The James Logan Courier

By Eric Benderoff
Chicago Tribune (MCT)

Many people, this reviewer included, found it easy to come up with reasons the Kindle, an electronic reading device introduced last month by Amazon .com, should be avoided.

That was before I got my hands on one. So let me start with three reasons why, if you're a reader, you would want the Amazon Kindle.

It is a simple gadget, easy to learn. If you can read, you can use the Kindle.

Note: Each week, The Courier spotlights books newly arrived, or expected to arrive in the James Logan Media Center.

Alphabet of Dreams, by Susan Fletcher
Reading level: Young Adult
Hardcover: 304 pages
Publisher: Ginee Seo Books (August 22, 2006)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0689850425
ISBN-13: 978-0689850424

From simonandschuster.com:
Mitra and her little brother, Babak, are beggars in the city of Rhagae, scratching out a living as best as they can with what they can beg for--or steal. But Mitra burns with hope and ambition, for she and Babak are not what they seem. They are of royal blood, but their father's ill-fated plot against the evil tyrant, King Phraates, has resulted in their father's death and their exile. Now disguised as a boy, Mitra has never given up believing they can rejoin what is left of their family and regain their rightful standing in the world.

From wikipedia:
Sally Rand (January 2, 1904 – August 31, 1979) was born Harriet Helen Gould Beck in Hickory County, Missouri. She also performed under the name Billy Beck. She was an exotic dancer and actress.

During the 1920s, she acted on stage and appeared in silent films. Cecil B. DeMille gave her the name Sally Rand. She was selected as one of the WAMPAS Baby Stars in 1927. After the introduction of sound film, she became a dancer, known for the fan dance, which she popularized starting at the Paramount Club. Her most famous appearance was at the 1933 Chicago World's Fair entitled Century of Progress. She had been arrested a few times due to indecent exposure while dancing, but the nudity was only an illusion.

Visit the Sally Rand Museum online.