Sunday, October 6, 2024

It's Monday! What are you reading?

An image of books has another image on top that explains what It's Monday is all about. You may find the same information in the first two sentences on the post.

It's Monday! What are you Reading? is a meme hosted by Kathryn at Book Date. It's a great way to recap what you read and/or reviewed the previous week and to plan out your reading and reviews for the upcoming week. It's also a great chance to see what others are reading right now...you just might discover your next “must-read” book! 

Kellee Moye, of Unleashing Readers, and Jen Vincent, of Teach Mentor Texts decided to give It's Monday! What Are You Reading? a kidlit focus. If you read and review books in children's literature - picture books, chapter books, middle grade novels, young adult novels, anything in the world of kidlit - join us! We love this meme and think you will, too. We encourage everyone who participates to visit at least three of the other kidlit book bloggers that link up and leave comments for them.

If you want to see more of my reading, visit my Goodreads shelves here. The lists of the books in the images below may be found at Goodreads.

Picture Books I've Shared at School Recently:

The cover of the book Viva Frida shows the word Viva in a papel picado style at the top and Frida written in a flowing style below the doll in the center. The doll looks like Frida with flowers at the top of her head. She is holding paint brushes. She has dangling earrings and her dress has a yellow top and black skirt with bright embroidered flowers at the bottom.
Viva Frida by Yuyi Morales is always a fun book to share. It has very few words, but has a lot of information in the back matter. The book is in Spanish and English. I also shared videos of Yuyi. The first I shared tells the story of how she started making children's books. The second is brief and shows how she sculpted the dolls and made some of the items in the book. The third has her explaining a lot of the process. I didn't show the whole thing, but just the first few minutes. This book is simply amazing in the details that she designed and created and I love sharing it with others. 

On the cover of the book You Hold Me Up two young Native children with dark hair are leaning forehead to forehead. They have little circles of pink on their cheeks.
You Hold Me Up by Monique Gray Smith illustrated by Danielle Daniel is always a joy to read. You can watch the author share it with children here. You can also see the video some students made in response to the book years ago when I read it in WI. Shortly after that, Monique did a virtual visit with us and was a true delight. She is such a loving person and she listens to children--really gives them her attention. 


What I Read Last Week:

I only finished one book over the week and it was an adult biography. Daughter of the Dragon: Anna May Wong's Rendezvous with American History by Yunte Huang was interesting, but it took me quite a while to read. I had only ever read a picture book about her life and wanted to know more about her especially after reading Stacey Lee's latest young adult historical mystery Kill Her Twice about a Chinese American actress during the same time period. There were parts that I flew through and others where it was a bit slow so it seemed to take a long time to read. Nonfiction goes so much slower than fiction for me. 

Currently Reading:

I have started the middle grade novel The Diamond Explorer by Kao Kalia Yang and am also reading a professional development book called Developing Digital Detectives. I'm also starting Fifty Words for Rain for a book club and will be reading The Hysterical Girls of St. Bernadette's to review over on Rich in Color. I wish you all a great week full of reading. 

Sunday, September 29, 2024

It's Monday! What Are You Reading?

An image of books has another image on top that explains what It's Monday is all about. You may find the same information in the first two sentences on the post.
It's Monday! What are you Reading? is a meme hosted by Kathryn at Book Date. It's a great way to recap what you read and/or reviewed the previous week and to plan out your reading and reviews for the upcoming week. It's also a great chance to see what others are reading right now...you just might discover your next “must-read” book! 

Kellee Moye, of Unleashing Readers, and Jen Vincent, of Teach Mentor Texts decided to give It's Monday! What Are You Reading? a kidlit focus. If you read and review books in children's literature - picture books, chapter books, middle grade novels, young adult novels, anything in the world of kidlit - join us! We love this meme and think you will, too. We encourage everyone who participates to visit at least three of the other kidlit book bloggers that link up and leave comments for them.

If you want to see more of my reading, visit my Goodreads shelves here. The lists of the books in the images below may be found at Goodreads.

