People Books

Paula McLain's Like Family is a riveting story of three girls' lives as they move from one house to another in the Fresno, California foster care system. Many altering factors lead to the girls' entry in the foster system, including the imprisonment of their father, the abandonment by their mom, and the incapability of their grandma to take care of them for long. The girls deal with many different obstacles in their foster homes including strict rules, sexual exploitation, and deprivation of water! The life-altering events are written in extremely descriptive and graphic detail that capture the reader's attention and don't let go. I'm not normally a reader of non-fiction novels; I generally find more interest in fiction books. However, as soon as I opened this book to the first page, I discovered that even non-fiction books could be entertaining and enjoyable. I couldn't put the book down, from start to finish. It was a dramatic, funny, emotional book that I would recommend to any girl or woman (Guys wouldn't like it much, I'm sure!).

Paula McLain's account of her childhood is compelling reading. I am deeply concerned with the dismal state of the foster care system and the impact of it on our community's children. I have also been a foster parent. Ms. McLain's writing is powerful and personal, a beautiful and touching memoir allowing the rest of us to experience the abysmal consequences of parenting taken too lightly (by biological parents or misguided fosters or officials entrusted with responsibility). The reader does not have to have a specific interest in this topic to be moved and gain value and insight. Ms. McLain takes full responsibility as an adult to have her own life work, even with the vestiges of her childhood forever present. No whining here, which makes it all the more powerful. A quick read, highly recommended.

Paula McLain's book is excellent. It deals with an extremely tough subject in an honest, heart-wrenching, sometimes funny, but never "feel sorry for me" manner. It was well worth every second I spent reading it.

What sad, sad childhoods the three sisters in Like Family had. This compelling tale may break your heart or inspire you to become a GOOD foster parent; what it won't do is leave you unmoved. Read this beautifully written book and weep.

Poet Paula McLain's memoir of growing up among foster families because of her ex-con unreliable father, and a mother who took off for the movies for sixteen years, is an American tragedy with a bittersweet ending.

McLain's characters, the people she meets during her harrowing journey through a foster-care system increasingly gone mad, are both abusive and pitiable, criminally unfit to be their own children's parents, and yet as adrift as Paula and her two sisters, Penny and Teresa. McLain's prose is a long-overdue love letter to her wry, spunky, strong personality, the children and families rebelliously proud of their differences in mainstream America, the love coming from real parenting such as McLain's father's ex-wife Donna, McLain's churchgoing Granny, and the kindly Fredericksons, a foster family for the McLain girls, the forgotten Americana of the 1960's and 1970's, the heartbreak of teenage girls looking for love in sexual embraces, and most of all, the unbreakable bond between McLain and her sisters, Penny and Teresa, who are as fascinating as she is.

Even McLain's absent mother, who returns miraculously out of the blue, as often happens in real life, gets sympathetic treatment. A brilliant, complex memoir.

What an insightful and healing book! Every page has powerful insights where most books might have 20% of real content. I couldn't wait to get through it and read it again. The first six chapters are analytical and the rest provide encouragement and direction. I have recommended this book to almost everyone. I bought several extra to give out as loaners.

As a Behavior Analyst I see a lot of these life situations in the work place (people bring their dysfunctions to work). Managers can learn great techniques to improve performance of staff. You are going to run into dysfunctional people, learn how to handle them!

I bought this book for quick reading on a plane. This title may do the content a disservice, but I did buy the book. I would rather that the title were the sub-title but please read on. Initially while reading the book I was prepared to give it a 7 out of 10 positive score. But as I moved toward the end, the book and advice got stronger and better. The conclusion brings me to rate this book a 9 out of 10. The reason for the seven or the nine was primarily due to the title and expectations. I like to share things with friends, and I was fearful that they might think I bought the book with them in mind. Strong advice, not preachy, and not I'm OK but your not, and well worth the full price. If you have difficult people in your life, buy this book. Thanks Elizabeth, but how about consulting with me on the next title? :)

I bought this book at Krogers while waiting for my wife and
it really turned me around in my view of SUP's ( Screwed Up People).
It is very common sense book on learning how to spot SUP's , dealing with SUP's , and letting SUP's go . A must have for anyone who deals with people in a work environment, home, or on the golf course.

A real world account of the many events that can occur on a daily basis in your life. It made me feel that I was not alone and that other people were facing the same problems. Not only facing them but how to face and resolve them. A friend told me to just put the book down and open it now and then to any page - and it always seems to hit the perfect page.

This is an excellent book that is easy to read, and offers solutions and helpful techniques for almost any adult. You almost always deal with at least one "screwed up person" every day. I have recommended it to patients who have benefitted from it.

She does an excellent job of explaining forgiveness, and moving forward.

Worth every penny.

Louisiana's Song is a wonderful book. Great for all ages. Once again, Kerry Madden takes you deep into the very heart of the Weems family and keeps you there! I found myself longing for more Weems stories!

