It's a Book

Lane Smith strikes again. I love John, Paul, George, and Ben, and I love The Happy Hocky Family Moves to the Country, and now's the time to share my love for It's a Book. I found this one in a blowout sale at a Borders a handful of weeks ago, and had it in my hand to buy it, full of excitement, until I walked around a corner and saw the line. I've been in some lines in my time, but this line was absurd. It was like WalMart on Black Friday. So I sadly put it back on the shelf and vowed to buy it from Amazon, where no lines are involved.

Simple and to the point, It's a Book points out the flaws in our generation of technology and virtual gizmos and such. Our poor children don't know what books are. Or how to read them. Perhaps it's a little bit of an exaggeration, but I think the premise is based in a lot of reality. We text and tweet and Facebook and email and Skype and bluetooth and gchat and ichat and....etc. We download books onto our Kindles/Nooks. We really are a generation of instant gratification and the newest toys. We really like our toys. And books aren't really toys (not for the general person anyway. The floor of my room shows that I obviously am an exception.) Lane Smith addresses this issue with Monkey and Donkey. Monkey has a book. Donkey isn't quite sure what it is. The plot thickens.

This book is hilarious, witty, clever, and obvious in its message. We need to take a step back and see what it is we're abandoning for the sake of the next best thing. For goodness sake, kids need to know how to read a book. I think it would be an awesome first or second day introduction to the school year, in which the teacher sets the stage for lots of reading, none of which will take place via text message.

Fun fact: the book is on youtube [HERE] courtesy of Macmillan.

The Adoration of Jenna Fox

After becoming exceedingly frustrated with audiobooks in general and scratched ones specifically, I listened to the first half and read the second half of this book. Honestly, although it was really frustrating to have to switch up methods halfway through, it was kind of fun. The actress reading the audiobook did a great job and I believed her as Jenna, and when I switched to reading the hard copy I continued to hear her voice in my head reading. It added a nice touch. As far as the actual book goes, though, I mentioned a while ago during the whiny audiobook posts that I got quickly and easily hooked on this one, and it's so true. I stayed hooked until the audiobook wouldn't work and I had to switch to hard copy while I was in the middle of Matched. That caused problems because I have never been good at reading two books at once [see my "Currently Reading" tab where I have been listed as "reading" Forgotten God for the last four months. I'm averaging about a chapter every three weeks or so.] But once I finished Matched then I moved back to Jenna and remembered why I loved it to begin with.

Jenna, 17-year-old narrator and central character, has just woken up from a year-long coma. She doesn't remember anything at all before the coma but everyone keeps referencing an accident. With no memory, awkward social skills, and basic coordination only just returning to her limbs, Jenna moves into a new house in a new state with her mother and grandmother while her father remains in Boston. As the story progresses, she starts to notice strange things about herself and the world around her, as well as the pieces of information that her family seems determined to keep from her.

Seeing this story through Jenna's limited perspective creates an interesting situation for the reader. A good reader will most likely pick up on subtle details and things that are "off" quicker than Jenna does, but not so much that you figure things out. I won't tell you whether my robot predictions were accurate, but I will say that this futuristic setting is very different from those of other books I've read recently. I adore Hunger Games and I've just recently gushed about Matched, but I also shared that I saw a lot of commonalities between them - particularly their settings - and eventually attributed it to the genre. The Adoration of Jenna Fox, though, clearly takes place in the future, but America is very much the same. Science has taken over a great deal more than now, and there are references to a Second Great Depression and a major earthquake that haven't actually happened in our world, but the majority of American culture/geography/society is the same. Most of the differences take place in the world of science, where technology has allowed our norms to progress in some pretty advanced but believable ways. Extremely interesting debates surrounding science ethics are raised (which might give teachers a cool opportunity for a student debate in the classroom.) Once again, there's definitely a boy interest, and I definitely like him. Last week I realized my weakness for fictional male characters, and this one had a similar affect. It also doesn't help that he's a "bad boy," which I apprently prefer as a trait in my fictional crushes. (Although if that's true...then why do I love Peeta so much more than I love Gale? Hmm. I'm going to have to think about this. That, and why I relate everything I read back to The Hunger Games.)

