Newbery Lament

So, if there are any readers out there, checking in, you'll have noticed that I struck out blindly with my Newbery predictions. Ah well. The one year I feel as if I've read a wider range than usual, and I'm smacked back to earth and proven totally out of my league! As I said, ah well. At least I'd heard of DEAD END IN NORVELT. I actually own a copy of it. It just hasn't risen to the top of my pile yet.

The two gems that I would have personally loved to see some admiration for were PIE by Sarah Weeks and ICEFALL by Matthew Kirby. ICEFALL did manage to receive a Cybill nomination this year, as well as an Edgar Award nomination, so at least it has that going for it.

Why did I like these two books so much? I don't know. PIE isn't necessarily the type of book I'd normally enjoy. Over at Heavy Medal one commenter summarized it as "light entertainment fluff". I suppose it fits that description, but it doesn't really pretend to be anything else either. It's "light entertainment fluff" done extremely well, and Weeks doesn't hide it.

I liked the mystery. I like the friendship between Alice and Charlie. I like getting to know Aunt Polly through seamless flashback scenes. I like the humor. I like that it doesn't take itself too seriously, as evidenced by the numerous jabs at the Newbery Medal (some characters in the book make it a point to go after a "Blueberry Award", which coincidentally enough has criteria eerily similar to that of the prestigious children's literature award). I like that it is kid friendly and gender neutral. My 5th grade class loved it as a read aloud.

Sure there were things that didn't make sense, like why would anyone care about a Mayoral election in a town as small as Ipswitch? And why would anyone hate their sister as much as Alice's mother hated Polly? And how could a woman as talented as Polly afford to live by giving away her labor for free? And why in the world would a woman leave a much sought after piecrust recipe to . . . well, that I better not get into.

Unlike the light, whipped mystery in PIE, Matthew Kirby's ICEFALL weaves a tale that Megan Whalen Turner herself would be proud of. The plot is fairly simple: To keep his family safe during a time of war, a Viking king sends them to hide in a glacier of sorts, and wait out the winter to return until all is safe. While in hiding however, his family and their protectors, begin to fear that someone amongst them is up to no good.

This is really a coming of age tale, set against the back drop of the Vikings' time. Solveig is the book's star, the king's ignored daughter, who has to not only get to the bottom of the treachery unfolding before her, but also learn how to question the blinding trust she's placed for so many years in those she's loved.

It's a slow start, glacier paced at best, but it adds to the claustrophobic atmosphere Kirby is after. By the time things begin to fall apart, we actually care because we feel as if we too, are trapped with this group of characters. Everyone seems to be a suspect, yet no one seems to be a suspect. It's a brilliant series of events that end in a thrilling, emotional climax. And . . . Kirby has succeeded in creating something more accessible than Megan Whalen Turner's heavier work, yet keep it in the same vein as her tales without sacrificing anything. I can't say enough about the book. Give it a read.

(Somewhat obvious by now) Final Grades:

PIE: A

ICEFALL: A+

A Monster Calls

I can only think of two ideal readers for A MONSTER CALLS by Patrick Ness. A middle grade student with a terminally ill parent, and an adult reader, marveling at the brilliance of Ness's beautiful prose and storytelling ability. Other than that, while powerful and moving, I cannot say A MONSTER CALLS is a book for everyone.

At 12:07 am, Conor is visited by a monster. However this is not the monster Conor has been expecting. This monster has come to help Conor face a truth he has been avoiding. Conor and the monster strike up a deal. The monster will tell Conor three stories and then Conor in turn, will tell the monster the truth. If only it were that easy.

I would hate for a student to pick this book up expecting a frightful ghost story, something along the lines of Alvin Schwartz's SCARY STORIES TO TELL IN THE DARK. The creepy cover image and the incredible illustrations that wrap themselves around the text throughout the story may give that impression. Such a reader would be sorely disappointed.

