Before the Ever After by Jacqueline Woodson

"The first time you forgot my name

feels like yesterday. Feels like an hour ago.

Feels like I blink and you forgetting

is right there in front of me."

We have a new adult television series (based on a book by Brendan Cowell) here in Australia called Plum and this program covers the same issue as Before the Ever After of brain injuries to football players. In the book by Jacqueline Woodson it is American Football and Plum is all about Rugby League but really the consequence of constant head injuries is the same - an acquired brain injury. 

ZJ is watching his football dad fall apart. Dad visits so many doctors but no one seems to know what is wrong and when they do offer a diagnosis none of their medicines work and worse some make his dad's behaviour even more erratic. 

"I feel like someone's holding us,
keeping us from getting back to where we were before
and keeping us from the next place too."

"There's not a name for the way

Daddy's brain works now.

The way he forgets little things like

the importance of wearing a coat outside

on a cold day. There's not a name

for the way I catch him crying

looking around the living room like

it's his first time seeing it."

This book is a MUST add to your library especially a High School library. Listen to Colby Sharp talking about this book. I know nothing about American football but that did not take away from my appreciation of this important story. Like me, Colby loved the friends in this book. I just wanted to thank and hug Ollie, Darry and Daniel. They are so supportive of ZJ and also beautiful in the way they relate to his dad.

You know – I think I thought I was writing Before The Ever After to talk about head injuries and loss. But in the end, it became a book about friendship and family and love. So I guess I wrote because that’s what I wanted to talk about here. ZJ has some really cool friends. It was so fun putting them on the page. Jacqueline Woodson

Before the Ever After is a verse novel and you know I love this form. The publisher site suggested age nine, but I think this book will better suit mature readers aged 10+. 

A poignant and achingly beautiful narrative shedding light on the price of a violent sport. Kirkus star review

Here is the publisher blurb: For as long as ZJ can remember, his dad has always been everyone's hero: a pro football superstar, a beloved member of the neighbourhood and a really, really great dad. But there's something not right about ZJ's dad these days. He's having trouble remembering things, seems to be angry all the time and is starting to forget ZJ's name. Bit by bit, ZJ has to face this new reality that his family can't keep holding on to his dad's glory days. As his dad begins to have more bad than good days, will they ever find happiness again?

In 2018 Jacqueline Woodson won the Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award, an international award for children’s and young adult literature, and in 2020 she won the Hans Christian Andersen Award (IBBY) an international award for lifetime achievement in children’s literature.

Picasso and the Greatest Show on Earth by Anna Fienberg

There is so much going on in the life of young Frances right now. She has moved to an outer suburb away from the busy city, to a home with a garden and lower rent. One special thing about this new place is the nearby bush.  But only a week after they arrive and begin unpacking that dad announces he has to travel overseas for his work as a journalist so now it is just Frances and her mum and the memory of her toddler brother Henry. Clearly something truly dreadful has happened to Henry but Frances is riddled with guilt and just does not want to revisit these terrible events.

Talking about this book I don't want to give too much away. You will work out some of the content from the labels I've assigned this post. Another way to introduce this book might be to look at the title. Moving to the new house means mum and dad decide to buy Frances a puppy. Picasso is her favourite artist and she has his painting Le Chien on her bedroom wall so the new pup is named Picasso. 

Visiting the beautiful Australian bush near her home Frances surveys the scene as the sun is setting and declares that moment - The Greatest Show on Earth. Here are some quotes from the text that will show you the highly evocative way Anna Fienberg describes the natural environment - trees, colours, light and shadow:

"The track turned into a spindly trail that zigzagged round rocks splotched with lichen. It was the palest olive green, thin as dried paint. ... On our right the creek trundled on, gathering into shallow pools, vanishing into mud. Trees towered above, filtering light that ended up as glitter on the water."

"After the rain the angophoras turned tangerine, their juicy pieces of bark smashed around their roots. I pressed my cheek against a massive trunk and the cold was startling."

Anna Fienberg has added some wonderful art insights into her book too - no doubt inspired by the late Kim Gamble. They met at the School Magazine where she was the editor. Kim Gamble illustrated The Magnificent Nose and Other Marvels by Anna Fienberg, which is a favourite book of mine, the Tashi series the Minton series and Joseph which was shortlisted for the 2002 CBCA Picture Book of the Year Award. 

All the art Kit and Frances create surely must link with the special relationship between Anna Fienberg and Kim Gamble. It is described with so much care:

"Crosshatching ... you create a hollow with shading by doing lots of parallel strokes one way, crossed with parallel strokes the other way."

