The House You Pass on the Way

A. Book Information

Woodson Jacqueline. 1997. New York, NY: Bantam Doubleday Dell Publishing Group. ISBN 0-385-32189-9.

B. Plot Summary

“Her father had married a white woman… The only mixed-raced family in Sweet Gum, maybe in all of CalmuthCounty.” (p.5) Staggerlee had not always been called that, but after years of listening to her grandparents song she understood the lyrics,

Staggerlee said, “There ain’t no right or wrong.

There ain’t no white or black…”

Caught in a world that she does not seem to belong to, Staggerlee identifies with the man her grandparents had sung about. She doesn’t fit in with the white people or the black people, and on top of that she knows that she is gay. This is the story about a girl realizing herself, and looking ahead to what the future has in store.

C. Critical Analysis

In less than 100 pages the plot of this book examines some tough issues—what it is like to be of mixed race in a town that is not accustomed to such “intermingling” and Staggerlee’s personal knowledge that she has sexual feelings towards other girls. She knows these feelings must be kept inside, “No one ever told me I had to lie about it or had to keep quiet, but somehow I just knew.” (p. 81) Being the only interracial family in a town of mostly African-Americans would be hard enough to deal with, but Staggerlee has her sexuality to confront as well. Jacqueline Woodson has crafted this novel simply and beautifully with a hint of optimism that this young girl will find her way.

The setting of this book is in a rural, African-American community of which many of the members find Staggerlee’s quiet mother stuck-up and uppity. The young girl is often teased about her white mother and made to feel that she doesn’t belong among the other young girls, “Everyone knows your mama… My ma see her in town say she don’t hardly speak to people, all these years she been in Sweet Gum. Nobody needs y’all.” (p. 25)

This book includes cultural markers of the biracial Staggerlee. For example, when Woodson describes the young girl as she looks in the mirror, “Her lips were full across her face like Daddy’s.” (p. 15) We also hear her father’s casual speech among other Black men, “What y’all know good?” (p. 41)

Staggerlee’s first encounter with her sexuality started in sixth grade, “She had kissed a girl once… They had kissed after school one day, behind a patch of blue cornflowers.” (p. 22) It is not until her cousin, Trout, comes to visit from Maryland that Staggerlee is able to discuss her sexuality openly. Trout has been sent to the rural town of Sweet Gum to “become more lady-like.” Staggerlee finds solace and relief knowing that someone else has the same feelings. Later in the story Trout writes a letter telling Staggerlee of her new boyfriend and how nice it is to walk in public and not feel ashamed.

Staggerlee is a minority in more than one way, and yet Jacquline Woodson has expertly crafted the main character of this book so that the reader forgets her race and sexuality and finds her as a simply loveable character, tough and determined. Staggerlee is brave through and through—worthy of emulation, and undoubtedly branded on the hearts of readers everywhere.

D. Review Excerpts

From Publishers Weekly
The daughter of an interracial couple, 14-year-old Staggerlee is already an outsider when she wonders if she is gay, too. PW's starred review called this a "poignant tale of self-discovery" and praised Woodson's "graceful, poetic" prose. Ages 12-up. (Feb.) r
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From School Library Journal
Grade 6-9. In this understated story set in a small, mostly African-American community in the South, Staggerlee Canan is shunned by her peers because her mother is white. This is not the sole cause of her isolation, however. She has a secret. In sixth grade, she had kissed another girl. Rejected by that friend, Staggerlee has no one to talk to about her sexual feelings until her adopted cousin, Trout, visits for the summer when both girls are 14. Both wonder if they are gay, but sexual identity is really only one of the things that troubles them. Their platonic intimacy is the intense kind shared by friends who see themselves as different from the crowd. Asked by Trout to say whether she's black or white, Staggerlee replies, "I'm me. That's all." That they seem to be taking different paths in the end adds to the story's poignancy. This richly layered novel will be appreciated for its affecting look at the anxious wonderings of presexual teens, its portrait of a complex interracial family, and its snapshot of the emotionally wrenching but inarticulate adolescent search for self. It's notable both for its quality and for the out-of-the-way places it goes.?Claudia Morrow, Berkeley Public Library, CA

http://www.amazon.com/House-You-Pass-Way/dp/0142501913/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1/103-4518657-7306245?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1183752855&sr=1-1

E. Connections

Other books for young people by Jacqueline Woodson.

· Sweet, Sweet Memory. ISBN 1423106806

· The Other Side. ISBN 0399231161

· Our Gracie Aunt. ISBN 0786806206

Moses Goes to a Concert

Review of Moses Goes to a Concert

A. Book Information

Millman, Isaac. 1998. Canada: Douglas & McIntyre Ltd.

B. Plot Summary

Moses who is deaf, goes to a concert with his class. After the concert his teacher introduces the class to the percussionist, Ms. Marjorie Elwyn. The class finds out that like them, Ms. Elwyn is deaf, having lost her hearing at age seven after an illness. Her heart was set on being a percussionist and she relates to the class, “I worked hard. Becoming a percussionist my heart was set and I did.” Moses takes with him the important lesson that if you set your mind to it, you can do or be anything you want.

C. Critical Analysis

The author has worked very hard to make this book’s illustrations, which depict the ASL (American Sign Language) precise and accurate. He consulted Dorothy Cohler and Joel Goldfarb, Deaf teachers at New York City’s J.H.S. 47 School for the Deaf. The author’s note appears at the beginning of the book to tell about ASL, and to educate the reader on how to read his illustrations. Young children will enjoy trying to sign with Moses during the story. At the end of the book, the ASL alphabet is included.

Cultural markers of the deaf community include the ASL used in this book, Moses feeling the vibrations of the music with his shoeless feet, and the students using balloons during the concert to feel the vibrations of the music. This gives young readers a glimpse into the deaf world, and while doing this, the author has included a universal message that is applicable to all readers, “When you set your mind to it, you can become anything you want when you grow up… A doctor, artist, teacher, lawyer, farmer, electrician, or actor. I (Moses) want to be a percussionist.”

