THE WATCH THAT ENDS THE NIGHT

THE WATCH THAT ENDS THE NIGHT, by Allan Wolf (Candlewick Press 2011)(ages 12+), tells the story of the Titanic's fateful voyage, from the point of view of sundry passengers, crew, stowaways, and, functioning like the chorus in a Greek tragedy, the iceberg itself.

Wolf does a terrific job of weaving together the threads of the lives of the passengers, providing context to them as individuals and not merely survivors or victims.  Altogether, a compelling, engrossing read. 

An extensive author's note illuminates Wolff's research and provides additional information on the individuals highlighted.

ON THE BLUE COMET

ON THE BLUE COMET, by Rosemary Wells, ill. by Bagram Ibatoulline (Candlewick 2010)(ages 8-12).  In this young middle grade novel, eleven year old Oscar lives with his father in a small house in Cairo, Illinois.  There, they've created a world of their own: ten Lionel trains, including the Blue Comet.

It all comes crashing down, though, two years into the Great Depression, when the bank takes the house and the trains, too.  Now, Oscar must move in with his aunt and cousin while his father seeks work out in California.

On Christmas Eve, the trains are on display in the bank's lobby.  When bank robbers appear, the mysterious night watchman urges Oscar to flee by "jumping."  He does so, first into the train set and then ten years into the future... 

ON THE BLUE COMET offers a fanciful and enjoyable time travel yarn featuring cameos from famous actors and politicians and bankers of the era.  Full color illustrations add richness to the depiction of the times.

CHOPSTICKS

CHOPSTICKS, by Amy Krouse Rosenthal, ill. by Scott Magoon (Hyperion, January 24, 2012)(ages 4-8). The Chopsticks are inseparable, working together like a well (olive) oiled machine.  Until, one day, Chopstick A breaks a leg and Chopstick B has to make his way on his own.  But how will Chopstick B get along without his partner?

CHOPSTICKS is fun and funny and colorful, and a great exploration of standing on one's own.  In sum, CHOPSTICKS is perhaps the finest coming-of-age story involving kitchen utensils yet written.     

Remember that Book: MIKE MULLIGAN AND HIS STEAM SHOVEL

MIKE MULLIGAN AND HIS STEAM SHOVEL, by Virginia Lee Burton (Houghton Mifflin 1939).

What I remember: Set in the 1930s, it involved Mike and his steam shovel, Mary Ann, who were being displaced by newer diesel models, even though they could do the job just as effectively, possibly even better.  I really remember liking the drawings, feeling sad about the steam shovel graveyard, the sense of nostalgia, and enjoying the very appropriate surprise ending.

The rest of the recollection: This was one of my brother's and my favorites.  We would go to the old Hild Library and check this book out as many times as we could. 

I also firmly recall that sense of sadness of when new technology replaced the old.  My mother used to do the typing for one of the companies in the old Rookery Building downtown, and I would drop off the finished papers at the switchboard operator, whose name was Helen.  At first, she had an old wire and plug style board, and I used to find it fascinating to watch.  But then, one day, it was gone, replaced by a sleek white plastic object with lots of flashing lights and buttons.  It wasn't nearly as fun as the old board, and Helen didn't think so, either. 

And now:  The book still absolutely holds up.  I love the drawings of the steam shovels and the sense of flying dirt as they dig the basement, as well as the fact that it's the kid who had the solution.  Further, the idea that a steam shovel -- old technology with an old aesthetic -- still has worth in a modern diesel-electric age still resonates (And I kind of want to call Virginia Lee Burton the "mother of steampunk." :-)).

I read this as an omnibus edition, which also included KATIE AND THE BIG SNOW, THE LITTLE HOUSE, and MAYBELLE THE CABLE CAR, which I also remember enjoying, although not as much as MIKE MULLIGAN.       

BIRD TALK

BIRD TALK: WHAT BIRDS ARE SAYING AND WHY, by Lita Judge (Flash Point/Roaring Brook, March 13, 2012)(ages 6-9).  This elegant and amply illustrated forty-eight page picture book presents an introduction to the myriad ways in which birds (avian dinosaurs) communicate: vocalizing, strutting, fighting, etc. Drawings are realistic and the text spare yet informative.  An afterword provides additional context on birds both familiar and unfamiliar.

A fascinating look at the natural world -- and I keep thinking it would be excellent paired with Diana Hutts Aston's AN EGG IS QUIET.  Lita did a Writers and Illustrators and Dinosaurs post for me a couple months ago, and she is also the author of BORN TO BE GIANTS: HOW BABY DINOSAURS GREW TO RULE THE WORLD.

The Hammacher-Schlemmer 20 foot animatronic Triceratops

Animatronic dinosaurs in museums and other places of public display go way back.  I understand that the 1933-1934 Century of Progress exhibition in Chicago even had them.

Today, thanks to Hammacher-Schlemmer, you can have an animatronic Triceratops of your very own.  Per the catalog copy, this "20' long animatronic triceratops...responds to onlookers with lifelike reactions and fortissimo bellowing."

I'm very glad the bellowing is "fortissimo."

It's all your for a mere $350,000.  Shipping not included.

Click here to order, or just see the full description.

H/T to Erin Murphy, who sent me the link back in August.

