New York City and Ground Zero

Beckman, Beth and Maher, Holley. Little Kid, Big City: New York

February 1st 2021 by Quirk Books

Copy provided by the Publisher

Want to raise a world traveler? Look no further than this new series by Quirk books. Starting with New York, we get an overview of the things that make the city unique and interesting. Colorful illustrations take us on a tour of the Big Apple, starting at the Statue of Liberty, grabbing a bagel, and crossing the Brooklyn Bridge. Other highlights include ferries and subways, a variety of food, and descriptions of the many neighborhoods that make up the city. Landmarks, such as The Strand bookstore, Grand Central Station, and the Bronx Zoo give young readers a good idea of the sites available to see in this vast metropolis. The end of the book has an Adventure Index, with fun facts and well as web site links, and a very vague map that folds out. (I don't go anywhere without very detailed maps, and this does not give roads, just the sites, so wasn't quite as useful.) 

The illustration style was such fun that I didn't care about the lack of photographs-- you can always pick up an older Fodor's or Lonely Planet guide at Half Price Books if you want those. This is a great way to encourage children to think outside of their own community and start to investigate other places that they might like to see when they are older. I'm not a fan of NYC, but I definitely want to take a look at the upcoming Little Kid, Big City: London (15 June 2021), since that is my favorite city in the world!

Gratz, Alan. Ground Zero
February 2nd 2021 by Scholastic Press

E ARC provided by Edelweiss Plus

This book delivers the stories of both Brandon, a nine year old in New York City during the 9/11 attacks, and 11-year-old Reshmina, who lives in Afghanistan in the present day. Brandon has to go to work with his father, who works in Windows on the World in the World Trade Center because he got in trouble at school. He likes being with his father, but has made plans to run an errand in the underground mall when he gets a chance. This happens when there is a kitchen fire. Brandon sneaks off, but the elevator in which he is riding stops. The people in the elevator all work together to get out onto one of the floors, but when they do, they find that a plane has flown into the building. Brandon is frantic about his father and tries to go up to the restaurant, only to find he can't get there. With the help of Richard, a man whom he and his father had helped earlier that morning, Brandon tries to get out of the World Trade Center, which is no easy feat. In Reshmina's story, her family has suffered greatly over the years that the Taliban has been struggling for dominance and the US troops are in place trying to help. Many members of her family have been killed, including an older sister, at whose wedding celebratory gun shots were mistaken for attacks and resulted in the wedding party being attacked. Reshmina would like to be a teacher and move to Kabul, so is learning English, but her mother just wants her to get married young. Her grandmother, however, remembers Afghanistan before Taliban control, when women could hold jobs and even wear mini skirts, and consuls Reshmina to try to understand her mother's point of view. When Reshmina finds a wounded US soldier, she has him follow her home to get help, but this puts her family and entire village in grave danger. Both children have to fight against the odds to survive, and in the end, are more connected than we could have imagined. 

Strengths: This was absolutely harrowing. The details of what Brandon and Richard had to do just to get out of the building were vivid without being too graphic, and made me feel like I was right there. The same is true of Reshmina's struggles to try to keep her family safe when her twin brother is determined to join the Taliban and her village is under attack. There is a lot of information about what life was like for Reshmina, which was quite interesting, and the politics of the situation were well balanced. Notes at the back are helpful for young readers who won't have as  much familiarity with the topic. This is probably the best book about 9/11 that I've read.
Weaknesses: It seemed unlikely to me that Brandon would have gotten his father on the phone in the restaurant, or that Richard would have adopted him, but both are hopeful occurrences that ease the really dire air this book has. 
What I really think: I know that this author's Refugee is very popular, given that it covers three very different stories of immigration, and the two characters did meet up in a very clever way, but I rather wished this were two separate books. Both stories are very intense, and given the length of the book, it could easily have been two shorter stories. Since it is not, I will definitely purchase it anyway. 

