Wombat Waiting (Katherine Applegate)

 

Katherine Applegate is a master of wonderful animal stories. This is in verse - a quick read. It is a beautiful story. 

The cover is perfect....the yellow/red hue in the background is because of the forest fires happening in the story. Wombat is a dog...who looks kind of like a wombat. She follows her heart until she finds her family that is just right for her. Everyone is healed by her determination.

Picked this one for Grade 3 book club. Would also make a great read aloud. It is about hope and how being patient is sometimes needed in the face of loss and rebuilding your life. Kindness and thought for others goes a long way.

Characters

Wombat - a stray dog....people think she kind of looks like a wombat and so she gets named Wombat
Henry - young boy who is part of a family that has to flee their home suddenly. His mom works in an animal shelter. He is nervous around dogs because he was bit by one when he was younger
Barnabas - a fruitbat that was injured and so she cannot fly. Henry keeps her as a pet
Sylvie - Henry's younger sister. She and Henry evacuate with their family during the wildfire.
Mama Ro – Henry's mother, a veterinarian who works at O.W.L. (Orphaned Wildlife). She helps care for rescued animals displaced by the fire.
Mama J – This confused me. It took me a while to realize that she is Henry's other mother, who is a librarian. She supports her family and community during the evacuation. Nothing is said about them being a gay couple. It just is. It is not a major plot focus.
Silas – An older stray dog who befriends Wombat and tells her she may be a "destiny dog" searching for her special person. 
Northern Saw-whet Owl – A young owl rescued by the wildlife center and temporarily housed at the shelter after the fire.
Other Important "Characters"
The Voice - mysterious inner voice that guides Wombat's decisions and encourages her to move toward her destiny rather than away from danger. It isn't a character, but it plays an important role in the story.

Grade 3 book club ideas:

- if you had to pack up quickly and leave because of a fire, what would you for sure bring?
- watch Hatchiko (Katherine Applegate references this story in the afterward)
- write diary entries from the perspective of different characters (Wombat, Henry, Barnabas, another person at the shelter). Prompt: What were you thinking and feeling during your time at the shelter?
- "Waiting for..." Poetry Activity

Since the book is written in verse, students can create their own free-verse poem titled:

"Waiting for..."

Examples:

• Waiting for summer
• Waiting for a friend
• Waiting to be brave
• Waiting for good news

Discuss how waiting can feel hopeful, frustrating, or exciting.
- connect this to our Earth Systems unit in science or Extreme Weather unit in Open Court
Wildfire and Community Research Project

Students can research:

• How communities recover after wildfires
• Animal rescue organizations
• Ways people help during emergencies

They can present findings through posters, slides, or infographics. The book is set in the aftermath of a Southern California wildfire and highlights both community recovery and animal rescue efforts. 

- have a special guest speaker from an animal shelter. Perhaps they could bring some animals
- Theme Discussion Stations

Set up stations with big questions:

• What makes a family?
• Can animals and people help each other heal?
• What does resilience look like?
• Why is community important after a disaster?

Students rotate and add thoughts on chart paper.
- Story Map - Students create a visual map showing:

• The wildfire
• The shelter
• Key events
• Where important characters meet

This helps reinforce plot structure and cause-and-effect relationships.
- Kindness Challenge: Wombat becomes a source of comfort and hope for many people. Challenge students to complete one act of kindness each day for a week and record it in a "Wombat's Kindness Journal."
= Compare and Contrast

Compare:

• Wombat and Henry
• Wombat and a pet dog
• Life before and after the fire
• This book and another Katherine Applegate book such as The One and Only Ivan or Odder

Use a Venn diagram.
- "Destiny Dog" Writing Prompt

In the story, Wombat believes she is a "destiny dog" searching for her special person. Prompt: If you were guided by a mysterious voice toward your destiny, where would it lead you and why?
- Readers' Theatre - Choose several poems or scenes and have students perform them aloud.
- Community Helpers Appreciation Project

Students identify people who help during emergencies:

• Firefighters
• Veterinarians
• Animal rescue workers
• Librarians
• Volunteers

Have students create thank-you cards or a class appreciation wall.
- "Home Is..." Students to create a poster, collage, poem, or presentation answering:

What does "home" mean?

This ties together one of the book's central messages about belonging, safety, family, and hope.

Potential parallel activities with picture books:

(list created with AI)

