Alice Across America by Sarah Glenn Marsh

This book made me miss taking road trips with my friends! But it also made me laugh, thinking of how my friend and I used to worry about being “two ladies” while driving down the California coast. 

Alice Ramsey and three friends drove across the country in 1909, when hardly any women drove cars. In fact, only a few men had driven across the country at that time. Ramsey made thirty more cross-country drives after this one. She knew how to take care of her car, crank it, change tires, and more.

I know how to do all of those things, in theory... but actually doing it? I haven't practiced. So it was admirable to see this woman learn when she didn't have to. She traveled without a phone or help line, and often didn't stop in cities. They camped in the car some nights. It's really interesting to compare and contrast that with how things are now.

Everything Awesome About Dinosaurs by Mike Lowery

Thanks to @kidlitexchange and @scholasticinc for sharing Everything Awesome About Dinosaurs by @mikelowerystudio.

My kid loves dinosaurs, and of course I encourage all types of reading, but some of the dinosaur books he brings home from school are a little bland, or too dense for his age. He wants something fun to read, but full of facts - and that can be a tough order for a 5yo! I was relieved to see this book because I knew it would have the information my son wants, and I personally love Lowery’s drawing style and humor - win-win!

Since my son is young, we look at the pictures and read the large, handwritten facts together. Sometimes I’ll read the smaller typewritten facts aloud, but sometimes he’s ready to move on and soak up more information on the next page. I love that, because as he gets older, he’ll be able to keep coming back to this book and learn new things!

As a parent reading it aloud, I especially appreciate the pronunciation key for all of these dinosaurs and other creatures! I definitely stumble over dinosaur names if left to my own devices, so it’s nice to have right under the pictures in this book. I also love Lowery’s trademark humor and random jokes, which help make this book amazing for all ages!

Volunteering

I've been a volunteer since childhood, delivering meals on wheels for MIFA with my mom and grandmother. I volunteered at my church a lot in middle school, and volunteered at my local library branch in high school. I've volunteered with people with disabilities, and continued to volunteer at the library in different ways.

I was a volunteer coordinator at a learning center for people with disabilities and the library. I know how important volunteering is to so many organizations, especially nonprofits who need more staff than they can reasonably afford.

I also know that volunteering is important for the volunteers themselves. Volunteering might seem like a selfless act, and it's wonderful to give up your time for a cause. But you're volunteering to get something back, and that's fine! It's important to feel proud of what you're doing to help out. And for many teens when I worked at the library, it's important to get service hours for school, or experience in a career field you might want to explore, or to earn a letter of recommendation for college.

Volunteering helps everyone, and I love still being an active volunteer with many organizations. I write book reviews for Teen Bookletters for my library system. I conduct storytimes at preschools, and want to expand that to parks and community centers in spring and summer months. I have experience doing storytime programs for adults with disabilities, and I want to start that again. I also love the idea of one-off volunteer experiences, in case you can't commit to a set schedule.

I am currently writing a volunteer manual for libraries, and I'm so excited to put all of my knowledge on paper. It's a subject I'm passionate about, and I love that I can put it all out there and help other libraries, and honestly - any other organization, form their own quality volunteer program. I'm just getting to the meat of the book so I have a lot of work to do, but Memphis has a wonderful volunteer scene, so I have a list of people to interview to really flesh out this manual.

Have you volunteered before? What did you do? What would you like to do as a volunteer if you could do anything, anywhere?

If you liked Popular...

I recently read and reviewed Popular by Maya Van Wagenen. I loved the book, bought a copy for my thirteen-year-old niece, and have recommended it to countless people. I also picked it as the topic of my final project for my summer class, Advanced Literature for Young Adults. We had to make a virtual book display using a Web 2.0 tool, and I'd love you to check out the one I made for Popular!

Popular: Vintage Wisdom for a Modern Geek

Plot Summary
Maya Van Wagenen isn’t a total loser—she has one best friend. But on the food chain of middle school popularity, she’s only a step above the teachers. After finding an old book called Betty Cornell’s Teen-Age Popularity Guide, Maya decides to attempt changing her social standing. Her mother encourages her to tackle a tip of two a month from the book’s table of contents, keeping a journal of the experiment as she does. Maya goes from throwing on whatever clothes she can find in her closet to wearing pressed skirts and a string of pearls. She stops being content at blending in and pushes herself to sit at every table in the lunchroom. Though the memoir is about Betty Cornell’s Teen-Age Popularity Guide, Maya adds in elements of her home life, including a sister with autism, and schoolwork, including an ailing beloved teacher, to round out the story.

