The Friday 56

  Rules:

* Grab a book, any book.

* Go to page 56.  Or 56% on your ereader. 

* Find a snippet, short and sweet.

* Post it and add the url to your post at Freda's Voice

My book this week is The Brilliant Abyss by Helen Scales.  It is all about sea life in the deep ocean.  Where all sorts of interesting creatures live.  

My Friday 56:

Even if the hunt is over, it can be easy to discern what a gelatinous animal has recently eaten because the prey is visible through its transparent body.  Like a set of glass Russian dolls, there could be a krill inside a ctenophore or a fish inside a scyphozoan.

What is a ctenophore or a scyphozoan?  Not sure.  I'm sure the book will tell me when I get there.  But life has been conspiring to stop me from reading lately.  So I haven't gotten there yet.  I am very interested to find out.  

The Aquanaut Review

 

The Aquanaut by Dan Santat

(from the book jacket)

Who is the aquanaut?  Ever since her father was lost at sea, Sophia has been moping around Aqualand, a marine theme park.  But Sophia's world is turned upside down when an 'aquanaut' breaks into the park research lab.

To her amazement, Sophia discovers that the aquanaut is not what it seems: inside lives a band of goofy sea creatures!  And when they all realize that Aqualand is more sinister than advertised, Sophia is determined to help the aquanaut crew free the park's captive marine life before it's too late.

Sea creatures use an old diving suit to make motorized transport so they can get around on land.  They want to get to Aqualand, where they think they will be safe.  Sophia, who lost her father when his research vessel sank, feels alone and lost and wishes her uncle had more time for her.  Her uncle is dealing with the loss of his brother the best he knows how.  They all come together at Aqualand.  The illustrations are wonderful: bold, bright, exciting.  The story is fun and exciting too.  It deals with the themes of loss and handling grief,  of how you can lose sight of what is important, of family, and of the ethics of places like Aqualand that keep sea creatures in cages and make them perform for human entertainment.  But it is told with humor.  The sea creatures manning the diving suit are funny and have great personalities.  And you grow to care about Sophia as she learns to live in a world without her father where she never seems to quite fit in.  I liked this one a lot and am going to go find myself a copy of Santat graphic novel Sidekicks right away.

Do You Dream of Turtles? (Dreaming in Turtle Review)

Today (May 23rd) is World Turtle Day.  

I like turtles.  Who doesn't like turtles?  Of course, some people like them for pets, some for medicine, some for food and some as a source of income.  But everyone likes turtles.

Peter Laufer, Ph.D. decided to write a book about turtles and all the ways humans interact with them and think about them and feel about them.

Dreaming in Turtle by Peter Laufer, Ph.D.

(from the book jacket)

Everyone has a turtle story.  Turtles that disappeared, then reappeared years later.  Turtles used in attempts to cure cancer, impotence, and infertility.  Turtles sought for sage wisdom and to promote longevity.  Investigative journalist Peter Laufer explores the stories we tell about the slow-moving, shelled critters and the facts about their world we need to know - before we destroy these links to dinosaurs.

Laufer travels the world to find turtle stories and expose the plight of these slow moving creatures, but also to show the hope of those who work to save them.  There is a lot of things in here that are hard to read.  People do horrible things to turtles and Laufer tells you about lots of them here.  You hear stories about turtles being butchered alive, kept in boxes piled on top of each other, packed up and sent through the mail or hidden in all sorts of ways to transport them overseas.  Laufer talks to people who hunt turtles, both legally and illegally, sell them, both legally and illegally, eat them, try to save them, use them for medicine and everything else you can think of.  He tries to understand why so many people love turtles and why people are willing to break the law to have or to eat them.  And how people who claim to love or revere turtles can treat them so badly.  You get all sorts of turtle information.  I find it all very interesting from the turtle myths to the interviews with people who smuggle turtles to the conservation efforts.  I especially like the little Fred breaks.  Laufer takes care of a turtle for a while that he names Fred, and every once in a while, he gives the reader an update on what Fred is up to.  I would like to meet Fred.  He sounds like a very interesting guy.  If you have ever stared at the tortoises at the zoo, or sought out the turtles at the aquarium, or have fond memories of a pet turtle you will like this book.

Save the Bees!

Today (May 20th) is World Bee Day.  We need bees.  Well, it's more that plants need bees and we need the plants.  But it amounts to the same thing.  So what can you do to save the bees?

If you want to donate money so other people can save the bees you can go here:

The Karma Honey Project

Project Apis m 

Pollinator Partnership

Bees For Development

Planet Bee Foundation

The Bee Conservancy

If you would like to be a little more hands on there are a few things you can do in your own backyard.

One is to stop using synthetic pesticides and herbicides.  Bees don't like them.

