Graphic novel spotlight - The Bodyguard Unit

 

The Bodyguard Unit by Clement Xavier

Most of us know next to nothing about Jujitsu as a discipline. Or about the history of martial arts in the West. Or about the suffrage movement apart from the little we are taught in school. Those ideas combine in this book. Here we learn about a couple that started out simply wanting to teach Jujitsu, especially wanting to teach women a few basic skills to protect themselves. They became enmeshed in the suffrage movement at a time in Britain where the conflict was becoming especially violent. The nature of the plot, being driven by fight scenes, lends itself well to the graphic novel format. It does not shy away from stark images and neither side of the conflict is painted in an especially positive light. This is a solid choice for supplementing an existing history lesson plan about the suffrage movement.

 

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Book review - All You Have to Do

 

Title: All You Have to Do

Author: Autumn Allen

Genre: historical fiction

Similar books: Required Reading for the Disenfranchised Freshman by Kristen R Lee

                     Anger is a Gift by Mark Oshiro

Rating:

 

thought provoking

Summary (provided by publisher): In ALL YOU HAVE TO DO, two Black young men attend prestigious schools nearly thirty years apart, and yet both navigate similar forms of insidious racism.
In April 1968, in the wake of Martin Luther King, Jr.'s assassination, Kevin joins a protest that shuts down his Ivy League campus...
In September 1995, amidst controversy over the Million Man March, Gibran challenges the “See No Color” hypocrisy of his prestigious New England prep school...
As the two students, whose lives overlap in powerful ways, risk losing the opportunities their parents worked hard to provide, they move closer to discovering who they want to be instead of accepting as fact who society and family tell them they are.

My opinion: I like the way this book blends two tough political and racial climates. We see how these two young men struggle to be accepted at their schools, to prove to their white peers that admission is not the same thing as belonging. Their is a lot of discussion of being seen, heard, acknowledged. The writing moves quickly and keeps us engaged and eagerly advancing through the plot. Which is almost a shame, because these are concepts that are worthy of thought, of lingering and contemplating. I could easily see using this book with a group of modern teens to spark discussion of the current approaches to race and how events in the news (MLK's death, the Million Man March, BLM protests) affect how we approach questions of racial inequality.

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Non-fiction book review - An Atlas of Afterlives

 

An Atlas of Afterlives by Emily Hawkins

It can be hard to discuss what a group thinks happens after we die without getting too deep into tenets of faith and deities but Hawkins handles this well. For each belief system we get a little about the people who follow(ed) that belief, what their afterlife looked like, and who would end up there. It is perhaps a niche area of interest but understanding a people's views on death tell us a lot about how they live. Additionally, the sections are well illustrated and artistic, making this a book worth reading and simply leafing through. 

More information: An Atlas of Afterlives releases September 26

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Book review - Grave Mistakes

 

Title: Grave Mistakes

Author: Kitty Curran

Genre: mystery

Similar books: What Stays Buried by Suzanne Young

                      Brick Dust and Bones by M R F

Rating:

 

a decent start to a series

Summary (provided by publisher): Molly Dade has big problems. She’s got an important violin audition coming up, she’s been paired with her nemesis for a group project, and she’s struggling to hide a life-or-death secret from…well, from everyone. It wasn’t long ago that the Dades were just a regular Maine family living in their reportedly haunted house in the local cemetery. But then Molly’s mom and twin brother Marty were killed in a freak accident. And Molly, her older brother Timothy, and her father became the town’s newest bereaved family.
Except Mom and Marty are still very much present. No one knows why, but Mom is now a ghost and Marty is a poltergeist. Oh, and there’s also Molly’s younger sister Dyandra, who is a zombie.
Keeping all this supernatural stuff a secret from everyone is hard work, especially when the dead (undead?) members of the family still want to participate in things like the Parent Teacher Association meetings or come to the (very public, very potentially embarrassing) school concert.
When Dad’s new cemetery assistant seems to know the Dade family secret, Molly and Marty worry about the future of their family. And when Marty begins to regain his memories of the explosion that killed him and Mom, the twins realize that the situation might be even more grave than they thought. Someone might be after the Dade family—but who? And why?

