Just in time for Halloween...

Although this book was named the 2008 Newbery Medal winner, I have only just decided to read it.


Ok, I lied. I ordered it as soon as the winners were named, read the first gruesome chapter, deemed it unsuitable for my students, and placed it on the shelf only to collect dust for the next two years.


Fast forward to October 2010.

Looking for a macabre tale to set the mood for our favorite October holiday, I came across this familiar cover on my shelf and sat down and read the first chapter again. And you know what? I couldn't stop! Once I overcame my embarrassingly sissy aversion to murder and death and read into the story, I realized that this is one beautifully written book that my students would love.

We are almost to the end and I am not wanting to part with Bod, Silas, Mr. and Mrs. Owens, Liza, Miss Lupescu and the rest of his deathly, yet endearing, graveyard family...

Recipe to Read By:Ghost Cookies.

Ingredients:
Nutter Butter Cookies
White Chocolate Baking Chips
Mini-chocolate chips

Directions:
Melt the baking chips. Dip cookies in melted chips. Add mini-chocolate chips for eyes. Done!

Check out Neil Gamain's website HERE.

The London Eye Mystery

I grabbed this book for two reasons: 1.) I love a good mystery. 2.) I love people with British accents. With high expectations for a good mystery involving funky British sayings, this book did not disappoint.

Ted and Kat live a relatively normal life in London with their parents. I say "relatively" because Ted lives with a brain syndrome that makes him think differently than everyone else.

However, when Aunt Gloria and her son, Salim, come to visit Ted and Kat their lives becomes much less normal and much more interesting.

Upon their arrival, Salim declares that he would like to visit the London Eye, a ginormous Ferris-wheel type ride that allows for amazing views of the city. While their mothers wait for them to buy tickets, a man approaches the three children and offers them his ticket for free. He explains that he is claustrophobic (afraid of small spaces) and can't bring himself to ride. The children happily accept the ticket and give it to Salim, who excitedly walks onto the next pod. Kat and Ted watch Salim get onto the ride and follow his pod all the way around, with Ted timing his descent to the exact minute. When Salim's pod finally reaches the ground they watch all of the other people file out, keeping a close eye out for Salim. Minutes pass, and as the pod empties they realize that Salim is not there.

They wait patiently as the other pods empty, but still no sign of Salim. What happened to him? He couldn't have just disappeared!

So begins Kat and Ted's impressive attempts to piece together all of clues left behind and solve the mystery of Salim's disappearance. Sounds cool, huh?

Go on, you know you love a good mystery, too! You super sleuths out there may even solve it before Ted and Kat do...

"I want to ride on the Eye, mummy!"

Here is a list of some of my favorite British words. Can you guess what they mean? Keep scrolling down to see if you were correct.

Fun British Words
1. Banger
2. Bloke
3. Bobby
4. Rubbish
5. Gobsmacked
6. Higgledy-piggledy
7. Ice lolly
8. Jumper
9. Loo/Water closet
10. Nappy
11. Numpty
12. Telly
13. Trainers
14. Post
15. Queue
16. Biscuit
17. Tube

Recipe to Read By: Digestive Biscuits

Fancy a biscuit? Despite their weird names, these cookies are very popular in Britain and resemble a crumbly graham cracker. After baking a batch of these simple, yet tasty treats,

practice your British persona by raising a pinkie, dunking a biscuit in some tea, and asking in your most elegant and regal voice, "Pardon me, but could you direct me to the loo?"

Ingredients:
3/4 cup whole wheat flour
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 tablespoon rolled oats
4 tablespoons butter
4 tablespoons brown sugar
4 tablespoons milk

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Grease cookie sheets.
2. In a large bowl, sift together the flour and baking powder. Mix in the oatmeal. Cream together the butter and the sugar and add to mixture. Stir in the milk until mixture forms a thick paste.
3. Knead dough on a floured surface until smooth. Roll out dough to approximately 1/8" thickness. Cut into rounds with cookie cutter about 2 1/2 inches in diameter. Transfer to cookie sheets and prick with a fork.
4. Bake 15 to 18 minutes, or until golden. Let cool on wire rack. Store in an airtight tin.

