AudioSynced November Roundup!

Yes, it's time for AudioSynced, a monthly roundup of audiobook reviews from all around the blogosphere!  I was not very on the ball about reminding people this month, so if you've posted a review of an audiobook in November and I missed it, please leave me a comment and I'll add it to the roundup!!

Didn't review an audiobook this month?  That's okay!  AudioSynced will be back next month at STACKED!

Right here at Abby the Librarian, I reviewed Alanna: The First Adventure by Tamora Pierce, read by Trini Alvarado (Listening Library, 2003).  If you haven't read the Alanna books, I highly recommend the audio recordings!

Kim at STACKED reviewed First Light by Rebecca Stead, read by David Akroyd and Colleen Marlo (Listening Library, 2010).

Lee at Reading With My Ears reviewed the following titles:

Scumble by Ingrid Law, read by David Kremenitzer (Penguin Audio, 2010).
Forge by Laurie Halse Anderson, read by Tim Cain (Brilliance Audio, 2010).
The Collected Stories of Winnie the Pooh by A.A. Milne, read (dramatized) by a bunch of people (Hodder Children's Audio, 1997; reissued by Listening Library, 2009).

Swapna at S. Krishna's Books reviewed Earth by Jon Stewart and the Daily Show (Hachette Audio, 2010).

Jen at Devourer of Books reviewed The Dead Beat: Lost Souls, Lucky Stiffs, and the Perverse Pleasure of Obituaries written and read by Marilyn Johnson (HarperAudio, 2010).

Laura at Ramblings of a (Future) Librarian reviewed a bunch of titles, including the following:

Perfect Chemistry by Simone Elkeles, read by Roxanne Hernandez & Blas Kisic (Brilliance Audio, 2009).
Twisted by Laurie Halse Anderson, read by Mike Chamberlain (Listening Library, 2007).
Dark Life by Kat Falls, read by Keith Nobbs (Scholastic Audio, 2010).
City of Bones by Cassandra Clare, read by Ari Graynor (Simon & Schuster Audio, 2007).

There are tons of audiobook reviews posted at Audiobook Heaven, including the following:

To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, read by Sissy Spacek (Recorded Books, 2006).

Peeps by Scott Westerfeld, read by Joshua Swanson (Penguin Audiobooks, 2008).
The Brethren by John Grisham, read by Frank Muller (Random House Audiobooks, 2000).

Bryce at Only the Best Science Fiction & Fantasy reviewed Ender's Shadow by Orson Scott Card, narrated by a full cast (Macmillan Audio, 2005) and Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins, read by Carolyn McCormick (Scholastic Audio, 2010).

Sophie at Mundie Moms reviewed Clockwork Angel by Cassandra Clare, read by Jennifer Ehle (Simon & Schuster Audio, 2010).

Patti at Peppermint PhD reviewed The Kite Runner written and read by Khaled Hosseini (Simon & Schuster Audio, 2003).

Travis at 100 Scope Notes reviewed Toby and the Secrets of the Tree by Timothee de Fombelle (Brilliance Audio, 2010).

proseandkahn's got a review of Before I Fall by Lauren Oliver (Harper Audio, 2010).

What audiobook reviews from November am I missing?  Leave me a link in the comments and I'll add 'em.  And hey, if you like our monthly AudioSynced roundups, help us spread the word!  We collect and post links to audiobook reviews around the blogosphere on the first of every month.  Links and Tweets are appreciated!

Guest Post: Deva Fagan

Well, folks, National Novel Writing Month is coming to a close.  I can hear the tappity tapping of each little key as NaNovelers frantically try to meet their deadline!  What better time for another fabulous guest post?

Today I'd like to welcome Deva Fagan, author of Fortune's Folly (Henry Holt & Co., 2009), The Magical Misadventures of Prunella Bogthistle (Henry Holt & Co., 2010), and the upcoming Circus Galacticus (Harcourt, 2011).

Deva presents...

A Tale of Two NaNoWriMos

I first did NaNoWriMo back in 2003, and it was a wonderful experience. I tried it again last year and failed miserably. Don’t worry, though, this isn’t going to be a tale of woe and misery. I still think NaNoWriMo can be a great tool. But as with everything in your writing kit, you have to decide if it’s the right tool for you, and for your current project.

