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The Forbidden Schoolhouse: The True and Dramatic Story of Prudence Crandall and Her Students by Suzanne Jurmain. Houghton Mifflin Books for Children. 2005. Personal copy. Review originally appeared at The Edge of the Forest.

Prudence Crandall was smart and a hard worker. She went to school, taught, saved, and then opened her own school for girls. One day a teenage girl approached her with a simple request: she wanted to learn so that she could teach. Would Miss Crandall admit her to the school?

Isn't that what every teacher wants, students eager to learn? Asking to come to school?

Except that Sarah Harris, the girl asking the question, is African-American. And the year is 1831. The town is Canterbury, Connecticut.

The Forbidden Schoolhouse is the account of how Sarah Harris's quest for education, so that she could teach others, led Prudence Crandall to open a school for African American girls and how the townspeople, the town, and the state, conspired to prevent the school from opening, and then to try to shut the school down. It is also an account of Crandall becoming a political activist, because before Sarah Harris asked her fateful question, Crandall was not active in the abolitionist movement.

One of the hardest things to do in works of history is to convey the point of view that existed in a different time. Jurmain presents the world of the 1830s, including the economic, legal and physical risks that Crandall took when she decided to open her school for African American girls. She also shows the courage of the students and what they were willing to put up with, in the pursuit of education. It is eye opening to the modern reader: the drive for education, and the prejudices that existed in the slave-free North.

The Forbidden Schoolhouse reads like an exciting work of historical fiction; yet it is all real. Jurmain does an excellent job with pacing, with keeping the reader on the edge of their seat with what will happen next. How far will the town and state go in wanting to shut down the school? How far is Crandall willing to go to keep it open? Jurmain includes detailed Appendices, letting the reader know "what happened next" to all the main people.

Another think I liked about The Forbidden Schoolhouse is that while it appears to be the story how one woman tried to change the world, Jurmain shows that it was much more than that. Crandall was one woman: but many people helped her, from the leading abolitionists of the day to the African American parents who were willing to pay the school fees and send their daughters to the school to the girls who went – and stayed – despite the abuse heaped on them by the townspeople who didn't want them in their town. And it also redefines what "to change the world" means: is it to open the school? To keep the school open no matter what? To bring an issue to the public? Does it matter whether the change takes place when you want it to, or 60 years later?


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Bodies From the Ash: Life and Death in Ancient Pompeii by James M. Deem. Houghton Mifflin Books for Children. 2005. I believe I bought my own copy. Review originally appeared at The Edge of the Forest.

Photos! Maps! Original sources! Multiple Subjects! Do history books get better than this?

Bodies From the Ash contains many stories. Pompeii: a Roman city during the early days of the Empire. It's also Pompeii: the volcanic eruption of Mt. Vesuvius that buried a city and its people. And Pompeii: the science behind the bodies. And Pompeii: the evolution of archaeology from treasure hunting to science. Finally, Pompeii: the preservation and storage of artifacts.

One of the things that I have always loved about history is the ability to glimpse a different world. Because of the quick destruction of Pompeii, and the way the city was buried, Pompeii provides a unique look into the past. Because Pompeii was covered with dust, ash, gas, and stone, when the bodies of the dead decayed a space was left; when a space is found, plaster is poured in, resulting in detailed plaster casts. We can look on the faces of people who lived more than a thousand years ago. And the buildings were also preserved: we can see their homes, the graffiti on the walls; look at the possessions they chose to take when they tried to flee. Bodies from the Ash is about this history; but it also is about how the first people who realized the ancient city and its treasures were still intact dug holes not to discover the past but to get jewelry and statues. Afterwards came the realization that the plaster process could be done, and that what was below the surface was more valuable than jewels.

All of these stories weave together into one narrative about life and death in Ancient Pompeii. This isn't about history that is dead and buried in the past; it's about history that is alive. It's alive in the unexcavated areas of the ancient city; in the ongoing pursuit to both explore the city and preserve what has been found; and in the still active nearby volcano. And it's photos! I could sit all day just looking at the photos and the maps, planning an imaginary trip to Pompeii to see the excavations for myself.


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© Elizabeth Burns of A Chair, A Fireplace & A Tea Cozy

Now, for your reading pleasure this lovely weekend: The Edge of the Forest:: February, 2008

So, why are you still here? Go, go! And tell me your favorite article.

I like A Backward Glance by Candice Ransom, even tho I was never a Trixie Belden girl myself (Nancy Drew and Happy Hollisters and Cherry Ames for me.)

But there's also Christine's interview with P.J. Hoover. Surprisingly, there is no T.J. Hooker reference. Uma.... Oprah... PJ.... TJ. OK, it's a pop culture reference that makes sense in my head.

