Irene Latham's Blog, page 85

How to Rise

Hello and welcome to Spiritual Journey FIRST Thursday! Today we are all sharing our thoughts and feelings about Leigh Anne's One Little Word "Rise." Be sure to visit her blog His Turn for a linkup of all the posts!

The word RISE brings to my mind some of my favorite quotes:

fall seven times, get up eight
if you're going through hell... keep going
a winner is a loser who tried one more time
And it takes me back to one of my favorite poems ever: "Mother to Son" by Langston Hughes. Here's Viola Davis... and then Langston Hughes... giving a beautiful reading!




So rising is really about perseverance, and hanging in there, not giving up.
I know for me, my confidence is built when I have the opportunity to rise. Which means I have to allow myself to fail. Which means taking chances. Which means getting out of my comfort zone. Which means being brave. Which is hard!
How to Rise
A kite needs wind,smoke needs fire.
A whale dives
d     e          e               p
before it swims up for air.
A balloon doesn't stopto ask, what's it all for?
It simply lifts,drifts,find new mountainsto float over.
And each day the sun returns,reminding us

              to try
                         once more.
- Irene Latham
                                        

Movie Monday: HIDDEN FIGURES

This past weekend we finally got around to seeing HIDDEN FIGURES, the based-on-a-true-story film about  3 African-American women who made important contributions to the US space program during the 1960s (and beyond).

The movie has been nominated for 3 Oscars: Best Movie, Best Supporting Actress (Octavia Spencer), and Best Adapted Screenplay. Will it win? I will be watching February 26 to find out. :)

I love it when literature/art/film showcases previously overlooked people in history. (I've written many poems about many other such overlooked women!) The movie is especially powerful and relevant because it's about women in a male-dominated science/math field -- and African-American women at that!

Yes, newsflash: women are smart, capable, determined, innovative. They have been for a long time. Even when all the TV showed was the (white, male) astronauts, these women were there doing the math, the engineering, the coding.

I'm grateful for this song for the unsung heroes. It's inspiring to think about these women pushing against boundaries, being "first." We wouldn't be where we are today with these women and others like them. I appreciate this opportunity to remember and recognize them.

And okay, the movie goes a little long and had some slow-ish moments... and doesn't get MY vote for Best Movie.. but it's still a good one! I especially loved sharing it with our young adult sons.

I AM WRITING A POEM ABOUT... a Rabbit.

Hello and happy Poetry Friday! Be sure to visit Carol at Beyond Literacy Link for Roundup.

How 'bout those ALA book awards earlier this week?! I was pleased to see a few poetry titles -- and poets! -- recognized, including  FREEDOM IN CONGO SQUARE illustrated by R. Gregory Christie, written by Carole Boston Weatherford (Little Bee Books)

and FREEDOM OVER ME: ELEVEN SLAVES, THEIR LIVES AND DREAMS BROUGHT TO LIFE by Ashley Bryan (Atheneum Books for Young Readers)

Nikki Grimes & me at Poetry Camp!and how lovely to see Nikki Grimes recognized with the Laura Ingalls Wilder Award?! Also Naomi Shihab Nye for the May Hill Arbuthnot Lecture Award. Yay yay yay!

I've got a book to share with you, but, first, in case you missed it, here are a couple of poetry posts:

HERE WE GO: A Poetry Friday Power Book by Sylvia Vardell & Janet Wong -- for Multicultural Children's Book Day (today!) #ReadYourWorld

UNBOUND: a novel in verse by Ann E. Burg

CATCHING A STORYFISH by Janice N. Harrington

Recently my friend and mentor Lee Bennett Hopkins encouraged me to read everything by Myra Cohn Livingston... so I've been working on that! I started at No Water River, where he and Renee La Tulippe have created the wonderful NCTE video series. And then I found a few books in my library.

The first one I want to share is a writing-prompt book, filled with prompts and Myra's students' responses. It's called I AM WRITING A POEM ABOUT...A Game of Poetry. It just shows you that wonderful work can come of challenges/assignments! And makes me wish again I could have attended one of Myra's classes. The good news is, because of this book, in some small way, we can ALL attend one of her classes. Enjoy!

Prompt: one word: rabbit

Poem About Rabbit
by Alice Schertle

I am writing a poem
     about

     rabbit.

A pink-eyed poem
     that watches
               from the

edges
of the page,
     that nibbles
                at the

corners
of my  mind.

