Kellee

Rescued by Eliot Schrefer

May 13, 2016May 13, 2016 by Kellee

Rescued
Author: Eliot Schrefer
Published April 26th, 2016 by Scholastic

Goodreads Summary: The third entry in the taut, heart-wrenching quartet that made Eliot Schrefer a two-time National Book Award finalist introduces us to an orangutan held captive in suburban America.

John grows up with everything he could possibly want. His father is a businessman who travels far and wide. One day, he comes home with a rare gift for his son, a baby orangutan, and the two become inseparable friends. But as the orangutan gets older, stronger, less cute, the family relegates the animal to a locked trailer in the backyard. Until John’s father finally decides to sell the ape to a roadside zoo. Coming to the defense of his childhood friend, John resolves to smuggle the orangutan back to Indonesia, and the two set out on a journey far more dangerous than John bargained for.

My Review: I think out of the three Ape Quartet books published so far, this is the one that is going to hit closest to home for many. It will make many readers uncomfortable and want to make a change. First, it takes place in the United States unlike Africa like the first two. Second, it really digs into an issue that is still very much prominent here–animal injustice.

I find Schrefer’s writing to be so beautiful yet so easy to read. He can pull you into his stories and makes you feel for not only his human characters but also his animal characters. He does such a tremendous amount of research for all of his books and with this one it brings the injustice of Raja alive.

I am a sucker for ape books. I find apes to be the most fascinating animals, and orangutans may be my favorite because they have these amazing eyes that just show me that they are so intelligent and deep thinkers. They are also introverts; I think I just relate to them in that way. This book brings orangutans to life through Raja.

Teachers’ Tools for Navigation: As evident from Schrefer’s status as a two-time National Book Award finalist, his books can be used as a mentor text for just about any aspect of writing that you are looking for: characterization, imagery, voice, conflict, etc. Read any of his books, and you can pull out so much to discuss and use within the classroom. Additionally, there are some amazing ape books, including Schrefer’s other Ape Quartet books, that would make for an amazing lit circle opportunity or text set.

Discussion Questions: Why does John feel obligated to help Raja?; What would you have done if you were John or John’s mom when the divorce happened? Or when John’s father showed up with Raja?; Why is it better for wild animals to be in the wild?

Flagged Passages: “Every family’s got something weird about it, and mine was no different. We just had to try harder than most to hide it. All it took was someone to walk in the door to see that we had an orangutan. A real-live, orange-brown, TV-obsessed, drinking-grapefruit-juice-from-the-carton orangutan.” (p. 11)

“The truck’s engine rumbled, and the trailer pulled away. I watched it go, stunned.

You did this, I scolded myself. You let this happen.

Sweat had soaked my shirt, ran from the pits down my arms. The heat radiating up from the pavement made me dizzy, even though the perspiration on my brow was chill. I bent over, hands on my knees. I could feel the cords of my neck stand out, straining. Getting ready to start my stomach, at least, back at zero.

I heaved in air, and it sounded like a sob. Then it was a sob. Something huge and dark and terrible came out of me, something that had tamped down for so long that it had become even more huge and dark and terrible.

One last sob came out of me, then all was quiet.

There, slumped in the dirt, was Raja’s old blue elephant. (p. 69-70)

Read This If You Loved: Endangered and Threatened by Eliot Schrefer (Ape Quartet #1 and #2 yet are all stand alone novels), Hurt Go Happy by Ginny Rorby, One and Only Ivan by Kathering Applegate, Ivan: The Remarkable True Story of the Shopping Mall Gorilla by Katherine Applegate, Top Ten Ape Book list from Nerdy Book Club (I’ll be updating here on Unleashing Readers soon)

Recommended For:

Review and Author Interview: Camp Rolling Hills series by Stacy Davidowitz

May 11, 2016 by Kellee

Camp Rolling Hills
Camp Rolling Hills: Crossing Over
Author: Stacy Davidowitz
Published May 10th, 2016 by Amulet Paperbacks

Camp Rolling Hills’s Goodreads Summary: A hilarious and heartfelt series about the particular magic of summer camp—a place where reinvention is possible and friends are like family—from a sparkling debut talent.

Finally, it’s summer! Stephanie—aka Slimey—has been counting the days until she can return to her favorite place in the entire world, Camp Rolling Hills. And this year she’s especially happy to be back—she’ll have eight blissful weeks away from home, where life has been decidedly rocky.

New kid Bobby, on the other hand, is pretty sure he’s in for the worst summer of his life. He does not understand his weirdo cabinmates, the group singing, and the unfortunate nicknames (including his: Smelly). But he does understand Slimey, and the two soon fall in crush. This summer might not be so bad after all!

But then a fight sets off an epic, campwide, girls-versus-boys prank war. Bunks are raided! Boxer shorts are stolen! And it’s up to Slimey and Smelly to keep the peace.

Crossing Over’s Goodreads Summary: There’s only one thing Melman loves more than soccer: her summers at Camp Rolling Hills. So she’s pumped to be back—until she realizes her bunkmates have gone totally boy-crazy over the school year and plastered their cabin in pink. Pink posters, pink t-shirts…it seems that the only not-pink thing in the cabin is Melman herself. That is, until she’s given a dare in front of the entire camp: wear a pink princess dress. For Three. Whole. Days.

