Benny and Penny in Lights Out!

So if you are a regular reader of my blog (or even an occasional reader!), you know that I have two young girls - Frances, who just turned 7, and Gloria, who is 5 1/2.  I've talked before about their names here and how those aren't the names my girls were born with, just the names that I use on the blog so as not to identify them.  There are a lot of similarities between the Frances and Gloria Russell Hoban created and my girls.  They have similar personalities - my Frances can be way too  trusting, like in A Bargain for Frances; my Gloria likes to play with her sister, but on her own terms, like Gloria in Best Friends for Frances.  But lately I've seen a tendency towards sibling behavior like that of Benny and Penny in Benny and Penny in Lights Out!

This is the fourth book in the Benny and Penny series of easy-to-read comics from TOON Books.  From the very first panel, it is clearly bedtime.  Benny is peering at the moon outside the window.  Penny is trying to keep them on track with their bedtime routine.  Benny continues with his antics - "haunting" Penny with a flashlight, burping, basically acting up in that way that only children who should really be asleep do.  Then Benny realizes that he left his pirate hat...gulp! outside.  In the dark playhouse.  It is only his sister's bravery and their teamwork that rescues the needed pirate hat.

One of the parts of the Benny and Penny series that appeals most to me is the sibling relationship.  Benny and Penny aren't perfect and they don't always get along.  There is tons of sibling squabbling.  Penny announces imperiously "It's time to brush our teeth." (p. 6)  And Benny promptly ignores her mandate, like most siblings would.  He tells her he is busy.  Then Benny cooks up a plan to scare Penny when she's brushing her teeth.  He turns off the light and uses a flashlight to try and scare Penny with threats of the Boogey Mouse.  It's all very familiar to those of us with more than one child - our constant refereeing of fights over a blanket, an inch of floor space, a perceived fight.  And the also constant picking at each other - just like Benny does in this book.  He's really only teasing Penny with his prank about the Boogey Mouse.  But siblings can get under each other's skin unlike anyone I've ever seen.

But there is something equally redeeming about siblings and the way they can put aside their fighting when needed.  Benny realizes that the pirate hat he can't fall asleep without is still in the playhouse out in the backyard.  He sneaks out the window, and when it takes longer than Penny thinks it should, she is out the window after him.  She's scared, though Penny keeps reminding herself that "The Boogey Mouse is not really real.  It's just a story!" (p. 17)  Ultimately, even though he drives her crazy, Penny is there to support and lend a hand.  When she finally makes it to the playhouse, Benny is too scared to go in.  It takes both of them together to rescue the pirate hat.

Another thing I enjoy about this story is the "just-right" sized adventure.  There isn't anything really fancy about this adventure.  To a parent's eye, there isn't even anything dangerous about their trip out to the dark backyard.  But seen through the eyes of the two young mice, the story becomes perilous indeed.  The two mice are on their own - no parents in sight as the story progresses.  They feel real responsibility for what they must do to rescue Benny's hat.  They are at that age where they want to solve the problem themselves, without parental involvement.  And Benny and Penny take satisfaction from having saved the hat on their own.  It's only after Benny has  fallen asleep that Penny asks their mother for her help, but only with reading a story.


And that brings me to one of the best themes of this story - reading and storytelling.  It combines the best of Penny and Benny.  Both children like to read and tell stories, but of course their stories are very different.  Penny loves fairy tales - they combine princesses with a sense of storytelling structure that appeals to Penny, with her love of routine.  Benny, on the other hand, retells stories with drama, action and adventure.  Those stories appeal to his daydreaming, adventurous side.  He throws in some whimsy when he tells a story about a dinosaur that lives at the circus.  The two children have a shared love of reading and story.  They fight about story too.  Penny primly gets under the covers and informs Benny that she is trying to read.  He chimes in "You can't read." She says "Yes, I can." (p. 10)  You can hear this fight going on for an eternity, but thankfully Benny burps loudly and breaks it up.  Both mice can "read", but the stories they are "reading" really comes out of their imagination.  Hayes very naturally shows the connection between adventures, imagination and literacy.  Everyone loves the idea of a good story, and through reading, Benny and Penny have created their own adventure story.

