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The Current

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5M4B disclosure

Often when I really enjoy a book, I have a hard time reviewing it. I typically start out my reviews introducing the plot of the novel. But sometimes, things happen even early on that I want you as a reader to discover just as I did–while immersed in the text. On the other hand, how can I entice you to read an excellent story without telling you something about it?

There’s no way. I can tell you that The Current is about, among other things, the relationships between young adults and their parents, particularly young women and their fathers, and the transforming beauty of love. It looks at the longterm effects of grief and loneliness, and how sorrow and evil leave their mark on a tight-knit community. It is extremely well written, such that I have marked it both as “literary fiction” and “suspense,” which in my world is a perfect pairing! Johnston writes with deft hand, creating a world that is entirely our own while at the same time having elements of beauty and magic.

I feel that isn’t enough so I will give a little synopsis, but don’t blame me if you’d rather have found out the entire plot on your own. One fatal winter’s weekend, 2 young women, both 19, leave their college to drive one of them to her home in Iowa to visit her dying father. Their car ends up plunging into an ice-bound river, but it’s no accident. One survives, and as she heals, she is forced to contemplate the river, its treacherous ice, and the mystery of other girls who have gone into that same river before. The current takes life but also gives it; those who survive it have learned its secrets and can do so again.

10 years ago, another 19 year old girl went into the same river but did not come out. No one was ever arrested or charged with the crime. The surviving girl connects the two stories and begins to dig into the past, recognizing that justice for another is in one sense justice for herself as well, and others. But doing so may put her at risk once again, as buried secrets begin to surface.

You guys, I can’t do it justice. Suffice it to say that this is an excellent book–complex, layered and intense, beautiful in its telling and unflinching in its portrayal. Go read it. It’s so good.

Worth Killing For

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5M4B disclosure

Worth Killing For opens with a young Hispanic man in search of day work so that he can pay for his girlfriend to visit the doctor. Instead, he is kidnapped and killed by a Native American man with a long black braid and a really sick penchant for hunting down his prey with bow and arrow, and photographing his victims at the moment of death, which he believes allows their souls to pass into his body. He will show up at various points throughout the book, and if you can handle him, you’re in good shape to begin.

I thought I could. I sort of read through the description through squinty eyes, which is my norm with gory bits (actually I skim them but in my head I’m sort of cringing away). I really enjoy murder mysteries but I don’t really like the gory bits, which seems contradictory, and sometimes I wonder why I like this sort of thing. This book did nothing to really explain it, which is why I’m giving it a fairly harsh review, but really it’s no worse than most of its genre.

Julia Gooden is a crime reporter called in to cover the finding of the body, which has been shot through the heart. The modus operandi links it to several other bodies that have shown up over the years. She’s allowed up close because she has developed personal relationships with several cops, including her lover Navarro. But a mysterious photographer shows up, claiming to have information about Julia’s brother Ben, who disappeared when she was 7 and he was 9. She ditches the hottest story in a while to follow up elusive clues. Don’t worry–it will all link up eventually, and Julia has a good enough relationship with her editor that all will be overlooked.

Meanwhile, her father, Duke Gooden, has shown up after 30 years. Because he’s back in town, suddenly all the bad guys are chasing Julia. In spite of her supposed smarts, she falls for the trick every time–if she thinks it might have something to do with Ben, she will go to the deserted trailhead alone, or she will visit her old childhood house. She has reason to–Ben was her hero, her protector, her idol. He was an awesome kid who did his best to make her childhood sustainable, before her father’s greed ruined it for all of them. There are ample flashbacks, told mostly from her point of view but also the occasional one from Duke, who ditched the family but rose to the high life. These fill in the gaps, explaining why people are desperate to find out information from Duke and about Duke. It also becomes more and more clear that Ben’s disappearance had something to do with Duke’s actions. Meanwhile, the body count rises higher and higher.

Worth Killing For is a plot-driven book, and the characters aren’t overly developed with the exception of Julia. It’s part of a series, but I didn’t feel I needed to have read the earlier ones to understand what was going on. It’d be a good read for an airplane or long car ride, where you want something gripping enough to keep your attention, but not too convoluted or involved. Enjoyable enough.

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Watch Me Disappear

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5M4B disclosure

You guys. You have to get this book! It is so much fun and I really enjoyed reading it. It’s a perfect summer read. Make sure you read it in snitches but can’t finish it all at one sitting; you will find yourself dreamily trying to decide whether or not Billie is someone who would walk away from a loving but imperfect family. Is she or isn’t she?, you will ask yourself while cooking dinner. And what is up with Olive’s visions? you will ponder as you do laundry. (or whatever you’re up to these days; I don’t know your life. With any luck you can ponder this poolside!)

I am almost reluctant to review this novel because I got a review copy on my kindle several months ago, and by the time I got around to reading it I had completely forgotten what attracted me to it in the first place. Without a back cover synopsis to remind me, I came to the book completely open and not knowing what to expect. But I am going to have to tell you a little bit, right?

By the time the novel opens, with a description of a happy family day at the beach, we already know that Billie, wife to Jonathan and mom to 15-year-old Olive, is gone. She disappeared while on a solo hiking trip in Desolation Wilderness several months earlier, leaving her husband and daughter reeling from grief. All that was found was a shattered cell phone at the base of a cliff, and a hiking boot stuck in a mud flow.

Things are not good in the Flanagan home. Jonathon, a workaholic, quit his job to write a grief memoir, but he spends more time drinking bourbon than writing. Olive, a student at an exclusive prep school in Berkeley, begins to see visions of her mother, and carry on conversations with her. She becomes convinced that her mother is alive and that she wants Olive to find her. Meanwhile Harmony, Billie’s best friend, is buzzing around being helpful and brushing up against Jonathon in the kitchen, which Olive simply can’t handle.

Olive begins to hunt for Billie. But when cleaning out Billie’s closet, Jonathon discovers some things that prove Billie had been lying to him about hiking trips with a friend for over a year before she disappeared. Is she really alive? Did she purposefully abandon them? Why did she lie to them? He meets people from her previous incarnations who report that she abandoned them completely; first college friends Harmony and ex-boyfriend Sidney, then high school friend Cheryl. But while she might leave Jonathon, surely she wouldn’t walk away from her daughter? Olive’s visions are getting more frequent, and her dad doesn’t know what to do with them either.

Part of what makes this book so great is its reflections on life and love. When we look at others, how much of what we see is what we want to see? How much of a longterm relationship–marriage, parenthood–is based on the past and not the present? In what ways do we really know one another?

