Wonder

Title of Book:  Wonder

Author:  R. J. Palacio

Publisher and Publication date:  Alfred A. Knopf, 2012

ISBN number:  978-0-375-86902-0

Audience: Ages 8 and up

Summary:  August Pullman is born with a severe facial deformity and is sheltered from the world and home schooled by his parents and sister until fifth grade when he begins middle school at a private school where he knows no one.  Making friends is hard enough in middle school, but when you look like Auggie, it’s nearly impossible.  He endures stares, ridicule, betrayal, loneliness and heartbreak before an overnight school field trip erupts in a group fight to protect him.  When the trip is over, most people at school realize he is just another kid like them and in fact a pretty terrific one.  This is a heartwarming story about courage and about judging people for who they are rather than what they look like.

Literary elements at work in the story:  This great story is broken into eight sections and told in first person from the view of six of the characters including Auggie, his sister, her former best friend, her boyfriend and two friends from his new school.  Each section has short easy to read chapters that express genuine feelings and allow the reader to experience the characters point of view and gain further insight into the story andits dynamics.  Each section of the story opens with a quote from a song, a movie or literature that relates to the section or character and ties into the story.  There is also mention of his English teacher’s precepts (defined as rules about really important things-like a motto) throughout the story and those are included at the end of the book in an appendix as well as those precepts written by the main characters.

Presentation of gender/race/culture/economic status/age/disabilities/etc:  The characters in this story are middle class and upper middle class white people living in New York City.  The main character is a 10 year old boy who has a severe facial deformity and a hearing disability.

Theological conversation partners:  1 Samuel 16:7-Humans looks at the outward appearance but the Lord looks on the heart, Parable of the Good Samaritan, Matthew 7:1 (Do not judge others), 1 Corinthians 13:4-7 (Love is…), Genesis 1-Created in God’s image-it is good, Shema/Mark 12:30-31 (Love your neighbor as yourself).  Karl Barth-The Judge who was judged in our place and was just.

Faith Talk Questions:

1. What story or character in the Bible does Auggie’s story remind you of and why?
2. How would you line up the characters in this story with the parable of the Good Samaritan? Why?
3. Who in this book do you think is the Good Samaritan?
4. What do you think it means to be created in God’s image?  What does that mean for people with deformities and/or disabilities?
5. What does it mean to judge other people?  How do we judge people?  How does God judge people?
6. What does it mean for us to love our neighbor?
7. Think of the ‘Auggie’ that you go to school with-How is he/she treated by other?  By you?
8. What can you do to love the “Auggie’ at your school?
9. How is courage displayed in this story?
10. What is Auggie’s source of courage?  What is yours?

This review was written by Union Presbyterian Seminary student Lisa McLennan.

Smack Dab in the Middle of God’s Love

Title of Book:  Smack Dab in the Middle of God’s Love

Author:  Brennan Manning and John Blasé

Illustrator:  Nicole Tadgell

Publisher and Publication date:  Tommy Nelson (a registered trademark of Thomas Nelson, Inc.), 2011

ISBN number:  978-1-4003-1713-4

Audience:  Ages 4 – 8

Summary:  Childless couple, Willie Juan and Ana, share much of their lives with the neighborhood children.  One evening Willie Juan asks a question ‘What do you think Abba will ask you in heaven?’  The conversations that follow, while eating Ana’s homemade sopapillas, help the children to understand that they are smack-dab in the middle of God’s love and that all the good gifts in their life are from God.

Literary elements at work in the story:  This story starts off acknowledging that ‘smack-dab’ is fun term to use and say.  It gives its definition as ‘precisely in the center’ and then throughout the story has a repetitive use of the term ‘smack-dab’.   The book drives the term home by reminding us that ultimately we are smack-dab in the middle of God’s love for us.  Reading the book aloud and encouraging the audience to say ‘Smack-dab” with the reader each time it appears, would be a fun way to involve the audience in participating.

Presentation of gender/race/culture/economic status/age/disabilities/etc:  All ages and genders are represented in the illustrations in the story.  The setting is in a small, modest Mexican village but many races are also represented by a variety of skin tones and hair colors and textures.  The story has a strong sense of community and sharing with ones neighbor.  The story introduces Hispanic culture in a way that explains the terms to those who may be new to them.

Theological conversation partners:  John 3:16-17, Romans 8:39, James 1:17, Heidelberg Catechism Question 1.  The story also has a conversational style that allows the reader to imagine their own questions and responses to Willie Juan.

Faith Talk Questions:

1. What do you think Abba will ask you when you get to heaven?  (Willie Juan’s question)
2. What will you ask God when you get to heaven?
3. If you’re smack-dab in the middle of God’s love, what is smack-dab in the middle of your love?
4. What are some things should be smack-dab in the middle of your love?
5. What might it look like to love God?
6. What are some good gifts that you have been given from God?
7. What are some ways that you can share your gifts from God?
8. Who are the Willie Juan’s and Ana’s in your life?

