Holiday reading can be fun, so I picked up the 14th installment of Leslie Meier's Lucy Stone series in anticipation of St. Patrick's Day. I've read a few books in this series and knew it wasn't a "must read in order" series. Lucy is a reporter for the Pennysaver in Tinker's Cover, Maine. Her pregnant daughter-in-law is in the hospital with toxemia and her daughter is under the influence of a fanciful child convinced that fairies are real. But she finds time to investigate when local pub owner Old Dan is found, without his head. Old Dan's estranged brother arrives from Ireland with his abrasive wife, with plans to produce Finnegan's Wake with the local church. Lucy ends up in the chorus, despite a lack of singing talent, giving her a window into the drama behind the scenes. The ending will surprise no one. This isn't on my A list of mystery series, but Lucy is usually a fun diversion. I expected a blarney-infused installment to be highly entertaining, but the plot was dull and plodding. One victim's death is so far-fetched as to be laughable. Celtic/Irish lore is thrown in for effect, but nothing really sticks. The attitudes of the Tinker's Cove residents changing toward the newcomer is implausible, and the "surprise" toxemia grated on my nerves, since that's the sort of thing that's closely monitored. All in all, an installment you could skip, and not recommended for your St. Patrick's Day fix.
Showing posts with label Holiday. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Holiday. Show all posts
Wednesday, March 17, 2010
St. Patrick's Day Murder
Holiday reading can be fun, so I picked up the 14th installment of Leslie Meier's Lucy Stone series in anticipation of St. Patrick's Day. I've read a few books in this series and knew it wasn't a "must read in order" series. Lucy is a reporter for the Pennysaver in Tinker's Cover, Maine. Her pregnant daughter-in-law is in the hospital with toxemia and her daughter is under the influence of a fanciful child convinced that fairies are real. But she finds time to investigate when local pub owner Old Dan is found, without his head. Old Dan's estranged brother arrives from Ireland with his abrasive wife, with plans to produce Finnegan's Wake with the local church. Lucy ends up in the chorus, despite a lack of singing talent, giving her a window into the drama behind the scenes. The ending will surprise no one. This isn't on my A list of mystery series, but Lucy is usually a fun diversion. I expected a blarney-infused installment to be highly entertaining, but the plot was dull and plodding. One victim's death is so far-fetched as to be laughable. Celtic/Irish lore is thrown in for effect, but nothing really sticks. The attitudes of the Tinker's Cove residents changing toward the newcomer is implausible, and the "surprise" toxemia grated on my nerves, since that's the sort of thing that's closely monitored. All in all, an installment you could skip, and not recommended for your St. Patrick's Day fix.
Tuesday, February 09, 2010
Over the Holidays by Sandra Harper
Sandra Harper's holiday novel is a nice way to spend an afternoon relaxing. The title could have double meaning and perhaps that was the authors' purpose; the story takes place over the holidays and also the characters' attitudes toward the holidays.The book itself only happens for a few short weeks around the holidays but Harper's story packs a punch in that short time frame. Following several women linked by family, we see many different viewpoints on the holidays. Just after Vanessa and her husband JT decide not to travel East as they do every year, her sister-in-law Patience decides to travel to California instead. Vanessa finds it hard to hide her annoyance as she already has her plate full with work and their own holiday preparations. Vanessa also teases with the idea of infidelity over the Christmas break. Patience struggles with not having her standard "perfect" New England Christmas and dealing with a sassy seventeen year old daughter who seems to hate her. Vanessa's older sister Thea is struggling over the holiday season with finding inspiration for her art. And Patience's daughter, Liberty (Libby for short) cannot seem to get through to her mother that she doesn't want the same things has her mother.
Lots of inner turmoil going on in this book from Sandra Harper. And amazingly, she wraps it all up with a perfect little bow by the end of the book. I wasn't sure if this book would be too fluffy for my tastes when I started it. But honestly, Harper has written a book that manages to capture the stresses of the holiday season from many women's point of view in a way that is entertaining and spot-on. I think at one time or another we've all been annoyed at the the fact that much of the holiday preparations fall on the woman's shoulders. It's amazing to see how universal this is through several characters in Over the Holidays. I would recommend this as a holiday read as well as a book for anyone who enjoys Women's Fiction with strong, well-developed characters and a story with some depth to it.
Source disclosure: I received this book from Simon and Schuster through the LibrayThing Early Reviewer Program.
Tuesday, January 19, 2010
'Tis the season--Holiday Books 2009
Despite the fact that Christmas is nearly a month over now, I did some holiday reading in December and want to get at least some mini-reviews up. Perhaps you can decide to add them to your holiday reading/gift giving list for 2010.
I won a copy of Wishin' and Hopin' in a book blog contest. I was excited to win a copy because the book sounded interesting enough that I wanted to read it, but didn't grab me so much that I actually want to purchase the book (is that terrible?!). And I was pretty right about my initial assessment.
Wishin' and Hopin' describes 1960's life through the eyes of ten-year old Felix Funicello (cousin to Annette). I found this book to be only a so-so holiday read. It takes over half the book to even get to Christmas. Quite a bit of the story is the school year leading up to the holidays. While I love nostalgic holiday movies and books, this one did not hit the jackpot for me. It was mildly entertaining but Felix as a protagonist seemed younger than his age and I just didn't care for it that much. However, if you grew up in the 60's and attended Catholic school, you may have a greater appreciation for Lamb's story than I did. It also bothered me that the book ended with the family eating a holiday dinner at a Chinese restaurant (um....did Wally Lamb just finish watching the holiday movie "A Christmas Story"? Not very original, in my opinion).
Source disclosure: won in a blog contest
If you're looking for a nostalgic Christmas story, I don't think you can find a better book than Dave Barry's The Shepherd, the Angel, and Walter the Christmas Miracle Dog. I first read this book two years ago, borrowed from the library. Barnes and Noble had it as a bargain book this Christmas so I just had to snatch up a copy of it and read it again. It did not disappoint, I loved the story just as much the second time.
I would definitely recommend this one over Wally Lamb's Wishin' and Hopin'.
Source disclosure: I purchased this book.
Secrets of the Christmas Box by Steven Hornby had sooo much potential. I really really REALLY wanted to LOVE it! However, it fell quite a bit short of my expectations. Cleverly written in 24 chapters, this middle-grade book could be read aloud each night from December 1st until Christmas. Secrets tells the story of Christmas ornaments come to life and the adventure that awaits them beyond the Christmas tree. However delightful the book synopsis sounds, this is actually quite a dark tale. Larry the snowman ornament's brother appears to be missing after the ornaments are all placed on the tree. Larry and his good friend Debbie along with a new toy solider ornament go off in search of Larry's brother. They discover along the way that things may not be as they seem in their little Christmas tree world.
I thought this would be a cute little tale to read to my children at Christmas each year, but I think it may be too dark and scary for younger children (with an evil Tree Lord and tree lights that hunt down and attack other ornaments) and perhaps a bit too young in subject matter for older kids who could actually read the book themselves. I'm not sure Hornby found the right audience for this one. In short, LOVED the idea of the book but was disappointed with the reality of it.
Source disclosure: Received a copy from the publisher through Shelf Awareness.
Susan May Warren's Christmas novella was quite entertaining at times and delivered a nice holiday message. I believe this would fall into the Christian Fiction category, but not too overtly. It didn't get too preachy and actually some of the church-related scenes were amusing to me.
The story follows Marianne Wallace as she plans to have her large family all together for one last holiday before her youngest goes off to college and her children all start to lead their own lives. Of particular interest to me is that the story takes place in Big Lake, Minnesota where Marianne cheers on her son as a football player for the Big Lake Trout. It's always fun to read books that take place in your home state. The Big Lake Trout and their drive to get to the state championship play a large role in this story, especially when the team mascot has a heart attack and Marianne is cajoled into donning the Big Lake Trout costume to cheer on the team. The description of her trying on the costume truly made me laugh. And as a mother, you realize there are all kinds of things you'll do for your kids that you never dreamed you would even consider! I really enjoyed the town and its characters and could identify with Marianne as a future version of myself. I would recommend this one as a fun holiday read (though I don't think it would top my all-time best holiday book list).
Source Disclosure: Received a copy from the publisher by contacting the author's website.
I won a copy of Wishin' and Hopin' in a book blog contest. I was excited to win a copy because the book sounded interesting enough that I wanted to read it, but didn't grab me so much that I actually want to purchase the book (is that terrible?!). And I was pretty right about my initial assessment.Wishin' and Hopin' describes 1960's life through the eyes of ten-year old Felix Funicello (cousin to Annette). I found this book to be only a so-so holiday read. It takes over half the book to even get to Christmas. Quite a bit of the story is the school year leading up to the holidays. While I love nostalgic holiday movies and books, this one did not hit the jackpot for me. It was mildly entertaining but Felix as a protagonist seemed younger than his age and I just didn't care for it that much. However, if you grew up in the 60's and attended Catholic school, you may have a greater appreciation for Lamb's story than I did. It also bothered me that the book ended with the family eating a holiday dinner at a Chinese restaurant (um....did Wally Lamb just finish watching the holiday movie "A Christmas Story"? Not very original, in my opinion).
Source disclosure: won in a blog contest
If you're looking for a nostalgic Christmas story, I don't think you can find a better book than Dave Barry's The Shepherd, the Angel, and Walter the Christmas Miracle Dog. I first read this book two years ago, borrowed from the library. Barnes and Noble had it as a bargain book this Christmas so I just had to snatch up a copy of it and read it again. It did not disappoint, I loved the story just as much the second time.I would definitely recommend this one over Wally Lamb's Wishin' and Hopin'.