A quiet poem

The kind
    with long-eared lines that
listen
     to where the words fall.

A poem
coming close
     enough to touch,
standing
     still

to watch
me write a poem
     about

        rabbit.
------------------------

Prompt: three words: ring, drum, blanket

A Ring Needs
by Ann Whitford Paul

A ring needs a finger,
a blanket, a bed.
A window needs curtains,
and butter needs bread.
A king needs a crown
and so does his queen.
A drum needs a drumstick;
A movie, a screen.
A clock needs two hands.
A door needs a knob.
And how would the corn
grow without any cob?
A cupcake needs frosting.
The shore needs a sea.
These words need a reader.
The reader is me.

Oh, Brother!
by Janet S. Wong

The little squirt,
begging for boiled eggs and toast,
circles me like a wrestler in the ring,
bouncing on my bed,
bouncing,
bouncing,
bouncing,
bouncing,
and when I try to hide my head,
he dives under the blanket,
to drum my stomach
until it surrenders
a growl.
----------------------
Prompt: six words: hole, friend, candle, ocean, snake, bucket or scarecrow

Celebration by the Sea
by Joan Bransfield Graham

My friend
and I scoop out
a hole in the sand, a
bucket to capture our own small
ocean.

We build
a castle cake.
Water snakes through its halls.
Mud turrets rise and on top -- one
candle.
-----------------
Aren't those wonderful?! Anyone want to join me in writing a poem on any of these prompts? If so, please do share! Happy writing!

UNBOUND by Ann E. Burg

UNBOUND: A Novel in Verse by Ann E. Burg, about young could-pass-for-white Grace's journey from her Mama's arms to houseslave to runaway slave making a new home in the Great Dismal Swamp (Virginia and North Carolina).

Some things to note:

The book is written in dialect. The g's are dropped, and all "and"s are shortened to "n."

The poems do not have titles.

Bound/unbound is a metaphor that works on a lot of levels in the book.

It's beautiful and hopeful and full of love, and Grace uses what power she has to make her life (and the lives of her loved ones) better.

Here is a passage I particular enjoyed:


Silent as moonlight
we glide
into the forever water.

OleGeorgeCooper
guides the canoe
round a narrow bend,
windin us
farther away
from the riverbank,
father away
from Mama's cabin
n the Big House,
from Master Allen
n the Missus,
father away
from Aunt Sara
n Aunt Tempie,
from Anna
n Uncle Moses,
farther away
from everythin
I ever knew.

Farther n farther
into darkness
we drift,
till before long,
we disappear too.

Far off,
a solitary cypress
keeps watch,
its ghostly silhouette
rising from
the dark water.

The only sounds
is the distant,
lonesome squawks
of the night heron,
the tiny swash n ripple
of our canoe,
n the soft,
silver prayers
Mama's sendin
to heaven.

Bove me,
the stars sparkle
low n bright.
I reach in my pocket
n squeeze Aunt Sara's small,
broken button.

I listen to the quiet
n wonder
what new world
is waitin.

Movie Monday: THE FOUNDER

I am very excited about the 2017 Youth Media Awards coming later this morning! I considered attending the event since it is so close (Atlanta), but decided I'd rather watch the live stream in my pajamas. :)

In other exciting news, the 2017 Oscar nominations will be announced  tomorrow (Tuesday) morning! Here are some predictions.

And here is a little bit about THE FOUNDER, which is about Ray Kroc, the man responsible for bringing McDonald's nationwide and around the globe (100 countries!). I really enjoyed the movie, as it shows the good and the not so good about being ambitious. Success comes at a price, and sometimes the story gets changed along the way. Things (like marriages and integrity) are sometimes lost in the pursuit of success, and by God, when you make a deal, get it in writing. 

I was instantly able to apply some of the movie's wisdom to my writing life -- it's not about talent or education; the way to succeed is PERSISTENCE.

I know this to be true, and I kind of ached for Ray Kroc in the movie when he's pitching McDonald's as a franchise, and the bankers and investors are laughing at him, remembering all his previous schemes and great ideas. It can be SO HARD to keep going.

But. All a person needs is one great success! And Kroc is right: it's got to be different, something revolutionary. This is good advice for we artists as well! Don't just do the thing that's already been done. Be bold and innovative. Know what you're selling/creating. (For Kroc, it was "family.") And Don't. Give. Up.