Wombat Waiting has such a gentle, hopeful focus on resilience, patience, belonging, and the idea that family can be formed through care rather than biology. If you're looking for picture books that echo those themes, these are excellent pairings: Resilience & Perseverance After the Fall by Dan Santat Humpty Dumpty learns to overcome fear after a life-changing accident. Themes: resilience, courage, growth mindset. The Most Magnificent Thing by Ashley Spires A girl struggles, fails repeatedly, and eventually succeeds through persistence. Themes: patience, problem-solving, perseverance. Jabari Jumps by Gaia Cornwall Jabari wants to jump off the diving board but must work through his fears. Themes: bravery, resilience, self-confidence. Patience & Waiting Waiting by Kevin Henkes Five toys sit on a windowsill and discover that good things often come to those who wait. Themes: patience, observation, hope. A House in the Woods by Inga Moore Animals gradually build a community through kindness and generosity. Themes: patience, cooperation, belonging. Found Family & Belonging The Rabbit Listened by Cori Doerrfeld A child finds comfort through the quiet companionship of a rabbit. Themes: empathy, support, emotional resilience. The Koala Who Could by Rachel Bright Kevin the koala learns that embracing change can lead to new friendships and community. Themes: belonging, courage, growth. Home in the Woods by Eliza Wheeler Based on a true story about finding security and love despite hardship. Themes: resilience, family, hope. Unlikely Friendships A Sick Day for Amos McGee by Philip C. Stead Amos and his animal friends care for one another through difficult times. Themes: friendship, kindness, reciprocity. The Lion and the Bird by Marianne Dubuc An injured bird and a lion develop a deep friendship built on patience and care. Themes: friendship, compassion, found family. Bear Came Along by Richard T. Morris A journey brings together a diverse group of animals that become a community. Themes: friendship, belonging, adventure. Animal Stories with a Similar Feel Mama Built a Little Nest by Jennifer Ward Explores how animals create homes and care for one another. Themes: family, nurturing, belonging. The Lonely Sea Dragon by Helen Scales A sea dragon finds connection after feeling alone. Themes: friendship, acceptance, belonging. The Journey by Francesca Sanna While more serious in tone, it explores finding safety and community after upheaval. Themes: resilience, hope, found family. Best Matches for a Read-Aloud Pairing with Wombat Waiting If you want books that feel most similar in emotional tone and discussion potential: Waiting by Kevin Henkes The Lion and the Bird by Marianne Dubuc A Sick Day for Amos McGee by Philip C. Stead The Rabbit Listened by Cori Doerrfeld The Koala Who Could by Rachel Bright A House in the Woods by Inga Moore These pair especially well for classroom discussions around: What does patience look like? How do we keep going when things are hard? What makes someone family? How do friends help us feel that we belong? How can waiting lead to unexpected good things?

Goodreads says:

From the Newbery Award-winning, #1 New York Times bestselling author of The One and Only Ivan and Odder comes a stunning new middle grade standalone novel about compassion, resilience, and surprising friendships, following a dog named Wombat in the aftermath of a catastrophic fire.

Wombat isn’t actually a wombat—but when the homeless dog is discovered, singed and ash-covered after a terrible fire destroys a community, someone tags her with the nickname and it sticks.

Wombat is a “destiny dog.” Something inside of her (she nicknames it “Voice’) keeps telling her there’s a special someone out there who is meant to be her person.

Surrounded by a devastated town, Wombat takes up residence on bench near the makeshift community center, an old brick warehouse that, for the most part, survived the flames. A small part of the community center evacuation site has been repurposed for the local wildlife rehab sanctuary that burned down. All of the animals were spared, and the temporary quarters include an elderly fruit bat and a young Northern saw-whet owl.

No matter what, Wombat refuses to move from her perch, despite the efforts of many humans. Clearly the dog is waiting for someone. But for whom? And what are the odds they survived?

Fans of modern classics like Because of Winn-Dixie , Pax , and Katherine Applegate’s own Crenshaw and Odder, and timeless tales like Charlotte ’ s Web , will find a friend in Wombat and her story.

Atmosphere (Taylor Jenkins Reid)

 

I saw lots of social media posts with people crying and talking about how this was the best book they ever read....at least Taylor Jenkins Reid best book. I can't say I was that hooked by it. Space: not really my thing. All the way through it, I kept trying to figure out what is the main point of this? Is it about being strong women? Is it about speaking out for LGBTQ+ rights? Is it about not being afraid to be yourself. Is it about standing up for what is right and being a good person even when your family is brutal? Is it about friendship. 

I think it's about all those things. 

And the last 30 pages about tore my heart out. What an ending. I don't often cry when I read. This made me gasp....then the tears.

Great quotes:

Bravery is being unafraid of something other people are afraid of. Courage is being afraid, but strong enough to do it anyway.

Happiness is so hard to come by. I don't understand why anyone would begrudge anyone else for managing to find some of it.

Because the world had decided that to be soft was to be weak, even though in Joan’s experience being soft and flexible was always more durable than being hard and brittle. Admitting you were afraid always took more guts than pretending you weren’t. Being willing to make a mistake got you further than never trying. The world had decided that to be fallible was weak. But we are all fallible. The strong ones are the ones who accept it.

Just the act of falling in love was to agree to a broken heart.

Goodreads says:
Joan Goodwin has been obsessed with the stars for as long as she can remember. Thoughtful and reserved, Joan is content with her life as a professor of physics and astronomy at Rice University and as aunt to her precocious niece, Frances. That is, until she comes across an advertisement seeking the first women scientists to join NASA’s space shuttle program. Suddenly, Joan burns to be one of the few people to go to space.