You can also give bees a place to live.  Most bees are solitary and don't live in hives.  Many live underground, so if you can leave a plot of undisturbed earth for them or put up special bee houses.

You can put up a bee bath.  Which is much like a bird bath, but for bees.  You can fill a shallow bird bath or bowl with water and put some stones in that break the surface so the bees have a place to land and get a drink.

And of course you can plant flowers (and trees) that bees like.

For some ideas on some plants for bees look here:

Bees and Blooms

Southern Living 

Gardeners World

Country Living

Garden Design

This is my brother's bee house for his Mason bees.  He takes good care of his Mason bees and makes sure when he mows the lawn that he leaves the clover for them.  (And besides, the clover is actually pretty, so why cut it down?) 

Will Humankind Survive?

When Earth Shall Be No More by Paul Awad and Kathryn O'Sullivan

(from the back of the book) 

Environmental scientist Constance Roy is one of forty-nine refugees rescued from Earth's destruction and transported to the ark spaceship Orb by an automaton race called the Curators.  Twelve months have passed since their rescue.  But now, with the ship's orbit decaying, the refugees seem doomed to crash into Jupiter's fiery belly.

In a parallel universe on present-day Earth. another version of Constance seeks answers to the questions that have haunted her since childhood: How and why did her mother die?  The head of a mysterious corporation housed at NASA's Wallops Flight Facility can give her the answers, but not without a price.

Two timestreams collide when the Constance on Earth discovers that Nicolas, her son, has the ability to save the Orb and its inhabitants.  Now she must battle treacherous Curators wishing to destroy Nicolas, while on the Orb, another Constance must fight to save the ship from Jupiter's fatal pull.

Only together can they save their son - and the future generations of humankind.

I think duel universes is always a solid starting point for a sci-fi story.   And I like the way you are given both stories simultaneously without ever losing track of which universe you are in at any given moment.  But some things in this story just didn't come together for me.  Especially with Nicolas saving all of humankind.  I was never really sure how what he did proved what it was supposed to prove.  And at the end there were a couple of things that were kind of resolved but still left me with questions. And there were times when situations were presented with more gravitas then they actually ended up having.  Probably to build tension and suspense, but what it led to was me being a little disappointed with the solution.  You have a spaceship and all souls on board about to be destroyed by Jupiter's gravity, creepy Curators running around and you don't know if they are friend or foe, experiments into traveling between universes, and a young boy who has to make some life and death decisions.  There should be tension and suspense enough without forcing it.  I did like the concept of the Curators, what they were and where they came from.  And they were suitably creepy.  I liked Nicolas and you did care what happened to him.  And towards the end there was a good amount of tension and suspense that kept you reading.  For me the good and not so good balanced out into an okay story.  It is neither great nor bad.

What is your favorite dinosaur?

Today (May 17th) is National Dinosaur Day.  (Don't worry if you are not prepared.  You will have another chance on June 1st.  Which is also National Dinosaur Day.)

It is hard to pick a favorite dinosaur.  They are all cool in their own ways.  I have an affinity for sea creatures so I have always liked the Plesiosaur.  But I have recently found out that he is not actually a dinosaur.  So I guess I would have to go with the Ankylosaurus.  I like his armor plating and club tail. 

There were no Ankylosaurus or Plesiosaurs in The Good Dinosaur, but I watched it anyway.

The Good Dinosaur starring Raymond Ochoa

A young Apatosaurus ends up far from home and befriends a young human on his quest to find the way home.

I was entertained.  And that's what it all comes down to in the end.  But this isn't going to be one of my all time favorites.  Arlo, the young, lost Apatosaurus is trying to prove himself to his family but he is afraid of everything.  When he finds himself alone and lost he doesn't even know how to feed himself.  It seems a little unlikely to me that Arlo can live in such a time period and still be so afraid all the time.  I know that in this world dinosaurs live in houses and plant crops and are highly civilized and all that but still.  And I think they missed a chance here with the concept that the asteroid missed the Earth and the dinosaurs did not go extinct.  It could have been a cool concept but it was established in the beginning and then was not really a part of the story after that.  And the story is very predictable.  You know where this is going right from the beginning.  There are really no surprises here.  Another issue I had was that the human, named Spot, acted too much like a dog.  I understand the point that dinosaurs are more advanced than humans at this point but it made Spot look like more of a pet to Arlo than a friend.  I know that is a lot of negative things to say about a movie that I found entertaining.  But it was still a cute, if not too original, story.  Arlo has to overcome his fear while learning that doesn't mean he won't be afraid.  And the importance of family and friendship is stressed here as well.  There are a few slow moments and a couple of scenes that might be scary for young children but as an adult I was entertained and would watch this with my nieces and nephews.

Friday 56

  Rules:

* Grab a book, any book.

* Go to page 56.  Or 56% on your ereader. 

