House

Katie John is a character I grew up with, and the books about her are filled with fun, adventures, and funny things that happen, while teaching good vurtues. Which is more than I can say for some of the depressing childrens' books in the bookstores and libraries today. The author should keep writing!

I loved Katie John; she was such a tomboy, and -- being one myself -- I enjoyed watching her get in and out of trouble and excitement. A definite must-read.

Katie John and her folks move into a huge old house. Katie John is into everything, and the fun begins! Don't miss the part where Katie John gets her finger stuck in the speaking hole!

I grew up with Katie John, and I can hardly wait for my new copy of this, her first book, to arrive at my house. Katie John is a wide-open, hysterical heroine for kids of all ages!

Years ago, young Keesha ran away from home, from her verbally abusive, alcoholic father. Since then, she has found comfort in the home of a local resident, Joe, who had a large house and an even larger heart. Joe provided Keesha with a roof over her head and a fresh start in life. Now it's Keesha's turn to give back. As she meets young people in trouble, she invites them to Joe's house, so that they may have a chance to sort out life's problems. Though unconventional and not in line with the state's plans for runaways, Keesha's solution is helping many local teenagers, including Stephanie who is pregnant, Dontay, who is a runaway from foster care, and Harris, a young man whose family will not accept that he is gay. We eventually watch these characters meet and learn from each other. The tragic ending serves to remind us that there's not always a happy ending, but success comes from making the most of your life.

Helen Frost has created a wise and thoughtful character in young Keesha; however, she's not perfect, which makes her more believable and more likeable. When Stephanie is accepted back into her parents' home despite her pregnancy, Keesha's comments reflect the jealousy you'd expect from a 14-year-old who always hoped that her own father would come looking for her. All poems in the book are written in sestinas and sonnets, and each contains multicultural references that will connect the readers to the characters and their environment. The situations are real and prevalent in society, and even though they're sometimes uncomfortable to talk about and read about, young readers from ages 15 on up will appreciate each character's candid, poetic narration.

In this poem, the lives of six troubled kids entwine. Wrapping around each other like the words to a song, or maybe more like a dance, their words work hard to make everything come out right. The fear of a teen pregnancy and it's consequences to both teens, foster care, DUI, being gay, an abusive stepfather, and the words Ms. Frost uses to convey everything are spare and concise and beautiful.
Surely a Printz Award contender.

my choice..........KATIE

"I sleep in my sleeping bag in a room
with a lock in the basement of the place
on Jackson Street. And I feel safe.
If Keesha wants to talk to me, she knocks
first, and if I want to let her in, I do.
If I don't, I don't. It's my choice.

There's not too much I really have a choice
about. Mom would say I chose to leave my room
at home, but that's not something anyone would do
without a real good reason. There's no place
for me there since she got married. Like, one time, I knocked
her husband's trophy off his gun safe,

and he twisted my arm--hard. I never feel safe
when he's around. I finally asked my mom to make a choice:
him or me. She went, Oh, Katie, he'll be fine. Then she knocked
on our wooden table. I blew up. I stormed out of the room
and started thinking hard. In the first place,
I know he won't be fine. I didn't tell her what he tries to do

to me when she works late. In a way, I want to, but even if I do,
she won't believe me. She thinks we're safe
in that so-called nice neighborhood. Finally, Katie, a place
of our own. And since she took a vow, she thinks she has no choice
but to see her marriage through. No room
for me, no vow to protect me if he comes knocking

on my door late at night. He knocks
and then walks in when I don't answer. Or even when I do
answer: Stay out! This is my room
and you can't come in! I could never be safe
there, with him in the house. So, sure, I made a choice.
I left home and found my way to this place,

where I've been these past two weeks. And I found a place
to work, thirty hours a week. Today Mom knocked
on the door here. She wanted to talk. I told her, You made your choice;
I made mine. She wondered what she could do
to get me to come home. But when I said, It's not safe
for me as long as he's there, she left the room.

My choice is to be safe.
This room is dark and musty, but it's one place
I do know I can answer no when someone knocks."

