MotherReader

When I was putting together the MEGALIST of the Best Books of 2007 (So Far), I didn’t have the time (or energy) to link back to the bloggers who’d participated. Honestly, two days later, I still don’t. Lots of folks left their favorites in the comments, which was great. Cut and paste. Can’t beat it. Many bloggers put together their lists with annotations, personal observations, and links to their reviews. If you feel like reading what your blog buddies had to say about the Best Books of 2007 (So Far), check out:

Confessions of a Bibliovore, Sarah Miller: Reading, Writing, Musing..., Writing and Ruminating, Miss Rumphius (and here) 
(and again), A Year of Reading (and more) (and yet more), What Adrienne Thinks About That, Becky’s Book Reviews, A Patchwork of Books, Little Willow at Amazon, Seven Impossible Things, So Many Books... (and here), 2nd Generation Librarian (and here), Pinot and Prose (and here), Greetings From Nowhere, Your Neighborhood Librarian, Proper Noun, Fuse#8, and me, me, and me.

Thanks again to everyone who made suggestions and lists and clever comments. I’ve got such a great reading list for the rest of the year, I don’t know how I’ll make time for Dancing With the Stars. Oh, that’s right — I won’t.

Here are the favorites of more than thirty bloggers and kidlit lovers (not mutually exclusive categories). If a book was mentioned more than once, the number of times it was put forward is indicated in parentheses. I took a few liberties with the placement in categories, but for the most part followed the suggestions of the person naming the book. The clear winner of the year is The Invention of Hugo Cabret, listed as a favorite by almost half the respondents. The out-of-sight-out-of-mind winner would have to be Eclipse, which got rave reviews, but was only mentioned after I nudged readers to name the missing YA. Enjoy.

Picture Books
17 Things I’m Not Allowed to Do Anymore, by Jenny Offill (4)
The Apple Doll, by Elisa Kleven
The Apple Pie that Papa Baked, by Lauren Thompson
At Night, by Jonathan Bean (3)
Bow-Wow Bugs a Bug, by Mark Newgarden
The Bunnies Are Not in Their Beds, by Marisabina Russo
The Chicken Chasing Queen of Lamar County, by Janice Harrington (5)
Chicky, Chicky, Chook Chook, by Cathy MacLennan
Cowboy and Octopus, by Jon Scieszka and Lane Smith
Dadblamed Union Army Cow, by Susan Fletcher
Dog and Bear: Two Friends, Three Stories, by Laura Vaccaro Seeger
Dumpster Diver, by Janet Wong
Edwardo the Horriblest Boy in the Whole Wide World, by John Burningham
The End, by David LaRochelle (2)
Fabian Escapes, by Peter McCarty
Fred Stays With Me! by Nancy Coffelt (2)
Fancy Nancy and the Posh Puppy, by Jane O’Connor (2)
Fish, Swish! Splash, Dash! by Suse MacDonald
Goldilocks and the Three Bears, by Caralyn Buehner
Go To Bed, Monster! by Natasha Wing
A Good Day by Kevin Henkes (3)
Green as a Bean, by Karla Kuskin
Grumpy Bird, by Jeremy Tankard (2)
I’m the Biggest Thing in the Ocean, by Kevin Sherry (3)
The Incredible Book Eating Boy, by Oliver Jeffers
Jazz Baby, by Lisa Wheeler.
Knuffle Bunny Too, by Mo Willems (4)
Library Mouse, by Daniel Kirk
Lissy’s Friends, by Grace Lin
Little Night, Yuyi Morales
Mary and the Mouse, the Mouse and Mary, by Beverly Donofrio
Me I Am! by Jack Prelutsky
My Cat Copies Me, by Yoon D. Kwan
Orange Pear Apple Bear, by Emily Gravett (3)
Penguin, by Polly Dunbar
The Pink Refrigerator, by Tim Egan
Pirates Don’t Change Diapers, by Melinda Long
Pssst! by Adam Rex (2)
On Meadowview Street, by Henry Cole
Ruthie and the (not so) Teenie Tiny Lie, by Laura Rankin
Scribble, by Deborah Freedman
Taking a Bath with the Dog and Other Things that Make Me Happy, by Scott Menchin (2)
That Special Little Baby, by Jane Ann Peddicard
Walk On! By Marla Frazee
What Happens on Wednesdays, by Emily Jenkins
The Wizard, by Jack Pretlusky
Wolf! Wolf! by John Rocco
Yo, Jo! by Rachel Isadora
The Zoo, by Suzy Lee (2)

Beginning Readers
“Every single Elephant and Piggie book by Mo Willems that you can get your hands on.” (quote from Fuse#8, but echoed in sentiment by anyone who listed this category.)

