Posts Tagged diversity

Family Book Club: Middle Grade Books That Can Be Enjoyed by ALL

By on August 21, 2020   /   Articles, Book Lists  

As I write this I am preparing to leave New York where we’ve been for the summer and return to London (where we live during the year) in time to quarantine for 14 days before school starts. I am kind of freaking out about what I am going to do with my kids in quarantine, but probably like most people with children or who are around children, the theme of this summer has certainly been “unstructured time.” My kids are currently 15, almost-12, 9.5, and almost-6. And thinking back to lockdown, one of the things that worked well was spending some time a few days a week listening to an audiobook while we colored or just relaxed. Okay, the 15-year-old did not involve herself in this, but for the rest of us it was nice. And when I would be reading a middle grade book to the 11 and 9 year old before bed, she would often casually come in and listen, or if we were discussing a book she’d read or I’d read to her when she was younger, she would happily weigh in.

How about a Family Book Club, in whatever shape that might look like to you?

So, for other people struggling with how to fill the last weeks of kids’ summers with something other than screens and devices, I thought I’d make a list of middle grade books that family members of different ages and genders would all enjoy reading (or listening to) and could then discuss.

I’m thinking middle grade books that work on a number of different levels—understood even by little ones not quite reading chapter books to themselves, hit the sweet spot of middle grade readers (either to be read out loud to or to read themselves), might interest your teen if they’ll deign to participate (boredom works in interesting ways), and sophisticated and nuanced enough to be truly enjoyed by adult readers too. 

Because of Mr. Terupt by Rob Buyea—this moves quickly because of short chapters narrated by different voices. The classroom dynamics are realistic and I found it wise in a way that I, as an adult, have taken the subtle lessons, for example how to handle a “girl wars” bully. There are now 3 additional sequels.

 

Because of Winn Dixie by Kate DiCamillo—written deceptively simply, this one is funny and moving and heartwarming—an all-round winner for everyone every time I’ve read it. I’d say ANY Kate DiCamillo is a good choice for family book club: as Ann Patchett writes, some people like the magic animals ones (her) and some the realistic childhood ones (me) but they all “crack you open and make you a better person.”

  All of a Kind Family by Sydney Taylor—written in the 1950s about a Jewish family on the Lower East Side in the early 1900s, this one just never, ever, feels dated. We are working our way through the sequels now.

 

 

Fudge books, in particular Superfudge by Judy Blume—laugh-out-loud funny and relatable about 6th grader Peter and the antics of his irrepressible 5-year-old brother Fudge. (My teen daughter’s suggestion was Otherwise Known As Sheila the Great).

 

Fortunately The Milk, by Neil Gaiman—madcap storytelling that’s fun for all ages.

 

Charlotte’s Web by E.B. White—honestly, I hadn’t read this since I was a kid and pretty much remembered nothing from it. Reading it to my almost-6 year old this summer, the writing blew me away as well as the story. Garth Williams’ illustrations are a delight for everyone. A classic for a reason.

 

The Ramona books by Beverly Cleary—again, funny and relatable situations that make moving drama out of everyday circumstances and relationships. These have been a big hit over and over again and provoke great discussions about relationships and difficult situations. My personal favorites are Ramona and Her Mother and Ramona Quimby, Age 8.

 

All of the above are available as audiobooks too. And speaking of audiobooks, a special mention for How to Train Your Dragon by Cressida Cowell narrated by David Tennant because on the SCBWI British Isles Facebook group someone queried if people had recommendations for an audio book for a long car ride with an 8-year-old that everyone else in the car would enjoy, and this was the overwhelming favorite.  

An important note:

When I looked at my list above I realized that it had no real diversity or POC in it. While many of the books we’ve enjoyed as a family do (see below), I couldn’t think of one that worked as well with my criteria of working for young children too—please, if anyone has any suggestions please add them in the comments.

 

Books next on my own family to-read list that I think will work well:

George by Alex Gino

Wonder by R.J. Palacio

The List of Things That Will Not Change by Rebecca Stead

Babysitter’s Club, the original books by Ann Martin—I loved this piece in the New York Times recently about boys reading these and my sons have devoured the graphic versions, not to mention that all of us are LOVING the fabulous Netflix series. Thought this might work well for us in audio. The first 5 are narrated by Elle Fanning.

 

Family Book Club for Middle Grade Readers and Up:

Graphic novels abound with moving stories and are great for reluctant readers or for kids ready for sophisticated themes but aren’t at a reading level for more advanced MG novels. They don’t work as well for the littlest members of the family, but if that’s not your situation, these books sparked lots of conversation and good book discussion in our family recently.

New Kid by Jerry Kraft —code switching and discomfort in either world when middle schooler Jordan changes schools, but instead of art school where he’d wanted to go, his parents send him to a prestigious academic school where he is one of the few kids of color. My kids have each read this several times and have asked a lot of questions sparking great discussion.