Steinberg’s summer gets off to a rough start, too, when his robot (usually his area of expertise) blows up during a camp-wide robotics contest. Steinberg might feel like a loser at home, but camp’s supposed to be his place to shine.

Steinberg without robots? Melman in pink? This whole summer feels turned upside down! To set things right, Steinberg and Melman team up and hatch a fail-proof plan. The plan’s secret ingredient? Hamburgers.

About the Author: Stacy Davidowitz is a camp-obsessed writer of books, plays, and screenplays. She also enjoys acting, singing, running long distances, and teaching theater all over New York City. Her alma maters are Tufts University, Columbia University, and Tyler Hill Camp. The Camp Rolling Hills series marks her debut as an author. Visit Stacy at www.stacydavidowitz.com and www.camprollinghills.com.

Author Q&A: Thank you to Stacy Davidowitz for answering some questions I had about the books and her writing!

Kellee: You share in your author’s note that your time at camp inspired these books. Can you tell us more about what inspired you, and how it directly affected the novels?

Stacy: I love camp. Truly, deeply love it. Experiencing it as a camper and then counselor and then head staff, I really got to understand its in and outs, and most importantly, the kind of positive impact it can have on a kid. So of course plots and activities and even the camp‘s layout are derived from my experiences, but also the bigger themes: friendship, being true to who you are, firsts–that’s the heart of the inspiration. I made such fantastic friends and helped nurture friendships among campers when I worked as a counselor; I experienced life-changing firsts I could never experience at home; and I learned to embrace my quirkiness with my bunkmates by my side.

Kellee: The sequel to Camp Rolling Hills is told from different perspectives than the first. Why did you decide to switch point of views? Will the next books go through the other campers’ POVs?

Stacy: When I wrote the initial draft of the first book, it was actually told from five perspectives: Slimey, Smelly, Play Dough, Jenny, and Steinberg. But when Abrams picked it up to be a series, we talked about what would work best. Ultimately we decided that each book should be told from the perspective of a different boy and girl. So Book One is Slimey and Smelly. Book Two is Melman and Steinberg. Book Three is Jenny and Play Dough. And Book Four is Missi and Wiener. If Abrams extends the series to six books, then we’ll get the perspectives of Sophie, Jamie, Totle, and Dover, too! Camp Rolling Hills is such an ensemble piece that having the series narrated by all the kids just feels right.

Kellee: You are a teacher of theater in NYC. How has your time teaching kids influenced you to want to write and want to write specifically these books?

Stacy: I teach a lot of playwriting and creative writing, even in the theater classes I lead. My students inspire me every day. Their ideas are so uninhibited. Exciting. Fresh. Alive. Honest. So of course that makes me want to do the same! It’s really cool to be able to write wacky, sweet, and adventurous characters my students can identify with. Also, writing middle grade is just so fun! Kids are smart and silly and it’s rewarding to be able to shine that light on them.

Kellee: Other than (hopeful) sequels, what’s next?

Stacy: I’m working on a dark young adult novel at the moment called Leper. I’m also co-writing a musical for Big Block Entertainment, the producers of Rock of Ages. Camp Rolling Hills the Musical (yup, it’s a musical, too!) is getting two productions this summer. One in Westport, Connecticut at Center Stage and another in NYC at New York Musical Festival (NYMF). Plus a play of mine called Sacred Water is being workshopped at Symphony Space, NYC in early July through a festival about social change!

My Review: The crazy cast of characters are what really make this book. Oh, and the reminiscing of camp. Camp really is something that is hard to explain unless you go yourself, but Stacy Davidowitz does a great job bringing the reader into Camp Rolling Hills and all of its quirkiness. And to add to the quirkiness, the characters in the books are so much fun! They are quite the mix of personalities. From stereotypical girly-girls to a cat-obsessed, sweet girl to a do gooder to a philosophical jock. Their interactions and characterization are what keep you reading the most! I also love the mix of letters home throughout the books.

Teachers’ Tools for Navigation: The Camp Rolling Hills books would be a fun way to get letter writing into the classroom conversation. First, I’d use the letters as conversation starters into characterization asking the students, “What can you tell about these characters based on their letters?” And discuss what clues the students used to figure it out. I’d then move to a RAFT (Role, Audience, Format, Topic) activity asking each student to write a letter as a made up character they were assigned. The Camp Rolling Hills website even has stationery!

Discussion Questions: Although each cabin is filled with friends, each character is quite unique. How do the characters differ? Compare?; What would your camp nickname be?; What makes camp so special?; How did the campers change between books?

Flagged Passages: “Things to Do No that I’m in Anita Hill Cabin (Upper Camp!)

Be a good role model.
Make a special camp collage of my friends and our inside jokes.
Box-stitch extra lanyard key chains for Mom, since stress makes her lose her keys.
Spend A LOT of time with my camp sister/soul sister/BFF.

