The Underground Railroad by Colson Whitehead

Cora was born into slavery on a plantation in Georgia.  Life is difficult, but things aren't any easier when Cora's mother Mabel escapes the yoke of slavery and leaves her young daughter behind.  Cora must endure backbreaking work in the field and the cruelty of the overseer.  She must listen to the overseer touting Bible verses suggesting that slavery is biblical because it is in the Good Book.  She must try to escape the notice of men, but once she comes of age, that becomes an impossibility.  The plantation owner has noticed her, and grabs her breast while the slaves are lined up for inspection.  She is already marked as a slave, but now she is marked as a woman who will be visited nightly by the owner of the plantation.  She knows she has no choice in the matter unless she tries to escape.  

Caesar, who is another slave on the plantation, had approached Cora with the idea of escape a few weeks before.  Her own mother had been successful, and the slave catchers had never found her, so maybe the same luck would be with Cora.  Cora knew the risks of capture - a long, slow tortuous death.  Cora also knows that death is better than being raped repeated by the cruel owner, Randall.  

Caesar and Cora make their bid to freedom via the Underground Railroad.  The Railroad was not known to be as far south as Georgia, but there were those individuals who risked their lives to fight for those who were enslaved.  Thus begins the story of Cora and those she meets along her journey to freedom.  

This book was difficult for me to read.  I saw so many parallels between that time period and today.  
One of the things that has most saddened me after the events of the last year is the deep-seeded racism that pervades our society.  I had no idea that so many people had so much hatred in their hearts toward other human beings. “The whites came to this land for a fresh start and to escape the tyranny of their masters, just as the freemen had fled theirs. But the ideals they held up for themselves, they denied others"(Whitehead).  

Until recently, history books never told the entire story.  I never knew about the Japanese internment until I met someone whose family was interned in Washington state WHILE he was working as an interpreter to fight against our enemy at the time.  Did our history books tell us how we gained land in the west?  Or how we built most of the railroads, the nation's Capitol building, and even the White House?  The United States has a tarnished history in its greatness.  
     “And America, too, is a delusion, the grandest one of all. The white race believes--believes with all its heart--that it is their right to take the land. To kill Indians. Make war. Enslave their brothers. This nation shouldn't exist, if there is any justice in the world, for its foundations are murder, theft, and cruelty. Yet here we are" (Whitehead).

And here we are indeed.  How can we as a nation move toward unity, civility, and a love for each other?  We won't get there by continuing to harbor racism in our hearts.  We won't get there if we believe that we must hate those who are different.  We certainly will not get there if we continue to excuse behaviors that are clearly racist in nature.  It is our responsibility to start our own underground railroad and help those who feel enslaved by a toxic cultural attitude.  

This book will force you to see what most history books didn't tell you.  Many people gave their lives so that others would have freedom. There are still those who fight for equal rights and racial equality. Those people represent the essence of our Constitution.  Our country is known as "the land of the free."  We all have the responsibility to make sure it remains so.  

The Readers of Broken Wheel Recommend by Katarina Bivald

Sara is a book lover.  Sometimes she can read for many, many hours and never have any idea what is going on in the world around her.  Sara works in a bookstore in Sweden, and she has a pen pal friendship with Amy, who lives in Broken Wheel, Iowa.  The two exchange letters and books for over two years until Amy convinces Sara to make the trip to Iowa to meet her and the residents of Broken Wheel.

Sara makes the long trip across the pond for a holiday.  Yet, Sara knows that something odd is going on when Amy doesn't arrive to pick her up from Hope, Iowa where she and Amy agreed to meet.  Sara makes her way to Broken Wheel only to discover that Amy has passed away the week before Sara arrived.  Sara's visa is set, and her departure date is October 31- several months away.  What should she do?

She decides to stay for a time and get to know the town that Amy described in her letters. She meets the people Amy loved, and she meets the man that Amy wanted to marry but couldn't because of the color of his skin.  Sara knew about John because Amy had written about him in her letters.  The following is an excerpt from one of Amy's letters.

"It’s funny, the way we talk about terrorism nowadays as though only Muslims and Arabs threaten our society. I’m afraid my understanding of terrorism was shaped long before September 11. It was the fear, the arbitrariness, the violence that affected people indiscriminately—even those who said they didn’t want to get involved or had no intention of fighting against segregation. For me, terrorism is still the image of white men, people active in society, standing over the charcoaled, lynched body of a black man and looking pleased with their work."  

