A blogging throwback to Nonfiction Monday starring 4 great High School nonfiction books of 2024

 Back in the day in the golden age of children's book blogging, we used to have Nonfiction Monday.  I'm doing that today, becuase I'm the chair of this year's high school non-fiction category of the Cybils Awards (after being Elementary/middle grade speculative fiction for the past few years, I thought it was time to turn that category over to a fresh chair, and happily Katy of A Library Mama has stepped up to the challenge, so it's in good hands).

So this summer I've been getting a head start on HS fiction, and here are a few of the excellent books I've read so far!

In a nod to labor day, I'll start with Shift Happens: The History of Labor in the United States, by J. Albert Mann (Harper Collins, 2024)

I generally consider myself to be well informed history wise, but there was So Much in this book that I didn't know about and have never thought about. Lots of really disturbing information about people struggling against the forces of capitalism throughout US history that was eye opening and thought provoking.   The author does a great job telling the stories vividly and without beating the reader over the head with, makes it clear how the struggles of our counties works and the oppression of those getting rich of their blood and sweat still reverberate today.

American Wings: Chicago's Pioneering Black Aviators and the Race for Equality in the Sky, by Sherri L. Smith and Elizabeth Wein (Putnam Young Readers, 2024)

Another one in which I learned an awful lot, not just about the history of aviation and the black men and women who fought hard against oppression to win their wings, but about American (and also Ethiopean) history.  What I loved especially about this one is how the authors made the people they wrote about come to life without putting words in their mouths or us inside their heads.  A truly engrossing read!

Shackled: A Tale of Wronged Kids, Rogue Judges, and a Town that Looked Away, by Candy J. Cooper (Calkins Creek, 2024)

When a Pennsylvania judge and his cronies have a financial interest in a for profit juvenile detention center, it is not a surprise that the number of kids sent to be locked up for minor infractions skyrockets. This is the true story of how the lives of more than 2,500 children were sacrificed for their greed, and how their hideous scheme was discovered and brought to an end.  It is horrific (the poor kids, and their poor parents who were powerless to save them), but also a gripping read.

Hurdles in the Dark: My Story of Survival, Resilience, and Triumph, by Elvira K. Gonzalez (Roaring Brook Press, 2024)

This autobiographical account of the author's determination to overcome the myriad challenges of her life and win a college athletic scholarship for hurdling reads like a gripping novel.  From her impoverished childhood to her mother's kidnapping (she has to find $40,000 to get her back), her brief time in juvie where she vows she'll someday write the story of her life, on to finding a coach who believes in her, but who turns out to be grooming her, and then at last to college, it is riveting, horrific, moving, and powerful. I am so glad she came out of it all and has shared her story with the world.

These are just a few of the books of that will be eligible for this year's High School Nonfiction category.  If you think they look like something you'd like to read, do consider applying to be a HS nonfic panelist!  The deadline is September 7th, and all the information is here at the Cybils website.  And if you have any questions about applying, or the amount of reading required, or anything else, please let me know!

The Genius Under the Table, by Eugene Yelchin

 

If you visit here regularly, you know that I mostly review middle grade sci fi and fantasy.  This does not mean this is all I read--today's book, The Genius Under the Table, by Eugene Yelchin (October 2021, Candlewick), is a mg autobiography (though one I think has lots of appeal for mg sci fi/fantasy fans, about which more later...).

Young Yevgeny grew up in the Soviet Union.  The Cold War still threatens to become hot, fear of the KGB is part of life (there is a KGB spy right there in his apartment complex), and keeping warm and fed is a constant struggle.  On top of this is the antisemitism of the USSR.  Yvegeny's older brother is a talented ice-skater, and on track for a life free of some of this struggle in a society that rewards its international stars, and his family hopes Yvegeny too might have some talent that will be his ticket into comfort and relative security.

So to please his mother, who works at a dance studio, he tries ballet...and although Barishnikov has burst onto the scene and a shining exemplar of what is possible (his mother even takes him backstage to see him dance), Yvegeny's talents don't lie in that direction.  Instead, he draws.  Mostly at bedtime, under the table where his cot is placed at night (there is no room for it anywhere else in their cramped space.  The underside of the table is his canvas, and he fills it with drawings. When his parents find his drawings, they know that art is his path forward, and they encourage him as best they can. 

It's not a full autobiography with facts about the author's life from birth to the present.  Instead, it's a slice of life in this particular time and place, quite often bitterly humorous, and just as often bitterly grim, though the child the author once was doesn't realize the grimness and fear of his family's life the way the reader might, and in this group of "readers" I include not just people my age, who remember that time, but even 9-12 year olds living in comfort in the US today.

And this vivid picture of a dystopia, in which a wonderful pair of jeans has to be kept secret, in which many records are banned, in which anyone can turn on you and report you to the authorities and all the adults in the family live in fear, will I think especially appeal to middle grade fantasy/science fiction fans! The book starts with a visit to see Lenin's corpse, a lovely horrific hook for that demographic!

So if you have such a kid in your life who you think needs a nudge to a different genre, or needs a biography to read for school, give them this book!  It's also the sort of book-- accessible, interesting, and despite all the differences, very relatable (there are lots and lots of kids out there, wanting to discover a talent that will make their parents proud!)-- that is lovely for teaching young readers history.  I wish for the sake of young readers that there was an introduction with time and place and a bit of context, but they know how to google/ask their parents for information.  

Lots of Yelchin's quirky drawings accompany the text, adding lots to the kid-appeal of the story.  And though the story ends with him still in the Soviet Union, it's very easy to follow on to one of his illustrated fiction books (I'd suggest The Assassination of Brangwain Spurge for the mg demographic) to see how his art developed!  I'd also show the young reader a clip of Barishnikov dancing (that being said, I just watch a few clips, and Simone Biles is more amazing so kids today might not be that impressed).

