Garbology
Adult nonfiction
We're Number One! We're Number One! Americans are quite fond
of this chant. It is not, however, always a cause for celebration.
According to Edward Humes' Garbology: Our Dirty Love Affair With
Trash, we create more trash than any other people: 7.1 pounds per
person per day which works out to 102 tons over an average lifetime!
Out of sight, out of mind.
Great balls of fire! How did we get to this point? Humes gives
us the very interesting back story behind our current wasteful life
styles and spells out the scary unintended consequences. For me the
most frightening chapters were the ones on the oceans which are
rapidly becoming plastic soups. It is estimated that every year 5.6
million tons of plastic debris ends up in the oceans every year, much
of which is ingested by the small organisms that sustain the rest of
the food chain. Does this endanger their survival? Enough can take
down a whale. And can plastic's ability to bond with even more toxic
chemicals create a ticking time bomb for all consumers right up
through the top predators? Tuna sandwich, anyone?
By the way, unlike some environmental problems that deniers are
trying to find culprits other than humankind for, say global warming,
there is no wiggle room here. Only people produce plastic. Got it?
A couple of really fascinating chapters in the book are all
about how people are using both state of the art electronics and old
school archaeology techniques to learn more about where trash goes and
what items we consider garbage. They really shoot down a lot of
assumptions people have about both waste collection and recycling. I
bet you'll find some surprising information. I certainly did.
Fortunately, after schooling readers on the enormity of the
garbage crisis, Humes does not leave us guilt ridden and without
hope. His last chapters cover projects large and small aimed at
lessening humankind's trash footprint. Ranging from a family of four
whose trash for a year can fit in a large mason jar to some truly
enlightened cities and countries, they can give us much food for
thought. My favorite is the artist-in-residence program at the San
Francisco dump.
If you are in the mood for some trashy (intentionally bad pun)
summer reading or want to be part of the solution rather the problem
when it comes to garbage, Garbology is a truly excellent choice. I
think I'll have my book club read it for our November meeting and hope
it effects people's holiday buying.
On a personal note, Veazie used to have a structure, The Barn, where
people could leave or take useful items. I used to get lots of
wonderful things ranging from clothes and toys for my then young
children to yarn for my knitting. It also was an amazingly social
place. Sadly it was shut down when a few people left shall we say
inappropriate items. I think if we had more Barns a lot of useful
items would be diverted from the trash stream.
A great big shout out goes out to all who wrestle with the garbage
crisis that is practically invisible to most of us.
Julia Emily Hathaway
PS In the 24 hour gap between writing and posting I saw a fascinating
article on composting in the Big Apple. New York City is having
students in 230 of its 1300 public schools (with plans to expand to
all) placing uneaten food in separate containers for composting. Some
kids even sort out uncompostable stuff. Not only is the city saving
$10 to $50 each ton and creating rich soil farmers will buy, they are
creating disciples of green. There are very few kids who don't like
showing mom and dad the error of our ways.
Sent from my iPod
Thursday, June 26, 2014
Wednesday, June 25, 2014
The Promise Of A Pencil
The Promise Of A Pencil
Adult Non Fiction
A simple act changed Adam Braun's life forever. During his
college years he went on Semester At Sea, travelling by boat to
countries around the world. He decided he did not want to collect
touristy souvenirs as memoires of his experience. He would ask
children in the countries, "If you could have anything in the world,
what would you want most?" He was sure they would request toys and
electronic gadgets. Responses were much more basic. In India a
little boy said, "A pencil." He was thrilled to receive a basic number
2 pencil.
Braun wrote, "For me that pencil was a writing utensil, but for
him it was a key. It was a symbol. It was a portal to creativity,
curiosity, and possibility...That single stick of wood and graphite
could enable him to explore worlds within that he would never
otherwise access."
Needless to say, Braun found the plum corporate job he landed
after graduation to be less than he desired. He wanted to find
something that he was passionate about, that he could dedicate his
life to. When he became eligible for an externship, a sort of
corporate sabbatical, he decided to use it to start a nonprofit.
Remembering the little boy who had been overjoyed to receive the most
basic writing implement, he decided to build schools for children in
other countries who otherwise would not have access to education.
The Promise of a Pencil is Braun's narrative, from back story to
present, of the organization he created, Promise of Pencils. In a
relatively short time it has built hundreds of schools in truly
impoverished areas of the world. It is, however, more than a
fascinating read. Braun targets people who want to add meaning to
their lives by starting or becoming part of something bigger than
self. Each chapter, while containing a step in organization history,
is focussed on and illustrative of a mantra such as "You cannot fake
authenticity" and, my favorite, "Embrace the lightning moments."
For all of us who believe there is more to life than capitalism
on steroids and want to make a difference in the world, The Promise of
a Pencil is a very worthwhile read.
On a personal note, my grad school savings account which I started
back in March with $142.19 left from the money I inherited from my
mother has just topped $300. Most of that is from recycling bottles
and cans. My enthusiasm seems to be contagious because I've started
getting help from people like a wheelbarrow full of bottles and cans
and a sandwich bag of pennies.
A great big shout out goes out to all who work to extend the promise
of education to children who otherwise would have no future.
Julia Emily Hathaway
Sent from my iPod
Adult Non Fiction
A simple act changed Adam Braun's life forever. During his
college years he went on Semester At Sea, travelling by boat to
countries around the world. He decided he did not want to collect
touristy souvenirs as memoires of his experience. He would ask
children in the countries, "If you could have anything in the world,
what would you want most?" He was sure they would request toys and
electronic gadgets. Responses were much more basic. In India a
little boy said, "A pencil." He was thrilled to receive a basic number
2 pencil.
Braun wrote, "For me that pencil was a writing utensil, but for
him it was a key. It was a symbol. It was a portal to creativity,
curiosity, and possibility...That single stick of wood and graphite
could enable him to explore worlds within that he would never
otherwise access."
Needless to say, Braun found the plum corporate job he landed
after graduation to be less than he desired. He wanted to find
something that he was passionate about, that he could dedicate his
life to. When he became eligible for an externship, a sort of
corporate sabbatical, he decided to use it to start a nonprofit.
Remembering the little boy who had been overjoyed to receive the most
basic writing implement, he decided to build schools for children in
other countries who otherwise would not have access to education.
The Promise of a Pencil is Braun's narrative, from back story to
present, of the organization he created, Promise of Pencils. In a
relatively short time it has built hundreds of schools in truly
impoverished areas of the world. It is, however, more than a
fascinating read. Braun targets people who want to add meaning to
their lives by starting or becoming part of something bigger than
self. Each chapter, while containing a step in organization history,
is focussed on and illustrative of a mantra such as "You cannot fake
authenticity" and, my favorite, "Embrace the lightning moments."
For all of us who believe there is more to life than capitalism
on steroids and want to make a difference in the world, The Promise of
a Pencil is a very worthwhile read.
On a personal note, my grad school savings account which I started
back in March with $142.19 left from the money I inherited from my
mother has just topped $300. Most of that is from recycling bottles
and cans. My enthusiasm seems to be contagious because I've started
getting help from people like a wheelbarrow full of bottles and cans
and a sandwich bag of pennies.
A great big shout out goes out to all who work to extend the promise
of education to children who otherwise would have no future.
Julia Emily Hathaway
Sent from my iPod
Beyond Magenta
Beyond Magenta
YA nonfiction
I first learned about transgender people in a really bizarre
way--from a legal perspective. (I was so naive then. I actually
thought there were only two genders.) I was on school committee. Our
neighboring town was involved in legal issues. A student's family was
suing the school system. That was when I learned that some people
identify with the gender that they feel more closely reflects their
inner selves (which made all the sense in the world to me) and other
people find them very frightening or dangerous (which made no sense
whatsoever). People were talking about building facilities like
bathrooms and locker rooms and legal obligations of schools and I was
wanting to step back and look at a much broader and deeper picture.
So I did what any true library geek would in the situation--set
out to learn all that I could. The way I see it there are two issues
to learn about. One is the prejudices transgender people face. We
need to be aware to help change that. The other is how our
transgender friends want us to see them and be with them.
One of the books I enjoyed reading the most was Susan Kuklin's
Beyond Magenta: Transgender Teens Speak Out. It's a wonderful
compilation of narrative and photography. Reading it is like being
introduced to some really fascinating young people. There's Jessy who
transitioned not only between genders, but between the cultures of
Thailand and the United States. There's Christina who came out as
transgender in a Catholic all boys school. There's Nat who self
identifies as gender neutral, neither male nor female with
characteristics of both, and wants to be alluded to as them or they
rather than he or she.
Two threads run through the book. One is the cruelty and
ignorance so often shown by the outside world. The other is the
notion that a binary male/female classification system or even a
continuum is just plain inadequate. One of the interviewees, Cameron,
envisions gender as three dimensional. Kuklin comments in her
author's note, "...Now that I've spent a few years researching and
talking with people who fall under the transgender umbrella, I am
confident saying that male/female is not the only way to describe
gender. The people I've come to know and love in the course of
writing and photographing this book have helped me better understand
the fluidity of gender and sex."
Kuklin started working on the book with the idea that she was
writing about "...boys who realize that they are girls and girls who
realize that they are boys." As she learned more, the scope of Beyond
Magenta, as the title implies, evolved. This beautiful volume has the
potential to evoke a similar change in the mind of readers. Therein
lies its power.
