2009 - The Graveyard Book

Dates read: Dec 2009/Jan 2010
Read or listened to: Listened to
Pages: 320 pp.
Rating: ●●●●○

This was a great book. It took me a bit to get into it. (I actually started it a few months ago without finishing it, but then when I got an MP3 player for Christmas, this was what I found at the library to download--as my first audiobook on the player.)

There really are a lot of messages and themes in this book. Most come out strongly in the end. Here are two thoughts from early in the book:

The main character starts out without a name. He is given the name of Nobody Owens. This comes about as all the "ghosts" in the graveyard talk about who he looks like. Finally, his adoptive mother (I believe) says something like, "He looks like nobody but himself." His name will be Nobody. He goes by Bod. What irony! He is named Nobody, but that comes about because he is viewed as his own unique person.

I also enjoyed the part where Bod meets the witch, Eliza Hemstock. He is counseled to not befriend her because she is "not our kind". This is a typical message shared in books directed to children and young adults - that oftentimes our best friends and those we learn much from are those that we view as different. Eliza does not have a headstone and comments that everyone deserves to be remembered.

As the book ends, it is obvious that the main message of the book is the need for Bod to truly live his life instead of staying in the graveyard. I agree with this, but I love the message of connecting with our past as well. Those who went before us paved a way for our happiness and success. Similarly to things they did for Bod, I believe that there are those on the other side who are currently involved in our lives and perhaps even have ways of protecting us. I am reminded of a time when Grandpa Nielsen very emotionally pleaded for us as his posterity to not forget his grandparents (or was it great-grandparents) who are buried in a location that no one really knows about. In fact, I think I'll call grandma right now and ask her about it.

1962 - The Bronze Bow

Dates read: September 2008
Read or listened to: Listened to
Pages: 256 pp.
Rating: ●●●●●

Whoops! I read this two months ago and haven't written anything about it! I loved the book though. It is a fabulous story of forgiveness and change of heart. It is so interesting (and a bit different) to have such an outwardly Christian message in a category of books that I don't view as religious. I was touched by the story line and the main character's journey. To me, it had a spiritual message.

1941 - Call it Courage

Dates read: September 2008
Read or listened to: Listened to
Pages: 128 pp.
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So, it looks like I managed to read two young-people-alone-on-an-island Newberys back to back. I would have to say that hands down, I preferred Island of the Blue Dolphin. I came to know Karana's thought processes, her plans for her survival and I experienced her struggles with her. I had a difficult time connecting with Mafatu and seemed to hear his experiences as a laundry list of I did this, then this, then this, and now I am brave.

I do respect the theme of the book--that we all have fears, and for good reason. Mafatu feared the sea as a result of an accident that took his mother's life and nearly his when he was only 3-years-old. Facing our fears is the best way to overcome. It is amazing that he was able to overcome those fear on his own--without the support of those who supposedly cared for him. I certainly hope that this book is one that can give readers the courage to face their fears and come off conquerors.

This is a quick listen--only 2 hours.

1961 - Island of the Blue Dolphins

Dates read: August/September 2008
Read or listened to: Listened to
Pages: 223 pp.
Rating: ●●●●●

This is a very beautiful story. Karana is a young girl living on an island with members of her tribe. Her community is devastated by the arrival of and ultimate attack from the Aleuts who kill many members of the tribe. Soon thereafter, a white man's ship arrives and the tribe evacuates the island to prevent future disruption. In a completely selfless act to save her brother who has been left behind, Karana jumps off the ship and swims to shore so that the young boy is not left alone. It isn't long until her brother, Ramo, dies and she is left alone on the island. The bulk of the book is an account of the many years that Karana lives and survives on the Island of the Blue Dolphins. This book is based on a true story from the mid-1800s.

Typically, I would be skeptical of a book without dialogue. (She is alone.) But he had a way of combining Karana's thoughts, descriptions of the surroundings, and accounts of her daily life that I never felt that the book was moving too slowly. I agree with other reviewers that her ingenuity and resourcefulness were inspiring and that the many ups and downs of the story (relationships with her animals, arrival and departure of other boats, etc.) contributed to the story's appeal.

2008 - Good Masters! Sweet Ladies! Voices from a Medieval Village

Dates read: August 2008
Read or listened to: Read
Pages: 96 pp.
Rating: ●●●●●

Unfortunately, I read this book a few weeks ago so I don't have lots of specifics to write. I really did love this book though. It is a book of monologues set in Medieval times. Characters range from the peasant to the nobility. I felt that several--the women, especially--were really brought to life. I found myself envisioning how it would be read and felt on the stage. If I taught 6th grade social studies, this book would be a must! It is quite informative and emotional. LOVED IT!

2005 - Kira-Kira

Dates read: Jun/Jul 2008
Read or listened to: Read
Pages: 272 pp.
Rating: ●●●●○

I really liked this book. Unfortunately, I finished it nearly a week ago and broke my first rule of book review blogging--that is to post within 24 hours after finishing the book so that it is fresh in my mind. It isn't fresh.

Anyway, here are a few thoughts:

• I didn't find this book quite as depressing as many of the reviewers did. Sad, yes, but I was interested in the way that the family stayed together and valued each other above all else.
• Lately, I have been drawn to books describing discrimination and prejudice. I have been born and raised in a relative state of ease and it is enlightening and disheartening to recognize the reality that some people live with. We all need to be aware of these things to stop the plague of intolerance and prejudice. The Japanese-American family in this book gave a perspective not commonly seen.

I will say that this is probably not a children's book--more of a Young Adult novel.

1987 - The Whipping Boy

Dates read: June 2008
Read or listened to: Read
Pages: 89 pp.
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Here is how it was for me: First 60 pages took me several days to get through. The characters seemed flat although I thought the story idea was fabulous! (I thought about giving this a rating of 2 out of 5, but it takes a lot for me to do that because it is a Newbery and I want to assume there are a lot of strengths.) I sat down tonight determined to finish the last 29 pages and, lo and behold, they went really quickly. Prince Brat had changed and his "newness" was believable because of the dialogue and action he was involved in. Jemmy was still skeptical of his change but, little by little, he came to realize that perhaps the change was for real. In a nutshell, I struggled to get through the first 60 pages even though I really wanted to love it. I did love the last 30 pages!