Sophie and Carter

by Chelsea Fine
on a shelf paperback 119 pages
genre: YA realistic, relationships

I had purchased this for school but reconsidered . . . the fonts used are super hard to read and it looked as though it might be a too-mature book for middle school. So it sat on my "consideration" shelf for a long time until I finally started reading it during lunch breaks.

Then I brought it home to finish it. The content is serious, indeed, but not in the way I expected. Sophie's mom is a prostitute who is almost never home, leaving the high school senior responsible for her three younger siblings. This includes feeding them, making sure they get to school, do their homework, etc. Next door neighbor Carter was horribly abused by his father until he was big enough to fight back. Now Carter cares for his mother, a broken woman who is mentally ill.

Through their years of friendship, the two have fallen in love but it takes a while for them to realize it. On some levels, this is a really beautiful book about what love really is. In other ways, it is so trite. The likelihood of these two seventeen-year-olds to overcome such traumatic childhoods to be balanced, caring, healthy individuals is unlikely. That said, I'm trying to think of which kiddo would *love* this book and want to own it!

If I Grow Up

by Todd Strasser
Carver County Library hardcover 220 pages
genre: YA realistic, gangs

This was so sad! Strasser again mixes factual information within his fictional story. DeShawn is a good kid growing up in the projects. He sees the drug dealers, prostitutes, violence, and hopelessness. The story is told in short chapters that broke my heart. This is almost a "call to action" for its readers. Poverty and hopelessness are powerful and real. Some students helped me create an audiobook for students who struggle to read. I had to bring it home to finish reading the whole story. So incredibly sad!

Every Day

by David Levithan
Hennepin County library audiobook 7 discs
read by Alex McKenna
genre: YA SciFi gender fluidity

A - changes bodies every day, sometimes a male and sometimes a female. Has been this way since birth but didn't realize it was unusual until reaching the age of 4.

Rhiannon - changes A's life by being herself. A is in her boyfriend's body for a day and falls in love with her. A is determined to stay with her.

Nathan - is inhabited by A for a day and KNOWS something happened to him. He confides in a preacher who has a website looking for people's stories of "demon possession."

Overall, I disliked this story but found that it stuck with me. Though the premise was far-fetched (a person whose "self" lives in a different body each day of existence), Levithan made it worked. I cared about A and wanted "him" to have a happy ever after . . .

The author's stance that gender is superfluous and same-sex, trans, and every other permutation of sexuality is irrelevant in light of who the person is "on the inside" came through loud and clear. Rhiannon's hesitance to kiss A when A is in a female body is roundly denounced by A, who doesn't see why it should bother her.

Ultimately, the story had my attention and I was pleasantly surprised by the resolution . . . although it brought me back to the oddness of the premise. Levithan is a talented storyteller, no question. I just didn't enjoy this one. 

More: How to Move from Activity for God to Intimacy with God

by Greg Hawkins
Hennepin County Library hardcover 203 pages
genre: Christian living

This was recommended by a colleague. Overall, I wasn't as inspired as I was by Francis Chan's Crazy Love. I marked a lot of pages, though, so clearly I made some connections!

Page 45 - The study that his church commissioned found four groups of Christians. Group Four were the "more" group. "People in this group love God with their whole heart and love others as themselves. They have found a life of purpose, a life of loving others, a life of inner contentment and peace. We want these things. We crave that kind of life, especially when we learn that it's not about doing more things." So true! I want to BE one of "those" Christians . . .

Page 51 - "We were made for an intimacy we cannot even imagine, one in which we feel loved and safe and joyful in ways we've never experienced in this life."

Page 85 - "When we worry, we are telling God, 'I don't trust You. I don't think You can help. . . '" This theme has come up in my readings before, but it's always a good reminder! I have gotten better about trusting God, but I'm surprised I still struggle with this at all!

Page 99 - "Rather than thinking I've got to . . . begin to think, We're going to . . . you and God. Think of doing your day, moment by moment, with God." This is an interesting shift. I'm not sure I can do it! But I think it's an exercise I should try.

