Michael Printz YA Award Honor Book

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Stiefvater, Maggie. The Scorpio Races. New York: Scholastic Press, 2011. ISBN 9780545224901

PLOT SUMMARY

Every year, people come flocking to the little island of Thisby to watch men and their horses compete in the Scorpio Races. But these horses aren’t like other race horses. Scorpio horses are a bloodthirsty, wild species called capall uisce, predators that migrate once a year from their underwater homes onto Thisby’s shores. The man who wins the Scorpio Races takes home a hefty sum, but many of his competitors will die before they reach the finish line, prey to the dangerous animals. So when Kate Connelly, better known as Puck, decides to enter the race as the first female competitor and the first competitor to ride a farm pony rather than a capall uisce, she creates quite a stir on the island. Despite attempts to dissuade the fiery teen, Puck enters the races, hoping to save both her home and her wayward older brother. Sean Kendrick, another competitor, is a four-time Scorpio Races champion. Yet, Sean—a loner and an orphan—still doesn’t have the one prize he desires most of all: Corr, the capall uisce that he rides every year, owned by the richest man on the island. Striking a bargain, Sean agrees that if he wins this year, Corr will be his, but if he doesn’t, the offer is off . . . forever. Both teens have everything to lose in the Scorpio Races, but when the two form an unlikely alliance, they realize an uncomfortable truth: only one of them can win.

CRITICAL ANALYSIS

The strength of The Scorpio Races lies in its characters. Puck is fiery and independent, unwaveringly loyal to her family and unafraid to speak her mind. Sean is quiet but passionate, wholly committed to Corr and perceptive to the horses under his charge. While both characters had every reason to be bitter—both have lost parents to the cappall and live unglamorous lives—both characters rise to meet their challenges and find beauty in unlikely places, in the island and in the cappall. Readers will cheer Puck on as she battles blatant sexism and continues training for the races, despite a few near-death encounters. Readers will cheer Sean on as he confronts those who have used his talents for their own gain. Although Puck and Sean don’t always make the right decisions, their decisions never seem childish or frivolous. Puck and Sean are written well, and readers will wait in breathless anticipation for the Scorpio Races to finally begin and for the destinies of the heroic pair to be revealed.

The Scorpio Races also sets itself apart with its highly detailed descriptions of the island of Thisby. The book begins, “Even under the brightest sun, the frigid autumn sea is all the colors of the night: dark blue and black and brown.” Readers will feel the chilly November air and hear the haunting call of the cappall uisce. The dark, gritty setting invites readers to immerse themselves in the island’s danger, mystery, and intrigue. Readers will understand Gabe’s insistent desire to leave the island and never return and Puck’s insistent desire to stay on the island forever. The setting also helps to convey an important theme: Puck loves the island wholeheartedly, even though loving the island can be dangerous and includes the possibility of pain. Love can be painful, but only by loving and hurting can Puck experience joy.

But if readers pick up this book hoping to read an action-packed racing story, they’re sure to be disappointed. While the plot is certainly creative, it trots along slowly and steadily, only galloping during the last fifty pages. Instead of high-speed chases and gory passages, the book is full of introspection, unhurried relationships, and a series of quiet events that gradually build into a heart-stopping finale. This story is focused on creating developed characters, not on creating a brisk plot. Still, the right readers will be thoroughly captivated by this novel and its perfectly bittersweet ending. The Scorpio Races is highly recommended to teens who enjoy character-driven stories, descriptive settings, and a dash of fantasy.

AWARDS AND REVIEW EXCERPTS

Michael L. Printz Award Honor Book, 2012

Odyssey Award Honor Book, 2012

Mythopoeic Fantasy Award for Children’s Literature Finalist, 2012

From Kirkus: “Masterful. Like nothing else out there now.”

From Booklist: “A book appealing to lovers of fantasy, horse stories, romance, and action-adventure alike, this seems to have a shot at being a YA blockbuster.”

CONNECTIONS

  • After reading The Scorpio Races, invite teens to draw their own depictions of the cappall uisce, the island of Thisby, the characters, or any other subject inspired by the book. Put up a gallery of the finished artwork.
  • Ask teens to decide whether they would choose to leave Thisby like Gabe or stay on the island like Puck. Team Gabe should discuss reasons why Gabe is right to go and Team Puck should discuss reasons why Puck is right to stay. Then hold a friendly debate.
  • Set out a teen book display featuring other books written by Maggie Stiefvater, such as the following:
    • Stiefvater, Maggie. Call Down the Hawk. ISBN 9781338188325
    • Stiefvater, Maggie. The Raven Boys. ISBN 9780545424929
    • Stiefvater, Maggie, Brenna Yovanoff, and Tessa Gratton. The Curiosities: A Collection of Stories. ISBN 9780761375272
  • Put out a display of all the 2012 Mythopoeic Fantasy Award for Children’s Literature finalists including Scorpio Races. Then allow middle-graders and teens to vote on their favorite title and hold an awards ceremony for the favorite pick.
    • Sherman, Delia. The Freedom Maze. ISBN 9781931520300
    • Mantchev, Lisa. Eyes Like Stars. ISBN 9780312380960
    • Pierce, Tamora. Terrier. ISBN 9780375814686
    • Valente, Catherynne M. The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland in a Ship of Her Own Making. ISBN 9780312649616

*Note—This book review was created as an assignment for a course at Texas Woman’s University.

A Historical Novel (Audiobook)

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Vawter, Vince. Paperboy. Read by Lincoln Hoppe. Portland, ME: Listening Library, 2013. Unabridged, 6 hr., 11 min.

PLOT SUMMARY

When he accidentally “busts” his friend, Rat, playing baseball, Vince agrees to take his friend’s paper route for the summer. There’s just one problem: Vince can hardly get a word out without stuttering up a storm, and he’s terrified of trying to talk to people he that don’t know about his condition. With lots of encouragement from Mam—his best friend and colored caretaker—and from his parents, Vince sets out on his month-long stint as paperboy. Vince’s route takes him to Mrs. Worthington, an attractive woman with sad eyes; Mr. Shapiro, an educated seaman and patient friend; TV Boy, a name that Vince makes up for a boy who always seems to be sitting in front of the television; and Ara T, an unkind junkman that Mam forbids Vince from talking to. Although Vince struggles to accept himself and to navigate the complex questions of life as he makes the transition from childhood to adolescence, his paper route provides Vince with life experiences that make Vince a better human being. By summer’s end, Vince has seen and experienced the effects of hate, sadness, and injustice, but he’s also learned where to go to give and receive kindness, love, and acceptance. The author’s note at the end of the story reveals the autobiographical nature of Paperboy and provides readers with deeper insights about stuttering.

