Bookami

The Calder Game by Blue Balliett

Synopsis: On a trip to Woodstock, England with his father, Calder Pillay is thrilled to see that in the town square of this remote village sits an Alexander Calder sculpture.  Named for this amazing artist, Calder is entranced by the modern sculpture, but the locals think it is abhorrent.  Soon both Calder and the sculpture disappear.  Calder's two best friends, Tommy and Petra fly to England to aid in the search for Calder and the missing art.

Review: I sometimes wonder if I'm not a discerning enough reader.  I sort of know in my head that The Calder Game isn't quite as good as Chasing Vermeer or The Wright 3.  The relationship between Calder, Petra and Tommy isn't quite so dynamic.  In large part, this is due to Calder's absence for a large portion of the novel.  His character provides the balance for the threesome, and his disappearance makes it impossible for him to fulfill his standard role and means there is a lot of bickering between Tommy and Petra.  Next, I know that these kids have grown up in the third largest city in the United States, but I find it hard to believe that any parent in today's world would let their child wander around even a small English town on their own.  I find it even less likely that Tommy and Petra would be allowed to go to England to help in the search for Calder.  In order to account for the readers' skepticism, there are numerous references made to how safe Woodstock is, but this makes the book less exciting.  In the other two books, the setting of big bad Chicago is enough to put the reader on edge. I thought the kids were allowed to wander around a bit too much in the previous books, but the danger of the various situations kept me from thinking about it too much.  There are so many references made to the safety of this remote village that it was much harder to stay in the story and believe that something truly sinister had happened to Calder.  It was pretty clear from the get go that his disappearance was likely some sort of blunder.  Having said all this, I still devoured the book in less than 24 hours.   I loved learning about Alexander Calder's work.  I loved Brett Helquist's marvelous illustrations, and when I finished the book, I went back to figure out the message written in Calder code.  In other words, I can't think of a much better way I could have spent a rainy Sunday than reading this book. 

If you enjoyed this novel, you might also like The Gollywhopper Games by Jody Feldman.

The Willoughbys Written & Illustrated by Lois Lowry

Synopsis: The four Willoughby children are part of an old-fashioned family and therefore, deciding that they should become orphans, create a sinister plan to rid themselves of their parents.  Little do they know, though, that their parents would also like to be free of them and have created their own scheme to become childless.

Review: Just as I was beginning to think March was a little slow for great children's books to review, two-time Newbery winner Lois Lowry publishes this wickedly funny parody of "old-fashioned" tales, The Willoughbys.  This book is certainly not sickeningly sweet like Pollyanna or Anne of Green Gables, but it does contain all the appropriate elements: a competent, loving nanny, an abandoned infant, a lonely, old benefactor, less-than-desirable adults, and rather naughty children.  No, this is more like Snicket's Series of Unfortunate Events, but without so much despair and all of the parenthetical phrases (thank goodness). 

The story begins when the Willoughby children find a baby girl on their doorstep.  The youngest and only girl, Jane, would like to keep the infant but her mother and three brothers, Tim, Barnaby A and Barnaby B, decide that the child is beastly and must be taken to the doorstep of some wealthy neighbor.  Alas, this leads the children to wonder why they too can't be orphans and go to live with a rich benefactor.  The oldest, Tim, points out that they could encourage their parents to take an exotic and dangerous vacation that would lead to their demise.  Thus, the plan is hatched.

Unfortunately, before their parents depart, the children make the mistake one night of asking for a bedtime story.  Their father begrudgingly reads them Hansel & Gretel, allowing Mr. Willoughby to form a scheme of his own.  He proposes to his wife that they could take an extended, permanent holiday, hire a nanny for the children, and then sell the house right out from under them, leaving the children homeless.  Thus, a second diabolical plan is born.

