication (I'll announce it when it's published this fall). It takes place in roughly the same era and region as my WIP, so I'm thrilled for the diversion. I did a cursory internet search of the legend, but found that only the old-fashioned, non-electronic kind would do. There's a library in Aberdeen that has the transcribed letters of one of the main persons involved in the legend—a diary of his journey across the Oregon Trail. Since the diary couldn't be checked out, I took off for the Washington coast to take a look for myself. Score one for bizarre legends with excellent primary source material.

The best part, though, is that this legend involves a rather unusual method of corpse preservation. The King County Medical Examiner's office has referred me on to a funeral home for answers to my questions. We'll see where this leads. The last time I researched corpses, I found myself under suspicion and feeling inexplicably guilty.

Historical research is not for wimps.

All in the Family

2011-06-21T07:31:00.000-07:00

Author Deb Lund coaches her dinosailors

Olympia held its Second Annual Imagination Celebration at the downtown library last Saturday, with too many activities and performances to list (but if you click on the link you'll get the idea). Highlights of the event were performances and talks by Richard Jesse Watson, Jesse Joshua Watson, Brandon Mull, Deb Lund (and her dinosailor band, husband Karl Olsen and son Kaj Lund Olsen), Stephanie Lile, the magic of Jeff Evans, music by Eric Ode and Los Cavaleras, and a stellar puppet show by DanLuce Puppet Productions. Whew.

On a personal note, I enlisted a few family members to assist in the proceedings:

My boy Popeye works the information booth with his grandma

Empressive nephew Brendan (left) and his friend Cole

Sister-in-Law Kristi signs up kids to read with dogs

Brother Bob sponsored the lego station

There's one brother I have to call out for not showing up. Even though it turned out that he had a good reason, how was I to know? Every time I email him, he replies with a head-scratching poem. Like this one:

Roads ask for directions
Trees stop listening
Nay...whispers the song
Questions crawl like butter.

I told him that if he kept doing this, I would post his verses online. And so, here is his reply to my email, asking if he could lend a hand at the Imagination Celebration:

The Hand Lender

Who seeks the Hand Lender?
The waves dribble across the plains
Who seeks the Hand Lender?
The dry bones of cats drift across the cold, bumpy sidewalks,
Who seeks the Hand Lender?
Aye, nay, of ode…seeks none,
But of Lenders Hands,
Who seeks thee?
The old man eats his beans
Can you? Can you? Can you?
Oh how the Hand Lender seeks

Maybe next year, we'll get him to host a poetry booth at the Imagination Celebration. Or not...

Friday Flash Fright

2011-06-10T06:46:00.000-07:00

Check out my latest flash fiction, A Persistent Haunting, at Underneath the Juniper Tree . It will also appear in UJT's July issue, but for now it's disturbing their blog. (I absolutely love the illustrations by Rebekah Joy Plett!)

Imagine This

2011-06-08T08:24:00.000-07:00

Last year, the South Sound Reading Foundation and Timberland Regional Library had such fun launching Olympia's Imagination Celebration, we knew we had to do it again.

This year's theme, One World, Many Stories, invites children and families to enter a world of imagination with a stellar line up of offerings that include:

Brandon Mull (FABLEHAVEN), Deb Lund (DINOTRAIN), Richard Jesse Watson (THE LORD'S PRAYER) and Jesse Joshua Watson (HOPE FOR HAITI)

Children's musician and author, Eric Ode

Magician Jeff Evans

Music by Los Cavaleros

DougLuce Puppet Productions of "Treasure-Bound: An Adventure in Literacy on the High Seas"

The Scoil Rince Slieveloughane Irish Dancers

Storytelling with Stephanie Lile, curator of the Washington State's History Museum exhibit, Wrapped! The Search for the Essential Mummy

PAWS to READ

Book Babies Storytime

Comic Book Making with cartoonist Chelsea Baker, and many more out of this world hands on activities.

See you there!

The Friendship Doll

2011-05-22T17:06:00.000-07:00

THE FRIENDSHIP DOLL
by Kirby Larson
Delacorte Books for Young Readers (May, 2011)
Ages 9 and up

Take four stories that span more than a decade of the Great Depression, each of which captures a pivotal moment in the life of a different girl, and link them through the awakening heart of a Japanese doll—you know what you have? One of this year's most compelling books in children's literature: THE FRIENDSHIP DOLL.

Although I am an admitted fan of Kirby Larson, I am not a big fan of dolls (unless they are the wicked, mangled, creatury kind); however, by the time I reached the end of the first story, I could not put this book down. Not only does Larson breathe life into the pretentious Miss Kanagawa, one of 58 Ambassadors of Friendship sent by Japan in 1927, she breathes life into the pages of this book with a subtle element of liminal fantasy that gives each episodic tale a mesmerizing mystical quality grounded in historical authenticity.

This is no easy feat, but when it works (as this does), the payoff is huge. One of my librarian friends read the ARC of this book a couple months ago, and she was raving that it "blew [her] mind." I had no idea what she meant by this, but I do now. The book—its four part structure and seamless blending of the magical with the mundane—has a numinous quality. And the voice—the voices—so pitch perfect in each narration they lend even more authenticity to the telling as Miss. Kanagawa is passed from place to place, suffering the hardship of years and diminished circumstances—but not diminished heart.

THE FRIENDSHIP DOLL closes with a fifth story that diverges from the other four by jumping to the present day. The leap jarred me at first, mainly because the Depression-era world created by Larson in the rest of the book is so hard to leave, but I can see that the book wouldn't have worked without it. In this sense, I tend to think of it more as a perfect epilogue than an ending.

On every level, THE FRIENDSHIP DOLL embodies the power of storytelling and friendship to heal and unite that which has become separated, isolated or broken. For me, there is just one thing lacking in this marvelous narrative: a cash reward for information leading to the whereabouts (or fate) of Miss Kanagawa and her missing sisters. Random House, are you listening?

Source: I bought my copy from Secret Garden Books

About my reviews:
My comments and reactions to the books I read are not so much reader-type reviews as they are my experience of the story as a writer studying the craft. I write them to examine what makes a story work.

Hide Your Mind

2011-05-13T16:17:00.000-07:00

FAMILY
Micol Ostow
Egmont USA (April 2011)
Young Adult

I don't read many YA books; however, when I saw the cover of FAMILY, it was a no brainer that this would land on my reading pile. It's got everything a girl like me could want: mind control, murder and a really messed up family—in this case, a cult of dirty hippies filled with the holy spirit of free love and helter skelter.

(sigh)

Thank you, Micol Ostow.

To rephrase the sage advice of Antoine Dodson: don't hide your mother or sister...hide your mind, because that is what's at stake in FAMILY, a chilling account of psychological manipulation and murder that's loosely based on the 1969 Manson massacres. Ostow's ability to unravel the mind of an emotionally damaged teen puts the icy finish on this tale told in fractured, formless verse that leaps back and forth between past, present and after (the murders).

Through the narrator's mesmerizing first-person haze (mental maze), it becomes clear that the real threat of monsters like Manson doesn't come solely from physical assault; it originates and rests with the subtle and insidious overwhelm of vulnerable young minds. Ostow's use of lowercase letters for all words except those that refer to Him (Henry, the father of the family) adds yet another layer of lost, egoless self. I'm not typically a fan of this sort of technique, but it works very well here. In fact, not doing so would have diluted the mood and tone of the narration.

I've always been fascinated by Charles Manson and his reign of terror, but Ostow deepens the horror of those events through this slow numbing and unwinding of a girl's psyche. Through it, she evokes a different quality of chill than the murders taking place in the backdrop of the narrator's consciousness—it's intimate and immediate.

Inescapable.

Perfect.

Source: I bought my copy at Third Place Books

About my reviews:
My comments and reactions to the books I read are not so much reader-type reviews as they are my experience of the story as a writer studying the craft. I write them to examine what makes a story work.

OKAY BY ME

2011-05-10T14:06:00.000-07:00

OKAY FOR NOW
Gary Schmidt
Clarion Books (April, 2011)
Young Adult

Problem: Take a troubled teen with a violent father, bullying brother and a shameful secret and watch him navigate the perils of downward mobility during a turbulent time when our country is perched precariously between hope and fear—the first moon shot and war in Vietnam—and you've got a dilemma: How in the world do you keep his story from smelling like cheap melodrama?

Answer: Get Gary Schmidt to write it.

In OKAY FOR NOW, Gary Schmidt's follow-up to his Newbery Honor-winning WEDNESDAY WARS, Doug Swieteck's life has all the hallmarks of an ABC after school special about abuse, illness, poverty, bullying, disability, war, and first love all rolled into one; and yet, in the hands of Gary Schmidt, it's a multi-dimensional work of art—just like the John James Audubon's drawings of wildlife that Doug studies at the library every Saturday afternoon.