I myself have a brother-in-law who is an artist who grew up in Leningrad at around the same time as the author, which added a personal feeling to my reading of this fascinating, disturbing, and moving autobiography.  I am not sure he will want to revisit his own childhood as vividly as the book would make him, but I will offer it to him and see.

disclaimer--review copy received from the publisher

Accidental Archaeologists: True Stories of Unexpected Discoveries, by Sarah Albee

As far as I know, I'm the only professional archaeologists who has a children's book blog. So I was delighted when I was offered a review copy of Accidental Archaeologists: True Stories of Unexpected Discoveries, by Sarah Albee, illustrated by Nathan Hackett (Scholastic Nonfiction, November 10th 2020). I enjoyed the reading of it very much, and learned lots I didn't know, and I think it's a great one to offer the 10-12 year old who has an interest in archaeology.


The book is self-described as a collection of "chance discoveries by ordinary people" that contributed to our understanding of the past. Arranged in chronological order of the discoveries (which has the added bonus of seeing how archaeology has changed over time), these chance finds from around the world are indeed extraordinary, marvelous, discoveries. Included are some that will be familiar to many kids in the US, like Pompeii and Herculaneum, and some that will quite possibly be new, like an Aztec temple in Mexico City, and a South African cave full of the fossils of a previously unknown early human species. They really are all tremendously exiting finds from around the world!

Albee does a truly great job providing historical context for many of the finds (along the way, for instance, you'll learn lots about the history of Thailand, and slavery in New York), and in some cases, the discoverers are brought to life too--like the black cowboy who found the first huge bison kill site in the US--which adds human interest. Lots of vintage illustrations, maps, and sidebars give even more substance to the already rich descriptions of each discovery. The accessible, almost conversational style of the stories allows Albee to include past injustices, misconceptions, and mistakes in a way that's thought provoking without being preachy.

In short, reading books like this is a great way to learn, and there's lots to learn here, not dumbed down at all, and so much more fun than reading books written for grown-ups!

(I only have one professional quibble--one of the discoveries wasn't accidental at all, but the result of cultural resource buraucracy working like it's supposed to. The discovery of New York's African American cemetery occured not by chance, but becuase the laws protecting historic sites worked--a regulatory archaeologist (like me!) reviewed the project, and called for an archaeological survey. And so, though it's a great story, it doesn't really belong in the book....and I wish Albee had used this story to hammered home a little harder than she does the point that many important discoveries are made becuase people know what they are doing and are trained professionals! In fairness, she does make the point clear that the finding of neat things is only the first step, and doesn't get you far without the professionals to do the analysis and conservation....)

We Are Power: How Nonviolent Activism Changes the World, by Todd Hasak-Lowy

We Are Power: How Nonviolent Activism Changes the World, by Todd Hasak-Lowy (April 2020, Abrams Books for Young Readers), is a great read for teens interested in political activism, or even adults who need catching up on the 20th century (a lot of which wasn't covered in history class when we were kids, because of being current events...).

It presents 30-40 pages discussions of various key non-violent movements, centered on their leaders: Gandhi and Indian Independence, Alice Paul and votes for women, Martin Luther King Jr. and Project C, Cesar Chaves and the Farmworkers Movement, and Vaclav Havel and the Velvet Revolution, and finally a look at Greta Thunberg's climate activism.

The language is clear and concise, making the history accessible reading.  There's lots and lots of detail, making particular incidents come to life vividly,  but no so much that the overall points are lost.  For those not familiar with these particular movements, it's eye-opening, and even those who have a cursory familiarity will learn lots (raises hand).  It was also interesting to ask my mother about her first-hand recollections of some of the movements discussed (she did not buy grapes during the Farmworkers strike, which was a relief),  and if this book were to be used in a classroom, interviewing older family members would be a really neat activity!

My own kids learned most of their political history from the internet, but books like this are, I think, a better place to start, being more trustworthy. (I tend to trust academics, like Todd Hasak-Lowry, more than I do miscellaneous content creators on-line).

I don't think I myself am qualified to actually critique this book (I'm not expert enough to question conclusions or note gaps), but I learned lots, and found it a gripping and fast read (the short intense bursts of information on each movement were not at all a slog!).  If I were teach a high-school class that included 20th century history, I'd make this required reading!  And I hope that these stories of individual action leading to big changes will inspire the next generation of impassioned young leaders!

disclaimer: review copy received from its publicist.

An Encyclopedia of Tolkien, by David Day

An Encyclopedia of Tolkien: the History and Mythology that Inspired Tolkien's World, by David Day (Canterbury Classics, October 2019), is the latest in the author's guides to Middle Earth.  If you have a young bibliophile, who has just read Lord of the Rings and fallen hard for it, this is a perfect gift.  It is a tremendously attractive book, bound in soft leather with a green silk bookmark, the sort of book 12 year old me would have died to own, and one that would have inspired me to head down wonderful rabbit holes exploring myth and history.

Day produced an earlier encyclopedia, Tolkien: the  Illustrated Encyclopedia, back in 1991.  However, the focus of this particular effort sets it apart.  It is not meant as a guide just to the people, places, and events of Tolkien's world, but as a guide to the bits of history and legend that (maybe) Tolkien had in mind (unconsciously or not) when he created them.  (Day tends to ignore the "maybe" part of this, laying things out for readers to accept at face value). In his introduction, Day discusses Tolkien's metaphor for how stories are born from a "Pot of Soup" to which new bits are always being added.  Essentially, this book is a collection of bits from a soup of European history and mythology that Day has fished out and linked to Tolkien's mythos.

Sometimes Day is successful in this, making credible links between Tolkien's fiction and historical and legendary events.  An example is the comparison between Tolkien's Battle of the Field of Celebrant and a quote describing the real world fifth century battle of the Catalaunian Plains, one which had never occurred to me. I also enjoyed Day's etymological exploration of the name "Bilbo Baggins," and I could give many more examples of Day's interesting links between real world and Tolkien world story.  Unfortunately, in other instances Day seems to be trying too hard to make connections where none necessarily exist, or pushes his connections too far--for instance, his effort to link Beowulf and Beorn fell flat for me, and some entries, like those for "brownies" and "Puck," are so tenuously tied to hobbits that they seem almost like padding.  So it's a mixed bag, but one that was often fascinating reading.

