No Sale

SO here is the deal with my half price book store- They are moving next week, but only across the street to their new location. Fine by me, one less crazy intersection to go through. But here is the negative- they are not having a store wide sale before they move! I tried to tell the cashier it just makes sense- they would have fewer books to move. He said good idea, I was welcome to buy lots of things before they move, but there is no sale.
They shut down Sun at 5, then reopen in their new location Feb 7. Their Great Opening Specials (with coupons) are the following week, Feb 14 and on.
At some point (I am reading the flyer right here, and yet I still can't figure out which week it is) the first 100 people through the door get free gift cards and totes, but I still it think it makes more sense to just knock 20% off everything in the store THIS WEEK.
My husband was not quite as bothered about this as I was. He said- Oh No- how ever will we live without more books? Please- he is as bad as I am!

to Good Reading

I am sitting here supposedly search the nursing literature for a school project, when a friend e-mails to invite me to join GoodReads- a website group to create lists of books I have read, review, ratings, etc. How I am I supposed to turn that down? So I have been searching their lists to rate all the JA stuff I have read, then I remembered the Oprah Book Club lists I had, and one of my other favorite authors- an English guy Ben Elton. When you link with friends through the site, you can see if they have read a book and would recommend it. This is a great way to find new things to read (for sometime in the future, when I am not supposed to be doing something else...)
Then I thought- oooh this would make a good blog too, so here I am. But now I must get back to work. It really can be too easy to get distracted at the computer.

Close Encounter

On Monday I will be missing yet another close encounter with an author/illustrator, Peter Catalanotto. My children's school has one visit each year. I think it is great for kids to see these presentations, and who knew these folks did this stuff on the side? It is like a complete business- I suppose I should have guessed in this day and age. They are paid to give presentations and also get to sell their books. Hopefully a child or two is inspired along the way, so it is win-win. After all these seem to be pretty popular, at least around here and you know school districts are always complaining they don't have money to throw around. I would have thought publishing a book was an accomplishment in itself, but apparently it is just a stepping stone to a speaking career...
And it is another way for me to discover a good book or two- an this guy seems to specialize in Real Art. His paintings have complexity and subtlety, and he says on his web site that he likes to affect people. So many things targeted for children are just dumbed down, so I am glad that publishing companies still see a market for the good stuff. Even if I have previous committments. At least my son can pass on his impressions of the show.

The Fonz

At almost the last minute I was invited to a presentation for Scholastic Book Fairs this afternoon, given by Henry Winkler. I was unable to change my scheduled commitments, so I couldn't actually go- I can't believe I missed an opportunity to meet the Fonz!!!
He has cowritten a series called Hank Zipzer, chapter books- stories about a bright boy with learing difficulties. Apparently he had all kinds of trouble in school himself, specifically with dyslexia, which was not diagnosed back then. So he was called lazy and stupid for many years, even though he was a bright kid. Even now he talks about how sometimes he finds another way to do things, like writting the books. He said he does not use a computer, so he stands in a room with his co-author and talks while she types, or she transcribes his written work, and of course they dialog and she works her magic into the stories too. How great to have stories about a kid who has to go through summer school, and makes mistakes and still is a great kid. And resourcefulness and truly creative problem solving in life are not valued or measured well in school, so it would be great for any kid who has challenges to read these.
So, I am glad for the invite, because now I have learned a little something new. I bet I will be recommending these books (I think there are 12 in the series already) soon. Too bad I won't have the signed copies...

What's in a name?

I got a chance yesterday to do one of my favorite things- recommend a book to a friend. She has a son named Nicholas, whom they had been calling Nicky. He recently decided that people should not call him 'Nicky', because it is A Girl's Name. I guess spelling does't count when you are 8!
I told her they should read Freckle Juice, by Judy Blume. The main charcter is a boy named Nicky. Kids like seeing their own names in stories- they feel there must be some kind of connection before they even start in. Plus I have always thought that was a really fine book. It falls in the literature catagory for me, rather than kid directed junk.
It seemed like there were some more boy Nicky characters, but that was all I could call to mind in the moment. I'm thinking of stories for young people- any tips?

Thumbs up

Northanger Abbey adapted by Andrew Davies was excellent. I was hanging on every word- he put the real people back in. It made me want to read the book again and see what I had missed; that is the best part of a good JA adaptation. Imagine- a young girl shown in bed, post deflowering, in a Jane Austen movie! I think the actions and games played between the young people were very relatable to kids today- the salacious glances, the stacking of one's claim, the jockeying for a better position in society... There were still the manners and chaperones, but somehow the story got through.

Masterpiece Theater

PBS has updated Masterpiece Theater. My interest is that yes- they are showing the complete Jane Austen collection. I may have mentioned I am a sucker for JA stuff. I have read all the books and own many versions of the films that have been made. I read completions, different point of view books, cultural adaptations, biographies and popular critical works.
The films being shown are a combo of new and previous releases. BBC's 5 hour P&P I can skip, as I have seen it about 50 times already. Emma is also not new- its the Kate Beckingsale version. But somehow I missed last week's film, a new version of Persuasion. I have the Amanda Root version and just adore it, but I like comparing, decoding the film makers intention and focus, seeing the different choices of how to adapt, what to leave out, how to change from a linear medium to a holistic presentation. Tonight I will see if they can do anything to rescue Northanger Abbey, JA's least liked and much misunderstood novel.
Many of these films collected here have been adapted by Andrew Davies, who seems to understand the urgency of feelings and the deep chemistry often missed when reading or seeing JA's work. It'll keep me on the couch Sunday nights for a while, I am sure. On my bedside table right now is a stack of school books, about Patient Education, Teaching Tools, and Health Literacy, so I will surly need another way to get my literary fix.