The Happy Hocky Family Moves to the Country

Just like the "Voice" tag in New Socks is kind of a stretch, the "Growth Mindset" tag in this one is a little dicey. I'm going to stick with it though, and I'll explain why. Lane Smith describes the life of the Hocky family after they move from the city to a broken-down farm house in the country. As someone who has lived in the country for about 13 years, I find a lot of the humor in this book to be, well, humorous. There's a whole lot of truth in it. Between the description of leaves in the fall, the chili cook-offs, and the abundance of "furry" creatures such as squirrels and skunks, the country is successfully captured. I have to say that my favorite page, though, is 52, which shows the house and yard covered with snow with a caption that says "In the country there are lots of new games to play. This one is called FIND THE DRIVEWAY." After last year's blizzards, this was a game we played often at my house.

The growth mindset comes in during a couple of the vignettes, in which the Hocky children either become dejected with a failure or decide to take their failure and try again. Some of the vignettes - the ones where the children become dejected - demonstrate fixed minset, while some of them display growth mindset, but in the very end of the book each family member has an opportunity to show growth mindset at last. It's subtle, extremely subtle, but I like it. And I think I could use it. Bottom line, though, this book is a really funny time.

New Socks

Honestly, the "Voice" tagging for this one is kind of a stretch. You could easily use this book as an example of voice, but the theme of this book is humor. Absolutely hilarious, just-for-fun, humor. What I'm about to say is truly big: New Socks is as funny as a Pigeon book. Blows your mind a little bit, doesn't it? I know.

There's not a lot of plot; the little guy's got some new socks. That's pretty much it. Oh, and he really loves those socks. He talks about the socks for page after page, sharing his love for his snazzy new accessory as if he's describing a million bucks. All I can say is that if you're in need of a good laugh, find this book. I hate spoilers so I'll share what the back of the book says instead of anything inside it:

"Imagine the best book ever. This is better. It's about me and my New Socks, and it's about me. Read it. You'll like it."

Pretty much sums it up.

Learning to Fly

This is one of the best picture books I've read in a while, and that's really saying something. I love picture books. But I also love growth mindset and books that display it, and this one does that impressively well. It also doesn't hurt that the drawings are awesome and penguins are adorable.

The narrator stumbles across a penguin who says that he decided that he wanted to fly. So he did. And as he flew he saw some other bird who told him that penguins can't fly. And he fell. The penguin wanted to fly, reached his goal, and then allowed someone else who didn't believe in him ruin everything. How often do we do this to our students? How often do we destroy their fires by believing that they aren't capable? They know when we don't believe in them, and they believe it themselves. Thankfully, the narrator believes in the penguin; he sets up a training program and does everything he can to help the penguin fly again. Unlike the first time, though, nothing works. It's not until the last page of the book, when they spot a penguin colony flying overhead, that the penguin believes once again and easily takes flight. Unfortunately, our students may need an incredible amount of convincing once they've been taught to believe that they're incapable of succeeding. The narrator of this book did everything he could to help the penguin but the final ingredient for success only came when the penguin believed it about himself. This is the case with students, too, and we need to be patient as their educators. It may not be an instantaneous change, but we need to do everything we can to encourage them so that when the moment comes and it clicks and they see what they're capable of, they'll fly just like the penguin.

Mia's Story

This is a genuinely unique story. With beautiful illustrations that provide an intimate sketchbook look and a writing style in the form of a personal narrative, the reader feels as though they are looking over the shoulder of the author as he writes. Taking place in the mountains of Chile, Mia's Story highlights a young girl's determination that embraces every element of her life. Whether caring for her new puppy, searching for that puppy after he disappears, or nurturing a crop of flowers to sell at the marketplace, Mia approaches life head-on. Her family's life in their poor village is difficult and she faces several hardships throughout the book, but she remains strong and focused. Mia finds happiness in each of these situations, whether taking a moment to breathe the clean air on the top of the mountain or harvesting an accidental crop of wildflowers to help her family. An somewhat subtle but sincere example of growth mindset, Mia demonstrates the benefit of seeing good in every situation as well as the results that can come from genuine effort.