Go see this one -- Michael Keaton does a great job, and it's a fascinating story.

FOOLING AROUND WITH SHAKESPEARE

Hello and Happy Poetry Friday! Be sure to visit lovely Violet at Violet Nesdoly for Roundup.
One of the things I love to do on this blog is showcase Alabama books and authors. Today it is my pleasure to welcome Glenda Slater, author of FOOLING AROUND WITH SHAKESPEARE (Negative Capability Press, 2016). These poems are FUN! They are not just for someone who knows and loves Shakespeare. They make a great introduction to him, especially as they are so easy to understand and amusing. Teachers, these poems would be great to pair with actual Shakespeare in the classroom!
First I'd like to share the Preface that begins the book:
You may be long-time lover of the Bard.You may be youth who thinks His plays too hard.The poems you will find within this bookProvide for you a new, irreverent, look.They focus on the foolishness and fun,The foibles, failings, faults of fools who runCapriciously cavorting on His pages.These fools may be, at times, confused with sages.I warn those who are with His plays besot:I'e taken liberties with place and plot.Your entertainment is the poem's intent, soFrame thy mind to mirth and merriment!
- Glenda Richmond Slater
Isn't that delightful?! And now I've asked Glenda to respond to a few prompts:
The Unexpected:
GS: I remember thinking, when Cold Sassy Tree by Olive Ann Burns was published, how remarkable that a woman could publish her first book at the advanced age of 60! And here I am, considerably older, with my first.
Everything about Fooling Around with Shakespeare has been unexpected. When I wrote the first poem, in response to a Pensters [writing group] prompt, I didn’t even turn it in to the contest. That was “A Midsummer Night’s Scream” and I thought the judge would not take seriously a poem that rhymed, had meter, and was a bit of a parody on the play. It would be dismissed as light verse, I suspected.
The next year, the prompt was unintentionally repeated and I took the poem to my small writing group. When we had finished our session and were about to leave, I remembered it, pulled it out, asked them to listen to it and tell me if I should try to do something with it. They found it very amusing. Sue Walker, a member of the group, said, “Glenda, if you will write more of these, I will publish the book.” [note from Irene: Sue Walker is awesome like that.]
Wow, that was a surprise! A publisher! Those are hard to come by! I got to work, not knowing whether I could actually come up with enough poems for a book. I started with the plays I knew best, all of which, of course, had at least one character who behaved quite foolishly. These first poems came easily, which is what I had come to expect with my writing. The plays with which I was not as familiar were more challenging. I often found myself having to (gasp, not used to this) discard my first effort and start all over. With Anthony and Cleopatra, for example, I didn’t find the right approach until after writing three other versions. Surprisingly, it turned out that I liked the challenge, the expansion of imagination, and the growth of my bond with the characters.
Negative Capability Press does not have a stable of illustrators and I knew a lot of artists, but none who had illustrated a book. Sue and several people suggested names to me and I looked at their work and talked to a couple of them, but I felt a more whimsical approach was needed. I mentioned this at a meeting of my P.E.O. chapter and one of the members, Dale Goss Mozley, a gifted artist, said she had never done illustrations, but she would like to try. I told her I had a vague idea of simple, whimsical drawings, and they would need to be black and white. She set forth on this immediately, brought me sketches for two poems, said if they didn’t work for me, she would understand. They were so far beyond the vague notion I had in mind! I was delighted with them. I think her drawings add immeasurably to the effectiveness of the book. And each is her own idea; I only saw them when she finished.
Glenda SlaterThe Delicious:
GS: I love rhyme and meter. I love the poems. I loved writing them, I love reading them silently, I love reading them to audiences.
Getting back in touch with Shakespeare has enriched my life. I have always enjoyed the plays, both reading them and seeing them on stage. If done well, all emotions are touched. If done poorly, perhaps hard to sit through, but such fun to critique afterwards. I acted in only one Shakespearean play (Regan, in King Lear), and found my acting ability did not measure up to my oral reading, but still it was a pleasure to be a part of what was an excellent production with a perfect King Lear and a perfect Fool.
I think the book is beautifully designed by Megan Cary. I couldn’t imagine how she would handle the various shapes and various lengths of the poems. I love that it is hardback and that she used Dale’s drawings on the cover.
I have been delighted by the reception. At my readings, the audiences have been receptive, responsive and very much with me, smiling and laughing, having fun. It’s great fun to do the readings—the poems lend themselves to oral performance.
I took great pleasure in writing them. Most often, I begin a piece when the first two lines come to mind. I usually have been mulling over the project and what I think of as the poetic section of my brain has been activated, with me thinking rhymes in my head as I go about daily activities. When those first perfect (at the moment, anyway), lines pop in, I know I’d better get them down immediately; otherwise, they’re gone. It’s best to continue the poem right then if I have time. It took me about two years to write the 20 poems.
The Difficult:
GS: It was hard waiting for the published product. Even though I knew this can take years, I did get frustrated. It took about two years from the time I turned in the manuscript to the August, 2016 launch.
The marketing process is difficult for me. I love doing the readings, but not the peripherals that are necessary.
Anything else? 
GS: It's never too late to get started. I first joined a writer’s group when in my fifties and, at that time, wrote children’s poems. I have a group of “veggie” poems that I took to elementary schools for years: “Goobers & Tubers & Pickles & Peas.” I tried to get that published with no success, but still see it as a good possibility for a poetry book with recipes for children. Just need a recipe person!
I didn’t start writing fiction until I moved to Fairhope and joined the Pensters writing group. I do well with flash fiction and have quite a few stories compiled—many of them have done well in contests. I continue to write them.
I’ve also written a middle grade novel, set in 1949 on the Gulf Coast. The first two chapters were awarded first place in Juvenile Fiction (Alabama Writers’ Conclave contest) by Watt Key three years ago. I’m looking into publishing options for it.
I’ve published a children’s play, The Junk Food King, poems. short stories, and articles on communicating with children. Not an extensive list—marketing is not my strong point.----------------------
Thank you, Glenda, and congratulations on the fun book of poems! You are an inspiration.
Glenda Slater was born in Crosby, Mississippi, but spent most of her early life in Alabama. Currently retired, she has a B.A. (English) and M.A. (Speech and Language Pathology) from the U of Alabama, and a Ph.D. (Speech and Language Pathology) from the University of Cincinnati. She currently lives and writes in Spanish Fort, Alabama. She says, "Writing brings me joy!"
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Books, Aging and "White House feet" According to Eleanor Roosevelt