In fact, the images of Audubon's birds in flight, conflict and balance provide the underpinnings of Schmidt's complex novel. He opens every chapter with a different plate from Birds of America and uses each one as a focal point for Doug to grapple with as he learns Audubon's techniques for depicting movement and stability in a perilous world. In the case of OKAY FOR NOW, life imitates art imitating life.

The parallels are worth taking note by anyone who attempts to re-create life through words or images. Both Audubon and Schmidt's stunning real life portrayals hinge on one simple technique: suggestion. The point is driven home by Mr. Powell the librarian who (pardon the pun) takes Doug under his wing:

"Don't think of the bird as a flat image. Think of it the whole way around, even the parts that you don't see. Then think of how all the different pieces of the bird are working with or against each other. Think how the body of the bird wants to fall..."

"And the wings want to keep it up."

"Exactly. All movement relies on that kind of tension. You show the movement by suggesting the tension."

Simply put, Schmidt's novel succeeds because of his ability to suggest. This single attribute is what makes OKAY soar above other books that deal with difficult subjects.

Doug's father is abusive, but Schmidt doesn't come out and tell us that; he suggests it. Doug never tells the reader his father hits him. That would make him a chump. But he does say his father's hands are quick. He doesn't say his mother feels trapped and hopeless; instead, he shows us how he feels during those rare times she smiles. Often, Doug doesn't assign any value to an event, other than to say. "You know how that feels?" Thanks to suggestion, the reader feels the emotion more keenly than being told outright.

Like Audubon's birds that Doug learns are indirectly defined by the space around them, he is likewise being shaped and defined by the narrative unfolding around him. It's an effective technique if you can pull it off, which Schmidt does without being too overplayed. He does tend to draw the comparisons a little strongly at times, but since the story is told first person by a boy who's trying to figure himself out as he goes along, it works.

The other technique that works beautifully is Schmidt's introduction of an object on page one that will ultimately save the story from becoming distractingly improbable at times, and that is this: Joe Pepitone's hat. It's established right at the beginning that Doug was given that hat the year before by Joe himself (which readers of WEDNESDAY WARS would recall and new readers can easily accept as fact). Without this element of something slightly fantastical, much of Doug's storyline later in the book would feel unearned and parts could be dismissed as too unrealistic for such a realistic story. As a result, I can buy into anything Schmidt delivers at the end (except maybe what happens with the father).

There's so much going on in OKAY FOR NOW, I won't even attempt to lay out all the plot threads; but trust me, none of it would work if Joe Pepitone's hat did not make an early appearance.

And with that, I leave you to READ THIS BOOK and decide for yourself.

About my reviews:
My comments and reactions to the books I read are not so much reader-type reviews as they are my experience of the story as a writer studying the craft. I write them to examine what makes a story work.

Monsters Eat Whiny Children

2011-04-18T09:21:00.000-07:00

MONSTERS EAT WHINY CHILDREN
Written and Illustrated by Bruce Eric Kaplan
Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing (2010)
Ages 4-8

I zeroed in on this book the other day because it had just about everything going for it that screamed READ ME:

The title, which does not leave me wondering if the trajectory of the plot will be on point. I already know where this story is going and I want to watch it unfold.
The back cover, which reads, "The crumbs are the best part." Okay. Now I know this is going to be brash, dark humor. Love it.
The color and illustrations, which are simple, bold cartoon style.(Very raw and monsterish.)
The inside cover pages, which display a map of the children's neighborhood, including this gem: "Store where people think Eve is a boy." It's one of those random, quirky details that tell me this book will not be the usual fare.

As I read the story—about a brother and sister who, despite the warnings from their "kindly father," continue to whine until they are taken by a monster to his lair "in the bad side of town"—I immediately felt an old conflict rising inside my gut (and it wasn't dinner). Here was a fabulous concept with off-beat twists...but the story had all the hallmarks of a writer for adults (Kaplan wrote for Seinfeld and Six Feet Under) who has just written his first children's book.

I love television writers. They're quick, witty, sharp and edgy—all qualities that, when combined with proven conventions of children's literature, could make for a dynamite story. But the key word is, conventions. There's a reason children's writers study them, practice them, and are rejected for years until they get them right: THEY WORK.

I think one of my biggest disappointments in MONSTERS EAT WHINY CHILDREN is that, while it's still a fun read, it could have been so much better. If only a few simple conventions were adhered to:

Make the children the protagonists. In MONSTERS, the protagonists are the "adults" (the monsters) and not the kids. How much more lively and empowering it would have been to see the kids get themselves into trouble, then deeper and deeper trouble as they tried to fix the problem; instead, the story shows us the monsters making all the decisions and mistakes, which his falls under "those dumb grown ups" category. (Yawn)

Stick to the rule of three. It's hard to tell how many problems and turns this story takes. It's a little muddled in this regard. The monster makes a whiny child salad, but the monster's wife doesn't like the dressing. So they make a new dressing, but the neighbor shows up and says they should be making whiny child burgers. But they have trouble with the grill... You get the picture. It's a very adult daily life sort of problem, which is fun to laugh at, but how much better would it have been if the children had been outwitting them or doing something (anything) to affect the storyline?

In the end, the children find a way out, but they didn't earn their way there. So, from my perspective, it felt much less satisfying.

Does this lessen the enjoyment of a reader? Probably not. On the other hand, why not make the most of a promising story and, at the same time, maintain the quality of of craft that we all want young readers to recognize and expect as they grow into the world of literature and life?

About my reviews:
My comments and reactions to the books I read are not so much reader-type reviews as they are my experience of the story as a writer studying the craft. I write them to examine what makes a story work.

Found

2011-04-14T12:36:00.000-07:00

I've been thinking quite a lot about ways to adapt stories to electronic media—not merely convert text in service to e-format, but really use the medium in service to the story. In other words, what's unique about a cell phone or e-reader that can add to the story. Sound? Visual effect? We see the impact of visuals when it comes to illustrated stories, but what about a different kind of visual? I'm not talking about movie making. I want to see the words. There's something much more intimate about silent words that reaches deeper into a story than someone's interpretation, especially when it comes to creepy stories.

As an experiment, I took a tiny piece of flash fiction that's not good enough to submit anywhere—just a little something I scribbled to entertain myself—and added some music, sound effects and subtle visuals. I wanted to see the difference between the plain text and the multi-media approach, so I'll share those with you so that you can see it, too.

Before I do, however, I want to make it clear that I love books. Real books. The kind that don't blink back at you. This experiment is something I think is unique to working with flash fiction, especially the micros, like the one I've practiced here which has 108 words. It's called Found.

Note: The story is a little creepy, so if this isn't your thing, don't go any farther.

For comparison, here's the text of the story:

Found

By the time they realize they’re lost, it’s dark.

“What is this place?” the girl asks as she picks her way through the gnarled landscape of recyclables and rot.

“I dunno. A junkyard?” he says, right before he trips and falls.

“What happened?” Her voice is shaky.

He groans and grabs her ankle.

She reaches for his hand. It’s cold and sticky.

“Are you hurt bad?”

He tightens his grip.

“We gotta go back,” she urges. “This is a dead end. We’re totally lost.”

“Oh no, you’re not,” he says, pulling her into the graveyard of shifting, twisted limbs. “You and your little friend have just been found.”

See? The story is pretty meh, but the media make it more of an experience. At least, that's what I took from the experiment. How about you?

Teacher Teacher

2011-04-04T12:42:00.000-07:00

I had tea with one of my teachers at Whidbey recently—Carolyne Wright.

Bonny Becker's Bear & Mouse to the left; poet and Whidbey MFA faculty, Carolyne Wright to the, er...right.

Carolyne will be teaching the teaching of creative writing for graduates of my creative writing program (life, much like this sentence, can be so circular), and I took the opportunity to ask her some questions about the course. Mainly, I wanted to make sure it will include how to teach creative writing to children rather than for them because teaching to adults would probably drive me witless (imagine having a student like me--uh oh).

By the time Bonny joined us, we were deep into discussion about qualities of teachers we liked and ones we didn't like (so that I could start thinking about my particular philosophy). Because she's well-bred and always prepared for any occasion, Bonny happened to have a large, laminated picture of her elementary school class handy--all black and whitey with a perfectly stern looking teacher lording over everyone in her pearl necklace. I can't account for why she was carrying this around with her. (Yes I can, she used it during a reading at Elliott Bay Books, but it sounds better to think of her randomly carting around a 2 x 3 foot picture of herself as a child.) At any rate, it was perfect timing.

I took one look at that picture and thought of my second-grade teacher, Mrs. Reese. I adored her. She was my hero; that is, until she made me stand in front of the class and hold out my hands while she slapped them with a ruler. I don't remember what I'd done, but I sure didn't care for her much after that. Nor did I favor the one before her, Mrs. Schroeder, who made me stand in the back of the class because I'd been using the restroom when Pledge of Allegiance started and she was convinced I'd dishonored our country on purpose. Or my fourth-grade teacher, Mr. Crocket, who shook his finger at me during class one day and yelled (really yelled) that I'd been giving him the "evil eye." I had no idea what an evil eye was, but I was pretty sure I'd only been thinking about lunch. I ran to the safety of the girls room before I was hanged in the town square.

