Bomb: The Race to Build and Steal the World’s Most Dangerous Weapon

Title: Bomb: The Race to Build and Steal the World’s Most Dangerous Weapon
Author: Steve Sheinkin
ISBN: 9781596434875
Pages: 266 pages
Publisher/Date: Flash Point, an imprint of Roaring Brook Press, c2012.
Publication Date: September 4, 2012
Awards: 2012 National Book Award Finalist for Young People’s Literature, 2013 Newbery Honor Book, Winner of the 2013 Sibert Award and the 2013 YALSA Excellence in Nonfiction Award, Cybils Top Five Nonfiction Finalist,

This is a big story. It’s the story of the creation — and theft — of the deadliest weapon ever invented. The scenes speed around the world, from secret labs to commando raids to street-corner spy meetings. But like most big stories, this one starts small [...] sixteen years before FBI agents cornered Harry Gold in Philadelphia. (7)

Not only is this a big story, but it’s also a complex and sometimes convoluted story, filled with spies and sabotage, intrigue and ingenuity, science and suspense. In 1938, German physicist Otto Hahn was the first to split the atom, an accomplishment that scientists around the world thought was impossible. Less than one year later, President Roosevelt was appraised by none other than Albert Einstein of the possibility of this discovery being used to build a super-sized bomb, and Roosevelt demanded action. Thus began the race for physical, monetary, and intellectual resources to discover the key and build a bomb before any of their enemies. In the shadow of World War II and into the Cold War, scientists worked tirelessly. Robert Oppenheimer’s team in California was the first to crack the code, but the group was plagued with security uncertainties and the government, military, and scientists involved questioned who they could really trust with this deadly and destructive data.

This book has received many accolades, from being a 2012 National Book Award Finalist for Young People’s Literature and 2013 Newbery Honor Book to winning the 2013 Sibert Award and the 2013 YALSA Excellence in Nonfiction Award. One thing that would have helped this award-winning book immensely is a timeline. As readers bounce from scientists to spies and back again across multiple continents and countries, it was almost information overload. It was difficult to differentiate everyone in the beginning, especially when the forward starts in one year and then you zip backwards in time almost a decade and another part where two people on a sabotage team both had the same first name. But for science enthusiasts and detailed orientated people, this will intrigue and enthrall them to have all the pieces of the puzzle together in one concise book. Sheinkin goes beyond the creation of Fat Man and Little Boy and their deployment on Japan, allowing readers a glimpse into the beginnings of the Cold War.

One scene mentioned in the book that particularly struck me was learning how far America went to determine who was spying on us:

While in the United States, Soviet spies had to use an American telegraph company to send information quickly to Moscow. The KGB probably knew that the telegraph company was making copies of every telegram and handing them over to the U.S. Army. This didn’t particularly worry the Soviets–the messages were always written in an extremely complex code.
In 1949, after years of failure, American code breakers cracked the code. Intelligence began decoding all the messages sent to the Soviet Union during the war. That’s when they came across a shocking note sent from New York City to KGB headquarters in 1944. [...]
The 1944 telegram summarized a top-secret scientific paper. The paper had been written by one of the British scientists working with Oppenheimer. A few phone calls later, Lamphere [a FBI counterintelligence agent] had the name of the paper’s author: Klaus Fuchs. (221)

Proving how complex the situation was, the German-born physicist named Klaus Fuchs was working with British scientists in England when his assistance was requested in America, prompting him to spy for the Russian Communist Party. When he is arrested and finally being tried in 1950, his lawyer emphasizes the fact that at the time he was passing secrets to the Soviet Union during World War II, the country and Britain were allies. This made the difference between a maximum 14 years in prison for passing secrets to allies and the death penalty if the two countries had been enemies at the time the crime was committed. Fuchs got out early for good behavior, later moving back to East Germany.

Especially interesting is a peak, however brief, into the political rational of Japan not surrendering after the first bomb was dropped. I would have liked to have read more about the bombs’ effects on the country, but sticking to the facts and not trying to sensationalize the country or its population I feel made a greater impact. The simple statement “Fat Man exploded over the city of Nagasaki with the force of 22,000 tons of TNT. At least 40,000 people were instantly killed, and tens of thousands more fatally wounded or poisoned with radiation.” leaves a power impression. I hope readers considered these stark statistics and allowed them the full attention they deserved. This is not a fast read, but you’ll feel immeasurably rewarded once you get through this dense text that presents the making of the bomb and it’s after effects from all sides.

