Merry, Merry and Other Cool Stuff!

Hello and Happy Holidays to all you travelers in "The Land of Blog!!!!" Well it's getting closer to Christmas and I am looking forward to spending time with family, friends and loved ones. Hey have I ever shared any pictures with you of my family? Well heck, let me do that now:




Papa-san Ninja



Momma-san Ninja (Taking care of business)

Little Ninja Bill and pet Fox!!!!

And now, my big Christmas surprise....Porky Pig singing White Christmas!!!!

Incarceron by Cathrine Fisher - It was created to become paradise. A place where all criminals where taken to be reformed by a group of wise people known as the Sapienti. They all disappeared into this place that has passed on into legend, except for the existence of a warden, and people are uncertain if it really exist. Well it does exist and the this paradise has become quite the opposite. Welcome to the ultimate prison; welcome to Incarceron. Incarceron is more than a mere prison. It is alive and controls the lives of all its inmates in one way or another. A teenager, who is more than meets the eye, named Finn is a prisoner in Incarceron who is trying to escape. His fellow potential escapee's are his oathbrother Keiro, a dashing but very unpredictable character, Gildas, a Sapienti, and Attia, a former slave to a group that Finn and the others belonged to before trying to escape. There is also a place that is supposedly outside of Incarceron known as The Realm. The Realm is a scientifically advanced civilization where, to supposedly stop war and humanities atrocities, time has been stopped to the period of the 18th century. Kings and Queens rule the land and treachery is around every corner. Claudia, who is the daughter of the Warden of Incarceron, feels trapped and without hope in The Realm. She is to be married against her will to an oafish an unfeeling prince and put under the thumb of the Queen who rules the land. She discovers secrets about Incarceron with the help of Jared, a Sapienti (it is an order that has existed for a very long time both without and within Incarceron), that she hopes to change her fate. This is a fantastic read that will delight those who are into Scfi and Fantasy. Heck, if you just like good stories you will love this one. This book is intended for teen readers as it has some language and violence.

P.S. Hot off the presses!!!! The follow up to Incarceron, Sapphique is coming out soon and I can't wait.

And now for something completely different!!



Leviathan by Scott Westerfeld - This Steampunk book is set in an alternative history at the very beginning of World War I. The two main characters are Alex, heir to The Austria-Hungary Empire (which is allied with Germany), and Deryn Sharp a British girl pretending to be a boy in order to join The British Air Service. The Austria-Hungary Empire and Germany have in their arsenal Clankers, steam-driven iron machines (both land based, Stormwalkers, Land Frigates, etc. and flying, Zeppelins, Aeroplanes, etc.) with guns and weapons attached. The British, French and Russians have genetically engineered animals. Darwinist Scientists have mixed genes from several animals to make new ones that are used for everything from labor to weapons. The most feared and powerful creation in The British Arsenal is The Leviathan a massive air-beast, which is mainly made after a whale, but is actually a massive ecosystem. Weapons on The Leviathan range from deadly bats that hurl metal shrapnel to powerful airguns (the reason being that The Leviathan uses massive amount of hydrogen to fly and hydrogen plus spark equals a big boom!!!!!!) amongst other things. The story mainly revolves around Alex and his friends trying to smuggle him out of Austria-Hungary because the powers that be want him dead and Deryn's struggle to be accepted into The British Air Service and maintain her secret that she is not really a boy. The two do end up crossing paths in this very cool book. What's even more exciting is that the sequel to this book, Behemoth, is already out and I can't wait to get my hands on it!!!!

Well that's it all you crazy cats!!!! Have a great holiday season and be kind to each other,

Bill



Sea Ghost, Comics and Graphic Novels, Oh Yea!!!!

