Polly and the Pirates volume 2: Mystery of the Dragonfish by Ted Naifeh, illustrated by Robbi Rodriguez

I loved the original Polly and the Pirates and although it's not as popular as Courtney Crumrin, I've not regretted adding it to our collection. It's sad, odd, beautiful, and hilarious, just like most of Naifeh's work.

I was excited when I heard there was finally going to be a second volume, shocked when I found out it would have a different illustrator, reluctant to try it, and finally determined to give it a fair shot.

I didn't like it, and I'm not just saying that because of the new illustrator. I didn't like Naifeh's script either. Rodriguez' illustrations don't have the exquisite shading techniques of Naifeh's art. His art is much more reminiscent of manga styles with lots of fine lines and brushstrokes. I hate this, since it means I can't tell the characters apart (yeah, I probably need new glasses, but my place of employment, excellent in many areas as it is, does not run to the heights of vision insurance).

I missed Polly's doll-like look and the style of the original volume. (I don't universally dislike Rodriguez, I own all the volumes of Maintenance and I like his work there, but it's much cleaner and less cluttered). I also missed the coherence. While I expect a certain amount of mystical drift from Naifeh, Mystery of the Dragonfish is hardly a mystery, since it has few identifiable characters, clues, or a plot. There are mysterious machinations, political ruminations, and about halfway through it's like the author suddenly said, "oh yeah, there's supposed to a plot, um...yeah...let's throw in some secret plans or something."

Verdict: I was disappointed. Others might not be, especially if they prefer the more manga-style art of Rodriguez and like the weird convolutions of Naifeh's "plot". However, the first volume isn't so popular at my library that I feel justified in purchasing the second. I'm expending my Naifeh budget on the colored volumes of Courtney Crumrin.

ISBN: 9781934964736; Published January 2012 by Oni Press; Borrowed from the library

Nonfiction Monday: The Plant Hunters by Anita Silvey

I've complained about how hard it is to find easy nonfiction to read aloud, and now I'm going to lament the lack of really booktalkable (yes, that's a word. As of right now) nonfiction for the middle grade crowd. Specifically for sixth grade, since that's mainly the group I do booktalks for.

The books have to be long enough and formatted so they don't look like "books for little kids" (which is a huge problem since most nonfiction books are formatted to look like extra-thick picture books) but they also can't have "too many words". They have to have a hook so I can booktalk them quickly and easily. I'm picky, but so are the sixth graders!

This one is an unlikely choice, but as soon as I started reading it I knew it would work.

"What's so important to you that you'd risk getting eaten by a tiger, falling off a cliff, attacked by bears, freezing to death, killed by bandits, or all of the above?"

*pause for raucous responses, hopefully all school-appropriate*

"For these daring hunters, the most important thing in the world was...plants!"

Anita Silvey tells the story of the men and women who risked their lives, sanity and freedom to collect rare plants. Some of them were stalked by jaguars, went on dangerous undercover missions to steal seeds and plants, or struggled on after being attacked by a grizzly bear to discover a new species of pines. Plant hunting continues today (did you know there's a super-secure vault for seeds?) along with its dangerous and adventure. Be prepared to add botany back to the curriculum after kids read this one!

The book is illustrated with historical photographs and botanical drawings and includes notes, a bibliography, illustration credits, and index. At a little under 100 pages it's brief enough not to discourage struggling readers and has a nice, readable large font. Silvey packs an astonishing amount of information into the pages of these book, from historical botanical expeditions, biographical sketches, reflections on the environmental impact of plant hunting, and botanical and scientific information.

Verdict: This is an unusual subject, but with some catchy booktalking it could be a very popular nonfiction selection for middle grade readers and might even inspire them to try a little botanical research of their own.

