Malla Nunn
A brief but revealing Q&A with Malla Nunn, author of A Beautiful Place to Die, the first in a new series set in 1950s South Africa starring Detective Emmanuel Cooper.
Kate DiCamillo
Kate DiCamillo and Yoko Tanaka, the illustrator of The Magician's Elephant, discuss the writing and illustrating of the book. In a separate Q&A, Kate discusses The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane.
Brigid Pasulka
Brigid Pasulka explains why she wrote her first novel, A Long, Long Time Ago and Essentially True, which is set in Poland during World War II, and in Kraków 50 years later.
Ida B: Summary and book reviews of Ida B by Katherine Hannigan, plus links to an excerpt from Ida B and a biography of Katherine Hannigan.
Ida B and Her Plans to Maximize Fun, Avoid Disaster, and (Possibly) Save the World
by
Katherine Hannigan
Hardcover: Aug 2004,
256 pages.
Paperback: Jan 2007,
256 pages.
What do you do when your life goes from righter than right to a million miles
beyond wrong?
Try to scare away the new neighbors with signs and posters that warn
things like "Typhoons Known to Occur Here -- Water Rats Abound."
Avoid eye contact and word contact, with Mama and Daddy in particular.
Stay away from the orchard and the brook and the old tree and anything
else that reminds you of how good things used to be.
Put together the best plan you've ever created to get things back to
just-about-perfect again.
Book Reviews
BookBrowse
The story did not resonate with the adults or children (aged 10 & 12) in our family.
Full Review (members only, 637 words).
Booklist - Illene Cooper
Starred Review. Sometimes Ida's fourth-grade, first-person
voice sounds like Junie B. Jones with a linguistic bent gone wild, but it's
definitely unique, and Ida's ability to articulate her feelings will warm
children, who will understand just what she's talking about. Gr. 4-6.
Kirkus Reviews
If the ending is a predictable reconciliation, this preternaturally sensitive and precocious child reaches it, not through the intervention of supportive adults, but through the puzzling out of her own difficulties - even
after many false starts. A poignant, affirming, and often funny debut from a
promising new author. (Fiction. 9-12).
Publishers Weekly
This insightful, seemingly intuitive first novel digs deep inside the soul of
9-year-old narrator Ida B Applewood....Hannigan shows a remarkable understanding of a stubborn
child's perspective in her honest, poignant portrayal of loss and rebirth. Ages
9-up.
Children's Literature - Joan Kindig, Ph.D.
Beautifully told, this first
novel is filled with remarkable characters and the story is one of growth and
adaptation. Seeing how Ida B deals with all of this is worth the price of
admission. Ages 7 to 10.
School Library Journal - Faith Brautigam
Gr 4-6-With just the right amount of tension in the plot, a spot-on grasp of human emotions, and Ida B's delightful turns of phrase, this book begs to be read aloud. Regardless of how tight the budget, don't pass
it up.
A spellbinding novel that spans the Victorian era through the World War I years, and centers around a famous children's book author and the passions, betrayals, and secrets that tear apart the people she loves.
A novel on the anxiety and disconnection of post-9/11 America, on the insidiousness of racism, the blind-sidedness of war, and the recklessness thrust on others in the name of love.
Jeannette Walls's memoir The Glass Castle was "nothing short of spectacular" (Entertainment Weekly). Now, in Half Broke Horses, she brings us the story of her grandmother, told in a first-person voice that is authentic, irresistible, and triumphant.
A gripping and fascinating adventure of one young girl's obsession with knowing who her parents really were/are. The delving into the idea of ...
read more
I borrowed Johnathan Strange and Mr. Norrell from the library, hoping it would be a lively story of two feuding wizards. Instead, the author spends ...
read more
Borders to close 200 Waldenbooks outlets(Nov 06 2009) As Barnes & Noble prepares to close all but two of their B. Dalton mall stores by January 2010, Borders announced that they will close about 200 of the...
Full Story
NPR & ABA Partner to Share Book Coverage(Nov 05 2009) In a joining of like minds, NPR and ABA have partnered to provide thoughtful bestsellers and unique book coverage to readers, both on NPR.org and...
Full Story
Ida B
BookBrowse
(members only, 637 words).
Publishers Weekly
RSS feed