When I read those words, I had chills. Bivard's words hit me to the core.  Our history is not pretty, and we have to make sure we are intolerant of this mindset. We are seeing an increase of hate crimes and many are complacent.  Our country is better than this, and we must stand up and speak out for those who cannot.  We must!

As Sara becomes more comfortable in her surroundings, she gains self-confidence and purpose while visiting Iowa.  She sees beauty where others might see a tired old town surrounded by corn.  She steps out of her comfort zone and decides to change her life.

"It was funny, she thought, how often we stuck to the safe path in life, pulling on blinders and keeping our eyes to the ground, doing our best not to look at the fantastic view. Without seeing the heights we had reached, the opportunities actually awaiting us out there; without realizing we should just jump and fly, at least for a moment."

The town realizes that they need Sara as much as Sara needs them.  They realize they are a community, and they need to take care of each other.  This is a lesson for all of us from a very gifted Swedish writer.  One more thing:  Sara says there is a book for everyone - and there is.  Look for it.  Find it.  Love it.  Let it change your life.

Behind Closed Doors by B.A. Paris

What if you met the man of your dreams one day in a park?  He is attractive, successful, and best of all, he loves your sister and understands her special needs.  But how well do you know him?

Grace and Jack seem to be the perfect couple.  They live in a beautiful home, entertain their friends, and travel to Thailand often on holiday.  However, what is life really like inside those four walls?  Why are their bars on the windows?  How is it that Grace can remain so slim?

 What do we really know about our friends and acquaintances and the life they lead in the privacy of their own homes?  Are they happy, or are they the victims of emotional, physical, or verbal abuse?

This books brings an important topic to the forefront.  How many of our sisters and brothers are subject to abuse?  Was it so subtle at first that they didn't realize what was happening, and suddenly they were in too deep to get out?  Was their boyfriend or girlfriend so concerned about them that they checked on their location several times a day?  Was that "concern" really controlling behavior and an effort to physically and mentally manage them?

I have seen several instances of abuse throughout my life.  I have suspected at least one of my friends was the victim of physical abuse.  When I tried to broach the subject, she retreated, I believe, because she was fearful of the outcome if she spoke out against her husband.

I have known several women who have been the victim of emotional and verbal abuse.  They are made to believe that if they had only done a better job of being a wife, or had made a better effort at making their husband happy, then they wouldn't deserve the punishment they received.

Abuse is insidious, and Grace was the victim.  If you too are a victim, there is help available.  Get out of the relationship and get the help you need.  Be aware of the signs that signal a potentially abusive relationship.

If you suspect that someone is a victim of abuse, reach out.  Yes, my friend did retreat from me because she knew that what I suspected was true, but she eventually found the strength to leave her husband.  It wasn't easy, and she and her children struggled for several years, but she did get back on her feet. She did find the strength to stay away from him and create a new life for her and her children.

There are people and agencies who care and will help.

Technology: Learning Distraction or Learning Aid?

A lot of things have changed since I entered the education field over thirty years ago.  When a new educational thought or process was introduced, I often heard some of the older teachers make this comment: "If we ignore this, it will go away in a year or so, then there will be some other new thing that takes its place."  I had to admit that this was often the case.  We would have a change of administration, and the focus would be on something else, and away we would go on a new journey.

Enter technology and the computer age...no longer can educators say that this will end of going away. Technology will not be going anywhere anytime soon. Technology is here to stay.  There are those holdouts who refuse to use technology in their classrooms, but these teachers are not the norm, thankfully.

Students are growing up with access to many devices, and they are comfortable using this technology.  How can teachers use this knowledge to enhance learning while monitoring the time spent doing everything BUT their assignments and meaningful work?

First of all, and most importantly, teachers cannot sit at their desks and lecture from their chairs.  Teachers need to be actively moving about the room and seeing what their students are doing.  If teachers are aware of the activities going on in the room, then students are more likely to stay on task with their assignments.

Students need to feel that the work assigned is meaningful - at least somewhat.  I say "at least somewhat" because we all know that students do not always see the long term benefit of practicing their vocabulary or knowing their chemistry elements.  However, if the teacher makes it clear that the work done in his or her class is important and meaningful, then students will be more apt to take an interest in their work.  If the teacher doesn't care, the students won't care either.

Finally, I think it is very important to listen to what the students have to say.  There are moments of true genius when a student might give me an idea of how better to teach my class.  With that feedback, I can create more meaningful assignments so we can all can benefit.  When students have a buy in, they also take ownership and responsibility in the class.  They often police each other, issues are stopped before they escalate into more than something small.

