Where To Buy Babymouse 3 Beach Babe by Matt Holm At The Lowest Price?

Why Buy A Babymouse 3 Beach Babe by Matt Holm?
Grab your sunglasses! School’s out and Babymouse is headed to the beach for a week of sun, sand, surfing, snorkeling, and sharks! That’s right, folks . . . sharks! Looks like Babymouse’s summer fun isn’t shaping up quite the way she expected! Will Babymouse survive her summer vacation? Will she be the surfing star she dreams of being . . . or is she sharkbait?! Find out in Babymouse: Beach Babe, written and illustrated by brother-sister team Matthew Holm and Newbery Honor winner Jennifer L. Holm—making a splash this summer!

Features

• Click here to view our Condition Guide and Shipping Prices
• Condition: NEW
• ISBN13: 9780375832314
• Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.

Over 3 Five Star Customer Reviews On Amazon!

The Irrepressible Spirit of Babymouse Shines Through
Babymouse: Beach Babe sat on my coffee table the day after it arrived, looking very pink, and calling out, in a high-pitched, squeaky sort of voice “read me.” Eventually, just before bedtime, I gave in. And I have to say, after missing the first two books in the series, that I am now in love with Babymouse.

For those of you unfamiliar with the series, the Babymouse books are graphic novels, with engaging pink and black pictures, designed for the 8 to 12 set. They feature an indomitable heroine, with a rich fantasy life, and loving, if largely invisible, parents. This installment begins with Babymouse dreaming of being a surfing champion, only to wake to discover that (oh great joy!) it’s the last day of school. After making it through the day, Babymouse learns (oh greater joy!) that her family will be vacationing at the beach. What follows is a mixture of real-life beachside trials and tribulations (sand-castles, surfing, sunburn, and boardwalks) and fantastical adventures (mermaids and genies in magic bottles).

But the real story is Babymouse’s relationship with her much younger brother, Squeak. Anyone who has ever had a younger sibling, or been a younger sibling, will be able to relate to the images of Squeak, ready with his kite, eager for his adored older sister to play with him. And, sadly, we can also relate to Squeak’s desolation when Babymouse is too busy, running off on her adventures. There’s a scene in which Squeak’s heart literally breaks, upon rejection from Babymouse. Clearly, the brother-and-sister creators of this book have some real-life experience in matters of older and younger siblings. You’ll have to read the book yourself to see how it turns out.

Babymouse: Beach Babe is a quick and easy read, and will definitely appeal to reluctant grade school readers. Two things make the book stand out for me. The first is the irrepressible spirit of Babymouse, as expressed through her actions, through the wonderful drawings, and through her discussions with the invisible narrator. She carries echoes of Anne Shirley in her dramatic failures, and of Pippi Longstocking in her bravado. The other thing that I love about this book is the regular seasoning of small, humorous details. The scene where Babymouse cleans out her locker, finding, among other things, troublesome gnomes, aliens, and the dish that ran away with the spoon, made me laugh out loud.

Babymouse: Beach Babe is the kind of book that you want to read with someone else nearby, so that you can hold it up and say “look at this!” at intervals. I think that my elementary school nieces will adore it. As for me, Babymouse: Beach Babe made me wish that I had been a little nicer to my younger siblings. It also made me nostalgic for childhood summer vacations, where life’s biggest problem is “who am I going to play with?” It’s an excellent read for the start of the summer.

This book review was originally published on my blog, Jen Robinson’s Book Page, on May 7, 2006.

I love Babymouse!!!
I am an educator and I teach kids with learning issues of all ages. I recently discovered Babymouse and have offered it to many of my students, boys and girls, and they all read one and ask for more. Babymouse is charming and lovable. She struggles with real world problems such as the mean girl, the scary teacher and issues of loyalty and friendship. Kids who don’t read well have access to a rich story line with Babymouse due to the graphics, which are delightful. The clever and non-patronizing humor also draws even the most reluctant reader in, causing them to read and then re-read their favorite parts. I enthusiastically recommend Babymouse.

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In the Forest A Novel by Edna OBrien – Save 20% Today!

