Brown Girl Dreaming

What is not to love about Jacqueline Woodson's memoir in verse?  This is a beautiful and eloquent book about Woodson's childhood and the people and places that shaped it.

Though her early childhood is spent in Ohio, Woodson's soul is already filled with the stories and people of South Carolina.  Even after the family moves to New York. Greenville, South Carolina, is an anchor.

This book is an exploration of place, people, and what it means to become yourself.  I absolutely loved it, and you will, too!

Watch the video below to hear the author reading from the book.

Popular

Maya was the lowest of the low on the social scale at her Brownsville, Texas, middle school.  She was a geek with glasses, braces, and only a handful of friends.  That's when she decided to embark on a social experiment.

Armed with a thrift store copy of a teenage etiquette book from the 1950's, Maya decided to see if the sixty year old advice would hold up today.  She did everything Betty Cornell, former model and author of the book suggested from changing her diet to her wardrobe with sometimes hilarious results.

But things really get crazy when Maya follows Betty's advice on making friends and meeting new people.  In her quest to get out of her comfort zone and find out what popularity really means, Maya has heartbreaking downs, some hilarious moments, and a few surprising triumphs.

Maya Van Wagenen's memoir took me back to my own middle school experiences, good and bad.  I really enjoyed reading this gem of a book about a girl with true courage and integrity.  I know I was never that brave!  Maya Van Wagenen proves the best way to become popular is to let people know you care.  Highly recommended!

The Warrior's Heart

Eric Greitens's memoir is a great read.  After weeks of putting it off thinking it would be too manly for me, I read the whole thing in one day!  What a great story about the importance of living a life of service.

The story starts when Greitens was in college and went on several humanitarian trips.  The first one led him to China where he taught English to college students and learned for the first time what it is like to live in a world with strong government control.  His students were hungry to learn anything about America, and when he learned that several of his students participated in the protests at Tienanmen Square, his view of the world really began to change.  These were normal people who were willing to risk everything to fight for their rights.

Greitens when on several other humanitarian trips before eventually deciding to join the military.  He knew that if he really wanted to make a difference in the world, he would need to step up and protect those who couldn't protect themselves.

The first half of the book describes Greitens humanitarian efforts that led him to the decision to join the military, and the second half mostly focuses on his SEAL training.  There he learned about strength, perseverance, and learning to protect his team.  Greitens class started with over 200 men, most owhom dropped out before graduation.

This is such a great read and an inspiring story.  I do want to mention that in the military section of book there is some "bleeped" profanity--the first and last letters with a dash in between.

The Boy on the Wooden Box

When Leon Leyson moved to Krakow with his family in 1938, he thought his life would be full of excitement, but an invading force from Germany soon followed, and life changed for everyone.  The boys who once played with Leon began to bully him, and Nazis filled the streets with propaganda about the Jews.

Soon all the Jews were moved to the Krakow ghetto, a small area of the city walled off to contain them.  That is when things really turned frightening, and rumors of death camps and mass killings circulated in the ghetto.

Leon and his family didn't know if they would survive the Nazi occupation, but then his father was hired by Oskar Schindler.  Schindler's enamel works made pots and pans for the German war effort.  While Schindler partied with powerful members of the Nazi party, he argued his workers were highly specialized and necessary.

Leon and his family were still near death many times, and they faced the horror and uncertainty of the camps, and the family would not survive the war in tact, but thanks to Oskar Schindler, Leon and over 1,000 other Jews would survive the war.

This is the true story of the youngest person to be saved by Oskar Schindler.  It is a story of courage and humanity in a time of horror and cruelty.  A must read!

Bad Girls

From Delilah to Bonnie Parker, this book is a collection of mini biographies about bad girls throughout history.  Each lady has a two or three page biography with an illustration followed by an argument between our two our two authors about how bad that lady actually was.  These discussions are presented in graphic novel format as an ongoing discussion between the mother/daughter author team.

There is nothing really in depth about the women in the book, but it's strength is really in encouraging readers to view the women in their historical context and to reserve judgement.

This quick and fun read by Jane Yolen and Heidi Stemple should encourage readers to find out more about the women so they can get the facts and draw their own conclusions.

Steve Jobs: The Man Who Thought Different

Do you have an iPod, iPad, or iPhone?  How about any of the many devices that are modeled after these products?  If so, you should thank Steve Jobs.  Karen Blumenthal's new biography follows the
Apple co-founder and CEO through a life filled with moments of brilliance and insight as well as defeat and frustration.

Steve Jobs's path in life was never easy.  He was adopted as an infant, struggled to make friends in school, and dropped out of college after just one semester.  He struggled to find his path.

But when he reconnected with Steve Wozniak who was trying to build a computer for an individual to use, Jobs quickly recognized the genius of this plan, and soon Apple Computers was born. 

Blumenthal's biography is highly readable and fascinating revealing the innovative thinker as well as the demanding control freak.  If you were ever curious about how your iPod came to be or about how computers evolved from massive behemoths largely confined to academia to the tools for business and life we use today, this is a must read!

Temple Grandin: How the Girl Who Loved Cows Embraced Autism and Changed the World

Temple Grandin was different from the start.  She didn't act like other babies, and her father was convinced she should be institutionalized, but her mother believed in her daughter.  This is the story of Temple's life.  All through school and even her adult life people have discounted her because of her autism.

When Temple was in high school, she discovered cows, and these animals saved her life.  She has devoted her life to making living conditions better for the animals we use as food.  And she uses the gifts of her autism to do it.

This is a wonderful story about a woman who embraced the parts of her life that others saw as challenges and used them to her advantage.  Sy Montgomery's new book is a great read for anyone who has autism or anyone who knows someone with autism. 

Here is Temple Grandin's TED talk about autism:

Animals Welcome

Peg Kehret is one of the most popular authors in our library with books like Runaway Twin and The Ghost's Grave.  Now she has written a memoir about her life rescuing animals.

Each chapter details Kehret's experiences with different animals including wildlife, and her sincere love of animals shines on every page.  A large portion of the book focuses on cat rescue.  Caring for cats is easier for Kehret because her body is weakened by childhood polio.  Each animal's personality comes shining through as the author details its rescue story.

Fans of Peg Kehret's mystery novels and animal lovers alike will enjoy this memoir about the many ways she and the animals in her life have rescued each other.

Here is a video of Peg Kehret talking about one of her most popular books, Stolen Children.  It is filmed in the home she describes in Animals Welcome, and you can hear her dog, Lucy, barking at the beginning. :)

Lincoln Through the Lens

This is an intersting photo biography of Abraham Lincoln who didn't have his first photograph taken until the age of 37.  It's a perspective on Lincoln's life that includes photographs of the president and the people who impacted him.  The narrative also features Matthew Brady, the Civil War photographer who took the portrait Lincoln credited with winning him the presidency. 

Each layout includes a photo or photographic spread on one page and text in large readable font on the other.  Each layout is also a separate piece of the story that you can read in a few minutes.  This is a great introduction to one of our greatest presidents.  You might want to pair it with Russell Freedman's Newberry Award winning Lincoln:  A Photobiography.