I heart Taylor

So I just had to post a link to this blog entry by Cheryl Klein because not only do I love almost every post on her blog, this one is particularly eerie to me because in it I learned that I am not the only person who lays awake at night dissecting Taylor Swift lyrics!

There is a line in Taylor's song Mine that I listened over and over again so I could write it down and figure out why it sounded so so beautiful and why a few short words made up an entire story. I loved reading Cheryl's post today and seeing that I am not the only person who thinks her words are sheer perfection when it comes to teens and getting to the heart of the matter.



One thing Cheryl didn't bring up was the beautiful song Taylor sang at the VMAs earlier this week. Someone said to me that she really put "Kanye in his place." Huh? What? I didn't feel that way at all! Listening to the song, it felt like an olive branch. Didn't you think?

I looked online and there seems to be great controversy about her intent. So let me set this straight. I feel like I'm entitled because I couldn't have been prouder of Taylor, I felt like she was my little sis up there teaching a jaded world about forgiveness and quiet grace. It was so not a jab.

And of course she wrote a song about it, that's what Taylor does. She's a teenager and she's Taylor Swift, so if all the adults out there think she should've just taken it in stride and moved on, they clearly don't remember what it means to be a teen. Millions of young girls (and boys) listen to her music and if they haven't lived through an experience that required an act of forgiveness yet, they soon will. I love that Taylor wasn't about revenge and payback.

Because I have a mental catalog of her music, I feel like I can say without a shadow of a doubt that Taylor can't let go of the past without learning from it. How cool is that? Keep writing Tay Tay. Whether or not you agree with all her messages is one thing (I personally don't), but there is no denying that she set a glorious example of forgiveness and turning the other cheek. I heart Taylor.

Boy-friendly Newbery Medal Winners-Gold, Silver and Bronze!

Newbery Award winning books are considered the best of the best in the middle-grade division of childrens' books. Each January, one Newbery Medal book is chosen as the winner. One to three Newbery Honor books may be chosen as well. The judges are librarians from all around the country who know their middle-grade fiction like a cat knows a canary, so when a new crop of books come on the scene each year, and a few rise to the top, the books are scrutinized and thoroughly dissected.

That golden seal means a lot. It means little dreamy girls who journal a lot will rub their fingers over the bas relief circle and dream that some day someone will cozy up in a corner somewhere and read her words (oops, that slipped out). Out of my dream state and back to reality! What it really means that every book store and library in the United States and beyond will order and shelve that book, and although many will agree with all the accolades and hearty praise, there will also be voices of dissension claiming that book had no place as the King of the Hill. The voices will try to push the book off its throne, dirty its knees and make its author cry.

In my recommendation of awesome boy-friendly Newberys, I do in no way mean to make this list exclusive. I am sure there are many Newberys able to make a boy smile and giggle. But this summer my son happened to read three that made his heart soar. Yesterday his fourth grade teacher announced that each person in the class needed to be on the look-out for a Newbery to read this year. He said boys moaned and groaned around the room and he was hoping that he could slip them a copy of his favorites so they could know that this task wasn't nearly as painful as they were anticipating.

So, in keeping with the 2010 Summer Olympics, here are the Gold, Silver and Bronze of Boy-Friendly Newberys according to my favorite fourth-grader:

THE GOLD

HOOT by Carl Hiassen

Hoot is an eco-adventure starring an imminently likable main character, Roy, and a barefoot boy who catches fish with his bare hands. Their quest involves saving a species of burrowing owls from certain extinction by fighting the corporate machine, Paula's Pancake House. Paula's company is trying to build on the owls' sacred breeding ground. Some people feel "boy" books do not have the character-development offered in "girl" books. Not true with Carl Hiaason. His characters jump off the page, wave you toward them with enthusiasm, twinkle and don't let you go until the very last page. My son says Roy is his favorite character in a book, ever! He says if the other two books in the trilogy, Scat and Flush, were Newberys, they might bump the other two out of their medals. Maybe.