Classy Uneducated Kids

My husband brought home a DVD of the "Baker Street Irregulars" from our library- a trite movie based on the gang of street kids that helped Sherlock Holmes in a couple of stories written by Sir Authur Conan Doyle. The movie is NOT recommended by me. I can't begin to go into all the things we both disliked about it, but here is one literary point of disturbance. The children of the group (3 girls and 3 boys aged about 12-18) live together, but have no family, parents, or home other than some possibly abandoned building they live in. Several times they mention they cannot read. They debate spending the group's money for food on buying beef (expensive) vs Pigs' heads. Yet when they receive some reward money near the end of the story which is then invested by Sherlock Holmes for their futures(?!) one girl says "It's always jam tomorrow for us..."
This is an allusion to Alice Through the Looking Glass- the queen says -we have jam every other day, and Alice says she doesn't want any jam today. The queen replies, "You couldn't have it if you DID want it. The rule is, jam to-morrow and jam yesterday - but never jam to-day." "It MUST come sometimes to 'jam to-day,'" Alice objected. "No it can't," said the Queen. "It's jam every OTHER day: to-day isn't any OTHER day, you know."
I seriously question whether this is something an unparented, uneducated, unread, illiterate child would drop into a conversation about hunger and disappointment. At least they got the dates right- I make Through the Looking glass as published in 1871, and the Holmes stories 1880s and onward, so the idea existed on paper at the time. But how long would in take in years past for information and general ideas in childrens books to become popular enough to become allusions in common speech anyway?
Ugh -now if you want GOOD Sherlock Holmes, see anything (AND everything)with Jeremy Brett. He is (was) a genius. He does Holmes differently than anyone you have ever seen, and yet it is the best and most faithful interpretation of the original stories. Watch the incredible protrayal of the relationship between the Holmes and Watson character. And we also love Mrs Hudson's role and the darkness of the whole production. It will color anything Holmes you ever watch again.

Global Warming

I watched An Inconvenient Truth with my family over Christmas time, and my son (as ever) had questions for me. We went to the library today and I found The Down to Earth Guide to Global Warming by Laurie David and Cambria Gordon. It is a 2007 publication, so it seems fairly up to date. It is laid out in the way kids seem to like books these days- lots of photos, graphics and side bars. But there is also real info- with source notes and references, a glossary, list of aditional sources and websites.
Just looking it over it seems balanced- a section on the science of what is warming, then evidence of the effect it is having on earth, and animals and plants, then finally what kids and govt can do. My son will love it and probably read it all cover to cover, but he is the kind of kid who seeks depth even in children's books.
My only concern is that it is a paperback and bears the Scholastic bar on the cover- will it fall apart in just a few weeks due to their poor use of adhesives? This is famous among school librarians. We got it from the public library, so it isn't really our problem, but will it become junk and add to the global waste problem?

Jane Austen

I was browsing my local public library's charity bookshop- they take in donations and sell them in their little space for great prices- and I found yet another Jane Austen read alike. Of course I bought it as most books are $1 and children's paperbacks are 25cents. I am a sucker for anything related to Jane Austen, and will read it all, even though I end up not recommending most of them. This one was called Pride, Prejudice & Jasmin Field. It was written by a young woman in London, which I also am all for. It was a good read, and since I wanted a "day off" from being in charge of family stuff I just went to my room and read the whole thing.
This one was a P&P story with the people in it also acting in a P&P play. I read one something like that before, but was dismayed to find the author gave her characters NO insight into the parallels they were living. Here was much better, many times these folks were laughing at themselves. The story was good in and of itself, but I get a little distracted with this type of book trying to figure out as each person is introduced- is she Charlotte Lucas, ohh is this going to be Lydia...? etc I am glad about the changes in the Lydia character, but found it confusing that the Mom and Dad were called by their first names. I may read this one again, as the twists of the story got a little hard to keep up with, and I tend to read faster and faster to the ending of any novel, so I might have missed some things. But it was pretty good if you like single girl with good sense, career and hopes kind of stuff.

Real Lit for Children

Yesterday I read "Dear Mr Henshaw", a Beverly Cleary classic. It is just so well written- I wish more children's book were literature like this. There is so much junk put out to promote movies and sell more Disney and Nickelodeon things, I really think kids are being gypped. People often say well, at least they are reading something, but I am not really sure I agree, when I see them week after week check out Pokemon books and Disney Princess stories. But the flip side for me is that I am not sure when to let my 7 year old read stuff like this- issues with a child and his dad during a divorce. He doesn't need to worry about that stuff, but he is very sensitive, so he probably will anyway... Good literature often deals with real issues, and so I have to pre-read many of his books. (Lucky me!!) It has really lead to an exciting renewal of my interest in children's books and an awe almost of the great stuff that is out there.

Languages and Education

I am trying to read Globalization: Culture and Education in the new Millenium Ed by Marcelo M Suarez-Orozco and Desiree Baolian Qin-Hilliard today. It seems like the kind of book to get one fired up about the real changes need in education, but I am stuck on page 13, because people keep interrupting my reading. It has already fueled some discussion with my husband about the need to teach our young children languages other than English at an early age.
The research saying they can learn best when they are young has been around for some time. It seems obvious with the changing global economic status that they need too. I wonder why public education doesn't have this stuff in all the elementary schools already. Guess we will have to fill in the gaps once again.