 

When Stars Are Scattered by Victoria Jamieson and Omar Mohamed—family love, education, and a Somali refugee’s story as told to graphic novelist Victoria Jamieson. Both my sons devoured this. My 9-year-old described it as about “a boy with a brother who can’t speak. Really sad but really good.”

 

Other MG books on my (older) Family Book Club list:

One Crazy Summer trilogy—The first book, the story of 3 sisters joining their estranged mother in tumultuous 1960s San Francisco, has been a big hit with all my kids over the years and coming late to the party I’ve just discovered that there are two sequels which I can’t wait to try.

The Length of a String by Elissa Brent Weissman—“Imani is adopted, and she’s ready to search for her birth parents. But when she discovers the diary her Jewish great-grandmother wrote chronicling her escape from Holocaust-era Europe, Imani begins to see family in a new way.” I can’t recommend this book highly enough—I think my boys will be ready for it this year and really look forward to reading it with them. I also gave it to my older daughter’s best friend who loved it and I hope my daughter will read it too!

High-Rise Mystery by Sharna Jackson—this just won the prestigious Waterstones Book Prize in the UK and I’m excited to read it with the kids. 

If mysteries are your family’s thing, check out some of these.

 

Turtle Boy by M. Evan Wolkenstein. I just finished this and want to hand a copy to everyone I know. In a portrait of contemporary Jewish life, this book explores self-image, grief and friendship and is a wonderful, wonderful, thoughtfully-written debut.

Middle Grade for All

In truth, minus needing to encompass a little one’s needs, to me the perfect Middle Grade book is written in a way that absolutely resonates on many levels and to many ages. My list includes a lot of obvious ones–classics and award-winners. But there are thankfully untold numbers that are amazing for a Family Book Club. In addition to the ones mentioned above, here are some suggested by friends of mine who said these worked well for different-aged readers in their families:

Where the Mountain Meets the Moon by Grace Lin

Book Scavenger by Jennifer Chambliss Bertman (for fans of The Westing Game)

All Four Stars by Tara Dairman

Look Both Ways: A Tale Told in Ten Blocks by Jason Reynolds (have just ordered this for myself)

Born a Crime: Stories From A South African Childhood by Trevor Noah, adapted for young readers edition

And Finally, In Her Own Words:

One of my favorite middle grade readers, who was in a neighborhood mother-daughter book club with her mom, recommends these (and her mom endorses them too 🙂

The Way to Bea by Kat Yeh

Fish in a Tree by Lynda Mullaly Hunt

A Drop of Hope by Keith Calabrese

Al Capone Does My Shirts by Jennifer Choldenko

Tuck Everlasting by Natalie Babbitt 

Orphan Island by Laurel Snyder

 

Happy Reading, Everyone!

Let me know how you get on with any of these, and please write more Family Book Club suggestions in the comments. With fears of a second Covid-19 wave and another lockdown looming (and who knows what will be with school), we all might have a LOT of time on our hands. But I can think of worse things than spending it reading and discussing great children’s books. Stay safe and Happy Reading! 

 

All books can be bought on MUF’s Bookshop.org affiliate program or wherever fine books are sold.

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STEM Tuesday — STEM Activity Books– Writing Tips & Resources

By on August 18, 2020   /   Activity Books, STEM Tuesday  

Sometimes, when there’s so much uncertainty in the world (like now) it’s nice to have a set of rules or instructions to follow. Honestly, having fewer choices is one reason I love writing nonfiction. We can’t just make up plots and main characters; we must stick with the facts and harness our creativity to turn those facts into compelling true stories.

This month’s booklist includes a host of STEM activity books, found here, all of which fall into the category of “how-to” books. As I looked through the books, I noticed each offered detailed rules or procedures for making or building items or conducting experiments. And each activity contained the following elements:

  • A list of supplies and/or equipment needed
  • Step-by-step instructions
  • Pictures showing the process

So how can we apply this “how-to” process to our writing? By embracing poetry, of course! Most poetry requires we follow certain rules. And some special poetry forms involve using materials like books, newspapers, markers, and more, just like our STEM how-to books. Fun, right?

Here are two simple, hands-on poetry forms to try.

Blackout Poems (erasure poetry)

No Angle by Austin Kleon

Supplies/tools needed:

  • old newspaper, magazine, or a page from a discarded book
  • pencil
  • markers

Instructions:

  1. Scan through one page of your newspaper or book, looking for interesting words that might spark a poetry idea. Lightly circle them with your pencil.
  2. Now look for other words connecting your circled words. Remember, you won’t be able to reshuffle or reorder the words. You can only use what’s available to you in the order it appears reading left to right, down to up. Circle those new connecting words with the pencil.
  3. Now go back with a marker and circle all the words for your poem.
  4. Color or blackout all the remaining words on the page, so only your chosen words remain. You can even draw interesting shapes and designs over the remaining words if you like.