What we get from Ness (inspired by an idea from the late Siobhan Dowd) is much more scary than ghosts and ghouls though. We are forced to witness a child learning how to let go of his mother when her cancer treatments begin to fail her. It's difficult to describe how well Patrick Ness has balanced his beautiful prose (reminiscent of Gaiman's THE GRAVEYARD BOOK) with some truly violent, raw, heart-wrenching scenes. But he does so in a way that is unlike anything else I've read in a children's book before.

I'm just not sure many children will get this, let alone like it. I think some could relate to Conor's smug tone, but I'm not sure many others would actually like Conor enough to care about him. Plus, the book is incredibly dark and dreary, with not a lot helping ease the feeling. One 'product description' I read somewhere used the word "funny" to describe this novel. I don't see it. Nothing about this book is funny or lighthearted. It's devastating actually.

But it is good. It's very good. One could learn a thing or two from Ness, in how to craft a story. It's an eerie character study of how one's impending grief can consume them like a monster. Of how the various stages of grief, some ugly, some mean, some fond and loving, can take control of us as those we love leave this world.

Final Grade: A-

Okay for Now

In 2005, Gary D. Schmidt's LIZZY BRIGHT AND THE BUCKMINSTER BOY received a Newbery Honor. Many children's literature enthusiasts at the time cried foul, feeling it deserved a Medal instead. In 2008, Schmidt's THE WEDNESDAY WARS also received a Newbery Honor. The outcry in this case, was even more intense. The novel had an enormous following. Suffice it to say, Schmidt's WEDNESDAY WARS companion novel, OKAY FOR NOW, had some major Newbery buzz long before it was even released.

In OKAY FOR NOW, 14 year-old Doug Swieteck has just moved to Marysville, NY so his belligerent father could take a job at a paper mill, after losing his original job in a fit of rage. Doug feels out of place in "stupid Marysville." Doug feels out of place in his own family. His father thinks of him as a "chump". His oldest "jerk" brother Lucas, is off getting "beat up by Vietcong" while his other (unnamed at first) "jerk" older brother regularly abuses him at home. He loves his mother but feels terrible for her. It isn't until Doug meets Lil Spicer, that he begins to feel more at home in Marysville. Lil is a spunky girl who gets Doug a job with her father delivering groceries. Lil and Doug strike up a friendship and she introduces Doug to the Marysville Public Library which in turn, introduces Doug to the work of John James Audubon. Through Audubon's drawings of birds, Doug begins to find the courage to make something more for himself. If only his father wouldn't make it so difficult for him.

Doug Swieteck is the type of narrator you pay attention to. He's blunt and in-your-face rude at times, but he's also endearing. Doug's voice is the most impressive thing about Schmidt's novel. He often puts the reader on the spot. "So what?" He challenges the reader to pay attention to what he says. Many times he'll even check and see if you're still paying attention. There's a few brilliant examples of this. At one point in the story, Doug is learning how to draw a Large-Billed Puffin's foot so that it appears underwater. Just when he begins to "get it" his brother bursts onto the scene, making fun of his drawing before destroying it. "Can't you even draw a foot right," he says to Doug. "It looks like it's underwater." The scene plays out for a while longer and ends with a smile plastered on Doug's face, even though he should be upset with his brother. "If you were paying attention back there," Doug tells the reader, "you'd know why."

At another point in the story Doug is being talked down to by his school principal, Principal Peattie. Principal Peattie says something so defeating to Doug, that Doug is too distraught to even repeat it in his narrative. Many references are made to what Principal Peattie said throughout the chapter but the reader is left hanging. Then many pages later, when Doug's brother Lucas returns from Vietnam and the family finds themselves in the midst of a terrible protest, Doug reveals to us what Principal Peattie said, and it's timing could not be more impeccable.

I would say that Schmidt's one fault with OKAY FOR NOW is that he does try and cram a lot into this novel. And most of it, primarily the second half of the book, feels a bit rushed. I'm not suggesting Schmidt should have added even more to his 360 page story. I just can't help but believe that some of this could've been trimmed back. A somewhat unbelievable sidestory of Doug and Lil being cast in a Broadway musical requires some suspension of disbelief as does many other instances near the book's dramatic conclusion.

