May B.

Caroline Starr Rose’s May B., a historical fiction novel in verse, is set on the Kansas prairie during the time of horse drawn wagons and pioneering days. May’s parents send May miles away to the Oblinger’s homestead to help out Mr. Oblinger’s new bride and to help her own family by bringing in some money. May is promised that she will only need to stay until Christmas. May wants so badly to attend school like her brother, Hiram. Despite reading being difficult for her, May is determined to overcome any obstacles and doubts to become educated. Mrs. Oblinger is just a little older than May herself and is extremely depressed, being isolated on the homestead is not what she had anticipated when she married. When Mr. Oblinger leaves the farm to find his wife who is determined to leave town, May finds herself stranded and alone in the harshest of wintery conditions with little food or warmth for weeks on end. When the food runs out and she becomes snowed in, she must make some tough decisions. This novel made me reflect on current stories of individuals who have lost their lives when stranded in harsh snowy conditions despite our new technological advances. Rose capture’s the isolation and unforgivable conditions of frontier life, as well as our human need to survive.

Under the Mesquite

Under the Mesquite is Guadalupe Garcia McCall’s debut novel in verse. The author drew on her own experiences as a Mexican-American adolescent who had to grow up quickly because of her family’s dire circumstances. This beautifully written story describes Lupita’s transformation from the time the family moves to the United States and her mother begins to battle cancer. Lupita, who loves to write and act, faces cruel criticism from her Hispanic friends when she works hard to do well in her high school theater arts program. Problems at school are minor compared to the ones Lupita faces at home. She makes huge sacrifices in her own life when she takes on the role of parent to her seven younger siblings when her father goes with her mother to seek treatment far from home. This emotional journey presents all the tribulations that families endure in fighting a horrible illness: financial burdens, family turmoil, and most of all the thought of losing someone you love so much. I absolutely loved this novel – can’t wait to read future books by Guadalupe Garcia McCall.

Planet Middle School

Author/Poet, Nikki Grimes, totally gets kids - all the challenges they face while growing into the person they will eventually become. Her newest novel in verse, Planet Middle School, is narrated by Joylin - a tough, athletic middle school girl - who loves to play basketball with her childhood buddy, Jake. Things become complicated when her body begins to change, her best friend begins to care about what others think, and she begins to have feelings for the new handsome boy at school, Santiago. It's also a story about how much children crave and need approval from their parents. Her younger brother, Caden, denies his own interests to get his father's attention. Read Planet Middle School to find out how quickly things are put in perspective for Joylin when Jake is in a serious accident. I love novels in verse...I especially love the ones written by Nikki Grimes. Other books you must read by Grimes include Bronx Masquerade, What is Goodbye?, The Road to Paris, Dark Sons, and A Girl Named Mister.

Hidden

Hidden by Helen Frost is told in poetry format (novel in verse – a popular genre in my library) by the alternating voices of Wren and Darra. Wren and Darra first saw each other when they were eight-years-old in the most unusual of circumstances. Wren’s mother left her in the backseat of her car while she quickly paid for gas. Darra’s father stole the car and parked it in his garage, not knowing that Wren was hiding in the backseat. Darra knows that Wren is hiding in the garage. That fateful night changed both girls forever. The story continues when the girls are fourteen-years-old and meet once again at an elite summer camp. Before long, the girls must face each other and the burdens of their last meeting. Will Wren blame Darra for who her father is? Can Darra forgive Wren for taking her father away? I love that Helen Frost also gives her readers more of Darra’s feelings by including her thoughts – readers only need to read the last word of each long line down the page (in Darra’s narrative) to understand how she feels about her father and what she went through that horrible night. Other outstanding novels in verse by Helen Frost include Crossing Stones and Diamond Willow.

Addie on the Inside

James Howe’s Addie on the Inside, a companion book to The Misfits and Totally Joe, is a touching novel in verse about the angst of the preteen years. Addie, a seventh grader who speaks her mind, is dealing with many issues. Her on and off again relationship with one of the most popular guys in school has her self esteem plummeting. Addie doesn’t understand why Becca, her childhood best friend, is picking on her. How will Addie survive when her grandmother moves out? She has been Addie’s confidant during these trying times. Things dramatically change when Addie covers her mouth with duct tape in a gesture to stay silent the whole day at school in honor of The Day of Silence. Howe poetically captures the voices of so many young adults trying to make it through those tough middle school years and the essence of emerging into the persons they will ultimately become. My favorite revelation in the book is when her grandmother discusses that “mean girls” always existed, but are now more powerful with today’s media networking – how true! No Name-Calling Week (nonamecallingweek.org), an anti-bullying campaign, was created as a result of Howe’s The Misfits. Other great books by Howe include the popular Bunnicula series, 13: Thirteen Stories that Capture the Agony and Ecstasy of Being Thirteen, and the Sebastian-Barth Mystery series.

Inside Out & Back Again

Inside Out & Back Again by Thanhha Lai is a novel in verse narrated by a young Vietnamese girl named Hà in 1975. The moving story is based on the author’s own experiences. Tragically, Hà’s father never returned from war and her mother is a single parent to Hà and her three older brothers. As Saigon falls, Hà’s mother makes the difficult decision to load her family onto a crowded ship headed to a land full of dreams. The family ends up being sponsored by a man in Alabama. Thanhha Lai does a superb job of capturing Hà’s emotional journey in a new home where everything is different – the language, the school, the people, the food, and the way they are treated. This book will help readers understand what many young people endure when coming to the United States for the first time. I appreciated the characters in the story that opened their hearts to this young girl and her family.

Three Rivers Rising

Jame Richards’ debut novel, Three Rivers Rising: A Novel of the Johnstown Flood, has two of my favorite styles of writing…novel in verse and multiple points of view. Although the genre is historical fiction, the most powerful part of this book is each fictitious character’s narrative. They include an upper-class young girl who becomes disowned by her family for falling in love with the hired help, a nurse who has experienced her own personal tragedy before the flood ever occurs, and the loving wife of a heroic railroad conductor. The characters’ stories represent the voices of the victims of the fateful 1889 Johnstown flood, where 2,209 people lost their lives due to the failure of the poorly managed South Fork Dam. My students should pair this book with the nonfiction book, The Story of the Johnstown Flood by R. Conrad Stein (974.8 STE). Click here for more information about this tragedy. The video below depicts what happened on May 31, 1889.

Street Love

Walter Dean Myers is on my top five list of favorite young adult authors. Street Love is a novel told in verse resembling rapping poetry. Normally I would say a novel in verse is great for a reluctant reader, but this story has such complex symbolism. For that reason, I would recommend this book for 8th grade and above. This romance is told from multiple points of view. The main characters, Damien and Junice, are two African American teens living in Harlem that come from total opposite family lives. Damien’s family has always encouraged him and wants him to attend college. Junice’s mother has just been sentenced to prison for selling drugs. Junice doesn’t know how she can take care of herself and her younger sister. She only wants what is best for the both of them…to rise above the destiny of women in her family. Sadly, I know there are students who can relate to Junice’s home life. Will the love they have for each other conquer all the odds they have against them? Personally, I would’ve liked a better resolution in the end.