American Born Chinese

American Born Chinese is a tale of trying to fit in. Initally, we are presented with three different stories, a 'folktale' about the magical monkey king of flower-fruit mountain, the story of Wei-Chen Sun and Jing Wang trying to fit in in an American middle school, and Danny's visits from his cousin Chin-kee. At first these stories appear to have nothing to do with each other, besides a link to being Asian. However, when the stories braid together, Jing Wang/Danny learns a dramatically important lesson about being who you are and remembering where you came from. This theme is universal, and not one that should just be learned by Asian Americans.

Graphically speaking, American Born Chinese has some beautiful moments. My favorite moments are the moments when there are not though bubbles on the page, when the story goes silent. These moments don't need to belong to a specific culture. Isn't any middle school boy on his first date extremely awkward?

Each main character in each individual tale experiences dynamic changes as the plot develops, Jing Wang, Danny and the Monkey King. All learn the theme or moral lesson of the tale, be true to yourself and true affections and friendships will develop.

This book belongs in the hands of students who have trouble fitting in, probably all of them, not just those who are Chinese. This is a great book to book talk, particularly if you have a document camera. Most middle school students would do almost anything to fit in. Thus, as far as the development of the characters goes, it isn't surprising that Jing Want would completely lose his identity and become Danny.

Yang manages to tell a beautifully written and illustrated story with a complicated braided plot line and make a comment on the nature of the Chinese-American immigrant culture. Why is it socially acceptable for every Chinese immigrant to change their names when they move to America?

One thing worth commenting on when assessing the value of a graphic novel are the drawings. In this case they are very vibrant and colorful. An Amazon.com review of the paperback edition of American Born Chinese says that "The artwork, rendered in a chromatically cool palette, is crisp and clear, with clean white space around center panels that sharply focuses the reader's attention in on Yang's achingly familiar characters."

Publisher's Weekley says that "Even when Yang slips in an occasional Chinese ideogram or myth, the sentiments he's depicting need no translation. " To be perfectly honest, these ideograms and myths about Chinese culutre occasionally made me uncomfortable. I think that I could have done without the episode when Chin-kee used the bathroom in one of Danny's friend's Coke. Also, within the first few pages of American Born Chinese , I was a little put-off because one of the characters compliments another character's peaches, which look dramatically like breasts in the drawing. I feel like some of this is inevetable with graphic novels, but also dramataically unessarry.

Inevetiablly, this story is well-written with characters that young people, regradless of race, can identify with. The setting adds a dramatic touch as well with the inclusion of a "folktale" set in ancient China. I feel like there are lessons to be learned here, both on the literal level and on a slightly more personal level.

Using this book in the school setting could be difficult. However, if studying folktales, it would be easy to show and read one section of the book using a document camera to a class of students. Kids might enjoy participating in a reader's theater. However, as the adult in the room it would be important to discuss sterotypes and racism. If students are interested in investigating other cultures, I would reccomend that they read Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi. That story is set in Iran and would require a slightly more advanced reading level than American Born Chinese's 5th Grade level. Another great book would be An Absolutley True Diary of a Part Time Indian by Sherman Alexi.

American Born Chinese was on the list for School Library Journal Best Books of the Year and Publisher's Weekly Best Books of the Year. It also won the Printz Award.

Reference:

Yang, Gene Luen. American Born Chinese. Roaring Book Press, New York: 2006. ISBN 978-1-4299-6936-9

The Book Thief

Markus Zusak's The Book Thief is one of the most powerful and touching books that I have read in a long time. First of all, it is not often, as readers or viewers, that we get to learn what it was like to live in and grow up in Nazi Germany. I, like many others out there, operate under the assumption that most, if not all, Germans from that time period are strictly bad people. The Book Thief has modified my point of view there.

Zusak's main character Liesel, is given to foster parents in the town of Molching outside Munich. Her stay on Himmel Street (Himmel= German for Heaven) is the meat and bones of the story and is narrated by none other than death. This narration provides readers with a unique prospective on the war and allows us to see what is happening across the world and outside of the Hubberman's house hold. While there, Liesel develops a beautiful relationship with her Papa, a cigarette smoking, house painting according player. She also learns the ways of the world through her miserable and book thieving experiences with her best friend Rudy. And, the most dynamic part of the story revolves around the Jew the Hubbermans hide in the basement, Max Vandenberg.

According to a starred review from School Library Journal, "Death is not a sentimental storyteller, but he does attend to an array of satisfying details, giving Liesel's story all the nuances of change, folly, and fulfilled expectation that it deserves. An extraordinary narrative."