Of course it's impossible for one book to contain everything.  But there's a lot more to Anglo-Saxon literature than Beowulf, and I wish Day had included more of it.  And I wish Day had pushed harder at the negative portrayal of the Easterlings, and the historical context beyond the "Barbarian Hordes from Asia" that went into forming Tolkien's derogatory attitude toward non-Westerners.

Still, the fun of seeing connections (and questioning them, and even fact-checking them) makes this a book many fans of Tolkien will enjoy.  The inclusion of brief retellings of three primary legends that served as sources for Tolkien’s creations—the Volsunga saga, the Nibelungenlied, and Richard Wagner’s Ring Cycle add educational value.  There are also about 200 black and white pictures, of varying quality, mostly by men, that serve primarily to show how vividly real Tolkien's world can become to its readers.

In conclusion--a great gift for a young fan in particular, but not necessarily great for readers who are already familiar with a lot of Tolkien's source material, or those who are themselves trained in academia, which calls for stronger arguments than some that Day makes.  That being said, the point of the book, that these sorts of connections exist and can be explored, may well open wide joyful windows for many readers.  I myself wrote my college application essay* on how the Lord of the Rings inspired in me an interest in archaeology and Early Medieval history, and this book would have been fuel to that fire.

*I got in.  I don't have a copy, which is good, because probably it would make me squirm to read it.

disclaimer: review copy received from the publicist

Spirit of the Earth: Indian Voices On Nature, for Multicultural Children's Book Day

I was one of the participants in Multicultural Children's Book Day who was matched with World Wisdom, and I received two books to review. The first, Rock Maiden, by Natasha Yim, I reviewed earlier today.  The second is Spirit of the Earth: Indian Voices On Nature (May 2017), edited by Michael Oren Fitzgerald and Joseph A.  Fitzgerald, with a foreword by Joseph Bruchac.  It is not a children's book, but it is one that middle grade and YA readers can certainly appreciate.

This book is a gathering of stunning images, both color pictures of places, and historic pictures of Native peoples  living within places, juxtaposed with quotations from Native speakers about persons (human and nonhuman) living within places, and the relationships that join people to the earth and sky.  It is not a book to rush through, but one to read meditatively and thoughtfully, listening to the words as one reads.  As Bruchac puts it in the introduction, " [T]he quotations....[are] so well chosen, so well paired with the images, and so beautifully centered on our appreciation, understanding and lasting reliance on that natural world, they do what our traditional stories have always done-engage and teach."

So it is a lovely book, with lovely pictures and words.

I did have two reservations though.  The first is one of temporality--Native peoples are still here, and yet with the exception of just two quotations at the very end, both the words and the images of Native persons are from the past, reinforcing the stereotype of vanished Indians.  I would have liked images of living people, and more contemporary quotations, to put a lie to that stereotype.  My second reservation is that the texts were drawn from previously published sources, mostly written by anthropologists and ethnographers years ago.  Some of the quotations are part of ceremonies, and I would have felt more comfortable if the Tribes whose words these are had given permission for them to be included here (I didn't see any acknowledgement that such permission was sought).  Without that permission, I couldn't accept the words as a gift freely given.   The fact that the foreword was written by Joseph Bruchac was some comfort, as he is a well-regarded Abenaki writer, and if he is comfortable with the book, that makes me feel better about it; also, his words are very much in the present tense, which gives some balance in that regard.

Despite my reservations, I'll say again that it is a lovely book, and one that offers riches to those who want to learn and who want to think about being in the world.

Thank you World Wisdom, and thanks to all the sponsors of WNDB and to the organizers and hosts for another tremendous event! Here's the link round-up for WNDB 2018; lots of great books!

The Science of Science Fiction, by Matthew Brenden Wood

The Science of Science Fiction, by Matthew Brenden Wood, from Nomad Press' Inquire and Investigate series (Feb. 2017) is a really fascinating and well-done look at the science that lies behind science fiction stories, and in front of us in the real world.  It covers six main topics--cloning, robotics, living on Mars, alien, faster than light travel, and time travel. 

The real life science of each topic makes up the bulk of the book, and I found it very interesting, even though I was familiar with some of the material. It was good, clear explanation and description of some pretty complicated concepts.   Lots of little side bar note, pictures, and QR codes dot the pages, adding to the material presented (although I could not check out the QR codes because I have not embraced today's technology*). Basically the sci fi tie-in is fun lead into actually science, and it's done very well--explaining without patronizing.

The part of the book that makes it really stand out, though, are the experiments.  I am not a hands on person myself, but I find myself strangely tempted to do some of them myself; there's one about putting a bar of chocolate in the microwave to measure the speed of light, for instance, which looks really cool (and the chocolate is not horribly harmed, and can be eaten afterwards).

So if you have a STEM loving kid around, or a twelve year old who read the Martian, and liked the first part of it lots, give them this book!  It's also good for classroom use; there are, for instance, thought-provoking questions to pose for discussion and writing prompts, which would work better in the classroom than swinging a bucket of water around your head to gain familiarity with centrifugal force, or the lack thereof....

disclaimer: review copy received from the publisher

*I had to ask my kid what those little boxes are called. He says everyone with a phone (except me) is able to use them, so perhaps my feeling that including this tech. reliant part of the book excludes kids who don't have all the resources is misplaced....

Mossby's Magic Carpet Handbook, by Ilona Bray

Mossby's Magic Carpet Handbook, by Ilona Bray, subtitled "A Flyer's Guide to Mossby's Model D3 Extra-Small Magic Carpet" (Innovation Press, Sept. 2017)  is an oversize book that purports to be, as the subtitle indicates, an instructional manual to the proper techniques of magic carpet flying, with lots of illustrations. There's a framing device that adds a bit of story and gives the instructions a personal touch--the manual has just been handed down by an old great aunt, with the promise of a the carpet to come, and the great aunt leaves marginal commentary on the official text.