"Kit let me share his chalk pastels and showed me how to make a twilight sky. I made notes of his instructions in my sketchbook ... At home I practised sky after sky. And I learned how to make a star sparkle.With white chalk you do the blue at the top, then take one dot and make it into a cross, smearing out the points into long white lines. When you stand back it sparkles."

I finished this book this morning having started it a couple of days ago and yes I did cry but that's okay because the happy, but not saccharine, ending restored me.  Anna Fienberg adds a wonderful layer of tension to the story. I just kept reading and reading even though I knew something dreadful was going to happen. This is a five star book. It is Australian in so many ways but it is also such a heartfelt human story.

Thinking about this story one word that came to my mind was consequences. Frances is obsessed with germs and diseases because she see this as a consequence of her action or inaction with her brother Henryre. Kit worries about consequences too. He cannot reveal anything about his house or mother because in the past the consequences were dreadful. Then there is the consequence of a tiny decision Frances makes when she makes a sketch of her friend. (When you are reading this book take your time over page 140-141). 

This story is also about personal growth. We watch the trust between Kit and Frances grow and both find a way to trust each other with their deepest secrets and sadness. Kit also has such emotional maturity and his gentle advice to Frances is uplifting

Someone asked about the themes in this book on a Facebook forum and whether it was too confronting for an eleven year old reader. I’d be happy to have this book in my primary school library but I’d be recommending it to mature Grade 6 readers. Yes it’s sad and yes grief and the death of a sibling and mental health are BIG topics but that’s okay. The writing is wonderful. You just feel as though you are right in the bush with all the sounds and smells and light and shade. This is a long book so really only kids with good reading stamina and the right level of maturity will persevere. I’m sure this book will go on to win many awards and be on short lists.

This book is like a warm, comforting hug when you need a friend, and I found myself wanting to read on to find out what had happened yet at the same time, it felt like one to savour and sit with so my reading pace could match France’s pace as she slowly revealed what had happened to her brother. The Book Muse

The different ways grief is expressed is a significant theme throughout this novel but there are other important ideas upon which to reflect such as family, bullying, courage, the healing provided by nature, dogs and art therapy and loneliness. Just So Stories

After reading Picasso and the Greatest Show on Earth you might like to revisit these classic Australian stories:

I do wish we could see the mural created by Kit and Frances but keen artists might like to look a little further into the art of Wang Wei.

It would be interesting to compare Picasso and the Greatest Show on Earth with a 2001 novel by Anna Fienberg - Witch in the Lake. I did read that one many years ago but sadly I cannot recall much of the plot. Other companion books:

The Losers Club by Andrew Clements

Alec and his younger brother have to spend time every day in an after school care program. In their school this is called Extended Day. His brother Luke goes to a different part of the program. Oh and I should mention at this point that mum and dad work in technology and they are both huge fans of Star Wars so we have Luke named after Luke Skywalker and Alec named after Alec Guinness who plays Obi-Wan Kenobi in the movie. Star Wars fans will love all the references to these cult films in the story.

Back to Alec. His passion is reading. He reads all the time. He reads at home, on weekend and in class. It is this last bit that has caused a huge problem. He has been sent to the school principal yet again - for reading in class. The Principal says Alec will have to attend a summer school and miss is family holiday if he cannot stop this habit. So that's the first challenge. Then he begins attending Extended Day and this seems like the perfect place to sit and read for a few hours but alas NO - the organiser Mrs Case gets on his case! Alec has to join an activity. Sport, Chess, Origami or the Homework club. Luckily Alex is a problem solver. He decides to begin his own club - and YES he names it The Losers Club. He tells Mrs Case it is a Book Club but in reality Alex just has a plan to read and read all afternoon every day. All he needs is one more club member and every one will be happy. 

Challenge number two. Alec's parents are sent a letter from the Principal about Summer School. There is no way they want to cancel their summer holiday plans so they tell Alec he can only keep attending his book club if he scores over 8 out of 10 for every subject from every teacher at the end of every week. Meanwhile, the Principal has organised for every teacher to allocate Alec a seat right in the front row and so now he has no choice. He has to pay attention and by doing that his grades improve and for a while the world is in a good balance because he can work through the day, achieve the scores demanded by his parents and then spend a few happy hours reading after school. 

One girl, Nina, joins his group and she is very happy to sit and read too, but things get complicated when the school bully, a boy named Kent, decides he likes Nina. He is a cool dude and a sport jock who is also a bully. At first Alec is sure Nina likes Kent but in reality she is far wiser than he could ever have guessed. And what about the other kids who want to join The Losers Club? Will Alec lose his peace and quiet? Oh and Mrs Case is pestering him about the end of term club presentation and Alec has NO idea what he will share with the audience of 500 parents and children. (The final scene will make all teachers and Teacher-Librarians SMILE).

