We’re in the home stretch of packing for camp now.  About 1,000 swimsuits, t-shirts, shorts and various sports paraphernalia are littering the beds in our guest room, waiting to be crammed into a duffel bag to make their way to sleep away camp. 

What was supposed to go in there and isn’t is Girl’s copies of the first two book in the Kingdom Keepers series by Ridley Pearson.  That’s because she finished them before she could leave. 

When I saw her return from a trip to the bookstore with her Grandfather with these in hand, I knew they were right up her alley.  The other series she’s been infatuated with is Sisters Grimm, and this seemed very much the same genre.  She’s gone through books 1-7 of Grimm, so there isn’t much left there either.

So I look to you, dear reader, to show me the next steps.  What’s another great book for a 10 year old girl to pick up?  Could be the same genre, but doesn’t have to be.   I’m sending a copy of one of my favorites, Charlotte Sometimes, in a care package to her -similar fantasy themes, but different.  But what else should I consider?  Any and all recommendations are welcome!

One of the best parts of BEA is getting advance reader copies of books due to hit the shelves in fall or winter.  While Dan Brown’s bestseller in waiting was not among the crop of titles I ran off with, there were some gems in there…

First, one of the books from the Editor’s Buzz panel – this is where editors from different trade houses get up and pitch their book of the season.  Some did this better than others, granted, but it was nice to hear people who are so close to their books getting a chance to tell everyone why they are worth the read.

The book that I ended up starting on the train ride home from BEA, based on the editor’s presentation, was Jonathan Tropper’s This is Where I Leave You.  I’m about halfway through this one, so I can’t give you the full scoop, but I can say it is well worth the read.   The main character’s marriage is falling apart (his wife has been sleeping with his boss for the past year) while he is dealing with the death of his father and having to reconnect with his dysfunctional family.  Doesn’t sound like a hoot and a half, but Tropper, author of several other titles including “The Book of Joe”, makes it a funny and great read.

Next, also from the Buzz panel, David Small’s Stitches.  Not really sure how to do this description justice, so I’ll take it from the author’s site…

One day David Small awoke from a supposedly harmless operation to discover that he had been transformed into a virtual mute. A vocal cord removed, his throat slashed and stitched together like a bloody boot, the fourteen-year-old boy had not been told that he had cancer and was expected to die.

In Stitches, Small, the award-winning children’s illustrator and author, recreates this terrifying event in a life story that might have been imagined by Kafka. As the images painfully tumble out, one by one, we gain a ringside seat at a gothic family drama, where David — a highly anxious yet supremely talented child—all too often became the unwitting object of his parents’ buried frustration and rage.

That’s enough to give you an idea of the plot.  Whatever you may think, it’s an amazing work.  It’s the first graphic novel-cum-memoir I’ve seen, so I can’t just it based on the genre.  It gives you a window into the world of this man that words couldn’t.  Once you pick it up, you won’t be able to put it down.  You may think, hey graphic novel, I can whip through this….don’t.  Take it a frame at a time.  Look, think, savor.  I’m glad the editor picked this book to talk about – he gave a touching tribute to the author and really made a lot of people excited about it.  When I left the room to find a copy of the book it wasn’t there, causing me to storm the booth the next day to get a galley, which ended up being autographed by the author during his signing.  Mega cool. 

Elizabeth Kostova’s new book “The Swan Thief” was supposed to be there, but wasn’t.  Big bummer as I loved “The Historian” and was hoping to pick this one up. 

The show floor wasn’t as busy as in years past.  This worked to my advantage when I browsed the children’s book publishers as a book fair mom rather than publishing babe.  Most reps took time to show me some new books and let me know what was going to be hot for fall. 

At Penguin, I got a copy of Mike Lupica’s new book Million Dollar Throw.  Having grown up reading Mike’s column in the NY Daily News, I can vouch for his talent as a writer.  As a book fair volunteer, I heartily recommend his books to any sports minded child.  His new one looks like it will follow in that tradition. 

Also from Penguin, Z-Rex, billed as “a video game in a book, and perfect for kids who think they don’t want to read.”  I gave the book to a young man who loved it and got REALLY upset when he realized that the sequels won’t be out for many many months.  Author Steve Cole better get to work on fleshing out the series judging by that fan’s reaction.

Adriana Trigiani is out with the first book in a new series for teens, Viola in Real Life.  It’s listed as 12 and up, so I’m going to wait for Girl’s review, as it will be in her bag heading for camp.