CRITICAL ANALYSIS

Vince, or “Little Man” as Mam calls him, is a believable 11-year-old boy: He’s big into sports—baseball specifically—like many other boys his age; he has his first crush on his neighbor Mrs. Worthington; and he begins to see past the innocent lens of childhood into the harsh realities of his world. Why, for example, does Mam have to sit in the back of the bus? Why is Mrs. Worthington always drunk? Are Vince’s parents who he thinks they are? Why does Mam distrust the junkman Ara T? And why does Vince have a stutter? Readers will journey with Vince through one eventful summer and into young adulthood as Vince learns more about the world and his place within it.

Listening to the book in audio format was especially powerful. The narrator did an exceptional job of recreating the pausing, hissing stutters of Vince’s speech, giving readers a better understanding of Vince’s frustrations as he tries to get out the words he so desperately wants to say. The other characters—Mam, Mr. Spiro, Mrs. Worthington—were easily distinguishable due to the narrator’s skillful navigation of each character’s unique inflection, accent, and tone. The narration was engaging and easy to listen to, making it a great audiobook for long family car trips. And the final author’s note spoken by the protagonist himself is a special treat for invested listeners.

The story’s plot, however, may not catch many young readers’ attention. Although the story does include a man intent on committing a murder, most of the story is introspective and a little bit humdrum. Vince spends much of the text explaining the limitations he feels due to his stutter, the philosophical discussions he has with an educated neighbor, and the mundane daily happenings of the customers along his paper route. Adults may find this book a hard sell due to the book’s less than exciting plot, and young readers may not find it especially easy to connect with this slice-of-life memoir of the late 1950s.

Still, the themes of the story are timeless. While Vince begins the story trying to “fix” himself, he unashamedly accepts his limitations—stutter and all—by the book’s end. At the beginning of Paperboy, Vince tries to stay in the background, avoiding interaction rather than risk embarrassing himself and others. His experiences bringing paper—and his voice—to the doors of many houses helps him to stand tall and dare to be different. So while this book might require more coaxing than the standard middle-grade fare, its powerful message is one that many kids will take to heart.

AWARDS AND REVIEW EXCERPTS

Winner of the AudioFile Earphones Award, 2014

John Newbery Medal Honor Book, 2014

Washington Post Best Children’s Books, 2013

From AudioFile: “Lincoln Hoppe’s narration is pure perfection in this story about ‘Little Man,’ an 11-year-old boy with a stutter so severe that he can’t even say his own name. . . . Hoppe brings out Little Man’s endearing vulnerability and portrays the stutter with a tender ease and grace that will make listeners feel empathy and hope for the boy. . . . The afterword is read by author, and stutterer, Vince Vawter, making this an extraordinary listening and learning experience.”

From Kirkus: “Carefully crafted language, authenticity of setting and quirky characters that ring fully true all combine to make this a worthwhile read. Although Little Man’s stutter holds up dialogue, that annoyance also powerfully reflects its stultifying impact on his life. An engaging and heartfelt presentation that never whitewashes the difficult time and situation as Little Man comes of age.”

CONNECTIONS

  • Discuss the significance of “TV Boy” in Vince’s story. How does Vince’s perception of the boy change over time? Invite students to get to know someone they may not know very well like Vince did, and teach middle schoolers the basics of American Sign Language.
  • Read Paperboy and I Talk Like a River together. Discuss how the stutter affects each boy and how each one learns how to overcome his challenges.
    • Scott, Jordan, and Sydney Smith (illustrator). I Talk Like a River. ISBN 9780823445592
  • Vince is a skilled baseball player. Set out a sports display of other middle grade sports books such as the following:
    • Rallison, Janette. Life, Love, and the Pursuit of Free Throws. ISBN 9780802788986
    • Alexander, Lori, and Allan Drummond (illustrator). A Sporting Chance: How Paralympics Founder Ludwig Guttmann Saved Lives with Sports.ISBN 9781328580795
    • Alexander, Kwame. Booked. ISBN 9780544570986
  • Put out a display of all the 2014 Newbery Award finalists including Paperboy. Then allow middle-graders to vote on their favorite title and hold an awards ceremony for the favorite pick.
    • DiCamillo, Kate, and K. G. Campbell (illustrator). Flora & Ulysses: The Illuminated Adventures. ISBN 9780763660406
    • Black, Holly. Doll Bones. ISBN 9781416963981
    • Henkes, Kevin. The Year of Billy Miller. ISBN 9780062268150
    • Timberlake, Amy. One Came Home. ISBN 9780375869259

*Note—This book review was created as an assignment for a course at Texas Woman’s University.

Historical Novel by Kirby Larson

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Larson, Kirby. Hattie Big Sky. New York: Delacorte Press, 2006. ISBN 9780385733737

PLOT SUMMARY

Hattie has been moving from house to house for almost as long as she can remember. This time, she’s been taken in by her distantly related aunt and uncle, although Aunt Ivy hopes to get rid of the orphan by employing her at the local boardinghouse. But Aunt Ivy’s plans are dashed unexpectedly when Hattie’s late uncle leaves her a homesteading claim in rural Montana. At just sixteen years old, Hattie takes an Iowa train west, hoping for a place to finally call home. But first she’ll have to appease an angry cow, brave the cruel winter weather, learn how to cook, make friends with strangers, cultivate forty acres of land, and set 480 rods of fence, all by herself. Things don’t always go smoothly in Hattie’s neck of the woods. Local prejudice against German immigrants—like her friendly neighbor, Karl—are high due to nationwide anti-German sentiment; the weather makes Hattie wonder if she’ll ever get a crop; and she worries for her childhood friend and pen pal, Charlie, who is off fighting World War I across the sea. Yet, Hattie never loses her grit and positive outlook. Daily conversations with God ease Hattie’s lonely existence along with blossoming friendships with homesteading neighbors, even when tragedy strikes. Although Hattie’s story may not be a perfectly painless one, it is surely one of determination and of hope.

CRITICAL ANALYSIS

Hattie’s story—the story of a sixteen-year-old orphan turned homesteader—isn’t a sugar-coated one. When Hattie first arrives at her new abode in the middle of nowhere, snowdrifts and mouse droppings greet her from inside the tiny shanty house. Hattie’s first few months are spent freezing, scaring off a hungry wolf, and trying to learn how to bake bread instead of the grain bricks that keep coming out of the oven. Putting down fenceposts in the muddy spring isn’t much easier, nor is the planting stage that comes a little while later. On every step of Hattie’s homesteading journey, she must confront an obstacle, each one seemingly more unsurmountable than the last. But Hattie’s no slouch. Her gumption and can-do attitude made Hattie easy to like and her ability to laugh at herself will have readers guffawing along with her.

While the story of one pioneering orphan girl in 1917 may seem completely different from the world of today, Hattie’s story is also a timeless one. Hattie refers to herself as “Hattie Here-and-There,” never feeling like she has a place in the world where she is truly at home. And while Hattie writes to Charlie, a childhood friend who fights the Germans across the ocean, she also befriends a German immigrant, Karl Mueller, and his wife and children. In an America embroiled in World War I, German immigrants are treated with suspicion and, in some cases, with outright cruelty. Through Hattie, the author addresses prejudice, friendship, belonging, and courage, themes that continue to resonate with tween and teenage readers today.

