Friends, if you’ll recall, I reviewed HALF of the stories in this anthology last week – click here.
The rest of the volume is reviewed below. The second half of this anthology contains even darker and more serious stories than the first half. Overall, the whole compilation is skewed to a much older audience than its predecessor. The quality of the stories is still excellent, but most would require more mature readers. Again, keep in mind that if you feature a single story with students, you should explain thoroughly whether or not they should seek out the rest to read on their own.
Bus Problems by Howard Norman
This is a fantastic story. Howard is working on the Bookmobile one blistering hot summer day. The man in charge of the Bookmobile heads inside for an “unscheduled stop” to see his wife. An older boy stops to talk to Howard and they meet a young girl who has just come from swimming in a local pond. The difficulty is, the local pond is rumored (at least among the children) to contain polio germs. The older boy acts swiftly, driving the Bookmobile to the emergency room to get the girl help. The results of his actions are perfect for a discussion of right and wrong. An added bonus is that the women in the story are strong characters. The wife of the Bookmobile driver is a)beautiful and b) a bus mechanic. The young girl snaps right back when the older boy calls her baby.
Due to the reason the Bookmobile is making unscheduled stops, I would recommend this for teenage audiences.
Sex, Nudity, Dating – Mrs. Oler kisses Mr. Oler. They take “a long moment” to kiss. Sometimes Mr. Oler has the bookmobile make unscheduled stops. He tells Howard this is because he and his wife are trying to make a baby. No other information is given. An older boy says “Hey baby” to a girl in a bathing suit.
Profanity – “dummy,”
Death, Violence and Gore – None.
Drugs, Alcohol and Smoking – None.
Frightening or Intense Things – His father has left and only returns sometimes to cause trouble. His older brother is in juvenile detention for stealing a car. The boys are invited to swim in a pond that is locally known as polio pond. There are rumors you get polio from the pond. There is some discussion of being lame or being in the hospital in an iron lung due to polio.
Pegasus for a Summer by Michael J. Rosen
This story takes place at camp, where a boy just loves to ride horses. His horse for the summer is a mare named Sparky and they get along better than he has with any other horse. Partway through the summer he learns that she is blind and must re-evaluate his choices when riding her.
Barring the cursing, this would be fine for almost any age, but probably would be most interesting to an audience that is actually interested in horses and riding. Since the swear is a single instance, you could omit it if you read the story aloud.
Sex, Nudity, Dating – None.
Profanity – “idiot,” “son-of-a-bitch,” “stupid,”
Death, Violence and Gore – A horse gets a bit wild and a riding instructor ends up with 4 broken ribs.
Drugs, Alcohol and Smoking – None.
Frightening or Intense Things – None.
Learning to Swim by Kyoko Mori
Kyoko is a strong athlete. In races she can often keep up with the boys or even beat them! But she wants to be on their level at swimming as well. Her mother trains her in the crawl and the breaststroke. The real test of Kyoko’s swimming skills will not come in a pool as she expected, however. When a riptide pulls her and her mother out to sea, Kyoko will really see if she can swim.
This is a touching memory Kyoko has of her mother. The story continues to explain how her mother eventually took her own life. Suicide and depression are so rarely written about in a manner that is appropriate for younger readers. This would probably be best for teens due to that content, but it is handled very well.
Sex, Nudity, Dating – None.
Profanity – None.
Death, Violence and Gore – Kyoko’s mother “chooses to die.”
Drugs, Alcohol and Smoking – None.
Frightening or Intense Things – None.
Waiting for Midnight by Karen Hesse
This is a very serious and depressing story about Hesse’s childhood in a Maryland row house. She has her own troubles; her mother is not well; her parents fight constantly, but nothing can compare to the situation next door. Each night when she goes to bed she can hear the neighbor children through the wall. They are begging and pleading with their Mother, begging her to let them out of the closet.
This is very sensitive subject matter and would be best for older readers, probably middle school or high school. The story is one of tragedy, but also of faith, and as such has a fair amount of vocabulary relating to Judaism.
Sex, Nudity, Dating – None.
Profanity – None.
Death, Violence and Gore – The neighbor locks her children in a closet each night. Her mother seems to be depressed and twice goes to the hospital and nearly dies.
Drugs, Alcohol and Smoking – None.
Frightening or Intense Things – None.
The Snapping Turtle by Joseph Bruchac
A young boy gets his love and appreciation for the outdoors from his grandparents. He’s much better at fishing than his peers because of the lessons he’s learned from his grandfather. One day he happens upon a snapping turtle and risks its powerful jaws in order to haul it home. He’s heard that you can earn up to $10 for a snapping turtle. But when the moment to sell comes, what will he do?
This story manages to have a less-traditional family structure and a native american character with grace and respect. Therefore it seemed odd and anomalous that a certain section of town was called the “colored” section. There was nothing else in the story that really marked it as a period piece and therefore the decision not to use a different term was an odd one.
While some young boys smoke, it it clear from the narrator that this is a bad thing, so barring any real sensitivity to the topic, I would okay this story for as young as third grade.
Sex, Nudity, Dating – None.
Profanity – “jerk,” “crap,” “colored” is used in reference to African-Americans.
Death, Violence and Gore – Four cats and two dogs have died on the local highway. His grandparents advise him to stay off it.
Drugs, Alcohol and Smoking – Some boys have stolen a cigarette and are smoking it.
Frightening or Intense Things – None.
