Book Talk

What if just about every thing in the world that could go wrong, did?  Climate change, floods, plague.   Ninety-nine percent of the world's population wiped out. 

Lucy, 16, lives alone in a human version of a mouse nest in what was Central Park, New York.  She has a book about survival, her father's hunting knife, and a backpack holding a few sentimental items. 

One day, while out hauling water, she runs into a pack of dogs (not a friendly bunch, btw).  Help appears in the form of a cute teenage boy, Aidan, who gives her a hand up into a tree.  Lucy hasn't talked to another human being in a year.  She finds she misses contact with other people, and decides to track down the refugee camp he lives in.  It's populated mostly by old people and kids, and government Sweeper vans come through and periodically kidnap people.   No one knows what happens to those taken, but they don't come back. 

This is a survival story with a little romance thrown in (c'mon, Aidan's cute, and kind, so of course Lucy develops a tendre for him).  Imagine if your life changed so much that a full meal and a hot bath were better than a day at Disneyland...  Read Ashes, Ashes and ask yourself how you'd do in a world of disaster.

Manthropology by Peter McAllister

Still basking in that after-Olympics glow and proud of the immense athletic skills of your fellow sportsmen? Don't gloat too much just yet: here's a book to knock you down to size! McAllister has looked at all of our greatest physical achievements and then shown how dismal they really are compared to our ancient ancestors. For instance, he compares amounts lifted by modern world champion weightlifters and finds none who could manage the 1,058 lb. boulder from the 6th century BC bearing the inscription "Eumastus, the son of Critobulus, lifted me from the ground"(!)

Comparing 20,000 year old footprints racing across the Australian outback, McAllister concludes the ancient runner would have beaten our fastest sprinter, Usain Bolt, as well!

"I discovered, to my horror," writes McAllister, that "there's nothing we can do that ancient men, and sometimes women, haven't already done better, faster, stronger, and usually smarter." 

And if you enjoyed this, you'd probably also appreciate another title with a made-up/

portmanteau word: Mathletics by John D. Barrow.

 Barrow is British so may dwell too much on strange activities like cricket, rugby and English premiere league soccer but he also covers more mainstream topics such as baseball and basketball. And he covers an even 100 of these topics, with only a page or two devoted to each one. Such as: 

* Why have world records in women's track remained static [unbroken] for decades?

* How did Michael Jordan hang in the air so long during his famous leaps to the basket?

* How a new rule in soccer led to the "most bizarre match ever played" where the teams started trying to kick the ball into their own goals!

* How drag-car racing is 'the most extreme sport of all'

*  How if you want to break a weight-lifting record then you should head for a high altitude spot near the equator! 

* A comparison of the four Olympic sports that use goals (soccer, water polo, field hockey & handball).

...& many more!

 Perhaps there's a bit too much arcane math but you can just skip those parts! (OR if you ARE a math buff, there's even more complicated formulas in the note section at the end!)

Samuel Blink and his sister are facing huge challenges in their lives after the loss of their parents.  Martha has stopped speaking and Samuel is angry at an unfair world that seems out to get him at every turn.  When they are shipped to Norway to live with their odd Aunt Eda he just knows they've gone as low as they can go.  Things just couldn't get worse... could they?  Yup, they can get a lot worse and definitely weirder. 

Aunt Eda and Samuel don't hit it off right away.  She has a lot of rules and Samuel means to break every single one of them as quickly as possible.  There's the rule about cheese (you'll have to read it to understand this one).  The rule about not going into the attic.  And then there is the big one:  don't go into the woods.  Samuel disrespects the cheese, heads up to the attic and ends up chasing his sister into the deep dark woods all in one short morning.  It turns out that his Aunt Eda really had good reasons to keep him out of the woods.  It's packed with strange and dangerous mythical Norse creatures who either want to eat him or blow him up or worse.

Samuel and his Aunt Eda's dog are lost in the forest and they have to figure out how to survive long enough to rescue Martha who has been captured by a group of the nastiest creatures in the forest.  Not only does he need to help his sister and escape from the wood but they all need to figure out what has gone wrong with the forbidden forest that has caused so many good creatures to go bad.  According to the Truth Pixie (who wants to blow him up) his chances are not good.

This is an action packed page turner with trolls, witches, pixies, evil geniuses and bad cheese.  You'll laugh and gasp and keep turning those pages.  Samuel Blink and the Forbidden Forest by Matt Haig is happily just the first in a series of unique and exciting adventure stories.

Mrs. Jeffries Speaks Her Mind by Emily Brightwell

Servants are frequently un-noticed as they go about their daily tasks in the wealthy homes of England.  Mrs. Jeffries, Inspector Witherspoon's housekeeper is aware of this and has gathered her staff to surreptitiously assist their employer with his murder investigations.  In Victorian England there are no DNA tests, fingerprint databases, etc.  Scotland Yard and the police just talk to and interview witnesses and suspects and then come to a conclusion.  Because of the servants "invisibility" Mrs. Jeffries musters her staff as they go about their normal business of maintaining the house to question their fellow servants, shopkeepers and the like.   Mrs. Jeffries carefully gives the information to the inspector with his before dinner sherry.  Inspector Witherspoon is an intelligent, kind but naïve man whose life as a policeman has not destroyed his basic belief in the goodness of others.  He has a colleague, an Inspector Nivens who is out to prove that Witherspoon just uses blind luck or has someone else solve his cases.   Mrs. Jeffries and her staff protect the Inspector, whom they admire because of his kindness and the way he treats his household staff and everyone else for that matter with respect.