Personal Update: I have not participated in such a long time. It's really true that once you skip a few times, it can be very challenging to start something again. I've been missing participating, but am finally back. Hopefully get back into the swing of things. I am now a teacher librarian at two elementary schools. One is the same one I had been at for the past two years since we moved to California. The librarians here are only half time though so I had been working several part time jobs in addition to my elementary school job. Now I am half time at two schools so I am back to just one employer. The second school is a bilingual Spanish and English school so I am learning a new space, meeting new people, and am quickly learning more Spanish. I have two classes a week and a casual conversation class once a week in addition to learning on the job. If anyone has tips on handling a Spanish/English library or how to speed up my language learning, I am happy to hear them. Thanks in advance. 

Picture Books I've Shared at School Recently:

This Land by Ashley Fairbanks illustrated by Bridget George - this is a great introduction to land acknowledgements and why they are being used. It's a great way to focus in on connecting with the land and knowing who has been there over time. We had excellent conversations about the land our school is on and whose ancestral lands our community is on.

Hiawatha and the Peacemaker by Robbie Robertson illustrated by David Shannon is a nice introduction to the Haudenosaunee and their Great Law of Peace that influenced the framers of the U.S. constitution.

Once Upon a Book by Grace Lin & Kate Messner - this was a fun one to share right before the Fall Moon Festival/Chuseok with the rabbit and moon references and it is always fun to look for that rabbit within the illustrations. Students always feel pretty proud of themselves for seeing the connection to Alice in Wonderland too.

I Want My Hat Back by Jon Klassen - it's alway a winner no matter what grade I read it to except sometimes the very young, very tender hearted can be a little sad depending on how they interpret the ending. I shared it with 6th grade and they loved it with a large amount of laughter echoing through the library.

Hike by Pete Oswald - many readers can connect with being out in nature with a parent and it's great for involving the students with the sound effects since there really aren't many words beyond sounds.

Berry Song by Michaela Goade - this was another book that we were able to connect to locally. Many of the students have gathered berries and there are many things to gather in our own county including elderberries that are on our campus. In addition, the Yocha Dehe Wintun Nation which is less than 45 minutes from us, has a video about their land management that echoes some of the exact words that are in this book, "We take care of the land.... As the land takes care of us."

How Do You Say?/¿Cómo Se Dice? and I'm Hungry!/¡Tengo Hambre! by Angela Dominguez - I love sharing her books with kindergarten students because if they know Spanish or not, these books communicate the information so the students get to hear Spanish and English and have fun too. 

Other Books I've Read Recently:

Picture Books
Home to Medicine Mountain - I am still learning about the Native Nations in California and this is a story about two brothers who were sent from Northern California to Southern California to attend a residential school there. Debbie Reese mentioned it in her webinar Selecting and Using Children's Books about Boarding Schools that's part of the free Native Ways of Knowing Virtual Book Club through California Indian Education for All. (I highly recommend this series)

Middle Grade Books
Boarding Schools by Heather Bruegl - very accessible nonfiction middle grade book that explains the impact of boarding schools on Indigenous children and their communities. 

The Beautiful Game by Yamile Saied Méndez - fun chapter book about a girl who has been playing on a boys soccer team coached by her grandfather and how things change for her drastically when she is thirteen and she ends up on a girls' team.

Red Bird Danced by Dawn Quigley was one I read for a Bookelicious Middle Grade Book Club (so many resources there). It was great to meet the author in the online book club and I even won a copy of a Jo Jo Makoons book in the giveaway. Red Bird Danced is a dual perspective book that is written in verse. The two main characters live in intertribal housing in a city. Ariel's Auntie has gone missing and both of the characters have challenges in their lives that they are dealing with as they move through the year. It's a beautiful book. 

Some others that I have enjoyed in the past little bit are Moko Magic: Carnival Chaos by Tracey Baptiste, Crushing It (another soccer book) by Erin Becker, The Kids in Mrs. Z's Class: Emma McKenna Full Out by Kate Messner, Across So Many Seas by Ruth Behar, The Last Cuentista by Donna Barba Higuera, and Pahua and the Dragon's Secret by Lori M. Lee (a sequel to Pahua and the Soul Stealer). 

