Hi, everybody!

Some of you might remember that last year I posted about my cousin Helen, who won an EEC wide art competition for high school students. This year, Helen has designed a beautiful Christmas card, which I wanted to share with you — (her school is using it as their official card!)
The colors don’t come out perfectly in my camera phone photo — but isn’t the drawing lovely?

For those who celebrate, I wish you a happy and blessed Christmas, and for those who don’t I wish you a joyous and peaceful new year!

In other news, we’ve got a new and exciting podcast episode up and running — an interview with Megan Whalen Turner, whose “Queen’s Thief” books have won all kinds of accolades and awards.

Here it is, if you’d like to listen:

Or, you can go to the podcast page.

That’s it for today, everyone! Stay well, and enjoy the day!
~D.

Hello, everybody! I hope you’ve all been well, this gray and chilly winter, and I wish you all lovely winter holidays!

I have just returned from my very first trip to Florida. I had a fantastic time, and saw the most awesome people, birds, beasts and flowers. Plus, our concert for the Lucia-fest was really beautiful! Dominique (our director) got a (VERY well deserved) standing ovation!

While in Florida, I made some new friends — look!

Isn’t he beautiful? He’s a manatee, and his name is Buffet, he lives in the Sarasota Aquarium with his brother, Hugh, and a sea turtle, and, as you can see, he is very fond of Romaine Lettuce. I love him!

In other news, we received the ARC of Megan Whalen Turner’s new novel, “A Conspiracy of Kings” at our library, (YAY!) and I just finished reading it last night. So here is my completely spoiler free (I hope) review.

The cover of the ARC for Megan Whalen Turner's new novel, to be published on March 23, 2010

Megan Whalen Turner has done it again! A Conspiracy of Kings is a fast-paced, intricate adventure story, in which, once again, the plot is completely character-driven, and a thread of magic winds through the complex train of events in an entirely believable way. Here is a list of some highlights of the tale, which doesn’t (I hope!) give too much away.

I. We see ALMOST all of our favorite characters again. Especially those who rule nations (Well, I think any MTW fans would be able to tell that from the title ;-D).
2. MWT also introduces a few new characters, some of whom are beyond awesome. (Well OK, some are also exacrable, but in a good and necessary way).
3. Anyone who has read any of the promotional literature or blurbs will have gathered that the book is about Sophos. It is, and Sophos rocks!! (Incidentally, there was some talk of moustachios on some of the boards ’round about. Haters of facial hair, be at ease. Only previously bearded characters sport beards in this book — there is no new facial hair to speak of).
4. MWT’s writing has always shown great mastery of Point of View. This book is no exception. There are specific points of view, point of view shifts, deliberate breaks in the narration, shifts from narrative to dialogue — & they are all brilliant. I can guarantee, you’ll love Sophos’s narration, plus who he’s talking to.
5. Then there’s the psychology. I think you’ll be amazed at how Sophos’s situation, and his reaction to it, “fit” our modern world, too, and some of our own situations.
6. Plus, there’s the great MWT tradition of stories within stories. That’s here, too — and the stories are the best yet! I was laughing out loud!
7. And, there are dreams….waking and sleeping. But I’ll say no more about them, lest I say too much.
8. And there’s at least one “loose end.” But it is neither accidental nor annoying. The plot winds up beautifully — but I was left knowing that there was more to know, and content to wait another few years for the knowledge. ;-D

That’s it! My completely spoiler-free review! I loved the book, and I think you will, too. Of course, I did not see the final version, or the final art, which I understand will include a map. There is no map in the ARC, and I would have loved one. Which is another reason I’ll be very happy to see the published book in March.

BTW, everybody, if you’d like to find out more about Megan Whalen Turner’s books, or her fans, she has a website here:
http://home.att.net/~mwturner/index.html

And there’s a site for discussing her books here http://community.livejournal.com/sounis/

That’s it for today, everyone! I hope you enjoy the photo, and the review, and I wish you very happy holidays!

~D.

Our simulcast session at the Mount Kisco Library this afternoon was amazing! Mo is even more charming “in person” than in his books. We had tons of kids there and they all loved it! Plus, they got to ask him a question! — well actually, I asked it for them….see?

Mo answering the Mount Kisco students' question!

Here I am, asking the students' question.

We finally have new furniture in the Mount Kisco Library teen room!
Look! Isn’t it lovely?

Plus, we have a reference desk in the Children’s Room!

Isn’t it lovely, and don’t Lazy and Crazy look happy in their new home?

In other news, the latest library podcast episode is up! This episode features teen writers, inspiration, creativity, etc. We have two more episodes in the pipeline. The first one will feature an interview with Fidencia Solomon, who will read her poem, Looking For Change. Then we will have an interview with authors Emma McLaughlin and Nicola Kraus, of “Nanny Diaries” fame, talking about their work and introducing their new book, The Real Real! So, stay tuned! And in the meantime, I hope you enjoy our current episode.

Hey, everybody!

