The Championship Round, Nuclear Mentos, and cyber kid

All right, everyone, you all have voted and decided who would move from the Final Four to the Championship Round and again we have a major upset!! Take a look and see:


J.K. Rowling 14 online votes///////////////Jeff Kinney 10 votes
Jay Piscopo 40 votes/////////////////////Neil Gaiman 14 votes

Jay Piscopo trounces J.K. Rowling for the major upset of the year! Therefore the authors that move on to the Championship Round are:




Jay Piscopo, author of The Undersea Adventures of Capt'n Eli

vs.

Neil Gaiman, author of Coraline, The Graveyard Book, and many others

Let the voting begin! You have until noon on Friday, April 3 to choose. And you have until then to send in reviews of books by any of these authors to win a fabulous prize!!

In other news, our brother reader guys at the SMS Guys Read blog have conducted a highly dangerous science experiment that risked life, limb, and the chance to be sprayed in their faces!! Yes, they performed the Nuclear Mentos test. Take a look at the SMS Guys Read link on the left-hand side of our blog!! You gotta see it!!

And our faithful friend cuber kid 303 has sent us a review of The City of Ember (even if he won't give this Ellen-innocent-or-guilty thing a rest!):

I got my revenge after all. And I do still think Evil Ellen did it. Where is proof from the DNA test? Innocence? HA!

Back to book reveiws now. City of Ember is an action packed book about the City of Ember, which is under gound.For 241 years, lights have been keeping the it in light, nstead of paralizing dark. The lights are powered by the genorator, which is starting to fail. Lights are starting to flicker. Even if the genorator worked, they are running out of lightbulbs and oher vitals such as food. This book is really, really good

Yes, it is!! This book will really grab your attention. This puts you in the running for one of our fabulous prizes. Remember, these prizes go to the three guys who send in the most reviews by noon this Friday!!

Carl

The City of Ember Book Club, Another Possible Upset, and Who's Messing With the Girls' Space?

Hey, reader guys, It's Carl and we had a great time last Saturday at the first Boys' Book Club meeting. We read The City of Ember and had some fun discussion. Then my good friend John Austin, Discovery Place volunteer, talked to us about the science of electricity. John really likes to tinker with things and find out how they work or think of new things to do with them. So he found this old DVD player and was about to throw it out when he started thinking, "Hmmmm, what if I...." and took the motors out to show us how a generator worked. (He showed us that, by turning that motor backward, you could generate a current) Here are some photos:

John and the guys and cool stuff with meters (he's showing us how to measure current)

John and the reader guys

The guys and me. This book rocks, btw. Go read it if you haven't read it already. We'll read the second, The People of Sparks, next. The meeting for that book may be the first Saturday in June. Watch this blog to find out.

The voting continues for The Final Four in the March Madness Author Shoot-out. Take a look and see. And send in your reviews for a chance to win the ultra-cool prizes. Look at the post under this one to see what they are)

AAAANNNDDD--it looked like we would have another mystery on our hands!! Just as we have a Sacred Shrine of Guyhood, the girls have their own book display at Imaginon. Normally this manly man is too busy keeping the guys' display stocked to notice what the girls do. But on this day, something called out to me from that spot. I turned and saw--There were signs advertising the Boys Rule Boys Read blog all over the girls' spot!! Well, you'd think I'd be glad to see signs about the awesome greatness of boys in the girls' display! But then I heard maniacal laughter--and then, out of thin air, appeared--

CYBER KID 303!!!

"Behold my terrible revenge!!" he said. "This is my payment for declaring Evil Ellen innocent of defacing the Sacred Shrine of Guyhood. HAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!" Well, I had to grab him before he could teleport back and remind him that Evi...I mean, Ellen was fairly tried and acquitted in a Cosmic Court of Justice and that he couldn't take out his frustration on the girls' display. He took his chastisement like a true man, went humbly to the book club, and is a wiser man today. This shows how a true guy can change his behavior and is more proof, if any be needed, of the awesome greatness of boys!!!

The Final Four (and a stunning upset!!)

The results are in from the second round of the March Madness Author Shoot-out and we are ready to move on to the Final Four. But there has been a stunning upset!! Didn't I tell you--every year there's a major upset in the NCAA basketball tournament and it usually happens in the second round. You won't believe it!! Here are the results:

J.K. Rowling 28 online votes (no paper ballots votes;in fact, no one turned any paper ballots for any author this round)
Jeanne DuPrau 22 votes

Kaza Kingsley 24 votes
Jeff Kinney 30 votes

///////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////

Rick Riordan 37 votes
Jay Piscopo 43 votes!!
There it is--the major upset!! That goes to show that Capt'n Eli has a lot of fans!

