A Fine White Dust by Cynthia Rylant

Cynthia Rylant reveals the depths of the protagonist's soul in this book more than other books I have read by this author. I was drawn to read this book to see how a seventh grader may perceive the rich experience of making a commitment to become a Christian. Rylant portrays Pete as a vulnerable sponge ready and willing to soak up everything the Preacher Man has to say to him. Pete highly respects this Preacher who is in town for a series of evangelistic meetings. After being saved by the things preached by the Preacher Man Pete experiences new feelings and a new and different outlook on life. He comes to realize a chasm of differences with his best friend, Rufus who is an atheist. As the book progresses the reader begins to think that Pete will give up everything and follow the Preacher Man in his travels, but the story ends with Pete being "stood up" by the Preacher Man in favor of a young girl who the Preacher Man prefers to take with him. Pete felt let down and discouraged, but Rylant has a way of making the reader hold out hope that Pete is still a changed young man in spite of the deception of the Preacher Man. Rufus remains steadfast and loyal to Pete throughout the book, and he even stays up all night waiting for Pete to return from his wait to escape town with the Preacher Man. At the end of the book Pete questions Rufus about his belief in God, and his response to Pete gives the reader hope that perhaps Pete's influence on Rufus may eventually bring about a good turn for Rufus. This realistic fiction work is a deep perceptive view into the life of a seventh grader at the age where he is questioning his own purpose and station in life.

The Watsons Go to Birmingham by Christopher Curtis

This historical fiction book set in the 1960s takes the reader from a hilarious narrative of nonstop mischief with Byron, Kenny's older brother to their close call with tragedy in the horror of the church bombing in Alabama. Kenny, the bookworm narrates the story throughout the book. His older brother Byron gets in so much trouble his parents resort to sending him off to spend a summer with Grandma in Alabama. At first the reader laughs at the one-of-a-kind pranks that keep Byron ticking and his little brother packing away the memories. Byron inceasantly teases his younger brother, but Kenny copes and watches his brother challenge the rules of society. Byron makes burning toilet paper parachutes in the bathroom . Kenny and his little sister Joetta cringe as their mother gets ready to burn Byron's finger to teach him a lesson. Byron deals with the bully who painted his brother's lost gloves with black shoe polish. He appears in front of his mother with an Afro resulting in a shaved head as punishment. Kenny portrays Byron as a fool, and between the lines the reader can almost witness him gloating as Kenny's parents finally resort to planning to drive Byron to Alabama to endure some Grandma remedy. The book takes a sudden turn in mood when the family arrives in Alabama. Kenny ventures into a forbidden water hole and almost drowns after he has a vision that will later push him to become a hero for his little sister. Byron's character changes as he becomes a helpful older brother to Kenny. The climax occurs when the family is startled with a huge blast that turns out to be the bombing of a church where Joetta was attending church school. When Kenny fears Joetta missing and finds a black shoe like the one she left the house in we see a new heroic side of Kenny appear. He shows a big brotherly side at the end of the book when he invites Joetta into his room with a new compassionate side to him. The family pulls together in the wake of the tragedy, and they vicariously suffer with the families who lost loved ones in the bombing.

The House of Dies Drear by Virginia Hamilton

This captivating mystery about a significant historical time of the Underground Railroad was a book that was very hard to put down: Truly an all-nighter, because so many deep issues were intertwined with the plot. Set in the 1960's this book centers around a young black protagonist named Thomas Smalls. Thomas Smalls and his family moved to Ohio to rent an old house dating back to the time of the Underground Railroad. Thomas never felt accepted in the new town, and even the folks at church did not seem to welcome the Smalls. At the beginning of the book the reader wonders if someone was breaking into the house to rearrange furniture for some strange reason. Being a curious young boy Thomas must investigate. Finding strange tin triangles stuck in the door jams who would think that these must be part of a puzzle for Thomas to try to solve? Strange things are happening to the Smalls throughout the book. The strange Darrows family seem to try to scare the Smalls out of the house. The reader wonders if the Darrows are in cahoots with Pluto, the eccentric caretaker of the old house. The high point of the book seemed to be the practical joke played on the Darrows to scare them off, yet later in the book after Thomas had discovered a secret tunnel and passageway under the house the reader discovers two Plutos. A rich and valuable treasure awaits Thomas beneath the house that connect him to his past and to learn gems of knowledge about the Underground Railroad. This book is a must-read, and the true twists and turns of the novel must be saved for those who have not yet picked up this book.

