Fatal Fever

Fatal Fever: Tracking Down Typhoid Mary by Gail Jarrow. Grades 5+ Calkins Creek, March 2015. 192 pages. Reviewed from ARC provided by publisher.

Right from the start, this medical history grips the reader and won't let go. This book tracks down typhoid fever outbreaks, explaining how they started and why they were so devastating. Typhoid fever is a serious disease and it caused many deaths, especially of young people. In a time before antibiotics, there was little that doctors could do beyond managing the symptoms of the disease as it ran its course.

Gail Jarrow does a great job of presenting Typhoid Mary and explaining why it was so important that she be quarantined while also showing Mary Mallon's side of it. She was an immigrant to this country, distrustful of authority figures that had a history of taking advantage of immigrants, and she didn't understand how she could carry a disease when she had never been sick!

This book is not for the faint of heart and may have greater appeal to kids who enjoy a gross-out story. Typhoid fever is transmitted through human waste and, while it's never discussed in a graphic way, there's plenty of poo talk. You may want to choose something different to read over your lunch break, is what I'm saying. I don't mind icky medical details, so it didn't bother me, but I know some are more sensitive to that.

My one disappointment is the trim size of the book. I may book talk this to 5th and 6th graders, but the text is pretty solidly middle school and up and I know we'll have trouble getting teens to pick it up. It'd be an easier sell if it was a smaller trim size like an adult book.

The narrative moves at a fast pace and archival photos add much to create a sense of place and time. This is an engrossing story for fans of medical history.

Readalikes:

Deadly by Julie Chibbaro. This fictionalized account of an assistant in the Department of Health and Sanitation artfully portray's the city's side of the hunt for Typhoid Mary. This would be a good choice for teens who like historical fiction.

Invincible Microbe: Tuberculosis and the Never-Ending Search for a Cure by Jim Murphy and Alison Bank. This medical history focuses on the search for a cure and does a great job of illuminating the devastating effects of tuberculosis throughout history.

Red Madness: How a Medical Mystery Changed What We Eat by Gail Jarrow. This is another book investigating a deadly disease and it's also told in a gripping, fast-paced style, bringing in lots of case studies to bring the era and issue to life.

Terrible Typhoid Mary by Susan Campbell Bartoletti. This book comes out in August and I haven't read it yet, but it's definitely one I'm looking forward to.

And hey, it's Nonfiction Monday! Make sure you stop by the Nonfiction Monday Blog and check out what great nonfiction books bloggers are sharing this week.

On Vacationing in the - Gasp - Summertime

Okay, weeks ago I stumbled into a Twitter conversation about public youth librarians taking vacation during the summer months. I've been wanting to write a blog post about it since then and since we're finalizing summer program dates this week, I thought it'd be a great time for this post.

You earn that vacation time. I think that as long as you're vacationing responsibly (i.e. not taking six weeks off during the summer when it's your busiest time) you should take it when you want.

Okay, okay, I know that summer has traditionally been seen as the bread and butter of the youth services world. The kids are out of school, summer reading club is going on, you're scheduling tons of programs and kids and families are coming in. It's not always the easiest time to get away.

That said, I think most youth librarians can overthink this. And I think we're a conscientious lot (at least, if you're reading youth librarian blogs, I'm figuring that you're a conscientious librarian). And as long as you're planning ahead, there's no reason to deny yourself (or your staff!) all summer vacations forever and ever.

You earn that vacation time. Your paid vacation time is part of your salary. In some library systems, your paid time off might be a significant part of your salary. You should be able to take some of that vacation time during the summer. And yeah, even if you're the only youth librarian at your library, I think that still holds true.

It definitely calls for some planning ahead. I ask my staff to have penciled in summer vacation requests by March 1 so that we can plan our programs around when folks will be off. I know if I've got a couple of folks out, that's going to be a light programming week for us. And that's okay. Patrons understand staff taking vacations - lots of them are taking vacations throughout the summer, too. If you're concerned about giving them something to do, look into providing some passive programming while you're away. And simplify your summer reading club so that other staff can step in and help you if you need it.