Page 127 - "I really prefer the idea of the Bible as 'food' or nutrition that is essential to having an intimate relationship with God. Eating isn't a habit; it's absolutely necessary to live. A habit is something you can break or give up. You simply cannot live without food, and that's how you should approach the Bible: I need this to survive. Without it I will die."

Page 140 - Sometimes, this author's words bugged me rather than inspired me. I don't feel like noting all of them, but this one jumped off the page at me! "At the end of the day, the only thing that will last is people. The only thing that is truly immortal is the human soul." What?! People *don't* last - that's why there's so much crying at funerals. And the "only thing" that is truly immortal is God Himself! If you're trying to make the point that people are important and we should pay attention to them, find a different way to express that!

Page 144 - I'm not sure why I marked this part on small groups . . . maybe I was thinking of the value of book club and the conversations we have about life and following Jesus.

Page 179 - "Push kills your life. I push so that things happen at the pace I want them to happen, not at the pace that God would like them to happen. And God has a pace in mind for things, which will bless me." This really resonates. I hate the go-go-go of modern life. I hate the push, and want God's MORE.

PRMS Book Club

I deleted this widget, but thought I might want to save the list. Each title should also be a blog entry somewhere . . .

Past Titles:
The Language of Flowers by Vanessa Diffenbaugh - March 2014
The Burgess Boys by Elizabeth Strout - February 2014
Having Our Say: The Delaney Sisters' First One Hundred Years - by Sadie Delaney and Bessie Delany, with Amy Hill Hearth - January 2014
Ship Breaker by Paolo Bacigalupi - December 2013
The Secrets of Mary Bowser by Lois Leveen - November 2013
Wonder by R.J. Palacio - October 2013
Personal favorites - May 2013
Killing Kennedy by Bill O'Reilly - April 2013
No Easy Day by Mark Owen and Kevin Maurer - March 2013
One Thousand White Women by Jim Fergus - February 2013
I Am Number Four by Pittacus Lore - January 2013
Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card - December 2012
The Story of Beautiful Girl by Rachel Simon - November 2012
Defending Jacob by William Landay - October 2012
Any Classic book (re-reads ok) - May 2012

 Invisible Bridge by Julie Orringer - Apr. 2012 
Same Kind of Different as Me (Hall, Moore, Vincent) - Mar. 2012
Hotel at the Corner of Bitter and Sweet (Ford) - Feb. 2012
Grisham titles - any - Jan. 2012
Home of the Brave (Applegate) - Dec. 2011
Little Bee (Cleave) - Nov. 2011
Bossypants (Fey) - October 2011
The Art of Racing in the Rain (Stein) - May 2011
Freedom (Franzen) - April 2011
American Assassin (Flynn) - Feb. 2011
Cutting for Stone - (Verghese) - Nov 2010 & Jan 2011!
The Death and Life of Charlie St. Cloud - (Sherwood) - Oct. 2010
Shanghai Girls (See) - May 2010
The Hunger Games (Collins) - April 2010
The Greatest Generation (Brokaw) - March 2010 

The Lost Symbol (Brown) - February 2010
The Dive From Clausen's Pier (Packer) - January 2010
The Glass Castle (Walls) - December 2009
Who Killed My Daughter - November 2009

Newton & Polly: A Novel of Amazing Grace

by Jody Hedlund

HC lib paperback 389 pages

genre: Christian historical fiction

John Newton and Polly Catlett

love at first sight / slave trade & abolition / music and passion

Loved the author's note at the end! Most of this story actually was true. (John Newton wrote the hymn "Amazing Grace.")

page 92 - "She didn't know why she bothered to argue with Susanna. She never won the word sparring." I can relate to this! There are times I want to argue, but know I may as well just keep quiet.

page 153 - "But even as her prayers formulated, her soul echoed with emptiness. Would God really hear her? Why would he listen to her when she was riddled with faults? Would she ever be free of her sin and good enough to truly connect with God and feel his presence? If only she could earn his favor. Maybe then he'd finally hear her prayers." I understand why people can feel this way, but trying to earn God's favor is foolish! His grace and mercy are what connects us to Him. We simply can't do enough to be good enough. That's the point!

