Archive for July, 2012

Blue Orange Games

July 30, 2012 at 8:06 am · Filed under Games ·Tagged , , , , , , , , , , ,

Looking for a great travel game?

Blue Orange Games are fun, quick games to take on the road, on the plane, to the restaurant, or even just to liven up a boring rainy day.

Most of you know Spot It! already, the fun game ages 3+ can play; it’s the game of matching, with a twist. The players each have their own card in front of them and a center card. They have to find the image that their card has in common with the center card and then yell out “SPOT IT!” and receive the card. The images differ in sizes per card, but there is ALWAYS one match. With four different ways to play, this card game is anything but boring. Now, you can buy Spot It! for younger kids (with fewer images per card), for your baseball or hockey lover, or for on the road.

Tell Tale is one of my favorite games by far because it is so creative. Each card has a very colorful image on it that to spark your imagination. It is a game of stories and can be played alone or with a group of friends and family. The aim of the game is to create a story using the images provided, and just like Spot It! there are multiple ways to play. My favorite way to play is to deal out a few cards to each player, one at a time, the players flip over their cards and create a story together using what the other person said. Also, for your prince or princess at heart, there is Tell Tale Fairy Tales, with all kinds of magical and fairy tale images.

Speedeebee is a new game from Blue Orange, and it’s great for older or younger kids. There are four letter dice and many question cards. The reader of the card chooses which question they will read, (example: “Name something you would never eat, starting with one of these four letters.”) the question then instructs you on how many letter die you should throw (“throw all 4 dice”), using the letters that show up (I rolled B, R, L, and R), the players try to be the first to answer to win the card. It seems easy, but come up to the front desk and play a game with us, we’re sure we can stump you.

This is only the tip of the iceberg when it comes to easy-to-pack, fun, travel-sized games. Come by and ask us about any of the games in our store or play a round with us.

-Maryam

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Attention Grownups: Arcadia by Lauren Groff

July 27, 2012 at 2:09 pm · Filed under Adult fiction and non-fiction, Booksellers Diary ·Tagged , , , , ,

Grownups, this one’s for you. Throw it in your beach bag and thank me later.

I don’t need to waste a lot of time spouting Arcadia‘s praises. For that, read this glowing piece  in the New York Times or this starred review in Publisher’s Weekly or Ron Charles’ review in the Washington Post. The book world clearly loves this novel. And I do, too.

Told in three parts, this is the story of one man. Nicknamed Bit, he is raised in a hippie commune in upstate New York (the titular Arcadia). Lauren Groff’s tale is rich, detailed, atmospheric, and engrossing. Her landscapes spring brilliantly to life, and Bit’s story avoids the “flower child” cliches that it so easily could have embraced.

This is one of those reads that will take over your brain. The beauty, scope, pain, and confusion of Arcadia are vividly rendered, and it will take some time to tear yourself away. Believe me, you won’t want to.

Arcadia is the perfect intelligent, emotionally relevant pick for the savvy summer reader. It’ll make a great book club pick for the fall, too.

Read on!

Megan

Arcadia by Lauren Groff; Voice/Hyperion (Simon & Schuster); 25.99; Ages 16-adult 

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Tiger Lily by Jodi Lynn Anderson

July 25, 2012 at 7:05 am · Filed under Ages 12 - 14, Ages 12 and up, Ages 14 and Up, Booksellers Diary ·Tagged , , , , , , ,

Yes, as you might have guessed, this story takes place in Neverland. Yes, we meet Peter Pan and Wendy and Captain Hook. But if you’re expecting the sugary cartoon escapades of the Disney film, or even the dark magic of J.M. Barrie’s original Peter Pan and Wendy, you’re in the wrong place. This is something else entirely, something new and a little surprising.

Tiger Lily has never quite fit in with her tribe. Adopted by the shaman, Tiger Lily has been raised in the tiny village but never truly accepted. Still, she abides by the rules: never wander off, never oppose the pirates, and avoid the Lost Boys at all costs. Everyone on the island knows their place, and so Neverland stays in a sort of uncomfortable balance. But when Tiger Lily saves a strange Englishman from shipwreck, she finds herself slowly but surely challenging the status quo. And when she meets the mysterious, impish Peter Pan, her entire world is flipped upside down. In the end, a terrible choice must be made: leave and grow up with Peter, or stay in the home she has always known.

Here’s the thing about this book: it doesn’t care about expectations. It’s not restricted by preconceived notions of who Peter Pan is and where he comes from, or even what becomes of him in the end. It’s not a slave to Barrie’s plot or characters. It is not, most certainly, a retelling of the original.

