One Crazy Summer by Rita Williams-Garcia

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1. BIBLIOGRAPHY

Williams-Garcia, Rita. One Crazy Summer. New York, HarperCollins Publishers: 2010. ISBN: 9780060760908

2. PLOT SUMMARY

It’s the summer of 1968, and eleven-year old Delphine and her two younger sisters, Vonetta and Fern, are flying from Brooklyn to Oakland, California. They’re going to see Cecile - their mother who left them when Fern was just a baby. Upon arriving in Oakland, the sisters quickly realize that their mother is crazy. She doesn’t have a motherly bone in her body, and she makes it clear that she doesn’t want them there and she doesn’t plan to take care of them while they’re there. They spend their days staying out of her way and attending a Black Panther summer camp. As the summer goes on, the sisters learn about Black Power, their poet mother, and where they fit in the world.

3. CRITICAL ANALYSIS

Delphine, Vonetta, and Fern live with their father and grandmother in Brooklyn, New York. Their mother, Cecile, left them when Fern was a baby, but it’s time that they know who Cecile is - and it’s time Cecile sees what she left behind. Their father puts them on a plane to Oakland, California to visit her for a month in the summer.

It’s the summer of 1968 when the three sisters go to visit their mother - right in the middle of the Civil Rights Movement. It has only been a couple months since Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was assassinated. All of a sudden they find themselves in Oakland, “a boiling pot of trouble cooking. All them riots” according to their grandmother, and in a community of Black Panthers. The girls have heard of Black Panthers on the news, but all they know of them is that “most people were afraid of Black Panthers because they carried rifles and shouted ‘Black Power.’” However, the Black Panthers who visited Cecile one evening “didn’t have rifles and Cecile didn’t seem afraid.” This is the first clue that the girls are in for quite a learning experience during their month with Cecile in Oakland. The Black Panthers aren't exactly what the news has made them out to be.

From the very beginning of the book, Cecile is portrayed as a villain. Upon the first mention of her name, the reader doesn’t even know she is the girls’ mother. She is Cecile, and they’re going to visit her because the time has come. A page later, it becomes clear that she’s their mother. “When Cecile left, Fern wasn’t on the bottle. Vonetta could walk but wanted to be picked up. I was four going on five.” She’s a mother who left a four-year-old, a crying toddler, and a nursing baby, never to look back. When they are reunited with her at the Oakland airport, she greeted them coldly with a “‘These’ - she motioned to us - ‘are mine.’” No hugs. No tears. She claimed them as if they were her baggage.

Cecile’s affection for her daughters doesn’t change throughout the book. She has no intention of caring for them, other than providing a place for them to sleep, during their visit. She sends them to the People’s Center, run by the Black Panthers, to eat breakfast and spend their days. It’s there that they learn about famous African Americans such as Muhammad Ali, Malcolm X, Martin Luther King Jr. and Huey Newton, founder of the Black Panther party. Cecile has them order take-out for dinner and refuses to let them in her kitchen, so they eat on a tablecloth on the floor. She even tells her daughters, “Should have gone to Mexico to get rid of you when I had the chance.” Garcia could not possibly have painted Cecile more like a villain. However, by the end of the book, the reader is given a glimpse into Cecile’s life, and leaves with an understanding of why Cecile is the way she is. Her mother died when she was eleven, and she eventually ended up on the streets to fend for herself. She’s been fighting for her own freedom her whole life.

Themes in this book include family, sisterhood, and motherhood. Big Ma, their grandmother, stepped in to take care of the girls when their mother left. She has been a mother to them - quite a different mother than Cecile. Their family looks different, but they are loved and cared for, and they miss their Pa and Big Ma terribly while they’re away. These sisters have to stick together no matter what. Cecile isn’t going to take care of them, so they have to take care of each other.

