Hitler Youth: Growing Up in Hitler's Shadow

It has been such a long time since I sat down and read a piece of non-fiction work for non-class purposes (and by non-class I of course mean curriculum prep for teaching).  I guess I was not expecting to enjoy this so much.  Usually when I read this type of literature I am more focused on my reading from a teacher’s perspective that I don’t just look at it as a reader (which is much more pleasurable I assure you).  Anyhow, I read my choice book first – Hitler Youth:  Growing up in Hitler’s Shadow by Susan Campbell Bartoletti.  The Holocaust period in history has fascinated me, as it does many people, since I first heard of its grisly truth.  I have always been drawn to the individual stories regarding the Holocaust.  The numbers “3 million Jews…” do not register for me – it is just too massive to wrap my mind around; I believe it is for this reason that I am intrigued by the individual stories.  Having taught Night for the past eight years, I am constantly looking for more material, new material, interesting material that will speak to my students.  Anne Frank and Elie Wiesel have incredible tales, but they are just two of millions.  Reading Hitler’s Youth I was not sure how I would feel about looking at things from this “side”.  I found myself completely engrossed.  This book is wonderful in that it moves chronologically (sort of) through what life would be like for a young German at the time of Hitler’s rise to power.  Reading things from this perspective, one cannot help but imagine they too would be drawn to the promises and power Hitler put forth.  Each chapter was thematic and chronological – fitting historically the thoughts/struggles of Hitler’s youth.  Some of Hitler’s youth held firmly to their belief in the mighty Hitler – others began to question and reject his messages and actions – and this book is about those who acted out because of their biases one way or the other. 

While reading the chapter, “The Brown Pest,” I felt their enthusiasm about what they were working for “A Greater Germany” who wouldn’t want that right?  If the words were not vivid enough to embrace the excitement and patriotism of these youth, the pictures filled any doubt.  Eventually the chapter “Long Live Freedom:  Hitler Youth and Resistance” grabbed me with tales of the Scholl siblings and their White Rose group which led to many young deaths for speaking against Hitler.  This chapter also focused on three young male friends who illegally listened to non-German broadcasts, discovered Hitler was not being truthful, and felt compelled to distribute leaflets to let others know the truth as well.  When caught – they knew they would be used as “examples” and so one fell for the group, knowingly costing himself his very life.  And for every story of a youth against Hitler’s ways, there is a different story of heroics for Hitler.  Reading the story of Emil Durr, a soldier who despite countless gun shot wounds kept fighting and eventually, in a last ditch effort to disarm a tank, ran up to it with a bomb and held the explosive to the tank until it went off, though fanatical, also impressively devoted, made me think – he should be proud of himself for never giving up.  Then I stop and recall which side he was on – does that make his devotion without merit?  Tough question.  Then I realized, because I forgot while reading, that these were teenagers.  All these tales were about individuals the same ages as my students.  Fascinating.

Overall I greatly enjoyed this book. It was not a difficult read and was interesting from beginning to end.  I know my students would enjoy it from cover to cover, although I imagine I would only use sections of it.  My son (I always bring my kids in, sorry…) read most of it – he too is very interested in Hitler and the Holocaust.  I would recommend anyone who teaches anything World War II to read this.  I suggest any student who is interested in war stories to read this as well.  It won’t take long and it is well worth the time.

A Northern Light - Historical Fiction

I do believe I have a new book to add to my “All Time Favorite Books” list!  Based on the back of the book I was not really too excited about reading this, but with each page I found myself loving it more and more and basically was not able to put it down. 

Historical fiction would be a difficult genre to write.  Not only does the author have the task of writing an intriguing story with believable characters, but also they must place them in a setting and situation that is historically accurate.  The amount of research going into the time, the customs, the food, the dress, the vernacular – everything – would be exhausting.  Jennifer Donnelly did her homework well in writing A Northern Light.  She not only created a believable setting historically speaking, she created marvelous main and supporting characters and placed them next to a mystery without losing them in it. 

