Author: Stephen Manes
Rating: 
Reading Level: 1st – 3rd
Pages: 76
Publisher: Yearling
Edition: Paperback, 1996 (1982)
Lily read it and found it mildly amusing. (I had to nudge her to finish it, though.)
Category Archives: Book Notes
Be A Perfect Person in Just Three Days
Author: Stephen Manes
Filed under Book Notes
Ramona Books
Author: Beverly Clearly
Rating: 
Reading Level: K-3rd
Pages:
Publisher: William Morrow / Yearling / Dell
Edition: Mixed, 1955 onward
This has been a favorite bedtime story series for the last 3 months. I read it to Lily when we were in Taiwan and David has been reading it to her every night for the last 2 months. The titles in the series are
Beezus and Ramona (1955)
Ramona the Pest (1968)
Ramona the Brave (1975)
Ramona and Her Mother (1977)
Ramona and Her Father (1979)
Ramona Quimby, Age 8 (1981)
Ramona Forver (1984)
Ramona’s World (1999)
We have finished all but the last two. I’m constantly amazed and reminded of Cleary’s uncanny talent at capturing the inner workings of a small child as I listen to David’s affective reading and watch Lily’s complete emotional involvement with the story.
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Cam Jansen Series
Author: David Adler
Rating: 
Reading Level: K-2nd
Pages: around 60
Publisher: Viking / Puffin
Edition: Mixed
This is really Lily’s first series. She’s finished 24 of them and is now tackling the 25th Cam Jansen and the Valentine Babies Mystery.
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Hope Was Here
Author: Joan Bauer
Rating:
Reading Level: 5th – 8th
Pages: 186
Publisher: G.P. Putnam’s Sons
Edition: Hardcover, 2000
I can see that, maybe, some readers will find parts (especially toward the end, when most things turn out exactly right) of this story a bit too good to be true, or even sappy, but I definitely ate it all up! Joan Bauer has the talent to capture many different personalities as only an observant writer would: they are just your every day ordinary people, they sound real, they act not that out of the norm, and yet, each single one of them also carries a little spotlight around that makes you, the reader as audience, see the details defined much more clearly and each of them shines with a glow that makes them a bit larger than life. Reading Hope Was Here, like reading its twin, another excellent book by Bauer, Rules of the Road, inspires the reader to examine the every day life and people with a special lens that captures what’s just below the surface that makes every thing and every body that much more special. We become less lazy about what we do and how we feel. I’m surprised that no one has offered a movie deal to turn this into one of the core American Spirit (dare I say Value???), feel-good, summer family movie! It has all: quirky, interesting characters, a mystery to solve, some very witty internal monologues (and food metaphors,) lots of hope and courage, and some romance, too. It’s a bit like Sideways, only it deals with the philosophy of Diner Food, not red wine, and it’s about a 17-year-old girl, not a middle aged man, of course!
As I read this book that has been quite popular with my 5th graders, I was constantly amazed in wonderous puzzlement: why do my girl readers, who are mostly from well-to-do families, and who has lived the city life all along would find this book so irresistable that they excitedly recommend it to their best friends all the time? What do they see and feel in it that speaks to them so much? The interesting and witty main character (Hope) alone cannot carry the weight of the entire book… what else? I’ll have to remember to investigate that one when school starts in a couple of weeks.
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The Homework Machine
Author: Dan Gutman
Rating:
Reading Level: 4th and 5th
Pages: 146
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
Edition: Hardcover, 2006
This definitely is a highly enjoyable book — a lot less funny than I had expected, and the homework machine itself seems a little bit far-fetched, but the characters and their slowly developed friendship are utterly true to life that the whole story simply works, convincingly. This is a quick read. The teacher (Miss Rasmussen)who is neither a heroic figure, nor a villain, is also realistically portrayed. Indeed there is no villain at all, except, maybe Belch the Computer itself and the internal enemies of all: laziness, bad habits, insecurity.
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Ask Me No Questions
Author: Marina Budhos
Rating:
Reading Level: 5th and up
Pages: 162
Publisher: Atheneum, Ginee Seo Books
Edition: Hardcover, 2006
The subject matter is definitely an important one (post-911 mistrust and political mistreatment of Muslim males and families) and there are many moments of heart-felt and hard hitting impacts. Not that I want the Hossain family to fail in their struggle, but the few plot twists that turn the event around seem a little too easy. I wonder if the success of their appeal almost undercuts the untold stories of those who were sent back to their countries and denied more chances in the States. True, the Uncle’s story is told on the side, which is a story of someone’s spirit being broken, but it was such a small aside compared to the main tale. Maybe the narrator (who uses present tense) sounds a bit more like the writer behind these words than the 14-year-old who does not quite excel in anything except for being patient and preceptive at moments of distress — some of the poetic descriptions seem a bit out of synch with the character.
