#IMWAYR June 24, 2024

Welcome! It's #IMWAYR time again, when bloggers share what they have been reading and find out what others have been up to. Kathryn hosts the adult version of this meme at Book Date. Kellee and Ricki at Unleashing Readers host the kidlit rendition. These are fabulous places to start your search for what to read next.

We have had an abundance of guests in the last couple of weeks. My cousin visited and we celebrated our birthdays. Hers is in May, and mine is coming up. My baby brother arrives today and will be here to celebrate with my other baby brother who shares a birthday with me. Both my 'little' brothers are now over six feet... 

I haven't planted much new in the garden because I have been busy keeping the weeds under control, harvesting peas and greens and picking raspberries. When my cousin was here I found a recipe for raspberry daiquiris and between the 21 jars of jelly that we made and those drinks, I've almost cleaned out the frozen berries from last year.  

Here in Canada, June is Indigenous People's month. I've been trying to focus on Indigenous and Native American literature. I hope you find something here to enjoy. 

Titles with a 🍁 indicate this is a Canadian or Indigenous Canadian Author and or Illustrator.

Clicking on the title will take you to the Goodreads page of the book.

PICTURE BOOKS

5 stars

Muinji'j Asks Why: The Story of the Mi'kmaq and the Shubenacadie Residential School by Shanika MacEachern, Breighlynn MacEachern, Zeta Paul (Illustrator) 🍁

This is more like an illustrated short story than a picture book because the pages are quite text heavy. 

Muinji'j comes home from school and tells her grandparents that her teacher wouldn't let her say anything about their stories of residential school. They sit together and the grandparents tell the history of colonization from their perspective. I really appreciate that not only do readers learn about the elders residential school experience, they also learn the historical context for why and how it came about. 

NON FICTION PICTURE BOOKS

5 stars

Log Life by Amy Hevron February 20, 2024

This delightful book is chock full of all kinds of important information. The graphic novel format with different talking species makes it fun to read. It starts with a tree falling and beginning its new life as a nurse log. It explains what happens in the spring of the first year, then moves on to summer, year ten, when a new fir tree gets a foothold. Then it jumps forward to autumn, year 100 to show how the nurse log still supports a host of plants and animals. Meanwhile, that "fir tree grew tall with roots that stretched over the nurse log." Next we see the tree in the winter 500 years after it first toppled. The log has almost disappeared. The fir tree now reaches for the sky. In the spring, year 1000, there is no sign of the nurse tree. "In its place now, the giant fir tree stands and stretches to the sun." Finally, what happened to the original tree happens to this one, and the cycle begins anew. I read this to a group of grade 3/4's last week and they especially enjoyed seeing the change over time. 

MG FICTION

4 stars

The War of the Witches (Dragons in a Bag #5) by Zetta Elliot 🍁 & Andrew Eiden (Narrator), Jade Wheeler (Narrator), Soneela Nankani (Narrator), Nicky Endres (Narrator), Ron Butler (Narrator) January 9, 2024

This is the finale in a series I adore. Jaxon is a young black boy who was apprenticing to be a witch before he discovered his connection to a phoenix. Ultimately this book is about a search for peace between human and magical realms. In the previous book, the Supreme Council appointed Jaxon to be the ambassador to Palmara, (the magical realm.) He and his friends set out to negotiate with Sis, the Guardian there. They succeeded in destroying the enchanted bridge, but not before Scourge, a magic eating monster, crosses over into Palmara. He fought Sis, defeated her, but didn't finish her off.

Scourge claims that he wants to live among the rest of the inhabitants of Palmara in peace. Most don't believe him, but Vic, one of Jaxon's friends, believes it's possible and works with Scourge to find alternative sources of magic. 

Then Ol-Korrok shows up with nefarious plans of his own. He manipulates Scourge into going to the human realm and feasting on the magic there. Before the story is over, there is be a war between the witches and Scourge. 

I love that this series has a diverse cast of characters. While the first book focuses on Jaxon, the following stories highlight the roles his friends play. 

I was fascinated by Scourge's addiction to magic, and that Vic and his Spiders were able to remember a time in history when Scourge didn't need it. I hoped he could be redeemed, but Ol-Korrok's hold over him was too strong. 

I mostly enjoyed this, but aspects of the ending just didn't work for me. Ol-Korrok's transformation felt rushed and didn't make sense - especially given that he had barely finished encouraging Scourge to take the rest of the magical world on. 

Perhaps it is because I had a sister with mental health and addiction issues, but as I read this novel, I couldn't help but make parallels between Scourge's desire for magic, and an individual dealing with drug addiction, and even the crisis of addiction more generally. 

