Carol's Notebook

Guess Who's Coming to Santa's for Dinner? by Tomie dePaola  This year, Santa and Mrs. Claus are having their entire family over for Christmas dinner. There's Uncle Alfred, the inventor from Bermuda; Sister Olga, the opera singer; eight young children, including Baby Willie; and even a polar bear named Oscar. With a family like this, mayhem is bound to follow; and from a snowball fight to the Christmas pageant to the meal itself, it's a wild affair. But in the spirit of the season, everyone has a wonderful time—even the frazzled hosts! The illustrations are cute and lively, as expected, and tell more of the story than the words alone.  It's nice to know that Santa's family is just as dysfunctional as the rest of us. This was a difficult book to read aloud, though. There are simply too many speech bubbles, and it feels jumpy. Amber liked the book, but wondered why no one in the story brought up the fact...

Great Joy by Kate DiCamillo, illustrated by Bargram Ibatoulline It is just before Christmas when an organ grinder and monkey appear on the street corner outside Frances’s apartment. Frances can see them from her window and, sometimes, when it’s quiet, she can hear their music. In fact, Frances can’t stop thinking about them, especially after she sees the man and his monkey sleeping outside on the cold street at midnight. When the day of the Christmas pageant arrives, and it’s Frances’s turn to speak, everyone waits silently. But all Frances can think about is the organ grinder’s sad eyes — until, just in time, she finds the perfect words to share. The illustrations are absolutely beautiful. The softness and details truly add to the story. This book reminds us of one of the great lessons of Christmas, that's it's for everyone. However, I was disappointed in the ending. I realize it was a picture book and therefore short, but the ending was...

This is the last challenge I'm signing up for, but I couldn't resist this one. As a way to celebrate publishers like X Libris, Avon Red, Ellora's Cave, Samhain, Siren, etc, this challenge will focus only on erotica fiction. Read 10 erotica in 2009. Overlaps with other challenges are fine. You do not have to list your books ahead of time. If you decide to, you can change them as you go. You must be 18 years or older to join. UPDATED 10/01/2009: Okay I should have resisted. I'm officially stating I failed at this one. I only read one that fits the category. Master by Colette Gale...

I’m going to give the A-Z Challenge a shot. I’m going to try Option C: Read both authors A to Z and titles A to Z, which is 52 books. This one may actually be a challenge for me. I will list my books here. If you want to join too, sign up here....

The Strength of a Sparrow by Tim "Dr Hope" Anders From the cover: The Strength of a Sparrow is based on a true story- the story of the author's parents. The character of a tenacious young woman, Bouvette Sherwood, who is a successful New York Broadway producer and actress, drives the plot. In the mid 1940s Bouvette meets and falls in love with a charming alcoholic, Hughie Hewitt. He has a secret though, which he keeps from her during their intense courtship- he is a Catholic priest. Their love story unfold into a kaleidoscope of intrigue, suspense, betrayal, and romance. My thoughts: What would you risk for love? What would you be willing to give up for the life you dream of? Bouvette "Boo" Sherwood and Hughie Hewitt risk everything to be together, including the wrath of the church and the respect of family and friends. And they do manage to find happiness together for a while. Boo's strength is obvious throughout the story. Her...

1. Do you get to read as much as you WANT to read? 2. If you had (magically) more time to read–what would you read? Something educational? Classic? Comfort Reading? Escapism? Magazines? Of course I don't get to read as much as I want to.  If I did magically have more time to read, I would lean toward escapism, but hopefully with a few classics thrown in. I love books that I can get lost in, but whose topics aren't too heavy....