oh, the newberies!

While I was MIA last month, I read voraciously. Along the way, I consumed several Newberies - so many, in fact, that I can't remember them all and have to read through my ALA list just to make sure that I don't leave any out. So please beware - this post will be long and not for the faint of heart!

• The Voyages of Doctor Dolittle by Hugh Lofting (1923) - One of the first in the very prolific Dr. Dolittle series. Old-timey and full of racial stereotypes about "natives" (hey, it was 1923, after all - not nearly as disgraceful as Daniel Boone,) the story is whimsical and playful and a surprisingly quick read. One of Jared's favorite series as a little boy.
  
  
  



• Young Fu of the Upper Yangtze by Elizabeth Lewis (1933) - I really enjoyed this book at the time and I wish I had written this review earlier so it would all still be fresh in my mind. A teenage boy and his mother move to the big city after the death of his father, where the boy becomes an apprentice to a master potter. While the book itself is old and the setting foriegn, the experiences are universal and still feel very contemporary, even 80 years later - making and losing friends, figuring out how to stand on your own feet, discovering what you really care about. A fun read with a heart-warming ending, this book really surprised me. I was expecting a reprise of the same Orientalism found in Shen of the Sea a mere seven years previous, but it couldn't have been more different.

• Invincible Louisa: The Story of the Author of Little Women by Cornelia Meigs (1934) - I read this book as a girl and I think I remember liking it, but not so much this time around. I suppose it is all because I read a real biography of Alcott last year (why can't I remember which one?!) so this old, child's version seemed to ring very untrue. Of course you wouldn't want to paint the real pain and instability of Alcott's life in stark colors to a young reader, but maybe we could be honest? Maybe I was just bugged because the author portrays Alcott's father - transcendentalist Bronson Alcott - as a lovable dreamer who put his family first. In reality, his passionate and nearly insane pursuit of his philosophy selfishly dominated his family's life, leaving them to live completely unsupported in poverty and instability. The Alcotts moved 30 times before Louisa was 20 years old! The real Marmee - Aba Alcott - was a brave, loyal and long-suffering woman. You can see why Jo's father is a rather vague and absent character in Little Woman. At any rate, skip this one and read the newest biography: Louisa May Alcott: The Woman Behind Little Women instead.
  
  


• Miracles on Maple Hill by Virginia Sorensen (1957) - an uncomplicated little story about a father's return from WWII and his family's attempts to heal his wounded spirit by moving to a farm in upstate New York. Kind of charming and heart-warming in all the expected ways, except that I couldn't stand the main character, 9 year old Marley. I think she was supposed to come across as spontaneous and full of joy, but really she was just obnoxious. Hello, Marley! Maybe that's why your Dad is always so crabby! On a side note, I found out that Sorensen is LDS. I wonder if BYU English professor Peter Sorensen is any relation.

• Rifles for Waitie by Harold Keith (1958) - Now this book was a big surprise. Thick, with small print, and a spine that looked like it hadn't been cracked open in all the 50 years it had been collecting dust on the library shelves, it did not look like a winner. But I was quickly drawn in to the story of 16 year old Jeff Bussey, who leaves his Kansas farm and family to join the Union fight in Oklahoma Territory. Thrilling adventures, a heroic main character, and a different angle on the Civil War all make this book a fun and fascinating read. Author Harold Keith, a Civil War buff, meticulously researched for years before beginning to write - and it totally shows! So interesting learning about Cherokee Nation settlements in the 1860s and the extent of their involvement on both sides of the war. Some weird quirks show Keith is not a novelist by trade - a disturbing (or funny!) typo where a much-beloved but also dead character appears nonchalantly in a later scene and a random title (really, neither rifles nor General Stand Waitie are big players in the book.) But still fun - I love being happily surprised.

• The Witch of Blackbird Pond by Elizabeth George Speare (1959) - Wow, now this one was so long ago I thought I had already reported it. A solid and still widely-read book even now, this one doesn't really need my endorsement. Teenage Kit leaves her home in the Barbados to move in with her Puritan aunt and uncle. Antics ensue! Free-spirited Kit is reluctant to embrace her new community's close-mindedness and suspicions quickly begin to fly. Great little book - and Eve loved it, too.

• Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH by Robert O'Brien (1972) - Just finished reading this outloud to both girls last night and it was a major hit. Just forget everything you remember from the movie - there is no "sparkly, " no magic amulet, no Nicodemus getting squished. Dismiss them as the usual trappings of a Don Bluth cartoon! (Bleh, Land Before Time, An American Tale - I am a definitely a Disney girl.) The book is fascinating, especially the chapters about the rats' transformation in the lab at NIMH. Not a whole lot of gripping conflict, but both girls were panting to read it every night, so that's a pretty encouraging recommendation.
  
  

• Joyful Noise: Poems for Two Voices by Paul Fleischman (1989) - a very short and very adorable book of poems written about insects. Some are lovely, some are hilarious, but all of them have two parts and are meant to be read by two people simultaneously (hence the title.) Jared read a few with me, so I could get the jist of it and it was tricky to get the rhythms right. But a pretty cool idea. Interestingly, the author is the son of Sid Fleischman who won the award a few years previous for The Whipping Boy.
  

• Maniac Magee by Jerry Spinelli (1991) - I loved this book. Reading it was a like a big cozy hug. The Publisher's Weekly blurb on amazon says "Winner of the Newbery Medal, this humorous yet poignant tall tale concerns a super-athletic teenager who bridges his town's racial gap." No offense, Publisher's Weekly, but you've got it all wrong. It is written like a tall-tale, a folk story, but Maniac isn't "super-athletic" - the point is that he is magic, that he can do anything! He can run fast and hit baseballs, but he also knocks on the door of the scariest man in town, he unties the biggest knot, he loves people who need to be loved. While there is a black side of town and a white side of town, this is not a book about racism, but a book about loving people who are different.
  

• Kira-Kira by Cynthia Kadohata (2005) - Just finished this yesterday and am still digesting. From the very first sentences I knew I would like the book and that it would make me sad: "My sister Lynn taught me my first word: kira kira...Kira kira means "glittering" in Japanese." You can see where this is going, right? The story is about a Japanese-American family who moves to Georgia in the 1960s (though that isn't the central focus of the book) and struggle to make ends meet while their oldest daughter grows increasingly ill. I loved the very authentic bossy protective big sister/adoring little sister relationship - reminded me very much of two little girls I live with (From the book: "Do you agree with me all the time just because I say so or because you really, truly agree with me?" I didn't see the difference between the two things, so I just said I didn't know.) Also, being a bossy protective big sister myself to an adorable Asian sister (Hey, Miranda! You know you are Asian, right? I'm not being racist) made the story close to my heart. Also, these very familiar sisters have a darling little brother named Sammy that they both adore. And, because in a weird way, I consider Korea to be a large portion of my cultural identity, the whole book felt very near. It is brilliantly written and the narrator's voice is startlingly authentic and touching. Filed in the YA books at my library, not the kids' section because of some mature themes.

Is anybody still there? If you are, you deserve a medal! Or a piece of the trick-or-treat candy sitting temptingly in front of me. (I keep reminding my kids it's for the trick-or-treaters while sneaking pieces for myself.) Have a happy and Newbery-y Halloween!

halloween sneak peek

The girls' school held its big Halloween carnival last Saturday, so we got to do a little Halloween dress-rehearsal. It was quite a night! The carnival is always crazy pants - a billion sweaty kids in costume tossing rings and bean bags - but this year seemed extra zoo-like. Eve vanished with some friends, Eleanor panicked at the crowd and tried to hide behind my legs for the first half hour, and Sam - my sweet brave little Sam - started off okay, but was reduced to trembling with fear because of a boy in a large blue duck costume. *sigh* After some cotton candy and snow cones eaten in the relative peace of the bleachers, everyone felt much better and launched themselves back into the chaos for another hour of fun. And I went home thanking my lucky stars that it's another whole year till we do it again!

While I am no huge Halloween fan, I love helping the kids with their costumes. And I loved their choices this year! (I may have been a little instrumental in Sam's selection...)

My Seuss-obsessed Eleanor as The Cat in the Hat. I found the little jumpsuit at Goodwill for only $2.99! It was meant to be. All it needed was a new bow. We already had the hat and, when we found Cat in the Hat socks at Target, the vision was complete.


Eve as Cleopatra. This pose was one she insisted on - her most queenly, I think.

