"You may begin." -David Almond

Pretty sure this quote from The Tightrope Walkers by David Almond is my favorite of my 2015 reading.  It's a big statement because I read some great books this year.  Crossover by Kwame Alexander, The Light of the World by Elizabeth Alexander, All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr, and Boys in the Boat by David James Brown, just to name a few.  Yet, I always come back to this little nugget.

What's my favorite part of this quote?  Probably the beginning with some of the best advice (Work hard, work hopefully) for just about any situation.  But I can't ignore those last three words, "You may begin" are so simple and compelling.  Not to mention the middle and the reference to the idea that we are simultaneously connected to the past and the future.  Wow, this is just a doozy of a quote.  As a teacher, I love it.  As a parent, I love it.  As a godmother, I love it.  As a neighbor, as a citizen, as a church-goer, I love it.  And, I must share it with you. Go on, read the book.  Yet, even if you don't, remember the power of giving someone or even yourself, the permission to be part of something much bigger than yourselves.

Keep reading, all.
-amybethstensonkujawski

Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein

Look, I know it's going to take you a bit to get into this book, but the pay-off is worth it.  This story of the friendship of Queenie and Maddie have in the midst of the terrible tragedies of World War II is a mighty one.  Please know that once you get to the second half of the book, the part told by Maddie, you will be reading intensely trying to figure out what is going to happen.  The story of these best friends, pilot and this spy, working undauntedly on behalf of the French Resistance is terrifying, beautiful, and stunning.  You won't believe your eyes as you read.

The episodes of war are both frightening (like when the German Luftwaffe is hovering above the girls as they try to escape the shooting or the accounts of Nazi torture) and intriguing (like all the plotting, planning, and promising the Resistance efforts require).  And the narratives are written like a puzzle.  You are certain you can trust the narrators, but you realize you aren't the only audience reading the pages.  But, BUT!, the very best part of this novel is the friendship the girls share.  It crosses class divisions and personal inclinations; it is as strong as any family tie.  They offer each other places to escape and chances to show great strength.  The share fears (literally, they each list 10) and moments of true joy (bike rides and plane rides).  Their friendship is uncommon.

As I try to describe this book that I just completed, I can't believe I'm really trying to describe it.  It's indescribable.  It's a puzzle and a simple story of friendship.  It is a slog and twisty suspenseful roller-coaster.  The narrators are trust-worthy and complete liars.  The girls are a spy and a pilot, a female spy and a female pilot, no less. The book and it's contradictions punched me in the gut- in a way only the best, best, best stories can.  I cannot stop thinking about the experience I had reading this book.  Book love, people.  Book love.  Get your hands on this challenge book when you can.  Stick with it's outcome, and enjoy.

War of the Whales by Joshua Horwitz

What you would do if you came across a 5,000 pound whale stranded on the beach?  How would you go about saving the big guy?  You'd need to find a marine biologist like Ken Balcomb to help you out. Mr. Balcomb is one of the protagonists of a new book- War of the Whales. It is a non-fiction tale about a mass stranding of whales in the Bahamas in 2000 that sparked a complicated, lengthy, and sensitive battle between researchers and conservationists and the United States Navy and ended up in the United States Supreme Court.

Scientist Balcomb partners up with conservation lawyer Joel Reynolds to uncover what role the U.S. Navy played in the tragic event that killed many whales. The whales were driven out of their underwater habitats by high-intensity sounds coming from a submarine surveillance system the Navy was testing out.  Readers learn how difficult and demanding it can be to be champions of marine wildlife, and they discover the great lengths the U.S. Navy goes to while keeping our national defense  in top shape.

The book is definitely a challenge book for middle-schoolers, but the right readers will rejoice in all details of marine wildlife biology, U.S. Navy tactics, and legal trials of our country's justice system.

In full disclosure, it was even a challenge book for me.  The Tall Guy had to help me get through some parts.  But the story will stick with me.  I'm struck by the tension we must face between taking care of ourselves and taking care of our planet.  We are all one, and what we do to each other (even the whales), we do onto ourselves...War of the Whales is a great reminder of this ever-present struggle.

Grasshopper Jungle by Andrew Smith

Kids will love the humor in this book.  Some will love the man-eating grasshoppers and the grasshopper-violence.  Others will love the complicated friendships and relationships.  This book seems like one of the bravest books I've read in a while. The end of the world is coming because of man-eating grasshoppers and the protagonist, Austin, and his best friend, Robbie, are responsible. Austin is as confused about what he is feeling in his heart as he is certain about it. The small-town setting is familiar even to those of us who have never lived in a small town. It's a coming-of-age tale complete with an army of grasshoppers meaner than the bullies, all sorts of sexual urges,  true friendship, and a search for what really matters in life.

Here's what the NY Times said about it...
Here's what The Onion's A.V. Club thought about it...
Here's what Common Sense media said about it...

It's definitely a book for Gr 8 or high school (lots of f-bombs and erections), and it is a book that stands up to classic YA literature: Catcher in the Rye and Slaughterhouse 5, for example.  I'm so thankful there are books like Grasshopper Jungle by Andrew Smtih in this world.  My boys, my students, all teenagers need books this funny, complicated, and honest.

