Book Reviews

“Wonderstruck” (Scholastic 2011) is a novel by Brian Selznick, told half in writing, half in drawings. It opens with wolves running at the reader. They’re so close you see only their eyes, then so close, one eye and then closer yet. Are the wolves a dream?

Ben wakes up. So it was a dream? The written story begins in Gunflint Lake, Minnesota in 1977. Through the wall, Ben, who is deaf in one ear, hears his aunt and uncle talk about selling his Mom’s house at the other end of the property. After all, his mom had died. But sell his house? What about his stuff? All he has with him is a box of bird skeletons and found odds and ends.

Even though a storm is brewing Ben runs to the house where he lived with his mom.

Turn the page and we’re back to exquisitely rendered drawings of a young girl in New Jersey, 1927. She’s making a scrapbook of the actress Lillian Mayhew. The girl runs outside into an urban setting.

Turn another page and we return to the written story—Ben’s story, which parallels the story of the girl—Rose, who we realize is deaf. It’s storming in both stories, which heightens the mystery. Where are Rose’s parents? Who is Ben’s father? At the moment that Ben finds a clue in his mother’s closet, he blacks out.

Ben wakes up in a hospital bed, now completely deaf. Was the house struck by lightning? He dreams of wolves again. This time they’re running down the streets of New York City.

In both stories—the pictorial and the written—each child, separated by fifty years, is running away to New York. Ben enters the American Museum of Natural History. Is it the same place that’s depicted on Rose’s post card? Is Rose seeing the same dinosaur skeleton that Ben just passed?

The two stories converge in a surprising manner, leaving the reader feeling rather ebullient. Rose and Ben’s realistic connection is more than satisfying. This is no fantasy. And the wolves were more than a dream.

“Wonderstruck” is not a graphic novel with multiple frames per page, but it is sequential art. And wow—what art. The excellent movie, “Hugo,” is taken from Selznick’s first such book, “The Invention of Hugo Cabret” (Scholastic 2007), a Caldecott Medal winner. Both books and movie are “must-sees.”

See the trailer and listen to the author speak of the creating process. http://www.amazon.com/Wonderstruck-Brian-Selznick/dp/0545027896

 

A Book for middle graders as well as everyone else: “Amelia Lost: The Life and Disappearance of Amelia Earhart,” by Candace Fleming (Schwartz & Wade 2011) begins with Amelia being lost somewhere on the Pacific Ocean on the last leg of her historic round-the-world flight–1937. Chapter two begins with Amelia’s birth, then being raised by her ladylike grandmother—1897.

The book alternates between the harrowing days at the end of her life with the story of how she became Amelia Earhart, America’s darling and the renowned female pilot in the new aviation age. We discover how Amelia was a phenomenon of publicity—the result of George Putnam’s skill at publicizing her charm, enthusiasm and determination, then marrying her.

Amelia was neither careful nor the most skilled woman aviator. On her first Atlantic flight, for which she gained much publicity, Amelia made decisions but did not actually pilot the plane. In a woman’s aviation cross-country race, Amelia in the fastest plane, finished third. An airplane manufacturer would not even sell her the aircraft she most wanted because she was not skilled enough to pilot it.

We discover that Amelia’s character was, in part, built on her father’s decline into severe alcoholism. That she was a combination of tomboy and fashion maverick. That she was fiercely independent and publishing magnate George Putnam courted her for years before she agreed to marry him.

As you read about the early years of aviation, you’re amazed at how frequently the equipment fails, fuel leaks or fires start on the wings. Early flight is not an activity for the faint hearted. Amelia was courageous to the point of being fool-hearty. For her final ill-fated flight, she was still learning to fly her Electra and hadn’t learned to use her radio equipment, which was her undoing.

It is heartbreaking to discover that amateur short wave radio operators heard Amelia’s pleas for help as she was apparently downed in the Pacific, probably floating on the sea. A housewife from Texas never reported to the authorities her radio-contact with Amelia, figuring the authorities had it under control. A teenager in Florida could not convince the authorities of her hearing Amelia calling for help. A teenager in Wyoming rushed to the authorities to report his findings, which were reported to the scout ship Itasca—to no avail.

This well-researched and suspenseful story is one reason we continue to care about the charming daring Amelia Earhart.

“Amelia Lost” just won the Golden Kite Award for non fiction books. The prestigious Golden Kite, awarded by the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI), is judged by peers in the field of children’s literature. Congratulations, Candy!

 

Patricia Hruby Powell (www.talesforallages.com) is a nationally touring speaker, dancer, storyteller, librarian and children’s book author. Her picture book in verse, Joséphine, about Josephine Baker and published by Chronicle Books will be released in fall 2013.