On a personal note, when I became a parent and said I had no problem
with gay and lesbian people folks would sidle up to me and say in an
ominous tone, but what if it's YOUR CHILD? Then they would think I
was lying, naive, or saintly. None of the above. It wasn't my
issue. Being a peace advocate, I knew my challenge would be if one of
my kids chose the armed forces. I would stick to my beliefs while
learning how to be supportive under the circumstances. With a child
heading toward the Navy that is just what I'm doing.
A great big shout out goes out to the LGBT community and allies.
Julia Emily Hathaway
Sent from my iPod
YA nonfiction
I first learned about transgender people in a really bizarre
way--from a legal perspective. (I was so naive then. I actually
thought there were only two genders.) I was on school committee. Our
neighboring town was involved in legal issues. A student's family was
suing the school system. That was when I learned that some people
identify with the gender that they feel more closely reflects their
inner selves (which made all the sense in the world to me) and other
people find them very frightening or dangerous (which made no sense
whatsoever). People were talking about building facilities like
bathrooms and locker rooms and legal obligations of schools and I was
wanting to step back and look at a much broader and deeper picture.
So I did what any true library geek would in the situation--set
out to learn all that I could. The way I see it there are two issues
to learn about. One is the prejudices transgender people face. We
need to be aware to help change that. The other is how our
transgender friends want us to see them and be with them.
One of the books I enjoyed reading the most was Susan Kuklin's
Beyond Magenta: Transgender Teens Speak Out. It's a wonderful
compilation of narrative and photography. Reading it is like being
introduced to some really fascinating young people. There's Jessy who
transitioned not only between genders, but between the cultures of
Thailand and the United States. There's Christina who came out as
transgender in a Catholic all boys school. There's Nat who self
identifies as gender neutral, neither male nor female with
characteristics of both, and wants to be alluded to as them or they
rather than he or she.
Two threads run through the book. One is the cruelty and
ignorance so often shown by the outside world. The other is the
notion that a binary male/female classification system or even a
continuum is just plain inadequate. One of the interviewees, Cameron,
envisions gender as three dimensional. Kuklin comments in her
author's note, "...Now that I've spent a few years researching and
talking with people who fall under the transgender umbrella, I am
confident saying that male/female is not the only way to describe
gender. The people I've come to know and love in the course of
writing and photographing this book have helped me better understand
the fluidity of gender and sex."
Kuklin started working on the book with the idea that she was
writing about "...boys who realize that they are girls and girls who
realize that they are boys." As she learned more, the scope of Beyond
Magenta, as the title implies, evolved. This beautiful volume has the
potential to evoke a similar change in the mind of readers. Therein
lies its power.
On a personal note, when I became a parent and said I had no problem
with gay and lesbian people folks would sidle up to me and say in an
ominous tone, but what if it's YOUR CHILD? Then they would think I
was lying, naive, or saintly. None of the above. It wasn't my
issue. Being a peace advocate, I knew my challenge would be if one of
my kids chose the armed forces. I would stick to my beliefs while
learning how to be supportive under the circumstances. With a child
heading toward the Navy that is just what I'm doing.
A great big shout out goes out to the LGBT community and allies.
Julia Emily Hathaway
Sent from my iPod
Cotton Tenants: Three Families
Cotton Tenants: Three Families
Adult nonfiction
"A civilization which for any reason puts a human life at a
disadvantage; or a civilization which can exist only by putting human
life at a disadvantage; is worthy neither of the name or of
continuance. And a human being whose life is nurtured in an advantage
which has accrued from the disadvantage of other human beings, and who
prefers that it should remain as it is, is a human being by definition
only, having much more in common with the bedbug, the tapeworm, the
cancer, and the scavengers of the deep sea."
Yowza!
In 1936 James Agee, a Fortune magazine writer, was commissioned
to do a report on the lives of tenant farmers. Agee was not confident
that he could pull it off. He was also skeptical that the magazine
would publish the piece in the form he would write it. They did not.
As a matter of fact Cotton Tenants: Three Families was not published
until 77 years after it was written. Sadly the quote from it with
which I started this review is as true today as when it was penned.
Tenant farming in 1936 was a very precarious business. Bad
weather, weeds, and insect pests could spell disaster. Often the
farmer would earn less than he owed, plunging him deeper into debt.
Agee indicted a combination of capitalism and feudalism as
perpetuating the wretched situation.
I must mention two caveats early on. First, Agee was a poet as
well as a journalist. His voice reflected this. Some of his
allusions are a little hard to follow. The second is that he shared
some of the prejudices of his time. Some of the inferences he makes
on the presumed intellectual and moral deficiencies of his subjects
may be hard for twenty-first century readers to swallow.
Nevertheless, Agee's chapters, grouped into categories such as
shelter and education, and the accompanying period photos by Walker
Evans are highly revealing and shocking. Take the chapter on food.
Agee considers his subjects haves in the world of tenant farmers
because they have three meals a day except in the four hardest months
of the year. But look at what those meals consist of. The chapter on
health is a total heart breaker. Infant mortality is unconscienably
high. One of the families profiled lost seven out of thirteen
children. And those who up their survival chances by living past
their second birthday live with conditions such as epilepsy, maleria,
and cancer.
However, it would be a serious mistake to read Cotton Tenants as
only a period piece and indictment of the past. Although it takes
drastically different forms, the blend of capitalism and feudalism
Agee described is alive and well today. We'll never get beyond it
until we see the wrongness of a society in which a small minority are
allowed to benefit from the disadvantage of legions of others and act
decisively to change this.
On a personal note, Orono Public Library had an outdoor concert with
Julie and the Bug Boys and used book sale. The weather was ideal,
sunny with a breeze. Everyone had a wonderful time. And the library
raised good money for community programs.
A great big shout put goes out to everyone who worked to make it such
a success.
Julia Emily Hathaway
Sent from my iPod
Adult nonfiction
"A civilization which for any reason puts a human life at a
disadvantage; or a civilization which can exist only by putting human
life at a disadvantage; is worthy neither of the name or of
continuance. And a human being whose life is nurtured in an advantage
which has accrued from the disadvantage of other human beings, and who
prefers that it should remain as it is, is a human being by definition
only, having much more in common with the bedbug, the tapeworm, the
cancer, and the scavengers of the deep sea."
Yowza!
In 1936 James Agee, a Fortune magazine writer, was commissioned
to do a report on the lives of tenant farmers. Agee was not confident
that he could pull it off. He was also skeptical that the magazine
would publish the piece in the form he would write it. They did not.
As a matter of fact Cotton Tenants: Three Families was not published
until 77 years after it was written. Sadly the quote from it with
which I started this review is as true today as when it was penned.
Tenant farming in 1936 was a very precarious business. Bad
weather, weeds, and insect pests could spell disaster. Often the
farmer would earn less than he owed, plunging him deeper into debt.
Agee indicted a combination of capitalism and feudalism as
perpetuating the wretched situation.
I must mention two caveats early on. First, Agee was a poet as
well as a journalist. His voice reflected this. Some of his
allusions are a little hard to follow. The second is that he shared
some of the prejudices of his time. Some of the inferences he makes
on the presumed intellectual and moral deficiencies of his subjects
may be hard for twenty-first century readers to swallow.
Nevertheless, Agee's chapters, grouped into categories such as
shelter and education, and the accompanying period photos by Walker
Evans are highly revealing and shocking. Take the chapter on food.
Agee considers his subjects haves in the world of tenant farmers
because they have three meals a day except in the four hardest months
of the year. But look at what those meals consist of. The chapter on
health is a total heart breaker. Infant mortality is unconscienably
high. One of the families profiled lost seven out of thirteen
children. And those who up their survival chances by living past
their second birthday live with conditions such as epilepsy, maleria,
and cancer.
However, it would be a serious mistake to read Cotton Tenants as
only a period piece and indictment of the past. Although it takes
drastically different forms, the blend of capitalism and feudalism
Agee described is alive and well today. We'll never get beyond it
until we see the wrongness of a society in which a small minority are
allowed to benefit from the disadvantage of legions of others and act
decisively to change this.
On a personal note, Orono Public Library had an outdoor concert with
Julie and the Bug Boys and used book sale. The weather was ideal,
sunny with a breeze. Everyone had a wonderful time. And the library
raised good money for community programs.
A great big shout put goes out to everyone who worked to make it such
a success.
Julia Emily Hathaway
Sent from my iPod
Keep Quiet
Keep Quiet
Adult fiction audiotape
Two truths I have discovered in my time on this Earth:
1) There is never enough time to read all the books worth reading.
2) HOUSEWORK TOTALLY SUCKS.
Yesterday I came up with a brilliant idea. Katie had discovered and
highly recommended a prolific author, Lisa Scottoline. I put her work
on my lengthy to read list. I saw her novel, Keep Quiet, displayed
prominently on the adult audiovisual shelves. The blurb on the back
looked really interesting, especially since I am the parent of a teen
age son. This morning before I started the cleaning I put it on.
Within minutes I was pulled right into the drama. It was much more
interesting than television because my imagination was needed to
complete the picture. I guess it was like radio stories for the pre
TV generations.
If you are the mother or father of a teenager, you know this can
be an intense time for both parent and child. The youngster who
previously delighted in your company may be a lot less eager for
quality time now. In fact, you may have morphed into the most
embarassing person who ever walked the face of the Earth or a disliked
enforcer of rules. Of course we saw that situation from the other
side in our younger years. But our parents seemed somehow less
traumatized. This appears especially true for older parents in the
boomer generation. Our folks were comfortable with a more distant,
authoritarian role. We have been sold on a closer, more equal role
where emotianal intimacy between parent and child can exceed that even
between spouse and spouse. So any rupture can be torture.
