ps

and oh my goodness I didn't even tell you why I liked the books. What am I becoming?

Good Brother, Bad Brother and Hitler Youth were both good gripping history with great photographs to accentuate the text. My main reservation with Hitler Youth is that I don't think it would be nearly as good without photos. And we're not really supposed to weigh photos unless they distract from the text. (I love the phrase "the text," by the way.) There's also a new bio out on Eleanor Roosevelt that I peeked at that's supposed to be good, although it wasn't on our list to consider since it just came out. And I still hold to my philosophy that if you want to learn about a subject without totally diving into it, children's books are the way to go. I'm all into non-fiction now! Another one on our short list was Guinea Pig Scientists which, gasp, actually makes science interesting. To me, at least.

Maude March was just good fun. The main characters all felt like they lived and breathed (even the dead aunt), the style was consistent, there are great newspaper excerpts included, it's thought-provoking, not just fluff. Love Maude and Sallie.

Each Little Bird was fun. If there were an award for best character names, it would win. Maybe a bit over the top, but recommendable.

Chicken Boy was just not what I expected. I expected: depressing, hicks, a boy-book. Instead there were great characters, spare style, a great narrator, and a look into the soul of the chicken.