Weekly Low Down on Kids Books 7/25/12
Title: But Who Will Bell the Cats?
Author: Cynthia Von Buhler
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin
In 2009, I distinctly remember coming across an ad for this book (maybe from my days of stalking shelfari for hours on end). I sat clicking though the website (click book cover and it will take you there) thinking it was so cool and eerie. Finally, this year – this month actually – I had the pleasure of reading But Who Will Bell the Cats? to my kiddo. It is so wonderful.
Based on an Aesop’s Fable, But Who Will Bell the Cats? follows the adventures of a mouse and bat as they try to get bells around the necks of the royal princess’s eight cats. If they could hear the cats approaching, there would be more freedoms and amenities available to them around the palace, they would no longer be confined to the cellar in fear.
The story is a lovely twist on a classic dilemma with beautiful and riveting images not limited by your typical 2D art. Von Buhler has made real sets for paper dolls and photographed them, making the art fascinating, unique, and a little bit intense:
In addition to having written this story, I was also the painter, sculptor, interior decorator, mason, gardener, and plumber of the sets. The rooms were built by hand from wood. The stone walls were formed from plaster. The floors are handmade from inlaid wood, mother-of-pearl, and plaster. The characters were painted in oils on gessoed paper, then cut out and placed in the sets. I photographed the scenes with a Nikon D300.
– Cynthia Von Buhler
(Browse through each part of the castle/book and how it was made: http://butwhowillbellthecats.blogspot.com/2008/06/portraits.html)
We love it, and it is a great story to read right before nap time (due to the length on each page, you really need a settled kiddo to hold their attention if they are under two). For older kids, the website offers all sorts of activities and games to tie into the book, including printable paper dolls, like the ones used to make the book! Visit: http://butwhowillbellthecats.com/lookinside.html
Title: The Wishing Star
Author: M. Christina Butler
Illustrator: Frank Endersby
Publisher: Little Tiger Press
Today at the story time at Half Price Books in Humble, a little girl picked this title out for me to read. We all enjoyed it so much, her mother bought it before leaving the store.
Endersby’s art work is so lovely and eye-catching. Reminiscent of the Rainbow Fish 
Together, they created magic.
City of Fallen Angels and Lilith Lore
Lilith in Atrology, click to read more
*Spoilers*
I sat down with City of Fallen Angels over a week ago, but just finished it this morning. The first half was hard for me to get into, having the melodrama equivalent of The Twilight Saga’s New Moon
I have many interests, and though I tend to purchase books sporadically, when reading through my TBR’s I’d like to think that I do it with a little finesse, with purpose. Years ago, I did a brief research day on Lilith, spawned from a conversation I had with someone completely convinced that Adam from Genesis had two wives. I was startled that someone would think this and wanted to get to the root of it all, and spent my astonishment reading through websites, encyclopedias, and other reference material. I have days like this, spent on a particular topic, often. Mostly I end up purchasing things to read later. Who would have thought that Cassandra Clare’s Mortal Instruments
So I plucked The Book of Lilith
The most confusing thing about Lilith (that Koltuv sorts out for the reader well) is all the contradictions embodied in her. She is supposed to be the first wife of Adam, equal to him being brought up from the dust like him, rather than a submissive form pulled from his bones. Yet, she is also a she-demon, according to many as powerful as God, equal but opposite. Some say she is God’s concubine, some say she is Lucifer’s current wife, but still Adam’s ex. She is often linked or married to the King of the Demons known as Samael. Sometimes Samael is thought to be equal to Lucifer, and sometimes he is thought to be Lucifer’s version of Adam, his own creation. All the mythology overlaps making Lilith a strange, cloudy line between humanity and Satan, but always the opposite of Truth, Goodness, and Steadfastness in every way. These characters are full of secrets and lies, evil, and are ever changing according to the story tellers grasp and manipulation. One would expect nothing less from those who are supposed to counter balance God.