Selected from a pool of thousands of applicants in the summer of 1980, Joan begins training at Houston’s Johnson Space Center, alongside an exceptional group of fellow candidates: Top Gun pilot Hank Redmond and scientist John Griffin, who are kind and easygoing even when the stakes are highest; mission specialist Lydia Danes, who has worked too hard to play nice; warmhearted Donna Fitzgerald, who is navigating her own secrets; and Vanessa Ford, the magnetic and mysterious aeronautical engineer, who can fix any engine and fly any plane.

As the new astronauts become unlikely friends and prepare for their first flights, Joan finds a passion and a love she never imagined. In this new light, Joan begins to question everything she thinks she knows about her place in the observable universe.

Then, in December of 1984, on mission STS-LR9, it all changes in an instant.

Fast-paced, thrilling, and emotional, Atmosphere is Taylor Jenkins Reid at her best: transporting readers to iconic times and places, creating complex protagonists, and telling a passionate and soaring story about the transformative power of love—this time among the stars.

The Secret Library (Kekla Magoon)

There was a lot going on in this book. The family history aspect was interesting....go back in time to learn about your family. She'd run into the same people again and again and it was confusing to keep straight who the person was and how old they were or what year it was. Time travel is not my favorite genre. It felt like maybe there should be a second book because many of the issues between Dally and her mother are not resolved - but Dailly has time traveled to the future and skipped a bunch of years (broke all the time travel rules!) so a resolution won't be possible. I thought the ending was rushed and rather incomplete.

The idea of a secret library is interesting. This is the key in the time travel - pick a book from your shelves and a cloud starts to form. Off you go! Sometimes the writing seemed quite didactic and sometimes it just wasn't conceivable at all that this is how a child would converse with people.

The main character says she's biracial but as the story ends, you discover that her mother, who is presented as a white woman, actually had a black father - something he kept hidden.  Even Dally's mother didn't know. No one knew. Oh the complexities of family history!

There was a lot of commentary on historic events. In chapter 29, she arrives at a Juneteenth celebration where her parents are, but they aren't married yet. I read this on Juneteenth....so that was a weird twist of fate. There is talk of LGBTQ issues and it's interesting to compare how the issues are viewed in the past to today, however, it was weird addition to the story and seemed like it was thrown in to make sure the author hit on all sorts of current issues: family secrets, LGBTQ lessons, weird explanations about scientific realities today, sex education (a baby is born, mother's water breaks...the whole lots of details kids don't need), segregation and racism issues as well. For an audience of 8-12 year olds, this would open a lot of questions unless they were REALLY well versed in history, which is quite unlikely. I would recommend it for readers over 12, for sure. The book banners would have a heyday with this one. Luckily, most kids didn't finish it and for those who said they did (that's questionable), clearly it was over their head.

This book was a lesson in why it's important to read the book before I suggest it for book club. This one was not a great choice. During our book club meeting we learned about resources online to research your genealogy. I logged into my Family Search account and showed them famous people I was related to. They really enjoyed that.

Goodreads says:
Since Grandpa died, Dally’s days are dull and restricted. She’s eleven and a half years old, and her exacting single mother is already grooming her to take over the family business. Starved for adventure and release, Dally rescues a mysterious envelope from her mother’s clutches, an envelope Grandpa had earmarked for her. The map she finds inside leads straight to an ancient vault, a library of secrets where each book is a portal to a precise moment in time.

As Dally “checks out” adventure after adventure—including an exhilarating outing with pirates—she begins to dive deep into her family’s hidden history. Soon she’s visiting every day to escape the demands of the present. But the library has secrets of its own, intentions that would shape her life as surely as her mother’s meticulous plans. What will Dally choose?

Equal parts mystery and adventure—with a biracial child puzzling out her identity alongside the legacy of the past—this masterful middle-grade fantasy rivets with crackling prose, playful plot twists, and timeless themes. A satisfying choice for fans of Kindred and When You Reach Me.

The Swifts - A Dictionary of Scoundrels (Beth Lincoln)

 

I'm always happy when I'm compelled to read a mystery. This was a choice for my Children's Lit book club. It wasn't a hit with anyone and our discussion about it was quite short. I hadn't finished it when we had our meeting but decided to continue, despite the poor reviews. I had seen so many good reviews for it on BookTok and Instagram. I kind of mid-way about this one. Some of it was so silly...like she's aspiring to Roald Dahl or David Walliams....and truthfully, I tire of that humor. There were a few things I did enjoy though! 

At the family reunion they play games. One of my favorite was the insults game they called Mock Up. 

p. 208 A Mock-Up is, in it simplest terms, an insult contest. The players put their names into a hat, bucket or other receptacle, and stand in a circle. The referee (in this case, Fauna) pulls out two names, and the players begin a battle of words, a one-on-one match of wits. The first person to run out of ideas or start laughing is the loser. Anyone can play - it is, after all, a remarkably simple game - but there are a few rules.

"No swearing, no foul language, nothing person," said Fauna. "Remember, you don't try to actually stab someone in a fencing match, and you don't try to really hurt anyone here My word is final. If I say you're out, you're out."

The insults made me giggle:

p. 209 "You're a puttock," said Tintinnabula, sraight out of the gate. "A seizing, grasping, witch-fingered harridan!"
"And you're a screaming kettle. A braying trumpet of gibberish! The world's most boring banshee!"