My opinion: For a book that starts with a family that is half dead, this book is surprisingly silly. It doesn't take itself overly seriously. There is a mystery, sure, but the bulk of the plot is more about rivalries with school peers and the fear of being an outsider than it is about mysterious deaths. The primary plot is fairly straightforward and doesn't dig too deeply into characters. There is certainly a sense that something larger is going on in the town so there's room for this to grow into a more complex series.

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Book review - The Wild Journey of Juniper Berry

 

Title: The Wild Journey of Juniper Berry

Author: Chad Morris & Shelly Brown

Genre: realistic fiction

Similar books: Star Girl by Jerry Spinelli

                     That Girl Lucy Moon by Amy Timberlake

Rating:

 

a solid read 

Summary (provided by publisher): Eleven-year-old Juniper Berry lives in a cabin with her family deep in the wild woods. Living off the grid is usually exciting, like the time she chased off three growling raccoons with a tree branch and some acorns, or when she thought she glimpsed the legendary Bigfoot. But her happy life in the wild ends abruptly when her younger brother gets sick, and the family moves to the city to be closer to the hospital.
Juniper and her older sister are sent to live with cousins they hardly know and attend a public school for the first time, which is harder to navigate than the wild woods ever were. Juniper feels like a wolf cub separated from her pack.
When Juniper notices that her cousin, Alayna, is being bullied by so-called friends, she’s ready to fight back like the wild geese do when protecting their goslings, but her cousin tells her to stay out of it; she doesn’t want Juniper making things worse.
As the hospital bills for her brother start piling up, Juniper knows they’ll need to be paid before the family can go back to the woods, so she decides to make enough money to help out. With Alayna’s support, Juniper starts posting videos filled with her wisdom from the woods, hoping to get a following. But what if it doesn’t work? What if the bills never get paid? Not going home to the wild is Juniper’s worst nightmare. But while she’s stuck in the city, she might as well make the most of it, like sticking up for her cousin, for starters.

My opinion: At face value, this is a pretty standard fish-out-of-water story. Juniper is used to a very specific way of life and doesn't fit in to regular society. The more she stands out, the more it drives a wedge between her and her cousin. They don't understand each other. These are basic elements of many middle grade books. It invites discussion about what it means to fit in, about individuality and conformity. What sets this one apart is it's exploration of the driving force behind isolation. It doesn't just tell us that Juniper's family lives in the woods, it looks at why they isolate. It doesn't just tell us that Juniper doesn't fit in because she's never had a peer group. It looks at why she never attempts to connect with her new peers. While there are some moments that strain believability, overall this is a solid read that could spark discussion with a middle grade group.

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Non-fiction book review - A Miscellany of Mischief and Magic

 

A Miscellany of Mischief and Magic by Tom Adams

Many kids go  through a phase of obsession with illusionists and/or pranks. So this book is going to hit right in that sweet spot for a wide audience. It is separated into three main topics: magicians, con artists, and hoaxes/pranks. It should be noted that all three sections have an air of admiration, which can be troubling when it comes to cons. Each section has multiple examples, both of noteworthy figures and famous incidents. There are also a few "do it yourself" sections of card tricks, simple illusions, and good natured pranks that are easy enough for a kid to try.

More information: A Miscellany of Mischief and Magic releases September 5. 

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Listen with me

 

The Wild Robot by Peter Brown

This is a surprisingly innocent, gentle story. It doesn't shy away from reality. It speaks plainly about the death of assorted animals (without going into unnecessary detail - so nothing gross). Overall, though, this is a simple story about survival and the power of kindness. This is the perfect choice for your youngster who is perhaps a bit sensitive.