Tracy Kampa, children’s librarian at the Grand Rapids Area Library is back. After a summer of reading lots of books, she’s ready to share her thoughts on some of the latest and greatest children’s books for What We’re Reading.
Tracy's Takes
Story Rug, by Sophie Blackall, illustrated by Phoebe Wahl
You may remember Sophie Blackall for her Caldecott-winning Hello Lighthouse or Finding Winnie or her outstanding Farmhouse. Her new picture book is Story Rug and I was delighted by the tale.
While other classrooms are busy playing drums or learning state capitals, room 203 is silent. Why? They are all braiding. Some are braiding hair, some are braiding the tails of the toy ponies, and some are even braiding their shoelaces. When young Noah has nothing to braid, his teacher rips up a rag that she had been using to clean the whiteboard, and then he too is braiding.
Noah continues to braid when he gets home and in school the next day, strip after strip after strip. His classmates are intrigued by the long braid Noah is producing, and soon they are adding their own strips to this. But what in the world is the class going to do with a strip of braided cloth that reaches all the way down the hall and back again? Well, they head to the library, of course, for a rather unorthodox reason. This is a wonderful tale of working and creating together and an ode to the importance of remembered story in our lives. A lovely and gentle book, check out Story Rug by Sophie Blackall with pictures by Phoebe Wahl.
Today is the Day, by Chelsea Lin Wallace, illustrated by Adam Rex
Think about today. This day. Think about all this day can be or won't be or might be. A day starts welcomed by some, grumbled at by others. A day can never take a day off because it is needed by so many. A day says goodbye to thousands of people across the globe. But that same day welcomes thousands more to the world. This day might see 100,000 airplanes take off or celebrate 22 million birthdays.
This day might feel insignificant, being only one day of tens of thousands of days a person might welcome. But it is the only day for a mayfly who will live its entire existence in this day. This day will be full of firsts and lasts and lost teeth and earthquakes and milestones.
And when the clock ticks past midnight to a new day, you might think it's time to let go the day before. But some people will remember that day for the rest of their lives, for that day was somebody's best day and somebody's worst day. And because of that, this day will live forever in the memories of the people who lived this day.
I'm still thinking about this picture book with wonder and gratitude. If you, too, might appreciate a reminder of how important this day can be, check out Today is the Day by Chelsea Lynn Wallace, illustrated by Adam Rex.
Diamond Fever!: A True Crime Story in the Wild West, by Steve Sheinkin with comics and art by Jon Chad
Steve Sheinkin writes remarkable nonfiction. Marketed mostly to middle grade audiences, you are missing something if you don't seek out his work, regardless of your age. His latest contribution begins with the exciting action of a train robbery in Verde, Nevada. Pegged as the first train robbery west of the Rocky Mountains, thieves got away with a sum worth over a million dollars today.
While almost all of that money was recovered, Sheinkin compares this bit of history to a developing heist that was worth much, much more and would ultimately, maybe prove to be a hoax. Probably.
Two cousins dumped a bag of diamonds on George Roberts' desk. They called them rough diamonds and needed a place to keep them hidden until they could decide what to do with them. They assured Roberts that they had found them somewhere in the American West and were uncomfortable carrying them around San Francisco. They asked to use Robert's safe and also asked him to promise to keep their secret. The two men left and Roberts kept their visit a secret for almost 12 hours.
What follows is a tale of diamond fever that made the gold rush look like a game of hide and seek. Dozens of men ultimately were involved and might have been bamboozled by the man-made distribution or salting of diamonds over a remote area in the western part of the United States.
But would this seemingly amateur move really fool some of the best geologists in the country? And the several million dollar question remained: Just where is this diamond mine? A couple dozen diamond companies opened, hoping to find the diamonds so they could sell their shares in their mine. and thousands of prospectors were searching on their own. Where were those pesky gems?
No spoilers here, but like all his books, Sheinkin is meticulous with his supporting data. The back of the book includes 13 pages of source notes and a nine-page bibliography. This is a story that captivated our nation's imagination and newspaper headlines for months in the 1870s. I was incredulous at the scope of this escapade. If you're looking for a tale of adventure and fortune and thieves and swindlers, I think this is the book for you.
Lydia Cooper Is a Lie, by Meaghan McIsaac
Lydia Cooper wants a phone for her birthday. Every other person in her school has a phone and access to social media. Lydia just wants to fit in. But she lives with her very overprotective dad, who is a cybersecurity expert.
She is thrilled then when she opens her birthday gift of a new computer tablet. Not a phone, but at least a window to the world of social media, right? Wrong. Her dad has the tablet locked down, and Lydia's birthday ends with anger and disappointment. Why can't she have what every one of her peers takes for granted?
Lydia's finally had enough when she realizes how much she has been left out of her friend's plans because she isn't part of their group chat, including a movie night at her crush's house. So she figures out her dad's password and bypasses the security controls and finally, finally creates a social media account of her own.
Although she is trying to keep a very low profile, Lydia is tagged in a group photo, and shortly after, her life is turned upside down. An intruder breaks into her house, and in the confusion, her father gives her a burner phone and a new name with instructions to meet him at a safe house as soon as she can get there.
The next few days are filled with people trying to kidnap Lydia or lure her on false pretenses. Or are they false? According to most people she meets, Lydia is not who she thinks she is. But who is she? And who can she trust? And how can she find this safe house? And is it really safe? And where is her father?
If you are looking for an adrenaline rush, I highly recommend Lydia Cooper Is a Lie by Meaghan McIsaac. It is a welcome addition to middle grade action stories. and promises to keep you guessing until the end of the book and maybe beyond.
Happy reading!
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What We're Reading is made possible in part by the Arts and Cultural Heritage Fund and the citizens of Minnesota.
