Graeme Base, my favorite Australian author/illustrator, is returning to the Parkland Community Library on October 17th at 3:30 pm. That's a LOT of advance notice, I know. Expect to hear about this again - and again. Graeme is fabulously talented. His books are visually challenging and thought provoking. I can't wait to get my hands on a copy of his latest, Enigma: a Magical Mystery. I hope it comes in soon.

So what else have I been reading? Well, not New Moon by Stephenie Meyer. It's not on the shelf here and there's a waiting list. This is a GOOD thing. I love it when a book or a series gets so popular it flies off the shelf.

I finished the latest Miss Julia, Miss Julia Strikes Back by Ann Ross. Miss Julia chases jewel thieves all the way to Miami, FL and she takes her late husband's son, "Little" Lloyd with her!! (His mother, Hazel Marie, won a trip to Mexico just at the same time that Miss Julia's new husband, Sam, took a long-awaited tour of Russia. What a coincidence!) Sometimes I worry about Miss Julia's judgment. At least, in this book she agrees that at 11, almost 12, Little Lloyd is not so little anymore. Without her lapses of judgment these books wouldn't be nearly as much fun. Miss Julia always manages to prevail over difficulties of ALL kinds. Drunken PIs, doubtful wardrobe choices and the unbearable heat of Southern Florida ruffle Miss Julia's feathers but she wins out over all. This book is for Mature audiences - not because of questionable content, though. It's just that us older readers can relate to Miss Julia and her particular struggles.