What makes this book stand out is that not only is there the fun magical premise of how exactly to operate a magic carpet (with practical advice on bathroom issue and such), but the carpet flying is also a cool framework for expository nonfiction.  There's fascinating information about flying, useful information about map reading, interesting tidbits about strange foods of the world and animals you might encounter, presented in a very kid-friendly way.  (I learned a few things I didn't know, which is always nice for me.  For instance, swing at the playground is 2 G's, a sneeze has the force of 2.9 G's, and a rocket being launched is 3 G's).

The kids shown in the handbook are a diverse bunch; many are not white.  And the inheritor of the carpet is nicely ungendered as well.

The book bears a faint resemblance to the books in Candlewick's "ology" series, though it doesn't have the bling elements of those covers, and doesn't have flaps and pockets and stuff inside.   Kids who like those will be drawn to this one.  Also consider giving it to the kid who is fascinated by looking down on the world from above!  Short answer: a very good book to give as a present, that simultaneously entertains and instructs.

disclaimer: review copy received for Cybils Award consideration.

The Time Travler's Handbook, for Timeslip Tuesday

The Time Traveler's Handbook, by Wyllie, Acton, and Goldblatt (Harper Design, May 2016) is designed to prepare the traveler for eighteen extraordinary trips back to the past.  It's not a fictional account of adventures there, but more a guidebook to where to find food, what to wear, how to get around, and more.  It reads very much like a good travel guide, throwing historical context into the mixed so that your experience of the past is informed by details of what's happening.   The time travel company offers a variety of trips-- you can join Henry VIII at the Field of the Cloth of Gold, see the premier of Julius Caesar at the Globe,  march on Versailles with the revolutionary women of Paris.  The trips are strongly Europe and the United States focused, but a trip with Captain Cook to Tahiti is offered, and one to the Xanadu of Kublai Khan.  In the cultural and sports side of things, you can go hang out at the Rumble in the Jungle at Kinshasa or see Charlie Parker at the birth of bebop or the Beatles in Hamburg....

This is a truly fun way to read about history; the framing device is present enough, and detailed enough, so that you can imagine actually being there, and it's fun knowing where you should stay and eat on your visit to Shakespeare's London!  It's not a book to read in one sitting, but it is a very good one to keep around and dip into, especially when there are other people in the room not doing anything important, so that you have someone with whom to share all the interesting tid-bits of information that you learn.  I enjoyed it very much. 

If you are teaching any of the periods covered, especially to middle school kids, you might want to check this out--the accounts are enging, easy to read, and full of information without being dry and didactic.  This is not a children's book per se, but if you are the parent of an information loving reader this might also be one to look out for.  I would have liked it from the age of eight on up if someone had given it to me (a big fan of history from an early age).  I would have liked the look and feel of it (fancy gold embossing), as well as the history within.


Here is seven year old me, re-reading for the umpteenth time my Ladybird biography of Nelson.  I sure do wish I have been given more non-fiction, because although I still have a pretty solid handle on Nelson, there are a gaps that could have been filled by the judiscious applicaton of other books at a young age.  I would have re-read my favorite bits of The Time Travellers Handbook (like the Berlin Wall coming down chapter, and the Shakespeare chapter) lots.

Hades Speaks! by Vicky Alvear Shecter

Hades Speaks! by Vicky Alvear Shecter (Boyds Mills Press, Sept. 2014)  is the second installment of a series revealing the Secrets of the Ancient Gods (the first being Anubis Speaks!).    It is a non-fiction tour of the Greek underworld, with Hades himself serving as guide--one with more than a bit of attitude.

For Hades, with good reason, has a chip on his shoulder that's more a plank--Zeus is undeniably not the baby brother anyone would want, and being lord of the Underworld has considerably less pizzazz than throwing thunderbolts around from the top of Mount Olympus (and poor Hades' planet Pluto lost its planetary status; at least he can take some comfort from that fact that Jupiter is just a big ball of hot gas....)

So Hades, grumpy, defensive, and rather, um, dark describes the places and people of his realm (with a brief interjection from his wife, Persephone).  Stories of the various mythological visitors, and residents, of the Underworld are interspersed with the descriptions of its geographical features; I myself found the introductions to the dead Greek philosophers a nice touch (you don't hear much about them in other books about Greek mythology!)

Although Hades is something of a one-note grouchy pants, the use of contemporary allusions and idioms makes his voice one that should go down very easily indeed for the target audience--kids who prefer their mythology with a bit of modern edge to it, and who aren't necessarily die-hard Percy Jackson fans yet! 

disclaimer:  review copy received courtesy of the author

Ripley's Believe It or Not! Reality Shock!

This is not a review, but more a note to say that there's a new Ripley's Believe it or Not out in the world -- Reality Shock! (September 9, 2014)  which I received the publishers.  Like all the Ripley's books, it's a mix of the educational, the gross, and the intriguing.

Something I appreciated:

A nice two page spread on the Shackleton expedition, illustrated with actual photographs.  Educational!

Something fascinating, in a horrific way:

An advertisement for electric corsets!

An interesting story that would make a fascinating book in its own right:

Conjoined twins Millie and Christine McKay were born as slaves in North Carolina in 1851.  The girls were sold to a showman while still toddlers, kidnapped and taken to England, and kidnapped once more.  The American show manager, and the girls' mother (I'm glad she managed to stay with them, at least until the kidnapping--this is my favorite part of the story) managed to track them down four years later.   The girls then performed as "the Two-headed Nightingale."  After emancipation, they used the money they earned to support schools for black children back in North Carolina.

Interesting thing I learned:

"Indigenous peoples of Paraguay account for only about five percent of the population, by their Guarani language is spoken by about 90 percent of the people. This makes Paraguay the only country in the Americas where an indigenous language is spoken by a majority of the population."  Cool!

Something I didn't need to know:

A dude in Louisiana has been saving all his nail clippings since 1978.