Critical Analysis
Maya’s writing is so honest and open that every teen girl will fall in love with her. Maya’s worries about her appearance, weight, and personality are universal, and are written about with an eloquent yet conversational voice that will draw in readers. The title, cover, and concept are all eye-catching enough to appeal to teen girls, but boys should also be encouraged to read the book. The lessons about fitting in and being popular vs. being well-liked are universal, and Maya interacts with a lot of boys in her school in a way that is enlightening for both genders.
     It can be hard to tell if a social experiment book will have a lasting place in literature, but if any do, Popular should definitely be one of them. Maya’s writing is timeless, and the idea of updating classic advice is something that will never go out of style. Before too long, Maya’s advice might be considered “classic” itself!
Related Activities
It’s time to get fancy! Teens will make pearls and bow ties out of paper. Collect junk mail and paper scraps so everyone can get their pick of paper types and colors. White paper can also be custom-decorated, so include markers and colored pencils as well. You can use glue sticks, or water down some white school glue to be painted on to the beads. Make sure you have plenty of stretchy string so teens can wear their pearl necklaces and bow ties!
     Find how to make different paper beads here:
          “How to Make Paper Beads.” WikiHow. Mediawiki, n.d. Web. 19 Jul. 2015.
     Find how to make a paper bow tie here:
          “How to make origami ties.” Origami-Make.com. N.p., 2015. Web. 19 Jul. 2015.
     Maya Van Wagenen not only experimented with becoming classy by wearing pearls, she turned around and made her own project into a book! Teens can do something similar during this craft program. Let them film short videos explaining how to make the beads and bow ties from start to finish. Upload them on the library’s social media sites so other teens can learn how to do these crafts at home.

Resources
Read the book that inspired Maya’s experiment! It’s being republished to meet the demand of Maya’s readers, so get your hands on a copy and see how you can interpret and apply the advice to your own life!
     Cornell, Betty. Betty Cornell’s Teen-Age Popularity Guide. New York: Dutton Books for Young
          Readers, 2014. Print.
If you’re not into retro advice or changing your social status, you can spice up your life in other ways, with a variety of social experiments. This book is framed within your high school career, but most of the suggestions will fill your time after school hours.
     Stalder, Erika and Steven Jenkins. 97 Things to Do Before You Finish High School. San
          Francisco, CA: Zest Books, 2008. Print.

Professional Review
Coats, Karen. “Popular: Vintage Wisdom for a Modern Geek by Maya Van Wagenen (review).”
     Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books 67.10 (2014): 546. Project Muse. Web. 19 Jul. 2015.

Read it for yourself!
Van Wagenen, Maya. Popular: Vintage Wisdom for a Modern Geek. New York: Dutton Books,
     2014. Print.

The Tarantula Scientist

Plot Summary
Tarantulas are misunderstood, billed as the scariest, deadliest spider known to man. In reality, their bites have never killed a man, and they would rather hide than harm a human. In this book, Sy Montgomery follows Sam Marshall, an arachnologist who studies wherever the tarantulas call him. The book explains the parts of tarantulas, how they got their name, spiders who are confused as tarantulas, and more. Sy Montgomery follows Marshall as he stalks tarantulas in South America, then studies them in his lab in Hiram, Ohio.

Critical Analysis
     Accuracy.
The book is clearly well-researched, since Sy Montgomery conducted much of her research right alongside Sam Marshall. The book ends with a lot of information about handling (or not…) tarantulas, spider statistics, and a breakdown of terms used throughout the book. There is also a section about how the book was researched, giving details about the author and photographer and how they compiled the book. There is also a bibliography, as well as websites to further research tarantulas.

     Organization.
Montgomery has the perfect approach to this book: he writes to the reader as if they already know everything, yet explains things in ways that build them up to actually know everything. Difficult words are spelled out phonetically in parenthesis, and a lot of terms and methods are explained, but not in a way that makes readers feel dumb. Chapters are creatively titled, but not listed in a table of contents.

