Classics
Hard Times
by Charles Dickens
One of the few Dickens books I never read during my Dickens-reading period some 20 years ago. I read it along with the Literary Life Podcast. They are always very helpful in giving background that makes the stories more understandable. Thomas Gradgrind runs a strictly utilitarian school (only facts, no imagination) in a dirty factory town. He runs his family the same way and finds out in the end the tragic consequences this brings on his family, especially his oldest daughter and son who bore the brunt of his training. I want to go back and read it a second time to catch some of the details I missed on the first reading. Dickens isn't the easiest of reads, especially for contemporary readers, but I enjoy his books. My goal for next year (or two) is to read or re-read all of his novels.
My Man Jeeves
by P. G. Wodehouse
A series of short stories about a British man in a somewhat self-imposed exile in America. He and his friends are always finding themselves in difficulties which his butler/valet Jeeves helps them out of. It is humorous, in a way. But most of the schemes involve misleading, deception, "prevaricating", and lying. I got about halfway through the audiobook and decided I wasn't interested in continuing this theme.
For Fun
The Ogress and the Orphans
by Kelly Barnhill
A new book published this year. From the front cover flap: Stone-in-the-Glen, once a lovely town, has fallen on hard times. Fires, floods, and other calamities have caused the people to lose their library, their school, their park, and even their neighborliness. The people put their faith in the Mayor, a dazzling fellow who promises he alone can help. After all, he is a famous dragon slayer. (At least, no one has seen a dragon in his presence.) Only the clever children of the Orphan House and the kindly Ogress at the edge of town can see how dire the town’s problems are.
Then one day a child goes missing from the Orphan House. At the Mayor’s suggestion, all eyes turn to the Ogress. The Orphans know this can’t be: the Ogress, along with a flock of excellent crows, secretly delivers gifts to the people of Stone-in-the-Glen.
But how can the Orphans tell the story of the Ogress’s goodness to people who refuse to listen? And how can they make their deluded neighbors see the real villain in their midst?
I was intrigued from the very first few pages. "All roads in town led to the Library." (Yes, Library is always spelled with a capital L.) There is rich vocabulary (I even had to look some words up), beautiful imagery (alliteration, metaphor, simile), strategic repetition of words and phrases, and just enough suspense at the end of each chapter to make it hard to put down. A thought-provoking read about kindness and "what is a neighbor?"
My three oldest kids devoured this long book, even the ones that don't often take time to read fiction.
Haven: A Small Cat's Big Adventure
by Megan Wagner Lloyd
Haven has been a strictly indoor cat since she was rescued as a kitten from the scary forest outside. But when her elderly owner becomes gravely ill, she faces her fears and heads out to try to find help. She makes friends with an adventuring-seeking fox who guides her through the forest into town. There are some perilous scenes and injury to animals and the elderly owner dies from her illness. I didn't think it was too graphic, but extremely sensitive children should be prepared for this. I strewed this, but I don't think any of my kids took the bait.
The Popper Penguin Rescue
by Eliot Schrefer
A totally unrealistic story inspired by the classic Mr. Popper's Penguins. But then, the original wasn't very realistic either. Two kids move into a new place with their single mom, find two penguin eggs which they incubate and hatch, and travel to the North and South Pole to try to release the chicks into the wild with the descendants of the original Popper Penguins. It was kind of amusing if you can suspend your disbelief. But it lacks the character and quality of the original. This was a completely reading-on-a-whim book (I happened to see it on the library shelf as I walked in).
Biography (-ish)
The Best of Will Rogers
by Bryan Sterling
The subtitle is pretty accurate: A Collection of Rogers' Wit and Wisdom, Astonishingly Relevant for Today's World. This book includes a brief biography at the beginning of America's favorite humorist from the 1920s and 1930s. He was famous for his rope tricks, which he performed on stage as well as in movies. When he added commentary and humor, his popularity really took off. He wrote newspaper columns and spoke on the radio about current events and politics. The book has numerous sections about various topics (such as politics, conferences, war, etc. with a brief intro followed by a series of quotes about that topic from his various works. It was quite intriguing. There were some comments about relationships between men and women that might not be appropriate for non-adults.
Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass
by Frederick Douglass
I tried to read this one because I know it was an important influence on American history. And I understand he's relating very difficult and very real experiences. But I just couldn't handle the graphic nature of it. I only got through two or three chapters before I had to stop.
Geography (read-aloud)Books set in Rhode Island:
The Bravest Woman in America
by Marissa Moss
Ida Lewis' father was a lighthouse keeper. Ida wanted to be one too, so her father how to do all the tasks need to keep the light shining brightly. She also practiced rowing till she was "as strong as any man." When her father grew too old and weak to work, Ida took over. She rescued many lives and eventually was rewarded with the official job and title of lighthouse keeper.
Blizzard
by John Rocco
A fun picture book describing the author's experience as a young boy getting snowed in during a blizzard in 1978. When the family runs low on food, he treks out through the snow and around town to check on the neighbors and pick up things from the local grocery store.
Finding Providence
by Avi
The story of how Roger Williams had to leave the Massachusetts colony because of religious persecution. With trust in God's providence to see him to safety and the help of the Narragansett Indians, he finds a new place to settle in what is now Rhode Island.
Books set in Connecticut:
Sybil Ludington's Midnight Ride
by Marcha Amstel
Paul Rever wasn't the only one who rode through the night to warn the colonists about the approaching British army. Sybil Ludington was a young girl in New York who rode through the night to help gather her father's troops scattered about on their farms, warning them that the British were attacking nearby Danbury, Connecticut.
Noah Webster and His Words
by Jeri Chase Ferris
A picture book biography of the man responsible for the first American English dictionary. Fun.
Books about New Jersey:
Heroes of the Surf
by Elisa Carbone
Two young boys are on a voyage from Brazil to New York, having great fun pretending that their ship is a pirate ship. Then a terrible arises, blows their ship off course, and grounds it in the shoals. A rescue team on shore sets up a zipline, of sorts, and brings all the passengers and crew to safety. A true story.
Aaron and Alexander
by Don Brown
The story of the conflict between Aaron Burr and Alexander Hamilton which led to "the most famous duel in American History.
