Every child is an Ugly until they turn sixteen.  Then you get to choose what for you is the perfect look and become a Pretty, and live in Pretty Town.  Tally Youngblood can hardly wait.  All her friends are already in Pretty Town.  But then Tally meets Shay.  Shay is different and wants to keep her own face.  She hates the operation.  Shay wants to run away to a mysterious place called The Smoke, and she wants Tally to come with her.

Comments from the Senior Owlets:

Book that makes the reader think about all the ramifications of controls in a society.
Very believable vision of the future.
Makes reader think about options.
Reader wants the book to continue.
Cliffhanger ending.
Book is a warning.
Future as presented is believable.
Ending feels a bit rushed, but there is a sequel.

Final score: 9.375 out of 10.

The next meeting of Senior Owlets (and the last one until we reconvene in the fall) is on Tuesday, June 5th at 4:30pm.  The book up for discussion is Acceleration by Graham McNamee.

It’s a hot, hot summer, and in the depths of the Toronto Transit Authority’s Lost and Found, 17-year-old Duncan is cataloging lost things and sifting through accumulated junk. And between Jacob, the cranky old man who runs the place, and the endless dusty boxes overflowing with stuff no one will ever claim, Duncan’s just about had enough. Then he finds a little leather book. It’s a diary filled with the dark and dirty secrets of a twisted mind, a serial killer stalking his prey in the subway. And Duncan can’t make himself stop reading.

What would you do with a book like that? How far would you go to catch a madman?

And what if time was running out. . . .

If you’re a kid in grades 7 to 9 and are interested in joining Senior Owlets, we’d love to have you.  Membership is free and open all year.  Just give us a call at 403-287-9557, email us at owlsnestbooks@shaw.ca or just drop in to one of the meetings.

Alvin Ho is afraid of just about everything.  He is afraid of elevators, tunnels, scary movies, the dark, and girls.  What he is most afraid of is school.  In fact, he is so scared, he suffers from “muteism”.  But it is only at school that he can’t talk.  At home, he is Firecracker Man, in disguise.

Comments from the Junior Owlets:

Good book for younger readers.
Took a while to warm up to Alvin.
Funny book.
Sometimes the story dragged.
Lots of fun.
Very easy read.
Looking forward to reading others in the series.
Says he is allergic to girls, but always hangs out with them.
Liked all the characters.
Even though written for younger audience, still fun for older readers.
Would have liked a complicated plot.
Liked the Shakespearean curses.
Good eye for children-characters and their fears.
Would have liked it longer.
Good ear for how children think and speak.
Everyone can related to Alvin’s fears.

Final score: 9.1615384 out of 10.

The Junior Owlets book for June (and final book of the year) will be The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman. The meeting is Saturday, June

It takes a graveyard to raise a child.

Nobody Owens, known as Bod, is a normal boy. He would be completely normal if he didn’t live in a graveyard, being raised by ghosts, with a guardian who belongs to neither the world of the living nor the dead. There are adventures in the graveyard for a boy — an ancient Indigo Man, a gateway to the abandoned city of ghouls, the strange and terrible Sleer. But if Bod leaves the graveyard, he will be in danger from the man Jack — who has already killed Bod’s family.

If you’re a kid in grades 3 to 6 and are interested in joining Junior Owlets, we’d love to have you.  Membership is free and open all year.  Just give us a call at 403-287-9557, email us at owlsnestbooks@shaw.ca or just drop in to one of the meetings.

Ben isn’t so sure about his father’s latest experiment.  His father has moved them from Toronto to Victoria in order to pursue a new scientific study.  That means lots of changes for Ben.  Not only will he have to go to a new school and make new friends, but he will also have a new family member: a baby chimpanzee.  His father is trying to discover whether or not chimpanzees can learn to communicate with sign language.

