TACKLING MY TBR WITH A BOOK TASTING

                

I don't know about your, but my TBR (Too Be Read) pile is huge! How best to tackle this behemoth of books? Picture books are easy - I just sneak those in here and there but the chapter books are a bit more challenging. I decided to not reinvent the wheel but to borrow from the First Look Book Club. If you have not heard of this delightful email service - Suzanne Beecher provides a few pages each day from a just published book. There's an excerpt from a new book, waiting in my inbox, each Monday-Friday morning, a different book each week. As the website says, "Get a first look before you commit to a book!" I probably read a dozen books each year that Suzanne has promoted through her emails. 

So I have adapted the process by reading the first twenty-five or so pages of each book in a stack to see what captures my attention - sort of like wine tasting but with books. The books picture above are my current stack. Let's see how I did!

 

You may notice that all but one of these books are middle grade fiction. But the book that snagged me immediately was the one adult book - Finlay Donovan is Killing It by Elle Cosimano. It's a delightful romp of a mystery! I loved it and can't wait for #2 which is being published in the spring. 

 

The next book I finished was How to Train Your Dad by the late, great Gary Paulsen. I love his books but my favorite is Harris and Me. This book is somewhat similar - crazy funny exploits of two twelve year old boys.  If you like Paulsen, I highly recommend reading this one. 

 

And then I read Kaleidoscope by Brian Selznick which was -- very different. Imagine a kaleidoscope. You turn it and the little pieces of glass inside shift to give you a pattern. Then you turn it again and the same pieces of glass give you a new pattern. Selznick took two characters - James and someone not named - and wrote a series of very short stories (two to five pages each) about them. Some are fantastical, some are realistic, some are mysterious. There are other recurring themes in the stories - butterflies and trees, for example. Some deal with grief, some with love. It was intriguing but I am not sure it's everyone's cup of tea - especially kids. 

I am about one-third of the way through Loteria which is a fantasy that delves into the question of free will vs. fate. Life and Death play a game of Loteria every year and whoever wins the game determines the fate of a person chosen before the game begins. This year, it's a twelve-year old girl named Clara. The chapters go back and forth between Clara and her life and the game being played by Life and Death. The game, of course, is impacting the events that are happening to Clara. Clara just followed her younger cousin, Esteban, into a magical world supposedly controlled by The Devil (that is one of the Loteria cards). It's all quite fascinating!

 

Two books went back to the library. I liked what Roger Sutton had to say in his November editorial in the HornBook -  "We have all read books 'for children' that were more like 'to children,' filled with firm ideas about just what the young need to know. I hate those books (whatever veneer of diplomacy I may have accrued over the years seems to be wearing off in anticipation of my semi-retirement) and hope you do, too." The two rejected books seemed to fall into that category. 

 

What are you reading? And how do you handle your TBR pile?

DRAWING CLOSE:

A LOOK AT CALDECOTT WINNING ILLUSTRATORS

#1 URI SHULEVITZ

                  

 

"Many people think that a picture book is a little book that provides merely a few minutes of entertainment. What a picture book truly is is a messenger from the outside world, bringing a message of a life of other possibilities. It requires a life affirming attitude. A saccharine or sentimental picture book won’t do. It doesn’t have to be deep, although it doesn’t hurt if it is, but a picture book must be alive, whether it offers pleasure, joy, or sadness."

 Uri Shulevitz, June 11, 2018 https://www.urishulevitz.com/blog.htm

 

I'm starting with Uri (pronounced "oo-ree") Shulevitz because I recently read his most recent book Chance: Escape from the Holocaust which is a memoir of his life during World War 2. He was born in 1935 in Warsaw, Poland. He remembers the Germans invading, bombs dropping, buildings blowing up - and then his family fled and spent most of the war years in different places in Russia. After reading his story, I wanted to take a look at his books. 

Uri won the Caldecott Medal in 1969 for The Fool of the World and the Flying Ship - A Russian Folktale, retold by Arthur Ransome. Since then, he has also earned three Caldecott Honors - for The Treasure in 1979, Snow in 1999, and How I Learned Geography in 2009.