ISBN: 9780374309084; Published April 2012 by Farrar, Straus and Giroux; Borrowed from the library; Purchased for the library

This week at the library; or, Dreaming with the frogs and fishes

Rather to my surprise, this week was...well...normal. Crazy busy, but not crazy, if you know what I mean. We had a staff meeting on Monday (highlights - patrons who want to check out their neighbors' holds, how can we get Spanish magazines to circulate? the mysterious and numerous stains on the community room carpet, and the continuing problems with our patron computer software which is driving everyone nuts). Got a few more storytimes planned. The toner exploded as we were trying to close, but happily on the staff member wearing black pants and not me (wearing light khaki)

On Tuesday our gate broke during storytime in the morning, but hopefully someone will donate another before all the happy wanderers escape. We had our second Storywagon in the afternoon with an old favorite, David Stokes. Best attendance ever, 200! 50 of them were a daycare, but it's still an awesome number. Maybe I should have live bullfrogs at my storytimes...I got a really good setup for the room that allowed everyone to fit in comfortably (mostly).

It's the second session of summer school, which has fewer attendees, but my Preschool Interactive is still pulling level at 35. Quite a few new people, and a few old friends as well. Spent most of the afternoon making book bundles. Time-consuming, but that's how I get those awesome circulation numbers!

Lots of babies Thursday morning and no gate! Oh the horror! However, we survived. Mid-sized crowd, 40, for Lego Club in the afternoon.

Closed on Friday - traded this out with another staff member who was properly grateful, although I spoiled it by pointing out that I had closed pretty much every Friday for the first two years I worked and really didn't care that much. I have no life. Plus, it's nice to start a little later the day after a late afternoon program like Lego Club, since I often don't leave until 6.

Finally, the numbers for June...I see lots of library programs shown online where the librarians gush about how successful they were - but I don't see any attendance numbers. Now, for some people this doesn't matter. If a few kids show up and have fun, it's a success. At my library, numbers MATTER. If my numbers drop, or a program is not well-attended, questions will be asked. So, just to put things in perspective, here are the statistics from my monthly report for June:

• Statistics
• Programs: 24
• Attendance: 1324
• Circulation: 11, 333
• Programs with Pattie Woods
• Tiny Tots: 1/20
• Toddlers ‘n’ Books (Tuesday session): 3/114
• Toddlers ‘n’ Books (Friday session): 3/142
• Books ‘n’ Babies: 3/60
• Programs
• Preschool Interactive: 3/100
• Messy Art Club: 1/65
• Lego Building Club: 2/125
• Summer Reading Kick-off: Welty Environmental Center: 1/85
• Fancy Nancy party: 1/135
• Star Wars party: 1/150
• Girls’ Night Out: 1/18
• Storywagon: Great Scott, magician: 1/110
• School Visits and Outreach (*counted as programs)
• *Jackson Elementary 5th grade school visit: 1/80 
• *Westside 2nd grade school visit: 1/20 
• *Summer School pre-kindergarten programs: 5/100 
• St. Patrick’s School summer reading promotion visit 
• Summer promotion/outreach at Frank’s 
• Westside summer reading promotion visit
• Stealth Programming
• Lakeland Animal Shelter joined us for the summer reading kick-off. A number of children and parents enjoyed meeting the friendly dogs.
• We now have a fish tank, maintained by Christopher Wells. It’s been a great attention-grabber, especially pulling people towards the reading suggestions on the bulletin board.
• Summer Reading
• We currently have approximately 420 children participating in summer reading.

One day and one amazing morning on Orange Street by Joanne Rocklin

I'm finally getting seriously to work on my to read pile...from ALA Midwinter 2011!

This is a slim chapter book, just a little over 200 pages, but it's packed full of emotions and evocative language. Throughout the course of one day and one morning the reader meets a variety of characters who live on Orange Street. Ali, who fights with her bossy friend Leandra and worries about her little brother Edgar, recovering from major surgery. Manny, Edgar's nanny, who gives advice to Robert who has a crush on Ali. Their elderly friend Ethel Finneymaker who grew up on Orange Street. Ethel's old friend's Larry and Pug, whose father was killed in Vietnam. One of them might be the stranger who has returned, putting the orange tree in jeopardy which leads to a brave action by Bunny, who worries about her mom.