As you know, TOON Books is one of my favorite publishers because of their innovative approach to literacy through comics.  On their website they have an online CarTOON maker which Gloria loved using.  It's a lot of creative fun.  Benny and Penny in Lights Out! is a Level Two comic, designed for readers in grades 1-2.  One of the descriptions of Level Two books in the back of this particular book says that Level Two books include "a story arc with few characters in a small world".  This is a perfect description of Benny and Penny.  It's intimate: Benny and Penny never go more than a few steps from their window, yet it seems a long, long way away.

Benny and Penny in Lights Out! Geoffrey Hayes.  TOON Books, 2012.

sent by the publisher for review

The Dyerville Tales

I have been waiting to share this book with you for a long time.  I read it almost three months ago - I was lucky enough to win a copy in a Walden Pond Press giveaway (side note: Walden Pond Press is a super-cool publisher with lots of other great books too!).  But I don't like to blog about books that I love until you are able to read them too - it doesn't feel fair to tempt you like that!  So now The Dyerville Tales has been out for a few weeks, and I'm ready to talk about it!

You might recognize the author's name from Juniper Berry, which I loved, here in this post.  I was surprised at how much I loved Juniper Berry and again at how much I loved The Dyerville Tales.  Both of Kozlowsky's books have a mood in common - one of building uncertainty and fear.  They also both look at the mysteries of the adult world with a steely, clear-eyed gaze.  Very few adults escape these books whole.  The building tension, combined with the look at how adults compromise themselves, is one of the things I love best about Kozlowsky.  But his books can also keep me up at night, worrying about what might happen next.

The Dyerville Tales begins with Vince Elgin.  He lives in an orphanage, because his mother died in a house fire when he was ten years old.  Vince believes that his father escaped the fire, somehow, and is still alive.  He believes this because while Vince's mother died in the hospital room next to his, after getting Vince and herself out of the house.  Vince knows that "the authorities never discovered a single trace of him in the ashes of their home.  No bones, no teeth, not even the gold ring Vince had been promised.  And for Vince, this changed everything.  This was where he found his hope." (p. 11)

Vince isn't sure exactly why there was a fire, nor is he really sure about the events leading up to the fire.  He remembers how scared his parents were the night before but has lots of questions about what actually happened.  But the younger children in the orphanage love to hear most of the tale of Vince's arrival at the orphanage, and so he retells it (and relives it) over and over again.  It is full of magic to the other children, because it has parents in it, parents who care about Vince's safety, who want to protect him from the evil that surrounds them.

When Vince goes to the orphanage, after his mother's death and his father's disappearance it's because the only relative he has left is his grandfather.  His grandfather was believed to be crazy and was living in a nursing home.  When this story begins, it is with a package that arrives from Dyerville, the town where his grandfather lived, addressed to Vince.  In the package, a letter informs Vince that his grandfather has passed away, and that the funeral will be in a week.  Enclosed in the package is a book - a collection of tales his grandfather told in his nursing home, much as Vince has told stories in the orphanage.  Vince knows he must get to the funeral.  After all, it is his father's father.  And if Vince has any chance of seeing his own father again, it will be there, at the funeral.

The director of the orphanage tells Vince that there is no possible way he can go to the funeral - the orphanage doesn't have the money or the resources to get him to Dyerville, which is a long way from the town where the orphanage is located.  Vince is determined, though.  He escapes from the orphanage with the help of a friend, Anthony.  "Vince heard the commotion but told himself not to look back.  He had to concentrate on climbing.  He thought of what would be waiting for him at the end of this journey.  In Dyerville he would find his father.  A new life would be waiting; all he had to do was make it to the other side of the gate.  Suddenly it didn't seem so impossible." (p. 52)  And he makes it.  It's just one little step in what could be a very long journey.  But as he clears the fence around the orphanage, "somewhere deep within his mind there was now a spark glowing.  It was small, but it wanted to grow." (p. 53) I don't want to ruin the suspense of the well-plotted story.  You just need to pick it up.

But here's what I will talk about.  This book isn't just about stories and telling them (although clearly that is a major focus, considering what I've already told you about Vince and his grandfather).  It feels just like a fairy tale set in real life.  After all, there are not one but two epic journeys written about here.  Each time Vince opens his grandfather's book, there is a picture that helps add to the drama of Vincent's journey.  Both stories have fairy tale elements in them - things that are almost too incredible to be true.  And yet they are.  There are also some elements of reality that are fairy tale scary, too.  Here is one of those moments: "Her breath was colder than the wind.  With her lips touching his skin, and in a childish voice, she began to sing: 'Oh, I have the moon in me.  And everything beyond.  I am a black hole, you see.  And I'll eat me some vagabond.'" (p. 144)  Just writing that quote totally out of context made the hair on my arms stand up!

