Mama’s Window by Lynn Rubright (Lee and Low, 2005) tells the story of “Sugar” Martin, a young black boy who lives with his uncle in a Mississippi Delta swamp.  For as long as Sugar can remember, his mother has worked to raise funds for a stained glass window for the Sweet Kingdom Church.  Some think her idea is foolish, but she insists that the window is important, that beauty is important. 

After his mother’s illness and death, Sugar clings to his mama’s dream.  When he discovers that the church has used the money to pay for bricks instead of a stained-glass window, he is broken-hearted.  Will mama’s dream ever be realized? 

St. Louis storyteller Lynn Rubright does a wonderful job recreating early 20th century life on the swamps of the Mississippi Delta.  Loosely based on the childhood of minister and civil rights activist Owen Whitfield, Rubright’s story was inspired by her research for a documentary on the Missouri sharecropper protest of 1939 (which was organized by Whitfield).  I met Lynn Rubright at a recent Missouri SCBWI conference, and found her warm, funny, and utterly charming.  Her novel also charms with a sweet tale of family, hope, courage, and generosity.

Special thanks to my son, co-writer of this blog entry.

Steampunk fiction is a sub-genre of sci-fi “set in an era or world where steam power is widely used” (wikipedia).  Think 19th century Victorian England with a fantasy/sci-fi twist.  Scott Westerfeld’s steampunk novel Leviathan  (Simon & Schuster, 2009) is set during the beginning of World War I, and follows many of the historical events of World War I.  A big part of what makes this novel so interesting is that it mirrors familiar events yet turns them on their head with imaginative techno-creativity. 

Young Prince Aleks, son of Archduke Ferdinand, must flee for his life after his parents are assassinated.   He makes his escape to Switzerland in a steam-powered “Stormwalker,” a vehicle similar to a Star War’s AT-ST:                   

Deryn, the female protagonist, lives in England, a “Darwinist Power” which uses genetically altered animals to double as weapons.  For example, they have genetically altered whales so they can be used as giant airships–hence the name Leviathan.  Deryn wants to join the Air Corps which is barred to females so he disguises herself as a boy, gets accepted, and proves to be a top notch flyer.  Deryn is soon entrusted with a secret mission, which grinds to a halt when the Leviathan is shot down in Switzerland.  Suddenly Deryn and Aleks’ fate rests on each others’ shoulders. Leviathan is a great book about trust and friendship in unlikely circumstances.

What if your family had no soap, milk, sugar or shoes?  Such is the case for Katje and her family in Boxes for Katje by Candace Fleming and illustrated by Stacey Dressen-McQueen (Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2003).  Set in Holland just after World War II, Katje and her little town of Olst are struggling to get by.  Katje is thrilled when one spring morning she gets a surprise package from America, “the land of plenty.”  The box contains a cake of soap, a pair of wool socks, a chocolate bar, and a letter:  “Dear Dutch Friend, I hope these gifts brighten your day.  Your American Friend, Rosie Johnson.” 

Katje is so excited to have these three treasures.  How long it has been since she’s had nice soap, warm feet, and any chocolate or sweets (that will make kids think).  Although Katje is tempted to keep the bounty for herself, she quickly decided to share.  Katje writes a thank you note to Rosie and soon they are pen pals.  Each note of Katje’s leads to another precious package from Rosie. 

When winter comes, it is “snow-deep and bitter cold, the worst winter anyone could remember.  The townspeople of Olst layered whatever clothing they had.  They huddled close to their small fires, ate sparingly from their almost empty cupboards, shivered, and prayed.”  How would they survive?

With the help of boxes for Katje.  Rosie and the townpeople of Mayfield, Indiana send boxes and boxes of supplies that help not just Katje and her family, but the entire town of Olst.   As thanks, the people of Olst, Holland send tulips bulbs to plant throughout Mayfield.

Boxes for Katje gives children a slice of history along with a beautiful story of friendship and sharing.  Rosie shares with Katje and Katje in turn shares with her family and friends.  The tulips that Olst sends as thanks give and give as they bloom each year. 

Boxes for Katje is also based on the true experiences of the author’s mother.  The afterword to the story explains that the winter of 1945 was “the worst winter of the century–plunging temperatures below zero, and in some places, piling up thirty feet of snow.”  Katje’s family and their plight tugged at the heartstrings of the people of Mayfield, Indiana and “grew into a churchwide effort to support Katje’s family through the hard winter.”

Like historical fiction?  Then try Chains by Laurie Halse Anderson (Simon & Schuster, 2008).  It looks at slavery from a different vantage point, that of the American Revolutionary War.

With their mother dead and their father sold long ago, thirteen year old Isabel and her younger sister Ruth are slaves at the mercy of their mistress in Rhode Island.  Although she promised to free the children after her death, their mistress’ greedy relative sells them to a cold, cruel family.  They arrive with their new masters, the Locktons of New York, just prior to the city’s siege and occupation by the British.  Since Isabel’s new master is a powerful and wealthy Loyalist, Isabel is asked to spy for the Patriots.  She does this thinking that she will then be freed as a reward for her information. 

But Isabel soon discovers that the principles of freedom, liberty, and justice that the Patriots speak of so fervently don’t apply to her.  Isabel has to decide–should she support the Revolution? 

The perspective in this book is fascinating.  I often think of slavery as a “Southern thing,” forgetting how widespread it was in the North.  In the appendix, Anderson points out that in 1771 New York was the second largest city in the American colonies (Philadelphia was the largest), and roughly 22% of the city’s population were black slaves. Slavery didn’t end in New York until 1827. 

Anderson also does a great job, both in the novel and the appendix, showing the contrast between what the colonists said and what they did.  At one point in the story Isabel (who has been taught to read) encounters Thomas Paine’s Common Sense.  She learns “Americans had good cause to overthrow their British masters, a person born to wealth was not born to rule over others, and ’twas good and proper to fight injustice” (p. 262).  She, of course, views these words in the context of her own enslavement.  She is right to fight; she is right to try to escape.

Anderson also brings up many of the complexities of the slavery issue.  Thomas Jefferson wrote that he abhorred slavery, yet he owned them.  The British freed slaves of Patriots, but returned runaway slaves to their Loyalist masters.  The young United States developed a patchwork of contradictory laws regarding slavery that came to a bitter head in the Civil War.  Some might say that only now, in 2008 with the election of Barak Obama as president, have we really begun to embrace racial equality. 

Chains has been nominated as a National Book Award Finalist (among other awards).  Anderson’s other books have won numerous awards as well.  In my local library, Chains is shelved under the “Teen Fiction” section, but I think the book is appropriate for younger children too.