I try to read all of the Newbery Award winning novels. Alas, I am so far behind. So many books and so little time.

Before I get to the Newbery Honor book that I want to mention, I want to tell you a bit about Book of a Thousand Days by Shannon Hale. I think this book is fabulous. It is exceptionally well-written. There are many well-turned phrases that please my literary soul.

There is suspense. There is action. There is romance. And it’s all deftly woven into a glittering tapestry of a tale.

This story is based on a forgotten fairy tale by the Brothers Grimm. It is re-set in central Asia (think Mongolia) and is about a maid and her lady that are shut in a tower for 7 years because the lady refused to marry a man. This man happens to be despicable but nonetheless, her father shuts her up.

The maid struggles to keep them fed and comfortable. Things become bleak. Then, a terrible battle takes place and all hope of rescue is gone. So, the maid finds a way to free themselves from the tower.  They travel to the maid’s home country only to have the maid find herself in a hopeless situation. The plot goes from one hopeless situation after another. There doesn’t seem to be any way out. But the author is so clever and the plot is so well written that everything ends well. (I hope this doesn’t spoil it for anyone!)

To me, the mark of a great young adult novel is that adults like reading the book, too. The only difference from a good adult novel and a good young adult novel should be vocabulary. A young adult book should have a lower vocabulary level than an adult novel but otherwise be just the same — good writing, good plot, good characterization. And this book definitely has it all.

I recommend that grandmothers read this book themselves and also consider giving it as a birthday present or Christmas present or a present to celebrate the 17th of April (or for any other random reason to give a good book to a granddaughter)!

Oh, by the way, this is not a paid endorsement. Sheesh, the author (nor her publisher, book marketer, or best friend from the 6th grade) doesn’t even know I exist. I can’t imagine why . . .

Now on to the Newbery Honor book.

Princess Academy, also by Shannon Hale, won the Newbery Honor book award in 2006. Did you catch that date?  That was only 6 years ago. Like I said, so many books and so little time. (If anybody has a job where I could get paid to sit around and read, I’d love to apply . . .)

The plot of this story is that all of the girls (of a certain age) in a small village on Mount Eskel are commanded by the king to attend a princess academy. At the end of one year, the prince will visit them and select his future bride from those at the academy.

The academy mistress is harsh. The competition between the girls is stiff. And then bandits come to capture the future princess. All of the girls are held hostage. One wrong step and their lives could be snuffed out. How in the world will they survive?

This, too, is a well-written book. (However, Book of a Thousand Days is my favorite of the two.) Hales has such skill and prowess as a writer. I am very impressed with her books.

Now I must make a confession. I do not like reading fantasy books. I have never cared for them. I remember trying to read one in days of yore (a.k.a. in my youth) and just couldn’t get into it. I believe that is the only book that I ever started and never finished.

Oh, wait. I tried reading Ivanhoe when I was about 11 years old and didn’t finish that. But in my defense, it was a tad above my reading level at that time . . .

I think that granddaughters would also enjoy reading Princess Academy. Maybe you could get both of these books for your granddaughters.

Methinks I should read Shannon Hales’ The Goose Girl next.  (Shannon’s books just might change my mind about reading fantasy!)

I’ve got an attitude.  Yesiree, Bob.  (Only one? my husband retorts. )

It’s an I-can-do-it attitude.  It probably started around the terrible twos, that age when kids want to do things for themselves.  That can-do attitude stuck to me through the years like a cocklebur clings to a sock.

That’s probably why I enjoyed The Summer of Hammers and Angels by Shannon Wiersbitzky.

Delia, the main character, has that can-do attitude.  She has spunk.  She has initiative.  She has drive.  What a delightful character.

Delia lives with her mother in a ramshackle home.  An inspector visits their home and threatens to condemn it unless repairs are made — and there’s a long list of them.  Before they could do anything, a bolt of lightening strikes the home injuring Delia’s mother who is rushed to the hospital in a coma.  As Delia’s mother lays in the hospital, Delia feels time ticking by.  They have only 19 days before the inspector returns.  Delia’s can-do attitude kicks in and she tackles the repairs with the help of her best friend, Mae — and with Tommy’s help, someone who Delia considers scum between her toes.

This book is for middle readers.  If you have grandchildren in this age bracket, I recommend this as a good summer read for them — the characters are beliveable and the what-is-she-going-to-do-now plot sucks readers in.  You keep reading because you want to know how in the world Delia is going to make all of those repairs — especially fixing the blackened hole in the roof left by the lightening.

