The school year just started and a new season of booktalks will begin on Monday centered around our 10th grade English classes that focus on biographies, autobiographies, and memoirs but in some cases open up to general nonfiction as well. ‘Tis the season; my favorite season: booktalks!
Here are a mix of new and old titles that I want to share such as the always popular Smith, Barnes, and Anyabwile collaboration called Victory, Stand! Raising My Fist for Justice, Krosoczka’s Hey, Kiddo. and the improbable story of survival by Ollestad and Kiely called Sole Survivor.
I love that our library’s biography section has it’s own separate space in the library as it’s one of the most circulated sections (after manga). Titles that feature stories of perseverance, personal experience, thoughtful reflection, and an evaluation of life as some of my favorites as well. Maybe I’ll create a separate post after the flurry of classes this coming week (and part of next) with the most talked-about titles.
Taking an actual vacation with chill time isn’t a priority as much as vacations that allow me to explore new places, eat new foods, learn new things. That means that often there isn’t large chunks of time for reading, it’s often the opposite that my daily routines include plenty of chunks of reading time so there is an art to reading on vacation but also packing for it too.
Questions like how much room do I have on a carryon or stowaway luggage for books? How much will I need my phone (or want to be off of it) that I don’t want to rely on reading via apps? What types of books am I bringing? For instance, there are times that I’ll bring ARCs because I can dispose of them without the guilt. An ultimate question- do you ever bring library books for fear of misplacing them altogether? And I often have a significant reading list to tackle, so do I bring books I “need” to read versus ones that are simply ones I know I’ll enjoy? And my biggest hang up is always– I don’t know if I’ll enjoy them all so do I bring more so that I can be sure I’ll enjoy the ones I’m reading? Literally these are the thoughts running through my head when I’m packing alongside my hot iron, clothes, and shoes.
Then there’s the time on the vacation for reading. I’m not one to watch movies on my phone on the plane or train, so many of the books I pack are for the waiting before boarding the transportation. Once I’m at the destination I know I’d rather be sitting in quiet contemplation or the “doing” of vacation, so the books I also want to bring aren’t ones that require significant concentration. And there’s where I’ll be staying and how I’ll be traveling to figure out the size and type of book (hardcover versus paperback) based on what I’ll take as a personal bag.
So you can see how a bookish person thinks about the art of packing and reading on vacation. Overly complicated to some but logical for me. Anyone else?
This trip was an actual island vacation with lots of downtime. Only one event was scheduled each of the days we were there and it included a plane. Are you dying to know what I brought to read? Here it is (with explanation)!
The Nakano Thrift Shop by Hiromi Kawakami
A library book that was my dark horse paperback. I had seen a few recommendations and borrowed it and themed by books into two categories for the trip: Japanese literary fiction and food. This was the airport and plane ride to the destination.
Best Wishes from The Full Moon Coffee Shop by Mai Mochizuki
Another library book (hardcover) but a choice I made knowing I enjoyed the first volume. This is a low stakes literary fiction title featuring a pop up coffee shop that suits the needs of those who find it. This was my poolside and sunset read on day one on island.
The Kamogawa Food Detectives: Menu of Happiness by Hisashi Kashiwai
Another library book (hardcover) that I knew I’d fall in love with because it’s the third installment of the series in which cases are presented to the owner of a diner and his daughter when visitors seek out the diner to track down a specific food item/recipe they had previously. These are a series of unconnected (but ultimately connected) short stories that are about the human experience through food memories and taste. Food is love. This was my breakfast and poolside read for days two and three on island.
An Everlasting Meal by Tamar Adler
This was a personal paperback copy signed by Adler at an event I saw her at more than a year ago that I hadn’t read yet. Part cook memoir and recipe cookbook, it blended the sensations of food and the utilitarianism of eating magically. This was my airport and plane ride back home read that made me absolutely hungry for a homecooked, albeit, late night meal.
The Art of Eating by M.F.K. Fisher
This was my “reach” read, tucked at the bottom of the checked bag and ready if need be. A behemoth at over 700-pages but a paperback, I’ve owned it for over two years now and haven’t read it because I’m scared I’ll love it so much and won’t be able to re-read it for the first time ever again. The hype of Fisher is real. So back to my TBR shelf it goes, but I have a plan for when I’m cracking it open.