I've just finished reading THE AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF ELEANOR ROOSEVELT. This was the December 2016 pick for Bas Bleu's Life Stories Book a Month club. (Now I can move on to THE SIX: THE LIVES OF THE MITFORD SISTERS by Laura Thompson... but first,
here are some words from Eleanor:
I was a shy, solemn child even at the age of two, and I am sure that even when I danced I never smiled. My earliest recollections are of being dressed up and allowed to come down to dance for a group of gentlemen who applauded and laughed as I pirouetted before them. Finally my father would pick me up and hold me high in the air. He dominated my life as long as he lived, and was the love of my life for many years after he died.
I don't supposed that kind of shyness ever really leaves one and to this day it sweeps over me occasionally when I face a crowd, and I wish the ground would open and swallow me. Habit has a great deal to do with what one actually does on these occasions, and the next years were going to give me a very intensive education along many lines.
Once, I talking to him [FDR] about some spiritualist conversations which had been sent in to me (people were always sending e their conversations with the dead), I expressed a somewhat cynical disbelief in them. He said simply: “I think it is unwise to say you do not believe in anything when you can't prove that it si either true or untrue. There is so much in the world which is always new in the way of discoveries that it is wiser to say that there may be spiritual things which we are simply unable to fathom. Therefore, I am interested and have respect for whatever people, believe, even if I cannot understand their beliefs or share their experiences."
[after FDR's death] I had few definitely plans but there were certain things I did not want to do. I did not want to run an elaborate household again. I did not want to cease trying to be useful in some way. I did not want to feel old- I seldom have. In the years since 1945 I have known the various phases of loneliness that are bound to occur when people no longer have a busy family life. But, without particularly planning it, I have made the necessary adjustments to a different way of living, and I have enjoyed almost every minute of it and almost everything about it.
As time when on, the fact that I kept myself well occupied made my loneliness less acute. I am not sure whether this was due to my own planning or simply to circumstances. But my philosophy has been that if you have work to do and do it to the best of your ability you will not have much time to think about yourself.
Readjustments in one's inner life have to go on forever, I think...
<!-- @page { margin: 0.79in } P { margin-bottom: 0.08in } </style> <br />--> <div style="margin-bottom: 0in;">I do not grow weary of travel and I do not tire easily – not so easily as some younger people I know. Sometimes, it is true, my feet hurt. What I call my “White House feet” hurt largely because of a change in the bones of my instep caused by years of standing at receptions in the White House. I generally find pleasure in travel because it give me an opportunity to catch up on my reading. In fact, I do must of my reading for pleasure on airplanes since at home there seldom seems to be time to puck up the many books that interest me. <span style="font-size: large;">Incidentally, if I have a complaint about the kind of life I lead, it is that I simply cannot find time to read as much as I wish.</span></div>