It may sound as though I attended school in the Village of the Damned, but I swear it really was that awful at times (even worse in middle school... do not get me started). And yet, in spite of the fact that I left school at the end of eighth grade, not one of those whack jobs destroyed my ability to learn.

I credit the good teachers for that, as well as the principal who let me schedule a meeting in his office to verify if the rumors were true that he had a paddle. He did. But he swore he had never used it. I really liked that guy. He let me use the cafeteria for my singing group's rehearsals, even though I couldn't sing and none of us had plans to perform anywhere except maybe the Merv Griffin Show.

There's really no point to any of this, except that if I ever have the chance to teach creative writing to kids, I will never accuse them of wickedness, unless it's essential to a story. In that case, we would celebrate.

This is me in kindergarten, while I was apparently honing my evil eye.

Your writing is really not for me, but I'm sure someone out there will like it—maybe someone who can't read...

2011-03-27T10:54:00.000-07:00

Several years ago, I attended a workshop by Don Miguel Ruiz (The Four Agreements). The guy was a tool, but there was no denying the truth of his message. One of the things he said is that people's opinions are just their opinions. They're not the truth.

This is easy to accept in theory, but when it comes to opinions about my writing, well...they seem to be more than just opinions. They feel more like red-faced, finger-pointing accusations. "She's a witch!" Thwack. "To the stocks!"

A case in point that's tame enough to share:

Exhibit A "Wow! This sucks!"

This was the verdict on the first draft of a story I wrote a couple years ago. Isn't the smiley face wonderful? The interesting thing is that I intended the story to be dark and disturbing (it was for older teens, not the picture book crowd). And yet, while my "wow" critiquer didn't care for such a negative story, another person in the same workshop laughed out loud when it was read. It wasn't the kind of reaction I was going for, but it clearly shows that someone found it laughable. Two different opinions. Neither of which helped me very much.

Here's another by the same person:

Exhibit B "I could tell you all day long how much I don't like your writing: Part Deux."

Uh...okay?

That leads me to my next observation about opinions, which is that when it comes to critiquing a story for a reader who is not like yourself (e.g. exhibit B), expect to be rejected. It's why, when I recently entered a children's story in an adult lit contest, I assumed I'd be tossed into the round file. On some level, I wanted to see if my writing would hold up in the outside world. More than that, however, I wanted to test my ability to take another licking and keep on ticking.

To my surprise, I received a notice yesterday that my story made the first cut. The judges said this means the story is "excellent." Of course, it's only an opinion and I should consider it in balance with the not-so-supportive laughter and ironic smiley faces of doom, but I'm so delighted I wanted to share. Some might call it bragging over nothing, but I think every little step that's not over a cliff is worth celebrating.

Of course, that's just my opinion.

BOOM

2011-03-22T18:36:00.000-07:00

I've been trying a different approach to book reviewing, which is to discuss only those books I have positive things to say about—ergo, the long stretches of silence.

It's not as though I haven't been reading or doing anything interesting; I've been trying to be nice. And, frankly, it's killing me. I'm a person with strong convictions. Strong doesn't mix with nice, which has always felt fairly gutless, even if it's for a good cause.

But who am I kidding? I read with undiluted passion, eager to find rare gems, disappointed when the stories fall short, and a muttering hot mess when my favorites don't get the recognition they deserve. I don't want to be this picky. In fact, I long for the days of pre-educated reading when I could get lost in a story and simply enjoy it without noticing moments of clumsy craft.

I wondered. Could I revert to those days? Could I randomly sift through the bookshelves and see what appealed to me, just like a regular person?

Yes I could. And this is what I found:

I'm not sure what drew me to this book. It certainly wasn't the fact that the author, Mark Haddon, wrote THE CURIOUS INCIDENT OF THE DOG IN THE NIGHTTIME...because I detested that book.

It wasn't for the blurbs. (There were none.)

Or the blog buzz. (The book was originally published in 1992 under the title GRIDZBI SPUDVETCH! and revised/released again in 2009)

Or the cover. (It's orange, with a rocket. Big whoop.)

What grabbed my attention was the immediate engagement of Haddon's writing on the first page—his clipped, breezy style and unpretentious humor. Nothing about this book is striving for higher ground. It is what it is.

And here's what it's about: Two boys overhear their teachers talking in a strange language and decide to investigate. Before they know it, the entire planet is at risk; and worse, their parents are going to be really upset.

There's an out-of-work dad, a work-obsessed mom, a sister's criminally thuggish boyfriend and a lot of smashing, crashing, injury-inducing mishaps. What you will not find is any great character development or meaningful growth. The main character—Jimbo—sleeps through a few key plot turns (because it just feels good to sleep, right?) and falls out of step with the action. No clever craft techniques or plot twists. Nothing along the lines of outrage that this book did not win any awards.

But guess what? I didn't mind. It was just plain fun to read. It reminded me a bit of M.T. Anderson's WHALES ON STILTS (wherein whales on stilts are trying to take over the world), and well, I sure wouldn't mind being on his playing field.

In fact, I wouldn't mind if all I ever wrote were fun stories like BOOM! that provided a little escape from a pretty treacherous world.

Source: I bought my copy at Orca Books.

A Book in Flight

2011-03-07T11:12:00.000-08:00

NO PASSENGERS BEYOND THIS POINT
by Gennifer Choldenko
Dial Books for Young Readers
ages 10 and up

Gennifer Choldenko's newest arrival, NO PASSENGERS BEYOND THIS POINT, delivers a rare blend of skillful craft and great storytelling that captures the hard-to-bottle quality of a book that, once it takes off, cannot be put down.

In this reality-bending story of three siblings whose world has been uprooted through the foreclosure of their home and forced relocation to another state (without their mother), Choldenko manages to pull off the extraordinary.

She effortlessly transports her characters to another plane of existence that is as understandable as it is mystifying, inviting the reader to put the pieces together without feeling overwhelmed or confused. Nothing about what happens to the three young protagonists should make sense, but it does. And that is the beauty of this refreshing novel.

The story is told through three points of view: India, a self-obsessed fourteen-year old striving for independence; Finn, a reliable man-of-the-house twelve-year old saddled with being forgettable in the eyes of his peers; and Mouse, their brilliant six-year-old sister with an equally brilliant invisible friend (Bing).

This narrative approach works beautifully, especially when the kids' flight to Denver takes an inexplicable detour to Falling Bird, a place known only by what it is not. In fact, Falling Bird is littered with signs indicating an endless assortment of "Nots"—Not Las Vegas, Not Albuquerque, Not Denver. Once separated, the different narrations serve to heighten the tension and deepen the storyline.

Falling Bird operates with its own strange, dreamlike logic built from elements of real life. Each of the kids has his and her own home that satisfies every desire, right down to a "cool mom" for India, a "dad" for Finn and plenty of explosive crafts for Mouse. And yet, all is not well in this world where new arrivals are welcomed like rock stars. For one thing, they have to choose to be citizens of Falling Bird and never see their mother again, or forever be passengers looking for a flight that doesn't depart.

Choldenko wastes no detail, making every element work double and triple duty to drive the narrative through character motivation, rather than exterior plot. India, Finn and Mouse create their own outcomes according to their individual flaws and desires—digging themselves to varying depths of difficulty (India more so than her siblings). Not only do they have to solve the puzzle of Falling Bird and find a way out of a place no one leaves, they have to overcome their own individual and collective challenges.

I'm not sure if the targeted reader will be able to tell what's really going on in Falling Bird, or if Choldenko intended to keep it a mystery to the end. I knew right away (though I will be mum about it here), but my knowing did not diminish the enjoyment or suspense; in fact, it was enhanced. So, either way, the story works beautifully.

It's not often I read a book that I get this excited about. It's the perfect middle grade attention-grabber for boys and girls alike. If you haven't already put it on your TRB list, get it on there!

Source: I bought my copy at Orca Books.

Well...Well...Well

2011-02-20T09:25:00.000-08:00

Because the water where I live is so bad it tastes like rusty car fender, I fill up on free flowing artesian well water in the heart of downtown. It's a unique gathering place for people of all stripes: cyclists and runners, people without homes who need a quick birdbath, others whose pipes have frozen, and some (like me) who prefer it to their own water.

Everyone's got her own story, including the woman who's trying to live lightly on the earth, or the one who rides around with a live chicken on the handlebars of her bike, or the man who travels with a cat on his shoulder (cat and man wear matching fatigues). Me, I just love the mix of people and their honesty. Even when there's a small crowd of people waiting to fill up their bottles, no one stands in line; instead, everyone takes turns in an unspoken give and take.

The other day it was raining when I stopped by, and there were a couple of people sitting around the concrete blocks, one of whom traveled with his home and two dogs hitched to his bike. When I filled up my bottle, I noticed a tiny red heart on the pipe and pointed it out. The man said, "Yeah, positive energy here." Just before I turned to leave, the young woman said, "Here" and handed me a rose bud. "Not everyone notices the heart," she said.

