Catching Fire: Review Haiku

Oh, come on - you don't
think I'm going to reveal
spoilers here, do you?

Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins. Scholastic, 2009, 400 pages.

A Little Bit Wicked: Review Haiku

You'd think a Tony
would buy a better proof-
reader. (It's WILLson, folks.*)

A Little Bit Wicked: Live, Love, and Faith in Stages by Kristin Chenoweth with Jodi Rodgers. Touchstone, 2009, 232 pages.

* And this is only one example. In the same section, "My White Knight" becomes "My White Night" not two paragraphs later. [bangs head against wall]

Finger Lickin' Fifteen: Review Haiku

Slap-happy Plum blows
up more cars, gets laughs. But is
she phoning it in?

Finger Lickin' Fifteen by Janet Evanovich. St. Martin's, 2009,

308 pages.

Vacation: Prediction Haiku

emilyreads will
finish the goddamn LIST on
vacation this year.

Roundup to come in early August.

Paul Has a Summer Job: Review Haiku

Quebecois campers
teach feckless teen life lessons,
outdoor skills, curse words.

Paul Has a Summer Job by Michel Rabagliati. Drawn & Quarterly, 2003, 160 pages.

It's Graphic Novel Week at emilyreads!

Missouri Boy: Review Haiku

Moments of joy, pain,
humiliation, peeing
in one boy's childhood.

Missouri Boy by Leland Myrick. First Second, 2006, 112 pages.

It's Graphic Novel Week at emilyreads!

Mom's Cancer: Review Haiku

Denial first, then
pain, then catharsis --
captured in black and white.

Mom's Cancer by Brian Fies. Abrams, 2006, 128 pages.

It's Graphic Novel Week at emilyreads!

Chiggers: Review Haiku

Indistinguishable
campers navigate
often-chartered waters.

Chiggers by Hope Larson. Ginee Seo/S&S, 2008, 170 pages.

It's Graphic Novel Week at emilyreads!

The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate: Review Haiku

Sparkly character
and writing with verve make up
for been-done story.

The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate by Jacqueline Kelly. Holt, 2009, 340 pages.

The Last Olympian: Review Haiku

BANG CRASH MONSTERS ZING
BATTLE BATTLE BATTLE CRASH
PROPHECY KISS HER.

The Last Olympian (Percy Jackson series) by Rick Riordan. Hyperion, 2009, 400 pages.

Along for the Ride: Review Haiku

Smart girl learns to get
back on the bike. Queen of Teen
pens another gem.

Along for the Ride by Sarah Dessen. Viking, 2009, 383 pages.

Also Known as Harper: Review Haiku

Hard-luck kids with hearts
of gold, saved by harder-luck
grownups. Affecting.

Also Known As Harper by Ann Haywood Leal. Holt, 2009, 246 pages.

Sweet Home Chicago: ALA Bound

I'm off this morning avec bebes to Chicago, for the 2009 ALA Annual Convention. If you're at McCormick, too, I'll be in Booth #1627.* Please stop by and say hello!

*Assuming, of course, that I have not murdered the children and/or spontaneously combusted after flying with them, alone, again.

Emma-Jean Lazarus Fell in Love: Review Haiku

Stellar example
of message without message-
heavy. Loved, loved, loved.

Emma-Jean Lazarus Fell in Love by Lauren Tarshis. Dial, 2009, 169 pages.

The Red Blazer Girls: Review Haiku

Dizzy, breezy, easy
mystery: a good beach
read for preteen girls.

The Red Blazer Girls: The Ring of Rocamadour by Michael D. Beil. Knopf, 2009, 300 pages.

Why We Make Mistakes: Review Haiku

Eye-opening and
ultimately depressing:
You suck -- and can't change!

Why We Make Mistakes: How We Look Without Seeing, Forget Things in Seconds, and Are All Pretty Sure We Are Way Above Average by Joseph T. Hallinan. Broadway, 2009, 283 pages.

The Selected Works of T. S. Spivet: Review Haiku

Truly original,
truly bizarre -- and wormholes
in my hometown!

The Selected Works of T. S. Spivet by Reif Larson. Penguin, 2009, 375 pages.