But I think it's Little Willow's bit on YA Lit that makes me smile. If I had a million dollars, on my "to do" list would be to get LW a membership in YALSA and get that girl on the BBYA committee.

Hi All. I had promised that the June/July issue of The Edge of the Forest would be up tomorrow. Well, that's not happening. Today will be occupied with clearing up a medical flexplan, planning for a conference in August, packing for a month-long trip, and clearing out (i.e. responding to) e-mails.

The issue will be up on Monday, the day I'll start a week-long blogvation.
====================
If you are interested in reviewing for the August or September issues of The Edge of the Forest, I have books for you. Lots and lots of books. Currently I'm sending out books to Brian and three other reviewers who don't have their own sites. If you'd like a package of 4-6 books, send me an e-mail asap (I'll be at the P.O. at 9am tomorrow) with your genre/age preferences.

Originally appeared at The Edge of the Forest, Issue 10, December 2006.

Named one of my Best Books of 2006.

Cathy's Book: If Found Call (650) 266-8233 by Sean Stewart and Jordan Weisman. Copy supplied by Running Press Publishers.

First things first: you may have heard about Cathy's Book pre-publication because of product placement. The makeup that gets mentioned, though, is barely noticeable—other books mention many more brand names than get mentioned here. If I didn't know about the controversy, I wouldn’t have even noticed.

Second things second: Cathy's Book advertises itself as an "original interactive teen book." Does it deliver? Absolutely: it's a believable teenage girl's diary; it's a fast paced adventure; and it's a lot of fun. The packaging (more on that below) easily could have been a gimmick—instead, it works to create a full, realistic story.

Hold Cathy's Book in your hands, and it looks like a sketchbook. Open it up and there is a clear envelope of "proof" on the left-hand side and the sketchbook on the right. Do I read the book, which is full of doodles and sketches? Do I open the envelope and see what's inside? There are phone numbers and websites—what about those?

Let's start with the book. It begins on January 30, and ends February 9th. Victor has broken up with Cathy, and she wants to know why. She's the type of girl who wants an answer, so she goes to Victor's house. And it's not really breaking in if the door is unlocked, right? What she finds leads her to a much bigger mystery than why Victor dumped her. If the book existed just as the book—a smart, funny Veronica Mars/ Buffyesque teenage girl stubbornly solves a mystery—it would be a simple fun read.

But the book doesn't stop with the text. And this ups the enjoyment. Remember that envelope? Remember all those phone numbers and websites? Your pick what to explore first; and just how much, and how deep, you want to go.

The envelope is full of the items Cathy picks up as she investigates first Victor and then a murder: photos, newspaper clippings, a birth certificate, a menu. The book isn't annotated. In no place does it say "stop now and look at the matching item." That's left to the reader. Interactive, remember? The book isn't dictating the story. I felt like Cathy as I poured over the "proof," noting things she didn't.

The phone numbers and websites give more opportunities to become Cathy, and one of the websites, www.doubletalkwireless.com, contains full color copies of everything in the evidence bag, plus other things Cathy has discovered. (So all you librarians who are worried about the items surviving check out, have the website and password* handy; the proof will always exist virtually.)

I've long wondered when authors would take real advantage of the Internet for storytelling. Not just the internet, but modern computers for publishing allow the cool envelope of stuff to be included with the book. There's been more and more use of the Internet recently, with playlists and character blogs. But Cathy's Book takes it to a new level, and I'm a bit annoyed that the whole product placement thing has stopped a conversation on the fascinating way this story is told. The reader becomes part of the story, because of the items and because of the Internet sites and phone numbers. These are not just "extra" items—they give additional information and depth and also allow the reader to discover things Cathy hasn't. At the same time, the story works regardless of how little, or how much, the reader wishes to explore. It's no surprise, then, that one of the authors, Jordan Weisman, is a video game developer. Many modern computer games are not just "games," they also tell stories that must work regardless of the player's choices.

*Cemetary Gates

Originally published in The Edge of the Forest, Vol. 1, Issue 5, June/July 2006.


Storm Thief
by Chris Wooding
Reviewed by Liz Burns, A Chair, a Fireplace and a Tea Cozy

There seems to be an unwritten rule for fantasy: there's no such thing as one book. Pick up a random fantasy title, and it turns out that it's "book one" of a trilogy, a quartet, a series. Chris Wooding is a rarity in that he writes stand alone fiction, such as The Haunting of Alaizabel Cray and Poison. His most recent work, Storm Thief, is another stand-alone addition to YA fantasy. These stand-alone titles are refreshing because sometimes, I just want to read one book and have completion. There are titles I haven't picked up because I don't want to commit to another four-book series that won't be finished for at least six years. I want to get to the end of the book and know that I have read the end of the story.

