Holiday Happenings

This is my first winter holiday season as a blogger, so I'm celebrating by participating in two fun holiday blogging events.

The first one is Nymeth's Christmas Exchange. It sounded like such a fun way to celebrate the holidays and my fellow bloggers. Those of us that signed up will be Secret Santas to someone in the blogging community. I've received my email from Nymeth with my secret person's name, so now I'm searching for the perfect gift to send to one of my favorite blogging friends!

Also, Kailana and Marg are hosting the 2007 Blog Advent Calendar. I've signed up for December 14th, and will be posting something special and holiday-related on that date as part of this really cook Virtual Advent Calendar.

I know that sometimes the holiday season can be full of stress and anxiety, so these activities are two fun ways to simply enjoy the company of blogging friends and celebrate the warmth of the community during this holiday season. A special thanks to Nymeth, Kailana, and Marg for organizing these fun and very creative activities!

Walking Shadows

Happiness is going for long walks with the Grandboy and taking a good look at the world through his eyes. Everything is of interest! ...Bird sounds, other people walking by, cats sitting on front porches, leaves on the ground, cars zooming by, kids yelling and playing in their yards, and shadows!

It was too cold and breezy in Portland today to go for our usual Grands and the Grandboy stroller walk, so this photo from our walk three weeks ago will have to do.

What a delightful first Thanksgiving with the Grandboy!

Happy Thanksgiving!

I am deeply thankful for my family and friends near and far, for good health and much happiness, for being able to live in the lovely Northwest, for having a job I enjoy and challenges me, and for my world of books and ideas that bring me such joy. My best wishes to each of you for a very Happy Thanksgiving. May your day be filled with warmth and love...and good food!

The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian

Sherman Alexie just received the National Book Award, Young People's Literature, for his book The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, and it was a well-deserved award. My book-guru friend, Melissa, loaned me her copy from the library so I could read it for Callista's Hometown Challenge. The library has 259 holds on this book right now, so I really appreciated the loaner.

It's a very interesting read, full of humor and pathos, and teenage angst, and it wasn't lightweight. The book was written for a teenage audience, and is semi-autobiographical, based on Alexie's own life growing up on a reservation outside of Spokane, Washington. He is incredibly honest with his descriptions of what it was like to grow up there, and on how he (and his main character) were able to survive -- physically, emotionally, and creatively -- amidst the poverty, alcoholism, dysfunctional families, and pervasive despair and hopelessness of reservation life. Arnold Spirit, or "Junior," (the main character) used humor and cartooning to help him express the very difficult emotions and experiences of growing up in that environment. I thought it was a tremendously courageous book, and it's a story that hits powerfully and sticks with you.

I think the story would definitely appeal to high school students because Alexie speaks directly to them and uses a lot of humor to talk about the difficult experiences and decisions of growing up. It's a very specific story, but with universal truths in it. Seattle artist, Ellen Forney, worked with Alexie to create cartoons that also help tell the story, and the cartoons became almost another character in the book. Reading, writing, cartooning, and basketball saved this young man by helping him sort through the complexities of his life and ultimately find himself. But it was the unconditional love of his family that gave him the courage to move out into the world and make something of himself.

A favorite part of this book, for me, was a long discussion between "Junior" and his new geeky, non-Indian friend, Gordy, about READING. I loved the entire discussion, but will only copy part of it here because I don't want to ruin the humor of the passage by taking it completely out of context. So I'll leave the humorous part to you--you'll need to read the book to find out where this passage for the passionate reader/writer leads:

Best of all, he taught me how to read.
"Listen," he said one afternoon in the library. "You'll have to read a book three times before you know it. The first time you read it for the story. The plot. The movement from scene to scene that give the book its momentum, it's rhythm. It's like riding a raft down a river. You're just paying attention to the currents. Do you understand that?"
"Not at all," I said.
"Yes, you do," he said.
"Okay, I do," I said. I really didn't but Gordy believed in me. He wouldn't let me give up.
"The second time you read a book, you read it for its history. For its knowledge of history. You think about the meaning of each word, and where that word came from. I mean, you read a novel that has the word 'spam' in it, and you know where that word comes from, right?"
"Spam is junk e-mail," I said.
"Yes, that's what it is, but who invented the word, who first used it, and how has the meaning of the word changed since it was first used?"
"I don't know," I said.
"Well, you have to look all that up. If you don't treat each word that seriously then you're not treating the novel seriously."

