October 2011

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Terezin: Voices from the Holocaust

October 31, 2011 in BookTalk, Cybils 2011 Nonfiction by Roberta | 3 comments

Terezín: Voices from the Holocaust by Ruth Thomson is about the World War II Terezín transit camp, called Theresienstadt by the Germans. Using excerpts from secret diaries and memoirs, as well as artwork from artists who were imprisoned there, the author lets the camp inhabitants tell the story of their experiences firsthand.

What first catches your eye about this book is the art, which is to be expected because Ruth Thomson was inspired to research the book when she found prints by the Czech artist Leo Haas. Haas, as well as other Jewish artists imprisoned at Terezín, secretly recorded life in the camp while being forced to produce propaganda art for the Germans. Thomson had seen the art and wanted to learn more about the place where it was created.

It turned out that this transition camp was where thousands of Jews were held before being sent to the death camps. Many of the prisoners were forced to work on projects, such as splitting the mica that was used as airplane windshields. At night the prisoners tried to keep their spirits up with secret meetings, lectures and plays.

Thomson does not shy away from the grim details of the thousands who died at the camp, many of starvation and disease. In one heartbreaking section, she describes how artist Friedl Dicker-Brandeis taught hundreds of captive children how to make collages, puppets and draw and sew. She managed to hide two suitcases full of some 4000 pieces of art by children before she was sent to Auschwitz in 1944, thus saving them, but not herself, for posterity.

Towards the end the Germans used Theresienstadt as a “show camp” to convince the Red Cross and others that they were treating their prisoners well, even though in reality the conditions were horrific.

Terezín will be useful for mature middle graders studying the Holocaust. It is an eyeopening account that is likely to stay with you.

It has been nominated for a Cybils award in the MG/YA nonfiction category.

Reading level: Ages 10 and up ( I would say 12 and up).
Hardcover: 64 pages
Publisher: Candlewick Press (February 22, 2011)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0763649635
ISBN-13: 978-0763649630

Be sure to look for more information about children’s books at today’s Book Talk Tuesday.

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Jane Austen: A Life Revealed

October 31, 2011 in Biography, Cybils 2011 Nonfiction, Nonfiction, Nonfiction Monday Review by Roberta | No comments

If you are an ardent Janeite (Jane Austin fan), you already know that this year is the 200th anniversary of the publication of Sense and Sensibility. To celebrate, Clarion Books has published a new biography, Jane Austen: A Life Revealed by Catherine Reef. It has been nominated for a Cybils award in the MG/YA nonfiction category.

The first thing you notice about this book is the striking silhouette on the cover, a nod to the popularity of that art during Jane Austin’s time. Inside, right after the Table of Contents, is Jane Austin’s family tree (more about that in a minute). Scattered throughout are drawings and paintings from the time, as well as black and white photograph stills from modern movies based on Jane’s books. In the end, after the author’s extensive notes and bibliography, is a list of Austin’s six novels in the order they were published between 1811 and 1817.

The author starts the book with Austin’s unfinished final manuscript that she was working on at the time of her death. Reef then follows Austin’s life chronologically, adding summaries of each of Austin’s novels as they appear. Her account is rich in detail, a difficult feat since Austin’s relatives lost or destroyed much of her correspondence after her death, only leaving tantalizing glimpses into what Austin was really like based on recollections of surviving family members and quotes from her novels. She fills in with careful explanations of the culture of the times, for example explaining how the classes were structured and how difficult it was to be an educated single woman. Jane Austin could not even travel unless one of her brothers went with her.

Cybils Notes: This book is not light reading. It requires devotion of time and sharp attention to fully comprehend,  First of all, Austin’s family is huge. She has seven siblings alone. You will need to refer back to the family tree often to keep all the characters straight, especially due to the common practice of naming offspring after other members of the family. Secondly, I wish the the publisher’s had somehow set off the summaries and quotes from novels from the text. There is no subheading, no change of font, nothing but a word or two to indicate the reader is moving from Austin’s life into a summary of the novel. Busy students would have benefited if the summaries were more distinct and easy to find.

Jane Austin’s life was not a particularly happy one, but her position did allow her to observe people of many different stations. Her witty descriptions of human behavior are as relevant and popular today as when they were written.

Janeites will love this new biography of their favorite author. Those who are studying one of Austin’s novels will benefit from the careful analysis of the times and circumstances under which it was written.

Reading level: Ages 12 and up
Hardcover: 208 pages
Publisher: Clarion Books (June 6, 2011)
ISBN-10: 0547370210
ISBN-13: 978-0547370217

nonfictionmonday

Nonfiction Monday is a blogging celebration of nonfiction books for kids. We invite you to join us. For more information and a schedule, stop by the new Nonfiction Monday blog to see who is hosting each week.

This week’s post is at Jean Little Library.

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We All Fall Down: Living with Addiction

October 29, 2011 in Cybils 2011 Nonfiction by Roberta | 2 comments

One of the wonderful things about being a Cybils judge is that I get to read books outside my usual interests, helping me grow as a reader. We All Fall Down: Living with Addiction, a memoir by Nic Sheff, is definitely an example of a book that I would have never picked up on my own if it hadn’t been nominated for a Cybils award in the MG/YA nonfiction category.