Garcia’s writing style reflects the voices of these three sisters. Delphine, Vonetta, and Fern, ages eleven, nine, and seven, are typical sisters. They argue and fight, and they’re always trying to get the last word. Delphine, however, the oldest and wisest of the sisters, is the one who tells this first-person narrative. It’s her voice we hear throughout the book, and the reader falls in love with her as a hard-working girl who has to grow up too fast. She does everything for her sisters. It’s her job to keep them in line, and while they’re in California it’s her job to feed them and look after them. Garcia’s writing style makes you feel like you really know these three girls. She makes you want to travel back in time and hope to befriend someone, anyone, just like them.

4. REVIEW EXCERPT(S)

2011 Scott O’Dell Award for Historical Fiction

2011 Newbery Honor Book

From SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL - “With memorable characters (all three girls have engaging, strong voices) and a powerful story, this is a book well worth reading and rereading.”

From BOOKLIST - “Regimented, responsible, strong-willed Delphine narrates in an unforgettable voice, but each of the sisters emerges as a distinct, memorable character, whose hard-won, tenuous connections with their mother build to an aching, triumphant conclusion.”

5. CONNECTIONS

Gather other books written by Rita Williams-Garcia to read such as:

• Jumped. ISBN 0060760915

• No Laughter Here. ISBN 0688162479
• Every Time a Rainbow Dies. ISBN 0064473031

Visit http://files.harpercollins.com/PDF/TeachingGuides/0060760885.pdf for a discussion guide and extension activities for One Crazy Summer. 

Have students spend some time researching the Civil Rights movement and Black Panthers. Each student could choose a significant figure from that time to focus on and share with the class.

Quest for the Tree Kangaroo: An Expedition to the Cloud Forest of New Guinea by Sy Montgomery and Nic Bishop

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1. BIBLIOGRAPHY

Montgomery, Sy. Quest For The Tree Kangaroo: An Expedition To The Cloud Forest Of New Guinea. Photographs by Nic Bishop. Boston, Houghton Mifflin: 2006. ISBN: 0618496416

2. PLOT SUMMARY

Lisa Dabek has loved animals since she was a child in spite of her severe allergies to them. When she met her first tree kangaroo, “she knew they were special” - so special that she became a tree kangaroo scientist. The Matschie’s tree kangaroo is one of the rarest creatures on earth. It makes its home in Papa New Guinea’s cloud forest, a land that is so unknown that “Ancient forests remain unexplored. New species are still being found.” Come along on a journey into this fairy tale land with Lisa and her team as they hope to discover more about this little known animal.

3. CRITICAL ANALYSIS

Sy Montgomery’s “Quest For The Tree Kangaroo” begins by introducing the reader to the “lost world” of Papa New Guinea. Before embarking on a journey into the cloud forest of Papa New Guinea in search of tree kangaroos, the reader discovers where exactly this journey will take him. The first two pages of the book include a world map highlighting New Guinea, and a close-up map highlighting the Huon Peninsula in New Guinea, the home of the cloud forest and tree kangaroos. Papa New Guinea is described in beautiful detail and Montgomery explains why it remained mostly unexplored until the mid-twentieth century. “The place is full of tangled jungles, steep mountains, erupting volcanoes, dangerous mudslides, aggressive crocodiles … Headhunting cannibal tribes sometimes ate people clothes and all.” The presence of these things aided in the preservation of this forgotten land that tree kangaroos call home.

Following the introduction to Papa New Guinea, Lisa Dabek and her diverse team of scientists are introduced. Lisa Dabek was possibly the least likely person to become a tree kangaroo scientist, battling severe allergies and asthma, as well as teachers who discouraged her love for animals. However, she learned that when she was outdoors, animal fur didn’t trigger her allergies. When she met her first tree kangaroo, “she knew that she would be willing to do anything to help these endangered animals,” and she began her journeys to the Huon Peninsula. For this particular journey, she has gathered a group of scientists, including an artist, a veterinarian, a zookeeper, and the author of this book, Sy Montgomery.