This is the case with Jake, Scottoline's protagonist. He and
his son, Ryan, 16, have become increasingly estranged. He feels
pressure to mend the alienation before Ryan goes off to college. The
precariousness he feels in their relationship causes him to make a
very bad decision. He allows Ryan to drive at an hour the law does
not allow him to. They hit a jogger, killing her. Attempts to
ressecitate her fail.
At first Jake decides they will say he was driving the car.
Then Ryan shows him a baggie of grass and admits to having had some.
Jake sees his chances for a college, a career, any kind of a future in
jeopardy. He decides to go the hit and run route, convincing a
traumatized Ryan that it is the right thing to do, even as he is
inwardly horrified. "He'd just become the guy he hated. He'd just
become the guy everybody hated."
I'm sure you've heard the saying about deceit necessitating the
weaving of a web of lies. Jake's self-appointed task becomes
increasingly difficult, especially when he learns that the victim was
only 16 like his son, a student at has small school, someone he
probably knew.
If you like drama and mystery firmly rooted in insightful grasp
of the human heart and soul Keep Quiet is a great choice for a summer
read or listen.
On a personal note, I have noticed a generational change (and I do not
mean strictly going by years) in how women who take at least some time
out of the work force to parent describe themselves that is, I
believe, related to the changes in the parent-child dynamic. My
mother-in-law and her peers used the word housewife. The proof of
their achievements lay in the cooking and cleaning sphere. They
probably would not have worked even without children. My mother (who
would be older were she alive but had more education) and her peers
had a transitional term: homemaker. They had the daunting task of
keeping house like June Cleaver while taking on more responsibility
for their children's happiness. Many rejoined the work force of
desire or necessity. My peers and I are stay at home moms. The
pendulum has swung almost completely to child primacy. We also have
many more expectations of a vibrant, achieving, adventurous post child
raising life than either of the previous generations.
A great big shout out goes out to my fellow stay at home moms (and
these days dads) as we muddle through lives with seemingly constantly
changing rules and expectations.
Julia Emily Hathaway
Sent from my iPod
Adult fiction audiotape
Two truths I have discovered in my time on this Earth:
1) There is never enough time to read all the books worth reading.
2) HOUSEWORK TOTALLY SUCKS.
Yesterday I came up with a brilliant idea. Katie had discovered and
highly recommended a prolific author, Lisa Scottoline. I put her work
on my lengthy to read list. I saw her novel, Keep Quiet, displayed
prominently on the adult audiovisual shelves. The blurb on the back
looked really interesting, especially since I am the parent of a teen
age son. This morning before I started the cleaning I put it on.
Within minutes I was pulled right into the drama. It was much more
interesting than television because my imagination was needed to
complete the picture. I guess it was like radio stories for the pre
TV generations.
If you are the mother or father of a teenager, you know this can
be an intense time for both parent and child. The youngster who
previously delighted in your company may be a lot less eager for
quality time now. In fact, you may have morphed into the most
embarassing person who ever walked the face of the Earth or a disliked
enforcer of rules. Of course we saw that situation from the other
side in our younger years. But our parents seemed somehow less
traumatized. This appears especially true for older parents in the
boomer generation. Our folks were comfortable with a more distant,
authoritarian role. We have been sold on a closer, more equal role
where emotianal intimacy between parent and child can exceed that even
between spouse and spouse. So any rupture can be torture.
This is the case with Jake, Scottoline's protagonist. He and
his son, Ryan, 16, have become increasingly estranged. He feels
pressure to mend the alienation before Ryan goes off to college. The
precariousness he feels in their relationship causes him to make a
very bad decision. He allows Ryan to drive at an hour the law does
not allow him to. They hit a jogger, killing her. Attempts to
ressecitate her fail.
At first Jake decides they will say he was driving the car.
Then Ryan shows him a baggie of grass and admits to having had some.
Jake sees his chances for a college, a career, any kind of a future in
jeopardy. He decides to go the hit and run route, convincing a
traumatized Ryan that it is the right thing to do, even as he is
inwardly horrified. "He'd just become the guy he hated. He'd just
become the guy everybody hated."
I'm sure you've heard the saying about deceit necessitating the
weaving of a web of lies. Jake's self-appointed task becomes
increasingly difficult, especially when he learns that the victim was
only 16 like his son, a student at has small school, someone he
probably knew.
If you like drama and mystery firmly rooted in insightful grasp
of the human heart and soul Keep Quiet is a great choice for a summer
read or listen.
On a personal note, I have noticed a generational change (and I do not
mean strictly going by years) in how women who take at least some time
out of the work force to parent describe themselves that is, I
believe, related to the changes in the parent-child dynamic. My
mother-in-law and her peers used the word housewife. The proof of
their achievements lay in the cooking and cleaning sphere. They
probably would not have worked even without children. My mother (who
would be older were she alive but had more education) and her peers
had a transitional term: homemaker. They had the daunting task of
keeping house like June Cleaver while taking on more responsibility
for their children's happiness. Many rejoined the work force of
desire or necessity. My peers and I are stay at home moms. The
pendulum has swung almost completely to child primacy. We also have
many more expectations of a vibrant, achieving, adventurous post child
raising life than either of the previous generations.
A great big shout out goes out to my fellow stay at home moms (and
these days dads) as we muddle through lives with seemingly constantly
changing rules and expectations.
Julia Emily Hathaway
Sent from my iPod
What The Moon Said
What The Moon Said
Juvenile historical fiction
Esther, narrator of Gayle Rosengren's What The Moon Said, is one
of those multitudes of children whose lives were drastically altered
by the Great Depression. When her father loses his job he decides to
give farming a try, going back to his early agricultural roots.
Despite initial misgivings, she decides it might be a change for the
better, a chance for her family to be happy.
There is a lot to get used to. The farmhouse is shabby and
bleak with an outhouse and no electricity. They won't be able to
listen to the radio which then was the major home news and
entertainment source. But there are farm animals including a dog.
At church Esther is befriended by warm, outgoing Bethany. At
school they become the best of friends. When they get together at the
4th of July festivities Esther's superstitious mother makes her family
leave early and warns Esther she must not stay away from Bethany
because of a mole on her face. It is the mark of angry fairies and a
warning for others to stay away from her dangerous presence.
What The Moon Said gives young readers a great introduction to
the Great Depression and the precariousness of life then for children
and families. Esther is a spunky, resilient heroine, striving to make
sense and the best of the unpredictablity in her life.
On a personal note, we celebrated Fathers Day with a lovely meal at
Amber and Brian's home.
A great big shout out goes out to dads.
Julia Emily Hathaway
Sent from my iPod
Juvenile historical fiction
Esther, narrator of Gayle Rosengren's What The Moon Said, is one
of those multitudes of children whose lives were drastically altered
by the Great Depression. When her father loses his job he decides to
give farming a try, going back to his early agricultural roots.
Despite initial misgivings, she decides it might be a change for the
better, a chance for her family to be happy.
There is a lot to get used to. The farmhouse is shabby and
bleak with an outhouse and no electricity. They won't be able to
listen to the radio which then was the major home news and
entertainment source. But there are farm animals including a dog.
At church Esther is befriended by warm, outgoing Bethany. At
school they become the best of friends. When they get together at the
4th of July festivities Esther's superstitious mother makes her family
leave early and warns Esther she must not stay away from Bethany
because of a mole on her face. It is the mark of angry fairies and a
warning for others to stay away from her dangerous presence.
What The Moon Said gives young readers a great introduction to
the Great Depression and the precariousness of life then for children
and families. Esther is a spunky, resilient heroine, striving to make
sense and the best of the unpredictablity in her life.
On a personal note, we celebrated Fathers Day with a lovely meal at
Amber and Brian's home.
A great big shout out goes out to dads.
Julia Emily Hathaway
Sent from my iPod
Edible
Edible
Adult nonfiction
It had seemed to me more and more that insects and related
invertebrates could be cheap sources of high quality protein in
America just like they are in a lot of the world. They reproduce like
nobody's business. They aren't injected with steroids and
subtherapeutic antibiotics. If we consumed more "pest" insects we
would be able to grow our veggies with fewer of the toxins that make
their way up the food chain.
But what would they taste like? With me, that was not idle
curiosity. One day at Community Garden I rinsed off and ate a grub.
It had hardly any taste at all. Like tofu, it could enhance anything
from chili to cookies. And I experienced absolutely no adverse effects.
As you can imagine, a lot of folks thought this experiment was
eeeuw, gross! You may very well have had that reaction. In America
incipient insectavores are distinctly in the minority. Fortunately,
not being deterred by majority opinion, I wanted to learn more. I was
delighted when I learned about Daniella Martin's Edible and thrilled
beyond measure when I was able to get my hands on it through inter
library loan. It is a fascinating read, I believe, even for folks who
plan to never chow down on grubs or crickets. There are several
strands beautifully intermingled in this very eye catching book.
One important strand is history. Although it may sound pretty
darn edgy, entomophagy (yes, that's a real word) has a long and
distinguished history. Remember the dude in the Bible, John the
Baptist, who baptized none other than Jesus. Out in the desert, he
was chowing down on locusts and honey. He was in good company. The
Paleo (hunter gatherer) diet, which people subsided on for 2.5 million
years, was about a lot more than bringing home big, dead animals.
While the guys were out doing the risky business of hunting, the women
were keeping everyone else nourished through their gathering of less
glamerous foodstuffs, with insects very much on the menu. It's only
very recently in history, a mere 10,000 years, that farming has been
the dominant mode of life. The yuck factor that makes many of us
cringe at the thought of devouring bugs is even more new to us and
even now limited to the most finicky of societies.