Eve told me her book on anciet Egypt had a picture of Elizabeth Taylor as Cleopatra, and she wanted to look just like that. Yikes! I did my best on a third-grade level. She loved her huge mysterious eyes, but when Sam saw her he burst into tears. "Who is that, Sammy?" "sobbing I don't know!" "It's just Eve in her costume." "Evie is scary!" I think the snake headdress was just too much for Sam. Little did he know about the blue duck awaiting him....

Sam as Charlie Brown. This picture just doesn't quite do justice to the hilarity that is Sam as Charlie Brown. He was a hit at the carnival - well, except for the lady who thought he was Batman. She wasn't joking, either! "Oh, Charlie Brown was my second guess!" Batman only wishes he was this cool!

I love his squiggle. Nora's makeup was pretty fun, too, but I'm thinking I can do a better job for actual Halloween, so I'll wait until then to post her close-up.

Little known fact: Cleopatra needs glass when she goes to carnivals. She tried to go without, but a friend later led a squinty, blind, arms-outstretched Eve up to me. Cleopatra can't win the soda bottle ring toss without her prescription lenses!

Carnivals make The Cat in the Hat very sad and nervous, apparently. Until he consumes large amounts of sugar - then everything is wonderful! This frown didn't last long.

in which I stage a comeback

I'm back! After a month's hiatus, I finally felt the urge to hear the little tip-tip-tapping of my keyboard again and return to my neglected blog.

To explain my shameful absence, September was a lame month and I just needed to take some time off. In short, I had a miscarriage at the end of August. And while it wasn't particularly traumatic, it was long and drawn out. And it has just taken me a while to get back on my feet. And so, here I am, standing on both feet, ready to get back to normal.

I feel I missed out on reporting all the ups and downs of the first week or so of school. Mostly, there were only ups. The return to school was a happy transition, even though Sam and I did pine for the girls a bit that first week. Both Eve and Eleanor are loving their classes and their teachers. Nora had no nervousness or misgivings about starting kindergarten, but knew that she could do anything as long as her trusty big sister was beside her on the bus seat. I think Eve still walks Eleanor to class every morning and gives her a hug goodbye.

And, Eve, for the first year, seems completely comfortable in her skin at school - she gabs with friends at lunch and at recess, she participates in class, and she still manages to have her nose stuck in a book the rest of the time. I'm happy she's finding a way to balance her charming and quirky nerdiness with a social life - it's a relief to an anxious mom.

There is so much to figure out those first few weeks. It seems like all extracurriculars in this town fill up by the end of September, so you've got to move fast. We did a lot of backing and forthing between the dance studio (Nora) and the indoor pool (Eve) getting everyone tested and registered and paid for that first week. Plus, trying to figure out time to volunteer in two kids classes is a nightmare. I just wanted to hold a big meeting with all the teachers and all my friends so we could figure out times and babysitting all at once. After stressing and emailing and getting a brain cramp, me and my friends figured out a very elaborate three-way babysitting calendar that allows us all to volunteer in our combined five children's rooms. Also, I have a very small role in our school's PTA (Birthday Cupcake Lady is a pretty sweet gig) that I decided needed expanding this year when I signed up to be a room mom. Because I am a crazy woman, apparently. And the school's biggest event of the year is in October and requires meetings starting the second week of school. Also, I have to plan fun weekly activities and lessons for the youth at church and, for some reason, that doesn't stop because I am busy elsewhere. Lame!

So after the frenzied energy of those first weeks calmed down, I felt like I could finally breathe a long sigh of relief and sit down on the couch for a few minutes. And take a big long drink of Diet Dr. Pepper. I think that was yesterday.

Eve's first day

Nora's first day (the kindergartners start a few days later.) This is Nora's most beloved outfit: her Horton Hears a Who shirt and her "Who" skirt. She thinks the pink with orange polka-dots is very Who-ish. She is very into Seuss.

A bus shot! I have never been able to get one before. I am getting sentimental in my old age, I guess.

sometimes

Sometimes you are having kind of a hard time.

And sometimes your sister will send you flowers, long distance. The very next day.

They are beautiful, Miranda. Love you!

witch, interrupted

I thought I was going to read The Witch of Blackbird Pond as my next Newbery endeavor. In fact, out of the last batch of Newberies from the library, I saved this one for last because I was so looking forward to it.