As you can see, the focus of this story is on the connections that exist between the people in the neighborhood, the long-ago residents, and possible newcomers. All of these different stories are entwined around the orange tree, the last orange tree on the street which once was an orange grove before the houses were built. An author's note gives some historical information about the orange industry in California, a little background on some of the historical settings, and a recipe for ambrosia. Simple black and white pencil drawings decorate the story, marking out chapters and separating the voices of various protagonists.

The story builds slowly with warmth and feeling, but doesn't shy away from painful emotions - the death of Larry and Pug's father, Robert's worries about growing up and the disintegration of his family, and Leandra's resentment of a new sibling. Although it never falls into the "all kids are the same throughout history, they just wear different clothes" fallace (which I hate) it does show links between the various kids on Orange Street dealing with issues and struggling to handle change as pre-teens.

Verdict: This isn't likely to appeal to readers looking for action or detailed historical fiction, but if you have kids who enjoy character-rich stories where the setting is so strongly built it's a protagonist in its own right, you might have an audience for this title.

ISBN: 9780810997196; Published April 2011 by Amulet/Abrams; ARC received at ALA Midwinter 2011; Purchased for the library

Extreme Adventures: Spider Bite and Man-Eater by Justin D'Ath

I rarely read or review past the second book in a series, but these are so much escapist fun that I just had to revisit them again.

The basic rule of the Extreme Adventures series is that anything that can possibly happen - will. So, in Sam Fox's fifth adventure, Spider Bite, he starts out by helping some stranded balloonists, which leads to him getting trapped in a balloon with his twin five year old brothers Harry and Jordan, untrained Great Dane puppy Myrtle, and a deadly Sydney Funnel Web Spider. When they finally crash land, desperate to get Jordan to a hospital (he's been bitten of course) they land in the zoo, naturally. In the Kodiak bear enclosure. Just to make things more interesting, the balloon knocks over a tree, adding a lion to the mix.

Sam's next adventure is even more dangerous, but at least he doesn't have to worry about saving his brothers. Nope, all he encounters in Man-Eater (besides a man-eating leopard) is a spitting cobra, hippos, crocodile, hyenas, poachers, baboons, and Cape buffalo. Of course, he has most of these adventure half-blind, thanks to the initial encounter with the cobra (see, he was trying to escape from an enraged mother elephant and...). Sam even has time to interject a few humorous asides "I don't know what it is about me and snakes. Wherever I go...I seem to run into them." Luckily, Sam has the help of Olki, a ten year old Masai boy who offered to help him get to the nearest hospital. Of course, that was before they were being tracked by poachers, man-eating leopards, and elephants. It takes the combined skills and knowledge of both boys to survive.

These books are refreshingly simple. Sam occasionally grumbles about missing his family, or being upset about their move in Spider Bite. His concern for animals is the reason he's in Tanzania and he feels strongly about preserving wildlife. But aside from these few glimpses, the stories really are pure adventure. Every time Sam gets out of one tight corner, he ends up in another. Escape from the leopard? Get trapped by a mad baboon! Crash land your balloon safely? Get trapped by a Komodo dragon! Unlike the usual realistic middle school fare that worries about girls, school, teachers, family, etc. Sam is worried about staying alive and everything else can wait. They're a nice length for intermediate readers and a perfect way to relax on a hot summer afternoon.

Verdict: Although the American covers aren't as attractive as the Australian versions, these have been quite popular and I'll continue to add to the series and booktalk them to kids who like their adventure without angst and their survival stories snappy!

Spider-Bite
ISBN: 9781610671014; Published March 2011 by Kane Miller; Review copy provided by publisher; Purchased for the library

Man-Eater
ISBN: 9781610670111; Published March 2011 by Kane Miller; Review copy provided by the publisher; Purchased for the library

Nonfiction Monday: The Big Green Book of the Big Blue Sea by Helaine Becker, illustrated by Willow Dawson

I'm not sure how I feel about this book. On the one hand, it's a marvelous compendium of research, history and information about the ocean with a ton of awesome activities. It has simple, everyday suggestions of things kids can do to help.

On the other hand, it starts out with and continues throughout the book with an endless series of warnings on the ocean's coming demise and destruction.

