1CassieBash
Hello, all! Thank you for visiting my thread! Expect a lot of chapter and YA fantasy books listed here, as I try to make a dent in the TBR piles.Although maybe I should consider holding off until after winter, as said piles are stacked against the north wall of my bedroom like additional insulation.
I used to make a lot of rules as to what counted in the official list of 75, but as I get older, and as my mom and cat get older, I find it harder to squeeze in time to read some days. So anything goes, which means that I’ll probably have some posts in February that will include some of last year’s Caldecott and other children’s award books winners. I have some fantasy books based on fairy tales. I have a crapload of audiobooks that I haven’t yet listened to. I have some trilogies and series to start (and maybe finish). I have grand plans to read so many books. Let’s see if I can accomplish any of it!
I used to make a lot of rules as to what counted in the official list of 75, but as I get older, and as my mom and cat get older, I find it harder to squeeze in time to read some days. So anything goes, which means that I’ll probably have some posts in February that will include some of last year’s Caldecott and other children’s award books winners. I have some fantasy books based on fairy tales. I have a crapload of audiobooks that I haven’t yet listened to. I have some trilogies and series to start (and maybe finish). I have grand plans to read so many books. Let’s see if I can accomplish any of it!
3PaulCranswick
Nice to see you back again, Cassie.
4thornton37814
>1 CassieBash: My list always includes some juvenile literature, and I want to try to hit the children's section at the library again soon. I tend to stop when I really have time to browse.
6CassieBash
Thanks, all—good to be back. We’re starting week 2 of the semester here where I work, and things are going suspiciously well. It’s quiet. Too quiet. (Always wanted to say that!) Except, of course, at lunchtime, when the students descend upon us with tech issues. It’s why I don’t even attempt reading at lunchtime until after the first two weeks are over. But never fear—my first “disturbing” nonfiction read of the year will be coming up!
Until then, I have some non-disturbing reads to list:
Book 1: The Shrieking Skull & Other Victorian Christmas Ghost Stories by James Skipp Borlase, edited/selected by Christopher Philippo Mr. Philippo is clearly a fan of the author, having written a biographical introduction to James Borlase. These are romantic ghosts stories in the main, and the only thing that makes them “Christmas” stories is when they take place. Mostly, this timing really isn’t important to the story—the stories could take place at anytime with no impact to plot, tone, theme, etc. The first two stories were so similar, I was concerned to the whole book would be nothing but variance of the first story. However, that wasn’t the case and it’s not a terrible collection. It is very of the times and so reads like a Victorian short story collection, with all the flowery language, the prejudices, and baggage of the era. Though there was one story in particular, “The Ghost-Guarded Trasure”, that featured a strong female character, Jane, who is the one to confront the ghost. I started this late last year when it seemed more timely, but since the vast majority of it was read this month, I’m adding it to this year’s count instead.
Book 2: Chronicles of a Royal Pet: A Princess and an Ooze by Ian Rodgers: This first in a series starts with an ooze (or slime or jelly—those familiar with fantasy games and stories know the type) being adopted by a princess as her pet. This first book clearly is mostly establishing characters, background, and the ooze’s transformation from unthinking monster to sentient and powerful creature with one goal—protect his princess and her family from all harm. Since it seems as if there’s a murderous plot being contrived against the royal family, this could be harder than “Jelly’s” thinks. Told mainly from Jelly’s perspective, this is an interesting take on a lowly fantasy monster trope. This was an audiobook with a very good reader, Peter Kenny—I’d definitely listen to another book read by him.
Book 3: A Wrinkle in Time: Archival Edition by Madeleine L’Engle: A children’s classic, this tale of 2 siblings—Meg and Charles Wallace—joining with mysterious celestial beings to rescue their father from Evil, has been banned for being either too Christian or too pagan—take your pick. L’Engle is in good company, though, as C. S. Lewis with his Chronicles of Narnia is also banned for the exact same thing. With an afterword by a descendant of L’Engle herself, this version is read by the author and she sounds pretty much as I imagined. It’s often nice to get an author reading their own work, and this was beautifully done. I’ll be listening to the archival edition of A Wind in the Door next, as these went on sale during an Audible 2 for 1. I just might break down and get the 3rd book with one of my carefully hoarded credits; I’d like to say they’d put it in an upcoming 2 for 1 but I notice Audible tends to avoid putting entire series on sale, or at least waits a long while before doing so. *sigh*
Until then, I have some non-disturbing reads to list:
Book 1: The Shrieking Skull & Other Victorian Christmas Ghost Stories by James Skipp Borlase, edited/selected by Christopher Philippo Mr. Philippo is clearly a fan of the author, having written a biographical introduction to James Borlase. These are romantic ghosts stories in the main, and the only thing that makes them “Christmas” stories is when they take place. Mostly, this timing really isn’t important to the story—the stories could take place at anytime with no impact to plot, tone, theme, etc. The first two stories were so similar, I was concerned to the whole book would be nothing but variance of the first story. However, that wasn’t the case and it’s not a terrible collection. It is very of the times and so reads like a Victorian short story collection, with all the flowery language, the prejudices, and baggage of the era. Though there was one story in particular, “The Ghost-Guarded Trasure”, that featured a strong female character, Jane, who is the one to confront the ghost. I started this late last year when it seemed more timely, but since the vast majority of it was read this month, I’m adding it to this year’s count instead.
