The Indigo King

The Indigo King. James A. Owen. 2008. Simon & Schuster. 375 pages.

The third adventure in the series mainly features Jack and John...Charles being conveniently away when this unexpected challenge/adventure finds them. Hugo Dyson, a friend, is introduced to readers, when he is thrown into the adventure. He may not know where he is or why he's there, but, he is perhaps *safer* than Jack and John...at least temporarily. For after Hugo disappears through the mystery-door-that-appears-out-of-nowhere, and that mystery door is shut by some well-meaning animals from the Archipelago of Dreams, their whole world changes...for the worse. The "real world" is dark and dangerous and ruled by the Winter King. The two aren't without some hope, they discover their good friend, Bert, who has been waiting and waiting for them. And he gives them hope, a time machine of Jules Verne and a mystery box. These friends, these caretakers, will have to journey through time--observing things very carefully--and have to use some wisdom and discretion on what to change and what not to change. Can they "fix" time and save the world? While the second adventure used Peter Pan and Jason and Medea for inspiration, this one uses King Arthur and Odysseus and the Trojan War. It also is the novel that introduces the young woman, Rose, and a young man Hank Morgan.

I really do LOVE this series!!! It is so fun to visit with these characters, and it's always interesting to meet new characters and see where they are going to take the story! This is a very significant book in the series, for it reveals the identity of the cartographer 'stuck' in the Keep of Time AND it reveals the identity of the Winter King.

This is also the book in the series that utilizes time travel most.

Read The Indigo King

• If you're a fan of fantasy, mythology, classic literature
• If you enjoy time travel; the more you LOVE time travel, the more you may appreciate this one!
• If you enjoy mystery and adventure mixed in with your fantasy
• If you've enjoyed the previous books in the series: Here There Be Dragons, The Search for the Red Dragon.

© 2012 Book of Just News To You

The Search for the Red Dragon

The Search for the Red Dragon. James A. Owen. Simon & Schuster. 384 pages.

I am so excited to be rereading this series. I think I will enjoy the new books in the series so much more after I reread these first books again. In this second adventure, Jack, Charles, and John are called to the Archipelago of Dreams by Laura Glue, a little girl with wings who shows up looking for the caretaker. The caretaker she means is an enemy of her grandfather. It is not Jack, Charles or John she is looking for, but a man named Jamie. But her need for help is very great...someone is kidnapping the children from the Archipelago of Dreams. Even the royal prince has been taken. Even some of the 'lost boys' are gone. Can these three caretakers solve a mystery? This one relies not only upon Peter Pan, but Greek mythology as well. Readers also learn that all is not well with time, and that their adventures in the Keep of Time has had an effect on both worlds and an old enemy has returned...

I enjoyed meeting Laura Glue, and her grandfather; I also enjoyed catching up with some of the other characters.

This is a fun series that is easy to recommend.

Read The Search for the Red Dragon

• IF you enjoy fantasy, mythology, classic literature
• If you enjoy fantasy-adventure quests
• If you read and enjoyed the first in the series, Here There Be Dragons
• If you have enjoyed the works of C.S. Lewis, J.R.R. Tolkien, James Barrie, etc.

© 2012 Book of Just News To You

Here There Be Dragons

Here There Be Dragons. James A. Owen. 2006. Simon & Schuster. 326 pages.

I was a little nervous to reread Here There Be Dragons by James A. Owen. I remember just loving it when I read it the first time. Would I still enjoy it? Still find the characters enjoyable? The plot twists clever? I was not disappointed. In this first adventure, readers meet Jack, Charles, and John, the three caretakers of the Imaginarium Geographica. They meet Bert, a former caretaker as well. Readers are introduced to a few other key characters as well: Tummler, Aven, Bug, Samaranth, the Cartographer, the Winter King, Magwitch, etc. (Just to name a few.) Many stories, tales, and myths are hinted at in this one. But. Mainly this book serves as a fun introduction into a brand new fantasy series. Readers are introduced to the 'real' world (England 1917 or 1918) and the 'imaginary' world of the Archipelago of Dreams, a world where there are dragons and dragon ships, elves, trolls, and talking animals. Readers also learn about the Keep of Time, which is central to the series....