This post is in honor of Nonfiction Mondays. For the entire round-up of all the bloggers who participated, check out Sue Heavenrich over at Sally’s Bookshelf.

This book in particular was read as I participate in YALSA’s 2013 Hub Reading Challenge which challenges readers to finish 25 books by June 22nd from a list of 83 titles that were recognized and published over the last year.

Dead End in Norvelt

Title: Dead End in Norvelt
Author: Jack Gantos
ISBN: 9780374379933
Pages: 341 pages
Publisher/Date: Farrar Straus Giroux, c2011.

BLAM! The rifle fired off and violently kicked out of my grip. It flipped into the air before clattering down across the picnic table and sliding onto the ground. “Oh sweet cheeze-us!” I wailed, and dropped butt-first onto the table. “Ohhh! Cheeze-us-crust!” I didn’t know the rifle was loaded. I hadn’t put a shell in the chamber. My ears were ringing like air raid warnings. I tried to stand but was too dizzy and flopped over. “This is bad. This is bad,” I whispered over and over as I desperately gripped the tabletop.
“Jaaaack!” I heard my mother shriek and then the screen door slammed behind her.
“If I’m not already dead I soon will be,” I said to myself. (10-11)

After playing with his father’s war souvenirs when he wasn’t supposed to and mowing down his mother’s corn when his dad told him to, Jack gets grounded for the rest of the summer. Stuck in his house, the only time he’s allowed out is to either dig the bomb shelter his dad is intent on making, or help the neighbor Miss Volker. Helping Miss Volker doesn’t involve the usual things like painting the house or raking leaves. Instead, Jack drives the elderly medical examiner around and types the obituaries as she dictates them to him. The job is much easier than digging in the heat a hole the size of a swimming pool. But when the elderly residents start dying out one after another, suspicion is cast on Miss Volker. Is Jack unwittingly helping a murderer?

This book has garnered a lot of love over the past year, winning the Newbery Award and the Scott O’Dell Award for historical fiction. Now I’m not saying that it’s a bad book by any means, but I’m not sure I can whole heartedly agree with the committee’s decision like I did with When You Reach Me by Rebecca Stead. I had a hard time getting engaged and engrossed by it, and I think I’m going to have a hard time convincing kids to read it. The biggest draw is I think the growing number of dead bodies, but although there are some suspicions, it’s not brought up until almost the end of the story, and even then quite suddenly. There is little suspense, if any, and the resolution of this mystery is accomplished quite suddenly, with not even a glimpse into the police work involved in “solving” the “crime” and no real rationale behind it. I found the obituaries that Miss Volker writes somewhat humorous, but I’m not sure how much humor tweens would get out of them.

The best way I can describe this book is odd. Jack does all sorts of “odd” things during his two month sentence, from driving a car and examining dead bodies (his sort-of friend’s dad owns the funeral home) to buying rat poison and digging a bomb shelter. His dad is odd, insisting that Jack mow down his mother’s corn to make room for a runway for an old airplane that Jack’s dad bought at a surplus auction. The chief of police chases people in a tricycle, a Hell’s Angel drops dead from dancing, and the old houses are being bought up and transported to another town. Even the cover of the book is “odd”, with Jack’s missing head behind the sign giving no inclination of the deaths in the book. The whole town is odd, but not in the Gilmore Girls series kind of kooky, just a collection of oddities.

The other thing I would have liked to have seen is an author’s note in the back separating fact from fiction. Obviously it’s semi-autobiographical since the main character shares a name with the author and grows up in a town where the author grew up. An accounting of what is fact and what is fiction would have been much appreciated and could have allowed for a strong connection for readers.

I’m sorry to say that this one fell flat for me.

Heart and Soul

Title: Heart and Soul: The Story of America and African Americans
Author/Illustrator: Kadir Nelson
ISBN: 9780061730740
Pages: 108 pages
Publisher/Date: Balzer + Bray, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers, c2011.
Awards: Won Coretta Scot King Author Award, 2012
Coretta Scott King Illustrator Honor, 2012

Most folks my age and complexion don’t speak much about the past. Sometimes it’s just too hard to talk about–nothing we like to share with you young folk. No parent wants to tell a child that he was once a slave and made to do another man’s bidding. Or that she had to swallow her pride and take what she was given, even though she knew it wasn’t fair. Our story is chock-full of things like this. Things that might make you cringe, or feel angry. But there are also parts that will make you proud, or even laugh a little. You gotta take the good with the bad, I guess. You have to know where you come from so you can move forward.” (7)

Just as the subtitle says, this is the story of America and African Americans. Narrated by a family matriarch, she takes readers back in time to her grandfather’s time, when he was taken on a slave ship to serve on a plantation, and proceeds to tell her family’s story all the way to present day. Covering the Revolutionary War, the Civil War, both World Wars and the Great Depression, she concludes with the Civil Rights marches and an epilogue that discusses the accomplishments that movement brought.