Something I wish hadn't been included:

Can we please not have pictures of white guys (Mr. Ripley himself in this case) posing next to a man from Fiji identified as a "human cannibal" because without cultural context I think it's just sensationalist neo-colonialism.

The Family Romanov: Murder, Rebellion & the Fall of Imperial Russia, by Candace Fleming

The Family Romanov: Murder, Rebellion & the Fall of Imperial Russia, by Candace Fleming (Schwartz & Wade, YA, July 8, 2014), is an absolutely top-notch exposition of its subject.  It's a pretty gripping story, of course, and reading this book is much like watching a train wreck in progress.  But even knowing the horrible inevitability of the end doesn't make the journey less suspenseful.

Fleming's beautifully lucid prose humanizes its subjects without straying into any sort of overly emotional intimacy--their story is  fascinating one, and they are fascinating people, and she is wise enough to let the primary sources and the facts of the matter speak for themselves without distracting authorly adornment.    It is narrative non-fiction of the sort that makes the people whose lives are recounted believable, without straying into speculation about things we can never know.  And Fleming doesn't tell the reader what to think, meaning that the reader is left with lots of room for independent pondering.

Interspersed in the account of the Romanovs--Nicholas, Alexandra, and their children--are primary sources that give voice to other Russians--the peasants, the workers, the ordinary people.  It is a tremendously effective approach.  Not only does it break up the primary narrative in a friendly sort of way for those with shorter attention spans, but it makes the whole state of affairs in Russia much more vividly real.  Numerous photographs, not just of the Romanovs and Rasputin, but of the world they lived in (including horrific images from WW I), also bring the past to life.

 I never thought I would really truly have a grasp on this period of Russian history (and the causes of World War I--it's the best two page discussion of this I've ever read), but this book has managed to educate me most beautifully.   But though I appreciate being educated immensely, I appreciate even more the fact that I sincerely enjoyed the reading of the book.   It's maybe marketed to YA audiences, but there absolutely no reason why even older adults won't like it too.

(includes bibliography, footnotes, and index)

disclaimer: review copy received from the publisher

Micronations: Invent Your Own Country and Culture, by Kathy Ceceri, for Nonfiction Monday

When I was offered a review copy of Micronations: Invent Your Own Country and Culture (with 25 Projects) by Kathy Ceceri (Nomad Press, May 2014) I jumped at it-- the topic combines beautifully my interest in fantasy world-building, and my real-life background as an anthropologist/archaeologist.   

This is a book that almost makes me want to be a teacher, either in class or homeschooling, because it would be so much fun to use as the basis for an exploration of geography and social studies!  Ceceri walks kids through all the things that go into making a modern country--the physical features of the land, the basics of government and economy, the symbolic elements of nation building, and more.  Generously interspersed with matter of fact discussions of such topics are interesting facts and activities (which seem entertaining, do-able, and useful), and I must say that I loved the interesting facts very much!  There are so many of them, and they are indeed so interesting, that the book is almost worthy reading and sharing just for their sake!

(Did you know in Bhutan there is one day every month where no one is allowed to drive, so as to cut down on air pollution?)

There's much here a young writer (or even some older writers) would find useful in fantasy worldbuilding as well--solid world-building depends on a deep understanding of how countries work from the ground-up.    That being said, the more amorphus side of a country's culture--the history, the mythology, the kinship structures--are not part of the scope of the book (which isn't criticism, just a comment).   

I appreciated that alternatives to late stage capitalism were included, such as barter economies, but couldn't help but feel that more alternatives could have been offered to push kids to question all that they take for granted about nation-hood! (Which is to say, this isn't subversive).

That being said, I enjoyed it for what it was.  It's very much worth using in an educational setting, and even worth giving in a more casual way to your kid at home who has a penchant for social studies trivia!

disclaimer: review copy received from the publisher

The Immortal LIfe of Henrietta Lacks, by Rebecca Skloot (48 hour reading challenge)

I am so glad that the 48 Hour Reading Challenge bumped The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks, by Rebecca Skloot, to the top of my reading pile.  It is my favorite sort of non-fiction--combining tons of interesting science with people one can care about, and leaving the reader changed by the experience of reading.

The book weaves together four stories.

One is the story of a woman named Henrietta, who loved to paint her toenails red and go out dancing, who loved her children dearly, who was poor, and black, and died of cancer in 1951.

One is the story of what happened to a sample of cells taken from Henrietta's cancerous tumor, and how this HeLa line of cells, with its extraordinary robustness, was used, and is still used, to make many marvellous advances in medicine and the study of cell biology.  The first great contribution Henrietta's cells made were in the development of the polio vaccine, but the list goes on and on and on.

The third is the story of the dark side of medical practice in the mid twentieth century, and how the black, the poor, the incarcerated, and the marginalized suffered at the hands of medical research.

And the fourth is the story of Henrietta's children, especially her daughter Deborah.   It was years before they learned that part of their mother was immortal--that her living cells had been bought and sold for the cause of medical research, while they struggled with poverty and inadequate health insurance.   To learn that part of their mother, who Deborah never knew, was still alive, brought heartache, confusion, and anger.

Into their lives comes Rebecca Skloot, a white woman determined to make the story of HeLa the story of people.  It is a difficult journey for Deborah and for Rebecca.   This book, weaving the four stories together in a utterly readable, mesmerizing, shattering, and poignant way, is the result.

Read it (if you haven't already).

And then read this op ed piece in the New York Times from 2013 that continues the story.  (or you could read the op ed piece now).

Ripley's Believe It of Not--Dare to Look, starring Camilla the Space Chicken

My mind has been distracted and confused (more so than usual) by the busy-ness of organizing the Elementary/Middle Grade Speculative Fiction Cybils nominations, and (the Shame!) by the fact that, thanks to a tweet a while back from Liz, I have discovered Candy Crush on Facebook.  Sigh. 

Happily today I have a book received from review that is fairly straightforward to write about--it's more a "this book is in the world" post.