Gordon Korman 21 votes + 3 for a review
Neil Gaiman 26 votes

So the Final Four will be:

J.K.Rowling vs./////////////////Jay Piscopo vs.
Jeff Kinney////////////////////Neil Gaiman

You can vote for your favorite until noon this Tuesday, March 31. Then I'll tabulate the results and announce the Championship Round. (The Championship Round will go from noon Tuesday until noon Friday, April 3. After that, I'll announce the winner) Don't forget--you can send in a review by any of the authors in this tournament (J.K. Rowling, Kurtis Scaletta, Rick Riordan, Suzanee Collins, Helen Hemphill, Jeanne DuPrau, Jeff Smith, Jay Piscopo, Dave Barry, Jeff Kinney, Gordon Korman, Dan Gutman, Kaza Kingsley, Jon Scieszka, Neil Gaiman, Jenny Nimmo)and be eligible for prizes, which are:

A signed t-shirt and two signed Erec Rex books by Kaza Kingsley
A Deadwood Jones t-shirt and a signed book by Helen Hemphill, author of The Adventurous Deeds of Deadwood Jones
An Undersea Adventures of Capt'n Eli graphic novel and a pack of Capt'n Eli cards

The three guys who send in the most reviews will get to pick. So start voting and sending those reviews!
Carl

New Prizes! A Three Pointer! And the Boys Book Club! And the Latest Casting Choices for The Lightning Thief!

This is amazing! The leads keep switching faster than a Carolina-Duke game! An author who has the lead one day can fall behind the next. And can you believe how close these brackets are? J.K. Rowling and Jeanne DuPrau are too close to call. Makes me hold my breath! Does the excitement ever stop??? Keep those votes coming!

A package of prizes has arrived from the wonderful Helen Hemphill. We have 2 Deadwood Jones T-shirts plus 3 signed copies of her book. Don't believe me? See for yourselves!

The shirt

The close-up

The book. These could be YOURS if you're one of the three guys who write in the most reviews!!

To add to the competition, our friend Andre the Giant from the SMS Guys Read blog has sent a review of a Gordon Korman book:

This is for Gordon Korman. I think his best book is schooled, where a hippie goes to a public school and greatly influences his students. This not only has a deep embedded msessage but it is a vastly interesting book. My favorite part is where the main character saves the bus driver by evading the cops and driving the bus to the hospital. He then asks why everybody is congratulating him for driving the bus, but not how the bus driver is. Gordon Korman Rules!!! Andre the Giant from Guysread

All right, Andre! Not only are you in the running for prizes, you have also given Gordon Korman three more points!
We also have some paper ballots out. I took some ballots and review forms to a school yesterday and won't get them until Friday. I'll get the results tabulated and posted Saturday. Then we'll move into the Final Four. And you can send reviews anytime to be eligible for prizes!

The first meeting of our Boys Book Club is this Saturday at 2 pm here at Imaginon. We 'll talk about The City of Ember and have John Austin, a Discovery Place volunteer, talk to us about the science of radiation and electricity. We have space for 15 guys and have 8 signed up already, so if you're a boy between 9-12 years old and have read The City of Ember, call 704-973-2720 to register. Our book clubs have always been fun. Hope to see you there!

Carl

PS--I just found out the latest casting choices for the Lightning Thief movie! I think they made good choices for Chiron and Medusa. I don't know the other actors/actresses, but it's good to see that the actress for Athena actually has a Greek name! (But Athena doesn't show up until the second book. Weird)

The Great and Powerful CARLMAN Goofs! Plus Our First Guy Event of 2009

It's Carl and it's painful to be corrected by a sith, but Darth Bill is absolutely right. He reminded me that I told you all that one of the prizes in the March Madness Author Shoo-out would be a Capt'n Eli graphic novel and a pack of Capt'n Eli cards.I looked back to space and time and saw that he was right! So, to be correct, let me tell you again what the prizes will be be:

A signed t-shirt and signed books by Kaza Kingsley, author of the fan-tastic Erec Rex series
A signed t-shirt and a signed book by Helen Hemphill
A Capt'n Eli graphic novel and pack of Capt'n Eli cards

The three guys who send us the most reviews of books by the 16 authors in this touramnet (J.K. Rowling, Kurtis Scaletta, Rick Riordan, Suzanee Collins, Helen Hemphill, Jeanne DuPrau, Jeff Smith, Jay Piscopo, Dave Barry, Jeff Kinney, Gordon Korman, Dan Gutman, Kaza Kingsley, Jon Scieszka, Neil Gaiman, Jenny Nimmo) will get to pick from these prizes. So send them and make yourself eleigible for one of the extremely cool prizes!!

BTW, Ms. Hemphill wrote to us about the tournament and losing by one vote:

I'm so bummed! I saw the balloting was closed and didn't know about paper ballots! Oh, well. I got the books and T-shirts off to you guys yesterday. Have a great tournament and keep reading! HH

I'm so sorry! I goofed again! But I tried to correct my goof in yesterday's post. We do have paper ballots and review forms here at Imaginon--feel free to use them, guys. You're a really good sport to send us those things anyway and we appreciate it!

