Focus On The Hocus Pocus

The room is darker.  Did the sun go under gathering clouds?  Your dog is staring at you and whining.  Didn't you just take her outside?  Your legs are asleep.  When was the last time you moved?  You look at the clock startled to see it's hours later; the afternoon replaced with early evening.  You look at the object in your hand realizing you've been lost...in a book.  You were captivated and captured by the writing, setting, plot and characters.  They invited you into their world and there was nothing else you would rather do.

Little more than one year ago readers were introduced to a resourceful, determined and caring eleven-year-old orphan in Audacity Jones To The Rescue (Scholastic Press, January 26, 2016).  The second book titled Audacity Jones Steals The Show (Scholastic Press, January 31, 2017) written by Kirby Larson is as suspenseful and charming as the first in the series.  You simply can't stop reading it once you start.

If you, dear reader, have not this very day observed at least three instances of the magical, the mysterious, or the miraculous, do set this book down right away.  Find a story more to your disposition.  Perhaps something about chalk.

Chapter One
A Somber Ceremony

Audacity Jones peered around the corner, examining the great hallway of Miss Maisie's School for Wayward Girls with utmost care.
"Is the coast clear?" asked someone standing behind her.
"Clear?" echoed the three small voices belonging to the triplets.
Audacity scouted left and right.  Not a kid-leather boot nor starched pinafore to be seen in either direction.  The dozen other Wayward Girls were no doubt hard at work on the morning lesson.

Audacity and Bimmy just informed Lavender, Lilac and Violet of their plans to leave Miss Maisie's School for Wayward Girls to assist Cypher, now a member of the Pinkerton National Detective Agency, in his first solo assignment in New York City.  Next Audacity must convince Cypher of the need for Bimmy and Min, her constant companion and most unusual cat, to accompany her.  With all missions accomplished, Cypher, Audacity and Bimmy board the train to New York City.  Cypher forbid Min from going but resourcefulness is a strong virtue in this creature as is her ability to converse with other animals, even elephants.

As the foursome move toward their destination a citizen of the city is fretting in the early morning hours about an upcoming performance unlike any previously done.  He has employed a person of the highest scientific intelligence to assist in his next trick, the vanishing of a full-grown elephant.  Theo Quinn seems to be hesitant to reveal more than small portions of the idea at a time.  Harry Houdini has sought the services of a particular Pinkerton man to protect this Theo Quinn, the idea and Theo's silence for which he has paid a great deal of money.

Cypher's plan to have him, Audacity, Bimmy and Theo (a remarkable young woman to Houdini's surprise) pose as jugglers so they can be near Houdini at the theater puts them in the thick of the crowd of performers at their hotel and the Hippodrome.  It makes all their efforts more difficult especially when Theo disappears.  Someone wants Houdini to fail.  Someone will do anything to make this happen.

There are several other surprising threads woven into the main tapestry of this tale; an inheritance, a baby elephant, and an unexpected circus performance.  Audacity's ear buzzing is most welcome in assessing the veracity of villains Billy Bottle, Helmut, an elephant trainer, and one Wylie Wurmer posing as the Great Oberon, a famous magician.  A hazel-eyed street vendor, Bert, the theater manager and Jamie Doolan, assistant elephant trainer, work their own kind of miracles.

You literally cannot turn the pages fast enough to reach the resolution of not one, not two but three scenarios.  You find yourself holding your breath, waiting to see if each small piece falls into place.

"Look at this life---all mystery and magic.
                       ---Harry Houdini


One of the first names which come to mind when you think of outstanding middle grade historical fiction is Kirby Larson.  Her ability to blend details of the past into her narrative is indeed magical.  You step back in time, soaking in the descriptions of specific scenes, the architecture, the clothing, the methods of travel and the way people spoke.

We flawlessly move from one character to another, chapter by chapter, adding to our knowledge of them and their place in the overall story.  Their thoughts and conversations disclose their personalities.  Each character, good and bad, is fully alive.  Enjoy these sample passages.