Before the team takes off, Montgomery provides the reader with a brief introduction to each team member, along with the list of supplies and kinds of preparation it takes to set off on an expedition such as this. At this point in the book Montgomery includes two more pages full of history about New Guinea and marsupials. She then takes time to talk about the village of Yawan, where the team begins their hike into the cloud forest, and efforts to teach conservation there. Conservation - preserving, protecting, and restoring the natural environment - is a major theme throughout the book. The people of Yawan began learning about conservation a few years ago, but it “made so much sense to the local people that landowners decided to donate some of their land to protect the tree kangaroos.” Children are even learning about conservation in school because they understand that conservation begins with the children.

The journey into the cloud forest takes three grueling days of hiking through mud, over holes, and into a tangled forest, with black leeches and nettles all around. Montgomery makes it clear what a difficult journey this is, and Nic Bishop’s photographs show us. His pictures of the forest give the reader an unforgettable view of this fairy tale land. There is vegetation everywhere, and moss covers everything. Once the team begins finding tree kangaroos, he allows the reader to see both the excitement of coming upon one as well as the beauty and endearing features of this rare creature. His pictures could tell this story on their own.

At the conclusion of the book, Montgomery revisits the subject of conservation and encourages readers to be conservationists at home and around the world. She says that each animal matters. “Each deserves a chance to be happy, healthy, and comfortable.” Montgomery also includes a list of resources where readers can learn more about tree kangaroos, as well as learn more “Tok Pisin” the language of the people of Yawan. Lisa Dabek also provides a list of five suggestions for kids who have a passion for wild animals and wild places. It seems as though she takes this opportunity to encourage children who are passionate about animals since she was discouraged from her own passion as a child. This would be an excellent book to use in a lesson about conservation, or as a resource for children who have an obvious love for animals. It would encourage them to pursue their dreams.

4. REVIEW EXCERPT(S)

From SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL - “The book’s fascinating glimpses into a little-explored region will hold the attention of anyone interested in unusual creatures and the efforts to study them.”

From BOOKLIST - “As usual, Bishop's color photographs are exemplary and extend the excitement in stunning close-ups of creatures and of the team at work.”

5. CONNECTIONS

Gather other books by Sy Montgomery and Nic Bishop to read such as:

• Kakapo Rescue: Saving The World’s Strangest Parrot  ISBN 0618494170

• Saving the Ghost of the Mountain: An Expedition Among Snow Leopards in Mongolia. ISBN 0547727348
• The Tapir Scientist: Saving South America’s Largest Mammal. ISBN 0547815484
• The Tarantula Scientist. ISBN 0618147993

Visit Sy Montgomery’s website here for a list of activites for both Science and English classes.

Biggest, Strongest, Fastest by Steve Jenkins

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1. BIBLIOGRAPHY

Jenkins, Steve. Biggest, Strongest, Fastest. New York, Ticknor & Fields for Young Readers, Houghton Mifflin: 1995. ISBN: 0395697018

2. PLOT SUMMARY

In this fascinating, informative book, Jenkins introduces readers to 14 world record holders in the animal world. He gives readers a tour through the best of the animal kingdom, the “biggest and smallest, fastest and slowest, strongest and longest animals.” Readers will gain a new respect for the pesky little flea who is the world’s best jumper - jumping 130 times its own height. They might be awestruck the next time they see an ant carrying crumbs away once they learn it’s the strongest animal - carrying five times its own weight. Learning about animals has never been as much fun as this book makes it.

3. CRITICAL ANALYSIS

Steve Jenkins organizes this book in a way that draws readers deeper into the stories of these animals, making them want to turn the pages faster to see which animal will be next. He begins with more familiar animals - the elephant, giraffe, ant, blue whale - and moves on to more obscure animals who are nonetheless impressive - the etruscan shrew, bee hummingbird, sun jellyfish, etc. He includes the most obscure, yet brief, facts about every animal so that readers are wowed by each one. For example, the African elephant eats over 300 pounds of grass or leaves every day. The Etruscan shrew could sleep in a teaspoon. Anacondas are so big they can swallow a whole deer or goat. Sun jellyfish have tentacles over 200 feet long. Simple, but amazing.

