BOOKS I FINISHED - MAY 2020

*****

The Ghost in the Tokaido Inn, written by Dorothy & Thomas Hoobler
A Japanese boy with a strong desire to be a samurai has an opportunity to help solve a crime. His endeavor takes him away from his merchant family and places him with a traveling group of actors. This is a school book for the kids that I read on my own.

p. 181, Inside they passed through a splendid garden. Even in the twilight, Seikei could see that it was planted with gorgeous flowers and trees that were pruned neatly into shapes that dazzled the eye. It was a breathtaking sight, one that must have required dozens of gardeners to maintain. But after a second, Seikei thought of the simple rock garden at Judge Ooka's house. The judge's garden invited the viewer to look within himself. The one in Lord Hakuseki's yashiki forced people to contemplate the greatness of the man who owned it. And of course, a truly great man would never do that.


*****

Dear Mr. Henshaw, written by Beverly Cleary and illustrated by Paul O. Zelinsky
A middle school boy's parents have split and his dad's not very involved. He reaches out to his favorite author as part of a school project and ends up developing a relationship that helps him work though the emotions he's feeling. This is a school book for the kids that I read on my own.

p. 78, "You know," said Mom, "whenever I watch the waves, I always feel that no matter how bad things seem, life will still go on."


*****

A Parcel of Patterns, written by Jill Paton Walsh
A small English village is exposed to the Plague by a contaminated package that arrived from London. Faced with the death of one person after another, disagreement among the community's religious leaders, and individual struggles over which risks are worthwhile, the community eventually chooses to self-quarantine in order to protect those outside of their village. This is a school book for the kids that I read on my own. I had no idea what it was about when I pulled it off the shelf, so it was interesting to read during our own country's experience with COVID-19.

p. 67, 'Child,' he said to me, 'if none know a thing, and none can know it, it were best none claimed to know it.'


*****

Red Scarf Girl: A Memoir of the Cultural Revolution, written by Ji-Li Jiang
Jiang tells the story of her life from twelve to fourteen years old, a girl growing up in China during the Cultural Revolution. Caught up in the contagious excitement of change and progress, she soon began to question why something so good wasn't making much sense. She was ultimately faced with the decision to stand with her family at the risk of her own safety or stand with her government at the expense of her family. This is a school book for the kids that I read on my own.


*****

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