 

MIDDLE GRADERS: In “Waiting for the Magic,” by Patricia MacLachlan (Atheneum 2011), Will’s parents fight and his father leaves. This real–but sad–scenario is one that so many children (and parents) experience.

The next day, Will, ten, goes with Mama and his sister Elinor, four, to the animal shelter. They take home all four dogs and one cat. Papa didn’t want animals. Papa, who is a college literature professor, left to “find some magic” and write a book.

Mama’s behavior seems authentic when she slips and says to the kids, Papa is flawed. A week later when Elinor repeats this pearl of wisdom, Mama covers her face with her hands and says, “Oh, Lord.”

Mama is preoccupied. She hasn’t hugged the kids since Papa left, but the four dogs and even the cat supply plenty of hugs and licks. The animals speak to each other, sharing their wisdom about what is going on in the house. Only Elinor, the youngest, and visiting Gran, the oldest, understand what the animals discuss. At first. It’s done matter-of-factly—that is, the animals are not overly cute, but simply intuitive and wise.

The dogs–Grace (greyhound), Bitty (terrier), Neo (Great Pyrenees), and Bryn (the alpha mutt) eavesdrop and gather information to help the reader understand what is happening. We’re all surprised when Lula the cat speaks. There are other surprises, but I’ll only say it ends believably and happily and is perfect for reading to the whole family, perhaps right after dinner.

“Saint Louis Armstrong Beach,” by Brenda Wood (Nancy Paulsen-Penguin 2011) is the title and the name of the sixth grade protagonist—a budding musician. He earns money playing his clarinet  on the street in New Orleans. As Hurricane Katrina approaches, no one is much concerned. They’ve weathered hundreds of hurricanes. Saint Louis is detained in the city by his love of a dog named Shadow.

Once you get to this point in the story, you won’t be able to put it down. So this one, I’d advise you read fast and on your own, perhaps, in bed and if necessary, under the covers with a flashlight.

 

TEACHERS: What cool things are you doing in your classroom? Please let me know at phpowell@talesforallages.com New on blog will be interesting class events starting with the fifth grade class of Kathy Hughes, Speech Pathologist, at Franklin Middle and Carrie Busey Elementary in Champaign-Urbana, Illinois.

 

Patricia Hruby Powell (www.talesforallages.com) is a nationally touring speaker, dancer, storyteller, librarian and children’s book author. Please sign up for the blog. Comment. Share it.

MIDDLE GRADERS: At times when you’re sad or grieving, rather than needing to laugh, it could be better to delve deep into your grief to find what you need. Perhaps you’ll read the perfect book at the precise moment you need it. “Midnight Zoo,” by Sonya Hartnett (Candlewick 2010) was that book for me. This haunting story broke my heart, then lifted me up.

Andrej, twelve, is a “Rom” or Gypsy boy traveling through war-torn WWII Europe with his brother Tomas, nine. They guard a mysterious bundle, traveling under cover of night.

Andrej’s father had told him, it’s not our war, it’s the “gadje” war, don’t worry. Yet for some reason the Nazis hated Gypsies. So, the story is told from a point of innocence—not just the innocence of a child, but from a culture outside of the warring culture. Andrej remembers his uncle saying, We gypsies are wildcat people. The earth and sky belong to us.

The brothers, escaping the Nazis, find a small zoo in a bombed out town. The caged animals are in need of hope, as are the boys. The animals communicate, but rather than being sentimentalized, they are cantankerous and seem true to their wild behavior.

The animals are dangerous, but don’t they deserve to be freed? Young Tomas’s major concern is the unfairness of life and his proposed solutions are childish. Andrej who is leaving childhood behind, thinks, “Sometimes…being courageous was the least safe thing in the world.” But to overcome your fear is what living is.

The embittered lioness accuses Andrej of being responsible for the war. Andrej tells the lioness, “Every war is everyone’s war.” “Every life is everyone’s battle.”

The boar accuses Andrej that he, as a human, would kill a lioness to take her cub back to civilization to make it a pet. But it will grow up to become a lion. Then what? The lion gets caged, then abandoned in wartime. “You persecute the creatures you fear.”

Both the human and animal characters explore profound ideas. Life is a battle fought alone. Why does war happen? Because humans WANT something. And nothing is more important than that wanting.

Andrea Offerman’s cover art has the animals looking at you imploringly, as if asking, can you be the one? And you, the reader, want to be the one–who will help.

 

Patricia Hruby Powell (www.talesforallages.com) is a nationally touring speaker, dancer, storyteller, librarian and children’s book author.