Billy Bottle watched from the shadows as Mr. Houdini parted company with Theo, possibilities scurrying through his mind like rats through a dark alley.  Houdini thought he was Mr. Muckety-Muck, did he?  Maybe he'd like to be taken down a notch or two.  And Billy was the man to do it.

What Billy heard when he eavesdropped through the vent weren't dull as dirt as Theo's conversations with all them scientist types.  This time he could almost follow the conversation, and it perked his spirits up considerable.


Bimmy tugged on the dark curl over her right ear.  "Oberon wasn't robbed."
"You see, I warned you about jumping to conclusions," Cypher said.
"Oberon wasn't robbed because that wasn't Oberon."  Bimmy put her hands in her lap.
Audie's fork clattered to her plate.  "What?"
Cypher closed his eyes, as if in prayer.  "Ladies, if I may---"
"Oh, this is so thrilling!"  Theo clapped gleefully.  "I must get out of my laboratory more often."
Bimmy glanced at Audie and then at Cypher.  "Do you remember in the cab I told you Oberon and I had performed in the same circus?"
"Oh, yes!"  Audie's eyes sparkled with the memory.  "He gave you a rabbit.  Which you set free in the woods."
"Clever girl," Theo approved.  "Animals deserve to live in their natural environments.  I myself once rehabilitated a small barred owl.  Though it does return to my window from time to time, it seems to have fully embraced its natural state.  Quite remarkable, really."
Cypher rubbed at his temples with vigor.  "This is all fascinating, but might we return to the subject at hand?" Keeping a conversation on track with these three was more difficult than herding camels!


Oblivious to the workers' hopes, the cat forged ahead, motivated by one reason only:  the sad aroma signaling her new friend, Punk.  She turned down a dark hallway, and down a darker set of stairs.  Ahead was an enormous door behind which bubbled a stew of animal scents, including that of the baby she sought.
With purpose, Min padded forward.
Only to be stopped by a snarling pair of Dobermans.


Rejoice readers!  Audacity Jones Steals The Show written by Kirby Larson is a page-turner extraordinaire.  The final four paragraphs will have you longing for another book in the series with the air thick with mystery.  In an author's note Kirby Larson explains this book in its historical context; no specific dates are mentioned in the narrative.  You will enjoy her acknowledgments too!

To learn more about Kirby Larson and her other work please visit her website by following the link attached to her name.  She further clarifies this book in a Friend Friday post.  Author Barbara O'Connor talks about this title on her blog, Greetings from Nowhere.

The Shape And Size Of Courage

Without authors and illustrators willing to research our historical past, many windows into these time periods remain closed.  Their efforts deepen and broaden our views beyond textbooks.  When their focus is on people and places in realities other than our own, their books are like a time machine we can hold in our hands.

In her series Dogs of World War II author Kirby Larson takes specific aspects of the war enlightening and captivating readers.  She begins with Duke (Scholastic Press, August 27, 2013) acquainting us with the Dogs for Defense program where family pets are trained to assist soldiers.  In Dash we become a silent member of the Kashino family as they are sent to Japanese incarceration camps. In both books children have to relinquish their best friends, their dogs.  Her third companion title, Liberty (Scholastic Press, October 11, 2016) takes us south to the city of New Orleans in the year 1944.

Thomas Edison said, to invent, you need a good imagination and a pile of junk.  Fish Elliott had both.

Fish Elliott also has a next-door neighbor Olympia who is more than willing to offer assistance and sage advice whether he wants it or not and an older, resilient and determined sister Mo, who has sent him to the market for green beans.  The green beans are a favorite food of Seaman Roy Weathers who has been visiting their home quite often lately.  What Fish Elliott does not have is a dog.

On the way home from the market a nasty neighbor, Mr. LaVache, yells out to Fish, asking him if the dog is his.  Turning around Fish sees a dog following him; until the man throws rocks at her and threatens to kill her if he sees her again.  Fish's life is about to change.  Far away in Africa a young German soldier, Erich Berger, is about to experience a change too.

