Stargirl (Readers Circle)

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"She was homeschooling gone amok." "She was an alien." "Her parents were circus acrobats." These are only a few of the theories concocted to explain Stargirl Caraway, a new 10th grader at Arizona's Mica Area High School who wears pioneer dresses and kimonos to school, strums a ukulele in the cafeteria, laughs when there are no jokes, and dances when there is no music. The whole school, not exactly a "hotbed of nonconformity," is stunned by her, including our 16-year-old narrator Leo Borlock: "She was elusive. She was today. She was tomorrow. She was the faintest scent of a cactus flower, the flitting shadow of an elf owl."

In time, incredulity gives way to out-and-out adoration as the student body finds itself helpless to resist Stargirl's wide-eyed charm, pure-spirited friendliness, and penchant for celebrating the achievements of others. In the ultimate high school symbol of acceptance, she is even recruited as a cheerleader. Popularity, of course, is a fragile and fleeting state, and bit by bit, Mica sours on their new idol. Why is Stargirl showing up at the funerals of strangers? Worse, why does she cheer for the opposing basketball teams? The growing hostility comes to a head when she is verbally flogged by resentful students on Leo's televised Hot Seat show in an episode that is too terrible to air. While the playful, chin-held-high Stargirl seems impervious to the shunning that ensues, Leo, who is in the throes of first love (and therefore scornfully deemed "Starboy"), is not made of such strong stuff: "I became angry. I resented having to choose. I refused to choose. I imagined my life without her and without them, and I didn't like it either way."

Jerry Spinelli, author of Newbery Medalist Maniac Magee, Newbery Honor Book Wringer, and many other excellent books for teens, elegantly and accurately captures the collective, not-always-pretty emotions of a high school microcosm in which individuality is pitted against conformity. Spinelli's Stargirl is a supernatural teen character--absolutely egoless, altruistic, in touch with life's primitive rhythms, meditative, untouched by popular culture, and supremely self-confident. It is the sensitive Leo whom readers will relate to as he grapples with who she is, who he is, who they are together as Stargirl and Starboy, and indeed, what it means to be a human being on a planet that is rich with wonders. (Ages 10 to 14) --Karin Snelson

Book Description

Stargirl. From the day she arrives at quiet Mica High in a burst of color and sound, the hallways hum with the murmur of “Stargirl, Stargirl.” She captures Leo Borlock’s heart with just one smile. She sparks a school-spirit revolution with just one cheer. The students of Mica High are enchanted. At first.

Then they turn on her. Stargirl is suddenly shunned for everything that makes her different, and Leo, panicked and desperate with love, urges her to become the very thing that can destroy her: normal. In this celebration of nonconformity, Newbery Medalist Jerry Spinelli weaves a tense, emotional tale about the perils of popularity and the thrill and inspiration of first love.

From the Hardcover edition.

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In this story about the perils of popularity, the courage of nonconformity, and the thrill of first love, an eccentric student named Stargirl changes Mica High School forever.

Customer Reviews:

Prismatic.......2007-10-03

How do I even begin?
This is one of the best books I've ever read. One of the best books ever written. I was walking through a bookstore, and I was scanning all the norm, all the cliche titles. I'm not really expecting to find anything at all. I hardly ever do. The section that is supposed to interest me I find dull and unoriginal. Its as if some people think that children my age (twelve) are machines and can be fed the same thing over and over and over and OVER.
Then I see the blue cover, stuck in between other titles. You had to have your eyes out for it. I spotted it. It was nearly hidden. I'm glad I saw. The title just sings to me.
Ooh. Stargirl.
I read the back. I read the first chapter. She's playing the ukelele, she's dancing around the cafeiteria in her long white dress, in the middle of the dull, indifferently-conformed Mica High student body, where Leo Borlock, the protagonist, is watching along with all the other kids at the tables, ogling at this girl who calls herself `Stargirl', strumming her ukelele and singing, with a rat riding happily on her shoulder.
That is enough for me. I bought it. I finished it in a night and a day.
It's not your run-o-the-mill `be yourself' story. And its not telling to just simply `be different'. Its about truly being who you want to be (or, rather, who you ARE--made up of the dreams of the person you ARE before you wake up in the morning), and also about doing good with what time we have on this earth.
And I did have a feeling that I would be heartbroken by the end. I was. But somehow that only added to the experience of this luminous story.
Its about feelings. Its about first love, about caring for others, about spontaneous acts of kindness, about a slender ray of sunshine in darkness.
Archie said it best: "When a Stargirl cries, she does not shed tears, but light."
It inspired me to think about people in general. It inspired me and surprised me. I look for little things. I find myself naturally drawn towards everything I overlooked before. I like these rare books that I can read and really remember, taking little bits of it, if only sentences, and them becoming apart of me, and carrying them around inside of me and those words echoing throughout me.
Bravo to Mr. Jerry Spinelli. This is a perfectly prismatic story.