Slimey had always wanted a sister, and she treasured the times she and Melman pretended they were fraternal twins separated at birth. Fraternal, because they looked nothing alike. Twins, because their birthdays were only three days apart, and they’d always understood exactly how the other felt.” (Camp Rolling Hills, p. 2)

“‘Well, how do you like camp so far?’
‘It’s fine.’
Fine? No one describes camp as fine. Amazing, incredible, life-changing, maybe. But never fine.”

‘The first time I came here,’ she offered, ‘it took me a couple of days to realize how much I loved it, but once you do, you love it forever. You’ll see.'” (Camp Rolling Hills, p. 41)

Read This If You Loved: Honor Girl by Maggie Thrash, Hidden by Helen Frost, Brain Camp by Susan Kim, Breakfast Served Anytime by Sarah Combs, Lumberjanes by Noelle Stevenson, Like Bug Juice on a Burger by Julie Sternberg

Recommended For:

**Thank you to Caitlin at Abrams for providing copies for review!!**

It’s Monday! What Are You Reading? #IMWAYR 5/9/16

May 9, 2016 by Kellee

It’s Monday! What Are You Reading? From Picture Books to YA!

It’s Monday! What are you Reading? is a meme started by Sheila at Book Journeys and now hosted by Kathryn at The Book Date. It is a great way to recap what you read and/or reviewed the previous week and to plan out your reading and reviews for the upcoming week. It’s also a great chance to see what others are reading right now…you just might discover the next “must-read” book!

Kellee and Jen, of Teach Mentor Texts, decided to give It’s Monday! What Are You Reading? a kidlit focus. If you read and review books in children’s literature – picture books, chapter books, middle grade novels, young adult novels, anything in the world of kidlit – join us! We love this meme and think you will, too.

We encourage everyone who participates to support the blogging community by visiting at least three of the other book bloggers that link up and leave comments for them.

Congratulations
Kristy P.
for winning Curiosity House: The Screaming Statue by Lauren Oliver and H. C. Chester!

Last Week’s Posts

**Click on any picture/link to view the post**

Tuesday: Childhood Characters We’d Love to Revisit as Adults

Wednesday: From Kellee’s (Huge) Library Pile Part Eleven: Nonfiction Picture Books

Thursday: Review, Signed Hard Copy Giveaway, and Author Interview: Invisible Fault Lines by Kristen-Page Madonia
Giveaway open until Wednesday!

Friday: Blog Tour, Author Guest Post, and Review!: Cici Reno #MiddleSchoolMatchmaker by Kristina Springer

Sunday: Author Guest Post! by Beth Vrabel, Author of Camp Dork

Last Week’s Journeys

I did finish two new picture books when Trent, Jim, and I went to the library this week. It was nice to be reading something other than Trent’s favorites that we read every night. Fetch and Nest by Jorey Hurley seem like simple books at first, but the beautiful artwork with a carefully chosen word within a cycle can lead to great conversation. I also read Bucky and Stu which we’ll be reviewing this week.

Ricki

Henry and I spent some an hour in the bookstore, catching up on books we have missed. I grabbed Dragons Love Tacos by Adam Rubin first. Several mom friends said their picky eaters now eat tacos because they read this book. It is such a funny story, and Henry ate tacos that night!

We’ve been nabbing all of the Llama Llama books by Anna Dewdney from libraries these last two months. Henry made me reread them all at the bookstore. The only one we’d missed (not pictured) was Nellie Gnu and Daddy Too. I think that might be my favorite because the father reminds me of my husband. Henry’s favorite is Llama Llama Mad at Mama. I’ll try not to be offended at that choice. Ha ha!

What is it about the Clifford the Big Red Dog series by Norman Bridwell? As a child, I loved these books. As an adult, I see them as a bit more simplistic than I remembered. That said, my son’s love for them makes me love them, too. The concept of a huge dog is just so silly for kids, I think. We read the above two Clifford books and enjoyed them very much. Henry’s favorite scene is when Clifford’s family jumps out of the birthday cake.

This Week’s Expeditions

Kellee

I am a bit all over the place with my reading this week because I am reading three different books for three different reasons and listening to an audiobook. I actually should be reading a fourth and fifth also… Let me explain.

First, I am reading Hidden by Helen Frost for my faculty book club that meets on Friday. I am almost done, and it has one of the best suspenseful beginnings of any book I’ve read.

I also start book clubs (lit circles) in my class, and there are a few books that were chosen that I need a refresher on. I started Flight #116 is Down by Caroline B. Cooney first because I haven’t read it since middle school, but I also need to pick up The Boy Who Saved Baseball by John H. Ritter and Undercurrents by Willo Davis Roberts because I haven’t read them in about a decade.

And I did start reading Unicorn vs. Goblins because I just think the Phoebe and Heavenly Nostril books are so hilarious!

Lastly, I am listening to Masterminds by Gordon Korman, and the mystery is all coming to light–so good! And I have a feeling that as soon as I am done with #1, I’ll want to read #2. Thank goodness my library has the audio of it also!

Ricki

I am halfway through The Memory of Things by Gae Polisner, and I love it! I just turned in my grades, so I should have a bit more time to free read this week!