...."You're a waste," said aunt Jilt. "A wizened, stunted, windblown shrub."

"That's fine, because you're a pestilent, meat-breathed plague taxi."

"You're a desperate circumstance. an idling fopdoodle with nothing to recommend her."
"And you're a bitter, dried-up lemon rind, A purse-mouthed gnashgab."

There's a LGBTQ addition to the story. One of the characters, Erf, rejects their name (something that is a fundamental premise to the family) and becomes Erf. We are never told what their previous name was but some of his family has a hard time remembering to use their new name. They try to shake the mold and just be themself. Erf is told:

p. 217 "Your gran doesn'nt get a say in who you are. No one in the world makes that decision but you."

The intro goes into a long diatribe about etymology and the evolution of the English language - exactly my thing! LOL 

"I would say that if a person is ride about the way you speak, write or spell, they are showing a distinct lack of understanding, and it's perfectly reasonable to make up a creative word to describe them."

The vocabulary in this story was great. There were too many characters to keep track of though and that made it hard to follow the story. There was a good twist in the end. I'm not so sure I'll continue on to read book 2 or 3 though. 

Goodreads says:

On the day they are born, each Swift is brought before the Family Dictionary. They are given a name and a definition, and it is assumed they will grow up to match. Unfortunately, Shenanigan Swift has other ideas.

So what if her relatives all think she's destined to turn out as a troublemaker, just because of her name? Shenanigan knows she can be whatever she wants - pirate, explorer or even detective.

Which is lucky, really, because when one of the Family tries to murder Arch-Aunt Schadenfreude, someone has to work out whodunit.

With the help of her sisters and cousin, Shenanigan grudgingly takes on the case, but more murders, a hidden treasure and an awful lot of suspects make things seriously complicated.

Can Shenanigan catch the killer before the whole household is picked off? And in a Family where definitions are so important, can she learn to define herself?

Winner of the Barnes & Noble Children's Book Award, shortlisted for the Nero Book Awards and nominated for the Carnegie Medal.

The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo (Taylor Jekins Reid)

 

This was a great read. It's one of those books that makes me despise having to work or having evening engagements. Although, it was also so good that I didn't want to rush through it and have it end too soon. Taylor Jenkins Reid is a great writer. I'm definitely going to read more of her books. I recently bought Atmosphere and while I carried it around the store two people pointed to it and tell me how much they loved the author and then the cashier said the same thing. 

I found myself wanting to look up Evelyn Hugo, figuring she had to be a real person....and reviews called it historical fiction - but there is no Evelyn Hugo. Her character is based roughly around women like Elizabeth Taylor (she had many marriages), Ava Gardner (was secretive about her life) and who knows who else. The characters sure did seem real to me! 

My daughter has read it and kept saying she couldn't wait until I got to the surprise....there were so many twists and turns that I figured she should just tell me....but she wouldn't budge. I was glad. It was a unforeseen surprise!

I'm really looking forward to discussing this one with my book club. If anyone doesn't like it, I might have to karate chop them :) 

Goodreads says:

Aging and reclusive Hollywood movie icon Evelyn Hugo is finally ready to tell the truth about her glamorous and scandalous life. But when she chooses unknown magazine reporter Monique Grant for the job, no one is more astounded than Monique herself. Why her? Why now?

Monique is not exactly on top of the world. Her husband has left her, and her professional life is going nowhere. Regardless of why Evelyn has selected her to write her biography, Monique is determined to use this opportunity to jumpstart her career.

Summoned to Evelyn’s luxurious apartment, Monique listens in fascination as the actress tells her story. From making her way to Los Angeles in the 1950s to her decision to leave show business in the ‘80s, and, of course, the seven husbands along the way, Evelyn unspools a tale of ruthless ambition, unexpected friendship, and a great forbidden love. Monique begins to feel a very real connection to the legendary star, but as Evelyn’s story nears its conclusion, it becomes clear that her life intersects with Monique’s own in tragic and irreversible ways.

We Are All Equal (P. Crumble)

 

Quick read. Super simple....as equality should be. 

No one is better than another because of their appearance, advantages, social standings, financial background, or education. 

This is something I would use to show how everyone in the classroom is different in their own way. Even though we all have differences, does not mean they should be treated different. Everyone should treat everyone the way they want to be treated, no matter how similar or different they are.

Goodreads says:

No matter who you are, where you come from, where you live, what you look like, who you love, whether you are small or tall, whether you walk or run, this book celebrates the richness in our differences and the joy that we are all equal.

A Family is a Family (Sara O'Leary)

 

This book could make for a great classroom project....to write about our families and how they're unique. 

I used to shy away from books that include LGBTQ people - but talking about this is part of the curriculum now and this is a great way to do it. This books has different races, a foster family, two families with LGBTQ representation, an interracial family and many more. Seeing yourself in books matters.

Goodreads says:

When a teacher asks the children in her class to think about what makes their families special, the answers are all different in many ways — but the same in the one way that matters most of all.

One child is worried that her family is just too different to explain, but listens as her classmates talk about what makes their families special. One is raised by a grandmother, and another has two dads. One is full of stepsiblings, and another has a new baby.

