Two books by Christina Soontornvat

The Last Mapmaker ~ by Christina Soontornvat, 2022, children's fiction, 359 pages

Joining an expedition to chart the southern seas, twelve-year-old mapmaker's assistant Sai, posing as a well-bred young lady with a glittering future, realizes she's not the only one on board harboring secrets when she discovers the ship's true destination.

A Wish in the Dark ~ by Christina Soontornvat, 2020, children's fiction, 375 pages

This Newbery Honor Book — about a boy on the run and a girl determined to find him — looks at issues of privilege, protest, and justice.  All light in Chattana is created by the Governor, who appeared after the Great Fire to bring peace and order to the city.  For Pong, who was born in Namwon Prison, the magical lights represent freedom, and he dreams of the day he will be able to walk among them.

But when Pong escapes from prison, he realizes that the world outside is no fairer than the one behind bars.  The wealthy dine and dance under bright orb light, while the poor toil away in darkness.  Worst of all, Pong’s prison tattoo marks him as a fugitive who can never be truly free.

Nok, the prison warden’s daughter, is bent on tracking Pong down and restoring her family’s good name.  But as Nok hunts Pong through the alleys and canals of Chattana, she uncovers secrets that make her question the truths she has always held dear.

Set in a Thai-inspired fantasy world, this twist on Victor Hugo’s Les Misérables is a fast-paced adventure that explores the difference between law and justice — and asks whether one child can shine a light in the dark.

Musing about Clover

Clover ~ by Dori Sanders, 1990, fiction (South Carolina), 184 pages

Clover is a 10-year old black girl from a small town in South Carolina.  She is forced to forge a new relationship with the white stepmother she hardly knows, when her father dies only hours after marrying the woman.

Word of the Day

mus·ing / noun = a period of reflection or thought.  Example:  "My musing was interrupted by a knock on the door."

Musing about this 10-year-old

When we read fiction, we put ourselves in someone else's shoes.  Right now, I'm in the shoes of a child, learning what it feels like to live with a stranger of a different race.

What I'm reading ~ and our new apartment building

The Watchmaker's Daughter ~ by Dianne Haley, 2022, historical fiction (Switzerland), 280 pages

Hiding the worn piece of paper among her father’s watch deliveries, her eyes fill with tears at the memory of her brave friend walking towards the Nazi soldiers, and the sharp sound of gun fire.  Her friend sacrificed herself so that she could deliver this message.  But if she hands it over, the love of her life will die.

1942, Geneva:  As her radio crackles with heart-breaking news from occupied France, Valérie Hallez gazes towards the snow-covered Alps after a long day helping her father, a local watchmaker.  With a Nazi invasion looming, she is sick with worry for the future of her country, and for Philippe, her childhood sweetheart with soft brown eyes.  Valérie might not be able to join the army like him, but she is determined to play her part in the fight against evil.

In defiance of her father, Valérie helps the French Resistance by smuggling messages among her father’s watch deliveries.  And when darkness falls, she risks everything to hide Jewish refugee children in his old workshop.  Philippe fears for her safety, as her work for the Resistance could come with a heavy price.  But nothing will stop her delivering vital information and getting terrified children to safety before they are sent back to the Nazis.

But when Valérie is entrusted with an urgent letter for the Allies, she finds herself in an impossible position.  The information it contains could alter the course of the war.  But if she hands over the message now, it will cost Philippe his life.  With Nazi spies closing in on her, Valérie must act now.  But can she really trust the man she loves, and will she find a way to save both him and her country before it’s too late?

We're close to moving into our new building.  My apartment is on this side.

Bloggers gather in the Sunday Salon — at separate

computers in different time zones — to talk about

our lives, our books, and our reading.

We are hosted by Deb Nance at Readerbuzz.

Ghosts, anyone?

The Saturday Night Ghost Club ~ by Craig Davidson, 2019, fiction, 224 pages

This is a coming-of-age story about a group of misfit kids who spend an unforgettable summer investigating local ghost stories and urban legends.  Growing up in 1980s Niagara Falls — a seedy but magical, slightly haunted place — Jake Baker spends most of his time with his uncle Calvin, a kind but eccentric enthusiast of occult artifacts and conspiracy theories.  The summer Jake turns twelve, he befriends a pair of siblings new to town, and so Calvin decides to initiate them all into the "Saturday Night Ghost Club."

But as the summer goes on, what began as a seemingly light-hearted project may ultimately uncover more than any of its members had imagined.  This novel poignantly examines the haunting mutability of memory and storytelling, as well as the experiences that form the people we become.