Lilith in History, click to view a concise but informative website
The most consistent version of Lilith is that she is a succubus for men, and “for women she is the dark shadow of the Self that is married to the devil” (Koltuv). Like Cassandra Clare’s character in City of Fallen Angels, she is a baby killer and is known as the goddess of dead children, Clare uses this concept as a cult inadvertently kill their offspring via demon blood while trying to please her.
So tied to feminism and the uterus, people also believe that she is ever linked to women in the form of the curse of our menstrual cycle. Tethered to our raging hormones, sexuality, and PMS. This line of thinking eventually made possible the transition of Lilith of evil she-demon to a goddess and Feminist icon/idol. It is amazing that this mythical creature has managed to be so many things (even a screeching night owl and a Leviathan)! Some of the discrepancies can be attributed to the idea of there being two Liliths: a Grandmother Lilith (married to Samael) and a Maiden Lilith (married to a dark prince of demons, Ashmodai).
I find it all rather fascinating. Throughout history people have linked Lilith to hundreds of stories, and though I don’t belive any of them as fact (I personally plop her right in there with Zeus, Athena, and Buffy the Vampire Slayer), I find the use of her in fiction pretty riveting.
A Southern Saturday at Half Price Books
Make plans for Saturday, July 28th!
Southern summer sun beating down on you?
Need an escape?
Take a trip to northeast Texas and the land of pine trees and red dirt roads in Josephine: Red Dirt and Whiskey. Set in the Great Depression, travel with Josephine on her late night adventures as she tries to find the elusive and forbidden Ethan.
Want to travel a little further?
Try post-Civil War Kentucky and meet Nelson McGinnis and Cora Ross as they get to know each other and come to terms with their attraction that will change their lives forever in Nelson and Cora – The Beginning. The McGinnis family are Confederate supporters and the Ross family are loyal Unionists. Each family hides dark secrets that will come to light as you get to know Nelson and Cora.
Prefer a little more modern travel?
The Green Bayou series set in south Louisiana may be just the ticket for your literary vacation.
Come on in to Half Price Books at Humble on July 28, from 1-3 PM, for a Southern Saturday. Escape the heat and dive into a Southern Fiction novel.
Come meet Melinda McGuire, author of Josephine: Red Dirt and Whiskey and Nelson and Cora – The Beginning, along with Rhonda Dennis author of the Green Bayou Series.
Enter to win a book bundle, signed posters, bookmarks, coffee mugs and more.
There may even be cookies!
– Melinda MCGuire
For Women Only – A Review
Title: For Women Only
Author: London Tracy
Publisher: New Hope Books
Genre: Self-Help, Health, Homeopathic
Length: 85 pages
I have to admit when I first saw the cover, a bit of dread came over me. A self-help title on depression. Give me memoirs about manic depressive women and I’m riveted, self-help, not so much. But it was 80-some-odd pages, no biggie, easy cheesy. I was tempted to procrastinate, the author didn’t expect me to post a review immediately after all, just within 3 weeks as per my Review Policy. I am SO GLAD I didn’t put this book off!
For Women Only: A Novel Approach to Depression in Women is short, sweet, wonderfully concise and to the point. London Tracy tells you what you need to know and who to talk to to get more information. Having had bouts of depression and fatigue myself, I appreciated that Tracy wrote this book specifically for the person suffering from the problems being addressed. While suffering from depression, one isn’t very likely to commit themselves to a lengthy and overly wordy explanation of how to deal with their issues. They want an answer. They want that answer now. A listless person can only handle reading chapters a page and a half long in an 85 page book. Tracy’s work is perfect.
Even if you don’t think you suffer from depression, this report is worth 30-45 minutes of your time. It is very informative and may prepare you for issues you might not otherwise know might be coming up in your future. I called my sister twice to share factoids and lists with her that I came across while reading, just little things that every woman should be made aware.
This is a quick women’s health guide for ladies from their 20’s on through menopause. When I open a Kung Fu studio (hopefully, one day, in my perfect dream world) there will be a member’s library, where resources and reference material both on health and martial arts will be available for students to browse. I plan to keep this book in that library. It could help someone in a major way one day.
