The Vespertine

Mitchell, Saundra. The Vespertine. Harcourt: 2011. ISBN: 9780547482477.

Summary:
It is 1899 and seventeen-year-old Amelia has been sent by her brother to Baltimore to find a respectable husband. Staying with her cousin Zora, is exciting and Amelia loves the city. The two girls go to dinners and other social engagements that mark the season. One night just as the sun is setting Amelia has a vision of Zora in a beautiful gown dancing with Thomas, the boy she is hopeful will propose. The girls just giggle and carry on until the vision becomes reality. Amelia begins having more and more visions, not all end happily. Unsure of how to use her 'gift' Amelia must face realities that are not of her choosing.

Evaluation:
This book is wonderfully written. The language flows and recalls the time and setting beautifully. Written in first person we see the action through Amelia's eyes. Amelia is thoughtful, caring, vulnerable and a bit rebellious, all at the same time. Her relationship to Zora is central to understanding Amelia. Both girls flirt with romance, it is not just a game, but a life altering experience. This book is a nice mix of historical fiction, romance and paranormal ability. The three blend together with ease.

Reader's Annotation:
The next time you feel the wind on your skin, you will think again.

Bibliotherapeutic Uses:
We all deal with guilt and feelings of regret whether they are deserved or not. Understanding that life has an ebb and flow of its own can release some of the tension we carry around.

Genre:
Historical Fiction, Romance, Paranormal

Why I Included This Book:
The cover really caught my eye, I am a sucker for costume dramas.

Copper Sun

Draper, Sharon. Copper Sun. Atheneum Books for Young Readers: 2006. ISBN: 9780689821813.

Plot Summary:
Amari lives a happy life with her family in an African village and is looking forward to marrying Besa to whom she is betrothed. White visitors arrive and the village plans a celebration with singing, dancing and storytelling. Abruptly the white visitors begin shooting people and dragging others away. Amari witnesses her parents being shot and killed. Amari and Kwasi, her eight-year-old brother run into the jungle to escape, but Kwasi is also shot and killed. Dragged away and marched to the coast Armari is shackled and housed with many other Africans. Unsure of what is happening and stripped of her clothing, Amari and the other Africans are boarded onto a ship. The men are stacked in rows three high with barely 6 inches of headroom. The women are given similar accommodations, but are not stacked in rows. The sailors help themselves to the women and girls, not caring who they hurt. Amari wishes to die, but her journey is only beginning.

Critical Evaluation:
This is not a happy book. Sharon Draper's unflinching, well researched account of one slave girl's experience from being captured in her African village to a satisfying ending is a book every teen should read and study in school. The depths of human depravity are usually taught with Hitler and the extermination of the Jews. We as Americans have our own inhumanity to account for. The contrast between Amari's life in the African village and life once the slave traders enter the picture is stark. The characters are vivid and well formed. Just when you don't expect it, a character acts kindly proving all of humanity is not lost. But, Amari needs more than random kindness. One of the great lessons of this book is the triumph of the human spirit. No one should ever go through the horror and degradation the slaves went through. Books like Copper Sun, educate new generations so that history does not repeat itself.

Reader's Annotation:
Amari is captured and forced into slavery in a foreign land. Will her spirit survive?

Bibliotherapeutic Uses:
Anyone who has survived horrific circumstances will benefit from reading this book. Amari's experiences are terrible and some would take the attitude that life is not worth living. This book shows the triumph of courage and persistence.

Genre:
Historical Fiction/Slavery

Why Book Included:
It is important for both genders to be represented in history.

The Book Thief

Zusak, Markus. The Book Thief. Listening Library: 2006. ISBN: 0739337270.

