ONLY ONE MORE WEEK UNTIL THE NEW PERCY JACKSON BOOK!!!

Yep, only 7 more days until the biggest thrill of the season!! Oh, boy!! Oh, boy!! All that action! All that humor! And just what is Kronos's "most terrible secret?" CAN'T WAIT!!!

And in the Percy Jackson spirit, here are some pictures from our Heroes Bold From Days of Lore program that I did today about the 12 Labors of Hercules:

Hercules grieves over an awful deed and finds out that he must serve his nasty, low-down, weakling cousin Eurystheus to make things right.

Hercules finds out about the Augean stables. P-YEWWW!!!!

Hercules dodges the three heads of Cereberus and puts his mighty arm around that massive dog's neck.

Do you know these stories? They're really exciting! You can find them in a good book of mythology, especially :

D'Aulaire's Book of Greek Myths by Ingri and Edgar Parin D'Aulaire--one of the best collections of Greek myths ever printed, with an especially section of the Labors of Hercules

and

Hercules--retold by Geraldine McCaughrean -a really good chapter book version of the story.

Until later,

Carl

PS--watch this blog for a really good story about cyber kid 303!

Listen Up, Guys, You'll Like These Books!

Do you guys remember how I told you about the Percy Jackson books? Aren't you glad I did? Well, here's another series I'm excited about and I bet you'll get excited about them too. It's the Barnstormers series by Loren Long and Phil Bildner. They're great--they've got suspense, magic, baseball, danger, creepy bad guys--in short, everything you'd want in a book! I've written about the first two on 3-19-08 and 4-1-08 and I've just finished the third, so I'll tell you about all three of them at once.

It's about the Payne family; the three kids Griffith, Ruby, Graham and their mom. Where's the father? He didn't come back from the Spanish-American War (the books are set in 1899) The father's friends from the war (they were all in Colonel Theodore Roosevelt's Rough Riders) formed a baseball team called the Travelin' Nine. They plan to go around the country and play exhibition games in order to raise money for the Payne family, who owes ten thousand dollars! The father left them his baseball, but when the kids put their hands on it, strange things, and I mean really strange things, happen during the games. Could the baseball be magic? And who is this creepy guy called The Chancellor and why does Uncle Owen tell the kids to beware of him? Why does Uncle Owen tell them that they are in very great danger, particularly young Graham? And, whatever they do, don't let the Chancellor know about the ball!!!You got to read these books!!! They'll suck you into the story and make you want to get the next one right away!!

There are three books in the series so far:




The series is divided into "Games". The first book is Game 1: Porkopolis







The second is Game 2: The River City







And the third is Game 3: The Windy City



This third book ends up with a real cliffhanger--Griffith, the oldest boy, finds the family in the worst situation possible! WHAT HAPPENS NEXT??? Fortunately, there will be at least three more books, but the fourth one won't be out until spring of '09! Now I have to wait ANOTHER WHOLE YEAR to find out! I guess all you Harry Potter fans had to go through the same thing. It's a good thing there are a lot of other good books out there to keep me occupied until then.

Carl

Lord Vader Speaks Again!!

Hey, everyone, we're going from the Wild, Wild West to the depths of space. We have a new review from Lord Vader:

I just finished reading The Magician's Nephew which is the first book in the Narnia series. I really liked it and up until now I didn't know where the wardrobe had come from. I'm glad I got a chance to find out. I was really happy also that it had a happy ending. It's about a boy named Digory and his friend Polly. They get tricked by his crazy uncle to go into this magical other world. They have a few adventures on their own and get into trouble with a wicked witch. When they finally find Narnia they bring quite a few other visitors with them.

Mikie (aka Lord Vader)

Good to hear from you again, Lord Vader. It's also good to get reviews after contests are over. Keep them coming! The Magician's Nephew really is one of the most exciting books in The Chronicles of Narnia. Have you read The Horse and His Boy yet? That's good too.You'll also notice that I have fnished updating the list of books that the readers and we have reviewed.

Darth Vader: You have?? How did you finish so quickly? Have you been using the forbidden time-compressing modulator?


Carl: Oh, it's you again! Don't sneak up on me like that! I told you on the April 15 post that I'd get it done.

DV: Very well, I shall permit you to live. Your next task shall be...

Carl: Oh, go polish the Death Star or something! I've got enough work to do! Hey, did you know one of you Sith lords is afraid of a rabbit???

DV: He is?? Wait until I find him! (Darth Vader exits)

Whew, sorry to do that, Mikey. Anyway, the list really is updated and you can find it on the left-hand side of the page. It's a good place to find the books that we and your fellow readers have reviewed--and it can be printed. Show it to your teachers, parents, school media specialists, librarians, etc. and impress them!!
Later,
Carl

Readin', Readin', Readin'--Rawhide!!!!!

Hello, all you Cowpokes out there in The Land of Blog, it's me Bad Bart Bill!!!!!! The shooten-ist, ropin'-ist, cattle-stealingest bandito south of the Mason-Dixon Line!!!!! Yep, I'm a fairly dangerous character ifin ya get my drift!!!!!! If ya want to see me in action, check out this little trailer here (I'm the guy with the cigar and poncho. Also I go by another name; Clint Eastwood).

Pretty Cool Right!!!!!! I'm a Good/Bad Man and ifin ya say different, get ready to draw Pilgrim!!!!!!

