Tuesday, December 2, 2014

Truly Great To Read Aloud...With A Slightly Older Audience

How They Croaked
By Georgia Bragg
Illustrated by Kevin O'Malley

Okay, this isn't REALLY holiday reading, BUT...it's a great way to get together with the older kiddies in your homestead AND learn some really cool history AND read out loud like you did when they were 2! My kids are 13 and 14 and we would read one person a night after dinner. They got to choose the awfully famous and I got to read their awful end. The book is not written like the horribly dry history books that they trudge through in school. This is exciting stuff with puss and fat and beheadings and blood-lettings and all kinds of creepy "cures" doctors back then would put the critically ill through. The book also features some of the most famous folks in history from King Tut to Julius Caesar to George Washington to Albert Einstein. Even the not-so-terribly-famous like James Garfield who we all were quoted as saying "Who?". By the way, he's a president. By the way, he laid around with an infected bullet wound while his doctor's tried to find it/pry it out...with their fingers. Bottom line, it's a fun read for everyone and a great way to get the teens off the phones and video games. You may not only share a few laughs, but walk away with a few more history smarticle particles.

Upcoming - How They Choked!! Can't wait!!

Friday, November 28, 2014

Collection For Local Families

Collection for Local Families

Part of being part of a community is stepping up and helping out your fellow neighbors. Just like small businesses, everyone has a story. Maybe good fortune, having the right contacts, being in the right place at the right time or maybe just pure luck. Others, may have been in your shoes, but because of bad luck, circumstances, or just because "stuff happens" now find themselves struggling

I have put together a gofundme request, if you are in a situation to help, great, if you can't help, that's OK as well. 
The money collected will be to purchase a Secret Santa gift of food for the holidays. It's not going to be for toys or gifts, there are other ways that families can request assistance.

Once we reach the funding limit of $300, we will purchasing and delivering the food anonymously to the family.

If you have kids that would like to help with the food shopping or delivery, let me know, we would like to get them involved as well

Feel free to give $1 or $10 or $100, there is no minimum.

gofundme.com/hm7tsk

Just remember, you might be in this situation someday and would love to have the help.

This campaign is being sponsored by Ken Kennedy and Edgewater Books!

Escape From Mr. Limoncello's Library

Escape From Mr. Lemoncello's Library
By Chris Grabenstein

Since the last book review was not-so-good, I have to follow it up with a better one. Escape From Mr. Lemoncello's Library by Chris Grabenstein is fantastic!!! Thoroughly enjoyed reading this one!! It is a nominee for the MD Black-Eyed Susan award for grades 4-6 and I think it has a great chance at winning. It's fun. It's comical. It's just a good read.

It about a huge board game mogul who builds a state-of-the-arts library in his home town. Through an essay contest, a group of students are awarded a sleepover in the library before it's open to the public. When the kids wake up the next morning, they are given an ultimatum...they can choose to leave or stay and play a game and win the grand prize. The gist of the game is to find an escape route (that's not the front entrance) out of the library in 24 hours. All the clues they need are in the library.

The clues were extremely clever and I got a chance to freshen up on my Dewey decimal skills. The characters are not unlike anyone you would find at any school or in any neighborhood which made the story believable. The high-techness was way cool too! I would LOVE to have a library like that here! I give Escape From Mr. Lemoncello's Library two thumbs up! If I had a third thumb, then that would not only be weird, but it would be up as well. Ya gotta read it!!

The Shock of the Fall

The Shock of the Fall
By Nathan Filer

This was my November new book read and for the first time in reading advanced copies...I wasn't thrilled. In fact, I still haven't finished this book.

The Shock of the Fall was originally published in November 2013 under the title Where the Moon Isn't and it didn't fair too well. The publisher gave it a new name and cover and republished it hoping that it would do better. I totally respect trying to give a book a second chance especially when you think it may do better, but in this case...well, who knows. Maybe I didn't get it. The structure of the book is rather choppy. There are really no defined chapters and it's just a bunch of pieces stacked together. This makes it's very hard to read. The idea behind the book is rather sketchy as well. So far what I've gotten out of it is that the main character's brother, Simon, suddenly passed away during a family vacation. The book does say that Simon had a disorder and went to a special school, but I never really got what his disorder was. Either I missed it or it wasn't really stated, but I really don't know how he died either. In any case, it really messed up the main character, Matthew, as well as his family. The book seems to be about dealing with this sudden loss. Upon arriving home from the family vacation, they have to deal with the reminders of Simon.  Matthew, is taken out of school and seems to be crazy protected by his mother who he states is "mad" (like in the crazy sense and not the angry sense). In some parts of the book, Matthew is talking about nurses and I'm thinking he spends some time in a mental ward, but that's not really stated either.

