Introverted Reader

The Wish Giver by Bill Brittain: Book Review

When The Wish Giver comes to the Coven Tree church social, four townspeople exchange 50 cents each for one wish. They can't even begin to dream how their wishes will affect their lives. I remember loving this book when I was in about fifth grade. I couldn't remember a thing about the story but I remember how much I loved this book. It held up well! As a young reader, I doubt that I noticed that the story is a cautionary tale about being careful what you wish for, I just liked the fanciful way that the wishes turned out. Polly wishes that people would like her and smile when they see her. Rowena wishes that a handsome traveling salesman would put down roots in their town. Adam wishes for water all over his parents' farm. They get what they wish for, all right! This was a quick, easy read for me and I'm pretty sure I smiled all the way through, reliving the magic I felt as a young reader. The illustrations by Andrew Glass are great too. There's one picture of the traveling salesman in particular that still sends a chill down my spine! I wholehearted recommend this for younger readers. It's a fun story that would be a delight to read aloud with a child. Banned/Challenged: The Wish Giver shows up in the 99th spot in the top 100 most-frequently banned/challenged books from 1990-1999. I can't find a reason why, so I'm going to take a stab at it. Read the second paragraph of the book: "Witches have abounded in this part of New England since colonial days, when Cotton Mather held his witch trials in Salem to be rid of them. The very name of our village comes from the huge, twisted tree down at the…

Introverted Reader Features

Scarlett O’Hara: Banned Books Week Character Connection

How the world sees Scarlett I intended to write about a different character this week, but I hated to throw such a sweet guy into the mix of my Banned Books Week celebration, so I'm going with that minx, Scarlett O'Hara. I just cannot figure out how I feel about her. I'm still trying to decide whether I love her or hate her eight months after finishing Gone With the Wind! She reminds me of Anna Karenina in that respect. (Coincidence that Vivien Leigh portrayed both women? Probably not.) Scarlett is a huge mix of contradictions. Maybe she has a multiple personality disorder! But that's not it either. All of her traits make sense together when you step back and look at them the right way, it's just not immediately obvious. Anyway, I guess you can already tell this is going to be a rambling post. As I sat down to write this, I was thinking that Scarlett is dumb as a post (I was thinking about a line early in the book where she cracked me up with her utter ignorance of history). But that's not at all true. She's actually too smart for her own good. She's weak on "book smarts" but I'm guessing that's because she's too busy having fun and flirting to bother with books. She has a good head for business and she's not afraid to use it. She's also great at getting what she wants. If charm doesn't work, she has a sort of alley cat shrewdness that lets her see exactly how to manipulate people. She is a survivor above all. Her world is burned down around her and she comes back stronger than ever. While all the other people of her class are stoically and heroically starving to death, she is picking…

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October 4, 2012

And Tango Makes Three by Justin Richardson and Peter Parnell: Banned Books Week Review

In this true story, Roy and Silo are two male chinstrap penguins in the Central Park Zoo who don't quite fit in. They don't take any notice of the female penguins and instead form their own little family. What an adorable little book! The illustrations by Henry Cole are charming. The story of Roy and Silo is sensitively written for the young ones. I was sad as they tried to nest and then uplifted when little Tango came along. All in the space of 30 or so pages. And I just love that the story is completely true. Much as I wish this world were more accepting, this book is not going to be for all families. If your family can handle it, I do recommend the book. It's a good introduction for children to the concept of families that are a little different but that are still built on love. Banned/Challenged: And Tango Makes Three was the number one most frequently banned/challenged book in 2006, 2007, 2008, and 2010. It was number two in 2009. Holy cow. It's ruffled quite a few feathers, so to speak. We can all guess what the reasons are. "Homosexuality, religious viewpoint, and unsuited to age group," according to the American Library Association website . It is perfectly suited to the age group, being a picture book that is beautifully illustrated with a story that children can follow and ask questions about. It is becoming more common for children to have two mommies or two daddies. Children are going to have questions and this is a place for them to start to find answers. My takeaway message from this book is that what defines a family is love. Who can argue with that? Unfortunately, a lot of people. Read more reviews at Bonnie's Books…

