White Bicycle

The White Bicycle by Beverley Brenna

Taylor Jane is living in the south of France for the summer, with her mother, her mother’s boyfriend, and his two sons. The youngest son has cerebral palsy and Taylor is employed as his personal care assistant (that sounds better than babysitter.) She hopes that her mother and Alan Phoenix don’t get married this summer, because then they’d be family, and it wouldn’t be a real job she can put on her resume.

Taylor wants a professional resume so she can lead her own lie, without her mother’s constant watching. She yearns for the independence and freedom that most girls her age have, but Taylor doesn’t. Yet.

Taylor is autistic but by this point in her life she has learned many ways to cope with her anger and frustration. She uses a lot of these ways very consciously and walks us through such things as sending her anger through her feet. She also looks back on her early childhood to see if there are connections that can be made between then and now, but it gives the reader great insight into her mindset, but also her growth as a person.

This is the third book in a series and while it completely stands alone and you don’t need to read the other books, I fell so in love with Taylor that I can’t wait to read the other two to see where she was before France.

I love this book because while Taylor has autism and that causes some of the obstacles to her independance, it’s not really the focus of the story. Trying to break away from home while still loving your parents is a fairly universal story and delicate line to walk for every young adult. Taylor’s mom uses the autism both as part justification, part excuse for holding Taylor too close. (But not in an overbearing way-- Taylor’s mom is also trying to find that balance of wanting your children near you forever and letting them go. The autism is an added complication, but, once again, universal story.)

I'm so glad this was a Printz honor. It's such an amazing book and if it hadn't won, I would have never known about it, let alone read it.

Book Provided by... my local library

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Mockingbird

Mockingbird Kathryn Erskine

Caitlin's brother was murdered during a school shooting. Caitlin's father has been a wreck ever since. Caitlin misses Devon so much. Devon was the one who explained the world to her, who helped her be normal. When Caitlin hears the word "closure" and looks it up in the dictionary, she decides that's what she and her father need and is off to find it, even if her father isn't entirely ready yet.

In what is already an emotionally powerful story about grief and survival, the extra layer added on is the fact that Caitlin is on the autism spectrum. While she understands what happened, she has a harder time understanding how others are feeling about the tragedy-- both family members (like her father) other survivors, and general community members. She also has a harder time expressing her feelings, so some of the adults in her life don't understand that she understands that Devon's gone and they don't understand how she's processing her grief.

It's beautifully written and I really like that although Caitlin's place on the autism spectrum is a large part of the novel, it's not the central focus. This is a book about a family trying to heal in the face of unspeakable tragedy with an added layer of how Caitlin's mind works. Extremely well done in all aspects, I've hear it mentioned for Newbery and while I'm still rooting for One Crazy Summer, I would love to see this one on the list (and it's probably a shoo-in for Schneider).

Book Provided by... my local library

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Anything but Typical

Anything But Typical Nora Raleigh Baskin

The basic plot is that Jason is autistic. He's in 6th grade and this is his first year without a one-on-one aide. He struggles with fitting in, with remembering all the rules he's been taught about social interaction. He likes writing stories and makes a friend in an online community friend where he posts his stories. It then becomes apparent that this friend is a girl. This is a really good thing for Jason, until they both plan to be at the website's conference, and Jason knows that she will see him, and learn the truth about him, and no longer like him.

Of course, it's so much more than that. It's told from Jason's point of view, but not the way he would like to tell it, because:

"But more than people like talking in their own language, people like to hear things in a way they are most comfortable. The way they are used to. The way they can most easily related to, as if that makes it more real. So I will try to tell this story in that way.

And I will tell this story in first person.
I not he. Me not him. Mine not his.
In a neurotypical way.
I will try--
To tell my story in their language, in your language."

It's about Jason not fitting in. Sometimes he cares, sometimes he doesn't, depending. It makes life hard, not being neurotypical. What struck me most was his mother, who just couldn't let anything go. She wants to fix him, to make him better, to make him normal. His father accepts him for who he is, but his mother can't reconcile the child she wanted with the child she has. This is a major source of tension and the part of the story that spoke to me the most. But, I'm also an adult and I wonder if it will speak to child readers in the same way. But that's the mark of a good book, right? When you find new meaning in various plot lines depending on where you are in life at the moment? Also, what a perfect ending!

A side tangent about book covers. The cover pictured above is the paperback. This cover is the hardcover. Quite a difference! The swirls on the cover are also used in the chapter headings in both versions. I think the paperback cover has more kid-appeal, which is useful for getting it into the hands of readers, but I like the hardcover version, especially as it unifies the design concept. What are your thoughts?