Clements's latest is engaging and funny. Book lovers and reluctant readers alike will enjoy the relatable characters, realistic dialogue, and humorous scenes. School Library Journal

This will keep readers turning the pages, and along the way they will encounter a list of books that the characters like that they might be interested in picking up after they have finished The Loser's Club. Ms Yingling

Awards for The Losers Club:

• Winner of the Rhode Island Children's Book Award (2019)
• Winner of the International Reading Association and Children's Book Council: Children's Choices List (2018)
• Winner of the Garden State Children's Book Award (2020)
• 2021 Grand Canyon Reader Award Nominee
• A Kansas William White Master List Selection (2018 & 2019)
• An Arkansas Charlie May Simon Children's Book Award Nominee (2019)
• A California Young Reader Medal Nominee (2019)
• A Nebraska Golden Sower Award Nominee (2019)
• A Virginia Young Readers Program Award Nominee (2019)
• A Minnesota Maud Heart Lovelace Award Nominee (2019) 
• A Missouri Mark Twain Award Nominee (2019)
• An Oregon Reader’s Choice Award Nominee (2019)

The Losers Club was first published in 2017 but my copy is a 2021 paperback. Very strangely one of our big chain bookstores here in Sydney, Australia, has been culling their book stock. The price sticker shows me this book arrived in the store in May 2022 so I wonder why it only lasted twelve or thirteen months on their shelves? I am not a fan of the cover but I do think it would appeal to the intended audience as will catchy the title. The culling by the shop means that a AUS$17 book cost me AUS$5. So I am a winner.

My only two quibbles with The Losers Club were, firstly the way Alec and other members of the club spend a lot of time re-reading books they have already read. Do kids really do this? Alec has read Charlotte's web and Hatchet so many times - I found this a little hard to believe. Secondly, it is fabulous to see the book lists in the back of the book but I had a few issues with the Young Adult and even adult titles suggested. Putting that aside though, there are some wonderful books mentioned by Alec and other readers in his group such as Because of Winn Dixie; Bud not Buddy; Julie of the Wolves; Hatchet (it is easy to see why Colby Sharp loved this book Hatchet is his all time favourite book); A Long walk to Water; Sarah Plain and Tall; Shiloh; and Tuck Everlasting.

I am a HUGE Andrew Clements fan. Sadly he died in 2019.  I've read all of these. My favourites are Frindle, Extra Credit and The Landry News:

Frindle (1996)

The Landry News (1999)

The Janitor's Boy (2000)

The Jacket (2001)

The School Story (2001)

Week in the Woods (2002)

The Report Card (2004)

The Last Holiday Concert (2004)

Lunch Money (2005)

No Talking (2007)

Lost and Found (2008)

Extra Credit (2009)

Troublemaker (2011)

The Losers Club (2017)

The Friendship War (2019)

The Jammer by Nova Weetman

Publisher blurb: Fred has moved around her whole life, one small town after another, and never minded starting over. She’s always had her mum, her dad, and her love of roller derby. On the track she’s Fred or Dead, the star jammer, a gun at smashing through a line of bodies and scoring for her team. But Fred’s life has fallen apart, and now she can’t imagine ever putting her skates on again. On a road trip to Melbourne with her dad, Fred meets a bunch of people who think they know what’s best for her. And although Fred tries to avoid it, roller derby has a way of barging back into her life. A true jammer could push through anything, but Fred doesn’t know who she is anymore. What do you do when the thing that could save you is the thing that hurts the most? This moving story of broken bones and healing hearts is a must-read for Nova Weetman’s fans and will find her many new ones.

I found this blurb a little bit strange - most the story takes place in Melbourne and that is where Fred meets people who want to help her - not "on the road".  Also in the story Fred catches a tram with her new friend Sammy. The book says they pull the cord on the tram but if this book is set in 2022 (which I think it is) I'm confused. I thought I used a button on a Melbourne tram on my recent visit to the city, but Nova Weetman is from Melbourne so perhaps I am wrong. 

This is sweet story of self discovery. Fred is a memorable character. I have read stories exactly like this in the past with a grieving father and angry confused child so there is nothing especially original here but readers aged 10+ will enjoy this book. As an adult reader I was not especially interested in the roller derby scenes but readers who play sport - especially roller derby - are sure to really enjoy these references and games. 

Here is Nova Weetman's web site. And here are a set of teachers notes for The Jammer. Read more of the plot here in the Reading Time review. And here is an extensive author interview by Joy Lawn on her blog Paperbark Words.