Kadir Nelson’s work is a force to be reckoned with. He has been recognized by the Coretta Scott King Book Award Committee a total of five times, but I think this surpasses everything I’ve seen of his. The book is formatted and designed to mimic a photo album, with the cover artwork framed out with scrollwork. The double page spreads primarily consist of one full-page picture and a page of corresponding text. Generous white space, short chapters, and the conversational tone make the book a very quick read, and readers will feel like their listening to their own grandmother telling the story of her youth.

You’ll really need to go through it a second time to truly appreciate the detailed artwork, ranging from unoccupied landscapes to crowded scenes. Nelson even includes imitations of some iconic portraits like Martin Luther King’s Jr. address on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial. Interspersed throughout the book are a handful of double page illustrations that really bring readers to a halt. The book could be called a pictorial history book or narrative nonfiction, but in any case it’s a stunning portrayal of history.

This post is in honor of Nonfiction Mondays. For the entire round-up of all the bloggers who participated, check out publishers Capstone over at Capstone Connect.

One Crazy Summer

Title: One Crazy Summer
Author: Rita Williams-Garcia
ISBN: 97800607960885
Pages: 218 pages
Publisher/Date: Amistad, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers, c2010.

“We were a block away from the green stucco house, chatting and laughing. Then we stopped walking. All three of us. There were three police cars parked outside of Cecile’s house. One in the driveway and two along the curb. Policemen lined the walk. Lights flashed on top of their cars onto the streets. Red, white, and blue lights everywhere. We inched up, the happiness knocked out of us.
Cecile and two Black Panthers. Hands behind their backs. Handcuffed. Being led out of the house and down the walkway. I could hardly breathe. (167)

Eleven-year-old Delphine and her two younger sisters are being placed on a plane for the first time. Leaving behind their father and maternal grandmother in Brooklyn, they’re forced to spend several weeks of their summer in Oakland, California with Cecile, the mother who abandoned them seven years ago. Cecile is about as happy as her children with the arranged visit. Their mother sends the sisters to a summer camp sponsored by the Black Panthers, where they receive a whole new education about black history and pride. When Cecile is arrested for her involvement with the group, will Delphine, Vonetta and Fern continue to fend for themselves? Or will they finally learn the benefits of having their mother in their life again?

I know some colleagues who have remarked that the experiences the girls go through and especially Delphine’s reactions to the situations seem too advanced for her tender eleven years old. But others have argued that her circumstances have forced her to grow up early, and it’s nice to see a child of questionable upbringing rise to the challenge and take responsibility for not only herself but her younger siblings. It’s overcoming adversity at it’s best. Regardless of how you feel about her circumstances and reactions, it’s impressive how Delphine is able to observe and process her surroundings. Even her uninterested mother comments at the end of the book that Delphine should “Be eleven while you can.” (210)

I have a coworker using this book for her next mother/daughter book group, which I think is a really good choice because of the mature themes of the Civil Rights Movement. Delphine asks some powerful questions regarding the events of that time. There is the story of Bobby Hutton, who was shot multiple times by police two days after Martin Luther King Jr. was killed. The Black Panthers are planning a rally in order to honor Bobby Hutton and urge the renaming of a park in his honor. Delphine observes

“Wouldn’t Little Bobby rather be alive than be remembered? Wouldn’t he rather be sitting out in the park than have the park named after him? I wanted to watch the news. Not be in it. The more I thought about it, the more I had my answer.” (133)

The settings and environment are brought to life by Rita Williams-Garcia’s vivid descriptions. When the girls leave for California, Delphine counts how many black people are in the airport, and informs readers that her grandmother expects the oldest black woman boarding the plane to look out for her grandchildren. Also, Delphine relates her awareness of racism and the novelty of her race to some people when she talks about strangers trying to take pictures of her and her sisters. While on the plane she recognizes that they are serving as representatives for the entire race in a way that white people don’t have to worry about.

