When Lightning Struck by Betsy R Rosenthal

James has lost his dad - he was killed by a lightning strike. His mum is in jail for bootlegging and she is also suffering from depression. James lives with his grandfather (Pappy) and until recently with his beloved grandmother (Abuela) but six months ago she died. Abuela was a town healer. Pappy runs the local diner and he makes delicious food for the people in the town. I loved the way James tucks into pie and hamburgers. 

There is a new kid who has moved to Odessa, Texas. He is from Ukraine and he has very little English. He is older than the kids in the class and so he is taller which is helpful for James because he is regularly tormented by a bully named Virgil and now Paul is his friend so her has someone on his side when the bullies attack. Paul's family seem very different to James. They speak a strange language (he later discovers this is Hebrew) and they observe unfamiliar customs which often include special rituals and very delicious food. They don't go to the local Christian church. 

Just before she died Abuela gave James an amulet which has a strange symbol on one side and foreign writing on the back. The Pappy shows James the family bible and it seems Abuela has a connection that goes back to 1492 when Jewish people were expelled from Spain. You can read about that in this picture book:

The Key from Spain

"Things were starting to get a little less muddy. Between the charm and the Bible with my name in it and the Hebrew writing, I felt like Abuela was sending me a message from the grave, trying to tell me that I was somebody different than I'd thought I was. And I go to wondering, too, if this news about my family's past could have something to do with me finding my purpose."

"I think your Texas Odessa is named after my Odessa because railroad workers here said this place reminded them of their home in Ukraine. ... Same name but better place for our family that Ukraine, Odessa ..."

Readers aged 10+ might gain a little more understanding about Jewish culture and the history of their persecution through this story. Paul talks about the terror his family experienced in Ukraine - a situation which has been repeated today with the Russian army. 

Our famous children's bookshop The Little Bookroom has reopened in a different location in Melbourne and I was there on their first day (not their official opening which was held two weeks later). The new owner filled several shelves with books from the previous store and marked them at 90% off the retail price and so that is how I came to find When Lightning Struck. This book was published in 2022. The ebook version is available. 

The setting for this book is Texas in 1928 but apart from references to prohibition, the Klu Klutx Klan and a few sporting heroes the parts of the story set in Texas didn't feel historical enough for me.

Here is list of other books by Betsy R Rosenthal (and there is a link to teachers notes from When Lightning Struck).

Bookseller blurb: It's 1928 in Odessa, Texas, and eleven-year-old James is struggling to find his purpose in life and to uncover a family secret. With his father struck dead by lightning and his mother in jail, he is taken in by his grandparents. Treated as a pariah at school, James is taunted as being cursed by his family's bad luck. But he finds a friend in Paul, a Russian immigrant, who is also treated as an outcast, and together, they battle the school bully. But James's life is turned upside-down yet again when he uncovers a family secret involving his beloved grandmother. His discovery leads him to find the sense of purpose he's been seeking.

Iris and the tiger by Leanne Hall

"The piano was the big, glossy concert sort with a propped-up lid. A young woman was bent so far over its keys she appeared to have no head. Sheets of music were spread out in front of her  - and there were black specks swarming all over the cream paper. Iris took two steps forward, her mouth agape. What, what, what? The music notes were moving! ... they weren't notes at all but ants almost as big as her hand."

Iris is sent to visit her elderly relative in Spain - the eccentric and reclusive Aunt Ursula sister of the famous surreal artist James Freer.   Iris does not really understand why her parents are so desperate for her to spy on her aunt.  There is a promise of inheritance but this feels distant and distasteful to Iris.  Aunt Ursula is a larger than life character.  Her home is filled with very strange art and as the days unfold strange things start to appear.  Boots that look like feet pull her around the forest.  She sees the piano mentioned above and the tennis court with huge sunflowers but the thing that fascinates her the most is a painting which has her name - Iris and the Tiger.  Iris was the wife and true love of James Freer but when Iris eventually sees the painting in an art gallery in Barcelona there is no tiger.  This is a mystery she is determined to solve.

Meanwhile developers keep appearing.  They have white vans and surveying equipment and seem determined to turn the estate into a theme park.  Iris and her new Spanish friend Jordi, who lives on the estate with his father, begin their exploration of the special and magic places inside and outside of Bosque de Nubes.  There is also the mystery of Aunt Ursula herself - she keeps disappearing and when Iris looks at a photo taken thirty years ago it also seems Aunt Ursula is not aging.

Here is a review with more plot details.  Here is an interview with Leanne Hall.  Here are some very detailed teaching notes.  Before beginning this book I recommend you listen to an interview with the author on Radio National.  During the interview Leanne also reads one of the scenes that fascinated me - a disused tennis court where enormous sunflowers are engaged in a game of tennis using their huge leaves as rackets.

I took a long time to read Iris and the Tiger.  I did find some of the characters confusing - I wanted to know their motives and sort out who was good and who was bad.  While the descriptions of the paintings are good I also just wanted to see them.  I don't have any real experience of surreal art and I am sure some of my students may find this confusing too.  The illustrator site has a few larger versions of the images on the cover. James Freer is not a real artist but I desperately wanted him to be real.  This book demands some perseverance but the final pages are rewarding.  You might also enjoy The Billionaire's Curse.  If you like the idea of mysterious things arising from art take a look at The Medici Curse.

You can see below Iris and the Tiger won our NSW Premier's literary prize and this is one of the reasons I wanted to share this book with you.  I don't think it will appeal to all young readers but I do know some avid readers will find this book quite different, exciting and engrossing.