I only use my pockets once a week

Utah winters keep a coat on me constantly; however, being an avid purse carrier I rarely use the pockets. At work we have to wear name tags presenting ourselves as a happy-helper to answer a number of various questions. Questions like, 'where's the felt' 'what kind of mat should I use with this piece' and surprisingly many guys come in who need a second opinion on which frame to buy from our ready-mades. I've been asked more times than I would like to admit, 'do you work here?' as I had currently mis-placed my tag. Who knew that little 2 by 4 piece was such a needed accessory? 'Cause you know, you might miss a worker if only identified by classy tan pants and black shirt. And back to the post title. My pre-mentioned name tag was nestled in my coat pocket. After I had scoured the path to the laundry, flipped through every single piece of clothing, swiped my hand along the washer and dryer searching for the magnetic piece of plastic and done nothing short of scoping a flashlight in both it was in my pocket the whole time! What a little sneak.

I wasn't going to report the tag as 'lost' because we're actually switching things up at work. I guess employees voiced their opinion about being denied expression in a craft store and out came the following brilliant idea. T-shirts. Regular t-shirts with screen printing on the back and a little piece of print up front for the employee (that's me) to write their name artisticly neat. Is there such a thing? Is that an oxymoron?

I am not totally upset, I mean... I never was much of a doodler. Therefore my name will easily fit into the category of 'neat' and maybe I can retrace the letters to make them bolder to give it some individual artistic flare. 'Cause thickening up a few lines is really artistic, right? But what if people judge me by my handwritten name? What if they look at that name and silently do a handwriting analysis: very readable (organized, purposeful, efficient), it drives me crazy when my 's' don't look identical (patience, perseverance), and lastly, sensitive (because my 'J' is capitalized, as is my 'A' because I think it looks more balanced with a tall letter at the beginning and end of my name). I can sum that up into two words, "kinda boring." See why I don't want people seeing my name written in my handwriting?

Now, these t-shirts are not just your basic white T. No Plain White Ts in a craft store, please! (And that includes in the music choice. Our target customers were raised in the 80's, therefore our background, easy-listening music is suffocating its way to the 90s) These t-shirts have various experts posted on the back. 'Framing Expert' 'Cake Expert' 'Art Expert' and my personal favorite, 'Party Expert.' That's right. A t-shirt that says Party Expert. Who wouldn't want to be an expert on every party ever thrown? But even if I got the shirt with 'Party Expert' screened all over the back people would take one look at my handwritten name and turn the other way and run fast. Because obviously someone who's 's's look just the same and who starts and ends their name with a capital letter to keep it looking balanced cannot be trusted to plan a raging party. Even if it's a jewelry making party. Perhaps I will keep wearing my printed name tag till the day that I resign.

After the First Death

After the First Death
Robert Cormier
288 pgs
Puffin (2006)
Subject Matter: death, terrorism, kids, loyalty

A school bus is hijacked by terrorists and the driver tries to save them by driving away. The bus is halted on a bridge and one of the children is shot. The story is told from the perspective of two foreign terrorists, Kate, a 16-year-old who is driving the bus and automatically becomes the caregiver of the children who she was driving to summer camp, and the son of the American general who is negotiating.

Review: Done very realistically and believable. Many heart strings are pulled as chapters are told by different perspectives.

Now You Know: Dramatic and colorful language

The Wednesday Wars

The Wednesday Wars
Gary D. Schmidt
272 pgs
Sandpiper (2009)
Subject Matter: religion, track, school, rats, creampuffs, Shakespeare

Holling creates a problem for Mrs. Baker right from the start. He is not of one of the main religions in his school and therefore has to stay in his home room while the rest of his classmates go to release times. At first Mrs. Baker tries to pawn him off to other teachers so that she may have a break from students for a hour. As the year goes on and Holling can no longer clean the erasers and he lets the rats of the cage when cleaning Mrs. Baker takes a special interest in him and they become quite good friends. She introduces Holling to Shakespeare which results in him playing a part in the Shakespeare festival. She arranges a meeting between Holling and the New York Yankees and saves and architecture firm from going under as she finds work for them. As her and Holling spend more time together Holling learns some secrets about this teacher that has her class under such strict demand.