What makes this book truly special is that it is both resonant with its readers and true to its historical period. The story is thorough in its research and authentic in its voice. Kirby Larson’s end notes shed light on her extensive research process as the book’s author, including reading dozens of homesteaders’ journals and books about the “honyockers” of Montana. Recipes for Perilee’s Wartime Spice Cake recipe and Hattie’s Lighter-than-Lead Biscuits found in the back matter are another fun (and delicious-looking) addition that interested readers will be excited to try. And Larson’s revelation that Hattie’s story is based loosely on the life of the author’s own great grandmother will delight readers and may spark a newfound love of history. Although Hattie Big Sky doesn’t end with a traditional happily ever after, this story is sure to be a popular favorite on any bookshelf.

AWARDS AND REVIEW EXCERPTS

John Newbery Medal Honor Book, 2007

School Library Journal Best Books List for Grade 6–8, 2006

YALSA Best Books for Young Adults List, 2007

From Kirkus: “This fine offering may well inspire readers to find out more about their own family histories.”

From Booklist: “The authentic first-person narrative, full of hope and anxiety, effectively portrays Hattie’s struggles as a young woman with limited options, a homesteader facing terrible odds, and a loyal citizen confused about the war and the local anti-German bias that endangers her new friends. . . . Writing in figurative language that draws on nature and domestic detail to infuse [Larson’s] story with the sounds, smells, and sights of the prairie, she creates a richly textured novel full of memorable characters.”

CONNECTIONS

  • Share Kirby Larson’s revelation that Hattie’s story is based loosely on the life of the author’s own great grandmother. Ask teens to learn more about their own family histories. Then have a special family history event where teens can share their favorite family stories orally, through pictures and art, or through written storytelling.
  • As part of a library youth book club, read Hattie Big Sky together. Then have a Hattie Big Sky party, complete with a “barn dance” and the recipes found in the back of the book.
  • Set out a teen book display featuring books set during World War I, such as the following:
    • Berry, Julie. Lovely War. ISBN 9780451469939
    • Westerfeld, Scott. Leviathan.ISBN 9781416971733
    • Murphy, Jim. Truce. ISBN 9780545130493
  • Put out a display of all the 2007 Newbery Award finalists including Hattie Big Sky. Then allow middle-graders and teens to vote on their favorite title and hold an awards ceremony for the favorite pick.
    • Patron, Susan, and Matt Phelan (illustrator). The Higher Power of Lucky. ISBN 9781416901945
    • Holm, Jennifer L. Penny from Heaven. ISBN 9780375836879
    • Lord, Cynthia. Rules. ISBN 9780439443821

*Note—This book review was created as an assignment for a course at Texas Woman’s University.

Scott O’Dell Award Winning Book

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Williams-Garcia, Rita. One Crazy Summer. New York: Amistad, 2010. ISBN 9780060760885

PLOT SUMMARY

Delphine knows that her mother is nothing but crazy. So when her Pa decides it’s time to fly Delphine and her two younger sisters to California to meet the mom that abandoned them seven years ago, Delphine isn’t all that excited. At least Delphine, Vonetta, and Fern will be able to go to Disneyland. But when the girls touch down in Oakland, they learn that their summer will be no amusement park. Cecile, their mother, is about as motherly as a cactus and she definitely did not ask to have her three girls shipped over. While Cecile busily prints off posters and poems for the radical Black Panthers in her kitchen, she sends her daughters off to a Black Panthers-sponsored summer camp each morning to get free breakfast and to get out of her hair. In the crazy summer of 1968, the girls learn more about Black power, revolution, and—slowly but surely—more about their outwardly prickly mother.

CRITICAL ANALYSIS

In this short but powerful novel, eleven-year-old Delphine take center stage. Delphine, the narrator of One Crazy Summer, has a voice that rivets readers from the very beginning. She muses that she’s a “plain” kind of person, steady and straightforward, but Delphine is anything but plain. Her sisterly devotion makes her both extraordinary and lovable. When Cecile only gets Chinese takeout every night, leaving Fern with nasty stomachaches, Delphine determines to shop for ingredients and cook dinner herself. When Cecile takes Delphine’s money, leaving the children without the California trip they’d hoped for, Delphine makes their own vacation, taking her sisters to explore San Francisco through her own eleven-year-old ingenuity. When summer camp classmates tease seven-year-old Fern for carrying around a doll, Delphine is quick to defend her sister. Readers can’t help but root for this no-nonsense main character.

The setting of the story is vivid and alive, firmly entrenched in Oakland, California during the summer of 1968. Delphine begins the story with a nod to Muhammad Ali as the plane’s turbulence is compared to a “Cassius Clay-left-and-a-right-jab.” The book is also peppered with other historical references: Delphine’s sisters talk about then-popular TV shows like Captain Kangaroo and Mighty Mouse, singers like The Monkeesand Brenda and the Tabulations, and the Vietnam War. Most integral to the novel is the Black Panthers, a radical group that recruits the girls’ mother for help making prints and poetry for their cause. While Cecile is printing and writing, she sends her daughters off to a Black Panthers-sponsored summer camp for kids where they’re taught about words like “revolution” and “Black power” and participate in a rally to remember the murdered Black Panther, Bobby Hutton.

Thanks to William-Garcia’s talent, the revolution and its members are written with incredible nuance. Sister Mukumbu, a Black Panther summer camp teacher, is compassionate and kind, while another Black Panther, “Crazy Kelvin,” is—well—crazy.. Delphine notices both the foreboding rifle-bearing leader, Huey Newton, and the hospitable, kind summer camp workers working together with locals, both Black and white. While Cecile never turns into the mom the girls have hoped she would be and Delphine never receives the motherly praise she craves, this bittersweet mother-daughter relationship is offset by Delphine’s loving and unbreakable sisterly bond with Vonetta and Fern. A memorable main character, a vivid setting, and a nuanced perspective of a radical historical group make this book a standout. Libraries need this book on their shelves.

AWARDS AND REVIEW EXCERPTS

Winner of the Coretta Scott King Book Award, 2011

John Newbery Medal Honor Book, 2011

National Book Award Finalist, 2010

Winner of the Scott O’Dell Award for Historical Fiction, 2011

From Kirkus: “The depiction of the time is well done, and while the girls are caught up in the difficulties of adults, their resilience is celebrated and energetically told with writing that snaps off the page.”

From Booklist: “Regimented, responsible, strong-willed Delphine narrates in an unforgettable voice, but each of the sisters emerges as a distinct, memorable character, whose hard-won, tenuous connections with their mother build to an aching, triumphant conclusion. Set during a pivotal moment in African American history, this vibrant novel shows the subtle ways that political movements affect personal lives; but just as memorable is the finely drawn, universal story of children reclaiming a reluctant parent’s love.”