I loved this one! I thought the storytelling was great!

Read Here There Be Dragons

• If you enjoy fantasy and/or mythology
• If you like dragons and other 'imaginary' creatures
• If you have enjoyed the works of C.S. Lewis, J.R.R. Tolkien, etc.
• If you love to read; this series draws richly from literature

© 2012 Book of Just News To You

Who Gets the Drumstick?

Who Gets the Drumstick? Helen Beardsley. 1965. Random House. 215 pages.

I just LOVE, LOVE, LOVE this memoir by Helen Beardsley. Growing up, I enjoyed watching the classic film "Yours, Mine, and Ours." What I didn't know until I was an adult was that it was based very, very, very loosely on a book. I have read the book at least twice since then and have just continued to love it more each time. The book is told through Helen's perspective, and it begins with the death of her first husband. It chronicles her family's move, her settling down, her first "introduction" to the man who would become her second husband. As she's enrolling her children in school, she meets a woman with a brother who has just recently lost his wife. He has a very, very large family. As this woman is relating the story to Helen, she feels led to send him a poem that comforted her after the death of her husband. And so the two meet first by correspondence. Not that they stay in touch, but, eventually these two begin to correspond with one another and exchange pictures. After getting to know one another, they decide to start seeing one another, just to enjoy each other's company, just to have someone who understands, never imagining that God is giving them both a second chance at love and a happily ever after. But. God is writing their love story. And these two families will become one very, very big family in their own way and at just the right time. Half the book takes place after their marriage. Their are chapters that capture the every day, little, ordinary moments of family life: preparing meals, family arrangements (bedrooms, bathrooms, laundry, chores, etc.), shopping (grocery, clothes, shoes, etc.), holidays and birthdays. Oh, and learning to get along with siblings new and old. The book builds up to the big decision to adopt one another's children.

The book is sweet, tender, genuine, and faith-friendly.

The book is so very different than the movie, in a way. The movie adds a LOT of drama and comedic sketches. And very little of the courtship from the book is related in the movie--not that the movie gets it wrong exactly, but they're going for a different picture or idea. Especially when it comes to Helen meeting his children. Let's just say the movie is about as far away from the book as possible.

I would definitely recommend this one. It's a tender, loving family story.  

Read Who Gets The Drumstick?

• If you enjoy reading biographies and memoirs
• If you have always been curious about large families
• If you enjoy true love stories
• If you have seen Yours, Mine, and Ours and want to know the 'real story' behind the movie

© 2012 Book of Just News To You

Every Day

Every Day. David Levithan. 2012. Random House. 336 pages.

  Every Day is one of those books that I can (only) appreciate from a distance. I can see why it might make many people's best lists for the year. It's definitely unique and for the most part well written. The premise is strangely fascinating and potentially disturbing. "A," our narrator has spent each day of his/her life waking up in a different body. Sometimes male, sometimes female, etc. A's ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, weight, height, etc, being something newly discovered each morning. A almost always has something to say about the body, the life, the lifestyle, the choices that person is making or has made. It would be easy to say that A is all about tolerance, and that A's experiences make tolerance a must. A has "walked" in many shoes, after all, which gives A a feeling of being very wise, very above it all. But. I found A to be quite judgmental at times. I found A's assessments of individuals--or hosts--to be limited at best and unfair at worst. A doesn't choose to "access" host memories unless necessary, unless he chooses to make a connection of sorts. And A is all about judging things superficially and by appearances. A wakes up in a messy room, A concludes this, that and the other...for example. If a host likes this kind of music, then he/she must be this kind of person... A does this without thinking about it perhaps. He concludes--usually within a few minutes--a person's worth, if that person is "good" or "bad", nice or mean, popular or nerdy, or even happy or depressed. A dismisses some of the host bodies very quickly, making all sorts of judgments about them. A definitely has ideas of who is a loser and who isn't.