Fish has been working on a trap to catch a critter nibbling too much on Miss Zona's, Olympia's grandmamma's, garden.  He has even created a model with a cigar box, some empty spools of thread and couple of Olympia's hair ribbons to figure out a trap door.  As you may surmise his plans have altered.  A dog needs to be saved.

Intertwined in Fish's efforts to help the dog, that he has named Liberty, are the everyday but hardly ordinary lives of people in his city.  There is the huge influence of Andrew Jackson Higgins, the manufacturer of the "Higgins boat" or LCVP (Landing Craft, Vehicle Personnel).  Mo works for him and Roy is being trained by Captain McDerby to navigate these boats.  Critical to the story is Fish having polio when he was young, leaving him with a limp, and Olympia's African American ethnicity.  With each incident the tension mounts as to whether Fish will get Liberty (with help from Olympia and others) and be able to keep her.  As all the elements and people come together in one breathtaking moment after another, you will be unable to stop thinking about this story and the multiple conclusions.


Once started (at 3:30AM yesterday) there was nothing, not even an essential appointment, that was going to keep me from finishing this latest title by Kirby Larson.  Everything was put on hold until I knew the resolution of Liberty.  In thinking about this book, I found it to be about courage.  Mo's courage to pursue her dream of becoming a engineering draftsman and maintaining a home while her father is away overseas fighting, Roy's courage to go into battle far from home, Olympia's courage to always be strong in the face of prejudice, Erich Berger's courage to do the right thing regardless of the consequences, and Fish's courage to champion for a stray dog and to keep working to walk with greater ease.  It is as if each of them are fighting battles but not doing so in isolation.  Larson heightens our involvement with the mix of narrative, spot-on conversations and the alternating chapters giving us glimpses in Erich Berger's current situations.  (If you think I am going to share what a German soldier fighting in Africa has to do with a boy, a dog and New Orleans, think again.  I will not.)

When I turned the last page, I felt an overwhelming sense of respect for Kirby Larson's ability to fit all these characters together to create a stellar story.  You can't help but be transported to 1944 New Orleans with her meticulous attention to detail which does not weigh the story down but lifts it up to excellence.  The specific brand names of food, the common colloquial phrases, methods of transportation, clothing styles and vivid descriptions of the climate, the heat, humidity and storms surround you.  Here are some sample passages.

"It'd go faster if you let me help."  she slipped through the narrow opening in the fence.  If they had been allowed to attend the same school, that loudmouth in his class would've called her String Bean.  Olympia's grandmamma, Miss Zona, says that Olympia had to turn around twice to catch her own shadow.

She should mind her own beeswax.  Roy was okay, but Fish had set three places at their dinner table too many times lately.  Roy said Mo's cooking was better than anything he got at the Navy base.  Why a lightning bolt hadn't struck him dead for saying that, Fish had no idea.  His sister could change the oil in a car, rotate a set of tires, and replace a worn clutch, but cooking edible food seemed beyond her.  If Miss Zona hadn't sent over a plate of gumbo or some red beans and rice once in a while, Fish and Mo might have starved to death.  

A funny feeling came over Fish.  Soon, Roy wouldn't be doing practice runs or tourist trips on the lake here.  He'd be on a ship, maybe heading to the Pacific.  Steaming to danger.
Roy caught Fish looking at him and gave a thumbs-up, Fish returned the gesture.  Then Roy circled his finger in the air, asking, "Ready to head in?"
Fish shook his head.  Out here, the war was at bay.  He liked that feeling.
Roy grinned and the engine roared; he pulled out of the circle and cut through the water like a great shark.  Fish lost his balance and grabbed on to one of the exposed ribs.  The energy of the boat's thrust pushed him back, but he found a way to lean on his good leg.  Wind whipped around his face, making his eyes water, ruffling his hair.  He felt like Errol Flynn in one of those pirate movies.   ...

"Olympia?" He let himself into the pen.  "What are you doing out here?"
"I heard Liberty crying."  She had her arms tight around Liberty's neck.  "She hates lightning."
"I think it's the thunder, but you're right.  Storms scare her."  He shivered as rain pelted his back.  "Let's go in the shed."
He clipped on the leash and the three of them made their way inside, watching the fingers of lightning through the one window.  Fish made a lap and Liberty curled up in it as best she could, trembling.  Fish stroked between her eyes; the book said that was calming to dogs.


