Sunday, April 25, 2010

Top 100 Children's books

School Library Journal did a poll of the top 100 children's books and Crowinator of Trapped Inside My Huge Chattering Head made a list of the books she's read. (link above) Here's mine- Bolded titles have been read.



100. The Egypt Game - Snyder (1967)
99. The Indian in the Cupboard - Banks (1980)

98. Children of Green Knowe - Boston (1954)
97. The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane - DiCamillo (2006)
96. The Witches - Dahl (1983)
95. Pippi Longstocking - Lindgren (1950
)
94. Swallows and Amazons - Ransome (1930)
93. Caddie Woodlawn - Brink (1935)
92. Ella Enchanted - Levine (1997)
91. Sideways Stories from Wayside School - Sachar (1978)
90. Sarah, Plain and Tall - MacLachlan (1985)
89. Ramona and Her Father - Cleary (1977)
88. The High King - Alexander (1968)
87. The View from Saturday - Konigsburg (1996)
86. Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets - Rowling (1999)

85. On the Banks of Plum Creek - Wilder (1937)
84. The Little White Horse - Goudge (1946)
83. The Thief - Turner (1997)
82. The Book of Three - Alexander (1964)

81. Where the Mountain Meets the Moon - Lin (2009)
80. The Graveyard Book - Gaiman (2008)
79. All-of-a-Kind-Family - Taylor (1951)
78. Johnny Tremain - Forbes (1943)
77. The City of Ember - DuPrau (2003)
76. Out of the Dust - Hesse (1997)

75. Love That Dog - Creech (2001)
74. The Borrowers - Norton (1953)
73. My Side of the Mountain - George (1959)
72. My Father's Dragon - Gannett (1948)
71. The Bad Beginning - Snicket (1999)
70. Betsy-Tacy - Lovelae (1940)
69. The Mysterious Benedict Society - Stewart ( 2007)
68. Walk Two Moons - Creech (1994)
67. Jeremy Thatcher, Dragon Hatcher - Coville (1991)
66. Henry Huggins - Cleary (1950)
65. Ballet Shoes - Stratfeild (1936)
64. A Long Way from Chicago - Peck (1998)
63. Gone-Away Lake - Enright (1957)
62. The Secret of the Old Clock - Keene (1959)
61. Stargirl - Spinelli (2000)
60. The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle - Avi (1990)
59. Inkheart - Funke (2003)
58. The Wolves of Willoughby Chase - Aiken (1962)
57. Ramona Quimby, Age 8 - Cleary (1981)

56. Number the Stars - Lowry (1989)
55. The Great Gilly Hopkins - Paterson (1978)
54. The BFG - Dahl (1982)
53. Wind in the Willows - Grahame (1908)
52. The Invention of Hugo Cabret (2007)
51. The Saturdays - Enright (1941)
50. Island of the Blue Dolphins - O'Dell (1960)

49. Frindle - Clements (1996)
48. The Penderwicks - Birdsall (2005)
47. Bud, Not Buddy - Curtis (1999)
46. Where the Red Fern Grows - Rawls (1961)
45. The Golden Compass - Pullman (1995)
44. Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing - Blume (1972)
43. Ramona the Pest - Cleary (1968)

42. Little House on the Prairie - Wilder (1935)
41. The Witch of Blackbird Pond - Speare (1958)
40. The Wonderful Wizard of Oz - Baum (1900)

39. When You Reach Me - Stead (2009)
38. HP and the Order of the Phoenix - Rowling (2003)
37. Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry - Taylor (1976)
36. Are You there, God? It's Me, Margaret - Blume (1970)
35. HP and the Goblet of Fire - Rowling (2000)

34. The Watson's Go to Birmingham - Curtis (1995)
33. James and the Giant Peach - Dahl (1961)
32. Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH - O'Brian (1971)

31. Half Magic - Eager (1954)
30. Winnie-the-Pooh - Milne (1926)
29. The Dark Is Rising - Cooper (1973)

28. A Little Princess - Burnett (1905)
27. Alice I and II - Carroll (1865/72)
26. Hatchet - Paulsen (1989)
25. Little Women - Alcott (1868/9)
24. HP and the Deathly Hallows - Rowling (2007)

23. Little House in the Big Woods - Wilder (1932)
22. The Tale of Despereaux - DiCamillo (2003)
21. The Lightening Thief - Riordan (2005)
20. Tuck Everlasting - Babbitt (1975)
19. Charlie and the Chocolate Factory - Dahl (1964)
18. Matilda - Dahl (1988)
17. Maniac Magee - Spinelli (1990)
16. Harriet the Spy - Fitzhugh (1964)
15. Because of Winn-Dixie - DiCamillo (2000)
14. HP and the Prisoner of Azkaban - Rowling (1999)
13. Bridge to Terabithia - Paterson (1977)

12. The Hobbit - Tolkien (1938)
11. The Westing Game - Raskin (1978)
10. The Phantom Tollbooth - Juster (1961)
9. Anne of Green Gables - Montgomery (1908)
8. The Secret Garden - Burnett (1911)
7. The Giver -Lowry (1993)
6. Holes - Sachar (1998)
5. From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler - Koningsburg (1967)
4. The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe - Lewis (1950)
3. Harry Potter #1 - Rowling (1997)
2. A Wrinkle in Time - L'Engle (1962)
1. Charlotte's Web - White (1952)



Thursday, April 8, 2010

The ABC Murders

I have been going through quite a Agatha Christie phase ever since I saw the episode of Dr. Who where he meets Agatha Christie at an English country house and they solve a mystery together back in 2008. (Also the episode that hooked me on Dr. Who to my husband's delight). My mother loves mysteries and she keeps hoping I'll get into them too, but so far the Christies aren't acting as a gateway drug. Miss Marple is my favorite Christie character, but, sigh, I've read them all. So, on to Poirot.

This is a fun mystery, Hercule Poirot's clueless sidekick Colonel Hastings narrates, which I enjoy, as they search for what could be seen as a prototype of the serial killer. The murderer sends notes to Poirot telling him details of the next crime and taunting him for his inability to solve the case. The clues are there, but as usual, I missed them. (That's ok, Christie even fooled The Doctor. Once) I listened to this as an audio book which gave me the illusion I was picking up on the tiny hints, but, nope.

I enjoyed it so much that I am now trying to find more Agatha Christie mysteries on audio. I'm reading Why Didn't They Ask Evans which has the distinction of being uber-librarian Nancy Pearl's favorite Christie.

Friday, April 2, 2010

Downtown Owl

My wild crush on Chuck Klosterman has crashed on the iceberg of this book. Sure, his recreation pot use was troubling. And, ok, so we are both already married to other people. But if Chuck Klosterman had shown up on my doorstep while I was reading Eating the Dinosaur or Killing Yourself to Live running away with him would have been a serious possibility. Now he'll be lucky to get to drink a beer in my kitchen while I lecture him on not writing a novel unless you have an idea about how it should end. Which he clearly did not.

Downtown Owl is set in rural North Dakota in the early 1980's. The book is told in alternating chapters by various townfolk, including new teacher and town "it" girl, Julia. The characters are interesting, but rather than bringing the characters together in some meaningful way, Klosterman essentially develops the characters and then just ends the book. Boom.

Sorry Chuck, I think it's time to start seeing other writers.