MotherReader

Uprising, by Margaret Peterson Haddix, made me feel a little bad for supporting Barack over Hillary. After reading about the fight that women put up to have any say in their lives, it seemed so amazing that we’d had a woman as a possible presidential candidate. Not that I didn’t understand that before, but this book put me right in the time when women’s choices were stunningly limited.

Uprising is about more than the Triangle fire of 1911 — starting further back with the shirtwaist workers’ strike and the stories of three women. Bella is a new immigrant from Italy who goes to work in the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory and struggles in this strange, new country. Yetta is a Russian Jew who has her sister to help her and to inspire her to fight for her rights as a worker. Jane is a society girl who crosses paths with the other girls during the strike and begins to question her own freedom as a woman in a man’s world.

The novel is elegantly done where the history is seamlessly woven into the story. The difficult lives of the girls tug at the emotions and the well-researched facts educate and illuminate. With a fire as the dramatic endpoint, you know this book can’t end happily for everyone. Kudos to Haddix for making it unpredictable along the way, beginning with the identity of the woman who starts the story as a reflection on the past. A truly unforgettable book.

Sweethearts, by Sara Zarr, isn’t an easy book. Like her magnificent Story of a Girl, it’s a tough story about coming to terms with one’s past. When. Bad. Things. Happen. The writing is so wonderful and the relationships so poignant, I got lost in this heartbreaking story.

Jennifer and Cameron are social outcasts and best friends as children. But one day he moves away without a word of goodbye. Jennifer is devastated and somehow buries that part of her forever. She loses weight, changes schools, and keeps order in her life. Her mother’s circumstances change too, placing Jennifer — now Jenna — in a nice home with two caring parents. But inside she’s still that scared and hurt kid. When Cameron comes back, those memories come with him. And some are so terrible she can barely face them down.

Sara Zarr builds up the tension of the past by using excerpts of memory from that time. The characters are imperfect and well-developed. No cookie-cutter stereotypes for this writer. The emotional tenor is complicated and realistic. Sweethearts was universally loved around the kids’ lit blogs — and at Amazon with all five-star reviews — and I’m glad that I got the chance to experience it myself. I just wish that I had better mental resources right now to review it properly. But I’m coming to the end of my 48 hours, and I’m getting pretty worn out. (Sorry, Sara, you deserve better.)

When her father goes to war, Ann Fay becomes the “man of the house,” pulling on blue overalls and taking care of all the farming that keeps the family going. At the same time, a polio epidemic hits the area, striking within her family and leaving Ann Fay with even more responsibilities.

Blue, by Joyce Moyer Hostetter, is a historical novel with an emphasis on the history. I didn’t lose myself in the story so much as note the number of references to the times. World War II, the polio epidemic, Franklin Roosevelt, and Jim Crow laws are all included. There are also neighborly friendships, a close-knit family, southern poverty, and an untimely death.

I actually don’t mean to be dismissive about the book, which was interesting and did a good job of placing the reader in another era entirely. I felt horrified at the predicament of a thirteen-year-old being left home alone to take care of her sisters for months while her dad was at war and her mom at the hospital. I knew someone in that family was getting polio, and it was very sad when it did happen. I couldn’t help but root for Ann Fay and her family to make it through the tough times. Overall, though, I felt less connected to the characters than educated about the time period.

I almost put this book back when I read the phrase “cast of quirky characters” in the jacketflap. I’m generally not a fan of books set in small towns where everyone is “quirky.” But in the interest of keeping alive my streak of one-word-title book reviewing, I gave Peeled, by Joan Bauer, a chance.

While the town newspaper seems obsessed with the idea of ghosts at the old Ludlow house, Hildy Biddle is determined to discover the truth. As the town gets caught up in the oddly fearful reporting, Hildy works on the school paper to report the facts. She is assisted by a former newspaper editor newly come to town who helps the teens with real reporting.