I owned a shirt that read “the book was better than the movie”. Of course, I’m a librarian. And that quote is often true, but not always. The slogan is more about promoting readership than actually being anti-movie adaptation to a book. So here are three movies that are better than the book, in my opinion. The disclaimer is that, I don’t watch a lot of movies in general. There could be more, but these are three that I can confirm.
First, let’s go way back to Anne Rice’s Interview With the Vampire. I was a rabid Rice fan when I was in my teens, but I was more into the witches than the vampires. However, when blockbuster names and a screen adaptation that provides the haunting atmosphere and longing provide the ambience that I didn’t think was there in the book, we’ve got the first movie that was better than the book.
Netflix’s adaptation of Jenny Han’s To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before was visually stunning, with music, color pops, and lively characters that felt like teenagehood. When I read the book way back when I just remember thinking- I couldn’t relate to the sisters drama that seemed primary to the romcom’s secondary status. But building up the romcom made it the delightful movie that it was which means that this is the second movie that was better than the book.
And last, and most recent, Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir. I wanted to see it in theaters, alas, it didn’t happen and I watched it while donating platelets. I giggled, I cried, I was visually taken aback by a man in a spaceship just trying to save the world. That said, I was blown away by The Martian both the book and the movie, but there was something extra special about the casting and delivery of the movie of Project Hail Mary that makes it the third movie that was better than the book.
Do you agree or disagree? Do you others that fit the bill?
I would be remiss not to compile a list of a handful favorites highlighting the history of the United States on its 250th birthday. Obviously not all of it is positive, but it is America’s story. Which books would you add to the list?
People
You Never Forget Your First: A Biography of George Washington by Alexis Coe focuses on being a female biographer with humor for days
Teri Kanefield’s The Making of America series from Alexander Hamilton to Thurgood Marshall are accessible middle grade biographies
Sheinkin and Robinson’s Two Miserable Presidents: Everything Your Schoolbooks Didn’t Tell You About the Civil War entertain and teach at the same time
Any James L. Swanson book featuring the tragic stories of assassinations of people like Martin Luther King Jr. and John F. Kennedy Jr. such as End of Days: The Assassination of John F. Kennedy. Swanson’s dedication to American history is unparalleled
Events
Brown’s The Great American Dust Bowl: A Graphic Novel
Graff’s The Only Plane in the Sky: An Oral History of 9/11
Slade and Gonzalez’s Countdown: 2979 Days to the Moon
Any of Kate Messner’s History Smashers series books from learning about the Mayflower to the Salem Witch Trials
Brown’s Drowned City: Hurricane Katrina and New Orleans
Iconic
Larson’s The Devil in the White City highlighting both the Chicago World’s Fair and an infamous serial killer H.H. Holmes
Biden’s inauguration was only memorable (for me) because of Gorman’s recitation of her original poem, The Hill We Climb, accessible in print but best listened to
Jarrow is known for her investigative science storytelling for teens and her newest White House Secrets: Medical Lies and Cover-Ups fulfills that. Her focus on certain presidents was enough to realize she wanted to write a follow up book too
Kluger and Shamir’s To the Moon!: The True Story of the American Heroes on the Apollo 8 Spaceship because you can’t talk about American without talking about space exploration
Aberg-Riger’s America Redux: Visual Stories from Our Dynamic History: Visual Stories from Our Dynamic History is a visual feast and provides unique storytelling that’s just as dynamic as the title implies
Social Justice
Cooper and Aronson’s book Poisoned Water: How the Citizens of Flint, Michigan, Fought for Their Lives and Warned the Nation
Mann’s Shift Happens: The History of Labor in the United States
Smith, Barnes, and Anyabwile’s graphic novel collaboration Victory. Stand!: Raising My Fist for Justice
Blumenthal’s Jane Against the World: Roe v. Wade and the Fight for Reproductive Rights
Elliott’s Invisible Child: Poverty, Survival & Hope in an American City
Yoo’s Rising from the Ashes: Los Angeles, 1992. Edward Jae Song Lee, Latasha Harlins, Rodney King, and a City on Fire
Tunnell’s Desert Diary: Japanese American Kids Behind Barbed Wire
I could go on and on… Perhaps I’ll create a few additional posts around the subject!
