Rediscovering treasured books

 

Dear Bookish Friends,

Oh how I have missed you all. It has been a very a very trying few weeks health wise, and I am daring to hope that I might be on the upslope at long last. I had to spend quite a few days in bed and the only things that made it bearable were audiobooks, books, my three dogs, and my honorary dog (who is a cat). I had a nerve block procedure done to see if that would help with my Long Covid symptoms, but alas it has not worked and I am back to square one. To say that this is tedious is an understatement.

   One of the few enjoyable things I have been able to do a few times is to unbox some book boxes. From 1998 until 2007 we lived on a farm in the countryside near Richmond, Virginia. The house was quite large and it had very tall ceilings. My dear husband built floor to ceiling bookshelves in every single room except the bathrooms, including the top hallway landing. Both of us love books and somehow we never seem to be able to go anywhere without buying books, so we have a lot of them; and I do mean lot. The nonfiction titles lived in the library and sitting room, fiction novels were in our bedroom,  classics were in the dining room, and cookbooks were in the kitchen. All the shelves in the guestroom, halls, and my office were full of children's books that I had either purchased or had been sent to review. 

   Long before I became a full-time reviewer I started collecting children's books, some of which I had had as a child and wanted to own again, and some of which were new. Obviously, I cannot keep all the books I review and most have been donated to public or school libraries along the way. So, the collection I had in the house were the books that I particularly treasured. When we left Virginia to come to Oregon these books were put into one hundred and seventy-five or so file boxes, and we drove them across the country in a big truck. 

 

 Up until now we have not had a place to put these books, and so they have lived in the garage, and of course more books have been added to their number; now there are two hundred and fifty boxes! On the days when I could get up for a little while my husband brought some boxes into the house for me to open up. I cannot tell you how wonderful it has been to see my old friends again. I don't know what is in the boxes and so every time I lift a lid it feels like a big unveiling moment. All that is needed is a musical fanfare of some kind. I will not be keeping them all (as I cannot afford to build a second house) and so the local school library system is going to get a lot of them. 

   As I go through the boxes I'm going to introduce you to some of my treasures. Today I bring you Adele and Simon, a book written and illustrated by my friend Barbara McClintock. Though I really like the sweet story, what I particularly love about this book is the artwork. Barbara's illustrations are always, always magnificent. She uses a color pallet that has an old-world feel to it, and they are gorgeously detailed. It is hard to convey how remarkable her artwork is. I happily spend many minutes looking at all the details in her illustrations, finding little stories in the artwork that tease my imagination. To create her artwork Barbara "did all the artwork by hand, using a dip pen with a flexible steel nib and waterproof ink, and watercolor. It took at least three weeks to a month to complete each full color double page spread (not counting the time spent with all the research and creating the sketch)." I'm thinking that I might like to get a few prints of the artwork to put in my office. 

Adele and Simon

Barbara McClintock

For ages 4 to 8

Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2006, 978-0374380441

Today, as is usual on every school day, Adele is picking up her little brother Simon from his school. One of the first things Adele does is to ask her brother to "please try not to lose anything today." From her words it sounds as if Simon is in the habit of losing things. Unfortunately, today is no exception. The children are not far from the school when Simon realizes that he has lost the cat drawing that he did in class that day. The children are in the middle of a street market and they look and look everywhere for the picture but they cannot find it. On they walk through the Jardin de Plantes. Here Simon climbs a tree, much to Adele's annoyance. Somehow he manages to lose his books.

   The children go from place to place through the colorful and vibrant city of Paris. They visit Pont-Neuf, the Louvre art museum, a patisserie where they have a snack, and many other places, and in each one Simon loses something. Why, by the time they get home Simon has lost his coat, hat, gloves, scarf, sweater, knapsack, books, and crayons. Luckily the items he has lost find their way back to him.

   Children will love this simple and amusing story, sympathizing with Simon, and understanding how hard it is not to lose things every so often. Better still, young readers will have a wonderful time trying to find Simon's lost possessions in the detailed, meticulously executed drawings that fill the double page spreads. The soft colors in the beautiful artwork give the pictures a delicious vintage feel.

   At the back of the book the author includes information about each of the places that the two children visit, and inside the covers readers will find a map of Paris which shows them where each of the places are.

An omage to Patricia MacLachlan and her book, Sarah Plain and Tall

Sarah Plain and Tall by P.J. Lynch

"I shook my head, turning the white stone over and over in my hand. I wished everything was as perfect as the stone. I wished that Papa and Caleb and I were perfect for Sarah. I wished we had a sea of our own."

In 2009 I set out to read and review as many American award winning books as I could. A few of these titles had made it across 'the pond,' and all the way to the island of Cyprus, which is where I grew up. However, there were so many books that I had never even heard of. One of these books was a slender little volume, a chapter book with an unassuming cover, which had won the Newbery Award. I confess that I didn't have high expectations as I started to read Sarah Plain and Tall on December 9th, 2009. After reading only a few pages I realized that I had found an extraordinary story, a story that I would never forget. That day I learned that books with around a hundred pages can be just as powerful as ones with three hundred pages. I discovered that in the hands of a master, even the simplest of phrases and sentences can have the power to deeply move a reader. 

The author of this story, Patricia MacLachlan, went on to write four more books about Sarah and her family, and I read them all with great pleasure and no small amount of awe. Sarah Plain and Tall was  adapted into a television film starring Glenn Close, and one-act children's musical.

Patricia MacLachlan left us on March 31st. She will be greatly missed by the people who knew and loved her, and by the many authors whom she encouraged and supported. She gifted us dozens of books, many of which I have read and reviewed over the years. On the Through the Looking Glass Patricia MacLachlan Page you will find a biography of this amazing women, and a links to those of her books that I have reviewed. 

Sarah Plain and Tall  

Patricia MacLachlan

Fiction 

For ages 7 and up

HarperCollins, 1985, 0064402053

Anna and Caleb’s Mama died the day after Caleb was born. It has been hard being without a Mama for so long, but now Papa has advertised in the paper for a wife and Sarah from Maine has answered.

Letters go between the family on the prairie and the young woman living by the sea. The children worry that Sarah won’t like them, won’t like their simple little house, won’t like Papa, won’t like the prairie where there is no sea and little water – just grass and sky. 

