Bluefish

Author: Pat Schmatz  

Genre: Realistic

Setting: Small town Wisconsin, USA  

Themes/Subject Matter: Bullying, Learning Disabilities, Alcoholism, Family, Death, Grief, Friendship  

AR BL: 4.0    AR Points: 6.0  

Alerts: Adolescent/middle school themes and speech, rare instances of cursing, one instance of an inappropriate gesture. middle school teasing and bullying  

Highly Recommended: 5th Grade and Up
  
Awards:

• 2010 PEN/Phyllis Naylor Working Writer Fellowship
• Josette Frank Award (Bank Street College of Education)
• ALA Notable Children's Book
• Junior Library Guild Selection
• Notable Children's Book in the Language Arts (National Council of Teachers of English)
• The Horn Book - Best of 2011
• Crystal Kite Award (SCBWI Midwest)
• Elizabeth Burr/Worzalla Award (Wisc Library Association)
• Top 10 Indie NEXT List

The style of this book reminds me a lot of S.E. Hinton's The Outsiders and while many of the issues are not the same, Travis is just as much an "outsider" as Ponyboy. Travis and his grandfather have just moved to town, and Travis is having a lot of trouble fitting into eighth grade at his new school. First, he's lost his best friend, an old hound named Rosco. Secondly, Travis has trouble in school and has just about given up hope. Travis continues to play the hiding game at school, hoping to just slide on through without being labeled the dumb kid again.

That's not going to be so easy, though. Mr. McQueen, Travis's fourth period teacher, isn't going to let Travis slip through the cracks any longer. Then there's Vida, Velveeta to her friends, who is as vivacious as Travis is quiet and unassuming. Smart, laugh out loud funny, and often the center of attention, Velveeta is hiding some serious secrets of her own. When Velveeta witnesses Travis committing a small act of kindness, she decides to get the know the new boy a bit better, and thus a tenuous friendship develops between the two seemingly opposite personalities. I don't want to give away too much of the story, but as Travis and Velveeta begin to trust one another with their secrets, they discover that facing and working their way through life's ups and downs becomes a bit easier when you have a friend.

I loved the Bluefish and was sad to see it end. While the reviewer in the video below thinks Travis was a weaker character, I admired his quiet strength and will and felt he balanced Velveeta's vivacious personality extremely well. If you give Bluefish a try, I would love to hear what you think.

True Legend

Author: Mike Lupica
  
Genre: Realistic, Sports, Basketball  

Setting: Southern California

Themes: identity, being true to yourself, personal gifts, jealousy/envy, friendship, teamwork  

AR BL: 5.2   AR Points: 10.0  

Alerts: Very mild boy-girl friendship; True does make a mistake that brings him in contact with law enforcement (with appropriate consequences for his actions).  

Highly Recommended: 5th Grade and Up ; 4th graders who like more meaty / mature sports stories may enjoy this one also, but parents should be aware that the protagonist is in high school and that means more mature issues.

Wow! What can I say? I really liked this story and I am not a huge basketball fan. Baseball -- Yes! Football -- sometimes. Basketball -- not so much, but this book was good, very good. I read it in one sitting.

Drew Robinson is a player. He was born to play basketball. Even as a youngster he could dish the ball so well, he played point with guys much bigger and older. He's been featured on All-American teams and has even owned the top two spots on ESPN's top plays of the day. No doubt about Drew Robinson is a "True" player, a natural, may even have the possibility of becoming a legend, but Drew has begun to believe the hype surrounding him. "Lebron Junior," indeed. Drew is surrounded by people who are willing to do anything to get Drew to the pros. Nothing else matters. Or does it? Will Drew fall victim to the hype, or will he discover what it takes to be a True Legend?

One night, while practicing his game at a local park, Drew sees a ghost practicing on the old court, a player that strikes awe in Drew. Ghost or man? Which is he? Who is he? Whatever or whoever, he has the skills to have played with the pros. So what is he doing here on a rundown court? Drew needs to find out more about the "ghost" and wants to learn more about his game. Can the ghost "school" Drew in what really matters in the game, before it is too late for Drew?

