by Sharon Creech
Libby audiobook 2 hours
Read by: Brittany Pressley
Published: 2016
Genre: children's realistic fiction
This one kind of bugged me, but I focused more on my work than on the story.
Reena's parents make her and her brother Luke go help neighbor Mrs. Falala, even though she seems like a crabby and scary old woman to them. They help take care of her cow Zora, even learning to groom her and show her.
The end of the story is gratifying, though sad.
by Sharon Creech
Libby audiobook 2 hours
Read by: Kirby Heyborne
Published: 2018
Genre: children's realistic fiction
Little grey donkey! He is not expected to survive, but Louie (the protagonist boy) is determined to keep him alive. What a sweet little story!
Winslow "helps Louie feel closer to his brother Gus, who is far, far away in the army."
Nora is a quirky little girl who is afraid to become attached and experience loss.
by Cynthia Lord
Libby audiobook 5 hours
read by: Maria Cabezas
Published: 2014
Genre: YA realistic fiction
I hadn't realized that the narrator is the same person who read Handful of Stars. She does a great job!
Lucy's dad is a professional photographer who has the family moving frequently. She loves to take photos, too, but her dad is more critical than encouraging.
She is new to a quiet New England lake when she meets Nate, a nice kid whose grandmother is succumbing to dementia. They go on "loon patrol" and report back to her. I love loons, so I instantly connected with that part of the story!
I liked the story and the characters (except the dad - he bugged me). I liked the descriptions of the photographs and the contest. I love the loons!
by Cynthia Lord
Libby audiobook 4 hours
Read by: Maria Cabezas
Published: 2015
Genre: YA realistic fiction
This may be more "children's" than "young adult" . . . which is part of my review. Friendship, fitting in, etc. Lily (Tiger Lily) is being raised by her grandparents because her mom died when she was little. Maine is known for its blueberries and the annual festival crowns a Blueberry Queen each year. Lily's mom won it three years in a row - a record!
But . . . who has elementary aged kids do this? Most festivals have teens or young women as their "royalty." The idea of doing this with little kids just seems weird.
Lily's best friend is now interested in boys. Lily wants to earn enough money selling bee houses to get an operation for her dog so he can regain his vision. She connects with migrant worker Salma Santiago and together they want to help Lucky.
My faves: Salma's creativity and honesty! The vet and her kindness toward Lily. This line about summer:
"Enough afternoons to do every single thing you wanted to do, and even some days left over to do nothing at all. But somehow summer fills up and flies by."
Too true! (As I'm writing this on August 24, 2023 . . . )
A sweet book, but geared to younger readers.
by Marie Benedict and Victoria Christopher Murray
Louise's copy paperback 324 pages plus historical note and authors' notes
Published: 2021
Genre: historical fiction
Interesting that I like historical fiction and I love libraries, but I didn't care much for this book. I definitely learned some new things, though! Belle Marion Greener was raised by Richard Greener (first Black graduate of Harvard and an activist for equal rights) and Genevieve Ida Fleet ( a member of a prominent Black DC family). Her parents separated when Belle was a teen and her mother chose to raise the family as white, since they were light-skinned enough and she saw the horrors of racial discrimination. Thus, the young lady became "Belle da Costa Greene" and her skin tone was attributed to fictional Portugese ancestors. She became J.P. Morgan's personal librarian and built a renowned collection of books and artifacts.
Page 19: "But the time for hope is past; things are only going to get worse. There is only black and white - nothing in between - and they will always be separate, but never equal. Segregation will take care of that."
This is part of a fight between Belle's parents before they split. They had huge ideological differences on how to best navigate life in America in 1905. I learned that the Supreme Court overturned the Civil Rights Act in 1890 . . . it's sad to think of what could have happened (in a positive way) if the politicians of the day hadn't fought to protect the status quo.
Page 121: But I could not have guessed London's greatest gift. Here, as I walk the streets, I don't feel the same assessment of my color that I routinely experience, and constantly anticipate, in America. Perhaps London's citizens don't have the same need to categorize us by race as they do in America.
I thought that was a very interesting observation. Also the next one.
Page 133: His eyebrows furrow. 'Because he's a Jew,' he spits in a tone that I've heard from him before. 'Or is rumored to be one anyway, though that is not what Berenson claims.' Inside, I sigh. Anti-Semitism is as rampant as racism against the colored in this country.
This makes me sad. People hating people because of skin color, religion, etc. makes our world more difficult.
Page 139: . . . a glimmering shade almost like grisaille . . .
A word I've never seen before! I knew it was a color, but I had to look it up. Dictionary.com says:
by James E. Amos
University of Minnesota Library hardcover 162 pages
Published: 1927
Genre: non-fiction biography
Oh. my. word. Where to start?!
