Wednesday, November 25, 2009

“Book Reviews - News Slashdot” plus 3 more

“Book Reviews - News Slashdot” plus 3 more

Book Reviews - News Slashdot

Posted: 24 Nov 2009 11:07 PM PST

Inkscape is installed on all of our Linux PCs at home, and on the Windows PCs and VMs at work. It is one of the "must-have" applications for graphics. We all use it at home, adults & kids.

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Time doesn’t change everything in the Fairport Historical Club - MPNow

Posted: 25 Nov 2009 06:24 AM PST

Women in Fairport gather regularly to share knowledge and friendship. They talk, read books and discuss a variety of topics.

This month, they also celebrated the 125th anniversary of the Fairport Historical Club, of which they are members.

Even though 125 years have passed since 16 women — more commonly referred to then as ladies — gathered for the club's first meeting Oct. 23, 1884, not a lot has changed within the club.

"In the late 1880s, women did not have easy opportunities for education and women formed study groups that allowed them to research an area and present it to the group," explained club President Jean Whitney, a Fairport native. "This group formed in a similar manner."

Members now meet nine times a year instead of every other week. Whitney said five meetings might be educational and the rest might be more social, not much different from original club members, who felt meetings should be "entertaining and instructive" for the club to be successful.

"These Fairport women decided to have a study group," Whitney said. "Since then, more than 600 women have shared ideas on history, literature, politics and book reviews, as different members presented papers on these and other topics."

Whitney, who's in her second year of a two-year term as club president, said she originally joined in the late 1960s. She left after a few years to raise a family and came back about six years ago, seeing people she knew then and meeting new members.

"I feel very fortunate to be in the group, just because it's a very interesting group of women," Whitney said. "I think they're stimulating as a group. The things that they've done and the places they've been, the diversity of their interests is stimulating."

Club members, like those 125 years before them, keep with the original mission to donate money to the Fairport Public Library. Somewhere along the way, they've added contributions to the Perinton Historical Society. They don't have fundraisers like the original members, but collect dues which they donate.

To celebrate their quasquicentennial, club members gathered for tea at the Perinton Community Center earlier this month, with many members dressed in hats or clothing of a decade representing the past 125 years. Members sang a few songs, accompanied by Evelyn Munson on piano, and historian Susan Angevine presented a history of the club with facts and fun information.

One has to do with the Delands, a name well known in Fairport as evidenced by street names and Minerva Deland School, which has about 600 ninth-graders in the Fairport Central School District.
"At one point there were five Delands in the group," Whitney said. "I'm not sure if they were sisters or cousins."

Helen Deland, who served as club president for 19 years, is shown in an old club photograph from 1912 or 1913.

"My grandchildren regard me with awe when I tell them I knew Minerva Deland and Martha Brown and Robert Dudley, now schools in the community," reads a 1993 quote by a former member, now deceased. "I am not old enough to remember Johanna Perrin (namesake of the Middle School). I feel deep gratitude to these early members who, perhaps unknowingly, persuaded the movement to the role women enjoy today."

The Fairport Historical Club is one of the oldest women's clubs in the state. It has 30 members.

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After a long weekend, the holiday season takes shape - Daily Telegram

Posted: 25 Nov 2009 05:41 AM PST

The library is closed Thursday-Sunday for Thanksgiving. You can log on to your library account at http://merlin.nwls.lib.wi.us/search to view your items on reserve and items checked out, renew items and place items on hold.

If you would like to sign up to get an e-mail when we post a new newsletter on our Web page, go to www.ci.superior.wi.us/library. If you choose "News and Events" and then click on the last link on that page, you can choose what library newsletters you would like to have sent to your e-mail when they are updated. On the main page, you can click on "Book News" or "On-Line Book Clubs" to have book reviews or selected chapters of books sent to your e-mail. It will keep you up-to-date on what new titles are out there. If you find one you like, you can click on a link to our online catalog to put a hold on the title.

The Friends of the Library meet Dec. 1 at 10 a.m. to decorate the library for the holidays. They will then get together at noon to share a pizza party with library staff. The Friends furnish the food, and also three beautiful wreaths to decorate the library.

At 7 p.m. Dec. 14 in the meeting room, the Superior Singers perform their Christmas concert "Shine On!" Come and enjoy the wonderful music under the direction of Brian MacDonell and have some refreshments served by the Friends of the Library. We are going to try out the meeting room instead of the chandelier area, because we can provide more seating.

New non-fiction includes: "Flat Belly Diet Cookbook," "Superfreakonomics," "Self-Promotion for Introverts," "The Big Burn," "You Better Not Cry" by Augusten Burroughs, "Animal Magnetism" by Rita Mae Brown, "Knockout" by Suzanne Somers, and "Bright-Sided" by Barbara Ehrenreich.