There are many twists along the way and I’ve already told you enough. Watch Me Disappear is a book full of believable, likable characters with an enigma in the center; you will try to figure out Billie Flanagan, but you just might fail to do so. You might think you know where things are going, but then again you might be wrong. In case you couldn’t tell from my opening paragraph, I really enjoyed reading this book. Go get it! I am pretty sure you will too.

 

 

Saving Abby

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Holmes-SavingAbby-small-size

5M4B disclosure

All children’s illustrator Claire Turner wants is to  be a mother. She had a baby at 18 which she gave up for adoption, under great pressure from her father. Now she and her husband Josh have been trying for years to have a baby, to no avail. Together they produce a series of much-loved children’s books, and have taken an extended cruise as a chance to not only get new material for their books, but say goodbye to the dream. But Claire has a difficult time with this.

Upon their return to their small Canadian hometown, Claire finds herself dealing with an unprecedented level of exhaustion and debilitating headaches. She refuses for a long time to get it checked out, and is stunned and thrilled to discover she’s pregnant. Within a few weeks, however, the headaches are revealed to be caused by tumors. Claire has to decide whether to have a life-saving surgery and risk losing the baby, or to wait till the child can survive outside the womb and risk waiting too long for the surgery.

Writer Steena Holmes presents an interesting mix. Her books contain hard real-life cases–an abducted child, potential child abuse, infertility and cancer–yet somehow her books read as cozy. The main characters always have great support systems of people who love them and are always feeding them. If you have a sweet tooth, you’ll enjoy her books. This book is no exception. Claire and Josh have great friends who come up with special teas for Claire’s headaches or who are always sending over pies or cupcakes. There’s a loving and involved mother (Claire’s) and the close-knit friendship Claire has with her doctor and best friend Abby, as well as Abby’s husband and his friendship with Josh. The guys go out monthly to a pub where everybody knows their names and is glad they came, where the owners tease them about their families by name and in exact detail.

Saving Abby doesn’t necessarily go exactly as you expect, but it’s heart-warming none the less. A good summer read, especially if you like to cry a bit.

The Pocket Wife

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the pocket wife

5M4B disclosure

Celia Steinhauser is found dead in a pool of her own blood in her house late one evening by her husband Ronald. Dana Catrell is awakened from her drunken nap by the sound of the siren, and she hurries down the street to see what has happened. She and Celia were just together, drinking too much sangria. Dana thinks they fought but doesn’t remember much else.

Dana has had a hard time, especially since her only son left for college. She feels like a pocket wife**. Whenever she calls her husband Peter, even for something as important as to report the murder of their neighbor, he never has time to talk to her. If he does make time, he slips her (the phone) into his pocket until he can leave his meeting or get off his phone call so that he can give her some attention.

She feels herself slipping into madness, a feeling she remembers from a breakdowns she’s had in the past, though not for many years. She undertakes her own investigation which only leads her to question her own role more closely.

The Pocket Wife follows detective Jack Moss’ investigation into this murder. Instead of there being no suspects as is sometimes the case, there seem to be too many. Dana herself fears she did it and just can’t remember. Peter seems awfully shifty and more concerned about talking to Moss than an innocent person should be. Of course there’s always the husband: Ronald is caught in several lies, has revealed that their marriage was in trouble, and doesn’t really have an alibi.

Author Susan Crawford kept me turning pages. I read the bulk of this novel on a flight, and I’m glad this was the book I brought along, because otherwise I might have sat as stone on my sofa as I needed to find out the resolution to this story. Throughout the novel, I felt as if I knew who the murderer was at different times, but never with complete certainty. She deftly doled out clues and once the true culprit is revealed, it holds up against the narrative.

When I was writing up the review for this paperback release, I noticed that Elizabeth reviewed the book last year when it was released in hardcover. Read her review — they’re always excellent — for another perspective. Realizing that my friend had read the book made me want to discuss it with her, which led me to believe it would be a great book for a book club. You could easily discuss who you thought was guilty and why, who the good guys and the bad guys are, and the question that I kept pondering: were Celia and Dana really friends, and if they were, why did Dana downplay their friendship?

In the notes at the end of the book, the author explains the pocket wife, yet another topic that bears discussion:

I think one of the reasons women are so interested in the meaning of the title is that on some level they already know what it means. They have experienced pocket wifery themselves, or maybe they’ve watched a friend underplay her intellect at a neighborhood barbecue or douse her ambitions with one too many eggnogs at her partner’s Christmas party.

That’s (Not) Mine

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New picture book from Geisel Award winning duo Anna Kang and Christopher Weyant

5M4B disclosure

Fresh off last year’s Geisel Award win for their book You Are (Not) Small, husband and wife duo Anna Kang and Christopher Weyant are back with a new picture book. (Follow that second link for my thoughts on their book from last year.) In That’s (Not) Mine, young readers get another chance to visit with the furry creatures they met last time, and their struggle this time around is one that all children will be able to relate to (and as a result, their parents, too!).

Sharing is that struggle, a universal challenge faced by every child who has ever been in the same space as another. The coveted item in question is that yellow chair with the fun designs, and both fuzzy guys want to occupy it. Their dialogue is simple, but totally representative of young children’s declarations, in the vein of “I had it first!” and “But I want it!” On top of that, their attempts to get the chair will also look familiar, from distraction to scuffling. The use of different sized and shaped writing conveys tone and emotion clearly and easily recognizable by even the very young.

Emotions definitely rise, but sometimes resolution comes even without outside intervention, as any parent of more than one child can attest. Sometimes fighting is just a waste of time when there is fun to be had. Just as in their previous picture book, Weyant’s illustrations are delightfully fun, and Kang’s story presents a life lesson without being overly didactic, allowing readers, whether they be young ones hearing the story read aloud or newly independent readers flying solo, to decide how much they wish to reflect upon the moral of the story.

I do hope Kang and Weyant continue to address such perfectly suited childhood themes with these furry guys in future books!

The Ultimatum

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5M4B disclosure

The Ultimatum by Law & Order creator Dick Wolf follows Detective Jeremy Fisk as he attempts to solve another series of crime in the third installment of this thriller series.When I read The Execution by Dick Wolf (and reviewed the second Jeremy Fisk novel last year), creator of NBC’s Law & Order series, he had me hooked with Detective Jeremy Fisk and his no holds barred focus on finding the bad guys and stopping them, even if it means breaking a few rules along the way. He’s back in The Ultimatum, the third installment in this series. Once again, there are bad guys out to make New York City their playground, and it’s up to Fisk to stop them.

Verlyn Merritt has released a horde of sensitive information about the NYPD Intelligence Division – of which Fisk is a member – via WikiLeaks and has far more that he hadn’t uploaded when he was arrested for the leak of confidential information. Given Fisk’s background, he quickly has hired killers literally on his doorstep. Of course he foils those (or the book would quickly be over), but that’s only the beginning.