All three of these titles are must reads in my way of thinking and all will leave lasting impressions but this book, Liberty, written by Kirby Larson is my favorite.  At one point I burst into tears of relief and happiness realizing I had been holding my breath.  There are many talking points within this story; the historical events and people's attitudes and outlooks in general, then and now.  I give this my highest recommendation.

To learn more about Kirby Larson and her other work, please follow the link attached to her name to access her website.

And The Plot Thickens

Every snapshot of life is composed of layers.  If we take any given scene revealed by a glance out the window of our home, a look across our yard at an unusual bird squawk, or a peek at people walking down the street when we are stopped at a light, we can expect there to be more beneath the surface.  The bird, a crow, upon further inspection is being chased by a bunch of smaller birds, probably for doing something pesky.  The tree, in which it takes sanctuary, now more than fifty feet tall, was planted decades ago by a little boy in memory of a beloved pet.  This pet was saved from...  Thankfully there will always be stories within stories.

When you have the opportunity to read a book with threads of history and mystery liberally woven into the fabric of a classic adventure, you can expect to have a page-turner on your hands.  Audacity Jones To The Rescue (Scholastic Press, January 26, 2016) written by Newbery Honor award winner Kirby Larson introduces readers to an eleven year old who more than lives up to her name.  Audacity Jones' predictable life at Miss Maisie's School for Wayward Girls in Swayzee, Indiana is about to change on this Christmas Eve.

WARNING
If you are a reader whose knees wobble at the mere mention of adventure, danger and derring-do, close these covers immediately and select a tome more to your liking.

Perhaps something about pudding.

Audacity Jones has once again devoured every sprig of burned broccoli, even though clean plates simply were not tolerated at Miss Maisie's School for Wayward Girls.
Miss Maisie's barley-water breath traveled the length of the scarred mahogany table, arriving well before her reprimand.

To her good friends, the triplets, Lilac, Lavender and Violet, and Bimmy, Audacity's fate on this holiday eve is upsetting at the very least.  To be sent to the Punishment Room is the worst sort of discipline any of the seventeen girls residing in this home can imagine.  In fact no one has ever been there and most certainly not with the regularity which seems to plague Audacity.

If they only knew what is within those four walls.  It's a magnificent library with books gathered by the late Mr. Witherton.  Audacity, like a particular rabbit begging not to be thrown into a briar patch, rather likes learning as much as she can.  She is frequently visited by a wayward cat, Miniver, with an uncanny amount of intelligence.  Her time this evening though is cut short by an unexpected visitor.

Commodore Crutchfield, a routine benefactor of the school, has arrived.  He is in need of a girl, specifically an orphan.  As Audacity's arch nemesis Divinity is so quick to point out, she, Audacity, is the only true orphan at the school.  Fueled by her constant reading and longing for adventure, Audacity agrees to go on this secret mission with the Commodore.  Besides the buzzing in her left ear, a predictor of usually bad news, is up at full volume.

It seems Audacity, Commodore Crutchfield, the driver of his touring car, Cypher, and Miniver, who smuggled herself aboard in the wicker trunk, are now traveling toward the nation's capital, Washington, D. C.   Once settled in their hotel there, other characters of decidedly dubious nature, the bellman, Stanley, and Mrs. Elva Finch, make an appearance as key players in a dastardly plan involving President Taft and his family.  There are new friends whose assistance is invaluable, Juice Johnson, a local newsboy whose grandfather Daddy Dub runs the stables at the White House and the French maid, Beatrice who has been hired to care for Audacity.  And who are the mysterious petite Madame Volta and the massive Igor?

Poison, locked, money and transatlantic are only some of the words found in a web woven of intrigue with the days and hours spinning toward the New Year's Day reception at the White House.  Efforts large and small on the side of good and evil will collide.  Resourcefulness will rule the day.


