GAME: WHERE'S THAT GUY?

WHERE'S THAT GUY?

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THE NEW YEAR "COME-TH"

THE NEW YEAR "COME-TH"

    It's that time of year when I ponder my goals for the upcoming year. I've done it most of my life. It helps keep me focused on the things that are important to me. Unlike a lot of people, my yearly resolutions don't set me up for failure. They set me up for success because I don't list ridiculous goals that are doomed to fail. I list the things I actually want to do.
     Here's my recipe for writing New Year's Resolutions:

1. I look at my life, my time, and what I can reasonably accomplish in 365 days.

2. I divide my resolutions into categories.

     PERSONAL    

    The things I list are based on effort and attitude. Under personal I may plan to be more positive, read my Bible daily, or walk 4 days a week.  I don't say I'm going to lose twenty pounds, although I'd like to. Or read the Bible through five times in the year. Or win Miss Congeniality.

WRITING

    I'm more specific in my writing goals. I list the projects I want to finish, but I tell myself it's okay to substitute a new story for a planned one. AND of course one goal will be to maintain this blog.        

WORK

    My husband and I own a small business, so there are always things that can be streamlined and made better.  I choose only one biggie thing to work on, because there's usually enough little-ies to keep me busy.

3. I add a 4th category called WISHES & PRAYERS. This is where I get to list all the fantastic things I'd like to see happen that are outside my control. Like having my books make The New York Times Best Seller List, where I lose the twenty-five+ pounds and win the lottery.

   Now this is written, it's time for me to work on my resolutions. I have 2 days until 2014 rolls around.
    

BRAIN TWISTER RIDDLE # 10

BRAIN TWISTER RIDDLE # 10

I run, but never walk.

I murmur, but never talk.

I have a bed, but never sleep.

I have a mouth, but never eat.

Who am I?

FAMOUS KID DETECTIVES: THE HARDY BOYS

 THE HARDY BOYS

     The Hardy Boys made their first appearance in 1927. Joe and Frank are brothers who live with their parents in Bayport on Barnet Bay. It's only natural that they became amateur boy detectives as their father in the story is a real one. The books are full of action, adventure and mystery.

     The series has been written by several different writers over the years under the pseudonym of Franklin W. Dixson. They are still popular today and sell more that a million copies annually.


NEXT KID DETECTIVE: ENCYCLOPEDIA BROWN 

NEW RELEASE

NEW RELEASE

HOST YOUR OWN MURDER MYSTERY PARTY:
DEATH A CASINO REVEL

   How to Host a MURDER MYSTERY Party DEATH at CASINO REVÉL. 
   Like a successful crime, a murder mystery party needs premeditated planning and preparation. This book provides the planning for you. All you have to do is the preparation.

* Invite your guests. 

* Set the stage. 

* Copy and print the scripts and player profiles. 

* Prepare to have a fun and exciting evening (or afternoon) of murderous mayhem with your friends and other guests. 

DEATH at CASINO REVÉL includes scripts for seven main players, plus an additional character list for larger parties.

 

BOOK TRAILER: DEAD END NORVELT

BOOK TRAILER:  

Dead End in Norvelt 

by Jack Gantos

EYE WITNESS CHALLENGE #7

EYE WITNESS CHALLENGE

#7

Godfather Pepsi Vs Coca-Cola commercial

Think you'd make a good eye-witness? Take the challenge.

Watch the video and then answer the questions about what you saw. No cheating. Don't read the questions before you watch the video or it doesn't count!