DC-based author Jodi Lynn Anderson  gives a voice to a character that is usually left silent, and it’s the sort of unique, multi-faceted voice that keeps you interested and engaged. This is a great read for teens who have fond memories of their own Neverland games, or who perhaps are swept up in the many current stage/film/TV spinoffs of Pan’s tale.

Also, can we gaze at the cover for a brief moment? It looks like a flower (a tiger lily, even?), but look closer. It’s a leaping girl in a dress! Surprise! I usually dislike the “girl in prom dress” covers so prevalent in the YA section, but this one’s creative. I give it a thumbs up.

Read on, readers!

Megan

Tiger Lily by Jodi Lynn Anderson; HarperTeen; 17.99; Ages 12+

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For the Record, A.S. King, You’re Pretty Great, Yourself!

July 23, 2012 at 4:47 am · Filed under Booksellers Diary ·Tagged , , , , , ,

We already knew we loved author A.S. King. She visited us last spring, and her books are some of our favorites to recommend to smart, savvy, teen readers (and the adults who love them). So when she wrote this awesome guest blog for Writer Unboxed, our hearts swelled with joy. We in the independent book business love to see our own passion reflected in such a concise, humorous, rousing show of support for what we do! It’s a must-read for anyone who has ever read or bought a book. Check out this excerpt, then read the whole thing here.

“Independent booksellers are badass ninjas. Let’s just get that straight right here. They are badass hardcore book-loving ninjas. As an author and a reader, I can’t help but love them because no one else in this business can do what they do for me.

Independent booksellers sponsor events like book launches, author readings, signings and festivals to bring authors in contact with communities. They are human beings who can match my taste with new books and answer my questions. They are people who end up friends because it’s more than a job to them.”

It’s people like this that make us love what we do! We’re so glad that Alexandria (and the DC metro area, for that matter) is full of these lovely, bookish kindred spirits. Thank you. Thank you for shopping locally and independently. We appreciate you.

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A great summer read for grown-ups!

July 20, 2012 at 8:44 am · Filed under Adult fiction and non-fiction ·Tagged , , , , , , , ,

18-year-old Victoria Jones is an incredibly strong yet stubborn young woman who just aged out of the foster care system. Bounced around for most of her life, Vanessa finds herself unable to trust anyone who crosses her path, no matter their good intentions, and almost finds solace in being homeless. She is able to make her own decisions, and doesn’t have to deal with people, staying as far away from people as she can.

When her little bit of money runs out, Victoria manages to wrangle herself a job in a flower shop. Because she has always been fascinated with the “language of flowers,” she spends her days making the perfect bouquets for her customers’ personal situations. Still dealing with her past, Victoria is forced to come face-to-face with specific people and events she’s wanted nothing more than to leave behind.

The descriptions in this book are top notch and learning all about hidden meanings behind flowers, no matter how true or false they may be, was fun. The author has experience with the foster care system and it was apparent. She obviously knows how children who spend their lives in the “care” of multiple people might turn out and the issues they might experience. Victoria was haunting in the best possible way and her character, plus the intriguing plot, make for a great book club discussion.

Some heavy subject matter and situations make this most appropriate for grown-ups, but a great read for teens that has definite similarities with this plot regarding the language of flowers is Forget-Her-Nots by Amy Brecount White, one of our local authors!

A fun index of flowers is included, so you can look up all of your favorite flowers and their meanings. Very cool!

The Language of Flowers by Vanessa Diffenbaugh; $15.00; Ballantine Books

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Wild Wings by Gill Lewis

July 18, 2012 at 10:05 am · Filed under Ages 8 and up ·Tagged , , , , , ,

Wild Wings is the story of Callum and Iona–two kids in the highlands of Scotland, who discover an osprey, an endangered wild bird, living on Callum’s farm. Together they agree to keep the bird a secret for fear of poachers and they observe and help it thrive in the woods. With the help of a ranger, they are even able to tag the osprey so they can follow its migration pattern all the way to Africa. But there are unknown dangers for both birds and humans, and when unthinkable challenges come up, everyone must work together to save the osprey.

This book covers a lot of issues, particularly for a middle grade book. Endangered species, absent parents, illness and inadequate healthcare and poverty of far-away countries are all touched upon at some point. It’s a lot to stuff into one stand alone story, but Lewis makes it all work. The tragic events that happen mid-way through the book make the somewhat fairy tale ending work, because only a stickler for absolute realism would begrudge the characters the joy of watching the osprey’s flight. Lewis gives background information on ospreys in an authors note, and she also provides Internet resources where readers can see photos and footage of real ospreys and follow their migrations online.

Give this book to kids who love animals or are studying endangered species. Or read it yourself, if you need a reminder of the amazing things humans can accomplish, when we work together.