She's right. Not only do they not notice the heart, they are afraid of the well. It's raw there, and real, which is why I like it so much. And probably why I like stories that are equally raw and real. It's a good reminder for me not to shy away from the heart in my stories or in life.

Lacey Loves to Read...Kirby Larson

2011-02-18T13:09:00.000-08:00

I had the good fortune to catch Kirby Larson's presentation/celebration of reading at the Lacey Loves to Read community event last night. Kirby's been in town the past couple of days, visiting schools in the Lacey area as part of a community reading initiative designed to generate the discussion and celebration of a notable author...in this case, her.

You know you've hit the big time when you see something like this on the main road that runs through Lacey and Olympia:

The event was standing room only, but I did my best to find a few attendees who gave up their seats and time to say a few words about why they love to read Kirby Larson's books:

The presentation was excellent, and I loved the question and answer period that followed (especially when Kirby was asked if you can eat buffalo chips). For me, one of the best moments came when a girl asked what the hardest part of writing was and Kirby replied that it's the first draft. Oh, how I needed to hear that. I've been finding everything under the sun to do except sit down and start that next story.

More than anything, I wanted to shout out to everyone just how immense Kirby's accomplishments are, and that they have no idea how rare it is for someone to reach that level of success and quality of art. It's an endless process of leaping into the unknown that takes courage and hard work and a little dusting of magic. I'm glad Lacey Loves to Read, and I'm grateful they love Kirby Larson enough to have brought her to our doorstep.

For the Love of Reading: Part 2 (and 3)

2011-02-12T09:53:00.000-08:00

When the South Sound Reading Foundation hosted its annual membership drive, For the Love of Reading, I was struck by just how strong the bond between books and community can be. The event was packed with local and state leaders of every stripe—from the county council, state legislature, county prosecutor's office, schools, libraries and the people who love them.

They were there to celebrate literacy, of course, and the impact it has on every level of society (or, the consequences of its lack); but they were also there to share in the power of story—children's stories in particular. The question posed to everyone who attended was "What's the book that got you hooked?"

I've already posted one short outtake of author Susan Blackaby talking about what makes children's stories great. These next two videos feature:

A long-time local radio broadcaster who was dismissed after more than 50 years on the air and who, in thinking about the book that got him hooked, roused himself from apathy and is making a bid for Mayor of Olympia in the next election.
Our newly elected county prosecutor who unabashedly shared is pride of mastering his first book—HOP ON POP.

They came to support reading. The love of reading. And the power of story to transform lives.

Part 2: Dick Pust

Part 3: Jon Tunheim

For the Love of Reading: Part One (Susan Blackaby)

2011-02-05T18:45:00.000-08:00

Last night, I attended the South Sound Reading Foundation's annual membership drive, For the Love of Reading. Amidst the chocolate, wine and good cheer, special guests shared with everyone The Book That Got Me Hooked.

The short video clip below is from author Susan Blackaby's hilarious re-telling of growing up in a book loving family. Unfortunately, I only had my tiny little camera with a battery that ran out before the end of Susan's sharing, but I managed to capture her wonderfully succinct explanation of what makes children's books so great.

While there, I bought Susan's latest picture book, BROWNIE GROUNDHOG AND THE FEBRUARY FOX (illustrated by Carmen Segovia), and it is an absolutely delightful tale of waiting—waiting for spring...waiting to eat the tasty groundhog...waiting for the right opportunity to outfox the, er, fox. Blackaby's playful language and sense of humor absolutely shine. Segovia's enticing red on white images pull the reader's eyes immediately into the story and turn each page into a deeply satisfying experience.

Review: Moon Over Manifest

2011-01-31T10:22:00.000-08:00

It's difficult not to take some things personally, especially when it comes to missing the arrival a great book; so when Clare Vanderpool's MOON OVER MANIFEST won the 2011 Newbery Award, I somehow managed to think it was a personal failure to not have known about it. Worse, because I'd had my favorites already in place, I questioned the right of this book to pop up out of nowhere (or, at least, nowhere I was looking).

I decided to read it and report my findings, but ran into a snag: how could I review a book without measuring it by the highest standard of children's literature? I can't. It's impossible for me to look at it without picking apart the bones to see how it holds up against those that came before it.

What I can say, after finally having read it, is that Vanderpool deserves her day in the sun for overcoming some complicated storytelling hurdles to deliver a story with breadth and depth. Her tale of twelve-year Abilene—whose father sends her away from their itinerant life to spend the summer in Manifest, Kansas—shifts from the present (1939) to the past (1918) as Abilene digs for clues to mysteries surrounding this small town burdened by a secret past.

There's a lot of ground to cover without ever stepping outside the tiny footprint of Manifest, including: an alleged WWI spy known as the Rattler; the dirty dealings of the Klu Klux Klan; an oppressive mine owner who commands the town and all its immigrants; local boys off to war; a bootlegging preacher; influenza; Hungarian diviner; and, last but not least, letters and mementos left behind by a boy on the run...a boy Abilene thinks just might be her father. Whew.

Vanderpool unravels these many threads through multiple points of view that give the story its movement as well as its continuity between the two time periods: Abilene's first person narration; letters from a WWI soldier; old news excerpts; and third-person vignettes told by a "diviner" who recounts the past as though it is being relived. She deserves kudos for doing something I don't see done very often or very well: alternating between two time periods without upsetting the story or the reader (who may become attached to one era and resent the jarring).

It could be that since the two eras are fairly close in time, and some of the same characters exist in both, Vanderpool is able to maintain the same grip on the reader's attention (although I admit to having preferred the old story within the present story of 1939). Regardless, this is no small feat. She also does a superb job of grounding her story in vivid historical detail without making the experience feel at all teachery (which kids will love).

I do have a few bones to pick, however, not the least of which is the similarity of the two main narrative voices—those of Abilene and Sadie, the diviner—which are expressed with a little too much generic folksiness. Even Abilene wonders how she should be speaking (do people in Manifest say y'all?), and this tells me that Vanderpool wasn't quite sure herself. Since Sadie is Hungarian, it would have been nice to hear different diction or tone to that key element of the storytelling. It would also have smoothed the transition from present to past with a little less confusion as to who was telling each part of the story.

I'd also love to have seen Abilene be more active, make some mistakes that drive the story, and maybe change a little more by the end; in other words, to be more of a protagonist. Instead, the protagonist is someone in the past—the boy known only as Jinx. The problem comes from the fact that so much of the story is being retold. The nature of the town's secret is so unique and well worth telling, I wanted to see Abilene be more of a participant than an observer; or, if not that, then somehow significantly altered by the experience of uncovering the past. If it's there, I didn't pick up on it.

Although I wish there hadn't been so much left to the end for the truth to be revealed (made manifest), there's a lot of depth to this story's message. By the end, I felt satisfied by all the threads that came together and the lives that reached across two decades to create a place called home. I can see why the Newbery committee selected it, and look forward to seeing more of Clare Vanderpool's work in the future.

Kate and Me: Like This, Only Not

2011-01-29T07:24:00.000-08:00

Presenting Kate DiCamillo, whose path to publishing is pretty much just like mine. And by pretty much, I mean the struggling outsider, loser stretch of the journey. It's the persistence part that speaks to me.

Video by Adolescent Literacy (Adlit.org). Thanks to Candlewick for the link.

On The Road Again...and Again...and Again

2011-01-25T14:48:00.000-08:00

I just picked up the winner of the 2011 Newbery Medal, MOON OVER MANIFEST. This is not a review of that book (I'll write one soon), but just a simple observation that of the 2011 Newbery recipients I've read thus far —MOON OVER MANIFEST, TURTLE IN PARADISE and ONE CRAZY SUMMER—all three have opening scenes that take place on some mode of transportation: train, car and plane (respectively). I'll also hazard a guess that the opening scene of HEART OF A SAMURAI (an Honor winner about a shipwrecked boy rescued by a whaler) takes place on a ship, though I could be wrong.

Thinking I found a simple key to success, I mentally scanned through a list of my favorite books to see if they all have opening transportation scenes. Alas, they do not. However, what this year's trend tells me is that putting the main character in a boat, plane, train or automobile is an excellent way to get the main character out of the ordinary world and into the special world of the hero's journey without delay. No messing around with snooze-inducing background information. The old life is already slipping away while the main character (and reader) can get down to the business of anticipating what comes next.

This is not to say that stories which open in place are not equally as heroic (in fact, I think they come with some very special heroics of the writer), but I do think it's a fine way to get the story gears in motion. Literally.

Another benefit of these transportation scenes is to create what screenwriter Kathleen Rowell calls The Pope in the Pool. During one of her presentations at a Whidbey Writers MFA residency, she described the technique as a way to avoid the talking head affliction when creating a scene in which a lot of information needs to be conveyed. In the example she shared, the scene took place at the pool of the Vatican. In order for the viewer to absorb the necessary information, they put the Pope in the pool and had him swim laps for a visual distraction.