Mindset

This book by Carol Dweck discusses the two mindsets that people have: the fixed mindset or the growth mindset. Fixed mindset says that you're born with an intelligence, skill set, and talents and what you have is what you have. Growth mindset says that every moment and every place is a starting point; you can learn a talent, learn a skill, or receive an education. You don't look at all the artistic people and the athletic people and the smart classmates and think "wow, I wish I could do that." You become that. Certainly, we have our natural talents that we are born with - our starting points - but we can always grow, always learn more. We can take an art class, spend some time in the gym, or become motivated enough to become a better student. We read this book in one of my grad classes this semester and I've been officially brainwashed; I see growth mindset everywhere. When I was asked by one of my professors to help her with an ongoing project in which I find her resources to help middle school teachers motivate difficult students, I knew that growth mindset was our starting point. So many teachers are fixed mindset themselves and/or believe a fixed mindset about their students, and no motivation or connection occurs. This book is awesome, and I highly recommend it.

The Red Chalk

Main character Sara has a piece of red chalk that she thinks is boring. After successfully tricking a friend into trading his marbles for her chalk - she says it has magic powers - she quickly becomes bored with the marbles and seeks her next victim. This pattern continues, but the interesting element is that she is always bored and unhappy with what she has and is continually on the hunt for what everyone else has, but each friend that she trades with is completely content with their new toy. It doesn't matter to them that it's just a normal piece of chalk...to them, it really does have magical powers. Why not? They all take their typical object and have the time of their lives with it while Sara remains completely unhappy. In the end, Sara realizes the great thing she had originally with the red chalk, and is finally content.

This book is adorable. The illustrations are cute, Sara is cute, and the lies Sara comes up with to trick her friends are...imaginative. For me, though, this book is an excellent example of growth mindset. Our students look around in the classroom and in the gym and in the lunchroom and they see what everyone else has. Everyone else is smarter, stronger, more popular, more artistic, more musical...fill in the blank. They wish they could trade talents - or just have one of the talents - of their peers and they fail to see what they have already. But everyone has talents, everyone has abilities, and everyone has the ability to learn. All of Sara's friends traded their items with Sara based on the premise of the lies that she told them. But when they realized that their item didn't really make you a genius or give you three wishes, they had just as much fun with the item anyway. They saw the item for its true potential, not just what they were told at face value. Just like Sara eventually realized that she should have seen the value of her red chalk rather than chase after what everyone else has, our students can learn that they already have the abilities to be whoever and whatever they want to be.

Matched

Alright. I finished this book not 30 seconds ago, and I have to be completely honest. I struggled with the first...eh...180 to 200 pages. I know that sounds like a lot of text to read while struggling with it, and it is. I wasn't struggling because I wasn't interested, though, or because the writing was bad. I was and it definitely wasn't. From the first review/synopsis I read of this book I've been genuinely intrigued and antsy to read it, and I wasn't disappointed in the plot - even during the first 180 to 200 pages. I was disappointed, though, and I did struggle with the way that the setting seemed to be a subtle rip-off of The Hunger Games. The Society of Matched is eerily similar to the Capitol of The Hunger Games; the love triangle irked me as a Katniss/Gale/Peeta copycat. Now that I've finished the book, however, I've moved on and realized that A) I don't have a lot of experience reading books that take place in the future, and maybe all these authors are just seeing the writing on the wall and doing a good job of predicting the same horrible future for us, and B) Katniss doesn't own the love triangle concept, they're just common. Period. Now that I've gotten that - and the first 200ish pages - out of the way, here's what I really think about it:

