The Canning Season

by Polly Horvath
PRMS hardcover 196 pages
genre: YA coming-of-age

Horvath has a very unusual style and sensibility. I read this to try to decide about keeping it in the collection or not. Not.

pg 39 - Tilly and old age . . . this is not part of most middle schoolers' life experiences! "Sleep, Tilly said, came to the old like the transition, the hallway between life and death. You needed less food and wandered more through the corridors of dreams." This resonates for me as a reader because of my elderly parents and the decline I see in their physical states . . . but I'm more than 30 years older than my students!

pg. 272 - Not sure why I marked this part. Hutch and Ratchet's mom are visiting Ratchet at her elderly aunts' house. They are talking about Hutch being an aerobic dance champion. Tilly's response to listening to all this conversation makes her think that there are just too many things in the world. "How do people keep up with it all, she thought. How do they have lives with all this clutter in the way?" Yep. I can relate to that.

pg 184 - Tilly's death. I cried. But again, this is more where I'm at in my life. Even middle schoolers who have had a parent or grandparent die . . . this is just not a book that I think will speak to my students.

The underlying story of Ratchet and her mother's dumping her on elderly aunts is an interesting one, but odd in so many ways - the bears, the canning, the doctor, the orphanage down the road, . . . bye, book.

Orphan Train

by Christina Kline
Hennepin County Library
paperback 273 pages
genre: historical fiction

PRMS book club title - we all liked it, but some disliked the suddenness of the ending . . . there was so much more of the story to tell!

pg 5 - "Being Goth wipes away any expectation of conventionality, so Molly finds she's free to be weird in lots of ways at once. She reads all the time - in the halls, in the cafeteria - mostly novels with angry protagonists. . . " I love that she writes down vocabulary words in a notebook because "she likes the way they sound: Harridan. Pusillanimous. Talisman. Dowager. Enervating. Sycophantic." This makes me think of how much I love books and words!

It makes me so sad when Niamh (Neev) is renamed multiple times without her consent and at one point says she doesn't care what she is called. Names are so important!

pg 132 - When Molly is trying to choose someone to interview for her portaging assignment, she thinks Vivian's life story is too tame. Ironic! If she only knew . . . and comes to know through their shared storytelling. "Maybe it'll be a stretch to find drama in Vivian's portage - a happy, stable life does not an interesting story make, right?"

pg 171 - Classroom discussion about immigrants and people who are"asking for handouts" versus wanting to be treated fairly.

pg 192 - Description of the Lutheran church service with the Nielsens. It's so accurate! "I like the assumption that everyone is trying his best, and we should all just be kind to each other. I like the coffee hour with almond cake and snickerdoodles in the vestry."

pg 197 - As she is reflecting on her life with the Nielsens, she is grateful for the safety and acceptance she has found. But she also recognizes that "They are not my people, and never will be."

pg 246 - I love how she takes over at the store, reorganizes things, and revives the business. It makes me sad, though, when she thinks, "I learned long ago that loss is not only probable but inevitable." Her loss and sorrow are so deep!

I think the author did an admirable job of intertwining Niamh / Vivian's story with Molly's. This was a wonderful book about an Irish girl who travels an amazing journey and shares her life story with a similar young woman.

The Lost Hero

by Rick Riordan
PRMS hardcover 553 pages
genre: YA adventure, mythology

Although this is a re-read, I want to blog it while it's fresh in my mind. I'm not always good about keeping track . . .
Percy Jackson has gone missing and Annabeth is searching for him.
Jason Grace shows up on a bus on a field trip remembering nothing about himself, much less his "girlfriend" Piper or his "friend" Leo.
The three end up at Camp Half-Blood where they learn about their demigod status, their powers, and their quest. They must save Hera before the king of the giants Porphyron rises and Gaea fully reawakens.
My favorite parts are Leo fixing Festus, the giant bronze dragon, and Piper getting control of the Aphrodite cabin from Drew.
Fun story.

 

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I didn't realize this was my *third* time reading this book. For the most part, it bugged me. But I had the audiobook on Libby and was in my car a lot. It worked well to listen while I drove. (Technology. Wow. My phone and car are smarter than I am!)

 

Reasons it bugged me:

• in the height of action / fighting, someone having a conversation about something not related to a life and death struggle
• the long section between Piper and Hera . . . about mythology . . . 
•  there was something else, but I didn't jot any notes and I don't care that much

 

This time my favorites were Coach (the satyr) and Mele (the wind spirit). Read by Joshua Swanson, it was a good way to pass car time. I've already requested book two . . . not sure why right now. But the other audiobook I have on my phone has been torture and I wanted something a bit more enjoyable. More on that later.

Insurgent

by Veronica Roth
PRMS hardcover 525 pages
genre: YA dystopian adventure romance

This was actually kind of disappointing. It seemed meandering and almost boring between action sequences. I'm sure I would feel differently if I were a 15-year-old girl, but I don't identify well with Tris and Tobias doesn't seem like that great of a guy other than the fact that he's hot-looking and strong. They are hiding out in Amity with the rest of the war refugees (my term) and trying to figure out what's really going on. There's a lot of back-and-forth on an emotional level (each one keeping secrets from the other) and within this world (with the factionless, Candor, and Erudite taking big chunks of the plot with them). And you can't forget the Dauntless - both the traitors who allied with Erudite and the ones who are trying to figure out what to do next. And the great big secret that Abnegation wanted to share and Erudite wants to hide? You'll have to slog through . . . I mean, read . . . the book to find out. Not sure I have any desire at all to read book three.