Last Saturday we had our Boys Afternoon with Roald Dahl, Dr. West, and a Giant Peach. What a great time!! Dr. Mark West, English prof at UNCC, came and talked about Roald Dahl, author of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, James and the Giant Peach, Danny Champion of the World, and others. Dr. West, a very cool guy, knows a lot about Roald Dahl and told this very funny story about going to England to interview the author. Then he read us a hilarious chapter from Boy: Tales of Childhood, Dahl's autobiography. This chapter was about the time the author, as a young boy, put a dead mouse in a jar of candy!! (You can imagine the response Roald got from his dad!) Dr. West showed us how the author used that story when he wrote The Witches and how we can hold on to our funny stories and use them later on. After the talk, we had a snack break and then watched the animated movie James and the Giant Peach. As I said, what a great time!

The guys hang on Dr. West's every word!

Thanks, Dr. West!

The Elite Eight

The first round is over and, boy, did we have a couple of close ones! I'll show the results in just a minute but let me tell you something first. I made some paper brackets here at Imaginon so that guys could vote while in the library. It's really handy, especially when school groups come. Well, last week we had 3 guys use those paper ballots and those three guys made a difference. Here you go:

The J.K. Rowling/Kurtis Scaletta bracket was almost an upset. Rookie author Kurtis led in the early voting!! It was like the Pittsburg/East Tennessee State game this weekend, where it looked like #16-seed ETSU would upset #1-ranked Pittsburg. In the final voting, however, it was:
J.K. Rowling 25 online votes + 3 paper votes
Kurtis Scaletta 20 online votes

In the opposite bracket:
Rick Riordan 46 online votes + 1 paper vote + 3 more points for a review
Suzanne Collins 15 + 2

In another exciting contest:
Helen Hemphill and Jeanne DuPrau were tied at 13 votes each. The paper ballots came in and Helen Hemphill got 1 vote and Jeanne DuPrau got 2!!! So she won by one vote! (always remeber that your vote does count!)

In other brackets:
Jeff Smith 5 + 3
Jay Piscopo 19

Dave Barry 8 + 2 ///////////////////Gordon Korman 13 + 1
Jeff Kinney 15 + 1////////////////// Dan Gutman 7 + 2

Kaza Kingsley 19 + 2///////////////// Neil Gaiman 18 + 1
Jon Scieszka 11 + 1////////////////// Jenny Nimmo 9 + 2

Yes, that bracket was a heartbreaker for Helen Hemphill fans, especially since she emailed me on Friday and said that she'd send some T-shirts and signed books as prizes!! Maybe it would have made a difference if I'd said something. Anyway, the votes are in and we move on to the Elite Eight. That means that the winner in one bracket will go against the winner in the bracket below (not in the bracket directly across, as I mistakenly said last Monday)

And those brackets are:

J. K. Rowling (Harry Potter) vs///////////Rick Riordan (Percy Jackson, The 39 Clues) vs
Jeanne DuPrau (City of Ember series)////Jay Piscopo (Capt'n Eli graphic novels)

Jeff Kinney (Diary of a Wimpy Kid) vs///Gordon Korman (the Island Trilogy) vs
Kaza Kinglsey (Erec Rex series)////////Neil Gaiman (The Graveyard Book, Coraline)

Looks like we have another action-packed week of voting ahead! You have until noon Saturday to vote (and you can vote for more than one author at a time). Don't forget that we have paper ballots here at Imaginon. And we also have paper book review forms. Your local library may have them too. If they don't, ask them to call me (Carl) and I'll send them out. Remember that your author will get 3 more points for each review of one their books that you send. PLUS, you will be in the running for prizes. The three guys who send in the most reviews of books by these authors (J. K. Rowling, Kurtis Scaletta, Rick Riordan, Suzanne Collins, Helen Hemphill, Jeanne DuPrau, Jeff Smith, Jay Piscopo, Dave Barry, Jeff Kinney, Gordon Korman, Dan Gutman, Kaza Kingsley, Jon Scieszka, Neil Gaiman, or Jenny Nimmo) will get a choice of signed t-shirts and books by Kaza Kingsley, signed books and t-shirts by Helen Hemphill, or your pick of graphic novels and/or books from our fabulous giveaway collection. (Yes, I changed the prize list when I heard about Helen Hemphill's prizes. And, yes, you can write reivews by the authors that didn't get into the Elite Eight) So vote for your faves, send in those reviews, and make this round one as exciting as the last one!

Carl

The Tension Mounts!

Yes, guys, this is definitely the most exciting contest we've ever held! The J.K. Rowling/Kurtis Scaletta and the Helen Hemphill/Jeanne DuPrau brackets are still so close that no one can tell how they'll turn out! Meanwhile Kaza Kingsley has a lead over Jon Scieszka, but he has made a run since yesterday and picked up a few more votes. And that can happen with any of the brackets! You have until 6:00 PM Saturday to vote, so send them in! Remeber, you CAN vote for more than one author with each ballot!

