12.31.2006

Unto Us a Son Is Given


Born on his due date!
The enormous babe debuts.
How to handle two?...

John William, born December 29, 11:02am. 8 lbs, 13 oz. 21 inches long.

12.28.2006

Saint Iggy: Review Haiku


Heartwrenching snapshot
of good kid with crappy life.
Shocking denouement.

Saint Iggy by K. L. Going. Harcourt, 2006, 260 pages.

The Wizard, the Witch, and Two Girls from Jersey: Review Haiku

As fantasy, meh;
As frothy chick-lit, so so;
Better in concept.

The Wizard, the Witch, and Two Girls from Jersey by Lisa Papademetriou. Razorbill, 2006, 273 pages.

12.26.2006

The Handmaid and the Carpenter: Review Haiku


We know the story,
but Berg tries to bring new life:
a modest success.

The Handmaid and the Carpenter by Elizabeth Berg. Random, 2006, 153 pages.

12.25.2006

The Right Attitude to Rain: Review Haiku



Hot thinker action:
Look, philosophers in love!
Cozy, a bit bland.

The Right Attitude to Rain (An Isabel Dalhousie Novel) by Alexander McCall Smith. Pantheon, 2006, 276 pages.

Cancer Vixen: Review Haiku

Real fear, unvarnished;
some perspective at Christmas.
The graphic form shines.

Cancer Vixen by Marisa Acocella Marchetto. Knopf, 2006, 212 pages.

12.23.2006

Grandfather's Dance: Review Haiku


Sarah, plain and tall,
closes another chapter:
bittersweet, content.

Grandfather's Dance by Patricia MacLachlan. Joanna Cotler/Harper Collins, 2006, 84 pages.

Yellow Star: Review Haiku

Yep, it's another
Holocaust book. Spare, poignant,
but sometimes obscure.

Yellow Star by Jennifer Roy. Marshall Cavendish, 2006, 227 pages.

A Spot of Bother: Review Haiku




What did Tolstoy say
about unhappy fam'lies?
Tragic, yet hopeful.

A Spot of Bother by Mark Haddon. Doubleday, 2006, 354 pages.

12.21.2006

Gravida: Complaint Haiku


Sick of pregnancy.
This kid must be Ollie. Say
it: "I WON'T COME OUT!"

12.18.2006

Special Topics in Calamity Physics: Review Haiku


How do you sell a
five-hundred-page first novel?
Hype author's hotness.

Special Topics in Calamity Physics by Marisha Pessl. Viking, 2006, 514 pages.

12.17.2006

Vive La Paris: Review Haiku


No more Cybils books!
Instead, this middle-grade gem:
subtle, wise, and warm.

Vive La Paris by Esme Raj Codell. Hyperion, 2006, 210 pages.

12.15.2006

Cybils Deliberations: Reviewer Haiku

Thirty-seven books,
five women, lots of talking.
Who'll make the top five?

The Cybils shortlists will be announced January 1.

12.11.2006

Jane Addams: Review Haiku


Once hailed as saint; now
the pacifist activist
seems but a footnote.


Jane Addams: Champion of Democracy by Judith Bloom Fradin and Dennis Brindell Fradin. Clarion, 2006, 216 pages.


A Cybils nominee.

12.10.2006

Writing Magic: Review Haiku



Needed: wand (pencil),
canvas (paper), and courage.
Good guide and teacher.

Writing Magic: Creating Stories that Fly by Gail Carson Levine. HarperCollins, 2006, 168 pages.

A Cybils nominee.

12.09.2006

Team Moon: Review Haiku



We went to the moon!
Thimmesh explores the fear, joy
with clear-eyed wonder.

Team Moon: How 400,000 People Landed Apollo 11 on the Moon by Catherine Thimmesh. HMCo, 2006, 80 pages.

A Cybils nominee.

12.08.2006

Escape!: Review Haiku



Abracadabra!
Fleischman dissects the showman:
immortal mortal.

Escape! The Story of the Great Houdini by Sid Fleischman. Greenwillow, 2006, 210 pages.

A Cybils nominee.

12.07.2006

101 Things to Do Before You're Old and Boring: Review Haiku


These one-oh-one things
seem pretty lame to me. Guess
I'm old and boring.

101 Things to Do Before You're Old and Boring by Richard Horne and Helen Szirtes. Walker, 2006, 224 pages.

A Cybils nominee.

12.06.2006

The American Story: Review Haiku


Coffee-table book
highlights key U.S. events.
Good pick for browsers.

The American Story: 100 True Tales from American History by Jennifer Armstrong. Knopf, 2006, 358 pages.

A Cybils nominee.

12.04.2006

The Shepherd, The Angel, and Walter the Christmas Miracle Dog: Review Haiku



Hey! Stocking stuffer!
Barry's shameless Christmas tome
is still good Yule fun.

The Shepherd, the Angel, and Walter the Christmas Miracle Dog by Dave Barry. Putnam, 2006, 117 pages.

Chew on This: Review Haiku



Where's the beef? you ask.
Trust me: after reading this,
you don't want to know.

Chew on This: Everything You Don't Want to Know About Fast Food by Eric Schlosser. HMCo, 2006, 304 pages.

A Cybils nominee.

12.02.2006

With a Little Luck: Review Haiku


Fradin uncovers the
perspiration that led
to strokes of genius.

With A Little Luck: Surprising Stories of Amazing Discoveries by Dennis Fradin. Dutton, 2006, 183 pages.

A Cybils nominee.

12.01.2006

Immersed in Verse: Review Haiku


A poet's toolbox
Kids as fellow writers, yet
a smidge pedantic.




A Cybils nominee.