Book 2: Chronicles of a Royal Pet: A Princess and an Ooze by Ian Rodgers: This first in a series starts with an ooze (or slime or jelly—those familiar with fantasy games and stories know the type) being adopted by a princess as her pet. This first book clearly is mostly establishing characters, background, and the ooze’s transformation from unthinking monster to sentient and powerful creature with one goal—protect his princess and her family from all harm. Since it seems as if there’s a murderous plot being contrived against the royal family, this could be harder than “Jelly’s” thinks. Told mainly from Jelly’s perspective, this is an interesting take on a lowly fantasy monster trope. This was an audiobook with a very good reader, Peter Kenny—I’d definitely listen to another book read by him.
Book 3: A Wrinkle in Time: Archival Edition by Madeleine L’Engle: A children’s classic, this tale of 2 siblings—Meg and Charles Wallace—joining with mysterious celestial beings to rescue their father from Evil, has been banned for being either too Christian or too pagan—take your pick. L’Engle is in good company, though, as C. S. Lewis with his Chronicles of Narnia is also banned for the exact same thing. With an afterword by a descendant of L’Engle herself, this version is read by the author and she sounds pretty much as I imagined. It’s often nice to get an author reading their own work, and this was beautifully done. I’ll be listening to the archival edition of A Wind in the Door next, as these went on sale during an Audible 2 for 1. I just might break down and get the 3rd book with one of my carefully hoarded credits; I’d like to say they’d put it in an upcoming 2 for 1 but I notice Audible tends to avoid putting entire series on sale, or at least waits a long while before doing so. *sigh*
7CassieBash
Book 4: A Wind in the Door: Archival Edition by Madeline L’Engle is the 2nd book in the series, with Meg, Cal, and Charles Wallace teaming up with a celestial teacher and a cherubim to figure out why the mitochondria—specifically the ones inside Charles Wallace—are dying. Like the other archival edition, this one is also read by L’Engle.
Book 5: Endangered: A Zoo Mystery by Ann Littlewood: Iris works at a zoo in Washington State and she and a coworker are tasked with removing rare tortoises and parrots from a rural farm when a meth bust happens, but there’s more going on than meth and illegal wildlife trade. When Iris finds a young girl’s body on the farm, she gets caught up in a dangerous game where she and everyone she knows could be caught up in the violence. Includes acknowledgments for the animal info and an author’s note about the harms of purchasing wild-caught exotics and illegal wildlife trafficking.
Book 5: Endangered: A Zoo Mystery by Ann Littlewood: Iris works at a zoo in Washington State and she and a coworker are tasked with removing rare tortoises and parrots from a rural farm when a meth bust happens, but there’s more going on than meth and illegal wildlife trade. When Iris finds a young girl’s body on the farm, she gets caught up in a dangerous game where she and everyone she knows could be caught up in the violence. Includes acknowledgments for the animal info and an author’s note about the harms of purchasing wild-caught exotics and illegal wildlife trafficking.
8CassieBash
Book 6: Goblins by Philip Reeve is a comedy fantasy whose cast of characters include an outcast goblin, a young cheesewright who wants to be a hero, a princess NOT in need of rescuing, and a trio of would-be “sorcerers” who haven’t a magical bone between them. As the star that heralds the rise of the evil Lych Lord’s heir, it’s a race between good and evil—will a new evil rise to the Lych Lord’s throne, or will good thwart evil? Some clever word play and characters help keep things light; this book is good for tweens on up, though adults can enjoy the light fantasy adventure romp.
9CassieBash
Book 7: Measle and the Wrathmonk by Ian Ogilvy: Measle has lived under the guardianship of Basil Tranplebone, an unusual and sinister man who has a penchant for playing with his model train set. Measle is forbidden to play with it—until the day he crosses his guardian and finds out first-hand that there’s more to Basil—and his train set—than meets the eye. A children’s chapter fantasy with a bit of darkness and danger for kids who like a little excitement and risk in their reads. Good for fans of Roald Dahl’s works. No inappropriate language, no romance.
10CassieBash
Book 8: Escape from Baxters’ Barn by Rebecca Bond: When one-eyed Burdock the barn cat overhears farmer Dewey Baxter’s plan to burn down the barn, the animals assume they’ll be burning with it. Thus, they start pulling together to figure out how to escape. But even if they can get out—where will they go? A children’s chapter animal story that would work well as a read-aloud;language and content suitable for younger readers, but I also wanted to know what would happen to the animals, and the book’s themes of cooperation, friendship, and family is a positive vibe everyone could enjoy.
11CassieBash
Book 9: The Thousand Deaths of Ardor Benn by Tyler Whitesides sees the titular character and his best friend pull together a team of thieves and ruse artists to do the impossible—steal the king’s regalia. Why? Maybe for the money—but will it turn into a deeper, more important mission as they learn what’s really at stake? A fantasy “Mission Impossible” type novel with humor but also a lot of bloodshed. This may be too intense for those who don’t want details of deaths—particularly violent ones. I will give the author credit for coming up with a novel concept of dragons—this world’s dragon waste can be processed into different types of “grit”—each kind with its own special magical properties depending on what the waste is composed of. Never read a story with that concept before. The ending could be seen as hinting at future books, and maybe that’s partly why I felt dissatisfied with the book by the end. Yes, it wraps up several things but not quite everything.
