SPEAK

Bibliography:

Anderson,Laurie Halse. 1999. SPEAK. New York. Penguin Group. ISBN 014131088x

Plot Summary:

Melinda, a high school freshman, is the protagonist of the story. After a horrific incident of which she can tell no one, she spirals into a dark depression, losing her ability to speak with ease. Abandoned by her friends, finding solace in her closet at school, all Melinda has left is her dedication to her art. It is this dedication that allows her to grow until she eventually sees herself as a survivor rather than as a victim. Melinda discovers that the only way to overcome evil is to speak out against it.

Critical Analysis:

Anderson uses the first person to advance the storyline in SPEAK. Her use of flashback, via Melinda remembering past events, and monologues, via a running commentary within Melinda’s thoughts, propel the story to its conclusion. Anderson’s use of symbolism is strong. For example, she uses trees to reflect Melinda’s struggles. Anderson writes of Melinda’s outward struggle determining which art medium best represents a tree while inwardly Melinda is struggling with her past. The tree in Melinda’s front yard is an additional representation of this struggle. The tree has a damaged branch, and Melinda’s father states “By cutting off the damage, you make it possible for the tree to grow again.” Another example of symbolism is Anderson’s use of closets. Melinda uses closets to escape from her surroundings. At school, she discovers an abandoned janitor’s closet which she cleans and then decorates with personal items from home, including a poster of Maya Angelou, the poet who had experienced the same trauma as had Melinda; at home Melinda sits in her bedroom closet with clothes stuffed her mouth to stifle her screams. Not being able to find another person with which to share feelings, Melinda chooses closets as her shelters and shields.

The main theme of this story is the strength of character. Anderson shows the reader that it is their choice to stay in the closet and be miserable or come out and find ways to deal with their difficulties and traumas. Once Melinda confronts her demons, she shows her strength of character by choosing the latter course. 

Experts Reviews:

“The book's overall gritty realism and Melinda's hard-won metamorphosis will leave readers touched and inspired.” Publishers Weekly

“Melinda's sarcastic wit, honesty, and courage make her a memorable character whose ultimate triumph will inspire and empower readers.” Booklist

“Melinda's sarcastic wit, honesty, and courage make her a memorable character whose ultimate triumph will inspire and empower readers.” Audiofile

“An uncannily funny book even as it plumbs the darkness, Speak will hold readers from first word to last.” The Horn Book

Connections:

Read other books by Laurie Halse Anderson:

PROM, Viking, 2005.

CATALYST, Viking, 2002.

FEVER 1793, Viking, 2000.

WHEN YOU REACH ME

Bibliography: 

Stead, Rebecca. 2009. WHEN YOU REACH ME. New York. Wendy Lamb Books. ISBN 9780385737425.

Plot Summary:

Miranda is an ordinary middle school student. She lives with her mother in a New York City apartment. Mom’s boyfriend, Richard – “Mr. Perfect (except his right leg is shorter than his left)” – spends much of his time with them. A latch-key kid, Miranda always walks home from school with her best buddy Sal. Together they navigate their neighborhood, trying to avoid the crazy man on the corner. They call him “Laughing Man.” Until one day after being punched by a strange kid, Sal abruptly ends his friendship with Miranda. That is when Miranda starts getting strange letters. The anonymous writer says he is going to save Miranda’s friend’s life and he needs her to write a letter for him. Miranda is intrigued and frightened, especially after she receives the next note which correctly predicts future events in her life.

While trying to resolve this mystery, Miranda gets caught in the daily routine of a sixth grader. She develops a friendship with classmates Annemarie and Colin, with whom she helps at Jimmy’s at their lunch time. Later, Miranda meets Marcus, the boy who hit Sal. As Miranda gets to know Marcus, she discovers that he isn’t mean, but he is extremely intelligent. Marcus provides a thought provoking commentary on Miranda’s favorite book A WRINKLE IN TIME.

One day on her way from school Miranda witnesses Sal running into traffic from Marcus. Sal is nearly hit by a truck, but Laughing Man saves Sal by kicking him out of the way and dies in his place. Miranda tries to connect the dots: she realizes that Laughing Man is travelling back from the future Marcus, who came to save her friend and was sending her letters. This book is Miranda’s mission to save Sal. She writes every detail of her adventure and must give it to present-day Marcus. It will remind him to return to the past when he discovers how to travel through time.

Critical Analysis:

Rebecca Stead created an enjoyable example of fantasy for young adults – WHEN YOU REACH ME. It is a compilation of mystery, realistic fiction, fantasy, and historical fiction (it is set in New York’s upper-Westside during 1978-79).

