Big Change Can Start Small

Whatever you want to do, if you do it with your whole heart, it will happen.

You probably thought we call our book club "guilt-free" because there's no pressure for you to read the book if it's one you aren't interested in and you're partly right. Well...mostly right. At least that was the initial reason. Turns out it also means we're under no obligation to discuss the book in a timely manner! Tray and I are good at escape clauses. Without further ado, or excuses, let's discuss February's book club selection: The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind.

There is so much to love about this book. First, you know I love me some Wright Brothers and wish the world had more of them. Now more than ever. I mean, really. Well I found one: William Kamkwamba. William and his windmill give me hope—and as of late, that is no small task. To see what he has overcome and how he's done it is nothing short of awe-inspiring. You know he had me at "the pictures in a library book gave me the idea...."

Like my beloved Wright boys, so much of what William accomplished was self-taught, and against even greater odds. His family too poor to send him to school, he found a small library and began reading every book and textbook he could get his hands on. Soon the library and scrapyard became his training ground, where he was swept up in the miracles of science, changing his life forever. Despite relentless mockery from those around him, including some in his own family, he forged ahead with his experiments. His resilience paid off in ways he hardly dare dream of: ending darkness and hunger for his family and others. And he's really just getting started. Something tells me we're going to be hearing a lot more about and from William Kamkwamba.

One of our readers is a middle school teacher and said this is required reading in her class. Lucky kids. She had them read the book and then create an invention of their own. Clearly, we need more teachers like her!

Here are a couple comments we've received from other readers:

Ali: I really enjoyed it. At times, it got way too technical for me and I learned not only was it ok to skim through those portions, but it made the book much more enjoyable. Normally, skimming through portions of a book would be taboo and if I did do it (the horror), I would feel terribly guilty. What champs these boys are. I would have died of Cholera for sure but they soldiered on and tried to change the face of their country. Bravo.

(I'll admit I skimmed over some of those sections as well, Ali. Clearly, no one should be expecting any inventions from me any time soon.)

Cami: I love, love, love this book! By boys are now 4 1/5 hours into it (listening) and they are loving it too. Although, I have to admit my motives to have them read this book are purely selfish. I'm hoping they see just how much they have been given and what their capabilities could be. I am also hoping it changes their outlook on school and how learning opens up a whole new world. We will be having lots of discussions about this book!

(You've inspired me to have Ben read this book as well, Cami! And my girls. For those reasons and to have them understand more about African culture. I found that fascinating as well. FYI for those with younger kids: there is also a young readers edition.)

We'd love to hear from more of you! Share your thoughts in the comments below.

Posted by Rachel

The Soul Doesn't Stutter

Words in the air blow away as soon as you say them, but words on paper last forever.

Rachel’s under the weather, and I’m under the gun.  We’re quite a pair.  But we’re mindful of you lovers of print. I promise.  I’ll be honest, when I started reading Paperboy to my boys I may have been a tiny bit skeptical.  Amazon bragged, “This Newberry Honor is perfect for fans of To Kill a Mockingbird, The King’s Speech, and The Help.”  If that doesn’t qualify as the trifecta of awesome, I’m not sure what does. Needless to say, expectations were high.  Vince Vawter’s Paperboy did not disappoint.  

Like Wonder, this endearing read shows us a perceptive protagonist with an obvious disability.  “Little man” is an eleven-year-old boy who, like Nolan Ryan, can throw some good hard cheese.  He feels normal on the mound because he doesn’t have to speak.  For a moment, he finds relief from the frustrations of an impossible stutter. Talking horrifies him. He can’t even utter his own name, Victor, cleanly.  

It’s 1959. Little man lives in the segregated South.  When asked to take his best friend’s paper route for a month, he is forced out of his world of near isolation.  Able-armed Victor makes life-changing discoveries as he interfaces with memorable customers.  He taught my boys and me something about bravery, resilience, and hope.  And most of all, he gave us an important lesson on love.  I may have felt verklempt when I read what little man says he learned in school at the close of the book: “It’s more important what I say than how I say it, and my soul doesn’t stutter.”

Posted by Tracy

Weekly Wrap-Up

There are two ways of spreading light: to be the candle or the mirror that receives it.

WHAT WE LOVE THIS WEEK

This lovely Penguin Classic's edition of three of Edith Wharton's classics.

