The Police Cloud

The Police Cloud
Author: Christoph Neiman
Publisher: Schwartz & Wade
ISBN-10: 0375839631
ISBN-13: 978-0375839634

Illustrator Christoph Niemann`s first book The Police Cloud is both a charming story and a visual treat. It’s a story about a cloud who, since he was a very small puff wanted to be a policeman and help people. When given his chance at his dream job and the big blue hat that comes with it, he finds unexpected obstacles to his chosen career.

The cloud tries so hard to be a good officer and blunders one assignment after another. A thief escapes right through him and his day as a traffic officer is a disaster. When he finally breaks down and cries he finds he is good at something and finds just the right career for him.

The story is touching and sweet. I read this to my grandson and granddaughter, expecting that the boy would love it and the girl might be a little bored (she loves pink and sparkly), but they surprised me. Both were completely entranced and I had to read it again and again and again. We read it four times in an hour and they both loved it. I see it getting pride of place on their bookshelf.

The illustrations are gorgeous and really have the feel of a beautiful blue sky and a very puffy white cloud. The sky is almost another character with the city fading in the background. The Cloud is just about the sweetest character I’ve seen and he just makes you smile. Both children and adults will love the well-meaning little cloud. I love the book’s message that everyone can aspire to be something and even if it’s not what they’re good at, everyone is good at something.

The Police Cloud is very highly recommended and sure to be a long time favorite. I see this becoming one of the classics of children’s literature.

Reviewing the Classics of Kidlit - The Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler - Reviewed by Elizabeth Lund

The Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler
Author: E.L. Konisburg
Publisher: Atheneum
ISBN-10: 068985322X
ISBN-13: 978-0689853227


When I reread The Mixed-Up Files, I can hardly believe it was written in 1968. Though the amount of Claudia's allowance and the price of The New York Times reveal its age, few books from that era retain such a contemporary feel.

For those who aren't familiar with the book, The Mixed-Up Files is about Claudia and Jamie Kinkaid, two suburban siblings who, fed up with the rest of their family, run away to The Metropolitan Museum of Art. The adventure becomes a mystery when they become determined to discover the true origin of a statue named angel, reputed to be the work of Michelangelo. Claudia's careful planning makes their escape and survival plausible. Jamie's practical nature and eye-rolling attitude keep Claudia from getting too romantic. The siblings complement each other and form a partnership that is at first grudging, later affectionate, making this a book with both boy and girl appeal.

I still think this is a nearly perfect premise for a middle-grade novel. It may not grab immediate attention, but in its simple plot, there are elements to appeal to many different segments of child readers: mystery lovers, kids intrigued by the romance of big cities, kids who like art and museums (such kids exist; I was one of them), and the nearly universal appeal of a story about running away.

And yet The Mixed-Up Files is so much more than its plot. Konigsburg works philosophy into these pages: ideas about secrets, learning, our need for comfort, and the isolation of modern life. Most importantly, she explore what make someone an individual rather than a member of a school class, a member of a family, or someone who defined simply by the motions of their daily lives.

Each detail in The Mixed Up Files is carved as carefully as Michelangelo's fictional angel. I remember precisely such images as the strip of white flesh between Jamie's jacket and sagging trousers when he fills his pockets with change, the deep black tub with golden faucets, the meals they eat from the Automat. The language is equally thoughtful. Decades after I first read this book, sentences such as, "Bedtime is the worst time for organized thinking," still ring in my mind.

Far from being outdated, The Mixed Up Files becomes increasingly relevant. Jamie and Claudia are described as siblings who were so busy with activities that they never really spent much time together, a situation that is certainly even more common today than in the sixties. They're suburban. They're consumers, with Claudia's spending of her paltry allowance described as "her biggest adventure each week." And they feel the emptiness of their busy lives. That is why they run away—as Claudia puts it, to "come back different."

By the end, she is different, and so are we.

Dancing to Almendra

Dancing to Almendra

Author: Mayra Montero
Translated from the Spanish by Edith Grossman
Publisher: Farrar, Straus & Giroux
ISBN-10: 0374102775
ISBN-13: 978-0374102777

Dancing to Almendra takes place in Mafia-dominated 1950’s Cuba before Castro takes over. It begins with a bizarre killing of a hippopotamus at the local zoo and young journalist Joaquín Porrata is sent to write up the story. Joaquín usually covers fluff pieces but desperately wants to be a real reporter covering more important things. He stumbles onto something at the zoo where he learns that the killing of the hippo was a warning to mob boss Umberto "Albert" Anastasia, who really was murdered in 1957. Joaquín starts investigating and begins to uncover an incredible story. He is threatened, beaten, warned and scared the hell out of, but he keeps on investigating and uncovering more and more.

As the investigation deepens, Joaquín’s life starts to spin out of control. He travels to New York, meets both Meyer Lansky and George Raft and finds out much more than any person should know about the Mafia.

The characters are all intensely interesting and detailed. Joaquín’s father and brother Santos, his lesbian sister and his tragic martyr of a mother are all fascinating. Yolanda, the ex circus performer, one-armed mulatta lover of Joaquín as well as Santos Trafficante and mother of a trapeze artist is simply too wild and wonderful not to love.