School Library Journal contributor Donna L. Scanlon praised Shulevitz's illustrations - particularly his use of contrast, as well as his "vibrant watercolor paintings, full of blocky angular characters and quirky off-kilter buildings". Uri uses pen, ink, watercolor, colored ink and tempera paint to create his sometimes realistic, sometimes fanciful illustrations. But he is "constantly searching for a new way of illustrating." (see citation below)

Snow and Dusk are my two favorites from the books I read. Dusk is a celebration of winter holidays while Snow is a great book to read in not-very-snowy Texas. Uri takes a drab winter landscape and turns it into a winter wonderland - propelled by one young boy's desire for snow. I also really enjoyed How I Learned Geography which is based on a true story from his childhood. And When I Wore My Sailor Suit features a very creepy pirate!

Do you have a favorite Shulevitz book?

Read more: Uri Shulevitz (1935–) Biography - Personal, Addresses, Career, Member, Honors Awards, Writings, Adaptations, Sidelights - York, Books, Book, and Children - JRank Articles https://biography.jrank.org/pages/1958/Shulevitz-Uri-1935.html#ixzz7CVgztTHC

 IT'S THE MOST WONDERFUL TIME OF THE YEAR!

Fall? Yep. I like fall. But - this is also book list time. The best of (insert year) lists. Publisher's Weekly has already posted their list. The GoodReads Choice Awards for 2021 should be starting soon. And, of course, the Youth Media Awards. The Caldecott and the Newbery are the most well known. They won't be announced until January but there are all kinds of prediction lists and mock award selections happening right now. One of my favorite bloggers, Travis Jonker, runs a mock Caldecott with his students. I like his method but I don't have a classroom - so I'm going to adapt. You can see what he is doing on his blog at 100 Scope Notes if you are interested. 

So - what is the Caldecott? It's a medal "...awarded to the artist of the most distinguished American Picture Book for Children published in the United States during the preceding year." (check out the Caldecott page for more information). In addition to the winner, there are usually several Honor books named.  The award is named after Randolph Caldecott, a noted English illustrator for children's books in the 19th century. There is some buzz to change the name of the award to honor an American illustrator such as the late Jerry Pinkney. I like that idea but it would be a lot of work to make the change. What do you think? 

The committee has fifteen members including a chair. This year's chair is Dr. Claudette S. McLinn, Executive Director at Center for the Study of Multicultural Children's Literature. The other members are librarians and teachers. Members must devote an incredible amount of time to reading and considering books for the award. They consider technique, artistic interpretation, the way the illustrations tell the story, and that it is created for children.

Rather than comparing individual books that have been awarded in the past, I'm going to look at a few illustrators. And then look at books that are getting Caldecott Buzz! The Horn Book has a blog - Calling Caldecott - that discusses possible winners. And GoodReads has a Mock Caldecott page also if you want to check those out. There is no official list. These are just guesses.

A few of my favorites for this year include the titles below but I'm still reading!

   

 

 

 

Next I discuss my first illustrator - Uri Shulevitz.

 

 

 MAGICALLY SPOOKY

                

I really loved all of these books and I hope you will find one that you love, too! For the most part, these books are not overly creepy. Ophie's Ghosts is probably the spookiest.

Almost There and Almost Not by Linda Urban An abandoned girl finds a place to call home with the help of a ghost dog.

 

Our main character is 11-year old California Poppy. California was dumped with one relative and then transferred to another while her dad disappears to Alaska. Great-Aunt Monica - recently widowed - decides to distract California with genealogical research on Eleanor Fontaine - a famous relative who wrote etiquette books. Except there's more to Eleanor's story than anyone knows. California gets a lot of help untangling that mystery from Eleanor's ghost. She forms a special bond with a ghost dog and even manages to find a few human friends! This book has lots of layers including death of a mom, grief, a depressed dad who makes some not so great decision, and body image, to name a few. But there's a lot of heart warming humor, too plus a few lessons in letter writing.

Sheets and Delicates by Brenna Thummler Friendly ghosts help save a laundromat - and a life! THESE ARE SO GOOD!

Hooray! Graphic Novels! Also - trigger warning - death and suicidal teen.
Sheets Marjorie Glatt’s life is pretty miserable. Her mom is dead; her dad is depressed and leaves everything up to Marjorie - taking care of herself and her brother plus running the family laundromat. Fortunately, Marjorie discovers Wendell - a young ghost - and he and his ghost friends help Marjorie defeat the bad guy. Marjorie is around 7th grade in this one and 8th grade in Delicates which is darker than Sheets.