New fiction includes: "The Wrecker" by Clive Cussler, "Wishin' and Hopin'" by Wally Lamb, "The Lost Art of Gratitude" by Alexander McCall Smith, "Ice" by Linda Howard, "Look at the Birdie" by Kurt Vonnegut, "A Rumpole Christmas" by John Mortimer, "Evidence" by Jonathan Kellerman, "The Perfect Christmas" by Debbie Macomber, and "Day After Day" by Anita Diamant.

New books on CD include: "There Goes the Bride" by M.C. Beaton, "Rough Country" by John Sandford, "Hothouse Orchid" by Stuart Wood, and "True Compass" by Edward Kennedy.

New DVD's include: "My Life in Ruins," "Away We Go," "Secrets of the Civil War," "Goodbye Solo," "The National Parks: America's Best Idea," "The Proposal," "Cheri," and "In the Family."

New children's books include: "Crow Call" by Lois Lowry, "Annie and Snowball and the Shining Star" by Cynthia Rylant, "Moose on the Loose" by Kathy-jo Wargin, "Brian Wildsmith's Amazing Animal Alphabet," "Mama, Will It Snow Tonight?" by Nancy Carlstrom, "Chaucer's First Winter" by Stephen Krensky, and "The True Gift: a Christmas Story" by Patricia MacLachlan.

Library hours are 9 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. Monday-Thursday; 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Friday and 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday in Superior; 2-7 p.m. Monday and 9:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Thursday in Solon Springs; and 2-7 p.m. Wednesday in Lake Nebagamon. Call 394-8860 in Superior, (715) 378-4452 in Solon Springs, or (715) 374-3477 in Lake Nebagamon.

Janet Jennings is the director of the Superior Public Library.

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Children's Book Reviews - Publishers Weekly

Posted: 22 Nov 2009 03:53 PM PST

Picture Books

Mine, All Mine! Claire Hawcook, illus. by Chiara Pasqualotto. Boxer (Sterling, dist.), $14.95 (32p) ISBN 978-1-906250-76-8

Hawcook's instructive, if not particularly inspired, debut employs a rowdy family of squirrels to tackle the topic of sharing. Little Squirrel is thrilled when, "[o]ne cold winter's morning," a giant snowflake lands on his nose. But his siblings grab the supersized snowflake, which is overlaid with silver glitter, for some enthusiastic play. Little Squirrel's initially timid response escalates to an angry "MINE!" and a dash up a tree where he savors the snowflake alone—until he misses his family. Little Squirrel pushes the snowflake out of the tree, where it rolls into a big snowball that explodes into many snowflakes for them all to share. For kids in the shadow of bossy older siblings or those in need of sharing skills, this book may fit the bill. Using tempera and acrylic on cotton paper, Pasqualotto paints friendly, rust-colored squirrels with amber eyes and sweeping tails––an even-handed mix of realism and cuddliness. While some may stumble over the implausibility of a huge, nonmelting snowflake, many will identify with the challenge of sharing with overzealous playmates. Ages 2–5. (Nov.)

Crocodiles Are the Best Animals of All! Sean Taylor, illus. by Hannah Shaw. Frances Lincoln (PGW, dist.), $16.95 (28p) ISBN 978-1-84507-904-8

The titular assertion of this lighthearted story gets put to the test when a donkey, seen lounging by the sea, reflects that "nothing is better than being a donkey!" This offends the honor of a nearby crocodile: " 'I am better!' came a loud boast./ 'I could eat you for breakfast with buttered toast!' " Animals gather to offer the crocodile challenges, but the reptile pulls off each task without a hitch—swinging through the trees like an orangutan, eating grass like rabbits ("I nibble grass and seedlings and shoots!/ I even chomp up Wellington boots!"), and besting a goat at mountain-climbing—before falling short in an unexpected area. Shaw's (Sneaky Weasel) anthropomorphized cartoon creatures have a hint of Steig about them. And while Taylor's (The Great Snake) goofy rhymes aren't strong on metric precision ("He bounced about like a basket ball,/ chuckling 'Crocodiles are the best animals of all!' ") they make up for it with pure exuberance. The crocodile's braggadocio and the poke in the ribs he gets at the end make this an amusing entry in the bedtime reading pile. Ages 3–6. (Dec.)

The Tallest of Smalls Max Lucado, illus. by Maria Monescillo. Tommy Nelson, $16.99 (32p) ISBN 978-1-4003-1514-7

Inspired by Lucado's adult book, Fearless: Imagine Your Life Without Fear, this earnest if faltering fable is set in Stiltsville, where residents gather daily to learn who's been chosen to receive stilts that will elevate them above "the less and the least,/ the shy and shier,/ the not-cools and have-nots/ who want to go higher." Among those never selected is Ollie, who is "too common and dull/ for the gang of the cool." When he finally is given a pair of stilts, Ollie smirks as he towers over others, until birds upset his balance and he tumbles to the ground. Jesus appears to urge him to "Keep your feet on the ground,/ refuse to be stilted" and lets Ollie know that he loves him. Busy, earth-toned cartoons and text in an array of sizes and colors make for some cluttered spreads. Though the verse is clunky and awkward from the outset ("Perhaps you don't know—/ then, maybe you do—/ the Too Smalls of Stiltsville/ and their story for you"), Lucado's fans will likely respond to his message of choosing humility over popularity. Ages 4–7. (Nov.)