I'm incredibly apologetic, but I can't give you much more than this. Honestly, I couldn't really recommend this book. I thought the title was as intriguing as the cover, but it was a bit disappointing. I'll keep trying to get through it and if I change my mind, I'll let ya know.

Friday, October 31, 2014

Pink

Pink
By Janet A. Holmes

Goodreads Summary

Lily loves all things pink-her boots, her bicycle, the food she eats-but she has no one to share them with. She begs an assortment of animals to play with her, but none of them is quite right. The snail is too slow, the chicken is too silly and the goat eats her clothes. Then along comes a perfect friend … who is perfectly pink, too!

Thursday, October 30, 2014

Pink Pages

Pink Pages
By Sarah Delmege

Goodreads Summary

A Girl's Directory to all things Fun

Wednesday, October 29, 2014

Pink Elephant

Pink Elephant
By Rachel McKibbens

Goodreads Summary

Poetry. PINK ELEPHANT is Rachel McKibbens' collection of beautifully crafted, emotionally searing poems depicting the fractured mythology of a family's tumultuous life. Picking up where Plath and Sexton have left off, McKibbens threatens the comfortable confines of confessional poetry with a take-no-prisoners surrealist and super-real edge. By creating a folklore out of brutality and violence (borne from misplaced or absent love) McKibbens ultimately locates both love and forgiveness, fearlessly placing them in their rightful home. McKibbens' PINK ELEPHANT is an audacious debut.

Tuesday, October 28, 2014

Nothing Pink

Nothing Pink
By Mark Hardy

Goodreads Summary

Vincent has always known, deep down inside, that he was gay. He was fine with that. The problem was that his faith told him he was a sinner and damned to hell. Every Sunday after Vincent's father preached his sermon and called on his flock to come to the altar and accept salvation Vincent tried but it never helped.

Monday, October 27, 2014

Tickled Pink

Tickled Pink
By Christina Jones

Goodreads Summary

A large village somewhere in Britain, with church, pub, shop, school and bus shelter for the young to hang about in, its people coming to terms with life and work in the new century, and three maverick characters give Christina Jones the opportunity to create a vivid, frequently hilarious, sometime poignant picture of unusual partnerships and changing small town life.

Posy Nightingale, Lola Wentworth and Flynn Malone are strangers to each other and all seem to be in losing situations, but their chance coming together in a struggling B&B gives each of them an unlikely opportunity Will they have the guts to take it?

Saturday, October 25, 2014

The Thin Pink Line

The Thin Pink Line
By Lauren Baratz-Logstead

Goodreads Summary

Jane Taylor is pregnant. Only, not in the conventional sense. It all began when Jane missed her period. Whether it was the clouds in the sky or a major case of pregnancy envy (this year's concern), Jane doesn't know. She only knows that she told her best male friend, and began to believe it. Until she got her period and realized she never was. Pregnant.

But that brief glimpse into the other world -- the world of smiling faces and courteous men -- was just too beautiful not to be a part of . . .and so Jane told a little white lie to her live-in boyfriend, and crossed the line. With the help of a pink Magic Marker she closed the gap that separated her from the positively perfect pregos.

Enter Jane's world, one of deception and success, Mr. Wrong and Mr. Right, Nutrition Police and tilted uteruses, baby showers and celebrity obstetricians. As Jane spins closer to her due date, she's got a lot of soul-searching to do -- not to mention an appointment with reality . . .

Friday, October 24, 2014

Pink Slip Party

Pink Slip Party
By Cara Lockwood

Goodreads Summary

She's been handed her walking papers. 
Jane McGregor has just been laid off from her job designing pink slips for an office supply company. The irony is not lost on her. She's a twenty-eight-year-old art major whose last major career accomplishment was being propositioned by the company vice president. Desperate to maintain her freedom from her oddball parents, tyrannical older brother, and slacker ex-boyfriend, Jane starts sending out resumes. So what if some of them aren't exactly, well, true. 

