Interesting People, Amazing Places, and Good Food

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I've been thinking about whether or not I want to do the Expanding Horizons Challenge again next year. And... I think not. Before you get all depressed (like you would. Really.), I'm not doing away with it entirely. I just came up with another idea for a challenge instead. It was born out of my love of food books, my missing Lesley's Armchair Traveler Challenge this year (I don't think she did it at all...), and my desire to host a challenge, but not the exact same one I did last year.

This year, I give you the Well-Seasoned Reader Challenge.

Here's how it works:

Rule #1: The challenge runs from January 1 to March 31. (No cheating and starting before!)

Rule #2: You must read three books. After that, it's up to you how much you want to read.

Rule #3: The books must:

have a food name in the title
OR
be about cooking/eating
OR
have a place name in the title
OR
be about one (or more) person's travel experience
OR
be about a specific culture
OR
be by an author whose ethnicity is other than your own (see, I squeezed it in!)

I'll leave it up to you to choose how the three books you read fit the criteria.

Rule #4: They must be middle-grade on up, but can be either fiction or non-fiction.

The purpose, this winter, is to take yourself someplace out of the ordinary, to go on a literary trip, whether that be challenging your expectations, discovering a new place, or enjoying the experience of reading about good food, places, and people.

Sign up using the Mr. Linky below. I'll probably set up a blog for the challenge sometime before January. This post will stay up until the challenge starts.

Little Leap Forward

by Guo Yue
ages 7/8-12

Little Leap Forward is a boy in Bejing, China in 1966. It is the height of Chairman Mao's reign, but it hasn't really touched Leap Forward's life much. He still plays by the river with his best friend, Little-Little, and he still enjoys his silkworms and the music he hears around him. One day, the boys capture a little yellow bird, which Leap Forward calls Little Cloud. He takes the bird home, intending on taming it and enjoying it's music. The bird, once caged, won't sing. Then the Red Guards arrive and Leap Forward's life -- and perspective -- change.

This is a small autobiographical novel that while not detailed, I think caputures something different about the Cultural Revolution and China during that time. Leap Forward isn't running from anything, he isn't being oppressed; he's mostly just trying to be a kid. Yet, because of the bird and a bamboo flute and a desire, his life was changed. There is a simple humanity and kindness to the book that I don't remember finding in the other books I've read about this time.

Additonally, I loved the paintings, done by Clare Follows, Gue's wife; they're simple, yet beautiful. Something that I could spend time absorbing. But I have to admit, what I enjoyed most was the author's note at the end where Gue tells part of his story. It's touching and sad and sweet and just perfect. He as also released a CD called Music, Food and Love, which I'd love to find and listen to. He sounds like a remarkable man, one with a fascinating story to tell.

Not A Cybils Review

Can you believe it?? Thank Heather for the break in our programming, she's the one who passed the award on to me. (Thank you, Heather!!)

7 things I did before
1. played the french horn
2. swam
3. watched TV
4. went to the ballet
5. listened to tapes
6. aspired to be a journalist
7. drank soda

7 things I do now
1. play the piano (though not as much as I want)
2. run (but mostly after my kids)
3. read
4. long to go out
5. listen to MP3s
6. aspire to get paid for writing reviews
7. drink water

7 things I want to do
1. get paid
2. travel overseas
3. lose 30 pounds
4. get rid of the debt
5. find an extra 5 hours in the day
6. decorate a wedding cake
7. learn French

7 things that attract me to the opposite sex
1. fine eyes
2. dark hair (an accent's a bonus)
3. humor
4. patience
5. intelligence
6. empathy
7. gentleness

7 Favorite Foods
1. orange scones at Panera
2. hot chocolate
3. anything with chocolate, caramel and nuts
4. Spinach-Artichoke dip
5. homemade wheat bread fresh from the oven
6. chili
7. angel food cake with fresh strawberries and whip cream

7 Things I Say Most Often
1. Mmmm... Uh huh. What?
2. Do your chores, please!
3. K, did you do that?
4. I need you to... (multiple ways to finish that one)
5. How was your day?
6. Do you have any homework?
7. I love you, too.

7 More Kreativ Bloggers:
This is the hardest part for me... I hate picking and choosing among my list. I've been participating in Mother Reader's comment challenge, and have discovered some (more) wonderful blogs. A sampling of my new additions:
1. Hip Writer Mama
2. Everead
3. Charlotte's Library
4. Teacher Ninja
5. Confessions of a Bibliovore
6. Semicolon
7. Writing and Ruminating

Every Soul a Star

by Wendy Mass
ages 8-12

Yesterday, I saw a lovely review of this book over at Fuse #8, which coincidentally enough, I had just brought home from the library. I thought that it sounded like something that I would enjoy, and began it this afternoon. I couldn't put it down.