Most of the book is focused on A's quest to have a real relationship with an unforgettable girl despite A's physical limitations (not being in the same body day after day after day). And as an impossible relationship that is supposed to be true, true love, it works for some.

But I didn't exactly like the way A treated/judged some of the host-bodies.

Read Every Day

• If you are a fan of David Levithan and/or John Green
• If you are looking for a very unique book; A isn't your typical narrator!
• If you enjoy young adult literature

© 2012 Book of Just News To You

City

City. Clifford D. Simak. Old Earth Books. 264 pages. 

I didn't exactly love or hate Clifford D. Simak's City. This is a collection of eight stories (plus an epilogue); the stories are linked together as the accumulated mythology of dogs. Each story is introduced and "explained" from the scholarly dog perspective. Man never really existed, there's no proof man ever existed, there certainly isn't any reason to think that men ever had anything to do with dogs, or helped in the "creation" of dogs or robots, etc. But men continued to play a role--sometimes a large role, sometimes a small role, in the cozy campfire tales/stories of dogs. The early stories focus on man's diminishing role on Earth, and the abandoning of cities for the countryside. Men no longer feel the need to work together to form a society, each man or each family prefers to be on their own, to rely on themselves. Government becoming absurd after the concept of cities has fallen apart. Most of the stories do feature talking dogs and robots and a few "mutant" men and "wild" robots. (I'm not sure exactly what made the mutant men mutant and the wild robots wild except both seem to have more freedom and less inclination to follow strict rules and structures.) The stories are: City (1944), Huddling Place (1944), Census (1944), Desertion (1944), Paradise (1946), Hobbies (1946), Aesop (1947), The Simple Way (1951), Epilog (1973). The stories do span ten thousand years or so, plenty of time for people and animals and society to change again and again. Elements of City strongly reminded me of The Long Earth; for example, the concept of there being many, many, many earths that one could learn to travel between, each one being a variant of sorts of the original but also unique.

Short stories can be difficult for me, at times, because I generally prefer longer fiction where I get a better chance to know the characters and a better chance to connect with the story and plot. I often felt disconnected from these stories. I remained slightly interested, for the most part, never really wanted to stop reading the book.

Read City

• If you want to read a science fiction classic
• If you enjoy vintage science fiction
• If you enjoy short stories 
• If you like dogs OR robots

© 2012 Book of Just News To You

Lord of Chaos

Lord of Chaos. (Wheel of Time #6) Robert Jordan. 1994. Tor. 720 pages.

I struggled my way through Lord of Chaos. I didn't find it as easy to love as some of the earlier books in Robert Jordan's Wheel of Time series. Because I was so enthusiastic at the start of the series, it was disappointing to "just" like a book instead of love it.

Lord of Chaos does have almost all of the characters I've come to like, love, enjoy. (Of course, in this good vs. evil battle there are plenty of not-so-good characters.) Rand isn't having an easy time being the Dragon Reborn. Sure, some people love him or the idea of him. Some might arguably be a little too enthusiastic for the cause. But others hate him and will stop at nothing to bring him down. But rather it's love or hate, there are plenty who just don't know him at all. They see him as a symbol, an idea, not a human being. Being around Rand brings danger to his friends... But this is never just Rand's story. There are a dozen or so "main" stories in this series. And hundreds of characters--at least--to follow through the narration. Some characters seem to have chapters and chapters dedicated to them, and others just a couple. Unfortunately, the proportion this time around didn't match my interest level. That is also how I felt about much of Lord of the Rings. There were characters that I just LOVED, LOVED, LOVED so very much and whose stories I found so compelling and wonderful. And then there were other sections where I just kept reading so I could get to the good parts I knew were coming.

