bookpagedev

FictionHistorical Fiction

Avenging the loss of sacred ground

Review by bookpagedev

A mesmerizing tale of revenge, retribution and forgiveness lies at the core of Louise Erdrich’s latest work, Four Souls, in which she reprises characters from Love Medicine and The Beet Queen and returns to a cherished piece of land from Tracks. The story opens with the relentless trek of Fleur Pillager as she seeks revenge on John James Mauser, the man who tricked her into giving up the land where her ancestors had lived for centuries. Fleur follows him to Minneapolis, where he has used trees from that land to build an enormous house with beeswaxed mantels and carved paneling.

To bolster her resolve in carrying out her quest, Fleur takes on the secret name given to her mother, Four Souls. In chapters alternating with Fleur’s present story, her past is recalled by Nanapush, her adoptive father, who recalls how Fleur’s mother got that name, and why Fleur is now adopting it. Nanapush also serves as the vehicle for Erdrich’s warm humor, as he regales the reader with the ups and downs of his relationship with Margaret, his wife.

When Fleur finds Mauser, she surprisingly finds herself pitying him for his physical afflictions; she marries him and bears him a son. But she never loses sight of her ultimate goal, even when an addiction to alcohol takes its toll. Erdrich deftly adds side plots while maintaining the underlying tension of what is behind Fleur’s every move. When Fleur finally returns to the reservation, her son (deemed a “hopeless idiot” by some) in tow, the author sets a perfect scene for her last attempt to win back her precious acres.

Erdrich’s forte is her ability to weave Ojibwe myths and traditions into her compelling narratives, creating many-faceted characters who seem to come alive before our eyes. Her latest novel continues in that tradition, and Fleur Pillager’s saga is destined to become a classic.

A mesmerizing tale of revenge, retribution and forgiveness lies at the core of Louise Erdrich's latest work, Four Souls, in which she reprises characters from Love Medicine and The Beet Queen and returns to a cherished piece of land from Tracks. The story opens with…
ParentingFamily & Relationships

Parenting with patience Guidebooks to peruse while hiding in the bathroom

Review by bookpagedev

The three most important words in real estate may be “Location, location, location!” but in parenting they are “Patience, patience, patience!” Patience is like toilet paper; you’re always running out of it, but because you’re the parent, you are expected to keep some in reserve.

How to perform this amazing feat? Parenting books are full of encouragement and offer welcome reassurance that you’re not alone out there. Besides, when your grandchildren are born, you can pass on the highlighted, underlined, question-marked, dog-eared, coffee and tear-stained remnants to the new parents.

Any of the following new books would make a great start for your collection.

How to Behave So Your Preschooler Will, Too! by Sal Severe, Ph.

D. (Viking, $23.95, 272 pages, ISBN 0670031089) makes it clear that good parenting begins with self-control. Forget the saying, “Do as I say, not as I do,” because whether we like it or not, a parent is a child’s most influential teacher and role model and preschoolers are avid students. Of course, no one is a perfect parent person all the time. Sal Severe advocates being honest with our kids and ourselves when our behavior has been less than stellar. “It is always better for you and your child,” he writes, “if you admit your mistake and take responsibility for your own behavior.” From your example, the child will learn that the best way to handle mistakes is by admitting them, apologizing and trying to do better the next time. Chapters cover topics such as “How Motivation Affects Behavior,” “Alternatives to Spanking,” “Preschool Fears” and “How to Choose a Preschool.” Emily Post’s The Gift of Good Manners: A Parent’s Guide to Raising Respectful, Kind, Considerate Children by Peggy Post and Cindy Post Senning, Ed.