   Sarah agrees to come and visit the family for a month “to see” and she arrives in the spring. Anna hopes desperately that they can all be “perfect” for Sarah so that she will stay. She wishes that they had “a sea of our own,” which would make Sarah miss Maine less.

   Sarah MacLachlan superbly captures the anxiety and tension that the children experience - the fear that they will loose their chance to have a mother at long last. With just the right words she brings the spirit of the prairie and the personalities of the characters to life so that we can see the grass, smell the dust, and experience the worry that flows through Anna and Caleb’s hearts. Full of poignancy, hope and love, this is a story that is timeless, and it will resonate with both children and adults. 

Celebrating Library Week, and Poetry Month, with a book that gave me hope

" I discovered that one could write one's own story, 

which is something that very few people even consider."

In 1998 I built the first rendition of Through the Looking Glass Book Reviews, and I did it myself, so you can imagine what it looked like! Back then I had no idea what TTLG would become in the years ahead. By 1999 I had got to know quite a few publicists in the publishing houses, and was getting review copies on a regular basis. One of the books I received was The Library, which was created by a husband and wife team. I fell in love with David Small's art and I sought out every book he had worked on. 

This Caldecott Honor book had a profound effect on me; I discovered that I was not the only book-mad person in the world. Here was a story about a real person who filled her house with books. I was not alone in my madness! I also saw how someone turned their passion into something that gave them, and so many other people, joy. I discovered that one could write one's own story, which is something that very few people even consider. If the lady in the story could do what she did with her life, why, I could do something that was untraditional too. 

The story is written in verse, so it is perfect title for Poetry Month.   

The Library

Sarah Stewart

Illustrated David Small 

Picture Book

For ages 5 to 8

Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 1999, 978-0374443948

From the time when she was a very little girl indeed Elizabeth Brown loved books. She had no interest in dolls or in playing games. All she wanted to do was to read, and read, and read. This state of affairs did not change as she grew up. As more and more books came into her home, her collection of books got bigger and bigger and bigger until it was so enormous that the front door of her house was blocked by piles of books. Even worse was the fact that Elizabeth no longer had room for "one more" book.

   Then Elizabeth Brown found a solution to her problem, a solution that would make it possible for her to go on buying books, a solution that would also benefit the entire community.

   This wonderful story with its spare rhyming text and its emotive watercolor washed paintings, is a joy to read. The dedication in the front of the book tells us that the Elizabeth Brown in the story was in fact a real person who loved books and who was a good friend of the author and illustrator.

Happy Birthday, Richard Peck, author extraordinaire.

 

I read my first Richard Peck novel, the one reviewed below, in 2000, and I have been a fan of his work ever since. This novel A Long Way from Chicago: A Novel in Stories is the first book in a trilogy featuring, among others, the unstoppable Mrs. Dowel. It is the kind of story both young readers and adults will enjoy. Indeed, many of Richard Peck's mid-grade and young adult novels will appeal to adults because their themes are so universal and so pertinent for people of all ages and backgrounds. I strongly urge to get a copy of this book. You will love it. Richard Peck was an incredibly gifted author whose writings made me both laugh out loud and weep a little weep. He wrote books in several genres for young readers, and he also wrote adult fiction and nonfiction.  

   Richard Peck wrote his first line of fiction the day he quit his junior high school teaching job. The year was 1971 and Peck was thirty-seven years old. Teaching had reacquainted him with the challenges of being young: “As adults, we want young people to start looking for themselves, but they only want to look for leaders.”

   He remembers when life was different. “When I was young, we were never more than five minutes from the nearest adult, and that solved most of the problems I write about for a later generation living nearer the edge.” In fact, he remembers the year when everything changed. “I was teaching. It was the second semester of the 1967-68 school year. The change was due to many things: the collapse of family structure, the politicization of schools. . . . But, the authority of the peer group began to replace adult authority, and children quickly learned that they dare not be better achievers than their leaders in the peer group,” he explains. “You only grow up when you’ve walked away from those people. In all my novels, you have to declare your independence from your peers before you can take that first real step toward yourself.”

   Peck calls the September 11 terrorist attacks on New York and Washington, D.C. “the only historic event that had ever happened” in the lives of his current readers. While the event briefly registered with them, he doesn’t see much difference in their lives or attitudes six months later. “This was not an attack on their peer group. When it didn’t impact them directly, then that was all. For these reasons--and so history does not repeat itself--there’s a real need for a greater sense of history in our schools.” Speaking and visiting in schools has inspired him to write historical fiction. “I am nudged by the ignorance of the young about the past,” he says. “I think the origin of history begins with your own roots,” he adds. With extended families often living miles apart, he makes sure to provide grandparent figures for his readers: “I try to include an elderly person in each of my books. These characters are tough, they’re fun, they’re outrageous, and they have survived. They’re what we wish for in our grandparents.”

   Peck was born in Decatur, Illinois, attended the University of Exeter in England, graduated from DePauw University, and served in the U.S. Army before becoming a teacher. The acclaimed author of 35 novels for children and young adults, he won the Newbery Medal for A Year Down Yonder, a Newbery Honor for A Long Way from Chicago, the Scott O’Dell Award for The River Between Us, the Edgar Allen Poe Award for Are You in the House Alone?, a Boston Globe-Horn Book Award Honor for The Best Man, and the Christopher Medal for The Teacher’s Funeral. He was the first children’s author ever to have been awarded a National Humanities Medal, and was twice a National Book Award Finalist.

   The world lost a truly great writer when Richard Peck left us in 2018 at the age of 84

A Long Way from Chicago: A Novel in Stories 

Richard Peck

Fiction

For ages 12 and up

Penguin, 2000, 978-0141303529

Joey and his sister Alice have always known that their Grandma Dowdel is a tough old lady, but it is only when they start spending time with her in the summers that they get a real sense of how tough she is. The country is in the grip of the Great Depression and times are hard. Grandma Dowdel, like so many other people, has to adapt to the changing circumstances. Some things don’t change though; Grandma Dowel pretty much always gets what she wants – in the end. Joey and Alice are shocked to discover that there is very little that Grandma Dowdel won’t do to get her own way. She will intimidate, blackmail, bully, lie, and steal, among other things, and she will do it all with great aplomb and not the slightest bit of regret.