Younger Elementary
The Friskative Dog, by Susan Straight
A Girl, A Boy and a Monster Cat, by Gail Gauthier
Henry’s Freedom Box, by Ellen Levine, illustrated by Kadir Nelson
Let it Shine: Three Favorite Spirituals, illustrated by Ashley Bryan (2)
Mokie and Bik, by Wendy Orr
Rickshaw Girl, by Mitali Perkins
The Talented Clementine, by Sara Pennypacker. (4)
Violet Bing and the Grand House, by Jennifer Paros

Elementary/Middle-Grade
The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, by Sherman Alexie
The Arrival, by Shaun Tan
Atherton: The House of Power, by Patrick Carman
The Aurora County All-Stars, by Deborah Wiles (3)
The Baptism, by Sheila Moses
Billy Hooten: Owlboy, by Tom Sniegoski
Cassie Was Here, by Caroline Hickey
Castle Corona, by Sharon Creech
Click, by Linda Sue Park and others
Clarice Bean, Don’t Look Now, by Lauren Child
A Crooked Kind of Perfect, by Linda Urban (5)
Diary of a Wimpy Kid, by Jeff Kinney (4)
Elijah of Buxton, by Christopher Paul Curtis (2)
Emmy and the Incredible Shrinking Rat, by Lynne Jonell
Emma-Jean Lazarus Fell Out of a Tree, by Lauren Tarshis (4)
Evil Genius, by Catherine Jinks
Faeries of Dreamdark: Blackbringer, by Laini Taylor
I Am Not Joey Pigza, by Jack Gantos (2)
Into the Wild, by Sarah Beth Durst (2)
The Invention of Hugo Cabret, by Brian Selznick (14)
Kimchi and Calamari, by Rose Kent
Laika, by Nick Abadzis
Leepike Ridge, by N.D. Wilson (2)
The Lemonade War, by Jacqueline Davies
Letters from Rapunzel, by Sara Lewis Holmes
Louisiana’s Song, by Kerry Madden (2)
Middle School is Worse Than Meatloaf, by Jennifer Holm (3)
Miss Spitfire: Reaching Helen Keller, by Sarah Miller (2)
Moxy Maxwell Does Not Love Stuart Little, by Peggy Gifford (4)
The Mysterious Benedict Society, by Trenton Stewart
The Navigator, by Eoin McNamee
No Castles Here, by A.C.E. Bauer
No Talking, by Andrew Clements
Paint the Wind, by Pam Munoz Ryan
Runaround, by Helen Hemphill
The Secret History of Tom Trueheart, by Ian Beck
The Secret Identity of Devon Delaney, by Lauren Barnholdt
Skulduggery Pleasant, by Derek Landry (3)
Someone Named Eva, by Joan Wolf
Theodosia and the Serpents of Chaos, by R.L. LaFevers
The Thing About Georgie, by Lisa Graff (3)
Titan’s Curse, by Rick Riordan
Un Lun Dun, by China Mieville
Verdigris Deep, by Frances Hardinger
Way Down Deep, by Ruth White
Where I Live, by Eileen Spinelli

