MMGM: Stealing Mt. Rushmore by Daphne Kalmar

 

It's the summer of 1974, and the Watergate scandal is all the news. But for Nell Sanders, 12, there are other worries. Five months ago, her mother had walked out, leaving Nell to care for her depressed father Ronnie, a short order cook, three brothers, and the house. Mom may be gone, but her father's dream of taking his family to see Mt. Rushmore isn't. It''s such an important monument to him that he named his three sons after the presidents carved there. Well, all except Abe Lincoln. That should have been Nell, instead she was named after Susan B. Anthony. 

But when her father discovers that the money he worked so hard to save is gone for their trip, he's sure their mother took it when she left. Depressed and angry, Ronnie takes to his bed. Left to fend for herself, the house and her brothers George, 15, Tom, 10 and Teddy, 6, Nell is determined to replace the missing money so that everything will once again be A-okay, as her dad would say.

And as if she hasn't enough to do, Nell and Teddy rescue a dog that is being abused, even though their father has made it clear - no dogs allowed. Naturally, they name the dog Abe. As if George becoming surlier, Tom withdrawing more into the basement to build models, and Teddy becomes needier isn't enough, Nell's best friend has become boy-crazy, causing a rift between them. But not before Nell comes up with a brilliant way to make some replacement Mt. Rushmore money with Maya's help.

To top all this off, Nell finds out that it was George who took the money in the first place and gave it to their mother for her new apartment in Boston. Then, when their dad finds this out, the rupture in the Sanders family just keeps widening, to the point where even Nell begins to lose hope. 

The Sanders family is certainly dysfunctional, but not because mom left. She has always made it clear she did not want to be there, did not want kids, did not want to be married. But while she was often mean and insulting to her family, her presence is still missed. 

Now, Nell is thrown into the role her mom should have fulfilled, because, as she says, "Mom had ducked out on cleaning and cooking and kid watching and I got stuck with it because I was the girl." Yet, Nell is extraordinarily kind to Teddy, giving him the motherly care and attention she so desperately needs herself. The clearest example of that is when her body begins to change, and there is no mom there to help and support her.   

Kalmar includes a number of important themes in Stealing Mt. Rushmore. It is interesting that she chose to tell Nell's story against the backdrop of Watergate. Both involve disillusionment, Nell in her mother, the country in Nixon; relinquishment, mother and family relinquishing each other, Nixon relinquishing the presidency; and both of these things result in change for the family and the country. 

But there are also themes of  neglect, a father who sleeps his depression away, and racism directed at Nell's friend Maya, whose family was from the Azores and whom Nell's neighbor refers to as "that foreign girl," but neither of these themes were explored with any depth. I also found that some of the language and some of the topics had a more modern sensibility - for example, a hippie telling Nell about how Mt Rushmore was stolen from the Native Americans living there. On the other hand, I loved all the period details, and there were plenty giving the setting a real feeling of authenticity, making this a good choice for anyone interested in historical fiction.

This book is recommended for readers age 10+

This book was gratefully received from Barbara Fisch at Blue Slip Media

Be sure to check out the other Marvelous Middle Grade Monday offerings, 

now being carried on by Greg at Always in the Middle.

Zora & Me: The Cursed Ground by T.R. Simon

I don't usually like to read second books in a series before I read the first book, but I made an exception for Zora & Me: The Cursed Ground, and I'm glad I did. I was immediately pulled into the mystery that the two main characters find themselves involved in, but this book turned out to be so much more than just a mere puzzle.

When Zora Neale Hurston was young, she lived with her family in a town called Eatonville, Florida, the first all black community in the United States. The story begins there one night in 1903 when Zora and her best friend Carrie Brown, both 12, discover two loose horses in the Hurston yard. Recognizing the horses as belonging to Mr. Polk, a mute neighbor, the two girls sneak out and head for his place to see what happened. There, they find Mr. Polk injured and a fire in his cabin. But Zora and Carrie aren't the only ones who noticed something happening, so did Old Lady Bronson, the town's conjure woman, who took charge of Mr. Polk's injuries, and to the absolute surprise of both girls, spoke to him in a strange language and heard him answer. When Zora presses Old Lady Bronson for answers about what she and Carrie just witnessed, the conjure lady makes a deal with her: if she keeps quiet about the night's events, she will tell Zora "a story worth hearing."

