Becker Drane has the best job in the world: he is a Fixer in The Seems, a behind-the-scenes society where all the things that happen in The World are orchestrated.  He jumps full-force into his first mission: fixing the glitch in sleep.  No one in The World can get any sleep, and it has kept several important things from happening.  If Becker can’t fix it, the Chain of Events will disassemble and life as we know it will be destroyed.

 The greatest strength of The Seems is the complex world its authors have created.  Everything in life is carefully orchestrated by the workers of The Seems, and Hulme and Wexler seem to have thought of everything.  If you were to find something they hadn’t, the world is so well-developed they could come up with an answer in a mere matter of seconds.  Becker is a relatable character, with ordinary problems in spite of his extraordinary job.  His supporting cast is charming or scary, as is appropriate.

I would recommend The Seems primarily to younger readers.  It is suggested for readers ages 10 and up, but I think readers as young as 6 or 7 would enjoy it.  Anyone who has the attention span to finish a novel is old enough to enjoy The Seems.  Older readers may find it a bit immature, but can still enjoy it as a quick, light read.

Book: The Seems: The Glitch in Sleep [affiliate link]
Author: John Hulme and Michael Wexler
Publisher: Bloomsbury
Original Publication Date: September 18, 2007
Pages: 288
Age Range: Middle Grade
Source of Book: Advance Reading Copy Requested From Publisher

1. I officially have the patience for novels again.  Yay!
2. I got to go to Kerry Madden's release party for Jessie's Mountain.  It was awesome to meet Kerry.  It was ironic that I had to go all the way to California to find a vanilla moonpie to bring back to North Carolina for my boyfriend.
3. I kind of want to do a general survey of sci fi, i. e., reading old classics and such.  Then I want to take notes on the women in these stories.
4. I've decided my goal for books read this year is 48.  Last year I read 35, almost 3 a month.  So 4 a month should be doable.
5. In that case, I need to finish 2 books in the next 2 weeks in order to catch up.
6. I've got The Lightning Thief waiting for me at the library.  Maybe I'll pick it up tomorrow.
7. I also am going to get cracking on my TBR pile full of ARCs/not A but just RCs.

1. Clear Your Clutter with Feng Shui, Karen Kingston
2. Craft, Inc., Meg Mateo Ilasco
3. Indigara, Tanith Lee
4. The Princess Diaries, Meg Cabot
5. Jessie's Mountain, Kerry Madden
6. Finding Serenity, Jane Espenson and Glenn Yeffeth, ed.

 I’m coming to LA for a few days this weekend and officially have no plans.  Any kidlitters in the area want to get together?  I’m staying at the Orchid Suites, near Hollywood & Highland.  Let me know.

To Check Out:
Valiant, Holly Black
Ironside, Holly Black
The Ferryman, Christopher Golden
Sold, Patricia McCormick
The Book Thief, Marcus Zusak
How I Live Now, Meg Rosoff

Borrowed from Mom:
The Amulet of Samarkand, Jonathan Stroud

It's that time of the week again, when jules and eisha ask us to list "Seven(ish) Exceptionally Fabulous, Beautiful, Interesting, Hilarious, or Otherwise Positive Noteworthy Things from the past week — whether book-related or not — that happened to you."

Here are mine!

1.  I seem to have really used parental support to modify one student's behavior and improve another student's academic achievement.  Parents can be such helpful people.

2. I went to the library and picked up two fiction books there.  I haven't finished a novel in 2008 yet.

3. I had my first check up in a long, long time, and my Nurse Practicioner and I came up with some strategies to get rid of the perpetual fatigue I seem to experience.

4. Thanks to The Zone Diet (which is not so much a "diet" as a general method of eating), I have greatly simplified my eating habits, which I hope will result in me eating much better.

5. I attended a very productive rehearsal for my current show, Yeomen of the Guard.

6. I beat Guitar Hero 3 on Medium.

7. I was inspired by Tanith Lee's novel Indigara to start writing my own fiction again. 

What about you?  What Seven(ish) Exceptionally Fabulous, Beautiful, Interesting, Hilarious, or Otherwise Positive Noteworthy Things happened to you this week?

1. Clear Your Clutter with Feng Shui, Karen Kingston
2. Craft, Inc., Meg Mateo Ilasco

As a public school teacher, I am distinctly aware of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act and its various incarnations, including Goals 2000 and No Child Left Behind.  As an avid reader and formerly low-income elementary school student, I was a direct beneficiary of the Reading Is Fundamental program.  I believe I still have the books I got from them.  At a time when my family could not afford new books and we rarely had time to go to the library, RIF provided new reading material for me.

