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May 2008

Hi folks!

I hope you are all doing well. I just enjoyed a day of taking my kids to the beach and then to the pool. My little ones are growing so quickly, and I am treasuring these moments while they still want me in their lives. I have also been busily constructing my wife’s Mother’s Day gift, and we are all vacationing in Colorado at the end of the month. 

I always get the bulk of my reading done on planes (or hanging out at a Border’s for a day), and I took a lot of planes this last month. I decided to tackle some thicker books that I have been meaning to read, including Tony Horwitz’s excellent A Voyage Long and Strange: Rediscovering the New World, Ladies of Liberty: The Women Who Shaped Our Nation by Cokie Roberts (she is such a gifted woman herself – I miss her on Sunday mornings) and the compelling Standing Tall: A Memoir of Tragedy and Triumph by Rutgers women’s basketball coach C. Vivian Stringer. If you have not noticed, I really like biographies, memoirs and other nonfiction.

Anyhow, enjoy this month’s book selections below. I hope you are all reading some wonderful books. Make sure to tell me all about them. If you're an author or a publisher and would like to send me review copies of your book(s), please send them to the address listed for authors and publishers.

I hope you are reading some wonderful books. Make sure to tell me about them by This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

Have a wonderful May, and enjoy your books!

Danny ;-)
Cancer on $5 a Day*

Cancer on $5 a Day*

By Robert Schimmel 224 pages Adult

Danny Says

The * stands for “Chemo Not Included.” If you ever want to read a memoir, stick to comedians. They are our most precious commodities, as they have a way of dealing with serious issues lightly. As someone who admires comedians greatly, I was extremely pleased when Lissa Warren at DaCapo Lifelong Books sent me not one but two copies of Schimmel’s compelling page-turner about how humor got him through his battle with cancer. Why does that please me? After I read the books that make my lists, I always donate them to teachers, libraries and literacy charities. This is one I wanted to keep for myself (I gave the other one to a student), as Schimmel does everything a great writer needs to do: he makes you laugh, he makes you cry and he makes you think. Better yet, he does it all in under 200 pages!
Buy on Amazon
I Was Told There'd Be Cake

I Was Told There'd Be Cake

By Sloane Crosley 230 pages Adult

Danny Says

I am increasingly drawn to books with great titles, short stories and funny observations about other people’s miseries. This book has all of those things, and I look forward to reading more works by Crosley in the future. An easy read, perfect for a mindless afternoon at the beach.
Buy on Amazon
Life Is So Good

Life Is So Good

By George Dawson,Richard Glaubman 288 pages Adult

Danny Says

Amazon says that this book is 272 pages, but my copy is 260 and includes a lot of blank pages. Regardless, I have boasted about this book to too many people to leave it off my recommended readings. This is one of the most inspirational stories I have ever read (I’ve read it twice  in the last three months), as it chronicles 103-year-old Dawson’s life and how he learned to read at age 98. Try reading the first chapter without crying (by the way: if you want to focus just on how he learned how to read at age 98, skip ahead to chapter 21).
Buy on Amazon
Life Is Fine

Life Is Fine

By Allison Whittenberg 181 pages Young Adult

Danny Says

I teach a lot of African-American teenage girls who complain that there are not a lot of good things out there to read, so they challenged me to read a lot more African-American literature. I guess the great thing about discussing books is that I stumble upon sweet pieces I probably would have never discovered on my own. This wonderful second novel by Whittenberg is a very quick read that reminds me of an African-American version of Dead Poet’s Society (but I enjoy this book a lot more than I enjoyed that movie, and you can email me if you want to know why I am not a fan of that flick).
Buy on Amazon
Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Book 1

Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Book 1

By Jeff Kinney 224 pages Young Adult

Danny Says

I have spoken at three school districts in the last month and a half that are discouraging students from reading this book. What “book banners” do not seem to comprehend is that banning books is precisely the way to make a book a bestseller. In fact, I pray that some day I may author a book that causes protests and boycotts. Why anyone would want to ban this book is beyond me. Boys love it, and – frankly – I rejoice whenever I can find a book that boys like that does not include graphic language or images. Kinney is hilarious, and this book should find its way off banned reading lists and on to recommended summer reading. I highly recommend this book (and its recently released sequel).
Buy on Amazon
The Opposite of Invisible

The Opposite of Invisible

By Liz Gallagher 160 pages Young Adult

Danny Says

It seems to be increasingly difficult to find books for teens that do not deal with sex, drugs and guns. I grabbed this book solely because I liked the author’s photo and was excited this was her first book. What I was treated to was a book that relies more on the author’s writing ability than any shock value…a simple and sweet story about a girl that learns the difference between love and a crush.
Buy on Amazon
Arf and the Metal Detector

Arf and the Metal Detector

By Philip Wooderson 72 pages Young Adult

Danny Says

If you have a boy who does not like to read, I’d recommend checking out Stone Arch Books. They produce all sorts of wonderful books, and I especially enjoy their graphic novels. This gem includes a lot of funny cartoons, writing prompts and discussion questions and works particularly well with 7-10 year-olds.  
Buy on Amazon
Someday

Someday

By Alison McGhee 40 pages Children

Danny Says

May begins the graduation season, and this is the perfect graduation gift for mothers to daughters. Moves you like Robert Munsch’s Love You Forever.
Buy on Amazon
The Mighty Pigeon Club

The Mighty Pigeon Club

By Daniel San Souci 40 pages Children

Danny Says

San Souci is one of my favorite authors/illustrators, and I greatly enjoy his Clubhouse series. Do yourself a favor and grab a copy of this and the other Clubhouse books, which are all silly and beautifully-illustrated and will let older readers like me reminisce of simpler times.
Buy on Amazon
Gallop!

Gallop!

By Rufus Butler Seder 12 pages Children

Danny Says

I am sort of addicted to these new scanimation books, as they operate like pop-up books on steroids. I have not shown this book to a single person who has not stopped what they are doing to stare in awe. You must check out this book.
Buy on Amazon

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