Why I haven’t been blogging
Something terrible has been happening to me. Doctors are stumped…
Wednesday, December 19, 2007
Wednesday, December 5, 2007
Wednesday, November 28, 2007
What I’m reading / watching
Reading
Cornelia Funke’s Inkheart. I know, four years old. But sometimes I just miss these things.
Watching
Moonlight. It’s a disease. Someone stop me.
The Golden Compass. Comes out in only 10 sleeps!
Sunday, November 25, 2007
Things I like > Nick Hornby
In today’s Globe & Mail.
Wednesday, November 21, 2007
How I learned to stop worrying and love online reviews
Given that my bread-and-butter is reviewing books for newspapers, it’s been an interesting (like, unsettling) experience to discover that - by and large - you’re not going to get reviewed in your average newspaper or magazine. Unless you’re JK Rowling. (But even then…)
My first book was widely reviewed, and critically lauded. And it sank without a trace. I dare you to find a copy on a store’s shelves. Double dog dare you.
Runnerland had one very kind review in the Vancouver Sun, and it’s got some really positive reviews in library journals and specialty magazines.
Yet all kinds of people are buying it (according to The Publisher) and that’s in part thanks to the power of online reviews.
So, remember I said I made my bread-and-butter as a traditional newspaper book reviewer? I have to really wrap my mind around the fact that smart, well-read, influential people are posting reviews on peer (teen) sites, on MySpace, on all kinds of interesting sites. It’s not about dreaming about getting reviewed in the Globe and Mail (which panned my first book, and which gives me work - so boo Globe and then thank you Globe). It’s about learning about this whole new world, and jumping in feet first.
Look out, here I come!
Speaking of boss online reviewers, the following is from Sally Kruger (aka Readingjunky), posted to Teensreadtoo.com, where my publisher put up this cool banner today. It’s a rave, gold star review!
Peter’s story is a realistic one. The deserted buildings that become his home, the creative methods he devises to beg and earn his living, and the fragile and scary trust he must have in the leader, Dekman, all come together to illustrate the dark and dangerous life of the homeless. This well-written story will make readers consider just how many of these teens are out there today, living on the edge of survival.
Read more at Teensreadtoo.com. And thank you, Readingjunky!
Monday, November 19, 2007
Canadian Children’s Book Week
Yes, it’s CCBW, and if you’re curious about that, visit here.
I particularly enjoyed Adrienne Mason’s post about her 10 wishes for book week. I’m singling out No. 6 here:
Wish #6: If your local school actually has a librarian, give them a cookie too. Then write a letter to the provincial government, cc’d to the local School District, principal and newspaper explaining why oh why it’s so very important to have librarians in each and every school who love children’s books and want to share them with children and teachers and parents.
Huzzah! Huzzah!
PS. Cookies for authors gratefully accepted here.
Saturday, November 10, 2007
Tuesday, November 6, 2007
Stop and smell the Halo
Sometimes you’ve just got to spend the night staying up late, playing Halo, and drinking beer. Big shout-out to my friend Blaine for having me over the other night to do just that. It was…necessary.
Yeah!
PS. This is in no way an endorsement of underage drinking or Covenant-pwning. Shoot and consume responsibly…
Tuesday, October 30, 2007
Toronto’s Book of the Week
Check it out! Runnerland is the teen book of the week for the Toronto Public Library system.
“This is a great story of a young person living on the edge of survival.”
And a pick of the North Vancouver library too:
“Three days after his father dies, Peter Weir learns that he’s not who he thought he was. He ends up living on the street, and in dangerous company”
Have I told you lately, librarians, how much I love you?
Monday, October 29, 2007
Sunday like / Sunday dislike
What I like:
The remake of I Am Legend, coming out in December. Creepy zombie/vampires take over LA. (Or have they already?) Super-cool animated tailers at Apple.com, or here’s the official trailer…
Plot? Sez Wikipedia:
Neville’s psychological disposition is a significant element in the novel, and his struggles with despair imbue the character with intensity and gravitas. The author emphasizes that he is an ordinary, flawed man trying to deal with an extraordinary catastrophe.
Much of the story is devoted to Neville’s struggles to understand the plague that has transformed everyone he meets except for himself, and the novel details the progress of his discoveries. In this regard, the novel is almost unique in vampire fiction in that instead of asking the reader to accept a supernatural explanation for vampire phenomena, the author strives to offer scientific basis for such symptoms as aversion to garlic, craving of fresh blood, and resistance to bullets but vulnerability to stakes and sunlight. The aversion to mirrors and crosses (or, in the case of one vampire of Jewish origin, the Torah) is classified as psychological.
What I didn’t like:
The new Jack Whyte book, Standard of Honor. Not so much.
