It has been a bit since I've posted an MGM, mostly because I was in the land of picture books for the last year or so, but now that I am prepping to head back up to Grade 3/4 I'm really excited to get back to reading some MGs!
Happy #middlegrademonday! It has been a bit since I've posted an MGM, mostly because I was in the land of picture books for the last year or so, but now that I am prepping to head back up to Grade 3/4 I'm really excited to get back to reading some MGs!
Find Her by Ginger Reno is an upper Middle Grade/Middle Years book about #MMIWG2S. Set in a small Oklahoma town and focusing on Cherokee culture, language and of course, a missing woman. 12 year old Wren lives with her father, and her maternal grandmother, all three of whom are grieving the loss of Wren's mother Raven, who disappeared years ago. Wren's father is White and Chief of Police in their town, she learns all about police investigations and crime just from visiting him at work. Her Grandmother, (known as Elisi, the Cherokee word for Grandmother) takes care of Wren when her Dad is on call or away on police business, she also teaches her the Cherokee language and many cultural traditions such as burning cedar and finding healing medicines in nature, as well as important lessons about racism towards their people, both throughout history and in present day. Wren's love of animals, her understanding of belonging to the Wolf Clan (protectors), and her natural investigation talents lead her on a mission to get to the bottom of a series of animal cruelty reports in her town. But can she solve the case without getting herself in danger?
This book covers such a range of important topics and does it in a way that is appropriate for a middle grade audience, a very difficult feat in my opinion! While MMIWG is mentioned throughout, the details are limited to Wren missing her mother and some mention of "remains" which do not belong to Wren's Mother (sorry if that's a spoiler but I felt it was important as if her remains were found it might be a different impact). As far as protests etc. the red paint on the face is mentioned (and featured on the cover) but the characters wear red bracelets. Some of the many other themes covered include: cultural appropriation, bullying, animal abuse, domestic violence (child abuse), racism, true friendship and grief. All of this is handled in a very careful and well thought-out way that is sensitive and generally appropriate for this grade group, especially if this were being used as a read aloud or shared reading experience.
To be sure, I reviewed the guidelines that separate YAs and MGs, and do feel that this book fits in the MG category, though it is definitely one that would be for older middle grade readers. There is no sexual content or romance. There is minimal swearing (mainly crap and badass), and a little bit of violence when an older teenager is trying to hurt someone and a main character hits him with a shovel in self-defence, there is mention of blood, but everyone is marked as safe within the next chapter. All that said, there is definitely content that could be triggering, particularly to more sensitive children, especially related to animals, or those who have experienced trauma, specifically child abuse. There is mention of a main character being abused by a parent, but the focus is mainly on seeing scars and encouraging the child to get help from another safe adult. Penguin suggests this book for ages 10+, and I think I would agree with that. I think it would be a great read aloud in Grades 5-10 but would recommend it for independent reading at grade 7 and up.
As for my thoughts around this as a class read aloud, I think some exposure to the topic of Murdered and Missing Indigenous Women may be beneficial prior to starting the story, though it is not necessary as long as the reader can discuss it with an adult as questions arise. There is also a bit of discussion around how lighter skinned people going missing is seen as more of a concern, which I think is an important piece to this topic, but may need a bit of pre-teaching and discussion as it is not something I think many young people would already have been exposed to. Despite being set in Oklahoma, I would definitely read this in Canada. I might spend some time teaching about local Indigenous groups so that students understand that Cherokee people have their own unique culture.
When we hear the word murder, it can often make us think this is mature, adult-only content, but kids hear the news or watch scary movies and play violent video games, and being exposed to this topic in a safe and appropriate way is so important. Additionally, there is a reason there is a G in MMIWG, girls go missing all the time. It's terrible to think about, but knowing about this content is essential for young people, especially Indigenous females. Careful conversations with trusted adults as well as media and literature content that is created specifically for this age group are essential. There need to be more books like this one written in this age group.
