Sorry for my lapse in posting anything. Story Lab (the summer reading challenge for this year) has filled all my waking and often sleeping moments! I rediscovered the pleasure of reading in the sunshine just before the wet weather set in.

I have been extremely lucky in reading some amazing books this summer. I have recently received a proof copy of 'The Last Minute' by Eleanor Updale (due to be published in January). As I read this novel I kept thinking "oh wow" and I am very impressed by how talented a writer she is. Even now I can't stop thinking about the premise of this book and how well formed and intricate the writing is.

I have finally got around to reading 'The Knife that Killed Me' by Anthony McGowan. What an unusual but striking piece of work. Another book that will stay with me and very thought-provoking.

Other summer highlights have included: 'The Snow Merchant' by Sam Gayton, '15 Days Without a Head' by Dave Cousins, 'Wonder' by R.J. Palacio and 'The Fault in Our Stars' by John Green.

I promise to start updating my blog on a regular basis.

Don't forget to vote for your Carnegie/Kate Greenaway candidate. Tomorrow is the last day to vote!

Holiday reading!

So I've just spent the last week in Great Yarmouth and what do I choose as my holiday read? 'The Devil Walks' by Anne Fine! A terrifying gothic novel, reminiscent of a Bronte or Shelley. The scary country house is there with it's very own miniscule doll's house model. There is madness, neglect and plain evil in this book and it hooked me from the outset. I think I needed the heat of the sun on the beach to stop me shivering! A great read, but atmospheric and a traditional scary tale. Highly recommended.

Book reviews and more....

Sorry for my lack of updates, but my head is still brimming after the amazing YLG/SLA/SLG conference. I have also joined the CILIP South East branch of the YLG group and will become a co-secretary. It was so rewarding to meet with other professionals who are passionate about children's literature. I was made to feel very welcome and I'm looking forward to helping out on future projects with the group.

I must include a short review on the 3 books that have stood out for me so far this year.....

• The Demon's Watch by Conrad Mason
• Bzrk by Michael Grant
• Butterfly Summer by Anne-Marie Conway

'The Demon's Watch' was a thoroughly enjoyable read. When I first received the book I was slightly reluctant and thought I'd have to force myself to finish it. I was really pleasantly surprised. There are some great twists - which I definitely did not see coming. Well-formed characters that you both root for and sometimes pity. The setting was amazing, I could imagine being there and I wanted to join the Demon's Watch and have my own shark tattoo! I don't want to ruin the story (which is why I am not going in to too much detail), but I would say it was for both sexes and a great adventure story. There are twists on the conventions normally expected and this makes an exciting and unexpected read.

I was lucky enough to meet Conrad Mason, as he came to do some talks in Medway libraries. Seeing his initial thoughts and illustrations made me like the book even more! I can't wait to read the second instalment!

'Bzrk' - as a huge fan of the 'Gone' series, I was excited about reading another one of Michael Grant's books. His writing draws you in and you feel as if you must read to the end to escape the World. There is a huge shock at the beginning, this hooked me in and I knew this would be an unforgiving book as far as the characters were concerned. I must admit that some scenes made me cringe, I really felt as though I were watching it happen and I will never look at an eyeball the same way again! I don't want to include any spoilers, but the use of future technology is cleverly used and reflects a vision of a frightening future. This is definitely one for the older teenager.

'Butterfly Summer' - I received a proof copy of this book from the conference. It happened to be the first book I picked up out of my massive pile of proofs and I'm so glad that it was. The dark secrets hidden and the effect of these secrets on the characters is subtly conveyed. The language is achingly beautiful in places and the reader is drawn into a world full of unanswered questions and pain. The description of the butterflies makes the book magical. I enjoyed reading this and again there is a huge twist, but I won't reveal any spoilers!

Happy reading everyone!  

YLG/SLA/SLG joint conference. 8th-10th June 2012. Old Windsor.

YLG/SLA/SLG joint conference. 8^th-10^th June 2012. Old Windsor.

  I was extremely lucky and won the CILIP YLG funding to attend this conference. As soon as I saw the programme I started getting excited! The 3 days would be crammed with interesting workshops, author talks and presentations. I immediately highlighted the workshops I wanted to attend and then ordered all my books to be signed.

  As soon as I pulled up to the grandiose hotel, I knew we were going to be spoilt. I wasn’t wrong; the rooms were amazing, as was the food. The hotel staff couldn’t do enough for us and were always on hand for any queries. They were very patient when I asked for directions yet again – it was a huge building!

  We dived straight in on Friday and my first burst of excitement was when Korky Paul did his author talk. The giant Winnie the Witch he created was amazing and drawn so quickly. It was a good job that someone claimed the picture before a Librarian fight broke out! Korky was a pleasure to meet and happily signed all of my books, even adding extra sketches for me. I may have gushed slightly at him, but he was lovely and not at all scared!