The use of those words over and over in a sestina--safe, knock, choice, room--I feel like I can really step into Katie's skin after reading the piece. Throughout this awesome verse novel we are able to step into the skin of a variety of kids--kids who all have problems that cause them to leave their "real" homes. What we find is that these young people are caring of each other and that they care about the future. You will like these kids. You'll like it at Keesha's house.

In this next piece--a sonnet instead of a sestina--we are shown why all these young people have been able to go to a safe place and stay there for free:

i know the value..........JOE

"I know the value of a house like this.
Old and solid, hardwood stairs and floor.
But when I showed up at Aunt Annie's door
when I was twelve--bruised, scared, clenched fists--
all I knew was: I could stay.
As long as you need to, Joe, was what she kept
on saying, right up till she died and left
the house to me. So now that's what I say
when kids show up and I know they can't ask
for what they shouldn't have to ask for. They need
more than I can give them. I know I'm
no Aunt Annie. I ain't up to the task
of tryin' to be their legal foster dad.
But I can give them space--and space is time."

Keesha is the girl living there who has put out the word about Joe's/Aunt Annie's house. Now everyone calls it Keesha's House and the new arrivals are surprised to meet Joe. In the long run some of these kids are able to come to terms with the adults who've raised them. They choose to go home. Others don't:

up to us..........HARRIS

"There's light ahead of me as I walk on
into my senior year. I wasn't sure
about going back, but Katie said, If you're
about to quit, The Jerks will think they won.
She calls them that--The Jerks--like Dontay calls me son
when he gives me fake advice:Stay pure,
son, in thought word and deed. We'll find a cure
for you someday. I laugh. It's all in fun.
If people we're supposed to count on can't
(or don't) support us, it's up to us to find
the friends who can and do. Of course
we want to be with both our parents in the kind
of home where we'd be loved. But why rant
on about all that? Home is in your mind."

Readers will find KEESHA'S HOUSE a great place to spend some quality time. You'll find me back there again soon.

Richie Partington
...

I gave this to my first grader for the holidays, and he has been glued to it for the past several months. He loves learning about all of the cultures and talking with his foodie parents about cooking. A picky eater who is trying to change his ways, he now wants to try several of the recipes after we successfully made the mac and cheese (which was delicious).

This neat cook book for kids is filled with interesting recipes from around the world and is loaded with historical information about the cultures featured in the book and their foods. Want to know how the hot dog got it's name or when people first enjoyed an ice cream soda? Well, it's in this book. I've already tried a number of recipes including the nutmeg cookies from Norway, the potjiekos from South Africa, and the coconut bread from Jamaica. All were delicious! I would recommend this book to teachers, parents and kids who love to learn about different cultures through cooking. A great way to inspire youngsters and pass along a love of cooking!

I enjoyed this book for several reasons. Although there are other multicultural cookbooks around, I enjoyed the way Ms. Braman was able to combine the historical and cultural facts as well as the recipes. "Cooking Up Some History" provides information such as how the ice cream soda was invented back in 1874. "Culture Link" discusses information such as how the people in Denmark make a rice pudding that is eaten at the end of Christmas dinner. In addition, she added "Tasty Tidbits" and "What's In A Name?" that further provides information about the countries and their foods. Ms. Braman's writing style flows well, the book is easy to read and the recipes are written so that children will be able to make them with minimal help from an adult. I would recommend this "tasty" book to anyone, child or adult, who enjoys cooking/historical facts.

Kids' Rooms: A Hands-On Decorating Guide by interior design expert Anna Kasabian is a very special and "user friendly" how-to guide for creating wonderful rooms crafted especially to meet the needs of children. Filled from cover to cover with a wealth of tips, tricks, techniques, and enhanced with full-color photographs of delightful, inspirational, and friendly room designs and colors for young people, Kids' Rooms provides practical inspirations for home owners and apartment dwellers, from creating safe and fun play areas for children of all ages, to soothing bedrooms for boys or girls, to babyproofing for an infant's safety. Kids' Rooms is an especially enjoyable and very highly recommended instructional guide for parents wanting to cherish ambiance, practicality, and originality in the decor of their children's rooms.

