I’ve been reading a lot, but not writing a lot, lol. All good! Hope you’re enjoying whatever you’re reading, wherever you’re reading it.

xo

wm

Here is this week’s round-up:

“7 Ate 9: The Untold Story” (Disney-Hyperion, 2017, $13.99). When you have a cousin named Seven, you learn pretty quickly to forget about telling the old joke, Why is six scared of seven? Cuz 7 ate 9! (Get it? Cuz? My cousin 7.) Yeah, that got old fast. Also, my auntie told me, Knock it off! when I’d call their house and ask, Seven up? Lol.

Yeah, it’s the truth. I’m easily entertained. The kids, too, will be entertained by this new children’s book. It’s a little noir-ish — Private “I” investigates when 6 rushes in, his pants scared off of him, because 7 is coming to get him. Sweet drawings, funny story, and it will engage the grown-ups and the kidlets.

“Welcome to Wonderland #1: Home Sweet Motel” & “Welcome to Wonderland #2: Beach Party Surf Monkey,” by Chris Grabenstein, illustrated by Brooke Allen, Random House 2016 & 2017, 284 pages & 300 pages, respectively, books priced at $13.99 each). I’m liking this new series, which is aimed at young adult readers. I know the school librarians will like the hard-bound paperback format, too. P.T. (named for Barnum) Wilkie, and his better-half sidekick, Gloria Ortega, are up for any challenges that come their way. First up: try to save the family business, a beat-up beach motel and amusement park, that P.T.’s grandpa started in Florida.

Can they do it?

In the second book of the series, teen idols and a monkey (who happens to be a YouTube sensation) visit St. Pete Beach, Florida. Hijinks? I’m guessing… yes!

Grabenstein (who writes the Mr. Lemoncello and I Funny books, as well) is always fun to read. I love that his books grab (I really am the queen of bad puns today, ouch) the struggling readers, and the kids who are reading well.

All for now, ciao!

“Incantation,” by Alice Hoffman (Egmont Press, 2006, young adult readers, 173 pages): Estrella DeMadrigal, a young woman living in a small village during the Spanish Inquisition, falls in love, learns her family’s secrets, and tells us her story. This is a gem of a book. I’ve been carrying it around in my backpack for close to a year, reading a chapter or two at a time, feeling like a thief, glimpsing into someone else’s life. Not mine.

“‘We are leaving and that’s that. Never look at other people’s bad fortune,’ my mother said. ‘If you do, it will come back to find you instead of its rightful owner.'”

And my favorite quote from the book:

“You cannot disprove the ridiculous. You cannot argue reasonably with evil.”

And now, on to something really goofy. (How’s that for shifting gears?) Only, for real, there is no way to segue into this next book, cuz it’s nutty mcbuddy. Or, “Funny as hell,” says Amy Morrison, founder of “Pregnant Chicken.”

Ready?

“The Big Fat Activity Book for Pregnant People,” by Jordan Reid & Erin Williams (Penguin Random House, 2017, $16, 172 pages). It’s very…. “Free to Be, You & Me,” this book. If “Free to Be” mated with “The Joy of Sex,” which I guess it did, in the ’70s, and that’s my generation, and here we are, not running the country, man, because some orange clown is in charge.

You wave at clowns in parades, people, you don’t vote for one and let him run the country.

Where was I going with this?

This book is hysterical and weird and I must say, you should buy it for the pregnant mommies you know or new parents and let them go nuts and have a laugh. Coloring sheets! Puzzles! Mad Libs!

“The Pinterest Nursery,” yes, which makes us realize “that we are wildly inadequate in virtually every area of our existence.”

“some divine secrets about your baby”: astrological info gone somewhat wacky. ie — “Cancers love things that are old. They also love garbage and refuse to throw away anything, including grandmothers, which is nice.”

My favorite: “Welcome to the Land of Being Amazing”

Great book. I’m not even pregnant (I thank God for that, daily) and I still enjoyed it. Mazel tov, new parents. You can do it.

“Joy in Every Moment,” by Tzivia Gover (Storey Publishing, 2015, $12.95, 219 pages): Ahhhhhh… I’ve been loving on this book for about two years now, since it came out. Daily affirmations and a lot more.

