King Lear

Shakespeare, William. King Lear. 2007. 215p. ISBN 0-300-12200-4. Available at 822.3 SHA on the library shelves.

Slowly descending into madness, Lear, King of Britain, decides to split his kingdom into three pieces, one for each of his daughters. As a price, however, he asks them to describe in glowing terms why they love him most. HIs two oldest daughters readily participates, but Cordelia, the youngest one, honestly replies that words alone cannot express how much she loves him. Enraged at what Lear perceives to be her lack of enthusiasm, he disinherits her, and grants her part to her two older sisters. The Duke of Kent opposes this move by Lear, so the King banishes him as well. Despite having lost her inheritance, Cordelia marries the King of France, who appreciates her honesty.

Lear then decide to live with his two daughters, alternating between one and the other. However, he brings with him a hundred knights which each must support while they are there, incurring significant expenses. Both daughters do not really love their father but consider him a old fool. Forced to disband his knights, Lear soon find himself alone with his Fool and the Duke of Kent, who has returned from exile and disguised himself as a servant to protect his King. Powerless against the daughters who have now turned against him, Lear looks to a French invasion to restore him to his throne.

His daughters have other plans, however, and they discover the plot against them. They assemble their armies and march on. Following the confrontation, the two sisters are victorious against Cordelia, but not without much bloodshed and double crossing. In the end all three sisters end up dead, and King Lear is left with only his madness before he succumbs to the trials he has lived through.

Shakespeare’s best known tragedy, King Lear remains relevant today for its presentation of greed and madness and for its discussion of the important of nature and reason.

Young Adult Literature

Cart, Michael. Young Adult Literature. 3rd Edition. 2016. 310p. ISBN 978-0-8389-1462-5. Available at PROF 813.009 CAR on the library shelves.

The history of young adult literature is an intriguing one. Originally an outgrowth of children’s literature, writers began to pay particular attention to the young adult market, loosely defined as boys and girls aged between 12 and 18. With the explosion of disposable income and pocket money in the 1950s, book editors and companies realized that teens had both the interest and the economic power to purchase books that were attractive for them. Books targeted at teens became a mainstay of book stores. As society changed and adapted to new realities, so did books for young adults, pushing beyond the comfort level of most parents and addressing issues such as sexuality, drugs, and violence, as well as portraying different family configurations.

This third edition provides updated information about the field and incorporates recent research and sales reports to highlight the most recent changes in the publishing industry and trends in book publishing. School librarians, youth librarians, and anyone with an interesting in the history of literature will appreciate this survey of young adult literature.

Survivors club: the true story of a very young prisoner of Auschwitz

Bornstein, Michael and Debbie Bornstein Holinstat. Survivors club: the true story of a very young prisoner of Auschwitz. 2017. 352p. 452 mins. Available as an audiobook on Overdrive.

Born in Zarki, Poland after the German invasion of September 1939 at the beginning of the Second World War, Michael Bornstein has known nothing but war, and the Jewish oppression and extermination is nothing out of the ordinary for him. His father, an accountant before the war, was appointed as president of the Jewish Council by the occupiers. Through skills and luck, he managed to make life bearable for most of the Zarki Jews, and kept his family together. Michael’s father, mother, grandmother, and brother continued to live in their house until the Germans decreed that Zarki was to become Jew-free. Even then, they were able to stay behind with the clean-up crew for a few more months, as rumors of resettlements in the East turned to confirmation of death camps where Jews were being massacred and incinerated.

Eventually, the Bornstein family’s luck ran out. First transferred to a munitions factory, they were soon put on a train to Auschwitz where both Michael, his mother and his grandmother were separated from his father and brother, who perished in the Nazi gas chambers. Though only four years old, Michael’s mother managed to keep Michael hidden and safe for months. Her deportation to Austria to work in another munitions factory left Michael and his grandmother alone in the most notorious death camp. Michael was once again saved from death when he became sick enough that his grandmother, in despair of losing her last family member, smuggled him in the infirmary where he experienced a bed all to himself for the first time in his life. The next morning, the Germans were gone and the Soviets arrived. Wanting to achieve a propaganda victory over the Germans, the Soviets filmed Auschwitz’s surviving children showing their tattoos and gauntness, and Michael’s image was immortalized.

Michael and his grandmother returned to Zarki after the war, and reconnected with their family. His mother survived as well, and eventually they made it to the United States in the early 1950s where Michael became a successful academic and researcher. It wasn’t until decades later that Michael, watching a movie, realized that he was one of the children in actual footage of the war.

Working with his daughter, Michael retells his story from the fragments he remembers. Supported by archival research, Michael’s experience shows that wit, love and looking forward can keep hope alive even when it seems hopeless. Listen to a segment discussing this book and Michael’s experience here, and check out the book on Overdrive.

Betwixters: Once Upon a Time

Cantu, Laura C. Betwixters: Once Upon a Time. Book 1 of the Betwixters series. 278p. ISBN 978-0-9885-8519-5. Available at FIC CAN on the library shelves.

Noah’s move to England from the United States was not without difficulty, but he has adapted fairly well to his new environment. In English middle school, he made quick friends with always full of himself Ethan and best dancer and quick-witted Skye but is often the target of bully Gunther and his cronies. Noah’s father worked for the NSA, and is now involved in a secret project, which forced the family to move. Noah’s mother, who is Chinese, is very supportive of Noah and his aspirations.