Source disclosure: I purchased this book.
Secrets of the Christmas Box by Steven Hornby had sooo much potential. I really really REALLY wanted to LOVE it! However, it fell quite a bit short of my expectations. Cleverly written in 24 chapters, this middle-grade book could be read aloud each night from December 1st until Christmas. Secrets tells the story of Christmas ornaments come to life and the adventure that awaits them beyond the Christmas tree. However delightful the book synopsis sounds, this is actually quite a dark tale. Larry the snowman ornament's brother appears to be missing after the ornaments are all placed on the tree. Larry and his good friend Debbie along with a new toy solider ornament go off in search of Larry's brother. They discover along the way that things may not be as they seem in their little Christmas tree world.I thought this would be a cute little tale to read to my children at Christmas each year, but I think it may be too dark and scary for younger children (with an evil Tree Lord and tree lights that hunt down and attack other ornaments) and perhaps a bit too young in subject matter for older kids who could actually read the book themselves. I'm not sure Hornby found the right audience for this one. In short, LOVED the idea of the book but was disappointed with the reality of it.
Source disclosure: Received a copy from the publisher through Shelf Awareness.
Susan May Warren's Christmas novella was quite entertaining at times and delivered a nice holiday message. I believe this would fall into the Christian Fiction category, but not too overtly. It didn't get too preachy and actually some of the church-related scenes were amusing to me.The story follows Marianne Wallace as she plans to have her large family all together for one last holiday before her youngest goes off to college and her children all start to lead their own lives. Of particular interest to me is that the story takes place in Big Lake, Minnesota where Marianne cheers on her son as a football player for the Big Lake Trout. It's always fun to read books that take place in your home state. The Big Lake Trout and their drive to get to the state championship play a large role in this story, especially when the team mascot has a heart attack and Marianne is cajoled into donning the Big Lake Trout costume to cheer on the team. The description of her trying on the costume truly made me laugh. And as a mother, you realize there are all kinds of things you'll do for your kids that you never dreamed you would even consider! I really enjoyed the town and its characters and could identify with Marianne as a future version of myself. I would recommend this one as a fun holiday read (though I don't think it would top my all-time best holiday book list).
Source Disclosure: Received a copy from the publisher by contacting the author's website.
Thursday, May 14, 2009
Picture Book Thursday--Me With You by Kristy Dempsey
Father's Day is coming up and maybe you're looking for something to give a Grandpa? Well, Me With You by Kristy Dempsey just might be what you're looking for!In this sweet picture book, a little girl goes through all the things she loves doing with her grandfather: tea parties, watering the garden, singing, playing baseball and more. She also talks about how her grandfather supports her, helps her, and forgives her grumpy moods. My favorite line from the book is the last one:
And though I'll find new ways of being me my whole life through, my favorite me will always be....when I am me with you.
Kristy Dempsey's words fall into the short but sweet category with this one. Perfect for the younger preschool set with short rhyming phases. And Christopher Denise's illustrations make this book a true winner! Every page is full of wonderful detail bringing the girl bear and her granddad to life. I love how expressive the bears are and the background details are fun. In one image, there is a doll house with Goldilocks and the three bears as dolls for the house.
This is a wonderful little gift for a granddaugther to give a grandfather for Father's Day. The book could stay at Grandpa's house so they could read it together when she visits! The book hits bookstores today, May 14th, if you want to rush out and get a copy for you or as a gift.
Thanks to Jess from Penguin who sent me a copy of this one to review! My girls and I thoroughly enjoyed it!
About the author: Kristy Dempsey enjoyed swinging from trees and splashing in the creek as a child on her grandfather's farm in South Carolina. These days, she lives in Belo Horizonte, Brazil, where her favorite moments are spent with her husband and three children. In addition to writing, Kristy enjoys running and hand-painting glass tiles. And as often as possible, she still makes time to swing from a tree or two.
About the illustrator: As the father of two young girls, Christopher Denise knows about the special moments that children share with their loved ones. In Me With You, he brings that feeling to life with his beautiful, warm illustrations. Mr. Denise has illustrated many books for young readers, such as Pigs Love Potatoes, The Great Redwall Feast and A Redwall Winter's Tale. He has also exhibited his work at the annual Society of Illustrators show in New York City. Christopher lives with his wife, Anika, and their daughters in Barrington, Rhode Island.
(image courtesy of Barnes & Noble)
Thursday, February 12, 2009
Picture Book Thursday
Our theme this week is...Valentine's Day!
We love Little Critter, Mercer Mayer's vaguely porcupine-like little guy and his animal friends. The Valentine's Day installment is lots of fun--our favorite is Little Critter decorating the classroom, strewing hearts and streamers all over the place. At the end of the story, he gives a special valentine to his special valentine - Mom. It's a sweet story on extra-sturdy pages with flaps to lift. Lilah loves this one, and I enjoy them, too.
Maisy, a cute mouse drawn by Lucy Cousins, doesn't have the most exciting storylines, but Lilah really loves these because of the animal drawings, but also because of...stickers! There are stickers to place on each page to complete each scene, and the simple story is made extra fun with the interactivity.
Franklin was new to us, but we really like him. Paulette Bourgeois writes and Brenda Clark illustrates. Franklin loses all his valentines on the way to the party, and feels very bad when he opens all of his valentines, but his friends tell him it doesn't matter. It's sweet, and Lilah loves the animals!
The Biggest Valentine by Steven Kroll and Jeni Bassett is the story of two adorable mice who are best friends. They decide to team up and make a valentine together, but they fight over the best way to do it. They separate, but neither can make a valentine he's happy with, so they come back together to make the perfect, the BIGGEST valentine ever.
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We are excited about Valentine's Day around here. My girls worked on their class valentines last night and are counting down to Saturday. Funny thing is that we don't really do much for Valentine's day and in fact, last year I completely forgot to give the girls' the books I got them until weeks later when I came across them. But they liked them anyway, even if Valentine's was over.
They each got a Dora lift-a-flap book: Valentine's for Everyone and Dora's Valentine Adventure. Both contain flaps to open. Both are board books with sturdy pages. The heart-shaped one actually contains a bit more of a storyline and a few more flaps I think. Valentine's for Everyone is about Dora and Boots delivering a valentine to Dora's grandma. I would suggest Valentine's for Everyone for a younger child (age 2-3) interested in Dora, and Dora's Valentine Adventure for more preschool age (age 3-4). My girls enjoy both books.
We picked out Mouse's First Valentine by Lauren Thompson at the library a few weeks ago. Our library (do all libraries do this?) has a holiday section in the children's area so that all the picture and chapter books relating to a holiday are put in one place. It's great! I usually go the month before a holiday and raid the section. :-) We thought Mouse's First Valentine was particularly cute. Mouse follows his sister around the house one night watching her collect ribbon, lace, and paper. She works very hard to make a valentine for someone and Mouse wonders who it is for. This is a very sweet book with fun illustrations. It is also available in a board book. Thompson also has other books in the Mouse series (Mouse's First Day of School, Mouse's First Snow, Mouse's First Christmas, etc). AND I just learned by doing a search for her other books that she is the author of the Little Quack books too, which we love! I never put two and two together that they were one in the same.
Lilly's Chocolate Heart by Kevin Henkes is another Valentine (or actually, a year-round) favorite of ours. We are fans of many Henkes books and own the little box of treats set. Each small book in the set centers around a holiday treat. They are short and sweet and our kids love all of them. They are only a few pages long. In Lilly's Chocolate Heart, Lilly wants to save her chocolate heart and searches for the perfect place to keep it until she decides the best place for it is in her mouth! Henkes has written and illustrated many picture books and a few novels. He hails from Racine, Wisconsin which is where my husband grew up. We love to support local authors so I just had to throw this one into the pile today.
We love Little Critter, Mercer Mayer's vaguely porcupine-like little guy and his animal friends. The Valentine's Day installment is lots of fun--our favorite is Little Critter decorating the classroom, strewing hearts and streamers all over the place. At the end of the story, he gives a special valentine to his special valentine - Mom. It's a sweet story on extra-sturdy pages with flaps to lift. Lilah loves this one, and I enjoy them, too.
Maisy, a cute mouse drawn by Lucy Cousins, doesn't have the most exciting storylines, but Lilah really loves these because of the animal drawings, but also because of...stickers! There are stickers to place on each page to complete each scene, and the simple story is made extra fun with the interactivity.
Franklin was new to us, but we really like him. Paulette Bourgeois writes and Brenda Clark illustrates. Franklin loses all his valentines on the way to the party, and feels very bad when he opens all of his valentines, but his friends tell him it doesn't matter. It's sweet, and Lilah loves the animals!