So, who exactly is Nic Sheff? I am embarrassed to admit I assumed he was some sort of musician or actor who had gotten involved with drugs. Actually Nic Sheff is famous because he was the subject of a book by his father, Beautiful Boy: A Father’s Journey Through His Son’s Addiction by David Sheff. Nic Sheff had started using drugs at the age of 17 and his father chronicled his downward spiral into addiction. The younger Sheff seems to have inherited his father’s writing ability and wrote his first book Tweak to tell his side of the story. (For more information, see this NY Times article, A Twice-Told Tale of Addiction: By Father, by Son.)

I have to say this second memoir, We All Fall Down, is compelling reading, although I felt a bit like a rubbernecker at a traffic accident. Nic Sheff’s life on drugs was not a pretty sight, and rehab wasn’t any better. It was heartening to read in the final chapters that Nic finally realized his addictions were efforts self-medicate his bipolar disorder. Once he found a psychiatrist who he felt comfortable with and got onto medication, things really seemed to start swinging up.

If foul language offends you, be warned that numerous obscenities are sprinkled throughout the text, as well strong sexual references. This book is definitely for older, mature teens and adults.

Whereas another nominated book, Dog Heroes, seems a bit young for this category, this book seems a bit too mature. There will definitely be young adults who will benefit from reading it, but it doesn’t have the general, broad appeal of some of the other nominees.

Reading level: Ages 15 and up
Hardcover: 368 pages
Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers; 1 edition (April 5, 2011)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0316080829
ISBN-13: 978-0316080828

Tweak: Growing Up on Methamphetamines by Nic Sheff

Beautiful Boy: A Father’s Journey Through His Son’s Addiction by David Sheff

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Scorpions: Armored Stingers

October 27, 2011 in Cybils 2011 Nonfiction, Middle Grade Nonfiction, STEM Friday by Roberta | 1 comment

Scorpions: Armored Stingers by Sandra Markle is part of the Arachnid World series. This book gives an overview of scorpion biology as well as compares scorpions to other arachnids.

Why am I reviewing it? First of all, because it has been nominated for a Cybils award in the MG/YA nonfiction category. Secondly, here in the Sonoran Desert region of Arizona we have quite a few different kinds of scorpions. Many people who move to the area have questions about scorpions and often when people don’t have facts they create stories or myths to fill in for what they don’t know. Scorpions goes a long way to dispel the myths.

Sandra Markle often uses a technique she calls “faction,” where she develops a character  and uses fiction-style techniques in her nonfiction books. Her Hip-Pocket Papa is an example. In this book and others in the Arachnid World series, however, she uses a more traditional nonfiction format.

Most of the pages contain a “Scorpion Fact” in a short sidebar, such as what happens if a scorpling (young scorpion) loses a leg. This captures the interest of a young reader thumbing through the book. Soon he or she is reading the text to find out more.

I always appreciate books with hands-on activities to reinforce learning. Markle has included an activity in the back matter to investigate a human’s sense of touch as it compares to the senses of a scorpion.

Cybils Notes:  The photographs in this book are rather blah, although I do recognize that photographing a creature with a painful sting is not always an easy task. On page 21 it is implied that a scorpion’s stinger will keep a meerkat from eating it. In fact meerkats regularly eat scorpions and are quite adept at avoiding the stingers.

You might not think much about scorpions if none are found where you live. If scorpions are a part of your environment, however, having a book like this is helpful for understanding them. Recommended for budding arachnologists or to accompany a unit on arachnids.

Review of another book in this series:

Orb Weavers: Hungry Spinners by Sandra Markle

Reading level: Ages 9-12
School & Library Binding: 48 pages
Publisher: Lerner Pub Group (T) (March 2011)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0761350373
ISBN-13: 978-0761350378

Stem Friday is at NC Teacher Stuff today. Click through for links to more excellent STEM books.

If you would like to participate in STEM Friday in the future, go to the new STEM Friday blog for more information.

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America Is Under Attack: September 11, 2001

October 25, 2011 in BookTalk, Cybils 2011 Nonfiction by Roberta | No comments

America Is Under Attack: September 11, 2001: The Day the Towers Fell by Don Brown recounts the events of September 11 in a way that is easy to comprehend for children who were either very young or had not even been born yet when the attacks occurred. 

I wasn’t sure what to expect when I picked up this book. Would it be too harsh a reminder of incidents still horrifically recent in the minds of many adults? Turns out the tone is pitch perfect for the targeted age group. Moving through the day’s happenings in chronological order, spotlighting personal stories of heroism and tragedy, makes the chaos of the day more easy to understand as a whole, and much more human.

Don Brown also illustrated this book. His watercolors capture the movement and sense of disarray of the events of the day, yet the softer lines and caricature style lessen the emotional impact enough that the reader isn’t overwhelmed by them.

I know some parents have tried to shield their children from the realities of September 11, 2001. When the children are ready to investigate the significance of that day, this is a superb book to introduce the topic. It is also perfect reading to accompany September 11 observances.

This book was nominated for a Cybils in the MG/YA category.

Aside:  Have you ever seen Meg Cabot’s incredibly moving essay about her very personal experiences that day?

For more reviews, see:

Geo Librarian
Nonfiction Detectives
Shelf-employed

Reading level: Ages 9-12
Hardcover: 64 pages
Publisher: Flash Point (August 16, 2011)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1596436948
ISBN-13: 978-1596436947

Be sure to look for more information about children’s books at today’s Book Talk Tuesday.

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