Book Review: Patron Saints of Nothing

Book 27 of 2020

Patron Saints of Nothing. Written by Randy Ribay

This is just the second book that I have read this year from the Carnegie Medal Short

list.  Although I do have a couple of others sitting in my to be read pile. There is a tiny bit of irony as well that I finished this book late last night and today I see the winner was announced.

Anyway – I digress. This book offers a unique perspective of a filipino boy living in America, and as I imagine many immigrants do – struggling with his identity. This is then heightened by the death of his cousin.

I took a little bit to get into the book – but once I did it was absolutely fantastic!! There were two quotes that really really spoke to me. These were

“It’s a sad thing when you map the borders of a friendship and find it’s a narrower country than expected.”

This quote about friendship really rang true, but was also so overwhelmingly sad. How do you come back from that? How do you put effort into a new friendship, but also, from my observations in the clasroom I think that it is quite an accurate statement. I think that there are a lot teenage friendships who often do just that, they realise that the narrow aspects of the friendship leave quite a bit to be desired.

The second quote that really resonated with me was

“Loneliness and noise. The American Way”

This was quoted about dinner, the difference in the phillipines where they eat dinner as a family, versus in America where they eat dinner in front of the tv. I found this really was quite powerful, especially in terms of often the American way is the american dream which is a really positive aspect. However that is not the case with this statement. ANd those two words Loneliness and Noise – are so accurate, even of this teenage generation and the way they live with headphones while at the same time using their phones to isolate themselves from failure and fear and connections.

Overall this was an amazing book! Definitely worth a read. What I like about reading the shortlist is the introduction to texts that I would not normally pick up off the shelf.

Mrs K

Genre: Young Adult, Contemporary, Realistic fiction.

Review: The Poet X

The Poet X. Written by Elizabeth Acevedo.

So this was the last book that I needed to read from the Carnegie Shortlist. But I had been on the waiting list for it for what had felt like forever!! It was certainly the most popular book of all the ones that I had read, in terms of trying to secure from the public library.

I was pretty excited that it came through before I went away, and that after reading this I could make a decision about what I think will win.

So I was very surprised to find that I read this book in one day. I was hooked, and because it is written in poetry I was able to read it in the 5 minute breaks that I had during my parent teacher interviews last night. (Teacher life!!)  I then desperately needed to know what happened so read the last 80ish pages when I got home.

This book was phenomenal. It is about Xiomara, a teenage girl who feels like she does not belong, in her family, in her body etc. She has been lucky in a way that she is able to let her fists do the talking, and as such has never had real problems. However when she is invited to join the slam poetry club for the first time she finds a way to express herself through words.  For the first time, people don’t just look at her body but want to hear what she says.

This does not apply at home though, especially as she battles with religion, and how it fits in her life, when it does not seem the same as how it fits into her mums life. Then of course there is Twin, who is having problems of his own.

This book was really really amazing! It had so many great moments, so many so that I just started taking photos of my favourite quotes. The quotes summed up so many aspects of life as teenagers, or women.

“When I look around the church

and none of the depictions of angels

or Jesus or Mary, not one of the disciples

look like me: morenita and big and angry

 

When I’m told to have faith 

in the father       the son

in men                 and men are the first ones

 

to make me feel small.”

This was the first quote that I snapped a picture of – I love it so much! Which probably says more about my own catholic upbringing and problems with the church than anything else. However I love the way that this book is not afraid to explore those feelings, and to explore the notion of a daughter not believing like her mama.

The second page I took a photo of was the lines

“This world’s been waiting 

for your genius a long time”

In the nature of the book, it was a fantastic line, as the person who said it was an actual genius, but he was talking instead about his sister’s ability to write poetry, and how that was her genius. It was a beautiful display of sibling love. But beyond that – what a fabulous idea, that we all have some genius in us, that it manifests in a different way – and that the world is waiting for it. A bit like the last book I read, this nicely sums up why I teach – because ever student has potential, and every student has something that we are waiting to see.

Finally my third page that I will share (and there could be so many more!)