This book is highly engaging and young readers will be sucked in. Many themes will be relevant and easy for them to connect to (bullying, friendship), and other themes will give them a taste of more mature content while also causing them to think about what they are reading. I could see some inquiry or follow up projects coming from reading this book in a middle years classroom and think the students would be engaged.
I love the use of an animal shelter as a key setting in this story and love that it goes beyond just looking at cute puppies and hoping everyone finds a home. As a former Humane Educator, this is definitely something I would recommend (though my only misgiving is that the main character is 12 and should not be left alone with animals, especially those that have potentially been abused...) I also think the connections between animal abuse and abuse of children and women is something a good strategy to help readers understand concepts around abuse without being overly scary.
I would 1000% recommend this book. Thanks so much to Netgalley, and the publisher, Holiday House, for giving me the chance to read and review it. Find Her is being published in October.
Out of My Mind (Movie)
It would be difficult to tell who was more excited for the Out of My Mind movie to hit @disneyplus this week; me or my students, but I'm pretty sure it was me. #outofmymind is my all-time favourite middle grade novel and is something that has transformed my teaching, and my perspective in so many areas. As soon as the credits rolled I texted my colleagues and said "I'm so glad they made this movie".
Movies are rarely as good as the book, and this one was no exception. There were moments I was annoyed by, things they changed that I didn't think needed to be, and things that were missing, but overall it is extremely well done, the messages are the same and it is a movie everyone, young and old, need to watch. In honour of Melody and her love of lists; here are a few:
What I loved:
Casting of @phoeberaetaylorx as Melody and @thisiscourtneytaylor as Catherine, even though neither looked like I pictured in the book at all.
That Melody's style and tween feelings were well represented (ex. liking certain shoes, wanting to wear makeup).
When Melody put Dimmings in his place and told him to wait for her to finish typing. Partly because it was so fantastic and also because it was realistic that she needed time to type, something that isn't always as easy to show in a book.
The Whiz Kids and inclusion classes were pretty accurate to the book.
The Doctor/assessment scene still happened.
Melody's narration, especially before the medi-talker.
What they changed that I didn't mind:
Penny's age
Catherine's job and personality - it was weird at first but I came around to it
That Melody and Rose hang out more outside of school
That Dimmings didn't give her a spot on the team from the start
The Jennifer Aniston's voice thing
That the medi-talker did less things like play music
What they changed that bothered me:
Mrs. V!!!!! Her personality, connection to the family and role in the movie was entirely different than in the book and not something I agreed with.
Diane (Mom)'s seemingly limited role in Melody's life earlier on in the movie, as well as her reluctance for things that she would have fought for in the book
That it seemed like the plane issue was because Melody was late
That they didn't showcase some of the inaccessibility of things like restaurants
That she had a proper core board rather than just the cards on her wheelchair (not because I don't want her to, but because she struggled significantly more in the book, and I think that part should be shown)
More kissing/crush type stuff - it wasn't in the original book, but more so in the other books in the series, but selfishly as a Grade 3 teacher wanting to share this with my students, it might be too mature for them :(
Crucial (to me) parts that were missing:
The horrendous teaching in Room H5
The relationship with Mrs. V
The Aquarium scenes (they had a science museum which is fine, but it didn't land the same)
Talk of sending her to an institution or completely segregated school
Showcasing how different the kids in H5 are and how in that sense it isn't the right place for Melody to learn and grow (maybe slightly included but not enough).
Melody's love of words and photographic memory
What I wished they changed
The minimal swearing - it isn't needed and makes it PG, making it less accessible for teachers.
Overall I loved the movie. I think that it tells an important story and makes it more accessible and available. The movie is well cast, interesting and funny, and brings Melody's story to life. I think this movie provides an opportunity for kids who have disabilities to see themselves represented on the screen and also helps bring accessibility- and inclusion-awareness to wide audiences.
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