The characters were simply amazing.  The main character Mattie was supported by an outstanding cast of secondary characters.  Whether Mattie was arguing with her father or Royal, studying with Weaver or her teacher – she was so complex and interesting and her supporting characters were as well.  Each brought something different to the story.   Each of them had their own story as well.  It was as if though the entire novel was and “against all odds” tale with Mattie in the lead.

Mattie dreamed of going to college – which because of the time, her gender, her economic situation, and her expectations at home as well as her promise to her dying mother – she never really believed that dream could become a reality.

Weaver also dreamed of going to college but because he was black during this time period, and short on money, his dreams were a stretch as well.

Mattie’s father missed his wife and his old life on the logs, but because of his land and children he felt stuck.

Mrs. Baxter wanted freedom to write and freedom from her husband – but time, her gender, and her lack of power (even though she had money she had no power) kept her from those things so her only chance for freedom was running away from her “expected life”

Royal too was trapped.  He wanted to help his mother as well as get back at the woman who was hurting her.  He wanted land on his own and in order to get those two things he developed a rational plan.  Problem with the logical plan he created is that his heart was more in the land he would never get than the wife he never really wanted.

And then there is Grace Davis, the woman for whom the entire story is centered around and the portion of the story that determines the setting.  Grace too is trapped.  Because she is a woman, and a pregnant unmarried woman at that, she relies solely on a man to save her – and that very man she believed would save her ultimately kills her. 

I could go on – but the point is that all the characters are so very rich – a stark contrast to the characters in folklore – that you want to keep reading to see what happens not just to Mattie but to all of the characters. 

The other aspect I appreciated in reading this book was the surprises.  The characters have some insight that Mattie does not initially have but discovers for herself along the way (like Royal’s real reason for his interest in her and the death of Grace Davis).  At the same time, there were times I just didn’t see some things coming – like who her teacher really was…or the ending.  I loved Mrs. Baxter and struggled with how she fit in the community she was in but then it all made sense when her true identity was revealed.  How amazing for Mattie as well to have her as a teacher – without her relationship with Mrs. Baxter, Mattie would  (most likely) not have ventured off to college in the end.  And the end…there were several times in the novel I was convinced the author was preparing the readers to be OK with Mattie’s decision to stay.  I found myself thinking like Mattie, thinking that life wouldn’t be THAT bad if she stayed.  I found myself making excuses for Mattie to stay there, convincing myself that if she did stay there she would be happy.  All the while I knew where she belonged but I never believed she would actually go.  The ending was the best part of the novel.  Everything I wanted to happen but didn’t think would happen (because real life sucks, it isn’t the happily ever after we read about in books – as Mattie reveals to readers) happened.  The ending was better than I could have ever imagined but Donnelly wrote it in such a beautiful and believable way that I was giddy at the end – and this coming from the reader who LOVES depressing books.  I was thrilled to read a realistic book with a realistic happy ending – beating the odds. 

I haven’t even mentioned the great use of language and the wonderful references to other texts.  It is clear Donnelly has a love for reading and language and she uses it to enhance the story she tells.

Overall - Great read!  This is historical fiction at its best.  I loved it and have already had two students read it and share that they loved it as well.

Skellig - Fantasy Novel

Skellig

 

Having very little background in science fiction or fantasy I was not sure what I was getting in to this week.  Fantasy to me usually seemed so far fetched.  Perhaps my greatest exposure to fantasy involves me helping my husband pack and unpack his numerous “forgotten realms” fantasy novels with muscled warriors, magically fierce wizards, or wise/sneaky looking elves and/or strong animals on the cover.  None of this ever appealed to me and I could never fathom why my intelligent, well-read husband would still find an interest in such childish books.  Hmmm…if I found no value in my husband reading this genre, how could I support/encourage YA who are interested in this genre?  This is one area that, as a teacher I must (even if unintentionally) show partiality.  Needless to say I am biased against fantasy without really having any exposure to actually reading fantasy – not good I know.

