Not My Problem (YA fiction)

     Aideen, protagonist of Ciara Smyth's Not My Problem, is the student who manages to step on the last nerve of many teachers. She rarely does her homework assignments. She routinely gets out of gym on the basis of highly improbable illnesses. She's minimally engaged in anything to do with her education. But when asked about her home life she insists that everything's fine...

     ...even though nothing is further from the truth. Her family is a hot mess. She is the result of her mother's affair with a married man--one who doesn't have the decency to vanish and stay lost. He keeps Aideen and her mom his dirty little secret, staging periodic visits which leave her alcoholic mother in seriously bad shape and Aideen needing to pull her out of her spiral and handle the basics like not starving...

     ...but she has no one to help. The school would call in social workers which could lead to foster care...

     ...Also Aideen's only real friend, Holly, seems to be ditching her for another girl.

     ...with all that uncertainty and precariousness is it any wonder that she doesn't have the bandwidth for trigonometry?

    One day Aideen finds her nemesis, overscheduled Meabh, throwing a tantrum. She's afraid that one slip will lead to her "lying in the gutter, a needle sticking out of her arm and a glazed expression on her face." Aideen finds an unorthodox way to buy her breathing space. 

     It's only the beginning. Other students begin asking her to solve their problems. Only that necessitates seriously risky business like breaking and entering and kidnapping.

     How long can Aideen keep walking the tightrope her life has become before it breaks?

On a purrrsonal note, I'm having really good days. Saturday I tabled for Black Bear Mutual Aid Fund with Catherine and other friends. Sunday Eugene and I went on a road trip and found garage sale bargains. Today I went on a Goodwill/Hannaford run and found a gorgeous dress, an adorable Squishmallow, and of course yummy fruits and veggies. Hannaford produce rocks!!!

A great big shout out goes out to the Hannaford produce workers.

Jules Hathaway 

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More pages from my joy journal

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Eliza, from Scratch

     I think many of us know/knew high school students like Eliza, teens who are focused on academic achievement and competition and filling in all the right boxes to get into an elite university to the exclusion of just about anything else. So you'll probably understand her total panic when she learns of a class change the first day of senior year. Instead of AP Physics she's been placed in Culinary Arts. It's a non weighted class, so even if she gets all A's someone taking all weighted classes could knock her down in class rank. When her guidance counselor tells her to not be afraid of taking it easy she thinks:

     "Now is not the time to take things easy, I want to say. I can take things easy when I have a college acceptance in hand and have given my salutatorian speech at graduation to a room of weepy eyes and all the work I've invested throughout the last three years has finally turned into something real."

     Actually in culinary Eliza is in a totally new situation. She's behind all her classmates, especially the obnoxious know-it-all Wesley with whom she's paired for a semester long group project.

     Eliza thinks she's in for a semester from hell.

But she may be mistaken. Maybe she can acquire valuable skills. Maybe the regular (non AP) students are worth knowing and being friends with...

     ...and maybe, just maybe, Wesley is not as obnoxious as he seems to be.

On a purrrsonal note, I had the heady experience of something I've intuited being confirmed by science. And it has a name: post-traumatic growth aka that which doesn't kill you makes you stronger. The trauma was the stroke nearly two years ago. I never would have chosen to have one. But I've experienced far more cognitive and emotional growth than I would have otherwise. The article I read said certain conditions make post-traumatic growth more likely:

1) finances. Eugene and I aren't rich, but we're managing. 

2) emotional support. Between family, friends, and the UMaine, Orono, and Greystone communities I have been surrounded by love ❤️ and support. 

3) self efficacy and a sense that one's life has meaning and purpose. I have them in spades.

I'm really proud of my growth in the past two years and eager to see how much I'll grow in the third. 

A great big shout out goes out to all who have contributed to my growth. 

Jules Hathaway 

Jules Hathaway 

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My grand prize

Isn't it AWESOME? If you look closely at the bag you'll see all these Harry Potter symbols. And one of the pins has a reading cat. Totally purrrfect. It's Orono Festival Day. I'm supposed to table with Black Bear Mutual Aid Fund. Gonna pack and start walking. Do something fun today if you get the chance.

