Book Review
Getorix
This adventure story begins on the first day of December, 101 B.C.E.,[i][b][/i][/b] as fourteen-year-old Getorix and his father, Claodicos, await execution. “Such a broad and heavy blade will take our heads cleanly at the first...
Book Review
Rebecca's Journey Home
Any day now Jacob and Gabriel Stein will be big brothers! The yearlong adoption process has finally come to a fruitful end. “Is today the day?” they wonder, fully aware that their mother’s suitcase has been packed for several weeks...
Book Review
The Glow Stone
Fifteen-year-old Phoebe Bernstein is confused. Everyone is saying that her favorite uncle, Bradford, died of a “heart attack brought on by his pneumonia-weakened lungs.” But that doesn’t make sense to Phoebe. Bradford “was strong...
Book Review
Robert and the Practical Jokes
Rubber snakes, toy mice, chocolate-covered worms—the trappings of a successful practical joke, right? Wrong! Third-grader Robert Dorfman’s teacher, Mrs. Bernthal, has had enough. The rubber-snake prank earns the class an extra...
Book Review
Seven for a Secret
Everyone has secrets. Some secrets are happy, like the one Grandpa has for Ruby. She’s going to be a big sister, and Grandpa has “been hiding shiny things” that he plans to pass on to her. Other secrets are sad, such as Dad’s...
Book Review
The Cow on the Roof
In this timeless folktale, a couple living in a cottage on a countryside in Europe seem content with life and work until Shon (pronounced Shorn) notices that his wife, Sian (pronounced Sharn) “always seemed as fresh as a buttercup”...
Book Review
Black Diva of the Thirties
When we think of Black American operatic greats, Marian Anderson, Leontyne Price and Paul Robeson usually come to mind. Few have heard of Ruby Pearl Elzy, until now. At age four, Elzy burst into song while attending church in her...
Book Review
My Story Being This
Mary, a literate fugitive slave living amongst other blacks in the territory of Rhode Island, has decided to keep a journal. Each entry begins with the day, date, and description of the weather followed by a synopsis of her thoughts and...