CONNECTIONS

  • Create a small book display with middle-grade and young adult novels about the Black Panthers. Along with One Crazy Summer, include books such as the following:
    • Magoon, Kekla. The Rock and the River. ISBN 9781416975823
    • Spotswood, Jessica (editor). A Tyranny of Petticoats. ISBN 9780763678487
    • Shih, Bryan, and Yohuru Williams (editors). The Black Panthers: Portraits from an Unfinished Revolution. ISBN 9781568585567
  • In One Crazy Summer, Delphine, Vonetta, and Fern recite poetry in front of a crowd. Host your own poetry recitation/slam night and invite middle-graders and young adults to recite poetry they’ve written or that they enjoy.
  • Read a short bio about Rita Williams-Garcia, the author of One Crazy Summer. Then set out a display of other middle-grade and young adult books by Williams-Garcia.
    • Williams-Garcia, Rita. P.S. Be Eleven. ISBN 9780061938627
    • Zoboi, Ibi (editor). Black Enough: Stories of Being Young & Black in America.ISBN 9780062698742
    • Williams-Garcia, Rita. Like Sisters on the Homefront. ISBN 9780140385618
  • Put out a display of all the 2011 Newbery Award finalists including One Crazy Summer. Then allow middle-graders to vote on their favorite title and hold an awards ceremony for the favorite pick.
    • Vanderpool, Clare. Moon Over Manifest. ISBN 9780385907507
    • Holm, Jennifer L. Turtle in Paradise. ISBN 9780375836886
    • Preus, Margi. Heart of a Samurai. ISBN 9780810989818
    • Sidman, Joyce, and Rick Allen (illustrator). Dark Emperor and Other Poems of the Night. ISBN 9780547152288

*Note—This book review was created as an assignment for a course at Texas Woman’s University.

A Biography

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Fleming, Candace. The Rise and Fall of Charles Lindbergh. New York: Schwartz & Wade Books, 2020. ISBN 9780525646556

PLOT SUMMARY

The title says it all: The Rise and Fall of Charles Lindbergh is about one man’s great triumphs—among them, his nonstop flight from New York to Paris—and his great flaws—among them, his belief in eugenics and a master race. Fleming takes her readers through Charles’s strange childhood, his short-lived college stint, and his pilot training. After graduating at the top of his class, Lindbergh heard about the race to get from New York to Paris and knew his plane could do it. With luck and incredible endurance, Charles and The Spirit of St. Louis made their historic flight across the Atlantic, the nation going wild for the “flying kid.” From then on, Charles was swarmed by tabloids. His wedding was carried out in secret, but his honeymoon was interrupted by intrusive reporters. When his young son was kidnapped and held for ransom, the press ran amok on his property. The Lindberghs finally fled to England to escape, but while there, Charles became even more enamored with Germany and eugenics. Returning to America, he became the voice of America First, opposing American involvement in World War II and supporting eugenics and anti-Semitism. For the rest of his life, Charles was both admired and detested by Americans and the world at large.

CRITICAL ANALYSIS

Candace Fleming has already proved that she’s well-versed in nonfiction stories for kids and teens with titles like Family Romanov, a Robert F. Sibert honor book; Amelia Lost, an ALA Notable Children’s Book; and The Lincolns, winner of the Boston Globe–Horn Book Award; and over 25 other informational books. The Rise and Fall of Charles Lindbergh, the 2021 YALSA Award winner, is another exceptional piece of writing. Not only is Fleming’s biography engaging and easy to read, but it’s also sprinkled with the genuine voices of its protagonists. Her abundant use of authentic, raw journal entries from both Charles and Anne allow their personalities to leap from the page, creating an intimate picture of two very real, very flawed individuals. Photos, an extensive bibliography organized into primary and secondary sources, detailed source notes for all thirty-three chapters, and a thorough index provide readers with a wealth of resources that many teens will undoubtedly feel compelled to use to learn more about this fascinating, sometimes shocking character.

But Fleming does more than merely write a story to shock her readers. Anyone looking for a nuanced perspective on a very complex man will find it here in the pages of The Rise and Fall of Charles Lindbergh. Fleming deftly paints a picture of the man who is neither solely the hero celebrated by America after his historic flight nor the villain decried by that same America after his infamous America First speeches echoed from radio stations across the nation. Nuance is so often lost in the human race’s inherent eagerness to categorize historical figures as either “good” or “evil.” Yet Fleming never gives in to this urge, staying ever faithful to her multifaceted approach of this complicated man, capable of both great love (stopping at nothing to save his infant boy) and terrible hatred (stopping at nothing to promote eugenics in America). Fleming invites readers to explore Lindbergh’s complicated life, to see both the bad and the good—ignoring neither—and to think critically about both. Controversial and vibrant, Charles Lindbergh comes alive in Fleming’s unforgettable biography. This book deserves be added to every library collection.

AWARDS AND REVIEW EXCERPTS

Winner of the 2021 YALSA Award for Excellence in Nonfiction for Young Adults

Publisher’s Weekly Best Children’s Book of 2020

Booklist Book Review Star, 2020

From Booklist: “Fleming places, in his historical context and ours, a man of intense contradictions. Absorbing and distressing in turns, this utterly prescient capture of a life and the lives it influenced is essential in classrooms and for history buffs alike.”

From Publishers Weekly: “A compelling biography of a flawed, larger-than-life man.” 

CONNECTIONS

  • Provide a brief introduction to The Rise and Fall of Charles Lindbergh and other young adult aviation stories, such as the following:
    • Wein, Elizabeth. A Thousand Sisters: The Heroic Airwomen of the Soviet Union in World War II. ISBN 9780062453013
    • Sheinkin, Steve, and Bijou Karman (illustrator). Born to Fly: The First Women’s Air Race Across America. ISBN 9781626721302
    • Waters, Eric. Fly Boy. ISBN 9780143176305
  • Along with The Rise and Fall of Charles Lindbergh, show teens young adult materials about the Lindbergh family, such as the following:
    • Bryant, Jen. The Trial. ISBN 9780375827525
    • Haddix, Margaret P. Revealed. ISBN 9781416989868
    • Anne Morrow Lindbergh: You’ll Have the Sky. PBS Documentary: 2016. Susan Wallner (director).
  • Read a short bio about Candace Fleming, the author of The Rise and Fall of Charles Fleming. Then set out a display of other young adult books by Fleming for teens to browse.
    • Fleming, Candace. The Family Romanov: Murder, Rebellion, and the Fall of Imperial Russia. ISBN 9780375867828
    • Fleming, Candace. Amelia Lost: The Life and Disappearance of Amelia Earhart. ISBN 9780375841989
    • Fleming, Candace. The Lincolns: A Scrapbook Look at Abraham and Mary. ISBN 9780375836183
  • Put out a display of all the 2021 YALSA Nonfiction Award finalists. Then allow teens to vote on their favorite title and hold an awards ceremony for the favorite nonfiction pick.
    • Soontornvat, Christina. All Thirteen: The Incredible Cave Rescue of the Thai Boys’ Soccer Team. ISBN 9781536209457
    • Sabic-El-Rayess, Amra, with Laura L. Sullivan. The Cat I Never Named: A True Story of Love, War, and Survival. ISBN 9781547604531
    • Rocco, John. How We Got to the Moon: The People, Technology, and Daring Feats of Science Behind Humanity’s Greatest Adventure. ISBN 9780525647416
    • Rusch, Elizabeth. You Call This Democracy?: How to Fix Our Democracy and Deliver Power to the People. ISBN 9780358387428

*Note—This book review was created as an assignment for a course at Texas Woman’s University.

