Perfect Chemistry by Simone Elkeles

Perfect Chemistry by Simone Elkeles
published December 2008 by Walker & Co
368 pages (paperback), YA

We all know the story - good girl falls for bad boy. She's popular, rich and college-bound, the envy of all her friends. He's in a gang, living on the poor side of the tracks, and hoping to at least graduate high school. Inevitably, the two must spend their school days together as chemistry lab partners. On their first day, they're forced to introduce each other to the class:

"This is Alejandro Fuentes. When he wasn't hanging out on street corners and harassing innocent people this summer, he toured the inside of jails around the city, if you know what I mean. His secret desire is to go to college and become a chemistry teacher, like you, Mrs. Peterson."

Brittany flashes  me a triumphant smile, thinking she's won this round. Guess again, gringa.

"This is Brittany Ellis," I say, all eyes now focused on me. "This summer she went to the mall, bought new clothes so she could expand her wardrobe, and spent her daddy's money on plastic surgery to enhance her, ahem, assets. Her secret desire is to date a Mexicano before she graduates."

I don't read a whole lot of realistic fiction or romance for that matter, but I quite enjoyed this one. Perhaps it's because I saw Simone Elkeles speak at ISLMA last month, and she was just so bubbly and hilarious. Perhaps because the trailer for this book is genius and fall-off-your-chair funny. Or maybe because I read it over a long weekend traveling to visit a friend. It made for great airport and plane reading.



One thing Simone mentioned when she talked about her writing career is that she was never great at school and she never saw herself as a writer or even reader. But a trip to the public library and a handful of romances later changed her mind. She loves the happy ending that all romances promise and deliver, and that's what she tried to do with this book. Personally, I could have done without the happy ending, especially in a YA romance, but I liked the rest of the story enough to be okay with it. Brittany and Alex are three-dimensional characters, with complicated family stories and even more complicated friendships, with thoughts and feelings so at odds with each other that they're constantly fighting and trying to figure out what's right. Simone's passion and general emo qualities shine in this book. Honestly, that's what I love most about teens and books for teens - the raw emotion and incessant need to question everything.

So, four purple crayons for a fantastic if predictable story. I smiled and laughed and wanted to hug someone when I was finished reading it. :)

Help!

So, I sort of became an aunt last night. I say sort of because my sister surely didn't have a baby, but my cousin-in-law did - and our families are so close that I think aunt is a fitting title. Anyhow, I need help choosing books for this little one!

I have a hard enough time finding books for kindergartners that I am just completely clueless when it comes to baby books. I know that board books are in, especially textured ones. Simple pictures. Not a lot of text. I guess? I really don't know.

Please offer your suggestions of favorite books for babies!

Zoey Zeta and the Sisters of Power by Robert Simon

Zoey Zeta and the Sisters of Power: Family Secrets written by Robert Simon, illustrated by Tomomi Sarafov
published April 2010 by Zeta Comics
unpaged (paperback), children's graphic novel
*received from publisher

In this first story of Zoey Zeta and the Sisters of Power, Zoey the scientific genius, middle sister Ella the indestructible, and youngest sister Lexi the supersonic are getting ready for an activity-filled summer vacation when evil villain Dr. Impossible thwarts their plans and puts the country-most importantly kids and their parents-on lockdown. But these girls are superheroes; well, they will be, at least, once they come up with a name and a plan to stop Dr. Impossible.

I quite enjoyed this full-color graphic novel aimed at elementary girls who like superheroes too. The dialogue is smart, as shown by one of my favorite lines, "Parents are cautioned not to weep openly or uncontrollably in front of their children," (in reference to Dr. Impossible taking control of the media world). Because it's aimed at a young audience, I was afraid that the text may be too difficult for my students especially, but I don't think that's the case. Where the language is a bit more sophisticated, the illustrations clearly support it so that the story is not lost. The panels are easy to navigate and the colors just pop right off the page. I'm intrigued by the story, but I'm disappointed that it's separated into three parts. It was over before I really got into it.

Here's a part of the letter I received from the author/publisher about the creation of this comic:

I created Zeta Comics to address the lack of science fiction for young girls. You see, fairies are great but they're not cool. Not unless they're packing molecular disintegrators. Girls need more imaginative, science and engineering based fiction and fun. That's where Zeta Comics is positioning its stories and characters. Get ready for an action-packed adventure starring three powerful little girls with big powers, big attitudes and big adventures.

