nomadreader

The barest of beginning plot:   The Magician's Elephant is the story of Peter Augustus Duchene, a ten-year-old orphan who chooses to spend food money to ask a fortune teller if his sister is alive. She tells him his sister is alive and an elephant will lead him to her, which is a message Peter does not understand, as he has never actually seen an elephant. The lovely: This book is mostly lovely. It's a story that starts simply and adds richness, meaning and layers as it goes. It's accessible to young readers, and would make a wonderful read aloud book for younger readers, but it's still enjoyable for adult readers.  The setting is somewhere between reality and magic. The time is modern, old-fashioned and timeless. The details of space and time are vague, and some readers will likely envision different settings; it's a book that uses your imagination without you even realizing it. Yoko Tanaka's occasional drawings are beautiful. Is it a contender for the N...

Summary:   The Graveyard Book  by Neil Gaiman is the story of Bod, a boy who was orphaned as a baby when his parents and older sister were murdered. He escaped to the cemetery, where he lives and is able to see the ghosts who dwell there.  Review: The Graveyard Book  is both dark and funny, which is a difficult combination to achieve, but Gaiman does. Bod is smart, and given his interactions with dead people from hundreds of years, he was a fantastic grasp of history, the history of language and customs. All the ghosts speak and act in the manners of their times. The mystery was compelling, even for me as an adult reader. The story is accessible, but isn't elementary. I adored The Graveyard Book , and I think it has the crossover appeal for teens and adults the Harry Potter books do.  Award:   winner of the 2009 Newbery Medal (I'm ready for the 2010 Newbery Medal announcement now!) Rating: 4.5 stars (out of 5 stars) Pages: 320 pages Publication da...

As I've mentioned before, my focus for 2010 is reading books from the awards I most enjoy. More specifically, I want to read all the shortlist books from the Booker Prize and Orange Prize, as well as the finalists for the National Book Award and Pulitzer before the 2010 awards are announced. Here's the numerical breakdown and my plan to read four nominees each month: Newbery Awards I read the 2009 winner, The Graveyard Book , but I will read the winner and honor books this year. The Medal and Honor books are announced in January, and number of honor books varies. Pulitzer Prize (Fiction) One winner and two finalists The finalists and winner are announced in April; I'll read one book a month and finish the 2009 list in March. Orange Prize for Fiction One winner and five on the shortlist The shortlist is announced in April; I'll read two books each month and finish the 2009 shortlist in March. Booker Prize One winner and five on the shortlist The s...