EAGLE DRUMS by Nasugraq Rainey Hopson

Eagle Drums by Nasugraq Rainey Hopson

Fantasy, Mythology, Native Americans, Indigenous People, Survival, Nature, Animals, Alaska, Friendship

Newbery Honor 2024

2023; 245 pages

Description

Kirkus Reviews starred (August 1, 2023)

The Iñupiaq origin story of the Messenger Feast and a boy who was kidnapped by eagles. Throughout Piŋa’s childhood, he was told haunting stories about the dangers of strangers, an unknown presence in the mountains near his family’s sod house, and his missing older brothers, Atau and Maliġu. His mother’s projection of his brothers’ successes onto him combined with his father’s silence, both expressions of their grieving, leave Piŋa wondering, “How can you compete with someone’s memories, anyway?” One day, Savik, who shape-shifts between man and golden eagle, offers Piŋa a choice: death or captivity. Piŋa reflects on the pain his death would cause his parents. He decides to go with Savik and try to return someday. The eagles teach Piŋa singing, drumming, and dancing. He also learns how to build a giant sod house and host a huge feast. The lessons aren’t easy, and his ego is challenged: “I learned not to lead with demands. I learned to lead with connections.” Piŋa struggles with fear and distrust instilled by his family, overcomes self-doubt, and becomes both “creator and learner.” This orally transmitted tale, once banned like the feast it describes, offers a deep connection to rich cultural teachings. Iñupiaq author and illustrator Hopson enhances the story with full-page color illustrations that visually connect readers with Piŋa’s journey and emphasize the importance of connections to nature, spiritual beings, and human relatives. A captivating tale filled with enduring lessons about overcoming the fear of others. (author’s note) (Folklore. 8-12)

My Comments

The beginning of this story is quiet, describing an Inupiaq family, their home, and the emotions following the disappearance of Pinja's two older brothers while hunting in the mountains. It quickly picks up, however, once the boy is captured by an eagle. Every detail from the story's beginning ties into the plot and the boy's feelings throughout the book.

The message of respect for life and community is emphasized, as well as the importance of creating a vision, setting goals, perseverance, and believing in oneself.

This story would lend itself well as a read-aloud and discussion book.

THE UNDERNEATH by Kathi Appelt

Animal Tales, Fantasy, Survival, Dogs, Cats, Bayou

Newbery Honor 2009, ALA Notable, Starred Reviews

320 pages. 

From the Publisher (Atheneum Books for Young Readers)
There is nothing lonelier than a cat who has been loved, at least for a while, and then abandoned on the side of the road.
A calico cat, about to have kittens, hears the lonely howl of a chained-up hound deep in the backwaters of the bayou. She dares to find him in the forest, and the hound dares to befriend this cat, this feline, this creature he is supposed to hate. They are an unlikely pair, about to become an unlikely family. Ranger urges the cat to hide underneath the porch, to raise her kittens there because Gar-Face, the man living inside the house, will surely use them as alligator bait should he find them. But they are safe in the Underneath...as long as they stay in the Underneath.

Kittens, however, are notoriously curious creatures. And one kitten's one moment of curiosity sets off a chain of events that is astonishing, remarkable, and enormous in its meaning. For everyone who loves Sounder, Shiloh, and The Yearling, for everyone who loves the haunting beauty of writers such as Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings, Flannery O'Connor, and Carson McCullers, Kathi Appelt spins a harrowing yet keenly sweet tale about the power of love -- and its opposite, hate -- the fragility of happiness and the importance of making good on your promises. (the publisher)

My Comments
An intriguing book. Gar-Face is terrifying so consider the reader. A lot of story threads that do manage to come together. Not an easy read. Give to kids who love old folk-tales with magic interwoven. A good read aloud.

MANIAC MAGEE by Jerry Spinelli

Fiction, Prejudice, Racism, Homelessness, Family, Strength

Newbery Award 1991; Boston Globe/Hornbook Award 1990
184 pages, 1990

Let's not forget to recommend this powerful, heartwarming book! It exemplifies the strength of innocence and truth. An uplifting story that will also make you want to cry.

