A New Installment

It seems like it has been FOREVER since Grace Lin had a book for me to read!  Because it's all about me, right?  When the Sea Turned to Silver is another in the same line as Where the Mountain Meets the Moon and Starry River of the Sky.  If you enjoyed the first two books, you will enjoy this one!

Stories

are so powerful.  I guess that is one of the reasons why I am passionate about librarians defining their work as a service. That's why I like language like "patron" instead of "customer."  I just feel like we, those who work in libraries are in a service profession.  A relational profession.  One in which we need to be ready, as I often say, to "open a vein" to serve our community.

Long has my motto been, "It's better to burn out than rust away." And when I read a book like Mara's Stories:  Glimmers in the Darkness, I know I am right.

Here is the remarkable Gary D. Schmidt, although there is no D. on the cover, serving all of us, by sharing tales from the Jewish tradition as if they were told from a concentration camp prisoner to those around her, in the evenings, after another day of hell has passed.

These are beautiful and horrifying and hopeful and heart-breaking.  And the author talks about their origin at the end of the book, which makes it all even more  powerful.  Once again, a must-read for all.

And as a librarian, I need to make sure that as many people as possible have the experience of hearing stories such as these. 

Wild and Wonderful and Delightfully Odd!

West of the Moon is unlike anything that I have ever read before and probably will ever read again.  It is just lovely and yet it has many a sad and terribly awful parts to the story of Astri, a young Norwegian girl who lives with her evil aunt, wimpy uncle, cousins and little sister, Greta, after being pretty much abandoned by her father.  He just up and left Astri and Greta with this toad of a woman and set out for America. This book is just incredible.  Incredible.  I was also thankful to have the author's note at the end of the book that talked about the "America Fever" that hit Norway, when lots of folks thought that America was the place to be.  Once again, here is a remarkable piece of fiction, magical realism, I guess you would call it, that teaches so much.  The whole deal is about choices and forgiveness and this book reads like a beautiful, lovely sermon.  Now I know that word has negative connotations, but for someone who preaches, I don't mean it in any negative way at all!  This book is a thing of beauty.  Even though it has darkness in it, because that's life here on this side of the Jordan right?  The beauty with the ugly.

Number 10...have I stayed too long at the fair?

It's bound to happen.  It happened with the Private/Privilege books, even.  And how I did love those.  But I think after gorging on the same deliciousness for so long, it was bound to get old.  Not to say that I am below the four star rating, not at all, Volume 10 was a solid four-star, but it just didn't have that five-star sparkle, as the others did for me.  While I do love Flycatcher and I loved what he did here with setting up Haven, I still don't know his backstory.  Did I miss it somewhere?  What horrible thing happened to his family?  Now I just read the wikipedia article and that makes sense.  But was this in a comic that I missed?  I am going to take a Fable break, but I know I will come back to them.  Maybe the break will help me to appreciate them as I once did! 

This One Had to Lose a Star

I do love Fables, as I have said, but I had to point out my usual trouble in this volume, number 9.  I was super excited to meet Hansel of Hansel and Gretel in this volume, but then, one tiny mistake was made, which of course, is my biggest pet peeve!   There is a flash-back scene in which Hansel refers to Father Somethingorother's sermons.  Father?  Really?  Sigh.  So anyway, another great addition to the series, but a pretty glaring mistake!

Ah, a good fable...

 I was recently told that I would be super addicted to theFables series, graphic novel/comic book.  I really didn't take the warning seriously.  Not at all.  I just thought, well, I will try one.  Just one.  Then I thought, well, I'll just see what the next one is like.  And then, oh, just the third.  I will stop at three.  Now I am currently reading Sons of Empire.  And that is Vol. 9.  So yes, I was warned but I didn't listen and now I am hooked.  They are all here, Snow White, Prince Charming, Beauty and the Beast, the Frog Prince, everyone.
See there is this bad dude, the Adversary.  And he and his armies have taken over most of the fable world.  Many fables have escaped and now live in New York City.  Sounds weird?  Yes.
Is it addictive and wonderful?  Yes.  But you are warned!
Also, this is not, not, not for kids!

Once again...

it was October.  But Favorite Scary Stories of American Children was less than scary and less a favorite.  I think I ended up listening to the abridged version, which was good, because the only good thing about this was that it was short.  Okay so it wasn't THAT bad.  There were a few good tales, but it just wasn't as good as I had hoped.

Another Great Book from Grace Lin

Again, not surprising at all, as Grace Lin is such a wonderful writer.  Starry River of the Sky is a companion book to Where the Mountain Meets the Moon, so I kinda figured that I would really enjoy it, and I did.  This one has a male main character, Rendi, who has run away from home and has found himself in a little village where the moon never shines.  Once again, Lin takes stories from Chinese tradition and puts a new twist on them, while weaving them inside a new story of her own.  She is seriously creative.  Just a beautiful writer.  Reading her books has given me a whole new insight into Chinese culture.  Great stuff. 

Barefoot and Bored

I don't really know the different between a ghost and goblin, so I am linking the words to aid me in that regard.  What I do know is that The Barefoot Book of Giants, Ghosts and Goblins:  Tales from Around the World just didn't do it for me.  It has high marks on goodreads.com, but for me, it was just flat.   They weren't very terrifying or tantalising, like the description says, but I don't know, maybe I'm jaded.  Blah. 

When the Moon Comes Over the Mountian

My grandma, my mom's mom, we lived with her while I was growing up.  She and I were quite the buddies.  A great pair.  She really loved me and I really loved her.  My grandma was awesome.  But man, she couldn't really sing.  And she didn't sing, but sometimes she sang, "When the Moon Comes Over the Mountain" but just the title and the lines that followed, "every beam brings a dream dear of you" and something about strolling through the mountain.  It was by Kate Smith.  Who I have never heard of, apart from my grandma talking about her.  In fact, listening to the youtube video, it is the first time I've heard the song!
Of course, this song came to me when I thought about the book Where the Mountain Meets the Moon.  When this book came out, it started the Great Kate Smith Resurgence of 2009.  So that explains that!
I loved WTMMTM.  I was told that I would and I did.  I am big fan of Grace Lin, of course, and so I thought I would love it.  Lin mixes Chinese folk tales with her own story of a little girl who goes off on an adventure to change the fortune of her family.  On her way she meets a dragon and a lot of other cool characters.  Great and beautiful story.  Thank you, Ms. Lin for another awesome book!

Many Bones

Obviously the book More Bones is second in a series, but I never read the first.  I need to go and do so now, as More Bones:  Scary Stories from Around the World is quite good!  The first one is called Ask the Bones.  I am going to get it at the library tomorrow!  And you should, too!  This is a collection of creepy stories from different places around the world.  The one from Japan is one of my favorites, and I use it when I have to do scary storytelling.  This book is worth buying, I think, if  you are a storyteller and called upon to do the scary thing.  I think I will get me a copy!