Now that it’s March, you know what that means—the various 2025 youth award winners have been announced, and of course that means I’ll be reading as I catalog the incoming titles. While Halfway to Somewhere by Jose Pimienta didn’t win the big three (Caldecott, Newbery, Coretta Scott King), it did win the Stonewall Award. With the concepts of gender and ethnic identity at its core, this graphic novel follows Ave, who moves with her mother and younger brother from Mexico to Kansas, where her mom has taken a job teaching languages at KU. Ave isn’t happy and worries about losing her Mexican identity and being accepted in a different country. But will she meet friends who understand and help her realize that identity can incorporate new things without having to give up old ones? This story deals not just with ethnic identity but also touches on LGBTQ+ themes. Not bad, but the illustrations seemed a little simplistic when it came to the characters, especially the profiles where they seemed very cartoony. Still, the story will speak to those who straddle two or more identities.
Now that it’s March, you know what that means—the various 2025 youth award winners have been announced, and of course that means I’ll be reading as I catalog the incoming titles. While Halfway to Somewhere by Jose Pimienta didn’t win the big three (Caldecott, Newbery, Coretta Scott King), it did win the Stonewall Award. With the concepts of gender and ethnic identity at its core, this graphic novel follows Ave, who moves with her mother and younger brother from Mexico to Kansas, where her mom has taken a job teaching languages at KU. Ave isn’t happy and worries about losing her Mexican identity and being accepted in a different country. But will she meet friends who understand and help her realize that identity can incorporate new things without having to give up old ones? This story deals not just with ethnic identity but also touches on LGBTQ+ themes. Not bad, but the illustrations seemed a little simplistic when it came to the characters, especially the profiles where they seemed very cartoony. Still, the story will speak to those who straddle two or more identities.
12CassieBash
Book 11 is last year’s Newbery winner, All the Blues in the Sky by Renee Watson. Sage’s best friend is killed, and she has to deal with the grief (and all the emotions that really can contain). We gradually find out the details as Sage tells us, mostly in lyrical prose, about how she’s processing this upheaval in her life. This is an excellent book for tweens and teens who may think no one understands how they feel as they grieve—because the book says just that—everyone’s grief is different. It doesn’t belittle nor does it say that the grief will go away, but instead it focuses on support, friendship, continuing love of all sorts.
Book 12 is a Coretta Scott King honor book, City Summer, Country Summer, a beautifully illustrated picture book about two neighbors’ families visiting for the summer—two from Mississippi, one from New York, and the bond they develop even though their different. A quiet story but one of deep connection.
Book 13: The Little Lobster: A Lobster Tale by W. Thomas Hotz is a children’s picture science book that follows the life cycle of lobsters, as well as touching on conservation. Beautiful illustrations, it won for Outstanding Science Trade Book.
Book 14: Rewriting the Rules: How Dr. Kathleen Friel Created New Possibilities for Brain Research and Disability by Danna Zeiger, who was mentored by Dr. Friel and thus was inspired to write this children’s science biography. Dr. Friel’s experiences growing up with cerebral palsy inspired her to go into medical sciences and to become a neuroscientist working on finding ways to retrain injured brains to re-communicate with their bodies by forming alternate pathways. These illustrations are fun, imaginative, and dynamic; you can easily read emotions through facial expressions and body language.
Book 12 is a Coretta Scott King honor book, City Summer, Country Summer, a beautifully illustrated picture book about two neighbors’ families visiting for the summer—two from Mississippi, one from New York, and the bond they develop even though their different. A quiet story but one of deep connection.
Book 13: The Little Lobster: A Lobster Tale by W. Thomas Hotz is a children’s picture science book that follows the life cycle of lobsters, as well as touching on conservation. Beautiful illustrations, it won for Outstanding Science Trade Book.
Book 14: Rewriting the Rules: How Dr. Kathleen Friel Created New Possibilities for Brain Research and Disability by Danna Zeiger, who was mentored by Dr. Friel and thus was inspired to write this children’s science biography. Dr. Friel’s experiences growing up with cerebral palsy inspired her to go into medical sciences and to become a neuroscientist working on finding ways to retrain injured brains to re-communicate with their bodies by forming alternate pathways. These illustrations are fun, imaginative, and dynamic; you can easily read emotions through facial expressions and body language.
13CassieBash
Book 15 was an audiobook version of The Reformatory by Tananarive Due, a novel taking place in a small town during Jim Crow era. This was a hard one to listen to, as themes of rampant discrimination, racism, rape, and child abuse all run throughout the book. When young Robert kicks a white boy who was hitting on his sister, he’s arrested and sentenced to serve 6 months at a boy’s school/reformatory—a place that has a horrible reputation for boys going in and not coming out. And that deserved reputation means “haints”. And Robert sees them—everywhere. They’re mad, and they want freedom—and that means revenge against the man in charge who abused and killed them. Complicating matters is that the town’s powers that be are using this opportunity to try to lure their civil rights advocate father out into the open for “justice” for a crime he didn’t commit.
I already gave you trigger warnings, and all I can add is that the last two hours or so are INTENSE!! To the point where after I finished it, I decided I needed to listen to a lighter option now and so I downloaded some fun kids books. This book made me mad, indignant, sad, and frustrated—often all at once. But mixed in is bravery, friendship, family. Robert’s sister Gloria will do anything to get Robert out alive—and she’s not the only one. I was satisfied, if drained, after it ended. Do read/listen to the author’s note, as she explains that the inspiration for writing this book is based on a real person—one of her relatives.
