What to Read Next...

Okay all you readers out there: How do you decide which book to read when you are ready to dive into a new novel? If you are like me (and I suspect that you are, by the way), you probably have at least one shelf, pile, or list of “to read” books. And if you are like me, you probably have a hard time deciding which book to grab next.

I usually go for a book that is highly recommended first. Especially if the person recommending the novel gets wide-eyed and blathers something along the lines of “OMG, you have GOT to read this book immediately. It is the absolute best. I couldn’t put it down…” How does anyone turn away from that level of enthusiasm? How could a novel that comes with this kind of energy disappoint? Okay, there are a million ways that it could disappoint, but never mind that. Let's stay positive here.

If no one is drooling on the cover of a particular book, and I’m perusing solo, I will lean toward an award-winner. Writer me wants to know what makes a novel special enough to earn a bright and shiny cover sticker. As with recommended books, I am rarely disappointed by award winners. This probably makes me sheep-like (as in following the herd), but I’m fine with that.

Next, I’ll turn to reviews for guidance. Not necessarily “professional” reviews. I’d rather check out what people on Goodreads.com have to say about a novel that I’m considering picking up. The opinions of other writers, teachers, librarians, and avid readers often sway me.

So, how do you decide which book to pick up? Am I missing some tried and true method of finding the next great read? Do tell!

A Holiday Story Recommendation

Raise your hand if you have never read A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens. If you’ve got your hand in the air, I am here to recommend that you go get yourself a copy of this story. Right this minute. Seriously. It is a classic for more than a few very good reasons. Not only is it a fabulous ghost story, but it is a tale of redemption and second chances. Frankly, by this time of year, I’m all for redemption and second chances.

Also, I’ve always loved the writing of Charles Dickens. I’ve read most of his books, but I’ve revisited A Christmas Carol and A Tale of Two Cities more times than I can remember. Sure, I’ve seen plenty of movie and play versions of these stories, too, but nothing comes close, in my opinion, to the experience of reading the original Dickens. Here’s how A Christmas Carol begins:

“Marley was dead: to begin with. There is no doubt whatever about that. The register of his burial was signed by the clergyman, the clerk, the undertaker, and the chief mourner. Scrooge signed it. . .”

How is that for a fine opening?

Scrooge, of course, is one of the most famous of curmudgeonly misers. And I really do think he comes through most vividly thanks to the words and phrases of Dickens. When I’m initially reading about old Ebenezer, it’s hard for me to be sympathetic with “… a squeezing, wrenching, grasping, scraping, clutching, covetous old sinner!” A man “… secret, self-contained, and solitary as an oyster.” But soon enough, the first spirit educates me about the sad and neglected past of this character and the events that came to harden him.

When the second spirit visits, I get the message along with Mr. Scrooge about the virtues and rewards of living in the present and the importance of gratitude. By the time the final and scariest ghost draws attention to how people influence the lives of others, in the short and long terms, I am as enlightened as Ebenezer when he says to the final ghost: “I will live in the Past, the Present, and the Future. The Spirits of all Three shall strive within me. I shall not shut out the lessons that they teach.”

Three impressive spirits, a character transformation from grumpy, snarly and mean to considerate, generous, and kind, lessons learned and potential tragedies turned to triumphs. For me, this is why A Christmas Carol is the perfect holiday story. And that’s no humbug.

Happy reading!

Ideas That Might Motivate Kids to Read

Yesterday I had the opportunity to talk with fifty plus teachers and librarians at an Educator’s Event at the Hamilton, New Jersey Barnes and Noble. It is always wonderful to meet and chat with teachers and librarians. Whenever I do, I often hear about those students who are not motivated to pick up a book. So, for the presentation yesterday, I tapped into my experience as a Reading textbook editor and presented ideas that might, hopefully, motivate kids to read. Since these ideas were well received, I thought I’d share a couple.

1) Back when I was said textbook editor, my fellow editors and I almost always included hands-on activities to be completed after the reading selections in the pupil editions and teacher editions. We did our best to tie these activities to the reading selections. Why? Because if students knew that an activity was coming that required them to know details from the reading, lo and behold, they often became more engaged in the selection. So, one idea to consider when helping kids get more enthused about reading is to incorporate story related crossword puzzles, games, art projects, and, or dramatizations to the stories being read.