As a former bookseller, it pains me to apply the description of "for all ages" to any book, but in this case it is warranted.  My five-year-old thought it was terribly funny when Tim put his sister Jane in the corner, but I loved when Mrs. Willoughby cut off all of the abandoned baby's curls to make it less cute.  We both liked how Barnaby A and B had to share the same sweater.  I'm even sure that my grandmother would love this book.  Whether it be historical fiction, fantasy or humor, Lowry's contributions to children's literature are immeasurable.  She even sweetly illustrated this book.  Is there anything she can't do?  Hopefully, this "wizened, reclusive old woman who sits hunched over her desk thinking obsessively about the placement of commas," will continue to write for many years to come.

If you like the idea of this novel, you'll likely also enjoy Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events or The Sisters Grimm by Michael Buckley and Peter Ferguson.

Tunnels by Roderick Gordon & Brian Williams

Synopsis: Will Burrows and his father are excited when they discover an underground tunnel far beneath modern-day London, but then Will's father disappears.  With the help of his only friend, Chester, Will vows to uncover the truth behind his father's disappearance, leading he and Chester to discover a bleak and deadly underworld.

Review:  While I certainly enjoyed Tunnels, I don't think I get all the comparisons being made to the Harry Potter books.  True, Tunnels has an incredibly elaborate plot like the Potter books, but it lacks the wonderful characterizations.  Will is all right, I guess, but he's not near as tragic and defined as Harry.  I didn't find that I felt terribly sorry for him even though his mother is a crack-pot, his father has disappeared, and his sister is just plain weird.  Then, there's whiny Chester.  I know the Colony is a dark, scary place, but when Will is removed from the jail, I felt as if Chester should buck up and try to escape.  Instead, he curls up in a ball and cries.  I doubt we would ever see Ron and Hermione go fetal.  Then, there's Cal, Will's underground little brother, but that's all he is, a typical, annoying younger brother. 

Tunnels differs greatly from the Potter novels in its tone as well.  Tunnels is bleak and grimy and claustrophobic all the time.  There are no light-hearted moments. It's hard for the reader to feel any hope when Will and Chester are traveling miles below London's surface.  It's especially difficult when they are told they can never return to London without constantly living in fear of the Styx hunting them down and killing them.  Even when above the surface, the tone is depressing.  Will is constantly getting beat up at school, and the description of Auntie Jean and her cigarette smoke-filled apartment made me shudder.  Does Will have no where that he belongs?  Does he have no where to feel safe?  At least Harry has Hogwarts or the Weasley's home. 

So while I liked Tunnels and think Gordon and Williams did an excellent job of capitalizing on many people's fear of the dark, I just don't think it bears much similarity to the Harry Potter series.  I'd be curious to see what the ratio of boys to girls reading this book is.  As there are no well-defined female characters, I can't help but think this falls more on the side of being a boy book. Oh, and one more thing, what is up with all the terrible spot drawings in the book?  Why bother?  Nothing of any importance is ever pictured.  The drawings were just a hindrance to the pacing of the text.   Hopefully, they can be left out of book two.

The Gollywhopper Games by Jody Feldman

Synopsis: If Gil Goodson can win the Golly Toy & Game Company's ultimate stunt and puzzle competition, his family will have the money to move away from Orchard Heights and all the bad things that have plagued them since the trial.

Review: The Gollywhopper Games is a cross between Dahl's Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and Balliett's The Wright Three.  It has all the humor of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory without the bleakness, and it has all the brain-teasers of The Wright Three without any of the characters seeming stuffy.  Jody Feldman has written a fun, fast-paced novel that gives kids credit for the brains in their heads and the kindness in their hearts.

The last 18 months have not been easy for Gil Goodson and his family.  Gil's father was accused of embezzling funds from his employer, Golly Toy & Game Company.  While his father was found not guilty of all charges, the little town of Orchard Heights has been hard-pressed to forget the incident.  Gil believes that the only way for his family to move on is for him to win the Gollywhopper Games.  The Gollywhopper Games are being held to celebrate Golly Toy & Game Company's 50th anniversary.  If he can win the challenge, his family will have enough money to move away from Orchard Heights, but it will also provide Gil a bit of vindication against his father's former employer.