Review: A touching teacher/student book of relationships and how they aren't always as bad as they seem to be at first.

Now You Know: Nothing in this book is bad.

Spinners

Spinners
Donna Jo Napoli
208 pgs
Puffin (2001)

A ploy of Rumplestiltskin, a tailor wants to win the hand of his true love. She is pregnant with his child, but her father will not allow the communion because he does not believe that the tailor will be able to take care of his daughter. The tailor takes a magical spinning wheel without asking to spin a wedding dress of gold and spins so long into the night that his leg becomes cramped and crippled forever, preventing him from his workship. The beautiful maiden runs from him and his nasty appearance. The baby is born and the mother dies, but the baby is left with a gift for spinning and becomes famous for it.

Review: Incredible idea of the daughter having the spinning talent of her father and being able to make thread out of anything. Very intriguing.

Now You Know: It does not follow like the rest of Napoli's fairy tales. Saskia is her own person and does not have anything more in common with her father than her spinning.

Me, Dead Dad, and Alcatraz

Me, Dead Dad, and Alcatraz
Chris Lynch
240 pgs
Harper Collins (2005)

For the first fourteen years of his life Elvin has been told that his father is dead and that all other relatives of his are gone. One day Elvin comes home from school to find an uncle, that his mother had never admitted to knowing, sitting on his couch. Apparently Uncle Alex has been in jail but is now willing to become the father figure in Elvin's life. Growing up with only his mother, Elvin has a hard time adjusting to another man in the house and does not appreciate the 'fixing up' his uncle tries to do for him, including nearly killing him at the gym with a vigorous work-out, getting his hair cut, and questioning his masculinity infront of his friends. Elvin does not welcome his uncle at all and does all that he can to get rid of him.

Review: A humorous book that allows a fourteen-year-old boy to be himself and describes the difficulties of growing up and not being happy with one's self, as we all have done before.

Now You Know: There isn't anything in this book that would be seen as offensive.

Donna Parker in Hollywood

Donna Parker in Hollywood
Marcia Martin
282 pgs
Whitman (1961)
Subject Matter: Hollywood, ganesha, illness, famous people

Donna is living with her glamorous aunt and uncle for the summer in a town a little south of Hollywood. Donna is from the east coast and finds that there are stereotypes about her home that she did not know of and that she does not fill. She is invited to lunch with one of the more popular girls of the area but becomes better friends with the girl next door. Donna is a naive girl from the east coast and does not understand publicity and the problems that go with it.

Review: A good leisure reading book as it tells of what we all wish would happen to us

Now You Know: very drawn out, not very adventuresome and a lot of time spent to thoughts that are not made clear from actual words said.

Fighting Blood

(There is no cover art for this book)

Fighting Blood

William Heyliger

248 pgs

The Goldsmith Press (1932)

Subject Matter: football, leadership, coaching, team captain

Tarly Ball came into high school with the attitude of making something of himself. The school football team has not won a game in many years and is coached by a teacher who would rather be writing scientific papers than out on the field yelling orders. Sophomore year Tarly is elected captain of the team and makes them work hard enough to win. He continues to be captain through to his senior year and coaches with that title. He spends his time thinking football and making up plays in his free time. His senior year the school hires a real coach who Tarly is intimidated by because he fears the control he has being taken from him. Tarly feels he has ownership over the team because he brought them from the dust but he learns that there is still much to be learned. Through a long, hard fight, Tarly is humbled and his leadership crumbles as he becomes a member of the team rather than the head lion.

Review: Definitely written in the 30's. It is not clear, concise language and takes a little bit to get into the roll of it. Interesting plot line and a boy who enjoys football I think could wrestle through it.