Upcoming Week’s Posts

top ten tuesday

Tuesday: Ten Favorite Book Titles

Wednesday: Review and Author Interview!: Camp Rolling Rills series by Stacy Davidowitz

Thursday: Review and Giveaway!: Bucky and Stu vs. the Mikanikal Man by Cornelius Van Wright

Friday: Rescued by Eliot Schrefer

Sunday: Author Guest Post!

So, what are you reading?

Link up below and go check out what everyone else is reading. Please support other bloggers by viewing and commenting on at least 3 other blogs. If you tweet about your Monday post, tag the tweet with #IMWAYR!

and

Blog Tour, Author Guest Post, and Review!: Cici Reno #MiddleSchoolMatchmaker by Kristina Springer

August 7, 2016May 6, 2016 by Kellee

Cici Reno #MiddleSchoolMatchmaker
Author: Kristina Springer
Published April 16th, 2016 by Sterling Children’s Books

Goodreads Summary: Middle school is a test, but Cici Reno has all the answers. She’s the go-to girl for advice. She’s cool, she’s funny, and she’s enlightened (thanks to yoga classes at her mom’s studio). So when her pretty BFF, Aggie, is too shy to speak to the boy she’s crushing on, Cici goes online and does the talking for her. The only problem is, Cici starts to fall for the guy herself! For the first time in her life. she doesn’t have a clue.

My Review: Cici Reno is a refreshing addition to middle grade romance. As a middle school teacher, I am always happy when there is a romance novel that actually features middle school kids instead of high schoolers. The thinking and feelings differ so much between 6th and 9th grade that sometimes the YA romance novels are a bit mature for the middle schoolers that want to read about crushes and dating. And Cici Reno is a book that middle schoolers will flock to not only because of the romance but because of the humor, Cici’s true voice, and the story of friendship.

Teachers’ Tools for Navigation (Teachers’ Tools for Navigation):
“Using Classic Retellings in the Middle Grade Classroom” by Kristina Springer

As readers, we love a good classic retelling. Renée Ahdieh reimagined The Arabian Nights in her #1 NYT Bestseller, The Wrath and the Dawn. The Coming of the Dragon by Rebecca Barnhouse was inspired by Beowulf. The Real Boy by Anne Ursu offered a new look at Pinnocchio. My first young adult novel, The Espressologist, was a twist on Jane Austen’s Emma. (In my book, the main character is a coffee shop barista who discovers a talent for matchmaking her customers based on their favorite coffee drinks.) And of course, Romeo and Juliet has been remade again and again and again (my favorite being Gnomeo and Juliet!).

With my newest middle grade book, Cici Reno #MiddleSchoolMatchmaker, I decided to do a modern twist of the Cyrano de Bergerac story, set in middle school and with Twitter instead of balconies and bushes.

Cici Reno, is the 12 ¾-year old enlightened daughter of a Yogi. When she’s not helping out at her mom’s beloved Peony Lane Yoga Studio or taking a class herself, she’s solving all of the 7^th grade’s problems, be it boy trouble or BFF drama. When her shy best friend Aggie asks for Cici’s help in getting the attention of the boy she likes, Cici goes online and does the talking for her. Only the more they talk, the more she falls for him herself. What’s a girl to do?

Studying a classic story and some of its retellings could be a fun and creative activity for middle grade classrooms. Here’s a suggestion of how you can approach this:

Start with talking about the original classic tale. Let’s say you choose Cyrano de Bergerac as I did. Talk about the original play written by Edmond Rostand in 1897. Show pictures of the real Cyrano de Bergerac for which the play is based on. More info here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cyrano_de_Bergerac_(play) And show this really cute 1 minute, 35 second YouTube Last Minute Book Report clip of Cyrano de Bergerac to get an overall sense of the story. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-u52OLtAws8
Have your class read through a bit of the play together out loud to get a sense of the relationship between Roxane, Christian, and Cyrano. Perhaps the balcony scene in Act 3, Scenes 6 and 7 where we see Christian bumbling for his words and Cyrano stepping in to rescue him. You can find the play this here: http://www.poetryintranslation.com/PITBR/French/Cyranoact3.htm
Talk about some of the movie adaptions of Cyrano de Bergerac over the years like Roxanne and The Truth about Cats and Dogs. If time and interest allows, show the 2012 Disney Original Movie, Let it Shine. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Let_It_Shine_(film)
Read my book, Cici Reno #MiddleSchoolMatchmaker, and discuss the similarities and differences between the original and this modern retelling. Consider having the students use a Venn Diagram to do this. Have them discuss why they think I, as the author, made certain changes and if those changes improved the story or not.
Have the students try writing their own modern short story re-telling of Cyrano de Bergerac. And have fun sharing them with each other!