Word of the Day

mutability = mu·ta·bil·i·ty / noun = liability or tendency to change.  Example:  "I'm curious about the mutability of memory and storytelling in that book above."

Beginning ~ in 1970

Beginning

It was a beautiful day; that needs to be said —

the first beautiful spring day in Kent,

after a long, dark, cold Ohio winter —

            And Nixon!

Yes, that speech.

Now we knew the war was going to go on.

And on.

We knew more would die.

            More would be us!

Kent State ~ by Deborah Wiles, 2020, YA historical fiction, 144 pages

From two-time National Book Award finalist Deborah Wiles, a masterpiece exploration of one of the darkest moments in our history, when American troops killed four American students protesting the Vietnam War.  May 4, 1970.  Kent State University.

As protestors roil the campus, National Guardsmen are called in.  In the chaos of what happens next, shots are fired and four students are killed.  To this day, there is still argument of what happened and why.  Told in multiple voices from a number of vantage points — protestor, Guardsman, townie, student — Deborah Wiles's Kent State gives a moving, terrifying, galvanizing picture of what happened that weekend in Ohio . . . an event that, even 50 years later, still resonates deeply.

Gilion at Rose City Reader hosts Book Beginnings on Fridays.

Thursday Thoughts ~ and Book Beginnings

Someone made a snarky remark about what I'd just said, and I've been thinking about it for a day or so.  I remembered that my mother told me — repeatedly — "if you can't say something nice, don't say anything at all."  So I've probably already said too much and should just shut up.  On the other hand, maybe I ought to go read this library book that I've checked out.

People Can't Drive You Crazy If You Don't Give Them the Keys ~ by Dr. Mike Bechtle, 2012, psychology, 208 pages

Strange as it may seem, other people are not nearly as committed to our happiness as we are.  In fact, sometimes they seem like they're on a mission to make us miserable!  There's always that one person, the one who hijacks your emotions and makes you crazy, the one who seems to thrive on drama.  If you could just "fix" that person, everything would be better.  But we can't fix other people — we can only make choices about ourselves.

In this cut-to-the-chase book, communication expert Mike Bechtle shows readers that they don't have to be victims of other people's craziness.  With commonsense wisdom and practical advice that can be implemented immediately, Bechtle gives readers a proven strategy to handle crazy people.  More than just offering a set of techniques, Bechtle offers a new perspective that will change readers' lives as they deal with those difficult people who just won't go away.

Book beginnings

Someone said that if you took all the crazy people in your life and laid them end to end ... it would be best to just leave them there (p. 9).

Gilion at Rose City Reader hosts Book Beginnings on Fridays.

Words I've heard or used that have gone out of style

• Poodle skirts (I remember seeing this exact shade of pink in the 1950s)
• hunky-dory
• You sound like a broken record
• Hung out to dry
• Having a lot of moxie

• Pedal pushers (which came just below the knees; if they stopped above the knees, they were Bermuda shorts)
• Heavens to Betsy
• Gee Whillikers
• Jumping Jehoshaphat
• Holy Moley
• In like Flynn
• Living the life of Riley
• Being a knucklehead, a nincompoop, or a pill

• Beehive hair styles (illustrated above)
• Not for all the tea in China
• That would be swell
• Wearing spats, knickers, fedoras, or saddle oxfords
• Kilroy was here
• Well, I’ll be a monkey’s uncle

• Pageboy haircut (illustrated above)
• Heavens to Murgatroyd!
• Don’t touch that dial
• Carbon copy
• Straighten up and fly right
• This is a fine kettle of fish
• Pshaw

• jalopy (like this one above)
• Hey, it’s your nickel
• Knee high to a grasshopper
• Well, fiddlesticks!
• I’ll see you in the funny papers
• Don’t take any wooden nickels
• More of [whatever] than Carter has little liver pills
• See ya later, alligator (to which a person would reply, "After while, crocodile.")

These words are heard no more, except in the collective memory of old folks like me.

Oops!  There's a children's book using that last one as a title:  See You Later, Alligator by Sally Hopgood, illustrated by Emma Levey, 2015, children's picture book, 32 pages.

Are you old enough to remember hearing any of these words or phrases?  I've worn pedal pushers and Bermuda shorts.  Did you ever sport a pageboy or beehive haircut?

What does it mean to sport something?  To sport is a transitive verb meaning to have or wear something in a proud way.  Example :  "He sported a beard."  Another example:  "All the bridesmaids sported beehive haircuts at Mary Jane's wedding."