Weekend Reviews (I-II)

Before I hit the (long) road back to Smalltown, I thought I'd stop in with this weekend's reviews. It's a s-l-o-w week in reviews. Here's the round up:

Publishers Weekly reviews now seem to be available online to everyone. (Am I crazy, or was a subscription necessary before?) In any case, check out this week's reviews of children's books. There are many starred titles in the "fiction" category.

Kathryn Ross reviews children's and YA titles that "will keep children entertained long after all the chocolate has gone" for the Scotsman. (First Aid for Fairies and other Fabled Beasts, by first-time author Lari Don sounds intriguing.)

Mary Harris Russell reviews five new books as usual (Thank you, Mary!) for the Chicago Tribune.

Linda Newbery is one of my favorite writers of YA/children's fiction. Mary Hoffman writes that Newbery's latest, Nevermore, has "the air of a classic" in the Guardian.

Rebecca Wigod reviews new books by Lois Lowry and Miriam Toews for The Vancouver Sun.

And, finally, (The) Amanda Craig reviews Once Upon a Time in the North, by Philip Pullman, for the Times and writes, "it is a joy to be reunited with the authentic creativity of His Dark Materials through another book."

Okay, that does it. I've got to hit the road. If I owe you an e-mail, I promise I'll catch up with you when I return to normality on Tuesday.