Ahoy all me Maties in "The Sea o Blog," ti's I Lieutenant Y (also known as Ninja Librarian Bill) here to talk about some great Graphic Novels and Comics for all ages. All ages does not mean just for the kiddies, but for all - children, teens and adults who love great stories and art. Check it out:

The Sea Ghost: The Sea Ghost in The Machine by Jay Piscopo - This is a comic that is a shoot-off from the most awesome "The Undersea Adventures of Capt'n Eli" Graphic Novel Series. Hey, do you know about them? Well then it's time you did!!!! Check out these reviews I did not that long ago, in a galaxy not that far away:

The Undersea Adventures of Capt'n Eli: The Mystery of Me, The Mystery of the Sargasso Sea; Plus Much More!!!!! by Jay Piscopo - The first story "The Mystery of Me" introduces us to the main character of the graphic novel Capt'n Eli. This is Capt'n Eli's origin story and introduces many characters and asks many questions that you will be intrigued to learn about in the future. In this story he joins the Seaserchers and also meets for the first time the mysterious Commander X (a descendant of Captain Nemo himself).

The second story in the book,"The Mystery of the Sargasso Sea," is an adventure tale that involves the mysterious Sargasso Sea that has been a floating burial ground for ships throughout history and the even more curious Bermuda Triangle where both ships and other seafaring vessels, planes even, have mysteriously disappeared never to be found again. This story involves time travel,Christopher Columbus, some of the very interesting history (or would that be future????) of Commander X, and lots of battling with the Hydrons. This is such a cool story!!!!!!

The last story in the book, "The Return of Baron Hydro," take us back to the days of World War II. The Big 3 (Commander X, Sea Raider, and the Human Sun) take on the villainous Baron Hydro and his evil Hydrons. This story is action packed and just a whole lot of fun!!!!!!!!

 

The Undersea Adventures of Capt'n Eli: The Mystery of the Sargasso Sea (Volume 2) by Joe Piscopo -  Man with this volume the Capt'n Eli Graphic Novel Series hits another gear and really takes off!!!!! As it was left off in the previous volume, Capt'n Eli is still with Commander X aboard his super high tech submarine "Sub Zero." They reach the underwater city of Aquaria only to find it under attack by a race of underwater denizens known as the Outcast. It seems Aquaria and it's people are now ruled by Commander X's former World War II partner, known then as The Sea Raider. We also find out that Commander X is Aquaria's sworn Lord Protector and it is his duty to protect them from all threats and enemies. Let's see what else happens in this story, we learn the history of Aquaria and its relationship to Atlantis, we learn the secret origin of the ruler of the Aquarians known by many names such as - Rex Noble, The Sea Raider and The Sea Ghost among others, Lord Hydro is back with all his evilness and Hydrons and much. much more!!!!!!!!!! I promise you if you pick up this Graphic Novel you will be unable to put it down until you have finished reading it and then you will still be wanting more.

Oh yea almost forgot, The review of The Sea Ghost Comic (I just get so jazzed up about this ultra cool GN series and it's offshoots!) Well the Sea Ghost is minding his own business when he discovers this strange device on the ocean floor. Next thing he knows he has been transported through time and space onto a world where two fractions, The Phlan - an Ocean dwelling race and The Simas - a land dwelling race, are in a constant circle of hate and war. The Sea Ghost tries to bring peace to these waring races, but is at a loss until he discovers an interesting fact. Both races seem to fight this endless war in the name of a god they both share. How does The Sea Ghost use this information and what is the ultimate outcome. Well, you will have to read the comic to find out. Check out this link to get more information on this wonderful comic http://captneli.blogspot.com/2010/11/sea-ghost-1-has-arrived.html.

One other piece of information I would like to share is that my buds Jay (Creator, Writer and Illustrator) and Tami (Just a very cool person) sent me a bunch of copies of the comic and other goodies to share. I have not given them all away yet, so if you write a review in our comments section on something you have read and enjoyed, I will send you the comic along with some other cool swag!!!! Come on!!!! What are you waiting for??????

That's all I have time for now me Hearties!!!! Until next time,

Stand By For Adventure!!!!!!

Lieutenant Y and Library Ninja Bill!!!!!!

Torpedoman by Jay Piscopo



 

Wimpy Kid, Manja, Graphic Novels and Turkeys Fighting Back!!!!!

Hello all,

Hope you all had a great Thanksgiving. I would have but when I went to get my turkey for the feast, I ran into a one with a serious attitude!!!! Check it out:

Ultimo - The Turkey Who Stood Up!!!!