Their town abuts the Dark Wood, a forest reputed to be haunted and the scene of a grizzly murder eight years ago. Noah’s father has made him promise never to enter the forest, but when Noah, Ethan and Skye are chased by Gunther and his crew, the only way to escape is to leave the school through the forest. As they go deeper, the environment changes and they can feel it become oppressive. They run in the man who owns the forest, whom they nickname Scaretaker and who warns them away from the dangers that lurk nearby. Skye, meanwhile, discovers the most amazing creature: Neevya the faerie, who comes from another realm and has unwillingly stepped through a portal to the human world. Stuck in an iron trap, Neevya has been infected by iron poisoning and must find the way back home soon, or she will die.

In a race against time and with enemies occupying the forest, Noah, Ethan, and Skye will need to outwit their parents, their bully, and the Scaretaker to deliver Neevya back to her home and save her life. Can they find the portal before it is too late?

The Notorious Benedict Arnold: A True Story of Adventure, Heroism and Treachery

Sheinkin, Steve. The Notorious Benedict Arnold: A True Story of Adventure, Heroism and Treachery. 2010. 337p. ISBN 978-1-59643-486-8. Available at B ARN and as an audiobook on Overdrive.

No figure in the history of the American Revolution is more reviled than Benedict Arnold, the man who agrees to betray his country and plotted the end of the Revolution for a large sum of money. Born in January 1741, Benedict Arnold was frail. Even as a small child, Arnold wanted to impress those around him, and felt that he needed to eclipse his father’s many failures. Through dedication and hard work, Arnold managed to redress the family finances and became prosperous. Married with three children, Arnold ran a successful Connecticut shipping company, but still wanted more.

An opportunity presented itself when the British made a series of political blunders while trying to collect taxes from its American colonies. Angry colonists gathered to protect themselves and their properties, until the flames of revolution was ignited with a British march to Concord and Lexington. Hearing of this momentous event, Arnold assumed command of the New Haven militia, and he marched out with his troops to support the nascent Continental Army. Despite never having fought, Arnold was shrewd and came up with a plan to seize the guns of Fort Ticonderoga and use them to dislodge the British from Boston.

Through subsequent action, Arnold made a name for himself for bravery and boldness, yet also attracted an increasingly higher number of detractors who could reproach him his lack of patience, his short fuse, and his capacity to enrich himself at the expense of the institutions he represented. Bold assaults on Quebec, the delay of the British reconquest of Lake Champlain and his bravery on the field spread his name far and wide, but he eventually garnered the ire important Pennsylvanians. With past decisions catching up with him, and with his financial situation in disarray, Arnold reached out to the British, who dispatched Major John André to negotiate a treacherous act: Arnold agreed to turn over Fort West Point to the British. With the Fort, which controlled the upper Hudson River in their hands, the British would have effectively cut off the colonies in two, and might have ended the Revolutionary War in their favor.

Unfortunately the plot failed, André was caught and executed as a spy, and Arnold escaped, joining the British as a general but then forced in exile in England, where he died in 1801. A man who could have been known as one of the greatest military heroes of the United States instead became synonymous with treason and bad judgment.

Engaging and packed with action and adventure, Arnold’s story continues to fascinate and intrigue readers. Fans of historical events and of military prowess will appreciate Arnold’s strength but will ultimately feel sorry for a man who made the wrong decisions.

A Visual History of the World’s Enduring Mysteries

Campos, Joan Soriano. A Visual History of the World’s Enduring Mysteries. Part of the Visual History of the World series. 2016. 100p. ISBN 978-1499465785. Available at 930.1 SOR on the library shelves.

History is plagued with events and locations that, to this day, have no explanation or are considered mythical. Yet, these events, whether or not they occurred, have influenced the course of civilization. And these locations, such as the Nazca lines, Stonehenge or Machu Picchu, clearly exist yet their purposes remain unclear. In World’s Enduring Mysteries, explore some of the strangest and mysterious occurrences throughout history. Was the quest for the Holy Grail real? Who was Jack the Ripper? Did the golden city of El Dorado really exist? How about Troy?

Providing timelines, gorgeous illustrations, and over forty mysteries, this book will fascinate readers who appreciate the “life is stranger than fiction” aspect of our world, and will give a better understanding of the mysteries that continue to intrigue and puzzle people millenia later.

Maximizing the One-Shot: Connecting Library Instruction with the Curriculum

Markgraf, Jill et al. Maximizing the One-Shot: Connecting Library Instruction with the Curriculum. 2015. 173p. ISBN 978-1-44223866-4. Available at PROF 025.5 MAR on the library shelves.

School librarians often have limited classroom contact with students. Unlike teachers who interact with their classes every day, librarians collaborate with teachers and staff and may not be in the classroom as much as they would like. Librarians are blessed when collaboration involve more than a classroom session, but for most of us the one-shot approach to coming in a classroom, presenting information, and then departing is more often than not the reality.

Aimed for the college librarian, Maximizing the One-Shot nevertheless provides excellent and adaptable advice to school librarians on how to better plan and use the one-shot approach to ensure that information delivery is effective and memorable. Their approach was to use the Lesson Study, where librarians and faculty collaborated together to develop one one-shot lesson to address specific skills necessary for students to successfully complete the class. Though they report that it took a lot of time, this was time well spent as it allowed all stakeholders to be on the same page as far as expectations and information needs, and it allowed the librarians to participate in the assessment of the skills taught.

The Lesson Study model approach to have multiple participants designing a unit lesson may be hard to accomplish in a K-12 environment, however the steps and recommendations can easily be used between one classroom teacher and one librarian to devise a truly collaborative one-shot lesson. Success can then be used as a model to build more collaboration with other classroom teachers.