TIF TALKS BOOKS: August 2010

Monday, August 30, 2010

Reading Log Roundup: August 30, 2010

I've decided to try out a new feature this week! Since my son has started Kindergarten, we are required to turn in a reading log at the start of every week featuring five books that we have read together. I have not been reviewing every book that I read with my children and the log we turn in does not capture all of our reads by far; however, I thought it would be fun to share a few titles of the books that I am reading with my children. Hence, the birth of Reading Log Roundup! Let me know what you think and if you want the feature to continue! And, suggestions are always welcome!

That's Good, That's Bad by Margery Cuyler

Elephant Eats the Profits by Jacquelyn Reinach

Robobots by Matt Novak

Duck Soup by Jackie Urbanovic

The Pet Dragon by Christoph Niemann

What have you been reading with your child?

Sunday, August 29, 2010

Sunday Synopsis: August 29, 2010

It's Sunday again!!! This last week flew by, but it was completely worth it because it was a great one!! Despite the craziness of it all, it was a great reading week, I got a lot accomplished, and my class went off without a hitch (almost) . . . Heck, I'm just glad that no one decided to drop it!! :)

I was busy most evenings this last week reading the recently released Mockingjay, so I didn't get a lot posted. I'm hoping to turn things around again this week as I begin to settle back into the routine of the school year and get back on track. I've got a couple of deadlines this week, so we'll see if I get as much posted as I would like. In the meantime, let's review what I did write this last week . . .

Fairy Tale Fridays: Your Choice . . . I discussed The Goose Girl.
FTF Book Discussion: Alice's Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll . . . Did I mention the awesomeness of the giveaway associated with this one?!?
Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins

I've got a lot of reading planned for this week and a lot of back-logged reviews that I am going to work on getting written. And, since it is the end of the month, I will also be posting the monthly Literary Locals feature (haven't decided what to write about here yet!). I was going to post my monthly challenge check-in tonight as well, but I think I will save that for next week. I want to see how many more books I can finish over the next six days. I'm hoping for at least three!!

In other book-ish news, I'm hoping to see Cassandra Clare, author of City of Bones this week!!!! She has an event scheduled in my area and I am keeping my fingers crossed that the stars will align and I will actually get to go! I haven't been to an author event in so long and I have a new goal to hit one a month. Clare will be my first to kick off this goal!!

Not much else here to report! I'm off to go read City of Bones now! Have a great week!

What are you currently reading this week? Do you have any big book-ish events you are looking forward to?

Saturday, August 28, 2010

Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins

Mockingjay may very well be the most highly anticipated novel of the year! I know that I personally have been very excited to finally get my hands on this book to find out the path Katniss Everdeen and her companions will take. And, from the word in the social media circles and my few friends that have actually read the first two books in the series, I know that I have not been the only one! This last Tuesday, we all finally had the chance!!

For those who may not yet know, Mockingjay is the final book in the series written by Suzanne Collins, with the first two being The Hunger Games and Catching Fire. If you remember my reviews of the first two books (click back for a refresher if you need it!), I absolutely fell in love with this series. Keeping with those reviews and the author's request, I will not be sharing any spoilers here. I do not want to ruin this adventure for others because I want them to experience Katniss's story for themselves, to feel what I felt as I was unable to read the pages fast enough, and to close the final book with a sense of . . . something . . . I'm not really sure what I felt, but I am going to attempt to describe my feelings . . .

I did not want to go into Mockingjay with too high of expectations. I did not want to set a high bar and then not have the book live up to it. I wanted to take this roller coaster ride and just let the wind blow through my hair and my stomach take its twists and turns, ups and downs . . . not really knowing what would come next . . . but hoping with all hope that it would end soon, still alive and breathing. Collins definitely took me on this ride!! I experienced emotions of joy and sadness, many ups and downs, many unexpected twists, and some that I could see coming. In the end, I was left with a simple . . . WOW!!!!

I loved this last chapter of Katniss's story. It can be a hard one to digest and I will admit that there were some details that I was not happy with. Most importantly, it is a story that is raw and realistic. It left me thinking a LOT after I read the last sentence, and even as I write this, I am still pondering. I want to pick up the books again and read them all the way through, but I almost feel like I need some time to heal and process . . . just like Katniss. Her story is one that will stay with me, one that is hard to forget, and one, though fictional, can maybe teach us all a little something about life itself. You really can't get more genuine than that!