I'm just going to pretend he didn't bad-mouth fairies there. Because you all know my fascination and love for fairies. Mmhmm.

Anyhow, I plan on sharing this book with my students, and we'll see how it goes! From me, it gets three purple crayons. Solid but too short.

October Reading Recap

Goal-Making
Did I read more for myself? Yep, I think so. Could always read more, though. Especially since the bedside stack has now split into two for fear of falling over. Oy. Public library, how I appreciate your 4-week loan period and generous renewals. I pretty much decide what I'm going to read based on what book cannot be renewed because it's requested by someone else. Tonight's selection is Blameless because it's due on Wednesday!

What I Read and Why 

Because reading for me makes me happy 

Clockwork Angel by Cassandra Clare
To the Nines by Janet Evanovich

The Body at the Tower (The Agency #2) by Y.S. Lee

The Extraordinary Secrets of April, May, and June by Robin Benway

A Kiss in Time by Alex Flinn

How to Ruin a Summer Vacation by Simone Elkeles

Because the public library buys EVERYTHING

What is Money, Anyway? by Jennifer Larson

A Fairy-Tale Fall by Apple Jordan

The Leaves Fall Around by Steve Mack

Ling & Ting: Not Exactly the Same by Grace Lin

The Earth Book by Todd Parr

Flora's Very Windy Day by Jeanne Birdsall

Thanks a Lot, Emily Post! by Jennifer Larue Huget

 

Because Halloween has so much read-aloud potential

The Scariest Monster in the World by Lee Weatherly

Pumpkin Town! by Katie McTy

Even Monsters Need Haircuts by Matthew McElligot

The Halloween Kid by Rhode Montijo

Hallowilloween by Calef Brown

The Monster Princess by D.J. MacHale

 Because they're nominated for the Monarch Award

Oh, Theodore! by Susan Katz

Help Me, Mr. Mutt! by Janet Stevens

Abe's Honest Words by Doreen Rappaport

Dog and Bear by Laura Vaccaro Seeger

 

 Because I bought them for my library

Mind Your Manners, B.B. Wolf by Judy Sierra

Tell the Truth, B.B. Wolf by Judy Sierra

Lots of Spots by Lois Ehlert

AlphaOops! H is for Halloween by Alethea Kontis

Big Babies, Little Babies by DK Publishing

Mentionables

Did I really only blog three times in October? I need to get better at blogging quicker. These entries take me hours on end. Anyhow...

Clockwork Angel was by far my favorite. The first book in The Infernal Devices series, which is a prequel to The Mortal Instruments series, all books that I have loved. Tessa finds herself at the Institute in London after being imprisoned by demon sisters, with the new knowledge that she's a Downworlder with the unique talent of shape shifting. Woo! Need I say much more? :) 

Just read How to Ruin a Summer Vacation by Simone Elkeles this weekend because I went to one of her sessions at the Illinois School Library Media Association's annual conference on Friday. She was so full of spunk and spark that I immediately rushed to my mom's public library to get one of her books to read - this was the only one on the shelf. And I rather enjoyed it. I love her easy style - she absolutely writes how she speaks, and it works for her. Can't wait to read more from her!

Not much else to say that I haven't said here, here, or here. 

November Aspirations

Honestly, I'll be surprised if I get any reading done in November. So much to do! I said that I would revisit The Hunger Games and Catching Fire during Thanksgiving break so that I can finally read Mockingjay, but I don't know that I'll have much free time while visiting family. I do plan on reading The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo because I just got it from the library after waiting months on their holds list. I'm not about to give it back without reading it! Also looking forward to Behemoth by Scott Westerfeld and The Exiled Queen by Cinda Williams Chima, both sequels to first books in a series. And I want to read everything Simone Elkeles has written because she's refreshingly honest, funny, a tad silly, and so full of life and emotion. OH! And Harry Potter 7, Part 1 comes out this month?! Goodness gracious, there's no way I'll have time to re-read it. Best I can hope for is to re-watch #6.

 

Nonfiction Monday: Big Babies, Little Babies

Big Babies, Little Babies
published April 2010 by DK Publishing
64 pages (hardcover), children's nonfiction

You and your kids will ooh and ahh and mostly aww your way through this book. I surely did! This collection of animal babies is all about the photographs. Each two-page spread features a different baby, including bears, dolphins, elephants, giraffes, penguins, monkeys, and much more. The photographs (a collection of stock images) drive the text in this book, with thought bubbles for the babies and captions that describe a small aspect of the baby's life.

