Just one true friend… That’s all Amelia E. Rye’s grandfather says she needs, and when Fancy Nelson comes to town, Amelia knows that it’s true. Fancy is the first black person Amelia’s ever seen, and she seems to have everything that Amelia lacks…courage and no-holds-barred confidence…and unconditional love from her family. With Fancy beside her, the world looks a little different to Amelia, a little brighter, and a little braver.

This is a fantastic, fantastic upper middle grade…more Let me just say for the record that I predict next year at this time, when we’re all guessing about the 2011 book awards, this title comes up in the conversation quite a bit.  I’ll also say, in the interest of full disclosure, that I know and like the author a whole lot.  Bonnie Shimko is a warm, funny, kind person in addition to being a seriously talented writer. This is her third novel for kids and teens, and while I liked the other two a lot…THE PRIVATE THOUGHTS OF AMELIA E. RYE has absolutely won my heart.

Just one true friend… That’s all Amelia E. Rye’s grandfather says she needs, and when Fancy Nelson comes to town, Amelia knows that it’s true. Fancy is the first black kid Amelia’s ever seen, and she seems to have everything that Amelia lacks…courage, no-holds-barred confidence, and unconditional love from her family. With Fancy beside her, the world looks a little different to Amelia, a little brighter, and a little braver.

This is a fantastic, fantastic upper middle grade novel – great for ages 10 and up – and really, it’s one of those titles that adult book clubs should pick up, too. The characterization is as close to perfect as I’ve seen in a novel for kids, vivid and rich and never stereotypical, and the writing is just brilliant — laugh-out-loud funny one moment and heartbreaking the next. I’m so thankful to have spent some time in Amelia’s world and can’t wait for April so I can share her with my students. This is a really special book.

(Reviewed from an ARC that I was lucky enough to pick up at NCTE… and due out from FSG in April 2010)

It’s been a busy week at the Messner house. 

Three manuscripts:

The draft of my middle grade mystery, which shall remain nameless for now, is DONE.  I finished in a marathon writing session the night before New Year’s Eve.  Now to finish polishing the first few chapters so I can send off to my critique buddies. I’m going on a writing retreat later this month, where I will be revising like a madwoman.

Reviewed copy edits for SUGAR ON SNOW are in the envelope, going back to NYC tomorrow.  My blue pencil got a workout.

And I’ve just received the copy-edited manuscript for MARTY MCGUIRE, FROG PRINCESS, the first title in my chapter book series with Scholastic, which will be coming out in February of 2011.  The copy edit email came with a special series style sheet that has not only a chart of all my characters and their relationships but also a list of "author’s made-up words" that are to be left alone through the copy editing process, including "flippy, boingy, poofy, floofy, princessy, and blech."  This amused me to no end.

Two rats:

But only one would even sit remotely still for a photo.

This is Chester.  The rat-who-will-not-be-still is named Guy (rhymes with "tree" as in Guy de Maupassant and Guy LeFleur) and they are E’s new pets who live in a cage three-bedroom condo in the basement.  They are Dumbo rats, so named for their big ears on the sides of their heads.  We brought them home from a Dumbo rat breeder in Montreal last week, claimed them at U.S. Customs —

"Anything to declare?"
"Two rats."
"Did you say rats?" 
"Yes, pet rats. Do you need to see them?" 
"No, that’s okay."

–and got them settled in their new home. We constructed a rat playpen out of plexiglass ceiling light covers and duct tape —

— and E and her friends have been building them forts and mazes out of cardboard boxes and more duct tape.  They’re quite cute and very friendly. More photos to come if they ever sit still for a minute.

A pile of books:

I was going to clean out my bookshelves and get rid of some books before they completely take over the house. 

But then I decided to get a new bookshelf instead.  

It’s full of novels I read over vacation.  I’ll post more detailed recommendations on my blog over the next few weeks, but for now, just know that CAPTIVATE by Carrie Jones made me gasp and cheer and cry within about ten pages and that Francisco X. Stork’s next book, THE LAST SUMMER OF THE DEATH WARRIORS is so far shaping up to be just as amazing as MARCELO IN THE REAL WORLD.  I have a feeling that 2010 is going to be a very good year for books.

(Which is not to say that I am calling reviewers rats… these are just two separate thoughts tucked together in one post. And they both started with R, so there you go.)

First the review part...  Fuse #8 is asking people to vote on which 2009 book should be her last review of the year, and THE BRILLIANT FALL OF GIANNA Z. is on her maybe-list.  I’ve long enjoyed the thoughtful reviews on this blog and would love to hear her take on Gianna Z, so I’d love it if you’d click here and vote if you haven’t already! 

Now the rats…  We’re headed to Montreal tomorrow to pick up two baby Dumbo rats, a belated Christmas present for my daughter. I thought we’d have her unwrap the cage on Christmas and then drop by the pet store the next day to pick up the rats.  But Dumbo rats are apparently not that easy to find, or so I discovered after calling every pet store in Northern NY and Vermont and some in New Hampshire. Finally today, I found a breeder in Montreal, and after several hours of emailing back and forth in French (those four years of high school French helped…some…), we are headed north tomorrow to pick up two residents for the cage in the basement.  Here’s one of them. 

I think his big ears are cute.  I also think after all this, the rats should probably have French Canadian names, but we’ll see…  Any suggestions?

Current temp: -3 F

I like to think this is nature’s way of making up for our cold hands…

I’m late to the party, but someone has declared today Agent Appreciation Day. Since I think it’s always a great idea to celebrate people who do great work, I’m sneaking in a quick post about my literary agent, Jennifer Laughran of the Andrea Brown Literary Agency. (She’s here on LJ and on Twitter, where she talks a lot about books and says wise things about the industry.)

For blog readers outside the world of publishing, a literary agent is someone who negotiates much of the business part of writing for authors — the book deals and contracts and any other film or foreign rights that grow out of something an author has written. Some agents, like Jennifer, also offer editorial advice to help get an author’s manuscript in the best possible shape before it’s submitted to editors. Agents help authors to shape their careers and generally act as advocates for writers and their work.

Given all that, I’m so very glad that Jennifer is in my corner. For starters, she’s sold six books for me in the two years we’ve worked together. But beyond that, Jenn is one of the smartest, funniest people I know and works harder than anyone I’ve ever met. She is a great communicator with an unflappable positive attitude, and she’s a tireless advocate for her clients. She cheers for our books both before and after they’ve sold. And she loves books just as much as I do.

Thanks, Jenn, for all that you do!