Sherman Alexie is a gifted storyteller. His humor, his insights, and his courage to tell young people this honestly complex and riveting story about LIFE won him the National Book Award -- an honor and recognition he so richly deserves.

Intersections

My husband turns 60 years old today. He says it's not a big deal birthday, but that it makes you realize that you don't have that much longer to live. That's not the usual happy birthday celebration thought, but it is a reminder to enjoy each day and every moment because life is short. Where did the time go? I just met this wonderful, gentle man...38 years ago!

B is an architect, an avid reader, and I would also have to call him a "philosopher" with great insight. He's been reading a number of books recently that he has really enjoyed, and today he explained that the books and the birthday have come together in his mind in what he calls an "intersection" of ideas and life experience.

First, turning 60 definitely triggers a new look at oneself and one's past experiences. Secondly, B has been reading a book called Metaphors We Live By, by George Lakoff and Mark Johnson, and he found some of the ideas in the book quite intriguing. He's not sure he agrees with everything in it, but it's certainly causing him to think about experiences from a different angle.

Is it true that all of us, not just poets, speak in metaphors, whether we realize it or not? Is it perhaps even true that we live by metaphors? In Metaphors We Live By, George Lakoff, a linguist, and Mark Johnson, a philosopher, suggest that metaphors not only make our thoughts more vivid and interesting, but that they actually structure our perceptions and understanding. Thinking of marriage as a "contract agreement," for example, leads to one set of expectations, while thinking of it as "team play," "a negotiated agreement," "Russian roulette," "an indissoluble merger," or "a religious sacrament" will carry different sets of expectations. When a government thinks of its enemies as "turkeys" or "clowns," it does not take them as serious threats, but if they are "pawns" in the hands of the communists, they are taken seriously indeed. Metaphors We Live By has led many readers to a new recognition of how profoundly metaphors not only shape our view of life in the present but set up the expectations that determine what life will be for us in the future.
(from the introduction in The Conscious Reader)

B has also been reading a new book by an architect whose work he admires, Steven Holl, and discovered that not only do they share certain ideas/beliefs about architecture and creativity, but that Mr. Holl will also turn 60 in two weeks. Kindred spirits...

Steven Holl's The Chapel of St. Ignatius, in Seattle

So we've had a lovely morning talking about this intersection of new ideas and old memories triggered by a birthday and two books, and together we took a different look at some of the incredible experiences we've shared in the last 38 years. What metaphors have we lived by?...and what new metaphors will we create to guide us through the later years of our life together? Just some thoughts...

B and I don't read a lot of the same books, but we talk a lot about what we read, share ideas and passages that impress us, and process together through some of these powerful book encounters.

Happy birthday, B!

Oh yes...just for the record...B also makes the best lemon meringue pie on earth, an absolutely delicious deep-dish apple pie, and the most sinful brownies you can imagine.

The Namesake

The Namesake, by Jhumpa Lahiri, is an intricately detailed account of the Ganguli family from Calcutta and their struggles as an immigrant family adjusting to a new culture, to their new life in America. The story focuses on their firstborn, a son whom they named Gogol after the father's favorite author. The name "Gogol" comes to represent to the boy everything that separates him from the mainstream of the America around him as he grows up. He hates the name, and ultimately changes it. The struggles he has with his name reflects the difficulties he has in coming to terms with family expectations versus his need for independence, with understanding his cultural heritage versus his need to identify himself as an American, and with his growing understanding and acceptance of his parents and the choices they made.

I found this book to be a fascinating account of cultural immersion. The descriptions of Gogol's mother during her first years in America were poignant and very honestly described the experience of culture shock, the isolation of the new immigrant, the longing for "home," and the slow adjustment to and assimilation of the new culture.