Today, I’ve got a couple of awesome photos for you, which illustrate interactions between human beings and the natural world, and feature (especially!) bicycles! I was inspired by the thought that our new library should soon be getting a bike rack. Who knows what wonderful things may then be seen in Mount Kisco?

The first photo is by Ton Van der Weerden from Holland. The horse is a Dutch Draft, a breed I did not know before. Isn’t he beautiful?

As you see, the type of horse is very similar to the Belgian Drafts from my home town, but the hairstyle is quite different! For pulling, people in my part of the world clip the horses’ manes short and trim their fetlocks. In Holland, they leave the horses’ hair long and make beautiful braids!

And here’s a Russian Blue kitten, photographed by Lindy Meow! Gorgeous, isn’t it!

This one’s definitely set for wurld domanashun, don’t you think?

So, it will be very exciting if we do actually get a bike rack at the library!

In the meantime, I am happy to report that we did get some new furniture today! Behold the Teen Room Computer Desks! The teenagers tell me they like them a lot, and I think they are very pretty!

That’s it for this afternoon — enjoy! And I am always amenable to comments or suggestions!

PS Don’t forget, Emma McGlauchlin and Nicola Kraus, authors of The Nanny Diaries will be at the library to introduce their new book, The Real Real on Wednesday, September 30th at 7:00 PM!

PPS Just noticed, I ended almost every sentence in this post with an exclamation point! What in the world was I thinking?!

The New Mount Kisco Library

I am sure you’ve been wondering how things are going at the new Mount Kisco Library — so, here I am, all ready to satisfy your curiosity!

We did indeed open on Saturday, August 8th — “to rave reviews,” according to our friends at The Examiner!

You can see in Sean Gorman’s picture above that we haven’t quite finished unpacking — notice the boxes in the front hall? (I think you can see a couple, if you look carefully). But still, people have been coming in, and we are happy that everyone seems to love the new building — and also that we can generally find what everyone needs!

Our Grand Opening is going to be on September 12th, and I hope everybody will be able to come!

In the meantime, we will be having some special programs in our new program rooms!

Story Times will begin the last full week of August. Stories for 4 and 5 year olds will be on Tuesday the 25th at 4:00 PM, stories for toddlers 9 – 18 months old will be on Wednesday the 26th at 10:30, and family story time, for children 18 months old and up, will be on Wednesday at 11:00.

We will also have an exciting workshop for older children on Thursday, August 27th at 4:00!

A miniature book, made by Malachi McCormick

The number is (914) 666-8041

That’s it for now — I’ll post more news, and especially more pictures, very soon.

~D.

It’s official! There’s an announcement on the Harper Collins page, and the news is wonderful! Those of us who were filled with dread after the last “Queen’s Thief” book can finally relax! Sophos lives!!!
Here’s the official cover art

A Conspiracy of Kings

“Sophos, heir to Sounis, doesn’t look like much of a prince. At least, according to those in power. At least, to those who do not know him or the size of his heart and the depth of his courage, loyalty, and love. But Helen, Queen of Eddis, knows him, and so does Gen, the queen’s Thief, who is now King of Attolia. Gen and the queen believe that Sophos is dead. But they also believe in hope, especially since a body was never found. So when Sophos is discovered in Attolia, the obvious question becomes: where has he been all this time?

Megan Whalen Turner’s books about Eugenides, the Thief of Eddis, have been called “triumphantly clever,” “tantalizing,” “suspenseful,” and “wholly satisfying.” Readers new to the series will be ensnared. Fans will be in heaven. Includes a map.”

Awesome, no? And I am BEYOND delighted that this vol. includes a map! I hope new editions of the previous volumes will include maps, too. Books that include extensive geographical descriptions and/or quests, journeys, battles, etc. should always include maps, imo. Preferably like Tolkien’s, but even less detailed maps are much better than none!

But I digress.

Anybody who wonders what I am raving about should go to their local bookstore or library and obtain a copy of The Thief right away!

And speaking of libraries, we now have an official opening date for the new Mount Kisco Library! August 8th! Which is really soon — keep your fingers crossed! It’ll be great to finally be open!

And if you’re wondering why I haven’t posted lately, moving the library is a large part of the reason. But I also did a birthday expedition recently, together with my lovely twin sister, whom some of you know as the YA librarian in Armonk. We visited the original Green Knowe, among other exciting locales. I did take tons of photos, and I’ll post some asap.

That’s it for now — thanks for reading!

Stay well…

Hello, everybody!

I just wanted to let you know that the latest episode of our podcast is up. It’s “A conversation with Kristin Cashore.” We really enjoyed it, and hope you will, too!

Kristin Cashore

Good afternoon, everybody!

I’ve been a little too busy to blog recently — I hope you haven’t missed me too much ;-D

Today, I have something entertaining, a mini rant — and maybe even a suggestion for President Obama.

First, here’s a picture: It’s called “Our New Friend,” and you can see the original shot on my Flickr account.

Our new straw penguin. Doesn't he look real?

I didn’t particularly like the look of him against our old cinderblock walls, so I did a quick, smudgy background for him on Splashup – which is quite a fun site to play with, BTW. I hope you enjoy him as much as I do!