Read Lord of Chaos

• If you're a fan of fantasy series, long fantasy series
• If you enjoy epic battles between good and evil 

© 2012 Book of Just News To You

No Crystal Stair

No Crystal Stair: A Documentary Novel of the Life and Work of Lewis Michaux, Harlem Bookseller. Vaunda Micheaux Nelson. Illustrated by R. Gregory Christie. 2012. Lerner. 188 pages. 

There were a few times when No Crystal Stair amazed me, and definitely there were times I found it interesting or fascinating. But. I didn't love this one enough to gush about it. It is a uniquely told story told in fragments, fragments which make for quick reading, for the most part. But also the fragments kept me separated, in a way, from the main character(s). It was a respectful distance. Readers meet an inspirational man with a big dream and determination to match it. A man convinced that books could make a difference, that is READING books could make a difference, that knowledge improves lives. The book chronicles his early life and comes to focus on his great success as a one-of-a-kind bookseller, owning a bookstore focusing exclusively on books written by African Americans or about African Americans. For those interested in race relations in the twentieth century--especially in the 1930s, 1940s, 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s--this one could easily be considered a must read.  

Read No Crystal Stair

• If you are looking for a fictional novel based on true people and events
• If you are looking for an unusual, often brilliant, portrait of a man and the times in which he lived
• If you are looking to learn more about the Harlem Renaissance OR the Civil Rights movement

© 2012 Book of Just News To You

Caught (MG)

Caught. (Missing #5) Margaret Peterson Haddix. 2012. Simon & Schuster. 352 pages.

  I have enjoyed Margaret Peterson Haddix's time-travel series for middle grade. Some of the books I've liked better than others, but, for the most part, I've enjoyed each one. In this fifth adventure, Jonah and Katherine face their biggest challenge so far. The book begins with the freezing of time. Jonah and Katherine are in school when time freezes. They know that something must have happened, but when and where?! They seek out others who have traveled in time--the only people unaffected so it seems by frozen time--but before they get the chance to do anything, Jonah and Katherine find themselves falling through time and landing in 1903. They have a few clues, they know Albert Einstein and his wife are somehow connected to their being there. But for the most part, these two are clueless and choosing to be invisible for as long as possible...but Albert Einstein's wife is clever and knows something is up....

Caught is a fast-paced read. I don't enjoy this series because the characters are well-developed and fascinating. I enjoy this series because of the story, the action, the history. I enjoy learning about different periods of history. I enjoy the author's notes at the end of each book. I like learning what is truth and what is fiction. I enjoy the time travel aspect of the story and the mystery behind it.

Read Caught

• If you've enjoyed the other titles in the Missing series by Margaret Peterson Haddix
• If you enjoy middle grade science fiction with a time travel element
• If you enjoy children's books with action and mystery

© 2012 Book of Just News To You

The Sweetest Spell (YA)

The Sweetest Spell. Suzanne Selfors. 2012. Walker & Company. 416 pages.

I was in the perfect mood for Suzanne Selfors' The Sweetest Spell. I loved the heroine, Emmeline Thistle. I enjoyed reading about her community, especially the husband market where the young women bid on the single men of the community. Since she was born with a deformed foot, and since the whole community distrusts her, she's not one of the young women joining in, at least not yet--she's just sixteen or seventeen. But the novel opens with a big disruption: soldiers arriving on that day to take away the men to fight the king's war. Days later, major flooding proves even more devastating to the community. Emmeline Thistle finds herself truly alone with nowhere to go, but as long as there are cows nearby, Emmeline will never be friendless.

I enjoyed this one so very much! I loved Emmeline. I loved Owen Oak, the love interest, who discovers her after the flood. I enjoyed so many characters--major and minor. And I really loved spending time in the world Selfor's created. I loved the storytelling, the adventure, the romance, the characters, the writing.

Read The Sweetest Spell

• If you enjoy fantasy with a historical feel
• If you enjoy fantasy with some romance
• If you are looking for some charm in your fantasy (I found it very delightful!)
• If you like reading about chocolate

© 2012 Book of Just News To You

The Fires of Heaven

The Fires of Heaven. (Wheel of Time #5) Robert Jordan. 1993. Tor. 992 pages.

