I loved, Three Sheets
to the Wind by Cynthia Barrett. It is now a coffee table book at my lake
house. Guests never fail to remark about this book. Everyone is surprised by
the numbers of everyday expressions that have a nautical background.
One of my favorites is posh. This little word of luxury came
about when wealthy Europeans where traveling to and from the Orient by ship.
Without air conditioning a ship quickly got hot and stuffy. Therefore, wealthy
individuals would select the more expensive cabins that did not get the sun on
the port side of the ship when travel to their destination and starboard side
traveling back home. Thus the acronym P.O.S.H. standing for portside out,
starboard side home.
There are lots of terms that are just as interesting, too
many to mention them all. Each term has the origin, the modern definition and an
illustration from literature. In
summary, this little gem of a book is quirky, funny, educational and thoroughly
entertaining!
If you are fascinated by the origins of our language or are
a sailing/nautical enthusiasts this is the book for you. Maybe you are a book
nerd like me, then you too will enjoy. It has started many a wordy conversation
in my house.
Thanks to the author for my free copy.
Writers of the Future Vol. 35, edited by David
Farland, is an anthology of Sci-Fi and Fantasy short stories by up-and-coming
new authors. In total there are twelve stories chosen from an international
writing contest conducted on a quarterly schedule. Therefore, the top 3 stories
from each quarter is what appears in the volume. In addition, this volume contains short
stories from established, well-known writers and advice for new writers and
illustrators.
The book also contains illustrations for each short story.
The illustrations are chosen in the same way as the short stories and I felt
were a nice bonus to the book. I also liked that each story was prefaced by a short
introduction to both the writer and illustrator. I enjoyed learning about these
debut authors and illustrators in the industry.
In an effort at brevity I am going to touch on only two of
my favorite stories in this collection. The first story I want to talk about is
Release From Service by Rustin Lovewell, illustrated by Emerson Rabbitt.
In this Fantasy story, a young man must choose between what he has been trained
for most of his life and what he knows is right even though the choice will cost
him his life.
What I liked about the story was the character development. I
prefer character driven stories over plot driven and this story is a perfect
example of how a good author does not need a hundred plus pages to give the
reader a character that is relatable. It also helped that the plot was spot on.
This story I would rate as five stars.
The next story I want to talk about is a Sci-Fi story, Super-Duper Moon Girl and the Amazing Moon Dawdler written by Wulf Moon and illustrated by Alice Wang. This story actually made me cry. It is about a young girl living on the moon with her parents. She is the sole surviving student of a school bombing that left her unable to breathe on her own. She has an AI unit in the shape of a dog who breathes for her and is her protector. Yet, some times protectors are too good at what they do. This is also a five-star story. Same as the previous story, I loved the character and felt a real connection.
There are other stories that I feel rated five stars or
close and some I would give a four too. There was only one I was not crazy
about and that was Yellow Submarine. I felt the plot was not very inventive. Yet,
the prose was good. I would rate that one as three stars.
As a whole, I was surprised at the quality of the writing and illustrations. There was a big variety in this collection and the stories were, for the most part, first-rate. Therefore, it made me want to read the next story and the next, until the end, which came a bit too quickly for me. I am left with the quandary of how to rate the book overall. As a whole, I would rate this collection as 4 stars, maybe even pushing 4.5.
I highly recommend this anthology to lovers of Sci-Fi and Fantasy. There is something to love in every story and the illustrations were fabulous. I am excited to see what the future holders for these new authors and illustrators and once you read this collection I suspect you will be too.
Disclaimer: I received a free copy from the publisher in exchange for my honest review.
Not Gonna Write Poems is a whimsical and quirky
collection of poems written by Michael A. Lee. The author wrote these poems for
his daughter. The collection is truly the perfect introduction to poetry that
any child will adore!
In this humorous, and down to earth, collection of poems, the
subjects include things like: Homework, Slime, Hair, and the Boogey Monster.
All subjects that will no doubt appeal to all discerning young readers. All the
poems are no more than a page long; therefore, even the most restless child can
enjoy these. There are drawings for kids to accompany all the poems too.
One my favorite poems
in this collection was The Gator Waiter. I found myself chucking at the idea of
an alligator serving guests their food. Another favorite was King of the Castle.
In this poem the King finds out he is not truly in charge, imagine that! I could
go on, but in short, this is a funny, whimsical collection for children and I thoroughly
enjoyed reading them.
