While researching her excellent non-fiction title, “Hitler Youth:  Growing Up in Hitler’s Shadow” Susan Campbell Bartoletti couldn’t forget the story of Helmuth Hubener of Hamburg, Germany.  Helmuth was executed in 1942 at the age of 17 for distributing anti-Nazi pamphlets.  Bartoletti’s work of historical fiction on Helmuth definitely fulfills her goals of raising questions about moral courage, nationalism and the responsibility of the individual.

This is a book for mature young adult readers due to its intensity.  The reader knows from the beginning that Helmuth is in prison and waiting for execution.  The story is told in flashbacks; the prison sections are agonizing and the suspense is painful. 

One of the book’s strengths, I think, is in bringing to life how a dictator such as Hitler could rise to power and gain the backing of a nation.  Too often people, young people especially, like to look back and believe that we would have done it differently.  “Hitler would never rise to power here in America.!” But Bartoletti’s book gives the necessary background to provide insight into how and why it did happen…and painfully, what happened to those who dared to take a stand.

A powerful book – not for every reader.  For young adult readers only, or mature readers very well versed in World War II history.

Vive la Paris - cover

This 210 page novel (if it were a person) is a real mensch but I think less experienced readers will be left meshuga. Paris (a 5th grader from Chicago) takes piano lessons from Mrs. Rosen (jazz lover and holocaust survivor).  Woven throughout the narrative are song titles and occasionally some lyrics.  Actually, a sound track to go with this novel would be valuable!  I’m left humming… but young readers are going to be left fahklumpt (look it up yourself – it’s Yiddish).

Strengths of the novel include a struggling but strong family, a main character with a strong and unique voice, wonderful character development in terms of beginning to view others empathetically, and a friendly culture clash of Chicago black and white.  I absolutely adored Miss Pointy, especially in Chapter 9!  Esme named her appropriately ’cause she is one sharp teacher!

If you want a novel focused on an individual topic, this is not it!  Esme Codell has included race, the Holocaust, bullying, peaceful protest, friendship, enemies, piano lessons, brothers, teenage pregnancy, death, God, fifth grade, and more all through the eyes of Paris McCray.  Paris is a unique character, with a unique voice, and while Codell manages to make it all come together in the end, it felt a little A.D.D. along the way.  That probably makes it perfect for many young readers.

I would recommend this narrative for better fifth and sixth grade readers through eighth graders.

Forest Born - cover

The fourth in Shannon Hale’s “Books of Bayern” series does not stand-alone as well as I would wish for young readers.  I recognize that a lot of books have gone under the reading bridge for me since “Goose Girl”, “Enna Burning” and “River Secrets”, but I found myself wishing Hale has provided more review, explainations and reintroduction of characters.  For a reader just discovering this series this will not be an issue, but a returning reader will struggle.

Razo’s younger sister Rin is the protagonist in this adventure.  A great deal of the conflict in the novel is Rin’s inner lack of self-esteem and confidence which results in great inner turmoil.  This drives her to leave her beloved family and home in the forest to follow Razo to Bayern for a change of scenery.  Adventure quickly follows. 

Rin slowly discovers that she has dual and dubious gifts of people-speaking and tree-speaking.  I found Rin’s unfolding discovery of her gifts somewhat convoluted and thus thought this the weakest book in this series.  Hale is an accomplished weaver of story, but her clarity of writing could have been better in this offering.  But fans of magic and fantasy and Hale’s previous Bayern titles will enjoy the book regardless.

The Lemonade War, cover

I always thought the worst part of school was math.  OK, it was PE.  But despite my ineptitude I understood PE and did NOT understand math… so math was the most dreaded class for me when I was a student.  This novel’s many detailed math portions felt obviously planted for the reader’s mathematical enlightenment.  I just skipped over them in annoyance.  I’m sure there will be young readers who feel the same.  Given a reader who enjoys math I’m not sure the mathematical sections of the narrative will be entertaining.  But face it, since I will never be entertained by numbers I am not the best judge.

I did appreciate the very realistic sibling conflict in this book.  Jacqueline Davies has created two very rich and believable characters in Evan and his younger sister Jessie.  Jessie is academically talented but socially inept.  Evan cannot compete with Jessie academically and fails in his own mind, especially, to measure up.  The catalyst for conflict is the impending school year where Jessie will be skipping a grade and will be, not only in the same grade as her brother Evan, but in the same class.  Evan’s unexpressed angst over the situation and Jessie’s inability to read social cues spark a competition between the two of them to sell the most lemonade.  It is war and it isn’t pretty.

Told in alternating voices, Evan and Jessie’s individual viewpoints richly illustrate the difficulties in communication within a family.  If this novel provides young readers with insight into the fact that another person views a given situation completely differently and that not everyone thinks exactly like they do, it would be worth plowing past the didactic math portions.  I especially appreciate the fact that both Evan and Jessie, while in conflict and confusion, are never totally uncaring about the other.  They have a solid, loving relationship beneath the communication issues and immature decision making ; that is what ultimately sees them through.

At 173 pages, plus illustrations, this is a very accessible novel for young middler readers… if they skip the math!

“You get what you pay for” is a folk wisdom that has proven true again and again. It becomes a useful phrase once again when attempting to teach information literacy and evaluation of resources. Yes, there is a great deal of wonderful FREE information on the Internet, but the quality of that “free” information must always be suspect.

The New York Times  is getting the message. Check it out:

Encyclopaedia Britannica helps prove that with information, you often get what you pay for

Eleven by Patricia Reilly Giff

Patricia Reilly Giff is a “giffted” writer, but there are eleven reasons this is not one of my favorite Giff titles.

1.  This narrative does not have Giff’s usual pace and flow.  The characters are well developed but the plot takes too long to spin out.  

2. Sam’s discovery of a newspaper clipping in the attic listing him as a missing child seems overly familiar. 

3. Cooney did the missing kid thing better in “Face on the Milk Carton”. 

4. Giff seemed to allow too many elements of the narrative as part of the mystery.   So many details are revealed slowly that there is not enough base to launch a solid story.    

5. The wonderful side characters, Onji and Anima, remain unexplained too long.  

6. The title conflict, Sam’s mysterious aversion to the number 11, is never believable and somewhat contrived.

7. Sam’s angst over his “missing” status is also not completely believable. 

I did, however, like Sam’s issues with reading disability and his friendship with a new student, Caroline. 

A nice novel in terms of length (165 p) for fourth and fifth graders, but I fear it will not keep their interest.

And – like the novel – my list falls short.  I did not quite make it with “Eleven” and neither did Giff.