I will return to Panem some day. It will be a good reminder, an unforgettable book that needs to be re-visited, and one that I believe will only be better with every re-read! In the meantime, I need to figure out a way to display these books . . . the covers are absolutely brilliant and beautiful in and of themselves!

I have spoken briefly with some of you who want to chat more about this book, but do not want to spoil it for others that have not yet had the experience. I would like to invite you all to join me in discussing the ending to Collins' story in the Discussion section of Tif Talks Books on Facebook. Please avoid any spoilers here!

Friday, August 27, 2010

FTF Book Discussion: Alice's Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll

A while back, I was in a bookstore perusing the literature shelves when I came across the classic of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll. I have never read this tale and once I saw a recent re-interpretation with gorgeous illustrations by Camille Rose Garcia, I knew I had to buy this book. I have been wanting to pick it up and read it for a few months now, but just keep putting it off again and again.

Thankfully, in one of my many conversations centering around or inspired by my Fairy Tale Fridays feature (FTF), I decided that the time has come! In many people's minds, Disney is the equivalent of fairy tales. Though I do not necessarily agree with this statement, it did push me into the decision to include Alice in the Fairy Tale Fridays feature. I know that I do not particularly consider this story a fairy tale, but hey . . . It's my feature and I will do what I want with it!!

And, I cannot forget to mention that final twist on adding this to the weekly FTF feature . . . AN ABSOLUTELY AWESOME GIVEAWAY!!!! It is going to be the best giveaway EVER done here at Tif Talks Books!!! You are going to be shocked and surprised!! And, every single one of you is going to want this for yourself, whether you win it or not . . . . including me!!! Of course, I am not going to mention what this giveaway truly is until next week's feature. It is going to be MADD!!! :)

Now for the details . . . I will have my review written (hopefully) by Friday, September 3rd. If, by chance, I am unable to finish the book before then, I will post thoughts about where I am currently at in the book and a complete review at a later date. I will also launch the giveaway at this time, lasting two weeks. I encourage you to read along with me, no matter which version you decide to pick up, and post your own review linked up to the usual Mr. Linky provided during FTF. If you have already read the tale, then feel free to join in as well. I will include a multitude of discussion questions throughout my review!

For those who may be interested in seeing a bit more of Garcia's amazing artwork throughout the version of Alice that I just had to have, check out this YouTube video . . .

Any questions? Are you super-pumped? Have you marked your calendar? Let's read!!

Thursday, August 26, 2010

Fairy Tale Fridays: Your Choice!

Special Thanks to my Personal Faery Friend for the Button Art: Ye Olde Faery Shoppe

This week for Fairy Tale Fridays is your choice! With so many tales, how was I supposed to narrow it down to just one? Thankfully, I had a little inspiration on this one! Emily from Emily's Reading Room has recommended to me a couple of times to read Shannon Hale's The Goose Girl. I finally picked it up from the library, but decided a read of the original would be a great precursor.

The Goose Girl written by The Brothers Grimm is a case of mistaken identity . . . well, sort of. A princess sets off to wed her new husband and is accompanied by a "waiting-maid." On the way, the maid makes the princess switch horses and clothes. When they arrive at their destination, the maid is mistaken as the princess, playing the role to her benefit. And, the true princess becomes a girl who cares for the geese.

True to fairy tale form, The Goose Girl ends with a happily ever after. It's a fun read, leaving you wondering how the true identity of the princess and the maid will be discovered. And true to Grimm form, a gruesome piece is also inserted, but this time it is a punishment determined by the "bad guy" herself!

Loving the previous works of Hale that I have read, I am now even more inspired to continue on to this modern tale. Now to just find the time to read it before it's due back to the library . . .

Out of the hundreds of tales to choose from, which did you highlight this week?

UPCOMING TALES: The special posts mentioned will be coming soon!

Friday, September 3rd: Alice's Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll (special post to come tomorrow for details!)

Friday, September 10th: Fairy Tale Flick (special post to come for details!)

Friday, September 17th: The Three Army-Surgeons by The Brothers Grimm

Friday, September 24th: A New, Modern Tale

Sunday, August 22, 2010

Sunday Synopsis: August 22, 2010

Another week gone by! It is that crazy time of year for me, so I am going to keep this short in the hopes that I can head to bed and read for a good bit before going to sleep! It's been a very long week and I need to gear up for another one!

