Tag Archives: interracial relationships

Review: Caterpillar Summer by Gillian McDunn

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Caterpillar Summer by Gillian McDunn - cover shows a girl holding a bait fishing pole standing back-to-back with a younger boy holding a shark toy on a beach.

Caterpillar Summer
Gillian McDunn
Bloomsbury USA Children’s
Published April 2, 2019

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Goodreads

About CATERPILLAR SUMMER

Cat and her brother Chicken have always had a very special bond–Cat is one of the few people who can keep Chicken happy. When he has a “meltdown” she’s the one who scratches his back and reads his favorite story. She’s the one who knows what Chicken needs. Since their mom has had to work double-hard to keep their family afloat after their father passed away, Cat has been the glue holding her family together.

But even the strongest glue sometimes struggles to hold. When a summer trip doesn’t go according to plan, Cat and Chicken end up spending three weeks with grandparents they never knew. For the first time in years, Cat has the opportunity to be a kid again, and the journey she takes shows that even the most broken or strained relationships can be healed if people take the time to walk in one another’s shoes.

My Review

Oh my gosh THIS BOOK! I loved so many things. Cat begins fishing because she’s hoping it will be the key to relationships that matter to her, but then she falls in love with fishing. It becomes something she needs, an outlet and interest that’s just for her. I absolutely identified with this whole emotional process because it’s how I came to love fly fishing so much.

When my grandfather passed away, I watched my dad grieve and had this sudden realization that someday, I will be in his shoes. Someday he’ll be gone. I’d grown up going out in the boat fishing with him, and I still treasure those memories. But at that point, I hadn’t fished since I was maybe twelve or thirteen years old. So I decided to learn to fly fish, partly because it seemed more fun than lure fishing and partly because I wanted to spend more time with my dad, who also loves fly fishing.

Then I fell in love with fishing all over again. And it’s funny, I think that love for fishing has been as great a bond as the activity itself. It’s really fun to have those shared experiences and moments together, but there’s also something to having that passion and sharing in the excitement and celebration of a great day on the water, or the fight of bringing in a big fish.

Anyway, all that to say that CATERPILLAR SUMMER really captures those magical properties of fishing. The way it can make you fall in love with it, and the way it can bring people together. And the way it can be the thing you need without you knowing you needed it.

I think the relationships in the story are expertly done. Cat’s relationship with her brother and the battle between her love for him, her fears about something happening to him, and the frustration and disappointment every time her own needs or desires get overlooked feel so real and understandable.

I love the quiet way Cat’s grandmother notices the way Cat feels and eases some of the burden. She says something to Cat at one point about how keeping a family together can be a quiet kind of work– and it’s exactly the validation Cat needs at that moment. She realizes she has an ally and that someone really sees her.

Cat’s grandfather, too, is an amazing character. Gruff and distant at first, but such a tender heart underneath all of that. And I love that it’s nature walks and fishing that bring him and Cat together and help them open their hearts to one another.

The progression of Cat’s relationship with her mom is powerful, too. Cat has to find real courage to speak up, to voice things she knew her mom wouldn’t want to hear. She risks disappointing or angering her, both of which Cat really fears.

I feel like I could go on and on about this book. So many things about it are so well done and really resonated with me. I hope CATERPILLAR SUMMER gets the awards and recognition it’s due. I know it will go on my shelf as one of my treasured books, one I’m sure I’ll go back and read again and again.

Readers who enjoyed ELSIE MAE HAS SOMETHING TO SAY by Nancy Cavanaugh or THE BENEFITS OF BEING AN OCTOPUS by Ann Braden absolutely need to read CATERPILLAR SUMMER.

Representation
Cat’s mom (and grandparents) are white and her dad is black. She talks briefly about how sometimes people don’t realize they’re all the same family because of the difference in the way they look. Cat’s brother has some sensory issues, and is maybe autistic (the story doesn’t specify).

Recommended for ages 8 up.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
None.

Romance/Sexual Content
None.

Spiritual Content
None.

Violent Content
None.

Drug Content
None.

Note: I received a free copy of CATERPILLAR SUMMER in exchange for my honest review. This post contains affiliate links, which don’t cost the reader anything when used. They help cover the costs of running this blog and occasionally provide an efficient caffeine delivery system for the blogger.

Review: Within These Lines by Stephanie Morrill

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Within These Lines
Stephanie Morrill
Blink YA
Publishes March 5, 2019

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About WITHIN THESE LINES

Evalina Cassano’s life in an Italian-American family in 1941 is everything it “should be” until she falls in love with Taichi Hamasaki, the son of Japanese immigrants. Despite the scandal it would cause and that inter-racial marriage is illegal in California, Evalina and Taichi vow they will find a way to be together. But anti-Japanese feelings erupt across the country after the attack on Pearl Harbor, and Taichi and his family are forced to give up their farm and move to an internment camp.