"In this modern-day tall tale, Spinelli ( Dump Days ; Jason and Marceline ) presents a humorous yet poignant look at the issue of race relations, a rare topic for a work aimed at middle readers. Orphaned as an infant, Jerry Magee is reared by his feuding aunt and uncle until he runs away at age eight. He finds his way to Two Mills, Pa., where the legend of ``Maniac'' Magee begins after he scores major upsets against Brian Denehy, the star high school football player, and Little League tough guy, John McNab. In racially divided Two Mills, the Beales, a black family, take Maniac in, but despite his local fame, community pressure forces him out and he returns to living at the zoo. Park groundskeeper Grayson next cares for the boy, but the old man dies and Maniac moves into the squalid home of the McNabs, who are convinced a race war is imminent. After a showdown with his nemesis, Mars Bar, Maniac bridges the gap between the two sides of town and finally finds a home. Full of snappy street-talk cadences, this off-the-wall yarn will give readers of all colors plenty of food for thought. Ages 8-12" -Publishers Weekly May 1990

FLORA AND ULYSSES: THE ILLUMINATED ADVENTURES by Kate DiCamillo

Illustrated by K.G. Campbell

Animal Fantasy; Superheroes; Squirrels; Humor; Divorce
Newbery Winner 2014

"It begins, as the best superhero stories do, with a tragic accident that has unexpected consequences. The squirrel never saw the vacuum cleaner coming, but self-described cynic Flora Belle Buckman, who has read every issue of the comic book Terrible Things Can Happen to You!, is just the right person to step in and save him. What neither can predict is that Ulysses (the squirrel) has been born anew, with powers of strength, flight, and misspelled poetry -- and that Flora will be changed too, as she discovers the possibility of hope and the promise of a capacious heart. From #1 New York Times best-selling author Kate DiCamillo comes a laugh-out-loud story filled with eccentric, endearing characters and featuring an exciting new format -- a novel interspersed with comic-style graphic sequences and full-page illustrations, all rendered in black-and-white by up-and-coming artist K. G. Campbell." (From the publisher)

My Comments
A fun and incredibly creative book. I kept thinking, "How did DiCamillo ever come up with this story?" But it works! The reader sees the world from the perspective of the squirrel and Flora in a way that makes total sense.

That said, it's not for every reader. I would give it to kids who want to laugh and be surprised. There is a dark, almost Roald Dahl shadow to this story, however, in the relationship of Flora with her mother who has distanced herself from Flora. But there is resolution, love, and understanding at the end.

MRS. FRISBY AND THE RATS OF NIMH by Robert C. Brien

Old Favorite. Love, love, love this one!
animal fantasy; courage

"With nowhere else to turn, a field mouse asks the clever escaped lab rats living under the rosebush to help save her son, who lies in the path of the farmer's tractor, too ill to be moved." (Follett Description)

My Comments
'This story pulls you in with the gentle, but oh so brave and loyal little mouse, Mrs. Frisby. Old fashioned courage and family love. It's a tearjerker at the end. Beautiful descriptive writing.

THREE TIMES LUCKY by Sheila Turnage

Mystery and Detective Stories

From the Publisher:

Newbery honor winner, New York Times bestseller, Edgar Award Finalist, and E.B. White Read-Aloud Honor book.

"A hilarious Southern debut with the kind of characters you meet once in a lifetime

Rising sixth grader Miss Moses LoBeau lives in the small town of Tupelo Landing, NC, where everyone's business is fair game and no secret is sacred. She washed ashore in a hurricane eleven years ago, and she's been making waves ever since. Although Mo hopes someday to find her "upstream mother," she's found a home with the Colonel--a café owner with a forgotten past of his own--and Miss Lana, the fabulous café hostess. She will protect those she loves with every bit of her strong will and tough attitude. So when a lawman comes to town asking about a murder, Mo and her best friend, Dale Earnhardt Johnson III, set out to uncover the truth in hopes of saving the only family Mo has ever known.

Full of wisdom, humor, and grit, this timeless yarn will melt the heart of even the sternest Yankee." Dial Books for Young Readers & Titlewave

It took me a few pages to settle into this story, but I was soon swept into the murder mystery and the colorful characters inhabiting this small town and local cafe. Good sixth grade mystery or Newbery choice.

BOMB: THE RACE TO BUILD AND STEAL THE WORLD'S MOST DANGEROUS WEAPON by Steve Sheinkin

Nonfiction; atomic bomb; world war II
2013 Newbery Honor book

This is an absolutely riveting book. An excellent choice for middle and high schoolers. It would pair well with Master of Deceit: J. Edgar Hoover and America in the Age of Lies by Marc Aronson.

