history

Blackout Book Club

December 31, 2022 By Annette1 2 Comments

Disclosure: I received this complimentary product (Blackout Book Club) through Nuts About Books. Affiliate Links will be used, thank you for your support of my blog, costs you nothing to do so, and is so much appreciated.

So it was kinda funny. I often take my review books to work and my co-workers would often raise their eyebrows at me when… I would cry out “NO NO NO!!! That can’t happen!!” Or I would start laughing at something Ginny would say or do. I often received comments that “Annette, you are too invested in that story!” I would just grin and say “A good story gets you invested!” I will heartily recommend The Blackout Book Club to you! Go out… READ IT! Laugh, think, read… and be inspired to read more!

The basic details of The Blackout Book Club

Title: The Blackout Book Club
Author: Amy Lynn Green
Publisher: Bethany House
Pages: 384
Genre: historical fiction, Christian historical fiction, WW2 historical fiction,
Intended Audience: Adult, young adult,
Additions: book club questions
Reviewed for: Nuts About Books
Formats available: Kindle, Audio, Hardcover, Softcover
Received: Softcover

Author: Amy Lynn Green

Amy Lynn Green is the author of several historical fiction novels. I also reviewed her novel The Lines Between Us. She does an excellent job of bringing history to life within the lives of people. She’s worked as a publisher, teaches at writing conferences, and generally just loves to write and read. On her website you can learn the history behind The Blackout Book Club.

About The Blackout Book Club

1942, Avis’s brother heads off to war, she takes up his position as librarian in small-town Maine. How can she help the town and her library? Answer: Start a book club! Complete with minutes, stories, secrets, and more. Discover the battle against U-boats, Wartime solutions, and see history come to life.

Digging Deeper!

You will love the characters in Ms. Green’s latest novel. Ginny made me howl with laughter, Avis tried so hard and became something more. Louise, took her time to grow on my heart, and my heart ached for Martina and her secrets. You’ll meet new characters like Freddy, Patrick, Russell, Gio, Oliver, Rosa and many more. Some you will love and others, well, your thoughts will be less tender toward. 🙂 ALL will broaden your understanding of USA history and WW2.

Each chapter is written by a different main character. Through these chapters we witness different parts of history and catch glimpses into the secrets of each person. Some secrets are hard and are held close, but through friendship…. wow… it’s amazing what good friends help each other do.

Minutes are taken for the Blackout Book Club. Mostly written by Avis, and occasionally by other members. It was rather fun reading the minutes!

Letters to friends are written, hardship and loss experienced, the realities of war lived out. You’ll find the writing clear and inviting to read. Nothing complicated, just a friendly story of people learning and becoming more among the stress of war.

Should you read it?

Oh Please YES!!! Add it to your bookshelves, loan it out to your friends, and enjoy a good read. Don’t expect yourself to fall in love with all the characters with The Blackout Book Club, and there is a chance you won’t love some of the characters I did. But expect to laugh, expect to hold your breathe in anticipation, and expect to learn more of USA history during WW2. It’s a good thing that!

As much as this is called Christian historical fiction I didn’t see faith playing a real role. Did some of the characters possess faith in God? For sure, but you can find that in any book. To me it’s just a well-written story about a small USA town dealing with the effects of WW2.

Have your highschool students read it as they learn more about some of the things the USA did to help in the battle of WW2. More was done then simply sending soldiers off to fight in the war. And seeing history lived out is fantastic. When they are done, they could pick just one aspect and dig into it deeper too! (if that’s what you want from them). Your choice right? 🙂

Irving Berlin

December 14, 2022 By Annette1 2 Comments

Disclosure: I received this complimentary product (Irving Berlin) through Arcadia Publishing. Affiliate Links will be used, thank you for your support of my blog, costs you nothing to do so, and is so much appreciated.

Irving Berlin is a well-known composer that perhaps you might like to know better. This time of year we often sing I’m dreaming of a white Christmas. Wouldn’t it be great if you could introduce yourself and/or your children to who he is? Paul M. Kaplan walks us through this rags-to-riches story of America’s most popular commercial composer in Irving Berlin: from Penniless Immigrant to America’s songwriter.

The Basic Details

Title: Irving Berlin: from penniless immigrant to America’s songwriter
Author: Paul M. Kaplan
Publisher: Pelican Books
Pages: 144
Intended Audience: 11-17 years, writing level grade 6-8
Formats: Kindle, Paperback
Reviewed for: Arcadia Publishing
Format received: paperback

About the Author

I was actually unable to discover much about Paul M Kaplan. I did learn that this is his seventh published title and second biography for young people. You can catch a list of his books on GoodReads.

