Cindy

The illustrations are delightful, and paired with the text include puns that will amuse not only the intended audience but the adults reading it with them. Particularly fun are the cut-aways of the alphabet’s house with lots of small dramas and humor presented…kids who like potty humor will especially enjoy the two bathroom scenes. Don’t miss the end-papers, and the title page on which an ambulance is swerving madly to arrive on the scene and nearly takes out the author names. Writing the blog at 5 a.m. this morning, I originally misread the end papers thinking that a high schooler illustrated the book. Let me set the record straight. The idea for the book was inspired by a YouTube video called Alphabet House created by a young man named Ezra Fields-Meyer who granted permission for Tom to build on the idea to write and illustrate E-mergency. Ezra is also the subject of a memoir, Following Ezra, written by Ezra’s father, Tom Fields-Meyer, about the first ten years following Ezra’s diagnosis with autism. Watch this book trailer and you’ll want to read that story as well.

It’s not awful by any means to be buried in teen lit, but I’m sure glad I didn’t miss this e-xtraordinary alphabet book.

Lynn: I’m so glad to be getting to this energetic and excellent book!  Since E has recovered from her fall I can throw around e words with abandon.  Thank goodness!  As readers quickly learn, E is essential!  In fact, according to the table in the back, E has the highest frequency use in the English language – 12.7% with T a distant second at 9%.  Entertaining and enlightening!  Our focus group loved this book for the clever word play and the hilarious illustrations.  Who knew letters of the alphabet could have such personality?  In fact, I think the audience is for readers a bit older than the usual alphabet book because of the language use.  It takes a reader to understand most of the jokes.  The twins solemnly decided you needed to be a sophisticated 7 or 8 to really appreciate this book but I think it would be a GREAT book to put up on a visual presenter in a classroom of first or second graders and collectively identify all the jokes.  Just be prepared for an epidemic of giggles.

Lynn:

Jurmain writes with a cheery informality that is completely engaging, making these two towering intellects thoroughly human.  Larry Day’s brightly humorous illustrations reinforce the tone wonderfully, helping children to understand the history is made by real people who do both ordinary as well as extraordinary things.  There is a lot of nicely related  history here too!  Kids may not realize it but they will learn quite a lot about some of the competing philosophies involved in the founding of this country.

This is one of those great books that can be used in so many ways in classrooms!  Terrific for elementary American history classes, and biography units, and just as valuable in middle schools as well.  Crank up that visual presenter and have fun!

Be sure to check out other Nonfiction Monday choices at Wendie’s Wanderings.

Lynn:

Bottner’s delightfully droll disasters are cleverly captured by Michael Emberley’s illuminating illustrations, executed excellently in pencil and watercolors.  Each sequential scene is seriously sidesplitting.  Readers will love watching the merry mayhem multiply.  OK – sorry – the book seems to be infectious!  This little gem is a hoot, clever and funny and each illustration rewards repeat reading.  Oops – I’m doing it again.

Our focus group who consider themselves waaaay to old for alphabet books loved this one anyway and I think it is going to become a family favorite.  Ack – I can’t stop.  I’m handing this off to Cindy before I’m permanently alliterized!

Cindy: I’ll tell you what’s annoying…returning from a busy ALA conference, tired and jet-lagged, and waking up to find out that Lynn expects me to be creatively alliterative in this post. Both bloggers being bouncy is too much for me this morning. I think she is nattering nervously on Newbery fumes! :) And as I flip through this book’s precocious pages again, this book is sounding much like the annoying adolescents in my middle school who are in serious need of a snow day to regain their calm. Or maybe they just need a spray with a watering hose and then a story hour. Yeah, that’s the ticket!

Cindy

We had a small group of avid 6th grade readers who worked the last couple of months to read as many titles as they could in a short list that we compiled from starred reviews and late year buzz. Their winner was Dead End in Norvelt by Jack Gantos (Farrar). They cited the characterization and humor as strengths. They selected just one honor book, A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness (Candlewick). They admired the plot and the imbedded stories that helped Conor process what was going on in his life. They also think the Caldecott committee should be considering the illustrations. I like the way these young teens think.