Finally, while waiting for David Small’s book signing, I picked up an autographed blad of Mary Jo Eustace’s Divorce Sucks.  Who is Mary Jo Eustace, you may ask?  Why she’s the first wife of Dean McDermott, of Tori and Dean fame!   I can’t say I’m a Tori fan or hater, but I have always wondered what her and her husband’s exes had to say about them and their relationship.  Now we will know.  Not sure what Mary Jo was like as a wife to Dean, but in person she was very pleasant, and, quoting the words of the guy in line with me, “effing hot”, making me wonder why someone would leave her for an unstable Hollywood child like Tori.  Ah, seriously, not really.  Who has time to wonder that.  There are too many good books out there to read!

The last few blog entries have been a bit serious, so I figured it was time for some summer fun.

Soccer Girl has begun her transition to Swimmer Girl.  Thankfully, it still gives her the same initials.  I know if she was Baseball Girl all of a sudden, it would confuse me.  SG?  BG?  Identity crisis!  I guess I would have to make her play softball, if only to preserve the nomenclature.

She has participated  in 2 meets so far, doing quite well both times.  This year, she didn’t swim at all during the school year, so it’s a testament to how good a shape her 9 year old body is in that she didn’t bitch and moan at me the first weeks of practice, when the water is cold and the muscles are tight. 

She swam freestyle and backstroke in her first meet, and anchored a relay team.  At the second meet, she did the same, but also swam breaststroke for the first time.  This is incredibly impressive in my world, because the year I learned breaststroke in Red Cross swim class, it was a variant on the stroke, never to be seen again.  My breaststroke, as a result, looks like I am trying to hug a barrel in the water.  Which I why you won’t see it.  Kind of like the year they taught us metrics by emphasizing what the equivalents in US measurements were, and then abandoned the whole thing.  I’m getting off track, aren’t I…

Here’s some pictures of her:

Everyone into the pool!

That’s her on the starting blocks.  These meets can be trying on the parents because all the girls look alike.  They’re all in the same suit, with the same head covering.  And they know we’re crippled when it comes to telling them apart.  After one race where she placed 2nd in her heat, I told her she did great.  The reply was, “Are you sure it was me and not some other kid?  Because I did horribly!”    She knows, she knows.

Stroke!

That’s her, swimming.  I am really sure it is her.  Yep.  I believe the glare that she gave me when she got out of the pool (I was screaming her name during the race) sealed the deal on her being my offspring.

Boy, on the other hand, is not on a swim team, but has lightened up his schedule a little for the summer.  He’s a big fan of the pool and enjoys the sand car I bought him.  Yes, I am the most amazing parent ever.  I found my son a car with wheels, but no metal, so he can take it in the pool.  He’s the envy of everyone in the kiddie pool.  In fact, on Sunday, I heard a mom saying to her son that he would get a turn with the car shortly, thinking it was the pool’s property and not my boys.  I said he could take a turn, but only if he shared the super cool sailboat he was playing with.  We have pool currency! 

Of course, his favorite activity still is hitting on older women.  Here’s a shot from one of Girl’s last soccer practices where he went up to the older sibling of one of Girl’s teammates and offered to push her on the swing. 

"Push swings!"

When he is 17 and brings home a 30 year old divorce, all I will be able to say is I saw it coming.

How is your summer going?

I got a note from an old friend today, letting me know that Jeri Edwards had passed away.  Jeri, Dan Harkey, and Bob Orfali were some of the first computer bookauthors I worked with, way back during my days at Van Nostrand Reinhold, and later after Wiley acquired the rights to their bestselling client server titles.  Jeri was a force of nature for sure, but as a woman operating in the man’s world that Silicon Valley was at the time, you know she didn’t get where she did by being anything less.  I shared a lot of good times with the three of them, at dinners at IBM conferences, and during visits to San Francisco where they lived.  We also had many discussions about martians, way more than most people in computer books ever get to have. 

Jeri was diagnosed with ovarian cancer soon after she and Bob, her husband, moved to Hawaii ten years ago.  I’m blogging about this for many reasons, but first and foremost to say TEN YEARS!  My mother in law died of ovarian cancer, and had less than 2 years to live after she was diagnosed.  Anytime someone beats the odds, even when the story doesn’t turn out like it should, it’s worth mentioning.

Bob put together a wonderful website that is a fine tribute to this woman.  She will be missed by many.

Last year at BlogHer, I had the honor of meeting the women behind the “Raising Our Children with Special Needs” panel, thanks to the coincidence of being in the speaker’s prep room with them, and because my good friend Susan Etlinger was coordinating the panel.  These women were all unique, coming from different experiences and different walks of life, but they were united by their fierce love for their children, and their desire to do whatever they could to help people understand what exactly it’s like to be raising a special needs child.

The panel itself was remarkable – Susan opened the session by reading Vicki’s essay, The Mother at the Swings, which gave me a new perspective, as I have been both mothers in the essay at any given time in my life.   I tear up just thinking of the mom who gave birth months before the conference to a daughter with Downs Syndrome, and having Jennifer Graf Groneberg reach out to her and show her the support that she had been missing from her friends and family.  I heard moms and dads talk about how having a community of support in the blogosphere has kept them sane, which echoed my own experiences. 