But Schmidt makes this suspension of disbelief easy. I believed every word Doug said. I believed in the way each plot thread was closed up and all the character transformations rang true to me. Even Schmidt's "villains" were allowed page space to grow and show depth. Mrs. Merriam the librarian; Coach Reed the "so-called" gym teacher; Principal Peattie; Doug's brothers; and even Doug's father. I also love the way that Doug compares many of these characters (as well as his feelings) to Audubon's bird drawings. Whereas THE WEDNESDAY WARS featured Shakespeare, OKAY FOR NOW introduces readers to Audubon, and the inclusion is terrific.

It's been a long time since I've read a book this engaging. In my opinion, it firmly lives up to the hype.

Final Grade: A

Inside Out and Back Again v. Hidden: Two Novels in Verse

In any other given year, INSIDE OUT AND BACK AGAIN by Thanhha Lai would be the sort of novel that the Newbery committee would drool over. Written in verse, with beautiful poetic language, it tells the story of 10-year-old Ha and her family as they leave their war-torn home of Vietnam to settle in the United States. Ha's father has been missing in action for 9 years and the transition to American culture is not easy. This kind of character drama is the stuff the Newbery committee loves. But this year, this particular free verse novel, has some pretty stiff competition.

HIDDEN by Helen Frost, is another free verse novel told from the point of view of two different girls, Wren Abbott and Darra Monson. When Wren was eight years old, a man stole her mother's car from a gas station and drove off. Unbeknownst to the man, Wren was in the backseat. Wren's next two days are spent trapped in the man's garage, hiding in his boat, eavesdropping on their family, and finding brief companionship in the family's cat Archie. Darra, the man's daughter, after seeing a news report of the missing girl, guesses that Wren must be hiding in their garage somewhere. Without telling her mother or father, she attempts to help by leaving food out for Wren. She even devises a plan to get her out unseen, but never gets to see it through. Wren is able to escape without the two girls ever actually meeting face to face. Six years later though, the two girls attend the same summer camp and those harrowing days Wren spent trapped in the Monson's garage come haunting back.

It's probably not fair to compare the two novels. They are each their own separate entities. However after reading both, Lai's attempt at free verse in INSIDE OUT AND BACK AGAIN seems rather meager compared to Frost's intricate and brilliantly designed plot. With INSIDE OUT AND BACK AGAIN, I feel that there is no real reason to tell the story in verse. The language is beautiful and poetic, but I feel that if Lai would not have been somewhat confined to the artistic style she chose, there may have actually been more of a story here. What we have are feelings and events pieced together in a rather sparse, and sometimes sporadic manner. I'm sure the intent was to have these small, quiet moments in Ha's narrative stand out loud and clear when they weren't surrounded by much context. But instead, I found it to be quite the opposite. I just didn't think there was much to this piece and I can't find much to say about it. Plus, it's kind of boring.

In HIDDEN however, the free verse serves an important purpose. Both Wren and Darra share the role of narrator and each do it in their own brand of free verse poetry. This gives them two very distinct voices. Wren's narrative is similar to that of Lai's style from INSIDE OUT AND BACK AGAIN, a more traditional form of free verse. It's beautiful on the page and reads effortlessly. At times, Wren's free verse narration is even incredibly suspenseful. Darra's narrative is of Frost's own creation. It's more a heavier style of narrative poetry, detailed and descriptive and even kind of a puzzle. When solved it gives the reader further insight into how Darra experienced the same event six years ago.

There are a few plot particulars of HIDDEN that did hold it back from being perfect though. Eight year old, pink and pigtailed, delicate little Wren behaves with such maturity and resourcefulness when surviving in the Monson garage that some suspension of disbelief is required on the reader's part. Later in the book, when Darra finds out that her father is being released from prison in a few months, Wren coincidentally receives an "urgent" phone call from her parents, interrupting her final few weeks of summer camp, informing her of the very same news. "We thought we should let you know," says her father. Why exactly couldn't it wait a couple of weeks, I ask? Probably, convenience of moving the plot along. But I'm willing to forgive Frost those minor blunders because the end result is so powerful.

