Book Review: Nancy's Mysterious Letter by Carolyn Keene (Reviewed by Olivia)

My daughter Olivia (age 7) continues to love Nancy Drew books. And after reading her most recent book, Olivia asked me if she could write her own review for the blog. She wrote it out by hand (including the synopsis) and I'm just typing it. So here she goes, all in her own words...

Nancy's Mysterious Letter

Written by Carolyn Keene
Juvenile Fiction; Ages 8 and up

The book starts when Nancy mistakenly gets a letter of inheritance for a Nancy Smith Drew. The book is all about the things she has to do to find this Nancy Smith Drew. Will she ever find her? You will find out if you read the book.
I really liked this book. I was interested by the idea that someone out in the world had nearly the same name as Nancy. I liked the way she decided to search for this other Nancy. I liked that it took her a while to find her, and I didn't think she'd ever find her. How she went about her search was interesting to me.

Books Read To/By the Kids in April 2011

Reading aloud to the girls suffered dreadfully in April, but here are most of the library titles we managed to get to. And of course, they pored over our own shelves and re-read lots of favorites. I'm proud of Olivia for picking up my slack and taking it upon herself to read her 3 year old sister stories anytime she wanted them, while Mom was otherwise occupied. There's nothing that squeezes a mother's heart quite like the sight of one of her children reading a story to a younger sibling.

An Egg Is Quiet

Written by Diana Hutts Aston

Illustrated by Sylvia Long

Non-fiction Picture Book; Ages 4 and up

(Published in 2006 by Chronicle Books)

  This beautifully written and illustrated book is a nature lover's dream. The rich, poetic prose discusses the physical qualities of eggs. And the incredible pictures featuring dozens of eggs had my 6 year-old Karina poring over this book time and again. I love them so much I plan on purchasing this book and the others Aston and Long collaborated on: A Seed Is Sleepy and A Butterfly Is Patient (not yet released).

I borrowed this from the library after I saw it featured on Janice Durant's blog Books of Wonder and Wisdom. Thank you, Janice.

Rechenka's Eggs

Written and illustrated by Patricia Polacco
Picture Book; Ages 4 and up
(Published in 1988 by Philomel Books)

Every year old Babushka paints eggs to sell at the Easter festival. One day, when a wounded goose falls from the sky, Babushka takes her in, tenderly nurses her back to health, and names her Rechenka. When the goose accidentally breaks all of Babushka's eggs that she labored all winter to paint, Rechenka makes amends by providing a miracle.

(Again, thanks goes to Janice Durant for the book recommendation.

Mercy Watson Fights Crime (Mercy Watson #3)

Written by Kate DiCamillo
Illustrated by Chris Van Dusen
Young Readers; Ages 6 and up (Younger if read aloud.)

Ah, Mercy Watson, how my children love thee!
All the Mercy Watson books are perennial favorites around our house and get re-read every few months by both my older girls (ages 6 and 7). This is one series that they can both read themselves, and they are delighted to read them aloud to their little sister. This whole series of Mercy Watson books (there are 6) got a work-out this month. Literarily, the stories are pretty fluffy, but my girls bask in the marshmallowy yumminess. And the pictures, with their fifties retro feel, add greatly to the fun.

Mercy Watson is a buttered-toast obsessed pig, and an unwitting hero. She gets herself into and out of some silly predicaments and manages to come out smelling like roses butter.

In Mercy Watson Fights Crime (the 3rd book of the series), Mercy unwittingly foils a small would-be, cowboy wanna-be house burglar.
For some reason or other, this book was read the most this month by both girls. (I heard it read aloud to Susanna WAY.TOO.MUCH!)
(We've also borrowed the audio CDs before and they are well done. The girls like listening to them at night.)

Here are the other titles:

Mercy Watson to the Rescue (#1)

Mercy Watson Goes For a Ride (#2)

Mercy Watson, Princess in Disguise (#4)

Mercy Watson Thinks Like a Pig (#5)

Mercy Watson: Something Wonky This Way Comes (#6)

The Tale of the Mandarin Ducks

Written by Katherine Paterson

Illustrated by Leo and Diane Dillon

Picture Book; Ages 4 and up

When a Japanese lord sees the beautiful plumage of a male mandarin duck, he orders his capture. In captivity, the male pines for his mate and begins to die. Appalled at his plight, a maidservant sets the duck free, and she and the Lord's one-eyed steward are sentenced to death for their perfidy. Help comes from unexpected quarters, and the two disgraced servants must flee for their lives. Find out what happens next in this beautifully told and illustrated story of compassion, courage, heroism, and loyalty.