*Both Hoot and Holes are movies (no surprise there). Fortunately we hadn't seen either movie before we found these books. After reading both books, we rented the movies. Of course neither movie lived up to the movie he'd "already seen in his head"! 


The Silver

HOLES by Louis Sachar

Stanley is sentenced to hard time at a labor camp/detention center for boys. His days with his fellow inmates are spent digging holes for the warden. This one is hard to sum up without getting into anything that might take away from the experience. There is a wonderful historical component Sachar weaves in back and forth along with Stanley's story. It sounds confusing, but it's not. And my son seemed to enjoy both storylines which eventually blend to create a satisfying and exciting read. Stanley and his buddies were phenomenal characters, creating the perfect blend of people and plot to keep you hooked!


The Bronze

MANIAC MAGEE by Jerry Spinelli

I love Jerry Spinelli. Star Girl is one of my all-time favorite books, so I had high-hopes for Jerry's ability to connect with my son. Jeffrey Maniac Magee has a lot of the sweet, naivete and allure I found in StarGirl and my son warmed up to him just as I had hoped. This is the oldest book of the three, having won the Newbery in 1990. This book deals with racial tension, prejudice, tolerance and acceptance. After reading this one, the whole family listened to the audio book while on a trip and not only did it have us all laughing, it created an opportunity for open and important dialogue about stereotyping and cultural differences. I personally think Jerry Spinelli is one of the greats in middle-grade fiction and I am surprised this one is not a movie along with Hoot and Holes.

Caveat: Once you hear the audio book, your family may have a hard time not chanting the jump rope song written about the legendary Maniac Magee by young girls who lived in the neighborhood! 

Now that I've completed this post, I realize that all three books were penned by male authors. Hmmm.

Freshly-Brewed Monday Book Recommendation

I didn't plan this. I really did just finish  The Last Best Days of Summer. It's been in a pile since I bought it in May, but I got side-tracked by Suzanne Collins maniaville, (go Katniss!) and a bunch of other books in the heap. Cut to September, now my boys start school in a few days, the season is winding to a close and I find myself writing about a wonderful book called The Last Best Days of Summer. Finishing this sweet hopeful book and knowing the last week of a glorious summer is slipping out of reach seems meant to be. Finishing a near-perfect book and a near-perfect summer is always bittersweet.

Twelve-year-old Lucy thinks August is the most perfect time of the year. August is when she spends time with Grams at the lake house. Grams is the person Lucy feels most known by. The person who makes her feel safe and centered. That is, until this summer. Grams is a different person this summer and it couldn't be happening at a more confusing time. Lucy's best friend sends her off with a stack of teen magazines, hoping Lucy will study up on how to increase their popularity and Lucy eagerly leaves behind Eddie, a friend with Down's Syndrome who she enjoys but only will admit it deep down inside. How can Grams be losing it when Lucy desperately needs her so much.

I love Valerie Hobbs' simple straightforward writing. She lured me in with Defiance (Imagine bringing together an eleven year old boy with cancer, a spunky old neighbor lady and a cow named Blossom. Are you hooked yet?) I have been eagerly awaiting this one and it did not disappoint. Once again she brings together characters who are so different from one another and manages to create this amazing harmony. Stuff that really does happen in life, but often feels artificial in print. With Hobbs it feels anything but artificial. My heart went out to sweet Lucy, grappling with the indescribable pain of losing her childhood, coupled with her beloved Grams, losing her memory, drifting away from Lucy when she needed her most. And innocent Eddie, who was so very unaware of the difficulties around him, but who added so much to the story and to Lucy's growth throughout the book.

This book has that "girlfriend" quality I remember longing for and looking for in books as a young reader. A book that provided a friend hidden in the pages. Someone who could articulate her frustration like I often could not, someone who's life felt a little out of control but she was muddling through anyway. This book will touch many girls' hearts. I know I will recommending it and giving it to many!