And now for some book reviews:

Lions, Tigers and Bears (Volume 1): Fear and Pride – Joey and his mother are moving out of his Grandmother’s house. Joey is afraid because he knows there are monsters underneath beds and hiding in closets and without his Grandmother’s presence, he knows that they will get him. Fortunately for Joey, his Grandmother knows these things to be real also. As a going away present, she gives him a package with four stuffed animals called The Night Pride. The Night Pride consists of Pallo - Leader of the Pack (a Lion), Venus – Guardian of the Pride (a Bengal Tiger), Minerva – Huntress of the Shadows (a Black Panther) and Aries – Warrior of the Night (a Siberian Tiger). These stuffed animals come to life whenever a child is in danger from Evil Beasties that come out in the night. One night, from out of his new closet in his new bedroom, two Evil Beasties, Mumbler and Grumbler, attack and Joey’s Night Pride comes to full-blown life to defend him. When the fight is over, Joey finds himself in the world where stuffed animals are real all the time. This is just the beginning of a wonderful book that is really great fun and promises further volumes in the near future.

Star Wars: The Last of The Jedi – The Desperate Mission by Jude Watson – This is the first book in “The Last of The Jedi” Series. The Clone Wars are over and Emperor Palpatine along with Darth Vader rule supreme. The Jedi are all but extinct, having either been betrayed by the deadly Order 66 and killed by the very Republic Clone Troopers under their command, or hunted down and killed by Lord Vader. Obi-Wan is one of the few Jedi remaining alive and his mission is to ensure that young Luke, who is being raised on Tatooine by his Aunt and Uncle, is kept safe from the Empire until he is of age to make a difference in the future. While on Tatooine caring out this duty, he hears that an old acquaintance named Ferus Olin, who at one time was a padawan but walked away from the Jedi Order before the end of the Clone Wars, is in deep trouble on the planet Bellassa. With the help of an “old friend” he is convinced he must leave Tatooine temporarily to help Ferus. Little does he know all that this “help” will involve. This is a great read and a great series and I highly recommend it to all!!!!!

Flight Explorer: Volume 1 edited by Kazu Kibuishi – This is really a wonderful collection of short stories by extremely talented and inventive writers and illustrators collected in one Graphic Novel. Some of my favorite stories in the collection (although I really liked them all) were Missile Mouse in “The Guardian Prophecy” (lots of action and adventure), Fish N Chips in “All in a Day’s Work" (Get this; a cat and a fish are galactic protectors of the planet Earth. Sounds funny, right? Well, the story is even funnier than you think. I just love it.) and “Big Mouth” (this one is so hilarious that I’m not even going to try and explain it; just read it). Do yourself a favor and give this Graphic Novel a try. The art work and stories will blow you away. You will not regret it, I promise!!!!!

Well, until next time all. Happy Trails,

Bad Bart Bill

Our First Winner To Claim a Prize--AND TWO WEEKS UNTIL THE NEW PERCY JACKSON BOOK!!!!

Hey, everyone, our first winners have claimed their prizes from the Boys Rule Boys Read Book Series tournament. The first lucky lad is Savage Stephen, who came in sixth. Here he is: Yes, that is a girl with him, but it's Rockin' Rebecca, his sister. They are holding up his prizes; Shipwreck and The Rescue, two books by Gordon Korman. (Shipwreck is an awesome book--look up the post of 8-3-07 and find out) Stephen got one book for shooting a three-pointer and one for writing his first review. (Don't forget that everyone who writes a reivew gets a free book) Our other winner is Crafty Carl M: Hmmm, too much flash in that picture! He's not holding up a book because, as one of the top three, he got to pick a book listed in the tournament and we'll have to order it. I won't say which one it is, but it's the latest one of that series and not out in paperback yet. Betcha can't guess!!!
I agree with Bill--this was one exciting tournament and everyone did well and everyone, readers and writers, were winners.

And now, talking about exciting, there are ONLY TWO MORE WEEKS until the new Percy Jackson book, The Battle of the Labyrinth, comes out!!!!! Can I stand it??? Guess I'll have to. In the meantime, here's a video of Rick Riordan, the author, reading a portion of the first chapter:



Doesn't that have one the best first lines you've ever heard??? Do you know who the red-haired girl is? I think I do. BUT I'VE GOT TO WAIT TWO WEEKS TO FIND OUT!!! Hope you all are as excited as I am!!

Carl

PS--Private note to Anonymous. I got your message and tried to respond but not sure it worked. We need to know what book you'd like and when you plan to come here. You don't have to reveal your secret identity, but we do need to know so we'll have your prize ready. Just contact us the same way you did before.

And the Champion is.......................

Why does Carl keep telling people I'm sick when he knows that sometimes my Sith work sometimes causes unavoidable delays!!!!!!!! What happened this time you ask(please ask)? Well I was working late Wednesday when all of a sudden I was surprised by an unannounced guest.


Me sensing through the force the presence of danger!! Notice how cool I react (well, sorta, um kinda?).

And what was I faced with? Look at the following picture only if you have a very strong stomach and are very brave!!!!!!!!!

The Sinister Sith Squirrel with No Name that attacked Carl just the other day (somehow he found out that Carl was not me and I was me; it's a long story so see my post on 4/15/08 for full details).


Well we battled Wednesday night and throughout Thursday from one side of the galaxy to the other. Finally both bloodied and bruised we called a temporary truce to let our wounds heal. His parting words were that the Lagomorph was not finished with me and neither was he with No Name.