Another strand is ethics and sustainability. The typical
American meat based diet, especially produced under conditions of
factory farming, carries many costs beyond those picked up by the
consumer. But when we grow veggies, unless we go organic, we're
putting all kinds of toxins in the earth and, ultimately, our bodies.
And when we go organic...here come the bugs.
The third strand is Martin's description of her world wide
adventures in insect based cuisine, some of which are quite amusing.
Her sometimes mixed feelings are shared quite candidly. This lively
narrative keeps the factual base of her book from ever getting too dry
or boring.
Finally, for those who find her arguements convincing, Martin
has included information on acquiring and preparing insects, complete
with recipes.
Martin is not trying to get us to eschew all other foodstuffs,
noshing only on six and eight leggers. She shows us they can be a
very nutritious and tasty addition to our diets. In the long run
globally, with the human population rising so quickly, entomophagy may
be an important way to keep millions of people from starving to
death. As my mom used to say, it can be a way we live simply so
others can simply live.
On a personal note, this is one area I want to want to be cutting edge
in. The kale salad with crickets and enhanced milkshakes sound good.
But I want to try mixing mealworms into oatmeal raisin chocolate chip
cookies which is my idea. I might even contribute some to church
coffee hour, with a full listing of all ingredients of course.
A great big shout out goes out to insect eaters around the world.
Julia Emily Hathaway
Sent from my iPod
Adult nonfiction
It had seemed to me more and more that insects and related
invertebrates could be cheap sources of high quality protein in
America just like they are in a lot of the world. They reproduce like
nobody's business. They aren't injected with steroids and
subtherapeutic antibiotics. If we consumed more "pest" insects we
would be able to grow our veggies with fewer of the toxins that make
their way up the food chain.
But what would they taste like? With me, that was not idle
curiosity. One day at Community Garden I rinsed off and ate a grub.
It had hardly any taste at all. Like tofu, it could enhance anything
from chili to cookies. And I experienced absolutely no adverse effects.
As you can imagine, a lot of folks thought this experiment was
eeeuw, gross! You may very well have had that reaction. In America
incipient insectavores are distinctly in the minority. Fortunately,
not being deterred by majority opinion, I wanted to learn more. I was
delighted when I learned about Daniella Martin's Edible and thrilled
beyond measure when I was able to get my hands on it through inter
library loan. It is a fascinating read, I believe, even for folks who
plan to never chow down on grubs or crickets. There are several
strands beautifully intermingled in this very eye catching book.
One important strand is history. Although it may sound pretty
darn edgy, entomophagy (yes, that's a real word) has a long and
distinguished history. Remember the dude in the Bible, John the
Baptist, who baptized none other than Jesus. Out in the desert, he
was chowing down on locusts and honey. He was in good company. The
Paleo (hunter gatherer) diet, which people subsided on for 2.5 million
years, was about a lot more than bringing home big, dead animals.
While the guys were out doing the risky business of hunting, the women
were keeping everyone else nourished through their gathering of less
glamerous foodstuffs, with insects very much on the menu. It's only
very recently in history, a mere 10,000 years, that farming has been
the dominant mode of life. The yuck factor that makes many of us
cringe at the thought of devouring bugs is even more new to us and
even now limited to the most finicky of societies.
Another strand is ethics and sustainability. The typical
American meat based diet, especially produced under conditions of
factory farming, carries many costs beyond those picked up by the
consumer. But when we grow veggies, unless we go organic, we're
putting all kinds of toxins in the earth and, ultimately, our bodies.
And when we go organic...here come the bugs.
The third strand is Martin's description of her world wide
adventures in insect based cuisine, some of which are quite amusing.
Her sometimes mixed feelings are shared quite candidly. This lively
narrative keeps the factual base of her book from ever getting too dry
or boring.
Finally, for those who find her arguements convincing, Martin
has included information on acquiring and preparing insects, complete
with recipes.
Martin is not trying to get us to eschew all other foodstuffs,
noshing only on six and eight leggers. She shows us they can be a
very nutritious and tasty addition to our diets. In the long run
globally, with the human population rising so quickly, entomophagy may
be an important way to keep millions of people from starving to
death. As my mom used to say, it can be a way we live simply so
others can simply live.
On a personal note, this is one area I want to want to be cutting edge
in. The kale salad with crickets and enhanced milkshakes sound good.
But I want to try mixing mealworms into oatmeal raisin chocolate chip
cookies which is my idea. I might even contribute some to church
coffee hour, with a full listing of all ingredients of course.
A great big shout out goes out to insect eaters around the world.
Julia Emily Hathaway
Sent from my iPod
This Journal Belongs To Ratchet
This Journal Belongs To Ratchet
Juvenile fiction
Ratchet, narrator of Nancy J. Cavanaugh's This Journal Belongs
To Ratchet, is a girl. Rachel is on her birth certificate. Her car
mechanic dad uses her nickname because she's the entity he relies on
to help him with so much of his work.
As the book begins it's the eve of the first day of school...for
all the neighborhood kids except Rachet. Her dad home schools her.
Actually he's too busy fixing vehicles at their home and fighting city
hall to save a local park from being converted into a strip mall to
really notice her work. So she is going to chronicle through her
langauge arts journal her campaign to radically change her life.
Everything in Rachet's life is second hand right down to her
clothes that help her stand out from her peers in a not so good way.
She'd like a friend. But the only peer attention she gets is being
picked on. Her father is notorious for his eccentric attire and
passionate environmentalism. Her mom died when she was young. Maybe
if she knew more about her she could become a more normal girl with
actual friends...
Ratchet's thoughts done in a wide array of formats are down to
earth and thought provoking. This Journal Belongs To Ratchet is a
perfect read for the many kids who feel left out and less than and the
peers who are strong enough to reach out to them rather than be silent
bystanders when they are ridiculed and excluded.
On a personal note, after a long winter Maine is finally rocking the
warm weather. Last week we signed up senior citizens to receive free
organic veggies from Orono Community Gsrden.
A great big shout goes out to my fellow gardeners and our senior
citizen chums.
Julia Emily Hathaway
Sent from my iPod
Juvenile fiction
Ratchet, narrator of Nancy J. Cavanaugh's This Journal Belongs
To Ratchet, is a girl. Rachel is on her birth certificate. Her car
mechanic dad uses her nickname because she's the entity he relies on
to help him with so much of his work.
As the book begins it's the eve of the first day of school...for
all the neighborhood kids except Rachet. Her dad home schools her.
Actually he's too busy fixing vehicles at their home and fighting city
hall to save a local park from being converted into a strip mall to
really notice her work. So she is going to chronicle through her
langauge arts journal her campaign to radically change her life.
Everything in Rachet's life is second hand right down to her
clothes that help her stand out from her peers in a not so good way.
She'd like a friend. But the only peer attention she gets is being
picked on. Her father is notorious for his eccentric attire and
passionate environmentalism. Her mom died when she was young. Maybe
if she knew more about her she could become a more normal girl with
actual friends...
Ratchet's thoughts done in a wide array of formats are down to
earth and thought provoking. This Journal Belongs To Ratchet is a
perfect read for the many kids who feel left out and less than and the
peers who are strong enough to reach out to them rather than be silent
bystanders when they are ridiculed and excluded.
On a personal note, after a long winter Maine is finally rocking the
warm weather. Last week we signed up senior citizens to receive free
organic veggies from Orono Community Gsrden.
A great big shout goes out to my fellow gardeners and our senior
citizen chums.
Julia Emily Hathaway
Sent from my iPod
All Joy And No Fun
All Joy And No Fun
Parenting
If you're a parent, unless you've maybe been elected president
of the United States or something of similar magnitude, the children
you brought into the world probably changed your life more
dramatically, more joyfully and terrifyingly, than anything before or
since. (I know that's true for me.) No matter how many how to books
you encounter, you spend much of your time in what seems to be
uncharted territory, often fielding several crises at once. And you
probably spend at least some time wondering if you're getting it right.
Most of us do.
If you're a member of this humungous club you will find Jennifer
Senior's All Joy And No Fun: The Paradox Of Modern Parenting very
reassuring. She focuses on parenthood as a stage in the life cycle,
rather than parenting, all too often seen as a high stakes competition
where one can never nurture well enough. She looks at the ways
children alter the lives of parents from the marriage disruption and
sleeplessness of the caring for infant years to the stress of teenage
rebellion and risk taking. She also expounds on the history of
families to show us that the the conceptions of childhood and teenage
life that seem to us to be etched in stone are anything but.
If you have older children here's an adage you've probably heard
and repeated about a gazillion times: the days are long but the years
are short. In the trenches of day to day, particularly when you're
running on empty from sleep deprivation, there seems to be an unending
store of chores, punctuated by moments of crisis. But kids also
provide us with some of the most transcendent experiences of joy and
fulfillment life has to offer. I think that's the paradox Senior
alludes to in her subtitle. All Joy And No Fun can be a big help in
understanding and coping with the oversized feelings evoked so often
by our undersized bundles of joy. Whether you're raising toddlers,
teens, or any stage in between it's a darn good investment.
On a personal note, as my regular readers know I stayed home to raise
my kids. During this time I got myself elected to school committee
and discovered my passion for educational reform. With the kids
nearly all grown, there are people who think I'm crazy to be focussed
on getting into grad school instead of getting a job, working, and
retiring. A much bigger majority think I'm wonderful to have this
kind of devotion. Actually it's neither. I can't imagine being any
other way. I was pleased to see in the book that highly generative
adults--ones who invest self in not sure thing ventures like social
change--would find a path like the one I want especially
psychologically adaptive. We're not crazy or saintly, just wired a
bit differently. Vive la difference!
