Here Lies the Librarian

"Twister in the Graveyard" is the intriguing title of the first chapter in this book by Richard Peck. In the midst of the mess made by the tornado, we are introduced to Peewee and big brother Jake, a couple of young auto mechanics hoping to cash in on the automobile boom that is sure to come their way once the road up to their shop is paved. Their lives (and the town) are then turned even more upside down when three modern young librarians arrive to rejuvenate the closed public library. This story is filled with wonderful, quirky characters and plenty of suprises that kept me gleefully turning the pages. I'm not going to say much more because I don't want to give away too much, but I will tell you that a rather exhilarating car race takes place. This is the first Richard Peck book I've read and I'm now quite eager to read more (even the ones that aren't about librarians :). I highly recommend this book, and if you'd like to find Here Lies the Librarian at SPL, click here.

Tiger, Tiger

I just finished listening to the audio book of Tiger, Tiger by Lynne Reid Banks. Set in ancient Rome, this is the story of two tiger cubs, brothers captured and brought to Rome to fight in the arena. One cub is saved from this fate when the Emperor decides to give that cub to his daughter as a gift. The story contrasts the life of this cub, named Boots by his mistress, with the harsh and terrible life of his brother, known only as Brute, who is raised to fight and kill in the arena for the pleasure of the crowd. Parts of the story are told from the perspectives of the cubs, and other parts are from the perpectives of the humans who touch their lives, especially the Emperor's daughter, Aurelia, and Julian, the slave who is responsible for Boots. Aurelia loves her new pet, and with Julian's help, she bonds emotionally with the cub. A very sensitive girl, she despises the bloody games in the arena and tries to be kind to everyone around her. Everything goes well until a thoughtless prank by Aurelia and her cousin Marcus ends in tragedy and threatens everything Aurelia holds dear. An odd twist at the end of book made it very unexpected but satisfying for me.

This was a great story, but I would recommend that young or very sensitive readers approach it with caution, since some of the descriptions of the arena and Brute's training were a little more graphic than I expected. Although all of the characters are fictitious, the historical aspects of the book are quite accurate to other descriptions I've read of this time period and could be distressing to some readers.

Click here to find Tiger, Tiger as a book on CD at SPL.
Click here to find Tiger, Tiger as a print book at SPL.

The Pox Party.

I just finished reading the book The Pox Party. The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, V. 1 by M.T. Anderson. It was a little bit difficult for me to get into the book but after awhile it began to get interesting.

I really don't want to spoil the book for you so I am not going to reveal too much about the plot here. But I will tell you that the story is about a boy and his mother, royalty from a distant land who find themselves in America around the time of the Revolutionary war. They are being cared for by a group of philosophers at The College of Lucidity who refer to themselves by numbers, not names. Octavian and his beautiful Mother, Cassiopeia are treated with the utmost respect and privilege. Octavian receives the best education while his mother spends her days charming the philosophers with her wit and beauty.

Then one day Octavian discovers that his life is not as wonderful as it seems. He learns a dark secret about he and his mother that changes his life forever.

As I mentioned above, I really enjoyed this book as I read more and more of it. I can't wait to read the next volume to find out what happens next to Octavian. This book is very dark and serious. So if you are in the mood for dark and serious, this is for you.

Click here to find this book in SPL's catalog.