First Check In: "You Can't Find a Cup of Tea Big Enough or a Book Long Enough to Suit Me."

That's what C. S. Lewis once said and he's right. I love tea and I love books--things that all MANLY MEN enjoy. Seriously, though, I've been reading a lot as part of the 48 Hour Book Challenge and its been a lot of fun. I've gone through two cups of Darjeeling tea (which I've drunk from my very MANLY Carolinas Panther mug) and have been steadily reading The Boundless by Kenneth Oppel and listening to Airborn, also by Kenneth Oppel. What terrific books! The Boundless (recommended by our friend and reader guy Mighty Micah) is a really good adventure story about the world's longest train, a boy who gets lost and nearly separated from the train, a murderer trying to find him, a sasquatch and every boy's dream, which is, according to page 141, is to join the circus. I'm a little over halfway through and enjoying it immensely.

But even the Iron Guy can't sit and read all the time. I still have to walk the dog, put away laundry (yes, MANLY MEN do their own laundry!) and do a few other things which get me off my chair. That's why it's great that we can listen to an audiobook during the Challenge--we can still "read" while doing other things. Well, this is one very terrific audiobook. It's long--about 10 1/2 hours--but it has really drawn me in. I'll give a full review another time but let me just say for now that it creates a totally believable alternate universe and populates it with good and interesting characters that you want to hear more about. It's not a book that starts off with a bang; I'm on chapter 5 and there has only been one thrilling event, a mid-air rescue in chapter one. This book takes it's own sweet time to set up the good stuff but there promises to be some very cool things happening before long. This is one of those books that, as C. S. Lewis would say, can't be long enough.

So I started reading and listening at 8:00 am and now it's 3:00 pm, so that makes seven hours of reading listening so far. I'm going to check out what my fellow bloggers have been doing and then get back to it.

ONWARD, fellow readers!

48 Hour Book Challenge--2015 Edition

Yes, reader guys everywhere, it's June once again and that means it's time for the Iron Guy's annual test of endurance and stamina, that time when he pushes his amazing MANLY MANLINESS to limits undreamed of. In other words, it's time for the 48 Hour Book Challenge, a weekend in which lots of kidlit book bloggers see how many hours they can read in a 48-hour period. The Iron Guy has done this in the past and has, of course, held the blog world in awe of his ability to sit in one spot and read. (click on the "48 hour book challenge" tab under this post to see what I've done in the past 48 Hour Challenges) This year promises to be one of the best ever, so stay tuned to this blog and see Iron Guy achieve even greater awesomeness!

What will I read this weekend? Well, I plan to finish a couple of books on my TBR ("to be read") list but there are a couple of others:


The Boundless by Kenneth Oppel--Our friend Mighty Micah recommended this one to me, so how could I refuse?










Yeah! Yeah! Yeah! : the Beatles, Beatlemania, and the Music That Changed the World by Bob Spitz--The story of the greatest rock band of all time. Gotta be a good one.








We're also allowed to listen to one audiobook, so I've got Airborn by Kenneth Oppel. Yes, that's two books by the same author in one weekend but this one is supposed to be really good, so why not?

OK, then. I'll officially start the challenge later tonight(actually started @ 11:30 pm--update from this afternoon), so watch this blog and follow the progress of the incredible--

IRON GUY!

Third Meeting of the Boys Read and Write Club

That's right, guys, we held the third meeting of the totally hip and happening Boys Read and Write Club last Saturday. And we had a good time too! Our friend Mighty Micah, who was at the second meeting, couldn't be here this month but we did have a great new friend come for the first time. His name is Walden and he likes mystery and comedy books. But I'll get to that in a minute. Our club always starts off with an activity, so this time we tried the Balance and Rescue activity from the upcoming Superhero Training Camp program. (which will happen at 2:00 pm on June 30 here at the Myers Park library) I put two rows of narrow tape down on the floor. One row of tape represented a cord stretched between tall buildings; the other was a wire over a deep prehistoric canyon. At the end of each row was a Cute Little Bunny that needed rescuing, one from a burning house and one from a T. Rex. If his feet didn't stay on the tape, he'd plunge hundreds of feet to certain destruction. If
he touched the burning house or the T. Rex, he'd be burned to a cinder or snapped up by hungry jaws. Was Walden up to challenge? Of course he was, just like all the MANLY MEN who attend this club! He walked the rows of tape as confidently and sure-footedly as the most fearless mountain goat. In fact, he even managed to walk BACKWARD at one point! What a guy! What a hero! (too bad I don't have any pictures of him performing his mighty deeds available)

After that, we had some snacks and talked about some of our favorite books. Walden has read some books by Gordon Korman that he likes a lot, such as The Masterminds. And, as I said, Walden is a big fan of mysteries and comedy. I wish we would have had some copies of the Brixton Brothers books on hand, so he could have gotten both in the same books.
However, I did have The Wright 3 by Blue Balliet, which has a good bit of mystery. We also had Alvin Ho: Allergic to Camping, Hiking, and Other Natural Disasters by Lenore Look, one of the hold-your-sides-funny books in the Alvin Ho series. He checked them out and will write reviews of them for us. Good choices, Walden! Can't wait to hear what you think of them.


