6/29/2023 0 Comments Rascal by Sterling NorthDuring an interlude, Sterling and his father take Rascal on a two-week camping trip. He steals off at night to drain the sugar from ears of neighbors' sweet corn, and develops some vandal habits. Living in a cabin in the southern Wisconsin woods with his father (his mother is dead, sisters married), Sterling-and Wowser-capture a one-pound infant raccoon in the summer of 1918. Sterling, 11, and his father (who lived to be 99) also have a bony reality that does much to keep Rascal's story from collapsing like a vanilla cone on July 4th. Yet, Rascal becomes an engaging character among characters such as Poe-the-Crow and Wowser the 170-pound St. Adults will not be as likely to eat the whole panful as may younger readers. North's childhood memoir about his pet raccoon Rascal mixes sentiment, nostalgia and treacle in about equal overdoses.
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Almost miraculously, he was soon able to express himself in the richest detail: dictating a word at a time, blinking to select each letter as the alphabet was recited to him slowly, over and over again. By the end of the year he was also the victim of a rare kind of stroke to the brainstem.Īfter 20 days in a coma, Bauby awoke into a body which had all but stopped working: only his left eye functioned, allowing him to see and, by blinking it, to make clear that his mind was unimpaired. In 1995, Jean-Dominique Bauby was the editor-in-chief of French Elle, the father of two young children, a 44-year-old man known and loved for his wit, his style, and his impassioned approach to life. A triumphant memoir by the former editor-in-chief of French Elle that reveals an indomitable spirit and celebrates the liberating power of consciousness. 6/29/2023 0 Comments Seedfolks novelIt beckons the wounded who find a reason to live as they watch life sprout from little seeds. It pulls in immigrants who yearn for vegetables they can't find at local markets. That garden in Seedfolks is like a big green magnet. It's filled with people - mostly immigrants - who live in close proximity but barely share more than an occasional "hello." They all stay in apartments surrounding a vacant lot that, in the course of this story, is transformed from a smelly junkyard into a lush community garden. Seedfolks takes us to the heart of the city, specifically the city of Cleveland, and a neighborhood that has seen better days. Each month we ask young people to read a book along with us, and for this month, our pick is Seedfolks by Paul Fleischman. How?Īpril showers bring May flowers, and in this case they bring us a selection from the garden for NPR's Backseat Book Club. Your purchase helps support NPR programming. Close overlay Buy Featured Book Title Seedfolks Author Paul Fleischman 6/29/2023 0 Comments Undead and unworthyTaylor." "You should tell the help not to speak to me," she said triumphantly, thrilled that someone else was acknowledging her presence. "I am not! You're here of your own free will, Antonia, and the sooner you figure that out the happier I'll be." "Make that all of us," Jessica added. "Tell him about how you're keeping me prisoner." My head snapped up so quickly I nearly overturned my chair. It clashed awfully with her bright yellow hair and made her skin look positively greenish. The center burners came up to the bottom button on her too-tight lime green blouse. Usually the ghosts behaved like they were still alive and tried not to walk through things unless they absolutely had to - say, through a door that was shut (because, natch, they couldn't grasp the knob). She was standing in the middle of the stove. And he can't hear you." "What?" Nick said. "He's a detective, you dimwit note the plain clothes and the holster. I sighed and rested my forehead on the counter. Several crimes." Ah, the perfect touch to destroy the last of my good mood. "Officer, I would like to report a crime. 6/29/2023 0 Comments The graveyard apartment bookI enjoyed the book, but I definitely didn’t “ get” it. Lastly, my interpretation of the story may have also been incorrect due to cultural differences and societal norms. There were many statements and descriptions where the translation seemed almost too literal and it made for some awkward dialog and narration. The book alludes to a few possibilities, but they don’t necessary correlate with the end of the book. There are several issues that I have with the book, and I feel that they may have simply been “lost in translation.” Without dropping any spoilers, the main issue that I have is the reason for the haunting. It feels dark, dreary, and cold – even when it is a beautiful summer day. The entire book has a very claustrophobic feel to it which adds to the spookiness. One thing this book does very well is creating a certain atmosphere. Strange occurrences begin on the first day in their new home and continue to ramp up all the way to the very end. The apartment building overlooks an old Buddhist graveyard and crematorium. The couple has bought their first apartment – it’s an absolute bargain for the location and close to school and the train. The Graveyard Apartment tells the story of Teppei, Misao, and their young daughter, Tamao. 