A Friend Like You Tanja Askani. Scholastic Press, $16.99 (40p) ISBN 978-0-545-05851-3

Askani runs an animal refuge/rehab center out of her home in Germany, and the unlikely and almost criminally adorable friendships that have sprung up among the inhabitants are the subject of this book. Many of Askani's photographs depict some kind of nuzzling (a piglet bumps noses with a puppy; a dormouse seems to steal a kiss from a turtle) but other images fall into the "critters do the darnedest things" category (a pointer sits placidly as a song thrush perches on his head; a rabbit seems to stick out his tongue to tease a hedgehog). That the accompanying text, usually set within swoopy boxes opposite the photos, never rises above the level of a greeting card ("Being friends is easy... when the friends are you and me,") is beside the point: readers will supply text of their own, certain to coo and say "aww" every time they turn the page. They'll also pore over the closing section, which gives the names and histories of all of the animals featured. Ages 4–8. (Dec.)

The Purple Kangaroo Michael Ian Black, illus. by Peter Brown. Simon & Schuster, $16.99 (32p) ISBN 978-1-4169-5771-3

Drawing out a joke to fill 32 pages is a tricky proposition, and despite consistently droll artwork, Black's (Chicken Cheeks) second picture book has trouble delivering. "I want you to think of something so spectacular that nobody has ever thought of it in the entire history of thinking about things," a wiseacre monkey directs readers. After inviting them to "[l]ook deeeeep into my eyes"—Brown (The Curious Garden) delivers a hysterical closeup of the primate (complete with pink hypno-swirls in its eyes)—the monkey shouts: "You were thinking about a purple kangaroo!... No? You weren't thinking about a purple kangaroo?" The monkey presses its case, adding over-the-top elements to an imagined story seen in thought bubbles. The purple kangaroo acquires roller skates, juggles bananas, blows bubble gum out of its nose, and eventually finds its best friend, "the wild-eyed chinchilla Señor Ernesto de Pantalones," via a paisley blimp that takes it to the moon. But while the text and artwork are sprinkled with genuinely funny details, the monkey's often overlong additions sap the story's momentum as it proceeds to its inevitable punch line: "You're thinking of one now!!!" Ages 4–8. (Dec.)

Child of the Civil Rights Movement Paula Young Shelton, illus. by Raul Colón. Random/Schwartz & Wade, $17.99 (48p) ISBN 978-0-375-84314-3

In her debut picture book, Shelton, a daughter of Andrew Young (activist, politician, and former U.N. ambassador), taps into her memories and those of her father, two older sisters, and others to offer a child's perspective of "the family of the civil rights movement." She recalls her parents, native Southerners, moving their family from New York to Georgia to help combat erupting racial violence ("At first, I thought Jim Crow was a big black crow/ that squawked whenever a black person/ tried to get a good seat"). Shelton smoothly threads together personal anecdotes: being turned away from a restaurant; listening from under the table as her parents, Martin Luther King Jr., and other activists gather ("With everyone trying to talk at once,/ I thought they sounded just like/ instruments tuning up before a concert"); and participating as a four-year-old in the Selma-Montgomery march. Colón's (As Good as Anybody) soft-focus art features his customarily rich textural backdrop of speckles, scratches, and waves. Both contributors evoke the drama and emotion of the times (while avoiding the violence) and a triumphal sense of community and family. Ages 4–8. (Dec.)

Sonia Sotomayor: A Judge Grows in the Bronx/la juez que creció en el Bronx Jonah Winter, illus. by Edel Rodriguez. S&S/Atheneum, $16.99 (40p) ISBN 978-1-4424-0303-1

Winter (Barack) offers an impressionistic, at times repetitive, bilingual biography of Supreme Court justice Sotomayor. The author explains that Sotomayor's mother, raising her two children in the South Bronx, "worked night and day, day and night" to support them and pay their private school tuition after their father died, "leaving just an empty chair and much sadness." Determined to become a judge, Sotomayor also worked hard: "while other kids may have been goofing off, Sonia was studying at her mother's kitchen table—year after year after year after year." Though it effectively conveys Sotomayor's personality and accomplishments, Winter's conversational narrative rambles; of her Supreme Court nomination, he writes, "This was huge (Gulp.) There had never been a Latin American on the Supreme Court. How strange this was!" Rodriguez's (Sergio Makes a Splash!) mixed-media illustrations feature chalky textures, gauzy coloring, and sketchy linework, providing competent portraits of Sotomayor and President Obama in a palette of grassy greens and terra cotta that particularly bring to life scenes from her Bronx childhood. An author's note offers additional details about Sotomayor's life. Ages 4–8. (Nov.)