She's taking the future in stride. 
When Jane's dad, a staunchly conservative believer in the corporate dream, loses his job, and her mom goes to work for a trendy dot com, Jane discovers that the family she's taken for granted is unraveling. After a fellow lay-off victim hatches a plot to seek revenge on the office supply company, Jane must choose between living in the past and seeking out a new future. To her surprise, that future might involve a most unlikely partner in crime -- handsome, funny Kyle Burton -- and maybe, just maybe, a new job, too.

Thursday, October 23, 2014

Deadly Pink

Deadly Pink
By Vivian Vande Velde

Goodreads Summary

Grace Pizzelli is the average one, nothing like her brilliant older sister, Emily, who works for Rasmussem, creators of the world’s best virtual reality games. The games aren’t real, though—or at least they weren’t. Now Emily has hidden herself inside a pink and sparkly game meant for little girls. No one knows why, or how to convince her to come back out, and the technology can’t keep her safe for much longer. Grace may consider herself average, but she’s the only one who can save Emily. So Grace enters the game, hoping to talk her sister out of virtual suicide before time runs out. Otherwise Emily will die—for real.

Wednesday, October 22, 2014

Pink Slip

Pink Slip
By Rita Ciresi

Goodreads Summary

Lisa Diodetto's mother may be ready for her to get married but Lisa isn't. 

At her sister's wedding she ducks when the bridal bouquet comes floating her way, and the only "eligible bachelor" in Lisa's life is her beloved gay cousin, Dodie.

Ditching her life as an underpaid, oversexed publishing drone in Manhattan, Lisa takes a lucrative spot at a more conservative company, and begins writing--on company time--a novel that pokes fun at corporate life. 

Enter Lisa's main character: her new boss, Eben Strauss. A man of manners and caution, Strauss manages to bring out the best bad girl in Lisa. And before they know it, two very different people from two very different worlds are doing the one thing you should never do at the office: falling in love.

In her funny, familiar, heartbreaking new novel, the award-winning author of Blue Italian weaves a tale of family, work, sex, and love--and of all the things we try to leave behind but never really can. . . .

Tuesday, October 21, 2014

Pink

Pink
By Nan Gregory

Goodreads Summary

Vivi is dizzy with wanting pink — the kind the rich girls have, beyond the budget of her beloved truck driver dad. One day in the window of a fancy toy store she sees something that’s just right — a bride doll in a dress of perfect glistening pink. Vivi wants it more than anything. She saves and saves for it, walking the neighbors’ dog and running errands for them. However when she takes her parents to show them the precious doll, something surprising happens. Nan Gregory's touching story about what’s really important features vibrant images by illustrator Luc Melanson.

Monday, October 20, 2014

One Pink Line

One Pink Line
By Dina Silver

Goodreads Summary

Can the love of a lifetime be forever changed by one pink line? Dina Silver's tender, absorbing novel, One Pink Line, is a warmhearted, wry story of love, loss and family, as seen through the prism of one singular, spirited young couple who find themselves in a predicament that changes the course of their lives, and those closest to them. With heart, humor and compassion, this debut work of women's fiction is certain to stir anyone who relishes a good laugh, can stand a good cry, and, above all believes in the redemptive power of love.

This unique, contemporary story gives readers a dual perspective. Sydney Shephard, a sweet-tempered, strong-natured college senior is young, in love with an exceptional man, and unexpectedly pregnant. Faced with a child she never planned for, she is forced to relay this news to her neurotic mother, relinquish her youth, and risk losing the love of her life. Then there's Grace, a daughter, who believed she was a product of this great love, grows to realize her existence is not what she assumed, and is left with profound and puzzling questions about who she really is.

Spanning generations and every imaginable emotion, One Pink Line reveals how two points of view can be dramatically at odds, and perhaps ultimately reconciled. Simultaneously deeply felt and lighthearted, One Pink Line deftly mines how the choices we make are able to alter so many lives, and how doing the right thing and living honestly can bring unexpected, hard-won happiness. It's a must-read for anyone who craves a great love story, absorbing characters, and plenty of laughs along the way.