It’s divided into sections on joy — all day long, at home, at work, on the go and so on. It’s a sweet book, I’m enjoying it.

“Keep a green tree in your heart and perhaps a singing bird will come.” — Chinese Proverb

(That’s what I’m saying.)

Bon appetit, babies.

wm

“Dream,” by Matthew Cordell (Disney-Hyperion, 2017, $16.99): Cordell is an old favorite of mine (“hello! hello!”, “Special Delivery,” “Wish” and other titles.) He has a nice style. Approachable. This one, just in time for Father’s Day, is about a gorilla family, so happy to be together. “I dreamed of the many stars in your small eyes. Of the music in your voice surrounding everything, everyone, everywhere.” Beautiful story, lovely art, and a gentle touch.

“Lead the Way,” by Ace Landers, illustrated by Garrett Taylor. (Inspired by the “Cars” movies, Disney Press, 2017, $16.99): This inspirational book for the younger set is sweet. You need “somebody who reminds you that when you can’t do something right the FIRST time, KEEP PRACTICING. YOU’LL GET IT EVENTUALLY.” OK, the ALL CAPS make me wanna tear the pages out and tack them up on the wall, but THAT’S OK. We all need a little inspiration sometimes. :)

“Feminist Baby,” by Loryn Brantz (Disney-Hyperion, 2017, $12.99): Here’s a wacky little board book about an “irrepressible” feminist baby. Oh, yes she is. Don’t mess with her. She loves to dance, says no to pants, likes pink and blue, and “sometimes she’ll throw up on you!” Well, there you have it.

“Welcome: A Mo Willems Guide for New Arrivals” (Hyperion Books for Children, 2017, $15.99): You know my (imaginary) friend Mo Willems, don’t you? Piggie and Elephant and that crowd? Here’s a title that’s a little unusual. This board book contains not one, but two mirrors, and lots of sweet and serious sentiments for the new arrivals. “You are a unique combination of Love + Time + Luck” and… “We anticipate that you will encounter both drawings of cats and actual cats during your stay. And not just cats. There are: MOUNTAINS + FRIENDS + BAGELS + INFINITE REMARKABLE THINGS.” #truth. Additionally, I love that Mo Willems’ bio on the back cover describes him as “a former baby, now a New York Times #1 best-selling author and illustrator.” Give this one for a baby present, or for any other occasion. It’s different, fun and original.

“Night Night, Groot,” written by Brendan Deneen, with pictures by Cale Atkinson (Marvel, 2017, $12.99): This is a “Guardians of the Galaxy” thing, I am told. It’s cool, even though 1) I don’t really know how “cool” is defined anymore. I’m still calling this “cool.” The art is lively, the story is good, and I think the kiddos will enjoy it.

I stashed this away and just found it :)

wm

blog post
4/14/17

How’s about some books, kids? Turn off the computer. I mean it. Power that tablet down and leave it to charge. Hide your phone in the drawer and grab something to read that doesn’t require a battery, just your brain.

“The Gumamazing Gum Girl! GUM LUCK” (by Rhode Montijo, with Luke Reynolds; Disney-Hyperion Books; on sale June 13, 2017; ages 6-8; 160 pages; $14.99.) Gabby Gomez is here to take you with her on some adventures. Are you ready? We’ll start with the scratch-n-sniff cover. Yum. Now, on to the adventures… Last time with Gabby, she saved a passenger plane with her bare hands. (“The Gumazing Gum Girl: Chews Your Destiny.”) This time? A school field trip is involved, and perhaps a trip to the dentist for Gum Girl. Did I mention that the dentist is her father? And he doesn’t know that his daughter is a superhero? Dun, dun, dun… The pink/black/white color scheme is great, the illustrations are pretty much perfect, and the story is lively. The villain? Hates gum. Spanish and English? No hay problema, there is no problem, we go back and forth between the two languages. I think you’ll like this one.

Next up:

“How to Behave So Your Dog Behaves” (by Sophia Yin, D.V.M.; T.F.H. Publications, Inc.; 2004; 244 pages). OK, I haven’t actually finished reading this one yet, this amazing, well-written how-to book. (I’m a few chapters in.) I have tried, valiantly, and failed, miserably, to get through it. Actually? I gave it to my friend Max, who doesn’t even need it because his dog is super well-behaved. I left it for my kids to read (before I gave up and gave the book away). They ignored it, too. We are bad dog owners at our house. It’s true. For example, I just put poor wild dingo in her crate (after taking her outside, bringing her back in… four times… feeding and brushing her, loving on her), just so I could write.