A great big shout goes out to my fellow parents around the world and
the generations who raised us.
Julia Emily Hathaway
Sent from my iPod
Parenting
If you're a parent, unless you've maybe been elected president
of the United States or something of similar magnitude, the children
you brought into the world probably changed your life more
dramatically, more joyfully and terrifyingly, than anything before or
since. (I know that's true for me.) No matter how many how to books
you encounter, you spend much of your time in what seems to be
uncharted territory, often fielding several crises at once. And you
probably spend at least some time wondering if you're getting it right.
Most of us do.
If you're a member of this humungous club you will find Jennifer
Senior's All Joy And No Fun: The Paradox Of Modern Parenting very
reassuring. She focuses on parenthood as a stage in the life cycle,
rather than parenting, all too often seen as a high stakes competition
where one can never nurture well enough. She looks at the ways
children alter the lives of parents from the marriage disruption and
sleeplessness of the caring for infant years to the stress of teenage
rebellion and risk taking. She also expounds on the history of
families to show us that the the conceptions of childhood and teenage
life that seem to us to be etched in stone are anything but.
If you have older children here's an adage you've probably heard
and repeated about a gazillion times: the days are long but the years
are short. In the trenches of day to day, particularly when you're
running on empty from sleep deprivation, there seems to be an unending
store of chores, punctuated by moments of crisis. But kids also
provide us with some of the most transcendent experiences of joy and
fulfillment life has to offer. I think that's the paradox Senior
alludes to in her subtitle. All Joy And No Fun can be a big help in
understanding and coping with the oversized feelings evoked so often
by our undersized bundles of joy. Whether you're raising toddlers,
teens, or any stage in between it's a darn good investment.
On a personal note, as my regular readers know I stayed home to raise
my kids. During this time I got myself elected to school committee
and discovered my passion for educational reform. With the kids
nearly all grown, there are people who think I'm crazy to be focussed
on getting into grad school instead of getting a job, working, and
retiring. A much bigger majority think I'm wonderful to have this
kind of devotion. Actually it's neither. I can't imagine being any
other way. I was pleased to see in the book that highly generative
adults--ones who invest self in not sure thing ventures like social
change--would find a path like the one I want especially
psychologically adaptive. We're not crazy or saintly, just wired a
bit differently. Vive la difference!
A great big shout goes out to my fellow parents around the world and
the generations who raised us.
Julia Emily Hathaway
Sent from my iPod
Thursday, June 12, 2014
Silver People
Silver People
Juvenile historical fiction
Remember learning about the creation of the Panama Canal in
school? Probably you don't have really vivid memories. This would
not be surprising. A typical textbook tends to have very little space
on the topic.
Your typical textbook takes a congratulatory stance on what it
considers a feat of American hard work and ingenuity. Any criticism
alludes to the deaths of American workers from illness and accident.
The Carribean workers who did the vast majority of the dirty work, the
apartheid like system by which they received much worse treatment than
United States citizens and northern Europeans, and the destruction of
native rainforest tend to be omitted. Fortunately, Margarita Engle
grew up with a Cuban mother, cognizant about this injustice. Her
Silver People: Voices from the Panama Canal is her attempt to set the
record straight.
The book title, Silver People, alludes to the system of
injustice built into the construction project. Island people and
darker skinned Europeons were paid in silver rather than gold and
forced to endure much worse living conditions, even when treated for
illness or injury. The story is told in multiple voices through
eloquent free verse. You'll hear from silver people and non human
denizens of the endangered rain forest. Can you imagine having to
live in huge crowded crates like those used to store dynamite, not
being able to sit to eat, doing the most physically challenging and
dangerous work for a pittance while seeing others lead lives or
relative luxury? You will learn what it was like while meeting very
engaging and dynamic characters.
Any students who read Silver People will have something
substantial to add to class discussion when they get to the building
of the Panama in history or social studies...information that may even
be news to a teacher. Wouldn't that be something?
On a personal note, I just got back from voting.
A great big shout out goes out to all those who fulfilled this civic
obligation.
Julia Emily Hathaway
Sent from my iPod
Juvenile historical fiction
Remember learning about the creation of the Panama Canal in
school? Probably you don't have really vivid memories. This would
not be surprising. A typical textbook tends to have very little space
on the topic.
Your typical textbook takes a congratulatory stance on what it
considers a feat of American hard work and ingenuity. Any criticism
alludes to the deaths of American workers from illness and accident.
The Carribean workers who did the vast majority of the dirty work, the
apartheid like system by which they received much worse treatment than
United States citizens and northern Europeans, and the destruction of
native rainforest tend to be omitted. Fortunately, Margarita Engle
grew up with a Cuban mother, cognizant about this injustice. Her
Silver People: Voices from the Panama Canal is her attempt to set the
record straight.
The book title, Silver People, alludes to the system of
injustice built into the construction project. Island people and
darker skinned Europeons were paid in silver rather than gold and
forced to endure much worse living conditions, even when treated for
illness or injury. The story is told in multiple voices through
eloquent free verse. You'll hear from silver people and non human
denizens of the endangered rain forest. Can you imagine having to
live in huge crowded crates like those used to store dynamite, not
being able to sit to eat, doing the most physically challenging and
dangerous work for a pittance while seeing others lead lives or
relative luxury? You will learn what it was like while meeting very
engaging and dynamic characters.
Any students who read Silver People will have something
substantial to add to class discussion when they get to the building
of the Panama in history or social studies...information that may even
be news to a teacher. Wouldn't that be something?
On a personal note, I just got back from voting.
A great big shout out goes out to all those who fulfilled this civic
obligation.
Julia Emily Hathaway
Sent from my iPod
Tuesday, June 10, 2014
Boys of Blur
Boys of Blur
Juvenile fiction
A few days ago our librarian for teenagers down to Orono Public
Library, Laura, asked me for suggestions for hot off the press books
6th grade boys might want to read over the summer. She was getting
ready for a book talk. It's a good thing I stay on my toes when it
comes to literature. I was able to point her towards the two James
Patterson offerings I just reviewed. Then I picked out a promising
looking volume. Did I ever hit pay dirt with N. D. Wilson's Boys of
Blur!
You know without even opening the book that it's going to pack a
lot of suspense and action (two factors that catch the attention of
many a middle school boy) into its pages. The front cover shows two
boys running as though the devil himself were in hot pursuit. On the
back cover there is a single sentence. "Out on the flats, when the
sugarcane's burning and the rabbits are running, you're either
quick...or you're dead." YOWZA!
What makes Boys of Blur really good literature, though, is the
combining of a wicked (in the Maine sense meaning very) suspenseful
plot involving the ultimate struggle between good and primordial evil
with a richly woven sense of time and place. It's set in a small town
and the surrounding cane fields and sinister mucky swampland. Check
this paragraph out:
"Most Sundays, the little church sees a few cars, and a minister
under a wobbling ceiling fan preaching at old men and women who have
heard it all before. But when this story starts, one of these men has
moved beyond old and straight into dead. There's a whole herd of cars
parked below that white church, and a while herd of people standing
around the rusty iron fence that cages in the graves."
Cages in is an excellent phrase to use in relation to that
graveyard. You know how dead men tend to stay put once they're six
feet under. This one doesn't. The pastor arrives at work the day
after the burial to find his elderly parishoners gathered at a ghastly
scene. The grave is open. The corpse has vanished. A live tree is
growing through the coffin. Symbols have been painted on the white
church in what appears to be dried blood.
Now doesn't that seem to be just what would hook a mystery
loving sixth grade boy into a bit of a summer read?
On a personal note, my Adam is back home. He spent a week in Maryland
at Naval Academy summer seminar. It gave him the chance to see if
it's what he wants for post high school education. Seems like it's a
sensible measure other colleges could do that might cut down on drop
outs. I was thrilled that Adam called me when he had chances to. I
am over the moon to have him back home.
A great big shout goes out to all the young men and women in Adam's
year who are making this momentous decision.
Julia Emily Hathaway
Sent from my iPod
Juvenile fiction
A few days ago our librarian for teenagers down to Orono Public
Library, Laura, asked me for suggestions for hot off the press books
6th grade boys might want to read over the summer. She was getting
ready for a book talk. It's a good thing I stay on my toes when it
comes to literature. I was able to point her towards the two James
Patterson offerings I just reviewed. Then I picked out a promising
looking volume. Did I ever hit pay dirt with N. D. Wilson's Boys of
Blur!
You know without even opening the book that it's going to pack a
lot of suspense and action (two factors that catch the attention of
many a middle school boy) into its pages. The front cover shows two
boys running as though the devil himself were in hot pursuit. On the
back cover there is a single sentence. "Out on the flats, when the
sugarcane's burning and the rabbits are running, you're either
quick...or you're dead." YOWZA!
What makes Boys of Blur really good literature, though, is the
combining of a wicked (in the Maine sense meaning very) suspenseful
plot involving the ultimate struggle between good and primordial evil
with a richly woven sense of time and place. It's set in a small town
and the surrounding cane fields and sinister mucky swampland. Check
this paragraph out:
"Most Sundays, the little church sees a few cars, and a minister
under a wobbling ceiling fan preaching at old men and women who have
heard it all before. But when this story starts, one of these men has
moved beyond old and straight into dead. There's a whole herd of cars
parked below that white church, and a while herd of people standing
around the rusty iron fence that cages in the graves."
