VINCENT AND THEO: THE VAN GOGH BROTHERS by Deborah Heiligman and THE GIRL WHO NAMED PLUTO: THE STORY OF VENETIA BURNEY by Alice B. McGinty

We started with our nonfiction 'novel': Vincent and Theo: The Van Gogh Brothers by Deborah Heiligman. Only one of us loved it; everyone else had parts they liked a lot, but thought the book was too long for what it was trying to accomplish -- a couple of readers said they couldn't finish it. Everyone liked the black-and-white reproductions of Vincent's drawings that introduced each chapter, and appreciated the fact that each one included the years covered. We all appreciated learning more about Vincent's early life and his very close -- maybe co-dependent -- relationship with his brother Theo. We appreciated the enormous amount of research the author had done, and the inclusion of direct quotes of the many letters between the brothers over the course of their short lives. We were gratified to learn about Jo, Theo's wife, who -- along with her son -- was instrumental in creating the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam. Although one reader felt the very simply-written text lacked passion, most of us weren't bothered by that; but even with the spare text several readers felt that it was a book for adults rather than young readers -- though a couple of us felt it could be enjoyed by high school readers who were interested in art. We all loved the fact that it spoke to Vincent's persistence in finding his way to express his deepest feelings through his art, though we wondered how much he would have done without his brother's emotional and financial help throughout his life. We all appreciated all of the end matter: the list of people involved in Vincent's life, the Timeline, the Author's note and the Endnotes. We felt it was an excellent resource, even as the writing perhaps lacked intensity or feeling.

We mostly liked our nonfiction picture book, The Girl Who Named Pluto: the Story of Venetia Burney by Alice B. McGinty; illus. by Elizabeth Haidle. We all loved the way the illustrations were fully integrated with the story of 12-year-old Venetia, a fan of astronomy and mythology, who -- on a sudden whim -- combined these two interests to come up with the name Pluto for the newly discovered planet in 1930, becoming the only child to have ever named a planet. We appreciated learning this bit of trivia, and a bit about Venetia's life -- especially her relationship with her grandfather who had the proper connections with the 'powers that be' to get her suggested name accepted by the Royal Astronomical Society. We were gratified to learn that Venetia actually got to see Pluto through a telescope when she visited the Observatory Science Center the day before her 89th birthday. One reader felt that the story was 'slight' -- pleaseant enough to read, but not showing any great initiative or struggle on Venetia's part; without her uncle's intervention, Pluto would never have gotten its name. We appreciated the author's note explaining how she created the story from known facts, and the Selected Bibliography for those interested in gaining more information. We thought the book was accessible for young readers and could also be useful for science teachers as an introduction to studying astronomy.

Two pieces of nonfiction added to our knowledge about the world.

LOOK BOTH WAYS by Jason Reynolds and STRONG AS SANDOW by Don Tate

Greetings to all!   .....Our October Zoom meeting provided a ton of positive reactions to both of our books. We started with our novel, Look Both Ways by Jason Reynolds. Although one reader said that the first chapter completely turned her off due to the graphic discussion of bodily functions (think: nose), the rest of us -- though agreeing that this chapter was the weakest of the ten chapters -- each depicting particular middle-schoolers walking home on a certain street -- kept reading and finished the book. We thought that the first chapter, although off-putting to adults would immediately pull young readers in. We ultimately felt that this book was a masterpiece of plotting, character, and brilliantly fresh writing. We thought it was very real, respectful of the youngsters it depicted, a great examination of joy and kindness and love -- along with some realistic 'kid meanness' -- and that its intended audience of young readers would 'eat it up'. We loved how each chapter/street was a short story within itself, and presented a new world to explore, ending with the last chapter/street in which the relationship of all the characters became evident as well as other things we didn't understand earlier. We also commended the book designer, who used a small line-drawing sketch to introduce each chapter/street and how -- visually -- these drawings descended downward, so that at Chapter 10 the drawing was at the bottom of the page. We hoped that our own 'reluctant reader' would give this book another try.

