Reading India

My ten day trip to India came to an end on February 25 when I boarded a plane in Bengaluru (Bangalore) at 2:20 a.m. and, after a change of planes in Paris, arrived in Detroit about 4:15 p.m. (Both times are local times so it came to about 24 hours in transit.)

There are many things I want to tell everyone about the trip and my thoughts about India, but since this blog is tied to libraries and reading, let me start with my attempts to read in India. Yes, I read several books but I also spent a lot of time reading and attempting to read street signs.

My husband and I arrived in India at Bengaluru which is in Karnataka state. From there we went to Coimbatore in Tamil Nadu where family members met us for the road trip to "home" in Kozhinjampara in Kerala. Because India has many major languages and most are related to state borders, this means that we went from trying to read Kannada to Tamil to Malayalam. Many signs are also in English so I had something I could easily read as we traveled along, but I enjoyed trying to understand these other languages and there three different scripts. All three languages are Dravidian in origin. This means that there many similarities. I could see some of them in the scripts and could even occasionally hear words that sounded very similar. I am sure that if I were a speaker of any of them, the similarities would be even more evident.

For me, the struggle to read the signs made me think of the miracle that is reading. How does our brain manage to take these funny-looking marks--and every written language is portrayed with a bunch of funny-looking marks--and turn them into sounds and meaning? It is amazing.

My guess is that learning to read Tamil is easier than reading English because each letter makes just one sound. There is none of the educated guessing that is so much a part of English.

If you would like to learn more about these languages, take a look at these sites.

Tamil

Kannada


Malayalam

I have delusions of learning to read any of these languages, but for now, at least, I am happy to relax into books in English.

Refusing to be Enemies

When a stranger appears at your door,
feed him for three days
before asking who he is,
where he's come from,
where he's headed.
that way, he'll have strength
enough to answer
Or, by then you'll be
such good friends
you don't care.

from "Red Brocade"
by Naomi Shihab Nye

On Sunday, January 24, the Diversity Committee of Emerson School will show "Refusing to be Enemies", a movie that tells the story of the women of Zeitouna and their efforts to better understand what being Jewish or Palestinian means to them and to the other women in their group. Several women of Zeitouna will join us after the movie to talk about their experiences and offer ideas to help with conflicts in our world, our community, our school, and our personal lives.

The women of Zeitouna are twelve Ann Arbor women, six of whom are Jewish and six of whom are of Palestinian origin, Muslim and Christian. They have been meeting regularly for several years, making sure that they listen to each other with respect and caring. The movie is the story of their coming together and their meetings. These women are not working to find a solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. They are only working to understand each other, believing that by getting to know each other as people they can not be enemies. You can read more about their story and see a trailer of the movie at their website "refusing to be enemies".

"Refusing to be Enemies" contains references to the violence of the area but has very little graphic content. However, it is not for young children who, at the very least, will probably find it boring. Middle School students and mature fifth graders will benefit from watching the movie along with parents and friends.

Parents have asked that I suggest some books for upper elementary and middle school students who might want to view the movie. There are many books available about what is happening in Israel and the West Bank. Not surprisingly, it is not easy to find one that offers a truly unbiased point of view. In fact, the presence of bias often depends on your personal experiences and point of view. I do not suggest that any of these books, or even all of them as a whole, will offer a truly fair or accurate picture of the causes and meanings of the conflict. Instead, I offer them as a starting point for your discussions.

Emerson was lucky enough to have Naomi Shihab Nye visit our school several years ago. As the librarian I was doubly blessed because I got to drive Ms. Nye to her next stop and enjoy an outstanding dinner and discussion with her. Ms. Nye writes poetry and novels for middle grade and older readers. She also has one delightful picture book. The quote at the beginning of this post as well as the one at end are from Nye's poetry collection 19 Varieties of Gazelle. The poems in this collection and her two other collections of poems from the Middle East--The Flag of Childhood and The Space Between our Footsteps--carry great emotion and offer insight into the lives of people living in the Middle East as well as those who have emigrated to other parts of the world.