There are, of course, lots of parallels between both journeys -both Vince and his grandfather are 12 when their journeys start.  When the director of the orphanage brings Vince the package, she asks Vince "' You were named after him.  Am I right?'  Vince nodded.  'My parents said I looked just like him too.  Almost identical.  I don't know.  I didn't see it.'" (p. 24)  Both boys are on their own, trying to solve a mystery of their own lives.  And of course, when the book begins, they are both stranded in places (the orphanage or the nursing home) without any family connection.  There are so many magical things that happen in this book to tie the two together, over and over.

I was truly spellbound by this book, as you should be by any true fairy tale.  It has adventure, magic and leaves you questioning  Please pick it up - you'll dive right in.

The Dyerville Tales.  M.P. Kozlowsky.  Walden Pond Press, 2014.

I won this ARC in a giveaway, without expectation of a review.

Burn for Burn, Fire with Fire

There are many sayings about revenge, but the one that kept coming to my mind as I read these books was this one: Revenge is a dish best served cold.  Ironic that that saying is the one that best applies to book that have to do with fire: Burn for Burn and Fire with Fire.

To begin with, there are three teenage girls: Mary, Kat, and Lillia.  It is their senior year in high school, a year that is supposed to be full of fun, starry-eyed excitement, and big plans.  Those plans, for most seniors, include college, graduation, and one last year of freedom.  But for Mary, Kat, and Lillia, those plans are focused on revenge for past wrongs.

Lillia is one of the in-crowd.  She and her best friend Rennie run the cheer leading squad.  Lillia's little sister Nadia is on the squad, too, and she basks in her older sister's popularity.  Lillia doesn't have a boyfriend, but she has a close guy friend, Alex Lind, who she secretly wishes could be a little bit more.  Lillia and Nadia are rich - the kind of wealthy where everything comes easily, where they don't think twice about having the kinds of things others covet.  So what could Lillia possibly need revenge for?

Kat is a tough girl.  Unlike Lillia, not much comes easily to Kat.  Instead she has always been given scraps of attention, food, whatever is around.  She was raised by her father, and has an older brother who seems to be going nowhere.  She, too, has a connection with Alex Lind - they have spent the summer hanging out together, and suddenly their relationship has changed.  But that is no reason for revenge.  Her reason has to do with Rennie, Lillia's best friend.

And lastly, there's Mary.  Mary has just returned to Jar Island, where they all go to school, to live with her aunt.  As Kat and Lillia get to know her, she reveals her own desire for revenge and what has caused it.  Kat's story is full of friends who are not really her friends, cruelty, bullying and a final event that makes you want to cover your eyes.  This is how the fire starts smoldering.

When Kat, Mary and Lillia first become friends, Kat seems to be the ringleader.  As I mentioned before, she's a little bit tough, tougher than the other girls by far.  So it's Kat who talks the other two girls into coming together to help each other get revenge.  She talks Mary into it by emphasizing their friendship: "'I don't have to know you to see that you're a total mess over whatever happened, like, years ago.  And hey, it wouldn't be a free ride.  You'd have to get your hands dirty too.  But we'd be in it together.  The three of us.'" (p. 129).  That's all it takes.  Kat, Lillia and Mary agree to participate in the revenge plot, with the idea that they will take down one of their grudges at a time.

There were many times in the first 250 pages of Burn for Burn where I felt uncomfortable with the central idea of this trilogy.  Revenge felt a bit too mean-spirited for me, and the ideas the girls came up with seemed too extreme for what had happened to some of them.  And the girls are fairly single-minded in their pursuit of revenge.  It doesn't matter if people's reputations get ruined, their futures in jeopardy, or if they get physically hurt.  Once that fire starts burning, it is difficult to put out.