Lynn also worked with another group, 5th graders at Waukazoo Elementary with their librarian, Lori Marco. They read from a slightly different short list of books with some overlap and they don’t want the book club to end with next week’s announcement. They selected a winner and four honor books. Their top choice was Masterwork of a Painting Elephant by Michelle Cuevas (Farrar). When we blogged this book in September I wondered “WHO IS THIS BOOK FOR?” Famous last words…of course a group of bright, well-read 10-year-olds would appreciate its magical realism even if they are unfamiliar with the literary term! Their four honor books were The Emerald Atlas by John Stephens (Knopf), Toys Come Home by Emily Jenkins (Schwartz & Wade), Waiting for the Magic by Patricia MacLachlan (Atheneum), and…drum roll please…The Other Felix by Booklist‘s own Keir Graff (Roaring Brook). We hope Keir has his Mock Newbery Honor acceptance speech written!

Lynn and I love making Best of the Year lists, as long-time Bookends readers know, but we have given that up this year while we are both serving on major award committees. Please comment here and let us know what YOU would choose for the Newbery before the announcements are made on Monday morning. And then you have another week or so to let me know what your favorite YA titles are before my deadline to select the Los Angeles Times Book Prize for YA Literature. The shortlist for that will be announced later in February. Stay tuned.

Cindy

The eight-chapter book gives the history of some of the most famous names in instrument history including: Zildjian cymbals, Steinway pianos, Conn Cornets, Martin guitars, Ludwig drums, Hammond organs, Fender electric guitars, and Moog synthesizers. Each chapter starts with a teaser about the musician who invented the famous brand, like Avedis Zildjian in 1623 Constantinople, a metalsmith who was given his last “cymbal-maker son” name by the Sultan who admired his work or 8-year-old William Ludwig whose father wanted him to play the violin rather than the drums. His father was a professional trombone player and “didn’t think drumming required serious musical skills.” Eventually Ludwig’s passion for drums won out, but not until he had worked through a variety of “real” instruments.  Many of the musicians found a unique way to improve the instruments they loved and some could not contain their creativity and spawned side inventions. Did you know that Larry Hammond of electric organ fame also invented 3-D glasses, and less popular, an electric card-dealing bridge table! There are great family photos to illustrate the chapters.

The book also gives sidebar information with photos, diagrams, and period advertising about the instruments themselves, and about famous legendary musicians who have played them. No Justin Biebers here, but you will find the likes of Eric Clapton, Buddy Rich, Ringo Starr, and George Gershwin.

The chapter about C. G. Conn of Elkhart, Indiana, strikes a personal chord with me. In addition to Conn manufacturing cornets, the C. G. Conn Company became the oldest continuous manufacturer of band instruments in America. I lived just down the street from this factory and later we’d moved across the state line to Michigan but I bought my flute from them when I joined the school band and took it there for service. The company played a big part in encouraging school bands, including founding the Conn National School of Music in Chicago to be the first “band teacher” training school in the country.

Your 784′s will welcome this book.

For more Nonfiction Monday blog posts, head to The Swimmer Writer today!

Lynn:

“It was the first of November and so, today, someone would die.”

Find me one soul who could put the book down after that opening!  Stiefvater doesn’t make it any easier to stop reading after that either.  First she creates and describes a place so vividly that atlases will be consulted.  Secondly she develops characters who thrust their way into our hearts.  We KNOW these people and we can’t stop thinking about any of them – from the main protagonists right down the the most minor secondary character.  And then there is the plot that maintains a sense of mounting dread and an urgency that never flags.

Thisby Island is a stark and brutal place.  The humans hang on but life is a battle every day.  Not only are jobs scarce  – the young people are fleeing to the mainland in droves – but basic survival is always in doubt.  The sea takes it’s share of of fishermen and travelers but it also holds an unusual threat.  The waters around Thisby teem with fierce water horses, the capaill uisce, carnivores who lunge from the waves to prey on the unwary and terrorize the island on storm nights.  For the brave hardy souls who can capture and control them though, there are riches to be had.  Larger and faster than horses, the capaill uisce, are used for the legendary Scorpio Races in November that draw throngs of enthusiasts to the island.  The purse is fat and winning it can mean having a future but the risk is huge.  In November people die racing on the beaches of Thisby, killed by the very creatures who carry them.  The narrative alternates between two young racers, Katherine”Puck” Connolly who races to save her house from foreclosure and keep her brother from leaving the island, and Sean Kendrick, 4-time winner of the Scorpio Races.  Sean races to buy the capaill uisce he loves from the greedy owner he works for and to start his own stable.  Fiercely independent and determined, Kate and Sean fall in love and their relationship both strengthens and weakens their chances of winning.

