When someone sends me a case of books… oh, my gosh. The exhilaration, the joy, the goofiness that is involved, daily, with being a book geek… yeah. I loved when those Scholastic Book Club orders would show up, when I was a kid (and later, there were the Scholastic Book Fairs with my own kids, and my own fairs that I ran when I was a librarian). Ah, books. So that’s how I have felt a lot lately, when the mail shows up. :)

All photos by me :) Except I think the butterfly pic is by B, because how could I take my own pic with a butterfly on my arm? Lol.

That’s a blue butterfly on Marys Peak in Corvallis. One of the endangered Fender’s Blues? Or one of the less-endangered ones? Who knows. Pretty, though.

First up: A review I needed to do months ago when this awesome cool book landed in the mailbox. “Miles Morales: Spider-Man,” by Jason Reynolds, cover by Kadir Nelson (Marvel, 2017, 261 pages, $17.99). Great book about a school-age young man who is smart, funny, loves his family, has fun with his best friend, is crushing out on a pretty poet in his class, puts up with school and the drama there and oh, yeah. He’s Spider-Man. Which is kind of a pain.

This book is a mystery, a story about a superhero, a love story, a family drama, and it’s all about poetry, too. It is poetry. Also? Brooklyn! (I like the Brooklyn/New York kid books. You know.) (And the cover is one beautiful work of art. Love Kadir Nelson, love.) You’ll like it. Reynolds’ other books include “When I Was the Greatest,” “The Boy in the Black Suit,” “All American Boys” and several others.

That’s a lovely sunset at Coronado Shores, Gleneden Beach, Oregon coast. I miss living there, but you can’t have it all, babies. Where would you put it?

“Hilo: Waking the Monsters,” written and illustrated by Judd Winik (Random House Children’s Books, 2018, ages 8-12, 208 pages, $9.99). If you like the “Bone” series (or “Big Nate,” or “Diary of a Wimpy Kid”) you are going to love this graphic novel (this is Book 4 in the series). Hilo and his sidekick Gina are going to save the world, so watch out.

My old front yard at the beach house, with gunnera plant (elephant ears) on front right.

Marvel’s “Grow Up, Ant-Man!” (written by Brandon T. Snider, illustrated by Jessika von Innerebner, Marvel, 2018, $12.99) is a picture book for the littles. Super fun, bright colors, and will hold the kiddos’ interest. Cassie’s dad, Ant-Man, is a little wild. She’d like him to grow up, but she would also like him to play in her dollhouse and have a tea party with her. So there’s some conflict. Lol.

All for now, babies.

WM