On the blog this week, I only had a couple of posts . . .

Outside of the blogging world, my son started Kindergarten this last week! Despite a little hiccup of a behavioral report on the second day, it really did go very well overall!

I am not sure what I will be able to get posted this week, but I'm shooting for at least a few different things . . . hopefully, at least the few that I have been meaning to get published for quite a few weeks now! After this week, I believe that things will begin to get back into the groove and I can get back to my writing, but until then I must admit that I have one thing getting me through it all . . .

Imagine that! It's book related!! :) And, something even more exciting is that I'm hoping to make it to an author event in the upcoming weeks . . . an author that I've been wanting to read for a while now. In fact, it inspired me to go and buy her book yesterday in the hopes of having it read by the time she comes to town. And, in case you are wondering what this book and who this author may be . . .

Well, that is pretty much the story of my life this week! Wish me luck for another hectic week . . . the start of classes for the university where I work and my return to the classroom for a freshmen transition course! I think I'm going to need whatever you can pass on to me!

Do you have any books or events that you are looking forward to in the upcoming weeks?

Thursday, August 19, 2010

Fairy Tale Fridays: A Russian Tale

Special Thanks to my Personal Faery Friend for the Button Art: Ye Olde Faery Shoppe

This week I decided to make a change to our schedule because I came across a book at the library featuring fairy tales from Russia. We had not yet covered this country in this weekly feature and I thought I would throw it in to explore. I am so glad I did!!

I chose to read the tale, The Snow Maiden this week. With the extremely hot temperatures in my neck of the woods, it was nice to experience a cooler breeze, even if it was ultimately in my imagination!! Though the two versions I read had slightly different details, the point of the story was the same . . . A childless couple decides to create a snow maiden one winter's day. Their many prayers are answered and out of the snow, a beautiful child appears, growing at an alarming rate. The couple fall in love with the child and invite her in as their beloved daughter. However, as the weather warms, the maiden begins to sulk and wither. By the end of the story, spring time has arrived and a trip to the woods with friends results in the disappearance of the sweet girl.

A few topics or themes immediately stood out to me as I read this tale. The first and foremost was the parallels with a tale that I grew up with . . . Frosty the Snowman! I have very fond memories of this tale and those warm and fuzzies were carried over into this tale as well.

The second theme is one that just keeps popping up in many of the tales that we have read . . . Have you noticed that many tales start out with couples that are childless or children that are parentless? So many tales feature a loss of some sort and how happily ever after this lost may eventually result in . . . or not. It makes me wonder if many of these tales started out as coping mechanisms for those who did love and lose.

Finally, the end of this particular tale leaves the reader hanging . . . will the snow maiden return during the next snow fall? Or, was she a one time deal? From there, I then begin to wonder . . . how did this couple who longed for a child so much react to only being with their sweet maiden for such a short period of time? Did they feel that it was better to have loved and lost than not to have loved a child of their own at all?

I would like my imagination to run wild on this one, leaving those warm and fuzzies inside of me . . . let's take this tale a bit further for the purpose of filling one of my own desires. Imagine this childless couple building yet another snow maiden after the first snowfall of the season and once again a beautiful girl shakes away the snow and spends another winter with her parents. She once again disappears, but in honor of her memory, the couple continue the tradition with the same result each and every year. I will leave it there, but you take it from here . . . what would be the result of this "alternate ending"?

The Snow Maiden wraps up the traveling fairy tale portion of this weekly feature. We will be exploring fairy tales in a wider sense in the next month, and then will return to more familiar tales and fairy tale authors for the remainder of the year. If you have a suggestion or request, please do not hesitate to post here or contact me via email using the menu at the top of this page.

Have you enjoyed traveling the world exploring fairy tales? Did you have a favorite region that stands out to you?

UPCOMING TALES: Please note that I made a change to include one additional cultural tale this week instead of your choice! Please feel free to join along with me or switch the weeks around due to late notice! The special posts mentioned will be coming soon!

Friday, August 27th: Choose Your Own Tale

Friday, September 3rd: Alice's Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll (special post to come for details!)

Friday, September 10th: Fairy Tale Flick (special post to come for details!)