Cages in is an excellent phrase to use in relation to that
graveyard. You know how dead men tend to stay put once they're six
feet under. This one doesn't. The pastor arrives at work the day
after the burial to find his elderly parishoners gathered at a ghastly
scene. The grave is open. The corpse has vanished. A live tree is
growing through the coffin. Symbols have been painted on the white
church in what appears to be dried blood.
Now doesn't that seem to be just what would hook a mystery
loving sixth grade boy into a bit of a summer read?
On a personal note, my Adam is back home. He spent a week in Maryland
at Naval Academy summer seminar. It gave him the chance to see if
it's what he wants for post high school education. Seems like it's a
sensible measure other colleges could do that might cut down on drop
outs. I was thrilled that Adam called me when he had chances to. I
am over the moon to have him back home.
A great big shout goes out to all the young men and women in Adam's
year who are making this momentous decision.
Julia Emily Hathaway
Sent from my iPod
How The Beatles Changed The World
How The Beatles Changed The World
Juvenile nonfiction
A friend once told me her experience the weekend in 1964 the
Beatles were to appear on the Ed Sullivan Show. She was burning up
with fever, suffering from intense cramps, and throwing up. She made
sure her mom didn't discover til after the show. In the ambulance en
route to the hospital her appendix nearly burst. Can you imagine? If
you're in my generation you can. We loved our Beatles!
Martin W. Sandler's How The Beatles Changed The World can be a
wonderful stroll down memory lane for us or a way to show younger
generations what life was like back in the day. It covers the Fab
Four from the years before they were discovered to their eventual
split up and shows how many facets of life were never the same. The
photos alone are worth the price of the volume.
If the lads from Liverpool were an integral part of your growing
up years, this book is a total must read. If you are in the
generation rediscovering their awesome music, join in the fun of this
magical mystery tour!
YOWZA!
On a personal note, my kids love the music I grew up with. They play
the oldies stations and sing along. How cool is that?
A great big shout out goes out to Beatles fans world wide.
Julia Emily Hathaway
Sent from my iPod
Juvenile nonfiction
A friend once told me her experience the weekend in 1964 the
Beatles were to appear on the Ed Sullivan Show. She was burning up
with fever, suffering from intense cramps, and throwing up. She made
sure her mom didn't discover til after the show. In the ambulance en
route to the hospital her appendix nearly burst. Can you imagine? If
you're in my generation you can. We loved our Beatles!
Martin W. Sandler's How The Beatles Changed The World can be a
wonderful stroll down memory lane for us or a way to show younger
generations what life was like back in the day. It covers the Fab
Four from the years before they were discovered to their eventual
split up and shows how many facets of life were never the same. The
photos alone are worth the price of the volume.
If the lads from Liverpool were an integral part of your growing
up years, this book is a total must read. If you are in the
generation rediscovering their awesome music, join in the fun of this
magical mystery tour!
YOWZA!
On a personal note, my kids love the music I grew up with. They play
the oldies stations and sing along. How cool is that?
A great big shout out goes out to Beatles fans world wide.
Julia Emily Hathaway
Sent from my iPod
Monday, June 9, 2014
Voices From The Oregon Trail
Voices From The Oregon Trail
Juvenile
Kay Winters' recent Voices from the Oregon Trail is one of the
niftiest introductions our younger readers can get to this chapter in
America's history. It's made up of the thoughts of members of a group
making this pilgrimage together expressed in free verse. There's
Patience, grieving at having to leave the grave of her son. There's
Zebulon who speaks of the extensive preparations his family made.
There's Louisa who meets and marries a young man--at the age girls
start high school these days. Mary loses her toddler son during a
river crossing. Josh scares his sisters with tales of Indians
scalping settlers...
And then there's Chankoowaahtay, a Sioux scout observing the
procession and worrying about the strangers who take more and more of
the resources his people need to survive.
Winters' preparation for writing Voices from the Oregon trail
makes for almost as interesting a story as the book itself. She and
her husband traveled the Oregon trail by car. "We explored forts,
museums, parks, interpretive trail centers, trading posts, and
landmarks. We took pictures, read diaries, heard presentations, asked
questions of the interpreters, saw dioramas, films, artifacts, and
charts. We tried on pioneer clothing, climbed into wagons, sat around
a campfire, heard stories and songs..."
Yowza!
On a personal note, I was overjoyed when my daughter, Amber, visited
me for 7 hours Thursday. It was like a late Mothers Day gift.
A great big shout out goes out to my three children and my future son-
in-law.
Julia Emily Hathaway
Sent from my iPod
Juvenile
Kay Winters' recent Voices from the Oregon Trail is one of the
niftiest introductions our younger readers can get to this chapter in
America's history. It's made up of the thoughts of members of a group
making this pilgrimage together expressed in free verse. There's
Patience, grieving at having to leave the grave of her son. There's
Zebulon who speaks of the extensive preparations his family made.
There's Louisa who meets and marries a young man--at the age girls
start high school these days. Mary loses her toddler son during a
river crossing. Josh scares his sisters with tales of Indians
scalping settlers...
And then there's Chankoowaahtay, a Sioux scout observing the
procession and worrying about the strangers who take more and more of
the resources his people need to survive.
Winters' preparation for writing Voices from the Oregon trail
makes for almost as interesting a story as the book itself. She and
her husband traveled the Oregon trail by car. "We explored forts,
museums, parks, interpretive trail centers, trading posts, and
landmarks. We took pictures, read diaries, heard presentations, asked
questions of the interpreters, saw dioramas, films, artifacts, and
charts. We tried on pioneer clothing, climbed into wagons, sat around
a campfire, heard stories and songs..."
Yowza!
On a personal note, I was overjoyed when my daughter, Amber, visited
me for 7 hours Thursday. It was like a late Mothers Day gift.
A great big shout out goes out to my three children and my future son-
in-law.
Julia Emily Hathaway
Sent from my iPod
Friday, June 6, 2014
The Other Way Around
The Other Way Around
YA fiction
Have you ever had the not living up to potential label stuck on
you? For Andrew, narrator of Sashi Kaufman's The Other Way Around,
it's a long time designation. He has just started his latest school,
St. Mary's, a formerly girls only institution. His mother was hired
as headmistress who would facilitate the integration.
Things go from bad to worse on Thanksgiving. Andrew's mother
announces they will not be visiting his grandmother Mima. His
divorced father will be in the Bahamas with a girlfriend. His uncle
and the cousin he detests, Barry, will be staying at their house.
The weekend lives down to Andrew's expectations. He packs and
heads to the bus station, intent on visiting Mima. At the bus station
he gets a call from his mom. He can't go. His grandmother is dead.
She has known that for days and not told him.
There's a group of teens in the bus station. They live on the
road, travelling in a VW camper van, gleaning food from dumpsters, and
performing in promising locations. They are more than willing to have
him join them. It's either that or go home to his mom who has
seriously betrayed him and Barry the obnoxious.
I bet you can guess which option he chooses. It turns out to be
quite the journey of discovery. If you go along for the ride you'll
be very glad you did.
On a personal note, I guess as a parent I should be horrified by his
choice. But I'm home with just Joey cat on a rainy night and the
prospect of unexpected adventure sounds downright appealing.
A great big shout out goes out to my more spontaneous chums.
Julia Emily Hathaway
Sent from my iPod
YA fiction
Have you ever had the not living up to potential label stuck on
you? For Andrew, narrator of Sashi Kaufman's The Other Way Around,
it's a long time designation. He has just started his latest school,
St. Mary's, a formerly girls only institution. His mother was hired
as headmistress who would facilitate the integration.
Things go from bad to worse on Thanksgiving. Andrew's mother
announces they will not be visiting his grandmother Mima. His
divorced father will be in the Bahamas with a girlfriend. His uncle
and the cousin he detests, Barry, will be staying at their house.
The weekend lives down to Andrew's expectations. He packs and
heads to the bus station, intent on visiting Mima. At the bus station
he gets a call from his mom. He can't go. His grandmother is dead.
She has known that for days and not told him.
There's a group of teens in the bus station. They live on the
road, travelling in a VW camper van, gleaning food from dumpsters, and
performing in promising locations. They are more than willing to have
him join them. It's either that or go home to his mom who has
seriously betrayed him and Barry the obnoxious.
I bet you can guess which option he chooses. It turns out to be
quite the journey of discovery. If you go along for the ride you'll
be very glad you did.
On a personal note, I guess as a parent I should be horrified by his
choice. But I'm home with just Joey cat on a rainy night and the
prospect of unexpected adventure sounds downright appealing.
A great big shout out goes out to my more spontaneous chums.
Julia Emily Hathaway
Sent from my iPod
A Mad Wicked Folly
A Mad Wicked Folly
YA fiction
"I never set out to pose nude." That is the first sentence of
Sharon Biggs Waller's A Mad Wicked Folly. Seven simple words with a
world of explosive potential.
Vicky is simply doing what the boys in her art class have done
when she poses in her birthday suit. The model has not arrived. The
students have no desire to waste a day. All of her peers have filled
in for absent models. If she doesn't she feels she won't really be
one of them.
There's only one problem. The year is 1909. Vicky has been
sneaking away from her fancy and expensive boarding school to study
art. This time a snitch from her school, a veritable goodie two
shoes, has discovered her secret and gone to the headmistress.
When Vicky is sent home in disgrace, her horrified father goes
into damage control mode. He and her mother have lost standing in
their social circles which may cost him business with the royal
family. They have hired her a lady's maid/chaperone and made plans
for her debut and marriage to a carefully chosen young man from a
respectable family, a young man who wants to get in on the family
business. In her mother's words, "A scandelous woman is not something
most men would want, but Edmund Carrick Humphrey has agreed.". If
she does not consent to the plan her folks will send her off to live
in isolation with her widowed, Bible reading aunt who considers her a
modern day Jezebel.