Not Gonna Write Poems will appeal to children of all
ages, even those over grown children such as myself. I especially recommend this poetry collection
for all adults who like to read to their children.
I received a free copy from the author in exchange
for my honest review.
We worked on
this book over the span of 3+ years. As
an illustrator, my skills grew tremendously with each new piece we added to the
project. In the end, I illustrated over
60 scenes. It was sometimes hard to keep
myself from going back into a previously finished piece to make a small
adjustment or change based on some new technical skill I had picked up along
the way.
ME: What
emotion are you trying to evoke in the reader?
Without
question we want to bring a sense of joy and delight to the reader. Many of the classic fairy tales have some
darker themes in them, but we wanted to keep the focus on telling positive
stories that made each one of the featured children shine.
ME: What
is the most memorable thing about creating this book?
For me it
would be imagining the looks on the kids’ (and their families’) faces when they
saw the final illustrated scenes featuring them as the main characters. Many of them were posing for their photos in
their classroom or in a home and had no idea what we were about to do to
transport them into these fantasy worlds and situations. Knowing that it would make each one of them
feel like a star is my favorite memory about the process.
ME: Can
you explain how your writing/creative process effected the final product in a
book like this?
Since this book is based on fairy tales, folk tales and
nursery rhymes, the process always began with research. First, I reread stories that I have heard my
entire life, but I went back looking for other details and storytelling
elements that could be worked into the illustrations. I took all kinds of notes, so that once the
illustration was completed, I could then work on a draft for its accompanying Chicago
Pretender newspaper-style article that would fit with the clever twists we
added to tell our versions. It was that
combination of figuring out what details to show in the images and what details
to include in the written story that made them work so well together.
ME: Did
you identify with any one part of this book over others? Why?
Larry Broutman did all of the photography, so I did not
meet any of the children featured in the illustrations I was creating until the
book launch celebration, with one exception.
My niece, MacKenzie, and nephew, Decklyn, are featured in the circus-themed
illustration. Their favorite movie at
the time was The Greatest Showman, so I transformed them into the
trapeze artist and the ringmaster. I
loved being able to include them in this project. They were so excited to show it off to their
teachers and friends.
ME: What was
the most rewarding thing about this project?
There are two
things I found the most rewarding about working on this project. The first is how this book celebrates access
and inclusion for all children, regardless of gender, race or ability. It not only shows the children featured in
the book that anything is possible, it subtly shows readers of the book that
all children are capable of great things.
The other rewarding aspect for me personally was getting to work with
coauthor and photographer Larry Broutman.
This is the fourth book in a series of books Larry has published. It has
been such an incredible experience getting to work with Larry. Through this process, I have come to consider
him a great friend. His kindness, his
philanthropy and his friendship have impacted my life in ways he will never
know.
ME: If an
author/illustrator asked you for advice on a project like this, what would you
tell them?
Do it! This
project has given back to everyone involved in so many ways. The author proceeds from the book are being
donated to The Chicago Lighthouse and Access Living. The children featured have been part of
radio, tv, newspaper and magazine articles.
The families have been touched by how special this made their children
feel. It is spreading a message of
access and inclusion for all. It shines
a positive light on the city of Chicago and reminds everyone that Chicago’s
greatest treasure is its children.
ME: Do you
have any plans to do other similar projects?
Larry has plans for all kinds of future book projects, some of which he is already hard at work on. I myself am working on some ideas I have for my own children’s book pitches.
Rich Green is the illustrator and co-author of newly
released Chicago Treasure. Rich created the Chicago Treasure Lighthouse
sculpture that was displayed during the summer of 2018 on Michigan Avenue as
part of Lighthouses on The Mag Mile and now permanently resides at The Chicago
Lighthouse. Rich also illustrated the A Girl With A Pink Cape series, A Boy
With A Cape, and Niko & Kate. He graduated from Columbia College Chicago
with a BA in Computer Graphics and Animation and interned with Disney. Rich is
the Chicago-Area Illustrators Network Representative for the Society of
Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators and an Executive Board Member of The
Artist Guild of Lockport. His artwork can be found in regional galleries.
This picture book, We Are Grateful: Otsaliheliga by Traci Sorell, honors the Cherokee way of being grateful for the many blessings received. In a sense, it is a celebration of all things Cherokee. The author, being Cherokee herself, has brought her special brand of insight to the views of her people and how they celebrate throughout the year.
It is beautifully illustrated by Frane` Lessac in the folk
art tradition. The colors are vivid, imaginative and want to jump off the page.