Young Adult
Beige, by Cecil Castellucci
Beauty Shop for Rent: ... fully equipped, inquire within, by Laura Bowers
Betwixt, by Tara Bray Smith
Blood Brothers, by S.A. Harazin
Book of a Thousand Days, by Shannon Hale (4)
Boy Toy, by Barry Lyga
Cupid, by Julius Lester
Cupcake, by Rachel Cohn (2)
Deadline, by Chris Crutcher
Defect, by Will Weaver
Does My Head Look Big in This? by Randa Abdel-Fattah
Dramarama, by E. Lockhart
Eclipse, by Stephanie Meyer (2)
Epic, by Conor Kostick
Evolution, Me, and Other Freaks of Nature, by Robin Brande (3)
Feathers, by Jacqueline Woodson
First Light, by Rebecca Stead
Flora Segunda, by Ysabeau S. Wilce
Forever in Blue, by Ann Brashares
Forever Rose by Hilary McKay
Girl at Sea, by Maureen Johnson
Grief Girl, by Erin Vincent
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, by J.K. Rowling (4)
Here Lies Arthur, by Philip Reeve
How to Get Suspended and Influence People, by Adam Selzer
I’m Exploding Now, by Sid Hite
In Search of Mockingbird, by Loretta Ellsworth
Lemonade Mouth, by Mark Peter Hughes
Lessons from a Dead Girl, by Jo Knowles
Memoirs of a Teenage Amnesiac, by Gabrielle Zevin (2)
The Nature of Jade, by Deb Caletti
The Off Season, by Catherine Gilbert Murdock (4)
The Plain Janes, by Cecil Castelucci (3)
The Princess and the Hound, by Mette Ivie Harrison
Reaching for Sun, by Tracie Vaughn Zimmer (2)
Story of a Girl, by Sara Zarr (5)
Such a Pretty Girl, by Laura Wiess
A Swift, Pure Cry, by Siobhan Dowd
Thirteen Reasons Why, by Jay Asher
Tips on Having a Gay (ex)Boyfriend, by Carrie Jones,
Twisted, by Laurie Halse Anderson (2)
The Wednesday Wars, by Gary D. Schmidt (5)
What My Girlfriend Doesn’t Know, by Sonya Sones
Wildwood Dancing, by Juliet Marillier
Y: The Last Man, by Brian Vaughn
Your Own, Sylvia: A Verse Portrait of Sylvia Plath, by Stephenie Hemphill

Poetry
Animal Poems, by Valarie Worth (3)
Blue Lipstick: Concrete Poems, by John Grandits
comets, stars, the moon and mars, by Douglas Florian (3)
Dogku, by Andrew Clements
Here’s a Little Poem, ed. by Jane Yolen (5)
Tap Dancing on the Roof, by Linda Sue Park
The Owl and the Pussycat, by Edward Lear (KCP)
This is a Poem That Heals Fish, by Jean-Pierre Simeon
This is Just to Say, by Joyce Sidman (3)
Today and Today, by Kobayashi Issa, illustrated by G. Brian Karas (2)
Twist: Yoga Poems, by Janet Wong
Shout! Little Poems that Roar, by Brod Bagert

Nonfiction
1607: A New Look at Jamestown, by Karen Lange
A Seed is Sleepy, by Diana Hutts (2)
Dogs and Cats, by Steve Jenkins
Good Masters! Sweet Ladies! Voices from a Medieval Village, by Laura Amy Schlitz
Nothing but Trouble: The Story of Althea Gibson, by Sue Stauffacher
One Thousand Tracings: Healing the Wounds of World War II, by Lita Judge
One Well: The Story of Water on Earth, by Rochelle Strauss
Strong Man, by Meghan McCarthy
Tasting the Sky: A Palestinian Childhood, by Ibtisam Barakat
The Long Gone Lonesome History of Country Music, by Bret Bertholf
Tracking Trash, by Loree Burns
Where in the Wild? Camouflaged Creatures Concealed... and Revealed, by David Schwartz, Yael Schy, and Dwight Kuhn

Thanks to everyone who participated. I hope this sparks some ideas for the upcoming Cybil Award nominations and gives everyone some new books to look for at your local library or bookstore!

Okay, this list has been very difficult to do. I had five books in mind before I had even started posting my lists. Then a bunch of books came in from my holds list from other library branches. Suddenly I had ten more great candidates. And then several of those books made me think of other books that I had liked but not thought of as I was making my list. Soon I was thrown into a sea of indecision — which ones were my absolute favorites? The pressure!

Throw in a little Girl Scout chaos, a weekend of yard work, and a visit from my dad, and I was fried. So, I’m going back to my original choices. I selected these books because they had something unique to share, the selection covers several ages within the middle-grade range, and the titles stuck with me.

