Wicked Cool Overlooked Books: Going for the Record

Swanson, Julie. 2004. GOING FOR THE RECORD. Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans. ISBN 0802852734.

Leah Weiczynkowski is seventeen years old. She's a soccer player who has wonderful news for her father: she's just made the Region II Under-18 Olympic Developmental Program team with an opportunity in August of making the National team. But her father has news of his own: during the week she was away at soccer camp, he was diagnosed with terminal cancer and he only has three months to live.

Leah, of course, is in a state of shock and disbelief. She doesn't want to accept the news--and does everything she can to deny it. He doesn't look that sick. Maybe the doctors were wrong. Maybe he'll be miraculously healed. Maybe they're some kind of cure or alternative treatment that will save his life. She goes to the bookstore and finds all of these self-healing, positive-thinking books and she also goes to the nutrition store and buys all these alternative type drugs. But her father will have none of it. He is past the stage of denial....he knows that whether or not he is ready to die...or whether or not his family is ready for him to die...that he really has no choice in the matter.

Leah's father signs a living will stating that he does not want any life-saving measures to be taken. He wants to die at home away from the hospital. He is in the hospice program. They have nurses come to the house regularly to care for him. They give him pain killers to ease his pain and keep him comfortable.

Leah doesn't know how to react or how to live her life with her father dying in front of her eyes. Practicing soccer three or four hours a day...driving around with friends....shopping at the mall...etc...all seem pointlessly unsignificant in the scope of things. She doesn't want to lose a moment of time with her father. But at the same time, he's urging her not to give up her dreams to sit home and watch him die. He wants her to go to soccer camp and try to make the National team--after all, hasn't that what she's been working hard for all these years? During this time she's very angry. She's angry and acting out against her friends.

She goes to camp, but with a heavy heart, a few days into camp...she's called home. Her father's failing. He is not quite ready to die yet. But this close call forces Leah out of denial. The whole family is hoping, praying, begging that he will be able to live long enough to see the birth of his first grandchild due the first week of September. All of the family--Leah's older brother Paul, and her pregnant sister Mary--come home to say goodbye. Her uncles and aunts say their goodbyes. But eventually Leah and her mom are left at home with him watching him die.

A few weeks before his close call, the father and daughter have a chat about how he is ready to die...and how he's ready to go home and be with Jesus. And although Leah's relunctant to let him go...to give him permission to go...the more pain she sees her father in...the weaker he gets...the more disoriented and disconnected he is from reality...she begins to realize the kindest thing in the world would be to let her father go...to not pray for his recovery...but pray that God would take him...that God would spare him another day of pain.

He survives several days past the birth of his grandchild...but as soon as he hears news of its birth...he begins to let go...he disconnects himself from the world...and his family. His condition starts to deteriorate quickly. It was true that he was fighting to hold on to life for the birth...and now he has no reason to keep fighting...he can just let go.

After his death, she's very depressed--naturally--and she is hesitant to enter social life. She has no interest in ever playing soccer again. She does patch things up with her friend Clay...but mainly this is a slow healing process for her.

This is one of the hardest books I've ever read. It is a very accurate, realistic, honest look at how it feels to watch someone you love very deeply die. The book had me close to tears in several places. The feelings were just so true--so honest. My grandfather died of bladder cancer and was in hospice...and reading those chapters about his last few weeks...were just so right. The author just got everything right in those scenes. Anyway, it was a powerful well written novel.

http://www.julieaswanson.com/

© Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

Wicked Cool Overlooked Books: Rash

Hautman, Pete. 2006. Rash.

Rash by Pete Hautman is an enjoyable novel that is unique in many aspects.

I pledge Allegiance to the Flag of the Safer States of America and to the Republic for which it stands one Nation under Law with Security and Safety for All

Set roughly in the 2070s, Rash provides readers with a clever and imaginative look at the future. Opening, in my opinion, with one of the greatest first lines I've ever read: "Gramps, who was born in 1990, once told me that when he was my age the only way to wind up in prison in the USSA (back when it had only one S) was to steal something, kill somebody, or use illegal drugs" (3). But times have changed quite a lot since then as our hero Bo Marsten finds out.