In Delicates, Marjorie desperately wants human friends and finds herself in the precarious position of lying to her ghost friend, Wendell, in order to be one of the popular kids. Another classmate, Eliza, is obsessed with photographing ghosts which makes her the kid everyone else makes fun of and bullies. Marjorie knows that feeling but she's not sure she wants to sacrifice being popular for being compassionate (and her true self).

Marjorie was lucky to find Wendell when she felt all alone. Will she be able to offer friendship to Marjorie? And will she make that decision in time?

The Elephant's Girl by Celesta Rimington  An orphaned girl adopted by zoo caretaker solves a mystery - and finds lost treasure - with the help of a ghost.

I am so happy this was a 2021 Bluebonnet nominee because this is one that I don't think I would have read - and then I would have missed out on a really great story! Lexington Willow is swept up by a tornado and lands in a Nebraska zoo where Nyah, an elephant, protects her from the full fury of the storm. That's where Roger, one of the zoo's caretakers, finds her. He adopts her and they get to live in the zoo! Lex has a telepathic link with Nyah which leads her and her best friend Fisher on the trail of missing treasure.

Midnight at the Barclay Hotel by F. T. Bradley  This is a classic whodunnit with a ghostly twist. JJ Jacobson, aspiring ghost hunter, finds himself tracking down a murderer with new friends Penny and Emma.

JJ Jacobson is obsessed with ghost hunting. And struggling with his schoolwork. His mom has promised him a special treat so when she receives an invitation to the local hotel - which has a haunting reputation - JJ is eager to tag along. When they arrive, they learn that the hotel's owner has been found murdered! Little do they know that they and the other invited guests are stepping into a carefully woven trap. Will JJ and his new friends, Penny and Emma, be able to unravel the true motive and identity of the murderer?

One Jar of Magic by Ann Corey Haydu  Can too much magic be a bad thing? And can no magic at all be a good thing? No ghosts but lots of magic. Also - an abusive dad.

In Rose's town, magic comes in jars that are harvested once a year. And her father is the very best at finding the magic jars. He knows that Rose will be the best, too - and tells her and everyone else that finding magic is her true destiny. Rose ends up sacrificing a lot in her attempts to please her father but trying really hard to find magic doesn't make it come to you. This is a complicated book set in a world similar to ours - it's just that the town where Rose lives has magic and other towns - and some people - don't. A bit of a spoiler but also a warning - Rose's father's obsession with magic has become out of control and he is willing to cheat and lie to get it, abandon family members who don't have the same passion for magic that he does, and fly into rages when things don't go the way he has planned. The story is about living up to impossible expectations and how to handle disappointment in yourself and your loved ones.

Ophie's Ghosts by Justina Ireland Daffodil House may look lovely but the ghosts that live there - and the house itself -have a different story to tell. Can Ophie solve the mystery before it is too late?

 The story begins in a small town near Atlanta, Georgia in 1922. Twelve year old Ophie (short for Ophelia) can see and communicate with ghosts. She is introduced to this amazing ability when her father - who has just been murdered by a group of white men - appears to her and warns her that she and her mother need to hide because the gang is headed to their house. Why was her father murdered? Because he voted. Ophie does not realize at first that she is speaking to her father's ghost but the grim realization dawns upon her fairly quickly. Ophie tries to tell her mother but her mom does not want to hear about it. Instead, they leave Georgia and head to Pittsburgh to live with her father's Aunt Rose. And Pittsburgh has a LOT of ghosts. Especially at Daffodil House where she and her mother work as maids. Can Ophelia solve their mysteries and help them move on to wherever they should be? It's dangerous work but she desperately wants to help the ghosts. Well - most of them, anyway.

I liked this book a lot - and enjoyed how the author inserted chapters that gave the viewpoint of the train, the trolley, Daffodil House, Pittsburgh, and other places impacted by our every day lives. She does not flinch from describing the injustice and cruelty experienced by black people throughout the history of America. It's also a quick read because the reader will want to untangle the mysteries presented by the book and learn how things turn out for Ophie. I would welcome a second book where we learn of more mysteries solved by Ophie. This book and Pony have the creepiest ghosts.