This book can show about really good times and really hard times. It could definitely teach people that have an easy and carefree life about much harder times and much better times. It's adventurous and exciting, and if you love nature, this book is perfect for you.


Alexis...
8yrs. old

Kerry Madden is a master at creating characters that existed in a real part of America - and allowing readers to understand the times and tribulations of a family in a time not too long ago. The importance of keeping recent history alive for young readers cannot be overstated. Real people, real problems, real characters that young (and old) readers can identify with and understand. Heartwarming, but not soft, Madden goes deep into the characters. This is the kind of book that keeps it real. The book stands alone, but to get the entire journey, start at Gentle's Holler.

Louisiana's Song

In reading Madden's second book of the Maggie Valley series and of the Weems family, you find yourself lost in the story. At the end, you must return to the world of tv, canned music, microwaves, etc. Madden's stories of the beautiful Maggie Valley might well be set anywhere as a young girl struggles with her dreams and the reality of everyday life.

This series is a great read for middle schoolers, teenagers, and even to the more mature readers who just want to lose themselves in a time that was more peaceful, more in touch with nature, and families were closer.

Here's my general rule regarding sequels: If you can pick it up and read it through without knowing one teeny tiny detail about the previous book (and I am including the author's name in that statement) and still feel like it stands entirely on its own two feet, then that's a pretty good book, mister. And "Louisiana's Song" is a pretty good book. A soft novel. The kind of book for a certain kind of doe-eyed twelve-year-old girl, perhaps. Or maybe I'm just limiting the scope of the potential audience of this title. In "Louisiana's Song" you're dealing with personal loss, hardship, and disillusionment. The ending could have used a once over, but for the most part this is a strong title and one that is sure to become deeply beloved by someone out there somewhere.

All Livy Two really wants is for life to become "normal" again. Ever since her daddy got in that car accident all those months ago her life has been topsy-turvy. Mama is having difficulty getting ends to meet. Grandma Horace is always insisting that they leave their lovely mountain holler home in the North Carolina mountains to live somewhere industrial. But now it is 1963 and daddy is coming home at last! Surely everything will go back to normal now, right? Wrong. Having suffered severe head trauma from his accident, Livy Two's daddy needs to relearn everything about his old life slowly. To Livy Two's surprise, however, it's her quiet sister Louise that is able to provide daddy with the help he needs and who works up the courage to sell pictures to make money for the family. Will all that be enough to overcome Grandma Horace's campaign to get their mama a factory job and them into the city? Time will only tell.

It's funny that the hero of Ms. Madden's series is always Livy Two, but that the titles are always named after her siblings and not herself. It's probably the mark of the series that the heroine's tales always bear the name of her sibs and that she herself bears a name that serves as a constant reminder that she was not the first child named "Livy" in her family. This is a loving household, but one that gives its children certain weights to bear. At one point Livy Two's mama explains why she willingly had so many children. It was because their father wanted a big family and to live in the beautiful outdoors. Now he's been hurt and no money was put aside for his family in his absence. And when families are this large, it's the older siblings who get stuck with the brunt of the responsibility. Little wonder that Livy Two's older brother Emmett takes off the minute he thinks he can.

Madden gets the emotional quality of her story right. In fact, there are times when it feels like she's shooting you through with one feeling or another on the sly. Livy Two's daddy is a good example of this. When they bring him to a kind of fun park called Ghost Town to see his son, a faux gunfight breaks out. The next line reads that, "Daddy stops crying and watches the rest of the show from behind a post." We didn't even necessarily know that he WAS crying at that point. So really, in a way this makes me feel even more sorry for him than if Madden were giving you a play-by-play of all her characters' emotional states and actions. The same might be said for Grandma Horace. Since we're seeing all of this from Livy Two's perspective, we're not supposed to sympathize with her Grandma, but it's hard for adult readers not to see her point of view when she says, "Child, I'm sixty-one years old, and I'm surprised that this year has not put me in my grave." Her methods for getting the family to move to Buncombe County may be questionable, but you can understand why she'd want to give her grandchildren what she truly believes to be a better life. Admittedly, it was a bit precious for me at times. I'll acknowledge that. It's remarkably hard for an author, any author, to show sentiment without dipping into twee. For the most part Livy Two and Louise are able to give their younger siblings stories and fairy realms that feel of childish innocence. Other times it's a bit much for me, though I suspect that child readers won't mind a jot.

As I mentioned before, this book doesn't require any knowledge of its preceding novel, Gentle's Holler. Be that as it may be, there were a couple moments where I got a bit confused. There's someone named "Uncle Hazard", for example, who is not identified as a dog until you're onto page 12 and the barking begins. And if you're not a fan of series where the plot bleeds into its sequel, best that you avoid this book. I got to the end of the tale without a lot of the major plot points getting resolved and was shocked to suddenly find my nose in the Acknowledgments section. It's an odd choice on Madden's part, I'll admit. "Louisiana's Song" stands on its own right up until the end. Readers, particularly child readers, aren't fans of books that leave them hanging so I wonder if at least one of the dangling strings could have been resolved.

