I can tell you what Love You Hate You Miss You is about from reading synopsis’s myself.  In fact, I’ll share with you from Scott’s website:

It’s been seventy-five days. Amy’s sick of her parents suddenly taking an interest in her. And she’s really sick of people asking her about Julia. Julia’s gone, and Amy doesn’t want to talk about it. No one knew Julia like she did. No one gets what life is without her.
No one understands what it’s like to know that it’s all your fault.

Amy’s shrink thinks she should keep a journal but instead, Amy starts writing letters to Julia. And as she writes letter after letter, she begins to realize that the past holds its own secrets–and that the present deserves a chance.

Looking over some of the reviews myself, it feels vaguely familiar but yet I cannot recall any feelings nor basic details about the book.  However, other reviewers were very enthusiastic about Love You Hate You Miss You and sad that it didn’t receive more attention at the time of it’s release.  Hey, it’s Elizabeth Scott, I say go read it despite my not being able to remember anything about it.  Will it stand the test of time?  For me, obviously not.  But I didn’t dislike it in the least.  I don’t think all books have to have staying power.  It was a good read at the time.

As a side note – I find it interesting to note how our feelings for a book change over time.  Do you find yourself  not being able to remember basic plotlines of books that you’ve read in the past?

Links of interest: My book reviews of Something, Maybe, Living Dead Girl.  Elizabeth Scott website and blog.  Other blogger reviews.
Genre:  Young Adult
Publisher:  Harper Teen.  May 26, 2009.
Hardcover, 288 pages.
Love You, Hate You, Miss You is available from your local independent bookstore, Powell’s, Barnes and Noble, and Amazon.

Copyright 2010. Maw Books Blog

Maw Books has an affiliate relationship with several bookstores, including Indiebound, Powell’s, and Amazon . When you buy a product (not just books – any product), via one of my links, Maw Books earns income from the sale and as always, it’s much appreciated as all affiliate income is used to support the blog. There is no cost to you.

I hate to write an obit for a bookstore (as I did recently for Daedalus), and it’s even more painful for an entire chain such as Borders, which announced today that it is headed for a liquidation sale. The chain said it has 399 stores and employs approximately 10,700 employees.

"Following the best efforts of all parties, we are saddened by this development," Borders Group President Mike Edwards said in a prepared statement. "We were all working hard towards a different outcome, but the headwinds we have been facing for quite some time, including the rapidly changing book industry, eReader revolution, and turbulent economy, have brought us to where we are now."

Borders said that subject to the bankruptcy court’s approval, liquidation is expected to start for some stores as soon as July 22, and conclude by the end of September.

I have fond memories of the Towson Borders, which played a big part in helping to revive the town. My kids spent a lot of time there — before it moved a few miles north, ceding Towson to Barnes & Noble. Even in its new location in Lutherville, the store provided a welcoming spot for readers, and was the place I bought my first (and last) book from Stephenie Meyer’s Twilight series. I guess I could go back for the liquidation sale to get some bargains, but those events depress me, so I’m likely to pass.

Bye-bye, Borders.

Saint Cuthbert was an Anglo-Saxon monk, hermit and bishop, and became the patron saint of Northern England. He is famous for being one of the first people to give two hoots about the poor and unfortunate, and, believe me, the poor and unfortunate had a rough time in 7th century Britain.

The Lindisfarne Gospels by Janet Backhouse is a rather more affordable reprint of Saint Cuthbert’s writings.

My dear friend Heike (pronounced Hike-ah) offers her first ever video review – The Third Policeman by Flann O’Brien. Love the hat, Heike! Of course, Flann O’Brien is actually Brian O’Nolan and this book was not published until after the author’s death.

As a fan of Google Doodles, the changing logos used periodically to enhance the usually dull search page, I was happy to see a drawing that marks the 450th anniversary of St. Basil’s Cathedral along Red Square in Moscow.

According to a brief history in Fodor’s, the church was commissioned by Ivan the Terrible to celebrate his conquest of the Tatar city of Kazan, and each chapel is topped by an onion dome carved with its own distinct pattern and dedicated to a saint on whose day the Russian army won battles against the Tatars. The cathedral was built between 1555 and 1560 on the site of the earlier Trinity Church, where the Holy Fool Vasily (Basil) had been buried in 1552.

It’s a stunning sight from Red Square, though I recall from a visit years ago that the interior was rather dull — and had nothing like the colors and patterns on the domes. (If you’re into kitsch, you can own a mini version with these SBC bookends.)

For more Doodles, check out this compilation – including the recent Les Paul digital guitar — from PC magazine.

Today’s launch of the Space Shuttle Atlantis, had an other-worldly feel. For those of us old enough to recall the Mercury and Gemini flights, not to mention the Challenger disaster, it’s hard to imagine that our manned space program is winding down.

The space race has provided some great reading. My favorite remains "The Right Stuff," Tom Wolfe’s account of the Americans who became space pioneers. As you can imagine, they were a daring, colorful bunch, and some of the macho test pilots rebelled at being strapped onto a rocket over which they had little control. It’s an entertaining, irreverent look at the beginnings of our space program. May be time to re-read it.

“In the game The Road to Canterbury, players each play a pardoner just like Chaucer’s. As you travel the road on pilgrimage to Canterbury, you sell indulgences delivering pilgrims from the eternal penalties brought on by the Seven Deadly Sins. But to succeed as a pardoner, you will need to do more than just sell forged pardons for quick cash. To keep your services in demand, you will actually need to lead these pilgrims into temptation yourself! Perhaps some phony relics might help? There is one big catch. The Seven Deadly Sins live up to their name: each sin that a pilgrim commits brings Death one step nearer, and a dead pilgrim pays no pardoners!”