We had equally positive things to say about our picture book biography, Strong as Sandow by Don Tate. All of us were happy to learn about Eugen Sandow, a body builder in the middle/late 1800s that none of us had ever heard of, and we felt the first page really made one want to read further and the vivid illustrations that bounced off the page were also enticing. We liked the layout of the book where each boxed chapter heading included the location and date where the depicted events occurred. We liked how the story flowed as it told the story of Friedrich Wilhelm Muller, a weak, sickly 10-year-old boy who -- against his parents' wishes -- worked hard at physical exercise to become --at the age of 20 --Eugen Sandow: Strongman. We thought this story was a good page-turner and could be inspirational for young readers as it described the pursuing of a dream and never giving up. We also liked the Back Matter a lot, where: 1) the Afterword elaborated on Sandow's life, where he prescribed physical fitness progams in schools and healthy diets for all; 2) simple exercises anyone could try at home were presented; 3) the Author's Note where Tate described his own experience with bodybuilding; 4) an excellent and extensive bibliography; and 5) actual citations for quotes used in the text. (This is often missing in picture biographies.) ...So great to have two books with (almost) total pluses!

 

EVERYTHING SAD IS UNTRUE by Daniel Nayeri and BIDDY MASON SPEAKS UP by Arisa White and Laura Atkins and illustrated by Laura Freeman

We began with our novel, Everything Sad is Untrue by Daniel Nayeri. A few readers said they were put off at the beginning of the book due to the non-linear story development which inserted ancient Persian myths and old family history into middle schooler Daniel's explanation of his life as an immigrant kid who fled Iran with his mother and sister for religious reasons and ended up in Oklahoma. But fortunately, those doubters returned to the book and finished it and were glad they did. We all agreed that it was an amazing feat of storytelling that provided a real window into the immigrant experience as Daniel related his story with insight, wisdom, humanity, and humor. We got used to the insertions of 'Sheherezade-like' stories, and the lessons they were trying to impart. We loved learning about the ancient roots of the Persian/Iranian culture. We all loved Daniel's 'rules' -- things he figured out as he tried to reconcile his past with his present: describing the struggles of an immigrant family, the cruelty they had to endure on their journey, but holding on to his cultural identity as he faced the challenges (typical to all middle schoolers) of just trying to fit in. Some readers felt that parts of the story were shocking and gripping, with no pleasure, and very hard to read. We marveled at the strength of Daniel's mother, and were happy when his father finally showed up -- after many years -- and spoke to the class. We all agreed that perhaps this book should have been 'billed' as a YA title, or even a book for adults, since we weren't sure that younger middle-grade readers would be able to stick with it due to the very non-Western style of storytelling. But we agreed that often it's not the story, but the connection between teller and listener that's important, and we felt that this book definitely accomplished that. We agreed that it was a tribute to the human spirit and we all felt richer for reading it.

Our discussion of our nonfiction picture book, Biddy Mason Speaks Up by Arisa White and Laura Atkins and illustrated by Laura Freeman brought up several interesting issues We were all glad that it honored this African-American enslaved woman who had been brought to Los Angeles because of her talents as a healer and a midwife in the 1850s, won her freedom in an important court case, and later became a successful entrepreneur as she continued a life of standing up for herself. We loved her story, which some (not all) felt was poetically written. We also loved the colorful illustrations which included small, individual boxed photos of some of the plants Biddy used in her healing maneuvers. We did have some issues with this book however. First, we had some problems with the actual story, which, though inspiring, made it hard to tell what was real and what wasn't due to the insertion of fictional characters into a true story. We felt that a picture book biography should only include characters and incidents that were real. Secondly, we had a problem with the format. Some readers likened this book to a web page with multiple 'clickbaits'. Although some young readers might like this, we felt it was distracting. Between the Timeline, maps, photos of related historical events, plus a sidebar Glossary and a moral issue for readers to consider on almost every page, it felt like it was trying to be a reference book in addition to just presenting Biddy Mason's story. We felt that it presented just too much information to digest, and several of us read the book more than once: for the story; for the Timeline; for the photos; for the issues raised. We weren't sure kids would do this, but we also felt that it was probably OK if they just bounced around and read what interested them -- even if that interrupted the story. We thought all of that information in addition to the Back Matter was more for adults, and could be very helpful for teachers, since this book could be used in a variety of curricular areas. We appreciated the authors' excellent research and citations, and we felt that anyone who read this book would certainly learn a lot, and perhaps be moved to do further research to find out more about this amazing Los Angeles heroine.

OUTSIDE IN by Deborah Underwood and ALL THIRTEEN: The Incredible Cave Rescue of the Thai Boys' Soccer Team by Christina Soortornvat

We enjoyed our first In Person meeting on July 1, along with two people joining us on Zoom....too bad they had to miss the great refreshments, capped by a magnificent Pavlova dessert made by Ann's very talented granddaughter. We discussed our picture book, Outside In by Deborah Underwood first. We unanimously agreed that this book was just NOT for young children, its presumed audience. The idea that 'Outside' was constantly reminding us that it was there continually helping us just didn't seem like a concept that young children would easily grasp...even with possible loving explanation by the adult reading the story. And even the little girl in the illustrations seemed to ignore everything that 'Outside' was trying to show and tell her; she was too busy reading, writing, playing with her dog -- just living her life. We did like the sensitively nuanced watercolor illustrations by Cindy Derby, but viewing the book from a distance, as a child would in a classroom read-aloud situation made it obvious that their beauty was less engaging from afar. We thought these illustrations could be valuable in an art class however...in a lesson on watercolors....otherwise -- not so much.