Jenkins gives most animals in this book a whole two-page spread in their honor. The spread features their picture and their world record. It also gives a brief description explaining why they’re the record holder, along with a silhouette showing readers the animal’s size in comparison to something familiar - giving them a tangible way to understand why the animal is so significant. The exceptions to the two-page spread include the Etruscan shrew, the world’s smallest mammal, and the bee hummingbird, the world’s smallest bird. These animals are so small they only require one page each. On the other hand, the blue whale (the world’s biggest animal) and the sun jellyfish (the world’s longest animal), get a whopping three-page spread, showing their magnificence in the animal kingdom.

Jenkins illustrates this book using collage. Each animal’s color contrasts with the background color, making the images pop off the page. He uses his illustrations to highlight the record-holding quality of each animal. He places the Etruscan shrew in a teaspoon. He gives the sun jellyfish three pages full of tentacles. He shows the cheetah running off the page. With each turn of the page, these beautifully illustrated, fascinating animals spring to life.

4. REVIEW EXCERPT(S)

From SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL - “Large, clear print; fascinating facts; and beautiful, detailed, cut-paper collages make this excellent title a delight … An all-round superlative effort.”

From BOOKLIST - “Here's proof that power isn't just about size and that science can be a lot of fun.”

5. CONNECTIONS

Gather other books written by Steve Jenkins to read such as:

• What Do You Do with a Tail Like This? ISBN 061899713X

• Actual Size. ISBN 0547512910
• Eye to Eye: How Animals See The World. ISBN 0547959079

Visit http://www.hmhbooks.com/readers_guides/pdfs/JenkinsGuide.pdf for a cross-curricular guide to books by Steve Jenkins, including this one.

Using Jenkins’s book, assign each student an animal from the book. Have them conduct further research on the animal and its significance in the animal kingdom.

The Extraordinary Mark Twain (According to Susy) by Barbara Kerley and Edwin Fotheringham

 

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1. BIBLIOGRAPHY

Kerley, Barbara. The Extraordinary Mark Twain (According to Susy). Ill. by Edwin Fotheringham. New York, Scholastic Press: 2010. ISBN: 0545125081

2. PLOT SUMMARY

The Extraordinary Mark Twain is a biography of Mark Twain based on the writings of his 13-year-old daughter, Susy. She is annoyed that people assume they know her father because he is famous and quoted everywhere. “They think of Mark Twain as a humorist, joking at everything.” However, Susy knows there is so much more to him than that. So she secretly keeps her own journal, a biography, about her father to show his true personality and character. Kerley includes excerpts from Susy’s journal to write a narrative that reveals the true Mark Twain - the one that Susy called father.

3. CRITICAL ANALYSIS

There have many many children’s books written about Mark Twain, but this one stands out above the rest. What makes this one so unique is that it’s the story of Mark Twain according to his 13-year-old daughter, Susy. Barbara Kerley skillfully writes this biography so that Susy’s voice is heard above her own. The reader gets to see Mark Twain’s life through his daughter’s eyes. Susy writes about her father in a direct and humorous way - like only a young girl with deep admiration and love for her father could write. She gives insight into who her father really is. She shows what he is like at home, from day to day, and how he is so much more than a humorist. “‘I never saw a man with so much variety of feeling as Papa has,’ Susy said, and she was determined to set the record straight.” She does just that as she writes about his habits, his good qualities, and his not-so-good qualities.

