scholarly journals Above by L. Bobet

2014 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Colette Leung
Keyword(s):  
New York ◽  
Information Science ◽  
Humanities Computing ◽  
University Of Alberta ◽  
Black And White ◽  
State Of Mind ◽  
White Good ◽  
The Times ◽  
Gray Areas ◽  
The Right

Bobet, Leah. Above. New York: Arthur A. Levine Books-Scholastic, 2012. PrintThis Young Adult urban fantasy novel takes place in present-day Toronto, Canada. The main character is Matthew, a teenager growing up in an underground, secret community known as Safe. This community was founded by Matthew’s guardian, Atticus, for disabled outcasts and people with abnormalities.  For example, Atticus has claws for hands, and Matthew has scales. In this underground community, Matthew is Teller, which means that he collects and remembers the stories of different individuals living in Safe. Matthew is in love with the traumatized girl Ariel, who can shape-shift into a bee and has wings. Ariel came to the Safe as a teenager, and lived in the city before then, but she is slow to trust others, including Matthew, and runs away frequently.Safe is threatened by an exile, known as Corner, who works with an army of shadows. Eventually, Corner invades Safe by following Ariel home after one of the times she ran away. This causes the community to disperse Above, which is actually downtown Toronto.  Once there, with the help of Ariel, Matthew has to reunite his community, and reclaim Safe. In order to do this, Matthew must discover the history of Corner, and its connection to Safe. He learns that there are two sides to every story, and not everything is black and white. Good people can make mistakes, and love and relationships are complex and defining elements of what it means to be human.Above has important messages about themes of “good” and “evil” and the gray areas in between. By blurring the lines between fantasy, magic, and medicine, these themes are easy to bridge into the real world. The focus on outcasts and disabled people gives the book a unique perspective, and the setting takes readers to both well-known and often passed over areas of downtown Toronto.The book suffers from poor setup, however, and slow character development.  Leah Bobet uses a stilted writing style, meant to reflect the main character’s education and state of mind.  Often this style makes the plotline difficult to follow, and undercuts some of the more intriguing descriptions of Toronto.  Readers are also launched into the world without explanation, which can make it difficult to figure out what is going on for the first half of the book. The story can be even more confusing as it is told in patchworks. Outside of Matthew’s main storyline, the narratives of other characters are interwoven into the book, so not all events are chronological.Above has a good premise that will appeal to the right group of young adults, but with the difficult writing level and the lack of setup, some of the target audience might lose interest before finishing the novel. It is worth nothing that some of the content deals with difficult topics, including mental illness, abuse, disability, poverty, gender-identification, people of different and mixed ethnicities, experimentation on people, and death.Recommended with Reservations: 2 out of 4 starsReviewer: Colette LeungColette Leung is a graduate student at the University of Alberta, working in the fields of Library and Information science and Humanities Computing who loves reading, cats, and tea. Her research interests focus around how digital tools can be used to explore fields such as literature, language, and history in new and innovative ways.

scholarly journals Falling Kingdoms by M. Rhodes

2014 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Colette Leung
Keyword(s):  
New York ◽  
Information Science ◽  
Social Classes ◽  
Digital Tools ◽  
Library And Information Science ◽  
The Novel ◽  
Baby Girl ◽  
Humanities Computing ◽  
University Of Alberta ◽  
The University