There are plenty of words that seem appropriate to describe this story; heart-breaking, heart-warming and poignant being amongst them. But the two words that sprang to mind for me were real and raw. Weetman has spoken about hers and her children’s grief after the death of her partner, and how that grief fed into this book. This story gives a palpable sense of that period in Weetman’s life. However, at no stage does the story feel morbid or hopeless. Story Links

I have previously talked about these books by Nova Weetman.

Sick Bay

The Secrets we Keep

August and Jones by Pip Harry

Jones Kirby and her mum and dad have had to sell their family farm and move to the city because after years of dreadful drought they can no longer afford to live in the town of Cotton. Their new flat is small and right beside a railway line. For readers who live in Sydney you might know the suburb of Wollstonecraft. In the alternate chapters we read about August. He lives with his footy mad dad, older brother Archer who has the potential to be a football (Australian Rules Football) star, mum and his sister Lexi. I just need to make a comment about Lexi - I love her!  She is a beautiful older sister. There is a scene near the beginning of this book where August tells Lexi he has been chosen to show Jones around the school. Here is part of his conversation with Lexi that made me cheer!

"Want me to tell you the school tour I'm going to do for Jones, in order of importance?"

Her reply: "Absolutely."

So Jones has to go to a new city school leaving her two best friends back in her old class. When Jones was a baby she lost her eye to retinoblastoma. She now only has vision in one eye but she knows how to navigate her way around, she is keen on climbing and running and she is very used to answering curious questions about her prosthetic eye. 

August has his own issues at home. His dad is crazy for football but August is not a skilled player and he really does not want to practice or play this game every weekend. He prefers reading, telling jokes and learning new facts. He is also learning, thanks to Lexi, how to knit. His mum and dad keep fighting and it is clear that very soon they will separate. 

August and Jones become the very best of friends and Jones suggests they should write a bucket list. At the top of their list they put - see a sloth - but it turns out there are no sloths in Australian zoos so they have to settle for a Francois Langur monkey at our Taronga Zoo here in Sydney and best of all this monkey has a new baby named Meimei. Also on their list is running a 10km race across Sydney and climbing Mount Kosciuszko.

It is SO lucky that the class teacher asked August to show Jones around the school on her first day!

Here is the publisher blurb: Eleven-year-old Jones Kirby has just moved to Sydney from her farm in country New South Wales. She's missing her alpacas and wide-open paddocks and can't get used to her family's tiny city apartment. She's also worried that her vision is blurry - she lost her eye to cancer as a toddler. Could it be another tumour? Enrolling at her new school, Jones meets shy, awkward August Genting. He loves fun facts, the library and knitting as much as Jones loves rock climbing and being outdoors. Who would have thought they'd become fast friends? At home, August's parents are fighting. And for Jones, the news from the doctor is not good. To cheer themselves up, the pair hatch a brilliant plan: the August and Jones Must-See Bucket List. Together, this brave duo will set out to meet a rare monkey, run across the Harbour Bridge and even climb Australia's highest mountain.

Here are some review comments for August and Jones:

Kindness and love are celebrated in this story of an unusual and moving friendship. Reading Time

This was a wonderfully heart-warming story about friendship, and what it means to find that one person who will stick by you and do all they can to support you and be there for you. That you can share everything with and be yourself with. The Book Muse

In this interview with Paperbark words Pip Harry talks about writing her book during the pandemic. 

Here are the judges comments for August and Jones:

August and Jones explores complex and challenging concepts such as parental expectations, drought, unemployment, changing homes and schools, anxiety, depression and childhood cancer. The characterisation is strong, with adults and children presented in an authentic and believable way. Contrasts in family life are highlighted with Jones's supportive family juxtaposed with August's angry father, depressed mother and sibling ties. The book is written expertly and sensitively, balanced with humour, showing how friendship, love, personal strength and belief in oneself and others can help overcome difficulties, change and loss. Jones’ cancer is never used for sympathy, and she remains positive despite the hardships she faces.

As I read this book I had so many personal connections with the story. At my former school we had a student with retinoblastoma. He had lost both his eyes but nothing could stop this wonderful boy. I feel so privileged to have met him. I recognised all of the places in the story, even the cafes because I have been to many of them here in Sydney. I'm terrified of heights so I really sympathised with August when he is too frightened to ride the chair lift at the ski field. Pip Harry read a story in our Sydney Morning Herald (October 19, 2019) about two kids just like August and Jones. You need a subscription to read the article but I found this report from the ABC about Mathilde and Jarrah.

I have been reading my way through the 2023 CBCA (Children's Book Council of Australia) Younger Readers shortlisted titles. When the list was announced I had already read three of the six and today I completed my final title - August and Jones by Pip Harry.