Nonfiction Book by Catherine Thimmesh

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Thimmesh, Catherine, and Melissa Sweet (illustrator). Girls Think of Everything: Stories of Ingenious Inventions by Women. New York: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2018. ISBN 9781328772534

PLOT SUMMARY

Girls Think of Everything is an informational book dedicated to girls and inventions from around the world. The book begins with end pages that introduce famous women inventors from the pre-1800s to 2018. Next comes the table of contents and an introduction to women inventors of yesteryear, of modern times, and of the future, followed by in-depth studies of 15 famous women inventors that have changed the world. Among them are Azza Abdelhamid Faiad, a teenager living in Egypt with ideas for eliminating plastic waste; Ann Moore, a former Peace Corps pediatric nurse who designed an ingenious baby carrier; and Grace Murray Hopper, a mathematician who helped to create the first universal computer language. Thimmesh finishes the book with a section titled “Your Turn,” with resources for kids and teens interested in creating inventions of their own. The book also includes bibliographic sources, a glossary of terms, and an index.

CRITICAL ANALYSIS

Girls Think of Everything is a well-crafted informational book and in its show of diversity, the book shines especially brightly. From chocolate chip cookies to waterproof solar lanterns; from KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa, to Albuquerque, New Mexico; and from well-established professionals to high-schoolers and college students, this book is a fantastic showcase of women inventors and inventions of all kinds. Middle-grade and teenage readers will appreciate the diversity of inventions, races, and age groups of the inventors, especially the four high school inventors included in this updated second edition. Readers will also be inspired by the “Your Turn” section in the back of the book, which provides resources to learn more about the patent process and the programs and contests available to young inventors on an international level.

The book’s organization is good, for the most part. Girls Think of Everything includes a top notch timeline, table of contents, introduction, select bibliography, glossary, and index—each a valuable research tool for its middle-grade audience, especially the inventors-in-training among them. However, the lack of order for Thimmesh’s 15 invention stories (chronological, alphabetical, or otherwise) is puzzling, especially since the book begins with end pages displaying a chronological timeline of women inventors. The pink side blurbs that accompany each invention are also problematic. While the extra information is fun to read, it always pops up mid-story when readers are still trying to engage with the main text, thus distracting from rather than enhancing the main text.

But despite some design flaws, Thimmesh’s stories create interest and enthusiasm about each unique invention and inventor, inspiring readers to create inventions of their own. Especially exceptional entries included those of Grace Murray Hopper, a woman with a can-do attitude and a love for mathematical code; Trisha Prabhu, a teen who heard about the harmful effects of cyberbullying and felt compelled to take a stand; and the inventing duo Anna Stork and Andrea Sreshta, two college students who wanted to help those effected by the devastating earthquake that hit Haiti in 2010. Girls Think of Everything offers a fascinating look at woman inventors and, despite its imperfections, deserves a space on the middle-grade STEAM shelf.

AWARDS AND REVIEW EXCERPTS

From School Library Journal: “This updated edition of the 2000 collective biography showcases greater diversity in its representation of women inventors. . . . Expanded resources for aspiring scientists and a time line that emphasizes more recent inventions are welcome changes. . . . In a growing marketplace of works about women transforming the world, this title holds its own.”

From Horn Book: “Today’s readers will find a laudable increase in the subjects’ diversity as well as a more contemporary focus. . . . A resource as informative as it is empowering.”

CONNECTIONS

  • Using Girls Think of Everything, share the four stories of high-schoolers and their inventions. Then ask middle-graders to think of a problem they’d like to solve and invite them to come up with a prototype for an invention to solve it.
  • Divide middle-schoolers into groups and invite them to pick one inventor from Girls Think of Everything to study and research together. Then ask each group to present to the other groups about the inventor they researched.
  • Read about Ruth Wakefield, the inventor of the chocolate chip cookie. Then present children with the ingredients for cookies and allow them to choose an unconventional (but safe) ingredient to add to the cookies. Create a name for the cookies and, if possible, allow children to taste the cookies they’ve invented.
  • Read a few stories from Girls Think of Everything. Then read a bio of Catherine Thimmesh and set out some of her other books for children to browse such as the following:
    • Thimmesh, Catherine. Team Moon: How 400,000 People Landed Apollo 11 on the Moon. ISBN 9780618507573
    • Thimmesh, Catherine. Lucy Long Ago: Uncovering the Mystery of Where We Came From. ISBN 9780547051994
    • Thimmesh, Catherine. Team Panda: Helping Cubs Return to the Wild. ISBN 9780544818910

*Note—This book review was created as an assignment for a course at Texas Woman’s University.

Sibert Award Winner

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Bryant, Jen, and Melissa Sweet (illustrator). The Right Word: Roget and His Thesaurus. Grand Rapids, MI: Erdman’s Books for Young Readers, 2014. ISBN 9780802853851

PLOT SUMMARY

Peter Roget (pronounced “Roh-zhay”) loved making lists. At the age of 8, he began his first, listing the Latin names of beasts next to their English counterparts. As he grew older, Peter became more and more enamored with lists and especially with lists of synonymous words. Even as he studied, traveled, became a doctor, got married, started a family, and dabbled in science, Peter continued growing his book of synonyms. Finally, after several other men had attempted to create thesauruses but with mixed results, Roget’s children convinced him to publish the thesaurus he’d been creating for years. His was the best, they assured. The people who read Roget’s thesaurus thought his was the best too! It became an instant hit. Even today, more than 150 years after Roget’s thesaurus was first published, it has never gone out of print. The Right Word includes a short timeline of Peter Roget’s life and other concurrent world events, a selected bibliography, suggested books for further reading, sources, a complete list of the 1,000 words found in Roget’s thesaurus, an author’s note, and an illustrator’s note.