The Gardener

Written by Sarah Stewart

Illustrated by David Small

Picture Book; Ages 4 and up

(Published in 1997 by Farrar, Straus, Giroux)

My girls and I so loved this Caldecott Honor book about a young girl who is sent to live with her uncle in the city because her father is out of work. Set during the Depression and told in the form of letters -first to her uncle and then to her parents and grandma at home in the country- Lydia Grace transforms her Uncle's drab life and bakery, one plant at a time, into a bower of blooming brightness.

The Story of Ferdinand

Written by Munro Leaf

Illustrated by Robert Lawson

Picture Book; Ages 4 and up

It's hard to believe that this book about a gentle bull who only wants to sit "just quietly" and smell the flowers, was once banned by Franco of Spain. First published in 1937, a few months before the outbreak of the Spanish Civil War, Francisco Franco saw the book as a message of pacifism directed at him and banned the book from Spain.
To me this book's timeless message is about being true to yourself and that being different is okay. I loved this story as a child and my girls love it, and enjoy re-reading it. They laugh hysterically when Ferdinand sits on the bee, and at the illustration showing his expression. And they laugh at the bullfight scene.

April's Reading Round-up - Books For Me

My blog posting suffered during April due to the INSANE amount of books I read. My duties as a Round 1 judge for the YA Bloggers Best Overlooked Book Battle are at an end, and my Top Ten has been submitted. It was hard to choose. (There were some books from the Book Battle reading list that I have already read, so I didn't re-read them.) In a few days I'll be able to share which books I chose for my top ten.
I also (yes, I'm crazy) read some other books while I was waiting for Battle books to become available. I think I might be forgetting a couple of books, but since my head feels like it's about to explode, I'll quit here.

1. Kiki Strike: Inside the Shadow City - Kristen Miller
2. She Smells the Dead - E.J. Stevens
3. Nomansland - Lesley Hauge
4. Hold Me Closer, Necromancer - Lish MacBride
5. Academy 7 - Anne Osterlund
6. Threads and Flames - Esther M. Friesner (Young Adult)
7. The Thin Executioner - Darren Shan (Young Adult)
8. By the Time You Read This, I'll Be Dead - Julie Anne Peters (Young Adult)
9. Stolen - Lucy Christopher (Young Adult)
10. Little Blog on the Prairie - Catherine Davitt Bell (Middle Grade/Young Adult)
11. The Actor and the Housewife - Shannon Hale (Adult Fiction)
12. StarCrossed - Elizabeth C. Bunce (Young Adult)
13. The Mockingbirds - Daisy Whitney (Young Adult)
14. Women in the Material World - Faith D'Aluisio (Non-fiction)
15. She's So Money - Cherry Cheva (Young Adult)
16. The Strange Case of Origami Yoda - Tom Angleberger (Middle Grade)
17. The Grimm Legacy - Polly Shulman (Young Adult)
18. Some Girls Are - Courtney Summers (Young Adult)
19. 13 Little Blue Envelopes - Maureen Johnson (Young Adult)
20. Adios, Nirvana - Conrad Wesselhoeft (Young Adult)
21. The Cry of the Icemark - Stuart Hill
22. The Summer I Turned Pretty - Jenny Han (Young Adult)
23. A Little Wanting Song - Cath Crowley (Young Adult)
24. The Sky Is Everywhere - Jandy Nelson (Young Adult)
25. Stork - Wendy Delsol (Young Adult)
26. Compromised - Heidi Ayarbe (Young Adult)
27. The 10 p.m. Question - Kate De Goldi (Young Adult)
28. Perfect Chemistry - Simone Elkeles (Young Adult)
29. Eon - Alison Goodman (Young Adult)
30. Birthmarked - Caragh M. O'Brien (Young Adult)
31. Whale Talk - Chris Crutcher (Young Adult)
32. Out of My Mind - Sharon M. Draper (Middle Grade)
33. Stravaganza: City of Masks - Mary Hoffman (Young Adult)
34. Hate List - Jennifer Brown (Young Adult)
35. Bloody Jack - L.A. Meyer (Young Adult)
36. Harmonic Feedback - Tara Kelly (Young Adult)
37. Dreamhunter - Elizabeth Knox (Young Adult)
38. High Heat - Karl Deuker (Young Adult)
39. The Last Knight - Hilari Bell (Young Adult)
40. Fat Cat - Robin Brande (Young Adult)
41. Heist Society - Ally Carter (Young Adult)
42. The Magic of Ordinary Days - Ann Howard Creel (Adult Fiction)
43. The Last Apprentice: Revenge of the Witch - Joseph Delaney

Three Favorite Picture Books About Family History

They Were Strong and Good

Written and illustrated by Robert Lawson
Winner of the Caldecott Medal
Ages 4 and up
(First published in 1940 by Viking Press)