I read about this somewhere else (don't remember!) and was curious. Teddy Roosevelt is one of the U.S. presidents I really like. I appreciate that he set aside National Parks for us! Especially since the railroad and timber barons were so powerful at the time.
This book was published the year my mom was born! There's a nameplate inside the front cover saying it was donated from the collection of O.M. Leland (dean emeritus) of the Institute of Technology (1921-1944) and his signature from July 1931! It's just a cool piece of history.
For the book itself, of course Amos is going to have an incredibly positive view of TR. As he tells of how he came to work for the president, he seems to be a wonderful man himself. He was only in his young twenties when he was hired to look after the Roosevelt children. Through his service to the family, he was proximal to President Roosevelt and worked for him for many years.
Page 8-9: Mr. Roosevelt was not only my employer, but he was until his death my dear friend to whom I could go always with my most personal and private troubles. I loved him deeply and served him, I hope, faithfully. And I have always liked to believe that he rather took a fancy to me at that very first meeting. That would be his way. Mr. Roosevelt's disposition was to like people. He never approached men with suspicion in his mind. He was always disposed to believe that people were all right and he liked those he met if they gave him half a chance.
I love the way Amos tells his stories; it's almost as though he and the reader are just chatting. It was also bizarre to picture what the White House was like just over 100 years ago . . . I'm guessing that in the last few decades, there are hundreds (if not thousands?) more employees!
Page 10: At first people used to swarm into the White House. The President's working quarters were there and altogether the little privacy the home part of the building enjoyed was subject to many interruptions. Under Mr. Roosevelt this was all changed. No President was as approachable as he was. He saw more people, probably, than any Chief Executive in our history. But he drew a line around that portion of the mansion which was called home, and he managed to keep his boys and girls living in a perfectly natural atmosphere in spite of the turbulent and stormy official life that swarmed all around them.
There are some fantastic photographs in the book. The picture of the author doesn't appear to show a black man, but later he refers to "his race." I looked him up online and found that yes, Amos was African American. The picture of the Roosevelt family shows the four boys and one daughter with the President, his wife, and their dog Skip.
Page 15: Public men are subject to all sorts of bitter criticism and if they filed suits against all the people who libeled them they would spend all their days in court. . . .
He had an "Ananias Club" to assign people who lied about him! It's one of those Bible stories that makes me stop and think about God's message about lying. I'm not surprised that part of being in the public eye is dealing with what people say about you, but I think it's interesting that there were two times Roosevelt charged people with libel. And that he started his "Ananias Club!"
Page 25: It was orders from home - from Mrs. Roosevelt - that whenever Mr. Roosevelt was traveling he must have one hour of absolute quiet during the day. He was a man of such tremendous energy that he would keep going forever if there was not someone around to slow him down. That was part of my job on all trips. . . . He preached the 'strenuous life.' But he also knew the value of the 'quiet hour.'
Reading this makes me curious to learn more about Mrs. Roosevelt! It is wise indeed to have some quiet time each day. In another chapter, Amos talks about some of the leading figures of the day and Mr. Roosevelt's relationship with them. I was surprised in this part about Booker T. Washington. (This is what I love about reading books like this - I learn new things!)
Page 56: . . . it is sometimes the little things that mar the effects of a man's work. And the fact that he preached to his race to send their children to manual training schools to learn to be good servants and workers, and then sent his son to England and his daughter to Wellesley to be educated, brought a good deal of criticism down on him from his own people.
Amos reprints a "wall motto" that was hanging at President Roosevelt's desk before he left the White House. It is "Opportunity" by John James Ingalls.
Master of human destinies am I;
Fame, love and fortune on my footsteps wait.
Cities and fields I walk. I penetrate
Deserts and seas remote, and, passing by
Hovel and mart and palace, soon or late,
I knock unbidden once at every gate.
If sleeping, wake; if feasting, rise, before
I turn away. It is the hour of fate,
And they who follow me reach every state
Mortals desire, and conquer every foe
Save death; but those who hesitate
Condemned to failure, penury and woe,
Seek me in vain, and uselessly implore.
I answer not, and I return no more.
I don't really like this poem, but the fact that it was meaningful to Roosevelt is interesting to me. It was most sad to me that Roosevelt grieved deeply for his youngest son, Quentin, who was shot down in France in July 1918. Theodore died six months later.
Page 158-159: But there was one disaster that I have always felt was too much even for his brave heart - that was the death of his son Quentin, whom we all loved. Quentin was shot down in an aeroplane while flying over the German lines.