The events of both books are like a rolling stone - they just keep on gathering speed.  And I sort of wondered when one of the girls would start to speak up and put a halt to this process.  But the three girls have very different personalities, and they aren't exactly conducive to stopping revenge.  Those personalities combine into a perfect storm.  Mary is mild, quiet, and deeply hurt by the events that unfolded.  Although those events happened years ago, she cannot let them go, and they have brought her back to the island.  Lillia is more of a people-pleaser, and does not stand up for what she thinks.  For example, although most people believe she and Rennie are best friends, Lillia can't stand Rennie.  But it's easier to just go along with the flow, to let others believe what they want, to not rock the boat.  And Kat continues on with the revenge because she can see how the others' revenge plans can benefit her own.  It's sneaky, but also strong-willed.

As I said, I couldn't imagine how these girls could really feel so strongly about getting revenge.  Lillia's original revenge, in particular, feels a little petty.  Then, on Homecoming night, things change.  And while the revenge idea still made me feel a little discomfited, I was totally caught up in what happens to all three girls.  Secrets begin to be revealed, and they are shocking.  It is truly astonishing the lengths to which these girls will go for revenge.  I can't say anything more about these books without spoiling something, but it is can't-stop reading.

I am always interested in authors collaborating in the way Han and Vivian do.  According to the blurb on the back of Fire with Fire, the authors "met in graduate school in New York City and have been inseparable ever since."  When I read books that are co-written, I like to play "Spot the Seam".  The authors often split writing duties in some obvious way - one author writing in one voice, the other creating a different character.  But there are three main characters here (each with their own chapters in both books), and while I've read both authors' work previously, I couldn't decipher who wrote which character.  And that just made me keep reading!  I'm not sure if they created a hybrid tone for these books, but it was seamless and fascinating!

Another thing that I think works very well in these books is the genre-busting.  While these books are primarily realistic, school fiction, there is a...hint of something else.  Realistic and school fiction are my two favorite genres of teen fiction, and these books work particularly well.  But the introduction of another genre also is believable and clever, and totally surprising.  I was shocked by what happened and how that changed my reading of the novels.  Frankly, the switch took this series from one I would have enjoyed to one I wanted to blog about.

And, finally, perhaps the thing that I loved most - the island setting.  I know I've mentioned before that I spent two years living on Nantucket.  I still have a real fondness for islands, and am very familiar with how hard it is to change people's reputations in a small town.  These girls, particularly Kat and Lillia, have their reputations set before they are even old enough to care.  On the island, life is an open door (sorry!) for Lillia, and that door is locked tight against Kat, no matter what she does.  It is interesting to see how that affects each of them.

I sped through the second book, Fire with Fire, in record time, and will be waiting with bated breath for the third, Ashes to Ashes, which will come out next fall.  I can't wait to see how revenge plays out for these girls.

Burn for Burn.  Jenny Han, Siobhan Vivian.  Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, 2012.
Fire with Fire.  Jenny Han, Siobhan Vivian.  Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, 2013.

both books sent by the publisher for review

A Trip to the Bottom of the World with Mouse

More than a year ago, I received an email from TOON Books, telling me about their Fall 2012 line.  Among those books was this title from Frank Viva, A Trip to the Bottom of the World with Mouse.  I requested it immediately, because I loved Viva's previous book, Along a Long Road.  And when it came, it went right into my "To Blog" pile, because I was excited about it.  And sadly, there it sat.  Through two Cybils panels, through many,  many other blog posts, it sat in the pile.  And it wasn't because I didn't like it - it just always seemed like I was on deadline for something else or had another book I was really enthusiastic about.  And A Trip to the Bottom of the World with Mouse waited patiently for me.

In the meantime, Frances and Gloria grew and changed.  They both are voracious readers now (just like their mama).  And while I am enthusiastic about this book, it truly belongs to Gloria.  In fact, at least once a week Gloria asks to take it to bed with her.  She also asks regularly when it will get out of my blog pile so she can keep it in her room for good.  So now it's time to talk about A Trip to the Bottom of the World with Mouse so Gloria can finally get it for her very own.

One of the things I love best about Viva's artistic style is how he regularly breaks "out of the box".  The story begins on the endpapers.  As a ship sails through a series of icebergs, there is one sad question "Are we there yet?" With just four words, Viva manages to convey the length of the journey to Antarctica and the tedium of such a lengthy journey by sea.  On the title page comes the answer "Soon, Mouse."  It is in a differently colored speech balloon, to indicate a different speaker.  All you can see is the freighter, sailing placidly along under a midnight sky.