About the book

Irving Berlin and his family fled anti-Jewish Russia before he went on to become one of America’s most popular commercial composers. As a self-taught pianist, Berlin is responsible for many hit songs such as “God Bless America,” “White Christmas,” as well as the musical Annie Get Your Gun. Author Paul Kaplan traces the path of the man behind the songs through this rags-to-riches story and Berlin’s place in the music business in the early twentieth century, including the tragedies that befell him on this journey.

Digging Deeper into Irving Berlin

Fifteen chapters round out this 144 page biography of Irving Berlin. Written in an easy to read style with short chapters and loads of pictures.

Chapters are aptly named and stick to the topic and follow easily after each other. I like a biography that follows a life historically and doesn’t jump back and forth. Makes it easier for younger readers too! 🙂

At the close of the book you’ll find a glossary, notes, and references pages. Each of the 45 images clearly states where it came from and helped bring Berlin’s history to life.

My thoughts

So I initially thought this, I can write this review without reading this book. Looks like a decent book, the couple pages I read in the middle read well, ergo easy review. I had a cold though and needed something to read, so I started at the beginning. Lo and behold, I couldn’t put Irving Berlin down. It was so interesting. I love a well-done biography, don’t you?

I learned about immigration, pluggers, singing waiters and more. Learning how the music industry changed over the years was intriguing, and helped me understand a bit of where we are today. Irving Berlin (formally Israel Baline) has led a fascinating life that all started with loving to listen to his dad sing.

I can easily see Mr. Kaplan’s book being used as a biography for youth in grades 7-10. It would be good to have them read it and pick one theme from Berlin’s life to research. It’s good to know more about a country’s history don’t you find?

Seen and Unseen

December 3, 2022 By Annette1 2 Comments

Disclosure: I received this complimentary product (Seen and Unseen) through Raincoast Books. Affiliate Links will be used, thank you for your support of my blog, costs you nothing to do so, and is so much appreciated.

World War 2 was a hard time in history, it brought out the ugly in too many people for a variety of reasons. Hitler brought out the ugly in his determination to create a master race and encourage his people to fight for him. The attack by Japan (at Pearl Harbor) brought out the ugly in the American populace toward Japanese and Japanese/Americans. This is not to say that some beauty didn’t occur during the war either, but sometimes, the biggest thing seen is the ugly.

The Basics of Seen and Unseen

Title: Seen and Unseen: What Dorothea Lange, Toyo Miyatake, and Ansel Adam’s Photographs reveal about the Japanese American Incarceration.
Author: Elizabeth Partridge
Illustrator: Lauren Tamaki
Publisher: Chronicle Books
Formats Available: Kindle, Audiobook, Hardcover
Received: Advanced Readers Copy
Pages: 132
Intended Audience: 10-14 years, 5-9 grade
Reviewed for: Raincoast Books

Author Information: Author of 18 books, this American born former acupuncturist is now a full-time writer. On her website she notes that she is “drawn to pivotal moments in our American history that have been erased from our narrative.” This story fits within that interest. Most of her books are geared for children and middle school readers.

About Seen and Unseen: Three photographers. Three perspectives. And through the lenses of their cameras, three different views of one bitter chapter of American history. What can photographers teach us about the Japanese American Incarceration? Dorothea Lange: hired by the government as a photographic documentor. Toyo Miyatake smuggled photographic equipment into camps to show the true conditions. Ansel Adams was hired to take photos, he was determined to show the resilience of the incarcerated.

Digging Deeper

Three Photographers, three different perspectives, one section for each journalistic effort. Photographs and line drawings fill the pages. Since I received an advanced reader’s copy, most of the pages I saw were in black and white. A few were in colour.

You’d think happily smiling faces would mean things were good in the camp, but as time went on in the camps, the incarcerated residents found ways to escape camp for a bit. And sometimes, smiles are put into places to hide fear within (which you’ll learn with the photos by Adams. Imagine… not knowing what you did wrong, and suddenly you lose everything and are stuck in a camp in the middle of nowhere. Treated poorly, feed basic camp rations, surrounded by barb wire, etc. Having your loyalty questioned continually and not knowing what you can say or do to prove yourselves. The fear and anger that would be part of your lives there. Imagine what that would do to you and your families. You will see this lived out in the pages of this photographic journal.