We had mostly positive reactions about our longer nonfiction book, All Thirteen: The Incredible Cave Rescue of the Thai Boys' Soccer Team by Christina Soontornvat. We all agreed that the author had done an excellent job in her research on this story that the world watched unravel in June 2018. This included talking in person with many of the heroic rescuers and volunteers and others involved in the saga -- an endeavor which was helped a great deal by her own father who was a fluent Thai speaker -- even though she was not. We mostly liked her straightforward writing tone, where she discussed the many very technical issues that were relevant to the rescue, and explained them clearly for young readers...probably middle- and high schoolers. Some readers liked the many sidebars which explained various technical issues in detail, as well as Thai culture, and Buddhism, both of which played a strong role in the boys' frame of mind as they endured during this heart-wrenching 18-day period when they were trapped by a flood in a cave that they had been exploring. We agreed that all of the maps, graphs, photos, and illustrations throughout the book were very helpful although a couple of readers found the appearance of the sidebars in the middle of the actual text somewhat distracting. We also liked the author's explanation at the end of why she wrote this book and how she went about putting the pieces of the puzzle together. We felt that the book could be used in so many ways in classroom situations: in science, geography, culture, religion, social studies, history, engineering, physics, weather, and political systems discussions. This very long, very dense, very heavy (in weight!!) book was definitely appreciated by all of us.

WE ARE WATER PROTECTORS by Carole Lindstrom and MIDSUMMER MAYHEM by Rajani LaRocca

We began with our picture book, We Are Water Protectors by Carole Lindstrom; illustrated by Michaela Goade. We all loved this beautiful book about the historic role of Ojibwe women to protect water, told in the voice of a young Native girl. We liked the beautifully poetic way it was written, while at the same time dealing with the contemporary and uncomfortable issue of the Dakota Access Pipeline, which is depicted in words and pictures as a 'black snake that will destroy the land.' We liked the way water's relationship with and importance to all of life was described, and shown on almost every page with beautiful, brightly colored undulating watercolors (of course!!) on almost every page and in every context -- even on one page as the protagonist's hair. We loved the two-page pictorial spread, rendered in various shades of blue, which showed the earth in the middle of the universe, adorned with traditional Native floral motifs and encircled by depictions of many Native spirit animals, and the text, "We are all related." We thought the end notes were very helpful in providing additional information regarding the text and the Native Alaskan illustrator's  choices in what she determined to depict to honor the author's Ojibwe culture.There were also translations of several Native terms that had been used in the text. We felt that very young listeners to this story as a read-aloud might not fully understand the controversial parts or the idea of the beauty of water vs. a threat, but that it could create a beginning appreciation of the importance of water to humans and all other living creatures. We felt the book could be used with older readers, even in middle or high school to begin a discussion of this very important social issue. Finally, we felt it was deserving of its recently bestowed Caldecott Award for picture books.

Although there was much to like about our novel, Midsummer's Mayhem by Rajani LaRocca, we had a few issues about the plot, the pacing, the surplus of characters and scenes, and the interconnection with Shakespeare's "A Midsummer Night's Dream." We did like the main character, Mimi Mackson, an eleven-year-old Indian American girl who was obsessed with baking and whose main desire was to win a local baking contest so that she could feel as important as her three older overachieving siblings: an actor, a musician, and a sports star -- all high school students. We liked the relationship between Mimi and her dad, a food writer who had somehow lost his sense of taste, and the descriptions of many Indian foods and ingredients that were mentioned throughout the telling of this story. We were a bit confused by Mimi's connection with Vik, a strange boy she met in a weird forest, who began to have a big influence on her decisions and choices and later turned out to be a VERY old inhabitant of an ancient fairy culture, the magic of which was throwing obstacles in Mimi's path around every corner...turning the real events in the narrative into a Shakespearean comedy OR tragedy -- depending upon one's interpretation. We just felt that this author had tried to do too much in this novel, and it could have benefited from better editing. We were also not enthralled with the several black-and-white illustrations throughout the book -- we felt that they didn't enhance the story in any way. BUT we all learned a lot about spices, flavors, and baking techniques and we did feel that young readers, especially young 'foodies' who watch a lot of kids' cooking competitions on food TV, would 'eat this up.'!! Even if they were confused by some of the elements, there was enough food/cooking/baking-related content to keep them happy. AND a great food-related glossary at the end, plus three recipes of things Mimi had baked.