It’s Father’s Day, so here are some of my favorite father’s in literature.
To Marko from Saga, the heart what it wants and he’ll stop at nothing to care for his daughter Hazel.
To Malala’s dad, who instilled in Malala that education is important for girls and that’s what she fights for even in the face of danger.
To the grandpa in Drawn Together, you reached out to your grandson who spoke a different language than you and found common ground to bond.
Loid Forger aka Twilight is a meticulous spy in Spy x Family but built a family and adopted Anya- yes it’s for a mission- but somehow readers know it’s built to last.
Navigating the pitfalls of growing up with body esteem issues, Ellie’s dad finds opportunities to allow Ellie to learn and grow and love herself.
While he was grieving and not at all perfect as the beginning of the Sheets graphic novel trilogy opens, the third book, Delicates, hits a home run with Marjorie’s dad explaining friendship as they’re hanging Christmas lights: “They light up different parts of your life. But see, they all cast shadows, too… There’s good and bad in everyone, you know? But the more friends you have in your life… well… the more, uh, brightness you’ll have overall.”
Roadtripping with your young daughter isn’t for the faint of heart after losing your wife, yet Coyote’s dad is patient and fun in Coyote Lost and Found.
I just finished Landing in Place Friday and Anisa’s pilot father was a pivotal character (along with the coworker, his friend, who was a confidant to Anisa). There was a specialness to his support and motivation.
Martin is funny enough recounting the stories of his childhood, but the way Martin showcases his father in the second book, Mexikid Dreams, is heartwarming. From poking fun at him adding an “e” in front of every word but also sharing how organized he was in the work they were doing in the hopes of giving his kids opportunities.
And one of the most classic dads of all time. Calvin’s dad’s continued commentary that the hard things built character in Calvin or his annoyance at Calvin’s antics endeared him even more to readers of the comic strip. I was able to walk back in time when the Fenimore Art Museum in Cooperstown, NY had an exhibit running on it’s 40th anniversary.
I changed in November 2022 when I read the first volume of Witch Hat Atelier by Kamome Shirahama. I distinctly remember finishing the book and finding construction paper to make my own hat in the likeness of Coco’s that day. Several years later I put together a full cosplay as Coco to accompany my Japanese Culture Club students to a comic con replete with a homemade brush baby and a sigil on the bottom of my shoes. And several years after that, I have collected every volume of the original series, every volume of the spinoff of Witch Hat Atelier Kitchen, and a hardcover beauty called The Art of Witch Hat Atelier gifted by my son.
Witch Hat Atelier, volume 14 not pictured
A few of my students asked the other week if I had watched the anime, which I knew had dropped on Crunchyroll. I told them about my reluctance to watch it (as with any book that I’m enamored with) because I love the original too much to have it mutilated by another format. I also know that the reviews have been positive.
Fast forward to Saturday night of a long weekend and I did it, I started watching the anime. I instantly fell in love. I said I would pace myself. There were eight episodes available and I now know that there are a planned thirteen total to drop by the end of June. What did I do? By Sunday afternoon I had watched all eight and yearn for more. Luckily I only have to wait about 24 hours for episode nine.
Let me break it down. The groundwork that Shirahama created with the series about a girl wishing to be a witch and ultimately being pulled into the orbit of witches by a witch named Qifrey at an atelier for apprentice witches was the start. Then the anime adaptation takes the imaginative creativity of Shirahama’s world and personifies it with color, cuteness, and attention to detail. I was absorbed on the screen for each scene in addition to the opening credits that use a visual paper folding that wows. Each chapter was a feast. The animation and the writing are unparalleled. If you haven’t been swept up into the orbit of the series in print or anime, here is your sign to start.
I’m going to be falling asleep envisioning my own ability to create sigils to make magic. Join me. I’m under the spell of Witch Hat Atelier.