     Design.
It is hard to speak to the book’s attractiveness, since I personally am creeped out by tarantulas despite learning that they are not harmful to humans. Trying to be diplomatic, I must say that Nic Bishop’s photographs are amazing. There are extreme close-ups, showing the true beauty of tarantulas. The photographs aren’t limited to tarantulas, also showing wasp nests and Marshall at work in his lab. There are photos on every page, even if it’s a text-heavy page with just a few tarantulas “crawling” up the margins.

     Style.
This book was a little more cut-and-dried than the others I read for the informational genre, but that didn’t make it hard to read. It gave a lot of great information about tarantulas, as well as gorgeous (I have to admit!) photographs. The author didn’t seem especially passionate about the subject, but I think in this case, it worked to have some distance from the author and the subject. I think an author who loved tarantulas too much might have made the subject harder to handle, but the book was written as a perfect mix of knowledge and passion.

Personal Response
I have to admit that I’m not a big fan of spiders, especially tarantulas, but this book completely drew me in. The photographs, I could have done without. I shuddered every time I looked at them! But the knowledge I accrued from reading this book was amazing! Tarantulas are something I never would have looked into on my own - I think they’re too creepy, but honestly, most of the knowledge I had about them was false! I loved learning that they didn’t harm humans, and that they had teeth as well as fangs, and more. I think that reading children’s nonfiction will actually be the way I approach learning new things that I don’t really want to learn about!

Reviews & Awards
From School Library Journal: “Informative, yes, but even more important, this is a vivid look at an enthusiastic scientist energetically and happily at work, both in the field and in the lab, questioning, examining, testing, and making connections. A treat, even for arachnophobes.”
     From Booklist: “Enthusiasm for the subject and respect for both Marshall and his eight-legged subjects come through on every page of the clear, informative, and even occasionally humorous text. Bishop's full-color photos, which concentrate on detail, not scale, are amazing--Marshall coaxing an elusive tarantula into the open or bringing readers literally face-to-face with a hairy spider. […] Readers will come away armed with facts about spiders in general and tarantulas in particular, but even more important, they'll have a clear understanding of how the answers derived from research become the roots of new, intriguing questions.”

Connections & Activities
The Tarantula Scientist is part of a series called “Scientists in the Field,” which can be further researched at ScienceMeetsAdventure.com. Other books in this series include:
     Hidden Worlds: Looking Through a Scientist’s Microscope by Stephen Kramer and Dennis Kunkel. ISBN 9780618354054
     The Mighty Mars Rovers: The Incredible Adventures of Spirit and Opportunity by Elizabeth Rusch. ISBN 9780547478814
     Eruption!: Volcanoes and the Science of Saving Lives by Elizabeth Rusch and Tom Uhlman. ISBN 9780547503509

Read it for yourself!
Murphy, Jim. 2012. The Giant and How He Humbugged America. New York: Scholastic Press. ISBN 9780439691840

The Giant and How He Humbugged America

Plot Summary
In 1869, workers digging a well on William Newell’s farm were astonished when their shovels hit something hard. After a few hours, they excavated a massive stone man, who scientists and assorted “experts” deemed as a petrified man. Newell let other men buy shares in ownership of the giant and they toured the giant around the country. P.T. Barnum thought the man was a fake, and “found” his own to tour. There was a competition between the two giants, until scientists and other experts studied both giants and came to a conclusion regarding their authenticity.

Critical Analysis
     Accuracy.
Jim Murphy’s bio states that he carefully researches his nonfiction and has won awards such as two Newbery Honors, a Sibert Medal, and the Margaret A. Edwards Lifetime Achievement Award. I feel like these accomplishments give him credentials worthy of the book he’s written.
     The book does not have in-text citations, but the last few pages of the book are Source Notes, divided by chapter, that give extra details on things mentioned in the text. Since information is not given as parenthetical documentation or footnotes, I feel like this is the best way to appeal to children, and I feel like they would read the entire book, including the source notes.

