When You Reach Me

When You Reach Me
by Rebecca Stead

With all of the news focusing on New York City, I thought it might be nice to think about a book set there.  This novel, When You Reach Me, popped into my head because I've been thinking about time travel, too.

This week in the calendar year is always a busy one around my house.  We like to have a mini family celebration to close the book on a year well spent by my son.  Monday night was to be our time to usher out age 11.  But, life happened and our small evening exploded out of our control. To restore order in our universe, last night I turned our front door into an ancient portal to the past and we re-lived October 29.  It was every thing we had hoped for.  And, the concept of an ancient portal thrilled my son.

You will find no time machines or ancient portals to the past in Rebecca Stead's award winning, When You Reach Me, but you get a hint about the plot outcomes when you learn that one of Miranda's compasses in life is the novel A Wrinkle in Time (props for the classics). The intrigue begins with Miranda and her best friend Sal aptly navigating the neighborhoods of New York City.  They are familiar with the landmarks, the safe places to go, and the people who regularly decorate the streets.  But, like my week, Miranda's life gets interrupted when Sal quits talking to her, the emergency apartment key is stolen, and Miranda finds a mysterious note scrawled on a tiny slip of paper: 

"I am coming to save your friend’s life, and my own.
I must ask two favors. First, you must write me a letter."

Notes keep arriving, and the contents reveal that whoever is writing them knows Miranda well.  They even suggest that the author knows details about the future.  Miranda gets drawn into the mystery and is convinced that she has a part to play in it.  

I would recommend this book for anyone over 9 years old.  And, if you were a lover of A Wrinkle in Time, you just might enjoy this one yourself.

The House of Dies Drear

The House of Dies Drear
by  Virginia Hamilton

Tonight is Halloween.  We are headed to a party and have all of the costumes planned.  My husband and I will be Superman and Jimmy Oslen-(I thought Jimmy's footwear would be more comfortable than Lois Lane's.)  My son is planning some type of ancient warrior.  The month takes us over and begs for us to make room for the hauntings and mysteries that can be conjured up in the mind.  Sticking with the theme of the month, one of my fifth grade book clubs choose The House of Dies Drear  by Virginia Hamilton for our next discussion.  I am no mystery writer so I will let the book cover sell it:

"The house held secrets, Thomas knew, even before he first saw it looming gray and massive on its ledge of rock. It had a century-old legend — two fugitive slaves had been killed by bounty hunters after leaving its passageways, and Dies Drear himself, the abolitionist who had made the house into a station on the Underground Railroad, had been murdered there. The ghosts of the three were said to walk its rooms...."

The pace is just right for the 4th-6th grade readers.  The suspense is thrilling, but not too scary.  The mysteries and the truths behind them are handled with great care.  This all adds up to a haunting tale that will let your child get a good nights sleep.  Though the writing far exceeds that of a Scooby Doo cartoon, the story is woven and unwoven in a similar way.  To my mind it makes for a perfect introduction to the genre of mystery-that it sheds light on the Underground Railroad just adds to its charm.  Encourage your young reader to give it a try and let me know what they think.  If they have also read Betty Ren Wright, let me know how it compares.

Danny and the Dinosaur

Danny and the Dinosaur
by Syd Hoff


I am having a sentimental week.  My only child will be turning 12 tomorrow.  He is quite the reader.  As a matter of fact, he is currently reading the Iliad for his independent reading.  But, last night when I went to tell him good night, I noticed his copy of Danny and the Dinosaur by Syd Hoff on his bed side table.  I asked, " What's this doing here?"  He replied simply, "Oh, I was just reading it."  That is all that was said, but I could not help thinking that he, too, is feeling a little nostalgic.

What a delight this little reader is!  And, Danny is my son all over.  At that age, Miller was just like Danny.  He loved museums with their Indians, bears, Eskimos, guns and swords.  Most of all he loved the dinosaurs.  I thought he might lose his mind the first time he saw Sue, the T-Rex, at the Field Museum in Chicago.  It is also easy for me to imagine that one of his many imaginary friends was a dinosaur that accompanied him through the neighborhood, visiting school, the park and even the zoo.

If you have a new reader, ready to tackle a book filled with simple sentences, I suggest you give this classic a try.  It will not disappoint!

The Mysterious Howling

The Incorrigible Children of Ashton Place: The Mysterious Howling
by Maryrose Wood

I am a very visual person. I love to make beautiful photographs.  I also love admiring skills in others that I do not possess.  One of these skills is illustration.  When I first saw this book on the new arrivals shelf at my local  library, I was immediately drawn in.  As you may or may not know, the author and illustrator of a book rarely, if ever, meet when working on a book together. I find this fact to be remarkable when I see a cover that so perfectly teases me about the contents of a novel. In this case, the cover did the trick.  I immediately thought, "Jane Eyre meets Tarzan and his sister," and I was pretty close to the mark.

In this kick-off to the Incorrigible Children of Ashton Place, we meet a darling 15 year old governess named Penelope Lumley. Having just completed her training at the Swanburne Academy for Poor Bright Females, Penelope is hired to look after three children:  Alexander, Beowulf, and Cassiopeia.  Upon arrival, she discovers that these children are unique.  Some might even say wild. 