Needless to say, I had tofu this Thanksgiving. Anyway lets talk good reads:

Diary of a Wimpy Kid: The Ugly Truth by Jeff Kinney - Well I just finished reading the latest installment in "The Diary of a Wimpy Kid" series, "The Ugly Truth," and it was great. Just as funny as it's predecessors with our hero Greg Heffley telling of the struggles of being a kid in a world that just does not understand him. It seems as Greg and Rowley (his best friend) have had a falling out and Greg has to start the school year out all on his lonesome. In this book Greg learns responsibility, um or not, when hired by a neighbor to take care of her plants while she is gone away. Greg goes to a school Lock-In and has a blast, well um not exactly. Greg's mom goes back to school and decides to get a maid to help with the house work making his life so much easier. Oh wait a minute, that's not exactly right either. Anyway this is a hilarious book and series that just keeps hitting on all pistons, so check it out. Highly Recommended!!!!!! (unless you hate laughing then this book is definitely not for you)  Others in the series if you want to check them out are:
Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Roderick Rules, The Last Straw and Dog Days. Again great stuff!!!!!

Death Note by Tsugumi Ohba and Takeshi Obata - This Manga is intended for Young Adult (teens). Well it seems there are death gods (Shinigami) in another dimension who keep tabs on us human beings. When it is time for them to power up they write a person's name down in a journal and that person dies. They don't do this very often and one among them named Ryuk has become bored. So he drops a journal (A Death Note) down into the human world to see who will pick it up and what will happen. Light Yagami a very bright teen finds it and soon figures out what it can do through experimentation and visits by Ryuk. There are rules to how the "Death Note" can be used and it is not as simple as it seems. Light decides to use it to take out criminals and those he sees as deserving to die. The police soon catch on to all these criminals dying and are soon in hot pursuit of this mass murderer. They even bring in a special agent, whose true identity is known by no one, known only as "L." From there the game is afoot, as Sherlock Holmes would say. This is a really fascinating read that makes one think about what are the responsibilities of those with great power. 

Green Lantern: Agent Orange by Geoff Johns, Philip Tan, etc. & Green Lantern Corps: Emerald Eclipse by Peter Tomasi and Patrick Gleason - The War of Light also known through prophecy as "The Blackest Night" is quickly approaching and both of these GNs are integral leads into this upcoming storyline. In "Green Lantern: Agent Orange" Hal Jordan and the rest of the Green Lantern Corps meet an enemy long known by The Guardians but kept a secret through treaties made long ago. Well the treaty is broken and all heck is about to brake loose. Orange Power Rings, representing greed, and all owned by an ancient entity known as Agent Orange or Larfleeze has declared war on The Green Lantern Corps. As the story and fight rages on other Corps such as The Sinestro Corps, The Blue Lantern Corps and The Star Sapphires are drawn into this mess. Things are heating up to critical mass and we have not even talked about The Red Lantern Corps or The Indigo Tribe. Sound like a bunch happening, eh? Well it is and "Green Lantern Corps Emerald Eclipse" adds even more to the impending War of Light. It seems that that Sinestro has gone missing and in his place Mongul decides to take over. That leads to a battle royal within The Sinestro Corps. On top of that a Red Lantern has shown up on OA (The official home of The Green Lantern Corps and The Guardians) and set loose all the prisoners being held there. The Green Lantern Corps really finds it's back against the wall in trying to not only maintain order, but staying alive. There is much more going on in both these books than I have described, if you can believe that, so check them out for some really good reads!!!!!!

Well, that's all this Library Ninja has for now guys and girls, until next time, HiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiYaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa.

Library Ninja Bill



An Interview With a Boy Who Reads AND Writes!

Hey, all you guys out in the land of blogs and books! This is Iron Guy Carl with a post that I put up yesterday on the Boys Rule Boys Read blog. I'm reprinting a lot of it and I hope you don't mind, but the interview this boy gives is so cool all that I had to reproduce it word-for-word. Let me give you a little background first. One of that blog's faithful followers is Susan Kaye Quinn, a writer who also runs a book blog called Ink Spells. (it's pretty cool--go check it out!) It turns out that she has a 12-year-old son who not only reads but is writing his own sci-fi book! Pretty good, huh? I also found that he goes by the uber-cool name of Dark Omen. Then, one day, I saw this conversation on Ms. Quinn's blog:

A 12 year old View of the World My son Dark Omen (age 12) is writing a novel. He's been diligently working on it for some time now (since the summer). We discussed it over dinner.