I already gave you trigger warnings, and all I can add is that the last two hours or so are INTENSE!! To the point where after I finished it, I decided I needed to listen to a lighter option now and so I downloaded some fun kids books. This book made me mad, indignant, sad, and frustrated—often all at once. But mixed in is bravery, friendship, family. Robert’s sister Gloria will do anything to get Robert out alive—and she’s not the only one. I was satisfied, if drained, after it ended. Do read/listen to the author’s note, as she explains that the inspiration for writing this book is based on a real person—one of her relatives.
14CassieBash
Books 16, 17, & 18: Bunnicula by James Howe and Deborah Howe, Howliday Inn by James Howe, and The Celery Stalks at Midnight by James Howe: The first 3 books of the “Bunnicula” series, all told from the point of view of Harold the dog, chronicling the (mis)adventures of his friend Chester the cat, whose imagination tends to run wild, and later Howe the dachshund (and maybe part werewolf), as well as the title character Bunnicula, who Chester is convinced is a vampire rabbit. This amusing children’s chapter series is considered a classic and I think “The Celery Stalks at Midnight” may just be the best book title ever. They’re a nice blend of humor with a hint of suspense, and the book’s approach to whether Bunnicula is or isn’t a vampire rabbit is left a bit vague. Are the white vegetables, drained of their juices and exhibiting two small puncture holes, evidence of Bunnicula’s vampirism? Or the strange way he seems to sleep all day and awaken only at night? Ultimately, the reader gets to decide. This is an excellent series for bedtime reading, and the print books have some fun illustrations. This audio edition had some commentary from the author as an extra about how he and Deborah came up with the book, and is definitely worth a listen, even if it is a bit sad.
15CassieBash
Book 19: Case File 13: Evil Twins by J. Scott Savage is a children’s chapter horror somewhere along the lines of R. L. Stine’s Goosebumps series—a little horror, a little humor. Three friends—Nick, Carter, and Angelo—are unofficially monster investigators. This seems to be book 3 in the series, chronicled by an unknown narrator (though by the end of the book, you might have theories). In this adventure, Nick’s parents take him and his friends camping, when a series of unforeseen problems leads the boys to a place where they find a miniature human that can change itself to look like anyone. Though his friends tell him not to, Carter smuggles it home—and then the real trouble begins as evil twins start taking over the town. Boys will like this book for the adventure and boy-centric characters—there are some girls including a trio who also love monsters, but they’re secondary and not heavily used (at least in this book). Goofy, slightly spooky (from a kid’s perspective) fun with no inappropriate language.
16CassieBash
Books 20-26
I promised a bunch of children’s books and by gum, I’m gonna deliver. If science books for kids isn’t your thing, though—sorry. This round is science heavy, specifically with nature.
The only non-science one here is Jashar Awan’s book Every Monday Mabel, in which a little girl always grabs a chair every Monday and plunks it down in a certain spot so she can see the best show in town. Which I won’t tell you what that is—though if you see the cover, you can probably guess. Simple story, simple bright colors for a very simple, straightforward story that at least some kids will easily relate to.
Alberto Salas Plays Paka Paka con la Papa by Sara Andrea Fajardo which, translated, means he’s playing hide and seek for potatoes. Mr. Salas is a real person and his goal is to find as many varieties of wild potatoes growing in Peru (potatoes are native to South America) as he can, partly to preserve the variety of the natural world, partly because each species he finds may have traits we can use to breed better potatoes for a variety of growing conditions. With a section in the back translating the non-English words and sections giving more information about potatoes, Alberto Salas, and more, you might look differently at the next potato you eat. This book is also available in Spanish.
Safe Crossing by Kari Percival is the story of how a wildlife tunnel leading under a road is created, saving countless toads, frogs, and salamanders (and probably other small critters, but amphibians are this book’s focus) from being crushed by vehicles. More information on how you can start your own initiative for a tunnel, as well as information on being a citizen scientist and amphibians, are included in the back.
Tanya Konerman wrote Mud to the Rescue!: How Animals Use Mud to Thrive and Survive; the title pretty much tells you what it’s about. From sun protection to expelling ingested toxins, mud has a lot of uses in the animal kingdom. Information about the animals featured and a glossary are included the back.
When a Tree Falls: Nurse Logs and Their Incredible Forest Power by Kirsten Pendreigh again has a self-explanatory title, as long as you know what a “nurse log” is. This book explains how dead, fallen trees are still an important part of the ecosystem, nurturing insects and other decomposers, providing homes for birds and mammals, even how other trees can grow up through them—thus their “nurse” status. Nurse logs help keep their ecosystem healthy and thriving.