Here is a message/press release from the president and CEO of Reading Is Fundamental:

President Bush Eliminates Funding for Reading Is Fundamental’s Historic Book Distribution Program Serving 4.6 Million Children

Statement from Carol H. Rasco, president and CEO, of Reading Is Fundamental

"President Bush’s proposed budget calling for the elimination of Reading Is Fundamental’s (RIF) Inexpensive Book Distribution program would be devastating to the 4.6 million children and their families who receive free books and reading encouragement from RIF programs at nearly 20,000 locations throughout the U.S.

“Unless Congress reinstates $25.5 million in funding for this program, RIF would not be able to distribute 16 million books annually to the nation’s youngest and most at-risk children. RIF programs in schools, childcare centers, migrant programs, military bases, and other locations serve children from low-income families, children with disabilities, foster and homeless children, and children without access to libraries.  The Inexpensive Book Distribution program is authorized under the Elementary & Secondary Education Act (SEC.5451 Inexpensive Book Distribution Program for Reading Motivation) and is not funded through earmarks. It has been funded by Congress and six Administrations without interruption since 1975.

“Since its founding in 1966, RIF’s programs have played an important role in improving literacy in this country.  The U.S. Department of Education has shown that the number of books in a child’s home is a significant predictor of academic achievement. In addition, RIF programs also support academic achievement by involving hundreds of thousands of volunteers and other caring adults in encouraging children to read for fun. We urge all Americans to contact their Congressional representatives and ask them to reinstate funding for this important program.” 

Reading Is Fundamental, Inc. (RIF), founded in 1966, motivates children to read by working with them, their parents, and community members to make reading a fun and beneficial part of everyday life. RIF’s highest priority is reaching underserved children from birth to age 8. Through community volunteers in every state and U.S. territory, RIF provides 4.6 million children with 15 million new, free books and literacy resources each year. For more information and to access reading resources, visit RIF’s website at www.rif.org.

 Discover the Joy!

For more information, contact:
Layla Wright-Contreras,
Media Relations Manager
202-536-3528
lwright@rif.org

TO TAKE ACTION, CLICK HERE AND WRITE THE PRESIDENT, VICE PRESIDENT, AND YOUR REPRESENTATIVES IN CONGRESS.

Hello, litosphere.  Remember me?

As mentioned in my last post, I haven’t had the attention span for fiction of late.  And I picked up Vale of the Vole from the library, and promptly set it down somewhere that will require me to look for it before I can find it.  So yesterday at the library, I roamed the YA shelves and picked up Tanith Lee’s Indigara.  Then I went over to the JF section and picked up The Princess Diaries.  I looked at a lot of books, and if the first paragraph didn’t capture my attention, I knew now was not the time for that book.  So, I’ll start with these and see how I do.  I’ve no set reading goal for this year.

The other day in Target I picked up The Lightning Thief, and was enthralled by the first little bit.  But I decided to get it from the library rather than buy it.  It’s such a popular book, of course, that there’s a waiting list.  So I’m on that.  And once I read that I can get cracking on in media res, my site devoted to the classics in modern media.  The first focus will be on the Olympians, so I’ll include the Percy Jackson series, the God of War video games, and I’ll try to find a movie or two as well.  Right now I’m having trouble because all the movies I can think of that involve Olympians are better suited to a Heroes unit.  So if you have any suggestions, let me know.

I’ve realized that I need to get back to the purpose of this blog, if I’m going to maintain it.  And in my Writing Blogs post, I stated that this blog was “a place to keep track of my own musings on reading."  So that’s what it will be, when I post.  And sometimes I might participate in multi-blog events, and sometimes I might write formal reviews.  But generally, it’s just going to be a journal.

Last year I wanted to write a review of every book I read, and I only failed to do that for 9 of them.  Pretty good, really.  There are a few that I should write reviews for because I specifically requested them from publishers and/or authors, and I’ll fit those in once I get some momentum going.   But for now, it has to be about what captures my imagination, or it won’t happen at all.

I have been out and about.  I haven't had the attention span for fiction in weeks.  So I've been reading non-fiction.  I recently finished Craft, Inc. by Meg Mateo Ilasco.  I'm reading The Subversive Stitch: Embroidery and the Making of the Feminine by Rozsika Parker.

I think to get me out of my refusing-to-read-fiction rut I need something familiar, but still new enough to maintain my interest.  I prescribe Piers Anthony: Vale of the Vole.  Just requested it from the library.