It wasn’t just Fisk’s address that was published on WikiLeaks. His bank information and more are also compromised, meaning someone is enjoying expensive toys thanks to his credit cards and bank accounts. Fisk has to go completely off the grid, as it becomes clear that the hired killers aren’t the only ones out to get Fisk.

Even better, a sniper with scary good aim has started stalking New York City, killing a single person each day. He announces in newspaper comments that he will continue to kill one person a day until Verlyn Merritt is released from prison, and of course Fisk is on the job. Against his will, he is partnered with Chay Maryland, a journalist who had been working with Verlyn Merritt and may have some insights, a well as the ability to get Verlyn to answer some questions.

It quickly become apparent that the daily sniper victims are being targeted uniquely. They are killed seemingly randomly, but once someone is killed in their apartment in away that would be impossible aim from anywhere a person could be standing, Fisk puzzles out that the solution is someone flying an unmanned drone.

New York is already frozen by fear of the daily killings, and knowing about the drone would push them over the edge. Not telling puts innocent lives in danger every day Fisk – and his compatriots within law enforcement – don’t solve the mystery. The book is gripping, and as with The Execution, I couldn’t put it down.

Fisk remains a bold character who has his own sense of justice and little patience for those who simply want to CYA and do things by the book when it means not finding the answers they seek. His moral code may not be identical to mine, but I sympathize with him completely and turn each page as quickly as I can to see how he can possibly find a way to move forward. It isn’t a surprise that Dick Wolf has won multiple Emmy’s and has such a long running successful tv show. He knows how to put together gripping material that keeps you coming back for more.

And me? I’m looking forward to seeing what Detective Fisk has up his sleeve next.

Written by Michelle of Honest & Truly! who is fascinated by the idea of drones but glad this is a book and not real life. See what her own real life looks like as she shares on her blog Honest & Truly! and follow along with her on Twitter where she is also @HonestAndTruly.

Galgorithm

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galgorithm

5M4B disclosure

Galgorithm is a fun, light YA novel by Aaron Karo. I really enjoy YA offerings from the male point of view, and this one was no exception.

Shane is a senior who has a lot of head knowledge that helps shy or slightly nerdy guys go after girls they like. He teaches them a formula (see more in the video below), but what he really helps them to do is to believe in themselves. The problem is that head knowledge is not something he uses on himself. Ever since she-who-must-not-be-named broke up with him years before (and yes, he calls her Voldemort), he hasn’t been willing to try again.

He’s definitely the cocky invincible type, he is also likable, because he does seem to genuinely care. When one of his success cases tries to set him up, he actually goes through with it.

His relationship with his best friend Jak (a nickname, her initials) is an interesting part of the book as well. They’ve known each other since they were babies, and while it’s a tale as old as time (Could they ever be more than just friends?), it’s unique in its own way.

The characters sing. It’s funny and sweet, but not too sweet.

Comedian Aaron Karo shares tips from his novel, ‘Galgorithm’, on how to charm the special person in your life. ‘Galgorithm’ is a romantic comedy about high school, heartbreak, and having all the answers. Check out his fun video.

This is a book for older high schoolers, in my opinion. There is some mild swearing, some drinking, and making out.

NOTES ON THE AUDIOBOOK

It’s hard to get the middle grade or young adult voice right, not the writing voice, but the speaking voice. Some are able to pull this off (I think it’s a bit easier to fake a girl’s voice), and if so, it makes the audiobook even better. Reader Jacques Roy doesn’t quite pull this off. I didn’t really believe it was Shane’s voice. That said, he conveyed the attitude of this type of 18-year-old boy and his narration was easy and enjoyable to listen to.

Listen to an excerpt at the Simon & Schuster Audio page.

The Dead Key

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5M4B disclosure

dead keyOk you guys, this is a great book. If you want some late nights (you know you do!) where even after you reluctantly turn off the light and try to sleep, your mind keeps racing with possibilities, you’ll want to add The Dead Key to your TBR immediately. Put it on the top.

The basic premise is this. The First Bank of Cleveland, an imposing and beautiful old building with 15 floors, was abandoned suddenly one day in December 1978, its doors locked against allegations of fraud and strange disappearances by staff members. Now, 20 years later in 1998, Iris Latch, a young engineer already bored with the cubicle, is sent to map out the floor plan of a building where vending machines are still stocked with 5-cent Tabs, and desks still have pictures and other personal items on them, mute reminders of a past locked in place. Even the personnel files are still there, stacked in a dusty cabinet by some long-gone secretary. Iris finds it more than creepy, but anything’s better than the already dead-end job she feels she’s in, still stuck living like a college student, getting drunk on weekends and living in the cheapest place she can find. And she keeps finding clues, leading to something–a hidden door in a false wall, a suitcase of clothes left in a closet, and keys, keys to vaults and safety-deposit boxes and cabinets and more.

Meanwhile, the story is following another heroine–Beatrice Baker, a 16-year-old who passed herself off as 18 so she could get a job in the secretarial pool at the Bank in 1978. Beatrice doesn’t have it easy. Small and lacking confidence, she has recently moved in with her aunt, who tutors her in how to get the job but isn’t exactly warm and helpful overall. The story follows both women as they separately come to the realization that all is not as it should be, and that large forces are moving under the surface. Moving back and forth between the two protagonists, the action builds and builds, as more things are revealed. It’s immediately obvious that something rotten is going on, but the suspense is masterfully done and almost unbearable. It’s best if you can block out some time when you start this book; if not, prepare for some late nights. (Aside: I love these kind of late nights.)

Friends disappear, angry voices shout behind closed doors, and keys to open safety-deposit boxes in the vaults can not be found. Both women separately find, and need, the tunnels that run down into the sewers and lead to safety. Both have a hard time knowing who can be trusted. It’s fun following Beatrice’s story and then seeing Iris making discoveries that dovetail in, 20 years later.

And ultimately, it’s all one story, and comes together in a smashing conclusion.

The Dead Key is just really fun to read. It’s not a perfect book. I didn’t especially like the character of Iris, who needs to stop drinking so much and not sleep with co-workers. Beatrice is so very helpless that it’s painful sometimes, although she proves herself in the end to have the necessary strength to pull through. There’s some sex and plenty of language (well, there pretty much always is, right?). But from the opening pages, the reader is pulled in to a tale that proves to have the staying power to keep you involved and committed. In case you can’t tell, I loved this book. Highly, highly recommended.

 

 

The Zodiac Legacy: Convergence #ZodiacLegacy #Giveaway

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5M4B disclosure

the zodiac legacy

The Zodiac Legacy: Convergence introduces a brand new series from Stan Lee, Stuart Moore and Andie Tong and Disney Press.

