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-

Junonia

I was a little leery of this Kevin Henkes novel for a couple of reasons. First, I believe Henkes is at his best when he's writing picture books about talking mice, kittens, gardens, and rabbits. Second, the few times I have read a novel of his I've been disappointed. OLIVE'S OCEAN and BIRD LAKE MOON were both depressingly dark and dreary. If LILLY'S PURPLE PLASTIC PURSE, KITTEN'S FIRST MOON, and other picture book and early readers are his Summer Blockbusters of sorts, it feels like his novels are his creative, moody Indie flicks!

In JUNONIA, nine-year old Alice Rice travels from Wisconsin with her family to their vacation cottage on Sandibel Island in Florida. It's a trip Alice looks forward to every year and this year is no exception. Especially since Alice will be celebrating her tenth birthday with the summer "family" she's come to love. However when Alice discovers that many of the regular vacationers the family spends each summer with are not coming this year, she begins to worry that her special tenth birthday won't be so special after all.

On the surface, JUNONIA is a simple, quick read, with larger than normal text and only 176 pages of story. By story's end however, a lot of big ideas wash to shore. In a way, JUNONIA is about the loss of innocence. The moment in a child's life when they begin to realize they are outgrowing certain common comforts. Alice realizes this as she makes her way through a beachy graveyard at one point in the story, and ponders some of life's biggest questions (as only a ten-year old could). Of course the presence of the younger, more immature, Mallory forces Alice to behave and reason in a more grown-up way . . . but I felt that Alice was aware of these feelings the moment she stepped foot on Florida sand, long before Mallory even entered the picture.

One thing I've learned in seven years of teaching is that kids are thinkers. Their minds are always soaking in details and processing information and reacting to that information in one way or another. Kids are selfish, yet sensitive by nature and knowing how to react to all sorts of new feelings is not something they know how to do. One thing Henkes does so well in JUNONIA is depict how jumbled of a process this can be. Poor Alice is confused and frustrated and sad about so many things, and sorting out all of these feelings is new territory for her. Luckily she has a mother and a father who have the ability to read her face like a book and shown her the joy and release that can be found in letting go of things and accepting other people for who they are. So much in this book leaves Alice at a loss for words though, and Henkes does a marvelous job of portraying this.

I enjoyed JUNONIA. It's much more light-hearted than some of Henkes' more recent novels and the text has an airy, island feel to it. I loved the different descriptions of the many shells Alice collects and didn't even realize that there are so many different kinds of shells. In the end, I had hoped for a little more closure on Mallory and her situation, but I understand that this is Alice's story. Maybe down the road, Henkes will want to follow up on Mallory, but I'm afraid that story could only be a return to the dark and depressing Henkes I wasn't ever fond of. So for now, I'll appreciate JUNONIA for the junonia shell that it is.

Final Grade: B+

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 . . .

Amelia Lost: The Life and Disappearance of Amelia Earhart

Amelia Earhart may be one of the more popular, recognizable women names in our history and Candace Fleming's new nonfiction biography of the famous flier, throws into question nearly everything we've ever come to assume about the woman. It's a rather fascinating read.

For instance, was it widely known that as a young lady, Amelia and her sister Muriel loathed their father and his alcoholism? "Each night the girls listened for their father's footsteps outside the house. A brisk step meant that a sober, loving Edwin was coming home; a shuffling pace meant the return of that angry, thick-tongued stranger who cursed and yelled."?

Or how many people have heard of the name Amy Phipps Guest? Guest is the fifty-five year old wealthy woman that Amelia owes all her fame and fortune to. Guest wanted to become the sixth woman to attempt (and first to achieve) flying across the Atlantic. When her age got the best of her she opted to foot the bill instead. Amelia was pretty enough and bold enough to meet Guest's requirements. The rest is history.

Is it written in other Earhart biographies that Amelia often powdered her nose or applied fresh coats of makeup after crashes (which apparently happened all the time in the 1920's), just in case reporters would come? Or that she purchased a knee-length leather aviator jacket and slept in it for three nights straight, just to look the part of a pilot?

It's such an unflinching look at Amelia's life and Fleming doesn't hold back in her presentation. In fact, upon finishing this, it's difficult to find much to like about Earhart! She was arrogant, brass, cunning, and stubborn and she loved hoarding the spotlight (even at a young age). She loved speaking passionately to crowds of women, urging them and inspiring them to strive for more than they were given at that point in our history. Yet Amelia herself was never about to let any other woman steal her fame.

The most interesting thing to me, according to Fleming's research, is that nearly everything the general public was ever fed about Amelia's life was heavily fabricated by her and her husband George Putnam, all in an attempt to turn Amelia into a celebrity of sorts. In fact, Amelia was a rather poor pilot. Putnam worked incredibly hard to cover this up! Fleming suggests that there were plenty of other more talented female pilots flying at the time, but that Amelia was the only one seizing the stage and demanding all the glory.