So here I sit wounded most grievously but posting all the same (people tell me all the time I'm one heck of a guy, well sometimes, actually hardly ever).

And now for something completely different:


Well the game has been played and the timer run down!!!!
Now to announce the winner of the Boys Rule Boys Read Book Series Tournament:

(drum roll please, rat-a-tat,tat,rat-a-tat,tat,rat-a-tat,tat)

The Harry Potter Series defeats The Chronicles of Narnia with the final score being 11 to 5!!!!!!

The Winner:

The Harry Potter Series!!!!!!

and The Runner Up:

The Chronicles of Narnia

Wow, that was an exciting contest with Narnia and Harry fighting there way to the final round!!! But as the saying from the Highlander movie goes: "There can only be one." (Although all the books in the competition are great and should be given a look at to see if you like them.) The one this go round is The Harry Potter Series; who knows about next year???????

Now for the Final Leader Board Results (those with 12 points or more with the top three winning prizes as promised; although I want to remind everyone out there that if you read you are a winner anyway and always):

1) Coming from way back in the pack to score 34 points (with 3 upset points and shooting eight 3 pointers in the last round!!!!!) to finish in first place on the Leader Board: The Mysterious Anonymous!!!!!!

2) Just being hedged out from the first place position to finish second with 29 points (with 3 upset points and shooting five 3 pointers in the last round) the Mighty Cyber Kid!!!!!!!

3) Finishing in third with a strong showing of 25 points (with 18 upset points and shooting four 3 pointers in the last round) is the Crafty Carl M!!!!!!!

4) Finishing in fourth with a very respectable showing of 17 points (with 11 upset points and shooting two 3 pointers in the last round) is the Quotable Melanie!!!!!!

5) Coming in fifth with a very nice showing of 14 points (with 0 upset points and shooting one 3 pointer in the final round) is the No-Nonsense Mona!!!!!

6) Finishing just behind Mona with a great showing of 13 points (with 16 upset points and shooting one 3 pointer in the final round) is the Savage Stephen!!!!!!!


Now it is time for 2 very special announcements!!!!!!!!!

1) In addition to the prizes to be given to the top three finishers, all those who finished in the top six will also receive special prizes.

2) For everyone who shot a 3 pointer we will give prizes to also.

Now for all to claim their prizes:

If you cannot get by ImaginOn, please give us your address so we can send you your prize. That's it!!!!!! Hope you all had fun, I know I did, and remember anyone who reads and tries their best, is a Winner in our book!!!!!!

Peace all,

Bill & Carl

Last-Minute Shots

We had some 3-pointers from Anonymous come in last night, after Bill and I left but before 9:00 pm:

Saving up for the last minute or almost last minute.Here are several more book reviews.


First, Thanks to the review about the second book in the Diary of Wimpy Kid series, I read the first book. Jeff Kinney really writes funny stuff! (My Nannah doesn't get some of it, but that is okay, because she is a girl.) Greg Heffley is the boy writing the diary about his day to day life. He writes about his family and friends and stuff that happens to him in school. It has lots of funny cartoons in it too. Two of my favorites were about a guy riding a skateboard and the second is about the things you can get away with saying when there is a substitute teacher. I can hardly wait to read the next book about Greg and his brother Rodrick.

Speaking of brothers, the next book is called "How NOT to babysit your brother" by Catherine Hapka.This book is all about what happens when Will has to babysit his little brother Steve because his grandmother falls asleep on the couch. If you have little brothers you might relate to what happens, I did. For some it might be an easy read, but for others it might be just right.

The next book is another book by Matt Christopher called "Long-arm Quarterback". I liked this book because I want to be a football player when I grow up. This is a story about how Cap Wadell gets to play football because his grandfather teaches him how to play "six-man football" when there aren't enough players at his middle school for a regular team.

Here is my next to last review.It's called "The Adventures of Tom Sawyer" by Mark Twain but this is the graphic novel retold by M.C.Hall. It is all about some adventures Tom has with his friend Huckleberry Finn. Three of the things that happen in the book are Tom gets some other kids to whitewash a fence and Huck and him go to their own funeral and another time they find gold in a cave.


My last review is about "John, Paul, George & Ben" by Lane Smith.John is John Hancock, He was called BOLD because he signed the Declaration of Independence with an extra BIG autograph. Paul was Paul Revere and he was called NOISY because of his midnight ride telling everyone the British were coming. George was George Washington. He was called HONEST because when asked if he chopped down a cherry tree, he said he did. He later became our first president. Ben was Benjamin Franklin and he was called CLEVER. Finally the book tells about Tom, Thomas Jefferson. He was an INDEPENDENT lad so the book says. He was the man who wrote the Declaration of Independence.

And there you have it, till the next time.

Good shooting, Anonymous! That's five reviews, the most anyone has sent us at one time--not only for the tournament, but ever!! This should put you in first place! I'll have to wait until Darth Bill comes back, though, becuase he's the official scorekeeper. He called in sick today. I'm sure he'll tally the scores for both the reviews and the votes for the book series and announce the winners the first chance he gets. In fact, I even called the Lagomorph on my sub-space communicator and asked him not to terrorize Bill until after the contest. (Hmmm---I wonder what would happen if I sneaked up behind Bill with a bunny puppet!)

Well, thanks for your patience and all those great reviews! Keep your eyes right here and let us keep hearing from you!!!

Carl

Cyber Kid Swooshes Another One!