The heroine of WHEN YOU REACH ME is 12-year old “latchkey kid” Miranda. Miranda struggles to make sense of her world. She balances between solving mysterious letters and daily experiences like lost friendship, self-doubt, coming of age. Stead gives us access to Miranda’s internal landscape through her authentic narrative voice and well-chosen sensory details: the smell of dry-cleaner exhaust, the way her hexagonal bathroom tile shifts into different patterns when she stares at it, the mesmerizing quality of light reflected on the oily water of a saucepan.

A primary theme is the importance of friendship. Miranda and her friends learn how to develop new and to maintain friendship without stifling it. They discover that you can build a strong relationship without regard to race or wealth or other circumstances in life. As soon as A WRINKLE IN TIME appears in a book’s plot, the reader recognizes a time-travel theme. Stead reveals the secret of “tessering” – taking shortcuts through time and space. WHN YOU REACH ME is a great story about the nature of time, friendship, compassion, and sacrifice. Rebecca Stead gives kids access to the wonder, doubts, and worries of someone their age.

Experts Reviews:

2010 Newbery Medal Winner

2010 ALA Best Books for Young Adults Top 10

"Closing revelations are startling and satisfying but quietly made, their reverberations giving plenty of impetus for the reader to go back to the beginning and catch what was missed." Horn Book Magazine
"[W]hen all the sidewalk characters from Miranda's Manhattan world converge amid mind-blowing revelations and cunning details, teen readers will circle back to the beginning and say,'Wow... cool.'" --Kirkus Reviews.

"This unusual, thought-provoking mystery will appeal to several types of readers." School Library Journal.

"It's easy to imagine readers studying Miranda's story as many times as she's read L'Engle's, and spending hours pondering the provocative questions it raises." Publishers Weekly.

Connections:

Read A WRINKLE IN TIME by Madeleine L’Engle.
What role did it play in this book?
Why is it significant to the events in this story?

BABY MOUSE

SKATER GIRL

Bibliography:

Holm, Jennifer, and Matthew Holm. 2007. BABYMOUSE: SKATER GIRL. New York. Random House. ISBN 9780375939891

Plot Summary:

Best gymnast! Best kazoo player! Home run champ! Top speller! Math whiz! It looks like everybody gets their prize. Everybody, except Babymouse. But, Babymouse is one tough girl. She is not going to give up… this time. Not like she did in Little Mouse Scouts… and in ballet… and in babysitting… and in…. Because, now she has a personal coach: Bearnakova. Bearnakova is the coach who will help her to win an ice-skating trophy. Of course, Babymouse must sacrifice many things if she wants to be a champion. Things like morning sleep, cupcakes, and play-dates with friends. Soon, Babymouse realizes winning is not everything, that sometimes you are already good at something; even if that something is eating cupcakes.

Critical Analysis:

A delightful graphic novel, BABYMOUSE: SKATER GIRL is the creation of brother and sister team Matthew Holm and Jennifer Holm. Babymouse is the star of this popular, award-winning, hilarious, pink graphic novel series.  Kids love Babymouse, who is sassy and a little clumsy. She is the kind of character with which many of us can identify. She dreams of being popular and beautiful; in real life she is just like you and me. She makes mistakes, she has her enemies, and she is loved by her friends and family. Babymouse carries a lesson for both children and adults: it isn’t necessary to be a champion to be happy in life. “Sometimes you have to quit to find out what makes you happy.”

Presented in black and white with pink highlights, this episode from the BABYMOUSE series is sure to delight readers who appreciate the adventures and misadventures of this charming mouse girl.

Experts Reviews:

"Move over, Superman, here comes Babymouse!" The Chicago Sun-Times.

"Nobody puts Babymouse in the corner!" The Horn Book.

"Cute, smart, sassy Babymouse is fun and funny, and this book, like its predecessors, will draw reluctant readers as well as Babymouse fans." Booklist.

"An almost absurdly likeable heroine." The Bulletin

Connections:

Other books in the Babymouse Series:

Babymouse : Burns Rubber (2010)
Babymouse : Cupcake Tycoon (2010)
Babymouse : The Musical (2009)
Babymouse : Dragonslayer (2009)
Babymouse : Puppy Love (2007)
Babymouse : Camp Babymouse (2007)
Babymouse : Heartbreaker (2006)
Babymouse : Rockstar (2006)

Visit the  Babymouse website:

www.babymouse.com

OKAY FOR NOW

Bibliography:

Schmidt, Gary D. 2011. OKAY FOR NOW. New York. Clarion Books. ISBN 9780547152608

Plot Summary:

When Doug Swieteck moves to Marysville, New York, he feels he doesn’t belong there. The small town in upstate New York seems strange and boring. Doug lands there in the summer of 1968, the year when the Apollo space missions are preparing to land on the moon, Joe Pepitone is playing for the New York Yankees, and the Vietnam War is raging. Doug shares “The Dump”, as he names his new home, with his mother – a quiet and submissive housewife; his father – who has lost his way; and his older brother Christopher– who is accused of robbery. His oldest brother Lucas is on his way home from Vietnam “a little bit different. Everyone comes home from Vietnam a little bit different.”