Gone With the Wind by Margaret Mitchell: Book Review

This sweeping epic portrays life during the Civil War and Reconstruction through the eyes of Scarlett O'Hara, a young Southern belle who has a stubborn streak a mile wide. She's in love with the wrong man, marries the wrong men, and is irredeemably selfish, but she's a survivor. Through it all, she steadfastly refuses the advances of reprobate blockade runner Rhett Butler. Their story is as timeless as it is turbulent. I feel like the last Southern woman to read Gone With the Wind. My excuse, such as it is: I did try to read it once before, when I was way too young. I thought Scarlett was mean, Miss Melly was a wimp, and Ashley was just useless. I put it down very early on and never wanted to pick it up again. However, as the host of The Southern Literature Reading Challenge, people were shocked that I'd never read this Southern classic, my aunt perhaps most of all. She has read it multiple times and re-watches the movie religiously. She finally told me last year when we were at the Decatur Book Festival together, "How about we do a read-a-long? It's been years since I re-read it and I would love to get your reactions as you're reading it for the first time." With her shove support, I finally got up the nerve to tackle this beast. I loved it. I have an ancient old mass market paperback with the tiniest font known to man and I still plowed through. My eyes physically hurt from the strain of reading almost 1000 pages of "ant prints" as I call fonts that small, and I still could not put it down. These characters just came to life for me. Don't ask me if I hated them or loved them because…

Introverted Reader Features

Welcome to Banned Books Week!

Badge reprinted by permission of the American Library Association. I can't believe it's Banned Books Week again! I said everything I really have to say about banning/challenging books in this post a couple of years ago, but I'll give a quick recap. I believe that you have the right to choose the books you want to read. I believe that parents/guardians have the right to choose what their children read up to a certain age, which is different for every child. Just remember that forbidding anything to anyone only makes them more curious about it. Forbid a book to a curious child and they will do everything they can to find it, read it, and see what the big deal is. I do not believe that you have the right to tell me what I can or cannot read. If I had children, you do not have the right to dictate what they can or cannot read. Our freedoms are what make our country so great and this is perhaps one of our greatest freedoms. You respect my freedom to choose what I read, write, watch, or listen to, and I will do the same for you. Because this is really about respect and trust. And the people who get on their moral high horses and declare what is right or wrong are disrespecting the choices and judgments of everyone around them. So join book lovers across the country in celebrating Banned Books Week. At least look at the list of frequently banned/challenged books on the ALA website. I believe you'll be shocked at some of the titles. You might even be shocked at some of the titles I review this week. And that's why this week is so important, because it brings awareness to the issue. I have an…

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October 1, 2012

Bookish Miscellany

It’s Monday! What Are You Reading?

It's Monday! What Are You Reading? is hosted by Sheila at Book Journey. Look at all of this activity! It's just like old times! Don't get used to it! :-) Posted:Review: The Art of Racing in the Rain by Garth Stein Review: Fables: Legends in Exile by Bill Willingham Review: The Winter Sea by Susanna Kearsley Review: The Tale of Despereaux by Kate DiCamillo Read: Lonesome Dove by Larry McMurtry And Tango Makes Three by Justin Richardson and Peter Parnell The Wish Giver by Bill Brittain Currently Reading:The Call of the Wild by Jack London The Exile of Sara Stevenson by Darci Hannah The Lost Hero by Rick Riordan, read by Joshua Swanson Don't Know Much About Mythology: Everything You Need to Know About the Greatest Stories in Human History but Never Learned by Kenneth C. Davis Up Next:It's Banned Books Week, so I'm attempting to post daily reviews of banned or challenged books. I've checked out The Awakening by Kate Chopin to try to read and review this week, but I will probably run out of time. I will give it a good try. Otherwise, it's time for a new audiobook. Sad as I am to reach the end, I'm in the last part of The Lost Hero. I'm downloading Graveminder by Melissa Marr onto my iPods as we speak. It is October and I love to tackle horror/supernatural books during this month and this will be my first. Of course, I'm also going to Jamaica for a week starting October 13 and I don't see myself reading dark books on the (hopefully) sun-drenched beach. We'll see how that plays out. What are you reading this week? I have an affiliate relationship with Malaprop's, my local independent bookstore located in beautiful downtown Asheville, NC; and Better World Books. I…

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October 1, 2012

The Tale of Despereaux by Kate DiCamillo: Book Review

Despereaux was born different. He's super-small and his eyes opened right away. And as he grows older, he's decidedly un-mousy in his behavior. In fact, he falls in love with Princess Pea. What will he do for her? I was drawn into this dreamy fairy tale from the first page. I can't say that I fell in love with any of the characters; that doesn't really seem to happen in true fairy tales. But I did fall in love with the book and all the gently-taught lessons it contained. There are lessons about individuality vs conformity, courage, honorable defiance, love, forgiveness, loyalty, envy, and judgment. And they're all presented so subtly that kids probably won't realize they're learning anything. There were several quotes I loved that will show you the heart at the center of this story. "Reader, you must know that an interesting fate (sometimes involving rats, sometimes not) awaits almost everyone, mouse or man, who does not conform." "The sound of the king's music made Despereaux's soul grow large and light inside of him." "Stories are light. Light is precious in a world so dark. Begin at the beginning. Tell Gregory a story. Make some light." "Reader, do you think it is a terrible thing to hope when there is really no reason to hope at all? Or is it (as the soldier said about happiness) something that you might just as well do, since, in the end, it really makes no difference to anyone but you?" I loved this little fairy tale with a big heart and recommend it. It would be perfect for parents to read aloud with their children. Reviewed May 25, 2009 Read an excerpt. Find author Kate DiCamillo on her website. Buy The Tale of Despereaux at Malaprop’s | Better World Books Friday…