I understand that the two books are aimed at two entirely different age sets. INSIDE OUT AND BACK again is geared toward the younger Newbery audience members while HIDDEN is definitely written for the upper end. I appreciate the fact that Lai's novel introduces younger readers to the free verse form, but just can't get over how far superior Frost's book is.

INSIDE OUT AND BACK AGAIN Final Grade: C+

HIDDEN Final Grade: A-

Chime

17-year old Briony Larkin deserves to be hung. Or at least she thinks she does. Because Briony is a witch and that's what happens to witches circa 1900 New England. Since Briony and her witchy ways were responsible for her stepmother's death and an accident that left her younger sister Rose damaged forever, she hates herself. That is, until a land developer Mr. Clayborne comes to town with his handsome son Eldric. Briony has a difficult time keeping her feelings for Eldric in check when he gives her attention she's not used to. When Mr. Clayborne's plan to develop a portion of Briony's Swampsea village threatens the magical "Old Ones" who live in the swamp, Briony sets out to save the "Old Ones", her family, and risk unveiling the very secret that could cost her her life.

I really had no business reading this book. First, take a look at the cover. I could have gotten beat up by a number of my friends for carrying this book around toting a cover like that. Second, this book is squarely rooted in the Young Adult realm of children's literature. That's not my forte. But I really wanted to give this book a chance. Step outside of my comfort zone for a moment. Every year some interesting discussions are had surrounding Newbery eligible titles and whether or not they are "too old" for Newbery gold. I can never take part in these discussions because I don't read YA. After reading a review that compared CHIME to the work of Elizabeth George Speare, I thought it might be worth the risk.

It wasn't. Not really.

This book doesn't have a snowball's chance in you-know-where at winning any sort of Newbery honor. With curse words scattered throughout, and a rather lengthy, rather sexual, inner conversation about girls' underpants, this book is definitely material for the Prinz and not the Newbery.

However, with that fact aside, I did read it, so I will review it.

CHIME is good, but not great. Briony is one heck of a narrator. Her snarky, wit is fantastic. From the opening sentence ("I've confessed to everything and I'd like to be hanged.") her self-loathe is felt, but definitely not shared, by the reader.

The plot is mysterious and eerie (especially a scene involving . . . SPOILER . . . an innocent girl being hanged while a village watches and waits for her to turn to ashes, which she never does) and the writing is top-notch. Check out some of these samples:

• "You may call me Briony," I said, "which makes it awfully convenient because so does everyone else."
• Silence clawed at my throat. It left a taste of burnt matches.
• The roof was slippery with moonlight.
• His voice hadn't undergone it's morning ironing.

There are times, when reading a book though, it becomes apparent that a setting was obviously so fully realized in the mind of the author, but not executed as such on the page. This is one of those times, for me anyway. I had serious troubling picturing the swamp and got lost in the endless adjectives used to describe it. The one area of the book that had the potential to be uber-distinguished just fell flat for me.

I also had an issue with the revelations made in the ending. For a book that takes itself so seriously, with such brilliant language throughout, to end in such a predictable way was simply a letdown. There wasn't a twist I didn't see coming thanks to some heavy, heavy foreshadowing throughout.

My troubles with this novel may result from it being outside the typical age range of stories I prefer to read. Which if that's the case, my final grade may need to be digested with a grain of salt. Many folks in the YA world will undoubtedly love this (it did already receive a Boston Globe Horn Book Honor Award) and I'm sure many Twilight teens will devour it whole.

Final Grade: B

Summer Reading

Well, it's not much, but I have been reading some this summer. Our last day of school was June 9th and we start back up early August this year, meaning this teacher's summer has dwindled from roughly three months to two!

I have read AMELIA LOST, a nonfiction title getting lots of Newbery buzz this year. I'm trying to put together my thoughts on it and soon, very soon, will post a review.

