Non-fiction book review - Three Summers

 

Three Summers by Amra Sabic-El-Rayess

This is a compelling snapshot of Bosnia before the war. While there is some exploration of the rise of Slobodan Milosevic, this is not the main focus of the memoir. Instead it's a picture of being a girl, of dealing with grief and trying to figure out aspects of femininity that seem to come easily to others. It's forming close relationships with other girls and testing out boundaries. It's the limits and tenuous nature of life in a communist country. We get a strong picture of the culture of Bosnia, the historic relationship between Serbs and Muslims and how that became conflict. For the most part it's a lovely picture of relationships with just small glimpses into the conflict to come and what that meant for people. 

Advanced Reader Copy provided by NetGalley

Non-fiction book review - Survival Scout: Tsunami

 

Survival Scout: Tsunami by Maxwell Eaton III

Extreme weather is a branch of science with high appeal for kids. And graphic novels add to that appeal. They allow the author to explain the science visually. This book adds a thin layer of "story" to the text but it's mostly a breakdown of the stages and causes of earthquakes and tsunamis. It conveys the danger and urgency of the situation without becoming overblown or fearmongering. There are plentiful safety and planning tips as well so this a a good one for parents to read with their children.

Advanced Reader Copy provided by NetGalley

Pick 6: Racism

 Some topics can be hard to talk about, hard to get kids to understand and empathize with. But they're part of everyday experience and must be explored. Racism is one of those topics and a book can be a great tool for facilitating conversation. Here are six books published in the past six months that feature racism as a central element.

6 new books that address racism

1. Tagging Freedom by Rhonda Roumi
2. Wander in the Dark by Jumata Emill
3. Ghost Roast by Shawnee Gibbs
4. One Big Open Sky by Lesa Cline-Ransome
5. Call Me Iggy by Jorge Aguirre
6. Call Me Al by Wali Shah
   

Book review - Coyote Lost and Found

 

Title: Coyote Lost and Found

Author: Dan Gemeinhart

Genre: realistic fiction

Similar books: Ashes to Asheville by Sarah Dooley

                     Far From Fair by Elana K Arnold

Rating:

 

entertaining and heart-felt

Summary (provided by publisher): It's been almost a year since Coyote and her dad left the road behind and settled down in a small Oregon town. . . time spent grieving the loss of her mom and sisters and trying to fit in at school. But just as life is becoming a new version of normal, Coyote discovers a box containing her mom’s ashes. And she thinks she might finally be ready to say goodbye.
So Coyote and her dad gear up for an epic cross-country road trip to scatter the ashes at her mom’s chosen resting place. The only problem? Coyote has no idea where that resting place is—and the secret’s hidden in a book that Coyote mistakenly sold last year, somewhere in the country. Now, it’s up to Coyote to track down the treasured book . . . without her dad ever finding out that it’s lost.
It’s time to fire up their trusty bus, Yager, pick up some old friends, discover some new ones, and hit the road on another unforgettable adventure.

My opinion: Clearly, this is a sequel to The Remarkable Journey of Coyote Sunrise. You could read and understand this book without knowledge of the other but the background sure helps. Given the set up - traveling cross country on a bus on a time sensitive quest when her father doesn't know all the details - this could easily be a rehash of the first book. But Gemeinhart introduces new elements and characters. Setting the book at the beginning of the pandemic is one of those twists. The world is changing just as Coyote is trying to figure out her place in the world, how to fit in with her peers, and coming to terms with her grief. As with the first book, the journey is funny and heart-breaking in equal measure, showing the reader how the world can be cruel and kind. A solid choice for any middle grade reader.

Advanced Reader Copy provided by NetGalley

WWW Wednesday

What are you currently reading?

Thieves' Gambit by Kayvion Lewis - Raised in a family of international thieves, our protagonist signs up for an elite heist competition in order to save her mother.

What did you recently finish reading?

The Reappearance of Rachel Price by Holly Jackson - Bel is the reluctant participant in a documentary about the mysterious disappearance of her mother. Things get far more interesting when her mother reappears and her story doesn't sit right with Bel. Uncovering her mother's secrets brings to light more than Bel ever bargained for.

What do you think you'll read next?

Three Summers by Amra Sabic-El-Rayess

Book review - The Wrong Way Home

Title: The Wrong Way Home

Author: Kate O'Shaughnessy

Genre: realistic fiction

Similar books: The Wild Journey of Juniper Berry by Chad Morris

                      Watch the Sky by Kirsten Hubbard 

Rating:

 

interesting and sympathetic

Summary (provided by publisher): Fern’s lived at the Ranch, an off-the-grid, sustainable community in upstate New York, since she was six. The work is hard, but Fern admires the Ranch's leader, Dr. Ben. So when Fern’s mother sneaks them away in the middle of the night and says Dr. Ben is dangerous, Fern doesn't believe it. She wants desperately to go back, but her mom just keeps driving.
Suddenly thrust into the treacherous, toxic, outside world, Fern thinks only about how to get home again. She has a plan, but it will take time. As that time goes by, though, Fern realizes there are things she will miss from this place—the library, a friend from school, the ocean—and there are things she learned at the Ranch that are just...not true.
Now Fern will have to decide. How much is she willing to give up to return to the Ranch? Should she trust Dr. Ben’s vision for her life? Or listen to the growing feeling that she can live by her own rules?

My opinion: There are a lot of elements of this book that we could discuss. Most important is the relationship between Fern and her mother, of course. The dynamic between them informs a great deal of the plot. The same could be said for the mother and her relationship with adults in her life. As her history is revealed we come to understand how her relationships lead her to living on the Ranch. It's all quite thoughtfully and carefully laid out. But I'm most interested in Fern herself. From the book's opening we see how Dr. Ben manipulates his followers. We can see and understand the toxicity of their environment. So Fern's insistence on returning to the Ranch is pretty clearly "wrong" to the reader. We know she's making choices that won't benefit her. But she is a consistent and empathetic character. Even as we understand that her decisions are wrong we can see why she makes them, why they are the logical choices for her. It's quite skillfully done and opens up an avenue for discussion with young readers. It's a great opportunity to talk about how environment and experience color perception and may contribute to helping young readers become more empathetic.

Advanced Reader Copy provided by NetGalley
 

Listen with me

 

The Summer She Went Missing by Chelsea Ichaso

It's becoming a familiar premise - a teen investigates the disappearance of her friend (or sometimes a sister) and uncovers secrets in her town. Still, it's a thriller which makes for good listening while running and I'm interested to see how Ichaso handles the concept. Let's find out together.