You can see that special care was given to each scene depicted in order to make
this book special.
I liked that the text is in both English and in Cherokee and
how the author explained the Cherokee celebrations in such a way that all can
understand. There is really not a plot here. It read more like a commentary,
which I am not faulting, because it is a picture book after all.
This is a lovely picture book for ages 3 to 8 years that is
thoughtfully done. My granddaughter and I have already read it several times
and I think this will be one of her favorites. I highly recommend this to all
young readers.
I received a free copy from the author at BEA in
exchange for my honest opinion.
Heart of Barkness by Spencer Quinn is the continuing story of the Little Detective Agency and is book nine in the series (Chet and Bernie mystery). In this quirky and sometimes humorous mystery which is narrated by Chet (who is the canine part of this crime solving duo), Bernie and his loveable assistant Chet attempt to solve the murder of the manager of an aging country singer. It appears to be cut and dry; but as cases go, it turns out to be much more.
The story opens when Bernie and Chet are invited to hear
Lotty Pilgrim sing at a dive bar on the outskirts of town. Bernie and Chet,
both being fans of country music, decide to leave a generous tip in Lotty’s
jar. Lotty never sees the tip because it
is quickly stolen right out of the jar under everyone’s nose. Chet quickly runs
down the “perp” and Bernie returns it to Lotty only to see it being taken away
by her manager.
Bernie senses something is not right here. He decides to
make an impromptu visit to Lotty. Before he and Chet know it, they are drawn
into the murder case and find that it is rooted deeply in Lotty’s past. Someone
is trying to keep her past buried and another murder is not too high a price to
silence anyone who digs too deep.
Because I have a no spoiler policy, I am going to remain
vague. Instead I would like to talk a little about Chet, my favorite character.
Chet gives a running dialogue of observations and information that the reader
needs to understand what is going on. So it is not necessary to have read any
of the other books in the series. Not only is Chet my favorite, he is spot on
in his observation of humans. The author did a great job here.
The plot was a little slow at the beginning and I was
wondering just where the story was going. Then bam, the murder happens and Bernie
and Chet start working to put the pieces together. The plot picks up and runs
along nicely after that. In addition, there were a few things I was not totally
sure about until near the end and I enjoyed the suspension. Then Chet wraps it
all up nicely for us at the end and he even gets a song written just for him.
Awww….
I would definitely categorize this as a cozy mystery and I
recommend this to anyone who enjoys them. I also think any dog or animal lover
would appreciate the wit and wisdom of Chet. I am looking forward to reading
more about this crime solving duo.
I received an ARC from the publisher in exchange for my honest review.
If you take the worst of mega companies like, Amazon and China’s Alibaba and give them ultimate power you will get The Warehouse. The author, Rob Hart, explores the idea of a dystopian world where one company rules supreme. This story hits so close to home it will make you shudder in horror and give you nightmares.
In the near future, the world is ravaged by global warming,
food shortages, lack of clean water and jobs. Amongst this chaos one company
rules supreme, Cloud. They tout themselves as nothing short of God. But they
have a seedy underbelly that few ever see.
Zinnia has been hired by a wealthy individual, whose
identity she does not know, to infiltrate Cloud so they can be exposed. This will be her most difficult job ever and
the most lucrative, if she can complete it. Once she gets hired, she immediate
starts looking for ways to break through their security. Cloud tracks all its
employees, ALL the time, through a watch. The watch must be worn at all times
and can only be taken off to recharge. She must figure out a way to take the
watch off and not get caught.
The solution lies with Paxton who is already drawn to her.
He is in security and knows things that will help her and he can go places she
can’t. How can she dupe him? If he knows what is truly going on at Cloud, will
he be willing to help her?
The author is obviously drawing parallels between Cloud and
Amazon just as The Circle did with Facebook. As the CEO of Cloud says repeatedly
throughout the book, the market decided. We as consumers want the cheapest
product delivered right to our door yesterday. The company that can do that
will be the winner in the end, not the consumer! The scariest thing about this
book is, the world Hart imagines I can already see beginning to take shape.
The world building was not extensive because it did not need
to be. Yet, what the author described was spot on. It was easy to imagine how
bad things could get when control rests with one person. The pace of the story
was excellent and it never dragged for one minute. Each reveal was thoughtfully
executed so you wanted to reader faster as the story progressed.
