Boys Books

my mother and myself enjoyed this book so much. we both teared up towards the end. a great book for adopted children to share with their adoptive parents.

The Mom with the Red Lipstick is a story that will touch the hearts of many! It is an incredible story! It is a Must Read! Thank you!

Richard P.

"The Mom with the Red Lipstick" by Lydia M. Kordalewski (as told by Nicholas to his mother on the way home from the orphanage) is a very heartwarming and real story. Great photos of little Nicholas, his orphanage, and his arrival in his new family. Lydia translates Nicholas' adoption and pre-adoption story as it came from his own mouth....combined with supplemental information. It is a must for anyone waiting to adopt from, or families with children already adopted from, any ex-Soviet orphanage, especially Bulgaria. (PS: ask for a copy with both the author AND Nicholas' autograph! Nice touch!)

My son couldn't put this book down. So many boys don't like to read (probably the "cool factor"), but the Hardy Boys books always keep my son reading. He loved this one in particular since he races motocycles. He said it isn't acurate always in the terms used and such, but he really enjoyed it.

The latest (and, sadly, last) Hardy Boys story finds Frank and Joe at a motorcycle rally held to benefit a disabled young woman.
Of course, this being a Hardy Boys story, there are plenty of thrills and mystery.
Someone breaks into the rally sponsor's office, there's a mysterious fire, the Boys' friend has his motorcycle stolen, all in addition to plenty of motocross action!
Naturally, Frank and Joe are deeply involved in the case and pursue the criminals right up to the exciting conclusion!

For those of you who may not know, Motocross Madness, #190 in the long running Hardy Boys series, will be the FINAL volume in the series that began in 1927. The characters of Frank and Joe will live on in a new spinoff series, called Hardy Boys Undercover Brothers, to be released in June 2005, but it won't be the same Hardy Boys as you've come to know them. Over the years, there have been other Hardy Boys spinoff series, such as The Hardy Boys Casefiles, Nancy Drew/Hardy Boys Supermysteries, etc., but those series were published right alongside the original Hardy Boys Mystery Stories series, which continued to add new volumes. The Hardy Boys Mystery Stories had gone through many changes since 1927, including changes in publishers, going to paperback, having rewrites done, etc., but they still managed to survive through it all, and a collector could count on seeing a new title come along almost as sure as counting on the sun rising each day. Now however, the sun has set, and the last volume has arrived. It's hard to believe that this series has lasted through 16 Presidents, is older than The Empire State Building and the Golden Gate Bridge, became a series only 15 years after New Mexico and Arizona became states, and a mere 24 years after the Wright Brothers invented the airplane, and yet continued clear until the 21st Century. I'm going to miss that thrill of looking forward to the next title in the series....

Jack lives on Earth, but he is going to visit his aunt on plant Alpha I. He'll travel there in only a few seconds by "voya-code." His identical-looking dummy on Alpha I will "come to life" as a result of a computer input, and his real body will "sleep" until the code of his real self is programmed back into it.

Well, anyway, Jack discovers that his aunt, who's supposed to be real, is a dummy. But why? And how can he foil the masters of his aunt?

[Science fiction for the intermediate grades.]

A Non-Workbook, Non-Textbook Approach to Teaching Language Arts: Grades 4 Through 8 and Up

Here's the booktalk I used in presenting this to students: Jack was making his first trip by Voya-Code from earth to the Planet Alpha I. It was 6 million light years away, but the trip would only take a few seconds by Voya-Code. It seemed more like going to the hospital than going on a trip. First you are wired up to the computer and then given a shot. When you woke up, you're there. At least your personality and mind are there. Your body stayed behind on the old planet in sleep storage until you returned.
On the new planet, you have an identical body, a dummy, to use until you return. All went well with his trip, but when he arrived at Alpha I, Jack discovered that strange things were happening there.

Jack didn't want to go to Alpha I. But Aunt Katherine had specifically asked for him to come and help her pack up to return to Earth. And she'd even paid for him to travel by voya-code. But when he gets there, something doesn't seem right. All she can talk about are the Arbos, her servants. And they seem too nice. What's really going on? And can Jack stop it all by himself?

I had read the author's other science fiction as a kid, but never gotten around to this one. I really missed out. The story is fairly straight forward, but it's lots of fun. The future world presented is interesting, and will capture kid's imagination.

The book is short, but will appeal to kids just beginning to read chapter books.