Rhodes, Morgan. Falling Kingdoms. New York: Penguin Group, 2012. Print.This young adult fantasy novel tells the story of three different fictional kingdoms: the prosperous Auranos, the impoverished Paelsia, and the oppressed Limeros. The book opens with a short prologue where two witches steal a baby girl, who is prophesied to become a powerful sorceress.Sixteen years later, the story continues with Princess Cleo of Auranos, who is out with some friends and Lord Aron, whom she hates but may one day be her betrothed. They visit a wine merchant in Paelsia, as the country is known for its wonderful wine. After tasting a sample, Aron uses his position to bully the wine merchant into letting him buy many cases of wine for only a fraction of their cost. When the merchant’s two sons, Tomas and Jonas, interrupt the trade, they become insulted and start a fight with Aron, who pulls a dagger and kills Tomas. The incident serves as a catalyst for war between all three kingdoms.The novel follows four different storylines. One is the story of Princess Cleo, who feels incredibly guilty about the death of Tomas.  She discovers love and loss, and is kidnapped by the neighbouring kingdoms, who wish to use her to make the King of Auranos give up his realm. Another major storyline is that of Jonas, who seeks revenge for his brother’s death. He aligns himself with the Chief of Paelsia, and helps instigate a rebellion with the help of the Kingdom of Limeros, in order to conquer Auranos. The last two storylines deal with the royalty of Limeros. Prince Magnus, who grew up under the abuse of his tyrannical father, struggles to live up to the king’s expectation as heir, and also to protect his younger sister Lucia. Even more torturous for Magnus are his strong, romantic feelings towards Lucia. The last storyline is that of Lucia, who is in fact the baby stolen years ago, raised as a princess in Limeros. At age sixteen, her powers manifest, and she learns to control them, and she seeks to protect her brother at all costs. Her father wishes to use her powers to his advantage during the war on Auranos. All four of these stories converge by the end of the book.Falling Kingdoms takes a serious look at politics, and the effects of economic discrepancy between social classes. The book ends on a cliffhanger. It is the first in a series, the second of which is called Rebel Spring. This series explores not only the repercussions of the war between kingdoms, but the place of magic in this fictional world.As the book alternates between the four different viewpoints, and each of these viewpoints engage multiple characters, the story is complex, and might be hard for some to follow. The novel also deals with heavy themes, including war, revenge, death, incest, abuse, and sex.Recommended: 3 out of 4 starsReviewer: Colette LeungColette Leung is a graduate student at the University of Alberta, working in the fields of Library and Information science and Humanities Computing who loves reading, cats, and tea. Her research interests focus around how digital tools can be used to explore fields such as literature, language, and history in new and innovative ways.

scholarly journals Half Bad by S. Green

2016 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Colette Leung
Keyword(s):  
New York ◽  
Information Science ◽  
Library And Information Science ◽  
Government Control ◽  
Second Person ◽  
Humanities Computing ◽  
University Of Alberta ◽  
To Come ◽  
Nature Vs Nurture ◽  
The University

Green, Sally. Half Bad. New York: Viking, 2014. Print.This young adult fantasy novel tells the story of sixteen-year-old Nathan. Nathan lives in modern England, which is caught in the middle of two warring factions of witches. These witches live undetected amongst humans. The White Witches paint themselves as good and orderly, while Black Witches are known as murderous and violent. At the time of Nathan’s story, the White Witches control much of England, and hunt renegade Black Witches.Nathan is unique, as he is the son of both a White Witch, and a Black Witch. In fact, Nathan is the son of the most terrifying Black Witch alive, Marcus, who eats the hearts of other witches to absorb their powers. Nathan is raised by his grandmother, with his half-siblings Jessica, Arran, and Deborah. He has never met his father. In spite of this, Nathan exhibits tendencies associated with dark witches. He cannot sleep indoors at night, and his strength changes with the moon. The White Witches’ Council constantly watches Nathan, and tries to control him through “assessments” and restrictions on whom he can speak to, and where he can go.  Although his grandmother frequently reminds him that he is half-White too, Nathan also experiences abuse from his older sister, and bullying at school. Nathan becomes lonely and angry, although he finds comfort in the young White Witch Annalise, and the kindness of his brother Arran.As Nathan nears his seventeenth birthday, when all witches come into their power through a specialized ritual, the Council takes more drastic actions to control Nathan. He is removed from his family, imprisoned, and subjected to harsh and painful training. The Council hopes to use Nathan as a weapon against his father. Nathan must escape, and find a way to come into his magic by his birthday, or he will die. But, even if Nathan makes it out, he cannot tell who to trust, or how to keep those he loves from danger.Half-Bad presents a complex story with compelling characters, including a well-rounded LGBTQ character who plays an important role. The book starts out slow, using both in media res and a second person viewpoint, which may deter some readers. But, the story quickly builds and switches to a first person viewpoint. The events are strongly enhanced by engrossing descriptions of the British countryside, London, and Switzerland. Easy answers are not provided to readers. No character, including the protagonist, is completely good or bad. Instead, people are shaped by how they are labelled or represented to others, and the actions they take. Some themes may be intense for younger audiences, including descriptions of violence, abuse, death, murder, suicide, torture, and the classification and branding of people. The main character also occasionally uses swear words. Other important themes include: good vs. evil, nature vs. nurture, government control, freedom, forbidden romance, father-son relationships, and anger. It is the first of a trilogy.Recommended: 3 out of 4 starsReviewer: Colette LeungColette Leung is a graduate student at the University of Alberta, working in the fields of Library and Information science and Humanities Computing who loves reading, cats, and tea. Her research interests focus around how digital tools can be used to explore fields such as literature, language, and history in new and innovative ways.