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This Could Be Forever (YA romance)

    

     Ebony LaDelle's This Could Be Forever is a quite suspenseful and relatable YA romance.  You know what I mean. You really want the protagonists to fight their way to happy ever after and there are strong obstacles in the way. But it's also much more, offering fascinating insights into a culture many of us know little about. 

     It starts when Deja, who is visiting the college she's going to attend, steps into the tattoo shop where Raja (who also will be a first year student there) works. The sparks are there. Even though they don't exchange digits you just know it isn't the last they'll see of each other. If only it was that easy.

     Raja's devout Hindu parents have their hearts 💕 set on him becoming an engineer. Not exactly compatible with his dreams of being a tattoo artist and opening his own shop. Even though he isn't going out of state for college they're angry that he's moved out of the family home into a studio apartment of his own. They're determined to set him up with an arranged marriage to a proper caste Hindu girl from Nepal...

     ...most definitely not a Black Christian American. But they aren't the only ones with reservations about the relationship. Deja's family hails from North Carolina where they experience plenty of racism. Her parents want her to be respected and loved, something they fear Raja's family will be incapable of. 

     But while the parents on both sides are acting apprehensive and sometimes cringe worthy Deja and Raja are finding allies in siblings and cousins. Will love conquer all?...

     ...only one way to find out. 

On a purrrsonal note, I am having an absolutely purrrfect Friday. It started on campus with first Friday bagels. My bestie Catherine toasted me a perfect sweet cinnamon one. (If she ever gets tired of anthropology she'd have a future with Bagel Central.) I saw so many friends who love my tattoo. I went to the fiber arts club which I know I'll enjoy. And best of all I got an email 📧 saying I WON ONE OF THE GRAND PRIZES in the Orono Public Library summer ☀️ reading challenge. Luckily Catherine, who was giving me a ride home, was agreeable to stopping at the library on the way. 

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Today is simply gorgeous here in Penobscot County, Maine: sunny 🌞 but not too hot. Flowers are very much in bloom with trees just starting to show the colors that will attract legions of leaf 🍃 peepers. Yesterday was great. It was Organizational Fair at Black Bear Nation. I was tabling with Black Bear Mutual Aid Fund. We were looking for new members and raising money. Our dunk tank was quite popular. I was envying the guys getting dunked. It was pretty hot out. Today I did a Goodwill run and found these simply irresistible cuties. Saturday is Orono Festival Day. I'll be tabling with BBMAF again. And (unless they're 🌧 out) there will be FIREWORKS 🎆! 

I hope you have something fun planned for your weekend. 

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A Pair Of Nature Picture Books

     Jordan Zwetchkenbaum's My Pollinator Garden gives young readers and listeners a up close and personal look at the many critters who carry pollen from one plant 🌼 🌸 to another so they can make seeds. We tend to think of bees in this role. But wasps, flies, butterflies 🦋, humming birds, and even bats play a part in this important activity. 

     With many pollinators endangered kids and families can help protect them by planting special pollinators. This fine book gives advice on getting into this important and rewarding hobby. It has a great bibliography for kids who want to read more on the subject. 

     

     Kirsten Pendreigh's When a Tree Falls: Nurse Logs and Their Incredible Forest Power gives young readers and listeners a bird's eye view of the life cycle of a tree. 

     As a tree grows it shelters a number of forest creatures. But what happens when it falls?

     It becomes a nurse log nurturing and sheltering a wide variety of flora and fauna in many important ways...

     ...including a brand new tree.

     Maine is full of forests with fallen trees. A good family activity would be to read When a Tree Falls and then go into the woods to examine nurse logs in real life.

On a purrrsonal note, the budding gardeners who tend the plants in the Orono Public Library's Children's Garden are big time pollinator fans and avid students of nature. Those kids are terrific!!! I'm so enjoying getting to know them as I photograph them for the library's social media. Yesterday it was really hot out and some of the kids were resting in the shade. They discovered my backpack and were playing with the Keychain critters. They really liked them. I promised them that next Tuesday I'll bring in a bag of critters they can keep. They're so excited!!! That will be so much fun!!!

A great big shout out goes out to our young gardeners, parent volunteers, library staff, and the library itself which is such a vital part of the Orono community. 

Jules Hathaway 

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