Blog for a grad school project

Here I will be showcasing a total of 25 children's books and blogging about them, blogger is 29 but this blog will strictly be for school

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Blog Post Part 2 Roundup

1. Hot Dog Girl

2. Light Filters In

3. Love Does

4. They Called Us Enemy

5. Beyond the Red

6. There’s Someone In Your House

7. The Cousins

8. The Henna Wars

9. Where Things Come Back

10. Challenger Deep

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Blog Post Part 2 Instructions

Second 10 blogs/Genres/Categories of Books (7th-12th grade level):

1 Romance

1 Poetry

1 Christian

1 biography or autobiography

1 Fantasy OR Science Fiction

1 Horror

1 Mystery/Suspense

1 LGBTQ

1 Printz winners or Printz Honor books

1 National Book award winner

For Blog II:

First, be sure to include an image of the cover of the book you are reviewing.

Second, you get to apply your own likes and dislikes to decide whether the book was good or bad, in your opinion.  This is your reader response to the book.  I also want you to tell us how you connected with this book.  Books become meaningful to the people who read them, in part, through personal connections.  Your response is your opinion of the book and your personal connection piece.

Take a look at the article at the following link for more information about writing a response: http://utminers.utep.edu/omwilliamson/engl0310link/readerresponse.htm (Links to an external site.)

Let the questions presented guide you in your response to the book.  As you consider your response to the book you are reviewing, I think that the a-g questions in “How to Write a Reaction Paper or Reader Response” (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. article can be nicely linked together in one paragraph. For instance, a. asks what the book you read had to do with your life while b. asks whether what you read clashed with your view of the world while c. asks whether your thoughts were changed by what you read. If I were responding to, let's say the book, The Glass Castle, I would say something like this: As I read The Glass Castle, there were parallels I could draw to certain experiences in my own life. (a.)  My parents were very young and made somewhat reckless decisions from time to time. I remember my grandfather being angry when I was 5 years old and my mom and dad decided to move to Minnesota in the middle of winter with very little money. While experiences like this allowed me to identify with some of Jeannette's world views, my parents were not as irresponsible as hers were. (b)  As I read, I found myself feeling thankful for the loving care that my parents did provide.  Unlike Jeannette, I never did without food, shelter, or clothing. In reading this book, my eyes were opened a bit wider to the plight of many children and I will remember what I read as I work with children. (c) In this paragraph, I responded to the following:

A: What does the text have to do with you, personally, and with your life (past, present or future)?

B: How much does the text agree or clash with your view of the world, and what you consider right and wrong?

C: How did you learn, and how much were your views and opinions challenged or changed by this text, if at all?

Please do label each letter as you speak to that criteria as it will help you to be sure you covered the criteria and it will help me as I read your blog to see that you covered the criteria.

You can label the parts of your response with the letters to help you know that you covered everything you needed to cover.

Third, write a justification describing why you chose this title.

Fourth, write a conclusion in which you wrap things up with a brief restatement of the main ideas stated in your book review.  

Another short but informative article can be read at the following link: http://laurynapril.blogspot.com/2013/07/10-tips-to-writing-excellent-book-review.html (Links to an external site.)

The article includes ten thoughts to consider when reviewing a book.  Keep these thoughts in mind as you review, both for this course and for books in your library collection.

Here is the rubric for how each of your blog posts will be graded for Blog I (see attached rubric also):

____ Provide an image of the book’s cover (1 point for each blog post)

____ Provide a 5-6 sentence paragraph discussing the justification for why you chose the particular title that you chose. (5 points per blog post)

____ Provide your response to the book in terms of what you liked or didn’t like in the form of one well-developed paragraph (7-10 sentences).  Answer at least 3 of the questions posed in a-g of the article, “How to Write a Reaction Paper or Reader Response,” in your reader response paragraph.  See my suggestions and example above for further help. (8 points for each blog post)

____ Conclusion—This should be one short paragraph (4-5 sentences) to conclude the blog post.  Please refer to “SaidSimple” article for ideas (3 points for each blog post)

____ APA Citations (1 point for each blog post)

*In your blog, please label each of the components above (Image, Justification, Response, Conclusion, Citation).  This will help you to cover all of the requirements and help me as I grade.  Points will be deducted for blogs not using labels.

____ Total (18 points for each blog post x 10 entries =  180 possible points)

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Light Filters In by Caroline Kaufman

Entry: Poem

Justification

I wanted to include this entry for two reasons: the author published it when she was 19, still a teenager but on the cusp of entering her 20s and at a vulnerable time in her life. That makes her poetry that much more relatable to a teen audience. Secondly, the entry is relevant to teenagers who feel like they’re being forced to grow up much too quickly which seems to be a good deal of them these days. Kaufman published this book to allow others like her to feel seen and heard and to allow them to find solace in this kinship. I would highly recommend this book to librarians looking for works to relate to teenagers. I would also recommend this to teens who are seeking to put a name or a poem to the complex feelings that they’re feeling as they’re growing up.

Evaluation

1. The overarching theme of this book of poems is longing for a time that came and went too quickly. Even though I’m 29, I definitely remember the quick transition from VHS tapes and floppy disks to compact discs and DVDs especially when videogames transitioned from cartridges to discs. I can imagine this for Gen Z except it’s the longing for discs instead of ephemeral streaming. The theme of life moving too quickly to savor it is felt by many but definitely compounded with younger generations. Older generations had black and white TV for quite a while before the transition to color TV and since then, TV didn’t really change until the last 10 years. The book almost asks the question: how are young people supposed to remember the good old days when those ‘days’ last for literal days instead of decades? Reading this book I felt completely called out even though I might not be the intended audience.

2. Even though the composition of Kaufman’s writing isn’t purple prose (writing something like ‘her cerulean orbs settled softly upon the cinnabar sky’) it shouldn’t have to be. The thing about poetry is that it can be quite versatile and it doesn’t even have to rhyme. Kaufman makes good use of light descriptors while still giving the audience room to imagine the setting of each poem. One can see the image of the 11 year old girl with melting chocolate ice cream on her face standing alone, lost in a crowd. The poems are short but sweet and are packed with emotion. I would recommend this book to a teen patron who likes the idea of poetry but is afraid of long and wordy poems like the works of Shakespeare or even Beowulf. From there I would also recommend haiku poetry to them if they liked the book well enough.