I'm not saying I disagree with these warnings - but I'm always leary of books for children that emphasize the coming destruction of the environment without concrete ways they can make a difference. I find it very odd that many parents and teachers are reluctant to talk to kids about big things like death, religion, or sexuality but have no problem handing over "the world is gonna be horribly destroyed in a few years" books.

Ahem. Anyways. After an introduction about the importance and plight of the ocean, the book continues into the sea, alternating between simple science experiments and information about the ocean. There are two sections near the beginning of things kids can do to help (kudos to the author for realizing that not everybody lives near public transportation or owns their own house!). Current events and the aftermath of disasters like the 2010 Gulf Oil Spill are highlighted in What's Happening Now sections. There are also features on The Ocean at Risk.

The science experiments, combined with information about life in the ocean, are the best features of this book. They use simple things you can find at the grocery store or in the kitchen and help demonstrate things like how blubber works, what happens when pollutants mix in the water, how fish use camouflage underwater, and how convection currents work.

I didn't care for Dawson's oddly retro illustrations - especially her odd people with pink circles on the cheeks - but there are also plenty of photographs to enjoy. The book has an index, but no source notes, bibliography, or further reading.

So, to sum up the pros and cons:
The Good: Lots of ocean facts, great experiments, general positive "things can be changed" attitude, simple ways kids can help, photographs.

The Bad: Ways to help stops early on in the book and there's nothing kids can do for many of the problems presented, no source notes or further reading, and I found the cover and illustrations unattractive.

Verdict: You decide.

ISBN: 9781554537464; Published April 2012 by Kids Can Press; Borrowed from the library

This week at the library; or, Planning? What planning?

Last year we started taking the week of July 4 as a programming break. I've had several dud programs where nobody came (including a free clogging program where the "audience" was the parents who had driven the kids over and ONE patron and her granddaughter) plus Miss Pattie is off this week, since it's a break week between summer school sessions so I'd have to find somebody to cover multiple storytimes. So, no programs and this is my planning week!

Ha ha ha ha ha

I arrived 30 minutes early on Monday, planning to go to the post office. I had discussed with a nearby daycare that they might bring over 7-15 kids, the 8 and up group, to browse and check out books etc. I drove up and saw around 30 kids as young as 5 or 6 waiting to go in. However, I need not have worried. This daycare has superb organization and they had marshalled the children into groups of ten kids and two adults, instructed them firmly on proper library behavior, supplied them with bookmarks to put on the shelves when they took books off, and after about 30 minutes they got the kids into an assembly line at the circulation desk and everyone checked out a book. So, unexpected, but good...but still an interruption.

More interruptions later, I got...1 and 1/2 storytimes planned and my monthly report written. Yay. We have had a massive month of June, btw. My attendance statistics (not counting Miss Pattie's programs) were 1050 !!! the children's circulation was up more than 4,000 from May (and is practically equal to the adult circulation, a goal I've been working towards for four years) (who, competitive? me?) and we have over 350 children participating in summer reading. Not just signed up - PARTICIPATING. Woo!

I took off Tuesday for a vacation and we're closed Wednesday.

Thursday was the Stuffed Animal Sleepover! I also felt really sick, but whatever...I wanted to do something during this down week and thought we'd try this out. Our adult services librarian (and all the staff) loved this idea and wanted to be involved so we had lots of props. I got the idea to make teddy bear tags from one of the Utube videos and had a volunteer make 50 teddy bear tags just in case lots of kids came. I also brought my big teddy bear (imaginatively named "Big Bear") to work because some of the little kids were worried about their stuffties staying all night alone!

Note to self - all those adorable movies we watched on utube...only had about 10, maybe 20 animals

We had OVER FIFTY.

I started taking pictures at 7 and our adult svs librarian joined me at 8 when we closed. We divided the animals into groups of 5, put a number on their tags and did two pictures per group. Then she set them all up for a couple final group shots while I organized the pictures to go to Walgreens.

We left at 9:30pm. Ack! It was fun, but not as simple as I had hoped for our week off program.

