Module 5: "Going Bovine" by Libby Bray

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Book Cover Image:

Book Summary:

Texas high school junior, Cameron Smith is known to be an unambitious kid with no goals for the future.  Although his parents are teachers, Cameron’s only motivation is drugs and finding trouble.  Having a preppy twin sister who is popular and smart irritates him as well.  It would seem that he is headed down the path to nowhere.   His erratic behavior is blamed on his drug use, until he is diagnosed with a progressive fatal illness called Creutzfeldt-Jakob’s disease, also known as “Mad Cow disease.”  This malady affects the central nervous system of the brain.

As Cameron battles the disease and endures hospital treatments, his mind gradually deteriorates and he begins to hallucinate, imagining fantastical wizards and tall flames of fire are attacking him.  Luckily, a punk rock angel named Dulcie and her sidekick dwarf named Gonzo come to Cameron’s defense and they all set out in search of the Mysterious Dr. X who is able to cure him of his disease.  The reader must determine what is real and what is imagined in this darkly comic novel that explores the meaning of life and making the most of the time you have been given.

APA Reference:  

Bray, L. (2009). Going bovine.  New York N.Y.  Delacorte Press.

My Impressions:

This book is very unconventional to be sure, and there were many things that I, as an adult, did not care for.  One thing is the foul language throughout the book.  Another problem for me is that I could never truly relate to the main character, Cameron.  I found myself getting annoyed with him for not doing something useful and productive with his life when he seemed to have everything going for him at first.    I also had a difficult time getting into his dream fantasies and the characters that popped up along the way.  It is my assumption that these characters were the product of his imagination and the deterioration of this thought process as his disease worsened.

There was, however, some wry humor that made me laugh now and then as well as that the story tries to impress upon the reader how short and precious life is, Cameron came to the realization that he was about to die, without ever really having lived.  That is very sobering and makes one re-think their daily lives.

The book won several awards, partly for its portrayal of teen life and also for its humor and description of social misfits and dealing with a terminal disease.

      *  2009 - Children's Book Sense Pick

• Publishers Weekly Best Children's Book of the Year - 2009
• Booklist Books for Youth Editors' Choice in 2009
• 2010 – won the Michael L. Printz Award (given to a book that exemplifies literary excellence in young adult literature)

Professional Review:

Going Bovine By Libba Bray.

Sept. 2009. 496p. Delacorte, $17.99 (9780385733977); lib. ed., $20.99

(9780385904117). Gr. 8–12. In a giant departure from her Gemma

Doyle historical fiction trilogy, Bray’s latest

offering is an unforgettable, nearly

indefinable fantasy adventure, as immense

and sprawling as Cervantes’ Don Quixote,

on which it’s based. Here the hero is Cameron,

a 16-year-old C-plus-average slacker

who likens himself to “driftwood,” but he

suddenly becomes the center of attention

after he is diagnosed with Creutzfeldt-

Jakob disease, the human variant of mad

cow disease. In the hospital, he meets Dulcie, an alluring angel

clad in fishnet stockings and combat boots, who presents him

with a heroic quest to rescue the planet from an otherworldly,

evil force. Guided by random signs and accompanied by a teen

dwarf named Gonzo, Cameron sets off on a wild road trip

across the U.S. to save the world, and perhaps his own life. Talking

yard gnomes, quantum physics, cults of happiness, mythology,

religion, time travel, the blues, Disney World, the vacuous machine

behind reality TV shows, and spring break’s beer-and-bikini

culture all figure prominently in the plot, and readers may not

feel equally engaged in each of the novel’s lengthy episodes. But

Bray’s wildly imagined novel, narrated in Cameron’s sardonic,

believable voice, is wholly unique, ambitious, tender, thought

provoking, and often fall-off-the-chair funny, even as she writes

with powerful lyricism about the nature of existence, love, and

death. Familiarity with Don Quixote certainly isn’t necessary, but

those who know the basic plot will want to start over from the

beginning and pick up on each sly allusion to the classic story.

—Gillian Engberg

[Review of the book Going Bovine  by L. Bray].  (2009, August 1). Booklist,
 105 (22).  67.  Retrieved from http://www.booklist.com.