When Kirby Larson creates historical fiction readers can be sure of several things in her writing; painstaking research, a true sense of place and time in the detailed descriptions and characters indicative of the time period.  The conversations between the characters, the words they use and the manner in which they speak, flesh out their personalities in our minds.  Even though those living in the story might not immediately know who can or cannot be trusted we readers start to form our own opinions until we are surprised by Larson's cleverness.

We find ourselves championing for Audacity, cheering for her friends at the school, fist pumping for her new companions in Washington D. C. and gasping at the vileness of the villains.  There are layers to the events and also to the portrayals of the people.  Here are some sample passages.

More prudent minds might label the Commodore's request nothing more than a wild-goose chase.  But what good are wild geese, if not pursued upon occasion?  Audie reflected on a Chinese proverb she'd skimmed in The People's Proverbs: "Pearls don't lie on the seashore.  If you desire one, you must dive for it."  In her short life, she had noted that, oftimes, a person is put in difficult positions for good reasons.  Reasons that are beyond comprehension.  And more than having an adventure, Audie dreamed of doing some good in the world.  It appeared that in order to gather that particular pearl, she would have to dive.  "Bees and bonnets," she said.  "I'll go." ...

...The triplets' sniffles exploded into wails.  Bimmy threw her arms around Audie's waist.  "Don't go, Audie.  Don't!"
Audie patted her comrade's back.  "What have I always told you?"
Bimmy released her grip, drawing in a shaky breath.  "That everything will turn out splendid in the end," she said.  "And if it's not splendid, it's not the end."

Juice leaned the poker against the fireplace.  "I was just thinking." he began.
The old man lit his pipe, shaking the wooden match to extinguish the flame. " 'Bout the little gal you brought 'round today?"
Juice had long ago stopped being surprised by his grandfather's intuition.  He nodded.
"You didn't find her any too soon." Daddy Dub took three puffs on his pipe.
Juice picked up a stick of cordwood. "What do you mean?"
"She's going to need our help."  He tapped his pipe on the ashtray.
"Pretty darned quick, too, 'cording to my rheumatiz.  Best to keep an eye on her."
Juice managed to load the wood into the stove without dropping it.  How did Daddy Dub know such things?  That was a mystery.
But it was no mystery that he was rarely wrong.


Audacity Jones To The Rescue written by Kirby Larson is first-rate historical fiction packed with memorable characters real and imagined whose lives run together accidentally and on purpose.  Every nuance within the plot unfolds precisely as planned by Larson. Fortunately for readers this is the first volume in a series with a hint as to the next escapade on the last page.  In an author's note and in her acknowledgments Kirby Larson further endears readers to this book and its beginnings.

To learn more about Kirby Larson and her other wonderful novels and picture books, please visit her website by following the link attached to her name.  Kirby Larson is interviewed about this title at author Janet Fox's blog.  Believe me; you are going to want to read this.  Author Barbara O'Connor talks about Audacity Jones To The Rescue on her blog, Greetings from Nowhere.

Not Ever Again

One of many things gained from being an avid reader of historical fiction is there are two sides (or more) to every story.  This is readily apparent during a time of war; each choice made by each person creates layers upon layers.  To see events unfold through the eyes of a child, a person powerless to major decision making, is particularly poignant.

My understanding of World War II deepened when I read Duke (Scholastic Press, August 2013) by 2007 Newbery Honor winner (Hattie Big Sky) Kirby Larson.  As a companion title, Dash (Scholastic Press, August 26 2014), follows the lives of another family on the home front.  Barely completing the first page, readers will have stepped back in time, becoming another member, a silent member, of the Kashino family.

Mitsi Kashino packed her sketch pad, her binder, and her worry in her book bag.  Dash sniffed the straps before flattening himself on top of it, muzzle resting on his front paws.  He watched Mitsi with worried brown eyes.  She ruffled the scruffy almond-colored fur on his head.

Christmas vacation, December 1941, has come and gone.  Returning to school Mitsi, an American of Japanese descent, is hopeful her classmates will no longer stare at her in the hallways or leave hurtful notes in her desk.  Hope leaves when her two friends, Mags and Judy, seem to have acquired another pal, Patty, who is especially cruel to Mitsi.  On the way home from school a group of older boys chase her, circling around, scattering items in her book bag and taunting her with chants.  Thankfully a neighbor, Mrs. Bowker, comes to her rescue, swinging her broom like a ball bat.