The story shifts back to 1855 and a young black girl named Lucia begins narrating her story. Leaving her Caribbean island home of Hispaniola with Prisca and her father Master Frederic, her white owners, Lucia finds herself living enslaved on a plantation in Florida named Westin. Up until moving to Florida, Lucia had been treated well by Master Frederic and was best friends with Prisca. But, three years later, Master Frederic has died and Prisca's stepmother decides to sell Lucia, claiming the plantation needed money and it was part of her marriage contract with Master Frederic that Lucia would be sold.

The story continues to alternate between Zora and Carrie's present and Lucia's life of slavery. Slowly, however, the two stories come together in a surprising way as Zora and Carrie learn the truth about Mr. Polk, Old Lady Bronson and their own connections to slavery and Eatonville's past, and that "history wasn't just something you read in a book. It was everything your life stood on. We who thought we were free from the past were still living it out." (pg 174)

Zora & Me: The Cursed Ground is a gripping coming of age work of historical fiction and Simon has done a stellar job bringing the characters, the time periods, and the setting to life. Carries is an intelligent, though somewhat cautious girl, while Zora is an impulsive, curious, and intelligent girl, and Old Lady Bronson knows when she finds the two girls at Mr. Polk's place that Zora won't be happy until she is told the truth about the night's events.

Simon goes easily from time period to time period without jarring the reader, ending each section with enough to really keep the reader going simply by igniting their curiosity to discover, like Zora, what is going on. 

And Eatonville? Setting in a novel is always important, but here so much of the action in this novel centers around the town of Eatonville, founded in 1887, that it actually becomes another important character as Lucia's 1855 story begins to merge with the event's of 1903 Eatonville. I can't say more or I'll give too much away and you definitely want to find out the answers on your own. 
 
Zora & Me: The Cursed Ground may be difficult for some readers. Simon tackles the brutality of slavery head on and without apology. This may make some white readers uncomfortable, but if you can get past you discomfort, there is a lot of painful truth to be found here. Prisca's stepmother and her children are classic examples of white attitudes about black people, but what is made clear is that this attitude persisted into the 20th century and, I am sad to say, even into 21th century. This is certainly a thought-provoking element in the novel and I hope people do think about it.

Do read Simon's short biography of Zora Neale Hurston at the back of the novel, and check out the timeline of her life. There is also an annotated bibliography of Hurston's work, and a list of children's books that were adapted from the folktales she collected.

You can find more information about the history of Eatonville, Florida HERE 

You can find a useful discussion guide prepared by the publisher, Candlewick Press, HERE

This book is recommended for readers age 10+
This book was an EARC received from NetGalley

And yes, I can't wait to read the first book, Zora & Me

Chasing Freedom: The Life Journeys of Harriet Tubman and Susan B. Anthony Inspired by Historical Facts by Nikki Grimes, illustrated by Michele Wood

Nikki Grimes has come up with a unique way to introduce young readers to two important women in American history in this historical fiction picture book for older readers.  She based her story in reality, at the 1904 Women's Suffrage Convention held in Rochester, NY (Grimes writes in the Author's Note that she could not discover when this convention was held and so she arbitrarily chose November).  Susan B Anthony was scheduled to speak and Harriet Tubman had planned on attending the convention, but ended up speaking about her life as a conductor on the Underground Railroad to the attendees after being introduced by Anthony.

Since there is no record of this meeting, Grimes has created an imagined meeting and conversation over tea at Anthony's home between the two women.  In alternating vignettes, each woman talks and reminisces about her life as am activists, recalling the dangers, the joys, the sorrows and the rewards.  Tubman tells Anthony about slavery and how she, once she freed herself, felt it was her duty to help others find freedom.

In between, Anthony tells Tubman about the family support she received that helped her learn to speak out for reform, especially for women, and about the dangers she also faced when speaking out or about unpopular topics.

