Lack of Reading Culture

Did anybody read the front page of the Borneo Bulletin on Monday? If so, you may have noticed this:

PARENTS TO BLAME FOR LACK OF READING CULTURE

Wow. That was a very bold statement by the Director of Social Services in the country.

Dr Mataim Bakar was quoted as saying, "The majority of parents these days come from a generation that were raised on having a low priority on the importance of developing a reading culture. Because of this their children are brought up to follow that similar mindset."

Things are changing, though. Aren't they girls? The next generation - you - are going to be different. Our school is filled with booklovers. Sure, some of the girls are only now discovering the enjoyment that a book can bring, but our school's reading culture is growing very rapidly.

Each yeargroup seems to get stronger. Yes, the form six girls who have just left the school were good readers, but the form fives and the year nines are amazing. The upper secondary girls can't wait to get into the SRR. Books are being passed from one girl to another within classes. Some girls are reading a book a day.

I've said it before and I'll say it again - there are more pages being read at our school than at any other school in the country. And we will see it in school results very, very soon. Mark my words, within the next few years our girls will surpass even Maktab Sains in English O Level results.

Keep on reading girls! It is fun to read and it will make a world of difference for your success in the future!

And when you get older and become a mother, please promise me you will read to your children. Perhaps ten years from now the Borneo Bulletin headline will read something like this:

PARENTS APPLAUDED FOR DEVELOPMENT OF READING CULTURE

The Girl With a Pearl Earring by Tracy Chevalier

Who is this girl?

Is she smiling?

Where did she get that fancy earring?

Why is she surrounded by black?

Why is her body turned away?

Is she keeping a secret from us?

What is she waiting for?

What is she thinking?


Last week the literature students and I took some time off our usual lit study (Anita Desai's short stories to be exact) and we had a look at this Vermeer painting.

I was amazed with what the girls were able to come up with. They thought of a number of explanations for the questions above and they had a lot of interesting ideas regarding the expression on the girl's face.

From what I can gather, it seems this painting is a bit of a mystery. Nobody really knows who the girl is or what her story is. In fact, I found that when I looked at Vermeer's other paintings that this one is quite unique. It was highly unusual for him to paint only the head and shoulders in a portrait and this is his only painting with a black background (I think).

I asked my students to imagine if they were to write a novel about this girl's life. What would they write? Who would she be? What would be their explanation for the woman's unusual expression, her clothes, and her possession of a very valuable pearl.

Actually, it has already been done. Tracy Chevalier explored the painting with her book The Girl With A Pearl Earring.

Like the painting on its front cover, Chevalier's novel is a beautiful work of art. She captures the personality and language of a poor tradesman's daughter who has no choice but to take work as a maid for the wealthy family of a master painter. Chevalier's girl, Griet, is wonderfully sweet and innocent, but she also sees things with a cleverness and insight that often startles those around her. As a reader, it is great fun to experience the story through her eyes.

My favourite parts of the book involve the descriptions of the paintings and Griet's reactions to them. I liked that Chevalier gave her narrator an artistic sensibility so she could really "see" the paintings. Griet has an innate understanding of composition and is able, in her simple language, to explain the paintings to us. She even guesses at missing pieces before the painter himself can discover them. I also enjoyed the fact that Chevalier incorporated a number of other Vermeer paintings into the story and so a quick search on the Internet will provide you with a visual representation of elements in the story.

Of course the story culminates in the painting of the narrator. It builds and creates for us an explanation of the painting. You and I may have imagined a different story for the painting, but Chevalier's is a good one too.

For students who are interested in reading something a bit mature and are ready to make the leap from teen novels to something with a bit of substance, this would be a good book. The language is that of a "simple" maid so it isn't too difficult to read. At the same time, it is the type of book that would be classified as "literature" and therefore worthy of study and likely to bring you to a greater understanding of the world if you take your time with it and give it a bit of consideration.

I'd like to discuss this book at length, but I think it is probably best to leave it to the reader to enjoy. I should warn you, though. This book has some mature content. Chevalier handles it well, as good writers do, but you should be aware that this is a book that is perhaps more suitable for older readers.

To hear an interview with Chevalier about the book you can find it HERE.

5/5 Stars

You Should Visit Steph Su Reads

The girls are always asking me, "What's next?" They want to know what the hot new books are going to be. It's hard to imagine that Twilight only caught on here late in 2008 - three years after it had been published and debuted on the New York Times Best Seller List. That still shocks me.

Anyway, how do you figure out which books are going to be hot? I usually point students in the direction of the teens' top ten list and you can find it HERE. If a book has been nominated for the list or it has won a place on the list, then it is a good bet that you will enjoy reading it. However, there is a lot of lag time between when a book is published and then nominated and then wins a place on the list.

To really figure out what is hot and new, you need to read the blogs of reviewers who are on the cutting edge. You want reviews from bloggers who are reading books before they even get published (ARC's or Advance Reading Copies).

I'd like to recommend you add Steph Su Reads to your weekly Internet surfing. Steph is a 20-year-old literature major, writer, and teen book reviewer from the United States. She is an award winning blogger who writes some of the best book reviews for teen fiction out there. Her writing is clever and fun to read. I also think she has good taste in books. I also enjoy her "coverlust" entries where she talks about interesting and beautiful book covers.