Well! Now to get to the meat of this post (and no, it’s not penguin meat!)

In case you are wondering about my title, let me clue you in.  I have finally got hold of Stephenie Meyer’s famous book, Twilight, and I am reading it. And enjoying it very much, I might add — despite certain lapses of logic, and even (gasp!) infelicities of style. Which leads me to this plea:

Dear President Obama:

Our nation is in desperate need of book editors! In the interests of American letters, let us give employment to the many talented people who could perform this terribly neglected task. We need to help the economy, and the environment — so let’s help the literary environment while we’re at it!

Not that I have anything against Ms. Meyer’s editor, mind you. I just think she could have used some help on a long book like this. And, (imo),  she should have been a bit more stringent.

Why? Consider this: Ms. Meyer’s heroine, Bella, although seventeen years old, “skips” to the bathroom in the morning. If she had done this  just once, it might not have been too jarring — after all, a certain amount of exuberance is to be expected when you’re seventeen. And there are “morning people” in the world!  So, a certain amount of skipping is OK. But, if repeated too often, it begins to sound improbable — or even formulaic. And that’s the main problem with how Ms. Meyer has written this story. Alice “dances” everywhere she goes, Edward’s hands are always “long, white” hands, Bella skips and bounces — and is quite improbably accident prone, for someone who habitually plays with knives.  And the list goes on…

Add a tendency to trust spell check to the mix, and you can get some pretty funny things. Consider the following passage, in which Bella is happy about the only sunny day she’s experienced in Forks, WA so far. (It always rains there, evidently).

I ate breakfast cheerily, watching the dust moats stirring in the sunlight that streamed in the back window.

Wow! Ms. Meyer has already made it clear that not much phases Bella — but such a chipper attitude in the face of falling fortifications — made of dust, no less (…in all that rain) — is really amazing!

On the positive side, Ms. Meyer plots brilliantly, and I’m finding her characters interesting. Twilight is quite a good book. But that’s what I’m finding frustrating about it — it’s just good, when it could have been really good, maybe even excellent.

And I do love excellent writing! Which brings me to the title of my post. All that rain in Twilight reminded me of a passage in another book — Muriel Spark’s The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie.  Here, Ms. Brodie is reading  aloud to her class from Tennyson’s poem, The Lady of Shalott.

Jenny was enthralled by the poem, her lips were parted, she was never bored. Sandy was never bored, but she had to lead a double life of her own in order not to be bored.

            Down she came and found a boat
           Beneath a willow left afloat,
           And round about the prow she wrote
           The Lady of Shalott.

     “By what means did your ladyship write these words?” Sandy enquired in her mind with her lips shut tight.

     “There was a pot of white paint and a brush which happened to be standing upon the grassy verge,” replied the Lady of Shalott graciously. “It was left there no doubt by some heedless member of the Unemployed.”

     “Alas, and in all that rain!” said Sandy for want of something better to say…..

Now that’s great writing, imo! If Dame Muriel ever needed editing, it never showed. She was a beautiful stylist! 

I would just love it if more of our very good YA authors could match that level of writing. Admittedly, many do. (Hilari Bell, anyone? Catherine Gilbert Murdock? Lloyd Alexander? Gary Schmidt? …. ) But I think they all should. We need to keep working against the perception I’ve encountered in other countries, that Americans can’t really write.

Well, that’s the end of my rant for today. I hope you enjoyed it! Let me know!

~D.

Hi again, everyone!

Just wanted to let you know that, for the first time ever, I am a winner in the S.N.A.P.E. art contest! I got second place — not bad, considering. And here’s my lovely banner to prove it!

The challenge was to draw a picture based on a letter in a Snape alphabet. I took “D” for “The name(s) of Snape’s dog(s).” Dead easy, as Hagrid would say. Except for drawing in artpad! That’s hard — and that’s my excuse for making poor Snape look so oddly dwarfish, & with green skin. Oh, well! Here’s my drawing

He's called "Dumbledog!" And he has a long auburn "beard" tied with a purple ribbon!

In other news, Teresa has finished the “six random things” meme — AND changed the rules! (You go, girl!) You can see her ” random things” post on her website. She’s also got a brilliant new post up, inspired by Laura Numeroff, called “If you give Wall Street a Bailout!”

And finally….I’m not really happy with that list of my 10 favorite books that I did last time. Because I left out lots of awesome titles that I really love! Here are just a couple more….

1. The Man Who Was Thursday. Really one of the world’s most awesome books, imo.  BTW, Orson Welles loved it as much as I do, and did a great dramatization of it many years ago. Here’s a clip, if you’d like to listen.  
2. Helen Keller. The Story of My Life. This is an astounding book. (Actually, I wouldn’t usually put it on a list like this, or even talk about it, because I love it so much.) But if there’s anybody in the world yet who hasn’t read it, they really should, imo. Anyway, I love it!

That’s it for tonight, everybody — enjoy! & I’ll be back later.

~D.