Once they "get there", Mouse and the other speaker (a young boy) peer over the side of the ship.  And all Mouse wants to know is "Can we go home now?"  The anxiety is evident in his face as he asks - whiskers sticking straight out in alarm, worry lines radiating around his wide eyes.  But the answer is "Not yet, Mouse."  The reader can plainly see that the trip does not agree with Mouse, even before he lists all the things that are difficult to do in the waves: "eat...sleep...kiss...draw...and stand!"  Mouse does not want to be there, and he doesn't care who knows it.

As his friend excitedly explores Antarctica, with its enormous sky, its penguins and whales, Mouse's familiar, repeated chorus is "Can we go home NOW?"  There is always the steady, patient reply "Not yet!"  The discoveries continue, until finally the ship sails off into the horizon.  And on the endpapers, one final question from Mouse: "Can we go back there soon?'

This is a fun book, a funny book.  Viva does a terrific job bringing Antarctica to the comprehension level of the youngest readers (it's marked Level One, which is defined as approximately K-Grade 1).  Mouse is the perfect foil  to the other explorer.  Not only does Mouse's repeated question help beginning readers decode the action, but his plaintive request will most likely sound familiar too.  Gloria quite often gets somewhere fun (a movie, a birthday party) and announces "I want to go home.".  Sometimes parents talk up an activity, and it isn't quite what the child has envisioned.  So many children can feel for Mouse and his preference for home.

I mentioned already that Mouse and his friend use a list style to give facts about the Antarctic.  It is a fun way to give a lot of information.  For instance, when Mouse friend notes "It is COLD out there, Mouse."  Mouse suggests that he needs "boots...mittens..a hat...a scarf...and a snowsuit!"  And quickly adds "Can we go home now?"  On many pages, four of the options take up one page.  Each choice in the list is in its own box, with bold, heavy black lines separating the panels.  The last choice is on its own page.  In the list of clothing,  Mouse is shown in each panel adding on more clothing also.  So by the end, in the snowsuit panel, Mouse looks quite silly indeed, peering out of one boot with mittens over his ears.  And those worry lines around his eyes haven't gone away.

Viva keeps the lists feeling fresh.  In a list of different types of penguins, each penguin is seen through a telescope, which gives the effect of an old-fashioned cameo.  A goldenrod line leads from one speech balloon to the next, guiding the reader's eye.  It keeps the sense of fun for new readers, and it is one of the things I appreciate most about TOON Books.  These are very visual stories, and this style suits Viva's graphic sensibility perfectly.

One final thing I loved about this book came at the very end.  In a page about the author, it is noted that this book was based on Viva's own trip to Antarctica on a Russian research vessel.  What an amazing experience!  But the blurb also notes that Viva, much like Mouse, became very seasick.  It forms a great connection between the author and the story, and can lead to some interesting discussion with children.  This could also be paired with simple nonfiction books about Antarctica to enhance their learning about this continent.

I can't wait to read other collaborations between Frank Viva and TOON Books.  This seems to be a natural, dynamic fit.  In the meantime, I started writing this post one afternoon, and then set my notebook down.  As soon as Gloria saw the book with my notebook, she started asking for it again.  I need to hit publish so she can have it back!

A Trip to the Bottom of the World with Mouse.  Frank Viva.  TOON Books, 2012.

sent by the publisher for review

Max Makes a Cake

Max is just like many other preschoolers I know.  He can do some things on his own successfully, like getting dressed, and singing the Four Questions for Passover in both Hebrew and English.  He can soothe and entertain his younger sister, Trudy, and even feed her a little.  One thing he cannot do on his own, however, is make a cake for his mom all by himself.  But his father is busy getting Trudy ready for a nap and can't help him yet.  Max just wants to get started. 

Michelle Edwards and Charles Santoso have teamed up in these pages to depict a perfectly real little boy.  The text rings with the tone of an exasperated child. "'Hurry,' said Max. 'We have a cake to make.'"  When his father starts back down the stairs after Trudy is asleep, Max calls "'Cake time'" and wakes Trudy again.  As a parent, I've been there many times before, where you get one child to sleep and the other child's exuberance wakes them.  Of course, Max has to wait again and he is rapidly losing patience.