"Back then there were five of us Marstens serving time: my father, my brother, two cousins, and an aunt. . .Most people don't like to talk about their jailed family members. It's embarrassing. But having five close relatives in the prison system is not that unusual. According to USSA Today, 24 percent of all adults in this country are serving time. My family was only slightly more criminal than average. . .Of course without people like us Marstens, there wouldn't be anybody to do the manual labor that makes this country run. Without penal workers, who would work the production lines, or pick the melons and peaches, or maintain the streets and parks and public lavatories? Our economy depends on prison labor. Without it everybody would have to work--whether they wanted to or not." (4-5)

Bo continues: "Anyway, here's my point: Given my family's history I should have known to keep an eye on my temper. Lose control for one tiny chunk of time and bam--next thing you know you're ripping the legs off shrimp. But at the time...Well, if you look at history, you will see that I was not the first guy to do something really stupid over a girl. Look at how many Greeks died for Helen of Troy. How much self control do you think they had?" (5-6)

Maddy Wilson. The girl who started it all. At least from Bo's perspective. When Bo sees Maddy getting a bit too friendly with the guy he dislikes, Karlohs, his natural reactions lead him into trouble. True, modern readers won't 'understand' what was so wrong with the altercation. After all, no physical violence occured. But in the 2070s, hurting another's feelings by name calling can be just as dangerous according to the law. Judge for yourself: 'She doesn't want anything to do with a pretentious droog like you,' I said, getting right in his face. 'So leave her alone, okay? I don't want your disgusting dog-anus mouth anywhere near her, understand?' Karlohs staggered back as if he had been struck. I felt a moment of satisfaction followed immediately by a sick feeling. I knew I'd gone too far, even though it was true--his mouth really did look like the south end of a beagle. But verbally attacking someone's physical appearance is a class three misdemeanor. Then I watched as Karlohs's eyes went glittery and his anus lips spread across his face in a smile. I picked up my helmet, turned, and walked away with a lead weight in my belly and a prickling on the back of my neck. I already had two violations on my record. Three strikes and you're out. (14-15)

His sentence is handed down several chapters later: "Because I had refused to offer a plea, the judge reviewed my case and my record, asked me a few questions, then handed down an instant judgment: Guilty, guilty, guilty, guilty, guilty, guilty. She sentenced me to three years, let that sink in for a few seconds, then suspended the sentence and told me I could go home. . . You have been tried, judged, and sentenced. However, I am waiving the requirements that you serve your sentence. You will remain free so long as you commit no further criminal acts between now and your nineteenth birthday. . .At the moment you remain free at the pleasure of this court. In other words, the next time you get in trouble, you will be incarcerated. One more verbal assault, one more reckless act, one more instance of self-neglect, and it's off to the rock pile" (68).

It doesn't take a genius to predict that it would practically impossible for a sixteen year old boy to control his temper 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, for 3 years. And sure enough, when he sees Karlohs Mink with his arms around Maddy at the local mall...his brief glimpse of freedom and a future fade away in rage.

Now Bo is being sent away to Prison 387 owned by the McDonald's Rehabilitation and Manufacturing Corporation and located in Canada after all "since the USSA annexed Canada during the Diplomatic Wars of 2055" most of McDonald's prison factories were moving up north.

According to Gramps, McDonald's used to only sell food, back when French fries were legal. But in the 2020s, they merged with a suv company called General Motors under the name the McMotor Corporation of America. A few years later, McMotor was bought by a Chinese company called Wal-Martong. In 2031, during the Pan-Pacific conflict, Wal-Martong was nationalized and privatized by the USSA government and renamed the McDonald's Rehabilitation and Manufacturing Corporation. I guess I learned something in school after all. For all the good it would do me. For the next three years, I would be a worker drone for McDonald's. They would use me however they saw fit, and there was nothing I could do about it. (86-87)

Prison 387 made frozen pizzas for McDonalds. You are no doubt aware of the retro craze for hand-tossed pizza. Until recently most people thought of pizza as just another old-fashioned grandma/grandpa food, like oatmeal or hamburgers. Most towns still have one or two old-fashioned pizzerias that cater to the geriatric crowd, but nobody I knew ate the things until recently, when Keanu Schwarzenegger told PeopleTime magazine that he enjoyed a hand-tossed, hand-topped sausage pizza during breaks on the movie set. That's how these things get started. (102)

But the lessons Bo learns about life, friendship, pizza, and football--which is also illegal by the way--open up his eyes to a whole new world. Prison life may not be easy, in fact it could be deadly, seeing as to how polar bears prowl around the fences of the prison, but Bo must learn to cope and adjust. And as he does so, the reader is taken on a very enjoyable journey.

http://www.petehautman.com/

Wicked Cool Overlooked Books: Notes On A Near-Life Experience

Birdsall, Olivia. 2007. Notes on a Near-Life Experience.

