Winterberries and Apple Blossoms

I recently picked up a copy of Nan Forler's new picture book, Winterberries and Apple Blossoms: Reflections and Flavors of a Mennonite Year, published by Tundra Books, as a Christmas present for my goddaughter and her siblings. This book is particularly special as it features the lovely paintings of Peter Etril Snyder.

The book follows a year in the life of Naomi, a Mennonite girl, with a poem and painting for every month. These reflect beautifully the Mennonites' simple lifestyle, closeness to nature and sense of community. As a bonus, twelve traditional recipes, one for each month, are featured at the end of the book. Living reasonably close to a Mennonite community, I can pop over to the local Farmer's Market to purchase their baked goods, but these recipes, including yummy treats like Strawberry-Rhubarb Custard Crisp, will be especially useful for those not so fortunately situated.

The Dragon Turn by Shane Peacock

Kate and I are both huge fans of Shane Peacocks’ award-winning Boy Sherlock Holmes series, which started with The Eye of the Crow. Each book has been suspenseful and true to the world created by Arthur Conan Doyle. A big strength of the series has been the development of the young Sherlock Holmes, with entirely plausible explanations of how and why the character had evolved into the familiar detective we know from Doyle’s classic novels.

Perhaps it is because the first four novels had been so strong that I find The Dragon Turn somewhat of a disappointment. Of course, this means that the latest in the series is merely a good story rather than an exceptional one. The Dragon Turn is about two rival magicians and the disappearance of the woman that had been married to both of them in turn. As before, Irene Doyle and the Lestrades, father and son, play significant roles in the story. The plot is, as usual, exciting and fast-paced, but I missed the exploration of Sherlock’s character and history that was more prominent in the earlier books.

This is not Shane Peacock’s best, but still, the series is well worth reading, for both those well acquainted with the Sherlock Holmes character and those meeting him for the first time.

Red Maple Mini Reviews - 2# Haunting Violet

by Alyxandra Harvey

Violet Willoughby is convinced that ghosts don't exist. Having participated in her mother's fake séances, she has learned that ghosts are just ways to scam people of their money. However, when she has terrifying hallucinations of a drowning girl, she learns that while she doesn't believe in ghosts, ghosts believe in her. She later finds out that the girl was Rowena Wentworth, who had drowned last year. With suspicious actions by everyone, Violet must find out who the murderer was before another person gets killed.

I found this book has a little bit of something for everyone: romance, action, suspense, fantasy, history, and mystery. It always kept me on my toes wondering who she was going to be betrothed to, if her mother was going to be found out as a fake, or if she would be killed by Rowena's murderer. I would recommend this book to young adults who like a well-rounded story.


Reviewed by Kate

Red Maple Mini Reviews - 1# Home Truths

by Jill MacLean

Brick MacAvoy plans to escape his abusive father and negligent mother the minute he turns sixteen. However, when he learns that his little sister, Cassie, is just as vulnerable to his father's attacks, he realizes he needs to stay and protect her. Throughout the book, he learns that he's just as bad as his father by bullying other kids. In the end, he comes to the realization that he's a bully and decides to never hurt other kids again.

I found this book very inspiring and meaningful. The author found an effective way to introduce the topic of bullying and I understood it a lot better than any teacher ever explained it to me. The fact that the characters seemed very realistic helped me appreciate the effects of bullying.


Reviewed by Kate

The Book Mine Set's Canadian Book Challenge

Recently, I joined the 5th Annual Canadian Book Challenge hosted by The Book Mine Set. My friend Heather from Books and Quilts had told me about this challenge in July, when it had started. I'm a bit late in joining, but better late than never, right? The challenge is to read and review 13 Canadian books before the next Canada Day, July 1, 2012. I figured the challenge will motivate me to post on this blog more regularly. I have no trouble reading Canadian books, as I love to keep up with my favourite Canadian authors and discover new ones, but sitting down to write a review takes more work. Despite the late start, I managed two reviews since joining. Kate did not officially join this challenge, but she too is hoping to add more reviews in the coming months.

Dewey's Read-a-thon: Final Post

I managed another hour of reading last night and half-hour this morning to get halfway through Dragon Turn. Kate read for two hours last night and another this morning. She finished Haunting Violet and started The Once and Future King by T. H. White.

Here are Kate's totals:
Hours of reading: 9
Total pages read: 656
Books finished: 2 (Home Truths by Jill Maclean and Haunting Violet by Alyxandra Harvey)
Other books started: 1 (The Once and Future King by T. H. White)

My totals:
Hours of reading: 7.5
Total pages read: 475
Books finished: 1
Other books started: 1
Mini-challenges done: 3 (Hour 1 end-of-event meme, Hour 6 Top 5, Hour 12 end-of-event meme)
Cheerleading hours: 1.5

Kate and I spent 18 hours participating (reading and cheerleading) in the read-a-thon, so as promised, we've donated $36 to UNICEF.

Now for the end-of-event meme:

1. Which hour was most daunting for you?
   Definitely the hour that coincided with my normal bedtime.
   
2. Could you list a few high-interest books that you think could keep a Reader engaged for next year?
   Young adult books are always good for these events.
   
3. Do you have any suggestions for how to improve the Read-a-thon next year?
   I always wish I could have more time for visiting other people's blogs and still have time to read. I would love to extend the read-a-thon by a couple of hours so we could have an "intermission" or post-event period for blog visiting, to leave encouraging or congratulatory posts.
   
4. What do you think worked really well in this year’s Read-a-thon?
   I'm really happy the read-a-thon didn't land on the Canadian Thanksgiving weekend this year, as we're usually busy with travelling or family activities on holiday weekends.
   
5. How many books did you read?
   For me: one finished and another started. For Kate: two finished and another started.
   
6. What were the names of the books you read?
   For me: The Guardian by Andrew Pyper and The Dragon Turn by Shane Peacock
   For Kate: Home Truths by Jill Maclean, Haunting Violet by Alyxandra Harvey, and The Once and Future King by T. H. White.
   
7. Which book did you enjoy most?
   Can't decide -- we liked them all!
   
8. Which did you enjoy least?
   Can't decide -- we liked them all!
   
9. If you were a Cheerleader, do you have any advice for next year’s Cheerleaders?
   I temporarily subscribed to all the blogs I was covering so I could immediately see the updated ones in Google Reader.
   
10. How likely are you to participate in the Read-a-thon again? What role would you be likely to take next time?
    Kate and I will definitely participate again. I will try to do more cheerleading next time.
    

Thanks to the organizers for another extremely well-run event!

Dewey's Read-a-thon: Update #2

We are at the halfway point of the challenge. Since the last update, I've read 3 more hours and Kate has read 2.5, to make a total of 6 hours for each of us. I finished The Guardians by Andrew Pyper and have just started The Dragon Turn: The Boy Sherlock Holmes, His 5th Case by Shane Peacock. Kate is halfway through Haunting Violet by Alyxandra Harvey, another book from the Red Maple list.

I've also spent some time on my cheerleading duties, checking out other readers' blogs and getting some good recommendations as a result. Because of a social commitment this evening, I'll be offline and away from my books for a while, but I hope to squeeze in a bit more reading before I go off to bed tonight.