Wow, the competition is getting intense! Cyber kid 303 has just sent us another review!

Matilda is a good book by Roald Dahl. It's about Matilda, who is a genius, but her parents think she is an idiot. When she goes to school though, the principal is meaner than her parents. It is a funny story, too. I suggest you read this book.

All right! You are definitely in the lead. But everyone else out there still has a chance! 9:oo pm tonight is the deadline!!

Carl

Last Day To Shoot 3-Pointers!

Nick Fury says, "Awright, you goldbricks, today is April 16, the last day to send in your votes and reviews for the Books Series Championship. Unless you're held captive in HYDRA Headquarters, let's hear from you by 9:oo pm tonight!!"

That's right, Nick. Today's the last chance to let you all determine which book series will win it all--and which readers will win our three prizes. Just to remind you, the prizes are:

First place will get to choose between an autographed T-shirt from the UNCC Men's Basketball Team, an autographed poster by the UNCC Men's Basketball Team, or a book of your choosing (softcover) from all the contenders in the tournament. Second place will be a choose between the two remaining items. Third place will be the remaining item. If you live near in the Charlotte area, you could come to Imaginon to claim your prize. If you live out of town or can't get to Imaginon, we will send your prize to you.

Cyber kid 303 has taken us up on the challenge and sent us three new reviews!

The Haunted School by R.L. Stine is all about some kids named Ben and Tommy who get trapped in another world. Thaila is one of their friends who is actually one of the original kids from the other world called Greyworld. It's very scary with some psycho kids who want to throw Ben and Tommy into a pit.

Baseball season is here and a good baseball book to read is Stealing Home by Matt Christopher. He writes books about all sports, so I'm sure you can find one of his books about your favorite sport, too. This one is about an exchange student who comes to live with a kid named Joey. It turns out the exchange student is very good at baseball and helps out on the local team. There are a couple of jerks on the other team who make fun of him and he doesn't understand it. Joey sets them straight in the end.

Who Really Killed Cock Robin is an ecological mystery by Jean Craighead George. It's a good book to read for Earth Day. It's all about a town trying to find out who killed a robin. I learned a lot about pollutants, birds and the food chain. Keep the earth clean and healthy!

Very well done, cyber kid! Those three shots put you in first place with 25 points. Second is Carl M. with 24. Third is Anonymous with 19. It's really close; only a few points separate all of you. So if you want to be sure to win the top spot, shoot us some more three-pointers! Many a game has been won by that last shot right at the buzzer!

Carl and Bill

Another 3 - Pointer, Baby!!!!!!!!!

Hello all, It is I, Darth Bill, reporting the latest on the Boys Rule Boys Read Book Series Tournament. Wait a minute, you won't believe what I just saw outside the library!!!!! Check it out, a Sith Squirrel taking out a wimpy Jedi Squirrel:


Hello, my brother Sith Squirrel. How are you? What's that? You are working for the Lagomorph!!!!!
Is my name Darth Bill? Um, no my name is ........,uh,........ Darth Carl. Where is Darth Bill at? See that next office over. Bye now. Yikes!!!!! Good luck Carl and sorry, but it was either you or me. What's all that noise? Better not look, poor Carl.

Oh, well, let's take note of the latest 3 pointer sunk by Melanie (wow, she must have a hot hand, didn't she just hit one?):

Black-Footed Ferrets: Back from the Brink by Miriam Aronin - This is an awesome book about an animal we thought was extinct. Scientist bred them in captivity and taught them about surviving in the wild. Maybe we can save these cool wild animals!

That is pretty cool!!!! I'll have to take a look at this book myself. That's the latest from our wild and wooly competition.

Peace,

Bill

Another Three-Pointer!

This one's from Melanie:

If you've read the Spiderwick Chronicles, you'll be happy to hear there's now Beyond the Spiderwick Chronicles. The first book The Nixie's Song was really interesting. Don't know what a nixie is? Well, you'll have to read it to find out but beware because not all creatures are as kind as they might seem.

Swoosh!!That one came all the way from downtown! This should be good news for all you Spiderwick fans.

Keep burning them in,

Carl
PS--Just to remind everyone, you can review any book you like! Doesn't have to be from the tournament list. (see our posts from 4-13 and 4-14)

Chance for an Instant Replay

Hey, guys, we have a comment from a new friend, Happy12:



I enjoy Time Warp Trio


Hmmm, I noticed that you sent this comment in to our March 25 post, which announced our last day for voting for the Final 8. The Time Warp Trio, unfortunately, was eliminated that round, losing narrowly to the Percy Jackson series. We're down to the championship now and you can vote for Harry Potter or the Chronicles of Narnia. I tell you what, Happy12, we're going to give you a chance for an Instant Replay. If you write back and tell us why you like the Time Warp Trio, that would qualify as a review and give you a 3-point shot--in other words, you'd get three points for that review (and 3 points for every other review you send in) So send some in and vote for your favorite in the Final Two! (and don't forget that every new reviewer gets a free book from us here at Imaginon)



BTW, everybody, this week is National Library Week. Go down to your favorite library and check out some the great stuff we've talked about on this blog, especially during our Book Series Tournament. Your fellow readers have sent in some terrific suggestions. Don't forget our complete list of books in the links on the left-hand side of the page. Yes, I know I haven't updated it lately, but I will.
Wait a minute...what's that music??? Dom dom dom, dom de dom, dom de dom, DOM DOM DOM, DOM DE DOM, DOM DE DOM!!! Oh, no, it's Lord Vader!!!