About the Author: Kristina Springer is the author of Cici Reno #MiddleSchoolMatchmaker (Sterling Children’s/April 19, 2016), My Fake Boyfriend Is Better Than Yours (Macmillan/FSG), a Scholastic Bestseller and 2012 YALSA Quick Pick book; The Espressologist (Macmillan,/FSG), a 2010 Society of School Librarians International Honor Book and 2014 Illinois Reads Book that has been purchased for film by Michael Eisner’s Vuguru; and Just Your Average Princess (Macmillan/FSG). She has a Masters in Writing from DePaul University and resides in a suburb of Chicago with her husband and children. Learn more about Kristina on her website: http://KristinaSpringer.com.

Flagged Passages: “‘Wow, you think of everything,’ Aggie says. ‘It sounds completely perfect. Only one thing.’

‘What’s that?’

‘I can’t talk to him, Cici! You heard me at the bonfire. I go from zero to dork in 2.3 seconds.’

‘But you’ll be online,’ I tell her. ‘You can take your time typing, really form your thoughts.’

‘Yeah. I guess.’ She pauses. ‘Or you could talk to him for me. Please? You’re so much better around guys than I am. Always so relaxed and cool. And funny,’ she adds.” (p. 35)

Read This If You Loved: Cyrano de Bergerac, Camp Rolling Hills by Stacy Davidowitz, Audition & Subtraction by Amy Fellner Dominy, Drama by Raina Telgemeier

Recommended For:

From Kellee’s (Huge) Library Pile Part Eleven: Nonfiction Picture Books | Pink is for Blobfish by Jess Keating, Hillary Rodham Clinton by Michelle Markel, Two Friends by Dean Robbins, Freedom in Congo Square by Carole Boston Weatherford, & The Great Monkey Rescue by Sandra Markle

September 4, 2016May 4, 2016 by Kellee

Nonfiction Wednesday

Nonfiction Picture Book Wednesday is hosted by Kid Lit Frenzy and was started to help promote the reading of nonfiction texts. Most Wednesdays, we will be participating and will review a nonfiction text (though it may not always be a picture book).
Be sure to visit Kid Lit Frenzy and see what other nonfiction books are shared this week!

Because of It’s Monday! What Are You Reading? posts, I find myself often with huge piles of picture books from the library that were highly recommended by fellow bloggers. I celebrate many of the nonfiction pictures books on Wednesdays, but I want to share some of the fiction picture books I have enjoyed. So, I decided to start series here on UR where I can pass on the love for these books sporadically as I read them. Here is a list of some great pictures books that I’ve read recently from my huge library pile (part 11!).

Pink is for Blobfish: Discovering the World’s Perfectly Pink Animals
Author: Jess Keating
Illustrator: David Degrand
Published February 2nd, 2016

Goodreads Summary: Pinkalicious meets National Geographic in this nonfiction picture book introducing the weirdest, wildest, pinkest critters in the animal kingdom!

Some people think pink is a pretty color. A fluffy, sparkly, princess-y color. But it’s so much more.
Sure, pink is the color of princesses and bubblegum, but it’s also the color of monster slugs and poisonous insects. Not to mention ultra-intelligent dolphins, naked mole rats and bizarre, bloated blobfish.

Isn’t it about time to rethink pink?

Slip on your rose-colored glasses and take a walk on the wild side with zoologist Jess Keating, author of How to Outrun a Crocodile When Your Shoes Are Untied, and cartoonist David DeGrand.

My Thoughts: I loved how Keating set up the book. The information that was included was fascinating, there were many text features that added interesting tidbits throughout, and there was some hilarity thrown in. Such a great read! I also was told that it is going to be a series, and that is such great news!

Hillary Rodham Clinton: Some Girls Are Born to Lead
Author: Michelle Markel
Illustrator: LeUyen Pham
Published January 5th, 2016 by Balzer + Bay

Goodreads Summary: In the spirit of Barack Obama: Son of Promise, Child of Hope andAmelia and Eleanor Go for a Ride comes an inspiring portrait of Hillary Rodham Clinton: a girl who fought to make a difference—and paved the way for women everywhere—from Michelle Markel and LeUyen Pham.

In the 1950s, it was a man’s world. Girls weren’t supposed to act smart, tough, or ambitious. Even though, deep inside, they may have felt that way. And then along came Hillary. Brave, brilliant, and unstoppable, she was out to change the world.

They said a woman couldn’t be a mother and a lawyer. Hillary was both. They said a woman shouldn’t be too strong or too smart. Hillary was fearlessly herself.

It didn’t matter what people said—she was born to lead.

With illustrations packed full of historical figures and details, this gorgeous and informative picture book biography is perfect for every budding leader. Includes a timeline, artist’s note, and bibliography.

My Thoughts: Alyson Beecher shared with me that Pham did a tremendous amount of research for this book though she had no issues researching because Hillary is so fact-checked. I think the idea of how much research LeUyen did for this book is fascinating and is also evident in the book. I am also a huge fan of Pham’s illustrations (she does Princess in Black also), and it was so much fun to see Hillary being represented so brightly. I loved learning about Hillary’s journey to the current presidential race. Right now so much is focused on negativity, it is nice to see why she is such an inspirational woman.

Two Friends: Susan B. Anthony and Frederick Douglass
Author: Dean Robbins
Illustrator: Sean Qualls and Selina Alko
Published January 5th, 2016 by Orchard Books

Goodreads Summary: Some people had rights, while others had none.
Why shouldn’t they have them, too?