3. The emotional weigh of each poem adds to the overall theme of comradery in the ‘pool of sour’ that teens experience once they hit puberty. Becoming someone different than they were before is definitely scary, especially when you often don’t have control of how you handle the emotions that come with that. More often than not, teens are written off as moody, hormonal, or overly emotion almost as if the ones judging had forgotten what it was like to be a teen. Kaufman’s voice from a literal teen perspective is invaluable and necessary to add weight to this book. A teen can look at the author of a book and think ‘they’re not my age, their teen book is unrealistic’ but that wouldn’t be the case for this book. Relatability can not only act as a focal selling point of a book but can emotionally sell a prospective reader on it as well and I’m quite glad Kaufman had the courage to publish in her teens. Voices like hers should be encouraged to publish, giving teens an authentic emphatic link with authors their age.

Conclusion

I’m quite jealous of teens of this generation not because I’m a bitter almost 30 something but because they have a larger wealth of teen works than I did. Kaufman’s sits as a precious gem amongst the wealth, reflecting the light and letting it into the teen poetry genre. As a librarian, I would recommend this work to teens who are having a hard time with their emotions. Using a book to put a teen’s emotions in order can be just as important as filling their bookshelf and sometimes librarians have a secret value as therapists.

Citation

Kaufman, C., & Bryksenkova, Y. (2018). Light Filters In: Poems. Harper, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers.

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Love Does by Bob Goff

Entry: Christian

Justification

I chose to include this book because of how it models ‘do good recklessly’. At first glance after reading the foreword, I just expected Bob Goff to be a Golden Retriever of a human being but more realistically, he’s that plus a bit of a clever fox. The way Goff writes and also explains his reasons for doing things tell us that this man isn’t so much reckless as he is cool as a cucumber. He takes things so in stride it’s like he wears them for shoes. Teens need a Christian book that isn’t a hokey and lame book of devotions their grandparents gave them for their 13th birthday and this book is it.

Evaluation

1. The tone with which Goff writes is very casual but also very informative. You don’t feel like he’s trying terribly hard to be academic or boring and that’s a good thing. Perhaps he doesn’t want to sound that way at all but the way he writes is smart all the same. His stories are told in a way that make you sound like a co-conspirator, like he’s letting you in on secrets. This method of storytelling can easily hook a reader into being interested in the subject without coming on too strong. The fact that Goff’s stories are also non-fiction lends credence to his storytelling ability, meaning he’s not spinning yarns. These things really happened to Goff and the way he tells them makes them sound interesting.

2. Even though I’m a Christian myself, I was often given a deluge of ‘Xtreme Teen Bibles’ for different birthdays and Christmases and ‘Chicken Noodle Soup for the Soul for teens’ which as an aloof teen quite soured my viewpoint of Christianity. At the time, I thought it was all trying too hard to hook the teen demographic and steer us from sin. I grew to be a young adult wary and weary of the teen services I was forced to go to on Sundays and even wearier when I was forced to go to chapel at DBU (mandatory for a scholarship if I remember correctly). As a Methodist I didn’t care for Baptist doctrine and I still don’t but that experience taught me what Christianity and conversely Christianity for teens shouldn’t be: strict. Now, I’m a bisexual (not out) adult Christian who tries to seek books and works that preach love and acceptance and don’t delve into ‘love the sinner hate the sin’ because that’s a backhanded viewpoint. That task is simultaneously hard and easy, with supportive also Christian social media accounts aplenty but supportive books few and far between. Goff’s book isn’t outwardly supportive of the LGBTQ+ community but his message is that Christians should loosen up and love unconditionally like Jesus does and I believe that’s an easier to swallow message than most Christian books today.

3. I do have a big gripe with this book despite how inspired it made me feel: Goff’s wealth. When he mentioned in the beginning of the book that he has a season pass to Disneyland, I wondered what he did for a living. Being a lawyer would make it vastly easier to afford such a luxury, and especially with his office on Tom Sawyer Island. It can be easier to go on his sudden adventures since he’s his own boss and a rich one at that. An argument can be made that he’s putting his wealth to good use by being a force for good in people’s lives but knowing he’s wealthy, his stories come off as a bit like he’s bragging. It can be hard to imagine someone has Christlike behavior when they can suddenly fly around the world for a wedding on a whim. The only big trip Jesus took was in Mary’s stomach as they escaped persecution on pain of death. Well-meaning but wealthy.

Conclusion

I would recommend this book to parents and grandparents who know the kids in their lives are tired of getting another Bible. The messages don’t come off as preachy or fire and brimstone-y and are genuinely heart warming. Teens reading it could learn that not all Christian adults are terribly serious in their faith but can still be serious about their faith. They could also learn that Christianity isn’t one thing to everyone and that it can become a personal journey for them.

Citation

Goff, B. (2014). Love Does. Thomas Nelson.

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Hot Dog Girl by Jennifer Dugan

Entry: Romance

Justification

I became interested in this title just on the title itself and the cover artwork. I found both to be really enchanting and endearing and it grabbed my interest enough to explore the book further. I was pleasantly surprised by the later introduction of a queer romance between Lou and Seeley, who were best friends. However, I was disappointed that another friendship between two girls became romance as if girls can’t simply be just friends. That’s not to say that it shouldn’t happen but it almost seems like the trendy thing to do in Young Adult fiction rather than something personal to the author. That being said, I still think it would speak to queer readers, especially girls who are quirky.

Evaluation

1. As an adult, I had to put aside my chagrin for predictable young adult romance novels and embrace this book as it is. As a quirky girl, I found a kinship with Lou, having also been passed over in high school in favor of ‘perfect princesses’ while crushing after guys above my popularity level. I truly wanted Lou to end up with Nick even though it’d be just another Cinderella retelling but in an amusement park. But Lou ending up with Seeley felt admittedly more organic not to mention the relationship was never treated as Lou settling. It also proves that two people can be friends before they become lovers. High school readers will enjoy the authenticity of the characters but might roll their eyes at the romance. All in all, the plot still has heart and makes it worth a read.

2. Even though the romance seems cut and paste, the setting of the novel is quite creative. Using an amusement park as a background for the changes that are set to unfold as well as putting Lou in the hot dog costume is certainly not the usual setting of a young adult novel. Not only that, the amusement park is set to close permanently at the end of the summer so Lou knows she has to change things for herself one way or another. Especially since the amusement park was a place she and her family visited when they were still a family. Usually in a romance novel the main couple visits an amusement park to have a date. Dugan’s idea to set the novel in an amusement park is a stroke of creativity that benefits the work not to mention sets it apart from other works that come to mind. The setting feels so real that I’d like to visit one day. Dugan’s descriptions were also good enough that they made me hungry for funnel cake.