Through their conversation, the reader begins to acquire a firm idea of what these two women accomplished, that will hopefully inspire young people to seek more in-depth information about them.  It is also interesting to hear them speaking about other well-known figures from their time, men like Frederick Douglas and John Brown.  There is just so much food for thought in this picture book, it will definitely take more than one reading to cull it all, but it is so worthwhile.

The acrylic and oil painted folk art style illustrations are so perfectly suited to the time period, done in a palette of rich colors from 19th century America and resembling a old handmade quilt.  Be sure to study each one closely.

The back matter shouldn't be ignored, either.  There are short biographies of each person mentioned in the book, additional notes, a useful biography and an Author's Note, all contributing additional information to the main part of the book.

I love that Grimes used an imaginary conversation to present so much information and to make the lives of these women stand out  in such an exciting way, making this a work that should not be missed.

And Grimes has also done an extensive Classroom Guide for teachers and homeschooling, which can be found HERE

This book is recommended for readers age 7+
This book was borrowed from the NYPL

P.S. Be Eleven by Rita Williams-Garcia

For all of you who became fans of the Gaither sisters - Delphine, Vonetta and Fern - in One Crazy Summer, the girls are back.  And for anyone who doesn't know the Gaither sisters - they are a delight to meet.

The girls have just returned to Herkimer Street in Brooklyn after spending the summer with the mother Cecile in Oakland, CA (see One Crazy Summer).  Gone for one short summer, when they get back home things are definitely different.  For one thing, their father is a changed man now that he has a girlfriend, Miss Marva Hendrix, and it looks like they are getting serious.  And they beloved Uncle Darnell is coming home from Vietnam.  Of course, the girls have also changed.  Now they know about the Civil Rights Movement, the Black Panthers and the new Feminist Movement.  But Delphine, Vonetta and Fern soon learn that sisterhood begins at home.

The Jackson Five have hit the pop charts hard and soon they will be coming to Madison Square Garden.  Papa isn't too crazy about the idea of the girls going to their concert, but Miss Marva Hendrix is all for it.  And so it is agreed: the girls will save their money and pay half the cost and Marva will pay the other half.  And she puts middle sister Vonetta in charge of the money usurping the power over her younger sisters older sister Delphine always had.  Now she has to trust Vonetta with all her hard gotten cash.

Things have changed at school, as well.  Delphine doesn't get the sixth grade teacher she was supposed to have and ends up with a strict exchange teacher from Africa, Mr. Mwila, who actually expects his students to do the work assigned and do it well.  And when Uncle Darnell comes home from Vietnam, its as if he is a completely changed person and not for the better.  All he does is sleep the days away and go out at night.  And then, the Jackson Five money gets stolen.  Meanwhile Delphine has started writing back to her mother Cecile.  Delphine pours out all her worries and concerns to Cecile and doesn't understand why her mother always ends her letters with the words P.S. Be eleven.

But her mother, even if she is a distant mother, knows that Delphine is taking life too seriously and taking too much responsibility on her shoulders for an 11 year old.

P.S. Be Eleven might sound like a coming of age novel, but it isn't.  Delphine is in the throes of growing pains, changing but still on the coming of age threshold.  And watching Delphine navigate her growing pains as she narrates them to the reader is what makes her such an endearing character and the novel so wonderful.

P.S. Be Eleven is a delight to read and a nice stand alone novel.  I haven't read One Crazy Summer, though I was inspired to go out and get a copy to read, but this works very well as a stand alone novel.  While I am sure that the Gaither sisters has lots of adventures in the first novel, enough is made clear in the second whenever something from it comes up.

Rita Williams-Garcia got so much so right in this novel.  Her depiction of Brooklyn in 1968 is perfection and she has really captured the mood of the times.  The late 1960s was an pivotal time in the history of this country and it effected everyone in one way or another and how it impacted one family in Bed-Sty Brooklyn is all detailed in P.S. Be Eleven.  Surely did!

This book is recommended for readers age 9+
This book was borrowed from the NYPL