While it’s a thought-provoking book, I didn’t fall in love with it the way everyone else seems to be embracing it. In one year, this book has won four, yes FOUR, awards.

• 2011 Coretta Scott King Award Winner
• 2011 Newbery Honor Book
• 2011 Scott O’Dell Prize for Historical Fiction
• 2010 National Book Award Finalist

You’ll see in the picture that there’s barely enough room on the cover for all the awards stickers that it’s received. I just think that adults might get more out of it than the audience it’s geared for, with the focus being on such an abstract political movement. There are other books with the identity “what’s-in-a-name” focus that I think might ring truer for the younger set. And while there are a very small number of books that deal with the Black Panthers for this age group, I hope that’s not influencing people’s opinions of the book.

Dark Emperor and Other Poems of the Night

Title: Dark Emperor and Other Poems of the Night
Author: Joyce Sidman
Illustrator: Rick Allen
ISBN: 9780547152288
Pages: 32 pages
Publisher/Date: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company, c2010.

“To all of you who crawl and creep,
who buzz and chirp and hoot and peep,
who wake at dusk and throw off sleep:
Welcome to the night.” (6)

With these opening lines, Joyce Sidman presents a collection of twelve poems describing the forest night life. From the tiniest snails to the mightiest oak tree, her poetry presents a typical night as animals and plants stir, eat, grow, and then fall back to sleep with the setting of the moon. I’m partial to the rythmic and ryhming poems, such as “Welcome to the Night,” “Oak After Dark,” and “Ballad of the Wandering Eft.” While the poems are on the left hand page, a small inset accompanying a detailed picture (more about that later) gives factual information about the animal (or plant) in the poem on the right hand page. The information is intended for young audiences, featuring little-known facts like “most orb spiders eat their damaged webs” or “young snails add a layer to their shells each night.”

While the poetry varies from rhyming couplets to more free verse, the illustrations by Rick Allen are uniformally stunning. People interested in learning how the pictures are made should look at the copyright page, where it gives a short tongue-in-cheek description that “There are definitely faster methods of making a picture, but few more enjoyable in a backwards sort of way.” In fact, I’m kind of disappointed that it got a Newbery Honor but nothing from Caldecott.

The detail that went into these photos prints is impressive. (That little goof just proves how much I admire the pictures.) The owl on the cover is the first clue that this is not your typical picture book of poetry. The leaves pop from the page, and there is texture on the tree bark that makes you think it’s a touch and feel book. On most of the scenery pages, readers can hunt for a tiny red eft (like a newt or salamander) amongst the leaves, grass, and mushrooms. I wish that the newt had been included on all the pages, because you miss him on the pages he isn’t present.

A must buy for nature lovers, poetry lovers, and art lovers alike.

Jimi Sounds Like a Rainbow: A Story of the Young Jimi Hendrix

Title: Jimi Sounds Like a Rainbow: A Story of the Young Jimi Hendrix
Author: Gary Golio
Illustrator: Javaka Steptoe
ISBN: 9780618852796
Pages: 32 pages
Publisher/Date: Clarion Books, an imprint of Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company, c2010.

The cover should give you a clue that this picture book just explodes with color! At times, the double page spreads are a little overwhelming, but they are also so engaging that you sometimes forget to read the text. Is it collage? Is it painted? Is it wood, paper, paint, or a combination of the three? Whatever it is, and however it was done, it is very cool.

The text is also accessible for the intended audience, which I feel is probably early elementary students. Beginning the story when Jimi Hendrix was 14, it talks about how he started playing his “one-string ukulele”, could “imitate guitars and trumpets with his mouth and hands”, bought his first used guitar for five dollars, upgraded to the cheapest electric guitar after joining a band, and finally “played for audiences far and wide.” It handles very few details in the text, saving them for the “More About Jimi Hendrix” which follows the text. Instead, it stresses how Jimi grew up observing the world and trying to infuse his music with the life, color, and vibrancy he found around him.