3. As stated above, the novel falls into some stereotypes. That can make or break a novel about teen romance and teen drama. However, it doesn’t fall into characterization stereotypes. Nick isn’t the type of jock who won’t give Lou the time of day, Jessa isn’t the typical vapid popular girl who wouldn’t be caught dead at an amusement park. Even though Lou calls Jessa ‘Perfect Jessa’ she doesn’t fall into the ‘not like other girls’ stereotype either, especially because Jessa isn’t a mean girl. I have to say that this choice works in the book’s favor and reminded me of other popular works that don’t particularly fall into old teen stereotypes like Stranger Things or Miraculous Ladybug. I’m glad teen novels are moving on from old writing conventions but I do hope that the new doesn’t become the old. 

Conclusion

Hot Dog Girl seemed like a breezy read on the surface but as I read I found out the characters had depth and past trauma. The merry go round symbolized Lou being stuck in a loop. Jessa had a troubled home life just like Lou. Looking past the cheese is important when one wants to find a good book for prospective library patrons.

Citation

Dugan, J. (2019). Hot Dog Girl. Penguin Books.

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They Called Us Enemy by George Takei, illus. by Harmony Becker

Selection: Autobiography

Justification

I’m a huge Star Trek fan thanks to my mom who watched the original series as a kid herself. Although it wasn’t because of that that I read this book, I actually had to read it last year as part of the comics and graphic novels course. I read it again this year to refresh my memory and absolutely wanted to include this selection because of Takei’s personal stake in the biography. Finding survivors of internment can be quite hard and harder still is finding one who’s famous making Takei’s contribution invaluable. For these reasons I wanted to talk about this book.

Evaluation

1. The first impression of the art might be that it’s too simple and doesn’t have enough detail or color. However, the thing about the clothes that prisoners wore was that it was what they could quickly grab at the moment they were arrested and sometimes, they were camp issue. Another thing is that the only color is in the front cover. The comic itself is somewhat like an American manga in that regard. No color except black and white. Becker instead relies on the depth of facial expressions and how they convey the tone and detail of a panel. As the reader, you can see the anxiety wash over Takei’s parents’ faces when they listen to the radio program about the bombing of Pearl Harbor and you know what that means for them. The emotional gravity is important.

2. Takei could easily be a poor storyteller considering his career as an actor. However, acting goes hand in hand with storytelling as an actor’s emotions are used to tell a story about that character while the story of the show is going on. Takei uses his pedigree well in how he writes and especially in how he talks about the naming of he and his brother. You can feel him beam with pride about his father’s names for them, like he loved that about his father. Even though sometimes the panels go on without him, his narration picks up seamlessly. Pacing is important in how a graphic novel tells its story. For this plot, we already know Takei’s family will be interred in a camp but we don’t know where or when. The pacing builds up this anticipation quite well along with Takei’s storytelling.

3. The story that is being told is one we all ought to be familiar with. Teens especially should know about one of the darkest spots in American history. Only talking about the ‘good parts’ of American history is sugarcoating mistakes that we could easily make again and have made with immigrant camps. A key witness testimony can make it all that much easier to warn against these mistakes. We shouldn’t be playing a game of volleyball with horrible historical events, serving them away and saying that we’ll never do them again when they get server right back to us 100 years later or even 70. Teens can act as a generation of future adults who will say ‘Never again’ and mean it. They are the future decision makers and reading this poignant and informative story will arm them with good judgment. 

Conclusion

I will admit I’m quite biased in suggesting this book but for good reason! Takei’s choice of making this biography a graphic novel is a wise one because it makes his story accessible for teens interested in graphic novels. On top of that, it’s important for readers to be able to see the faces of the people who were victims of this atrocity. We in modern times can talk about Japanese interment and conjure up vaguely Japanese people in vaguely 40s clothes but this book puts a face to the people. As a conclusion, I would also recommend season 2 of the horror anthology The Terror to older teens as it also covers Japanese internment with actors who are grandchildren of interred people and George Takei has a role in it as well.

Citation

Takei, G., Eisinger, J., Scott, S., & Becker, H. (2019). They Called Us Enemy. Top Shelf Productions.

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Beyond the Red by Ava Jae

Entry: Science Fiction

Justification

I wanted to include this because of the interesting twists and turns this book takes. On its face, it seems like just another space romance novel but it’s really a narrative on genocide and gender in politics. The fact that alien Queen Kora’s people want her violent twin brother to rule them instead of her just because she’s female is a powerful admonishment of perception of gender. On top of that, the humans of the planet are treated as second class citizens, and calls for their culling are regular. The plot isn’t solely on the romance and that makes for an interesting story.

Evaluation

1. After reading the first novel of the trilogy, I found Jae’s criticism of gender in politics very apt. Just because a ruler is male doesn’t mean they’re going to automatically be good or have their people’s interest at heart. Kora is a much better fit but she’s the first female ruler in generations so her position is tenuous at best. When I first picked up the book, I thought that a woman had written it but soon learned that the author is not only male but a trans man at that and used his experiences as a white passing Latinx to inform how he wrote Eros, the secondary protagonist. The book also seemed like a typical straight romance novel but Eros enters into a romance with another man instead of Kora in the proceeding books, making this an important book for gay patrons. Much of science fiction up until recently seemed to feature straight romance if any romance at all so this theme change was welcome, even if I thought Kora and Eros were cute together. Jae’s book is among a number of LGBTQ+ science fiction that I’ve seen emerging in recent years and I hope changes its mistakes for the better.

2. A common theme of science fiction romance for teens seems to be, on the surface, something like ‘she lives a privileged life and he’s a dangerous and mysterious nomad with barely anything to his name’ and they end up together after realizing that they’re not so different after all. The first book in the trilogy seems to follow that formula, but as pointed out above, it diverges into something pleasantly surprising that hasn’t really been used that much in its genre: gay romance. To top it off, Eros, one half of the gay romance, is also mixed race, a combination that is usually killed at birth. We do eventually learn why he was spared but the fact that his kind are killed at birth goes to show how much disdain the races of his parents usually have for each other. In fact, the alien race attempts to genocide the humans with nanites and later the humans attempt to genocide the alien race with reprogrammed nanites. Themes of genocide aren’t unusual in science fiction, like how the humans of Isaac Asimov’s worlds usually try to make the robots second class citizens. But Jae’s interweaving of gay romance into the genocide plot makes the combination different.

3. Jae could have chosen to make the planet Earth-like but instead opted to highlight how Kora’s region has red sand and another region of the planet has white. Humans look like standard humans while the Sepharons are described as being tall and tattooed and even though not much else is given about their appearance, one can imagine them being almost graceful. Height also sometimes brings a sense of superiority over those who are shorter and it seems like that’s one of the reasons the Sepharons believe themselves better than the humans. Tall means towering over and towering over means dominance over. The alien landscape can also remind readers of Mars even though the planet is not. Today we know a little more about Mars than we we first discovered it but the planet is still so alien to us and the red surface will always stick out in our minds. Jae wanted readers to think of Safara as familiar but not too familiar, almost like a subtle comparison to humanity.

