Brown Girl Dreaming by Jacqueline Woodson

Novels in verse, like this one, are like many, many little and beautiful stories that add up to one giant wonderful story.  This one, Jacqueline Woodson's newest release, is so powerful I had to read many parts of it out-loud to the Kujawski boys. And very often when I did, the tallest one, Barney, recognized the sweetness of the story too.

Non-fiction, historical non-fiction, memoir, novel in verse...so many aspects of this book.  The writers in every kid would benefit from reading this book.  Teachers in every LA/R classroom will benefit from sharing pieces of this book with their students.  This book is so simple and so powerful. Jacqueline Woodson is brilliant.

Born in 1963 and raised by all the important people in her life (mom, dad, grandmother, grandfather) in Ohio, in the South, and in Brooklyn, Ms. Woodson tells us the tales of her adventures.  She shares secrets about her questions and her insecurities, and she shares her confidence in friendship, family, and faith. There are lines from old music, poems quoted and copied, favorite games and pop culture divulged- it's a book that is as playful as it is powerful.

I want kids of color to get their hands on this book.  But I need kids not of color to get their hands on this book too. It's just that #weneeddiversebooks for so many reasons.  For empathy, for knowledge, for sharing of the struggles.

Yet, still, we could simply read beyond the brown in this story of a little girl dreaming, and we'd have a marvelous story of a writer-in-bloom.  Kids who grow-up dreaming of becoming writers and story-tellers need to get their hands on this book.



This is one of those books I'm so thankful exists.  It makes this world one in which I'm capable of raising kids.  Because they are all ours, all of them.

SAMS kids and families, you are welcome to my copy!  Any time.  You'll find it either in my office or Ms. Mohr's classroom.

-absk

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.

Stargirl by Jerry Spinelli

Top Five Reasons to Read this Book:
5. The narrator is a kid who doesn't take himself to seriously, so he'll make you laugh.
4. There has never been a better time to talk about acceptance and tolerance in our schools.
3. Because the narrator is a boy, boys will like it.
2. Because the star (no pun intended) of the book is a girl (and because the narrator falls in love with her), girls will like it.

1.  and the best thing about this book is the way Stargirl remains true to herself. She is a character I'll always remember. And I'll look for bits of her in my own students.

Go on. Read this book. Try it today. Or tomorrow. Just enjoy it.

Keep reading,
stenson

Isabel and Amari

I just re-read Copper Sun (Sharon Draper) with a few girls in my 7READ classes. And I couldn't help but think of another equally powerful but very different story of a slave girl Chains (Laurie Halse Anderson).



The stories of two slave girls told by two of the most creative young adult authors in Young Adult literature give teen readers a chance to read historical fiction with strong characters and gripping story lines.

Both stories speak to the power of the human spirit and the gifts of real friendship. Neither story shields readers from the dark and upsetting and unforgettable horrors of slavery, but both will keep readers thinking ar beyond the last page.

Historical fiction isn't given enough credit, so in my class, they "count" for two books. Go ahead and expand your reading experiences! I think you be enthralled!

Keep reading,
stenson

Be smart. Act intelligent. Know things.

“It takes an adult to make a child hate knowing things" -M.T. Anderson

Books make people smarter in all sorts of important ways. I like comparing getting the right book into the right student's hands to watering my garden. A slew of young adult authors are making a point to talk to kids about the importance of being a critical thinker and an aware, engaging citizen. I support them. I'll do my best to get kids reading books they enjoy and are willing to discuss and dissect. That's what good books do. They getting us thinking, talking, and growing.

Here are a few titles of books I've read or read about recently. They are certainly ones that will get readers thinking...and hopefully talking.

High Wind in Jamaica by Richard Hughes

Written in Bone: Buried Lives of Jamestown and Colonial Maryland by Sally M. Walker

WinterGirls by Laurie Halse Anderson

The Disreputable Life of Frankie Landau-Banks by e. lockhart

The Pigman by Paul Zindel

Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

Read on!
-stenson

Libba Bray

Hello. Just another reminder about all of the great authors out there. One of my favorites is Libba Bray. She's given us the Great and Terrible Beauty series (a story about a strong and courageous young woman, Gemma, in a marvelous, mysterious and somewhat misunderstood land, India).

Anyway, I found a post on her blog from May 2009 particularly interesting. With full disclosure, it is about same-sex marriage. If this topic fires you up, proceed with caution. I include it in my blog not to be political or decisive, but because I've had the pleasure of teaching kids who live a GLBT world, and I want them to know, I will not stay silent either.

Submitted with kindness,
stenson (aka abs kujawski)

"I want to be thoroughly used up when I die."

My DA kids are reading the book Three Cups of Tea. The geography and the people, the story and the spirit of this book are each extraordinary.

The man behind this true story, Greg Mortenson, is a true American hero who school by school is promoting peace and justice in an impoverished land; but he is not alone. Jahan, the first young girl from her village to be educated, has just as much courage as Greg. Haji Ali, a village leader, holds himself with wisdom and patience unfamiliar to the Western world. Jean Hornei and his wife Jennifer Bergman give so generously, it's not surprising that the title of this post comes from Jennifer's necklace inscription.

There are several versions of this book. Anyone up for a challenge should try the original, but there are a few other versions depending on who is reading the book. For more information, please go to this website.

I urge you to read this book. It will reach right through you and grab you by the spine. In my experience, that's always been a sign of a good book.

Peace,
-Stenson