And as he talked to more and more people about their spiritual beliefs, he concluded that yes: even though Jeff doesn’t feel like it some days, Jesus really does love us all. A few years ago, Jeff found himself on the road, searching for the answer to his long-held question across America as he interviewed everyone from nice church ladies to members of the Westboro Baptist Church. Over time, while he prayed for God to change who he was, Jeff threw himself into his work to escape his inner turmoil and realized he was a gifted storyteller who loved talking with people from all walks of life. As Jeff approached high school, he realized he was gay. Jeff grew up immersed in a family of theologians, where knowing and sticking to the Bible’s rules were prized currency. “Does Jesus really love me?” Journalist Jeff Chu has asked himself this question countless times since he was a kid.
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Laurie Halse Anderson has quickly become one of my favorite authors and is such an influence on my own writing, and I just found out that she’s coming to Dayton on a book tour in a of couple weeks. Plus it made me laugh out loud that the slippers she wore to the ball/prom were, in fact, slippers. I felt like I was in Ashley’s school with her, and all I wanted was to help her find the right path for her life. What I really enjoyed about this book was how real it felt. Prom, like all of Anderson’s books, pulls you in with its unique voice and doesn’t let you go. In a Philadelphia high school, who doesnt care about the prom Its pretty much the only good thing that happens there, and everyone plans to make the most of. Prom is truly a modern Cinderella story, as Ashley makes it to the ball despite everything and learns a lot about what she wants for her life. Then Ashley finds herself roped into helping her school put on the prom anyway with no budget and just about everything against them. Her best friend, Natalia, however, is on the prom committee and is devastated when the math teacher steals all of the prom money. She doesn’t care too much about school, she has a large family, she has a crappy job and an even crappier boyfriend, and she really doesn’t care about the prom. With Prom, Anderson gives a character that you can really relate to. Laurie Halse Anderson continues to amaze me with each book of hers that I read. But there was one easy decision: A few years ago, we did a summer list based on All Things Considered's Backseat Book Club of great reads for kids from 9 to 14. Now, we understand that half the fun of a list is arguing about what didn't make it on - and our judges had to make some hard choices. And instead of a ranked list, it's grouped into categories that we hope will help you find just the right books for the kids in your life.ġ00 Best Books The Ultimate Backseat Bookshelf: 100 Must-Reads For Kids 9-14 (Otherwise it would have been nothing but 100 Mo Willems books - and we love Mo Willems, but that wouldn't have been the most useful list.) Rather, it's a curated list built from your recommendations and picks from our expert panel of judges - a fantastic group of authors, librarians, publishers and all-around book nerds. And thousands of you answered.Īs with all our summer polls, this one isn't a straight-up popularity contest. We asked you to tell us about your favorite kids' books, from board books for babies to great read-alouds to early chapter books and even a few books for older readers. With that in mind, we decided that this year's summer reader poll should be all about keeping kids occupied. Camps and schools and activities have shut down during the pandemic, leaving kids and caregivers stuck at home and climbing the walls - and sometimes the garden fences. The Seventh Bride is a beautiful, clever, funny story about power, abuse, revenge, and-above all-the ties of shared experiences that bind women together and the vital importance of women loving and supporting each other. It turns out to be much more than just a simple retelling of an old tale, however. I don’t see “Bluebeard” pop up that often in the vast sea of princess stories that seem to get almost obligatorily reimagined on a perennial basis, so right out of the gate I was predisposed to love this story because it was so obviously a fresh perspective. The Seventh Bride is, loosely, a retelling of “Bluebeard,” which is a nice change from the more common fairy tale retellings that populate most shelves. Panchaali is swept into their quest to reclaim their birthright, remaining at their side through years of exile and a terrible civil war involving all the important kings of India. The novel traces the princess Panchaali’s life, beginning with her birth in fire and following her spirited balancing act as a woman with five husbands who have been cheated out of their father’s kingdom. Narrated by Panchaali, the wife of the legendary Pandavas brothers in the Mahabharat, the novel gives us a new interpretation of this ancient tale. Relevant to today’s war-torn world, The Palace of Illusions takes us back to a time that is half history, half myth, and wholly magical. Narration: First Person (Draupadi’s Point of view)Ī reimagining of the world-famous Indian epic, the Mahabharat-told from the point of view of an amazing woman. Major Characters: Panchaali, Arjun, Yudhishthir, Bhim, Krishna, Duryodhan, Karna, Dhristadhyumna, Drauna, Bhishma |