scholarly journals Mystery at Lake Placid by R. MacGregor

2014 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Colette Leung
Keyword(s):  
New York ◽  
Science Fiction ◽  
Information Science ◽  
The Novel ◽  
Wide Audience ◽  
Humanities Computing ◽  
Team Members ◽  
University Of Alberta ◽  
And Gender ◽  
Lake Placid

MacGregor, Roy. Mystery at Lake Placid. 1995. Toronto: Tundra Books, 2013. Print.This Young Adult mystery novel is the story of Travis Lindsay, a twelve year old boy, and his Canadian peewee hockey team, the Screech Owls, while they play at an international tournament. Travis dreams of being an NHL hockey player someday, even though he’s small for his age and still afraid of the dark. He is not the star of his team, the title of which belongs to team captain Sarah Cuthbertsome, but Travis is a great skater, stick handler, and is very passionate about the sport and his team. The Screech Owls is a diverse team, with people of all backgrounds including the excitable and loyal Nish, the science fiction fanatic “Data”, the clever strategist Fahd, the ambitious Dmitri, the loveable and humourous coach Muck, team trainer Mr. Dillinger, and his son, Derek.In this novel, the Screech Owls team is on their way to Lake Placid, New York, where they will play at an international peewee tournament, and potentially be seen by scouting agents for other important hockey teams. This tournament is even more exciting for the team, because they get to play on an Olympic rink in a huge arena.Almost as soon as the team arrives, however, things seem to go wrong for them. At the hotel, people keep knocking on star player Sarah’s door, stopping her from sleeping and making her too tired to play. Next, Travis is knocked down in the street by a player from another team at the tournament. Finally, Sarah’s equipment is tampered with and damaged on multiple occasions during the night. The Screech Owls believe that these acts are not random, but that someone is sabotaging the team. They must use their combined skills to figure out who the culprit is. In the process, Travis challenges his own limits and witnesses the importance of teamwork and forgiveness.Roy MacGregor, the author of the novel, is also a sports columnist for the Globe and Mail. This background gives MacGregor excellent insight into the hockey world in both a national and international level, and he brings the sport to life through his detailed accounts of a hockey game. The novel takes great care in describing the workings of a team, and the various roles that coaches, parents, and other team members play. Important themes about competition, forgiveness, teamwork, and gender roles are conveyed through this detail, and MacGregor shows both the good and bad side of being caught up in the love of a sport.Mystery at Lake Placid is part of a larger series of twenty-two novels focused on the Screech Owls as they travel around the world for tournaments, and solve mysteries. It is also a re-publication, the original novel was published in 1995, but the story remains contemporary and engaging, partly due to its humour, light action, and well-developed characters. This book will appeal to a wide audience of children and young adults interested in sports or mystery stories.Highly Recommended: 4 out of 4 stars Reviewer: Colette LeungColette Leung is a graduate student at the University of Alberta, working in the fields of Library and Information science and Humanities Computing who loves reading, cats, and tea. Her research interests focus around how digital tools can be used to explore fields such as literature, language, and history in new and innovative ways.