Now, to make this work during your busy season, it's perfectly reasonable to set limits for yourself and for your staff. I black out certain weeks when I know we're going to have a lot on our plate - the last week of school (tons of school visits) and the first week of summer reading club (busy busy in the department!). I ask my staff to keep requests to one week during the months of June & July. And if multiple people want the same dates, I may close those dates to additional requests off. Exceptions can certainly be made, but I set these ground rules so that everyone knows what my expectations are.

If you truly, absolutely feel like you can't get away during the summer, even for a special trip with family who might only be available in the summer months, I think it's time to think about some balance. This year, my staff and I have increased our outreach to the schools exponentially and it's been extremely rewarding and also exhausting. So I don't feel like summer has to be completely over the top. I am hoping that this is going to be the easiest summer in a long time.

And yes, I'll have some staff out on vacations at points during the summer. And yes, I will be gone for a week in June/July for the ALA Annual Conference. And we'll make it work. As we're finalizing dates for programs, I'm conscious of what our staffing levels will likely be at that point.

And yes, I too learned in grad school that no children's librarian would ever dare take vacation during the summer months and that August is for vacation-taking. But guess what? Our local schools are shortening summer break and our kids go back to school before August. August may no longer be a feasible time to take a family vacation.

So, what say you? Are you ready to take the plunge, do your family or friends (and your work/life balance) a favor and schedule some vacation time over the summer?

Roller Girl

Roller Girl by Victoria Jamieson. Grades 4-8. Dial Books, March 2015. 240 pages. Review copy provided by publisher.

Booktalk: 

Astrid is used to her mom’s “evenings of cultural entertainment”. She and her best friend Nicole have been dragged along to operas, art galleries, and poetry readings - usually stuff that bores Astrid out of her mind. But one night, Astrid’s mom takes her and Nicole to a roller derby… and Astrid’s life is changed forever.

Roller derby is a sport played on roller skates. It’s fast and INTENSE. The ladies on roller derby teams aren’t afraid to get knocked around and they all have cool roller derby names like Scald Eagle, Scrappy Go Lucky, and Rainbow Bite. As soon as she sees it, Astrid knows she wants to try it, and luckily the Rose City Rollers are holding a junior derby camp over the summer.

But Astrid's best friend Nicole isn’t interested in roller derby. Like, at all. In fact, she’s already signed up for ballet camp. So if Astrid wants to do this, she’ll have to do this on her own. And that will mean spending the entire summer away from her best friend.

To make matters worse, when Astrid shows up for camp, roller derby is NOT as easy as it looks. In fact, Astrid pretty much stinks at roller derby. Does Astrid have what it takes to see this roller derby thing through?

If you love the friendship story of SMILE by Raina Telgemeier or if you want to see what this crazy world of roller derby is all about, pick up ROLLER GIRL by Victoria Jamieson. 

My thoughts: 

What a great book! I am really excited to share this full-color graphic novel with kids at our book talks for 5th and 6th graders. We have a TON of Raina Telgemeier fans and I think this is going to be right up their alley. 

This is a great introduction to the sport of roller derby, something that a lot of young readers won't be familiar with. The reader learns about the rules and strategies of roller derby as Astrid's learning, so it happens organically throughout the story. 

This is a great story about middle school friendships and about girls starting to grow apart and get interested in different things. It's not an easy road to navigate, but as Astrid continues to attend derby camp, she learns about herself and how to deal with friends. 

One thing I really love about this book is that roller derby is not easy for Astrid. She's not a great skater and it takes a lot of hard work for her to even be okay at it. Because she loves it and because she looks up to the players on the ladies' teams, Astrid sticks with it. It's a great message for kids without being message-y at ALL. 

Readalikes:

Well, definitely Smile by Raina Telgemeier. The themes of middle school friendships and learning about yourself are similar and the full-color artwork will likely appeal to similar audiences. 

