Lynness: My January read

Well, I haven't actually read my January picks yet, but I have requested a few books and am eagerly awaiting their arrival at the library.

**Can I say that I just LOVE being able to browse our library system's extensive holdings via the 'card' catalog online and read reviews and summaries and then request that books be sent to the library branch of my choice and then return them to any branch!!!**

ANYWAY...I thought about a few of Rae's ideas like Garrison Keillor, Dave Barry, Douglas Adams- but they can all be just annoying if you aren't in the right mood; or Roald Dahl and Piers Anthony, both of whom I have read, but never really thought of as 'funny'...I do like Bailey White- I have Mama Makes Up Her Mind (and Other Dangers of Southern Living), but I wanted something different still.  So I decided to try The Egg and I (which will also work for February, but I don't know that I'll be able to find the movie...it's not something Blockbuster would be likely to have) and then I started thinking about how I've missed Mary Roach's articles in the Reader's Digest.  I decided to see if she had written any books and, lo and behold, she has!  I have requested Stiff- about human cadavers, decomposition, etc. and Spook- about the scientific search for the afterlife.  Yes, these are supposed to be funny books.  And, according to the reviews I read, seem to deliver.  I think these will work for me- the subject matter (at least for Stiff) is right up my alley, and her style (based on her RD articles) resonates with me.

Raehink: February read

Ah, February. Such a short and squat and totally meaningless month. Not even easy to spell. At least my crocuses (croci) and daffs will be up soon and a wonderful rainy storm has temporarily blown out our inversion smog. We could make it a romantic reading month, but we won't. Just because. I. Get. To. Pick. The. Books!

Your February assignment is to find a book that has also been made into a film. This task is not complicated at all and the genre is left totally up to you. The said title may be fiction or non, as you wish. Note that there are booklists galore online of this type. It shouldn't be too hard for you to find a title. Remember that most classics have been made into movies, as have many wonderful contemporary novels. Be imaginative and stretch yourself. Your reward at the end of the month is to watch the/a movie version of the book. Let us know how it compares. Don't cheat and just watch a Harry Potter movie or Twilight...find something you haven't read or seen before!

Happy reading!

Raehink: A Seemingly Impossible Resolution

After realizing that I would have to live to be about two hundred years old to ever finish reading all the books I own, I made a commitment not to purchase any more books this year. My two exception categories are books selected (beyond my control) for my book group here in Payson, and books required for my BGS degree. I've already made it three weeks!

The funny thing is that no one (and I do mean no one!) thinks I can possibly accomplish such a goal. So the gauntlet has been thrown down, the goal has been dutifully recorded on paper and here online, and I am determined to keep my end of the bargain. No buying of books for one year. Enough said.

Think I can do it?

Happy reading!

Raehink: My funny reads for January

I just finished four amusing reads for the January assignment. Three of them are by the author Celia Rivenbark. She is a newspaper columnist and lives in North Carolina. Her claim to fame is simply being a slightly tarnished Southern belle. I read her trilogy of silly essays called Bless Your Heart, Tramp, We're Just Like You, Only Prettier and Stop Dressing Your Six-Year-Old Like a Skank. They were just what the doctor ordered, although they do contain a smattering of four-letter words and a little scatological and slightly naughty humor. I just wish I had experience living in the South so that I could appreciate her words even more.

My fourth read was delightful and would make a good read for a book group. It's called A Girl Named Zippy by Haven Kimmel. Kimmel grew up in Mooreland, Indiana and was raised a by an "unbelieving" father and Quaker mother. She tells about her idyllic childhood in a small town with lots of eccentric characters. I am looking forward to reading her other book titled She Got Up Off The Couch and Other Heroic Acts from Mooreland, Indiana. Any of you girls who wish to write or record family history would benefit from reading this author. I was extremely satisfied with her words.

Happy reading!

Lynness: a few more ideas

I remember reading and re-reading Edward Eager's "Half Magic" and Isaac
Asimov's "Norby" books in elementary school. So if he's into fantasy
and sci-fi, they might be places to start. I also thought about the
Tennis Shoes among the Nephites books. I never read them all, but I
remember enjoying the first few.

