The Sword of Summer (Magnus Chase and the Gods of Asgard #1) by Rick Riordan

If you liked Percy Jackson, you will enjoy this first book in a series that follows a similar pattern with a snarky protagonist, humor that balances violence, great monsters, a demigod, mythology-based fantasy plot, mnemonics to learn foreign words, a cross-over with a character (Annabeth Chase appears), and a first person narration. Why mess with a good thing? Rick Riordan's Percy Jackson series has sold in the millions. Magnus Chase will satisfy loyal fans. Yah... sure.

Magnus Chase is sixteen and homeless. His mom died protecting him when two monsters burst into his apartment. When Magnus discovers two people looking for him he breaks into the home of his uncle setting in motion a hunt for an ancient and powerful sword. He learns that his dad is a god which gives him the ability to retrieve the sword. And don't cha know, good and evil beings want this sword and once he calls it to him he sets in motion events that signal not only the end of the world, but life as he knows it. That's right. He's killed. This isn't a spoiler. He tells the reader in the first paragraph using the oh-so-familiar Rick Riordan hook. I bit. As Magnus learns what it is like to be a ghost warrior in Valhalla, he tries to save the world with the aide of a Valkarie of Arab descent and two disguised homeless men. The action snowballs to an exciting climax.

In Norse mythology, the gods know that their destiny is inescapable and doomed to a bloody epic battle called, "Ragnarok," that will leave them and humanity dead. From the ashes will rise two people that signify the regeneration of life. The myths show life as cyclical with gods and human beings not in despair over their fate, but attempting to hold it off. Loki points this out when he tells Magnus: “Well what you do is change the details. That’s how you rebel. That’s how you change the narrative. I know how I’m going to die, but between now and then I’m going to make my own game.” You betcha.

Magnus reminds me of the Germanic heroic code found in medieval literature such as Beowulf and the Icelandic sagas where death is heroic and not tragic and destruction is final not life-giving. The heroic code means that Magnus places honor above death and dies saving the lives of strangers. He decides at the last minute to make his death count by taking out a fire demon. Magnus displays courage in the face of overwhelming or impossible odds and remains strong in the face of death. This hero understands that Fate will take everything - power, family, wealth - gained in the world, but it can't take the hero's character. Out of this mentality comes the literary trope where the Germanic hero dies with a quip taking light of the situation. Magnus does not have wealth, fame, or power and he puts his own spin on the heroic code calling the fire demon, "Fire Dude,"and acting like a rebellious teen taunting him and giving him the finger, but he does reflect elements of this type of hero.

Don't worry. All my Minnesota speak that comes from German and Scandinavian immigrants is not in Rick Riordan's book. He does have a deaf person in it that uses sign language to communicate with others. That character is unique and worked into the plot in interesting ways. He does have several characters use Old English that enhances voice and setting, but don't expect to find kennings and alliteration found in Beowulf and the Icelandic sagas. That's probably a good thing for the younger reading audience. Kennings are confusing. Although I do like how Riordan makes it easier to memorize the names of gods using mnemonics. If he could come up with a way to wade through the murky waters of kennings that would be amazing.

The character of the Valkarie that is Muslim-American is a nod to 10th century writer, Ibn Fadlan, an Arab traveler who was part of a delegation sent by the Caliph in Baghdad to help establish Islam for the king of the Volga Bulghars in Russia. Fadlan wrote about the "Rus" or Vikings that had settled there for trade and goes into detail the funeral rites involving a ship burial and human sacrifice. Riordan has the Valkarie character descending from this family. Ironically, Fadlan was a theologian and thought the Rus Vikings were vulgar and primitive. I doubt Fadlan would appreciate his descendant being loyal to the Norse gods; however, no religion is revered by these characters, especially Magnus.

Fadlan's account about Viking funeral practices have been somewhat generalized and it might not be how a funeral was conducted in Scandinavia during the Viking reign. Fadlan met a band of select warriors who became merchants and that adapted to a new culture in Russia. I'm not an archeologist, but I don't think there is an account of Viking funeral rites in Scandinavia. Don't quote me on that. Sorry. This has nothing to do with the book. I'm digressing into my fascination with Viking history. Maybe that is my clue that I've written enough book reviews on Rick Riordan's series. Time to move on.

3 Smileys

Circus Mirandus by Cassie Beasley

This book is like a slow boiling pot of noodles. I'm always impatient for the quiet pool of water to heat up. I forget about it and then suddenly boiling water is rushing unexpectedly to the top, steam hissing as it touches the dry sides of the metal pan before spilling over the edge onto the burner. "Circus Mirandus" simmers at the start with the nasty Aunt Gertrudis that cruelly manipulates her nephew, fifth grader Micah, from seeing his dying grandfather. The story erupts at the end with oodles of action as Micah matures into a young man willing to take risks and find happiness in whatever situation life gives him. The writing has beautiful figurative language that had me writing down favorite lines and themes that spilleth over like my pasta pot - although I found it hard to latch onto one. Good book. Thought-provoking. Just hard for me to write about in a cohesive manner. My fragmented sentences truly reflect my thoughts on this one.

Micah Tuttle has heard his Grandfather Ephraim's "Circus Mirandus" stories all his life, but when he finally gets to enter the world of stories for real, he finds magic in illusions that give him hope when things look bleak. His grandpa is dying and Micah needs a miracle to save his life. Micah knows that the Lightbender promised Ephraim a miracle as a young boy that he never used. Micah wants Ephraim to use that miracle now for a cure so he doesn't die and Micah will have to live with the unimaginative and mean-spirited Aunt Gertrudis. Grandpa Ephraim cashes in his "ticket" for a miracle and most of the story is spent seeing what that miracle is. Micah makes friends with Jenny, a girl in his class that doesn't believe in magic but science. She's a loyal friend and grounds Micah in reality as he gets lost in the world of magic.