So, thank you 2011 Newberyians. You've got me thinking that, whether I'm launching a story into the special world of the hero's journey or issuing a massive data dump, I'm going to be considering my story's first scene with my feet instead of my head.

Boycott the Bird

2011-01-13T13:59:00.000-08:00

The first major insult to the literary world came with the release of a book by the foul-mouthed, semi-sober, trash t.v. celebrity known as Snooki, from which the following exudate is spewed forth:

"They were huddled together like a family of Ellis Island Immigrants just off the Mayflower."
—A Shore Thing

Okay. I think that's enough said.

The second blow came earlier this week when NBC's Today bumped Caldecott and Newbery winners in favor of an interview with said "author."

Really NBC? Really?

Jane Yolen has taken on Today by emailing and posting a succinct rant on her website. Listen, if there's anyone I wouldn't want to rub the wrong way, it's the author of 300 children's books. You go, girrrrl!

Jane suggests emailing NBC to voice our outrage.

I suggest a boycott. Or a good YouTube send up of NBC sinking into the human waste it so powerfully embraces and promotes.

It would be a step in the right direction.

Announcing the Winner of the First Annual Platinum WTF Award

2011-01-12T10:44:00.000-08:00

Oh, get your mind out of the gutter. In this case, WTF stands for We Think you're Fabulous! It's to honor glaring omissions in the august award selections for a Newbery (medal or honor). And if you want to think it stands for something else, so be it. I am not here to judge you.

The point is to award the book (or books) that deserved a nod from Newbery. This is not to detract from the medal and honor winners, but to say Hey, WTF! to the author who deserved to be honored as well. Historically, honor books have not been restricted to a set number (they have ranged from zero to five). I understand that the committee wishes to distinguish the very best by keeping the count low, but come on. Even winners can tie.

And so, it is with heartfelt appreciation for the Meryl Streep of children's literature that I award the first annual Platinum WTF Award to.....

That's right, Laurie Halse Anderson was ~~screwed~~ overlooked yet again. We saw the same thing with CHAINS. And with that book, I have to say that there is no way Neil Gaiman's THE GRAVEYARD BOOK could hold a bloody candle to LHA's breathless masterpiece.

Could it be, as many had anticipated, that the second book in a series would run off the rails? Well, tell that to Susan Cooper who won a Newbery honor and medal for THE DARK IS RISING and THE GREY KING respectively. Or...dig up Laura Ingalls Wilder, who won a whopping five honors.

No, there is no good reason why FORGE was left off the podium. As part of a series, it stood alone. There was no confusion about events that came before the book, and the ending was a classic leave-em-begging-for-more that is not restricted to series, but should be an element of all great books.

As alluded to above, I tend to think it's a case of MSS—Meryl Streep Syndrome. Everyone knows Laurie Halse Anderson is a gifted writer who is guaranteed to deliver a stellar performance. The Committee, like the Academy, may be wooed by the element of surprise...the authors or books they didn't see coming. Such is the curse of fabulousity.

While I'm at it, I'd like to present a retroactive Platinum WTF to....

It's true that Barbara O'Connor's little delinquents-in-the-making go nuts over HOW TO STEAL A DOG, but who cares what kids think? GREETINGS FROM NOWHERE is simply too good not to have received a Newbery.

That's it for the 2011 Platinum WTF Award. Until next year...don't forget to tell an author you feel was overlooked that you think s/he is fabulous.

Almost Live...

2011-01-11T13:00:00.000-08:00

I needed to create a website for someone, so in order to become familiar with the process, I tossed up a website for myself.

Welcome to Grier Jewell...Almost Live

For those who lack a single meaningful thing to occupy their time.

My Life as a Shack

2011-01-01T15:41:00.000-08:00

This is not a New Year's resolution. It is part of THE PLAN, which is not so much a plan as it is a series of experimental leaps through life and writing. Right now, one of those leaps is to create something from scrap that comments on my process, something I can also use as a space in which to create more life and writing.

In poetry, I learned how to write found poems with words picked up in random places (newspaper clippings, box tops, labels, headlines, etc), so this next project is along those same lines of building a form out of found items. Some people call it reclaimed. Others call it junk. I call it my meta shack.

It starts with this:

A door (or, most of one). It needs a bottom panel among other things.

The idea is to build a structure using found or reclaimed items that I can shape and revise into something I can live with (or better yet, love). I got lucky with the door. It's my reminder to keep going in all creative pursuits—symbolic as well as a functional.

First, I need to learn how to build something that won't fall apart. Sort of like learning how to write a story. Hopefully, this will be less painful.

I'm no genius, but figure I'll need the following:

A roof.
Four walls.
Windows.
Something along the lines of a floor.
The rest of the front door.

I'll post updates as I move along (don't expect much until the weather warms up and dries out...say, July).

How Writing is Like Breaking the Law...and Making the Law

2010-12-27T15:53:00.000-08:00

A couple of recent events caused me to reflect on writing and laws. I'm not talking about the laws of writing—the kind that established writers caution about not breaking unless you know what you're doing. I'm talking about the legal kind you get in trouble for breaking (and making).

The two events both occurred this past Christmas Eve in which I spent time with my niece and nephews while their father was at home on his roof—with a chain saw and a tree that he felt was getting in the way of his giant inflatable Santa—and their mother was holding the ladder.

My oldest nephew, who's out of college and starting his own business, asked me why I gave up a career with pay for writing stories with, you know, nothing in return. It was nice to be asked. For me, the answer was simple. "I write because I can't not do it."

His sister is more like me, but she's determined to make herself stick with a course of studies that will provide a secure career. Me, bad aunt, suggested it was better to follow her passion even it meant that she would "only" be happy, but not financially secure. Good thing their parents weren't there.

The way this relates to the law is that it was their father who taught me how to break it, literally. I was fourteen at the time and he was nineteen. We were living in the middle of nowhere on an island (and that's all you need to know for now). He found some abandoned buildings up the road and was curious about what was behind one of the locked doors. He kept kicking and kicking the door, but it wouldn't budge. Then, voila! He figured out the secret.

"You have to kick all the way through," he told me, "like you know you're going to succeed."

Me—when I lived on an island that shall not be named

Writing is like a locked door that I can't just pound on here and there. I have to give it everything I've got in order for it to fall into place. Not only that, but it takes going outside the parameters of what is acceptable and responsible. At some point, it's important to stop caring about the right thing to do and break down the door like I know it will give way. It's different for everyone, but this is how it is for me.

The other thing that triggered my thinking about laws and writing was later in the evening when my nephew found a picture of me at a bill signing. He wanted to know why I was in a picture with the old governor and the new one (when she was Attorney General for the state). I told him it was the signing of an anti-bullying bill—years ago, when it wasn't at all easy to be against bullying. The bill had taken the prime sponsor many years to push through a lot of resistance.

It made me realize how writing is a lot like creating laws:

If it's really good, it will take years to succeed.
There will always be people who don't like what you come up with.
They may even not like you. A lot.
You will have to create something that does not exist, in an environment that does not want it to survive.
You need the right people to agree with your idea.
The more people who agree, however, the worse your idea probably is. Best to try something else.
In the end, the most you may get is a pen and your dignity.
You will do it again.

Now, as I'm celebrating the completion of my thesis—a collection of flash fiction for middle graders called FLASH FRIGHTS: TINY TALES OF CREEP—I have a little law breaking and law making to thank for giving me the strength to get this far.

Bill signing for Anti-Bullying Law

(That's me in the back row—toward the left—heh)

Is You Is or Is You Isn't?

2010-12-17T13:11:00.000-08:00

There are many qualities that separate really great writers from the rest of the pack—some of them reside entirely in the realm of art and some in craft—but I'm currently of the mind that there's nothing that tests the mettle of a writer more than the ability to write a novel in present tense without being noticed.

Case in point: Jennifer L. Holm's TURTLE IN PARADISE.

First of all, I don't think I've read anything of hers that I haven't fallen in love with. Her stories are fully entertaining and magnificently well-told; but more than anything, she's got that ineffable quality of voice that makes her work sing.

When it comes to TURTLE, it's Holm's technique that I think elevates the narrative even further. Her narrator (Turtle) tells the story in the present tense without that excruciating tendency to walk the reader through each movement, as in: "I look out the window; I walk to the door; I turn the handle." I aye aye.

This sort of point-by-point present tense approach can become so mechanical, it hurts to read. The only place I've ever seen a need for this might be in creating scenes in which each action places the character in peril, and we don't know what the outcome will be. HUNGER GAMES works well in present tense because it helps build the suspense (although I may be the only one who wanted Katniss and Peeta to die).

Otherwise, I prefer the distance of time to allow a little past tense reflection, even if the story is being told the next day. Most people aren't that brilliant in the moment, and they don't think about the position of their bodies unless they're in physical distress. Yes, dear narrator, you've had to move your body parts from point A to B. Unless your telling is so mangled, the reader can make the leap from lying in bed to lunging at the intruder (and be better off for it). I don't think, "I'm going to the door to open it." I think, "Whoever is pounding down my door is gonna be sorry real soon—" Readers can make the leap between cause and effect, and they should be trusted to do so.