Sunday, October 19, 2014

My Life in Pink and Green

My Life in Pink and Green
By Lisa Greenwald

Goodreads Summary

Twelve-year-old Lucy Desberg is a natural problem solver. After the local homecoming queen shows up at her family’s struggling drugstore with a beauty disaster that Lucy helps to fix, Lucy has a long line of makeover customers for every school dance and bat mitzvah. But all the makeup tips in the world won’t help save the pharmacy. If only she could find a way to make the pharmacy the center of town again—a place where people want to spend time, like in the old days. Lucy dreams up a solution that could resuscitate the family business and help the environment, too. But will Lucy’s family stop fighting long enough to listen to a seventh-grader?

This book is a funny and sweet debut featuring an unforgettable narrator who knows what she wants, whether it’s great makeup, a killer business plan, or a better world.

Saturday, October 18, 2014

Pink

Pink
By Gus Van Sant

Goodreads Summary

Gus Van Sant goes from auteur to author in an brilliant, inventive, and endlessly entertaining first novel that reads like a Warholian mix of Kurt Vonnegut and Tom Robbins.

In the town of Sasquatch, Oregon, Spunky Davis, middle-aged maker of infomercials, is trying to find his next assignment, finish the screenplay that he hopes will bring him Hollywood glory, and deal with the death of his friend and favorite infomercial presenter, teen idol Felix Arroyo. Enter two young aspiring filmmakers, Jack and Matt, whom Spunky finds strangely familiar--especially as Jack bears an uncanny resemblance to the late Felix. But Jack and Matt are not what they appear to be; they are messengers from a dimension beyond time known as Pink, and they invite Spunky to join them on their voyage of transcendence and recovery.

Using a delirious array of voices signified by different typefaces, a flip cartoon that animates the novel's action, footnotes and line drawings, Gus Van Sant turns the novel into an explosively visual experience, a captivating combination of texture and text. As original and involving as any of Van Sant's films, Pink is both a hip, comic deconstruction of our image-obsessed culture and a genuinely tender story on the classic themes of love, time, and loss.

Friday, October 17, 2014

Pink and Say

Pink and Say
By Patricia Polacco

Goodreads Summary

There are few picture books written about the Civil War, and none are as powerful as this one. This story, about how a young black soldier rescues a white soldier, opens young readers' eyes to the injustices of slavery and the senselessness of war. Highly charged emotionally, this masterful retelling of a true story is seen through the white soldier's eyes.

Thursday, October 16, 2014

The Secret History of the Pink Carnation

The Secret History of the Pink Carnation
By Lauren Willig

Goodreads Summary

Deciding that true romantic heroes are a thing of the past, Eloise Kelly, an intelligent American who always manages to wear her Jimmy Choo suede boots on the day it rains, leaves Harvard's Widener Library bound for England to finish her dissertation on the dashing pair of spies the Scarlet Pimpernel and the Purple Gentian. What she discovers is something the finest historians have missed: a secret history that begins with a letter dated 1803. Eloise has found the secret history of the Pink Carnation the most elusive spy of all time, the spy who single-handedly saved England from Napoleon's invasion.
The Secret History of the Pink Carnation, a wildly imaginative and highly adventurous debut, opens with the story of a modern-day heroine but soon becomes a book within a book. Eloise Kelly settles in to read the secret history hoping to unmask the Pink Carnation's identity, but before she can make this discovery, she uncovers a passionate romance within the pages of the secret history that almost threw off the course of world events. How did the Pink Carnation save England? What became of the Scarlet Pimpernel and the Purple Gentian? And will Eloise Kelly find a hero of her own?

Wednesday, October 15, 2014

Pepita Thinks Pink

Pepita Thinks Pink
By Ofelia Dumas Lachtman

Goodreads Summary

Pepita does not like the color pink and is dismayed to learn that it is the favorite color of the pink little girl who moves in next door.

Tuesday, October 14, 2014

Under The Pink

Under The Pink
By Tori Amos

Goodreads Summary

Deluxe folio, with color photos, notes from Tori, and her renditions of each song. Includes: Pretty Good Year, God, Cornflake Girl, Icicle, Cloud On My Tongue, Space Dog, Yes Anastasia, and two bonus songs not on the album: All The Girls Hate Her and Over It.