Young Adult
Accountable: The True Story of a Racist Social Media Account and the Teenagers Whose Lives it Changed by Dashka Slater was one I picked up at ALA over the summer. It's by the same person who wrote The 57 Bus. Again it is a nonfiction book about an even that actually happened. It happened at a high school here in Northern California. It would be an amazing book to read with teens not just to discuss what is legally allowed and not allowed, but the ethics around all of it and the impact that words and images can have.

This Ravenous Fate was the group discussion book over at Rich in Color in September. It's a sapphic vampire book set during the Harlem Renaissance. It's pretty unique and we had a wonderful time reading and discussing it.

Whew! That's as much as I'll share for now. 

What's Next?
I just started reading The Diamond Explorer by Kao Kalia Yang and up next is Developing Digital Detectives by Jennifer LaGarde for another online book club. Have a fabulous week filled with reading.

Sunday, March 3, 2024

Spotlight on Robin Ha

Three books are sitting together. Cook Korean, Almost American Girl and The Fox Maidens

Robin Ha is a Korean American author and illustrator and if you don't know her work yet, you'll want to check it out. Earlier this year, I reviewed The Fox Maidens over at Rich in Color. It's quite a fun graphic novel especially if you like Gumiho stories. This reminded me that I had also enjoyed Robin Ha's graphic novel memoir, Almost American Girl. I figured I should find her comic book cookbook Cook Korean! as well. There was a copy at the library and I read through it, chose some recipes, and got ready to cook. 


First, I made Pan Fried Tofu. It was relatively easy and quite tasty. The illustrations are super cute and the instructions are clear and easy to follow.


The Rice Cake Soup took longer, but the recipe was also quite easy. Later, I did add an ingredient that isn't in the photo. I dropped in some mandu and that made us all quite happy. 


The Spicy Bok Choy was also simple enough to make and was also a delight to eat. We cook bok choy quite often, but usually it is served fairly simply with a broth or chopped up to add to another dish. The sauce was yummy. 

The Braised Daikon with Saury was very new to us. We've only ever had daikon in a pickled form so it was different to experience it cooked. Also, I had never heard of that kind of fish, but I thought had seen it on the shelves at the local Korean market so this was a good excuse to give it a try. Our market did have it so we were in luck. 

When I was finished making this dish, we had extra daikon left over so the next day I made some quick pickled carrots and daikon because that is one of my favorite side dishes. That wasn't in the cookbook, but I had used this recipe from My Korean Kitchen before and did it again.

I appreciated the engaging way that Robin Ha illustrated the recipes and it was cool to learn about the process of making the book with her mother's input. My family also really enjoyed the wonderful food we had as a result of this book so to Robin Ha I say 감사합니다! 

Here is a video of the author introducing her illustration process. 

Here she talks about Cook Korean!

 

Review: A Costume for Charly

Title: A Costume for Charly

Author: C.K. Malone

Illustrator: Alejandra Barajas

Publisher: Beaming Books

Review copy: Final copy via publisher

Availability: On shelves now

Summary: Trick-or-treat! Non-binary Charly must think outside the box to create the perfect Halloween costume: one that represents both their feminine and masculine sides. 

Halloween is always tricky for Charly, and this year they are determined to find a costume that showcases both the feminine and masculine halves of their identity. Digging through their costume box, they explore many fun costumes. Some are masc. Some are femme. Some are neither. But all are lacking. As trick-or-treating looms, they must think outside the box to find the perfect costume--something that will allow them to present as one hundred percent Charly.

*Our Thoughts: We are excited to see this book out in the world and are glad to have bi-gender representation for young readers. It's great that it exists and we are hopeful that many people will have the chance to read this delightful and enjoyable Halloween story.

Before even getting to the text, the illustrations are super fun. They are bright and cheery and the endpapers full of bats are top-notch. Charly's facial expressions support the text wonderfully. Altogether, the illustrations really add a lot to the story.

We appreciate the blurb on the back that says, "Charly is searching for a Halloween costume that reflects their whole self." That reflection is the goal for Charly, but also for readers. 

