kira-kira

Kadohata, C. (2006). Kira-Kira. New York: Atheneum Books for Young Readers.

Paperback | $6.29 USD | ISBN-13: 978-0689856402 | 272 pages | Juvenile | Ages 10 & up

This 2005 Newbery Medal Winner book is about a family that moved from Iowa to a Japanese community of 31 people in the Deep South of Georgia. Younger sister Katie narrates the story – prior to the move her biggest struggle was keeping track of her doll named “Bera-Bera.” The family had to move because Katie’s dad was to begin working at a chicken hatchery. Lynn and Katie are best friends. Lynn is Katie’s older sister; they are inseparable. They share everything including dreams of the future. Katie is always trying to keep up with Lynn who is a genius. Upon arrival in Georgia, things are different for the family. Their dad works a lot of hours and their mom has to work as well, overtime if possible. The family is saving to buy their own house, and even the girls help with that secretly. Soon Katie has a little brother to take care of and she begins school herself. Lynn, who is always looking out for her, warns her that some people might not be so nice to her. Katie is growing up and will learn things that she doesn’t know much about, such as racism and discrimination. On a trip to work with her mom she hears the phrase “trying to unionize” and her mother scolds her for asking about it. But then Lynn’s focus changes because Lynn gets sick and Katie has to care for her. Lynn’s health is better some days and worse others. The family gets their new house, but struggles to pay the bills for Lynn’s illness as well as the mortgage. Taking care of Lynn is a difficult task because Lynn does not make it – Katie is on her own to fulfill her dreams and she feels she must live up to the promised expectations of Lynn. The entire family, but especially Katie, must deal with Lynn’s illness and death and the parents must deal with difficult work experiences with little or no worker’s rights. This book has won many awards (listed below) and it is no wonder why – every library should own a copy as children and adults of all ages will enjoy reading this Japanese family’s story of love, togetherness, struggle and survival in rural Georgia. Highly recommended for public libraries and K-12 school libraries.

Awards and Honors for kira-kira:

·      ALA Notable Children's Books

·      Asian/Pacific American Award for Literature

·      Blue Spruce YA Book Award Nominee

·      Booklinks Lasting Connections

·      Booklist Editors' Choice

·      Capitol Choices List (DC)

·      Cooperative Children's Book Council Choices

·      Charlotte Award Reading List (NY)

·      Dorothy Canfield Fisher Award master

·      Garden State Teen Book Award nominee

·      Junior Library Guild selection

·      Kiriyama Prize Notable Book

·      KSRC Middle School Titles, Top Pick

·      Nene Award Master List (HI)

·      NYPL “Books for the Teen Age”

·      Pacific Northwest Young Reader’s Choice Award Master List

·      Thumbs Up! Award Master List (MI)

For libraries with diverse populations, kira-kira is also available in simplified Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Indonesian, Italian, Romanian, Serbian, Spanish, Thai, and Vietnamese. To read more about kira-kira, or to listen to an audio clip of the story, please visit Kadohata’s website.

The World's Strongest Librarian

Hanagarne, J. (2013). The World's Strongest Librarian: A Memoir of Tourette's, Faith, Strength, and the Power of Family. Los Angeles: Gotham.

Hardcover | $18.09 USD | ISBN-13: 978-1592407873 | 288 pages | Adult Memoir

 

Imagine growing up with a tic. This tic started when you were on stage dressed as a tree and participating in a school play in first grade. You didn’t seem to mind at the time. You didn’t really notice and you were a busy kid with all of your book reading and library visits (plus other important kid stuff). Your parents and siblings understood the tics, and you can be who you are at home, so it was not an issue. But then, the tics get worse and were compounded with verbal outbursts that you can’t seem to control. This happened in middle school. You were tall so you joined the basketball team. This would both help you fit in and stay under the radar. Still, kids can be cruel and you become a target in the classroom. You start to wonder what if something was wrong with you? This is what happened to Josh Hanagarne. He found out in 9^th grade that he has Tourette Syndrome. What he does next will not only inform you about this unknown disease but inspire you to see what a man can accomplish with it.  

The World’s Strongest Librarian is a memoir of Josh Hanagarne’s life from childhood to adulthood and how he dealt and deals with Tourette’s. Sometimes as Josh explains he would just like to be invisible.  Readers can all agree that sometimes we all find ourselves in situations where we would prefer to be invisible. But when you grow to be 6’7” tall that is just impossible.  It is even more impossible when you have Tourette’s. His tics and his outbursts became very difficult that he was endangering himself. He tried many things to make them stop from drugs to injections. Nothing seemed to work for Josh until he got involved in strength training. And even then that took a few tries, modifications, encouragement and patience in figuring out the regimen that would work best for him.