Two friends, Susan B. Anthony and Frederick Douglass, get together for tea and conversation. They recount their similar stories fighting to win rights for women and African Americans. The premise of this particular exchange between the two is based on a statue in their hometown of Rochester, New York, which shows the two friends having tea.

My Thoughts: I loved learning about this friendship! I am a great admirer of both Anthony and Douglass; however, I did not know anything about the relationship they had. I love that they were both visionaries within two a civil rights movement though they also realized how their goals were connected, so they fought the prejudice together. Although I really would have loved this story to be longer to learn more about how they worked together, learning about their histories and imagining their tea party was a perfect way to introduce the friendship. I am also a huge fan of Qualls’s artwork, and I loved how this book incorporated his work with the written words of both reformers.

Freedom in Congo Square
Author: Carole Boston Weatherford
Illustrator: R. Gregory Christie
Published January 5th, 2016 by little bee books

Goodreads Summary: This poetic, nonfiction story about a little-known piece of African American history captures a human’s capacity to find hope and joy in difficult circumstances and demonstrates how New Orleans’ Congo Square was truly freedom’s heart.

Mondays, there were hogs to slop,
mules to train, and logs to chop.
Slavery was no ways fair.
Six more days to Congo Square.

As slaves relentlessly toiled in an unjust system in 19th century Louisiana, they all counted down the days until Sunday, when at least for half a day they were briefly able to congregate in Congo Square in New Orleans. Here they were free to set up an open market, sing, dance, and play music. They were free to forget their cares, their struggles, and their oppression. This story chronicles slaves’ duties each day, from chopping logs on Mondays to baking bread on Wednesdays to plucking hens on Saturday, and builds to the freedom of Sundays and the special experience of an afternoon spent in Congo Square. This book will have a forward from Freddi Williams Evans (freddievans.com), a historian and Congo Square expert, as well as a glossary of terms with pronunciations and definitions.

My Thoughts: I found this book to be touching and beautiful and sad. Books about slavery always make me so ashamed of our past, so they are hard to read yet so important. I think Weatherford’s story really captures the brutal conditions of slavery in the South but also the freedom that was felt on the one free day in Louisiana. Also, I personally like rhyming couplets, so I thought it had a great sing-songy quality. And let’s not forget the illustrations. They are pieces of art. They could each be framed and put in a museum.

The Great Monkey Rescue: Saving the Golden Lion Tamarins
Author: Sandra Markle
Published October 1st, 2015 by Lerner Publishing Group

Goodreads Summary: Golden lion tamarins are found only in Brazilian forests. These small, remarkable monkeys once had plenty of space to roam and claim family territories. But years of deforestation caused their numbers to shrink. They were in serious danger of becoming extinct.

To help, scientists studied the animals in zoo settings. But they faced several mysteries. Why weren’t golden lion tamarins reproducing in zoos? If scientists reintroduced zoo-raised tamarins to the wild, would those monkeys survive? And how could scientists give tamarins enough forest area for the population to grow? Find out how scientists and concerned citizens worked together to give golden lion tamarins a hopeful future.

My Thoughts: It is always sad to learn about an endangered animal I didn’t know about before, this story was inspiring because it showed how a team working together could, and hopefully will continue, reverse the loss of a species. This book is so hopeful in that if we all work together to help save species that are struggling to survive. I really want to read more of Markle’s work now because she really is quite brilliant about turning information into narrative nonfiction.

All Recommended For:

Want to see Part One? You can view it HERE.
Want to see Part Two? You can view it HERE.
Want to see Part Three? You can view it HERE.
Want to see Part Four? You can view it HERE.
Want to see Part Five: We Need Diverse Books (NF)? You can view it HERE.
Want to see Part Six: We Need Diverse Books (F)? You can view it HERE.
Want to see Part Seven? You can view it HERE.
Want to see Part Eight: 2015 Nonfiction Titles? You can view it HERE.
Want to see Part Nine: 2015 Nonfiction Titles? You can view it HERE.
Want to see Part Ten: 2015 Fiction Titles? You can view it HERE.

It’s Monday! What Are You Reading? #IMWAYR 5/2/16

May 2, 2016May 2, 2016 by Kellee

It’s Monday! What Are You Reading? From Picture Books to YA!

We encourage everyone who participates to support the blogging community by visiting at least three of the other book bloggers that link up and leave comments for them.

Last Week’s Posts

**Click on any picture/link to view the post**

Tuesday: Bookworm Delights

Wednesday: Animal Planet’s Ocean Animals and Polar Animals

Thursday: Blog Tour, Authors Interview, Character Q&A, Giveaway, and Review!: Curiousity House: The Screaming Statue by Lauren Oliver and H.C. Chester
Giveaway open until Wednesday!

Friday: Cody and the Mysteries of the Universe by Tricia Sprinstubb

Sunday: Author Guest Post! “Reading the Middle Grade Mind” by Sally Barlow-Perez, Author of The Unintended Runaways

Last Week’s Journeys

Kellee

This week I had a much more successful reading week. It felt great to have a good reading week!