The first few chapters of the book were hard going for me. There was a feisty heroine and small-town idolization, and some odd character traits. Oh no. As I plugged on, I began to appreciate the story and the mystery. And the characters weren’t all so quirky after all.

I liked how journalism tips were folded into the story. Not only was it a mini-lesson on being a reporter, it served as a model for identifying good reporting. For instance, when the former newspaper editor (and new adult advisor) is taking apart a flowery article in the school paper, he tells the students, “Less is more. Less description, more facts. Only describe if it means something. The killer has one arm. The mayor was seven feet tall. The hero was deaf. For now, let’s not care if the sky was blue. If it’s plaid, mention it.”

There was a nice vein of humor throughout the book. A group of older people who stake out the Ludlow house to see if anything is really going there, calling themselves Elders Against Evil. An occasional insert of funny mistakes from the school paper. A psychic who offers advice on love and family, but also pet compatibility selection. But in the end, readers will remember the greater message of fighting against manipulation and for the truth.

My continuing schedule:

2:30 p.m. – 5:30 p.m.	Read — Bloom.
5:30 p.m. – 6:00 p.m.	Break to preserve my sanity.
6:00 p.m. – 7:30 p.m.	Read — Blue.
7:30 p.m. – 8:30 p.m.	Dinner and emails.
8:30 p.m. – 11:30 p.m.	Read — Peeled.
11:30 p.m. – 2:30 a.m.	Sleep.
2:30 a.m. – 4:30 a.m.	Unexpectedly wake up and can’t get back to sleep. Usual option — reading — seems repugnant. Spend the newly found time catching up on email.
4:30 a.m. – 8:00 a.m.	Sleep.
8:00 a.m. – 8:30 a.m.	Regret decision to spend two hours online in the early morning. Blog.

Other thoughts: I found myself wanting to clean the house rather than read. If only I could bottle the feeling and use it in the future. I decided to stick with the one-word title books purely on a whim. It’s amazing that I have so many checked out from the library and waiting on my review shelf.

Oh, today is my birthday. Not yet forty.

Here at home if I want to clear the room, I can say, “Hey, let’s talk about our feelings.” My kids run away, usually with a trailing cry of, “Nooooooo!” Well, Bloom, by Elizabeth Scott, is all about feelings. It’s one of the most feelings books I’ve ever read. Now, I am not like my kids, so this did not alarm me, but it is worth mentioning.

Lauren is an average girl dating the most popular boy, but she finds she is attracted to another boy instead. The popular boy is perfect, but boring. Should she be with someone safe, or someone who makes her heart race?

A simple conflict, but not written simply at all. The characters are all well-developed with a particular depth often lacking in teen first love stories. Lauren isn’t a perfect person, and in fact, behaves pretty badly at times. Her friend Katie seems shallow, but is balancing a difficult home life and is perhaps craving more from her friendship with Lauren. Lauren’s popular boyfriend Dave is a good guy, but a little dull. Evan’s exciting, but comes with baggage. Lauren’s dad ignores her, but at the same time does seem to care about his daughter.

There’s some light humor through the book, but mostly the sense of drama takes center stage. But while other books pump up the volume with drug abuse or date rape or mental illness, Bloom shows off the everyday drama of being a flawed teenage girl in an imperfect situation. I looked for this book after Bookshelves of Doom’s glowing review, and I have to agree with her assessment of the book as “smart and layered and real.” I also have Elizabeth Scott’s Perfect You at home, but since it appears I’m only reviewing books with one-word titles this weekend, it will have to wait.

(Side note: There is a thunderstorm coming and we’d better not lose power tonight.)

I probably should have started this book by reading on the back jacketflap that the author, Julie Bertagna, lives in Scotland. It would have saved me a lot of energy in figuring out where in the world this story was taking place.

Exodus is a science fiction story, and as such would not usually be on my radar screen, but it looked interesting with the whole global warming theme — and Sheila liked it, so I gave it a go. It was out of my comfort zone — especially the whole cyberspace aspect — but I enjoyed it.