There's a class of sixth graders that comes into my library once or twice a month, and these kids have a huge range of tastes and preferences. I'd say that five or six of the girls, though, like a certain kind of book. They read Izzy, Willy-Nilly by Cynthia Voight, A Corner Of The Universe by Ann Martin, and Shug by Jenny Han. They eat these puppies up and then come to me asking, "Do you have any more of the same? Do you have anything EXACTLY like these books?" I don't, obviously. The best that I can do is to sloooowly introduce them to the notion of historical fiction. These are kids who prefer contemporary fare, but find the right historical novel with the right characters and emotions and they go to town. So the next time I see them, I'm going to have to booktalk "Louisiana's Song". It'll be right up their alley. The great characters. The feelings of love and frustration between siblings. Trying to strike out on your own. For a certain kind of reader, this is a book to love.

As usual, Sam Keith proves that he is an artistic genius with this gripping story of one of the most unusual superheros ever created.

What I like about this story is that it shows how the world would really react to a superhero. It also shows that even with superpowers, we are all still human by showing the characters' imperfections.

A definite must-read for any superhero fan!

Especially those who like urban superhero stories as opposed to science fiction superhero-type stories!

I reccomend this very highly!

A big purple monster type guy protects a girl that is trying to help others. A nasty bad guy and his hordes of creepy little black chomping demon type things try and get to her.

That is, if most of this isn't just some demented dream or other. Entertaining, but maybe a little wayward.

The first three volumes of the Maxx are by far the best experience in reading comics I have ever had. Seeing how the story unfolds and the mystery of all this crazy stuff unravels is awesome. Sam Kieth does an excelent job of dropping hints and little visual clues along the way without giving plot points away to soon. this was an excelent comic and sam keith's visual style is so neat.

The Maxx is a masterpiece. It's that simple.

Personally, I found The Maxx through watching the MTV Liquid Television show. I was very young, and very confused. Once I got older, though, I found a renewed interest in The Maxx and Sam K.'s work.

If you liked the show, and you know how to read, this is a no-brainer. Even if you've never seen the show, the various art styles, deep story and astounding, true-to-life dialog (Thanks to Messner-Loebs) will suck you in. This series honestly changed the way I look at life. You can see the specifics on the story in other reviews. I just wanted to share what The Maxx means to me. Which is a lot. Thank you, Sam Kieth.

I do not read comic books. I got the first volume of The Maxx because I enjoyed the cartoon so much - and volume 1 is almost exactly like the cartoon. The same is with the first half of volume 2 - then it starts to expand in strange and interesting rhelms!

Now - I can't help it, I'm ordering volume #3, I'm hooked.

Annie Sullivan, Helen Keller's teacher and lifelong friend, tells her own story for middle grade to high school readers in this fictionalized autobiography. Each chapter begins with an excerpt from Sullivan's letters to Sophia Hopkins, a mentor and friend (as well as housemother) from Perkins Institute for the Blind. Annie was sent to serve the Keller family after her own hero journey from Tewksbury orphanage to Perkins, half blind most of the time. While the story will be familiar to anyone who has seen The Miracle Worker with Patty Duke and Ann Bancroft, the details of Sullivan's first teaching job, counter pointed by details from her personal history (sent to the almshouse, the ensuing loss of a brother, her blindness, her trepidation hidden carefully from the Kellers about not being able to help Helen at all) will ring true. The courage and determination of a young woman triumphs in the face of family reluctance and interference which made her efforts to teach Helen Keller the "true meaning" behind the fingerspelled words very difficult. Annie's emphasis on civilized behavior despite disability is remarkable in our own "anything goes" world where comportment has fallen into the world of archaic concepts. The author's afterword is perhaps the heart of the book, telling the story concisely of how 20-year-old Sullivan broke through Helen's shell in a month, and for the next fifty years accompanied her on the incredible journey into the wider world. 11 photographs, an extensive bibliography including books, articles, films and videos plus online resources will help readers continue inquiry if they desire. A two-page chronology of events is also included. The cover includes Braille rendition of the title and subtitle.

While most people have at least heard of Helen Keller, few know much about her teacher, the dedicated and passionate Annie Sullivan. Sarah Miller's MISS SPITFIRE may change that. The novel gives a fictionalized but well-researched narrative, in Annie's own voice, of the first month Annie spent with Helen. Her struggle to reach this wild, blind, and deaf child and overcome the obstacles presented by Helen's family makes a riveting read.

Miller delves deeply into her subject, letting readers in on Annie's early life through memories and flashbacks--of her abusive father, of the horrible years she spent at a state almshouse, and of the better but still difficult years in a school for the blind. Readers will find it easier to sympathize with and relate to her loneliness and longing for affection. It's wonderful to see the parts of her personality that had long been considered flaws--her stubbornness, her fierce temper--become assets in dealing with Helen. More than just a historical figure, in MISS SPITFIRE Annie Sullivan becomes a fully realized human being.