   They also discover that their large overall-wearing grandmother has soft spots. She will not tolerate bullies, she does her best to help those in trouble, and in her own crusty way she takes care of the people she cares about.

   In the nine summers that Joey and Alice go to visit their grandmother, they see their first dead body, they watch their grandma fire a shotgun, they see the sheriff in his underwear, they impersonate a ghost, they feed hungry hobos, and they 'borrow' a boat so that they can poach fish.

   Laugh out loud scenes and larger-than-life characters make this book a joy to read. At the same time, it is thought-provoking, and it paints a portrait of a very hard time in America’s history. Grandma Dowdel is a force of nature whom the reader will be compelled to admire. Surely we would all be better off if we had a Grandma Dowdel in our lives.

Happy Poetry Month - A review of Classic Poetry

Dear Friends, 

Happy April and happy Poetry Month.

   When I was little, my father used to read to me. He had such a beautiful reading-aloud voice that I would sit and listen, taking in every syllable. One of the things that he liked to read to me was poetry. I had a collection of classic poetry, and we had such a marvelous time exploring the language in the poems of Robert Louis Stevenson, Walter de la Mare, Emily Dickinson, T.S. Eliot, Robert Frost, and others. 

   When my daughter was little I bought her the book that I have reviewed below, and she and I shared the same wonderful experiences. I reconnected with old friends, and made new ones, and to this day we will quote lines from some of the poems to each other, even though she is now an adult, living far away. 

Classic Poetry   

Selected by Michael Rosen

Illustrated by Paul Howard 

Poetry

For ages 8 and up

Candlewick, 2009, 978-0763642105

In this day and age so many of us expect to be constantly entertained when we read. We like titles that have a fast-paced plot, ones that will keep us engaged all the way through the book. We are less willing to explore words and the images and emotions that they describe or conjure up. Because of this tendency, we often miss out on some wonderful stories, and we completely bypass poetry. Reading poetry can take a little more work; it is a little more demanding than a simple narrative. At the same time, poetry can give us a wonderfully rich literary experience.

   For this book Michael Rosen, one of Britain’s Children’s Laureates, has selected classic poetry written by some of the world’s most wonderful English language poets. Some of the poets will be known to the reader, like William Shakespeare and Lewis Carroll, while others will become new friends.

   For each poet Rosen has written a short biography, and so this book is “not only a book of classic poetry; it is also a book of classic poets.” For some of the poets Rosen has chosen more than one poem, and this will help the reader get a richer picture of what the poet cared about.

   In addition to reading poems about Ozymandius, the Mock Turtle, Paul Revere’s Ride, The Jumblies, and much more, readers can read the poet’s biographies, looks at portraits of them, and admire the art that Paul Howard has created to accompany the poems.

   This is a title that young and nor-so-young readers will dip into again and again, and it is a book that they will surely enjoy for many years to come.

Happy Spring! With a review of Crinkle, Crackle, Crack It's Spring.

 

"In the spring all the little flowers came out obediently in the meads, and the dew sparkled, and the birds sang; in the summer it was beautifully hot for no less than four months, and, if it did rain just enough for agricultural purposes, they managed to arrange it so that it rained while you were in bed."

-T.H. White from The Sword in the Stone.

Here is a springish book that perfectly captures the magic that the season brings. Even though I reviewed this book some years ago, I remember it very fondly and think that you will enjoy it. 

Crinkle, Crackle, Crack It’s Spring!

Marion Dane Bauer

Illustrated by John Shelley 

Picture Book

For ages 4 to 6

Holiday House, 2015, 978-0823429523

If you are lucky, one cold winter’s night you will be woken up by some strange sounds. You will hear a “rap, bap, tap” followed by a “crunch, scrunch,” and a “crinkle, crackle, crack.”  You will get out of bed to investigate and look out the front door, where you will see mud, melting snow, and a bear. The bear will tell you that “It is time,” and will ask you to “Come with me.”

   As everyone knows, it is not possible to say no to a bear when it invites you to join him, so you will take his paw and go with him.  You will hear the noises again and again as you journey through the woods with the bear, and the words “It is time” will drift around you on the air. You will be joined by a rabbit who also knows that “It is time,” and then by other woodland creatures. Something is happening, something marvelous, but you will have no idea what awaits you in the woods ahead.

   In this magical picture book children will get to take a journey with a bear, and some other animals, to witness a special moment. With beautifully expressive art and a lyrical text, the author and illustrator give their readers a singular story experience. It is one that they will enjoy again and again as they read and reread the book. 

A magical ability - Would it be a gift or a curse....or both?

If you are a Beaumont - by blood mind you - you know that after you turn thirteen it is certain that you will develop a magical ability, a "savvy." No one knows what their savvy will be, so the waiting process is rather nerve wracking, as I am sure you can appreciate. Sometimes a savvy is a wonderful thing. One Beaumont's savvy is the gift of perfection; she is always perfect in her looks and behavior. Then there are the savvys that are prone to creating disasters; Fish Beaumont can control the weather. If he does not keep his emotions in check tornadoes and hurricanes appear and wreck havoc. 

   The marvelous New York Times bestselling author Ingrid Law is the person who tells the stories of the Beaumonts and their savvys. To date she has written three books about this remarkable family, Savvy, Scumble, and Switch; Savvy won the Newbery Honor award in 2009. 

  Today I bring you a review of the third book in the series. The book is available in print, as an ebook, and as an audiobook. As with all the books that I've written about so far this year, these three titles will appeal to both young readers and adults. 

Switch

Ingrid Law

Fiction

For ages 9 and up

Penguin, 2015, 978-0-8037-3862-1

Gypsy Beaumont is so eager to turn thirteen. In her family, turning thirteen is a landmark birthday, but not because it is the first of the teen years. When Beaumonts turn thirteen they get their savvy and they are always eager to see what form their savvy will take. A savvy is a magical ability, and no one can tell in advance what it will be. Gypsy’s big brother Sampson can become invisible, and he can become incredible strong. He can even pass this latter ability on to others in a crisis. Her mother’s savvy is that she is always perfect in her appearance, and every other aspect of her life. She is never frazzled or out of sorts, she never drops, breaks, or burns things. Gypsy’s Grandpa Bomba, could “move and stretch” landmasses to make them bigger or smaller. 