WARNING! WARNING! WARNING! WATCH THE VIDEO BEFORE SCROLLING DOWN

BOOK REVIEW: GIRL STOLEN

GIRL STOLEN - Mystery book review

GIRL STOLEN

April Henry

Henry Holt

2010

Available: Hardcopy, Paperback, Kindle, audio

This story is told from both sixteen-year-old-Cheyenne Wilder’s point of view and Griffin’s, a teen high school dropout. Cheyenne is the daughter of a wealthy business man. Griffin is the son of a crook. The story opens with Cheyenne waiting in the car for her stepmother to return from the pharmacy with a prescription for Cheyenne. She’s not feeling well and is sleeping under a blanket in the backseat. The car door opens, shuts, the car’s engine starts and she smells cigarette smoke. Her stepmother doesn’t smoke. Someone is stealing the car with her in it. Griffin sees a car with keys and takes advantage of the opportunity to boost an expensive car to gain his father’s approval. He’s shocked when he realizes he has an unexpected passenger. She pleads to let her go, but he can’t let her go just yet and he’s worried she’s seen him. She assures him she hasn’t. She’s blind. Everything becomes more complicated his father realizes the girl might be worth more than the expensive car. Suddenly the tension ratchets into overdrive as both teens have to wrestle with their fears of what might happen next.

The story rocks back and forth between the teens. The reader can’t help but feel sympathy for both which creates a suspense that grows as the story develops. Will Griffin do the right thing? Will Cheyenne? Is a happy ending possible? Who will survive? April Henry does masterful job of developing both characters. The readers left guessing right up to the end and cheering for both.

Target Audience: Grades 7-11

Mystery/suspense: Excellent

Kid Appeal: High

HISTORY OF THE MYSTERY 1923

HISTORY OF THE MYSTERY 1923    

Dorothy Sayers published her first Lord Peter Wimsey mystery in 1923. Wimsey was a new kind of detective. He had style and brains. Readers loved him and Sayers became one of the most popular authors of her time.

ACTIVITY: DETECTIVE TALK 101

DETECTIVE TALK 101

It's 1950. You just dropped into a crime syndicate as an undercover cop. Your crime boss is giving orders right and left. But what does he want you do to?

Read and decide what the underlined words mean so that you can follow orders to keep your secret identity secret.

1. "Take a patsy for the job."

a. a girl    b. a boy     c. a fool

2. "Take the fall for the job."

a. water bucket    b. the blame    c. money

3. "Take a fin for the job."

a. five dollars b. shark fin  c. a Finnish waitress

4. "Take a bunk after the job."

a. take off    b. a nap    c. a hotel room

5. "Take a hack after the job."

a. cut of the money   b. piece of cheese    c. a taxi

"6. Take a pair of Cs to do the job."

a. pair of doves  b. $200.00  c. tennis shoes

ANSWERS:

1. c. Patsy: Person who is set up; fool, chump

2. b. Take the fall for: Accept punishment for

3. a. Fin: $5 bill

4. a. Bunk: "Take a bunk" - leave, disappear

5. c. Hack: Taxi
6. b. Pair of Cs: $200.00

WHAT'S YOUR DETECTIVE STYLE?

Are you a . . .

Sherlock? Hardy Boy? Spy Kid? Psychic? Or Totally Clueless?

Take this little quiz to discover your hidden detecting potential.

 You go to get your lunch and discover IT'S GONE. Someone in your homeroom had to have taken it, but who? You immediately:

a. set up a hidden camera pointed at your locker, announce you have chocolate chip cookies for afternoon recess, and wait to catch the thief in the act.

b. gather your class together for a group picture. You yell, "Cheese!"Take a photo. Study it with a magnifying glass to see who has pepperoni pizza in their teeth and tomato stains on their shirt.

c. close your eyes to feel the vibes of your classmates. You lick your lips and imagine the after taste of cold pizza as you try to envision who has a hungry spirit.

d. ask around and find out who came to school without their lunch… Someone who's not hungry now… Someone who has pizza breath.

            e. call your mom, because you think she forgot to pack your lunch

If you answered A, you're a Spy Kid. You like to set high tech traps to catch the real thieves in the act.

If you answered B, you're a Sherlock. You logically look at the state of things and then draw your conclusions.

If you answered C, you're a Psychic. You go through life in response to your intuition and feelings.

If you answered D, you're a Hardy Boy. You investigate the facts and then draw your conclusions.

If you answered E, you are a totally clueless to what is going on around you. You may not make a great detective, but you have other special gifts.