Summer 2009 Wrap Up

This is a list of books I read this summer but didn’t have the time or inclination to review in detail. So this will be brief:

Crispin: The Cross of Lead by Avi – A work of historical fiction that won the Newbery in 2003. Crispin is a young boy whose mother has just died. He is soon on the run (accused of a crime he did not commit) being declared a wolf’s head (meaning anyone may kill him). The secret to his sudden fall from obscurity lies in the identity of his father. A great read but not a favorite, if you know what I mean. I hate the cover! I think it has been a turn off for a lot of young patrons, who might otherwise gravitate toward it as the language is very accessible.

Someone Like You by Sarah Dessen – Not my favorite Dessen but an okay read. Clearly one of her earlier books. I was dying to know if Michael’s parents replied to Scarlett’s letter. Dessen certainly has a hang up when it comes to Mother/Daughter relationships. Regarding teen boys, they have ranged from the wonderful (Along for the Ride and Just Listen) to average (Someone Like You) to terrible (Dreamland) in nature. It was satisfying that our heroine, Halley,  didn’t end up with the stereotypical loner but that her experiences shed some light on the relationship between Scarlett and her deceased boyfriend (aka father of her child).

The End of Overeating: Taking Control of the Insatiable American Appetite by David Kessler – You wouldn’t believe how you are being manipulated by the restaurant industry. Fat, sugar and salt (the three points of the compass) combine to trick your mind into eating more and more and more food you do not need. What’s worse, they stick healthy sounding names (like Spinach Dip) on the dishes to mislead you. Read this book. Take back control!

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One Crazy Summer by Rita Williams-Garcia (2010)

There was a little colored girl on our favorite commercial who looked just like Fern. In fact, I said that little girl could have been Fern, which made Vonetta jealous. In the commercial, the little girl took a bite of buttered bread and said, “Gee, Ma. This is the best butter I ever ate.” Then we’d say it the way she did, in her dead, expressionless voice; and we’d outdo ourselves trying to say it with the right amount of deadness. We figured that that was how the commercial people told her to say it. Not too colored. Then we’d get silly and say it every kid of colored way we knew how (p 119).

The year is 1968. Acting the mother, eleven-year-old Delphine cares for her two younger sisters as they travel from Brooklyn, NY to Oakland, CA to spend the summer with the real mother, Cecile, who abandoned them years ago. It is immediately apparent Cecile wants nothing to do with them. She sends them for dinner at the local Chinese restaurant and foists them off on a summer camp sponsored by the Black Panthers for free breakfasts. When the girls hang around after breakfast, they receive a radical new education.

With all that is going on in the world, the girls, especially Delphine, keep the beat and remain the heart of this beautifully told story. They are so perceptive, so aware of their own presence on the white world and their expected role in black society. Coming from a differently slanted Brooklyn to Oakland, it was fascinating to see how they clashed and coexisted with the Oakland crowd, both children and adults.

One might be surprised and a little disbelieving of Delphine’s intelligence, but skepticism should be quickly dispelled as one learns what the girl has to navigate on a daily basis.

Fuse #8 also has a comprehensive and praising review. She raises the ‘bad mother’ issues saying, “many a parent’s ire will be raised when they see how [Cecile] refuses to call her daughter Fern by her name out of spite.” But I found her stubborness to be quite realistic and, based on my experiences, reflective of human nature.

An excellent book and one that will garner attention during award time. For a very funny toon review…

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