Last year Steph sent us some great new books for the Reading Room including the beautiful new hardcovers The Knife of Never Letting Go, If I Stay, and Fairest. She has also taken time to comment on my blog under "The Study Series" entry (which she highly recommended reading by the way). Even more reasons to be a fan I'd say!

As well, Steph is celebrating her one year "blogoversary" and in doing so she is offering up a bunch of prizes - including books that haven't even been published yet like the new Meg Cabot book which doesn't come out until April! Cool, right? To enter the contest you just need to go HERE.

Our Most Popular Books

For those of you who are looking for a good book to read, you may want to have a look around to see what the other girls are reading. If they are enjoying one, maybe you will enjoy it too!

Here is a list of some of the most popular books in the SRR. This list is just based on my own observations of those that always seem to be out and the ones that are always being requested. If you see one, grab it. It won't last long.

Just a reminder that you must only borrow books for two weeks. Some of these popular ones have disappeared for months while disinterested readers kept them in their bags and didn't finish them.

1. Poison Study (the Form 5's have passed this around)
2. The Hunger Games (amazing book by Collins)
3. PS I love You (and any other Cecilia Ahern book)
4. The Princess Diaries (and any other Meg Cabot book)
5. Shopaholic (and any other Kinsella book)
6. The Notebook (as well as Sparks' A Walk to Remember)
7. House of Night Series (these books are very popular)
8. Just Listen (and any other Sarah Dessen book)
9. Diary of a Wimpy Kid (this is so funny!)
10. The Lovely Bones (often requested, coming soon)
11. Before I Die (Jenny Downham makes you cry)
12. Elsewhere (Zevin's book is also a tear jerker)
13. Twilight (of course, though most girls have read it by now)
14. Goosebumps (funny, interesting, quick book snack)
15. Chicken Soup (great real life stories - more coming soon)
16. Uglies (this Westerfeld series is making the rounds)
17. Inkheart (and any other Funke book)
18. My Sister's Keeper (another popular one)
19. If I have a Wicked Stepmother, Where is My Prince? (everyone likes it)
20. Memoirs of a Teenage Amnesiac (picking up steam)
21. 13 Little Blue Envelopes (always out)

There are a lot of books that take time to catch on. For example, Graceling is the type of book that could become popular quickly. City of Bones and Vampire Acedemy could also become more popular as more and more readers pick them up. As well, last year some books were circulated in certain classes so I didn't see them for months and months - these too could be on our list of popular books.

Is there another book I should add to this list? Have you and your friends enjoyed the same book? Let me know.

Book Requests

IS THERE A BOOK YOU REALLY WANT TO READ?

I can get it for you! You just need to ask.

Last year the students asked for Cecilia Ahern, Nicholas Sparks, Mr Midnight, Meg Cabot, Goosebumps, Chicken Soup, and Sophie Kinsella. They got them. We now have an excellent collection of those books.

How do I do it? Well, I have a number of ways to get books. Sometimes I get lucky and our HOD gives me a bit of money (remember your $1 donation to the SRR fund) to buy books. Then I go to the bookstore and stare at the shelves trying to guess what a teenage girl would like to read! Sometimes I buy books from book depository (an incredible online bookstore) that I want to read and pass them on to the SRR. At other times, our generous benefactor Peta is able to get us books in the UK and she donates them to us. As well, we have a group of other mysterious donors who give us books that we request. Isn't that amazing?

How do I choose which books to get? That's the challenge. I need your help. You need to tell me which books to get. I'm older. I'm a guy. What do I know? Help me.

Don't be afraid to ask. Leave me a note on the shoutmix. Better yet, leave me a note in the comments section of this post. That way I have a permanent record of what you requested and who you are - making it easier for me to get the book to you.

Actually, I'm happy to report that a lot of girls are now getting the courage to ask me for books. Even girls from the other classes will now approach me in the office to ask about getting a book they like. It's great! I know it takes a lot of courage to do that so I try my best.

Notes on Books

• A girl asked for the book Discover Your Destiny by Robin Sharma. I don't have that one yet, but I do have a woman in Australia (Cherelle) who has agreed to send The Monk Who Sold his Ferrari. I hope you will enjoy it. Can you remind me of your name by leaving a comment on this post and I'll let you know when it comes in?

• For all the girls who are waiting for Poison Study. Our book hero Peta is sending us a new set from Book Depository. Yay! Actually, she was the person who "discovered" the study series and sent us the first set. It has been a huge hit at the school. Too bad the bookstores here haven't caught on yet.
  

• For the Form 5 girls who asked me about Lord of the Rings, I have contacted a number of book donors and I hope to hear from them soon. I read this series five years ago and it is absolutely incredible.
  

• As for My Sister's Keeper, we have one copy in SRR that is being read but I'll try to get another copy from Best Eastern as soon as possible. This book is very popular and a lot of girls want it so we had better get another copy.
  

• Also, Eqah in 5D really enjoyed the first book of Vampire Academy. Good news, Egah! Peta is sending us copies of #2 and #3 from Book Depository. You're first in line to read them!

• Another booklover in the UK named Sal (froglady) has donated 50 books to us! Isn't that amazing? We are so lucky to have the support of wonderful people like Peta and Sal. Thanks ladies!