Her’s a good girl, but a little nutty.

She won’t come when we call. She slips her leash, collar and halter like she’s canine Houdini. She growls at everyone. She thinks Chase-the-Cat is the best game she’s ever invented. We watched that movie, “Marley & Me”? She makes that dog look like a damn amateur. Every night, she’s sprawled out in the middle of my bed, snoring and being adorable. She bats her eyelashes at you. She is pretty.

She looks like a deer, with those long legs. “Is she a polar bear?” the kids ask. “A dingo? A monkey? A cow? A little lamb? Or… a wolverine?”

Who knows.

I might take a nap after this, though, because having a dog in the house wears me the hell out. She’s a puppy, she just turned a year old. She’s a yellow lab/golden retriever mutt. She weighs a lot so far. Sixty-five pounds or so? Most likely due to the fact that she likes to eat, oh, how she likes to eat, just about anything. Oyster shells, an entire plate of brownies, anything from the garbage/the floor/the counters. As much Purina One as we’re willing to dole out. The entire drip line irrigation system from the back yard, her toys (especially the rope pulls. She will eat an entire one of those, no problem).

I love her. Dog, I promise to borrow the dog book back from Max, I promise to try to figure out how to behave. Let’s keep working on it.

And last, but certainly not least:

“Vampirina at the Beach,” written by Countess Anne Marie Pace, illustrated by Mistress of the Night LeUyen Pham. (No, I did not make that up, it’s what they put on the cover.) (Disney-Hyperion Books, 2017, 40 pages, ages 3-5, $16.99.) (Sequel to “Vampirina Ballerina” and “Vampirina Ballerina Hosts a Sleepover.”)

This one is dedicated to Kevin: “…the werewolf who taught our vampire girl not only to dance, but to fly.”

I kind of have a soft spot for book dedications, and that one is particularly nice.

Vampirina’s family looks a little like the Munsters, or the Addams Family, so that’s cool. They drive around in a hearse. They head to the beach! It’s a full moon, and they’re going to make a night of it. I’m enamored of this book, it’s pretty adorable. The colors are bright and pop off the page; the story is engaging; our heroine is a darling.

Bon appetit, babies! More reading, more, I say. Just do it.

xo

wm

“If Your Monster Won’t Go to Bed,” illustrated by Zachariah Ohora, written by Denise Vega, Knopf Books for Young Readers, 2017, $17.99, ages 3-7): “‘Time for bed!’ Who hates those words more than anything? That’s right. Your monster.” Parents know a lot about putting human kids to bed, but not monsters. Welcome to the land of nightmares and toss-the-slime-ball. The blocky, bright illustrations make this an appealing, and funny, read.

“Say Bonjour to the Lady: Parenting from Paris to New York,” by Florence Mars and Pauline Leveque, Clarkson Potter, 2017, $19.99): Cute, and divided into categories that include Greetings, Style & Beauty, Playtime, and Parties & Holidays. Mars had a French upbringing and is now a Brooklyn girl; Leveque, who practices a more “American style” of parenting, lives in Manhattan. Parisian-style: “Don’t eat with your hands!* You’re not a baby. *Exceptions: bread, asparagus, and artichokes.” American-style: “Go ahead and eat with your hands — whatever is easiest for you.” Beautiful line drawings, and a light sense of humor throughout.

“The Book of You, for My Child, with Love,” by Kate and David Marshall, Plume/Penguin Random House, 2017, 73 pages, $15): Darling baby book/coloring book/journal for those months before and after baby arrives. Just the right size to write and draw in, and not so precious that new parents will be intimidated by it.

Chick books. More, mas, more, mas, more…

“Under the Tuscan Sun” (and the Diane Lane movie), book by Frances Mayes: Now, my girlfriends say we can’t count this one as a true “getting through divorce” book, because Mayes was technically already remarried when she ran off to Italy, got a cool new (trashed) place, complete with scorpions, etc., and started over. But I’m still counting it. It’s got that sisters are doing it for themselves vibe and all, and “i get by/with a little help/from my friends” is fine with me. In the movie, her character is single and blah-blah. Whatever. The book (and the recipes) and the movie are all good.

