3 Q's for Molly McIntire from The American Girls

I was definitely one of those girls who had the American Girl books and doll when I was growing up. My American Girl of choice was Molly McIntire. Oh, how I loved, just loved her outfits! That cute preppy look with the sweater vest, navy blue skirt and adorable Mary Jane shoes. However, other than just loving dressing her up in various outfits and doing her hair, Molly's stories were by far the most interesting to me. I think it was because I was fascinated with the 1940's and all that was going on. Not only did she have to endure the hardships of World War II, but she also grew up during a time of ground-breaking technologies, innovative music, and amazing fashion trends.

If Molly were here today, here's what I would want to know!

1.) Which food did you most miss because of the war rationing?
2.) Of all the outfits girls can purchase for your doll, which outfit is your favorite?
3.) If you could travel to 2009 and bring something back to your time during the 1940's, what would it be?

After writing those questions to Molly, is there anything you'd want to ask her or any other American Girls for that matter?

However the one question I'd really like to ask Molly is where in the world I ended up putting her doll? Unfortunately that is one mystery that can never be solved.

—Carly M., STACKS Staffer

3 Questions for Percy Jackson

Monster slayer, demigod, wise-cracking teen, and all-around class act Percy Jackson is the hero of the Percy Jackson and the Olympians books by Rick Riordan (the latest and final book in the series is the recently released The Last Olympian, which is garnering rave reviews and selling like hotcakes -- #4 on Amazon's bestsellers list as I write this).

If you're a loyal Splot reader, then you know I've been a little bit obsessed with Percy Jackson lately (check out my book review of The Lightning Thief and my PJ trivia). In honor of the end of that awesome series, I'd like to pose three questions to the man/god himself!

1. Who would win in a fight: you or Harry Potter?

2. Are you ever tempted to use your powers for ridiculous ends . . . like . . . creating a giant, air-guitaring, animated statue made of water?

3. If you couldn't be a hero in the Greek tradition but instead were a hero from another mythology — Native American, Hindi, Norse, whatever — who would you be?

I expect Percy will answer these just as soon as the last monster is dead and vanquished! I'm not holding my breath, though.

How do you think Percy would answer these? How would you? Holla at a schola in the comments!

— Jack, STACKS Staffer

3 Q's for Sabrina from The Sisters Grimm

I'm on a kick reading the Sisters Grimm series by Michael Buckley. And let me tell you, this is one of my favorite series I've read in a while. There's something about reading a good series (Twilight, Harry Potter, His Dark Materials, anyone?) that brings me to my happy zen place. Sometimes I try to stretch out my reading over a period of days, or weeks even, to make it last longer, as opposed to speed reading through!

Anyhow, as many of you know (perhaps from my Ink Splot review last month), the Sisters Grimm follows two orphan sisters, Sabrina and Daphne, who are sent to live with their grandmother — who they thought was dead. Her town turns out to be full of all kinds of twisted fairy tale creatures. And Daphne and Sabrina turn out to be descendents of the Brothers Grimm! They have lots of crazy adventures, acting as fairy tale detectives in the town, all the while trying to find out the truth behind their missing parents.

I can't decide if I relate more to Sabrina or Daphne. So I followed a very scientific method to decide who to ask my 3 questions: the coin toss! Heads was Daphne, and tails was Sabrina. Tails won . . . so here are my 3 questions for Sabrina:

1. Two parter: Who is your favorite fairy tale character? And the one you can't stand the most?
2. Do you have a secret crush on Puck?
3. Will you EVER rescue your parents?

How about you? What would you ask Sabrina? (Or Daphne!) And how do you read your series? Slowly, enjoying each word? Or racing to the finish to find out the end?

— Ratha, STACKS Writer

Character Confidential: 3 Qs for Bilbo Baggins

Bilbo Baggins (from The Hobbit and the Lord of the Rings books) is one of the all-time classic "unlikely hero" characters. First of all, there's that silly, alliterative name — really, break it down and say it without attaching any context, it's ridiculous. And then there's his appearance and physique, which might generously be described as "roly-poly." Short, squat, big, hairy feet; definitely not your typical Orc-slayer.

