War Horse

 
War Horse by Michael Morpurgo

The first time I ever heard about War Horse, it was on Good Morning America. The London stage play, War Horse, had finally crossed the ocean and was premiering in New York. The trio of puppeteers for Joey, the titular character, brought him to life in the newsroom and I was mesmerized. What amazing talent! I am relatively certain that Joey also made an appearance on Live with Regis and Kelly. I stood spellbound in my kitchen. Oh how I longed to witness the magic for myself.

And then War Horse was made into a motion picture by Stephen Spielberg himself in 2011. I wasn’t interested. I wanted the mystical quality of the puppets on stage. But even then, I had not a clue that the play and the movie were based upon a CHILDREN’S BOOK!

No, it wasn’t until I received the 2013 Illinois Bluestem Nominee Master List last year that I did a double take. WHAT!!?? Not only is it juvenile fiction, but it is a VERY slight novel. I read it in a day in the truck driving towards Mt. Rushmore. Had I read the book as a child myself… it was published in 1982… I doubt that I would have envisioned it as the type of book that would be made into anything… It has obviously touched many lives.

I am trying not to regurgitate what so many already know about the story. I also realize that the three different versions are not identical due to the nature of the various media arts. I will tell you the way I see the story. Through a non-human participant, Joey, the reader is shown that many people, even the ones that are supposed to be our enemies, have good in them.

The most obvious example occurs when Joey is caught between two trenches, one belonging to the Germans and one belonging to the English. Both armies spontaneously accept a ceasefire long enough to rescue the injured and lost Joey from between the two sets of barbed wire. The men who enter the area known as “no-man’s-land” agree to the conditions of a coin toss and thereby Joey is saved and placed once again in safe, capable hands. The two soldiers agree that they would both rather be at home tending to their own affairs rather than fighting the battle for which they no longer understand the reason. Neither wants to be in the business of killing men.

Even at the beginning of the story, Joey’s young master, Albert, has a drunkard for a father. In fact, much of Joey and Albert’s troubles come from the father’s drinking binges. Joey was purchased out of a drunken spite. Joey is beaten out of drunken rage. Joey is forced into manual labor out of a drunken bet. Finally, Joey is sold to the army out of a drunken need for money. But when Albert’s father wakes from his drunken coma, he is regretful and remorseful and contrite to an extent. It is his vice that is evil. The reader hopes that he will learn to shun alcohol.

The story would have bored me when it wasn't bringing me to tears if not for the climax and resolution. When Albert finally finds Joey! It is BEAUTIFUL in my opinion. And I thought the ending was very clever. Recommended to boys who enjoy war stories. Too sad and depressing for my girls, I believe. And not your typical horse book either. Wouldn't recommend to animal lovers.

Close to Famous

Close to Famous by Joan Bauer

I finished this 2014 Caudill Nominee on the first leg of my family’s summer vacation trip to Mt. Rushmore – the first of six books that I devoured over the course of a week. I find reading to be an excellent way to spend many, many, many hours in a truck. I feel nothing but sympathy for the poor souls who are unable to read in a moving vehicle without getting carsick.

The most interesting facet of this book is its foray into pop culture. No, there is no reference to Justin Bieber or Shake It Up or anything else with which a junior high tween would be enamored. Instead, a good portion of the book’s blueprint relies on a popular television network – The Food Network. I don’t know how many contemporary children watch The Food Network channel, but in our house it is a daily affair. We are hooked on Chopped; Iron Chef; Diners, Drive-ins and Dives; and The Next (fill in the blank.) My children would like nothing more than to host their own Chopped and I always offer to judge the contestants. Our Sunday evening ritual finds us sitting in front of the newest contest to hit the network. We get quite competitive with our favorites.

Here I had a book I could suggest to both my 13-year-old and my almost 9-year-old! And I might even get cupcakes out of the deal. Check out that delicious cover! Yes, book talks are free vacation offerings.

I like the main character that is both skilled and smart despite her major reading disability. Foster McFee barely passed the sixth grade and I wonder how she managed. She cannot read even simple street signs. So here is a gal who can waltz into the local dive and offer a sample of her delectable cupcakes and muffins in the hopes of selling them from said establishment. She wins their hearts through their stomachs and bakes to order. Yet she has never been able to read a recipe from a cookbook! She hears them on television and commits them to memory along with any tips that would be useful for future flavors.

Once I was on vacation and free from life’s labors, I truly enjoyed this novel. I thought it read very much like real life. There is never only one problem in one’s life. And we are always surrounded by people with their own unusual circumstances. It would be a rather dull life otherwise. It is the downs that make the ups soar. And it is the different people at various stages of life’s roller coaster that lend us support, encouragement and sympathy.

But I do wonder at how much a tween is able digest when even some of the adults complain. There is A LOT of drama here in 250 pages. Foster’s father died, a soldier in Iraq. Her mother is a backup singer who wishes to take center stage. The two are on the run from an abusive boyfriend who happens to be an Elvis impersonator. They end up in a town with problems of its own. A prison was built with the promise of jobs that never were offered locally. A church is for sale and the preacher’s wife sits on the steps scaring off the buyers. A boy wants to make a documentary but needs a chance as well as help. And a jilted Hollywood star lies sick in bed waiting for her next big offer. And that is just what I remember from a month ago!! I think girls who enjoy cooking and making their own drama will delight in reading Close to Famous.