I very much appreciated that this journal was not just a series of photos, but actually told the story of what happened with whole families. American families, with American-born children. Trapped away from their lives, with no choices.

Aren’t the pages filled in with colour nice? The shades of orange highlighted over the yellow and black backgrounds. It feels very oriental, and yet, not. Respectful of the people involved, and yet showing the hardship they went through. I wish the whole book had been done in colour!

Helpful Additions

At the close of the book you’ll find a very helpful section that gives a bit more information into the history. The section includes

After the War
Why Words Matter
Citizenship violated
Civil liberties and the Constitution
Biographies of the photographers
Notes from the author
Notes from the illustrator
The damage of the model minority myth
Photo Credits and Notes

Throughout this section, youth are helped to think through these issues. To consider the government’s actions, even despite the anxieties of the time.

The photos each of these journalists took has a different perspective to it. They each saw different things in this incarceration. Some the unfairness of it all, others the stark reality of life, and yet others a shaded perspective of resilience.

So, add it to your history lessons?

It is evident throughout that the author is unhappy with the US government for how they treated the Japanese Americans. That she wants her readers to stop and think about how the government acts. She uses language, drawings, and photos to help her readers think and to question what happened.

And books like these are helpful in presenting a broader picture than what you might find in a textbook. Combining this read with other middle school books such as Displacement and This Light Between Us will present a broader, richer experience for students. This fuller experience allows students to form a deeper understanding of the issues and become better critical thinkers.

Elizabeth Partridge did an excellent job of not only showing us history but also telling the story of how the authors got involved and how they were impacted. Seen and Unseen is worth using in your American and WW2 history studies.

The Boy Behind The Door

November 19, 2022 By Annette1 2 Comments

Disclosure: I received this complimentary product (The Boy Behind the Door) through Ascot Media Group. Affiliate Links will be used, thank you for your support of my blog, costs you nothing to do so, and is so much appreciated.

For those who don’t know, I love history (it’s not the only think I love, but it’s up there eh?). Anyways, books that tell a story, bringing history life… makes for a very good read you know? The Boy behind the Door is a tale sending us into the life of a short Jewish Lad. We take a front-row seat to his experiences as Germany swarmed over The Netherlands. We see his bewilderment as growing restrictions are placed upon the Jewish population. Learn how Salomon Kook escaped the Nazis in this short, historically-based, fiction read.

The Facts

Title: The Boy Behind the Door: How Saloman Kool Escapes the Nazis.
Publisher: Amsterdam Publishers
Reviewed For: Ascot Media Group
Pages: 194
Format Received: Softcover
Genre: History, WW2, Teen and Young Adult Survival, Jewish Literature, WW2 Fiction
Intended Audience: Teen, Young Adult

Author Information:

David Tabatsky is a writer, editor and performing artist based in New York City. David’s two passions have driven his career as a performer and writer. He has performed as an actor, clown and juggler around the world, in venues such as Lincoln Center, Radio City Music Hall, the Beacon Theatre, throughout Europe and Japan, and most notably at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival.

The Story:

Inspired by a real boy and real events shares the story of a Dutch teenager who survived World War II by eluding the Nazis time and time again as German forces occupied the Netherlands. Learn the story of Salomon Kool and how through the kindness of others, and his own ingenuity, he survived in Nazi invasion of The Netherlands.

Looking More Closely at The Boy Behind the Door

Short chapters and careful character development fill the pages of this quick read. I won’t say the reading is always easy. But it was very much eye-opening. I had not considered the war from the perspective of a Jewish family, particularly that of a young man. Seeing through the eyes of a just past childhood all the limitations and dislike Jewish families faced. Seeing how the Nazis worked to destroy families. Not always easy. But then seeing, oh, seeing people willing to help. People willing to risk everything for people they didn’t even know. How careful they had to be, and yet, risks taken.

Written from the point of view of Salomon so you get to understand the ramifications of Nazi “enforcement policies” on the Jewish population. Imagine not being able to play in a park, or watch a movie, go to visit your favourite barber, or not being able to walk on the sunny side of the street. Things that affected real children in a dangerous time in history. So very hard.

Should you read it?

Despite the plethora of WW2 literature invading the bookshelves lately making it hard to choose what to read, The Boy Behind the Door shows a different perspective. Seeing the war through the eyes of a child-man is eye-opening. Well worth reading, particularly if you want to learn more about the war.