D., tackles teaching the rules of etiquette from the time children are toddlers through their teenage years. Good manners are an extension of good behavior and are indeed a gift; well-mannered children are more apt to be welcome visitors and guests wherever they go, thereby increasing their level of sociability and hence their range of experiences and opportunities as they mature. Still, the incentive for practicing good manners shouldn’t just be the results achieved for the child. Whether it is making eye contact, sharing toys or writing thank-you notes, the authors contend “manners express in action the values we hold dear” and should be an outgrowth of “the higher values of respect for others, integrity, loyalty, self-sacrifice, and honesty.” The Secure Child: Helping Children Feel Safe and Confident in a Changing World by Stanley I. Greenspan, M.D. (Perseus, $20, 160 pages, ISBN 0738207500) is a timely book not only for parents, but for educators and others who worked with children. The events of September 11 have made it all too clear that we live in an unpredictable world. This book outlines numerous ways to help children grow to adulthood with confidence and faith in their ability to solve problems. “Security,” Greenspan writes, “resides in advancing one’s ability to resolve difficult situations.” He offers both short-term strategies for difficult times (spend time together as a family, help children express their feelings, contribute to others in need) and long-term goals for preparing children to face an uncertain world. Greenspan’s prescription is not an easy fix; it involves establishing secure relationships for children and broadening their knowledge and understanding of people around the world. Girls Will Be Girls: Raising Confident and Courageous Daughters by JoAnn Deak, Ph.

D. (Hyperion, $23.95, 320 pages, ISBN 078686768X) deals with overcoming the obstacles particular to girls as they struggle with body image, self-esteem, intellectual and physical growth and other issues while getting mixed messages from contemporary culture. Having raised a daughter, not to mention being female myself, I wish I had had this book by my side over the years. Two of my favorite chapters were “Aiming to Please: Moving Beyond the Tyranny of Niceness” and “Girls in Action: The Magic of Doing,” but underlying every chapter is the same theme: the importance of fostering what Deak calls “the three C’s of self-esteem in girls:” competence, confidence and connectedness. The goal being that girls will not only feel good about themselves, but also be able to take action from positions of strength. Unhappy Teenagers: A Way for Parents and Teachers to Reach Them by William Glasser, M.D. (HarperCollins, $24.95, 198 pages, ISBN 0060007982). The best time to read a book about dealing with teenagers is well before your child actually becomes one not that you still won’t be taken by surprise, but surprise is better than total shock. So even if your children are still young, this is a good book to have on hand. If you are already in the “I’ve tried everything” stage, however, and your store of patience is running low, it’s not too late to grab this book and benefit from it. Glasser offers a different approach to reaching teens than the typical methods of grounding or taking away privileges. “Get rid of your use of external control” he advises, and “replace it with choice theory.” He uses real-life examples to illustrate choice theory in action and to help parents who are at once frustrated, angry and heart-sick re-establish communication with their troubled teens. Glasser also deserves kudos for his courageous remarks about breaking with traditional teaching methods in order to reach all students It’s NOT That Complicated: The Twelve Rules for Raising Happy, Self-Reliant Children by Doug Peine, (Health Communications, $10.95, 175 pages, ISBN 0757300049). This title probably already has you halfway out the door headed to the nearest bookstore a simple guide? Only 12 rules? For once, something too good to be true actually measures up. At less than a dollar a rule, with lots of wonderful insights into human nature thrown in, this little gem is a must-have at a bargain price. The rules are simple but time-tested: never hold grudges, don’t fight in front of your children and read to your child every night. A word of caution however: “not complicated” doesn’t mean “easy.” Parenting is hard work. While the major principles are easily understood, “putting them into practice is where most people fail,” says Peine. “To parent well,” he cautions, “requires time and effort. Parenting cannot be accomplished in absentia. You must be there in person, and you must be there a lot.” So much for hiding in the bathroom. Briefly noted Parenting Principles: From the Heart of a Pediatrician by William T. Slonecker, M.D. (Fredricksburg, $19.95, 213 pages, ISBN 0967039908) shares a Christian perspective on parenting from a pediatrician who practiced for 43 years. Slonecker urges parents to balance love and authority, using firm discipline to set boundaries for the child. Though based on theology, the book has many practical suggestions as well, on topics ranging from potty training to conflicts with grandparents. Three tips for parents: 1. Get plenty of rest. (Which admittedly will be next to impossible when your children are young.) 2. Drink plenty of fluids. (Frequent trips to the bathroom may be your only means of escape.) 3. Keep plenty of parenting books on hand. (They are full of sound advice and will give you something to read while hiding in the bathroom.)