Library Uses:

Since the content of this book is for mature teens and deals with serious issues, I would have to use this book either on a book display with other issues that are of interest to teens, or do a book talk in the high school to get kids to read.

Module 5: "Bud, Not Buddy" by Christopher Paul Curtis

Book Cover Image:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bud,_Not_Buddy

 Book Summary: 

Bud Caldwell is a 10-year-old boy from Flint Michigan during the Great Depression, who was orphaned at a very young age.  He now is forced to live at an orphanage, with a select few cherished mementoes of his mother which include a picture of her as a child, a bag of rocks, and some posters of a jazz musician and his band.  “Bud” is assigned to an abusive foster home, but soon escapes and goes in search of the mysterious musician in the posters, Herman E. Calloway, who he suspects could be his real father.  With the assistance of a limousine driver he meets on the road, Bud finds Calloway and follows his concerts, noticing that after each one, Calloway takes a rock and writes the concert date and location on it.  They look exactly like the rocks his mother left behind.  Bud shows the musician his rocks, which at first are met with suspicion, then with anger.  It is soon discovered that Bud’s mother is Calloway’s very own daughter who had run away years ago.  Eventually Bud and Calloway come to accept that they are grandfather and grandson, and become very close, and Bud finds the home he has been longing for.

APA Reference:  

Curtis, C.P. (1999). Bud, Not Buddy.  New York N.Y.  Delacorte Books for Young Readers.

My Impressions:

This book struck a chord with me in that it related a sad and tragic story of an orphaned young boy whose life is without hope and who doesn’t even know his own heritage.  He is abandoned and alone – your heart goes out to him.  The Depression was a difficult time to live through for most people, but an orphaned boy has almost no chance for survival.  Bud shows his creativity, his resilience and his humor throughout the book as he pursues leads that will possibly take him to his father.  He has inherited the love for jazz music as well, and when he finally finds his grandfather, it is such a relief.  That young man now has a brighter future and can experience the love of family.  This is a heartwarming book and definitely deserved to win the Coretta Scott King Award (2000).

Professional Review:

…Christopher[Curtis’]second novel was going to be about the sit-down strike of 1937 in Flint. In the first draft of Bud, Not Buddy Bud had a glimpse of tanks and strikers in the street, but that story will have to wait for another book; in this one, the strike boiled down to the box of flyers in Lefty's car. Bud had amazing adventures that also wait for other books, as do some terrific characters. Stories leak out of Christopher like laughter, along with hilarious asides, dialogue, and wonderful details. Most of the editorial process (i.e., struggle) is about trying to control these elements so that the story doesn't lose momentum or tension.

I marvel at his use of slapstick, humor, and "gross" things kids love, like backwash in a bottle of pop. Or his shorthand with the details: Bud's first meal in a restaurant, or Kenny's description of breathing in the pomade on his little sister's hair, or that moment, after the bombing, when Kenny looks at the shoe.

Each book is carried along by the exaggerated tone and the heightened childlike energy of the voice, and by the tension created when Christopher sets each boy up against a great, dark force: the bombing; the Depression; racism. In Bud, Not Buddy the rules are funny and to the point, but they also show us what inspired them--Bud's hard, hard life in the hands of strangers.

Christopher's readers learn how history affects ordinary people like the Watsons and Bud--and about other ideas, such as the importance of music, whether it's Yakkity Yak on the Ultra Glide or the subtle "vocal stylings" of Miss Thomas in 1930s Grand Rapids. And they learn about family: family is the goal; family is the salvation; family is Bud's right and he must demand it from the world…

[Review of the book Bud, not Buddy, by C. P. Curtis].  (2000, Juy/August). Horn Book Magazine. 76(4). 397-401.  Retrieved from http://www.mediasourceinc.com/

Library Uses:

This book takes place in the 1930s during the Great Depression in the United States, a time of extreme hardship and poverty for many people.  Many Americans faced the desperate situation of joblessness and starvation, especially African Americans.  If there happened to be a job available, long lines would form to apply for it, and it most likely would not go to a black person.  This was the era before the Civil Rights movement took place, and the Depression affected African Americans even more severely. 

This would be a good book to lead into a discussion on the Great Depression and the advent of the Civil Rights movement.  This could also spark a discussion on orphanages, child abuse, or the exploration of jazz music.