Yes, technology can be a distraction.  I have to focus on writing my blog rather than checking out the latest tweets.  It takes discipline, and that is something that requires some maturity as well.  If we set the example early, we make it easier for our students as they navigate the world beyond high school.

The Lost Girls by Heather Young

Justine loves Patrick, at least she thinks she does.  He calls her every day, at least several times a day.

He makes her feel like she is needed, and he plans fun outings for her girls. But there is something smothering about Patrick as well. Justine gets a phone call from a lawyer who is managing her aunt's estate in Minnesota, and Justine finds out that she is the sole heir of her aunt's estate.  

She met her Aunt Lucy when she was a small child, but she remembers the house and the lake where her aunt lived.  She has happy memories of the place, and that is enough incentive to uproot her girls and make the move to Minnesota.  She leaves Patrick a note telling him that his dinner is thawing in the fridge, and takes off from San Diego to travel to the Midwest.  

She remembers parts of the visit from her childhood, and one of the things she remembers is that her aunt and her aunt's sister (her grandmother) had a sister, Emily, who disappeared on the last day of summer many, many years before.  Emily vanished into the woods, and she was never seen or heard from again.  The family never left their summer home in case Emily returned.  

Justine enters a house full of secrets and finds that there is much she doesn't know about her aunt, her grandmother, her mother, and the neighbors. She has a limited income, and has no idea how to live in such a frigid environment.  Her children are trying to settle into a new school, and Justine is just trying to survive.  

Family secrets, love, forgiveness, and the complexities of different personalities are interwoven throughout the book.  What are the secrets that the house holds?  What does Lucy know that she shared in her journal? 

 I loved this book.  It was difficult to put down.  I will definitely read more from this author.  

The Couple Next Door by Shari Lapena

I certainly didn't see that coming!
I have mentioned before that I love a good mystery.  One thing that I dislike about some mysteries is knowing the outcome of the "whodunnit" before I have read half the book.  Not so with this book!  There are so many twists and turns that I had no idea who the culprit might be.

Anne and Marco are at a dinner party with their next door neighbors and friends, Cynthia and Graham.  Cynthia doesn't like children, so Anne and Marco have to hire a babysitter to care for Cora, their six month old daughter while the couples have dinner together.

At the last moment, the babysitter cannot work that evening, so the couple has to make a difficult decision.  They know that Cynthia doesn't like children, so they decide to leave the baby in their home alone.  Since the dinner party is right next door, and their home is a duplex, they know that they can check on their daughter often.

Anne and Marco decide to check on Cora every half hour while they are attending the dinner party.  They will take turns, and they will time it so Anne can nurse Cora when she needs. The couple checks on the baby every half hour. Both Anne and Marco have been drinking quite a lot, and realize their judgement has been affected.  It's getting late, and Anne wants to go home.  Marco is happy hanging out with the neighbors. Anne knows that Cora hasn't been checked since 12:30 and it is now going on 1:30.  Marco senses that she needs to go home, so the couple says their goodbyes and walks next door to their home.

Suddenly Anne realizes that the front door is open.  She knows she shut it when she checked Cora at midnight.  Marco checked Cora at 12:30, but she maintains that he used the back door as an entrance and exit.  The couple rushes upstairs and find that their daughter is not in her crib, nor is she anywhere in their home.  She has disappeared.

The police are called, and thus starts the twists and turns of a very complicated case.  This book will suck you in and not let you go.  I really had several suspects - and the ending!  Wow!

The Selection by Kiera Cass

America Singer lives in a time of Caste systems.  She is a Five, so she can work for a living as a musician to bring food to the family.  Nevertheless, there is never enough.  Her boyfriend, Aspen, is a Six, so he is a servant to all others.  She knows that they can never have the permission of her family to be together, and if they choose to be together, America will be a Six the rest of her life.  She is, however, in love and willing to do what she needs to do with stay with Aspen.

Then the Selection happens....women all over the country are asked to come to the office, turn in paperwork, and have their picture taken so the Prince and his family can choose his bride.  He will choose 35 women as part of the selection, and one of those women will rule with him as queen.

America never dreams that she will be chosen, but she is, and she and 34 other women are flown to the capital to compete in the Selection contest.  Aspen tells America to go through the process because she is compensated handsomely for her time, and her family desperately needs the money.  She leaves for the contest feeling betrayed and angry.

It never occurs to America that she might actually like Maxon, the crown prince.  America also finds out there is much, much more to being royalty than she ever expected.  This is book #1 in the Selection series.  Bachelorettes, get ready to compete for your prince!