catching up with more mini-babble

What I read the past few weeks:

The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd.

*As I just read and reviewed this a couple years ago, there's really no need to say much now. But it might be worth mentioning that I loved this book even more this time around. Not sure I would have thought that possible.






Fables: March of the Wooden Soldiers by Bill Willingham.

*Damn. This series just keeps getting better and better!
*These books are making me want to delve deeper into the world of fairy tales and folktales. Occasionally I come across a character that I have no idea who it is. While this doesn't detract from the story, I know that I would likely get even more from the books if I had more background knowledge. And not only that, these characters are just so dang interesting that I want read more, more, more. (And many thanks, Nymeth, for continually answering my questions, and never making me feel like a pest.)
*Misc. thoughts: I would occasionally like to smack Prince Charming across his smug pretty face. I hope we get to see a lot more of Rose Red in the future; I've missed her since she's been more in the periphery. The wooden soldier "assembly line" cracked me up. Frau Totenkinder can kick ass, huh?

The History of Us: Reconstruction and Reform, 1865-1896 (Book 7) by Joy Hakim.

*I know I don't usually talk about the books we use for homeschooling. (Well, with the exception of the ones we read for "literature" units, that is.) But I just felt the need to mention this series, because it is just so awesome! And I was confident they would be as it was Dewey who recommended them to me. I don't know that anyone who reads this will be in the market for middle grade U.S. history books, but if so, you just can't go wrong with these.
*A few of the things I love: They cover more obscure pieces of history, along with the more well-known events. They look at things from various points of view. They don't try to cover up or put a pretty face on the uglier parts of this country's past.

Javatrekker: Dispatches from the World of Fair Trade Coffee by Dean Cycon.

*To be honest, when I read the introduction, I worried. Despite the fact that I already fully support Fair Trade, I worried that Dean Cycon was going to come across as "holier than thou." Happily, I was wrong! Is he passionate about making sure farmers get fair prices for their labor? Yes! Is he passionate about preserving indigenous cultures around the world? Yes! Is he passionate about taking care of the Earth? Yes! But he is not in any way condescending or arrogant. In fact, he's really quite a goofball. (And I have a very soft spot for goofballs.)
*This book is full of the stories of unfairness. I won't lie, some of these stories break the heart. But it doesn't stop there...from these heartbreaking stories come stories of hope. Beautiful, touching stories of hope. Does he claim that Fair Trade can solve all the problems of the world? Of course not. But in countries around the globe, we hear stories of creative solutions and of differences made.
*Yes, I did just say that this book is full of heartbreak and hope. But it's also full of humor. Often at the author's expense...he's definitely not afraid to laugh at himself. I found myself smiling often, and one time laughing heartily aloud.
*And on top of all that, this book provides a fascinating look at several cultures around the world. We visit countries as diverse as Guatemala, Ethiopia, Sumatra, and Papua New Guinea (and others, too).
*Though the copy I read was from the library, I'm hoping to have a giveaway later when things settle down around here (please, please, please let that be soon). In the meantime, if you'd like to see what this fellow Dean Cycon and his company Dean's Beans are all about, visit here.

No More Strangers Now: Young Voices from a New South Africa, interviews by Tim McKee, photographs by Anne Blackshaw.

*One thing I love about homeschooling is the amount of wonderful books I read that I otherwise probably wouldn't. (Of course, in a way, it's one of the things I hate, too...as I'm left with so little time for spur of the moment fun reading.) Anyway, this is one of those books that I probably wouldn't have read on my own, and well, that would have been my loss.
*This book features interviews of twelve teenage South Africans, each with a very distinct background. Among others, we meet a teen born in exile as her mother worked for the ANC, a Afrikaner teen living the rural life, a teen living in a small village that is still ruled by a chief.
*These interviews were done just a few years after Nelson Mandela was elected president. The varying viewpoints were fascinating. The one thread that seemed to run through them all was hope. Not naivety. But hope. I would so very much love to see a follow up to this book, to hear what each of these teens thinks now that another decade has passed. How their lives and views have changed since then.
*Oh, and I also wanted to mention that this book is filled with truly lovely black and white photos.

Legend of Chun Hyang by CLAMP.