Mrs. Jeffries Speaks Her Mind is one of many (29 as of today) Mrs. Jeffries Victorian mysteries.  In this one a totally disagreeable woman is murdered in her garden and there are many, many suspects who can give a good reason as to why she should be done in.  Inspector Witherspoon interviews the gentry and the servants of the household, while Mrs. Jeffries sends her staff to interview the hansom cab drivers, the neighbors' servants and the local shopkeepers. Each day the staff meets to discuss what they have found. Mrs. Jeffries adds what she has heard from the Inspector and they plan what to do next.  Each servant has his or her way of eliciting information from their unwitting help.  The cook plies her informants with food.  The footman has a young innocent look and he talks to the maids and the garden boys.  The maid has a pretty face and she is able to talk to shop assistants, while she is buying groceries for the household.  The coachman talks to other coachmen in the pubs as he buys them a pint or two.

Mrs. Jeffries Speaks Her Mind is a cozy mystery with likable characters (except for Inspector Nivens and the victim).  If you like historical fiction such as Downton Abbey and the like, you may very well enjoy following the servants throughout London and environs as they help their Inspector solve this mystery.

What Can You Do with a Rebozo? by Carmen Tafolla and Amy Córdova

A rebozo is so versatile!  Mamá spreads it like a butterfly and wraps it into a cozy cradle for baby brother. Big sister braids it in her beautiful hair. Grandma uses hers to keep warm when it's cold at night. The little girl in the story uses the rebozo to play. Made of silk or cotton, rebozos are traditional large shawls that have been used by women in Mexico for centuries. Carmen and Tafolla and Amy Córdova celebrate the lovely tradition of el rebozo in "What Can You Do with a Rebozo?". "What Can You do with a Rebozo? was a 2009 Pura Belpré Honor Book. 

English: Seated woman with teal rebozo shawl on her head. Hand-colored photograph by Luis Marquez.

Underwater Dogs, by Seth Casteel

I love dogs.  I love all of them; big or little, sleek or scruffy, frantic or mellow.  So of course I had to check out this new book of dog photographs, and boy, it's a hoot!  The premise is simple: position yourself and your camera in a pool, chuck in a ball, and start snapping photos when the happy pup hits the water.  That's it; hilarious, adorable, beautiful, and eye opening.  It's well worth a look.

Seth Casteel mainly photographs pets, although he does showcase wild animals, too.  His photos have been shown in National Geographic , the New York Times, and others, and he's appeared on TV in Good Morning America, Duck Dynasty, and more.  He also takes pictures of homeless pets to help them find families; a worthy cause if ever there was one. 

A Posse of Princesses

Sherwood Smith

Isn't it always the case: all the really popular e-books by the big name authors are checked out. So why not try something a little off the beaten path?

Rhis, princess of an incredibly small, completely isolated, but fabulously rich (jewel mines!) mountain kingdom has been invited to the ultimate month-long house party. Actually, make that a palace party: She and princesses from kingdoms far and wide will be hosted by the Royal Family of Vesarja in the hopes of finding a suitable wife for the handsome young crown prince.

Of course, Rhis isn't particularly interested in getting married off. What she really wants is a break from her family role as the Perpetual Disappointment. Is it really so terrible that a girl would rather go to parties, read romantic adventure stories, and have friends rather than studying hard and preparing to Do Her Royal Duty?

Her older sister tries to convince her to get her head out of the clouds: Real life isn't like the songs!

Rhis knows that: She doesn't want real adventure which usually involves hardship, terror, suffering, and things like war and revolution. She just wants, oh, to fall in love, or have a wonderful prince fall in love with her. And just a little bit of fighting, like a duel or two (not to the death) and some exciting chases, where nobody really gets hurt.

The only fly in the ointment of potential fun is that her family insists she travel and room with her perfect cousin Shera, the one Rhis is continually being compared to (and not favorably). But when she meets her cousin for the first time, she discovers Shera is just as frivolous, and the lonely teenager has her first real friend. And just in time! Rhis and Shera are immediately thrust into a whirlwind of parties, fancy clothes and social intrigue at Vesarja Palace. 

Are there realistic teenage girls complete with gossip, sniping, bonding and commiserating? How about deeply satisfying come-uppances for the insufferable, snobby, popular girls? Perhaps even more satisfying coming-into-their-own for the plain, shy, or awkward ones? What about truly, madly, deeply attractive princes, with plenty of opportunities for romance?

Yes to everything. And just to make matters more exciting, before the story is done there's a kidnapping and a royal plot, which only the posse of princesses can foil.

Take Georgette Heyer, cross her with Gail Carson Levine, add a dollop (just a smidge) of high adventure and you get a great read for anyone whose inner-13-year-old is alive and well. This small press gem is possibly one of the best unsung princess book ever.

For the E-book, visit www.kcls.org/downloads and follow the directions for Overdrive Media to get a copy for your e-book reader. For the-book-on-dead-tree, click on the links for A Posse of Princesses embedded in this blog.