Intro
Hi everyone and welcome to Books Between - a podcast to help teachers, parents, and librarians connect kids between 8-12 to books they’ll love. I’m your host, Corrina Allen - a 5th grade teacher, a mom of two girls who are 8 and 11, and feeling extraordinarily lucky on this Mother’s Day to have my mom in my life. And having a mother who is and has always been such a staunch supporter of my reading life.
This is Episode #49 and Today I’m discussing three new middle grade releases, and then I’ll share with you a conversation with authors Ann Braden and Saadia Faruqi from the Lifelines Podcast.
Alright - announcements! I hope you have been loving the May Middle Grade at Heart Book Club pick Every Shiny Thing as much as I have. Laurie Morrison and Cordelia Jensen will on the podcast soon so if you have a question you want me to ask them, please let me know! In June we’ll be reading The Mad Wolf’s Daughter by Diane Magras and July’s pick is Just Under the Clouds by Melissa Sarno.
And - I hope you’ve been as inspired as I have by the Educator Spotlight interviews at the MGBookVillage site. We have lots more coming, so keep an eye out!
A quick reminder that the outline of today’s interview and a full transcript of all the other parts of this show can be found at MGBookVillage.org - including links to every topic and book we mention. I know you are busy and I want to make it effortless for you to find things.
Book Talk - Three Fantastic Spring Releases
This week we are back to some book talks! And instead of having them fit a particular theme, I thought I’d simply share with you three really great recent releases from this past spring. They are Playing Atari with Saddam Hussein by Jennifer Roy & Ali Fadhil, Me, Frida and the Secret of the Peacock Ring by Angela Cervantes, and Rebound by Kwame Alexander.
Playing Atari with Saddam Hussein
Our first featured middle grade novel this week is Playing Atari with Saddam Hussein by Jennifer Roy with Ali Fadhil. This historical fiction novel is set in 1991 in Basra, Iraq - just as the United States is launching Operation Desert Storm. And it’s based on the true story of Ali Fadhil’s life as an ordinary 11 year old boy who loves playing video games and watching American TV like the The Muppet Show. But then, the bombings come and life for Fadhil and his family is becoming more and more bleak. Here are three things to know about Playing Atari with Saddam Hussein:
Playing Atari with Saddam Hussein is a great book for 5th graders through middle schoolers who are interested in the real impacts of war, Iraqi history, or just want a good historical fiction book. And it would make a great complement to the many World War II novel studies out there to add a more modern perspective.
Me, Frida and the Secret of the Peacock Ring
A second great spring middle grade release is Me, Frida, and the Secret of the Peacock Ring by Angela Cervantes. You might know her work from her two earlier novels - Gaby, Lost and Found and Allie, First at Last. This novel is a mystery and centers around a missing ring belonging to the artist Frida Kahlo. The main character is 12 year old Paloma Marquez, who begrudgingly travels with her mom from their home in Kansas City to Mexico City for 4 weeks of the summer. (Her mom is a professor and has a fellowship there.) Although Paloma’s father was Mexican, she doesn’t speak Spanish, she worries about missing out on fun with her friends, and she just doesn’t want to go. But…. on her first night in Mexico, she attends a reception at Frida Kahlo’s home - Casa Azul - and receives the following note from a mysterious boy. Here are three things to love about Angela Cervantes’ Me, Frida, and the Secret of the Peacock Ring:
Me, Frida, and the Secret of the Peacock Ring is a great book for kids who love art or travel, for kids who are intrigued by Mexican culture and the Spanish language - and for anyone who loves a great mystery!
Rebound
Last up this week is Kwame Alexander’s Rebound - the much-awaited prequel to the much-loved and much-awarded, novel-in-verse The Crossover. This book is all about Josh & Jordan’s father - Chuck “Da Man” Bell. But - this is an origin story. So when we first meet him, he is just Charlie - an 80’s kid reeling from a family tragedy and trying to find his way forward and trying to find his smile again. When home becomes tense, he is involuntarily shipped off to his grandparent’s house for the summer where he starts to find that path forward. Let me read you the first page….
Here are three things I loved about Kwame Alexander’s Rebound:
Rebound is a must-get for your classroom or library. And fans of The Crossover are going to absolutely relish this prequel. It’s a book you finish and want to immediately talk to your friends about. It’s not necessary to have read The Crossover first, but I think it’s a better and more enjoyable reading experience to read them in the order they were published. So The Crossover, the Rebound, and then go read Crossover again!
Ann Braden & Saadia Faruqi - Interview Outline
Our special guests this week are Ann Braden and Saadia Faruqi. Ann is the author of the upcoming middle grade novel The Benefits of Being an Octopus and founder of GunSenseVT. Saadia is an interfaith activist and author of a new early chapter book series called Meet Yasmin. Ann and Saadia recently teamed up to launch a podcast - Lifelines: Books That Bridge the Divide. I have been loving their show and am so happy to be bring you this conversation. We chat about why they started a new kidlit podcast, their novels, how they make time for reading with their kids, and some secrets for the perfect French Toast.
Take a listen..
Lifelines Podcast
Can you take a moment to tell us about yourself?
I was so excited to see your new podcast, Lifelines, pop up in my Twitter feed a few weeks ago! How did you two connect with each other and then how did the podcast start?
What is your collaboration process like to produce the show?
I know when I first started podcasting, it took a while to get into a groove… what mistakes have you made along the way?
And what are some plans you have for the future of the podcast?
So Ann - your pictures of your baby posed with the stuffed animals is adorable!
So Saadia, I started following you on Instagram and realized that you and I share a love of French Toast. What is your secret for the perfect French Toast?
Your Writing Life
You both have children’s books coming out this year! Can you tell us about them and when they’ll be available?
Your Reading Life
What were some of your favorite or most influential reads as a child?
I’ve realized that something we all have in common is that we have young children. I’m wondering - how do you foster that love of reading in your family? And how do you make reading a priority when family life can be so busy?
What have you read lately that you’ve loved?
Thank You!
Links:
Ann Braden’s website - http://annbradenbooks.com
Saadia Faruqi’s website - http://www.saadiafaruqi.com
Ann on Twitter and Facebook and Instagram
Saadia on Twitter and Facebook and Instagram
Books & Authors We Chatted About:
Witch of Blackbird Pond (Elizabeth George Speare)
Fifteen (Beverly Cleary)
Frog and Toad (Arnold Lobel)
The High King Series (Lloyd Alexander)
The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy (Douglas Adams)
Homecoming (Cynthia Voigt)
The Famous Five (Enid Blyton)
Nancy Drew (Carolyn Keene)
Hardy Boys (Franklin W. Dixon)
I Survived Series (Lauren Tarshis)
Crenshaw (Katherine Applegate)
Wishtree (Katherine Applegate)
Orbiting Jupiter (Gary D. Schmidt)
Okay For Now (Gary D. Schmidt)
Closing
Alright, that wraps up our show this week!
If you have a question about how to connect kids between 8-12 to books they’ll love or a suggestion about a topic we should cover, I would love to hear from you. You can email me at booksbetween@gmail.com or message me on Twitter/Instagram at the handle @Books_Between.
Books Between is a proud member of the Education Podcast Network. This network features podcasts for educators, created by educators. For more great content visit edupodcastnetwork.com
Thank you so much for joining me this week. You can get an outline of interviews and a full transcript of all the other parts of our show at MGBookVillage.org. And, if you are liking the show, please leave us some love on iTunes or Stitcher so others can discover us as well.
Thanks and see you soon! Bye!