   Now it is Gypsy’s turn, and she has high hopes that her savvy will be something fabulous. She is therefore rather disappointed when it turns out that Gypsy’s gift is that she is able to see into the past or the future. The family discovers that her savvy is linked to her poor eyesight. On the very day Gypsy gets a pair of glasses her savvy “visions” stay where they belong. As long as she wears her glasses she is vision free, and so this is what she does; she keeps her head down and plays it safe.

   Three months after she gets her savvy, Gypsy has a vision while they are in church. She sees an old woman standing on a tower. The woman is wearing a bizarre outfit and it is a cold, snowy night. The old lady falls from the tower, surely to her death. Gypsy is sure that the old lady is herself in the future, and she decides that she will do everything that she can to prevent her premonition from coming true. 

   When they get home from church, Gypsy’s father, Poppa, tells his children that his mother, Grandma Pat, is going to have to come to live with them. One of Grandma’s neighbors called and told Poppa that Grandma is becoming forgetful and disorientated, and she cannot live alone any longer. No one is happy to hear this news because Grandma Pat is, to put it simply, not a very nice person. She loves her son, and thinks he made a big mistake when he married Momma. She has never shown much interest in Gypsy and her siblings.

   On hearing this news Tucker, Gypsy’s little brother, proceeds to have a tantrum, which then turns into something else altogether. Tucker starts to get bigger and bigger and bigger. And then Samson bursts into flames. They manage to get the two boys outside where Sampson put himself out in a bank of snow, but Tucker is still in a rage and he is enormous. Desperate for the chaos to cease, Gypsy yells “Stop, stop, stop, stop, STOP!” and everything stops. Literally. Gypsy has frozen time. 

    It takes a while, but Gypsy finally figures out how to unstick time. Tucker is given gummies and he shrinks back to his normal little boy size, and the family set about trying to figure out what is going on. They decide that Momma, Sampson, and Gypsy are experiencing a savvy switch. Instead of being perfect Momma is very imperfect; instead of being invisible Sampson  gets hot and can light himself on fire; and instead of being able to see into the past and the future, Gypsy can now stop time. On top of this Tucker has got his savvy a lot sooner that is the norm Apparently he can make himself big. Really big.

   Feeling very out of sorts and pretty miserable, the Beaumonts set off for Colorado a few days later to pick up Grandma Pat. Poppa has to stay home to get the house repaired because Tucker did a lot of damage when he got his savvy. When they finally get to their destination they can see very clearly that the neighbor was right, Grandma Pat certainly cannot live alone. She drifts between her memories of the past and the present and wanders off without any warning. This situation is bad enough, but what makes things even worse is that Gypsy comes to realize that the old woman on the tower in her vision was Grandma Pat and not herself. Somehow Gypsy has to make sure that Grandma Pat does not end up on that tower on a cold, snowy, wintery night.

   This remarkable companion to Savvy and Scumble takes readers on a whirlwind adventure that is full of surprises. As Gypsy, Sampson, and Tucker race to save Grandma Pat from herself, they collect a colorful collection of allies along the way. In addition Gypsy learns some interesting things about her grandmother that give her cause to think about things in a new way. Gypsy had convinced herself that the solution to her problems was to live under the radar and to suppress her natural “sparkle” and ebullience. Could it be that this strategy is not the answer after all?  

About Ingrid Law:

Before Ingrid Law wrote her Newbery Honor book Savvyand its companion books Scumble and Switch, she had many different jobs and interests, including: issuing marriage licenses, being a mom, selling shoes, working in a bookstore, designing and sewing costumes, puppets, and dolls, and creating art quilts she displayed and sold in galleries. Ingrid was born in northern New York but moved to Colorado when she was 6 years old, where she grew up and lived for many years before moving to Portland, Oregon, for five wonderful, rainy years. Back in Colorado now to look after her aging parents, Ingrid spends her free time reading, writing, watching movies, and contemplating small and lovely things in the garden behind her house—a house just big enough for her and her two dogs, George and Eliot. Ingrid has a new children's fantasy book in the works, but cannot say yet when it will be finished.

A time to reflect, and a review of Thankful by Elaine Vickers and Samantha Cotterill

 

This morning we got our first real snow of the season, and just by chance this book found its way onto my desk. How appropriate it is that a title about thankfulness should appear at a this particular moment, for these are the days when many of us take the time to rest, and to consider the old year that is fading and the new year that is coming. I bring the people I love into my home and together we celebrate, and give thanks, for the things that truly matter, just as the little girl in this book does. 

Thankful 

Elaine Vickers

Illustrated by Samantha Cotterill

Picture Book

For ages 5 to 7

Simon and Schuster, 2021, 978-1-5344-7734-6

Every year a little girl and her family start making “thankful chains” on the day when the first snow starts to fall. On strips of colored paper they write down what they are thankful for, and then they create a paper chain using the pieces of paper. 

   The little girl starts with the things that she is thankful for that are found in her home. She has parents who love her, and who show their love with every story that they read to her; with every gentle stroke as they brush her hair; and with the poem, full of good wishes, that they share with her every night at bedtime. One of those wishes has come true and now the little girl can be thankful for the little dog who “jumps when I am happy and comforts when I am scared.”

   The little girl goes on to give thanks for big things like “a heart that beats” and “every breath,” and the colors that makes her world so beautiful and exciting. Then we hear about the wonderful things that are warm and give comfort, for things that are cold, for things that are soft, and for things that are hard. 

   Onto the little strips of paper all these words of thanks go, with one sentence of thanks leading to a memory that brings forth another. 

   Many of us forget that we have a great deal to be thankful for. We are in so much of a hurry to move on to what comes next, that we don’t take the time to stop and look at, and to remember, all the gifts that we already have. It is only when we take this time to reflect that we realize that we have so many beautiful, special, and enriching things in our lives. 

   On the pages of this picture book, readers will find a lyrical text that summons up memories as it is read; as the little girl remembers her thankful things, we remember ours. These lines are paired with photos that combine dioramas and drawings in a unique and emotive way. 

   This is book that will encourage children and their grownups to pause and find gratitude, and readers might even decide to bring chains of thankfulness into their homes. 

