for you:
the last two books I have read have been really spectacular

The Time-Traveler's Wife - Audrey Niffenegger
this is one of those popular books that actually deserves most of the hype...really a book about how even when you have found the love of your life, you are still waiting.

Love Conjure/Blues - sharon bridgforth
mel actually read this one aloud to me over the last two nights..incredible. I cannot reccommend this book more highly. Bookwoman carries the title - and sharon is a local austinite.

for monk:
Ender's Game - Orson Scott Card. This just happens to be one of my absolute favorite books - ever!. It has spawned a bunch of sequels/prequels/companions, etc. but the original book is incredible. The other books of the quartet - Speaker for the Dead, Xenocide, and Children of the Mind are also good but don't have the impact of the first.

Eragon and Eldest - Christopher Paolini
These are written by a homeschooler. I think he is about 20 now.
Tell Monk he can email me for more if he wants!!

for Coley:
He would probably get a kick out of the Edward Lear nonsense verse stuff. Right up his alley I would say

I could go on forever, but I will stop and say good night!

Regarding Orson Scott Card... I understand there is some controversy surrounding his politics (and he has written a bunch of political essays), because he is very right wing in certain ways, and was a strong supporter of George W. Bush in the 2004 election. (Although, I just checked the Wikipedia site to confirm this, and it says that Card still identifies as a Democrat but calls himself a "Tony Blair Democrat" because he has to look outside of the U.S. to find someone who represents his views, such as Tony Blair. Ugh...) This doesn't necessarily mean his fiction has to be bad (I haven't read it), but I've kind of been turned off to the idea of reading him, because I have heard this stuff about his politics. Maybe that's a mistake on my part, I don't know. Anyway, sorry to the person before me who recommended Card; I don't know you or Card's fiction, and for all I know, his fiction may be wonderful in some way.

Do kids these days ever read the science fiction classics? It seems every boy between 9 and 14 should read Ray Bradbury. In fact, quite a few of his stories star boys that age. When I was around that age, I also got into Isaac Asimov. (Of course, this was, like, 35 years ago...) But later in my life, his work started to seem a bit thin. I also would recommend Theodore Sturgeon. Every kid should have a chance to read More Than Human.

Coley may or may not have gotten to read a famous writer of childrens' books who was also a libertarian socialist. His name was Dr. Seuss.

Maybe one of them would like a glimpse at George Orwell's animal farm. At least it seems like a childrens' book ;)...

Dru, I wouldn't know where to start recommending books for you, based on your descriptions. I don't know what you've read yet, and my list would probably be far too long...

Kai, I was about to suggest The Time-Traveler's Wife , too. Dru, I hope you read it. Absolutely amazing.

Richard, I've read a few of Card's books, on the recommendations of friends, and I find they range from spectacular to painfully unreadable. Ender's Game, however, is hands down his best book as far as I know, and really written as a redemption tale for "smart kids." It gets pretty violent, and I'm not sure what age group I'd recommend it for. Dru, I suspect that Monk would EAT it up if he reads it at the right age -- you might want to read it first, and be braced to talk him through the wilder parts.

Around the boys' ages (which is now millions of years ago), I recall absolutely adoring The Wizard of Op by Ed Emberly; Lizard Music, by Daniel Manus Pinkwater; and The Mysterious Disappearance of Leon (I mean Noel), by Ellen Raskin. I also wonder if Monk might "get" Ella Minnow Pea, by Mark Dunn.

For you, my sweet:
- any of the Maisie Dobbs mystereis by Jaqueline Winspear for a great, smart-girl protagonist and a good story
- likewise, the Sister Fidelma mysteries set in ancient Ireland by Peter Tremayne (they make me want to move to ancient Ireland)
- it is hard to go wrong with Barbara Hambley. Start with her Ladies of Mandrygon, or her Benjamin Janvier novels.