If you have children and are considering redecorating their rooms, you MUST HAVE this book! The details and suggestions are wonderful. There are even lots of helpful hints and project ideas which are practical and easy to do. I have rarely found so many unique ideas on decorating children'ts room all in one place. Especially appealing is the use of "real" children using their thoughts, ideas and actual rooms. A book well-worth referring to over and over again!

Anna Kasabian has done it again! Her latest book will appeal to all pocketbooks and tastes. She offers a unique array of ideas from accents to basic furnishings in a concise, easy to follow style.The book is a wealth of creativity, practical and beautiful, to boot. The photographs are wonderful. The book even contains drawings by children of their dream rooms, which are both poignant and illuminating. Grandparents, this is the book you've been looking for. You can't go wrong. Best of it's sort.

Personally, I believe this is one of the best detectives book I've read. There are so many little details that the main character points out that it's amazing! If you're the type that loves both manga and mystery this is highly recommended

I stumbled apon this accedentily, sorry for spelling, on the Tokyopop web site. I read the plot and fell in love. I am a HUGE fan of manga and murder mysteries so I got it and I LOVE it it's an amazing manga!!! You also get some major BANG for your BUCK, It's over two hundred paged and only [$$$] which is god for a manga. I can't wait for the rest to come out I promise you I'll buy them all. And if the anime series coems out I'll but that too :)!!

I am a long time fan of Kindaichi and I am thrilled to see that it is finally available in English from Tokyo Pop! The series was very popular in Japan spawning a 50+ episode anime series, 2 animated movies, 2 live action TV series, a live action movie, 2 series of manga, novels, bilingual comics, english novels(printed in Japan), as well as loads of special editions and merchandise!

*ahem*

Hajime Kindaichi is the grandson of the famous Japanese detective Kousuke Kindaichi, a popular fiction character(much like Sherlock Holmes) who was popular in 70's and 80's. Kindaichi is a genius, especially when it comes to solving difficult crimes. Miyuki Nanase is Hajime's oldest friend and she often accompanies him on his adventures.

Each Kindaichi story is a murder mystery(often serial murder) where the murders are carried out in a seemingly impossible way. Kindaichi puts the clues together and finds the link between the victims until he figures out who the murderer is. Then, usually, he tricks the murderer into giving himself(or herself!) away.

Volume 1 "The Opera House Murders" is the tale of Fudo High's drama club who take a trip to an island to prepare for the drama competition in the wake of the suicide of their best actress. One by one, members of the drama club are being murdered in ways that mimic the play they are rehearsing, The Phantom of the Opera. After the first murder all lines of communication with the outside world are cut by a vicious storm and the fact that someone has cut the line on the boat.
I won't say anymore because I don't want to spoil the mystery......

As with all Tokyo Pop titles the print quality is lacking, but for the price there is no sense in complaining. The translation isn't as smooth as it could be. Some of the truly beautiful prose found in both the original Japanese and the bilingual editions are lost. Sometimes the dialogue is choppy and the jokes don't translate well, but overall it isn't a bad translation. One nice thing about the TP editions is the fact that each book is one self contained mystery. The mysteries in the original editions often spanned 2 or 3 smaller books.

Kindaichi is a wonderful read. I loaned my bilingual editions to all of my friends and everyone, male and female, anime fans and otherwise, enjoyed them.

I highly reccomend this to fans of manga and anime, as well as fans of mysteries. Even if you don't normally read mystery stories(like me) give Kindaichi a try. You'll probably enjoy it.

Another plus of these books is the fact that they have a great repeat factor - after the mystery is solved it's fun to read them again and look for the clues(which are there!) that point to the killer!

Just for fun: There is a sequel to this particular storyline. The first animated Kindaichi movie(not currently available R1) is "Return to Hotel Opera" and it draws heavily on the events of this storyline and further explores the past tragedy of the owner. The animated movie is based off a Japanese Kindaichi novel(which is quite a bit better than the animated film - they changed many things in the anime) which is avialable in both Japanese and English, though you may have a tough time finding the English edition outside of Japan.