The Biggest Valentine by Steven Kroll and Jeni Bassett is the story of two adorable mice who are best friends. They decide to team up and make a valentine together, but they fight over the best way to do it. They separate, but neither can make a valentine he's happy with, so they come back together to make the perfect, the BIGGEST valentine ever.-------------------------------------------------------------------------
We are excited about Valentine's Day around here. My girls worked on their class valentines last night and are counting down to Saturday. Funny thing is that we don't really do much for Valentine's day and in fact, last year I completely forgot to give the girls' the books I got them until weeks later when I came across them. But they liked them anyway, even if Valentine's was over. They each got a Dora lift-a-flap book: Valentine's for Everyone and Dora's Valentine Adventure. Both contain flaps to open. Both are board books with sturdy pages. The heart-shaped one actually contains a bit more of a storyline and a few more flaps I think. Valentine's for Everyone is about Dora and Boots delivering a valentine to Dora's grandma. I would suggest Valentine's for Everyone for a younger child (age 2-3) interested in Dora, and Dora's Valentine Adventure for more preschool age (age 3-4). My girls enjoy both books.We picked out Mouse's First Valentine by Lauren Thompson at the library a few weeks ago. Our library (do all libraries do this?) has a holiday section in the children's area so that all the picture and chapter books relating to a holiday are put in one place. It's great! I usually go the month before a holiday and raid the section. :-) We thought Mouse's First Valentine was particularly cute. Mouse follows his sister around the house one night watching her collect ribbon, lace, and paper. She works very hard to make a valentine for someone and Mouse wonders who it is for. This is a very sweet book with fun illustrations. It is also available in a board book. Thompson also has other books in the Mouse series (Mouse's First Day of School, Mouse's First Snow, Mouse's First Christmas, etc). AND I just learned by doing a search for her other books that she is the author of the Little Quack books too, which we love! I never put two and two together that they were one in the same.Lilly's Chocolate Heart by Kevin Henkes is another Valentine (or actually, a year-round) favorite of ours. We are fans of many Henkes books and own the little box of treats set. Each small book in the set centers around a holiday treat. They are short and sweet and our kids love all of them. They are only a few pages long. In Lilly's Chocolate Heart, Lilly wants to save her chocolate heart and searches for the perfect place to keep it until she decides the best place for it is in her mouth! Henkes has written and illustrated many picture books and a few novels. He hails from Racine, Wisconsin which is where my husband grew up. We love to support local authors so I just had to throw this one into the pile today.
Saturday, January 03, 2009
Squeezing in a bit more Christmas cheer
Next up I'll finally do the year in review, but I read three more books in 2008 before closing the Christmas season.
Blue Christmas by Mary Kay Andrews: Fun, fun, fun. Lots of Christmas cheer. Weezie Foley and (Savannah Blues and Savannah Breeze) is competing for the best window display against the trendy, stylish shop around the corner (and its pissy owners). Meanwhile, mysterious break-ins and her boyfriend's withdrawn behavior are making it tough to keep her Christmas spirit. Weezie is resigned to a rather blue Christmas when inspiration strikes--not only for the window display, but for a great gift for Daniel, a memorable (though not in the way she hopes) Christmas dinner, and a solution to the mystery at hand. This is a short, fast read with some laugh-out-loud moments along with tender Christmas cheer. It's a sweet, hilarious book with fun subplots and engaging characters.
The Shepherd, The Angel, and Walter the Christmas Miracle Dog by Dave Barry: If you like Dave Barry, you'll love this story. Likewise, if you are a fan of A Christmas Story or The Best Christmas Pageant Ever, this one's for you. Equal parts nostalgia, outrageously funny moments, and heartwarming Christmas spirit, this book is set in 1960 and told by middle school student and pageant shepherd Doug. Doug has a crush on Mary, who is playing alongside a depressingly cute Joseph. Meanwhile, the family dog is not doing well. What happens next results in the most memorable Christmas pageant the Episcopal church has ever seen.
The Stupidest Angel: A Heartwarming Tale of Christmas Terror by Christopher Moore: Christopher Moore brings back characters from past books in this outrageous Pine Cove Christmas story. The angel Raziel (from The Gospel According to Biff) has come to Earth to grant a child's Christmas wish. Seven-year-old Josh Barker is worried because he's pretty sure he saw Santa killed by a woman wielding a shovel. These two events converge in a parody of B movie horror that somehow manages to have abundant Christmas spirit. Moore fans will love returning to Pine Cove and visiting Raziel and Tucker Case (the pilot from Island of the Sequined Love Nun), but those offended by junior high boy humor or senseless violence might want to skip this one. A great balance of parody and heartwarming character development.
Blue Christmas by Mary Kay Andrews: Fun, fun, fun. Lots of Christmas cheer. Weezie Foley and (Savannah Blues and Savannah Breeze) is competing for the best window display against the trendy, stylish shop around the corner (and its pissy owners). Meanwhile, mysterious break-ins and her boyfriend's withdrawn behavior are making it tough to keep her Christmas spirit. Weezie is resigned to a rather blue Christmas when inspiration strikes--not only for the window display, but for a great gift for Daniel, a memorable (though not in the way she hopes) Christmas dinner, and a solution to the mystery at hand. This is a short, fast read with some laugh-out-loud moments along with tender Christmas cheer. It's a sweet, hilarious book with fun subplots and engaging characters.
The Shepherd, The Angel, and Walter the Christmas Miracle Dog by Dave Barry: If you like Dave Barry, you'll love this story. Likewise, if you are a fan of A Christmas Story or The Best Christmas Pageant Ever, this one's for you. Equal parts nostalgia, outrageously funny moments, and heartwarming Christmas spirit, this book is set in 1960 and told by middle school student and pageant shepherd Doug. Doug has a crush on Mary, who is playing alongside a depressingly cute Joseph. Meanwhile, the family dog is not doing well. What happens next results in the most memorable Christmas pageant the Episcopal church has ever seen.
The Stupidest Angel: A Heartwarming Tale of Christmas Terror by Christopher Moore: Christopher Moore brings back characters from past books in this outrageous Pine Cove Christmas story. The angel Raziel (from The Gospel According to Biff) has come to Earth to grant a child's Christmas wish. Seven-year-old Josh Barker is worried because he's pretty sure he saw Santa killed by a woman wielding a shovel. These two events converge in a parody of B movie horror that somehow manages to have abundant Christmas spirit. Moore fans will love returning to Pine Cove and visiting Raziel and Tucker Case (the pilot from Island of the Sequined Love Nun), but those offended by junior high boy humor or senseless violence might want to skip this one. A great balance of parody and heartwarming character development.
Sunday, December 28, 2008
Murder for Christmas, Part Three
Part One here!
Part Two here!
I read three more Christmas mysteries on my Murder for Christmas spree:
Mistletoe and Murder by Carola Dunn: This is the eleventh Daisy Dalrymple mystery, and I've only read the first. However, I had no trouble jumping in and figuring out what was going on. Daisy's mother is Lady Dalrymple, but Daisy is a reporter for Town and Country (shocking!) during the 1920s. She and her family end up (in a convoluted way) staying at Brockdene, a Cornish estate, for Christmas. Questionable parentage, entailed estates, poor relations, and hidden treasure make this a delightful holiday cozy. A wet-blanket priest protests against the Christmas decorations, among other things, but he's mercifully killed off. Daisy and her Scotland Yard husband investigate to uncover the murder. Daisy is a bit more blase than I would be about her child being in the vicinity of a murder, and there are a few too many exclamations of "Blast!" added for period authenticity, but that's fine. A fun holiday cozy.
Mrs. Jeffries and the Silent Knight by Emily Brightwell: I'm not sure why, but I had a little trouble getting into this one at first. This is the 20th in the series, so that's probably it. Once I got into, though, I was hooked, and I'll definitely read this series from the beginning. The premise is that Inspector Witherspoon's servants actually solve his cases, giving him clues without making him aware of it. Mrs. Jeffries, the housekeeper, is the leader, and all the servants get in on the action with their own special skills. I was a bit disturbed that the book began with the servants lamenting that they hadn't had a murder to solve in a long time, but I suppose there wasn't much in the way of entertainment for the serving class back then. Witherspoon's case, the murder of Sir Braxton, is a tricky one--Braxton is some sort of cousin to the Queen and the mystery must be solved quietly before Christmas. Sir Braxton's daughter's don't like him, and neither does anyone else, really--he's not a nice person and he didn't pay his creditors. Once I got into the story, I really liked Mrs. Jeffries and all the servants. It's a fun bunch, and the mystery was entertaining.
A Catered Christmas by Isis Crawford: This was the big surprise out of this batch. I haven't read the first two in the series about sisters Bernie and Libby, who own A Little Taste of Heaven, a store? restaurant? I think just a store. I felt I was missing some background (who was this Bree person and why didn't they tell her to take a hike?) and there were some annoyances (Bernie twists her ring when she's nervous, which is kind of pointless to bring up periodically--adds nothing to the story) and I was annoyed by the wandering point of view, but there was a lot to like in this book. Bernie and Libby participate in a televised competition hosted by Martha Stewart-like Hortense Calabash. When Hortense's holiday preparations literally blow up in her face, Bernie and Libby (and their ex-cop father, Sean) investigate. There's a wealth of suspects, from the competitors, all of whom have secrets, to the producer, to Hortense's assistant. I liked the sisters and the competition was funny. Lots of Christmas preparations make it festive. A decent mystery with engaging characters.
Part Two here!
I read three more Christmas mysteries on my Murder for Christmas spree:
Mistletoe and Murder by Carola Dunn: This is the eleventh Daisy Dalrymple mystery, and I've only read the first. However, I had no trouble jumping in and figuring out what was going on. Daisy's mother is Lady Dalrymple, but Daisy is a reporter for Town and Country (shocking!) during the 1920s. She and her family end up (in a convoluted way) staying at Brockdene, a Cornish estate, for Christmas. Questionable parentage, entailed estates, poor relations, and hidden treasure make this a delightful holiday cozy. A wet-blanket priest protests against the Christmas decorations, among other things, but he's mercifully killed off. Daisy and her Scotland Yard husband investigate to uncover the murder. Daisy is a bit more blase than I would be about her child being in the vicinity of a murder, and there are a few too many exclamations of "Blast!" added for period authenticity, but that's fine. A fun holiday cozy.