The plot of this book focus on the the struggles of the poor people of Nazi Germany. It is gripping and sorrowful at the same time. Papa may not have been sent to a concentration camp because he offered bread to a Jew who was marching down Munich street. However, he was essentially drafted into military service and assigned to a crew of men who stayed above ground during the air raids. The plot, of course, is driven by the setting- Nazi Germany.

That setting provides Zusak with an opportunity to address a unique theme, much like a more adult book set in the same time and place, The Reader by Bernhard Schlink. (I had no idea that illiteracy was such a problem in Germany). Words are extremely powerful. When Liesel arrives at the Hubbermans, she can not read. She is taught how to read words by her father and then later how to use words by Max.

Utilizing this book in a classroom setting could be difficult. Students would need extensive background knowledge to understand the context of the story. Also, it would be an incredibly long whole class read.

However, I would utilize passages of this book if I were a social studies teacher. The Diary of Anne Frank covers the point of view of the Jewish people very well. This book covers the point of view of the poor German. Obviously, I would ask students about how they would react or hope to behave in each context. We can imagine that we would do more to protect the Jewish population than the Hubbermans did. However, if we sit and actually think about it, there was nothing more that Liesel could have done and ensured her own survival. Asking students to write from Liesel, Rudy, Hans or Max's point of view could cause some very serious reflective thinking too. After selecting and reading a scene with the students, reader's theater would generate more learning through experiences. Great scenes to reenact would be one of Liesel's thefts, a night by the fire with the Hubbermans and Max, or when Liesel tries to demonstrate that she can read to the teacher.

The Book Thief has won several awards. Some of those awards include School Library Journal's Best Book of the Year, Publisher's Weekly's Best Book of the Year. The Book Thief was also nominated for the Printz award.

Of all the books that I have read for my Children's Literature course, this book was the most thought provoking.

References:

Zusak, Markus. The Book Thief. Knopf Books for Young Readers, New York, 2006. ISBN: 978-0-375-84220-7

Joey Pigza Loses Control

In Joey Pigza Loses Control, Joey's mom sends Joey to visit his father for the summer. To most of us, nothing seems right from the beginning. Dad takes Joey to Storybook Land, compares himself to Humpty Dumpty, never stops talking, and then does the unthinkable by flushing Joey's medicine down the toilet. Now, by all appearances, Joey and his father are just alike; they are self-medicators. The real tale begins when Joey starts to learn how little he actually has in common with his father.

I deeply enjoyed Joey Pigza Loses Control for several reasons. First of all, as the narrator, Joey is captivating. This is what middle school boys think like right? I can't help but be reminded of Jeff Kinney's Diary of a Wimpy Kid. Joey's insights are not always abvious, but are always thought provoking.

I also enjoyed the book because it is written for two levels of readers, the middle school reader and the adult. As an adult, I could focus more on Joey's spiral as he becomes an unmedicated child with ADHD. As a child, readers would focus on all of the silly and funny things that Joey gets away with as the medicine leaves his system. As an adult, the hardest part of the plot for me to read however were the father's struggles with alcoholism and the borderline elderly abuse that the grandmother struggles with. I fear children reading this might not see either of these cases as problems. The important them or lesson that students should learn includes the concept of making sure that you know what adults in your life will be there to take care of you and what adults in your life might not be as trustworthy.

This book could open up some quality discussions within families and classrooms about divorce, special needs learning, and alcohol and cigeratte abuse. As a librarian, I would promote this book to students who struggle with being calm or understanding their classmates who can't remain calm. I would also ask students who are reading this text "when did you realize things were going wrong for Joey?" --or his dad? I would then prompt them to look for earlier or earlier problems or details they should have caught in the story. So many issues and problems are obvious in retrospect. What kind of adult never stops talking and does all of his deep thinking in an amusement park? Because some of Joey's behavior is so humorous, there are also great opportunites for reader's theater within this text.

Using this book as a morning or afternoon read aloud in an upper elementary school setting would prompt great discussions about maturity, both in children and adults. When should Joey have called his mother to get him after all? (Probably the moment his dad flushed his medicine or drank a beer for breakfast!)

Joey Pigza Loses Control was a Newbery Honor Book and was nominated for the Young Reader's Choice award. Publisher's Weekly says "Struggling to please everyone even as he sees himself hurtling toward disaster, Joey emerges as a sympathetic hero, and his heart of gold never loses its shine." In summation, the charaters of Joey Pigza Loses Control are well developed, particularly Joey as the narrator. The plot is interesting and enterataining to both adults and children. Set in a contemporary Pennsylvania, the most captivating stylistic element of the book is Joey's narration.