In 2003 I had been grinding away on a long, serious epic fantasy novel for the past year or more, when a friend of mine told me about NaNoWriMo. He said a bunch of other folks I knew were going to give is a shot, and invited me to join them. By that point I was sick of my “serious” book, and also kind of desperate to meet some other writers. So I dusted off a funny little idea about a girl who told fake fortunes, and said yes. The six of us created a Yahoo group to cheer each other onward. And at the end of the month, I had over 50K. A few weeks later, I had a completed draft of Fortune’s Folly. A few years later, that book got me an agent, and then a publishing contract. And now it’s out there in libraries and bookstores. Sure it’s changed some-- I completely rewrote the ending and went through at least five beginnings-- but the heart of the book remains the same as the story I was madly outlining on October 31, 2003.

Fast-forward to last year, when I decided to give NaNoWriMo another try. I’d written a couple other books since 2003, and sold a couple of them. I had an idea for a new book, and I figured NaNoWriMo would be a good way to kick-start it.

I think I wrote about 6K words total that month. And then I didn’t write anything at all in December.

So what was the difference?

First, I had a support group in 2003. Okay, the competition probably helped too. I sure didn’t want to be the ONLY ONE in the group who didn’t finish! (And in fact all of us DID finish, go team!) Last year, while I did know folks who were doing NaNoWriMo, and added dozens of “buddies” to my list, it wasn’t the same. I think it’s fantastic that NaNoWriMo now has such a rich array of forums, but I also think that for folks like me, it can be more helpful to form a smaller, more focused support group.

Second, I picked a project in 2003 that was light and breezy. I do like to think there are some deeper themes and issues in Fortune’s Folly, but it’s also fairly plot-driven. The book I was trying to write last year was darker, more emotional, and more character-driven. So maybe it just wasn’t a good choice for NaNoWriMo: the more I forced the words out, the more I hated what I was writing.

Third, last year I was lazy. I have no excuse for that except that I had recently discovered Project Runway.

So would I do NaNoWriMo again? Definitely. (I may even have signed up for this year...) The best thing about NaNoWriMo, in my opinion, is the kick-in-the-pants it can give us when we’re struggling to get started on something. So if you need it, go out there and grab some of that enthusiasm! But if it’s not working for you, or for this book, give yourself permission to break the rules, and do what is best for YOU and YOUR BOOK, whether that’s writing fast, or slow, or somewhere in between.

Deva Fagan writes fantasy and science fiction for teens and tweens.  She lives in Maine with her husband and her dog. When she's not writing she spends her time reading, doing geometry, and dressing up as imaginary people. She believes stories have the power to change the world. You can read more about Deva and her books at www.devafagan.com.

So, NaNovelers, take heart!  If you're able to finish, fabulous!  If not, there's always next year, or maybe NaNo's just not the right tool for you or for your book.  

Thanks, Deva, for wrapping up our NaNoWriMo guest posts with such a super one!

The Adventures of Ook and Gluk + Giveaway!

Okay, first of all, I want to tell you about The Adventures of Ook and Gluk: Kung-Fu Cavemen from the Future.  And then keep on reading because I have a fabulous Scholastic giveaway to share with you!  First thing's first:

The Adventures of Ook and Gluk: King-Fu Cavemen from the Future by Dav Pilkey.  (Grades 2-5.)  Scholastic, August 2010.  176 pages.  Review copy provided by publisher.

Ook and Gluk (rhymes with 'duck') have been having fun together since they were in cave diapers - going over waterfalls on logs, running from Mog-Mog the dinosaur, and making life miserable for Big Chief Goppernopper, the ruler of Caveland.  When an evil corporation from the future comes back to harvest resources and enslave the cavepeople, can Ook and Gluk save the day?

Step 1:  TAKE OFF YOUR GROWNUP HAT.

Step 2:  Enjoy this wacky, hilarious, irreverent book.  Laugh like you did when you were a kid.  Revel in the ridiculousness. 

Step 3:  Hand it to the kids at your library and tell them, "This book is soooo funny!"

I admit that when I first opened this book, I still had my grownup hat on.  I read Captain Underpants in grad school, but that was years ago, and I kept saying, "Really?  This book is all misspelled!  We can't let kids read this!"

Yeah, then I made myself take off my grownup hat.  And what I found was a hysterical romp through time and back.  I mean, this book's got time-travel, dinosaurs, kung-fu, pleeenty of potty humor, and two kids who end up saving the day by beating down The Man.  What more could a young reader want?

I have proof from the trenches, too.  The other day, a boy came in asking for "the new Captain Underpants".  I explained that there weren't any new Captain Underpants books, but the same author had this new series and I pulled it off the shelving cart for him.  Holy cats.  You would have thought I was, I dunno, Santa Claus or The Beatles or something.  He was so happy to have this book in his hands.