It's clear from the novel that Annie's success didn't come easily. It details every setback and every triumph, no matter how minor, until readers will be racing through the pages waiting to see how she will finally break through to Helen. They may be a little disappointed to discover that the novel ends shortly after that major breakthrough, wishing to read on and continue the journey with Annie. A sequel would certainly be welcome!

MISS SPITFIRE is everything a historical novel should be--richly imagined, true to its period, and providing an engaging story that will feel completely relevant to modern readers.

Reviewed by: Lynn Crow

I love this book! When I first read it, I was reminded of reading the play, The Miracle Worker. Ms. Miller has written a wonderful book for children about Annie Sullivan, the teacher who helped Helen Keller connect to the world. I have shared the book with my students and other teachers. Some of my students have commented that they never knew about Annie Sullivan, and how important she was to Helen's education.

"My heart is singing for joy this morning."
-Anne Sullivan to Sophia Hopkins, March 1887

So begins one of the chapters in Sarah Miller's debut novel Miss Spitfire: Reaching Helen Keller, and her quote from Annie Sullivan describes just how I felt when I finished this magical book.

Last spring, I issued an invitation to authors of historical fiction, to send me information about their books for a presentation I'm doing this fall at the New York State Reading Association Conference. I heard from wonderful writers -- some whose works I knew and some who were new to me. But one title REALLY caught my eye: Miss Spitfire by Sarah Miller. First, it got my attention because the titles of our books are so similar(Mine is called SPITFIRE). When I opened it up to start reading, it got my attention in another way -- a sweep-you-away-in-the-story kind of way.

Miss Spitfire: Reaching Helen Keller tells the story of Annie Sullivan, the young woman who battled beliefs of the time and fought with every ounce of energy she had to give Helen Keller the gift of language. Sarah Miller tells the story in Annie's voice -- and tells it with a passion that speaks to the depth of her research and her pure love for this historical figure. Miss Spitfire not only tells the story we see in The Miracle Worker -- the story of Annie's time with Helen -- but also plunges into Annie Sullivan's past, and in doing so, provides a deeper understanding of the commitment and determination that led to her success.

The portrayals of Annie's emotional, psychological, and physical struggles with Helen were so vivid that I found myself reading with my brow furrowed in determined solidarity with Annie as she plunked Helen back into her seat at the dining room table for the tenth time. Truly, Annie had to be a spitfire to survive this monumental challenge when she was little more than a girl herself.

The minor characters in this novel sparkle, too. One of my favorite scenes brought Helen together for a lesson with the Kellers' servant boy Percy. I felt like I was about to burst with pride right along with Annie when Helen began to turn from a student into a teacher, helping Percy with some of the letters. Mr. & Mrs. Keller, too, are painted with a tremendous depth of understanding. It would have been easy to portray Helen's parents as one-dimensional characters who got in the way of Annie's work, but instead, Sarah Miller helps us to see their complexity and feel some of their anguish at having a beautiful, broken child.

Early in the book, Annie tells Helen's mother why her lessons are so vital to Helen.

"Words, Mrs. Keller, words bridge the gap between two minds. Words are a miracle."

Indeed, they are. And Miss Spitfire will have you believing in that miracle all over again.

Authors that try to tackle any aspect of Helen Keller's life in a children's literary format are simultaneously blessed and cursed. On the one hand, talk about God's gift to authors. The emotional ups and downs of Helen's tale, the (dare I say) hope of her life, I mean she's a great historical character. Loads more interesting to a nine-year-old than your average everyday biographical figures. So there's that. On the other hand, none of this is a secret. As a result, my library's Helen Keller section of biographies is rivaled only by Martin Luther King Jr. So when I saw that someone had done a middle grade work of fiction regarding Helen and Annie Sullivan's early days, I hardly gave it a thought. Why read what we already know? I mean, if everyone knows a series of facts about someone, can there be any worthwhile reason to read yet ANOTHER story about her life and trials? The answer, as it happens, is yes. Debut author Sarah Miller shows us that even the most familiar story can become edge-of-your-seat gripping when the writing's cool and collected.

There's a reason this book is called "Miss Spitfire". Turns out, that was the nickname bestowed on Annie Sullivan when she attended the Perkins Institute for the Blind. Irish, alone in the world, half-blind, and with guts galore, Ms. Sullivan is terrified at the prospect of her very first job. She's being sent to work with one Helen Keller, a blind, deaf child. The hope is to work a "miracle" on her and teach her to bridge the gap between signing and the use of words. The task turns out to be more than she gambled for, however, when it appears that Helen has had the run of her household for years. Uncivilized, uncouth, and unrepentant, her wishy-washy parents have failed to discipline, thereby allowing Helen to always get what she wants. If Annie didn't see Helen coming, though, you can be darn certain that Helen didn't see Annie either. Now the battle between the two firebrands has begun and it's time to see whether or not the stubbornness of a child who has always had her way can compete with the stubbornness of a woman as tough and smart as Annie Sullivan.