Living in Barrow, Alaska, the farthest north community in the U.S., I have experienced small houses in a harsh environment, like the one in the book. The book takes place in the small Northwest Alaska village of Buckland and is based on tales elders tell the young people all the time.
Kumak and his family have a comfortable little house on the edge of a frozen river, but with several generations living there, it seems crowded.
When I first met my wife Chris in Barrow, she was living alone in a 10x12 dwelling she called "The Box." And we do have a lot of larger and newer houses, but some large families and households still live in smaller houses.
Anyway, the author writes and illustrates the very wise way a local elder helps Kumak and his family deal with their perception of "a crowded house." It is a fanciful and funny at times, but there is a good lesson to be learned.
The book is listed for children age four years old and up, but I'd say it will be interesting to older children and adults ---anyone who has lived the small village lifestyle in Alaska, or who is interested in that way of life.
Now if I can just make some space in our little house in Barrow, so I can find my notes and finish my writing for the day.
Enjoy the book!
Earl Finkler

bravo, michael bania!,more books like this one,please. i adore this book, and so do my nine year old twin son's. the pictures in the book are beautiful, the colors reflect the exact colors in the far north (how did she acomplish that?). and the message this story shares with us is priceless, to be content with what we have, NOW. this is a book we all can learn from, and one we need to teach to our children. give this book as a gift to all the people in your life that you care about. my family is already looking forward to the next one. blessings to you michael bania, your a winner.

My three year old was engrossed as I read this book to her. I couldn't turn the pages too fast because she was busy examining all the details in the illustrations. At the same time, my 11 year old 7th grader who was born reading wanted to see the illustrations also. He did not leave his chair til I had finished the book. My three year old immediately wanted me to read the book to her again. It is a pleasure to be able to read them a story depicting Native children and adults engaged in cultural activities.
From a bush teacher's point of view- a great piece of literature with local ties.
I hope this is only the first in a long line of books from this talented author and illustrator!

I know the author very well, his know how is of the highest quality,he knows his stuff!!Im sure that all who read this book will be blessed.

Thanks a zillion times for finally coming up with something I can use. It's simple, easly to follow, and concise. This guy knows his stuff. I recommend this book to any landlord who needs to save time and money and significant amounts of it. BRAVO Mr. Fletcher.

If all you got from this book was a single useful fact to help you decide on one carpet/flooring installation, then you've paid for the book - perhaps many times over.

But if you only got one useful fact - then you're still on page one.

I manage apartments for a living. Replacing carpets & flooring is an expensive part of apartment turnover. No matter how many times I've done it, I still feel like flooring salespeople are like used-car dealers. They'll tell me whatever I want to hear for the product at whatever price I'm able to pay.

I wish I had a flooring expert by my side. Now, I do (in a way). This book is written in a very comfortable, casual style. It's almost as if the author is standing there tutoring you on all the aspects of flooring. He has a real understanding of the cost/benefit of different flooring materials and he understands the sensitivities of apartment management.

It's chock-full of tidbits of useful information, tips & tricks. I don't remember it all yet - but next time I have to buy flooring material, I'm going to re-read the important sections and go to my dealer a lot more prepared to understand what it is I'm buying - and to save money doing it!

It's not only useful - it's an easy read. Clearly the author knows his stuff and is able to present it without making me feel like I'm a dummy.

Highly Recommended.

In middle age,life can seem to drag to a halt. Marion Woodman and her coauthors demonstrate that the richest part of inner work is possible when we no longer are focusing most of our energy on the outer world of our families,or our careers. the stories these women tell of their own dream journeys are almost beyond belief, and inspired me to resume dream work i abandoned years ago. the journey never ends, and Leaving My Father's House begins a whole new ring on the spiral to wholeness. my only complaint is that at times the book felt too wordy.

If life had a reading list, this book would certainly be on it. Woodman does a supreme job of linking the women's narratives -- clarifying and filling in their experiences in archtypical and Jungian terms -- without dimming the spotlight on their individual experiences.