Nature Explained: A Family Guide to 20 Nature Cycles by Helen Brown is perhaps, of them all, the least “story-like”; it looks more like a 2 page infographic spread. These are simplified explanations but there are some technical defined in text and also in the glossary. Pros: I liked how the individual cycles that were related to each other were linked together by an overarching cycle—an example is shedding leaves and growing fruit are under the “Tree Cycles”. The 2 page spread and oversized format means plenty of room for larger font size; big, bright illustrations; extra space for insert text and illustrations that compliment the cycle. Arrows should guide you through the correct stages—but now we get to some cons. The arrows generally work, but on some cycles, they’re sometimes easy to lose track of and sometimes it’s hard to figure out at a glance where to start. I’ll cut them a break on the monarch stats that they live only 2-5 weeks because they were using them for the reproduction cycle, and a sexually mature monarch probably does only live that long. The monarchs hibernating in either Mexico or California are not sexually mature until AFTER they come out of their hibernation in the spring—and they live several months, but bears were used to explain hibernation, so I suppose to keep things simple, they went with stats for mature butterflies. The one cycle that they didn’t cover, now that I think about it, is migration. Overall, though, a good introduction to various life cycles.
Ok, these are all good, solid science books but I saved my personal favorite for last. I love my creepy crawlies and when I read about someone—especially a girl or woman—who also loves them, it makes me smile. (And also makes me think maybe I’m not as weird as most people probably think.) Penny Parker Klostermann came across this lady’s name when she found an article about how spider silk was used in WWII and started digging deeper. She felt this woman’s story needed to be told, and wrote The Spider Lady: Nan Songer and Her Arachnid WWII Army. Nan was always drawn to insects and spiders—and she filled her house with her tiny critters—especially spiders. When a friend told her how he’d used spider silk to repair the crosshairs of his surveying scope, she began experimenting with ways she could safely restrain spiders to harvest their silk. By the time she’d come up with this idea, the U.S. had joined the war and wanted spider silks of all different thicknesses. The book chronicles her discoveries and ingenuity as she works hard to perfect her techniques to aid the war effort. Awesome extra info in the back and just delightful illustrations by Anne Lambelet. I haven’t been actively seeking out picture books for my personal collection in a long time—but I may have to get a personal copy of this one!
I promised a bunch of children’s books and by gum, I’m gonna deliver. If science books for kids isn’t your thing, though—sorry. This round is science heavy, specifically with nature.
The only non-science one here is Jashar Awan’s book Every Monday Mabel, in which a little girl always grabs a chair every Monday and plunks it down in a certain spot so she can see the best show in town. Which I won’t tell you what that is—though if you see the cover, you can probably guess. Simple story, simple bright colors for a very simple, straightforward story that at least some kids will easily relate to.
Alberto Salas Plays Paka Paka con la Papa by Sara Andrea Fajardo which, translated, means he’s playing hide and seek for potatoes. Mr. Salas is a real person and his goal is to find as many varieties of wild potatoes growing in Peru (potatoes are native to South America) as he can, partly to preserve the variety of the natural world, partly because each species he finds may have traits we can use to breed better potatoes for a variety of growing conditions. With a section in the back translating the non-English words and sections giving more information about potatoes, Alberto Salas, and more, you might look differently at the next potato you eat. This book is also available in Spanish.
Safe Crossing by Kari Percival is the story of how a wildlife tunnel leading under a road is created, saving countless toads, frogs, and salamanders (and probably other small critters, but amphibians are this book’s focus) from being crushed by vehicles. More information on how you can start your own initiative for a tunnel, as well as information on being a citizen scientist and amphibians, are included in the back.
Tanya Konerman wrote Mud to the Rescue!: How Animals Use Mud to Thrive and Survive; the title pretty much tells you what it’s about. From sun protection to expelling ingested toxins, mud has a lot of uses in the animal kingdom. Information about the animals featured and a glossary are included the back.
When a Tree Falls: Nurse Logs and Their Incredible Forest Power by Kirsten Pendreigh again has a self-explanatory title, as long as you know what a “nurse log” is. This book explains how dead, fallen trees are still an important part of the ecosystem, nurturing insects and other decomposers, providing homes for birds and mammals, even how other trees can grow up through them—thus their “nurse” status. Nurse logs help keep their ecosystem healthy and thriving.
Nature Explained: A Family Guide to 20 Nature Cycles by Helen Brown is perhaps, of them all, the least “story-like”; it looks more like a 2 page infographic spread. These are simplified explanations but there are some technical defined in text and also in the glossary. Pros: I liked how the individual cycles that were related to each other were linked together by an overarching cycle—an example is shedding leaves and growing fruit are under the “Tree Cycles”. The 2 page spread and oversized format means plenty of room for larger font size; big, bright illustrations; extra space for insert text and illustrations that compliment the cycle. Arrows should guide you through the correct stages—but now we get to some cons. The arrows generally work, but on some cycles, they’re sometimes easy to lose track of and sometimes it’s hard to figure out at a glance where to start. I’ll cut them a break on the monarch stats that they live only 2-5 weeks because they were using them for the reproduction cycle, and a sexually mature monarch probably does only live that long. The monarchs hibernating in either Mexico or California are not sexually mature until AFTER they come out of their hibernation in the spring—and they live several months, but bears were used to explain hibernation, so I suppose to keep things simple, they went with stats for mature butterflies. The one cycle that they didn’t cover, now that I think about it, is migration. Overall, though, a good introduction to various life cycles.
