Reading Road-Trip: Maine

Welcome to Day 1 of the 2013 Reading Road Trip Hop which is being hosted by I Like These Books and IceyBooks.  While I was disappointed to not be able to get the state that I live in (Missouri) or the one that I'm getting ready to start teaching in because it is right next door (Kansas), I was excited to get Maine, as one of my favorite authors of all time, Stephen King, lives there, and sets most of his books there.  The flag:

• The state motto is Dirigo as you see on the top of the flag, which means "I Direct".
• It contains the city Eastport, which is the city in the US that is the furthest east, and is considered to be the city that receives the Sun's rays first in the country.
• It's the only state that has a name with one syllable.
• The chickadee is the official state bird.
• It is nicknamed the Pine Tree state, hence the tree on the flag.
• It was admitted to the Union as the 23rd state on March 15th, 1820.
• The Vikings are believed to have discovered Maine more than 1000 years ago!
• The state animal is the Moose, they have more Moose per mile than any other state.
• There are 3,166 islands that are considered part of Maine.
• Maine produces 90% of the country's toothpick supply.

And I'm sure you know that Maine lobsters are pretty popular as well!  Some famous people from Maine besides Stephen King are:

• Joe Hill, but as he is Stephen King's son, can I count him as another?  
• Henry Wadsworth Longfellow - poet
• Judd Nelson, of The Breakfast Club fame
• Victoria Rowell, from one of my favorite tv shows, The Young and the Restless
• Author C.J. Stevens
• E.B. White, author of Charlotte's Web
• Anna Kendrick, actress who played Jessica in the Twilight movie series

For my giveaway, which you will have till the end of the month to enter, you may pick one of the books I've listed below.  These are books that either take place in Maine, or are by an author from Maine.  My giveaway is International, as long as The Book Depository ships to you.

• Any book from the Delirium series by Lauren Oliver
• Any book from the Hush, Hush series by Becca Fitzpatrick
• Any book from the Need series by Carrie Jones
• Any of these books by Stephen King, It, Joyland, The Long Walk, The Shining, The Stand, The Mist, Carrie, Road Work, The Green Mile, Misery, Cujo, Needful Things, Cycle of the Werewolf, Different Seasons, The Cell, Skeleton Crew, Firestarter,  or Thinner.
• Siren by Tricia Rayburn

Fill out the Rafflecopter below to enter.  There are no mandatory entries, in fact the first one is free!  You may choose to follow my blog or any of the other choices for more entries though.  And when you're done filling it out, you can click on the button on the sidebar to go to the other stops on the tour.  

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Lobster Land by Susan Carlton

I wanted to like this book so much. The author was so nice when I emailed my request to get an advanced copy. She talked about how authors loved teachers and librarians. And when I got the book? I got an awesome little package of goodies wrapped in a pretty bow. Unfortunately, I can't give it my best review.

Sure, I can see how a teen would like it. It's got the angst, the romance, the wanting to get away from parents who just don't understand. But unfortunately it just wasn't my cup of tea. One thing that may have kind of flavored my mood as I read was at the beginning. Now, yes, I know this is from a teenager's point of view, but when Charlotte, our main character, calls John Walsh, the host of America's Most Wanted pathetic, and says he should basically "get over" his son's kidnapping and murder? I just really couldn't stand that. Maybe it's because I was a kid when all that happened and it was a horrible news story that I remember hearing about and feeling for that man and his family.

Some cute things about the story, the character is a "brain". I do like that part. And their parents named them all based on the book Charlotte's Web. Our main character Charlotte, her 4 year old sister is named Fern, and their 9 month old brother is E.B. or as Charlottle calls him, Eb. So that's pretty cute. I do also love hearing about the setting of the book, an island near Portland, Maine. I've never been to this part of the country, but I really would like to. So I enjoyed hearing about the ferry they had to take so they could go to school, and all that. Unfortunately this is definitely a teen book, the f-word is used a bit, and so I couldn't pass it on to my 8th graders in good consious. So, while I think teens might enjoy it, it just won't be one I pass on. And I have a cool, autographed copy too. Maybe I could donate it to a high school library.