Girl Sunday

Look at all the girls on the covers. *Weary Sigh* The following will be great for someone, just not for my library, where I haven't been moving much paranormal romance lately. Oddly, a lot of Ellen Conford and Beverly Cleary has been circulating, and girls have been wanting funny, realistic fiction about girls who play sports. Unfortunately, none of these fit that bill.

Shirvington, Jessica. Embrace (Violet Eden Chapters #1)

From Kirkus Reviews, 1/12: " Seventeen-year-old Violet Eden's mother died in childbirth, leaving her to be raised by her detached, workaholic father. If it weren't for her best friend Steph and her trainer (and secret love) Lincoln, Violet would be very much alone. But on her 17th birthday, everything changes. Though finally being kissed by Lincoln is a dream come true, Violet learns that their romantic involvement is forbidden because he and Violet are both Grigori--half angel and half human. They're destined to be eternal partners in the battle against exiled angels on Earth, and romance would make things far too complicated. "

Why This Didn't Work For Me: Just don't need any more paranormal romances.

Agresti, Aimee. Illuminate.

From the Publisher: "Haven Terra is a brainy, shy high school outcast. But everything begins to change when she turns sixteen. Along with her best friend Dante and their quiet and brilliant classmate Lance, she is awarded a prestigious internship in the big city- Chicago-and is sent to live and work at a swanky and stylish hotel under the watchful eyes of a group of gorgeous and shockingly young-looking strangers: powerful and alluring hotel owner Aurelia Brown; her second-in-command, the dashing Lucian Grove; and their stunning but aloof staff of glamazons called The Outfit. As Haven begins falling for Lucian, she discovers that these beautiful people are not quite what they seem."

Why This Didn't Work For Me: Just don't need any more paranormal romances.

Gould, Sasha. Cross My Heart.

From the Publisher:" After her older sister, Beatrice, drowns in 1585 Venice, sixteen-year-old Laura is removed from the convent by the father who forced her to live there in order to for her to marry Beatrice's fiance, a repulsive old merchant named Vincenzo, but Laura has other plans and after she is accepted into a shadowy society of women known as the Segreta, Laura begins to question whether her sister's death was actually a tragic accident."

Why This Didn't Work For Me: Slightly paranormal and an odd historical period. Young Adult fiction is really much more introspective than middle grade fiction.

Coker, Rachel. Interrupted: A Life Beyond Words.

From the Publisher: "If Sam Carroll hadn't shown up, she might have been able to get to her mother in time. Instead, Allie Everly finds herself at a funeral, mourning the loss of her beloved mother. She is dealt another blow when, a few hours later, she is sent from Tennessee to Maine to become the daughter of Miss Beatrice Lovell, a prim woman with a faith Allie cannot accept.Poetry and letters written to her mother become the only things keeping Allie's heart from hardening completely. But then Sam arrives for the summer, and with him comes many confusing emotions, both toward him and the people around her. As World War II looms, Allie will be forced to decide whether hanging on to the past is worth losing her chance to be loved."

Why This Didn't Work For Me: This didn't seem at all historical, and was confusing and wordy in the way that the writing that my students hand me to read is. I finally looked at the back cover and discovered that the writer is 15. Hey, she's written an entire book and had it published and I haven't, but I think that her writing will improve with age and experience.

Child, Lauren. Ruby Redfort: Look into My Eyes.

From the Publisher: Crack open this new series starring Ruby Redfort - Clarice Bean's favorite all-action heroine - and you will literally be on the edge of your wits. Now in her own starring role, Ruby, a genius code-cracker and daring detective, along with her sidekick butler, Hitch, work for a secret crime-busting organization called Spectrum. Ruby gets into lots of scrapes with evil villains, but she's always ice-cool in a crisis.

Why It Didn't Work for Me: This reads like a Harriet the Spy for the new millenium. Only problem? No one is reading Harriet the Spy. I was also confused as to when this took place-- there was a mention about a house being built a few years previously in 1961, but it seemed very modern.

Out in Left Field

Lemna, Don. Out in Left Field.

Publication 1 April 2012, Holiday House.

