The Sunday Salon - Galleys From BEA - 2011 Edition

One of these days, I will make it to BEA. But, alas, this is not one of those days!

Instead, I get to peruse PW's Big Children's Books of BEA and hope that some awesomely cool blogger/librarian/teacher/fill-in-blank who's going will take pity on me and bring me one (or all) of these back!

So, if you are going to BEA and want to spread kindness and love to me, here are the books I'm salivating for:

 Darth Paper Strikes Back: An Origami Yoda Book by Tom Angleberger  - Darth Paper!! What's not to want?

The Flint Heart by Katherine Paterson - me loved Bridge to Terabithia and The Day of the Pelican.  Look forward to this one.

Eve by Anna Carey - Dystopia!

Liesl and Po by Lauren Oliver - If you haven't read Oliver's Before I Fall or Delirium - get off  the computer and hop to it!  Her track record has made me a fan.

Shatter Me by Tahereh Mafi - killer touch? Awesome! Also, dystopia!

Why We Broke Up by Daniel Handler - love the title. That is really enough for me.

All These Things I've Done by Gabrielle Zevin - Elsewhere is one of my favorite YA reads.  Zevin's imagined world was so easily visualized, a testament to her writing. I also loved the idea of living your life backwards after you die. Memoirs of a Teenage Amnesiac was also well written.

Dead End in Norvelt by Jack Gantos - haven't read any Gantos but this title looks like Okay for Now which I loved so I want it.  I know it's irrational.

Crossed by Ally Condie - the daughter and I had a heated discussion over Matched.  Looking forward to more.

The Fingertips of Duncan Dorfman by Meg Wolitzer - middle school scrabble players? You had me at fingertips!

The Apothecary by Meile Meloy - she used Apothecary in the title of a kid's book! Gimme it!

The Death Cure by James Dashner - We read Maze Runner as an all school book and it was well received. I read Scorch Trials the day it was released. I would give my right sidebar to get this book before October!

The Scorpio Races by Maggie Stiefvater -boy vs girl deadly horse race? Yes!!

Wonder Struck by Brian Selznick - I've always loved Selnick's illustration, especially the ones for Andrew Clement's books.  At first I was sad when he stopped illustrating Clement's works to do his own book but was soon blown away by The Invention of Hugo Cabret and this looks like a similar book.  I'm preparing to be struck. By wonder.

The Unwanteds by Lisa McMann - dividing kids into Wanted, Necessaries and Unwanted? Twins separated into two camps? Shunning the emotional, creative child? Lisa, you are a genius. Consider this pre-ordered!

All links are to my Amazon Associates account.  It helps me pay for all these books I need!
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The Sunday Salon - Monthly Update - April 2011

Wow, April flew by. Plus I missed the March update. So, here they are together. I'm looking forward to things slowing down for summer!

Challenge Update

POC Reading Challenge (15)
Warp Speed by Lisa Yee
Trash by Andy Mulligan
The Silver Phoenix by Cindy Pon
Sidekicks by Dan Santat
Tall Story by Candy Gourlay
Red Glove by Holly Black

Debut Author Challenge (9)
The Emerald Atlas by John Stephens
Sidekicks by Dan Santat

Graphic Novels Challenge (9)
The Odyssey by Gareth Hinds
The Loser List by HN Kowitt
Sidekicks by Dan Santat

Overall

6 Adult
13 Young Adult
9 Middle Grades

Best Book: The Silver Phoenix by Cindy Pon

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Nerds Heart YA - Short List 2011

Woo-hoo! They just announced the Nerds Heart YA Short list! Nerds Heart YA is a battle of the books contest where the books have special qualities and were published in 2010.