As romantic as it is terrifying, the story crescendos to a heart-pounding finish that is both powerful and satisfyingly right.  I listened to this on audio while I exercised and the terrifically crafted story and outstanding production was responsible for keeping me walking on that miserable treadmill for MILES longer than I usually do.  My heart and blood pressure thank you, Maggie Stiefvater!

Cindy: I’m not a “horse girl” so I had shied away from this book in my pile, but I could not ignore the mounting starred reviews, best of the year lists, and praise I was hearing about it. Stiefvater’s story is just what I needed this cold, cruel January. Puck is a contrary girl who won my affection, although she probably could care less if she got it or not! This is a horse story, but so much more. Puck riding her small bay on a dangerous beach with carnivorous horses in a race in which no one wants a girl to compete may be the main event, but the story that takes us there is well worth the ride. The pace of the tale follows the pace of the race…a slow start…some daring moves, some tragedy, and a furious race to the finish.

I am so very tired of paranormal romances that I could go all “Puck” on you just thinking about it. But this one is fresh, unique, and the setting of Thisby is a character as surely as Puck and Sean and the fabulous cast of secondary characters are. The relationship between Puck and Sean develops in a natural and satisfying way. I care about these people. If you’d like a real treat (besides the one waiting for you in the pages of this novel), head to Stiefvater’s website. There you’ll find a fabulous photograph slide show of Maggie on location researching her setting. The photos of the cliffs and rocky narrow beaches are stunning. And there’s a book trailer with Stiefvater’s artwork animation and her own music you can use to promote the book with your teens. Did I mention the recipe for Maggie’s November Cakes?  Lynn improved her physical health and I’ve improved my mental health–I’m in a better mood already just thinking about this atmospheric well-written book.

Lynn: I KNEW it!  This is the reason I can’t find the books I’m looking for!  They get up and dance around the room when we are sleeping.

Cindy

Mattie’s first invention was a stop-motion device that prevented women from being injured with the shuttle while working their looms. She was too young to register the patent and did not make any money from it, but was satisfied with the knowledge that she had helped improve working conditions for the women.

There’s plenty to get indignant about in Margaret Knight’s biography: age discrimination, sex discrimination, theft of intellectual property. You name it. By day Mattie worked in a paper bag factory, folding and gluing the flat-bottomed bags by hand. By night, she worked on a design for a machine to make this work easier (among other inventions). But after working two years and successfully designing and building the machine, she got to the patent office to discover that a worker at the machine shop had stolen her idea and patented it ahead of her. Not one to give up without a fight, she took her case to court. I’ll never take a paper grocery sack for granted again. And, while this is meant for a younger audience, it would make a great short read aloud for my 6th grade scientist and inventor unit.

Lynn: I didn’t know anything about Margaret Knight either and I’m so glad to make her acquaintance through this engaging book.  Kulling leads off this entry in the wonderful Great Idea Series (Tundra) with a poem in the style of William Carlos Williams .  (See our post on  Kulling’s All Aboard:  Elijah McCoy’s Steam Engine) I love stories about smart and determined young women and Kulling’s lively text tells an inspiring story about this determined woman who “never gave up without a fight.”  David Parkins’ charming illustrations are filled with carefully drawn period details and engaging humor.  Each page turn reveals at least one full-page illustration in authentic-feeling sepia tones.  The focus group loved this book as much as I did.  They were drawn in by the humor but stayed to savor the intriguing details.  An author’s note provides more information about Margaret Knight and a nice bibliography on the verso provides additional resources both in print and online.  Don’t miss this really excellent book that opens the door to a multitude of curricular uses.

For more Nonfiction Monday titles, please visit Great Kid Books

An old couple folded sheets together, stepping close and then apart as if doing a dance they knew by heart.

This is a series that I hope continues for many more books. Now, excuse me while I go track down the first book. I want to be ready for the next sequel.