Don't forget that we'll have the Boys Afternoon with Roald Dahl, Dr. West, and A Giant Peach at 2 pm tomorrow! Dr. West, English prof and very cool guy, will talk about Roald Dahl and the day he spent with the author! After that, we'll take a snack break and then show the animated movie James and the Giant Peach. Still time to sign up. If you're between 9-12 years old, call 704-973-2720 to register. (or have your parents call) And----this is a BOYS ONLY event!!!!! Yippeee!

See you there!

Carl

Our First Three-Pointer!

The thrills just never stop in the March Madness Author Shoot-out! We have several games are are close and could go right down to the wire!! J. K. Rowling and Kurtis Scaletta are neck-and-neck, with J. K. up by only ONE vote!!! Who would have thought that a rookie author could be so close? Will she hold on or will there be an upset??? Helen Hemphill and Jeanne DuPrau are also only one vote apart and have been switching leads all week. Other brackets seem to have authors far in the lead, but, as any basketball fan knows, that could change at any time. You have until 6 pm on Saturday to vote, so keep those votes coming. And remember, you CAN vote for more than one!

And now, guys, let me proudly present the first three-point shot in the contest!! Remeber, any guy who writes a review of a book by an author in the tournament will not only give that author 3 extra points but will put himself in the running for some very cool prizes! Let hear what anonymous has to say:

The Demigod Files are awesome!!! Rick Riordan is the best author ever!!! His writing is particularly great becauses it connects the mythological world with the modern world. Rick Riordan is an awsome writer!

Good shot, anonymous! The Demigod Files really is good. And you've said in one sentence what I've tried to say in long paragraphs--Rick Riordan is great at connecting the mythological and the modern and that's why the Percy Jackson books are so great! Thanks! Keep shooting those 3-pointers and---aaaughhh! Who are YOU??

I AM THE WATCHER.

So what are you staring at?

Look right there. Do you not see it?

See what??

That is the money you could be saving with...

OH, GET OUTTA HERE!!!

Yeesh, the things you gotta put up with!
Carl

Prizes, Where To Read The First Chapter of The Last Olympian Online, and Boys Like Gregor

Wow, fellow reader guys, the March Madness Author Shoot-out has gotten everyone all excited!! We've had the most hits EVER on this blog! And the most votes ever!! The tension mounts as readers vote. Who will win and move to the next round? Will there be an upset?? Anything can happen!! Keep those votes coming! And don't forget that we are giving away prizes to the three guys who write in the most reviews of books by these authors. The first-place prize is a T-shirt from Kaza Kingsley's fan-tastic Erec Rex series plus the first two Erec Rex books, signed by the author! To show you how extremely cool these prizes are, Darth Bill took some photos:

Here is the unbelievably handsome CARLMAN modelling the Erec Rex t-shirts that Kaza Kingsley so generously gave us:

She even signed them!

Not only that, she also gave us copies of her first two books:

And signed them too!!!

THANKS, KAZA!!!! These books and the t-shirt could be YOURS if you send in the most reviews. The second-place winner gets a Capt'n Eli graphic novel and cards. The third-place winner gets free books and comics. We'll take your reviews until the end of the contest. Remember, when you send in a review, not only are you eligible for a prize, your author gets three more points (a "three pointer")

On to other things. A couple of new friends have written to us. Bibliophile told us where to read the first chapter of The Last Olympian, the next Percy Jackson book, online. Cool!!

There is a place where you can read an excerpt of The Last Olympian!!! It's on the Percy Jackson book site (percyjacksonbooks.com). You click on About the Series at the top of the page. If you're not already at the blurb about The Last Olympian, you just click on the book at the left. Next to a picture of the book that will come up, there will be a summary, and underneath that, a button that says, "read first chapter." There will be an excerpt of the last book in this amazing sereies.

Thanks, bibliophile! I've gone to that site and read it. Boy, Percy doesn't waste any time getting into danger. By the end of that first chapter, he's in danger from telkhines and Annabeth! Hmmm--I wonder which I'd be more scared of--an angry telkhines or an angry Annabeth!! Read the chapter yourself by going to the Percy Jackson Booksite in the Links section on the left-hand side of the page or by going here.

The other comment comes from hollybookscoops. This new friend tells about how much guys like Gregor the Ovelander:

I really enjoyed Gregor the Overlander and passed the recommendation on to a Mother of 4 boys. Her oldest devoured the books and then re-read them, just to make sure he didn't miss something.

Wow--he read them and then re-read them. Very impressive! Hope that oldest boy is reading this post. He could be in the running for prizes if he sends in reviews of the Gregor books. The excitement just keeps building!!
It's March Madness, baaaayyybeeee!!!!

Carl

It's March Madness Again, Baaaayyyybeeee!!!

Ah, yes, wonderful March is here again, that glorious time when the NCAA tournament fills our thoughts and TV schedules! Excitement abounds as teams battle, old rivalries come alive, and some unknown team dazzles the whole country. Last year we held a March Madness Tournament of Books; this year we're doing something different--an Author Shoot-Out! You can vote for your favorite author and win a prize for yourself!! How does it work? First, you can vote on the poll the left-hand side of the page. (you CAN vote for more than one) Then, if you send in a review of a book BY AN AUTHOR IN THE TOURNAMENT, your author will get a "three pointer," that is, that author will get 3 extra votes. PLUS---YOU will get a chance for a prize!! The three guys who send in the most reviews of books BY THESE AUTHORS will win prizes!!! Easy enough? You bet!