It’s the year 2100 and the melting ice caps have raised the ocean level so that all but the highest areas of land are underwater. No one on the island of Wing even knows where other civilizations may be, or if there are any. From her solitary ventures into the ghosts of the Internet, a teenage girl, Mara, learns about New World cities built high above the water. As the ocean finally creeps up on their island sanctuary, her people take to the sea to seek out a new life, only to find themselves shut out as useless refugees. Only Mara’s continued determination and vision can offer any hope as she moves through hidden worlds and a high-tech society.

I have to say, Exodus isn’t easy to put into a quick review, because so much keeps happening in the book. Where to stop explaining before you give too much away? There’s definitely a strong climate crisis message in the book, along with a brutal look at refugees. The book was darker than I expected, and I never really got the whole Weave thing, where the remains of the Internet exist with bits of information and monsters and cyber-adventures. Over my head. Overall though, I liked the book. It certainly kept my interest, and I had no idea what was going to happen next.

Head to Wands and Worlds for a much better and more detailed review. I’ve got to get back to reading.

I started off my 48 hours at the pool, and chose my first book of the challenge mainly because it was not a library book. I don’t want wet pool hands near library books. Well, not new hardbacks anyway.

Shabanu: Daughter of the Wind, by Suzanne Fisher Staples, has been on my to-read list for a while. There’s always been something more pressing that moves it to the bottom of the pile. Now that I’ve read it, I’ll look for the sequel — or is it sequels? — but I’m not running out today to find it (them?).

Shabanu is the daughter of nomads in Pakistan. She loves helping with the camels her family raises, but worries about her coming responsibilities as a woman. As a child, she still has some freedoms, even if she must obey her family unconditionally. As a woman, she becomes a wife and must be prepared to sacrifice her own needs to those of her husband. As her sister Phulan’s wedding draws near, disaster strikes and shakes up everything Shabanu has come to accept about her own fate.

Even though the back cover focuses on the major plot point in the story, the book is mostly about bringing the reader into the world of the Cholistanis, with their customs, beliefs, and concerns. In fact, I found the hints of upcoming disaster to be pretty distracting, as I was looking for it at every page turn, and the crisis doesn’t in fact come until more than halfway through the book. Overall, it was an interesting book and I enjoyed the cultural education. It didn’t “wow” me.

My schedule so far:

5:00 p.m. – 7:00 p.m.	Read — Shabanu.
7:00 p.m. – 7:30 p.m.	Eat dinner.
7:30 p.m. – 9:30 p.m.	Read — Exodus.
9:30 p.m. – 10:00 p.m.	Play with the hamster.
10:00 p.m. – 1:00 a.m.	Read — Exodus and Uprising.
1:00 a.m. – 7:00 a.m.	Sleep.
7:00 a.m. – 9:00 a.m.	Set up yard sale for near-teenager’s charity project, Camel Bookmobile.
9:00 a.m. – 11:30 a.m.	Read — Uprising. So hard to concentrate with yard sale going on outside. What was I thinking?
11:30 a.m. – 12:00 noon	Break down yard sale because it’s too freakin’ hot to wait even thirty more minutes.
12:00 noon – 12:30 p.m.	Read — finish last section of book so annoyingly interrupted.
12:30 p.m. – 1:30 p.m.	Break to eat, shower, and sort book donations for Camel Bookmobile.
1:30 p.m. – (?) p.m.	Blog.

Thoughts so far: While having a yard sale in the middle of a book readathon may seem like a good idea, it’s really not. Even if two almost-teens are manning it for their own project, it’s a hard thing to ignore. Also, I’m wondering if I have enough one-word titles to make this a theme. The last three books weren’t intentionally chosen that way, but now I’m kinda liking the idea.

You’ve read the rules. You’ve cleared your schedule — as much as possible. You’ve stacked your books and stocked your power snacks. Let’s rock and read.

