The Way a Door Closes (African American Poetry)

Book Cover compliments of Titlewave

Bibliography

Smith, Hope Anita. The Way a Door Closes. Ill. by Shane W. Evans. New York: Henry Holt and Company. 2003. ISBN 0-8050-6477

Review 

A moving story told in 34 poems, The Way a Door Closes is told by a 13 year old African American boy whose warm family life is broken when his father loses his job and leaves the family without warning. Moving from secure, idyllic poems about family mealtimes, outings with Dad, family pictures, and rich lessons from Grandmomma, the short, free verse poems take a coming-of-age turn as the boy wrestles with wide-ranging emotions that ultimately lead him to accept the circumstances and embrace his family with new commitment. Shane Evans detailed oil painting illustrations in soft browns and occasional splashes of red capture the richness of the nuclear and extended family relationships. Stirring and finally hope filled, the poems will strike a cord in the heart of readers who have experienced family difficulties and loss of a parent figure.

Amazing Faces (Hopkins Collection)

Book Cover compliments of Titlewave

Bibliography

Poems selected by Lee Bennett Hopkins. (2010). Amazing Faces. Illustrated by Chris Soentpiet. New York: Lee & Low Books. ISBN 1-60060-334-1

Review 

This illustrated anthology of 16 poems reveals the depth and breadth of human emotions as seen in the faces of adults and children of all ethnic backgrounds in America. Everyday life experiences are captured by poets such as Nikki Grimes, Joseph Bruchac, Langston Hughes, Lee Bennett Hopkins, Pat Mora and more. Evoking universal emotional response, the rich watercolor illustrations of Chris Soentpiet that cover a page and a half of each spread bring alive the diverse cultures and familiar emotions reflected in faces such as a gleeful baby, dreaming boy, preening pre-teen, isolated child, rejoicing football fan, tired firefighter. The images are balanced by the corresponding poem on the opposite side of the spread reflected on an ivory background. Poems vary in style and size, but connect harmonious to the overall theme of the amazing beauty of faces.

Bookspeak! Poems about Books (School Poetry)

Book Cover compliments of Titlewave.com

Bibliography

Salas, Laura Purdie. (2011). Bookspeak! : poems about books. New York: Houghton Mifflin. ISBN 0-547-22300-1

Review 

In this whimsical collection of 21 original poems, books gain their own voice and “speak” to the reader. Josee Bisaillon’s fanciful collage illustrations utilizing a variety of art mediums and text styles colorfully and playfully incorporate Salas’ book-related poems producing a unified piece on each spread. Each poem delves into a book related theme ranging from book characters, plot, and conflict to beginnings, middles, and endings to book adventures at the bookstore after dark, books on vacations, and books living under beds. Some poems even wax “instructive” playfully focusing on book care  and the publishing process. Salas’ poems of various styles give books a tongue-in-cheek voice as seen in the poem “Cliffhanger” which asks “Is this the end?/This breath my last? Please, author, write a sequel fast!” just before the words like the waggish dog in the picture spill over the proverbial edge. Teachers, librarians, and book lovers of all ages will enjoy reading poems straight from the “mouth” of a book.

Ship Breaker (Printz YA Award Winner)

(Book Cover compliments of Titlewave.com)

Bibliography

Bacigalupi, P. (2010). Ship Breaker. New York: Little, Brown. ISBN 0-316-05621-9

Plot summary

Set in a post-oil, global-warming-wrecked future, Nailer, a fifteen-year old child laborer on a ship breaking crew on the Gulf of Mexico experiences betrayal, loyalty, despair, and hope for a better future when he spares the life of a wealthy girl on a hurricane-battered, high-tech clipper ship.

Critical Analysis

In the dirty waters of a future Gulf of Mexico not far from Orleans II, Nailer and the other young members of the ship-stripping “light crew” struggle to “make quota” and survive in a dirty, dangerous occupation that is certain to end their young lives early. After miraculously surviving a near drowning in a hidden chamber of oil inside a tanker ship, Nailer begins to dream of finding his own “Lucky Strike” that will get him out of reach of his drug-addicted, physically abusive father and the dirty, broken world in which he barely survives. When a hurricane destroys the beach community and maroons a high tech clipper ship, fate offers Nailer a way out. Fortified by his true friendship with crewmate Pima and her mother, Nailer decides to risk his life to save “Lucky Girl” Nita, the wealthy “swank” and sole survivor on the clipper ship.  Barely escaping being murdered by his father and other dangerous men and half-men bent on salvaging the clipper, Nailer pledges to protect Nita and begins a treacherous journey to the flooded city of Orleans to find her family leading them into the path of violent criminals, perilous sea storms, and repeated tests of loyalty.