DV: How do I know that you'll really update it? You've said that before.

Carl: I've been busy. I'll get to it.

DV: I don't accept excuses!!

Carl: Oh, chill out---wait, no! Don't use The Force!!! Aaaauugghhh...gasp..choke...all right, I'll do it by the end of the month!


Yeesh, some people get so impatient!!

One more thing, if you live in the Charlotte area, be sure to come to the RED READ PARTY this Friday, April 18, here at Imaginon from 7--9 pm. It's to celebrate National Library Week and our own Paint the Town Read program. We'll have lots of fun stuff, so we hope to see you there!

Carl (cough, cough, wheeze)

3 Pointers Being Shot Left and Right!!!!!!!!!

As Darth Maul (or was it that imaginary voice I sometime hear in my head?????) once said: "Let loose the dogs of War!!!!" Well, it's not exactly the "Dogs of War" but the sweet swooshing of "nothing but net" from 3 pointers in our Boys Rule Boys Read Book Series Tournament as the two finalists, The Harry Potter Series and The Chronicles of Narnia, go for the gold that is the Championship!!!!!! Let's take a look at some of the beautiful shots that have been made recently.

Stephen dribbles down the court, pulls up, and unleashes a 3 pointer:

"The Gregor books. That is one of the best books in the World!!!!! It was even better because me and my family read it together, so we all got to bond over what we thought was the best part of the book. I thought the fight with Bane was the best part. My sister didn’t think so. She thought the crushes Gregor and Luxa had on each other was. Eeewwwwwwwwwww!!!!!"

Eeewwwwwwwwwwwww, indeed Stephen. Speaking from a purley Sith perspective, we hate the mushy stuff!!!!!

Well that was quite a shot, but what do we have here??!!! Carl M. goes on a hot streak hitting 4 three pointers in a row (the most to date):

"I really like the Gregor the Overlander Series because Susan Collins wrote it cleverly. It’s a great fantasy story that’s believable. It has many twists and the only thing I did not like about the last book (Book 5) is that the series is over now.

Chronicles of Narnia is an awesome series about four kids finding a fantasy world of all kinds of creatures. It’s one of my favorites because it has all things I like in a book: A sword battle, fantasy creatures, danger and adventure.

I really enjoyed The Lighting Thief; it is one of my favorites now. The story is that the Greek Gods are real and it’s about a son of one of the Gods. But a war is about to break out over who stole one God’s Lighting Bolt.

When I first heard of Harry Potter it was said to be full of witchcraft and evil, but later - after I read the books- I realized anyone who thinks that is really stupid. If you liked Lord of the Rings you'll like this series"

Smokin!!!!!!! And just when you think the threes have stopped, Mona pulls up from behind the line and lets one bomb away:

"Uncle Montague's Tales of Terror by Chris Priestley - Edward cannot explain it. Uncle Montague fascinate him. His house is old, dark and creepy. And the stories he tells are unbelievable, but that seems to draw Edward back for more. Why is the house so cold? And why has Edward never seen his Butler? Pick up this page turner and read it today!"

Great shooting all. Man, this is intense, so keep voting for who you want to win and putting up those 3 pointers. This is really a tight and exciting finish and I can't wait to see how it all turns out.

Later,

Bill

It's Raining Three Pointers!

Hey, everyone, Anonymous has sent us enough three-pointers to put Tyler Hansbrough and Stephen Curry to shame:

Oops! What I meant was that ANY team who actually beats the MIGHTY TARHEELS in BASKETBALL has to be very good. Not just any team can do that! That is pretty obvious. Now when you talk about BASEBALL .......

Now you asked for a book review. Okay, here are several.First,Eulalia - Brian Jacques. This is the 19th book in the Redwall series. I think badgers are COOL! I really like reading Mr. Jacques books if a badger is featured, like in Lord Brocktree.This new book tells the story of Gorath, a young badger, who goes from being taken prisoner, by the evil fox Vizka Longtooth and his crew of sea rats, to becoming the new leader of the rock island, Salamandestron, home of badgers and the fighting hares of the Long Patrol. As with other books in the Redwall series you can expect to find lots of action and lessons in friendships.

I'm a big fan of everything pirate ever since the first Captain Jack movie. I just finished reading about the actor who brought us Captain Jack, Johnny Depp. This is a book in the Blue Banner Biography series. The author is Kathleen Tracy. The book starts off talking about who else, Captain Jack. Then talks about Johnny Depp's life growing up and how he became an Actor's Actor. At the end of the book his films are listed and other books and articles written about him.

Finally, getting back to Redwall, if you want to read a COOL graphic novel that has been written about another already written book, "Redwall: The Graphic Novel" is GREAT! The pictures tell a story that doesn't really need many words.

So there you go. three reviews.

SWISH!! That's 3 three-pointers in a row! Great job, Anonymous. This should put you in first place. Gotta be careful, though--you never know who's running up the court behind you!! Just like the real championship game, the score can change in a moment. And it's often because of the three-pointers! So let's hear it! MAKE SOME NOISE! SEND IN YOUR REVIEWS! You have until 9:00 pm on Wednesday, the 16th.

Carl

BTW, Anonymous, who's your favorite baseball team? And have you checked out the Barnstormers series?

PPS--Thanks for defending the great Tarheels!

Another Vote!