page 233 - Ugh! How maddening that John continues to make stupid choices! What an idiot! It was hard to like him as a protagonist at times.

page 352 - Finally! "Newton dropped his face into his hands and wept for the man who'd never given up on him. The man who'd loved him though all the difficulties and disappointments and failures. The man who'd never stopped loving him. 'Thank you.' His voice cracked. 'I love you too, Father.'" And I love how he comes to the realization that his heavenly Father loves him, just as his earthly father does.

page 369 - Polly's mom: "No one can expect a perfect marriage. Both partners are sinful human beings, and we bring those sins with us to marriage. However, when two people are committed to growing in holiness there is hope for any problems that arise." So true!

page 385 - from the author's note, a message from John Newton to his wife - "My love has been growing from the day of marriage, and still it is in a growing state. It was once as an acorn, but it has now a deep root and spreading branches like an old oak. It would not have proved so if the Lord had not watered it with his blessing." Love this actual quote from his writings!

Book club discussion - slave trade.

Jeremy Fink and the Meaning of Life

by Wendy Mass
Hennepin County Library audiobook 8 discs
read by Andy Paris
genre: YA realistic fiction

I enjoyed this story, and there's a lot to it (great discussion book!) but I kind of understand why it hasn't been a hit at my school. It's kind of an odd story. Jeremy and Lizzy are unusual kids, best friends but almost more like siblings. Jeremy's dad is dead and Lizzy's mom is gone.

"A mysterious box with the words "THE MEANING OF LIFE: For Jeremy Fink TO Open On His 13th Birthday" arrives in the mail from Jeremy's long-departed father. The four keys needed to open the box are lost, setting Jeremy and Lizzy off on a quest to find them somewhere in the vastness of New York City."

I liked a lot of the quirkiness (junk dealers, collections, unique people) but was confused by Jeremy's weird phobias and how they developed. Paris' vocal work was wonderful!

The 5th Wave

by Rick Yancey
Hennepin County Library audiobook 10 discs
read by Brandon Espinoza and Phoebe Strole
genre: YA dystopian SciFi

This book was so depressing! In addition to the usual darkness of dystopia, there were kids turning into killers. Lots of death and destruction. The "Others" don't show up as ET-type aliens; they have inserted their intelligence into humans. Who is "infested" and who is not? How do you tell, or do you shoot first and try to figure it out later?

Cassie (short for Casseopia) and her brother Sammy, Ben, the mysterious Evan Walker, . . . and lots of other young people take center stage in this gripping story.

Some of my notes:
- part two is Ben!
- Vosch is evil! Or is he?
 - Evan IS the silencer, right?
- part five is Sammy! Nugget / Sammy
- Who will get there first? Ben/Zombie or Cassie & Evan?

When the book ended, I was frustrated. What happened to Evan? Where will these kids go next? How long until Vosch is after them? I need to read the Infinite Sea!

I found another scrap of paper with notes:
- dystopian = depressing
- theology . . . don't go there! "God hasn't kept His promises" / ugh! I hate when YA authors use their fiction as a platform for theology. It's one thing for a character to explore these issues, but another when proclamations are made.
- hope - yes! So true! If this is lost, then all is over.
- Some beautiful descriptive passages!
- for more mature readers / lots of swearing / challenging, even bleak outlook

Empire of Storms

Throne of Glass book 5
by Sarah J. Maas
Hennepin County Library hardcover 689 pages
genre: YA fantasy

Arg! Once again, I read a book in this series even though I do NOT love her writing style. And once again, I want to read the next book in the series to find out what happens!

Don't like:

• how the characters don't seem consistent in their own storylines from one book to another
• assumptions / jumps being made . . . or perhaps I'm not reading carefully enough to follow nuances
• choppy plot development
• references to long-dead rulers, various gods, etc. Who ARE these people?!
• overdone sex scenes . . . but if I were a sixteen-year-old, these probably would have been my favorite parts

Like:
Obviously, the characters have some resonance with me as a reader, since I want to find out what happens to them. Elide, Aelin, Rowan, Manon, Dorian, Chaol . . . and so many others.
I like how the battles turned out. And I like Aelin's sauciness.

