Atherton is one of THE best juvenile fiction books I have ever read, second to the Golden Compass.  I loved reading every page of the book and I even couldn’t wait for the sequel to come out.  The last time that happened was when I fell in love with the Golden Compass and that took like, 7 years, before the author published the third book.  Atherton is about this strange world, like a mini planet, that is has stratified plateaus.  Each plane lies on top of each other, like a pyramidal shape.  The protagonist is a young boy who tries to climb the steep cliff towers onto the next plateau in search of what is exactly up there.  He lives in the lowest plateau, where most of the farming and production comes from.  Those who live above them would lower large baskets to be filled with their produce.  They are rarely ever seen, except for the guards who have come with the baskets. But protagonist and his community live a meager life under the strict watch of overseers.  Well, he actually manages to climb up and over the next plateau he learns there is a great secret behind Atherton.   In the readers’ eyes, we too do not know what goes on above and the hierarchy of this society makes it such an intriguing mystery.

Image from New York Magazine

Warning: contains few scenes of a sexual nature

My interest in the topic of mail order brides came from a funny conversation I had with my fiancee about his friend’s interest in a certain type of “foreign women”.  I was curious about these women and trolled sites that had these kind of services.  Many of the testimonials from the matched couples were quite fun to read through.  I think like, “Well, we may not speak the same language or share any thing in common but we are now happily married”.

While also searching, I came across the title of this little known graphic novel of the same nature, “Mail Order Bride” by Mark Kalesniko.  I had to check this through my library’s internal library loan program and I guess not than many libraries own it because it came from this far away university.  But it was worth the wait, because it had drama and all sorts of murky problems that could happen from this  awkward arrangement.  I guess the kind of topics a woman would like to know more about , like me.  It starts with your average geeky white nerd who had arranged for mail order bride from Korea.   The nerd not only looks like a typical nerd but also owns a comic book shop.  Yay, for predictable setups.  He meets his new bride at the airport and she is a lovely Korean named Kyung.    Later, we come to find out she is everything that that he does not expect to her to be; especially that she doen’t act as foreign or subservient as he had imagined.  Yay, for stereotypes that lead to endless marital conflicts.  I really enjoyed reading this.  It’s a great “what if this happened?’  book about mail order brides.  Kudos to Kalesniko for doing such a wonderful job protraying emotions through his style of paneling.

Warning: strong images of female/male nudity and violence.  Don’t give this comic book to the kids.

Calling all fashionistas and fans of “Project Runway” here is a book written by the master of style

A fashion and style book by Tim Gunn

himself Tim Gunn.  I actually read the entire book!  Believe me with my book stuffing habits that is a surprise.  Usually what I do is read a few chapters then skip the rest when reading books on fashion or beauty.  But Tim Gunn writes with a rare and sharp wit that makes the topic of style the “highest” of art forms.  Sometimes I think he might even be snubbing you while reading his book.  Tim Gunn does’ nt exactly tell you what styles are the best in his opinion but rather gives you the ultimate advice of finding clothes that flatter your proportions.  He also includes different categorizes of styles along with their famous  role models.  What’s more there is an refreshing chapter on ‘how to walk’ and matching your handbag to your tone of attire that I find very useful and missing in most fashion books.  A great book to keep on hand, whether you’re a budding teenager or graceful lady.  I think this book will be around as his advice is positively time-less.   A definite keep worth buying and reading!

See you next time, Library Cat.

Gary Paulsen's biography "My Life in Dog Years"

My life in Dog Years by Gary Paulson (Childrens’ Biography section of your library)

This is a really great bio. from popular childerns and young adult novalist Gary Paulsen.  In his bio. he writes about his life in the time line of the many dogs he had come across since childhood to the present.  Its filled with many funny and interesting stories of these unique dogs.  From the dog who once fought an electrical fence and won, to a gentle yet huge Great Dane that lives for hot dogs .  I love animal stories especially ones that has animals with such  great personalities.  This is a great read for both adults and kids.  In fact, it makes for a excellent bedtime book as each story is quite short.

Go check this out at your local library!  Tell them the library cat sent you

See you next time.

so stick around!