Illusion in Circus Mirandus is suppose to inspire hope and good-will for children that represent the future. Not everyone understands the power of illusion. Aunt Gertrudis felt deceived by the world of illusion as she never got to see Circus Mirandus. Victoria believes that magic is power and should be spent on oneself and not children. She uses magic for the wrong reasons. Micah and his Grandpa believe in the good and joy that magic brings to their lives. The Lightbender is the master of illusion and a metaphor for storytelling.

Micah and Ephraim tell the Lightbender that he has "changed" them. Storytelling in its own right is a form of illusion with the goal of changing the reader. Readers must be able to enter another world and identify with the characters. In that alternate make-believe world they can interpret what is happening in the plot, apply it to themselves and develop new understandings of themselves in a complex world. In this case, Micah is dealing with death and the choices he makes in life. He realizes that he can't control the adults around him, but he can control his attitude and beliefs. Storytelling is passed from generation to generation and as Ephraim passes his stories on to Micah the tradition and history of this craft is highlighted. Stories as a form of entertainment, socialization, ethics, and education can be found in every culture from ancient times (i.e. Gilgamesh, Beowulf, Vedas, Shijing) to the present.

The friendship between Jenny and Micah reveals the complexity of relationships from acquaintances to interpersonal bonding. Jenny is skeptical of magic and at times embarrasses Micah with her lack of understanding when she meets others from the circus. She's not sensitive to what she is saying and only realizes something is up because Micah seems upset. But Micah doesn't abandon their friendship because of a fight. She helps settle him down during emotional moments and gives sound advice at critical moments. Micah knows this and reminds himself of her strengths when he feels let down or angry with her. The two disagree but they are respectful of each others opinions.

Aunt Gertrudis is an archetype like Dicken's Scrooge or more accurately Roald Dahl's Aunt Spiker. She is wicked and more of a caricature that represents human qualities than a three-dimensional character. I understand that hyperboles are a good way to to point out the details of characters, but it doesn't work for me if the character is cliched or stereotyped. Aunt Gertrudis is neither, but she was plain ole frustrating with her lack of compassion and use of authority to keep Micah from seeing his grandpa. I thought the plot's action got slightly repetitive as she kept preventing him to see his grandpa.

Aunt Gertrudis' description is delicious: "On the inside, Aunt Gertrudis was probably cough syrup. She wore her dust-colored hair twisted into a bun so tight it almost pulled her wrinkled skin smooth, and she starched her shirts until the collars were stiff enough to cut. She made black tea every day in a bright steel kettle. The tea was scalding and bitter, a lot like her, and she wouldn't let Micah add sugar because she said bad teeth ran in the family."

Now compare the above description to Aunt Spiker in Roald Dahl's book. "Aunt Sponge was enormously fat and very short. She had small piggy eyes, a sunken mouth and one of those white flabby faces that looked exactly as though it had been boiled. She was like a great white soggy overboiled cabbage. Aunt Spiker, on the other hand, was lean and tall and bony, and she wore steel-rimmed spectacles that fixed on to the end of her nose with a clip. She had a screeching voice and long wet narrow lips, and whenever she got angry or excited, little flecks of spit would come shooting out of her mouth as she talked. And there they sat, these two ghastly hags, sipping their drinks, and every now and again screaming at James to chop faster and faster. They also talked about themselves, each one saying how beautiful she thought she was."

Grandpa Ephraim explains to Micah that if you hold on too hard to something you break it. When something becomes too important in life such as magic, money, power, fame, it leads to self-centered choices that are distorted in reality. Victoria thought she was so important and special that she murdered animals to prove a point and didn't see anything wrong with it. For her, the future did not exist in the children she brought happiness to but existed in satisfying her own needs and wallowing in her magical powers. She desires to be special, to stand out. Like Aunt Gertrudis she is an archetype  villain whose perspective is distorted in the quest for power.

Circus Mirandus nutures magic. But magic is what is inside of people. For Micah, magic is in the knots he can tie that reflect the complexity of others. For Jenny, magic is in her friendship to Micah and ability to be open to new ideas. Magic for the Lightbender is to create fantastic illusions that give hope in the impossible. Magic is the part of a person that is too big to keep to himself or herself and must be given to others in order for a person to reach his or her potential. Magic is a metaphor for giving to others. Individual talents are not for personal gain but used to nuture and share with others. Like I said, I had a hard time pulling out one strong overall theme that the character development points back to. I think its magic. In the end, I feel more like Big Anthony who loses control of his pasta pot. Perhaps someone else can take my mishmash and make sense out of it. I'm done drudging through my thoughts and I'm hungry for spaghetti.

5 Smileys

Echo by Pam Muñoz Ryan

Fairy tales, magic, suffering, and music in four parts that swirl together at the end like an imaginary symphony. I am always swept up in Pam Munoz Ryan's stories. Her musical way with words and terrific character developments are full of tension and emotion hitting the right chords with me. The author takes risks with this story creating a complex blend of fairy tale and historical genre. Her ending tells and doesn't show. This removes the climax and results in sections ending on cliffhangers. However, the characters are not left dangling and they do have emotional resolutions. This is not the norm for narrative fiction so some might not like the style. I did. More importantly the story reminded me that in dark times there is beauty whether it is in music or reading or spending time with loved ones.

