Book Review Roundup #3
July 12
The Tiger Who Came to Tea by Judith Kerr
This picture book is quite well known and popular in Britain, practically a classic, but not so well known in the U.S. As one can tell from the title, it’s a very British sort of story. Nevertheless, American children as well as those from other countries should be able to appreciate this whimsical tale of an unexpected tiger who comes to visit and eats up all the food and drink in the house. Words such as “tap” and “tins” and “biscuits” and “packets” and even “tea” may need to be redefined for those same American children, but that’s part of the fun.
Big Machines: The Story of Virginia Lee Burton by Sherri Duskey Rinker
In Big Machines Rinker places Burton (Jinnie) in her setting, introduces us to her two machine-loving sons, tells us how Jinnie would study a machine before she tried to capture it on paper, and then invites us to delight in Burton’s magical powers of storytelling. At the end of the book, she provides two pages of biographical information to give the reader a little more of the story. From a story standpoint, Rinker gives us all of the desired elements.
The Apple Pie That Papa Baked by Lauren Thompson
This story poem begins, “This is the pie, warm and sweet, that Papa baked.” With a rhythm and pattern similar to “this is the house that Jack built”, the story poem goes on to tell where the apples that make the pie originated: on the tree, in the earth, fed by rain, from the clouds, in the sky, etc. And it all comes back to a pie made by Papa with love for a little girl to share with friends.
A Mathematician’s Lament by Paul Lockhart
There is an astonishing amount of power and truth packed into this 140-page book. If, like me, you feared and resented math in school because it made you feel stupid, perhaps you will understand why Lockhart’s lament almost had me crying by the end of the second chapter. Crying for “what if?” What if I had had even one math teacher in school who had loved mathematics as an art and taught it as such? What if even one of my teachers had given me time to explore the beauty of patterns and have ideas about them? What if, sometime in my twelve years of school, even one teacher had believed, “Being a mathematician is not so much about being clever . . . it’s about being aesthetically sensitive and having refined and exquisite taste”?
Rooftoppers by Katherine Rundell
Excellent writing, a lively plot, endearing characters, building action–I can see why Rooftoppers was an award-winning, best-selling success in Britain and why it is becoming more and more well known in the U.S. I had a very bright young lady recommend the book to me when I was in Ireland a few years ago, but I’m just now getting around to reading it.
But . . .
The Lord of the World
I have been an avid reader of Joseph Pearce for years. I love Literature: What Every Catholic Should Know published by Augustine Institute & Ignatius Press. It is a truly excellent resource that is so well written and such a fascinating read. Each chapter covers one period of literature. In each, Pearce highlights the seminal author(s) of that period and gives us a compelling invitation into their best work(s). At the back is a top 100 list that I have been working my way through for the last five years. This year, I decided that it was time to put my big girl pants on and read Msgr. Hugh Benson’s nightmare-novel, Lord of the World. It is excellent!
The Crab Ballet by Renee M. LaTulippe
Someone gave me a couple of readers from All About Learning, and I had never seen that series before. I also had never heard of the author, Renee M. LaTulippe, so I went to her website and discovered this book. Miraculously, our public library had it.This illustration made me laugh out loud. I know enough about crabs to know that move is ridiculous! And quite cute. I knew at that moment I would be reading this book to my 6-and 7-year-olds in literature class that week.
Come On, Rain by Karen Hesse
Come On, Rain by Karen Hesse is a lovely story that transports me back to the hot and sticky days of summer from my childhood. Growing up in a small town in the 80s without air conditioning, I remember well the oppressive August heat and how we watched and waited for that storm that would break the heat wave. I remember dancing in the rain and delighting in the sweet relief. This charming story told with beautiful verse, makes me smile as I remember.
Snow Treasure by Marie McSwigan
This story is about the villagers of Riswyk, Norway scheming to get Norway’s gold bullion out of the country just ahead of the invading Nazis. If the Nazis were to get their hands on the gold, it would enrich them by millions of dollars and leave Norway destitute.
Part of the plan to sneak the gold out right under the noses of the Nazis involves teams of Riswyk children each carrying 75 pounds of gold on their sleds down to a fjord where the crew of a fishing boat waits to load the gold for transportation to America.
Wolf Hollow by Lauren Wolk
I found myself depressed and frustrated throughout the story, and I didn’t find a powerful redeeming theme. I know that we are supposed to be cheering for Annabelle because she is so brave and strong, but I find myself wanting to take her into my arms, to hug her, and then promptly ground her until she learns to be more honest and trustworthy. While the villains in the story are true villains, Annabelle in her immaturity, makes things more complicated than necessary and ultimately deadly.
The Hidden Yellow Stars by Rebecca Connolly
Hidden Yellow Stars is the inspiring account of the true efforts of Belgium’s resistance movement to hide Jewish children from the Gestapo, in plain sight, throughout Belgium. This historical novel follows the work of school teacher Andree Geulen and Jewish Ida Sterno. Together with a team of resistance workers, Ida would convince Jewish families to let their children be removed from the home and safely hidden under new identities. When the arrangements were settled, Aryan-looking Andree would collect the children and transport them, right under the noses of the Germans, into safe hiding places in Belgian farms, convents, boarding schools, etc. By rescuing these children and hiding them, it freed the parents to go into hiding themselves much more easily.
Cathedral by David Macaulay
Part historical account, part engineering explanation, and part artistic expression, this exceptional book takes the reader on a journey from the foundation to the dedication over decades and in layers.
Written with real language, David Macaulay’s technical writing is not too complex for a child to understand but, rather, is sufficiently intelligent to make them truly wonder at what he is explaining.
Flame Over Tara by Madeleine Polland
Macha is the daughter of the Chief Judge of the High King Leary, fourteen years old, and soon to be wed. So in our culture, Macha would be a child, and in the book she acts like a child, but in her era and culture she is expected to be ready to take on the responsibilities of an adult wife and homemaker. It’s a coming of age novel as Macha grows from an impetuous fourteen year old with divided loyalties into a woman who has learned to follow the God that Patrick preaches and to depend on Him to work out her other debts and responsibilities.