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Recent reads & book news

post from Chasing Ray on 09 February 2010 11:48:24 PM. © Chasing Ray

1. My new column went up last week at Bookslut and included several titles of the "coming-of-age" variety. In particular please note Tales From the Madman Underground by John Barnes, a recent Printz honor recipient that I have not heard nearly enough about around the blogosphere. Go. Read. You will fall so hard and fast for this one that you really will not believe it.

2. Other titles in the column (all of them fabulous) are: Age 14 (gritty WWI drama); Stunt (spec fic/family drama mashup from one of my favorite small presses all about missing parents, bad parents and a discovered grandparent who is a trapeze artist); Shine, Coconut Moon (or what I like to think of as an Indian twist on the Gilmore Girls, including post-9/11 drama); A Very Fine Line (manages to be about clairvoyance, home schooling, cross dressing and family secrets all at once - plus BONUS crushing on the teacher); and the Colors gn trilogy from First/Second which is as pretty as it gets and very funny and also all about growing up in Korea. Nicely done, each and every one.

3. In the midst of January chaos there was also a new issue of Eclectica. (Read here to see how my editor is still waiting on one of his adopted children to arrive from Haiti - they have been in the process for Evans for about two years now). I had three review pieces for kids up in the issue, including one on Myths, one on learning books (that you don't realize are teaching you things and thus are supposed to be boring) and one on biographies of many people I did not know much of anything about. Amazing what you can learn reviewing picture books!

4. Oh - and bonus, another review of Shine, Coconut Moon from Eclectica contributor Niranjana Iyer.

5. I just finished reading Raina Telgemeier's delightful MG graphic novel Smile. I didn't intend to do more than give it a quick glance (it showed up unrequested) but after turning just a few pages I was completely sucked into this one. It follows the real story of the author's trials and tribulations after falling and severely damaging her two front teeth at the age of 12. All through middle school she is alternately tortured and healed by a variety of dentists, orthodontists, etc. and must deal with the physical discomfort and all too familiar emotional dramarama. Nothing truly exceptional happens in this book except growing up but it's told so well that you can't resist it. In terms of plot it is a perfect MG vacation book - add a sandwich, some chips and lemonade and this the 2010 winging in the hammock version of The Penderwicks. The bonus here is the fantastic multicultural cast - Telgemeier has truly drawn Raina's school in about the most realistic manner I've ever seen with all shades of brown and beige portrayed with great fun and aplomb.

Smile is a true winner - could very well be a dark horse award winner later this year (I'm thinking the Cybils are doing to love this one.)

6. Bonus - See much more about Smile at Raina's website.

7. Cory Doctorow YA SF alert! For the Win is due out from Tor this summer. Set in the future, it's about gaming, unions, and a "vast shadow economy, running electronic sweatshops in the world's poorest countries, where countless 'gold farmers,' bound to their work by abusive contracts and physical threats, harvest virtual treasure for their employers to sell to First World gamers who are willing to spend real money to skip straight to higher-level gameplay." Basically a novelization of his short story "Anda's Game".

Although I was not completely sold on Little Brother as the greatest YA SF title to hit the ground in forever, I do think he's a solid writer and has lots of teen appeal, so I'll be looking for this one. (Not a very good title though - sounds like a sports book which it certainly is not.)

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Personally: I'm nuts!

post from Estella's Revenge on 09 February 2010 10:25:13 AM. © Estella's Revenge

If you can't already tell from the title of this post, I have no idea what to write about today. Everything is a swirl of activity 'round here, and I'm just trying to keep my head above water. I've been supremely stressed and emotional lately, and it's about to drive Chuck and everyone nuts, so I've spent the last couple of days trying to calm the hell down!

Here's a little story about a bad experience with an OB:

After I had to leave the Medicaid clinic (loved those ladies) where I was receiving my maternity care because I elected benefits through my godsend of a full-time teaching position, I wound up with a nut for a doc. Actually, she was nice, but her practice gave me the supreme creeps. The good part: this practice was literally right around the corner from our house. The bad parts:

They insisted on keeping a credit card on file (felt like a bar tab to have a baby)
They explained very litte--kinda had to drag it out of 'em
Their office was cold and intimidating
There was a sign in the lobby instructing women with children over 3 months TO WAIT IN THE HALL until appointment time
They refused to file any secondary costs on my Medicaid
They charged patients for "rush" calls to answer questions. They practically charges patients if they farted in the office.

I just had an icky feeling about the practice, so I started looking for someone different. As it turns out, after much phone calling and referral chasing I found a practice at the hospital I really like where I had my ultrasounds done. I met the doctor for my first appointment yesterday, and I LOVE HER. I could hug her and squeeze her and pinch her cheeks and give her lots of money. As it turns out, they'll file secondary costs on my Medicaid, though, so I don't have to give her any money. I let my insurance company do that. She made me laugh, and she was normal (but a weird, quirky, bubbly normal), and she even had a PC vs. Mac discussion with Chuck. And she told us we have big heads. Just like her family.

Seriously, though, it is SUCH a relief to find a doc, right here at week 30, who I love and who I trust and who explains things and is normal. And doesn't make ANYONE wait in the hall. HA!

Chuck and I spent the rest of the afternoon and evening registering at Babies R'Us, and we had a blast (until I got tired and heartburny and wanted to go home).

Work is stupid busy, but I won't go into all that. I don't have time since I am at work, this class is almost over, and I'm about to zip away to the next class. I'll be back with more book talk soon (maybe later today) since I'm actually READING this year (so different from last year).

I hope you're all having a delightful Tuesday thus far!

