Brown, Laurene Krasny, and Marc Brown. Dinosaurs Divorce, A Guide For Changing Families.
New York, NY:Little Brown and Company, 1986.

Dinosaurs Divorce extremely unique, not only in its content, but also it’s form. The author and illustrator worked together to create a very real depiction of what can occur when parents divorce. They wrote the book together for their children who had come together as step siblings to create a new and unique family unit. As the book opens there is a table of contents which lists the topics covered in the book such as: words that revolve around divorce and their definitions, why divorce can occur, feelings a child may have, what happens after, living with one parent, visiting parents, dealing with two homes, holidays and special occasions, telling friends about divorce, meeting parents new friends, and dealing with stepparents and stepsiblings. The book covers many reasons for why divorce could happen, feelings children may have, different situations that may result and different options for how to cope. I really enjoyed the comic book format because of it allowed versatility in the author’s representations of situations. For example, when talking about how a child may deal with feelings they explain that emotions may not be plain and simple to explain. Rather, they offer different emotions through distinct facial expressions to show that it is okay to feel not only sad, but also angry, afraid, confused, ashamed, relieved, guilty, and worried about who might take care of them. This is unique form other books because it allows the reader to take a second and think about how they feel and what situations apply to them. Further, the book offers many reasons divorce can occur, how to cope, and what may happen after the divorce which makes this book extremely beneficial to a variety of readers who come from diverse and unique family situations. I think this book is also of great value because it can be used for children who have not been affected by divorce personally. The authors did an excellent job specifically describing all the different outcomes divorce can bring to a child while intertwining emotion with each possible pathway. This book, although could be read and explained to a very young audience, seems to be geared toward elementary age and middle school students because it covers a lot of information. There is one part of the book where the authors are writing about how parents may be upset with each other and behave in ways that hurt themselves and their family. This is depicted by a mom finishing a martini with bottles and pills behind her which, although often realistic, too mature for young readers to understand. As always, the book ends with the message that no matter how divorce affects a family or what happens after parents will always love their children.

Book Review: "Mama and Daddy Bear's Divorce"

Spelman, Cornelia Maude. Illustrated by Parkinson, Kathy. Mama and Daddy Bear’s Divorce.
Morton Groves, Illinois: Albert Whitman & Company, 1998.

The story of Mama, Daddy, Ruth, and Dinah, a family of bears, is a story that discusses, in an oversimplified way, the idea that although they may not have both parents in the same household they will not loose the things they had before the separation. The author wrote the book with the memories she had as a child during her parents divorce and the process of recovery that her and her sister, Ruth, worked through together. The story is told through the eyes of the youngest sister, Dinah, who learns that although she may not be able to do all the things she loves in one home she will not loose the things that are important to her. This book is for a very young child and can be used to relay the idea that everything in the child’s life, except where their parents live, will remain the same. In a comforting tone, Cornelia Maude Spelman does an excellent job to portray a family that made it through trying times that no matter what may happen with the family composition the love shared between a parent and child will never falter. The illustrations, by Kathy Parkinson, are great for young children because she relays the emotion of the characters through detailed facial expressions which will help emphasize the flow of the plot for a young child. I really enjoyed the use of bears as the main characters was an effective choice in that the characters are more relatable and effective for children of all races.

Book Review: "When My Parents Forgot How to Be Friends"

Moore, Jennifer. Illustrated by Fabrega, Marta."When My Parents Forgot How to Be Friends". Hauppauge New York: Barron’s Educational Series, 2005.

This is a great book that can be used as a tool to use with children who are dealing with parental separation or divorce. The author, Jennifer Moore- Mallinos does an excellent job acknowledging some of the concerns and anxieties she had as a child in order to help families adjust to changes within family composition. I really enjoy the progression of the characters emotions, beginning with how things were once good in the characters, which remains nameless, home. As her father moves out, the author addresses the idea that children often feel guilty for the separation that occurs between parents in a way that is honest and to the point. She is quick to write about the parent’s efforts to comfort the girl and remind her that despite the change, both her mother and father still love and care for her very much. In the end, the character is comfortable with the situation and enjoys spending time with both parents. The illustrations by Marta Fabrega add to the sensitive but positive tone to the book in that they are done with watercolors outlined in charcoal pencil. She used warm colors that grab the eye as well as a pattern of two cut-out people one each page to make the book more inviting and focus the young readers. I really enjoyed this book and thought that there was a sense of simplicity that captured the thoughts of a child as they deal with divorce in their home and adjust to their new family units.

Confessions of a Closet Catholic

i really enjoyed this book because it made me remeber the things I like about the Catholic Religion. I have never heard of a story like this and found it hard to put down! I remember someone asking me about why I always followed rules, never drank in highschool or tried drugs and my response was becuse I feel guilty if I break the rules that my Catholic school taught. I felt like I needed to follow the school rules or I would be disobeying God. I often miss the consistency of Catholicism, traditional and clear. However, I think this book points out exactly what I felt when I graduated... it is important to evaluate yourself without the religion you were raised on because it helps you find your own beliefs and thoughts. I am interested to see what others post and look at the texts about religious differences in multicurltural literature.

Becoming Naomi Leon

I really liked the fact that in , Becoming Naomi Leon, the mother was the character that had left her family. Too often we see father figures portrayed as the characters who have have the affair, or have a drug problem, or get sick of being tied down to the family. this was a refreshing twist to the story line. further, I really enjoyed the fact that author, Pam Munoz Ryan, really incorporated the idea that Latina families were strongly connected to not only their immediate familiy but also their extened family adn their close friends. She did a great job of putting a good light on the "kinship" of the Latina families...I really enjoyed it adn will look out for other books she has written!

Blindness and Hybrids...?

There was an news "blip" on CNN about an issue that blind people are having today, in the midst of all the new technology. The article discussed the face that the new hybrid cars are so quiet that people who can not see, and depend solely on their hearing to guide them, believe that the extreme quietness that comes with the new environmentally friendly cars could cause a grave problem. I just thought this was interesting to think about while reading the book for this week... I couldn't imagine what it would be like to be in Charlie's situation!

The Lambda Literacy Foundation Award’s website can be found at: http://www.lambdaliterary.org/index.html. The purpose of this award is to celebrate GLBTQ literature. This award does not take the orientation of the author into consideration; it is secondary to the quality of the writing and the LBGTQ content of the work. There are twenty one categories in which books can be nominated by their author or publisher. The books are judged by various members of the literary community, but judges are not announced until the winners are made public.
In 2004, there was a book (The Man Who Would Be Queen) which was nominated, announced as a finalist, and then removed from the list due to an outcry of the LGBTQ population. More information about this at http://www.tsroadmap.com/info/lambda-literary.html.
We found it quite interesting that we could not find a “seal” to acknowledge books which won this award. Our group questioned whether this is due to the political climate of our country and the connotations that this award might have toward these books. Does not having an award allow for this book to be read by children and young adults without being "flagged"?
In searching for books which have won this award, we could only find two of the books in the young adult/children’s lit categories: Luna (which was found at the library) and Boy Meets Boy (which is actually a book we’re reading in class).