When you start your reading, leave a comment on this post with your blog name. If it’s unclear from your profile, also leave the address. Don’t make me search for you.

On Monday morning, I’ll have a finish line post where you can leave the link to your final summary page.

READY, STEADY, GO!

I had wanted to do a post of the prizes on Wednesday or Thursday, but storms hit the DC area and left us without power until 3:00 this morning. And then, of course, it has been complete chaos anyway between school stuff and packing my belongings at my old branch to start at my new branch on Monday. So now, at 7:00 a.m. on Friday, I don’t know where my list of prizes is, like, this exact minute. I’ll be back later to let you know what you’re playing for. Promise.

Sorry for being incommunicado, especially since the big contest starts... tomorrow. But we’ve been without power since those storms came through DC yesterday. If we don’t get power back tonight, I’ll figure out some way to post a “go” message tomorrow morning (I’m typing this on Bill’s iPhone).

Meanwhile, here’s hoping the lights come back soon...

Hold on, people, it’s a sale at Threadless! What does this have to do with MotherReader and/or books? Well, MotherReader ordered five shirts for herself and the family (and is enjoying talking in the third person, thank you very much). As for books, there’s this shirt for illustrators or this shirt for poets... and of course this shirt for classics buffs was donated as a prize for the 48 Hour Book Challenge. Personally, I’m going with the word find shirt and kicking myself for not thinking of the concept myself. But I’ll enjoy wearing it.

With one email, you too can be a prize contributor to the 48 Hour Book Challenge just like Threadless. No lie. Send me an offer at motherreader AT gmail DOT com — you know, with the right symbol replacements.

Wow, the 48 Hour Book Challenge really crept up on me. It’s like, this weekend! Here are the guidelines again, with a few minor changes — mostly an allowance for a few graphic novels in your total count. If you haven’t done so already, sign up at the original post.

1. The set weekend is June 6–8, 2008. Read and blog for any 48-hour period within the Friday-to-Monday-morning window. Start no sooner than 7:00 a.m. on Friday the sixth and end no later than 7:00 a.m. Monday. So, go from 7:00 p.m. Friday to 7:00 p.m. on Sunday... or maybe 7:00 a.m. Saturday to 7:00 a.m. Monday works better for you. But the 48 hours do need to be in a row. That said, don't sweat it if you need to have a big gap in the middle to go to a recital, swim team, or work. You just can't stop the clock.


2. The books should be about fifth-grade level and up. Adult books are fine, especially if any adult book bloggers want to play. If you are generally a picture book blogger, consider this a good time to get caught up on all those wonderful books you’ve been hearing about. In the past I’ve not allowed graphic novels in the interest of making sure that the number of books and page counts mean the same thing to everyone. However, if you’re going for the gold as it were, you can mix in up to three.


3. It’s your call as to how much you want to put into it. If you want to skip sleep and showers to do this, go for it. If you want to be a bit more laid back, fine. But you have to put something into it or it’s not a challenge.


4. The length of the reviews are not an issue. You can write a sentence, paragraph, or a full-length review. The time spend reviewing counts in your total time.


5. For promotion/solidarity purposes, start the challenge with a specific entry on that day. Write a final summary that clearly includes the number of books read, the approximate hours you spent reading/reviewing, and any other comments you want to make on the experience. It needs to be posted no later than noon on Monday, June 9th.


6. Sign up in the comments at the original post. You’re welcome to post the challenge on your site. On Friday, June 6, I’ll have a starting-line post where you can sign in to say you’re officially starting the challenge.

I’m still looking for donations for prizes for most books read, most hours spent, and most pages read (if it isn’t the same winner as most books read). Last year I also picked out some “door prizes” randomly from the participants. So far I’ve got some signed books, t-shirts from Threadless, blank journals, jewelry, gift cards, and more. If an illustrator would like to contribute an original sketch or picture, I’d be in heaven. If you’d like to contribute to the prizes, shoot me an email at motherreader AT gmail DOT com.