Mrs. Jeffries and the Silent Knight by Emily Brightwell: I'm not sure why, but I had a little trouble getting into this one at first. This is the 20th in the series, so that's probably it. Once I got into, though, I was hooked, and I'll definitely read this series from the beginning. The premise is that Inspector Witherspoon's servants actually solve his cases, giving him clues without making him aware of it. Mrs. Jeffries, the housekeeper, is the leader, and all the servants get in on the action with their own special skills. I was a bit disturbed that the book began with the servants lamenting that they hadn't had a murder to solve in a long time, but I suppose there wasn't much in the way of entertainment for the serving class back then. Witherspoon's case, the murder of Sir Braxton, is a tricky one--Braxton is some sort of cousin to the Queen and the mystery must be solved quietly before Christmas. Sir Braxton's daughter's don't like him, and neither does anyone else, really--he's not a nice person and he didn't pay his creditors. Once I got into the story, I really liked Mrs. Jeffries and all the servants. It's a fun bunch, and the mystery was entertaining.
A Catered Christmas by Isis Crawford: This was the big surprise out of this batch. I haven't read the first two in the series about sisters Bernie and Libby, who own A Little Taste of Heaven, a store? restaurant? I think just a store. I felt I was missing some background (who was this Bree person and why didn't they tell her to take a hike?) and there were some annoyances (Bernie twists her ring when she's nervous, which is kind of pointless to bring up periodically--adds nothing to the story) and I was annoyed by the wandering point of view, but there was a lot to like in this book. Bernie and Libby participate in a televised competition hosted by Martha Stewart-like Hortense Calabash. When Hortense's holiday preparations literally blow up in her face, Bernie and Libby (and their ex-cop father, Sean) investigate. There's a wealth of suspects, from the competitors, all of whom have secrets, to the producer, to Hortense's assistant. I liked the sisters and the competition was funny. Lots of Christmas preparations make it festive. A decent mystery with engaging characters.
Friday, December 12, 2008
Murder for Christmas, Part Two
Read Part One here!
Christmas Cookie Murder by Leslie Meier: If I'd realized that the first in the Lucy Stone series was Mistletoe and Murder, I would have started there! But my amazon searching only brought me to this, the 6th entry, and that's fine. I had previously read Leslie Meier's novella in Candy Cane Murder and enjoyed it, and I think I'll be reading more about Lucy and Tinker's Cove, Maine. Things are grim in Tinker's Cove with lobster quotas playing havoc with the local economy and an influx of drugs. But Lucy is trying to have a merry Christmas anyway, probably the reason she agrees to host the Christmas cookie exchange. The cookie exchange is hilarious, with backbiting and backhanded compliments the order of the day. And backed-up plumbing that brings the disastrous "party" to an end. An overzealous cop complicates her family's lives, and she struggles with her teenaged son, more interested in marijuana than in college applications, making this a little less cozy than the usual cozy mystery. Things are complicated in the Stone family, but interesting, and I liked Lucy. She decides to investigate when a young daycare assistant is found murdered and the cop's focus is on a dentist she's sure is innocent. The mystery is fine, but Tinker's Cove and the Stone family really make this a pleasant holiday diversion.
O Little Town of Maggody by Joan Hess: I haven't read the Maggody series, but I love the Claire Malloy series by the same author. This series is quite different, featuring Arly Hanks, who returned as "police chief" for her Arkansas hometown of Maggody where the people are inbred and closed-minded. At first, I wasn't sure about this series. Arly looks down her nose at the Maggody folk and the usual jokes about inbreeding and moonshine made me uncomfortable (I know that sounds goofy, but my mom drilled into us not to make fun of other people). But at its heart, it seems affectionate toward the town and its people, not mean-spirited. Maggody is thrown into an uproar when country star Matt Montana "returns" to his "hometown" in a carefully constructed PR move. Though no one remembers him (he really just spent a couple of summers there with his great-aunt, mostly raising hell), they are happy to boost the local economy by renaming all the businesses in his name and selling kitschy Matt Montana souvenirs. A couple of murders have Arly scrambling for clues, and there was much more Christmas spirit in this one than I expected from the beginning. This is the seventh in the series.
A Highland Christmas by M.C. Beaton: This one starts out with cranky policeman Hamish MacBeth thinking about the gloomy lack of Christmas spirit in Calvinist Lochdubh, so I didn't expect it to have much Christmas spirit. No murder in this novella, but the two crimes--a lost cat and missing Christmas lights in an adjacent village--lead to a really sweet little story that's perfect for reading by the fire. I will definitely revisit Hamish MacBeth from the beginning. This is 16th in the series, but I didn't feel lost at all--quite an accomplishment by Beaton.
Kissing Christmas Goodbye by M.C. Beaton: Private investigator Agatha Raisin is obsessing over the "perfect" Christmas, complete with snow and reconciliation with her ex. Meanwhile, a woman has asked for Agatha's help because she's sure one of her children is plotting to kill her before she can change her will to leave the money to the state. Her new assistant, Toni, is young and perky enough to make Agatha feel extra old, and her Christmas seems destined to disappoint her. The mystery was good fun (I love when the head of the family assembles all the ungrateful children to announce a change of will, and this one had some nice twists). Agatha is quite a piece of work, very sarcastic and witty, and her developing friendship with Toni is sweet. The story is bogged down a bit by Agatha's obsession over her ex and a bit about Toni's brother, but on the whole, this was a nice holiday mystery, and is 18th in the series.
Christmas Cookie Murder by Leslie Meier: If I'd realized that the first in the Lucy Stone series was Mistletoe and Murder, I would have started there! But my amazon searching only brought me to this, the 6th entry, and that's fine. I had previously read Leslie Meier's novella in Candy Cane Murder and enjoyed it, and I think I'll be reading more about Lucy and Tinker's Cove, Maine. Things are grim in Tinker's Cove with lobster quotas playing havoc with the local economy and an influx of drugs. But Lucy is trying to have a merry Christmas anyway, probably the reason she agrees to host the Christmas cookie exchange. The cookie exchange is hilarious, with backbiting and backhanded compliments the order of the day. And backed-up plumbing that brings the disastrous "party" to an end. An overzealous cop complicates her family's lives, and she struggles with her teenaged son, more interested in marijuana than in college applications, making this a little less cozy than the usual cozy mystery. Things are complicated in the Stone family, but interesting, and I liked Lucy. She decides to investigate when a young daycare assistant is found murdered and the cop's focus is on a dentist she's sure is innocent. The mystery is fine, but Tinker's Cove and the Stone family really make this a pleasant holiday diversion.
O Little Town of Maggody by Joan Hess: I haven't read the Maggody series, but I love the Claire Malloy series by the same author. This series is quite different, featuring Arly Hanks, who returned as "police chief" for her Arkansas hometown of Maggody where the people are inbred and closed-minded. At first, I wasn't sure about this series. Arly looks down her nose at the Maggody folk and the usual jokes about inbreeding and moonshine made me uncomfortable (I know that sounds goofy, but my mom drilled into us not to make fun of other people). But at its heart, it seems affectionate toward the town and its people, not mean-spirited. Maggody is thrown into an uproar when country star Matt Montana "returns" to his "hometown" in a carefully constructed PR move. Though no one remembers him (he really just spent a couple of summers there with his great-aunt, mostly raising hell), they are happy to boost the local economy by renaming all the businesses in his name and selling kitschy Matt Montana souvenirs. A couple of murders have Arly scrambling for clues, and there was much more Christmas spirit in this one than I expected from the beginning. This is the seventh in the series.
A Highland Christmas by M.C. Beaton: This one starts out with cranky policeman Hamish MacBeth thinking about the gloomy lack of Christmas spirit in Calvinist Lochdubh, so I didn't expect it to have much Christmas spirit. No murder in this novella, but the two crimes--a lost cat and missing Christmas lights in an adjacent village--lead to a really sweet little story that's perfect for reading by the fire. I will definitely revisit Hamish MacBeth from the beginning. This is 16th in the series, but I didn't feel lost at all--quite an accomplishment by Beaton.
Kissing Christmas Goodbye by M.C. Beaton: Private investigator Agatha Raisin is obsessing over the "perfect" Christmas, complete with snow and reconciliation with her ex. Meanwhile, a woman has asked for Agatha's help because she's sure one of her children is plotting to kill her before she can change her will to leave the money to the state. Her new assistant, Toni, is young and perky enough to make Agatha feel extra old, and her Christmas seems destined to disappoint her. The mystery was good fun (I love when the head of the family assembles all the ungrateful children to announce a change of will, and this one had some nice twists). Agatha is quite a piece of work, very sarcastic and witty, and her developing friendship with Toni is sweet. The story is bogged down a bit by Agatha's obsession over her ex and a bit about Toni's brother, but on the whole, this was a nice holiday mystery, and is 18th in the series.
Wednesday, December 03, 2008
Picture Book Thursday!
We have a couple more book tour stops coming up on Picture Book Thursday so Allison and I decided to do Christmas books this week. There are so many great Christmas/holiday books out there. It's really hard to narrow it down.