1. Middle School Is Worse Than Meatloaf, by Jennifer Holm
   I loved the way the story of the girl is told through stuff. Very creative book.
   


2. The Invention of Hugo Cabret, by Brian Selznick
   Who didn’t like this book? With an interesting story and amazing illustrations, it may be the book of 2007.
   


3. The Talented Clementine, by Sara Pennypacker
   Can I say that a sequel has something unique to share? Sure, if it’s about Clementine.
   


4. The Thing About Georgie, by Lisa Graff
   I loved the way the narrator involves the readers in this book. The story was different, engaging, and funny.
   


5. Rickshaw Girl, by Mitali Perkins
   This book brings a view of the other side of the world to younger elementary school readers. I love the focus on solutions and innovation.
   

Now, I know there are books I left out; as I said, I couldn’t spend any more energy sorting through it. But you can still include those books and suggest them for my blogwide list of Best Books of 2007 (So Far). Maybe you can consider it a chance to sort out your nominations for the upcoming Cybil Awards. Maybe you’ll want to make up for the certain lack of fantasy I’ve noticed while working on the master list. Maybe you’ll want to guess which HUGE book hasn’t been named, even though more than twenty people have posted lists or named a favorite in the comments. (It’s not Harry Potter or Hugo Cabret — I’ll give you that.)

You have until Friday at midnight to come out and play with me.

I’m extending the deadline for submitting your choices for the Best Books of 2007 (So Far). Why?

1. The new school year and Girl Scouts have kicked my butt this week.
   


2. Big ideas in the kidlitosphere have kept everyone busy.
   


3. I started pulling together the list and was surprised that some books were not on it — including one HUGE book. HUGE.
   

So, if you still want to post a list or add your favorites in the comments, you have until next Friday. Working on the master list, I’ve found it very low on fantasy and science fiction. C’mon wizard lovers, represent!

I could have sworn that I read more 2007 YA books. Maybe it was just that I heard about a lot of new books, or read a lot of 2006 titles. So if you look at my list and think, “How could you leave out My Favorite Book?” chances are that I didn’t read it. One of the reasons I like compiling a list of the kidlitosphere’s choices (and there is still time to post your selections and/or leave titles in the comments) is that it serves as a reader’s advisory for the rest of the year and into the next.

While I didn’t read as much as I thought, I was fortunate enough to hit some excellent books. All of these titles would be appropriate for middle school, with only a word of caution on Story of a Girl, which does talk about sex.

1. Beige, by Cecil Castellucci
   I loved this fish-out-of-water story of a conservative girl spending time with her aging rocker dad. There’s humor! There’s angst! There’s a playlist in the chapter titles!
   


2. First Light, by Rebecca Stead
   The first sentences of the book captured me, and I found that I couldn’t put it down. I enjoyed the mix of realism and fantasy. Marketed as YA, it could also be for middle-grade readers. Interesting and engaging book.
   


3. Evolution, Me, & Other Freaks of Nature, by Robin Brande
   My husband did the official review of this title, because evolution vs. intelligent design is His Thing, but we both loved the teen take on a controversial subject. The large side helping of humor in the book didn’t hurt.
   


4. Story of a Girl , by Sara Zarr
   I was late to this title, and by then it seemed like lots of people had loved it and written about it, so I just didn’t. (If you are one of those bloggers, give me the link in the comments and I’ll put it in here.) I was haunted by the angst of a girl trying to leave behind one mistake. Top-notch writing.
   


5. I’m Exploding Now, by Sid Hite
   Funny story: As I was pulling together today’s list, I realized that I hadn’t read any guy books at all. At all. In desperation, I read a book from my ARC pile, just hoping that it would rock. What do you know? It did. It’s not a long book and not a lot happens. In fact, I was halfway through before anything really happened. But I loved the insight into the teenage boy’s mind. I loved the humor. I’ll be posting a review — with book quotes — very soon, because I don’t want you to miss this title.
   

You have all been so good about getting together your lists for for the Best Books of 2007 (So Far). Bravo, people, bravo. You can still post your own list or add a special title to the comments. It’s certainly not too late, as evidenced my my own Best Of lists beginning today. I’d like to do a round-up of the lists over this weekend, when I am blissfully free of obligations.