Freshly-Brewed Monday Book Recommendation- Boys Without Names by Kashmira Sheth

"Stay here, starve here," Gopal's father sums up the family's reality in a few small words. Eleven year-old Gopal lives in rural India where his family's survival is deeply tied to their land. As is typical in most third world countries, a bad crop, a family illness or any number of small turns could force a family away from their life in the country, toward a life in the city where job opportunity hopefully awaits. Gopal’s father (Baba) decides to move the family to Mumbai where they can be helped by relatives and Baba can find work. The first half of the book walks through many tenuous situations in the family's travels to find Gopal’s Uncle Jama. These situations allow the reader to see the beauty and goodness of people in India and the love Gopal's family has for one another. The second half of the book follows through on what is described on the back cover, life in a sweatshop. I was grateful for the time the author spent grounding me in Gopal's family life and his sense of self, investing me all the more in my desire to see him escape the conditions and dangers of his life locked up in a  sweatshop building where he is forced to work all day with no pay and little food.

In the sweatshop, Gopal meets the other child laborers who do not give their names. Throughout the story they are known as: Dimple Chin, Gray Cloud (GC), Rocking Boy, Night Chatterer and Thick Fingers. The names breathed life and new dimension into these characters, much like Stanley's imprisoned buddies in Holes by Louis Sachar. Gopal's relationships with the wounded boys build slowly and tentatively and created what was my favorite part of the book. Over time, Gopal realizes he has a gift the other boys have not been given, years of love from his family and the confidence and sense of self that provides. Slowly, the author develops Gopal's realization that he must use his strong foundation of love and security provided by his upbringing to engender the trust of these wary boys. Only then can they can create a connection that will allow them to do more than merely survive within the walls of the building- create a plan to escape!

Gopal quickly realizes storytelling is his best means to forge a bond with the other laborers. The theme of storytelling is central to this book. First, Gopal uses storytelling to entertain himself and his younger siblings in their life in the Indian countryside. Then Gopal turns to storytelling as a way to insert hope into the desperation of his family's life as they travel through India and lose Baba. Finally, Gopal uses story as a way to connect with the other boys within the walls of their sweatshop. Evenings of story-telling became the highlight of the boys evenings together on their bunks and ultimately is what bonded them.

Gopal's stories are sweet and endearing. I loved the slow build of hope he infused into the lives of the boys who had not known joy inside or outside the walls of their sweatshop.

The abuse the boys suffered included beatings, ladders taken away in the night so they could not use the bathroom, and being forced to hold their ankles for hours. It didn't get much worse than that. It felt authentic in its depiction of the types of evils that a child might endure in this environment, although I am sure Sheth only provided the milder forms of abuse, so that this could be palatable for a middle grade reader. In the acknowledgments in the back of the book, the author discussed that the basis for many of the characters and situations were founded on experiences she had while traveling in India doing extensive research on this subject matter.

Jacqueline Woodson's blurb on the cover of the book sums up my feelings about this book, I will let her say it for me! "Boys Without Names is not a heartbreaking story, even if there are moments that break the heart. Instead, it is a story about growing up, about learning and relearning the meaning of family. This is one of the best books I've read this year."

There were definitely moments that broke my heart. It is beyond difficult hearing any detail of abuse inflicted on children. Sheth does a beautiful job providing enough to create an authentic story, and yet not too much so as to take the book out of the middle-grade range of appropriate subject matter and detail.

This book would be great for male or female middle grade readers, either to read on their own or as a class read aloud. I can imagine the class discussions would be rich with "aha" moments for children who may not appreciate the comfort and ease with which they go about their days. I will be eagerly awaiting any future work by Kashmira Sheth. I am now a huge fan.

Not Exactly Kid's Lit, but So Very Cool!

My son is taking a Stop-Motion Animation Class this week at an amazing local art studio. The ceilings go up and up forever and just being in the building I feel like I'm wearing a beret and holding a little art pallette with a thumb hole. I can't even imagine how artsy the kids must feel. 