AT THE MOUNTAIN'S BASE by Traci Sorell and Weshoyot Altrite and THE HOUSE THAT LOU BUILT by Mae Respicio

We began our April discussion with our picture book, At the Mountain's Base by Traci Sorell & Weshoyot Altrite. We all liked the simple, flowing text of this pictorial poem depicting a family awaiting the return of a member who had gone to war. We were puzzled by some of the illustrations, which were somewhat ethereal, showing several generations of women in their cabin at the base of a mountain. (Where were the men??) But when we saw a young woman flying a P-38 warplane -- about halfway through -- her depiction looked almost photographic. We found that confusing and somewhat jarring, and felt it might confuse young readers also. There were a few other things that were a bit off-putting after we learned more. Why did the Author's Note say that this was about a "fictional Cherokee family," and then inform us that it was an homage to Ola Mildred "Millie" Rexroat, an actual WWII pilot from the Oglala Lakota tribe? We also felt that another confusion was the depiction of various Native artifacts and cultural entities...and although the illustrations throughout the book portrayed cords/threads surrounding various parts of each page, we couldn't decide for sure what this actually meant. We were glad to learn about this undersung Native American WWII heroine, but we felt that a serious picture biography about her life and her many accomplishments would have been a better choice.

We all liked our novel, The House That Lou Built by Mae Respicio. We loved the portrayal of Lou, a 13-year-old biracial (Filipino/Caucasian) girl who was adept at using tools and relished building things. We also loved the relationships she had with her best friends, her cousins, her mom, and her multi-generational extended family who frequently gathered in her Lola's (grandma's) small apartment in San Francisco, CA where they enjoyed the food, music, and stories that had bonded them together for generations. Everything about the family and the Filipino culture and the conversations felt very real. We liked Lou's persistence as she worked toward her dream of building a 'tiny house' on the land in Marin County that her deceased father had left her, even though we knew that it might be a bit unrealistic to assume that she could actually accomplish this by herself. We liked the way that each character's personality was developed, and felt that drove the story more than the actual plot, which we felt was a bit too long and convoluted, and could have benefitted from cutting a few scenes. (Are our attention spans shortening??) We also discussed the fact that Lou told many lies to further her goals, and even though there were consequences, we wondered if so much lying should occur in a middle-grade story. We didn't actually arrive at an answer to this question. However we felt that middle-school readers would love reading this book, because of its lively language and great characters, and that they would root for Lou throughout. All things considered, it was a pretty good book, and we were glad to have read it also.

I TALK LIKE A RIVER by Jordan Scott and FRANKLY IN LOVE by David Yoon

We started with our picture book, I Talk Like a River by Jordan Scott. It was beautifully read aloud to us by one of our members, and when she finished, we all just said, "Wow!" One member said the book was 'breathtakingly gorgeous,' and another said it was 'what a picture book should be.' We loved the quiet support the dad gave to his son who had a stutter, and felt self-conscious every time he had to talk in class because his words churned around in his head but just wouldn't come out of his mouth properly. When the two of them visited a nearby river, the boy realized that the gurgling, flowing, pounding, rushing sounds of the river were similar to the way he felt when he tried to talk. We loved the quiet kinship between father and son and the idea of connecting the boy's troubles to nature and all the kinds of movement of the river, which were beautifully depicted on a double-page foldout in the center of the book. We were pleased to learn in the Author's Note at the end that this was his own story, and an homage to his father. We felt the book was a wonderful read-aloud, but we weren't sure if it would be equally appreciated in the hands of a young reader. But -- regardless -- we all loved it.

We were equally enamored by our novel, Frankly in Love by David Yoon. We loved being in high school senior Frank Li's head as he tried to figure out his life. How could he be a good Korean son and a regular American kid at the same time? What does love really mean? How important was his best friend, 'Q', an African-American kid who was equally smart and nerdy? Which girl did he really love? -- very American 'Brit Means' or 'Joy Song', daughter of Korean family friends. What would be his future as a college student and a music designer? These and other questions made for many smaller stories in the total plot, which a few readers felt was a bit too long, but which was enjoyable reading, full of fun metaphors and humor, and provided a surprise ending. We liked how the story dealt with family relationships, work, racism, friendship, school, a mirror into the life of a Korean immigrant family, and how -- in life -- you never know what will happen because things keep changing. We felt that YA readers would love this book because of its accessibility, realism, and humor.