Gogol's journey is also a very honest account of growing up as "second generation " in an immigrant family, more American than his parents, but still perceived as "different" by American friends and colleagues. His struggles were not resolved by the end of the book, which I feel once again is an honest portrayal of that experience. Gogol will continue to struggle with defining his cultural identity throughout the rest of his life.

This was the third book I read for Callista's Book-to-Movie challenge, and I'm looking forward to watching the movie version on DVD this week. We didn't see it in the theaters because I wanted to read the book first. I'm glad I waited, but now I'm very anxious to see how the film compares to the book. I'm sure the film will add a wonderfully rich visual experience to my reading of the story of this Bengali family.

A Hometown Reading Challenge

Callista at SMS Book Reviews has put together another great idea for a reading challenge. She's calling it her "Hometown Challenge," and only requires that you read 1 book between November 1st and March 1st. The book can be written by an author from your hometown (defined as either where you grew up or where you are living now), or the story can take place in your hometown. What a great idea!

I grew up in Salt Lake City, but have adopted Seattle as my hometown. The two cities really do represent two different parts of my Self...I'm the girl with mountains and desert landscapes in my soul, but I'm the woman who craves the rain and the green beauty of the Pacific Northwest. So I went through my bookshelves and found 2 books that I've been wanting to read for some time now. One is by an author Washington State is proud of and who, I believe, is currently living in Seattle. The other is by a Salt Lake City author. Perfect! Then I made these two little challenge buttons (based on the button I saw on SuziQoregon's blog), and I'm ready to start!

For my Seattle "Hometown Challenge," I'm going to read Sherman Alexie's The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian.






For my Salt Lake City "Hometown Challenge," I'm going to read Shannon Hale's The Goose Girl.




It's nice to have an extra reason to pull these two books off my TBR shelf and read them. Thanks, Callista!

The Tale of Despereaux

Despereaux Tilling is a very small mouse with big ears. He is fascinated with light, captivated by the sweet sound of music, and he breaks the very strict behavior rules of his world by falling in love with a human being, the Princess Pea. Not only did he fall in love with the Pea, but he allowed himself to be seen and even touched by her. The other castle mice are outraged by his behaviors, even (or especially) his own family, and the consequences of "being different" are very grave indeed. In the story that ensues, Despereaux becomes a most "unlikely hero."

Kate DiCamillo received the Newbery Award for this beautifully written adventure story told with such heart. The Tale of Despereaux has been on my class library shelf for a long time, and many students have read my copy. Now I understand why. What a delightful read for young and old!

After finishing it, I started looking for information on Kate DiCamillo and discovered that the book is being made into an animated movie that is due to be released in December of 2008. It has an outstanding cast for the voices of the characters: Emma Watson plays the Princess Pea; Matthew Broderick is Despereaux; Dustin Hoffman is Roscuro; Sigourney Weaver is the narrator; and other characters are played by Christopher Lloyd, Robbie Coltrane, William H. Macy, Kevin Kline, Stanley Tucci, Ciaran Hinds, and Tracey Ullman! With a cast like that, and the wonderful story by DiCamillo, it's going to be a fabulous movie!

So when I discovered the movie connection, I decided to count this fun little book as one of my reads for Callista's Book-to-Movie reading challenge. I'll be first in line next December to see the movie!

The Djinn in the Nightingale's Eye

"...And 'round about the time of rediscovering the fairy tale, I shed some of my high seriousness and decided that a writer has a right to learn from what they intensely enjoy as well as what makes them think and understand. (I do know that thinking and understanding are also almost always a form of pleasure.)"
--A. S. Byatt

The Djinn in the Nightingale's Eye, by A. S. Byatt, is a small book of five stories, beautifully written "fairy tales" with a modern twist. They are very enjoyable tales that definitely make you "think and understand."

The first two stories in the book had already been published in her book, Possession, so they were familiar to me. The title story, The Djinn in the Nightingale's Eye, is actually a novella, and made up the bulk of the book. It was an amazing work, very imaginative and sensual. Byatt is a brilliant storyteller writing about a story that happens to a storyteller! Dr. Gillian Perholt is an English "narratologist" in Turkey for a conference (on storytelling), where she finds a beautiful glass bottle (the nightingale's eye) in a dusty old shop. When she takes off the stopper and begins to wash the bottle, a djinn appears and, of course, grants her three wishes. How she handles the three wishes is fun and thought-provoking. But the story is also filled with the stories Perholt hears in the conference, and the Djinn's own story, and they are all fascinating! So, this is a very multilayered, intelligent story, with stories within the stories, and is lots of fun.