The reason the Helen Keller story works is because Helen is hell on earth. She's not the angelic creature just waiting for a helping hand. No dewy-eyed, saintly personality-challenged naïf she. She's not Little Eva or Little Nell. No she was, to use my grandmother's phrase, a pistol. So for a book like this to work you need to really feel for Annie Sullivan. When Helen cracks her in the jaw with a hardheaded doll, you have to want to strangle the child with your own bare hands and not just Annie's. As an author, Miller's smart enough to know how to tease out the dramatic elements of this tale. Seeing Ms. Sullivan's background, you are all the more impressed at her restraint around Helen. Considering that the girl has enough crafty qualities to try the patience of a saint, and considering that Ms. Sullivan's own father was abusive, you would think such tendency towards violence might easily pass down from father to daughter. Instead, the opposite is true. She does not hit because she knows what it is like to be on the receiving end of a blow. I was very taken with the moral in this story that rules and order breed love. It is Annie's restraint and discipline that in the end manages to tease out that love.

Annie's loneliness and need almost becomes their own characters in this book. Right from the start we learn that "The loneliness in my heart is an old acquaintance." Yet Miller plays Annie as increasingly desperate for human affection. She constantly looks for love from Helen, even though the child has little to no interest in forming any kind of a relationship at first. And when a baby gives Annie a kiss (lunging at her, as the text says, "like a lecher"), the woman says that, "Warmth ripples down to my toes," and that she is "Woozy with pleasure." The writing here, as you can see, is good.

Technically I should probably have a copy of The Miracle Worker in front of me for reference. It would allow me to note whether or not the emotional beats in both the play and Helen's story are identical or not. Then again, maybe it's better this way. It's clear that "Miss Spitfire" is a story of Helen's teacher, not just Helen herself. I'm sure that if Miller had wanted to she could have written the book from Helen's point of view, but as far as I can tell that way lays only tears. Seeing Annie's past allows us to note how much she and her young pupil have in common. It's a clever motif. So clever, in fact, that I feel certain that the kids who read this story will have little difficulty getting inside of the mind of an adult. Sometimes there's a disconnect between the protagonist and the reader, particularly in children's novels, if the hero is fully grown. Here I have no qualms.

The book is meticulously referenced, much to my relief. There's an author's note, photographs of the characters and locations, books for further reading, a plethora of websites and videos to visit for further info, a timeline, and even a list of sources (print and online). Better still, Miller knows enough to point out the elements of her tale that jar with the narrative. At one point Annie sing-signs the words to the song "Bessie's Song to Her Doll", because they fit the situation so well. In her Author's Note, Miller is quick to point out that the poem was written some years later by Lewis Carroll and could not have been used as it is here. It just happens to fit the book well.

I did have some questions here and there. As I've said, you get the feeling that Miller was a stickler for historical accuracy. So much so that there is no cleaning up of the real Annie's references to the "little negro boy" who worked in the house. So it was interesting to me that at no point does Annie go about wearing dark glasses ala Anne Bancroft. I assume that this was a theatrical flourish in the stage production of Helen's story that didn't accurately occur at this point in time. I did wish for a mention of it somewhere in the book, though.

And I had some other confusions elsewhere. Miller's book never really clarifies how Annie got out of the almshouse and into the Perkins school for the blind. How was her way paid? We see a brief encounter between her and a man in charge of Perkins, but there's never a full explanation of how that led to her acceptance into the school. I had hoped that maybe the author's note in the back would offer some background, but the only mention of the incident is a cryptic sentence reading, "Annie enters Perkins Institutions for the Blind" without any attention paid to the "hows" behind the sentence.

For me, the book is summarized nicely in the real life quote taken from Anne Sullivan's letters to a Ms. Sophia Hopkins, appearing at the beginning of Chapter Six. "The greatest problem I shall have to solve is how to discipline and control her without breaking her spirit." In the solution we find the heart of the novel. I've read very little historical fiction this year that stayed with me. I like to think that Ms. Miller's book is one of the few worth keeping close at hand. A really enjoyable story.

I read this book for the first time in my 4th grade Tier 4 class and still remember how I felt when I read the last lines. Chills went out all over my body and I was so upset that there wasn't more to the book! Now, 13 years later, I still get chills at the end. The whole book is suspenseful and myseterious... it's just wonderful. The sad thing is that it seems so few people have read it. I recommend EVERYONE reading it. It's a light read, but its incredibly engaging. Frank Bonham has such a wonderfully creative mind!

It's funny and brushes on some very serious subjects, this book is the whole package! Also try The Forever Formula (also by Bonham)!

