Good Dirt by Charmaine Wilkerson

GOOD DIRT by Charmaine Wilkerson (Black Cake) is the story of the Freeman family over 100s of years, beginning in Africa, through their slavery in America, transitioning to sailors and tradesmen, and, later, professionals. In the present day, the main characters are parents Ed and Soh and their children Ebby and Baz. Tragically, Baz is killed during a burglary and Ebby witnesses it as a ten-year-old. Wilkerson writes movingly of the impact: “They went through the motions, based on memory. And this rote behavior had its value. Sometimes, all a person had was a routine, or a series of rituals, to hold things together. … Before Baz was killed, the four of them together had formed a unit, each one linked to the others. Without the fourth section, without Baz, they no longer knew the shape of themselves.” Gradually, Ebby and her parents learn to ignore the media coverage, change houses, and struggle to rebuild their lives, keeping the hurt and secrets from each other. It is another blow, when Ebby’s groom, a white man named Henry, runs off before their wedding. Ebby flees to France where no one knows her and Wilkerson employs multiple flashbacks to fill in the family story, including the work with clay (good dirt) as potters on the plantation in the 1800s. Mirroring current debates, Ed Freeman points out that “History is a collective phenomenon. It can only be told through a chorus of voices. And that chorus must make room for new voices over time.” Wilkerson employs multiple narrators and perspectives which, with the time shifts, contribute to some confusion. But resilience in the face of trauma is a recurring theme that will comfort readers: “So much of life must go forward on faith…” GOOD DIRT is the top pick for January 2025 LibraryReads.

The Secret Lives of Booksellers and Librarians

THE SECRET LIVES OF BOOKSELLERS AND LIBRARIANS by James Patterson and Matt Eversmann was described as “comfort food for bookworms” by Publishers Weekly. The authors have compiled a series of stories that touch on the importance of books and reading. There are so many words of wisdom here about book joy and the role of books in connecting people. One is from the Kelly Moore, librarian at the Carrollton Public Library near Dallas who comments on how libraries are “staffed with some of the most naturally curious people out there. Come in and ask a question, and we joke that we'll chase you out into the parking lot when we finally find the answer, even if it's a week later.” Another is from Sharon Perry Martin library director at University Park Public Library in Texas who tells about a day when she was about fifteen and her Mom confronted their public librarians, saying Sharon could take out any book she wanted: “From that point on, I get an adult card and can check out anything I want. It makes a big impact. So does my mother's taking ownership for raising me, as every parent should. She trusts me not to check out or read books that I'm not supposed to, just the ones that I want to read.” Carolyn Foote, the 2022 recipient of AASL Intellectual Freedom Award, reflects on an increasing number of book challenges and her work defending the right to read by creating the hashtag #FReadom. Martha Hickson, high school librarian in New Jersey, says, “I’m all about protecting children and their right to information.” This wonderful collection will help readers better understand what booksellers and librarians do, but more importantly, WHY they do it.

A Great Country by Shilpi Somaya Gowda

A GREAT COUNTRY by Shilpi Somaya Gowda is a novel which uses suspense and family dynamics to explore attitudes towards race, immigration, class, and privilege. Early on, Gowda writes about how “a country whose global advantage was its diversity born of immigration was turning its back on what had made it great.” She describes the lives of two hard-working immigrants, husband and wife Ashok and Priya Shah, who recently moved from Irvine to the wealthier enclave of Pacific Hills. Running their own business, they “keep their heads down” and seem to be fulfilling the American Dream. All of that is disrupted when their 12-year-old son, Ajay, is arrested by an over-zealous cop who fails to account for Ajay’s age and communication difficulties likely attributable to autism. There are two older sisters, Deepa – a rebel at heart who prefers their old neighbors and tries to open her parents’ eyes to “the challenges of being a visible minority and an obvious foreigner” – and Maya, a young high school student desperately trying to fit in and loosing her own identity in the process. A timely and well-crafted look into American society and a family in crisis, A GREAT COUNTRY received a starred review from Publishers Weekly who wrote “Readers won’t want to put this down.” I concur – I read this novel in two days – definitely recommended. Teachers, students, and book groups will find much to discuss; as Gowda prompts in her author’s note when referring to the South Asian American post-pandemic experience: “the minority group often deemed to be 'model' in the US was being forced to reconsider its role and comfort level in this country. Should we be seeking common cause with other communities of color? Or protecting ourselves in dangerous times? What did it mean to be an American in this new context, hyphenated or otherwise?”