So the big question is---WHO ARE THE AUTHORS?

I'm glad you asked. We've chosen authors who are proven favotites with guys. We'll set them up in brackets, just like the NCAA tournamnet, and we'll start with a Sweet Sixteen. You vote for your favorites this week and next week we'll have an Elite Eight. Then we'll go to a Final Four and then the championship. You'll see the brackets in a bit, but let me first tell you who will be in the brackets:

J. K. Rowling

vs.

Kurtis Scaletta, first-time author of Mudville, a very terrific book.

Now, it may not seem fair to put a rookie against an established powerhouse, but that's what happens in the NCAA; a # 1 seed always goes against a # 16

Rick Riordan (the Percy Jackson and 39 Clues man

vs.

Suzanne Collins, author of the Gregor the Overlander series and The Hunger Games which Bill and other guys have liked a lot

Helen Hemphill, author of The Adventurous Deeds of Deadwood Jones (she came to Imaginon to speak)

vs.
Jeanne DuPrau, author of The City of Ember series (we're going to start a City of Ember book club on March 28)

Jeff Smith, creator of the awesome Bone series

vs.

Jay Piscopo, creator of the awesome Undersea Adventures of Capt'n Eli series

A clash of the graphic novel titans!

Dave Barry, author of Science Fair

vs.
Jeff Kinney, the Diary of a Wimpy Kid guy

Two funny guys square off!

Gordon Korman, author of the Island triolgy and One False Note, the second 39 Clues book

vs.

Dan Gutman, author of the My Weird School series

Kaza Knglsey, author of the fan-tastic Erec Rex series

vs.

Jon Scieszka, author of The Time Warp Trio series and that hilarious autobiography Knuckleheads

Neil Gaiman, author of the Newbery-winning The Graveyard Book

vs.

Jenny Nimmo, the Charlie Bone author

Two masters of fantasy in one bracket!

Here are what the brackets look like:

J. K Rowling vs//////////////Rick Riordan vs

Kurtis Scaletta////////////// Suzanne Collin

Helen Hemphill vs///////////Jeff Smith vs

Jeanne DuPrau///////////// Jay Piscopo

Dave Barry vs//////////////Gordon Korman vs

Jeff Kinney/////////////////Dan Gutman

Kaza Kingsley vs/////////////Neil Gaiman vs
Jon Scieszka////////////////Jenny Nimmo

(Yeah, these are weird-looking brackets but I couln't figure out how to make real ones
The winners of each bracket will go against the winner of the bracket directly across from it; for example, the winner of the Kaza Kingsley/Jon Scieska bracket would go against the winner of the Neil Gaiman/Jenny Nimmo bracket. Got it?

The rules are simple:

1.Vote on the poll for your favorites. You can vote more than once.
2. The boys who send in the most reviews of books BY THESE AUTHORS will get prizes. (plus your author will get 3 more points for each review)

What are the prizes?

First place will be an EREC REX T-SHIRT AND SIGNED COPIES OF THE FIRST TWO EREC REX BOOKS!!!
Second place will be FREE CAPT'N ELI GRAPHIC NOVEL AND A PACK OF CAPT'N ELI CARDS!!!

Third pace will be A FREE BOOK AND FREE COMICS!!!

All right! Have fun and-----LET THE AUTHOR SHOOT-OUT BEGIN!!

Carl

Another Hung Jury, Mudville, and a Good Weekend

Whoa. What are the chances of this happening again?? We set up a poll for you to vote on the guilt or innocence of Evil Ell...I mean, the accused Ellen. You remember that she stood accused of the heinous crime of putting a princess book in the Sacred Shrine of Guyhood (our Boys Read book display). We held a fair and impartial trial in the Cosmic Court of Justice but ended up with a hung jury (which means they couldn't decide), so we put it out there for you to decide. Well, the time was up at 4 pm today. At 3 pm the votes were going against Darth Bill. Then somehow, I don't know how, there were 6 votes in one hour that said the Carlman did it, which made it exactly 11 votes against Darth Bill and 11 votes against the Carlman!!!! What a coincidence!!!! Never in all the eons of the galaxy has the Carlman seen such a coincidence. Now some might say that it was a sith plot to throw suspicion off Darth Bill, but I say it is just an amazing alignment of the stars and planets. That means, of course, that we have another hung jury and we must declare Ellen INNOCENT. There--once again you have an example of the great fairness and justice of BOYS.