I read this book when I was 12 or so and loved it(even though I didn't understand It)!Now I have been scouring all the libraries in search of this book(i'm 15 just to mention).I finally looked on the internet and have just ordered it.I always loved the imagery in this book and have started making an animation of this story(I'll ask for permission If I can get enough support to actually finish it!).I think this would be a fantastic movie(If there was a good director[say the one from bladerunner]).If you have never read this book ,I suggest you get it.Please Email me if you think I should finish this animation or to tell me to give up!linkenobi@sbcglobal.net

I first read this book when I was 11 and I have to echo some others when I say I loved it but perhaps didn't grasp all of it at the time. I recently tracked down a used copy and I am re-reading it right now. I think it is great and would make a great movie, perhaps on the Sci-Fi channel. Does anyone know if this has been made into a movie? Parts of the book may be dated now, but as far as characters and story-telling I think it still holds up.

I read this book many years ago, and while I'm not certain that as a 12-year-old I fully grasped it, it was a fun read, and it has stayed with me since. I'm fascinated to seee that this has been the case with others as well. Having read several of Mr. Bonham's urban-set tales beforehand, this bit of action/science-fiction(?) came as a real curveball, though many of his stories are parables. He tells his moral tales so well that, much like an episode of "Fat Albert", you don't realize you've been taught a lesson until it's all done. Anyway, every time a another piece of vacant land gets paved over in my beloved (insert your state here), I think about this book and wonder how much closer the future depicted herein is inching.

I loved this book. Out of the many many books I possessed from that time of my life, I still have this one. I read it when I was in 4th grade, and I re-read it every now and then (usually, when I move, and "find" things that I have forgotten about). I still remember the day in high school being able to raise my hand and give the answer "Noble Gas!".. and thinking "No, I DIDN'T do my homework, but I read a book that mentioned it years ago!"

My parents house is very well insulated, and hence very quiet inside... every time insulation's effect on how quiet a house is, I think of this book too.

Oxygen bars, of course, usually remind me of this book... as well as many other things we see in everyday life.

Buy this book, and SAVE it. Loan it out only if given something good in collateral!

What an amazing and touching story! Even though I am not Jewish, I cannot help but love Patricia Polacco's stories of the Jewish faith and culture. What is most striking about this book is the comparison and contrast to African-American culture. Of course, first and foremost this is a story about friendship between a lonely old woman, a little boy, and a tailless cat. It's absolutely delightful.

What a sweet story of connection. My 4 yo liked it a lot, and i was moved to tears. Lots to the story.

What a beautiful story to show children that, despite our differences, i.e. age, race, family background, we still have some many important things in common. Characters have wit, charm and integrity. Story is very moving and good for all ages.

This is one of the best children's books I have ever read. In fact, it is one of the most beautiful (in language and illustrations) books I have read--period. Patricia Polacco is a master at bringing diverse, meaningful relationships to life. Every sensitive, mature parent should buy this book for his/her child!

This is the story of a loving friendship between an elderly Jewish lady from Poland named Mrs. Katz, and an African-American child named Larnel. Mrs. Katz lives alone in her apartment and doesn't have anyone to visit her. (It's not stated in the book, but, since this appears to be a predominantly African-American inner city neighborhood, one wonders if she was left behind by the Jewish community when the more affluent members moved to the suburbs? In real life it has happened...) Larnel's mother stops by to visit her every other day or so, and brings Larnel with her.

One day, Larnel gets the idea to give Mrs. Katz a kitten from the litter that was born in the basement of his apartment building. (Get the pun -- Katz/cats? Actually, the name "Katz" has nothing to do with "cats," but it's cute anyway.) Mrs. Katz names the kitten Tush, which is Yiddish for "bottom," because it has no tail. Larnel agrees to help her care for Tush, and from this sharing, a lifelong friendship grows.

The story is well-written, the characters are well-developed and "real." The illustrations are vibrant, beautifully done, and ethnically accurate. Well, almost. There are a couple Jewish bloopers. For one thing, the menorah sitting by Mrs. Katz's window only has seven branches. A Hanukkah menorah has nine -- eight for the eight days plus an extra for the "servant" candle. The seven-branched menorah mentioned in the Bible was specifically for the Jerusalem Temple, and is not usually found in the home. Since Hanukkah was mentioned in the story, I have to assume that this was supposed to be a Hanukkah menorah.

The second blooper is the scene in the bakery. Mrs. Katz is shopping for PASSOVER -- a time when no leaven is to be found anywhere in a Jewish home. It is not just a matter of eating matzoh. The entire house is cleaned of anything even resembling leaven, and even owning leavened products is forbidden. That being the case, why is she shopping for her Passover feast in a bakery, of all places? She is clearly pointing at a cake or some rolls, and these would NOT be served on Passover! So nu, maybe she's a Reform Jew and not so strict? But in that case, why is that very Hasidic-looking gentleman in the corner shopping there? Surely HE would not serve bread for Passover! (...)

These are relatively minor quibbles, given the overall good quality of the book. But when it comes to children's books, I insist on total accuracy with regard to Judaism, because these are the images that will stick in the mind for years to come. Granted, this is not a "Jewish" book per se, it's a multicultural book -- which is all the more reason to pay more attention to the Jewish details, lest the reader(s) be misled. For the bloopers I'm docking it a star, but it's still a great story and I highly recommend it to both Jews and gentiles.

