Tales from the Rushmore Kid

Happy Thanksgiving

I am thankful for...

my family, my friends,
my editor Steve Meltzer, the sucess of
Hanging Off Jefferson's Nose,
chocolate cupcakes with white icing,
fine French champagne, sushi,
Maui Jim sunglasses, Mephisto sandals,
being an American,
the SCBWI, my writers' group,
watercolor sketchbooks,
my Calloway driver,
costume contests,
my two kitties Toulouse & Monet,
my puppy Honey, gardenias, good health,
and yoga.

Happy Thanksgiving!

November Recommendations--Lynn Becker's Book Picks

Novels:

In I CRAWL THROUGH IT, by A. S. King, Stanzi won't take off her lab coat and dissects frogs with a clinical passion. She's in love with Gustav, who builds a helicopter that is not technically invisible, but Stanzi can only see it on Tuesdays. China, Stanzi's best friend, repeatedly turns herself inside out due to a nasty encounter with a weatherman—on any given day, she might be an esophagus or a stomach as she walks down the street. Everyone is aware of this. The dangerous bush man sells letters for a kiss. The brilliance of this novel is that everything makes sense! (YA)

THE THING ABOUT JELLYFISH, by Ali Benjamin, has a classic mid-grade feel to it. Seventh grader Suzy Swanson hasn’t spoken since she learned of the death of her former best friend, Franny Jackson. Suzy is convinced that Franny died from a poisonous jellyfish sting and not from drowning, like everyone else thinks. Suzy uses her love of science to help work through her grief and to understand her complicated relationship with Franny. This debut novel explores the power of friendship, jellyfish, and the importance of moving on. (MG)

ZEROES, by Scott Westerfeld, Margo Lanagan, and Deborah Biancotti, is the first in a promising new series about a small group of teens who have strange “superpowers”—Ethan has the Voice, which speaks for him whenever he is in a jam (which sometimes makes things WAY worse), Kelsie, can control a crowd’s emotions (until she is carried away by them herself), Blind Flicker can see through everyone else’s eyes, Chizara can control technology, Anonymous is extremely hard to keep track of, and finally there is Nate/Glorious Leader, who melds them into a group.  Together, they are drawn into a mission to save Ethan, while evading murderous drug dealers and Ethan’s DA mom. This is great action enhanced by awesome-yet-marginal superhero-ness, and harkens back to Westerfelds early work on his Midnighters series.  (YA)

 

Hanging Off Jefferson's Nose - Book Trailer Number 3

This was a really fun trailer to do for my book, Hanging Off Jefferson's Nose. My friend, song writer/musican Jack Conrad, wrote a theme song for the book. My editor went wild and arranged to put it on Amazon and Barnes & Noble for a free download with the book.

Evil Librarian--Lynn Becker's Book Picks

November’s Book Pick (still in the spirit of Halloween and Day of the Dead) is EVIL LIBRARIAN, by Michelle Knudson.

This SCBWI Sid Fleishman Humor Award winner is all about the demons—or maybe it’s about the cute love interest—or maybe the plays the thing:

Before the new handsome but creepy librarian showed up, all Cynthia Rothschild had to worry about was getting super-crush Ryan Halsey to notice her, and coming up with the perfect prop chair for her school's production of Sweeney Todd. But when Mr. Creepy ensnares Cyn's best friend in a weird and disturbing relationship, she begins to suspect he may not be human. And when teachers and students behave like zombies, and begin to disappear, Cyn knows she has to act to save Annie, her entire school, and this year’s awesome production of Sweeney Todd.