The three most important words in real estate may be "Location, location, location!" but in parenting they are "Patience, patience, patience!" Patience is like toilet paper; you're always running out of it, but because you're the parent, you are expected to keep some in reserve.
ParentingFamily & Relationships

Parenting with patience Guidebooks to peruse while hiding in the bathroom

Review by bookpagedev

The three most important words in real estate may be “Location, location, location!” but in parenting they are “Patience, patience, patience!” Patience is like toilet paper; you’re always running out of it, but because you’re the parent, you are expected to keep some in reserve.

How to perform this amazing feat? Parenting books are full of encouragement and offer welcome reassurance that you’re not alone out there. Besides, when your grandchildren are born, you can pass on the highlighted, underlined, question-marked, dog-eared, coffee and tear-stained remnants to the new parents.

Any of the following new books would make a great start for your collection.

How to Behave So Your Preschooler Will, Too! by Sal Severe, Ph.

D. makes it clear that good parenting begins with self-control. Forget the saying, “Do as I say, not as I do,” because whether we like it or not, a parent is a child’s most influential teacher and role model and preschoolers are avid students. Of course, no one is a perfect parent person all the time. Sal Severe advocates being honest with our kids and ourselves when our behavior has been less than stellar. “It is always better for you and your child,” he writes, “if you admit your mistake and take responsibility for your own behavior.” From your example, the child will learn that the best way to handle mistakes is by admitting them, apologizing and trying to do better the next time. Chapters cover topics such as “How Motivation Affects Behavior,” “Alternatives to Spanking,” “Preschool Fears” and “How to Choose a Preschool.” Emily Post’s The Gift of Good Manners: A Parent’s Guide to Raising Respectful, Kind, Considerate Children by Peggy Post and Cindy Post Senning, Ed.

D., (HarperResource, $24.95, 400 pages, ISBN 006018549X) tackles teaching the rules of etiquette from the time children are toddlers through their teenage years. Good manners are an extension of good behavior and are indeed a gift; well-mannered children are more apt to be welcome visitors and guests wherever they go, thereby increasing their level of sociability and hence their range of experiences and opportunities as they mature. Still, the incentive for practicing good manners shouldn’t just be the results achieved for the child. Whether it is making eye contact, sharing toys or writing thank-you notes, the authors contend “manners express in action the values we hold dear” and should be an outgrowth of “the higher values of respect for others, integrity, loyalty, self-sacrifice, and honesty.” The Secure Child: Helping Children Feel Safe and Confident in a Changing World by Stanley I. Greenspan, M.D. (Perseus, $20, 160 pages, ISBN 0738207500) is a timely book not only for parents, but for educators and others who worked with children. The events of September 11 have made it all too clear that we live in an unpredictable world. This book outlines numerous ways to help children grow to adulthood with confidence and faith in their ability to solve problems. “Security,” Greenspan writes, “resides in advancing one’s ability to resolve difficult situations.” He offers both short-term strategies for difficult times (spend time together as a family, help children express their feelings, contribute to others in need) and long-term goals for preparing children to face an uncertain world. Greenspan’s prescription is not an easy fix; it involves establishing secure relationships for children and broadening their knowledge and understanding of people around the world. Girls Will Be Girls: Raising Confident and Courageous Daughters by JoAnn Deak, Ph.