The details in this book are what really sold me on it. And the organization. Each spread contains a large, bold, unique title with two or three sentences of description. The rest of the text is written in a smaller font size and serves as caption or thought bubble. Also, the spreads contain a dominant background color which is pulled from the images and also serves to outline the text and photo boxes. The page numbers wouldn't be complete without a paw print, webbed foot, or other stamp to match the  animal.

I have every intention of sharing this book with students in the library as a read-aloud. I probably won't read the whole book, or every single word on each page, but I will definitely hit some of the especially aww-worthy pages. This one might even work well using a document camera to project it on the board for enlarged images. Tie into teaching about how to read nonfiction text, what's a caption, text box, photograph, etc. Oh, the curricular connections are endless.

Check out more Nonfiction Monday posts at the round-up, hosted this week at Write About Now.

Monster picture books

The Scariest Monster in the World written by Lee Weatherly, illustrated by Algy Craig Hall
published September 2009 by Boxer

This monster would be hugely scary if he didn't have one little dilemma - he has the hiccups. And the poor thing just doesn't know what to do about it! He tries everything he can think of, but there's one cure that he can't try on his own - scare the hiccups away! Looks like he'll need some help with this one...

Big Scary Monster by Thomas Docherty
published July 2010 by Candlewick

Big Scary Monster loves to play BOO! at the top of the mountain where the animals are small and afraid. But they've learned to hide from the monster, so he wanders down the mountain to find other animals to scare. Trouble is, the animals at the bottom of the mountain are rather large and like to play BOO! too. Frightened away, the monster heads back up the mountain in search of someone to play with. Lucky for him, the animals are understanding and know that he just needs a friend.

Leonardo the Terrible Monster by Mo Willems
published September 2005 by Hyperion

Is this everyone's favorite lovable monster book? It sure is mine! Leonardo is, you guessed it, a terrible monster. He's never been able to scare anyone. Until one day. He spies a weak-looking boy, and he finally works up the courage to do it. He scares the tuna salad right out of this boy! Success! But he's not feeling very good about himself. Indeed, he decides it might be better to befriend the boy instead of scare him.

Even Monsters Need Haircuts by Matthew McElligott
published July 2010 by Walker & Co

This book has been making the blog rounds and for good reason. What a wonderful idea for a monster story! In a very matter-of-fact tone, we meet a boy who has inherited his father's profession, that of a barber. But the boy's shop is only open at nighttime, when the monsters come out, because, hey, monsters need haircuts too. The monsters are generally wary of humans but they know the boy well, so he's okay. Except that one night, it seems that a human stumbles in for a haircut... How will the monsters react?

The Monster Princess written by D.J. MacHale, illustrated by Alexandra Boiger
published August 2010 by Simon & Schuster

Every little girl wishes she could be a princess, and monster little girls are no exception. Lala the gnome sets out for the castle and finds the princesses' room empty - oh, what luxury! She tries on dresses and jewels and stares at her pretty reflection in the mirror. But when the princesses discover a monster in their room, they are none too happy... until Lala shares how much she'd like to be a princess just like them. A sweet story with a "love yourself" message at the end.

Welcome to Monster Town by Ryan Heshka
published July 2010 by Henry Holt & Co

When the sun sets, it's time for the monster day to begin. Each page describes "a day in the life of..." - for example, "The ghost writers cover the news" and "King Kong climbs tall buildings as he makes them." Interesting premise and vivid illustrations, but I wished for more of a storyline.




Got any monster favorites of your own? Please share!

Read recently

Sometimes I just don't have the energy or thoughts enough to devote to one book, so this is a nice way to catch up on what I've been reading. For you and for me!

The Extraordinary Secrets of April, May, and June by Robin Benway
published August 2010 by Razorbill
256 pages (hardcover), YA

I loved Benway's first novel, Audrey, Wait! so yes, I was a little disappointed with her second. April, May, and June are sisters, one year apart each in high school, and they are all recently discovering that they have special powers. April sees the future, May disappears, and June reads thoughts. While April and May are perfectly fine with blending in at school, the youngest sister June wants to be popular. So of course June uses her mind-reading abilities to turn the popular girl's friends against her so that she can get in her good graces instead. But April disapproves of the girls using their powers for selfish reasons and tries to be the responsible older sister by suggesting they use their talents for good and not evil.