Why Buy A In the Forest A Novel by Edna OBrien?
In the best of Edna OBriens novels, there is a lawless element, a violence, that springs up to satisfy some primal urge: revenge, desire, thwarted love, or even the seemingly contrasting need of a community for balance and order. In the Forest is based on a true story of a local terror, a murderer sprung from the fertile soil of the west Ireland countryside. Michen OKane is a loving boy gone bad. His father beat his mother, and his mother died young, leaving 10-year-old Michen to the indifferent care of relatives and teachers. A rich fantasy life and little outside guidance quickly lead to a detention center, where Michen is the prey of bullies, as well as of a kindly priest with an unfortunate use for small boys. But none of these factors fully explains Michens transformation into a killer. It is one of the strengths of this difficult and beautifully written novel that the lyrical fragments of Michens tale–told from various points of view–do not completely add up. The dark mysteries of psychosis are left intact. We have only evocative glimpses of Michens inner world and a crystal-clear image of the ruin he left behind. –Regina Marler

Over 14 Five Star Customer Reviews On Amazon!

Kinderschreck.
A boy, robbed off his mother’s love at the age of ten. Refusing to believe she is dead, clinging to the idea that she was buried alive while she was sleeping, digging a hole into the ground near her grave in order to speak to her. A loner who, then and there, decides to become “a true son of the forest,” as his mother in a dream apparition has told him to be. (Or was that an early delusion?) An adolescent, locked up in juvenile homes, boarding schools, prisons and other institutions, abused by a priest, neglected, ignored, and locking himself off against the outside world in response. Putting to practice the one lesson he has learned from Lazlo, the boys’ schizophrenic leader in the first such institution; Lazlo who heard voices and who has taught him that the one thing that counts is to hate “them” (the grown-ups, those that stand for authority and society as a whole) with a worse hate than they have for him. A young man, unable to show any feeling other than that long-practiced hatred; acting out his suppressed emotions in violence whenever he is not locked up, unable to escape the voices now talking in his head more and more often, just as they were once talking in Lazlo’s.

And a young woman with long red hair. Maddie’s mother, raising her young son alone, breaking off all relationships with men as soon as they get to close for comfort. An outsider, only recently moved to the village. A teacher. An artist. Mistress of ceremonies at a Celtic festival, performing pagan rituals. Druidess. Mystery woman whom nobody knows with complete intimacy, maybe not even her sister Cassandra and her best friend Madge. Raped and murdered by a young man trapped between insanity and emotional deprivation, for whom she is the realization of everything he associates with the idea of the female – simultaneously fairy queen, virgin, angel, object of his sexual fantasies, [...], confidante and most importantly, mother. This is the couple which, in the deadly dance at the heart of Edna O’Brien’s “In the Forest,” is locked together by fate; a fate prompted by the murderer’s delusions and rage as much as by society’s inability to deal with him. And this first murder is only the starting point of a killing spree which will demand several more victims before the young man is apprehended.

Like two of O’Brien’s previous novels, “Down by the River” (addressing incest, abortion and society’s inability to deal with either, as expressed in the trial of a girl who went to England to abort the child conceived from her own father) and “House of Splendid Isolation” (inspired by the Irish “troubles”), “In the Forest” is based on a series of real events which deeply shook the Irish society in the mid-1990s, and which occurred in the county which O’Brien, before moving to London, used to call her home. But here as there, the author is less interested in the hard, cold facts as such but rather, in the psychology involved and society’s response to the unspeakable horror of the crimes committed; in “man and the intentions of his soul,” as she once said in a newspaper article, quoting Leonardo da Vinci. And like the great painter, with an unrelenting eye for detail she takes the reader into the killer’s mind; a mind inexorably spiraling, spiraling, spiraling into a dark abyss from which soon there is no way out. At the same time, the reader experiences the terror of the abduction felt by his victims; the slow and chilling realization that there is no escape, that this last walk into the somber depth of the forest is the way into certain death, to be preceded by a suffering dreadful beyond imagination. Yet, the tale is not solely told from the perspective of Michen O’Kane, the killer and rapist, the “Kinderschreck” and bogeyman who holds an entire county at gunpoint; nor only from that of his victims, Eily Ryan and her son, and the others that will follow them within a matter of days. Thread by thread, Ms. O’Brien weaves the voices of all those involved in the events – the vicitims’ relatives, the killer’s family, the police, neighbors, women of the community and the psychiatrist who treated O’Kane at trial – into a fabric of rage, helplessness, despair and desolation; symbolized by the vast, dark, threatening forest where the first murders have taken place, that “chamber of non-light” which “lost its old name and its old innocence in the hearts of the people” when a dead goat “decomposed and stank” in a wooden hut at the farthest entrance to the forest.