Ok, these are all good, solid science books but I saved my personal favorite for last. I love my creepy crawlies and when I read about someone—especially a girl or woman—who also loves them, it makes me smile. (And also makes me think maybe I’m not as weird as most people probably think.) Penny Parker Klostermann came across this lady’s name when she found an article about how spider silk was used in WWII and started digging deeper. She felt this woman’s story needed to be told, and wrote The Spider Lady: Nan Songer and Her Arachnid WWII Army. Nan was always drawn to insects and spiders—and she filled her house with her tiny critters—especially spiders. When a friend told her how he’d used spider silk to repair the crosshairs of his surveying scope, she began experimenting with ways she could safely restrain spiders to harvest their silk. By the time she’d come up with this idea, the U.S. had joined the war and wanted spider silks of all different thicknesses. The book chronicles her discoveries and ingenuity as she works hard to perfect her techniques to aid the war effort. Awesome extra info in the back and just delightful illustrations by Anne Lambelet. I haven’t been actively seeking out picture books for my personal collection in a long time—but I may have to get a personal copy of this one!
17CassieBash
Books 27 and 28: More children’s award winners. The first, Sundust, is a Caldecott honor by Zeke Peña, and features mainly earth tones accented by splashes of brighter colors, mainly pinks, blues, and purples. When a brother and sister see something fall from the sky, it leads them on a desert adventure and exploration, that takes them eventually right to the sun in an existential moment, before returning home. Beautiful, poetic in language and images, I can see why it appealed to the Caldecott committee.
Wanda Hears the Stars: A Blind Astronomer Listens to the Stars by Amy S. Hansen and Wanda Diaz Merced won the Schneider Family Book Award, which honors authors or illustrators who create books for children or adolescents featuring people with disabilities. In this case, the book chronicles co-author Wanda Merced’s journey to overcome the obstacles that visual impairment seemed to throw in her way to becoming an astronomer. While others may focus on sight to study space, Wanda uses sound, picking out differences in the pulses and waves of stars and planets. To quote the book itself, she just “had to work differently” from what her peers were doing. An excellent science book addition to any public or K-12 collection that showcases both a scientist with a disability (which she has turned into an asset) as well as a woman in the STEM fields.
Wanda Hears the Stars: A Blind Astronomer Listens to the Stars by Amy S. Hansen and Wanda Diaz Merced won the Schneider Family Book Award, which honors authors or illustrators who create books for children or adolescents featuring people with disabilities. In this case, the book chronicles co-author Wanda Merced’s journey to overcome the obstacles that visual impairment seemed to throw in her way to becoming an astronomer. While others may focus on sight to study space, Wanda uses sound, picking out differences in the pulses and waves of stars and planets. To quote the book itself, she just “had to work differently” from what her peers were doing. An excellent science book addition to any public or K-12 collection that showcases both a scientist with a disability (which she has turned into an asset) as well as a woman in the STEM fields.
18CassieBash
Book 29: Ancient Tales in Modern Japan: An Anthology of Japanese Folk Tales. You know this is scholarly ny the press, Indiana University, which by-the-by happens to have a well-respected folklore and ethnomusicology department—if it doesn’t get cut by our state legislature’s latest ill-advised plan to cut what they see as useless programs—even if those programs include classes that are core to graduation, like in the fields of history, English, and communications. But I digress…. This book wa compiled and translated by Fanny Hagin Mayer, and while there are lots of unique stories, some are variations of each other and so your average reader might tire of the repetition. Not I. I found it interesting to compare and contrast. If you’re looking for a fun, polished translation that’s easy for an English reader to breeze through—find another anthology. While not a difficult read, the stories retain a translated, rough feel in mechanics and style, so it does sometimes have that oral tale flavor. If that’s more your speed then this book is for you. This is definitely not a kid’s translation but scholars of Japanese culture should find this a great look into the oral storytelling traditions of Japan.
19CassieBash
Book 30: Darkwood by M. E. Breen: The fearsome kinderstalk prowl Dour County after sundown—and the sun goes down fast at night. Annie has always lived with her aunt and uncle, while her sister Page was taken by the kinderstalk. Then a man comes to their house, and her uncle sells her to work in the mines. Before she can be collected, she runs—and the kinderstalk follow. Her choice to run leads her on an adventure that will uncover her past, her future—and her true family. This was an excellent fantasy for tweens, and I had to work hard to put it down.
20CassieBash
OK—so for those of you who don’t know me, I have a dark side that loves to read what I call “disturbing” books, especially nonfiction ones. These tend to center around themes like poisons, food adulteration, medical stuff like horrible infectious diseases and questionable medical procedures, and the big one—death. Funeral customs. Forensics. Mummification. As disturbing as all my previous disturbing reads have been, hold on ‘cause this one by Dick Teresi is a bumpy ride in places.
Like Mr. Teresi, I’m going to preface this by saying that I am not saying that organ donation is terrible and that you shouldn’t consider doing it. That wasn’t really the point he was try to get across. The actual premise of The Undead: Organ Harvesting, the Ice-Water Test, Beating-Heart Cadavers—How Medicine Is Blurring the Lines Between Life and Death is that maybe the medical community’s definition of death is a bit unreliable, and he speculates that in the billion dollar legitimate organ procurement agencies around the U.S. are driving the legislation and push to declare people dead as fast as possible. Now, Teresi claims that there are signs like muscle spasms that suggest that the cortex is still active even if the brain stem shows no sign of activity. I’m not entirely convinced of that; I’ve seen a clearly dead rabbit twitch for a few days after being struck by a car. It’s freaky, but it doesn’t mean there’s life. BUT he does raise some interesting points that are concerning, such as Locked-in Syndrome, which can mimic death if it’s severe enough, to the point of full paralysis. And the scary thing about this is that all the tests that supposedly tell doctors that a patient is brain dead are counting on “living” people reacting, something that a total LiS patient can’t do. It’s very rare, but obviously possible—and if that patient is an organ donor, they’re fully conscious when their organs are being harvested. Since these operations happen without any painkillers or anesthesia, they would feel pain.