Now You Know: There is nothing in this book that needs to be censored. Just a good book about football and being humble enough to learn football and not just play.

Keesha's House

Keesha's House

Helen Frost

128 pgs

Farrar (2007)

Subject Matter: teen pregnancy, teen troubles, peace, comfort, worry

It's not really Keesha's house, it is Joe's house. Joe was taken in by his aunt when he was 12 and always invited friends over who had nowhere else to go. As he grew older and his friends grew older a younger generation began to occupy Joe's house and Keesha is the girl that invites them all and tells them all about the haven behind the blue door. This is a collection of poems of the kids who stay at Keesha's house, their problems, why they are there and why they stay. Also are poems from those who care about them, their mothers and fathers and coaches or grandparents. Each poem could stand on it's own, but together they weave a beautiful story of co-dependent people that have nothing in common but their problems.

Review: So good! Each poem had it's own message and story and yet they all seemed to link together with the characters knowing each other and such.

Now You Know: This is a book of problems. Each kid has their own set of problems and they are spelled out in poetry, but some are frightening all the same.

Model - A Memoir

Model -- A Memoir

Cheryl Diamond

368 pgs

Simon Pulse (2008)

Subject Matter: modeling, photo shoots, runway shows, modeling agencies

Cheryl Diamond relates her experience as a model breaking into the New York population of pretty people. Her journey is not an easy one as she has problems with finding a place to stay and loses her cat, the one object that she can rely on. Her positive attitude is not one that you would plan on meeting in the modeling industry and her charisma causes a reader to fall in love with her and realize how funny this material world that we live in, really is. She tells the story of her coming to New York for the first time and then venturing out alone to find a place to stay and to find her way around New York city going to photo shoots so that she may build her portfolio.

Review: Cheryl's optimistic attitude causes a reader to question her credibility, as it seems that no one would have the confidence and the mindset to do some of things that she did.

Now You Know: A very good book that accurately describes what it takes to be a model.

Aremegeddon Summer

Armageddon Summer

Bruce Coville

272 pgs

Harcourt Paperbacks (1999)

Subject Matter: religion, Mount Weepacut, Massachusetts, July 27, 2000

Reverend Beelson has done the math from the bible and has figured that the world is going to end July 27, 2000. He has told his two congregations of believers that they must all retreat to the Mount Weepacut in Massachusetts and set up camp a month before the end of the world. He predicts that his followers will be saves while the rest of the world is cast into the typical fire and brimstone ending. Jed is the son of one of the believer men who has caught onto this new religion as a lifeline. Jed does not believe any of what the Reverend is predicting but most go along because he is still under the care of his father. Marina is a devout follower of her mother to believes all that the Reverend is predicting. She questions if her faith is enough and tries her hardest to belief. The two of them are about the same age and share a friendship that allows them to find peace among all the fear of the believers.

Review: Seemingly real, this is a story that so many of us don't believe could happen. An interesting story of religion and what happens if a person allows themselves to be caught up without much else to go on but faith.

Now You Know: This is a book of extremes as Jed and Marina soon find out. Religious extremes, eating extremes, exercise extremes, none are good.

The Boxes

The Boxes

William Sleator

208 pgs

Puffin (2000)

Subject Matter: orphans, Pandora, crab-beasts, science fiction, houses

Annie is given two boxes by her uncle Marco, who she loves and trusts. Given the predicament much like Pandora, Annie is told not to open the boxes. Her curiosity gets the best of her and she cracks the lid of one of them. Out comes a creature that she cannot control and the reproduces itself in a quick manner. Soon Annie's basement is full of these crab-like creatures that speak to her through her thoughts. They insist that she go and talk to the box upstairs that they refer to as "Lord." She does their bidding the Lord slows time for the creatures to create their home and this catches the extreme attention of some landowners who are interested in what is going on inside of Annie's house and are willing to buy, bribing Annie's aunt with a million dollars to sell. Annie must save the creatures and their home and must not allow the landowners to buy.