I’m reading it aloud with my 5th grade son. We aren’t quite finished, but I wanted to post my thoughts, and point you to my phone interview with the creators, who helped me explain exactly how this new series came to be. It’s not a comic book, it’s not a graphic novel. It’s a full (very long, in fact!), novel, with a few images per chapter, but the whole thing reads very visually. In spite of the fact that it’s so long, I think that a reluctant reader, especially one interested in super heroes and already a fan of comics, would definitely be engaged by this book.

Steven Lee is on a school trip to China when he gets involved with the Zodiac team after he hears something strange going on in the basement of the museum he’s visiting. He sees something strange. Twelve pools, an eerie green light, and a large shipan (the Chinese zodiac) hung from the ceiling. When he sees the odd spectacle of a man seeming to appropriate this power, he realizes he may be in trouble. When he feels the power of the tiger go into him, he wonders if he might have found his destiny. When Maxwell spies him, Steven realizes that he’s not pleased, and Steven has a choice to make.

Carlos and Jasmine are trying to prevent Maxwell from getting too much power, and Steven goes with them to find the others who hold the powers of the Zodiac.

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The new heroes are all so different — overweight, drifters, big, small, male, female — which makes the book more interesting, and also probably gives every reader someone different to root for or identify with.

There is a lot of action, but also a lot of internal drama, in regards to each person’s mission and the way each character — hero — sees themselves.

CONTENT NOTE: There is the violence that you would expect in a super-hero story, handled in the same way that you would expect in this genre. It is definitely a story of good versus evil, where the good might have to do things that don’t always seem “good” to combat evil, and the bad guys are definitely bad. There are also a few mild swear words.

Learn More at DisneyZodiac.com

Watch the Book Trailer

Follow DisneyHyperion on Twitter

#ZodiacLegacy

It was interesting talking to the creators of the series, because they are hard at work on the second book now, so stay tuned for even more action.

I especially liked the fact that artist Andie Tong — who has been successfully working as an artist, commercially and in the publishing world — answered my question about any advice he might have for future illustrators (i.e. my daughter) in a way that she’s already taken to heart:

I think everyone has a different path. And every artist experiences different things. For myself, I went the safe path first. I’m actually a multimedia designer in my profession. I graduated a graphic designer, but I always liked drawing. So, whenever someone asks me, I always say have a backup plan because illustrating is very competitive. There’s so many artists out there. So, you got to be the best of what you do in a sense to be noticed, and I know networking’s also important. But essentially, for myself, if illustrating fails for me right now, I will attempt to go back to design. The long short of it is you want to do something that’s fun. And design is the closest thing I could find to illustrating that’s just kind of creating still.

But in terms of illustrating, just keep drawing every day. Keep drawing. My mom told me off when I was growing up, and I would always have my study book on top and my drawing book on the bottom. So, you’ve got to study, of course, as well. But just keep drawing every day. Just draw something. And that would be my advice to you.

And to improve, for me, look at other artists and what they do. And you know you don’t have to copy exactly, obviously. Give credit if you’re doing that. But just take bits and parts from every different artist in what they do best for that particular artist. And maybe he or she draws the eyes very beautifully. And so, maybe you just take that bit from that artist. And then I guess use it in your style. And eventually, as an artist, you will find your style.

And so, yeah, just keep drawing every day is my advice.

Special Giveaway

ZodiacCreativeTeam

Please click through to read my interview with the team behind this unique new series at 5 Minutes for Mom.

But first enter to win a copy of the book and an original character sketch by Andie Tong:

Prizing provided by Disney Enterprises.

Sleuth on Skates

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5M4B disclosure

Sleuth on SkatesSophie Marguerite Catriona Seade is the bane of her parents’ existence. Their favorite phrases consist of, “Sigh. The problem with Sophie is that she’s a (negative word) little (obscure name).” Fortunately, she goes by Sesame and has quite a precocious attitude towards life in Sleuth on Skates by Clementine Beauvais. She’s always wanted to be a roller skating detective, and finally there is a mystery for her to solve in sleepy Cambridge.

Sophie’s parents both work for the university, with her mom the Head of Christ’s College and her dad is the college chaplain. They are busy with their lives and are always surprised when Sesame shows up in unexpected places on her skates. When a student goes missing, her parents go the traditional route, but Sesame decides this is her perfect mystery and gets started with her sleuthing.

It soon becomes apparent that something’s afoot, but no one believes that she could possibly learn anything. However, her persistent questions and a penchant for listening coupled with a bit of luck turn up bits of evidence of a bigger plot, though what it could be, Sesame has no idea.

I love the perkiness of Sesame and her unusual ideas and belief in equality of everything from the pregnant duck who shows up in their yard to their cat Peter Mortimer. She tries not to get too attached to the students because they are transitional, which I think is cute. And precocious describes her perfectly. She’s spunky and doesn’t give up, but she’s nice about all of it.

Though she disobeys her parents, she does so for the right reasons and only after working through the logic of how what she is doing is the right thing. Inevitably it is, and she never comes to harm. Though it is most definitely a book aimed at elementary school kids, it was a fun and quick read for me as an adult.

My children, however? They devoured the book and giggled through much of it. There is enough material based on fact that it wasn’t too fantastical for them, yet there was so much out of the ordinary that it kept them entertained. Though I figured out the plot and the bad guys long before Sesame did, the wee ones were pleasantly surprised to learn the villain. That to me makes this a great grade 3-5 book.

This is the debut novel for Clementine Beauvais who is a PhD candidate at Cambridge and wrote the novel while writing her thesis. It doesn’t feel like a debut novel, and I love the life and character she lets Sesame Seade bring to the written page.

Written by Michelle of Honest & Truly! who is grateful that her children have no desire to become sleuths on skates. See what they’re up to instead on her blog Honest & Truly! and follow along with her on Twitter where she is also @HonestAndTruly.

The Marco Effect

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5M4B disclosure

The Marco EffectThe Marco Effect by Jussi Adler-Olsen is not my first foray into Department Q. I also read (and reviewed) The Absent One, which I absolutely adored. Once again, Detective Carl Morck is making no friends in the Copenhagen police force, but that isn’t his goal. He is focused solely on solving the cold cases he decides to take on and has no patience for anyone who isn’t a part of his program.

This time around, he quickly determines that an assigned cold case was not investigated properly and the conclusions entirely wrong, with the help of his assistant Rose (who he unilaterally begins to make a field officer) and Assad, who is still recovering from an attack in the previous book. However, Gordon, an intern and apparent lackey of Morck’s nemisis within the department who is the new acting head, is assigned to Department Q as a watchdog and proceeds to frustrate Carl even further as he unwillingly investigates a missing person’s case at the behest of Rose, one that wasn’t even a part of their cold case files.