• Atul in 9A has requested Carolyn Meyer's Young Royals series. Atul, we have Beware Princess Elizabeth and Mary Bloody Mary already but I'll try to get a few more for you. Arnden in the USA has agreed to send us Isabel Jewel of Castilla.
  

Book Lovers

Some of you may have noticed the bulletin board near the SRR stairs has some book reviews on it. A few of the girls from Lit class wrote them and I typed them up to make posters. I'd love for the other book lovers out there to make similar posters for display in February.

It's really easy and fun. Here is what you do:

• Write your name and class
• Write the title of your favourite book and the author's name
  
• Write a quotation to go in the speech bubble by your picture. It would be great if you were saying something about how much you love reading.
• Next, write a paragraph about the favourite book. Why did you like it so much?
• Drop it off at my office or send it to me by e-mail.

It is amazing. Every time I walk by I notice people reading the reviews and girls have started requesting the books that were mentioned on the noticeboard. Isn't that great? You should promote the book/author you love too!

BTW, this was our principal's idea and she is really happy with what we have so far. She really is an amazing supporter of our reading program and SRR! We are so lucky to have her on our side.

The Lovely Bones - Coming to the SRR

Hi girls,

Every day a girl asks me if we have The Lovely Bones. I'm not sure what has happened but this is the most requested book since Twilight. Well, Poison Study is also highly requested, but I think Lovely Bones is number one.

We have one (or two?) copies of The Lovely Bones in the SRR but it is being read by one of my students right now. Keep your eyes open for it.

Anyway, due to popular demand, I have just ordered three new copies fresh from book depository. The books should arrive in two to three weeks.

If you would like to be one of the first girls to read "The Lovely Bones" all you need to do is add a comment to this post. Put your name and your class. The first three girls to put their names on the list get to read the books when they arrive and then the other girls will be waitlisted and can read them as they get returned to me.

Alice Sebold would be so proud!

If you have seen the movie, could you write a short review in the comments section? I'd like to know if it is good - you know I'm a big Peter Jackson fan! I still want to read the book first, but I was so close to getting the DVD last week.

BGIC 2010

I've invited 12 Year 9 students for an introduction to the Model United Nations Club tomorrow at 10:00 in the Senior Reading Room. Students were chosen by teachers in the English Department and they will have a chance to join the new ECA this year.

Let me just say that BGIC is the best thing you will do all year. You will meet some of the cleverest and most amazing young people around. Students come from many schools from Brunei as well as from other countries for this big event.


Year 9 students who participate in the Model United Nations Club will have the chance to observe the BGIC this year and may also be selected to participate as delegates in 2011.

Also, congratulations to the three girls from Form 5 who will represent the school as delegates this year!

We are in Forum 1 and we will be working in the Human Rights Committee

• Humairah will be representing new Zealand

• Ruth will be representing Cambodia

• Lim will be representing Malaysia

Congratulations girls!!!

To see pictures from 2009 you can look here.

Zee Avi Loves Books

If you listen to Krystal FM in the morning on the way to school you have probably heard the young Miri singer's "Kantoi" song in which she plays a ukulele (a kind of small guitar) and mixes both Malay and English. If you haven't, you can by pressing HERE. The first time I heard it while driving to school I was really shocked. First of all, it has a style that sounds kind of old, but at the same time it sounds very fresh and fun. Plus I kept wondering what language it was she was singing and then it hit me - it's Malay!

Her voice is incredible, isn't it? I'm really impressed by her work. I just love to hear songs that are different, new, and catchy. This girl is an original. I just think it is great that young artists have the freedom to explore new things - singers like Agnes Monica and even Lady Gaga just go out and find their own style. Fantastic! I mean, nobody sings with Zee Avi's style anymore and nobody plays the ukulele. Very cool.

I just sent her a message on her youtube page to congratulate her and wish her all the best. You can find her youtube page HERE at KokoKaina's channel.

I guess she has recorded an album in Los Angeles and has had her song used in a WalMart commercial. It also seems like she has played live on American television and managed to sneak onto the Billboard countdown list. She is on her way up! And all of this because she posted a video on YouTube. Cool.

I've always said that it is only a matter of time before somebody in Brunei becomes a worldwide sensation. If a girl from Miri can do it, a girl from Brunei certainly can!

Anyway, it turns out that Zee is also a book lover and we have proof in this short youtube video where she talks about how she started promoting her music just last year and her love of books. She seems like a very talented and clever girl (and I'll bet reading had a lot to do with that). :-)

New Reading Room Books

We have some amazing new books for the SRR thanks to former STPRI girl Hudiya from 5B. She was in my class last year and is a great book lover just like the rest of us and on her vacation to Australia in December she was kind enough to get us some incredible books - especially if you are a Twilight fan! I think it is absolutely wonderful that she would think of us.

First of all, she got us a copy of the New Moon Movie Companion. Last year the Twilight Movie Companion was probably the most popular book in the SRR so I'm sure this year the New Moon book will get a lot of attention.

I guess Hudiya knows that the students like the guys in the movie because she got us a Scholastic book with lots of pictures in it called The Guys of Twilight. I wonder when they will publish a book of The Girls of Twilight. It's not really fair is it (btw, my favourite character is Alice)?