Earmuffs for Everyone

Earmuffs for Everyone!: How Chester Greenwood Became Known as the Inventor of Earmuffs by Meghan McCarthy. Grades 2-5. Simon & Schuster, January 2015. 48 pages. Review copy provided by my local library.

How do I love Meghan McCarthy, let me count the ways...

First of all, there are her super cute, colorful illustrations. I love those big round heads and eyes.

And then there are the subjects that she chooses to write about. One thing that I LOVE about children's nonfiction is that you're likely to run across subjects you never thought to think about. And this is one of those books.

Did you know that a town in Maine celebrates Chester Greenwood Day every year, celebrating the guy credited with inventing earmuffs?

Did you know that Chester Greenwood did not actually invent earmuffs?

Some claim that Chester Greenwood invented earmuffs as a teenager, but his patent is actually for "improvements on the ear muffler", meaning that Greenwood improved on an invention that already existed. So, why is Greenwood the one getting all the credit?

On the surface, this may look like a straightforward biography of the inventor of earmuffs, but Meghan McCarthy takes this book to the next level, investigating why Greenwood is credit with the invention and explaining how easy it is for facts to be lost or misinterpreted in history. These concepts come across in the simple text and are expanded in the substantial author's note where McCarthy provides more detail about how she searched for information as she researched this book.

This is not only a fun read for kids who are interested in history, biography, and inventions, but a book that can contribute much to classroom discussions on researching history and questioning sources.

Readalikes:

Ain't Nothing But a Man: My Quest to Find the Real John Henry by Scott Reynolds Nelson and Marc Aronson explores the process of researching history for an older audience.

The Day-Glo Brothers by Chris Barton and

Pop! The Invention of Bubble Gum by Meghan McCarthy

These nonfiction picture books introduce children to the little-known inventors of Day Glo colors and bubble gum, respectively. Either would make a good readalike for kids interested in other off-the-beaten-path inventors.

Hey, it's Nonfiction Monday! Head on over to the Nonfiction Monday Blog to check out what other bloggers are sharing this week.

To register or to drop in?

That is the question. I asked it earlier this week over at the ALSC Blog, so pop on over and check it out. I'd love to hear your two cents.

This is my beach book bag from St. Croix a few years ago. I really miss the beach...

Do you require registration for programs or offer drop-in programs? Inquiring minds want to know!

Gabi: A Girl in Pieces

Gabi: A Girl in Pieces by Isabel Quintero. Grades 9+ Cinco Puntos Press, 2014. 284 pages. Review copy provided by my local library.

Guys. This book.

I'm so thankful for dear friends like Kelly Jensen and for awards like the Morris Award because I wouldn't have picked this book up on my own (the cover scares me a little) and then I would have been MISSING OUT. 

This fictional diary of Mexican-American high school senior Gabi Hernandez is so real that I could have sworn I had picked up the actual diary of a seventeen-year-old girl. It reminded me of writing in my own diary when I was in high school (much less eloquently, of course), and I don't at all mean that it feels like Gabi's writing in the '90s. I just could really identify with Gabi and the questions that she has and her thoughts about relationships and friendships and family.

The masterful thing is that I don't have anything in common with Gabi, actually. She's a Mexican-American teen dealing with a lot of issues that (thankfully) I never had to deal with in high school. And yet, I feel like she could have been me as a teen.

I also kept thinking about Mattie Gokey (one of my literary BFFs) and Anne Frank. Like, seriously, Gabi is so easy to identify with and root for. I didn't want the book to end, and that's probably the biggest compliment I can give (I LOVE finishing books).

This is probably not making much sense. I'm gushing, I know.

Let's see... Gabi is dealing with a lot of issues. Her dad is a drug addict and hardly ever around. Every now and then he'll try to change, but he's always relapsed. Gabi has two best friends - Sebastian who has just come out to his parents and is now kicked out of their house, and Cindy who has just become a statistic - another pregnant teen. Gabi wonders if all of these problems will keep her from following her dream to go to college. She starts taking a poetry class and falls in love with writing poetry. She's a talented writer with lots on her mind.