scholarly journals Imagen y comunicación: el peso de la fotografía en el periodismo digital internacional / Image and Communication: the Weight of Photography in International Digital Journalism

2016 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
pp. 9-17
Author(s):  
Joan Francesc Fondevila Gascón ◽  
Carlos Cardona Pérez ◽  
Eva Santana López ◽  
Josep Rom Rodríguez ◽  
Javier López Crespo ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
New York ◽  
News Media ◽  
New York Times ◽  
Total Content ◽  
Home Page ◽  
Large Format ◽  
The New York Times ◽  
Black And White ◽  
Digital Journalism ◽  
The Times

ABSTRACTPhotography is one of the singular indicators of digital journalism. Among its exponents (text, photography, video, sound or graphics), photography metamorphoses into the virtual environment. Through an empirical analysis, we compare the reference newspapers from four countries of global relevance: Germany, USA, Japan and the UK. The reference digital versions of the most read newspapers in these countries are Spiegel Online, The New York Times, The Japan Times, and The Times. The items analyzed in this work are all the text units published at the home page, including the number of existing photographs in total content units and the number of different types of pictures, classified in ten different parameters: photo-news, illustrative, new, resource, black and white, color, large format, small format, edited, unedited. This work confirms that photojournalism is losing its relevance at the multimedia area and that photography gives way to the purely illustrative side; photography is an element in relation to the present; black and white photography remains for documentary reasons only; the large format photography is the only with great power in news media; and editing is not as usual activity in journalism as everybody think about.RESUMENLa fotografía es uno de los indicadores singulares del periodismo digital. Entre sus exponentes (texto, fotografía, vídeo, sonido o infografía), el fotográfico se metamorfosea en en el entorno virtual. Se presenta un análisis empírico compa-rativo entre los diarios de cuatro países de relevancia a escala global: Alemania, Estados Unidos, Japón y Reino Unido, a través de las versiones digitales de referencia de los diarios más leídos en estos países: Spiegel Online, The New York Times, The Japan Times y The Times. Los ítems analizados son las unidades texto publicadas en la home page, el número de foto-grafías existentes en el total de las unidades del contenido y el número de los diferentes tipos de fotografías, clasificadas según diez parámetros diferentes: foto-noticias, ilustrativas, nuevas, de recurso, blanco y negro, en color, gran formato, pequeño formato, editadas y sin editar. Se concluye que el fotoperiodismo tiene cada vez menos relevancia en el ámbito multimedia y deja paso a la fotografía puramente ilustrativa.

scholarly journals On the determination of the difference of longitude, by means of the magnetic telegraph. By Elias Loomie, Esq., in a letter to Lieut.-Col. Sabine, R. A., For. Sec. R. S. Communicated by Lieut.-Col. Sabine, R. A., For. Sec. R. S

1851 ◽  
Vol 5 ◽  
pp. 787-789
Keyword(s):  
New York ◽  
Usual Manner ◽  
Series Of Experiments ◽  
The Difference ◽  
The Times ◽  
The Right ◽  
Time Pieces ◽  
Right Ascension ◽  
Source Of Error