For older readers, there is an author’s note that details how Jimi Hendrix died of an overdose and what effect the drug use might have had on his career. Personally, I think this portion of the book was a little over the top. The author informs readers “As a clinical social worker who has worked with hundreds of teens and adults suffering from addiction problems, I have seen how alcoholism and substance use often follow physical or emotional abuse, depression, childhood poverty, and the loss of one’s parents at an early age.” It sounds like he is diagnosing or evaluating Jimi Hendrix, which I don’t think fits the tone of the rest of the biography. The added resources regarding substance abuse, while nice to have, seem like overkill. People are not reading this book for a “told you so” tale of substance abuse. The illustrator’s note talks about his inspiration, but offers little information about how the engaging pictures were produced, simply stating that he “used plywood [he] found at The RE Store in Ballard, a Seattle neighborhood.” and that he “layered and used bright colors” Don’t miss the very last page, which offers a list of sources and resources.

A solid interpretation of this musician’s life, the pictures alone are worth a look at this book. The lyrical text ends the story with Jimi Hendrix’s own words: “Don’t let nobody turn you off from your own thoughts and dreams.” In January, the book became a Coretta Scott King Illustrator Honor Book. Don’t feel too bad for illustrator Javaka Steptoe, since he’s already previously won the award.

Fat Cat

Title: Fat Cat
Author: Robin Brande
ISBN: 9780375844492
Pages: 327 pages
Publisher/Date: Alfred A. Knopf, c2009.

That’s when I knew what I should do. I knew if I made this my project, I’d really have to take it seriously. I couldn’t back out. I couldn’t cheat. This would be for a grade and for the science fair, so I’d have to do it for real. Once I committed to it– once I wrote my idea on a piece of paper this afternoon and turned it in alongside everyone else’s research topics–I’d have no choice but to take it all the way.
Mr. Fizer said he wants big ideas. He wants us to be creative and to really push ourselves. He wants us to throw ourselves into our projects, mind and body and soul.
Well, you can’t get more committed than this.
“I’m going to do it,” I told Amanda. “I’m going to become prehistoric.” (11)

Junior Catherine Locke (known as Fat Cat to some of her classmates) is turning herself into a test subject for her science fair project. She’s determined that she will report on the results of living as a cave woman would have, which means no technology, no candy, no processed food, and no transportation (except for emergencies of course). Her friend Amanda thinks she’s crazy, especially considering all the honors and AP classes Cat is already taking. It doesn’t help matters that Amanda enlists her to help save the local vegetarian restaurant where Amanda does Poetry Night every month. After recovering from the initial caffine withdrawls, things go well until her quickly slimming body garners some unwanted attention, especially from ex-friend Matt. Will Cat be able to win the science fair and trounce Matt once and for all, paying him back for the horrible thing he did a few years ago?

Upon reading the back cover, I was surprised that this was the same author who won the 2008 Thumbs Up! Award for her first novel, Evolution, Me and Other Freaks of Nature. Most people have never even heard of this award, and it’s really quite nice that she recognizes her award on the back cover. I also think it’s surprising that she’s a finalist for a second time for her second book. You know you have a quality writer when that happens (either that, or it’s a Michigan favorite?).

And Robin Brande is a quality writer. Her dialogue is snappy and witty, and reads with some marvelous realism. I fell in love with not only Amanda and Cat’s relationship, but also Amanda’s relationship with her boyfriend Jordan. The science fair experiments mentioned in the book are elaborate and involved, putting to shame my attempt in sixth grade to determine whether or not increasing the amount of color dye in water decreased the amount of time it took for the flower to change color. (It does) While sex is mentioned, both Amanda and Cat are set in their opinion to abstain at least until college, which is a refreshing view in teen literature. In one scene, Cat tells an overly interested boy

“Remember I told you I’ve taken a vow of chastity. You understand what that means, right?
“Yeah,” he said. “You’re very generous. I think that’s cool.”
I didn’t quite get his answer, but I didn’t want to prolong the conversation. [...]
That’s when it dawned on me what Greg had meant. [...] Um, that’s charity, Greg, not chastity.
He is so not the right guy for me.(137-138)

What’s also refreshingly authentic is Cat’s relationship with her parents and brother. While awkward, it’s not to the point of deteriaration, and as her parents are a positive, supportive role models for Cat, Cat returns the support by offering her younger brother nutritional and relationship advice. Although some recipes for Cat’s creations would have been appreciated, she does provide a “for further reading” which details sources for recipes. I espeically appreciate that Cam’s sizes and weights are not specified (with the exception of her bra size), which leaves it to the reader’s imagination how small/big Cam really is.

Cat is a smart, sexy, and self-concious teen, and while she might not be the most popular kid in school, it’s not even mentioned in the book. It focuses on her and her small circle of friends, which is nice that it doesn’t obsess over the cliche cliques. All and all, a wonderful read, and I’m going to have to check out her first book. If it’s anything like this book, I know I’ll fall in love with it just as quickly.

