Totally Off-Topic

I just saw a commercial for the new Venus Embrace razor. It has 5 -- FIVE -- razor blades for the smoothest skin ever!

How many razor blades does a person need?

When I was growing up, two-bladed razors were the standard luxury. Then it became three. Then four. Now five.

In 2015, will we see a Bic X - the newest razor with an astounding 10 razors?!?

Middle School Is Worse Than Meatloaf: A Year Told Through Stuff

Middle School Is Worse Than Meatloaf: A Year Told Through Stuff
by Jennifer Holm. Illustrated by Elicia Castaldi

Graphic novel? Scrapbook? This is the story of Ginny Davis, spanning her 7th grade year. Ginny starts off the new year like we all do: with high hopes and optimistic goals. But this is middle school and there are more downs than ups for Ginny who experiences the humiliation of a bad home hair dye to the adjustment of gaining a step-father to seeing her brother sent away to military school.

And the medium? The story is literally told through stuff. To-do lists, post-its from family members, notes from teachers, notes passed from Ginny to her friends during class. Bills, report cards, drawings, poems, instant messaging. Everything that is on each page connects to and enhances the story line. One of the most appealing parts of this book is looking at each object and seeing how it adds to the story or gives you more info.

This is a great book for reluctant readers.

This is also a great book for adults who want to take a quick trip back middle school. While we might not all know what it's like to get a new step-dad or the experience of breaking your arm trying to rescue your cape-wearing little brother, we do remember the high hopes of middle school: the wished for boyfriend, the slow accumulation of money from babysitting that is so quickly wasted on lip gloss and eyeshadow, the wheeling and dealing with mom and dad... Books like this (and Diary of a Wimpy Kid) help me remember and regain empathy for the plight of the middle-schooler.
Grade: A+

BTW, this is my 35th book since June.

Fat Tuesday

Fat Tuesday should happen when it's warm. Then you can really revel in the hedonism. It's not as much fun in the cold. I guess this is why warm New Orleans has such a lovely celebration.

Fat Tuesday and I've never even had an official Paczki. They advertise the hell out of them here. Really it's just a Polish donut. I don't even like donuts that much, but still...

Good Times

Today I had the kids warm up by writing an intro for a persuasive topic. Here are some of the best snippets.

*I heard that you think we should get a class pat. 90% of the class would like a snack. Also snacks teach you about shedding skin and that could be a prize if you do the best on a quiz or test. I think snacks are a good class pet.

*I recommend that you get a King cobra. They may be poisonous, but on a white floor you could see them easily if it escapes...I think you should get a King cobra and name it Bill.

*I think a Komodo dragon is a good pet. (My comment: Aren't these animals dangerous? Maybe they would be a good ISS pet.)

*Donkeys can discipline people if they don't get something signed on time.

*A parrot would be a good pet because if a student didn't hear something the teacher said, the parrot could repeat it.

Touching Spirit Bear

Touching Spirit Bear (YA) by Ben Mikaelsen

Cole is a deeply troubled and violent teenager who brutally beats a classmate named Peter. Cole is given an option: a trial and the possibility of jail or participation in Circle Justice.

Circle Justice is a Native American concept of justice that involves the perpetrator, the community, and the violated. Those who participate collaborate on what type of punishment should be given. Circle Justice works under the assumption that no justice actually occurs unless healing occurs. It is a means of healing for, hopefully, all involved. Rather than just punishing the criminal, the hope is to foster growth and change in that individual.

Cole signs on for Circle Justice because he thinks that it's a joke and will be a cake walk when compared to a jail term. Rather than prison, Circle Justice sends him to spend a year on an isolated island. Cole will have to fend for himself, and come to terms with his own actions, hurt, and anger.

However, when Cole gets to the island, he still acts with all of his violent, reckless old self. He burns down his cabin, he tries to swim the cold Alaskan sea to escape, and he attacks a bear. All on his first day alone! After being brutally mauled by the bear, Cole waits to die ... and comes to terms with his own desire to live.