Let's start with Merry Christmas, Curious George. In this installment, George and the man with the yellow hat go in search of a Christmas tree. George becomes curious about a large tree on a truck and winds up taking a ride to the hospital where the tree is being delivered. My girls and I enjoy all the Curious George books and this one is no exception. My daughter actually asked Santa for this last year. I was so thrilled that she actually asked for a book (well, she also asked for an Ariel Barbie too). There were no books on her list this year for Santa, but he's bringing her some anyway. ;-)
We received this next book as a gift a couple years ago and its so fun! Santa's Coming to Town by Tish Rabe. The book comes with an attached reindeer finger puppet. It has a magnet in the nose. On each page, the child is supposed to find certain things (like all the elves with striped hats) and the reindeer "sticks" to the correct answers. This is a nice sturdy board book and part of the The Nose Knows series of books. Also in the series, a Halloween version called Spooky Night and another called Puppy Love.
The last book: Once There Was a Christmas Tree is a very sweet tale. Mr. and Mrs. Bear get a very large Christmas tree. It doesn't fit into their house so they cut off the top to give to Mr. Fox and his son, saying to them, "We took our tree and made it two. One half for us, one half for you." This line is repeated through the book as one tree is shared among many animals getting smaller and smaller. I really like the giving and sharing storyline in this Jerry Smath book.
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I picked up McDuff's Christmas by Rosemary Wells at the Highland Games this year (if it's remotely Scottish, SOMEONE sells it in a booth there!). It was our first McDuff book, and it won't be the last. The sweet little white terrier saves Christmas when the family (and Santa) are snowed in. Susan Jeffers illustrates in a lovely, yet realistic style, and both text and illustrations are evocative of Christmas in a simpler time. The text is simple, and Lilah will listen to the whole thing.
The Peek-a-Boo books by Marie Torres Cimarusti are really cute, simple text with lift-the-flap surprises and bright, appealing illustrations by Stephanie Peterson. This Christmas version is really cute, with the flaps revealing an elf who asks "Naughty or Nice?", a toy train, a snowman, and more. The last page has several small flaps, each concealing a previous page's surprise, with a hint for each--in the shape of a gingerbread house! This is a cute one for younger children.
I've mentioned the Bear series by Karma Wilson and Jane Chapman before, but Bear Stays Up For Christmas is really sweet. Bear's friends set out to keep him awake to celebrate Christmas, but they fall asleep! Bear happily prepares their presents and treats before his friends wake up to give him a truly thoughtful gift. Santa makes a cameo, but the real star is the friendship between Bear & Co. If you've read any of the Bear books, the rhyme scheme and illustration style will be familiar and welcome.
Some of Lilah's very first books were by Sandra Boynton, and she remains a favorite for all three of us. This is an oversized board books with seven one-page rhyming stories accessed by lifting the tabs on the side to choose one. My personal favorite is A Really Big Box, about a child looking for a really big box for a gift he wants to give "so the hippo's ears don't squish." The first six poems are delightful holiday silliness, and the seventh is a sweet Christmas lullaby, complete with sheet music.
Let's start with Merry Christmas, Curious George. In this installment, George and the man with the yellow hat go in search of a Christmas tree. George becomes curious about a large tree on a truck and winds up taking a ride to the hospital where the tree is being delivered. My girls and I enjoy all the Curious George books and this one is no exception. My daughter actually asked Santa for this last year. I was so thrilled that she actually asked for a book (well, she also asked for an Ariel Barbie too). There were no books on her list this year for Santa, but he's bringing her some anyway. ;-)We received this next book as a gift a couple years ago and its so fun! Santa's Coming to Town by Tish Rabe. The book comes with an attached reindeer finger puppet. It has a magnet in the nose. On each page, the child is supposed to find certain things (like all the elves with striped hats) and the reindeer "sticks" to the correct answers. This is a nice sturdy board book and part of the The Nose Knows series of books. Also in the series, a Halloween version called Spooky Night and another called Puppy Love.The last book: Once There Was a Christmas Tree is a very sweet tale. Mr. and Mrs. Bear get a very large Christmas tree. It doesn't fit into their house so they cut off the top to give to Mr. Fox and his son, saying to them, "We took our tree and made it two. One half for us, one half for you." This line is repeated through the book as one tree is shared among many animals getting smaller and smaller. I really like the giving and sharing storyline in this Jerry Smath book.****************
I picked up McDuff's Christmas by Rosemary Wells at the Highland Games this year (if it's remotely Scottish, SOMEONE sells it in a booth there!). It was our first McDuff book, and it won't be the last. The sweet little white terrier saves Christmas when the family (and Santa) are snowed in. Susan Jeffers illustrates in a lovely, yet realistic style, and both text and illustrations are evocative of Christmas in a simpler time. The text is simple, and Lilah will listen to the whole thing.
The Peek-a-Boo books by Marie Torres Cimarusti are really cute, simple text with lift-the-flap surprises and bright, appealing illustrations by Stephanie Peterson. This Christmas version is really cute, with the flaps revealing an elf who asks "Naughty or Nice?", a toy train, a snowman, and more. The last page has several small flaps, each concealing a previous page's surprise, with a hint for each--in the shape of a gingerbread house! This is a cute one for younger children.
I've mentioned the Bear series by Karma Wilson and Jane Chapman before, but Bear Stays Up For Christmas is really sweet. Bear's friends set out to keep him awake to celebrate Christmas, but they fall asleep! Bear happily prepares their presents and treats before his friends wake up to give him a truly thoughtful gift. Santa makes a cameo, but the real star is the friendship between Bear & Co. If you've read any of the Bear books, the rhyme scheme and illustration style will be familiar and welcome.
Some of Lilah's very first books were by Sandra Boynton, and she remains a favorite for all three of us. This is an oversized board books with seven one-page rhyming stories accessed by lifting the tabs on the side to choose one. My personal favorite is A Really Big Box, about a child looking for a really big box for a gift he wants to give "so the hippo's ears don't squish." The first six poems are delightful holiday silliness, and the seventh is a sweet Christmas lullaby, complete with sheet music.
Tuesday, December 02, 2008
Murder for Christmas, Part One
Inspired by holiday releases by two of my favorite mystery writers, I decided to sample several (okay, a LOT) of Christmas-themed mysteries. I'm breaking my "always read a series in order" rule for this purpose, figuring that a holiday entry might be a fun way to try out a new series. I found what may be the most extensive possible list of Christmas mysteries right here, though it's a bit outdated. It still has more mysteries than anyone can read between Thanksgiving and Christmas!
Six Geese A-Slaying by Donna Andrews: This is entry #10 in the Meg Langslow series, a series I've read from the beginning. Meg is in charge of the Caerphilly Christmas parade that includes camels, her mother hilariously in charge of the Dickens float, the meanest Santa Claus ever, an excess of SPOOR (Stop Poisoning Our Owls and Raptors) members shedding feathers in their goose costumes, and a snarky photographer sent from a big-time newspaper. When the mean Santa meets his end, Meg investigates along with Chief Burke. I figured out whodunit, but not why, which made the mystery plot interesting. I always enjoy a Meg Langslow mystery, and this was no exception, with the added element of a crazy Caerphilly Christmas!
Santa Clawed by Rita Mae Brown: I am a die-hard fan of Mrs. Murphy, Pewter, and Tucker (and their person, Harry), but even I have had some less than enthusiastic reactions to a few of the more recent mysteries. Brown tends to incorporate her opinions on everything under the sun in her books, which sometimes bogs down the narrative enough to lessen the fun, so I was delighted to see her back in fine form in this, the 17th entry, and a holiday treat, no less! The Brothers of Love, a monastic order in Crozet, run a Christmas tree farm to raise funds for their work with the dying. This year, one of the brothers is found at the farm, throat slit, and a strange coin under his tongue. The brothers each have a shady past, and the plot is complicated by a homophobic doctor and a paranoid wife. Christmas in Crozet is a delight, and the mystery is satisfyingly complex. Harry & Co. are in fine form, and the animals are a delight (did I say delight already? a couple of times? well, that's how delightful the book was). I really enjoyed the musings at the beginning on whether or not a leopard can change its spots, as well as Brown's explanations of Southern courtesies.
Sugarplum Dead by Carolyn Hart: This is #12 in the Death on Demand series (named for the mystery bookshop owned by the main character, Annie Darling), and my theory about publishers getting lax on the editing late in the series holds true here. I read the first book in the series at some point, but it didn't make much of an impression, I guess, because I didn't pick up any others. I actually thought the plot here (at least the main mystery plot) was well-done, a satisfying mystery with some twists and turns, but the characters and subplots were a problem for me. Annie's father turns up after 20 years out of her life (with a lame explanation for his absence), and she and her husband seem strangely cold and unaffected by what should be a major emotional upheaval. She rejects him at first, then sort of accepts him for no real reason. This bogged down the plot quite a bit, as did a subplot about Max's mother. Perhaps dedicated readers would be excited about her role, though--I'm not sure. Annie's father is in town to help his siblings and their spouses persuade an aging former Hollywood star to keep her money in the family instead of giving it to a charlatan who claims to communicate with the dead. There are a lot of characters, and it seemed Hart was afraid we might forget one, because she had several instances of listing what every single member says or does, one after the other, in tedious fashion. The mystery plot was intriguing, but I found myself skimming quite a bit to get to the interesting parts. And Annie and Max left me kind of cold. I didn't feel very invested in either of them. I got that Max was rich, and that Annie has read every mystery under the sun, but I really didn't get to know them. I was told some of their character traits, but I didn't feel much was shown. I liked Broward's Rock, the bookstore, and the mystery, but the main characters don't really scream "Buy the rest of the series so you can spend a few hours with me!" Also, as a holiday mystery, there wasn't much Christmas there. Annie and Max talk about presents for each other, and Annie decorates the shop, but it didn't feel much like a Christmas mystery. I may try the first in the series again to see if I like it.