Chapter by chapter the dread filling the hearts and home of the Kashino family builds until the day Mitsi and her magic-loving older brother read the announcement posted on a telephone pole.  All people of Japanese descent, whether they were born in America or not, are being evacuated to camps.  They can only take with them those items they can carry.  Stop...think about this...long and hard.  A decidedly horrible situation is made worse when Mitsi is told she cannot bring Dash, her closest friend and confident.

Having built a relationship with Mrs. Bowker, working in her gardens, Mitsi is able to leave Dash with her.  A touching kindness is shown to her by her teacher as all the people gather to ride the trucks to the camp; a gift of pencils and a drawing pad for her artistic student.  Initially they are taken to Camp Harmony (the state fairgrounds) to live in a tiny room with only five cots, a stove to keep them warm and paper thin walls.

These Americans ate in a mess hall, used outdoor latrines for multiple people with no privacy, slept on straw-filled mattresses, delivered and received mail and bought supplies at a canteen.  As days turn into weeks, Mitsi sees her family dynamics change.  Relationships are shifting as connections are made with others at the camp; some are good, others are not.  When a rhythm of living here seems to be forming, more bad news is received.  They are being moved again...by train for three days...to Idaho.


There is something extraordinary about the books written by Kirby Larson.  Great care is taken in depictions of place and people.  Every experience is brought to life through the thoughts of her main character and the dialogue between the other personalities.  Impeccable research leading to specific descriptions creates movies in the minds of her readers.  You are immersed in the worlds her written words weave.

Burning all their Japanese books and heirlooms to maintain their American identity, turning in their radios and cameras to the authorities, and her grandmother having to register because she was born in Japan not only paint a true picture of this historical time period but build a connection between this family and the reader.  We ride with them in the trucks and on the train, stand in line with them at the camps, we suffer their humiliation and lack of privacy, and we feel the resilience and unity of the Kashinos and many others like them.  Our hearts are bound to Mitsi as she struggles to understand, as she develops skills to adjust and survive and writes letters to Dash (Mrs. Bowker) and receives messages in return.  Here are a couple passages from the book.

"What kind of flowers are you going to plant?" she asked.
"Oh, crocus and daffodils and tulips." Mrs. Bowker waved her arm like an orchestra conductor.
"And later on, peonies and roses and gladiolus."
Mitsi thought of the beautiful gardens Uncle Shig planted along the borders of his strawberry fields.  "It must be hard to wait," she said.
"Oh, very hard." Tears glimmered in Mrs. Bowker's brown eyes.  "But that's what life is all about.  Doing winter's work in hopes of summer's flowers."

Mitsi wrapped her arms around Dash.  She inhaled as deeply as she could so she wouldn't forget his smell.
Mrs. Bowker held the camera up to her eye, peering through the viewfinder.  "Say 'cheese' ".
It was a good thing it was only a camera, not an X-ray machine, or all Mrs. Bowker would see was Mitsi's heart broken into a billion kibble-size bits.

Mitsi's throat was raw from the dust, and the ringing in her ears was driving her crazy.  Mom heard from Mrs. Suda who heard from Mrs. Kusakabe that the ringing was because of the altitude.
"Seattle is only about five hundred feet above sea level," Pop explained.  "Here, we're about four thousand feet above.  That's a big difference."
"As soon as you get used to the altitude, the ringing will stop," Mom promised.
Mitsi rolled over on her cot, blanketed in misery.  She was never going to get used to anything about this place, not the dust or the miles of sagebrush or the pancake-flat landscape without one tree to provide shade from the bullying sun.


Give Dash written by Kirby Larson to readers who loved Duke, to readers who like exceptional historical fiction, to readers who enjoy seeing the world of others and to readers who like dog stories.  I know this book would be a favorite read aloud.  Our children need to experience through great stories what happened in the past so we can all be better.  You have to trust me, this book will move you...deeply.