There are lots of reasons why you should sign up your kids or grandkids for Camp Village Books this summer. First, the hands-on experiments, crafts, and activities we have lined up are going to be educational & entertaining, sometimes messy, and always FUN. Second, we will show kids all the great books that are related to each week's theme. Third, since each week has a different theme, no two camp sessions are alike, and so kids can and should sign up for more than one session (if you sign up for four or more, the price goes down). Fourth, VB staffer Christina knows how to be kid-like, and you can count on her for playing games and doing all activities together with the campers. Fifth, Village Books is just one of the greatest places Christina can think of to spend a summer hanging out with other kids doing fun stuff.

Here's a break down of each session and some of the projects kids can look forward to:

Thurs., July 14th, Mad Science Camp
Come prepared to make messes, do science experiments, learn about why things happen & how, and talk about the scientific method. We'll create Frankenstein's Hand, do experiments looking at pH levels in food, light a light bulb using lemons, and maybe even drop egg parachutes out of the window of Book Fare Cafe! And much more!

Thurs., July 21st, Games We Used to Play
Today we will play all types of  low-key and energetic old-fashioned games…the kind mom, dad, grandma & grandpa used to play. We'll learn the rules in marbles and perfect our technique. Play a game of jacks. Create never-ending stories while sitting in a circle. Come have a fun day of running around and squealing with laughter.

Thurs., July 28th, Observing Nature Through Art
Make hand-bound art books with Christina using recycled office paper, rubber bands and sticks. After making our own original books, we'll hit the interurban trail in Fairhaven and take an easy-going walk in search of nature objects. We'll stop along the trail at various points to observe the sights, sounds and smells, and then record them in our books using watercolors, markers, pencils, pens and crayons.

Thurs., Aug. 4th, Behind the Scenes Businesses
This is a day for taking a field trip around Fairhaven. We'll be stopping in at a variety of local businesses to see how they run their storefronts and restaurants behind the scenes. Campers will get to experience what it's like in receiving rooms, kitchens, offices and repair shops. Everyone will come home with a new understanding of what it takes to run a business, and may get some free goodies as well.

Thurs., Aug. 11th, Writing IS Fun
Now, I'm sure you're thinking, “what kid wants to go to writing camp in the summer?” But, this isn't your average writing camp. We won't be learning about essay form, perfect grammar, composition, or research papers. Instead, we'll be learning about all of the creative ways kids can use writing to have fun. We will write our own Mad Libs, write haiku outside on the sidewalk, get an intro to slam or performance poetry, and do a brief intro to screenwriting.

Thurs., Aug. 18th, Performing Arts 101
Today's activities will be completely hands-on, and will bring in a few experts in theater, dance and music to do mini performing arts workshops. Local improv teacher from Improv Playworks, Sheila Goldsmith will come do an introductory improv workshop with the kids that will have everyone giggling.

Thurs., Aug. 25th, Maritime Science & Exploration
This week we'll learn about ships, boats and other maritime-related topics. We will talk about tall ships, learn to tie basic nautical knots, take a walk down to the water for some beach-combing, and make origami paper boats, shell rubbings, and other sea-related crafts.

More info about our camps:
Cost: $30 for each session, or $25 each if you enroll in 4 or more! All registrations must be received by 5pm on the Sunday prior to camp date. Space is limited. Camps without a minimum enrollment of 5 will be canceled and registrants will be notified. Register at the VB main counter or print out a registration form (attached below) and mail it or bring it in. A snack and water will be provided at the camp. Call
671-2626 for questions.

Andrew Boynton, who appeared in 1992, was in a modern-dance company at the time, and guessed that Trebek would ask about that. But instead, Andrew told me, “he asked what kind of music we used for the choreography. I was completely unprepared, and stammered something about using ‘just-starting-out composers’ (huh?) and Beethoven. It was pretty horrible.” He redeemed himself at the show’s end, when Trebek asked him more about dancing itself. Ken Marks must not have been as nervous. He can’t remember the story he shared, though he suspects it was something about his softball team.

Perhaps the best way to figure out just how anxiety-inducing a task is is to attempt it oneself. So I spent time yesterday (way longer than thirty seconds) writing my own thirty-second stories. And since even “Jeopardy!” contestants have two other people sharing the stage, I asked some Book Benchers to do the same. Turns out, we’re a bunch of clowns. Here are our stories, presented in threes, since that’s how many Trebek commissions; please share yours in the comments!

Meredith Blake:
1) I have the same name as the evil stepmother-to-be from the Lindsay Lohan version of “The Parent Trap.” You’d be surprised how many people have seen that movie.
2) I once got kicked out of a Backstreet Boys concert.
3) Andy Richter once sent me a lock of his hair.

Ian Crouch:
1) I was born with six fingers on each hand.
2) I once got shamed by a T.G.I. Fridays employee into helping save a guy from a burning car, after I at first showed reluctance.
3) I got a better job title at a previous job based perhaps entirely on a karaoke performance I did at an office retreat of “I’m a Believer,” in the style of Neil Diamond.

On one trip, and to the dismay of my uncomfortably proximate fellow passengers, I happened upon a nugget of prose gold while looking through the American state mottoes—a collection of odd phrases, mostly written in Latin and so suffering all the glory of stilted translation—that were included in that season’s edition of the Rand McNally Road Atlas. Most conveyed a banal patriotism or an aggressive religiosity, until that is, I came to Maryland’s motto: “Fatti maschii, parole femine,” or “Manly deeds, womanly words.” Hemingway in phrase. The head and the heart, all summed up in a dated and ridiculous formulation. It became a motto to live by, if quietly, and so my love for state mottoes was born.