Comments from the Junior Owlets:

Very interesting.
Quite amusing in places.
Very realistic.
Liked all the characters.
All characters were well developed.
Sad when the book ended because really liked it.
Satisfying ending.
Brought attention to how easy it is to get attracted to things.
Raised awareness of the conflicts with testing on animals.
Raised the issue of differences between analytical and emotional thinking.

Final score out of 10: 8.5

June’s meeting of Senior Owlets will be on Tuesday, May 8th at 4:30pm.  The book up for discussion is Uglies by Scott Westerfeld.

Tally is about to turn sixteen, and she can’t wait.  In just a few weeks she’ll have the operation that will turn her form a repellent ugly into a stunningly attractive pretty.  And as a pretty, she’ll be catapulted into a high-tech paradise where her only job is to have fun.

But Tally’s new friend Shay isn’t sure she wants to become a pretty.  When Shay runs away, Tally learns about a whole new side of the pretty world — and it isn’t very pretty.  The authorities offer Tally a choice: find her friend, and turn her in, or never turn pretty at all.  Tally’s choice will change her world forever….

Amanda and Leo were born on the same day.  For the past ten years, they have celebrated their birthdays together.  At last year’s party, Amanda overheard Leo say something nasty about her.  She hasn’t spoken to him since.  This year, they are celebrating separately.  But everything goes wrong.  It is the worst birthday ever.  And to make it more horrible, Amanda seems to be caught in a weird time loop.  The same awful day keeps repeating over, and over…and over….

Comments from the Junior Owlets:

- Thought the birthdays repeating went a little long until realized it was 11 repeats for 11 Birthdays.
- Liked how they kept trying different things.
- Book did draw reader in because you wanted to know how they would break the curse.
- Parts were quite exciting and funny.
- Liked how she related to people.
- Did slow down until Amanda and Leo reunite.
- Very fast read.
- Some of the characters were too shallow.
- Really like the idea : Repetition of birthdays dragged in some places.
- Very like the movie Groundhog Day.
- Unique story.
- Liked that the kids had to solve the problem.

Final score 8.5769223 out of 10.

The May selection for Junior Owlets is Alvin Ho: Allergic to Girls, School a Other Scary Things by Lenore Look.

Alvin Ho is an Asian American second grader who is afraid of everything—elevators, tunnels, girls, and, most of all, school. He’s so afraid of school that, while he’s there, he never, ever, says a word. But at home he’s a very loud superhero named Firecracker Man, a brother to Calvin and Anibelly, and a gentleman-in-training, so he can be just like his dad.

If you’re a kid in grades 3 to 6 and are interested in joining Junior Owlets, we’d love to have you.  Membership is free and open all year.  Just give us a call at 403-287-9557, email us at owlsnestbooks@shaw.ca or just drop in to one of the meetings.

What: An evening of stories, songs and hope.

When: Tuesday, 24 April 2012, 7:00pm

Phyllis Wheaton and friends come to the Owl’s Nest for a night of stories and songs, sharing from In the Mood for Peace — The Story of the Izzy Doll.

In the Mood for Peace — The Story of the Izzy Doll tells how a grieving family coped with the death of their soldier son and how their actions inspired friends and strangers alike across Canada.  Through their determination and willingness to change the world, The Isfelds uncovered a blueprint for Peace and have left behind answers capable of healing the world.

Find out about how Canadians gave back — one volunteer, one knitter, one crocheter at a time — inspired by a soldier’s ultimate sacrifice and his desire to bring joy and goodwill to the needy and the forgotten. With this book, the story of the Izzy Doll will now become firmly embedded in our folklore and history.

When / Quand:

Who / Qui:  Érik L’Homme

This event is presented by the Alliance Française, the Médiathèque Francophone Emma Morrier and Wordfest.

Cet événement est presenté par l’Alliance Française, la Médiathèque Francophone Emma Morrier et Wordfest.

 About the Author / Biographie de l’auteur
Érik L’Homme was born in Grenoble, France, in 1967. He has a degree in History and has traveled extensively. A gifted storyteller and reporter, he divides his time between journalism and writing for children. His works include Le Livre des étoiles, Maîtres des brisants, Phænomen, and A comme Association.