I'm having trouble putting my effusive thoughts into coherent sentences (the Alvin and the Chimpmunks Witch Doctor in the background isn't helping!), so I'll just stick with a bullet list:

• Basically, it's the story in the voices of three (well, four) kids: Ally, a homeschooled girl who lives at Moon Shadow campground, and has been preparing for the advent of a solar eclipse her whole life, and who is faced with the impending move back to suburbia; Bree, a A-list girl, whose whole life is fashion and shopping, and who is being summarily uprooted from her suburban life when her parents decide to take over the running of Moon Shadow; and Jack, an overweight loner who failed science and is stuck going to see the solar eclipse instead of going to summer school.

• I loved that this book was about astronomy. Honestly, that was the only thing I remember from 8th grade science, but I really love going out and looking at stars and the moon. This book captured the awe that stargazing can make a person feel very eloquently.

• I liked how Mass did the three voices. Each one was disctint, with a voice I could literally hear in my head, but they all interconnected in ways in order to propel the story forward. There were only a few instances where I felt like the narrative sagged, and it wasn't enough for me to really care.
  

• In the same vein, I liked how Mass treated her characters. Bree was one that I could see myself being annoyed at, but I found myself sympathizing with her and eventually even liking her. But it wasn't just Bree: all of the characters (even the 20-something eclipse chaser dudes) were likeable. Even though we only heard the narrative from three of the kids, I wound up liking pretty much everyone who had a place in the book.

• All that said, I actually learned stuff from this book. (It's not often I can say that!) Mass threw an awful lot of astronomy in the book, and did so in a way that felt completely organic to the story. Of coure Ally's going to go off about stars and nebulas: it's been her whole life for as long as she can remember. I just happened to pick up a few interesting facts along the way.

• Given all the science and narrative and everything else, what I really liked was that this was a book about change and hope. And looking for the best in everything -- from situations to people.

• Oh, and don't forget to read the author's note at the end.

Two Very Different Books About Two Extraordinary Girls

Savvy
by Ingrid Law
ages: 9 (I would say 10, but call it fourth gradeish)+

Mississippi Beaumont (she'd rather you call her Mibs) is about to turn 13. The thing is, in her family, that's when your savvy hits. It's kind of like a super-power, but it's not. Mibs's brother Rocket is trying to control electricity, her grandpa moves land around (to hear him tell the story, Idaho was his fault), and her brother Fish controls the weather. Naturally, Mibs is excited (if not a little bit anxious) to find out what her savvy will be. However, the night before her birthday, her Poppa is in a car accident and lands in a hospital in Salina, Kansas. From there, a series of events unfolds that makes Mibs's birthday one of the most unforgettable of her life.

Law had charmed with this book. At least, when I started it yesterday, I was. I think if I had finished it yesterday, I might have been bubbling over the top with praise, but I put it down, and didn't get around to finishing it until later this afternoon. As a result, I felt like it was missing something. Like the end didn't maintain the momentum that the beginning set up.

In the end, though, I do think it's a very, very good book, with very, very good characters and a very, very entertaining plot. I liked Mibs's savvy, and the way she learned to deal with and use it. But it was more than that: I liked Mibs as a character; she was a good-hearted, sweet, girl who was determined and stubborn when she needed to be. I liked the adventure she and her brothers and the preacher kids went on. And I appreciated the ending, even if it didn't wow me as much as the beginning did.

It's definitely worth reading.


Daisy Dawson is on Her Way!
by Steve Voake
ages: 6-9

On the completely opposite end of the spectrum from Savvy, we have Daisy. It's a quiet, sweet little book without much conflict but with some wonderful illustrations.

Daisy is like many other girls: she gets up, she goes to school, she likes animals. The liking of the animals, however, seems to get in the way of going to school. On the way, she stops, watching and helping all the little and big animals she sees. As a result, she's usually late to school. This amplifies one day, when Daisy discovers that the animals can talk back. This leads to some fun friendships (and some interesting exchanges) and a daring rescue attempt of a sweet dog named Boom.

I think what I liked best about the book was Voake's matter-of-fact way of handling Daisy. He simplified everything for the youngest chapter-book readers, but he didn't talk down to them at all. It's very descriptive, but in as few words as possible, he captures the essence of Daisy's heart and personality. I also liked how he touched on growing up, ever so lightly, when Daisy is trying to figure out whether or not her gift for talking to animals is a "real" one. She tells herself that she needs to grow up and come down to earth, but the animals -- wisely -- talk her out of it. Sure, maybe someday she'll grow up and not be able to hear the animals, but for now, she's enjoying all her newfound friends.

As did I.

(Just for the record: because these are Cybils nominees, I've been asked to make sure y'all know this is my opinion only, and not that of the panel.)