A lovely idea for the holidays: The Dewey Tree

Those of you who frequent a number of book blogs may be familiar with Dewey, a well-known blogger who passed away this time last year. She was a force in the on-line community - sponsoring and supporting a variety of the events we all participate in. Lisa at Online Publicist came up with a lovely idea to comemmorate Dewey and spread the charitable spirit around the holidays.

Here's how it works

"Here's what you do: Gather up the books you can live without. It can be 4
books, 10 books, or 20 books! Find a worthy group you would like to donate your overflow books to. It can be your local library, a literacy campaign (mine will go to the literacy center I volunteer for), or overseas. There's a great list of
book donation sites here on the ALA. Find a charity that speaks to you!*Then take a picture of your donation and email it to me (onlinepublicist [AT] gmail [DOT] com). It can be a pic of the mailing label on your package, one of your kids giving a box of books to a librarian, or you handing books over to your literacy center. Be creative and have fun!"

I will definitely be pulling together a pile of books. I can think of several local charities that might be able to use them (my local library is kind of funny about donations). I sometimes forget that although I consider books a necessity, for others they are a luxury, a luxury they set aside when there is barely enough for food and shelter. I hope these find their way into the hands of someone who will really enjoy them.

For more information, check out Lisa's post on The Dewey Tree.

Review: Santa Responds: He's Had Enough and He's Writing Back!

Okay, the rush of Christmas excitement has passed. Are you tired of Christmas carols? Have the kids already broken at least one of their gifts and started complaining about the others? Is all the forced "family time" that comes with Christmas vacation starting to wear on everyone's nerves? Then this is the perfect book for you!

Santa Responds is a sarcastic and hilarious look at kids and the Christmas letters they write. For every parent who has ever had to listen to the weeks of begging for expensive toys, whose kids handed them a six-page Christmas list, really for everyone who has ever had to deal with that special brand of greed that only comes out during the holidays - and not just from children - this book says all the things you've thought in the privacy of your head but could never say out loud.

The kids in this book are greedy, whiny, angry and dishonest, all to hilarious result. Even the cute, honest kids get a little backlash - apparently Santa's patience is not endless. Santa can also see the future! He tells one little girls asking for movies and video games that she needs to ask for some presents that require physical activity if she wants to stave off the diabetes she'll get at 14 and the heart attack due when she's 20. He tells one boy, stuck in what sounds like a particularly miserable home, not to worry because his father really isn't, his brother is only a half-brother, and the athletic talent he inherited from his real father will get him an athletic scholarship if he plays his cards right and he'll be able to leave all that behind him. Page after page was filled with irreverent, sometimes unprintable in a family blog, advice for kids who fibbed about being good and asked for the world.

Now, there's a reason that I left this review until after Christmas and Boxing Day had passed. I am as much of a big elf at Christmas as the next gal, and I didn't want to tarnish the glow of a lovely season. Still, I know that I am not the only person who thinks they will lose their mind if they have to listen to any more tinny holiday Muzak while they just want to grab a few groceries. When the big servings of Christmas treacle get to be just too much, this book is an excellent antidote. My family passed it around on Christmas Eve, after the more traditional dining and holiday chatter, laughing and reading our favorite passages aloud. A little goes a long way, but it's easy to pick up, read a bit, and set aside.

I will definitely be packing it away with the ornaments and cards and decorations, so it will be easy to find next holiday season when I find that I. Have. Had. Enough. Already!

My copy was and Advance Reader Edition; you can buy your copy at Amazon.com.