The Egypt Game by Zilpha Keatley Snyder

This is the second book from Ann's recommendation list that I have read. Another gem! She thought I would enjoy its Berkeley setting, and I did. The milieu is very familiar and enjoyable! The time (1967) is also familiar, and I love the occasional sixties lingo, like "fink" which I had totally forgotten! But most delightful are the characters. In particular, Melanie is a true and gifted friend to troubled April. They are sixth graders, and their ups and downs feel authentic. There's also lots of wisdom sprinkled in the story;  for example, Melanie says, "It's sort of like what you do in nonviolence. My mom says it's appealing to their better natures."
The impressionistic grey scale illustrations are a nice addition to the story. I also enjoyed the opportunity to learn about Egyptology, though not in any depth. It might be enough to spark a young person's interest, though, to delve into this study after reading the book. I liked how imaginations, costumes, and inventions (like the hieroglyphic code and names) were so enthralling to the kids. It will be interesting to see if Gabe likes it. I wonder if he'll be able to relate to kids who have nothing to do with technology! I think he'll enjoy the suspense, and the fact that these are sixth graders. Since he's a fourth grader, he'll enjoy looking up a grade or two. He may also enjoy Melanie's little brother Marshall, who is a wise four-year-old. It will be interesting to see how he reacts to the girls' getting the two sixth grade boys involved in their Egypt game. I wonder if he will feel that this is true to life, because I wondered about that. Would boys really choose this intriguing activity over basketball? I think all kids enjoy adventure...which is what the Egypt Game and this book have.

The Trumpet of the Swan by E. B. White

The paperback edition of this book has very sweet and expressive illustrations by Fred Marcellino and they definitely enhanced the story for me.
My sister Ann is a fourth grade teacher and when I visited her recently, she gave me a whole list of books she  thought I would enjoy. We always talk books, and she knows I like to put good books in Gabe's hands as well. This happens to be the first one of her recent recommendations that I read. It's a sweet and tender story about a swan who doesn't have voice. His friendship with a thoughtful boy develops over the years and incredible things happen. These incredible developments don't seem unrealistic or incredible, though, within the context of the story. They just feels kind of natural as the story weaves its comfortable way along.
While the story has a wonderful message about overcoming difficulties and being observant, what I especially enjoyed was White's love of the natural world. His descriptions of the lakes and marshes are lyrical and are obviously the work of a man who loves nature. He also shares wonderful and useful information about the species he's describing.
There's also something very endearing about the somewhat formal voice of Louis, the swan, particularly when he's staying at the Ritz. Quaint and gentlemanly and reminiscent of a forgotten era! I enjoyed that part a lot. It felt a little like going back in time to a gentler era.
I also liked the character of Sam Beaver. He's an inquisitive, patient boy who's very observant. I loved his practice of journaling every night, and ending each journal entry with a question to ponder. I'm hoping Gabe will like this practice, too, and maybe understand why I frequently ask him, "Did you ask any good questions at school today?" Maybe this book will awaken some inquisitive impulses in him, too! I know he's inquisitive, but for some reason, he doesn't like to show it.
Here's what I plan to write in the front of the book: Dear Gabriel, I hope you like this book as much as I do! Your Aunt Ann recommended it to me. I think you will like it because you love animals, and this book has a lot of very interesting animals in it. I also think you will like Sam Beaver, one of the main characters. He's a loyal friend, and I think you will like him, too. Enjoy!

The Pearl by John Steinbeck

This was a difficult book for me to read! It was short and accessible, but I didn't like the setting and I could tell it wasn't going to be a "nice" story.  Everything told me it was going to be sad, sad, sad. And it was. I knew it was "just a story" but I really care about characters, even fictional ones, and I hate to read about suffering. Yet, Kristine told me she had really liked it, so I felt like I should read it to sense more about what she likes. And of course Steinbeck reading has to be good for you, so even though it was hard, I soldiered through it.

Actually, I'm glad I did. I wouldn't choose to read it again...but in thinking about it, it has a most wonderful message. Among them are...listen to the your intuition or Holy Spirit or whatever sense you want to call it. But when it calls, you need to listen. Another message is that there's no use in trying to fool yourself that one simple thing will end all of your problems. Life is never that simple. This was a short but very meaty story. Thank you, Steinbeck, and thank you Kristine.

Bel Canto by Ann Patchett

Melissa handed me this book one day and said she thought I would enjoy it. She was right! It was enjoyable, different, and sweet. Yet it didn't "call" to me when I wasn't in it. It wended its way slowly and subtly through time as a group of foreign nationals were held hostage in a Latin capital.

The characters were intriguing and beautifully described. The development of the relationships under these extraordinary circumstances was interesting. People said what was in their hearts. People bonded with people they would have never spoken to in other circumstances. The author did a delightful job of making me wonder what I would do if my world were radically altered. It seems like a whole new set of mores came into being and old ones went out the door. It also illustrated the transformative power of beauty...in this case, an opera singer's beautiful singing.