5. In your best British accent, walk around asking people if they "fancy a biscuit."

Recipe courtesy of http://www.allrecipes.com/

American Equivalents to Fun British Words

1. Banger=Sausage 2. Bloke=Man 3. Bobby=policeman 4. Rubbish=garbage 5. Gobsmacked=utterly astounded 6. Higgledy-piggledy=in disarray 7. Ice lolly= popsicle 8. Jumper=sweater 9. Loo/Water closet= bathroom 10. Nappy=diaper 11. Numpty=stupid person 12. Telly=TV 13. Trainers=sneakers 14. Post=mail 15. Queue=a line you wait in

16. Biscuit=cookie 17. Tube=subway

Skeleton Creek

Warning: Do NOT read this book if...
-You are by yourself
-You are in a dark place
-It is thundering/lightning/general storminess outside
-You are easily spooked
-You still sleep with your parents
-You cover your eyes during scary movies
-You refuse to go first in haunted houses

You scaredy-cats know who you are and don't say I didn't warn you!

Skeleton Creek isn't just a mystery. It's a creepy mystery that sucks you in until the very last page, where it spits you out panting and trembling. If you weren't afraid of the dark before, you will be after reading this. Trust me.

Ryan and Sarah live in the boring town of Skeleton Creek, Oregon where nothing exciting ever happens. When researching the history of their town's dredge, they stumble across the mystery of Old Joe Bush, a miner who worked on the dredge and was mysteriously killed. The two curious teens make a midnight jaunt to the abandoned dredge in the middle of the woods where two things happen: they bare witness to a bone-chilling "phantom" and Ryan has a terrible accident that leaves him in the hospital for two weeks.

After the accident Ryan is left recuperating in his bedroom and is forbidden to have any contact with Sarah. However, the search for the truth is far from over. Sarah continues to hunt for clues and video tape her findings, sending them to Ryan by email where he secretly checks them without his parents knowing. Readers can watch Sarah's videos by going to http://www.sarahfincher.com/ and typing in the passwords she gives Ryan (which are located throughout various chapters in the book).

OK, this is really embarrassing but I have to get it off my chest: I watched the first of Sarah's videos by myself one Tuesday night after everyone went to bed. I don't know if it was the dark room, or the quiet house, or the late hour, but I was spooked. VERY, VERY SPOOKED. After that I couldn't bring myself to watch anymore of the videos. I know, I know, I'm a huge wimp. When I work up the courage to finally watch the rest of the videos it will be at 9:00 in the morning, with all of the lights on, and surrounded by people. WIMP!

As Ryan and Sarah begin to piece their clues together they realize that the mystery is larger than they ever imagined and that the entire town seems to know something that they don't.
The story ends with the two of them making their way back to the dredge (dun dun DUN) and leaves you with a cliffhanger that makes you want to throw the book at the computer in total frustration. (Or, if you're like me, you'll be breathing a huge sigh of relief that it's finally over. For now.)

For those brave enough to want more, the sequel, Ghost in the Machine, comes out October 1, 2009 and you can pre-order it HERE. You're on your own for that one, though. I've had enough of sleeping with the lights on...

Recipe to Read By: Bone Cookies
These sweet treats are pretty authentic-looking. You can even add 1-2 drops of yellow food coloring with the extract for an "aged" look.

Ingredients:
1-1/2cups sugar
Pinch of salt
5 egg whites at room temperature
Pinch of cream of tartar
1teaspoon almond, vanilla, orange or lemon extract

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 220°F. Line 2 cookie sheets with parchment paper. Prepare pastry bag with round #10 tip (about 3/8-inch diameter).
2. Combine sugar and salt in small bowl. Beat egg whites and cream of tartar in small bowl with electric mixer at low speed until soft peaks form. Gradually add sugar mixture, beating constantly. Beat until stiff peaks form and meringue is shiny and smooth. Add extract; beat just until blended.
3. Fill pastry bag with meringue. (Note: Mom probably has a piping bag collecting dust somewhere under the counter behind all of her other never been-used wedding gifts of long ago.)
Pipe log 3 to 4 inches long. Pipe 2 balls on both ends of each log. Smooth any peaks with wet finger. Repeat with remaining meringue.
4. Bake 30 minutes; turn off heat. Leave cookies in oven overnight; do not open oven door.
5. Take the hamster/gerbil/mouse out of your little brother or sister's cage and replace with these cookies. When he/she starts to cry pick up one of the bones and eat it. Watch them howl. (I didn't tell you that!)

Recipe courtesty of http://www.howstuffworks.com/
Click on the link to see a cool pic of what the finished cookies look like: http://recipes.howstuffworks.com/meringue-bone-cookies-recipe.htm.