6/29/2023 0 Comments Tolkien christmas lettersMcllwaine continued: “They contained news from the North Pole where Father Christmas lived with his 'helper' the North Polar Bear, who often got into trouble and caused twice as much work for Father Christmas. The letters were delivered by the postman, who'd been persuaded by Tolkien to deliver them with the rest of the post, or arrived on the hearth with specially made stamps from the North Pole, marked with the cost of postage '2 kisses'. The Bodleian Library in Oxford will have some of them on display alongside the largest array of original Tolkien materials from the UK and the USA to be exhibited since the 1950s.Ĭatherine McIlwaine, Tolkien Archivist at the Bodleian Libraries and curator of the Tolkien: Maker of Middle-earth exhibition, said: “The Father Christmas letters are some of my favourite items in the exhibition. These letters and the stories from Father Christmas were also richly illustrated by Tolkien, and now members of the public will be able to view them. The Father Christmas letter writing started in 1920 and continued until 1943, when Tolkien’s youngest child, Priscilla was 14. The question inspired Tolkien to pen a letter to John from Father Christmas. It was a tradition that J R R Tolkien kept going for 23 years and was first started when his three-year old son, John, asked who Father Christmas was and where he lived. 6/29/2023 0 Comments Anathem by neal stephensonI put that idea in cold storage because I was working on the Baroque Cycle. And I talked about clock monks who would tend the clock. But if you were inside it when the gate closed, you'd be making a commitment to stay in until it opened again. I proposed that you could have a system of gates where it was open for a while at a certain time of year, or decade, or whatever, when you could go in and out freely. "In my little back-of-the-napkin sketch, I drew a picture showing a clock with concentric walls around it. Stephenson has said that when asked to submit ideas for the Clock of the Long Now, The novel was inspired by the real-life Clock of the Long Now, an attempt to build a clock that will function with minimal intervention for 10,000 years. It contains the account of Fraa Erasmas of the Concent of Saunt Edhar, who begins the tale as an unassuming avout trying to keep up with his studies, and by the end has traversed continents and seas, faced extraordinary dangers, met unexpected persons, and perhaps even saved the world as he knows it. For the rite celebrated by the avout of a concent wherein a fraa or suur is expelled from their company, see anathem.Īnathem is a novel, published in 2008, by Neal Stephenson. This page is about the novel by Neal Stephenson. Ellis is one of the nation's leading scholars of American history. In American Dialogue, Ellis gives us a deeply insightful examination of the relevance of the views of George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, and John Adams, to some of the most divisive issues in America today. The story of history is often a conversation between past and present. This public program is free to the public, but reservations are recommended and can be made online. Attendees should use the Special Events entrance on Constitution Avenue at 7th Street, NW. McGowan Theater of the National Archives Museum in Washington and live streamed on YouTube. Ellis to discuss his new book, American Dialogue: The Founding Fathers and Us, that addresses the question: “What would the Founding Fathers think?” This event will be held in the William G. On Wednesday, October 17, at noon, the National Archives welcomes back Pulitzer Prize–winning historian Joseph J. Historian Joseph Ellis to Discuss “The Founding Fathers and Us” on Oct. 6/28/2023 0 Comments Killer Words by V.M. BurnsHis ex-girlfriend has been found murdered and Dawson (to the law) is the prime suspect. Unfortunately for Dawson, some of the gilding has flaked off his golden crown in the eyes of the local police. To Sam, he’s as close to her as any son could be. Heroic MISU quarterback, Dawson Alexander, is known throughout town. This time around, however, a crime is committed that’s even closer to home. Sam has already experienced the world of a sleuth, so to speak, up close and personal. Samantha Washington is a mystery writer and the owner of the Market Street Mysteries Bookstore located in North Harbor, Michigan. But when it comes to this, the Mystery Bookshop series, this follow-up to the amazing premiere is just as fantastically written! It’s difficult to know if a series is going to continue on after reading only one book. 6/28/2023 0 Comments Eon and eona seriesRowling, Once Upon a Time (TV), Darkwood, Star Trek: Voyager, Merlin (TV) Cast & Kristin Cast, Dusssie - Nancy Springer, Hunger Games Trilogy - Suzanne Collins, Percy Jackson and the Olympians - Rick Riordan, The Hadassah Covenant: Tommy Tenney, The Reluctant Queen: The Love Story of Queen Esther, Claudia: Wife of Pontius Pilate, The Unicorn Chronicles - Bruce Coville, Eon: Dragoneye Reborn, The Drake Chronicles - Alyxandra Harvey, The Selection Series - Kiera Cass, Rumpelstilzchen | Rumpelstiltskin (Fairy Tale), Harry Potter - J. Smith, The Chronicles of Vladimir Tod - Zac Brewer, House of Night - P. RavenclawVulcanofCamelot Fandoms: Christian Bible, Twilight Series - Stephenie Meyer, Greek and Roman Mythology, The Host - Stephenie Meyer, Goddess of Yesterday - Caroline B. 100 Ways to Say I Love You (in 100 Words or Less) |