*To be perfectly honest, the reason I read this book right now was because I still needed a book for the folklore category of the Once Upon a Time challenge, and the cover of the book said, "The Legend of Chun Hyang is one of Korea's most enduring folktales..." I'm not at all familiar with Korean folklore, and I have no idea how much this book reflects the original folktale. But now I am really interested to find out, because I fell in love with the spitfire heroine, Chun Hyang.
*This is the first manga by CLAMP, of whom I've heard such good things. And I did enjoy this book, but I didn't out-and-out love it. Honestly, it could be that I still need more exposure to manga in general, as it at times felt a little disjointed to me.
*The art in this book is beautiful.



The Sandman: A Game of You by Neil Gaiman.

*I've finally figured out which, The Sandman or Fables, is my favorite. Whichever I'm reading at the time. ;)
*I have really, really loved this series from the beginning, even Preludes and Nocturnes, which I know some people aren't overly fond of. But I think this may be my favorite book so far. I so adored these characters! I liked Barbie far more sans Ken (not that I disliked her previously, but I didn't feel like I knew her all that well before). And Wanda, and Hazel, and Foxglove...how could one not love them?!! And Thessaly...well, she's definitely left me wanting to know more about her, that's for sure.
*It may take some effort not to have nightmares of George's face on the wall...shudder.
*I really wish I could say something about the end, but I don't want to give any spoilers. Let's just say that Death allowed me to end the book with a smile, when I had been seething over ignorance and intolerance.

bits of babble

Perpetually behind. I have no plans of being buried and having a headstone, but if I were, I think those might be the words I'd choose for it. ;) Anyway, I figured that I ought to try to catch up a little bit on my babbling before the read-a-thon. You know, because after the read-a-thon, I'll have an enormous new pile of books to babble about. Hahahahahahahahahahaha. Yeah, two does not qualify as an enormous pile, does it? This does make a nice diversion from cleaning the bathroom though.

Fax From Sarajevo: A Story of Survival by Joe Kubert.

While very different in so many ways, it is hard not be think of Art Speigelman's Maus when reading this book. For both chronicle the story of a family struggling to survive in the midst of atrocity. Both families the target of genocidal monsters, not because of anything they've done but simply because they exist. The books are actually quite different though. Both visually, and in the manner the stories are told.

Joe Kubert had long been friends with Ervin Rustemagic and his family, having first met decades ago at a European Cartoonists' Convention. During the 18-months his family is trapped in Sarajevo, Ervin finds his lifeline to the world outside through a fax machine. Joe and a few of Ervin's other friends from around the world read Ervin's story as it unfolds through these faxes. And they fight desperately through any means they can think of to rescue the Rustemagic family from the hell in which they are imprisoned.

The book tells their story through a variety of ways, through the faxes, through the art and words of the graphic novel story, through photos taken both before and during the siege, and through a chapter by chapter narrative included at the end of the book. This is both a personal family story, and the story of a city, a nation, a people caught in a web of human cruelty. Victims of ethnic cleansing. Are there any two uglier words in the English language than "ethnic cleansing"? I don't know, but perhaps "apathy" ranks right up there.

The Dead & the Gone by Susan Beth Pfeffer.

For a while, I wasn't actually sure if I wanted to read this book. Not because I didn't like the companion novel, Life As We Knew It, but because I liked it so much. I guess I was sort of leery about how Pfeffer could tell another story about 'the same event' and make it equally compelling. Well, she did! While the catalyst for devastation (an asteroid striking the moon and knocking it into a closer orbit to Earth) and the devastating events happening around the world are the same in each novel, the stories told in the books are most definitely not. And when I now stop and think about it, I realize there could be millions of stories written and none would be the same. Pfeffer did a wonderful job in both of these novels at making the stories feel real, feel authentic. In Life As We Knew It, we witnessed the survival of Miranda, a teenage girl in small town America; in The Dead & the Gone, we witness an entirely new set of struggles through the eyes of Alex, a teenage boy in New York City. Alex's parents are lost on the first night, and he is left to keep his two younger sisters safe. It's a story of family. A story of survival. A story of faith. A story of growth. It's terrifying, horrifying, emotional, and definitely hard to put down. And yes, not surprisingly, it had me blubbering like an idiot.

The Sandman: Season of Mists by Neil Gaiman.

We begin with a family reunion of sorts. Destiny calls the Endless together so that events might take their proper course. Said events include Dream's return to hell to release his former love Nada, Lucifer's abandonment of hell, gods and demons visiting the Heart of the Dreaming to beg, threaten, and bribe...and so much more. All of this is told with such depth and intelligence that I again found myself in awe of Mr. Gaiman. I also found myself wishing that I had a little more of that depth and intelligence, because I'm sure there was even more to be gleaned from the book if I had had the insight.