Troubled by Rob Henderson

Subtitled “A Memoir of Foster Care, Family, and Social Class,” TROUBLED by Rob Henderson describes his experiences in foster care, the military, Yale and Cambridge. In some ways, this text is reminiscent of 2016’s Hillbilly Elegy as both chronicle childhood instability (life with drug addicts and abandonment by parents) followed by military stints and time at Yale (in fact, Vance “blurbed” this new book). Henderson is quietly reflective and focuses a great deal on what he labels as “luxury beliefs.” He writes at length about differences in experiences and perspectives, noting, for example, “in one of my classes at Yale, I learned that eighteen out of the twenty students were raised by both of their birth parents. That stunned me, because none of the kids I knew growing up was raised by both of their parents.” Later, he comments, “I grew to understand that there were aspects of social class that can't be quantified or put on a resume” and “part of integrating into this community meant having a cursory knowledge of the latest op-eds and fashionable news items.” Henderson himself has written an essay with excerpts (“Only the affluent can afford to learn strange vocabulary. Ordinary people have real problems to worry about”) from TROUBLED for The Wall Street Journal. Given Henderson’s frustration, anger, and bitterness at “elites” and hypocrisy, it would be interesting to compare and contrast his conclusions with the analysis and commentary on White Rural Rage recently published in The New York Times.

Safe by Mark Daley

SAFE by Mark Daley is subtitled “A Memoir of Fatherhood, Foster Care, and the Risks We Take for Family.” I had asked for this preview because I have had students who feel passionately about the foster care system and any related research. It truly is eye-opening to learn more about the traumas involved and to recognize the support that these children (like the students involved with Learning Bridge) need. Mark Daley, the author, is a communications professional with experience in the political sphere and has now turned his attention to activism as a founder of TheFosterParent.com. His book was a bit surprising because it is so personal, very emotional and moving. After four months of marriage, Daley and his husband decided to foster children, with the hopes of eventually adopting. The first few chapters of his book deal with their relationship, marriage, and decision to try fostering. Then, the focus turns to the realities of childcare, especially for infants, and much learning that being a new parent entails. Subsequent sections look at visitation rights, the birth family situation, custody battles, and adoption protocols. In this memoir, Daley employs a conversational tone to share the story that he and Jason experienced, but he also incorporates relevant statistics (e.g., in California about 55 percent of foster children are eventually reunified with their birth parents). Told with emotion and primarily from an adult perspective, SAFE is a heartfelt introduction to the foster care system in California and points to its inadequacies as well as to the importance of a support network for all involved. To the End of June, published roughly a decade ago, is another excellent text on this subject. More recent titles include the coming-of-age memoir Troubled by Rob Henderson and Anne Moody’s analysis which also covers international adoptions titled The Children Money Can Buy. There are also multiple books written for young children to help prompt discussion and hugs. I hope SAFE gets the wide readership it deserves. 