In this biography, Kerley tells two stories - the one of Susy writing her father’s biography, and the one of Susy’s father, Mark Twain. The book is organized in such a way that it would have no trouble keeping a child’s attention and interest. On every other page, a small journal entry is included in the form of an actual journal. The reader can open it and read Susy’s own words about her father. Reading these journal entries is like walking right into the Clemens home and entering Susy’s world. On the final page of the book, we’re told that all excerpts from Susy’s biography come from the original manuscripts, which can be found at the University of Virginia Library. Kerley also includes a timeline of mark Twain’s life, allowing readers to see the events of Mark Twain’s life beyond this biography.

Edwin Fotheringham allows us to enter into the life of this beautiful family with his digitally-enhanced illustrations. He gives the reader a picture of Mark Twain just as Susy describes him - with curly gray hair and a small mustache. He shows him up all night writing, or “sailing right on” as Twain called it, and sitting in a rocking chair “roaring with laughter” while reading one of his own books. His charming illustrations depict the architecture and scenery of the late 1800s. These images of Twain’s life help Susy set the record straight about her father  - “the funny, serious, absentminded, cat-loving, billiard-playing, philosophical Papa - the extraordinary Mark Twain, according to Susy.”

4. REVIEW EXCERPT(S)

Texas Bluebonnet Award 2011-2012

From SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL - “A delightful primer on researching and writing biographies, and a joy to peruse.”

From KIRKUS REVIEWS - “A heartwarming tribute to both the writing life in general and the well-loved humorist—oops, sorry Susy… ‘Pholosopher!’”

5. CONNECTIONS

Gather other books written by Barbara Kerley and illustrated by Edwin Fotheringham such as:

• What To Do About Alice?: How Alice Roosevelt Broke the Rules, Charmed the world, and Drove Her Father Teddy Crazy!. ISBN 0439922313

• Those Rebels, John and Tom. ISBN 0545222680
• A Home For Mr. Emerson. ISBN 0545350883

Write a biography of someone you spend a lot of time with (a family member or a friend) whom you think the world needs to know the truth about. Use Susy’s journal-writing style as a guide for your own writing.

Visit http://www.barbarakerley.com/site/Common_Core__Extraordinary_Mark_Twain.html for more ideas for exploring The Extraordinary Mark Twain.

World Rat Day: Poems About Real Holidays You've Never Heard Of by J. Patrick Lewis and Anna Raff

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1. BIBLIOGRAPHY

Lewis, J. Patrick. World Rat Day: Poems About Real Holidays You’ve Never Heard Of. Ill. by Anna Raff. Somerville, MA, Candlewick Press: 2013. ISBN: 9780763654023

2. PLOT SUMMARY

World Rat Day is a collection of holiday poems. However, these aren’t poems about Christmas or Thanksgiving. Instead, they’re poems about Dragon Appreciation Day, Frog Jumping Day, and Ohio Sheep Day - “holidays you should be celebrating,” but most likely are not. In fact, this is a collection of poems about holidays that most people have probably never heard of, and never would have heard of if Lewis hadn’t written these hilarious poems in celebration of them.

3. CRITICAL ANALYSIS

The poems in this collection are just as unique and funny as the holidays they’re written about. There are 26 poems in all, placed in chronological order beginning with “Happy Mew Year for Cats Day” on January 2nd and ending with “Chocolate-Covered Anything Day” on December 16th.

The poems in this collection are written in all different styles, and Lewis seems to choose a style for each poem that is most fitting for the subject he’s writing about. He writes some in free verse, like “Eight Table Manners For Dragons,” the poem for Dragon Appreciation Day. Others have a rhyme scheme, like “Why I’m Late For School,” the poem for National Hippo Day. The poem “A Flamingo,” written for Pink Flamingo Day, has pink words in the shape of a flamingo. The five poems written for Limerick Day are all written in the normal meter and rhyme scheme (AABBA) of limericks. What better style would there be for a poem like Ohio Sheep Day than a straightforward one-liner? To create a lengthy poem in rhyme would not fit such a random day nearly as well as simply saying “No one will ever forget Ewe.”