This book was just a pleasure to read and I want to make sure you don't miss it. Honestly, the cover scared me a little bit, although once I read the book I could see where it came from - it has to do with a zine about body image that Gabi creates during her senior year.

Sigh. You should probably go read a real review of this book, like the one over at Stacked.

I'd hand this to teens who like reading about characters they can identify with, teens with questions about romance and life and friends, especially teens who appreciate the honesty of Anne Frank's diary.

WRITE MORE BOOKS NOW, PLEASE, ISABEL QUINTERO. :)

The War That Saved My Life

The War That Saved My Life by Kimberly Brubaker Bradley. Grades 4-7. Dial Books, January 2015. 320 pages. Review copy provided by publisher.

Booktalk:

Ada is 10 years old and she’s never been outside of her family’s one-bedroom apartment. Born with a twisted foot, which her Mam calls the mark of the devil, Ada is not allowed to be seen by other people. Her Mam doesn’t let her go to school and has never bothered to help her learn to walk - Ada has to crawl around their apartment. Worst of all, when Mam is angry at her, which is pretty often, she shuts Ada up in a damp cabinet with the roaches for hours.

World War II is brewing and the children of London are being sent away from their parents to live in safety in the country. When Mam decides to send Ada’s younger brother Jamie away to safety, Ada sees her chance. She teaches herself to walk - very painfully - and she sneaks out to join her brother.

They’re sent to the English countryside and taken in by a lady named Susan, a lady who never wanted children but feels it’s her duty to help out in wartime. For the first time, Ada gets crutches so she can walk, she learns how to ride a horse and even to read… but she knows that at any moment Mam could change her mind and everything could be taken away from her.

My thoughts:

There is so much to love about this book, but what I loved most of all is the complicated characters that Ms. Bradley has created here. It's one thing for siblings to experience abuse together, but it's a completely different animal when one sibling suffers abuse and one does not. Ada loves Jamie and wants to protect him more than anything, but as the younger sibling, Jamie cannot reciprocate and he doesn't even see some of the abuse that has been going on. When Jamie gets homesick and longs to go home to Mam, Ada cannot understand how he feels because she is so grateful to have escaped. Logically, she knows that life in London was different for Jamie, but emotionally she cannot identify with what he's feeling.

At the same time, Ada cannot trust in what's happened to her. Sure, life is way better in the countryside, but Ada is very guarded. She knows that at any moment her new life could come crumbling down around her. Her emotions are overwhelming and often volatile... and through it all, Susan is steadfast.

Susan is suffering her own loss. We learn by bits and pieces that Susan is mourning the death of her "good friend" Becky whom she lived with. Becky was obviously someone very important to Susan and we see how having the children around, having others to care for, having someone to come home to is helping Susan deal with her grief.

I just couldn't get enough of these characters and I loved learning their stories and seeing them grow and change.

This is also a great World War II story from a perspective - the English home front - that many kids may be less familiar with. Details bring this historical setting to life - blackout curtains, victory gardens, air raids, and more.

And it's even a sneaky kind of horse book! It may not be enough of a horse story to satisfy super fans, but there are definitely plenty of details about Ada learning to ride and taking care of Susan's pony which had been neglected after Becky died.

Readalikes:

Hand this one to kids who love to read about a character they can root for or kids looking for great historical fiction, particularly war home front stories or World War II.

Kids may enjoy The War That Saved My Life if they liked:

• Half a World Away by Cynthia Kadohata for its emotional and authentic portrayal of an adopted boy struggling to adjust to life in a new world.
• One for the Murphys by Lynda Mullaly Hunt for a foster kid protagonist who is easy to root for.
• Books about the WWII home front.

Reading Wildly: Transitional Chapter Books

This year, we've been booktalking to several 2nd and 3rd grade classrooms, which made transitional chapter books (chapter books aimed at 2nd/3rd graders) a must for one of our Reading Wildly meetings. This month, we kicked off our exploration of transitional chapter books by talking about an "article". I printed out slide selections from the presentation A Missing Link in Closing Reading Achievement Gaps: Short Chapter Book Series with Primary Characters of Color by Sandy Carrillo and Jane Fleming.

