838-841 (2018 #52-55). The Rest of August 2018

Pictures at an Exhibition by Sara Houghteling - audiobook read by Marc Bramhall, historical fiction set in France just before and after World War II involving artwork stolen by the Nazis.  Good story, unlikeable characters.

Before We Were Yours by Lisa Wingate - audiobook, narrators Emily Rankin and Catherine Taber, historical fiction, realistic fiction, hybrid.  SOO good.

American Ghost by Hannah Nordhaus - ebook, memoir, about the author's ancestors who were early Jewish settlers in Santa Fe, New Mexico - one of whom supposedly still haunts a hotel there.  Interesting read.

The Relic Master by Christopher Buckley - historical fiction, audiobook - set in the 1500s around the time of Martin Luther, this romp of an adventure is a great satire of Catholic Church practices surrounding holy relics and the sale of indulgences in that period.  The main character, the relic master, is Dismas, who buys relics on behalf of two employers,  the good Frederick the Wise, Elector of Saxony (who shelters Luther from the wrath of the Pope) and the evil Cardinal Albert of Brandenburg. Elector and Archbishop of Mainz, an evil archbishop cardinal.  Even includes the real painter Albrecht Dürer as a major character.  Dismas is named for the Penitent Thief, the good thief who was crucified next to Jesus.  A fun book!  Actor James Langton is excellent as the reader.


© Amanda Pape - 2018

837 (2018 #51). Mary Who Wrote Frankenstein

A picture book biography by Linda Bailey of Mary Shelley, with publication timed to coincide with the 200th anniversary of the publication of her classic, Frankenstein.  The book also helps answer the question - where do authors get their ideas?  There's a nice photograph of Mary Shelley along with a more detailed four-page author's note at the end, as well as a list of sources.  The book neatly avoids all the scandal associated with Mary, her family, and her compatriots.

The people in the illustrations look like a mix of the 1960s Munsters and Addams Family, only with a bit more color.  Readers who remember these series might appreciate that, and the relationship to Frankenstein.  Rendered digitally by Júlia Sardà, the illustrations are incredibly detailed.

© Amanda Pape - 2018

[I received a hardbound copy of this book from the LibraryThing Early Reviewers program.  It will be added to my university library.]

836 (2018 #50). Makerspaces in Schools

Lacy Brejcha is a 16-year-veteran of Texas public schools, serving as a gifted and talented elementary teacher and district coordinator, makerspace/innovation/enrichment teacher, and instructional technologist.  In Makerspaces in School, she outlines a ten-month (school-year) plan for creating a makerspace in a classroom or school.

I would have preferred that the space given over to the monthly "Planning Page and Reflections" be used instead to make the photographs in the book LARGER.  They are so small, you can't see what is going on in them.  Otherwise, this is a useful tool.

© Amanda Pape - 2018