Never Fall Down by Patricia McCormick

I don't know if I can talk about this book yet.  It knocked the breath right out of me, and fear, sadness, and pain filled me up.  But this book is about so much more than sadness.  This book represents resilience and the power of the human experience, connection, and survivial.

The book is about a Cambodian boy, Arn Chorn-Pond, who lives through the Khmer Rouge revolt.  He really did...the author's story is a retelling of his life. It's like the movie "Killing Fields" but in YA literature.  I don't want to say much more about it because I'll never do it justice or the experience of reading it justice. 

I just know teenagers, by their nature, are drawn to stories of justice, survival, and resilience.  As I read this book, I couldn't stop thinking about my boys and my students and how much I yearn to protect them from this kind of injustice, violence, and hatred.  The truth is, I can't.  This violent hateful story represents how this world works too often, and if we don't share these experience in safe, artistic, and genuine ways, we risk being too far removed from them.  We need to live them...especially those of us who are safe, insulated, and privileged.  So, yes, I recommend this book to my 8th graders (and to both of my boys once it's timely), and I celebrate Arn's story.  I celebrate, with Arn, the power of tears, the power of music, and the power of embracing the past in order to live, alive and awake and aware, in the present.

Here is some of the buzz around this book:

Reading Rants (my most trusted book blog)
LA Times
NY Times
NPR
YouTube

The Book Thief by Markus Zusak

In all my reading life, I have never cried so hard over a book.  I cried because it's a book about war.  I cried because I'm so sad my time with the characters came to a close.  I cried because everything beautiful about this book is ultimately everything human.

Now I realize what I've said so far isn't going to inspire kids to read this book (especially boys) but oh, how I want EVERY kid to pick up this book.  Because there's something in this book for everyone...

• War
• Bullies
• Soccer
• Nazi Germany
• Stealing
• Foster care
• Friendship
• Death (after all, Death is the narrator)
• Creativity

Pick up this book today.  Take your time reading it's pages.  This book will stay with you.  It will haunt you and change you.  Pick it up and tell me what you think.

The Sky is Everywhere by Jandy Nelson

This books is about death and grieving.  This book is about life and loving.  17 year-old Lennie is still trying to figure out how weird everything has gotten now that her sister has died unexpectedly.  She tries to use her poetry and her music to help her find her way back into life of the living since she finds it too troubling to rely on her best friend or her eccentric grandmother.  However, two very different boys have her thinking and acting in new and inexplicable ways even if she's still devastated by the loss of her sister.  This story is definitely for mature readers who are willing to think carefully about the power of grief and love and life.

This a soothing story interrupted with genuinely funny moments of how unscripted life can seem.  The symbolism and figurative language lulls readers until the end of story, leaving readers with a smile on their faces and the lives of Lennie & Company forever in their hearts.

Click on the picture to see the book trailer.

Enjoy the read!
-stenson

No Impact Man by Colin Beaven

Are you the type of person who tries? Colin Beaven is. He sets out to live, with his wife, daughter, and dog, in NYC, for one year without creating a environmental footprint. Then, he writes a book about the experiement.

They stop making trash, they stop using any transportation that is not self-propelled, they only eat food grown/made with ingredients from within a 250 mile radius, and they turn off the electricity.

He doesn't do it to self-promote. He doesn't do it to be a martyr. He doesn't do it to be a over-acheiveing environmentalist. He does it because he doesn't know what else to do, but try.



As a story, it works. And, in my opinion, it works well as an experiment too. Ultimately, he asks questions that go beyond what's good for the climate, and he begins to ask questions about what is good for us? And, he means what is really good for our quality of life and our happiness levels.

As non-fiction goes, this book will be enjoyed by mature kids and grown-ups in their lives. I'm really sad I didn't read it with someone I love. I'm going to sign off and start lobbying the Tall Guy to read it.

No Impact Man by Colin Beaven can also be sampled at this site, the No Impact Blog.

Keep reading, everyone!
-stenson

Claudette Colvin & Friends

Some of my favorite books have nominated by or have received this award. It's an award that is given not just to books that are widely popular and well received, but to books that represent excellence in young adult literature. Here are some of my favorite National Book Award nominees and winners:

• What I Saw and How I Lied by Judy Blundell,
• American Born Chinese by Gene Luen Yang,
• Rules of Survival by Nancy Werlin,
• Inexcusable by Chris Lynch,

and I could on and on and on but I won't. I'll just trust that you look at the links and pick a few to add to your future book lists. Go ahead; you are about to be wowed!

Congrats to this year's nominess and winner:

Claudette Colvin: Twice Toward Justice by Phillip Hoose
Charles and Emma: The Darwins’ Leap of Faith by Deborah Heiligman
Stitches by David Small
Lips Touch: Three Times by Laini Taylor
Jumped Rita Williams-Garcia

This years nominess and winner are officially on my book list. As I read them, I'll certainly post about what I've experienced. Add them to your lists too! Go ahead; you are about to be wowed by the talent listed here. Keep reading everyone!