Me: What genre is your story?

Dark Omen: Well, it's science fiction and adventure. And mystery, too. But no romance.

Me: No romance?

Dark Omen: No! Why would I write a scene about that, when I can be writing about the Carillions attacking the base?

Me: Are there any girls in your story?

Dark Omen: *makes face* Of course! It wouldn't be even if there weren't any girls.

Me: So, there are girl characters and boy characters in your story. They just don't fall in love.

Dark Omen: Well, somewhere in the universe of my story there are probably girls and boys falling in love. I just don't waste words writing about it.

Well said, Dark Omen!! Why waste words on romance and all that stuff when there are space battles!! It was obvious that I had to know this guy better!! So I emailed his mom and got permission to quote from her post and also to ask him some questions. Then I emailed him some interview questions (most of them are the same questions I ask grownup writers) and, being a truly great guy, he answered all of them and sent them back. Here's what he said.

What made you decide to write a book?

My class was making “Exquisite Corpse” books (books where everyone takes a turn writing in them). I started my book and left it out for people to write in. When nobody did, I decided to take it home and write the whole thing myself.

Tell us a little about your book. (no spoilers!)

The book starts out with a bang when Exibluar is rescued from an underground tunnel complex in which evil ewoks were chasing him. Aidan Dawn is a Cavalieri with great skill with both mind powers and computers. Steve Irwin is a slightly less powerful Cavalieri with a knack for adventure. Nathaniel Lil is a highly disciplined Galactic Government soldier. Exibluar Hazahat is a quirky Rosarian who’s future may be invaluable to the galaxy at large…

Tell us about some of your favorite books.

I like Harry Potter (all of them), Artemis Fowl (all of them as well), Star Wars (yes, all of them), Ranger’s Apprentice (same as the last three times), Percy Jackson (…make that the last four times), the Leviathan trilogy (I don’t know why I’m still making these), the Hitchhiker’s Guide series (I hope you get the point by now), and many more.

Why is it cool for boys to read?

I don’t know why it’s “cool” per say, but I do know that for me it is enjoyable as well as educational.

Why is it cool for them to write?

I hate to say so, but most of the people in my class (and even my school) groan when a teacher tells them to write something (or even take out their writing/Language Arts notebooks)

Why are grownups so obsessed with romance and kissing and all that mushy stuff?

In a nutshell, I have no idea. Personally, I fast-forward through love scenes, never write them, and have my heart set on buying lots of cats instead of getting married.

What's it like having a mom who's a writer?

The only differences are that

a)S She has a blog about writing

b) She has written several novels and published one

Sh She'salways on the computer

d S She sometimes come into the school to give talks about writing.

Which do you like better--cheeseburgers or pizza? What do you like on them?

I like pizza better, with either pepperoni or cheese.

Thanks, Dark Omen! Yeah, reading is enjoyable and educational--and most guys don't think the two can ever go together!! That's one reason I run this blog--to prove that those two words CAN go right next to each other. And it thrills me to no end to hear from reader guys like you who believe it too. And there really such things as evil ewoks?? Interesting!!

Well, Dark Omen was also good enough to send us a excerpt from his book-in-progress. Here you go:

“It fired missles!” Steve yelled, “They’re 200 yards behind us!”

“Jump coordinates set!”

“150 yards!”

“Navigations computer calibrating.”

“100 yards!”

“Initiating acceleration to Ultra-lightspeed!”

“50 yards!”

Vvvvvviip! CRRRRACK! CRRACK! BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!

“What in the galaxy is happening?” exclaimed Steve.

“I TOLD YOU to fix those stress points, Exibluar!” Aidan slammed his fist on a large flashing red button. Vviiissssss!

“I’ve dropped us out of Ultra-lightspeed, we’re still in the Erian system, except now we’re by Erian VII instead of Erian IV,” Aidan announced. “If we had continued any longer, we would have exploded.”

“It’s amazing how many ships we go through in one day,” observed Steve. “Isn’t it, Exibluar?”