Holm's TURTLE shows us how present tense can work with an expert hand guiding it. She starts off right away with this gem for the opening:

Everyone thinks children are sweet at Necco Wafers, but I've lived long enough to know the truth: kids are rotten. The only difference between grown-ups and kids is that grown-ups go to jail for murder. Kids get away with it."

The story is told in first-person present tense with sprinkles of past tense reflection that Holm seamlessly blends together, putting the reader in the immediate experience of the narrator (Turtle) while also filling in the background a little at a time, just the way a person might think about herself. Even though the "I do" this's and that's are unavoidable, she does not rely on them to crank the story forward.

Aside from her narrative skill, Holm simply writes a compelling, entertaining novel with depth. But if she had handled the present tense any differently, it would have turned her fluid storytelling to wood.

So, as I read TURTLE IN PARADISE, I'm thinking...wouldn't it be nice to write like that?

Review: Saraswati's Way

2010-12-09T13:45:00.000-08:00

SARASWATI'S WAY
by Monika Schroder
Frances Foster Books | Farrar Straus Giroux (November 2010)
Ages 10-14

Some books remind me of movies that come out right around the end of the year, just in time to be fresh in the minds of Academy Award voters. I'm talking about the quiet movies, the ones with substance and staying power. Like their visual counterparts, these books earn their way through the emotional landscape--no manufactured sentimentality or cheap scenes that break down at the end of the day.

SARASWATI'S WAY, by Monika Schroder, is one of those books. Set in current day India, it has all the components of a heartrending plot: a boy has a dream to go to a good school, but he needs a tutor in order to compete for a scholarship, his family is poor and his father dies, forcing the boy to grapple with modern day indentured slavery from which he escapes, only to end up in the slums of Dehli where his dream slips farther and farther away; and yet, Schroder keenly shies away from milking the reader's emotions with the editorial narration of a superior outsider.

This isn't a "multicultural" book that helps to educate readers about other ways of life. It's a human and humane novel that levels the playing field for all readers.

Schroder deftly crafts a story that tells itself honestly and without frills. This is simply how life is. People die. Others are cruel. Circumstances turn good children into drug addicts, dealers and thieves. However, no one and no thing can steal or stifle a dream when it's as powerful as that of twelve-year old Akash.

He has a genius for numbers and patterns, and a real chance for a better life if only he can find the money to pay for a tutor, but Akash's real gift is his personal integrity and internal compass. Through the lens of a somewhat distant third person narration, Schroder brings us inside the mind of a boy struggling to understand why the gods—Ganesha, remover of obstacles, and Saraswati, wisdom and knowledge—are ignoring his pleas.

Thankfully, Schroder allows Akash to make mistakes—one of which leads to a big loss—and she does not ignore the realities of lecherous men who prey on boys, corrupt authorities, and the prevalence of poverty and crime. I'm not sure how she does it, though, but none of the seaminess is gratuitous. Like the storytelling itself, it's there to serve and not detract.

My only wish is that the resolution had taken longer to reach and been a bit less tidy. Even so, I was left wanting to follow Akash to the next chapter in his life. This is one book I would love to see a sequel to.

For a little taste of SARASWATI'S WAY, check out the book trailer:

Source: copy provided by author

Top Ten Chapter Books of 2010

2010-11-28T20:19:00.000-08:00

On average, I read about 2-3 books per week. Most are chapter books, a few young adult novels and a smattering of picture books and early readers. Since my own writing is geared toward the 8-12 year old crowd (my peers, basically), I sifted through all the chapter books I've read that were published this year and came up with a solid list of top ten. (A few are in that gray area—lurching toward YA.)

(Please click on the bottom right of the screen to get rid of the ads if they appear.)

There are other worthy books, of course, but these are the ones I would recommend to any reader or parent/grandparent without a second thought. I have no doubt that some of these will be on the Newbery shortlist.

For picture books, I have to put in a plug for Bonny Becker's A BEDTIME FOR BEAR. And it's not just because I know her. This follow-up book to the E.B. White Read Aloud award winner, A BEDTIME FOR BEAR, is the season's best gift for little ones. Another great picture book gift for the holiday season is Jesse Joshua Watson's HOPE FOR HAITI.

And let's not forget Kate DiCamillo and Alison McGhee's BINK & GOLLIE for the year's most smashing early reader chapter book.

Keep reading!

The books listed in the Top Ten Books of 2010 slideshow are (in alphabetical order):
Alchemy and Meggy Swann, by Karen Cushman
The Fantastic Secret of Owen Jester, by Barbara O'Connor
The Fences Between Us, by Kirby Larson
Forge, by Laurie Halse Anderson
Guinea Dog, by Patrick Jennings
The Kneebone Boy, by Ellen Potter
One Crazy Summer, by Rita Williams-Garcia
Seaglass Summer, Anjali Banerjee
Touch Blue, by Cynthia Lord
Turtle in Paradise, by Jennifer L. Holm

Widen Your Imagination: Watch This

2010-11-28T12:35:00.000-08:00

The following TED presentation/talk by writer Elif Shafak, The Politics of Fiction encourages us to get out of our "cultural ghettos" and, rather than write what we know, write what we feel.

Popeye Reviews Splipping Spiddlers

2010-11-19T08:34:00.000-08:00

SIPPING SPIDERS THROUGH A STRAW
Campfire Songs for Monsters

Written by Kelly DiPucchio and illustrated by Gris Grimly

Scholastic Press (May 2008)

Ages 9-12

Diz heer is Popeye an i jes kongradulated frum skool (yu kan se my pichur beelo). My peeples sez im soo smart i kud prolly lern to reed an soo i red me a buk i wont too tel yu abowt. Itz colled Splipping Spiddlers Threw An Strawl by Kelly DiPucchio and Gris Grimly (woo i thunk muzt ble a dawg becuz he maks growly fun pichurs).

Heer iz me reedeeng da buk.

Da buk iz abowt funni monster songs lik Home on the Strange an Creepy Creepy Little Jar. But my flaborite iz Clap Your Paws (if yur skary an yu no id).

Da pichurs by Gris Grimly iz extry spesel kreepy an funnly too. My peeples sez he iz uh geanus.

I laf so hard wen ~~my peeples~~ I reed da buk, I thunk everlybudy shud git it for Kristlemas an Honnikerh prezentz too gif everlybudy.

My peeples sez itz wun uv har flaveritz buks uv oll tim.

Heer iz me getteeng kongradulated.

Soo ok, go ged da buk.

Mitzi Notnagel Strikes Again

2010-11-13T14:51:00.000-08:00

Lord have mercy, Mitzi Notnagel (organisierungsexpert and chaos control agent) strikes again, this time with a very important! review of Bonny Becker's A BEDTIME FOR BEAR. Who doesn't love Mitzi?

Mitzi Notnagel reviews Bonny Becker's A BEDTIME FOR BEAR

Pssst...for more of Mitzi, be sure to check out her cautionary video on maintaining a clean Halloween.

All Hallow's Read

2010-10-30T13:00:00.000-07:00

If he knew, he probably wouldn't care that we have a complicated relationship, but author Neil Gaiman has proposed an idea that I have absolutely no bone to pick with. It has to do with a new book giving tradition he wrote about on his blog, and has since launched with an official All Hallow's Read website.

It's akshually a brilliant idea. Takes little effort. And (as Gaiman points out) does not require that anyone be eaten.

Give a kid a scary book for Halloween.

Time is running out...be sure to pick up a book or twenty to hand out with your Snickers bars and gummy worms. You know you want to.

Tips for Trick or Treatin' to Keep from Being Eaten

2010-10-29T09:02:00.000-07:00

My contribution for Poetry Friday, in honor of...you know...

Tips for Trick or Treatin’ to Keep from Being Eaten

It’s almost here—that time of year

When goblins roam the street...

Be brave! Be bold! Prepare yourself!

Or you’ll be someone’s treat.

If zombies cast their eyes your way,

You must protect your soul…

Be safe! Be smart! Do not look back!

Such staring takes its toll.

A luring chant may catch your ears

And tempt you with its verse…

Be swift! Be sharp! Run fast and far!

Avoid the witch’s curse.

Above all else, do not go out

With just a ghost or two…

Beware! Be wise! Remain alive!

Take several fiends with you.

A Monster Read

2010-10-27T16:12:00.000-07:00

The Monstrumologist
by Rick Yancey
Simon & Shuster 2009
Ages 14+

Unlike this masterful work of macabre, I'll keep my review of THE MONSTRUMOLOGIST short and sweet. This 2010 Printz Honor is hands down the best gothic horror novel I've read in years.

THE MONSTRUMOLOGIST details a man's dying account of his boyhood service to a "philosopher" with a maddening obsession for the Anthropophagus (flesh eating monster).