* Find a snippet, short and sweet.

* Post it and add the url to your post at Freda's Voice

My book this week is Dreaming in Turtle by Peter Laufer Ph.D.  It is an exploration of all things turtle.  From the turtle lore, to turtle soup, to the plight of the endangered turtles, to the people trying to save them.  I haven't gotten very far into it yet.  I just hope it is as interesting as it sounds.

The Friday 56:

The English made turtle broth and used the turtle meat only for the flavoring, tossing it out before the meal.  The French added roux, the Spanish added spices, and some hungry soul added turtle meat and yelled out, "Oh my God, taste this!"  Turtle meat soup was born.

I have never had turtle meat in any form.  They do not look like they would be tasty.  Maybe when it is prepared well it is delicious.  Maybe.  But it is unlikely I will ever find out. 

Need a Little Luck?

Today (May 13th) is National Leprechaun Day!  (Am I the only one who thought this would be in March?)  It seems odd that we are celebrating what could be the luckiest beings in the world on Friday the 13th.  Maybe the good luck and bad luck will cancel each other out.

I did not want to dress up like a leprechaun to celebrate today so I decided to find a nice leprechaun friendly movie to watch instead.

Luck of the Irish starring Ryan Merriman and Henry Gibson

When Kyle Johnson loses his lucky coin odd things start to happen and he learns that he is part leprechaun.

Kyle has been lucky all his life.  He is great at basketball.  He never loses anything.  He finds money wherever he goes.  But when someone switches his lucky coin with a fake all that changes.  And when his mother starts to act differently and speak with an Irish accent he knows something is going on.  It's a Disney made for TV movie, so it is kid safe in the extreme.  Nothing really bad happens to anyone, there is no swearing or violence.  I can see how children would have fun with this and as an adult it is something I didn't mind watching either.  There were some moments when you just had to remind yourself you are watching a children's movie and let it go.  Kyle wants to know about his heritage but when he asks his parents they say they are from Cleveland and act all suspicious instead of just saying he's Irish or telling him where the completely human side of his family is from.  But that sort of thing is for comic effect and you just have to go with it.  You know, for the children.  It's silly at times but fun too.  I enjoyed watching as Kyle's leprechaun side started coming out and he staring using phases like 'Oh, saints preserve us!' all of a sudden.  And Merriman did a good job with the role.  It isn't something I would choose to watch again myself, but if my niece is over it is a family friendly movie that won't have me tearing out my hair.  

Moonshine for My Birthday

I didn't actually drink any moonshine on my birthday.  Although, I wouldn't be opposed to that.  But I did have a couple of drinks at Moonshine 152.

I don't even know how to describe the cuisine at Moonshine 152.  They have jalapeno crab rangoon, short rib grilled cheese, lamb meatballs, braised rabbit pasta, tapas style patatas bravas, Hawaiian poke bowls, Thai fried rice among other things.  They seem to have a little of everything.  

The restaurant isn't huge but the whole front of the building is windows so it
feels open and roomy inside without losing the warm inviting feeling.  Make sure you check out the chef's artwork that you can find hanging on the walls.  

We were early and had our choice of seats and sat at the bar.  The bartenders were friendly and helpful.  They had a nice selection of bourbons and we didn't feel rushed to order while we sat and enjoyed a drink before dinner.  But the bartender was right there when we were ready.  

We got the 'Moonshine's Boston's Best Fried Chicken' to start.  It is buttermilk fried chicken wings with a poblano ranch dressing.  It was awesome.  The chicken was cooked perfectly.  The batter was light and crispy.  And the sauce was the perfect compliment.

There were a lot of things on the menu I was interested in trying but when I first go to a restaurant and am unsure if I will be going back I usually go with something familiar.  Something I have a large basis for comparison for.  Like a burger.  Which is what both my husband and I got.  

Once again it was cooked perfectly.  It was juicy and flavorful.  The shoe string fries that came with it were good as well.  

Picking dessert was a challenge.  It was between the butterscotch pudding and the Oreo layered fudge brownie.  The couple sitting next to us at the bar said we had to try the butterscotch pudding.  And that tipped the scale.  I like butterscotch, so I might be bias, but it was delightful.  Rich and creamy, and the Chantilly cream on top was perfect.  It was sweet but not too sweet.  We ordered one to share and it would have been plenty for both of us but the chef actually came out and gave us a complimentary Oreo layered fudge brownie!  I didn't even mention it was my birthday.  So I got to try them both anyway.  The brownie doesn't look like much on the plate but, trust me, it is plenty big.  It is very sweet so we were not able to finish it but it was tasty.  If you like Oreos that is.  It is a good fudgy brownie with Oreos in it.  How can you go wrong?  

I also had a couple of cocktails.  The Old Fashioned was great but my advice is stay away from La Diabla.  She lives up to her name.

