Boom! (or 70,000 light years)

Haddon, Mark. 2010.Boom! (or 70,000 light years). New York: Random House.


According to the author's foreword, this book was first published in Great Britain in 1992 as Gridzbi Spudvetch! He was asked to update it for new publication and proceeded to change nearly every sentence in the book.  What resulted was Boom! (or 70,000 light years), a humorous, sci-fi, adventure story featuring James (or Jimbo), his 16-year-old sister Becky, his best friend Charlie, Mum and Dad, and a cast of jibberish spouting aliens.

Jim and Charlie are cut-ups at school, Becky is a rebellious teen with a boyfriend nicknamed Craterface.  Dad is an out of work tinkerer, fond of building model planes.  And Mum, well, after she nearly knocks out Craterface with her briefcase for threatening Jimbo, the story's narrator who is hiding in the bathroom, he emerges to shake Mum's hand and say,

"That was classy." At least there was one real man in the family.

He continues,

After all the commotion it turned into a surprisingly pleasant evening.  Dad spent so long in the shop, for fear of coming back and finding Craterface still in residence, that he'd done enough shopping for three weeks.  Toilet rolls, J-cloths, washing-up liquid, scouring powder, the works.  So Mum was happy.  And Dad was happy that Mum was happy.  And I was happy that Mum and Dad were happy with each other.  Plus, Becky was really unhappy, which always cheered me up.  And anyway, she just stayed in her room, sulking, so we had a very nice time indeed.

The reader will have to get used to the many British terms and occasional spelling differentials (licence for license). Most words can be figured out contextually, but one sent me scurrying for an Internet browser,

I dreamed of duvets and hot breakfasts, big jumpers and radiators.

Jumpers are apparently the British term for sweaters.  I wouldn't have guessed that one.

Boom! is full of non-stop action from the first alien encounter at school to the boys' eventual trip to the planet, Plonk.  Fun, fast, and full of humor, there's still a message to this story - big teenage sisters aren't as bad as you think and of course, there's no place like home!

Read an excerpt.
Here's an interview with author, Mark Haddon.  In it, he doesn't discuss Boom!, however, I was pleased to hear that he and I share The Wind in the Willows as one of our favorite children's books.

A side note - Mark Haddon is also the author of The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, 2010's One Book NJ choice for adult readers.

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One Book NJ

This year, for the first time, the One Book NJ committee is offering the public a chance to vote for the 2010 One Book NJ titles. Each year, four different books are chosen - one each for pre-readers, independent readers, teens, and adults.

According to their website, One Book NJ's "goal is to bring people together through literature by encouraging them to read the same book and participate in discussions and other events centered on that book. One Book New Jersey celebrates reading, literacy, and all that New Jersey's libraries do."

If you want to see great programming based on books that you enjoy, vote today!

My picks? The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-time Indian (for teens), The Tale of Despereaux (for older kids), and Click Clack Moo: Cows that Type (for pre-readers).

If you're not in NJ, check out your own state or local One Book program.

Marley: A Dog Like No Other

Grogan, John. 2007. Marley: A dog like no other. New York: Harper Collins.

Marley, A Dog Like No Other, is a juvenile version of the bestseller, Marley & Me. I have not read the adult version, so I cannot compare the two, however, Marley: A Dog Like No Other is a wonderful book in its own right.

A true story, based on the life of a lovable yet incorrigible Labrador, this book is a celebration not only of a dog, but of a family as well - one that is willing to see its imperfections and find humor in them. Like a comedian that spends ten minutes setting up the perfect punchline, Grogan has a perfect sense of comedic timing. Even if the reader can guess the outcome of any one of Marley's many escapades, Grogan delivers them with humor. More difficult than humor, however, is conveying the love that the Grogan family has for their dog.

"We could have bought a yacht with what we spent on our dog and all the things he destroyed. We'd take Marley any day. Yachts don't wait by the door all day for your return. And they don't live for the moment they can climb into your lap or ride down the hill with you on a toboggan, licking your face."

Eight pages of color photos are included. This is a humorous and heartwarming book that has just been chosen as the 2009 One Book New Jersey choice for middle grade readers. An excellent choice!

The movie version is due out on Christmas Day. Read the book first!

The Sisters Grimm: The Fairy-tale Detectives

Buckley, Michael. 2005. The Sisters Grimm: The fairy-tale detectives. New York: Amulet. ISBN: 9780810959255.

This is an older book, but it has recently been reissued. It is NJ's choice for One Book NJ 2008 for children. I had reviewed it previously and posted it to a wiki, but I will add it here. I am trying to keep everything in one place. (although I am a big LibraryThing fan and keep my books there as well)

Daphne, age 7, and Sabrina, almost 12, have been shuffled from one dismal foster home to another since their parents disappeared almost a year ago. Now that they have been claimed by a grandmother they thought was dead, Daphne is delighted to have found a real home. Sabrina, however, is not so sure. There’s something peculiar about Granny Grimm and her home in Ferryport, New York. She cooks black spaghetti with bright orange sauce and green meatballs. She talks to her house and secures it like a fortress. She has a mysterious locked room from which voices can be heard, and a steadfast companion, the creepy, Mr. Canis.

Granny Relda Grimm, and the girls themselves, it appears, are descendants of the famous Brothers Grimm – destined to keep order in a world inhabited by fairy tale characters. Daphne swallows the whole story – along with the green meatballs, but Sabrina remains skeptical – that is, until Granny Grimm and Mr. Canis are whisked away by a giant! Now the girls must rely on themselves, fairy tale books, and the “Everafters” themselves (Jack, Prince Charming, Puck, pixies, the three little pigs and more!) to sort out this fairy-tale detective story.

This first in a series of The Sisters Grimm: Fairy-Tale Detectives, is delightfully, though sparsely, illustrated in black and white sketches by Peter Ferguson. The action is swift and the story moves along rapidly. The foreshadowing is a bit too obvious at times - the three little pigs appear to have an unusual dislike for Mr. Canis, the mayor’s name is Charming and he’s planning a ball. Younger children, however, will likely enjoy figuring out the “clues.”

Dialogue is plentiful and appropriate for two young sisters, however, it sometimes reads like a vocabulary lesson when Daphne stops the conversation to have a word explained. “Daphne was poring over a large book entitled Anatomy of a Giant. ‘I don’t know what this word is,’ she said. ‘How is it spelled?’ ‘A-L-L-I-A-N-C-E-S.’ ‘It’s alliances, it means to team up or join a group,’ Sabrina explained.”

An overwhelming number of “everafters” make an appearance in the story. Many will be familiar to young readers, Glinda the Good Witch, the Queen of Hearts, Momma Bear, King Arthur, Prince Charming. Many of them, however, will not – Puck, Morgan Le Fay, Frau Pfefferkuchenhaus. In any case, The Sisters Grimm offers young readers a glimpse into part of our cultural heritage in a thoroughly modern and entertaining manner.
Review Excerpts:

The October 2005, issue of Kirkus Reviews, notes " this tongue-in-cheek frolic features both a pair of memorable young sleuths and a madcap plot with plenty of leads into future episodes."

Charles De Lint writes, “…older readers will get a kick out of seeing the characters in new guises, but the writing, characterization, and plot are definitely aimed at the younger reader. …It’s fast-paced and fun, simple, but not simplistic.” (Fantasy & Science Fiction Sep 2006)