First, finished the two Camp Rolling Hills books:

I’ll be reviewing these books next week, but I recommend them both for middle school. I love how the campers seem like real middle schoolers.

I also finished my audiobook of The War That Saved My Life by Kimberly Brubaker Bradley.

Oh. My. Goodness. What a phenomenal book! Everyone says how great it is, and everyone is not lying. It reminded me of a Ruta Sepetys novel because you can tell the author did her research but also made sure to focus on her brilliant story. The audiobook is well done also; I can still hear Ada’s voice. It was heartbreaking yet uplifting. And what a fascinating point of view to tell a WWII story from!

And I dove into my library pile of nonfiction picture books that I have been recommended (All their photos are below because I’ll be reviewing them all this week!).

Ricki

Invisible Fault Lines by Kristen-Paige Madonia kept me guessing! From the very first page, I wondered what happened to the narrator’s father. About halfway through, I realized that it didn’t matter what happened to him because this was a story about character. I enjoyed this one very much and am looking forward to sharing more on Thursday!

This Week’s Expeditions

Kellee

Two of my favorite early reading series have new books, and they finally arrived from the library, so I am so excited to read them, and they are first on my TBR for the week.

masterminds

I also started a new audiobook: Masterminds by Gordon Korman. This book is on my #mustreadin2016 list because many of you loved it, and so far I am really enjoying it. I can tell something big is about to happen!

Ricki

I think I might get started on The Memory of Things by Gae Polisner. I was excited to receive it on NetGalley and look forward to it!

Upcoming Week’s Posts

top ten tuesday

Tuesday: Childhood Characters We’d Love to Revisit as Adults

Wednesday: From Kellee’s (Huge) Library Pile Part Eleven: Nonfiction Picture Books

Thursday: Invisible Fault Lines by Kristen-Page Madonia

Friday: Blog Tour, Author Guest Post, Giveaway, and Review!: Cici Reno #MiddleSchoolMatchmaker by Kristina Springer

Sunday: Author Guest Post! by Beth Vrabel, Author of Camp Dork

So, what are you reading?

and

Author Guest Post!: “Reading the Middle Grade Mind” by Sally Barlow-Perez, Author of The Unintended Runaways

May 1, 2016 by Kellee

“Reading the Middle Grade Mind”

Have you ever tried to steer one of your favorite kids toward one of your favorite books? You’re in eager enthusiasm mode. “Hey, you are going to LOVE this book!”

Then the kid rears back, looks like you asked him to drink a glass of hot chalk, gives you that look, and says, “Uh, thanks, but I don’t think so.”

Just like adults, kids pick books for their own reasons. And timing is everything. One week a reader might feel like something light that reflects familiar problems like, The Mother Daughter Book Club series; the next week he or she might relish the challenges of Wonder or maybe a visit to a whole to universe in The Lightning Thief or something as wacky as one of the Wimpy Kid books. It all depends on mood, just like it does with you and me. Or stress level. Or time availability. I’ve seen a 9-year old read and enjoy a Babysitter Club book – standard 3^rd grade level reading—during a school week, and Wonderstruck— 5^thgrade level reading–on her vacation. Makes sense. You and I don’t read Dostoevsky when we barely have time for lunch. Middle grade readers thrive on a huge variety of choice. Which is lucky, since as authors, we are just as eclectic as our young readers!

That said, I am sure there are those of us who try to shake loose a few practical thoughts before we set pen to paper to write our deathless prose. No doubt, in addition to prayer, you’ve tried to psyche out just where that sweet spot in middle grade literature is. Sure, there are trends and the Goodreads lists and I’m sure there are some left-brain writers out there who can successfully write to the formula. But since I’ve always favored on-the-spot research, I thought I’d go directly to the source: my sixth grade consultants: Sarah, Haley, Carolyn, Mia and Emily. “What have you been reading lately?” I asked them. These are just a few samples of the many titles they sent me:

Escape from Mr. Lemoncello’s Library by Chris Grabenstein
I Will Always Write Back: How One Letter Changed Two Lives by Martin Ganda
The Agony and the Ecstasy by Irving Stone.
The Port Chicago 50 by Steve Sheinkin
School of Charm by Lisa Ann Scott
Black Beauty by Anna Sewall
Little Women by Louisa Mae Alcott
Number the Stars by Lois Lowry
Hope is a Ferris Wheel by Robin Herrera
The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
Wonder by R.J. Palacio
The Egypt Game by Zilpha Keatley Snyder

Sure, it’s a girls list; not much blood and guts there but look at the variety. From dystopia to Victoriana to the serious issues of an adolescent with a disability to pure escapism. Irving Stone, no less! Remarkable that reading tastes could vary so widely among such friends from the same school in the same grade with such similar backgrounds. My point being, that predicting subject matter that will appeal to every middle grader is a losing proposition.