     Organization.
The book is told chronologically, from the time the giant was discovered until he was retired in a museum. There are a few flashbacks to explain how the giant was created and planted, and the book ends by focusing on a modern day hoax that National Geographic fell for. The book starts with a cast of characters and what parts they played. Chapters are titled according to the major action that occurs during the text. After the conclusion of the giant’s story, there are brief summaries of other famous hoaxes. Source notes are included, as well as a bibliography, photo credits, and an index. There is also a detailed section about the author’s research process.

     Design.
This book is fairly text-heavy, but the font is larger and more spaced out than typical 12 point, single-spaced formats. This makes it easier to read - even on the pages where there are no photographs or illustrations. All of the artwork included in this book is historical; it’s not illustrated like an informational storybook. The photographs have dates and credits, the illustrations are most frequently political comments from newspapers of the time, and scans of relevant promotional booklets and posters are included. Though even the artwork is informational, the book does not seem boring or a heavy-handed history book.

     Style.
The book is written fairly formally, but it does not make it hard to read. Because the subject is so interesting, it’s hard to feel like you’re learning something as you read this book. In “A Word About My Research,” Jim Murphy explains that he became interested in the topic because he wanted to learn about Bernie Madoff and his Ponzi scheme. I think this is a great way to engage readers because he portrays himself as a regular guy, curious about the things around him. I think children can relate to this, and might even suggest reading this section before starting the book, as interesting as the hoax topic is on its own.

Personal Response
I’m big on conspiracy theories, and I love the idea of hoaxes and how they have been pulled off. I had never heard of the Cardiff Giant, so this book not only taught me a lot about that particular subject, but also gave me a great idea of how America was during this time. Despite being intrigued by the subject matter, I was also really drawn in to Murphy’s writing style, and look forward to reading more of his work.

Reviews & Awards
In a Booklist starred review, “Murphy shows how the controversy itself fueled the giant’s notoriety—to the extent that the figure’s ‘authenticity’ became such a non-issue that P.T. Barnum made a bundle displaying an openly made duplicate and to this day the original and several surviving copies remain local museum attractions. Illustrated with plenty of photos and images, and capped by summaries of the later lives of the major hoaxers, brief mentions of other pseudo-scientific hoaxes, detailed research notes, and a rich bibliography, this makes an entertaining and intriguing case study in how a seemingly minor incident can provide insight into both human psychology and large historical and cultural changes.”
     Publishers Weekly says “Although a significant number of players are involved, the narrative’s 12 chapters move swiftly, with period photos helping to break up the text-heavy pages (printed in brown ink). Contextualizing this scam against the wider backdrop of the Gilded Age, Murphy adeptly explains how hoaxes like the Cardiff Giant helped accelerate reforms, such as the establishment of professional scientific organizations and journals.”

Connections & Activities
Jim Murphy mentions many other hoaxes at the end of his book; any number of these would inspire students to research on their own. It would also be interesting to open a conversation with children about what they consider a hoax, since there are many modern conspiracy theories that aren’t addressed in this book.
     Jim Murphy has written many other books that children may be interested in, such as:
     The Great Fire. ISBN 9780439203074
     Blizzard!: The Storm That Changed America. ISBN 9780590673105
     An American Plague: The True and Terrifying Story of the Yellow Fever Epidemic of 1793. ISBN 9780395776087

Read it for yourself!
Murphy, Jim. 2012. The Giant and How He Humbugged America. New York: Scholastic Press. ISBN 9780439691840

What To Do About Alice?

Fun fact: My son has the same name as Alice’s father!
Plot Summary
Alice Roosevelt was unlike the other girls of her time. She called the way she lived life “eating up the world” - but her father, Theodore Roosevelt, said she was “running riot.” Alice’s mother died when she was just two days old, and her father remarried and had more children. Alice never really fit in with the family, preferring to join an all-boys club and race her bike around town. Instead of attending boarding school, she convinces her father to let her learn from his personal library. After Roosevelt is elected president, Alice travels extensively as her father’s goodwill ambassador, taking the world by storm.