The writer first refers to a series of experiments made under the direction of Professor Bache, for the determination of the difference of longitude between New York, Philadelphia and Washington, by means of the magnetic telegraph. By this series of experiments he considers it established that, by means of Morse’s telegraph, two clocks distant from each other 200 miles, can be compared together with the same precision as if they were placed side by side; and that the difference of longitude of two places can be determined with the same precision as the relative error of the clocks. These results were so satisfactory that Professor Bache determined to pro­secute them more extensively, and during the past summer comparisons have been made between New York and Cambridge observatory near Boston. The plan of operation this season was more matured than during the former. The comparisons were all made between a solar chronometer at Cambridge and a sidereal clock at New York. At ten o’clock in the evening, the two observatories having been put in telegraphic communication, when the seconds hand of the solar chronometer came round to 60 s , a signal was given at Cambridge, by pressing the key of the telegraph-register; at the same instant a click was heard at New York, and the time was recorded according to the sidereal clock. At the end of 10 s a second signal was given, which was also recorded at New York; at the end of another 10 s a third signal was given, and so on for sixty seconds. The Cambridge astronomer then commenced beating seconds by striking the key of the telegraph-register in coincidence with the beats of his chronometer. The New York astronomer compared the signals received with the beats of his clock, and waited for a coincidence. When the beats were sensibly synchronous the time was recorded, and the astronomer waited six minutes for another coincidence of beats. The Cambridge astronomer continued beating seconds for fifteen minutes , during which time the New York observer was sure of two coincidences, and might obtain three. When these were concluded, the New York astronomer in the same manner gave signals for one minute at intervals of 10 s , and then beat seconds for fifteen minutes, during which time the Cambridge astronomer obtained four or five coincidences upon his chronometer. This mode of comparison was practised every night, and it is considered that the uncertainty in the comparison of the time-pieces cannot exceed two or three hundredths of a second on any night; and in a series of comparisons the error may be regarded as entirely eliminated. Another mode of comparison which was practised is that of telegraphing star transits. A list of stars which culminate near our zenith at intervals of five or six minutes was prepared, and the observers, both at New York and Cambridge, were furnished with a copy. They then proceeded as follows: Cambridge selected two stars from the list, which we wall call A and B, and struck the key of his register at the instant when the star A passed each of the seven wires of his transit. These signals were heard at New York, and the times recorded. Cambridge then observed the transit of star B in the ordinary manner without telegraphing. New York then observed the transit of star A on his meridian in the usual manner; and struck his key at the instant the star B passed each of the seven wires of his transit, which signals were heard and recorded at Cambridge. The difference of longitude between New York and Cambridge is nearly twelve minutes, affording ample time for all these observations. Thus New York obtained upon his own clock the times of transit of star A over the meridians of Cambridge and New York; and Cambridge obtained upon his chronometer the times of transit of star B over the same meridians. The difference of these times gives the difference of longitude independent of the right ascension of the stars. Both observers then reversed the axis of their transit instruments; Cambridge selected a second pair of stars from the list, and the same series of observations was repeated as with the first pair. The error of collimation was thus eliminated, and by confining the observations to stars within about five degrees of the zenith, the influence of azimuthal error was avoided. The level being read at every reversal, the correction for it was applied by computation. In this manner it is hoped to eliminate every possible source of error, except that which arises from the personal habits of the observers. In order to eliminate this error, a travelling observer worked for a time at Cambridge and compared with the Cambridge astronomer; then came to New York and compared with the New York astronomer; then returned to Cambridge again, and so on as often as was thought necessary. Finally, at the conclusion of the campaign all the observers were to meet at Cambridge and make a general comparison of their modes of observation.

scholarly journals Orchards by H. Thompson

2013 ◽  
Vol 2 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
John Huck
Keyword(s):  
New York ◽  
English Literature ◽  
Spoken Word ◽  
American Girl ◽  
Her Family ◽  
University Of Alberta ◽  
Black And White ◽  
The Media ◽  
The University

