Landon Snow, in time for Christmas

Snow, just in time for Christmas! Landon Snow, that is.

This is the coolest new book for kids: Landon Snow and the Auctor's Riddle by R.K. Mortenson. It has sort of the same feel as Alice in Wonderland except the hero is a boy, and the fantasy world that he steps into possesses a beautiful logic that makes for a satisfying read. Alice's adventures always left me befuddled, while Landon's story makes perfect sense in its own fantastical way. It's a great blend of fun and logic.

Landon starts off in an ordinary Minnesota town, but before long he's off to investigate a strange tunnel and an even stranger library. He winds up in a magical but dangerous kingdom where he's not sure who's a friend and who's an enemy. The story moves along at a breezy pace with a lot of fun wordplay. The book is a visual and tactile pleasure, too. It's hardcover, with a quality feel to the paper and an intriguing cover illustration that makes me think of mysterious old books in old libraries.

You can check out some reviews at Amazon. I plan to give this book to some some young book-lovers I know. It's affordably priced, which is always a nice bonus when you find a treasure of a book. I'm looking forward to reading the sequels.

The Seven Sevens

I'm it, I've been tagged by Deeanne Gist, and it's my turn to play.

Seven things to do before I die
1. Drive the entire coast of California, stopping wherever and whenever I please.
2. Learn how to ride a motorcycle. The real kind, not just a little-bitty dirt bike.
3. Organize about ten thousand photos for my kids.
4. Visit England, Scotland, and Ireland.
5. See all my kids happily married.
6. Read books to the grandkids who don't exist yet.
7. Write a novel that says exactly what I want it to say.

Seven things I cannot do
1. Swim.
2. Write words on unlined paper without letting them drift south.
3. Get interested in the stock market.
4. Dance.
5. Sign my name prettily.
6. Back up a large pickup truck with any accuracy.
7. Stop drinking coffee.

Seven things that attract me to my husband
1. His kind heart.
2. His dark, mysterious eyes.
3. The fact that I can trust him completely.
4. His crazy streak, as in "I bought a bike on eBay and I'm off to Wisconsin...."
5. The way he turns a blind eye to how much money on I spend on writing-related expenses.
6. His patience.
7. His love for the Lord.

Seven things I say most often
1. Oh, crap.
2. Oh, shoot.
3. Y'know?
4. You guys.
5. Right?
6. Anyway....
7. Um, I didn't start anything for dinner....

Seven books (or series) I love
1. To Kill a Mockingbird
2. Busman's Honeymoon
3. Peace Like a River
4. My Family and Other Animals
5. On Writing (King)
6. Bridget Jones' Diary
7. Ragamuffin Gospel

Seven movies I would watch over and over again
1. Sabrina (the original)
2. Green Card
3. Strange Brew (okay, maybe not over and over, but once every few years)
4. While You Were Sleeping, if only for the paperboy on the bike
5. To Kill a Mockingbird
6. Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, esp. for the wheelchair-down-the-steps scene
7. Pirates of the Caribbean, just to watch Johnny Depp walk/swagger/stagger

Seven people I want to join in too
1. Sally Apokedak
2. Suzan Robertson
3. Sherrie Lord
4. J. Mark Bertrand, not that I know him, exactly, but I admire his brain and love his blogs and I would be honored if he would join the fun.
5. Cindy Chen, who doesn't have a blog but has an interesting mind and could use the comments section.
6. Michelle Truax. Ditto.
7. My mother, who doesn't own a computer and doesn't know what a blog is, but boy, wouldn't I love to see her answers.