Okay, it's not for all readers.  Kids looking for sensitive stories with nuanced characters should probably look elsewhere.  And it's definitely not for all parents.  It's not great literature, but it's a mighty enjoyable read and anything that gets kids excited about reading is a-okay with me.

Check out more reviews at Oh Boy, Books, Back to Books, Brimful Curiosities, Literate Lives, and A Year of Reading.

And while you're checking out things, check out the book's website with lots of neat activities and a video about the creation of Ook and Gluk.   

The Adventures of Ook and Gluk: Kung-Fu Cavemen from the Future is on shelves now!

And if you're just dying to read it, why not enter this fabulous giveaway from Scholastic?

The giveaway is now closed.  Thanks to all who entered!  Happy holidays! :)

Just in time for the holidays, one lucky winner (US residents only) will receive

A HUGE Scholastic Holiday prize pack featuring

· Ook and Gluk

· Captain Sky Blue

· It’s Christmas David

· Tony Baloney

· The Odious Ogre

· I SPY Christmas

Just fill out the following form by the end of Sunday, December 5 and on Monday, December 6 I will use the random number generator to pick one lucky winner!  These books will make great gifts for the kids in your life.  Enter today!

Claude Monet: The Painter Who Stopped the Trains

Claude Monet:  The Painter Who Stopped the Trains by P.I. Maltbie, illustrated by Jos A. Smith.  (Grades 2-5.)  Abrams Books for Young Readers, September 2010.  Unpaged.  Review copy provided by my local library.  This book is a nominee for the 2010 Cybils Awards and this review reflects only my own opinion.

Claude Monet didn't like being called an Impressionist.  When he was alive and working, the term was meant to poke fun at the new generation of artists who painted outside with bright colors and visible brush strokes, taking inspiration from the scenery and towns around them instead of from ancient myths and historical events.  So, when Monet was invited to participate in a show with a couple of his artist friends, he tried to think of something that would wow viewers and critics.  And then it came to him:  Trains.

The year was 1876 and trains were the thing.  They were the most modern and fastest mode of transportation.  Trains were changing everything, and Paris was charging forth into the future.  Claude Monet wanted to paint the trains and capture the billowing smoke and how the light played through it.  But first, he had to get the station master to agree to stop the trains, just for him.

Well, Monet dressed up in his fanciest suit and the director of the Saint-Lazare train station agreed to delay the trains so that he could paint them.  And guess what?  People liked it.

What I love about this book is that it tells a small tale - a story of Monet painting the trains - but it conveys so much more information than just that little bit of Monet's life.  The text and illustrations work well together to create a feel for the time.  You know, I can hear a train outside my window as I type this (the tracks are lamentably close to my apartment complex) and I realize that we've lost much of our sense of wonder in trains.  But back then...  They were the harbinger of technology, of the modern age.  And, artistically speaking, maybe Monet was, too.

And ohhh the author's note!  It fills my heart with joy!  It spells out exactly what was fictionalized and adds additional factual details about the events that happened in the book.  A small reproduction of one of Monet's train paintings and a photo of the actual station are included.  Also included is a list of museums where Monet's paintings can be found, as well as a bibliography and an index.  The artist's note includes information about what research he did to replicate the time period and his decision not to emulate Monet's art in the illustrations, but rather to create something new.

Altogether, I think this is a fantastic example of children's nonfiction.  And hey, it made me want to go look at Monet's art, which might be the best reaction an author could hope for.

Claude Monet: The Painter Who Stopped the Trains is on shelves now!

Happy Nonfiction Monday!  The roundup is at Playing by the Book!

In My Mailbox #58

Welcome to In My Mailbox, a weekly meme hosted by Kristi of The Story Siren in which bloggers share the contents of their mailboxes in order to spread the word about new and upcoming titles.

This week I only got one book in the mail, but I am super excited about it...

Behemoth by Scott Westerfeld, read by Alan Cumming (Simon & Schuster Audio, October 2010).  Y'all know how much I loooved the audiobook recording of Leviathan, so I'm super excited to listen to this one!  Alan Cumming is a *great* reader and I have heard wonderful things about Behemoth. 

And if you want a little something to whet your appetite for this one, here's a video of Alan Cumming and Scott Westerfeld talking about the audiobook: 

A NaNoWriMo Confession

I have been putting off writing this post, but I won't put it off any longer.

I am not going to finish NaNoWriMo this year.  I knew going into it that I'm busier now than I ever have been in Novembers past, and I decided (about 2 weeks ago) that it's more worthwhile for me to concentrate on the things I need to do (my job, the Cybils) and the things I really want to do (practice my choir music, read awesome books, sleep) than to grind out 30k more words.