Still, he's a legend for a reason. He's quick-witted (if the riddle showdown with Gollum is any indication), and he's brave enough to stand up to goblins, enormous spiders, and a dragon. Of course, the real reason he's important in J. R. R. Tolkien's mythology is that he finds the One Ring and brings it back to the land of the living, as it were. In doing so, he sets in motion the events that fill the three volumes of The Lord of the Rings. He also begins a slow descent from a happy-go-lucky hobbit with nary a care in the world to someone who finds himself struggling with an addiction that he only partially conquers, which makes him a pretty tragic figure in the end.

Anyway, if I could sit down with Bilbo, here's what I'd ask him:

1. Do you ever wish you hadn't found the ring — is the knowledge that Sauron is gone for good worth the pain that the ring caused you and a lot of people you love?
2. How did you convince yourself to give Frodo the ring?
3. Finally, a riddle: The man who invented it doesn't want it. The man who bought it doesn't need it. The man who needs it doesn't know it. What is it? (Splotters: 2,000,000 extra special bonus points if you can figure this out — but NO GOOGLING. I'll know.)

What's the answer to question #3? What are you hoping Bilbo could tell you? And what the heck is going on in that video? Holler at a scholar in the comments!

— Jack L, STACKS Staffer

Character Confidential: 3 Questions for Matilda

In Matilda by Roald Dahl, Matilda is a smart girl stuck in a mean, dumb family. When she asks for books to read, her father says she doesn't need books because they have a TV to watch! (I love me some good TV, but it will never compare to my favorite books!) And school is even worse. The headmistress, Miss Trunchbull, just accuses Matilda of cheating when she gets all the difficult questions right. But since Matilda has all this extra brain power that's not being used in school, she develops telekinesis -- the ability to move objects with her mind!

With this power, she's able to do something about all the bullies in her life -- but you'll have to read the book to see what.

Because I've always wished I could move objects with my mind, here are my three questions for Matilda. (There are spoilers in the questions, so if you haven't read the book, you might want to skip this!)

3 Questions for Violet from The Boxcar Children

Before I could read on my own, I remember sitting down with my older brother and listening to my mom read us The Boxcar Children. When I got older, I read as many Boxcar Children books as our library had. My favorite character was always Benny; I liked how the other kids were inspired by his hard work.

I always had a few questions for Violet, though:

1. You are always so shy; was it difficult being around Benny since he was always trying to meet new people?

2. Do you think it was worth being sick to finally meet your grandfather?

3. When you get older, do you want to be an artist? Would you be a musician or a painter?

Who is your favorite of the Boxcar Children and do you have any questions you'd like to ask them?

— Rob, STACKS Staffer

Character Confidential: Three Questions for Garfield

Every Sunday growing up, my brother and I would race to beat each other to the comics in the paper. My favorite comic strip has changed so many times over the years that I don't even remember what I was going for on any given day. But my brother was always racing for Garfield. The fat, orange cat was front and center on the page, and my brother loved him. He had all the compilation books and couldn't wait to see what would be in the next set of panels.

So my three questions today are for Garfield:

1. Everyone knows your favorite food is lasagna. What food do you absolutely hate?
2. Admit it — your really love Odie, right?
3. Why do you think Jon can't get a date?

To the other fans of this lazy but lovable feline, what would YOU ask Garfield? And if one of the other strips is your favorite, what would you ask those characters?

— Carly H., STACKS Staffer

Character Confidential: 3 Qs Claudia of the BSC

If you've ever read one of Ann Martin's Baby-sitters Club books, you know that everyone has a favorite baby-sitter, the one they relate to best. If you are a leader who likes sports, you love Kristy. And if you want to save the world, you are Dawn. Responsible girls love Mary Anne. Stacey is the role model for big-city (and aspiring big-city) girls. And my favorite baby-sitter was always Claudia. She was artistic, and I thought I was. She was crafty, and I actually was too. Claudia wore amazing outfits, and I had a great pair of rainbow leggings. And more than anything, I still want a book that is hollowed out so that I can hide candy inside.

So I would love to ask her:

1. What's your favorite color?

If Claudia's so into art, I feel like one of the books should have been mentioned somewhere what her favorite color is, but I can't for the life of me remember. Maybe she's like me — why pick one favorite color when all the colors are so great?