We discussed the importance of transitional chapter books in building fluency and reinforcing vocabulary. The slides mention that many early chapter book series deal with events and situations that are familiar to kids, which makes the stories easy for children to understand. And they often include a chapter or section to introduce the setting and characters to the reader, setting the stage for the story.

Since they are short, easy books, we had quite a stack of books shared this month! We did not formally book talk all of these, some were just mentioned and briefly described as we were winding down. Here are the books shared at our meeting:

• Freckle Juice by Judy Blume
• The Haunted Library by Dori Butler
• The Stories Julian Tells by Ann Cameron
• Ballerina Dreams: From Orphan to Dancer by Michaela DePrince
• Little Sister is Not My Name (Sassy) by Sharon Draper
• Moxy Maxwell Does Not Love Stuart Little by Peggy Gifford
• Tales of Bunjitsu Bunny by John Himmelman
• Bunnicula by James Howe
• Alvin Ho: Allergic to Girls, School, and Other Scary Things by Lenore Look
• Ruby Lu, Brave and True by Lenore Look
• Judy Moody Gets Famous by Megan McDonald
• A Crazy, Mixed-Up Spanglish Day (Get Ready for Gabi) by Marisa Montes
• Who's That Girl? (Get Ready for Gabi) by Marisa Montes
• Tales from the Odyssey, Part 1 by Mary Pope Osborne
• Tales from the Odyssey, Part 2 by Mary Pope Osborne
• Abel's Island by William Steig
• Keena Ford and the Field Trip Mix-Up by Melissa Thomson
• Keena Ford and the Second Grade Mix-Up by Melissa Thomson
• EllRay Jakes, the Dragon Slayer by Sally Warner
• Frankie Pickle and the Closet of Doom by Eric Wight

I think we heard about a great variety of stories that will be good to share with those 2nd and 3rd grade classes we're visiting. 

Next month, we'll be discussing mystery books, which is definitely a genre I do NOT gravitate toward (so a month that will be especially good for me!). What are your favorite middle-grade mysteries? 

Preschool Storytime: Bears

Earlier this week, I did a preschool storytime about bears! Grrr. Here's what I did:

Opening Song: My Hands Say Hello (our typical opening song, repeated every week)

Book: Bears! Bears Bears! by Bob Barner. This is a great book for vocabulary. Simple, rhyming text presents eight different kinds of bears that live all over the world. The kids were familiar with some - pandas and polar bears are very recognizable - but there were some new ones introduced, too!

Book: A Den is a Bed for a Bear by Becky Baines. I like this nonfiction text for its photographs and simple rhyming text that explains the concept of hibernation and what bears do in their dens. This is another one that includes lots of great vocabulary. The trim size is a little small for group sharing and the extra facts on each page do make the spreads a bit cluttered for a readaloud.

I look for books that include words that kids may not hear very often. Books can be a great source for kids to hear words that are not used much in normal conversation. Kids can't recognize these words when reading if they've never heard them before, so it's important to introduce kids to lots of words!

Song with Puppet: Where is Bear? (Found on Storytime Katie)

(To the tune of "Thumbkin")

Where is bear? Where is bear?
Here I am! Here I am!
How are you this winter?
Very tired, thank you.
Go to sleep. Go to sleep.

The bear puppet then "falls asleep" and I ask the kids if they'd like to sing again and we wake up bear and start again! They really liked this song and one of my kiddos picked up the puppet and wanted to sing it with me again during our play time.

Book: Where's My Teddy? by Jez Alborough. This is a favorite of mine because it's a very silly story with lots of rhyming words* and the book has a large trim size that makes it great for sharing with a group.

*Hearing rhyming words help children hear that words are made up of smaller sounds, which helps them when they start to learn to read and sound out words.

Song with puppet: The Bear Went Over the Mountain (Traditional)

The bear went over the mountain
The bear went over the mountain
The bear went over the mountain
To see what he could see!

And all that he could see...
And all that he could see...