I am continuing to love the Wheel of Time series by Robert Jordan. The Fires of Heaven is the fifth book in this fantasy series. If I have one complaint about this book, it is that after spending so much time with Perrin in The Shadow Rising, readers don't get any Perrin at all in this one. I missed him terribly. It just didn't seem fair that we couldn't get his story too. I mean I loved following the characters we did follow. And new characters abounded in this one. But. No Perrin and no Loial. Readers do get a chance to follow Mat more closely, but, that isn't the same.

I really enjoyed reading The Shadow Rising and The Fires of Heaven so closely together, but the action of the two books did blend for me after a few days.

I would say this one focuses more on Rand and his immediate group than other books in the series. But it also paid great attention to our three "main" heroines: Nynaeve, Elayne, and Egwene. I really enjoyed spending time with all of these women, I especially enjoyed some of the Nynaeve/Elayne sections of the novel.

The series continues to be addictive.

Read The Fires of Heaven

• If you have enjoyed the other books in the Wheel of Time series
• If you really enjoy fantasy novels and are looking for a good, long series 

© 2012 Book of Just News To You

Dear Mr. Darcy

Dear Mr. Darcy. Amanda Grange. 2012. Berkley Trade. 400 pages. 

I wanted to love this one, and I did! I'm not sure it is my absolute favorite Amanda Grange novel, but, it comes close! I loved reading a familiar story in new way. The whole story being revealed by letters. While the focus in the beginning is on Mr. Darcy, soon other characters are added into the timeline. These characters, for the most part, are true to the originals. By writing from the perspective of so many different characters, readers really get a chance to explore the story. For example, I really enjoyed reading letters to/from Caroline Bingley. Her sister, Louisa, had quite a few things to 'tattle' on about her sister. And the correspondence between Mary Bennet and Lucy Sotherton was great!!! These two being "learned" ladies. I enjoyed meeting reading about the Sotherton family, I had never really thought about a family having had to leave the neighborhood in order for Mr. Bingley to be coming into the neighborhood as a tenant. I thought the characterization was great.

I would definitely recommend this one!

Read Mr. Darcy's Diary

• If you enjoy Amanda Grange's adaptations of Austen novels
• If you love Jane Austen, especially if you love Pride and Prejudice
• If you like satisfying (and clean) historical romances

© 2012 Book of Just News To You

The Shadow Rising

The Shadow Rising. (Wheel of Time #4) Robert Jordan. 944 pages.

The Shadow Rising is the fourth in Robert Jordan's Wheel of Time series. It's a series I've come to LOVE. I'd definitely say this series is addictive! Each book leaves you wanting--needing--the next book. But not in a mean way. Not really.  So much happens in this one. Each character (almost) has a major story, and each story matters. It's not unusual for me to get annoyed with books with multiple points of view because they can be uneven. But for me, it works so well with Wheel of Time. 

One of the things I loved about The Shadow Rising was how big a role Perrin plays in this one. Readers get to spend a LOT of time with Perrin and Faile and Loial back in Two Rivers as they fight to protect their homes and land. I just LOVE, LOVE, LOVE Perrin.

I also enjoyed revisiting Tar Valon in this book. Min has returned just in time, it seems, to be of great use to the Amyrlin Seat (Siuan Sanche), and it's a time when she finds herself out of friends and out of luck--minus an Aes Sedai named Leane.

And two of our heroines (Elayne and Nynaeve) are still in search of the Black Ajah...

But most of the action does occur directly around Rand and Egwene. Probably my new favorite character was Aviendha.

This one had plenty of world building. I loved getting to know the different cultures in this one--revisiting a few of them, getting introduced to a few new ones. I thought Aiel culture to be very interesting. I liked learning more about the Wise Ones and the Maidens of the Spear. But it also had plenty of action.