The story is framed by a fairy tale that sets the tone for a magical instrument that makes it way through the real lives of Friedrich, Mike, and Ivy. The instrument symbolizes hope, for when the current owner plays it, he or she feels strong and optimistic about the future regardless of his or her bad circumstances. The beauty of literature is that readers can make connections between the plot and their lives; thus finding meanings that help in the pursuit of understanding life. I happened to be reading this when my mom died and was comforted by the symbolism of music in this story. Music in the fairy tale prologue helped the sisters in the drudgery of their lives. When the witch cursed them, their souls were tied to a woodwind instrument or a harmonica. It is not a flashy instrument and is often overlooked or considered inferior. This rich symbolism and imagery can be applied to humans too. My mom preferred to not be in the limelight and I kept thinking she was like a harmonica in our family.

In the fairy tale, the three sisters want to go home but the jealous witch wants them for herself and curses them. They can only leave if they save a soul from "death's dark door." Their story, read aloud by the character, Otto, was unfinished and they had the choice of how to write their own ending. Their future was not determined by Fate. However, their fate did rely on a messenger bringing them out of the woods and them helping someone on the brink of death. This is the setup for the next three parts where the harmonica travels through different peoples lives and saves them. The parts end on a cliffhanger and there is no climax. Instead the author ties the stories together in an unusual way using leitmotifs found in the beginning prophecy.

Strong themes on death, tolerance, and loyalties fill the pages. Death can manifest in physical, mental, and spiritual ways for people. Friedrich lives in Germany as the Nazi's come to power and changes are made in his community that marginalize Jews, outspoken citizens, disabled people, or anyone outside the norm established by the Reich. Twelve-year-old Friedrich has a large birthmark on his cheek and likes to swing his hands in the air conducting an imaginary symphony. He is bullied at school to the point where his arm is broken. His father is an honest, good man that does not like the changes in his country where friends turn against friends and neighbors turn against neighbors out of fear. He does not have much self-preservation nor foresight for he suffers a bit from denial. He cannot believe how people will only look at the outward appearances rather than internal character in each other. When his daughter joins the Nazi Youth he is crushed and afraid for the first time. But nothing is as it seems and the author catches the complexity of humans and how people get trapped by the promises of a government that become more and more extreme in its persecution. Again, music rises above all prejudices and draws no lines in the sand. The end of the story refers to the fairy tale in the beginning by making Friedrich the new messenger (versus Otto) who must save a soul.

The second part involves eleven-year-old, Mike, and his seven-year-old brother, Frankie that live in an orphanage. Mike is a gifted pianist. When Mrs. Sturbridge takes the two boys in, Mike and Frankie have gone from poor to wealthy. It seems too good to be true and sure enough Mike discovers Mrs. Sturbridge only wants to keep Frankie. He makes a deal with her that he will leave by earning an internship with a harmonica band. In a subplot the boys are mistreated at a department store because they are dressed shabby. Again, people are wrongly accused based on appearances and not what is inside of them. In part one entire races are deemed worthless based on what is on the outside; whereas, here appearances and intolerance are examined on an individual basis.

There is foreshadowing that a soul needs to be saved from death. This is one leitmotif that is carried from the fairy tale beginning. The prophecy in the prologue talks about fate not sealed, stars shining in the darkest night, and bells chiming to signal a path for a person to choose. Before the reader knows Mike's fate he thinks, "Above him, the dark, gnarled branches of the elm reached toward the heavens like a witch's crooked fingers. And yet, even in this strange limbo, Mike saw stars above him, tiny dots of light bobbing in and out from behind the fluttering leaves." And added to that "...the wind blew a chord through the harmonic clutched in his hand." The prophecy contains leitmotifs (death, stars, bells, messengers) and recurring themes that can be found throughout the entire book connecting the stories. This original and unique plot layout was interesting for me, but I can see others that might not like it. I'll be curious what the students think at my school.

Part three covers Ivy, a flute prodigy, and first generation Mexican-American living in the 1940s. She plays in a harmonica band at school before having to move. Her father got a job watching the Japanese-American Yamamoto's family farm who was forced to move to a U.S. internment camp. Ivy must adjust to losing a friend and being forced to go to an inferior school in Orange County, Los Angeles. Her father fights the discriminatory laws that affect his daughter's education but change is slow. Meanwhile, Ivy makes friends with a white girl but they must meet in secret because the girl's father will disapprove. He has been buying up local farms owned by Japanese families forced to sell by the U.S. government and has his eye on the Yamamoto's farm. He has lost his sons in the war and is full of anger and grief. Again, music is woven into the story with parents that don't appreciate Ivy's talent and a Japanese farming family that loves music. Again, appearances are not everything and I was reminded of Jacob Grimm's "The Bremen Town Musicians."

"Echo" shows how bleak the world was for the characters during this time in history, and how music lifted them up to a beautiful place. The music also showed not only the physical but the emotional state of the characters and how it helped them understand what was going on around them and inside of themselves. Reading stories is like that too. The inner state of the reader can be illuminated by the plot or character development. At least for me and I found an emotional resonance in Munoz's words. You'll have to see what chord it plays inside you.

5 Smileys

Everything I Never Told You by Celeste Ng

This is one dark book. Of course, when you read middle grade books 95 percent of the time, it doesn't take much to shock me. This well-told tale was a dig through the dredges of a dysfunctional family in the 1970's when interracial marriages where rare and women career aspirations were mainly to be homemakers. The writer takes a complex topic that could easily have been stereotyped and turns it into a mystery with characters and their motivations turning reader expectations upside down. What an intense read.