Dare to Look is the latest offering from Ripley's (September 10, 2013), and if you have seen one of their books, you'll have a good idea of the mind candy/image and fact explosion/startling, disturbing, fascinating content that these books offer.  This one is no exception.   Some things are grotesque, like the guy who holds the record for most clothes pegs attached to the face--161, some are scary, like a Swedish evil clown who gets hired to terrify children at birthday parties, and some are very side-show-esque, like a real "wolf boy"--a man suffering from "werewolf" syndrome, and a man who ended up with a big toe where his thumb should be, and vice versa....

I myself enjoy the more historical trivia sort of facts than the "freakish" ones; I can't help but feel a bit voyeuristic looking into the eyes of the Wolf Boy, for instance.   On the other hand, he's making a living from his difference, and it was his choice to be in the book...so it might well be the sort of thing that could lead to a Profitable Discussion with a handy child about how strange and quirky things happen in some people's bodies and, those these things might be odd, they are superficial differences and there it is, and one says "huh" (or other interested but not judgemental noise) and moves on.

Although I get a bit dizzy reading the Ripley's books cover to cover, I do enjoy dipping into them.  Here is something that I had somehow missed at the time--in March of 2012 Camilla the rubber chicken was launched by NASA to the edge of space to test levels of radiation during an intense solar storm.   I think it is great that NASA has a sense of humor, and I truly appreciate that someone make her a knitted sweater.  (She parachuted safely back to Earth).

(image from NASA's image of the day website, which, for some strange reason (sarcasm) isn't loading today).

Disclaimer: review copy received from the publisher

Cool Creations in 35 Pieces, by Sean Kenney--fun with Lego for Non-fiction Monday

Cool Creations in 35 Pieces, by Sean Kenney (Henry Holt, Sept. 10, 2013), is exactly what the title (and subtitle) promise--it's a how-to book of Lego models you can build with (wait for it) just 35 pieces.  The same pieces, used over and over, can make robots, spacecraft (I like the Space Shark), buildings, furniture and household objects (included in this category is the Iridium Q-45 Space Modulator, which made me smile--I think I need one), and more. 

Sean Kenney is a Lego Master--he is a professional Lego artist who owns nearly 2 million pieces of Lego, makes ginormous Lego art, and has published several other Lego books for kids.   So he knows whereof he speaks, design-wise, and the creations he illustrates in the book demonstrate this.

This book is both useful and inspiring.  I don't think I'm alone in having a ginormous box of Lego bits, that are mostly unused.  It's not that my boys don't still play with Lego, because they do; it's just that they mostly move the minifigures, engaged in epic fantasy adventures, through a blasted wasteland of Lego bits.

Sample of playroom floor, with bonus Walrus:

And this is just fine, but they don't spend much time thinking critically and creatively about what they can build.  So this morning we tried this book.

The first, and most exciting, challenge, was to find the requisite 35 pieces (happily the book has a handy page with pictures of them all).

My son assured me that if we kept digging, we could find them all.

The interior of our Lego box, thousands of pieces not shown:

Lots of scrabbling and matching pieces to pictures later (which was rather fun), we had a complete set.

And my thirteen year old built one of the robots, and enjoyed doing so: 

I am glad he was willing to play along, because his opinion as a nine-year veteran of Lego building is useful.  He felt that the book was not just for beginners.  Although the title suggests that it's an introduction to building with Lego, and it is just fine as such, in fact there aren't explicit instructions for every single thing in the book.  So it offers a bit more of a challenge than one might think.  That being said, the creations are not extraodinarily complicated, and of course only use, at most, 35 pieces...

My ten-year-old opined on the cuteness of many of the Lego robots and animals, and was inspired by them to make a robot turtle, which he declined to share.

Note:  unless you are a long-time amasser of Legos, you might well not have the exact 35 pieces used in the book.   If you are giving this book to a kid who is particular about having exactly what he or she is supposed to have, it might be wise to make sure the specific pieces will be available.  You can order them individually, if you want to spend an extra bit of money just to be sure, and then you have a very nice present indeed.

On the other hand, you don't have to stick to the particular 35 pieces the author uses--if I were doing this for a Lego group at a library, I'd just give each kid 35 pieces of randomness, pass the book around for inspiration, and challenge them to see what they can do.

In short, I think this is a nice one for both the young entrant into the world of Lego, and one that sparks new creativity in the experienced builder.    Don't make the mistake of thinking it's just for boys--although some boy favorites, like vehicles, are included, girls like making spaceships and aliens just fine, and, though it does feel a bit like falling into gender stereotypes, the section on household furnishings might well have appealed to young girl me lots.

At Sean Kenney's website, there's a gallery where kids can share photos of their own creations (for free).  There's nothing there yet (since I'm writing this before the book has been published), but I bet it will be another handy source of inspiration.

Final answer:  My boys don't want me to pass the book on to the library.

disclaimer:  review copy received from the publisher.

This week's Non-fiction Monday is hosted by A Mom's Spare Time.

Three new non-fiction books for kids for Earth Day!

Happy Earth Day!

By Happy Chance I got three new picture book non-fiction books for little kids last week, all of which are great picks for Earth Day (or any day) reading.

Ocean Counting, by Janet Lawler (National Geographic Little Kids, May 2013), with photographs by Brian Skerry, starts thus:

"Explore our beautiful blue ocean while learning how to count.  Visit colorful coral reefs, warm and sunny seas, sparkling ice packs, and other special spots where marine animals live and play.  And on your way, discover new ocean friends on a worldwide counting adventure."  For the numbers one through ten, there are double spread pictures, and short blurbs and supplemental "did you know" insets that offer interesting information.  A very nice book!

The cute baby seal and its mama (for Two) are particularly kid-friendly, although I myself was especially taken by the four reef squid--a stunning picture in which the squids obligingly arranged themselves in a line by size (sweet squids!).

Flowers by Number, by David Shapiro, illustrated by Hayley Vair (Craigmore Creations, April 2013).

