Snow Flower and the Secret Fan by Lisa See

Snow Flower and the
Secret Fan
Author: Lisa See
Rating: 4
Genre:Historical Fiction

I'm glad I finaly read this book, it has been sitting on my shelf for a couple of years now. I can see why this book is a popular bookclub book. It's not a particularly happy story, but it is one you will gain something from.

The story takes place in 19th century China in a remote part of the country. Lily, the main character and narrator, comes from a Chinese family of low status. However, she may be able to rise to a higher status because of her "perfect" feet and the match of a laotang (a girl who is sworn to another girl to be there for each other their entire lives). Lily and Snow Flower become laotang and enter into a lifetime of ups and downs. Both girls face obstacles unthinkable to most woman today; footbinding, arranged marriage, and complete submissiviness. An added dimension to this story is the use of nu shu, a secret language used by Chinese women to communicate with each other without men being able to understand the writings.

Snow Flower and the Secret Fan is very enlightening about some parts of the 19th century Chinese culture. It also made me think and learn more about myself and hopefully taught me to make better decisions in the future.
Overall, a great read, if not the happiest of books.

I will also be watching this movie in the near future and posting a book/movie comparison...

Shadow of Night by Deborah Harkness

Shadow of Night
Author: Deborah Harkness
Genre: Fiction
Rating: 2.5

FINALLY finished it. It took forever to get through!! I was...disappointed. I remember enjoying the first one for some reason (although I didn't write a review so I don't remember why). But this one just didn't make the cut for me. I didn't start enjoying the book until about 3/4 of the way through it. There was too much historical detail for a fantasy fiction book. Don't get me wrong, I love historical fiction, but I think half of this book could have been taken out and it would have made it incredibly better. Ugh, I'm glad I'm finished with it, but sorry I didn't just skip over about 300 pages to save some time. Probably will read the next one though as I can't leave a storyline unfinished and it sounds like there will (hopefully) be more action and stuff actually happening in it.

Diana and Matthew timewalked back in time in order to hide from the Congregation and try to locate Ashmole 762.  Diana finds out more bad stuff about Matthew and blindly accepts it (like every other female in fiction does when it comes to vampires) and Matthew tries to control Diana in every possible way.  However, Diana does learn many new things about herself  in the past which will hopefully help her control her magic better.  She also has a couple pretty big secrets of her own that she keeps from Matthew (sign of a healthy relationship?), which I'm guessing will come out in the next book.  The story got a bit more exciting towards the end when there was a little bit of action going on and it ends on a promise for more action to come.

Overall, a very very long read, and if I could go back in time I would just skip the middle 300 pages.

Family Library Program - Pumpkin Decorating Palooza!

This was so much fun!  This October I really wanted to have a pumpkin decorating contest throughout the month to add some fun decorations around the library and get more people into the library who might not have stopped in before.  I was kinda stuck on how to get people to actually birng in their own pumpkins though.  Soo...I decided to have a Pumpkin Decorating Palooza!

I was worried it would be too spendy for my limited budget, but it really wasn't considering most of the supplies were just random stuff I found in my craft cabinet. And I found these great little fake pumpkins at the dollar store!  The program ended up being a huge hit and it will most likely become an annual event.

Supplies Needed:

- Fake Pumpkins (Dollar Store)
- Paint and Paintbrushes
- Glue
- Mod Podge
- Misc. Decorating Supplies:

• Tissue Paper
• Google Eyes
• Mesh fabric
• Paper crowns
• Pipe cleaners
• Old book pages
• and so much more...

- Old newspapers (to cover tables)

Here's What Went Down:

First I gathered all of my supplies and began to cover all of the tables in newspaper.  (I did enlist some help from teens to get all of the tables covered ;)

Then I stocked up a table and designated it the "Supply Table".

Then I got all of the pumpkins out and waited for people to come!

Thankfully I had a couple volunteers to help with handing out the pumpkins and helping kids pick out supplies!  When people started coming in we gave them each a pumpkin and told them to be as creative as they could be. We also said that if they wanted paint to tell us which color and we would pour some on the paper next to them which turned out to be a great idea! They didn't get the paint everywhere and everyone was able to see all of the colors.

This was a super easy program as almost every child had a parent come with them and the kids didn't need much direction when it came to decorating.  And I had so much fun seeing what these kids came up with!

Once the deocrating had commenced (and all of my pumpkins were taken!)  I told everyone that they could take their pumpkin home or they could leave it at the library for people to vote on throughout the month and they could win a prize from the local bakery (that got their attention!).

The cleanup was a breeze too.  I got rid of a ton of old craft supplies and the tables cleaned up just by taking off the newspapers.

Plus I got a ton of pumpkins to put in the library (and I heard someone say "Who'd have thought we could do this at a library?"  Made my day :)!  Now people keep asking if they can bring in their own pumpkins, which is just what I wanted!

Overall, a big success and hopefully I can repeat it next year!

Summer and Bird by Katherine Catmull

Summer and Bird
Katherine Catmull
Genre: Junior Fiction
Rating: 4

I got this book as part of the LibraryThing Early Reviewers program and am glad I did :) 

Summer is a practical and loving young girl, older sister to Bird, a wild and free-spirited, sometimes irrational little girl. Summer and Bird.  This is a lovely story completely out of the ordinary. After waking  up to find their parents, and cat Sarah, missing one morning, Summer and Bird embark on a magical adventure which will change their lives forever.   A beautiful swan queen, an evil puppeteer, a mysterious old man, and all kinds of birds flock this book and mix with the two girls, for better or worse, throughout the story.  Summer and Bird is filled with many thought provoking issues and beautiful imagery, making it not just a young adult story, but a gret read for adults too.