The Winter Sea by Susanna Kearsley: Book Review

Carrie McClelland is an author struggling with writer's block. She heads for Scotland for some alone time to try to work through it. When she arrives, she is immediately attracted to Slains Castle and decides to use it in her book. In 1708, Sophia Paterson finds herself at Slains Castle as well. She finds herself mixed up in a Jacobite rebellion and falls in love with one of the soldiers. I know, that's pathetic, but it's been ***coughcoughalmostayearcoughcough*** since I read this. I loved it so much that I did want to get some sort of review down. I love Scotland. I haven't been, but I think that will be our next European vacation. I'm just dying to go. I don't actually read all that many stories set there, I think because I don't want to get sick of it. It just seems so beautiful, so different, yet so familiar. There's a reason so many Scots settled in the Southern Appalachians--they were reminded of home. It works both ways now. Anyway, I read this on our cruise last year, and even though I was bathed in sunlight on the Caribbean, my mind was totally lost to the coolness and mist of Scotland. I liked both stories equally, which is pretty rare. I usually read through one story just waiting to get back to the one that I'm really interested in, but I was happy just going back and forth between Carrie and Sophia. I liked Graham and John Moray. They are both handsome, solid, dependable men. With Scottish accents. What's not to love? The ending has a twist that I did see coming from pretty far away. My mom read this around the same time I did and it caught her completely off guard. We were both happy with it…

Legends in Exile by Bill Willingham: Book Review

All our familiar storybook characters have had to leave their homelands because an evil creature known as the Adversary has destroyed them. They have all converged on New York. In order to fit into mainstream society, there are some pretty stringent rules in effect. Snow White is effectively in control but her right-hand "man" is Bigby, otherwise know as the Big Bad Wolf. Jack the Giant Killer comes tearing into their headquarters one day with a story of finding Rose Red, his on-again off-again girlfriend and Snow's sister, missing from her apartment, which is covered in blood. Has there been a murder? Who did it? The first thing that struck me is how very much Snow White in the opening pages of this graphic novel looks like Regina/The Evil Queen from Once Upon a Time. My husband was even struck by it when I showed him. I know that doesn't have much to do with anything, I just found it amusing. Anyway, I really liked this story and the world that Willingham has built here. I am a fan of Once Upon a Time, so the idea of storybook characters living in our world is familiar to me. Still, this take is slightly different (and first--I just came to them backwards). They aren't cut off from the world in a little out-of-the-way town; most of them are living in the heart of one of the biggest cities in the world. I liked seeing how their personalities allowed them to thrive or not in that setting. I was surprised by the mystery and had absolutely no idea "whodunnit." I was also amused by the characters gathering at the end for the classic "parlor scene" so familiar to fans of the cozy mystery. I liked the art a lot as well. I…

The Art of Racing in the Rain by Garth Stein: Book Review

Enzo, the wonderfully perceptive narrator of The Art of Racing in the Rain, is a dog. His master is Denny, a talented race car driver who can't seem to get a break. There is always something that keeps him from realizing his full potential. Enzo is an astute, loyal observer of Denny's life as events spiral out of control around them. With wisdom and compassion, Enzo relates Denny's story with his own incisive commentary. This review keeps veering off into "Why I Love Enzo," so I guess I'll start there but try to keep it short. He is the friend that is quietly there, always loyal, always listening, and always loving. He's so quietly necessary that it would be easy to take him for granted. Luckily, Denny knows what a good dog he has so that doesn't happen. Enzo has almost a zen take on life and he shares his thoughts in such a way that I wanted to highlight almost the whole book. He believes that good dogs are allowed to come back as men in the next life, and he believes he's reached that stage. I agree. He understands life and being human better than most of us ever will. Enzo relates some tough times in his life with Denny. There's the adjustment period as Denny gets married and has a child. As Enzo shares very, very early in the book, Denny's wife also dies and there's huge fallout from that. That's where the book got almost infuriating. I was so aggravated with the jerks around Enzo and Denny! I didn't know why Enzo would even aspire to be human when we do such horrible things to each other. But that's where they both actually shine and they have the most to share. It was hard, but when…