Deb Nance at Readerbuzz
I read. That's what I love to do. But I am also crazy about my guitar, drawing, writing, puppets, traveling, baking, gardens, and walking....and let's not forget serendipity and paradox....
Give and Take: A Revolutionary Approach to Success
There are givers. There are takers. Who loses? Who wins?As you might suspect, the givers lose. But here’s a surprise: the givers also win.Lots and lots here for those who own companies or manage people or just want to know more about human nature.
A Curious Man: The Strange and Brilliant Life of Robert "Believe It or Not!" Ripley
You may have suspected that Robert Ripley was an odd fellow. If so, you were right. It makes for a fascinating read, this life of the man who brought us all the odd facts about the world, all the fascinating facts about the world, this man who was an odd and fascinating subject himself.
Flambards (Oxford Childrens Modern Classi)
Horse Fever? Downton Abbey fan? Yes, this might be the book for you. Flambards is a book that is filled with horses and saddles and riding and hunting and other Horse Words that escape me at the moment. Trust me on this. Drink this book in and you’ll get your horse love quota for the year.
Eleanor & Park
It’s been a long time since I first fell in love as a teen. This book brought it all back. The first time you hold hands. Those amazing phone calls where every word feels important. The time apart when you can’t think of anything but the Loved One. It’s all here.But it’s more than that. Eleanor & Park is the story of two don’t-fit-in teens find each other and fall hard for each other. Eleanor has a miserable home life and a miserable school life, and Park is there to save her. Park has a great family and good friends, but is nevertheless not-very-happy, and Eleanor is there to save him, too.
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Y
There are times that I think it might be a good idea to have warning labels on teen books. When I was an impressionable teen (are there any other kind?) I found myself reading The Bell Jar, a book that spiraled me into a six-month-long depression. (I blame Bell Jar, in any case, for my senior year angst...it certainly didn’t generate any happy thoughts.) This is, then, a book that could use a warning label. On a scale of Bleak to Grim to Mind-Numbingly Depressing, this book would fall far to the right.
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Marbles: Mania, Depression, Michelangelo, and Me: A Graphic Memoir
Read this extended title. It is a perfect description of this little book. It is all you need to know about it.
The House at the End of Hope Street: A Novel
Alba Ashby, after suffering a humiliating defeat, arrives unexpectedly at the house at the end of Hope Street and finds a way to heal. I don't think I'm giving too much away. You knew this, didn't you? It is why you sought out this book, I think. You certainly wouldn't read this book if you discovered in the first sentence of this review that Alba found only more misery and more defeat at his home. So, it's that is what you are seeking, then I will reassure you that it will be found here. Hope. Optimism. Healing.
The World is a Carpet: Four Seasons in an Afghan Village
Yes, sometimes the world is a carpet, but mostly it’s not. This book is about a world that’s not. You may think you have learned all about Afghanistan from the years our soldiers have spent time there, but this is not that Afghanistan. This is the Afghanistan experienced by the women who live there. The women who spend most of their days, most of their lives, making amazing carpets, beautiful carpets that will support their families, while their husbands escape this world with opium, while their children hunger. Yes, the world is a carpet. But mostly it’s not.
The Coral Island
Another 1001 book read. Adventure. Action. Pirates. Cannibals. Murder. Treasure. Mystery. What more does a book need?
Little Acorn Grows Up
Lovely little board book that tells the story of an oak tree for our youngest readers.
The Magic Pudding - Being The Adventures Of Bunyip Bluegum And His Friends Bill Barnacle & Sam Sawnoff
Zany. A pudding that everyone wants to steal. You better not take your eyes off that pudding for one second. Even people you trust will do anything to get their hands on that pudding. A delight that was completely unknown to me before two weeks ago. A delight that I loved, despite the fact that I really wasn’t clear on the appeal of the pudding or the knavish associations of many of the characters. It isn’t important; it’s just great fun.
Unusual Creatures
Creatures so odd that no one can really believe they exist. I could share some of these details but that would ruin the fun. Read it. You will like it.
Gilded Lives, Fatal Voyage: The Titanic's First-Class Passengers and Their World
Whew. Who isn’t intrigued by the sinking of the Titanic? As Brewster reminds us, even people who have never heard the old Greek myths know the mythic story of the demise of the Titanic. Who isn’t intrigued by the stories of the very rich on board this ship? And who better to tell this story than Titanic expert Hugh Brewster? If you are in need of a new fabulous Titanic read, this is it.
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Reading Magic: Why Reading Aloud to Our Children Will Change Their Lives Forever
Mem Fox keeps things simple and that’s exactly what I needed after listening to experts harangue the schools and teachers last week at the International Reading Association conference. Mem Fox says it all comes down to reading aloud. Do that with your children and your students three times a day and it will happen; children will be ready to learn to read. One thousand read-alouds and students will read.