Wow. I have learned some things about myself while reading this book. For starters, I'm apparently a sucker for fictional boys. Kind of obnoxiously so. I did a much better job of resisting the wiles of Ky than I did Peeta's, but what does it really matter in the end? I fell for that charm and I fell hard. I like Ky. Of course the problem is that I like Xander. (In case you didn't catch it, this is the love triangle element.) The weird thing is that it took me most of those 200ish pages to like Cassia, the main character/antagonist/narrator. I saw her as weak and flighty...a big part of me wanted to keep comparing her to Katniss and Katniss kept winning. But, also in the end, I moved on. They're two completely different characters and Cassia wisens up considerably, changing from that weak and flighty girl into a headstrong rebel that the Girl on Fire would be proud to march alongside of. (Wow...if you haven't read The Hunger Games, you are so lost. But honestly, you've had a couple years to get on board. Read those books immediately.) As I closed the book for the last time just minutes ago, I decided that I definitely love this book. My feelings went from a mild "eh" to concrete enthusiasm, and I would recommend it without a hesitation. I also appreciate that it seems to be set up for a sequel...I just love sequels. It's so hard for me to say goodbye to characters I have come to love. And I did come to love these characters.

The more blogposts/reviews I write, the more I realize how I am so hit or miss. Sometimes I'm straight to the point and just explain myself. And other times I'm bouncing all over the place. Since this is Friday afternoon and I've been alone at work against my will for two and a half hours now, this is one of the bouncier ones. I'm really sorry about that. Here, succinct and to the point, is my review: Slow start, but comes together in the end. Loved it. Go check it out.

Happy weekend.

The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Society

Set in post-World War II London and the British island Guernsey, this book is written entirely in the letters that are sent as correspondance between each of the characters. This somewhat unique approach - or at the very least, uncommon - brings the characters so much more to life than I had expected. Virtually no character or plot development is lost through this method, and I actually think that I grew to love the characters more because I got to know them through their letter-writing. (Also, it made me really want to write letters. And receive them. And immediately join a book club.) I know I have a tendency to be generous with my support and flowery adjectives and gushes of being in love with every new book I read, so I'll spare you from that this time and just simply say: this book is really good. It's special. The characters are immediately endearing and charming; the setting is unique to me as the 20-something American who has not recently survived a war fought in my own city; the insights and perspectives offered regarding the German occupation of the island of Guernsey during World War II are honestly far beyond what I'd ever seriously considered as true events that took place. It's good...it's really, really good. The friend who recommended it to me said that her mother had given it to her for Christmas, and that both of them had already read it several times because they missed the characters so much. At the time this sounded slightly silly, but now I understand. I dearly wish that Juliet was a real person in my life. I would write her a letter a day just so I could receive her hilarious and witty responses. I honestly would.

Audiobooks Might be Out to Get Me

I found the flaw in audiobooks: you get three discs into the plot and are totally hooked and then the CD is scratched and won't play.

Page [1]: The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society

Here's the first page [basically] of the book I'm reading, The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Society, written by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows:

"Dear Sidney,

Susan Scott is a wonder. We sold over forty copies of the book, which was very pleasant, but much more thrilling from my standpoint was the food. Susan managed to procure ration cupons for icing sugar and real eggs for the meringue. If all her literary luncheons are going to achieve these heights, I won't mind touring about the country. Do you suppose that a lavish bonus could spur her on to butter? Let's try it - you may deduct the money from my royalties.

Now for my grim news. You asked me how work on my new book is progressing. Sidney, it isn't.

English Foibles seemed so promising at first. After all, one should be able to write reams about the Society to Protest that Glorification of the English Bunny. I unearthed a photograph of the Vermin Exterminators' Trade Union, marching down an Oxford street with placards screaming "Down with Beatrix Potter!" But what is there to write about after a caption? Nothing, that's what."

Stay tuned for my thoughts after I finish!