It was a wonderful evening and I plan to go back.  I will pretend I am going to try all new things from the menu but will probably get the fried chicken again.  I was still thinking about it days after I ate it.

Calling all Shrimp Lovers

Today (May 10th) is National Shrimp Day.  How do you celebrate National Shrimp Day?  You eat shrimp of course.

There are a million shrimp dishes out there to try so you have a lot of choices.  Maybe you can even try several dishes.  I mean, you are probably going to eat three meals today.  Why not make them all shrimpy?

The one I chose was Shrimp and Grits from the Food Network.  Why this particular Shrimp and Grits recipe?  Because of all the cheese obviously.  

I didn't try grits until later in life.  And the first time I tried them I was not impressed.  But I decided to give them a second chance.  I thought maybe what my first taste of grits was missing was 2 cups of cheese.  Turns out I like grits.  (I have tried them without the cheese.  I still liked them.)

It turns out that Shrimp and Grits is pretty easy to make.  The hardest part is deveining the shrimp.  I hate doing that.  It isn't so much that it's messy but that it takes me forever.  I keep hoping I will get faster with practice.  Problem is I don't practice very often.  So I'm still slow.  Now, the recipe says prep time is 15 minutes.  Those estimates are always wrong.  I always thought it was the time it took to prepare.  But now I think it does not take into account any chopping or, say, deveining that has to take place.  So if you have all your ingredients in the state they are asked for (i.e.. sliced, chopped, minced, deveined) then it will be 15 minutes of prep.  If not, you will need to add some time.  

All that being said, there are some things to chop and mince and juice.  But it is all simple cooking prep.  By the way, you will be surprised how hard it is to cut raw bacon.  Well, I was anyway.  

Now, the recipe calls for stone-ground grits.  I couldn't find any.  I just bought a can of store brand grits.  Which took about 5 seconds to cook as opposed to the 20 to 25 minutes the recipe says the grits will take.  You can make up some of that deveining time here.  But you need to watch them.  Because I'm not joking.  It's quick.  (Be careful when you are adding the salt.  Remember that you will be adding a lot of cheese to the grits and then bacon to the shrimp.)  Then you add 2 cups of cheddar cheese.  That is a lot of cheese.  I like cheese.  But that was a lot of cheese even for me.  But they were delicious so...

The shrimp are cooked in the grease left in the pan after you cook the bacon.  (You use 6 slices of bacon.  Which leaves you with left over bacon.  I mean, you can't let it go to waste.)  Then you add the other ingredients, like garlic and scallions and such and you are done.  All you have to do is spoon out the grits and put the shrimp mixture on top.

Grits do not reheat all that well.  If you do not eat them immediately they will not be the creamy, spoonable texture, they will be a solid, sliceable mass.  They will still taste good though.  I brought this for lunch, having made it the night before.  I put it all in the microwave.  The grits, as I said, were solid (but not hard) and the microwave didn't do the shrimp any favors either.  But it was what I had to work with and the food still tasted great.  Fresh, this is a delight.  With the creamy grits with the meltly cheese, and the firm but not rubbery (hopefully) texture of the shrimp and the bacon to add a nice savory, salty touch.  I think Shrimp and Grits would be a perfect way to celebrate this wonderful holiday.

Have a Coke and a Smile

Today (May 8th) is National Have a Coke Day.  (Yes, it is also Mother's Day.  I know.  I didn't forget.  I got my mother something, so don't judge me.) 

I like Coke.  Regular original Coke.  Not diet coke.  That sucks.  But Coke can get even better if you add some alcohol.

There are several cocktails that use Coke.  Most of them are pretty tasty.

There is, of course, the Rum and Coke.  You can use either white or dark rum.  Both are yummy but the

lounge lizard

molasses flavor of the dark rum really compliments the coke well.

If you add some lime to a rum and Coke you get a Cuba Libre.  Also yummy and the lime adds a bright note and something to offset the sweet of the other two ingredients.

Or you can have a simple Coke and Vodka.  Just as easy as it sounds.  It is basically a glass of Coke with a kick.

time bomb

If you use tequila instead of vodka you get a Batanga.  I liked this one but not as much as some of the others.  Tequila doesn't mix as well with Coke as some other alcohols.  But if you are a tequila lover you might disagree with me.  

If you are a fan of Kahlua you might like the Time Bomb.  It is not as scary as it sounds.  This one also uses rum which we already know is great with Coke but adds Kahlua.  Which, as it turns out, is also great with Coke.

Another Kahlua Coke combination is the Cherry Coffee Cola.  Not the most inventive name but it is very accurate.  You need Luxardo liquor for this one.  But it might be worth picking up a bottle.  The cherry flavor is a nice compliment to the rich, darker flavors of the other two ingredients.