This would be a great addition to students learning about the war. I can see teens reading and then discussing or writing papers about various topics raised. It’s not always easy, but you know what? War and the brutalization of a people is NOT an easy topic. Learning about how hard it was perhaps might open eyes and ears so it never happens again! Wouldn’t it be good if we could prevent THIS history from happening again?

The Orchard by Beverly Lewis

October 22, 2022 By Annette1 2 Comments

Disclosure: I received this complimentary product (The Orchard) through Nuts About Books. Affiliate Links will be used, thank you for your support of my blog, costs you nothing to do so, and is so much appreciated.

Beverly Lewis is a popular author in the Christian fiction set. She uses the Amish community of her childhood to inspire her work. Romance, faith, and working through salvation issues feature as predominant themes in her work (at least in her works that I have read). The Orchard does not deviate from that path. If you like the work of Ms. Lewis, you will enjoy this work featuring twins Ellie and Evan.

The Basic Facts

The Orchard is a 352 softcover work of fiction by Beverly Lewis. She is a prolific author and you can learn more about her and her books on her website. Bethany House Publishers put together a lovely cover for this latest Lewis novel.

Written during the Vietnam war, we are witness to the tensions in the Amish community and the Englishers about being conscientious objectors. The Vietnam War was a time of protests and high tension in the United States. Ms. Lewis touches on some of the difficulties of this time period. People fleeing over the border, the conscription, the protests, the anger against the Amish community and more. Not written with the intent to sensationalize, but woven into the story as a natural part of the struggles of the day. These struggles are an integral part of how this story of the twins plays out.

Learning more about The Orchard by Beverly Lewis

A standard adult fiction presentation in a softcover format. You’ll find it available in four formats: Audio, Kindle, hardcover and paperback. The text is a reasonable size for reading, but I could easily see seniors using a magnifying glass to expand the lettering.

The chapters are ornamented with numbers and what I think are apple blossoms. A single blossom marks changes within a chapter. These changes might be a letter received, a time change, or perhaps a change in character focus.

The story is written in a user-friendly manner, an easy-going story that, is fairly easy to predict where it will go next. A relaxing read on a Sunday afternoon. Faith is evident throughout. Likeable characters fill the pages.

Would I recommend it?

I’m not a huge fan of Christian fiction written around the Amish community. I find them fairly predictable and nothing that happened in this book really surprised me. Well okay, one thing surprised me and that was an incident that happened with Sol. But as soon as it happened it was like “OH, yeah, that was necessary for the rest of the story to fit”.

That said, I know a number of women who would love reading this. It’s light Christian fiction that encourages us to think about pacifism and what it means to us. Not always as easy a decision as you might think. The Orchard by Beverly Lewis is a feel-good story, with a strong faith element. It contained just enough controversy to make it an interesting read. The characters felt real, and I could well imagine how hard it was for Evan’s parents and seeing how their boy reacted to faith issues. Observing them working through their pain (and anger) felt familiar to me. It was a good reminder to not count out God’s work in the lives of the wayward.

Homeschool Connection?

If I were doing a unit on the Vietnam War with its protests, or just on pacifism/conscientious objectors I would be inclined to have my students read through this novel. My goal would be to have them write a critical response to how the characters responded. Seeing real-life struggles is pivotal in helping youth think through issues.

Becoming Beatrix

June 15, 2022 By Annette1 4 Comments

Disclosure: I received this complimentary product (Becoming Beatrix Potter) through Independent Publishers Group. Affiliate Links will be used, thank you for your support of my blog, costs you nothing to do so, and is so much appreciated. 🙂

Don’t you just love the works of Beatrix Potter? Her rabbits, mice, and squirrels along with all their antics? If you would like to learn more about her life, hobbies and success, Becoming Beatrix is sure to delight you. I invite you to come and learn more!

The highlights of Becoming Beatrix

Becoming Beatrix: the life of Beatrix Potter and the World of Peter Rabbit was researched by Amy M O’Quinn. Nine chapters round out this 176-page hardcover book with dust cover. Without the dustcover it has a plain white cover. Black and white photos are scattered throughout. Published by Chicago Review Press with children in grade 3-8 being the target audience.