I THINK THIS STORY IS VERY TOUCHING. AS A PERSONAL FRIEND OF THE AUTHOR, I WOULD HAVE NEVER THOUGHT THAT SHE WOULD HAVE GONE THROUGH SO MUCH TERROR. LANEY IS A VERY FRIENDLY PERSON. SHE BRIGHTENS UP THE OFFICE AT WORK WITH HER SMILE AND WORDS OF ENCOURAGEMENT. SHE'S ALWAYS CHEERFUL AND FRIENDLY. INSTEAD OF COFFEE IN THE MORNING TO WAKE ME UP, I JUST GO AND VISIT LANEY.

The Mud People describes the powerful and difficult journey of a young girl seeking to find the truth in her painful world. The story unfolds through her eyes, and the voice which is created as a result is innocent, honest, and very moving- for in her simplicity there lies a depth which speaks directly to the reader with heartfelt force. Laced with powerful imagery throughout, the tale quickly takes hold of the reader to usher them into the silent inner space where true pain and joy lie. Her journey of discovery and recovery is one which might spark hope in the hearts of us all.

I am Laney's youngest sister and have suffered from the emotional and verbal abuse referred to in her story. Her book was able to put in words something that was buried deep and locked tightly inside of me since childhood. It is my hope that many wounded survivors will find their way to this book of gentle healing and journey out of the darkness into light and life.

Laney MacKenna Mark is my great aunt.And in the book the sister refered to as Reene was my grandmother, so for me this book ment more than it would to the average reader. But if I were to look at this as an regular person I would still rate it the same. I recommend this book to anyone and everyone..

As an avid reader of many, many books on healing of emotional and physical abuse, this little book, The Mud People is one of the finest little books I have ever come across. I have continually recommended this book to many people who have suffered emotional and physical trauma from parents and family. It is so profound in its story of a little girl who had a small inner voice who kept nudging her, reminding her that she had worth and value. Having the courage to leave the tribal-minded thinking of her abusive family and begin a journey that would lead herself to her own true worth. When you first pick up this little book and start reading it you might be tempted to think that it was a childrens book, written for children, but I assure you it is for adults. It brought tears to my eyes as I read the story, and made me appreciate the courage it takes to leave an abusive people and claim value for oneself....and the expected anger and rejection that will follow from family and parents when they realize they can no longer control or dominate. The book makes powerful yet subtle insights about the tribal thinking patterns, the family history of abuse from generation to generation, and the courage of one child to break the rules of abuse and leave it behind. It will help those who have grown up with cruel and insensitive parents and family. It will help those of sexual abuse and it will confirm and support that inner voice that speaks to many of us which says....there must be a better way, I must have self-worth and I am willing to risk finding it, even if it means leaving people who are not willing to journey with me into healthy-minded relationships. Read this little book....it will help you.

The book burns, numbs, burns. The people are real. The history is real. "It was History she ran from," the author tells us, we who are prone to forget or deny, "and, to her, there was no stalker more tenacious, no trapper so cunning: its favorite victims are those who survive."

'Music for the Third Ear' is a deceptively simple and quick book. But it lingers, it doesn't go away, and it keeps you thinking about it long afterwards. There are so many levels that meet or careen into each other... It is an extremely saddening book, with no happy ending, and barely a ray of hope. It is pessimistic, as many of the characters are sucked down into and feed on their own vortexes of hate or need. It is a violent protest about man's inhumanity to man, and what to depths our egocentricity allows us to stoop---Mette feels all she does is OK because she is childless; Mesud rides on a cloud of ethnic hate that becomes its own reason to exist and be nurtured; Dr. lo Schiavo has no qualms about removing love and trust in the name of 'charity' and 'humanity', and so on. The only truly innocent one is as always the child, who might be the eternal loser.

A moving story that is relevant today. It tells us how war is a tragedy not only for its victims, but also for the children of the victims. After World War II the phrase "never again" became a mantra, but when is it going to occur? Read this book; pass it on to your friends. Help spread the word that today we should shout to our leaders around the globe "NEVER AGAIN."

Susan Schwartz Senstad could not have written a more timely and powerful work of fiction. The book is about the aftereffects of the rape genocide/ethnic cleansing policies carried about by Slobodon Milosevij on a couple coming back from their ordeal who meet up with a child of Auschwitz survivors, looking to take them in and "fix" what happened to them. .... In this powerful intersection of the Shoah that could not happen again, with the one that has happened and is now being debated--like its predecessor--Schwartz Senstad understands the human need to rid ourselves of survivor guilt, the resilience of the survivors of the Balkans and of other atrocities, and the great silence that, for the victims, is often the only possible response to what has happened to them. In this short and powerful tale, the main character,Zhelijka, a Croation Catholic woman, endures deliberate cruel and constant mass rapes, until she becomes pregnant by an anonymous father. Zhelijka's soon-born son becomes the pivotal character in the story. She calls him "Zero" and despite her strong ties to her child, is finally forced to endure yet another horror--she allows her Muslim husband Mesud to put the child up for adoption. Ultimately, the rejected child re-enters the lives of the four adult characters, Zhelijka and Mesud and Mette (the first-generation holocaust survivor) and her Norwegian husban Hans Olav.A perfect book club book, which manages to transcend its sad moments with emotion writ large and beautifully, a la Alice Walker or Joyce Carol Oates. Destined for the Oprah show! Thanks to Picador, USA for publishing a paperback version that exceeds the beauty of "The Red Tent."