2. What's your favorite pair of shoes?

My favorite pair of shoes are a pair of gray, suede, slouchy boots. I'm betting Claudia's are a lot more colorful.

3. Where did you get that candy-hiding book?

No, really. I want one so bad.

Who's your favorite baby-sitter? What would you ask her?

— Carly H., STACKS Staffer

Character Confidential: 3 Questions for the Grinch

Today's the day everyone is thankful that the mean, nasty Grinch from Dr. Seuss' How the Grinch Stole Christmas! is just a fictional character. We don't need to worry about our presents, candy canes, or big Christmas dinners. But if he were real, I wouldn't waste my time worrying — I'd ask him questions instead!

1. Everyone knows you hate Christmas. What's your favorite holiday?
2. Where and how did you get your dog, Max?
3. What's your favorite breakfast cereal? (Because breakfast is the most important meal of the day!)

What would you ask the Grinch?

— Carly H., STACKS Staffer

Character Confidential: 3 Questions for Listen Taylor

There's an interesting story behind The Spell Book of Listen Taylor, one that doesn't have anything to do with spells or listening, but rather with pancakes.

That's because the book is actually an edited version of author Jaclyn Moriarty's regular adult novel, called I Have a Bed Made of Buttermilk Pancakes, which was only published in Australia way back in 2004. Moriarty's editor was really interested in one of the characters in I Have a Bed Made of Buttermilk Pancakes, and wondered if Moriarty could re-write the book and make that character — who was Listen, by the way — more central. So she did, and the end result, The Spell Book of Listen Taylor, is perfect for sophisticated younger readers.

I just finished the book, and I could NOT put it down. Listen is the title character, but there are so many other characters to get in to, and so many threads to so many plots — the book was like a giant, fun, heartbreaking, funny mystery to solve. I loved all the characters — especially Cath, Cassie, and Marbie — but Listen is the one I have some questions for!

If I could ask Listen three questions, they'd be:

1. If you come across another spell book, will you open it?
2. Do you think you'll ever go back to using your original name, Alissa?
3. What’s your favorite pancake flavor?

Any other Listen Taylor fans out there? What would YOU ask her?

— Morgan, Scholastic Staffer

Character Confidential: 3 Questions for Hermione

If I had a chance to sit down with Hermione Granger, my favorite character from the Harry Potter series, I don't think I could limit myself to just three questions. If I met Gryffindor's class braniac, I'd probably ask her a billion questions about magic, her friends (most of all, her good friend and celebrity wizard, Harry Potter), and growing up between the magical and non-magical worlds. And after those hours and hours of conversation, I'd probably follow up with these three "fluff" questions:

1. What classes did you feel were missing from Hogwarts?
2. Who would you like to play you in a movie (besides Emma Watson, pictured above)?

a) Hillary Duff (with dyed brunette hair, of course)
b) Emma Roberts
c) Miley Cyrus

3a) When did you first start liking Ron Weasley?
3b) When did you first admit to yourself that you liked Ron?

Okay, so maybe I cheated a little — I would never be able to limit myself to three questions if I were interviewing Hermione. But seriously, could you? What would YOU ask Hermione if you had the chance?

— Nancy, STACKS Staffer               

Photo: EMMA WATSON as Hermione Granger in Warner Bros. Pictures' "Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire." Photo Courtesy Warner Bros. Entertainment

Character Confidential: 3 Questions for Charlie Bucket

In Roald Dahl's Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, the main character Charlie Bucket's only vice is that he loves chocolate. Charlie is the kind of book character I admired when I grew up — he endured hardships but never became bitter. I thought Charlie was so cool that I started liking cold cabbage soup. And chocolate, of course.

Three Questions I'd Ask Charlie Bucket:

1. What was your first order of business after you won the Chocolate Factory? (I totally would have filled an entire room with Eatable Marshmallow Pillows and jumped around.)

2. Did you get a stomachache from eating that first candy bar so quickly, after nearly starving all winter?

3. Given how the other children left the factory, what would you do if you passed one of them in the street?

Now, if YOU were a kid passing Charlie on the street — what would you ask him?

— Nancy, STACKS Staffer