Rising Class and It.Goes. So. Fast

RISING CLASS by Jennifer Miller profiles “How Three First-Generation College Students Conquered Their First Year.” The names of these real life students are Briani, Conner, and Jacklynn and the first two attend Columbia University in New York while Jacklynn attends Ozark Technical Community College. Briani is from a small town in Georgia and Conner and Jacklynn, a long-time couple, are from Missouri. By sharing details about issues like financial strains and family addiction, Miller poignantly points out “the gulf between … [first generation] and so many other students. They all lived on the same campus, but they didn’t live in the same world.” Professional reviews suggested this text for students in high school (ages 12 to 18 or in grades 10 -12), but I am honestly not sure how much they could relate since they have not yet been to college. However, they could definitely learn from these experiences and perhaps better formulate questions and criteria related to their own future college choices. Educators, too, could benefit from reflecting upon these students’ concerns and Miller’s extensive reporting. Brookings published a report (8/21) on transition programs between high school and college which outlines their mixed success in preparing students. And Miller notes that in Fall 2019, “roughly a third of college students in the United States were first-generation.” Given more recent mental health crises, it is clear that even more support is needed. 

A related text, told from a parent’s perspective, is IT. GOES. SO. FAST by Mary Louise Kelly, an accomplished journalist and cohost of NPR’s All Things Considered.  She subtitles her non-fiction text “The Year of No Do-Overs” and appeared last month on the PBS NewsHour Bookshelf to discuss this memoir. Kelly reflects on balancing work and motherhood, particularly during the year when her oldest son is a senior in high school and about to dramatically change family dynamics. While Kelly’s stories (e.g., simultaneously getting on a helicopter in Baghdad while taking a call from the school nurse about her younger son being ill) may be more dramatic than what most parents face, the conflict between work and family will certainly be familiar and readers will find Kelly’s writing to be engaging. IT. GOES. SO. FAST received starred reviews from Booklist and Publishers Weekly. 

Although this text centered on older, high school age children, childcare – availability, quality, cost – in America and around the world (particularly due to COVID’s impact) continues to be a major issue and deserves more attention. The World Economic Forum published this report about a year ago and looks at the gender gap in pay as well as the “motherhood penalty.” Pew Research also recently (5/23) complied some perspective on motherhood.

Coming of age stories by Aleman and Berg

BRIGHTER THAN THE SUN by Daniel Aleman (Indivisible) is a young adult novel which features a sixteen year-old main character, Maria de la Soledad (called Sol), who clearly struggles with age appropriate identity issues: “even when I try my hardest to be Sol [sun/happy], Soledad [solitude/lonely] has a way of winning ...” All of that is complicated by her status as an American citizen although the rest of her family (including two brothers) have Mexican citizenship and live in Tijuana. The text deals with themes of grief, responsibility, immigration, racism, familial ties and expectations. Sol crosses the border each day to go to school and eventually moves North to continue high school and live with friends while working part-time to support her family. I personally found the effort she made to be crushing and unfair. It reminded me of a cousin who, with little guidance, chose to work 40 hours a week during high school and is now a widow with four young children, perpetuating a life of limited opportunity, even though her siblings graduated college and enjoy six figure incomes. BRIGHTER THAN THE SUN highlights the tensions and pressures faced by students who do not have a strong safety net and adult support. Sol’s deceased Mami was correct when she stressed the importance of education and I do think that teachers would have been more aware and understanding, but they are mere shadows in this story. Sol perseveres, though – she is resilient despite the loneliness she faces. Fortunately, friends like Ari (plus her mother, Nancy) and co-worker Nick fill some of the gap and reinforce a sense of hope. The publisher provides an online book club guide with discussion questions for this emotional text.

In EARTH'S THE RIGHT PLACE FOR LOVE Elizabeth Berg offers a prequel to The Story of Arthur Truluv, sharing Arthur’s coming of age story as a teenager in 1947 Mason, Missouri. The story reflects Berg’s typically gentle, heartwarming writing style, but there is not much action. Arthur falls in love and deals with several family situations, particularly his relationship with his older brother, Frank. Praised by authors like Adriana Trigiani (Big Stone Gap), Rachel Joyce (Miss Benson’s Beetle), and Debbie Macomber, EARTH'S THE RIGHT PLACE FOR LOVE is sure to please loyal Berg readers who will enjoy this relatively short novel with its small town setting and homespun feel.