Ubalblog

[  Mood: Happy ]
Silas Heap is a seventh son. He is also a wizard. On his way home one night, he finds a baby girl in the snow. At this point the ExtraOrdinary Wizard appears to him and tells him not to tell anyone and raise the child as his own. His wife had just given birth to a seventh son, who died just before Silas got home with the baby girl.

The couple went onto raise the little girl as if she was their own. Then one day, the ExtraOrdinary Wizard appears and warns them to flee, that evil wizard DomDaniel has returned and is after their daughter Jenna.

And so begins a rolicking good read that takes the reader through an imaginative fantasy world. Part cyber-punk, part questing fantasy, I couldn’t put the book down. The ending of the book opens the book up to sequels, which I have already requested from the biblio. Another one for the next "What to Read After Harry".

[  Mood: Happy ]
[ Currently: Enjoying Naptime ]
The Wall is a picture book that documents what is what like to grow up in communist Czechoslovakia. No you might think that this is not the topic for a picture book, but let me tell you it works. Author/illustrator’s drawings of communist Czechoslovakia are in black and white, with the communist symbols of a red scarf and red flag were red. Contrasted to this are Peter’s childhood drawings that are in colour. Interspersed in the narrative are entries from Peter’s diaries and journals.

This is a very good book. It is easy to see why it was nominated for a Caldecott by the ALA.

[  Mood: Amused ]
This mystery sees Kinsey investigating an acident. Bobby Callahan’s Porsche was pushed off the road by a hit and run driver. Bobby was lucky to survive, but has been perminantly disabled by the tragedy. Having met Bobby at the gym, Kinsey sees him as more than a client. She gets emotionally involved, so much so much so that when he is killed, she continues to investigate to find out who is behind his murder.

Woven through this mystery is the beginnings of author Sue Grafton’s development of Kinsey’s world. Landlord Henry has a mysterious (and not very nice) new girlfriend. Kinsey, along with resterant owner Rosie set about to find out what is going on.

A well done story full of twists and turns, as well as real character development. This is where the series begins to come into its own. Worth the read.

[  Mood: Happy ]
[ Currently: Enjoying Naptime ]
Temeraire, Laurence and his crew have returned from China to find that the British dragons have come down with a cough. Unfortunately chicken soup doesn’t fix this cough. Rather, it is quickly causing the mass extinction of Britain’s arial corps.

Temeraire and Laurence are dispatched to Africa in search of a cure. While there, they learn about African society and how Dragons fit into it. In addition, Laurence and Temeraire are faced with a horrible decision between loyalty and the good of dragonkind.

This was a much better read tean the previous Temeraire book. Laurence’s devotion to the Celestial is heartwarming. Temeraire’s naivete in the face of cruelty and politics is still refreshing. This series had kept it fresh and is worth the read.

[  Mood: Shocked ]
Was on the Facebook checking up on the world. I am friends with an ex-boyfriend. (Against my schorched earth policy, I know, but I am trying to be a better person.) He has changed his profile picture. Now he is wearing a loincloth.

Did I really need to see that?

I think my answer is no.

[  Mood: Happy ]
[ Currently: Breastfeeding my son – Situation Normal ]
The second volume of this series brings back the group that we all remember from the first volume. This time the League is up against martians, the ones from War of the Worlds. For extra flavour there are glances of John Carpenter, Gulliver and Dr. Moreau.

Once again the story moves along at a quick pace, but this one sees the devolution of the League. The downfall of the Invisible Man is particularly gruesome. While not as good as the first volume, it is still worth it to see Hyde take on a tripod.

Fun!

[  Mood: Happy ]
[ Currently: Breastfeeding my son – Situation Normal ]
The ninth entry in the Dresden Files series finds Harry training his apprentice Molly in the intricacies of magic when his first love, Elaine, appears.

Following Harry’s example, Elaine has become a private investigator. She has been hired to protect a small group of low level female magic practitioners. Apparently a serial killer has been targetting women like them. Over thirty are dead, but the authorities think they are all suicides.

As if that isn’t enough, Harry is drawn into White Court politics. This means that we get a better look at the three different groups that feed off psychic energy and the politics that surround them.

This is a great story, with character development that has become typical for Butcher’s work. Well done!!

[  Mood: Happy ]
[  Currently: Listening to CBC Radio One ]
Sophie is the eldest of three daughters of a millner. As the oldest daughter, she knows that nothing remarkable will ever happen to her as it is always the youngest of three sisters who has great things ahead.

Resigned to an ordinary life, Sophie is cursed by the Witch of the Wastes. Turned into an old woman, Sophie runs, well hobbles, away. She takes refuge in a castle that is moving across the landscape.

The castle belongs to the Howl, a powerful wizard who supposedly eats young women. Howl allows her to stay on as a cleaning woman. Avtually, he just ignores Sophie, who decides to stay.

I know I am late coming to this party as the book was published in 1986 and also has a Hayao Miyazaki filmed adaptation, which was in turn nominated for an Academy Award.

This is a WOW!! book. Funny, poking fun at the conventions of fairy tales, it also manages to be an exciting tale that unrolls at breakneak speed, with interweaving plots and characters.

Worth the time and effort and will be in the next "What to Read After Harry".

[  Mood: Sleepy ]
So Husband Unit and I finally came to the conclusion that we could not keep up with the Feline Unit’s knots. He is a beautiful domestic longhair. He is a buff colour, like the undercoat of an orange tabby. If you really must see a pic, head to my Facebook page.

Up until recently, the Feline Unit has been fastidious in his upkeep, I have never had to brush him. In the last year or so, knots have begun to appear. We went to the vet for advice how to deal with it. We came away with brushes. They worked somewhat, but he still had knots.

And then the baby came.

I have had no time to brush him and he got worse. Why not take him to a groomer. Well the Feline Unit does not travel well. The vet is five minutes away and he rubs his nose raw against the bars of the carrier almost every time. He also screams out to passing cars that we are not his real parents and to please contact the authorities. So travel is not an option.

So we found a groomer who made home visits. She came over last night. Initially I thought it would be a little trim. She disagreed. The knotting was worse than I thought. He apparently needed a fairly complete shave.

So she shaved the Feline Unit all over his body, leaving only his head, neck, tail and most his legs alone. My cat now looks extremely wierd. How wierd? Remember Mars Attacks when the reporter’s head was sewn onto her dog? Like that, only it is my cat’s head. And he is wearing a feather boa for a tail and thigh high fur boots.

Added to the indignity is the fact that the Husband Unit and I burst into hysterics when the cat comes into the room. It is quite funny.

So pity the Feline Unit. His dignity is under attack.

[  Mood: Silly ]
So while I was in Sudbury, I went to Science North with Husband Unit and Geeklet. While there, we were looking at the various animals that call the centre home. I had just passed the beaver enclosure when I heard a dull bang.

My brain took a mere second to process that sound.

Some punk had just banged on the glass of the beaver house where the poor animal was sleeping.

Before I knew what was happening, I had spun on my heels and headed back for the enclosure to find out which little darling was harrassing the wildlife. I was surveying the group of 5 and 6 year-olds from the day camp to see who was the most likely candidate as it slowly dawned on me that this wasn’t my group of students to deal with.

But that didn’t change the fact that I wanted to catch the little hooligan.

You can take the teacher out of the school . . .

And, no, I didn’t catch the perp, but I did have a big revelation about my personality.