This one is a classic.......2007-09-26

Okay, I'm going to say it. Stargirl by Jerry Spinelli is a young adult classic (maybe even a children's classic but that's really a cataloguing issue that I am ill-equipped to discuss). This designation raises the question: What makes a book (any book) a classic? For me it means a book that is timeless; something you can read years and years after it was written without the book losing its vibrancy. A classic also needs to have memorable writing and characters. It needs to speak to the reader. It needs to be a book that you enjoy more every time you read it or talk about it. Classics are the books you want to immerse yourself in: the books you wish you could live in with the characters that you wish were your friends.

I'll say it again: Stargirl is a classic.

The story starts with Leo Borlock, who moved to Mica, Arizona at the age of twelve. Around the time of his move, Leo decided to start collecting porcupine neckties--no easy task, especially in Mica. For two years, Leo's collection stood at one tie. Until his fourteenth birthday when an unknown someone presented Leo with his second tie, someone who was watching from the sidelines.

Mica's unusual events don't stop there. The story continues when Leo is a junior in high school. On the first day the name on everyone's lips is Stargirl. Formerly home-schooled, Stargirl is a sophomore like no one Leo (or any of the other Mica students) has ever met before:

"She was elusive. She was today. She was tomorrow. She was the faintest scent of a cactus flower, the flitting shadow of an elf owl. We did not know what to make of her. In our minds we tried to pin her to corkboard like a butterfly, but the pin merely went through and away she flew."

After finishing this book and recently reading Love, Stargirl (Spinelli's newly released sequel), I have my own explanation: Stargirl is magical. She represents the kind of magic more people need in their lives: to appreciate the little things, to dare to be different, to be kind to strangers. The kind of magic where you still believe things can be wondrous.

In the story, Leo soon realizes that Stargirl might be someone he could love.

Unfortunately, high school students don't always believe in (or appreciate) magic like Stargirl's. As the school moves from fascination to adoration and, finally, to disdain Leo finds himself in an impossible position: forced to choose between the girl he loves and his entire lifestyle.

Technically speaking I love everything about this book: the characters, the story, the cover art. This one has the full package. Spinelli's writing throughout the story is perfect. He captures Leo's fascination with Stargirl as well as his equivocation as he is forced to choose between Stargirl and "the crowd."

Stargirl is not a long book. The writing is cogent, sentences brief. Nonetheless, the text is rich. This book never gets old or boring. Spinelli creates a compelling, utterly new narrative here (with a charmingly memorable heroine).

Captures a Time in Life Most of Us Can Easily Relate To........2007-09-19

High school is a very trying time in any young adult's life, and if you happen to be a nonconformist, the going is twice as difficult. If you remember your teens without regret, your are part of the few who do.

Jerry Spinelli shows us a world that more than vividly captures the affections of a boy named Leo for the unusual Stargirl who's social status changes almost as often as her names. Now, I'll admit like some of the reviewers here that she was a bit over the top in her behavior, but it seems that Spinelli exaggerated her to make his point about how cruel kids can be to others who don't act as impulsively on their whims as our heroine.

I learned in my own high school years that it's okay if others don't like you for being yourself, but when someone like Leo is very close to you and expects you to change, it's a different matter entirely. If you were teased in school for associating with a "stargirl" or a "starboy," you usually gave them a nasty and unceremonious dumping. Leo held on instead, cringing all the while as he kept on crushing Stargirl's spirit by asking her to give up pieces of what attracted him to her in the first place. A rather truthful and sad social commentary about people at any stage of life.