My Life in Literature Meme
A fun little exercise, taken from Becky’s Book Reviews, as well as A Room of Ones Own.
Using only books you have read this year (2012), answer these questions. Try not to repeat a book title.
Describe yourself: Treasure
How do you feel: Human Happiness
Describe where you currently live: The House of Mirth
If you could go anywhere, where would you go: The Planets
Your favorite form of transportation: The Mystery of the Blue Train
Your best friend is: Voice of Conscience
You and your friends are: Of Mice and Men
What is the best advice you have to give: How to Buy a Love of Reading
What’s the weather like:City of Ashes
You fear: The Map of Time
Thought for the day: Just Breathe
How I would like to die:Roast Mortem
My soul’s present condition: Dragonfly in Amber
A Rainy Day With the Olympics
Gabby Douglas, Winner of the U.S. Olympic Team Trials 2012
Bright and early this morning, I went to my best friend’s house to watch the Olympic Trials (old news, we were watching what we missed of the Women’s Gymnastics Team Trials on the DVR). It had been pouring down rain most the night and well into the morning, keeping my sweet baby asleep much longer than usual. So by the time I was heading over for some Olympic goodness, kiddo still cozy in her pajamas, the streets were quite flooded. It was a delightful morning, sipping coffee, hanging out, watching the best athletes in the country do their thing. It set me up for my whole day.
First, while watching Gabby Douglas rock day two and Sarah Finnegan do that fancy beam skill she shares with Terin Humphrey (Click to see the awesome beam skill I’m talking about: Sarah, Terin), I heard a commentator say something that got me pretty curious about Olympic rules and regulations I wasn’t familiar with already. They were talking about how young Sarah was. Young? I thought. Dominque Moceanu was young. This girl is normal… right? Nope, not anymore.
Dominique Moceanu was the youngest to win nationals at 13. She was allowed to compete because she would turn 15 during the Olympic year, which means she was actually 14 during the summer Olympics when the Magnificent Seven awed the world. That was 1996. In 1997 the rules were changed. Instead of gymnasts being required to turn 15 in the Olympic year, the eminent “they” that makes important Olympic rules added an extra year to that requirement, and now girls must be 16 (or turning 16). So Dominique Moceanu will remain the youngest for quite sometime, because it will be impossible for any equally talented 13-year-old to even have the same chances to prove themselves. In addition to that, there are rumors that the age may be increased to 18! I, personally, am not a fan of these rules. Yes, our children should be protected, but I think there is a higher risk of injury for training that intensely after an athlete has peaked. No, I was never an Olympian, but I am very familiar with peaking as an athlete and then things going downhill from there, no matter how hard you train.
Of course, I discovered all this and formed all these opinions today during kiddo’s nap time, while also polishing off my assigned reading for the day:
Title: The Naked Olympics
Author: Tony Perrottet
Publisher: Random House
Genre: Sports, Ancient History
Length: 214 pages
Perrottet takes an already fascinating subject and presents it in the form of riveting history. I was surprised how much detail had been discovered regarding the ancient games, and was impressed at how well Perrottet presents it step by step, without leaving anything out. There were so many things included in the games back then, beauty contests, poetry readings; it wasn’t just for athletes, it was an all out ancient world pagan party honoring Zeus and Eros. A lot of this information (though it makes perfect sense and fits right in with what I already knew about the times) was new to me.
I was fascinated by how often names I knew popped up in the commentary… Plato, Socrates, Herodotus… I didn’t expect them at the Olympic games! I also was ignorant of the role the Nazi’s played in our modern view of today’s Olympics, and the lighting of the torch. An interesting tidbit about the Nazis being so fascinated with Sparta kept popping up, along with tales that put shivers up my spine.
Regardless of the Olympic Games origins and history, and how much of it goes against my personal world view and moral standing, I still find the Olympics wonderful. Should you purposely breed Olympians? No. But if someone has the drive and talent and has a passion for it, competing in the Olympics is a beautiful dream and an awesome thing to behold.