I made the mistake of setting it on the dining room table for a few minutes yesterday afternoon. When I went back to get it, it had mysteriously vanished! I immediately had my suspicions.

Me: "Eve? Have you seen my book?"

Eve: No answer

Me: "Eve? Have you seen the book that was on the table?"

Eve: No answer

Me: "Eve? Are you reading my book?"

Eve: "Hmmmmmmm?"

I find Eve flopped on the couch. On page 23 and totally engrossed. Oh well. There are worse ways to lose a book. From all appearances, she is enjoying it very much and that was the whole point of my Newbery project, wasn't it?

After she fell asleep last night, I crept into her room and snuck the book out for a few hours so I could read. Then I snuck it back in. It looks like I may just need to skip to the next book on the list for now. I'm looking at you Young Fu of the Upper Yangtze! Show me what you got!

newbery extravaganza!

So this is my last "catch up" post and I have saved the most boring exciting post for last! Newberies! Hooray! Were you afraid that I had given up on my thrilling goal while sunshine beckoned so beguilingly outside, while swimming pools sparkled and the siren call of the ice cream truck wove it's magic spell? Never fear, loyal reader! I have spent many a summer afternoon diligently reading and am now ready to make my full report.


The number generator was not very kind to me this last go around and I was stuck in the 1930s for several books. But what's done is done and I have learned alot. So are you ready to begin? Sitting in a comfy chair? Sipping a cool beverage? All right, then - let's start:

• Shen of the Sea by Arthur Bowie Chrisman (1926) - a collection of "just-so" style Chinese folk tales. As far as I can tell (with my extensive Wikipedia searching,) the author never actually went to China but just hung around Chinatown in San Fransisco and decided to write a book of Chinese folktales. You could apparently do this in the 20s. Hence, the stories are a little too "ah-so-confucious-say" but some were still pretty charming.
  


• Strawberry Girl by Lois Lenski (1946) - heartwarming little story about a pioneer family in Florida (that's something new!) trying to fit in with their grouchy neighbors and start their strawberry crop. Just the same sweet innocuous book I remembered reading in 3rd grade. The most interesting thing I learned this time, however, is that Ms. Lenski - a very prolific children's writer - wrote a series of 16 regional books about children all over the country when an illness forced her to travel from her native Connecticut. While Strawberry Girl is her most famous, some of the other titles include Blue Ridge Billy, Bayou Suzette, and Texas Tomboy. The titles may seem a little quaint now but were probably fascinating to children in an era where travel and knowledge of other parts of our nation were rare.
  


• Walk Two Moons by Sharon Creech (1995) - the story of a young girl's road trip with her grandparents, retracing her mother's steps before she vanished from Sal's life. An adult reader will probably figure out the "surprise" ending in the first chapter, but I child reader will weep and hope right along with our heroine. The story deftly and sweetly handles grief and death and loss of various kinds; reads a little more like YA fiction and would possible be over the heads of younger readers. I was really touched by this book, though I did bridle at the number of parents in the book who did selfish things while telling their children "it's not about you, it's about me." One of my favorite books this summer. A real surprise find.
  


• Good Masters! Sweet Ladies! Voices from a Medieval Village by Laura Amy Schlitz (2009) - So I totally made fun of this book before I read it because... well, look at the title! Wouldn't you? But it really surprised me. It was The Spoon River Anthology set in medieval England, a series of poems and songs about the various inhabitants of the town, from the lord's son down to the lowly beggar. A librarian in Maryland (I think) whipped this up when the 7th graders at her school needed a reader's theater exercise for the unit on the Middle Ages. Funny and quick and well-written. Eve snatched this out of the library bag before I read it and she really enjoyed it. The frank poem about childbirth did bring up a lot of questions, though, so be prepared!
  


• Dobry by Monica Shannon (1935) - story of a boy's coming of age in his remote Bulgarian village. There is no real conflict in this story until somewhere in the middle when Dobry must convince his family he is destined to be a sculptor, not a farmer. Even more interesting: Bulgarian villagers grow their tomatoes in the winter, so the snow will keep them cold and preserved. Crazy Bulgarians!
  