Now that we've got that settled, I can tell you about Mudville, the new book by first-time author Kurtis Scaletta. 12-year-Roy McGuire lives in Moundville, loves baseball, but has never played a game in his hometown. Why? Because it's been raining there for the last 22 years!! Yep, 22 years. It all started when Roy's dad was playing for the Moundville team against their old rivals, the Sinister Bend team. Moundville had never won against the other team but, when rain clouds started moving in, Roy's dad saw that they could keep Moundville from losing if he could delay the game until it rained, when the game would be called off. So the rain came, the game was called off--and it kept raining for 22 years!! What would happen if the rain stopped? Could Roy and his friends finish the game his postponed?? You gotta read it to find out!! And the ending--knowing what happens at the end, would YOU do the same thing Roy did? Don't know what I'm talking about? Then you gotta read to find out!!

BTW, Mr. Scaletta is writing more books. Read an interview with him here. I'm glad Mudville won't be his last book!

I'm off until Monday. I've got The Sword Thief, the latest 39 Clues with me, plus The City of Ember, and James and the Giant Peach. PLUS--the ACC basketball tournament is on TV. Carolina plays at noon tomorrow and Florida State at 2. Ahhh---good books, ACC basketball with chips and salsa!! This will be a good weekend!!

Carl

Cyber Kid and the Hooples

Hey, guys, cyber kid 303 has just sent us the goods about a very funny-sounding book:


The Hooples' Horrible Holiday by Stephen Manes is about Alvin Hoople and his family. All the Hooples decide to go to Grandma and Gramp's for Thanksgiving. This includes Alvin's snobby cousin, the cat, Alvin's weird uncle, his complaining sister, and all the rest of the Hooples. When they get there, even more Hooples come. But then diasters strike. A blizzard (not the kind you can get at Dairy Queen, either) blows out the power. Alvin's sister keeps on saying she wants a Carly Cutie doll and a Fuzzbot. And no turkey!!!!!!! Not even on Thanksgiving!!!! How could such a thing happen! NO!!!!!!!!!! Any way, there is no TV or anything electric. This is bad because almost everything in Grandma and Gramp's house is electric. Watch the Hooples try to have fun on Thanksgiving!


Wow, that does sound funny!! Thanks, cyber kid. Have you ever had funny family get-togethers? Or any of you other guys?

I'm reading that new book Mudville by first-time author Kurtis Scaletta and enjoying it. I'll let you know how good it is.

Things are not looking good for Darth Bill on the poll! Be sure to vote for his innocence or guilt or if you think Evil Ellen did or didn't do it. Today's the last day!

And don't forget to call 704-973-2720 and register for the Cool Guy Events in March (sse the post of March 7 to find out more)



Carl

Jedi Mind Tricks, Jay Piscopo's Visit in April, Science Fair

Tis a sad day for the "Boys Rule Boys Read Blog." I'm looking at this poll Jedi Master Zack put up and it is showing yours truly as the leading candidate for the "Girl Book" crime in the Boys Read Section of the library. I would also point out that Jedi Master Zack put this poll up. Is it not curious how he accuses everyone in this poll but himself (just think about it). Jedi are notorious for manipulating other, check it out:

This is from Star Wars Episode 4 "A New Hope." This clip from the movie clearly shows how Luke and Obi-Wan hedge the truth and use mind control on some honest, hardworking Stormtroopers just doing their jobs to keep from being arrested for possessing droids that are in fact not theirs, but the Empire's!!!!!





I apologize to Ellen, now that this new evidence has come to light, and would now like to reveal the true culprit of this crime.......Jedi Master Zack!!!!



Just appalling isn't it!!!! Typical Jedi behavior if you ask this Sith, sigh ):


And Now For Some Really Excellent and Exciting News..... Jay Piscopo's visit schedule to the PLCMC System has been finalized!!!!! For those of you not familiar with the most awesome Mr. Piscopo check out the following posts to learn more about him and his great "The Undersea Adventures of Capt'n Eli" Graphic Novels:

http://jaja-cas.blogspot.com/2009/01/gigantic-and-most-excellent-anouncement.html

http://jaja-cas.blogspot.com/2008/12/captn-eli-news-graveyards-avengers-and.html

http://jaja-cas.blogspot.com/2009/01/darth-bills-picks-of-2008.html

http://jaja-cas.blogspot.com/2008/07/interview-with-jay-piscopo-of-undersea.html



This is not an event to be missed so mark your calenders!!!!!!!!!!




What: Jay Piscopo , author and illustrator of “The Undersea Adventures of Capt’n Eli,” will be visiting various PLCMC locations in April presenting Drawing Workshops, discussing his Graphic Novel Series and answering any questions you have about Comics and Graphic Novels. If you have any questions about these events please call the participating libraries. Reservations for kids 7 - 12 years old is encouraged.

When & Where:

Monday, April 6:

ImaginOn 11:30 AM
704-973-2720

North County 2:30 PM
704-416-6000

ImaginOn 6:30 PM
704-973-2720

Tuesday, April 7:

Mountain Island 11:30 AM
704-416-5630

Morrison 3:00 PM
704-416-5421

Matthews 7:00 PM
704-416-5000

Lastly, I want to share my review with you of Science Fair. This is an awesome book!!!!!!