Reason #627 Why I Love Librarians.

About a week ago I attended a Championship Tailgate event... at my library! It's an annual event hosted by Katie Jane Morris of Hoover Library in which she speed-book-talks her favorite titles from the previous year.

I immediately put on request about twenty titles I hadn't already read, and also shared with Katie Jane some additional titles that made my list. And then yesterday, when I opened one of the books, CATCHING A STORYFISH by Janice N. Harrington (WordSong, 2016), this is what I found:


Note says: I hope you love this one! Katie Jane

Isn't that awesome? And. I love the book! It's about a girl who loves her grandfather and talktalktalks... until she moves to a new place and kids tease her about her (Alabama) accent. It's a book of friendship and family and love and fishing and finding our power through story. And it's all poems. Yay! It reminds me of WORD WITH WINGS by Nikki Grimes and GONE FISHING:A NOVEL IN VERSE by Tamara Will Wissinger.

Here is a poem from the book I am happy to share with you:

FISHING LESSON #7
by Janice N. Harrington, from CATCHING A STORYFISH

Bait your hook with patience,
if you want to catch a fish.

Bait your hook with be still,
be quiet, be slow.

Bait your hook with mosquito-buzzing,
with dragonfly-darts and frog-plops.

Bait your hook with shadows,
with a crow's awk-awk and with sunlight.

Bait your hook with enough wind
to cool the heat but not too much.

Bait your hook with your grandpa's
steady breath and the way he smiles at you.

But mostly, bait your hook with listening, with waiting,
with low waves bumping against the bank.

#ReadYourWorld with HERE WE GO: A Poetry Friday Power Book by Sylvia Vardell & Janet Wong

Hello and Happy Poetry Friday on this fabulous Friday the 13th! (Unlucky? I think NOT.) Be sure to visit Keri at Keri Recommends for Roundup. Also, shout-out to our baby boy Eric, who turns 17 today!
For the past several years, it has been my privilege to be a participating blogger in Multicultural Children’s Book Day,now it its fourth year!

This year the celebration will be all over the blogosphere January 27. You will find my review below of HERE WE GO, a multicultural book provided by two of the most passionate and generous poetry people I know: Janet Wong and Sylvia Vardell of Pomelo Books. HERE WE GO is also  a Children's Book Council "Hot Off the Press” selection for January 2017. Woohoo! Win your own copy below! But first, some more information about this event!