Not surprisingly, neither prospect is really what Vicky has in
mind for her life. Her passion is art. She has aspirations for the
very selective Royal College. Where her father has control over
nearly every aspect of her life, she has hard core determination.
But will that be enough?
Read the book and see. You'll be glad you did!
On a personal note, I recently took pictures at Universal Fellowship
where they had a blessing of the animals service. Dogs were lounging
between pews. Birds perched on their owners' shoulders, joining in
the hymns. The cats in their carriers looked dazed and slightly
distrustful. But it all went off without a hitch.
A great big shout out goes out to all who recognize non human critters
as fully sentient fellow beings rather than possessions.
Julia Emily Hathaway
Sent from my iPod
YA fiction
"I never set out to pose nude." That is the first sentence of
Sharon Biggs Waller's A Mad Wicked Folly. Seven simple words with a
world of explosive potential.
Vicky is simply doing what the boys in her art class have done
when she poses in her birthday suit. The model has not arrived. The
students have no desire to waste a day. All of her peers have filled
in for absent models. If she doesn't she feels she won't really be
one of them.
There's only one problem. The year is 1909. Vicky has been
sneaking away from her fancy and expensive boarding school to study
art. This time a snitch from her school, a veritable goodie two
shoes, has discovered her secret and gone to the headmistress.
When Vicky is sent home in disgrace, her horrified father goes
into damage control mode. He and her mother have lost standing in
their social circles which may cost him business with the royal
family. They have hired her a lady's maid/chaperone and made plans
for her debut and marriage to a carefully chosen young man from a
respectable family, a young man who wants to get in on the family
business. In her mother's words, "A scandelous woman is not something
most men would want, but Edmund Carrick Humphrey has agreed.". If
she does not consent to the plan her folks will send her off to live
in isolation with her widowed, Bible reading aunt who considers her a
modern day Jezebel.
Not surprisingly, neither prospect is really what Vicky has in
mind for her life. Her passion is art. She has aspirations for the
very selective Royal College. Where her father has control over
nearly every aspect of her life, she has hard core determination.
But will that be enough?
Read the book and see. You'll be glad you did!
On a personal note, I recently took pictures at Universal Fellowship
where they had a blessing of the animals service. Dogs were lounging
between pews. Birds perched on their owners' shoulders, joining in
the hymns. The cats in their carriers looked dazed and slightly
distrustful. But it all went off without a hitch.
A great big shout out goes out to all who recognize non human critters
as fully sentient fellow beings rather than possessions.
Julia Emily Hathaway
Sent from my iPod
Thursday, June 5, 2014
Indigo
Indigo
YA fiction
What would you do if you felt that you were cursed in such a way
that your touch can kill those you love? That's the terrible
predicament Corrine, protagonist of Gina Linko's Indigo, finds herself
in. She and little sister Sophie were on the Lake Michigan shore when
Sophie died. A storm begins. Sophie falls and begins to convulse.
Corrine tries to save her. She sees a blaze of infigo and passes
out. When she regains consciousness beautiful little Sophie is gone.
Corrine's family has moved to their summer residence in New
Orleans. Determined to never again kill someone she cares about, she
keeps everyone at a distance psychically and physically. She isolates
herself from her peers in school and won't even touch her mother.
Then a boy, a distant relative, makes a concerted effort to get
past her defenses. Rather than a curse, she may have the gift of
healing. Others in their family have possessed it. Corrine is of two
minds. Part of her wants to end her self imposed isolation and have a
special person in her life; the other part is terrified. What if he's
wrong and becomes the next victim?
I couldn't put the book down. I don't think you'll be able to.
On a personal note, although it's nothing as dramatic as Corrine's
gift, the sixth sense is not always easy. Sometimes I know things I
don't want to. Like when my mother left Maine I knew I'd never see
her again. Try dealing with that when you have kids ranging in age
from one to eight. But most of the time it lets good things happen.
In April 2013 I knew I had to make Betsy Webb, my mentor, a loaf of
banana bread and deliver it on a certain day. I did it covertly,
knowing my kids would question my sanity. It turns out Betsy's
grandmother, who had died, had made her banana bread every year on her
birthday. Guess what day that was!
A great big shout out goes out to all of us who have gifts that fall
beyond the realm of what science can explain.
Julia Emily Hathaway
Sent from my iPod
YA fiction
What would you do if you felt that you were cursed in such a way
that your touch can kill those you love? That's the terrible
predicament Corrine, protagonist of Gina Linko's Indigo, finds herself
in. She and little sister Sophie were on the Lake Michigan shore when
Sophie died. A storm begins. Sophie falls and begins to convulse.
Corrine tries to save her. She sees a blaze of infigo and passes
out. When she regains consciousness beautiful little Sophie is gone.
Corrine's family has moved to their summer residence in New
Orleans. Determined to never again kill someone she cares about, she
keeps everyone at a distance psychically and physically. She isolates
herself from her peers in school and won't even touch her mother.
Then a boy, a distant relative, makes a concerted effort to get
past her defenses. Rather than a curse, she may have the gift of
healing. Others in their family have possessed it. Corrine is of two
minds. Part of her wants to end her self imposed isolation and have a
special person in her life; the other part is terrified. What if he's
wrong and becomes the next victim?
I couldn't put the book down. I don't think you'll be able to.
On a personal note, although it's nothing as dramatic as Corrine's
gift, the sixth sense is not always easy. Sometimes I know things I
don't want to. Like when my mother left Maine I knew I'd never see
her again. Try dealing with that when you have kids ranging in age
from one to eight. But most of the time it lets good things happen.
In April 2013 I knew I had to make Betsy Webb, my mentor, a loaf of
banana bread and deliver it on a certain day. I did it covertly,
knowing my kids would question my sanity. It turns out Betsy's
grandmother, who had died, had made her banana bread every year on her
birthday. Guess what day that was!
A great big shout out goes out to all of us who have gifts that fall
beyond the realm of what science can explain.
Julia Emily Hathaway
Sent from my iPod
Just In Time For Summer
Just In Time For Summer
You remember that rhyme we fondly recall from respective
childhoods? We'd chant it gleefully leaping and bounding out of
school on the last day of classes.
No more teachers!
No more books!
No more teachers' dirty looks!
We hope our kids won't have bookless summers. Fortunately James
Patterson has come up with two volumes that may have them forgetting
at least part of the vacation pledge.
Middle School: Get Me Out Of Here will be a must read for
affecianados of his Middle School: The Worst Years Of My Life. Rafe,
he of the very vivid imagination, is about to undergo serious life
challenges. His mom has lost her job which means no money for rent.
His grandmother has invited them and his sister to crash at her big
city apartment as long as they need. Seventh grade is about to
start. With Rafe in attendance the only thing that can be expected is
the unexpected.
In I Funny: A Middle School Story you meet Jamie Grimm, a kid
who is working to become a sit-down comic. (He uses a wheel chair.)
He's studied every joke book and website he can get his hands on. A
lot of people think he has what it takes. He's the one who isn't
quite sure. Then when he wins his first competition some people
insinuate that the judges voted out of pity for his disability. What
if they're right?
On a personal note, I recently had my week long vacation. University
of Maine has this post graduation tradition called Clean Sweep. All
the stuff the students leave in dorms is collected, sorted, priced,
and turned into the yard sale all the others wish they were. I get
totally caught up in helping the student workers and had the time of
my life. I got some really amazing clothes and other cool stuff.
This year for the first time we netted more than $5,000 in a two day
yard sale. YOWZA! Plus all the stuff we didn't sell went where it
was needed.
A great big shout out goes out to all my Clean Sweep Chums!
Julia Emily Hathaway
Sent from my iPod
You remember that rhyme we fondly recall from respective
childhoods? We'd chant it gleefully leaping and bounding out of
school on the last day of classes.
No more teachers!
No more books!
No more teachers' dirty looks!
We hope our kids won't have bookless summers. Fortunately James
Patterson has come up with two volumes that may have them forgetting
at least part of the vacation pledge.
Middle School: Get Me Out Of Here will be a must read for
affecianados of his Middle School: The Worst Years Of My Life. Rafe,
he of the very vivid imagination, is about to undergo serious life
challenges. His mom has lost her job which means no money for rent.
His grandmother has invited them and his sister to crash at her big
city apartment as long as they need. Seventh grade is about to
start. With Rafe in attendance the only thing that can be expected is
the unexpected.
In I Funny: A Middle School Story you meet Jamie Grimm, a kid
who is working to become a sit-down comic. (He uses a wheel chair.)
He's studied every joke book and website he can get his hands on. A
lot of people think he has what it takes. He's the one who isn't
quite sure. Then when he wins his first competition some people
insinuate that the judges voted out of pity for his disability. What
if they're right?
On a personal note, I recently had my week long vacation. University
of Maine has this post graduation tradition called Clean Sweep. All
the stuff the students leave in dorms is collected, sorted, priced,
and turned into the yard sale all the others wish they were. I get
totally caught up in helping the student workers and had the time of
my life. I got some really amazing clothes and other cool stuff.
This year for the first time we netted more than $5,000 in a two day
yard sale. YOWZA! Plus all the stuff we didn't sell went where it
was needed.
A great big shout out goes out to all my Clean Sweep Chums!