Science Fair by Dave Berry & Ridley Pearson -

This book is too funny!!!!!!! Imagine if you will a story that involves 3 fairly normal kids (although not in the popular set at school - how many of you can identify with that): Toby (the main character), Tamara and Micah. Now throw in a very small and poor country named Krpshtskan, ruled by Grdankl the strong - son of Bmepl the Brave and grandson of Kminkt the Good at Remembering Names, bent on destroying the United States of America. Other necessary ingredients include a science fair project entry that involves floating a pet frog named Fester, various government agencies in hot pursuit of the kids, police in hot pursuit of a Wienermobile, an ally in a mad scientist who constructs things you would not believe and a Science Fair held at a middle school that brings the United Sates to it's knees. The last ingredients would be a rather large hairy man known as the Wookie and an individual convinced he is Darth Vader battling Toby's father dressed as Luke Skywalker and his mom dressed as Princess Lea (Jabba the Hutt Slave Costume) and just so much more stuff I don't have room to write about. This is a Very Funny Book and I highly recommended it along with everyone else who has reviewed it on this Blog and others!!!!!!

Well I guess that's allot of stuff for one post, but man is it great stuff!!!!! Until next time all,

Bill otherwise known as (Lt. Y)

Cool Guy Events In March

Hey, fellow reader guys, it's Carl telling you about a couple of fun events coming up this month. First, on Saturday, March 21 at 2 pm we'll have Dr. Mark West, English professor at UNCC and very cool guy, talk to us about Roald Dahl, author of Charlie and the Chaocolate Factory and other books. Dr. West knows a lot about Roald Dahl and even got to spend the day with him once! Dr. West will talk about that day and about Roald Dahl's book Boy, the author's autobiography. After the talk we'll have a snack break and then watch the animated movie James and the Giant Peach. We have spaces for 25 boys (ages 9-12) but you have to register. So call 704-973-2720 to do that.

AND on Saturday, March 28 at 2 pm, we'll hold the first meeting of the City of Ember book club. We'll meet four times this year and read all four books in the City of Ember series. That Saturday we''l talk about The City of Ember, the first book, and then we'll have my firend John Austin, who used to work for Discovery Place, talk about the science of radiation. John is knows a lot about science and does fun programs. We have space for 15 boys in this club and you have to register. You also must be 9-12 years old and MUST read The City of Ember before the meeting.

Both of these events will be here at Imaginon. You can come to one or both of them! But you have to call 704-973-2720 to register. Hope to see you there.

Oh, by the way--did I tell you that these events are for BOYS ONLY?? Wooo-hooo!!

Carl

The Cosmic Court Convenes!!

GUYS!!! An unbelievable amount of buzz has occured since Master Jedi Zack's post of Tuesday. Sith and Jedi are agreeing with each other!! The Force is seriously out of balance!! And on top of that, girls are hopping mad!! Listen to the reactions from Tuesday's post from Teacherninja and Anonymous:

Teacherninja said...
Oh Master Jedi Zack, she's gonna get you man. Better watch your back or you'll be doing a Fancy Nancy storytime before you know it!

Anonymous said...
DUDE!!!!!You are sooooo going to regret printing that photo! Better find a VERY good place to hide!

Things are getting pretty hot! Therefore, in the interest of justice (and not getting whacked upside of the head!), the Great and Powerful CARLMAN convened a Cosmic Court of Justice to decide the matter. Keep in mind, guys, that in a court of law the accused is always presumed innocent until proven guilty. Even Evil Ellen. Wow--that's a tongue-twister!! "Even Evil Ellen" Try saying that 10 times in a row!! But I digress. Here is a video of the Court of Cosmic Justice: (Darth Bill filmed the proceedings)

Seems like we couldn't come to an agreement. (that's what a "hung jury"means) The only thing to do is to leave it up to YOU. Vote on the poll you see on the left-hand side of the page. REMEMBER that the whole point of a trial is to see whether or not the prosecution brought "clear and compelling evidence" that the accused is guilty "beyond all reasonable doubt." Is that what happened? BE FAIR, GUYS! I'll announce the results next week. And to show that we are impartial and unbiased, we invite the GIRLS to vote too!

Carl

PS--I'll give a prize to any guy who will come to Imaginon and say "Even Evil Ellen" 10 times in a row without messing up!

More Comments From Friends

Hey there, ho there, it's Carl. Let me first give my thanks to Zack for letting me know about lining up for The Last Olympian. Can't wait to get my hands on it. I'll sign up right away.

We've had two comments that make us feel good. The first is from Warnell, one of the Fellowship of the Followers:

Warnell said...
Thanks to your inspiration I am running a March Madness of Books at my school this year. Check it out here (russel-library.blogspot.com). If you scroll down a bit you can see a video I made explaining how they are to enter the contest. That's for the wonderful site and inspiring ideas!

You are so very welcome!! It makes us feel really good to know that we inspired someone. Take a look at the site, guys!! We had a lot of fun with our March Madness last year. Will we do it again? Maaaayybeeeee! Watch out for a post next week!