Habibi, Nye's first novel for middle grade readers, moved me personally as it describes a girl's first visit to the land of her father. In Habibi Liyanne travels to Jerusalem and the small Palestinian village where her father was born. The family stays long enough for her to enroll in a Jerusalem school so Liyanne sees more of the good and bad, the confusion and the beauty of this once alien place. Nye's picture book, Sitti's Secrets tells a similar story of a little girl visiting her grandmother in a Palestinian village. It ends with a clear and concise plea for world peace.

Samir and Yonatan by Daniella Carmi won the Batchelder Award from the American Library Association for its portrayal of a young Palestinian boy who finds himself in an Israeli hospital ward. He believes that the Israeli's are to blame for his brother's death so he is not eager to interact with the other boys in the hospital. Gradually, however, Samir gets to know these boys and befriends Yonatan. Together they offer a strong message for understanding and for peace. The author was born in Tel Aviv and currently lives in Jerusalem. This book is suitable for grades five and older.

A Little Piece of Ground by Elizabeth Laird with Sonia Nimr looks at war and peace through the eyes of a Palestinian boy. It clearly has a Palestinian bias but carries a strong feel of the impact of war on all who live through it. This book is best suited for middle school students.

When I Was a Soldier: A Memoir by Valerie Zenatti is a Batchelder Honor Book. This gritty, frank book well be best appreciated by young adults. It tells the true story of a young Jewish girl from France whose family immigrated to Israel. Like all Israeli youths, she joins the army soon after her 18th birthday. Using memories and journal entries, Zenatti tells her story as a rebellious young woman who wonders about her friends, her family, her boyfriend, and her personal commitment to her adopted home while facing life and death decisions on a regular basis.

Tasting the Sky: A Palestinian Childhood by Ibtisam Barakat gives a brief overview of the conflict before settling into her own story which begins with the Six-Day War. She writes with the grace of the poet that she is. The author was born in Ramallah and earned a degree in English literature in the West Bank. In addition to writing, she works with young people dealing with injustices in their lives. This is another book that is aimed at Middle School readers.

Deborah Ellis visited children caught up in the Israeli/Palestinian conflict at orphanages and schools, at McDonald's and at the Holocaust memorial, at home and in public to find out how they were dealing with life in a war zone. In Three Wishes: Palestinian and Israeli Children Speak they talk about sibling rivalry and wanting a special toy or pet, but they also talk of families separated, friends lost, and dreams put on hold. Throughout all of the stories, there runs a thread of hope that their lives will be better and at least some of their wishes will come true. While the writing is simple, I suggest that readers wait until reaching fifth grade or older to tackle this book.

Let's change places," the teenagers said.
"For a week, I'll be you and you be me."
Knowing if they did,t hey could never fight again.

Listen to them.


from "Trenches and Moats and Mounds of Dirt"
by Naomi Shihab Nye

I Have a Dream

I have a dream that is not nearly as inspiring as Reverend Doctor Martin Luther King, Jr. My dream this week is that people will use a part of the Martin Luther King, Jr. holiday to think about peace, justice, and equity. You could throw in a few books about King himself.

In fact, books are about King may be the easiest to find. For a first biography as well as beautiful illustrations, check out Martin's Big Words by Doreen Rappaport. This award winning book lets the story of King's life grow from quotes from his speeches. The words of the story itself are sparse. Text changes in font, size, and color to bring emphasis. Some of the concepts are not easy to grasp, so parents will want to share this book with their children for the first read. Then you can expect to see your child reading it again to fully appreciate the art and the words.

Search your library for the longer biography of King that best suits your interests and needs. There are many and I hesitate to suggest any one as my favorite. You will find many that are wonderful. You will also find some that were written to get to get on the bandwagon with little to offer in terms of writing or information. Look carefully.