In this sequel to When the Sergeant Came Marching Home (which I haven't read; it didn't affect my comprehension) set in 1947, Donald flubs catching a pop fly at the before school baseball game with a rival town, and feels that he let down the entire town. When school starts, he tries one scheme after another to redeem himself-- he saves up for an archery set, learns to drive a truck, takes up hockey, and generally tries to find something to set himself apart while enduring the taunts of his classmates. Life has its ups and downs-- the family's crops do well enough to get electricity in their house, relatives come and go, and school has its crises and triumphs. In the end, Donald realizes that one bad baseball game won't ruin his life.

Strengths: This reminded me very strongly of Homer Price, with small but telling illustrations at the beginning of the chapter, and the same leisurely descriptions of life as the year rolls on. I strongly suspect (but haven't been able to find out for sure) that Mr. Lemna grew up during this historical period reading Homer Price, and these books are his very fond memoirs. Could be wrong. I feel like I should give the book to my dad to read.

Weaknesses: There was not as much baseball as the cover would indicate, and this lacked a unique hook.

The Moon Over High Street

Babbitt, Natalie. The Moon Over High Street.
In the 1960s, orphaned Joe is living with his grandmother. She is determined to keep him in contact with the rest of his meager family, so intends to go visit "Aunt" Myra for the summer, but falls and breaks her hip. Joe goes alone, and finds himself quite at home in Midville. He likes Myra and is comfortable with her, and especially likes the girl next door, Beatrice, with whom he explores the town. After Beatrice's dog runs off, they run into the rich Mr. Boulderwall at his home on High Street, and he is so impressed with Joe that he eventually decides to adopt him so that he can leave his business (which makes the swervit, a device indispensable on cars) to someone who will run it the way he does. Joe, however, would rather be a scientist studying the moon and not a businessman. Should he choose his pleasant but challenging life with his family, or the life of private schools and financial security? That is the choice... the moon, or High Street.
Strengths: This is a pleasant tale about family and opportunity by a well-regarded author. It is also set in Ohio.
Weaknesses: Very little happens in this book, and I fear that middle school students will not connect with Joe, since many of them would probably go for the easy life offered by Mr. Boulderwall. This struck me as a book teachers would like more than students.

Quilting

Latham, Irene. Leaving Gee’s Bend.
Gee’s Bend, Alabama was an impoverished place in 1932. When Ludelphia’s mother has a premature baby and becomes ill with pneumonia afterwards, there is not much to be done, especially since the family refuses the help of a neighbor, Etta Mae, because they fear she is a witch. Ludelphia decides that she will go to Camden, forty miles away, and get a doctor for her mother. She sets off, runs into trouble with the ferry, and is found in the barn of Mrs. Cobb, whose husband ran a general store and helped many of the black citizens. Unfortunately, Mrs. Cobb is a bit undone by her husband’s recent death, and has a grudge against the people of Gee’s Bend. When she finds out that Ludelphia’s family owed her husband money, she vows to go to their house and take everything of value. Ludelphia manages to get to the local doctor, and his wife is somewhat helpful, but tells her that the only cure for her mother is rest and good food. Mrs. Cobb’s raid on Gee’s Bend is awful, but luckily Ludelphia had written to the Red Cross, and supplies soon come to help out the community.
Strengths: Ludelphia is a spunky character who takes her fate into her own hands and does her best to help everyone around her despite her own disability. This is a vivid portrait of a community under stress.
Weaknesses: I love quilting, but didn’t feel that Ludelphia’s sewing fit in with the story.

Nolen, Jerdine. Eliza’s Freedom Road.
Eliza’s master in 1854 has some money problems, and ends up selling Eliza’s mother. When the mistress becomes very sick, she goes from Virginia to Maryland to stay with her sister, and takes several slaves, including Eliza, along. Eliza knows how to read, and tells a lot of stories using the quilt that her mother left her, but dreams of her freedom. When a group of slaves at the Maryland estate find out about Harriet Tubman’s plans to go north to freedom on the Underground Railroad, Eliza also makes her own plans. When the mistress dies, she runs away and manages to make her way to Canada.
Strengths: This would be a good book to read with an elementary class covering this topic. The inclusion of various stories of importance in African American slave culture, as well as explanations of them in the back of the book, are a nice touch.
Weaknesses: Other than the stories, this is not that much different from similar stories that I have read.