Once again on the Twilight theme, Hudiya got us a a parody of Twilight called "nightlight". How cool is that? I didn't even know there was a parody made of it. What's a parody? Well, it is a joke version of a story and it makes fun of the original. If you love Twilight (or even if you didn't like Twlight), you'll probably get a few laughs from this one.

As well, Hudiya bought us a copy of a book called Surf School which looks really good. I'm certain that it will be another popular book to read this year.

Thanks again for your generosity Hudiya. That was so nice of you!

Peter Pan

Hi everyone,

Today I read a little from Peter Pan in Scarlet with the 9A and 9D girls. Isn't it just the most beautiful book you've ever seen? I'm still amazed at what a great job the publisher did.

You can read my review of the book: HERE.

Anyway, we talked about the mysterious change in dates on page 11 (one book said Saturday and another said Sunday) and we also talked about the mysterious writing on the inside cover page. As I told you, I e-mailed the publisher and was pleasantly surprised when the auther, Geraldine McCaughrean sent back a reply.

I thought some of you might like to read the e-mail she sent us. I hope she doesn't mind me sharing it. Here it is:

Dear Jason,

I'm so glad you and your class have been enjoying Peter Pan in Scarlet. It sounds as if you explored it pretty extensively!! I agree about the cover and silhouettes - gorgeous, aren't they? A new younger edition was published at the end of last year with fewer words but many more full colour pictures. The illustrator really excelled himself working on the book. I think he, like me, knew it was a very special assignment to be given.

As to the mystery, I think I can probably solve it. Sometimes bookshops buy too many copies of a book and return some to the publishers. I expect I signed that book in some big London store, the store then sent back some copies to the warehouse and the warehouse sent them out again to different customers. I have found myself signing in a shop, opening a book and finding I have already signed it!

Also, I did sign about 800 copies of the book at the warehouse, so it may be one of those.
I can tell you for certain that the signed book comes from a different print-run. At the beginning of the book, on the copyright page, you will see a string of numbers. The last number tells you how many printings there have been of the book. I believe that after the first or second edition, a few little changes were made, including that date in chapter 2. There is a story behind that which I can tell you and which nobody else knows. When I wrote the book, I sent the characters to Neverland on Saturday 6th June, because 6th June is my birthday and I thought that made it auspicious. My clever editor did not know this. She worked out that 6th June in l926 was not a Saturday but a Sunday, so she changed it to June 5th before publication. Then someone pointed out to her that it was my birthday ...And she changed it back in the next print-run! I didn't expect her to, but it was very sweet of her. A sort of birthday present, I suppose!

Anyway, I am delighted if a mere signature added to your enjoyment. I can't imagine why it should! (Now when the illustrator invents and draws a fairy on the title page - then and there, in front of you - that's special.) I'm afraid I can't arrange that, but if any of your students would like signed bookplates to go in their copies of the book, I will willingly send them. (I would need your postal address, though.)

Wishing you everything you wish yourselves and a little more besides,
Love
Geraldine

After reading her e-mail I guess it is easy to tell that she is a talented writer. Even when she sends out a quick e-mail it ends up sounding a lot like poetry. I think that you can also get a sense that she is a really nice person, can't you?

Anyway, in the coming weeks you will have a chance to read some of the story if you like. Also, we have added two books to the regular collection so you will have a chance to read them at any time in the next two years. As well, you could order the book online at bookdepository for 11 british pounds and the delivery is free: HERE: The last time I went to Icklebooks in Kiarong they had a few copies that didn't get sold last year. You can find a map for Icklebooks: HERE. You may want to call them and check first, though.

If you do decide to buy your own personal copy, I have a few autographs left and I will be happy to put one in your book!

By the way, the younger version that Geraldine mentions in the letter will also be available soon in the SRR. Our marvelous book angel Peta in the UK sent us a copy in December. It is absolutely beautiful. The artwork by David Wyatt is simply stunning. I hope you will enjoy it as much as I did.

Finally, I'd like to put together a thank you package for Geraldine. If you'd like to send her a note or ask her a question, please let me know and we can add it along with some postcards and stuff from school.

I'd also like to get a picture or two of you reading the book. I'm sure she would love to get pictures like that from us.

The Road by Cormac McCarthy

Amazon description from Publisher's Weekly:

Violence, in McCarthy's postapocalyptic tour de force, has been visited worldwide in the form of a "long shear of light and then a series of low concussions" that leaves cities and forests burned, birds and fish dead and the earth shrouded in gray clouds of ash. In this landscape, an unnamed man and his young son journey down a road to get to the sea. (The man's wife, who gave birth to the boy after calamity struck, has killed herself.)

They carry blankets and scavenged food in a shopping cart, and the man is armed with a revolver loaded with his last two bullets. Beyond the ever-present possibility of starvation lies the threat of roving bands of cannibalistic thugs. The man assures the boy that the two of them are "good guys," but from the way his father treats other stray survivors the boy sees that his father has turned into an amoral survivalist, tenuously attached to the morality of the past by his fierce love for his son. McCarthy establishes himself here as the closest thing in American literature to an Old Testament prophet, trolling the blackest registers of human emotion to create a haunting and grim novel about civilization's slow death after the power goes out.

