The Hogan that Great-Grandfather Jack Built -- Review and Signed Copy Giveaway

Thought for the Day:

"Words are never too big for children as long as they are the right words." ~ Jane Yolen ~

Some Gifts for My Writer Friends:
Christie Wright Wild has been running a series of posts on her wonderful blog looking at story elements in picture books. Click HERE for the link for the latest one which looks at Patterns, but they are all worth checking out. If you are not reading her blog regularly, you are missing a lot. She also gives away picture book critiques. Check it out.

Writers Helping Writers has another wonderful post. Click HERE to find five writing exercises to get your writing juices flowing. 

I was visiting Writing for Kids (While Raising Them), Tara Lazar's wonderful blog which you can find by clicking HERE,  and she was telling about a new group blog for kids writers called GROG (GRoup blOG -- get it?). It's pretty cool. Take a look by clicking HERE.

Last week, I offered a copy of Shadows on My Wall by Timothy Young for one of you who was a follower with a U. S. address who left a comment. Grandmamiller met the criteria and her name was pulled as the winner this week. Congratulations, Grandmamiller! WooHoo!! I will be sending the book to you this week. If you didn't win, stay tuned for a very special giveaway.

There was a great deal of interest a couple weeks ago when I reviewed Nancy Bo Flood's wonderful picture book Cowboy Up! here. Several people mentioned being grateful for a book about the Navajo people. I was really glad to see that, because I knew what I had on deck for this week. Nancy has another terrific picture book about the Navajo culture. That's what I'll be reviewing today.

Title: The Hogan that Great-Grandfather Jack Built

Author: Nancy Bo Flood
Illustrator: Peterson Yazzie

Publisher: Salina Bookshelf, Inc.

Year: 2012

Intended Audience: Ages 3-7

Opening Line: This is our home, our Navajo hogan, that long, long ago, Great-Grandfather Jack built with his hands out of earth, water, and trees.

Peterson Yazzie

This lovely book is loosely based on This is the House that Jack Built and follows that structure to some degree, but is much richer. The story introduces the reader to the large, extended family of a Navajo family from the oldest to the youngest. Everyone in the family makes contributions to the well-being of the family in many ways. Great-grandmother greets the sun and gives thanks for all they have. Grandfather cuts and stacks wood for the winter, but also teaches the children games and star names and tells stories of the history of their people. Father works and brings home food. Mother weaves and the children help where needed. Grandmother cooks fry bread and mutton stew. And they all live in the hogan that Great-Grandfather Jack built.

Nancy Bo Flood

There is a wonderful musical quality underlying this sweet story that shows the closeness and caring of this family and presents some of what is important in their culture. All of this is presented on marvelous illustrations made with the colors of sunset and desert. I'm not sure what medium artist Peterson Yazzie uses, but the art has the softness of oil chalk. Throughout Yazzie weaves in shapes and designs that, with the colors he uses, call up Navajo images we would be familiar with through the pottery and blankets and rugs we've seen in museums and shops in the Southwest. (You can see more of his wonderful art by clicking HERE.)The combination of Nancy's story and Peterson Yazzie's artwork is stunning. This is a book that will be enjoyed by a far wider audience than young children. This is a Perfect Picture Book and to find more Perfect Picture Books, please visit Susanna Leonard Hill's blog by clicking HERE. She always has a picture book review and links to many others.

I'm happy to report Nancy has offered to send a signed copy of The Hogan that Great-Grandfather Jack Built to one of you. If you are a follower or subscriber, please tell me that and leave a comment. If you have a U.S. address, I will put your name in the hat and draw one out next week. Thanks for reading and don't forget to leave a comment.

 

The Paradox of Vertical Flight -- a Review and Giveaway

Thought for the Day: 

“Time is the coin of your life. It is the only coin you have, and only you can determine how it will be spent. Be careful lest you let other people spend it for you.”  ~ Carl Sandburg ~ 

Some Gifts for My Writer Friends:

Spice up your dialogue, but just enough by clicking HERE for a great post. 

Seven Quick Ways to Write Sentences that Sizzle is the name of a good article from The Writer’s Village written by editor Jodie Renner. Find it HERE.

 

Would you like to add suspense to your story? HERE is a great post on that topic.

Last Sunday's post had a chance for one of my readers to win a copy of This is NOT a Drill by Beck McDowell. Well, sometimes it pays to get in early. Natalie Aguirre was the first to leave a comment and her name was the first to be picked from the hat! Congratulations, Natalie!! Natalie is a writer and an attorney -- a very busy lady -- and blogs at Literary Rambles with Casey McCormick (who works at a literary agency). Click HERE to check it out. They also give away a LOT of books, so if you like to read, you might want to subscribe, and they run a regular agency spotlight, so if you are looking for an agent, you really don't want to miss their posts. Natalie, I will be in touch and will get your book out this week.

I have spent the last eight hours at baseball games. My grandson plays on three different teams and today he played one game with one team and two games with another. I keep score, so there I was for many hours of pretty darned exciting baseball. They did, of course, win all three! (Proud Grandma here.) I tell you this because I am just wrung out. So I am simply going to post a review I wrote last fall of a book I really enjoyed. Read to the end to find out how you can have my copy of The Paradox of Vertical Flight by Emil Ostrovski.

Jack wakes up on his eighteenth birthday and decides it might be a good idea to almost commit suicide. His ex-girlfriend calls before he can figure out how to almost kill himself. She has just given birth to their son. Jack has not heard from Jess in quite awhile. She wants him to see their son before he is given up for adoption. Jack goes to the hospital and, when Jess hands the baby to him, everything changes. Jack decides he really wants to introduce his son to his grandmother, Bob, and he takes the baby and leaves. Being a student of philosophy (and not being very believable as a high school senior), Jack names the baby Socrates and begins to imbue the newborn with stories of ancient Greece and lots of mythology, a great foundation for any child. Jack corrals his best friend, Tommy, to help him get to grandma’s house and Jess comes along as well as they dodge police and take a journey of a lifetime.

“High school psychology taught me it’s important to give out verbal cues when someone else is talking, even when you have no idea what they’re talking about.”

If one is looking for an entertaining read, look no further. This book is wacky and wild and funny, but a bit over the top.  Teens will like this one a lot.

Emil Ostrovski

I suggest you click HERE and poke around Emil Ostrovski's web site. His bio and his "Unfrequently Asked Questions" are worth a look. He's a very funny guy. 

If you would like to win my gently-read ARC of The Paradox of Vertical Flight, be a subscriber or a follower (it's free and easy -- check the right-hand column), have a U.S. address, and leave a comment. If you would like an extra chance in the drawing, spread the word by sending out the link to this post by Twitter, Facebook, your own blog, or whatever way you choose and tell me in your comment that you have done so. Next week I will draw a name from my proverbial hat and will send the book to that winner. I will, if all goes well, be back with a picture book review on Friday and then a middle-grade, YA, or adult book next Sunday. Please come back!