Runt by Craig Silvey

Evie and Rhino by Neridah McMullin

The Raven's Song by Zana Fraillon and Bren MacDibble

Xavier in the Meantime by Kate Gordon

The Way of Dog by Zana Fraillon

The early scenes in August and Jones when Jones and her family pack up their farm reminded me of this wonderful (but sadly now out of print) verse novel:

Jones has cancer. You might like to also read these books:

Exit through the Gift Shop

The Honest Truth

Sick Bay

Lenny's Book of Everything

Here are two other books by Pip Harry:

Are you there, Buddah?

The Little Wave

Sunshine on Vinegar Street by Karen Comer

Sport fans, especially fans of basketball and netball are sure to enjoy this new Australian verse novel due for publication in June 2023. This is the second book I have read by Karen Comer and I was happy to discover this one relied a little less on familiarity with Melbourne.

There are a few reasons I enjoy verse novels. They are quick to read of course but more than that they usually contain quite emotional stories. Sunshine on Vinegar Street didn't quite touch my heart but I did relate to Freya's fear of riding in lifts. At her age of twelve, I had a fear of riding on escalators. 

Back to the setting of this book. Freya has moved with her mother to the eleventh floor of a city apartment building. She has to navigate a lot of stairs each day and worse, she now has to navigate relationships in a new school. Especially relationships with awful girls who plan to be selected for the A Grade basketball team. Freya loves basketball and she is a skilled player but Val is determined to see her fail. Freya also has to cope with desperately missing her dad who is working in Broome. 

Across the road from their new apartment there is a Melbourne landmark - The Skipping Girl Sign or Skipping Girl Vinegar Sign, colloquially known as Little Audrey - an historic animated neon sign in the inner suburb of Abbotsford, Melbourne. You can read more about Little Audrey here. Turn off the sound and watch this video of the neon sign in action. 

Publisher blurb: Freya's world is turned upside down when she and her mum move to inner-city Melbourne. Now she's ... Stuck in a new apartment on the eleventh floor and Freya is afraid of lifts. Stuck in a new basketball team where not everyone likes a killer new player.  Stuck in a classroom of kids who don't know Freya is a donor-conceived baby. Stuck, just like little Audrey in the Skipping Girl sign suspended in mid-air over the suburb of Abbotsford. Being the new girl makes Freya feel like a dark cloud on a summer's day. Can she figure out how to belong on Vinegar Street?

Here is Karen Comer's previous book which was also a verse novel but aimed at an older reader:

Worse Things by Sally Murphy illustrated by Sarah Davis

Using alternating voices Blake, Jolene and Ahmed share with readers the ups and downs of their daily lives. Blake is a sports star but he now finds himeself on the bench because of a broken arm. Blake feels alone for the first time in his life. He no longer 'fits in'. Jolene is being pressured by her mother to become a hockey star but Jolene does not like hockey. All she wants is for her father, who is a doctor working far away, to come home and spend time with the family. She also wishes her mother would listen and not expect Jolene to fulfill her mother's failed childhood dream. Amed is new. He is a refugee kid with very limited English. Amed would like a friend and he would like to play sport but for him this sport is played with a different ball. For now he quietly observes Blake, who is forced to watch the footy from the sidelines, and Jolene who excels at hockey but who does not seem happy.

Between each voice Sally Murphy supplies some definitions. Here is an example:

ALONE
[uh*lone] (adj.)
Single
sole
solitary
separate
sad.
Set apart
unattached
unaided
unassisted
Un-together.

If I was still working in a school library I would ask my students what they think about this cover. For myself I have walked past this book several times because the cover did not appeal to me. This is a pity because inside this cover is a splendid verse novel. I am not the demographic for this book, however, and that is why I would like to know what readers aged 10+ think about the cover and whether it entices them to pick up Worse Things. (Yes you should pick up Worse Things - it is terrific)

"… this verse novel is stunning in every way.  It is an experience not to be missed. Children’s Book Review"

In this blog post Sally Murphy talks about the cover design, and she reads extracts from her book. 

Here is an interview by Joy Lawn for Paperbark Words. And here is a very detailed set of teaching notes from the publisher Walker Books. These notes also include an extensive list of other terrific verse novels. Click the link on my sidebar for other books in this form.

Here are some other verse novels by Sally Murphy:

Pearl verses the world

Toppling

The Dollar Kids by Jennifer Richard Jacobson

Lowen draws cartoons. With a lot of practice he has become very skilled. He and his family live in a city apartment building. Across the hall lives a younger boy called Abe.  Abe likes to visit Lowen and watch him draw. Abe always has lots of questions and comments and suggestions but often Lowen just wants to get on with his work - alone! Lowen knows Abe loves twizzlers. Lowen gives Abe some money and tells him to go to the store and buy some. Abe is gone for a long time then Lowen's mum arrives with the utterly shocking news that Abe has been shot and killed.