On a layover in Chicago I found a nice little book kiosk and loaded up on books for the 14-hour flight ahead of me. This book grabbed my attention immediately. I had heard something about the movie which is now being shown world-wide except here in Brunei and I always love a good end-0f-the-world movie so I was keen to see this one. Also Viggo Mortensen is awesome, right? Anyway, I figured if they made it into a movie it must be good and if I'm going to watch the movie I'd rather read the book first. This book before movie thing has worked out so far. I enjoyed Harry Potter more for reading the books first and can you imagine seeing New Moon if you hadn't read the book - disaster!

On my plane, the in-flight entertainment was awful, I was squished against the emergency door exit that jutted out about a foot and a half inside the plane and into the space where I wanted to put my rather long legs, and I kept catching a whiff of noxious toilet fumes from the area next to me....but none of that mattered because I was totally engrossed in this book. I started it as the flight took off and didn't stop reading until every last page had passed before my jet-lagged eyes. And, sure enough, while I was reading the end of the book, tears started flowing down my cheeks so badly I had to turn off my overhead light before the people waiting to use the can noticed the blubbering baby in the window seat.

Let me just say, this book is pretty intense. It isn't so much about the end of the world as it is about what it means to be a father and what it feels like to take care of a son. Of course this is child-care pushed to the extreme. If the father fails to take care of his son here, he will either freeze to death, starve to death, or get eaten by wandering bands of nasty degenerates. It's fascinating to watch as these two characters try to take care of each other. It's tense, it's dark, it's sad, and it is utterly gripping.

I'd also like to mention that I loved the way McCarthy wrote all the dialogue in this book without quotation marks. It is an extra touch that makes this book even more fascinating to read.

The Road won the 2007 Pullitzer Prize and it was chosen to be an Oprah Winfrey's Book Club selection. If you think you might like this book, I think you will.

I'll be adding my copy of this fabulous book to the SRR next week. Let me know if you are interested in being the first one to read it.

5/5 Stars

Welcome back...

Hello everyone and welcome back! It has been a busy first week at school and I'm still recovering from jet lag so I haven't had a chance to post on my blog until today.

First of all, I'd like to say hello to all my wonderful new students. So far I've met my sweet 9A form class of 21 students and my big, friendly 9D class with 37 students. On Saturday I'll finally get the chance to meet 9F and I'm sure they will be equally lovely. In our first English period together I'm afraid I did most of the talking but I look forward to next week when you will have a chance to participate more in the lessons.

I also met with my mega outgoing 5ACD Lit class. It's so good to see you all again! Really, I love teaching you girls so much that the time just flies by, doesn't it? This year is going to be another great year for us! Anyway, welcome back and I can't wait to dive back into our short story collection. Isn't Desai's Sale a powerful story? I'll be looking over your Reader Reaction assignment later today. See you Saturday.

BTW, the principal has made a special request. She would like us to decorate the noticeboard near the SRR again. This time she'd like us to put posters with pics of students and quotations about reading. I think it would be great to put a book recommendation as well. I would like the girls in 5ACD Lit class who absolutely love reading to make posters. I've made a template so you can just delete stuff and add your own ideas. Also, I have your pics so I can always put your pic if you don't have one.

Please click here for the template:



I would also like to send out a big thank you to my wonderful 9A form class for processing 120 new books for the SRR while we were waiting for our textbooks on Wednesday. I put the books on the shelves yesterday so that when students go in for their first reading period there will be a lot of added excitement. I hope you love the Reading Room as much as I do!!!

As usual, I'd also like to send out a big THANK YOU to our book angel Peta. For those of you who don't know, Peta is our mysterious donor from the UK who has been sending us big packages of incredible books for the last year. In December she sent us an amazing 39 books, most of them brand new. Wow!!! There are so many beautiful new books that she has sent us that I can't single out one for special recognition. All I can say is that Peta has a great eye for Teen lit and she has sent us so many books that have become a huge hit with the girls at the school. Thanks again Peta! You're amazing! To see all the great books she has sent us you can look at the bottom of the entry here.

Peter Jackson: A film-maker's journey by Brian Sibley

Amazon Description:

This work presents an authorised and fully illustrated insight into the life and career of the award-winning director, from his childhood film projects up to "King Kong", together with Jackson's revealing personal account of his six-year quest to film "The Lord of the Rings". Once, Peter Jackson was a name unknown to all but a small band of loyal fans and fellow film-makers.

Now, he is the newest member of Hollywood's elite fellowship, with his name on the most successful movie trilogy of all time. Written with Jackson's full participation, this extensive biography, illustrated with never-before-seen photos from Jackson's personal collection, tells the inside story of how a New Zealander became Hollywood's hottest property - from the early cult classics, through Academy Award -winning success with Kate Winslet's "Heavenly Creatures", the abandoned "King Kong" remake, and the filming of "The Lord of the Rings", a project which was abandoned two years into pre-production, rejected by most of the other studios and then picked up by New Line Cinema in the biggest gamble in film history.

Drawing upon interviews with fifty of Peter Jackson's colleagues and contemporaries, author Brian Sibley paints a portrait of a true auteur, a man gifted with single-minded determination and an artist's vision. Jackson himself is both revealing and insightful about his entire film-making life, from his first childhood steps filming in Super 8 to the grand realisation of his life's dream: "King Kong". Together, these joint narratives provide a truly unique and compelling insight into one of the finest cinematic minds at work today.