CRITICAL ANALYSIS

The Right Word is one of those rare books with incredible dedication to detail and historical accuracy. Each page reveals careful study on the part of both author and illustrator. For example, readers learn that at age 8, Roget began writing his first “book”—a list of Latin words he’d learned from his English tutor. What makes this seemingly normal piece of information so incredible is that Melissa Sweet uses the illustrations to deepen the reader’s understanding of Roget’s list. To accompany the story about 8-year-old Roget, readers see an illustration of the actual words Roget printed in his book, a list of Latin beasts and their English counterparts—leo for lion, ursus for bear. In this and every other illustration, the lists of words that Melissa Sweet draws come straight from Roget’s notebooks and his 1852 thesaurus. Her design not only complements the text, but it often gives readers further understanding about the subject.

While the illustrations are notably researched, they might prove problematic to readers who find Sweet’s signature collages (colorful organized chaos) visually overstimulating. For example, Sweet draws columns of lists describing the four elements, the weather (in Latin and English), shapes, triangles, things that are green (in Latin and English), and things that fly, all on just one motley page spread of browns, whites, greens, reds, and blues ripped from pages of many-textured papers, some clipped onto the page, some pasted helter-skelter. With so much clutter, readers may be derailed from the main text of the story.

But while the illustrations sometimes outshine the text they’re meant to complement, it’s never due to poor writing. Jen Bryant has a knack for creating sentences that use just the right words to keep readers interested. The book begins, “Baby Annette slept in Mother’s arms, a small pink blossom against a wall of black.” The first sentence creates immediate interest with its unique metaphor—a baby isn’t a blossom but she could certainly look like one! Bryant never stops constructing these wholly original sentences. Roget’s idea for a thesaurus is carried “like a secret treasure,” and to describe the popularity of Roget’s thesaurus, Bryant writes, “People snatched it from the shelves like a new kind of candy,” a simile that will certainly strike a chord with its young, confectionery-loving audience.

The story’s reference aids are impressive too. Most notably, the timeline of principal events both in Roget’s life the world at large gives readers a better sense of the time period Roget inhabited. During Roget’s lifetime, he saw the end of the American Revolution ended and, only eighty years later, the beginning of the American Civil War. Young researchers will also learn that the term “scientist” wasn’t coined until Roget was almost 50!

One of the characters in The Right Word declares that Roget’s thesaurus is “a marvel, a wonder, a surprise!” But The Right Word itself, an incredibly crafted informational picture book, certainly deserves the same praise. This book is a must-buy for every library.

AWARDS AND REVIEW EXCERPTS

Robert F. Sibert Informational Picture Book Award Winner, 2015

Randolph Caldecott Honor Book, 2015

Orbis Pictus Honor Book, 2015

Golden Kite Award Winner, 2015

Kirkus Prize Finalist, 2014

From Booklist: “In brilliant pages teeming with enthusiasm for language and learning, Bryant and Sweet (A Splash of Red, 2013) joyfully celebrate curiosity, the love of knowledge, and the power of words.”

From Kirkus: “Bryant’s prose is bright and well-tuned for young readers. She goes gently, omitting Roget’s darkest traumas, such as witnessing his uncle’s suicide. Sweet tops herself—again!—visually reflecting Roget’s wide range as a thinker and product of the Enlightenment. . . . In a word: marvelous!”

From Publishers Weekly: “Together with Bryant’s sympathetic account, Sweet’s gentle riot of images and words humanizes the man behind this ubiquitous reference work and demystifies the thesaurus itself.”

CONNECTIONS

  • After reading The Right Word, play a synonym game with middle-graders. Split children into groups and then say a word (like “big”), giving the groups one minute to write down as many synonyms as they can for the word (like “humongous,” “gigantic,” “ginormous,” “huge,” etc.). Then share the words each group has come up with, and repeat the exercise.
  • Read The Right Word with another 2015 Sibert Honor picture books, such as the following:
    • Roy, Katherine. Neighborhood Sharks: Hunting with the Great Whites of California’s Farallon Islands. ISBN 9781596438743
    • Tonatiuh, Duncan. Separate Is Never Equal: Sylvia Mendez & Her Family’s Fight for Desegregation. ISBN 9781419710544
    • Powell, Patricia H., and Christian Robinson (illustrator). Josephine: The Dazzling Life of Josephine Baker. ISBN 9781452103143
  • As a creative writing prompt, ask children to write their own unique list of things like Peter Roget did in The Right Word, and pull out art supplies for children to decorate their lists. Hang them up when they’re finished.
  • Read The Right Word. Then read a bio of the illustrator, Melissa Sweet, and set out some of the other nonfiction books she’s illustrated, such as the following:
    • Sweet, Melissa. Some Writer!: The Story of E.B. White. ISBN 9780544319592
    • Sweet, Melissa. Balloons Over Broadway: The True Story of the Puppeteer of Macy’s Parade. ISBN 9780547199450
    • Markel, Michelle, and Melissa Sweet (illustrator). Brave Girl: Clara and the Shirtwaist Makers’ Strike of 1909. ISBN 9780061804427

*Note—This book review was created as an assignment for a course at Texas Woman’s University.

Novel in Verse

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Lai, Thanhha. Inside Out & Back Again. New York: Harper, 2011. ISBN 9780061962783

PLOT SUMMARY

Told in verse, Inside Out & Back Again is the story of a girl and her journey from her war-torn home country, Vietnam, to a strange, often difficult new one in America. The novel begins in February 1975 in Saigon, where Hà lives with her mother and three older brothers. With the country in the throes of war and her father taken by the communists, Hà and her family are shepherded aboard a runaway navy ship by a kind uncle. For over three weeks, the family and other Vietnamese refugees live at sea on cut rations and one bathroom break a day, hoping to be spotted and saved by rescue boats. Finally, Americans come, bringing food and transport to camps in Guam and then in Florida, where the family waits for weeks on end, hoping and praying for an American sponsor. When a “cowboy” comes to the camp looking for a car mechanic, Hà’s brother Quang, who studied engineering in Vietnam, catches his eye and cowboy man decides to bring the whole family home with him to Alabama. The move to the state is difficult for school-smart Hà, who now struggles to learn English and keep up with her classmates. Bullies and racist neighbors make life even more difficult. Still, Hà manages to rise above her difficulties, holding tightly to her family, a kindly next-door neighbor, and school friends who care. One full year after Inside Out begins, Hà senses that her future is bright.

CRITICAL ANALYSIS

Lai’s mastery of imagery, exemplified in her descriptions of papaya, is astoundingly good. First, Hà introduces readers to the papaya seed she has planted, “a seed like / a fish eye, / slippery / shiny / black”—and then to the freshly picked papaya itself, which Hà describes as “soft as a yam / gliding down / after three easy, / thrilling chews”—and lastly, to a different kind of papaya given to her in her new home in Alabama: “Three pouches of dried papaya / chewy / sugary / waxy / sticky / not the same / at all.” The imagery of the fruit, “middle sweet / between a mango and a pear,” imbues itself into the pages so descriptively, so palpably that readers will feel as though they can almost taste the exotic fruit—and with it, Hà’s joys and sorrows.