Mom and Dad Glue Kes Gray, illus. by Lee Wildish. Barron's, $14.99 (32p) ISBN 978-0-7641-6262-6

Distraught by his parents' marital difficulties, a boy decides that he needs "parent glue" to "patch their marriage up." A kindly local glue shop owner explains "[t]hat sometimes life works out this way,/ That what must be must be," and gradually the boy comes to understand that "[m]y parents may be broken/ But their love for me is not." Wildish's (All Better) little but large-headed hero is instantly sympathetic in both his determination and vulnerability. A recurring "cracked" motif—doors, trees, and other objects are shown torn in half—underscores how a parental fissure makes a child's entire world feel broken. Many of Gray's (006 and a Half) rhymes come across as platitudes ("The more I hold together/ The more I'm super strong./ The more I'll come to terms with things/ The less it will seem wrong"), but may offer comfort, along with a few choice lines ("sometimes love gets damaged,/ Way beyond repair"; "I need to make the best of things,/ There is no glue for hearts") that should help readers realize that time is most likely to heal the hurt. Ages 5–8. (Nov.)

The Princess's Blankets Carol Ann Duffy, illus. by Catherine Hyde. Candlewick/Templar, $18.99 (40p) ISBN 978-0-7636-4547-2

British poet laureate Duffy (The Tear Thief) tells the curiously dark fairy tale of a princess who is always cold. Her father offers any reward for her relief, "even unto half the kingdom." Among those who arrive is a menacing stranger with "hard, gray eyes like polished stones," who brings her a series of blankets stripped from the planet itself. The first—"the ocean's blanket"—is "woven in blues and greens and grays" and "moved over her body in clumsy, urgent waves." Hyde paints the princess's face surrounded by an inky ocean, highlighted by silvery speckles of foam and fish tails. The stranger's gifts—blankets of forest, mountain, and earth—impoverish the world and smother the princess. Only when a humble musician appears and plays for her is the princess warmed and the earth restored. Richly told and sumptuously illustrated in haunting acrylics, it can be seen as a somber allegory of the waste of the earth's resources. But the image of the young woman who spends the story supine, waiting for a man to revive her, is disquieting. Ages 5–8. (Nov.)

The Goat-Faced Girl: A Classic Italian Folktale Retold by Leah Marinsky Sharpe, illus. by Jane Marinsky. Godine, $16.95 (32p) ISBN 978-1-56792-393-3

Rich storytelling and intricately imagined artwork make this debut a standout. Raised by a lizard (how's that for a promising opening?), Isabella is lovely but lazy, and her lizard/sorceress mother gives her the head of a goat when she becomes engaged to Prince Rupert. Repulsed, Rupert gives Isabella three sham tasks to get her out of the way. Her trials give her the resourcefulness she's lacked and the moxie to boot Rupert out when he confesses that her goat head turns him off. Sharpe's retelling maintains a smart, modern tone throughout (as a swaddled foundling in the forest, Isabella becomes "a tripping hazard"), while fairy tale references add spice: "[I]n one kingdom nearby, they made the girls sleep on peas. In another, the girls had to attend balls in glass slippers." Marinsky's paintings, in the chalky, sun-bleached colors of the Italian renaissance, contain many small pleasures: the woods and flowers of medieval tapestries, the goat-headed princess licking cupcake batter off her goat nose, and a portrait of the shallow prince's just fate. A must for anyone who would rather be a sorceress than a princess. Ages 6–up. (Dec.)

Rabbit and the Fingerbone Necklace Deborah L. Duvall, illus. by Murv Jacob. Univ. of New Mexico, $19.95 (32p) ISBN 978-0-8263-4723-7

Based on the raven's prominent role in Cherokee legend, this original fable, tinged with creepy details, joins the collaborators' long-running series starring Ji-Stu the trickster rabbit. Wearing a necklace that he found while digging for onions, Ji-Stu joins a flock of ravens who try to trade him some blue-green rocks for the necklace. After he refuses, he learns that it is made from human finger bones—and that the ravens won't give up easily (a frightened Ji-Stu later surrenders the necklace). The next day, however, the rabbit feels emboldened and decides to retrieve it, accompanied by Little Raven, "the wisest of all the forest creatures." During their journey, the raven shares a lengthy, somewhat anticlimactic history of the bone necklace, which brings the story's action to a halt. When the ravens laud Ji-Stu's arrival, he decides to leave well enough alone (their home is surrounded by skulls and bones, after all). Jacob's artwork features vivid skies and lush forest scenes, and his animals possess a totemic quality that gels with the folkloric aims of the story. But the book's message is elusive. Ages 6–up. (Nov.)