Josh is more than a 6’7” muscle man extraordinaire. Through weight lifting and training he learns to manage himself. Readers will appreciate his humor; this memoir has plenty of funny stories about his job at the Salt Lake City’s public library (A beautiful place to work he explains). His own memories on the events of his life are light hearted and enjoyable to read. He certainly meets some very interesting characters along his journey– some who challenge him, some who just yell at him, but despite those he encounters, Josh is able to find his place, his comfort, and use his skills within the library’s walls. Josh may have had more difficulties than we ever can personally know – he explains how he was able to get through much of this. It was because of his faith and because he has the greatest family ever. This was his foundation – he now is married and has a young son named Max (“Josh Hanagarne” n.d.). Watch Josh Hanagarne’s book trailer for The World’s Strongest Librarian or connect with Josh Hanagarne on his personal website.  This memoir is highly recommended for every library – readers can learn more about the struggles in living with Tourette’s, appreciate those who have it, and read a powerful story about one who has learned to fight it on a daily basis. Hanagarne’s journey can serve as a life lesson for all readers who have their own struggles, no matter what they are. 

Blasphemy

Alexie, S. (2011). Blasphemy. New York: Grove Press.

Hardcover | $18.69 USD | ISBN-13: 978-0802120397 | 465 pages | Young Adult Short Stories

This collection of short stories will fly across the page. But take your time. Within twenty minutes of reading, I was on page 90, and I was thinking what is Blasphemy anyway? Is it Blasphemy that the Indians in Alexie’s stories must deal with difficulties and problems that are the realities of poverty, alcoholism, drug abuse, child abuse, spousal abuse, homosexuality, rape, death, murder, or divorce? Is Blasphemy discrimination based on race and skin color that occurs within these stories and still both on and off the Indian reservations?  Could it be Blasphemy that too often Americans have stereotypes of the Native American experience that is never challenged? Or perhaps while reading you may judge the actions of the characters in these short stories as Blasphemy.

You may get to the end of this book and still not understand Blasphemy. Sometimes the search for understanding takes a while and when it comes to Indians, there just may be some things that you won’t understand or can’t understand. This is one theme of many that is drawn from the stories Alexie shares. The stories are full of characters trying to make things right and some not caring one bit, but they are honest, unapologetic and Alexie doesn’t mind “telling it like it is.” Alexie’s stories include a lot of dialog and though we never know the narrators, we hear his thoughts and we feel for the situation, whatever that may be. Each short story seems to have an open ending, leaving you, the reader, to take away from the characters and their life experience what you will. So many times the characters are down in the dumps, or just shared horrible life events that occurred and sometimes they are not proud of them, but most times, they just keep going – the Indians in his stories have learned to accept and they do this whether or not they want to or not. There is not a lot of complaining that goes on in these stories.

Many of Alexie’s stories are written from the male perspective and include anecdotes about childhood friends or experiences that would shape them as adults. Tradition is steep and family upbringing matters, but sometimes things get messy. Some of the stories may scare you – and worry you – some will make you cry. While some of the stories may remind us how things used to be or how things should be, it doesn’t appear that much will change. There is a lot of violence in the short stories, even killing. Some of it is graphic. Some of the stories should worry us about this marginalized group of Native Americans. Their race has been stereotyped and forgotten before it was realized– pushed too far and pushed to the corners and life on the rez (reservation) is not glorious. What we may have thought could be a simple life on the reservation is filled with all types of ills of society and yet hopes for humanity as well. Despite all of this, readers will find a favorite short story and make a connection with the characters involved. This page turning collection will appeal to all ages, white and Indian, and is recommended for all public libraries that want to serve their diverse populations properly. 

Sherman Alexie has mastered the short story. Watch a Time interview of Sherman Alexie discuss Blasphemy. Alexie is also a screenwriter. One of his short stories “This Is What It Means to Say Phoenix, Arizona” became a movie called “Smoke Signals” (“Sherman Alexie,” n.d.).  

 

Mr. Mendoza's Paintbrush

Urrea, L.A. (2010). Mr. Mendoza’s Paintbrush. El Paso: Cinco Puntos Press.

Paperback | $17.95 USD | ISBN: 978-1933693231| 64 pages | Young Adult, Grades 10 & up



Mr. Mendoza is the self-proclaimed graffiti king and conscience of Rosario. No one likes graffiti combined with a conscience of any kind. Mr. Mendoza tells it like it is, but he does so with a paintbrush and in a way that many townspeople feel is offensive. His advice and candor is unwelcome. He will write on animals, walls, and even (dead) people. This graphic novel written by Latino writer Urrea combines a bit of magic and realism in the form of a comic. The narrator of the story is a young boy who is just learning about all of the wonderful things life can offer you. He is a typical teen that gets in some trouble when Mr. Mendoza catches him where he shouldn’t be.  Mr. Mendoza is there to paint it all and to offer his opinions, chastisement and advice in the process.