A wonderful glimpse into Leo's psyche as his tale of first love makes him grow up and regret his poor choices with a truly unique and wonderful individual. With beautifully simple details that even the youngest reader can grasp, quirky humor, and heart-tuggingly painful moments that deal in heartbreak and peer pressure--plus a touch of mystery--I would recommend Stargirl to anyone who is grasping with this issue. The book also has a surprising and bittersweet ending that will bring a smile to your face. Age recommendation: 9 to 90!

first love and nonconformity.......2007-09-02

The years in high school are really the years in which you discover what kind of person you really want to be. It is where you are allowed to make your first big mistakes in life, in love, and hopefully learn from them. Leo, the narrator of Stargirl, meets the nonconformist Stargirl Caraway and the two, through the actions, decisions and consequences that follow, propel each other into a more adult understanding of love, community, mob mentality, acceptance, courage and sadly, the events that follow when all of those things fail. It is a touching story about how the people you meet at this time in your life and how you react to them can really shape who and what you become.

Sarah Phelan, author of Stay At Home Stay At Home

Impossible ideals..........2007-08-27

As a Christian, when I read Stargirl at the age of 16(back in 2001) I thought it was the most awesome book ever - period. Stargirl represented everything I wanted to be; carefree, beautiful, bold, and honest. I was a shy girl who acted tough and confident, but I wanted to be able to be like Stargirl prancing around the school singing happy birthday to people I didn't know, sending cards to random people, and putting daisies on my desk at school. To me Stargirl represented a fearless woman who could do what she wanted without fear of judgement. Now, as I am older I still want that, but I feel differently about how Stargirl acts.

The character of Stargirl is used to contrast against the other students of Mice High who are afraid to be themselves, but go with the flow, and critize anyone who goes against. Stargirl is the catalyst who gets people like Leo to think that maybe he should stop caring about what people think. I do agree that people need to care about what other people think so much when it causes them to judge themselves, and conform to what they percieve as "normal". The character Stargirl is used here to tell children and teenagers that true freedom is found in being who you were created to be, and not who you think you should be, or others think you should be.

As the story progresses we see that Leo is less keen on complying with Stargirl's antics when it conflicts with his reputation; such as her knack for cheering for the other team at basketball games. Later Leo looks back on things and sees how he tried to make Stargirl change, and it ended up making her miserable, and realizes he lost his first love because he kept trying to change her.

There are two things I want to note about "Stargirl". One, although Leo was wrong to try to change Stargirl, it was not a bad thing for her to change. This is because her passions were unbridled, she didn't understand restraint, and yes while she did good to break Mica High out of their shells, she also needed to come to a balance where she herself learned that some conformity is a good thing (Such as conforming to the image of God or being obedient to parents).

Two, I initially loved the idea of Stargirl erasing herself, because I use Christian meditation (focusing on Jesus) as a way to get away from the world. The book gave an impression that she was a Christian, but when I started reading the new book "Love, Stargirl" I realized Spinelli was not in the least talking about a Christian form of meditation, but rather an Eastern form of meditation. I understand this in the second book, but it is important to note that Stargirl calls her practice of erasing herself "Mind Washing", which reminds me a lot of Eastern meditation and New-Age practices that tell us to empty our minds.

I am not saying that Stargirl is a bad book, in fact it is an amazing book. It is still one of my favorites because it does illistrate how we are often expected to fit a certain mold when every person is different and has their own personality. I am just not excited about books that tell our children that non-comformity is good either, but we all have to conform on some level. I am not saying that Spinelli was telling us to live without restraint, but rather that we should enjoy life more. I agree with that, but the message gets mixed up in all the fluff and can be easily misconstrued.