William Stark is a civil servant who went missing four years previous upon his unexpected early return from Cameroon where he was looking into a government aid project. No one ever heard from him, and his step daughter and partner are still looking for him, unwilling to admit that he would have voluntarily disappeared on them.

At the same time, Marco, a fifteen year old pickpocket finally had the straw that broke the camel’s back within his clan and has run away. No one leaves Zola, and when he realizes that his nephew may have stumbled upon the body of a man he had killed as part of a contract and overheard Zola and his brother – Marco’s father – discussing the murder, he pulls out all the stops in an attempt to track him down and kill him, as opposed to his previous plan to simply maim him to increase the clan’s begging proficiency and keep Marco dependent upon them.

Having lived his entire life on the streets, Marco has no love of the police and has put the body he discovered out of his mind until he discovers the missing person’s poster put up by Stark’s step daughter and can no longer live with knowing the fate of the man. As he wrestles with what to do – whether to contact the step daughter, turn Zola in to the police, or something else entirely – he is finally spotted by his clan and needs to evade their capture attempts on top of everything else.

The book started out somewhat difficult to follow, as it jumped from time frame to time frame and perspective to perspective without tying them together well at the beginning, but once Carl Morck came into the narrative and began to tie the various pieces together, it became much more clear – and the reasoning behind the jumps in time and place made much more sense, as well.

As much as I would hate to work anywhere near Carl Morck, he is a character you root for throughout the book. His assistants as the perfect foil for him and keep him from being too hard edged and ensure he never crosses the line into cruel. The levity of their interactions, as well as Carl’s forays into dating, keep the book from being too dark. They are a great contrast, although in this book I felt like the bad guys were too bad and lacked that kernel of humanity that makes them a trace more interesting.

Not surprisingly, once I was immersed into the world of Department Q, I didn’t want to surface and devoured the book in a matter of a little more than a day. It was an enjoyable read, and it reminded me that I haven’t – yet – read all the Department Q novels and that I need to get caught up on the series. I have read two of the books so far, out of five, and they all stand alone. Though there are references to other cases and Morck’s personal life is frequently brought into the book, it is not necessary to have read them to follow each individual book.

Written by Michelle of Honest & Truly! who is more grateful than ever for her stable home life and that of her children. See how she keep her family together as she shares her blog Honest & Truly! and follow along with her on Twitter where she is also @HonestAndTruly.

Bad Piggies: Piggy Island Heroes

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5M4B disclosure

Bad Piggies Piggy Island HeroesMy children adore Angry Birds. It started with the original game, and it has expanded to every conceivable facet of our lives from shirts to stuffed animals to board games and – of course, to books. Bad Piggies: Piggy Island Heroes is the first chapter book that I’ve personally seen starring the Angry Birds characters. This particular book, however, focuses on the pigs instead of the birds, which means the “bad guys” are the heroes.

I’m always a little tentative when bad guys are made to be the heroes in any book (or tv show or movie) because I don’t want my own children to emulate them. In this book, however, the bad guys are so obviously still bad and incompetent that I’m not concerned about imitation.

This short chapter book is filled with short stories, each one only 10-15 pages and filled with illustrations and other entertainment to keep the younger reader engaged. There are five stories, each one distinct from the others. Because we don’t tend to know much about the pigs, there is a helpful guide to the characters in the book in the front with drawings of them, their names, and a bit about their personalities. This made it much easier to figure out, and it was nice that many of the characters recurred in later stories.

My personal favorite story is the last one in the book, “Pig Dreamer” where the misfit pig who never does anything right dreams of being in the circus. He is told to find a skill by the Ringmaster Pig, but he can’t think of one. Dejected, he continues his current job where he is yelled at and belittled by his boss, and his true talent for messing things up lands him the perfect role in the circus at the end.

The stories are funny, particularly the image of greedy pigs being electrocuted while trying to steal a weather vane in a storm. And the illustrations that accompany each story help bring it to life, as well. Everything about Angry Birds is so visual, and it’s nice to see that continued in this book – and to see that some of the familiar pigs from the game are there and now have more full personalities.

That said, I was disappointed to see that “What the heck” was used in this book aimed at young children, and was highlighted in red text several times the size of the rest of the text on the page. It’s a minor expletive, but still one I try to keep my children away from using, as it just doesn’t sound good coming form little kids. The “Oh fiddlesticks” and “for goodness sake” that were similarly emphasized, I don’t have as much of an issue with, but that’s me and my little nitpick.

And yes, my 8 and 10 year old adored the stories. They can’t get enough of Angry Birds, so this was a treat for them. They would have liked to have seen more stories and longer, more in depth versions, but at 8 and 10, they are probably close to maxing out on the designated age range for the book anyway.

Itch Rocks: The Further Adventures Of An Element Hunter

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5M4B disclosure

Itch RocksItchingham Lofte does not fit in at his new Cornish school. He had promised himself he was going to make more of an effort this school year, but in Itch Rocks by Simon Mayo, he is now the most protected kid in the world, and his bodyguards scare away everyone, not giving him much of a chance. Add to the fact that he’s still an element hunter, and he remains as much of an outcast as he did in Itch, aside from his (female) cousin Jack and sister Chloe.

Itch Rocks picks up after Itch has been released from the hospital after suffering severe radiation poisoning in the first book trying to protect the new radioactive element he accidentally found and keep it from the bad guys at Greencorps who were after it. Dr. Flowerdew appears to be dead, so far as everyone knows and the rocks are safe. Only Itch knows where they are hidden, but the rumor of their existence – instant nuclear power to any country, clean energy, terrorist bomb in your pocket – means there are plenty of people who are still after them and will stop at nothing to get Itch to tell them where they’re located.

This book is one that my 10 year old wants to read. He’s fascinated by the cover and the details of the periodic table of elements there. We’ve had some great conversations around them, but he’s not quite old enough for some of the material in the books. This isn’t a science fiction type book where you can push out the fiction of what happens. There is enough realism in them to make me want to wait until he’s a little older before exposing him to the graphic description of radiation poisoning, the two books in this series would be a great read for a middle school or high school student.

While the books are definitely related, you do not have to have read Itch before picking up Itch Rocks. There is enough background information given in the sequel to keep a reader from being completely lost, and the stories are separate. That said, it would be helpful to read the first book, and I would recommend doing so.

Personally, I enjoyed the first book more than the second one. In the first book, Itch, his sister, and his cousin actively control their destiny. They are the ones doing and deciding throughout the book. In the first half or so of Itch Rocks, it is more than things are happening to the trio instead of the other way around. Once that dynamic changed in the second book, I settled back into enjoying Mayo’s creation thoroughly.