Sixteen-year-old Lydia is found dead (don't worry, you know this from the first sentence) and her family deals with her death in different ways. Through flashbacks and multiple points-of-view, the parents and surviving sister and brother, reveal their motivations and the scars inflicted on each of them as a result of feeling like outsiders in a world that doesn't accept biracial marriages. What the author does so well is make the characters' revelations unfold like a mystery leading the reader to wonder if Lydia was murdered, committed suicide, or had an accident.

James is Chinese-American and grew up in a town where he was the only Chinese boy in school. His blond wife, Marilyn, wanted to be a doctor before meeting James at Harvard University where she was a student and he was a graduate teacher. They are drawn to each other because they never felt like they fit in with mainstream society. James feels sidelined because of his ethnicity while Marilyn feels isolated because of her gender. When Marilyn finds out she is pregnant, she quits school to become a housewife.

The author does a good job showing a mother killing her daughter by placing impossible expectations on her. Marilyn's complex relationship with her daughter and extending her squashed dreams onto her is tragic. James wanting Lydia to fit in so desperately that he buys books for her on how to make friends and then she, in turn, pretends to talk on the phone with friends is poignant in showing just how off-kilter the relationships are in this family.


Whether an Asian-American man and white woman should get married is the overarching theme, but the idea of feeling marginalized in society is explored even more. The entire family does not feel like they fit in with the culture and the result is isolation, loneliness, and feeling trapped. The end has an interesting twist that makes a character's motives unclear. Either way, all of the characters are not grounded in reality and their lives have become impossible. No one in this family really talks to each other, until the very end, where some understandings are made that suggests the family can move forward. They'll limp along, no doubt, but at least they will start moving forward.


4 Smileys

All the Answers by Kate Messner

Ah, the joys of wish-fulfillment. Remember Rita Skeeter's Quick-Quotes Quill that magically wrote when she interviewed subjects from the Harry Potter series? Most of the stories were sensational but one time it was accurate (sort of). I really want a magical pen that will write for me. Just think, papers or book reviews appear with no mistakes. No drafts. No bad-writing days. Now I'm going to add Kate Messner's magical pencil to my wish list. Imagine having a pencil that answered all your questions. Oh, the places you'd go. Or not. Twelve-year-old Ava has found such a pencil and luckily she is morally grounded and learns to not abuse the pencil's magical powers. Her friend, Sophie, on the other hand, does use the pen to hurt others and learns the hard way that she cannot control a person's free will. There's plenty of humor, emotional turmoil, and strong character development. If you liked, "Bigger Than a Breadbox," by Laurel Snyder, then you'll like this realistic book with a touch of magic.

Ava  Anderson is taking a math test when she hears answers to her questions as she writes on scratch paper. She figures out that her pencil is magical and shares her secret with her best friend, Sophie. Messner is good at creating distinct traits in her characters and Sophie is a rambunctious, tumbling gymnast that uses the curb as a balance beam and does back handsprings when she finds out a boy likes her. She's impulsive and it gets her in trouble when she uses the pencil to feel important with other kids in her grade. When she starts to share secrets about others that hurt feelings, it is Eva that reigns her in.

The two friends balance each other out. Eva is neurotically worried about the future. She has so many fears that it can be crippling. Sophie, convinces her to take risks or lets her know when she's out-of-control. Eva is particularly worried about death. Her grandma passed away five years earlier and Eva's grandpa is in a nursing home. She's also concerned about her parents getting a divorce or her mom having cancer. Many of her fears come true so she seems justified in her worries, although it was appropriate that she saw a counselor at the end to help her deal with anxiety.

The plot is a bit overly ambitious with death and divorce and cancer. Seems like one could have been dropped. The subplot of romance is light with the girls interested in boys but no one is serious for very long. It's spot-on for most middle school behavior. The grandpa's storyline is easy to figure out early in the book but it isn't resolved until the end; however, the pencil twist and where the magic comes from was not predictable. Good fantasy writing explains the source of magical powers and while some might find this far-fetched, it makes for a stronger plot. Some criticized it and I know my readers that really don't like fantasy might struggle with this unbelievable part.

The humor helps lighten the heaviness of the topics and I especially enjoyed the father and his attempt to create some famous recipe that would draw people to his general store. A large superstore is coming to town and he is trying make his small grocery store stand out so that people will choose it over the other. When he starts an oven fire and then pulls out a donut that is charred on the outside and raw on the inside, it reminded me of my sister and me making brownies. I preheated the oven and my mom had sixteen boxes of cereal stashed inside (family of seven). I set the cereal on fire and my sister and I lined up like a fire brigade chucking cereal into the kitchen sink with the faucet on full blast. Later we cooked the brownies only to discover we'd read the recipe wrong and the inside was runny. I was 16 and she was 10-years-old. I'm still a hopeless cook, just like Ava's dad.

4 Smileys

Upside Down in the Middle of Nowhere by Julie T. Lamana

Relationships are the centerpiece of this story that slowly builds like a tropical cyclone. Ten-year-old Armani is a cumulonimbus cloud full of sass, courage, and emotion. While her siblings irritate her, she would also do anything to protect them. When Hurricane Katrina hits the Ninth Ward and wipes out all that she knows, she has to deal with guilt and protecting her brothers and sisters that are younger than her.

Students will like this great adventure story. The start shows a loving, large family that is enjoying their daughter's tenth birthday when the wicked storm hits New Orleans. Armani adores her grandma and gets tired of sharing her with her other siblings. She fights the most with her older brother that teases her. Armani doesn't know how to handle it except to yell at him. In fact, she yells quite a bit at her siblings as a way of dealing with her frustration of sharing everything and everyone. Her heart is good though. If she's not protecting seven-year-old Sealy on the bus from bullies, she's teaching her infant twin brother and sister how to make the love sign, or comforting her scared grandma, or sticking up for her cousin against a drunk dad. Her hurricane-like personality can be ferocious at times.