Pony by R. J. Palacio When Silas's father disappears, he and his ghost friend, Mittenwool, set out on the adventure of a life time to find him.

 
R. J. Palacio's latest is captivating. It is the story of a boy on a quest to find his father who has been kidnapped by a small band of unscrupulous men. Silas Bird and his best friend, Mittenwool, wake up in the middle of the night to a group of three armed men on their doorstep. These men want to take Silas and his father; they have even brought a white faced pony for the boy to ride. But the father refuses to go unless they leave Silas at home. He makes Silas promise to stay at the house (which is in the middle of nowhere Ohio) until he returns. But when the white-faced Pony shows up all alone, Silas decides his father must be in trouble and sets out with Pony and Mittenwool to find him.
I have been pondering exactly what genre fits Pony. It is a bit supernatural because it has ghosts but it is not overly scary. It is historical because the story takes place just before the Civil War - when people still rode everywhere on horseback. And some historical facts are discussed. It's also a bit of a mystery because there are a lot of unknowns that are resolved by the end of the book. It's realistic fiction because it is the story of the relationship between a boy and his father. But mostly it's a quest story which is why I would mark it an adventure. With a sprinkling of mythology and ancient literature thrown into the mix. The dog's name, for example, is Argos. And Silas considers any number of names for Pony (such as Bucephalus, Alexander the Great's horse). But none of the names seems to suit as well as Pony.
I think it would make an excellent read-aloud for a classroom of 5th/6th graders. There is a lot to discuss; the chapters are short; and no one is going to want to stop reading it once they truly get into the story.
And then there are the antique photographs sprinkled throughout the chapters and sections. The author explains those in her note at the end!

River Magic by Ellen Booraem Donna will do anything to not be shipped off to live with her terrible aunt and cousins. Even cleaning house for the creepy lady who moves in next door. But why are there so many chickens?

This was a very enjoyable read! It starts out with Donna grieving the death of her aunt and worrying about how to make ends meet. Donna lives with her mom (Mim) and her older sister Janice. Her aunt used to live with them and had been planning to start a carpentry business with Mim but her untimely death (by drowning in a kayak accident on the titular River) left the family with a pile of bills and Mim working three jobs. Things are also not great at school - Donna knows her grief has changed her. Her BFF Rachel has started to hang out with other friends, leaving Donna to navigate school with another loner. Her luck seems to be changing when she begins to hear her aunt's voice in her head, providing guidance. Then an older lady moves in next door and hires Donna to clean house. And that's when all the really strange things start to happen! The lady pays her in gold. Donna sees something huge and scaly swimming in the river. And strange chickens keep appearing. Will Donna's desperation to help her family out of financial trouble lead to a completely chaotic situation? Yes - yes it will.
Like several other books on this list, this book starts out like realistic fiction and then quickly veers into fantasy. The first 100 pages are intriguing but after that, you will have a hard time putting the book down because you want to know how everything is going to be resolved!

When Life Gives You Mangos by Kereen Getten Clara can't remember what happened last summer but she is determined to figure things out no matter what it takes.

Something happened to 12-year-old Clara last summer but she can't remember what it was. She catches glimpses of it in her memory but there's a blank in her mind. She does know that she gets angry very easily. And that she used to love the water but now she is afraid of it. She loved to surf, swim in the ocean, and play in the river but now she just can't. She lives in the small community of Sycamore in Jamaica. There are two other story lines that run parallel to Clara's memory loss. One is that her uncle Eldorath has been accused of witchcraft and banished to his house on the hill. The other is the new girl, Rudy, who is from New York and visiting her grandmother. And there is also Clara's cousin and (sometimes) best friend, Gaynah.
I was immediately drawn into the story because, of course, I wanted to know what had happened to Clara! And also the mystery surrounding her uncle which no one really wanted to talk about. I actually had to make myself put the book down and go to bed. Which is when a piece of the puzzle clicked into place for me. But there were still a lot of unanswered questions - which all fell into place when I finished the book the next day.
I loved how supportive Clara's mom and dad and uncle (eventually) are with her while she works through her trauma. And the interesting people that lived in the community. I think this would make a great read-aloud in a 4th or 5th grade classroom. And it pairs nicely with The Year I Flew Away by Marie Arnold.