I personally love the character of Itch. He has found his passion, and he runs with it. Collecting elements is definitely odd, but he learns from each one, and he is creative with how he collects them, as well as how he uses many of them in the book. He has issues outside of just not quite fitting in at school, and his interactions with his mom make me smile – especially as I can see myself in that exact role with my own son.

In each of the two books so far, a little more has been revealed about the characters and a larger plot that continues to develop. I like that not everything is tossed out there upfront, as it keeps the suspense and tension in the book alive. Mayo times the release of his information well, and it’s clear by the end of Itch Rocks that there is at least one more book yet to come in this series – and I’ll be on the lookout for it once it is published.

Written by Michelle who can only hope that her son doesn’t blow off his eyebrows or discover a radioactive element as he grows older. He provides enough of a challenge as it is. See what he’s up to on her blog Honest & Truly! and follow along with her on Twitter where she is also @HonestAndTruly.

Something Borrowed: Books on Screen

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something borrowedLast week, I had a bit of a long-weekend reading binge inspired by a great bargain bookstore haul. I bought Something Borrowed and promptly read it through in a day.

Darcy is a self-absorbed brat engaged to best friend Rachel’s law school buddy Dex. Rachel is responsible and supportive, but on her 30th bday, she sleeps with Dex. Because of the obvious incompatibility of Darcy and Dex as well as the general character of Rachel and Darcy, I think the author wants us to pull for Rachel. We also get her POV, feeling conflicted about the whole situation, so it clouds the issue.

This was exactly the kind of character-built suspense novel that I love. I could NOT put this book down, and I didn’t really know how I wanted it to end. I couldn’t see an outcome that would be good for all the involved players, but I have to admit that Emily Giffin totally pulled it off.

The secondary characters were well-developed as well and added to this story. I also loved the 80’s references from their teen years (the book was written in the early 2000’s).

I liked it so much that I promptly downloaded Something Blue on my Kindle, which tells a bit more of the story from Darcy’s point of view, and read it the next day.

something borrowed dvdI also wanted to watch the movie. As I was reading it, I did picture the casting — Ginnifer Goodwin as Rachel and Kate Hudson as Darcy. I had the guys mixed up though. I knew Jon Krasinkski was in it, and I pictured him as Dex, though he was really Ethan, with another unknown-to-me dark haired actor playing Dexter.

I enjoyed the Something Borrowed movie. It was mostly true to form, with some notable differences (but I’m cool and easy with that). However, it was hard to build the true complexity and suspense of the issue without Darcy’s thoughts.

It was a cute rom-com movie, but if you haven’t read the book, I’d recommend that you do that first. If you have read the book but haven’t seen the movie, you might like seeing the characters come to life on screen.

Have you read the book or seen the movie or read the sequel? I’d love to know what you think.

The LEGO Movie: The Official Handbook {Books on Screen}

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5M4B disclosure

Lego Movie official handbookSo yes, we’re just a little excited about The LEGO Movie coming to the big screen in February. Minifigures have long been a favorite imagination building activity in our house as the wee ones build worlds around them and then act them out. Watching these toys come t life on the big screen is … exciting for them, to say the least. With The LEGO Movie: The Official Movie Handbook, all the information you want to know before going to see the movie.

The book is designed for younger readers than The LEGO Movie: Junior Novel but older kids would also enjoy this. It introduces the various characters in an almost graphic novel type concept. You get to meet Emmet Brickowski, the hero of the movie, along with the good guys from Batman to Wyldsyde and bad guys including Bad Cop and Lord Business.

The handbook includes plenty of almost snarky, though not mean, humor that I appreciated as an adult reading through it. Little call outs like Emmet saying, “So… everything isn’t awesome? made me giggle.

The Official Handbook isn’t laid out in a story format at all. Emmet helps walk us through his favorite place Bricksburg. Seeing the naive assumption that everything is awesome and following the rules to a T is perfection is quickly disturbed as Emmet’s day turns strange when a glowing red brick attaches to his back and the adventure starts.

After the graphic novel introduction to the characters and locations, there is also a “sneak peek” at the movie itself with a six page synopsis of the movie, including plenty of still from the movie to help you envision it. This is a fun book and quick read that’s another great way to get (even more) excited about the upcoming LEGO Movie.

Written by Michelle who loves when she finds kids’ books that have humor she can also appreciate. See what else she finds funny on her blog Honest & Truly! or follow along with her on Twitter where she is also @HonestAndTruly.

Sport-themed Books Not for Sporty Kids only #Kidlit #Cybils

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I am not a sporty person. I am not raising sporty kids. I am married to a sporty guy, but apparently his genes skipped a generation. However, we do all like to read (sporty guy included). These are books that are well written and plotted, so if you are trying to encourage a sporty kid to read, they might give these a try. That said, my non-sporty self liked these a lot. The sports created a cool setting and background or plot element, but were part of the greater themes of friendship, fitting in, self-improvement, or something else.

strikethreeStrike Three, You’re Dead by Josh Berk is a mystery. I’m assuming – or hoping – that it’s the first in a series, because after the title online it says (Lenny and the Mikes). These guys made me laugh. Lenny’s two best friends are both named Mike, so one is called Other Mike, which never really got old. Lenny and the Mikes love the Phillies, but instead of playing ball, it’s Lenny’s dream to be an announcer. When he wins a contest, it seems like his dream is going to come true.

When he’s in the press box getting ready to announce his one inning, he meets the new phenom pitcher who takes the mound for the first time and then collapses and dies! Lenny and the Mikes try to figure out what happened (How else are they going to spend their summer?). Some might think the mystery is obvious, but honestly, I was so charmed by these characters that I didn’t really care. They did end up with a girl in on the action (a girl who is not named Mike), but I liked the focus of the boys’ friendship, which is somewhat rare in novels that try to reach the masses by having boy-girl best friend duos.

LosingItLosing It by Erin Fry is another book that I liked for its strong male friendship (with no token girl, except for the ones that the guys are crushing on). Bennett is also a baseball fan. He and his dad like watching the Dodgers, eating snacks, and hanging out like men. It helps them deal with or forget the death of Bennett’s mom. But when Bennett’s dad has an attack and goes to hospital, Bennett ends up living with his estranged aunt Laura.

Bennett’s dad has a long road of recovery ahead of him, so he’s stuck with Laura and her healthy ways. And to be honest, since his dad’s attack is related to being overweight and sedentary, Bennett begins to think about shedding his extra pounds and getting healthier himself. When he sees a sign-up for the cross country team — no experience needed — he decides to give it a try. He and his best friend P.G. have done it all together — hanging out, eating junk food, and being last in gym. Will Bennett’s new lifestyle put up a wall between them?