Conclusion

Those who think they need to turn a blind eye to cheesy romance will be pleasantly surprised at the turn of events the book takes. Not only that, the representation of a mixed race gay character could speak to more teen patrons than librarians might realize. There are so few sci fi books for teens that cover this and Beyond the Red could easily become a sought after book in a library. Like how Safara desperately needs a ruler, the sci fi genre for queer teens needs books to fill the genre and Beyond the Red can be a good foundation. A revolution can be started with just one, after all.

Citation

Jae, A. (2017). Beyond the Red. Sky Pony Press.

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There’s Someone Inside Your House by Stephanie Perkins

Selection: Horror

Justification

At first I wanted to include this selection because the main character is half native Hawaiian and half African American and that is still the main reason; however Netflix is coming out with a movie of this book very soon and I can imagine popularity for the book exploding. Going back to the first reason, I hardly ever hear about books that center on a native Hawaiian character if at all. What makes her circumstances especially unique is her backstory and the fact that she’s forced to live in Nebraska. Where once she was on land in the middle of the ocean, she’s now on land in the middle of... land. I can imagine teens in general identifying with isolation while native Hawaiian teens would likely be happy there’s a book with a character just like them.

Evaluation

1. The writing hooked me as soon as I started reading. Right away I got a sense of Haley’s character as well as Ms. Colfax’s, the drama teacher. To me, as a reader, it’s important to establish a character’s motivations and how they act in order for me to relate to them. I was crushed that Haley was the first victim of the slasher but in a way her death was also predictable because she wasn’t the main character. Perkins’s writing is great for establishing characters without focusing too much on them that the pacing loses steam. Makani’s character is relatable without coming across as too bratty, as authors like to do when a character has a troubled past. I also liked the inclusion of a believable trans character who wasn’t a stereotype and wasn’t killed!

2. Makani’s grandmother is her family and acts like family but the book tells us that Makani’s parents are out of the picture. We’re also meant to surmise that the rest of her family wants nothing to do with her, either. We eventually learn why she’s so family poor but as we discover this, Makani discovers a new family in her friend group. Ollie, Alex, and Darby act as Makani’s support group even after learning about her dark past and say that just because she did a bad thing doesn’t make her a bad person. Teens definitely need to understand this important life lesson as it’s wisdom that will serve them well in life. Sometimes the adults in their lives can influence how they view morality and even though Perkins is technically an adult, her point rings true. Makani’s incident was a perfectly human response to experiencing trauma and betrayal and expecting her not to act out of a sense of grace or politeness is unrealistic. Teens will pick up on this and perhaps learn something about themselves.

3. Makani is, in a way, a reverse fish out of water. She was raised on an island surrounded by water with a large population and a long list of things to do in Hawaii. After being forced to live with her grandma in Nebraska, we know that she must be miserable with so much land around her and not that much to do in Nebraska other than look at corn. Mix in the guilt she feels about her dark past and the rash of teen killings and we can further surmise that Nebraska becomes a kind of prison for Makani. However, Perkins lets it be known that the people aren’t boring and Makani’s friend group is definitely a good deal more exciting than what the stereotype is for teens in Nebraska. Perkins tells us that just because Makani is stuck in a dark spot, doesn’t mean she can’t find her way out into the light. Teens will find inspiration in Makani’s perseverance and feel a kinship with her, thanks to Perkins’s characterization.

Conclusion

As a librarian, if I knew about this book I’d absolutely want to include it on the shelves of my library. It teaches kids about determination and perseverance in a dark situation while providing chills and thrills and an interesting mystery. The killer also isn’t obvious right away in the lazy writing way or the ‘we know you know this person did it but did they really??’ way. The mystery will be good for kids who want to use their powers of deduction while being presented with a good challenge. Perkins has written a book that I hope receives an accurate movie adaptation so that viewers can become new readers that give this book the support it deserves.

Citation

Perkins, S. (2018). There's Someone Inside Your House: A Novel. Speak, an imprint of Penguin Random House LLC.

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The Cousins by Karen McManus

Selection: Mystery/Suspense

Justification

I chose to include this selection because of how online summaries made it sound so interesting and one of the first sentences in the book has the word ‘mansplainer’ which is just delightful. I think first impressions for books are important and my first impression is that the book would be good for teens with senses of humor. Not only that, the book doesn’t just center on one person but switches around, meaning teen readers could see themselves in multiple people. McManus’s versatility in switching around is noticeable and appreciated. After all, the book is called the Cousins not the Cousin.

Evaluation

1. McManus does an excellent job of keeping the writing flowing but not so fast that readers will be confused. Descriptions are sparse but not so sparse that it’s hard to tell what something looks like. Something that can be easily lost in ‘tense and taut’ storytelling are adjectives and character descriptions but that’s not the case here. As readers start the book, they might wonder what Milly looks like but we can gather that by osmosis like when we find out her dad is Japanese and that her mom has dark blue eyes. In our minds, a composite sketch of Milly can form but it’s not so specific that teen readers will feel alienated. In addition, half Japanese readers might also find kinship with Milly’s heritage, even though her affluence might alienate. However, she’s not so affluent that her parents can resist sending her to her very rich grandma’s house at her grandma’s request, making Milly’s plight more relatable than what was on the surface. Once I started reading, I couldn’t stop and as someone with ADD, finding a book like that is rare but great!

2. The book starts off in New York City and almost made me roll my eyes at there being another young adult book set in NYC. However, the setting soon changes to an island off the coast of Massachusetts where Milly and her cousins Aubrey and Jonah are invited to stay. On that island resides Gull Cove Resort which their grandmother owns and I got the feeling that this could easily turn into some sort of Nancy Drew style mystery. Rich, estranged, elderly relative invites you and your cousins to stay at your family’s storied and old resort but doesn’t give a reason why except to say that it’s good for young people on the verge of adulthood. I’m an adult and I was immediately sucked into the setting and I can imagine what high schoolers might think of it. It’d be interesting to see the reaction from kids who live close to the ocean versus kids who are landlocked to see if the landlocked kids idealize the resort more than the oceanside kids. I’ve heard from my friend who lives in Massachusetts that it can be annoying when out of state tourists come to visit and don’t know how to act. But in the book’s case, Gull Cove Resort doesn’t seem to be meant for just anyone, thankfully, which adds extra mystery to the setting.