Lowen is wracked with grief. He sees an advertisement for one dollar houses in a little town called Millville. The town are selling five rundown houses for one dollar each as a way to boost their falling school enrollments and as a way to add players to the various sport teams in the town.

"It seemed like a way out. If they moved, he wouldn't have to walk past the Siskins' door every day. He would no longer be tricked into thinking that Abe was going to pop out at any minute. He would no longer have to hear Mrs Siskin crying."

Dad is keen to move because he is training to be a doctor and wants to help people in less affluent areas. Mum is keen to move because she has a dream of opening a restaurant to sell Cornish pasties. Clem is open to the idea of moving because he loves sports and he thinks in this small town he can rise to be a star. Anneth, Lowen's sister, does not want to move. She will miss her friends and shops and social life.

The family make the move knowing there are conditions. After all how can a house only cost one dollar? How will the community receive them? Will Lowen ever recover? Can he take a risk and make new friends?

The house:

"The kitchen cabinets had doors, but they were ill-fitting, crooked. Two of the cupboard doors had come off ... the floor was a patchwork of bare wood and linoleum. ... They passed through the dining room, which had water spots on the ceiling and floor ... the bathroom had black grunge growing on the walls, and several of the shower tiles had fallen off."

The town:

"What was the word Lowen was looking for? Downtroddenness. Former stores and businesses were boarded up. And even those still in business ... were all in desperate need of paint. The spotty patches of grass in front of the stores needed mowing; the garbage needed picking up."

The mill:

"This spot afforded them the best view of the mill, or what used to be a mill. Here again, what had looked so proud and shiny on the website now looked decrepit. It was an enormous tangle of boxy structures, pipes, and vaporless smokestacks - a breathless giant."

Early one evening this week I picked up The Dollar Kids intending to read a chapter or two. I ended up reading late into the night and then I finished the whole book (400 pages) by mid morning.  This book engulfed me.

Here is an example of the graphic novel  pages by Ryan Andrews which appear in this book. I hesitate to call it a graphic novel because less than 20 pages use this format.

Jacobson insightfully examines the dynamics of small-town life and strategies for revitalization as well as the landscape of Lowen’s complex grief and survivor’s guilt. The story incorporates Lowen’s graphic-novel panels contemplating his feelings about his deceased friend, Abe,whom he calls “the unseen force,” …  A rich, thoughtful exploration of individual and community resilience. Kirkus

Jacobson manages to tell an excellently nuanced story of all sorts of after-lives—after death, after failure, after loss, afterwards.Bulletin of the Centre for Children’s Books

This was a great look at a different type of life that will be new and informative for many readers. The Grovers are struggling financially, although they were doing okay in the city. The family bonding because of the move was interesting, and the reality of setting up a restaurant was fun to read. The reaction of the townspeople was also intriguing, and the story moved at a decent pace. … the story of small town life is such a fantastic one that I can't wait to hand it to my readers. Ms Yingling

If I haven't convinced you to READ THIS BOOK! then take a look at this personal insight by Jennifer on the Nerdy Book Club page.

Listen to an audio sample here.  I loved a previous book by Jennifer Richard Jacobson - Paper Things.

I would follow The Dollar Kids with Each Little bird that Sings.

The Wednesday Wars by Gary Schmidt

This book is "just swell"

Holling Hoodhood has Mrs Baker as his English teacher. He is sure she hates him - that's HATES with all capital letters. This situation is made worse by the fact that Holling has to spend every Wednesday afternoon with Mrs Baker and more importantly Mrs Baker has to spend every Wednesday afternoon with Holling - she calls him Mr Hoodhood - and this is all because he happens to be Presbyterian.

On Wednesdays half the class go to Temple Beth-El for Hebrew school and the other half to Saint Adelbert's for Catechism.  Holling gets to stay at school with Mrs Baker. Yes every Wednesday for the whole year.

After a few weeks of cleaning the classroom and the blackboard dusters (it is 1968) and a small disaster with the class rats -  Mrs Baker decides Holling will read Shakespeare plays and answer quiz questions (there are 150 of them each time). What Mrs Baker perhaps does not expect is that Holling loves this. He is an intelligent boy and he is well read. We know has has read Treasure Island four times, Kidnapped twice and The Call of the Wild. Reading the plays adds a whole new dimension of enjoyment for Holling. He particularly enjoys the language of Shakespeare especially the insults. He even scores a part in the local amateur production wearing yellow tights and feathers.