Missing May by Cynthia Rylant

This book was a puzzling yet celebratory experience for me. The first half of it just did not reach me, because it forced me to face again my father's death about a year ago. I just did not want to read on at that point. But Cynthia Rylant is true to her down-to-earth way of touching readers in that part of the soul that says, "Yeah, I've experience that, too." The last half of the book came around to giving me a huge hug to affirm that my circle of grief had been completed much in the same way as Summer's had. There was a tremendous healing effect of that good long cry and allowing a living loved one to feel needed and to be healed by feeling needed. A couple of full circles of grief interlocking and becoming strengthened by them.
I could only wonder if May and Ob were the aunt and uncle that Rylant grew up with after losing her mother and father. Summer was always cautiously looking on and worrying about Ob, yet she always shared thoughts that let me believe she was ready to be the caretaker of him and their trailer home. Cletus was the nonconformist who turned out to be the character who enabled Summer and Ob to process through losing May. He was have been a comfort to Ob as an optomistic conversationalist who knew how to draw out a person's thoughts in conversation. Though Summer found Cletus annoying in his propensity for being overly observant and collecting things he must have earned her respect by the end of the novel. Perhaps when she became acquainted with Cletus's parents she was able to see him in a different light. The climax was clearly when Ob decided to turn the car around to follow through with the original plan to visit the capitol building. That must have been the point when Ob realized that his sole purpose in life was to be needed by Cletus and Summer. At the end of the book Summer must have finally realized how much Ob had wanted to "fill May's shoes" in caring for Summer. The italicized narrative of May speaking to Summer's conscience was touching and seemed to mirror the feelings Ob must have conveyed to Summer through his embrace to comfort her and to wipe away her tears. I wonder if the book were to continue if Cletus would eventually become an adopted member of Ob's home.

The Van Gogh Cafe by Cynthia Rylant

This tiny book is a powerhouse of little miracles that really seem to convince the reader to recognize the little things in this simple little cafe and its effect on the community. It was strange to me to see the whole book written in present tense. It almost felt like it was narrated by a newspaper reporter. Nonetheless the effect was fitting for the type of book it was. It was like looking at a living museum. Clara must have been a quiet, observant little girl for the things she noticed. The poem on the napkin was the most captivating miracle in the way that Marc's poems came true in someone else's life. I laughed at the image of all the pigeons sitting on the roof and then jumping onto the truck bound for California. This book was light reading, and it swept me off to a place I decided I wanted to imagine and see. Our family used to frequent a little restaurant during our summers in Indiana. All the waitresses knew us on a first name basis, and the same neighbors came often to the restaurant as we did. I just remember the overwhelming friendliness and homey feeling about the place. I imagined the Van Gogh cafe in this way. Once again Cynthia Rylant crafts the wonder and curiosity of a little girl seeking validation and meaning in the people and events around her.

Seedfolks by Paul Fleischman

This little novel is packed with themes! It would be a mighty tool in the classroom for exemplifying themes in literature. One of the themes may be: Gardens yield not only fruit to feed souls, but gardens also yield generosity and compassion in encouraging weary souls to hope. If only that little Vietnamese girl knew the impact her little garden had on so many lives. She truly did honor her father in starting a garden. Her garden inspired Wendell to avoid complaining and to get busy with better things. The reader wonders what she would say to the people gathered on that once-empty lot at the end of the book. Fleischman crafted a unique plot bringing 13 diversified people together to develop a powerful place of beauty and life amid the muck and downtrodden slums of the city. Gonzalo made a very perceptive statement when he said that older people get younger when they come to the United States. But his statement yields a negative connotation connecting youth with vulnerability. The garden became a healing solution for his father who was out of his element when he first came to the United States. Assertive Leona tried to appeal to the authorities about cleaning up the lot that had been discovered by the neighbors for gardening. Smiling Sam added cheer and optimism to the garden community. As others discovered the potential power of growing things in a garden the reader's heart melts with compassion as Nora brought hope and vitality back to Mr. Myles in his wheelchair as she accommodated a garden place for him to tend. No longer was he a

salmon traveling upstream.

The garden renewed hope in an unwed mother and
to all the rest of the community of gardeners over time. At the end of the novel the reader is assured that another season of community building and healing is about to begin as the little girl again digs a spot to plant her beans.