*ENJOY ~Amy

Beginner's Luck: A Novel (Ballantine Reader's Circle)

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CHARMING FIRST NOVEL SPAWNS GREAT SERIES
We should all be so lucky to find a home like this!
Quickwitted sarcastic humor
A fast, fun read.
BECAUSE OF WINN DIXIE for an older teenage audience

Beginner's Luck: A Novel (Ballantine Reader's Circle)
Laura Pedersen
Manufacturer: Ballantine Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0345458303
Release Date: 2003-01-01

Book Description

“There could be no doubt left in anyone’s mind that my life had all the makings of a country-and-western song.”

The second of seven children (with another on the way), Hallie Palmer has one dream: to make it to Vegas. Normally blessed with an uncanny gift for winning at games of chance, she’s just hit a losing streak. She’s been kicked out of the casino she frequents during school hours, lost all her money for a car on a bad bet at the track, and has been grounded by her parents. Hallie decides the time as come to cut her losses.

Answering an ad in the local paper, she lands a job as yard person at the elegant home of the sixty-ish Mrs. Olivia Stockton, a wonderfully eccentric rebel who scribes acclaimed poetry along with the occasional soft-core porn story. Under the same wild roof is Olivia’s son, Bernard, an antiques dealer and gourmet cook who turns out mouthwatering cuisine and scathing witticisms, and Gil, Bernard’s lover, whose down-to-earth sensibilities provide a perfect foil to the Stocktons’ outrageous joie de vivre. Here, in this anything-goes household, Hallie has found a new family. And she’s about to receive the education of her life.

From a wonderful new voice in fiction comes the freshest and funniest novel to barrel down the pike since Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Café. In Beginner’s Luck, Laura Pedersen introduces us to the endearing oddballs and eccentrics of Cosgrove County, Ohio, who burst to life and steal our hearts–and none more so than Hallie Palmer, sixteen, savvy, and wise beyond her years, a young woman who knows life is a gamble . . . and sometimes you have to bet the house.

Customer Reviews:

CHARMING FIRST NOVEL SPAWNS GREAT SERIES.......2006-08-10

I enjoyed BEGINNER'S LUCK for it's delightful characters and clever dialogue. Most of all I loved the depiction of the American Midwest as a place where a lot has changed with the advent of technology, collapse of the family farm, and so many industries that provided jobs to Rust Belt city dwellers, but where life still hums away with the changing of each season and most people are friendly, proud, and involved in their communities. There was a time when, if you lived in the heartland, you really had to be neighborly because disaster could strike -- fire, flood, illness -- and it was the people who lived nearest who were going to rescue you (or not). But even with the advent of good fire departments, hospitals, and police, I find that this sensibility of helping others and spirit of generosity still prevails, if you turn off the ratings grabbing-fear instilling evening news and wander over to the baseball diamond, church potluck, synagogue, local theater group, etc.

BEGINNER'S LUCK displays the sharp-edged humor, quick dialogue, and modern social issues that anchor it as a 21st century novel more than one of the 19th or 20th centuries, but there is still something beautifully timeless in the action and people that harkens back to everything good about an earlier America. Main character Hallie Palmer continues to return home for more adventures with this entertaining cast of characters in HEART'S DESIRE and THE BIG SHUFFLE, and now the question is -- will she settle down in her hometown after college or move on to "bigger things." However, Pedersen has set things up nicely in that if Hallie does move away, she'll be taking all the best of growing up with her, and if she decides to stay, well, who wouldn't?

We should all be so lucky to find a home like this!.......2006-01-15

This has to be the best book I read in 2005! The characters are endearingly funny and Hallie is a child to be admired. The Stockton household is one any child would be thrilled to inhabit. For a side dish, we get history lessons, literature classes and plenty of social conscience raising. The rich descriptions of Olivia, Bernard and even Rocky make us want to spend a summer with this family; even if we have to weed the garden!