After class, we've spent a lot of time online looking at ideas for his projects. It's amazing all the crazy household items people can make fly, reach summit, swim and puke! This Friday (day 5 of his class) is the Stop Motion Animation Jamboree where his film will be released to the public (his classmates, their four or five moms and me)! OK, so maybe so far his project is mostly whirling q-tips, flying pennies and a tiny wooden cross from an Easter egg but look where this burst of creative energy could lead!!! So much creativity and precision in this amazing work of art- Hooray for artists!!!

Fickle Fickle Fiction Fan

I love a good mystery. As a kid, I loved Harriet the Spy, The Mixed-Up Files of Ms. Basil E. Frankweiler, Nancy Drew, Trixie Belden and my favorite boy sleuth, Encyclopedia Brown. Mystery is a tricky genre, but when an author proves they can master the beast, readers will follow them anywhere! When my oldest son devoured all the Encyclopedia Browns in one summer, and read all the A-Z mysteries (from A to Z!), I knew we needed some new gumshoes. We've covered serious ground, but there is one super sleuth who deserves today's spotlight because she has captured my attention in a big way and I know little me would have loved her as much as big me does. (And my sons love her too, which is saying something when you can appeal to both boys and girls!)

Who is this girl wonder you ask?

Sammy Keyes! She is sassy, adventurous, intrepid and smart. She will get the job done and you (even as an adult) will not solve this one! I read the first book (in the wee hours of the night) over Christmas break and loved it. It twists and turns with plot and sub-plots galore.This past Memorial Day weekend I checked the audio book out at the library and we listened to the CDs in the car- two hours up and two hours back. A test of the crime-solving abilities of the men in my life. As we pulled into the parking lot of the Pasadena Islands, after a completely mesmorized vehicle of five made it's way back through the Memorial Day traffic (starving for lunch), the last CD revealed Sammy's mystery's solution. (Picture me squealing with delight as my husband picked a red herring as the ending). No one saw it coming.

Sammy Keyes and the Hotel Thief is the first in the series of ten books. Wendeline Van Drannan won the prestigious Edgar award for this first installation and it is well-deserved. I can't wait to see what else she has in store in books 2-10. This morning at breakfast, my oldest son was reading chapter nine of the second book and left for school this morning with it tucked in his backpack. I think he's hooked too! 

While reading Sammy, something sort of random dawned on me. As a kid, I loved that Encyclopedia Brown always solved the mystery and did it all on foot, walking all over Idaville to get his man. I could do what Encyclopedia does, couldn't I? All I need is a garage office and someone willing to plunk a quarter into the gas can so I can solve their case. Nancy Drew, on the other hand, needed her little blue convertible, and by extension, a driver's license and the ripe old age driving requires. Sammy and Encyclopedia were far from driving, a skateboard or a bike would be the best mode of transport they could dream up, and yet no crime was impossible to solve, nothing was out of reach. For this reason alone, three cheers for Sammy and non-driving girls everywhere who have mystery dragons to slay. And what girl doesn't, right?

In which I give you a poem in lieu of a book recommendation

Walking to our Saturday School Fair this weekend, my oldest son, who has never failed to notice every bit of nature God puts in his path, looked at a weed pushing up through some broken pavement and said, "Look, Mom, nature and God always win."

His observation reminded me of an old journal I'd found earlier in the week, and of one poem in particular, by Mary Oliver.

It doesn't have to be
the blue iris, it could be
weeds in a vacant lot, or a few
small stones
just pay attention, then patch
a few words together and don't try
to make them elaborate,
this isn't a contest but a doorway
into thanks, and a
silence in which another voice can speak

-Mary Oliver

Ann Lamott says that all writers should have a copy of Mary Oliver's poem, Wild Geese, taped to their computer monitor. I'm not sure if my flat screen is considered a monitor? I like a clean uncluttered computer screen, but Wild Geese does rock, as does Anne Lamott. Maybe I'll try it, just for a bit.