This book is about so much more than basketball. It is about discovering what matters in life and being true to the gifts God has given each and everyone. The basketball scenes are extremely well-done and hold your breath exciting. After all, Lupica is a renown award-winning sports writer. He knows his stuff, but the real story in True Legend, the story that kept me reading half the night, is not about the team's season and attempt for a state championship but the story that developed Drew's character.

Readers will find themselves cheering for Drew, his best friend Lee (who might have been my personal favorite character), and others in the book, not only as they play the game of basketball but as they learn to play the game of life. This was my first Mike Lupica book, but I don't think it will be my last, especially if he goes beyond the sports hook in all of his books.

Former University of Memphis basketball coach John Calipari said about True Legend, "Mike Lupica captures the passion of basketball, the allure of NBA stardom, and the risks kids will take to get it. True Legend gets it right." I agree, True Legend is a game winner of a read.

Mike Lupica talks with Matt Lauer of the the Today Show about True Legend:

 

The Liberation of Gabriel King

Author:  K. L. Going

Genre:  Historical Fiction

Setting:  1976, Georgia

Themes:  Prejudice, Tolerance, Confronting and Resolving Fears, Friendship, Racism

Recommended:  4th Grade and Up

Accelerated Reader Book Level:  4.5

Mrs. Carter says:

It’s the summer of 1976. Former Georgia governor, Jimmy Carter, is running for president. Gas prices are high and the country is in a recession where money is tight. It’s also the year of the nation’s bicentennial, and the year Gabe has determined that he will not go to fifth grade next fall. You see, Gabriel King is afraid of almost everything — spiders, cows, centipedes, and almost anything to do with fifth grade. Everything except his best friend, Frita Wilson, that is.

Nobody can make Gabe move up to fifth grade, well, except possibly Frita. Frita has determined that while some people were “born chicken,” Gabe is not one of those people. According to Frita, all Gabe needs is a little “liberating”, and she is just the one to help free him from his fears.  Frita has a plan. She has Gabe make a list of all of his fears (all 38 of them), and they will attack those fears one by one throughout the summer. Once Gabe has faced all of his fears, he will have the courage to face fifth grade.

Things don’t go quite as planned, however. Gabe learns that Frita is not fearless as he had once thought, and Frita’s fears involve people who hate her for the color of her skin. How can Gabe ever help Frita when he is so afraid of everything himself?

The Liberation of Gabriel King by K. L. Going is a terrific read. It’s a thin little book (only 151 pages) and moves at a fast pace. Told in first person from Gabe’s point of view, the story is at times laugh out loud funny as Gabe desperately tries to overcome his own fears. When he becomes afraid for Frita, however, Gabe’s voice becomes much more serious . Will Gabe find the courage to help Frita?

Wonder

Author: R. J. Palacio

Genre:  Realistic Fiction

Setting:  Present Day New York City

Themes/Topics: Identity, Friendship, Bullying, Kindness, Overcoming disabilities, Middle School

Alerts: None — everyone in grade 4 our up should read this book!

AR BL:  4.8     AR Points:  11

Highly Recommended: Grades 4 and up.  Some of the themes and content may make Wonder a more difficult read with 3rd grade students, but it could make a great read aloud or read with a caring adult book for younger students.

Wow! I will be thinking of Wonder by R. J. Palacio for a very long time.  In fact, it may make it onto my favorite books of all time list.  August Pullman, Auggie to his family and friends, was born with severe facial deformities as a result of a very rare genetic condition.  Auggie himself tells us, "I won't describe what I look like.  Whatever you're thinking, it's probably worse."

Auggie has been homeschooled all his life due to the many surgeries he has had to undergo in order to survive and because his parents feared the reactions of other children.  But, Auggie is now about to enter the fifth grade and his mom feels it is time for him to go to a traditional school.