This one's from our friend Anonymous:

It think the Harry Potter series ROCKS, but Narnia has my final vote. Oh and YEA! Kansas! Anyone who can beat NC has got to be an awesome team. Can we do something like this again? Hope so. : )!

Thanks, Anonymous! We'll probably do something special again, but don't know when. Give us a chance to take a break (but don't stop reading us!). I've got to tell you, though, you're walking on the fightin' side of me. I don't mind your cheering for Kansas because they are awesome, but anyone who cheers for them because they beat Carolina, well, that person is going to deal with Carl, the Mad Duelist!!!That's right! Memphis may be my old school, but I live in Charlotte and I've got to pull for those TARHEELS!!! Beware, my friend, an angry Sith is nothing compared to angry Carolina fan!

Hey, maybe I'm missing something---maybe you're saying NC is great and only a great team could have beaten them. In that case, sir, I withdraw my sword! (Besides, our boys played well and then folded like a napkin in the Kansas game!)

AND, speaking of b'ball, why don't you send us a review for an extra 3 points?

Carl

First Vote For The Championship!

And it's from cyber kid 303, our leader of the pack:

I pick Harry Potter for the winner!
The Sea of Monsters is a good book by Rick Riordin. It's all about Percy, Annabeth, and Grover who have to retrieve the golden fleece to save Thaila, who has been turned into a pine tree. If you know the story about Jason and the Argonauts, this is a story sort of like that. This is the second in the Percy Jackson series. I'm looking forward to the fourth, The Battle of the Labyrinth, which comes out in May.

Well done, cyber kid! You've not only sent in a vote but you've also given us a review for 3 extra points! If anyone else wants more points, that's how you do it! The review doesn't have to be fancy; just give the title and author and tell us a little about the book and why you liked it. Let's start shooting, guys! I remember how heated the competition got during our January contest--let's see if we can do it again!!

Carl

It's The Final Countdown or Then There Were Two

Well, everyone, it's down to two in The Boys Rule Boys Read Book Series Tournament. Without further adieu, let's see who our two final combatants are:


Right Side Game:


The Harry Potter Series (seed 1) 14 pts.

Vs.

Star Wars: Clone Wars Adventures (seed 3)
3 pts.

The Winner in a Knock-Out The Harry Potter Series!!!!! Ding, Ding!!!!

Left Side Game:



The Chronicles of Narnia (seed 6) 10 pts.

Vs.

The Underland Chronicles (seed 7) 6 pts.

In a Close Contest The Chronicles of Narnia Eliminates The Underland Chronicles

Now let's take a look at the Leader Board (those with 8 points or more):

1) Now in first place with 13 points (with 3 upset pts.) is the one, the only Cyber Kid (he has shot two 3 pointers!!!).

2) Slipping from first to second but still in firm competition is Carl M. with 12 points (with 18 upset points).

3) Falling one notch from second to third place is Melissa with 11 points (with 8 upset points).

4) Tied in forth place with 10 points each (also each having 16 upset points) are Stephen and Mary.

5) In fifth place with 10 points (having 11 upset points) is Melanie.

6) In sixth place with 10 points (having 10 upset points) is Leah.

7) Tied in seventh place with 10 points each (each having 3 upset points) are Bekah and the Mysterious Anonymous.

8) In eighth place with 10 points is Mona.

9) In ninth place with 9 points (having 6 upset points) is Teresa.

10) In tenth place with 8 points (having 8 upset points) is Danna.

11) In eleventh place with 8 points is Matthew.

Congratulations are in order for all, even those not on the Leader Board (it's a game and the main point is to have fun!!!!!). I think all should take note that this is a very tight race. With that in consideration just think what shooting a 3 pointer (a review) could mean to your standing. Remember a 3 pointer is the equivalent of three correct picks. So lets say you had 10 points. If you shot a 3 pointer that would increase your points to 13. This is a powerful tool I tell ya!!!!

So playing for all the Championship of The Boys Rule Boys Read Book Series Tournament are the two powerful heavyweights (ding, ding, ding!!!!!):


The Harry Potter Series (seed 1) Vs. The Chronicles of Narnia (seed 6).

So let the voting begin for the Championship!!!!!!!

Here are the rules for voting once again:

1) The books that are going against each other will move to the next round if they receive the most votes from you guys.

2) Everyone who wants to (adults and girls also) can vote by responding to this blog and voting for the books in each match-up they would like to see go on in the tournament.

3) Multiple voting by the same individual for a particular book is not allowed. One vote for each match-up.

4) Voting will start with the posting of this blog entry. Voting from bloggers will be allowed for that day and for 7 following days (Championship votes due by 9:00 p.m. Wednesday, April 16) . Also if you can get by ImaginOn, we will have paper handouts that you can use to vote.

5) You will notice that the books are seeded. What this means is the books with the higher seeds (1 being highest, 8 being lowest) are expected to go further in the tournament. Those with lower number are expected to make early exits. However, who goes on and who goes home will be determined by your votes.

6) Finally, prizes will be awarded to the one who votes for the most books that go the furthest. In the case of a tie, the number difference between upsets will be used to determine the ultimate winner (say someone picks a seed 8 to beat a seed 1, that would give them 7 points for a tie-breaker, etc.). Also the three pointer can be used to give voters more points (3 points).