Monday, October 13, 2014

Pink Is Just A Color and so Is Blue

Pink Is Just A Color and so Is Blue
By Niki Bhatia

Goodreads Summary

17 of Today’s Best Selling Authors in Young Adult, New Adult & Romance came together to support Breast Cancer Research. 

Proceeds from the sale of this book will be donated towards Fifty Shades of Pink Avon Breast Cancer Team- Santa Barbara, CA. 

FIFTY SHADES OF PINK team participates in the 2 Day, 39.3 miles Breast Cancer Walk in beautiful Santa Barbara, CA. For one weekend- we wake up at 5am, deal with blisters the size of mountains, body aches (from body parts we should never ach from) and become one big family with the other thousands of walkers. We do this all in hopes that no other Mother, Sister, Aunt or Friend will have to deal with Breast Cancer.

Sunday, October 12, 2014

Pink Shades of Words

Pink Shades of Words
By J. L. Berg

Goodreads Summary

17 of Today’s Best Selling Authors in Young Adult, New Adult & Romance came together to support Breast Cancer Research. 

Proceeds from the sale of this book will be donated towards Fifty Shades of Pink Avon Breast Cancer Team- Santa Barbara, CA. 

FIFTY SHADES OF PINK team participates in the 2 Day, 39.3 miles Breast Cancer Walk in beautiful Santa Barbara, CA. For one weekend- we wake up at 5am, deal with blisters the size of mountains, body aches (from body parts we should never ach from) and become one big family with the other thousands of walkers. We do this all in hopes that no other Mother, Sister, Aunt or Friend will have to deal with Breast Cancer.

Go Ahead And Finish...

Then stop by Edgewater Books for more!!!

Saturday, October 11, 2014

Puzzled By Pink

Puzzled By Pink
By Sarah Frances Hardy

Goodreads Summary

Not every girl loves pink

Izzie hates pink as much as her sister, Rose, loves it. So when Rose plans an all-pink birthday party with the guests dressed in fairy costumes, Izzie decides to give her own alternative party in the attic, where the guests will be monsters, spiders, ghosts, and the pet cat. But some powerful magic triggers the appearance of yet another guest - an unexpected one. This will be a party nobody forgets!

Friday, October 10, 2014

The Boy With Pink Hair

The Boy With Pink Hair
By Perez Hilton

Goodreads Summary

He was born that way-The Boy with Pink Hair. He had a cotton candy colored mop that no one had ever seen before . . . Life is not easy being pink. Adults stare at you, little children giggle behind your back and some kids are just mean. But when you have a best friend who appreciates your uniqueness and parents who are loving and supportive, you can do just about anything.

From blogger-extraordinaire, Perez Hilton, comes the story of a boy who is not afraid to be who he is and how his difference makes a difference.

Thursday, October 9, 2014

Double Pink

Double Pink
By Kate Feiffer

Goodreads Summary

Pink. 
PINK. 
PINK. 

Madison loved pink. Wholly, completely, deeply, truly pink. Is there any other color in the world? No -- never. What for? Did there ever need to be? 
Day by day, Madison begins to create a totally pink world. What could be more perfect? Perfectly pink! But something is missing.... 
Then Madison remembers her favorite brown bear, her red fire truck, her green balloon. Pink is nice -- it really is -- but it needs the other colors to shine, and so does Madison! What is she to do now? 
This delightful first picture book by Kate Feiffer illustrates the age-old adage -- be careful what you wish for, as it might come true. Complemented by Bruce Ingman's inspired artwork, Double Pink will charm enthusiasts of all colors of the rainbow.

Wednesday, October 8, 2014

Penny Loves Pink


Penny Loves Pink
By Cori Doerrfeld

Goodreads Summary

My name is Penny,
And I love PINK!

Meet Penny, the world's number-one pink fan. She loves her pink sunglasses, her pink tea set, her pink stuffed animals, and even her pink potty! But as Penny discovers, there is something she just might love evenmore than the color pink . . . 

This is the perfect my-first-pink book for every little girl's library. After all, you can never ever have enough pink!

Monday, October 6, 2014

Hot Pink

Hot Pink
By Adam Levin

Goodreads Summary:

Adam Levin’s debut novel The Instructions was one of the most buzzed-about books of 2010, a sprawling universe of “death-defying sentences, manic wit, exciting provocations and simple human warmth” (Rolling Stone).