Review: Lots of loose ends were not tied at the end and leaves the book at a cliff-hanger. Would recommend to someone looking for a good science-fiction novel.

Now You Know: Great concern is built for these rather scary crab-like creatures

Leven Thumps

Leven Thumps

Orbert Skye

848 pgs

Aladdin (2005)

Subject Matter: fantasy, orphans, runaways, magic, fate, adventure, super powers

Leven Thumps is an orphaned child given to his aunt for caregiving. He is abused and does not have a happy childhood. At age fourteen he discovers he has a gift for vaguely seeing into the future and being able to manipulate it. He runs away from his home, not knowing the destiny that lays ahead of him. A small squirrel like magical animal accompanies Leven on his escape from his home, insisting that they need to find a person named Geth who can help Leven save the world. Winter is another child who has had a rough childhood and discovers her own special gift of being able to freeze things - water, people, animals, what-have-you. She also runs away, in search of Leven, though she does not know it at the time. The two of them meet and soon-after, by much fate, find Geth. Their object is to save Foo (a land of dreams and fantasy) from the evil villain who wishes to combine this world that allows people to hope and dream to the real world, ruining them both. Leven must get to the one and only portal between the two worlds before it is too late with the help of Winter and Geth.

Review: A fast adventure that is very well done with enough detail to fill a reader in but not so much to keep the story from moving along.

Now You Know: A lot like Harry Potter

Godless

Godless

Pete Hautman

pgs 208

Simon Pulse (2005)

Subject Matter: religion, water towers, snails, club, peer pressure, power of one

Jason is a teenager looking for something to believe in. His father is a devout follower of Catholicism, whom Jason resists walking in the footsteps of. When getting hit in the face under the water tower and looking up at the large underside of the structure while gaining his breath, Jason realizes that there is something to believe in. Something that saves and destroys all life; water. Forming a religion on the spot worshiping the water tower Jason forms a cult of followers that include the boy that punched him. Their adventure to the top of the tower to fully appreciate their God quickly turns into a disaster as Henry slips and crashes to the catwalk below. Police arrive on the scene, as no one is supposed to climb the water tower, and the church is disbanded. A whole other story opens up as Jason tries to explain what worshiping the water tower and creating a religion means to him.

Review: A great book of teen power that shows how the decisions of one can effect others and how plans and preparations can really come through.

Now You Know: Being a religious book, it does say a lot about religion, which may cause some students to question why they personally belief in what they do and reevaluate their own questions and answers.

Valentine Princess

Valentine Princess

Meg Cabot

96 pgs

Harper Teen (2006)

Subject Matter: Princess Mia, Valentine's Day, misunderstanding, Princess Diaries, dating

It is Princess Mia's first Valentine's Day with a boyfriend and after talking the subject over with her best friends she is not sure if she should give him a valentine or not. He seems to think that it is just a Hallmark Holiday, made up to sell candy and cards, while to Mia it is something a little more special.

Review: A quick read of a Valentine's Day where everything is a twisted mess and seems to be going wrong until Mia just puts herself out there and things turn around and begin to go right.

No You Know: The 'B' word is used more than once, but not excessively. I was surprised.

Speak

Speak

Laurie Halse Anderson

240 pgs

Speak (2009)

Subject matter: silence, rape, parties, alcohol, drinking, high school, victim

Melinda starts school with a horrible secret. She had high hopes of entering high school as a brand new person and making an identity for herself, but at a party held the week before school starts all off that comes crashing down. She makes a phone call and everyone knows she did it, but they don't know why. She starts high school friendless and wouldn't really mind except for the rumors, all of which are not true. As the school year moves on she finds others who have had nearly the exact same experience she has and finally gives them all a voice as she speaks out about the truth.

Review: A touching story that reminds us that we all have secrets but that there are always people out there with the same secret. In order to stop the secret from happening to others it is important to Speak.

