Anne of Green Gables

Anne of Green Gables

by L. M. Montgomery

(YP AD FIC MONTGOMERY)

I read somewhere that July marked the 100th anniversary of the original publication of Anne of Green Gables, so I decided to listen to this dramatization. What makes this audio a dramatization rather than an audiobook is that the script has been re-worked from the original text, so that instead of an oral reading the audio is like a verbal play with different actors and actresses playing each of the different characters.

While I was listening to this audio, I found myself laughing everywhere I drove. The actress who voiced Anne, portrayed her character as full of enthusiasm and dramatics while still sincere and conscientious. The supporting cast were equally talented, and I found that I enjoyed listening to the Canadian accents. The audio is short, only 2 hours and 30 minutes making this a sweet treat.

Three Little Words: A Memoir by Ashley Rhodes-Courter

Ashley Rhodes-Courter was Ashley Rhodes, living in the United States’ foster care system from the age of three until her adoption at age 12. Her mom was not the best of mothers, a teenager who was arrested for passing a check stolen by her boyfriend. Her mother’s arrest precipitated Ashley’s entrance into foster care in Florida, and even though her mother was released, she was declared too destitute to get her children back, Ashley and Ashley’s half brother Luke. Ashley gives us her memories of different placements, which include an interlude of some months leaving Florida to live with her maternal grandfather and his girlfriend in South Carolina. While the girlfriend gives both children loving care, the grandfather has issues with violence and alcohol which eventually cause Ashley and Luke to go back to foster care. Altogether, Ashley lives in nine different placements, sometimes with and sometimes without her brother. Through Ashley’s eyes, you see even well-meaning case workers making no attempt to explain developments to a child in the system, and see some foster parents working the system for their own benefit, including one foster “mother” enjoying punishing both physically and mentally the children entrusted to her care. When children want to get help in these situations, they are often afraid to speak for fear of retribution by the foster parents. I especially liked Ashley’s account of her adoption and subsequent developments with her adoptive family. Written ten years after being adopted, her straightforward narration of her struggles to adapt to a secure situation speaks for itself and gives unique insight into her emotional adjustment.

Deep Down Popular

Deep Down Popular

by Phebe Stone

(YP FIC STONE)

Jessie Lou is part tom-boy and part wild child, but the one thing she is not is popular. Conrad Parker is popular though. He's the most popular kid at their school and a soccer star at their small school, that is until his leg is injured and he has to start wearing a brace. Suddenly Conrad is unpopular, but Jessie Lou, who has always liked Conrad, doesn't care. She still likes him anyway. Then their teacher asks Jessie Lou to help Conrad take his things home from school. Gradually they, along with Quentin--a fourth grader, become friends as they try to solve a local mystery. When Conrad is selected for a special operation that could heal his leg, Jessie Lou is afraid that she will lose her new friend.

This simple story of friendship and crushes is told in an almost lyrical fashion. The small town, country setting is beautifully captured throughout, as are the several outlandish characters, such as Jessie Lou's mischievious grandfather and the rascally Quentin. Stone does an exceptional job of capturing the attitudes and typical behaviors of sixth graders.

Kissing Brendan Callahan

Kissing Brendan Callahan

by Susan Amesse

J FIC AMESSE

Sarah is determined to be a great writer just like her idol the romance writer, Antonia DeMarco. However, Sarah's mother keeps upsetting her plans. First her mother gives the job of summer intern at the local paper to Sarah's arch rival. Her mother hires a snoopy nanny. Then her mother makes Sarah work with Brendan, the jerk, preparing for a local fair. And if all that weren't bad enough, her mother plans a writing contest that she won't let Sarah enter. When Sarah finds out that Antonia is going to judge the writing contest, she is over the moon. Her friend Brendan, who maybe isn't such a jerk after all, encourages her spunkyness and helps her deal with the problems that Antonia creates for Sarah.

Despite the title, this book is as much about mother-daughter relationships as it is about first kisses. The first kisses though are very sweet. Sarah is a fun and imaginative character. Each of the supporting characters has something to contribute both in the way of entertainment and in helping Sarah. Loved the slogans for Brendan's T-shirts!

His Majesty’s Dragon (Book 1 – Temeraire Series) by Naomi Novik

Ms. Novik started this series back in 2006, and is still going strong with book five, coming out in July 2008. The book is set during the Napoleonic wars, and it is alternative history/fantasy, because in this universe the history is given a new twist – with dragons existing and even being used in warfare by England and other European nations. Will Laurence is a Captain in the British Navy, but his station changes when his ship captures a French ship carrying a dragon’s egg. Dragons are matched at birth with their “trainers” and the fledging dragon chooses Laurence. Now he’s forced to become a member of the British Aerial Corp, but he finds his new status more than acceptable once he realizes what it’s like to be a dragon trainer, an “aviator”. Although the flying is exciting, Laurence’s principal gain is finding out how creative and endearing dragons actually are, and soon he can’t imagine being without Temeraire, as he has named him. Novik does a wonderful job of sustaining our interest both in Temeraire’s development and in the plot, which is predictable only in its unpredictability. I am hooked on the series, having started on Book 3, and am now reading them in order. Novik is enamored of history, particularly this period, and has woven the details of dragon warfare to mesh skillfully with the actual mechanics of war at that time. I’d love to hear from others regarding your reaction to the series.

Airhead

Airhead

By Meg Cabot

(YP FIC CABOT)


Em Watts is an online gaming geek. She and her best friend Christopher, geeky but cute, despise the fashion obsessed contingent of their school's population. Em's point of view changes drastically after she is hit by a plasma TV at a record signing. When she wakes up a month later, she knows right away that something is different. Her voice is different for a start, then her sister keeps looking at Em like she doesn't know her. But what is really unusual is when celebrities, like socialite Lulu Collins and hottie musician Gabriel Luna, sneak into her hospital room to talk to her. And why do they keep calling her Nikki?

Meg Cabot took on several heavy subjects, such as medical and business ethics, and made a story that is fun and thought provoking. Airhead is the first in a series, and it is a good thing too, since Em's story takes on enough issues here for a half dozen books at least. Em is a down-to-earth character who talks tough and uses big words, but who also genuinely cares for the people around her and is smart enough to quickly understand what is happening--one of my favorite traits in a character. Her lack of reaction to the changes in her life is somewhat puzzling, but it is also consistent in how she deals with her snarky younger sister. The cliffhanger ending has me dying for the next book in the series, which is due out this time next year.

Found

Found

Missing Series, Bk 1

Margaret Peterson Haddix

J SF Haddix

It's Angela's first day on the job, when a plane mysteriously appears at the arrivals gate of an airport. She doesn't find a pilot or any crew onboard, instead all she finds are babies, thirty-six, one on each seat.

Thirteen years later, Jonah is hanging out with his new friend, Chip, when he gets a mysterious letter that says, "You are one of the missing." Jonah already knows that his parents adopted him, so he assumes the letter is a prank. When Chip gets the same letter and finds out that day that he too was adopted, the joke gets less funny. A phone number for an FBI agent adds to the creepiness. Against his better judgement, Jonah gets pulled into the mystery of who he is and what the strange letters mean.

From the beginning, this book was intriguing. I can't wait to see what the other books bring. Jonah, Chip and Katherine, Jonah's sister are fun together. Katherine's enthusiasm frequently provides an interesting contrast to Jonah's worry and concern. The premise is an interesting one, and the motives at least seem very plausible. (I don't know enough about the science to comment.)

I'm devestated that I have to wait a whole year for the next book! In the mean time, I think I'll reread this one. A great summer read!