Now, in the stories of Hot Pink, Levin delivers ten smaller worlds, shaken snow-globes of overweight romantics, legless prodigies, quixotic dollmakers, Chicagoland thugs, dirty old men, protective fathers, balloon-laden dumptrucks, and walls that ooze gels. Told with lust and affection, karate and tenderness, slapstickery, ferocity, and heart, Hot Pink is the work of a major talent in his sharpest form.

Sunday, October 5, 2014

Pinkalicious

Pinkalicious
By Victoria Kann

Barnes and Nobles Overview:


Pink, pink, pink. More than anything, Pinkalicious loves pink, especially pink cupcakes. Her parents warn her not to eat too many of them, but when Pinkalicious does . . . she turns pink! What to do?

Saturday, October 4, 2014

The Pink Suit

The Pink Suit
By N. M. Kelby

Goodreads Summary:

On November 22, 1963, the First Lady accompanied her husband to Dallas, Texas dressed in a pink Chanel-style suit that was his favorite. Much of her wardrobe, including the pink suit, came from the New York boutique Chez Ninon where a young seamstress, an Irish immigrant named Kate, worked behind the scenes to meticulously craft the memorable outfits. 

While the two never met, Kate knew every tuck and pleat needed to create the illusion of the First Lady's perfection. When the pink suit became emblematic, Kate's already fragile world--divided between the excess and artistry of Chez Ninon and the traditional values of her insular neighborhood--threatened to rip apart.

Moving from the back rooms of Chez Ninon to the steps of Air Force One,The Pink Suit is an enchanting, unforgettable novel about hope and heartbreak, and what became of the American Dream.

Friday, October 3, 2014

The Pink Fairy Book

The Pink Fairy Book
By Andrew Lang

Warning: This book had several mixed reviews. It is one book in a series of translated fairy tales from all over the world. I'm not talking Disney fairy tales...I'm talking Grimm Brothers fairy tales and therein lies the warning. Some of the stories may be a bit much for young children.

Goodreads summary:

It is almost impossible to envision what childhood would be like without the enchanting world of of fairyland. The snow-queen, the mermaid's son, ogres and dwarfs, monsters and magicians, fairies and giants - these are the companions who thrill boys and girls of all lands and all times, as Andrew Lang's phenomenally successful collection of stories have proved. From the day that they were first printed, the Lang fairy tale books of many colors have entertained thousands of youngsters, as they have also brought pleasure to the parents who have read these classics to their children.
The Pink Fairy Book contains 41 tales from Japan, Scandinavia, Sicily, Africa, and the Catalonian tradition. They range from such familiar stories as Hans Christian Andersen's "The Snow-Queen" and "The Fir-Tree" to virtually unknown tales of the Tanuki, and unforgettable Japanese creatures; of the strange labors demanded by a generous troll; for the cruel treatment given lovely Maiden Bright-eye; and of many other people and happenings that are different enough to captivate young imaginations, but familiar enough so that boys and girls everywhere will listen and understand.

Thursday, October 2, 2014

Pink


Pink
By: Lili Wilkinson
Teen Read



Goodreads summary:

The pink jumper was practically glowing in my grey bedroom. It was like a tiny bit of Dorothy’s Oz in boring old black-and-white Kansas. Pink was for girls.

Ava Simpson is trying on a whole new image. Stripping the black dye from her hair, she heads off to the Billy Hughes School for Academic Excellence, leaving her uber-cool girlfriend, Chloe, behind.

Ava is quickly taken under the wing of perky, popular Alexis who insists that: a) she’s a perfect match for handsome Ethan; and b) she absolutely must audition for the school musical.

But while she’s busy trying to fit in — with Chloe, with Alexis and her Pastel friends, even with the misfits in the stage crew — Ava fails to notice that her shiny reinvented life is far more fragile than she imagined.

Debut author Wikinson takes a lighthearted but timely and resonant look at a teen's attempts to don a new personality and figure out who she really wants to be.

Wednesday, October 1, 2014

Breast Cancer Awareness

October is Breast Cancer Awareness month and every day in October we'll be featuring a "pink" book here on the Edgewater Books blog. Hope you enjoy!