Friday, September 17th: TBA

Wednesday, August 18, 2010

Guest Post: The Overnight Illusion by Adam Jay Epstein & Andrew Jacobson

Today I would like to welcome not one guest, but two . . . Adam Jay Epstein and Andrew Jacobson, both of the upcoming book The Familiars! I personally am so excited for the release of this book and cannot wait to get my hands on a copy!! In the meantime, we have a little "illusion" to satisfy us . . .

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The Overnight Illusion

ADAM JAY EPSTEIN spent his childhood in Great Neck, New York, while ANDREW JACOBSON grew up in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, but the two met in a parking garage out in Los Angeles. They have been writing for film and television together ever since. The Familiars is their first book.

One day, Adam asked Andrew, “Are you familiar with what a familiar is?” And from that simple question, Vastia was born, a fantastical world filled with the authors’ shared love of animals and magic. They wrote every word, sentence, and page together, sitting opposite each other.

Adam Jay Epstein lives in Los Angeles with his wife, Jane, their daughters, Penny and Olive, and a black-and-white alley cat who hangs out in their backyard. Andrew Jacobson lives with his wife, Ashley, and their dog, Elvis, four traffic lights away.

THE FAMILIARS will be produced for film by Sam Raimi and Sony Animation.

Here’s a story that sounds too good to be true. Two guys write five chapters of a book with a detailed proposal, get a book agent within a month, sell the uncompleted manuscript within two days of going out to publishers, and sell the movie rights the next week. Well, it’s sort of true, and sort of a big fat lie. Because what it doesn’t mention is the 10 years of rejection and frustration before it. We started writing screenplays when we met during college, and we spent years working day jobs and writing into the wee hours of the night at various LA coffee shops, sometimes so long that we were asked to leave. We endured break-ups and miniscule paychecks all in sacrifice of living our dream. Finding our first film manager – which is kind of like a stepping stone to a film agent -- took years. When we got our very first meeting with a manager, we both got all dressed up and drove over to the manager's office, circling outside as we were early… only to receive a phone call that the meeting had been canceled. We sulked away in our khakis and button downs. Hollywood success would have to wait another day. And it did. Even when success in film and television came, it only seldom felt truly rewarding. We were constantly faced with having to reinvent ourselves, and every job felt like a miracle (which it still does). Then, about two years ago, we decided to try our hand at being novelists. And we were fortunate in that we already had a film agent who worked in the book world to help us secure a literary agent in New York. Our “overnight success” in the book world doesn’t account for the 10+ years of struggle in the Hollywood trenches. It’s as much of an illusion as one cast by Skylar, the magical blue jay in “The Familiars.”

You can learn more about “The Familiars” at www.thefamiliars.com. Follow us on twitter @the_familiars.

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Thank you so much to Adam and Andrew!! If you would like more information, I also encourage you to view two recently released (and very entertaining) YouTube videos:

Sunday, August 15, 2010

Sunday Synopsis: August 15, 2010

I have no idea where this past week went, and I'm a bit afraid that this week will be flying by just as fast! Before we get to the week to come, however, let's do a quick recap of this week . . .

As I mentioned above, I am not sure where this past week went and I'm having a hard time even remembering highlights! However, I will say that yesterday was the Grand Opening of one of our local libraries. I really wanted to go to the opening ceremonies, but was unable to make it due to child responsibilities. However, I did get lucky and was able to take a trip children-free later in the afternoon! The opening is actually of the old library that has recently undergone HUGE renovations! I was not living in this community at the time of the old building, so I have nothing to compare it to, but I can say that I think the new building is gorgeous!! See for yourself . . .

This upcoming week is a big one for my household! My son starts Kindergarten this week, and we have checked out a multitude of books and videos regarding the start of school. If I come across any really good ones, I will definitely be posting about them here! I also have students arriving on campus this week, have to finalize the class syllabus, and am facilitating a discussion for our campus' summer reading program. I particularly want to incorporate a multitude of literature into my course, so if you have any suggestions for titles, short stories, or poetry that address transitions . . . . particularly educational transitions as I will be working with first-year college students . . . please feel free to share them! I am so excited to be back in the classroom again!!

Despite the craziness of the week, here is what I hope to have coming here on the blog . . .

Guest Post by "The Familiars"
Review: Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban by J.K. Rowling (with another fun wizarding recipe!)
The Top 100 Children's Book Challenge
Review: Only in New York Darling! by Virginie Sommet

Thankfully, I've got most of this written! It will all depend on how much computer time I will have to get them actually posted and scheduled!!