Érik L’Homme est né à Grenoble, France, en 1967. Il a un diplôme en histoire et a voyagé considérablement. Un écrivain doué, il partage son temps entre le journalisme et l’écriture pour les enfants. Son oeuvre inclut les series Le Livre des étoiles, Maîtres des brisants, Phænomen, et A comme Association.

Érik’s work / L’Oeuvre d’Érik
Érik’s newest book is Car nos cœurs sont hantés, the seventh volume in the series A comme Association, which he began with the late Pierre Bottero.

Le plus récent livre d’Érik est Car nos cœurs sont hantés, le septième tome de la serie A comme Association, qu’il a commencé avec le regretté Pierre Bottero.

When:

About the Book
In the fall of 1066, a thirteen-year-old Anglo-Saxon girl named Catla watches from afar as Viking raiders burn her village and imprison her family and the other villagers. No one sees her as she flees toward Aigber, the closest village, praying the people there will help. Catla must ignore her terror as she makes her way to the standing stones, a place of refuge, where she meets Sven, an older boy from her village. Together, they continue toward Aigber and are able to alert the village of the coming peril. Catla and Sven rally the villagers of Aigber, and with Catla’s help, a plan is put in place that will save both villages from the Nord-devils.

About the Author
Mary Elizabeth Nelson was born in Calgary, Alberta and spent most of her life there, some of it as a teacher and teacher-librarian at Springbank Junior high and for the Calgary Board of Education. She also has lived in Montreal and Winnipeg. Some years ago, she moved to Duncan, Vancouver Island. She has previously published bits of poetry and a textbook, Medieval Times, used by the Ontario school system. Catla and the Vikings, a novel for juvenile readers, was published by Orca Books, in March 2012. She has four grown children and three grandchildren. She enjoys the natural world, golf, quilting, calligraphy, and writing.

Fire is an outcast.  Her hair brands her as a monster.  Monsters are dangerous not only because of their mesmerizing beauty, but because of their powers of mind control.  Fire’s father, Cansrel, nearly destroyed the country with his powers.  Fire is afraid that she might be evil like her father, so she hides her beauty, and rarely uses her mind control.  Her friend Archer thinks she is only safe in isolation, but Fire doesn’t think much of that.  (Prequel to Graceling.)

- Very intriguing world.
- Many compelling characters
- Author’s talent is definitely growing.
- Liked Fire more than Graceling.
- Secondary characters as faceted as the main.
- Reader was drawn in.
- Lech’s story was very creepy.
- Fire was very young.  Other characters were older, but she often seemed more mature.
- Fire and Brigen were very similar characters.
- Calling Fire a “monster” leads reader to believe that she is “evil”.
- Liked how Fire grew in strength, culminating in her control at the party.
- Her powers, while perceived as “bad”, were similar to Katsa’s in Graceling.  Every one has choices as to how to use skills.

Final score out of 10:  8.966

The next Fledglings meeting will be Tuesday, April 24 at 4:30pm.  The book up for discussion will be Lock and Key by Sarah Dessen.

Ruby can take care of herself.

She’s used to counting on no one and answering to nobody.  But all that changes when her mother vanishes and Ruby is sent to live with her older sister, Cora.  Now Ruby’s got a room of her own in a fabulous new house, she’s going to private school and — for the first time — feeling as if she has a future.  Plus, there’s the adorable and sweet boy next door, Nate.  Everything should be perfect.  So why is Ruby so wary?  And why is Nate keeping her at a distance?  Ruby soon comes to realize that sometimes, in order to save yourself, you’ve got to reach out to someone else.

If you’re a teen in grades 10 through 12 and are interested in joining Fledglings, please email us at owlsnestbooks@shaw.ca, call us at 403-287-9557 or just drop into one of the meetings.

