Have a great vacation!

Two of the best books I've read all year, The Help by Kathryn Stockett and Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet by Jamie Ford were by first time authors. However, they didn't make the list of NPR's Best Debut Fiction of 2009. Just goes to show you what I know about being a literary reviewer!

The long wait is over.........Avatar is out!

It's that time of year again ~ Top 10 "Best Of" Lists. Here are but a few book lists to look over; see if you agree with the selections (let's just say that I've heard of most of these but haven't read one).

New York Times 10 Best Books of 2009

Publishers Weekly Top 10 Books of 2009

Michiko Kakutani's Top 10 Books of 2009 (NYT reviewer)

Janet Maslin's Top 10 Books of 2009 (NYT reviewer)

This has to be one of the greatest ideas I've heard of recently. It's one of those things that's so simple and intuitive you want to smack yourself for not thinking of it first. Smart Mom Jewelry is rather fashion-forward jewelry that also doubles as teething rings! So brilliant! Babies already like to chew on, pull at and break jewelry, so why not make it safe for them? There are pendants and bangles made out of food and dishwasher(!) safe silicon. And it's affordable - about $20 for a necklace and $13 for a bracelet, so if your jewelry starts to get teeth marks you buy new ones.

A few weeks ago I read The Maze Runner by James Dashner. It's the story of 16-year-old Thomas who wakes up one day in an elevator shaft with no memory in the middle of a maze. Thomas and a bunch of the other teen guys (and one girl) who are stuck there must figure out how to escape the maze and the horrifying monsters that live inside it before they are all killed. I read this book because it sounded similar to The Hunger Games (Suzanne Collins). It's not nearly as good, but I found it entertaining and look forward to reading the next 2 books in this trilogy.

See the book trailer here:

Looking for a great cook book as a gift this season? You might find exactly what you are looking for on NPR's list of the 10 Best Cook Books of 2009.

Bon appétit!

The latest Drizzt book is out and the crystal shard is back!

There's nothing I like better than a well-crafted author/illustrator website. It's so important to have great information about what they were like as a kid, especially their childhood drawings and writings, because it helps kids see that they don't have to be as perfect as the drawings they see in books to someday become an illustrator. Peter Brown, author/illustrator of The Flight of the Dodo and The Fabulous Bouncing Chowder, does all that and more with some insight into how he crafts a book and a peek into his sketchbook. His latest book, The Curious Garden, inspired by the Highline gardens in Manhattan, happens to be one of my favorite books from this year.
PS- My fandom has absolutely nothing to do with the fact that he's cute (wink, wink).

Last week I wrote about picking safe toys for holiday gifts, well what could be safer then a book? It's not noisy or full of toxic chemicals and I've never seen a book that's a choking hazard, unless your kid has really strong teeth to take a bite out of it. So here are a few lists to offer some ideas of the best books out this year, and then a few of my personal favorites:
Kirkus Review Best Children's Books of 2009
NY Times Best Illustrated Children's Books of 2009
Publishers' Weekly Best Children's Books of 2009
And for my personal favorites:
The Day-Glo Brothers by Chris Barton - true story of borther who invented new colors
A Penguin Story by Antoinette Portis - a big story time hit
Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins - anticipated sequel to The Hunger Games, for older readers
The Storm in the Barn by Matt Phelan - graphic novel that is part history, part folklore and part thriller
Heart of a Shepherd by Roseanne Parry - debut novel that I can't stop thinking about.

In the 80's series the visitors wore red, in the 2009 series they're wearing gray. Is this symbolism or just bad taste? My guess is.......,"lose your mind and come to your senses."

Looking for book ideas for the discriminating reader on your holiday list? Check out the Holiday Books edition of the Book Review @ NY Times 100 Notable Books for 2009.

'Tis the season for buying gifts for kids, but are they safe? The U.S. Public Interest Research Group (US PIRG), a political lobby and non-profit group, has released its 24th annual Trouble in Toyland report. The report focuses on three areas:
1) Choking Hazards
2) Excessive Noise (We would all be thankful for less of that!)
3) Toxic Chemicals
They also have a new smart phone website, so you can check on toys right at the store.

The holidays are coming and Ebooks are the hot technology these days with the advent of the Kindle from Amazon. A big drawback with the Kindle though is you must purchase the books from Amazon, no library borrowing allowed. The new Sony Reader, however, allows you to download your books (for 14 days) from the Nassau Digital Doorway located on the RVC website using your library card number.

We thought this was important information for you to have before making a decision on what device you decide to purchase.

The Twilight Saga (when did it become a saga instead of a series?) is pretty chaste up until Breaking Dawn, but maybe mom says you're still too young to read about Bella and Edward - so what's a reader who loves the supernatural to do? Here's a few books that might satisfy kids and parents:
Cirque du Freak by Darren Shan- scary, funny, no mushy stuff
Dakside series by Tom Becker - visit the hidden and terrifying side of London in this boy-friendly series
Heck: Where the Bad Kids Go by Dale Bassye - siblings die in a marshmallow explosion and try to escape an otherworldy reform school, also try the sequel
Chronicles of Vladimir Tod (series) by Heather Brewer - funny, gross, books grow-up along with Vlad
The Crossroads and The Hanging Hill by Chris Grabenstein - ghosts and scares abound
The Silver Kiss by Annette Curtis Klaus - from way back in 1990, but still swooningly romantic and tragic
Dead is the New Black by Marlene Perez - first boyfriends and vampire cheerleaders?!
Vampire High by Douglas Rees - failing student, Cody, chooses Vlad Dracul Magnet School instead of Our Lady of Perpetual Homework - hilarity ensues.
A Taste for Red by Lewis Harris - Svetlana searches for missing classmates and vampires
Vampire Island by Adele Griffin - life in Manhattan as fruit bat-vampire hybrids