Benjamin Franklin and a Case of Christmas Murder by Robert Lee Hall: I was predisposed to like this book. In elementary school, I used to check out the Benjamin Franklin biography from the school library, and I read Ben and Me I don't know how many times. But in the first five pages, the long sentences, long paragraphs, and historical diction were driving me to distraction. Within just a few more pages, though, I'd gotten used to the style, and I was completely sucked in. This book balances mystery and historical atmosphere brilliantly, bringing Franklin to life through the narration of his young assistant, Nick Handy. When merchant Roddy Fairbrass is murdered very publicly, during a mummer's play at his home, his wife is reluctant to answer Ben's questions, his son is evasive, and there are numerous threads including a local gaming hell, a criminal mastermind, a brother in Jamaica, and a ghost spotted in the Fairbrass home by Roddy's daughter. All this is wound together in a tight narrative at turns charming and suspenseful. The Christmas element is strong and gives an interesting look at Christmas celebrations in London circa 1757. I will definitely be picking up the first in the series (the Christmas one is #2), Benjamin Franklin Takes the Case.
Six Geese A-Slaying by Donna Andrews: This is entry #10 in the Meg Langslow series, a series I've read from the beginning. Meg is in charge of the Caerphilly Christmas parade that includes camels, her mother hilariously in charge of the Dickens float, the meanest Santa Claus ever, an excess of SPOOR (Stop Poisoning Our Owls and Raptors) members shedding feathers in their goose costumes, and a snarky photographer sent from a big-time newspaper. When the mean Santa meets his end, Meg investigates along with Chief Burke. I figured out whodunit, but not why, which made the mystery plot interesting. I always enjoy a Meg Langslow mystery, and this was no exception, with the added element of a crazy Caerphilly Christmas!
Santa Clawed by Rita Mae Brown: I am a die-hard fan of Mrs. Murphy, Pewter, and Tucker (and their person, Harry), but even I have had some less than enthusiastic reactions to a few of the more recent mysteries. Brown tends to incorporate her opinions on everything under the sun in her books, which sometimes bogs down the narrative enough to lessen the fun, so I was delighted to see her back in fine form in this, the 17th entry, and a holiday treat, no less! The Brothers of Love, a monastic order in Crozet, run a Christmas tree farm to raise funds for their work with the dying. This year, one of the brothers is found at the farm, throat slit, and a strange coin under his tongue. The brothers each have a shady past, and the plot is complicated by a homophobic doctor and a paranoid wife. Christmas in Crozet is a delight, and the mystery is satisfyingly complex. Harry & Co. are in fine form, and the animals are a delight (did I say delight already? a couple of times? well, that's how delightful the book was). I really enjoyed the musings at the beginning on whether or not a leopard can change its spots, as well as Brown's explanations of Southern courtesies.
Sugarplum Dead by Carolyn Hart: This is #12 in the Death on Demand series (named for the mystery bookshop owned by the main character, Annie Darling), and my theory about publishers getting lax on the editing late in the series holds true here. I read the first book in the series at some point, but it didn't make much of an impression, I guess, because I didn't pick up any others. I actually thought the plot here (at least the main mystery plot) was well-done, a satisfying mystery with some twists and turns, but the characters and subplots were a problem for me. Annie's father turns up after 20 years out of her life (with a lame explanation for his absence), and she and her husband seem strangely cold and unaffected by what should be a major emotional upheaval. She rejects him at first, then sort of accepts him for no real reason. This bogged down the plot quite a bit, as did a subplot about Max's mother. Perhaps dedicated readers would be excited about her role, though--I'm not sure. Annie's father is in town to help his siblings and their spouses persuade an aging former Hollywood star to keep her money in the family instead of giving it to a charlatan who claims to communicate with the dead. There are a lot of characters, and it seemed Hart was afraid we might forget one, because she had several instances of listing what every single member says or does, one after the other, in tedious fashion. The mystery plot was intriguing, but I found myself skimming quite a bit to get to the interesting parts. And Annie and Max left me kind of cold. I didn't feel very invested in either of them. I got that Max was rich, and that Annie has read every mystery under the sun, but I really didn't get to know them. I was told some of their character traits, but I didn't feel much was shown. I liked Broward's Rock, the bookstore, and the mystery, but the main characters don't really scream "Buy the rest of the series so you can spend a few hours with me!" Also, as a holiday mystery, there wasn't much Christmas there. Annie and Max talk about presents for each other, and Annie decorates the shop, but it didn't feel much like a Christmas mystery. I may try the first in the series again to see if I like it.
Benjamin Franklin and a Case of Christmas Murder by Robert Lee Hall: I was predisposed to like this book. In elementary school, I used to check out the Benjamin Franklin biography from the school library, and I read Ben and Me I don't know how many times. But in the first five pages, the long sentences, long paragraphs, and historical diction were driving me to distraction. Within just a few more pages, though, I'd gotten used to the style, and I was completely sucked in. This book balances mystery and historical atmosphere brilliantly, bringing Franklin to life through the narration of his young assistant, Nick Handy. When merchant Roddy Fairbrass is murdered very publicly, during a mummer's play at his home, his wife is reluctant to answer Ben's questions, his son is evasive, and there are numerous threads including a local gaming hell, a criminal mastermind, a brother in Jamaica, and a ghost spotted in the Fairbrass home by Roddy's daughter. All this is wound together in a tight narrative at turns charming and suspenseful. The Christmas element is strong and gives an interesting look at Christmas celebrations in London circa 1757. I will definitely be picking up the first in the series (the Christmas one is #2), Benjamin Franklin Takes the Case.
Thursday, October 23, 2008
Picture Book Thursday!
Today, we have Halloween Part 2!
We were at story time on Tuesday morning this week and Goodnight Goon by Michael Rex was featured. This was a lot of fun! As you can guess, it is a take off of Goodnight Moon. It follows the same rhyming patterns as Goodnight Moon and the illustrations are so fun! Just like in the classic book, you can look through the pictures and find all the things the text is talking about. Just a really fun Halloween book, in my opinion. My five year old loved it!
Go Away, Big Green Monster by Ed Emberley is a year round favorite in our house by both my 3 and 5 year olds. With each page, you "build" the monster's face. The pages layer onto each other with cut-outs so each page you turn adds two eyes, or a nose, through all the different facial features. Once the face is created, you get to tell each piece to "Go Away" and eventually, "Go Away, Big Green Monster, and DON'T COME BACK!". My older daughter is in speech therapy and one of her sounds this past year was the initial "G" sound. This book was a fantastic book to do with her because the second half she would say "Go Away!" with me on every page. This is a good book for younger kids too. I would say ages 2 and up. The text is very simple and not much on each page. And it would be a good book to over different facial features with really young kids.
We received this book for Halloween from my mother-in-law a couple years ago and it was so well liked, the pages were ripped and taped together and ripped again. Obviously, our copy is a bit mangled. But its a very cute little book and a great one for toddlers and preschoolers. Fun illustrations of the kids in their costumes with rhyming text in short little spurts. A good one, especially if you're looking for a counting book.
AND if the books we've reviewed have left you wanting more, Barnes and Noble actually has a really great list of Halloween books on their site. You can check it out here.
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Spot's Halloween, by Eric Hill, is a Halloween book in the Spot tradition. Spot can't decide what to dress up as for Halloween. The typical illustrations show Spot wearing each possible costume, and at the end, he and his friends go trick-or-treating. Lilah loves Spot, and this is a cute book in our Halloween collection.
Corduroy's Trick or Treat is illustrated by Lisa McCue, an illustrator we love for beyond-adorable fuzzy animal pictures that are more true-to-life than than the usual board book animals. Corduroy and all his friends are sweet in their costumes at the Halloween party, and simple text describes the usual Halloween activities. If the text lacks the magic of the original Corduroy, the cute illustrations make it a sweet, fun addition to the Halloween library of a younger child.
Baby Snoopy's Pumpkin is adorable! Each page is a different shape, with the largest being Snoopy's head. Baby Snoopy and Baby Woodstock plant a seed, watch is sprout and get bigger, and finally produce a pumpkin. On the last page, they decorate it. This is as much about gardening as Halloween. Lilah likes the differently shaped pages, Baby Snoopy and Baby Woodstock, and the bright orange pumpkin, and it's a fun little book to read (and, if you happen to have a flight coming up, is very small and portable!).
We were at story time on Tuesday morning this week and Goodnight Goon by Michael Rex was featured. This was a lot of fun! As you can guess, it is a take off of Goodnight Moon. It follows the same rhyming patterns as Goodnight Moon and the illustrations are so fun! Just like in the classic book, you can look through the pictures and find all the things the text is talking about. Just a really fun Halloween book, in my opinion. My five year old loved it!Go Away, Big Green Monster by Ed Emberley is a year round favorite in our house by both my 3 and 5 year olds. With each page, you "build" the monster's face. The pages layer onto each other with cut-outs so each page you turn adds two eyes, or a nose, through all the different facial features. Once the face is created, you get to tell each piece to "Go Away" and eventually, "Go Away, Big Green Monster, and DON'T COME BACK!". My older daughter is in speech therapy and one of her sounds this past year was the initial "G" sound. This book was a fantastic book to do with her because the second half she would say "Go Away!" with me on every page. This is a good book for younger kids too. I would say ages 2 and up. The text is very simple and not much on each page. And it would be a good book to over different facial features with really young kids.We received this book for Halloween from my mother-in-law a couple years ago and it was so well liked, the pages were ripped and taped together and ripped again. Obviously, our copy is a bit mangled. But its a very cute little book and a great one for toddlers and preschoolers. Fun illustrations of the kids in their costumes with rhyming text in short little spurts. A good one, especially if you're looking for a counting book.AND if the books we've reviewed have left you wanting more, Barnes and Noble actually has a really great list of Halloween books on their site. You can check it out here.