As one by one, her classmates describe who they live with and who loves them — family of every shape, size and every kind of relation — the child realizes that as long as her family is full of caring people, her family is special.

A warm and whimsical look at many types of families written by award-winning author Sara O’Leary, A Family is a Family is a Family springs to life with quirky and sweet illustrations by Qin Leng.

The One Hundred Years of Lenni and Margot (Marianne Cronin)

 

This book just got better and better as I read. The author is a great writer. Her metaphors and literacy connections she makes side by side as she puts the character's lives' stories together are brilliant. 

It isn't often that I actually cry when reading....but parts of this book left me in a puddle.

I was left with so many questions. This book touched on our society's inability to stand by people to the end and to think that disease and disability make someone disposable. 

Although the family connections were sad, the community that came together to support each other was beautiful. The lessons in having a purpose or project in your dying days was profound.

Re: The Title: The One Hundred Years of Lenni and Margot

p. 44 In honor of my own vanity, at the bottom of my painted star, in yellow and using the thinnest brush I could find, I wrote Lenni, aged 17. Seeing this, Margot did the same. Margot, she wrote, 83, And then we put them side by side, the two stars against the dark.
Numbers don't mean a lot to me. I don't care about long division or percentages. I don't know my height or my weight and I can't remember my dad's phone number, though I know I used to know it. I prefer words. Delicious, glorious words. 
But there were two numbers in front of me that matters, and would matter for the rest of my numbered days. 
"Between us," I said quietly, "We're a hundred years old."

Characters: 

Linnea Pettersson (age 17)

Margot (age 83)

Dawn (counselor)

Father Arthur (minister)
Jacky -head nurse)

The Temp

Pippa (art teacher)

New Nurse - not sure why she was always referred to as New Nurse?

Lenni's mother (in Sweden most of the book)
Lenni's father

Paul (porter)

Walter and Elise and various old people in the art room

Johnny (Margot's first husband)

Meena (Catherine Amelia Houghton)
Humphrey James (Margot's second husband)

Jeremy David Star (Meena's son)

The professor Meena worked for

Words of the Wiser

p. 38 Father Arthur: Those who ask questions and return to God are better than they who never ask questions and only pay lip service to their religion.

Re: Lenni and Margot dying [see Memory Moment p. 42] Margot and I both watched her try to explain. "Your heart is beating and your eyes are seeing and your ears are hearing. You're sitting in this room completely alive. And so you're not dying. You're living. She took in Margot.  "You both are."

It simultaneously made perfect sense and no sense at all.

    (people really are uncomfortable with the idea of death, it seems!)

p. 152 "Meena was right...about not giving chase...what she said to you when you were looking for Johnny about waving someone off into their new life but not feeling the need to follow. Letting the people who need to leave, leave. Allowing them to be free."

Contrasts and Contradictions

p. 41 "What are you doing here?" she asked, and I knew she meant the Rose Room, but I think it's best to be honest, so I told her the truth.
"They say I'm doing to die."
There was a moment of silence between us as Margot studied my face. She looked like she didn't believe me.
"It's a life-limiting thing," I said.
"But you're so..."
"Young, I know."
"No, you're so..."
"Unlucky?"
"No," she said, till looking at me like she didn't believe it. "You're so alive."

p. 134 My body was taking a stand, and I sometimes had to stand with it. We were a team. Sometimes.

p. 169 We have practiced for death every night. Lying down in the dark and slipping into that place of nothingness between rest and dreams where we have no consciousness, no self, and anything could befall our vulnerable bodies. We have died each night. Or at least, we have laid down to die, and let go of everything in this world, hoping for dreams and morning. Maybe that's why my mother could never sleep - it's too much like death and she wasn't ready. So she was always walking, chasing awareness, clinging to life. Too afraid to let go, and then, years later, unable to do anything else.

Again and Again

Margo about Meena: P. 269 She always called me "Mrs. James". It was her way of reminding me of the permanence of my decisions, of reminding me she'd never change her name for a man. But my taking Humphrey's name had been very unconscious. Accidental, almost.

Tough Questions

Lenni and Father Arthur: p. 12 "...the Bible teaches us that Christ can guide you to the answer to every question."
"But can it answer an actually question? Honestly? Can you answer me a question without telling that life is a mystery, or that everything is God's plan, or that the answers I seek will come with time?"
"Why don't you tell me your question, and we will work together to see how God can help us find an answer?"
I leaned back into the pew and it creaked. The echo reverberated around the room.
"Why am I dying?"

A ha Moment

p. 64...we will have told our story, scratching out one hundred pictures intended to say, "Lenni and Margot were here."

Memory Moment
p. 42 Margot saying, "But you look so alive." [see contrasts and contradictions] triggers a memory moment for Lenni about getting in trouble at school for tearing the cover off of a book:
I think because I didn't look contrite enough, she sent me to the head teacher's office. It felt like I was being sent to the police. I was already sure that my parents would be told and that I would be in trouble forever. My palms started sweating. Even walking along the corridor to the teacher's office while everyone was in class felt wrong, like I was somewhere I ought not to be. 
There's a boy there who is also in trouble and he doesn't seem bothered at all. Suddenly, Lenni's memory moment stops:
p. 43: And that's exactly how I felt when Margot chose to break the silence by leaning toward me and whispering, "I'm dying too."
For a moment, I met Margot's bright blue eyes and I felt that we were perhaps going to be cellmates.