In her native Ireland, Edna O’Brien was severely criticized for “In the Forest,” even before the novel was published, and accused of exploiting a gruesome crime for the sake of selling a story. The families of the victims of the incidents on which the novel is based reportedly spoke out against the book. But while it is undoubtedly difficult for them to deal with those events, the reaction of others only demonstrates the accuracy of Ms. O’Brien’s analysis. Yet again, the woman who to many seems to be a literary “Kinderschreck” herself, whose first six (!) books were banned because of their daring stance on women’s role in the Irish society (and society in general), and who moved to London years ago to “escape from those fields, gates, trees, woods, winds, sleet, priests, nuns and family, all of whom seemed to overwhelm [her],” as she wrote in the above-mentioned article, has held up a mirror before her fellow men; and yet again, some do not like what they see. That criticism, however, reflects more on those articulating it than on the author herself or her book. “In the Forest” is as brilliantly written as it is necessary – as shown by nothing better than by the reactions it provoked. A deeply disturbing book, but under no circumstances to be missed.

Also recommended:
The Country Girls Trilogy and Epilogue
Down by the River
The House of Splendid Isolation : A Novel
Dancing at Lughnasa

Gripping, a stunning portrayal of crime with several perspectives
this is the first Edna O’Brien book I have read, but it will not be the last. Her capacity for finding characters voices, her sensitivity in dealing with subjects and her masterful handling of a brutal story have made me a fan.

She started has based this on a true story, of a psychopathic killer who returned to his homeground in Ireland, killing three locals before he was caught and convicted. How much of this book actually is true I don’t know – how many of the characters are real live people whom she is reflecting in the work, and how much is pure fiction would be interesting to know but not necessary.

The strength of this work, for me anyway, was her ability to speak in each chapter from a different character’s perspective – the rushed and hurried tones of sympathetic witnesses, to the pitiful and victimised voice of the killer. Although I was aware of the outcome it was still fresh and surprising as the various layers of lies and counter lies were stripped away from the story to reveal the truth.

It is a wonderful and moving novel which I have recommended to several other readers now with all enjoying its compelling story.

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A Very Long Engagement: A Novel By Sebastien Japrisot – Save 20% Today!

Why Buy A A Very Long Engagement: A Novel By Sebastien Japrisot?
January 1917: five French soldiers are marched to their own front lines where they will be tossed out into no mans land with their hands tied behind their backs and left for the Germans to shoot. They were, in civilian life, variously a pimp, a mechanic, a farmer, a carpenter, and a fisherman; now they are condemned because each had sought to leave the war by shooting himself in the hand. Taken to a godforsaken trench nicknamed Bingo Crépuscule, the five are reluctantly sent out into the darkness; days later, five bodies are recovered and the families are notified, merely, that the men died in the line of duty.

August 1919: Mathilde Donnay receives a letter from a dying man. In it, the former soldier tells her that he met her beloved fiancé, the fisherman Manech, shortly before he died. Mathilde goes to meet Sergeant Daniel Esperanza at his hospital and there hears the story of the execution. She also receives a package with a photograph of the men and copies of their last letters. As Mathilde reads and rereads the letters and goes over Esperanzas tale, she begins to suspect that perhaps the story didnt end quite so neatly. And so begins her very long investigation into the mysterious circumstances surrounding the deaths of five condemned prisoners–one of whom, at least, might not really be dead.