Thompson, Holly. Orchards, New York: Delacorte Press, 2011. Print. Orchards is a poetic novel written by Holly Thompson. It tells the story of Kana Goldberg, an American girl, half-Jewish and half-Japanese, who is sent to spend the summer with her mother’s family in Japan working on their mikan farm. (Mikan is a type of Japanese orange.) A school-mate, Ruth, has committed suicide and Kana is a member of the group of girls who had excluded and locked horns with the girl over a boy, not realizing at the time that she suffered from bi-polar disease and that she was reaching out to the boy for support. The book is less about Kana accepting responsibility for her involvement in the confrontation with Ruth than it is about mending relationships and the process of Kana overcoming her anger and feelings of guilt. The book challenges us to set aside our own pre-conceived notions about bullying and consider the idea that everyone is vulnerable to depression, and that what gets sensationalized in the media as bullying is not always a black and white case of cruelty, but is sometimes a case of misunderstanding that escalates in dramatic fashion when emotions are mixed in. Kana’s fixation on Ruth and the pressure of a community that blames her and the other girls constitute an invisible burden that puts her at risk of the unthinkable, too. “Suicide can spread like a virus,” Kana’s grandmother warns. Kana’s ‘exile’ to a strange country turns out to be a chance to ground herself amongst her family, make peace with the presence of death in life, find confidence in who she is, and learn how to make a difference in the world of the living. Readers expecting a remorseful narrative may feel unsatisfied, but because the book reads quickly and the language is pleasurable, they may also decide to re-read it for a second impression. The reason it reads quickly is that Thompson has chosen to tell the story in a kind of free-flowing verse. Stanzas of varying lengths define sentence-like sequences, with the breaks between stanzas replacing the conventional sentence demarcators of full stops and capitalized first words. Line breaks play the role of commas, controlling the flow without impeding it. These syntactic arrangements complement the imagistic and uncluttered style of the writing, giving an inward, contemplative feel to the story. Because it is a subtle book, it would be most suitable for an older teen who is perceptive and has literary sensibilities. Recommended: 3 out of 4 starsReviewer: John HuckJohn Huck is a metadata and cataloguing librarian at the University of Alberta. He holds an undergraduate degree in English literature and maintains a special interest in the spoken word. He is also a classical musician and has sung semi-professionally for many years.

scholarly journals Apparition by G. Gallant

2015 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Colette Leung
Keyword(s):  
Young Adult ◽  
Information Science ◽  
Library And Information Science ◽  
Humanities Computing ◽  
University Of Alberta ◽  
Canadian Youth ◽  
Young Adult Novel ◽  
To Come ◽  
The University ◽  
The Impact

Gallant, Gail. Apparition. Toronto: Doubleday Canada, 2013. Print.This Young Adult mystery-ghost story tells the story of seventeen year-old clairvoyant, Amelia MacKenzie. Amelia has seen ghosts since she was a little girl, and after her mother passed away from cancer, Amelia saw her mother’s ghost too. Until recently, Amelia thought she was imagining these visions, but that all changes when her best friend and crush Matthew dies.Amelia lives near the small city of Owen Sound, Ontario, with her grandmother Joyce, and her two brothers Ethan and Jack. Amelia struggled with depression after her mother’s death, but her friendship with Matthew helped her through the hardest time of her life, and leads to burgeoning romantic feelings. After Amelia gathers the strength to express her feelings to him, Matthew is flustered. The next time she meets him, however, Matthew is acting strangely, and while giving Amelia a ride home, begins to talk about a mysterious girl. Amelia finds out the next day that Matthew apparently killed himself in a nearby barn. Although devastated, Amelia feels something is off about Matthew’s death.At Matthew’s funeral, Amelia meets a local journalist named Morris Dyson. Morris investigates paranormal occurrences, as he believes ghosts travel along specific geographic routes, and sometimes become stuck or cause trouble. Morris also believes Amelia can see ghosts, just like he knew her mother could. Morris suspects Matthew’s death is linked to similar deaths that happened in the same barn - all young men who committed suicide after heart-break surrounding a mysterious woman named Dot. Morris theorizes a ghost is in the barn and causing all these problems.With the help of Morris’ handsome and charming son, Kip, Amelia and Morris begin to unravel the mystery of the barn, the ghosts who still haunt it (including Matthew), and the impact for those who come into contact with the barn. At the same time, Amelia learns to come to terms with her gift, her grief, and to explore her own identity.Gail Gallant conveys the stark beauty of the Canadian landscape throughout her novel, and captures the unique and realistic culture of small town Ontario. The setting will strike home with many Canadian youth. Even with its supernatural elements, Gallant’s characters are interesting and realistic, especially for a young adult novel. Amelia makes a notable heroine not because of her clairvoyance, but from how she learns to understand her own feelings as an ordinary teenager. Amelia cares deeply for her brothers, and her stern, no-nonsense grandmother, but can at times find them aggravating. She also navigates realistic issues, such as family, friendship, and integrity in relationships. Gallant presents these themes with sophistication and empathy.Apparition tackles mature issues including depression, grief, death, romance, the afterlife, and murder. Young readers may find some content scary, although the novel is more suspenseful than frightening. The book stands complete on its own, but has a sequel, Absolution.Recommended: 4 out of 4 starsReviewer: Colette LeungColette Leung is a graduate student at the University of Alberta, working in the fields of Library and Information science and Humanities Computing who loves reading, cats, and tea. Her research interests focus around how digital tools can be used to explore fields such as literature, language, and history in new and innovative ways.