Filled with details that make readers wince, Bacigalupi’s dark, raw writing holds no punches. But Nailer’s complex commitment to family, determination to do what’s right, and unwillingness to embrace revenge balance the grim tone of the story. His journey to find a better life for himself and others in the face of impossible odds will resonate with readers. The authenticity of the characters draws us into the story and makes Bacigalupi’s nightmarish details and surreal landscape believable.  Readers will finish the book wondering about their own future when cheap energy is gone and they are forced to face the uncertain sustainability of life.

Rapunzel's Revenge (Graphic Novel)

(Book Cover compliments of Titlewave.com)

Bibliography

Hale, Shannon and Dean. Illustrated by Nathan Hale. Rapunzel’s Revenge. New York: NY Bloomsbury. ISBN 1-59990-070-X

Plot summary

A graphic novel fairy tale set in the Old West, Rapunzel escapes from her tower, takes on a sidekick named Jack, and fights her way back home to face Mother Goethel and free the oppressed people under Goethel’s rule.

Critical Analysis

While this fresh spin on a traditional tale starts with “Once upon a time,” the story veers promptly off the familiar fairy-tale path and into the old wild West filled with wild creatures, dangerous outlaws, double crossers, and hangin’ trees. Having been raised by powerful Mother Goethel in an impenetrable grand villa, Rapunzel scales the walls on her 12^th birthday and discovers the impoverished, barren landscape outside the lush villa where the citizens (including Rapunzel’s real mother) are enslaved in Goethel’s mines. When spunky Rapunzel confronts Goethel, her life of luxury at the villa ends, and she is imprisoned for years far away in a barren tower in a magical forest. The plot thickens as fast as Rapunzel’s braids when she determines to escape and rescue her real mother using her now 20-foot long lasso-like braids as weapons. Her journey back to Goethel’s realm leads her into the companionship of thieving side-kick Jack (beanstalk and magical goose owner) and into the path of increasingly dangerous henchmen hired and controlled by Goethel’s dark magic.

Shannon and Dean Hale’s use of first person narrative bring readers into the heart of “Punzie” where we witness her compassion and insatiable determination that accompany her outwardly sassy wit. Filled with outlandish characters, rollicking western dialogue and euphemisms, and the bright colors and detailed artwork of Nathan Hale, this fairy tale twist gives readers of all ages a rootin’ tootin’ ride and a satisfying ending where justice is served and the gal gets the guy.

The Graveyard Book (Newbery Award winner)

(Book cover compliments of Titlewave.com)

Bibliography

Gaiman, Neil, and Dave McKean. The Graveyard Book. New York: HarperCollins Pub, 2008. ISBN 0060530928

Plot summary

18-month old “Bod” (short for Nobody) is overlooked during the murder of his entire family and toddles uphill to the community graveyard where he is sheltered, protected, loved, and raised to age 16 by the ghosts living there.

Critical Analysis

“There was a hand in the darkness, and it held a knife.” Thus begins the spine-chilling opening scene of the murder of an entire family in their home at night…except for the toddler who miraculously ambles unnoticed out of the house and uphill to the unexpected safety of the archaic, local graveyard inhabitants. With the murderer Jack still pursuing the whereabouts of the baby, the ghosts decide to trust the raising of the baby to the kindly ghost couple Mr. and Mrs. Owens who name the baby Nobody Owens. Gaiman’s adept skills at spine-tingling horror pairs beautifully with the likeable, complex graveyard characters who lived during a myriad of centuries. Under the tutelage of the enigmatic Silas who is both living and dead, and the loving care of the highly-entertaining ancient occupants, “Bod” receives an education in academics, loyalty, and supernatural skills like the Slide, the Fade, and the Dreamwalk. Bod’s innocence about the world outside the graveyard and his obedience to his guardian’s requirements to stay within the safety of the ghostly confines keeps him safe for years until he meets an unexpected human visitor to the graveyard. 

Like Mowgli in Kipling’s Jungle Book, Bod’s growing curiosity about the human girl sets in motion a series of adventures and jaunts outside the safety of the graveyard reigniting the pursuit of the murderer Jack. Gaiman’s dark humor and genuinely creepy settings will keep young readers turning pages as well as the desire to see Bod and his “family” ultimately defeat the evil that pursues him. Peppered with spirits, werewolves, and murderers, this unique coming-of-age story will delight both young and adult readers alike.

One Crazy Summer (Historical Fiction)

(Book cover compliments of Titlewave)

Bibliography

Williams-Garcia, Rita. 2010. One Crazy Summer. New York: Amistad. ISBN 0-06-076088-5

Plot summary

In the summer of 1968, 11-year old Delphine and her two sisters visit their estranged mother in Oakland who coldy sends them off to the Black Panther-run community center where they daily receive free food and a revolutionary education.