This review was written by Union Presbyterian Seminary student Lisa McClennan

Stellaluna

Title of Book:  Stellaluna

Author:  Janelle Cannon

Publisher and Publication date:  Harcourt Brace & Company, 1993

ISBN number:  0-15-280217-7

Audience:  Ages 4 – 8

Summary:  Stellaluna is a baby bat who is separated from her mother during an owl attack.  She ends up in a bird’s nest befriending the baby birds and being cared for by the mother bird.  As she grows she begins to act like a bird.  Along her journeys as she grows she meets other bats and becomes reunited with her mother.  They teach her how to be a bat and she realizes that she isn’t being who she was created to be and that life is much better for her as a bat.  She finds her bird friends and shares her new bat skills with them and tries to teach the birds how to be a bat.  The birds aren’t very good at being a bat and run into trouble.  They wonder together how they can be so alike and yet so different.  

Literary elements at work in the story:  From the very beginning, readers will be wondering how Stellaluna will survive the owl attack and make it without her mother.  The author uses suspense, humor and dialogue between the bats and birds to keep the reader engaged.  There are beautiful illustrations to enhance the story and help the reader visualize Stellaluna’s journey.  This would also be a great story to use in a readers theater or for children and youth to act along with the reading.

Presentation of gender/race/culture/economic status/age/disabilities/etc:  This story highlights the different gifts, abilities and strengths that bats and birds have, like people.  Each is uniquely made with different abilities.  These creatures are very similar but also very different.  The book represents that neither is better than other, just different.

Theological conversation partners:  Two prominent themes are represented in this story.  One is the love and care for your neighbor.  The other is how we are each uniquely made yet at the same time we are all the same, children of God.  Following along the lines of this theme is the idea of being who God created you to be and not trying to be someone else.  Love your neighbor-Deuteronomy 6:5, Mark 12:31, Matthew 25: 31-46, Hebrews 13:2, Uniquely made-Psalm 139:13, Creation-Genesis 1, Spiritual gifts- 1 Corinthians 12: 1-11, 1 Peter 4:10, Romans 12, Ephesians 4,

Faith Talk Questions:

1. In what ways is Stellaluna shown the love of a neighbor?
2. How can you see God at work when bad things happen to Stellaluna?
3. How is Stellaluna unique from the birds?  What happens when she tries to act like a bird?
4. How does Stellaluna feel when she discovers her true self?  How does it change her life?
5. What do Stellaluna and her bird friends discover about themselves?
6. How are we like Stellaluna?

This review was written by Union Presbyterian Seminary student Lisa McLennan.

Lizzie Bright and the Buckminster Boy

Name of Book:  Lizzie Bright and the Buckminster Boy

Author:  Gary D. Schmidt

Illustrator:  None

Publisher:  Clarion Books

ISBN:  978-0618439294

Audience:  Ages 10 and up

Summary:  In 1912 thirteen year old Turner Buckminster moves to Phippsburg, Maine with his mother and father. Within six hours of arriving he learns that Phippsburg boys don’t play baseball the right way, being the son of the town’s new minister is a trial, and his new neighbors take joy at giving him grief. Turner wishes that he could “light out for the territories” until he meets Lizzie Bright from nearby Malaga Island. Initially unaware that his friendship with dark-skinned Lizzie will be a problem in Phippsburg, Turner embraces his friendship with Lizzie and learns to find joy in clamming, boating with the whales, and meeting the good people of Malaga. Although Turner’s father and others in the town forbid him from returning to the island, and instead insist that he visit with an elderly neighbor, Turner finds a way to continue his friendship with Lizzie. When Turner learns of a town plot to remove the residents of Malaga Island, however, he feels helpless to defend his friend and her community. Through a series of tragic events, and in the midst of human greed and evil, young Turner learns the true value of acceptance, friendship, and what it means to love one’s neighbor.

Literary elements at work in the story:  Schmidt creates a novel with a rich setting. The Maine coast, its islands, cliffs, and shores provide an almost mysterious backdrop for the unfolding of the plot. And while the plot has numerous unexpected twists and turns, the beauty of this book lies in Schmidt’s ability to create beautifully rounded characters. As each part of the story unfolds, Turner grows and changes as a result of the challenges he faces and the people he meets. Instead of providing simple foils in some of the secondary characters, Schmidt allows these characters to become vulnerable and to change just as significantly as Turner does. Additionally, in terms of theme, Schmidt explores the way that perceptions – our own, as well as those of others – cloud our ability to see our neighbors as vulnerable human beings. As several conflicts converge within this theme, Turner learns to trust himself, to challenge others, and to stand up for what’s right.

Perspective on gender/race/culture/economics/ability:  The events that occurred at Malaga Island are true, and while this novel is a fictional account of what might have happened to a young boy during those events, the author addresses the conflicts over gender, race and economics in such a way that the reader feels close to both the real events and the fictional characters.  Schmidt skillfully creates characters on both sides of the drama that resist stereotyping, both in terms of race and economic means. Turner learns to discern a person’s character, rather than relying on perceptions or opinion. While the town thinks he ought to be a boy’s boy, playing baseball and jumping off cliffs into the ocean with other (white) church boys, Turner finds joy in spending time with a young black girl and her preacher father. Turner sees the basic value of their lives apart from their economic status or their race.