This was a great easy-to-read story of resilience with the realistic middle school setting featuring bullies, crushes and coaches who all affect Bennett in different ways.

ultraUltra by David Carroll is a Scholastic Canada book (which I received for review), so I’m not sure it’s available here in the U.S. (yet — I hope). This was a fun novel about 13-year-old ultra-marathoner Quinn Scheurmann. The book’s first page sort of gets the reader’s heart thumping with this disclosure:

Not for Publication
This is an unedited manuscript of an interview between the 13-year-old ultra-marathoner Quinn Scheurmann and Sydney Watson Walters, host of the Sydney Walters Show.

It’s always exciting to read something that you you don’t think you should be reading, right? Quinn story of running 100 miles — yes 100 miles in a row — is told by using the interview, plus Quinn’s own narrative during the race. There are also flashbacks, mostly dealing with his dad, who is absent but we don’t know why.

I don’t think you have to be a runner to appreciate this story. I think that kids will feel empowered and root for Quinn who is not competing in some race for kids, but going up against adults in such an extreme challenge that most do not finish (or even try). The book was exciting, the subject matter was intriguing, and Quinn is a likable guy. These elements combined to make this an extremely readable book.

athlete vs mathleteAthlete vs. Mathlete by W.C. Mack features fraternal twins Owen and Russell Evans. Owen plays basketball; Russell is a brain. That’s the way it’s always been, and the brothers are happy with that. But when a new coach comes to the middle school, he asks (orders??) tall and lanky Russell to try out for the team. Russell’s dad is excited and encourages him to work on some of his skills, and Owen just wants him to keep from embarrassing him in front of his teammates.

When Russell’s height overshadows his lack of experience on the court and he makes the team, there’s a big shift. Russell is surprised that he likes the attention on the court, but will his Masters of the Mind team suffer with some of his focus on the court? And will Owen accept that Russell isn’t completely one-dimensional? For that matter, will Russell accept the fact that he can be a mathlete and an athlete?

The story is told in alternating chapters from Owen’s and Russell’s points of view. This story is as much about coming of age and figuring out who you are and how you’re going to get there as it is about shooting hoops. Of course sibling rivalry (and loyalty) looms large as well.

These reviews are linked up to Marvelous Middle Grade Monday.

These opinions are mine alone and not meant to represent the Cybils as a whole or the rest of the Middle Grade Panelists.

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Walking Disaster

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5M4B disclosure

Jamie McGuire’s Beautiful Disaster (linked to my review) is the love story of Abby and Travis, from Abby’s point of view. McGuire quickly followed up with Walking Disaster, where we get Travis’s side of the story.

Abby is a girl with a past she wants to leave behind, she wants to be a good girl and only date guys who aren’t a disaster. Travis is definitely a disaster; he’s the youngest of five boys who lost their mother at an early age, an underground fighting champion, and the campus stud who can get any girl he wants. Except Abby.

I had mixed feelings about this book, which is why it’s taken me so long to write this review. Travis doesn’t have as much of a creepy stalker vibe, but his misogynistic views on women as sexual playthings and his inability to deal with his own feelings are front and center since we’re inside his head. Abby comes off more as a hot mess than just wishy washy; I didn’t like her in the first book, and liked her even less in this one.

Also, if you haven’t read Beautiful Disaster, then large chunks of the story are missing, and I was hoping for more of Travis’s reactions in certain situations. There is more of Travis’s family and his relationship with his brothers and his father and both endearing and realistic. Also, like the first book, Walking Disaster is rife with foul language, explicit sex and fighting.

McGuire recently released A Beautiful Wedding, a novella that gives more details on Abby and Travis’s impulsive wedding, and I actually liked that better than either of the first two books. Follow the link to read my review of that one.

Notes on the audiobook: Dan Bittner sounds exactly like I’d expect Travis to, which is amusing since he looks nothing like I’d expect Travis to. The voices for the different characters were distinct, though some of the older men started to sound similar.

Nancy was in some short-lived relationships in college but fortunately none that were quite so unhealthy. She writes about her boys, books and life in Colorado at Life With My Boys and Books.

Friday’s Five: Totally Clever #Cybils Nominated Books

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Lots of themes run rampant in children’s literature, especially in picture books. Anthropomorphized creatures with some sort of dilemma, children who don’t want to share or say goodbye to their mamas, and tired farm animals that will apparently convince a riled up toddler to just go to sleep already are a few examples. Every year, a ton of picture books are published. In this category for the Cybils Awards, over 200 books were nominated! I find myself looking past the books that quickly remind me of others or follow some predictable and familiar storytelling pattern.

But then there are the ones that stand out for their absolute cleverness, doing things differently with the plot, the characterizations, or the illustrations. In this installment of “Friday’s Five,” I’d like to share five picture books that stand out to me as quite unique in the genre.

1. Carnivores by Aaron Reynolds and illustrated by Dan Santat — When you open the cover of this straightforwardly titled book, the image of a Carnivore Food Pyramid stares back, wide-eyed animals lined up in triangular pecking order. The book focuses primarily on three of the biggest guys– the lion, the great white shark, and the timber wolf. These predators are a bit fed up with the way everyone else in their animal worlds treat them. They want to stop being snubbed and looked down upon for their eating habits, so they meet and come up with a brilliant idea… go vegetarian! How could this possibly work out? Well, by book’s end, there may be some surprised children, but nature has a way of being nature, you know?

2. No Fits, Nilson! by Zachariah OHora — A little girl named Amelia has her large, lovable, watch-wearing blue gorilla pal to help her navigate her world– a world of unwanted bathtimes, knocked down block structures, gigantic tantrums, and subsequent time-outs. Amelia is the quintessential preschooler, and all those challenges are somehow a little easier to handle with Nilson by her side, especially when she helps to calm him down from one of his fits. What will young children think about this big old gorilla? Will they be surprised by the ending’s little twist? Nah, something tells me that they’ll understand this one just fine.

3. I Dare You NOT to Yawn by Hélène Boudreau and illustrated by Serge Bloch — It will take only a few pages for parents reading this one to their children to fail the title’s dare. Trust me. I’ve tried. Oh, how my kids and I have laughed as we yawn uncontrollably with every single reading. The power of suggestion is strong with this book, I tell you, as is the level of fun. Also, Serge Bloch’s whimsical illustrations always bring some lightness to a book, and as soon as I saw the cover, I knew that we were going to enjoy it. This book is perfect fodder for a group story time (just before a preschool class’ nap time!) or for a one-on-one lap story, too.