If you want to address the Civil Rights Movement, there are many options.

In Warriors Don't Cry Melba Patillo Beals tells a moving story of her experiences as one of the students who integrated Little Rock High School. Young adults and adults will be touched by the courage that it took to face angry classmates and their angrier parents every day.

The brilliantly illustrated Rosa by Niki Giovanni is the most beautiful of the many biographies of Rosa Parks. Parks has also written an autobiography for middle grade readers.

Not everyone wants to read non-fiction. Luckily for all of us, there are many wonderful novels that address the inequalities that lead to the painful fight for civil rights.

For the reader in grades four and up it is hard to beat the works of Christopher Paul Curtis and the best of his works for talking about Civil Rights is The Watsons go to Birmingham--1964. As with all of the books by Curtis, its ability to capture the voice of a young boy with healthy dose of humor soon has the reader engulfed in the story. Because we are so comfortable with the characters as they travel from Flint, Michigan, to visit relatives Alabama, the ending is especially moving and meaningful. If you know what happened in Birmingham in 1964, you can already predict the event what event changes the story and the lives of its characters.

My two favorite picture books that give a poignant look at the 1960s are best shared with students in grade two or older because they include topics that require explanation and thought. Freedom Summer by Deborah Wiles features two young boys who ignore the differences in their skin color because they are friends. Then the city decides that rather than integrate the swimming pool as the new Civil Rights Act decrees, they will see that no one gets to swim. The emotions of the boys are the feelings any boy on a hot summer day would feel but also bring them to the realization of how differently the world views each of them.

A Taste of Colored Water by Matt Faulkner follows two young white children into town where they hope to see the "colored" water fountain. In their minds this means rainbow colored water that probably also means wonderful flavors. What they encounter is a group of protesters and police. It is a powerful story.

Let us not dwell entirely on the African American experience. There are many other fights that continue today for justice and equality as well as many others who have worked to make change.

Demi has created a beautifully illustrated biography simply titled Gandhi. The story is detailed but the lush pictures with gold accents will draw younger readers to listen to parts of the story. There seems to be a growing interest in offering Gandhi's story to elementary and grade school readers. Keep looking for a biography that appeals to you.

Biographies of Caesar Chavez, Nelson Mandela, and many more have found their way into juvenile literature. Explore libraries and bookstores to find stories of your favorite leader of change.

Ultimately, Martin Luther King, Jr. Day is about working for peace and understanding. With beautiful photographs from around the world, A Little Peace by Barbara Kerley offers simple ways to find peace around us all and to spread the message to others.

The Peace Book by Todd Parr is an even simpler, brightly colored discussion of peace. It strives to show very young readers that peace can be as simple as appreciating the right to wear different clothing or that not everyone likes the same things.

World Book has collected essays and thoughts on peace and human rights in Stand Up for Your Rights. Not all of these will appeal to everyone but it will not take you long to find something that appeals to you.

Look also for a book called We Are Born Free--The Universal Declaration of Human Rights in Pictures which, as the title indicates, offers a variety of illustrations to help everyone more clearly understand the intent of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

Find your own way to honor Martin Luther King, Jr. and celebrate his day by finding a way in which you can work to make a positive change in the world.

Books on a Plane

While flying may not be the great adventure it once was, it certainly offers great opportunities to pull out a good book. There are the long waits for your flight after you rushed to get to the airports early enough to be sure you were on time. Then, at least if you fly in the winter, there is the extra time spent on the plane as they de-ice the wings. Finally, there is the long flight with no flight attendant bothering you with meals and such.

My husband and I flew to San Francisco to spend the holidays with our math teacher daughter. (The musician spent the holidays sharing her voice with lucky listeners in churches and other venues.) It is a good long flight so we had plenty of time to read. The result is that I have four good titles to recommend that you consider for adult reading enjoyment.