Finding my favorite picture books of the year is always extremely hard, because while I might read thirty/forty/fifty Young Adult books or middle-grade books, I’ll see about two hundred picture books as they come into the public library system. I read — or at least skim — most of them. (Of course, the exception is any book with a corresponding TV show, like Dora or SpongeBob. Then the exception to the exception is the Charlie and Lola books, which my kids and I adore.) Bringing it down to five top choices is tough, but I look for those that stuck with me as the year went on.

1. Knuffle Bunny Too, by Mo Willems
   Yeah, I know I’m a huge Mo fan, but in all sincerity, this sequel is just as strong, interesting, and funny as the first. If anything, I’d say the story and humor are even more developed than the first. Total slam-dunk by the Mo man.
   


2. Lissy’s Friends, by Grace Lin
   I love the lively, detailed illustrations, the sense of whimsy (did the stork really come alive?), and the theme of friendship. Beautiful, sweet book.
   


3. Me I Am! by Jack Prelutsky
   The message of individuality is so well done with Prelutsky’s adapted poem, but for me the real joy is in the lovely and whimsical illustrations which develop their own story. Really special.
   


4. 17 Things I’m Not Allowed to Do Anymore, by Jenny Offill
   I loved this book the instant I saw it, but didn’t review it because it felt like it was being mentioned everywhere, because everyone loved it. It’s one funny book with amazing illustrations. (Apparently, this title brought out a range of emotions in Amazon reviewers, who either loved it or despised it. Interesting.)
   


5. Dog and Bear: Two Friends, Three Stories, by Laura Vaccaro Seeger
   I suppose I just forgot to review this title, but I loved the simplicity of the drawings, the text, and the humor. It’s a funny book, but in a subtle way. It makes a great beginning reader book too.
   

I was tempted to include Someday, by Alison McGhee, but it’s really less a book for kids than for adults. I’ll mention it, but I won’t put it in my top five.

I don’t recall anything standing out in the Beginning Readers except Mo Willems’ Elephant and Piggie series. They are wonderful and I’ll be talking about them soon with the folks at 7-Imp in a cross-blog review.

Tomorrow I’ll be posting my Elementary School favorites. No! Young Adult. No! Elemen...

Let’s just wait and see, ’kay?

I was going to start on my own lists for Best Books of 2007 (So Far), but I’m not ready yet. You know, emotionally. So instead I’m going to spend the next two days beating you over the head with the idea. Or simply mentioning it. One or the other.

With my vacation at the end of the summer, I missed announcing the arrival of the August Carnival of Children’s Literature. Since the feature was hosted at a homeschooling blog, there were many participating blogs that I didn’t know. I was particularly interested by Woman of the Tiger Moon’s personal list of
her favorite 100 children’s books. I’ve seen the National Education Association’s Teachers’ Top 100 Books for Children, but there are several books on there that I wouldn’t choose. Plus the list doesn’t include books published after 1999 (are they going to update it any time soon?). I’m intrigued by the idea of making my own Top 100 sometime. Hmmm. By the way, the next carnival will take place at Charlotte’s Library.

I also was interested in a question received over at The Longstockings, where an English teacher asked, “What MUST READ books would you include in a primer dedicated to YA or on a syllabus for a YA course?” I’ve seen a course guide for Young Adult Literature, but again, the question made me think of a more personal approach. What would I suggest, especially if I had to keep the choices limited — say, to a selection of twenty books? Hmmm. I may have to look at that issue, though I suspect that I have some readers who are ready to answer that question right now.

I hadn’t paid any attention to BlogShares for a while, until I learned that Gotta Book was subject to a hostile takeover. It made me look, and I found that the kidlit blogs have been targeted. Probably because none of us takes any interest in — or for that matter understands — the whole BlogShares concept. I have to admit, however, that I loved my “press release” — even if can’t comprehend it.

MotherReader was the subject of much speculation when analysts at several firms were heard to be very positive about its recent performance. Its share price rose from B$126.14 to B$182.90. Much of the hype was said to originate from Ken Adams whose Maurice Sendak (artefact) was said to be involved.