From the Publisher: "In December of 1938, a chemist in a German laboratory made a shocking discovery: When placed next to radioactive material, a Uranium atom split in two. That simple discovery launched a scientific race that spanned 3 continents. In Great Britain and the United States, Soviet spies worked their way into the scientific community; in Norway, a commando force slipped behind enemy lines to attack German heavy-water manufacturing; and deep in the desert, one brilliant group of scientists was hidden away at a remote site at Los Alamos. This is the story of the plotting, the risk-taking, the deceit, and genius that created the world's most formidable weapon. This is the story of the atomic bomb."

Bomb is a 2012 National Book Awards finalist for Young People's Literature.
Bomb is a 2012 Washington Post Best Kids Books of the Year title.
Bomb is a 2013 Newbery Honor book.

MOON OVER MANIFEST by Clare Vanderpool

Historical Fiction; 1929 Depression; Mystery; 2011 Newbery Gold Medal

Quiet book. I enjoyed it and was pulled in as the story unfolded and the intrigue increased. It would be a good read aloud and class discussion book.

Horn Book (Spring 2011)

"It's 1936 and Abilene's father, himself looking for work, sends her to his hometown of Manifest, Kansas, to live with Pastor Shady, a bootlegger-turned-preacher. There Abilene uncovers secrets about her family and the entire community. The setting jumps between the Depression era and WWI; mysterious letters and enlightening newspaper articles help set the scene for this captivating tale." Horn Book from http://titlewave.com

WHEN YOU REACH ME by Rebecca Stead

Fiction, space and time. 2010 Newbery Gold Medal.

I have to read Wrinkle in Time again! This book would be fantastic for discussion. Loved it.

Booklist starred (June 1, 2009 (Vol. 105, No. 19))

"Grades 4-7. If this book makes your head hurt, you’re not alone. Sixth-grader Miranda admits that the events she relates make her head hurt, too. Time travel will do that to you. The story takes place in 1979, though time frames, as readers learn, are relative. Miranda and Sal have been best friends since way before that. They both live in a tired Manhattan apartment building and walk home together from school. One day everything changes. Sal is kicked and punched by a schoolmate and afterward barely acknowledges Miranda. Which leaves her to make new friends, even as she continues to reread her ratty copy of A Wrinkle in Time and tutor her mother for a chance to compete on The $20,000 Pyramid. She also ponders a puzzling, even alarming series of events that begins with a note: “I am coming to save your friend’s life, and my own . . . you must write me a letter.” Miranda’s first-person narrative is the letter she is sending to the future. Or is it the past? It’s hard to know if the key events ultimately make sense (head hurting!), and it seems the whys, if not the hows, of a pivotal character’s actions are not truly explained. Yet everything else is quite wonderful. The ’70s New York setting is an honest reverberation of the era; the mental gymnastics required of readers are invigorating; and the characters, children and adults, are honest bits of humanity no matter in what place or time their souls rest. Just as Miranda rereads L’Engle, children will return to this." Booklist Review from Follett's Titlewave: http://titlewave.com

THE MOSTLY TRUE ADVENTURES OF HOMER P. FIGG by Rodman Philbrick

Civil War; Adventure; Newbery Honor.
Kirkus Review (December 1, 2008)
"Shortly after this lively comic yarn opens, Homer, a half-starved orphan boy who lives in rural Maine with his mean-spirited uncle and 17-year-old brother Harold, helplessly watches as Harold is sworn into the Union Army. After finding out that their avaricious uncle sold his underage nephew to substitute for a richer neighbor in the Civil War, 12-year-old Homer takes off on a rescue mission. On the way, Homer is kidnapped by some nefarious slave-catchers, joins a traveling medicine show and holds up the Union colors during the Battle of Gettysburg. Bursting with vividly voiced characters and descriptions so crisp they practically crunch, the story is trenchantly narrated in the first person by Homer, a resourceful, sharp-witted child who is never without a lie in his pocket. Despite the overall comic tone, Philbrick makes serious points about the evil of slavery, the horrors of war, inexplicable bravery, ethical decision-making and the need to move forward in one's life. (Historical fiction. 9-12)"

I had questions at first about whom I would recommend this to since the voice of the main character is very much in a 'tall tale,' mode; I wondered if middle school students could relate (IMHO after working daily with this age group). I changed my mind, however, a chapter or two into the story. Encourage students to stick with it a bit. Kirkus review above is a very accurate description.
Rodman Philbrick website http://www.rodmanphilbrick.com/