Relax and enjoy The View from Saturday

The View from Saturday by E. L. Konigsburg; published by Atheneum Books for Young Readers, New York; 1998 (paperback edition).

In a book that feels like a collection of short stories woven together to create a single story, the Academic Team is introduced.  These four shy sixth graders call themselves The Souls.  They drink high tea every Saturday afternoon.  And they use their complementary skills to build their paraplegic teacher’s confidence.  Sound like an unlikely favorite read?  Give it a try and you’ll be surprised by how easy it is to make lemonade when life gives you lemons!

I was skeptical when I started reading this book.  I loved From the Mixed-up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler and I couldn’t believe that an author could write a second Newbery Medal winning book 30 years after her first.  Oh, but Ms. Konigsburg did it and did it well.  This coming of age tale weaves together seemingly disparate back stories into a climactic finale that includes high tea, of all things.  I will be recommending this book.  A colleague is using it in an upper elementary book discussion group; I’m anxious to hear what they have to say about it.  There are so many possibilities for a book club, including introducing high tea (when else might they have that opportunity?). 

Newbery, Caldecott winners announced

ALA and ALSC announced the winners and honorees for the 2012 Youth Media Awards.  The most famous of these are the Newbery and Caldecott medals.  A complete list of winners, honorees, and descriptions of the criteria for all awards is available at the ALSC website: http://www.ala.org/alsc/2012-alsc-book-and-media-award-winners.

Newbery Medal:

Dead End in Norvelt written by Jack Gantos, published by Farrar Straus Giroux

Newbery Honor Books

Inside Out & Back Again written by Thanhha Lai, published by HarperCollins Children’s Books, a division of HarperCollins Publishers

Breaking Stalin’s Nose written by Eugene Yelchin, published by Henry Holt and Company, LLC

Caldecott Medal:

A Ball for Daisy illustrated and written by Chris Raschka, published by Schwartz & Wade Books, an imprint of Random House Children’s Books, a division of Random House, Inc.

Caldecott Honor Books

Blackout illustrated and written by John Rocco, published by Disney/Hyperion Books, an imprint of Disney Book Group

Grandpa Green illustrated and written by Lane Smith, published by Roaring Brook Press, a division of Holtzbrinck Publishing

Me…Jane illustrated and written by Patrick McDonnell, published by Little, Brown and Company, a division of Hachette Book Group, Inc.

2013 Arbuthnot Honor Lecture:

Michael Morpurgo

Batchelder Award:

Soldier Bear written by Bibi Dumon Tak, illustrated by Philip Hopman, translated by Laura Watkinson, published by Eerdmans Books for Young Readers, an imprint of Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co.

Batchelder Honor Book

The Lily Pond written by Annika Thor, translated by Linda Schenck, published by Delacorte Press, an imprint of Random House Children’s Books, a division of Random House, Inc.

Coretta Scott King (Author) Book Award:

Kadir Nelson, author and illustrator of Heart and Soul: The Story of America and African Americans, is the King Author Book winner. The book is published by Balzer + Bray, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers.

King Author Honorees

Eloise Greenfield, author of The Great Migration: Journey to the North, illustrated by Jan Spivey Gilchrist and published by Amistad, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers; and Patricia C. McKissack, author of Never Forgotten, illustrated by Leo and Diane Dillon and published by Schwartz &Wade Books, an imprint of Random House Children’s Books, a division of Random House, Inc.

 Coretta Scott King (Illustrator) Book Award:

Shane W. Evans, illustrator and author of Underground: Finding the Light to Freedom, is the King Illustrator Book winner. The book is a Neal Porter Book, published by Roaring Brook Press, a division of Holtzbrinck Publishing Holdings Limited Partnership.

King Illustrator Honoree  

Kadir Nelson, illustrator and author of Heart and Soul: The Story of America and African Americans, published by Balzar + Bray, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers.

Coretta Scott King – Virginia Hamilton Award for Lifetime Achievement:

Ashley Bryan

Storyteller, artist, author, poet and musician, Bryan created his first children’s book in first grade. He grew up in the Bronx and in 1962, he became the first African American to both write and illustrate a children’s book. After a successful teaching career, Bryan left academia to pursue creation of his own artwork. He has since garnered numerous awards for his significant and lasting literary contribution of poetry, spirituals and story.