Santoso's illustrations are also replete with Max's energy.  Max dashes from the kitchen to the foot of the stairs.  He taps his foot impatiently, shakes the special box of Passover cake mix.  He just.can't.wait.

Max has a brainstorm.  While they have gotten cake mix, they haven't gotten frosting, and he begins to experiment.  Max stirs together jam and cream cheese to make frosting, and he discovers that it tastes quite good.  It gives him the confidence to try a cake all on his own.

This is a warm, sweet look at family life.  As Daddy cares for Max and Trudy on this particular day, Mama is shown downstairs working in her studio.  There are great details in this story - Max stands on a stool as he mixes frosting, in front of a kitchen island lined with books and family odds and ends.  Their home isn't particularly neat and tidy - this is the house of a family that values their time with each other more than a perfect home.  Even though Max wakes up Trudy, his father doesn't scold him.  He simply goes back upstairs to to take care of her.  Max's father is also very capable of handling the daily routine on his own - a happy thing to see.

The subtext of this story is hurrying.  At the beginning, Max tells his sister that she will have to learn the Four Questions (as the youngest child, it will be her responsibility to recite the Four Questions, but right now she is far too young).  Trudy will also learn the Passover story.  Max explains it to Trudy this way: "'A long time ago, the Jews were slaves in Egypt.  When Pharaoh freed them, they had to hurry,hurry, hurry away with their bread on their backs.  The sun baked it flat like crackers.  That's what matzoh is."  It is Max who is in a big hurry during the story.  In fact, he wishes his dad would hurry up many times during the story (which is opposite what usually happens, where the adult wishes the child would hurry up!).  The Passover story is so nicely integrated into Max's emotions.  He feels that same sense of urgency.  And matzoh, one of the symbols of Passover, finds its way into Max's Hurry, Hurry, Hurry cake.

This is a picture book, but I love that it still has some age-appropriate back matter to help provide context.  There is an easy recipe for the Hurry, Hurry, Hurry cake, a more complete explanation of the Four Questions, and a slightly longer retelling of the Passover story.  All of these help make some of Max's story more understandable to children not previously familiar with Jewish culture.  And the recipe would be fun to make and customize after reading.

I was lucky enough to be asked to participate in the blog tour for this book.  I was also lucky enough to be sent an extra copy of the book for one of you!  The giveaway is below, and it will be open until March 21st.  Enter and win - I can't wait to share it with you!  If you'd like more information on the author, or want to follow along on the blog tour, click here.


a Rafflecopter giveaway

Max Makes a Cake. Michelle Edwards; illustrated by Charles Santoso.  Random House, 2014.

sent by publisher and Provato Events as part of the blog tour

Doll Bones

I'm going to start this blog post with a confession.  I couldn't read this book for more than six months.  It was sent to me by the publisher way back last June, and I was so excited to read it.  I do love Holly Black, and there had already been enough pre-publication buzz that I knew I wouldn't want to miss it.  But when I received it, the cover...well, it really freaked me out.  And I am a wimp about scary stuff.  So every time I would pick it up to read it, I would be afraid that I'd be up all night with nightmares, or...yeah, the cover really did it to me.

But that buzz I mentioned didn't go away, and it was quite often associated with the word "Newbery".  I knew I needed to get past my fear and dive in, because I would be sorry if I hadn't read it by the end of January.  Lo and behold, I finished it at the beginning of January and could grin when it won a well-deserved Newbery Honor.

The story begins with three friends - Zach, Alice and Poppy.  They've been friends for a long, long time, and one of the things they like to do best is play the game.  It's an ongoing, perpetually changing story that they tell and act out with a ragtag bunch of characters.  There are pirates, thieves, women raised by bands of carnivorous horses, and the Great Queen.  Most of the characters are action figures, bought at yard sales or thrift stores - the thief, Lady Jaye, is a repurposed GI Joe figure.  But the Great Queen is different.  The Great Queen lives in a glass-fronted display cabinet at Poppy's house.  She is a china doll who sits perched on the shelf. "Zach couldn't remember when exactly they'd decided that she was the Great Queen, only that they'd all felt like she was watching them, even though her eyes were closed..." (p. 8).  So they incorporated that creepy observation into their game.  The Great Queen had the ultimate power over the game - if a character displeases her, then they are cursed until they regain her favor.

