Taking Stock - November

I can't believe we are staring down the end of 2018! 

Total Books: 38/ 342
Total Posts: 33
Total Reviews: 15

Challenges:
Debut: 6/ 20
Audio: 12/87
Picture Books: 9/111

The Good: Reading A. Lot. of middle grade fiction for my CYBILS round one judging! 

The Bad: Still have a lot to read for my round one judging! It's all pretty darn good! Also, I blew Picture Book Month! 

The List:

304. An Absolutely Remarkable Thing by Hank Green (11/1)*

305. This is the Day! By Amy Parker (11/1)

306. Bunny’s Staycation (Mama’s Business Trip) by Lori Richmond (11/2)

307. Good Night Bunny by Lauren Thompson (11/3)

308. Rabbit Moon by Jean Kim (11/3)

309. Ivy Aberdeen's Letter to the World by Ashley Herring Blake (11/3)*

310. Sleep, My Bunny by Rosemary Wells (11/4)

311. A Truck Full of Ducks by Ross Burach (11/4)

312. The Little Red Fort by Brenda Maier (11/5)

313. Write to Me: letters from Japanese American Children to the librarian they left behind by Cynthia Grady (11/5)

314. Avalanche Dog Heroes: Piper and friends learn to search the snow by Elizabeth Rusch (11/6)*

315. Squirm by Carl Hiaasen (11/8)*

316. Merci Suarez Changes Gears by Meg Medina (11/8)

317. My Brigadista Year by Katherine Paterson (11/8)

318. If This Were a Story by Beth Turley (11/9)

319. Strongheart by Candace Fleming & Eric Rohmann (11/9)

320. Woodpeckers: drilling holes and bagging bugs by Sneed B. Collard III (11/9)*

321. Interrupting Chicken and the Elephant of Surprise by David Ezra Stein (11/9)*

322. Storm by Sam Usher (11/9)

323. Captain Superlative by J.S. Puller (11/9)

324. SHOUT by Laurie Halse Anderson (11/11)*

325. The Perfect Score by Rob Buyea (11/11)

326. Interrupting Chicken by David Ezra Stein (11/14)

327. The Key to Every Thing by Pat Schmatz (11/14)

328. Daphne Definitely Does Not Do Drama by Tami Charles (11/17)

329. Eliza Bing is (Not) a Star by Carmella Van Vleet (11/17)

330. Bat and the Waiting Game by Elana K. Arnold (11/18)*

331. One True Way by Shannon Hitchcock (11/18)

332. Just Like Jackie by Lindsay Stoddard (11/18)

333. The Wizards of Once by Cressida Cowell (11/20)*

334. The Truth as Told by Mason Buttle (11/22)*

335. The Third Mushroom by Jennifer L. Holm (11/23)

336. Smack Dab in the Middle of Maybe by Jo Watson Hackl (11/24)

337. P. S. I Still Miss You by Jen Petro-Roy (11/25)

338. Dry by Neal Shusterman and Jarrod Shusterman (11/25)*

339. Made by Hand: a crafts sampler by Carole Lexa Schaefer (11/27)

340. Zora and Me: the cursed ground by T. R. Simon (11/30)*

342. Wimpy Kid 13: Meltdown by Jeff Kinney (11/30)

Fact Friday and Review: Avalanche Dog Heroes: Piper and friends learn to search the snow by Elizabeth Rusch

Avalanche Dog Heroes: Piper and friends learn to search the snow by Elizabeth Rusch. 50 p. Little Big Foot/ Sasquatch Books, October, 2018. 9781632171733. (Review of finished purchased copy.)

Let me start right out by saying that this is a terrific book! I'm a dog lover and a skier and admit I was inclined to like it. It was not a problem being objective however. This is a beautifully designed, informative book!

Let's start with the photos. They are crisp, clear, full-color and plentiful from front cover to back. There's at least one on every page showing the dogs (mostly Piper) in training on the mountain. The scenery is gorgeous! There are plenty of text boxes and diagrams to further explain/ illustrate finer points, such as a dog's sense of smell or the anatomy of an avalanche. The narrative is peppy, conversational and informative. Readers learn all about Piper, her canine buddies, her handlers and her day of training. 

Backmatter includes directions for making your own tug toy as well as instructions for training your dog to tug. Resources include books and websites to learn more. An additional page provides an educator's guide for group discussion and activities. 