This page really made me happy – the metaphor of being lit up like a gas with words basically explains how this book made me feel, and why I love reading and writing so much.

I really cannot recommend this book enough. Particularly for those out there who struggle to fit in and belong, and don’t know how to talk to those that they love.

The conclusion also was able to look at the power of communication, and ultimately the importance of family.

Have a read – I would recommend this book for all my students from years 9-13 and beyond, I feel that everyone could take something away.

Mrs K

Genre: Poetry, Young Adult, Contemporary, Fiction

Review: My Brother’s Name is Jessica

My Brother’s Name is Jessica. Written by John Boyne.

WOW. Just Wow. This book was absolutely phenomenal.

I picked this book up because of who the author was. I thought I would read a few pages, and then maybe if I was lucky I would manage to read the rest o er the week. Instead, I totally put everything on hold so that I could finish reading it. Even being stuck in traffic I considered pulling over so I could just finish it!!

So let us start with one of my biggest problems with a lot of teenage LGBT+ books is that they seem to be set in a very unrealistic world. They are set in a world where they are accepted unconditionally, which is nice, bad sadly still not the case in the world. These stories often have maybe one person who does not accept them for who they are, and that is the key conflict of the story, this person being on the journey to acceptance. Like I said, this is a nice picture, but does not feel realistic to me.

So what I love about this book by John Boyne is that it is not like that at all! This is a book where the characters absolutely cannot accept or understand what is happening to Jason. The book is written from the point of view of Sam. Who for the bulk of the book is 13 years old. The book is also set among English politics, with the mother being a cabinet minister, which of course brings about its own level of scrutiny and expectations.  I did love the moments that also were able to show that this book was published in 2019 – such as the reference to a certain current president of the United States, which definitely made me laugh!

As well as a book about the courage of transgender youth this is also a book about motherhood, and families, and how at some point you realize that you must take responsibility for your children. But also the sacrifices that children are often prepared to make in order to support their parents.

The parents in this books are the villains from the start, from the number of au pairs that they try to employ to raise their kids, to the fact that they cannot stay in hospital with their children. But nothing is perhaps more shopping than some of their suggestions when Jason says

“But that’s just it, Sam. I don’t think i’m your brother at all. In fact, I’m pretty sure I’m your sister.”

The vulnerability showed by Jason in this moment is outstanding, and yet it is met with an almost wall of hostility.

We then continue mostly on Sam’s journey of acceptance and ultimately love for his sister.

In the afterward John Boyne’s says:

“The worst piece of advice anyone can give a writer is to write about what they know. Who wants to do something so limiting?

In all my books for younger readers, I’ve written about children who are isolated in some way, whether through the effects of war, grief or abandonment. As my books for adults have grown more personal in nature, so has my writing for young people, and i became interested in exploring how a child would deal with complicated issues of gender and sexuality, not when it’s a struggle that they’re facing, but when the struggle belongs to someone they love.”

I did not realize that John Boyne was gay but I suspect his understanding and isolation that he felt at times is what makes this book so powerful. The writing from Sam’s point of view makes it even more poignant. Listening to Sam listen to his sister cry herself to sleep is heartbreaking, as is Jason’s confessions to Sam about not knowing how things work. And the fact that the first person is totally accepting is the football coach.

THis book is amazing and powerful and I cannot recommend it enough. I would love to teach it to a class, but that also would depend on the class. But what a great launching pad for a discussion on diversity and empathy and acceptance. This is the sort of book we need to be using in our classrooms in order to show our youth that one should always be able to be themselves.

Mrs K

Genre: Young Adult fiction, realistic fiction, LGBT

Review: The Weight of a Thousand Feathers

The Weight of a Thousand Feathers. Written by Brian Conaghan.

This is the second book that I have read off the 2019 Carnegie Medal Longlist. The strange thing when you are reading from a list rather than choosing books for interest is that they have the ability to totally take you by surprise.

Once I had this book in my possession (borrowed from the local library) I still did not read the back of the book, merely launched myself into it.

