The Story of Seeds, Think Global, Act Local – Book Recommendation

Posted on January 28, 2020 by Joanna

Title: The Story of Seeds, Think Global, Act Local; Our Food is in Crisis. What will you do to protect it?

Author: Nancy F. Castaldo

Photos (mainly) by: Nancy F. Castaldo

Genre: Nonfiction

 Publisher: Hougthon Mifflin Harcourt, 2016

Ages: 11+

Themes: seeds, agriculture, food, genetic modification, biodiversity, climate change, poverty, seed biology, environmental science

Opening:

You spit a watermelon seed onto your plate, wishing your slice were seedless. You flick the black dots into the trash before loading the dishwasher. They’re garbage, right?

Synopsis:

Something as small as a seed can have a worldwide impact. Did you know there are top-secret seed vaults hidden throughout the world? And once a seed disappears, that’s it—it’s gone forever? With the growth of genetically modified foods, the use of many seeds is dwindling—of 80,000 edible plants, only about 150 are being cultivated. With a global cast of men and women, scientists and laypeople, and photographic documentation, Nancy Castaldo chronicles where our food comes from, and where it is going as she digs deeper into the importance of seeds in our world

Why I like this book:

I am so happy to see this 2016 book is now out in paperback. If anything its pertinence sadly only increases with each year as corporations and governments do not heed this sort of wisdom. It is a very readable and succinct (but not lacking complexity) way to introduce younger (and adult) readers to seeds. Every page is chock full of eye-opening details, photos and information, with a very compelling call to action at the end.

It includes brief stories about the importance of seeds to humanity and individuals championing this knowledge, and includes fascinating information on: developing new varieties of seed, long-term storage in high-tech seed banks, the differences between traditional seed selection and GMO seeds, and the legal issues surrounds GMO crops. The book is also made more personal by the individual stories and impact of policies, such as suicide rates among Indian farmers.

This is a subject I have been interested in for twenty years when I started planting heirloom seeds in my own garden and understanding biodiversity more, and I highly recommend this book for middle and high school libraries with its great mix of science, history and advocacy.

 “Some 75 percent of plant genetic diversity has been lost since the 1900’s… Only 150 plant species are being grown for sale of the 12,000 plant species used for human food…Eight grains are traded throughout the world and rice, wheat, and maize are where half of our calories come from… One in five plants are threatened with extinction”. 

Activities/resources:

The book includes: color photos, pop out boxes, contents, index, glossary, timeline, sources, investigate further …

Curriculum Connections: Poverty, Agriculture, Culinary, Technology & Engineering, Environmental Science, Biodiversity, Seed Biology

Teachers can use this free guide from Nancy’s website.

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When Aidan Became a Brother – Perfect Picture Book Friday

Posted on January 24, 2020 by Joanna

Title: When Aidan became a Brother

Author: Kyle Lukoff

Illustrator: Kaylani Juanita

 Publisher: Lee & Low Books Inc., 2019

Ages: 4-8

Themes: being a big brother, lgbtqia+, transgender, trans boy, family, intersectionality, transitioning, #ownvoices, pride, genders, identity

Opening:

When Aidan was born everyone thought he was a girl. His parents gave him a pretty name. His room looked like a girl’s room. And he wore clothes that other girls liked wearing.

Synopsis:

When Aidan was born, everyone thought he was a girl. His parents gave him a pretty name, his room looked like a girl’s room, and he wore clothes that other girls liked wearing. After he realized he was a trans boy, Aidan and his parents fixed the parts of life that didn’t fit anymore, and he settled happily into his new life. Then Mom and Dad announce that they’re going to have another baby, and Aidan wants to do everything he can to make things right for his new sibling from the beginning–from choosing the perfect name to creating a beautiful room to picking out the cutest onesie. But what does “making things right” actually mean? And what happens if he messes up? With a little help, Aidan comes to understand that mistakes can be fixed with honesty and communication, and that he already knows the most important thing about being a big brother: how to love with his whole self. (publisher)

Why I like this book:

Lukoff’s opening is perfect for this beautiful story of transition. he has created an #ownvoices picture book that celebrates a child who understands with deep conviction that their gender identity is different from the one they were assigned at birth. There are very few books about transgender boys, so this is a welcome addition to our lgbtqia+ shelves. The reaction of the supportive parents is beautiful to see for this age group as they work with Aidan not only to be able to express himself fully as a boy, but also to be able to work through his natural brotherly fears with a new baby. Lukoff tackles some of our deeply ingrained thoughts about gender and how pervasive they are also through the inevitable discussions of the new baby’s gender.