Now, Teresi feels that there’s some simple things that could be done in order to double check a patient’s death status. Here’s what’s usually done:
Check pupils for reactions to light.
Stroke the eye with a soft object to see if there’s reaction.
Put ice water in the ear canal, which causes eye movements in living people.
Try to get a tube down the throat to instigate coughing or gagging.
Disconnect from the ventilator to see if they breathe on their own.
Originally, the team that came up with these also had brain scans to detect any possible activity, but this was removed from the requirements several decades ago. Teresi suggests it should be put back in so there is no doubt a person is dead before organs are removed. This seems reasonable to me and seems like the best way to really know for sure. He’s also open to the idea of allowing for general anesthesia and/or painkillers to be administered as an extra precaution, and he even had an email conversation with a hospital about this that did not go well—in the end, they simply ghosted him, all because he wanted to guarantee he wouldn’t feel pain if they misdiagnosed his death before harvesting.
He has a boatload of notes which includes his references, so if you want to read more on any given topic covered, he certainly makes it easy to get the source material—a plus in my book, so to speak. But this book certainly isn’t for the faint of heart and, if anything, it raises more questions about life, death, and consciousness than it answers.
Like Mr. Teresi, I’m going to preface this by saying that I am not saying that organ donation is terrible and that you shouldn’t consider doing it. That wasn’t really the point he was try to get across. The actual premise of The Undead: Organ Harvesting, the Ice-Water Test, Beating-Heart Cadavers—How Medicine Is Blurring the Lines Between Life and Death is that maybe the medical community’s definition of death is a bit unreliable, and he speculates that in the billion dollar legitimate organ procurement agencies around the U.S. are driving the legislation and push to declare people dead as fast as possible. Now, Teresi claims that there are signs like muscle spasms that suggest that the cortex is still active even if the brain stem shows no sign of activity. I’m not entirely convinced of that; I’ve seen a clearly dead rabbit twitch for a few days after being struck by a car. It’s freaky, but it doesn’t mean there’s life. BUT he does raise some interesting points that are concerning, such as Locked-in Syndrome, which can mimic death if it’s severe enough, to the point of full paralysis. And the scary thing about this is that all the tests that supposedly tell doctors that a patient is brain dead are counting on “living” people reacting, something that a total LiS patient can’t do. It’s very rare, but obviously possible—and if that patient is an organ donor, they’re fully conscious when their organs are being harvested. Since these operations happen without any painkillers or anesthesia, they would feel pain.
Now, Teresi feels that there’s some simple things that could be done in order to double check a patient’s death status. Here’s what’s usually done:
Check pupils for reactions to light.
Stroke the eye with a soft object to see if there’s reaction.
Put ice water in the ear canal, which causes eye movements in living people.
Try to get a tube down the throat to instigate coughing or gagging.
Disconnect from the ventilator to see if they breathe on their own.
Originally, the team that came up with these also had brain scans to detect any possible activity, but this was removed from the requirements several decades ago. Teresi suggests it should be put back in so there is no doubt a person is dead before organs are removed. This seems reasonable to me and seems like the best way to really know for sure. He’s also open to the idea of allowing for general anesthesia and/or painkillers to be administered as an extra precaution, and he even had an email conversation with a hospital about this that did not go well—in the end, they simply ghosted him, all because he wanted to guarantee he wouldn’t feel pain if they misdiagnosed his death before harvesting.
He has a boatload of notes which includes his references, so if you want to read more on any given topic covered, he certainly makes it easy to get the source material—a plus in my book, so to speak. But this book certainly isn’t for the faint of heart and, if anything, it raises more questions about life, death, and consciousness than it answers.
21CassieBash
Books 32, 33, 34: Started a humorous fantasy series by L. G. Estrella that throws together misfit characters: a necromancer and his child apprentice (and her army of sentient ninja rats), a bureaucrat with hoarder tendencies from the Council of Mages, and a rogue, outlaw elf pyromaniac who team up to help save Everton—and receive full pardons as well as a decent pay. As the first book, Two Necromancers, a Bureaucrat, and an Elf it tells how this unlikely team assembled to fight a feared, deadly dragon as they struggle with the initial trust issues they naturally have with each other. Book 2, Two Necromancers, an Army of Golems, and a Demon Lord find themselves hired to stop a self-replicating golem army that’s overrun a border town, and then must take on a demon lord, all to secure Everton’s borders. Book 3 finds our heroes with a new ally, a dragonling who thinks the pyromaniac elf is mom. But that’s not even the worst of what happens in Two Necromancers, a Dragon, and a Vampire, as Necromancers Timmy and Katie and their team have to break into the most notorious prison stronghold in the land—a prison where Timmy and his late master were imprisoned themselves and barely escaped—to rescue an ancient vampire.
The situations aren’t all that unusual for a fantasy series, so what makes these so amusing is the character interactions between each other and the tasks they are assigned. It wouldn’t be nearly so amusing if you didn’t have an elf that constantly chooses violence (often flaming violence), or necromancers that are constantly trying out new zombie combinations.
