oceans – Peaceful Reader

Summer Books

I’ve read a ton this summer and I want to share these titles with you so you can read them also. All of these are perfect for upper elementary and middle school except for the last one on my list. All are worth a read even as an adult. Pick your topic and find them at a library near you.

The Lion of Mars by Jennifer L. Holm: Life on Mars as told by Bell, an orphan growing up on this solitary space station. America is at war with other nations over Antarctica and even on Mars the U.S. team is not speaking to the other settlements (so like American) and the kids save the day.

A Whale of the Wild by Rosanne Parry: Told from the point of view of Vega, an Orca Whale, as she shares her life journey with her extended Orca pod. Deals with environmental changes that affect our water, climate change, family relations, and a darkly humorous insight into humans.

Stand Up, Yumi Chung! by Jessica Kim: Yumi wants to perform and finds her way to a comedy camp through a hilarious mix-up. Her parents want her to study hard for a scholarship as they try to safe their restaurant. Great friendship and family story about what really matters.

Becoming Muhammad Ali by James Patterson and Kwame Alexander: A novel in verse mixed with prose takes us through Cassius Clay’s early life. He is a peace activist hero of mine and I loved this story. This is an important but quick read.

Before the Ever After by Jacqueline Woodson: ZJ lives with his parents as they begin to navigate his father’s head trauma from playing professional football. It’s very difficult to see your hero become angry and confused by every day life with no answers from the medical world. Made me cry and wonder why we don’t just play flag football at all levels!

The Amelia Six by Kristin L. Gray: Fun mystery that takes place in Amelia Earhart’s childhood home. I learned a lot about Amelia and her flying career as the girls uncover an unusual plot to steal the aviator’s favorite goggles.

The Best At It by Maulik Pancholy: Rahul Kampoor, a gay Indian American boy, growing up in the Midwest and is anxious about the upcoming school year. He takes his grandfather’s advice to be good at just one thing…but what if he can’t find anything to be good at. I loved the multigenerational story, the characters were outstanding, and was emotional in love with his struggle. Most of us understand this struggle.

Firekeeper’s Daughter by Angeline Boulley: I think I’ve already said multiple times how much I loved Boulley’s story; a family mystery set on a reservation in Michigan. Drug use, FBI informants, romance, athletes, all mixed with Native lore and traditions made this my favorite summer read. This one is for young adults.

Summer may be waning but there is still plenty of time to find your hammock and read any one of these fabulous books.

My search for trash bags…

What does everyone else use for garbage bags? You probably make the easy decision to just pick them up at Target or the grocery store where you shop. Here is what you need to know; it takes 1,000 years for that trash bag to decompose. That’s a helluva long time. I’m on the search for a better alternative.

After learning how much plastic (Ocean Conservancy) is in the ocean and making a mess of our precious and beautiful land as well I decided to look for a more eco-friendly choice. We ran out of the box of Glad ForceFlex 50-count bags the other day and as I broke the box down for recycling I started thinking about a safer bag. We recycle a lot and think about what goes into our garbage but what if what was surrounding our trash was also a problem. I’ve purchased other eco-friendly choices before but either they were cost-prohibitive or not easily attainable. So I turned to the internet to see if I could find an answer.

I found this great article posted on a website selling compostable trash bags. Of course they want you to buy their compostable bags yet the definitions make sense to me based on what I know already. What I learned is not to buy biodegradable bags because regular landfills do not usually have the key ingredients to biodegrade. Unfortunately the notes didn’t help me find what I need as I’m looking for a trash bag for my NON- compostable materials; the stuff that ends up in landfills. We compost a lot at our house and we just throw that stuff right outside into a rolling bin and in the springtime we used to spread it out on the garden. This is our first spring without a backyard garden so we’ll still find a new place to spread the compost love back into the earth. I don’t know why more people don’t compost; its so easy and it’s literally like giving the earth a gift back.

In my continued search I found this article from the SFGate from the city that’s already banned grocery bags! I like some of Ms. Lovering’s ideas of lining trash containers with paper bags or newspaper. According to my husband our trash pick-up is required to be in tied bags so right now I’m using the few grocery bags my husband carries home because he forgets to bring reusable bags. I have to move forward, knowing I’m working on this issue in my own time, and hopefully along this journey I will find a solution. It’s going to make a difference, maybe not in my life time but for my children and the next generation.

Anyone have a green alternative?

One White Dolphin by Gill Lewis (2012)

Groovy Girl and I just finished reading this one together. We had a massive read-a-thon to finish it this morning as it is surprise, surprise…overdue! It left us both thrilled, exhausted, and a little teary.

Synopsis:

That Wood clan needs to be stopped. Save the reef? What a joke. What kind of family loves fish and dolphins more than community? dredging the reef will mean fishermen can reel in more money. That’s what the town needs.
What the town gets, though, is an albino dolphin calf that washes ashore after being caught in some old nets. It will take help from an unexpected new kid, a daring, helicopter rescue, and a pod of dolphins, but Kara Wood won’t back down. The calf must be saved and so must the reef. (inside blurb)

There is a lot to take in in this 338 page novel which is what really makes it a slice of life. Bullying by adults and kids alike, economic strife, death, survival, and at the heart of it; how we are taking care of the earth for future generations play a part in One White Dolphins message. All these varied topics were solidly weaved in to make a believable and interesting tale. The chapters are relatively short which makes for an easier read-aloud which always leaves Groovy Girl begging for more each time I stop to tuck her in. This year she begins 6th grade and my plan is to keep reading together before I tuck her in. She’s my last one until I have grandchildren which, truthfully, is quite a ways away!

A sample from One White Dolphin:

Moana slices through the water on a course set for Gull Rock. We’re running fast and smooth. Mr. Anderson and I have to lean right out to balance her. I run my hands in the bow waves that furl along Moana’s sides. Her sails above us are curved and taut like birds’ wings. We’re racing through the water. It feels as if we’re flying almost.

I look back again to see Dad and Felix , big grins stuck on both their faces. That pang of jealousy hasn’t gone away. It’s not because of Dad, this time. It’s because of Felix. For someone who’s never sailed before, he’s good at sailing. (119)

Find Gill Lewis at her website. She’s a former veterinarian living in the United Kingdom who transforms her love of animals and the earth into really lovely stories.