Let It Snow

No, I don't really want it to snow-- I'm looking forward to the 50 degree weather coming next week. This is a new collaborative title from three popular young adult authors. I bought this unread on the recommendation of Mrs. Hill, who reviewed it, and because I love Maureen Johnson's work. I was not disappointed.

There's a big snow storm, and it causes the intersection of a number of characters. In Johnson's section, Jubilee's parents get arrested in a collectible village riot, so she is sent to her grandparents in Florida. The train gets stuck, she talks at length to Jeb, and the two of them decide to get off and go to the Waffle House nearby. There, she meets Stuart, a boy her age, who suggests that she go to his house to ride out the storm, since his mother would want him to rescue her from the onslaught of cheerleaders who have also descended upon the restaurant. While there, she realizes that her boyfriend, Noah, is ready to break up with her. Luckily, she takes great solace in being around Stuart, and their romance blossoms.

In Green's section, three friends, JP, Tobin, and the Duke (who is a girl), get a call from Keun, who is running Waffle House when the cheerleaders arrive. He tells them to get to the restaurant as soon as they can, and bring Twister. Since there is a lot of snow, this turns into a big and funny production. My favorite line was "A squirrel has more impressive musculature!" During all of this, the Duke chafes at how the boys are treating her, especially since there is some attraction between her and Tobin. The eventually get to the Waffle House where...

In Myracle's section, Jeb is pining for his former girlfriend, Addie, whom he has traveled to see. She, however, is involved in an attempt to obtain a teacup pig for her friend Tegan, with te help of Dorrie. Most of the characters come together at the Waffle House, fun is had by all, damage because of the snow is miminal, and the parents don't seem overly concerned about the whereabouts of the teenagers.

All in all, good fun.
Speaking of fun, I whiled away a Saturday afternoon with Tim Walsh's Timeless Toys: Classic Toys and the Playmakers Who Created Them, which I picked up for $7 at Half Price Books. It might be a little too much information for middle school students (it's 320 pages and almost 5 pounds!), but told a lot of interesting back story. It focused on toys that were invented by individuals instead of corporations, with the exception of the Big Wheel, just because Mr. Walsh enjoyed his so much he had to include it. There is a lot of very apparent love for toys in this, and the developers are given the respect they deserve. This covers Monopoly, Radio Flyer, Legos, Slinky, Barbie, Twister, and a huge number of other toys. I will look forward to the sequel, and when I looked this book up on Amazon, I found a lot of other good books about the history of toys. My own children kept stealing this book from me every time I put it down.