“Eat, Pray, Love” (and the Julia Roberts/Javier Bardem movie), book by Elizabeth Gilbert: So sexy. And all that pasta. All that meditation. All that good nooky when Javier Bardem shows up. Ahhhh… Good book, good movie, good God, can we all run off somewhere for awhile?

“Brave Enough,” by Cheryl Strayed: I’m finding this little book of affirmations to be helpful.

“You Are a Badass,” by Jen Sincero: My kid gave me this book for Christmas because she loves mommy. I’m not really big on self-help books (although you’d never know it, reading this post), but this is a cool book. Helpful, not preachy; funny, but sincere.

Bon appetit, babies.

xo

wm

“What didn’t you do to bury me / But you forgot that I was a seed.” — Dinos Christianopoulos, poet (b. 20 Mar 1931)

This one won’t be out until end of June, but I received galleys in the mail for review, woot! (I donate the galleys to teacher friends, who use the art for bulletin boards. This works out nicely.) “Fall is For School,” written and illustrated by Robert Neubecker (Disney-Hyperion Books; June, 2017; ages 3-5; 32 pages; $17.99). This is the sequel to Neubecker’s “Winter is for Snow.” Another one to look for: “Keith Haring: The Boy Who Just Kept Drawing,” written by Kay Haring, and illustrated by Neubecker.

Fall is time for school, and most kids (and parents :) ) look forward to it. But what do you do, sister, when your brother hates school and says he’d rather stay home? This is a sweet “New York kids” book, with loads of color. The red-headed siblings are a likable pair — the sister, already dressed in her school clothes; the brother, refusing to change out of flip-flops and shorts. How can she coax him?

“Fall is here! Come on with me! It’s time to go to school!”

He’s having none of it. But they will meet their teachers, who will help them learn about Romans, the pyramids and… (this being New York and all)… dinosaurs! (Thank you, American Museum of Natural History.) Great book. Fun story, the art is whimsical and inviting, and will give parents and teachers a good way to segue into a discussion.

Visit the artist online at neubecker.com.

“Poppy Louise is NOT Afraid of Anything,” by Jenna McCarthy, illustrated by Molly Idle (Random House Books for Young Readers; April, 2017; ages 3-7; $16.99) When students tell me their favorite colors (and ask me what mine are), I immediately say, purpleandgreen. Purple and green have been my favorite colors since I was a kid. Flowers, gardens, landscapes, clothes, jelly beans… Now comes “Poppy Louise,” with a purple-and-green theme, so you know it’s good.

She really, really, even though she should be, sometimes, is not scared of anything, much to the consternation of her friends and her big sister Petunia.

“How do we get up on your roof?” she asks her friend Finn.
“We don’t,” Finn tells her.

I love storytimes when the kids cut in, Ms. Nancy, that is not a good idea, is it? No, it’s not. Finn is right to work on his rocketship and leave the roof alone, lol.

“People call Poppy the brave sister and Petunia the careful sister. Petunia prefers to think of herself as wise.”

Is there anything Poppy is afraid of? Read on and we’ll find out.

Jenna McCarthy also wrote the Maggie Malone series. Molly Idle is a Caldecott Honor winner for “Flora and the Flamingo.”

“When God Made You,” by Matthew Paul Turner, illustrated by David Catrow (WaterBrook & Multnomah, 2017, juvenile fiction, 48 pages, $11.99) Yay, more purple and green! A little girl, searching for her place in the world, is told:

“God pictured your nose and all ten of your toes. The sound of your voice? God had it composed. The lines on your hands, your hair, every strand, God knew every detail like it was all planned.”

God is there, throughout the book. He’s a hipster, wearing a beret and a scruffy white T-shirt, Capris, white tights and red ballerina slippers. Perfecto.

Mr. Turner’s website is at MatthewPaulTurner.com; David Catrow’s is here. (He has illustrated a ton of great stuff, including the Molly Lou Melon books.)