Opinion
I think that New Years Evil is a good book. You will enjoy it if you love to read mysteries. It leaves you in suspense throughout the whole story. I think the book gets better after you get through the beginning. You will like this book if you like the Hardy Boys or Nancy Drew.

Character Description/ Comparison
Nancy Drew and the Hardy Boys are the main characters in New Years Evil. Nancy, Frank, and Joe have similar personalities. They all three love solving mysteries, and mysteries seem to find them. Bess Marvin is one of Nancy's best friends. Those two are visiting Bess' cousin, Emily, who is working on the film. The Hardys, Nancy, and Bess, work together to solve the mysteries and bring the bad guys to justice.

Summary/Overview
New Year's Evil is a mystery story by Carolyn Keene with Nancy Drew and the Hardy Boys. They end up meeting each other in Quebec City with different mysteries to solve. Nancy and Bess are there with Bess' cousin, Emily, to find out who is trying to wreck the film, Dangerous Loves, Joe and Frank Hardy were there on vacation at fist, until the ice-racing champion, Snake Junot, was murdered. Then Emily's boyfriend, Jack, disappears. They find many suspects and eventually catch the real criminals. Nancy finds out that Grant Shulman, the assistant director, has been working with a rival company called Oh! Canada Productions to sabotage the film. They find out that Joe and Frank's case is unrelated to that of Nancy's. The Hardys, with the help of Nancy, catch Pierre Desmoulins and Danielle Rocheville for stealing to fund money and murdering Snake Junot when he found out. Jack was also found in Pierre's hotel room. They end up saving the day on New Years.

This book is so compelling and exiting I just couldnt put it down. You really should read this! A great ending!

It holds a lot of excitement and action. New Year's Evil was the second book I read of the series, and it kept me addicted to it. I went on to collect almost the whole series. There are only 3 that I need.

Next Door Lived a Girl is an intelligent, provocative story about a group of young boys and their exploits in Germany. It had real, in-depth characters, who are put into extraordinary, and complicated situations. Kiesbye's telling of the story is intriguing and very entertaining. I would recommend this book very highly.

The writing in Stefan Kiesbye's perfectly pitched novella (its actually a short novel at 110 pages) is at once stark yet filled with wonderfully cast images and a story which draws the reader in from the first page. 'We are the Badgers. My name is Moritz. Thomas and I are the oldest. Johannes is the only boy whose father does not work at the candy factory. His family lives on the property of the slaughterhouse.' It is an oversimplification to say the story in NEXT DOOR LIVED A GIRL is one of incest and violence. There is ever so much more to this book; the narrative voice filled with compassion and care for even its bleakest characters. Set in working class Germany, the book is at once intimate to its time and landscape and transcendent of such, like a great fable. In my capacity as a writer and reviewer, my work is often complicated in that I can't help meeting and getting to know many other writers. I come clean then here and say that I have recently gotten to know Stefan Kiesbye. Those who know me, however, understand that I would never write a review for a friend if I did not truly find his work worthy. There is no question of this with Stefan's wonderful achievement in NEXT DOOR LIVED A GIRL.

Stefan is my friend. That is fair to say up front. He and I have studied together, fought with each other and been good friends for a number of years. But that should in no way diminish the validity of this claim: I believe this novella is one of the finest pieces written in recent years.

An old hand at writing (Stephen King, no less) has said that a basic definition of art is that it gives back more than you give it. This is a useful definition in many ways, and Stefan's book is proof of the claim. 110 pages of terse, startling prose yields returns on par with equisitely rendered poetry. It is a stark landscape, not unlike the tightly wound world of Hitchcock's Psycho, and it will pay you back many times over for each moment you pay it by lingering with its words.

We borrowed this book form the library, but may buy it. The first night I read it, my 26 month old asked for it to be read three times in a row. He is fascinated with it and already repeats lines. He also thoroughly enjoys pointing out each of the different types of construction vehicles.

My 3 year old son loves this book. I learned of this author / illustrator team reading "Close your eyes," another good bedtime book. I came across this one on Amazon and noted that it is one of relatively few books that focus on children and their fathers. Mom's feature prominently in most childrens' books. As a divorced fatherwho doesn't get to spend nearly enough time with his little boy, I wanted to find some that focus on kids spending time with Dad. The illustrations are simple but evocative, and the words seem to transport a child into the world of a busy city at night.

I highly recommend this, especially for fathers and sons.