3. As an amateur writer myself, I can imagine that it’s hard to get the voice of individual characters right, as in not only how they speak but the actions they take and how they take them. McManus has a clear command of that with how each individual cousin acts. None of them are perfect kids and none of them does exactly what an adult wants. Aubrey stays down in the water during swim practice longer than her coach wants her to, Milly swears and doesn’t get perfect grades which her mom hates, and Jonah keeps secrets. Teens reading about these characters will relate to them because no teen is perfect nor should they be. Something that sharp readers will also pick up on is the fact that Grandma Mildred named all her children with A names like Archer, Allison, and Anders. What’s also nice is that each of these characters gets their own viewpoint chapters too. Even sharper readers will recognize their names could be shortened to A. Story. Little character details like this as well as their idiosyncrasies make this mystery one worth solving. 

Conclusion

This mystery left me wanting to read it over and over and craving after a sequel. I can imagine that Netflix might even want to adapt this into a series like Locke and Key but more Agatha Christie than Harry Potter. Teen readers who grew up with Nancy Drew but hated the show adaptation might greatly enjoy this book to soothe their sorrows and would find that people can have different motivations and viewpoints than their own. Books for high schoolers can sometimes center on one character but books with multiple viewpoints can serve to teach these students that not everyone is the mask that they choose to put on. I would definitely have this on my library’s shelf.

Citation

McManus, K. M. (2020). The Cousins. Thorndike Press

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The Henna Wars by Adiba Jaigirdar

Selection: LGBTQ+

Justification

I wanted to include this selection because of how it deals with subjects like homophobia in non-white cultures, how non-white cultures can appropriate culture from other non-white cultures, and how brown people can rediscover their culture in a predominantly white culture. I thought these themes would be relevant to kids today, especially as more are able to freely find themselves. When we think of homophobia, we might imagine a white evangelical Christian family shattering because a member came out. Sadly, homophobia can and does exist in other cultures, especially those that expect girls to marry boys and produce children. High schoolers who come from these backgrounds might find kinship in this book and a better understanding of their identity.

Evaluation

1. Right away we know that Nishat is simultaneously at odds with her own culture while wanting to embrace that culture to share it with others. Her parents, whom she views as tradition breaking representations of Bangladeshi culture, receive her coming out coldly and Nishat automatically thinks that this means her whole culture must hate her. Despite this, Nishat wants to open a business offering mehndi or traditional Bangladeshi henna tattoos and show how beautiful her culture is. The problem is that not only does an old friend, Flavia, come back into her life and rekindle feelings she thought she buried, but Flavia is half white Irish and half black Brazilian and mehndi is not in her culture. This problem expertly covers how some relationships can be strained when one half knows the other is appropriating a culture that isn’t theirs for their own benefit and not the culture’s. On top of that, Nishat’s unique situation involves wondering if Flavia is doing this to truly compete with her or to tell her she still loves her. Nishat becomes torn between defending a culture that seemingly disowned her or defending a culture that seeks to appropriate her. Non-white LGBTQ+ teens will see Nishat’s identity confusion in their own struggles and understand right away.

2. The characterization of both Nishat and her parents when she comes out to them is quite commonplace from my point of view. She’s nervous, they don’t get it and later, while the girls are sleeping, tell each other it’s just a phase and that she’ll work it out and go back to normal. Nishat’s heart is broken and she doesn’t think she’ll be alright despite her friend Priti’s support. How the parents and the child act is quite typical but the situation is still very authentic. Coming out to one’s parents can be sort of measured on a scale of 1 to 5 with 1 being wanting to kill you, 2 being disgusted and trying to talk you out of it, 3 being confused and wondering if it’s just a phase but not being aggressive about changing your mind, 4 being a shoddy but growing in support reaction, and 5 being all out unconditional support and going to marches and events with you. Nishat had hoped that since her parents married for love instead of arrangement as is tradition in Bangladesh, that they would be more openly supportive but there wouldn’t be much conflict in the book if they supported her outright or much authenticity. Anyone who wants to nitpick this book would point out how much of a typical characterization that scene is but if they looked deeper, they’d understand that it couldn’t happen any other way or the tone of the rest of the book would be too jarring compared to that first page. This whole exchange sets the tone for the rest of the book and it’s a subtle choice.

3. In my experience, hearing about racial violence in England, I haven’t heard much of it happen in Ireland at all. That’s not to say that it doesn’t happen there but perhaps occurrences are fewer than on the bigger island. That being said, I can’t imagine how different Irish culture is compared to Bangladeshi. Nishat talks about how brave her parents are for wanting to provide a better life for her, especially in a country that is so vastly different from theirs that even their skin tone is different. Nishat feels so isolated from Ireland mainly because her parents are the only relatives she has there so when she runs into Flavia again, she feels like she’s meeting a familiar stranger all over again. That might be due in part to Flavia being half white Irish, already a genetic part of the culture while also having a darker skin tone than the native population. The setting of the book and Flavia both seem alien to Nishat and considering she wants to introduce mehndi to one without letting it appropriate it while the other has already appropriated it, her feelings about Ireland are muddied. Non-white teens whose parents moved to a primarily white country will relate with Nishat’s plight and see themselves in her struggle with identity.

Conclusion

As a librarian, I would be sure to recommend this to high school students looking for a book that addresses other non-white members of the LGBTQ+ community appropriating ethnic cultures that aren’t their own. It can be quite a sticky subject because it’s usually white people who commit this offense so Henna Wars could act as a guidebook with how to manage this problem. Additionally, it could give a voice to what non-white members of the LGBTQ+ community feel when they come out to their parents and compare themselves to other members of the community who might have more privilege than them. A fully black child who came out to their religious Catholic parents and got a negative reaction would have a harder life than a half black/half white child with non-religious parents who automatically accepted them, for example. As a cis white bisexual woman who’s not out to her religious Protestant parents, I only have one thing in common with these kids but I can certainly guide them to a book like Henna Wars that describes their experiences in an accurate way.

Citation

Jaigirdar, A. (2020). The Henna Wars. Hodder.

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Where Things Come Back by John Corey Whaley

Selection: Printz Award Winner

Justification

As a big believer in second chances, the hook for this book caught my attention. Not only is the theme of second chances part of this book, it’s the core of it. And pecking its beak at the core is none other than a long thought extinct woodpecker, the subplot of which intersects my love of birds and my hope that we can stop climate change nicely. I imagined that the return of this woodpecker was like the return of the dodo bird for Cullen’s small town in Arkansas and I wasn’t disappointed. High schoolers who struggle with the big moral topic of second chances might find an answer in this book.

