The Poet in the Fields: A Review of Wildflower Emily

 

Do you love Emily Dickinson? Perhaps you are looking for ways to share her quiet poems with your students or children, but you weren’t sure where the winding path into her world began.

For many of us, our first introduction to a classic is a bit formal. I received a hardbound book of hers as a teen, but it remained closed for many years on my shelf while I chased the more exciting Romantic poets, like Elizabeth Barrett Browning. It wasn't until I sat down for poetry tea with my sons that I realized Emily’s simplicity is her greatest gift. Her poems are nature-heavy, brief, and full of the 'kindred spirit' energy we look for in our homeschool days.

If you are looking for a gentle 'front porch' to introduce her to your family, I’ve found a new treasure: Wildflower Emily by Lydia Corry.

Summary

Wildflower Emily: A Story about Young Emily Dickinson by Lydia Corry is a delightful slice of Emily’s young life. As a young girl, she loved to explore in the fields and woods. Her parents were worried about her safety, so they gave her a dog, her beloved Carlo (named after a dog in Jane Eyre, her favorite book). With whimsical illustrations and sparse tense, Corry shows us a day in Emily’s life with her dear dog. 

 

Why This Story Stays With Me:

1.    Beautiful illustrations! Wildflower Emily is Corry’s first graphic novel, but she has illustrated many others, including The Corgi and the Queen by Caroline L. Perry. If you love watercolor and more vintage illustrations, you will love this. And I think Emily would as well!

 

2.    An insight into a poet’s inspiration. Reading how much Emily loved exploring nature and learning about botany brings a new understanding of why her descriptions of nature are so exquisite. 

3.    Emily’s relationship with her dog. It was precious reading about Emily’s relationship with Carlo, who was her trusty companion. Animals can be kindred spirits, too.

4.    Afterword with facts about Emily’s life and a recipe. This book would make a wonderful starting point for a unit study about Emily. It would be fun to make gingerbread and deliver it to neighbors in a basket, just as she did. Or to do a little nature study, keeping a journal of insects and flowers.

5.    Emily’s poems are interspersed throughout the text. As you are reading and learning about Emily’s real-life explorations, you encounter her poems. What a lovely way to see direct inspiration for her poems. 

Reading Guide: This book would appeal to 7-10-year-olds as a Morning Time read-aloud and independent readers at the 3rd-4th  grade reading level and above. The book is 112 pages.

  

Max’s take (out of a 5 bone scale)

Max when he found out Emily wrote about a dog!

 🦴🦴🦴🦴🦴

I loved meeting Carlo! He likes to explore nature and go on adventures, just like me. And Emily wrote a poem about a dog, too!

Editor's note: Max is talking about "I Started Early--Took My Dog 656," which you can read at the Poetry Foundation.

 

 

Notes from the Front Porch:

Do you have a favorite poet who feels like a kindred spirit to you or your family? 

Or perhaps there is a story about an author's life—like this one about Emily and Carlo—that has made their work come alive for you or your children lately?
  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Check out other fabulous middle grades at Always in the Middle!

 

  

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MMGM: The Genuis Under the Table by Eugene Yelchin

 

I enjoyed reading Breaking Stalin’s Nose and using it as a read aloud and history lesson with my kids when I homeschooled them. So when I saw that Eugene Yelchin wrote an autobiography for kids I had to read it. If you don’t know, I lived for a semester in the Crimea in the 1990s. It always puzzled me how so many of my Russian friends  looked back on life under communism with nostalgia. But perhaps we all cling to what we know best.

Breaking Stalin’s Nose captured that worldview so well: the realistic way that after living under such a repressive regime, people either absorbed the propaganda or quietly subverted it.

This is a story of a family who did the second.

Synopsis of The Genuis Under the Table*

With a masterful mix of comic timing and disarming poignancy, Newbery Honoree Eugene Yelchin offers a memoir of growing up in Cold War Russia.

Drama, family secrets, and a KGB spy in his own kitchen! How will Yevgeny ever fulfill his parents’ dream that he become a national hero when he doesn’t even have his own room? He’s not a star athlete or a legendary ballet dancer. In the tiny apartment he shares with his Baryshnikov-obsessed mother, poetry-loving father, continually outraged grandmother, and safely talented brother, all Yevgeny has is his little pencil, the underside of a massive table, and the doodles that could change everything. With equal amounts charm and solemnity, award-winning author and artist Eugene Yelchin recounts in hilarious detail his childhood in Cold War Russia as a young boy desperate to understand his place in his family. (from Amazon)

 

 

My Take 

 

 

This book tells the story of what it was like being Jewish in 1970s Russia. Sometimes people have the impression that communism was thawing by then, but that is not true. Yegeny’s family won’t even tell him what happened to his grandfather, who presumably dissented.