How long will we live our lives unwhole and blaming others (or even ourselves!) for our unhappiness? Until we all read this book and others like it, I'd guess.

With this book, Marion Woodman guides us through a complex and difficult journey. Her work with women through the often painful and lonely process of coming into their own life is shared with wisdom, compassion and deep love. I have found this book to be fundamental to my growth and my process. The women who shared their stories have enriched my life and have helped guide me on my way. I've given this book as a gift to many women friends, and I feel it can be a helpful and useful tool for anyone embarking on the inner journey.

After reading this book,I becamemore aware of how the 'CivilWar"families,were separated bypolitics that were never resolved.And the recipes found in this bookare treasures,that can still be used today.It is fascinating reading,a book you definitely won'tbe able to put down,until you'veread the last page.It's so absorbing,so historical,and thephotos bring the "Lincolns' alivefrom the past to present time.The author has displayed warmth,of a family's love,and couragebeyond imaigination. Donna McCrearyis truly giving the reader far morethen the culinary arts,she isshowing how a family under thedirest circumstances,emergesfrom the War' with grace,and dignity."Lincoln's Table' is alsothe greatest love story,I have everread,a test of vicissitudes thatbrings hope for others to endurein their marriages.This book is a cookbook,a'How-to-"keep a family together',and most of all,a masterpiece of all times!!

The book is bursting with an array of a myriad of 'President Abrahamand Mary Todd Lincoln's' lifefrom their childhood to the time they got married,recipes thatgives the reader a delightfulinsight to what prompted the"Lincoln's tastes.It tells us whatfoods were 'Lincoln's favories',as a young boy,to adulthood.Ancedotes that tell us about thecooking ingredients that were popular in the different timeframes of their lives.It is abook of great intensity of notonly the foods that the 'Lincolns'enjoyed when they were married, also, a marriage of superbspices,blended with each recipeof historical facts(i.e.....what foods were popular duringthe 'antebellum' period,and the'Civil War.' Abrahan's favoritecomfort foods that he had whenthe 'Civil War' was raging,andMary's love of the culinary arts.It's book full of lovely remmbrances of the "Lincoln'senduring love for each other,and you feel like you're havingdinner right there with them.The author did an excellent merging of food with Americanhistory.A book you'll want to own,and pass it on to your grandchildren. Kudos to theauthor, 'Donna D.McCreary'for a book that should be ineverybody's library to betreasured.A "best-seller' that should beon the lists of 'books' to be read for decades.

The author has done a wonderful job of collecting an array of recipes of food that Lincoln enjoyed from his boyhood through his presidency. The recipes are easy, fun, and are good old fashioned home cooking!A very charming part of the book is how the author has added little anecdotes, background info and tips about certain ingredients. Quite a bit of history thrown in too as we see the menu for Lincoln's sister Sarah's wedding, and menus from an inaugural luncheon and a White House ball. The book also serves as a mini biography of Lincoln as we see him go from a boy in Kentucky to a laywer, husband and father in Springfield IL, to being President of the United States and alot thrown in between! We see the private side of Lincoln and the love he had for his family, and the meals they enjoyed. This book is a must for any Lincoln buff, and even if you're not, it is a great addition to any cookbook collection. For a good old fashioned taste in the midst of this fast paced processed world-give this book a try!

The Series "My First Little House Books" is a great tool for Special Education adaptations of the Core Literature "Little House in the Big Woods". I've used this series in general education classrooms, too, to supplement the Core Lit text. The children's positive responses to the beautiful illustrations made my day! The beautifully portrayed color illustrations capture essential details from the book chapters and make the stories come alive for all of the students. Two thumbs up for this series!

I bought this book for my 1st grade daughter, hoping she would love the Laura Ingalls Wilder tradition as I had as a child. She did and I was excited because she could read this book herself and she was empowered! I only wish that you could buy the other 13 titles of the "first books" in a collection or gift set like you can the original series.

I ordered the whole series for my soon to be 4 year old for Christmas. She is absolutely delighted with the stories. The illustrations are beautiful. A must have for younger children.