So, reading Skellig, I was not sure what I was going to get.  I went into it with as open a mind as possible.  There were some things I really enjoyed about Skellig, and some things I did not.  First, the positives:

The main characters - I greatly appreciated and felt like I truly “got-to-know” the main characters Mina and Michael.  The author created believable characters.  According to the Literature and the Child text, the characters of such a piece should be, “Multidimensional personalities who behave consistently, respond to events in a believable fashion, and grow and change across the course of a story” (209).  Both Mina and Michael behave consistently.  Michael is a little flatter than Mina, mainly because she contrasts his quiet introverted personality with vibrancy and eccentricity, but both remain consistent throughout the novel.  I am not certain I agree that they responded to all parts in a believable fashion; I find it hard to believe that the first time Michael encounters Skellig that he would remain so calm.  Mina’s response – because of her open-minded personality – is believable, but it seems as though Michael would have freaked out a bit more.  This is my only concern in this area though.  Michael grows in a different fashion than Mina.  Mina becomes more open and gains a friend – a person other than her mother that she has a relationship with.  She is a social recluse at the beginning and finds friendship with Michael – a person she otherwise would have judged and ignored as quickly as she did Michael’s football friends from school.  Michael seems to grow several ways – he gains confidence, faith, love, happiness, and he gains insight from Mina into knowledge and puts value on education. 

The plot idea was also good.  But…the idea was not necessarily executed as well as it could have been.  And here I go with the negatives:

There was so much foreshadowing that I found myself annoyed with all the hinting and implying and duality of meaning that I just wanted the author to get to the point.  Not only that but it all seemed pretty obvious to me while I was reading.  The first time Michael mentioned the “odd protrusions” from Skellig’s back I figured he must be an angel of sorts or something close to it who is going to have a hand in Michael’s sister’s life and then ¾ of the book later there was still hinting and no actual action, I was frustrated by that.  So my question – if this won an award it should be a rather impressive example of this genre (although perhaps, as we discussed in class, there are a lot of awards and what do they all really mean about the book any how?)  But if this is a well-received fantasy novel – are all fantasy novels this full of foreshadowing and implications?  I love figuring things out but this wasn’t hard to figure out so by the end it just seemed drawn out.  Looking at the requirements or definition of fantasy, Skellig fits perfectly in this genre – so if this had all the components and was well received – do I surmise I won’t like any fantasy or just that this story fell short for me?  As a teacher I should go with the latter, but as a reader, my gut is going with the former. 

Very nice story and story idea – just didn’t appreciate how it was told…

Tales from Old Ireland

Tales from Old Ireland

Several years ago my parents lived in Ireland for a couple years.  My father’s job took him there and it ended up being an amazing adventure for our entire family.  At some point during their time there, every one of us children and our spouses were able to spend some time with our parents in Ireland.  What a beautiful place so rich in history!  My husband and I loved being there.  While touring castles, the Burrens, little towns and roaring cities like Dublin, we were made acutely aware of how little history our America had.  In fact, while winding down a narrow road in the middle of nowhere to see Ireland’s version of Stonehenge, we spoke of that very thing - how items in Ireland that were considered “newer” were still older than most buildings, monuments in America.  So the point, American folk tales are brought from other countries - we have folk tales from slaves and immigrants talking about the “old country”.  We also have American Indian folk tales which most European Americans read with little recognition of history.  Are there Euro pean folk tales?  If not, will there be some day?  America is just not that old/rich in history to have a plethora of folk tales - but Ireland is. 
As I was thinking about what type of Folk Tales I wanted to read, I asked my eldest daughter to bring me her book of stories and fairy tales (that includes the original “dark” versions of stories as they were before Disney got their hands on them).  WIth this book, she also brought Old Tales from Ireland because, This has a different Cinderella story too mom.”  AS soon as I saw the book, I recalled that my daughter often requested I read it to her.  I usually opted out of this book b/c I thought it was quite long for a bedtime story and read her a shorter one instead (obviously she read it without me).  Anyhow, I began looking for the Cinderella story she was referring to and became engrossed in all the stories.  Irish Folk Tales - stories that teach history and lessons and don’t always have happy endings - why hadn’t I read this sooner?!?!!  I read the stories from cover to cover in one night, in the morning I told my daughter how much I liked the tales and we had some good conversations about our favorites and the ones we didn’t like.  