Amos goes on to share about the change in Mr. Roosevelt's demeanor and his deep sadness. This is a lovely little book and I'm glad I read it!
by: Cynthia Lord
Libby audiobook 3 hours
Read by: Kate Reinders
Published: 2019
Genre: childen's realistic fiction
This was sweet, but clearly for an elementary age reader (interesting that I enjoy middle grades fiction so much!). Emma helps her game warden dad rescue a rabbit one evening. This is no wild animal; it's a pet! Holding it overnight to take to the shelter in the morning, Emma falls in love.
Oh, and Emma is going to public school for the first time after having been home schooled.
This is a story about fitting in and standing out. It's about kids and relationships and meanness and friendship. It's sweet but not terribly memorable.
by: Ellery Adams
Libby audiobook 9 hours
Read by: Johanna Parker
Published: 2014
Genre: murder mystery
When I "opened" this book to listen, it was on chapter 3. Apparently, I tried this once before and returned it unread and unblogged. This time I listened to the end. There were things I liked and things I disliked.
Here's the description that caught my attention (twice):
Tucked away in the rolling hills of rural western Virginia is the
storybook resort of Storyton Hall, catering to book lovers who want to
get away from it all. To increase her number of bookings, resort manager
Jane Steward has decided to host a Murder and Mayhem week so that fans
of the mystery genre can gather together for some role-playing and
fantasy crime solving.
But when the winner of the scavenger
hunt, Felix Hampden, is found dead in the Mystery Suite, and the
valuable book he won as his prize is missing, Jane realizes one of her
guests is an actual murderer. Amid a resort full of fake detectives,
Jane is bound and determined to find a real-life killer. There’s no room
for error as Jane tries to unlock this mystery before another vacancy
opens up…
I liked the literary allusions! There were lots and lots and lots of references and some I didn't know. I liked that there were so many clues and twists.
Jane's twin sons were named Fitzgerald and Hemingway. Fun!
I like that so many of the guests thoroughly enjoyed the Murder and Mayhem activities and it benefited other businesses in the small town. It was fun to think that Jane would plan other theme weeks for Storyton Hall.
I didn't like "Mrs. Pratt" - she was probably why I stopped reading it the first time. She just seemed creepy. I'm not sure what her age was, but she came across as a middle aged sex-starved pervert. Yuk.
Aunt Octavia is sickening with her disregard for her own health (overeating and not exercising), especially considering her extreme concern for the big family secret.
Also, Aunt Octavia is spending money on extravagant clothes when Storyton is falling into disrepair and money is needed to take care of the building? What the heck!
The bend-over-backwards-to-appease the guests by Jane is absolutely mind-boggling. This was clearly written before the era of shaming Karen behaviors.
I didn't like how extreme the story got - they have a secret, hidden library that has untold treasures (like the fabled library at Alexandria). The Stewards are literal stewards of this treasure and Jane is now going to train to be a superhero of sorts. It just got to be a bit much.
by Markus Zusak
Libby audiobook 9 hours
Read by: Marc Aden Gray
Published: 2002 (this version 2006)
Genre: YA realistic fiction with fantasy elements
Wow. This was both bizarre and incredible. I think I remember getting this for PRMS, based purely on the popularity of The Book Thief. Well this book is NOT really for a typical middle school reader. It isn't just the swearing, violence, drinking, etc. that make it for an older reader; it's the deeply philosophical look at the meaning of life.
I just googled the author because the book (and the reader's accent) most definitely indicated Australia as the location of the story. Yes.
Here's Wikipedia's intro to the book: "The protagonist is Ed Kennedy, an uninspired 19-year old Australian taxi driver. Ed laments his mediocre life and strained relationship with his mother, as his father died recently and left Ed with only his dog, the Doorman, but does nothing to improve his situation, instead preferring to continue living alone and playing cards every week with his friends: Ritchie, who is unemployed and generally apathetic about life; Marv, a stingy carpenter; and Audrey, a fellow taxi driver whom Ed is in love with, although she does not reciprocate. After accidentally foiling a robbery he is proclaimed a hero by the public, though the robber leaves him a warning that he sees "a dead man" when he looks at Ed before being taken away by police. One night, he receives a small unmarked envelope, inside of which is an Ace of Diamonds with three addresses and times of day written on them. His friends deny involvement, so Ed investigates the three addresses."
"Beautiful women are the torment of my existence." - Ed, such a genuine, honest character.
Audrey, Marv, Ritchie, . . . Mila, Sophie, so many others . . . why the violence?
Playing cards - hearts last. Diamonds - 3 addresses. Clubs - names on rocks. (Beatings to start and finish.) Spades - authors / street names / family with Christmas lights. Hearts - friends.
The Doorman! Stinky dog, sweet friend. Conversations! Sharing coffee.
Conversation with his mom. Loss of his dad.
"Sometimes I wish I was a dog." - me, too, Ed. Me, too.
