Back To Regular Life
Next sabbatical reading?
Not that a life spent researching Japanese demons and plesiosaurs is all that regular, but anyway, the sabbatical is over.
Too bad. It was an intoxicating experience to be able to read for hours at a stretch, the way I used to be able to read (now that I think about it) in childhood. It’s surprising that, as a writer, I could forget how mind-blowing it is to bury yourself in a fictional world, not to be dragged out for anything less urgent than lunch (hey, I like lunch). Thank goodness for this reminder. I may have to schedule mini reading-sabbaticals more often.
I realized something, though. I read realistic fiction, fantasy, humor, autobiography, award winners, and regular everyday books…but what I did not read was anything where the main character is not white. This is disheartening. I’m a fan of children’s literature, reasonably well-read in the field, alert to new trends…and to find books with a character of color, I must go deliberately searching for them. Most readers don’t do that. And then the fictional world reflects and reinforces the world inside our heads, where minorities are not just minorities–they are nonexistent.
So I’ve got Linda Sue Park’s A Long Walk To Water on the list. Anything else I should add?
Read MoreWhat I’ve Been Reading: The Misfits
Charming. James Howe creates real characters, real kids, and vivid real-life problems. Perhaps the ending is a bit too fairy-tale good, but who am I to complain when it’s so satisfying?
Read MoreWhat I’ve Been Reading: Wonder
My name is August, by the way. I won’t describe what I look like. Whatever you’re thinking, it’s probably worse.
This is worth every bit of the hype. Far and away my favorite piece of sabbatical reading so far. I’m a big fan of Cynthia Lord’s Rules, which deals with a boy with autism and his older sister, but I actually think that R. J. Palacio actually provides a stronger, more vivid, more honest look at what it means and feels like to grow up other than “normal,” to have a sibling or a friend or a student who is not “normal.”
This is one of those books that is hard for me, as an adult, to read. It’s difficult to shed my adult impulses to protect and shelter Auggie from all the cruelty, intentional and unintentional, that he encounters every day as he leaves his sheltered, homeschooled life and starts fifth grade. Like his mom, I want to keep this kid safe forever. But that’s one of the ways the author succeeds so brilliantly–in letting Auggie suffer but also letting his courage show through. His story is bearable in part because he is so strong, and also in part because he’s surrounded by a cast of flawed but loving characters who help him through (and grow themselves as well).
Read MoreWhat I’ve Been Reading: Boy
Gulp. All I have to say is, no wonder Roald Dahl’s books are so dark and so full of horrible teachers and sadistic adults.
Read MoreWhat I’ve Been Reading: A Great and Terrible Beauty
My experience with Libba Bray’s books has been up and down. I didn’t care much for Going Bovine, which got a lot of attention, but I adored Beauty Queens–sharp, funny, dead-on satire. So I’ve been meaning to get around to A Great and Terrible Beauty.
Some good stuff here, no question; I like the meld of historical fiction and fantasy, although her dialog tended to run a bit modern to my ears. And the weaving of past history into present drama is very deft. But I must say that this falls into a category I invented when I was growing up: “books where the main character does stupid things.” I dislike spending the book mentally yelling at the protagonist, “Don’t do it!” I want to identify with the character, not feel myself inclined to lecture her, or bop her over the head in hopes that it will shake up her thinking.
Read MoreWhat I’ve Been Reading: Hope Was Here
Not too many writers can turn out genuine poetry about waitressing in a diner the way Joan Bauer can.
Read MoreThere’s soemthing about diner setup that soothes the soul. Something about making good coffee in a huge urn glistening in fluorescent light, something sweet about filling syrup pitchers and lining them on the back counter like soldiers ready to advance. It gives your courage to face another day.
What I’ve Been Reading: Guys Read
For a long time I’ve been convinced that both readers and writers are badly served by the fact that children’s lit is such a female-dominated industry. (And so heavily white, too, but more about that later.) Yes, there are some great male editors, but not too many. Librarians? Teachers? Also skewed toward the female. That has to have an effect on what books get read, published, given awards, and handed to kids.
So this series seems like a solid idea. I was a bit disappointed at first glance, however. The stories seemed so boyish as to be stereotypic. (What do boys like? Fart jokes! All boys! All the time!) It was redeemed for me, however, by David Yoo’s quirky and deeply unsettling “A Fistful of Feathers.” Nice to see that there is more than one way of being a boy. Plus I won’t be enjoying a turkey sandwich for quite some time.
Read MoreSarah L. Thomson
A children’s book author publishing award-winning nonfiction, poetry, picture books and novels including…
“Thomson focuses on newfound connection, magic, and suspense to conjure a fast-paced, heartwarming mystery. Thomson’s world is populated by resourceful protagonists, fanciful creatures, and quirky supporting characters.”
—Publishers Weekly