Audiobook Awesomeness

Well, guys, summer's heating up here in Charlotte. How hot is it? It's so hot that the birds are using potholders to pull worms out of the ground. It's so hot the orchards are growing fried pies.It's so hot that Domino's turned off their ovens and are baking their pizzas on the sidewalk! Yep, it's hot.

Things are heating up in the library, too--I mean we're really busy, so I'm going to be brief today.
Do you remember my talking about the audiobook version of The Serpent's Curse by Tony Abbott? Well, I finished and I have just two words to say about it:

AWE    

SOME!!!

This really is one of the best audiobooks I've heard in a long time. The plot is terrific and the reading is spot-on, which means it gets all the intense action, suspense, danger, humor and mystery just right. I can't say enough good things about it. You'll enjoy it so much that you'll ask your parents to drive around the block a couple of more times to hear what happens next! If you haven't listened to his, go get it!! And if you haven't read any of The Copernicus Legacy books----well, I can't think of a better way to cool off that with a big glass of lemonade and one of these unbelievably good reads.

Reid Reads Again!---I Mean, Writes Again!--I Mean He Reads AND Writes Again!

Tars Tarkas, Martian warrior chief

Hey everyone, this is the Iron Guy, keeping busy during this ultra-busy summer season. I tell you, this summer keeps me hopping! I'm checking out books faster than light speed. Sometimes I wish we could hire one of those four-armed Martians from the old John Carter books in order to keep up!
And when it gets this busy, even a MANLY MAN like the Iron Guy has trouble keeping up with his reading. That's why I'm glad we have faithful friends like our good pal Reid! He has sent us a review of something that sounds really good. Let's hear what it is:

The Mysterious Benedict Society, by Trenton Lee Stewart is a cool book that hooks me and keeps me on the edge of my seat at all times. It is really fun to read because it is about smart people like you and is really good. It is about 4 people named Reynie,Constance,Sticky,and Kate. They go on an adventure together to a place called the Learning Institute for the Very Enlightened or LIVE for short. They become Messengers and help with the Whisperer project. The Whisperer is a scary device able to remove,steal,and communicate thoughts. 


Thanks, Reid! This is another one of those books that keep getting checked out over and over and over again. I can see why from your review! This is the first book in a series and I hope you read the rest of them. Let us know if you do! BTW, the audiobooks must be really good. I know someone who would listen to it in the car and, when she got home, would run run inside and slap the disc in the cd player to keep playing the story!

How about the rest of you reader guys? Have any of you read this book? Or any of the others in this series? Or listened to the audiobooks? Send us a review in the "Comments" section--or send us a review of ANY book you're enjoying this summer.

It's Monday--What Are You Listening To?

Summertime greetings, guys! What sort of fun activities are you doing? Swimming? Baseball?  Movies? Traveling? I certainly hope you're doing more than playing video games all day and night! (it's OK to do that but there's so much more fun stuff out there) I hope you're finding fun stuff to read as well. And if you are traveling or even just getting driven around town to camps/sports/etc., one of the most fun things you can do in the car is listen to audiobooks. That's what the Iron Guy loves to do. If I'm driving to work or even just going to the store, I'll always have an audiobook going. It's great fun and I get to hear some truly cool stuff. That's why this post is called It's Monday--What Are You Listening To? A bunch of grownups host a weekly meme called It's Monday--What Are You Reading? but I thought I'd change it and give it an audiobook focus. (btw, you can find that meme at Teaching Mentor Texts)

So what am I listening to? The Serpent's Curse by the amazing Tony Abbott. It's book number two in that incredible series, The Copernicus Legacy. I'm a HUGE fan of those books. Action! Danger! International conspiracies and 500-year-old secrets! Plus some spectacularly evil villains and generous dashes of humor. So when I saw the library has audiobook versions, I knew I HAD to check out one. I'm only on disc 2 so far but I'm enjoying it a lot. The actor who reads this book, MacLeod Andrews, paces the reading just right to get the maximum suspense and humor out of the story. (especially when he reads the part with Dr. Beverly Billing...ham, one of the funniest episodes in any book from the last couple of years!) And he gets the voices just right too--the kids sound like kids and the villains--well, you couldn't find more perfectly-done voices for all those smooth or brutal or bone-chillingly frightening bad guys. If you're going to spend some time in the car, find these Copernicus Legacy audiobooks! You will get hooked and you may even find yourselves sitting in your driveways at the end of your trips because you just have to listen to a few minutes more!!

Big Fun With Big Nate!

Hey, guys, I hope you're all enjoying the summer. The Iron Guy certainly does. Even though summer is busy at the library and it gets miserably hot in Charlotte during June, July and August, the summer always has that laid back, let's-all-have-fun vibe that I love. So, in the spirit of fun, I decided to check out some Big Nate books. I see those things get checked in and out, in and out, all the time. This has been going on for quite a while. So, after seeing these books keep coming through the checkout line, I figured they must be really good. So I found three of them and guess what??

I'm Charlotte's newest Big Nate fan!!

These books are great! Truly terrific! They are funny, funny, funny. The story lines are fun and the characters are believable--well, in a cartoonish sort of way. I picked out three books at random and here they are:

Big Nate: Mr. Popularity (all of these books are by Lincoln Peirce)

Big Nate running for class president??!! What a goofball idea. But then, the election results might surprise you! Along the way, you'll learn Big Nate's basketball game prep, what happens between Nate and Jenny (could it be looovve?) and why Nate's dad never got Nate a wallet. And you'll laugh the whole time.







Big Nate Lives It Up

A new kid comes to P.S. 38, Nate's school, and the principal assigns Nate to be his "buddy" and show him around the school--but this kid is the complete opposite of Nate and how will they ever get along? And Nate keeps thinking he's met this kid before. Then there are 100-year-old cartoons, Randy and his fellow bullies and a massive scavenger hunt with a most unexpected find. THEN NATE REMEMBERS when he met the new kid before--and it's not pleasant...



Big Nate Makes the Grade

Ah, the first day back at school! Is it a chance to start a year of fresh possibilities or for Nate to re-enter "my own personal chamber of horrors"?
He finds out pretty quickly when he hands in homework with Cheese Doodle dust on in it, has "Hot Feet Syndrome" and tries to tell jokes during school announcements. Plus the teacher's reaction when Nate shows him where he created his art homework. Plus the surprising things he does in the chess tournament. (well, thy're normal for Nate!)





I tell you, I have become totally hooked by this little guy with his big mouth, big attitude and big capacity for getting into trouble! I see now why all the kids keep checking out these books. Guys, this is your chance for great fun. If you haven't read Big Nate, then run down to your local library and check out some before everyone else does. And if you are already a fan of Nate Wright, then go to the "Comments" section under this post and tell about the books you've read.

And I hope all of you have a great fourth of July weekend! I know I've said this before but it's worth saying again--don't  forget that we we live in a country in which you are free to read what you like. Which is not true everywhere on earth. I recently listened to an audiobook in which a woman decided to travel the old Silk Road route from China to Italy. Part of the route took her through a central Asian country ruled by a dictator. The capital city had a big modern library and the shelves were full, only they were full of copies of one book--a biography of the dictator, written by the dictator! Boys, remember to celebrate your right to read this weekend. Head to your library! Read widely! Read what you like. Read something you've never looked at before. Read people you agree with. Read people you don't agree with. Read something fun. Read something challenging. Always remember--

THE FREEDOM TO READ

ROCKS!!

#704th