D. Review Excerpts

From Publishers Weekly
The seemingly incongruous premise of this harmonious debut of a class of deaf children attends an orchestral concert, leads to a revelation for readers who may well have assumed that the ability to hear is a prerequisite for enjoying music. Holding balloons that their teacher passes out to help them "feel the music," Moses and his classmates are thrilled to pick up the vibrations. Afterward, they visit with the orchestra's deaf percussionist, who, intriguingly, performs in stocking feet so she, too, can feel the beat. She lets the students play her instruments and, using American Sign Language (precisely illustrated in easy-to-read diagrams), explains how she worked hard to achieve her career goal. Back home, Moses tells his parents about his day, signing a message of universal value: "When you set your mind to it, you can become anything you want." An introductory note explains how to interpret the sign-language diagrams, which are integrated throughout the clear and colorful illustrations. Fiction and instruction make beautiful music together on these cheerful pages. Ages 5-up.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.
From School Library Journal
PreSchool-Grade 2 A group of deaf children is taken to a concert where the youngsters meet the percussionist, a friend of their teacher, and learn to their surprise that she is also deaf. She explains to Moses and his class how she became a percussionist even though she had lost her hearing and helps them understand that anything is possible with hard work and determination. She lets the children play on her instruments and feel the vibrations on balloons that their teacher has given them. Cheerful watercolor illustrations show the multiethnic children enjoying themselves at the concert, while smaller cartoon strips feature Moses's additional comments in sign language. A page displaying the manual alphabet and a conversation in sign language in which Moses tells his parents about his day enhance the upbeat story. Sally R. Dow, Ossining Public Library, NY

Review Accessed at:

http://www.amazon.com/Moses-Goes-Concert/dp/0374453667/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1/103-2916387-4513423?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1183847629&sr=1-1

E. Connections

Other books for young people by Isaac Millman.

· Moses Goes to the Circus. ISBN 0374350647

· Moses Goes to School. ISBN 0374350698

· Moses Sees a Play. ISBN 0374350663

Habibi

Review of Habibi

A. Book Information

Nye, Naomi Shihab. 1997. Simon & Schuster. New York, NY. ISBN 0-689-80149-1.

B. Plot Summary

Liyana, a young teenager has just experienced the jubilation of her first kiss when her father announces that the family will move back to his homeland of Jerusalem. He is an Arab, and upon hearing that turmoil is lessening in the country he decides it is the opportune time to move. This book is about a teenage girl finding a place for herself, and along the way discovering the tragedy and beauty that is humanity.

C. Critical Analysis

“Poppy would pass through the house lifting his nose to the air saying, There it is, there’s my country… Well where was hers? Was she on the verge of finding out? Sometimes Liyana felt she had passed her own country already and it was an age, not a place,” (p. 12).

Liyana, on the journey of a lifetime finds out for herself that the things that make a place a home can be found anywhere, “She did not feel like a foreigner in the Old City anymore. Now she had her own landmarks and scenes to remember. She had Hani, the banana seller, Bilal, the fabric seller, and Bassam, the spice man…She knew the blind shopkeeper who sat on a stool in front of his shop nodding and saying, Sabah-al-khair—Good Morning---to the air. The Old City was inside her already,” (p. 235).

The main character, Liyana is easy to identify with as she writes in her notebook about the ups and downs of adolescence, such as her first kiss and later the new boy she likes (who is Jewish and her family is not!). This book brings insight and understanding into the culture that surrounds Jersusalem, while showing the commonness of us all.

The setting of this book takes us from St. Louis, Missouri to Jerusalem, and along the way we learn with Liyana many things about the culture that she comes to embrace, and other aspects she refuses to accept—such as the hostility between the religious populations. “In Jerusalem so much old anger floated around, echoed from fading graffiti, seeped out of cracks,” (p. 89).

This book is rich in cultural markers, many of which are experienced by Liyana for the first time. For example, the family Liyana meets in Jerusalem is nearly opposite of her mother’s family in America, “But this bustling group of aunts and uncles swirled in circles as Sitti, their grandmother, threw her strong arms around each one of them in succession, squeezing so tightly that Liyana lost her breath,” (p. 39). We learn of the different expectations of young ladies, including a more conservative dress code requiring that Liyana wear modest skirts and blouses. She is inspected each day at school and gets in trouble one day when she forgets to remove a ring she loves so much.

This is a rare gem of a book, offering richness in characters and plot, as it takes the audience from one culture to the next, and allows the reader to share in Liyana’s new experiences first-hand.

D. Review Excerpts

From School Library Journal
Grade 5-9. An important first novel from a distinguished anthologist and poet. When Liyana's doctor father, a native Palestinian, decides to move his contemporary Arab-American family back to Jerusalem from St. Louis, 14-year-old Liyana is unenthusiastic. Arriving in Jerusalem, the girl and her family are gathered in by their colorful, warmhearted Palestinian relatives and immersed in a culture where only tourists wear shorts and there is a prohibition against boy/girl relationships. When Liyana falls in love with Omer, a Jewish boy, she challenges family, culture, and tradition, but her homesickness fades. Constantly lurking in the background of the novel is violence between Palestinian and Jew. It builds from minor bureaucratic annoyances and humiliations, to the surprisingly shocking destruction of grandmother's bathroom by Israeli soldiers, to a bomb set off in a Jewish marketplace by Palestinians. It exacts a reprisal in which Liyana's friend is shot and her father jailed. Nye introduces readers to unforgettable characters. The setting is both sensory and tangible: from the grandmother's village to a Bedouin camp. Above all, there is Jerusalem itself, where ancient tensions seep out of cracks and Liyana explores the streets practicing her Arabic vocabulary. Though the story begins at a leisurely pace, readers will be engaged by the characters, the romance, and the foreshadowed danger. Poetically imaged and leavened with humor, the story renders layered and complex history understandable through character and incident. Habibi succeeds in making the hope for peace compellingly personal and concrete...as long as individual citizens like Liyana's grandmother Sitti can say, "I never lost my peace inside."?Kate McClelland, Perrot Memorial Library, Greenwich, CT From School The New York Times Book Review, Karen Leggett
Adolescence magnifies the joys and anxieties of growing up even as it radically simplifies the complexities of the adult world. The poet and anthologist Naomi Shibab Nye is meticulously sensitive to this rainbow of emotion in her autobiographical novel, Habibi…. Habibi gives a reader all the sweet richness of a Mediterranean dessert, while leaving some of the historic complexities open to interpretation. (Ages 10 and older)

