Carol's Notebook

Brave New World by Aldous Huxley "Community, Identity, Stability" is the motto of Aldous Huxley's utopian World State. "The world's stable now. People are happy; they get what they want, and they never want what they can't get. They're well off; they're safe; they're never ill; they're not afraid of death; they're blissfully ignorant of passion and old age; they're plagued with no mothers or fathers; they've got no wives, or children or lovers to feel strongly about; they're so conditioned that they practically can't help behaving as they ought to behave. And if anything should go wrong, there's soma." Soma is a drug engineered to eliminate side effects of sickness, while promoting submission. The revelation of Huxley's world, how it is created and how it functions leads to powerful messages about the purpose of humanity, the pursuit of happiness, the role of suffering and the need for individual human dignity and freedom. It also illustrates Huxley's theory that the masses are...

This week's "can't-wait-to-read" selection is: Magic Strikes by Ilona Andrews (Kate Daniels, book 3)release date: March 31, 2009 Drafted into working for the Order of Merciful Aid, mercenary Kate Daniels has more paranormal problems than she knows what to do with these days. And in Atlanta, where magic comes and goes like the tide, that's saying a lot. But when Kate's werewolf friend Derek is discovered nearly dead, she must confront her greatest challenge yet. As her investigation leads her to the Midnight Games - an invitation only, no holds barred, ultimate preternatural fighting tournament - she and Curran, the Lord of the Beasts, uncover a dark plot that may forever alter the face of Atlanta's shapeshifting community... I'm a sucker for these urban fantasy novels, I admit, even though they seem to blend together after awhile. I really enjoyed the first two of this series. Kate is a great character, strong, independent, but I think she really does want someone to come home...

TEASER TUESDAYS asks you to: Grab your current read. Let the book fall open to a random page. Share with us two "teaser" sentences from that page, somewhere between lines 7 and 12. You also need to share the title of the book that you’re getting your “teaser” from … that way people can have some great book recommendations if they like the teaser you’ve given! Please avoid spoilers! My teaser: The singing of the girls over their test-tubes, the preoccupied whistling of the Microscopists, suddenly ceased. These was a profound silence; every one looked round. Brave New World by Aldous Huxley, pg. 100 See more teasers here....

The Best Chrismas Pageant Ever by Barbara Robinson The Herdmans are the worst kids in the history of the world. They lie, steal, smoke cigars, swear, and hit little kids. So no one is prepared when this outlaw family invades church one Sunday and decides to take over the annual Christmas pageant. None of the Herdmans has ever heard the Christmas story before. Their interpretation of the tale -- the Wise Men are a bunch of dirty spies and Herod needs a good beating -- has a lot of people up in arms. But it will make this year's pageant the most unusual anyone has seen and, just possibly, the best one ever. This is the first year I've read this with my daughter. I had to do some convincing to get her to read it with me, but she ended up loving as much as I do. Seeing the Christmas story through the Herdmans' eyes makes it new and fresh again. Sometimes...

Wild Thing (an anthology) Get swept away by the passions that rise out of the unfathomable depths of the lost city of Atlanits...  I only read one story in this anthology, Wild Hearts in Atlantis by Alyssa Day. I enjoyed the story, even though it was short. It is the story of Bastien finding his soulmate, a half-human, half shape-shifter park ranger. We also learn a little more about the alliances the Atlanteans are forming in the war for humanity's future. My complaint though is that I don't like it when a part of a series, this is the second of the Warriors of Poseidon series, is included in an anthology. I know that way we are introduced to new authors with similar styles, etc., but I only wanted to read the one story. I got the book from the library, but I doubt that I would have bought it if I hadn't been able to find it. I wouldn't have spent $14...

We went to Literacy Night last night at Amber's school. The Polar Express was the theme. First, we got to write letters to Santa and then take a ride on the Polar Express. They had rows of chairs set up in the hall behind a cardboard engine front and the superintendent was the conductor. He walked up the middle reading the story, showing everyone the pictures, and cookies and chocolate milk were served during the trip. It was really cute. The kids decorated train cookies to take home and there were treats and hot chocolate in the cafeteria. It was a fun evening....