Fleming balances the biography portion of the story with intermittent scenes from the rescue mission for Amelia. The pacing is suspenseful and the backstory Fleming fills in is surprisingly depressing in that Amelia may have no one to blame for her demise but herself. In turning down radio training in preparation for her final flight, in favor of press conferences and photo shoots, she was left with little to no knowledge of how the radio of her plane worked. Leaving her stranded with no means of communication once her plane missed its destination.

It's a captivating read and one that sheds new light on one of America's first and most popular heroines. It's definitely worth a read, regardless of how you feel about Amelia in the end.

Final Grade: A-

The Incorrigible Children of Ashton Place: The Hidden Gallery

I have to say for me personally, one of the more enjoyable reads I recall from last year (2010) was THE INCORRIGIBLE CHILDREN OF ASHTON PLACE: THE MYSTERIOUS HOWLING. It reminded me of Lemony Snicket's A SERIES OF UNFORTUNATE EVENTS! Fans of his, Pseudonymous Bosch, Trenton Lee Stewart, and Dr. Cuthbert Soup, I'm sure would agree. While the second book of the planned trilogy, THE HIDDEN GALLERY, doesn't answer any of the questions the first book raised, it does continue on in the same fashion, opening even more doors that will hopefully be explored (and closed shut) in the third and final book.

Still reeling from the events that transpired near the end of book one, Miss Penelope Lumley is in need of a break from Ashton Place. When she suggests to Lady Constance that her and the children visit London for the summer, Lady Constance jumps at the opportunity to relocate the whole lot of them! Ashton Place is in need of some serious renovations and Lady Constance can't stand the clutter and mess, so off to London they go. With a mysterious guide book (given to Penelope as a gift from her former teacher Miss Charlotte Mortimer) as their only resource, Penelope and the Incorrigibles set out to explore all London has to offer.

These books are not for everyone. In fact, when reading them out loud to my fifth grade students, briefly summarizing each chapter was of high importance. Maryrose Wood rambles quite incessantly and pulling out the key events and details (and clues) can sometimes prove tricky. My students' eyes definitely glazed over from time to time, but the mysterious elements to the plot kept their ears eagerly tuned in. My students, and I'm sure other avid fans would agree, desperately want to know where these children came from, and why Penelope Lumley became involved in their upbringing in the first place. That hook alone, is enough to keep them returning to the story. Which is quite the feat, if you ask me. It speaks volumes of Wood's ability to get her readers to care for her characters.

In the same fashion as Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events, many mysteries are explored in book one, only to be briefly forgotten in book two so that even more mysteries can bubble to the surface. Where did these children come from? Why is Lord Frederick's almanac so important to him? What was hiding behind the attic wall in Ashton Place? Who was behind the sabotage of Lady Constance's Christmas party? Wood brilliantly doles out important information left over from book one at various times throughout this book. This way the first chapter or two are not wasted summarizing the information, as many sequels do.

Wood's writing is so good, it's difficult to pull out just a few examples. The entire book is filled with interesting phrases and clever uses of language. I loved this sentence:

- However, just as a carelessly spilled puddle of India ink blots out the line of practice cursive letters painstakingly written on the paper beneath, the anxiety-producing contents of Miss Mortimer's letter blotted out any other emotions Penelope may have had.

Here's another taste. Miss Charlotte Mortimer is Penelope's former mentor and teacher. We've heard so much about her and in book number two, we finally get to meet her! And her introduction, is awesome:

- Penelope wondered if it was a desire for secrecy that had prompted Miss Mortimer's choice of restaurant and not just an appreciation for ferns - but she did not have to wonder for long. With a flourish, the maitre d' held back an armful of foliage so that Penelope could enter the leafy, secluded room. There, at a charming table for two, with her only companion being the thin plume of steam that rose lazily from the teapot before her, sat Miss Charlotte Mortimer.

Talk about a grand entrance! It's a mouthful, I know. And as I said, this book and it's style is not for the average middle age reader. But for the above average middle age reader, who's willing to put a little extra effort into what they read, this book (and series) is a delight. It feels as if author Maryrose Wood has undoubtedly made it so some predictions are rather easy to make (ex. What is up with Lord Frederick? and Why is Penelope's strikingly natural auburn hair the exact same color as the Incorrigibles?) so as to keep readers' attention and let them feel some success. But I have a feeling that other answers are going to come out of left field and naturally blow us away. Who knows if all our questions will even be answered!

What was The Hixby's Guide and where did it come from? Where are Penelope's parents and will they return for her? Who has cursed the Incorrigibles and why? What exactly does Miss Charlotte Mortimer know that she's not letting on? When will the mysterious Agatha Swanburne's true intentions be revealed? And where did these three Incorrigibles come from? Book Three can't come soon enough!

Final Grade: A-