7) Let me stress the 3 pointer once again!!!! One review gives the writer the equivalent of 3 right votes. Lets say you have 8 points now on the Leader Board ; one review would up you score to 11 points (the number of points the leaders have now). This is a powerful tool in the tournament!

8) Also remember the prizes for the 3 highest on the Leader Board!!!! First place will get to choose between an autographed T-shirt from the UNCC Men's Basketball Team, an autographed poster by the UNCC Men's Basketball Team, or a book of your choosing (softcover) from all the contenders in the tournament. Second place will be a choose between the two remaining items. Third place will be the remaining item. If you live near in the Charlotte area, you could come to Imaginon to claim your prize, If you live out of town or can't get to Imaginon, we will send your prize to you.

9) That's it all. So get in there and vote for your favorite books and more importantly have fun!!!!!

Can't wait to see what happens!!!!! Good choosing and shooting baskets all,

Bill

LESS THAN A MONTH UNTIL THE NEW PERCY JACKSON BOOK!!!!!!!

First, let me give a shout-out to the University of Memphis Tigers for making it all the way to the championship and almost winning. U of M was my old school and I'm really happy for them, although it was a tough loss. Hold your heads high, boys, you played well all season and set a record of 38 wins in a season. None's ever done that before!

Speaking of championships, Bill is compiling the results of our Final Four and will soon post the names of the books that will square off for the championship. May the best series win!!!

And now---Yes, I'm excited! And with good reason--today is April 8. That means there is less than one month until The Battle of the Labyrinth, the new Percy Jackson book, comes out!!! The release date is May 6---less than 30 days from now!! Are any of you out there as excited as I am? I've got my copy on hold at the library (naturally) and I'm # 6 on the hold list. That means I should get within a couple of days of May 6, if not on that very day!! Wooohooo!!


Here's a trailer about the new book:





Here's an extra video treat. Do you remember in The Sea of Monsters when Annabeth asked Percy, "You do know the story of Jason and the Argonauts, don't you?" and Percy replied, 'Sure, that old movie with the clay skeletons" (and Annabeth said,"Oh, Percy, you're hopeless")--well, here's that clip from that movie showing Jason and his fellow heroes fighting the skeleton army after the bad guy sowed the dragon's teeth :






This is a terrific movie! Go search your videostore and find it. (Look for the old 1963 version) The PLCMC library system does have one copy on DVD!

Waiting (somewhat) patiently,

Carl

A New Comment From Danna and Son

Hey, one and all, we have a comment and votes from Danna:

Where are all the comments? Ok, as the secretly lurking adult female librarian, I just could not make a choice for the final two. So I had to turn to my son (age 10) for the final call. His votes:Harry Potter and Narnia. By the way guys, I have had a lot of fun exploring your blog (and many others) as I try to find a manageable way to introduce these to my students! Thanks for the fun!

You're welcome, Danna. We'll do you what we do for any girl (or lady) who writes to us--we'll give you the greatest honor we can bestow and make you an Honorary Guy. Tell your son that he can send a review (or more than one) and get 3 extra points.

BTW, I usually do something different with comments than most blogs. I save them and publish directly to the blog so that everyone can see them. That's why you haven't seen them in the "comments" section. Maybe I ought to change that, though, and put them in both places. Well, I did that today--maybe I'll try that for a while.

Anyway, that's enough 'bout that! We had our first two entries in the Story Tubes today!!! Come on down and do some!!! It'll be fun. (Check out Darth Bill's post from April 5 to find out more)

And keep sending in those votes and reviews! (send them by 9 pm tonight to be counted for the Final Four)

Carl

Vote for the Final Four, StoryTubes & Book Reviews

Can you guide Mr. Basketball through the Sith Basketball Backboard of Terror? Probably, I'm pretty sure (I think I did, or maybe I cheated) you might.
Yes it is I once again, the man of many names. Captain/Darth/007/Ninja/No More Mr. Nice Guy Bill welcomes and thanks you for visiting the blog (Aaaarrrrrrhhhhhhh!!!!!!!). Well the voting for the Boys Rule Boys Read Book Series Tournament has been fast and furious. If you have not voted, as a reminder, you have until April 7th, Monday at 9:00 p.m. to get your votes in. Also keep shooting those 3 pointers. I have a feeling they may have a serious impact on who comes in the top three places of our little contest. I can feel it in me bones, I tell ya!!!!!

Just got the following vote cast by Mace Windu (those darn Jedi):

Harry Potter
Narnia

Har, Har, Har, it will be interesting indeed to see who are the two last books standing to compete for the Championship.

One other contest I would like to mention on this blog is the StoryTubes competition that is going on nationwide.




Rather than me just blab away about the contest, check out the following press release:

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Public libraries partner in national online video contest:
StoryTubes encourages kids to talk up their favorite books on YouTube

April 3, 2008 (Charlotte, N.C.) – From New York to California to North Carolina, kids in grades 1-6 are talking up their favorite books in an online video contest that supports public libraries, including the Public Library of Charlotte & Mecklenburg County (PLCMC). The contest, which runs through April 20, 2008, is called StoryTubes, and your children can join in the fun, too!

Along with your parent or guardian, kids can follow these simple steps to participate:
1. Make a 2-minute or shorter video about your favorite book;
2. Upload the video to www.youtube.com; and
3. Click on www.storytubes.info and send in the link to your uploaded YouTube video using the online contest entry form.