Amelia Earhart - Lady of the skies

Before I moved to the U.S some eighteen years ago, (was it really that long ago?) I did not know much about Amelia Earhart. Then I worked in a school for a while, and began exploring the world of children's literature. I discovered that many children (especially girls) are fascinated by Amelia's story. As I started reading non-fiction titles about Amelia, I came to realize that flying was only one of the many things that she did with her time.She gave speeches about the role of women in the modern world, she taught, and she spent time with children and young women. She was, in short, a very remarkable woman.

For Amelia's birthday anniversary (July 24th) I reviewed an excellent book called Amelia Earhart: The Legend of the Lost Aviator by Shelley Tanaka and illustrated by David Craig. Shelley Tanaka has written many splendid non-fiction titles and this is one of her best. Here is my review of the book.

Amelia Earhart: The legend of the lost aviator

Shelley Tanaka

Illustrated by David Craig

Non Fiction Picture Book

Ages 9 to 12

Abrams, 2008, 978-0-8109-7095-3

Amelia Earhart was not the kind of person to be put off when people told her that what she wanted to do was impossible, or inappropriate, or unladylike. More than almost anything Amelia believed that people should pursue their dreams. If need be, they should fight to do what they believe is important. Amelia certainly did; she ended up doing what she cared about the most: flying, teaching, and helping others.

Once Amelia found her place in the sky, she was unstoppable. She broke records and proved to the world that women can be great pilots, just like men. Flying rickety planes that were notoriously prone to breakages and problems, Amelia traveled long distances not only to break records, but to show women that the sky is indeed the limit.

When Amelia’s plane disappeared in July 1937, the whole world watched, waited, and then grieved. To this day, we do not know what happened to Amelia Earhart. We may never know, but her legacy lives on, and generations of girls and women still look to her for inspiration.

In this marvelous picture book Shelley Tanaka brings Amelia Earhart’s world to life. With numerous quotes from Amelia’s writings and speeches, the book beautifully captures Amelia Earhart’s indomitable spirit and her sense of adventure. Packed with information, illustrations, and photographs, this title is a must for all young Amelia Earhart fans.

If you are interested in purchasing this title please consider doing so through The TTLG website to help support this blog. Many thanks.

Hot, Hot, Hot

We have had some very hot days here in Ashland this summer. The Fourth of July was blistering, and during the day I frequently found myself seeking out shade, spraying myself with water, sticking my feet in the river, and drinking cold water. These singularly low tech cooling off methods reminded me of a book that I read and reviewed recently. The book, Heatwave, describes what takes place in a town during a very hot summer week. The story is set in a time when people did not have air conditioning units in the homes and offices. They have to find other ways to get survive the hot days and night.

Here is my review:

Heat Wave
Eileen Spinelli

Illustrated by Betsy Lewin
Picture Book
Ages 3 to 7
Harcourt, 2007, 978-0-15-216779-0
Lumberville is in the grip of a heat wave. There are no air conditioners, so everyone in town swelters in the heat. On Monday, the move theatre closes and Abigail and Ralphie Blue set up a lemonade stand. Tuesday is even hotter, and some of the residents in the town resort to taking long cool baths and showers. By the time Thursday rolls around it is so hot that Mr.Blue shaves off his beard, and the Pettibone sisters put their perfume and makeup in their icebox. How much hotter can it get?
In this delightful picture book, Eileen Spinelli perfectly captures what it was like to live in a time when there were no air conditioners, when people had to find all kinds of creative ways to stay cool. She shows her readers how the heat unifies the people in Lumberville; it brings them together as they all try to find some relief from the heat.
Throughout the book, Betsy Lewin’s illustrations beautifully compliment the narrative. In particular, she brings the humorous touches in the story to life.

If you have creative ways to keep cool please tell us about them.

The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate - A Review

Last month I reviewed The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate by Jacqueline Kelly. The book delighted and intrigued me. Indeed it is one of the best books I have read in a long time. Here is my review of the book. I hope you are encouraged to go out and get your own copy. You won't regret it.

The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate
Jacqueline Kelly
Fiction
Ages 12 and up
Henry Holt, 2009, 0-8050-8841-5
Calpurnia Tate lives in a big house with her father, mother, grandfather, and her six brothers. It is summertime in 1899 and to say that it is hot is an understatement. It is so hot in fact that everyone is too uncomfortable and tired to keep a close eye on what Callie is doing. Being a clever girl, Callie takes full advantage of this situation, and she spends a good deal of her time floating in the river. She also decides that she is going to be a naturalist. After all, why not?
And so, Callie starts writing down her observations in a notebook. She wonders why dogs have eyebrows and why the cardinals are behaving so strangely. Then Callie notices that there are two kinds of grasshoppers around. Usually there are only small green ones, but this summer there are large yellow ones. No one seems to know where these newcomers came from, and Callie finally decides that she has no choice, she is going to have to ask her frightening grandfather.
Grandfather tells Callie to “figure it out,” which is what, in time, Callie does. After much thought she decides that the yellow grasshoppers are a different version of the green ones. They are basically the same animal! Full of excitement, Callie tells her grandfather what she has learned, and he discovers that he has a granddaughter who loves to learn, to question, and to observe.
Thus begins a wonderful summer for Callie. She and her grandfather become good friends, the old man helping his granddaughter to learn the scientific method. He lets her borrow his books – including the controversial Origin of Species – and he encourages Callie to use her mind in new ways. The problem is that Callie lives in a time when people do not believe in educating girls. Will Callie ever be able to pursue her interest in science, or will she be forced to spend her time learning “cookery” and how to tat lace?
In this wonderful title, Jacqueline Kelly tells a story that is funny, thought provoking, and thoroughly addictive. Callie’s evolving relationship with her grandfather is fascinating to observe, and the various misadventures that her family members experience are enormously entertaining. One brother falls in love, while another grows too fond of the Thanksgiving dinner turkeys.
Set in a time of great change, this story combines humor, beautiful writing, and unforgettable characters, to give readers a book that they will remember long after the last page is read.

Cashay - A Review

I recently read a book that I was not, I have to admit, keen on reading. I read the blurb, and the subject matter sounded so grim that I kept picking it up - and putting it down. Yes, I was a coward. I didn't want to read a book about something that sounded painful.


