Cracker!: The Best Dog in Vietnam by Cynthia Kadohata
Cracker starts out life as a championship show dog, but then a broken leg sends her to twelve-year-old Willie and his family as a pet. But when Willie can’t keep her, she becomes a U. S. Army dog, assigned to newly-enlisted teenager, Rick Hanski. And there, [...]

With its moody, atmospheric cover, When the Whistle Blows may not be the first book boys and kids will reach for. Mr. E was skeptical when I first brought it home as our next read-together. But it didn’t take much convincing. As soon as I mentioned football championships, tricking the nasty school principal, and Halloween [...]

The Secret Science Alliance and the Copycat Crook by Eleanor Davis
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Out of the huge stack of books my boys collected at the ALA conference last week, this was the very first one that Mr. E (10) picked up and devoured. I know why. With science gadgets you wish were [...]

Mr. E: [crunching breakfast] You know how boys aren’t smart at school?
Me: [slightly panicky and defensive] Huh? What do you mean? Boys are just as smart as girls.
Mr. E: Well, you know how boys in books are never “the smart ones?”
Me: Hmmm.
And this little conversation has got me thinking. He’s kind of right. You know, [...]

My mom’s a genius. (Most moms are—it just takes a while for us to realize it). Look what she made my kids for the lake.

Mr. E and the Critter Keeper
We’re calling it a “critter keeper.”
Some background: our cabin is very much a “cabin” and not a “cottage”. In other words, there’s no carpet, cutesy northwoods [...]

That’s a camping headlight he’s reading by. I’d scold him about getting to sleep, but I was exactly the same way when I was nine.

This is the face of one happy kid. For an early birthday treat, Mr. E and I took a road trip to the Red Balloon Book Store in St. Paul to see Rick Riordan and pick up a copy of the final Percy Jackson, The Last Olympian. We got there early, but the room (it [...]

I always think it’s funny when people say they neglect housework for their writing. About the only time my house is clean is when I have a deadline hanging over my head. The more pressure, the more I dodge. And polish, and clean out closets, and bake, and just plain goof off. Here’s what ended [...]