Evaluation

1. Cullen might seem like the focus of the book, but a secondary focus is on the religious struggle of Cabot Searcy, who’s life was shattered while on a trip to Africa. He loses the respect of his uncle and mentor, Benton, after impregnating a girl named Alma who he later marries out of wedlock. Benton passes soon after that and Cabot loses his drive for missionary work and God’s calling after that. However, after his life intersects with Cullen’s, he feels the calling again. He starts researching the Book of Enoch, even wanting to go to graduate school to further his study. The underlying theme of resurrection is found when the town renewed after an extinct woodpecker comes back at the same time a man of God is renewed in his faith. Cabot should understand better than anybody that Jesus gave second chances to many people society considered unclean or unworthy. High schoolers who struggle with what second chances mean to them might find their stance clarified in this major theme of the book.

2. Imagine living in a town so dull and so small that the return of a once extinct woodpecker is news you’ll all talk about for decades after. That’s Cullen’s town in Arkansas. Even though the town is in a specific state, readers will get the feeling that this could be Small Town, Anywhere. There are many similarities with the townspeople, the layout of the town, and the level of liveliness of the town that readers will draw between their own small towns. Whaley’s decision to feature this book in a small town isn’t lost and makes the book quite relatable while also giving the book a quaint tone. It’s almost like the setting is saying ‘if it can happen here, it can happen anywhere and second chances don’t only happen in this town!’. Teen readers who catch this theme will understand that change can happen in their lives too. 

3. Cullen Whitter self-describes as fitting into two bubbles that kids at his school perpetuate: being called gay because he doesn’t play sports or have promiscuous sex and being called a nerd because he has good grades. Cabot Searcy is described as having the kind of confidence that when he talks, the listener doesn’t want to listen to anything else. Cullen loses his cousin to an overdose and his brother disappears one day and Cabot loses career path and respect when his mentor dies and he impregnates someone he knows. Even though the two men are different in their social standing, the circumstances of their lives are very similar. Whaley’s descriptions of Cullen make him a very relatable character for teens tired of high school ‘bubbles’ and find themselves shunted into Cullen’s same bubbles. Cabot, on his face, seems unrelatable until he commits a few human mistakes and has to find his way back almost on his own. Readers who aren’t boys will relate to these characters because their lives are so realistic but also so tumultuous, almost eliciting a kind of compassion for their outcomes.

Conclusion

I would recommend this book to teens who either identify as outcasts or seem like outcasts. I would also recommend this book to teens who are having a hard time of life after making a perfectly human mistake and thinking they don’t deserve a second chance. This is a book for comeback kids and underdogs, absolutely, and teen readers might also identify with the woodpecker who comes back to town. The fact that the townspeople are so enamored with its return should communicate to teen readers that everyone loves an underdog story because they identify with the underdog, no matter what their social standing is.

Citation

Whaley, J. C. (2011). Where Things Come Back. Simon & Schuster.

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Challenger Deep by Neal Shusterman

Selection: National Book Award

Justification

As I looked back at this list, I realized I didn’t have any books about mental illness. Light Filters In is a collection of poems centering on the feelings surrounding growing up and barely having a childhood but it doesn’t focus on mental illness. Challenger Deep is an important book for teens struggling with mental illness and depression, as it centers on Caden Bosch’s ‘journey’ to Challenger Deep, the lowest point on Earth. He tries to make sense of his voyage on the way but none of the crewmates make sense either, pointing out that mental illness doesn’t let the brain make sense. High school readers should find a common voice in Caden’s struggle, especially if they have their own.

Evaluation

1. The main setting of the book is the ‘ship’ Caden is on, the artist in residence. If the ship represents Caden himself, it seems that he should be the Captain but the Captain is someone he fears thinking about. Loss of control of the ship represents how Caden had lost control of his life due to his mental illness. It’s worth noting that the path the ship is taking is toward the Marianas Trench and ultimately Caden will dive down into Challenger Deep, the lowest point, in order to draw what he sees there. However, just because Challenger Deep is mysterious and unexplored doesn’t mean it’s not a dark and lonely place, sort of like how the lower someone goes into depression the colder mentally they get. As someone who has struggled with mild depression for years, finding out that it can go hand in hand with ADD was a burden lifted since my condition wasn’t my fault but that doesn’t mean my life has been a cruise ship vacation since then. I’ve had to learn how to manage my time and my habits in order to give my life structure, sort of like navigating a boat so I don’t sink in a storm.

2. As stated previously, Caden’s journey on the boat and sinking down into Challenger Deep represents someone’s path into depression. It doesn’t always happen immediately and when it goes slowly, it can be a kind of soft hell. You don’t want to live like this or let others see you like this, you want control back, but you still have no control of the ship. When you sink, you only have one life line that your subconscious thoughts know of but you can’t use it until you feel you’ve fulfilled your ‘jail’ sentence. In the case of Caden, being the ship’s artist means capturing Challenger Deep to the full extent of his skill but not only is the trench so deep and dark and wide that getting exact details is impossible, but he is his own jailor with how he decides to capture his art. Expecting himself to draw everything he sees is highly unrealistic but Caden has no control. The thing about a life line is that the people on the crank control how to lift you back up but you control when you come back up and even though Caden feels like he doesn’t have control of one, others can always help him up.

3. When Caden’s parents learn of his mental state, they commit him to Seaview Memorial Hospital. It’s here that Caden meets other mental patients as well as a doctor and therapist who want to help him out of his mental state. Caden’s roommate on the ‘ship’ is a navigator obsessed with drawing things and finding meaning in them and his real life counterpart is Caden’s hospital roommate named Hal who has the same condition. The wooden maiden on the ship is the representation of a girl at the hospital named Callie and the Captain’s parrot is a mental representation of Dr. Poirot, the doctor treating Caden. The Captain himself doesn’t have a true representation as he is the embodiment of Caden’s depression and continues to be in his mind long after he’s declared sound of mind. Unfortunately, someone who has depression can never fully be cured of it but how they manage it with help and time can allow them a semblance of control. When Caden reaches the bottom of the trench and finds candy treasure, he remembers the root cause of his problem: he encountered a homeless man in New York City who had a Cap’n Crunch box on his head and said that ‘no one knows how deep the subways go’. Shusterman’s use of nautical themes comes full circle with Caden’s realization, telling us that Caden had subconsciously built this mental world to cope with this descent even as descending deeper into Deep isolated him from everyone. Sometimes the best mental help is our subconscious but getting there can take a crew.