One of my favorites is “Son of an Otter, Son of a Wolf.”  In this tale, a daughter of a king swims in forbidden waters and is “attacked” (impregnated) by an otter.  The king is angry at first but when the child is born and it is a boy, the king is thrilled (for he had only daughters - four of them)  He raises the boy like his own son and spoils him terribly.  When the king grows old and becomes quite sick, the boy asks for his crown.  THings get ugly and the King quickly realizes what a terrible character the boy has.  The boy flees to build an army.  The king quickly marries and is apparently quite sterile b/c the night of his wedding the battles begin but his new bride safely escapes and nine months later has a child - a boy.  This boy though, is stolen by a wolf (hence the title)  After much time passes, he miraculously ends up back with his grandfather and mother.  He confronts the king and reveals to the king that his father was an otter.  The Son of a wolf helps the Otter king by returning him to the sea.  The otter king becomes an otter, joins his true father, and the wolf boy become kings - rightfully so - and rules the kingdom with peace and harmony.  The end...  I think I enjoy this one because it ends with the “good guy” winning.  

Another I enjoyed was a Rumplestiltskin type tale only in the “Twelve Wild Geese” a mom has twelve sons and says she will give anything for a daughter so an old woman (witch) grants her wish and once her daughter is born her sons turn into geese.  The daughter is quite pleasant and once she discovers her birth is the cause for her brothers’ disappearance, she sets out to right her mothers wrongs.  Though she appears evil, selfish, and nearly loses her love and her life to save her brothers, she sticks to her guns and fulfills the requirements to end the curse.  It was great to see a female savior rather than a male.  And it was great to read a story of sacrifice no matter how great to make a wrong situation corrected.   

There are seven tales in this compilation - and I enjoyed them all (except one I thought was quite simple).  I hadn’t even thought of Ireland for folk tales but how foolish of me - and I am very glad now that I read this book (finally my daughter would say).  Ireland is very rich in history so it should be no surprise their tales are just as rich.

I believe a lot of conversations by students could be had regarding choices and morals.  These tales provided an interesting tale with sometimes surprising ends that would keep students and adults engaged.  

The People Could Fly

The People Could Fly

The Two Johns.  This tale to me was a very engaging and educational tale.  Near the end I thought - OK, Big JOhn has got to figure out by now that things don’t work the way he believes they will when dealing with Little JOhn - but he never did figure it out and it was the death of him.  

The idea of the wise John and the foolish John is played out in many stories and characters.  Even Wiley E Coyote comes to mind.  Anyhow, this tale really makes readers think about who truly has it better.  In this case, the person with more, Big John, truly had less.  And try as he may to have as much, if not more than Little John, he could never get there.  In the end it cost him dearly.  

The trickster tales though were by far my favorite.  Paybacks only work if you think things through.  It isn’t the fastest or the biggest that has the advantage but the calmest and most clever.  This tales seemed very fitting historically.  Slaves had no legal rights above their owners.  Slaves had no power over their owners.  Even if they were bigger and stronger they could not use that physical power against their owners.  The tool they needed the most was their wits.  Using their wits could keep them out of trouble, calm a situation, and possibly - as in the stories told here - offer them their much sought after freedom. 
THough slavery is not an issue today in the states, using wits is still something every person can learn about.  There is the quote, “Once you start swinging fists you are admitting you have run out of ideas”  Thinking, having patience, a plan, and using those things to your advantage can take you much farther than anything else (especially when you are in an otherwise powerless situation).