Death With Interruptions by Jose Saramago offers an interesting premise. What if death decided to take a vacation and suddenly no one was dying? Saramago ponders this possibility with humor and philosophy. Imagine, if you will, the impact on religion if clerics no longer could tell people about the importance of what comes after death? Would the funeral industry be forced to offer services for pets? This novel is one that you will think about long after you finish the last page. Thank you to the parent who suggested that I would enjoy it.

Sea of Poppies by Amitav Ghosh takes the reader to Calcutta in the 19th century. The colonists have strongly encouraged the people of the rural areas to turn their wheat fields into poppy fields for the opium trade with China. The many characters who people the story represent all of the parties involved in this end of the opium trade. A woman whose husband has died from the addiction that came with his job processing the poppies into opium must run away to find a safe refuge. A ship's second mate tries to understand this new world that he reaches after a harrowing journey which has taken him far from the life he knew as a freed states in the young United States. The British, other natives of the area, and people from all walks of life bring strong accents and stronger feelings to this beautifully written story. I was totally engrossed in this book. The hardest part is that it is the first of a trilogy with the other parts yet to come.

The Seamstress by Frances de Pontes Peebles is set in Brazil in the 1920s and 1930s. Two sisters, raised by an aging aunt in the back country of Brazil, have very different dreams of how they will use their talents as seamstresses to fulfill their dreams. Luzia broke her arm as child and will never again be able to bend her elbow. This is the deformity that marks her when she becomes part of a notorious group of roaming bandits who rob and brutally murder the rich to give to the poor. Her sister Emilia has always dreamed of living in the big city of Recife so jumps at the chance when she meets the son of a wealthy man. Though their lives go in very different directions, each sister keeps an eye open to learn what the other is doing. It is the quality of the writing and the juxtaposition of the the two divergent ways of life that keep one rushing to the end.

I confess that I did not read Stitches by David Small until I got back from my trip, but I don't want anyone to miss this amazing memoir. David Small is an children's book author and illustrator who lives on the west side of Michigan. He won a Caldecott for So You Want to be a President? by Judith St. George. He also illustrates books by his wife Sarah Small and his own stories with easily recognizable drawings full of personality and life. Stitches, however, is not for children. This is the graphic story of Small's very difficult childhood. He survived abuse, cancer, and shocks and disappointments that no one should ever face. It makes one appreciate his happy tales even more. Sarah Stewart and David Small visited Emerson School about a dozen years ago. Everyone who heard them talk was moved by what kind and gentle people they are. This story adds new levels appreciation that I felt for them at that time.

You don't have to fly to find time to read. May your reading be one of the many pleasures you find in 2010.

Rhopalic Sentences

Until Wordsmith.org ran a contest for a rhopalic newspaper headline a couple weeks ago, there is no way that I could have defined "rhopal" for you. Now I know that it is a sentence or poem which either grows or decreases by one syllable or one letter as it progresses.

This kind of writing is not easy. Students in a couple of library class know this very well because they attempted to write rhopalic sentences. They did a great job, but ran into the same difficulties that I did with getting a great idea only to realize that the next word I wanted did not fit the rules.

Here are some of the sentences that students in grades four and five created in under 30 minutes, many with time left over to look for books they wanted to read.

With increasing/decreasing number of letters:

I do not like candy.

Is dog love enough?

Is cat love enough?

Special winter night--ever!

People fight lots for it.

Birds sing for it.

I do not like crazy people.

A no tow sign makes people quickly withdraw.

I am not good after dinner, Chicken Annelore.

I am the cool super person.

Why am I?

I am Jen Mood.

I am not nice.


With increasing/decreasing number of syllables.

Some person vomited Technicolors disastrously.

What lovely butterflies.

I played Mancala.

Kids-- skiing, snowboarding, outrageously extraordinary!


If you rearrange the sentences you can create some amazing poetry, especially if you stick in a couple of rhopalic sentences of your own. Let me know what you can create.