This is one for the child who appreciates beautiful illustrations--the flower paintings are lovely, in a calm, painterly way.  They aren't your common or garden flowers either--instead, they are wildflowers from across the country, including new ones for East Coast me, like the six Pacific Starflowers.   The text is minimal, but interest is added by occasional metaphorical language.  For the nine lupines, for instance, the text says "Named after the wolf, they howl in purple when many flower at once."

The Latin names of the flowers are included, though a little note explaining what these foreign words are might have been useful. 

This one is strong on aesthetics and floral interest, could for peaceful appreciation of the beauties of nature.  I particularly liked that it started with Zero, which so often gets overlooked--it's a snowy landscape with no flowers at all.

The World is Waiting for You, by Barbara Kerley (National Geographic Children's Books, March 2013), is a photographic invitation (and a very compelling one) to get outside!!! From woods to water to fossil hunting in the desert, the imperative commands, like "Dig deeper" or "Take a peek.  Go on--get a little nosy" reinforces the beautifully clear message of the pictures that there are wonderful things to do out there in the great big world of nature.  And if that cave full of huge crystals really is real (I assume it is, but it boggles the mind!) I want to go there myself!  It is a joyful celebration of the outdoors that manages to enthuse without any sense of didactic preaching.

This is a truly inspiring one that I wholeheartedly recommend.

So, have a happy Earth Day!  And just to close, here is my own go-to saving the earth tip--keep a bucket in your shower, to catch the water while its warming up, and use that water to flush the toilet.   If you have four shower-ers in your family, like me, and an old plumbing system that takes ages to warm the water, you'll save hundreds of gallons a year.

For more great non-fiction for kids, visit this Monday's Non-Fiction Roundup at A Mom's Spare Time

disclaimer:  review copies received from publicist

Writing Children's Books for Dummies, by Lisa Rojany Buccieri and Peter Economy -- with giveaway!

Writing Children's Books for Dummies, by Lisa Rojany Buccieri and Peter Economy (John Wiley and Sons, 2013).

(Thanks all who entered the giveaway--the winner is Anne.)

Someday, hopefully sooner rather than later, I hope to have written a children's book--non-fiction, drawing on the archaeology side of my life.   I've even taken the plunge and joined the Society for Children's Book Writers and Illustrators, and will be going to the May New England Conference.  So when I was offered a review copy of  the newly released revised edition of  Writing Children's Books for Dummies, I said "yes, please."

And I found it good--knowledgeable, practical, and helpful.

It's divided into sections that pass from an introduction to the various genres of children's books, into the nuts and bolts of writing (characters, dialogue, setting, etc.), then moving on to editing, and finally tackling the mysteries of publishing and publicity.   Helpful icons in the margins identify especially useful tips and things to remember.

I started out bookmarking every page that had what seemed an especially useful tip, but soon the book had so many pieces of paper sticking out of it that I realized I couldn't share them all.    So you'll have to trust me--there are lots of useful tips!

For instance, there's a valuable section entitled  "Defend your prose--or let it go" (page 137).  If your words aren't moving the plot forward and making the story proceed at a nice pace, or developing a main character, chances are it should go.  The section on what makes good dialogue seemed especially spot on, and if I were a teacher of writing to even quite young kids, I might well share it with them!  The examples of good and bad dialogue, and why the former works and the later doesn't, are spot on.

I could go on.  Short answer--lots and lots of good advice on how to write and publish a children's book.

As an incidental bonus, I found the sections on the mechanics of good writing rather enlightening from my perspective as a reviewer.  Jean Kerr, a favorite author of mine was married to a drama critic, and often went to the theater with him--she has a pithy little line that resonates a lot for me:

"The critic says: this is an extremely bad play--why is that?  The audience says:  This is an extremely bad play--why was I born?" (Penny Candy, page 88)

I myself have trouble getting past the "why was I born" approach, and now feel more able to make informed judgements (look for "the dialogue does not advance either the plot or the characterization" (or, one can hope, the opposite) in future reviews).

It wasn't perfect.  For instance, the book examples used in the early section on genres of children's books seem somewhat cobbled together (one obscure book is shown twice, for instance), and the pictures of the books float in isolation with no little line why the books were chosen, or what they illustrate.   If I myself were giving a new author lists of books, I wouldn't just offer a list of my own; I'd refer readers to the lists of ALA award books--which, since they are updated every year, would keep current.  (I myself would also include the Cybils lists).  

The sections on publicity and social marketing are not desperately helpful for authors who wish to get their books reviewed on blogs--I think that a future edition could usefully expand that section, with more on what book review blogs are, and who they reach, with the does and don'ts of how to find bloggers who are a good fit for your book (contrary to the advice given here, the best blogs to approach are not necessarily the ones that get the most traffic), and how to request a blog review. 

But still--a very valuable book from which I think every new and aspiring writer of just about any age could learn lots.  

Courtesy of the authors, I'm hosting a giveaway of Writing Children's Books For Dummies.  (International entries welcome!).  Just leave a comment by midnight EST next Sunday (March 31), with some way to contact you. 

If I haven't convinced you that you might well want to enter to win this one, here's another blog review at Ms. Yingling Reads--she called it "an indispensable tool for writers."

Disclaimer:  review copy received from the publisher at the authors' request.

Brain on Fire: My Month of Madness, by Susannah Cahalan

I am fascinated by the workings, and not workings, of the brain--for instance, Oliver Sacks' newest book, Hallucinations, is on my Christmas wish list.  So naturally I said yes, enthusiastically, to the offer of a review copy of Brain on Fire: My Month of Madness, by Susannah Cahalan (Free Press, November 2012).

Susannah was a healthy, vibrant young reporter when, slowly and insidiously, her brain betrayed her.   At first the signs were subtle--manic mood swings, paranoia, and a sense of not-rightness, but progressively thing got worse.  Fortunately for Susannah, she began having seizures, making it clear that there was something actually, physically, wrong.   And so, instead of being committed to a mental hospital, she spent a month of madness as a neurological mystery.

