MMGM NW Authors: Something To Hold by Katherine Schlick Noe

About The Book: Can a white girl feel at home on an Indian reservation?
Based on the author’s childhood experience in the early 1960s, this debut novel centers on Kitty, whose father is a government forester at Warm Springs Reservation, Oregon. Kitty is one of only two white kids in her class, and the Indian kids are keeping their distance. With time, Kitty becomes increasingly aware of the tensions and prejudices between Indians and whites, and of the past injustice and pain still very much alive on the reservation. Time also brings friendships and opportunities to make a difference. 
  
First Line: "Station One, this is Sidwalter Lookout. Come in!" A woman's voice, strained and urgent, drags me out of sleep.
   
Awesome Passage: When we arrive at the playfield after lunch, there's a big knot of kids at the backstop. Baseball happens, every day, even when the wind is biting, like today.

What Others Are Saying: "Kitty’s discoveries and ethical dilemmas are age-and era-appropriate, the characters affectionately portrayed, rounded individuals."--Kirkus
   
"Based on the author's own experiences, this novel fills a gap in the historical fiction genre. Great for classroom discussion as well as independent reading." --School Library Journal
Awards:  2012 Washington State Book Award for middle grade/young adult2012 Notable Social Studies Trade Book for Young People

What I Thought: I've only read a few middle grade memoirs but one thing that I believe is crucial is an authentic voice. Noe definitely nails it which makes this not only believable but enjoyable. Kitty's challenges are universal; great jumping off points for further discussion. I especially appreciated the layers of bullying she exposed. I think we often simplify the subject into bullies and the bullied, but reality is much mor complex than that. I highly recommend this as a great read-aloud for parents and teachers. 

About The Author: 
Katherine Schlick Noe
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Who: Katherine Schlick Noe is Professor of Education and Director of Literacy in the College of Education at Seattle University. A former high school English and reading teacher, she received her Ph.D. in Reading/Language Arts from the University of Washington. Katherine works with beginning teachers in the Master in Teaching Program and directs the master's degree program in Literacy for Special Needs, preparing reading specialists. —Seattle University

Why: The years at Warm Springs were pivotal for me, as they are for all children between the ages of seven and eleven. Something to Holdis grounded in universals. We all long to find a place to belong, to make friends, to feel connected and rooted. The book also explores a unique perspective of a non-Indian outsider’s growing awareness of prejudice, including her own. —The Fourth Musketeer

Be sure to check back because part of my NW author focus will be interviews and giveaways so don't miss them. Next week The Ring of Leilani by Annie Crawford!

MMGM Review: One Day And One Amazing Morning on Orange Street by Joanne Rocklin

About The Book: When a mysterious man arrives one day on Orange Street, the children who live on the block try to find out who he is and why he’s there. Little do they know that his story—and the story of a very old orange tree—connects to each of their personal worries in ways they never could have imagined. From impressing friends to dealing with an expanding family to understanding a younger sibling’s illness, the characters’ storylines come together around that orange tree. Taking place over the course of a day and a half, Joanne Rocklin’s masterful novel deftly builds a story about family, childhood anxieties, and the importance of connection. In the end the fate of the tree (and the kids who care for it) reminds us of the magic of the everyday and of the rich history all around us.

First Line: It was a hot summer day on Orange Street, one of those days that seem ordinary until you look back on it. 


One Great Line: "Mostly sweet, but tart, like happiness and sadness mixed together." (144)

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Cover Art: Chris Buzelli

Website
Who:After graduating from Rhode Island School of Design, I moved to New York City and began my career as an illustrator. Fortunately my oil paintings have appeared in many national publications, books and projects for design firms/advertising agencies. Currently I also show my original paintings in various galleries throughout the US and teach once a week at RISD and SVA. I live with my wife, SooJin, and mini-pinscher, Sota.

What Others Are Saying: "...realistic, evocative novel, which features a warm and believable community of adults and children... culminating in a confrontation that resolves several mysteries and brings out the best in everyone." -Publishers Weekly

" Fascinating and thought-provoking, the writing has a gentle cadence, richness in detail, and is charged with emotion." -School Library Journal

What I Thought: In about thirty minutes my new grandson will be born. These milestone events often crown our lives and connect us to one another. Rocklin's story about an ordinary orange tree highlights how many ways we are connected, the small ways that we often forget about. As she describes each character, we get a glimpse of their own thoughts and dreams. The orange tree standing alone in the vacant lot provides a sense of place, a grounded tangible metaphor for life. With its roots firmly planted it is free to extend itself with all it has to offer. This multifaceted story would be a great read aloud, an opportunity to discuss these similarities we all share.

About The Author:Joanne Rocklin Website

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Who: Joanne Rocklin, Ph.D. has written over 20 books for children, encompassing several genres. She has a doctorate in psychology and is a former elementary school teacher, presently writing children's books full-time. Originally from Montreal, Canada, Joanne lived in Los Angeles for many decades. She now resides in Oakland, California with her husband Gerry, one cat and one golden retriever. When not writing she enjoys babysitting regularly for her four grandchildren, singing in a choir, gardening, baking artisan breads and reading voraciously. -Balkin Buddies

MMGM: Crush by Gary Paulsen

Release Date: May 8, 2012
About The Book:Readers met the comical Kevin in Liar, Liar and Flat Broke. Kevin gets serious about Tina Zabinski, the Most Beautiful Girl in the World. Finally, finally, he's worked up his courage—he's going to ask her out. Or will his trademark scheming get in his way?


First Line: I'm the most romantic guy you'll ever meet.


One Hilarious Line: That plastic-looking, fake-named, phony-friendly doofus wasn't going to waltz into my school and take my girlfriend away from me. (10)


What Others Are Saying: "Kevin takes his understanding
 of the scientific method and attempts to apply to it learning 
about romance. His naivete and innocence about relationships 
and dating makes not only this character, but even his crazy 
antics all the more endearing. The girls who were bored by Hatchet will love Crush." -Mrs. Bond on Goodreads


What I Thought: There are few books that make me literally laugh out-loud and this one did. I don't think there was a page that lacked something outrageosusly funny. Middle school readers will love every minute of Kevin's experiments of love. I hadn't had a chance to read Kevin's other adventures and I definitely want to pick them up,now. Paulsen really has an authentic middle grade voice and makes this story believable.

About The Author: Gary Paulsen


Who: Born May 17, 1939, Gary Paulsen is one of America's most popular writers for young people. Although he was never a dedicated student, Paulsen developed a passion for reading at an early age. After a librarian gave him a book to read — along with his own library card — he was hooked. He began spending hours alone in the basement of his apartment building, reading one book after another.

Running away from home at the age of 14 and traveling with a carnival, Paulsen acquired a taste for adventure. A youthful summer of rigorous chores on a farm; jobs as an engineer, construction worker, ranch hand, truck driver, and sailor; and two rounds of the 1,180-mile Alaskan dog sled race, the Iditarod; have provided ample material from which he creates his powerful stories.-Random House
How: Writing is so much a part of the way I live that I would be lost without the discipline and routine. I write every day—every day—and it gives me balance and focus. Every day I wake up, usually at 4:30 a.m., with the sole purpose of sitting down to write with a cup of hot tea and a computer or a laptop or a pad of paper—it doesn’t matter. I’ve written whole books in my office, in a dog kennel with a headlamp, on more airplanes than I can remember, on the trampoline of my catamaran off the shores of Fiji—it never matters where I write, just where the writing takes me.-Random House