Fish in a Tree

While up in New York, we took a detour to visit with our granddaughters before heading home. Who knew that our 9-year old was such an avid reader? And she's finally at the point where she's reading the type of books that as a fifth grade teacher I enjoyed reading. Her library book, Fish in a Tree by Lynda Mullaly Hunt was laying around. I picked it up to look at it and it wasn't too long before I was sucked in.

I think I was so easily caught up in the novel because this is the type of novel that I have written. (Mine is still in rough draft format, but it's similar in that both Fish in a Tree and my draft, working title Dear Learning Log are about kids who feel like they just don't fit in.)

The title Fish in a Tree comes from the following quote:

“Everybody is smart in different ways. But if you judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree, it will live its life believing it is stupid.”

Ally moves from school to school and does a good job fooling her teachers into not realizing that she can't read. That is until her latest teacher goes on maternity leave and she gets a really cool substitute teacher named Mr. Daniels. Not only does he recognize what the problem is, he helps Ally to come to terms with it - and to overcome it - and she is able to accept that different doesn't always mean loser.

The first class read aloud of the entirety of my full-time teaching career was One Thing I'm Good At by Karen Lynn Williams. Same premise. In that book, Abby Dorinsky is the girl who believes she isn't good at anything - until circumstances prove her to be quite talented. There are lots of similarities - and differences - between the two novels. Fish in a Tree has the more fully developed plot. But the message is the same. Just because you're not good at school doesn't mean you're not good at anything. And it is possible to get better at doing the school thing.

Imagine having a learning disability that makes going to school torture. It's not like you can say, I won't go to school, I'll go to work... at 10 years old. You have to go to school. Every day is just one more opportunity for things to go horribly wrong. I've been witness to it, but I really cannot imagine what that must feel like. The kids who would benefit most from this book are kids who wouldn't be able to read it on their own. But books like this will always be needed - and need to be shared with some scaffolding to make Ally's story accessible to those who might benefit from hearing it most. All kids, whether they can read independently or not enjoy being read to, whether they say so or not.

My granddaughter was amazed that I was able to finish this book in one day without impacting the day I was spending with her. We still played several rounds of board games I can't even remember the names of, an overly long game of Monopoly Junior, did some art, watched a sappy movie and just hung out. I was hoping that she'd let me know what she thought of the book once she finished it. I wonder, has she finished it yet?

The Girl Who Drank the Moon

If you've been following me for any length of time, you know that I hate buying books and that fantasy is not a genre I typically enjoy. The thought of spending almost $10 to purchase a fantasy book to be read for Books & Beer Club was not something I was thrilled with doing. Sharon, if you are reading this, thank you so much for trusting me with your kindle to enable me to read this book! I appreciate it more than you know.

The Girl Who Drank the Moon by Kelly Barnhill is supposed to be a middle grade fantasy novel. It's the winner of the 2017 Newberry Medal. The Newberry Medal is a big deal. It's named for an 18th century British bookseller, John Newberry. In the present day, it's award annually by the American Library Association to the author of the greatest contribution to American literature for kids. Like I said, it's a really big deal. In my teaching days, I was totally on top of the Newberry Medal winners and Honors titles.  Imagine my delight when Books & Beer selected a) a kids' fantasy and b) a Newberry Medal winner and finally c) a book with mostly female characters.

I think that those three reasons made The Girl Who Drank the Moon a little bit more to my liking than The Name of the Wind which we read last March.

Luna is a girl born in the Protectorate who is raised by a witch, a swamp monster and a tiny little dragon. She is accidentally enmagicked. As a young girl, her magic endangers Luna and those who love her. The kindly witch locks Luna's magic inside of her... which can be done until she becomes a teenager.

To me, the book is about pre-conceived notions and assumptions and why they can be often be wrong. The people of the Protectorate think that the witch is evil. They sacrifice a baby each year to the witch, believing that will keep them safe from the witch's wrath. They also believe that the leaders of the Protectorate have their best interests at heart. The witch thinks that the parents of the Protectorate are neglectful. Why else would they abandon their babies?

In reading some reviews, I guess there is a political component to this book that I didn't really catch. I'm anxious to learn if others in the book club picked up on that.

What I loved about this book were the strong female characters. They aren't role models in any way, shape or form, but they demonstrate the strength of women and girls, something that in the past was lacking in lots of children's books. The Girl Who Drank the Moon is a coming of age story. Yet this feels like a story from long ago. The fantastical parts of the story are simply the way the story is told. And I was okay with that.

This isn't a story for all middle grade readers. I think that like me, some kids who aren't big fans of fantasy might be okay reading this book. It would make a great read aloud. Some of the story is a bit dark and some of the villains are really villainous. The dragon, Fyrian, is a completely lovable. He's a teeny tiny dragon who thinks he's exceptionally large. I found Xan, the witch, lovable as well. Who wouldn't want a grandmother like Xan?

Has it made me a convert to the fantasy genre? Okay, don't go crazy. But it also wasn't painful for me to read this book and I look forward to discussing it at Books & Beer Club on Wednesday.

I've also read that the story has been picked up to be made into an animated movie. I'd pay money to see this movie!