Boys Rule Boys Read!: Scott O'Dell

Showing posts with label Scott O'Dell. Show all posts

Wednesday, May 16, 2012

Another Blast from the Past: Island of the Blue Dolphins

Every once in a while the Iron Guy likes to set conventional wisdom on its ear. (When I say "conventional wisdom," I mean "The way people say it's always done") The conventional wisdom says that boys won't read books with a girl as the main character. Well, I stick out my tongue and say, "Ppphhhhttttt!!" to that. Give a guy an exciting story about a boy or a girl and he'll read it. I've seen guys sitting around the library reading Nancy Drew graphic novels. So there! I've got a book that any guy would enjoy. I read it several years ago (which makes it a Blast from the Past) and it's Island of the Blue Dolphins by the terrific Scott O'Dell. This is a great survival story in the tradition of Hatchet. (see my review of that book here) In this story, a Native American girl named Karana and her little brother get left behind when her tribe has to leave their island, which is a desolate spot off the coast of California. They learn to fend for themselves but then her brother gets killed by a pack of wild dogs. Can she learn to survive on that lonely island? Can she make peace with that pack of dogs or be killed by them too? Is it possible to make it through the winter on her own? Add to this an unforgettable fight with a "devil fish" and you've got one fantastic book that will stay with you long after you finish.So go and check it out. You'll really like it.

This gets the Iron Guy Seal of Approval as One Terrific Book!

(sorry about the glare on the cover--must the glow of MANLINESS radiating from the Iron Guy!)

Thursday, March 20, 2008

"And He's Outta There!"

Hey, guys, just wanted to let you know that I'll be on vacation too. I won't leave town until Sunday but I'l be gone from the library on Friday. So keep writing and voting. Don't forget that you get three extra points for every review you send in. Don't stop writing because Bill and I aren't here. Bill will be back Tuesday and he'll catch up on things. I might even check in before Sunday. But don't forget that the deadline for voting on this round ends at 9:00pm Tuesday, March 25. (Bill will be back and he'll figure the results)

Our friends at the Guys Read blog often have a What I'm Reading Now post. Well, here's my What I'm Taking to Read on Vacation list:

The King's Fifth by Scott O'Dell. I told you earlier that I was reading a book called The Black Pearl by Scott O'Dell. Well, I liked it and I like the author too so, if I like this book, I'll make a Scott O'Dell post and talk about those two books.

Carry On, Mr. Bowditch by Jean Lee Latham--an old, old book but it looks good. A fictionalized biography of Nataniel Bowditch, who lived in the days of the tall-masted sailing ships. He went to sea when he was 12 and eventually learned to navigate ships so well that he became a living legend. This book the Newberry medal as Best Book of its year.

And I might finish the second Barnstormers book while I have the car worked on tomorrow. This second one is good!!

Well, like Harry Carey, the great baseball announcer said whenever someone hit a homer,''He's going ...he's going...he's outta there!"

Keep swinging for the outfield,

Carl

Here's How Our Blog Works

If you don't know how to post comments or reviews to our blog or if you want to read what we and other boys have written, here's what you do:

1. Every post has a place underneath it that says "Comments". Click on it and it will take you to a place in which you can write something. When you're done, click on a way to identify yourself. You don't have to create a Blogger/Google account (unless you already have one); you can click on "Name/URL" or even "Anonymous." Then click "Publish Your Comment." We try to get your comments and reviews posted right away, but sometimes we get busy with other duties. So, if you don't see your comment right away, don't panic. We'll post it soon.

Don't forget--any boy can get a free book the first time he writes a review. If you live too far away to come to the Myers Park library, go ahead and write to us anyway. We'll try to find a way to get a book to you. Besides, all the other boys out there would love to hear from you.

When you tell us about a book, please give the title, author, what the book is about, and why you did or didn't like it.

2. Blogs go "front to back"; that is, the newest post comes up first and the older ones are put further back. You click on the "Blog Archive" to read older articles. The posts for this month have the titles listed. You can click on other months to catch our other posts. (Our introduction is in June of 2007; if you're new to this blog, you might look it up.)

3. Underneath each post you'll see a line that says "Labels" and several other words such as "graphic novels" or "Andrew Clements." These extra words are links to a subject; for instance, if you clicked on "graphic novels," it would pull up all the posts about graphic novels. There's also a section below on some of our best posts on the most popular subjects

4. Did you notice that the posts from last year don't show up month by month as they did before this year? If you click on the triangle next to the previous years, the months will drop down and you can go back and see what we and your fellow readers have written.

The Iron Guy's Review Policy

1. Since the Iron Guy works for the terrific Charlotte Mecklenburg Library, I review only books that the library already has or will get soon.
2. If you are an author or publisher or agent and think you have a book that boys will go crazy over, please leave me a comment (with your email address so I can contact you) under any post. I will look and see if we have the book. If not, and if the book looks good, I will contact Those Who Order Books and see if CML would be interested. (Please note--CML does not usually order self-published books) PLEASE do not just send me a book! I appreciate the offer but but first I want to see if CML has it or will get it soon.