TOP TEN TUESDAY: The Top Ten Books That Make Me Think About Poverty

Top 10 Tuesday is hosted at The Broke and the Bookish. Today’s topic is the Top Ten Books That Make Me Think About Poverty

I know, I know, I know… super depressing topic. BUT on Saturday I am giving a book talk at Urbana School District’s American History Teacher’s Collaborative Focus Workshop on Poverty so I am already hunting down those books and it’s on my mind. So I’ll just be the buzz-kill for the day. Hooray!

Out of the Dust by Karen Hesse
The Great Depression + the Dust Bowl + lots of sadness & people dying = really sad book that focuses on the poverty and horrible conditions of people living in the 1930s. It is written in verse so although it is not the happiest book, it is a quick read and will get you thinking.

Roll of Thunder, Hear my Cry by Mildred D. Taylor
I almost couldn’t believe that people actually lived like this in the south in the early to mid-1900s. It really was difficult to think that in AMERICA, where people are supposed to be free and have chances to succeed, that thousands of people lived with so little due to sharecropping and Jim Crow las.

Letters from Rifka by Karen Hesse
Karen Hesse is the queen of sad historical fiction books. Seriously. Her books are great, but they definitely don’t leave you jumping for joy. This book focuses on the poverty made so many immigrate to America between 1880 and 1920 AND that their lives weren’t all that great flowers once they got here.

You Wouldn’t Want to Be an American Colonists: A Settlement You’d Rather Not Start by Jacqueline Morley
Ok, I love these “You Wouldn’t Want to Be…” books. They are hilarious but really do make you think about the hardships people faced long ago. 

Thimble Summer by Elizabeth Enright While the family in this book wasn’t necessarily in complete poverty, that was a very real possibility if there was no rain and their crops failed. I kept thinking about this book all summer as we would go weeks without rain and the news showed withered crops. Sometimes one bad season is all that stands between us and poverty.

Uncle Tom’s Cabin by Harriet Beecher Stowe
Centuries ago when Americans were allowed to have slaves, those who were enslaved were the lowest of the low. They worked in rough conditions, had little food, and, worst of all, didn’t even have their freedom. Uncle Tom’s Cabin stirred the rage of Americans and fueled the abolitionist movement. There is no way that Harriet Beecher Stowe could have known what a huge impact she would have when she wrote this book about the conditions of slaves in the south. Good for you Ms. Stowe!    

A Child Called “It” by David Pelzer Although the families David lived with may not have been monetarily poor, he had to live through impoverished and dangerous conditions at times. David (like many children today) did not receive basic care, emotional support, or attention due to the cruelty and ignorance of some adults.

The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros
Esperanza may live in a poor part of Chicago, but she has hope. And hope is what gets her through assaults, having meager resources, the ups-and-downs of friendships, boys, and experiencing negativity around her. I like books that have hope.

Trash by Andy Mulligan This book broke my heart. In a city in a third world country the only hope people have of survival digging through garbage day after day and hopefully finding something useful or edible. Beyond the vivid descriptions of the garbage dump and shacks piled together (and on top of each other), Mulligan gives faces, names, and personalities of the young people affected by intense poverty. 

The Glass Castle: A Memoir by Jeanette Walls
This was one of those books that I wished I could talk (or yell!) at the characters- especially the parents. Jeanette Walls’ story of growing up was frustrating to read because there were opportunities for the family to not live in poverty but adults made bad (or selfish) decisions and the children suffered the consequences.

Ninth Ward by Jewel Parker Rhodes

Ninth Ward

By Jewel Parker Rhodes

Published by Sanval, 2010

217 pages (hardcover)

Twelve-year-old Lanesha is a young girl living in the Ninth Ward of New Orleans. Rejected by her peers because of her ability to see spirits, Lanesha longs for connection. The one true light in her life is her elderly but fiercely loving caretaker, Mama Ya-Ya. When Hurricane Katrina lands and tragedy strikes, Lanesha is forced to come into her own to survive the storm.

I started this book on the 7^th anniversary of Hurricane Katrina which was actually when Hurricane Issac was hitting Mississippi and Louisiana (including New Orleans). I remember when Hurricane Katrina hit. I had just started my first teaching job in a rough area Kansas City, Missouri. Soon after the hurricane, some former residents of the flooded south started attending our school. Also, because Katrina was such big news, the kitten my husband and I got a few weeks later was given the middle name of “Katrina”.

