Is anyone reading this Huffington Post series on libraries? I'm not a big Huff fan; but this is worth reading.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/news/libraries-in-crisis/
Friday, January 13, 2012
Thursday, January 5, 2012
White Water invites us to wade in
Set in the segregation-era South, White Water is based on one particular memory author Michael Bandy just couldn't shake. The memory: not being allowed to drink from the white fountain.
As Bandy's (fictional) main character, also named Michael, puts it:
It's a children's picture book, so there's no space for a detailed history lesson and it's not the place to assign blame. It's a 32-page opportunity to open a window and begin a discussion with kids about racism. Or not.
I repeat, it's a picture book, so it's difficult for adults to gauge what the book's intended audience might read into it. And that's OK.
We should read it to them, ask them to feel what Michael feels - think about his thirst for that white water - and see if they can grasp the irony, as Michael did, when he realized that the same pipe fed both fountains. It's the same water.
Michael (the character) realizes the only difference between the water in those fountains was in his imagination.
Whatever our differences, the easy, politically correct way to handle them is to pretend we are blind. Color blind or unable to see the yamaka, turban, veil, dreadlocks, wheelchair, whatever makes the person (apparently) different from one's self. It's not completely wrong to pretend we don't notice labels or differences and instead choose to "see inside" the person. But it's only half right.
What if we go all the way? What if we see the labels, read the signs and then ask questions? Of each other?
How would that water taste?
That's a big question, and this is a book for little people. But we should ask. Maybe they'll lead us to the answer.
-- -- -- -- -- -- --
I received a free review copy of White Water (copyright 2011) from Random House.
As Bandy's (fictional) main character, also named Michael, puts it:
"I was just sure it must be pure and icy cold, like mountain water. Suddenly I just had to know what that white water tasted like."And (spoiler alert) he finds out.
It's a children's picture book, so there's no space for a detailed history lesson and it's not the place to assign blame. It's a 32-page opportunity to open a window and begin a discussion with kids about racism. Or not.I repeat, it's a picture book, so it's difficult for adults to gauge what the book's intended audience might read into it. And that's OK.
We should read it to them, ask them to feel what Michael feels - think about his thirst for that white water - and see if they can grasp the irony, as Michael did, when he realized that the same pipe fed both fountains. It's the same water.
Michael (the character) realizes the only difference between the water in those fountains was in his imagination.
"The signs over the fountains had put bad ideas in my head," Bandy writes.
Whatever our differences, the easy, politically correct way to handle them is to pretend we are blind. Color blind or unable to see the yamaka, turban, veil, dreadlocks, wheelchair, whatever makes the person (apparently) different from one's self. It's not completely wrong to pretend we don't notice labels or differences and instead choose to "see inside" the person. But it's only half right.
What if we go all the way? What if we see the labels, read the signs and then ask questions? Of each other?
How would that water taste?
That's a big question, and this is a book for little people. But we should ask. Maybe they'll lead us to the answer.
-- -- -- -- -- -- --
I received a free review copy of White Water (copyright 2011) from Random House.
Wednesday, January 4, 2012
Can you believe what you read?
So far today I've read about Obama's trip to Mars and Newt's suggestion that we pay middle- and high school students to take math and science classes. Before the world ends (on 12/21/12 in case you need to put it on your calendar...wait for it...the last calendar you'll ever need) I'll post a review of a children's book that I received from Candlewick Press (Random House) last year.
White Water by Michael S. Bandy and Eric Stein, is one of many free review copies I received last year. For the record, I rarely accept them and review them even less often. While it's flattering to be contacted by publishers (and fun to get free books), it becomes something of a pain sometimes, especially - I know this will draw nasty replies - when the books are sent by self-published authors along with such a huge amount of hyperbole in the accompanying press material, it's matched only by the typos and grammatical errors in their books. I understand why many good writers choose to self-publish and self-publishing is certainly gaining (deserved) respect but I stand by my assertion that self-published shouldn't mean self-edited. But I digress.
Back to my point and headline: can you believe what you read here? (It's the only place I have complete editorial control. You're on your own with the Obama-on-Mars thing.) The answer is yes, because when I receive a review copy, I say so somewhere in the review. If I've reviewed a book for another publication - such as The Plain Dealer or Kirkus - I explain that in my reviews on this blog.
If you read much online and reviews in particular, you know that's how it's supposed to be done - and that it's not always. So. Yeah. You can believe what you read here. Next up: my review of White Water, a very interesting book for young kids, about racism. Until then...well, don't believe everything you read, ok?
White Water by Michael S. Bandy and Eric Stein, is one of many free review copies I received last year. For the record, I rarely accept them and review them even less often. While it's flattering to be contacted by publishers (and fun to get free books), it becomes something of a pain sometimes, especially - I know this will draw nasty replies - when the books are sent by self-published authors along with such a huge amount of hyperbole in the accompanying press material, it's matched only by the typos and grammatical errors in their books. I understand why many good writers choose to self-publish and self-publishing is certainly gaining (deserved) respect but I stand by my assertion that self-published shouldn't mean self-edited. But I digress.
Back to my point and headline: can you believe what you read here? (It's the only place I have complete editorial control. You're on your own with the Obama-on-Mars thing.) The answer is yes, because when I receive a review copy, I say so somewhere in the review. If I've reviewed a book for another publication - such as The Plain Dealer or Kirkus - I explain that in my reviews on this blog.
If you read much online and reviews in particular, you know that's how it's supposed to be done - and that it's not always. So. Yeah. You can believe what you read here. Next up: my review of White Water, a very interesting book for young kids, about racism. Until then...well, don't believe everything you read, ok?
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)