Summer Daze
ON BEING THANKFUL
by
Kate Marley
Just about every family will have something to be especially
thankful for this month, and the following books reflect the
variety of reasons for counting one’s blessings.
Particularly as a nation that built itself on immigration,
the quest for religious and political freedom is extremely
apropos. But personal freedom is important also, and in one
way or another, these books celebrate the endurance of the
human spirit over adversity.
PICTURE BOOKS
A Strawbeater's Thanksgiving
by Irene Smalls. c 1998, Little,
Brown.
Set in slavery time, during the harvest festival when slaves
shucked the field corn, this story is about a young boy
named Jess who wants to be the strawbeater soooo badly he
can taste it. But there’s another, older boy who thinks the
privilege is his, and his alone. Gorgeous illustrations by
Melodye Benson Rosales enhance this tender story of a boy’s
longing for something just a little bit special to happen to
him. And if you like this one, be sure to check out the
author’s earlier book BECAUSE YOU’RE LUCKY.
My Freedom Trip
by Frances and Ginger Park. C 1998, Boyds
Mills Press.
Written by two sisters who now live in the DC metro area,
this true story is based on their mother’s flight from North
Korea. In the early days of the partition, many families
would escape over the border by ones and twos to more easily
evade the soldiers set on guard. Her father goes first, and
then the guide comes back for Soo. All through that scary
crossing, Soo clings to thoughts of her father waiting for
her, and of her mother to come after, and trying to be
brave. Oil paintings by Debra Reid Jenkins wonderfully
compliment this poignant tale of one family’s bid for
freedom, and the terrible price they paid.
Marianthe's Story : Painted Words, Spoken Memories
by Aliki.
C 1998, Greenwillow.
These are presented as two separate stories, told by an
immigrant girl. At first she has no English, and so she
communicates in school with her drawings. Later, as she
learns the language, she can tell her classmates her
feelings and memories of the loving village she and her
family left behind. Born to Greek parents, the author knows
whereof she speaks, and presents the heartbreak and promise
of immigration with compassion and conviction.
TRANSITIONAL BOOKS
Against the Odds
by Joe Layden. c 1997, Scholastic.
The cover leaves no doubt about the message intended; the
NBA logo is in one corner and the subtitle is
“inspirational, true-life stories of courage and character”.
Eight players who have overcome various problems - traumatic
childhoods, or drug and alcohol addiction, or heavy family
responsibilities - are profiled. Each short, uplifting
segment has a couple of photographs, and (natch) a list of
career stats. A neat little book that emphasizes the good
being done by some members of the NBA!
Donavan's Word Jar
by Monalisa DeGross. c 1994,
HarperCollins.
Some kids collect marbles, rocks, or buttons…Donavan
collects words. First he started noticing the neat sound
some words made when spoken aloud. Then he started looking
up their meanings. And so he wouldn’t forget, he started
writing his new discoveries down on paper and collecting
them in a jar. But now his jar is full, he needs a better
solution of where to put all his nifty words. The
illustrations by Cheryl Hanna also deserve a closer look by
readers, and the author (a Baltimore native) comes up with a
heartwarming ending that leaves the reader with great warm
fuzzies. I think it’s a wonderful story on the power of
language to make positive changes.
Amber Brown Is Feeling Blue
by Paula Danziger. c 1998,
Putnam.
Quirky little Amber is back, and facing two new dilemmas -
there’s a new girl in school with a double color name, but
even more important…which parent should she spend
Thanksgiving with? They are letting her decide, and she
anguishes over the difficult choice and knowing that no
matter what she chooses, someone will be hurt. It’s a
problem that many children of divorce will understand.
Hilarious drawings by Tony Ross bring this endearing child
and her exploits to life.
FOR OLDER READERS
The Turnabout Shop
by Colby Rodowsky. c 1998, Farrar Straus Giroux.
When Livvy’s mother dies, she has no family to take her in; it
had always been just her and her mom. Her new guardian is a
woman she has never met, who was a friend of her mother’s in
college. Now Livvy has to move to Baltimore, live with a
stranger, and start a new school. Through mental conversations
she has with her mother, readers follow her painful but steady
progress as this plucky ten year old rebuilds her life. Since
this award-winning author actually lives in Baltimore, kids
might find the setting fascinating.
Slavery Time When I Was Chillun
by Belinda Hurmence. c 1997,
Putnam.
This is a great collection of slave narratives, recollections
by the elderly of what it was like to grow up a slave - work,
clothing, games, food. Since there are so many stories, kids
will get many different points of view. Some slaves were,
except for their freedom, well off; but too many others
suffered tremendously, particularly when children were sold
away from their parents. Most are written in the first person,
in the vernacular, and there are also lots of photographs.
Somehow, when one reads about kids being fed at a trough like
livestock, or of an eight year old girl who picked a hundred
pounds of cotton, it makes slavery seem more close-up and real
- just not something that used to happen. And since slavery
still exists in the world, it’s an even more important lesson
(unfortunately) for kids to learn.
Foster's War
by Carolyn Reeder. c 1998, Scholastic.
Only eleven when America enters the war against Germany and
Japan, Foster’s life in 1941 California changes dramatically.
His older brother goes off to fight in the Pacific, his best
friend is interned, and his struggle to live with and
understand his cold, stern father intensifies. It’s a story
that has been told before, about the patriotic fervor that
swept the country during the war, but it’s especially well told
here. Foster, his family, and their tragedy will speak to many.
ADULT READERS
Children Learn What They Live
; Parenting to Inspire Values. by
Dorothy Law Nolte, c 1998, Workman.
If the title sounds familiar, that’s because the author wrote a
famous poem by the same title. In this full length book she
expands on each line, giving examples and discussing ways for
parents to teach values in a positive, rather than punitive,
way. Personally, I found it to be uplifting - while the
emphasis is on being a better parent, it might help one to just
be a better person.
All contents © 1999, Kate Marley. All rights reserved.