Summer and Bird was a bit hard for me to get into right away, but it was well worth the difficult start.  I feel like I gained something from reading the story and learned about myself too. (Always the sign of a great book).  I have a feeling this book will become quite popular shortly...

Quote:

"We never really know what might be beside us or ahead, but most days we walk as if we do."
(from uncorrected galley) — Katherine Catmull

Youth Library Program - "Make Your Own Dry Erase Board!"

For the first "big" event of fall programming this year in my tiny library, I decided to try a "Beat the Back to School Blues" theme for youth in town.  We made dry erase boards out of old thrift store picture frames.  I was super worried because this was the first event I had completely planned and carried out on my own (and no extra help was available that day, so I knew I would be running around like a crazy woman).  What if the kids spill paint everywhere (carpet, themselves)? What if I run out of frames because it turned out to be super popular? What if no one comes and now I am stuck with a ton of old picture frames?

Turns out I needn't have worried.  The program went very well and I will probably repeat it in the future. (Pictures will be up within the week)

Supplies Needed:

For the Dry erase boards:

-8x10 old picture frame for everyone who attends

-Paint (I used acrylic)

-Paint brushes

-Sponge brushes

-Cardstock paper in different light colors (for background in frame)

-Blank calendar templates

-Dry erase markers

For set up:

 -Old newspapers

-Glass cleaner
-Paper towels
-Paper cutter

Here's what went down:

I went around to thrift stores around the area and collected some cheapo 8X10 picture frames. (I learned the non-glossy, wood frames allow the paint to dry faster and adhere better to the frame.)

Then I chose acryclic paint in colors youth would most likely enjoy at a local craft shop. (Bright Neon Colors!)

I already had cardstock paper for backing the frames and paint brushes for painting in my stock of "stuff". I also printed off templates of blank calendars in case some people wanted a erasable calendar.

I forgot I would need dry erase markers to give out for the kids to take home, but I found out that old Crayola markers work just fine, so I gave those out instead since I have way too many anyhow.

After getting all of the supplies rounded up, I decided to play it safe and tape newspaer securely around all of the tables I planned on having the kids work on. Turned out this was a great idea.  The kids could just put the paint they wanted to use directly on the newspaper and it made cleanup a breeze.

The Set Up

Then I sat around and waited for people to show up. (The worst part :S)  Thankfully, the perfect amount of people came!  Ten kids showed up to actually make dry erase boards (for the size of town I work in, this is great!) some came with parents and siblings, so around 15 people were there.

For the most part, the program went very well! (Only one minor paint spill.) 

I started off by having everyone choose a frame they wanted to work with.

Then I had everyone remove the backing and glass from the frame to make it easier to paint.

After just the frame remained the kids started painting!

While the paint was drying between coats the kids talked and watched a movie which was playing in the background.

Then, when the final coat was drying, I had the kids pick out the color of cardstock paper they wanted to put in the back of the frame to be the background of their dry erase board and I cut all of the paper to size using a paper cutter. Some of the kids decided they did want to use their boards as calendars so I just glued the calendar template to the cardstock for them.

Once, the frames were dry (or mostly dry) we put the glass, cardstock, and backing back in the frame.

And Voila! Customized dry erase boards :)

What I learned:

-Make sure the kids don't use too much paint! Otherwise the frames will be camping out at the library overnight while they dry.

-If you have to use glossy frames, it would probably be best to sand them first to make it easier for the paint to stick and cover.

-Enlist the help of some adults or older teen volunteers especially if you will be working with a larger group of kids, because you will be running around helping people the entire time. (Cleaning the glass, answering questions, helping choose colors, etc.)

I would say this program was pretty successful!  The kids enjoyed themselves, and it didn’t cost a lot (since what library has money to spare?).  A win-win in my opinion! Plus, I had a lot of fun myself J

The Rise of Nine by Pittacus Lore



Title: The Rise of Nine
Author: Pittacus Lore
Genre: Teen Sci Fi
Rating: 3.5



Just like the previous two books in this series, The Rise of Nine is a fast, action-packed, quick read. The title is a bit misleading though, as the story doesn't really focus around Number Nine, but tells the story of all of the kids except Number Five. It's a good story to just get lost in for the day it will take you to read it, since it doesn't involve much thinking at all.

Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter by Seth Grahame-Smith



Title: Abraham Lincoln:
Vampire Hunter
Author: Seth Grahame-Smith
Genre: Sci.-Fi
Rating: 3.5


So I'll admit, I only read the book so I could watch the movie when it comes out on DVD, and I didn't have high hopes, especially given the kinda gross cover.  However, I was pleasantly surprised (I did skip the gory parts though).  It wasn't so completely out there to make it sound absolutely ridiculous and it wasn't so "completely true" to make it seem like an actual boring biography.  I actually found myself looking up different things that happened in the book to see if some of the happened in Lincoln's real life to like his familiy history manic depressive tendencies (so I did learn a little too:) Overall, it was a good read, held my attention and made me curious (possibly curious enough to read a non-fiction book?).