The next comment is from new friend jedi JT:

jedi-JT said...
Hey Carl, This is J.T. you met my mom the other day and she brought me home Barnstormers 1. Guess what, I had already read it! I got it out of South County a few months ago. I read it again yesterday and wanted to tell you:it is amazing because it combines baseball and mystery two of my favorite things. I liked the train zooming through the baseball field and the fact that the story really made your brain think.Thanks for recommending it! Are there more books in the series yet

Yes there are! I have two of them right in front of me, Barnstormers # 2 and 3. I'm SO glad you liked # 1. The other two are even better!! I've been telling guys about these books for a long time. As we always say, any guy who writes in gets a free book, so come down to Imaginon and pick one up! And check out my reviews of the Barnstormer books here and here. The next Barnstormers book comes out in May but the series will have a new name, the Sluggers. Find out why the new name at their website.

BTW, the CARLMAN, who brings balance to the Force, is pleased to see that there are now 2 jedi, Master Jedi Zack and jedi JT, and 2 sith, Darth Bill and Darth Devin, involved in the blog. The Force is in equilibrium; the galaxy sleeps peacefully tonight.

Line Up Now!

Even more Percy Jackson news!!! The CARLMAN mentioned the fifth book, The Last Olympian, is coming out in May. Well, you can already place a hold on it with the library. The line has started and already 13 people have put names on the list. Follow the link above to the library catalog and use your card to set a hold so you can be one of the first to get your hands on it when the library gets copies.

Did you hear?!?! also more on Evil Ellen

Hello all, Master Jedi Zack here again,

I just found out today that there is going to be a Percy Jackson movie!!! Maybe I've been to busy fighting the evil Sith and this is old news, but it is new to me and makes me very happy.

I've been following the drama that is the ImaginOn Boys Reading shelf and I thought I would put in my two cents. I have to agree with Bill (yes I know, I'm agreeing with a Sith), it must have been The Evil Ellen. We all know that she wants to destroy the Boys Rule Boys Read blog and only have girly books all over the place. Also, I went to library school with Ellen, and she is not to be trusted. Here is photographic evidence of how Ellen will even take to costume wearing to get away with her evil deeds.

I know I am going to pay for this, but the world must know just how low The Evil Ellen will sink!

Bill and Carl, beware and make sure she stays away from the shelf!!! I'll help you in anyway I can.

p.s. Ellen, please don't hurt me!

New Erec Rex Cover, New 39 Clues Book, and The Dangerous Book For Boys

Hey, everyone, it's Carl, shaking the snow out of my brain. Hope everyone enjoyed the day off yesterday. I spent the day wrestling polar bears and skiing down Mount McKinley. A typical snow day for the CARLMAN.

Got a little bit of news today. For all you Erec Rex fans, the new cover of Erec Rex 3: The Search For Truth is up on the Erec Rex website. You can see it here. What did you say? You haven't read the Erec Rex books??? Well, what are you waiting for???? They are FAN-TASTIC!!! Kaza Kingsley has created one of the BEST new series out there. (Check out my review here and an interview with Kaza Kingsley here) The third book is coming out July 30 and the first two books will be in paperback soon. Not to mention the library has lots of copies. So don't just stand there--run out and get them!!!! Look at the new Erec Rex 3 cover here or check out the website on the list of sites on the left-hand side of the page.

OK, in other exciting book news, the latest book in the 39 Clues series is out. It's The Sword Thief, written by Peter Lerangis. This time Dan and Amy go to Tokyo to find the next Clue. That city also happens to be a stronghold of the---hold on, do you know which branch of the Cahills has its HQ in Tokyo? I know, but I wonder if you do. Who'll be the first to tell us? (The llibrary hasn't received its copies yet--can't wait until they get here!)

Speaking of things created by Rick Riordan, check out the latest info on The Last Olympian on his Twitter site. AND--the first two casting choices for The Lightning Thief movie are on Rick Riordan's blog. They've chosen actors for Percy and Grover. What do you think of them?

And I've got a very cool nonfiction book for you all, The Dangerous Book For Boys by Conn and Hal Iggulden. It's one of those marvelous nonfiction books that you can wander around in and don't have to read straight through. You can even skip parts, but you won't want to because it's full of stuff that guys want to know like making batteries, crystals, and bows and arrows. Or coin tricks or astronomy or The Greatest Paper Airplane in the World. There are also Extraordinary Stories, Books Every Boy Should Read, The Golden Age of Piracy, Famous Battles, Five Pen-and-Paper Games, Baseball's "Most Valuable Players" (ending at 2006), and more. As you can see, this book is full of cool stuff to do. especially for guys!!! It'll be especially good when you and your buddies are sitting around and wondering what to do. Besides, there's just something about being a guy that makes you want to find out and make things. This is the book to show you how. There have been a lot of similar books printed since it was published but I think this one's the best. I really enjoyed this one and I know you'll like it too. In fact, I'll give a prize to the first guy who demonstrates something from this book! Come on down to Imaginon and show me!!

Carl