Quickwitted sarcastic humor .......2005-12-24

Hallie is a 16 year-old girl who despises the school that she goes to so much that she doesn't bother to show up to 90% of the classes. Most of the time you can find her down at the horse track betting on the ponies, aka earning money to buy a car. Since she lives in a house barely big enough to house the nine that it consists of now, not to mention the new baby on the way, she plans to head to Las Vegas. She is the second oldest and is overlooked up until now,when the attendence officer "Just Call Me Dick" begins to notice that she doesn't come to homeroom, or most of her other classes for that matter. He alerts the ultimate authorities; her parents. They simply retract their offer to help pay for the car and ground her until her grades pull up. Hallie thinks, "Well that's too bad because I'm gone, I'll gamble until I have the money to go to Vegas then, so long Ohio!" Hallie is a gifted card player that goes along with her innate sense of numbers. She doesn't have a gambling problem just does it for the money. An unfortunate loss at the track forces her to take a job as a lawn person in the eccentric household of the Stocktons. This quirky family includes Olivia, the head matron, The Judge her husband, Bernard their son, Gil Bernard's lover, and the ever persistent Rocky the chimp, who is between jobs. Not only are they paying her 12 dollars an hour they soon welcome her into their home with her own room. Her parents want her back but no such luck, she becomes a permanent fixture in the lives of the Stocktons. She is now learning things that she would not otherwise learn, like how to prepare exqusite dishes, little known facts about authors and figure heads. The sarcastic humor, intermixed with exquisite vocabulary, envelope her in Ms. Olivia's rabble rousing and protesting for a greater cause. Olivia soon becomes her tutor that way she will graduate and be able to go to college. Her boyfriend, Craig, even gets along with the Stocktons. This leads to a pinch or romance among all the gambling and clearing of her name. A household that will not be forgotten easily.

Slowly but surely, a quickwitted sarcastic humor takes you into this quirky world of Hallie Palmer. This hold is not relinquished throughout the entire novel. I laughed so hard I cried multiple times. The reader is faced with a gay couple that Hallie coexists with and not all romantic scenes are backstage. For those with improving vocabulary, I suggest a pocket dictionary nearby, just in case. Morals and prejudiced thoughts are faced and delt with making you think about your own beliefs.This book is for those willing to be open-minded to other's thoughts and ideas even though you may have originally rejected them as not part of your beliefs. Not everything is black and white as it might appear, and there are two sides to each argument. It helps to see both.

Reviewed by a student reviewer for Flamingnet Book Reviews
www.flamingnet.com
Preteen, teen, and young adult book reviews and recommendations

A fast, fun read........2005-10-18

I liked this book. It took me a while to get used to Hallie's (the main character) lifestyle, but eventually I got into the swing. The Stockton family was just endlessly entertaining, and I thought the author did a terrific job of writing in the voice of a teenaged girl (though I haven't been one myself in almost 15 years, so I might not be the best judge).

I look forward to reading more by this author.

BECAUSE OF WINN DIXIE for an older teenage audience.......2005-10-01

I started BEGINNER'S LUCK with some skepticism: I wasn't sure of the target audience for a small-town coming-of-age story about a 16-year-old high school dropout, runaway, semi-professional gambler/math genius.

How could the main character, Hallie (as in the Comet) Palmer be a good role model for impressionable teenage readers? And for older readers, what would be the compelling interest, having experienced adolescent angst and 'been there, done that' to one extent or another? (Although I'm not sure how many of us were teenage gamblers?)

By the end of Chapter 1, you'll be engaged by Laura Pedersen's straightforward, funny, clever writing style and turns-of-phrase, many having some allusion to poker or gambling, as do all the chapter titles.

By the end of Chapter 3, you'll be drawn in by Hallie herself, the first person narrator, who, in spite of her growing reputation as "the town miscreant" for various misadventures, turns out to be a very intelligent, deep-thinking, somewhat confused teenager. Not so much a hardened criminal as a hard worker with a good heart. Not so much a juvenile delinquent, at least in attitude or intent, as a typical teenager--impatient, naïve, self-conscious, and conflicted about everything: school, family, boys, sex, growing up and finding her place in the world.

By the end of Chapter 7, when the remainder of the cast of colorful characters is introduced, you'll be hooked into the wonderful world of Hallie Palmer.

The first book of a projected four-book series, in BEGINNER'S LUCK, we get to know Hallie as she drops out of high school, runs away from home (with six brothers and sisters, and more on the way, who could blame her?!), and finds refuge and the space to sort everything out as a live-in yard person in the truly out-of-the-ordinary Stockton home.