Lynn: I am definitely in agreement with Cindy on this charming book.  I don’t know what planet I was on last year to have missed the first book but I am tracking it down the minute Midwinter is done.  There is so much I love about this book from the lovely language and images that sit so strongly in the reader’s mind to the vivid characters that feel like our own neighbors.  Here are a few examples of the delicious descriptive language:

“…her sister’s fuzzy apricot of a cheek.” “Mo and this tree had known each other so long, its trunk and her spine were friends. “The sounds of E 213th St. bumped against the glass trying to get in.”

There are some lovely child-centered themes here from the impact of change to identity.  Mo, who has seen herself as responsible for her father and little sister, feels adrift when her Dad becomes more involved on the home front and Dottie begins to grow up and need her less.  “Your job, “says her father, “is to make new friends and work hard in school…In other words be normal growing girls.”  Springstubb clearly respects her young readers and skillfully shows us how Mo struggles with this concept, trying to discover who she is as the family builds a new life in a new place.  Mo, and all the characters, are painted with a sweet humorous insight that rings true and strong.  Here’s hoping there are many more stories to come.

Lynn:

Beginning with a birth during an air raid and ending with the planes flying into the World Trade Center, Peet’s scope is at once wide ranging and narrowly focused.  The book is told primarily by the adult Clem looking back at his first world-exploding discovery of sex and love against the backdrop of the unraveling British class structure and the Cuban Missile Crisis.  His relationship with upper-class Frankie would have horrified both sets of parents so their stolen time together had to be planned like a battle campaign.  Focused entirely on each other, Clem and Frankie are oblivious to the larger world where other battle campaigns are in motion.  An unseen narrator alternates with the lovers’ intensely personal moments, revealing in scathing caustic fury, just how close the world came to having the button pushed by madmen.  I was 13 during the Cuban Missile Crisis and Peet’s writing brought back my sense of helpless infuriated terror like it was yesterday. This is a book that is tender and terrifying, that whispers sweetly and shouts in anguished anger.  Life and death, love and war – we humans are inescapably formed by the impact of both forces – and Mal Peet explores this theme with as explosive a power as I have ever encountered.  Is it conventional YA?  No, but thoughtful teens will connect with the passion and the honesty in these pages.

Cindy: I, too, listened to this book…and pardon the pun, I was blown away. I’ve been delayed writing my portion of the blog because I am dipping into the hardcover and keep getting sucked into the story again and again. But here’s a shot at it. The book opens with endpapers illustrated with an exploded diagram of a rocket and English teachers could have a blast (sorry) with that metaphor alone for a week. The story is divided into three sections: Putting Things Together, Blowing Things Apart, and Picking Up the Pieces. The chapter titles alone are worth the price of admission:

The Heartbroken Nazi
A Wink in the Barley
The Girl Who Ate His Heart Bums a Smoke
You Learn Nothing About Sex from Books Especially If They’re By D. H. Lawrence
The Limited Opportunities for Obtaining Contraceptives in North Norfolk in 1962
The Shifty Word Standstill

Lynn has mentioned many of the strengths of the book so I’ll take another tack. I want to address audience with this book as I’ve heard some rumblings that it is an adult book masquerading as a YA publication. I will agree that Life will appeal to adults and it would make a great book club selection. Angelina Benedetti, author of the Booksmack “35 Going on 13″ column for LJ, listed it among the Best of 2011: YA Books for Adults and it certainly deserves a place among those other titles on her great list. I acknowledge that the adult sensibilities of the grown Clem looking back on his life will be offputting to some who like their YA lit to be completely teen-centric (exit adults stage left in Chapter One) but most high school students are regular readers of adult literature and we often underestimate their interests, capabilities and predilections when we assume we know what they want to read. I have many strong 8th graders reading and enjoying Mal Peet’s Tamar, another complex historical fiction with teen and adult characters and this story will appeal to those readers who have moved on to high school. Do teens shy away from Stephen King novels like Pet Sematary with their adult sensibilities? No. The bulk of the novel is set during Clem’s teen years and his decision to try to get Frankie to “gather ye rosebuds while ye may” is appropriate and that tension alone will keep some teens turning the pages. In between those steamy pages is a rich story full of metaphor, meaty themes, and gorgeous writing. It’s an exploded diagram of life with all of its longing, sadness, love, humor, regret, indifference, anger, power plays and all the rest of the emotions that make us fully human. Don’t miss this one. Carpe diem! Pluck the day…or better yet..pluck this book off your nearest library or book store shelf.