Notes/Quotes

p. 31 The hospital is a cruel mistress. The International Date Line run somewhere between the end of the May Ward and the nurses' station. The only way to fight Hospital Time is to never fight it. If New Nurse wanted to claim that she had been gone for only tow and a half hours, then I would let her. People start to worry if you fight Hospital Time. They ask you what year you think it is and if you remember the name of the prime minister.

p. 46 I promised Jackie I'd stop wandering around. Or wondering around. Nobody was specific about the spelling.

p. 50 Lenni: I have an urgency to have fun.

P. 132 ...they (the nurses) are the wardens and we are the prisoners, and if they get too close, the lines might become blurred as to who is captive and who is free.

p. 133 the octopus? time spent with the octopus? all the lines and poles?

p. 264 Though my soul may set in darkness, it will rise in perfect light. I have loved the stars too fondly to be fearful of the night. (old astronomer to his pupil, Sarah Williams)

p. 206 His shelves of books lined both sides of the living room. Most of them hadn't been touched since I first met him but they were all, as he insisted, essential. They'd been there so long that they seemed to be part of the walls rather than objects for use, like additional beams holding up the timber structure of his little cottage. With each book I took from the shelf, it felt like I was removing a brick from the walls of the house. Without him and his books, surely it would all fall down. 

p. 264 "Though my soul may set in darkness, it will rise in perfect light. I have loved the stars too fondly to be fearful of the night,"  I said.

p. 265

"Do you know," she said slowly, "that the stars that we see the dlearest are already dead?:
"Well, that's depressing." I took my hand from hers.
"No," she said gently, linking her arm through mine, "It's not depressing, it's beautiful. They've been gone for who knows how long, but we can still see them. They live on."
They live on.

Goodreads says:

An extraordinary friendship. A lifetime of stories.
Their last one begins here.

Life is short. No-one knows that better than seventeen year old Lenni living on the terminal ward. But as she is about to learn, it's not only what you make of life that matters, but who you share it with.

Dodging doctor's orders, she joins an art class where she bumps into fellow patient Margot, a rebel-hearted eighty three year old from the next ward. Their bond is instant as they realize that together they have lived an astonishing one hundred years.

To celebrate their shared century, they decide to paint their life stories: of growing old and staying young, of giving joy, of receiving kindness, of losing love, of finding the person who is everything.

As their extraordinary friendship deepens, it becomes vividly clear that life is not done with Lenni and Margot yet.

Fiercely alive, disarmingly funny and brimming with tenderness, THE ONE HUNDRED YEARS OF LENNI AND MARGOT unwraps the extraordinary gift of life even when it is about to be taken away, and revels in our infinite capacity for friendship and love when we need them most.

Falling Back in Love With Being Human (Kai Cheng Thom)

 

Once I realized this was poetry, I could forgive the author for the lack of capitalization (that's the teacher in me!) The book is beautiful. It is almost like therapy. It has a story/poem and then a suggestions for something to do. Some of my favorites were: 

Make a list of five good things that you frequently do for other people. Within a two-week period, do them all, at least once, for yourself.

Design and perform a ritual to release something from your life that you love, but htat is no longer serving you. Throw a handful of dandelion seeds out the window of a moving vehicle, or clip a lock of your hair and leave it on your windowsill for the birds to carry away.

The author is a trans female. She is a Chinese Canadian. It was a beautiful opportunity to get a view of her heart and heartaches. It's very honest and vulnerable. In this day and age, this should be required reading. It would be great for a discussion.

Goodreads says:

What happens when we imagine loving the people--and the parts of ourselves--that we do not believe are worthy of love?

A transformative collection of intimate and lyrical love letters that offer a path toward compassion, forgiveness, and self-acceptance.

"Required reading."--Glennon Doyle

Kai Cheng Thom grew up a Chinese Canadian transgender girl in a hostile world. As an activist, psychotherapist, conflict mediator, and spiritual healer, she's always pursued the same deeply personal mission: to embrace the revolutionary belief that every human being, no matter how hateful or horrible, is intrinsically sacred.

But then Kai Cheng found herself in a crisis of faith, overwhelmed by the viciousness with which people treated one another, and barely clinging to the values and ideals she'd built her life around: justice, hope, love, and healing. Rather than succumb to despair and cynicism, she gathered all her rage and grief and took one last leap of faith: she wrote. Whether prayers or spells or poems--and whether there's a difference--she wrote to affirm the outcasts and runaways she calls her kin. She wrote to flawed but nonetheless lovable men, to people with good intentions who harm their own, to racists and transphobes seemingly beyond saving. What emerged was a blueprint for falling back in love with being human.

The Wishing Flower (AJ Irving)

 

The summary says that this is an LGBTQ-inclusive story but it is very subtle in that regard. But then again, maybe I just don't know enough about what it is like to be an LGBTQ child. I don't know. I think there are a lot of kids who feel like they don't belong and don't have a friend. 