Please follow the link embedded in Kirby Larson's name to read about her and her other books.

"Doing Everything You Can"

The most detailed information I have on World War II is my Dad's perspective as a soldier in the United States Army.  Several photograph albums are filled with small black and white snapshots representative of his tour of duty.  Many of the stories he told are as fresh in my mind as if I only heard them yesterday, rather than twenty years ago.

I know much less about how it was for those here at home.  Filling this gap are compelling historical fiction books by authors whose meticulous research is evident page after page.  Until I read Duke (Scholastic Press, August 27, 2013), Kirby Larson's most recent title, I had no idea family pets were used to assist military personnel during the war.

Hobie pushed harder against the bike pedals, harder against the cold wind scrubbing his face, as he followed the Adairs' Chrysler sedan.

It's January 1, 1944 in Seattle, Washington.  Eleven-year-old Hobie Hanson is saying good-bye to his best friend; the family is moving to Portland so the father can work in the Navy shipyard.  Hobie's Dad is flying a B-24 on missions in Europe and his Mom has joined the Red Cross.  His seven-year-old sister, June, is even attempting to knit socks for the soldiers.

Remarks by a neighbor, announcements on the radio and even a conversation after his favorite radio show, Hop Harrigan, all urge people to do their part by loaning their pets to Dogs for Defense.  Hobie's head is telling him he should give up Duke but his heart won't let him do it.  He constantly worries about whether he is as courageous or committed as the other men in his family.

An incident with the school bully, Mitch Mitchell, and a chance meeting with the assistant regional director of Dogs for Defense, cause Hobie to reluctantly loan Duke to the program.  As if the sadness of Duke being gone is not enough, tensions at school escalate when a new student, Max Klein, joins their class.  Mitch continues to pick on Hobie, calling him names, looking for opportunities for subtle physical contact, and starts a campaign against Max due to his German heritage.  What's hardest for Hobie to understand in himself is his inability to stand up to Mitch.

A letter from the Marine assigned to Duke increases Hobie's worries.  He thought Duke would be a guard dog here at home with the Army.  Despite the kindness extended by the Marine writing the letter as if it is from Duke, Hobie, to his shame, starts to think of ways to get Duke back.

Special events at school, summer vacation baseball games, more letters from Duke and Pfc. Marv Corff, helping on his family's fishing boat and finding an abused stray dog, make up the days of Hobie's life.  Hobie learns through trial and error some tough lessons about friendship, the difference between knowing the right thing and doing the right thing and the value of family.  News from a Western Union messenger and a nurse at the naval base on Pearl Harbor change everything for Hobie.  Readers will wonder along with Hobie, if he will see his Dad or Duke again.


We quickly become attached to the characters, especially Hobie, in Kirby Larson's Duke through her brilliant writing skills.  Each chapter is titled with words designed to hint at what readers can expect within the next few pages.  Readers are made to feel more personally involved in the story with a date assigned to the chapters.

Descriptions of radio programs, products used during this time period, the buying of Victory stamps by the students, meals cooked (Porcupine Meatballs) and rations used for the purchase of certain items contribute to the authenticity of the story; you are there experiencing life on the home front during World War II.  Dialogue between the characters, the exchange of letters between those serving in the military and Hobie's family and Hobie's thoughts about all the decisions swirling about him, draw you emotionally into this book. Here are a couple of passages from this title.

"Get off," Hobie hollered. "That's mine."
"Finders keepers." Mitch pedaled faster.  Hobie picked up his pace.  He snagged part of Mitch's jacket.  The bike wobbled.  Mitch shook him off.
"Give it back!" Hobie ran harder.
"When I feel like it," Mitch called over his shoulder.  He bumped the bike over a tree root. "Ya-hoo!"
"Young man!" the Doberman's master called. "That's enough. You've had your fun."
"Yeah. Come back here," Hobie yelled.
"Come back?" Mitch repeated. "Okay." He wrenched the bike around sharply, legs pumping like pistons, and headed straight at Hobie.

