For MMGM and #IMWAYR, I am recommending Efrén Divided by Ernesto Cisneros. I decided to read this book after seeing positive reviews of it by Sierra Dertinger on her blog, Books. Iced Lattes. Blessed, and by Shaye Miller on her blog, The Miller Memo. I am so glad I took their advice! Efrén Divided tells the story of middle-schooler Efrén Nava. Most of us (including myself) would probably pity Efrén from the very start of the story; his family is pretty poor, so he, his twin young siblings Max and Mía, and his Amá and Apá all live in a one-room apartment. But where we see a shabby apartment, Efrén sees the home of his loving family. Where we see a tiny kitchen, Efrén sees the place where his Amá bakes fresh sopes, flipping them with her bare hands (the root of his nickname for her, Soperwoman). Between his amazing parents, his best friend David, and his love of reading, Efrén knows he has what truly matters in life. So, of course, e...
I hope everyone is doing well today! As back-to-school season begins, I just want to take a moment and thank all the wonderful educators I've met in the blogging world, as well as all the wonderful educators I haven't met at all, for their tireless work in shaping the kids of today and tomorrow into better, smarter people, in spite of being under-paid, under-appreciated, and under-protected from the pandemic. I wish you all good luck!!! I also want to mention that I did some spiffing-up on the blog this past week, so the menu and sidebar have a different layout that is hopefully a little more intuitive—I realized that things I wanted people to see were buried in sidebar widgets or other pages, while things I didn't care much about were taking up space in the main menu. Let me know if the new layout works for you or is totally confusing and awful! (Update [8/15/2021]: I just discovered that the sidebar looks weird on a larger screen, because Blogger, in their...
In light of the death of George Floyd and the protests against police brutality toward Black people, I have a few things to mention. First, there is no question that people are woefully uninformed about the ways that racism affects Black people (and about the experiences of Black people in general). In order to help spread some knowledge in a way appropriate for this blog, I am holding the 2020 Books by Black Voices Giveaway , in which I will be giving away copies of Brown Girl Dreaming , New Kid , Genesis Begins Again , and The Hate U Give . Details and the entry form are at the bottom of this post. Second, I am recommending one of the books that I am giving away: Genesis Begins Again by Alicia D. Williams. The review is below. (This is my second MG book review in a row; I will have a YA review next week, followed by an MG review the next week to resume my alternating schedule.) Finally, I highly encourage you to donate to Black Lives Matter , Color of Change , Campaign Zero ...
Beautiful! Thanks! Love his " My Papa's Waltz" too!
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