The Unthinkable Thoughts of Jacob Green

by Joshua Braff
PRMS paperback 259 pages
genre: YA coming-of-age

I was curious about this book and whether it "fit" as a title for my more mature readers. It was left here by the Freshman Center librarian. I also saw it on a recommended list by . . . John Green? Or some other notable YA source. Anyhow, I finally read it.

Jacob is a good Jewish boy, doing what it takes to make his dad happy (except for doing well in school - his learning disability makes that tough). As dad's narcissistic behavior alienates Jacob's older brother Asher and everyone else in the family, Jacob strives to calm his dad down. His ability to sing and read the Hebrew for services beautifully does not help him survive the transition to public school, his parents' divorce, or his own growing desire for escape from his father's anger.

Swearing, some promiscuity, some illegal behavior . . . but has some good relationship storylines. I think it might be too rooted in Jewish culture to be effective for my students.

Some of Jacob's "thoughts" are embedded in the story in such a way that you think he is actually saying them . . . until you realize he couldn't possibly say them aloud without consequences from his father or a teacher. When his mother Claire announces the refreshments at a big party, Jacob finishes her unspoken words:

"And lastly, since I have you all here in one place, I have something to share with you. Along the garden ways just now . . . I too heard the flowers speak. They told me that our family garden has all but turned to sand. I want you to know I've watered and nurtured this square of earth for nearly twenty years, and waited on my knees each spring for these gentle bulbs to rise, reborn. But want does not bring such breath to life. Only love does. The plain, old-fashioned kind. In our family garden my husband is of the genus Narcissus, which includes daffodils and jonquils and a host of other ornamental flowers. There is, in such a genus of man, a pervasive and well-known pattern of grandiosity and egocentrism that feeds off this very kind of evening, this type of glitzy generosity." The rest of the text on page 173 continues this thread of analysis that Jacob is making about his father as though told by his mother. Powerful. Painful.

Reality Check

by Peter Abrahams
PRMS paperback 330 pages
genre: mystery thriller

I read this last night for 8th grade book club. I enjoyed it, but it was fairly predictable. Ike was one of my favorite characters, since he seemed like a shady figure but turned out to be a genuine individual. It took me a while to suspect the real "bad guy," though Townes was an easy mark. I liked Cody and his processing of situations - especially his ability to just keep quiet. Clea's dad was stereotypical but a minor player other than sending his daughter away and having high aspirations for her.

A Night Like THis

by Julia Quinn (pen name for Julie . . . . )
Hennepin County Library audiobook 8 discs
read by Rosalyn Landor
genre: historical romance

I liked this one much, much better than that other romance. It was reminiscent of Jane Eyre, with the governess and the earl falling in love. This one had elements of danger and mystery with Daniel's past (a drunken duel where he lamed a man) and Annelise's foolish mistake as a teenager (thinking George whats-his-face loved her). I would read more of this author's work. At the end of the book, as the copyright info was read, it said that the text copyright was held by Julie something something, and that made me curious about the author. When did she adopt a pen name? Why? (Personal preference or publisher's urging?) Anyhow, an enjoyable read and a wonderful vocal job by Landor.

Between Shades of Gray

by Ruta Sepetys
PRMS hardcover 344 pages
genre: historical fiction WWII

A student recommended this book last fall and I finally read it! It was very well-written (and so elicited the sadness and sorrow implicit in the topic of pogroms). Lina, her mother, and her brother are rounded up during the night and sent to Siberia. Although a work of fiction, the true history behind this story is appalling. Under Stalin's leadership, over 20 million lives were lost . . . more than three times the number who were murdered by Hitler. People from Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, etc. were especially affected by his tactics. People were rounded up because of their perceived opposition to Stalin's regime.

Lina's strength, struggles, and triumphs are powerfully written about and we are drawn into her painful reality. This book was depressing, but worthwhile.

 

<Above on 4.3.14. Below added 6.21.23.>

 

Page 49: "Two Soviets pulled a priest down the platform. His hands were bound and his cassock was dirty. Why a priest? But then . . . why any of us?"

 

Page 55: "I stared at Andrius. Dried blood caked his teeth and the corners of his lips. His jaw was swollen. I hated them, the NKVD and the Soviets. I planted a seed of hatred in my heart. I swore it would grow to be a massive tree whose roots would strangle them all."

 

Page 146: "Mother quickly wiped off the slime, as if it didn't bother her at all. It bothered me. I wanted to roll the hate up into my mouth and spit it back in his face."

 

Page 164: "Walking to the fields each morning, I could predict who would be the next to sign. Their faces sang songs of defeat. Mother saw it, too. She would chat with the person and work next to them in the field, trying to bolster their spirit. Sometimes it worked. Many times it didn't. At night I drew portraits of those who had signed and wrote about how the NKVD broke them down."

These excerpts jumped out to me, but I don't want to comment on them now. I re-read this over a week ago!