Predictions of Robots

Just felt the need to check in after my dramatic post about starting the new audiobook. As it turns out, I am completely hooked on this one. Big fan of Jenna Fox so far, and I'm making really intuitive predictions. I think Jenna is a robot, and I simultaneously felt really smart and really ridiculous for having that light bulb yesterday on my drive to work. But I'll have the last laugh when I turn out to be right.

[Stay tuned for whether that actually happens....fingers crossed.]

Also, just a tidbit for your amusement/information: when you are staying at a friend's house while she is out of the country, it's good to test the key and make sure you can actually turn it so it's not 7:30 in the morning, 30 degrees out, and you cannot physically lock the stupid house. It was a fun morning. But yay for friends who get out of bed and drive across town in their jammies to help you jiggle the lock until the dumb deadbolt goes in.

To Kill a Mockingbird

Well...I finally finished it. "Finally" not referring to the fact that it was hard to get through or that I wasn't able to plow through it out of excitement, but because life got busy and responsibilities piled up a little bit and I couldn't make enough time to read. I loved this book. I know I said just last week that The Westing Game is one of my new favorite books and I meant it, but Mockingbird is now my official new favorite. I am in love with this book. The story, the writing, the characters...I laughed out loud and yes, I did cry.

[For those of you who may be like me and have managed to go 20-something years of life without reading this classic...] Scout Finch narrates this book as an eight year old girl, telling the story of one of the most important moments in her childhood. Growing up with a single father, defense attorney Atticus Finch, and her big brother Jem, Scout is a rough-and-tough tomboy who is fully capable of keeping up with Jem's antics as well as having a political debate with her highly educated father. At the center of the plot, however, is a particular case in which Atticus defends a black man charged with rape and consequently puts his family in danger.

I've already said that I love this book and it is now at the very top of my favorites list, so I guess I shouldn't say it again [Oops. I guess I just did, huh?] What I haven't really said is why I love it so much. The witty dialogue and hilarious interchanges between Scout and...well...everyone, are endearing and bond the reader to the characters immediately. To see the world - such a Depression-era, racist, sometimes backwards world - solely through the eyes of a girl wiser and more vocal than her years is a priceless opportunity. Rather than being just another adult caught up in the silly gossip and judgments of this culture, you become acutely aware of the practicality of truth. Example? Okay. The biggest moment of clarity that hit me came about forty pages or so from the end, when Scout goes on a tirade about how her teacher and classmates hate Hitler for discriminating against the Jews just because of their race but they themselves hate black people and see them as second-class citizens just because of their race. Personally, I loathe every concept and inkling of racism or discrimination on the basis of race, and it's been a hot-button topic with me for a long time. But I'm not sure that I ever really connected those dots: how did the American public feel the way they did towards Hitler in the 1940s and yet have the cross burning, murder, and vicious violence of the 1960s? How on earth was that possible? It's so simple, and so indicative of human nature, and yet it had gone completely unnoticed by me until Scout pointed it out. [It should probably be said that the historical timeline seems to be slightly off-set here...Americans were not nearly as aware of Hitler's racial cleansing practices in the 1930s, when this book takes place, as we were during the 1940s, but the point is very well made.] There is so much that I love and appreciate about this book, and the tears did in fact flow in the final pages. I won't tell you what my absolute favorite scene is because it would spoil the entire book if you haven't read it, but I will say that it simultaneously broke my heart and made me sing for joy. If you've read the book, you probably know what scene I'm talking about. If you haven't...well...read it.

Audiobooks Take 2

Alright...I decided - on my walk back to the library to check in Sammy and Juliana - that I need to give audiobooks another chance. I'm a a commuter for the rest of this semester and it just makes too much sense that I would fall in love with them and crank out books regularly by listening to them. It makes too much sense and I am determined to make it happen. So round two is The Adoration of Jenna Fox, written by Mary Pearson. Say a prayer for me and Jenna Fox as we commence on our journey together at approximately 2:30 today.