Doug knows it will be a long and difficult year at Washington Irving Junior High School. He must deal with his nagging gym teacher, the suspicions of his other teachers that thievery might run in families, and the constant arguments that occur in his own home. However, the days seem to brighten after he shares a “really cold Coke” with Lil Spicer, a green-eyed girl whose family owns Spicer’s Deli. Lil introduces Doug to the local library. It is at the library where he first encounters the plate collection of John James Audubon’s Birds of America. He also meets Mr. Powell, the librarian. With the help of Mr. Powell, Doug discovers his penchant for drawing.

As Doug attempts to capture his world through the eyes of an artist, he opens another as strange to him as the lunar landscape. Brick by brick Doug begins building a house of self-confidence. But, he is not alone. His helpers are the customers to whom he delivers groceries on Saturdays, those who share with him chocolate donuts or their daily chores, his father’s boss, with whom Doug sometimes pitches horse-shoes, and Mrs. Windermere, a local script-writer who drags Doug to the Broadway play. Everything seems okay, for now. Will it continue to remain so, even if Lil is terminally ill? Here the author leaves us, balancing on our reflections about life, relationships, and love.

Critical Analysis:

“OKAY FOR NOW” is a novel of the famous writer Gary D. Schmidt - a Newberry Award winner. This book is an outstanding example of Schmidt’s figment of imagination sprinkled with historical facts. It takes place in the late 1960’s, the era when mankind is about to take its giant leap onto the surface of the moon. The main character, Doug Swietek, is stuck in stupid Marysville, New York. He seems to be an ordinary 8th grader, but his mission to recover the missing pages of the Audubon book makes him to stand out among his peers. Doug is a witness to the horrors of the wounds suffered in the Vietnam War when his brother returns home blind and without legs. At the same time, Schmidt wants to show the reader the positive turbulence of the late 60s – especially within the Space Race.

One of the primary themes present throughout the book is the theme of coming of age. Each of the characters learns lessons about growing up and dealing with responsibilities in life. Doug deals a lot with puberty and changes in his body, as well as those in his feelings. His brothers Lucas and Chris come of age as they realize they don’t want to turn out like their abusive father. Readers can also find leitmotif, as Schmidt writes about the power of a mother’s love and standing up for what one believes in.

Schmidt presents his story in first person monologue. Doug speaks directly to the audience, using short, easy flowing sentences in a language appropriate for his age in the era the story is set. The rarity of metaphors and similes makes the reading inviting and pleasurable. 

Experts Reviews:

A New York Times Bestseller

A Children's Choice Award winner

An ALA Notable Children's Book

An ALA Best Fiction for Young Adults Pick

"Readers will miss Doug and his world when they're done, and will feel richer for having experienced his engaging, tough, and endearing story."
School Library Journal

"This is Schmidt's best novel yet."
 Kirkus Reviews

"Stealthily powerful."
 Booklist

Connections:

Read more books by Gary Schmidt:

THE WEDNESDAY WARS

WHAT CAME FROM THE STARS

LIZZIE BRIGHT AND THE BUCKMISTER BOY

Visit the author's website:

http://www.hmhbooks.com/schmidt/index.html

ONE CRAZY SUMMER

Bibliography:

Williams-Garcia, Rita. 2010. ONE CRAZY SUMMER. New York. Harper Collins Publishers. ISBN 9780060760885

Plot Summary:

It is summer, 1968. Delphine and her younger sisters Vonetta and Fern are on their way from Brooklyn, New York to Oakland, California. They are to meet their mother Cecile, who left them and their father. The girls haven’t seen their mother since Fern “needed her milk,” Vonetta “needed to be picked up,” and Delphine “was four going on five.” The three sisters cannot wait to arrive in California. They are anxious to visit Disneyland, meet movie stars, and maybe, learn the truth about the missing pieces of their past. But, their mother, now a poet, seems too busy to fulfill the girls’ dreams. She makes them eat Chinese takeout dinners, forbids them to enter her kitchen, and never explains the stranger visitors with Afros and black berets. Instead she sends her daughters to spend all day at the People’s Center, which is run by the Black Panther. There they learn more about their mother and the Black Panther’s revolutionary ideas. There also, the bond of sisterhood that connects them is strengthened.