A team of doctors tested and assessed and observed, and Susannah's condition progressively worsened.  Her self was masked by a cascade of impairment, but her family and her boyfriend continued to believe that the Susannah they loved was still there.

Most fortunately, a new doctor, Souhel Najjar took up her case, one who just happened to be familiar with examples of other young women suffering from similarly catastrophic mental collapse.  Susannah finally had a diagnosis--a newly discovered autoimmune disorder in which the body attacks the brain. With diagnosis came treatment, restoring Susannah to her self.   And Susannah decided to write this book.

Though she herself has few memories of her month of madness, she set out to chronicle with journalist attention to finding out facts just what happened to her.  It is gripping as all get out. 

Susannah's descent into illness is not comfortable reading.  Though I was absorbed, it was a lot like watching a train wreck happening...and I was much more comfortable once the new doctor arrived on the scene, and the tone of the narrative becomes one that's more hopeful, and one that's more focused on the scientific non-fiction aspect of her illness, and less on watching her mind collapse.

And it is fascinating to speculate, along with Susannah, just how this illness, and others like it, might be responsible for misdiagnosed mental dysfunction...and it's scary as all get out to think that had Susannah's first doctor been the only one she saw, a complete and utter misdiagnosis of too much alcohol consumption might have been on her charts as her brain became completely consumed by her sickness.

Highly recommended for those like me who are fascinated by medical mysteries with the human element front and center!

Home Front Girl: A Diary of Love, Literature, and Growing Up in Wartime America

Home Front Girl: A Diary of Love, Literature, and Growing Up in Wartime America (Chicago Review Press, November, 2012, Young Adult) is the actual diary of Joan Wehlen Morrison (1922-2010), beginning in 1937, when she is fourteen, and continuing to February, 1942.    Joan Wehlen was clearly destined to become a writer--her diary entries, transcribed by her daughter after her death, are funny, coherent, thoughtful, and diverting.

Joan starts her diary as a high school sophomore in Chicago, at a time when the country was recovering (mentally and materially) from the Great Depression.   Her journal entries are full of the everyday doings of a bright, friendly girl--thoughts on her teachers, classmates, a bit about whether she's thin, what she thinks about religion, watching her paramecium inexplicably die in biology, her work on the school paper, boys she's crushing on....and darker things too.  She is tested for tb, and found to be on the borderline of having it--she must periodically have her chest x-rayed.   And even in 1937, the shadow of war haunts her nightmares. 

As the war in Europe progress, and as Joan grows up, she (naturally) moves beyond the light-hearted school girl she was.   Though I found these years less immediately entertaining, from a social history point of view, they were interesting as all get out.  I was powerfully reminded that it was not clear in the late thirties in the US that this was a war that we were inevitably going to have to fight. Joan is terrified by the thought of it, thinks of Winston Churchill as "pig face," and rejects patriotic fervor.   And then, only a few months before Joan puts down her diary, Pearl Harbor is bombed.  There's a forced brightness to these entries, with Joan talking more about boys than about the war, but under that gloss, it's clear that it's filling her mind.

This is one I'd give in a second to anyone who loves historical school girl stories and stories of home front girls--I was variously reminded of Daddy-Long-Legs, Betsy-Tacy, and Rilla of Ingleside.   If you like those books, you will almost certainly join me in loving Joan's high school diary entries with a passionate intensity, laughing out loud at both her words and her doodles, and sharing with her the sometimes painful process of growing up.  I wish I could have been her friend, because she really does sound like a kindred spirit:

"Sometimes I wonder if I'm really laughing at the things I say or if I mean them.  I catch myself saying things and find myself grinning at something--inside I mean." (page 23).

Here's one example of a passage that made me laugh out load--Joan studying biology on her bus ride home in 1938:

"Then I went back to the difference between man and animals.  Very slight, it seems.  I was testing myself out to see if I was human.  Seeing if my thumb was opposable (by wiggling it) and if I had a definite chin (thrusting it out) and if my great toe was opposable (very hard in shoes). By this time, the man next to me also seemed to need proof that I was human and took quite an interest in my experiments.  In most points I seemed human so I gave up and went back to one-celled animals.  Man went back to his magazine" (page 77).

Joan may be naive in some ways, as so many young teenagers are, but she is not the product of a "more innocent time."  In one searing entry written in 1940 (pages 140 to 146), she reflects on her generation--how their parents, coming out of WW I "...had the awful feeling of being "timed"-that they must hurry and gobble life or it would leave them."  How "...though most of us were loved, we were, most of us, lucky not to be abortions."   Then came the Great Depression, and Joan tells how her family, like so many others, lost their house and became poor.  And how those lean years shaped the physical health of her generation.

"Oh you, my generation! --we were  lovely lot!  Sharp minds -- arguing all the time and brittle bodies and even more brittle laughter--and all the time knowing that we were growing up to die.  Because we weren't fooled, you know.  All through those bright-colored years of adolescence we knew we were growing up to disaster.  For at least four years--well, three, before it happened, we knew it was coming.  Some sort of inner sense of war lay upon us." (page 143)

And having read Joan's descriptions of her nightmares of war, I believe her.

In one of her last entries, she says that she thinks she's written her diary "with the intention of having it read someday....I rather like the idea of a social archaeologist pawing over my relics" (page 229). And indeed, this is one I'd recommend with great conviction to social historians. 

I just really truly wish she'd kept on writing in her diary!  The ending comes too soon (and I was expecting from the title that we'd see more actual "home front-ness), and though we know, from the introduction her daughter wrote, that Joan went on to a happy marriage, three kids, and a career as a writer, still, I would have liked more of her own words...and I would really have liked her thoughts on the 1950s and the Cold War!  She did, however, go on to write, with her son, a book about the sixties--From Camelot to Kent State: The Sixties Experience in the Words of Those Who Lived It (1987).

Review copy gratefully received from the publisher.  Will be kept for re-reading and sharing.

(I've thrown this into this week's Non-Fiction Monday round-up, hosted today by The Flatt Perspective)