|
Staff Picks September 2021
|
|
|
|
|
The Reason I Jump: The Inner Voice of a Thirteen-Year-Old Boy with Autism by Naoki Higashida This is an eye-opening book written by a remarkable 13-year-old boy with autism. Using an alphabet grid to painstakingly construct words, sentences, and thoughts that he is unable to speak out loud, Naoki Higashida illuminates his autism from within, making a connection with readers, like me, who don’t know a lot about the condition. At a brisk 135 pages, the book is accessible to many readers. In each chapter, Higashida answers a simple question, such as “Why do you line up your toy cars and blocks?” “Why don’t you make eye contact when you’re talking?” and “What’s the reason you jump?" His candid answers are truly fascinating. The Reason I Jump is educational and inspiring. It helps readers be more empathetic to neurodiverse individuals by allowing us to step into an autistic child’s shoes. The Reason I Jump will be the featured book for the Livermore Reads Together community reading program in March 2022, and for good reasons. I also recommend checking out the critically acclaimed film based on this book that came out last year.
|
|
|
Jazz Owls: A Novel of the Zoot Suit Riots by Margarita Engle Jazz Owls is a work of historical fiction based on real events and gives readers a window into the lives of patriotic Mexican-Americans living in Los Angeles during World War II. By interrupting and interrogating the predominate narrative in much the same way that books about the lives of African-Americans, Japanese-Americans, and Chinese-Americans do, it draws attention not only to the roles they played in helping to win the war, but also the unmitigated bigotry they were made to deal with on a daily basis. Jazz Owls tells the story of a hidden part of American history. It is a novel told in free verse. It is told mainly in the voices of Marisela, Lorena, and Ray, and to a lesser extent, by their Papá, Mami, Abuela, different reporters, sailors, police, and even the spirit of José Díaz. Engle used the rhyme and rhythm of poetry to create a story that surrounded the event with a family who feels so relatable and even modern to today’s social strife. Marisela presents the view of a young woman in love during the trying times of outlawed intermarriage, while her younger sister Lorena shows how difficult it was to be a young woman with professional dreams during the 40’s. Their younger brother Ray deals headfirst with the racism against Mexican Americans from sailors and officials, yet the whole time Nicolás, the oldest sibling, fights for everyone’s freedom in segregated military units against the Nazis.
White U.S. soldiers go on a rampage, terrorizing Mexican-Americans, publicly beating and stripping any zoot suiters they find of their drapes and burning them, including Ray. Even though the police see what is happening, they do nothing to stop it, ultimately arresting a hundred kids and only two sailors. This would become known as The Zoot Suit Riots (truly, Sailor Riots). This part of U.S. history sadly mirrors some events of our present-day history. Jazz Owls is a much-needed addition to the body literature about WWII historical fiction based on a real event, and I believe today's readers may be surprised at how much the story of a Mexican-American family and the racial hate they faced that led to the Zoot Suit Riots will most certainly resonate with them.
|
|
|
Not My Idea: A Book about Whiteness by Anastasia Higginbotham I am asked quite a bit, “When is it the right time to talk about racism to my kids?” My answer is always, “When they ask. When your kids bring it up in whatever state or fashion. That is when.” The answer I usually get is: “But isn’t it too early to talk about it when they’re so young?” My response is usually, “That my friend is what is known as White Privilege.” Then, the usual look. It is the responsibility of parents to listen to what their children are trying to say and ask, and parents must talk with, inform, and teach their children about race, racism, and white privilege. This book does just that. Looking at race, racism, and white privilege from the eyes of a white child. What is the parents’ response and actions after the issues of race, racism, and white privilege is broached? This book delves into this scenario. The book does not have all the answers, and yes, there are gaps throughout. But let’s remember, this is a children’s book. This book is written for children, but the subject matter on how to talk about issues of race, racism, and white privilege is really for the adult, the parents. The book is attempting to show the parents how to talk about race, racism, and white privilege, not just to their children, but to themselves and other adults.
|
|
|
Ring Shout : Or, Hunting Ku Kluxes in the End Times by P. Djèlí Clark Ring Shout is dark fantasy historical novella that gives a supernatural twist to the Ku Klux Klan's reign of terror. P. Djèlí Clark melds two types of horror, Lovecraftian monsters and the bloody rise of the Ku Klux Klan in 1922 Georgia, as a group of black resistance fighters take on an enemy with frightening supernatural powers. It is a brilliant concept! It uses real historical facts and blends them with fantasy to show how strongly hate breeds hate and creates monsters.
|
|
|
|
|
|