The author slows down the writing in spots and brings in the senses making small moments special. One of my favorites is when Armani is doing the dishes and her baby sister rolls a mini-toy car over her foot. It's always fun when an author shows a non-stereotyped character such as the twin sister that loves her brother's cars while he has nothing to do with them. When the baby sister teases Armani, Armani playfully tosses a dishrag at her only to hit her grandma in the face. "I grabbed the wet, red-checkered dishrag out of the soapy water and threw it at her. But she scooched quick around the corner. Just then, Memaw [grandma] came walking toward me around that same corner. The slopping-wet rag slapped her smack in the middle of her face and stuck there like flypaper." The dialogue in the book uses a dialect that some might struggle with reading, but it adds to the unique character's voices. When the hurricane hits, the terror and smells come to life in the details that make the book hard to put down.

The author captures how young people don't always know how to communicate when their feelings are hurt and it would make for good discussions. At the table when Georgie laughs at Armani for believing a cow had a chicken, she screams at him because she is embarrassed. Later she shouts at her sister because her grandma was going to tell her something important about her cousin's mother and then was unable. (We never did find out the answer to that question.) As a middle child of five siblings, I remember being mean just because I was tired of sharing with them all the time. And tired of being picked on. Some days were survival of the fittest and I was nasty to protect my turf. Later Armani and her sister yell at each other but its because Armani thinks they will be separated. Hurtful things are said but later they make up. This is the heart and soul of this novel. How the family works together. They fight, but also care deeply for each other.

I didn't particularly like the start or the end of the book. On the bus Armani is annoyed with her cousin that is big, braggie, and bossy. She kept talking about her big butt and I thought... great we are getting a book with a girl that is a mean name-caller. Armani goes overboard at times and turned me off with her meanness, but then she shows how her attitude gives her strength and courage. She is a flawed character and it makes her more real and interesting in the end. Luckily the author balances enough of her mouthy, disrespectfulness, with redeeming qualities. I found myself admiring her for not collapsing in the midst of an incredibly stressful circumstance and being so young. She grows up quickly learning to be responsible and trust others.

The end of the book was somewhat abrupt. I had questions for Georgie about what happened with the dog and dad. TayTay had her own story that is never told. I wanted to find out what happened to Uncle T-Bone. I wasn't sure what was going to happen with the Bromans. By the way, it seemed that the older Broman, Matthew, was interested romantically in Armani. I think I might have mistaken the author's showing that Matthew just admires her. She is only a 4th grader and I was never sure of Matthew's age. I actually mixed him up with the fifteen-year-old boy in the shelter. I wouldn't think he was that old. Danisha was another character I wanted to meet again and I would have really liked some author's notes at the end explaining how she mixed her facts and fiction. I didn't know that the Dome was so dangerous. I looked up facts on my own and discovered what a mess it was inside there.

This book is like a levee of emotions flooding the reader. Its emotional pull is going to appeal to many of the students at our school. Oftentimes I recommend: Wonder, Okay for Now, One for the Murphys, Rules, Out of My Mind.  Now I can add this book to the list.

4 Smileys

Nightingale's Nest by Nikki Loftin

This book was beautiful and disturbing. The first time Little John hears Gayle singing he describes, "The notes were high and liquid, a honey-soft river of sound that seeped right through me. I stopped when I heard the first notes and just stood there, dropping cedar cuttings at my feet. The song sailed over the fence, like it was meant for me alone." Little John is helping his dad with his business by cutting and removing Pecan trees at a rich man's house dubbed, "The Emperor," when Little John hears Gayle singing next door. She's the same age as his younger sister who just died in an accident. Gayle is a foster kid that is abused by her foster brother, Jeb Cutlin, and his mom, Mrs. Verlie Cutlin. Gayle hides in a nest that she built in a tree and sings to keep from despairing. She believes her parents can only find her in the nest. Little John and the Cutlin's live in poverty and life is difficult at home for Little John. His mom cannot accept her daughter's death and is not functioning on all cylinders. His dad drinks away his pain until he is in a stupor. When Little John makes a series of devastating mistakes he must decide between betraying his friendship with Gayle or saving his family from losing their home.

*spoilers - shucks, I can't seem to write a review without spoilers.*
I don't read any reviews or the blurb before reading a book. I don't want to be prejudiced in any way. I loved the magical realism and fairy tale link to Hans Christian Anderson's "Nightingale." It wasn't until the Emperor called his tape recorder a "cage" that I remembered the story and started to see the connections between the two. The reader first knows that Gayle's voice heals when she sings and the cut on Little John's hand heals. Later when she heals a deer that is near death, the reader knows that this story is part fairy tale. Because of this, the ending worked for me with Gayle's transformation.

Gayle can't heal everyone but she does make an impact on Little John and his dad, the latter smiling for the first time in ten months after he hears her sing. Mrs. Cutlin and Jeb are immune to Gayle's singing suggesting they are beyond curing. The characters are not completely one-dimensional villains. Jeb will vacillate between being a bully and showing glimmers of his humanity. The Emperor wants Gayle's voice for purely selfish reasons. Gayle said she could fix Little John inside. Gayle brings healing just like the Nightingale in Hans Christian Andersen's story. But this suggests that Gayle heals Little John by forgiving him; thus, allowing him to forgive himself for hurting Gayle and causing his sister's accident that killed her.