I think it all boils down to the fact that most people and places were affected by Katrina: Gas prices rose. We had family or friends who had survived (or not) the disaster. We had family or friends who went south to help with recovery. BUT most of us were not actually there. I think that is what makes Ninth Ward so moving. Jewel Parker Rhodes’ sing-song prose not only takes us through the days before and after the storm, but gives us an insight into New Orleans culture, the poverty of the area, why people didn’t/couldn’t evacuate, and how people actually survived.

Although Hurricane Katrina was a terrifying time, Rhodes does not let Ninth Ward become a tale of dread and despair. Instead, there is a forever hopeful tone of love, trust, and family that will empower readers and make everyone come to adore Lanesha and her Mama Ya-Ya. My only wish was that the book was longer so I could find out what Lanesha does in the subsequent days, weeks, months, and years.

Wolf Mark by Joseph Bruchac

Wolf Mark

By Joseph Bruchac

Published by Lee & Low Books, 2011

392 pages (hardcover

Luke King knows a lot of things. Like four different ways to disarm an enemy before the attacker can take a breath. Like every detail of every book he’s ever read. And Luke knows enough—just enough—about what his father does as a black ops infiltrator to know which questions not to ask.
Luke hopes that this time, he’ll finally have a normal life. He’ll be able to ask out the girl he likes. He’ll hang out with his friends. He’ll be invisible—just as he wants.
But when his dad goes missing, Luke realizes that life will always be different for him. Suddenly he must avoid his father’s kidnappers, while at the same time evading the attention of a mysterious clique of Russian hipsters, who seem much too interested in Luke’s own personal secret. Faced with multiple challenges and his emerging paranormal identity, Luke must decide who to trust as he creates his own destiny. (from barnesandnoble.com)

1.  JOSEPH BRUCHAC IS COMING TO UMS OCTOBER 5^th!!!

2. I am so excited that Joseph Bruchac is coming to UMS! His books are awesome (well I don’t know about the scary books because I rarely read scary books, but the ones I have read have been great)!

3. Wolf Mark is Bruchac’s latest book. I read the summary and thought “whoa… there is a lot going on in this book”. True. But it all fits together. Bruchac has done a wonderful job of mixing modern with ancient, fantasy with science fiction, and action with emotion.

Right off the bat this book reminded me of Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater. Yes, both books reference wolves, but that isn’t why. Wolf Mark, like Shiver, give a voice to those trying to find their true identity and make a path for themselves in this world (even if the path is of ancient legends and truth). Bruchac’s writing flowed along with just enough description to allow me to become enchanted with the characters and enough dialog to help me understand Luke and his friends.

Each 8^th & 7^th grade team has a copy of this book and the library has a copy (hopefully more soon!) and I would definitely recommend that as many people as possible read this book. It’s a suspenseful tale that will spark your imagination and make you wonder what everyone is really like.  

STUDENT REVIEW - We Beat the Street: How a Teenage Pact Lead to Success

We Beat the Street: How a Teenage Pact Lead to Success

By Sampson Davis, George Jenkins, Rameck Hunt, and Sharon Draper

Published by Penguin Group Incorporated, 2006

208 pages (paperback)

Growing up on the rough streets of Newark, New Jersey, Rameck, George,and Sampson could easily have followed their childhood friends into drug dealing, gangs, and prison.  But when a presentation at their school made the three boys aware of the opportunities available to them in the medical and dental professions, they made a pact among themselves that they would become doctors.  It took a lot of determination—and a lot of support from one another—but despite all the hardships along the way, the three succeeded.  Retold with the help of an award-winning author, this younger adaptation of the adult hit novel The Pact is a hard-hitting, powerful, and inspirational book that will speak to young readers everywhere.

I would recommend this book because it is fun to read during school and in class! What was good about the book was they grew up together during their hard early life. The book could be improved because they brought up drugs too much in the book.

---Reviewed by Rodrigo

[I would recommend this book to a middle schooler] because it teaches you right from wrong. It taught you important things. [It could have been better if it had told] us more about the end.

---Reviewed by Kaylee

Yes, I would [recommend this book to a middle schooler] because it could persuade them to be a medical doctor or dentist. [I liked] them being who they are and them graduating from medical school.

There is nothing [I don’t like] really. Just more pictures of them in the book.

---Reviewed by Vanessa

The Immortal Rules by Julie Kagawa

The Immortal Rules

By Julie Kagawa

Published by HarlequinTEEN, April 2012

485 pages (hardcover)

Source: NetGalley

MY VAMPIRE CREATOR TOLD ME THIS:

"Sometime in your life, Allison Sekemoto, you will kill a human being. The question is not if it will happen, but when. Do you understand?"

I didn't then, not really.

I DO NOW.

