Non-fiction book review - Into the Streets

Into the Streets by Marke Bieschke

It's important to get a full understanding our our nation's history, both it's triumphs and it's failings. And a history of protest is going to inherently contain both elements. Why else do people protest than because they have been failed in some fundamental way? Bieschke starts at the nation's formation gives us an overview of times that people have turned to public protest to regain rights that have been denied them. This includes movements with which we are familiar (the Boston Tea Party, Suffrage March, Bus Boycotts, the Grape Strike) and some that are likely to be foreign (the Stonewall Riots, the Miss America Protest, the Occupation of Alcatraz). The reasons they protested were varied, as were the results of their action. And importantly, the protests highlighted include some we might consider "bad", like Klan rallies, highlighting the importance of rights for everyone, regardless of the unpopularity of their opinions. Highly readable, this is an excellent addition to resources for young people needing to understand their rights.
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Book review - The Dream Weaver

Title: The Dream Weaver
Author: Reina Luz Alegre
Genre: realistic fiction
Similar books: In Your Shoes by Donna Gephart
                      The Dollar Kids by Jennifer Richard Jacobson
Rating:

simple but decent

Summary (provided by publisher): Zoey comes from a family of dreamers. From start-up companies to selling motorcycles, her dad is constantly chasing jobs that never seem to work out. As for Zoey, she’s willing to go along with whatever grand plans her dad dreams up—even if it means never staying in one place long enough to make real friends. Her family being together is all that matters to her.
So Zoey’s world is turned upside down when Dad announces that he’s heading to a new job in New York City without her. Instead, Zoey and her older brother, José, will stay with their Poppy at the Jersey Shore. At first, Zoey feels as lost and alone as she did after her mami died. But soon she’s distracted by an even bigger problem: the bowling alley that Poppy has owned for decades is in danger of closing!
After befriending a group of kids practicing for a summer bowling tournament, Zoey hatches a grand plan of her own to save the bowling alley. It seems like she’s found the perfect way to weave everyone’s dreams together...until unexpected events turn Zoey’s plan into one giant nightmare. Now, with her new friends counting on her and her family’s happiness hanging in the balance, Zoey will have to decide what her dream is—and how hard she’s willing to fight for it. 

My opinion: We are seeing an increasing number of books about biracial kids trying to figure out their place in the world, how they fit into two cultures and feel isolated from both, torn between the two sides of their family. Alegre adds to the conflict by showing us the extended family, the father brother and grandfather, at odds with one another. We have not only culture clash but ideological conflict and years of resentment. That alone is interesting. Then we add in peers and their interactions. Bullies, class divide, and social pressure. All of that together could easily have been too much, but Alegre keeps it in check. Mostly side issues are introduced in small moments and resolved within a few chapters. Characters clash over an issue and hash it out just a few scenes later. None of these side plots carry on very long. The final resolution is a bit rough, the conflict underdeveloped. So there are flaws, but its readable and enjoyable.
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Book review - It's Girls Like You, Mickey

Title: It's Girls Like You, Mickey
Author: Patti Kim
Genre: realistic fiction
Similar books: Front Desk by Kelly Yang
                      The Secret Life of Lincoln Jones by Wendelin Van Draanen

Rating:

a couple of great characters

Summary (provided by publisher): For the first time in her confident, bold life, Mickey McDonald is nervous about starting school. Her best friend, Ok, has moved away; her father has probably left town for good; and she can’t afford to go back-to-school shopping. But she’s going to make the most of things because that’s the kind of person Mickey is. Nothing’s going to stand in her way or get her down.
Still, the first few days of school are rough, until she becomes friends with Sun Joo, who has just moved to town. Their connection is instant and strong. But things get complicated when Sydney, the popular (and mean) girl in Mickey’s class, also takes a shine to Sun Joo. Suddenly Mickey is facing her first ever friend breakup, and it’s getting harder and harder to keep her chin up. Luckily, Mickey’s made of tough stuff. 

My opinion: I was a couple of chapters into this book before I began to realize that it was a sequel. There are moments of recaps, quick overviews of the events of the previous book, but for the most part the events of this novel stand on their own. Mickey is a fantastic protagonist. She's self-assured and outspoken. She wants to be liked, to have friends, but she won't change to make that happen. She's mostly cheerful, a positive person. But that doesn't mean that she doesn't get overwhelmed by life at times. She makes mistakes and snaps at the people in her life. She lets disappointments drag her down. She's nosy and bossy and talks too much. And I like that Sun Joo calls her out. In spite of being a more reserved person, she pushes back when Mickey goes too far. We get this message that even when we mean well, it's more important to listen than to push for "what's best". Some of the book is a bit underdeveloped, a bit reliant upon random happenstance. Even so, it's charming and entertaining.
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Graphic novel spotlight - Bolivar