The author sprinkels expressive phrases throughout the book.  Novel and fresh phrases that enchanted my reading.  Phrases like ‘hot and humid enough to make a toothpick wilt’ and ‘honeysuckle smells warm, like fresh buttered buiscuts’ and sunflowers that ‘started scarlet in the center and then faded to butter.’  (I wish my writing was like hers and not the drab oatmeal brown crud that plops out of my fingers onto the page.)

So, grab your middle-grade grandchildren.  Snuggle together on your comfy couch and read the book outloud to them.  This memory-making activity would last a long time for your grandchildren.

Two thumbs up on this book, Shannon!  Can’t wait to read your next one!

(I went to a conference in Philadelphia the end of June.  A few days before the conference, my husband and I visited several places in Pennsylvania — Gettysburg, Valley Forge, Hershey, Lancaster.  Come to find out, Shannon lives in that area.  Had I known that, I would have dropped by to say hello.  It’s always fun to meet authors in person. Maybe next time . . .)

Because I enjoyed reading The Wednesday Wars by Gary Schmidt, I decided that I would read First Boy.  And over all, I enjoyed this book more than The Wednesday Wars.

Cooper Jewett is the main character.  He lives with his grandparents because his parents died in a car crash shortly after he was born.  Then, his grandfather passes away (his grandmother had passed away earlier) leaving Cooper an orphan.  An orphan responsible for a New Hampshire dairy farm.

A local politician wants Cooper’s help on the campaign trail.  The Senator believes that Cooper can help him become the next president of the United States. Then there are suspicious black sedans lurking around.  Then his small barn burns down.  Cooper struggles to do his homework and do all of the chores on the farm.

Theft, kidnapping, and car chases.  And the President of the United States wants to talk with him. Suspense abounds in this book.  It is a definite page-turner-I-gotta-know-what-happens kind of book.

I only have one complaint about the book.  Some of the emotions that the author attributes to the fourteen-year-old main character seem to be rather juvenile.  Emotions that seem to be more normal for a nine or ten-year-old boy. But, I think this would not be something that a young person would think while reading the book.

Recommend this book to your grandchildren that are in the sixth grade — or above.  I think know that they will enjoy reading it.

I just finished a great Newbery Honor Book called Wednesday Wars.  It’s by Gary Schmidt.

While his Catholic and Jewish classmates attend their religious instruction, Holling Hoodhood (who is the main character of the book and is the only Presbyterian in his seventh grade class) is stuck staying with his teacher, Mrs. Baker, on Wednesday afternoons.  And because Mrs. Baker is forced to stay at school because of this one lone student, Holling is positive she hates his guts.  His belief is reinforced when she makes him read Shakespeare.

The author deftly weaves in writing about the angst of growing up, the turbulent 1960s, the Vietnam war, and the timeless wisdom of Shakespeare into a tale of a likable kid in his seventh grade year at school.  Holling gets into many predicaments (being late to the New York Yankee’s baseball game, getting hit by a school bus, being a slow runner) and Mrs. Baker comes flying in like a super hero to solve all of his problems.  Well, most of them. (Mmmmm. . . none of my school teachers were involved in my life — or any other student for that matter — like Mrs. Baker is involved in Holling’s life . . .)

This book will keep your grandchildren engrossed — even if they might happen to be girls and even if the book is about a boy.  It will even hold grandma’s attention if she reads it.  (It kept me happily occupied while riding to and fro on public transportation.)

I only have one beef about the book.  And that’s the incident with the rats and the cream puffs.  The delaying of the eating of the cream puffs seemed too contrived to me.  While the thread of the rat incidences runs through the tapestry of this story, this one thread seems to be flawed.  But did it stop me from reading?  Not in the least!  I instantly forgave the author (well, I forgave him after thinking about it for three minutes) and continued reading.

This would be a good book to give as a birthday present to a grandchild.  Or, you can have a ‘virtual’ book club with your grandchildren and read this book.

If you are in a book club yourself, this would be a fun book to discuss with adults — and especially discuss the use of Shakespeare’s words and themes in the story. (Using the phrase ‘pied ninnies’ sure wants to roll off my tongue lately . . .)

Wednesday Wars.  Try it.  You’ll like it.

(And I’ll give a big Symphony creamy-milk-chocolate-almond-and-toffee-bits one-half pound bar to the first reader who can tell me what the last two sentences refer to.)