Accessed at:

http://www.amazon.com/Habibi-Naomi-Shihab-Nye/dp/0689825234/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1/102-1586993-9296931?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1185570848&sr=8-1

E. Connections

Other books for young people by Naomi Shihab Nye.

· Sitti’s Secret. ISBN 0689817061

· The Flag of Childhood: Poems from the Middle East. ISBN 0689851723

· 19 Varieties of Gazelle: Poems of the Middle East. ISBN 0060504048

Kamishibai Man

Review of Kamishibai Man

A. Book Information

Say, Allen. 2005. New York, NY: Houghton Mifflin Company Books. ISBN 0-618-47954-6.

B. Plot Summary

Despite being rejected for the more current television by the youth he love so much, the Kamishibai man decides to give it another go many years later. Upon returning to the bustling city the storyteller finds his audience mature and willing. They applaud his art and devour his wife’s sweets. This is a charming story of a lost art.

C. Critical Analysis

This book begins in the serene countryside of Japan, an old man and his wife sit in their modest home passing time. The old man misses making his rounds as a Kamishibai man. His legs and bicycle still work, so he decides to go into the city and give it a try.

The setting of this book dramatically changes from the peaceful countryside to the bustling city. As the old man enters the city he is greeted by blasts of horns and other city noise. The simple noodle house he remembers has been replaced by a large supermarket.

The author and illustrator, Allen Say does a remarkable job making the illustrations come to life. This book is a story within a story. The illustrations reflect this, the pictures are very realistic as the story unfolds, but when the Kamishibai man begins telling his story to the audience the pictures have a more cartoon feel as we see the scenes of his memory. This helps the transition, making it easier for the reader to follow his story. The illustrations of the city reveal Say’s knowledge of the setting and attention to detail. Signs are written in Japanese, and most of the city dwellers are realistically dressed in western style clothes as is seen on the streets of Japan today. The Kamisibai man himself changes from traditional clothes to western clothes for his ride into the city. The people in the story are accurately portrayed with skin tones that vary from pale to a dark tan, the eyes of the people are distinct ably Asian and done with expression.

The nice thing about this book is it gives us a glimpse of Japanese culture past and present. The forward by Allen Say is short and well done. We are introduced to what a Kamishibai man is before we meet the lovable character. In this book we see both country and city Japan, traditional and modern dress, and attitudes past and present. It is a charming story, one that has many parallels in American culture.

D. Review Excerpts

From School Library Journal
Starred Review. Grade 1-5–An elderly kamishibai (paper theater) man decides to return to the city and spend the day on his former rounds. His wife makes candies for him, just as in the past, and he sets off on his bicycle. Things have changed–there's traffic with honking horns and he wonders, Who needs to buy so many things and eat so many different foods? when he sees the shops and restaurants replacing beautiful trees that have been cut. He sets up his theater and begins to tell his personal story of being a kamishibai man in a flashback sequence. Soon he is surrounded by adults who remember him and his stories from their youth. Ironically, that night he is featured on the news on television–the very technology that replaced him. Say's distinctive style and facial expressions are especially touching. A foreword gives readers a glimpse of the importance of the kamishibai man in the author's early life, and an afterword provides a historical look at the forgotten art form. The power of the story and the importance of the storyteller are felt in this nostalgic piece that makes readers think about progress. Those interested in storytelling and theater will be especially impressed with this offering, but it will have broad appeal.–Helen Foster James, University of California at San Diego
Copyright © Reed Business Information

From Booklist
*Starred Review* Gr. 1-3. In a foreword, Say explains that Kamishibai means "paper theater" and that years ago Kamishibai men were itinerant storytellers who traveled around Japan on bicycles with a big, wooden box mounted on the back seat. The box contained a miniature theater, and beneath it were drawers of candy that the performer sold to eke out a living. As a storyteller spun his tale, he used picture cards to illustrate dramatic points, finishing each time with a cliffhanger designed to entice the children in his audience to come back another time to hear the continuation of the story. Say's lovely new book is about an elderly Kamishibai man, long retired, who, missing his rounds, decides to pedal back to the old neighborhood for one last performance. The story-within-a-story that emerges reveals why this unique type of performance art has all but disappeared. The quietly dramatic, beautifully evocative tale contains a cliffhanger of its own, and its exquisite art, in the style of Kamishibai picture cards, will attract even the most jaded kid away from the TV to enjoy a good, good book. Michael Cart
Copyright © American Library Association.

Review Accessed at:

http://www.amazon.com/Kamishibai-Man-Allen-Say/dp/0618479546/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1/103-0920525-3996630?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1184965286&sr=8-1

E. Connections

Other books for young people by Laurence Yep.

· Grandfather's Journey. ISBN 978-0395570357

· The Bicycle Man. ISBN 978-0395506523

· Stranger in the Mirror. ISBN 978-0395938836

Review of The Case of the Lion Dance

A. Book Information

Yep, Laurence. 1998. New York, NY: Harper Collin’s Children’s Books. ISBN 0-06-024447-X.

