Centennial, James Michener

This epic tale has long been one of my favorite books ever. I marvel at how James Michener started with dinosaurs and ends up with generations of people, all tied together by a place in America’s western frontier.

A stunning panorama of the West, CENTENNIAL is an enthralling celebration of the history of America, brimming with the glory and the greatness of past that only bestselling author James Michener could bring to life. From Native Americans, migrating white men and women, cowboys, and foreigners, this is a story of trappers, traders, homesteaders, gold seekers, ranchers, and hunters–all caught up in the dramatic events and violent conflicts and human life that shaped the destiny of the West.

I first read this book while traveling west to settle in the US – the story made the country and its history come to life. Hope you like reading it as much as I did. If you do, I recommend most of Michener’s other stories all based on fact: The Source (Israel); Hawaii, Poland, Alaska, Space, etc.!

Armageddon Summer, Jane Yolen and Bruce Coville

The main criterion for my selection of my 52 favorite books ever, is “how long did this book stay with me after reading it, and how did it change me?”

Armageddon Summer is an intriguing novel. Each chapter is in the voice of either Marine or Jed. I always wonder if Jane Yolen and Bruce Coville each ‘became’ the girl and the boy and wrote to each other?

The world will end on Thursday, July 27, 2000. At least, that’s what Reverend Beelson has told his congregation. Marina’s mom believes him. So does Jed’s dad.
That’s why they drag their teen children to join the reverend’s flock at a mountain retreat. From the mountaintop they will all watch the end of the world — and then descend to begin the world anew. But this world has only just begun for Jed and Marina, two teenagers with more attitude than faith. Why should the world end now, when they’ve just fallen in love?

Told in alternating chapters from both Jed’s and Marina’s points of view, this first-ever collaboration between two masters of children’s literature is a story about faith and friendship, love and loss . . . and the things that matter most at the End of the World.

A powerful read. It will make an interesting book club read for discussion in high school classes.

Wilfrid Gordon McDonald Partridge by Mem Fox, Julie Vivas (Illustrator)

Wilfred Gordon McDonald Partridge lives next door to a nursing home where several of his good friends reside. Of course, his favorite is Miss Nancy Alison Delacourt Cooper, because she has four names just as he does. The only problem is Miss Nancy, who is 96, has “lost” her memory. Undaunted, Wilfred sets out to “find” Miss Nancy’s memory for her. Something warm, something fuzzy, an egg, a rock – they all bring back memories and stories.
A delightful, funny and touching story about Alzheimers and about friendship between a child and an elder. This story is great to read with students in class or to give as a gift to someone coping with Alzheimers.

• Reading level: Ages 4 and up
• Paperback: 30 pages
• Publisher: Kane/Miller Book Publishers (September 1, 1989)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 091629126X
• ISBN-13: 978-0916291266

Waiting for the Whales by Sheryl McFarlane, Ron Lightburn (Illustrator)

    This is a “classic” that should be on every child’s bookshelf as well as be read by all adults. A beautifully crafted, heart string story with depth.

    This timeless story is set on the West Coast. An old man lives alone on a bluff overlooking the sea and tends to his garden. Each year, when the whales return to the bay in front of his cottage, his loneliness is somewhat eased.
    One day, his daughter and her baby return home to live with the old man, bringing a renewed sense of purpose to his life. As his granddaughter grows, the old man passes on a wealth or knowledge and wisdom as well as his passion for the whales. And each year they wait together for the whales to appear.

    The darker images light up with joy once the child enters his life. No words are needed when the gorgeous illustrations tell us that grandfather is no longer there, but mother and daughter wait for the whales to return as they always do.
This is a tale of the unique friendship between grandparent and child, but also of the circle of life and the promise of new life when an old one ebbs away.

Paperback, 32 pages, Orca Book Publishers  ISBN
0920501966 (ISBN13: 9780920501962)

Hey Canada!
Author: Vivien Bowers
Illustrations:  Milan Pavlovic
Publisher:  Tundra Books, a division of Random House
Pages:  72
Format:  Hardcover
Ages:  Children 7-10 years
Genre:  Children’s books/non-fiction/history
ISBN 978-1-77049-255-4
Release date:  May 8, 2012

I am writing this review of Hey Canada! on a small island on the west coast. I have lived in the Yukon, in Alberta, and across B.C. When my two sons were 7 and 9 years old, we were lucky enough to be able to travel across Canada for a whole year. I had not written many books back then, but if I had, I would have wanted to write the book that Vivien Bowers has just created. Illustrated by Milan Pavlovic, Hey Canada! is an interesting, upbeat book that is not only chock full of information, photos and great illustrations – it is FUN to read!

9 year old Alice and her cousin Cal accompany their Gran on this coast to coast trip. In each province, the kids have to find a number of things and readers can search right along. Through blogs and tweets, the three characters share their journey. From cod in Newfoundland to dinosaurs in Alberta, from PEI’s red sand to Nunavut’s throat singing, the book touches on all things Canadian.

Comic strip pages with historical U-Turns, text boxes with additional facts, even side bars on how their hamster is doing on the trip, keep the story moving along and fun to read. Nice, too, to see the same amount of information dedicated to the territories as to the provinces, making this truly a complete trip across Canada.

A great family read for Canada Day!

