Sorry about the delay - big problems on the internet last night around here!

Inspired by Max over at The Millions, I thought I would highlight some interesting sounding titles in the catalogs I receive. Today brought the Spring catalog from Tundra Books, a Canadian publisher of picture books and YA titles that has impressed me in the past. I reviewed their sci fi title, The Aquanuats in my January column at Bookslut and the mystery From Charlie's Point of View last Fall. Both were excellent and I've been pretty eager to see what they have coming out this season.

The first book to catch my eye was the picture book Tapicero Tap Tap by Warabe Aske. I'm always trying to find picture books that not only look good and have an engaging story (or a series of engaging poems) but also provide a different perspective for young readers. I like to champion books that show kids about different places and people without making them dull social studies titles (not that there's anything wrong with social studies...). This story about a two bored children in a small Spanish village and their uncle who once dreamed of seeing the world but now makes furniture in his workshop sounds both sweet and unique. The pictures look amazing and the idea of reading about someone who is happy doing what he does sounds incredibly appealing in this day and age.

Journalist Val Ross has written a history book for kids 11 and up on the subject of reading itself: You Can't Read This. She focuses on the struggle to read, on great libraries, burned libraries and censorship. Her subjects included everyone from Frederick Douglass to "girls in Afghanistan in the year 2001 who defied laws that prevented them from learning to read." I think all of us take our freedoms for granted - and I don't mean that in a go to war right now kind of a way but in a demand to know the truth kind of way - and a book like this could go a long way toward shedding light on why books matter. I'm hoping it rocks.

Domenic's War by Curtis Parkinson is about the battle surrounding the monastery at Monte Cassino in January 1944 and an Italian family who lived nearby and were caught in the crossfire. I've been intrigued by Monte Cassino since I first read about Monte Cassino over at A Common Reader (best book catalog ever and sadly to be missed) and to see it covered for young adults really amazes me. I'm very curious as to why Parkinson decided to write about this subject and I'd like to read the book and then hopefully interview him and see why he wrote it.

Mable Riley is about a young girl in 1901 who "dreams of adventure and becoming a writer." She ends up in a small Ontario town with her sister who becomes the school mistress. It is in Stratford that she meets a "real" writer, Mrs. Rattle and is invited to attend a meeting of the Ladies Reading Society. The society ends up being not about books at all, but a group of suffragists and Mable finds herself in situations she could never have planned for. Since this is a woefully overlooked period in history, I'd like to see what Marthe Jocelyn does with a spunky heroine and a group of dedicated woman reformers. VOYA writes that it "makes the early suffragette history engaging and entertaining" and I'm all for any book that can do that with history for young adults.

And even though this blog is not about baseball, I can't let the passing of Kirby Puckett go by without saying how much I enjoyed watching him play. He always seemed to love the game and certainly the Minnesota Twins. This is sad day for baseball, and a reminder of just how great some of the sport's players truly are.