DANGEROUS WATERS: AN ADVENTURE ON THE TITANIC

DANGEROUS WATERS: AN ADVENTURE ON THE TITANIC, by Gregory Mone (Roaring Brook, March 13, 2012)(ages 9-12).  Thirteen-year-old Patrick Waters has managed to secure a job as a steward aboard RMS Titanic in a highly unconventional manner.  There he befriends a young book collector who carries with him a copy of Francis Bacon's Essaies that just might hold the key to alchemy.

Also aboard are a stowaway and his partner, who are trying to secure the volume and the formula for turning base metals to gold for themselves.  Can Patrick uncover the plot and divine the secret of the Essaies?  Or is he destined to go down with the ship?

In DANGEROUS WATERS, treachery and adventure abound as readers are offered a glimpse into a bygone era.  In short, DANGEROUS WATERS provides a fascinating look at the most famous shipwreck of the 20th Century, with an appealing protagonist, a richly-drawn setting and, yes, an iceberg.  

A Cretaceous Christmas Feast

1/10 scale T.rex skull on antique clock

Merry Christmas, everyone, and best wishes for the New Year! This year, Cyn gave me the above-pictured T.rex skull, so displaying it on her great-grandma's antique clock seemed appropriate :-). 

I thought I would make it a "Cretaceous Christmas" this year, using foodstuffs that were around during the time of CHRONAL ENGINE (Yes, Cynthia and our guests for the evening are very indulgent and forgiving).

So, here's what I'm planning:

Brunch:

Lox and bagels with cream cheese, red onions, tomatoes, and capers.  Obviously, there is no such thing as Cretaceous cream cheese (no cows), and probably no recognizable red onions, tomatoes or capers, either, but their ancestors may have been present.  Salmon likewise wasn't around, but salmon are teleosts, which have been found in the Mesozoic.

Dinner:

Chicken and lobster in a pot. (Lobster fossils have been found in the Cretaceous, and chickens are birds and therefore dinosaurs).

Crab and heart of palm salad with tomatoes, onions, and pine nuts (Crabs, like lobsters, go way back. Hearts of palm can come from palmettos and other palms, which apparently were around in the Late Cretaceous. Pine nuts are from pines which, like other conifers, formed a significant part of the Mesozoic ecosystem).

Roasted corn soup. (Corn probably wasn't around in the Cretaceous, but it is a grass and some grasses have been found in the Cretaceous, although there probably weren't large meadows or grass steppes :-)).

Green bean casserole with alligator jerky garnish.  (Okay, I have no idea about when green beans evolved, but one of the key ingredients in green bean casserole is cream of mushroom soup.  And mushrooms were extant during the Cretaceous.  So were alligators.).

Cheese, apples, and grapes.  Again, no cheese and probably no apples or grapes. 

Sources:
 
Currie & Padian (ed.), Encyclopedia of Dinosaurs, Academic Press (1997), p. 426 (pines).

James O. Farlow et al., The Complete Dinosaur, Indiana University Press (1997), p. 610-11 (teleosts).

Fraiije, The Oldest In Situ Hermit Crab from the Lower Cretaceous of Speeton, UK, Paleo. 46 (1): 53-57 (2003)(crabs and lobsters).

Hibbett et al., Fossil Mushrooms from Miocene and Cretaceous Ambers and the Evolution of Homobasidiomycetes, Jour. Botany 84(78): 981-989 (1997)(mushrooms).

T.S. Kemp, The Origin and Evolution of Mammals, Oxford University Press (2005), p. 156 (tubers).

Prasad et al., Dinosaur Coprolites and the Early Evolution of Grasses and Grazers, Science, Vol. 310 (November 2005), p. 1177 (grasses).

Schwimmer, King of the Crocodylians: The Paleobiology of Deinosuchus, Indiana University Press (2002)(alligators).

Vega et al., Fossil Crabs (Crustacea: Decapoda) from the Late Cretaceous Cardena Formation, East-Central Mexico, J. Paleont. 69-2 (1995), pp. 340-350 (crabs).

David B. Weishampel et al., The Dinosauria, University of California Press (2d Ed. 2004), p. 220 (birds are dinosaurs).

Wing et al., Implications of an Exceptional Fossil Flora for Late Cretaceous Vegetation, Nature 363: 342-344 (1993)(palmetto or cabbage palm).

A Cretaceous Christmas!

It won't come as a surprise to anyone that our Christmas tree has felt the impact of CHRONAL ENGINE research, although dinosaur ornaments are not the most common.  (The tree itself, being a conifer, is representative of types that were extant during the Mesozoic).

  Above is a Sue ornament from the Field Museum.

Above, a large, nefarious-looking T.rex looms over the Millenium Falcon.

 A theropod of indeterminate species with the infamous "bunny hands."

And, finally, just to show that not all of the fauna was dinosaurs, a turtle:

Merry Christmas, everyone!


 

CHRONAL ENGINE and other news!

Two things about CHRONAL ENGINE:  First, I am delighted to announce that CHRONAL ENGINE is going to be a Junior Library Guild selection for March-September 2012!

Second, if you're going to be in Austin on March 24, 2012, stop by the official CHRONAL ENGINE launch party and signing at 2 PM at BookPeople, 603 N. Lamar.  

And a bit of Austin news:  On December 21, NPR did a story titled "Great Books to Give your Little Ones", highlighting books by Virginia Driving Hawk Sneve (THE CHRISTMAS COAT), and Austinites Cynthia Leitich Smith (TANTALIZE series), Don Tate (DUKE ELLINGTON'S NUTCRACKER SUITE), and Jennifer Ziegler (SASS & SERENDIPITY)! 

Go check it out here!