Netflix. They had me at Gilmore Girls. Now they've swooped in and saved The Little Prince after the geniuses at Paramount Pictures dropped its U.S. theatrical release. A Cannes Film Festival audience favorite and winner of best animated film in France, but nah, Paramount said, we'll pass. Must be too educational and uplifting to their liking. It's enough to make a girl lose hope. Look for it on Netflix later this year.

March Madness, baby. How's your bracket looking? Oklahoma gave me a scare this afternoon. Now if Oregon will pull through with a win, my final four will have survived the weekend. Tar Heels for the championship!

Audio books the whole family will love. Spring Break means family road trips and the best cure for the "Are we there yet?" blues is listening to a great book. My friend Monica, who's a family-audio-book guru, swears by Treasure Island narrated by Alfred Molina. It kept the whole family riveted in the car—from her pre-schooler to her high schooler. (Riveted=not pestering each other...or you.)

Me Before You. The movie. One of my favorite beach reads with a brain will be in theaters this June. Here's a sneak peak. (I see you, Finnick and Mr. Bates.)

COMING NEXT WEEK

That long overdue review and book club discussion of The Boy who Harnessed the Wind. Really.

Tracy's latest kid-lit pick—word has it Jonah and Luke are giving it a big thumbs up.

Posted by Rachel

I Owe Tracy A Trip To Ireland

Being Irish, he had an abiding sense of tragedy, which sustained him through temporary periods of joy. —W.B. Yeats

I owe Tracy a trip to Ireland. She was saddled with two broke girls for friends in London. Well, obviously not broke, or we wouldn't have been studying abroad. Let's just say we were funds-challenged. Ireland was a priority for her—we were so close, how could we not go? When would we have this opportunity again? Turns out never. At least not in the past almost thirty years. I should have scrimped, borrowed, and begged my way (or just cut back on the Hobnobs and Callard & Bowser licorice toffees). While I spend my St. Patrick's Day in Shoulda Coulda Woulda Land, enjoy some picks from some of our favorite Irish writers, including Yeats above.

James Joyce. I'm smitten with this Penguin Classics Edition of Dubliners. My favorite Joyce short story is The Dead.

C.S. Lewis. I must confess I didn't know until today that he hailed from Ireland.  The Screwtape Letters is a must read, and of course, always, his Chronicles of Narnia.

Frank McCourt. If you have yet to read his Pulitzer prize winning Angel's Ashes, you should remedy that pronto!

Oscar Wilde. My favorite: The Importance of Being Ernest.

George Bernard Shaw. On my list to read: Pygmalion. Or as we know it, thanks to the lovely Audrey Hepburn, My Fair Lady.

Posted by Rachel

I'll Be The Riverbank And You Be The River

Human beings are the best hope in the world of other human beings to survive.

No, this is not a review of last month's book club selection, The Boy who Harnessed the Wind, that was promised for yesterday. And yes, this is the review I promised last week but didn't deliver. You should know by now I'm nothing if not unreliable. What can I say except that it's taken me this long to recover from the shock of Tracy finally succumbing to an escape read. Next up: audio books! Why quit while we're ahead?

While I can't say whether Tray will take to the sound of books in her ear, it's a safe wager she'll take to Anna and the Swallow Man. I know I did. This beautifully written young adult book (that every adult should read) centers around seven-year-old Anna, suddenly alone in a city torn apart by war, and a tall, thin, enigmatic man she calls the Swallow Man. She follows him as a river follows the riverbank, across Poland and parts of Russia, as they try to stay alive and out of war's way. While the Swallow Man teaches her how to survive in a time of war, Anna reminds him that survival, in and of itself, is not enough to support life.

I can't stop thinking about Anna and her Swallow Man, or her beloved Reb Hirschl, a Jew they meet along the way and against their better judgement, but to their betterment, befriend. This book will stay with you long after the last line. There is something uniquely unsettling about witnessing war through the eyes of a child: it's raw, unfettered, and devastating in it's simplicity. But at the same time hopeful, leaving us all better for the reading. Like Liesel and Marie-Laure before her, Anna helps us see the world through younger, yet wiser, eyes—as children so often do. In the words of her father: "Men who try to understand the world without the help of children are like men who try to bake bread without the help of yeast."