I have read LUCKY CAP, my new favorite author Patrick Jennings' latest and didn't like it as much as GUINEA DOG, but it's still great.

I have broadened my horizons and read a young adult title, CHIME, that is also receiving plenty of buzz, and should spark some interesting discussions come Heavy Medal time! I will try to gather my thoughts and post on that title as well.

I have had in my possession but yet to read, INSIDE OUT AND BACK AGAIN, another strong Newbery contender. It's written in verse so should be a quick read. One I'd like to finish this week so I could move onto others before the school year starts back up.

A few I'd like to get my hands on yet (or read) before the year's end:
- YOUNG FREDLE
- LUNCH-BOX DREAM
- BREADCRUMBS
- OKAY FOR NOW
- THE MOSTLY TRUE STORY OF JACK
- WONDERSTRUCK

More thoughts soon . . .

The Trouble With May Amelia

I have not read OUR ONLY MAY AMELIA by Jennifer Holm. My first foray into the world of Ms. Holm came in reading TURTLE IN PARADISE this past year. Historical fiction is not always my cup of tea and perhaps that is why TURTLE IN PARADISE impressed me so. A genre of book I don't normally read for pleasure, yet I couldn't get Turtle and her Diaper Gang of cousins out of my mind. Anytime a book catches a reader off guard in a good way, it tends to linger on and leave a lasting impression.

Written in the same spunky, first person narrative style as TURTLE IN PARADISE, THE TROUBLE WITH MAY AMELIA grabbed me with it's opening sentence:

My brother Wilbert tells me that I'm like the grain of sand in an oyster. Someday I will be a Pearl, but I will nag and irritate the poor oyster and everyone else up until then.

May Amelia is far from irritating to me as a reader, but to her father and family full of boys, she's nothing but trouble. She's witty, she's strong-willed, she's not near as proper as she's expected to be, and she never lets anyone get the best of her. She's learned how to survive as the lone girl in her small pioneer farming community of boys in 1900, Washington State and she refuses to take guff from any of them. That is, until a business man comes to Pappa with a proposition and he needs May Amelia to translate to Finn for him. Suddenly, May Amelia begins to wonder herself if she's good for nothing.

As with TURTLE IN PARADISE, the strengths of this book come in May Amelia's voice, Holm's impeccable characterizations, and her strong sense of setting. Details specific to the time period and setting (such as the Dunking Box at school) make the dark, damp, and chill of Washington State in 1900 come alive off the page. And through May Amelia's eyes, each character grows and develops in realistic fashion through the course of the book. Her siblings are almost as memorable as the Diaper Gang!

Life in 1900 was a lot of work and Holm sugar coats nothing. The manual labor of maintaining a farm was not easy and each child shares the load. Pappa's job at the lumber mill is dangerous and when some of May Amelia's brothers are forced to work there as well, the danger is intensified. Balancing this gloom with May Amelia's witty humor, is done exceptionally well.

The thing that impressed me so while reading TURTLE IN PARADISE was how Jennifer Holm's figurative language was so fitting to the narrator's voice. The same is true with THE TROUBLE WITH MAY AMELIA. Every word from May Amelia was a word I fully believed she'd say. Look at some of these writing samples:

• My brother Wendell wants to be a doctor, so he doesn't hold to things he can't squeeze between his fingers.

• Sunday is a day of rest but nobody bothered to tell the big bear who knocked down the fence in our field where our sheeps graze.

• It's spelling time and I'm starting to see Berle's point of view. Not much use in knowing how to spell words on a farm. The cows don't care if we can spell "hay.' All they want to do is eat it.

• Sorry about stealing your teacher away, Mr. Clayton says to me. A good wife is hard to find. A good teacher is even harder to find, I reply.

In terms of plot, THE TROUBLE WITH MAY AMELIA may be even better than TURTLE IN PARADISE. It's a little tighter and not so far-fetched (as TURTLE became near it's conclusion). I do realize it's a little unfair to compare the two, as Holm has authored a book about May Amelia previously and Turtle is not even in this same universe, but TURTLE IN PARADISE is the only other Holm book I've read and the similarities were so striking, it was hard not to be reminded of it.