So, with all of this in mind perhaps it is not surprising that I was absolutely totally blown away by this book.

The book started off simple enough, about a young man (17) who is looking after his brother an his mother who has MS. From the beginning I was drawn in, I liked the humor of the main character, and the nature of the story was interesting. I wanted to keep reading. However I was not sure exactly where it was going to go.

I read it quite quickly, over about four days. It was one of those books that I was able to enjoy when I picked it up, but it did not have a massive selling point which had me unable to put it down. However that all changed about half way through the story when the mother asks her son to do the unthinkable.

I essence, this is a book about euthanasia. What surprised me was that this is a book written for teenagers discussion a topic which is still not often discussed in any medium. While there are many other topics that were once taboo that are no longer, euthanasia is not one of them.

What I really liked about the book was the relationship between the brothers. The need to protect each other, and look out for each other. Also that each of them still worked on maintaining a relationship with the mother.

While I liked the inclusion of Pozitive as an outlet for the older brother, I felt that some of the relationship between Bobby and the friend was not needed. Especially since it was left with such a lack of conclusion.

I really liked the depth of these male characters. It is not often that we get the opportunity to see such strong and nurturing characters in adolescent fiction.

Oh my goodness! Just now – when loading the picture of the cover I saw that the feathers are actually the silhouettes of the people. That is so cool! I did think that the title was so apt, the idea that you are always happy to look after those you love, but the weight and burden of that is also difficult.

There was one quote that really stood out to me – stood out so much that I took a photo so I could remember. Bobby was talking about his mum and he said:

“I can imagine Mum flouncing around to these groups back in the day when she was a different person, rejoicing in an alternative universe: no kids, just herself, her friends, great songs and the thrill of youth; life’s blank canvas to splatter. Exactly the place where I’m at now I suppose.”

There are two things about this quote  – one is that him thinking about his mum in this way highlights how far from the ordinary Bobby’s life is. It highlights that with his responsibilities he will never be like this. It is both what his mum has taken away from him and what she wants to give him back. However I also love that idea of life as a blank canvas to splatter to decorate or change the way that you want. What a cool idea to think that as a teenager you have this blank canvas to do with what you want.

Overall I would recommend this book. It was a tear jerker, it certainly deals with a tricky subject, but it well worth the read. Especially if you are looking for a book that deals with male characters.

Mrs K

Genre: Contemporary, Adolescent Fiction, Slice of Life, Teenage fiction

Review: I Have Lost My Way.

I Have Lost My Way. Written By Gayle Forman

So it was a hot night in little old NZ last night and I could not sleep. So instead I read this whole book! It was cute! Really really cute! It kinda asked you to suspend some reality, as no one day in anyone’s life is actually that crazy, but other than that it dealt with some really good issues.

This book follows three characters who all for some reason feel like they have lost their way. Each of these characters is struggling with issues of their own. Then a chance meeting in a New York park changes their outlook and their day.

As I already said, you have to suspend belief a little bit, as it does not seem realistic to me. But that aside it is a lovely  book. The book is a mixture of the three characters who are together in New York dealing with the present. But you also get chapters which offered the background to the characters, which were so well written they just had you fall more in love with the characters.

I really liked the development of the characters, even over such a short period of time – they went from being hesitant and awkward, to realizing that for whatever reason they needed each other.

‘‘You gonna be okay,’’ she says.
‘‘How can you know that?’’ Harun asks.
“When a broken bone heals, it’s stronger than it was before the break,’’ she replies. “Same holds true for broken hearts.’’

The empathy that the characters showed in this book was really well written, they had

an understanding that is often not seen. I liked too that each of the main characters dealt with family issues as one of their main elements, and the relationship in there did not feel contrived at all. I could happily have continued to read about the lives of these characters, and never have I wanted a happy ending for the characters more.

This is the first book of Gayle Forman’s that I have read – but it definitely wont be the last!

Mrs K

Genre: Contemporary, Young Adult, Diversity, Slice of Life, LGBTQ, Adolescent fiction, fiction.