I am a big fan of the Lord of the Rings movies. I read the trilogy during a vacation five years ago and I loved the movies directed by Peter Jackson. When I came across this beautiful hardcover biography of Peter, I couldn't resist it. I picked it up and started reading it and before I knew it I had read the entire book from cover to cover.

I guess to begin with I was fascinated that this little-known guy from New Zealand somehow came along and got to do one of the biggest film projects in history. That amazes me. I wanted to know how he did it. The book does a really good job of explaining the whole thing. It describes his humble beginnings and all the challenges he faced making his first movies. Then it gave all the details related to how he managed to get the LOTR movies. Simply fascinating.

I really liked the way the writer, Brian Sibley, managed to keep this biography moving along. I also was very happy with the way that he quoted a lot of what Peter told him. I loved being able to read full page excerpts from conversations he had with him. With authorized biographies like this, you get a lot more real information and it makes you feel good knowing you are getting to the heart of things and not just speculation from a book writer who may just be speculating a lot of the time (I recenly read parts of a Rowling biography that was a complete waste of time because it based a lot on stuff the writer got from newspaper articles and other secondhand sources).

I liked everything about this book and the stories it told. The only thing I felt I missed out on was more about the casting of Kate Winslet in Heavenly Creatures. Peter's film was Winslet's first film and, being a big Winslet fan, I really wanted to know more about her and how Peter felt about her work on his movie. Oh well, you can't have everything.

Having read this book, I'm very interested in seeing all of Jackson's movies. As well, it has made me even more curious about visiting New Zealand and it has further convinced me that Kiwis are amazing people.

Stay tuned for the new movie The Lovely Bones based on the popular novel by Alice Sebold which is being produced my Peter Jackson and should be released soon. The Lovely Bones is available in the SRR and I'm hoping to get a hardcover before January as it is going to be an even bigger hit once it makes it to the theater in December.

Note: I'm reading a lot of different stuff these days. I just thought I'd post this review to keep you all up to date. There are so many amazing books in the world. Just pick one up! Pick up something you wouldn't usually read. Read something totally "different" today! Take a chance on a different genre or a different writer. You never know.

4/5 Stars

Notes from a Small Island by Bill Bryson

Amazon Description:

After nearly two decades in Britain, Bill Bryson, the acclaimed author of such bestsellers as "The Mother Tongue" and "Made in America", decided it was time to move back to the United States for a while. This was partly to let his wife and kids experience life in Bryson's homeland - and partly because he had read that 3.7 million Americans believed that they had been abducted by aliens at one time or another. It was thus clear to him that his people needed him. But before leaving his much-loved home in North Yorkshire, Bryson insisted on taking one last trip around Britain, a sort of valedictory tour of the green and kindly island that had so long been his home. His aim was to take stock of modern-day Britain, and to analyze what he loved so much about a country that had produced Marmite, zebra crossings, and place names like Farleigh Wallop, Titsey, and Shellow Bowells. With wit and irreverence, Bill Bryson presents the ludicrous and the endearing in equal measure. The result is a social commentary that conveys the true glory of Britain.

I think I'm done with my tour of Bill Bryson books. It was a good run, but I'm done.

Bryson's Notes from a Small Island is a book that covers a trip he took around Great Britain. I thought that I would really enjoy this book, but I found it a bit tiresome.

The first quarter of the book was very good as he described his experiences in London when he was younger. I lived in London for six months and really liked hearing Bryson's take. I especially liked his description of his first trip to Dover and how he reacted to staying in a number of bed and breakfasts. I also found his work experiences in London to be of great interest.

However, as Bryson moved out into the countryside and travelled from town to town, he started to lose me. He gets excited about details and half the time I feel his enthusiasm and I want to know more. The parts I enjoy the most are bits about people and crazy situations and his thoughts on how ridiculous the world is. The problem is that he spent a lot of time describing buildings I have never seen and never will see. If he only wrote about half of the places he did and spent more time talking about the people he met and the funny experiences he had, this book could have been amazing.

My reading style changed as I read this. At times, I read the first sentence of each paragraph and scanned the rest. I only stopped to read the parts that interested me. The only thing is that by the last half of the book I was reading smaller and smaller patches.

2.5 / 5 Stars

2009 Teens' Top Ten Winners

Here they are, drumroll please:

1. Paper Towns by John Green
2. Breaking Dawn by Stephenie Meyer
3. The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
4. City of Ashes by Cassandra Clare
5. Identical by Ellen Hopkins
6. The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman
7. Wake by Lisa McMann
8. Untamed by P.C. and Kristin Cast
9. The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks by E. Lockhart
10. Graceling by Kristin Cashore

Okay, first of all, I'm excited because I actually read some of the books on the list this year. It is nice to know something about the kinds of books that are up for nomination. Second, I can't believe that Breaking Dawn didn't win! Wow. I figured the Twilight fans out there would crash the ballot boxes. Also, I can't believe they actually had 11,000 teens vote this year - that's amazing. I'm also happy to say that we already have some of the winners in the SRR. We have Breaking Dawn along with the other Twilight books. We have two copies of Hunger Games along with Part 2. We have City of Ashes along with City of Bones already. I have a copy of Wake. Plus Peta just sent us Untamed and Graceling. So, all in all, we are off to a really good start.