No You Know: A touchy subject dealt about in a delicate way

War Is...: Soldiers, Survivors and Storytellers Talk about War

Marc Aronson, Patty Campbell

288 pgs

Candlewick (2009)

Subject Matter: war, hurt, loss, death

This book is a compilation of many war stories, essays, interviews, poems and articles from many different perspectives. Not only are the stories from different perspectives, but they are also from different time eras, given a wide spectrum of war.

Review: A powerful book that should cause any person to think twice about the word war and what it means.

No You Know: controversial and loaded with emotion, this book may cause a person to feel attacked. Language - lots of it. It is a war story.

Hurricane Song

Hurricane Song

Paul Volponi

160 pgs

Speak (2009)

Subject Matter: hurricane, hurricane Katrina, super dome, crime, natural disaster

Miles had been living with his mother, but when she remarries and there is no room for him in the house he moves in with his Jazz musician father. They are evacuated from their home as Hurricane Katerina moves into New Orleans and must move with the rest of the city into the super dome. Here is where the story takes place, telling of the tragedies and hardships of living in such tight conditions that are not at all beneficial other than for immediate protection from the hurricane.

Review: Who knew? Who knew this happened? I wasn't really interested in the whole deal as it was happening, but looking back and reading this book makes me realizes how hard it really was for all the people who lost everything. The hardest thing for me to swallow was how our country could allow that to happen to its people. It seemed as if the whole situation was poorly taken care of.

Now You Know: language is prevalent

Diary of A Wimpy Kid

Diary of a Wimpy Kid

Jeff Kinney

217 pgs

Amulet Books (2007)

Subject Matter: humor, comics, comedy

Greg has just entered his first year of middle school and while he has an average life, it is not told in an average way. A graphic novel that explains the forgotten everyday things of school. Greg goes through school and life as an average student. . . with a diary. Everyone that Greg does or that happens to him is recorded in this diary in a very humorous way that cannot help but make the reader laugh out-loud.

Review: Jeff Kinney does a very good job at taking the embarrassing moments of middle school life and finding humor in them. This would be a good book to give to someone who is anxious about starting middle school

Now You Know: This book may make you laugh out loud in public.

Paper Quake

Paper Quake

Kathryn Reiss

288 pgs

Harcourt Paperbacks (2002)

Subject Matter: earthquakes, triplets, detective, museums

Violet is delicate and plain compared to her two other sisters (the three of them form triplets). She is living in California and there has been a series of earthquakes that have sent terrifying shivers up her body. During each earthquake Violet uncovers a letter written during the time period of the 1906 earthquake in San Francisco. They are addressed to a girl named "V" and Violet begins to wonder if they are to her, as this girl seems to have the same situations are herself. Finally given confidence in that she has something special that her sisters do not Violet has a brave streak that allows her to try to figure out the mystery of who the letters are to and who they are from. The findings seem to be merely coincidental until Violet finds that they are being put in her path on purpose to warn others that the San Francisco bridge may collapse in the next current earthquake.

Review: An interesting idea that I am sure we all wish would happen to us. That we would find clues from the past that would lead us to save others in the present. Anyone who is interested in mysteries, science fiction or time travel would love this book.

Now You Know: This book is safe for anyone of any age

Deadline

Deadline

Chris Crutcher

320 pgs

HarperTeen (2007)

Subject Matter: death, meaning of life, dying, sexual abuse, self-perception, football, friendship, prejudice, depression

Ben is diagnosed with an aggressive form of leukemia and refuses to tell anyone. At the legal age of 18 he is not bound to disclose any medical information and decides to not tell anyone because he doesn't want to be treated any differently. He goes out with the attitude that he is going to live his whole life in a year and does his best to make sure he does all that he can to make a difference, including petitioning for a street to be named after Malcom X.

Review: A real life changer that causes you to think of each day as a gift rather than part of a whole. I would hand this book to anyone and hope that they got the same thing I did out of it, that life is precious and there is no time to waste.

Now You Know: there are subplots of sexual abuse that do not go into graphic detail but that may make a person squirm. Colorful language is used in choice spots.