Rae: Think Outside the Box Perhaps?

Lulu: Maybe try a Redwall novel (Brian Jacques) or an elementary Star Wars novel. Those might be less intense and scary and more in line with Reed's interests. I know we talked about animal stories too...try Old Yeller (which is intense emotionally, but not too scary) or Charlotte's Web (which still makes me cry). And even something funny like the Captain Underpants books might work. I loved reading The Best Christmas Pageant Ever and Best School Year Ever to our kids. They were a mixed bag of ages at the time. And don't be afraid to make those librarians do some readers' advisory there in St George. That's what they are supposed to be doing!

Even though they tend to appeal to girls more, I agree with Abby that the Little House books might work for Reed. Especially if you can link it with some Dixie church history. I also remember my mother reading me some great stories about Joseph Smith when I was about Reed's age. I loved the story about his leg. Reed might really respond well to a story that is true rather than one that plays so much with his emotions and imagination. Just some thoughts...

Happy reading!

Rae: A Little Humorous Help

I can see that some of you are finding it difficult to think of something "funny" to read. Don't stress over this month's assignment, ladies. Almost every genre has funny elements...even murder mysteries. In fact, one of my favorite plots involved some birdwatchers and binoculars were the murder weapon! Just find something that has humorous elements in it, even if it's a children's or YA book.

Here are some authors you might try: Douglas Adams, Meg Cabot, Piers Anthony, Robert Benchley, PG Wodehouse, Roald Dahl, "The Egg and I" (old but very funny), Garrison Keillor, Daniel Pinkwater, Bill Cosby, Dave Barry and Bailey White, and John Mortimer.

And don't give up. Some things that strike one person funny won't necessarily do the same to you. Like Lynness, put it down and look for another title.

Good luck and happy reading!

Abby: more on The Mouse and the Motorcycle

I was just remembering that The Mouse and the Motorcycle is the first of three books about Ralph. Next is Runaway Ralph and third is Ralph S. Mouse.

Abby: Read-alouds for Lulu

If you can find The Mouse & the Motorcycle at the library, get it! Or buy it if you can. :) The girls loved that one. The girls like I, Houdini but it was a chore for me to read. I think I mentioned this in my post about I, Houdini.

Of the ones Lynness mentioned, we have read:
The Cricket in Times Square -- we all loved it
The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe -- we all loved it, and we read it a few years ago actually, I think Autumn was 4. She still remembers quite a bit. I think we'll re-read it so we can move on to Prince Caspian. (They've also now seen the movie The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe and they make it almost all the way to the end before losing interest.)
Little House in the Big Woods -- the first in the Little House on the Prairie -- we just started this one and Autumn is excited about it. She is especially excited that it's a true story.
The Wizard of Oz -- we are on chapter 6 of something like 12? They love this one too!

We have also read the first, second, and third (I think!) books of the Series of Unfortunate Events. That was a couple of years ago, definitely while we were still in Utah but I can't remember when exactly. Some of them we actually listened to on CD in the car. I discovered the girls were scared too. They knew it wasn't real, they know the difference between fiction and non-fiction, but they wanted to keep hearing the story -- they liked being a little scared! ;)

We started Alice in Wonderland but haven't finished it yet...can't remember why we put it down. We probably just got distracted. But the girls were enjoying it.

Also, Autumn loves to read The Magic Treehouse books. She reads them on her own, but I read the first one to her the summer before kindergarten and she's loved them ever since. You might find it a little less fun for YOU in the reading aloud department (some imperfect grammar usage...), but I'm sure Reed would love them.

Hopefully that gives you some ideas to run with.

Lynness: More possible solutions

I just took a quick look at my shelves and came up with a list you might
consider...

Mr. Popper's Penguins- Richard and Florence Atwater
The Phantom Tollbooth- Norton Juster
The Castle in the Attic- Elizabeth Winthrop
The Indian in the Cupboard- Lynne Reid Banks
The Island of the Blue Dolphins- Scott O'Dell
From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler- E.L.Konigsburg
The Enormous Egg- Oliver Butterworth
The Cricket in Times Square- George Selden
King of the Wind- Marguerite Henry
The "Little House..." books- Laura Ingalls Wilder (we started these
after talking about pioneers around pioneer day last summer)
The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe- C.S Lewis
The "Oz" books- Frank L. Baum
maybe some Beverly Cleary (although I was never big into these for some
reason)
and I'm sure I'll think of more...

some of these may be a bit old or a bit intense, but maybe soon...