For you writers out there, you might want to create some activities to go along with your books. I put together a crossword puzzle to go along with Dog Gone, for example. I give this puzzle to kids, teachers, librarians… Okay, to anyone who wants the darn thing whenever I’m at signings and events. Of course, one must read Dog Gone before one can complete the puzzle. Tricky? Mmmm, maybe. But who doesn’t enjoy a nice puzzle now and again?

2) Another idea is to engage children while reading a story aloud. Like most of us, children of all ages appreciate being read to. But once in a while, attention might wander. To hook a listener’s interest, try pulling attention back in by focusing on the reading strategies of making predictions and making inferences. Pause at points while reading aloud to ask children to predict what might happen next or make guesses about what is going on.

In Dog Gone, for example, children could be asked to make predictions and inferences (or guesses about what is happening) after only the second paragraph.

A Make Predictions question might be: What do you think Dill and Cub will do next? The story clues point to giving Dead End, the dog, a bath. As the reading continues, though, children discover that certain events keep Dill and Cub from delivering that bath. Children confirm or revise their predictions based on these story events.

A Make Inferences question might be: Where could the sour stench rising off of Dead End have come from? What could the greenish-brown smudges that mat his fur be? Again, as the story progresses, children can revise their guesses based on additional information or they can confirm that they guessed correctly.

So, there you have a couple ideas. In my next blog, I’ll share a two more while I’m still tapping into the textbook editor part of my brain.

Top Ten

Have you ever had someone throw out a question that is both thought provoking and revealing? A question that really gets a conversation going? Here’s one that I found fascinating:

If you were stuck on an island by yourself, with only ten books, which books would you want to have with you? Survival is not an issue. Your selection should be geared toward keeping yourself entertained. In other words, which ten books could you read over and over again and still learn from, enjoy, savor?

Hmmmm... After some thought, I’ve listed my top ten picks for best read and read again (and perhaps again and again) below.

Number one: The Bible.

Great stories, great characters, lots to learn and absorb, lots to savor.

Number two: A dictionary

Why not? Have you ever read a dictionary? It’s kind of fun, really, not that I’ve read one cover to cover. I would probably really have to be stranded on an island before I did that.

Number three: The Complete Works of William Shakespeare

No explanation needed here, right? Action, drama, tragedy, etc…

Number four: To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee

If I’m alone on an island, Scout, Jem, and Atticus (along with everyone else in the novel) would make great company, I think.

Number five: A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens

This is just one of those novels that I can’t get enough of.

Number six: A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens

Love, love, love this story. As it is, I’m pretty sure that I’ve read this twenty plus times. Probably more. Wow, I hope that's not too revealing.

Number seven: Grimm’s Fairy Tales

Again, no explanation needed, right?

Number eight: An Anthology of Hans Christian Anderson

Ditto.

Number nine: Story: Substance, Structure, Style, and the Principals of Screenwriting by Robert McKee

Okay, here’s a book that I’m pretty sure that I could read twenty times and still learn from. It’s amazing.

Number ten: An anthology of poetry

I’m still undecided as to which one. I’ll have to get back to you on this.

So, which ten books would you want to have with you if you happened to be stranded somewhere for an undetermined length of time? Interesting question, right? Try throwing it out to others. The answers can be really interesting!

Hurray for Grandparents! Hurray for GRAND Magazine!

Have you heard of GRAND magazine? I hadn’t until about six months ago, but what a great concept. GRAND is a magazine geared toward providing information and inspiration to grandparents of all ages and in all stages of life. In GRAND Magazine and through GRANDmagazine.com, the joys and challenges of relationships with grandchildren are celebrated. How cool is that?

I think grandparents are incredibly special and wonderful and just plain fabulous. I love seeing grandparents interacting with their grandchildren. Some of the best times of my kitten-hood were spent with my grandparents. I adored each them. My grandfather Chapman, in particular, taught me the value of first drafts. He always wrote rough copies of his correspondences prior to the final versions. I remember watching him at his big, clunky desk and being absolutely fascinated with what he was doing. I swear he had something to do with me becoming a writer.