D. (Hyperion, $23.95, 320 pages, ISBN 078686768X) deals with overcoming the obstacles particular to girls as they struggle with body image, self-esteem, intellectual and physical growth and other issues while getting mixed messages from contemporary culture. Having raised a daughter, not to mention being female myself, I wish I had had this book by my side over the years. Two of my favorite chapters were “Aiming to Please: Moving Beyond the Tyranny of Niceness” and “Girls in Action: The Magic of Doing,” but underlying every chapter is the same theme: the importance of fostering what Deak calls “the three C’s of self-esteem in girls:” competence, confidence and connectedness. The goal being that girls will not only feel good about themselves, but also be able to take action from positions of strength. Unhappy Teenagers: A Way for Parents and Teachers to Reach Them by William Glasser, M.D. (HarperCollins, $24.95, 198 pages, ISBN 0060007982). The best time to read a book about dealing with teenagers is well before your child actually becomes one not that you still won’t be taken by surprise, but surprise is better than total shock. So even if your children are still young, this is a good book to have on hand. If you are already in the “I’ve tried everything” stage, however, and your store of patience is running low, it’s not too late to grab this book and benefit from it. Glasser offers a different approach to reaching teens than the typical methods of grounding or taking away privileges. “Get rid of your use of external control” he advises, and “replace it with choice theory.” He uses real-life examples to illustrate choice theory in action and to help parents who are at once frustrated, angry and heart-sick re-establish communication with their troubled teens. Glasser also deserves kudos for his courageous remarks about breaking with traditional teaching methods in order to reach all students It’s NOT That Complicated: The Twelve Rules for Raising Happy, Self-Reliant Children by Doug Peine, (Health Communications, $10.95, 175 pages, ISBN 0757300049). This title probably already has you halfway out the door headed to the nearest bookstore a simple guide? Only 12 rules? For once, something too good to be true actually measures up. At less than a dollar a rule, with lots of wonderful insights into human nature thrown in, this little gem is a must-have at a bargain price. The rules are simple but time-tested: never hold grudges, don’t fight in front of your children and read to your child every night. A word of caution however: “not complicated” doesn’t mean “easy.” Parenting is hard work. While the major principles are easily understood, “putting them into practice is where most people fail,” says Peine. “To parent well,” he cautions, “requires time and effort. Parenting cannot be accomplished in absentia. You must be there in person, and you must be there a lot.” So much for hiding in the bathroom. Briefly noted Parenting Principles: From the Heart of a Pediatrician by William T. Slonecker, M.D. (Fredricksburg, $19.95, 213 pages, ISBN 0967039908) shares a Christian perspective on parenting from a pediatrician who practiced for 43 years. Slonecker urges parents to balance love and authority, using firm discipline to set boundaries for the child. Though based on theology, the book has many practical suggestions as well, on topics ranging from potty training to conflicts with grandparents. Three tips for parents: 1. Get plenty of rest. (Which admittedly will be next to impossible when your children are young.) 2. Drink plenty of fluids. (Frequent trips to the bathroom may be your only means of escape.) 3. Keep plenty of parenting books on hand. (They are full of sound advice and will give you something to read while hiding in the bathroom.)

The three most important words in real estate may be "Location, location, location!" but in parenting they are "Patience, patience, patience!" Patience is like toilet paper; you're always running out of it, but because you're the parent, you are expected to keep some in reserve.
LifestylesHealth & Fitness

More natural cures for what ails you

Review by bookpagedev

Already a surprising phenomenon in the publishing world, Kevin Trudeau takes aim at modern-day health care once again in his latest release, More Natural Cures Revealed: Previously Censored Brand Name Products That Cure Disease. Planning a first printing of half a million copies, Trudeau clearly believes his readers are hungry for more of what he has to say about the causes and cures for common illnesses. An advocate of natural healing methods, Trudeau argues that doctors, the pharmaceutical industry and government agencies have conspired to censor information about remedies.

Trudeau’s previous book, Natural Cures They Don’t Want You to Know About, was the best-selling nonfiction book in America in 2005, outselling such well known authors as David McCullough, Thomas L. Friedman and even Dr. Phil. Industry journal Publishers Weekly reports that Natural Cures sold 3.7 million copies last year, easily outpacing every other book on the market except for boy wonder Harry Potter (J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince took first place in publishing with 13.5 million copies sold in the U.S.)

Trudeau achieved his incredible success by promoting his book on seemingly endless infomercials that turned up on television at all hours of the night (and day). Telegenic and articulate, Trudeau used the programs to press his claim that sinister forces are at work.  "There are certain groups, including government agencies, as well as the food industry, the drug industry, and even some news . . . organizations that don’t want people to know about cures for diseases that are all-natural because people can’t make money on all-natural cures,"  Trudeau says.  "So there are in fact cures for cancer. There are cures for diabetes."