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Third Annual Black Quill Awards Announced

post from mediabistro.com: GalleyCat on 09 February 2010 10:23:16 AM. © mediabistro.com: GalleyCat

Award-black 60.jpg Dark Scribe magazine has announced the winners of the Third Annual Black Quill Awards, celebrating the best work in dark horror, suspense, and thrillers.

Two awards were handed out in each category, one for editors' choice and one for readers' choice. The editors' choice for Dark Genre Novel of the Year award went to Dark Places by Gillian Flynn. The readers' choice went to Drood by by Dan Simmons. Editors' choice for Best Small Press Chill went to Kelland by Paul G. Bens Jr. and the readers' choice went to As Fate Would Have It by Michael Louis Calvillo.

See all the award winners at this link. Here's more from the release: "Nominations for the Black Quills are editorial-based, with both the editors and active contributing writers submitting nominations in each of the (8) categories. Once nominations are announced, readers of DSM cast their votes for their picks in each category. For this year's outing, more than 3,300 votes were cast by the magazine's readers."

New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media.

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Rosalind Wiseman's Sponsored Book Tour

post from mediabistro.com: GalleyCat on 09 February 2010 09:23:33 AM. © mediabistro.com: GalleyCat

As writers around the world struggle with evaporating book tour budgets, one writer has uncovered a unique solution--corporate sponsorship.

This week, Rosalind Wiseman will partner with Family Circle magazine and Dove "Go Fresh Deodorant" for her ten-stop Girl World Book Tour. The author is selling $40 pairs of tickets (for a mother and daughter) to each two-hour event. Attendees will receive a 12-month subscription to Family Circle and a Dove gift bag. They will also get copies of three books: Queen Bees & Wannabes: Helping Your Daughter Survive Cliques, Gossip, Boyfriends, and the New Realities of Girl World.

Family Circle publisher Carey Witmer had this statement: "We know that some of the most important conversations you have with your teens and tweens can be difficult to start. Every month, Rosalind Wiseman helps our readers gracefully navigate some of the tougher parenting moments ... Each and every one of her Girl World Book Tour events will have mothers and daughters talking, laughing and understanding each other a little bit more."

What do you think? Can this strategy help other writers?

New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media.

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A few more LOVE-ly picture books for Valentines
Day (or any time!)

post from She Is Too Fond Of Books ... on 09 February 2010 08:53:54 AM. © She Is Too Fond Of Books ...

A few weeks ago I told you about My Heart is Like a Zoo, a new children’s picture book which has quickly become a favorite in our house. We love Michael Hall’s bright illustrations, finding the hearts incorporated into the pictures, and the way he has assigned human moods to the animals.

The kids and I [...]

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A Voice From The Book Trade

post from John Baker's Blog on 09 February 2010 08:10:48 AM. © John Baker's Blog

Over at The View From Here Magazine, Helen Miles talks about her experience of the book trade:I was quite unprepared for the bizarre practices that persist in the selling of a book. Apparently, I must set a price for our books (that must end with 99p, obviously) and then offer a whacking discount to the [...]

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The Autobiography of a Sexually Emancipated
Communist Woman, by Alexandra Kollontai

post from Vulpes Libris on 09 February 2010 06:48:36 AM. © Vulpes Libris

A note about the sources: The 1971 translation by Salvator Attansio is the first and as far as I know the only version in English of Kollontai’s complete autobiography which shows the text as it was before it was extensively corrected. In this edition, passages in italics were those subsequently removed by the author. Kollontai’s [...]

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Reckless and Dangerous: Justin Taylors Everything
Here is the Best Thing Ever

Justin Taylor depicts a generation raised on video games and cable-news politics, a nation where alcohol abuse and sexual discord are the main rites of passage.

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I Guess Ill Call it a Day

Banana Yoshimoto, Amrita (Jap. 1994, English 1997)This is such a pity that I couldn?t really enter this book and that I had to skim through half of it. It started well, with an endearing main character, Sakumi, a young woman from Tokyo with a fresh and friendly voice. She comes from a bit of an [...]

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fwd; DIANA BREBNER PRIZE READING AND LAUNCH OF
ARC #63 (Ottawa)

Please join the crew of Arc: Canada?s National Poetry Magazine for wine, snacks and great poetry in celebrating the winners of the 8th Annual Diana Brebner Award for Poetry, and to launch the Winter 2010 issue of Arc.

When: 7:30 p.m., Tuesday February 16, 2010

Where: Collected Works Book Store and Café

1242 Wellington St., Ottawa

All are welcome! For more information on this event, the magazine, the contest, or other Arc promotions, please visit: www.arcpoetry.ca

8^th ANNUAL DIANA BREBNER PRIZE FOR POETRY

The winner of the Diana Brebner Prize for 2009 is Gillian Wallace for ?Crow, of the family Corvidae.? This contest honours the memory of the late Ottawa poet Diana Brebner, and is awarded each year to an emerging poet in the National Capitol region. The prize was judged this year by Gatineau poet and former Arc editorial board member, Peter Richardson. He also awarded an honourable mention to Jacqueline Kawaja for the ?Speed of Angiogenesis. Both of these winners will be on hand to read the winning poems.

NEW DEADLINE

Due to a change in deadline this year, we are actively encouraging new submissions to the 9^th Annual Diana Brebner while celebrating the 8^th. If you are a poet living in the National Capital Region who has not yet been published in book form, we want to hear from you. All submissions to the 2010 competition must be postmarked no later than March 1, 2010. For detailed submission guidelines, please see:

http://www.arcpoetry.ca/mag/contests/diana_brebner_prize.php

ARC #63 ? CANADA?S THREE LEGGED POETRY MAGAZINE

Contributors to Arc #63 and Arc board members will be on hand to help launch the Winter 2010 issue with readings of selections from the current issue.

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http://robmclennan.blogspot.com/2010/02/fwd-diana-brebner-prize-reading-and.html

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