She proves to be up to the task of guiding and teaching the children.  But with every fact she learns, she finds she has 10 more questions.  Where did these children come from?  Why do they live in the estate's surrounding forests? Why does Old Timothy, the coachman, lurk around every corner? 

I encourage you to read this charming book to find out the answers and have a ball while doing it.  I would recommend it for 3-5 grade children looking to take a peek into an estate of old.

The Book Thief

The Book Thief
by Markus Zusak

On our recent trip to Washington D.C., we had many serious discussions about whether or not to go to the Holocaust Museum.  Their age recommendation is 11 and over.  My son is 11.  The final decision was "not this trip."  All of the discussions left him with an interest in the time period.  He is rapidly reading non-fiction and asked me for some fiction recommendations.  There are many good choices, and I am going to cover them in the next few days, but my new favorite is The Book Thief by Markus Zusak.

It is original from the start.  Death is the narrator, and a fine one he is.  I am not sure if Zusak actually referred to him as "he", but he seemed like a man to me.  I can't say why.  He becomes infatuated with a young girl, Liesel, who continues to bump up next to him, but never be ready for his services.  She is a young lady in Nazi Germany.  She is an orphan being moved to foster care.  On the way, she steals her first book.  Her new foster father teaches her to read and she keeps stealing the books.  She makes many close relationships, including one with the Jewish man that her foster family is hiding in their home in the heart of Germany.  Through Liesel's eyes, we are witness to the events in Germany during the war.  Because of her love of  books and her need for them to survive her meager existence, we are reminded of how a book can feed the soul.

I have read it with many groups of kids-Always with great success.  The text is simple, and the symbolism fantastic.  Please share this remarkable book with any reader who has an interest in World War II.

City of Bone

City of Bones
by Cassandra Clare

There was a show on one of the cable networks last spring called Political Animals.  It starred Sigourney Weaver. One day, I heard her being interviewed on the radio about the show, among other things.  The interviewer, Terry Gross of Fresh Air I think, pointed out that Ms. Weaver has never played the traditional role of "the damsel in distress."  She replied, "I guess that is because I have never met one.  All of the women with whom I am acquainted get the job done and are not looking to men for a solution."  I loved this line and think of it every time I read a novel in which the heroine is always being rescued by her appointed white knight.

Clary, the protagonist in Cassandra Clare's City of Bones seems to find herself in just such a situation.  In her case there are two young men vying for the job.  However, I get the distinct impression that Clary is a girl who can look after herself; the boys keep getting in the way.  This does make for some interesting interpersonal situations, but did distract from the story for me- But not my 7th and 8th graders.They love this book!  As a matter a fact they devoured this 400 page book and came back for more.  Cassandra Clare wrote them a trilogy and they are gobbling it up.  The next books are City of Ash and City of Glass.  And, I believe there is a series of prequels available as well.

These books are all fantasy.  They are set in current times and places, except for one small country that can only be accessed by those with the sight.  Every fantastic creature, from werewolves to sprites, has a role.  The story has plenty of action, a little romance, and complicated family dynamics.  The good guys are hard to spot, but the bad guys are very bad.  I guess this is why it appeals to the middle schooler.  Unless you are just a fan of the genre, you may want to skip this book, but it is a must read for the 11-14 year-olds in your household.  (I find that the boys love it as much as the girls!)

Monster

Monster
by Walter Dean Myers


We had the great pleasure of attending a book reading by the magnificent Walter Dean Myers while at the 2012 National Book Festival.  After his prepared remarks, he took questions.  Among them was, "Where did the idea for Monster come from?"  He responded that after doing work with some young incarcerated men, he was conferring with a prosecutor and asked, "What is the most difficult part of your job? Funding?"   "No,"the prosecutor replied, sadly. "The most difficult part of my job is convincing the court that these boys are human." 

With a seed planted, he went away ready to tell the story of these boys.  He chose to write the book with a combination of writing techniques. We come to know the main character, Steve Harmon, through his journals.  We learn the details of his trials though a screenplay Steve is writing to cope with this experience.  What we learn as we read is that Steve has been arrested for participating in a robbery turned murder.  He is sixteen. He is afraid. And, while he seems confused by his reality, he is clear that prison is a frightening place.  The book begins,

"The best time to cry is at night, when the lights are out and someone is being beaten up and screaming for help.  That way even if you sniffle a little they won't hear you.  If anybody knows that you are crying, they'll start talking about it and soon it'll be your turn to get beat up when the lights go out."

This isn't a pleasure read, but it sheds light on a truth not regularly being told.  Walter Dean Myers told us he loved reading, because through it he has seen and experienced the world.  With his help, I have looked at life with a new pair of eyes, and learned a little about myself.

I am reading this book with a small group of young African American men at the moment.  We had our first conversation today.  I asked them why the book might be named Monster.  One of the boys replied, "It's a true story.  When you go to court you are guilty until proven innocent, that's why he named it Monster."  It wounded my heart.