Happy Holidays

The holidays can be a tricky time for a school librarian. While it seems impossible to not mention the holidays, it is important to attempt to give equal emphasis to the various practices of my students. This year I headed for the safety of the connection of light that in some way ties the major holidays of this time of year. We touched briefly on Divali despite the fact that came very early this year. The other holidays we discussed were the winter solstice, St. Lucia Day, Hanukkah, Christmas, Kwanzaa, and Three Kings Day. As you have noticed, that still tips the balance toward Christianity. I try to include other religious and secular holidays throughout the year and hope that this offers a better balance by the end of the year.

In sharing books with the students, my goal is to offer those with little religion and lots of holiday customs. The library owns books that describe the religious stories of the holiday. I put these on display and hope that families will find the books that best serve their own beliefs and practices.

There are hundreds of books about Christmas. Some of them are good and some are just plain awful. Here are a few of my favorites for sharing with my students or personal enjoyment. All of the books on this list are picture books.

When I was a child, the Christmas Eve ritual was for my mother to read Clement C. Moore's The Night Before Christmas. I still can recite long portions of it from memory. Bookstores abound with different illustrations for this classic. What appeals to you may be all wrong for someone else. Jan Brett did some beautiful illustrations a few years ago, but I have heard people grumble that they are too busy. You will have to be your own judge.

Another classic is How the Grinch Stole Christmas by Dr. Seuss. This is not as much fun to read to children any more because they all think about the movie and think they know the story. They do not relax and enjoy the rhyme as well as the true scoop on the Grinch.

Also affected by the movie is the beautiful Polar Express by Chris Van Allsberg. Don't think you know the charm of this book if all you have done is watched the movie. This is a good book to read with a child snuggled on your lap.

The favorite book for my youngest listeners this year was clearly Minerva Louise on Christmas Eve by Janet Morgan Stoeke. If you have not met this very literal chicken, Christmas may the best time for an introduction to the many books with this winsome protagonist. Minerva Louise sees fancy fireflies on the tree outside her farmers' house. Then she spies a farmer in a red hat on the roof. He falls down the brick well up there so Minerva Louise follows to offer help, soon finding herself inside the house. There are many more confusions as Minerva Louise tries to understand things through the eyes of a chicken. The illustrations are bright and bold and the simple one or two sentence per page text draws even very young listeners into the book as they eagerly correct her mistakes.

Alan Say always uses beautiful illustrations to convey a cross-cultural story. Tree of Cranes takes the reader to Japan where a young boy's mother is remembering Christmas when she lived in the United States. The boy doesn't understand exactly what is happening but appreciates the beautiful tree that his mother makes.

A familiar message is conveyed in The All-I'll-Ever-Want Christmas Doll by Pat McKissack. We all remember that perfect gift that we wanted so desperately that we were willing to make all kinds of deals for it, like promising to never ask for anything else ever again. The young girl in this story wants a doll that is beyond the family's budget but she is very convincing and her mother acquiesces. Her sisters want to play with this perfect doll, too, but she is not about to share. That is when she learns the lesson of this story. Adults with laugh and cry with this story and most children will find themselves nodding knowingly at the conclusion.

The surprise ending is just a small part of the fun in Three French Hens by Margie Palatini. Three French hens are sent to a true love, but get lost in the mail and end up not in Paris but in New York City. These three girls want to fulfill their duty so they seek out Phillippe Renard, settling for plain, old Phil Fox whose only friend is the cockroach who shares his apartment. When the hens arrive Phil sees breakfast, lunch, and dinner, but these hens are too kind to ever be eaten. Palatini is a master of puns. Read this and laugh.

For sheer goofiness around the tree, try Where Did They Hide My Presents? by Alan Katz which sticks some new words into familiar Christmas songs.