When a young Chinese princess is sent from her father’s kingdom to marry a king in a faraway land, she brings along the secret most treasured by her people. Red Butterfly: How a Princess Smuggled the Secret of Silk Out of China, by Deborah Noyes, brings the story to life with spare free verse, retold in the style of T’ang Dynasty poetry.

In my father’s kingdom
there are many splendors.
Most valued of all is silk.
Faraway rulers wish for China’s
wealth and call it
woven wind.

Silk, my red butterfly wings flapping,
is our people’s solemn secret,
thousands of moons old,
spun by a little worm that feeds
on the mulberry leaves
in Father’s gardens.
While I walk,
it whispers,
whispers.

The text is lovely, if perhaps sometimes obscure for younger readers. The illustrations by Sophie Blackall are breathtaking, capturing a traditional Asian style and fusing it with an original interpretation. Months ago, the stunning cover of this book caught my eye, and the pages within did not disappoint. Simply a lovely book in art and word. It could be paired with The Silk Princess for a fuller story of one of China’s true gifts to the world.

Poetry Friday is hosted by Wild Rose Reader. Head over and see what else is in store for you there.

At our screening last night we were able to show “All Roads Lead Away” in high definition — which looked awesome — and get lots of compliments from fellow filmmakers. Unfortunately, we did not take home any additional awards. While I am immensely proud of our film, I’ve learned not to be surprised by the judging. Sometimes a quirkier, but less sophisticated film wins. Sometimes it’s about “wow factor” — like if you have a team filming in Moscow while a crew films in DC. Impressive. Sometimes good acting seems particularly enhanced by the inclusion of many, many f-bombs.

Most importantly to us, Bill was excited about how many other directors and teams wanted to talk about our film, our story, and our process. It’s all good. We’ll continue to submit the movie to other competitions and make plans for the next film. I’ll bet that Bill will be putting up the winners with the links later at the Tohubohu blog if you want to see what won. Thanks to everyone for their support.

It’s still Thursday. Late, yes, but still Thursday.

Minji’s Salon, by Eun-hee Choung
This book comes to Kane/Miller publishing from South Korea, but it could just as easily be set in any of the bustling Korean neighborhoods popping up in America. While her mother is getting her hair colored and styled, Minji follows suit with her own customer — a black dog — and in her own way. The child’s desire to do grown-up things is universal, and is captured well in this simply worded picture book. The illustrations are engaging, especially when capturing the expressions of Minji and her mom. Enjoyable, lovely book.

If Not for the Calico Cat, written by Mary Blount Christian, illustrated by Sebastià Serra
A ship’s crew believes that a calico cat will bring them good luck on their sea journey. They load the silks, rice, tea, fans, vases, jade... and of course, a calico cat from the pier. But they may have picked the wrong cat. This fluffy pet just wants to find a nice place to rest, even if it means inadvertently causing chaos. There was a moment toward the conclusion of the book when I felt that it was going kind of dark, but all was okay in the end. At least for the cat. An interesting book on sea journeys and kitties with a little old Japanese flair thrown in for good measure.

The Silk Princess, by Charles Santore
The Chinese legend of the discovery of silk is expanded in this picture book. A child sees a silkworm cocoon fall in hot tea and begin to unwind. She takes one end and walks away from her mother to see how far it stretches. She walks and walks and soon gets worn out and lies down. She continues her adventure, running away from a dragon and then meeting an old man who teaches her the way to use the silk. She takes the story — or dream — back to her mother and silk is introduced in China. The illustrations are beautiful and very detailed. There’s a lot of text, so a better story for older preschool or early school-age kids.

I’ve really blown this whole Asian Pacific Heritage Month thing. I started out well at work at least, updating a bibliography of newer kids’ books and setting up a display to highlight those titles. But on this blog here, bupkus. Not that there wasn’t great inspiration at Fusion Stories from some fellow bloggers. Not that I wasn’t reminded of Fusion Stories from Biblio File. Oh well. I’ll give it the last week of May, starting with a repeat of a post I did in February.