I want to know how adults decide when the truth is necessary and when it isn't, and if there's some kind of an age requirement for it. Like, does getting a driver's license or the right to vote also mean it's time for you to know why your aunt Lucinda was in that hospital for two months when you were eight, or what really happened to your dog when it mysteriously vanished three weeks after its fourteenth birthday? The strange thing is that the truth has this way of seeping through, leaking out, even when you build walls and dams and work as hard as you can to contain it. It's like even when no one tells you what the truth is, somehow, eventually you just feel it. Even if you don't want to. (37)

Mia is fifteen-going-on-sixteen when her father leaves her mother, and her family begins to change practically overnight. No more bologna sandwiches for lunch. No more family time at the dinner table. No more family rounds of Jeopardy. Allen, her older brother, and Keatie, her younger sister, each react differently. Allen turns to drinking, partying, and skipping school. Keatie reacts by living in denial. Pretending that none of this is real. That this isn't her family. That this new reality is not permanent. And Mia? She responds by isolating herself. She's not in denial exactly. She knows her parents won't be getting back together--her dad's new girlfriend is proof of that--but she doesn't want this new reality to be spoken. To be shared. So she starts keeping one thing after another from her best friend, Haley. With so many things going wrong, it's good for one thing to be going right. In the midst of the fallout, it seems her brother's best friend, Julian, has finally, finally noticed that she existed as more than a pesky little sister. Could this be true? Could her life-long crush finally be hers?

Notes on a Near-Life Experience presents a family in crisis. Each have troubles of their own. Each needs a little guidance in how to communicate with the others in a healthy way. It is a funny, honest look at families.

It's that time of month again...Wicked Cool Overlooked Books

Being the first Monday of the month it is time for another edition of Chasing Ray's Wicked Cool Overlooked Books.

This month I am highlighting one of my favorite 2006 books that I didn't happen to discover until 2007.

I've mentioned this before, but let me repeat myself...a test of a good book...particularly a good historical fiction book is when the reader picks up a book ABOUT a subject or event that they have had little or no interest in reading about before and having the book completely draw them in. In that regards, BLACK DUCK by Janet Taylor Lisle is a great book.

Lisle, Janet Taylor. 2006. BLACK DUCK.

On December 30, 1929, the Coast Guard killed three suspected rum-runners on the vessel Black Duck which they claim failed to stop (and surrender) when warning shots were fired. This newspaper account in the Newport Daily Journal introduces us to the book Black Duck. David Peterson is a young boy in town looking for a story. He dreams of one day being a journalist. And he is looking for any chance to get away from the family business of lawn care. So David is a boy on a mission:

A rumrunner had lived in town, one of the notorious outlaws who smuggled liquor during the days of Prohibition, that was the rumor...Someone said to ask at the general store across from the church. It would be a miracle if the man was still alive, David thought. He'd be over eighty. If he were anywhere, he'd probably be in a nursing home by now. But it turned out he wasn't. He still lived in town. Ruben Hart was his name. The number listed in the telephone book doesn't answer. There is an address, though. (3).

Looking for a story to report, he finds so much more. He finds a story that has yet to be told. Ruben Hart was just a young boy at the time. He had no intentions of participating in anything illegal. Witnessing anything illegal. But sometimes you don't have a choice. When Ruben and his friend discovered a dead body on the beach...it was the beginning of a sometimes dangerous, sometimes exciting adventure. It is book about decisions. Ethical decisions. Moral decisions. Taking a stand. Is Ruben the kind of boy who sees things as black and white? Or is he the kind of boy who sees a gray foggy area between the two? Friendships of all sorts will be formed and tested throughout the course of the novel.

The framework of the story is integral. Ruben is fleshing out stories that no one else knows. He's going beyond the meager facts of a few newspaper articles. He's going back to the beginning...well his beginning of the story. As he shares his story from the summer of 1929 through that fateful December day, he's sharing his life story with David. It's a process that is connecting the two, forming a new friendship. Fulfilling needs neither one was aware of. But it's a beautiful thing. A healing thing.

Behind the scenes of my reading (selection) process....OR why I loved to be surprised

Here are four of the reasons why I picked up this book I was uninterested in...
1) It appeared on Kirkus Reviews Best Books of 2006
2) It appeared on the Best Books for Young Adults (BBYA 2007) list
3) It appeared on the VOYA Top Shelf Fiction for Middle School Readers 2006 list
4) It appeared on the Texas Lonestar Reading List for 2007-2008.