On his quest, Gil has to team up with 4 other kids.  His favorite is Bianca LaBlanc.  She's 15 and wants to be a supermodel.  She just hopes being a contestant will get her on T.V.  Then there's Lavinia Plodder.  Lavinia is very smart, but her mother pushes her too hard and treats her like she's 5.  Thorton Dewitt-Formey basically bought his way into the competition by buying a bunch of Golly toys, but he's pretty smart if not a bit on the wimpy side.  Finally, there's brawny Rocky Titus.  Rocky's dad used to work for Golly too, and he's not above taking some cheap shots at Gil. 

With a quick moving plot, challenging puzzles, a sinister enough villain, and a main character who is smart, nice and a "good son", Jody Feldman really has created a winner in The Gollywhopper Games.   

As If Being 12 3/4 Isn't Bad Enough, My Mother Is Running for President by Donna Gephart

Synopsis: Vanessa Rothrock is a 12-year-old spelling champ with frizzy hair and gigantic feet.  She has not yet been visited by the Boob Fairy, and her mother, currently the governor of Florida, has decided to run for president.  Vanessa is pretty sure that this will only make her life more difficult.

Review: While the plot of As If Being 12 3/4 Isn't Bad Enough, My Mother Is Running for President lacks originality, I found the book to be a pretty fun read. This is Donna Gephart's first book, but she seems to have remembered well what it is like to be a 12-year-old girl.  Vanessa Rothrock is a likeable character.  She's a frizzy haired, flat-chested klutz who loves her Mom and misses her Dad.  She desperately wants to win the Regional Spelling Bee so that she and her Mom can both make it to D.C.  (She to the National Bee, and her Mom to the White House).  She wishes that Reginald Trumball were her secret admirer, and that she could have a little privacy in life.  Being followed around by a bodyguard all the time is not as glamorous as it sounds.  But more than anything, she just wants her Mom to be safe and and have more time for her.

The relationship between Vanessa and her mother is probably the nicest aspect of this novel.  Vanessa is not the perfect daughter.  She's a bit whiny, and not terribly understanding how busy her Mom is running for president. She even causes her mother some major campaign problems when she sends off some poor responses to a teen magazine's questionnaire.  Of course, her Mom is not perfect either.  She misses Vanessa's County Bee, fails to make it to the emergency room when Vanessa breaks her wrist, and laughs when Vanessa shows her a threatening letter saying that Rothrock better not run for president, but there are wonderful moments too.  I love how they always try to watch Gilmore Girls together.  And when they can't, her Mom remembers to tape it so they can watch it together later.  Also, her Mom does make it to the Regional Bee and is there to comfort Vanessa when she loses.  They have a very realistic, loving relationship.

Now the aesthetic downsides to this novel.  The title is too long, and the cover is awful.  The title should have just been My Mother is Running for President.  As for the cover, it's institutional and looks like it's from the '70s.  I think the hat with the Mom for President button on the band would have been better.  Or red, white and blue balloons with Mom for President on them would have worked too.  Finally, given that this plot is not all that original (we've all seen it on West Wing) and that this novel was published with the current presidential campaign in mind, it might have been wise to make this novel a paperback original to lower the price point.

If you like this novel, you might also enjoy the Princess Diaries by Meg Cabot. 

My Chocolate Year: A Novel with 12 Recipes by Charlotte Herman with Illustrations by LeUyen Pham

Synopsis: Dorrie Meyers is determined to win her fifth grade Sweet Semester baking and essay contest,  but Dorrie doesn't know how to bake and has no idea what to write.  Then her immigrant cousin, Victor, arrives in America, bringing with him the solutions to both of Dorrie's problems.

Review: My Chocolate Year is a sweet homage to food and how it brings families together.  It's September, 1945 in Chicago.  World War II has just ended, and the fifth grade has just begun for chocolate-lover Dorrie Meyers.  Dorrie is particularly excited about this school year because her class will participate in the Sweet Semester baking and essay contest.  The winners will get their picture in the paper.  Dorrie really wants to win, but first she's going to have to learn to bake and figure out what she'll write in the essay.