My favorite part is around page 220 where a Russian declares his love for the American opera singer through a Japanese translator. There is so much heart and truth in this scene, that it's almost embarrassing and painful to read! I read it aloud to Leonard one night, and he agreed it was a fascinating scene. It also reveals some wonderful insights about the nature of unselfish love and the purpose of declaring it. And the story of the Russian's book of art and its influence on him is a reinforcement of the message about the power of beauty in one's life. Very sweet, very different, very refreshing. Maybe that's why I'm called back to the DC art galleries again and again and again!

The ending of the story is somewhat disturbing and surprising, but when I thought about it, it felt true.
Lovely story. Often disturbing. Deep and complex characters, and rich descriptions.

One Crazy Summer by Rita Williams-Garcia

This was the perfect book to read on my flight last night from DC to Minneapolis. A two-hour read that was pure joy! For some reason I seem to be connecting with a lot of novels that have eleven-year-old girls as the narrator! This one is black, and her story unfolds in 1968 when she travels to Oakland with her two younger sisters to meet her mother. She also connects with the Black Panthers. It's a moving story, a fun story, a tragic story, and a thought-provoking story. Melissa lent it to me and told me it was good--she was right! I especially enjoyed it because of my own connections to the Bay Area and the Black Panthers and 1968. (We hosted Eldridge Cleaver in our home years later in Napa...) It was a flashback into a familiar time, but the culture was very foreign and enlightening to read about. It's considered a "youth" book, and is one of those rare ones that is just as enjoyable and uplifiting for adults as it is for youths... There could be fruitful discussions about identity related to this book and the way that Delphine's identity develops and changes in the course of the story. Parts of the story poetic and poignant. An amazing accomplishment to hit all these themes and still be mostly light and engaging too.

Steve Jobs by Walter Isaacson

Melissa gave me this biography for Christmas. It's a treat because it's new, it's hardbound (and heavy!) and has some fascinating photos. It was a good read, despite Isaacson's occasionally confusing syntax. He did a masterful job of getting into Jobs's professional life and associations. There is less about his personal life, but we do get glimpses of Jobs's wife and children. It's often a story of our time and the development of iconic technology tools. It was fascinating to read about how these tools and ideas developed under Jobs's passionate attention. The book also reveals quite a bit about Bill Gates and other key players of this era.

Points to remember...

• Steve Jobs was passionate about DESIGN. This includes how products look, feel, and function. He lived at the intersection of the humanities and technology.
• He designed the new Apple campus building in a way to encourage people in different departments to intersect.
• He was diametrically opposed to Gates's open archetecture and instead controlled the user's experience from end to end.
• He launched a series of products over three decades that transformed whole industries: (pp. 565-566)
• Apple II - took Wozniak's first circuit board and turned it into the first personal computer that was not just for hobbyists.
• The Macintosh, which begat the home computer revolution and popularized graphical user interfaces.
• Toy Story and other Pixar blockbusters, which opened up the miracle of digital imagination.
• The iPod, which changed the way we consume music.
• The iTunes Store, which saved the music industry.
• The iPhone, which turned mobile phones into music, photography, video, email, and web devices.
• The App Store, which spawned a new content-creation industry.
• The iPad, which launched tablet computing and offered a platform for digital newspapers, magazines, books, and videos.
• iCloud, which demoted the computer from its central role in managing our content and let all of our devices sync seamlessly.
• And Apple itself, which Jobs considered his greatest creation, a place where imagination was nurtured, applied, and executed in ways so creative that it became the most valuable company on earth.
• He was very difficult to work with...and the author traces Jobs's personality development over time. It's an interesting story which Isaacson offers with compassion.

My favorite part of the book is the final word which Isaacson gives to Jobs. It's what he hoped his legacy would be, and revealed what he cared about. Page 567 onwards...worth reading again...

Winter Solstice by Rosamunde Pilcher

My friend Jann reads this book every winter...(kind of like my ritual reading of Prodigal Summer!) so I was anxious to see what she enjoys. She warned me that it was a restful place she likes to go...and indeed it was. I thoroughly enjoyed this book over the holiday break. It was the perfect "cruise read" around the pool and in the sunshine. It's light yet full of interesting characters who are unpredictable and very likeable. The setting is Scotland, and I know that's part of the attraction for Jann. This sweet story of love gave me a lot of insights into Scottish landscape and personalities and values. I enjoyed that, because the people are an unknown quantity to me. Coincidentally while on the cruise, I met a Scottish woman, and I told her what I was reading. Her face relaxed into a big smile when I mentioned the author; apparently she is revered in Scotland. It's basically a story about family and love and loss, and how people who are positive and loving can create joy no matter what the circumstances. Very enjoyable...very restful...