I also really enjoyed The People Could Fly until the end.  I wanted them to take all the slaves. I wondered why, if they know how to fly they didn’t leave sooner.  Partially I thought that they were not oppressed enough, and only when things were so bad would they recall how to fly - then I thought that was ridiculous - as a slave when were things tolerable?  Honestly I struggled with the end.  Who could leave others behind?  Were they OK with that?  Did they go back?  There were just more questions than anything else after reading this tale that I was left unsettled.  

The other thing I did appreciate about this book was the illustrations.  They were simple but strong.  I especially was drawn to the boy in “The Talking Cooter”  There seemed to be a fitting quality to the drawings.  Had another artist gotten too colorful or fanciful I believe I would have been a bit turned off to the illustrations.  The drawings in the book seemed perfectly suited.  It is interesting because I like the drawings because they are “simple” but do not believe the people or tales are simple.  Perhaps it seems fitting to me because folk tales usually appear simple but if you look beyond their surface meaning, they are usually quite deep and meaningful - in that way I enjoyed the illustrations.

Overall though, the stories in this book were fitting to the genre of Folk Tales.  The language was appropriate, the historical element was present, the lessons were clearly there, and many had repetition or rhythm to make them verbally easy to recall/retell.

How I Live Now

How I Live Now

There were a couple things I struggled with reading this book. Certain things did not seem believable to me - for example, the way the children lived on a regular basis (before the war and initially after it began) seemed very false/odd. I couldn’t buy into it - not sure why but I struggled. It just seemed like someone would have been very bothered that children were living on their own and want to intervene somehow. Also, the swiftness of Daisy’s retrieval after the phone call seemed unbelievable. Here her father is, several thousands of miles away, and even if he had people there working for him, it would take a bit longer to get to Daisy and she could have fled by then. Plus - it was so sudden, so abrupt, and without the slightest warning Daisy and the readers were torn away from that life then and thrown into her other life in the States - and neither Daisy, nor myself as the reader, wanted to be there. I hated that part and because of that I had a hard time accepting that scene as believable. At the same time - I had no problem with the idea that Edmund could read minds, that the two of them communicated while apart, and that all the cousins had some “special” skills. Not sure if it is the author’s style, lack of details, or what that leads me to buy into the nearly impossible and question the quite probable.
Another area I had issues with was the relationship between Daisy and Edmund. Perhaps it is that our time period and culture (in most areas in the US) are not in favor of cousins becoming romantic. More than likely it is because I have grown up with over 30 cousins and have NEVER thought of any of them in a way other than family. I realize she had not grown up with them and they were all strangers until they met - but still - they are cousins and I struggle with that. Also, their ages at the onset of their relationship seems way too young for such a relationship to develop. I am quite aware that kids are physical at younger and younger ages, but this just threw me for a loop. If it was just their ages I may not have rejected their relationship like I did - but when you combine their age with the fact they are cousins...couldn’t get past it. On one level I liked them and very much wanted them both to live and be happy; on the other hand I kept waiting for one or both of them to acknowledge their wrong doings and feel guilt or regret.
When I read the last page, the last line, I found myself thinking, “That’s it?” I put the book down and just thought for a bit. The last line is the title - which is a perfectly wonderful title for the book and life; still, I wanted answers. I wanted to know what was really wrong with Edmund? What happened next? Why didn’t she come back sooner? Contact him/them in some way? Why did the author write this? What was the intent? Is there some bigger message here I am totally missing? How would my students react to this? Would the details of the war be too much for them? Why doesn’t that bother me more? Is anyone else bothered by their relationship? Am I a huge prude that their age shocks me?
The more questions I asked, the more I respected the book. I wasn’t asking the questions because it was poorly written, I was asking the questions because it made me think about a lot - I thought about the story, the author, myself and I am still thinking. I guess that impresses me. Like The Absolutely True Diary of a Part Time Indian, this books leaves many loose ends, many things to consider about others and yourself. For that, I have to admit, I liked reading this book and think it would spark a number of conversations on a variety of topics.