I debated about whether to read OUR ONLY MAY AMELIA first but decided against it. Often times when discussing the Newbery Medal and "sequels" the debate of whether or not the title can "stand alone" is brought up. When Newbery discussions heat up this winter, I fully expect THE TROUBLE WITH MAY AMELIA to be brought up. Not having read this book's predecessor, I can now attest to its ability to "stand alone".

Jennifer Holm is no stranger to the Newbery (Honoring in 2011, 2007, and 2000) and here's hoping THE TROUBLE WITH MAY AMELIA only follows suit!

Final Grade: A

Small Persons With Wings

I'm a slow reader. Each year, dozens of books are released that I would love to read and I only get around to reading about two of them. What happens then is I spend the next year reading books from the previous year while more dozens of new books are released that I want to read as well. It's a vicious cycle and I always feel so behind. So this year I set a goal for myself, to read 10 books published in 2011. I can fill the rest of my time spent reading with whatever I want and this way, still feel current. The first book I could get my hands on this year was Ellen Booraem's SMALL PERSONS WITH WINGS.

When she was young, Mellie Turpin's best friend was a fairy. A fairy named Fidius to be exact. After announcing this to her classmates at school she's made fun of and called Fairy Fat, a name that sticks throughout the years and turns her into a social outcast. Little does she know (and soon does she find out), that her family serves as protector of an ancient fairy artifact known as the Gemmaluna, a moonstone ring that stores all of the fairies most natural, true magic (Magic Vera). The fairy community wants to get back to their roots and become one with their ancient magic once again, but to do so they need the Gemmaluna. Mellie's family is ready to rid themselves of the responsibility, but someone in the fairy community wants the ring for themselves. And they'll stop at nothing to take it.

With multiple starred reviews, this book has already caught the eye of some folks making early 2012 Newbery Medal predictions. Without reading anything else the year has to offer yet, I can definitely see why. It's very strong in voice and language. Mellie is cynical and witty. She's an outcast because of her weight (something not often found in children's books) and her belief in fairies. She's a hard person to like because she's such a smart aleck and even when people reach out to her, she lashes out keeping them at bay. Because of the way she's been treated in the past she's hardened. But this is what makes her such an endearing character too. Despite the wise-cracks and the sarcastic tone, Mellie is a girl longing for attention. A girl seeking approval even from those closest to her. She's a scrappy fighter and makes for a great heroine, although I did wish she'd take herself, and the plot, a little more seriously.

The writing here is top notch as well. I loved the following description:

It's a Saturday in October, one of those fall days that makes you think summer is overrated. The sky is so blue you wouldn't believe it if you saw it in a painting. The air is warm and sweet, smelling like dead leaves and the good kind of mold, the kind that stays outdoors.

Broken down to its sentence level, writing like this will undoubtedly earn Booraem props. It's fresh and witty and found throughout the book.

Often times being pleasantly surprised by a book causes the material to stay with you longer and to appreciate it more. I've got to be honest, the rave reviews drew me to this book, but the subject matter (fairies) and the girlie, glittery cover brought out my skepticism. At the heart of this story is a coming-of-age tale about an overweight girl growing into her grandeur. But beneath even that are some truly terrifying ideas I was astonished to find. The description of the real Gigi Kramer is frightening and the idea that the fairies can alter the way humans see reality is a scary concept. The way Gigi Kramer messes with illusions may keep some younger readers up all night. Scary stuff, and a little unexpected.

Not everything in this book worked entirely for me though and one example would be the development of Booraem's plot. It's quick and suspenseful, sure. And the pacing is rather effortless. I found myself burning the midnight oil as soon as Gigi Kramer's true intentions were revealed. However, I also found myself flipping back to previous sections for clarification. The fairy world that Booraem has created is very intricate and complex. Often, it's too imposing.

