What Joa is Reading & Other Stuff

Book reviews...from picture books to adult books, as well as books-to-movie info, and other stuff I think is interesting. Note: Not all books reviewed or recommended are appropriate for all ages.
JULY 30, 2007
Review of East by Edith Pattou

I just finished a fantasy with a fairy-tale quality that I would recommend to middle school, teen and adult readers. Interestingly, the copy of the book I read was actually called North Child, as it was published in the UK under a different title. After reading the book, I'd say this is a much more appropriate title than East...but the book itself is the same.

The book tells the story of  Rose, who is born a "North Child," which her overly superstitious mother thinks is a bad sign meaning she will be wild and a wanderlust. The book is told in chapters that alternate between the viewpoints of Rose, her father, Neddy (her brother), the Troll Queen (the villain) and White Bear, who shows up one day at the family's doorstep and takes Rose to an enchanted castle.

It is very beautifully written and the plot really keeps you interested.

It is kind of like a combination of Beauty and the Beast and the Greek myth of Cupid and Psyche...with some Norse and Inuit lore and customs mixed in.

 

 

 

 

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JULY 8, 2007
YAY for new Wayside School show on Nick

While reading the August 2007 edition of Nickelodeon magazine, which you can check out from the youth dept., I just finished reading an interview with the actors who play Harry, Ron and Hermoine, about the Harry Potter #5 movie coming out...and turned the page.

There, I was thrilled to see that Nick was having a new cartoon show--"Wayside"-- based on some of the funniest chapter books, the Wayside School series by Louis Sachar. Sachar might be most well known for the novel Holes, which was made into a movie a few years ago, but the Wayside School books have a completely different--and hilarious--tone. They are great if you love wacky humor...and they are also good for readers who are looking for something quick, because they are essentially written almost as a collection of short stories, so you can almost open the books to any chapter and just read it as a funny skit. To understand the premise, readers should read the first, Sideways Stories from Wayside School.

 

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JULY 8, 2007
Harry Potter and other stuff

I just finished re-reading Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone last night (unlike many other the other Harry Potter readers, this was the first time I have re-read any in the series.) Since I first read it in probably 1998 or something...I thought I could "brush up" a bit in time for the last book.

It was really fun to see some foreshadowing for future books, as well as see characters mentioned before you realized they would be significant. For example, I was struck by the fact that right at the beginning of the story, it mentions that Hagrid rides up to the Dursley's on a motorcyle...borrowed from Sirius Black. I am just amazed at how well organized JK Rowling has been in keeping these threads throughout the whole series.

I was also pleasantly surprised at how short the first book was...as I had forgotten that the novels didn't get to be mammoth size until maybe the fourth book. Now I am torn between trying to re-read Chamber of Secrets...or Half-Blood Prince, before I start reading Book 7 which will be out in less than two weeks now.

How many of you have re-read the whole series leading up to Book Seven?

Reminder...we will be having a series discussion for all older fans of the books (teens through any age adults)...actually planned by popular demand for Thursday, July 12. Then we'll probably plan a fall follow-up to discuss how well our expectations/predictions coincide with Rowling's last book.

For younger Harry Potter fans (but old enough to read the books independently) we'll have our traditional Saturday morning Harry Potter party to celebrate the book's release on Saturday, July 21 at 10 a.m. We'll have English muffins and marmalade, plus samplings of butterbeer (which only, according to Rowling, can make a dwarf tipsy...not Muggle children!) Plus photos with Hagrid, a magical demo, prizes, trivia, and more. One name will be drawn for the first check-out of one copy of #7...all others will begin circulating through the reserve list (you might want to get on the the list NOW for either the book or audio.)

 

 

 

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Categories: FantasyMovie Tie-insStuff to Do

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