B. Plot Summary

Auntie Tiger Lil has planned an elaborate opening celebration for the opening of the Wok Inn restaurant in San Francisco’s Chinatown. She has even arranged for a competitive Lion Dance in which the winning lion will eat a cabbage of $2,000 dollars- to be given to charity. When the bills explode and the money is missing, former Hollywood star Auntie Tiger Lil and young Lily have an adventure ahead of them finding the perpetrators.

C. Critical Analysis

This mystery book is light-hearted with slap-stick humor, but beware, on the inside flap it claims it is for grades 3-7 but on page five it starts off with some rather strong language, “You’ve bastardized our art and prostituted our discipline.” This type of language is probably inappropriate for eight-year olds in third grade.

The setting of this book is in San Francisco’s Chinatown in modern time. The quest to find the theif takes place all over Chinatown, through alleys, neighboring Little Italy, and sweet-smelling restaurants. The setting is very authentic, describing several parts of San Francisco, “…all the way to Market Street, the main thoroughfare that cuts diagonally across the heart of San Francisco,” (p. 143).

Cultural markers are through out this book- such as the struggle of the Chinese American who can not speak English, “The employer pays someone like Kong under the table, .. There’s no such things as benefits or a vacation,” (p. 109). We see the tenements that the poor, working class Chinese live in-- run-down and over-crowded. Traditional Chinese honor and resulting family feuds is a central theme in this novel, “Everyone said he was so honorable, so I decided that I would get the family to pay me one way or another. It took almost twenty years , but I got it from the daughter. With interest. Two thousand dollars instead of one thousand,” (p. 208). This is from the thief, Bernie who took it a little too far!

This is a cute mystery book, of the same caliber as Nancy Drew or The Hardy Boys, only with Chinese-American characters, which is needed to represent the diversity in America. This book will interest any child who likes mystery because of the adventure- the exposure to Chinese American culture is just an added bonus.

D. Review Excerpts

From School Library Journal
Grade 4-7-Tiger Lil and her niece, Lily, first introduced in The Case of the Goblin Pearls (HarperCollins, 1997), are back. As part of the festivities for the opening of her friends' new restaurant, Auntie has invited students from two local martial-arts schools to compete in a Lion Dance contest. Kong, one of the competitors, is an angry, native-born Chinese teen who has no patience for Lily, who was born in the U.S. and speaks Chinese only haltingly. He has even less respect for Barry Fisher, the other contestant and the son of the restaurant owners. His mother is of Chinese descent, but his father is not. At the conclusion of the competition, an explosion injures both Barry and his brother. In addition, $2000 has been stolen, and sore loser Kong appears to be a prime suspect. Although prejudiced himself, Kong's teacher instructs his reluctant pupil to assist Auntie Lil and Lily in finding the thief. Yep does a fine job of weaving in lessons on Chinese culture and life in San Francisco's Chinatown as well as the need for racial and ethnic tolerance. As Lily and Kong work together to solve the crime, she begins to understand what lies behind his arrogance and anger. Kong also finds that he has misjudged Lily. Yep's style is entertaining, and the pace of the story moves quickly enough to sustain interest. Fans of lighthearted mysteries will enjoy this book.
Roxanne Burg, Thousand Oaks Library, CA

From Booklist
Gr. 4^-6. In the second installment in Yep's Chinatown Mystery series, Lily and her great aunt Tiger Lil, a Chinese American movie star turned public-relations guru, have been enlisted to help friends who are opening a restaurant. Unfortunately, opening day festivities go awry when the Lion Dance competition ends in angry words and punches and someone steals money earmarked for charity by rigging an explosion. Was it Kong, the angry martial-arts student; Leonard, the vituperative uncle with the gambling habit; or Bernie, the restaurant's helpful "waitron" ? Yep makes San Francisco's Chinatown more than a simple backdrop here, working in some sense of cultural conflicts within a diverse community as he guides readers through a twisting plot that combines some nice humorous bits with some competently manipulated suspense and some interesting red herrings. Stephanie Zvirin

Review Accessed at:

http://www.amazon.com/Case-Lion-Dance-Chinatown-Mystery/dp/0064405532/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1/103-2916387-4513423?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1183845416&sr=1-1

E. Connections

Other books for young people by Laurence Yep.

· Child of the Owl: Golden Mountain Chronicles: 1965 (Golden Mountain Chronicles). ISBN 006440336X

· Dragon's Gate (Golden Mountain Chronicles, 1867). ISBN 0064404897

· Mountain Light: Golden Mountain Chronicles: 1855 (Golden Mountain Chronicles). ISBN 0064406679

Seesaw Girl

Review of Seesaw Girl

A. Book Information

Park, Linda Sue. Illus. by Tseng, Mou-Sien and Jean. 1999. New York, NY: Clarion Books. ISBN 0-395-91514-7.

B. Plot Summary

Young 12 year-old Jade Blossom spends all her days and nights in the Inner Court of the House of Han, the home of her aristocratic family. This story takes place in Seoul, Korea during the 1600’s, the Chosan period. During this time Korean women of noble birth were only allowed to leave their homes to wed and join their husband’s family’s home, at which time she would be confined to that household. Jade Blossom has a deep curiosity and wants to know what is on the outside. When her 15 year old friend and aunt leaves to marry the curiosity and longing to see her best friend becomes too much. She devises a plan to sneak away in a cart destined to the local market. After being caught she misses the spectacular views and fashions a Korean seesaw in her family’s garden so that she can catch glimpses of the distant landscape she longs for.

C. Critical Analysis

Linda Sue-Park has created an important novel- this book captures a part of history that may be unbelievable to today’s generation. It is thought-provoking as the reader imagines being in young Jade Blossom’s place- trapped in every aspect, unable to read, draw, or travel, she clings to her dreams as she catches glimpses of the distant mountains from her improvised seesaw.

