NCTE Annual Convention

Philadelphia
NCTE Annual Convention

Reasons for and Advantages of Breathing by Lydia Peelle

This book of short stories is amazing.

The Private Lives of Pippa Lee by Rebecca Miller

A Gate at the Stairs by Lorrie Moore

South of Broad by Pat Conroy

When it comes time to choose the last book of the summer, I am always torn. So little time, so many books - as the saying goes. But when I read an article in Southern Living Magazine about the new Pat Conroy novel set in Charleston, South Carolina, I went out and bought the book the day it went on sale. I'm a sucker for Conroy's blowsy prose. This book is supposed to be Conroy's love song to Charleston, and it is. The plot drags on, the characters are caricatures (the Southern debutante, the first Black Police Chief, the buxom film star), but my friend Anne once said reading Conroy is like reading whipped cream. So put a cherry on the summer! It has been a great summer for reading.

The Help by Kathryn Stockett

A fitting bookend to our summer civil rights pilgrimage seemed to be The Help, which is currently #2 on the NY Times book. The title refers to the African American house servants who made many lives so comfortable for Southern women in the early 1960s. Stockett is a graduate of The University of Alabama and this book is her way of making peace with the women who aided her childhood, and who she never really thought to interview about their own lives, as her main character does in this wonderful, realistic novel. This will be an addition to book lists for my students in the future.

Wise Blood by Flannery O'Connor

Having traveled to Flannery O'Connor's Andalusia Farm in Milledgeville, Georgia, and since Wise Blood was listed on the Free Response AP Literature and Composition book list, I decided to give it a try. I was a bit curious since, when I told the curator of the O'Connor property that the book was listed on this year's test, his response was -
"I can't imagine any state allowing the teaching of that book. Not here in the South!" Well all of O'Connor's typical freak show of characters are present in this amorally religious, Southern Gothic novel. I've have decided I'll definitely never teach it, but we did buy the John Huston film to watch someday. My favorite O'Connor quote - “WHENEVER I’M ASKED WHY SOUTHERN WRITERS PARTICULARLY HAVE A PENCHANT FOR WRITING ABOUT FREAKS, I SAY IT IS BECAUSE WE ARE STILL ABLE TO RECOGNIZE ONE.”

For other glimpses into our travels this summer -

www.lackeysroadtrip.tumblr.com

The Selected Works of T. S. Spivet by Reif Larsen

This book is so unique, I don't know where to begin. Tecumseh Sparrow Spivet is a twelve year old cartographer. His drawings fill the margins of the story which takes him from his home in Montana to the Smithsonian Institute in Washington, D. C. Stephen King described the book as a cross between Mark Twain and Little Miss Sunshine, and I would have to agree. There an awesome
website for the book.

The Girl Who Played With Fire by Steig Larsson

I was a big fan of The Girl With the Dragon Tattoolast year, so I anxiously awaited the sequel. Although crime fiction is not normally my thing, these books are entertaining, page turners and I loved this book as well. Of course they are the next Da Vinci Cods; of course I can see them being made into movies. But they make for a great summer read.

Little Bee by Chris Cleave

Mostly a one day beach read, Little Bee is one of two narrators in this gripping story about a Nigerian refugee who finds her life dependent upon a British magazine socialite.

Ravens by George Dawes Green

Another road trip book - this time on audio. Ravens is a twisted tale of two sickos from, where else, Ohio, who hold a family hostage to insure their split of a lottery win. Funny and pretty sick, in a Chuck Palinuik sort of way.

The Potential Hazardss of Hester Day: A Novel in 1400 Miles by Mercedes Helnwein

Thanks to the public library in Strongsville and their great display of road trip books, we picked up this gem before heading to Alabama for the annual "dead author" Lackey road trip. I read the book aloud as David drove and it was a hoot. Hester graduates from high school, impulsively marries the odd guy she has met in the public library, kidnaps her nephew and heads across country in an RV. Perfect road trip reading. Hester has the voice and gumption of Juno. We loved this book.

The Road Home by Rose Tremain

I had read about this Whitbread winner and decided because it is about a restaurant I'd give it a try. It is a somewhat sad story of Lev, who flees Eastern Europe for London, where he works in a posh restaurant before encountering all sorts of road blocks on the road that eventually leads him home.

Olive Kitteridge by Elizabeth Strout

Our July book club book was this year's Pulitzer winner and the best book I have read in a while. Olive is the central character in a series of interlocking short stories. I would consider teaching one or more of these in AP - maybe in relation to Winesburg, Ohio

Breakfast with Buddha by Roland Merullo

This was a suggestion from Mary Pat Murphy, my yoga teacher. It is a road trip book about a man named Otto Ringling, who travels to North Dakota to take care of his parents estate following their deaths in an auto accident. He had assumed his psychologically "interesting" sister would be making the trip with him, but she was busy investigating past lives of her clients. Instead, she sent her guru, Volvo Rinpoche, along for the ride. I found the book especially interesting because they visit Chagrin Falls and a few other Ohio sites on their cross country trip, which, of course, softens Otto and helps him see the landscape through new eyes.

