Waiting for the Magic: Review Haiku

Ohhh! Sad-happy-heart-
breaking family story
of love, lost. And dogs.

Waiting for the Magic by Patricia MacLachlan. Atheneum, 2011, 160 pages.

The Happiness Project: Review Haiku

Nothing earth-shattering,
but a step up from your
average self-help tome.

The Happiness Project: Or Why I Spent a Year Trying to Sing in the Morning, Clean My Closets, Fight Right, Read Aristotle, and Generally Have More Fun by Gretchen Rubin. Harper, 2009, 336 pages.

The Fault in Our Stars: Review Haiku

Hazel, I will buy
you a "F**k Cancer" kit from
Subversive Cross Stitch.

The Fault in Our Stars by John Green. Dutton, 2012, 336 pages.

The Future of Us: Review Haiku

So we beat on, boats
against the current, borne back

ceaselessly into . . .

The Future of Us by Jay Asher and Carolyn Mackler. Razorbill, 2011, 356 pages.

Explosive Eighteen: Review Haiku

FINALLY Stephanie
acts like something more than
a two-dollar whore.

Explosive Eighteen by Janet Evanovich. Bantam, 2011, 320 pages.

Koko Be Good: Review Haiku

Odd little nugget
about following your own dreams,
not another's.

Koko Be Good by Jen Wang. First Second, 2010, 304 pages.

Ten Things We Did . . . : Review Haiku

WOW does she get
teenage invincibility and
dumbass moves right.

Ten Things We Did (And Probably Shouldn't Have) by Lauren Myracle. Harper, 2011, 368 pages.

How to Save a Life: Review Haiku

Makes the unsympathetic
sympathetic, for both
main characters.

How to Save a Life by Sara Zarr. Little Brown, 2011, 352 pages.

V Is for Vengeance: Review Haiku

Who cares about the
story? I just want Kinsey's
kickass apartment.

V Is for Vengeance by Sue Grafton. Putnam, 2011, 448 pages.

The Grief of Others: Review Haiku

Normally love her,
but could not get into this
one. Too depressing?

The Grief of Others by Leah Hager Cohen. Riverhead, 2011, 384 pages.

Cocktail Hour Under the Tree of Forgetfulness: Review Haiku

It's books like this that
make me appreciate my
sainted Swedish mom.

Cocktail Hour Under the Tree of Forgetfulness by Alexandra Fuller. Penguin, 2011, 256 pages.

And the Pursuit of Happiness: Review Haiku

The most beautiful
patriotism I've ever
read.

And the Pursuit of Happiness by Maira Kalman. Penguin, 2010, 480 pages.

Charlie Joe Jackson's Guide to Not Reading: Review Haiku

Not as clever as
it thought it was. Try
Wimpy Kid instead, won't you?

Charlie Joe Jackson's Guide to Not Reading by Tommy Greenwald. Roaring Brook, 2011, 224 pages.

Dead End in Norvelt: Review Haiku

Pretty sure I knew
where this was going, but still
glad I took the trip.

Dead End in Norvelt by Jack Gantos. FSG, 2011, 352 pages.

Toys Come Home: Review Haiku

Liked but didn't love;
still adore the oddball
collection of friends, though.

Toys Come Home: Being the Early Experiences of an Intelligent Stingray, a Brave Buffalo, and a Brand-New Someone Called Plastic by Emily Jenkins. Schwartz & Wade, 2011, 144 pages.

Resonate: Review Haiku

Written for business
types, it's what every good
picture-book writer knows.

Resonate: Present Visual Stories that Transform Audiences by Nancy Duarte. John Wiley, 2010, 248 pages.

Mo Wren, Lost and Found: Review Haiku

Hard-luck Mo struggles
to adjust to new neighborhood,
new friends, new life.

Mo Wren, Lost and Found by Tricia Springstubb. Balzer + Bray, 2011, 256 pages.

Flunking Sainthood: Review Haiku

Marvelous treatise
on our status as sinners all.
Good thing there's grace.