4. The Day the Crayons Quit by Drew Daywalt and illustrated by Oliver Jeffers — The crayons in Duncan’s box have had enough. When he goes to grab them from his desk one day, he discovers a pile of letters tied together with twine in their place. Each of the colorful characters has written a note to Duncan expressing their frustrations, from being overworked or underutilized to wishing he would resolve an argument about which color is the correct one for the sun. (Green would truly like his pals orange and yellow to cut out all the bickering!) You want clever, this book has clever colored all over it. The blend of Daywalt’s voices for each of the uniquely characterized crayons with Jeffers’ brilliant illustrations made this an immediate favorite of mine when I first read it last summer.

5. I Hate Picture Books! by Timothy Young — Okay, if I’m being completely honest, I have to admit that at first glance, I wasn’t expecting much from this book. I’m not a huge fan of the illustrations, which remind me of comic strip style drawings, but once I read the book through, I was actually quite charmed by it. Then I read it with my children, and my 7 year old daughter fell in love. The concept is fairly simple, yet still unique in the genre– the boy is giving up on picture books because they either get him in trouble when he tries to mimic what he has read (think purple crayon drawings on the wall, or disappointment when his bedroom transforms into NOTHING when he gets sent to it without supper, or trying some greenish-tinted ham from the fridge). Or worse… like the one about the little bird who cannot find its mother… that made him… CRY! As you can likely predict, the boy has a change of heart when he realizes that he does actually love these picture books and cannot bear to get rid of them. But, the best part of this entire book is the plethora of picture book covers and well-known characters featured in the illustrations, created in fabulous replicated style. My kids have had a blast trying to identify as many familiar books in the pictures, which led to even lengthier conversations about why they also have loved so many of those books, too. Great idea! (Though, there is a typo with an incorrect form of ‘its,’ which makes me wonder about the editing process!)

Bonus #6. A Long Way Away by Frank Viva — I’ve already reviewed this one back in April, but the review is worth a second look because this is a truly unique artistic endeavor, and perfectly suited for a round-up of clever picture books!

If you’re reading along with me through the nominated picture books with me, I’d love to hear about which books are standing out to you!

All opinions offered here are mine alone, and do not represent the Cybils Awards.

Friday’s Five: #Cybils Nominated Picture Books to Check Out

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Jennifer and I have the great pleasure to be involved with the 2013 Cybils Awards as round one judges. While her bookshelf is getting weighed down with middle grade novels, my dining room floor is starting to resemble the children’s section of the library with a growing stack of picture books! I’m thrilled to be working with the team in the Fiction Picture Book category, and this genre of children’s literature has long been so very dear to my heart.

In between frequent trips to the library, I sit and read the nominated books either with my own children (ages 5 & 7), or by myself, and I am happy to see familiar titles from the past year that I’ve enjoyed while also being surprised at how many books published in the last year that have flown under my radar! I’d like to share as many titles with you over the next couple months of the round one time period, and I’m borrowing a recurring post theme from my personal blog- friday’s five. Each week, I’ll briefly share my thoughts on five nominated titles– it’s like five posts in one!

For this week’s roundup, there seems to be a slight theme that runs through all the books. They’re all a bit non-traditional, either taking a different spin on a familiar concept book theme, or changing up the format of a typical picture book, or engaging young readers in a different way than usual.

1. 123 versus ABC by Mike Boldt — Counting Book, meet Alphabet Book; Alphabet Book, meet Counting Book. Now, try to get along, you guys! In the opening pages of this comical picture book, the number 1 and the letter A each welcome the reader to the book, though they have very different ideas about what is in store in its pages. As they sing the praises of numbers and letters, respectively, a crowd of other numbers and letters gather, and the discussion gets spirited. Then along comes an alligator. One alligator, followed by two bears. You can imagine where this is going, right? I quite like the way in which Boldt has created a dual-concept book that incorporates humor, perfect for classroom shelves and laugh-filled reading times at home. The last page is a kicker, too, with a nod to one other common type of concept book for young children.

2. A is for Musk Ox by Erin Cabatingan and illustrated by Matthew Myers — Here’s another take on the alphabet book theme, but you won’t find the same old words being presented for each letter, thanks to a very “helpful” musk ox who has consumed that apple on the cover and offers some alternative words for the book. (The cover itself is pretty cool with an actual hole cut out where the apple used to be.) Though the associations might not be obvious at first, A could really be for Musk Ox, because they are Awesome, of course. On each page, the original word can still be partially seen, and the illustrations give clues to the word as well that astute young readers will surely delight in figuring out. Interactions between the enthusiastic musk ox and an increasingly frustrated zebra provide the humor in the book, and the end result is a very different type of alphabet book that stands out in the crowd.

3. Count the Monkeys by Mac Barnett and illustrated by Kevin Cornell — It’s already been established that Mac Barnett has a unique voice in the picture book writing field (Chloe and the Lion, Extra Yarn- both 2012 Cybils Finalists!), and his take on a counting book definitely carries his signature humor. Though the title leads the reader to believe that there will be some monkey counting going on, there are some big obstacles with each page turn, but each obstacle does bring big laughs, too. Though I’m not teaching preschool this year, I could absolutely envision reading this aloud to a class of four year olds, and I imagine that it could become quite the raucous and fun story time.

4. Open This Little Book by Jesse Klausmeier and illustrated by Suzy Lee — The idea of a book within a book isn’t too far from the norm, but how about seven books within a book? That’s what Klausmeier has created here, and though the text is short, the nontraditional format and details in the pencil and watercolor illustrations by the amazing Suzy Lee are wholly engaging. This is a perfect book for a child to read atop his parent’s lap, helping to turn the pages that get progressively smaller as each book reveals the next. I love when books celebrate the joys of reading, and this one encourages the practice in a fun way. (Incidentally, Suzy Lee was the artist for this year’s National Book Festival poster, and it was as beautiful as one would expect.)

5. Tap the Magic Tree by Christie Matheson — This adorable picture book invites children to interact with the physical book in order to make the changes that occur to the tree, giving the impression that they are magically helping the tree progress through the seasons. I’ve found this book to be a big hit with the toddler and preschool set, and it’s definitely a formula that works. The first time I saw this innovation work perfectly was with Herve Tullet’s Press Here, and since then more books have followed suit. The collage artwork features soft colors beautifully suited to each of the seasons represented, and the cyclical nature of the story leads to immediate requests to read it again after finishing.

There are still four days left to nominate books for the 2013 Cybils Awards, so if there’s a book that you would love to see get recognized, head to the nomination form! (If you’re not sure what books are eligible or even what the Cybils Awards are all about, they’ve got all the answers for you on the FAQ page.)

All opinions offered here are mine alone, and do not represent the Cybils Awards.

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