Conclusion

Challenger Deep is an insightful and deep look at mental health and illness in teens and the struggles of addressing it. Caden’s family is stable and none of the members are the root cause of his problem but that doesn’t mean his problem isn’t family related. Sometimes, mental illness can be genetic as well as environmental and teens whose lives resemble Caden’s will find this to be true. I would want to have this on my shelf as a librarian for students and teens who seek a kindred spirit like them. Teens might find it hard to communicate how they’re feeling, especially since adults around them don’t understand what teens have to be depressed about, but I think Challenger Deep would help them navigate those uncharted waters.

Citation

Shusterman, N., & Shusterman, B. (2015). Challenger Deep. Quill Tree Books.

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Blog Part 1 Round up

1. The One and Only Ivan

2. The Night Gardener (spooky)

3. The Night Gardener (soothing)

4.  Above the Rim: How Elgin Baylor Changed Basketball

5.  We Are Water Protectors

6.  Who Was? Catherine the Great

7. Hilda and the Mountain King

8. Between Worlds: Folktales of Britain and Ireland

9. Inside Out and Back Again

10. Grand Canyon

11. Honeybee: The Busy Life of Apis Mellifera

12. Not Quite Snow White

13.  Titanosaurio: El Descubrimiento Del Dinosaurio Mas Grande Del Mundo             (Titanosaur: Discovering The World’s Largest Dinosaur)

14.  R-E-S-P-E-C-T: Aretha Franklin, The Queen of Soul

15.  Sal and Gabi Break the Universe (A Sal and Gabi Novel, Book 1)

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Sal and Gabi Break the Universe (A Sal and Gabi Novel, Book 1)

by Carlos Hernandez

Entry: Pura Belpre Award Winner

Justification

At first I wanted to include this because it’s part of the ‘Rick Riordan Presents’ showcase which is a publisher that highlights and uplifts stories about marginalized groups. Not to mention that Rick Riordan is the author of the Percy Jackson series that I’m finally reading. So in addition to being the winner of the Pura Belpre award, this books’ pedigree also includes an endorsement from the iconic Rick Riordan. The plot is also one filled with heart and themes kids would easily identify with. Not to mention there’s levels of comedy that transcend dimensions.

Evaluation

1. Definitely a book for older children as they’re less likely to lose focus. Also good for kids who have lost a parent and don’t like their step parent. This is especially true for Sal since he doesn’t like that his new mom is American. This disdain shows how out of touch people of different cultures can be with a culture they’ve never been a part of. It’s important to Sal that his father not only remember his first wife but also remember his culture. To Sal, the fact that his father is marrying an American means that he’s moving on from wanting to be Cuban. Of course this proves to be a great source of friction between the men of the family.

2. The fact that this book is based on Cuban mythology sort of ties in nicely to Rick Riordan’s endorsement. A highly respected author of children’s mythology fiction is using his platform to uplift other stories that might have flown under the radar. It’s a very appropriate use of his reputation and I appreciated it. I wouldn’t have thought much of this book outside of its award, to be honest. I also didn’t think things like alternate dimensions and magicians being able to tap into them would tie into Cuban mythology but the transition was seamless. It sort of reminded me of how Rick Riordan tied Greek mythology into a modern setting. This would be an excellent book for children looking to expand their mythology horizons outside of typical Greek or Roman myth.

3. Sal and Gabi isn’t a terribly serious book, either. Of course, it would be hard to be serious when people have holes to other dimensions in their locker and Sal’s father is a ‘calamity physicist’. I think this is almost like science fictions and fantasy at the same time and meant for children. Alternate dimensions makes me think of authors like Isaac Asimov or CS Lewis and while the latter’s known as a children’s author, the former delves into heavy stuff. Hernandez doesn’t take himself too lightly either as Gabi’s brother, Iggy, who was born critically ill on his birth is able to be connected to an alternate dimension version of himself where he can be healed. Before I figured out what they would do for Iggy, I was seriously stressed out about his health and was relieved when that problem was solved. Balancing serious and funny can be hard in a book and Hernandez does it brilliantly though I would say his writing is 70 percent funny and 30 percent serious.

Conclusion

I would absolutely start a ‘Rick Riordan presents/recommends’ program just to include this book. I’m sure that due to how beloved Percy Jackson is, this book would fly off the shelves, not to mention it features a Cuban-American boy going on adventures with his best friend Gabi, who’s a girl. It’s also written by a Cuban-American author so Cuban-American children could easily see themselves in this book about their culture. Unfortunately they might have to go to another dimension if the book isn’t available at their local library.

Citation

Hernandez, C. A. (2019). Sal & Gabi Break the Universe. Disney Hyperion.

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R-E-S-P-E-C-T: Aretha Franklin, The Queen of Soul

by Carol Boston Weatherford, illus. by Frank Morrison

Entry: Coretta Scott King Award

Justification

I got the idea for including this book in my blog when another classmate covered this book in one of our ‘discuss a book’ videos. As it just so happens, Frank Morrison, the man who illustrated the book on Mr. Baylor, also illustrated this one and I would have to say that his art style is on target as usual. I think that the award is well deserved for this entry as Aretha Franklin was an active activist for civil rights not to mention a pioneer of soul music. Before I read this book, I didn’t know that much about Aretha except that she was a highly successful, talented, and respected musician and after, I might just give her music a listen.

Evaluation

1. As stated above, Frank Morrison’s art style is so rich. At times, it feels as though he draws everyone in a caricature style. But if one thinks about it, it’s almost like he’s trying to humanize them while respect them. If he drew them in a completely realistic way, we wouldn’t think the subject is relatable. His art style is almost like Impressionism with how blurred but familiar everything is. I love that he doesn’t try to lighten up the skin tone of his subjects, either. He colors them exactly as their tone really was.

2. The subject matter of the book ties in Aretha’s origins with the catalyst for her interest in civil rights. In one scene of the book, we find out that her preacher father is having a meeting with civil rights leaders in Detroit. Up to this point, Aretha had been close to her father because she and her sisters were gospel singers in their church. Even though her father cheated on her mother which caused her mother to leave, Aretha was still raised by a parent who turned out to be more dependable than one might think. Aretha would go on to help fund the civil rights movement and give concerts for free. I think without Aretha’s father recognizing that she had talent and in turn cultivating it, the civil rights movement would be poorer without her influence and legacy. Aretha used her voice, both literally and metaphorically, to bring awareness to something that affected her personally.

3. The fact that this book won the Coretta Scott King Award for Illustration just goes to show how crucial this book is for black children. In this century, we can take the numerous talented black artists we have now for granted. Black artists that thrive outside of their expected genres like soul, R & B, and rap and in genres like country like Lil Nas X’s debut song that might be triple diamond at this point. Without Aretha’s influence and her determination to sing, there might not be as many singing opportunities for black artists today. Not to mention her developing of soul music influenced white artists to create the blue-eyed soul sub genre. Her talent is so powerful that it reached across racial barriers. The Queen’s legacy will surely continue to be felt for a long time and I’m so glad black musicians have such a prominent example to look up to.