Bolivar by Sean Rubin

Bolivar is the graphic novel for kids growing out of Imogene's Antlers or What the Mailman Brought. It takes a very strange occurrence - a dinosaur living in New York City - and makes it very commonplace. The bulk of the plot is Sybil either trying to see her neighbor or prove to others that he is a dinosaur. The adults in the neighborhood interact with Bolivar regularly but are so caught up in their own concerns that they cannot see that he isn't human. Or if they do notice something odd about him assume they can't possibly be right. This is actually a pretty high level concept for such a simple story since most of the plot is predicated on self absorption and willful ignorance. In the end, the plot doesn't even matter (though it's definitely worth reading). The illustrations are amazing. They are full of super fine details. It's a book you can enjoy simply leafing through.

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Non-fiction book review - Throw Like a Girl, Cheer Like a Boy

Throw Like a Girl, Cheer Like a Boy by Robyn Ryle

I make no secret of my general disinterest in sports. What does interest me, I'm realizing, is sociology. That means that I found this book fascinating. It looks at what sports can tell us about roles in society: gender, race, class, and identity. We look at how those roles and how the public's view of various sports have changed over time. As minorities began to achieve, to threaten the superiority of the majority, efforts to hold them back become common place. It's a lot of information, a lot of individual examples, and can be a little dense but I found it compelling enough to drive me to keep reading. Additionally, it's well documented and reliably sourced. There's a clear agenda and bias in the presentation but it's so well researched that it's hard to argue with.
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Book review - The Mall

Title: The Mall
Author: Megan McCafferty
Genre: historical fiction
Similar books: The Seven Torments of Amy and Craig by Don Zolidis
                      Rayne and Delilah's Midnite Matinee by Jeff Zentner
Rating:

a great snapshot of the time

Summary (provided by publisher): The year is 1991. Scrunchies, mixtapes and 90210 are, like, totally fresh. Cassie Worthy is psyched to spend the summer after graduation working at the Parkway Center Mall. In six weeks, she and her boyfriend head off to college in NYC to fulfill The Plan: higher education and happily ever after.
But you know what they say about the best laid plans...
Set entirely in a classic “monument to consumerism,” the novel follows Cassie as she finds friendship, love, and ultimately herself, in the most unexpected of places. Megan McCafferty, beloved New York Times bestselling author of the Jessica Darling series, takes readers on an epic trip back in time to The Mall.

My opinion: McCafferty really captures the essence of the early 1990's, in large part because she's set the entire plot within the mall. We see all of the specialty shops, the culture of the mall. Now, since the plot is essentially a treasure hunt it has an almost magical air. Really, though, that hunt is just a framework for the character development. It's a method by which Cassie explores the complexity of relationships, the ways people change for each other, and finding the balance between healthy compromise and staying true to yourself. It makes some interesting points about toxic masculinity but the characters are a little progressive for their time. While the attitudes are understandable now, they were far less common in 1991. It makes some interesting points about emotional maturity, though it's not likely to be my first choice.
More information: The Mall releases July 28.
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Book review - Starting from Seneca Falls

Title: Starting from Seneca Falls
Author: Karen Schwbach
Genre: historical fiction
Similar books: A Time for Courage by Katherine Lasky
                     Counting on Grace by Elizabeth Winthrop
Rating:

Summary (provided by publisher): Bridie's life has been a series of wrongs. The potato famine in Ireland. Being sent to the poorhouse when her mother's new job in America didn't turn out the way they'd hoped. Becoming an orphan.
And then there's the latest wrong--having to work for a family so abusive that Bridie is afraid she won't survive. So she runs away to Seneca Falls, New York, which in 1848 is a bustling town full of possibility. There, she makes friends with Rose, a girl with her own list of wrongs, but with big dreams, too.
Rose helps Bridie get a job with the strangest lady she's ever met, Mrs. Elizabeth Cady Stanton. Mrs. Stanton is planning a convention to talk about the rights of women. For Bridie and Rose, it's a new idea, that women and girls could have a voice. But they sure are sick of all the wrongs. Maybe it's time to fight for their rights! 

My opinion: The Seneca Falls Convention is a relatively well know event among history buffs, less so among the rest of us. Even if it's familiar, though, viewing it through teh eyes of children nearby is always an interesting premise. This particular book gives us two marginalized perspectives: a white domestic worker and a black school girl. Bridie comes from abject poverty and expects very little out of life. She figures all the future holds for her is hard work. She's never really seen any other possibility. It does not occur to her to consider what she might want out of life. Rose is filled with ambition. She wants to achieve great things but society tells her that her gender and her race will hold her back. The plot is pretty straightforward and not especially conflict driven. The ending is built on a lot of convenient coincidences and cuts off pretty short. Still an interesting exploration that could spark some decent conversations with young readers.
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