Dorrie works hard to create a yummy chocolate treat.  She wants to be just like Ruth Wakefield, the woman who invented chocolate chip cookies.  First, she tries to create chocolate covered gum.  As you can imagine, the gum melts in the heated chocolate.  Next she attempts nut clusters, but accidentally uses a laxative bar instead of a chocolate bar.  Then she settles on chocolate carmel apples, but another classmate is making taffy apples.  Dorrie is disappointed that she can't come up with anything good to make.  Both her Mom and Bubbie are excellent bakers.  What's she going to do?

Then cousin Victor arrives.  Victor is 16 and the only surviving member of his immediate family.  Victor's family owned a bakery in Lithuania, and it is he who teaches Dorrie how to make the chocolate peppermint sticks she makes for the contest.  His story also provides Dorrie with the idea for her essay.

My Chocolate Year is a charming story of food, family and world history.  While at moments a bit sappy, it provides kids with some very basic details of the holocaust without being too horrific.  Add in some interesting little historical tidbits like calling the refrigerator the Frigidaire and the creation of the silver penny due to a copper shortage, and you have a solid story that provides many jumping points for discussions of World War II.  The inclusion of the various recipes is also a nice touch.  For many children, their first sense of their family history comes by what food is served at the dinner table.  Not to mention, I can't wait to make the chocolate nut torte on page 131.  I'm off to the grocery for supplies.

If you like this novel, you might also enjoy A Year Down Yonder and A Long Way from Chicago by Richard Peck.

What the Dickens: The Story of a Rogue Tooth Fairy by Gregory Maguire

Synopsis: During a Hurricane Katrina like storm, the parents of Dinah, Zeke, and Rebecca Ruth must go in search of insulin. In order to entertain the anxious children, their cousin Gage tells them the story of an orphan tooth fairy, also known as a skibberee, named What-the-Dickens.

Review:  I can't say that this was my favorite book ever or even my favorite Maguire work, but I can say that Maguire understands the importance of having a little magic in life whether one is 1-year-old or 99-years-old.  When you're a child that magic comes from tales about tooth fairies or Santa Claus or the Easter Bunny.  When you're an adult, you must seek out the magic.  Thankfully, authors like Maguire make the search easier by creating novels like this one.

There are two passages I haven't been able to get out of my head since I finished this book last Sunday.  "Not once upon a time, but, oh, next upon a time."  What a brilliant phrase.  We often think of stories as transporting us back in time and space, but they also move us forward.  They help us create dreams and ideas.  They help us believe in the impossible, and above all, give us hope.

The second passage is, "The possibility of wishing strengthens the imagination to consider, at times, that things could improve. Could be different.  They could.  They might."  Children are constantly wishing whether it be for a new bike or computer or to do well on a test. They also seem to create many opportunities to make wishing a part of every day life.  I remember wishing on fallen eyelashes as a girl.  Also, when the clasp of a necklace got turned around, you were supposed to make a wish.  Do we forget this skill as adults?  I can't remember the last time I made a birthday wish, but this year I'm certain to do so. 

As both of these quotations come within 30 pages of the end, certainly this book took a while to make its point, but reading a novel is not supposed to be like buying a meal at a fast food restaurant.  All Maguire has promised the reader is a unique spin on a traditional childhood myth.  I think he delivers on this promise, and for me, he also reminded me to believe that my wishes could and might come true.

Diary of Wimpy Kid & Diary of Wimpy Kid: Rodrick Rules by Jeff Kinney

Synopsis: Greg Heffley hopes to be famous one day, but for now he's stuck in middle school where he is smaller than just about all the kids in school.  At home, he's the dreaded middle child, stuck between his evil big brother, Rodrick, and his cute little brother, Manny.  Add dealing with his parental units, and life is not easy for Greg, but it is hilarious, and he writes about and illustrates it all in his diary, I mean, journal.  After all, guys don't write in diaries.