That said, I will not hesitate giving this story to many young readers who will find both the topic and the perilous situations absorbing.
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The Illustrated Mum
Author: Jaqueline Wilson
Rating:
Reading Level: 5th and up
Pages: 282
Publisher: Delacorte Press
Edition: Hardcover, U.S., 2005 (1999)
So, after a year of hearing little exclaiming squeals from the library’s young readers (4th to 6th grade girls, mostly) telling their friends how amazing this book was and how much they loved, loved it — I finally got around to read it myself. Yes, indeed, the urgency, the dire situation that the two girls, Dolphin and Star live under (with their obviously very unbalanced, irresponsible and artistic mother,) and the sense of danger and injustice all contribute to a transfixing read.
However, mid-book, suddenly, the realism gives way to incredible coincidences. Incredible here means: not credible, not believable. And the ending leaves me quite puzzled. Is there a message that says, do not ever put your trust in the males in one’s life? Even a mother who needs to go through serious psychiatric treatment is better than the fathers who can offer more stable lives? What does the story wish to celebrate? or condemn? There is a hidden message there somewhere, but I couldn’t quite put my finger on it! I don’t know what I actually expected, not quite like these TV-soap-melodrama twists, for sure. (I wonder how teachers in 4th grade think about Miss Hill who seems so clueless about the situation that Dolphin is in while there are so many outward signs that anyone working with 10-year-olds with some basic training would have picked up on right away — in Real Life.)
I guess there is the literary licence, and Wilson definitely uses it quite freely. Oh, I sound as if I did not enjoy the read or won’t recommend it to young readers. Not so, not so. I quite liked the book and I now know why my students like it, too!
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Ptolemy’s Gate
Author: Jonathan Stroud
Rating:
Reading Level:
Pages: 501
Publisher: Hyperion
Edition: Hardcover, 2006
Warning: Plot Spoiler Below
I’m still trembling minutes after finishing the final scenes of this ever-better trilogy. Shed much tear at the end. The nobility of the three main characters, growing more obvious as each moment passes, is both so cleansing and so real. My mild delight at seeing Nathaniel becoming more like his old, idealistic self in the middle part of the book turns into the gigantic admiration toward the end, when he calmly sacrifices himself and protects all that he loves. I’m still in shock! Stroud is gutsy in constructing this unexpected and utterly convincing ending. No wonder so many readers have told me how great this book is. Indeed.
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A Damsel in Distress
Author: P.G. Wodehouse
Rating:
Reading Level: Adult
Duration: 9 Hours
Publisher: Blackstone Audio Books
Edition: Audio, narrator: Frederick Davidson, 2001 (1919)
I absolutely enjoyed this light-hearted drawing room comedy. This is my first Wodehouse title and maybe I’ll try some other writings by him in the future. Some of his humorous observations on human emotions can be so dead-on that I laughed out loud while listening to the competent reading by Davidson (although I didn’t quite like his high-pitched, soft-fake tone of all the female characters). There were even a couple of tender romantic scenes that touched my heart! (I know, I’m a sap!)
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Golem’s Eye
Author: Jonathan Stroud
Rating:
Reading Level: 5th and up
Pages: 562
Publisher: Hyperion
Edition: Hardcover, 2004
I couldn’t put this down half way through this intriguing story. The narrative definitely gains momentum midterm, when the Resistance’s efforts prove futile, when Nathaniel’s situation becomes more dire, and when Bartimaeus shows his concerns for Nathaniel’s waning integrity. Stroud definitely did a fabulous job joggling three points of views, flashbacks, and excitement and humor (sarcasm, mostly.) Although there are other books piling on my desk, waiting to be “evaluated” for my other commitments, I am going to be super indulgent and finish the Trilogy with Ptolemy’s Gate, eager to see how Nathaniel’s heart turns out and how Kitty’s fate intertwined with that of Bartimaeus’.
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Gregor and the Marks of Secret
Author: Suzanne Collins
Rating:
Reading Level: 4th and up
Pages: 343
Publisher: Scholastic Press
Edition: Hardcover, 2006
This 4th installment in the Underland series is more powerful than the previous. The plot is tight. The characters are more developed and complex and the dangers are even more real now. I don’t know how young readers without much knowledge of the holocaust might react to the scene where the Nibblers (the mice) are lured unsuspectingly to be mass-murdered. I was shocked at the brutality of this scene, although I think Collins did a superb job.