I was a little unsure when I tried a Colorado Bulldog.  The idea of cream and Coke together?  But it

bulldog

works.  It tastes like a White Russian with a fizz.  

If you like root beer try the Root Beer.  This one also has Kahlua.  But with some Galliano it all comes together to taste very much like root beer.

I love amaretto.  So I love the Lounge Lizard.  Rum, amaretto, and cola.  It is sweet and delicious.

There are more obviously.  You should go out there and explore them all.  But please drink responsibly.

The Friday 56

  Rules:

* Grab a book, any book.

* Go to page 56.  Or 56% on your ereader. 

* Find a snippet, short and sweet.

* Post it and add the url to your post at Freda's Voice

My Friday 56 this week comes from When Earth Shall Be No More by Paul Awad and Kathryn O'Sullivan.  In one universe the last 49 of Earth's human population are in a decaying orbit around Jupiter.  In an alternate universe a woman (whose counterpart is on the ship orbiting Jupiter) learns that her son may be able to save the 49 doomed humans.

The Friday 56:

"Hmm," Nicolas said.  He inspected each book's cover and description.  "This might take a while."  He retrieved a book from the top shelf, sat on a nearby stool, and turned to page one.

Nicolas is at a book store and has just been told he can only pick out one book.  He is taking the decision very seriously.  I have had that same feeling.

Prepare to Blast Off!

Today (May 5th) is National Astronaut Day and tomorrow (May 6th)  is National Space Day.  It does seem fitting that they are right next to each other on the calendar like that.  But it did make it hard for me to get a book read for each of them.  So I am using the same book to honor them both.  

Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir

(from the book jacket) 

Ryland Grace is the sole survivor on a desperate, last-chance mission - and if he fails, humanity and Earth itself will perish.

Except that right now, he doesn't know that.  He can't even remember his own name, let alone the mature of his assignment or how to complete it.

All he knows is that he's been asleep for a very long time.  And he's just been awakened to find himself millions of miles from home, with nothing but two corpses for company.

His crewmates dead, his memories fuzzily returning, Ryland realizes that an important task now confronts him.  Hurtling through space on this tiny ship, it's up tp him to puzzle out an impossible scientific mystery - and conquer an extinction-level threat to our species.

And with the clock ticking down and the nearest human being light-years away, he's got to do it all alone.

Or does he?

This was fun to read.  It was one of those books where every time you put it down you want to get back to it to see what happens next.  Grace wakes up with no memory of who he is or what he is supposed to be doing.  I like that we are inside his head as he tries to figure it out.  It's fun to see him surprised by his own figures of speech and knowledge.  The story flips back and forth between Grace in space trying to figure out what he is supposed to do and Grace back on Earth as he slowly remembers how he got there.  As his memories come back Grace starts to remember who he is, not only his name and where he is from, but his character too.  Some of the things he remembers about himself he isn't happy about.  And he has to deal with those feelings all alone on a spaceship while he also has to save the world.  It is a fun, exciting, interesting story.  There are some very interesting characters but some of the members of the international team did seem rather cliché sometimes.  Grace's relationship with Rocky (he is an important part of the book but I don't want to give too much away) makes them both seem like children at times even though they are doing very complicated math and science things.  Like a kid who has finally found another kid who loves Dungeons and Dragons as much as he does.  But these are barely even complaints.  The story is told with lots of humor.  The menace to the planet feels real and believable.  There is a lot of science.  At first it was light lifting but it got heavier as the book went along.  It does not interfere with the enjoyment of the book or your understanding of what is going on.  But if you don't like science you might get slightly bored at times.  (But if you don't like science what are you doing reading this book?)  There were enough twists that you are never really sure you know what is going to happen next.  And I liked the ending very much.  It was a nice, satisfying finish to Grace's adventure.

It's Getting Freaky In Here

 Today (May 3rd) is National Paranormal Day.  How do you celebrate National Paranormal Day?  You can go hunting for ghosts.  You can go to visit a physic.  You can send signals into space looking for aliens.  You can post a YouTube video of poltergeist activity (real or staged) in your home.  But if you are like me you are going to choose something you can do from your sofa.  Like watch all the Ghostbuster movies.  Or perhaps read a book.  Maybe something like No Hero by Jonathan Wood.

No Hero by Jonathan Wood

(from the back of the book)

What would Kurt Russell do?  British police detective Arthur Wallace asks himself that question a lot.  While he's a good cop, he prefers his action on the big screen.  But when he sees tentacles sprouting from the neck if a fresh corpse, the secret government agency MI37 comes to recruit Arthur in its struggle against a threat from another dimension known as the Progeny.  But Arthur is NO HERO!  Can an everyman stand against sanity-ripping cosmic horrors?