Flunking Sainthood: A Year of Breaking the Sabbath, Forgetting to Pray, and Still Loving My Neighbor by Jana Riess. Paraclete Press, 2011, 192 pages.

2011 Year in Review (Haiku)

Number of posts: 148
Number of book reviews: 136

Favorite middle-grade reads:
A Tale Dark and Grimm

Breadcrumbs

The Penderwicks at Point Mouette

The Incorrigible Children of Ashton Place #2: The Hidden Gallery

Favorite chapter book-y reads:
Clementine and the Family Meeting

Lucky for Good

Favorite YA reads:
The Last Little Blue Envelope

Picture This

Beauty Queens

Withering Tights

Real Live Boyfriends
Why We Broke Up

Favorite grown-up reads:
The Borrower

Bossypants

The Pioneer Woman

One Was a Soldier

Confessions of a Prairie Bitch

Best jackets of the year:
Darth Paper Strikes Back

Divergent

A Tale Dark and Grimm

Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children

Beauty Queens

Okay for Now

Confessions of a Prairie Bitch

Books that, if they do not get some kind of ALA award recognition, I will eat my hat:

Breadcrumbs

Okay for Now

Beauty Queens

A Tale Dark and Grimm

Wonderstruck

FIVE: Birthday Haiku

Happy birthday to
my Turkey Boy! May you stay
forever insane.

Best American Nonrequired Reading 2011: Review Haiku

Perfect for dipping
in and out of while on the
beach in Rio (sigh).

Best American Nonrequired Reading edited by Dave Eggers. Mariner, 2011, 528 pages.

Why We Broke Up: Review Haiku

I think the New York Times

just ji$$ed in its collective pants.
Epic win.

Why We Broke Up by Daniel Handler, illustrated by Maira Kalman. Little Brown, 2011, 368 pages.

Merry Christmas!

From our house to yours.

Breadcrumbs: Review Haiku

And another one:

Yes, it really is that good.

My Newbery pick.

Breadcrumbs by Anne Ursu. Walden Pond Press, 2011, 320 pages.

A Tale of Two Castles: Review Haiku

A surfeit of classic
fantasy tropes adds up to
a middling tale.

A Tale of Two Castles by Gail Carson Levine. Harper, 2011, 336 pages.

Alvin Ho #4: Review Haiku

Surprisingly
touching, yet still wicked funny.
Marry me, Alvin?

Alvin Ho: Allergic to Dead Bodies, Funerals, and Other Fatal Circumstances by Lenore Look. Schwarz & Wade, 2011, 208 pages.

Secrets at Sea: Review Haiku

Is it sacrilege
to say I thought this was just
okay? Lurve the art.

Secrets at Sea by Richard Peck. Illustrated by Kelly Murphy. Dial, 2011, 256 pages.

The Leftovers: Review Haiku

"Left Behind for atheists"?
-- probably too flip.
Solid Perrotta.

The Leftovers by Tom Perrotta. St. Martin's, 2011, 368 pages.

Little Bets: Review Haiku

Nothing shocking, but
a good reminder that
incremental change works.

Little Bets: How Breakthrough Ideas Emerge from Small Discoveries by Peter Sims. Free Press, 2011, 224 pages.

Don't mind me . . .

. . . I'll just be in Rio for a few days.

Darth Paper Strikes Back: Review Haiku

Multiple narrators
sometimes grate, but it's
ORIGAMI VADER.

Darth Paper Strikes Back by Tom Angelberger. Amulet, 2011, 176 pages.

The Story of Charlotte's Web: Review Haiku

A bit precious, a
bit pretentious, but how
could I resist this one?

The Story of Charlotte's Web: E. B. White's Eccentric Life in Nature and the Birth of an American Classic by Michael Sims. Walker, 2011, 320 pages.

St. Paul's Advent Fair: TOMORROW!

Local peeps, stop by my church's awesome Advent Fair for terrific gift baskets, crafts, food, and a raffle for an iPad2!

Divergent: Review Haiku

Does the world need more
dystopian YA? Well,
this one kinda rocks.

Divergent by Veronica Roth. Harper, 2011, 496 pages.