The Mostly True Adventures of Homer P. Figg

Title: The Mostly True Adventures of Homer P. Figg
Author: Rodman Philbrick
Narrator: William Dufris
ISBN: 9780739372326
Pages: 224 pages
Discs: 4 CDs, 5 hours 1 minute
Publisher/Date: The Blue Sky Press, c2009.

My name is Homer P. Figg, and these are my true adventures. I mean to write them down, every one, including all the heroes and cowards, and the saints and the scalawags, and them stained with the blood of innocents, and them touched by glory, and them that was lifted into Heaven, and them that went to the Other Place.
I say my “true” adventures because I told a fib to a writer once, who went and put it in the newspaper about me and my big brother, Harold, winning the battle at Gettysburg, and how we shot each other dead but lived to tell the tale. That’s partly true, about winning the battle, but most ways it’s a lie.
Telling the truth don’t come easy to me, but I will try, even if old Truth ain’t nearly as useful as a fib sometimes. (7)

Orphaned Homer P. Figg is cared for by his seventeen-year-old brother Harold and his mean and nasty Uncle Squinton, who Homer thinks of like he would “think of a rabid skunk, or scabs on my backside, or a bad toothache.” (8) In fact, Harold makes Squint so mad, Squint lies about his age and forces him to enlist in the Union Army to fight the Civil War. Homer heads off to find his brother, certain that Harold is going to get killed in battle. Along the way, he meets a Quaker abolitionist who’s part of the Underground Railroad, joins a suspicious medicine show, and participates in one of the largest battles of the Civil War.

First, I need to continue to rave about the narration, which is done by William Dufris. It’s EXCELLENT! Dufris is truly the epitome of narration at it’s best. The sheer range of his different voices for each and ever character is highly impressive. From the childish frustrated squeak of Homer’s “I want to go with Harold!” to the booming, almost god-like voice of Quaker abolitionist Mr. Brewster, from the sniveling, non-to-bright Mr. Willow to the commanding con man Professor Fleabottom, he nails them all.

And what a wonderful cast of characters this book contains. Rodman Philbrick details Homer’s journey in an authentic voice, with rambling interludes of past adventures accompanying the embelishments of present events. Although I’m not entirely sold on the cover drawing done by David Shannon, the Newbery Honor Book sticker on it is well deserved in my opinion. The innocence, brotherly concern, and exagerrated bravado that Homer shows seems well balanced. Homer’s brother Harold is a conflicted character, saddled with the responsibility of taking care of Homer at an early age, a responsibility that he’s never desired. Even the secondary characters have their own back stories and seem well developed.

Ninjas, Piranhas, and Galileo

Title: Ninjas, Piranhas, and Galileo
Author: Greg Leitich Smith
ISBN: 0316011819
Pages: 188 pages
Publisher/Date: Little, Brown and Company, c2003.

I hung up the phone and ran upstairs. My dad was in his third-floor tower den, attacking his cello with the bow, looking like he was trying to slice its strings in two.
When I knocked on the door frame and walked in, Dad pointed at me, his bow’s tip touching my chest.
“You,” he announced, “will be participating in your school science fair this year.” (2-3)

That’s how the trouble all started. Elias, named after his father’s favorite composer, figures the best and easiest thing to do is to “copy” his older brother’s science fair experiment in an effort to “obtain experimental confirmation.” Basically, he’s out to prove his brother’s experiement right a second time at his prestigious school science fair in Chicago. Shohei, his Japanese friend adopted by Irish-Americans, volunteers to help, but is being smothered by his parents attempts to expose him to all things Japanese. Honoria is skeptical that the project will work, but then again she’s the one trying to turn her piranhas vegetarian in time for the science fair. Will any of these classmates prove successful?

