Have you read any great books this month?
I finally caught up with HOW TO CATCH A BOGLE, by Catherine Jinks. Orphan Birdie is apprenticed to the Go-Devil Man, a bogler named Alfred. She considers herself lucky to be helping to catch bogles rather than working in the sewers of London. But the job is dangerous each and every time she sings within her circle of salt, and she and Alfred can't let anything distract them as they lay their traps. When other orphans begin to disappear, Birdie and Alfred have their work cut out for them. This is appropriately creepy Victorian fun, and I look forward to the sequel, coming out in November. (MG)
THE ISOBEL JOURNAL, by Isobel Harrop, is a quirky scrapbook, full of the musings of one young woman who is just beginning to figure out the meaning of her life. It's not a traditional narrative by any means, but taken as a whole it is strangely satisfying. (YA)
SINNER, by Maggie Stiefvater, returns to the werewolves of the Shiver/Linger/Forever trilogy. In this one, Cole St. Clair, is a famous musician (also a werewolf), trying to stay clean after faceplanting onstage from a drug overdose. He swears to Isabel that he has come to LA for her. Never mind that he's also managed to land himself a six week stint on a reality show, where he will be recording his new album in front of the world. So what's Isabel to believe? Relentlessly restless, and always a player, Cole longs to find a home in this sun-soaked city, but only if he can convince Isabel that their love is real. Sinner is a terrific follow-up to the Shiver trilogy, but it can also stand on its own for readers willing to believe that a bad-boy rocker in LA can be a werewolf! (YA)
MY TEACHER IS A MONSTER! is by Peter Brown, who also wrote and illustrated the Golden Kite-winning Mr. Tiger Goes Wild, and Children Make Terrible Pets, among others. In this one, Bobby knows his teacher is a monster, but when he meets her at the park, they just might get along anyway. (PB)
IS THAT MY CAT?, by Jonathan Allen, is a sweet picture book for young children that employs patterns of repetition to great effect. A boy marvels at how his cat has changed from a sleek, playful pussycat to a rather rotund feline who sleeps a lot and doesn't catch mice anymore. We can wonder with the little boy what's going on around here. (PB)
And finally BAD BYE, GOOD BYE, by Deborah Underwood (The Quiet Book) and Jonathan Bean, is a lyrical, rhyming look at moving to a new home. With only two words per page, it still manages to impart a compelling story. (PB)
--Lynn
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