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.

THE GIRL IN THE WELL IS ME by Karen Rivers and CITY DOG, COUNTRY FROG by Mo Willems, illus. by Jon Muth

We had very interesting discussions at our last meeting, starting with our novel, The Girl in the Well is Me by Karen Rivers. We all marvelled at the fact that a novel that almost totally takes place in a well where Kammie has fallen could even get published. We had varying opinions of the story however. Many readers said the whole thing made them feel very claustrophobic and therefore difficult to read. We basically liked how Kammie's story developed as she told about how her father had been sent to prison for embezzlement, why she and her mother and brother had to move to Texas, and how she had so much wanted to be accepted by the 'cool girls' -- who actually turned out to be mean girls, since they did little to help her after she fell in the well, and may have even caused her fall. Many of us felt that they didn't receive proper comeuppance at the end after Kammie was rescued. Although we liked Kammie's descriptions of the various details of her life, several of us felt that when she started describing what was going on in her mind, after she became delirious, it just went on for too long. A couple of readers skipped thru that part quickly. We also felt that there were a few things that just weren't plausible, even though they made for a good story. Mixed opinions all around.

We mostly all liked our picture book, City Dog, Country Frog by Mo Willems; illus. by Jon. J. Muth. We all loved the illustrations, which revealed new details each time one re-looked at them, and beautifully depicted the year as the seasons passed. Most of us liked the development of the friendship betwen the two animals as they taught each other new things each season, but a couple of readers felt that the friendship actually became too dispensable, since it appeared so easy for Dog to make a new friend at the end when Frog wasn't there waiting for him when Spring returned. We felt it could be a good story to read to a small child to help deal with the death of someone near and dear, OR to explain why a good friend had left. At first we all felt that Frog had certainly died, but as we talked more, we learned from one reader that frogs hibernate, so Frog could have just left for that reason. It's amazing how knowing one additional piece of information can affect one's perception of a story. . . which is why reading, and the thinking it creates, are wonderful things!