After BlogHer, I began following Vicki’s blog, Speak Softly.  I learned about her youngest child Evan’s challenges and triumphs (Vicki’s son was a twin, born prematurely, and was multiply-disabled.  His sister Ellie passed after 4 days in the hospital.)   I enjoyed reading about her amazing daughter Josie and her wonderful husband Cliff.  Quite the family, under any circumstances. 

At the end of July, I was saddened, along with so many others, to hear about the loss of her son Evan.   No parent can imagine what that is like, and my heart broke for her.  As I continued to read her blog, I learned she was writing a book.  A memoir of her life as a mother of premature twins.  I kept in touch with her, on Twitter, Facebook, and her site.  We commented on each others posts and tweets. 

I recently finished reading her book, This Lovely Life.  It’s a beautiful look at a life that was worth living, even though at the time no one thought it would be.  It’s a look at how a woman finds it within herself to be the parent she never dreamed she would have to be.  How a family comes to love a boy for who he is, not who they hoped he might be. 

In the pages of the book, she never comes off as anything other than a woman thrust into circumstances that are unimaginable, who finds the strength to do what she needs to for her children.   That’s one reason the book is so readable.  She’s a great writer, drawing you in as a friend and confidant to her world.  You’d think this book would be horribly sad, but it’s not.  It’s not sappy, or my favorite descriptive word, squishy.  She doesn’t ask for sainthood, nor does she go around wearing a Superwoman “S” on her t-shirt.  Nor does she beat herself up when she wonders whether she can love a less than perfect child.  But just because she isn’t in awe of herself doesn’t mean that a reader can’t be.

My favorite moments:

*The nurse in the hospital who stayed with her while her daughter Ellie passed revealing that she got down on her knees that morning and begged God to give her the strength to do and say the right thing for Ellie and her parents.  I’m thankful they had someone like that to do and say the right things for them.  It was such a genuine thing, and it truly brought me to tears. 

*When Vicki wonders, why me, not in a pitying sense but in a truly questioning manner, she decides that, “I’ve been given this opportunity: to look at fear, forgive myself, learn how to love (myself, others, my son, no matter how imperfect he may be).  To practice detachment and patience.  To love my daughter no matter how large I perceive her demands to be, even though I have a son whom I feel needs me more.  It’s what I do in the face of this experience that matters.  Do I find ways to go on, or do I stop?” 

*Her husband, staid, firm and in control.  How did he do it?  She says it’s his Japanese heritage.  As he put it, most matter of factly, his “culture just accepts people who are sick and maimed.  We take care of people when we get old, and we take in people with disabilities.”  We can learn something here, people…

*Learning that their friends would fall into three categories after learning the news about the twins- rocks, wanna-be-theres, and gingerbread men.  Any parent who has been there can understand what that means.

* I chuckled when she talked of ”monster babies” in the NICU.  (as an aside, if she had met my boy when he was in our NICU, she undoubtedly would have called him the supermonster.  He was almost 10 lbs at birth, but had issues that necessitated him being in there.  At one point, he was next to a friend’s baby who was born at 3 lbs.  Every time I see this kid, I marvel at how he bears no ill effects of his premature birth, nor his long stay in the NICU.  Marvel, yet, while still a bit jealous that was not my outcome.  But then I move on…and love the boy that I have, who’s pretty remarkable himself. )

Lastly, I’ve told everyone I run into, physically or virtually that I’m reading this book.  When they hear the story, there are a lot of OH MY GODs and OH MANs.  A few “how can you read that kind of a story” comments.  I don’t really know how to put this into words, but I am going to try.  This book is in no way depressing.  At the same time, it’s not one of those weepy, spiritually uplifting books (I don’t do squishy).  It’s honest and real, just like the author.  Anyone who is a special needs parent should read it, but really, the audience for this book should not be limited in any way.  Vicki Forman is an excellent writer, and I think anyone would be enriched from learning her story and going on her journey with her.

For the first time in a LONG time, it felt like summer this weekend.  If you don’t live in the Northeast, you probably have had drier weather than we have.  June was one of the wettest on record, with rain or thunderstorms coming most every day. Not exactly the kind of weather that has you dreaming of time outdoors.