There are four video categories: Hair-Raising Tales; From or For the Heart; Of Heroes and Heroines; and Facts, Fads and Phenoms. When entering, please don’t use your last name in the video. Entries will be evaluated on creativity, content and performance. Parents are encouraged to read the complete contest rules and regulations at www.storytubes.info/rules.

The video becomes part of a national contest!

The deadlines for entries is April 20, 2008. Voting mania will happen each week in May. At the end of each week, one lucky contestant will win $500 in books. The sponsoring organization they choose (school, library or designated organization for home-schooled youth) will receive $1,000 in books.

Bill Corder, a children’s librarian at PLCMC’s ImaginOn is excited about the project. “It’s so much fun to see kids having a blast creating these videos. They get to talk about their favorite books and have their 15 minutes of fame on YouTube. And they have a chance to win a prize. It’s really cool!”

Want help creating your video?
Kids and parents can come to ImaginOn’s Spangler Library on the following dates and times. Library staff will be on hand with all the equipment needed to help create your video.
- Monday, April 7 from 11 - 1 p.m.
- Tuesday, April 8, from 11 - 1 p.m.
- Wednesday, April 9 from 2 - 4 p.m.
- Friday, April 18 from 7- 9 p.m. (during the “Red Read Party” at ImaginOn)
For questions about the video sessions at ImaginOn, call 704-973-2720.

Everybody wins when kids get excited about stories!

Sponsoring publishers are: Simon & Schuster, Scholastic, Eaglemont Press, DK Publishing, Charlesbridge Publishing and Shenanigan Books.

The StoryTubes partner libraries are: Northeast: Middle Country Public Library of Centereach; NY; Southeast: The Public Library of Charlotte & Mecklenburg County/ImaginOn, Charlotte, NC; Midwest: Gail Borden Public Library, Elgin, IL; Northwest: King County Library System, Issaquah, WA; and Southwest: Pasadena Public Library, Pasadena, CA.

Sounds pretty cool to me. You get to be a star on YouTube and could win $500 worth of books!!!! Man I wish I could compete, but alas I'm not quite in the age range (I'm in the 7th grade; okay not really I'm in the 8th(; ). So guys (and maybe some girls) look into this and remember we will be videoing people here at ImaginOn!!!!

Lastly I would like to talk about some really cool books I have read recently:

Marvel Adventures: Fantastic Four – All 4 One, 4 For All by Zeb Wells and Kano – The Fantastic Four are back and better than ever!!!!! This graphic novel includes four stories that concentrate on each of our heroes. The first story focuses on everyone’s favorite rock guy The Thing. The Thing and a new friend learn the hard way that true beauty lays beyond one’s outside appearance while battling The Absorbing Man. The second story takes a look at The Invisible Woman. Susan Storm is beginning to feel that she is taken for granted by her teammates. So when Nick Fury approaches her about being a spy for the Government, she faces a dilemma in whether to stay with the FF or leave. The third story puts Mister Fantastic in the cross-hairs of Arcade and along with trying to stay alive; he learns that life is about more than numbers and calculations. The last story pits The Human Torch against Iceman (of the X-Men) as they are co-judges in the Miss Teeny Teen Pageant. Things go from bad to funny as these two guys try to one up the other (funny stuff). This is a fun read, so check it out!!!!!

The Midnight Library: I Can See You by Damien Graves – If you like scary stories, and I mean scary stories, this series is just wicked!!!!! The first story in this book is about Michael who along with his parents has relocated from the city to the country. Michael has trouble making friends, but finally seems to have made some in Stephanie and Jack. They tell him about the house he has moved in which once belonged to old Farmer Axby whose wife and children left him. Farmer Axby eventually went mad and the last time he was seen alive he was out in the fields with an old lantern looking for his children. The whole time screaming: “I can see you!” Well, he must have fallen sometime in the night because there was a massive fire and the only remains of Farmer Axby that were found were his broken lantern and the remains of his burnt coat. Ever since that night the kids in the area play a game on the anniversary of the fire called I Can See You. Stephanie and Jack invite Michael to play this year and he agrees. Maybe that was not the wisest of decisions? This is some super spooky stuff and if you like this story you will love the other two in the book. A word of warning however, these stories do not always have happy endings and, perhaps, could cause nightmares. If you like real scary stories this series and book are for you.

Tunnels by Roderick Gordon and Brian Williams – This book rocked and I absolutely cannot wait for the sequel. The main character of the book is 14-year-old Will Burrows who along
with his archaeologist father, Dr. Burrows, shares a passion for digging tunnels into the earth in search of buried historical items. Will’s family is extremely “different” and to say the least dysfunctional. His father is always involved with his work and little else, his mother watches TV non-stop, and his younger sister runs the families finances. Will is an extremely pale boy and picked on non-stop at school. That is until he befriends another outcast by the name of Chester, who is a rather large intimidating boy, and
gets him interested in digging. Life is going pretty good for Will between digging with his father and digging independently with his new friend Chester. That is until Dr. Burrows goes missing and Will finds that right in their basement is a tunnel that leads to a subterranean world populated with people time left behind. This book is full of twist and turns and just when you think you know what’s going on, the book kicks into another gear to throw you for a loop. I would classify this book as a mystery/action book. Whatever you want to classify it as is up to you, just make sure you don’t miss one of the truly great books of 2008!!!!!

One last note, I want to say it is so good to see so many Sith posting lately! It really warms my black little heart so much.

Well take it easy all you out there in Blogland (and remember to get your votes in along with 3 pointers). Peace,

Bill