Many have questioned Trudeau’s conclusions and his background, which includes a stint in federal prison and an enforcement action against him by the Federal Trade Commission. A 2004 FTC order fined Trudeau $2 million and banned him from appearing in infomercials for drug supplements. This ban is meant to shut down an infomercial empire that has misled American consumers for years, an FTC official said at the time. Ironically, though, the order specifically exempted infomercials for books, newsletters, and other informational publications. From that point on, Trudeau stopped selling supplements and started selling books, with extraordinary results.

 

 

Already a surprising phenomenon in the publishing world, Kevin Trudeau takes aim at modern-day health care once again in his latest release, More Natural Cures Revealed: Previously Censored Brand Name Products That Cure Disease. Planning a first printing of half a million copies, Trudeau…

Children's & YA

Wing Nuts

Review by bookpagedev

Spring is a time to try out new ideas, and Wing Nuts: Screwy Haiku, written by Paul B. Janeczko and J. Patrick Lewis with illustrations by Tricia Tusa, introduces readers to the poetry form of senryu. Described as the kissin’ cousins of haiku, these are short, pun-filled, humorous poems. Rusa’s whimsical illustrations match the wacky, offbeat humor of the poems, creating a book that is sure to evoke giggles from listeners. The first poem reads, Tabby and Fido do whatever they want reigning cat and dog, while the illustration shows a be-crowned cat and dog being lovingly waited on by their human family (not really so far off from a lot of families, when you come to think of it). Another poem depicts a crow, Solitary crow calls its cousin in distant pine with its Ôcawing card.’ And then there’s this pun-filled gem, City pigeons chatter and coo busybodies eavesdropping. Wing Nuts is just the kind of book to inspire young readers to create their own poetry for National Poetry Month, so let the shower of poems begin! Deborah Hopkinson’s new book, a Junior Library Guild selection entitled Up Before Daybreak: Cotton and People in America, will be published this month.

Spring is a time to try out new ideas, and Wing Nuts: Screwy Haiku, written by Paul B. Janeczko and J. Patrick Lewis with illustrations by Tricia Tusa, introduces readers to the poetry form of senryu. Described as the kissin' cousins of haiku, these are…
Mystery & SuspenseSuspense

The might to remember

Review by bookpagedev

Maggie Wilson remembered what happened that night she was left for dead. Her then-husband Nate came home drunk. She could see him in the doorframe still, raising his hand to strike her. She never doubted that memory. But then, five years later, someone else confessed to the attack.

This gripping first novel by Paul Jaskunas reads like a memoir as he captures the earnest voice of this beautiful young woman, turned into the village freak by the savage attack. Her testimony sent Nate to prison, and Maggie, now 28, must consider that she might have misremembered. Maybe it wasn’t her husband after all. Maybe that powerful memory was false.

Tautly written, Hidden opens with Maggie’s description of the scene when the police arrive and find her unconscious and bleeding on the floor of their farmhouse near the picturesque Utopian community of New Harmony, Indiana. The reader gradually learns much about Maggie: how she happened to marry so young, and how she came to violate her marriage vows with a co-worker; how she wants to lose herself. “Mine is a secretive country,” Maggie says. “It was settled by people who came here to hide.” Supporting characters come off well in this novel, and that’s what keeps it compelling. Manny, the 78-year-old neighbor Maggie drinks gin with is as memorable as her tedious, devoted mother, or Nate, who makes the mistake of taking his domineering father for a role model.

No simple story of good and evil, this novel keeps you guessing. Jaskunas, who is himself an epileptic, gives convincing descriptions of the seizures Maggie undergoes following her injuries. He tells how seizures feel from the inside. In fact, Hidden is a well-told story of what an experience like Maggie’s would feel like from the inside how it might feel to no longer trust your memory. Anne Morris is a reviewer from Austin, Texas.