October New Releases

Here are a few new releases in October. "Endgame" is our October book and further down in the posts there is also a book trailer for it. It comes out on the 7th. James Frey has had his downs. If you remember, Oprah put a spotlight on his book "A Million Little Pieces". It was supposed to be biographical, but turned out to be a complete work of fiction. It made Oprah not only look bad, but probably discredited her book club just a touch. As we all know, Oprah isn't going to be hurt by one bad book choice. Unfortunately, those loyal Oprah fans aren't forgetting James Frey's blunder making the book reviews on "Endgame" very tainted. I, personally, really enjoyed the book and look forward to the next in the series. Jodi Picoult's new book "Leaving Time" comes out on the 14th for all her fans. I haven't had the pleasure of reading any of her books, but I hear she is a wonderful writer. Sadly, P. C. Cast's House of Night finale "Redeemed" comes out on the 14th as well. House of Night is one of my favorite series and one of the few series that I have actually read! I usually stop at the first book for reasons unknown. Walter Isaacson's new book "The Innovators: How a Group of Hackers, Geniuses and Geeks Created the Digital Revolution" comes out the 7th. I LOVE Walter Isaacson! He's a great historical/biographical writer. He wrote a book on Steve Jobs and a book about Benjamin Franklin and they were both very long, but captivating and informative. I highly recommend his books! All these books can be ordered through Edgewater Books! Enjoy an October book!!

2 October 2014

  • Hand To Mouth: Living in Bootstrap America By Linda Tirado (Autobiography)

5 October 2014

  • Becoming Calder By Mia Sheridan (Romance)


7 October 2014

  • Endgame By James Frey (Fiction)
  • Rain Reign By Ann M. Martin (Children's)
  • Pennyroyal Academy By M. A. Larson (Children's Series)
  • The Innovators: How a Group of Hackers, Geniuses and Geeks Created the Digital Revolution By Walter Isaacson (History)
  • Not My Father's Son: A Memoir By Alan Cumming (Autobiography)
  • The Forgotten Girl By David J. Bell (Mystery)
  • The Boy Who Drew Monsters By Keith Donohue (Mystery)
  • Burying Water (Burying Water #1) By K. A. Tucker (Romance)
  • Sleep In Peace Tonight By James MacManus (Historical Fiction)
  • The Way of Shadows: The Graphic Novel By Brent Weeks (Graphic Novel)
14 October 2014
  • Redeemed by P. C. Cast (Fiction)
  • Leaving Time By Jodi Picoult (Fiction)
  • Winterstreet By Elin Hilderbrand (Fiction)
  • Septimus Heap: TodHunter Moon, Book One: Pathfinder (TodHunter Moon Series, #1) By Angie Sage (Children's)
  • The Woman Who Would Be King: Hatshepsut's Rise to Power in Ancient Egypt By Kara Cooney (Biography)
  • Tinseltown: Murder, Morphine and Madness at the Dawn of Hollywood By William J. Mann (History)
  • Without You, There Is No Us: My Time With the Sons of North Korea's Elite By Suki Kim (Autobiography)
  • Ruth's Journey By Donald McCaig (Historical Fiction)
  • Fish By Bianca Bagnarelli (Graphic Novel)
15 October 2014
  • The Possible Police By Wylde Scott (Children's)
  • The Art of the English Murder: From Jack the Ripper and Sherlock Holmes to Agatha Christie and Alfred Hitchcock By Lucy Worsley (History)
21 October 2014
  • Gray Mountain By John Grisham (Mystery)
  • Bathing the Lion By Jonathan Carroll (Fantasy)
28 October 2014
  • The Peripheral By William Gibson (Science Fiction)
  • The Book of Strange New Things By Michel Faber (Science Fiction)


Sunday, September 14, 2014

The Key That Swallowed Joey Pigza





The Key That Swallowed Joey Pigza
By Jack Gantos
Published by Farrar Straus Giroux
Published on 2 September 2014
Ages: 10-14
Series: Joey Pigza (www.joeypigzabooks.com)

Goodreads description:
"The fifth and final book in the groundbreaking Joey Pigza series brings the beloved chronicle of this wired, wacky, and wonderful boy to a crescendo of chaos and craziness, as everything goes topsy-turvy for Joey just as he starts to get his feet on the ground. With his dad MIA in the wake of appearance-altering plastic surgery, Joey must give up school to look after his new baby brother and fill in for his mom, who hospitalizes herself to deal with a bad case of postpartum blues. As his challenges mount, Joey discovers a key that could unlock the secrets to his father’s whereabouts, a mystery that must be solved before Joey can even hope that his broken family might somehow come back together—if only it doesn’t pull him apart first."