• Daniel Boone by James Daugherty (1940) - how is this book still in print? How did it managed to get reprinted as recently as the 60s? If you like really inaccurate poorly researched "biographies", then this is the book for you! Also, violently offensive. Pretty much Daniel Boone is a hero because he burned down Indian villages just for fun. And, according to quotes from his journal, thought they were "lazy" and "shiftless" and "ignorant" and many other choice words. I didn't know many of the runners up in 1940, but By the Shores of Silver Lake by Laura Ingalls Wilder - an author who handled the frontier and Native Americans with a much gentler pen - was one of them. Need I say more?
  


• The Dark Frigate by Charles Hawes (1934) - dark and thrilling tale about a boy who runs away to sea only to find himself in league with a surly group of pirates. And I mean surly. Even Long John Silver would be terrified! Many graphic and brutal scenes of violence (well, graphic for a children's book from the 30s.) One pirate complains of his knife scraping along his victim's ribs as he stabs a man in the back. Yikes! Great characters, especially the lonesome and noble heart of our hero, Philip Marsham.
  


• A Visit to William Blake's Inn: Poems for Innocent and Experienced Travelers by Nancy Willard (1982) - a very short book of whimsical poems about a boy who imagines he stays for a visit at an inn run by famous poet William Blake. Yes, an odd and not-so-relevant choice for 1982, but there you have it. Ramona Quimby, Age 8 was a runner up this year, a book which would probably resonate more with the child of 1982. That said, however, Eve did read through it and the illustrations were very enchanting.

• Gay Neck, the Story of a Pigeon by Dhan Gopal Mukerji (1928) - aside from the fact that I felt like a 12 year old boy every time I said the title (Hey, Gay Neck!), this book was perfectly tolerable. The title pretty much says it all. Gay Neck escapes hawks, Gay Neck escapes eagles, Gay Neck escapes cats. Gay Neck, Gay Neck, Gay Neck!

Aaaaaaand.... I think that's it! I still have The Witch of Blackbird Pond to read before I pick up my next batch from the library, but I am sure I will breeze through that one and love it. Thanks for sticking with me to the end of this post. I don't want to give anything away, but this next batch of books actually has one written in the 90s! I can't wait!

making memories, martha-style

It is the last week of summer vacation around here. And I am feeling a wee bit sad about this. I feel like this summer has been so action-packed - which has been very fun, don't get me wrong - that I haven't had time to do all the idyllic summertime activities with my kids that I had planned on. Making cupcakes just for fun, weaving dandelion garlands, catching ladybugs, and all the things that Martha Stewart tells me make for perfect summer memories.

One thing we did manage to do was finally go camping last weekend, just our little family. We drove a few hours to the coast - Brookings, OR - and camped at the lovely Harris Beach State Park. We even managed to go home through the California redwoods and enjoyed a beautiful hike.

It was absolutely perfect. Maybe even Martha would approve.

catching up: sam's birthday

July is a packed month for us, birthday-wise. First mine, then Sam's, and finally Eve's. I already posted the most important bit about mine, so today we will revisit Sammy turning two.

Sam is a simple creature. He loves food and he loves trucks. So we combined his two greatest loves into one happy little family birthday celebration. He is still talking about it: "Sammy happybirthdaytoyou! Sammy truck cake!"

A few of his vehicular related gifts:

Books about cars


Cars about cars



After our visit in June, Jared's parents sent home this awesome truck with us to give to Sam on his birthday. It was Jared's most beloved Tonka truck in all of his sandbox collection as a boy. So glad it survived to bring trucky joy to another generation!

Sam really, really liked his cake. Mostly he liked licking the frosting off the trucks.

And using the trucks instead of his fork.

Sam continues to be the most pleasant, self-contained, good-natured little guy. He loves to give spontaneous hugs and would spend every second of the day with his big sisters if they would let him. (The school year is going to come as a big surprise to Sam!) He's a great little talker and endears himself to everyone with his knack for remembering names. And he will come running from any corner of the house at any mention of food. If you sat on top of the running dryer behind a closed door and whispered the words "fruit snacks," Sam would come sprinting.

We love you Sam! I hope you never change!

catching up: Eve's birthday

Hooray for a new week! No swim lessons this week - just an open schedule and beautiful weather, so I have high hopes for my blogging record this week.