Wild Wings, by Gill Lewis, Atheneum Books for Young Readers, $6.99

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The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore

July 16, 2012 at 5:10 am · Filed under Ages 3 - 6, Booksellers Diary ·Tagged , , , , , ,

Where do I begin describing this book? It is absolutely fantastic for kids and grown-ups, which is my favorite combination in a children’s book. “Morris Lessmore loved words. He loved stories. He loved books.” reads the first page. Sound familiar? The book tells the story of Morris, whose life was turned upside down when a tornado blew his whole word apart and even scattered the words of his book. He wanders down a trail which leads him exactly where he needs to be: a library, or as the book describes it “An extraordinary building where many books apparently ‘nested.’”  Here he finds it his job to nurse the books back to health and share their stories with the whole town. My favorite part here is how the illustrator, Joe Bluhm, has everyone in black-and-white until they receive a book, as we all know life would be very dull without books. Morris continues caring for the books for days, and months, and years, until his story is complete and it is time to pass along the stories to another.

As I mentioned before, I love books that can be read and loved by adults and children. I can see this book being given to a book lover (big or small) or to a librarian or teacher. Or, to someone whose story is ending, or someone whose story has just begun, or even to someone who doesn’t quite know what their story is yet.

The book accompanies an Academy Award winning short film which is definitely worth the watch after reading the story.

The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore by William Joyce; illustrator Joe Bluhm ; Atheneum Books for Young Readers

Happy Reading,

Maryam

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New Picture Books from the Authors we Know and Love!

July 13, 2012 at 11:02 am · Filed under Ages 3 - 6, Ages 6 - 8 ·Tagged , , , , , , , , , , ,

It is always exciting to see new and old names on our new books bookcase. For the month of  June, we have a few familiar names that we were pleased to see. It’s good to know they haven’t stopped writing and illustrating these wonderful books. Here are a few you can expect to see on our Hot off the Press shelf.

The Hueys in The New Sweater 

The title suggests more to come and we sure hope so. Megan K has raved about the conversation starter of  The Incredible Book Eating Boy, and Oliver Jeffers has done it again with this book. These egg-like creatures called Hueys are so much fun. They all do the same thing, dress the same way, think the same, etc. Until one day a brave Huey by the name of Rupert knits himself a bright orange sweater–very different than everyone else. His fellow Hueys respond in shock. What happens when Rupert’s friend Gillespie decides that being different is not so bad after all, and follows Rupert’s lead?

The Hueys in The New Sweater, by Oliver Jeffers; Penguin Young Readers; $10.99; Ages 3-6

Our favorite dog Zorro is back. We looove Say Hello to Zorro here at Hooray for Books. When it came out, even cat-lovers among us had to agree that it was adorable and true for most dogs.  So when a new Zorro book came out, we all could not wait to read it. This book did not disappoint. Mister Bud and Zorro were going through their previously established routine when there was a hold-up at walk time. Their owner had found a super-hero costume just right for Zorro. While his owner loves it, Zorro finds it very embarrassing, as dogs and even cats laugh at him. Zorro’s mind is changed when he meets a very fast dog at the park who is also wearing a costume.

Zorro Gets an Outfit by Carter Goodrich; Simon & Schuster Books For Young Readers; $15.99; Ages 3-6

Wumbers

From the cre8ers who kept our minds busy with Duck! Rabbit! we have a brand-new book. Amy Krouse Rosenthal has a way of making us think and reordering the ordinary. This book mentions it right on the cover that it is a game and a book together, and it sure is fun. This book uses the sounds of the numbers to create words by mixing letters and numbers. For example: 4gotten or con10tment. Rosenthal even found a way to use these wumbers in foreign languages “c’est 4midable, non?” If you’re having trouble figuring out what all these wumbers mean, Tom Lichtenheld’s artwork helps paint the picture. After you’ve figured all the wumbers out, it’s fun to try to come up with some on your own.

Wumbers by Amy Krouse Rosenthal, Illustr8ed by Tom Lichtenheld; Chronicle Books; $16.99; Ages 3-6

Happy Reading,

Maryam

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Dragons Are Cool Again: Seraphina by Rachel Hartman

July 11, 2012 at 7:09 am · Filed under Adult fiction and non-fiction, Ages 14 and Up, Booksellers Diary ·Tagged , , , , , , , , ,

I never got on the Eragon train. All the best to Mr. Paolini, but I just wasn’t interested in dragon fantasy and there were other things to read, so I moved on, and missed most of the recent dragon craze.

I picked up Seraphina because the positive buzz on the interwebs was almost deafening. I gave in to peer pressure. And, possibly for the first time ever, that ended up being a very good thing.