Pura Belpre (Illustrator) Award:

Diego Rivera: His World and Ours written and illustrated by Duncan Tonatiuh, published by Abrams Books for Young Readers, an imprint of ABRAMS

Belpre (Illustrator) Honor Books

The Cazuela that the Farm Maiden Stirred illustrated by Rafael López, written by Samantha R. Vamos, published by Charlesbridge

Marisol McDonald Doesn’t Match/Marisol McDonald no combina illustrated by Sara Palacios, written by Monica Brown, published by Children’s Books Press, an imprint of Lee and Low Books Inc.

Pura Belpre (Author) Award:

Under the Mesquite written by Guadalupe Garcia McCall, published by Lee and Low Books Inc.

Belpre (Author) Honor Books

Maximilian and the Mystery of the Guardian Angel: A Bilingual Lucha Libre Thriller written and illustrated by Xavier Garza, published by Cinco Puntos Press

Hurricane Dancers: The First Caribbean Pirate Shipwreck written by Margarita Engle, published by Henry Holt and Company, LLC

Carnegie Award:

Children Make Terrible Pets produced by Paul R. Gagne and Melissa Reilly Ellard, Weston Woods Studios, Inc.

Theodore Seuss Geisel Award:

Tales for Very Picky Eaters written and illustrated by Josh Schneider, published by Clarion Books, an imprint of Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company

Geisel Honor Books

I Broke My Trunk written and illustrated by Mo Willems, published by Hyperion Books for Children, an imprint of Disney Book Group

I Want My Hat Back written and illustrated by Jon Klassen, published by Candlewick Press

See Me Run written and illustrated by Paul Meisel, published by Holiday House

Sibert Medal:

Balloons over Broadway: The True Story of the Puppeteer of Macy’s Parade written and illustrated by Melissa Sweet, published by Houghton Mifflin Books for Children, an imprint of Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company

Sibert Honor Books

Black & White: The Confrontation between Reverend Fred L. Shuttlesworth and Eugene “Bull” Connor written by Larry Dane Brimner, published by Calkins Creek, an imprint of Boyds Mills Press, Inc.

Drawing from Memory written and illustrated by Allen Say, published by Scholastic Press, an imprint of Scholastic Inc.

The Elephant Scientist written by Caitlin O’Connell and Donna M. Jackson, illustrated by Caitlin O’Connell and Timothy Rodwell, published by Houghton Mifflin Books for Children, an imprint of Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company

Witches!: The Absolutely True Tale of Disaster in Salem written and illustrated by Rosalyn Schanzer, published by National Geographic Society

Congratulations to all winners and honorees!

ALSC publishes 2011 Youth Media Award winners and honorees

ALSC has posted the winners of the 2011 Youth Media Awards (in the children’s categories) on their website: http://www.ala.org/ala/mgrps/divs/alsc/awardsgrants/bookmedia/2011medawardwin.cfm

Congratulations to all winners and honorees!

Show Way is family, American history

Show Way by Jacqueline Woodson; illustrated by Hudson Talbott; published by G. P. Putnam’s Sons, a division of Penguin Young Readers Group, New York; 2005.

Jacqueline Woodson has created a book that chronicles a bit of American history along with some impressive family history.  The story of generations of women handing down their ability to share knowledge with others first through their needlework (creating “show ways” or maps to freedom on quilts) then in their ability to tell stories is written as though an oral history was captured on paper.  There’s a bit of a history lesson, about slavery and the pursuit of freedom, in Woodson’s words.  But even more importantly, there is a story of strength and love being passed from generation to generation; a story every mother wants to share with her children.  Remarkably, Hudson Talbott’s multi media illustrations further the story in breathtaking detail.  Look especially for the image of the sisters looking overwhelmed in front of a wall of hateful history.  Using watercolors, chalk, muslin and other fabrics adds dimension to the images, like piecing together the pieces of a patchwork quilt.  Put all together, Show Way sends a powerful message of love, hope and endurance.