The alliteration and word pairings like "fangy delight" add a brightness to the story and will be sure to generate smiles. 

Recommendation: Get it soon. This is a great addition to any collection for young people especially around Halloween. 

*One of my adult children also read the book and shared some thoughts with me. 

Sunday, October 29, 2023

Review: Warrior Girl

A girl is standing on one leg with the other bent. Her arms are stretched out and her head is tilted up with streaming dark hair. There is a shield behind her left arm that has a star on it. The background is in purples, blues, and greens with large painted flower shapes.
Title: Warrior Girl

Author: Carmen Tafolla

Publisher: Nancy Paulsen Books

Pages: 209

Review Copy: ARC via publisher

Availability: On shelves now

Summary: An insightful novel in verse about the joys and struggles of a Chicana girl who is a warrior for her name, her history, and her right to choose what she celebrates in life. 

Celina and her family are bilingual and follow both Mexican and American traditions. Celina revels in her Mexican heritage, but once she starts school it feels like the world wants her to erase that part of her identity. Fortunately, she’s got an army of family and three fabulous new friends behind her to fight the ignorance. But it’s her Gramma who’s her biggest inspiration, encouraging Celina to build a shield of joy around herself. Because when you’re celebrating, when you find a reason to sing or dance or paint or play or laugh or write, they haven’t taken everything away from you. Of course, it’s not possible to stay in celebration mode when things get dire--like when her dad’s deported and a pandemic hits--but if there is anything Celina’s sure of, it’s that she’ll always live up to her last Guerrera--woman warrior--and that she will use her voice and writing talents to make the world a more beautiful place where all cultures are celebrated.

My Thoughts: From the start, Celina, or Tere as she was called at home, knows that she comes from a courageous and loving people. The poems share the many times when she comes up against people in her schools and elsewhere that don't listen to her or believe that they know her or her name better than she does. With her Gramma and the one teacher that encouraged her and other students to use their voice, Celina is able to keep from having her culture, history, and self be erased. 

Writing is Celina's comfort when she is dealing with difficult things and she doesn't want to burden her family or worry them. So we get to see her inner thoughts as she works through the stresses. When it's not writing or her family, the moon and nature are where she looks for peace.

In middle school, Celina learns much more about poetry and writing and as a teacher I see all kinds of possibilities for using this book in a classroom. There are examples of great writing in the poems, but there are also lessons about poetry. And the lessons are in Celina's voice and style so they aren't super didactic. 

There are interesting conversations about history too like when they discuss who gets to relax on Labor Day, or why Columbus could claim the land that already had people, or that slavery was a reason for the battle at the Alamo though it often isn't framed that way in classrooms. There are many times when Celina asks questions of her friends and teachers and creates space for thinking about things. 

Part of the story happens during the spring of 2020 so events of that time including COVID come into play. The fear of illness or loss of loved ones and the killing of George Floyd are part of Celina's life even as she is still waiting for her father to return after deportation. There's a lot going on, but she has the support of family, friends, and some teachers who care. 

Recommendation: Get it soon. This is a short book that packs in a lot of things to think about around freedom, identity, family, friendship, history, community, and more. 


Sunday, September 24, 2023

Indigenous Kidlit

Indigenous Peoples' Day is coming soon so I thought it would be a good time to highlight some of the Indigenous titles that have caught my attention lately. Obviously these titles are excellent for all times of the year though.

Picture Books - All three of these are lovely in different ways and are definitely books that everyone should get a chance to read. 

Book cover. Adult and young child are sitting in the middle of a yellow dandelion. There are two bees flying around them. They are holding a bouquet of dandelions. There are other large dandelions around the one they are sitting in.
Âmî Osâwâpikones/Dear Dandelion by S.J. Okemow

Annick Press Ltd.

Publisher summary: Both a love letter to the dandelion and a call to love ourselves in a difficult world, Âmî Osâwâpikones reminds us that we are not defined as others see us. Following our young protagonist and the dandelions through the seasons, we are reminded that we are resilient, we are healers, we are funny, and we are loved.