Hillarious. That’s the only way to describe this book. I think the title alone is a selling point, as people don’t normally lump those three things together. The cover lauds itself as the Writers’ League of Texas Teddy Award Winner for 2004, and also a winner of the Parents’ Choice Gold Award from the Parents’ Choice Foundation. It also has some great discussion points involving relationships, both friendship and familial, fairness, and culture and a short list of possible discussion questions are included in the back of the book. Told from alternating viewpoints from the three main characters, readers really get a glimpse at these three very different lives. Shohei’s younger, non-biological brother Tim becomes obsessed with ninjas as the family surrounds themselves with Japanese culture. Shohei convinces Tim (who wears a cape for no apparent reason) to water his plants for him because “the honor of the family depends on it.” (52) Brainiac Honoria incorrectly assumes that another classmate is sending her secret admirer letters. Several resulting scenes follow where she awkwardly confronts not only the accussed but also the real culprits of the letters. (She kind of reminds me of Hermoine from the Harry Potter series.) And finally there’s Eli, who must put up with everyone’s high expectations, especially those unfairly placed upon him by the science teacher. For communities like mine that every year become obsessed by the science fair, this is a book that I would love to hand to some of the kids and parents. There are some great ideas for projects in here, and while there’s no discussion as to their execution, it might serve as a launching point for the completely clueless. Libraries looking for a book discussion selection for the Make a Splash! theme summer reading them this year might like this book.

ALA Awards

ALA announced the top books, audiobooks, and videos for children and young adults for 2010 on Monday. And here I thought we were just celebrating Martin Luther King Jr.’s Birthday! Silly Me. So, I’m obviously late in posting, but here are the highlights:

John Newbery Medal
Winner: When You Reach Me by Rebecca Stead
Honor: Claudette Colvin: Twice Toward Justice by Phillip Hoose
Honor: The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate by Jacqueline Kelly
Honor: Where the Mountain Meets the Moon by Grace Lin
Honor: The Mostly True Adventures of Homer P. Figg by Rodman Philbrick

Randolph Caldecott Medal
Winner: The Lion and the Mouse illustrated and written by Jerry Pinkney
Honor: All the World illustrated by Marla Frazee, written by Liz Garton Scanlon
Honor: Red Sings from Treetops: A Year in Colors illustrated by Pamela Zagarenski, written by Joyce Sidman
*The ironic thing about this announcement is that I had just placed an order for The Lion and the Mouse for our folklore and fables collection, because our picture book librarian hadn’t ordered it like I thought she would. Well, now she’ll have to!

Michael L. Printz Award for excellence in literature written for young adults
Winner: Going Bovine by Libba Bray
Honor: Charles and Emma: The Darwins’ Leap of Faith by Deborah Heiligman
Honor: The Monstrumologist by Rick Yancey
Honor: Punkzilla by Adam Rapp
Honor: Tales of the Madman Underground: An Historical Romance, 1973 by John Barnes

Coretta Scott King (Author) Book Award recognizing an African American author
Winner: Bad News for Outlaws: The Remarkable Life of Bass Reeves, Deputy U.S. Marshal by Vaunda Micheaux Nelson
Honor: Mare’s War by tanita s. davis

Coretta Scott King (Illustrator) Book Award recognizing an African American
Winner: My People illustrated by Charles R. Smith Jr, written by Langston Hughes
Honor: The Negro Speaks of Rivers illustrated by E. B. Lewis, written by Langston Hughes
*Does anyone else see the irony that Langston Hughes wrote both of the books that won for their illustrations?

Coretta Scott King/John Steptoe New Talent Author Award
Winner: The Rock and the River by kekla magoon

Coretta Scott King – Virginia Hamilton Award for Lifetime Achievement *New Award*
Winner: Walter Dean Myers
*Highly agree with this one. He is a wonderful author.

Pura Belpré (Illustrator) Award honoring a Latino illustrator whose children’s books best portray, affirm and celebrate the Latino cultural experience
Winner: Book Fiesta!: Celebrate Children’s Day/Book Day; Celebremos El día de los niños/El día de los libros illustrated by Rafael López, written by Pat Mora
Honor: Diego: Bigger Than Life illustrated by David Diaz, written by Carmen T. Bernier-Grand
Honor: My Abuelita illustrated by Yuyi Morales, written by Tony Johnston
Honor: Gracias Thanks illustrated by John Parra, written by Pat Mora

Pura Belpré (Author) Award honoring a Latino author whose children’s books best portray, affirm and celebrate the Latino cultural experience
Winner: Return to Sender by Julia Alvarez
Honor: Diego: Bigger Than Life by Carmen T. Bernier-Grand, illustrated by David Diaz
Honor: Federico García Lorca by Georgina Lázaro, illustrated by Enrique S. Moreiro