Okay, I have to stop there because I'm getting bored just writing about it. Sigh. It wasn't a boring book, really. But it wasn't all that engaging either. The characters were bland, besides having special powers, and the plot either didn't go anywhere or went too many places - I can't decide which. Maybe I just had too high of hopes for this book, but it just didn't do anything for me.

The Body at the Tower (The Agency #2) by Y.S. Lee
published August 2010 by Candlewick
352 pages (hardcover), YA

I liked the first book in this series and saw endless possibilities of where it could go. This book went to a strange, unexpected place. I know that I say quite a bit that I'm all about the characters in a book and don't care much for plot. But I also can't read a book if the plot is so boring and distracting from the characters. And that's what I felt here.

Mary has a new case at the Agency. Dress as an apprenticing boy to gain access to the Big Ben worksite to solve the mystery of an unexplained death. Yeah, what else can I say? It certainly didn't grab me, but I read it anyway because I like Mary. We learn a little (itty bitty bit) about her past, and we also see potential changes in the Agency. That irritated me. I hardly know what the Agency is about, after only one book in the series, and now it's changing? But that's okay because I like Mary. And that's enough for me to read the potential third book in the series.

To the Nines by Janet Evanovich, read by C.J. Critt
published 2003 by Recorded Books
9 sound discs (10 hours, unabridged), adult pop lit

I love Stephanie Plum. These books are perfect for long drives because they're formulaic but most of all, they're hilarious. The situations are ridiculous, and Stephanie's decision-making skills are laughable. In this installment, Stephanie is looking for a man whose work visa is just about to expire. This case takes her in many different directions - with a trip to Vegas to boot! But who cares about the mystery? It's Stephanie's love life that keeps me reading, or rather, listening. She's back with Morelli, even living with him for now because her apartment is just too easy to break into. They're together but still not ready for marriage, even though Joe hints that he wouldn't mind if Stephanie was pregnant! Which she's not; her sister is. And Ranger? Well, he takes a backseat in this one, but I can't imagine that will last very long.

I also really like the narrator's voice, which I recognize from previous Plum novels. She uses different voices for Stephanie, Lula, Grandma Mazur, Ranger, Joe, and others, so it feels like there's a full cast. She reads well. :)

September Reading Recap

Goals, Goals, Goals
Did I meet them? Partially. I finally read The Help! I love love loved it, but I haven't blogged about it yet. Oops. I haven't been reading as many novels from my collection at school as I wanted to, but that's okay with me. And I decided not to revisit The Hunger Games and Catching Fire just yet because I'm not reading Mockingjay anytime soon. As for coffee shop reading - hah! What was I thinking? 


What and Why I Read

Because the public library had an awesome autumn display

Seed, Sprout, Pumpkin, Pie by Jill Esbaum
I Know It's Autumn by Eileen Spinelli
Fall Is Here!: Counting 1 to 10 by Pamela Jane
Who Loves the Fall? by Bob Raczka
Mouse's First Fall by Lauren Thompson
When Autumn Falls by Kelli Nidey
Fall by Ann Herriges
Leaves, Leaves! A Lift-the-Flap Book by Salina Yoon

Because I like to read to and for my students

Country Road ABC: An Illustrated Journey Through America's Farmland by Arthur Geisert

Pop!: The Invention of Bubble Gum by Meghan McCarthy

Frog by Moira Butterfield

Beware of the Frog by William Bee

The Tale of Tricky Fox by Jim Aylesworth

My Lucky Day by Keiko Kasza

Pinduli by Janell Cannon

Meg Mackintosh and the Mystery in the Locked Library by Lucinda Landon

Dog's Colorful Day: A Messy Story about Colors and Counting by Emma Dodd

I Went Walking  by Sue Williams

Once Upon a Cool Motorcycle Dude by Kevin O'Malley

Found by Margaret Peterson Haddix

Because I like to read for me too

Bleeding Violet by Dia Reeves

The Help by Kathryn Stockett

 Glimmerglass by Jenna Black

Nice Girls Don't Date Dead Men by Molly Harper

Noteworthy
I should have blogged about The Help. But what could I say, really? "Best book I've read in a long time" just doesn't cut it. It's one of those books that will forever stay with me. Maybe I'll find words for it the next time I read it.

I did blog about Bleeding Violet. And Pop! and Found.