Going into this year's novel, I had a strong idea of what I wanted to write, but my idea turned out not to be a 50,000 word idea.  And you know what?  That's okay.  I'm okay with giving up on NaNoWriMo this year.

If you have already hit 50k, that's amazing!!!  Huzzah!!!

If you are still going with your novel, KEEP UP THE GOOD WORK!  You can do it!!!!

And if you have decided that 50,000 words are not in the cards for you this year, that's okay.  Maybe next year.  Or maybe the year after that.  Or maybe not.  For me, I don't plan on seriously pursuing publication, so the most important thing about NaNoWriMo for me is to have fun.  And this year I decided to have fun doing other things instead of writing my 50,000 words.

Thanks

It's Thanksgiving, so I started thinking about all the things for which I am thankful.  Here are a very few of them:

I'm thankful for my family and friends and my wonderful colleagues (present and past!  I have been so lucky in working with nice people).

I am thankful that my library is still open and able to serve our community.  I am thankful they let me work there because I have fun almost every single day and who can say that about their job?

I am thankful for my blog readers because you make it fun to blog, even when it feels like work (which it does, sometimes).

I am thankful for authors working hard to write great books and I am thankful for publishers working hard to publish and promote them and I am thankful for all the other book bloggers who let me know about them and make my collection development that much easier.  And, of course, I am thankful for publicists and marketers and interns who offer to send me free books.  The teens and kids at my library are thankful for that, too, because that's where most of them end up when I am done with them (given away as prizes, etc.).

There are lots of other things I'm thankful for (like purring cats and warm socks and the IUS Community Chorus and mashed potatoes and my car [please don't stop working, car...]).  But that's enough for this post.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

Guest Post: Author Denise Jaden

My excitement over NaNoWriMo continues and so do the guest posts!  In honor of National Novel Writing Month, I'm hosting several wonderful authors who started or worked on their books as part of NaNoWriMo.

Today I have the pleasure of introducing Denise Jaden, author of the 2010 debut Losing Faith (Simon Pulse).  Denise is a member of the Class of 2k10 and lives in British Columbia, Canada.  I asked her about her experience with NaNoWriMo and this is what she had to say:

Back in 2007 I had heard of NaNoWriMo a few times, but didn’t really understand what it was until my critique partner explained it to me. She pretty much insisted we attempt it together, since she’d had great success with it the year before. I was excited, and at her suggestion, I worked on my first outline in anticipation.


I knew from the start that I didn’t want to get too absorbed in the social aspects of NaNo. I barely thought I had the time to write the book, let alone spend anytime online talking about it. I generally just checked in each day and updated my word count. Sometimes my critique partner and I would email and congratulate each other on big milestones.


I’m an extremely goal-driven person (just ask my husband, who lives in our hurricane of a house each November). The daily word count updates, and that nifty little bar that showed me how far I had gone and how far I had yet to go were the things that kept me going. I needed to complete it. It’s just how I am.

I believe my first draft of my 2007 novel, Losing Faith (Simon & Schuster, 2010), came in at around 48,000 words complete. I could not bear to leave the goal undone, so I went back and fleshed out a few of the bare scenes (there were lots to choose from, as I am an under-writer). I was truly ecstatic when I hit (and surpassed by a couple thousand words) the 50k mark. It felt like such an unbelievable accomplishment, and even though I knew the story had some holes, I felt so incredibly capable. If I could write a draft in thirty days (twenty-one actually) then I felt like I could do anything!


I’d been trying to get published prior to NaNo, so I definitely had hopes of get this novel published, but really, I was amazed at how quickly the process happened. I’d spent several years on each of my first two novels, but with my NaNo novel, I revised it and had an agent representing it within just under a year. And I had an offer after having it out on submission for only about six weeks.


I can’t say that every NaNo project will go this way, and in fact I still have novels from the last couple of years that are nowhere near ready for publishing. But it only took a month of my life to write each one of them! And I know if I spend the time, there is some good stuff there to work with. Which is more than I can say for a blank page.


I LOVE NaNo and encourage all writers to give it a try. People need to find their own system that works for them—some may need a lot of the camaraderie in the forums to keep them going. For me though, all I need is the goal, and it works every time.

Thanks for stopping by, Denise!

Anna and the French Kiss

Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins.  (Grades 8+)  Dutton Books, December 2010.  372 pages.  Reviewed from ARC provided by publisher.

Typical.  Anna's father has decided that she'll be spending her senior year across the Atlantic at a boarding school in Paris.  It means leaving her friends, leaving her younger brother, and living in a city where she doesn't speak the language.  Not Anna's idea of a lovely senior year.