This game has gone on and on, morphing in different directions over time.  But as the three friends turn twelve, things are changing.  Alice, who lives with her grandmother, is being noticed by boys.  Her grandmother is getting more controlling about what Alice wears and does.  Zach's father, who is back living with Zach's mom after having moved out three years ago, is focusing on Zach's basketball skill.  He doesn't approve of anything else.  "' You're growing up,' he said, which seemed to be one of those weird things adults would say sometimes, stuff that was really obvious and to which there was no reply." (p. 23).  And Poppy feels lost and left out more often - she has been growing up in a family with very little parental supervision, and she just doesn't seem to know where to go next.

Then Poppy and Alice come to Zach's house in the middle of the night and tell him an incredibly creepy story about the Great Queen.  Poppy has taken her out of the cabinet - "The Queen's dull black eyes were open, her gaze boring into his own.  He'd always thought she was creepy-looking, but in the reflected beam of the flashlight, she seemed demonic." (p. 62).  Then Poppy explains that she had a dream where she had seen a dead girl, who sat at the edge of Poppy's bed.  The dead girl told Poppy that she couldn't rest until her body was buried and that Poppy had to help her.  Even worse, it turns out that the dead girl is really the doll.  Her ashes have been made into the china doll.

There is a mystery surrounding this doll, of course, but there is also a quest.  The doll (and the girl) need to be buried in Liverpool, Ohio, which isn't far from where the three friends are.  So they set off to get her to Liverpool.  It's partly fear, sure.  The Queen (whose real name is Eleanor) told Poppy if she didn't help Eleanor, she'd get her.  It sounds ominous and no one wants to find out exactly what she means.  But even though they don't name it, they all know that this may be their last chance to play the game.

There is so much to talk about in this book.  One of Black's gifts is wiring a middle grade book that is scary, but not too scary.  There are definitely some creepy things going on.  At one point, Zach wakes up after they've spent the night outside, at a makeshift campsite.  "Turning, he saw the Queen resting in the dirt right behind his head, far from where she'd been the night before. ...Zach sprang up and scuttled away from her, his heart racing." (p. 113).  The campsite is trashed, with food scattered and a ripped sleeping bag.  There is never a real explanation for what happened - was it bears or other animals?  Was it the doll? The lack of a concrete explanation only ratchets up the suspense.  It doesn't help that just before he wakes to the mess, Zach has been dreaming about Eleanor as a little girl.  The fact that a china doll is seemingly controlling their trip through their dreams is also a little unnerving.  It's the sort of delicious discomfort and readers might enjoy without getting too scared.

One of the most interesting things about this book from my point of view is Black's choice of Zach as the narrator.  It's definitely not what a reader would expect, especially from the title and cover illustration.  They do indicate that the book will be scary (there are bones in the title and the doll on the cover looks very unsettling).  And yet the book is told from a boy's point of view.  As I continued to read and dwell on Zach as narrator, I realized he is actually a perfect narrator.  To the outside world, he is beginning to look like a jock.  He has grown very tall, and is playing basketball.  Poppy condemns him by saying "'You're going to be one of those guys who hangs out with their teammates and dates cheerleaders and doesn't remember what it was like to make up stuff.'" (p. 199)  But while Zach may appear that way to the outside world, we know that isn't the way he really is.  We know "That was why Zach loved playing: those moments where it seemed like he was accessing some other world, one that felt as real as anything.  It was something he never wanted to give up." (p. 3) So Zach isn't what he seems.  It makes him a really interesting character to me.

Another thing that struck me about the journey the three friends go on is how ingenious and creative they have to be to get anywhere.  They all pack quickly, and pack what they can get without alerting anyone to what they are doing.  It's the middle of the night, and they are trying to make the scheduled bus to Liverpool.  "When he finally went to the cabinets, he felt as though he was provisioning himself for one of those epic fantasy quests... " (p. 71).  And no matter how carefully they've planned (which isn't really very carefully at all), they are soon alone, out of money and supplies, and very far from home.  But the three friends believe in the quest, and each other.  They each have different reasons for agreeing to take this journey, but they are all determined to succeed.