“Are you having a boy or a girl?” asked a lady. Aidan didn’t like it when people asked if he was a boy or a girl and he hoped the baby couldn’t hear yet. He was glad when Mom just smiled and said, “I’m having a baby.”

Juanita’s illustrations are festive and colorful, and show a little boy with a flair for fashion. Aidan’s facial expressions transform from his deep sadness when he is being treated as a girl to exuberance at being able to express himself as the boy he truly is. The depiction of a supportive family of color handling these issues so lovingly is wonderful.

This is exactly the sort of picture book families with transitioning children need and other families need to read. Please add this to you school library shelves too and encourage teachers to use it and the teacher’s guide in story time.

Activities/resources:

This book is informative and celebratory without becoming didactic, and it is accompanied with a teacher’s guide available on Lee & Low’s website. 

Transgender Resources GLAAD (Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation) lists resources, organizations, and general information for transgender youth, adults, and families. The resources and organizations are categorized by their specific focus: media advocacy, policy and legislative advocacy, support for families of people who are trans, resources for trans people and their families, support services, legal services, economic empowerment, and more (https://www.glaad.org/transgender/resources). Explore these resources and organizations as part of reading When Aidan Became a Brother to find out how you can support and advocate for transgender youth in your school, community, and country. ACLU has an “LGBTQ Youth & Schools Resource Library” (https://www.aclu.org/library-lgbt-youthschools-resources-and-links) that provides general resources, information, and organizations that help educators, librarians, and administrators learn more about what they can do to make schools and

Each week a group of bloggers reviews picture books we feel would make great educational reads. To help teachers, caregivers and parents, we have included resources and/or activities with each of our reviews. A complete list of the thousands of books we have reviewed can be found sorted alphabetically and by topics, here on Susanna Leonard Hill’s website.

Posted in Book recommendation, children's books, LGBTQIA, Perfect Picture Book Friday, Picture Books | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 10 Comments

In Search of Safety – Book Recommendation

Posted on January 21, 2020 by Joanna

Title: In Search of Safety, Voices of Refugees

Author and Photographer: Susan Kuklin

 Publisher: Candlewick Press, May 2020

Ages: 13+

Themes: war, refugees, re-settlement, USA, slavery, violence, Nebraska

Opening:

Fraidoon: “From 1984, when I was born, until July 16, 2017, when I arrived in the United States, I never lived in a place where there was no war.”

Synopsis:

Five refugees recount their courageous journeys to America — and the unimaginable struggles that led them to flee their homelands.

An Iraqi woman who survived capture by ISIS. A Sudanese teen growing up in civil war and famine. An Afghan interpreter for the U.S. Army living under threat of a fatwa. They are among the five refugees who share their stories. The five, originally from Afghanistan, Myanmar, South Sudan, Iraq, and Burundi, give gripping first-person testimonies about what it is like to flee war, face violent threats, grow up in a refugee camp, be sold into slavery, and resettle in America.

Why I like this book:

A moving powerfully crafted book to help young people and adults better understand the devastating impact of war and persecution, pertinent to our modern day tensions and need to welcome and support refugees.

Each individual or family faces similar fears and hopes on starting their new life in the US. These emotions are palpable through the interviews and reading these stories had me cheering for every little success these survivors sustain as well as feeling for their ongoing pain through loss and adjustments. Inevitably their experiences are wildly different and we are permitted a glimpse into what sort of support needs to be in place and how often it is lacking. Often it is unpaid local volunteers who pick up much of the care.

As an anglophone immigrant with a handful of friends already when I arrived, the awareness of my good fortune and privilege was heightened reading these stories. The brutality of what these people have endured and their tenacity in making a new life froim nothing in a vastly different culture highlights our need for increased compassion and resources to meet these peoples’ needs.

Kuklin chose well to limit her focus to the lives of very different refugees having fled five very different countries but all of whom ended up in one place, Nebraska. Their pasts are unimaginable; their courage amazing. Each story is an inspiration and a call for us to be more involved in the world wide refugee crisis. This is a strong addition to the books I have added to our school library for our teachers’ units on refugees. I was a fan of the author after reading Beyond Magenta (also purchased for our library) and am an even greater one now.

*Disclaimer: A review copy was provided by the publisher. All opinions are my own.

Activities/resources:

Included in the end matter are chapter notes, information on resettlement and U.S. citizenship, historical time lines of war and political strife in the refugees’ countries of origin, resources for further reading, and an index.

Posted in Book recommendation, nonfiction | Tagged , , , , , , , | 3 Comments