Finally, thanks to the gently cajoling of a good friend, I began to read. I read the whole book in one sitting and turned off the light very late that night. It was a fabulous book and I know that I will always remember it. Here is my review:

Cashay
Margaret McMullan
Fiction
Ages 12 and up
Houghton Mifflin, 2009, 978-0-547-07656-0
Cashay lives in the projects with her mother and her sister Sashay. There are many things about her life that Cashay wishes she could change, but there is one thing that she loves and treasures – her sister. Cashay’s mother took drugs when she was pregnant with Sashay, and because of this Sashay is a little behind in school, but she is a sweet, sunshiny girl who makes Cashay laugh.
Together Cashay and Sashay cope with their often very difficult life. Then the unthinkable happens, Sashay is killed by a drug pusher’s bullet. For Cashay it is as if the light has gone out of her life. Her mother gets herself a new boyfriend and sinks herself into the oblivion of dugs, and Cashay is alone with her grief and her rage.
Realizing that Cashay is in trouble, the school counselor decides to send her to an afterschool program that is run by some nuns. At first the experiment is a dismal failure as far as Cashay is concerned. Then she is set up with a mentor, a single white woman who is a stockbroker and who helps Cashay to see that the world is a big place full of possibilities.
This often painful and very powerful story beautifully captures what life is like for children who live in poverty in inner cities. They are surrounded by ugliness, despair, and violence. They don’t know what it is like to ride in a cab, to go to a museum, or to eat in a nice restaurant. They also live with the fear that at any minute someone could shoot them or someone they love. Margaret McMullen gives Cashay such a compelling voice, that readers will find this young girl irresistible. With poignant realism and memorable characters, Margaret McMullen gives her readers an honest message of hope.

Later this week I will be interviewing the author, Margart McMullen. By the by, I have asked the publisher for Margaret's other YA titles. Never again will I "pass" on a book by this talented lady. Thank you Susan for getting me to read it.

The Tilbury House Give a Goat Book Tour

I want to share a review with you that I wrote about a splendid book published by Tilbury house. It is called Give a Goat and it takes a look at one way in which children can make a difference in this world.

Give a goat
Jan West Schrock
Illustrated by Aileen Darragh
Picture Book
Ages 6 to 8
Tilbury House Publishers, 2008, 978-0-88448-301-4
It is a rainy day and the children in a fifth grade class are “restless.” So their teacher, Mrs. Rowell, reads them a true story about a little girl in Uganda who was too poor to go to school. Then someone gave the little girl’s family a goat and their fortunes changed dramatically. With the money that they earned from selling the goat’s milk the family was able to pay for the little girl to go to school.
After they hear this story the school children decide that they want to “give a goat” to someone like the little girl in the story. Their teacher warns them that such a project will take hard work and cooperation, but the children do not back down. This is something that they really want to do.
And so the children begin to do some research. They learn that an organization called Heifer International gives people free livestock to help them get back on their feet. The children learn that they are going to need to raise $120 to send a goat to a family in need. Will they be able to raise so much money on their own?
In this simply written and inspirational story the author shows her readers that children can indeed make a meaningful difference in the lives of others. She shows children that with some hard work and plenty of determination they can be a part of the “giving” and “passing on the gift” process.
In a world where there is altogether too much “gimme” and not enough “giving,” this picture book offers children a new way of looking at things.
Readers can visit the Heifer International website to find out how they can be a part of this very worthy cause.

Please visit the Tilbury House website to find more "make a difference" ideas for children.

An Interview with Roland Smith

I just read and reviewed a book by Roland Smith called I, Q. It is the first title in a new series and if you are acquainted with some young people who like thrillers, then you should definitely tell them about this book.

1. Where did the idea for I, Q come from?
I grew up on the periphery of the music business. My brother Mike was a professional musician for over thirty years, and although I don’t play or sing, he took me under his wing and I hung out with his musician friends and in that venue for decades. I’ve always wanted to write about the music business for young people. It can be a brutal art…and like many of my books I like to peel away the glitz and take a look at what lays beneath. Fame and celebrity are not always what they appear to be and both are fleeting. And people who are celebrities work a lot harder than most people know.

I also wanted to write about international terrorism…but I waited, hoping the current mess we are in would go away. Sadly, I don’t think it is going to go away for a very long time. It is something my readers will still be dealing with when they become adults. I’d been researching Islamic terrorism long before 9/11. One of the things I hope to do in the series is to explain where this all came from and how it happened. We are all responsible for it, and the issues are complex. Perhaps in the I,Q series I’ll be able to unravel some of this complexity. We can’t resolve a problem until we understand the problem.

Another reason for writing the series is that I wanted my readers to know that there is a lot more going on than is reported in the news. There is secret war being fought everyday that is not being reported in the media.

2. Did you always know that this book was going to be part of a series?
Yes, but at this point I’m not sure how many books there are going to be. Hopefully several. The first book: Independence Hall, took longer to write than I expected because I had to set up a strong foundation for the other books to follow.

3. Did you have to do a lot of research into the spy world in order to write the book?
Yes…I have been research spies and covert ops for many, many years. Again, I’m very interested in what lies beneath. And I’m still doing research.

4. Were you at all inspired by adult spy books?
I grew up reading thrillers, adventure, and mysteries. Writer’s tend to write the kind of books they like to read.

5. Why do you think we are attracted to books of this kind?
When I was growing there wasn’t much for me to read (today’s YA literature has changed that), so I quickly started reading the books my parents were reading, which were in this genre.

6. I have read and reviewed Elephant Run. What inspired you to write this marvelous book?
First, thank you! It took me ten years to get Elephant Run. I trained elephants here in the states and have worked with them in the wild in Africa and Asia. My first novel was Thunder Cave, which was about African elephants. I want to write a novel about Asian elephants. I also wanted to write about the Pacific theater of WW2. There are many books about the European theater, but very little about what happened in the Pacific for young people. The war on that front started first, lasted longer, was more brutal than the European theater, and was a bigger direct threat to the U.S.

7. What did you think of the working elephants that you saw in Myanmar?
I actually wrote two books about my experience there. Prior to Elephant Run I co-wrote a non-fiction book with Michael Schmidt called “In the Forest with Elephant” and took the photographs for the book. This book is no longer in print, sadly, because it was a beautiful book and story. For me as an elephant lover the trip, despite the very rough conditions in the jungle with elephants, was incredible.