The Year I Flew Away by Marie Arnold  Never (ever) trust a witch. But if you do, talking rats and librarians are there to help!

Don't judge a book by its cover. At least, not this one. There are witches and talking rats in this book - and I would never have guessed that from looking at the cover. Gabrielle has moved to Brooklyn from Haiti to live with her Uncle John and his family. Her mother and father will join her as soon as they get their paperwork in order. On her very first night in her new home, she can't sleep so she takes a walk - and encounters a witch - Lady Lydia - who assures her that she can help her if she is ever in trouble. Gabrielle knows better than to trust a witch so she tells the witch no. But soon she must navigate going to a new school in a new country with no friends and very little English. She had good friends plus her loving parents in Haiti but in Brooklyn she has no friends, her new family is very busy, and at school there is a bully who makes her life miserable. Trying desperately to make friends and fit in, Gabrielle turns to Lady Lydia and makes a deal. Three wishes. But magic in this world comes at a cost. Each time she uses a wish, she loses something. And if she uses all three wishes, Lady Lydia will control her essence. Yes - Lady Lydia is definitely a bad witch. Fortunately, Gabrielle has a few friends - Carmen, a school friend; Rocky, a talking rat who wants to be a rabbit and has an invisibility cloak; and the school librarian who is also from Haiti. They help her overcome her mistakes and fix the mess she makes - though Gabrielle is ultimately the one who has to have the courage to admit that she messed up big time.

Gabrielle and Carmen are ten years old but the magical elements in the book should grab the interest of older readers also. I think it would make a good read-aloud. Kids will be able to relate to Gabrielle and her mistakes. The book also addresses how difficult it can be for a new student from another country to fit in at school. And encourages students to not give up on their culture and customs but embrace and share them with others.

So many middle grade books this year have ghosts in them!  Or some aspect of the supernatural. They may be historical or mystery or realistic - but then there's a magical element thrown into the mix. At first I thought I might be imagining it  - but even the kid lit journals have commented on it. How to classify these books? What genre sticker do you put on the spine? Supernatfantastihistoricarealistic? I know that not every book needs to be pigeon-holed into a category but as a librarian, a few of these books would drive me batty. As a reader, however, it's delightful and intriguing. Why so many ghosts this year? I know magic and ghosts are plot devices that help move the story along. Mittenwool, for example, is an essential element of Pony. No answers, really. Just more questions!

And these are only a few of the books that have ghosts! Do you have a favorite?

 BLUEBONNETS!

Here is the 2022-2023 list! I guessed four out of the twenty! Huzzah! Voting for these titles will be in January of 2023 so you have a long time to read the books! Voting for the 2021-2022 book will be in January of 2022 - the winner is usually announced some time in February. I am not sure why the list is announced early but I am guessing it gives libraries and schools a chance to acquire the books before they need to switch out the current books for the new books. And a chance to read the books before presenting them to the students.  My TBR stack just grew a bit. I have read eight of the titles. And there are several that are currently unavailable from my local library. But they will purchase them soon! 

Happy Reading!

         

Amari and the Night Brothers by B. B. Alston

Barefoot Dreams of Petra Luna by Alda P. Dobbs

Bartali's Bicycle: The True Story of Gino Bartali, Italy's Secret Hero by Megan Hoyt 

Becoming Muhammad Ali by James Patterson and Kwame Alexander

Billy Miller Makes a Wish by Kevin Henkes

The Hungry Place by Jessie Haas

JD and the Great Barber Battle by J. Dillard

The Lion of Mars by Jennifer L. Holm

Long Lost by Jacqueline West

Memoirs of a Tortoise by Devin Scillian

Nightingale by Deva Fagan

No Place for Monsters by Kory Merritt

Once Upon a Camel by Kathi Appelt

The One Thing You'd Save by Linda Sue Park

Rock by Rock: The Fantastical Garden of Nek Chand by Jennifer Bradbury

Stella by McCall Hoyle

Swish!: The Slam-Dunking, Alley-Ooping, High-Flying Harlem Globetrotters by Suzanne Slade

Twins by Varian Johnson

Unspeakable: The Tulsa Race Massacre by Carole Boston Weatherford

Willodeen by Katherine Applegate