Degrading treatment makes life at Manzanar Relocation Center difficult. Taichi’s only connection to the outside world are treasured letters from Evalina. Feeling that the only action she can take to help Taichi is to speak out on behalf of all Japanese Americans, Evalina becomes increasingly vocal at school and at home. Meanwhile, inside Manzanar, fighting between different Japanese-American factions arises. Taichi begins to doubt he will ever leave the camp alive.

With tensions running high and their freedom on the line, Evalina and Taichi must hold true to their values and believe in their love to make a way back to each other against unbelievable odds.

My Review

It’s probably no secret that I love Stephanie Morrill’s storytelling. Her characters always have this deep core of integrity and courage, and yet they’re relatable and funny. WITHIN THESE LINES has all the thing I love about her other books, and it focuses on a historical moment that we need to remember.

WITHIN THESE LINES isn’t the first book about the Japanese internment camps that I’ve read before, but it’s the first one I’ve seen where the political atmosphere around the camps is so overtly described. I loved that the story followed Taichi’s perspective as a Japanese American and a prisoner of the Manzanar camp. But I thought it was also cool to show how difficult it would be to speak out against the camps, and to love across racial lines at a time when not only was it viewed as wrong, but was illegal. It’s easy for us to look back at history and say, “I would never have stood by silently while that happened. I totally would have spoken out.” WITHIN THESE LINES gives us a chance to walk in those shoes and see how difficult that might have been. (Obviously Evalina’s experience was nothing compared to Taichi’s.)

In terms of the characters, I loved both Evalina and Taichi. I spent a couple of months in Tokyo a few years ago, and some of the language and the way Taichi relates to his family and camp members made me think back to that trip and really miss it. I’m no expert by any stretch of the imagination, but there were a lot of references to and snapshot moments of Japanese language and culture throughout WITHIN THESE LINES. Taichi’s sister was probably my favorite character. She added a lot to the story with her fierceness and strong emotions.

At its core, WITHIN THESE LINES is a love story. If you love forbidden romance and/or liked Morrill’s other historical novel, THE LOST GIRL OF ASTOR STREET, then you definitely want to check this one out. (Also, if you haven’t read LOST GIRL, go check it out!)

Recommended for Ages 12 up.

Cultural Elements
Evalina is an Italian American and considered white. She is ashamed of her family’s earlier connection to the mafia. Taichi and his family are Japanese American and end up imprisoned in an internment camp.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
None.

Romance/Sexual Content
Brief kissing.

Spiritual Content
None.

Violent Content
Some racist comments and situations. Signs prohibit Japanese from entering some places of business. A man spits at the feet of people on their way to internment camps. A group within the camp vows to overthrow the system and align themselves with Japan, threatening to harm or kill others, including any fellow prisoners who don’t support their efforts.

Drug Content
None.

Note: I received a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. This post contains affiliate links.

Review: Loving vs. Virginia by Patricia Hruby Powell

Book Review and Content, Historical, New Adult 18up, Poetry, , , , ,

Loving vs. Virginia
Patricia Hruby Powell
Illustrations by Shadra Strickland
Chronicle Books
Available January 31, 2017

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Summary from Goodreads
From acclaimed author Patricia Hruby Powell comes the story of a landmark civil rights case, told in spare and gorgeous verse. In 1955, in Caroline County, Virginia, amidst segregation and prejudice, injustice and cruelty, two teenagers fell in love. Their life together broke the law, but their determination would change it. Richard and Mildred Loving were at the heart of a Supreme Court case that legalized marriage between races, and a story of the devoted couple who faced discrimination, fought it, and won.

My Thoughts
Somehow I missed the fact that this story is told in verse—which is admittedly ridiculous, since it’s one of the first things stated about LOVING VS. VIRGINIA. Actually, I thought I would be reading a more traditional narrative relating the story of Richard and Mildred Loving, so discovering the stark, emotive poetry in which Mildred and Richard tell their stories surprised and delighted me.

Each chapter paints a specific scene in the tale of their love. The poems create a sense of time and culture in few words and really drew me into the emotions of the characters. Fans of novel-in-verse storytelling and of historical fiction and romance should definitely read this book. Honestly, I felt like reading LOVING VS. VIRGINIA made me stop and think about how short a time ago in our history a man and woman were denied the right to love one another and be married because of their race.

I loved the message of hope and triumph in the story and the inclusion of historical timelines and other information. Those helped craft a larger understanding of what was happening in the country at the time this story really happened.