Lai hasn’t just mastered imagery; she’s mastered language itself. There’s no doubt that her poetic verse packs a Bruce Lee punch, despite the brevity of the lines. Readers will smile behind the curtains with Mother as Hà’s brother Vu teaches neighbors combat techniques in the front yard, slowly winning over the community after having eggs thrown through their door and bricks smashed through their window. Readers will join Hà in despair when “Mother runs in after work, / hands clenched into white balls,” her amethyst wedding stone—and the last hope of her husband—lost forever. Readers will sympathize with Hà as her friendly neighbor, “MiSSiss WaSShington,” begins to teach her English, the hissy language she can’t pronounce. Finally, readers will cheer with Hà as she reveals her New Year’s hope: to “truly learn . . . to fly.” Hà’s emotions—and, inevitably, the reader’s own—will run the gamut, from scared and sorrowful to exultant.

This book is an important one. It is a book that will likely resonate with refugees and, perhaps more importantly, provide those who have never had a refugee experience with important insights. Furthermore, its format gives middle-graders an impressive introduction to verse poetry, and its imagery and emotional appeal provide unquestionable literary merit to middle-grade, teen, and adult readers alike. This book should be part of every library’s collection.

AWARDS AND REVIEW EXCERPTS

Newbery Medal Nominee (2012)

National Book Award for Young People’s Literature (2011)

Jane Addams Children’s Book Award Nominee for Older Children (2012)

From Publisher’s Weekly: “Narrating in sparse free-verse poems, 10-year-old Hà brings a strong, memorable voice to the immigrant experience as her family moves from war-torn South Vietnam to Alabama in 1975.”

From BookPage Reviews: “Lai’s spare poetry, full of emotion and infused with humor, is accessible to young children and adults alike. This moving and beautifully told story is a must-read for anyone who works with children new to the country.”

From Kirkus Reviews: “In her not-to-be-missed debut, Lai evokes a distinct time and place and presents a complex, realistic heroine whom readers will recognize, even if they haven’t found themselves in a strange new country.”

CONNECTIONS

  • Read Inside Out & Back Again as an introduction to the Vietnam War. Then suggest the following books on the Vietnam War for teens to read and discuss in groups:
    • Crowe, Chris. Death Coming Up a Hill. ISBN 9780544302150
    • Schmidt, Gary D. Okay for Now. ISBN 9780547152608
    • Kadohata, Cynthia. Cracker!: The Best Dog in Vietnam. ISBN 9780547152608
  • Read Lai’s free verse poems about the papaya. Discuss how she uses imagery to bring her poetry to life. Invite middle-graders to write their own free verse poetry about fruit. Then, bring papaya and other fruits for a fruit party while children share their poems.
  • After reading Inside Out & Back Again, invite middle-graders and teens to read other books and short stories by Thanhha Lai. Then, have a discussion about which they liked best and why:
    • Lai, Thanhha. Listen, Slowly. ISBN 9780062229182
    • Lai, Thanhha. Butterfly Yellow. ISBN 9780062229236
    • Scieszka, Jon (editor). True Stories. ISBN 9780062316523
  • After reading Inside Out & Back Again, invite teens to read other verse poetry. Then, vote on which they liked best and hold an awards ceremony for the favorite verse novel. The list could include the following:
    • Reynolds, Jason. Long Way Down. ISBN 9781481438254
    • Anderson, Laurie H. SHOUT. ISBN 9780670012107
    • Wolff, Virginia E. Make Lemonade. ISBN 9780805080704

*Note—This book review was created as an assignment for a course at Texas Woman’s University.

A Book by Douglas Florian

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Florian, Douglas. Poetrees. New York: Beach Lane Books, 2010. ISBN 9781416986720

PLOT SUMMARY

In Poetrees, Douglas Florian has created a poetry collection dedicated to all things tree—its seed, its bark, its roots and rings. His poems also go beyond tree anatomy to teach readers about a wide variety of tree species—among others, the baobab (“Vat tree. / Fat tree. / Bottle tree. / Brown tree”), the giant sequoia (“Grow by degrees / To world’s tallest trees”), and the bristlecone pine (“One of the oldest trees on Earth, / With swirling branches, twirling girth”). The book’s original format turns the book sideways to read top to bottom rather than left to right, and its original art was created using a variety of mediums on top of brown paper bags. The book includes a “glosatree” and a list of other tree resources for the blossoming arbor lover.

CRITICAL ANALYSIS

Douglas Florian has a strong sense of rhythm, and the arrangement of each poem’s meter and line reflects deliberate writing. In his first poem, “The Seed,” Florian uses a single, unbroken poetic line in the shape of the infinity symbol to deftly depict the never-ending cycle of the tree (and the seed and the tree . . . ). In “Coconut Palm,” Florian creates a short, bouncy ABAB rhyme scheme to echo the light tone of the poem’s text. In “Monkey Puzzle Tree,” Florian pens a true limerick, the perfect vessel for his humorous musings. Each of Florian’s poems has a rhythm that matches its tone, a true feat in the poetry world. Furthermore, Florian’s poetry never feels forced and his poems hold to an unfaltering rhythm, reminiscent of the unfaltering stability of trees.

The design of the book itself is also commendable. The pages turn vertically, allowing trees to reach great heights on the paper. But the quality of the illustrations themselves is a mélange. Some reflect the mood of the poem exceptionally well. (These include “Giant Sequoias” with its breathtaking collage of ecological coexistence, and the gorgeous watercolor circles in “Tree Rings” which complement the wonder of discovering a tree’s history.) However, some illustrations are so bizarre that they make otherwise strong poems seem at best badly matched with their visual counterparts and at worst unappealing. (These include “Roots,” paired with an unsettling and seemingly random brown watercolor of a shirtless man, and “Banyan,” accompanied by underdeveloped tree outlines and a strange Weiner-dog-esque creature lying at the root).

As for the language of Poetrees, one characteristic of the collection is the ample use of the pun. In fact, puns can be found in almost every poem in the collection, in both the poetry itself (cold-climate paper birch is renamed “paper birrrrrrrrrrrrrch”) and in the illustrations (dogs peek out from underneath the “bark”). While clever puns are sure to delight clever children, on occasion the puns feel too ample. In “Japanese Ceder,” for example, the puns “ex-seed-ingly” and “tree-mendous” are repeated five times in the short ten-line poem, making it seem more trite than witty. Occasionally, Florian produces poetry that feels underdeveloped. Take “Oak,” for example, with its four short lines—“From the acorn / Grows the tree— / Slowly, / Slowly.” In summary, Florian’s Poetrees shows a grasp of rhythm and rhyme, but the illustrations and language aren’t consistent enough to merit true excellence.

AWARDS AND REVIEW EXCERPTS

From School Library Journal: “This exquisite collection, with its thoughtful wordplay and timely subject, rewards careful reading and should resonate with a wide audience.”