House of Night Series

Finishing school for Vampires

Yeah, I thought that would grab your attention. For all the Twilight fans out there, you'll be excited to hear that we now have the House of Night Series.

Here's how amazon describes the first book:

When sixteen-year-old Zoey Redbird gets Marked as a fledgling vampire she must join the House of Night school where she will train to become an adult vampire. That is, if she makes it through the Change. But Zoe is no ordinary fledgling. She has been chosen as special by the Goddess Nyx and discovers her amazing new power to conjure the elements: earth, air, fire, water and spirit. When Zoey discovers that the leader of the Dark Daughters, the school's most elite group, is misusing her Goddess-given gifts, Zoey must look within herself to embrace her destiny - with a little help from her new vampire friends.

Sounds good, doesn't it? I thought you'd like it. We now have four of the books in the series: Marked, Betrayed, Untamed, and Hunted. That ought to keep you girls busy for a while. In fact, I think I'll be adding this one to my to be read list (though it is getting very, very long at this point).

Once again, we have our book angel, Peta, to thank for sending us this series. All four books were ordered, brand new, from book depository and sent to us. Thank you so much Peta for sending us so many wonderful books. The girls are loving the Study Series and now we have another series that is bound to be just as popular. You're the best Peta!

Teens' Top Ten in the SRR

Here is our update on our SRR books. Books in BOLD are the ones we have.

2010 Winners

1. Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins (P)
   
2. City of Glass by Cassandra Clare (J/M)
   
3. Heist Society by Ally Carter
4. Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater (?)
   
5. Hush, Hush by Becca Fitzpatrick (J)
   
6. Beautiful Creatures by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl (P)
   
7. Along for the Ride by Sarah Dessen
8. If I Stay by Gayle Forman (M)
   
9. Fire by Kristin Cashore (P)
   
10. Wintergirls by Laurie Halse Anderson

2009 Winners

• Paper Towns by John Green
• Breaking Dawn by Stephenie Meyer (J)
• The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins (P/J)
• City of Ashes by Cassandra Clare (J)
• Identical by Ellen Hopkins
• The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman (M)
• Wake by Lisa McMann (J)
• Untamed by P.C. and Kristin Cast (P)
• The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks by E. Lockhart
• Graceling by Kristin Cashore (P)

2009 Nominated Books in SRR

1. Truancy by Isamu Fukui (J)
2. Bloodlines by Katy Moran (J)
3. The Knife of Never Letting Go by Patrick Ness (Su)

2008 Winners
1. Eclipse by Stephenie Meyer (J)
2. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows by J. K. Rowling (J)
3. Diary of a Wimpy Kid by Jeff Kinney (J)
4. Vampire Academy by Richelle Mead (J)
5. Maximum Ride: Saving the World and Other Extreme Sports by J. Patterson (coming -Mary)
6. City of Bones by Cassandra Clare (J)
7. The Sweet Far Thing by Libba Bray (J)
8. Extras by Scott Westerfeld (J)
9. Before I Die by Jenny Downham (P)
10. Twisted by Laurie Halse Anderson (P)

2007 Winners
1. New Moon by Stephenie Meyer (J)
2. Just Listen by Sarah Dessen (P)
3. Maximum Ride: School’s Out – Forever by James Patterson
4. Firegirl by Tony Abbott (coming - Mary)
5. All Hallows Eve (13 Stories)by Vivian Vande Velde
6. Life As We Knew It by Susan Beth Pfeffer (M)
7. River Secrets by Shannon Hale (coming - Peta)
8. Bad Kitty by Michele Jaffe
9. Road of the Dead by Kevin Brooks

2006 Winners
1. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince by J.K. Rowling. (J)
2. Twilight by Stephanie Meyer (J)
3. Eldest by Christopher Paolini (coming - Mary)
4. Rebel Angels by Libba Bray (P)
5. Peeps by Scott Westerfeld (P)
6. 13 Little Blue Envelopes by Maureen Johnson (P)
7. Poison by Chris Wooding (P)
8. Captain Hook: The Adventures of a Notorious Youth by J.V. Hart (P)
9. If I Have a Wicked Stepmother, Where’s My Prince? by Melissa Kantor (P)
10. Elsewhere by Gabrielle Zevin (P)

2005 Winners
1. Girls In Pants: The Third Summer of the Sisterhood by Ann Brashares
2. The Truth about Forever by Sarah Dessen (P)
3. Looking For Alaska by John Green (P)
4. My Sister’s Keeper by Jodi Picoult (P)
5. Drums, Girls and Dangerous Pie by Jordan Sonnenblick
6. Maximum Ride: The Angel Experiment by James Patterson (J)
7. The Gangsta Rap by Benjamin Zephaniah (P)
8. Teen Idol by Meg Cabot
9. The Garden by Elise Aidinoff (P)

2004 Winners
1. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix by J. K. Rowling
2. Eragon by Christopher Paolini

3. Pirates! by Celia Rees
4. Trickster’s Choice by Tamora Pierce
5 Inkheart by Cornelia Funke
6. A Great and Terrible Beauty by Libba Bray
7. The Goose Girl by Shannon Hale (coming- Mary)
8. Princess in Pink by Meg Cabot
9. The Earth, My Butt, and Other Big Round Things by Carolyn Mackler (P)
10. Curse of the Blue Tattoo by L.A. Meyer