The Hot House Flower and the 9 Plants of Desire by Margot Berwin

It isn't what you think! I saw an ad for the book in the Times Book Review and read that Julia Roberts is going to star in the movie version. I read a few reviews which sounded promising and ordered it from the library. It is not the steamy, fluffy romance novel that the title suggests. Instead, I would call it the botanical equivalent of Indiana Jones. Protagonist Lila Nova buys a bird-of-paradise from a ruggedly handsome plant man who introduces her to the myth of the Nine Plants of Desire. When she meets Armand, Laundromat owner, who claims to have all nine plants in his back room, the plot takes off. Lila travels to the Yucatan, encounters scorpions and snakes, meets a few more mysterious characters and finally returns to New York in this mysterious, entertaining adventure novel. Beach reading at its best.

A Pigeon and a Boy by Meir Shalev

This lovely novel by one of Israel's most celebrated novelists is a story of the past and present of protagonist Yair Mendelsohn. Israel's 1948 war of independence and the role of homing messenger pigeons is interwoven with love stories of two sets of characters in two very different times.

The Piano Teacher by Janice Y.K. Lee

This debut novel by former Elle editor Janice Lee follows the life of Claire Pendleton, who is hired to give piano lessons to the child of a wealthy Chinese couple. Both love story and Chinese military history, I enjoyed this sweeping saga.

Apologize, Apologize by Elizabeth Kelly

The book jacket claimed that Kelly's debut novel begs comparison with John Irving and I would have to agree. Protagonist Collie Flanagan's family contains raging drunks and selfish millionaires who cannot escape the heartbreaks of life. Kelly's quick pacing keeps the story moving from one agonizing moment to the next. The only flaw for me was the ending which, like life, did not offer much resolution.

Their Dogs Came With Them by Helena Maria Viramontes

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I am just back from grading AP Literature and Composition test essays in Louisville, Kentucky where the professional night speaker this year was Helena Maria Viramontes. She read from this novel and from Under the Feet of Jesus, as well as entertained the crowd of teachers and college professors with her stories about growing up one of nine children in Los Angeles. Their Dogs Came With Them follows several separate characters through the mid-1960's turmoil in L.A. The four female protagonists, Turtle, Ana, Ermila and Tranquilina, struggle with gang violence, family issues, Civil Rights, gender issues and mental illness in this sometimes violent, sometimes lyrical novel.

Callisto by Torsten Krol

Torsten Krol, whoever you are, I loved Callisto. Published under a bizarre pseudonym, this raucous novel was described as a modern-day Catch-22. Protagonist, Odell Deefus, is the unluckiest bumbler to ever have his car breakdown on a country road. Deefus stumbles from a murder scene, into espionage and finally spends time in a terrorist holding cell before his travels end. This crazy novel entertains.

Welcome to the Departure Lounge by Meg Federico

Meg Federico applies her journalistic flair to chronicle the hilarious and heartbreaking escapades of her 80-year-old mother and step-father. Caring for aging parents is a subject on my mind a lot these days, and Federico made me grateful for the fact that at least my mother hasn’t woken up in a hospital screaming, “I demand an autopsy”. At least not yet!

Geek Love by Katherine Dunn

I like to read along with my students when they are reading their self-selected American novels, so I chose Geek Love, a novel I have picked up and put back down many times in the bookstore. I would describe it as a cross between John Irving and Chuck Palahniuk, heavy on the Palahniuk. I was alternately fascinated and disgusted by this story about a family of circus freaks and their freakish behaviors. Crystal Lil and Art Binewski breed an assortment of children - Arturo the Aqua Boy who performs from a tank; Siamese twins who play four-handed piano; Oly, the narrator, who is an albino dwarf; and Chick, who they initially try to leave on the side of the road because he is "normal" just as his telekinetic powers are revealed. I've read some pretty weird fiction, but this National Book Award Finalist is way, way out there.

A Thousand Days in Venice by Marlena de Blasi

Spring break took us to Delaware to reconnect with family and spend a few days near the ocean. I wanted a true escape from my normal reading, and A Thousand Days in Venice proved to be just perfect. Marlena de Blasi was a food writer visiting in Venice, when a handsome man approached her, told her she was the most beautiful woman he had ever seen and promised to pursue her. Their love story is accompanied by recipes and lovely descriptions of Venice. I was drawn into the beautiful landscapes and am excited to read the continuation in A Thousand Days in Tuscany.

Going to See the Elephant by Rodes Fishburn

I was given this book by a fellow AP grader I met in Louisville last year who teaches at Emory and Henry College in Virginia where Fishburn went to school. What a pleasant spring break surprise this novel turned out to be. Journalist Slater Brown arrives in San Francisco and takes a job at a failing newspaper, The Morning Trumpet. He quickly realizes that he needs to find great stories in order to keep his job, and through a serendipitous happening, he gains access to the secrets of the city. He meets and falls in love with a beautiful chess champion, wards off the evil politicians and finds a happily-ever-after solution to his personal unrest. I was enchanted by this little fable.