“Don’t blame me!” Exibluar retaliated.

“Why not?” Steve shot back.

“Because…uh…I…” Exibluar struggled to find an excuse.

“Let’s just go down to Erian VII,” Nathaniel suggested.

Wow! Very good, Dark Omen!! Makes me want to read more--which is what a good book is supposed to do! Would you mind sending us more excerpts as you go along? And send us some reviews of your favorite books. (I'd especially like to hear what you thought of Behemoth) Thanks again and here's hoping we hear from you again!

Exciting Stuff I tell Ya!!!!

Hello once again all in The Great Land of Blog. Ti's I once more Library Ninja Bill with some truly cool information on recent reads. I finally got round to reading the last book in "The Hunger Games Trilogy," Mockingjay, and boy was it worth it. Check out this fan video that was made for it:




Pretty frickin cool if you ask me!!!! I mean like Ninja Cool!!

For those of you unaware the two books that proceed this one, they are great also and have been reviewed by me on a different blog in the past. To get you up to speed here is a repeat of those reviews:

The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins - Now I have to warn all you potential readers off the bat that this book is probably a little to intense for younger readers. Not really any language problems, violence and the cruelty of the world portrayed may not be to all our blog readers taste. Okay now that I've got the obligatory warning out, let me tell you about this roller coaster ride book. It is by Suzanne Collins, who also wrote the Gregor Books, and set in a depressing future. The United States no longer exist and what remains has become known as Panem. Panem is made up of the Capitol, where people have it easy and control the rest of the Panem, which is divided into 12 Districts. The Capital basically rules the Districts as a Dictatorship. Sometime in the past the Districts rebelled against the capital and lost. After the Districts defeat "The Hunger Games" were initiated. The Hunger Games is basically a reality T.V. Show where 2 tributes, a boy and girl, between the ages of 12 to 18 are selected from the 12 Districts (making a total of 24 teens) to compete against each other until only one player remains alive. The story centers on District 12's tributes Katniss Everdeen (16 years old) and Peeta Mellark (18 years old). Katniss becomes involved when her 12 year old sister is chosen for the games, which she can not bear to happen, so she takes her place. The games are violent and the tributes put through terrible treatment in the outdoor arena (encompassing a fast forest) all of which is televised for the Capital to watch. This book has so many twist and turns you will not be able to put it down. Can Katniss and Peeta beat the rest of the District tributes and even so what happens if they are the last two remaining. Only one victor is allowed. Don't miss this book!!!!! Even better news is that it is the first in a trilogy. Great Stuff!!!!!!!!! There is also a pretty cool website for this book that you might want to check out:

http://www.scholastic.com/thehungergames/games/index.htm

Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins - Well without blowing too much for those who have yet to read the first book (see above), Katniss and Peeta from District 12 have won the 74th Hunger Games. That's the good news. The bad news is that President Snow, who runs the Capital and the defeated Districts, is not happy at all about the series of events that have lead to their co-victory (the first ever in the games). He is so unhappy that when their victory tour is about to start he visits Katniss and warns her to be on her best behavior as she has become a sort of symbol of rebellion for some of the Districts. Well even with the best intentions everything begins to fall apart and some of the Districts go into full rebellion mode. To hopefully solve this problem President Snow fixes the 75th Hunger Games so that previous winners must compete against one another. District 12 only has three living victors: Katniss, Peeta and Haymitch. At the very minimum, because she is the only living girl winner, Katniss is horrified to learn she must again go into the games to fight for her life (or perhaps someelse's). I guarantee you will love this book, so if you are not on the waiting list for it get on it NOW!!!!!!!

And now a review of the last book:

Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins - Katniss Everdeen, the girl on fire, has escaped the destruction of District 12 along with her family members, Gale, Haymitch and others. Some are missing like Peeta, her partner in both Hunger Games. Where is he and how will he play into the story? She along with others has been rescued by District 13; a district that The Capital has led all to believe destroyed. Not only is District 13 alive and well, but it is leading the other districts in a full scale revolt against The Capital and President Snow. The Capital and The Districts match up very well against each other so something is needed to tip the scales in favor of The Districts. That something is Katniss Everdeen who has survived 2 Hunger Games; a feat unheard of ever. The President of District 13 makes her the symbol of The Resistance as she inspires hope in all people fighting in this terrible war. Well as Katniss has proven before, she will not merely be a behind the scene symbol for televised promotional videos and live in safety while other fight and risk their lives. She wants to help take The Capital down and personally kill President Snow. Like the two books before it this is an exciting and powerful read. It may also be to much for younger readers due to violence and some language. This is a great book and a great series that should be read by all!!!!!!!