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Spot's Halloween, by Eric Hill, is a Halloween book in the Spot tradition. Spot can't decide what to dress up as for Halloween. The typical illustrations show Spot wearing each possible costume, and at the end, he and his friends go trick-or-treating. Lilah loves Spot, and this is a cute book in our Halloween collection.
Corduroy's Trick or Treat is illustrated by Lisa McCue, an illustrator we love for beyond-adorable fuzzy animal pictures that are more true-to-life than than the usual board book animals. Corduroy and all his friends are sweet in their costumes at the Halloween party, and simple text describes the usual Halloween activities. If the text lacks the magic of the original Corduroy, the cute illustrations make it a sweet, fun addition to the Halloween library of a younger child.
Baby Snoopy's Pumpkin is adorable! Each page is a different shape, with the largest being Snoopy's head. Baby Snoopy and Baby Woodstock plant a seed, watch is sprout and get bigger, and finally produce a pumpkin. On the last page, they decorate it. This is as much about gardening as Halloween. Lilah likes the differently shaped pages, Baby Snoopy and Baby Woodstock, and the bright orange pumpkin, and it's a fun little book to read (and, if you happen to have a flight coming up, is very small and portable!).
Thursday, October 16, 2008
Picture Book Thursday: Halloween Part I
We have so many Halloween books...it's hard to choose which to feature. Good thing we have two weeks in a row of Halloween books!
Where Is Baby's Pumpkin? by Karen Katz: We've been reading Karen Katz's lift-the-flap books to Lilah since she was tiny, and she continues to enjoy them. If you've read the previous holiday entries in this series, you know the drill. With seasonally appropriate substitutions, this is the same as Where Is Baby's Valentine? and Where Are Baby's Easter Eggs? Like those books, Where Is Baby's Pumpkin? features shiny, sparkly details in the items Baby finds beneath the flaps. Baby is looking for her pumpkin so she can go trick-or-treating. She looks in a variety of locations, finding other Halloween-related items (a black cat, a ghost, some bats)...will she find her pumpkin on the last page? These are simple and predictable, but fun for little ones. Lilah loves lifting flaps and the sparkles definitely add something to the holiday books. Baby is adorable in her little kitty costume. A winner!
I hadn't encountered Spookley the Square Pumpkin until Barnes and Noble gave us a free Spookley bag for buying three Halloween books. Spookley the Square Pumpkin: Colors and Numbers is two books in one (finish reading the first, then flip the book upside-down to read the second. Lilah is in a very colors/numbers oriented place right now, plus she adores pumpkins, so this was a big hit. It's pretty straightforward. Colors shows one pumpkin on each page with a little rhyme telling what color the pumpkin is. Numbers shows an increasing number of pumpkins until we reach 10. My only quibble with this is that Numbers doesn't show the same pumpkins on each page and just add one new one. Except for Spookley, all the pumpkins change on each page, if that makes sense. I think for counting, it would make more sense to have Spookley for #1, Spookley and Green Pumpkin for #2, Spookley, Green Pumpkin, and Red Pumpkin for #3, and so one. Instead, you have Spookley and an ever-changing array of different pumpkin friends. Anyway, Lilah loves this one, and it's pleasant to read aloud. A bonus: unlike practically every other Halloween book we have, there is NO mention of candy!
Monster Tales: Pumpkin Patch Party is a tiny (couple of inches) board book with flaps. Since the whole book is tiny, the flaps are too small for little fingers to pry up, so parents will need to loosen them the first time. This is one of our traveling on the plane books because it takes up almost no space in the diaper bag, but takes a while to read (sometime, I'll have to post our favorite books for plane travel--it's funny to watch me calculating the space taken up versus length of time it keeps Lilah entertained). It features Lilah's favorite Sesame Street characters at a Halloween party. The flaps reveal the monsters beneath the costumes. Kids who love flaps, costumes, or Sesame Street will probably love this one--Lilah adores it.
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One of my 5 year old's favorite Halloween books is Harriet's Halloween Candy by Nancy Carlson. We got this book from the library last year and she still loved it when I brought it home again this year. Harriet gets quite a haul trick-or-treating and even though her mom asks her to share her candy with her little brother, she hides it all (except for one piece of coconut candy that she doesn't like anyway). Throughout the next day, she eats some candy and then moves her stash to a new hiding place until she just decides she should eat it all. By the end of the book, her tummy is telling her she's had enough candy and eventually shares with her brother. It's a fun little book with a nice lesson that maybe we shouldn't eat ALL our Halloween candy in one sitting. :-) This is a nice Halloween picture book and the illustrations are fun.
Halloween Hats by Elizabeth Winthrop is a cute Halloween picture book. It opens with children finding their costumes (and hats) in a attic. As you turn the pages, you see children in all different costumes with hats. Some of the same children appear on several pages so you can have fun looking through the book and recognizing the kids from the previous pages. In the last two pages everyone throws their hats up in the air to become someone new. The text is short, simplistic rhyming and perfect for the younger end of picture book listeners. The story is nice here, but I think the illustrations make it really fun.
That's it for today! Stay tuned next week for another roundup of Halloween books!
Where Is Baby's Pumpkin? by Karen Katz: We've been reading Karen Katz's lift-the-flap books to Lilah since she was tiny, and she continues to enjoy them. If you've read the previous holiday entries in this series, you know the drill. With seasonally appropriate substitutions, this is the same as Where Is Baby's Valentine? and Where Are Baby's Easter Eggs? Like those books, Where Is Baby's Pumpkin? features shiny, sparkly details in the items Baby finds beneath the flaps. Baby is looking for her pumpkin so she can go trick-or-treating. She looks in a variety of locations, finding other Halloween-related items (a black cat, a ghost, some bats)...will she find her pumpkin on the last page? These are simple and predictable, but fun for little ones. Lilah loves lifting flaps and the sparkles definitely add something to the holiday books. Baby is adorable in her little kitty costume. A winner!
I hadn't encountered Spookley the Square Pumpkin until Barnes and Noble gave us a free Spookley bag for buying three Halloween books. Spookley the Square Pumpkin: Colors and Numbers is two books in one (finish reading the first, then flip the book upside-down to read the second. Lilah is in a very colors/numbers oriented place right now, plus she adores pumpkins, so this was a big hit. It's pretty straightforward. Colors shows one pumpkin on each page with a little rhyme telling what color the pumpkin is. Numbers shows an increasing number of pumpkins until we reach 10. My only quibble with this is that Numbers doesn't show the same pumpkins on each page and just add one new one. Except for Spookley, all the pumpkins change on each page, if that makes sense. I think for counting, it would make more sense to have Spookley for #1, Spookley and Green Pumpkin for #2, Spookley, Green Pumpkin, and Red Pumpkin for #3, and so one. Instead, you have Spookley and an ever-changing array of different pumpkin friends. Anyway, Lilah loves this one, and it's pleasant to read aloud. A bonus: unlike practically every other Halloween book we have, there is NO mention of candy!
Monster Tales: Pumpkin Patch Party is a tiny (couple of inches) board book with flaps. Since the whole book is tiny, the flaps are too small for little fingers to pry up, so parents will need to loosen them the first time. This is one of our traveling on the plane books because it takes up almost no space in the diaper bag, but takes a while to read (sometime, I'll have to post our favorite books for plane travel--it's funny to watch me calculating the space taken up versus length of time it keeps Lilah entertained). It features Lilah's favorite Sesame Street characters at a Halloween party. The flaps reveal the monsters beneath the costumes. Kids who love flaps, costumes, or Sesame Street will probably love this one--Lilah adores it.****************
One of my 5 year old's favorite Halloween books is Harriet's Halloween Candy by Nancy Carlson. We got this book from the library last year and she still loved it when I brought it home again this year. Harriet gets quite a haul trick-or-treating and even though her mom asks her to share her candy with her little brother, she hides it all (except for one piece of coconut candy that she doesn't like anyway). Throughout the next day, she eats some candy and then moves her stash to a new hiding place until she just decides she should eat it all. By the end of the book, her tummy is telling her she's had enough candy and eventually shares with her brother. It's a fun little book with a nice lesson that maybe we shouldn't eat ALL our Halloween candy in one sitting. :-) This is a nice Halloween picture book and the illustrations are fun.Halloween Hats by Elizabeth Winthrop is a cute Halloween picture book. It opens with children finding their costumes (and hats) in a attic. As you turn the pages, you see children in all different costumes with hats. Some of the same children appear on several pages so you can have fun looking through the book and recognizing the kids from the previous pages. In the last two pages everyone throws their hats up in the air to become someone new. The text is short, simplistic rhyming and perfect for the younger end of picture book listeners. The story is nice here, but I think the illustrations make it really fun.That's it for today! Stay tuned next week for another roundup of Halloween books!
