Giveaway: Sabriel by Garth Nix {CLOSED}

I am so excited to be hosting a giveaway in honor of my 500th post (technically, we’re at 475, but it’s awfully close)!

As you may have noticed, I love books. I read Sabriel this year in May and absolutely loved it – you can read my review here. Harper Collins, the publisher of Sabriel, has generously donated a copy for me to give away here on my blog. Head over to this Browse Inside page at Harper Teen where you can take a look at Sabriel, inside and out.

To enter:

Leave a comment on this post telling me one of your favorite books. You must include a valid email address in the form.

Extra entries:

• Follow me on Twitter and tweet this:
  RT @mikahillery Win a copy of Sabriel by Garth Nix at fifty thousand pages http://wp.me/pb3E4-pK Then come back here and leave a comment with a permalink to your tweet. This can be done once daily.
• Visit the Harper Teen site and leave a comment here with the title and author of a book that looks interesting to you. This can be done as many times as you like.
• Blog about this giveaway and leave 2 comments with a link to your post.
• Subscribe to my RSS feed and leave a comment letting me know that you’ve done so.

You can enter until 12pm PDT on September 16, 2009. A winner will be drawn using random.org and announced here on September 17, as well as contacted by email. The winner will have 48 hours to claim their prize or a new winner will be drawn.

Good luck! And happy (almost) 500 posts to me!

The Mysterious Benedict Society

by Trenton Lee Stewart
{ 2008 | Little, Brown Young Readers | 512 pgs }

It’s true, I’m doing a few things wrong here. First, I should be reviewing Tallgrass right now, since I read it before The Mysterious Benedict Society. Second, I really should not have read this book all in one sitting…which meant staying up until I-dunno-how-late-since-I-made-sure-not-to-look-at-the-clock. Third, it would probably be better for me to be thinking about lunch instead of debating having another cookie. (Or two. Or three.)

The Mysterious Benedict Society seems, to me, to draw on the success of A Series of Unfortunate Events. (I’m having really severe déja vu here. I know I’ve said this before. Seriously, can you help me out? Did I tell you about this book already?) It’s about rather brilliant orphans who have to solve a mystery, or a series of mysteries. One key difference is that TMBS (do you mind? It’s a pain to type the whole title) isn’t nearly as depressing. It’s actually quite cheery in comparison.

The orphans are Reynie, Sticky, Kate, and Constance, although the narration centers more specifically on Reynie, as he is the leader of the group (and the most empathetic character). The book starts with an extremely difficult written test, given to several large groups of children. Reynie, Sticky, Kate, and Constance are the only four who pass – or are selected by Mr. Benedict – and then complete additional unorthodox testing. Mr. Benedict needs to assemble a team of children to combat the threat of…well, it’s rather mysterious. And hard to explain without giving away too much plot.

What do I have to say about it, then? Well, like I told you, I stayed up half the night (maybe more, maybe less) reading it. The characters are each amusing and poignant in their own way; the writing is unobtrusively excellent; the story is fascinating. There were a few twists and turns, but mainly Stewart has done a great job of letting the reader discover new things when the children do. I never felt like I knew extra pieces of the mystery that the orphans hadn’t yet found. It was a fun journey.

Apparently there is a second book, and a third due for release this year. I’ll definitely be picking those up. (Special thanks to Katie for lending me TMBS, and not harassing me for always forgetting to return it!)

Tweet: In the mood for a humorous, exciting, and dare I say mysterious novel? Pick up The Mysterious Benedict Society by Trenton Lee Stewart!

P.S. I can’t believe I forgot to mention this: the illustrations – the cover, the title headings, and so on – are done by the incredible Carson Ellis, and while you never can judge a book by its cover (so they say), that’s really half the reason I wanted to read it in the first place. They add so much to the book.

It’s Monday! What Are You Reading?

(This is my first week participating in this meme hosted by J. Kaye’s Book Blog.)

Books I completed this week are:

The Underneath by Kathi Appelt is a middle reader book that deserves the awards it received, but I took issue with the author’s writing style at times. It distracted me from the marvelous storytelling.

Tallgrass by Sandra Dallas is a piece of historical fiction that I read in one sitting (late at night, of course). It’s about a small Colorado farming town during WWII where a Japanese internment camp is set up, and the way the townspeople and the Japanese-Americans deal with the tension that results.

The Mysterious Benedict Society by Trenton Lee Stewart is a YA novel that draws on the success of A Series of Unfortunate Events. It is a quick, easy, captivating book about four unique children who are given a special undercover assignment. I can’t wait to get my hands on the second book.

Unaccustomed Earth by Jhumpa Lahiri is a collection of short stories whose main characters are Bengali. I’m not sure where I saw the book recommended, but I had no idea what to expect – didn’t even know it was a collection before I started reading – but I was enthralled by the author’s ability to present so many different characters in first-person.

So this week:

The Legend of Zelda and Philosophy edited by Luke Cuddy is part of a series of books on philosophy and popular culture.

Still Life with Rice by Helie Lee is a memoir of Lee’s grandmother, who was born in 1912 in Korea and lived through the Japanese occupation.