the first part last by Angela Johnson

Stereotypes and judgements - wow this book does an excellent job making the reader look at those things.  While reading the first part last, (actually the judgements started before I read the first word - it started when I looked at the cover of a boy and a baby) I found myself thinking the main character, Bobby, was foolish, selfish, crazy, and a number of other negative things.  Just looking at the cover, my mind wandered and I imagined I knew the story just b/c the character was young and black - in fact, because he was male I was puzzled for a moment and thought he was “stuck” b/c the mom must have wanted to keep the baby.  Wow!  I am not a racist person - I believe everyone deserves to be treated with dignity, respect, and love regardless of their gender, race, class, age, or anything else.  People are people; yet here I am prejudging the character before I even read a single word.  How many people in our world do that on a regular basis?  Myself included!  Unlike most situations in real life where judging occurs, the first part last gives readers the details, the answers, the real story from the boy’s/father’s perspective and makes the reader (or at least it made me) acutely aware of how seldom  people really know the entire story.  The reader, the characters (like the teacher or people on the bus) have no clue what the entire story entails; and therefore they judge the entire situation, misread the people involved, and walk away with their mind made up - their stereotypes strengthened - and no clue how wrong they might be (or in this case are).

As I read, I kept waiting for the NOW chapter that included the Nia’s reasoning for abandoning her child.  As I got closer and closer to the end I was waiting for the two of them to fight, kept waiting for an explanation as to why she would just walk away.  I found myself really disliking her for leaving Bobby and Feather.  I was also waiting for Bobby to change his mind and give Feather back (I even judged to choice of names - thought how immature to name a child that...I felt like such a jerk when I got to the end).  I was impressed by his mother’s determination to let Bobby live with his choice (tough love); I was disappointed by his father’s passive approach to the situation, thought he babied his son.  While reading I got frustrated by some of Bobby’s choices thinking - grow up!  How immature!  You are a father.  and the next chapter thinking, “well, he is just a kid trying to do so much - cut him some slack.”  I contradicted myself throughout.  

When I got to the end I was completely caught off guard.  Felt like such a b*$#@ for all the things I thought about Bobby, about Nia, was mad at Bobby’s mom and liked his father.  At the end I completely understood Bobby keeping Feather.  And then...I thought that really, nothing changed about Bobby’s situation other than it got worse.  When Nia was there to help, they knew they shouldn’t keep the baby.  Now he has to go at it alone and he decides to keep her - what is he thinking.  Again - the questions this book brings up are endless.  

I kept thinking this would be a wonderful discussion piece for students.  Reading this could bring out discussions about stereotypes, choices, values, how you look at others when they make decisions, can circumstances change what the “right” thing to do is.  Is everything right/wrong, black/white, good/bad.  How would the story change if the characters were white?  another race?  another class?  What would those people have for options - does that change what is right/wrong.  

Some random things:

On page 103, Bobby’s mom says, “I don’t think you and your brother could have stood two parents like me.”   This line shows that people are not perfect, most know their faults, and regardless of who you are, you have to be true what what you think is right, even if you maybe don’t like it.  

Does anyone wonder why Nia’s parents do not want a more active role in the life of their grandbaby?  I realize they were not terribly involved with Nia - but they loved her and wanted a good life for her - one would imagine they would want a part of her - which would be Feather.

Switching back and forth between then and now, as Johnson does throughout the book, seems a much better format than chronological.  For one, the same effect would be lost if written chronologically - she did have to write the first part last in order to have the readers determine everything before they knew anything.  This style of writing out of order has become more popular in the past several years or so.  Jodi Picoult does this nearly every time she writes a novel.  The Time Traveler’s Wife is a good example.  James Patterson does as well.  This is by no means a new way of writing but it is becoming more evident.  Some people may struggle with this style or format (those who are very structured or focused - the nonmulti-taskers of the world) but in a novel like this one it is necessary and powerful.  Students/readers who have short attention spans will appreciate this b/c it keeps going back and forth - jumping from one place to the next - never getting dull b/c the reader is always trying to figure things out/piece things together.