Happy Monday, everyone, happy spring! And happy reading.

xo

wm

This one isn’t coming out until June 20, but keep it in mind: “The Teacher’s Pet,” by Anica Mrose Rissi, illustrated by Zachariah OHora (Disney-Hyperion Books, ages 3-5, 40 pages, $17.99).

Mr. Stricter and his students are breeding tadpoles. Once they’re grown, they can keep just one for a classroom pet, he tells them. But… pets and classrooms have a way of getting interesting. Bruno, their pet, (“Isn’t he adorable?” Mr. Stricter asks) smashes, crashes, farts, has allergies and maybe isn’t the best classroom pet. And he doesn’t really look like a tadpole at all. What?!?

How can the students break it to Mr. Stricter?

Funny story, one that will be great for a classroom or library read-aloud, of course, but will be a good one, too, for parents and kids of all ages. (Not limited to ages 3-5.) The ’60s-style art is whimsical and pretty. An engaging picture book.

Speaking of pretty art… “I Love My Grandma,” written by Giles Andreae, illustrated by Emma Dodd (Disney-Hyperion Books, 2016, ages 3-5, 32 pages, $17.99) is another lovely picture book. It’s a rhyming book, with great, big vivid pictures in soft colors. “I go ’round to her house to play/And sometimes we just chat all day.” (Love.) A sweet tribute to the special relationship to grandmas and their grands.

Alicia Padron illustrated Danica McKellar’s latest math/picture book, “Goodnight Numbers” (Crown Books for Young Readers, 2017, ages 2-5, 32 pages, $16.99). (Winnie Cooper from the television show, “The Wonder Years,” yes, that’s who wrote this :) She acted, and then she went off to graduate summa cum laude in mathematics from UCLA, go, go, go, Winnie!) Absolutely charming picture book, which will comfort the littles as they unwind for the night, while teaching them basic math concepts.

The art is precious, Padron did a beautiful job. The “frames” within each page are an extra nudge with the math. (The number 7 page, for example, “Goodnight, seven days. Goodnight,whole week. Goodnight, seven teeth so clean they squeak,” for the words, but you also get a cat toy with seven baubles attached, a picture on the wall with seven strawberries, seven buttons on mother’s skirt, and so on. Clever. That kind of repetition enforces the counting, the memorization, and the comprehension of math.

All for now! Enjoy your day, wherever you are.

— WM

Locked myself out of my blog, but here I am, back in. The breadmaker broke. Everything breaks at once (“when it rains/it pours”) — the fence, the breadmaker, the thermostat outside that tells us inside how cold/hot it is, the carpets are trashed, the puppy ate the entire irrigation system in the backyard, which didn’t work all that well, anyway, truth be told, and on and on.

I thought I’d use Steve’s recipe for homemade bread, couldn’t find it, then I remembered we wrote this cookbook and there it was. Only it’s too hard, I hadn’t remembered that until I saw it again.

But right next to it… my bread recipe. That I don’t even remember at all. I don’t remember baking it, writing it down, including it in the cookbook, nothing. But there it was, here it is, it’s simple and rises fast and the 2 loaves I baked turned out awesome.

So my kid, who only loves only homemade bread, and always has, is happy. I’m happy about that, and other stuff. Spring. Our crazy puppy. My other kid is happy, too. One kid is out walking the dog right now, the other is playing video games. Later, we’ll go for dinner with friends.

Things will settle down someday. In the meantime, I write, and bake bread.

Some things don’t change.

xo wm

Whole Wheat Oatmeal Bread

Dissolve 2 tablespoons yeast in 2 cups warm water; leave for five minutes
Stir in 1/2 cup sugar or honey
Add one cup oats
Add 3/4 cup vegetable oil
Mix in 2 eggs
Add 2 cups white flour & 3 cups whole wheat flour, stirring in as you go. Depending on the weather, you might need a little more or a little less flour
Add in 2 teaspoons salt as you stir

Turn onto floured bread board. Knead nine or ten times.

Put into greased bowl, cover with towel, put it somewhere that’s not too cold, not too hot, not too drafty, and let rise until double in size.

Grease pans or cooking sheets, form dough into 2 loaves of bread or 24 rolls.
Leave again and let rise until doubled.
Bake at 375 degrees until nice and brown and yummy. Brush with butter when done.

Bon appetit, babies!
wm

“A Night Full of Talking”

— Rumi