2003 Winners
YA Group
1. “Faerie Wars” by Herbie Brennan
2. “What Happened to Lani Garver?” (M)
3. “Abhorsen“ by Garth Nix ("Sabriel")
4. “The First Part Last” by Angela Johnson
5. “Tithe: A Modern Faerie Tale” by Holly Black (P)
6. “The Second Summer of the Sisterhood” by Ann Brashares
7. “After” by Francine Prose (M)
8. “Storm Catchers” by Tim Bowler
9. “Once Upon a Marigold” by Jean Ferris
10. “The Thief Lord” by Cornelia Funke
Teen Public
1. "A Wizard Alone: Young Wizards Book 6” by Diane Duane ("So You Want to be a Wizard" Deep in USA)
2. “The Second Summer of the Sisterhood” by Ann Brashares
3. “Tithe: A Modern Faerie Tale” by Holly Black (P)
4. “The Thief Lord” by Cornelia Funke
5. “Abhorsen” by Garth Nix ("Sabriel")
6. “The Book of Wizardry: The Apprentice’s Guide to the Secrets of the Wizards’ Guild” by Cornelius Rumstuckle
7. “Dead Girls Don’t Write Letters” by Gail Giles (B)
9. “True Confessions of a Heartless Girl” by Martha Brooks (B)
10. “America” by E. R. Frank (B)


Where are the books coming from?
(J) = I've donated it
(P) = Peta has donated it.
(B) = Bikki in the USA donated it.

(M) = Mary in the USA donated it

Thanks to all of the people for sending us their books! I've listed their names and countries beside the books they have donated to us.

Cut-throat Celts by Terry Deary

Amazon.com:

The ghastly truth about the wild warrior race who weren't afraid to fight the Romans. The book includes stories about suffering saints, gruesome games for Celtic kids, and the dreadful Druids with their strange sacrifices and terrible trials.

I've said it before and I'll say it again: YOU ARE SO LUCKY. When I was a teenager we didn't have many great books to read and Horrible Histories is just another example of the type of book I would have eaten up if I'd had them around.

Terry Deary is amazing. He is funny and interesting. He really knows how to make history interesting for young readers. He goes after all the shocking stuff and all the disgusting stuff and he tells us his story in a most amusing way.

Martin Brown's illustrations are hilarious. My favourite was the comparison of the Celtic and Roman solidier ready for battle. The Roman is standing there in full armour, covered from head to toe. Next to him is the Celtic warrior, standing naked except for a little fig leaf over his private parts. My son and I laughed so hard when we saw that.

Deary's books get a lot of the facts on the table and he gives us maps and drawings to make things clear. He tells funny little stories about real people. He makes little question lists (followed by answers) and the result is usually shock and awe.

The Celts are an interesting group and well worth reading about. I think I know a little bit more about European history now. At the very least I know that reading about history is good fun!

Scholastic recently had the whole series in a box set. I'm still kicking myself because I didn't buy it. You see, I only recently discoverd Horrible Histories and their amazing creator Terry Deary. Even if you don't like history, I dare you to pick one up. I'm sure you'll find something in there that you'll love.

Terry Deary is a hero for making history exciting and fun for kids (well, and even for us older types). BTW, we now have a signed copy of the Second World War book for our collection! Yay! Stay tuned, I'll try to get more for the SRR as soon as I can.

4.5/5 Stars

I Am Legend by Richard Matheson

Amazon.com:
An SF novel about vampires . . . Robert Neville is the last living man on Earth . . . but he is not alone. Every other man, woman and child on the planet has become a vampire, and they are hungry for Neville's blood. By day he is the hunter, stalking the undead through the ruins of civilisation. By night, he barricades himself in his home and prays for the dawn. How long can one man survive like this?

This was kind of like a zombie book. These vampires are nothing like the Twilight vampires. They are mindless killers much more like the Dawn of the Dead zombies.

I saw the movie a while ago and it was okay. I like Will Smith and I found the story interesting enough. I figured I'd give the book a read and see if it was better than the movie.

Actually, it was much better than the movie. Hollywood made a lot of major changes to the script - almost so many that you wouldn't necessarily connect the movie with the book if they didn't have the same title!

As much as I really enjoyed the story, I found myself a bit disappointed because of the twist at the end. If you read it you will know what I mean. I really liked the beginning and Robert Neville's struggle being the only man left on earth. That was fascinating. I would have enjoyed 300+ pages devoted to Neville's struggle to keep sane in his bizarre situation. I really enjoyed the last half of the book and wanted to see how it was going to play out. The book has 317 pages so I was really geared up for a good, long read. However, when I hit page 170 I discovered that the story had finished. The rest of the book includes a variety of Matheson's short horror stories. In fact the horror stories are quiet good, but I had wanted more of I Am Legend. Oh well.

If you like horror or zombie stories, you'll enjoy this one. I Am Legend was published in 1954 so I think we can consider it as one of the first books of its kind. Even just for that, you can feel like you are biting into a bit of horror story history.

Enjoy.

3.5/5 Stars