Read The Shadow Rising

• If you have enjoyed previous books in the Wheel of Time series
• If you're a fan of fantasy series
• If you're a fan of character-driven, highly-detailed fantasy series focused on the fight between good and evil

© 2012 Book of Just News To You

The Red Queen

The Red Queen. Philippa Gregory. 2010. Touchstone. 432 pages.

The light of the open sky is brilliant after the darkness of the inner rooms. 

It has been a few years since I read the White Queen by Philippa Gregory, and while I remember enjoying it, I don't remember loving it. At least not enthusiastically. I found The Red Queen to be compelling and fascinating, a surprisingly quick read! The heroine of this one is Margaret Beaufort (aka Margaret Tudor, Margaret Stafford, Margaret Stanley); she may perhaps be better known simply as the mother of Henry VII, and the grandmother of Henry VIII. Like the White Queen, The Red Queen is set during the mid-fifteenth century during the War of Roses. Margaret is loyal to Lancaster. And her first marriage--arranged when she was just a child and consummated when she was still so very young--resulted in the birth of a son, the male heir in the House of Lancaster. That is if Henry VI and Margaret of Anjou's own son Prince Edward, died, Henry Tudor would be the next Lancaster heir to the throne. But when the Yorks prevail and take the throne, Margaret's dreams are put on hold indefinitely--though never, ever forgotten. She will have her son on the throne, she will if it's the last thing she ever does, she'll see her son established on the throne of England. 

The Red Queen is told almost exclusively from the Lancaster side of the war. Readers meet Margaret, her two Tudor husbands Edmund and Jasper, her son Henry, her next two husbands Henry Stafford and Thomas Stanley. In addition to briefly meeting other historical figures like Elizabeth Woodville, Elizabeth of York, etc. Of course, Richard III enters into the picture, but, perhaps with the exception of the big, big battle scene, he's more someone the other characters talk about, gossip about, plot against, etc. This is without a doubt the Lancaster side of the story. 

I definitely found this one fascinating. I just could not put it down!!! True, the first chapter or two were slow for me, but, things quickly changed. I would definitely recommend this one to those who love historical fiction.

Read The Red Queen

• If you enjoy historical fiction
• If you enjoy reading about royals
• If you enjoy this time period, the War of Roses

© 2012 Book of Just News To You

Left for Dead

Left for Dead: A Young Man's Search for Justice for the USS Indianapolis. Pete Nelson. With a preface by Hunter Scott. 2002. Random House. 224 pages.

From the preface: I was standing in front of my history fair project, surrounded by a cluster of men in their mid-seventies and eighties. Their families, children, and grandchildren were also gathered around. These men had one thing in common: They were all survivors of the USS Indianapolis. I had developed a special appreciation for these men and what they had done in World War II. I had learned to appreciate these veterans who had sacrificed so much to ensure that a generation that had not been alive when they served could enjoy liberty.

From chapter one: The sailor finds himself swimming in the open ocean, wondering in shock how it came to this so suddenly. 

I am so glad I went outside my comfort zone and read this book!!! It was so compelling, so addicting. It wasn't always an easy (emotional) read. Especially chapter seven which details the time--at least four days--the men spent in shark-infested water, in the ocean, waiting, hoping, praying for rescue. But the book is so very good at detailing everything--the events leading up to the tragedy, the sinking of the ship itself, the time the survivors spent in the water, the rescue, the return back home to the United States, the court-martial of the ship's captain, etc. Probably half the book is devoted to Hunter Scott's mission for justice, to see the ship captain's name and reputation restored, to "prove" that the court martial against him was absurd and unjust. There are several chapters discussing how he got important people to pay attention to the new facts and work together to bring this before the House and Senate and pass legislation that would help restore the truth.

I enjoyed this one. It was just a fascinating read!

Read Left for Dead

• If you're interested in history; if you're looking for proof that historical research is important
• If you're looking to read a good human-interest story
• If you're interested in World War II
• If you're looking for a compelling nonfiction read

© 2012 Book of Just News To You

Never Forgotten

Never Forgotten. Patricia C. McKissack. Illustrated by Leo and Diane Dillon. 2011. Random House. 48 pages.