Mysteries!

Bond, Victoria and T.R.Simon. Zora and Me.
Zora and her friends Carrie and Teddy get into all sorts of trouble in their small Florida community in the early 1900s. Zora has a flair for the dramatic and is always making up one story or another. After a local man is mauled to death trying to wrestle an alligator, Zora comes up with two stories-- one about Mr. Pendir having the snout of an alligator, and one about what might have happened to a man found murdered beside the railroad tracks. Her stories make it hard for anyone to believe her, but Zora is convinced that she knows what happened to the murdered man, and tries to make her parents believe her to make sure that justice is done.
Strengths: Many students would not know who Zora Neale Hurston is, and this is a good introduction to the author combined with a mystery.
Weaknesses: This is a small book with a somewhat cartoonish cover, but the contents are not necessarily for very young children. There is a lot of heavy duty coverage of prejudice and discrimination, as well as romantic intrigue. The language is also very rich, especially when Zora is spinning her yarns.

Margolis, Leslie. Vanishing Acts. (Maggie Brooklyn #2)

Maggie is still walking dogs, and this time the problem is that someone is hiding in the park and throwing eggs at the dogs. Not only that, but when Maggie spends some time being an extra in a film, she meets the star, Seth Ryan. He then goes missing, and Maggie thinks she can find out what happened to him. Maggie's friends and neighbors play a big part in this plot, as does the neighborhood itself. Maggie learns that stardom isn't all it seems to be, and in the end, solves both mysteries.

Strengths: While light on plot, the characters in this series are so fun that the book is very engaging. The small size and appealing cover art by Tuesday Mourning (as well as the inclusion of dogs!) will make this a bit hit with girls in 3rd through 7th grade.

Weaknesses: Again, light on plot, and somewhat transparent mystery.

Thanks for Erik over at This Kid Reviews Books for awarding me a Liebster Award. If you want book reviews from an actual middle grade boy, head over and check out his great blog. Since I posted the answers to all the questions back in the fall, I won't bore people again-- instead, spend your time visiting Erik!

Guy Friday-- Football

Barber, Ronde and Tiki. Goal Line.
Primarily written, as pointed out by Mr. Winchell in comments, by Paul Mantell, who should be allowed to write books under his own name!

Twins Ronde and Tiki are starting 8th grade and are very excited to start playing football again, but Ronde is disconcerted to find that his identical twin is 3 inches and many pounds heavier than he is. Suddenly, the team is not rooting for “the Barber twins” but just Tiki. Tiki also writes an essay for a contest and wins, forcing him to read the essay at an assembly. He is approached by the school newspaper to write an advice column, and keeping up with football, class work, and the column prove stressful. Another set of twin players from Haiti help the team, but make the Barbers worry about their worth. The Eagles have a chance to have an undefeated season with the return of Coach Wheeler, and might have a chance to go to the playoffs again, but not unless Tiki can get his priorites in order.
Strengths: I wish there were more sports series for boys. These are the perfect length and have just the right mix of sports and school problems. They do need a little more romance, though!Weaknesses: For some reason, even though these are based off the Barbers’ real lives, there’s always something I can’t quite believe. In this one, it is Tiki having to read his essay at assembly, and the sudden popularity of his advice column. Are there any middle school that even have school newspapers?


Tunis, John. All American. (Nota Bene: Published in 1942)
E ARC from Netgalley.com from Open Road Media.