Lewis carefully chooses the sounds for his poems, and he uses alliteration often. In “A Bulldog Is” for Bulldogs Are Beautiful Day, he says, “A sieve for the slobber / A soloist (grunts) / The sumo of canines / The semi of runts.” This repetition of sounds emphasizes that stanza. (and the amount of slobber that comes from a bulldog). Lewis also uses vivid imagery to show his readers what he is writing about. He refers to fireflies in his poem for Firefly Day as “ELECTRIFIED CONFETTI.” Imagine each tiny piece of confetti as a firefly instead. What a wondrous celebration to have the sky filled with electrified confetti! For National Skunk Day, he says, “If the skunk did not exist, / Then the skunk would not be mist.” When the word “mist” is read instead of “missed,” the reader’s mind automatically pictures the stinky mist that is the very reason the skunk would not be missed.

All of Lewis’s poems evoke emotions of humor and lightheartedness in the reader. In his poem “Jack A.” for Mule Day, he humorously describes the mule as a stubborn, short-tempered animal, and leaves us laughing with the final lines, “And if, of course, you call him Jack, / Don’t mention his last name.” In “What the worm Knows” for Worm Day, the worms receive the humorous, but sound, advice to “Stay away from / The Robin ‘hood.” Lewis does an excellent job writing factually, but humorously, about each subject.

The illustrations, created by Anna Raff, are bright and colorful - just like the poems they’re depicting. They are simple and draw the reader’s eyes directly to the silliness of the subject at hand. From the hare sitting upright in the dragon’s bowl of soup for Dragon Appreciation, to the pieces of fudge being hurled at the cobra for Yell “Fudge” at the Cobras in North America Day, to the heart-shaped box filled with chocolate covered ants for Chocolate-covered Anything Day, Raff’s illustrations are unique and clever.

4. REVIEW EXCERPT(S)

From SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL - “Funny from start to finish, these superbly crafted poems and inventive illustrations celebrate the extraordinary, odd, and seldom heard of holidays that the elementary-school crowd will love.”

From PUBLISHERS WEEKLY - “Raff’s loose washes with ink details exude personality and humor (a skunk’s photo shoot has her posing next to a bottle of “Eau de Eeeew!”) in this gleefully silly crowd-pleaser.”

5. CONNECTIONS

Gather other books written by Patrick J. Lewis to read such as:

• Poem-mobiles: Crazy Car Poems. ISBN 0375866906

• Please Bury Me In The Library. ISBN 0152163875
• Last Laughs: Animal Epitaphs. ISBN 1580892604

Gather other books illustrated by Anna Raff to read such as:

• Sylvia’s Spinach: ISBN 0983661545
• Things That Float And Things That Don’t. ISBN 0823431762

Invent your own silly holiday and write a poem in honor of it. Draw an illustration for the poem and share it with the class.

Choose one poem from the book and conduct further research on the holiday and its roots.

One Of Those Hideous Books Where The Mother Dies by Sonya Sones

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 1. BIBLIOGRAPHY

Sones, Sonya. One Of Those Hideous Books Where The Mother Dies. New York, Simon & Schuster Books For Young Readers: 2004. ISBN: 0689858205

2. PLOT SUMMARY

Ruby Milliken’s mother just died, and she is being forced to go and live with her movie-star father, Whip Logan, whom she has never known. She is being uprooted from her life in Boston, and moving three thousand miles across the country - away from her best friend, her boyfriend, and her aunt - to Los Angeles. When she arrives, her father, “who is such a scumbag / that he divorced my mother / before I was even born” is glad to see her and eager to take care of her. Ruby makes it clear that she is not glad to see him, and she does not want much to do with him either. Her father has enrolled her in a school full of other celebrities’ children, and she finds the people and atmosphere quite strange. Her only refuge and source of happiness in L.A. is Max, her father’s “assistant slash personal trainer slash all-round lifesaver.” As the book progresses, Ruby is devastated when she finds out her boyfriend is cheating on her with her best friend. Her world is caving in, but Whip is there to comfort her and prove to her that he is not the scumbag she thinks he is. In fact, he has wanted to be a father to her all along.