8. Many of your books are about animals either directly or indirectly. Have you always liked animals or was that something that developed because you worked in a zoo for a time?
I fell into the animals at the ripe age of 18. I was majoring in English at Portland State University and go a part-time work/study job at the Portland Zoo (now the Oregon Zoo). I was not raised with animals, and frankly hadn’t thought much about them. But it turned out that I was actually very good with animals. A talent I didn’t know I had until I actually had the job. Of course I became fascinated and worked with animals all over the world for 22 years. But during those years I wrote everyday and eventually got a book published called “Sea Otter Rescue” (which is still in print). My career culminated with helping to get the red wolf back into the wild as the Species Coordinator for the U.S. and helping to get the gray wolves back into the wild in Yellowstone National Park. Helping to get an animal back into the wild was the peak of a long career. By this time I had seven books published and felt it was best to leave the animals behind and return to my original dream of becoming a full-time author.

9. Do you share your life with any animals at the moment?
My wife, Marie, and I have a farm just south of Portland and there are cows, goats, and a horse, but I’m afraid because of my travel schedule these days we don’t have any close animal companions because it would not be fair to our friends.

10. Do you think that you might write a book for children about your zoo experiences? I hope you do!
It’s on the “long” list. I would like to write an autobiography. I have a lot of stories, but I’m not sure it would be for young people. But I bet a lot of them would read and enjoy it.

11.What role do you think zoos have to play in today’s world?
I worked in zoos for over twenty years, but the truth is that I’m uncomfortable with animals in captivity. When I hired a keep (and I hired a lot of them) I always picked people who were a little uncomfortable with zoos as well. They took better care of the animals. 99.9% found in zoos today were actually born in zoos. It’s all they’ve known, and they are not going to be put back into the wild. And they wouldn’t know what to do if they were put back into the wild. Having said that, I believe that if a zoo doesn’t have a very strong educational component connected with the animal they are holding in captivity, then they have no right to keep that animal. I know for a fact that if there hadn’t been zoos the wolf would have gone extinct a long time ago. So, zoos do good work and it gives people a chance to learn about environmental issues and our wild brethren in an urban environment.

12. You have written several alphabet books for Sleeping Bear Press. What do you like about books of this kind?
The picture books with Sleeping Bear are wonderful because they work on two levels for younger and older readers. I am actually the “junior” author on these books. My wife, Marie, writes these books and I help her when I can. This is why her name is first on the cover. She’s a wonderful writer and she is writing several more picture books for Sleeping Bear.

Sleeping Bear Press has given me several copies of this book to share with you. If you would like a copy please drop me a line.

An Interview about "What Dogs Want for Christmas" with Kandy Radzinski

Just to get you all into a Christmassy mood I have reviewed a splendid dog book called What dogs want for Christmas by Kandy Radzinski. You can see my review of this title on the Through the Looking Glass Book Review website, and here is an interview that I had with the book's author.

Why did you decide to write this book?
I decided to write "What Dogs Want for Christmas," as a companion to "What Cats Want for Christmas." I love painting animals.

You have dogs in your life. Do they get Christmas presents?

At the moment I have two dogs, Kirby a scotty male, and Beanie, a female rescued mut. They don't get presents for Christmas because everyday is Christmas for them, with all the love, attention, and food that they get everyday, anyway.

You have written another Christmas book about cats. Do you have a special fondness for Christmastime? If so why? I love Christmas; I see it as celebrating Jesus' birthday, plus alot of glitz. I also love the colors of Christmas. How do you create your illustrations? I create my illustrations by first just seeing them in my mind, then I do very rough drawings, refine that, and then go to good watercolor paper and paint. Hopefully, it turns out like that mental image that I had in my mind in the beginning. You have done several alphabet books for Sleeping Bear Press. Have you enjoyed doing these books? I have loved doing the alphabet books for Sleeping Bear Press. I really love painting just about everything.

What do you think alphabet books of this kind offer young readers?
These alphabet books offer young readers education, excitment, etc., what any good children's book should offer, some kind of magic.

If you could choose any topic which topic would you like to turn into an alphabet book?

If I could choose any topic to turn into an alphabet book, it would deal with animals. When I was growing up, my parents were very distant, but I always had a dog. They were and are so important to me. I love painting animals and anything with fur. Don't you just want to reach out and touch and cuddle anything that has fur on it?

The publisher of this book has kindly given me several copies of this book to give away to you. Drop me a line if you would like one.

Many thanks Kandy and Sleeping Bear Press.

Meet Elise Broach, author of Masterpiece

Not long ago I read and reviewed Masterpiece by Elise Broach. It is a terrific book for young readers and you can read my review here. I was so impressed by the book that I decided that I wanted to talk to the author. Here is an interview that I had with her:

1. How did you get the idea for Masterpiece?
I actually started Masterpiece in the 1980s, when I was a graduate student in the history Ph.D. program at Yale, living in an apartment in New Haven. Late at night, I accidentally dropped one of my contact lenses down the bathroom sink. I spent over an hour trying to fish it out, and I kept fantasizing about how great it would be to have some tiny creature capable of going down the drain and retrieving it for me. I finally found the contact, and then, after midnight, sat down at my desk and wrote the first three chapters of the story. I didn't return to it for over twenty years!

2. In Masterpiece one of the main characters is a beetle. Why did you choose this particular animal?
I like beetles. There are so many different kinds. They're small and fairly harmless, you see them everywhere, and they don't have the scary associations of insects that sting or bite. Plus, they're exremely resourceful and hardy, and they can live inside houses without being part of an infestation. Really, a beetle was the perfect insect for the purposes of the story!

3. Do you have an interest in/fondness for art?
I've always been interested in art. When I was little, I loved to draw and paint. In college, I took lots of art history classes. Now, as an adult, one of my favorite things to do is visiting art museums with my family or friends.

4. Is Durer one of your favorite artists, and if not why did you pick his work to be at the center of Masterpiece?
I knew Durer's work from my art history classes, but he wasn't one of my favorite artists until I spent so much time thinking about him while writing Masterpiece. For the plot to work, I needed an artist whose drawings were almost magically detailed and tiny, so delicate they could plausibly have been created by a beetle. Durer was an expert at pen-and-ink drawings, had completed several miniatures, and was renowned for the incredible level of detail in his work. In personality, he was melancholy and had quite a sad life, but was beloved by his friends and very generous to them, so he seemed a good fit for the story that way too.