Definitely the Mouse and the motorcycle, etc.

For everyone else- any humor authors I might try? I'm going to try to
read this month- I haven't read as much lately b/c during Ruth's naps
(a.k.a. seminary prep time) I've mostly been napping myself. Growing a
baby and teaching seminary are both tiring! Anyway- I checked 2 books
out of the library yesterday. One on motherhood was just crude, and the
other book I chose just isn't very funny.

Lulu: Some Possible Solutions

Phill heard my frustrated sighs here at the computer and asked me to let him in. He had a few suggestions, mostly what he liked reading when he was little, and I was pleasantly surprised! I also looked at what we've read as a book club and realized that there were two suggestions there--I, Houdini and Babe.

Phill thought of:
Pippi Longstocking (he says he LOVED these books. I think I didn't like them when I read them, but it's sure worth a try)
Alice in Wonderland (?)
Peter Pan (Isn't this a much older story than it seems? Older as in mature? As in probably too much for Reed right now?)

Lulu: Help?

For a humorous read this month, Abby suggested P.G. Wodehouse to me. I will definitely check that out at the library, but I was curious if the rest of you have any funny suggestions, too. I just finished re-reading the entire Harry Potter series, which was lovely to escape to (again). I'm now reading The Host, which I like infinitely better than the Twilight series.

I'm having issues finding something to read aloud to Reed each night. We have read: By Roald Dahl: The BFG; The Witches; The Minpins; George's Marvelous Medicine; Charlie and the Chocolate Factory; Charlie and the Great Glass Elevator; part of Matilda and part of The Twits; Fantastic Mr. Fox. Also: The Tale of Despereaux (a junior novelization); and part of Inkheart (which I decided might be scary for him, as he is really responsive to suspense and I could actually hear his little heart thrumming away next to me one night while I read). The issue I'm having is that the books are either too old, too young, or we've already read them! Out of no other choices on my bookshelf, I started reading the first book in A Series of Unfortunate Events to him tonight, but it was definitely too scary for him. We started reading Stuart Little, but I found myself totally bored, yawning, annoyed by the wordiness, and wondering why I had ever read it and enjoyed it. (Reed was also incredibly bored by it, and was rather dismayed that a book about a talking mouse wasn't more interesting to him.) I think we'll see if the library has The Mouse and the Motorcycle, but at the moment, that's all I can think of to read to him. (Rae, didn't you suggest that to me?)

Rae gave me the coolest book to look at--The Barnes & Noble Guide to Children's Books. It has been helpful, but not as much in this particular vein. (Stories to read out loud to Reed at night....) It has plenty of suggestions for chapter books that he himself would read, but very few as far as me reading to him. He has plenty of picture books and a few chapter books, and basically many books overall. Many classics, as well as a hefty helping of oddball gems.

Anyway, I might be really over-thinking this, but I was just curious to see what response I could get from sending out a little S.O.S. to this oh-so-literate family of ours. :) I'm not AS concerned with hard words or long sentences or advanced reading levels as I am with subject matter. (We did start reading the first Harry Potter, but after 3/4 of the way in, I stopped, noticing that Reed seemed a little shaken by the story in general. He's not fragile, but he is extremely imaginative, and I could see the detailed scenes unfolding in his mind while I read. That can be great and worrisome at the same time when I'm selecting subject matter.)

Raehink: January Read

Yes, I'm a day or two behind, but what with all that's been happening around here, it's amazing I even know what day it is! I don't know about the rest of you ladies, but I need a little lighthearted reading this month. Accordingly, your assignment is to find something HUMOROUS...it doesn't matter what genre or whether it's truth or fiction. Just find something that makes you smile, giggle, snicker, laugh or guffaw as the need may be. Enjoy!