Book Provided by... my local library

Links to Amazon are an affiliate link. You can help support Biblio File by purchasing any item (not just the one linked to!) through these links. Read my full disclosure statement.

Star-Studded Review-a-Rama

Currently Reading: The Brothers Grimm: Two Lives, One Legacy, Special Topics in Calamity Physics
Just Finished: Yang the Youngest and his Terrible Ear, From a Crooked Rib, Kitchen

Oh, I have a lot to talk about, I don't even know where to begin. It's like when you're writing a paper and you just become paralyzed with the enormity of the task before you and freeze up and never get started.

So... let's talk about some books, eh? I guess I'll focus on award winners and those with buzz. We'll see how far I get tonight!

First up on the block is the lovely A Drowned Maiden's Hair: A Melodrama by Laura Amy Schlitz

All Maud wants is to be adopted and to have a real family again. When the elderly Hawthorne sisters take her home, Maud is overjoyed. She has nice clothes, good food, and indoor plumbing. What Maud doesn’t have is any friends—she’s not allowed to go to school or see visitors. Maud is a secret, and when she finds out why, she has some very tough decisions to make about what’s important.

This was a very moving story about the compelling need for love and a home, versus doing what is right. At the same time, we get a good dose of spirituality and mediums and ghosts. It was wonderfully spooky without being scary.

I loved the way Maud's friendship developed with Muffet, the Hawthorne's deaf servant. I also liked the way that Maud really struggled with her decisions about what to do-- she didn't always want to do the right thing, and how Schlitz handles this conflict makes Maud so much more real and likeable.

It was getting a lot of well-deserved Newberry buzz and even though it didn't win and wasn't honored, you should still check it out.

Rules by Cynthia Lord.

This was a Newberry Honor, as well as the winner of the Schneider Family Book Award (for books about disabilities.)

Catherine is a twelve year old girl whose little brother, David, has autism. On one hand she is fiercely protective of him but on the other, she is mortified when he does embarrassing things that could potentially mess up her relationships. She doesn't give her friends nearly enough credit in understanding about David, but she's been burned in the past. To help David be less embarassing, Catherine writes him rules about day-to-day life. No toys in the fish tank. It's ok to yell on the playground, but not during dinner. Over time, a lot of these rules are obviously more for Catherine than for David.

Catherine's best friend is away is away for the summer and there's a new family moving in next door. Catherine has high hopes for her friendship with Kristi, but, like real life, not everything goes as she wished it would--and that's not necessarily a bad thing.

When Catherine accompanies David to therapy, she meets Jason, who is in a wheel chair and can't talk. Jason has a book of cards with pictures and words that he points to in order to communicate. Catherine starts drawing him more cards, including nebulous concepts like "murky" and "unfair". Catherine again tries to balance fitting in with her "normal" friends and classmates, and her friendship with Jason. Jason was a really interesting character that continued to surprise me, and I wish we saw even more of him.

One of my favorite parts of this book were when Catherine was trying to figure out what to draw for abstract ideas. My other favorite part was the struggle Catherine had in trying to be understanding of David, but feeling overshadowed by him in the family dynamic and needing her parents to sometimes focus exclusively on her. I think it was a very real, if not pretty, look at what it means to be in a family with someone who requires so much attention and energy.

I also liked how, when David couldn't put his thoughts and feelings into words, would quote extensively from the Frog and Toad books by Lobel. It was heartbreaking and hilarious.

My main quibble is with the ending-- it was overly tidy and neat while at the same time not really solving anything. It tarnished the rest of the wonderful book for me.

Penny from Heavenby Jennifer Holm

This was another Newberry Honor and my favorite of this year's Newberry crop. Penny is growing up in 1950s northern New Jersey and is torn between her mother and grandparents (whom she lives with) and her nearby Italian family of her deceased father. The two sides of the family don't talk to each other and even though Penny's mother would never tell her not to see her Italian family, it's obvious she doesn't like all the time she spends with them.

Summer is hard, even without the family drama. Penny's mom won't let her go swimming in fear she might catch Polio and then she starts dating the milkman!

Eventually, the truth about Penny's father's death comes out, as well as the horror of what Italian-Americans went through during WWII, which is something that doesn't get discussed much. I had no idea most of this stuff had happened.

The book is a bit nostalgic, but wonderfully written (and from the same person who does Babymouse! Such versatility!) and while showing excellence in children's literature, has definite kid-appeal. The author's note at the end was excellent, as well as Holm's own family album. I highly recommend.


And that's all for tonight, but I have a lot more to come...