  The talk on technology by Jonathan Douglas (NLT), Dave Coplin (Microsoft) and Bev Humphrey (Independent trainer), made me consider my own use of technology. It was really useful to hear a talk that made me question my own way of working. They rightly concluded that technology is key for engaging the younger generations and it was the nudge I needed to find out more about what is on offer.  Since then I have started using Twitter more productively and I am trying to post on this Blog on a frequent basis.

  Meeting other professionals from both public and school libraries was fascinating. Some preconceptions existed and I really hope this conference was an education for both sides. I know I definitely learnt some new ways of working with schools and made some excellent school contacts (who I can now pick the brains of!). Nikki Heath’s workshop helped to add to this knowledge and it was useful to view things from a school library perspective. The practical use of Book Idol also made this workshop stand out for me and I will be using that in the future.

  The Breakfast Sessions were an added bonus and waking up with Jeanne Willis and Ros Asquith made me smile for the whole day. Other author highlights were meeting Angie Sage, who I fawned over and declared my love for Septimus; hearing Morris Gleitzman’s after dinner speech and reading of ‘After’; and listening to the lovely Maggie Stiefvater, who had come all the way from America.

  The publishers and stallholders were extremely patient with us and I am grateful for all of the freebies. I can’t wait to start reading through the proof copies. It was an absolute pleasure being able to attend. To be with so many like-minded people and have such interesting discussions was incredible. I am just starting to cascade the information I gathered to library staff and I can’t wait to apply some of the tips to my job.

  I’m already excited about next year; I will definitely be there again. So bring on September 2013!

I thought I'd try something a bit different. I've always loved poems that form words, so I thought I would give this a go. I've had lots of hospital visits in the past year and so this is quite personal. If this doesn't appear very clearly on here, then my word for this weekend was Doctor and this spells out Doc...

Doctor

Healing Hands

Reassurance

Slicing

                                                             Needle

                                                         Unconscious

                                                            Unaware

   Pain

    

      Unsteady

Try             Cry

Push

Grab

Wobble       Stand

       Grateful

 

 

 

 

My new short story based on a pair of spectacles!

Cunning Plan!

So how do you trick someone into wearing glasses? Glue them on while they sleep? Tell them glasses will make them look much younger? Show them photographs of all the famous spectacle wearers?

Well I’ve tried all of these and so far there has been maximum resistance. William would rather be covered in bruises and hold his menu as far away as possible than risk being seen in glasses. It must stem from his childhood, I know ‘four eyes’ was a regular taunt at school, but even so - at 50 you think he would accept his age and diminishing eyesight.

I daren’t let him read a map; last time he had to navigate we ended up in Wales. I wouldn’t have minded but we were en route to France!

So this is how I came up with my ultimate plan, I knew I would have to use all my cunning to get those glasses on him. It’s amazing what people will do for money. Every person on my street suddenly needed glasses. Not a single person was spec free. Well William is not one to be left out, so off we went to Specsavers and that was that!

William loves his glasses and claims he is ‘the envy of the street’. I have to hide my smug smile every time he coos over those spectacles. I knew I would win in the end!

Originally my plan was to write a story every weekend, but that has already been forgotten! Life gets in the way of writing, but I am starting to record things in my ideas diary. From the crazy bag lady feeding the pigeons to the dog pulled along by bicycles, my brain is creating so many stories. I have finally realised that I need to stop and notice everything around me as inspiration is everywhere. The Jubilee weekend will be the ideal time to do more writing so expect dogs and crazy old bag ladies!

I am now so pleased that I undertook the OU course. Not only has it forced me to finally write, rather than procrastinate, I also get to take the journey with other writers.

Before I add my short story, I should give a slight introduction. I am a Children's Librarian, so I primarily read children's and young adult fiction. Therefore, that is the shape that my writing seems to take. As always any feedback is welcome.

Revenge

It wasn’t fair. Why was he being punished? Ben had taken part too, but of course he wasn’t sent to his room. He got away with it, as always. Thomas slammed his door as hard as he possibly could. He gave a smug smile as something crashed to the floor outside his room. If he was lucky it would be his mother’s favourite vase, hopefully smashed to a blue and white heap. He threw himself down on the bed and angrily thought of all the revengeful acts he could exact on his brother. His favourite was the custard bed. Ben always jumped into bed in the pitch black, so he wouldn’t be able to see what he was about to land in. Thomas chuckled at the thought of Ben covered in slimy smelly custard.