And, last but not least, I wanted to draw your attention to On Our Minds @ Scholastic: Summertime is Harry Potter Time. Considering that I am almost done with Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, I think I would have to tend to agree! However, there is so much more! Did you know that Scholastic has launched some great wizarding games on their Harry Potter website? I am definitely keeping track of this website to share with my kids when they are old enough!! Click on over and check them out for yourself! In the meantime, I will leave you with this . . . it is never too early to start sharing your favorite books with your children! I just taught my 2 year old how to say Harry Potter and told her never to forget the name! She walked around all afternoon repeating "Harry Potter" over and over again!! :P

Hope you have a magical week!

Friday, August 13, 2010

Fairy Tale Fridays: A Tibetan Tale

Special Thanks to my Personal Faery Friend for the Button Art: Ye Olde Faery Shoppe

First things first . . . I need to apologize for getting Fairy Tale Fridays posted late again this week. I typically like to get it written and posted on Thursday evenings. Unfortunately, I had a bit of a graceful moment last night, slipping and tripping, resulting in an injury that I spent most of today nursing and investigating! Thankfully, everything is okay and I will be spending the majority of the weekend with ice on my foot and book in my hand!!

Now, let's get to it . . . this week's selection for Fairy Tale Fridays had us traveling to Tibet. I found the book Tibetan Tales for Little Buddhas by Naomi C. Rose in the fairy tales/traditional tales section of my local library and knew that I had to check it out for myself. I was not only drawn to the book thanks to this very feature, but I also loved the art on the front cover. And, it helped that there was also a message from the Dalai Lama himself as the foreword!

The selection that I chose was Chunda's Wisdom Quest. In a nutshell, the story follows Chunda on his quest to find wisdom as a monk. I am not familiar with Buddhist religious traditions, but you don't need to be to get the point of this little story. On Chunda's journey, he meets a yeti . . . one who is hurt, but he fears may eat him. Despite this fear, he helps the yeti when he is in need and in turn, heals both of them. My personal moral . . . What comes around, goes around! Chunda learned a lesson that kindness can help him go a long way, even despite fear or differences we may have with those we help!

I have to wonder if a theme is found among the different Tibetan tales. What did you read this week? Please share!

UPCOMING TALES: Please note that I made a change to include one additional cultural tale next week instead of your choice! Please feel free to join along with me or switch the weeks around due to late notice! The special posts mentioned will be coming in the next week!

Friday, August 20th: The Snow Maiden (Russian Fairy Tale)

Friday, August 27th: Choose Your Own Tale

Friday, September 3rd: Alice's Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll (special post to come for details!)

Friday, September 10th: Fairy Tale Flick (special post to come for details!)

Wednesday, August 11, 2010

Countdown to Mockingjay!!!

For those who are highly-anticipated Mockingjay fans, I could not help but post about the ultimate countdown to release day! I have truly not been this excited about a book release since Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, and I must say that it is about darn time for this enthusiasm to show itself once again!

For those unaware of what Mockingjay is, I will refresh your memory . . . It is the third and final installment of The Hunger Games series by Suzanne Collins. These books are truly brilliant in so many ways . . . plot, symbolism, characters, etc. . . . that I was immediately drawn into the story and will be keeping these books on my re-read pile for many years to come! They are truly worth multiple re-reads! In case you missed it, here are my reviews of The Hunger Games and Catching Fire.

Also, for those that are not aware . . . Mockingjay is set to be released on Tuesday, August 24th. Until then, Scholastic is doing some major marketing campaigns because of the high levels of anticipation. Throughout this month and leading to the big release day, many of my favorite book bloggers and even a few that are new to me will be representing the 13 districts from the series, focusing on specific topics and offering some amazing giveaways! I have listed each of them for you below with their announcement post. As their tour posts go live, I will come back and update these as well!

District 1: Galleysmith

Announcement Post

Tour Post: Who could have been the winner?

District 2: SciFiGuy

Announcement Post

Tour Post: Who is your favorite character?

District 3: Word for Teens

Announcement Post

Tour Post: Did Rue spark the rebellion?

District 4: GreenBeanTeenQueen

Announcement Post

Tour Post: Are you Team Peeta?