Wooding's fantasies are always well-thought-out, complete worlds. This makes me admire the lack of sequels even more. Given all the work that has to go into making a complex fantasy world, I think it would be easy to write a second or third book in a setting that is already established. It must be more work to invent, over and over again, something new and different. Yet this is what Wooding does: each new book by Wooding gives us a peek into some different universe.

In The Haunting of Alaizabel Cray, Wooding creates a vaguely Edwardian alternate universe with vampires and ghosts and demons; in Poison, it's a world of fairy tales come true; and in Storm Thief, the created world is a distant future where anything is possible.

Rail and Moa live in the city of Orokos; they are the lowest of the low on the social ladder, thieves who live in a ghetto-like section of the city. The privileged and the thief have one thing in common: they live in fear of storms— probability storms. When one strikes, anything can happen. It can be as minor as being right-handed before a storm and left-handed after; and as strange as disappearing from the city and reappearing only in pictures. Rail is well aware of the risks of living in a place where anything can happen. One such probability storm took away his ability to breathe, and now he has a permanent mask and portable machine to force air into his lungs. Orokos urban legend says the cause of the storms is the Storm Thief:
"Anything could happen when the Storm Thief was abroad. He was a wicked entity who delighted in mischief, as likely to snatch a person's purse as he was to shower them with jewels. He might steal a baby's eyes and replace them with buttons, or turn a house into sugar paper. The tale was old, invented long ago to make sense of the senseless. People used it to explain probability storms to their offspring. But though it was only a legend, they never quite managed to stop believing in it themselves. When they talked of the damage wrecked to their lives in the aftermath of the storm, they still talked of a visit from the Storm Thief."

Rail and Moa steal something they shouldn't, and end up on fleeing across the various segregated sections of the city, entering areas where they don't belong. It's a nightmare version of a road trip; their pursuers include Mozgas, reaver-like monsters, the thief master, Anya-Jacana, the Secret Police, the machine-like man, Vago, and the vampire-like ghosts, the Revenants. Rail and Moa are fleeing death and punishment, but they are also running towards a hope of a better life, of an escape from Orokos and its probability storms.

In The Haunting of Alaizabel Cray, Wooding explored the power of belief; in Poison, the meaning of story. In Storm Thief, Wooding looks at the balance between chaos and order, stagnancy and creativity. Wooding once again creates not just a believable world, but also one with an interesting, complex plot and fully realized characters. It's beautifully written; in the ARC, the note from the editor, David Levithan, is simple: "Chris Wooding is at it again. His imagination never ceases to amaze me. Read on."

Read on and be amazed at how Wooding has once again created a unique fantasy.

Penny From Heaven
by Jennifer L. Holm

Reviewed by Liz Burns, A Chair, a Fireplace and a Tea Cozy

Originally published at The Edge of the Forest, Vol 1, Issue 6, August 2006

Penny From Heaven appears, at first, to simply be an old-fashioned book. The cover reflects the 1950s setting, with Penny (almost 12) and her cousin Frankie leaning against a car, Penny daydreaming, while Frankie has a baseball and mitt. We're about to be transported to the past. (And isn't the past always a better time?) Penny and her widowed mother live with Penny's maternal grandparents. Penny's father's family lives close by, and she is also close to them.

On the surface, this is a book that is both an ode to old-fashioned summers and a love letter to Holm's grandmother. Frankie and Penny explore their neighborhood with a great deal of freedom, and have summer days during which they can do whatever they want to do: no camp, no lessons, no structure. Penny From Heaven is based on the childhood stories of Holm's grandmother, and Holm has taken that and made it into fiction, into story, with endnotes and photos explaining the "real" story.

Penny From Heaven is warm, funny, and real. Most of the book is about the summer, as Penny and Frankie make their own fun, whether it's hanging out with her father's relatives, listening to her favorite baseball team (the Brooklyn Dodgers), searching for lost treasure or trying to sneak into the forbidden public pool.

Penny is close to both sides of her family; yet those two sides barely speak to each other, divided by the loss of her father. Her mother's family is solid American, her father's is Catholic and Italian. Penny From Heaven is more than a summer book or a family love story, because Holm also shows that the 1950s were not a perfect time. One uncle lives in a car. Penny is forbidden to go to the public swimming pool because of the fear of catching polio. The most serious secret is that involving Penny's father and his death. Penny discovers that during World War II "enemy aliens" had to registered and had their lives seriously restricted, with regulations for curfews, travel, and what they could own. Some were even sent to Internment Camps; and she also learns that those enemy aliens included people who were born in Italy and lived their whole lives in the United States. People like her father.

Towards the end of the book, Penny From Heaven shifts from a story of long summer days to one of Penny finding courage and strength. There is an accident—one that threatens to further divide Penny's family. Instead, Penny discovers her own strength and the power of love and forgiveness. Holm has managed to take her own personal family history and make it universal—to take a time in the past, and make it accessible. She honors the past without glorifying it