The setting of this book is in Seoul, Korea during the Choson period. There are many cultural markers such as the traditional names- Jade Blossom and Graceful Willow, the food- kimchee, and the traditions of respect- “The groom bent his knees slowly until they touched the ground, then lowered his forehead to the ground. Willow finished her bows in a seated pose, with her forehead like-wise on the ground. She was required to bow twice as many times as the groom to signify the weaker position of the woman,” (p. 21). We are also introduced to the importance of clean clothes to this upper-class family as young Jade Blossom has to take apart clothes at the seams during each washing to get the garments clean.

The wedding ceremony, traditional dress, and customs are incorporated into this book as Graceful Willow marries, “Her long red silk skirt flowed...her hair was twisted into an elaborate bun…and intricate wedding headdress rested atop her head. Her face had been powdered until it was as white as paper, her kohl-drawn eyebrows arched delicately, and her lips were stained ruby-red,” (p. 16).

In the author’s notes we learn historical background information about Korea’s isolation policy. Korea was known as the “hermit kingdom” and it wasn’t until 1882 when Korea began accepting foreign visitors upon signing treaties with the Western world. In the novel, during her escape young Jade Blossom sees some captured men, her description of them shows historical accuracy as a young Korean girl would have never seen a white man before, “The prisoners looked like no men she had ever seen. They had red faces, with eyes that seemed to have no color at all and noses that protruded like beaks of birds. Several had what seemed to be yellow or brown sheep’s wool on their cheeks and chinds; a few had hair—it must have been hair, for it covered the top of their heads—but how could it be hair? For it was the color of straw,” (p. 40). The author explains that this encounter in the book has some historical basis, when Dutch Sailors were detained in Korea from 1653 to 1666.

This book is well-written, with much research having been completed by the author. It may just spark the curiosity of the young reader and encourage them to find out more about this period of history.

D. Review Excerpts

From Publishers Weekly
This first novel set in 17th-century Korea centers on 12-year-old Jade Blossom, daughter of one of the king's advisers. With all the temerity of a 1990s girl, Jade plays tricks on her brother (with the help of her cousin Willow), and her yearning to see the world outside of her family's walled household ultimately leads her into trouble. She conceals herself in a basket on market day and catches her first glimpse of the mountains as well as a group of imprisoned Dutch sailors, whom she describes as wearing what looks like "yellow or brown sheep's wool on their cheeks and chins." Park manages to get across many of society's restrictions on girls and women, but often relies on telling rather than showing. For example, Jade says how much her view of the mountains affects her, yet she never describes what it is about the vista that moves her. Readers gain little insight into Jade's relationship with other members of her household or her daily routine. Though the novel glosses over the meaning of the Dutch sailors' appearance, a closing author's note helps to put it into context. Fortunately, Jean and Mou-sien Tseng's animated black-and-white drawings fill in many details missing in the text concerning dress and setting. Ages 8-12. (Aug.)
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From School Library Journal
Grade 4-6-Life in 17th-century Korea is not easy for a girl, even for the daughter of a wealthy family. Jade Blossom must learn to do the laundry, sew the clothes back together after each washing, help in the kitchen, and embroider flawlessly. Her world is circumscribed by the walls of the Inner Court where she will spend her life until she marries and then will be confined to the Inner Court of her husband's household. However, when her aunt and best friend since childhood gets married, Jade is determined to see her again. Park maintains a fine tension between the spirited girl's curiosity and her very limited sphere. Certainly Jade looks for opportunities to expand her horizons, but after her first disastrous foray to see Willow, she learns that those chances have to come within the walls of her own home. The story is full of lively action and vivid descriptions, enhanced by appealing black-and-white paintings, to give a clear sense of the period and reveal the world as Jade sees it. Even the minor characters have substance. The girl's parents are understanding but not indulgent. Her father is a thoughtful man, distant from the family, but looking at the possibilities for the future of his country. Her mother recognizes Jade's longings and shows her that it is possible to be content with her life. Like Jade's stand-up seesaw, Park's novel offers readers a brief but enticing glimpse at another time and place.

Accessed at:

http://www.amazon.com/Seesaw-Girl-Linda-Sue-Park/dp/0440416728/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1/103-2916387-4513423?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1183845032&sr=8-1

E. Connections

Other books for young people by Linda Sue-Park.

· When My Name Was Keoko. ISBN 0440419441

· The Kite Fighters. ISBN 0440418135

· The Firekeeper's Son. ISBN 0618133372

The Game of Silence

Review of The Game of Silence

A book written by Louise Edrich

A. Book Information

Erdrich, Louise. 2005. New York, NY: Harper Collins Publishers. ISBN 0-06-029789-1.

B. Plot Summary

Rumor has it that the chimookoman are coming to claim the land that Omakayas’ family has lived on for so long. The people of the tribe have all gathered for a council on what to do. The children settle into The Game of Silence. There are handsome prizes for winning the game, but the children can tell by the faces of the elders that there is much more at stake than arrows or ribbons. It is decided that men will be sent to the four directions to find out what the tribe has done to make the white men angry. While they are away, the young girl and main character, Omakayas begins having prophetic dreams and sees that her people will have to leave their beloved land.

C. Critical Analysis

Louise Erdrich has expertly crafted this novel, having done a great deal of research, which was inspired by her own family history. The sights, sounds, and day-to-day life of the traditional, historical Ojibwe are brought to life in this novel.

There are many cultural markers in this book including food, language, clothing, family and tradition. Erdrich has woven the language of the Ojibwe into every page, using the phonetic spellings of words. She has included a helpful glossary of terms at the end of the story, which is some six pages long. In the story the Ojibwe’s humbleness and respect for the land is related, “Omakayas leaned into her grandmother’s arms and for a long time the two sat in the garden, on the sun-warmed earth, listening to the birds call and talk to one another unseen in the dense green of the woods. If they ever had to leave, Omakayas felt, her heart might fall right out of her body to lie forever on the ground it loved.” (p. 30)

The craft of the people is shown time and time again as they create everything they need from the Earth’s materials and by hand. For example, “Mama and Nokimis were weaving reed pukwe mats outside in the shade of a maple tree. They used long flat matting needles that Dedey fashioned of bone.” (p31)

This book allows the reader to catch a rare glimpse of what it might have been like to live an industrious life with the Ojibwe people. It brings sensitivity and awareness to a people who were unjustly thrown off the land that they cared so deeply for.