Review: Okay, so I'm a believer.  Diary of a Wimpy Kid and Rodrick Rules are truly hilarious.  The humor in these illustrated novels falls somewhere between Dav Pilkey's Captain Underpants series and The Simpsons.  And without giving too much away, the whole Cheese Touch storyline in the first book made me think of the family brown towel situation in David Sedaris' memoir, Naked.  And much like Naked, I think I will find myself reading these novels over and over again.

Kinney really gets what it is to be a kid in middle school, sugar-coating nothing.  In Diary of a Wimpy Kid, I love Greg's explanation for his friendship with Rowley.  "It's been great having him around, mostly because I get to use all the tricks Rodrick pulls on ME."  Or when it comes time for the wrestling unit in P.E., Greg is the lightest kid in the class, and he's worried that he might have to wrestle this really big dude, Benny Wells.  "But then I found out who I DID have to wrestle, and I would have traded for Benny Wells in a heartbeat."  Greg has to wrestle, Fregley, the only other kid in his weight class and about as low on the school popularity scale as he can get.  It would be better to get beaten up by one of the big guys then get beaten up by a dweeb.

In Rodrick Rules, Kinney's insight is applied more to Greg's family dynamic.  The family motto, at least amongst the siblings, would fall along the lines of "eat or be eaten."  "The truth is, Rodrick can pretty much treat me any way he wants, because he knows there's nothing I can do about it.  See, Rodrick is the only one who knows about the REALLY embarrassing thing that happened to me over the summer, and he's been holding it over my head ever since.  So if I ever tell on him for anything, he'll spill my secret to the whole world."  And things with little Manny aren't all that much better for Greg.  When Greg plays a trick on his friend, Rowley, Manny sees the whole thing.  Greg thinks he's got it covered by bribing Manny with candy, but no such luck.  "Manny told Mom everything.  He even told her about the horror movies.  Don't even ask me how he knew about that."  Poor Greg.  He can't even catch a break from a three-year-old.

Both of these novels are a great read and fun to look at too.  The illustrations are simple and reminiscent of traditional newspaper comic strips. (Does anyone else think that the drawings of Greg's Mom look like Marcie from Peanuts?)  I can't wait until my four year old is a bit bigger so I can read them to him.  And if I can't wait, I suppose I can always cover them with brown paper so that no will know I'm reading a kid's book on the subway.  Even at 35, there's peer-pressure.

Amulet, Book 1: The Stonekeeper by Kazu Kibuishi

Synopsis: After the death of their father, Emily and Navin move with their mother to an ancestral home so that they may begin anew, but on their first night in this strange home, their mother is abducted by some sort of octopus like creature.  It is up to Emily and Navin to save their mother with a little help from an amulet and some new found robot friends.

Review:  Okay, so for those of you who don't know, my husband is a graphic novel expert.  He used to be the graphic novel buyer for Borders, and I have been exposed, whether I wanted to be or not, to this amazing visual world for many years now.  I have learned a lot through him, and I was certainly excited to review my first graphic novel on my own site, but sadly I have to say the excitement has ebbed considerably after reading Amulet.

While some of the background art is nice and well-detailed, (the drawings of the house towards the end of the book) the character drawings are for the most part weak.  Emily and her family look like potatoes with faces.  They have no spark.  Their eyes always look the same no matter what emotion they are experiencing.  Moving the irises from left to right does not signify great feeling.  Also, what's up with the much more detailed drawings of Great-grandfather Silas?  He has age-spots, wrinkles, and bags under his milky, blue eyes.  He actually has some character.  Does he somehow deserve better art just because he's wise with age?  Emily is the main character, and the art should allow the reader to somehow respond to her.  Emily never smiles in the book after the death of her father.  While it might be okay for the main character in a YA novel to be morose 100% of the time, it's not okay in a book with an 8 to 12 year old audience. 