From what I understand, the fairies initially possessed a very natural, organic magic known as Magic Vera. Over time some fairies became bored with this and came up with Magic Artifica, a more sinister kind of magic involving illusion. As the entire community of fairies moved further in the direction of Magic Artifica they captured their Magic Vera and contained it inside the Gemmaluna, so as to never lose it. A third magic, Magic Mala then came along, more sinister and dark even than Magic Artifica, and it requires the power of a Circulus. The Circulus is a group of fairies spinning around very quickly, supplying the entire fairy community with a source power to draw from. Like a generator. Some fairies are good enough to perform Magic Mala (the ability to manipulate and move inanimate objects) without the use of a Circulus and that idea becomes very frightening to many fairies. Thus, a campaign to return to the days of Magic Vera. But for that, they need the Gemmaluna, which has been given to the Turpin family to look after for all these years. It's all very clever, and something I wish I could be clever enough to think of myself, but it's also incredibly confusing. It took a lot of rereading to get all that down and I don't even know if I have it all right!

I enjoyed this book and I think among students bridging the space between elementary school and middle school, or junior high, this book will definitely find a home. It's snarky, it's hilarious, it's heartfelt, and it's exciting. Plus it's well-written and it stands on it's own without the promise of future installments!

Final Grade: B

One Crazy Summer

Rita Williams-Garcia's ONE CRAZY SUMMER is the story of three little girls traveling from Brooklyn to Oakland to spend their summer with the mother that abandoned them years earlier.

Heaps and heaps of critical praise have been piled upon this book but I can't dole it out. I don't know if I can effectively explain why, but I will sure try! Some of the reasons this didn't sit well with me . . .

The voice. The one element of this novel that is praised by many is the one element of this novel that felt insincere to me. Delphine is our narrator, the oldest of the three, and she's taken on the role of caretaker in her mother's absence. The problem is, there is absolutely no reason for her to do so. Delphine and the girls live in Brooklyn with their loving father and their loving grandmother. We know they care for these girls and have taught them well because the girls tell us so throughout the book. They are constantly reminded of some words of wisdom bestowed upon them by either their grandmother or their father. They've been taught well. So why does Delphine feel this added pressure?

I would overlook this if it wasn't a major part of the story. But it is. Cecile, the girls' mother, is a terrible mother. She is not thrilled by the girls' visit and she doesn't want them to be involved in her life. The one thing that Cecile teaches Delphine in the book is to be selfish, take time for herself, and to let go of being so protective of her younger sisters. Delphine learning this from the mother she detests, her selfish mother, is a pretty big moment in the book, given that Delphine has tried very hard to not be like her mother. But it's cheapened by the fact that Delphine's protective instincts are self-imposed for no believable reason. Which leads me to another reason this book fell flat . . .

The message. I have a difficult time finding anything in this book that is uplifting, or positive, for children readers. Maybe that is the point. Families don't always get back together. Sometimes parents suck. If so, I'd love to ask Rita Williams-Garcia why she ended the story so optimistically then. By doing so, her message becomes very conflicting. Is she trying to paint the Black Panthers in a more positive, non-violent light? Is she trying to say it's okay for parents to abandon their children as long as they have the greater good of the people in mind?

By story's end, the girls and Cecile have come to terms with each other . . . but I don't see how. Cecile changed very, very little while the girls stayed with her. Sure she took baby steps in warming up to her daughters, but nothing worthy of their forgiveness or redemption. When the girls forgive her, I found myself scratching my head. I surely wouldn't forgive her! Cecile is selfish and distant. The fact that the reader turns the final page with a hopeful feeling of reprieve, is off-putting to me. I'd have had far more respect for the book if Delphine would not have been fooled and left Oakland as angry as when she arrived!

I honestly don't think I could put this book in the hands of my 5th grade students and hold their interest. I'm sure that many could relate to Delphine, or Fern, or Vonetta, and their situation, but I don't think that alone is enough to propel them through the book. The length of the book is reasonable, but the plot is slow moving, and the title incredibly misleading. The writing is good and for the most part, the author stays out of the story, but historical fiction and mother abandonment have been done so much better before.

My final grade: C+