Every night, Papa kisses Alex good night, puts him to bed and then goes off to work. He's an engineer at a construction site and a night worker. While everyone else is home and in bed, sleeping, Papa is at work, doing his job. One special night, Papa gives Alex his own hard hat and together they go out into the night to Papa's job..... Kate Banks has written a gentle, endearing story full of imagery and magic that turns the quiet night into an unimagined busy place...full of street sweepers, delivery men, heavy machinery and cranes that dig holes, move earth, pour concrete and lift steel. Her simple easy to read text is complimented by Georg Hallensleben's wonderful, subdued artwork that will transport youngsters right to the job site, surrounding them with the sights, sounds and construction activity as the night workers go about their work. And as day begins to break, all is quiet and little Alex has gone to sleep, dreaming of becoming a night worker, too, when he grows up.

...because if they were I'd buy this book and make a tradition out of reading to them every Christmas. Offbeat and moving; I've never seen a Christmas book quite like this one. Fanciful and thought-provoking.

Not to seem patronizing, but ever since I discovered SCTV I have come to admire Canadians and Canadian art... I characterize some Canadian work as American hipness or trendiness mixed with a strong British literary and arts tradition. And then there's Neil Young and Joni Mitchell... Canadians have a unique voice on the world arts stage.

By the way, I have also read Kurelek's "Prairie Boy" works...also excellent. But this one stands out. Very recommended.

There is a blend of spiritual, surreal, emotional and artistic aspects in Mr. Kurelek's "dream" series, illustrating how it would be if Jesus were to be born in different settings in the farth North instead of the historical Bethlehem. Canadians should buy this book for their American friends and relations, especially (but not only) those with young children. Though seen through distinctly Canadian eyes, these visions have universal appeal.

This is one of my favourite Christmas books. I have used it many times in children's story times,selecting several of the stories and in one case using it as the basis for a Christmas play. I hope we were not breaking any copyrite laws. I don't know why this book is not more popular.It has a wonderful story to tell of a young Ukrainian boy's dreams about how the nativity of the Christ Child could be repeated in many northern settings including a trapper's cabin and a railway car. The paintings are delightful and are distinctively Canadian.I hope this book will become more popular. It is already a Canadian classic!

Right from the start this book is one of those that just feels good in the hand. A thin aesthetically pleasing little volume it has a red satin ribbon to mark your place and a brightly colored huge red heart invites you inside from the front cover. The text is a love poem by the great Carl Sandburg that has never before been published. The pictures are by Anita Lobel and they are filled with glad, warm-hearted images and colors.
A young man goes to "where the aurora borealises grow" and brings home a beautiful speciman for his true love's birthday. The enchanting swirls of color actually do quite well at depicting the essence of the aurora borealis and its mysterious, magical light show. I know, because the northern lights were swirling in the skies over my home just a few nights ago and Lobel captured the feeling just perfectly.
We follow the young man's struggle to find and bring the aurora borealis to his love and we believe that his feelings are so strong that he really can do anything for his love that he sets his heart on doing. He offers to bring her more aurora borealises or even a rainbow if she would like. This poetical man is letting her know that he will always work hard for her and struggle through life with her which is something a young woman may hope for, but this clever man has found a beautiful and romantic way to say it. His sensitivity to her need for beauty and abundance is the endearing point of the colorful promises he makes in this story.
I treasure this book and I think it makes a wonderful gift for anyone you love, especially yourself.

I'm an avid reader of all sorts of novels. I've read 'em with thousands of pages, but none of them have ever moved me as much as this little book did. Both the poem and the illustration have a magical, enchanting quality to them. Buy it for yourself or as a gift. It's well worth the money.

This book is so amazing that when i picked it up in the store and started reading it, i began to cry right there in the shop. i've never experienced that sort of thing in before. i bouth the book right there on the spot with money i had ear-marked for something else. It is just a really simple, really beautiful poem about love with wonderful illustrations. It makes a beautiful present for a child or even a sweetheart.

My wish would be that all the "Brads" in the world could have a loving aunt and uncle and people that would really work hard to save them. This is a very thoughtful book.

I'm still reading, but so far this book is amazing! Excellent writing, this is really going to help people.

Thank you! I have worked with a lot of children, and this has opened my eyes a bit. Now I will try and dig deeper to see why a child is acting the way they are.

The book was better than I expected...so perfect for kids. The books arrived safely and promptly.

This book is great for boys and girls all ages. My grandson is 2, and loves this book. His Dad is a Bobby Orr fan, so it was a perfect gift for him!

My five year old son loved this story. Great for young hockey fans.