Perrottet has done a great job portraying the Olympics for what they are, presenting a well-rounded quick study of the origins of an event which everyone is already familiar. As I plan to educate kiddo classically, I think this would make a fun optional read during the summer games when she hits her teens. I see us doing what we did today, eating tomato, avocado, honey mustard, parmesan cheese sandwiches on toasted wheat, sipping coffee, watching the trials, and doing some research. It could be a fun study/ study break from regular school assignments.
Now Time to Detox
The other night I finished City of Glass
Sigh. I feel as though I can rest and breathe now. The series isn’t over, but the ending of City of Glass serves for a solid intermission. Well done, Cassandra Clare, well done. If you have been following my blog this last week, there is not much more I can share regarding my feelings about this series. Pure cotton candy for the intelligent teen, it is lovely and exciting. However, I need a little detox after all that sugar before I dive back in with books 4, 5 and the 2nd of The Infernal Devices: Clockwork Prince.
So, my intentional break until the weekend (when I plan to whole-heartedly go on another bender) is a steady diet of meat. I’ve been leisurely reading through Merchant Kings
The Naked Olympics
Who else is down for a mind and body detox? Grab a good book, mix yourself some vitamin water (http://www.food.com/recipe/homemade-vitamin-water-479989) and don’t shower until you’ve done 50 jumping jacks, 30 crunches, 20 pushups, all your stances for at least 30 seconds each (if you’re in martial arts), and had a good long stretch!
Here’s another earn your shower workout routine, and may I note that its been a good long while since I looked anything like this lady – man, she’s awesome. http://www.bodyrock.tv/2010/02/12/earn-your-shower-workout/
Review: Suite Francaise
I don’t think anyone can truly appreciate this book until they know the following: When Nemirovsky was writing the book she originally meant it to be five parts, but she only finished two: Storm in June and Dolce, these two parts are what makes up Suite Francaise. These five parts though, were each individually fashioned (in writing style) after the five parts of Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony. Storm in June’s chapters are short and sweet, choppy, slightly repetitious in nature. Dolce is a little more long-winded and flowing. Imagine the beauty of the completed work, if she had lived to finish it. Without this critical information I was irritated by her repetition. I thought perhaps it hadn’t been through the proper editing because she died before the novel was completed. But listening to Beethoven and knowing what she was fashioning this all after, putting the war in terms of music, within a novel. Its beautifully fascinating. What made her think of it? How wonderful would the entire book have been had she lived to complete it? The story was interesting and the writing good, but for some reason I just didn’t enjoy it as much as I think I should have. I expected this to be a four or five-star book for me, easily, based on reviews and whatnot. Instead, I just liked it, and was far more fascinated by the appendices at the end. I loved her notes and journal entries, it was so amazing to be inside her head for those brief moments.
Book Title:Suite Francaise
Author: Irene Nemirovsky
Original Publication Date: 2004 (written in 1942)
Edition Read: 2006 Knopf
Total Pages: 395
Genre: Classic Historical Fiction
Reason Read: Found on Amazon as a gift for my mother; she gave thumbs up as did Sandy, neither of whom steer me wrong
Rating: 5 out of 5 Stars
“He wanted to write a story about these charming little horses, a story that would evoke this day in July, this land, this farm, these people, the war – and himself.
“He wrote with a chewed-up pencil stub, in a little notebook which he hid against his heart. He felt he had to hurry: something inside him was making him anxious, was knocking on an invisible door.” – Page 179
If you love lyrical prose and character development, I highly recommend this enjoyable book. I really loved this book the farther along I went…
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Indulging My Latest Addiction
*Spoilers!*
Title: City of Ashes
Author: Cassandra Clare
Publisher: McElderry Books
Genre: Young Adult, Paranormal
Length: 453 pages
My obsession for these books goes against every fiber of my being, but I love them. I blew through City of Ashes in just a few hours and am pausing to write this review against the deep urge to blow it off and just start the next book. But the kiddo is napping and my blog is being neglected, so I have no excuse, and will sit and spout off a few thoughts before I move onto City of Glass.