5. James is a rather lonely little boy. Is his loneliness something you identify with?
I'm not sure I identify with his loneliness as much as sympathize with it. I've known so many people like James, who stand off to the side of things and never quite get the attention they deserve, who are great observers of life but not necessarily full participants in it. James is exactly the kind of child who would notice Marvin, and whose life would be most changed by a friendship with him.

6. On your website you say that you identify with Elizabeth Bennet from Pride and Prejudice. In what way?
Oh, I'm not sure that's very original! Anyone who has read that wonderful book probably most identifies with the character of Elizabeth. I guess apart from superficial things, like the fact that I love to read and am interested in other people's lives, I'd say that, like Elizabeth, I am pretty opinionated and independent, but never take myself too seriously.

7. Which do you prefer, writing a picture book or a novel?
They're very different experiences. A picture book is more immediately satisfying, because I can usually write the first draft in one sitting. It may take months and months of noodling to get it right, but it's very rewarding to finish a story in a few hours: to see the whole thing, complete, on paper. By contrast, a novel is a Herculean labor at some level, at least for me. There's always a point at which I wonder if I can pull it off (usually right in the middle!). But when I finish a novel, and have peopled an entire world and watched it change and deepen over time--and even surprise me--that is tremendously fulfilling.

8. Do you read a lot of children’s literature?
Yes! All the time. I love to read. It used to be my guilty pleasure, but now that I write for a living, I can convince myself it's justified.

9. Where do you write and do you have a schedule for writing?
I usually write in an alcove of my bedroom, in front of a window overlooking the woods. My desk is an old library table, with all of my favorite children's books on the shelf at my knees. But I also write in coffeeshops, libraries, while I'm waiting in the car to pick up my kids from some activity or other. When you have a busy life, you have to fit it in wherever possible. I don't have a schedule for writing, and certainly don't write every day. I tend to work very hard in spurts, and then need a lot of thinking time in between.

10. If you were to write a work of historical fiction which period in history would it be based in?
That is a very interesting question. I think it would be really hard for me to write historical fiction, even though I have a background in history... or maybe BECAUSE I have a background in history. I'd be so concerned about getting every single detail right--what wood were the floors made of then? What did people eat for breakfast and how did it vary by social class?--that I'm afraid it would be crippling to the story. But there are so many periods in history that fascinate me. I love Elizabethan England, which played such a big part in my first novel, Shakespeare's Secret.

To find out more about Elise please visit her website.

Diane Z. Shore Book Blog - Day One

Welcome to day one of the This is the feast book blog. To kick off this tour I would like to begin with my review:

This is the feast
Diane Z. Shore
Illustrated by Megan Lloyd
Picture Book
Ages 4 to 7
HarperCollins, 2008, 978-0-06-623794-7
In 1620 a group of men, women, and children left behind the only life they knew to build new lives in America. Their dream was to be able to live in a place where they would not have to fear religious persecution. Their ship, the Mayflower, was tossed by ferocious storms. People were sick and fearful, but their prayers were answered and they reached America.
The people on the Mayflower - the pilgrims as they came to be called - had many troubles ahead of them as they tried to survive in America. Many of their number got sick and died. Food was scarce for many months, but then some Native Americans came to the Pilgrims’ village and they taught the newcomers how to grow food in the new land.
With the help of the Native Americans the Pilgrims were able to bring in a good harvest in the fall, and their future was more secure.
In this attractive picture book Diane Z. Shore tells the familiar story of the first Thanksgiving using beautifully constructed rhymes that flow across the pages. The rhythm of the text is almost musical, and children will soon get caught up in the story of how the Pilgrims survived their first year in the New World. With powerful imagery and an obvious appreciation for the history of her country, Diane Z. Shore tells a compelling tale.

Please visit these blog sites to see what else is happening on this tour today:
the 160acrewoods, A Mom Speaks, All About Children’s Books, Becky’s Book Reviews, Cafe of Dreams, Dolce Bellezza, Homeschool Buzz, KidzBookBuzz.com, Looking Glass Reviews, Maggie Reads, Maw Books Blog, Never Jam Today, Olive Tree, Our Big Earth, Quiverfull Family, Reading is My Superpower, SmallWorld Reads

Blog Book Tour for "Amadi's Snowman" - Day One

For the next three days I am going to be featuring the book Amadi's Snowman, which was written by Katia Novet Saint-Lot

Let's begin with my review of the book:

Amadi’s Snowman
Katia Novet Saint-Lot
Illustrated by Dimitrea Tokunbo
Picture Book
Ages 4 to 8
Tilbury House, 2008, 0-88448-298-7
Amadi is not pleased when his mother tells him that Mrs. Chikodili will be arriving soon to teach him how to read. Amadi is an Igbo man of Nigeria who will be a trader, a “businessman” when he grows up. He does not think that a businessman should have to learn how to read, and so, when the opportunity presents itself, Amadi runs off.
Soon Amadi is in the market, a place that he loves. He eats a mango that he is given, and then he sees his friend Chima sitting on the ground next to a book stall. Chima has a book in his lap and he appears to be reading it. When he looks at the book Amadi sees a picture of a strange “animal with a nose that looked like a carrot.” Chima tells Amadi that the creature in the picture is something called a snowman and that it is made of “frozen rainwater.”
Amadi is surprised that Chima has been learning to read. Why would his friend want to do such a thing? Chima explains that he wants to “know more.” After all, if Chima had not read the book, then he and Amadi would not know about snow.
As they day unfolds Amadi discovers that reading not only allows you to learn new things, but reading might in fact be useful for a businessman.
Often children are very sure that they know what is right. They don’t need to learn math because they are not going to use numbers when they grow up. They don’t need to learn history because history has no relevance to life today. In this case Amadi believes that he does not need to read – until he realizes that reading will allow him to learn about all kinds of fascinating things. Through Amadi’s eyes children who think that reading and books are boring will see that reading allows people to discover all kinds of remarkable things about their world. Written from Amadi’s point of view, this picture book has a powerful message to share with children. No only will they be reminded of the value of reading and books, but they will also see that children around the world are very much the same. The voice that the author creates for Amadi is very convincing and, in its own way, eloquent.

Join me tomorrow for an interview with the author of this meaningful picture book.