Before I begin with today's catch-up, I just have to say I had the most fun with my girls this weekend. I took them on a date to a Saturday matinee of Suessical the Musical, put on by a local children's musical theater group. I was expecting so-so production level and thought the success of our little date would hinge mostly on the fact that we were just doing something different together, but I was completely blown away. The vocals, the acting, the costumes, the choreography were all fantastic! I think Eve's mouth hung open the entire first act. I love going to shows and have such happy memories of my family's own community theater experiences, I was so happy to share some of that with my girls. Now I just need to buy the CD so we can keep reliving our happy little date.

Okay, today's catch up is Eve's birthday, mostly because I'm working my way backwards in chronological order. But it does seem like the end of July and beginning of August were really all about Eve. Like I mentioned before, Eve did manage to sweet talk me into a "friend" party this year. It was an arts and crafts party, so we had a few of her best friends over for some little projects and cake. I really tried to keep it simple and didn't plan really elaborate craft projects - we painted little jewelry boxes (a wooden snake for Eve's boy buddy B.), made shriny dink magnets/necklaces, decorated their goody bags, and each kid got to frost and decorate their own 9 inch cake. It was pretty fun, I think.

In fact, it was so fun I have absolutely no pictures of most of the party. D'oh! Between keeping Sam happy and helping all those busy little hands with their paint/markers/frosting, I didn't think to pick up my camera until present-opening time. So, a picture of Eve opening a present:

Yay! Webkinz!


The crowning glory was her 6-layer rainbow cake. Somehow I managed to get a hundred pictures of this labor of love.


This picture did not want to turn sideways and I didn't feel like arguing with it. Wait till you see the inside....

Ta-da!

Eating a cake with this many colors was like eating a slice of pure joy. I highly recommend it.

Eve was so happy with it. It made all those hours of baking six layers of differently colored cake in my measly two cake pans all worth it.

That evening we had a family dinner (fish and shrimp, per Eve's request) and opened her family gifts.

Yay! New scriptures! Please note: Eve's hot pink scripture tote also matches her hot pink Sunday shoes which also match her hot pink plaid Sunday dress. She looks hilariously put together the Sundays that she chooses that ensemble.

Yay! Twirly pettiskirt from Aunt Miranda! And, yes, that is Eleanor in her undies in the background hurrying to put on her version of the same skirt.

This book hade the same engrossing effect on me when I was little. We had a hard time getting Eve's attention after this gift until....

....she opened this one! Eve learned to ride a two-wheeler early this summer, but her bike was waaaaaaay too small. I thought she might be ready to move on to some gender-neutral BMX style bike, but this pink one with white wheels and iridescent streamers was the one she strongly dropped hints about at the store. And why not? You're only an eight year old girl once.

Then I fell into bed exhausted.

Then I woke up and planned the camping trip for all the church Young Women that I would be leaving for in 24 hours.

And that was fun, too. Phew!

catching up: playing with cousins

You may have noticed that I have not posted every day after all. Really, are you surprised? But in my defense:


That picture does not even begin to do the situation justice. Imagine a thin layer of that spread over every room in my house and that is what my house looked like yesterday at 4pm. Our good friends were passing through on their way to California and stopped for a quick visit. With my kids, their kids, and a few other visitors, there were 14 children running around! It was really fun, but left little time for blogging and other quiet recreation.

Back to catching up. I wanted to post some pictures of the fun we had with all the family in town around Eve's baptism. Jared's sister's family and his parents came a little early and my brother's family stayed a little later to optimize our having-fun-with-cousins time. It was really great.

The ubiquitous Crater Lake on an unfortunately hazy day. Still stunning.

Cousins (and me) perching on The Watchmen, an old firetower overlooking the lake.

Sam enjoying his favorite past time: wallowing in dirt.

Everyone went to swim at the cousins' hotel one night. Everyone except me... sniff, sniff. I was home writing a talk for Sunday. Bleh.

Sam hates the pool.


While my brother was here I took ZERO pictures. Because I'm lame. Jared was either at work or home sick during their visit and I was worried about juggling all my kids, plus a camera, so I just left it at home. My sister-in-law was much more diligent and probably has better documentation of our ambitious agenda. We visited multiple parks, the local children's science museum, Crater Lake, the Oregon coast, the California redwoods, and even managed to catch a showing of Henry IV, Part I at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival in Ashland. It was a lot of fun and the kids held up fantastically for such a busy week.