D. Review Excerpts

From School Library Journal
Grade 5-8 -Omakayas's tale, begun in The Birchbark House (Hyperion, 1999), continues in this book. Older and more insightful, Omakayas begins to understand the elements of life more fully as she accepts her gift of telling dreams. Changes are coming to the Ojibwa people and she struggles to deal with all that she is experiencing and her dreams foretell. Her sister falls in love with a warrior, strange and lost members of her tribe come to rely on her, and her people are threatened with certain eviction from their homes and food supply. But traditions are strong, and after Omakayas is sent off into nature to face the spirits and her dreams, she learns to accept the fate of her people and comes to see it as an adventure, "the next life they would live together on this earth." Although the story is set on an island in Lake Superior in 1850, readers will identify with the everyday activities of the Ojibwa, from snowball fights to fishing excursions, providing a parallel to their own lives while encouraging an appreciation for one that is very different. The action is somewhat slow, but Erdrich's captivating tale of four seasons portrays a deep appreciation of our environment, our history, and our Native American sisters and brothers.-Kimberly Monaghan, formerly at Vernon Area Public Library, IL

Reviews accessed at:

http://www.amazon.com/Game-Silence-Louise-Erdrich/dp/0064410293/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1/102-6525658-6305719?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1183610174&sr=1-1

E. Connections

Other books for young people by Cynthia Leitich Smith.

· The Birchbark House. ISBN 0786814543

· Grandmother's Pigeon. ISBN 0786812044

· The Range Eternal. ISBN 0786802200

Squanto's Journey

Review of Squanto’s Journey

A book written by Joseph Bruchac

A. Book Information

Bruchac, Joseph. Illus. by Shed, Greg. 2000. Orlando, Florida: Harcourt, INC. ISBN 0-15-201817-4.

B. Plot Summary

The story of the first Thanksgiving is related to children in America each November, but that story is seldom told from the Native American point of view. This book accomplishes just that. This book tells the story of Squanto of the Wampanoag tribe, who escaped slavery in Spain and made his way back home, only to find so many of his friends and family dead due to the “great illness.” Squanto became an interpreter and guide for the English, showing them how to care for the land and hunt. It was because of Squanto and others like him that the Pilgrims were able to feast with the native people of the land with food bountiful and plenty.

C. Critical Analysis

Joseph Bruchac is himself a person of Native American New England descent, but he says, “Being Indian does not mean that you automatically know about all things Native American.” Joseph Bruchac researched this story, consulting a Wampanoag scholar and the Plimoth Plantation, the living history museum.

In this story we hear Squanto’s tale, “My story is both strange and true…,” and indeed it is. It is strange and true that almost 400 years later, we are just now starting to get the story straight, and this book helps. One day in 1614 a boat with white men entered his people’s bay. One of the ship’s captains, Thomas Hunt invited Squanto and 20 other men to a feast on the boat, but he held them captive and took them to Spain where he sold them as slaves. This book recounts the truth that many of the white people who came to the New Land treated Native Americans unfairly. It also shows a strong leader in Squanto, who upon returning to his homeland was able to forgive and treat each white person he encountered as an individual. “I came to see that these pilgrims could be our friends and we theirs. Together we might make our home on this land given to us by the Creator of All Things.”

The wisdom of the Native American people is shown as they teach the white people to care for the land and use fertilizer, “Bury those fish in the earth and they will feed the corn.”

This is a traditional recount of a Native American, and his clothes represent such. In Greg Shed’s illustrations Squanto has a dark mahogany skin tone, chiseled features, and wears simple clothes, presumably made of hide. He is adorned with one feather in his long hair and carries tools around his neck.

In this book some terms from Squanto’s language are used such as “pniese”—someone who is expected to be a man of great honor and courage. Bruchac uses a glossary at the back of the book to further explain the terms he has chosen for inclusion.

This book is a great addition to every class, school, public or home library. One can only hope that more teachers will read this book around Thanksgiving time and set the brown paper bag Indian vests free!

D. Review Excerpts

From School Library Journal
Grade 2-5-A picture book that focuses on the young Indian who helped the Pilgrims survive the brutality of the New England winter. When he was 24, an English captain abducted Squanto along with 20 of his tribesmen and took them to Spain to be sold as slaves. Spanish friars helped him escape to England where he learned the language and dreamed of going back to his native land. When he finally returned, he served as translator and mediator between the English colonists and the other Indian tribes. He convinced Samoset, a sachem of the Pemaquid, to accept and work with the white settlers. It was this cooperation that helped the tiny Plymouth Colony to survive. Many authors have given the Native American credit for his role in the survival of the colony. What distinguishes this first-person account is the authenticity of detail. In his author's note, Bruchac describes the research that he used to flesh out the story with dates and names. However, because of the wealth of facts, the text has a stilted quality. Shed's full-page gouache illustrations are beautifully executed in golden, autumnal tones. There is a richness of detail in the pictures that echoes the passion for historical accuracy in costume and interior-and-exterior dwellings. However, the full-bled illustrations tend to overwhelm the text and the uniformity of their size and placement can become somewhat tedious. Still, most libraries will want to own this version.
Barbara Buckley, Rockville Centre Public Library, NY

Review accessed at:

http://www.amazon.com/Squantos-Journey-Story-First-Thanksgiving/dp/0152060448/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1/103-4518657-7306245?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1183740133&sr=8-1

E. Connections

Other books for young people by Joseph Bruchac.