Maggie Wilson remembered what happened that night she was left for dead. Her then-husband Nate came home drunk. She could see him in the doorframe still, raising his hand to strike her. She never doubted that memory. But then, five years later, someone else confessed…
Children's & YA

Yellow Elephant

Review by bookpagedev

Yellow Elephant: A Bright Bestiary celebrates animals and colors with poems by Julie Larios and the vibrant artwork of Julie Paschkis. Although recommended for ages 5 to 10, the book would be especially appropriate for younger children just learning their colors and animals. Some of the animals imitate nature: a white owl, a green frog and a gray goose ( Gray mama goose in a tizzy, honk-honk-honking herself dizzy ) while others leap off the page in bright, vivid colors: Yellow elephant in the jungle sun . . . trumpeting her song and galumphing along. Deborah Hopkinson’s new book, a Junior Library Guild selection entitled Up Before Daybreak: Cotton and People in America, will be published this month.

Yellow Elephant: A Bright Bestiary celebrates animals and colors with poems by Julie Larios and the vibrant artwork of Julie Paschkis. Although recommended for ages 5 to 10, the book would be especially appropriate for younger children just learning their colors and animals. Some of…
Children's & YA

Once Around the Sun

Review by bookpagedev

Spring figures predominantly in the clever new collection from Bobbi Katz, Once Around the Sun, illustrated by LeUyen Pham, which follows a brother and sister through the months of the year. January finds them sledding, until your nose is a dull cold pain and your big toe starts to complain about the hole in your sock. In April we see the children running through daffodils to visit their grandmother: April is when your blue slicker collects beads of misty drizzle and the walk to Grandma’s house is a skip-splash-dance! And when you get there, Grandma tells you how each spring she falls in love with the world all over again and you understand. Each month brings with it a new activity and a new poem, until Earth starts to loop around the distant sun again. This book would make a great read-aloud, a title to return to again and again throughout the year. Deborah Hopkinson’s new book, a Junior Library Guild selection entitled Up Before Daybreak: Cotton and People in America, will be published this month.

Spring figures predominantly in the clever new collection from Bobbi Katz, Once Around the Sun, illustrated by LeUyen Pham, which follows a brother and sister through the months of the year. January finds them sledding, until your nose is a dull cold pain and your…
Children's & YA

A boy’s colorful quest for knowledge

Review by bookpagedev

<B>A boy’s colorful quest for knowledge</B> Why is it that stories and fables set in the Middle East have such a hold on the imagination? Is it the fabulous beasts, the genies that pop improbably out of magic lanterns or the carpets that are not only gorgeous but can fly? Even today, when the real Middle East has lost much of its mystery and just about all of its glamour, stories set there never fail to fascinate.

Ed Young’s new title, <B>What About Me?</B> will help readers solve the riddle of the Middle East. A captivating picture book for youngsters, the volume delivers the seductiveness of this exotic region through a timeless story and rich paper collage work set against a glorious gray and gold background. The very first illustrated page is a long shot of the book’s boy hero surrounded by goats in a blizzard of glitter. Based on Sufi tradition, the story is simple. The boy, like generations of seekers before him, goes to a Grand Master to gain knowledge. The Grand Master, pieced lovingly together by Young, with a bit of floss for a beard, tells the boy to go and get him a carpet, despite the fact that he’s serenely sitting on one. The boy, in his turban and beautiful robe of red marbled paper, logically goes to a carpetmaker, who says he needs some thread. The boy then goes to a spinner woman, who says she needs goat hair, and so on. It’s a process of learning for the boy, whose initiation into the ways of the world leaves him much wiser than before.

Even before the journey’s end readers can revel in the textures of the artist’s work. You can almost feel the fuzziness or roughness or smoothness of the collage pieces. A strip of hot pink on a veil is wonderfully vivid, and the subtle, melting mauves and violets of a cloud that flies over the boy’s shoulder as he runs away is a beautiful touch.