The Islander by Cynthia Rylant

This short novel is a fantasy of a young boy, Daniel who lives with his grandfather on an island called Coquille off the coast of British Columbia. Daniel initially struggled with fitting in and feeling a part of the island community, but he found a mermaid comb and witnessed a brief visit by a mermaid along the beach one day. Curious, he returned to the beach and stayed there past his curfew just to witness another visit. Later in the book Daniel tries to communicate with the mermaid by leaving a message in a bottle on a rock on the beach. He did not see the mermaid again, but he received a message from her through an otter who threw Daniel a shell from the water one day. To Daniel's surprise the shell held a key. Throughout the rest of the book Daniel wore the key around his neck. As he helped rescue birds with his grandfather after a huge storm Daniel discovered that the key quivered at times. Daniel made the connection that when the quivering was strongest he was standing near a living bird or animal that was in need of rescuing. In his rescue efforts with his grandfather he also found a sense of belonging as he helped island neighbors and they helped him after his grandfather died. The story ends happily, because a child he helped rescue because of the quivering of the key turned out to become his girlfriend in later teenage years soon after his grandfather died. Daniel threw a message out to sea in a bottle thanking the mermaid for providing him the family that the islanders had become to him. This book was a thought-provoking escape into a fantasy world that made me hear the waves beating on the beach.

The Clay Marble by Minfong Ho

This historical fiction novel is set in the 1970s in Cambodia during the effects of the Vietnam War The protagonist, a young Cambodian girl named Dara is victim with her family as they are directed to leave their home and to head to the Border of Thailand to gather supplies and restore their lives before returning to the war-torn homeland in Cambodia. Dara's father had been killed, and her mother, brother and extended family members set off with numerous other refugees to find food and shelter near the border. The plot takes the reader into more desolate lands where Dara and her family meet other refugees who are struggling. Dara's brother joins the army and saddens Dara who feels neglected now. The struggle for Dara and her family to keep the family together drives the plot. One of Dara's new-found friends makes her some clay marbles which Dara later treasures, because her friend dies in one of the refugee camps near the border. The clay marbles symbolize hope, however. Dara realizes the treasure in the hopefulness shared by her late friend. Dara's family is given rice in Nong Chan to take back with them to their homeland. Soon the effects of the war dwindle, and it is safe for Dara's family to return home and to again plant rice and to restore their harvest. Dara realizes the hope of the marble is not required to to make wonderful things happen. She realizes that the hope and joy in her now is a lasting result from the traumatic experiences she had shared with family and new friends.

The Golden Goose Book being the stories of The Golden Goose, The Three Bears, The Three Little Pigs, and Tom Thumb illustrated by L. Leslie Brooke

The original author of this collection of fairy tales is not mentioned in this book, but the numerous color and black and white illustrations brought back so many memories of the image of fairy tales as I remember. I couldn't resist picking up this book and reliving the time when I sat by my great grandmother as she read these stories in her tender voice. It seemed that every time I turned a page I could smell her linen flowered handkerchief with scent of lavender scented soap. Although the illustrations in the book are far removed from the images of present-day illustrations, the whimsical nature of the pictures captured the pleasant memories of those stories as I saw them as a child. This 95 page collection thoroughly related each of the tales with a clear plot, story problem, and happy-ever-after ending. The one tale that seemed most descriptively written was The Three Bears. Numerous detailed illustrations showed the facial expressions about which the text eloquently described. The language in the tales made me laugh: Words such as thereupon, and Yonder stands an old tree; hew it down all invoked old-fashioned unique qualities to the tales that have been modernized in so many ways. Although I would probably not choose this book to read-aloud to a child I was again brought back to the couch where I was read these tales over and over again with family members.

Poor Goose - a French folktale retold and illustrated by Anne Rockwell

This folktale was a frequently-requested read aloud by my two children. The original folktale was titled The Four Friends and published in 1968. The Poor Goose version was published later in 1976. The story is a cumulative journey tale about four animals who meet along Goose's journey to the castle to get some tea to make her headache better. The folk-art style of the illustrations emphasizes scenes and objects typical of those seen in France. The drawings are simple and child-like, and they lack perspective. The pictures very effectively supplement and extend the text, however. Each page shows a framed illustration on a different colored a patterned background that seems to add charm to the story and to focus the reader's attention on the pictures. The text in the folktale even applies the French style of quotation marks. As the journey progresses Goose meets Cat, the two of them meet Lamb, and the three of them meet Cow. Each chooses to join the others in the journey to the castle, because each wishes to find something different for themselves there. The climax of the tale occurs when they all hear a wolf howl, and they are scared into an old woman's house on the hill. Throughout the tale a recurring verse is recited by the animals,

Cric-Crac, kitchen spoon, Over the hill, We'll get there soon.

. This verse adds rhythm to the oral reading of the tale, and the predictable page turns add to the interest to this read-aloud. In the end the animals never arrived at the castle, but they found a new and comfortable home and caring in the home of the old woman who gladly took them in. This folktale implies the lesson about realizing that your desires may realized in simpler things than you choose to dream, and happiness can be found unexpectedly.