This, of course, leads me to my next point.  The father's death scene is a bit harsh for this set of readers.  Yes, yes, I know you're going to say that characters die in middle grade novels all the time.  Look at Harry Potter for instance, but there is a great difference between reading about death in words versus seeing it on the page. I'm not saying that this scene should have been left out entirely, but the bottom half of page 10 and all of 11 could have been scrapped.  The reader would have grasped what happened by just showing the one panel on page 12.  Kids do understand subtlety.

The one saving grace to this novel is the relationship Emily and Navin have with their mother.  For instance, when she tells them the house will have to be cleaned from top to bottom, they don't argue.  They tackle the task with energy.  They seem to understand that their Mom is doing the best she can.  Hopefully, Book 2 will allow us to see more of this bond, as well as a happier, more likable Emily.  She may be brave and strong, but she also needs to show some joy in her successes so that the reader may take some pleasure from reading the novel.

The True Meaning of Smekday by Adam Rex

Synopsis: Gratuity "Tip" Tucci is assigned to write an essay on the "True Meaning of Smekday" for the National Time Capsule contest.  Tip's essay has her reliving the year when aliens named the Boov took over the Earth, abducted her Mom, and forced all Earthlings to move to Florida, then later to Arizona.  On her journey South then West, she is joined by an alien Boov mechanic, who has dubbed himself J. Lo., and her fickle cat, Pig.  Both of whom, along with her fabulous hovercar, Slushious, help her save the Earth from a second alien invasion.

Review: I wasn't sure I was going to like this novel. I don't generally care for alien invasion stories.  I only decided to give this book a shot because I loved Rex's picture book, Frankenstein Makes a Sandwich.  Thankfully, Rex has impressed me a second time.  While this is an alien invasion story, it's also a great story about the friendship between Tip and J.Lo and a spot-on commentary of today's pop culture with charming and hilarious illustrations to boot.

Tip is an incredibly savvy and practical kid.  She manages to live on her own for a while after her Mom is abducted, and she also taught herself how to drive so that she could make the trek to Florida with just her cat, Pig.  For as smart as she is, though, and considering the alien invasion, she could be totally jaded and difficult to befriend, but she's not.  For instance I love when she first lets J.Lo. into her life.  "The Boov lunged forward, and I instantly regretted everything, except then I realized he wasn't attacking me.  It must have been a hug, because I can't think of any better word for it."  Or take the conversation J. Lo and Tip have about families.  "Families are meaning you have to care about some people more than others, he said. But all peoples are just as good.  Alls have a job to do."  These two characters come to have a great tolerance for each other's cultures, and certainly appreciate the job each does in their make-shift family (and just wait until you find out what Pig's job is).

And for adults who need just a bit more of an incentive to read with their 10 year old, Rex has done a fabulous job of high-lighting some pop-culture follies.  J. Lo is in a convenience store and notes, "People who want to understand better how the human race was conquered so easily need to study those stores.  Almost everything inside was filled with sugar, cheese, or weight-loss tips."  There are also the many references to Happy Mouse Kingdom in Orlando.  I wonder what that might really refer to : )  Of course, while we may scoff at it being the most "perfect place in the world" some kids do actually survive both invasions living underneath the park.  And finally if none of the other pop-culture smack-downs get you laughing, my favorite is an alien's description of a casino.  "I was told to go to the large offensively colored building.  The building where humans who are bad at math give away their money!"  I would be one of those humans who are bad at math, and I still found this hilarious.

Finally,  no review of this book could be complete without a comment on the great illustrations.  It's easy to appreciate Rex's talent when you look at any of the numerous illustrations that are supposed to be Polaroids, but the comic-strip drawings are also fabulous, especially as these ones help move the story along.  I also think these are more appealing to boys, which is a good catch given that the main character is a girl.  I only wish there had been more illustrations.  Given the length of this book and that there really aren't any chapter breaks, this book could be slightly daunting to some readers.  Additional illustrations would have helped pace the book a bit better, especially if reading aloud.

All in all, though, a fun book filled with memorable characters, catchy language, and heroic actions that will have most readers hoping to meet an alien.