Multicultural Children's Book Day was founded by Valarie Budayr from Jump Into A Book and Mia Wenjen from PragmaticMom . 
Our mission is to raise awareness on the ongoing need to include kid’s books that celebrate diversity in home and school bookshelves while also working diligently to get more of these types of books into the hands of young readers, parents and educators.
Despite census data that shows 37% of the US population consists of people of color, only 10% of children’s books published have diversity content. Using the Multicultural Children’s Book Day holiday, the MCBD Team are on a mission to change all of that. <br /><div align="CENTER" style="background: #ffffff; line-height: 0.24in; margin-bottom: 0.17in; margin-top: 0.03in;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: red;"><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><b>Free Diversity Book Lists and Activities for Teachers and Parents: </b></span></span><span style="color: #17365d;"><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><b>http://bit.ly/1sZ5s8i</b></s... align="CENTER" style="background: #ffffff; line-height: 0.24in; margin-bottom: 0.17in; margin-top: 0.03in;"><span style="color: #17365d; font-family: inherit;"><b>------------------------------</b></span></div><div style="background: rgb(255, 255, 255); line-height: 0.24in; margin-bottom: 0.17in; margin-top: 0.03in; text-align: left;"><span style="color: #17365d; font-family: inherit;"><b>And now.... a look at <a href="https://www.amazon.com/HERE-WE-GO-Poe... WE GO: A Poetry Friday Power Book by Sylvia Vardell and Janet Wong</a>.</b></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-mof7HoBxw4..." imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-mof7HoBxw4..." width="262" /></span></a></div>Don't you love all those diverse faces on the cover?! And that's just the beginning... the art continues throughout the interior as well. It's perfect for the book!<br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-iZjQyyLj6w..." imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-iZjQyyLj6w..." width="128" /></span></a></div><br />Like its predecessor <a href="https://www.amazon.com/You-Just-Wait-... JUST WAIT</a>, this is an interactive poetry book that includes a bunch of original poems by Janet Wong as well as a selection of "anchor" poems, many of which appear in previous books in the Poetry Friday Anthology series.<br /><br />Anchor poems in HERE YOU GO are courtesy of some Poetry Friday friends, and other wonderful poets, including (in order of appearance) <a href="https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poem... Shihab Nye</a>, <a href="http://davidbowles.us/poetry/"&g... Bowles</a>, <a href="https://cbweatherford.com/">C... Boston Weatherford</a>, <a href="http://katecoombs.com/">Kate Coombs</a>, <a href="https://reflectionsontheteche.wordpre... Simon</a>, <a href="http://www.eileenspinelli.com/heart_0... Spinelli</a>, <a href="http://www.ibtisambarakat.com/"&... Barakat</a>, <a href="https://michellehbarnes.blogspot.com/... Heidenrich Barnes</a>, <a href="http://josephbruchac.com/">Jo... Bruchac</a>, <a href="http://nowaterriver.com/">Renee M. LaTulippe</a>, <a href="http://www.davidlharrison.com/"&... L. Harrison</a> and <a href="http://www.robynhoodblack.com/"&... Hood Black</a>.<br /><br /><div style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; line-height: 0.24in; margin-bottom: 0.17in; margin-top: 0.03in; text-align: left;"><span style="color: #17365d; font-family: inherit;">HERE WE GO focuses on activism and how we can change our world. Readers meet four characters: David, Ameera, Jack and Jenna -- who are struggling with some timely issues, like being an immigrant; practicing a minority religion (Muslim); identity; what makes a family; what can we DO to make our world better? Each PowerPack provides a complete lesson -- a way into the material, poems to share, and an invitation to create one's own poem. The book is also a writing notebook, with space for young writers to include their responses.</span><br /><div style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #17365d; font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div><div style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #17365d; font-family: inherit;">And now, here's Janet Wong to answer a few questions for us!</span></div><div style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #17365d; font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div><div style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #17365d; font-family: inherit;"><b>IL: Welcome Janet! How did this book come to be?</b></span></div><div style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #17365d; font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div><span style="background-color: white; font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #17365d;"><b>JW:</b> </span></span>When Sylvia and I met together at NCTE in mid-November, we were despondent over the election. As bad as we felt, though, we knew that there were vulnerable children who felt even worse—and we wanted to create a book that would offer comfort and inspiration to them. We hope that HERE WE GO accomplishes this. We decided not to make explicit references to the election and instead to focus broadly on empathy, unity, and social change (in this case, fighting hunger). </div><div style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; line-height: 0.24in; margin-bottom: 0.17in; margin-top: 0.03in; text-align: left;"><div style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #17365d; font-family: inherit;"><b>IL: Wow, that's a book with a BIG idea! Did you encounter any difficulties or challenges?</b></span></div><div style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #17365d; font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div><span style="background-color: white; color: #17365d; font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #222222;"><b>JW: </b></span></span>For me, a big challenge—but something that I wanted to do—was to put a “Trump supporter” in there. Jack’s dad never is described as a Trump supporter, but—pssst! you heard it here!—he is! I wanted to do this because I believe that Trump supporters were lumped together and dismissed as being all the same—and they’re not. We all have a friend, acquaintance, or family member who voted differently than we did; now is the time to get over it. In order for this country to move forward, I think we need to stop labeling each other as much as we do, and simply to come together as people. That’s what I’d like kids to take away from this book perhaps more than anything. Part of getting over it might require stepping into that person’s shoes or, as Naomi Shihab Nye describes in her poem “Blue Bucket” (the opening poem of the book, found below -- keep reading!), to carry "someone else’s bucket a while.”