Lucky for us, some really nasty Anthropophagi are on the loose, and Yancey leaves out none of the details.

From the moment the crazed doctor and his young assistant dig a monster's spawn out of an unfortunate victim, Yancey takes readers deep into a maze of horror that gradually reveals some painfully personal secrets.

Yancey seldom relieves readers with a moment of peace, continually ratcheting up the tension with breathless suspense. But there's more to the story than a rip-roaring plot. The main character, an orphan named Will Henry, has a story of his own that's beautifully crafted and well-paced. He is a refreshing surprise. I'll just say that.

I was hooked, and if you like superb writing, you will be too.

Here's the book trailer:

Source: I bought my copy at Orca Books

Poetry Friday

2010-10-22T11:46:00.000-07:00

Rest in Peas My Pumpkin

Be brave my precious pumpkin.

Do not fear the knife.

I will slice you quickly

And bring you ghoulish life.

Your guts, I’ll roast for snacking.

Your head, I’ll cook for soup.

And when I’m finished eating,

I’ll compost all your goop.

—Grier

The Inside Story on BOOks

2010-10-21T10:02:00.000-07:00

Mark your calendars for October 27th for the SCBWI Western Washington Inside Story. The Chinook Update says it all:

If you missed our Professional Series Meeting last week (or even if you didn't), you might like to see the banner that Snackmeister Dana Sullivan created to welcome attendees and celebrate books with a Halloween feel. (Click the image for a closer view.) The books featured the banner are among those that will be celebrated at our upcoming Inside Story, which will be held at 6:30 p.m. on October 27 at Parkplace Books. Watch for banners at our November and December meetings for the covers of more books we'll hear about at the Inside Story. Thanks, Dana — and congratulations, authors and illustrators!

Featuring new releases by:

Kevan Atteberry
Bonny Becker
Erik Brooks
Royce Buckingham
Liz Callen
Janet Lee Carey
Holly Cupala
Barbara Caridad Ferrer
Karen Kincy
Laura McGee Kvasnosky
Karen Lewis
Liz Mills

Maggie Smith
Kathryn Thurman
Michele Torrey
Jesse Joshua Watson
Conrad Wesselhoeft
Suzanne Williams
Dori Jones Yang

There will also be a brief performance by Kevin Emerson, author of several books for children, and lead singer and drummer of our favorite Seattle kid music band, the Board of Education.

Freaky Family

2010-10-19T13:25:00.000-07:00

I love Halloween. It was the only time of year I fit in. Having recently come across some old family photos (when we were down to just four kids and a dog), I don't think I have to wonder why I'm drawn toward off-beat stories and funky characters.

The following are some family pictures we sent to relatives at Christmastime, accompanied by this introduction written by my brother. I think it explains a few things (like why other parents wouldn't allow their children to come to our house).

From the dawn of recorded history, stemming through the lifetimes of every man, woman and child who ever walked upon the face of the earth, there have been but a handful whose fate it was to become known as Phenomenon. From their birth came their deeds, and from their deeds recognition. And few indeed were born to be known by name alone.

There were, of course, literally thousands—from Einstein to Mozart, from Lincoln to Hemmingway, from Alcindor to Rich—who have burned their family names forever into the pages of history.

Each Phenomenon have been true leaders of each culture. From Peace and War and Innocence and Politics there came Jesus and Napoleon and Twiggy and Mao.

And it was this unknown—something phenomenal—energy which caused an entire world to wake up one day realize that everyone knew a boy named Elvis!!!

When you hear Ella, the mind says Fitzgerald. But when you hear Elvis, one thinks only of The King. His time came to pass in the Fifties.

When you hear John, Paul, George and Ringo together, the mind becomes fixed on The Beatles. Their era became known as the Sixties.

It has often been said that Art becomes great not when it is "good" or "bad" but only when it absolutely cannot be ignored.

For the JEWELL FAMILY, that time came in the year 1973.

Standing outside the Jewell estate

(those are my legs hanging down from the roof of the pump house)

No, these are not costumes.

Monster Chuckles

2010-10-16T08:39:00.000-07:00

FRANKENSTEIN MAKES A SANDWICH
by Adam Rex
Harcourt Children's Books (Spetember 2006)
Ages 4-8

Monsters make great stories, but do they make a good sandwich? Adam Rex answers these and other pressing questions with a resounding mmmph! mmmph! in FRANKENSTEIN MAKES A SANDWICH, a fun and fabulous collection of illustrated monster rhymes.

From Frankenstein's culinary challenges to the Creature from the Black Lagoon's swimming cramps, Rex tells it like it isn't. The rhyming narratives flirt with scary legends by poking fun at prominent baddies, like Dracula who's got an embarrassing problem in Count Dracula Doesn't Know He's Been Walking Around with Spinach in His Teeth.

Rex has fun toying with the reality of monsters who have to deal with mundane issues, but he also manages to turn the mundane into the monsterish with The Dentist (a scary topic in its own right) whose described by Frankenjunior as having hooks for fingers and a giant glowing eye for a head.

One of the delights of this collection is a running gag with the Phantom of the Opera's inability to rid his mind of maddening tunes like It's a Small World and B-I-N-G-O—something everyone can relate to. This recurring theme also has the effect of subtlety tying the collection together.

The real star of this wickedly entertaining variety show, however, is Rex's mad gift of illustration. Talk about range--the illustrations run from classic monster film creep show to black and white comic strip and full-color, eye-popping paintings. It's a bit like strolling through an old-time fun house.

There are oodles of monster books, but very few that have oodles of monsters worth their weight in gore. FRANKENSTEIN MAKES A SANDWICH is definitely worthy of a permanent place on the bookshelf.

Source: I bought my copy at Orca Books.

Zombiekins

2010-10-06T14:18:00.000-07:00

ZOMBIEKINS
Written by Kevin Bolger
Illustrated by Aaron Blecha
Razorbill (June 2010)
Ages 9-12

When the Widow Imavitch of Dementedyville sells a sinister-looking "stuffy" to Stanley Nudelman, life in his "tidy, uneventful town" suddenly becomes interesting; but interesting in a way that's sometimes barely indistinguishable from the everyday horrors of slope-headed bullies, and sixth graders who speak only in grunts or snarls ("So?" says Stanley's friend Miranda. "They're always like that.")

Kevin Bolger has a gift for making the dreadful totally entertaining, beginning with the nighttime playroom massacre in which Zombiekins comes to life with its menacing limp—Stump!—scritch...Stump!—scritch...Stump!—scritch—tearing the stuffings and limbs off the competition. But is this scary? Nah. It's delicious fun. Stanley blames his poor dog for the "savaged stuffies" and ignorantly takes Zombiekins to school, where things really unravel.

Bolger lightens the mood set by this terrifying teddy by poking fun at the ordinary and mixing it up with the horridnary. After all, can one really tell the difference between a pack of sixth-graders and a zombie horde? No wonder poor Stanley is a little slow to tumble.

He's not the only one to miss the signs. When one of his classmates starts moaning and swiveling her head after one bite from Zombiekins, the teacher Mr. Baldengrumpy doesn't notice a thing. As long as everyone stays in line and follows instructions, he could care less.

Once he catches on, however, Stanley sets out to save his school from ETERNAL ZOMBIEFICATION before something really bad happens and he gets detention.

ZOMBIEKINS is pure entertainment, perfect for reluctant readers and eager readers alike. The illustrations of Aaron Blech bring this deadbeat toy to life with just the right touch of ghoulishness.

Source: I bought my copy of ZOMBIEKINS at Ocra Books.

Want a little taste? Here's a trailer for the book:

Picture Books for Little Chills

2010-10-03T09:58:00.000-07:00

BOO, BUNNY!

Written by Kathyrn O. Galbraith
Illustrated by Jeff Mack
Sandpiper (September 2010)
AGES 4-8

“One shy bunny / One dark night” begins the quietly told tale of a bunny's daring evening of trick-or-treating. Kathryn O. Galbraith delivers just the right touch of shivery anticipation for young readers as one scared bunny joins another, and the two friends face the spooky sights and sounds of Halloween "paws held tight."

The bumps, eeks, squeaks, booos and whoooos resolve into a satisfying ending that makes the journey all the more worthwhile.

BOO, BUNNY! is told in rhythmical slant rhymes and long vowel sounds that create an engaging read-aloud. Great for small groups and one-on-one reading.

This one is a keeper.

WHEN A MONSTER IS BORN
Written by Sean Taylor, Illustrated by Nick Sharratt
Roaring Brook Press (August 2009)
Ages 4-8

WHEN A MONSTER IS BORN is the twisted creation of Sean Taylor who lays out the many possibilities that unfold when a monster is born, starting with:

"either it's a faraway-in-the-forests monster, or…it's an under-your-bed monster."

Each set of choices has one option that ends the story ("If it eats you, that's that") and one option that leads to two more possibilities. After a series of fabulous twists and turns, the story returns to the birth of a new monster...and the story begins again.