First of all, the Jace and Clary business hasn’t been resolved yet and my impatient self likes to get past the angst and the romance and on with the war. It’s that deep inner girly desire to lunge head on into adventure *with* the love of my life, rather than struggling with all the defining the relationship business. I was never good at that, I married my best friend and soul mate after years of waiting for him. The angsty waiting should be reserved for books like Persuasion, for me, not warrior demon-slaying sagas. That’s probably what hooks me with Diana Gabaldon’s Outlander Series, Jamie and Clare are married. I get why that’s not applicable for a young adult series though.
Second, and mostly notable because its fresh on my mind (being in the epilogue), I love the Harry Potter reference. It is fantastic. Although, the subject matter puts this series in the sub-genre of Meyer’s Twilight Series, I find it more comparable to Harry Potter or the wonderful works of Robin McKinley. There’s a fine line, but it makes a huge difference. For those who read McKinley’s Sunshine as an adult, and perhaps read the Hero and the Crown, these books will suck you in.
Third… well, actually, I’m done here, I have more reading to do!
The Part Where I Admit I’m a Sucker…
…for any book cover featuring a gentleman in a top hat.
Title: Clockwork Angel
Author: Cassandra Clare
Publisher: McElderry Books
Genre: Young Adult, Paranormal, Steampunk
Length: 478 pages
I am very skeptical when it comes to current popular young adult titles. Anything published in the aftermath of the Twilight Saga makes me pretty inclined to doubt that the story will be anything but unequivocal crap. In fact, when I first saw the covers of Cassandra Clare’s original series The Mortal Instruments (City of Ashes, City of Bones, etc.), I had no interest whatsoever in the nearly naked teens displayed on the front cover in all their thin, muscled perfection. Clockwork Angel, on the other hand, the first in the prequel series The Infernal Devices taunted me for months. This front cover is still shimmery and radiates young adult paranormal pop culture crap, but the teen isn’t naked, he’s in full on Victorian era attire, coat, top hat, the whole shebang. I was torn. How did they know they would suck me in like this? How did Cassandra Clare know that this book was basically screaming at me: YOU, You pompous, self-righteous, book snob, YOU, try to NOT read THIS one!
I rebelled. I refused. It continuously called my name. And if it hadn’t been for 1) S. Smith renewing my faith in *new* young adult fiction with Seed Savers and 2) Felix J. Palma enchanting me with a love hate relationship with The Map of Time (that a. ended in love and b. also featured a somewhat shiny top hatted man on the front cover), my rebellion would have won out and in turn I would have lost out.
Cassandra Clare, if you are reading this, I loved Clockwork Angel. I didn’t want to, because I’m a book snob, but you won me over, with – of all things – book love.
Clockwork Angel is a little bit paranormal, a little bit steam punk, a whole lot of adventure, and even more book worship. Clare’s characters are well read in all my Victorian and pre-Victorian favorites. No matter how predictable or typical they behave, they win me over every time with their references to Jane Eyre, Wuthering Heights, A Tale of Two Cities, countless poets, and more. The feelings are that of typical teens without over exaggerating the melodrama. And the adventure and fight scenes are just down right fun. How do you pass up automatons, vampires, warlocks, and gadgets? You can’t, especially when its been so long since the vampires have actually been bad guys, not sparkling, cheesy love interests. Thank you Clare, for putting those vamps in their place. In Clockwork Angel we know they are bad guys, dangerous, but they don’t over run the story… it’s not entirely about them, they’re just part of the landscape… Thank God.
Now, of course, I have the entire Mortal Instruments series sitting on my end table to be read, despite their front covers. I’m suckered, I’m hooked, I have to know the whole story.
End Note: I’d put Clare’s writing at about a 6th-7th grade level, content probably for a 14+ but I’d have no problem letting anyone younger read it because there’s nothing inappropriate or anything, it just might take a slightly older child to catch all the literature references.
Anakalian Whims 