One more book I would like to talk about before I finish up is a Graphic Novel/Manga:

Barefoot Gen - A Cartoon Story of Hiroshima by Keiji Nakazawa - This is the first in a series of autobiographical graphic novels/mangas of the author's true life experiences in Japan during World War II and living through the bombing of Hiroshima, by the atomic bomb, and it's aftermath. The main characters name in the book is Gen who has one sister and two brothers. His father is an outspoken opponent of Japan's involvement in World War II and the family suffers greatly for it. The book shows the desperate straights that the Japanese citizens went through toward the end of the war such as starvation, bulling by corrupt political officials and much more. It shows in a very poignant way the horrors of war and the horror unleashed by the beginning of the atomic age. This book needs to be read so that we all understand the consequences of wagging war against one another. Because of the subject matter and some language, this book is also not for younger children.

Well that's all I have for now, but I want you guys out there to right about some good reads also. So write about a good book in our comment section of the blog and we will post it and try and get you a prize for doing so.

Peace all,

Bill

The Lost Hero

I finished Rick Riordan's The Lost Hero last night, and boy oh boy is that some good reading. In case you have been living under a rock, the story takes place after the events in Riordan's series Percy Jackson and the Olympians. The Lost Hero follows 3 demigods that are new to the Camp Half-blood world, Jason, Piper and Leo. The trio are given a quest to free the goddess Hera who has been captured by Gaea, the Greek goddess of the Earth.

This is the first book in the new Camp Half-blood series, The Heroes of Olympus. If the first book is any indication, the series should be just as much fun as the original. I did find myself missing the original characters, but Jason, Piper and especially Leo are good on their own. I mean, Leo makes a giant metal flying dragon, what else could you ask for?

Happy Halloween with a slice of good reads!!!!

Hi all and a happy Halloween from your favorite Library Ninja, Bill!!!! I love Halloween because it let's you pretend to be anybody or anything you want. Such as:

Dracula!!!!!

OR

Frankenstein!!!!!

OR The Scariest of All........

Smurfs!!!!!!!!!!

Hey how about a little Halloween music??? Check it out:

"This is Halloween" from "The Nightmare Before Christmas." 

 

Okay, here we go:


Amulet: The Cloud Searchers by Kazu Kibuishi - This is the third book in the Amulet Graphic Novel Series (The Stonekeeper Book 1 and The Stonekeeper's Curse Book 2). It continues the adventures of the human children Emily and Nathen, Miskit and the rest of the robotic crew, Lean Redbeard a swashbuckling fox, along with new allies in Captain Enzo (a cat) of The Luna Moth (a flying airship) and his brother Rico. Emily and her allies convince Captain Enzo to fly them to the mythical city in the sky "Cielis" to meet it's Guardian Council in hope to save the Kingdom of Alledia. An unexpected addition to their team is The Evil Elf King's son Prince Trellis. He appears to be on their side, but is he really? If that were not enough they are also being pursued by a bounty hunter hired by The Elf King, Master Gabilan and his frighting flying beast mount. Do they find the floating city in the clouds? Does everyone make the journey through intact? Are there more twist and turns in the storyline? I guess you will have to pick this great GN up and read it to find out. This is a story not to be missed. 

Alligator VS. Crocodile by Isabel Thomas - This is a great book that has wonderful pictures of alligators and crocodiles in their natural environments along with being packed with information about these lean mean killing machines (err reptiles that is). The book is divided up into rounds like a boxing match. Before the fight you have the obligatory "Meet the Reptiles" which gives some basic information on both. The rounds are divided up comparing facts about the two predators. The Rounds go something like this:
Round 1 - Size and Strength
Round 2 - Speed and Endurance

Round 3 - Surprise Attack

Round 4 - Teeth and Jaws

Round 5 - Hunting and Fishing Skills

Finally we get to find out theoretically if these two creature went head to head who would win the fight. Lastly we are given some important information concerning the survival of these animals from their worst enemy; man.