Avalanche Dog Heroes is a fine addition to any collection. Display it prominently and it won't sit. 

#tbt: The Little Prince by Antoine Saint-Exupéry

The Little Prince 75th Anniversary Edition by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Books for Young Readers, October, 2018. 9781328479754.

#tbt features The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry. This novella was originally published in France in 1943. It is narrated by someone called the Pilot who crash landed in a desert and meets a strange assortment of beings. It is supposedly the most widely translated (300 languages) and best selling book of all time. It has been adapted for film, as well as a graphic novel and pop-up book. Tragically, the author, who was also an aviator was shot down over the African front in 1944. He was forty-four-years-old.

Waiting on Wednesday: Give and Take by Elly Swartz

Give and Take by Elly Swartz. 176 p. Farrar, Straus & Giroux BYR, October 15, 2019. 9780374308216.

Publisher synopsis: When eleven-year-old Maggie's parents become foster parents for a new baby, her tendency to hoard spirals out of control.

I absolutely adored this author's debut and sophomore titles. Finding Perfect and Smart Cookie and am so-o excited for this!

Teen Tuesday and Audiobook Review: Dry by Neal Shusterman and Jarrod Shusterman

Dry by Neal Shusterman and Jarrod Shusterman. Unabridged audiobook on nine compact discs. ~11 hours. Performed by the authors, Jenni Barber, Noah Galvin, Michael Crouch, Kivilighan de Montebello and Candace Thaxton. Simon & Schuster Audio, 2018. 9781508263081. (Review of audio cd borrowed from public library. Own hc.)

Teen Tuesday features Dry by Neal Shusterman and Jarrod Shusterman. This gripping novel is told in present tense from multiple perspectives and takes place in a scarily possible near future in southern California. Water shortages have caused farms to fail and lawns and pools to go dry; but one day, without warning, it stops flowing. At first, residents take it in stride and pile into their cars for a trip to Costco. But when seemingly plentiful cartons of bottled water can't be obtained, ordinary people, when desperate do despicable things. And, that is only the beginning. Not only will reading this make you terribly thirsty, you may want to start hoarding bottles of water the way that the book, Life as We Knew It by Susan Beth Pfeffer made the reader want to stock up on canned goods. As the copy asks, what would you do for the last drop of water?

This was a seat-of-your-pants read! One which, if you are reading with your eyes, you might read in one tense sitting. If you are reading with your ears, as I was, it made a marathon raking session fly by. The audio performances were fantastic. The five points-of-view weave seamlessly with each other and occasional "snapshots," narrated by the authors. Boy, does Michael Crouch have that creepy guy vibe nailed.

Dry is a must-read! Recommend it to everyone possible. Definitely hand it to teens to love apocalyptic stories like Pfeffer's Life as We Knew It series. It's timely and oh so possible.

Middle Grade Monday and Audiobook Review: The Third Mushroom by Jennifer L. Holm

The Third Mushroom by Jennifer L. Holm. Unabridged downloadable audiobook. ~3 hours. Read by Georgette Perna. Listening Library, September, 2018. 9780525636168. (Review of audiobook borrowed from public library. Own hc.)

This sequel/ companion to The Fourteenth Goldfish was a pleasant read. It was great to revisit Ellie and her irascible grandfather, Melvin. I just love a smart mc, especially a girl who unabashedly loves science. I also love how fascinating science history is woven into the narrative and spelled out at the end of the story! 

Melvin moves back in just in time to team up with Ellie for the science fair. While he's still a bit outrageous and still stinks, Melvin might be mellowing. Ellie also may developing feelings for her best friend, Raj and the feelings may be mutual? She and Brianna might work things out as well. 

Ellie's engaging voice sounds conversational in this gentle story of friendship, family and science. The dialogue was often humorous in that unique middle school way. Chapters are short and the book flies by. That the audiobook narrator sounded appropriately young added to the pleasure of listening.

Fans of The Fourteenth Goldfish will love this sequel.  

What's New? Stacking the Shelves

Stacking the Shelves is a weekly meme hosted by Tynga's Reviews. Hop on over there to ogle what other bloggers got this week.

For review:

Curse of the Evil Librarian by Michell Knudsen. 314 p. Candlewick Press, August, 2019. 9780763694272.

