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Endangered by Elliot Schrefer Scholastic Three Times Lucky by Sheila Turnage Dial/Penguin Judged by Kathi Appelt
Set these two books side by side, and with the exception of their trim sizes, it would be difficult to find anything about them that is similar. But once I sat back and let the full impact of both stories settle in, I realized that they had more in common than one might imagine. For one, they both feature orphans.
One is the story of an orphaned girl, raised on the bayou by a quirky cast of townsfolk. The other is the story of a displaced girl raised in the jungle by a cast of orphaned bonobos. (Okay, I promise, that’s the end of my cleverness).
Both stories have strong narrative voices, told in the first person past tense. Mo LoBeau, of Tupelo Landing, is the natural sister of so many well-loved middle grade heroes. One can’t help but read her and conjure up Opal, Frankie and Turtle. She shares their attributes as well: pluck, smarts, and gumption. It’s easy to get on her side from the very opening pages, and the reader is literally lifted through the story by the buoyancy of the language. This book was written in my native tongue, and it made my ears happy to hear it.
Sophie’s voice, in Endangered, is not nearly so dear. Hers is older, and more melancholy. But it is just as distinct. In it, are the echoes of …
» Continue Reading: Round 1, Match 3: Endangered vs Three Times Lucky
Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein Hyperion/Disney Titanic by Deborah Hopkinson Scholastic Press Judged by Margarita Engle
Judging is inherently biased. It is a blatantly subjective process. Since I am primarily a writer of novels in verse, I foolishly assumed that I would be asked to choose between two volumes of poetry. Instead, I have received two works of prose, and just to make the choice even more challenging, one is historical fiction, while the other is nonfiction. This is not a simple case of comparing apples and oranges; it’s apple pie against whipped cream. I want both!
Titanic: Voices From the Disaster, by Deborah Hopkinson, and Code Name Verity, by Elizabeth Wein, are both spectacular feats of literary accomplishment. Both are based on towering mountains of detailed research. Both cover historical topics so disturbing and terrifying that in my opinion, both books are only suitable for teens. Younger children would be devastated.
At this point, I should probably admit that I have read other books about the Titanic, but I have never seen anything about captive British women pilots in World War II. I didn’t know they existed, and I happen to love the rediscovery of forgotten aspects of history. On the other hand, Titanic surprised me with an astounding array of heart-wrenching photographs, personal anecdotes, and excerpts of letters by survivors.
Let’s talk about those photographs. Am I supposed to judge this Battle between a famous shipwreck and unknown women pilots solely …
» Continue Reading: Round 1, Match 2: Code Name Verity vs Titanic
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