I Will Always Write Back: How One Letter Changed Two Lives

by Caitlin Alifirenka & Martin Ganda, with Liz Welch
Hennepin County Library hardcover 392 pages
genre: non-fiction, memoir(ish)

Caitlin wrote a pen pal letter in 1997 as a seventh grader. She chose Zimbabwe. Martin Ganda received her letter and responded. Over the years, the two young people growing up a world apart. Caitlin slowly realized that her world was wealthy and shallow; Martin struggled to stay in school and have enough food to eat. A top student, he had many people encouraging him, but was so incredibly poor that survival was a priority. The gifts that Caitlin and later, her parents, sent truly made a significant difference for Martin and his family.

What an amazing book! I don't know where I saw the recommendation, but I'm so incredibly glad I read this book. I would love for my students to learn what Caitlin learned . . . and I love the photographs and the happy ending!

Seedfolks

by Paul Fleischman
PRMS paperback 102 pages (including the author's notes)
genre: YA realistic fiction

I don't remember why we picked this for book club . . . but I'm glad. It was a re-read for me and I really enjoyed it and the many positive messages in it. The kids mostly responded well to it, but they disliked the lack of resolution. I didn't realize / forgot that the author is Sid Fleischman's son. I get the two of them mixed up. This is a lovely book about people and a neighborhood garden that brings them together. The author purposely picked Cleveland for the setting and included lots of immigrants. Wonderful, short book (unless examining plot is your main goal . . . ).

Scythe

by Neal Shusterman
Hennepin County Library hardcover 435 pages
genre: YA SciFi

Oh my word. I don't remember where I heard about this book, but I think it is Shusterman's best ever. I'm not sure I can give a fair summary, so look for that on Amazon. This book was both horrible (I had to put it down, because it is very dark in places) and wonderful (offering insights on morals, philosophy, history, culture) in the guise of a new book for teens. Amazing!!!

Page 53 describes the Thunderhead. "The greatest achievement of the human race was not conquering death. It was ending government." That made me laugh. I would quote more of that passage here, but I'll just tell you to read the book. (The Thunderhead is what today's "cloud" becomes with AI.)

Page 82 ". . . he could tell it was in fine penmanship. It figures she would take penmanship in school. It was one of those classes people took just to be superior. Like Latin." Interesting observation. Taking classes to be superior to others who lack that knowledge or ability.

Page 85 I need to include this entire page. No commentary, except that I'm glad I have faith in God and His plan for eternity.

Page 118 Another journal entry from Honorable Scythe Curie. A passage on religion and the tone cults. I really would love to discuss this book with another reader! Also, I appreciate the scythes taking a name of a Patron Historic. The names were a really interesting part of the story.

Page 235 (Citra) "She resolved not to feel guilty about that. She'd had more than her share of guilt. 'Guilt is the idiot cousin of remorse,' Scythe Faraday had been fond of saying." Yes! Guilt is an idiot cousin and a waste of time.

page 262 From the gleaning journal of H.S. Prometheus - "Human nature is both predictable and mysterious; prone to great and sudden advances, yet still mired in despicable self-interest." Truly, this book has some amazing gems.

page 339 "The idea of truly wishing to end one's own life is a concept completely foreign to most post-mortals, because we can't experience the level of pain and despair that so seasoned the Age of Mortality. Our emo-nanites prevent us from plunging so deep." The nanites in the bloodstream that dull pain, heal, and do other health maintenance are an intriguing concept. Immortality is not something that I think human beings will ever attain on this planet, but as a future innovation in biomedical technology, some of this stuff might be prophetic (like some of the predictions in 1984).

Page 388 Another page contemplating religion and prayer, this time from Faraday's journal.

Page 433 I don't want to include a spoiler, so I'll just say I smiled like crazy when I read this page. If this book doesn't sound that fascinating, I'll just say that Citra and Rowan are two young people who could overpower Katniss Everdeen in a heartbeat. (And I *love* the Hunger Games series.) I MUST buy this book for PRMS and my avid readers. The violence is intense, but the story is amazing.

