One Crazy Summer

By: Rita Williams-Garcia

          One Crazy Summer is a historical fiction novel that has been recognized as a Newbery Honor Book, the Scott O'Dell Award Winner for Historical Fiction, the Coretta Scott King Award Winner for Non-Violent Social Change, and a National Book Award Finalist.

          Delphine, Vonetta, and Fern are three young girls from Brooklyn, New York who live with their Pa and Big Ma (grandmother) because their mother, Cecile, abandoned them when seven years before the story takes place.  Through Delphine's 11-year-old voice, we see that she often feels pressured to step up and care for her younger sisters.  Their pa eventually decides that it is time for the girls to go and see Cecile (who is NOT excited to see them), so they head to Oakland, California in 1968 for the summer.  Once there, the girls begin attending a Black Panther summer camp where they get free food, grapple with racial tensions, and work to develop a relationship with Cecile (or Sister NZila as the Black Panthers call her).  Through this experience, Delphine and her sisters learn to be increasingly independent and enter the radical world of Black Panther territory in 1968 through their re-education and growth with one another.

          One of Rita Williams-Garcia's main strength is her characterization of each of the girls, because all three sisters are depicted with strong and distinct personalities.  In addition to their individual characteristics, the portrayal of their sibling dynamic as one filled with endless teasing and love is relatable to readers.  This style works to keep the novel's focus on family, identity, and self-discovery, even as the radical time period provides a rich context for the story.

          By choosing Delphine to narrate the story, Williams-Garcia creates a relatable tale in which readers experience Delphine's emotions and struggles alongside her.  Delphine is smart, outspoken, and (in her opinion) "plain," yet she is the clear leader of her sisters.  She is constantly solving conflicts and keeping her sisters out of trouble; this skill becomes especially important as the girls navigate their new Oakland environment without any parental guidance.  Delphine is very attuned to her sisters, as evidenced when she states, "Just like I know how to lift my sisters up, I also know how to needle them just right" (143).  We also get a good idea of Delphine's character quirks through her repeated phrases and  ideas, such as how she often monitors herself so she doesn't "spin too much straw" or get caught lying (13).

           Poetry plays an important role throughout the text in various ways.  First, Cecile is a poet who sees writing as her only true outlet in life.  When describing her childhood to Delphine, Cecile claims that poems "comforted [her]. Their rhymes. Their beats. They made a place for [her]. They kept [her] strong" (208).  I think this quotation succinctly highlights the power of poetry throughout this text and many people's lives.  In addition to Cecile's poetry, Fern has a strong moment at the end of the book, in which she finds her own voice in reciting her own poem that many people rally behind.

           The portrayal of race and racism plays a large role in this story through social commentary.  Some of the most painful instances begin she Fern is mercilessly teased for loving her white doll and the sisters are often viewed as a spectacle of "colored girls" when in public, that is, if they are not being accused of being thieves.  While readers witness the sisters struggling with racism, they are not immune from racializing others in the story.  For example, when conversing with Hirohito (a character that had many admirable qualities and I really like), Delphine refers to him as "China boy," despite his half Japanese make-up (114).  These racial issues also tie into social incongruences between life in Oakland and life with Big Ma in Brooklyn, so the girls learn to develop their own opinions regardless of what is is expected of them in different environments.

           Williams-Garcia also works to weave a rich historical context into the novel, while still emphasizing the family dynamics and play.  She provides descriptions of significant historical figures (Ex: Cassius Clay/Muhammad Ali), historical events (ex: MLK's assassination), while also presenting the Black Panther Party through Delphine's young eyes.  I was excited to read about this, because I do not have a deep understanding of the Black Panther history, with figures like Huey Newton and Little Bobby Hutton and repeated phrases like "all power to all the people," so I was wrapped up in learning the history to increase my understanding of the story.  The rich historical context present within this book would make this especially accessible for students in 6th grade and above, and would make a great addition to any study on the 1960s Civil Rights Movements, and more specifically any focus on the Black Panthers.

To learn a little more about the Black Panthers: http://www.pbs.org/hueypnewton/actions/actions_formation.html

There is a sequel to this book (which I have not read) that you can find here:  https://www.worldcat.org/title/one-crazy-summer/oclc/319320797&referer=brief_results

Rules

Author: Cynthia Lord

          The realistic fiction book, Rules, is a Newbery Honor Book and Schneider Family Book Award winner that follows the life of a 12-year-old girl named Catherine.  From Catherine's perspective, we learn that her little brother, David, has autism, and that, while she loves him very much, she constantly works to take care of him, often under the pressure of her parents.  Catherine, in her desperate desire to live a "normal" life, even creates a list of rules for David to try to make his life "easier" in terms of fitting in and avoiding embarrassing situations; however, Catherine still feels frustrated, overwhelmed, and ignored within her family.  One day at David's occupational therapy, Catherine befriends a wheelchair-bound boy who cannot speak (so he uses a communication book instead) named Jason.  Jason brings a fresh perspective into Catherine's life and causes her to re-think her own perceptions of normalcy and changes her life for the better.