We Troubled the Waters Ntozake Shange, illus. by Rod Brown. HarperCollins/Amistad, $16.99 (32p) ISBN 978-0-06-133735-2

This unflinching collection of poems and paintings portrays the struggle for civil rights in all its anguish and triumph. Shange (Ellington Was Not a Street), an Obie Award–winning playwright and poet, crafts powerful vignettes that trace the movement from 1941 to the present, her malleable voice creating indelible characters and moments. Lynching is the topic of the harrowing "Crying Trees": "how can our boys be some decorations in the forest/ never to kiss good night again/ never to hold other sons in their arms again/ cut em down now if we dare." Brown's (From Slave Ship to Freedom) iconic, earth-toned paintings add even more dimension. Bodies hang surreally on stem-short nooses against chaotic foliage—a nod to the era's influential song, "Strange Fruit," perhaps. Insightful compositions capture the dignity of "garbage boys" and the palpable outrage of Martin Luther King Jr. (his clenched fist rivals his head in size and intensity). Moving from the powerlessness of the Jim Crow years to how today, "the flag protects each American all," this is a deeply honest and moving chronology. Ages 9–up. (Nov.)

Fiction

The Little General and the Giant Snowflake Matthea Harvey, illus. by Elizabeth Zechel. Tin House (PGW, dist.), $10.95 (64p) ISBN 978-0-9820539-1-1

This tidy allegory about the importance of imagination pits a group of Realists, led by a diminutive and orderly general (who has a meticulously tended flowerbed and an appreciation for the blind devotion of lemmings) against an army of Dreamers. Not that there's ever any actual fighting ("The Dreamers were always too busy playing games. But the little general thought it best to be prepared"). However, the general's discovery of a giant snowflake one morning becomes the first crack in his steely facade; soon he's having surreal dreams and losing his grip on his loyal army. With the help of two soldiers—Sergeant Samantha (who has braided pigtails, rectangular glasses, and a clandestine crush on the general) and the bumbling, free-spirited Lieutenant Lyle—and the Dreamers themselves, the general learns that a little imagination can go a long way. Both Zechel's (Is There a Mouse in the Baby's Room?) whimsical grayscale drawings and Harvey's lovely, straightforward prose are characterized by an understated sense of humor that should give the book crossover potential. Ages 8–up. (Nov.)

Clay Man: The Golem of Prague Irene N. Watts, illus. by Kathryn E. Shoemaker. Tundra, $19.95 (96p) ISBN 978-0-88776-880-4

Folktale, historically rooted horror story, redemption parable, and the inspiration for Superman and other classic comic book superheroes: the centuries-old Jewish narrative of the golem has something for everyone. But readers would never guess it from Watts's (Good-bye Marianne) somber retelling. Her narrator is Jacob, the young, underachieving son of Rabbi Judah Loew, the spiritual leader of the 16th-century Prague ghetto. Jacob spies on his father as the rabbi turns red clay into a ponderous, mute giant, then tags along as the golem protects the community from anti-Semitic violence. The central incident rises out of the "Blood Lie," in which Jews were accused of making Passover matzo from the blood of Christian children. By all rights, this should be a page-turner—it even has moments of comedy, mostly rooted in the premise that the golem will take orders from anyone, but can only be stopped by its master. But the passive, peripheral, and somewhat whiny Jacob never coalesces into an intriguing narrator or reader surrogate. Shoemaker's charcoal sketches, scattered throughout, are technically handsome, but do little to evoke a sense of the perilous times. Ages 9–up. (Nov.)

Claim to Fame Margaret Peterson Haddix. Simon & Schuster, $16.99 (272p) ISBN 978-1-4169-3917-7

Former child star Lindsay Scott has been out of the spotlight for five years, ever since she became a "hearer," able to hear anything said about her, anywhere in the world ("I would call it a hidden talent, but talents are supposed to be happy possessions.... My secret skill has brought me nothing but pain"). The one place she isn't bombarded by voices is her home, where she's been a virtual recluse. When a tabloid reports that her father is keeping her hostage (in reality he died two weeks before), two local boys kidnap her, starting a chain of events that gets the 16-year-old back out into the world, discovering other hearers and ultimately finding her mother, whom she's never known. The premise is compelling, and Lindsay's powers have fascinating, sometimes heartbreaking results (when a police officer arrives to inform her of her father's death, she suddenly knows the news before he speaks, then must act devastated after he actually tells her). If everything wraps up a bit quickly, Haddix (Found) nonetheless creates a thought-provoking story laced with themes of transcendentalism, self-centeredness, and the importance of human connectivity. Ages 10–14. (Nov.)