Never Forgotten by Patricia C. McKissack won a 2012 Coretta Scott King Author Honor. It is a picture book for older readers, a collection of poems focused on the slavery experience from Africa to the Americas. While the book addresses, in a way, slavery as a whole, it is also a personal narrative in that it focuses on one young man--taken from his family, his community. The book has folklore elements to it as well, as several of the poems are narrated by wind, water, fire, etc.

I definitely liked the text more than the artwork, but that is just me. (Judging illustrations is so subjective--or it seems that way to me.) I liked the personal aspect to it--tracing the loss in his family, in his community. The always-wanting, always-missing, always-wondering aspect of it. This one is more a story about those left behind. So it is unique, in my opinion.

Read Never Forgotten

• If you're a fan of poetry
• If you're a fan of multicultural poetry
• If you're looking to read Coretta Scott King winners/honors
• If you're a fan of folklore

© 2012 Book of Just News To You

Enchantress from the Stars (MG)

Enchantress from the Stars. Sylvia Louise Engdahl. 1970/2003. Penguin. 304 pages. 

From the prologue: The planet shines below us, cloud-flecked, dazzling against the dark backdrop of space. Down there it is cool and green and peaceful. In a little while we will take the ship out of orbit and leave this world behind, a mere speck in the vast currents of the universe. This world, which we call Andrecia--the third planet of a quite ordinary yellow sun...but that's just coincidence, of course. What difference does it make that just such a planet was my own people's ancestral home?

From chapter one: At the edge of the Enchanted Forest there lived a poor woodcutter who had four sons, the youngest of whom was named Georyn. They were able to earn a meager living by selling wood to the folk of the village, and although there was seldom more than dry bread or thin gruel on their table, they were not miserable.

Oh, how I LOVED Enchantress from the Stars. It was one of those oh-so-magical-practically-perfect-in-every-way books for me. I know not every reader will feel the same connection, the same adoration for this as I do. But. It's one of those books that I could just gush on and on about!!!

What did I love about this one? Everything! I loved the premise. Just loved it! I loved the world-building, the setting, the atmosphere. I loved the storytelling. I loved the characterization!!! I loved Elana. I loved Georyn. I loved Jarel. I even cared a great deal about the Starwatcher and Evrek. I thought this book was just so well written.

Enchantress from the Stars is narrated, primarily, by a young woman named Elana. The novel is reflective, in a way, because the novel is an account of her first 'adventure' on another planet. She's writing her report, giving her side of the story. But this novel is more than just her side of the story. It ventures to include the perspectives of two others--a young man, the woodcutter's youngest son, Georyn, and a young medical officer named Jarel. Both Georyn and Jarel are from Youngling cultures. Georyn is a native to Andrecia; Jarel is from another planet, a planet in a different stage than Georyn's, but a great deal less advanced than Elana's. (He is with the Imperial Exploration Corps). Jarel is just one of many in the first ship sent to "colonize" this planet.

Elana is on a ship with several other agents--including her father--when they learn that Andrecia is being invaded, and a Youngling culture/civilization is being threatened. They can't directly intervene. And they definitely can't reveal themselves. But they can try to influence things subtly, indirectly. Elana is chosen--with some reluctance--to interact with the natives. Well, she's to interact with two brothers--Terwyn and Georyn. These two are on a quest--along with their older brothers--to KILL A DRAGON. Yes, they are on their way to get the king's blessing, the king's permission to enter the Enchanted Forest. They don't know what dangers they'll face, but they know the fiery dragon must be stopped. These brothers see Elana an an enchantress, a faery perhaps. They see her as having great power, great wisdom, great magic.

So Enchantress from the Stars reads as a fantasy novel--a fantasy novel in the style of a fairy tale. But. Of course it also reads as a great science fiction novel with space ships, etc.

Enchantress from the Stars won a Newbery Honor in 1971.

