Deenie

Like many woman my age who were avid readers as a child, I so enjoyed Judy Blume books but one that really connects with me now and that I read in April is Deenie. It is about a girl who finds out she has scoliosis and must wear a brace. My daughter too has scholiosis and this past January she began to wear a brace. The character Deenie though has a mother who is determined to have her become a model even though Deenie herself has no interest in becoming a model. In the midst of all this, Deenie discovers she has scholiosis and unfortunately her mother decides there is no way she can model. The mother gives each of her daughters labels and they must live up to them. Deenie is the pretty one while her sister is the smart one. Deenie really struggles with having to wear the intrusive brace which unlike braces of today, weren't not hidden underneath clothes and also had a part that came up around her neck. This book has a happy ending. Her friends really come through for her and she is able to accept her scholiosis and wearing her brace.

cover picture from Amazon.

This was a great book I read over the summer. I do like historical fiction so I am biased towards this book. It is about a girl living in Little Rock during the time of school segration but now the first black students are being admitted to the school. What makes this book feel real is that her parents don't agree on whether African American students should come to the white schools. The parents disagree and argue about it even as both work in the public schools.  The character in the story goes on to befriend a girl who happens to be black although she is passing herself off as white to attend their school. Marlee, the main character struggles socially but manages to become good friends with this new girl. There are a lot of issues going on in this book, racial issues, social anxiety and sibling rivalry which also makes this is intriguing book.

Wondering about wonders of the world?

I just discovered this site and signed up for the emails but I think it would be a fun morning activity for students in a class or for a family. The site is called Wonderopolis: where the wonders of learning never cease. Here is the link: Wonderopolis
The site is split into wonder of the day, explore wonders and what are you wondering? Wonder of the day features one wonder or question of the day such as who created escalators, why do you need your toes and my favorite, who invented candy bars.  On the page claaed explore wonders, you can search through wonders and they have a filter system where you can search by grade or subject matter. As you wondered, What are you wondering section allows you to pose a question or a wonder by email. You can also sign up to get a wonder of the day email. For those trivia lovers out there, this is for you!

Tango: The Tail of An Island Dog

I picked this book because it was on the Massachusetts Book Award list for last year. Children love anything to do with animals so I thought it woudl be a crowd pleaser of a book. Some where in a review of the book, it was described as a Charlotte's Web for older children and that is spot on. The dog who is the main character starts off life as the over indulged pet of wealthy Manhattanites.  He has a great life but when they set off for sail up to Maine, Tango is lost over board in a storm and ends up in a world opposite of his one in New York. We get to hear the point of view of many of the town animals, from the rats to the cats and not all are nice in fact, some are quite scheming. We also are introduced to some nice and not so nice people in the town and also an orphan is has been brought to live with her uncle and his less than pleased wife. There are many up and downs but this is an interesting book with a happy ending.