Gifts by Jo Ellen Bogart, Barbara Reid (Illustrator)

One of my all time favourite picture books. I give this book as a gift to new babies, to grandmothers, to friends who like to travel, and to any child in need of a good story.
Told in beautiful poetry, this book is a whimsical introduction to faraway lands and cultures is told from the perspective of a young girl, whose adventurous grandmother brings her back such treasures as an African baobab seed, an Australian didgeridoo, and a Hawaiian rainbow.
As the story progresses, the girl grows up and her grandmother grows older. But the sad ending turns happy as she now is the one traveling the world and sending home gifts to her own grandchild.
Jo Ellen’s beautiful text and Barbara’s fascinating plasticine art are the perfect combination – just like books and travel!

The Devil’s Arithmetic, by Jane Yolen Hannah is twelve and tired of always visiting the same old family members, always listening to the same old stories. But this Passover is different. When she opens the door, this time, Hannah ‘becomes’ her grandmother and lives her experiences in a concentration camp. Experiencing the horrors first hand changes Hannah in ways she could never have expected. The story is riveting and well told by master storyteller Jane Yolen. A must for readers of all ages! From School Library Journal Grade 4-8 In this novel, Yolen attempts to answer those who question why the Holocaust should be remembered. Hannah, 12, is tired of remembering, and is embarrassed by her grandfather, who rants and raves at the mention of the Nazis. Her mother’s explanations of how her grandparents and great-aunt lost all family and friends during that time have little effect. Then, during a Passover Seder, Hannah is chosen to open the door to welcome the prophet Elijah. As she does so, she is transported to a village in Poland in the 1940s, where everyone thinks that she is Chaya, who has just recovered from a serious illness. She is captured by the Nazis and taken to a death camp, where she is befriended by a young girl named Rivka, who teaches her how to fight the dehumanizing processes of the camp and hold onto her identity. When at last their luck runs out and Rivka is chosen, Hannah/Chaya, in an almost impulsive act of self-sacrifice, goes in her stead. As the door to the gas chamber closes behind her, she is returned to the door of her grandparents’ apartment, waiting for Elijah. Through Hannah, with her memories of the present and the past, Yolen does a fine job of illustrating the importance of remembering. She adds much to children’s understanding of the effects of the Holocaust, which will reverberate throughout history, today and tomorrow.
Reading level: Ages 8 and up Paperback: 176 pages
Publisher: Puffin; First Edition edition (April 12, 2004) 
ISBN-10: 0142401099
ISBN-13: 978-0142401095

This dramatic and moving YA novel has been written by Ting-xing Ye, internationally acclaimed author of A Leaf in the Bitter Wind, working together with her husband, William Bell, author of the award-winning novels for young adults Forbidden City, Zack, and Stones. Ting-xing Ye hails from China and tells this story with a well informed voice. Throwaway Daughter is the impressive story of Grace Dong-mei Parker, a typical Canadian teenager until the day she witnesses the Tiananmen massacre on television. Horrified, she sets out to explore her Chinese ancestry, only to discover that she was one of the thousands of infant girls abandoned in China since the introduction of the one-child policy, strictly enforced by the Communist government. But Grace was one of the lucky ones, adopted as a baby by a loving Canadian couple. With the encouragement of her adoptive parents, she studies Chinese and travels back to China in search of her birth mother. There she manages to locate the village where she was born. At first no one is willing to help her. However, Grace never gives up and finally is reunited with her birth mother, discovering through this emotional bond the truth of what happened to her almost twenty years earlier. Although the account is fictionalized it is very realistic and believable. A fascinating read and an eyeopener to a different culture.

This powerful tale, told in sparse words, stayed with me for a long time. The gorgeous art work adds to the Oriental setting and allows for many classroom activities that can be based on this picturebook. Ping is a Chinese boy with a green thumb: he can make anything grow. One day the Emperor announces that he needs a successor, someone who can carry on the kingdom with wisdom and kindness. He gives each child one seed, and the one who grows the best flower will take over as Emperor. Competition is fierce but Ping is heartbroken when nothing comes up and his pot with soil remains empty, despite his careful tending. On the day of the competition, he is the only child with an empty pot; all the others brings lush plants. But the Emperor has tricked everyone and announces that Ping, with his empty pot, is the only honest gardener–and thus the winner. Ages 4-7 but can be used with much older students and makes a beautiful coffee table tale as well. Henry Holt, PB ISBN-10: 0805082271 ISBN-13: 978-0805082272 Teaching guides: http://www.homeschoolshare.com/empty_pot.php http://teachwithpicturebooks.blogspot.com/2009/02/empty-pot.html

Week # 5 in my 52 week Bucket Book List! So many amazing books come in small packages. Like Stone Fox, or Sara Plain and Tall, Night John is the powerful story of a slave and the importance of literacy. Publishers Weekly called this “Among the most powerful of Paulsen’s works (together with Hatchet and Dogsong), this impeccably researched novel sheds light on cruel truths in American history as it traces the experiences of a 12-year-old slave girl in the 1850’s. Narrator Sarny exposes the abuse suffered by her people on the Waller plantation. The punishment for learning to read and write, she knows, is a bloody one, but when new slave Nightjohn offers to teach her the alphabet, Sarny readily agrees. Her decision causes pain for others as well as for herself, yet, inspired by the bravery of Nightjohn, who has given up a chance for freedom in order to educate slaves, Sarny continues her studies. Convincingly written in dialect, this graphic depiction of slavery evokes shame for this country’s forefathers and sorrow for the victims of their inhumanity. Ages 12-up, great topic for conversation. A must read for adults, too.