"When the Civil War began, my father's father quit fighting Satan and went off to fight the Yankees instead. My father was twelve years old and wanted to go too, but they said he was too young. So he went to work in a store to help out."
This book is a simplified account of Lawson's paternal and maternal grandparents and his mother and father with some truly wonderful illustrations that speak a world of words with just an image. I can see why the book won the Caldecott, because the black and white drawings are "strong and good" and sometimes gently humorous (like the picture of his young grandmother as a new bride, hanging over the side of a ship being sick.)
I love this book for the way it captures little slices of history in the personal stories of his ancestors. 
Please be aware that there are some depictions of Native Americans and slaves that are stereotypical, but try to leave off judging, considering that these were the attitudes of the times in which the people lived.

Aunt Claire's Yellow Beehive Hair

Written by Deborah Blumethal
Illustrated by Mary GrandPre
Ages 4 and up
(Published in 2001 by Dial Books for Young Readers)

"Grandma Marilyn says
our book is like the Kaddish,
a prayer of love
to keep the past alive
so that it will never be forgotten."

Annie learns snippets of family history while listening to the grown-ups talk at large extended family dinners. Inspired to learn more about those family members who came before, Annie embarks on a family history project. She and her Grandma Marilyn gather every scrap of family memorabilia they can find in the house and bring them to the kitchen table, to create a family story album. As they assemble it, we learn -along with Annie- stories of various family members.
The pictures in this book are just so much fun. I love how GrandPre gives life to these family characters. My favorite is the spread below. (I hope the publishers don't mind if I share this with you.)

Can you see the sheepish shrug in Great-Grandpa Louis' eyes as he looks across the page at his wife? And the answering sardonic glint in hers as she gazes back, holding up her needle in an almost threatening manner? I love it! It's priceless!

The Name Quilt

Written by Phyllis Root

Illustrated by Margot Apple

Ages 4 and up

(Published in 2003 by Farrar, Straus and Giroux)

"The name quilt was made of little patches, like Grandma's other quilts. But the name quilt had names on it, too, sewn on some of the patches in tiny stitches with different-colored thread. And every name had a story."

Sadie loves working on the name quilt with Grandma, listening to the stories of those people sewn into the quilt.When a terrible storm blows through with heartbreaking consequences, Sadie learns the importance of memories.
This is a wonderful, heartwarming story of family relationships, and how family stories knit us together.




The first book I own, and the last two were borrowed from the library.

Picture Book Read-Alouds, Inspired by Folk Tales

Lucia and the Light
Written by Phyllis Root
Illustrated by Mary GrandPre
Picture Book, Ages 4 and up
Published by Candlewick Press in 2006


Inspired by a Norse folk tale, this is the compelling story of a little girl who bravely journeys up the mountain to rescue the sun, in order to bring light and warmth back to the land.
My girls loved this story, so much so that they asked if we can check it out of the library again. (It's due back today, and we're on our second renewal, so we can't keep it longer.) Even Susanna sat completely enthralled by the story. (She was the first one to spot the shadow of a troll, a portent of things to come, made by the shadows cast from hanging baskets in the family's cabin.)
The pictures are luminously beautiful. The medium looks like pastel, but I'm not sure. However they're done, they have an ethereal softness to them that is very dreamy. The way GrandPre captures light is amazing. The book is a beautiful marriage of art and text.
This is our first encounter with both Phyllis Root's and Mary GrandPre's work, and we will definitely check out other books by these talented women.

The Greatest Treasure

Written and illustrated by Demi

Picture Book, Ages 4 and up
Published by Scholastic Press in 1998


Inspired by a Chinese folk tale, this is the story of two fathers, a poor one who enjoys life, and a rich one obsessed with his money. Baffled, annoyed and perhaps a tad bit envious of the seemingly care-free life of the poor family, the rich man decides to give the poor man some money to worry about. This is a wonderful allegory about finding balance.
My girls were familiar with the so talented Demi from her book The Empty Pot, which they love and frequently request to be read.
They liked this story too, maybe not quite as much as The Empty Pot, but they have asked it to be read several times since we checked it out from the library.
(I want to get her books about Gandhi, Muhammad, Buddha, and Mother Teresa next.)


Both these books were checked out of the library.

Some of my favorite read-alouds for young boys (and girls, too)

This post is inspired by Fanny's comment (on this post) of her desire to find more books to read to her young son. Here are some fun books, all written for the 8 to 11 year old range, all older classics, that work beautifully and are especially appealling for reading aloud to young boys (and girls, who will love them too.)