The publisher says it's for ages 4-8, but I don't think it stops there.

This is a great book for a dramatic reading and interactive storytime.

A Guaranteed Good Read

2010-09-25T12:54:00.000-07:00

THE FENCES BETWEEN US
by Kirby Larson
Scholastic (September, 2010)
Ages 9+

THE FENCES BETWEEN US reintroduces Scholastic's Dear America series through the diary of thirteen-year-old Piper Davis who witnesses the incarceration of her preacher father's entire congregation of Japanese immigrants and their American-born children during World War II.

As author Kirby Larson expertly reveals over the course of the novel, it was one of our country's darkest secrets and deepest shames—particularly in the Pacific Northwest where the threat of an attack from without and within our borders felt imminent (sadly, not all that different from today).

Piper's account of the events leading up to, and during, the incarceration of Japanese Americans is carried by the impeccable voice of authentic self-interest that slowly evolves from lipstick and boyfriend drama to the realities of war and fear of "otherness."

Larson ups the emotional ante for Piper, whose brother is stationed in Pearl Harbor when his ship is attacked. So, while her father attends to the victims of war at home—to the point of moving with Piper to Idaho Falls to be with his congregation fenced inside Camp Minidoka—she follows news reports of the war in the Pacific with an added level of fear for her brother's life.

Through Piper's recounting of the news, as well as her vivid description of conditions inside two incarceration camps (thanks to Larson's brilliant decision to make Piper a budding photographer), THE FENCES BETWEEN US explores the war far and near without ever feeling like a history lesson.

The voice of Piper is pitch perfect, adding yet another layer of authenticity to a fictional account that feels so very real. Piper's entries are loaded with the idioms, values, and facts of the day in a natural, unforced way. And, as she changes, so too does the reader, as we transform from outsider to insider, peering through the fog of war to find some clarity and understanding.

This is education at its best—when it makes the reader think beyond the dry facts to what it all means in human terms.

Kids, teachers, and librarians will love this riveting relaunch of Scholastic's Dear America series.

Satisfaction Guaranteed:
Because I know and adore Kirby Larson, one could argue that my opinions are biased. So, just to keep my integrity, I'll stand behind my words with a money back guarantee. If you are not completely satisfied with THE FENCES BETWEEN US, send your copy to the South Sound Reading Foundation, email to let me know, and I will refund your money. F'real.

Source: I bought my copy at Third Place Books

Whip Flash

2010-09-20T10:14:00.000-07:00

The fall issue of Crow Toes Quarterly is out, and I'm delighted that my flash fiction blaster, The Hand of Holland Rogers: Is It True? is included in this weird and wonderful issue.

I learned about flash fiction in my MFA program at the Whidbey Writer's Workshop and fell in love. Flash fiction is the term used in literature for adults. It's generally defined by word length--anything under 1,000 words, but sometimes 500 or 250, depending on the editor.

There is no equivalent form in literature for children, probably because so many forms of kidslit are naturally short; however, there is a different quality to flash that sets it apart from traditional stories. It's truly a snapshot, a quick flash on one potent moment or serial incidents of crisis and change (including change that takes place in the reader), typically with a twist at the end.

I've heard the terms sudden fiction and figment fiction tossed around kidslit here and there, but I prefer flash. And, since the definition is pretty flexible, I'm defining blaster as anything under 250 words.

Just like the name, flash fiction is tightly packed with energy. And, if it works, its afterlight lingers in the reader's mind.

Subscribe to Crow Toes Quarterly today...if you dare.

It's no secret...

2010-09-16T09:20:00.000-07:00

The Fantastic Secret of Owen Jester
by Barbara O'Connor
Frances Foster Books/Farrar Straus Giroux (August 2010)
Ages 8-12

It's no secret that I'm a BIG fan of Barbara O'Connor's work. She's got a signature style that never goes out of style. Her words are playful, lyrical, and a delight to read aloud.

The stories have heart.
The emotions are earned.
The characters are true.

It's also no secret that I'm a tough reader, hard to please, and easily irked when I think a writer is rusting on her laurels.

The only rusting going on in THE FANTASTIC SECRET OF OWEN JESTER, however, is the cage that Owen and his buddies Travis and Stumpy are constructing for poor, sad Tooley Graham, "the biggest, greenest, slimiest, most beautiful bullfrog in the whole world."

Once again, O'Connor has crafted a tiny corner of the world that's jammed packed with characters and mysteries that she slips into the story as easily as Owen drops poor Tooley into Earlene's soup pot. Besides Owen and his buddies, there's the memorable Viola, a girl who makes it her business to be in Owen's business no matter how much he tries to shed her from his life. I love this kid. She could have easily been a one-note character, but O'Connor surprises us—slowly, but surely—as the story unfolds.

The adults are, thankfully, either in the background or slightly off center stage, just enough to make life complicated for Owen. Interestingly, Owen and his parents have come to live with his grandfather due to financial problems. O'Connor drops this background—so pertinent to today's reality—with a deft hand. The loss of Owen's home is simply there. It gives an emotional underpinning to the story without being the least bit overwrought and hand wringingly nauseating (as others with less skill—me maybe—would be tempted to do).

With great subtlety, Owen's story mirrors that of Tooley Graham—plucked from his home and made to live under the unnatural law of Earlene, his grandfather's aide. The relationship Owen has with his grandfather is magnificently understated. He shares his secrets with his ailing grandfather (who never speaks) at the same gradual pace that it takes him to make sense of the world.

It's incredibility difficult to people a world without confusing the reader or becoming distracting, but O'Connor manages to do this with such ease, the result looks effortless. Every character is part of a delightfully designed puzzle that, when it comes together, is completely satisfying.

Why discuss the characters first, before the plot? Because the characters are what make this story float (heh). The big secret of course (which is illustrated on the book's stunning cover), is the discovery of an unearthly object that's fallen off the train tracks in the middle of the night. It's the sort of discovery of a child's summer fantasy, but O'Connor makes it perfectly possible.

And that, ultimately, is the wonder of this book. It leaves the reader feeling that the world, despite its problems, is filled with possibility. Imagination is not just in the head. It may, in fact, be just beyond those trees, lying off the side of the tracks, waiting to be discovered.

Fantastic.

Source: I bought my copy at Orca Books.

For fun, check out Barbara's O'Connor's Trailer:

The Project

2010-09-10T07:48:00.000-07:00

Check out this fabulous video PROJECT: Tales of Mere Existence, by one Levni Yilmaz, which answers the question..."So what do you do all day?"

Uh Oh

2010-09-05T19:14:00.000-07:00

OH NO!
(Or How My Science Project Destroyed the World)
Written by Mac Barnett, Illustrated by Dan Santat
Hyperion Book (June 1, 2010)
Ages 4-8

Having read and loved Mac Barnett's Brixton Brothers' CASE OF THE CASE OF MISTAKEN IDENTITY, I could not wait to get my hands on his picture book OH NO!, illustrated by Dan Santat.

Let me just say that it is a visual feast, a gloriously illustrated graphic-novel-style-picture-book-that-defies-picture-book-convention. This is good and not so good. The good is that it is delicious eye candy from cover to cover. Dan Santat is a genius. Period. As someone who volunteers for a reading foundation, handing out free books by the hundreds, I know that kids would dive-in headfirst for this golden nugget.

The not so good is that I would be there to pull them back from the plunge and point out a book with an actual plot. Because the truth is that there's no there there. It's a premise (what happens when a girl's science project destroys the world?) with an unfulfilled promise.

I could add a spoiler alert here, but the subtitle sort of gives it all away: How My Science Project Destroyed the World. That about sums it up. Santat's stunning comic book illustrations show how a girl's (a girl, yay!) science project destroys the world. To her (and Barnett's) credit, she does try to fix the problem...once, by repeating it. So much for story arc.

In a chilling way, it reminds me of M.T. Anderson's FEED, in which language is boiled down into its most elemental state, except that in the case of OH NO! it's the concept of story that's been reduced for mass consumption, sort of like being fed through the television. It's non-interactive. You look at it, but you don't really need to think about it.

I can't see being able to read this aloud at a storytime event because there's a lot going on visually that would be hard for a group of children to see; and it doesn't seem to challenge the imagination enough to sit down one on one. It is something that, like television, could be given to a child to keep busy, but that sort of ruins the point of a picture book. Little kids are learning how to use a book, turn a page, read left to right. The layout of this book appears to ignore developmental needs. So, maybe it's a new breed of early reader, for first and second graders who want to watch a book.

I could have said nothing about Oh NO! because I admire Mac Barnett's work (and Dan Santat, well, he's brilliant), but I found myself dreaming about it last night and getting upset. It's not really this particular book that's gotten a rise out of me, it's the style of book--a $16.99 television program or movie produced by Disney. Even the gorgeous cover, when removed, lays out to reveal a movie poster.

Please, don't let this be a trend. And Mac Barnett, please get back to telling great stories.

Source: I bought my copy at Orca Books.