Picture this—and if you’ve taken your children or your students to the library, you’ve seen it many times. A middle grader sitting on the floor between the stacks taking out book after book off the shelf, looking at it very briefly, and then returning it to that empty slot among the other books. Those poor, forlorn, rejected books. Someone put his or her heart and soul into writing that book! What was wrong with it! Well, it just didn’t suit, that’s all. For reasons we, as onlookers (or the unfortunate author of said rejected volume) will never know. My conclusion: short of writing a tome on the love life of ants, I might as well forget trying to guess what will suit the middle grade reader and suit myself instead.

At the same time—trying with some difficulty to recall my past life as a lit. major—I tryed to find the commonalities in the lists of books my sixth graders sent me. It wasn’t in the eras, the settings or the subject matter. They varied from Hogwarts, to Ghana, to the rural South, to a dystopian future, to small town USA, to ancient Rome. Lots of variety there and choice in those areas can be a matter of cover art, flap blurb or momentary whim. But in the protagonist (Lit. 101 !) I do think young people make a conscious choice to read a book featuring one of two different kinds of protagonists:

A character with whom they can completely identify; someone who shares their sensibilities, their strengths, their weaknesses, and their secret feelings; someone who permits them to sigh in relief, saying, “I am not alone; Someone else feels or behaves that way too.”
Or
A character with whom they can partially identify, but who is perceived as an individual to emulate; someone with qualities to admire, or aspire to, even if those qualities are as basic as patience, or self-assurance, or courage rather than the ability to fly or fight dragons.

It might be simplistic to say that the former is featured in reading that requires a little less concentration than the latter. I’m sure there are examples either way. But the best authors show us well rounded characters who evolve and change in both cases. What a privilege it is to read the work of the many wonderful authors of middle grade fiction who make their characters come alive for us. I see my young friends absorbing Palacio’s Auggie, Hodgson Burnett’s Sara Crewe, Pullman’s Lyra, Selznick’s Ben and Rose; Riordan’s Percy, and Lowry’s Jonas and I think, “These characters are becoming part of who my young friends are.” How could they not?

I too feel as though I too have been influenced by the thousands of fictional characters that have filled me up over the years. A good number have come from middle grade books. Many from young adult books. One memorable one was the picture book that inspired my own middle grade novel, The Unintended Runaways, with its lively painting of a gypsy wagon and the carefree little girl who lived in it.

The tale that formed around that picture was the story I wanted to tell. I fought it. I’d been in marketing and public relations and I knew historical fiction was emphatically NOT in vogue. Would anyone read it? Newsletters and conferences told me I would never sell it. “Write it anyway,” I told myself. I already had visions of the beautiful blue wagon and the big shire horse trotting down the lovely rural roads of mid-19^th century England. market.

“Don’t be an idiot,” I argued back. “You’re a journalist. You wrote a history book. Get out there and write something that’ll sell. How about an academy for shapeshifters? A middle school mafia? An underground society ruled by 12-year olds? You can do it! Get with the program!”

“Yeah,” said my better self. “And it will suck, big time and you will hate every minute of it. This is 40,000 words we’re talking about.”

So I did it my way. I wrote my historical novel about 19^th century young people. Unfashionable as my setting might be, I knew today’s middle graders would identify with the larger themes of justice, freedom, and family. And I hoped they would fall in love with my characters just as I did.

Thus The Unintended Runaways came into being. My sixth grade consultants – who were very generous early readers!—say they like it. (They kind of have to say that.) But the proof will be in the sales figures. Because as a general rule……

There’s just no reading the middle grade mind.

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Links:

Website: www.theunintendedrunaways.com

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Summary: For a girl who loved adventure, twelve-year old Lia Leonides had the perfect life. Every summer, she and her grandfather traveled the rural roads of England in their gypsy wagon, stopping at fairs and selling horse brasses along the way. It was exactly the life Lia wanted, until the day a mysterious letter arrived. Lia’s grandfather warned her not to get her hopes up, but lifelong dreams are hard to ignore. Lia’s father was alive and looking for her. But when her grandfather suddenly passes away, Lia is sent to work as a servant in an orphanage and is left with a choice that she never wanted to make: let the world decide her future for her, or run away and decide it for herself? Lia, with the help of her beloved pets and some unexpected friends, must take her gypsy wagon south on a harrowing journey before her father disappears forever. A persistent sheriff and the constant threat of misfortune won’t make the trip easy, but Lia and her friends don’t plan to let anything stop them from forging their own destinies.

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About the Author: Sally Barlow-Perez openly admits that books have taken over a good chunk of her life. She gobbles down two or three library books a week, ranging in genre from young adult, to middle grade, to fantasy, to mystery. She tries to balance her book obsession with writing, hiking, and hanging out with the young people who inspire her. But no matter how hard she tries, she always comes back to books. As a fiction writer, Sally’s focus is curiosity. “Curiosity is a great excuse for writing, as well as for reading,” she says. “Even when I finish a book, I still wonder what the characters are doing!” Sally makes her life in Palo Alto, California. She has two grown sons, whom she believes to be her greatest contribution to mankind. The Unintended Runaways is her first middle-grade novel. More information is available at www.theunintendedrunaways.com.

Thank you Sally for this insightful guest post!

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