· A Boy Called Slow. ISBN 069811616X

· Between Earth & Sky: Legends of Native American Sacred Places. ISBN 0152020624

· How Chipmunk Got His Stripes. ISBN 0142500216

Jingle Dancer

Review of Jingle Dancer

A book written by Cynthia Leitich Smith

A. Book Information

Smith, Cynthia Leitich. Illus. By Van Wright, Cornelius and Hu, Ying-Hwa. 2000. New York, NY: Morrow Junior Books. ISBN 0-688-16241-X.

B. Plot Summary

Jenna is preparing for the tradition of jingle dancing that has been passed down through generations of women in her Muscogee Creek family. Jenna practices at home in front of the TV using videotape, but she soon realizes that she does not have enough jingles for her regalia. Jenna visits the women of her life—her Great aunt Sis, the neighbor Mrs. Scott, Cousin Elizabeth, and Grandma Wolfe to ask for jingles for her dress. In turn, Jenna promises to dance for each woman who has contributed to her dance regalia.

C. Critical Analysis

Crystal Leitich Smith has made a great contribution to children’s literature with this book. She is a mixed-blood member of the Muscogee (Creek) Nation, and has shed some natural light onto what it is like to be a Native American in today’s world. The special thing about this book is that the main character is every child. She wears sneakers, which we later see her changing into her moccasins; she lives in a neighborhood that looks like any suburban American home (an intertribal community in Oklahoma); and there is a nice transition between showing the modern side of Jenna and the Jenna who takes part in a traditional powwow. It is this accurate portrayal that will help educate children that Native Americans lead lives very similar to their own. It also humanizes the “Indians” that are portrayed inaccurately in so much of children’s literature still circulating.

There are many cultural markers in this book including food, vocabulary, and oral tradition. In the story we meet Mrs. Scott who is making fry bread and Indian tacos. A glossary in the back of the book gives a more in-depth description about both fry bread and Indian Tacos. Instead of using standard time or transitional words, the author uses phrases such as “As Sun arrived at midcircle.” When Jenna visits her Great-aunt Sis she tells a Muscogee Creek story about Bat. In the author’s note at the back of the book she explains more about such traditional stories.

The illustrators, Cornelius Van Wright and Ying-Hwa Hu have done a nice job illustrating this book in watercolor. The facial expressions are especially charming, and the skin tones and facial features of the characters accurately portray the Native American heritage.

D. Review Excerpts

From Publishers Weekly
Smith, a mixed-blood member of the Muscogee (Creek) Nation, convincingly juxtaposes cherished Native American tradition and contemporary lifestyle in this smooth debut. Watching a videotape of Grandma Wolfe performing a jingle dance, Jenna is determined to dance at an upcoming powwow. But she lacks the cone-shaped, tin jingles that are sewn on to dancers' dresses as part of the regalia. The girl walks down a suburban sidewalk lined with modern houses as she sets out to visit her great-aunt, a neighbor, a cousin and Grandma Wolfe, all of whom lend her jingles for her dress. Smith's language consciously evokes legend. For example, "As Sun caught a glimpse of the Moon" indicates the time of day; and Jenna is careful to borrow only a limited number of jingles, "not wanting to take so many that [another's] dress would lose its voice." Van Wright and Hu's (Jewels) lifelike renderings capture the genuine affection between Jenna and these caring older women. Their easy integration of Native and standard furnishings and clothing gracefully complement Smith's heartening portrait of a harmonious meshing of old and new. Ages 4-10.

From School Library Journal
Kindergarten-Grade 3-Without enough tin jingles to make her dress sing, how can Jenna be a jingle dancer just like Grandma Wolfe at the next powwow? She borrows one row from Great-aunt Sis, whose aching legs keep her from dancing; another from Mrs. Scott, who sells fry bread; one from Cousin Elizabeth, whose work keeps her away from the festivities; and a fourth row from Grandma, who helps Jenna sew the jingles to her dress, assemble her regalia, and practice her bounce-steps. When the big day arrives, the girl feels proud to represent these four women and carry on their tradition. Watercolor paintings in bright, warm tones fill each page. In scenes where she is dancing, backgrounds of blurred figures effectively represent both the large audience and the many generations whose tradition the gathering honors. Seeing Jenna as both a modern girl in the suburban homes of her intertribal community and as one of many traditionally costumed participants at the powwow will give some readers a new view of a contemporary Native American way of life. An author's note and glossary tell more about the Muscogee (Creek) Nation, the Ojibway origins of jingle dancing, and the significance of the number four in Native American tradition. This picture book will not only satisfy a need for materials on Native American customs, but will also be a welcome addition to stories about traditions passed down by the women of a culture.
Ginny Gustin, Sonoma County Library System, Santa Rosa, CA

Reviews accessed at:

http://www.amazon.com/Jingle-Dancer-Cynthia-Leitich-Smith/dp/068816241X/ref=sr_1_1/102-6525658-6305719?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1183606011&sr=8-1

E. Connections

Other books for young people by Cynthia Leitich Smith.

· Rain Is Not My Indian Name. ISBN 0688173977

· Indian Shoes. ISBN 0060295317

In the Name of Salome, A Book by Julia Alvarez

Review of In the Name of Salomé

A book written by Julia Alvarez

A. Book Information

Alvarez, Julia. 2000. Chapel Hill, NC: Algonquin Books of Chapel Hill. ISBN 1-56512-276-3.

B. Plot Summary

In the Name of Salomé is a work of historical fiction based on the great poet and pedagogist, Salome Urena de Henriquez. The novel alternates between the life of Salome in the chaotic Dominican Republic and her daughter, Camila in America and later Cuba. The book revolves around the central theme and following questions: “Who are we as a people? What is a patria? How do we serve? - - and most importantly - - Is love stronger than anything else in the world?” This novel is a journey through the lives of two women tragically separated by death yet bonded by a spiritual connection that transcends mortality. The reader is transported into their innermost worlds as the women retreat into their own thoughts and feelings of love and questioned existence.