Posted by Rachel

I've Got A Serious Case Of The Mondays

There's a house, a napping house, where everyone is sleeping.

I’ve got a serious case of the Mondays.  Daylight savings just added insult to injury, didn’t it?  Spring forward to exhaustion.  But never fear, it’s National Napping Day! This very day, March 14th, we are encouraged to nap. (Like I need encouragement.)  I just read a bit about Winston Churchill—said he only slept four hours a night during World War II, but he insisted on a two-hour snooze every afternoon. Like champagne, naps were a staple for the British Bulldog. Good for you Winnie!  

Here’s the thing, I’d gladly take a sincere doze today if I could. I’m a gifted sleeper—I shouldn’t mask my talent, right?  But I’m a working mom, one with too many nagging items on a semi-futile daily “to-do-or-die” list.  So, in honor of National Napping Day, I won’t be catching any extra z’s.  Instead, with a muffled yawn, let me tell you “there is a house, a napping house, where everyone is sleeping.”

You don’t have to be a pre-K insomniac to enjoy Audrey and Don Wood’s The Napping House. It’s one of my favorite children’s books. A snoring granny, a dreaming child, a dozing dog, a snoozing cat and a slumbering mouse enjoy a collective siesta until a wakeful flea crashes into the subliminal.  The pictures are as big a draw as the text. I have yet to find a tired tyke who doesn’t love to snuggle up with this read!  The Woods are responsible for some of my children’s very favorites:  Quick as a Cricket, King Bidgood’s in the Bathtub, The Little Mouse, The Red Ripe Strawberry, and THE BIG HUNGRY BEAR are all keepers.  Maybe the thought of joining the fictional folks at The Napping House is the next best thing to taking advantage of this national holiday for a girl once called Rip Van.

Posted by Tracy

If You Have Time To Kill

No one can change the sound of an echo.

I have never read a John Grisham book. (“Not that there’s anything wrong with that.”)  More than once my sister Sharee has told me they’re entertaining reads.  This I believe.  Give me some popped corn in front of a remotely big screen and Grisham proves entertaining.  Because my time is scarce like awesome political candidates, I want to read the exceptional stuff. I want to read books with staying power.  

That was the idealist in me talking.  Lately, I’m so tired and spent that I quieted my inner book snob, and looked for a simple escape.  Yes, I said escape.  As in, “to get away from a place where you’re being held or kept; to get away from something that is difficult or unpleasant.”  When I discovered The Life We Bury by Allen Eskens, I said to myself, “oh why not?” Besides it was touted as “compulsively suspenseful”—even noted it on the cover.  

The Life We Bury did its job. I escaped to Minnesota of all places.  It shouldn’t be a surprise that I was drawn in by a student, Joe Talbert, who took a college writing assignment to heart.  His assignment morphs into an investigation of a not-so-cold case.  Eskens, a lawyer by day, writer by night, created a nice piece of storytelling with depth.  He penned some nice lines too.  And I found myself reading one more skinny chapter despite heavy lids.  Something tells me Grisham fans will love this book (that includes you Sharee).  At the end of the read, I can say it was just what I needed—but I am so looking forward to picking up Girl at War!

Posted by Tracy

March Book Club Selection

The realization that my parents, too, felt pain and fear frightened me more than any strangers could.

International Women's Day seems like the perfect time to announce Girl at War as our March book club selection. Let's just pretend we planned it that way, shall we? It's received stunning reviews. The one below by Victor Lavalle (The Devil in Silver) may be my favorite, and will explain why this is a timely choice on this day we celebrate and recognize the power of women and girls all over the world:

Sara Nović isn’t here to play games. Her debut novel, Girl at War, serves as the announcement of an audacious talent. Great war stories are engaging and rough and honest, and Nović’s book is certainly all three. But it’s the fact that all this war is happening to a child that makes this book singular and special. You’ll hold tight to this book as if you were going to protect the young girl at its center—but come to find out, she’s the one with all the courage and all the strength.

I'm eighty-three pages in and find it hard to put this mesmerizing read down. We haven't forgotten about last month's pick. We'll be reviewing that one and opening it up for discussion next Monday.

*Fair warning to our readers offended by harsh language: while there has been some in what I've read so far, it's very limited.

Posted by Rachel