Critical Analysis:

ONE CRAZY SUMMER is a book about a child’s perspective of social change and the Black Panther movement. Delphine is learning about the world around her through important events, such as Bobby Hutton’s assassination, and historical figures such as Huey Newton.

At first glance, this book is about issues: identity, the Civil Rights Movement, sisterhood, and one’s responsibility to family. But above all it is a book about a summer of discovery. As Delphine grows to understand the complexities of the world around her, she learns that the reasons her mother left are equally complex. By the end of the book Delphine accepts that she will never have the daughter-mother relationship she so desires. But, she does come to understand the reasons for Cecile’s choices.

All three sisters, Delphine, Vonetta, Fern, have strong, independent personalities. Their relationship is like any other among siblings: there are fights and disagreements, but also moments of love and caring. These leitmotifs are unchangeable through time. Though the story’s protagonist – Delphine - is mature for a girl of eleven, she does and says things that are beyond her age, deep down she is just a young child who has a huge, unfair burden.

The style of writing allows the telling of a good story sprinkled with social commentary. It is a thought provoking story that is fun and heartbreaking.  

  

Experts Reviews:

2011 Coretta Scott King Award Winner

2011 Newbery Honor Book

2011 Scott O’Dell Prize for Historical Fiction

2010 National Book Award Finalist

Junior Library Guild Selection

Texas Library Association Best Book for 2010

Set during a pivotal moment in African American history, this vibrant novel shows the subtle ways that political movements affect personal lives; but just as memorable is the finely drawn, universal story of children reclaiming a reluctant parent’s love.

Booklist

Each girl has a distinct response to her motherless state, and Williams-Garcia provides details that make each characterization crystal clear. The depiction of the time is well done, and while the girls are caught up in the difficulties of adults, their resilience is celebrated and energetically told with writing that snaps off the page.
School Library Journal

Connections:

Invite children to imagine that they are one of the Cecile's daughters and ask them to write a letter to Cecile after their return to Brooklyn.

Read some poems by Langston Hughest:

DREAMS

COMES THE COLORED HOUR

LET AMERICA BE AMERICA AGAIN

What would Delphine thing about this poems?

Read other Books by Williams-Garcia:

BLUE TIGHTS.

FAST TALK ON A SLOW TRACK. 

LIKE SISTERS ON THE HOMEFRONT.

EVERY TIME A RAINBOW DIES. 

NO LAUGHTER HERE.

RODZINA

Bibliography:  

Cushman, Karen. 2003. RODZINA. New York. Random House Children's Books. ISBN 044041993-X

Plot Summary:

Rodzina Clara Jadviga Anastazya Brodski, a twelve year old orphan, is going on the orphan train from Chicago to the west. It is the cold spring of 1881. Rodzina is a girl from a family of Polish immigrants. She is on her way to the unknown. As the miles go by, Rodzina’s story is revealed. Her younger, twin brothers have died in a fire; Papa has been killed by a runaway horse in Chicago’s stockyards; and Mama died from aching (putrid fever). Rodzina is left alone in the whole wide world, sent away with other orphans to strange, unknown places to be “traded into slavery”, though they call it “adopted by a family.” 

The wound of losing her family is still fresh. Everything reminds Rodzina of her lost loved ones: “the flat, stubby prairie looked like Papa’s face when he needed a shave.” It seems to Rodzina that no one cares about her future, especially “cold and frosty” Miss Doctor who is assigned to take care of the orphans on their way to California.

Being the oldest among the children on the train car, Rodzina unwillingly takes on the responsibility of looking after a group of orphans. She grows closer to funny and cheery Mickey Dooley, naïve “feeble-minded” Lacey, and always fighting Joe and Sammy. 

As the train stops at numerous stations, and orphans are taken home by their new families, Rodzina is waiting for her “perfect” family: a mama, a papa, and two brothers. Twice, Rodzina is sent from the train to be adopted; twice, she is returned to the train. The first family consisted of two old-maid sisters who were looking for a “strong back and hands” to do the chores. The second family was a father of thirteen children looking for a replacement for his soon to be dead wife. At the end of the trip only “unwanted” Rodzina and Miss Doctor remain. Unexpectedly for the reader, after this hard and uneven journey, these two find family in each other. Though the future will be full of difficulties for a female doctor and a young girl, they know they will face it together.