Schneider Family Book Award for books that embody an artistic expression of the disability experience
Winner ages 0 to 10: Django written and illustrated by Bonnie Christensen
Winner ages 11-13: Anything but Typical by Nora Raleigh Baskin
Winner ages ages 13-18: Marcelo in the Real World by Francisco X. Stork

William C. Morris Award honors a book written by a first-time author for young adults
Winner: Flash Burnout by L.K. Madigan

Odyssey Award for Excellence in audiobook production
Winner: Louise, the Adventures of a Chicken written by Kate DiCamillo and narrated by Barbara Rosenblat
Honor: In the Belly of the Bloodhound: Being an Account of a Particularly Peculiar Adventure in the Life of Jacky Faber written by L. A. Meyer and narrated by Katherine Kellgren
Honor: Peace, Locomotion written by Jacqueline Woodson and narrated by Dion Graham
Honor: We Are the Ship: The Story of Negro League Baseball written by Kadir Nelson and narrated by Dion Graham
*Again, a repeat of names, this time being the narrator Dion Graham. He must be doing something right. It actually makes me laugh that something like We Are the Ship, which won a Coretta Scott King Illustrator Honor last year for the illustrations, gets made into an audio book where there are no illustrations.

Theodor Seuss Geisel Awar for most distinguished beginning reader book
Winner: Benny and Penny in the Big No-No! written and illustrated by Geoffrey Hayes
Honor: I Spy Fly Guy! written and illustrated by Tedd Arnold
Honor: Little Mouse Gets Ready written and illustrated by Jeff Smith
Honor: Mouse and Mole: Fine Feathered Friends written and illustrated by Wong Herbert Yee
Honor: Pearl and Wagner: One Funny Day written by Kate McMullan, illustrated by R. W. Alley

Margaret A. Edwards Award for lifetime achievement in writing for young adults was awarded to Jim Murphy.

Robert F. Sibert Medal for most distinguished informational book for children
Winner: Almost Astronauts: 13 Women Who Dared to Dream by Tanya Lee Stone
Honor: The Day-Glo Brothers: The True Story of Bob and Joe Switzer’s Bright Ideas and Brand-New Colors written by Chris Barton, illustrated by Tony Persiani
Honor: Moonshot: The Flight of Apollo 11 written and illustrated by Brian Floca
Honor: Claudette Colvin: Twice Toward Justice by Phillip Hoose
*Irony alert: Two books being recognized cover subjects about the space program. Was it just a coincidence that we celebrated the 40th anniversary of the moon landing last year and these two book were recognized?

YALSA Excellence in Nonfiction Award *New Award*
Winner: Charles and Emma: The Darwins’ Leap of Faith by Deborah Heiligman

Andrew Carnegie Medal for excellence in children’s video
Winner: Don’t Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus! produced by Paul R. Gagne and Mo Willems. The video is based on the book of the same name written and illustrated by Willems; it was narrated by Willems and Jon Scieszka with animation by Pete List.

Mildred L. Batchelder Award for an outstanding children’s book translated from a foreign language and subsequently published in the United States
Winner: A Faraway Island by Annika Thor and translated by Linda Schenck. Originally published in Swedish in 1996 as En ö i havet
Honor: Big Wolf and Little Wolf written by Nadine Brun-Cosme, illustrated by Olivier Tallec, translated by Claudia Bedrick
Honor: Eidi written by Bodil Bredsdorff, translated by Kathryn Mahaffy
Honor: Moribito II: Guardian of the Darkness written by Nahoko Uehashi, illustrated by Yuko Shimizu, translated by Cathy Hirano

Alex Awards for the 10 best adult books that appeal to teen audiences

• The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind: Creating Currents of Electricity and Hope by William Kamkwamba and Bryan Mealer
• The Bride’s Farewell by Meg Rosoff
• Everything Matters! by Ron Currie, Jr.
• The Good Soldiers by David Finkel
• The Kids Are All Right: A Memoir by Diana Welch and Liz Welch with Amanda Welch and Dan Welch
• The Magicians by Lev Grossman
• My Abandonment by Peter Rock
• Soulless: An Alexia Tarabotti Novel by Gail Carriger
• Stitches: A Memoir by David Small
• Tunneling to the Center of the Earth by Kevin Wilson

May Hill Arbuthnot Honor Lecture Award recognizing an author, critic, librarian, historian or teacher of children’s literature, was awarded to Lois Lowry.

Is it sad that I have read so few of these before the award announcement? I have plans in the future to make a page that lists the award winners and links back to my reviews, so look for that soon.