I usually hesitate to assign the title “best” to any particular book, because reading is so subjective. As we’ve established, I like some books better than others, but elevating just one above all the rest seems impossible and unfair. So I won’t say that Seraphina is the best book of the summer. But it’s probably my favorite.

Enough with the wishy washy attitude. It’s my favorite.

As decreed by treaty, dragons are permitted to live and work alongside humans in the kingdom of Goredd, provided they assume a human shape. In theory, there is peace between the races. In reality, prejudice and anti-dragon sentiments are rising, inspired by the recent mysterious murder of a member of the royal family, a murder that is rumored to have been committed by a dragon. Into this tenuous situation enters Seraphina Dombegh, hired as assistant to the head court musician. Seraphina is no ordinary girl with a talent for music–she is also half dragon, a horrible secret she must protect at all costs. Drawn into the court’s investigation by Lucian Kiggs, captain of the guard, Seraphina finds her stamina for concealment challenged almost beyond what she can bear.

But as the drama and intrigue swirls around her, Seraphina is surprised to learn that she may not be alone. There are others like her, halfbreeds with various skills and gifts who just might be able to help. Gradually, Seraphina begins to come to terms with who she is, and, strange as it seems, begins to wonder if perhaps her dragon ancestry is something to be proud of. Perhaps what she has striven to hide is in fact the key to bringing peace once and for all.

Rachel Hartman’s world building in this novel is simply fantastic. I loved the little historical and societal tidbits that she dropped casually along the way, never overloading me with information, but giving me enough to imagine clearly the landscape she was creating. Goredd is the perfect blend of the recognizable and the strange. And the characters are compelling, sympathetic, and layered. There’s plenty to discover here! Hang on for some awesome twists and turns, too. A spectacularly fun read!

P.S. Hey, Game of Thrones fans! This book is for you. Read it and make the season three wait more bearable.

Seraphina by Rachel Hartman; Random House; 17.99; Ages 14+

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If You Loved I Capture the Castle…

July 10, 2012 at 12:26 pm · Filed under Adult fiction and non-fiction, Ages 12 and up, Ages 14 and Up ·Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

If You Loved I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith…

Regency Romances

Many fans of I Capture the Castle are also fans of Jane Austen, and Austen is actually referenced by the characters several times. Although I Capture the Castle  is set in the 1930′s, in some ways the story about love vs. money echoes Regency themes and preoccupations. So this first section of read-alikes is all Regency Romances of one kind or another.

Keeping the Castle by Patrice Kindl

This new romance is narrated by Althea, who knows that she must marry a rich man in order to save her family’s falling-down castle. To that end, she tries her best to attract the local Baron, while avoiding his argumentative cousin Mr. Frederick. Fans of Pride and Prejudice will be able to guess who she ends up with!

Sorcery and Cecelia by Patricia Wrede & Caroline Stevener

A novel told through the letters of Kate, enjoying her first Season in London, and her cousin Cecy, back home in the country, in a Regency England where magic is a part of everyday life.  Balls, suitors and picnics are mixed with wizards, sorcerers and spells.

For Darkness Shows the Stars by Diana Peterfreund

How often have you heard the words ‘post-apocalyptic’ and ‘Jane Austen’s Persuasion’ in the same sentence? Peterfreund has transplanted Austen’s final novel to a future where the world is run by ‘Luddites’ who eschew technology and run estates worked by ‘Posts’. Elliot North is a Luddite but her best friend Kai, back after four years away, is a Post. Will they be able to reconcile after years away from each other?

1930′s Adventures

Of course, I Capture the Castle is really set between the World Wars. The following are books set during that time period, some historical and some that take a few liberties with history.

A Brief History of Montmaray & The FitzOsbornes in Exile by Michelle Cooper

These two intriguing books are the journals of Sophie FitzOsborne, who lives with the rest of her royal family in the tiny island kingdom of Montmaray. In the first book, the kingdom is attacked by fighter planes and in the second book, the family is forced to flee to England. The year is 1936, Germany is a threat, and Sophie must balance her concerns for her home country with the usual trials of adolescence. A great alternative history of mid-century Europe.

Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein

This is not a romance, and it isn’t set in the 1930′s. Rather, it is an espionage and aviation adventure set during World War II. However, in a blog post, the author revealed that one of the books she used for research into the atmosphere and setting of mid-century England was I Capture the Castle. She loves the book, and recommends that if you do too, you should read…

A Childhood in Scotland by Christian Miller

This is a memoir by a woman who grew up in a castle in the Scottish highlands in the 1920′s and it is filled with lush details of rooms, gardens, meals and clothes, similar to I Capture the Castle. Perhaps Cassandra’s life would have been more like this if the family had actually had any money! This book is out of print, but we’d be happy to find you a used copy.

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