Life is never dull with Bernard Stockton, a flamboyant (yes, that's right, read: GAY) antiques dealer; his equally-charming, long-term boyfriend, Gil; his gracefully aging, revolutionary, free-spirited mother, Olivia; his father, the Judge, an ailing Alzheimer's patient; and an alcoholic Chimpanzee named Rocky. Eclectic, yes. Eccentric, definitely. These characters will make you wish for small town innocence (as claustrophobic as it can be), and long for the nostalgia that people and places like this might actually exist.

With such a colorful backdrop of characters, the plot is just as original, as Hallie matures and finds her way, even graduating from high school under the private tutelage of Olivia Stockton. She even kind of resolves the age-old Sex issue with her boyfriend, who is pressuring her, with a surprisingly explicit few pages toward the end of the book--explicit, yet very genuine, and she remains a virgin, which is a refreshing, intelligent choice in teenage literature. Congratulations to Laura Pedersen for handling this sensitive issue so well.

I look forward to continuing to read about Hallie's adventures, and this is a book I would love to have my someday-a-teenager daughter read, when she's ready for teenage issues.

Sherri Caldwell, co-author, The Rebel Housewife Rules: To Heck With Domestic Bliss!

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An OK Example of Urban Fantasy
Enchanting Light Read!
Cavity-Inducing
Young Adult Read to Satisfy the Adult
devine

Eccentric Circles
Rebecca Lickiss
Manufacturer: Ace Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback

Contemporary | Fantasy | Science Fiction & Fantasy | Subjects | Books

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Never After

ASIN: 0441008283
Release Date: 2001-07-03

Book Description

The doctors said Piper Dickerson's grandmother died of old age. The elf said it was murder.

A charming debut from a writer who already shows great promise. (Charles de Lint)

A delight. Rebecca Lickiss is a strong new voice. (Kristine Kathryn Rusch)

Customer Reviews:

An OK Example of Urban Fantasy.......2005-10-19

I adore urban fantasy and read tons of it. This book is not a very good example of the genre. It recycles many tropes from other books and doesn't deal with them in interesting or unusual ways. Our heroine inherits a library from her grandmother, discovers a gateway into faery, it turns out her grandmother was murdered and our heroine must solve the mystery in order to prevent untold chaos and crappiness. This has been done way better by other authors such as Charles De Lint (The Little Country) or Tanya Huff (Gate of Darkness, Circle of Light). This book was not offensive, but it certainly wasn't great.

Enchanting Light Read!.......2004-09-29

While not exactly an engrossing tome of a fantasy novel such as I usually read, "Eccentric Circles" was a pleasant diversion and a great lighthearted read. It's nothing that will take your breath away or leave you panting for more, but it is a very enjoyable book, nonetheless.

Upon her grandmother's death, Piper Pied (who comes from a family with increasingly bad taste in names) inherits her relative's home, as well as the innumerable books inside it. The first visitor she has in her new home just happens to be a young male elf named Aelvarim who informs Piper that her grandmother was in fact murdered in order to create a rift between the world of humans and the world of Faerie.

For Piper, who wants nothing more than to have a normal life, these forays into the land of Faerie are amusing, but unimportant. Unimportant, that is, until the problems from the mythical world start leaking into the human world. Faced with the problem of the two worlds drifting away from each other permanently, Piper and Aelvarim must work together to save both worlds from the separation. As they work side by side, Piper finds herself attracted to the handsome elf, and this adds many a humorous episodes into the book.

Overall, I give the book 4 stars because it is charming and funny without being an epic saga, as some fantasy novels are wont to be. The foibles of Piper and her eccentric family, not to mention a woman-hating wizard and irksome faeries, will provide a brief entertaining escape for readers.