Recommended for Ages 13 up

Cultural Elements
This novel in poetry follows the historical story of Richard and Mildred Loving, a white man and black woman who fell in love and married in a time when interracial marriage remained illegal in their home state of Virginia. The novel shows some of the experiences of racism and prejudice against the couple and their friends.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
Mild profanity used infrequently.

Romance/Sexual Content
No explicit descriptions of sex, but readers do understand that Richard and Mildred have sex before getting married. Mildred becomes pregnant with his child more than once. At one point she makes a comment about how a man has needs—saying that she may feel guilty about having sex with him, but kind of a shrug of the shoulders, men-have-needs. I feel like, within the historical context, that kind of thinking may have been the understanding between men and women, but I wish that somewhere the author had addressed it or hinted about the lack of balance and equality in that idea. (Men are not excused from responsibility for their sexual conduct on the grounds that they “have needs”.) This might be an angle to discuss with readers either as a parent or within a classroom setting.

See violent content.

Spiritual Content
None.

Violent Content
Mildred spends time in jail because she married a white man. The jailer threatens her, marching male prisoners past her cell and insinuating that he might let them assault her. It’s brief and without graphic description, but may be startling to some readers.

Drug Content
None.

Note: I received a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Review: 10 Steps to Girlfriend Status by Cynthia Toney

Young Adult/Teen 12-18, , , , , ,

10 Steps to Girlfriend Status (Bird Face #2)
Cynthia Toney
Write Integrity Press

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Goodreads

While visiting an elderly neighbor, Wendy stumbles onto a family secret about a forbidden romance from her grandmother’s generation. Wendy investigates further, but her snooping only seems to create more trouble. Her visits to her neighbor, Mrs. V, land her in trouble with her hopefully-soon-to-be boyfriend, David, when he sees her with Mrs. V’s grandson. Having Alice for a new stepsister was supposed to be fun, but Alice withdraws, barely speaking to Wendy. And even her friend Gayle seems distant. Solving the mystery of what happened to the forbidden couple might soothe Wendy’s curiosity, but it will take more than that to patch up the other relationships in her life.

I enjoyed Wendy as a narrator in the first book, 8 Notes to a Nobody, and was excited to jump back into her quirky mind in this story, too. At fourteen, her latest project is making herself David’s girlfriend. As she pursues a relationship with him—it’s all clean, innocent things—she learns that relationships require more than holding hands and going out on Saturday nights. Respect and trust are essential, as is a basis of friendship. The story unfolds naturally. There’s no moment in which a preachy adult or friend hands Wendy the pearls of wisdom or beats her over the head with them. Everything happens as Wendy’s own discoveries about herself and the world around her. I really appreciated this and thought it was nicely done. I also liked that Wendy doesn’t pursue David using her body or emotional manipulation.

I liked that in the midst of all these other things—investigating the past, learning about changes in Mrs. V’s life, pursuing a relationship with her first boyfriend—Wendy is learning to adjust to her new blended family. When Wendy learns that her mom and new stepdad want her to wait until she’s a little older to date, she struggles with this news. Not only is she disappointed, but she feels like her new stepdad is overstepping his bounds, and worries that her mom may not stand up for what she wants and believes and will let her stepdad run the show. They have a long talk about it, one that I felt like was pretty realistic. Everyone articulates his or her side well, even if they don’t all agree. Blending two families isn’t an easy adjustment for anyone, and while it doesn’t dominate the story, I appreciated that it was an element included. I liked that it was a functional version of what blending families can be. We often see the dysfunctional versions in literature, so I was glad to see smart adults making good calls but again, not driving the story or taking over the scenes. Wendy remained the protagonist and the truth-seeker throughout the entire story.

For late elementary and middle school readers, this is a light, fun story that introduces relationships on a lot of different levels: Wendy’s mentoring/grandparent-like relationship with Mrs. V; the changes in her relationships with her new stepfamily; her relationships with Sam and David. The forbidden relationship in Wendy’s past explores an interracial relationship, and the challenges faced by the two in a generation much less tolerant than today. The details about that struggle are brief and vague, but the story definitely communicates that this was a big challenge for a couple of that time period. Toney does an excellent job introducing deep topics like this in a way that makes them accessible to younger readers but maintains a light story.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
None.

Romance/Sexual Content
Wendy really wants David to be her boyfriend. In her mind, there are ten steps she’ll need to complete in order to make this happen. As the story unfolds, she mentally checks off the steps. They are things like meeting his family, and eating lunch together.

There is one brief kiss on the lips.

Spiritual Content
Wendy and David’s families attend church.

Violent Content
None.

Drug Content
None.

Note: I received a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

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