Next year, we need to add a few rules - only one animal per kid (this was only 2 or 3 kids, but still...) and they have to be small to medium. The four foot tiger was adorable, but difficult to photograph and lug around.

And we have to accept that our patrons are insanely enthusiastic and stuff that works at a small library our size where maybe 10 people participate won't work here, where we get about 50 people showing up for anything that sounds interesting.

And tell people not to come until after noon to pick them up, so we have time to process the pictures!

Friday I worked on uploading and creating a slideshow with the pictures (Angela was the one who got to stay up late last night and send them to Walgreens and pick them up this morning and label them and stuff them in envelopes...). When people came to pick up their animals on Friday, we matched the number on their tag with a photo and they got to take a picture home.

I spent most of Friday doing statistics and trying to finish the planning that hardly got started...

Not a bad week on the whole, and we're over the hump for summer so things will be a little more relaxed now.

Kat, Incorrigible and Renegade Magic by Stephanie Burgis

Have you ever really, really anticipated a book...and then not felt like reading it when it came?

I adore polite society fantasies, especially those of Patricia C. Wrede and I was breathless with anticipation when I heard that there was going to be a new one by Stephanie Burgis a few years ago. I finally got an ARC of it and...well...it was about a younger girl and I had hoped for more of a teen one and...I didn't like the new cover and title and...I was just never in the mood.

However, I am in the midst of a reading slump and my simple cure for this is to sit myself down and force myself to read through my to read shelf. So I finally read it.

And the sequel.

And despite my original blah feelings, I really loved them!

Kat is definitely incorrigible, a bit of a tomboy, and fiercely determined to save her older sisters from themselves and the awful marriages her stepmother has arranged. She's also the possessor of unexpectedly powerful Guardian magic as well as a dose of witchcraft, a most improper and scandalous attribute. Not only does she have to deal with Society's (and her stepmother's) horror of magic, there's her mother's scandalous legacy, a nasty Guardian who has it in for Kat's family, and her useless gambling addict brother Charles. By the end of the second book, all is not resolved, but Kat's older sisters' futures are assured and Kat herself is hopeful that she may have something to look forward to.

While these books don't have much of the romance I expect in a polite society fantasy - they are middle grade after all - they have all of the delicious combination of magic, Society, truly awful rows, escapades, and climactic endings. There's a definite resemblance to Wrede and Stevermer's trilogy, with disapproving relatives who turn out to be supportive in a pinch, a useless brother who has to be protected, and a vaguely academic papa among other things, but Burgis brings a different perspective to these characters with her young protagonist.

There's a more serious vein running through these books than the light froth of the other polite society fantasies. Kat's magic is frequently fueled by her sense of helplessness. Not only are she and her sisters helpless against Society's prejudice against witchcraft and magic, there's also scandal and family imbroglios to avoid. Some of Kat's night adventures are dangerous indeed with no glossing over the real perils a young, unprotected girl faces in the streets. Kat's vague papa and brother are incapable and unwilling to protect her and her sisters, although her papa does awaken a little towards the end of the second book. Kat's desire to become a Guardian and protect not only her sisters but England itself, is her way of becoming independent of the society that has made her helpless.

I think I'm becoming academic, so I'll stop there, just saying that these books have a truly perilous feel running through them, although they're perfectly appropriate for middle grade readers.

Verdict: While these may not be the most popular of fantasies, they will certainly find a few enthusiastic fans. Occasionally I like to buy books for the minority (and myself) and these will definitely be my purchases in that area. I'm glad I finally got around to reading them and I look forward to recommending them to girls who like historical fiction, funny stories, a light touch of romance, and fantasy adventures.

Kat, Incorrigible
ISBN: 9781416994473; Published April 2011 by Atheneum; ARC provided by publisher; Purchased for the library

Renegade Magic
ISBN: 9781416994497; Published April 2012 by Atheneum; Borrowed from the library; Purchased for the library

My Mixed-Up Berry Blue Summer by Jennifer Gennari

June has always known that her mom has "special friends" but it never mattered before. June had her best friends Luke and Tina, her pie baking, and her beloved Lake Champlain. But now Mom's friend, Eva, has moved in and since the new civil union law has passed, they're planning to get married.