I will be saddened when I reach the end of this series. And yet I'll be ever-so-happy as well, because I can then start it all over again. (And I somehow have this feeling that I may just enjoy it even more on the second time around. Though at the same time that seems impossible...how could I possibly enjoy it more?)

George & Sam: Two Boys, One Family, and Autism by Charlotte Moore.

This is one of those books I read because of Nick Hornby and those wonderful columns he wrote for The Believer. In his foreword to this book, Mr. Hornby guesses that the majority of people reading it have been in some way been touched by autism. That would be true of me; there is autism in our family, but I won't go into that for reasons of privacy. I'm not sure if that's the reason why I picked up this book. But I can say that I thoroughly enjoyed it, and would recommend it to anyone whether personally touched by autism or not.

Charlotte Moore is the mother of three sons, George, Sam, and Jake. George and Sam are autistic; Jake is not. Charlotte Moore is wonderfully engaging and intelligent. She's amazing. And I think part of why she's so amazing is that she probably doesn't see herself as so. It's hard not to try to imagine myself in her shoes...but when I did, I found myself horribly lacking. I think what I admired most, marveled at most, was her adaptability. She's forthright, honest even when it might be easier not to be. Most of all, she not only loves her children for who they are, she accepts and respects them for who they are. Maybe that sounds obviously simple. But face it, there are many parents who can't seem to manage that even without the challenges of autism in a family.

And while Moore definitely talks about the sometimes nearly overwhelming challenges, she also speaks of the joys. Moore discusses the scientific theories and whatnot, but she focuses very much on her own personal family story. And she speaks a great deal about the conclusions she's reached about various pieces of this vast autism puzzle. What she has to say is very illuminating. I can't tell you how much I enjoyed "getting to know" her wonderful sons. And I truly learned a great deal from this book.

There is just one small thing I want to mention, however. And it's not a criticism of the book. In fact, it doesn't have much to do with the book, except for the fact that it at one point raised these concerns in my head, concerns that I've dealt with many times. Moore is telling her story. She never says "this is exactly how it is for every person with autism." And I think it's important to remember that. In fact, she shares how very different George and Sam are from one another. But she does often compare their behavior to that of Jake, using Jake as the example of a neurotypical child who reaches all the milestones at the correct times, etc. And it was here that I wanted to say, "But just because your baby/child doesn't fit all these so-called "normal" standards, it doesn't mean that he has autism." And you know, I know that Moore knows that...as I said it's her family's story. The reason it even struck me was because as an infant, Gray was much more like her son George than he was like her son Jake. And Gray is not autistic. However, he has had other neurological problems, with seizures. And definite sensory issues. Maybe that's why there's this overlap. I don't know. My point being, that yes, I do understand why in watching a child's development it can be important to notice how and when they reach these milestones. It's just that I worry that sometimes people have too narrow a definition of "normal." It can be frustrating and heartbreaking to watch people try to apply a "label" to Gray, simply because he is different. From teachers to friends to relatives, most of whom I am confident were well-intentioned, we've gotten diagnoses ranging from ADHD to Asperger's to bipolar disorder. Our diagnosis, and the one that is supported by his doctors, is that he's Gray.

Oh crap...you know, in a way, I feel tempted to just delete that entire last paragraph. Because I in NO WAY want anyone to think I am minimizing the benefits of diagnosing autism early. Truly I'm not! Okay, how about I just shut up now, and tell you to just go read this book. :)


*****

Other opinions:

Becky at Becky's Book Reviews (The Dead & the Gone)
Chris at Stuff As Dreams Are Made On (The Dead & the Gone)
Jimmy and J.Kaye at J.Kaye's Book Blog (The Dead & the Gone)
Jia at Dear Author (The Dead & the Gone)
NathanKP at Inkweaver Reviews (The Dead & the Gone)
The Reading Zone (The Dead & the Gone)
The Sleepy Reader (The Dead & the Gone)
Fantasy and Sci-Fi Lovin' Book Reviews (The Dead & the Gone)
Heather at Book Addiction (The Dead & the Gone)
Sharon at Shermeree's Musings (The Dead & the Gone)
Book Dweeb (The Dead & the Gone)
Bookshelves of Doom (The Dead & the Gone)
Fyrefly's Book Blog (The Absolute Sandman Vol. 2)
Jenny's Books (Season of Mists)

If you've reviewed one of the above books, and I've missed your review, please feel free to leave my a link in the comments, and I will happily add it to the list. Thanks!