One irritating thing that I find more and more when I read new books . . . typos! Seriously?! What ever happened to proofreaders? I didn't mark the pages, but it really irked me. How do these get through the publishing process? Here's a new one for me:


(How do you spell "you" with a comma???)

Note added 2019.01.13: I re-read this blog entry when I saw that it had over 100 views. I laughed at myself when I saw an error (now fixed) in the place where I wrote about page 339. (I had "out" instead of "our.")  Then I got to this last note on proofreading and laughed at my own arrogance and carelessness! Sigh. I am only mortal, after all.

Uncommon Learning: Creating Schools That Work for Kids

by Eric C. Sheninger
Colleague's copy, paperback 194 pages plus appendices
genre: non-fiction education

I am not ready to review this book, but it confirms for me that I need to not be teaching at PRMS any more. The goals are lofty and some of the paradigm shifts are overdue. But children are still children and I'm not convinced that the majority of our students are mature enough to be "in charge" of their own learning. Student-centered education has not looked like the ideals put forth in this book, in my experience. I scanned the chapter on MakerSpaces (which is why the book was loaned to me) and it broke my heart. Clearly, I am the crusty old professional they wish to be rid of and I hope they can replace me with the dynamic young thing they're looking for.

Ten Days a Madwoman

by Deborah Noyes
Hennepin County Library hardcover 122 pages
genre: YA non-fiction, history

This story about Nellie Bly was fascinating! From helping students with this as a History Day topic, I was aware of her going "undercover" at an insane asylum. I did not realize, though, that she had a drive and perseverance that was unusual for her time. She had a tough life and was determined to take care of her mother and siblings.

I liked best her trip around the world - a "stunt" to increase readership - and her meeting with Jules Verne and Mrs. Verne in France. From page 92: "In Chicago, a cable that had missed her in San Francisco caught up with her: 'M. and Mme. Jules Verne address their sincere felicitations to Miss Nellie Bly at the moment when that intrepid young lady sets foot on the soil of America.' (The great writer was probably doubly pleased with Nellie in that she brought fresh publicity to his novel: Around the World in Eighty Days was reissued in more than ten new editions in France before Nellie even completed her journey.)"

I liked least the double-blue pages that focused on a story from Nellie's life. They seemed out-of-place in the middle of chapters where they didn't make chronological sense. Overall, though, this was a wonderful non-fiction book about an extraordinary young woman. I learned a lot!

Snow White

by Matt Phelan
Hennepin County Library hard cover unpaged
genre: YA graphic novel fairy tale

This is Snow White retold as a tale of the Great Depression. It is beautiful and has very little text. The "seven little men" are street urchin boys. The story is effective and worth owning (for my personal collection) but I won't buy it for school. I simply don't have enough budget and the story is told almost exclusively through images.

The Penderwicks: A Summer Tale of Four Sisters, Two Rabbits, and a Very Interesting Boy

by Jeanne Birdsall
Hennepin County Library audiobook 6 discs
read by Susan Denaker
genre: children's realistic fiction

When this won a National Book Award for Children's Literature, I heard lots of comments about the cover art being off-putting to readers. "The story is much better than the cover art leads you to believe." I've long been meaning to read this to find out for myself, so the audiobook was a perfect chance to do just that. (I clearly spend too many hours in my car!)

Denaker did a great job with the vocal work! The story is about four sisters - Rosalind (12), Skye (11), Jane (10) and Batty (4). Their mother did of cancer two weeks after Batty (Elizabeth, like her mother) was born. The thing that made me crazy throughout this book was that dad was off in his own world for the most part. Rosalind was the parent for her siblings! I know that the freedom the kids had was part of the plot, but it bugged me so much that she was setting limits, giving permission (or denying it), and generally acting as a parent. A twelve-year-old shouldn't have to do this!

The Penderwick family has rented a cottage for the summer. The cottage is at the back of the Arundel property, owned by Mrs. Tiften, a serious piece of work. Her son Jeffery becomes friends with the Penderwick girls (against his mother's wishes) and the five kids have adventures and fun.