Music for the Third Ear in eerie synchronous plotting seeks to and successfully connects two twentieth century holocausts, the Nazi atrocities and the Yugoslavian. Although fictional, it achieves an immediacy and a depth of understanding, particularly about the victimization of people from the Bosnian War. By putting names, faces, and personal histories in front of us, we can't avoid becoming emotionally involved.

I will just briefly outline the plot here. The details are important, but what lies underneath in meaning is more so. A Yugoslav couple, one a Bosnian Muslim and the other a Croatian Catholic reunite five years after the end of the Bosnia War in Rome. The woman has a son as a result of gang rape during the war, whom her husband forces her to give up to a childless Italian couple. The Yugoslavians immigrate to Norway, where they stay temporarily with a childless couple, the woman being the daughter of Jewish holocaust survivors. The child, in the meantime, has severe psychological problems and eventually becomes a pawn between the Italians, the Yugoslavs, and the Norwegian couple. Each family is already psychologically scarred, some as a result of war, some for other reasons.

The story is told in flashbooks. As we are taken through their lives what becomes painfully evident is that we can only watch, but are powerless to stop another tragedy in the making, even after war is long over. What makes it bearable at all, is the loving insight of the author, a psychotherapist, who tells the story in way that enhances our understanding and never intrudes.

The title is not entirely clear to me, but I gather that it relates to a method of psychotherapy described by the psychoanalyst, Theodore Reik, in which listening, not just with the ears, but with all of one's senses and one's soul, is revelatory and crucial to understanding and healing.

Ngarrindjeri Wurruwarrin is about big issues like the quality of justice enjoyed by Indigenous peoples and what sort of society we want to be. It is about the particulars of Hindmarsh Island and the writing of ethnography in the southeast. It is about anthropologists and anthropology. It is about the politics of knowledge in an oral culture and those of a print-oriented one. It is about women who insist on being authors of their own lives. And it is about belief, dissent, story-telling and story tellers.

"[A] compelling account that demands to be read... a meticulous piece of scholarship but very readable and accessible." Prof. Fay Gale, President

"[A] formidable collection...It leaves the reader wondering whether the outcome would have been different had the contents of the book been known at the time of the events it describes." John Toohey, former High Court Judge and former Aboriginal Land Commissioner

"Ngarrindjeri Wurruwarrin falls into the category of books which are likely to be valuable to almost all sectors of the reading public, and at the same time, to be criticised by almost all sectors of the reading public." Deborah Bird Rose

This work of scholarship by Diane Bell is a world away from technicist anthropology meant to be read only by specialists: it engages in a highly controversial contemporary landrights issue in a way which demonstrates the profound importance of the act of documenting culture in as polyvalent and multivocal a way as possible. She is also candid about the voices she would like to have represented and could not, those of the dissident women. For me the most valuable section of the book was its re-reading of early anthropology with an eye to the muted women's voice in it. This section demonstrates the systematic bias against recording the rich women's culture, which in the late twentieth century is the powerhouse of cultural reclamation and renovation in many Aboriginal communities. Without engaging in postmodern jargon, this book demonstrates a fine postcolonial and poststructuralist understanding of the complexities of symbolic analysis and the conditions of transmission of epistemologies, both by the Ngarrindjeri and white anthropologists. What the book demonstrates very powerfully is the gender-blind ethnocentrism of the discipline of anthropology, and its tendency to read Aboriginality through patriarchalised eyes.In particular, its assumption that men are the 'natural' makers and controllers of culture. It's a very westernised notion of power relations between the sexes, and one born of at least five millennia of patriarchy. It's a tragedy that 'women's business' as a lens for understanding the role of women in Aboriginal communities was employed in Australia as late as 1941, as by then much dominant-culture contamination and destruction of Aboriginal culture had occurred. It's surely time to pay more attention, as this book does, to the quiet but rich understandings of land and story and people that is vested in women's business. This book will inevitably create controversy because of the financial and deep political investments in the Hindmarsh Island affair, and the appalling bureaucratic fumbles and lack of respect which have marked the public utterances about it. To hear the proponent women's stories, in all their variety, is to be taken into a parallel and very moving universe of discourse, of which we need to learn the subtleties. This book is a great teacher of those. Frances Devlin Glass, School of Literary and Communication Studies, Deakin University