I.Q. [Book One: Independence Hall]

Roland Smith is one of my favorite authors and it was so cool to hear him talk about how he writes books last spring at the Texas Library Association Conference. He writes them by hand in little "journal-like" books called moleskins that he can carry around with him while he travels. I can't imagine writing a 300 page novel by hand, can you?




Anyway, I.Q. is the first novel in a series that kind of reminds me of James Bond's 007 (Bet you didn't know there were books before the movies?!). Book One begins with a wedding between two musicians, who each have a teenager. The guy's daughter is Angela, a fifteen year old "wanna be" spy and martial arts expert, and the woman's son is "Q" (stands for Quest), a thirteen year old magician. While the parents are making music and becoming famous, the two kids become partners in unraveling a terrorist conspiracy with the help of some retired intelligence agents and a really old gap-toothed dog named Croc and ends with a trip to the White House. In between, Angela and Q discover a mutual love for Big Macs and use their special skills to save each other.



This is quite a page turner...full of suspense, foreign terrorists, counter-terrorists, and has more twists than a roller coaster. Just when you think you've got the bad guys figured out, Smith throws another curveball into the plot! I can't wait for Book 2! In the meantime check out the IQ series website at http://www.iqtheseries.com/. You can learn Q's magic tricks, here music by the parents' band, and all kinds of really coooool stuff!!

"Trouble"

The trouble with "trouble" is you never know where or when trouble will occur. I bet you've experienced many kids of trouble in your life....friends that talk about you, family members who disappoint you, the death of someone you love, losing something important to you, etc. I always appreciate a book that show me how other people deal with trouble in their lives. Perhaps if I've had the same experience, I get new ideas about how to deal with a situation next time. Or perhaps I might learn something to use when I run head first into a new kind of "trouble."

Gary Schmidt's new book, Trouble, is one of those books. There's plenty in the story that I have never experienced (like going to a preparatory school where everybody is really smart or living in Massecheusetts) but there's a lot I can relate to.

For Henry Smith, the main character in Schmidt's novel, trouble shows up with a capital "T" on the eve of his 14th birthday. Henry's father is fond of saying "If you build your house far enough away from Trouble, then Trouble will never find you." I'm not sure I agree with Henry's dad. I think trouble can find you wherever you are. Trouble is just a fact of life. Things don't always go the way we want them to, and people don't do the things they should. Sometimes they do bad things for good reasons.

Henry's world is turned upside down when his older brother is critically injured an a car accident. As he and his family struggle to cope, they learn alot about each other and Henry learns the truth about the accident.

One part of the book that I could really relate to is Black Dog. Henry saves this dog from drowning. This part is kind of sad. She wins over the whole family and provides a way to help them cope with their grief. My own good black dog is named Ellie and she behaves just as crazy as Black Dog does. You'll be surprised when you find out how Black Dog ended up in the water.

I'm anxious for you to read this book and let me know what you think.

Summer Reading

One of my favorite things to do over the summer is....you guessed it! READ!!! When I was a kid, my mom, brother and I would have reading contests every summer to see who could read the most books. I was a frequent winner! I think my mom was inspired to come up with the idea. Trips to the library were basically free, reading kept us quiet and out of trouble, and she loved to read, too.

Think about picking up a book instead of turning on the TV or your Ipod. It is better for the environment ('cause it doesn't use electricity) and much better for your brain.

Here's another place to find good book recommendations - http://txla.org/groups/yart/Assets/Files/lonestar/lone0910.pdf

This list is designed to promote student reading. It's not about books that are "good" for you to read (like eating vegetables is good for you) , but rather includes "good" books you'll ENJOY reading.

Check it out and let me know what you think. I can't wait to hear from you.