 
A few highlights:

 
1.    Even though this book is heavy with the hardships of living under communism, it offers hope. Yegeny’s quest to find his own talent, rivalry with his brother, and insecurities about his parents’ approval will be relatable to kids no matter where they live.

 
2.    Characters are memorable and brought to life in Yelchin’s sharp and funny drawings. 

Yelchin's drawing of his brother ice skating behind a truck. Oy!

  
3.    Although the book shows bleakness and despair, Yelchin lightens the darkness of the time with sharp descriptions and humor.

 
4.    Grandma provided a nice counterpoint and an encourager for Yelchin.

 
5.    I enjoyed the side story about Michel Barishnikov! 

What I loved about this book is that I hope by reading it, North American middle-grade readers will not only get a glimpse of a vastly different culture but also see how communism affects an entire culture. Even though it’d been four years since communism fell, when I was in the Crimea, the fear of being singled out lived on. Every time I hear people say that communism is a beautiful dream, I flinch. 

Yelchin also has a graphic novel sequel to Genuis, I Wish I Didn't Have to Tell You This.* This was a moving read, but a little bit darker in tone. Definitely YA.

 

 Max’s take (out of a 5 bone scale)

Max, the Reading Dog

 

 

 

 🦴🦴

No dogs in this one! But my mom said when she was in the Crimea, she attended a dog birthday party! How I would’ve loved to have been there!

Your Turn: 

Have you read any good nonfiction lately?

Check out other fabulous middle grades at Always in the Middle!  

 

 

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*As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. It is no cost to you. Thank you for your support!

MMGM: Crack the Code! Puzzletastic Mysteries and Creating Your Own Language

Do you like stories with codes or deciphering ciphers? One of my favorite things about the middle grade mystery genre is that there’s rarely a dead body, since I tend to be a bit squeamish. The focus in middle grade mysteries is usually solving a theft or finding a treasure. 

And that almost always that involves a code.

Today I’m featuring two middle grade books, one is fiction, a collection of short stories, and the other is nonfiction. 

If you like your middle grade mysteries in short doses, check out Chris Grabenstein Presents Super Puzzletastic Mysterties: Short Stories for Young Sleuths from Mystery Writers of America! (Whew, that’s quite a title!) If you’ve ever wanted to learn how to write your own secret codes, you’ll love Create Your Own Secret Language: Invent Codes, Ciphers, Hidden Message, and More: A Beginner’s Guide by David J. Peterson with Illustrations by Ryan Goldsberry. (Another long title!)

 

Synopsis of Puzzletastic Mysteries:

From tales of hapless superheroes and stolen squirrel monkeys to murderous triplets and haunted basements, these thrilling, puzzling, and hilarious cases have one thing in common—YOU get a chance to be the detective before the author reveals the solution.

With twenty-never-before-published mystery stories, this collection will leave young detectives sleuthing for more!

Featuring stories by Chris Grabenstein, Sheela Chari, Stuart Gibbs, Lamar Giles, Bruce Hale, Peter Lerangis, Lauren Magaziner, Kate Milford, James Ponti, Tyler Whitesides, and ten other incredible authors. (from Grabenstein's website)

My Take 

I picked this book up initially because I wanted to read another tale solved by Julian and Margaret from the Framed series by James Ponti. But I ended up enjoying so many more of the stories. I loved the humor (especially in Grabenstein’s story about solving who wrote the word FART in the snow). I loved the history and mystery of the story about the cats of Hemingway house by Sheela Chari. (Chari is of my favorite writers--check out her wonderful musical mystery Vanished, if you haven't already). Many of these stories include codes, which are well laid out, so you can solve it along with the kid sleuth. The stories are certainly short enough to use for a read aloud at home or at school. As a bonus, the ending of each story is in the back, which gives kids a chance to solve it on their own, before checking. 

 

Synopsis of Create Your Own Secret Language:

Protect your diary from snooping siblings. Share your secrets with a BFF. Guard your texts from unwanted eyes. Create the lingua franca for your own fantastical secret world!