Theological Conversation Partners: Luke 10:25-37; The Greatest Commandment

Faith Talk Questions:

1. Ask students to consider the many cliques or groups they observe at school. What generalizations do students make about various groups?
2. When have you felt like an outsider? What was that like? How did you feel?
3. Consider a time when you were misjudged, or a time when you misjudged someone else. What do you think causes people to misjudge others?
4. In what ways does Turner misjudge his father? Mrs. Cobb? Willis? How do various events and interactions with these people cause him to change?
5. How do our perceptions of one another affect our ability to understand one another? Consider Turner and his father. Initially their relationship is plagued by assumption and misunderstanding. What causes each to better understand the other?
6. What does it mean to be a good neighbor?
7. What is ironic about the church leaders’ desire to remove the residents of Malaga? Where do you see this kind of irony today?
8. How does Turner live out Christ’s call to “love your neighbor as yourself”?

This review was written by Union Presbyterian Seminary student Catherine Lovejoy.

Number the Stars

Name of Book:  Number the Stars

Author:  Lois Lowry

Publisher:  Sandpiper

ISBN:  978-0547577098

Audience:  Ages 10-14

Summary:  Young Annemarie Nielsen and her friend Ellen Rosen live in occupied Copenhagen in 1943. Though young, they understand that the occupation of their city by the Nazis is frightening and dangerous, especially for Jews like Ellen and her family. When the Nazis begin to relocate the Jews, Annemarie and her family take many risks to save Ellen and her parents. Faced with difficult choices, frightening truths, and hope for a time beyond war, Annemarie learns about her own strength and courage as she works to save her friend.

Literary elements at work in the story:  In very age-appropriate ways, this short novel brings to life the historical events of Europe during WWII. Lowry develops Annemarie’s character across the novel as she matures from a carefree school girl to a young lady burdened by the reality of war. Annemarie is insightful, intelligent, caring, discerning and brave. The novel’s action rises quickly as Annemarie’s family works to save their neighbors, the Rosens. While the plot is not complicated, the author slowly unveils the secret that Annemarie’s family must keep. This skillful plot development allows the reader to experience tension – and hope – alongside Annemarie. Additionally, as various family members come forward to help the Rosens, the author maintains her focus on Annemarie and the fears she must face, thus allowing a young reader to relate to this difficult period in history.

Perspective on gender/race/culture/economics/ability: With a backdrop of Nazi-occupied Europe, this novel explores the treatment of the Jews at the hands of the Nazis. Through Annemarie, a Lutheran, and Ellen, a Jew, the author reinforces the idea that love and friendship are not bound by such distinctions as race or religion. Throughout the novel, in fact, the two families are shown to be loving neighbors who are respectful of their varied traditions. Annemarie and her sister Kirsti, in fact, are frequently invited to the Rosen’s home to see the lighting of the Sabbath candles. In terms of gender, Annemarie is depicted as a strong girl, capable of carrying out a dangerous mission. However, the author is also careful to be realistic in her characterizations for this particular time and place. When Annemarie and her mother visit Uncle Henrik, Annemarie’s mother notes the clutter and announces that Uncle Henrik needs a wife. Finally, while Annemarie must present herself as a “silly, empty-headed little girl,” the great irony is that this pretense is what allows her to be her most daring, brave, and quick-witted self.

Theological Conversation Partners:  Genesis 15:1-6; Psalm 147 (Quoted in the novel); Isaiah 41:8-13; Mark 12:28-34; I John 3:11-22

Faith Talk Questions:

1. Ask children to identify some of the things that frighten people. Ask them to consider why we become fearful in certain situations.
2. The novel makes the point that bravery is not the absence of fear, but the putting aside of fear for a greater good. In what ways were Annemarie and her family brave in the face of great fear?
3. Ask students to brainstorm for a list of examples from scripture that show bravery in the face of fear.
4. What do you think motivates people to set aside their fears and act bravely?
5. How does faith play a role in facing fears?  What are some examples of the role of faith in this novel?
6. The Rosens and the Nielsens are neighbors. What does scripture say about the relationship between neighbors? How is this lived out in the action of the novel?
7. Peter reads Psalm 147 during the dark and frightening night of the Rosens’ escape. How does this psalm offer hope to those gathered? How does it offer hope to us?
8. Abraham was promised as many descendants as there are stars in the sky. Consider the use of stars in this novel. How do Ellen’s necklace, the title of the novel, Psalm 147 and the story of Abraham in Genesis 15 work together to speak of hope in the midst of the persecution the Jews faced in Europe in 1943?

This review was prepared by Union Presbyterian Seminary student Catherine Lovejoy.