The town of Rosario is falling apart – the cathedral is crumbling and the walls are covered with graffiti. There are plenty of ugly things to observe there and plenty of citizens that don’t want to face the ugly truth, but Mr. Mendoza continues to paint his messages. He catches the narrator peeping at the girls by the river taking a dip. He brandishes the narrator and his friend with labels and criticizes them, but never uses obscenities. People find him to be too bold and obtrusive to their lifestyles that they want to live. Then one day he announces via his paintbrush that he is going away to his funeral. The townspeople are intrigued. They all show up in the town square to see what will happen. And Mr. Mendoza begins to paint.  He paints stairs and begins to climb them. He climbs so high into the sky. No one knows what he is doing. No one knows where he went. Then he disappears so high in the sky. The next day it rains and the stairs are gone. 
  
I would recommend this book for an older teen audience and all young adults. Though Urrea does not use any obscenities in his story, there are plenty of references to sex and also some nudity in the drawings. Because the story is based on a real life town in Mexico it can help readers gain an understanding about the lives of teens growing up in Mexico and their struggles with poverty. Christopher Cardinale illustrated the graphic novel. To do so Cardinale went to the actual town to get a feel for what it really looked like. The scenes in the story provide the reader with realistic images of the town. According to Urrea’s website the town of “Rosario” is the real-life “Tres Camarones,” which is the town in his famous novel Into the Beautiful North.


Writer Luis Alberto Urrea is a 2005 Pulitzer Prize finalist for nonfiction and member of the Latino Literature Hall of Fame. He was born in Tijuana, Mexico and has a Mexican father and American mother. He is the author of 13 books and has won countless awards for his other publications of poetry, fiction and essays.  Many of his works depict small towns in Mexico (like Mr. Mendoza’s Paintbrush) and deal with immigration as well as the poverty of the town. Urrea attended the University of Califonia at San Diego and also attended graduate school at the University of Colorado in Boulder.  Urrea currently lives with his family in Naperville, IL, and he is teaches creative writing at the University of Illinois in Chicago. Read more about him on his personal website at http://www.luisurrea.com/. 

Where the Pavement Ends: Five Native American Plays

Yellow Robe Jr., W. S. (2009). Where the Pavement Ends: Five Native American Plays. Stillwater, Oklahoma: University of Oklahoma Press. 

Hardback | $15.26 USD | ISBN-13: 978-0806140964 | 192 pages | Adult

This collection of plays on various topics including the relationship between Indians and whites, life on Indian reservations, and the cultural identity of those who are in the Assiniboine and Sioux Tribes. Perhaps the most famous play called The Star Quilt discusses the relationship between one white woman named Luanne and one Indian woman named Mona. Luanne enters Mona’s home without knocking and during their first meeting asks her for a favor. Mona obliges but then is consistently bombarded with more and more favors. Luanne assumes Mona would approve of her business ideas and help her, even serving as her advocate with the other Native American women, but Mona grows to resent Luanne. The women are from different worlds living in the same town, shopping at the same stores and yet their friendship never flourished. Mona is torn between being true to her own heart and making her way in the world. The Indian friends as well as Mona were misled, mistreated and taken advantage of by Luanne’s business propositions, which exploited so many. Luanne’s blatant lack of cultural appreciation & understanding is something that never goes away within Mona. Readers can relate to the positions of both characters which makes this a must read & a learning opportunity.

Rez Politics is between two young friends – Gerald & Curtis. Both are Indian but Curtis is part white and Gerald is part black. This causes friction between the two when Gary, the older brother of Curtis, tells him to beat up Gerald because he is black. Curtis can’t beat him up (though he tries) and Gerald can’t understand why this is happening. This play allows readers to see the impact of race and how their friendship and the families of these two young men are affected.

The Council is about the relationship between Man and the other animals on the Earth. The Council is made up of all the nations of animals on earth. Man learns to only take what he needs, to never waste and to never leave his mark on Earth. Man is young and making his way, so the Council declared no animals should hunt Man. But then, Man becomes stronger. The Council meets and determines that Man is unpredictable and can now be hunted. The Council feels that Man will destroy all the other nations on Earth unless they are contained. The Men of the Nation do not care much for the Council and believe they should be above the animals, but Man wants peace and harmony. Man is naïve perhaps, but hopes to bring understanding to other men about the importance of living peacefully. This is a symbolic play; it shows how Native Americans live in appreciation of humanity while the rest of society exploits and takes what they want.

William S. Yellow Robe, Jr., teaches Native American literature and drama at the University of Maine. He is the award-winning author of more than 45 plays. He writes plays about humanity and emphasizes appreciating cultural differences. He also is brutally honest; sometimes people do not understand other cultures and do not make the attempt to do so. This book is a must read for adults of all ages who want to learn more and appreciate Native American traditions and values. Appreciating other cultures is only the first step – we must gain understanding of others. Robe’s plays allow us to do this. http://www.amazon.com/Where-Pavement-Ends-American-Literature/dp/0806140968