scholarly journals The Riddlemaster by K. Crossley-Holland

2017 ◽  
Vol 6 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Colette Leung
Keyword(s):  
Young Children ◽  
Graduate Student ◽  
Information Science ◽  
Picture Book ◽  
Digital Tools ◽  
Library And Information Science ◽  
Humanities Computing ◽  
University Of Alberta ◽  
Literary Characters ◽  
The University

Crossley-Holland, Kevin. The Riddlemaster. Tradewind Books, 2015.The Riddlemaster is a picture book aimed at children between the ages of four and seven, although the story may interest readers of multiple ages. It tells the story of three children: Anouk, Ben, and Cara. Together, these friends seek to cross a harbour to a special island full of treasure. The children are offered passage on a boat with the mysterious old man known as the Riddlemaster, and many terrifying island creatures. Anouk, Ben, and Cara must answer seven riddles the Riddlemaster and island creatures ask them during the voyage, or be eaten alive. If they succeed, however, they will meet the rest of the islanders, who are well-beloved literary characters from around the world.The riddles within the story are generally drawn from classic mythology, and may be difficult to guess for young children. The story is told in approachable and masterful language, however, and is well-paced. The watercolour illustrations in the book match the text well, and add a layer of diversity, especially among the children, who come across as distinct in personality and culture. The setting is haunting, and reminiscent of coastal medieval European towns.The Riddlemaster presents a different story for children, with a lot of charm. It strongly celebrates literature and mythology, although some references may not be understood by younger children. The Riddlemaster is a rich read for families that naturally leads to new thoughts, questions, and conversations. It also serves as a good jumping board for further myths, legends, and literature.Recommended: 3 out of 4 starsReviewer: Colette LeungColette Leung is a graduate student at the University of Alberta, working in the fields of Library and Information science and Humanities Computing who loves reading, cats, and tea. Her research interests focus around how digital tools can be used to explore fields such as literature, language, and history in new and innovative ways.

scholarly journals Fortunately, The Milk by N. Gaiman

2014 ◽  
Vol 3 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Hanne Pearce
Keyword(s):  
Social Sciences ◽  
New York ◽  
Public Service ◽  
Support Staff ◽  
Adult Readers ◽  
University Of Alberta ◽  
Black And White ◽  
Corner Store ◽  
Long Time ◽  
The University