Joey Pigza Loses Control is a part of a series that begins with Joey Pigza Swallowed a Key and includes What would Joey Do? and I am not Joey Pigza.

References:

Gantos, Jack. Joey Pigza Loses Control. Farrar, Straus, and Giroux, New York: 2000. ISBN: 9-780374-399894-51600.

Hiroshima

In Hiroshima, Laurence Yep tells a story of Sachi and her sister Riko. Sachi's entire life is defined by one moment, the moment the Enola Gay dropped the atomic bomb on Hiroshima. This was a moment Riko didn't survive. Needless to say, that morning, August 6, 1945, changed Sachi's life forever and Yep's entire simple plot centers on this moment.

What makes Hiroshima a poignant read is Yep's direct writing style. All sentences are brief and to the point. Sentences like "Everyone is busy as the Enola Gay approaches" make readers realize the gravity of the matter (page 15). Publisher's Weekly says "though Yep's spare, deliberate description of the bomb's consequences delivers a brutal emotional punch- and though it is on the whole extremely well suited to the target audience- his novella has some jarring stylistic elements."

On the other hand, Yep's characters are simple. As readers, we get a little insight into survivor emotions as Sachi ventures to the United States as one of the Hiroshima Maidens. Perhaps, sending the women to the United States for surgeries was more therapeutic for Americans than for Japan or the city of Hiroshima.

Hiroshima also promotes a theme of peace, even through questioning the building up of more atomic weapons during "peace" time.

I found Yep's tale of the tragedy of Hiroshima to be both touching and informative. I was heart broken that such a tragedy could occur at the hands of man and learned about the causes and results of the attack.

I believe that this book would make a great 5 minute read-aloud at the beginning and/or end of a Social Studies class studying World War II. Students would learn a great deal about humanity from Sachi's experience. I might ask students about their worst scar or most vivid memory before reading this book. I might then have them compare those scars to Sachi's.

Yep provides readers with an amazing reading experience through the reading of this brief novella. The reading level is 4th through 8th grade, but to truly understand the message or content, a reader might need more emotional maturity, around 10th grade. Booklist says "Though accessible to middle-grade readers, this will also interest older readers who will find nothing condescending in content or format."

Other books by Yep include The Serpent's Children, Mountain Light, and The Traitor. Yep has received the Newbery Honor for two books, Dragon's Gate and Dragonwings. He has also been awarded the Laura Ingalls Wilder Medal for his contributions to children's literature. According to his website, http://www.harpercollinschildrens.com/Kids/AuthorsAndIllustrators/ContributorDetail.aspx?CId=12929, Yep has written over 60 books.

Hiroshima, though written for a level of younger children, provides a mature and well-rounded look at what some people call "America's biggest mistake." School Library Journal says that "Hiroshima has a more adult format than Junko Morimoto's more personal My Hiroshima (Viking, 1990) or Toshi Maruki's Hiroshima No Pika (Lothrop, 1982), both of which tell the story in pictures as well as words."

Reference:

Yep, Laurence. Hiroshima. Scholastic Inc., New York: 1995. ISBN: 0-590-20832-2.

Turtle in Paradise

Turtle in Paradise is the story of a young girl's journey to find a way to fit in with the Conchs of the Great Depression in Key West. Turtle, as she is nicknamed, is sent to Key West when her mother gets a job housekeeping for a woman who does not like children. While in Key West, Turtle encounters cousins in the form of the Diaper Gang, a busy Aunt who manages a home full of boys without the help of their father, and a grandmother she never knew she had.

Turtle is a tough kid. She has been made that way by a slightly naive mother and a string of employer's kids who have treated her poorly. Turtle is a natural skeptic, but as another character points out to her, turtles have soft under bellies. By the end of the stay in Key West, Turtle has found that soft spot.

The characters and the plot of Turtle in Paradise are very entertaining. Of course, a pair of best friends named Pork Chop and Beans live up to your expectations as a reader. Also, botched quests for gold are fun too.

Set in the Great Depression in a place where food hangs from trees, Key West, readers can recognize some of the elements of the time period. For example, the father in the story is absent because he is working on a public works project, building the bridges to Key West. Also, the Curry family and most of the people in Key West are living in extreme poverty; Turtle's shoes are a rarity.