Book cover. The overall image is done in different shades of red. There is a young person's face in the center. There are flowers, dragonflies, stars, and many other things surrounding the face. The person is looking up with what seems to be wonder.

Remember by Joy Harjo, illustrations by Michaela Goade

Random House

Publisher summary: Remember the sky you were born under, Know each of the star's stories. Remember the moon, know who she is. Remember the sun's birth at dawn, That is the strongest point of time. So begins the picture book adaptation of the renowned poem that encourages young readers to reflect on family, nature, and their heritage. In simple and direct language, Harjo, a member of the Mvskoke Nation, urges readers to pay close attention to who they are, the world they were born into, and how all inhabitants on earth are connected. Michaela Goade, drawing from her Tlingit culture, has created vivid illustrations that make the words come alive in an engaging and accessible way. This timeless poem paired with magnificent paintings makes for a picture book that is a true celebration of life and our human role within it.

Book cover. An animal is in each corner of the book surrounded by green leaves.
It's a Mitig! by Bridget George

Douglas & McIntyre

Publisher summary: A fun and colorful introduction to the Ojibwe language through nature It’s a Mitig! guides young readers through the forest and introduces them to Ojibwe words that describe the natural world. Featuring vibrant and playful artwork, an illustrated Ojibwe-to-English glossary and a simple introduction to the double-vowel pronunciation system, plus accompanying online recordings, It’s a Mitig! is one of the first books of its kind. From sunup to sundown, encounter an amik playing with sticks and swimming in the river, a prickly gaag hiding in the bushes and a big, bark-covered mitig . Using rhyme to help readers predict the Ojibwe pronunciation, It’s a Mitig! makes learning new words fun. Anishinaabe author-illustrator Bridget George created this unique book for young children and their families with the heartfelt desire to spark a lifelong interest in learning language. Whether connecting with one’s Ojibwe ancestry or simply opening children’s eyes and ears to the cornucopia of North American dialects, It’s a Mitig! is a useful tool for exploring language.

Young Adult - These are two incredible stories and both were almost impossible to put down. 

Book cover. Young man is standing holding a basketball against his hip with one hand.
Rez Ball by Byron Graves [My Review at Rich in Color]

Heartdrum

Publisher Summary: This compelling debut novel by new talent Byron Graves tells the relatable, high-stakes story of a young athlete determined to play like the hero his Ojibwe community needs him to be. These days, Tre Brun is happiest when he is playing basketball on the Red Lake Reservation high school team—even though he can’t help but be constantly gut-punched with memories of his big brother, Jaxon, who died in an accident. When Jaxon's former teammates on the varsity team offer to take Tre under their wing, he sees this as his shot to represent his Ojibwe rez all the way to their first state championship. This is the first step toward his dream of playing in the NBA, no matter how much the odds are stacked against him. But stepping into his brother’s shoes as a star player means that Tre can’t mess up. Not on the court, not at school, and not with his new friend, gamer Khiana, who he is definitely not falling in love with. After decades of rez teams almost making it, Tre needs to take his team to state. Because if he can live up to Jaxon's dreams, their story isn’t over yet.

Book cover. A young woman's face is centered. There is a lighter silhouette behind her and the phases of the moon are above them.
Warrior Girl Unearthed by Angeline Boulley [My Review at Rich in Color]

Faber

Publisher Summary: Perry Firekeeper-Birch was ready for her Summer of Slack but instead, after a fender bender that was entirely not her fault, she’s stuck working to pay back her Auntie Daunis for repairs to the Jeep. Thankfully she has the other outcasts of the summer program, Team Misfit Toys, and even her twin sister Pauline. Together they ace obstacle courses, plan vigils for missing women in the community, and make sure summer doesn’t feel so lost after all. But when she attends a meeting at a local university, Perry learns about the “Warrior Girl”, an ancestor whose bones and knife are stored in the museum archives, and everything changes. Perry has to return Warrior Girl to her tribe. Determined to help, she learns all she can about NAGPRA, the federal law that allows tribes to request the return of ancestral remains and sacred items. The university has been using legal loopholes to hold onto Warrior Girl and twelve other Anishinaabe ancestors’ remains, and Perry and the Misfits won’t let it go on any longer. Using all of their skills and resources, the Misfits realize a heist is the only way to bring back the stolen artifacts and remains for good. But there is more to this repatriation than meets the eye as more women disappear and Pauline’s perfectionism takes a turn for the worse. As secrets and mysteries unfurl, Perry and the Misfits must fight to find a way to make things right – for the ancestors and for their community. 