Wonder is the story of Auggie's fifth grade year, and is told from multiple perspectives.  Each narrator has a distinct voice and his or her own burdens to bear, even though none of those burdens are as obvious as Auggie's.  It is Auggie's voice that truly makes this novel shine and that let's the reader know that, yes, indeed, we all are created in the image of God.

Gandhi once said, "Be the change you wish to see in the world."  Wonder is a novel about being that change no matter who you are or what obstacles are in your way.  It is a novel about being kind, being a friend, and loving others, and the courage it takes to live life to its fullest.  It is a novel about how one person can make a huge difference.  Read this book and be challenged to be the person, God created you to be.

Interview with R. J. Palacio about her book, Wonder, and presenting the Choose Kind Campaign:

Heart of a Samurai

Author:  Margi Preus

Genre:  Historical Fiction

Setting:

• Japan, the United States, Hawaii,
• Whaling Ships
• 1841-1852

Themes:  courage, isolationism, whaling industry, racism, prejudice,

AR BL: 5.4
AR Points: 8.0

Awards:  Newbery Honor Book

"We can never go back to Japan, you know, " Goemon said, staring across the sea.

"Why not?"

The law says, "Any person who leaves the country and later returns will be put to death."

They brooded on this in silence.

Finally, Manjiro said, "But why?"

"Because, if we were to encounter any of the foreign devils, we would be poisoned by them."

"Poisoned!" Manjiro said.

"Maybe not our bodies, but they would poison our minds with their way of thinking.  That's why no fisherman are allowed to go very far from the coast -- they say contamination lies beyond the reach of the tides.  The barbarians would fill our heads with wrong thoughts!"

Heart of a Samurai is a great historical adventure book, based upon a TRUE story.  Manjiro is a young Japanese boy who must help provide for his family as a fisherman.  When a violent storm destroys the fishing boat, Manjiro and his friends find themselves stranded on a deserted island with little food and water, but that is only the beginning of Manjiro's story.  An American whaling ship rescues Manjiro and the rest of the crew from the fishing boat.  Manjiro and his mates do not know what to make of the strange looking men who they have always considered "barbarians."

Unable to return home to Japan because of the strict laws isolating Japan from the rest of the world in the late 1800s, but not sure of what the "barbarians" might do to them,  Manjiro and his mates must make the best of their lives.  Manjiro, always curious, asks lots of questions,  begins to learn English, and soon joins the whaling ship crew on a whale hunt.    As Manjiro continues to ask questions and learn, he catches the eye of the whaling ship captain.  The Captain soon makes Manijro an interesting offer.  What will Manjiro do?  Should he take the captain's offer or should he stick with the other Japanese fishermen?

This book is full of the exciting history and fascinating information about the early whaling industry, the U.S., Japan and Hawaii in the late 1800s (Hawaii was not a state then), and the true story of a young Japanese fisherman who dreamed of being a Samarai.  The illustrations in the book are reproductions of drawings actually created by Manjiro.  Also included is a glossary to help readers understand unfamiliar sailing and whaling terms and a bibliography for further reading for those interested.

Overall the book moves at a quick pace, although some may find some small sections drag a bit.  Stick with it, the pace picks back up again fairly quickly.

This website also offers more information about Manjiro's adventures.

One Crazy Summer

In Brief

Author:  Rita Williams-Garcia

Genre:  Historical Fiction

Setting: 1968 - Oakland, California

Themes:  abandonment, racism, oppression, poverty, responsibility, prejudices, discrimination, individuality, character

Highly Recommended:  Grades 4 and up

Accelerated Reader Book Level:  4.6

Awards:

• Nominee -- National Book Award for Young People's Literature (2010)
• Newbery Honor Book (2011)
• Scott O'Dell Historical Fiction Award (2011)
• Coretta Scott King Author Award (2011)
• Publishers Weekly's Best Children's Books of the Year for Fiction (2010)
• Many other nominations and awards. 

