Three Good Deeds by Vivian Vande Velde (Harcourt, 2005). Howard shouldn’t have taunted the old witch, but he didn’t know she really was a witch until she turned him into a goose! Now he’s stuck that way until he does three good deeds. Meanwhile, the male geese want him away from their females. The female geese want him away from their eggs. And people–including his supposed best friends–want to eat him! Besides flapping his wings, stopping his webbed feet, and HONKing, what’s Howard to do? Ages 8-up. Read an excerpt. Listen to the author read an excerpt.

More Thoughts on Three Good Deeds

This delightful middle grade novel feels very much like a sort of old-fashioned story, told to the reader. It has a cleverly interwoven novel, a reflective narrator, and a timeless setting.

It’s also fresh, funny, and a one-sitting read. Definitely one of the best middle grades and fantasies of the year.

Cynsational News & Links

Happy Halloween!

Vivid Vivian! from the Bulletin of the Center of Children’s Books.

DFW-HWA: the North Texas Chapter of the Horror Writers Association.

A couple of days ago, I posted a list of links to MFA programs in writing for children and/or adults. Two more are at Lesley University and Simmons College.

Books on my nightstand are: Spacer and Rat by Margaret Bechard (Roaring Brook, 2005); Mr. Chickee’s Funny Money by Christopher Paul Curtis (Wendy Lamb/Random House, 2005).