The Scoop:
I've read one other Joey Pigza book and completely loved it! Joey is such a likable kid, but he does some really crazy things. He has ADHD and his mind is always working overtime, but in some very strange yet interesting directions. Joey Pigza books are quick, light-hearted and sometimes comical, but I'm so impressed that Gantos can cover some very serious issues like postpartum depression and ADHD in a way a child may understand. In "The Key That Swallowed Joey Pigza" I loved the relationship Joey has with his ex-girlfriend Olivia who is blind and has been suspended from her boarding school. He tries to be politically correct and not offend her, but his words always seem to come out wrong. Who doesn't have THAT problem?! I loved the way Olivia explained the black box and her description of her world as a blind child. Joey wasn't afraid to ask the questions as we sometimes are out of fear of offending the person. I thought her answers were very interesting. In world where it's so difficult to get boys to read, I would definitely recommend this book to boys. I think that they could relate to Joey even if they don't share his issues. He's just a regular, normal boy.  He's not a jock. He's not popular. He's not a brainiac. He's just Joey and he's just trying to get by in his Pigza world.

If you enjoyed this book then try:

 


Sunday, August 31, 2014

Yes it is!

Selfie Sunday







Diary of a Wimpy Kid
By Jeff Kinney

One of a, soon-to-be, nine book series that took the kids' book world by storm! Written in diary form and in Greg's "handwriting", these books and easy and fun books that kids seem to get through quite easy. The one thing I love about this series is that boys LOVE it and anything that gets those boys to read can't be that bad. Jeff Kinney is a Maryland native who originally started the Diary of a Wimpy Kid books for adults. Kids picked up really quick on the smash hit and before you know it ~ there was a movie!! So if you haven't read Diary of a Wimpy Kid by Jeff Kinney yet, then stop by and pick up a copy. You'll be back for the rest of the series real soon afterward! Happy reading!

Diary of a Wimpy Kid Series
Diary of a Wimpy Kid
Rodrick Rules
The Last Straw
Dog Days
The Ugly Truth
Cabin Fever
The Third Wheel
Hard Luck
The Long Haul (coming 4 November 2014)


Saturday, August 30, 2014

It's Moving Day!


It's moving day for Edgewater Books!!! We're moving to a bigger and more convenient location! Looking forward to your first visit!

Endgame: The Calling Book Preview

Sunday, August 17, 2014

Cartwheeling in Thunderstorms


Cartwheeling in Thunderstorms
By Katherine Rundell
Published 26 Aug 14 by Simon and Schuster Books for Young Readers

Wilhelmina Silver loves her world living free on an African farm. Every day is a delight until her home is sold and Wilhelmina is sent to a boarding school in England. Lions can't rival the viciousness of these school girls! Where can a girl run to in a city like London and will her courage be enough?

Ages: 8-12
Grades: 3-7

Thursday, August 7, 2014

AACPS South River High School Summer Reading

Believe it or not, the beginning of the 2014-15 school year is right around the corner! Many high schools require students to complete reading assignments over the summer and guess what...you have  about 2 weeks to get them read! Here are the books assigned to the South River High School students.

9th Grade Honors English
Night
By Elie Wiesel










9th Grade STEM English
Have Spacesuit Will Travel
By Robert A. Heinlein










10th Grade Honors English
Bronx Masquerade
By Nikki Grime










11th Grade Honors English
Death of a Salesman
By Arthur Miller



AP English Literature may pick one from the following list:

Slaughterhouse Five
By Kurt Vonnegut











Memory Keeper's Daughter
By Kim Edwards











The Road
By Cormac McCarthy











Jasmine
By Bharrati Mukherjee











The Glass Menagerie
By Tennessee Williams











Song of Solomon
By Toni Morrison











A Thousand Splendid Suns
By Khaled Hosseini











The Inferno
By Dante Alighieri











One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest
By Ken Kesey











Beginning in September, AP English Literature will begin reading Wuthering Heights so grab your copy now!!



Don't forget to do the assignments for each book!

HAPPY READING!!