Boys Rule Boys Read!: The Whipping Boy

Tuesday, May 11, 2010

The Whiiping Boy by Sid Fleischman: My First Blast From the Past

Hey, all you crazy reader cats in blogville, the CARLMAN has to apologize for not posting as much as I have before. With all these changes going on in the library, I'm busy with a lot of stuff, so I don't get as much time to blog or read as I used to. But it's all good--I'll get on here when I can. I've got several good books to write about eventually, like the first Redwall book. Our family also went ahead and bought The Red Pyramid and The Emperor's Code, so you'll hear about them before too long.

In the menatime, I thought I'd tell you about some terrific things I've read in the past but never

blogged about. These are my Blasts From the Past. The first is The Whipping Boy by Sid Fleischman. This is one TERRIFIC book! You will REALLY enjoy this one!

Can you imagine how unfair it would be to be whipped for something someone else did? That's the situation that young Jemmy finds himself in--whenever Prince Brat misbehaves (which is all the time), Jemmy gets the thrashing since no one can whack the heir to the throne. No wonder that Jemmy runs away. But guess who's the first person he meets--that's right, Prince Brat!! The prince has run away also and wants to tag along with Jemmy. What could be worse? Well, how about being the both of them being captured by two murderous bad guys named Hold-Your-Nose Billy and Cutwater? I tell you, guys, this is a fun, fun, FUN read! There are laughs, escapes, and a circus bear. And wait until you see what finally happens to the bad guys! Go check this one out, guys! You'll truly be glad you did!

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.