Here’s a step-by-step how-to video from Austin Kleon showing how he made the poem above.

Spine Poems (found poetry)

Supplies/tools needed: Lots of books!

Instructions:

  1. Stack up books, one on top of the other, so you can read the spines.
  2. Starting at the top, read down through the spines, letting the words from each title become a line of poetry.
  3. Rearrange books as necessary until you have a poem you like.

Enjoy following these hands-on poetry “how-tos.” And here’s hoping limited choices spark unlimited creativity.

O.O.L. F (Out of Left Field)

Kirsten W. Larson used to work with rocket scientists at NASA. Now she writes books for curious kids. She’s the author of WOOD, WIRE, WINGS: EMMA LILIAN TODD INVENTS AN AIRPLANE, illustrated by Tracy Subisak (Calkins Creek, 2020), A TRUE WONDER, illustrated by Katy Wu (Clarion, 2021), THE FIRE OF STARS, illustrated by Katherine Roy (Chronicle, Fall 2021), along with 25 other nonfiction books for kids. Find her at kirsten-w-larson.com or on Twitter/Instagram @KirstenWLarson.

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Diversity in MG lit #19 August 2020 Mysteries

By on August 15, 2020   /   Book Lists, Diversity, Fiction, For Librarians, For Parents, For Teachers, Homeschool Resource  
If there’s one thing I get asked for constantly in the bookstore it’s mysteries for MG readers. Grandparents have warm memories of The Hardy Boys and Nancy Drew and they want something just as fun for their grandchildren. A satisfying mystery is hard to write though so, I’m thrilled when I find any MG mystery to recommend. I’m especially happy to have found these mysteries with a cast of diverse characters.
Ikenga by Nnedi OkoroforIkenga by Nnedi Okorafor
This one is set in contemporary Nigeria follows Nnamdi, the son of a murdered police chief as he searches for the people responsible for his father’s death. It has a supernatural element based in Nigerian mythology which served the story well without making it seem cartoonish. What a terrific way to introduce young writers to a writer with such strong body of work for adults. It goes on sale Aug 18th.
The Gemini Mysteries by Kat Shepherd
Twin Black detectives Evie and Zach Mamuya are seventh grade sleuths who along with their friends, affable Vishal and wealthy Sophia, solve crimes, inspired in part by their single mom, a crime reporter in an unspecified American city. Each chapter has an illustration at the end which contains clues to the mystery. The first book in the series  The North Star is already in paperback and the next, The Cat’s Paw, will go on sale in December or January.
Kudo Kids: The Mystery of the masked medalist by Maia & Alex Shibutani with Michelle Schusterman
Here’s another pair of sibling detectives, 11 and 12 year old Mika and Andy who travel to the Summer Olympics in Tokyo with their parents, one a sports writer and the other a food critic. The puzzle loving Kudos are keen to play a Pokemon Go type game which has them finding clues and learning about Japanese culture all over town. Their game leads to a deeper mystery. The book is illustrated and if the authors names sound familiar its because they are Olympic bronze medalists in Ice Dancing. This book, on sale last May, was obviously meant to coincide with the postponed Tokyo Olympics, but it’s a quick and fun read, even in a non-olympic year.
Muse Squad The Cassandra Curse by Chantel Acevedo
Here’s a mystery that will appeal to fans of Rick Riorden. Cuban American girl Clio discovers she’s actually a muse, a legacy in her family handed down from the ancient Greeks to the present. Her mission is to inspire others who will go on to do great things for humanity. I liked the concept and the core of the story which holds inspiration as a superpower. So refreshing. This one is not illustrated and it’s a bit longer than the other books I’ve reviewed here. The Cassandra Curse came out in July and a second title will follow.
Goldie Vance The Hotel Whodunit by Lilliam Rivera
Also featuring a Cuban American main character, this book is a novelization of a comic book, it’s set in Florida of the 1950s and features 16 year old Goldie Vance who dreams of becoming a hotel detective in a family immersed in the hospitality industry. When a movie shoot comes to her family’s hotel and jewels go missing, Goldie’s mother is suspect number one. This one is a little more leisurely in pace than the others but it evokes an era well and portrays Florida vacation culture with warmth and wit. There is a graphic novel insert in full color but it was not in the ARC that I reviewed.
ATTY At Law by Tim Lockette
And finally here’s a book that celebrates speaking up for those without a voice. It features multi-racial family in the contemporary south and is a legal thriller in the vain of the Theodore Boone series by Grisham, but with considerably more heart. Our advocate Atticus Peale who goes by Atty is an animal lover and uses the law to save a shelter dog. She then tries to advocate for a considerably less sympathetic animal and her efforts intersect with her father’s. He is an attorney defending an illiterate man facing a murder charges.
If you have a favorite mystery, either a stand alone or a series. please mention it in the comments.
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