My class will love looking under the dust-cover of this one! It's beautiful!

The author grew up in Boise and lives in SLC now. What are the chances she isn't a member of the LDS church? That puts an interesting spin on her topics.

Goodreads says:

An LGBTQ-inclusive story about understanding your peers, your feelings, and yourself, The Wishing Flower is a love letter to longing, belonging, and longing to belong.

Birdie finds comfort in nature and books, but more than anything she longs for connection, to be understood. At school, Birdie feels like an outsider. Quiet and shy, she prefers to read by herself, rather than jump rope or swing with the other kids. That all changes when Sunny, the new girl, comes along. Like Birdie, Sunny has a nature name. She also likes to read, and loves to rescue bugs. And when Sunny smiles at her, Birdie's heart balloons like a parachute.

From the acclaimed author of Dance Like a Leaf, with stunning illustrations by Kip Alizadeh, this book will inspire readers to honor their wishes and show the world their truest selves.

Molly's Tuxedo (Vicki Johnson)

 

This book doesn't mention being anything about LGBTQ kids, but the main character is a great role model for kids who just want to be themselves. I understand not feeling comfortable in scratchy stiff outfits! It's not about dresses....dresses are great. It's about being comfortable. At first she is questioned (girls don't wear tuxedos) but it doesn't last long....and the better we get at that, the better world it'll be, I think.

Goodreads says:

*2024 NCTE Charlotte Huck Award for Outstanding Fiction For Children Recommended Book* Molly has big plans to wear a dashing tuxedo for her school picture day—but Mom’s picked out a dress. With her friends’ support, Molly proves the way to look your best is to be yourself.

Mazy Chan's Last Chance (Lisa Yee)

 

This book is amazing. It is well written and touches on a multitude of hot topics. It is powerful because the main character is a middle-school aged girl just trying to figure out life by observing adults. Through grandfather telling Maizy family history stories we learn about racism towards Chinese people over the last hundred years in North America. Maizy sees her family brought together to a greater understanding of each other and that not everything is as it seems.

Goodreads says:

Welcome to The Golden Palace!

Maizy has never been to Last Chance, Minnesota. . . until now. Her Mom’s plan is just to stay for a couple weeks, until her grandfather gets better. But plans change, and as Maizy spends more time in Last Chance (where she and her family are the only Asian-Americans) and at The Golden Palace—the restaurant that’s been in her family for generations—she makes some discoveries. For instance:
• You can tell a LOT about someone by the way they order food.
• And people can surprise you. Sometimes in good ways, sometimes in disappointing ways.
• And the Golden Palace has Secrets.

But the more Maizy discovers, the more questions she has. Like, why are her mom and her grandmother always fighting? Who are the people in the photographs on the office wall? And when she discovers that a beloved family treasure has gone missing—and someone has left a racist note—Maizy decides it’s time find the answers.

Live Oak With Moss (Walt Whitman, illustrated by Brian Selznick)

 

I picked this up because I love everything Brian Selznick does. I really don't know much about Walt Whitman and I'm really not good at poetry...but this book is beautiful. The story of his poem is fascinating. I can't imagine what drives someone to play with words to that extent until they get it to exactly what they want. It's a special kind of brilliance. Apparently, he wrote this, then cut it up and hid it amongst other poetry....and then someone who studies Walt Whitman uncovered it! Amazing!

Brian Selznick tells the story of how he got to know Maurice Sendak (imagine?!) The book is dedicated to Maurice Sendak. He was originally asked to illustrate the poem but felt like poems didn't need illustrations. I hope Brian Selznick will illustrate more famous poems. It helped me  increase my understanding, that's for sure! I'm sure there are more people like me out there who need a little help with their poetry comprehension. 

Goodreads says:

As he was turning forty, Walt Whitman wrote twelve poems in a small handmade book he entitled “Live Oak, With Moss.” The poems were intensely private reflections on his attraction to and affection for other men. They were also Whitman’s most adventurous explorations of the theme of same-sex love, composed decades before the word “homosexual” came into use. This revolutionary, extraordinarily beautiful and passionate cluster of poems was never published by Whitman and has remained unknown to the general public—until now. New York Times bestselling and Caldecott Award–winning illustrator Brian Selznick offers a provocative visual narrative of “Live Oak, With Moss,” and Whitman scholar Karen Karbiener reconstructs the story of the poetic cluster’s creation and destruction. Walt Whitman’s reassembled, reinterpreted Live Oak, With Moss serves as a source of inspiration and a cause for celebration. 
 

Nevertheless, We Persisted: 48 Voices of Defiance, Strength and Courage (So many authors)

At  first, I started to feel like this book was a bit of a downer. Every chapter is a story of someone who is an underdog. As I pressed on though, it became more and more compelling to hear their stories. They are stories of people who not only persisted, but accomplished great things despite other people. The more I read, the more inspired I was. I think this book is one of those best taken in full doses. It reminded me of reading a book by Deborah Ellis on First Nations kids called Looks Like Daylight. It wasn't until I had really buried myself in the stories that the feeling took over. This is one of those books that can change you, if you let it.