Conclusion

I would recommend this book to any black kids looking to gain inspiration for a singing career or to just strike up the courage to sing in their church’s choir. By seeing that Aretha didn’t start out famous and was able to cultivate her talent through support, children would be able to see that they can do it too. Their parents might even point out that they listened to Aretha growing up, further cementing her legitimacy in their minds. They can see that black singers fought against the odds 55 years ago and were popular in a time of great civil unrest and realize they could be in good company if they wanted to pursue singing.

Citation

Weatherford, C. B., & Morrison, F. (2020). R-E-S-P-E-C-T Aretha Franklin, the Queen of Soul. Atheneum Books for Young Readers.

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Titanosaurio: El Descubrimiento Del Dinosaurio Mas Grande Del Mundo (Titanosaur: Discovering The World's Largest Dinosaur)

by Diego Pol, Jose Luis Carballido Illus. by Florencia Gigena

Entry: Tejas Star

Justification

I wanted to include this selection mainly because I noticed I didn’t cover dinosaurs. Dinosaurs are like catnip for children. A personal example is my cousin’s oldest daughter who is OBSESSED with Jurassic Park everything and she’s not even 8 yet. I’m impressed with her parents for not forcing her to like ‘more girly’ things and for trusting her enough to let her watch such scary movies. She even knows the correct names and has GIANT sized action figures of some of the dinosaurs from the movies.

Evaluation

1. Originally this book was in English which made me think this was just a translation that the publisher did for a Spanish-speaking audience. That was not the case at all. Not only are the authors and illustrator of Hispanic heritage, the authors are doctors of archaeology in their own right! To them, translating the book into their language was likely a natural next step. I think when Hispanic kids see that the authors have names like theirs and are doctors, they’d be really impressed and also inspired to like dinosaurs and archeology on their own. t’s important for kids to have people that look and speak like them to look up to that they might not see in an every day setting. I could tell when reading this book that the authors are passionate about the subject. Althought, why wouldn’t they be when they’re doctors in their field!

2. The way the illustrations are laid out is a little plain. That’s not to say that this book is ugly, not at all. There’s even one illustration where an archeologist is laying side by side with a huge dinosaur bone to illustrate how big they truly are. But I don’t feel like there’s any dynamic framing or ‘camera angles’ in the illustrations. That’s at least one drawback this book has for me, at least as an adult reader. Perhaps a child reader would be able to look past that. All this being said, the information contained within the book certainly isn’t something to be overlooked.

3. As expected of a book penned by doctors of archeology, the information provided is top notch. It’s also not terribly dry or matter of fact information. I think the authors knew their audience would be children and tweaked the writing to reflect their audience. The decision to start the book with a man called the gaucho also made for an interesting hook as kids might wonder why this man is in Argentina or why he’s visiting a dinosaur museum. The children reading are introduced to this mystery that eases them into the world of archeology and digging up dinosaur bones. Hispanic children reading would recognize that a gaucho is a South American cowboy, something unique to their culture, and perhaps feel a kinship with this representation. For me, I figured out where gaucho pants came from.

Conclusion

This would be a must have inclusion in my imaginary library’s Spanish-speaking collection. Not only does it tap into that irresistible subject of dinosaurs, it’s also in Spanish! Spanish speaking children who might want to learn about dinosaurs would find this book incredibly useful. And who knows, they might become doctors like the authors themselves one day!

Citation

Carballido José Luis, Pol, D., Gigena, F., & Berriz, A. (2019). Titanosaurio: el descubrimiento del dinosaurio más grande del mundo. Scholastic Inc.

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Not Quite Snow White

by Ashley Franklin, illus. by Ebony Glenn

Entry: Texas 2x2

Justification

As I compiled this list, I noticed I didn’t really have any books specifically for black girls. Certainly not for black girls that want to see themselves as princesses, either. So I set out to read this adorable selection and remedy this problem immediately. What followed was a book I knew little black girls would clamor to read, if they knew more about it.

Evaluation

1. I did a bit of research on the author and not only is she black, she’s also Muslim. This is important because the intersect of black and Muslim happens more often than one might think. Representation matters and as a librarian, I would point out to little black Muslim or Muslim girls that the author is black and Muslim. That would mean that they’d found an author that would have lived their own personal experiences and write from their point of view. Franklin writes Tameika as experiencing racism when she recounts that ‘princesses can’t be tall, or chubby, or brown’ according to her classmates. I’d never thought of the first two as being something associated with being black but now that I think about it, black people are often grouped as all being tall. It wasn’t important to me but it’d be important to the girls I’d suggest the book to.

2. So when I first discovered this book, I wondered why Tameika didn’t go for Tiana, Disney’s only black princess. As I read the book, I came to understand that her school was having a Show White musical which made more sense. Aside from that, just because Disney has a black princess doesn’t mean that black girls should only see themselves in her. Black girls can have the lived experiences of any princess which is why they’re so relatable. Tameika is brave and stalwart to me by wanting to be Snow White, a princess renowned for her snow white skin. Tameika wants to break the race barrier and she’s not even doing it with intention, she just really wants to be the princess because princesses are awesome! This story illustrates in a simple way the argument that’s been going on in Hollywood for a few years: is the hiring of actors of color for white parts only because they want representation or because they have talent? The answer is both!

3. While the art style is simple, I don’t think it’ll be lost on little black girls that Tameika looks so much like them. Aside from skin tone, Tameika has poofy, kinky hair and a more pronounced button nose. Often, when I’m scrolling through Tumblr or Twitter, I notice that black people make posts talking about how it seems like even though Hollywood is hiring actors of color, they seem to be focusing on the ones that have European features and light skin. As a white person, I never would have noticed this but I can’t unsee it now. Recently, In the Heights came out and I thought this would be excellent representation for black people but it was critiqued for a distinct lack of Afro-Latinos, the group that In the Heights is about. Just because a work has a certain type of representation, doesn’t mean it’s respectful to the group that originated it. Glenn’s illustrations don’t have this problem in the slightest.

Conclusion

I would highly recommend this to little black girls who want to see themselves as princesses but don’t quite see that reflected in major movies yet. I’d also recommend this to little white girls who might want to understand more about their black classmates. Little boys might also be interested in reading this if only to understand the inner workings of their sister’s problems or want to be princesses themselves. Not Quite Snow White is an absolutely adorable book that teaches little black girls: just because you can, means that you SHOULD.

Citation

Franklin, A., & Glenn, E. (2019). Not Quite Snow White. Scholastic Inc.