After being rescued, Cole takes many months to rehabilitate. He is given one last chance to complete his year of Circle Justice. Will he be able to finally come to terms with his anger and his own actions? As he learns to deal with his own issues, Cole begins to focus on that of his victim, Peter. How can Cole help Peter come to terms with what happened? How can Cole help Peter overcome fear?

This was an excellent book, and as the ALA Bestseller states, "An excellent companion to Gary Paulson's Hatchet." There are remarkable similarities between this book and the Hatchet books. However, this book contains more moral and ethical dilemmas to mull over.* All in all, a great read (especially Chapter 23).

Final Grade: A

*But in defense of Paulson, this book has nothing on the Hatchet books' wonderful descriptive imagery.

Abner & Me: A Baseball Card Adventure

Abner & Me: A Baseball Card Adventure (YA) by Dan Gutman.

Having tired of recommending the same few books for reluctant male readers, I finally asked my school librarian for some new picks to expand my own horizons (and, hence, hopefully my students as well).

Joe, an avid baseball player and fan, is a 13 year old boy who is able to time travel when he touches old pictures (in particular, baseball cards). In this story, Joe decides that he wants to uncover the truth behind the inventor of baseball. Abner Doubleday is the American whom legend reports to have invented the game; however, there is no proof of this. Joe decides to hop over to 1863 to find out if it's true. The only thing stopping him? Mom. But to his surprise, his mother, a nurse, readily agrees to let him go - IF he'll bring her too. Reluctantly Joe agrees, and he and his mom embark on their journey.

To their surprise, (but not the reader) they land in the middle of the Civil War. Gettysburg to be exact. Excellent depictions of the battle are given as well as what medicine was like at the time. Eventually, they stumble across Doubleday. After a quick baseball game and some war-time fighting, Joe and his mother decide to retreat home to safety. More adventures ensue, but I don't want to give it all away.

At first, I did not like this book. I didn't like the protagonist, and I'm not a big sports fan. However, I love the idea of time travel and historical stories. So in the end, the book worked for me. It had just enough humor. The 19th century scenes were well done. The suspense was rather low key, but I can definitely see why boys would like this book.

1) It's an easy read. Nothing very complicated. Easy plot. Easy and few characters.
2) It's about sports.
3) The boy helps play the hero, and becomes more grown-up (especially in his relationship with mom).

An Amazon review that I read mentioned that this book was too violent, but I don't really know what they're talking about. The Gettysburg scenes were truthful, and nothing that a fourth grader couldn't handle.

Final Grade: B+

One Caveat:
At one point, the mother muses over the possibility of going back in time to prevent the assassination of Lincoln. Joe tells his mother that history cannot be changed. Joe reminds her that he tried to prevent the Black Sox Scandal in 1919 but couldn't ( page 129). But at the beginning of the novel (page 22), the reader learns that Joe's Uncle Wilbur is only alive because of Joe's time-traveling intervention. In 1919, Uncle Wilbur originally died of influenza. On Joe's trip there, he gives his uncle some flu medicine. So I guess you can change history as long as it's not textbook history.

What I'm Doing Today

If You're Gonna Watch a Godfather Marathon...

watch it on a big, flat-screen. Really.

Dracula - A Ben Caldwell Cartoon Comic

Dracula - A Ben Caldwell Cartoon Comic
Adapted by Michael Mucci. Drawn by Ben Caldwell. Published by Sterling.

This is an excellent adaptation of Stoker's Dracula. All of the important parts of the book remain intact. The graphics rock. They're hip, modern, and thoroughly charming. Best of all, I think it would equally appeal to both girls and boys. I would love to teach this to my kids. My only complaint is the lack of page numbering. It's a pretty significant size, and if I were to use this in the classroom, it would need page numbers.