While Little John's family does not live in extreme poverty, they are poor and struggling at not making enough money to pay the rent. The death and funeral expenses of his sister has wiped out any savings and Nikki Loftin not only shows how poverty effects Little John's family decisions, but leads to insecurity, powerlessness, and susceptibility to violence in the community. Little John wants to do the right thing, but his family needs the money so badly that he intentionally breaks his promise to Gayle of never cutting down her tree or nest of refuge. In addition, Little John is so ashamed of his family's poverty that he breaks off his friendship with his best friend, Ernest.

The author presents some of the ugliness resulting in people's desperate need for money from the bruises on Gayle's arms and face to the whipping that Little John gets from his dad. The Cutlins take in foster children for the money only, not because they want to help or nurture children. When Little John gets beaten with a belt, his father doesn't ask Little John's side of the story; he is just angry about the money and believes the Emperor's side of the story. Money is always the priority for these desperate families; at the expense of character and doing the right thing. Later, the mom asks the dad why he's so hard on the boy and in a heartbreaking explanation the dad says it is the only way he knows how to parent. The physical abuse and harsh discipline might disturb some younger readers, but it is explained after-the-fact and there is no descriptive violence. I was most bothered by the Emperor coming across as a pedophile. He isn't, but the situation captures the difficulty of knowing when it is appropriate to take action as an adult or child. Little John should have talked to his dad about his suspicions. He does talk to the dad about the bruises on Gayle's arm and the dad agrees to let Little John spend time with Gayle. Even the adults don't take the right actions. Of course, his dad's job depends on him treading carefully and his dad can't cope with his daughter's death, much less whether or not his employer is a pedophile.

Little John struggles with the definition of saving people and being a man. He wants to atone for his mistake of causing his sister's death by saving Gayle, but realizes that he can't save her. He wants to protect Gayle from the Emperor, the Cutlins, and loss, but he fails miserably for the most part. The adults force him to compromise his morals for money, from the Emperor threatening to take away his father's job to his dad telling him to cut down Gayle's tree to save them from eviction. Ironically, Gayle loses her "nest" home at the expense of Little John keeping his. The Cutlins use stolen money to have Gayle's tree removed for a garden that will feed them. There is a cycle of violence surrounding money by the adults that disregards the feelings of Little John and Gayle and even Jeb. One reason Jeb is a bully is to try and have some power in his powerless life. This lack of authority reflects the nature of childhood. However, Little John realizes that he can make small differences when he stands up to the Emperor, "He had no power over me. He looked broken, kneeling there. As broken as Gayle. As broken as my dad."

Little John wonders what it is like to be a man and thinks of his dad and poverty and Gayle. He knows that his dad scrapes and bows to the Emperor even though he dislikes him. He doesn't want to be that way, but is forced to because his family needs a home. He knows that the only person who can give him work is the Emperor. However, when he asks for work, the Emperor asks him to have Gayle sing for him again. The first time he did this Gayle lost her voice and was devastated. Little John was ashamed that he used his friendship with Gayle to make her sing for the Emperor who gave him $500. When the Emperor asks a second time, Little John stands up to him and does what he should have done the first time. He says he won't have Gayle hurt again.

Little John wants to protect Gayle and while he is able to stand up to Jeb, his peer, throughout the novel, he learns how to stand up to powerful adults even if it means loss of money or home for his family or a whipping. In a nice scene that foreshadows the resolution, Little John tells Gayle she can't fix all the hurts and she says neither can he. In a beautiful parable called, "The Treasure Nest," at the end, Little John describes Gayle's singing that symbolizes him as a tree and her as a bird. They are both broken but find beauty in friendship and protection. Gayle teaches that, "Treasures don't come from the store, Little John." A subplot on Little John's friendship troubles with Ernest shows that he has learned that friendship is a "treasure" and that true friends forgive the mistakes of others.

Tree stumps symbolize Little John's (whose nicknamed, "Tree," by Gayle) growth internally. When Little John cuts down Gayle's tree, he gets sick over his betrayal of their friendship. He muses over the leftover stump a symbol of their injured friendship. The tree has not been completely dug up or burnt suggesting there is time to salvage the friendship. In another instance, Little John looks at a different tree stump that is in their yard - the one that killed his sister - and it painfully reminds him of her and how he caused her death when he jumped from the tree and his sister imitated him breaking her neck in the fall. His memories slowly turn from hating trees and himself to forgiveness. He is responsible for her death and must find a way to forgive his mistake. He's like the stumps. Broken and cut to the core, but from his friendship with Gayle, the singing nightingale, he can begin to heal. Little John looks at situations with a raw honesty that is moving and memorable. He refreshingly takes responsibility for his actions and admits when he is wrong. Forgiveness is a strong theme in this novel. Even the Emperor asks for Gayle's forgiveness, although he loses his voice as a consequence of his actions. When Little John climbs the tree to give Gayle the nest he made with his hair, he shows someone of great character that is willing to face his fears and live life in a positive way.

The writing is gorgeous in this book. "She nodded, her head bobbling like a heavy sunflower on a too-narrow stalk, and edged out a bit more on the branch. Her feet were bare, and dirty. Her toes were a thin as the rest of her, and kind of long - she used them to clutch the branch she was on just like a baby bird would." The contrast between poverty of the characters and the beauty of the singing helped balance what could have been a dark, depressing book. The author also shows the community trying to help Little John's family during their troubles by bringing them dinners and showing kindness. Amidst the desperation, hope shines forth. This rich and complex book has the elements of an award-winner that sings. Don't miss it.