The fifth reason I picked up this 'uninteresting' book was because it was available at my local library and it was one of the few 2006 titles left on the shelves. (At least that I hadn't already read in previous months.)

My only other exposure to this book was by reading The Golden Fuse Awards 2006. (Fuse #8's personal picks of the year.) It was mentioned as one of the books in the category of: The "Kids Really Want To Read About This?" Trend.

So I knew when I saw the book on the shelf that I would check it out. I knew that I would read it. But I didn't expect much from it. I didn't expect to hate it. But I didn't expect to love it either. Here is what the back cover says:

What happened next that spring afternoon is something I know Jeddy remembers. I can see us standing there, two raw-boned boys beside the bootleg crate, seagulls wheeling overhead, making dives on a tidal pool up the beach from us. Almost as an afterthought we wondered toward this pool, not expecting to see anything. It came into view with no more drama than if it had been a sodden piece of driftwood lying on the sand: a naked human leg.

It is further described in these ways:

History and mystery collide in a gripping saga of rum-running on the Rhode Island coast during the 1920s.

and

Inspired by very real accounts of the Black Duck, a legendary rum-running boat that worked the New England shores during the era, Newbery Honor winner Janet Taylor Lisle has written a colorful, original work of historical fiction.

Those blurbs and the cover weren't enough to catch my eye. But as previously stated the fact that it appeared on four "best of the year" lists convinced me that this was a book worthy of review for this blog.

Let me just say how wonderful it was to be surprised by a book. I didn't just like BLACK DUCK. I absolutely LOVED Black Duck. I thought it was great. I loved so much about it. I loved the framework of the story. I loved the intergenerational aspects of the novel. I loved the storytelling format of the novel. Most of all I love how this novel unfolds bit by bit. Even though as a reader you know you're building your way up to the killing/murder on December 30th....the story was suspenseful to me. You still didn't know the how or why of it. The characters were wonderful. You saw how everyone was struggling. On one hand, money was scarce. It was not easily come by. Yet by either looking the other way or pretending you didn't see what you saw you could make a few bucks OR you could even go so far as to help the bootleggers and make enough money to support your whole family. A hard choice. Do you watch your family live in poverty...always wanting or needing a little more than they have? Is it better to follow the laws? Or do you adopt the philosophy...well what is it really hurting anyone if I break a few laws now and then. Half of Ruben's neighbors seemed to be on the side that was beyond bribery or temptation. Half were not. But there were very few truly bad characters. Everyone was doing what they felt was right for them. They might not be understood by the other side. But they were following their own consciences. Some decisions. Some actions had some unpleasant consequences. But it was always a very thoughtful (thought-filled) book.

http://www.janettaylorlisle.com/author/author.html
http://www.janettaylorlisle.com/books/blackduck.html
Interview with Janet Taylor Lisle about Black Duck

Wicked Cool Overlooked Books: Pepperland

This month I'm choosing to highlight one of my favorite 2004 books, Pepperland. It was released as a paperback this year. I suppose one of the reasons I love this book is because it has so many Beatle--particularly Lennon--references throughout.

Delaney, Mark. 2004. PEPPERLAND. Atlanta: Peachtree. ISBN 156145317X.

Pamela Jean Cochran (a.k.a. Star) is sixteen when her mother dies from breast cancer. Struggling to find a way to cope, she turns to her music hoping that if she can write a song to honor her mother then she can finally let go of her anger and pain. While going through her mother's belongings, Star discovers a fan letter to John Lennon and a vintage Gibson guitar--now in need of repair. These two items are the catalyst to Star's healing process. Set in the fall of 1980, Delaney's novel is a wonderful exploration of grief, anger, loss, and confusion. Star and Dooley, her best friend, are remarkably well-developed characters. And Delaney's use of language is impressive. One striking passage occurs when Dooley shows Star his new drawing:

"Before me is a portrait of a young woman. She is strikingly beautiful, her face nearly white and her cheekbones shaded in an ice pale blue. Her eyes are large and pretty, but dark and a little wounded-looking. She's not really smiling. Behind her is a background of burgundy and violet. Within this background, and over the girl's face, are crossing lines, like the squares on a sheet of graph paper. It's as if little parts of her have been painted on hundreds of tiles, and the tiles have assembled themselves to make this image. Except in the upper left-hand corner, the pattern breaks down. The tiles are scattered, the lines no longer forming perfect angles. The pieces seem to be falling, cascading into place. The girl is in the process of becoming a complete picture...And then I understand. I see it. The girl with the wounded eyes, the girl who doesn't quite smile, the girl made of a thousand pieces that are falling, at last, into their proper places...She's me" (105-106).

