Clubs: A Lolly Leopold Story by Kate De Goldi

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


In my review of Billy, a Lolly Leopold Story by Kate De Goldi and Jacqui Colley, I mentioned the author's other book, The 10 PM Question, as one of my favorite books, but, again, these books are completely different from that book. My comments about Billy and Clubs are similar, except, for some odd reason, I found the story line for Clubs to be more appealing.  Perhaps it is because clubs are familiar to American readers, whereas Pets and Produce days are a bit of a stretch - more like a county fair than a school event. 

Again, the pictures make the story for me.  Very interesting and appealing. 



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Billy: A Lolly Leopold Story by Kate De Goldi

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


The 10 PM Question by Kate De Goldi is one of my favorite books, but it is completely different from this book.  I am actually a bit surprised that they are by the same author.  This book, and its companion, Clubs, are really graphic stories - not really picture books - they are clearly targeted for an older set than most picture books.  Yet, they are not manga or cartoons.  Maybe illustrated story would be a better description.  In some ways, they are similar to the Wimpy Kid books, in that there is a mix of story and illustration, and they contain typical school kid humor.  But the illustrations for these two books are far and away above the illustrations for the Wimpy Kid books.  The illustrations should get billing along with the author, as they are equally important.  The illustrator is Jacqui Colley. 

The story is fairly standard school kid fare, albeit with kind and understanding adults, which is typical of books from Oz and Kiwiland.  It doesn't have the depth of The 10 PM Question, but it probably has greater kid appeal, because of the pictures. 



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Why Gender Matters: What Parents and Teachers Need to Know about the Emerging Science of Sex Differences by Leonard Sax

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


This is one of those books that, when I am finished reading, I wish I had read more carefully.  While I agree in part with the author's premise - that boys and girls brains and physiology are in fact different and it would behoove us to take note of the consequences of those differences, rather than deny or subvert them - there is a lingering uneasiness that perhaps the author is a bit too biased in his analysis.  Separate was not equal in terms of racial differences; I am worried that separate will not be equal in terms of gender differences (or religious differences, or socio-economic differences, or gender orientation differences, or ...) 

Another thing that worries me is the chapter on teen sex.  I am really alarmed that there isn't more support for girls to just say no to the degrading practice of "hooking up" and other aspects of teen sex that are exploitative of girls' natures.  What are girls getting out of "hooking up" and how do we empower them to fight back against this?

There are several things I would like to see explored in more detail:  what exactly are the differences in teaching boys and girls?  The brief examples he gives are simply not definitive enough for me.  In one of the ending chapters, he very briefly mentions that girls used to be concerned with their character, but nowadays their self-esteem (in coed schools) is largely based on how they look.  Coed schools are so prevalent in the US, and I am convinced that this will not change soon, given the current economic problems and the impending drastic cuts in education, how can we deal with education and socio-emotional issues?

I have ordered his next two books from the library.  Maybe I will find out more from them.




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The False Princess by Eilis O'Neal

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


A good adventure.  I enjoyed this audiobook and listened to it practically straight through.  I don't think it will be classed as a classic, but it was certainly enjoyable.



ALERT: mild spoiler

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One thing I really appreciated about this book was the relationship of Cinda to Kiernan.  Given that I have been arguing on adbooks about the opinion that too many books treat relationships in a very superficial manner, with the protagonists advancing to sex very quickly in the relationship, this book provides a very refreshing difference.  Cinda and Kiernan start out as best friends and that is emphasized.  The relationship is treated respectfully, even through realistic ups and downs. 



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The Genius Files: Mission Unstoppable by Dan Gutman

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


Books like this make me realize that I don't have the sense of fun I used to have.  This book is mostly fluff and adventure, with some puzzles thrown in.  It should be just fun - and it is a bit, but it doesn't have enough lingering substance for me.

I should add, however, that the inclusion of the exact route of the trip, with instructions on how to use Google Maps to follow the route is brilliant.  It had me breaking out the atlas and following along.  



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Pearls Blows Up: A Pearls Before Swine Treasury by Stephan Pastis

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


I used to not like Pearls Before Swine, because I especially didn't like the crocodiles and they way they talk, but it was one of my younger daughter's favorite cartoons, so I tried it again.  I still am not particularly fond of the crocodiles (or the guard duck, for that matter), but I have thoroughly enjoyed the Treasuries.  I especially like that he annotates the series, adding another dimension of humor.  I am Goat.  My daughter is Rat. 



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Too Small to Fail by Morris Gleitzman

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


I have been enjoying audiobooks a lot lately and this one was better than some of them.  It suffered a bit less from the overacting sound of some of the other audiobooks I have listened to.  The other significant advantage of the book over some other recent "reads" is that the plot was less predictable than many of them.  There were quite a few plot twists that added an extra dimension to the story.

And, like many books set in and written by Australians, it also has a strong sense of family.  I like this about the Australian books and wish I found it more in American books.  The Penderwicks (the 3rd book of which I also listened to lately) has a great love of family, too, but, for some reason, it was just a bit TOO sweet for me.  This book felt more real.  I wish Australian books were easier to get.  Audiobooks surprisingly are pretty good values.  I would guess that that is because there is a significant savings in shipping - shipping bits and bytes costs less than shipping dead trees.

I have read other books by Gleitzman and found them a bit silly in places.  This one didn't seem to suffer from that for me.  It dealt with a much more serious topic, but it wasn't oppressive in that respect either.  I feel he struck a good balance between serious topic and hero's adventure. 

I enjoyed it.



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