<br /><div style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #17365d; font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #222222;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #17365d; font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #222222;"><b>IL: What are your hopes for the book?</b></span></span></div><div style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #17365d; font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #222222;"><br /></span></span></div><span style="background-color: white; font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #17365d; font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="color: #222222;"><b>JW:</b> </span></span></span>That HERE WE GO will find its way into the hands of 3rd graders who have been confused or fearful since the election and that it will give them comfort and security to read about kids like themselves: Muslim kids like Ameera, grandkids of immigrants like David, young feminists like Jenna. I also hope that teachers will read this book aloud to classrooms that include kids from conservative families; and when they hear this book, they might start to understand that what they're hearing at home isn’t the only way of thinking. And if my poem “Fake News” gets us ALL thinking more critically, what a much better place this will be!<br /><div style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #222222;"><b><span style="font-family: inherit;">Thank you, Janet! I think many of us have these same hopes for our children. Congratulations on the new book... <i>and now let's take a peek inside!</i></span></b></span></div><div style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #17365d; font-family: inherit;">The PowerPack I'd like to share with all of you today is the one that begins the book.</span></div></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-6ADIkS9IXr..." imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="308" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-6ADIkS9IXr..." width="400" /></span></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">This spread introduces the pack!</span></td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-family: inherit;"> THEN we get this wonderfully thoughtful page to help open us up to find our poems... (including my answers to the "easy" ones. ;)</span><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-1VVvYneB3N..." imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="308" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-1VVvYneB3N..." width="400" /></span></a></div><span style="font-family: inherit;"> <b>JUST IMAGINE</b></span><br /><span style="font-family: inherit;">Imagine if the world were a little different or you were a little different. What would that be like? Choose one of the following questions and draw or doodle your response on the opposite page.</span><br /><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: inherit;">1. If you lived in a country at war, what would your life be like?</span><br /><i><span style="font-family: inherit;">(my answer: I just wrote a whole middle grade novel about this! And I've also just written a series of poems set in Aleppo... bombs, dust, dead bodies, blood, missing parents, demolished buildings, trash everywhere, no bread, powdered milk, no electricity... it's pretty horrifying, and my heart breaks for those actually living it.)</span></i><br /><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: inherit;">2. If you could change one thing about yourself, what would that be?</span><br /><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: inherit;">3. If you could stay home and play all day, what would you choose to do?</span><br /><i><span style="font-family: inherit;">(my answer: read! quilt! write poems! play cello! take a walk! cook - and EAT- good food!)</span></i><br /><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: inherit;">4. If you were the leader of your country, what one thing would you like to change?</span><br /><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: inherit;">5. If you didn't have a home, what would your life be like?</span><br /><i><span style="font-family: inherit;">(my answer: there are quite a few books out lately about refugees. See <a href="http://irenelatham.blogspot.com/2016/... post</a>.)</span></i><br /><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: inherit;">6. If you could change one thing about your family, what would that be?</span><br /><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: inherit;">7. If the whole world were listening, what would you like to say?</span><br /><i><span style="font-family: inherit;">(my answer: Thank you. I love you. Forgive me. I forgive you.)</span></i><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-1J4JaBrQ7z..." imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="308" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-1J4JaBrQ7z..." width="400" /></span></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-family: inherit;">from BLUE BUCKET</span></b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">by Naomi Shihab Nye</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">What if, instead of war,</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">we shared our buckets</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">of wind and worry?</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Tell me the story </span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">you carry there,</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">steeping in old pain</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">and future hope,</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">rich with fragrant</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">savory spices,</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">ginger, turmeric,</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">tarragon, find me</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">a spoon in one</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">of your pockets,</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">even if we don't</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"> speak the same language...</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">maybe</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"> you hold my bucket</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">a while, see what</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">the handle feels like,</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">and I hold yours,</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">and maybe both buckets</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">are empty and</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">we trade them forever...