Goodreads says:

A powerful collection of essays from actors, activists, athletes, politicians, musicians, writers, and teens, including Senator Amy Klobuchar, actress Alia Shawkat, actor Maulik Pancholy, poet Azure Antoinette, teen activist Gavin Grimm, and many, many more, each writing about a time in their youth when they were held back because of their race, gender, or sexual identity--but persisted.

"Aren't you a terrorist?" "There are no roles for people who look like you." "That's a sin." "No girls allowed." They've heard it all. Actress Alia Shawkat reflects on all the parts she was told she was too "ethnic" to play. Former NFL player Wade Davis recalls his bullying of gay classmates in an attempt to hide his own sexuality. Teen Gavin Grimm shares the story that led to the infamous "bathroom bill," and how he's fighting it. Holocaust survivor Fanny Starr tells of her harrowing time in Aushwitz, where she watched her family disappear, one by one.

What made them rise up through the hate? What made them overcome the obstacles of their childhood to achieve extraordinary success? How did they break out of society's limited view of who they are and find their way to the beautiful and hard-won lives they live today? With a foreword by Minnesota senator and up-and-coming Democratic party leader Amy Klobuchar, these essays share deeply personal stories of resilience, faith, love, and, yes, persistence.

"Each tale is a soulful testament to the endurance of the human spirit and reminds readers that they are not alone in their search for self. An unflinchingly honest book that should be required reading for every young person in America."--Kirkus, Starred review

"An invaluable collection of snapshots of American society."--VOYA, Starred review

"[A] gem of a book. . . There's a lot to study here and talk about on the way to becoming kinder, more empathetic, and most important, compassionate."--Booklist

"Readers encountering injustice in their own lives may be compelled to take heart--and even action."--Publishers Weekly

"A powerful collection of voices."--SLJ

"The sheer variation in writing styles, subject-matters, and structure to these narratives provides readers with inspiration in assorted forms and a complex interpretation of what it means to persist."--The Bulletin

Morris Micklewhite and the Tangerine Dress

I think this book is beautiful and I love the idea of being okay with being more open with gender roles, but I'm too chicken to read it to my class. I feel quite strongly about this  topic but I don't have enough confidence in that arena to open that can of worms right now in my classroom. I'm proud of the mom in this book though for letting him be creative.

Goodreads says:

Morris has a great imagination. He paints amazing pictures and he loves his classroom's dress-up center, especially the tangerine dress. It reminds him of tigers, the sun and his mother's hair.

The other children don't understand--dresses, they say, are for girls. And Morris certainly isn't welcome in the spaceship his classmates are building--astronauts, they say, don't wear dresses.

One day Morris has a tummy ache, and his mother lets him stay home from school. He stays in bed reading about elephants, and her dreams about a space adventure with his cat, Moo. Inspired by his dream, Morris paints a fantastic picture, and everything begins to change when he takes it to school. 

Pride: The Story of Harvey Milk and the Rainbow Flag (Sanders)

This is a good historical book about how the pride flag came to be. It isn't a topic that comes up in my classroom very often, but I have seen attitudes change over time and can imagine that in time it will become a matter of fact topic. For now, it's one I don't tread into very often just because I'm afraid of the blacklash from parents. If it does though, this is one well worth having, for sure.


Goodreads says:

The very first picture book about the remarkable and inspiring story of the Gay Pride Flag!

In this deeply moving and empowering true story, young readers will trace the life of the Gay Pride Flag, from its beginnings in 1978 with social activist Harvey Milk and designer Gilbert Baker to its spanning of the globe and its role in today’s world. Award-winning author Rob Sanders’s stirring text, and acclaimed illustrator Steven Salerno’s evocative images, combine to tell this remarkable - and undertold - story. A story of love, hope, equality, and pride.

The Secrets of My Life (Caitlyn Jenner)

In my conservative social circles, this is an explosive topic. That is one reason I read this book. I felt like I had very little understanding of people who transition from one gender to another. I'm not a Kardashian fan. I've never watched the show actually and I can't keep the names of the Kardashian children straight, nor do I really care to. I was well aware of Bruce Jenner as an Olympian. I'm a fan of all things Olympics. When I first heard of it, his story really surprised me. I suppose that is one thing that compelled me to read this book.

A lot of people say this is a scourge of our day. They say that people are only doing these kinds of things because it's trendy right now. That wasn't the case for Bruce Jenner. This wasn't something he came up with just recently. It was a struggle his entire life. It is only now that it is really "safe" to even attempt to live as he felt most comfortable.

I am not part of the crowd that condemns people who choose to transition. I don't know why God makes people like this. I just hope that we can all be a little kinder. I"m glad to have a little more understanding of what life was like for Bruce and then late, Caitlyn Jenner. I appreciated the honesty found in the book.

Goodreads says:

The book will cover Caitlyn Jenner's childhood as Bruce Jenner and rise to fame as a gold-medal-winning Olympic decathlete; her marriages and her relationships with her children; her transition; and her experience as the world's most famous transgender woman.