Module 4: "Shiloh" by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor

Book Cover Image:

http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/207153.Shiloh

Book Summary:

Eleven-year-old Marty Preston stumbles across a loveable but starving beagle pup in the woods behind his home and takes him in.  They become immediate friends, and Marty names his new pet “Shiloh.”  Marty soon discovers that Shiloh belongs to an abusive alcoholic named Judd Travers who has a reputation for abusing dogs, and he also carries a gun wherever he goes.  Judd wants the dog back, not because he has any affection for Shiloh, but because Marty has become so attached to him.  The dog of course prefers to be with Marty, which angers Judd even more.  When Shiloh runs away, Marty hides and protects him from Judd, but endangers his family in the process.  It is up to Marty to think of a creative way to trick Judd into letting him keep Shiloh as his own.

APA Reference:  

Naylor, P.R. (1991). Shiloh.  New York N.Y.  Atheneum.

My Impressions:

This book is really a story of love and devotion between a boy and his dog. It also shows the lengths someone will go to protect someone or something they dearly love.  Animal abuse and cruelty are difficult issues to deal with at any age, but more so for a child.  However, any dog lover could relate to the situation and would try to step in and help.

Professional Review:

When Marty, age eleven, befriends an abused dog, Shiloh, and his father demands that he return Shiloh to his owner, Marty must choose between deceit and truth. He does return Shiloh once, but when Shiloh returns, half-starved and obviously mistreated, Marty cannot betray the dog's faith in him as savior. He hides Shiloh in the woods until his perfidity is discovered and Marty must face the wrath of his parents and of Shiloh's owner, Judd. This brief, simply told novel is better than most animal stories. The characters are well drawn and even Judd, Shiloh's cruel owner, has some reasons for his behavior.

The book is easily and quickly read but there are no simplistic answers in it. The great respect of the mountain people for each other's privacy and personal rights is at the heart of the book. Martin Preston's family's strict code of honor is the sticking point. The book provides ample opportunity for discussion of such questions as: would money have made a difference here? And then there are the larger questions brought into focus by the author: what is truth? Marty makes two statements that are questions for debate: "A lie don't seem a lie anymore when it's meant to save a dog" and "What kind of law is it... that lets a man mistreat his dog?" Is it necessary to be untruthful in order to gain some greater truth or good? In other words, do the ends ever justify the means?

[Review of the book Shiloh by P.R.Naylor].  (1996, September). Teaching K-8 magazine,
 34(5). 216. Retrieved from http://www.carolhurst.com/titles/shiloh.html.

Library Uses:

This would not be a book for real young children, but those who are mature enough to deal with the potential abuse of an animal and feel like they could help in some way.  The book could be used in a book talk to an elementary school on pets, or abuse, or courage in the face of conflict.   You could also place this book with others on dogs or pets in general for a display in the juvenile area.

Module 4: "Maniac Magee" by Jerry Spinelli

Book Cover Image:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maniac_Magee

Book Summary:

Maniac Magee is a fictional story written for teens by popular young adult author Jerry  Spinelli.  The story follows the challenges of a young boy (Jeffrey Lionel Magee), tragically orphaned at the age of 3 who is then required to live with a hostile aunt and uncle in the fictional town of Two Mills, PA.   Jeffrey  hates it and eventually runs away, and is forced to live on his own in the street as a homeless person.  He befriends a bookworm named Amanda and goes to live with her family, but makes enemies of the neighborhood street urchins along the way, earning him the name “Maniac Magee.”  He grows to become a local legend of sorts for his athletic talents and his courage to stand up to anyone and anything, including those who wished to maintain racial segregation in the town.  Throughout the books he meets several characters who influence his life. 
 

APA Reference:  

Spinelli, J. (1990).  Maniac Magee.  New York, NY: Little, Brown & Co.

 My Impressions:

Jeffrey “Maniac” Magee is a child forced to grow up too soon, in a world that is hostile to him.  He struggles to find his identity throughout the book, but manages to adapt very well in the end.  Racism plays an important part in the story as well as homelessness.  This book is a Newbery Award winner for its depiction of timely topics and is often used in school curricula to explore racial identity.  Although harsh at times, the story proves that confidence in oneself and optimism and endurance pay off.