Hours later, Thomas was bored. He still couldn’t leave his room and there was only so much daydreaming and staring at football posters he could do. He considered tearing up some of his posters, but the England squad hadn’t done anything wrong, why should they suffer. He looked at himself in the mirror and sighed at his mass of curly hair. Nothing he could do would ever control the unruly mass on his head. He reached for some gel and then changed his mind and grabbed a cap. The bright green cap clashed with his freckled pale face, but he didn’t care. It’s not as if anyone would actually see him wearing it. 

Tap. Tap. Tap. An unusual noise was coming from the window. He decided to ignore it; it was probably his brother throwing stones at the window again. Tap. Tap. Tap. Thomas was starting to get annoyed now; he just wanted to be left alone to sulk. The curtains were closed, that should have been enough of a hint. Tap. Tap. Tap. In frustration Thomas ripped the curtains open and soon wished he hadn’t. For there was nobody there. He scanned the garden and the road outside but no one was in sight. He shuddered and strained his eyes to see as far as he possibly could. The road was completely empty, not even a cat wandered among the houses. It was then that he noticed the words written in tiny print upon his window. He stared in wonder at the tiny handwriting and tried to imagine the creature that would be small enough to write it. His nose was almost pressed against the glass and his breath clouded around the words as he read them. 

‘Nice cap. Custard it is’. 

Puzzled, Thomas read the words again. Lying on his bed might help him to think and it was almost bedtime, so he sunk down underneath his squishy duvet and punched his pillow into a more comfortable shape. He was just about to close his eyes when he heard a scream from next door, from his brother’s room. 

‘Muuuuuuuuummmmm’, Ben was yelling, ‘there’s something disgusting in my bed’. 

Thomas smiled and pulled his football pitch sheets tighter around his body. He didn’t understand what had happened, but revenge was definitely served – and this time it was a delicious slimy bed.  

Outside Thomas’s window a tiny winged shadow chuckled, before launching itself delicately from the ledge. The Revenge Fairy was needed elsewhere that night.

I very rarely give up on a book, but I just can't get into 'Everybody Jam'.  I may try again in a few days because I might change my mind. Having 'Bsrk' and 'The Demon's Watch' in my book pile were also distracting me. So for now I am moving onto them! 'The Demon's Watch' has been very hard to put down and I can imagine staying up until the early hours of the morning just to read one more chapter! I can't wait to read 'Bsrk' - ever since reading 'Gone' and seeing Michael Grant speak at the YLG conference I have been a huge fan. I just know that I won't get any sleep when I start to read it! Book reviews will follow.

I'll start off with a quick rant. Has the art of saying "thank you" completely disappeared? I was extremely disappointed today when several people refused to thank me. I held a door open, stood aside to let someone pass and waited patiently for a car to pass me in a narrow street. Not one of these people said thank you or even smiled at me. Nothing makes me more angry than rudeness and surely courtesy doesn't take much effort.

Anyway rant over. I am thoroughly enjoying the Carnegie shortlist. I'm now on the final book 'Everybody Jam'. My favourites so far are 'A Monster Calls' and 'Between Shades of Gray'. It's going to be a close competition this year and I can't wait to find out who wins.

One of my book reviews:

Book Title: Jasmine Skies

Author: Sita Brahmachari

Genre:

ISBN: 978-1447205180

Number of pages: 337

Suggested Age / Year Group: 13+

‘Jasmine Skies’ deals with differing cultures and how it feels to belong to more than one culture. The story is set in Kolkata, India and explores the differences between India and the UK. Issues such as extreme poverty, education, career prospects and cultural traditions are all included in this story. Grief is another subject dealt with as well as a sense of belonging.

Mira’s trip to India allows her to explore her family’s origins. Priya, her crazy cousin, is not at all what Mira expects. Will they get on? What will Mira discover so far from home? Will she discover hidden secrets? Will she discover new feelings?

After her granddad dies, Mira is desperate to feel close to him again and this is part of the reason she travels to India. She can finally see all the sights that her granddad so lovingly described. She can fully immerse herself into the traditions, cultures and languages of India and see the place that her granddad called home. The question of ‘home’ – which can be in more than one place, is crucial in this story.

Mira uses her Artwork to interpret what she sees whilst sightseeing. Some of the sights are magical and some are heartbreaking. Mira becomes even more appreciative of what she has at home and how lucky she is. Viewing India through Mira’s eyes also allows the reader to enter that world and to be just as spellbound or shocked at all of the surroundings.

This is for the more confident reader and would be more appealing to girls because of the romance elements of the story.

‘Artichoke Hearts’ is the author’s first book and begins Mira’s story. Another series with similar cultural themes is Malorie Blackman’s ‘Noughts and Crosses’ series.

The world of Blogging is entirely new to me, but after completing an OU course I thought I would give it a go. My aim is to write, write, write - it's the only way to improve apparently. So what better medium than a blog to make me write!