Julia Emily Hathaway
Sent from my iPod
Wednesday, June 4, 2014
Orange Is The New Black
Orange Is The New Black
Adult nonfiction
No, I did not watch the tv show Piper Kerman's Orange Is The New
Black inspired. I feel sort of embarrassed that for months I looked
every week on the Orono Public Library computer to see if the book was
in. I wondered if there was something wrong with me for wanting to
read about a woman's experience in prison. Probably would have
mentioned it in Confession if I was Catholic. Anyway, when I finally
was able to start reading the guilt fell away. Not only is this book
fascinating in its own right, it's a strong indictment of the punitive
approach to justice the United States takes which has us locking up
more of our citizens than any other country.
Kerman graduated from college not really sure what she wanted to
do with her life. She made some poor choices and ended up in a
glamerous life style that included being on the periphery of drug
dealing. She broke away from her contacts when she almost became a
drug carrier.
When Kerman was living a respectable life style with a devoted
significant other she felt that she had put that part of her life
behind her. That is until two U.S. Customs officers arrived at her
New York apartment with indictments for money laundering and drug
trafficking. She wound up doing time in a federal correctional
facility.
Fortunately for us, Kerman is introspective and willing to share
her thought processes. Readers are allowed to see her evolve and grow
in an environment highly uncondusive to either process. Even more
fortunate for us, she gives us poignant glimpses of the lives of other
woman inmates who did not have the resources she does. Not
surprisingly a lot of them come from underprivileged segments of
society. "Most of the women in the Camp were poor, poorly educated,
and came from neighborhoods where the mainstream economy was barely
present and the narcotics trade provided the most opportunities for
employment. Their typical offenses were for things like low-level
dealing, allowing their apartments to be used for drug activity, and
passing messages, all for low wages. Small involvement in the drug
trade could land you in prison for many years, especially if you had a
lousy court-appointed lawyer..."
What should outrage us is that in the face of spending more than
it would take to send them to good old University of Maine,
pathetically little is done to prepare them for more productive lives
on reentry into society. You'd think $30,000 a year per inmate could
buy more than a poorly run GED program. No wonder the prison system
has a high recidivism rate.
Then there is the cost to the next generation--those youngsters
only getting to see mom on rare visitations. Ya gotta wonder what
this deprivation is doing to them.
If you believe, like I do, that a shift to a restorative justice
system would be good for America, I urge you to read Orange Is The New
Black. If you are fine with the status quo punitive justice system we
have going on I CHALLENGE you to read the book. It could be the basis
for really productive dialogue.
On a personal note, as I read the book I was also following a case in
Texas where a woman was arrested and charged with a felony for leaving
her two young children in her car when she went for a job interview.
She had nowhere else to leave them. Those self-righteously calling
for punishment to the fullest extent of the law (and sometimes beyond)
are the same folks who would have condemned her if she'd expected the
system to support her little family. Wouldn't those involved
including taxpayers have been better off if there had been a safe
place for her children to stay while she tried to find a way to
support them? Inquiring minds want to know.
A great big shout out goes out to all who work to change us over to a
more restorative system of justice.
Julia Emily Hathaway
Sent from my iPod
Adult nonfiction
No, I did not watch the tv show Piper Kerman's Orange Is The New
Black inspired. I feel sort of embarrassed that for months I looked
every week on the Orono Public Library computer to see if the book was
in. I wondered if there was something wrong with me for wanting to
read about a woman's experience in prison. Probably would have
mentioned it in Confession if I was Catholic. Anyway, when I finally
was able to start reading the guilt fell away. Not only is this book
fascinating in its own right, it's a strong indictment of the punitive
approach to justice the United States takes which has us locking up
more of our citizens than any other country.
Kerman graduated from college not really sure what she wanted to
do with her life. She made some poor choices and ended up in a
glamerous life style that included being on the periphery of drug
dealing. She broke away from her contacts when she almost became a
drug carrier.
When Kerman was living a respectable life style with a devoted
significant other she felt that she had put that part of her life
behind her. That is until two U.S. Customs officers arrived at her
New York apartment with indictments for money laundering and drug
trafficking. She wound up doing time in a federal correctional
facility.
Fortunately for us, Kerman is introspective and willing to share
her thought processes. Readers are allowed to see her evolve and grow
in an environment highly uncondusive to either process. Even more
fortunate for us, she gives us poignant glimpses of the lives of other
woman inmates who did not have the resources she does. Not
surprisingly a lot of them come from underprivileged segments of
society. "Most of the women in the Camp were poor, poorly educated,
and came from neighborhoods where the mainstream economy was barely
present and the narcotics trade provided the most opportunities for
employment. Their typical offenses were for things like low-level
dealing, allowing their apartments to be used for drug activity, and
passing messages, all for low wages. Small involvement in the drug
trade could land you in prison for many years, especially if you had a
lousy court-appointed lawyer..."
What should outrage us is that in the face of spending more than
it would take to send them to good old University of Maine,
pathetically little is done to prepare them for more productive lives
on reentry into society. You'd think $30,000 a year per inmate could
buy more than a poorly run GED program. No wonder the prison system
has a high recidivism rate.
Then there is the cost to the next generation--those youngsters
only getting to see mom on rare visitations. Ya gotta wonder what
this deprivation is doing to them.
If you believe, like I do, that a shift to a restorative justice
system would be good for America, I urge you to read Orange Is The New
Black. If you are fine with the status quo punitive justice system we
have going on I CHALLENGE you to read the book. It could be the basis
for really productive dialogue.
On a personal note, as I read the book I was also following a case in
Texas where a woman was arrested and charged with a felony for leaving
her two young children in her car when she went for a job interview.
She had nowhere else to leave them. Those self-righteously calling
for punishment to the fullest extent of the law (and sometimes beyond)
are the same folks who would have condemned her if she'd expected the
system to support her little family. Wouldn't those involved
including taxpayers have been better off if there had been a safe
place for her children to stay while she tried to find a way to
support them? Inquiring minds want to know.
A great big shout out goes out to all who work to change us over to a
more restorative system of justice.
Julia Emily Hathaway
Sent from my iPod
Sunday, June 1, 2014
The Killing Woods
The Killing Woods
YA novel
Some high school students reach a point in their reading careers
where many YA offerings seem childish but adult adult books are not
appealing. Couple this with the fact that this is a very busy time in
their lives and you'll see why they can be lost from the reading for
fun ranks at least temporarily. Lucy Christopher's spine tingling The
Killing Woods is a good bridge volume--an impossible to put down
thriller with a suspenseful plot and vivid, complex characters.
A high school girl, Ashlee Parker, is found dead in the woods
that border a small town and play large in the psyches of town
residents. People are quick to blame Emily Shepherd's father, a war
veteran suffering from PTSD. He was the one who carried the corpse
out. All evidence points to his committing murder or at least
manslaughter, caught in the grips of a terrible flashback.
Emily believes in her father's innocence even more than he
does. There had to have been other people in Darkwood that fateful
night. Maybe one of them choked the life out of Ashlee. Maybe
Ashlee's boyfriend, Damon, is not as innocent as everyone believes.
And then there are covert games played under the cover of night
in the woods, games in which both Ashlee and Damon participated.
The Killing Woods is written in terse, suspenseful chapters
alternating between Emily's and Damon's voices. Each is striving in
his or own way to discover the truth about the tragedy, what it means
for self and loved ones...and what consequences will ensue if it is
ever revealed.
On a personal note, Orono Public Library had a special program on
insects. It started off with Louise reading stories and jokes. Then
kids were free to go to stations ranging from using microscopes to see
insects up close and personal to doing crafts like antenna making.
Kids got their passports stamped as they went from activity to
activity. Even though rain deterred kids from outdoor discovery in
the far from killing woods and fields, a grand time was had by all.
A great big shout out goes out to all who share the knowledge that
insects are cool and wicked fascinating including my new chum Olivia.
Julia Emily Hathaway
Sent from my iPod
YA novel
Some high school students reach a point in their reading careers
where many YA offerings seem childish but adult adult books are not
appealing. Couple this with the fact that this is a very busy time in
their lives and you'll see why they can be lost from the reading for
fun ranks at least temporarily. Lucy Christopher's spine tingling The
Killing Woods is a good bridge volume--an impossible to put down
thriller with a suspenseful plot and vivid, complex characters.
A high school girl, Ashlee Parker, is found dead in the woods
that border a small town and play large in the psyches of town
residents. People are quick to blame Emily Shepherd's father, a war
veteran suffering from PTSD. He was the one who carried the corpse
out. All evidence points to his committing murder or at least
manslaughter, caught in the grips of a terrible flashback.
Emily believes in her father's innocence even more than he
does. There had to have been other people in Darkwood that fateful
night. Maybe one of them choked the life out of Ashlee. Maybe
Ashlee's boyfriend, Damon, is not as innocent as everyone believes.
And then there are covert games played under the cover of night
in the woods, games in which both Ashlee and Damon participated.
The Killing Woods is written in terse, suspenseful chapters
alternating between Emily's and Damon's voices. Each is striving in
his or own way to discover the truth about the tragedy, what it means
for self and loved ones...and what consequences will ensue if it is
ever revealed.
On a personal note, Orono Public Library had a special program on
insects. It started off with Louise reading stories and jokes. Then
kids were free to go to stations ranging from using microscopes to see
insects up close and personal to doing crafts like antenna making.
Kids got their passports stamped as they went from activity to
activity. Even though rain deterred kids from outdoor discovery in
the far from killing woods and fields, a grand time was had by all.
A great big shout out goes out to all who share the knowledge that
insects are cool and wicked fascinating including my new chum Olivia.
Julia Emily Hathaway
Sent from my iPod
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)