Ronald is a student at a the private Academy and a star on the football team when an attempt to stop Meyer Goldman from making a touchdown results in Goldman being in the hospital with severe back injuries. Wracked by guilt, and increasingly irritated by the attitudes of the students and staff at Academy, Ronald transfers to Abraham Lincoln High School. The transition is tough-- people call him a “pretty boy” and cause him problems until he gets in a fist fight with the nasty Stacey and ends up in the hospital himself. After this, everyone is nicer and Ron plays on both the baseball and football teams. When the football team is invited to an intersectional game in the South, one of the players will not be able to go because the school does not allow Negroes to play. Ronald wants the team to refuse to go, and he has the support of his fellow players, but local businesmen who will lose money if the team does not go put pressure on his father and the fathers of the other players to encourage the team to play. In the end, the team does not bow to this pressure, but end up being uninvited in the South but invited to an intersectional in the North, so everyone is happy.
Strengths: Tunis (1889-1975) always does excellent sports descriptions, and we get football and baseball in this one. The cover alone makes the book worth buying. This is also a good historical description of the plight of African-Americans during this time period. It was fun to read about the fathers talking about the “big game of ‘16” and about Ronald’s lunch: scrambled eggs, potato chips, a piece of pie, bottle of milk and bread and butter, all for 27 cents. Probably considered well balanced, too!
Weaknesses: It was jarring to read “Negro” again and again, and I worry that this will offend readers who don’t know the historical background. Also, since this is from Open Road Media, it is only available as an E Book.

It's funny how small print is an indicator that a book is meant for older audiences. I looked at Caludia Gray's new Fateful, and just couldn't get into it because the print was too small AND it was about werewolves on the Titanic. Lots of people out there need two copies for their libraries, but I don't have the audience for this book this year. Will get this author's Balthazar, however, which comes out March 6. Another one was Hautman's What Boys Really Want, which is usually the kind of realistic fiction I adore, but again, small font (along with more mature subject matter) doomed it.

Another one I really wanted to like was House and Vaswani's Same Sun Here. From the Publisher: " A twelve-year-old Indian immigrant in New York City and a Kentucky coal miner's son become pen pals, and eventually best friends, through a series of revealing letters exploring such topics as environmental activism, immigration, and racism." Again, libraries where Naylor's Faith, Hope and Ivy June is popular will want to have this, but the letter format seemed anachronistic, and I see this being a hard sell at my library. Marjoleine Book Blog and Middle Grade Reads both adored this.

For the past week, I've been longing to reread books. Cleary's Fifteen. Edwards' Mandy. Most recently, Paige Dixon's May I Cross Your Golden River (1975). Someone mentioned it, I remember reading it, and there is not a copy to be found anywhere. This made me think about all of the books I have in my library that are rather aged-- the copy of Mandy (1974) that I have is a first edition. How long will it last? When will all of my copies of Stormbreaker fall to pieces and be irreplacable? I need to teach for 25 more years, so I will not be able to recommend the same books forever.

Second morning this week that gently sobbing seems required.

Missing Parents

Townsend, Wendy. The Sundown Rule.
Nominated for the Cybils by Nancy Hogan.

Louise and her father live an idyllic life in a small house in the woods, where Louise is free to roam and commune with animals. The only rule-- anything she has caught needs to be released at sundown. When her father gets a job in Brazil, she is sent to live with an aunt and uncle. She misses her cat, who has been left at the house, but soon makes a friend and manages to find animals to tend even in the suburbs. After the death of her cat, her father's attack of appendicitis, and the death of a crow at the hands of a friend's father, she relies on the help of her family and friends (as well as a new pet tortoise) to get over all the bad things life has thrown her way.
Strengths: Lots of good details about working with wild animals-- Louise even stitches up a bird's leg!
Weaknesses: A very, very sad book.

Steinhoefel, Andreas. The Spaghetti Detectives.
Nominated for the Cybils by Jen Robinson.

Rico lives with his mother, who works in a nightclub. She refers to Rico as her "proddity" because he has trouble with math and paying attention, but is good at other things. He fancies himself a detective, and frequently pays visits on the other residents of his apartment building. He befriends Oscar, who loves music and wears a helmet to protect his special brain. Rico's uncle is dying of cancer, so his mother leaves him alone to go visit him. During this time, Oscar goes missing, and Rico suspects the Aldi kidnapper (aka Mr. 2000, because he demands only 2000 Euros for the children he kidnaps, under $3000), Rico checks out everyone in the area to try to save his friend.
Strengths: Fairly interesting mystery, and the German setting (and mention of Aldi!) is new.
Weaknesses: This looks like a lighthearted book for younger readers, but is filled with mature content-- the mother's appearance, the fact that she leaves him alone, the Aldi kidnapper threatening to return body parts of his victims to their families-- maybe this is something that European children revel in, but this is definitely not for elementary students.