Clementine and the Family Meeting: Review Haiku

Clementine returns!
(I vote for One-Ball Reilly
as a name.)

Clementine and the Family Meeting by Sara Pennypacker. Hyperion, 2011, 176 pages.

This Won't Hurt a Bit: Review Haiku

The first step in
Medical Memoir Addiction:
admit your problem.

This Won't Hurt a Bit (And Other White Lies): My Education in Medicine and Motherhood by Michelle Au. Grand Central, 2011, 336 pages.

Happy Thanksgiving!

. . . from my Turkey to yours.

Emmy and the Rats in the Belfry: Review Haiku

Good rats win, again.
(It's okay that I still find
them revolting, right?)

Emmy and the Rats in the Belfry by Lynne Jonell. Holt, 2011, 384 pages.

Tales for Very Picky Eaters: Review Haiku

Funny for me? Yes.
Funny for the children? Erm . . .

maybe not so much.

Tales for Very Picky Eaters by Josh Schneider. Clarion, 2011, 48 pages.

The Last Time I Saw You: Review Haiku

Nostalgia, and could-
have-beens, and surprisingly
honest life lessons.

The Last Time I Saw You by Elizabeth Berg. Ballantine, 2010, 288 pages.

P.S. Annoyingly Unanswered Question: WHY was this their last-ever reunion? HS reunions don't traditionally stop after the 40th, as far as I know. Everybody kept saying, "Oh, it's our last one!" but nobody ever explained why (except, you know, as a Convenient Plot Device, I guess). Irritating.

The Borrower: Review Haiku

Reluctant kidnapper/
librarian gets in
over her head. FAB.

The Borrower by Rebecca Makkai. Viking, 2011, 336 pages.

Sex on the Moon: Review Haiku

Too clever by half:
hardscrabble genius loses
everything for love.

Sex on the Moon: The Amazing Story Behind the Most Audacious Heist in History by Ben Mezrich. Doubleday, 2011, 320 pages.

P.S. Hyperbole much, Ben?

Warp Speed: Review Haiku

Slow to get started,
but ultimately satisfying:
geek makes good.

Warp Speed by Lisa Yee. Levine/Scholastic, 2011, 320 pages.

Bossypants: Review Haiku

YES, I'm the last person
to read it, and YES, it
really is that good.

Bossypants by Tina Fey. Reagan Arthur Books, 2011, 320 pages.

P.S. Happy birthday to my big sister! I can't imagine why this title made me think of you.

Between Expectations: Review Haiku

Yes, I AM a sucker
for medical-school memoirs --

why do you ask?

Between Expectations: Lessons from a Pediatric Residency by Meghan Weir, MD. Free Press, 2011, 288 pages.

It Looked Different on the Model: Review Haiku

Makes me want to both
live next to her, and stay the
hell away from her.

It Looked Different on the Model: Epic Tales of Impending Shame and Infamy by Laurie Notaro. Villard, 2011, 240 pages.

Lucky for Good: Review Haiku

Careful, brilliant
conclusion to Lucky's Hard Pan
history. Enjoy.

Lucky for Good by Susan Patron. Atheneum, 2011, 224 pages.

P.S. Hate new illos. Haaaaate.

Super Sad True Love Story: Review Haiku

Could not last thirty
pages in this hipster
douchebag fantasyland.

Super Sad True Love Story by Gary Shteyngart. Random, 2011, 352 pages.

Knowing Your Value: Review Haiku

Fairly obvious
platitudes, repeated ad
nauseam, for girls.

Knowing Your Value: Women, Money, and Getting What You're Worth by Mika Brzezinski. Weinstein Books, 2011, 208 pages.

The Summer Before Boys: Review Haiku

War and loss and love
and friendship, skillfully captured
in one tween girl.

The Summer Before Boys by Nora Raleigh Baskin. S&S, 2011, 208 pages.

The Adults: Review Haiku

Hated every
character, yet somehow did not
hate the book. Odd, no?

The Adults by Alison Espach. Scribner, 2011, 320 pages.