The next meeting of the club will be on Saturday, July 11 at 2:00 pm. Hope to see a bunch of you then!

Super Summer Reading!

Greetings, reader guys and heroes everywhere! Next Monday, June 15, starts the library's ultra-cool and very exciting Summer Reading program. This year's theme is Every Hero Has a Story. Isn't that the perfect theme for GUYS? Doesn't that just make you think of flying through the air or racing through the streets in a high-tech vehicle? Of course it does! Every GUY knows he's really a superhero! Well, all kidding aside, this year's Summer Reading will be a lot of fun. It's a chance to get prizes for reading and participate in great activities. Find out more by going to the library's Summer Reading--Every Hero Has a Story site. It should tell you all you need to know but if you don't understand something, I (or anyone at the library) will be glad to explain to you how it works.

In addition, there will be a Summer Reading Kickoff here on Monday, June 15. We'll have some self-directed activities and Discovery Place will do a program at 2:00 pm. There will also be really good weekly programs like the Storytime Explorers on Monday nights at 6:30 and Tuesdays at 2:00 on (you guessed it) Tuesday afternoons at 2:00 pm.

But the Iron Guy, always looking out terrific stuff for boys to do, has scheduled some things for GUYS. The first is the next monthly meeting of the Boys Read and Write Club on Saturday, June 13 at 2:00 pm. The next will be the first Guys Movie Night on Tuesday, June 30 at 6:00 pm. This will be a chance for boys to come with their dads, grandpas, uncles, older brothers, mentors, etc. and have fun being GUYS by watching a movie together. This month we'll show The Incredibles.

All right, heroes, call the Myers Park library at 704-416-5800 to sign up for these programs. Let's have fun and knock out summer boredom together!

Our First Review From Mighty Micah!

Hey, reader guys everywhere. Have I got something exciting for you--our first review from Micah, the newest member of our very fun Boys Read and Write Club. If you remember, he picked three books to read and write about. And here's his reaction to the first one, The Roar by Emma Clayton. Let's hear what Micah (aka Mighty Micah) has to say:

The Roar is a fictional story placed in future London where the world is divided into two parts, over the wall, where poisonous dust and gas rule the Earth (or so they say), and behind the wall, which is further divided into two subdivisions,  the Shadows, the home of the poor, and the Golden Turrets, the home of the rich.   I liked The Roar because of the excitement throughout the book.  The Roar also contains hope directed toward a better life. 

Mika Smith was born in The Shadows and has lived there his entire life.  Ever since his sister Ellie disappeared one year ago, Mika has been hoping for a chance at a better life and that time is now.

Meanwhile, up in orbit aboard the space Station, The Queen of the North, Mal Gorman, a 108 year old walking zombie has finally struck gold, but what will he do with it. 


Pod Fighter, the tie between Mika and Mal Gorman has come out and now it is time for them to meet.

Thanks, Micah! (Hey--did you notice that the guy in the book is also named Mika?  Of course you did!) I enjoyed this book a whole, whole lot. And I wasn't the only one--that book got more comments than any other ever reviewed on this blog. It has excitement to the max along with thrilling pod fights, a thoroughly despicable villain and a deeply-held secret. Take a look at my original review and all the comments here.

The library system has plenty of copies of The Roar. And we also have copies of The Whisper, the sequel, which I haven't read. I haven't heard of Pod Fighter, though, Micah. Is that a new book? I heard Emma Clayton was going to make this a trilogy but I haven't found out anything about a new book. If you know, Micah, or if any of you reader guys know, please tell me in the Comment section below this post. And if you've read The Roar or The Whisper, let me know that too!

BTW, Micah, any time a guy writes in his first review, he gets a free book from our ultra-cool prize box. Come in any time and claim your book!

What Am I Reading? (Or About to Start Reading)

Hey, guys, it's Monday. "Well, great big duhhh," you might say, "we already knew that!" The reason I'm telling you is because this is It's Monday! What Are You Reading? day. A very nice kidlit blogger named Jen hosts this every Monday so other kidlit bloggers can write about what they are reading. I thought I'd jump on board that train today and tell you about a couple of things I'm about to start reading and am very excited about.