Sophie and Josh Newman are twins, and each have their first summer job.  Sophie works in the coffee shop across the street from Nick and Perry Fleming’s bookstore, where Josh works.  When armed good kidnap Perry Fleming and steal a rare book, Josh’s quick snatch of the two more important pages from that book plummet him and his sister into a frightening world of magic and treachery.

Comments from the Senior Owlets:

- Descriptions made the novel.
- Some difficulty getting into the story.
- Mythology was the best part.
- Liked how real people, such a Flamel, John Dee, were characters.
- Author’s use of world mythologies intrigued all readers.
- Very strong sense of place.
- All characters were very strong and well defined, even secondary ones.

Final score: 8.6333333 out of 10.

In April, Senior Owlets will be reading Half Brother by Kenneth Oppel.  The meeting is on Tuesday, April 10th at 4:30pm.

When Ben Tomlin’s mother brings home his new “baby brother,” an eight-day-old chimpanzee, Ben is far from thrilled. His father, a renowned behavioral scientist, has uprooted the family and moved them halfway across the country, to Victoria, B.C., so he can pursue a high-profile experiment— to determine whether chimpanzees can learn human sign language.Zan must be raised exactly like a human. He’s dressed in clothes and fed in a high chair and has a room full of toys and books. Ben is soon smitten. Joining the team of students who are helping with the experiment, Ben becomes both researcher and adored older brother.Within months, Zan learns his first signs and becomes a media sensation. At his new school, Ben’s life seems similarly charmed as he vies for the attentions of the beautiful Jennifer— using his newly acquired scientific observational skills.But when Project Zan unexpectedly loses its funding, Ben’s father is under huge pressure to either make the experiment succeed or abandon it—and Zan. Unable to convince his father that Zan is now part of the family, Ben must risk everything to save his baby brother from an unimaginable fate.

If you’re a kid in grades 3 to 6 and are interested in joining Junior Owlet’s, we’d love to have you.  Membership is free and open all year.  Just give us a call at 403-287-9557, email us at owlsnestbooks@shaw.ca or just drop in to one of the meetings.

Peter has just enough money to buy some bread, but instead he gives his money to the fortune teller.  Peter is desperately looking for a sign that his sister Adele is alive.  The fortune teller reads that an elephant will appear and take him to his presumed-dead sister.  That very night, a magician brings an elephant crashing down on his audience.

Comments from the Junior Owlets:

- Beautifully written.
- Liked every character and the depth of every character.
- All characters seemed real.
-Magical story with realistic characters.
- Suspenseful.
- Would have liked not to know Adele is alive until the end.
- Would have it longer.
- Why did the magician feel he had to make an elephant?
- Dark story.
- Some confusion with so many characters.
- Found the plot too jumpy.
- Very descriptive.
- Are there too many characters?
- Problem was solved too easily.
- Loved the illustrations
- Very descriptive.
- Really liked how you wondered what would happen next.
- Wrapped up a bit too quickly.

Final score: 8.75 out of 10

The April book for Junior Owlets is 11 Birthdays by Wendy Mass and we’ll be discussing it Saturday, April 14th at 9:00am.

Amanda’s eleventh birthday should have been a happy occasion. Instead she’s dressed in an itchy costume her mother picked out for her Hollywood-themed party (Dorothy from The Wizard of Oz, even though the flying monkeys have always creeped her out). Meanwhile, across town, her ex-best friend, Leo, is celebrating their joint birthday with a huge bash that includes a hypnotist, a football star, a giant iguana, and a rock band. SO not fair! Amanda can’t wait for the day AFTER her birthday so she can stop thinking about the fight that led her and Leo to have separate parties for the first time in their lives. There’s just one problem. The next day is her birthday all over again.

If you’re a kid in grades 3 to 6 and are interested in joining Junior Owlets, we’d love to have you.  Membership is free and open all year.  Just give us a call at 403-287-9557, email us at owlsnestbooks@shaw.ca or just drop in to one of the meetings.