Books about Hanukkah are not as easy to find. The best stories for this holiday seem to be all be written by Eric A. Kimmel who also writes great picture books about many other topics. Three of my favorites by Kimmel are The Chanukkah Guest in which a grandmother thinks that the Old Bear who comes to her house is the rabbi, Hershel and the Hanukkah Goblins which is full of magic and trickery, and Jar of Fools: Eight Hanukkah Stories from Chelm which presents the humorous tales of Chelm in a very accessible format. The last of those three books is not a picture book, but an enjoyable story collection with a few illustrations.

Another Hanukkah story that my first and second grade students enjoy is The Inside-Out Grandma by Joan Rothenberg. Rosie notices that her grandma is wearing all of her clothes inside out and asks why. This leads to a long list of memories that finally lead to remembering to buy enough oil to fry latkes for the entire family. My classes follow up the story with good discussions of how to remember things and what is important things to remember.

Kwanzaa has even fewer good books. There are only a handful of books that I have found that explain this uniquely American holiday. Of the ones in our school library, the best is Seven Candles for Kwanzaa by Andrea Davis Pinkney. Because there is so much to explain about the holiday, the students are soon bored with all of the wordiness required. This would be great to read one night at a time so that the new Swahili words as well as the difficult concepts are fresh in the reader's mind.

Seven Spools of Thread: A Kwanzaa Story by Angela Shelf Medaris is a good story from Africa that makes the principles of Kwanzaa more easily understood. The story is one of the few that I have had older students come back to re-read. They are impressed by the cooperation of the brothers involved in the story and clever solution to their problem.

Whatever holidays you will be celebrating this year, my best wishes go out for them to be happy for one and all. My holidays will include travel, family, and friends and several good books.

Getting Susie to Read

A friend recently asked me for reading suggestions for a friend's daughter. It seems this six year old girl was not reading as much as her older sister had at that age. The parent's wanted to "fix" this problem. The six year old was able to read; the teacher said she was reading and comprehending as well as any of the other students in the class. The problem, as the parent's saw it was, that she was not reading for fun. They wanted to books to give her that would make her enjoy reading and start to be an avid reader like her big sister.

This is a problem that is often not really a problem. If Susie, as I will call her though I don't know her real name, is not falling behind in class, perhaps she just has not found the right book yet. Unfortunately for her parents, having them push books on her may well make her withdraw from books even further. The worst thing to do may be to tell her she has to read "for fun" every day for a certain length of time. I sometimes wonder if I grew to dislike physical exercise because my gym teacher used exercise as a punishment. Being forced to read seems like a punishment, though it will be hard for Susie to understand why she is being punished.

While I gave my friend several title suggestions for the most interesting and enjoyable books that I could think of, I am now wishing that I had added more instructions for the parents. I would tell them to any or all of the following:

• Find some good books--perhaps from my suggestions, perhaps from a favorite librarian or bookseller, or perhaps just things that looked interesting to them--and leave them around the house where Susie will see them. Don't make an issue about them. Just have them around where she will see them when she is bored. The bathroom is one good location. Somewhere near her bed is another.
• Read to Susie. When she is totally engrossed in the story, find an excuse to leave her alone with the book. If she is enjoying the story, she may well finish it before you have another chance to read it. Some parents even say, "Please don't finish this without me because I want to know how it ends." You have to know your child to try this, because she may put your request above her own interests.
• Have her see her parents read for pleasure. Some studies suggest that seeing the father read for pleasure is the most powerful impetus for children to read. It is important that this be reading for pleasure. If parents read only work related things or child rearing books or anything that may make them sigh or groan the idea of reading as work or punishment will be re-enforced.
• Don't stress. I have seen so many kids who did not read for pleasure in the early grades suddenly become avid reason for no apparent reason. Just a few weeks ago a young man who used to hate--he would have put it in capital letters, HATE--to read. I don't what it was that changed all that, but now he is reading at a very high level and willing to have good discussions about the books he has read. (Last week we discussed Moby Dick.)

I hope that Susie soon finds the joys of reading. It seems likely that at this point, though, that the best route is for her parents to make books convenient and enjoyable companions for her and then let nature take its course.