Enjoy a literary smorgasbord of history as we march into the hottest and most festive weekends of American culture. Happy Fourth of July! May your hot-dog buns runneth over, your fireworks be bright and your reading, as always, be plentiful. How blessed we are to live in the land of the free!
HOT DIGGITY DOG: The History of the Hot Dog. By Adrienne Sylver. Dutton Juvenile. Ages 4 to 8. $16.99.
Who knew that sausage dates to the Roman Empire? In 1987, Frankfurt, Germany celebrated the 500th anniversary of serving hot dogs in that city. The modern hot dog's recipe was created sometime in the 15th century, somewhere in Germany or Austria. America discovered hot dogs when immigrants brought the sausages over in the 1860s. Now, hot dogs are an American favorite. More hot dogs are eaten in July than any other month, so it makes sense for July to be National Hot Dog Month! Filled with interesting facts about hot dogs (the hot-dog bun originated in America), Hot Diggity Dog is the perfect book about America's favorite Independence Day food.
WOODS RUNNER. By Gary Paulsen. Random House. Ages 11 and up. 164 pages. $15.99.
Samuel, a 13-year-old Pennsylvania colonist, has lived on the frontier with his parents for most of his life. But one fateful day while Samuel hunts in the woods, his world is turned inside-out. Smoke fills the sky above Samuel's small community. He rushes home to find cabins burned to the ground, with their residents brutally killed.
Samuel's parents are nowhere to be found, so he follows the invaders' tracks. He finds himself in the middle of the Revolutionary War and befriends several men and women who secretly help patriots. They help Samuel search for his parents.
The realistic violence of war is suitable for a middle-school and older audience. Gary Paulsen's incredible writing creates a great historical-fiction read for boys.
Stocked full of facts before each chapter, this book should be on the shelves of history classes.
DANIEL AT THE SIEGE OF BOSTON, 1776 (Boys of Wartime). By Laurie Calkhoven. Penguin. Ages 12 and up. 194 pages. $16.99.
This excellent series presents normal, everyday boys in historic situations. Daniel Prescott helps his parents run their Boston tavern as the British Redcoats make it their headquarters. Daniel's family, however, staunchly believe in the Sons of Liberty cause. They become spies, dangerously transmitting information to the Patriots. Daniel's exciting and nerve-racking role in the Revolutionary War makes for breathless, page-turning reading -- exactly the type to keep reluctant readers ready for more.
Also read the graphic novel THE SONS OF LIBERTY. By Alexander Lagos and Joseph Lagos. Random House. Ages 10 and up. 176 pages. $12.99.
TELL US WE'RE HOME. By Marina Budhos. Simon & Schuster. Ages 12 and up. 297 pages. $16.99.
Not everyone is born celebrating the Fourth of July, and immigration is an important aspect of the holiday. Moms and grandmothers, if you read The Help by Kathryn Stockett, you will appreciate that this book is along the same lines for contemporary adolescent girls. In this story that focuses on three first-generation immigrant eighth-grade girls, readers will empathize with the struggles three families face trying to carve out a new life in the United States. Jaya is from the Caribbean, Maria from Mexico and Lola from Eastern Europe. Their mothers work as maids and nannies in an upper-crust New Jersey community.
Jaya, Maria and Lola attend school with the children their mothers clean up after and tend. They wear their classmates' hand-me-downs and stay home from expensive field trips. Yet, their families have chosen to live and work in the community because of the school system, to give their children a better chance of making it in the United States.
The girls' struggles and their mothers' challenges present jarring situations about perspective and compassion. We recommend this book, especially if you participate in a mother-daughter book club or any book-discussion group.
Monica Young and Hannah McRae Young can be reached at cyoung9@triad.rr.com. View book reviews at the Journal in Education site at www.jie.journalnow.com
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