Rose Under Fire by Elizabeth Wein

Rose Under Fire by Elizabeth Wein, Disney-Hyperion, 2013.

The Review…

 

photo from parnassusbooks.net

In late summer of 1944, American pilot Rose Justice has recently arrived in England as a part of the Air Transport Auxiliary. Anxious to be a part of any real action, she is allowed to pilot her uncle to Paris, shortly after it has been freed from Nazi occupation. Suddenly, friends and family lose all communication with her. Six months later, Rose arrives in back in Paris and begins to recount her unimaginable experience in a concentration camp. Weaving in actual events at the Ravensbruck concentration camp, Wein’s devastatingly beautiful story is not simply that of the unthinkable acts of concentration camps, but that of the hope, loyalty and family among prisoners. Even as Rose struggles to acclimate back to civilian life, her heaviest concern is for finding those with whom she escaped. Recommended for ages 14 and up, this highly anticipated companion to award-winning Code Name Verity is certain to surpass expectations.   

The Opinion…

Holy moly, the tears. And tears. And tears. And dreams. Yes, dreams. Some may think its weird that one could love a book that makes you weep and have nightmares so damn much, but those people are just doing it wrong.

I think this is the first time in my life I’ve had concentration camp nightmares. But I’m not even mad about it.

I listened to Code Name Verity last winter on a road trip and love.love.loved it. So when I heard they were giving out the ARC of a companion at ALA, I’m pretty sure I walked away from a friend midsentence. I hustled myself over to the Disney-Hyperion booth and snatched that thing up like it was the last book in the place. It wasn’t. 

Rose Under Fire isn't actually out yet. But don't worry your pretty little head. It'll be out next month. 

And, oh man…

I’ve previously mentioned that I love WWII novels, so it really isn’t shocking that I would get into this one. But I just didn’t know how much I would love it. Every page was just so moving and horrible and perfect. Horrible because you know these stories you’re reading are real and that people lived and died through this. And you want to stop reading because you want to believe that it never happened, but you can’t. You can’t stop reading. Because it did happen. And these stories must be told. And these stories must be read.

I honestly don’t even know how to describe this book and these characters and this story. It really is something you just have to experience.

All I can say is thank you. Thank you, Elizabeth Wein, for telling the world. 

Making Mask Magic

So, here at the Pub, we’ve decided to create a readers theatre for kids. And what is the first thing you need for readers theatre?? Costumes of course! Well, in our case… masks will do just fine!

So this week Becky and I decided to take out all of our felt, scissors and glue guns and get to work. With a little help from Pinterest (naturally), we came up some fancy little woodland creatures, and few farm animals, and one… creepy… CARROT!!

Here are a few pics...

Journey by Aaron Becker

Journey by Aaron Becker, Candlewick Press, 2013

photo from parnassusbooks.net

The Review…

One small girl. One red crayon. One giant adventure. A magic door drawn on her bedroom wall leads this lonely girl to a world of castles, moats, flying machines and captured birds. With her magic red crayon, she draws all she needs to waterfalls, soldiers and, most importantly, boredom. With his beautiful illustrations, Becker uses splashes of bold red, purple and gold to lead the eye through every page turn. This book is bold, daring, and most excitingly, wordless. Journey is adventure, magic, imagination recommended for ages 2-6.

The Opinion…

I love this book! Love.

Friends. Wordless picture books, when done right, are amazing. Just look at Flotsam by David Wiesner or A Ball for Daisy by Chris Raschka or, one of my favorites, Shadow by Suzy Lee. Imma just go ahead and add Journey to that list too.

Fantastic.

Also, it reminded me a Harold and the Purple Crayon by Crocket Johnson. And I love Harold and the Purple Crayon. Its such a classic, that it would be really hard to take Johnson’s concept and insert it into a new story. You’d have to do it very carefully. And that’s just what Aaron Becker has done. Its just enough Harold to make you love it and you’re not appalled like when Vanilla Ice ripped off Queen and Bowie and claimed it was totally original. You actually really like it like the first time you heard Jason Derulo’s “Whatcha Say” and you weren’t even mad because you love Imogen Heap so much… or was that just me? 

Counting by 7s by Holly Goldberg Sloan

Counting by 7s by Holly Goldberg Sloan. Dial, 2013.

The Review…

photo from parnassusbooks.net

Twelve-year-old genius Willow Chance has exactly one friend, and she’s only known her a few weeks. When tragedy takes the only family Willow has, her new friend Mai decides she cannot abandon this strange girl. Mai, along with her brother, mother, and the school therapist, creates an elaborate lie to keep Willow out of the scary and unpredictable world of foster care. As the group works to live out the lie they have created, their dependence upon one another builds into a steady working relationship. Before they know it, the life they have been pretending becomes just life. But with the court date to determine Willow’s future looming, each member of this makeshift family must face the fact that this is, after all, just temporary. Holly Goldberg Sloan’s story is diverse, original, tragic, hopeful and heartwarming. With well-developed, diverse and believable characters in a challenging circumstance, Counting by 7s is a beautiful story recommended for ages 10-13.

The Opinion…

I picked up an ARC of this book at ALA this summer, based on a recommendation by my librarian friend Amy, who actually hadn’t read it, but picked it up based on another recommendation by another librarian friend.

I’m glad I did. I really enjoyed this book. I love a good grief story. And if you know me well, you know that I HATE bad grief stories. So if I am recommending a grief story, you can trust that it is realistic, believable, heart breaking and, hopefully, hopeful.

The publish date isn’t till August 29, so don’t run out to the pub right away. Just know that when your pub does get it in, it’s definitely worth a check out.

New Displays... Or: Callie Ann goes crazy with die-cuts...

A few weeks ago we decided we needed a better way to display our new YA titles. So we did this…

But then I didn’t want to stop... So this happened.

Naturally, I didn't take any before pictures. But believe me, they look much better!

Tea Rex by Molly Idle

Tea Rex by Molly Idle, Viking, 2013

The Review…

photo from parnassusbooks.net

Cordelia decides to have a tea party, inviting her brother, her teddy and, of course, T-Rex. Idle’s text gives the proper ways to host afternoon tea for special guest. Meanwhile, her humorous illustrations contrast the text by showing the difficulties that come along with hosting such a special guest. Complete with too-small chairs, tiny teacups and wild dinosaur dancing, Cordelia struggles to make sure her afternoon is not a disaster. But not to worry, with these instructions “you can be sure that your guest will want to return the favor.” Sure enough, who hosts the next tea party? Tea Rex, of course. Idle’s use of the end papers for added illustrations completes this imaginative story. She creates beautiful images with just the right mix of dainty and elegant with chaos and disaster. Recommended for ages 2-6.

The Opinion…

Just lovely! Who’d have thought a T-rex and a tea party would be such a great mix! Also, please take a look at Molly Idle’s Flora and the Flamingo. Beautiful and just perfect! 

Conversations with Kids... Episode #1

Two children (brother-7 and sister-8) talking about Pokemon.

Ask my opinion...

Me: “I’ve never actually watched Pokemon.”

Kids: “What?!”

Me: “It wasn’t around when I was a kid.”

Girl: “So that means you were born in like the 19-somethings.”

Me: (deep sinking feeling...) “Yep. I was born in the 19-somethings.”

Boy: “Whoa… was tv invented then?”