On top of the usual angst of a new step-parent, June has to deal with how she feels about Eva and her mom being together permanently, her longing for a father, and the unpleasant reactions of some of the people in her small town, including her best friend Tina's family. To make things even more complicated, June is starting to wonder how she really feels about Luke and her mom and Eva are fighting about how to deal with the negative publicity.

I thought the author did an excellent job of putting all the events into perspective from June's point of view; she's got a lot going on and her emotions are all over the place. She's upset and scared by the negative reactions, but sometimes she feels angry that her mom has put her into this position. She doesn't really like Eva, but she wants her mom to be happy. She's confused by her feelings for Luke and hurt that her friends don't always back her family up. She's embarrassed by the people who want to define her - and her mom - by their lifestyle, both negatively and positively.

In the end, June has grown up a lot over the summer, learning more about herself and her friends. She understands a little more how hard it is to stand up to people, she's willing to make allowances for people and compromise, and she's gained new self-confidence.

SPOILERS

The dramatic endings - June saves Tina's little brother's life with Eva's help and wins a baking competition against 46 other adults - are rather unrealistic, but kids like dramatic endings and at least Gennari didn't stereotype the town's reactions to the events.

Sort of pre-verdict:
Am I going to think about community reaction to this book? Well, yeah. We're a public library and we serve the public - that means that the bulk of what I'm going to buy is going to be what the public wants to read. I can think "this is an important topic and we should have a book on it" but that doesn't matter if nobody ever checks the book out. I originally purchased this book for the library not because it was about a girl with two moms, but because A. Julia Denos created the cover, making it a sure winner and B. I can always use more books about baking. While our small town is pretty conservative, I've never had problems with any books we've purchased. A few suggestions to move books to a different area (completely merited - Piers Anthony is NOT always appropriate for teens!) and one problem with a magazine subscription in the four years I've been here. Of course you never know how people will react, but our parents generally seem to be comfortable with the idea that we're a public library and it's up to them to decide what their kids read. I appreciated that the description delineates the plot clearly so we won't have any shocked parents saying they didn't know what it was about. I won't booktalk it unless I know the parent and child well enough to know if they'll be offended, but I think it will easily go out on it's own.

Verdict: Even if they aren't in this situation themselves or know someone who is, kids can relate to the emotions about a step-parent and growing up. I loved the descriptions of Lake Champlain and I am WILDLY ENTHUSIASTIC about the very manageable length of this middle grade title. Not preachy, well-written, attractive cover, and a story kids will enjoy. I'd say it's a winner. Recommended!
ISBN: 9780547577395; Published 2012 by Houghton Mifflin; Borrowed from the library; Purchased for the library

Nonfiction Monday: It's Milking Time by Phyllis Alsdurf, illustrated by Steve Johnson and Lou Fancher

"Every morning, every night, it's milking time."

Alsdurf draws on her own childhood experiences to take readers and listeners on a gentle stroll through her memories of helping to milk the cows. Readers see the cows coming to the barns, being fed, milking machines, and what happens to the milk afterwards.

This is a very simple picture book, with sweet, peaceful language. Most of the facts are woven into the story - there's not description of how a milking machine works, for example, but we see how it's cleaned and attached to the cows.

Johnson and Fancher's illustrations are, as always, warm and glowing. You can see the warmth and love between father and daughter, the peaceful cows, and the beauty of the farm in these paintings.

This is a perfect read-aloud for storytime. It includes a few new vocabulary words (stanchion, suction, trudge) and enough information about the milking process for kids to get interested and for parents to seek out longer nonfiction books on milking and other farm processes. I'm assuming from the author's note that the story is set in her childhood, so some of the processes may have changed a little.

Verdict: This is the kind of easy nonfiction I look for to read aloud in storytime. Beautifully written, with facts woven into the story and a few vocabulary words to practice saying aloud. I also look for farming books and frequently have trouble finding anything for our quasi-rural community, but this is perfect. Highly recommended.

ISBN: 9780375869112; Published 2012 by Random House; Borrowed from the library; Purchased for the library