 

In 1872, Jules Verne wrote “Around the World in Eighty Days,” the rollicking good novel of Phileas Fogg circling the earth. As the 19^th century waned, adventurers were inspired to do likewise.

In the graphic novel, “Around the World” (Candlewick 2010), Matt Phelan tells the story of three such adventurers who take up the quest. If you’ve resisted graphic novels, resist no longer. Phelan’s art is captivating and dramatic without being bombastic.

Thomas Stevens, the first of the three adventurers, is a former miner who sets out in 1884 on a high wheeler—an early bicycle with an immense front wheel. The bicycle was evolving as Stevens took his ride just as a four-wheeler driven by a gasoline engine was being born. Yep, the automobile. So you get some interesting history along with Stevens’ ride, which ended in 1886. This was no eighty day trek. Stevens didn’t use hot air balloons or camels as did Phileas Fogg. How did Stevens cross the oceans? Well, he took a steamship for those bits.

Next comes Nellie Bly, girl reporter, who sets out in 1889, backed by her newspaper, the “New York World”. By steamship, train, horse and carriage, Nellie races against time, gaining publicity along the way. She meets Jules Verne in France, has scheduling set backs, is threatened to be outdone by a surprise competitor, gains more supporters and fame, and circumvents the globe in seventy two days. Nellie becomes a celebrity—the first in the media-driven modern world.

In 1895 retired sea captain, Joshua Slocum, rebuilds a trashed vessel and sets out from Fairhaven, Massachusetts. His wife declines to accompany him, so he sails solo. In his thirty-six foot craft, Slocum navigates by the stars, weathers horrendous storms, a tsunami, hallucinations brought on by tainted food, the horrific conditions around Cape Horn, and finally he anchors back home at Fairhaven after three years on the high seas.

Phelan delves into the depth of his characters with such deft strokes of his pen that you feel his characters’ emotions.

“Reading” these three remarkable journeys is a grand adventure. If you love it the way I do, you might also try Matt Phelan’s “The Storm in the Barn” (Candlewick 2009). If you’re a teacher or the parent of a reluctant reader, consider graphic novels or “sequential art” as a bridge toward reading. To read graphic novels requires concentration and can teach the skill of inference.

 

At Matt’s website you can see the trailers for the books which shows much more of the art. Check it out.

http://www.mattphelan.com/ATW.html

 

In 1975 Saigon, ten-year-old Hà, wakes before dawn on Têt, the Vietnamese New Year, and taps the floor with her toe. A boy is supposed to wake first to touch and bless the house. Never a girl. Hà says, “…only male feet can bring luck. An old angry knot expanded in my throat.” What if her act of defiance has spoiled the family’s luck. Because what happens next is devastating. War-torn Saigon falls to the enemy—to North Vietnam.

So begins “Inside Out and Back Again” by Thanhha Lai (Harper 2011), winner of the National Book Award for Young People. Written in prose poems, it is succinct and fast-paced. 

Years ago, Hà’s father disappeared, undoubtedly taken by the North Vietnamese. But on this day, when the capitol is in chaos, her mother manages to escape with Hà and her three brothers to an overcrowded refugee boat at the river. They drift to the sea without being apprehended by the enemy, but no one arrives to rescue them. Finally, after days of hunger and dehydration on the open seas, an American ship rescues them.

In spite of speaking no English, the family starts over again in Alabama with the help of their sponsor who Hà calls “our cowboy”. He wears a cowboy hat, boots, but has no horse–a sore disappointment to Hà. But he’s kind, although his wife isn’t. Neither are the neighbors. They throw eggs, then a brick through the window.

The cowboy encourages the family to join the Baptist church in order to be accepted by the community. Mother says one religion is like another, so they all get baptized, attend church, but continue to chant before their Buddhist altar at home. Why not.

Unable to speak English at school, Hà is considered stupid. When her tormentor, Pink Boy, cannot multiply 18 x 42, Hà marches to the board and makes the calculation in five easy strokes. This of course makes life even worse for Hà. Not only do they taunt her with ha-ha-ha, but Pink Boy and gang corner her, ready to attack.

Having anticipated this, Hà’s big brother approaches on a motorcycle as planned. Saved. By this time, Hà has befriended a red-haired girl and a boy the “color of coconut shell”. Wise Mrs. Washington, a neighbor and retired teacher tutors Hà in more than just English.

Sparely written, this autobiographical story of assimilation is a must-read.

 

Patricia Hruby Powell (www.talesforallages.com) is a nationally touring speaker, dancer, storyteller, librarian and children’s book author. Joséphine, a picture book biography of the African American dancer, Josephine Baker, will be published by Chronicle Books and available fall 2013.