There is a lot going on the Holling. His dad is just awful. He is an ambitious man who wants to win every architect contract in the town. He has no time for his son. His mother just seems ineffectual and, can I say, simpering.  Then we have the cast of school bullies especially Doug Swieteck and his brother.

Characters
Mr Guareschi Principal
"Mr Guareschi's long ambition had been to become dictator of a small country. Danny Hupfer said that he had been waiting for the CIA to get rid of Fidel Castro and then send him down to Cuba, which Mr Guareschi would then rename Guareschiland."

Mrs Baker Teacher
She seems to only focus on the lessons but underneath a lot is going on for her especially in relation to her son who has been deployed to Vietnam.

Meryl Lee Kowalski Student
Her dad runs the other architect firm in town. Her relationship and friendship with Holling slowly develops - it is a beautiful thing to watch.

Mai Thi Student originally from Vietnam

Danny Hupfer Student
I wish he was my friend. The scene when he insults the famous baseball player after this guy insults Holling is just splendid.

Rats Sycorax and Caliban (from The Tempest)
The parts in this story about the rats are not for the faint hearted - you have been warned.

Coach Quatrini
Favourite expression "At tempo".

Mrs Bigio School Cook
When you read the final scenes in this book you will understand why, for me, Mrs Bigio is a true hero. And it is the actions of Mrs Bigio when she makes nuoc mau for the class and for Mai Thi that made me cry.

Heather Holling's sister
Her voice in this story is so important as a way to understand the complex politics of this time.

Laughs
The names of the school textbooks - English for you and me; Mathematics for you and me; Geography for you and me.
The English concepts taught by Mrs Baker - diagramming sentences such as "He kicked the round ball into the goal." "The girl walked home." 

And this one for Holling - "For it so falls out, that we have we prize not to the worth whiles we enjoy it; but being lacked and lost, why, then we rack the value, then we find the virtue that passion would not show us while it was ours."

"No native speaker of the English language could diagram this sentence.  The guy who wrote it couldn't diagram this sentence. ... 'If you had been listening to my instructions, you should have been able to do this,' said Mrs Baker, which is sort of like saying that if you've ever flicked on a light switch, you should be able to build an atomic reactor."

Atomic Bomb Awareness Month
"We stayed under our desks for eighteen minutes, until the wind would have whisked away the first waves of airborne radioactive particles, and the blast of burning air would have passed overhead ... and every living thing would have been incinerated except for us because we were scrunched under our gummy desks with our hands over our heads, breathing quietly and evenly."

This book has it all!  I laughed, I nearly cried, I marveled at the references to Shakespeare and US History, I cheered when things went the right way for Holling and I cringed (big time) when things went horribly wrong for Holling. If I knew him in person I'm sure I would reach out and give him a big hug of reassurance. Boy oh boy life has thrown some hideous curve balls at this kid.  Read this part again and then marvel at the fact that I am an adult, woman, in Australia, with absolutely no knowledge of baseball. I am not a American adolescent and yet  I loved this book so so so much! I'm visiting some adult readers this week and I would love them to read this book so I think The Wednesday Wars will appeal to readers 12+ and to all adults.

At its heart this is a book about relationships. Every relationship is special in this story but the best one in my view is the one between Holling and Mrs Baker.

The Wednesday Wars was a Newbery Honor book in 2008. It is considered an American classic so it is in print. I read my copy as an ebook. Please take a few minutes now to read this review by Betsy Bird - her words are far more eloquent than mine.

Holling navigates the multitudinous snares set for seventh-graders—parental expectations, sisters, bullies, girls—with wry wit and the knowledge that the world will always be a step or two ahead of him. Schmidt has a way of getting to the emotional heart of every scene without overstatement, allowing the reader and Holling to understand the great truths swirling around them on their own terms. Kirkus Star Review

The fox and the ghost King by Michael Morpurgo illustrated by Michael Foreman

I found this book The fox and the ghost King in our last brochure from Scholastic Book Club.  I wonder why they didn't make a bigger feature of it - this is quite an engrossing story and one that will appeal to young soccer fans.  It is a short book with wonderful illustrations by Michael Foreman and it would make a good family read-aloud.

Take a look at this football team logo - Leicester City F.C.  It has a fox in the centre and the nickname for this team is The Foxes.  They were founded in 1884 and by 2008 the were at their lowest ever position. "Then ... in August 2012, King Richard III was found under a Leicester car park, and a right royal turnaround in the Foxes' fortunes began..."