That’s why I think it’s really great that there is a magazine that recognizes the important role that grandparents play in the lives of their grandchildren. And that’s why I am honored to have Dog Gone and Buck Fever highlighted in GRANDS this week. Thank you, GRANDS.

http://grandmagazine.com/article.asp?id=202

Two Months and Counting

Do you hear the clock ticking? I do. It’s two months as of today before Buck Fever will be released. Excuse me for a moment while I clap madly while tossing back a handful of aspirins. For me, prepping for my novel to bust out into the world brings on giddy excitement and a sort of chilled stomach sink coupled with nail-nibbling anxiety. I hear this is standard operating procedure. Oh, joy. Anyway, despite all this, I’m making this blog entry about shameless self-promotion because Megan Rebekah, a wonderful former teacher and writer sent me a lovely review to post.

Let me rewind for a moment and explain that I gave away some advanced reader copies of Buck Fever about a month ago and Megan scored a copy. I would also like to share that Megan admitted to me that she wondered, upon seeing the book, if she would like the story. I have heard this a couple times before, recently. People not necessarily interested in reading about hunting and unaware that Buck Fever is about more than guns and deer, glimpse the cover and think Uh-oh, will I like this? These readers have been nice enough to let me know that they’ve been pleasantly surprised. Fabulous. Anyway, enough blah-blah from me. Here is Megan’s review:

"Buck Fever does an amazing job of portraying the emotional struggle that children face when trying to please their parents while establishing their own unique identities. The main character, Joey, made me cry with his raw, open feelings and desire to be a good son that would make his father proud. Joey’s not perfect, and he knows it, but he tries to do right by everyone – his parents, his older sister, his friends, his coach, even the next-door neighbor.

I would recommend this book to anyone looking for a character that tugs at your heart strings and gets under your skin, or someone captivated by the viewpoint of a young hunter who yearns to bond with his father, but is emotionally paralyzed by Buck Fever."

No spoilers, either! You didn’t really think I’d keep this to myself, did you?

You can visit Megan Rebekah at www.meganrebekahblogs.blogspot.com and www.meganrebekah.com I did and her young adult novel in progress sounds amazing. And boy, does she have an adorable doggie!

Thanks, Megan!!!

Best Friends

It goes without saying that when an author reads a nice review of her book, she’s usually giddy, happy, and thrilled for days. Perhaps weeks, maybe even months. But when the review comes from a very, very special organization, one that the author holds close to her heart, the experience is beyond wonderful. Especially when the review is a surprise.

Picks for Young

Readers

By Sally Rosenthal

Dog Gone by Cynthia Chapman Willis. Feiwel and Friends, 2008

Taken on appearance alone, books, like most things in life,

can be deceiving. Such is the case with

Dog Gone by first-time novelist

Cynthia Chapman Willis. When

I picked this young adult novel

from a stack of possible review

candidates, I expected to while

away a few hours reading a tale

of canine loss, but discovered

a rich, complex story of grief

and ultimate renewal.

The book opens with pre-

teen Dill, frozen with sadness

over the recent death of her mother, struggling to cope

with housekeeping demands,an ailing grandfather and a

distant father who is equally drawn inward and mourning.

As if that were not enough, there is mounting concern in

her rural Virginia community that a pack of dogs has been

killing local farmers’ livestock and that Dill’s beloved rescued husky

mix, who is prone to roaming, might be involved.

Without giving away too much of the plot, I can say that Dog

Gone is one of the best animal-themed young adult novels I have

come across in years. With believable, finely drawn characters, local

color and a story deftly balancing empathy and tension, this first

novel reads like the work of a well-established author. Exploring

the often-harsh reality of what can occur when canine pack instinct

meets economic reality, Dog Gone also celebrates the devotion

between people and dogs and the myriad ways that devotion can

lead to healing.

This lovely review appeared in the May/June issue of Best Friends magazine, the publication of the Best Friends Animal Society, a nonprofit organization dedicated to the day when there will be “No More Homeless Pets.” Best Friends is one of my favorite (if not my favorite) animal help organizations. So, imagine my excitement when I discovered this DOG GONE review. I just kept muttering Wow! and How cool is this? And then I’d blink, shake my head, and try to refocus to be sure I really was reading a review of my book.

Anyone who knows me, knows that I am a huge mush when it comes to animals. Love them. All of them. Some more than others, of course, but never mind that. The point is, Best Friends touches my heart. It’s hard not to visit their website or read their wonderful magazine without melting, putting my hands to my chest, and wanting to adopt just about ever critter that needs a home. You’ll probably understand if you check out this organization at www.bestfriends.org. If you don’t know of Best Friends, let me introduce you. I think you’ll be glad that I did.

Enjoy!