Goodreads Challenge 10/85: The BFG

Oh I just finished a wonderful book by Roald Dahl, The BFG.  This book has been hanging around my classroom library for several years, but I've never taken the time to read it.  Why did I wait so long?  What a delumptious book!  For my after school class, my kids wrote descriptions of some of the giants in this book, including Bonecruncher, Childchewer, and Fleshlumpeater.  My favorite scene is where the queen of England has breakfast with the Big Friendly Giant.  Her butler, Mr. Tibbs, creates a giant-sized table out of grandfather clocks and a pingpong table.  Vivid images, hilarious dialogue, whimsy and whim (and add a dash of horror)--this is a great children's book.

Another Lovely Day in Highland Park

 See anything unusual in this picture?*

My class was in the computer lab working on our math program.  Usually the kids are completely engaged and focussed--what could be better than playing computer games at school?  In the back of the room, I saw a hand go up.  It was Eric, one of the quiet boys in my class.

"What's the problem?" I asked.

"Ms. A., yesterday I was playing in the yard after school," he started.  Boy oh boy, stories that start out that way never end with a happy face.  Always that moment of normality before the blast of cold hard reality destroys the veneer.  Eric continued.

He was playing outside his house by himself when a big black car drove up.  A man got out of the car, pulled out a gun, and started shooting at a house a couple of doors down from where Eric was playing.  Eric ran into the house, told his mom, and hid.  He was worried that the man with the gun would start shooting at all the houses.  I told him that the man was surely looking for someone in particular and wouldn't shoot around randomly--but it sounded really scary.

Eric had nightmares that night.  Four men were outside shooting at his house.  He couldn't get the dreams out of his head.

I don't live in this part of the neighborhood, but I know it can be scary. During the day we get tidbits of the gang wars.  Just this last Tuesday we had a lockdown shortly after school let out.  All of the teachers were in the library in professional development.  This lockdown came suddenly, no warning of helicopters.  That usually means that a shooting or incident has taken place on the school's perimeter (apparently there was a shooting about a half block away).  We locked the door of the library and waited until the announcement came that the lockdown was over.

These incidents might be isolated, or they might be the start of another run of shootings like we had in 2009.  Either way, after the doors close at school, those kids go home, play in unsafe yards, endure sleepless nights, and wish they lived somewhere other than Highland Park.

* Yes, that little buglike thing hovering in the sky next to the middle palm tree, above the playground, is a police helicopter.

Goodreads Challenge 9/85: Cross My Heart and Hope to Spy

Cross My Heart and Hope to Spy is the second book in a series by Ally Carter about a spy school for girls, the Gallagher Academy (yes, another young adult book).  I enjoyed the first book and decided to continue with the second.  Our hero, Cammie Morgan, attends the Gallagher Academy, where her mom is the headmaster.  One of the big draws of this book series is Cammie's voice as a narrator; she certainly says everything that comes into her teenagery head.    This book is full of intrigue, cool gadgets, and teenage crushes.  The story ends somewhat abruptly, though, but I'm sure there's followthrough in the next book, Don't Judge a Girl by her Cover.

Goodreads Challenge 8/85: The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest

Thanks to the Kindle I was able to start The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest right after I finished the second book in the series.  At the beginning of the book, I was excited--it showed great promise.  I was hoping to see great character arcs, and the anticipation of seeing certain characters was fun.  (see Portable Elephants post.)

Yes, this was a page turner like the others, but it also had more of the same downpoints, worst of all being lots of exposition.  Pages and pages about the history of a secret police.  More pages and pages on the background of a character that wasn't really germain to the story.

But, if you like a story where karma kicks the butts of the bad guys, this will be your kind of story.

I was slightly disappointed that there didn't seem to be much of a character arc in Mikael Blomqvist's character.  Doesn't he learn from anything?  Still flaky from beginning to end with his friends and women, I really wanted him to appeal to better angels, but he didn't.  Glad, though, that he's a good guy when it comes to political issues, and with a high amount of integrity.  Almost too good.  However, I'd love to see him hook up with Salandar again in solving a crime.

Also I would have wanted to see Niedermann's downfall be directly tied to either his inability to feel pain or his ghosts.

Lisbeth Salandar doesn't disappoint, though.  She's almost like a superhero and I'd love to see more of her.  I guess we won't, though, unless Stieg Larsson's "widow" is able to finish his fourth manuscript and publish it!

Now I can get on with my life.

Goodreads Challenge 7/85: The Girl Who Played with Fire

Continuing onward, I downloaded The Girl Who Played with Fire onto Santino's Kindle and started reading again.  There are so many sections that are full of exposition, sometimes it got a little hard to read.  Stieg Larsson gives almost too much background information, you think he's confused himself with Mikael Blomqvist.  But otherwise it was a pageturner, just like the first.

Unfortunately, Santino wanted to use "his" Kindle to read the Neal Shusterman book Everlost, so I had to suspend reading this story in the middle of a highly suspenseful scene.  How dare he??!!  But you know, aside from the fact that it is his Kindle, Neal Shusterman is kind of sacred in our household.

I distracted myself by starting another book of the old-fashioned paper sort (Cross My Heart and Hope to Spy) until he finished Everlost.  Well, it took him a day.  That night (it was a Saturday), after Santino went to bed, I resumed reading The Girl Who Played with Fire.  I finished it at around 10 pm, and guess what?  This book doesn't have an ending!  It's really the first two acts of a 5 act tragedy.  So it's 10 pm, the heroine has just been shot in the head, and the book ends.  What do I do?  Of course I downloaded the next book, The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest, right away on the Kindle.  Instant gratification.  Love it.

Goodreads Challenge 6/85: Your Mother Was a Neanderthal

By Jon Szieschka, Your Mother Was a Neanderthal is part of the "Time Warp Trio" series.  Three kids go back in time (and I suppose occasionally into the future) to pursue adventures.  I read this book to see if it would be appropriate for a class read.  To be honest, it was a little....weak.  Not good enough for a re-read as an adult, but I'm sure the kids will like it.

Goodreads Challenge 5/85: The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes

Okay, okay, I started this book way back in November.  It was the book I keep in my backpack for emergencies--waiting rooms, lines--that kind of thing.  But that's no excuse.  I guess the reason it took me so long was because the book has about 15 short stories.  I'd start one and was motivated to finish it, but then I was done I'd put the book down for a while.

I selected this book for several reasons.  First, Sherlock Holmes is always on those "Top 100" lists for literary characters.  I want to form my own opinion.  Also, I'm a big fan of the TV show "House."  Greg House's character is loosely based on Sherlock Holmes, and I wanted to see for myself.  But most of all, I like to read mysteries, and I thought it was time I read this classic.

Sherlock Holmes (the guy) is definitely someone I'd like to have tea with.