The situations aren’t all that unusual for a fantasy series, so what makes these so amusing is the character interactions between each other and the tasks they are assigned. It wouldn’t be nearly so amusing if you didn’t have an elf that constantly chooses violence (often flaming violence), or necromancers that are constantly trying out new zombie combinations.
22CassieBash
Books 35-39:
OK, more children’s books on deck! Most are nonfiction but let’s start with our fun, more fantasy-based title:
Cat Nap by Brian Lies sees a young cat napping until a mouse disturbs his slumbers. Kitten chases it through the world history of art, jumping into ancient Egyptian murals, into illuminated books, into oil paintings and stained glass and even past sculptures and carvings—all identified at the end of the book. The author/illustrator does a wonderful job of recreating works in these various styles to incorporate his Kitten and mouse into them. A great way to introduce children to art!
Rachel Carson’s Wonder-Filled World by Kate Hannigan is a picture book providing a quick biography of the “mother of the environmental movement”, that culminates with the publication (and briefly discusses the controversy in the author’s notes) of Rachel Carson’s final (and likely best known) book, Silent Spring. A wonderful device this author used was to periodically use the 5 senses to describe what’s going—both good and bad—in the places she visited, an activity that kids can do themselves. But something that both offended and made me shake my head in exasperation was, apparently, one person flung an insult her way, calling her “a woman who loved cats”. Some things never change….
Let’s stick with the science ladies and look at The Girl Who Tested the Waters by Patricia Daniele, a children’s biography about Ellen Swallow Richards, the woman who, among other things, changed the gender rules at MIT, paving the way for women to attend and proving that women can be excellent scientists. Making a splash (sorry, couldn’t resist!) in the world of environmental science and water analysis, she was one of the first human ecologists and she was a firm believer in keeping the world clean. The colored pencil illustrations are simple, but the shading gives them a surprising depth.
Now for a different biography: Andre Leon Talley-A Fabulously Fashionable Fairy Tale by Carole Boston Weatherford and Rob Sanders follows the life of Andre Talley, a boy growing up surrounded by racism, bullies, and abuse who finds escape in the pages of fashion magazines, leading to his career in fashion reporting writing. This book is unusual in that it covers the life of a famous gay African American—a lot of LGBTQ+ children’s books feature white characters, so this Coretta Scott King honor book might be a nice addition to some looking to get a bit more diversity on their shelves.
Moving away from biographies but circling back to science, the final book this round is Stuck! The Story of La Brea Tar Pits by Joyce Uglow. Done in a freestyle poem, it outlines briefly how the pits lure and entrap animals, then preserved them for future study. Complete with a glossary, timeline, partial list of plants and animals that have been found preserved in it, and some general notes, this is a great book for young paleontologists.
There you are; I’m working on a non-fiction book on medical quackery and a fictional pirate story—a sequel to a prior book not yet counted (I’ll post them together).
OK, more children’s books on deck! Most are nonfiction but let’s start with our fun, more fantasy-based title:
Cat Nap by Brian Lies sees a young cat napping until a mouse disturbs his slumbers. Kitten chases it through the world history of art, jumping into ancient Egyptian murals, into illuminated books, into oil paintings and stained glass and even past sculptures and carvings—all identified at the end of the book. The author/illustrator does a wonderful job of recreating works in these various styles to incorporate his Kitten and mouse into them. A great way to introduce children to art!
Rachel Carson’s Wonder-Filled World by Kate Hannigan is a picture book providing a quick biography of the “mother of the environmental movement”, that culminates with the publication (and briefly discusses the controversy in the author’s notes) of Rachel Carson’s final (and likely best known) book, Silent Spring. A wonderful device this author used was to periodically use the 5 senses to describe what’s going—both good and bad—in the places she visited, an activity that kids can do themselves. But something that both offended and made me shake my head in exasperation was, apparently, one person flung an insult her way, calling her “a woman who loved cats”. Some things never change….
Let’s stick with the science ladies and look at The Girl Who Tested the Waters by Patricia Daniele, a children’s biography about Ellen Swallow Richards, the woman who, among other things, changed the gender rules at MIT, paving the way for women to attend and proving that women can be excellent scientists. Making a splash (sorry, couldn’t resist!) in the world of environmental science and water analysis, she was one of the first human ecologists and she was a firm believer in keeping the world clean. The colored pencil illustrations are simple, but the shading gives them a surprising depth.
Now for a different biography: Andre Leon Talley-A Fabulously Fashionable Fairy Tale by Carole Boston Weatherford and Rob Sanders follows the life of Andre Talley, a boy growing up surrounded by racism, bullies, and abuse who finds escape in the pages of fashion magazines, leading to his career in fashion reporting writing. This book is unusual in that it covers the life of a famous gay African American—a lot of LGBTQ+ children’s books feature white characters, so this Coretta Scott King honor book might be a nice addition to some looking to get a bit more diversity on their shelves.
Moving away from biographies but circling back to science, the final book this round is Stuck! The Story of La Brea Tar Pits by Joyce Uglow. Done in a freestyle poem, it outlines briefly how the pits lure and entrap animals, then preserved them for future study. Complete with a glossary, timeline, partial list of plants and animals that have been found preserved in it, and some general notes, this is a great book for young paleontologists.
There you are; I’m working on a non-fiction book on medical quackery and a fictional pirate story—a sequel to a prior book not yet counted (I’ll post them together).