This is a book kids will learn from and enjoy, a coming-of-age odyssey filled with wisdom and meaning. Caldecott winner Ed Young is the author of the children’s classic <I>Seven Blind Mice</I>. Although his book’s target audience is children aged four to eight, <B>What About Me?</B> is a volume that readers of all ages will treasure.

<B>A boy's colorful quest for knowledge</B> Why is it that stories and fables set in the Middle East have such a hold on the imagination? Is it the fabulous beasts, the genies that pop improbably out of magic lanterns or the carpets that are not…

Children's & YA

Handsprings

Review by bookpagedev

Each season has its charms, but none is quite so intoxicating as spring. This spring’s crop of new poetry books for children includes several wonderful titles to help readers of all ages appreciate the many facets of spring, including flowers, rain and, of course, mud, as celebrated here by Douglas Florian: The spring rains came and made a flood, so now there’s mud and mud and mud.

The only cure for springtime muds, is suds, and suds and suds and suds. A poet and artist, Florian is the reigning prince of poetry for children, somehow managing to combine innovative art with insightful poetry in book after book. In his latest, Handsprings, Florian celebrates the freshness and promise of spring and the joyful feeling that leads to handsprings at the start of this new season. Florian’s work can be silly, as in Hey Day, which proclaims, The sky has fell, the seas are dry. The fish are swimming in the sky. The moon is cheese. There is no school. And you are such an April fool! Florian’s poems also often include clever wordplay that deepens and enriches a child’s appreciation of the season. Take this entry: Sometimes sun and sometimes rain Spring is one big daisy chain. Sometimes warm, and sometimes chilly spring is silly daffodilly. Deborah Hopkinson’s new book, a Junior Library Guild selection entitled Up Before Daybreak: Cotton and People in America, will be published this month.

Each season has its charms, but none is quite so intoxicating as spring. This spring's crop of new poetry books for children includes several wonderful titles to help readers of all ages appreciate the many facets of spring, including flowers, rain and, of course, mud,…
Children's & YA

Creepy new tale for young readers

Review by bookpagedev

Coraline Jones and her parents have just moved into a house so big they share it with an old man who trains mice upstairs and an aging former actresses in the basement. An avid explorer, Coraline investigates the large garden and grounds around her new home until a heavy rain forces her to confront every active child's nightmare an entire day stuck inside with nothing to do. So she turns to exploring the inside of the house, and in a corner of the seldom-used drawing room, finds something puzzling a locked wooden door that reveals only a brick wall when her mother opens it with a huge rusty key.

One day when her parents are away, Coraline opens the door again and finds that the bricks have vanished, revealing a dark corridor that leads to an almost exact copy of her own house, complete with another mother and father, who have pale white skin and shiny black button eyes. They feed her delicious food and let her play in a room with toys that move on their own. They seem completely devoted to her happiness. This new world is certainly more interesting than the one Coraline left behind, but the longer she stays the less wonderful and more frightening it becomes. Soon, her other parents want to replace her eyes with shiny black buttons like theirs in order to keep her with them "for ever and always," and Coraline decides to flee to the comfort of her real parents. When she returns through the door, however, she finds that they have disappeared. It soon becomes clear that her other mother has captured her real parents in an attempt to lure Coraline back. Despite her growing fear, she must return and find a way to save them and escape her other mother's vengeful anger.

In Coraline, Neil Gaiman creates a world that is both familiar and frightening, and his long-time collaborator Dave McKean's wonderfully disturbing illustrations give the story a surreal, haunting atmosphere.

Gaiman has said that of all his books, Coraline "took the longest to write, and it's the book I'm proudest of." And for good reason. His first novel for younger readers is truly unnerving, completely original and well worth a look.

BookPage intern Emily Morelli is a student at the University of North Carolina.

 

Coraline Jones and her parents have just moved into a house so big they share it with an old man who trains mice upstairs and an aging former actresses in the basement. An avid explorer, Coraline investigates the large garden and grounds around her new…

Children's & YA

Sharing a love of language

Review by bookpagedev

Selig loves words. He loves how they sound, how they taste and how they rattle around in his brain. He especially adores the way they play on the strings of his heart. Selig is drawn to collect what he cherishes, and his pockets, hat and socks are filled with jottings.