This book was creepy, of course.  But it's also a great book about friendship, growing up, imagination, and creativity.  I would also note that there is a really awesome librarian in this book too!  Now I'll shelve this book with the cover facing the wall so I don't have to look at that doll.  But every once in a while, I'll want to check to see if it's moved.

Doll Bones.  Holly Black; with illustrations by Eliza Wheeler.  Margaret K. McElderry Books, 2013.

sent for review by the publisher

Family Dinner Book Club - Our Thoughts

I wanted to do a follow-up post on how Family Dinner Book Club went at our house in January .  If you read the post linked above, you'll already know that Frances was far more interested in listening to Winnie-the-Pooh than Gloria was.  This continued all month.  Gloria mostly read to herself in bed while Frances and I enjoyed the story together.

Before I get to our book club meeting, I want to talk about my impressions of the book.  I'm not sure I had ever read Winnie-the-Pooh all the way through previously.  I've certainly read excerpts, probably also chapters.  I have a very strong memory of listening to some of the story on audiocassette as a child, narrated by Sterling Holloway.  It is a little embarassing to admit that my experience of the book had been so heavily influenced by my knowledge of the Disney movie, but it was.  I was surprised at how some of the little songs Pooh sings (especially "I'm Just a Little Black Rain Cloud") weren't in the chapter book.  I know, I know - I shouldn't admit how much I am influenced by Disney, but I am.  I can't help it.

One of the other things that surprised me was Milne's writing style.  I was especially struck by his use of the word "carelessly".  One or another of the characters is always saying something "carelessly", most often Christopher Robin.  For instance, in the chapter "In Which Piglet Meets a Heffalump", Pooh wonders what a Heffalump looks like. "'You don't often see them,' said Christopher Robin carelessly." (p. 56)  The first few times I read the word, I was taken aback.  It isn't a word that I use in that context at all - it seems that Christopher Robin says things carelessly when he doesn't want to be questioned about his authority on the topic. Here, it is what a Heffalump looks like - Christopher Robin doesn't know, of course, but he still wants to seem like he does.  His lack of a description causes problems for the rest of the group later on.  Once I noticed the word "carelessly", it seemed like all of them were saying things carelessly.  I hate to say A.A. Milne overused a word, but it came up frequently.  It may have been used so often as a combination of the British sense of language and the time period, but it makes me want to start saying things carelessly.  I'll let you know what happens!

One of my favorite things about this experience was how much Winnie the Pooh became a part of our daily lives.  Since we finished reading it, I have heard Frances say to herself several times "Think...think...think.", just like Winnie the Pooh often does.  And both girls watched children on TV throwing sticks over a bridge into a river and called out "Pooh sticks!" in unison.  So they were both really listening and internalizing this book.  It is a fun ongoing connection for us.

Even more fun was the night we celebrated our book club meeting.  Gloria was sick and pretty lethargic, and didn't have any interest in celebrating by the time we got started.  In fact, she fell asleep on the floor while Frances and I were eating.  That was fine because Frances and I got to really talk about the book.  We used the questions from Growing Book by Book, and they were great conversation starters for us.  We took turns answering them and really thinking about things.  I used the placemats and name cards from Enchanted Homeschooling Mom  , as well as decorating with some of our Winnie the Pooh stuffed animals (down at the end of the table).    For the dinner part of the meeting, I made the Baked Honey Chicken from Daisy at Home (which was delicious!), and added roasted carrots in honor of Rabbit.  I also made Tigger Tails (recipe in this post).  Here they are:

 Finally (and this was probably unnecessary), I made Peanutty Shortbread.  In the magazine article where I  got the recipe (also cited in that post), they cut the cookies into hives and decorated them with little bees.  Obviously way too much effort for me, especially considering Gloria was sick.  So instead I used a heart cookie cutter and tinted the frosting pink.  They turned out really cute, and lasted a week in our house, bridging the time between book club and Valentine's Day. 

It was a very fun night, and we can't wait for our next meeting.  The book has already been announced, and it is The Day the Crayons Quit.  We've already read it once, and are looking forward to our next meeting.  All of the questions, decorations and food will be posted tomorrow, but I already have a food idea.  Stay tuned for our next report!!

The World of Pooh: The Complete Winnie-the-Pooh and The House at Pooh Corner.  By A.A. Milne with illustrations by E.H. Shephard.  E.P. Dutton, 1957.

book from our own collection