In Mathilde Donnay, Sebastien Japrisot has created one of the most compelling and delightful heroines in modern fiction. Though confined to a wheelchair since childhood, Mathilde has other lives, varied and quite beautiful ones. She paints, cares for her pets, enjoys a rich fantasy life, and is relentless in her search for the truth about Manechs death. But she is by no means the only vibrant personality leaping off Japrisots pages. This author has a remarkable ability to draw even minor characters in three dimensions with economy and wit. Take Mathildes mother, for instance, caught in mid-card game: At bridge, manille, bezique, Mama is a dirty rotten swine. Not only is she an ace with the pasteboards, but she throws her opponents off their mettle by insulting or making fun of them. And even the characters we meet only through other peoples memories–the condemned men–are so fully realized that you find yourself torn over which one you hope may have survived. As Mathilde comes ever closer to solving the mystery of what happened at Bingo Crépuscule that January morning in 1917, Sebastien Japrisot proves himself a master storyteller and A Very Long Engagement a near perfect novel. –Alix Wilber

Over 79 5-Star Customer Reviews On Amazon!

Great Movie, Better Book
I’m one of those people who never watches the movie first. The book is simply the better experience, and it’s lessened, typically, by having seen the film first.

That truism didn’t exactly hold for A Very Long Engagement. I actually saw the movie first (didn’t know there was a novel at the time), and I loved it. I watched it twice and immediately recommended it to my friends. About a year later, then, I happened upon the book and picked up a free copy. I doubted that I’d ever read it, but one rainy day, I picked it up. Before that day was over I was finished.

The movie does follow the novel very closely, but I was still swept away. The mystery is so complex, and yet tight and logical. Once you’re grabbed by it, you must follow it through to the end. The characters, especially Mathilde and Manech (who we’ve gotten to know through memory), are so engaging.

Mainly though, it’s just so hopeful. I think that’s what got me each time I’ve experienced the story, the romantic notion that no matter how absurd and confused and sorrowful and illogical this life can seem, perhaps truth and love at least have a fighting chance.

I think everyone needs to be told that sort of story every once in a while. This one does it awfully well.

One of my favorite reads of aall-time

“Once upon a time, there were five French Soldiers who had gone off to war, because that’s the way of the world.” So begins Sebastien Japrisot’s haunting novel which chronicles not only the horrors of war and the endurance of love, but the ways in which World War 1 forever changed the lives of those who were caught up in the conflict.

I have already read this book several times. For some reason, I seem to find myself returning to it every few years. Japrisot’s writing is so beautiful and flows so well in translation (the novel was originally written in French) that it makes me want to take language lessons so that I could enjoy his writing in his native language.

The story concerns Mathilde Donnay, an intelligent and strong-willed protagonist who happens to be confined to a wheelchair because of an early childhood injury. Don’t let this detail bother you, as it certainly doesn’t bother Mathilde. She has far too many fish to fry to let a little thing like partial paralysis get in her way. As a young girl, Mathilde formed a lasting friendship with a boy named Manech, who became her fiancee after their childhood friendship developed into a strong and loving relationship. At the tender age of 19, Manech was sent off to the war, serving as an infantryman on the front of the French lines. Literally driven past the point of endurance by the horrors he has witnessed, Manech arranges for an accommodating soldier in German trench to shoot him in the hand. Manech is sentenced to death for this self-mutilation, along with four other soldiers. Their sentence is to be thrown into no-man’s land, the space between the French and German trenches, with no weapons and their hands tied behind their backs. What happened to Manech and his fellow inmates becomes a mystery, one which Mathilde is not willing to let remain unsolved, and spends seven years trying to uncover. In pursuing this mystery she will uncover not only Manech’s ultimate fate, but also learn the stories of those who witnessed it.

This is such a beautiful novel, and Mathilde is such a likable character. Each time I read it I find myself furiously turning the pages, hoping for a resolution to lives that were so unfairly interrupted.

Very engaging mystery
I love the book. I couldn’t wait to see the movie. I must admit the movie fell flat. Don’t waste your time with movie, but definitely read the novel. It is set during and just after WWI. Wheelchair-bound Mathilde Donnay is told that her fiancé has died honorably during the war. She notices discrepancies in the official story and is convinced that her fiancé is still alive. This is a love story set in a historical setting, but what I loved about the novel was the mystery or I should say mysteries because there are several in this novel that Mathilde must solve. I really admired Mathilde’s tenacity to find the truth about her fiancé. The twists and turns this story took while investigating her fiancés whereabouts and the mysteries that are discovered and solved during this time really keep you guessing about what actually happened to her fiancé right up to the end of the novel. I read this novel in 2 days, something I haven’t done in quite some time.

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