Plot Summary:
This is the story of Liesl Meminger. When the book begins in Germany in 1939, Liesl is nine years old and on a train traveling to her new foster parents house. On the trip her six year old brother dies. Liesel's life with her sickly mother and absent father is difficult, but she is not happy about living with foster parents and assumes her mother will be coming back for her. Liesl steals her first book near her brother's grave. It is a Grave Digging Handbook. Even though Liesl is not a good reader, she can't help taking the book. Life with her foster family, Hans and Rosa Hubermann is not bad. Rosa is all burrs and bristles, but deep down she cares for the little saumensch (pig in German), a term of endearment for Rosa. Hans spends a great deal of time teaching Liesl to read and helping her through the night. Liesl has terrible nightmares about her brother on a regular basis. Rudy Stiener is Liesl's neighbor and eventually best friend. They walk to school together and Rudy is usually vying for a kiss. Max Vandenburg is the son of a Jewish man who saved Han's life during the first World War. To repay the debt the Hubermanns hide Max in their basement to save him from the Jewish internment camps. Max and Liesl develop a strong bond over books and words. The book concludes in 1943 when Lielsl is fourteen years old.

Critical Evaluation:
The audio book is read by Allan Corduner and is riveting. The story is narrated by death which has an unsettling feel. The reader never really trusts that things are going to be okay because only negative is associated with the narrator. Not because Death's tone is negative or oppressive, it isn't, just simply because of who he is. Death is surprising in a couple of ways, first is his humanity. At different instances his heart aches and even he tires of the destruction and devastation of the war. Second is his use of colors which he needs as a distraction from the suffering of humans. The book is divided into eight parts, each part has a small list of what is featured in the following pages. Descriptive language is throughout the novel. Images are easy to conjure with such help from the author. The language also evokes emotion and reflection that I have not experienced in other books. Death's logical narration allows the simplicity and power of the story to come through without wading past unnecessary details. There aren't many books out there that deal with the experience of German citizens during World War II. Knowing the back story about Hitler and the war adds lays of understanding without adding more pages to the 552 page book. Markus Zusak explains that the idea for the book came from listening to his parents stories about their childhood in Germany and Austria. It is easy to see why this book was on so many best book list and a 2007 Michael Printz Honor Book.

Reader's Annotation:
We meet many different people through out our lifetime. In the end, we all meet death.

Bibliotherapeutic Uses:
We are all touched by tragedy at some point in our lives. Books like this help us navigate those difficult times.

Genre:
Historical Fiction/World War II and the Holocaust


Why I Included This Book:
I was intrigued that the book was narrated by death. This is one of the best books I have ever read.

The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing: Tratior to the Nation

Anderson, M. T., Read by Peter Francis James. The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing: Traitor to the Nation. Listening Library: 2006. ISBN: 9780739338629.

Summary:
Octavian and his mother Cassiopeia live with Mr. Gitney of the Novanglian College of Lucidity in Boston, Massachusetts before the Revolutionary War. Octavian knows no other life and is educated in the classics and music. He is shocked to find out that he and his mother are slaves, the property of Mr. Gitney, not guests. The subject of scientific experiments, Octavian's life is measured and recorded in minute detail down to weighing his daily bowel movements. Cassiopeia is a beauty and also musically gifted, she is sought after by the college's benefactor, Lord Cheldthorpe. The relationship seems enjoyable to all which is good news to Mr. Gitney, he wants Lord Cheldthorpe to continue his generous financial support. When the time comes for Lord Cheldthorpe to return to England he wants to take Cassiopeia as his mistress. She refuses to go unless she is his wife. An English Lord cannot marry an African slave without committing social suicide, something Lord Cheldthorpe is not willing to do. This refusal causes the lord to withdraw his financial support and life changes greatly for everyone at the Novanglian College of Lucidity, especially Octavian and his mother.

Evaluation:
This book is a Printz Award and National Book Award winner. Told from the perspective of Octavian, much of the detail has to be read between the lines in the beginning. As Octavian grows, so does our knowledge of the circumstances. Set in pre-revolutionary Boston, the political turmoil is in the background, but ever present. Much time is spent explaining the purpose and experiments of the Novanglian College of Lucidity. As interesting as the book is, I wonder how many teens will stick with it and connect with the subject matter.

Reader's Annotation:
Freedom doesn't always have to do with being free.

Bibliotherapeutic Uses:
Octavian and his mother are slaves and treated unfairly. They are not at liberty to come and go as they please. Teens may use this book to understand the institution of slavery better and the inter-workings of Colonial America.

Genre:
Historical Fiction

Why I Included This Book:
I wanted to have books from many different genres.