Expert language creator David J. Peterson (inventor of languages for Game of Thrones, the Marvel Universe, and more) guides you as you create your own secret languages, codes, ciphers, and hidden messages. 

From simple cyphers to entirely new alphabets, CREATE YOUR OWN SECRET LANGUAGE will help you master the skills of secret communication, whether it’s written, drawn, or spoken. By the time your finished reading, you’ll be able to share messages memora vosak laz vos otihoe vosecchi! (“that no one will be able to understand!")

 (from Amazon)

 

My Take 

 

I initially picked up this book because I wanted some inspiration for a story idea that might involve a code or cipher. (They are different, as I’ve now learned). The book is written as a workbook, so kids can practice writing and deciphering the ciphers right in the book. Also, at the end, Peterson walks kids through creating their own language! I had fun creating a cipher for my older son, who just graduated with a math minor. That gave me some insight into how my own characters might solve their cipher. It’s a fun read and very hands-on and interactive. My only caveat is that I felt like the sentences given for coding were a little snarky for my taste. So, I would change those or clarify that if I was using this as a teacher or in a homeschool setting. 

This is exactly the kind of book my math-loving son would have loved as a preteen.

 

Max’s take (out of a 5 bone scale)

Max, the Reading Dog*

 

 

 

 

 

 🦴🦴

Both books had cats, but no dogs. The code and cipher book was a little too complicated for me. But I’d love to see more mysteries with dogs. Don’t they know how good I’d be at sniffing out a thief?
 

Your Turn: 

Do you like solving codes or ciphers? Do you like reading or writing short stories? Any book recs for me or Max?

 

 

Check out other fabulous middle grades at Always in the Middle!  

 

 

 

MMGM: Red Scarf Girl

I wasn’t sure about highlighting this book right now with all that is going on with Covid 19. I thought people might not want to hear about a serious book right now, especially one set in China. But then I realized that I often like to read books about people surviving extraordinary times when my own life is difficult. It puts things in perspective.
 
Red Scarf Girl was recommended for kids who were old enough for YA, but not ready for edgy YA on the Read Aloud Revival, a great website for finding book recommendations!

I'm drawn to books about communism, because I lived in the Crimea in the 90s right after communism fell. It surprised me then how many of my Russian friends were nostalgic for communism, despite how their families had suffered under it. But it was all they’d ever known. This child’s perspective on the Cultural Revolution might surprise you as well.

From Amazon:

In the tradition of The Diary of Anne Frank and I Am Malala, this is the incredible true story of one girl’s courage and determination during one of the most terrifying eras of the twentieth century. This edition includes a detailed glossary, pronunciation guide, discussion questions, and a Q&A with the author.

It's 1966, and twelve-year-old Ji-li Jiang has everything a girl could want: brains, popularity, and a bright future in Communist China. But it's also the year that China's leader, Mao Ze-dong, launches the Cultural Revolution—and Ji-li's world begins to fall apart.

Over the next few years, people who were once her friends and neighbors turn on her and her family, forcing them to live in constant terror of arrest. And when Ji-li's father is finally imprisoned, she faces the most difficult dilemma of her life.

Written in an accessible and engaging style, this page-turning, honest, and deeply personal autobiography will appeal to readers of all ages.

Ji Ji Jang, the author, from her website, jijang.com

My thoughts:

While reading this book, I couldn't help thinking of Breaking Stalin’s Nose, a fictional account of a boy in Stalinist Russia. My son, 15, read the first part of Red Scarf Girl, and said, “But she thinks communism is okay!”  We had a great discussion about propaganda and its effect on people.

What endeared me to this book was its simple story telling. The author doesn’t use a lot of fancy language. The occasional metaphor doesn’t detract from the prose. I liked how she included an afterward on what happened to her and her family after the end of the book.

Like Breaking Stalin’s Nose, it’s Ling's connection with her family that helps Ji-Ji break free from the brainwashing/propaganda she’s believed. Both books are really about the triumph of the human spirit and love for family over a system that seeks to separate families and neighbors and pit them against each other.

Highly recommended. Although Red Scarf Girl takes place in the 60s and was written in the 90s, the message is still very relevant today.

Content warning: While there is some violence in this book, the one death (a suicide) happens off the page. Of course, you know your child or students best, but I would recommend this for MG readers.







To learn more about Ji Ji Jang, go to www.jijang.com. 

What kind of books do you like to read during difficult times? Let me know in the comments!