But then there's this boy.  Almost immediately after arriving at the School of America in Paris, Anna meets Etienne, a gorgeous guy with a dreamy British accent.  The trouble is that Etienne is taken.  And Anna's kind of taken, too - there was that one kiss with Toph before she left... But maybe anything can happen in the City of Lights.

Oh, this was a yummy read! Why?  Well, first of all, it takes place in Paris.  A foreign, romantic city.  Okay, I'm happy with where I am right now and I love my job, but after reading this book I found myself researching American schools abroad and wondering if there were any librarian positions open...  From the food to the sights and museums, to read this book is to take a brain vacation to Paris.  Ooh la la, delightful!

And definitely don't forget the dreamy boys.  Anna and the French Kiss has the kind of boys that you love to drool over and Stephanie Perkins keeps the sexual tension taut throughout.  She's able to make it hot without being too graphic.  Not that there's anything wrong with being graphic, but the way things play out feels very true to the characters.

Really, I identified with Anna.  She's a bit of a wallflower and totally intimidated about going out into the city and trying to find her way around.  As she goes through her year in Paris, and with the help of her new boarding school pals, she slowly begins to brave the city and she ends up gaining a lot of self-confidence.  I think this is a story that will speak to a lot of girls.

Plus, it was just super fun to read.

I'd highly recommend this to fans of teen romance novels.  It's a perfect pick for your winter break reading or to bring with you on vacation (or, say, when you're super stressed and you need to read something to get away...).  I'd hand it to fans of the Students Across the Seven Seas series or Sarah Dessen in a heartbeat.  And I kinda feel like Cruel Summer by Alyson Noel flew under the radar a bit, but I'd recommend it as a readalike to Anna.  It's got the same girl-unwillingly-abroad + hot-boy-ness that makes Anna so yum.

OH. And and and!!  Stephanie Perkins says in the acknowledgements that she started this story during NaNoWriMo.  That is awesome!!

Read more reviews at Just Your Typical Book Blog, The Raven Desk, Persnickety Snark, GreenBean TeenQueen, YA Librarian Tales, Everyday Reading, and GalleySmith (among many, MANY others).    

Anna and the French Kiss will be on shelves December 2!

Skit-Scat Raggedy Cat: Ella Fitzgerald

Skit-Scat Raggedy Cat: Ella Fitzgerald by Roxanne Orgill, illustrated by Sean Qualls.  (Grades 3-7.) Candlewick Press, August 2010.  Review copy provided by publisher for Cybils consideration (this review reflects only my own opinion).

Ella Fitzgerald, raggedy and poor, had a dancing beat in her heart that just wouldn't stop.  She grew up poor in New York and after she was orphaned at 14, she was soon out on the street, but she didn't let it stop her.  Ella started going to auditions and people could see she had something special.  Even though she was sleeping on friends' couches and floors, her music made people want to get up an dance.  And pretty soon, Ella wasn't a raggedy cat anymore, she was a "rowdy-dowdy high-hat baby" climbing the charts.

Skit-Scar Raggedy Cat is an accessible and kid-friendly account of Ella Fitzgerald's childhood and teen years.  Ella was only 14 when she was orphaned and she made her singing debut at the Apollo Theater when she was 17.  The book concentrates on her teen years, her transition from poor and happy with her family to running with a rough crowd and living on the streets to the start of her successful singing career.  This is a great picture book to share with older readers.

I love the carefully chosen words that make up this book.  They ring with rhythm and music and beg to be read aloud.  (And yes, I read parts of this book aloud to my cats.  They seemed to enjoy it.)  Take this passage describing Ella's life after her mother died:

"Ella was a rough-tough raggedy cat on the outside, but inside she was milky and silky and soft and shy.  The raggedy cat got rougher... Ella was hurting, and there was no one to notice.  Ella broke the law herself once, twice, and then - 


Skit-scat. 


Ella got sent up the Hudson River to a school for orphans.  It was an awful place, a nightmare place... The school was no place for a rowdy-dowdy high-hat baby with a broken heart.  How could Ella dance in a nightmare?  How could she sing with no one to send the song to?"

Illustrations in pinks and blues and reds and browns compliment the text.  They bring out the joy on Ella's face when she's singing and dancing, making her beautiful even though many people didn't think she was beautiful in real life.

Skit-Scat Raggedy Cat is a great addition to the many wonderful picture book biographies today.  It'd make a nice choice for units on music or Black History.  And it's on shelves now!

Happy Nonfiction Monday!  Practically Paradise has the roundup!