Poor Arthur Wallace, no amount of detective training could have prepared him for work with the MI37.  But maybe by following Kurt Russell's example he can make it through.  Creepy, mind eating parasitic, aliens from another dimension?  Cool.  A (no) hero who loves Kurt Russell?  Cool.  Arthur is relatable for someone who is fighting interdimensional aliens.  He is someone who has been thrown into a situation he is incapable of understanding and is just trying to do the best he can.  The story is filled with humor, scary aliens, interesting characters, and some cool fights.  I like Arthur's attitude in his crazy situation.  I like the interesting concept of the magic/science way the aliens are invading and are being fought off.  I didn't like the way MI37 was unbelievably unreasonable when they sent him into the field without telling him anything and then blamed him for not knowing anything.  And Arthur was more indecisive than even this unusual situation warranted sometimes.  But the plot was interesting, and the alien threat was menacing, and I liked the characters (well, most of them).  I was amused and entertained and will probably get the next book in the series to see what happens to Arthur next.

Everyone Loves the Bad Guys

The Bad Guys Series by Aaron Blabey

I work at a library and was seeing these books everywhere.  They seemed to be very popular, and they looked like fun, so I decided to see what they were all about.  I have now read the first six in the series and have ordered the next four from my local library.  I plan to read all 16 of them.  The concept is that a wolf is tired of being the bad guy, so he gets some other animals with bad reputations to join his team and become good guys.  You have the founder of the team (team name is still be determined), the overly optimistic wolf, the shark who is a master of disguise, the snake who has trouble remembering he is one of the good guys now, and the piranha who is always angry because everyone thinks he is a sardine.  Six books in and they have already saved dogs from the pound, chickens from the chicken farm, run into zombie kittens, an evil mad scientist hamster, aliens and gone on a trip to the moon.  So far all of the books have been fun, exciting and silly in all the best ways.  They are written for children, so you will get fart jokes and the like.  They do get goofy, but I love it.  The drawings are wonderful.  The snake has some of the best expressions.  I like that they make the fact that the shark and piranha are walking around out of water and that all the animals are wearing clothes a joke in the books.  Blabey makes a point of mentioning both but never explaining so the reader feels like that are part of an inside joke.  Children will love going on adventures with these unlikely heroes as they learn to work together and find out that helping others is a wonderful feeling.

The Friday 56

  Rules:

* Grab a book, any book.

* Go to page 56.  Or 56% on your ereader. 

* Find a snippet, short and sweet.

* Post it and add the url to your post at Freda's Voice

This week my Friday 56 comes from Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir.  Ryland Grace has been sent on a mission that is the last chance to save the human race.  If only he could remember that.  

The Friday 56:

Astrophage can propel itself with light and has absurd energy-storage capability.  It's had God-knows-how-many billion years of evolution to get good at it.  Just like a horse if more energy efficient than a truck.  Astrophage is more energy efficient than a spaceship.

Astrophage - could be the cause of the end of the human race but could also be the only way to save it.  If only Ryland Grace could remember why he is in this spaceship and what he is supposed to do next.  

I'm liking this one.  Weir writes with a lot of wit without making his characters feel absurd and silly and without losing the gravitas of the whole extinction level calamity that is taking place.  This is the first book I've read by Andy Weir but I don't think it will be my last.

To the Rescue!

Today (April 28th) is National Superhero Day!

Everyone loves a superhero.  Except, of course, for the supervillains.  And maybe all the people who live in the many, many houses that superheroes destroy on a regular basis.  But who would fight all the aliens and metahumans if we had no superheroes?

There are a million graphic novels, books, and movies that you can use to celebrate this important holiday.  Here are two movies I would like to share with you in honor of National Superhero Day.

Average Joe starring Jason Sedillo

Joe really needs a job, so he answers an ad in the paper for a superhero.  He gets the job and now this average Joe is on a superhero team.

How does a man with no super powers fight a supervillain?  Well, it's not easy.  But Joe really needs this job so he will give it his best try.  This movie probably didn't have a very big budget.  Some of the costumes are not the best and I don't think they had a big camera or special effects crew.  But the plot is fun.  And (although often goofy) the writing was clever.  It's a fun movie about an average guy stepping up and fighting against the odds.  If you don't go in expecting blockbuster special effects and huge movie stars you will be truly entertained.  

Eternals starring Gemma Chan and Richard Madden

A group of super powered, immortal beings, the Eternals, are sent to Earth to protect it from the Deviants.

This movie felt a lot longer than it was.  Which is never a good sign.  There is a lot of fighting and then big, long scenes where things are explained but there is not much interesting in-between.  You never feel as if you know these characters so it is hard to care about their lives.  There are a lot of things going on at the same time and it makes the story feel disjointed at times.  It just plods along to what turns out to be a lackluster finish.  I can't say I wasn't entertained at times and if the hinted at sequel comes out I will watch it.  But after this one I don't care if one ever does.