5 Smileys

After the River the Sun by Dia Calhoun

As a kid, my best friend and I would act out books we had read. Nancy Drew in "The Secret of the Old Clock," meant solving a made-up mystery and climbing the neighborhood church bell tower. "Banner in the Sky" meant freezing water on our steep backyard hill and chiseling our way up "Mount Everest." (My best friend still bemoans the ruin of her Swiss army knife hammering it into ice.) The Narnia Chronicles meant sword fights, choking down clam chowder (we were at sea and had to suffer), and suffocating in a coat closet during the heat of summer trying to wish the back of it would transform into an alternate world with fauns and witches. Acting out books was great fun and I got grounded a few times. My best friend rarely got in trouble and I remember asking her mom why as an adult. "I thought it was healthy that you both were using your imaginations." This story has Eckhart and Eva using their imaginations by acting out King Arthur stories, pretending they are knights on a quest. In reality, Eckhart is trying to deal with the tragedy of losing both parents in a rafting accident. He feels guilty over their deaths and must find the courage to forgive himself.

Eckhart Lyon is taken in by his uncle Albert after spending four months in foster homes after the death of his parents. Uncle Al says he'll take Eckhart on a trial basis. Al and his sister, Eckhart's mom, did not get along and Eckhart doesn't even know Al. Eckhart likes to play video games and is not an outside person so moving to Uncle Al's house is not easy with its lack of T.V., Internet, and other modern comforts. Eckhart has to work on Uncle Al's orchard farm and it takes some getting used to. He misses his parents desperately and keeps his mom's violin that she played in the Seattle symphony close at hand to remind him of her.

Uncle Al is dealing with grief like Eckhart although his tragedy happened three years earlier. Eckart discovers why Al and his sister no longer spoke to each other although there must be more anger to it because Al didn't even go to the funeral of his sister. With the help of Eva, Eckhart decides to go on a quest like Sir Gaiwan in the King Arthur books and find a home and find the courage to face his fears. He must decide whether or not he wants to live with his uncle who is not the most open and welcoming man. In an exciting climax Eckhart learns what sacrifice means and finds hope for his future.

When a relative of mine died tragically, the family would light a candle in his memory at  significant events or holiday gatherings. Memories of the person swirled with smells of turkey and gravy while the candle flame bent and twisted by the unseen air currents on the table. While our hearts were heavy, this ritual somehow lightened the heaviness inside me. When Eckhart builds the Tower of Troth and describes his feelings, it reminded me of our memory candle and raw grief. Uncle Al is dealing with grief as well and is an interesting contrast to Eckhart. In an interesting twist, the adult seems to be dealing with his loss in a manner less healthy than Eckhart.

The characters are well developed in Eckhart and Eva. Uncle Al is harsh, bitter, and withdrawn at the start. He has a chip on his shoulder toward his sister that makes him angry at Eckhart. He's dealing with guilt over his loss like Eckhart, but the reader isn't privy to his point of view. He angrily chopped down an orchid three years earlier and it would appear he is still mad. That is why his transformation of accepting Eckhart at the end seemed a bit sudden. While he is healing from grief and shows some internal changes as he begins to write stories again and smile more often during the day, his actions at the end and use of alcohol suggest that there may be some deeper issues he must deal with in his grief. The fact that Al's actions just about killed Eckhart, made me expect more from the resolution. It's fine, but felt a little incomplete.

The plot is straightforward and not too complex. The author has nice pacing with giving out information that keeps up the tension while the reader pieces together what happened on the river with Eckhart and his parents. At 350 pages long, this novel-in-verse can be read fairly quickly. The violin twist and use of music as a way to sooth also adds to Eckhart's emotional journey of learning to accept the tragedy. An excellent grade 4-5 story.

4 Smileys

Sure Signs of Crazy by Karen Harrington

The more I write reviews the more I realize how much my biases come into play. I like a story with a fast pace. This story is not fast-paced. I like a story with lots of dialogue. This story has more interior monologue. I like a story that is funny. This story is dramatic and sad. I like the fantasy genre the most and the horror genre the least. You get the idea. The difficulty of writing a book and then having a review based solely on biases must be irritating for authors. I find it hard recognizing when my likes and dislikes are interfering with an analysis. It reminds me of when I was learning to be a reporter at 19. The professor said that it is really impossible to be objective. I was not a very good reporter. I'm probably not a very good reviewer. But at least I like writing book reviews better than being a reporter. It's enough to drive a person crazy. "Crazy" is a trouble word in the home of twelve-year-old Sarah Nelson. Crazy is a mom that tries to drown her kids and succeeds with one but not the other. Crazy is trying to learn to live with it.

This book has quite the premise. Sarah is worried about being crazy like her mom. When Sarah's mom killed her brother and tried to kill her, it was the only case of filicide in Texas and got so much publicity that Sarah and her dad move all the time to sustain some anonymity. They are recognized and ostracized wherever they live. Sarah's mom was found insane and put in a mental institution. Sarah worries that something might be wrong with her like her mom. While her dad deals with the tragedy by drinking too much, Sarah, for the first time, gets to stay home with her dad for the summer rather than go to her grandparents home in another city.

Her babysitter has a boyfriend and passes the watching of Sarah onto her brother, Finn. Sarah develops a crush on Finn and learns he has his own painful past. When another parent kills her children in the city, the press start to pester Sarah's family. Even after 10 years the family can't move on. She also wonders about her mother and she wants to get to know her. When the English teacher suggests keeping a journal and writing to a favorite fiction character, Sarah writes letters to Atticus Finch in "To Kill a Mockingbird." She talks about problems with her dad and longing to know her mother.