The story is told in Joaquín’s hard-bitten, matter of fact voice with alternating chapters told in a mystical way by Joaquín’s lover Yolanda. The Cuba of the 50’s comes to life with Mayra Montero’s incredible writing. She paints a decadent picture of nightclubs, music and gaudy casinos where an underlying threat of revolution is bubbling to the surface.

Dancing to Almendra is a gorgeous book about a crazy time and Montero manages to paint both the garish, brightly lit surface as well as the darkness underneath it all with a deft hand.

Los Angeles Times Festival of Books

The Los Angeles Times Festival of Books is this weekend, April 28-29, 2007. I look forward to this festival every year and usually go both days. It's a great place to meet up with old friends, meet authors, get your books signed, buy books, hang out and just have fun.

This year I'll be there all day Saturday and am really excited about it. Sunday I'll be there from opening till about 3pm and I'll have the grandkids along so I'm betting I'll be in the storytelling area a lot with the exception of swinging by to meet one of my literary idols Paco Taibo III and buy his new book on Pancho Villa.

If any of you authors, publishers, publicity people are interested in saying hello, shoot me an email and I'll make the time to swing by your booth, panels or maybe we can grab a coffee. Hope to see you all there!

Cecilia's Year

Cecilia’s Year
Author: Susan Gonzales Abram and Denise Gonzales Abram
Publisher: Cinco Puntos Press
ISBN-10: 1933693029
ISBN-13: 978-1933693026

Cecilia’s Year covers the life of a 14 year old Mexican-American girl who lives on a ranch in New Mexico during the Depression era.

Cecilia is smart, bookish and determined in her quiet way to follow her dreams. One of those dreams is going to high school instead of marrying and being a stay at home wife and mother as is expected of girls in that era. The book is set up with each chapter dedicated to a different month on the ranch with rich cultural details and a profound sense of community. The family and friends Cecilia has surrounding her are all very definite personalities and each feels real and true.

Cecilia’s Year has a down home feel to it with a strong Mexican flavor. Even though I grew up decades after Cecilia did and in the city, most of the core values, the family she lives with, the dichos (sayings) and food they eat is much like what I grew up with in my Mexican home. Some things always remain the same. The book really resonated with me for those reasons as well as being a great and engrossing story. You just have to love Cecilia and root for her. You hope she gets everything she dreams of and that’s the magic of reading a book like this – you end up really caring about the characters. They become real to you. Cecilia’s story is heartfelt and lovely.

The book is a tribute to the author’s mother and a note at the end tells what happened to the real Cecilia. Sepia toned photos are included as well as a glossary of Spanish dichos.

Fancy Nancy and the Posh Puppy

Fancy Nancy and the Posh Puppy
Author: Jane O’Connor
Illustrator: Robin Preiss Glasser
Publisher: HarperCollins
ISBN-10: 0060542136
ISBN-13: 978-0060542139
Fancy Nancy and the Posh Puppy is a completely charming story about a little girl with very fancy ideas. Fancy Nancy’s parents have agreed to get a family dog and Fancy Nancy wants a very special dog. Her very fancy neighbor has a posh (another word for fancy) little papillon dog that is tiny, elegant and perfect in Nancy’s eyes. Her mom has her doubts and so it is up to Nancy to convince her that a papillon is what this family needs.

Nancy soon finds out that elegant, posh dogs aren’t exactly that fun when she dog sits for the papillon and encounters lots of obstacles. When Nancy learns after a long day that a fancy dog just might not be for her, she’s very disappointed and sad – to sad to even get very fancy. Her mom has the bright idea of stopping at the pound to see what dogs are available and Nancy finds one with the fancy name of Frenchie.

Frenchie turns out to be perfect for the family and Nancy learns that there is a lot more to being fancy than just looking the part. Jane O’Connor’s humor and wit make this lovely little story something that both little girls and their mommies will love. I love how she sneaks in those big words for little girls to learn. My granddaughter loved the first book and she’s even crazier about this one. I have had to promise her a visit to the pound to find her own posh puppy.

The illustrations are beautiful and marvelously fancy. I love Nancy’s costumes and her sparkly little face. She steals your heart.


Book Description from the publisher:

Fancy Nancy is back! And when her family decides to get a dog, she's certain she can be fancier than ever. After all, a papillon—a small, delicate, fluffy dog—is the ultimate accessory. But her family wants a large, plain dog. How unglamorous!

With Fancy Nancy's trademark humor and warmth, Nancy discovers that real fanciness does not depend simply on appearance but more on a genuine joie de vivre, which is a fancy phrase for having lots of fun.

About the Author:
Since the publication of Fancy Nancy, Jane O'Connor's closet now boasts so many boas, tiaras, and sparkly ensembles that sometimes friends do not recognize her on the street. She still resides (that's a fancy word for lives) in New York City with her family and their canine companion, Arrow.

About the Illustrator:
Robin Preiss Glasser actually wore tiaras and tutus when she danced with the Pennsylvania Ballet for eleven years. Now she happily spends her days in jeans and glasses, drawing such bestsellers as Fancy Nancy by Jane O'Connor and America: A Patriotic Primer by Lynne Cheney. Robin lives in Southern California with her husband, Bob, children Sasha and Benjamin, and their puppy, Boo, whom they still love even after she ate the living room sofa.