This graphic novel did bring up the following thought: How enhanced is my enjoyment of this story because I have read the original? I can only assume that I get greater satisfaction from this version because of my familiarity with Stoker's book. But if that is the case, how well would someone who has never read the original (or seen a movie version) assess the comic version? Would there be gaps in their comprehension of the story line?

Grade: A+

(Photo courtesy of www.barnesandnoble.com)

Eager

Eager (YA) by Helen Fox.


I got this sci-fi book at a school book fair. I was intrigued by what seemed to be a story about robotics and ethics. The stuff of Asimov and Bradbury (but more Asimov). I was so intrigued that I bought it, put it on my shelf, and promptly found many other books to occupy me. Last week, however, I had the kids voting for the Nutmeg Awards (Connecticut's YA and Children's Book awards, which are chosen by the kids themselves). Eager was one of the nominations. I was shamed by the fact that I had only read two of the many choices, and yet I owned most of them! And so I set to work...

Eager is set in a world about 100 years into the future. Robots help run everything - from construction to egg scrambling. Life Corp is the primary robotics corporations, and they have just begun distributing their latest product, the BDC4. These robots are efficient and exceptionally life-like. They are only for the most wealthy and privileged - the technocrats.

Young Fleur Bell and her family have an old antiquated robot named Grumps. Grumps' timing mechanism is off - causing all sorts of mishaps like tomato soup for breakfast. The Bells know they need a new robot, but they are reluctant to part with Grumps or deal with the high cost. Fleur's best friend has her own BDC4. While the Bell children dream of the newest and latest, Mr. Bell acquires an experimental prototype named EGR3. EGR3 is able to learn from his own experiences. The children, especially Fleur, are not so eager to accept EGR3 but as EGR3 becomes more life-like they come to rely upon him - especially when the BDC4s of the world begin malfunctioning!

This was a fun read. I enjoyed the descriptions of life in the future, but I felt that the conflict of the plot was rather subdued. The terrifying takeover of a group of BDSC4s wasn't depicted as being really that terrifying. It feels as though the author had a great time writing until right before the start of the climax (which I will state is the moment in which Marcia announces that the BDC4s have taken over her neighborhood), and then just got tired. The details after this point seem muted and more like a summary.

Grade: C+

Delayed Opening

Delayed Opening Today. Once again, I would like to reiterate that my students' last full week was December 8th, and for the foreseeable future won't have a true full week until February 26th.

We are getting lazy and soft because of the snow.

Circle of Blood (YA)

Circle of Blood by Alane Ferguson

Another forensic mystery solved by Cameron Mahoney! That's right. Our modern day Nancy Drew is back and truly better than ever.

Cameron is dealing with all of the difficult emotions of being reunited with her mother when the small town of Silverton is once again the sight of a murder mystery. A young girl is shot, or is it suicide? Cameron's mother is somehow involved in this whole mess, but Cameron is determined to solve the crime in order to save her mother from any implication of murder.

All in all, this is the best Cameron Mahoney mystery yet. Why? 1) This one had some great stomach turning autopsy description. 2) Cameron makes mistakes typical of a teenager. 3) Really believable plot concerning the murder.* 4) Cameron uses technology more frequently than before.**

Grade: A-

*And when I say the plot line is believable, I mean that I have seen familiar crime plots on various crime shows, which may or may not have been ripped from the headlines.
** I feel that YA literature is still catching up to technology. It's nice to see the frequent references to Google, e-mail, and texting in a story line. This type of instantaneous information retrieval is now a part of life.

Early Dismissal

An early dismissal was announced today. The why is actually beyond me. It's only a light snow right now, and it's not even accumulating on the roads. It's melting! This year there hasn't been a snow where the flakes didn't just sit on top of the pavement. It's been pretty consistently below freezing. Regardless, we had an early dismissal, which means that my students will not have had a complete week (no snow day/no vacation/no delay/no dismissal) from December 8 to February 23.