**This last one is probably considered Adult, but I think it would also work with Young Adults.

Book cover. An elder is standing in a field with a blue sky above her. There are a few puffy white clouds. She is wearing a colorful shawl and glasses and is smiling.
Project 562 by Matika Wilbur [Project 562 Website with Gallery]

Ten Speed Press

Publisher Summary: In 2012, Matika Wilbur sold everything in her Seattle apartment and set out on a Kickstarter-funded pursuit to visit, engage, and photograph people from what were then the 562 federally recognized Native American Tribal Nations. Over the next decade, she traveled six hundred thousand miles across fifty states—from Seminole country (now known as the Everglades) to Inuit territory (now known as the Bering Sea)—to meet, interview, and photograph hundreds of Indigenous people. The body of work Wilbur created serves to counteract the one-dimensional and archaic stereotypes of Native people in mainstream media and offers justice to the richness, diversity, and lived experiences of Indian Country. The culmination of this decade-long art and storytelling endeavor, Project 562 is a peerless, sweeping, and moving love letter to Indigenous Americans, containing hundreds of stunning portraits and compelling personal narratives of contemporary Native people—all photographed in clothing, poses, and locations of their choosing. Their narratives touch on personal and cultural identity as well as issues of media representation, sovereignty, faith, family, the protection of sacred sites, subsistence living, traditional knowledge-keeping, land stewardship, language preservation, advocacy, education, the arts, and more. A vital contribution from an incomparable artist, Project 562 inspires, educates, and truly changes the way we see Native America.

Monday, September 4, 2023

Book Review: How Do You Spell Unfair?

Young Black girl is wearing a white dress with some kind of small read flower or other object dotted around. She is holding onto a microphone stand and has her mouth open to speak. The title is in gold letters and there is a red curtain behind MacNolia.
Title: How Do You Spell Unfair?

Author: Carol Boston Weatherford

Illustrator: Frank Morrison

Publisher: Candlewick Press

Availablity: On shelves now

Review copy: Final copy via publisher

Summary: MacNolia Cox was no ordinary kid. Her idea of fun was reading the dictionary. In 1936, eighth grader MacNolia Cox became the first African American to win the Akron, Ohio, spelling bee. And with that win, she was asked to compete at the prestigious National Spelling Bee in Washington, DC, where she and a girl from New Jersey were the first African Americans invited since its founding. She left her home state a celebrity—right up there with Ohio’s own Joe Louis and Jesse Owens—with a military band and a crowd of thousands to see her off at the station. But celebration turned to chill when the train crossed the state line into Maryland, where segregation was the law of the land. Prejudice and discrimination ruled—on the train, in the hotel, and, sadly, at the spelling bee itself. With a brief epilogue recounting MacNolia’s further history, How Do You Spell Unfair? is the story of her groundbreaking achievement magnificently told by award-winning creators and frequent picture-book collaborators Carole Boston Weatherford and Frank Morrison.

My Thoughts: There are so many ways people have found to discriminate against African Americans and others over the years in the United States, but young readers may not realize how incredibly pervasive these things were. They may know about separate water fountains, where people could and couldn't sit on buses, or how difficult it could be to be able to vote, but might know that discrimination was baked into so many other areas of life. Here we see how there were many young people, including MacNolia Cox, who faced this unfairness with much effort, determination, and the support of family and community. 

The use of unique and interesting words throughout the text support the context of the spelling bee and provide challenges for readers if they want to practice or learn that vocabulary. The illustrations are rich and add depth to the story without distracting from it. 

Recommendation: This is a great picture book that shares part of our history and honors the many who have fought for justice in many areas of life over the years. It is an excellent addition to any library especially if you want to broaden your civil rights collection beyond the more typical buses and boycotts books.