From Horn Book Magazine: “Trees need all the help they can muster in today’s world; this quirky entry may well enlist interest.” 

From Booklist: “Starting with the book’s title and ending with a final glossatree, the wordplay in Florian’s latest poetry collection provides plenty of fun.”

From Kirkus Reviews: “Trees receive a witty and informative rhyming appreciation. . . . Although some of [Florian’s] wordplay falls flat (sequoias are “Ancient seers / Of three thousand years”), by and large the poems live up to his usual high standard. . . . Readers and listeners will learn and laugh.”

CONNECTIONS

  • Read the shape poem “Tree Rings” together. Then invite children to create shape poems of their own.
  • Show children a local field guide of trees and go on a neighborhood walk together, allowing children to collect leaves, seeds, and bark. Then, use the book to identify tree species together and create a “neighborhood tree guide” by pasting leaves and seeds onto paper and writing the species name underneath. The following book could be a helpful reference:
    • Gibbons, Gail. Tell Me, Tree: All About Trees for Kids. ISBN 9780316309035
  • Read excerpts from Poetrees with other excerpts from Douglas Florian. Ask children which book or poem is their favorite and why.
    • Florian, Douglas. Comets, Stars, the Moon, and Mars: Space Poems and Paintings. ISBN 9780152053727
    • Florian, Douglas. Insectlopedia. ISBN 9780152163358
    • Florian, Douglas. Winter Eyes. ISBN 9780688164584
  • Read Poetrees with other picture books about trees. Then, ask children to write and illustrate their own tree story.
    • Napoli, Donna J., and Kadir Nelson (illustrator). Mama Miti: Wangari Maathai and the Trees of Kenya. ISBN 9781416935056
    • Hopkins, H. J., and Jill McElmurry (illustrator). The Tree Lady: The True Story of How One Tree-Loving Woman Changed a City Forever. ISBN 9781442414020
    • Zweibel, Alan, and David Catrow (illustrator). Our Tree Named Steve. ISBN 9780142407431

*Note—This book review was created as an assignment for a course at Texas Woman’s University.

Award Winning Poetry Book

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Hoberman, Mary A., and Linda Winston (editors). The Tree That Time Built. Naperville, IL: Sourcebooks Jabberwocky, 2009. ISBN 9781402225178

PLOT SUMMARY

Science and poetry are more alike than we might think. That’s what a children’s poet laureate–schoolteacher duo are out to prove in a book dedicated to the greatest naturalist of all time—Charles Darwin. This compilation of over 100 poems by more than 70 poets is divided into nine sections honoring topics such as the sea, the trees, prehistoric life, reptiles, and our role in taking care of the planet. Classic poets like Ralph Waldo Emerson, William Blake, Emily Dickinson, and Ogden Nash make an appearance. Yet the duo is also careful to select poems from modern award-winners like Joseph Bruchac, Douglas Florian, Kristine O’Connell George, and Tony Johnston, as well as lesser-known writers. Poems are sometimes accompanied by minimalistic art and brief comments or questions for the reader to ponder. The back of the book includes a glossary, suggestions for further reading, and short summaries of each poet.

CRITICAL ANALYSIS

The organization in The Tree That Time Built is well done and the design is clean and clear. Each section is marked with a thoughtful introduction and a breathtaking tree illustration. Teachers, parents, and middle-graders need look no further for a poetry collection that bridges the gap between juvenile and adult poetry. The book includes not only oral readings of many of the poems, but also a helpful glossary, poet bibliography, and additional resources for further naturalistic and poetic study. And, with questions reflecting on what the world would be like without trees or what would happen if we lost our connection to the natural world, the book prompts thoughtful middle-graders to think more deeply, helping them to gain important analytical skills and a deeper appreciation for poetry, science, and the connections we share with all living things.

Furthermore, poems run the emotional gamut. Some are funny like “The Jellyfish and the Clam”—one “‘no more than a lump of wet squish,’” the other “‘just a thick shell.’”  Some are philosophical like “If They Spoke,” a poem in which Mark Van Doren wonders what animals would tell us if they could talk. Some are comforting like “The Sea is Our Mother,” and others melancholy like “Nothing Gold Can Stay.” In a truly incredible display of their selection powers, Hoberman and Winston have successfully balanced an enormous variety of poetical voices, no one outtalking the others.

One especially captivating poem is an excerpt from March ’79, translated from its original Swedish. The translator writes, “I come across the marks of roe-deer’s hooves in the snow. / Language but no words.” Here, readers uncover an original and wholly surprising insight—that animal tracks tell a story. As delightful as this poem was to read, even more delightful is the fact that each and every poem has its own insight to ponder. In this collection, there are no duds.

AWARDS AND REVIEW EXCERPTS

Cybils Award Nominee for Poetry (2009)

From Publisher’s Weekly: “Taken in total, the poems encompass nature’s multitudinous qualities, from harsher realities (‘On my early walk/ I passed the Frog Prince/ dead in a rut of the road,’ in Virginia Hamilton Adair’s Early Walk) to its ability to inspire at its most microscopic, as Ralph Waldo Emerson writes, ‘Atom from atom yawns as far/ As moon from earth,/ as star from star.’”

From Booklist: “Selected by Winston, an anthropologist and teacher, and Hoberman, the current U.S. Children’s Poet Laureate, this attractive, accessible anthology collects poems that celebrate both the facts and the mysteries of the natural world.”

From Library Media Connection: “Children’s Poet Laureate Mary Ann Hoberman gives us an exciting collection of over 100 poems that make connections between poetry and science. . . . This collection would be a great choice to use as a collaborative tool with Middle School Science and English classes.”

From School Library Journal: “From the playful to the profound, the poems invite reflection and inspire further investigation.”

CONNECTIONS

  • Ask middle-schoolers to pick one favorite poem from the collection and memorize it. Then have a recitation party together.
  • Focus on one of the poems from the collection that includes commentary from Hoberman and Winston. Talk through their commentary and discussion prompt together.
  • Listen to one section of the poetry collection audio CD together while middle-schoolers create a piece of artwork that relates to that poetry section. Then, put on an art show and allow them to present their work.
  • After reading The Tree That Time Built, read through some of the poet biographies in the back of the book and present children with these poets’ other works. The following books could be possible candidates:
    • Hoberman, Mary A., and Betty Fraser (illustrator). The Llama Who Had No Pajama: 100 Favorite Poems. ISBN 9780152055714
    • Prelutsky, Jack, and James Stevenson (illustrator). The New Kid on the Block. ISBN 9780688022716
    • Sidman, Joyce, and Beth Krommes (illustrator). Swirl by Swirl: Spirals in Nature. ISBN 9780547315836
    • Singer, Marilyn, and Josée Masse (illustrator). Mirror Mirror: A Book of Reverso Poems. ISBN 9780525479017

*Note—This book review was created as an assignment for a course at Texas Woman’s University.