Allison Sekemoto survives in the Fringe, the outermost circle of a vampire city. By day, she and her crew scavenge for food. By night, any one of them could be eaten.

Some days, all that drives Allie is her hatred of them. The vampires who keep humans as blood cattle. Until the night Allie herself is attacked—and given the ultimate choice. Die…or become one of the monsters.

Faced with her own mortality, Allie becomes what she despises most. To survive, she must learn the rules of being immortal, including the most important: go long enough without human blood, and you will go mad.

Then Allie is forced to flee into the unknown, outside her city walls. There she joins a ragged band of humans who are seeking a legend—a possible cure to the disease that killed off most of humankind and created the rabids, the mindless creatures who threaten humans and vampires alike.

But it isn’t easy to pass for human. Especially not around Zeke, who might see past the monster inside her. And Allie soon must decide what—and who—is worth dying for.  (from NetGalley)

1) I LOVE Julie Kagawa’s writing. Her Iron Fey series got me through some sleepless nights last summer (darn you amoxicillin!) and I was definitely hoping this new series would be good.

2) I am not a fan of vampire books. The whole “help me because I am a damsel in distress and I love vampires” thing annoys me.

3) This is not one of those vampire books that annoy me.

4) Allison is a strong-willed survivor who has a huge heart (well, not really since she is dead, but hopefully you get my point) and is torn about what she is/wants to be.

5) Rabids now give me nightmares.

6) Lots of adventure and breath-taking moments, but there might have been just a tad too much fighting for my taste.

7) Read. This. Book. NOW!

TOP TEN TUESDAY: The Top Ten Books Set in London

Top 10 Tuesday is hosted at The Broke andthe Bookish. Today’s topic is the Top Ten Books Set in London. 

 The 2012 Olympics are coming!!!!! I LOVE watching the Olympics. It is so exciting to see the competition, country loyalty, and records being broken. This year the Olympics are in London and in honor of that here are my top ten books that are set (at least partially) in London. Enjoy!

Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
Part of the story takes place in London. And I love this story. And Mr. Darcy shows his honor and love for Elizabeth in London by dealing with the youngest sister. Awwwwww.

Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen
This wouldn’t be a good list about London without at least 2 Jane Austen references!

The Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling
I want to meet up with Harry Potter & company in London some time. They are real, right?

Sherlock Holmes by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
Solving crimes and taking names.

13 Little Blue Envelopes by Maureen Johnson
True, this book takes place all over Europe, but the journey starts in London so it gets put on this list.

The Name of the Star by Maureen Johnson
Maureen Johnson does a great job of writing about London. She gives it such life and mystery. The Queen should give Maureen an award for making young adults (and adults) in America love London so much!

Clockwork Angel & Clockwork Prince by Cassandra Clare
LOVE! Cassandra Clare takes this paranormal historical fiction series to a whole other level. And the fact that it is set in Victorian England makes the love and angst so much better.

Great Expectations by Charles Dickens
Pip is clueless and Estella is a drama queen, but this is a great book. Creepy, but good.

The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis
Such a wonderful fantastical book. And I want to cuddle with Aslan.

The Alchemyst series by Michael Scott
The first book does not take place in London and, in fact, the characters go all over the place in this series. But it is an awesome and magical series that blends the past with the present and since some of it takes place in London, it made the list.

Secret Letters by Leah Scheier

Secret Letters

By Leah Scheier

Published by Disney-Hyperion, June 26, 2012

Source: NetGalley

Inquisitive and observant, Dora dreams of escaping her aristocratic country life to solve mysteries alongside Sherlock Holmes. So when she learns that the legendary detective might be her biological father, Dora jumps on the opportunity to travel to London and enlist his help in solving the mystery of her cousin's ransomed love letters. But Dora arrives in London to devastating news: Sherlock Holmes is dead. Her dreams dashed, Dora is left to rely on her wits-and the assistance of an attractive yet enigmatic young detective-to save her cousin's reputation and help rescue a kidnapped heiress along the way.

Steeped in Victorian atmosphere and intrigue, this gripping novel heralds the arrival of a fresh new voice in young adult literature.

I liked this. Sure, I think I have a thing for historical novels set in England, but whatever. It was a fun read with lots of mysteries and secret (hence the title).

The weirdest thing is that this book takes place in a world where Sherlock Holmes is read and not just a fictional character. Once I got past that oddity, I quickly flew through this book. I mean, there were rich guys, girls with secret pasts (and letters), detectives, and people who were pretending to be other people.

In Dora I found a feisty young lady who is more than willing to buck proper tradition and have some fun snooping around (aka- I really liked her). If you want a book that will take you on a mini-vacation this might be a nice one to pick up.