That in essence is the story of The fox and the ghost King.  Narrated by a little fox cub we read that this pair make night visits to watch their beloved team.  Once again Leicester have been defeated but on the way home everything changes.  Our narrator and his dad hear the buried king.  He asks them to dig around his body so the archaeologists working on the site will finally discover his burial ground. Naturally foxes are very good at digging. The rest, as they say, is history!  There is even a touch of Shakespeare woven into the story.

"By his play of Richard III, that vile villain made a  villain of me, a traitor, a murderer... that dastardly dramatist, that William Shakespeare."

Here is a six minute video of Michael Morpurgo reading his book.  At the back of the book you can read about Leicester City FC, King Richard III and "newspaper" article about the change in fortune for this popular team.  You can read a review here.

I was quite excited to discover the London Underground have a series of posters promoting books and one featured The fox and the ghost King."

On Track by Kathryn Apel

I have been looking forward to reading On Track.  We purchased this book last year for our library but it some how disappeared.  Last week it 'turned up' hidden under a shelf.

Why have I been looking forward to this book?
1.  It is a verse novel and I adore verse novels
2.  It is about sport and I am always looking for books which might appeal to my senior boys
3.  I read one glowing review and one less complimentary review and so I was curious - how could one book elicit such divergent views?

I read this book over two sessions.  I read the first 80 pages waiting for a take away order of fish and chips and the remaining 215 pages today.  I know this is an odd thing to say but if you read this book please stay with it until page 175 because that is when the action really kicks in.

Now don't panic.  You will reach page 175 before you realise because this is a verse novel and so each page can be read very quickly.

Shaun and Toby are brothers but they don't really know each other at all.  Each brother is wrapped up in his own worries and feelings of inadequacy.  Toby is doing well academically - A grades for everything and yet he feels like a failure in his parents eyes.  Shaun is not doing well at anything. School is hard, physical activities are hard and he knows he can never be as 'good' as his brother.

In these two extracts you can hear the voice of Toby.

Shaun 
is only
11 months.
9 days, 
4 hours and
22 minutes
older than me,
but that is enough
to make him
oldest.

Toby : Not good enough
Sometimes it feels
like my body doesn't belong 
to me, like I tell it to do stuff
and it doesn't.  My feet stumble along
and trip over each other, my hands fumble
and drop, and it's almost like I'm wrapped in
invisible bubble wrap ...

This verse novel did have some emotional highs and lows as you would expect from this genre but not quite enough to satisfy me.  I also had some difficulty distinguishing the two boys 'voices' at first. Perhaps I was not concentrating.  This did pass after a while and I found there was a rhythm to the writing.  I think my early problem might relate to the way the voices do not always alternate. Later in the book I enjoyed this structure.  I am looking forward to putting this book into the hands of several of our Grade 6 boys - we read some verse novels last year and many of them enjoyed these books both for the way you can read them quite quickly and for their powerful storytelling.

You might like to think about the title with your students.  The boys compete in an athletics carnival on the track.  Toby has some major hurdles to over come and so he must stay 'on track' with his training.  Shaun wants to win the discus competition and so he works hard to also stay 'on track'.

After reading On Track I recommend look for Motormouth and Tom Jones saves the world by Steven Herrick.

Here are a set of very detailed teaching notes.

Perhaps you would enjoy reading a range of reviews of On Track book:

Kids Book Review
Aussie Reviews
Children's Books Daily
Reading Time

The boy with lightning feet by Sally Gardner

All the books in this Magical Children series have such appealing covers although I will say the colour here is not quite as bright as my copy.  The boy with lightning feet is such a happy book (although there are some awful bullies) and a story that will be enjoyed by all sport fans especially children who play football (soccer).

"In that moment something in Timmy clicked, like a light being turned on in a dark room.  He stood up and it seemed everyone on the pitch had disappeared. He rubbed his eyes.  There next to him was the lad he had met my the canal.  'Timmy Twinkle, I've told you already.  You've got lightning in your feet. Use it."

Just like the Billy in The boy with magic numbers, Timmy has lost one parent - in this case his mum. He has been raised by his grandparents but as the story opens we read that his precious grandmother has recently died.  Gramps had been a baker and after the death of wife Timmy is the only customer and so over the weeks and months Timmy has been packing on weight eating cakes and scones and not much else.  In an old photo album Timmy sees a photo of his Great Uncle Vernon known as Twinkletoes and from that moment we know Timmy's life is set to change.

The Boy with Lightning feet is a terrific book for readers who enjoy a satisfying story that is quick to read with lively characters and a very happy ending.  You might also enjoy Extra Time by Morris Gleitzman which is also about soccer and the determination of one boy and his very special younger sister to play and enjoy the game.  I was interested to read Morris Gleitzman actually met families in the UK of young boys who had been selected as football rising stars.