          By telling the story from Catherine's point of view, Cynthia Lord immediately draws readers into the story.  Catherine is a very relatable character because she struggles with issues, such as her self-conscious desires to fit in and make friends.  She is ruled by her fear of embarrassment, depicted by the inner turmoil that readers can see as Catherine navigates between her love for her brother and her self-conscious desire to be "normal."  Furthermore, Catherine feels the pressure to care for her brother, while living under David's shadow, so Lord crafts her language to depict her need for parental love and attention too.

          Throughout her constant ups and downs from missing her best friend and trying to make new friends, Jason's presence helps Catherine come to great realizations about herself.  Her perspective allows readers to experience the powerful moment when her views on normalcy and rules change surrounding a community dance scene at the end of the novel.  Catherine realizes that what she really wants is to surround herself with those she loves, and to not fear what others think of her.  Additionally, by presenting the story through Catherine's voice, readers can relate to her when dealing with real situations involving family members, friends, or others who are often categorized as "others" in society.

          Each chapter is organized with one of Catherine's rules for David as the title, such as "no toys in the fish tank," which is repeated frequently throughout the novel, and even referenced in the cover illustration.  When explaining her rules, Catherine says they are "so if my someday-he'll-wake-up-a-regular-brother wish doesn't ever come true, at least he'll know how the world works, and I won't have to keep explaining things."  This quotation broke my heart, as did her constant wishes for a "regular" brother, because it presented David as broken, but it made her perspective shift at the end of the novel even more powerful for me to read.  Additionally, Catherine also had rules for herself, such as "no dancing unless I'm alone in my room or it's pitch-black dark," to protect herself from embarrassment.  She is constantly ruled by her fears of what others will think, so I loved when Jason called her out on her rule "excuses."

           As this story dealt with disability and family relationships surrounding disability, I was immediately reminded of Wonder in many ways, except that this story consists entirely of the sister's perspective.  The book explicitly draws on realistic experiences of how people often look away immediately when they see someone physically different from themselves, and uses this connection to enlighten readers about how harmful this can be.  Additionally, through Catherine and Jason's friendship, readers connect to and empathize with Jason as we see him experience various emotions when dealing with Catherine.

           I think this would be a great story for children in mid to upper elementary school to read, because Catherine's voice makes the story easily accessible and relatable to young readers.  I also think that this would be a great story for families to read together, as many of the issues present deal with family relationships that families could connect to and talk about.  

Dark Emperor & Other Poems of the Night

Written by: Joyce Sidman

Illustrated by: Rick Allen

        Dark Emperor & Other Poems of the Night is a Newbery Honor collection of 12 poems of various forms that are brought together to explore the idea of life in the dark night.  Each poem details the lives of different animals or plants at night, and is accompanied by a stunning illustration and informational blurb on the right side of the page to introduce new vocabulary and additional details on the subject of the poem.

        Joyce Sidman demonstrates her mastery of language and artistry within every poem in this book.  She uses a wide variety of poetic forms (i.e. ballad, concrete, uni sunt, etc.) to offer a broad introduction to poem structures.  Additionally, each word is carefully placed to create vivid sensory depictions and to play with the sounds of lines and language flow through rhyme, repetition, alliteration, line breaks, and so much more.  Each poem strings words together to create distinct lines that contribute to readers' understandings to each of the characters presented; with such a wide variety of animal and plant subjects, ranging from oak trees to "dark emperor" owls, Sidman demonstrates the fluidity of poetry to create new experiences and perspectives for any subject.

         The opening stanza of the first poem, "Welcome to the Night," immediately draws readers in:

"To all of you who crawl and creep,

who buzz and chirp and hoot and peep,

who wake at dust and throw off sleep:

Welcome to the night." (p. 6). 

I love this stanza because Sidman utilizes vivid sensory language through onomatopoeia to transport readers with all of the sounds of life in the woods, while the action words connect readers to the movement of life and invite readers into the story.  I also think that the alliteration, rhyme, and repetition of the final line, "Welcome to the night," to close each stanza within the poem make this a great read aloud by allowing children to participate in reciting the poem.

            This book would not have been complete without the intricate illustrations that Rick Allen created.  According to Allen's website, he spent almost two years completing the extensive process of making the linoleum cut prints that accompanied the poems.  This unique illustrative medium, in combination with the dark color palette that Allen used to reflect real the night setting, drew my eyes to the darkness within each illustration.  I found this attraction to the darkness strange because my eye is usually drawn to any and all colors, but the skill of both Allen in his art and Sidman in her text trained my mind to focus on the elements of night.  Additionally, the intricate line within each print created a rich texture and depth to each illustration.