"Wicked Cool Overlooked Books"

Chasing Ray has started a Wicked Cool Overlooked Books Iniative in which she highlights--and asks other bloggers to highlight--titles that they feel deserve more attention and recognition.

Here is my pick for this month:

Garcia, Laura Gallego. 2005. THE LEGEND OF THE WANDERING KING. Translated by Dan Bellm. New York: Arthur Levine (Scholastic). ISBN 0439585562

As a young man, Walid (Wah-leed) ibn Hujr dreamed of being a great man, a great ruler, and a great poet. He wanted to be loved, admired, appreciated, and respected. And since he was born a prince, son of King Hujr ruler of Kinda (in Arabia), he thought his dreams would be easily attained—especially since many thought he’d been touched by a djinn at birth. (Djinn being a genie). However, Walid failed to consider what fate had in mind.

A gifted and beloved prince, Walid was certain that he was the best poet in Kinda. Wanting to earn his father’s approval to go to Ukaz to enter a poetry contest, he organizes a smaller poetry contest for the kingdom of Kinda—arrogance and vanity assuring him that his winning is a matter of certainty.

However, when a peasant man—a carpet weaver—Hammad ibn al-Haddad, wins the contest three years in a row, the once magnanimous prince becomes embittered and resolves to make the peasant pay for his superiority. He forces the peasant to leave his home, his wife, and his three sons (a merchant, a shepherd, and his youngest son who has not chosen a career yet) to become the kingdom’s archivist and historian. He is told he must read and organize the kingdom’s archives (library). The task is monumental and overwhelming. He begs for mercy, but none is given. Walid does grant him this, however, if he can organize the archives and weave him a carpet, then he can be free to return to his home.

After four years, a thinner and wearier man presents himself to the King—Walid’s father having died in the subsequent years. Walid is surprised, yet wanting to remain a man of his word, he adds a stipulation to his earlier request: he must weave a carpet “that will contain the entire history of the human race” (62). Hammad is subsequently driven mad on his quest to create such a carpet, but in his madness finds unusual peace. Even Walid notices the change in him and becomes scared of him noting that there was something not quite human about him now. Once when Walid visited him in his workshop, Hammad tells him mysteriously, “Know that you are a mere mortal who has unleashed powers more terrible than a mighty storm, and that as a mortal, you cannot stop their wrath. Not anymore. It is far too late” (73).

After considering these seemingly prophetic words, Walid decides to release the man from his “curse” and allow him to go home. He opens the door to discover him dead, collapsed on the floor, and the completed carpet. One look at the carpet and Walid becomes convinced that the old man spoke the truth; in shame and fear, he locks the carpet into his secret room. But his life (and destiny) is forever changed. His kingdom begins to fall apart. His soldiers, his servants, his household begins to distrust him. Betrayal seems inevitable.

In the middle of the night, a former friend and advisor slip into the palace with two companions their goal to steal the king’s treasure. Instead of silver or gold, they find a carpet. The king is awakened by a nightmare about the carpet—and so being a paranoid man—he decides to make sure the carpet is still locked away. He discovers that his dream is all too true, just in time to receive a club on the head. As soon as he awakes, however, he dashes off to the stables for a horse so he can pursue the thieves; he’s still dressed in his nightgown!

Since his plan was foolhardy—to begin a dash across the desert without any provisions—it’s no surprise when he collapses in the sand certain that his death is hours away. He is saved by a stranger, an outlaw. But this close-call with death won’t be his last.

THE LEGEND OF THE WANDERING KING is an adventure quest with unexpected twists and turns. As Walid sets out on his journey to recover the carpet and restore past wrongs, what he discovers is that it is never too late to change one’s self. It is an adventurous quest to restore and redeem his own life.

Set in Arabia in 6th century C.E., THE LEGEND OF THE WANDERING KING is an exciting adventure story with probing questions. Is there such a thing as fate? Can a man ever truly make amends for his past mistakes? Is a man defined by his mistakes? Can a person really change his character?

First published in Spain in 2002, THE LEGEND OF THE WANDERING KING has been translated into English by Dan Bellm. It is rich in pre-Islamic Arabic culture. An author’s note explains the time and culture which is depicted in the book. (Yes, the book is based loosely on a pre-Islamic legendary poet, Imru’l Qays.)