Cavity-Inducing.......2004-03-01

Sweet and quirky are two words that come to define this novel. On the plus side, the author's easy-to-read style made the book more endurable than it might otherwise have been. But eventually even the style grows old. Now, I was not expecting Shakespeare, just a light romance. But this was too light. Part of the problem comes from what others have said: its a small, small world which means the pool of suspects is even narrower. Another problem with this small world however is that it seems to lack balance. Every character - even the so-called normal characters - turn out to be quirky or colorful in their own ways. I began to wonder if the "real" world hadn't already disappeared since no one boring or dull or mediocre seemed to be left. The novel also needed more suspense. Yes, there were moments - esp. in the beginning - but they were few and far between. With a murderer on the loose, I expected more. That leaves the main characters. Piper is fine, but I kept expecting her to do more. Like others have said: she's so busy worrying about her relationship with the elf that little else gets her attention. And finally the elf. Had his moments, liked his look, but his naivety bordered on stupidity. However, despite all this, I will be following this author's work since she definitely showed unrealized promise in this first novel.

Young Adult Read to Satisfy the Adult.......2003-12-21

I think I was told this was a young adult book, but I am in love with the Fae so I had to give it a try. I LOVE it. I am definitely going to look for other work from this author. The book moved at a nice steady pace and for only 200 something pages, you were not left needing more detail. Everything was nicely filled in. Now as an adult, this ended WAY to fast. I would have like to seen more of that happily ever after story with the elf Aelvarim (sp) and the human Piper. Either way, if you are looking for a nice quick read, I would go fir it. Or even if you are looking for your child to read, go for it. Nice story.

devine.......2003-07-12

this book is devine. It holds life like ours and the life of books. In this book holds love,lies,and magic all in one. the charecters are life like the description is specifically put to the challenge. reading the book u could find urself thinkin what happens to all the books published where do they go and in this book is filled with questions that need to be sought out throgh the book. the book has a lot to do with life and death too.

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Eccentric Circles
Larry Duberstein
Manufacturer: Permanent Press (NY)
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Contemporary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

United States | Short Stories | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

General | Short Stories | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

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Eccentric Circles (ISBN: 1877946206)
Larry Duberstein
Manufacturer: Permanent Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000NQISF0

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Eccentric Circles an Uncommon Tale Of
Lynn Buck
Manufacturer: DORRANCE PUBLISHING CO INC
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000SI7PV6

Eccentric Circles: An Uncommon Tale of Five Women

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Deep Water
Used book in writing workshop where it was enjoyed.

Eccentric Circles: An Uncommon Tale of Five Women
Lynn Buck
Manufacturer: Dorrance Publishing Co.
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Contemporary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 0805940146

Customer Reviews:

Deep Water.......2004-01-31

This book covers all bases of a complete life--spiritual, psychological, political and philisophical. I especially loved the main character--Lee is so human. She's idealistic and commited and also a pushy worry-wart. It's my favorite book!

Used book in writing workshop where it was enjoyed........1997-03-24

I taught a six-week workshop at our local library entitled "Reading for Creative Writers." During one week's session , I included Buck's ' Eccentric Circles' together with May Sarton's 'Magnificent Spinster' and Barbara Pym's 'Excellent Women' as examples of unmarried mature women in fiction. The group I taught ranged in age from thirties to early seventies, all female. These eleven students thoroughly enjoyed Buck's style, her humor and her portrayal of "real" women. Considering the scene of the nude swimming, where the characters rise like well-aged Aphrodites from Peconic Bay, led to a lively discussion of issues ranging from women's bodies, shame, aging skin and face-lifts to Georgia O'Keeffe, Eleanor Roosevelt and physical exercise. I heartily recomend this novel to anyone looking for a good read. And especially to Women's Studies/Feminist teachers or students looking for positive images of women's humor, maturity, and well-written modern fiction

Eccentric Circles: Around America in a House on Wheels

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Eccentric Circles: Around America in a House on Wheels
Richard B. McAdoo
Manufacturer: Houghton Mifflin (T)
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Travel | Writing | Reference | Subjects | Books

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ASIN: 0395524415

Passing On The Spirit - Celebrating Eccentric Mentors

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Passing On The Spirit - Celebrating Eccentric Mentors

Manufacturer: MMPublishing
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: 0972426000

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Celebrating eccentric mentors including: Page Smith, Myles Horton, Frederick Franck, Gregory Bateson, Rollie Jones, Jack Ahern and Eugen Rosenstock-Huessy.

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Sailing in Eccentric Circles
Ian Dear
Manufacturer: Adlard Coles Nautical
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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