Penguins Galore!

 Today (April 25th) is World Penguin Day!

(Not to be confused with National Penguin Day Which is in January.)

Everyone loves penguins.  They are cute and silly and just watching them waddle around makes you laugh.  I like penguins too.  But I don't think I would want them as a pet.  Unlike Mr. Popper.  Who welcomes them into his home.  That might be a fun concept for a book and a movie but I don't think it would be very funny in real life.  Besides, I think it would be illegal.

But that's why we love fiction.  Rules do not apply.

Mr. Popper's Penguins by Richard and Florence Atwater

Mr. Popper is obsessed with the polar regions.  One day, in response to a letter he wrote to an artic explorer, he receives a penguin in the mail.

It's silly and goofy and all sorts of impossible things happen, starting with a penguin being sent in the mail from the Antarctic.  It is a kind of fantasy book since none of this could happen in the real world so don't count on this book for penguin facts.  But the idea of having a penguin (and then lots of penguins) in the house is a fun one.  And I think most kids (and some adults) would find it funny - the penguins living in the refrigerator, sliding down the stairs on their bellies, and riding the bus.  My biggest criticism of the book is Mr. Popper.  After he gets the penguin he starts spending all the family money on it, even after his wife mentioned her worries about being able to afford food.  Mr. Popper treated the penguin like it was more important than his family and I could not forgive him for that.  Although a child would probably not take it all so seriously and just enjoy the silly antics on the penguins and Mr. Popper alike.

Mr. Popper's Penguins starring Jim Carey

Mr. Popper inherits a penguin and it turns his life upside down.

Carey was a perfect pick because he does the silly, goofy thing so well.  And this movie is definitely silly and goofy.  Like the book, it is a fantasy in so far as none of this stuff could actually happen.  But it is fun and there were moments that made me chuckle.  I think penguins in the city are just naturally funny and watching them waddle around outside of their natural habitat will amuse young and old alike.  It is a good family film that turns out to be more about Mr. Popper's family than his penguins.  

Movie vs. Book

I didn't like either Mr. Popper but in the movie he was able to redeem himself to some degree.  Both were full of things that could never happen and sometimes goes to eyeroll levels.  But it's kids fiction so it is forgivable.  Why Mr. Popper comes to have the penguins, and his reactions to the penguins completely different.  They share some elements but they are not really the same story.  Is one better than the other?  Apple and oranges.  I think I would have to say I personally enjoyed the movie more.  But the book is a simpler, less complicated story with less real world problems.  Which does have a certain appeal.

Give Your Local Librarian Some Love

 Today (April 16th) is National Librarian Day!  I think that's awesome.  But I work at a library so maybe I'm bias. 

So in honor of National Librarian Day I decided to learn about some bad-ass librarians.

The Bad-Ass Librarians of Timbuktu by Joshua Hammer

from the book jacket)

In the 1980's, a young adventurer and collector for a government library, Abdel Kader Haidara, journeyed across the Sahara and along the Niger River, tracking down and salvaging tens of thousands of ancient Islamic and secular manuscripts that were crumbling in the trunks of desert farmers.  His goal was to preserve this crucial part of the world's patrimony in a gorgeous library.  But then Al Qaeda showed up at the door.

The Bad-Ass Librarians of Timbuktu tells the incredible story of how Haidara, a mild-mannered archivist and historian from the legendary city of Timbuktu, became one of the world's greatest and most brazen smugglers by saving the texts from sure destruction.  With bravery and patience, he organized a dangerous operation to sneak all 350,000 volumes out of the city to the safety of southern Mali.

This was not the adventure story the book jacket and awesome title led me to believe it would be.  The first quarter of the book is about the manuscripts: what they were about, who wrote them, how they were made, how they came to be hidden in various households and how Haidara came to be the one who collected them.  I loved hearing about the rich culture that was collected in them.  But then the librarian and the manuscripts disappear from the narrative for quite some time.  You get a very detailed history of Al Qaeda and other extremist groups in Mali, especially around Timbuktu, and the groups that oppose them.  It is full of dates and names of people, places and groups.  You can tell Hammer really did his research.  And if that is what you are looking for this book is very informative (if a bit dry at times).  But what this book is not, is a book about librarians.  When Haidara reenters the story with his group of helpers they feel shoehorned in.  They are mentioned in short bursts with few details.  I felt that Hammer started out to write about the librarians and the manuscripts but got caught up in the history of Al Qaeda and liked that story more.  I'm glad Haidara's story got told.  I think he deserves to be known for the dangers he risked to save his people's heritage.  I just wish Haidara and all the people who helped him were the story here.  They are not.  They are more of a side note in another story.  I learned a lot from this book and I'm glad I read it.  It just was not the story I was expecting.

