Terry Pratchett is one of my favorite authors of all time. I’ve read the Discworld series in its entirety and several of Pratchett’s other works as well. When he passed away in March 2015, the literary world lost one of the contemporary greats, but it seems he left a lot of unpublished things or just works in progress or to be collected. I was looking forward to Dragon’s at Crumbling Castle and Other Stories, which is a collection of juvenalia fiction. Some of the stories […]
Sarcastic Kids are Good Kids
My son Tommy and I just finished reading Crimebiters 2 together and it was pretty cute. I was always partial to Nancy Drew, The Charisma series (girl spies! who are models! and can do cool stuff!) and (The New) Encyclopedia Brown books (now very old because I am very old) when I was a kid because I have always liked a good mystery. My son seems to enjoy a good mystery too because he brought this book home from his book fair along with […]
Need a Hero? El Deafo To the Rescue!
Well, I couldn’t have chosen a better book to raise my spirits in these trying times. Cece Bell’s Newbery Honor-winning graphic novel is pitched toward kids but will entertain and educate anyone who picks it up. El Deafo is Bell’s account of losing her hearing but finding her power in her childhood. I am the parent of two special needs kids, one of whom wears a hearing aid, and I found myself saying, “wow, I never thought of that,” as Bell recounts what it was […]
Perspective matters.
I read and review a LOT of picture books. Clearly I have many opinions on this topic. I can’t even blame my current lifestyle of Squishie Wrangler- I’ve always collected picture books, the only difference is now I have to share them. Books are precious and magic. They need to be amazing and special to inspire a child’s imagination. I have 3 criteria for a picture book: 1) beautiful illustrations 2) lyrical language 3) powerful message. I think the illustrations can be as complex or […]
Maybe if you really like modern fairy tales…?
Young Adult Fantasy is one of my favorite genres, particularly because the writers don’t always have to worry about the details because the targeted audience is more capable of suspending their disbelief. I, however, am the sort who always enjoyed ripping stories apart, especially when I actually do like them. This works out well for me with films, but when it comes to books and comics, I tend to obsess. I spent years avoiding mainstream American comics because I could see, even from a casual […]
Old Childhood Favorite
Father Fox’s Pennyrhymes is an old picture book, first published in 1971, and one we had in our house when my sisters and I were growing up. I have very fond memories of it and got it for Christmas this year. I was a little worried that it wouldn’t hold up, as it’s been over 40 years since the first publication, but I think that it does. What I remember most fondly about it, the amazing and intricate illustrations are still just as beautiful to an […]
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