One is the new book from the great and hilarious Dave Barry, who writes some of the funniest stuff you'll ever belly laugh to. He wrote Science Fair, which has always been a guy favorite. This newest book is  The Worst Class Trip Ever and it's about an 8th grade class going on a trip to Washington, DC. Does that sound familiar to anyone? I know a school that sends its eight-graders there every year. Anyway, I've read the first couple of pages and have laughed out loud three times. This ought to be fun! (ps--our good friend Ms. Yingling wrote about how that book was like real life and how also about meeting Dave Barry!)

The other will be fun in a different way. This is The Serpent's Curse, the newest installment of The Copernicus Files by the outstanding Tony Abbott. I've posted recently about another book in this series, so take a look here and see why I'm so happy to get this one.

I'm also going to start on a couple of mythology books by Vicky Shecter, an author who contacted me about her books several months ago. One is called Anubis Speaks! and the other is Hades Speaks!. I've felt bad about never getting around to her books, so, in true MANLY MAN fashion, I'm going to tackle my procrastination and wrestle to the ground! I'm also into a book on my old Nook. Even though I'm reading it on an e-reader, the he library has  copies of the actual book and e-copies as well. This book has been around long enough to be a classic. Now I know a lot of boys groan who they hear that word because they think "classic" means old and boring. And, yeah, sometimes that's the case but often a book is a classic because it's still exciting after all these years. Like this one--King Solomon's Mines by H. Rider Haggard. Boys have been thrilling to this for many years and I'm enjoying it a lot. It hasn't gotten to the really good parts yet but it's coming--and even the build-up has been fun!

So that's what the Iron Guy is reading--what about YOU? Write in and tell us what you're reading these days. Can't wait to hear from you!

May the 4th Be With You--and With the Boys Read and Write Club!

Hey, all you super-cool reader guys out there, you probably don't need me to tell you what today is--but I'll tell you anyway! It's May the 4th, Star Wars Day. That's because we can say, "May the 4th be with you." Clever, huh? Anyway, guys everywhere love Star Wars and the library has a truly great new book, Ultimate Star Wars by Patricia Barr, Adam Bray, Daniel Wallace and Ryder Windham. It's amazing--it covers all the movies and animated series and has stunning photos and scenes. You GOTTA check this one out!! While we're at it, let me show you the trailer for the NEW Star Wars movie:

Doesn't that look exciting? And it's good to see Hans Solo and Chewbacca again.

Speaking of movies, I saw the new Avengers movie yesterday. I won't say much about since I'm sure
most of you will see it or may have seen it already because it has all the things GUYS love in a movie--superheroes, explosions and fights with killer robots. Anyway, one thing really stood out for me. Near the end of the movie, they show a scene of a family at home, waiting for the dad to arrive. There's a boy, curled up on a sofa. And what is that boy doing? Playing a video game? Staring at an hand-held device? No, he's reading a book! A Wimpy Kid book, no less. See, it does prove that boys read!

Mighty Micah and his books

Which brings me to the main point of this post. We held the second meeting of the Boys Read and Write Club last Saturday. Our two friends, Sharyq and Zarak, couldn't make it this time but we had a terrific new guy show up. His name is Micah (aka "Mighty Micah") and he was very excited to be there. Micah and I have talked before and I've recommended several books to him. But what really convinced me that he was a world-class reader guy was that he is a big fan of The Copernicus Files books!! Oh, yeah! So I was very glad to see him come to the meeting Saturday. We had a good time--we started out with some Nerf ball soccer. Micah, of course, is shorter and faster but I'm bigger and could block the  goal better. So we had an epic contest--Mighty Micah vs. the Iron Guy! We played a bit of regular soccer, then did something inventive--I got books off the shelves and put them up as "players." Micah and I had to avoid them when bringing the ball up the "field." In fact, Micah knocked one over and had to sit out a "penalty." But, in the end, youth and speed prevailed and Micah won, 3--2.
Then we talked about books we like. Micah reads a wide variety of stuff, including a YA book called Boundless. He liked it so much that he talked me into getting it. You'll see a review of it here one day. Micah doesn't like books that start out slowly; that's why he doesn't like The 39 Clues. He says The Maze of Bones begins slowly. (Hint--stick with it, Micah. It gets really good) After we talked, Micah picked out not just one, not just two but three books to read and review. You'll see them in the picture. One is Lucky Strike by Bobbie Pryon, one is The Roar by Emma Clayton and the other is the fabulous Wade and the Scorpion's Claw by Tony Abbott. Good choices! Of all the books I've ever reviewed, The Roar got the most comments from boys. And do I think that Wade and the Scorpion's Claw is good? Just look here.
OK, Micah, I can't wait to see your reviews! We are planing another meeting on Saturday, June 13 at 2:00. It will be a great time, just like the others. And we have plenty of room for new guys! Call me at 704-416-5800 to find out more.