Acampora, Paul. Rachel Spinelli Punched Me in the Face.
Nominated for the Cybils by nanmarino.

Zachary and his father live in a rusted out trailed in Colorado, but after Zachary's mother runs off to work on a cruise ship, the two decide to move to Connecticut, where Zachary's father gets a job as the local policeman. The Spinellis are new neighbors, and Zachary soon takes to Rachel, even though she is harboring a lot of anger about her developmentally delayed brother Teddy and has a habit of getting into fights. There are many interesting people in town-- Rachel's family runs a diner in town (where her mother's ashes are kept in a coffee pot), there is a local ice cream parlor run by a Polish couple, and the mayor and teachers are friendly and accessible. Teddy, Rachel and Zachary spend the summer hanging out together and getting into various scrapes. When Zachary's mother wants to come back to visit, Zachary is enjoying his life so much that he doesn't want to see her.
Strengths: Nice humorous book with a romantic interest. Small size and funny cover will encourage boys to pick this up.
Weaknesses: There is great character development, but the plot suffers because of it. At first, the book is one introduction to a new character after another.

Avi. City of Orphans.
Nominated for the Cybils only in my mind!

In 1893 New York, Maks works as a newsboy. When the Plug Ugly gang threatens him, he is saved by the plucky but homeless Willa, whom he takes back to meet his hard working Danish immigrant family. Unfortunately, this is the night that they find his sister Emma has been arrested for stealing a watch from a guest at the Waldorf Hotel, where she works as a maid. Maks sister Agnes is studying but ill with tuberculosis and Agnes and the father are going to lose their jobs when the shoe factory closes down, so Maks and Willa try to find a detective to help them prove Emma's innocence. They find Donck, a former Pinkerton detective also dying of "consumption" who helps Maks get a job at the Waldorf so he can find the watch and the real thief. Willa helps the family out by taking over Maks news job, but the gang continues to threaten the two. Some odd coincidences help the two figure out the real culprit, and the family's fortunes improve.
Strengths: A fast-paced writing style and compelling mystery, combined with a few fun illustrations, make this one historical novel that students won't mind picking up.
Weaknesses: The persistence of teachers to overuse this author's older titles make him a hard sell. This is too bad, since some of his books are really great.

Wallace, Rich. War and Watermelon.
Nominated for the Cybils by Beth Mitcham (pending approval- thank you!)

In the summer of 1969, Brody is dreading junior high while looking forward to playing on the football team. His older brother, Ryan, has just graduated from high school and is stocking shelves at a grocery store, which makes Brody worry that Ryan may soon be drafted. The brothers attend Woodstock, follow the popular rock songs and the Mets baseball season, and try not to have too many generation gap fights with their (shocking!) mother AND father. Brody and his friends also spend a fair amount of time hanging out at the swim club checking out the girls, and the dance there is a highlight of the season. As the summer draws to a close and junior high looms large, Brody realizes that the summer, while busy and filled with some difficult moments, has helped him prepare for his future.
Strengths: Rich Wallace writes fantastic sports fiction, and this book makes it clear that his writing is so good because he remembers clearly what it is like to be a junior high school student. The historical details are spot on in this one, but set against a more interesting story line than a lot of other 1960s books. Boys will pick this one up for the baseball, football and girls and not even care that it is "historical". If books like this won awards, more children would read them! Has a sports book ever won a major award?
Weaknesses: There's almost too much going on, and I wish that Brody had not eaten the chicken salad that had been out all day and missed the moon landing! I would have loved to read Wallace's description of that, although maybe he, too, had some bad chicken salad that day! I barely remember being allowed to stay up to watch that; I had just turned 4!