However, this past Saturday and Sunday were blissfully dry and sunny.  Not too hot, not too humid.  Just perfect.  And what better way to spend a day like that than finding a good book and curling up in a comfy chair out of doors.  I didn’t get much time for that, having 2 young children and all, but I was curious about those who were planning on spending time reading – what were they reading?  I asked my Twitter followers and Facebook friends and here are the responses I got:

The Seekers

The Secret Mitzvah of Lucio Burke

Things I Want My Daughters to Know by Elizabeth Noble (noted as “not great”)

Into the Beautiful North

Infinite Jest

Olive Kitteridge

The Glassblower of Murano by Marina Fiorato

Sunnyside

Rich Like Them by Ryan D’Agostino

For me, I’m finishing up This Lovely Life, and a review will follow here.  Mr IT, as we know, is a great guy, but doesn’t read.  IT Boy is still a fan of Dora the Explorer’s All Dressed Up book, but had it taken away from him this weekend because he keeps ripping the flaps.  Soccer Girl was in the pool most of the weekend, but when she wasn’t, her nose was firmly ensconced in two books – Kingdom Keepers and Kingdom Keepers II.  Oh boy, is she in love with this series.  Almost cried when I told her the release date for Book #3 is almost a year away.   Interesting to see her reading preferences develop.

What are YOU reading these days?

Wondering what Wiley is doing at BlogHer this year?  Well, we’ve got a great offering for ya…

Our rock star photography author Erin Manning will be hosting a FREE photography workshop for a select number of attendees.  Join us for a lunchtime outing to explore and learn about digital photography techniques and quick fixes to improve the quality of your photos without the need for expensive editing software (lunch will be provided for all participants).  More details can be found here. 

Don’t wait!  This will fill up, and fill up soon!

The lack of bloggy newness here can be attributed to the fact that IT Boy and I have both been under the weather.   It started about a week ago, and for me, it came on top of a month of really heinous allergies.  I thought it was just a build up of pollen resistance, or a reaction to the non-stop rain we have been having.  Unfortunately, I quickly realized it was a cold.  A bad cold.  IT Boy spiked a fever on and off, with a cough, sniffles and general aches and pains.  I stayed home most of the week, but was able to work at home a bit of the time.  Boy missed school and therapy for the week.

Before this, we had been running at a frantic pace and it was about to get worse.  Soccer Girl has a lot of end of season activities, plus she’s moving up from elementary school to middle school, and that’s a social milieu in itself.   I had to bail out on a number of commitments because I just couldn’t get it together.  FORGET about the gym, that’s a distant memory.

But don’t worry, it’s not the swine flu…we went to the doctor and he assured us that it was just the junk, not the piggy, and this too should pass.  Here’s a look at Boy in the waiting room of the  doctor’s office.  He’s singing the Barney theme song, but the lyrics are, “I love me, I love me.”  No self esteem issues here. 

I love me, I love me, someone get me some Tylenol.

Since I am all about reuse, I bring to you content originally seen in a Facebook note…

Most everyone who follows my Twitter feed has noticed me on a Saturday or Sunday talking about making pancakes for the family.  It’s a weekend tradition that won’t seem to die.  And that’s a good thing. 

Seeing Al’s adventures in pancake making had me chuckling a bit.  I used to make Bisquick pancakes until I started using an Alton Brown recipe.  About a year ago I was too lazy to create the mix and used Bisquick.  Both Mr. IT and Soccer Girl protested, saying that they really preferred my homemade batch and wouldn’t I please go back to making that.

So I did.  I prefer it because there are no preservatives or other stuff mucking up the mix – just pure honest ingredients.  Alton’s recipe has gotten altered along the way, so I am hoping that I am in fair use when I present to you this adaptation…

The Mix:

• 6 cups whole wheat flour (you can also use 1/2 wheat and 1/2 AP)
  1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
  1 tablespoon baking powder
  1 tablespoon kosher salt
  2 tablespoons sugar

Combine all of the ingredients in a lidded container. Shake to mix. Use the mix within 3 months.

The Pancakes:

• 3 eggs, separated
• 1 cup plain yogurt (prefer lowfat or full fat to fat free)
• 1 cups milk
• 1/2 stick melted butter 
• 2 cups  dry Pancake Mix (see above)
• 1 very ripe banana
• 1/2 cup chocolate chips (or blueberries, if in season) 

Whisk together the egg whites, yogurt and milk in a small bowl. In another bowl, whisk the egg yolks with the melted butter.  Combine the mixtures from the two bowls and whisk.  Mash banana and add to the mixture.  Add dry pancake “mix” and stir till just mixed.  Drop in chocolate chips (or blueberries, or whatever)  and mix gently.

Lightly butter the fry pan. Drop pancake batter in pan and cook till bubbles form on edges.  Flip and cook the other side.  Serve immediately or place plate in warm oven and keep them there.  remove to a towel-lined baking sheet and cover with a towel. Hold in a warm place for 20 to 30 minutes.

ENJOY!  If you try them, let me know what you think.  Feel free to add your own improvements to the recipe – that’s what this is all about!