Friday, March 28, 2014

Flora & Ulysses: The Illuminated Adventures by Kate DiCamillo


Kate DiCamillo can do no wrong. This three time Newbery Award winning author has written another extraordinary novel.

Flora and Ulysses is the story of an ordinary squirrel "born anew" after being traumatically sucked into a vacuum; and not just any vacuum--the Ulysses Super-Suction, Multi-Terrain 2000X. Flora Belle Buckman, a self proclaimed cynic and comic book lover, resuscitates the squirrel and names him Ulysses. But Ulysses is not the same squirrel. His brush with death has changed him. He is now capable of flight and super-strength. And perhaps best of all, he can write poetry...or something. 

   Squirtel. 
   I am.    Ulysses.    Born anew. 

In typical superhero fashion, Ulysses inevitably gains an arch-nemesis.  “George..." says the arch-nemesis. "We have a problem. Your daughter has become emotionally attached to a diseased squirrel.” 

Flora and Ulysses is quirky and sweet. The oftentimes silly and ridiculous plot twists are softened with subtle meaning. In addition, the novel is sprinkled with lovely full-paged illustrations and comic style action sequences by KG Campbell.

It will leave you wishing you had a Ulysses in your life.

Friday, March 21, 2014

Five, Six, Seven, Nate! by Tim Federle

Nate the Great is back!


As you might re-call, I was a HUGE fan of Tim Federle's first novel, Better Nate Than Ever, and I'm just as big a fan of the sequel, Five, Six, Seven, Nate!

Having been cast in an actual Broadway show: E.T. The Musical (OK, he's E.T.'s second understudy, but still....it's a Broadway musical!), 13-year-old Nate Foster feels like his life is finally about to begin.  He's leaving dull, grey Jankburg, PA behind for more hilarious adventures in New York City as he tries to learn his way around the often-times crazy world of professional theater.


Self-conscious that he's much less experienced than the rest of the cast (in fact, Nate has NO experience with any theater beyond his school's nutrition play [he played the broccoli]), Nate's just hoping not to mess things up too badly, and maybe make a friend or two along the way.

But that's no easy task.  Professional theater is a whole new ball of wax for small-town Nate to get used to, especially since they expect him to dance.  "Graceful" isn't a word Nate would ever choose to describe himself.  And as Nate suffers one humiliation after another, he gets cut from most of the show's scenes.

Even worse, Nate's nemesis - the super-talented and good-looking Jordan Rylance (who IS graceful, wouldn't you know) has been cast as the show's star.  Jordan from the wealthy family.  Jordan with the fancy-pants theatrical training.  Jordan with the professional head-shots.  Jordan with the perfect skin and perfectly proportionate nose.  How can Nate not feel intimidated?

As the big opening night draws nearer, Nate feels sad that the thing he always wanted - to be in a Broadway musical - is turning out to be more than a disappointing experience.  But when the show's future starts to look uncertain, Nate just might get his chance to shine!  And what really makes the book shine is Federle's insider-view of the drama, work, and just plain luck that goes into launching a big-budget Broadway show (Federle himself has been a dancer on Broadway).

There's no way I'm going to give away what happens, but let's just say that there's no better Nate Foster on Earth than Nate Foster.  And that's the message Tim Federle has for his lucky readers. In his own words, "The coolest thing you can become is yourself!" 


Friday, March 14, 2014

Matilda by Roald Dahl

I vividly remember reading Matilda for the first time in one sitting while my dad shopped a plant sale for hours. Even at 9 years old, I appreciated its absurdity and dark humor. Roald Dahl is a popular author because he frequently writes stories where the children triumph over the brutish, inattentive adults in their lives and Matilda is no exception.

Matilda is a modern fairy tale and its title character is the perfect heroine. Matilda Wormwood is kind and brilliant and unassuming. Her parents are a combination of the "Dursleys" from Harry Potter and the stepsisters from Cinderella. At the age of 1 1/2, Matilda has the vocabulary of an adult, though her parents refer to her as a "noisy chatterbox" and tell her that children should be "seen and not heard." When Matilda reads The Secret Garden, Great Expectations and Jane Eyre at the age of 4, her parents encourage her to watch more TV. “There's nothin' you can get from a book that you can't get from a television fastah!" says Mr. Wormwood.

Because Matilda never fully harnesses her extreme intellect she develops telekinetic abilities. She then uses this new-found ability to redeem her sweet teacher Miss Honey by terrifying the nightmarish headmistress Miss Trunchbull. Miss Trunchbull is a former hammer-throwing champion, able to hurl a child across the playground in a single throw. Illustrator, Quentin Blake captures this moment marvelously.

Matilda is available at our library in a variety of formats and adaptations including: paperback (J/DAH), Spanish (SPANISH/J/DAH) and audio book (J/DAH/YS/DISC ). There is also a 1996 movie starring Danny DeVito and Rhea Perlman (ARTS&LIT/MATIL/YS) and a musical called "Roald Dahl's Matilda the Musical" (MUSICALS/MATILDA).

Friday, March 7, 2014

The Name Game: A Look Behind the Labels by Donna M. Jackson


Names are really interesting.  We've all have one or two or three or more, but where do they come from and what do they mean?  Why would a celebrity name their child Apple or Moxie Crimefighter?  What name would you choose for yourself if you had the chance?  Learn where your name might have come from and explore what's behind it.  Read a few "Name Nibbles" included in the book which explains where names name like Jona Jonsdottir  and Yao Ming come from. The Name Game also gives interesting information regarding brand names and surprising changes the names went through....would you rather drink a Brad's Drink or a Pepsi?  Have you ever heard of the Marufuku Company?  Maybe you have heard of Nintendo, one of the most successful Name-Change stories.

Check it out!
929.97J/JAC