Books could be nominated if  they had characters in at least one category:

• Persons of Color
• GLBT
• Disability
• Mental illness
• Religious lifestyle
• Lower socioeconomic status
• Plus-size

Nerds Heart YA 2011 Short List
A Love Story Starring My Dead Best Friend - Emily Horner
Abe in Arms - Pegi Dietz Shea
Bamboo People - Mitali Perkins
Bleeding Violet - Dia Reeves
Dark Water - Laura McNeal
Dirty Little Secrets - CJ Omololu
Efrain’s Secret - Sofia Quintero
Eighth Grade Superzero - Olugbemisola Rhuday-Perkovich
Finding Family by Tonya Bolden
Five Flavors of Dumb - Antony John
How I Made it to Eighteen: A Mostly True Story - Tracy White
Invisible Girl - Mary Hanlon Stone
Jumpstart the World - Catherine Ryan Hyde
Last Summer of the Death Warriors - Francisco Stork
Mindblind - Jennifer Roy
Paper Daughter - Jeannette Ingold
Premiere - Melody Carlson
Pull - B. A. Binns
Stargazer - Von Allan
Stringz - Michael Wenberg
Summer Song - Louise Blaydon
Tall Story - Candy Gourlay
Teenie - Christopher Grant
Tell Us We’re Home - Marina Budhos
The Dark Days of Hamburger Halpin - Josh Berk
The End:  Five Queer Kids Save the World - Nora Olsen
The Kid Table - Andrea Seigel
The Red Umbrella - Christina Gonzalez
Toads and Diamonds - Heather Tomlinson
What My Momma Left Me - Renee Watson
When The Stars Go Blue – Caridad Ferrer
Where the Truth Lies - Jessica Warman

Wow, although I've read some of these titles, I've got a ways to go.  How many have you read?

Oh yeah, did I mention I'm a judge in Round 1???!!!

Look for a discussion between between me and Deborah from Books, Movies and Chinese Food sometime in June!!

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The Kitchen Daughter by Jael McHenry - Review

The Kitchen Daughter
Jael McHenry
Gallery Books/Simon and Schuster
272 pgs

"Only difficult people chuck warm biscuits at their dead mothers. I assume."

Ginny is having a hard time dealing since her parents died.  She never realized how much her mother did for her, she just remembers all the times she said no.

"Ma never let me drink alcohol, along with the other things she never let me do: go on dates, get a job, move out, travel to other cities alone...she always said we'd talk about it again...now she's not around to talk about it anymore."

Ginny's sister, Amanda, is resigned to help her.  She sets up a real estate agent to sell the house and told Ginny she would move in with her.  But Ginny doesn't think she needs anyone to take care of her.  She's a grown up.  She's normal.  She just has "a personality." So what if she likes to sit in the closet with her hands inside of her parent's shoes? She also likes to think of food and recipes to calm herself down.  "And the coping always worked."

The more Amanda tries to pack up her house, the more Ginny needs to find ways to cope.  And then the ghosts of cooking pasts start to show up.  And they have information to help her move forward.  And then she meets David, the grocery delivery boy. And she might have her first friend.  And then Gert, the housekeeper, asks her to help cook at the temple.  And she realizes she might be able to do those things her mother said no to.

The Kitchen Daughter is straightforward but not simple. Just like Ginny. The more we learn about her, we see how she has taught herself, with some help from her mom, to cope in a world where she feels uncomfortable and out of place.  The story moves forward as Ginny unravels a mystery that has always been in her face but she never noticed, because she feels better looking down.  The Kitchen Daughter is not just another book about a character with Asperger's.  It's about finding out who your are based on the past but not letting it define who you can be.  It's about moving beyond the label people want to put on you. But also about accepting your limitations without giving in to them. This was a fast read but it sticks with you.  I found myself wanting to know more about Ginny in the future. How will she make it if she doesn't move in with Amanda? Can she look after herself?  This book leads me to do more research into Asperger's.  Also, I want to make a ribollita.  Get this one. It's good.

I wonder if this novel is based on anyone.  I'm asking Jael McHenry and will update when she answers.

About the Author

Jael McHenry is a talented and enthusiastic amateur cook who blogs about food and cooking at the SIMMER blog.

Find Jael McHenry: The SIMMER Blog, Twitter, Facebook

Tour Dates

Thank you to TLC Book Tours and Gallery Books for this review copy.
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