The character's arc begins with Sarah worrying about her mother going crazy, but changes later to wanting to get to know her mother. The result is a fractured plot. I preferred the beginning message of Sarah worrying that she'll have signs of mental illness. I worry I will get alzheimer's like my mom. Others worry about inherited diseases such as depression, strokes, heart attacks. Fear can be so crippling in people's lives that it is a universal theme that speaks to the adult as well as the child. The switch to wanting to meet her mother bored me in comparison. I kept waiting for the doctor to give a scientific reason for the mom's psychosis or some statistics on mother's killing children. When our family had a loved one die from suicide, our family couldn't get enough information on what makes the brain go haywire.

The romantic subplot is going to appeal more to girls than boys. Sarah trying to find a mother substitute in her babysitter to discuss her body changing is not going to interest boys either. The other subplot of Sarah's dad as an alcoholic as a result of their mom was more interesting. After 10 years Sarah and her father seem to be in a perpetual groundhog's day where they must relive the event until they can transcend it. He is depressed and unable to deal with the tragedy. He also seems to still love his wife. He was charged in the death of his children for neglect and I kept waiting for that issue to be addressed more in-depth with Sarah. The neighbor whose husband dies and Finn's past water down Sarah's story. It seemed that the author was trying to do too much.

Sarah loves words and writes the definitions of them throughout the story. I remember the first time I came across this in a middle grade novel and thought it so clever. While it is a good way to help readers toward fluency, it has become almost cliche. I have seen it in way too many realistic stories and it no longer enthralls me.

When readers come to a story with their own experiences and backgrounds, they make unique connections that help them deal with issues in their own life. Sarah's letter writing shows this and was a highlight for me in this story. Sarah is so lonely. She's isolated at school because of her past. She's teased so much she talks to a plant rather than people. Sometimes I feel so isolated living overseas. One thing multilingual students do is switch to another language when a monolingual adult is walking behind them in the hallway. They will do it to other monolingual or new students too if they want to exclude them. I feel the most isolated then. I'm sure the students do too. A foreigner on foreign soil that is illiterate. Move over Sarah. I'd like to talk to your plant.The story ends on hope with the family moving on, but leaves too many loose ends.

3 Smileys

Flying Solo by Ralph Fletcher

Imagine you are in 6th grade. Your teacher is gone and a sub is coming. The school bell rings and there is no sub. The class takes attendance and still no sub. What do you do? Karen, a natural leader in the class, goes down to the office and DOES NOTHING. Yahoo. Free day. Right? Well...not exactly. Told from the point of view of Fletcher (not the author-it's the main characters name), discover how a class handles the disappearance of their teacher and sub. Tension mounts as they try to hold class without adult supervision. From Rachel, the mute, to Bastian, the not-so-nice teaser, students get some homework done, goof around some, and fight some. Things reach a climax when they discuss the death of a student that happened in the fall learning that maybe they need to act differently toward each other.

This book has a good pace and some of the issues are resolved at the end of the novel. I like the image/metaphor of flying and how it was used throughout the story. The story reminded me of the Because of Mr. Terupt by Rob Buyea where students learn to be responsible for their actions and grieve the loss of someone. I like how Fletcher doesn't give easy answers and choices such as Bastian's choice to give his pet away as being more for his pet than because he has a generous heart. He's mean in his teasing of others and this made sense to me and made the character's choice authentic. I do think the students would have goofed around more than they did, but that's debatable. Another terrific book by Fletcher and a great read aloud.

Reading Level 5.8

:-) :-) :-) :-) 4 out of 5 Smileys

 

Fig Pudding by Ralph Fletcher

"Sasparilla succotash," says Uncle Billy snapping his fingers. Cliff listens as Billy makes up a story about what "yidda yadda" means. Baby Josh wants a "yidda yadda" and no one knows what it means. In Fig Pudding by Ralph Fletcher a clear picture is painted of 5th grader Cliff and his brothers and sisters. Baby Josh looks like a sickly baby with green snot running down his nose that he  constantly smears all over his face. Teddy is a terror who shouts instead of uses a regular voice. Nate pulls pranks, especially on the gullible Brad. Cyn is the only girl who spends more time with the family down the street than with her own family. And Grandma, is adored by all, and has skin like tissue paper but a grip that is still strong. When a terrible accident happens, everyone has to deal with their "bowl of sadness."

This is a great read aloud. In the beginning of the novel, each chapter stands on its own almost as a story itself. The stories are funny and poignant. The descriptions are terrific:

Teddy was wild in church, wild in school, and especially wild during the holidays. After Christmas, while Josh was still at Good Sam, Teddy started hiding people's presents and unscrewing lights on the tree. He took gobs of tinsel off and made little bird nests that he stuck back onto the tree. One day while Mom and Dad were shopping, Teddy stole baby Jesus from the manger and laughed when no one could find it. See what I'm saying? He stole Jesus and thought it was funny.

I also thought the beginning chapters were choppy. The first has Grandma as a significant character and then it shifts to a sibling and Grandma disappears. The change was abrupt. I think it would have helped if there had been something linking the chapters together in the beginning. Fletcher does tie the baking of stollen or bread to the end of the story but I think some overall theme was needed throughout. The book reminds me of The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate by Jacqueline Kelly, but in that story the main character wants to be a scientist and it weaves a thread throughout all the chapters tying it together. Maybe if it had something like that? I'm no expert. What do you think?

There is a death in the story that makes it sad but it is balanced with humor and ways of dealing with grief. Terrific book.

Reading Level 4.9

:-) :-) :-) :-) 4 out of 5 Smileys