Like many who are consumed with zeal, Selig is regarded as peculiar. His parents worry about him. His classmates ridicule him, calling him an oddball and nicknaming him Wordsworth. Selig grows lonely.

But life takes an intriguing turn when, in a dream, Selig is visited by a swarthy, swirling man, a Dijinn. This genie, in typical form, is prepared to grant a wish. Selig, however, chooses to ask a question. The genie’s ensuing reply sends Selig on his way, prepared to find purpose in his life.

What Selig discovers on his journey is that words don’t belong tucked away. They must be shared. His words become verse for a poet and his enchanting adjectives bring new life to the edibles of an unsuccessful baker. It is not until Selig returns to nurturing his heart, however, that he can truly leave loneliness behind. True love, aptly named Melody, brings him contentment and the resolve to continue sharing his words with legions of lucky people. Roni Schotter clearly conveys her own love of language in this endearing picture book. The story is pleasantly packed with alliteration and spotlights a host of interesting words, set apart in the text by italics. Giselle Potter, who has illustrated several ALA notable books, enhances Schotter’s story with her simply styled drawings. New readers will undoubtedly yearn to read the confetti of language that litters every page. Logophiles young and old will delight in this satisfying nod to the power of words. Jennifer Robinson is a teacher in Baltimore.

Selig loves words. He loves how they sound, how they taste and how they rattle around in his brain. He especially adores the way they play on the strings of his heart. Selig is drawn to collect what he cherishes, and his pockets, hat and…
Fiction

Great Expectations

Review by bookpagedev

First novel sure to make a splash All friendships are not created equal. Or so Jonathan Raymond illustrates in his thoughtful debut novel, The Half-Life, which takes place in picturesque Oregon and tells two intertwined tales set 150 years apart.

Tender, intelligent and mostly afraid, Cookie is an anomaly among the feral frontiersmen who make up an 1820s trapping party lost in Oregon Territory. A violent tragedy results in his clandestine meeting with Henry, a young adventurer who secretly steers Cookie’s party to safety. The two part, but meet again later and become boon companions.

Fast-forward to the dawn of the Reagan era, where Tina and her newly unemployed mom arrive at an Oregon hippie commune. Tina, a high school student too young to drive but old enough to really want to, falls in with the enigmatic Trixie Volterra, a fellow teen who in her scant years has somehow earned a shadowy past.

Tying this quartet together is a pair of anonymous skeletons, submerged for scores of years at the bottom of a muddy marsh before their discovery by Neil, the inconsequential owner of the land the commune is built upon. It is upon this palimpsest of mysterious bleached bone and history that Raymond skillfully weaves the parallel stories of Cookie and Henry and Tina and Trixie.

Cookie and Tina, the passive partners in their respective relationships, serve as narrators as they follow their alpha comrades into dangerous get-rich-quick schemes and pipe dreams that result in serious consequences. While Cookie accepts being little more than Henry’s sidekick, Tina quickly grows to resent giving center stage to the more flamboyant Trixie. Both relationships build to shocking and horrific climaxes that reveal both the brittle frailty and the unquenchable strength of humanity.

Raymond, who has also worked as a screen writer, is at his best in his detailed physical descriptions of the Oregon timberland, combining the clinical eye of a naturalist with a poetic lyricism. He is nearly as precise when exploring the mind of a girl on the brink of womanhood, bringing to life her dreams, joys, pains and real and imagined slights. Although slow-moving at times, Raymond’s work is an engrossing and evocative cerebral feast, and marks a promising literary beginning.

First novel sure to make a splash All friendships are not created equal. Or so Jonathan Raymond illustrates in his thoughtful debut novel, The Half-Life, which takes place in picturesque Oregon and tells two intertwined tales set 150 years apart.

Tender, intelligent…

Sign Up

Stay on top of new releases: Sign up for our newsletter to receive reading recommendations in your favorite genres.

Sign up now

Trending Features

All Features