3. CRITICAL ANALYSIS

Sonya Sones uses free-style poetry to write about a heavy topic - a grieving teenager. The free-style verse allows her to address this subject both creatively and honestly. Each poem is one to two pages long, with stanzas ranging from one to 10 lines each. The poems read easily, like a story, and flow well from one to another. Mixed in with the poems are emails exchanged between Ruby, her best friend, and her boyfriend, and from Ruby to her dead mother.

Sones uses repetition to help the reader understand Ruby’s emotional state. She repeats the phrase, “I’m not that depressed, / considering ...” throughout the book to show how bad things are for her - so bad that she should be more depressed than she already is. In each letter to her mother, Ruby repeats the phrase, “How are things …” and finishes it in different ways - “six feet under?” “in Kingdom Come?” “in Decomposeville?” Her repetition of this question emphasizes her mother's current location and the finality of her death.

The use of free-style poetry, mixed with Sones’s play on words throughout the novel allows the reader to experience the emotions of this 15-year old girl - in all of her immaturity, playfulness, and grief. Ruby refers to L.A. as “El Lay” and “Hell A.” She calls the west coast “west toast.” She refers to Monday morning as “Monday mourning.” She calls her best friend Liz by multiple names - Lizzerella, Lizzandra, Lizard, Lizistrata, etc. In the poem entitled, “Things I Am Thankful For,” she writes nothing. The page is blank. Ruby is a typical teenage girl who is calling life as she sees it, and Sones uses this language to summon the reader to experience it with her.

A major theme in this book is misconceptions. From the beginning of the novel, Ruby thinks her dad is a horrible person. All she knows of him is that he divorced her mom before she was born, he has never come to visit her - which she interprets as not wanting to visit her or be in her life, and he’s a superficial celebrity. However, we find out in the end that he loved her all along, but Ruby’s mother wouldn’t allow him to be a part of her life. Ruby learns that things aren’t always as they seem. Her dad isn’t the deadbeat that he seemed to be, but a heartbroken father who wanted more than anything to know his daughter.

There’s also a theme of forgiveness throughout the novel. Ruby is angry at her aunt for not letting her live with her. She says, “You deserter. / You traitor. / You scum of the universe. / You call yourself an aunt?” She is angry at her father for not being a father to her. When the paparazzi catches them on their way out of the airport and her father apologizes for it, she says to herself, “Is that all you’re sorry for, Whip?” However, in the end of the novel he tells her just how sorry he is - for everything. Ruby forgives him. Throughout the book Ruby was physically unable to cry, but once she forgives her dad, her tears keep coming. It’s as though forgiveness breaks open the lock she’s had on her heart all this time. In the end, she forgives her dad, she forgives her best friend, and she forgives her mom. She says, “It’s funny. / I can remember hating palm trees. / I can even remember hating Coolifornia. / I just can’t remember / why.”

4. REVIEW EXCERPT(S)

2005 Best Book for Young Adults by the American Library Association

From SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL - “Ruby's story is gripping, enjoyable, and memorable”

From BOOKLIST - “A satisfying, moving novel that will be a winner for both eager and reluctant readers.”

5. CONNECTIONS

Gather other books written by Sonya Sones to read such as:

• What My Mother Doesn’t Know. ISBN 1442493852

• To Be Perfectly Honest: A Novel Based On An Untrue Story. ISBN 0689876041
• Stop Pretending: What Happened When My Big Sister Went Crazy. ISBN 0064462188
• What My Girlfriend Doesn’t Know. ISBN 1442493844

Have students write their own personal narrative in free verse.

Class discussion during reading: Do you think Whip Logan is as awful as Ruby makes him sound? Do you think he is a typical movie star? Support your opinion with evidence from the novel.