Tons of great information teamed with great photographs make this book a WINNER!!!!!!!!!


Happy Halloween all you ghouls, ghost, guys and gals,

Bill

It's here!

Well look what was sitting on my desk when I got into work this morning. This really takes the sting out of working on a Saturday.

Not So Patiently Waiting

There are two books I'm wanting to get my hands on right now the first is Behemoth. If you read Scott Westerfeld's Leviathan, than you are probably are already ahead of me. If you haven't read either, you are in for a treat. The sequel released last week, but my library hasn't yet ordered it despite my begging and pleading. We do have the audio book on the way, which I hear is great, but the illustrations done by Keith Thompson are so great that I want to get my hands on a print copy.

Behemoth continues the alternate history story of an Austrian prince who is running for his life from the Germans. The prince must trust in people he would normally consider enemies to survive.

The second book is The Lost Hero by Rick Riordan and it comes out tomorrow. This book is on order for my library, so I am going to resist the temptation to just run out to the store and buy it. This book is the first in the new Heroes of Olympus series that takes place with the next generation of demigods after Percy Jackson's adventures. If you don't know who Percy Jackson is, you have some awesome catching up to do.

New Series: Trackers

Patrick Carman, one of the authors for the 39 Clues series, has a new action series called Trackers out for the middle school audience. The first book is the aptly titled, Trackers: Book One, is a good start to the series and introduces the readers to the characters through a fast paced high tech adventure.

The books are enhanced with a website. Every few chapters, the book pauses and directs the reader to put enter a new password to unlock a new set of videos and puzzles for the reader. If you are like me and are not usually around a computer while reading a book it can be a little frustrating. But, the book does offer text transcripts of the videos if you can't watch them online. So they aren't essential to enjoying the book, but they are a good deal of fun if you include them.

The second book, Trackers Book 2: Shantorian is scheduled to come out January 1st, 2011. You can see more about the series on Patrick Carman's web page.

Bond, James Bond, Monstrumologist, and Graphic Novels

Greetings all in "The Land o Blog" it is I once again. The Library Ninja that wonders the world righting wrongs, Library Ninja Bill. It's a dirty job, but someones got to do it. Speaking of Ninjas here are some of my all time favs:

The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles!!!!!!

Snake Eyes and Storm Shadow!!!

Iron Fist (Marvel Comics)!!!



The Naruto Crew!!!!

And Lastly The Great

Hong Kong Phooey!!!!!

Alright is this sight about Ninjas or cool reads? Well I guess it's more about cool reads, so here goes!!!!!!

First let's start with some reads I have talked bout before. Something old (that's new again):

Silverfin: A James Bond Adventure by Charlie Higson - I have read the first three books in the Young Bond Series and they all are awesome. The first book of the Series is this one and once I read it I was seriously hooked. In this first book we are introduced to Bond when he is a 12 year old student attending Eton Boarding School in England. He has few friends, although the ones he does have are good ones, and he is very much a loner. We find out that his parents died when he was 7 years old and he is being raised by his Aunt Charman. James is a new student at the school and he immediately runs afoul of an older student George Hellebore who is a bully and the son of Lord Hellebore, a wealthy and powerful arms dealer. Lord Hellebore comes to the school and sets up a tournament that involves shooting, running and swimming all in the hopes that his son George will win by any means necessary. Let's just say that James prevents George from winning and their relationship does not improve. Break comes to Eaton and James travels to Scotland to meet his Aunt Charman who is there taking care of his Uncle Max who is dying of cancer. Just when James thinks he is getting away from his troubles at school, he discovers that the Hellebores live in an old castle by Lock Silverfin; right in the very same area that his uncle lives. James meets new friends in Scotland in Red Kelly, who sneaks on a train in England with Jame's help, and Wilder Lawless as they try to figure out what has become of Red's brother who was last seen in this area. Needless to say all clues lead to Lock Silverfin and the Hellebores. This is a great book for both Bond and Non-Bond fans (if that is possible?). Two Thumbs Up!!!!!!