Critical Analysis
     Accuracy.
In her bio, author Barbara Kerley mentions how and why she became familiar with Alice Roosevelt. This leads one to believe that the book was a labor of love, researched because the author was enthralled with her subject. Kerley has written other picture book biographies.
     The book ends with an author’s note, giving information about why her father’s second family might have prompted Alice to act out and what she did with her life past the scope of the book’s text. There is a small section that gives attribution to sources of various quotes, and a note that both the text and illustrations were fact-checked, though only a name is given, not a title or affiliation.

     Organization.
This informational storybook is organized like a fictional storybook, which will certainly engage young readers. Though it’s nonfiction, the book doesn’t seem boring or fact-laden; Alice is as bright and energetic as any fictional character. There is not a page without an illustration, and the text is formatted to look aesthetically pleasing as well, with different layouts, fonts, and font sizes. Since it reads in chronological order like a traditional storybook, there is no need for chapter headings or an index.

     Design.
This book is beautifully done. Edwin Fotheringham’s illustrations help the book read almost like a comic or graphic novel, yet are gorgeous enough to be framed. The text is straight-forward and almost basic compared to the illustrations, but the elements work together to give a more rounded story overall. For instance, after being warned by her father to avoid publicity, the next page simply reads “‘Oh, Alice.’” If only the text were being heard, this page would sound boring; when shown the illustrations, however, there is a two-page spread where Alice is being surrounded by newspapers with headlines all about her. There are also jokes in some of the illustrations that are missed when reading the text alone. I think this is a great approach because it seems sly and humorous, just like Alice herself.

     Style.
The style of this book is fun and lighthearted. This is clear from the front cover all the way to the author’s bio in the back. It’s clearly a project that both the author and illustrator were passionate about. The illustrations are playful and the text gives a broad overview of Alice Roosevelt’s life, encouraging further exploration by giving just enough information to pique the reader’s curiosity. The summary on the end pages complete the story of Alice’s life, but overall the book seems to be a great introduction to biographies in general and Alice Roosevelt in particular. I think it will encourage further reading.

Personal Response
I wasn’t a big fan of informational books as a child; biographies seemed especially boring. I’m thrilled to see that the genre has had a complete overhaul. I can’t count how many times I’ve flipped through this book just to look at the pictures. The text is fun and interesting and easy to read, but the illustrations are what really grab me, and I feel they will grab younger readers as well. I will look for more Kerley biographies because I appreciate her approach to the genre. This is Edwin Fotheringham’s first picture book, but I am already seeking out his other illustrations from The New Yorker, Vanity Fair, The New York Times, and more.

Reviews & Awards
This book is off the charts! It is a Sibert Honor Book, Boston Globe-Horn Book Honor Book, Irma Black Award Honor Book, Publishers Weekly Best Book of the Year, School Library Journal Best Book of the Year, Kirkus Reviews Best Book of the Year, an ALA Notable Book, and has won the Washington State Scandiuzzi Children’s Book Award and the Parents Choice Award. (Phew!)
     In a Booklist starred review: “Irrepressible Alice Roosevelt gets a treatment every bit as attractive and exuberant as she was... Kerley's text has the same rambunctious spirit as its subject, grabbing readers from the first line... The large format gives Fotheringham, in his debut, plenty of room for spectacular art." Publishers Weekly also gave it a starred review, saying “It's hard to imagine a picture book biography that could better suit its subject than this high-energy volume serves young Alice Roosevelt.”

Connections & Activities
“Well-behaved women seldom make history.”
     This quote has been attributed to many noteworthy women, such as Eleanor Roosevelt, Marilyn Monroe, and Anne Boleyn. The earliest version that could be found was in a 1976 academic paper by Laurel Thatcher Ulrich. Ulrich is now a Pulitzer-Prize-winning professor at Harvard, but was a student at the University of New Hampshire when she wrote the article in question. (Read more here.)
     Have students check out more biographies about other women who spent their lives “eating up the world.”
     I Am Amelia Earhart by Brad Meltzer. ISBN 9780803740822
     Eleanor by Barbara Cooney. ISBN 9780670861590
     Joan of Arc by Diane Stanley. ISBN 9780064437486
     Bon Appetit! The Delicious Life of Julia Child by Jessie Hartland. ISBN 9780375969447

Read it for yourself!
Kerley, Barbara. 2008. What To Do About Alice? Ill. by Edwin Fotheringham. New York: Scholastic. ISBN 9780439922319