The Great Brain
by John D. Fitzgerald
illustrated by Mercer Mayer

A funny romp of a book, told through the eyes of the youngest brother John D. (or J.D. as his family called him), about life in a family of all boys around the later part of the 1800's. The adventures, schemes, mayhem and mischief, usually concocted by his brother Tom (the Great Brain), that the boys are involved in will leave you laughing and blessing the patience of mothers everywhere. These books are also good to give reluctant readers, because they are so engaging, and well-written, and they keep moving.

These books (some of them) have been re-published, which is wonderful, as it's always a shame when good stories become unavailable to readers. And there are more in the series (that you might only find at your library, 'though I think Amazon has a few of the series):

• More Adventures of the Great Brain
• Me and My Little Brain
• The Great Brain at the Academy
• The Great Brain Reforms
• The Return of the Great Brain
• The Great Brain Does It Again
• The Great Brain Is Back

The Genie of Sutton Place

by George Seldon
(First published in 1973)

Set in New York City, this is a heartwarming and hilarious story by the author of The Cricket in Times Square (another good read-aloud) about what happens when you employ a genie to help you solve your problems. When Tim's father dies, Tim goes to live with Aunt Lucy in her Sutton Place apartment, bringing along his mutt, Sam. Then Sam falls in love with Aunt Lucy, following her all around the apartment, lying his head on her lap or foot whenever she sits down. Aunt Lucy doesn't love Sam back, and quickly gets so annoyed that she tells Tim the dog has to go. Desperate to keep his beloved pet, Tim seeks the help of Madame Sosostris, an old friend of the family and also a Medium. The solution they stumble across takes Tim to the National Museum to release the trapped Slave of the Carpet. When the genie turns Sam the dog into Sam, the man, hilarity and disaster ensue. It is a funny, charming, gripping story that will leave you smiling at the end.

As a read-aloud, this book works for kids as young as five or six, if they're used to narratives. (The first part of it is a little slow as the story is being set up.) For the child who will read it alone, they might need to be a little older, say 8 or 9 - unless, of course, you've already read it aloud and they want to relive the magic themselves.

Unfortunately, this book is out of print. You can still purchase copies second-hand, and definitely try your library, as they usually have older classics like this.

Ben & Me: An Astonishing Life of Benjamin Franklin By His Good Mouse Amos

Written and Illustrated by Robert Lawson

(First published in 1939)

Amos the mouse feels the need to set the record straight on how Benjamin Franklin got the ideas for all of his marvelous inventions.
A witty, humorous and interesting look at a great figure in history.
ALSO try Lawson's other historical fiction book along similar lines: Mr. Revere and I.





The Enormous Egg
by Oliver Butterworth
illustrated by Louise Darling
(First published in 1957)

Nate Twitchell is shocked to discover that his hen has laid a very un-hen-sized egg. It's so enormous, she can't sit on it. When it hatches, he and the whole town, indeed the whole country, get the surprise of a lifetime when out pops a triceratops. Find out what happens as this enormous baby starts eating and eating...
A fun story, set in the 1950's, that my little girls loved when I read it aloud to them a couple years ago.

Book Review: All Their Names Were Courage by Sharon Phillips Denslow

All Their Names Were Courage

Written by Sharon Phillips Denslow

Historical Fiction
Ages 7 and up

An historical novel, set during the Civil War, told in the form of letters over the course of three years, as eleven year old Sally Burd corresponds with her brother William, a Union soldier away at war. Sally writes to her brother that she and her friend Isaac have decided to write a book about the horses of Generals fighting in the war, illustrated by Isaac. She writes a letter of introduction and sends copies off to 19 generals, on both sides of the war. Here is an excerpt of that letter:

"Dear Sir,

My friend Isaac Mills and myself, Sarah McAlister Burd, both eleven and one half years,  of Brewers Mill, Kentucky, are writing to generals with regard to your fine horses. We mean to make a book of horses with pictures drawn by Isaac and letters from generals, such as yourself, telling us some about your favorite horse. We feel that the courageous warhorses and their stories and daring should not be lost."

When I saw this book on the library shelf, the title intrigued me. Then when I realized it was an epistolary book, I had to check it out: I'm a sucker for books in the form of letters or journals.
As I started to read, I quickly got hooked by the story. I appreciated that the focus of the book isn't on taking sides in the war; rather, it's about the life of a family, seen through the eyes of a young girl, when a son and brother are away at war; it's about the relationship between brother and sister, and their joint interest in the project that Sally and Isaac have undertaken. And even though I am not a horse person, I was intrigued by the project they undertook. I have never really considered before just how important horses were in the Civil War. I now have a better understanding and appreciation for those gallant warhorses and that all their names were, indeed, Courage.



Book published in 2003 by Greenwillow
This copy borrowed from the library.