All I thought about while reading Show Way was, “Why isn’t this book included in book lists for Martin Luther King, Jr. Day?”  When I worked in an elementary school library, I struggled to find powerful books about King and his message;   a way to use words and pictures to reach the minds and hearts of even the youngest students.  This book does all that.  I will recommend it to others for read-alouds in Black History Month or on MLK Day; I will refer it to parents wondering how to share family history with their own children.  Woodson has shown the way to do that!

When You Reach Me (or Things that Win the Newbery Medal)

When You Reach Me by Rebecca Stead; published by Wendy Lamb Books, an imprint of Random House Children’s Books, New York; 2009.

Sometimes random occurrences are significant, and sometimes they’re not.  Miranda is in sixth grade.  She loses her best friend when he is punched in the stomach (and smacked across the face) by a random kid on their way home from school; significant, right?  Maybe not.  The “quackers” guy that stands in front of her apartment building, kicking and screaming, is just some poor homeless guy; insignificant, right?  New friends, a lunch-hour job, Mom’s appearance on “The $20,000 Pyramid,” and mysterious notes from the future all play feature roles in Miranda’s life in New York City.  Some of these events, occurrences and synchronicities will impact her for today, and some will have repercussions  into the future.

It is really hard for me to summarize this book without giving away important events or without detracting from the absolutely delightfully constructed story.  Rebecca Stead’s 2010 Newbery Medal winning novel is part coming of age story, part futuristic fantasy, and part mystery.  It is, however, all engrossing and thoroughly enjoyable.  I chuckled when turning to a new chapter and finding that the vast majority are written as categories for the 1970s game show (currently reprised, I might add) “The $20,000 Pyramid.”  My favorite part of this book is finding it utterly delightful and realizing that it’s the first Newbery Medalist in awhile that would actually appeal to kids, large numbers of kids as a matter of fact.  It can’t be categorized easily so it can be enjoyed by boys and girls; mystery fans and romance fans (yes, there is a middle school kiss involved); and sci-fi fans or school drama fans.

I definitely would push this book as an independent reading choice and as a middle (or upper elementary) school book club read.  In fact, it’d make a dandy book for a family book club.

Some books stay with you long after you’ve closed the cover.  This is one of those, for me at least.

Rules for living

Rules by Cynthia Lord; published by Scholastic, New York, 2006.

Twelve year old Catherine keeps a list of rules for living.  Some are for her, some are for her 8 year old brother, David.  ”If the bathroom door is closed, knock (especially if Catherine has a friend over” is one of David’s simple rules.  He also has some harder rules, like “Sometimes people laugh when they like you.  But sometimes they laugh to hurt you.”  Catherine’s rules include “Not everything worth keeping has to be useful” and “No dancing unless I’m alone in my room or it’s pitch-black dark.”  Why so many rules?  It is Catherine’s way of dealing with things she can’t control.  Things like the predictable meltdowns of an autistic brother, or the self-conscious struggles every tween faces.  Catherine longs for a friend to talk to, to share frustrations and successes with.  Her hopes are high when the house next door is sold to a family with a daughter her own age.  But Kristi may not be the friend Catherine had hoped for.  Could Jason fill that need for friendship?  But how can he, when he is in a wheelchair and cannot speak?  Catherine finds her voice, speaking up to her parents for equal attention from them, and helps Jason find his, by using her artistic talents to add words to his communication book.  And together, Catherine and Jason find friendship.

As the mother of a boy on the autism spectrum, and a daughter who isn’t, this book hit a resonant chord with me.  Reading the book brought tears and laughter as I related our similar experiences.  When I closed the book after reading the last words, I wanted to call every teacher I know, every teacher the kids ever had, and make them all vow to read this book and include it in their required reading lists.

Wow, Lord nailed my mantra when she wrote this book; I’ll paraphrase a line from the book to express it best: Everyone has a place.  The lessons in acceptance, diversity, and overcoming prejudice are subtly taught in Catherine’s actions and choices.  When elementary school students are working on their citizenship skills, this book should be mandatory reading.  Middle schoolers, with their hormone-induced posturing, should have to read this book.  Teachers, whose actions teach more profoundly than their words, should have to read this book.