</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">-----------------</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Isn't that lovely? And here is the RESPONSE POEM:</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-family: inherit;">JENNA</span></b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-family: inherit;">IN OUR WRITING JOURNAL</span></b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">In our writing journal this week</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">we are supposed to ask,</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">What if?</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">It can be something silly, like</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-family: inherit;">What if</span></i></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><i>I could stay home and play all day</i>?</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Or something serious, like</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-family: inherit;">What if </span></i></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><i>I didn't even have a home</i>?</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Most kids are choosing a fun subject</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">and funny answers,</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">but I feel like taking a chance</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">and asking a hard question</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">even if I might not like my answer,</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">even if I might not have any answer at all.</span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-family: inherit;">- Janet Wong</span></i></div><div data-canvas-width="268.86972121212125" style="background-color: white; color: transparent; cursor: text; left: 257.778px; margin: 0px; opacity: 0.5; padding: 0px; position: absolute; top: 369.269px; transform-origin: 0% 0% 0px; transform: scaleX(0.656629); white-space: pre;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div><div data-canvas-width="198.4570181818182" style="background-color: white; color: transparent; cursor: text; left: 257.778px; margin: 0px; opacity: 0.5; padding: 0px; position: absolute; top: 566.117px; transform-origin: 0% 0% 0px; transform: scaleX(0.701402); white-space: pre;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div><div data-canvas-width="203.89284848484849" style="background-color: white; color: transparent; cursor: text; left: 257.778px; margin: 0px; opacity: 0.5; padding: 0px; position: absolute; top: 598.926px; transform-origin: 0% 0% 0px; transform: scaleX(0.712967); white-space: pre;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div><div data-canvas-width="334.10812121212115" style="background-color: white; color: transparent; cursor: text; left: 257.778px; margin: 0px; opacity: 0.5; padding: 0px; position: absolute; top: 828.582px; transform-origin: 0% 0% 0px; transform: scaleX(0.617802); white-space: pre;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-8zvwUDB7QN..." imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="307" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-8zvwUDB7QN..." width="400" /></span></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-family: inherit;"> Ameera</span></b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-family: inherit;">WHAT IF</span></b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">What if -</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">instead of</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">this country and that country,</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">this state and that state,</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">these people and those people,</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">it was just</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">us here and us there?</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">What if?</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-family: inherit;">- Janet Wong</span></i></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div style="background: rgb(255, 255, 255); line-height: 0.24in; margin-bottom: 0.17in; margin-top: 0.03in; text-align: left;"><span style="color: #17365d; font-family: inherit;">----------</span></div><div style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; line-height: 0.24in; margin-bottom: 0.17in; margin-top: 0.03in;">I really love how accessible and timely this book is! I also love how it invites questions and doesn't demand answers. This is what it means to be a poet... to be open to the world, to play with words and to live in the questions. I hope you will include it in your reading and writing practice... also, toward the end of the book there are some great ideas for practical ways kids can start changing the world TODAY. <br /><div style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: #17365d; font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span></span></div><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="background-color: white; float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ZC7qqrCfLv..." imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ZC7qqrCfLv..." width="320" /></span></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: small;">Maggie</span></td></tr></tbody></table><div style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: red; font-family: inherit;">If you would like to win a copy of this book, Pomelo Books has generously donated FIVE copies to giveaway! Simply leave a comment by 11:59 pm Tuesday, January 31, 2017 <i>answering one of the above JUST IMAGINE questions</i>, and our cat Maggie will select the winners!</span></div></div><div style="background: rgb(255, 255, 255); line-height: 0.24in; margin-bottom: 0.17in; margin-top: 0.03in; text-align: left;"><span style="color: #17365d; font-family: inherit;">Happy day - go forth and #ReadYourWorld!</span></div></div>

Movie Monday: LA LA LAND

Last night while La La Land was winning a record 7 Golden Globes, we were sitting in the theater watching it.

Sunday night is not our usual date night, but this past weekend the city of Birmingham was incapacitated by snow and ice for about 48 hours, so... we missed Saturday night, and let me tell you, I was going CRAZY! I was so, so happy to get out of the house.

And you know, I loved the movie. LOVED it. I really cannot think of a movie that has made me so happy -- and broken my heart -- as this one. It's magical and beautiful and inspiring. It about dreams and hope and always, always LOVE. And did I mention it's magical and beautiful? In some ways it's old-fashioned, and it reminded me of MARY POPPINS. Plus I want all Mia's (Emma Stone) dresses. :) That whole segment at the end -- which I won't spoil for those who haven't seen it yet -- is so very perfect (even though it broke my heart). And the music! Great lyrics and melodies, throw in some jazz, and WOW. I can't think of a single thing I'd change about this movie. I can't wait to see it again. DON'T MISS.