BEFORE THE EVER AFTER by Jacqueline Woodson and ANTIRACIST BABY by Ibram X Kendi

We were unanimous in our love of our novel, Before the Ever After told in short verse pieces by Jacqueline Woodson. We loved the voice of ZJ, a 12-year-old youngster whose dad, Zachariah 44, a famous professional football player, is deteriorating before his very eyes -- probably due to the many concussions he has experienced throughout his career...now known as CTE. We learned from the author's end note that in 2000,when this story takes place, little was known about this condition...fortunately, now that has changed. Everything about ZJ and his descriptions of his life felt real: his relationships with his mom and dad, the importance of music between ZJ & his dad, the love and friendship provided by "his boys" -- four guys who each brought specific skills and behaviors and support and fun and joy to him, his questioning and distrust of doctors, and his awareness of how things were changing almost from moment to moment and the feelings all of this created in his mind and heart. A couple of readers felt that it was "individual pieces," -- i.e.,1 or 2-page poems that could stand alone, and not really a story; but others felt that wasn't really an issue. We felt there was a strong connection between the situations ZJ described and the issues he was attempting to handle. We felt it would be very accessible to young readers, both because of the format, and the real voice of ZJ. One reader said it was, "breathtakingly beautifully written," and we all agreed. 

Our picture book for our February meeting was Antiracist Baby by Ibram X Kendi. Our first remark was "this is a book for adults, not young children."  We felt it was didactic; the language -- especially for an obvious read-aloud -- used vocabulary way beyond what even a brilliant young child might know; it wasn't a very smooth read. We couldn't imagine a young child being very engaged by listening to this non-story. Some of us liked the illustrations better than others, and there were a few illustrations that we felt might be useful in iliciting responses and beginning discussions with children. We also felt that many of the suggestions in the 'back matter' could also be helpful. We agreed that a well-told story that would hit kids emotionally could do far more in creating positive attitudes about people who are in some way different. We were happy that authors are taking on this very important issue of helping children to become antiracist, but we all agreed that this book is not the one to accomplish it. We also agreed that people who "really need" this type of book are probably not going to ever pick it up.

DANCING HANDS: TERESA CARRENO PLAYED THE PIANO FOR PRESIDENT LINCOLN by Margarita Engle and RESTART by Gordon Korman

 We began our January discussion with our picture book, Dancing Hands: How Teresa Carreno Played the Piano for President Lincoln by Margarita Engle (2019). Some of us thought this book was wonderful; and no-one actually disliked it. We all loved the colorful illustrations, and the way that they portrayed the mood of Teresa's story through the physicality and expressions of the characters and the depictions of the scenes. A couple of people were confused by the illustration of the Civil War soldiers, since it was difficult to recognize the difference between the Union and Confederate uniforms. Several of us also noticed the colorful little bird that appeared on many pages, and found it interesting when President Lincoln requested that 10-year-old Teresa play "Listen to the Mockingbird," even though she was miffed by the fact that the White House piano was out of tune, but we wondered why the bird wasn't on every page. Most of us liked the poetic language of the story, but one reader noted that there had been an abundance of similes, which she found somewhat jarring. We all liked the "Historical Note" that was actually shown on the back endpaper and we were all pleased to learn a story about a person about whom we had never heard, and felt that it would be a good story for young readers -- or -- as a read-aloud.

We all had positive things to say about our novel, Restart by Gordon Korman (2017), which tells the story of Chase, a 13-year-old boy suffering from amnesia after a bad fall, who was trying to figure out who he really was: the football-playing bully he had been before or the nice guy he was becoming now. We agreed that the writing, although not literally magnificent, was quite straightforward and accessible for young readers -- specifically middle-schoolers, the target age group. We felt that the story was plot-driven rather than character-drive, and we didn't really feel any true connection with any of the characters. But we did feel that it portrayed the angst and impulsivity of kids of that age as we read accounts by Chase's 'friends' and 'enemies' and learned of the events of his 'before' and 'after' lives. We all knew how it would end, and several of us felt that there were too many scenes to get through before arriving at the satisfying conclusion. We thought it would be a good kickoff for a discussion about bullying and the "nature vs. nurture" issue: could one's behavior really change in a situation like this? One reader who had not heard of Korman before was now eager to read all of his books, and to introduce them to middle-school students...so that is a good thing!