Professional Review:

Maniac Magee was well-received upon publication, variously lauded in reviews as "always affecting," having "broad appeal," and being full of "pathos and compassion."     Booklist reviewer Deborah Abbot says, "...this unusual novel magically weaves timely issues of homelessness, racial prejudice, and illiteracy into a complicated story rich in characters and details...an energetic piece of writing that bursts with creativity, enthusiasm, and hope."

[Review of the book Maniac Magee, by J. Spinelli].  (1990). Booklist,  86(19).  1902.  Retrieved from http://www.booklist.com. 

Library Uses:

I believe this book could be used as a tool in a study on the issues of race and homelessness.   These are current moral and ethical problems in our world today and children need to be prepared to deal with racism and the plight of those less fortunate.  Reading and writing can also be emphasized as positive skills to develop, as they helped Maniac Magee out of many situations.  Education is always worth pursuing and developing.

Module 4: "The Witch of Blackbird Pond" by Elizabeth George Speare

Book Cover Image:

 (image from www.goodreads.com)

                                 "The Witch of Blackbird Pond" by Elizabeth George Speare

Book Summary:

16-year-old Kit Tyler has always lived in luxury, reading books, dressing in fine clothes, and enjoying life in Barbados with her grandfather.  That all comes to an end when she is tragically orphaned and must move from the only home she has known, to live with relatives in the cold, foreboding shores of Connecticut Colony in New England, America.  She has always been a bit of a free thinker, a liberal, and is now thrust among people who are pious and strict.  In this stern Puritan community, the only place where Kit can escape the criticism of her uncle and the frowns of the townspeople, is in the lush meadow, where she befriends an elderly Quaker woman known as the Witch of Blackbird Pond.  She also gets to know a young sailor boy named Nat.  But Kit's friendship with the "witch" is discovered by the locals and must now deal with suspicion, irrational fear, and anger. The gossip is so rampant that even Kit herself is accused of witchcraft and must fear for her life.

APA Reference:  

Speare, E. G. (1958). The witch of Blackbird Pond. Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin.

My Impressions:

I read this book as a child and was entranced.  Reading it again as an adult put an added perspective on the topics raised in the book.  The issues brought about by strict religious constraints and unwillingness to accept values and customs that were different is a theme that carries through even today.  The status of women in the 1600s is worth noting as well.  The frenzied behavior generated from irrational fear is also still present in today’s America.

Professional Review:

The Witch of Blackbird Pond. By Elizabeth George Speare.

'Hurt masterfully reads this Newbery

award winner, set in seventeenth-century

Puritan New England. Orphan Kit Tyler

sails to the Connecticut colony to live with

her aunt and uncle, but despite earnest

attempts to belong, her behavior is unacceptable

by Puritan standards. Criticized by

the community, Kit seeks solace with a

kindly old Quaker woman. Hurt’s youthful

voice and soft New England accent perfectly

match Kit’s buoyant personality and

well-meaning antics. Hurt’s perception of

the story enables her to shift seamlessly

among characters, and she ably portrays

everyone, including Kit’s soft-spoken aunt

and her terse, unforgiving uncle. The villager’s

talk of heresy is thick with suspicion,

and Hurt’s capable reading accentuates

this sense of foreboding." —Anna Rich

[Review of the book The witch of Blackbird Pond, by E. G. Speare].  (2002, November 1). Booklist,
 99(5). 518.  Retrieved from http://www.booklist.com.

Library Uses:

This book could create a lot of discussion among middle school children and young adults while discussing American history or the topic of religious freedom.  Colonial America in the 1600s held many different views on religion and customs;  women’s rights were basically non-existent;  and legends superstitions ruled the thoughts of the Puritan people who feared witchcraft more than any other “threat” they had to face.  This would be a good introduction to a study on the Salem Witch Trials as well.

Books on related topics could be set up as a display or introduced to children through book talks.

Module 3: "The Lion and the Mouse" by Jerry Pinkney

Book Cover Image: 

The Lion and the Mouse by Jerry Pinkney

Book Summary:   In the story "The Lion and the Mouse," a little mouse accidentally awakens a very large lion from his nap, making him very upset.  He pins the mouse by the tail and teases him; they both know that he could end the mouse’s life at any moment.  But for some reason, the lion changes his mind and decides to let the mouse go free. The mouse is so grateful that she promises to repay the lion’s kindness one day. The lion thinks this is quite funny.  After all, what could such a small creature do to help out “the king of beasts?”  However, later on in the story, the lion becomes entangled in a trap set by some hunters.  The mouse happens to be nearby and when she hears the lion roaring in pain and frustration, she comes to assist him.  She quickly chews through the ropes and sets the lion free, thereby repaying his earlier kindness.