Friday 56

  Rules:

* Grab a book, any book.

* Go to page 56.  Or 56% on your ereader. 

* Find a snippet, short and sweet.

* Post it and add the url to your post at Freda's Voice

My book this week is The Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Juster.  It is about a boy named Milo who is bored by everything.  Then one day he receives a mysterious gift of a tollbooth.  When he drives through it he ends up in a land he has never heard of.  I was pretty sure I read this book when I was a kid.  That was a long time ago so except for the title I couldn't remember anything about it.  So I decided to give it another go.  But now 70 pages in I still don't remember anything.  So now I'm not even sure I ever read it.  Well, either way it's been fun so far so I guess it doesn't really matter.

My Friday 56:

The bee, who had tangled himself in some bunting, toppled to the ground, knocking Milo over on top of him, and lay there shouting, "Help!  Help! There's a little boy on me."  The bug sprawled untidily on a mound of squashed letters and Tock, his alarm ringing persistently, was buried under a pile of words.

That's what happens when a spelling bee and a humbug get into a fight at a word market.  It was utter confusion until they could get all the words sorted out.  

Let Me Tell You a Tale (Dolphin Tale Review)

Today (April 14th) is National Dolphin Day.  Dolphins are amazing animals.  You have probably heard stories of dolphins saving people in trouble.  Well, in these movies it is people helping a dolphin.

Dolphin Tale starring Harry Connick Jr. and Nathan Gamble

A dolphin gets injured by a crab trap and ends up losing her tail.

This is a feel good movie.  It makes you happy.  You like the people here and you root for the dolphin.  Yes, you know what is going to happen, but that does not lessen the impact of the happy ending.  It warms your heart to see all the people who rally around Winter, the dolphin, and all the people she inspires.  (Winter plays herself in the movie so you get to see her in the film.  Which is cool.)  The movie is also a coming of age tale for the boy who helped to save Winter.  He finds something to believe in and to fight for, and helping Winter helps him find someplace he belongs.  There is a long scene with a remote control helicopter that annoyed me because it was pointless and impossible and went on for far too long and felt like filler to bulk up the movie.  But that is my only complaint.  The acting was good, the story was heartwarming and it is very family friendly, there aren't even any villains in this.  A great movie to watch with kids who like animals.

Dolphin Tale 2 starring Harry Connick Jr. and Nathan Gamble

Winter's surrogate mother dies and leaves Winter's future uncertain.

This is another feel good movie about the dolphin, Winter.  This time around her surrogate mother dies leaving Winter alone.  But there is a rule that you can not keep a dolphin in a tank alone, they need a companion.  So how can they keep Winter without another dolphin?  There is still a feeling of people banding together to help Winter in this movie but there is also a feeling of menace with the looming inspectors and the looming buyer as money runs out.  And there are some life lessons too as the children are growing up and have to make big decisions and have to choose between doing the responsible thing and what their heart wants them to do.  It is a good, solid, family friendly movie that adults can enjoy as well.  If you like the first movie you will like this one too.  

It Turns Out Vikings Are Kind of Boring (Severed Ways Review)

Severed Ways: The Norse Discovery of America starring Fiore Tedesco and Tony Stone

Two Norsemen get left behind when the rest of the group gets attacked and assumes they are dead.

So.  This sounds interesting in theory.  But.  Some of the camera work actually makes it hard to watch sometimes.  It is really shaky (it does calm down a little later but is always jumpy) and there are some really fast pans that your eyes just can't follow.  Then there are the shots of the ground and random trees like no one is looking through the camera to see what is being filmed and the extreme close-ups where we stare at a man's forehead or chin for half a minute.  And then when we can see the Norsemen most of the time we just watch them plod through the woods.  Or chop down six trees.  I got the point after two trees.  I didn't have to see them all.  And then there are the scenes where literally nothing is happening and we watch them sit for minutes at a time.  And when you get a close up of a man's behind as he defecates in the woods I almost gave up on it right there.  I kind of wish I did.  Because it never got any better.  Or more interesting.  It may have been real and gritty as some reviews have said but it was not entertaining in any way.

National Siblings Day! (Sisters Review)

Today (April 10) is National Siblings Day!  So get on the phone and give your siblings a call.  Or take them out to lunch.  Or have them take you out to lunch.  Or go out for a drink.  Or, well, I'm sure you get the picture.  Get in touch!  Because, like it or not, family is forever.

A perfect book for this special day is Sisters by David McPhail.  It is about, you guessed it, sisters.

These two sisters are different in many ways, and they are alike in many ways as well.  But whether they agree or disagree they will always love each other very much.  It is a simple story told in simple terms but it is a lovely sentiment expressed in a beautiful way.  The sweet illustrations show so much character you can't help but love these adorable sisters.  A perfect book for any sisters.