Turtle's narration and honesty are heart warming. This brings us closer to her and involves us more in the plot. We learn through the theme or central message of Turtle in Paradise and maybe the Great Depression, that our individual walls or protective barriers might work for a while, but only when we start giving and caring for others, we are protected.

Holm also teachers readers about a time period, the 1930s, and a culture, the Conch culture of Key West. Holm utilizes an "Author's Note" to provide more detail about some of her pop culture references and to explain the origins of some of her characters. For example, the character Kermit, one of Turtle's cousins in the story, was based on a character by the same name who later became mayor of Key West.

Turtle in Paradise would prove a great supplement to a study of the Great Depression. As students read or discuss this book, it would be important to ask them how their summers and free time differ from those of Turtle's and the Diaper Gang's. When students get to the root of the question, they will most likely discuss the lack of shoes or the types of foods the characters ate. Otherwise, I found the historical value of Turtle in Paradise to be slightly limited in comparison to other books I have read in this unit.

Turtle in Paradise was a Newbery Honor Book and won the the Golden Kite Award and was named to the American Library Association's Notable Books for Children list. School Library Journal says that "Readers who enjoy melodic, humorous tales of the past won't want to miss it." In a starred review from Booklist, Ilene Cooper says "The numerous references to 1930's entertainments (Terry and the Pirates, Shirley Temple) will most likely go over kids' heads, but they'll get how much comics and movies meant to a population desperate for smiles."

Other books by Jennifer Holm include The Babymouse Series with Matthew Holm, Boston Jane: An Adventure, Boston Jane: Wildness Days, Boston Jane: The Claim, The Creek, Middle School is Worse than Meatloaf, Our Only Amelia, Penny from Heaven, and The Stink Files Series with Jonathan Hamel. At the end of Turtle in Paradise, Holm also provides a brief list of resources and related websites.

References:

Holm, Jennifer, L. Turtle in Paradise. Random House Children's Books, New York: 2010. ISBN: 978-0-375-836886.

Elijah of Buxton

Elijah of Buxton is the story of a settlement of former slaves and a "fra-gile" young boy named Elijah. Elijah is a young man who follows the rules of the settlement by helping others and going beyond what is asked of him. He struggles with the idea that he is not accepted as an adult because he is young, cries all the time, and once threw up on Fredrick Douglas. As the first free-born child in Buxton, Elijah is on the path to greatness by learning to read and write. If only he can get people, mainly his mother and father, in the settlement to accept him as an adult.

To me, I missed the plot of the book for a very long time. However, Curtis is front loading his readers so that they understand the culture of Buxton and the restrictions that freed slaves in Canada might face. When the story truley starts, Elijah of Buxton is nearly impossible to put down. Elijah leaves Buxton and the saftey of Canada with his friend Mr. Leroy in search of the reverand who stole Mr. Leroy's money that was supposed to be used to free the Leroy family from slavery down south. Needless to say, things go terribly wrong while Mr. Leroy and Elijah are in America. However, Elijah finds his way into adulthood by the end of the book.

Elijah of Buxton is the winner of a large number of awards, including the Coretta Scott King Award, the Scott O'Dell Award for Historical Fiction, and the Canadian Library Association's Book of the Year Award. Elijah of Buxton was also a Newbery Honor Book, an American Library Association Notable Book, and a finalist for the Governor General's Literary Award. Other books by Christopher Paul Curtis include The Watsons go to Birmingham-- 1963, Bud, Not Buddy, Bucking the Sage, Mr. Chickee's Funny Money, and Mr. Chickee's Messy Mission.

Reading Elijah of Buxton should play an important role in any child's education. Students could enrich their learning by writing a short scene from the book. The use of dialogue will be dramatically important to student learning. Students will learn about the importance of education and should discuss why freed adult slaves might have had such difficulty learning to read and write. Also, students could create their own photo album with descriptions of important people, places, and objects in the fictional Buxton that Curtis created.

In the "Author's Note," Curtis encourages readers to visit "an interesting, beautiful, hope-filled place the Elgin Settlement and Buxton Misson of Raleigh." He also states that "Buxton is an inspiration, and its importance in both American and Canadian history deserves to be much recognized." In a stared review from Booklist, Carolyn Phelan states that "Narrator Elijah tells an episodic story that builds a broad picture of Buxton's residents before plunging into the dramatic events that take him out of Buxton and, quite possibly, out of his depth."

In Elijah of Buxton, Curtis uses characters, plot, setting, the theme of coming of age in a difficult time, and unique style most noticable through dialogue to develop a historically accurate and emotionally striking story.