Catching up

I have been reading so many books lately, which is why I haven't been posting them here. Just too busy!

I just finished What is the What by Dave Eggers, which is about the Lost Boys of Sudan. It's really amazing. Even though it's a true story (about Valentino Achak Deng) it is classified as a novel--Deng's reasoning is because when he was sending information to Eggers to write the book, he couldn't be 100% sure of conversations that happened when he was a young boy. Either way, it's really sad and funny. I stayed up late last night finishing it. Also interesting is how much criticism the book got because of Eggers' style of writing. I've read A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius (also by Eggers) and I didn't think that his writing style was too apparent in this one. Either way, the story is true, and very sad. Also--if you are planning on reading it and don't know anything about the Sudanese Civil War... you might want to read up on it. The book does a pretty good job of explaining it but I had to keep asking Robbie questions about it. And if you even try to comprehend Darfur in the mix... woof. It's just complicated.

Anyway. During the last week of Europe I read Love in the Time of Cholera, The Time Traveler's Wife, The Year of Magical Thinking, and Eat Pray Love. I should really expound on my feelings on all of the books but let me make it easy for you: LinToC left something to be desired (I really hated the protagonist!), TTTW was... ugh (I just can't imagine it being portrayed on-screen, yet I have this desire to see how it plays out), TYoMT was sad and good (I think it deals with a lot of the same issues that the two former books do [loss of love, real or imagined] but so much more maturely--probably because Didion is 1) older and 2) a real person), and EPL was okay. I liked it at first--compelling, funny, and engaging--but the author lost me when she started sharing too much information about her love life. I don't know. It was okay.

Anyway. Done with the blogging break. Off to apply for jobs at bookstores. (Not kidding.)

A Baseball Story

I found this little gem many years ago while browsing the BYU Bookstore during some Education Week or Women's Conference.

The story is wonderfully imaginative. And when Noah played baseball with MYBL, I thought often of this character in the outfield. The bugs are great stand-ins for people we all know.

And his parents - clueless but loving and supportive.

Read and smile - and weep and laugh too!

Another Children's Fave

I was speaking with someone the other day - a mom and and a school teacher - and she didn't know about this book!

I was quite surprised. So I thought I would let anyone who didn't know about, know about it!!

The rhyming is wonderful - but what is even better is the way the lines build on one another - a device young children love - and so it's easy to memorize.

The New York Times Book Review said:

"This is a lovely small book, well-conceived and very well-drawn, gentle, humorous, unsentimental."

I couldn't have said it better myself!

Kids' Books I Have Known and Loved

There are lots of wonderful books on the market for children. I first discovered this when I took a children's lit class at the U about 33 years ago. I learned about the wonderful world of Caldecott and Newbery winners. I reveled in the fact that it was a class requirement that I immerse myself in all these wonderful books!

I used to subscribe to the Horn Book magazine and diligently peruse all the best new books for children. When I worked at the nursery school, I was even more diligent. And the teachers there kept me up on the latest. While substitute teaching, I took to carrying around a totebag full of wonderful books and read them to the classes where teachers had not left sufficient lesson plans.

While pursuing my teaching credential, I was introduced to even more great books for kids and teens. When I began teaching full-time, I scanned the Scholastic handouts for new titles. I scoffed at Harry Potter when it first came out - thought it wasn't really literature. Shows just how wrong you can be sometimes!

But now I find myself pretty much sticking with the old faves, and I don't venture out too much. I don't think it is a function of age - I think I just can't do everything, and keeping track of kid lit was one of the items that got left by the wayside.

When Phoebe encouraged us to read the Newbery winners this summer, I was pulled back into the children's side of the library. While scanning the shelves for Newbery winners, I found a few "winners" of my own - and have posted them too.

Then Keli Clayton did a post about her girls squabbling, and I was reminded of a book about two girls who shared a room and had trouble getting along. It was a great little book - and I can't remember the title! But while unsuccessfully looking for it, I found myself stopping at every other book and thinking, "I love this book," "Why don't I read this to the grandkids?" "I need to tell everyone about this book."

So, here I am with my first recommendation - if you don't already have this one, try to locate it - you will be glad you did!

We first found this in the public library - probably in Bountiful, Utah. It's been a Terrill fave for years. The words have wonderful rhythm, the illustrations are delightfully "otherworldly," and it's lilting cadence lends itself to almost "singing along" with it.

Try it - you'll like it!

A pretty good movie

Dad and I went and saw Adam - a film with Hugh Dancy and Rose Byrne. I have never heard of either of them, but they did a good job.

The LA Times had given the film a good review. When I looked it up online, the reviews were mixed. It apparently did well at Sundance though.

It's about a young man with Asperger Syndrome. And I think their portrayal of the condition - on the autism spectrum - was "spot on." I could just imagine several of my students in a few years being just like the character Adam.

It's worth a look-see as far as I'm concerned.

Latest "good read!"

I read about this book on cjane's blog - and it sounded like something I might enjoy - so I ordered it. The guy from the site later commented on her blog that "now he knew why he'd had 25 orders in the last hour!"

If you've read it - cjane said they were going to have a discussion on it, but said discussion has not occurred yet - I'd be interested in your take. It's not a typical "Mormon novel" by any stretch. But I wonder if a non-Mormon would read it and find it enjoyable.

Basic premise is about a young "hippie" in Colorado who comes in contact with the church via a young woman named Annie.

Let me know - if you haven't read it, I think you'd find it a "good read."