Blessing's Bead Debby Dahl Edwardson. FSG/Kroupa, $16.99 (192p) ISBN 978-0-374-30805-6

Author of the picture book Whale Snow, Edwardson's first novel is a lyrical piece of historical fiction that focuses on Iñupiaq culture in Alaska, narrated by two teenage women, generations apart. In 1917, Nutaaq's beloved older sister, Aaluk, falls in love with a visiting Siberian and disappears with him across the ocean, leaving her sister with a pair of blue beads and a promise to return. Soon after, Spanish influenza devastates Nutaaq's village ("The silence of death has become as familiar as family. I recognize it instantly"). Seventy years later, Blessing (Nutaaq's great-granddaughter) and her younger brother are sent away from their alcoholic mother in Anchorage to live with their grandmother in a traditional Iñupiaq village where they initially feel like outsiders. But as Blessing absorbs their stories and traditions ("When they stamp their feet, the drums pound louder and the voices rise higher and it makes me want to jump up and dance with them"), she begins to identify with her culture. Narrating in a heavy dialect, Blessing makes an emotional journey of self-discovery, as Edwardson weaves a fascinating portrait of a family's rich history. Ages 10–up. (Nov.)

Fallen Lauren Kate. Delacorte, $17.99 (464p) ISBN 978-0-385-73893-4

Beautiful Lucinda (Luce) Price is banished from everything she knows after a mysterious fire leaves her friend Trevor dead and Luce shouldering the blame. She is forced to board at a decrepit reform school where students are under the constant watch of cameras and must go without cellphones or Internet access. Grief-stricken by Trevor's death and horrified by her new surroundings, Luce is also plagued by sinister, terrifying shadows that appear wherever she goes. The remote gothic setting provides the standard backdrop for the crux of the story, first in a planned series—the romantic feelings Luce develops for the elusive, unpredictable, and rather unlikable Daniel. Aside from the evil shadows, the plot can be summed up with a single word: pining. Luce longs for Daniel in various ways—dreaming of him, digging up information, trying to talk to him, experiencing rejection, then trying again. Some readers will pine right alongside Luce, but others may feel that Kate spends too much time on unrequited love and too little on forward movement in Luce's relationship with Daniel and the mystery of what, exactly, Daniel is. Ages 12–up. (Dec.)

Angel in Vegas: The Chronicles of Noah Sark Norma Howe. Candlewick, $16.99 (256p) ISBN 978-0-7636-3985-3

Howe (the Blue Avenger trilogy) offers the odd pairing of Las Vegas kitsch and a purported angel in this stylized sideways tourist travelogue. Waking up in the bathroom of Angelo's Donut Shop, Noah Sark reveals that he has arrived on Earth for his latest guardian angel gig. When he meets Andy and his girlfriend, Barbra, he knows he's found his target—"Bulletins from Above" trigger a stabbing pain in his head to get his attention. Breathlessly explaining to readers that Barbra is a ringer for his failed last assignment, Princess Diana, Noah believes he must take all of his experience from that fateful sojourn in Paris to redeem himself. He gets an introduction to all things Vegas: Elvis impersonators, poker-playing dogs, pirate ships, dancing waters, and more, while mooning over Barbra and seeking to protect her from whatever terrible fate might come. Howe's style is droll, but the story is flat and meandering. Her double-take ending will either make readers resentful or want to reread the book with a new perspective, reconsidering chance, coincidence, and fate. Ages 12–up. (Nov.)

Pastworld Ian Beck. Bloomsbury, $16.99 (368p) ISBN 978-1-59990-040-7

London in 2048 has become one vast Victorian-themed amusement park (there's even an "artificial fog bank") under the control of the powerful Buckland Corporation. Caleb Brown, 17, and his father, one of Pastworld's architects, are attacked and separated as soon as they visit the exclusive tourist destination. Accused of murder and on the run, Caleb is quickly drawn into Pastworld's underbelly; at its center is the mysterious Fantom, a crime lord with a bloody reputation. Caleb's fate eventually becomes entangled with that of Eve, a beautiful teenage circus performer with little memory of her past. The theme park strives for absolute authenticity, and Beck (The Secret History of Tom Trueheart) relishes in some grisly details (the laws in Pastworld are antiquated as well, and certain crimes are punishable by public execution). As the central protagonist (besides a security officer who is drawn into solving Pastworld's dark mysteries), Caleb is remarkably passive; only Eve takes control of her destiny, rejecting her predetermined role as victim. Though the story has its flaws, steady action and an inventive concept keep this a fast-paced adventure. Ages 12–up. (Nov.)

Tangled Carolyn Mackler. HarperTeen, $16.99 (320p) ISBN 978-0-06-173104-4

Mackler's latest is structured as four interconnecting novellas that explore the gulf between teenagers' inner lives and what they project externally. Starting with awkward Jena's Caribbean vacation, Mackler (Vegan Virgin Valentine) is at her best with the kind of insecurities readers will find familiar, be it Jena's carefully chosen flight outfit ("under the glaring lights of Kennedy airport it all felt wrong") or her self-consciousness around Skye, the glamorous daughter of her mother's best friend. Jena has a fling with studly Dakota, who narrates the second novella. Dakota is the least likable character (earlier, he tells Jena, "[Y]ou have some fine-looking tits"), but his growth as he reflects on his rocky relationship with his girlfriend, who died in a car accident, is moving. Privileged Manhattanite Skye is at the center of the third story, which exposes the depression under the surface of her seemingly charmed life. The final tale, about Owen, Dakota's brother, ties up various loose ends and provides a happy ending. Mackler's protagonists have distinct, engaging voices; if the book never gets terribly deep, it's still an entertaining read. Ages 14–up. (Jan.)