I listened to the audiobook version of this book, narrated by Virginia Leishman, and absolutely loved the storytelling/listening experience. Byatt's writing is such a pleasure to read or listen to, and Leishman is a perfect voice for her work.

Expanding Horizons: A New Challenge

I completed one reading challenge this week so it must be time to take on another! Melissa, at Book Nut, is hosting one called the "Expanding Horizons Challenge," and it encourages multicultural reading.

It will run January through April of 2008, and the purpose is to read works by authors of ethnicities other than your own. The focus is on the nationality of the author rather than the characters. The books can be fiction or nonfiction, adult or YA, and can cross over to as many other challenges as you want.

There are two ways to approach this challenge. Either read four books by authors in one of the six categories (you can read more than one category, but you must read four books; not two books in one category and two in another) OR read six books, one from each of the six categories. The categories are:

1. African/African-American
2. Asian/Asian-American (This is not just East Asia--China, Korea and Japan--but also Indonesia, Singapore, Thailand, Philippines, and the Central Asian-"Stans.")
3. Hispanic/Latin American
4. Indian/Indian/American (Again, books by Indian authors, not books by white authors with settings in India.)
5. Middle Easter (Iran, Iraq, Israel, Palestine, Turkey...)
6. Native Peoples (can include Native American, Inuit, Polynesian-Maori, Samoan, etc.--Siberian natives and Australian Aborigines.)

I've decided to focus my challenge on Hispanic/Latin American literature, both adult and young adult. Some of the authors in my pool at the moment are:

Gabriel Garcia Marquez (Colombia)
Alma Flor Ada (Cuba)
Julia Alvarez (USA)
Sandra Cisneros (Dominican Republic)
Jorge Luis Borges (Argentina)
Isabel Allende (Chile)
Pam Munoz Ryan (USA)
Octavio Paz (Mexico)
Pablo Neruda's poetry (Chile)

I'm looking forward to this challenge and will choose my 4 specific books as it gets closer to the January start time.

A Different Kind of Book Club

"Teachers as learners" is a phrase that doesn't even begin to describe the hours of classes and training sessions teachers go through every year. School districts require training on curriculum, technology, and new issues facing the profession. States require that classes be taken for renewal of certificates. Teachers don't just teach, but spend many, many hours in classes themselves.

So after my medical leave of absence last year, I told myself that I would be very careful to NOT overextend my energies this year by signing up for lots of classes (although I do have to complete 150 "clock hours" in order to renew my teaching certificate in 3 years...and now that I'm teaching 2nd grade, I am also required by the State of Washington to take 10 hours of training on the DIBELS test).

But then I discovered that my school district is offering a number of new classes this year that will fulfill some of those required hours, and those classes are set up like book clubs. We will all read a specific book and then meet for discussion. Perfect! So I signed up for two different classes. My October/November class focuses on the book The Explosive Child, by Ross W. Greene. Dr. Greene's work is on disruptive behavior disorders, and how to better understand what those behaviors mean and how to help children struggling with them to "develop the skills needed to be more flexible and to handle frustration more adaptively."

For my December/January class, we will read Songs of the Gorilla Nation, by Dawn Prince-Hughes, a book which focuses on Autism. In this memoir, Prince-Hughes "traces her personal growth from undiagnosed autism to the moment, as a young woman, when she entered the Woodland Park Zoo in Seattle and became immediately fascinated with the gorillas. By observing them and, later, working with them, Prince-Hughes was finally able to emerge from her solitude and connect to living beings in a way she had never previously experienced."

The information in both these books should be very valuable to me as a teacher. I like the "book club" format and this way of increasing my knowledge of important issues facing teachers today, and I hope to learn some new strategies that will help me be more effective in helping individual students in my classroom.