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In Grace Lin’s book, The Year of the Rat, Pacy is celebrating Chinese New Year with her family and cousins and learning to expect a year of great changes. Unfortunately for Pacy, one of these changes will involve the loss of her best friend when Melody moves away. Pacy is distraught, and sees the new Chinese family that takes over Melody’s house as the enemy. It doesn’t help when the new boy, Dun-Wei, is instantly linked to her at school as the only other Asian kid there. She doesn’t want to like him and resents being thought of as friends just because they are both Chinese. Pacy also finds it hard to fall back into sync with her old friends, now that Melody is gone. How will she make it through this year of changes?

The Year of the Rat is as wonderful as Lin’s first book in this series, The Year of the Dog. The reader can identify with the childhood crisis of a best friend moving and can root for Pacy and Melody to keep up their friendship long distance. Lin weaves in elements of Taiwanese-American culture, including Pacy’s questions of identity as Chinese, Taiwanese, or American. For kids who want to learn more about customs — maybe after coming off a school-sponsored, Chinese New Year extravaganza — this book will take them far while being a pleasant journey all the way.

The Best of the 48 Hour Film Project has been announced, and our movie, “All Roads Lead Away,” is among the finalists. We’ve known for a few days because they wanted to get the films in high definition (assuming they were shot that way). That means that we know — shhhh! — that we were actually among the top fourteen films selected.

Our movie will screen in the second group at the AFI Silver Theatre in Silver Spring. Tickets are available now, and will sell out. But if you’re nowhere near the DC area and are curious about the films in competition, Bill has found the films that are now viewable online. Watching even a few offers a real education about how hard it is to write, film, edit, and score a movie in two days. Check the list of finalists — with links to the films — at the Tohubohu Productions news blog. And if you haven’t watched “All Roads Lead Away” yet, written by Young Adult author Barry Lyga, well what are you waiting for? Go.

A Jeff Foxworthy poetry book? To the BACAmobile!!!

So Jeff Foxworthy wrote kid poetry. I don’t mean that he wrote poetry for kids — I mean that he wrote poetry like a kid. If you saw it on your child’s elementary school homework, you’d be mildly amused. But from an adult? Oh, not good. And there is no way on God’s green earth that the jacketflap should read, “In this hilarious collection of poems...” Folks, there’s nothing hilarious to see here. Move along.

Dirt on My Shirt is a perfect example of a book that would have never, ever been published if not for the celebrity of the author. I find it particularly sad that it’s a book of poems — and I use that term loosely here — because parents don’t buy a lot of poetry books for their kids. So while the horrible Steve Martin ABC book will hopefully become a distant memory among the many other picture book choices, children may actually come away from Dirt on My Shirt with the idea that this is real poetry that, like, grown-ups write.

I couldn’t even find a favorite, or decide on the the worst of the batch to share. Grandparent’s day must be coming up soon, so I’ll go with these two selections.

Granddaddy

It sounds kind of sappy, but it makes me happy
To sit in my granddaddy’s lap
He tickles, I giggles and wiggles like crazy
And sometimes we just like to nap

Grandma

My grandma puts on lipstick
It’s bright red like a rose
Because she cannot see too well
It ends up on her nose!

By the way — no periods. That’s how all of the poems are. Apparently, they can end with an exclamation point or question mark, but not a period. Whatever. I give up.

The book is a freakin’ bestseller and the Amazon reviews are all good. A few people mention the poems as “simple” or “uninspired” but they don’t appear to see that as a problem. It breaks my heart that this piece of poetry crap will end up in the hands of readers instead of a dozen — a hundred other better choices. I guess Kelly’s right. It’s time for my own celebrity author blog. I’ll be Simon; anyone want to be Paula or Randy to balance my snark?

Poetry Friday Roundup is over at Becky’s Book Reviews. Head over to find some good poems.