Benold Book Blog

I did find time over Easter weekend to read Pure Dead Magic by Gliori. This series is part Addams family, part Series of Unfortunate Events, and Harry Potter. This family lives is a house with a giant crocodile in the moat and a Yeti in the dungeon. Terrible things happen to them–their father has been kidnapped by his own nefarious brother. The baby has vanished into cyberspace  via the computer modem and a giant tarantula is searching the World Wide “Web” for her. Mother is a witch in training and daughter steals her multi-pack of spell wands to try to make things right with semi-disasterous results. I plan to read at least one more (Pure Dead Wicked) just to see what mischief happens next.

Also managed one of the Chet Gecko books, a quick read with the “trench coat and fedora” detective motif transferred to public school. This was a fun book especially if you enjoy animal characters. Pair it with another animal detective story, The case of the cat with the missing ear : from the notebooks of Edward R. Smithfield, D.V.M. by Scott Emerson. This one was a Sherlock Holmes take off, especially fun if you are acquainted with Conan-Doyle’s characters.

My other weekend read was Sleeping Freshmen Never Lie by David Lubar. Surviving freshman year is Scott’s goal and maybe attracting the attention of a certain female. His life fills with extra-curricular activities and unexpected friendships in pursuit of the elusive and oblivious Julie. Scott records his many observations on family and school life in a journal addressed to the baby brother that his mom is expecting. Not part of a series but I loved this book…funny and fulfilling. Lubar has written some other books that I have read. Dunk is more serious, a look at the life of young man who aspires to become the clown in the dunk tank on the boardwalk. Flip is about total opposite twins who discover some disks with the power to transform them into historical and literary characters. When you are not sure of who you really are, does it help to become someone else?

I managed to read a couple of new books over the weekend that got me to thinking of others that I had read or reviewed in the past. The topics were similar but of course each story is unique.

Emma-Jean Lazarus Fell Out of the Tree  by Lauren Tarshis is the story of a seventh grade girl who is close to genius level, extremely neat, organized, and methodical. She observes her peers’ messy, noisy existence with tolerance but no desire to become a part of the turmoil. Then one day a classmate in distress appeals to Emma-Jean for help. No one has ever asked for her help before and she feels that she cannot decline. Can she become one of the group? Does she even want to? What becomes of her nice, neat life?

Paired with this, I remembered reading Millicent Min, Girl Genius by Lisa Yee. Millicent, also a certified genius, is a bit more concerned with trying to fit in with her peer group. Volleyball is the challenge she undertakes to see if she can make friends with her classmates. How much does Millicant’s cultural background influence her attempts to connect?

Another book I just finished is called Sender Unknown by Sallie Lowenstein. A strange little, futuristic story, I found it hard to decide if this is really a “middle-school” book or an adult read because the main character is twenty-five years old. Another genius-type, he was a happy putterer until a high school reunion pushes him into the “most-likely to succeed,” technology whiz-kid, corporate role. In this new mode, he purchases an old house with a peculiarity. Every day a stack of catalogs for various “dolls” based on the fairy tales and nursery rhymes that have become relics of the past is delivered to the house. When he orders, what he receives are not dolls at all but he doesn’t know exactly what they are. All the boxes are marked “No Returns.”

The book I chose to pair with this is one that I have not read. House of the Scorpion by Nancy Farmer does share a common element with the book above. How closely do they parallel? Maybe someone out there will comment.

Last, I want to pair a book with Louis Sachar’s book, the incomparable Holes. I loved this story with its incredible cast of characters, the historical flashback, and the curse. Students often ask for another book just like Holes. Now I suggest that they read Out of Patience by Brain Meehl. The town of Patience is somewhat like Camp Green Lake, dried up and desolate, it has been cursed. Jake’s dad, a plumber from a long line of plumbers, believes that salvation for Patience lies in his plan to start …The American Toilet Museum. Jake is waiting for the final blow, the return of the Plunger of Destiny. I don’t think that you can help but chuckle and wonder how a toilet plunger can be the bad guy.

Have you ever read a couple of books that pair well because of themes, characters, or plots? Tell me something about them.

The Benold Literacy was the Friday before spring break. We had a gorgeous day. I appreciated all of the students that walked or ran laps. My observaton is that there were fewer students who chose just to sit and many who were on the track.

All those who cheered also helped me to stay focused on my own lap goal. I hoped to at last tie my 48 laps from last year. However, with so many onlookers I finished two more for a total of 5o–12.5 miles. I have to say thought that even with cold shower and pain relief medication, I hurt for two more days. My daily 3-4 miles just is not enough training for a one day half marathon!

Thanks to the concesion stand and those who collected pledges, we slightly exceeded our total from last year. The funds will provide many new books for the library. I know that sometimes the 8th graders who are moving up feel like they will not benefit from the Walk but thanks to an extremely active inter-library loan system within the district we can share our new title with those who helped to buy them. All you have to do is ask!

Does anyone have a title request? How about a series that you would like to see completed? Is there a genre (such as mysteries, romance, sports, biographies) that you would like to see more books? Be as specific as you can be. Schools do have selection policies but I am always ready to evaluate your recommendations.