Critical analysis:

Karen Cushman, an author of many award-winning historical fiction books for young adults, wrote RODZINA as a tribute to her own family’s roots. Not only did she research her family tree for this book, she also researched the time period for the setting of the story. More information is included in her Author’s Note at the end of the book.

Most of the characters in this story are children aged two to twelve. They seem real and believable, their language mirroring their social background. Rodzina, the story’s protagonist, is forced to grow up in the blink of an eye, yet is full of domestic wisdom. Like the other orphans, she is a scared child. But, she finds the optimism to encourage others. Her stories, quick-witted and full of good humor, enlighten the spirit of all who listen. 

The story of Rodzina is not sugar-coated: it reveals the dark societal realities of the time. Cushman vividly describes America’s prairies, American and Polish historical events, and the Cheyenne Indians Rodzina encounters on her journey. Cushman provides opportunities for readers to make comparisons between the present and the past by filling the back-story with examples of pricing and travel times. For example when Rodzina notices the price of a dental filling, and when she mentions it takes all night to travel twenty-five miles by wagon.

RODZINA is about the search for family. But, for today’s readers it can provide an opportunity to reflect on their own families: what they appreciate about their parents; why family is important; and, how they can express their love for their family.

Cushman’s style of writing is meaningful and compelling. Her characters use vocabulary and speech patterns typical of that era: outhouse, prigger, a mite. Cushman also incorporates a smattering of Polish into Rodzina’s vocabulary. RODZINA is a wonderful way for children of today to take a glimpse into the past through the eyes of their peer.

Experts Reviews:

Parents' Choice Gold Award

Booklist Editor's Choice

Child Magazine, Best Books of the Year

“Engaging characters, a vivid setting, and a prickly but endearing heroine... first-person narrative captures... personality and spirit...poignancy, humor.”
School Library Journal, starred review

"Rodzina is prickly, stubborn, and heart-sore but she's also honest, likable and smart...Enough unpredictability to nicely unsettle expectations."
The Horn Book

"A natural for American history or social studies classes...especially interesting as a women's history title...a great story."
Booklist, starred review

Connections:

Read other books by Karen Cushman:

WILL SPARROW'S ROAD

MATILDA BONE

THE MIDWIFE'S APPRENTICE

THE BALLAD OF LUCY WHIPPLE

THE BRAIN
 OUR NERVOUS SYSTEM

Bibliography:

Simon, Seymour. 1997. THE BRAIN: OUR NERVOUS SYSTEM. Smithsonian. ISBN 9780060877187.

Plot Summary:

Author Seymour Simon invites you to wiggle your toes and scratch your nose. These activities, and many others, are under the control of your brain, your body’s remarkable message center. The brain is made up of microscopic cells, such as neurons, which carry signals from the brain to other parts of the body. Neurons are very important in our daily lives. For example, if you touch something hot with your finger, signals travel through different kinds of nerves (bundles of neurons) in order to reach the brain. Your brain receives the “hot” message and then sends a response to your spinal cord and to your motor nerves so that you can move your arm and get your poor finger out of harm’s way. This example gives you an idea of the complexity of the brain and the interdependence of the cells in the body. Every day when you run, read, solve a problem, breathe, or throw a ball, remember to be grateful for your “wrinkled blob of pinkish gray jelly” that we know as the brain. Simon’s informative text and full-page illustrations will help you to discover many fascinating features of the brain.

Critical Analysis:

The accuracy of this title is assured to Simon's reputation and his works in the science field. Seymour Simon wrote over 250 books on science subjects. All of these books, including THE BRAIN OUR NERVOUS SYSTEM, are photo essay books.

While there is a lack of reference aides (indexes, table of contents, subheadings), the information is presented in a clear logical layout. The design of the book is attractive thanks to greatly magnified full color photos. The style of writing is clear and interesting. The author introduces the complicated scientific information in an easy comprehensive way.

Expert Reviews:

"Full-color photographs, computer simulations, drawings, and three-dimensional models are used to grand effect to clarify, explain, and celebrate the remarkably complex system of brain and nerves; the large format, often with white type on black paper and full-page photos, is visually striking." Kirkus Reviews.

"Simon brings his deft touch to an explanation of the brain and the nervous system. His clear, concise writing style is complemented by stunning color images."  School Library Journal.

"The vivid illustrations catch the eye, but the clearly written text provides a fuller understanding of what happens in various parts of the brain and nervous system." Booklist.

Connections:

Read some of Simon's other titles about the body, including:
BONES: OUR SKELETAL SYSTEM
GUTS: OUR DIGESTIVE SYSTEM
MUSCLES: OUR MUSCULAR SYSTEM