Read Enchantress from the Stars

• If you love science fiction
• If you love fantasy
• If you love fairy tales
• If you love adventures and quests
• If you love great writing
• If you love bittersweet love stories
• If you're looking for a Newbery Honor

© 2012 Book of Just News To You

Bud, Not Buddy (MG)

Bud, Not Buddy. Christopher Paul Curtis. 1999. Random House. 245 pages.

Here we go again. We were all standing in line waiting for breakfast when one of the caseworkers came in and tap-tap-tapped down the line. 

Some novels have me at hello. Bud, Not Buddy wasn't like that--for me. It was a novel that had to grow on me. It was a quiet novel, in a way, that in the end proved most satisfying. Chapter by chapter I came to know Bud Caldwell better, and I started to care about him. By the end, the novel felt just right, so perfectly right. It is easy to see why this one won awards!!!

Bud, Not Buddy is set in the 1930s during the Depression. It is set in Flint, Michigan, for the most part. Though this novel will see Bud setting out on quite a journey. He's an orphan, just eleven, in search of one simple thing: a father, a family, he's never known, never hoped to know. So what led him to begin this journey? Well, he had to run away from his last placement in a foster home. The family had a son who was a few years older, and, this boy was cruel and mean, and his parents were stupid enough to believe their son an angel. Could he have gone back to the Home? Maybe, maybe not. But isn't this ending worth it?!

Read Bud, Not Buddy:

• If you are looking for a historical read with plenty of heart and a good, satisfying ending

• If you are looking for books set during the Depression that are realistic but not depressing

• If you are looking to read a great Newbery winner with memorable characters

© 2012 Book of Just News To You

Catherine, Called Birdy (MG)

Catherine, Called Birdy. Karen Cushman. 1994. HarperCollins. 212 pages.

September 12,
I am commanded to write an account of my days. I am bit by fleas and plagued by family. That is all there is to say.

This children's book set in 1290 (1291) won a Newbery Honor in 1995.

I wanted to like it more than I did. But. It just didn't quite work for me. Why? Well, I found the heroine, Catherine, annoying. I think readers are supposed to like her for her spunky independence. I think readers are supposed to admire her stubbornness and rebellious attitude.

I am NOT saying that Catherine's arranged marriage to a much, much older man, a man who disgusted her, was a good thing. I am not saying that I wanted her to just mindlessly say yes to the marriage just because it is what her father wanted for her. But I couldn't help finding Catherine just a tiny bit obnoxious. She was just so disrespectful, so disobedient, so strong-willed. It was just so draining to listen to her whine in each and every entry.

I'm also not sure how realistic the novel is. I'm not sure how many daughters were that educated. I'm also not sure how many girls kept diaries during that time period. I'm not saying that it was impossible, just that it was convenient. Speaking of being convenient, the ending, well that was extremely convenient. 

© 2011 Book of Just News To You

Balloons Over Broadway

Balloons Over Broadway: The True Story of the Puppeteer of Macy's Parade. Melissa Sweet. 2011. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. 40 pages.

From the time he was a little boy, Tony Sarg loved to figure out how to make things move. He once said he became a marionette man when he was only six years old. 

Balloons Over Broadway is a picture book biography of Anthony "Tony" Frederick Sarg. Perhaps a more apt description would be a picture book about Tony Sarg and his larger-than-life hobby. True, his hobby of making things move--marionettes especially--didn't start out big or larger-than-life. But by the end, when he was making-designing balloons for the Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade, well, it doesn't get much bigger than that!!! I found this nonfiction book to be oh-so-fascinating. I just LOVED how detailed it was.

Balloons Over Broadway won the 2012 Sibert Medal and the 2012 Orbis Pictus Award for Outstanding Nonfiction for Children.

Read Balloons Over Broadway

• If you love reading fascinating nonfiction, even in picture book format.
• If you love picture book biographies or picture books for older readers.
• If you love watching Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade.
• If you love history.

© 2012 Book of Just News To You