C. Critical Analysis

Julia Alvarez has done her homework in creating this provoking novel. Alvarez had the help of authentic diaries, historians, professors of the same universities in which Camila taught and several editions of Salome’s poems. Much like the character and historical figure, Camila, Alvarez herself resides in both the Dominican Republic and the United States, undoubtedly pouring her own experiences of a split existence into this novel.

The pride and machismo of a Dominican father (who was also President for four months) is expertly portrayed, and is balanced by the sullen, heartbroken Salome in Alvarez’s book. Pancho, the father, after leaving to Paris for medical school, takes up with a Parisian mistress and fathers an illegitimate child. This is not the only affair he is rumored to have had. Upon finding out, Salome is heartbroken, and upon returning from Paris she orders Pancho to a separate bedroom, “From now on, you go your way, and I go mine.” (Alvarez, p256).

The Spanish language is effortlessly woven in this novel, even some titles of chapters are written in Spanish and even have the Spanish number word, for example chapter seis is, “Ruinas.” Many of the characters in this novel have authentic, endearing pet names such as Papancho for Pancho, Pibin for Pedro, and Camilita.

The setting takes place in various locations, including the Dominican Republic, Cuba, and the US. For the American reader, the descriptions of the Dominican Republic and Cuba are palpable. As the family embarks on a journey via ship, the reader can picture the scene, “They are on deck and up ahead loom dark green mountains with a little town at their feet and pretty houses coming right up to the sea with zinc roofs flashing in the sun and fishing boats bobbing up and down, just like when they lived in Puerta Plata, which she remembers as the sound of their mother coughing.” (Alvarez, p326)

D. Review Excerpts

Amazon.com
It's 1960, and 65-year-old Camila Ureña decides to join the New World. Castro's new world, that is, which she has been following on the news with a heated excitement she hasn't felt for years. Forced into early retirement from her 20-year post as a Spanish teacher among the perky white girls of Vassar College, Camila faces a choice: whether to move to Florida and live down the block from her best friend or to fly over Florida and into Havana where her brothers live--and thereby land in a place of upheaval and hungry ghosts. The hungriest ghost of all is Camila's mother, Salomé Ureña, whose poems became inspirational anthems for a short-lived revolution in the late-19th-century Dominican Republic.

Based in fact, In the Name of Salomé alternates between Camila's story and her mother's. Camila's chapters are written in the third person, Salomé's in the first. By calling Camila "she," Alvarez alienates her within the text--as if in her attic at Vassar she is floating outside herself in an America that does not belong to her. In contrast, Salomé's chapters vibrate with life and tears and melodrama. Through the alternating voices, which Alvarez handles masterfully, the reader comes to grasp Camila's longing for the color and music of her mother's lost world--how the meek daughter wishes "she" could become the "I" of her mother's revolutionary and passionate life as a poet, which began under a pseudonym, Herminia, in a local political paper:

Each time there was a new poem by Herminia in the paper, Mamá would close the front shutters of the house and read it in a whisper to the rest of us. She was delighted with the brave Herminia. I felt guilty keeping this secret from her, but I knew if I told her, all her joy would turn to worry.

Yet for Salomé, her pseudonym allows her to become the voice of a country, "and with every link she cracked open for la patria, she was also setting me free." --Emily White --

From Publishers Weekly
The Dominican Republic's most famous poet and her daughter, a professor in the United States, are the remarkable protagonists of this lyrical work, one of the most moving political novels of the past half century. Camila Henr!quez Ure$a is introduced as an "eminent Hispanicist, a woman with two doctorates [and] a tenured chair" at Vassar. She is also the exiled daughter of both renowned Dominican poet Salom Ure$a and the country's last democratically elected president. Born in 1850, Salom called a revolution into being with her fearless poetry. Even as an adolescent, she saw her pseudonymous poems inspire bloodshed in the streets. Camila, born in 1894, followed the fortunes of her famous family into exile, first in Cuba, then on her own in the U.S., where she became an academic's academic. Alvarez, who has written more than once about women in exile (How the Garcia Girls Lost Their Accents) and women revolutionaries (In the Time of the Butterflies), and who is herself a poet, academic and exile, has found in Salom and Camila Ure$a her best topic yet. The novel's protagonists are based on real characters, yet by offering history through the lenses of both the poet and the scholar, as well as by portraying male-dominated events from the perspective of female activists, Alvarez conveys purely Latin American revolutionary idealism with an intellectual sensuality that eschews magical realism. The narrative flows freely across timeDHavana in 1935; Minnesota in 1918; Washington, D.C., in 1923; Santa Domingo in the mid to late 19th century; Poughkeepsie in the 1950sDand is punctuated with letters and poetry. While Salom is the flame that heats this cauldron, Camila tends the fire.When she retires from teaching in 1960, she must choose a meaningful conclusion to her life. Her long-time love, Marion, though recently married, invites her to live nearby in Florida. But born and bred to revolution, Camila has been too long away from the fray. It is not giving away anything to say that she spends the next 13 years in Cuba, heeding the old call to create "Jos Mart!'s America Now." $50,000 ad/promo; 22-city author tour. (June)
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc

Reviews accessed at:

http://www.amazon.com/Name-Salome-Julia-Alvarez/dp/0452282438/ref=pd_bbs_sr_9/104-6408436-7567945?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1183327862&sr=8-9

E. Connections

Other books for young people by Julia Alvarez.

· Once Upon a Quinceanera: Coming of Age in the USA. ISBN 0670038733

· In the Time of the Butterflies. ISBN 0452274427

· How the Garcia Girls Lost Their Accents. ISBN 0452287073

Before We Were Free. ISBN 044023784X