Review:

This is a powerful little gem of a read.  Rita Williams-Garcia's characters, especially Delphine,  leap off the page, grab hold of the reader, and just do not let go.

The story takes place in one of the most pivotal and chaotic years in the history of the United States -- 1968.  The year is also crazy for Delphine, Vonetta and Fern, traveling across the country for a summer visit with a mother who abandoned them seven years earlier.  Williams-Garcia chose to tell her story in first person, from Delphine's point-of-view, and Delphine's "old soul" voice shines through the prose, loud, clear and fabulous, as she balances the responsibility for caring for her sisters with her own need for someone to mother her. 

Eleven-year-old Delphine, the only one of the sisters to have any memories of their mother, has borne the role of "mother" for her younger sisters most of her life.  Although nervous about seeing her mother again, Delphine has visions of a glorious summer vacation and a joyful reunion with her mother.  The girls' mother, Cecile, however, resents the girls' visit and sends them to the community center run by the Black Panthers each day to keep them out of her way as she focuses on her writing. 

At the community center, Delphine and her sisters are immersed in the culture and propaganda of the Black Panther Movement.  They learn about the Movement's jailed leader Huey Newton and the tragic story of Panther martyr, Bobby Hutton.  As they learn more about the Movement and the discrimination that still existed during that time, the girls begin to balance what they learn with their own beliefs and experiences and are able to survive and thrive during One Crazy Summer.

Though the period depicted was somewhat violent and the issues addressed in the novel are serious and mature, Rita Williams-Garcia reveals her themes in a child-friendly format.  There is some mild racially-based name calling, but the violence of the period is not graphically depicted.  Cecile's abandonment of her family and her cavalier attitude toward her daughters is addressed in a way that can be understood according to each reader's individual maturity level.

As evidenced by the sheer number of awards for One Crazy Summer, this is a book not to be missed.

Zora and Me

Authors: Victoria Bond and T.R. Simon

Genre: Historical Fiction

Setting: Early 20th Century Eatonville, Florida

Themes:  social justice / injustice, race relations, discrimination, prejudices, racial identity, economic class, poverty, employment, migration / migratory workers

Highly Recommended :  Grade 4 Up

Awards:  Corretta Scott King John Steptoe New Talent Award

Zora and Me won the 2011 Coretta Scott King John Steptoe New Talent Award, and I can see why.  I loved this book.  Told in first person narrative, this fictional story introduces middle grade readers to American literary great Zora Neale Hurston, author of the classic Their Eyes Were Watching God.

The fictional story is very loosely based upon events from Hurston's autobiography, Dust Tracks on the Road.  Hurston spent much of her early life in the town of Eatonville, Florida, one of the few all black incorporated towns in the US in the early twentieth century.  Told through the first person narrative by Zora's fictional best friend, Carrie, the prose begs to be read aloud.  It is through Carrie's rich voice that readers discover Zora's insatiable curiosity, tenaciousness, and her greatest gift -- the ability to spin stories that could capture anyone's attention.

The authors do not shy away from the issues and violence faced by African Americans living during this time.  Zora Neale Hurston's indomitable spirit shines through as she explores the swamps surrounding her community and discovers that the gators are not the only monsters in the area.  The girls also ponder and seek answers to the questions they have about their own identity (both personal and racial) -- who they are, how they see themselves, and who they want to be.  Thus, this novel, though short, is not a book for  readers younger than nine or ten.  It is a serious work, told with a child's sense of wonder, that should be savored and discussed.

Parents and Educators:  Be aware that the "n" word is used in its historical context.  (For the record, I do not believe in sanitizing such language in children's books as it was a part of our history.  If we refuse to acknowledge this, it is impossible to learn from it and move on from there. I merely mention this to alert parents and educators to be ready to discuss these issues with their children and students.)  In addition, there are a few instances of mild swearing (exclamations of Deity).  While the violence of the area and period is present, it is not graphically described, although there is a incident where a decapitated body is found.