Very LeFreak Rachel Cohn. Knopf, $16.99 (320p) ISBN 978-0-375-85758-4

As in Cohn's books starring Cyd Charisse, a wild child with a complicated past is at the center of this coming-of-age story. It's easy to fall for lively Very: she plans flash mobs using a social network she programmed at college, makes play-lists for every situation (even to apologize to her roommate after hooking up with a mutual friend), and has an intense fantasy life with El Virus, a mysterious stranger she met on the Internet. However, the author's mix of fun, far-out characters sits uncomfortably with somber subject matter, including Very's bad first sexual experience at age 12 and the death of her mother. These shifts in tone make it hard to know how seriously to take the book's central problem, when perpetually plugged-in Very is sent to a computer-addiction recovery center. There she eventually realizes "I prefer the virtual world because the real one is hard, and cruel, and scary." Her story never feels entirely cohesive, but readers will have fun watching Very in action. Ages 14–up. (Jan.)

Dawn Kevin Brooks. Scholastic/Chicken House, $17.99 (256p) ISBN 978-0-545-06090-5

Brooks (Black Rabbit Summer) delivers a tense psychological thriller narrated by 15-year-old Dawn, traumatized after an event that prompted her father to disappear two years earlier and left her with an alcoholic, pill-popping mother. A loner, Dawn walks her dogs Jesus and Mary, listens to the Jesus and Mary Chain, and plots how she might kill God (who she blames for her father's transgression and absence) even though "He doesn't exist. Which is why it's going to be kind of difficult to kill him." The "two badass-iest girls from school" insert themselves into Dawn's life and begin to untangle the web of secrets that keep Dawn and her mother in stasis. Dawn's narration, punctuated with lists and song lyrics, proves compelling as the mystery unravels about her father's crimes, what transpired between Dawn and her father, and what her mother knows about it. Brooks presents the story's dark underpinnings—including substance abuse, drug dealing, and sexual abuse—responsibly and with suspense. Though this hard-hitting novel does not deliver happy endings, acceptance of the truth offers the characters a new beginning. Ages 14–up. (Dec.)

The Seven Rays Jessica Bendinger. Simon & Schuster, $16.99 (320p) ISBN 978-1-41693-839-2

In this lackluster fantasy debut, 17-year-old narrator Beth Michaels has hallucinations of glowing dots, tentacles, and knots. Eye surgery is of no use, and Beth develops the ability of "retrocognition" and begins learning the graphic history of things she touches and hears. Vicariously feeling musicians' experiences with drugs and sex by listening to her iPod, or being subjected to the pain and slaughter of livestock after biting into pepperoni pizza, Beth is soon overwhelmed by sensory overload. Eventually, Beth's mother places her in a mental institution, but Beth escapes with help and heads to New York City in order to save her mother, whose life is being threatened. Screenwriter Bendinger (Bring It On) aims for hipness in her prose, but comes across as strained and awkward ("Shirl was covered in pink dots.... Then the dot-o-vision got all fuzzy and stopped. Sadly, eyelash Tourette's was not to be the diagnosis. Or the live-agnosis"). Though the ambitious premise is interesting and the characters are varied, much is kept in secret, making the unexciting final revelations even more disappointing. Ages 14–up. (Nov.)

Freaks and Revelations Davida Wills Hurwin. Little, Brown, $16.99 (320p) ISBN 978-0-316-04996-2

Inspired by the true story of a vicious hate crime in Los Angeles in 1980, Hurwin (Circle the Soul Softly) traces the converging paths of two teenage boys. Thrown out of his home for being gay, 13-year-old Jason lives on the streets, where he turns tricks and finds community, but is later brutally beaten and left for dead. Though he survives, he is forever changed by that hatred ("Before the alley, I didn't understand that people could stop being human and still live"). Doug lives with an abusive dad and racist family that, along with his embrace of punk culture, help form his skinhead roots. Hurwin's descriptions of Doug's addiction to violence are especially riveting ("getting hit more and more, hitting back and feeling how that is, my fist on their flesh, always forward. It's awesome"), giving readers insight into the 17-year-old who savagely beats Jason, believing that he killed him. Sympathetic to both characters without shying away from brutality—physical or emotional—the finely crafted story leads to a powerful climax of hope and redemption that will stay with readers. Ages 15–up. (Nov.)

A Few Good Reissues

Some treasured picture books from yesteryear are back to tempt new generations of readers.