Was the other side of the mountain
The other side of the mountain
The other side of the mountain
Was all that he could see!

Book: The Red Sled by Lita Judge. This nearly-wordless book shows a bear and his friends borrowing a red sled and taking it for rides all over the forest before returning it in the morning, leaving only footprints for the little child to find. When I read this whimsical book, I read the sound effects words on the page and I ask the kids to help me tell what is happening. This is a fun story to share in winter since many kids will be able to relate to the experience of sledding.

Felt Activity: Color Bears. I handed out the bears to the children and they brought their bear up to the board when I called their color. With this activity, we practice listening and following directions. We also reinforce color concepts and we practice counting when we count them all up at the end.

Play Time:

I set out wooden blocks and color sorting bears similar to these by Lakeshore Learning. It was amazing to me how long the blocks kept the kids occupied!

I also had a table set up with simple folded typing paper and die-cut bears in red, pink, and purple so kids could make Valentines ("(I love you BEARY much!"). I don't always do a craft, but this was very simple and easy to put together, plus an activity like this encourages children to practice writing (or drawing or scribbling, etc. etc.).

Turning 15 on the Road to Freedom

Turning 15 on the Road to Freedom: My Story of the 1965 Selma Voting Rights March by Lynda Blackmon Lowery with Elspeth Leacock and Susan Buckley, illustrated by PJ Loughran. Grades 6+. Dial, January 2015. Review copy provided by publisher.

Booktalk:

"By the time I was fifteen years old, I had been in jail nine times." (pg 13)

So begins Lynda Blackmon Lowery's story of growing up in the Jim Crow South and marching for justice. At a young age, Lynda got involved in the Civil Rights movement in her hometown of Selma, Alabama. Even after she and her friends were jailed for protesting, even being put inside the "sweatbox" where the airless heat was so intense that all the girls passed out, Lynda would not stop in her quest for equal rights. When organizers put together a march for voting rights in Selma, Lynda knew she would be part of it. And even when she was horribly beaten by state troopers in an event called "Bloody Sunday," Lynda knew that she needed to find the courage to keep going, to keep marching.

"If I [gave up], I would never be the person I wanted to be. And the person I wanted to be was a person who would stand up against what was wrong." (pg. 82)

Lynda was the youngest person in the 1965 Selma Voting Rights March. She stood up for what she believed in. And you can, too.

My thoughts:

This is an important first-person account of the 1965 Selma Voting Rights March. It's written in a conversational tone, as if Lynda's sitting across from you at the kitchen table and telling you about her experiences. Some archival photos and color illustrations accompany the text. The illustrations are well-suited to a teen audience, adding splashes of color throughout.

At the back of the book, you get brief bios of some of the casualties of the Selma March - Jimmie Lee Jackson, a young man shot by police at a nighttime protest just prior to the march; Reverend James Reeb, a white minister from Boston who traveled to Selma after seeing Bloody Sunday on the news; and Viola Liuzzo, a white homemaker who was murdered by the KKK while driving folks between Selma and Montgomery after the march.

The Oscar-nominated film Selma may pique additional interest in this topic.

Readalikes:

For those interested in learning about young people's roles in the battle for civil rights, suggest any of the following:

• Because They Marched by Russell Freedman
• Claudette Colvin: Twice Toward Justice by Phillip M. Hoose
• Marching for Freedom by Elizabeth Partridge
• We've Got a Job: The 1963 Birmingham Children's March by Cynthia Levinson

For those interested in additional first-person accounts of young people standing up for what they believe in, suggest any of the following: 

• I Am Malala: The Girl Who Stood Up for Education and Was Shot by the Taliban by Malala Yousafzai 
• A Mighty Long Way: My Journey to Justice at Little Rock Central High School by Carlotta Walls LaNier
• Warriors Don't Cry: The Searing Memoir of the Battle to Integrate Little Rock's Central High by Melba Patillo Beals

And hey, it's Nonfiction Monday! Head on over to the Nonfiction Monday Blog to see what other great nonfiction bloggers are sharing this week!