Looking Deeper

Easy-to-read text, along with illustrations and black and white photos, make this a good read for youth in grades 3-8. This children’s biography focuses more on Ms. Potter’s life and hobbies, than on her actual ability to write. Mr. O’Quinn focuses on helping her readers understand Potter’s life in light of the historical period she lived in. For instance, she points out how an almost 40-year-old woman still needed her parent’s permission to be married. But that is how it was done at the time.

The images used were not all strictly of Potter’s life, but also of the history of the day. You’ll see photos of sheep, an illustration of a victorian nature study drawing, as other images. Most images could be directly correlated with Beatrix.

Each chapter starts with a Potter quote and is illustrated in her style. Most of these quotes came from letters she wrote.

Should you get this?

Who doesn’t love the world of Peter Rabbit? Seriously, it’s such a good series to read with little children (am sometimes biggers as well!). If you are doing a unit study on Beatrix Potter you will find “Becoming Beatrix” to be a well-researched book. It is full of images and interesting tidbits about her life.

So yes, I will encourage you to read Ms. O’Quinn’s biography on Beatrix Potter. Her tone is quietly informative showcasing not only Ms. Potter’s written skills but other life endeavors as well.

Other Beatrix Potter Books

Over my reviewing and homeschooling years I’ve used beatrix potter books.

The Art of Beatrix Potter is a beautiful book. You will not want to miss this one and would be a perfect companion to “becoming Beatrix”. Amazon Link.

Beatrix Potter and her Paint Box. a fun book to read with your children. Amazon Link.

More Than My Scars

May 21, 2022 By Annette1 5 Comments

Disclosure: I received this complimentary product (More than My Scars) through Nuts about Books. Affiliate Links will be used, thank you for your support of my blog, costs you nothing to do so, and is so much appreciated.

I did not know the story of Kechi Okwuchi before I read More Than My Scars. I enjoyed reading her story, but at the end, I felt like I wanted to know the rest of the story. Like I just got a glimpse of God in action in her life and wanted to know more. That’s a good thing yes? To want to know more of her story?

Learning about More than My Scars

More than My Scars: The Power of Perseverance, unrelenting faith, and deciding what defines you is a 240-page autobiography by Kechi Okwuchi. Baker Books put together this soft-cover tome. Because of her story, I actually took the time to look up the Golden buzzer she got at America’s Got Talent.

Kechi is one of two survivors of a plane crash in Nigeria. She was a 16-year-old Nigerian student at the time and was burnt over most of her body. In More than My Scars she talks about her healing process from that incident. She takes us up to her win of the Golden Buzzer at AGT.

Looking Deeper

Three sections divide up Kechi’s autobiography. Each covers a different part of her recovery process. We are brought into her pain, her dreams, her growing awareness of God’s call on her life, and her family’s love and care for her.

Each of the sections is introduced with a dark page with white writing. Very simple and straightforward.

You’ll find the font easy to read and nicely laid out. A standard adult read. 🙂

The story of Kechi and her recovery is interesting. I found her relationship with her family to very tight. They all had a strong bond with each other. Her mother proved to be stalwart in her healing process. It was eye-opening to me all the processes a burn victim needs to go through. I can see how some people would be overcome by the pain and just sink away. This is course, makes Kechi determination to keep fighting a remarkable feat.

Kudos to Ms. Okwuchi for using the hard things that happened in her life to effectuate change. Advocating against bullying, speaking on the behalf of various people groups, and speaking of her faith in God.

Should you read it?

More Than My Scars is worth reading if you are looking for a tale of inspiration and hope. It is most excellent to see God at work in the lives of his people. It was incredibly inspiring to see God at work as she was healing. Meeting her best friend’s mom the way she did was all God’s timing. How she learned to make her Mom’s faith her own faith… was most excellent indeed. So definitely worth the reading.

I did struggle with two things, well, maybe three.

When I finished the story I thought… but there’s got to be more to tell? This biography leaves so much yet to be said. There’s got to be more to her life than healing from her burns and her showing on AGT.
She expressed anger that her mom didn’t love her with everything she had. That her mom had the audacity to love Christ more than her. This caused me to take a step back from the story and I just couldn’t connect well with her.
The dreams. I never really know what to do with the dreams that people have and how they interpret them. Does God work through people’s dreams? I think so, I wouldn’t want to limit his actions in this. But he’s also given us his word and that just speaks more clearly. The lack of God’s word being used as support just didn’t sit well as a result.

Overall though, a well-written story from the point of the view of the burn victim, and how God used the events in her life to draw her into his heart.

history

Blackout Book Club

The basic details of The Blackout Book Club