APA Reference:     Pinkney, J. (2009).  The lion & the mouse.  New York, NY: Little, Brown and Company.

My Impressions:   This beautifully illustrated book tells the simple tale of a lion who spares the life of a smaller, helpless creature and is repaid with kindness in the end when he needs a friend the most.  The fact that the two creatures in this story are so very different in size and status within the animal kingdom stresses the importance of being kind to others, no matter who they are or what the circumstances.  The moral of the story is that a kind deed is never wasted.  This theme continues on as it relates to the characteristic of good citizenship in the world and fellowship between all God’s creatures, human or otherwise.

Professional Review:  
The art of Jerry Pinkney’s new picture book is commanding enough to do without the author’s name or even the title on the front cover. A jacket with no words at all? It’s been done before, but not often — probably most notably with Fred Marcellino’s “Puss in Boots” (1990), which won a Caldecott Honor. That cover featured a big cat, too, but here Pinkney gives us a lion’s head with a magnificent mane, filling the entire frame. The Sun King demeanor is somewhat diminished by the uneasy glance the lion is casting stage right, toward the back cover, where a mouse looks up with a question in its eye. Which creature will be the hero of the tale within?

Skip to next paragraphTHE LION AND THE MOUSE

Illustrated by Jerry Pinkney

This is Pinkney’s second go at “The Lion and the Mouse,” the first being a brief entry in his “Aesop’s Fables” of almost 20 years ago. But that first pair were only supporting players to Aesop’s text, 200 or so words plus a moral: “Even the strongest can sometimes use the help of the smallest.” The new book has only seven distinct words, all sound effects — an owl, stalking the mouse, “whoooo” and “screeeech”; the mouse, “scratch” and “squeak.” Providing the plot is the “putt-putt-putt” of the jeep bearing humans into the Serengeti landscape (a note says).

And you don’t even need the sounds to see exactly what’s going on. Wordless picture books require great cunning not only to provide a recognizable pantomime but also to lead readers from one scene to the next: how do you know when to turn the page when there are no words to pull you forward? Pinkney’s story begins with a mouse pausing alertly in —what is this? — a big paw print in the sandy ground, one of a set tracking across the title-page spread. We turn the page, dawn is (beautifully) breaking, the mouse is poised, apparently listening. . . . Good thing there is a hole in that fallen tree on the far right, because on the next page the mouse barely dives in when the owl swoops. The mouse moves on, coming to rest on — “Is that a snake?” asked the 4-year-old I was sharing the book with. Pinkney’s sly use of nature’s camouflage causes us to look more closely. Nope: it was a tail, then a furry back, and before you know it the lion has the mouse by its tail, his “GRRR” seeming more puzzled than threatening, the mouse’s squeak an “Oops!”

Winner of five Caldecott Honors, Pinkney has always seemed happier drawing animals than people. Look, in his 2007 retelling, at his studied Little Red Riding Hood next to his lively Wolf. His beasts are not humans in disguise; while both the lion and the mouse have emotions and intelligence in their eyes, they are animal in nature. We don’t know why the lion lets the mouse go free or why the mouse nibbles the lion out of the net planted by the men (poachers? wardens?) from the jeep. But it’s actions in this case that count. That’s the moral of the story. 
Roger Sutton, editor

[Review of the book The Lion & the mouse, by Jerry Pinkney].  (2009, Nov. 5). New York Times Sunday Book Review, BR15.  Retrieved from http://www.nytimes.com.

Library Uses:   This story could be used to demonstrate how children can show kindness towards others.  They could discuss what they could do as a good citizen to help someone in need – a classmate, an elderly person, a parent.  This could also lead to an examination of bullying and how to prevent such behavior.

Another use of this book could be to discuss art and the various illustration styles.  Watercolor is the main theme in Pinkney’s book which won the Caldecott Medal in 2010.