The Book About Moomin, Mymble and Little My Tove Jansson, trans. from the Swedish by Sophie Hannah. Drawn & Quarterly/Enfant (FSG, dist.), $16.95 (20p) ISBN 978-1-897299-95-1

First published in 1952, the late Jansson's first picture book to feature the Moomins returns with its droll, rhyming text and singular characters intact. Bringing home a thermos of milk, Moomintroll, who resembles a small, white hippopotamus, meets Mymble, searching for her lost sister, along with other creatures. Throughout, die-cuts create a spooky, layered effect, offering a tantalizing peek at what's to come. Readers are repeatedly asked what might occur next in the story, drawing them in further. From the bold colors and oddball creatures to expressive variations in font and inventive die-cuts, the book remains a kid-friendly package and a wonderfully weird vision. All ages. (Nov.)

The Man Who Lost His Head Claire Huchet Bishop, illus. by Robert McCloskey. New York Review Books, $14.95 (64p) ISBN 978-1-59017-332-9

Out of print for more than 25 years, Bishop and McCloskey's unusual story about—well, the title says it all—is back. Awakening sans his head, the man at the center of the tale tries to remember where he left it ("It is very hard once you have lost your head"), then ventures forth to try to find it, substituting a pumpkin, a parsnip, and finally a wooden facsimile in the meantime (helpful, yes; undeniably unsettling, too). The solution is as madcap as the rest of the story, which was originally published in 1942, but the prose and Caldecott winner McCloskey's deliciously crisp artwork are evergreen. Ages 4–8. (Dec.)

Life Story Virginia Lee Burton. Houghton Mifflin, $22 (80p) ISBN 978-0-547-19508-7; $7.99 paper ISBN 978-0-547-20359-1

"Our sun is not the biggest star, nor is it the smallest, but to us it is the most important star of all." Burton's 1962 exploration of the history of life on Earth, framed as a five-act play, returns in a newly updated edition that takes current scientific information into account (Pluto, for instance, is not among the planets shown orbiting the sun). Beginning with the birth of the Sun and continuing through the Earth's creation, the emergence and evolution of animal life, up to the changing seasons of the present, it's a lyrical and informative journey. Ages 8–12. (Nov.)

Globetrotters à Go-Go

These books hail from outside the U.S., but should be right at home with American readers.

Around the World with Mouk Marc Boutavant. Chronicle, $17.99 (32p) ISBN 978-0-8118-6926-3

In this French import, Mouk is a busy bear with a large head and tiny body, whose world feels like a Richard Scarry/manga mashup. He joins his animal friends at a chic Parisian restaurant just before leaving on a world tour ("So basically, you are dumping us," one catlike friend comments), visiting places like Finland, the Sahara, Japan, and New York. Every page is an explosion of activity, as assorted animals converse in speech balloons and mini-dramas unfold. For extra eye candy, the book comes with a spread of reusable stickers that can be placed onto the smooth, shiny pages. Dynamic and lots of fun. All ages. (Nov.)

Alphab'art Anne Guéry and Olivier Dussutour, trans. from the French by Antonia Parkin. Frances Lincoln (PGW, dist.), $19.95 (60p) ISBN 978-1-84780-013-8

Originally published in France, this eclectic book asks readers to locate letters of the alphabet embedded in 26 paintings by artists including Mondrian, Dalí, Van Gogh, and Modigliani. Some are easy to find: C is a sliver of moon in Chagall's The Crow Who Wanted to Imitate the Eagle. Others, like the K hidden in Robert Delaunay's Champ de Mars: Red Tower, will take more effort. A key in the back shows each letter's location, along with background. The emphasis is on imagination and art appreciation rather than learning the ABCs. Ages 3–6. (Dec.)

All About Faces! La Zoo, trans. from the Japanese by Junko Miyakoshi. Seven Footer Kids (PGW, dist.), $14.95 (28p) ISBN 978-1-934734-06-3

This interactive book, created by a Japanese graphic design firm, explores the human face using simple, accessible images that resemble images kids might draw with a computer painting program. Readers can interpret facial expressions ("What are these faces telling you?"), lift a child's face away to reveal a cheery skull underneath, and, on wipe-off pages, use crayons to apply makeup to a woman and a girl. On another spread, a group of children play pretend ("Give yourself long ears and pretend to be a bunny"). The hands-on elements will likely inspire activities beyond the pages. Ages 3–up. (Oct.)

Pocoyo: Ready, Steady, Go! Red Fox (IPG, dist.), $6.99 paper (24p) ISBN 978-1-862-30177-1

Based on the animated Spanish TV show, this interactive book, first published in the U.K., features the show's four star characters as they appear on-screen: in eye-catching 3-D against white backgrounds. Pocoyo, a cherubic boy, and his elephant friend, Elly, decide to have a race at the urging of Pato, a yellow duck. Liftable flaps move the story forward (amid a few bumps, twists, and turns) before Pocoyo and Elly realize that teamwork can be as rewarding as competition. Additional flap and board books are also available. Ages 4–8. (Jan.)

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