            There are two full-bleed illustrations within the book- on the first and last pages.  The first one depicts dusk, as readers are entering their nighttime journey, and the final one shows dawn and the end of night's reign.  One aspect that immediately caught my attention was the presence of the the eft within each illustration (except for the final full-bleed to close the book).  In an entertaining Where's Waldo-like adventure, I found myself searching for the eft as I moved along the story, and was incredibly excited to read the poem that featured the "wandering eft" itself.  As mentioned earlier, the final full-bleed illustration is the only page missing the eft, which I think demonstrates the end of night and the camouflaged status of all the animals, except the owl, at dawn.  Additionally, by zooming out with respect to the perspective presented to readers, the reader grows distant from the night setting as day comes.

             I am not well-versed in poetry, but I thoroughly enjoyed this book.  I think the text aligns beautifully with the illustrations to create a book that would make a great addition to any elementary units on nocturnal animals and habitats, or even just as a way to expose students to quality poetry in the classroom.  I also loved that this book exposes children to various forms of poetry and remains interesting through all of the different perspectives presented, and think it would be great to share aloud to students!

Where the Mountain Meets the Moon

By: Grace Lin

        The Newbery Honor fantasy book, Where the Mountain Meets the Moon, is the story of a curious young girl named Minli, which means "quick thinking," who lives with her parents- Ma and Ba- in the Valley of Fruitless Mountain (names for its barren appearance).  Every day, the family works hard in the fields to earn a living, but Ma is never satisfied with their level of poverty.  Despite Ba's endless storytelling and Minli's cheerful outlook, Ma's unhappiness and an encounter with a talking goldfish eventually cause Minli to chase after the Old Man of the Moon, a powerful figure who can answer any question in the world with his Book of Fortune.  On her journey, Minli encounters many new friends (Dragon, a magical king, Da-a-Fu, and more!) who help her through various obstacles on her quest for answers and to bring good fortune to her family.

        Grace Lin artfully weaves elements of traditional Chinese folklore with fantasy to create this captivating novel.  The importance of storytelling remains key throughout the book, as is visible through Minli's fascination with all of Ba's fantastical stories.  Each time a story is told, it is offset from surrounding text by a decorative heading and italicized font.  In her "Behind the Story" segment at the end of the book, Lin states that many of the folktales presented within the book were inspired by Chinese myths and embellished with aspects of her own fantasies.  For example, the Old Man of the Moon is a combination of the myths of "Yue-lao- the Chinese God of Marriage" and "Shou Xing, the God of Longevity."  

           By drawing on these traditional myths, Lin connects to the Chinese culture that inspired much of the story, which, in turn, allows Lin to present Minli's adventures as a new myth.  This idea is highlighted at the end of the story when the children of the (what is now referred to as) Village of the Fruitful Mountain come "every night because they want to hear they story again- the story of Minli's journey to and from the Never-Ending Mountain!" (p. 278).  This scene mirrors earlier instances of Minli's enthusiasm for Ba's storytelling, with Minli as the new storyteller, and emphasizes the importance of stories and their interconnected nature throughout the work.

         In addition to the rich context surrounding the inspiration for many of the myths within the story, Lin's use of vivid imagery creates a setting that transports readers.  From the first line of the text, Lin demonstrates her mastery of description with the image of Fruitless Mountain as "a black mountain that cut into the sky like a jagged piece of rough metal" (p. 1).  The depiction of the setting becomes even more authentic with the insertion of various examples of figurative language, such as how "the stars above files the sky like spilled salt on dried seaweed" (p. 27).  Not only does this figurative language paint a clear picture of the setting in readers' minds, but it also draws upon various aspects of Asian foods.

        The book highlights the importance of other values as well, including obedience, the value of life and presence of spirits within all things, faith, and hospitality; however, the most important is "Thankfulness" (p. 250).  Minli reads this word from the Paper of Happiness when she visits the Old Man of the Moon, and connects this word to her own life.  Thankfulness becomes the key to teaching Minli a valuable lesson on the importance of being thankful for the love that she has, from both her family and her friends.  The teamwork demonstrated throughout the novel shows the power of friendship and familial love when supporting one another, and allows the book's satisfyingly happy ending to come to light.

        One aspect of the book that is unique from many other chapter books of this length is the presence of various illustrations done by Lin.  Small illustrations accompany each chapter title to give a hint about what is to come in the text, but there are also full-page illustrations scattered throughout the book.  These full-page illustrations are filled with bright colors and ornate details that draw readers deeper into the story.  Some of the illustrations are even based on real locations from Lin's travels around China, described in the "Behind the Story" portion of her book.  For example, Lin's sketch that became the mountain village of Moon Rain is based on her own experiences in seeing the mountain village of Chaudixia.

        As a reader, I have always loved folk and fairytales, so this modern twist in incorporating fantasy into elements of traditional tales made this book a perfect read for me.  I believe that the emphasis on bringing stories to life makes this book interesting and relatable to readers of various ages, though I believe it would be best for those in 4th grade and above.  The language would lend itself nicely to an exciting read aloud, especially because of the way many of the folktales within the story draw on storytelling language patterns.  Additionally, the action-packed, short chapters make the story fly by for readers.  All of the elements of the story come together to create a beautifully engaging and heartwarming tale that I think all readers, especially those who love folk and fairytales, would enjoy!