Kaye Umansky is back with Pongwiffy and the Spell of the Year. This is not the first Pongwiffy book -- and it really isn't necessary to read them in order, though it might help get to know the characters just a little bit better.
Pongwiffy, as her
name implies, is a smelly old witch who lives in a hovel and loves it. Her familiar is a hamster. She and her best friend fall out and make up
almost all the time. And something
always goes wrong ...
Book 044
To be honest, I was
trying to find more Kaye Umansky books through the library and found this one
available on CD, so I put in a request for it.
**sigh** It is number three of a series of four. This is the only one of the series that the
library has. It is incredibly short and
at first I did not like that idea then I thought about it and decided this was
truly clever. If all four tales had been
put into one book most kids would run away from it because it would be too
long for them. Each story, if like this
one (and I am fairly certain they are) can be a stand-alone story but even
better if read in order.
Strange Days at Sea is the third book in The Quest For 100 Gold
Coins series of books. This book is not
particularly appealing to adults in its humor but I think it is quirky enough
for most boys (and girls) of the middle grade reading level to enjoy.
Book 045
Another book,
discovered in the library's inter-library loan system, by Kaye Umansky, is I Live in a Mad House. While washing cars through a door-to-door
canvassing of neighbors, a car gets washed by accident and the owner goes ballistic. Meanwhile, preparations are being made at
home for little brother's third birthday and a friend has purchased a bunch of
old falling-apart hand puppets at a thrift sale. Of course, the madhouse erupts when all three
components collide on the day of the birthday party ...
Book 046
Well, I did say I
had put in a "hold' request for Jasper Fforde's The Eyre Affair through the library's OverDrive system. The version they have is the one read by
Susan Duerden.
Well ...
I haven't checked to
find out which was published first, whether one was for the US market as
opposed to the British market or what but ...
They are
different! Not just a different
reader. Different quotes at the
beginning of chapters; different scenes; different.
I did not like Dueren's
narration. If I had not already grown
quite accustomed to Elizabeth Sastra and Emily Gray, I suppose I could have
gotten used to Duerden's narration and maybe even preferred it over the others
if I heard them later. Except there were
a few words really mangled in their pronunciation.
One I could not get
passed was "Spesh Ops" instead of "Speck Ops" for SpecOps
-- the Special Operations force. Sure,
special is "spesh" but generally it is "speck" when shortened. **sigh**
And the only other
one that really smacked me hard enough to write down was Nikon with a short i
instead of the long i of "Nigh Kon" not her "Nih Kon." Picky, picky, I know.
Oh, and one more --
you know the word for "tartan," P.L.A.I.D. Yeh, that word. How do you pronounce it? I pronounce it "plah-d" but here it
was "plade" ... **shudder and
shudder again**
The different scenes
and quotes really did not improve the story compared to what I am familiar with
except ... and I would love to have this scene added to the version I know and
love: Thursday and Landon attend a
performance of Shakespeare's Richard the Third.
I've never been to one of these showings but this scene sounds just like
what I've heard a showing of The Rocky Horror
Picture Show with all its audience participation is like. Wonderful scene. Doesn't actually add to the story / plot but
was great fun.
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