-stenson

*image taken from The National Book Foundation and http://us.macmillan.com/claudettecolvin

The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie

Flavia, the protagonist from the mystery The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie, made me laugh, made me want to study Chemistry, and made me keep reading until the caper was solved. I really fell in love with little Flavia. Feisty, smart, fun- this little girl has two sisters she's constantly trying to poke, pinch, and prod and a father she is constantly trying to delight and charm. The family lives in her deceased mother's family's estate in 1940's Britain.

Day by day, Flavia is entertained mostly by the chemistry lab in the family mansion, but all of that changes one day when she stumbles upon a dead man in the garden of the estate.

Flavia is part Scout, part Sherlock Holmes, and part Marie Lavoisier (don't worry, I didn't know who that was until I read this book either), and she pulls you right into her mind, her home, and her life- a land where emotions though rare sneak out, observations are detailed, complete, and funny, and the story, like the mystery at the center of it, only gets better and better.

The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie is definitely a challenge book (those of you who have had me as a teacher will know what I mean) because I think it's intended audience is grown-ups. However, this delightful tale will be enjoyed by all ages, and the writing is simply too brilliant and too fun to not be shared by everyone of all ages.

Enjoy! The book is a part of a series so get excited for all sorts of amusement.

Please visit the sit for more information about this charming, fun series. The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie by Alan Bradley. The picture above was taken from the site linked to the left: www.flaviadeluce.com.

Keep reading!

-stenson

Ender's Game

According to Nancy Keane, a reading pro, this book shouldn't be missed. I'm adding it to my FBL!

It seems to be Harry Potter meets Space Warfare. Ender Wiggins is chosen by the world government to help save the earth. He is sent to Battle School for military training in the form of computer war games. He proves to be a genius and is looked to as a future military leader. But the fate of the human race on your shoulders is a scary prospect! Simulated war games are one thing, but what will happen in real combat?

If you read it, let me know. Or if you've read it, share your opinion. Keep reading, everyone!

-stenson

The Help.

This weekend I finished the book my book club is reading for March....The Help by Kathryn Stockett (pictured to the right thanks to the great River Region Public Library).

Here are some of my thoughts...

1. I know some of my girls would like it. It's a challenge book, but they could do definitely read it and get something out of it. Challenge books always pay off because the stories are rich, the characters flawed yet likeable, the topics mature and universal. This one is no different.

2. I would describe it as Chick Lit, but I think it's a powerful book similar to the Secret Life of Bees.

3. I am all about strong friendships and strong families. This book is filled with both.

4. One of my FAVORITE parts of the book is when the main character, Miss Skeeter, goes to the "white" library and checks out a bunch of books for a black women who works for Miss Skeeter's friend Elizabeth. The list of books represents some of the best American Lit, some of the best books written about the disenfranchised: The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Souls of Black Folks, and To Kill a Mockingbird just to name a few.

5. Also, it's not often the setting of a book strikes me as important as the setting in this book does. Jackson, Mississippi. There's a whole lot of trouble in the town during this time period in history, but I found myself longing to be there to experience the heat, meet the people, stroll through the downtown, walk the land. The South, I gather, is much different from what we know here in MN. The author did a splendid job bringing us down to her world, Skeeter's world, Aiblene's world.

The Help by Kathryn Stockett. A good read. If you try it, let me know what you think.


Keep reading!
-stenson

More books to make you think.

The latest books from our gifted and talented specialist, Mrs. Donaldson.

These books aren't hard to read, though some of them might be tougher than others. These books will get you think about BIG themes and BIG ideas in life. There's more than just good stories and good characters in these books. We are talking life lessons, people. Life lessons. Keep reading! Enjoy!

The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks. By e. lokhart

Frankie Landeau-Banks, narrator and hero of the award-winning “The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks” by E. Lockhart, is the literary friend for whom my middle school girls have been looking.

Our heroine pointedly asks the handsome, popular, rich guy: “Why is it psychotic if I did it, and brilliant if Alpha did it?” Calling to task the double-standard girls and women face frequently, widely, all too often. That's not the only aspect of gender stereotypes and roles Frankie calls into question. You've got to read this book to find out more.

She is equal parts insecurity and confidence, creativity and conformity. That's why she is great...because she's a lot like many of the young girls I teach, a complicated mess of strengths and weaknesses. Her sophomore year is an unforgettable one. She wins the heart of the most popular senior boy on campus, she fights hard successfully to become more than just the "bunny-rabbit" nickname her family has given her, and she makes a mark at her prestigious prep school by taking on a long-standing, all-male, secret society, and she does so with with flair and imagination.

The book is entertaining, witty, clever, and smart. It's a fun read, and a satisfying one. The lessons of the book are tough to articulate, but even me--a happily married, pretty boring and ordinary 34 year old woman--learned about the tricky relationship between men and women.

Secretly (or not so secretly now), I also loved the peek into the rich, boarding school life of Frankie and her classmates. Good grab a copy and read it.

BUT! I also recommend the audio version. Ms. Sirois (the narrator), Ms. Lockhart, and Ms. Landeau-Banks create a captivating, memorable story. Read it this summer. If you can't trust me, trust the NY Times.

Keep reading-
Stenson (a.k.a. abs kujawski)