Cagney is the handsome teen "garden boy" who works on Arundel's extensive gardens. He had learned from his uncle, who held the job before him until he died. Churchie (Mrs. Churchill) is the housekeeper and Harry the Tomato Man are the other main characters. Oh, and Dexter Dupree is Mrs. Tiften's nasty boyfriend / fiance.

There are four more books in the series. I won't read them. But I can enthusiastically recommend this title to my more innocent, capable readers. It's hard when they're excellent readers, but not ready for more mature content. This book has plenty to interest them.

How to Say Goodbye in Robot

by Natalie Standiford
PRMS hardcover 276 pages
genre: YA realistic

This book came to my attention when a sixth grader returned it and my paraprofessional left me a note. "She was upset by the swear words and sex talk in the book." Since I was unfamiliar with this author or this story, I checked it out and added it to my ginormous reading pile.

It was pretty mild in terms of content (and in relation to some of the other titles in my collection), but it's definitely not a sixth grade book. The blurb on the inside cover doesn't really get at the heart of the story, either, which is probably part of the problem.

Bea is new in town, living with mom (and her increasingly bizarre behaviors) and dad, a college professor who has moved them many times over Bea's life. Bea meets Anne Sweeney on her first day at Canton High School. Anne is one of the popular people, but she welcomes Bea and is kind . . . until she mentions Jonah Tate aka "Ghost Boy" and the funeral they had for him as a joke a few years back. Some joke. Jonah's twin brother perished in the same car accident that killed his mom, back when the twins were little kids.

To me, this is a story about kids who don't fit into the "norm" for whatever the reason. They see the world and themselves differently. Call them freaks, misfits, oddballs . . . or teens who are just trying to figure out their place in the world differently from their peers. It was beautiful and sad, but mostly unfulfilling to me (because of how the story ends). Now that I've read it, I know better which kind of reader to recommend it to!

The AM night radio program (and the people on it) were the neatest part of this story!

Ghosts

by Raina Telgemeier
PRMS paperback 240 pages
genre: YA graphic novel, supernatural layered on realistic

Wow! Another fabulous book by Telgemeier! In this story, the family is moving because Maya has cystic fibrosis and will benefit from a different climate. Older sister Catrina loves Maya and understands the move, but she isn't happy about leaving her home and her friends.

I just decided that I don't feel like blogging any more of this. It's a wonderful story, though I'm not typically a "day of the dead" / ghosts / celebrating with skeletons kind of gal. Telgemeier makes it work. I can think of many of my readers who will love this book and want to visit the town in Northern California to visit with ghosts themselves! (Though I'm pretty sure that Bahia de la Luna is a fictional town.)

Camp Midnight

by Steven T. Seagle and Jason Adam Katzenstein
PRMS paperback 244 pages
genre: YA graphic novel, supernatural

I don't love their artwork style, but I definitely enjoyed the storyline. Skye is supposed to be spending the summer with her dad and stepmom, but they send her off to camp. Camp Midnight is bizarre and the campers . . . all have their secrets. Skye is a dramatic but realistic character and her choices over the course of the summer show her maturing but still a kid. Delightful!

Linda Dierks gifted this to me from her Scholastic Book Fair.

The Fourteenth Goldfish

by Jennifer L. Holm
Hennepin County Library audiobook 3 CDs
read by Georgette Perna
genre: children's fiction, mostly realistic with a dab of SciFi

The "dab" of SciFi is that the protagonist's grandpa has developed a way to reverse aging. His thirteen-year-old self with his seventy-six year old brain, experiences, and attitude make eleven-year-old Ellie do some growing up of her own.

From notes I jotted at stoplights:

The narrator did a great job, but her voice sounded soooo young! It was a bit disconcerting at first.

Why would Ellie's mom keep replacing her goldfish? The teacher emphasized the point of the project / lesson was to learn about death.

Short chapters / fifth grader - fits the upper elementary reader this is intended for.
Science and scientists - I love the way the grandpa piques Ellie's curiosity and gets her researching just for the sake of knowing more.

I had to laugh when grandpa got detention. His comments were funny, even though I can't remember them.

A lot of discussion material on aging, teens, families, communication . . .

Grandpa is a cranky old man, always complaining. Gee - where have I experienced this scenario?