YA GRAPHIC NOVELS

5 stars

A Blanket of Butterflies by Richard Van Camp, Scott B. Henderson (Illustrator), Nickolej Villiger (Letterer), Donovan Yaciuk (Colorist) October 20, 2015  🍁

I adore the artwork in this book almost as much as I do the story itself. The story begins with a Japanese man coming to a northern museum to repatriate a suit of armor and sword. The curator is happy to return the armor to its family of origin, but the sword has been taken. A young boy who is visiting the museum takes the man to where the sword should be. A battle ensues and the Japanese man is badly hurt. They young boy gets the injured man to his grandmother who ends up healing him. Eventually she helps get the sword returned to him without bloodshed. 

I really appreciated that it is the elder who manages to bring peace and heal all the combatants. I especially loved these Dene Laws. 

MG/YA NON FICTION

5 stars

More Than Money: How Economic Inequality Affects Everything by Dyer, Hadley 🍁

This book takes a comprehensive look at the causes and consequences of inequality. It's fairly global in outlook but focuses primarily on OECD countries. I really like

the layout.  As you can see from the Table of Contents, it is organized into three main sections. The book is loaded with all kinds of text features to make the information easier to understand. It includes graphs, illustrations, labeled diagrams, side bars, and fact boxes. I appreciate that many of the latter tell the story of real people. Each Chapter has a section at the end called The Takeaway, that reviews the important ideas presented. It also includes a section called Learn More! that presents links to other places and people if you wish to expand your knowledge. 

The final section is important as it takes young readers through many ways that they can get involved in changing their world, even if they are too young to vote. 

If I was still working in the library, I would purchase a copy of this book. If I was working in a secondary school, I'd purchase two. 

 

ADULT/YA FICTION

5+ stars

Warrior Girl Unearthed by Angeline Boulley & Isabella Star LaBlanc (Narrator)

Angeline Boully's first novel, Firekeeper's Daughter, was one of the best books I read in 2021. Warrior Girl Unearthed will be in my top 10 this year.

Perry Firekeeper-Birch is niece to Daunis, the protagonist from the first book. The story is set ten years later. Perry is into fishing, hunting, gardening and hanging out with elders and telling stories. A minor automobile accident ends up with her working as a summer intern to pay Daunis for the cost of the repairs. She starts out working in the tribal museum. A meeting at the nearby college introduces her to artifacts that ought to be returned to the band. Cooper Turtle, her mentor, tries to instil an ethical way of living in Perry, but she's impulsive, strong willed, and doesn't understand why things need to be done in a proper way if the ending is the same.

Perry and other interns end up planning a heist to take back a collection of stolen remains from a local white man. They soon learn that it's more dangerous than they first anticipated and that many people can't be trusted. 

I appreciate how much I learned about NAGPRA. I ended up searching to see what we have like it in Canada. I was delighted to see that recent changes to NAGPRA require institutions to obtain permission from tribes to display remains and cultural objects. This has forced museums to shut down Indigenous sections of their exhibits. Hopefully it will mean that those artifacts will be returned to their owners. Unfortunately, Canada has no such laws in place. 

I liked the bit of romance between Perry and another intern, Erik. It felt authentic and healthy. Most importantly, it was a minimal part of the story. 

Just like in the last book, I loved the elders. I especially enjoy the humour they bring. 

4 stars

Study for Obedience by Sarah Bernstein (Author and Narrator) 🍁

This book won the Giller Prize in Canada and was shortlisted for the 2023 Booker. It doesn't have a plot, but I couldn't put it down. When I finished it, I still wasn't sure what was going on. It's a dark book that examines power dynamics, racism, and groupthink. 
An unnamed, and unreliable, narrator leaves her job to go to some unknown countryside to live with her older brother. He expects her to submit to looking after him and his house. Not only does she do this, she seems to consider it an ideal she must achieve.
She is the youngest of a large Jewish family. It is never out in the open, but there are hints of what might have been a previous incestuous relationship between the two siblings. Neither of them are very likeable.
The local people fear her and hold her responsible for the unusual troubles of local livestock. It might be because she is Jewish, but the crafted gifts of greenery woven into men that she leaves on their doorsteps most likely exacerbates things. 

For me this book was a reminder of how dangerous group paranoia can be. In a different time the narrator could easily be accused of witchcraft. 

The Ex Hex by Erin Sterling September 28, 2021

I could not finish this book. It had too much sex and not enough story. I stuck around for longer that I should have because I wanted to know how the hex problem was resolved. I ended up giving up. 

CURRENTLY 

The Gene: An Intimate History by Siddhartha Mukherjee June 2, 2016

A Game for Swallows: To Die, To Leave, To Return by Zeina Abirached, Edward Gauvin (Translator), Trina Robbins (Introduction) October 22, 2007

Betty: The Helen Betty Osborne Story by David Alexander Robertson & Scott B. Henderson (Illustrator) April 27, 2015 🍁

UP NEXT (MAYBE)

Lesser Known Monsters of the 21st Century by Kim Fu February 1, 2022 🍁

READING GOALS 

#MustRead2024 12/25 

NonFiction 18/24 one on the go

Canadian Authors 37/50 one on the go

Indigenous Authors 15/25 one on the go

Goodreads Reading Challenge: 114/200