Monday, December 10, 2007
Second half of Bridge of Sighs
I give this book 3 out of 5 stars. Character development is really good overall. The story sort of ebbs and flows. I tended to be very interested throughout sections and very bored through others. My husband asked me if I was reading a boring book. When I asked him why, he said, "Because you have fallen asleep to this book every night for a week." And that's the truth. :-)
The book is about small town American and a commentary on the American Dream and social classes. I can't say the book is totally without merit, but there are much better books out there. I definitely recommend Empire Falls over this one any day. Maybe Richard Russo will do better next time around.
I also finished The Best Christmas Pageant Ever by Barbara Robinson. This is a very fun and quick holiday read. I first read it in elementary school and liked it then. I remember my mom taking me to a children's theater production of the book and enjoying that. So I thought it would be fun to reread it. And I will be sharing it with my daughters when they get a little older as well.
The book is about small town American and a commentary on the American Dream and social classes. I can't say the book is totally without merit, but there are much better books out there. I definitely recommend Empire Falls over this one any day. Maybe Richard Russo will do better next time around.
I also finished The Best Christmas Pageant Ever by Barbara Robinson. This is a very fun and quick holiday read. I first read it in elementary school and liked it then. I remember my mom taking me to a children's theater production of the book and enjoying that. So I thought it would be fun to reread it. And I will be sharing it with my daughters when they get a little older as well.
Saturday, December 01, 2007
Holidays on Ice by David Sedaris
Okay, finished holiday book #2 for today. This collection of essays is autobiographical in nature (found in the nonfiction section) and again a very quick read. Some of the stories are fiction. The best essay by far is "SantaLand Diaries" about Sedaris' experience as an Elf at Macy's in New York. I almost wish the whole book were like this. I enjoyed this first story the most, the rest of the book was a little bit too sarcastic for me. While the stories are entertaining, cynical and sarcastic, they almost go a bit too far for me. I find the idea of making fun of the annual Christmas newsletter amusing, but by the end of "Seasons Greetings" I wasn't so amused. And I found that to be the case with most of the stories. I started out interested and amused, then just sort of ended up skimming through them toward the end.
On the Barnes and Noble website there's an editor comment that Sedaris could be a 90's version of Jean Shepherd (the author whose stories were the basis for the film, A Christmas Story). I'm not sure I agree with this sentiment. I found Dave Barry's story to be much more Jean Shepherd-ish than Sedaris' volume.
If you are extremely sarcastic and cynical of the holidays you will really enjoy Sedaris' collection. If you are just looking for fun, humorous holiday fare, I'd go more with The Shepherd, the Angel and Walter the Christmas Miracle Dog.
PS. While browsing book blogs I came across the Christmas Theme Book Challenge 2007. You can learn more here.
On the Barnes and Noble website there's an editor comment that Sedaris could be a 90's version of Jean Shepherd (the author whose stories were the basis for the film, A Christmas Story). I'm not sure I agree with this sentiment. I found Dave Barry's story to be much more Jean Shepherd-ish than Sedaris' volume.
If you are extremely sarcastic and cynical of the holidays you will really enjoy Sedaris' collection. If you are just looking for fun, humorous holiday fare, I'd go more with The Shepherd, the Angel and Walter the Christmas Miracle Dog.
PS. While browsing book blogs I came across the Christmas Theme Book Challenge 2007. You can learn more here.
The Shepherd, the Angel, and Walter the Miracle Dog
This book by Dave Barry is a delightful, easy and quick read. It takes place in 1960 in New York during Christmas. The narrator is a junior high boy telling about his family's Christmas, their dog, and the church's Christmas pageant. The story's style is very reminiscent of A Christmas Story. Throughout the book there are old photos, advertisements and illustrations that accompany the text. These make the book especially fun. Two of the pictures show Christmas trees circa 1960, and they look exactly like my Grandma Mazie's tree still does every year! This book is so short everyone should read it for a fun holiday treat!
First Half of Bridge of Sighs
I've been reading Bridge of Sighs by Richard Russo. I LOVED Empire Falls. I really liked his style of writing and the depth of the characters. He had a great story as well. But here, I'm a little disappointed so far. I'm about half way through the over 500 pages (Allison, probably why I'm not excited to consider another 500 page book yet! :-). I was interested in the beginning and through the first 200 pages, but now it's sort of slowing down and I'm starting to lose interest. Again, he's pretty heavy in the character development but where Empire Falls had a great story, Bridge of Sighs lacks that (at least so far).
Again, Russo takes us to a small town in northeastern America. And again, the town is full of characters struggling to deal with everyday life. The timeline jumps around between the main character's childhood and present day. Russo does a good job of keeping what time we're in clearly defined, so its not hard to keep up. This book also reminds me a bit of I am Charlotte Simmons by Tom Wolfe. Not in the story elements at all, but in my reaction to the book. I read Charlotte Simmons fairly quickly for the length of it and found it only mediocre. It was great in character development again, but I felt the story was a tad boring. Bridge of Sighs is shaping up to be a similar reading experience for me. But I guess you can't always have great characters, great story, and keep it exciting too, huh?
I do want to finish it and I hope it picks up a little in the second half, but I think I will take a break for a bit. I have two holiday books on hold at the library that I might try in the meantime. The first, Holidays on Ice by David Sedaris, sounds like an amusing collection of short memoirs about Christmas. For example, some of the stories are about Sedaris' experience working as an elf at Santaland at Macy's. I'm chuckling just thinking about the things he must have witnessed. The second book was a high recommendation from my mom and others, The Shepherd, the Angel, and Walter the Christmas Miracle Dog by Dave Barry. Maybe I'll read those and come back to Bridge of Sighs. :-)
Oh, and I finished Murder is a Girl's Best Friend, the 2nd book in the Paige Turner Mystery series. I enjoyed this one even more than the first. Paige's best friend didn't annoy me quite so much and the ending didn't fizzle out as much as the first did. I'll continue to read the others in this series.
We're getting 8-10 inches of snow today so it seems it will be a nice cozy reading day in Minnesota! Enjoy your weekend!
Again, Russo takes us to a small town in northeastern America. And again, the town is full of characters struggling to deal with everyday life. The timeline jumps around between the main character's childhood and present day. Russo does a good job of keeping what time we're in clearly defined, so its not hard to keep up. This book also reminds me a bit of I am Charlotte Simmons by Tom Wolfe. Not in the story elements at all, but in my reaction to the book. I read Charlotte Simmons fairly quickly for the length of it and found it only mediocre. It was great in character development again, but I felt the story was a tad boring. Bridge of Sighs is shaping up to be a similar reading experience for me. But I guess you can't always have great characters, great story, and keep it exciting too, huh?
I do want to finish it and I hope it picks up a little in the second half, but I think I will take a break for a bit. I have two holiday books on hold at the library that I might try in the meantime. The first, Holidays on Ice by David Sedaris, sounds like an amusing collection of short memoirs about Christmas. For example, some of the stories are about Sedaris' experience working as an elf at Santaland at Macy's. I'm chuckling just thinking about the things he must have witnessed. The second book was a high recommendation from my mom and others, The Shepherd, the Angel, and Walter the Christmas Miracle Dog by Dave Barry. Maybe I'll read those and come back to Bridge of Sighs. :-)
Oh, and I finished Murder is a Girl's Best Friend, the 2nd book in the Paige Turner Mystery series. I enjoyed this one even more than the first. Paige's best friend didn't annoy me quite so much and the ending didn't fizzle out as much as the first did. I'll continue to read the others in this series.
We're getting 8-10 inches of snow today so it seems it will be a nice cozy reading day in Minnesota! Enjoy your weekend!
Monday, October 08, 2007
Halloween Nostalgia
Halloween is one of my favorite times of the year. I love the whole month of October with the culmination of Halloween. The (supposedly) crisp Midwestern air, leaves changing colors and falling to the ground, but still nice enough to play outside, apples and pumpkins. LOVE it!
I've started getting Halloween books from the library to read to my daughter at night. And one, Harriet's Halloween Candy by Nancy Carlson, made me think of a book from my childhood that I just loved. I don't think I had a copy of it (I'll have to ask my mom), but I remember the librarian reading it to us at school and I think I probably checked it out a few times too. It was about a bear, a halloween party and popcorn. The whole house fills with popcorn and they have to clean it up. I searhed "halloween popcorn" on the Barnes and Noble website. Turns out it was called Popcorn: A Frank Asch Bear Story by Frank Asch, originally published in 1979, I think, but reprinted several times. Sadly, this wonderful book is out of print, but there are several copies available on ebay. I may need to purchase one for me (and my two girls too, of course). ;-) I even checked with the library and they do not have one copy of it in circulation, at any of the branches. I can't believe that!
If you ever come across this little gem of a book, you should definitely take a look!
I've started getting Halloween books from the library to read to my daughter at night. And one, Harriet's Halloween Candy by Nancy Carlson, made me think of a book from my childhood that I just loved. I don't think I had a copy of it (I'll have to ask my mom), but I remember the librarian reading it to us at school and I think I probably checked it out a few times too. It was about a bear, a halloween party and popcorn. The whole house fills with popcorn and they have to clean it up. I searhed "halloween popcorn" on the Barnes and Noble website. Turns out it was called Popcorn: A Frank Asch Bear Story by Frank Asch, originally published in 1979, I think, but reprinted several times. Sadly, this wonderful book is out of print, but there are several copies available on ebay. I may need to purchase one for me (and my two girls too, of course). ;-) I even checked with the library and they do not have one copy of it in circulation, at any of the branches. I can't believe that!
If you ever come across this little gem of a book, you should definitely take a look!
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