But not Glimmerglass because it was such a pathetic, fairy bore. That sounds harsh, I know. But when you've read as many fairy books as I have, you have slightly higher expectations. And boy, was I disappointed. Same with Nice Girls Don't Date Dead Men, except with vampires. I really need to take a fantasy break.

Finally, I have to gush about my public library. We librarians have to stick together, you know, and brag about each other too - I love that my library buys anything and everything autumn-related because teachers and parents will inevitably seek those books out this time of year. Multiple copies galore! So many shiny books, all published this century! Nice.


October Aspirations
Read more for me. That's all. :)

Bleeding Violet by Dia Reeves

Bleeding Violet by Dia Reeves
published January 2010 by Simon & Schuster
454 pages (hardcover), YA

Hanna has issues. She's manic-depressive. She talks to her dead father. She's run away from home because she nearly killed her aunt. And now she's on her mother's doorstep, a mother who wants nothing to do with this teenage daughter of hers. Here we are in Portero, Texas, where the world is not quite the way it should be. Evil spirits more than just lurk; they are deadly. Portero is a portal to many other places and worlds, with hidden doors littering the entire town. Nothing is impossible in Portero. Odd as it may be, Hanna actually feels at home in this town that defies reality - mostly because it's weirder than she is. But Portero folk are not that accepting of outsiders, and Hanna must prove that she can fit in if she wants to stay with her aloof mother.

I love this book. I needed this book. I read it at exactly the right time - the weather finally turned chilly, I was curled up in bed ready for the kind of creepy, spooky book we all want to read this time of year.

Let me just say again that this is definitely a creepy, spooky book. Blood. Gore. Violence. Nudity. Sex. Drugs. Monsters. Just the kind of book I should be reading during Banned Books Week - but shhh, don't say I said so. It has that weird Going Bovine feel to it, where you're not quite sure if what you're reading is actually happening in the story or if it's just a hallucination trip, and it's creepy in that Girl, Interrupted way because people who are not quite mentally stable are apt to do unpredictable and very dangerous things. Add the likes of the City of Bones, with portals to other worlds and otherworldly creatures, and you've got most of the elements of this book.

But what I loved most was not the strange story or fantasy setting or troubled characters but instead the way they were seamlessly intertwined. There was no moment of suspending disbelief for me here; I just went with each twist and turn as if it was all normal. That's how much Ms. Reeves pulled me in from the start. Wow. Just wow.

There's not much else I can really say about this book. You'll love it or hate it. The story will grab you or repel you. I will say this, don't be fooled by its length. If you love it, you'll fly through it. I did not want to put it down! One late night and early morning later, and I was finished. Sad but sated.

Four purple crayons for the wow factor and fresh perspective.

Others said it better:
Book Gazing; Reading in Color; Bookworming in the 21st Century; read what you know; Presenting Lenore; Bloody Bookaholic; The Neverending Shelf; Pure Imagination

Fall into Reading

I confess that I haven't been keeping track of my other challenges lately, but one of these days, I will catch up with the progress I've made.

But that doesn't mean I could resist the temptation to join another. :) Hosted by Katrina over at Callapidder Days, this is a laid-back sort of challenge just to inspire and encourage some more reading during the chilly, rainy autumn days. Not that you could tell that it's autumn around here - it's 9:20pm and it's still 77 degrees outside, yeesh.

Anyhow, the challenge runs from September 22 until December 20, 2010 - that's four months of fall reading! I know that I get into a reading slump this time of year, what with school and the holidays approaching. Here's my list of books that I hope to read during this time:

Bleeding Violet by Dia Reeves
because everyone loves it

The Body at the Tower by Y.S. Lee
because I liked the first one

The Cardturner by Louis Sachar
because I love to play cards

Extraordinary by Nancy Werlin
because I liked Impossible
 
The Extraordinary Secrets of April, May, and June by Robin Benway
because I loved Audrey, Wait!
 
A Kiss in Time by Alex Flinn
because I love retold fairy tales

The Night Fairy by Laura Amy Schlitz
because I love all things fairy

Princess of Glass by Jessica Day George
because Jessica Day George is awesome

Savvy by Ingrid Law
because it's a Rebecca Caudill Award nominee

Behemoth by Scott Westerfeld
because Leviathan made me so happy

Freedom by Jonathan Franzen
because Oprah said so

I will inevitably add more books to the list and perhaps take some off. But that's a pretty good start.