Not much is out there yet. I read the first and have the second on my mountain of books to be read. 

The Three Rules of Everyday Magic by Amanda Rawson Hill.192 p. Boyds Mills Press/ Highlights, September, 2018. 9781629799407.

Publisher synopsis: Magic doesn't work the way you think it will, but it's what Kate needs as she confronts friendship trouble, her parents' divorce, and Grammy's dementia in this lyrical middle-grade coming-of-age novel for fans of Half a Chance and The Same Stuff as Stars.

Kate has trouble believing in magic, especially since the people she loves keep leaving her. But when Grammy tells her the three rules of everyday magic--believe, give, and trust--Kate can't resist believing, at least a little. Following Grammy's advice, she tries to bring her father, her best friend, and even Grammy herself back to her. Nothing turns out as Kate expects, yet the magic of giving--of trusting that if you love and give, good things will happen, even if you don't see them happen--will change Kate and her family forever. 

Made by Hand: a crafts sampler by Carole Lexa Schaefer. Illustrated by Becca Stadtlander. 48 p. Candlewick Press, October, 2018. 9780763674335.

Publisher synopsis: A beautiful, one-of-a-kind volume invites readers to marvel at the time, effort, and care that went into creating handmade toys, tools, and treasures of the past.

Whirr, buzz, hum. Before busy machines in factories turned out most of what we need and use, people crafted these items by hand. From a globe to a pie crimper, a butter churn to a rocking horse, this unique collection highlights fourteen one-of-a-kind objects — each one drafted, stitched, painted, or engraved by hand. Author Carole Lexa Schaefer draws inspiration from real historical artifacts to create thirteen short works of fiction, imagining the hands that might have made and used each item. Several artifacts can be traced to their origin, while others remain complete mysteries, making for a fascinating patchwork of fact, guesswork, and imagination. Illustrator Becca Stadtlander breathes color and charm into this handmade history, bringing to life the different objects, people, and times. The result is a singular glimpse of everyday objects and treasures alike — back when such things were made by hand.

Purchased:

The Orphan Band of Springdale by Anne Nesbet. Unabridged audiobook on one MP3 CD. 9 hours, 40 minutes. Read by Kate Rudd. Candlewick on Brilliance Audio. 2018. 9781543687477.

Publisher synopsis: It's 1941, and tensions are rising in the United States as the Second World War rages in Europe. Eleven-year-old Gusta's life, like the world around her, is about to change. Her father, a foreign-born labor organizer, has had to flee the country, and Gusta has been sent to live in an orphanage run by her grandmother. Nearsighted, snaggletoothed Gusta arrives in Springdale, Maine, lugging her one precious possession: a beloved old French horn, her sole memento of her father. But in a family that's long on troubles and short on money, how can a girl hang on to something so valuable and yet so useless when Gusta's mill-worker uncle needs surgery to fix his mangled hand, with no union to help him pay? Inspired by her mother's fanciful stories, Gusta secretly hopes to find the coin-like "Wish" that her sea-captain grandfather supposedly left hidden somewhere. Meanwhile, even as Gusta gets to know the rambunctious orphans at the home, she feels like an outsider at her new school — and finds herself facing patriotism turned to prejudice, alien registration drives, and a family secret likely to turn the small town upside down.

The Cursed Ground by T.R. Simon. Zora and Me series. Unabridged audiobook on one MP3-CD. 6 hours, 6 minutes. Read by  Channie Waites. Candlewick on Brilliance Audio. 9781978644694.

Publisher synopsis: When Zora Neale Hurston and her best friend, Carrie Brown, discover that the town mute can speak after all, they think they’ve uncovered a big secret. But Mr. Polk’s silence is just one piece of a larger puzzle that stretches back half a century to the tragic story of an enslaved girl named Lucia. As Zora’s curiosity leads a reluctant Carrie deeper into the mystery, the story unfolds through alternating narratives. Lucia’s struggle for freedom resonates through the years, threatening the future of America’s first incorporated black township — the hometown of author Zora Neale Hurston (1891–1960). In a riveting coming-of-age tale, award-winning author T. R. Simon champions the strength of a people to stand up for justice.

If you leave a comment, I will definitely stop by and try to comment back - unless commenters have to sign onto Discus or whatever that's called. But I will check out your stack!