Tudy's Think Tank

It's all about the SALE, right?  It's the sign of our times!  But there are sales and then there are real sales.  Case in point:  you've been eyeing those gym shoes since (OMG!!!) last year's Thanksgiving sale.  The price of those shoes were discounted at 30% then. Now with spring around the corner, they've been discounted another 20%.  Would you have saved more on those gym shoes with a single discount of 50%?

(Tudy Tip: a single 50% discount is way cheaper! And, speaking of savings - making your own cards is way-out-there cheaper, so check out Tudy Tidings for a real deal!)

Moon Magic

Okay, okay. At 500+ pages, this book initially intimidates! But once you realize 287 pages are detailed, interactive illustrations of the story, you'll breeze thru... and rave all about it!!!

The Invention of Hugo Cabret by Brian Selznick is that one of a kind book that begs to differ.  Part novel, flipbook, comic book, and graphic novel, it truly is in a genre all its own.  ( Frankly, I have yet to see anything like it! )

Set in 1930's Paris, the book opens with Hugo, a 12-year-old, orphaned boy and his clock keeper uncle living within the confines of a train station. When his uncle dissappears, Hugo decides to quietly maintain the clocks so he can continue living the way he did and secretly repair an artifact left by his late father. This artifact, an automaton, sends Hugo on a wild and meandering journey! ( Think streets of Paris! ) What follows brings together unlikely friends and a giant in the then budding film industry, Georges Melies.

Winner of the 2008 Caldecott Medal and Quill Award in the Children's Chapter/Middle Grade category, The Invention of Hugo Cabret  will captivate your imagination.  I know it did mine.  So sit back, relax, and let this wonderful, spellbinding book leave you moonstruck!

Tudy's Top Ten Reasons to See Avatar

1.  10-foot, blue-skinned people totally rock!
2.  You'll quickly realize Earth is our home, our Pandora.  (Resolve to go green!)
3.  It's a titanic 3-hour treat!  But this ship doesn't sink so it's well worth your parent$' money.
4.  It's early American history... ON STEROIDS!!!
5.  It's a wonderful story of coexistance. Could be our story too!  ( Wake-up people! )
6.  James Cameron spent $250,000,000 on production... and did it RIGHT!!!
7.  This time, the really good guys win!
8.  It could actually take Dad away from ESPN!
9.  It's a good excuse to miss this weekend's science fair.
10.  I give it an A... for AVATAR!!!

So shake the winter doldrums away.  Enjoy this visually, thrilling 3-D epic!

Good Omens!

Start your New Year with an oldie but goodie - Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman's Good Omens!  First published in 1990, this hilariously dark and apocalyptic book is just what the start of this New Decade needs (Did you realize that it's the end of the Naughties!)!  Throw in the oddest of couples (an angel and demon), the strangest of Adams, and a Dog who never turns out to be what it was supposed to be, and you have a devilishly good, cunningly funny read!  Sometimes it helps to find a laugh in serious stuff! And both Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman are masters at this!

So here's hoping 2010 is full of Good Omens!