The characters were especially well done. Zinnia and Paxton
charters were easy to relate to. Though I must say, I did not like the
character of Paxton because he was too much of a push over. Yet, I think this
is what the author intended. Paxton represents the attitude I see a lot of in
America today, that as long as I am doing OK ignore what is happening elsewhere.
Don’t rock the boat and stand up for what is right.
I remember, in school, reading The Handmaid’s Tale, 1984
and Animal Farm. The Warehouse falls right into the same niche as those. If you
liked them, you need to read this one. In addition, I think this book should be
a must read for everyone. Highly, highly recommend!
I received a free copy from the publisher, via NetGalley, in exchange for my honest review.
Fearless Mary by Tami Charles (illustrated by Claire Almon) is a nonfiction early reader about Mary Fields the first African American Woman to drive a stage coach. It is an incredible story about a larger than life figure that helped pave the way for others of color and women in general.
The story tells how Mary Fields, a former slave, hitched
horses faster than any man to be awarded the job of stage coach driver. It also
gives us a glimpse of what it was like to be a stage coach driver. The daily
challenges Mary would have faced and the pride she took in doing her job.
The whole book was thoughtful done. While it is nonfiction mixed with fiction, the story is presented in such a way that all young readers will enjoy. The illustrations are well done and suit the story nicely. I think most young readers will connect with Mary in some way. We need more role models like her today.
I recommend this book to young readers (6 to 10) who are
interested in the history of the American West and African American history.
The book is appropriate for readers as young as 6; yet, because of the subject
matter some older readers may also enjoy. I think it will especially appeal to
girls because the story has such a positive message about women and women of
color and Mary is such a strong female character that young girls will identify
with.
I received a free copy at BEA from the author in exchange
for my honest review.
Lumber Jills by Alexandra Davis (illustrated by Katie Hickey) is an early/beginning reader book about the British women that filled the lumberjacks’ place during WWII. The prose is lyrical in nature and simple enough for a very early reader. Each page is beautifully illustrated and my favorite part of this book.
While I wished the story contained more history, I am not
the intended audience. This book is meant to show young girls (target age of
5-7) that they can do anything a boy can do. This is a valuable lesson and one
young girls do not hear often enough.
I loved that the book also referenced numbers in several of
the passages. When my granddaughter and I read it together, we counted along
with the story. I also liked that this book invites the child to ask questions.
Because the back page gave a little more history about Lumber Jills, I was able
to answer questions that came up. Kudos
to the author for giving the adult reader that information.
I recommend this book for an early reader because it shows
women in a role other than a princess. I think we have plenty of those kinds of
books already. I for one want all young girls to realize they can do anything
and their gender should not stop them from fulfilling their dreams. By the way,
my granddaughter enjoyed this book!
I received a free copy from the author at BEA in exchange
for my honest opinion.
The Last Romantic
is a compelling story, told retrospectively, from the view point of the
youngest of four siblings. It is a story of the deep binding love shared among
siblings, the things that drive them apart and the guilt for not being
everything that a sibling needs. In addition, it is a profound look at how even
the closest of young siblings can grow apart and how tragedy effects each
differently.
The story opens in the distant future when renowned poet Fiona Skinner is doing a reading. She is asked who the inspiration is for the character of Luna in her famous work titled The Love Poem. She begins by telling of the death of her father when she was a young girl and the subsequent “Pause” as she and her siblings call the period in which her mother withdraws into herself leaving the siblings to fend for themselves.
The Pause leaves deep wounds on each of the siblings, some of which never heal. All the children bear these into adulthood and it effects many aspects of their lives. As Fiona further delves into the story and the individual lives of each sibling, she gets closer and closer to Luna; until, the unlikely connect is revealed between them.
The author, Tara Conklin, has a perceptive eye for all the intricacies of relationships and an even better skill at getting those thoughts into words. This made for some prose that is nothing short of outstanding. Despite the plot being rather slow, the book is so thought provoking I did not mind.
I would also like to note, this book is one of the more
intimate looks into what makes a family, a family. By the end of the book, I understood the
dynamics of the four siblings and how each of their experiences and
personalities effected the others. Also, how each used the strength of the
others, sometime to the others detriment, as a personal well of power or force with
which to face the world.
This book has elements of both Women’s Fiction and Literary
Fiction and at times was very introspective. I recommend this book to those
readers who enjoy books that are reflective in nature. The author brings up a
lot of life issues and because of this it would make an excellent book club
selection.
I received an ARC from the publisher in exchange for my honest opinion.