This year, our library celebrated fifteen years of author visits with our twentieth author. It was a phenomenal day with Gail Jarrow. One that our students, staff, and I won’t soon forget from her fantastically gross images on screen to her deep knowledge of science and history. Couple it with thoughtful questions from the students, and books (free to them through a grant) to have her sign, each student had a personalized experience with her. Plus, it was captured by our dedicated communications staff person who popped up throughout the day to capture it all for which I’m grateful to have the memories that will last afterward but also from better angles and more creative shots with a fancy camera than I could ever get.
It’s been one week and I’m still thinking about it daily. This one but also the ones that came before it.
No one will say author visits are easy. In fact, every year I get frustrated at least once (an understatement) and tell my colleague that I’m never doing it again, but, like childbirth, here we are fifteen years later (though because I had twins, I only did childbirth once so I kind of cheated). Yet, what keeps me doing it year after year is the students. I have received messages years after students have graduated talking about memories of author visits. I look back at the folder of pictures from visits and see the smiling faces. I see the statistics of increased book check out. I hear the teachers talking.
Often the frustration lies with funding, policies, and procedures. Unnecessarily complicated. Not student-centered. Procedures made up by people far removed from the everyday grind of making it happen. But I won’t dwell on the negative. Simply to share that it’s all worth it.
Taking this St. Patrick’s Day opportunity to highlight a few recent reads that we can celebrate exist in this world. In a word, lucky, that they exist.
There isn’t a more popular author than Taylor Jenkins Reid who has turned out several hits. Atmosphere is no different. I just finished the audiobook and I have never been so enmeshed in a character’s journey than Joan’s journey to the stars. It reminds me of Frankie from The Women by Hannah. Completely pulled into their orbit in a pivotal time in history and one that women don’t get nearly the recognition that they should. Seriously, what a way to celebrate Women’s History Month too. Readers are lucky to have books like this one to highlight the strength of women.
Cassandra Calin created a follow up to The New Girl. First Crush will be out shortly and higlights what it means to grow up, have a crush, but also screw up, but still survive by learning lessons and having people around us to be a comfort and a sounding board. There’s so much to adore about the graphic novel series from the layout and design to the choices in honoring multiple languages of the characters and not shying away from topics like periods. Readers are lucky to have graphic novels like this one.
More books are being published for teens that focus on stories that are difficult to reckon with. In Takvorian’s graphic novel memoir exploring her Armenian-American heritage and asking the hard questions of her family who would rather leave the past in the past, Armaveni is a sentimental journey into history and the human toll of genocide on generations. Readers are lucky to have authors to explore the corners of their own experiences to benefit us all.
Winter break is nearing it’s end and I’ve coveted the time needed to do random household chores, update the last pieces of the spring semester for the college course I teach, complete odds and ends work on other projects, and READ.
I read daily. It’s a core element of my daily routine for personal and professional reasons, so it’s work even when it’s not work and it’s not work even when it is work. And Lena Dunham’s quote popped up in my head after thinking about the week that included quite a bit of reading
I couldn’t agree more. I will never get out from under my TBR pile and I spent a few days drinking from my “Death by TBR” mug gifted by my friend, Stacey. So if I could lobby the powers that be for an eighth day dedicated entirely to reading, I would. I am. Please, add an eighth day to the week so that I may read… while drinking tea.
What was I reading during break? What wasn’t I reading is the more apt question.
Picture books like Every Peach Is a Story by Masumoto, Masumoto, and Tamaki, The Octopus by Guojing that is a wordless picture book not yet released, and I’m So Happy You’re Here: A Celebration of Library Joy by Threets and Nam to name a few.
Middle grade graphic novels like Deepwater Creek by Regina and the adapted One Crazy Summer by Williams-Garcia and illustrated by Miller.
Young adult like Leave It On The Track by Fisher, Red Flags and Butterflies by Azzam, I Love Amy by Unni, and the forthcoming Corpse de Ballet graphic novel by Kearney.
Adult books like much-talked about The Correspondent by Evans and the dark manga called Confession by Kawaguchi.