Man if you are looking for a book that is:

*Scary;

*a great story that will have you turning and reading page after page;

*Has great characters.

I have the book for you!!!!!!!!

The Monstrumologist by Rick Yancey - Let me give you a little taste from the inside front jacket of this book: "These are the secrets I have kept. This is the trust I never betrayed. But he is dead now and has been for more than forty years, the one who gave me his trust, the one for whom I kept these secrets. The one who saved me.....and who cursed me."

This book is about a young boy named Will Henry living in the mid/late 1800s, whose parents have passed away, that lives and assist the great Monstrumologist Dr. Warthrop. What is a Monstrumologist you ask? Well let me give you the definition given in the book:

mon*stum*ol*ogy (n.)

1: the study of life forms generally malevolent to humans and not recognized by science as actual organisms, specifically those considered products of myth and folklore

2: the act of hunting such creatures

This book starts with the Doctor and Will discovering the remains of a male creature known as an Anthropophagi. The creature appears somewhat human, except that it has no head. Its eyes are found on it's shoulders. It has very long arms that end in razor sharp claws. Its mouth with shark like teeth are found in it's chest area. It is extremely muscular and dangerous whether it be male or female. Lastly, and most frightening, they prey on humans.

Somehow these creatures, normally found in northern and western Africa and the Caroli Islands, have found there way to the good Doctor's home in New Jerusalem, North America. This discovery starts the beginning of a story of adventure and horror that will haunt Will Henry for the rest of his days. Another great but creepy character that helps the Doctor and Will Henry hunt and attempt to destroy these creatures is one Dr John Kearns, whose true identity will shock you.

This is a great book that will have you turning pages in quick succession to find out what happens next in the book. However, I feel obligated to warn all that this is probably not for young children. This book contains some extremely gory scenes in addition to just being down right frightening. It scared the living "you know what" out of me and I'm far from being a child. So before starting to read this book make sure it is cool with your parents and you are not frightened easily. This is a great book and I hope there are more in the near future such that this could become a series. Highly recommended!!!!!!!!!!!

Now for some fresh and hot of the presses reviews. Something new:

The Donner Party by Scott Welvaert, Ron Frenz and Charles Barnett - This Graphic Novel for ages 9 and up tells the true story of the ill-fated Donner Party and there journey in the mid 1800's to reach California starting from Missouri. The group that would become known as "The Donner Party" was made up of a group of 87 people and 23 wagons. Many incidents and bad decisions would lead this group of people to being remembered through history. What exactly happened to them and what makes them so infamous in history. Read this terrific Graphic Novel and find out!!!

Green Lantern: The Sinestro Corps War (Volumes 1 and 2) by Geoff Johns, Dave Gibbons, and more - This story collected into Graphic Novel format is epic and kicks butt!!!! It collects a storyline that ran through the comic series Green Lantern and The Green Lantern Corps along with various special one shots. Okay here is a quick overview, Sinestro, a one time Green Lantern and mentor to Hal Jordan, has come up with the perfect plan to put OA (the home of The Guardians of the GL Corps and the Corps itself) and The Green Lantern Corps on a path he desires.

He forms The Sinesto Corps and recruits members who have the ability to install great fear. Each Sinesto Corp member is armed with a yellow power ring, mirroring the green ones of the Green Lantern Corps. Amongst Sinestro's allies are Parallax, The Anti-Monitor, Cyborg-Superman, Superboy-Prime among others. On the Good Guys side we have The Green Lanterns Hal Jordan, John Stewart, Guy Gardner, Kyle Rayner, Sodam Yat, Kilowog and many more. That's a bunch of good guys and bad guys. The reason is this story is epic. Blood is spilled on both sides as both heroes and villains fall. Will the Yellow Power Ring Bearers who represent fear prevail or the Green Power Ring Bearers who represent good (at least as far a we can tell) and overcoming fear. This GN is recommended for ages 13 and up because of some language and violence.

Also the follow up "The Rage of The Red Lanterns" rocks pretty hard!!!!!!

Well that's all for now all you mighty ninja readers!!!! Peace out with a Kung Fu Grip,

Library Ninja Bill