I believe this is supposed to be the second to last book and am eagerly awaiting the concluding volume!
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The Mouse and His Child
Author: Russell Hoban
Rating:
Reading Level: Adult?
Pages: 165
Publisher: Faber and Faber, UK
Edition: Paperback, 2005 (1969)
I was thoroughly engrossed by this tale of many horrors. It’s funny how it never dawned on me that the “mouse” is the father — and of course, it’s him and HIS child who have to go through all the hardship in the story. The killing fields, the betrayal, the maiming and the ill-luck — on my goodness, how much they must endure before the triumphant finale could be rewarded!
This is a story that I as a children’s literature student would have loved and thought to be exemplary as the highest form of children’s literature: a story featuring tin toys with a very grown-up sensibility. What a wonderful work for children and their adults! But as a practitioner in the library field, I kept wondering whether ANY child would have the heart and stomach to go along on the arduous journey and not feeling too bogged down or burdened.
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A Mango-Shaped Space
Author:Wendy Mass
Rating:
Reading Level: 5th and up
Pages: 220
Publisher: Little, Brown
Edition: Paperback 2005 (2003)
Even though there is quite a bit of novelty on the subject of the rare physical condition that Mia suffers from, the story was not over-shadowed by it. Mass tells a story that is genuine on its emotional level and appeals to many young people. Mia is a likable character and her family is quirky and supportive. Of course, I had to cry over the couple of deaths of family pets!
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Persepolis: The Story of a Childhood
Author: Marjane Satrapi
Rating:
Reading Level:
Pages:
Publisher:
Edition:
This is a book that every single person should read. Satrapi has the gift of injecting much humor into a story that is ultimately tremendously disturbing and sad. The images (being a Graphic non-fiction) are fittingly simplistic and yet so expressive: the war dead, the tortured, the rebellious teens, the loving parents, the everyday people. I cried at least 3 times in different places. If I hadn’t been reading it in the crowded school cafeteria, I probably would have cried more than that — but I also laughed out loud a few times at the wit and comical situations Marji experienced. What an amazing accomplishment.
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Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep
Author: Philip Dick
Rating:
Reading Level: 9th and up
This reads so differently from Blade Runner which it inspired. I am more or less indifferent to the book — I like the philosophical aspect of it but also am a bit bored reading too much musing and not enough action. Might be a bit unfair since my expectation was based on the action-packed movie..
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Castle Waiting
Author: Linda Medley
Rating: 
Reading Level: 6th and up (Graphic Novel)
This is truly a delightful illustrated light fantasy. (Graphic Novel?) Being a compilation of short stories that do not seem to have an overall structure of a longer “novel,” parts of it seem incomplete and others seem a bit too lengthy. It is a prime example, however, of how a graphic novel really works: the story of the bearded ladies really drives the notion that the graphics enhance the narrative. Each time the reader sees a panel with these bearded beauties (? haha,) the “shocking” impact is refreshed. In a plain text narrative, one can easily forget that Beatrice is a burly manly bearded woman but you simply cannot escape these images and ignore this fact here!
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A Feast for Crows
Author: George R.R. Martin
Rating:
Reading Level: Adult
Pages:
Publisher:
Edition:
This is definitely not as well written or plotted as the previous ones in the Song of Ice and Fire sequence. However, it was fun to read about the other parts of the world Martin created — to know what Oldtown and Bravossi feel and smell like is fine.
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A Storm of Swords
Author: George R.R. Martin
Rating:
Reading Level: Adult
3rd book in Song of Ice and Fire. Still amazing. Actually.. it is even more amazing than the second one. Certain scenes of bloodshed is engraved in my brain now…
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A Clash of Kings
Author: George R.R. Martin
Rating:
Reading Level: Adult
Second book in the Song of Ice and Fire cycle. Oh, my, God! It is as exciting and surprising as the first one. I was trapped in the world of Westero and the outer regions, fascinated by the host of characters and the complex storyline.
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Elsewhere
Author: Gabrielle Zevin
Rating: 
Reading Level: 5th-7th
This book, quite popular with many students of mine (mainly girls) is such a disappointment. The writing is so elementary that it reads as if an elementary student could have written it — on the sentence structure and formation level. The limited view on life after death (although, it is supposed to give an alternative idea on the land of the dead) assaults my sensitivity and insults my intelligence. It “pretends” to be profound but it is so shallow. I also could not care enough about the characters to be emotionally touched. Although, I have to say that I wanted to find out how everything turns out in the end. *shrug* It will be popular for a while and then it will join its characters and flow to the Elsewhere of books.. oblivion.
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