Gaiman, Neil, Fortunately, The Milk. Illus. Skottie Young. New York: HarperCollins, 2013. Print.Mum has left to present a paper on lizards at a conference leaving a young boy and his sister at home with Dad for a few days. In addition to frozen meals she leaves Dad a long list of things to do and remember, including the fact that they were running low on milk. On the second day of Mum’s absence the children are dismayed to realize that the refrigerator is now void of milk. Dad heads out to the corner store to remedy this unfortunate disruption to their breakfast, only to be gone an exceptionally long time. When Dad finally returns, he recounts the most unbelievable adventure he had on his way home with the milk, including an encounter with space aliens, pirates and a time travelling stegosaurus named “Dr. Steg”.I am familiar with Neil Gaiman’s works for adult readers and this was the first book I have read by him intended for children. I was delighted to see that his imaginative style shines as bright, or dare I say even brighter, in this juvenile genre.  The narrator tells the story in a very candid style and I particularly enjoyed the places where the children interrupt their father to dispute the details of his story.The black and white illustrations on nearly every page of the book have an edgy hand-drawn quality to them that complement the lighthearted nature of the story. Skottie Young has conveyed exceptional detail in his drawings, focusing not only on the zany cast of characters but also with the depth using background images. I enjoyed how his artistry weaved and wrapped itself around the text on the page.Fortunately, The Milk is an adventure tale born out of the commonplace that shows one can find adventure even in a simple jaunt down to the corner store. As an adventure story it has a narrative momentum that will appeal to those who enjoy movement and action. Readers like myself, who enjoy action alongside breaks of description and character development, may find these aspects a bit lacking. Overall, this is a fun story that when accompanied by the illustrations would make it easy to read together with the whole family, as even younger children would manage to follow along.Recommended: 3 out of 4 starsReviewer: Hanne PearceHanne Pearce has worked at the University of Alberta Libraries in various support staff positions since 2004 and is currently a Public Service Assistant at the Rutherford Humanities and Social Sciences Library. In 2010 she completed her MLIS at the University of Alberta. Aside from being an avid reader she has continuing interests in writing, photography, graphic design and knitting.

Rrralph by L. Ehlert

2012 ◽  
Vol 1 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Kim Frail
Keyword(s):  
New York ◽  
Public Services ◽  
Tree Bark ◽  
Large Format ◽  
University Of Alberta ◽  
Black And White ◽  
Word Play ◽  
Story Time ◽  
The University ◽  
At Home

Ehlert, Lois. Rrralph. New York: Beach Lane Books, 2011. Print. “Would you like to meet a talking dog?” According to the author’s note, this book was based on jokes that her brother told his grandchildren. The humour translates well into the story as the narrator uses a series of onomatopoeic word-play to explain how Ralph the dog “talks”.  For example, when asked where he is, Ralph answers that he is on the “Roof” of the dog house. When asked what is on a tree, he replies “Bark, Bark, Bark”. The story even includes a somewhat scary encounter between Ralph and a “Wolf! Wolf!” This book will definitely be a story-time favourite for younger children. The large format and brightly coloured pages make it ideal for displaying to groups. The super-size font alternates on each page between black and white, creating high contrasts. The illustrations were created from: “zippers, wood, buttons, twine, metal, tree bark, screws, hand-painted and home-made papers, and textile fragments”. This creates layers of interesting textures and gives the book a “home-spun” appeal. It would also provide an interesting opportunity for educators or parents to talk about making art from found or recycled objects, or the benefits of recycling in general.  The highlight of the illustrations is Ralph’s multi-coloured textile collar and metal-heart shaped dog tag, which will remind readers of real beloved family pets. His zipper smile is pretty endearing as well. Other books by Lois Ehlert include: “Lots of Spots”, “Boo to You!” and “Chicka Chicka Boom Boom”. According to the publisher Rrralph is recommended for ages 2-6. Highly recommended: four out of four starsReviewer: Kim FrailKim is a Public Services Librarian at the H.T. Coutts Education Library at the University of Alberta. Children’s literature is a big part of her world at work and at home. She also enjoys gardening, renovating and keeping up with her two-year old.

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