Yesterday I looked obsessively for this exchange from Friends, when Monica and Chandler got engaged, because I had to use it today.

Rachel: I’m so happy for them!

Phoebe: Me too! So happy for them!

Rachel: I’m so happy and not at all jealous.

Phoebe: Oh no! No, God, definitely not jealous!

(They both take a drink of coffee.)

Rachel: I mean I’m probably 98 percent happy, maybe 2 percent jealous. And I mean, what’s 2 percent? That’s nothing.

Phoebe: Totally. I’m like 90/10.

Rachel: Yeah, me too.

It’s the perfect lead-in for pointing out the fantastic, incredible, totally zazz interview with Mo Willems over at Seven Impossible Things. Not only is Mo funny (of course), not only is the content interesting (naturally), but they also linked to several other interviews through the ages. My Mo-view is listed, and I believe my obsession is noted, along with the announcement that I and the 7-Imp gals will be co-reviewing the Elephant and Piggie books. I’m so happy...

Oh, one quick thing for a laugh. Read Roger pointed out this great site with 15 Unfortunately Placed Ads. Some were groaners, but several made me crack up. I’ll never forget the one with the cat and... Jesus.

Oh, hi. There you are. It’s been a quiet summer statistics-wise, and I’ve been wondering when you’d show up again. Not that I blame you for taking it easy on your blog reading and commenting over the summer. I mean, we’ve all got to get in our time lying by the pool/ocean/lake/pond/spigot. But now summer is officially over, and it’s time to get down to business.

Last year I listed my best books of the year before the year was technically over. Then I invited anyone who wanted to participate to make a list of their own, which I incorporated into one big list of the kidlitosphere choices. It was fun, in a busy, obsessive way.

So, want to do it again? We can consider it a public service toward next summer’s reading lists, and school librarians’ fall ordering, and just plain reading choices for people everywhere. If you want to join in, post your “Best Books of 2007 (So Far)” in any or all of the categories: Picture Books, Early Elementary, Elementary, Middle School, High School. Mix in your nonfiction or graphic novels by the age categories. Narrow it down to five choices per category (I know it will be tough). Let me make it clear that you don’t have to cover every age. Also, you can combine categories and make, say, one YA list. But if so, be a pal and indicate if you think it’s more High School level or Middle School level. My ultimate plan is to pull together the posts into one big list by the middle(ish) of September. Oh, and the books don’t have to be the most literary choices or the Caldecott contenders. They can be on your list because they made you laugh or cry (or were better than Cats) or proud to be an American, or whatever.

Some of you have already let me know that you plan on participating, and to you I say, “Rock on.” For those of you just waking up from your lazy summer days in the hammock or just back from vacation, let’s see what you’ve got. Comment on this post when you’ve got something to share, and I’ll put your choices in the master mix.

I was going to do this later, but now fricking Amazon messed me up. They sent me a little email of the Amazon Best Books of the Year...So Far, and I’m all like, “Hey, I did that last year!” Not that they know, or care, or that I have any sort of hold on the idea of making a best books list before the year is even up. Except that I still feel like it’s my idea, because I made a list of the kidlitosphere choices last year and I’m a little possessive like that.

So, want to do it again? We can consider it a public service towards next summer’s reading lists, and school librarians’ fall ordering, and just plain reading choices for people everywhere. If you want to join in, starting after Labor Day, post your “Best Books of 2007 (So Far)” in any or all of the categories: Picture Books, Early Elementary, Elementary, Middle School, High School. Mix in your nonfiction or graphic novels by the age categories. Narrow it down to five choices per category (I know it will be tough). My ultimate plan is to pull together the posts into one big list by the middle of September. Oh, and the books don’t have to be the most literary choices or the Caldecott contenders. They can be on your list because they made you laugh or cry (or were better than Cats) or proud to be an American, whatever.

Now, next week is Recommendations From Under the Radar, with many blogs highlighting books that were overlooked or underappreciated, so I certainly don’t want to see your 2007 Best Books then. That would be wrong. I wouldn’t even have mentioned the idea if Amazon hadn’t made me feel pressured. But after Labor Day, I’ll be looking for your lists.

Next week I’m on vacation, but I may be able to get in an overlooked book or two at the end of the week. Could happen.