Two Parties, One Tux, and a Very Short Film About The Grapes of Wrath: Review Haiku

This is the high school
I remember: equal parts
pain and comedy.

Two Parties, One Tux, and a Very Short Film About The Grapes of Wrath by Steven Goldman. Bloomsbury, 2008, 307 pages.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Lately the Munchkin has been singing a song from preschool called "Albuquerque Turkey." Please pray that it does not become our Thanksgiving grace.

Room One: Review Haiku

Clements' formula
wrought well again; this time, with
military twist.

Room One by Andrew Clements. S&S, 2006, 162 pages.

Chicken Feathers: Review Haiku

Magical chicken
cures Mom's infertility.
Cuter than it sounds.

Chicken Feathers by Joy Cowley. Philomel, 2008, 149 pages.

Antsy Does Time: Review Haiku

Anyone who names
a Swedish family "Umlaut"
is all right by me.

Antsy Does Time by Neal Shusterman. Dutton, 2008, 247 pages.

White Sands, Red Menace: Review Haiku

After the Bomb, what
next? Smart not-quite-sisters try
to figure it out.

White Sands, Red Menace by Ellen Klages. Viking, 2008, 352 pages.

Masterpiece: Review Haiku

Bug prodigy and
lonely boy find friendship, solve
art crimes. Luminous!

Masterpiece by Elise Broach. Holt, 2008, 292 pages.

Knucklehead: Review Haiku

Now, when my kids are
nuts, I can thank God that at
least they're not Scieszkas.

Knucklehead: Tall Tales and Mostly True Stories About Growing Up Scieszka by Jon Scieszka. Viking, 2008, 106 pages.

Please note: This one earned the Scary Clown Laugh Seal of Approval from my husband, so you know it's good.

The Wordy Shipmates: Review Haiku

Now I'll feel smarter
when we sing, "till the stock of

the Puritans die."

The Wordy Shipmates by Sarah Vowell. Riverhead, 2008, 254 pages.

NaBloPoMo wha?

Hey, look! A whole week without posting!

What can I say? I got home from our whirlwind Midwestern weekend (the children were excellent on the plane both ways, praise Jebus) with lots of mail/magazines waiting for me, in addition to the books I was already reading but of course made no progress in over said weekend.

This week I spent most of my (limited) reading time devouring Newsweek's post-election edition. Right now I'm dividing my attention between The Wordy Shipmates and The Autobiography of Malcolm X, and what an interesting pair they are.

More to come, eventually . . .

How to Ditch Your Fairy: Review Haiku

So THAT's why my tennis
serves always go in! Doos
cautionary tale.

How to Ditch Your Fairy by Justine Larbasletier. Bloomsbury, 2008, 307 pages.

P.S. Getting on a plane at the ass-crack of dawn this morning to fly, by myself, with both children, to Chicago for my nephew's baptism this weekend. Just me! No other adult backup! With Drama Queen and Sir Shrieksalot! Wheeee! . . . Pray for us.

An Exact Replica of a Figment of My Imagination: Review Haiku

Your heart breaks under
the weight of the missing and
the weight of hope. Rare.

An Exact Replica of a Figment of My Imagination by Elizabeth McCracken. Little, Brown, 2008, 184 pages.

A thought for this morning . . .

. . . which I am writing last night, before all the results are in.

What the frak am I going to do with myself now that I can't fritter away hours on political blogs? The horror!

Go vote.

Go vote.
Go vote.
Go vote.

That is all.

The Idiot Girl and the Flaming Tantrum of Death: Review Haiku

Notaro profits
from our collective schaden-
freude. Snorty fun.

The Idiot Girl and the Flaming Tantrum of Death: Reflections of Revenge, Germophobia, and Laser Hair Removal by Laurie Notaro. Villard, 2008, 218 pages.