That being said, there are other reasons to read Rules. The paperback copy I read includes a section at the end of the book called “After Words.”  Included are an interview with the author, activities, and a bibliography of books about siblings dealing with autistic and special needs brothers and sisters.  The teachable moments continue even after the story is done!

This book is next month’s selection for the middle school book club I participate in.  I can’t wait to see what they have to say about the book!  I’ll be sure to let you know!

Joey Pigza really knocked…oh! look! a chicken!

Joey Pigza Loses Control by Jack Gantos; published by Farrar, Straus and Giroux; New YorkFarrar, Straus and Giroux,New York; 2000.

Joey Pigza has Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder; that fact is portrayed in Gantos’ manic, run-on style from the first sentence in the first paragraph of this entry in the Joey Pigza saga (and a Newbery Honor book).  In this book, Joey spends the summer with a father he’s never known, a father with his own manic issues.  What follows is a peek inside the mind of a child who knows what it feels like to be an outsider, whose medication has given him a glimpse of mainstream life; a child who is more responsible than his father.

My son could be Joey Pigza; through Gantos’ descriptions, I got a glimpse of what the world looks like through his eyes.  I would use this in a display about diversity (because it’s about a kid with special needs).  I would booktalk it to upper elementary students as well since I think all kids would benefit from looking at the world through Joey’s eyes.  I’d also be sure it appears on a pathfinder about special needs, diversity, or a similar topic.

Ooh, to live in a museum

From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler by E. L. Konigsburg; published by Scholastic, New York; 1967.

Claudia Kincaid needed something, some change, in her life.  So she convinces her brother Jamie to run away from home to the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City.  There adventure really takes off when a statue is delivered to the museum, and the mystery of its origins takes root in Claudia’s imagination.  Those roots develop into an adventure of self-discovery.

The author’s afterword in the edition I read provided insight into the characters and their transformations.  Following the afterward are remarkably rich resources, including a list of discussion group questions and activities.

I would most definitely use this book with any museum tie-in program at the library—including a program based on Night at the Museum that would use books and online exhibits.  Using online exhibits from a variety of museums, but especially the Met, would bring this story to life.

Desperate hero in Tale of Despereaux

The Tale of Despereaux: being the story of a mouse, a princess, some soup, and a spool of thread by Kate DiCamillo; published by Candlewick Press, Somerville, Massachusetts, 2003.

Despereaux was a disappointment to his mother—mostly because his ears are of unusually large size.  But his tale of love and bravery is only one of three in this tome.  Roscuro the Rat’s tale and poor Miggery Sow’s story round out the perspectives in the tale of salvation for Princess Pea and the kingdom.

DiCamillo’s narrator speaks directly to readers, asking them to look for the definitions of new words or nudging their thoughts in a particular direction as the story progresses.  Ering’s pencil drawings are a nice addition to a book physically designed to appear old (rough edged pages, a leather-look cover, and the telling of the tales).  I have discovered that Kate DiCamillo is a talented author that can write in many formats and I’d use this book in a book club and discuss the differences in style between this, Because of Winn-Dixie and The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane. I think I’d also do a display of DiCamillo’s books when her next novel, The Magician’s Elephant, is released.

Can’t believe I’d never read this one before!

The Bridge to Terabithia by Katherine Paterson; published by Harper Trophy, New York, 1977.

Jess and Leslie get off to a rough start when she moves into Jess’ neighborhood but it isn’t long before they overcome their differences and discover that they share a special gift: the ability to imagine a world they dub Terabithia.  There they are safe no matter the adventure.  That is, they are safe until one fateful afternoon when Leslie meets with disaster when she tries to visit Terabithia alone.  In the end, Jess must deal with grief and rebuilding relationships.

The illustrations are superfluous to the emotional text that paints a story strong enough to bring tears to the eyes.  I would recommend this book for upper elementary students (even middle schoolers) who are looking for a story that is more than an adventure—to students looking for a more mature read.  Perhaps I would tie it in with the movie version; especially because Terabithia is much more developed in the book than in the movie.

By the way, I just learned that Katherine Paterson is the heir-apparent to Jon Scieszka as the National Ambassador for Children’s Literature.  Brava!