Hobie and Duke sped for home together, as they'd done hundreds of times before.  But something was different for Hobie.
Like a record with a scratch in it, Mr. Rasmussen's story played over and over in his head.
And in his heart.
His are-you-doing-everything-you-can heart.


Once started Duke written by Kirby Larson will be one of those books read from beginning to end without stopping.  Readers won't be able to turn the pages fast enough, wanting to know the outcome of all the little and big things happening in Hobie's life.  There is so much love in this book; love of country, love of family and the love of a boy for his dog.  I can't recommend this book highly enough.

Please follow the link embedded in Kirby Larson's name above to access her personal website.  This link takes you to a page at Scholastic's website including a discussion guide.  Enjoy her conversation about Duke in the video below.

Always...

The lines shaping who we become, are colored in by the people who enter and leave the days of our lives as well as our response to them.  For readers those numbers increase by leaps and bounds being introduced to real people in works of nonfiction and truly memorable characters in all forms of fiction. Probably more than we understand, these additional people, rarely met outside the pages of a book, influence and inform our personalities in varying degrees.

To connect with a real or imagined person, who has faced and conquered obstacles whether similar or different than ours, is to make their story part of our story.  In 2006 author Kirby Larson, introduced readers to Hattie Inez Brooks, a sixteen-year-old orphan.  Hattie left Iowa in December, 1917, never having felt welcome in the home of her Uncle Holt and Aunt Ivy, to live on her late Uncle Chester's homestead near Vida, Montana.  Hattie Big Sky, winner of a 2007 Newbery Honor award, is the story of her successes, failures, happinesses and heartbreaks as she set forth to "prove up the claim".  We were immersed in those, meeting a cast of characters who helped and hindered her attempts, as the history of the time swirled around them all.

On February 12, 2013 Hattie Ever After celebrated a book birthday.  Kirby Larson brings us back to Montana in June of 1919.  She opens the door; we gladly step through into a past we have come to know and love.

As she did in the previous title a letter begins chapter one.

June 4, 1919
Great Falls, Montana
Brown's Boardinghouse

Dear Perilee,
      You will never guess what I am posting in the mail besides this letter to you: my last check to Mr. Nefzger!  After these long months, Uncle Chester's IOU is paid in full. ...

Hattie finds it ironic she is making money doing the very thing which she left Iowa to avoid; cleaning and cooking in a boardinghouse.  She harbors a secret dream though; being a newspaper reporter after her articles, Honyocker's Homily, sent back to Iowa were published in The Arlington News.  Fate decides to intercede in the form of love.

Long-time friend Charlie Hawley, back home from his service during World War I, questions Hattie about their relationship when he makes a surprise visit.  The wardrobe mistress of a group of performers staying at Brown's has unexpectedly run off with a member of the cast.  A letter for Hattie's deceased Uncle Chester from a mysterious Ruby Danvers is forwarded to her.

These three seemingly unconnected occurrences chart a course for Hattie's new future.  Still unsure but determined to pursue her dream she finds herself in San Francisco as Charlie begins his new career in Seattle.   From Big Sky Country to big city living, we shadow Hattie as she makes her way.

People and moments connect in a chain of events leading to Hattie's employment at the San Francisco Chronicle as...yes...a night crew cleaning woman.  Her curiosity to uncover the truth about her uncle's past, her instinctive nose for news, her beliefs about human nature and her baseball pitching skills, learned from Charlie, all contribute to her being at the right place at the right time.  Plenty of excitement from the good and not-so-good people who cross her path lead Hattie to the best possible outcome.


With precise and painstaking research, Kirby Larson places her vivid, true-to-life characters within a historical setting so real, readers feel as though they've willingly ridden on a time machine.  Through dialogue, letter writing and musings by Hattie we are privy to the distinguishing personality traits of each person in Hattie's world.  With adept skill in her use of words and language Larson conveys a depth of emotion completely captivating her readers.  Here are a couple of passage from Hattie Ever After. (It was hard to narrow it down to only three.)

First impressions might lead one to think that a newspaper morgue was as quiet as...well, as a morgue.  Not that I knew about that firsthand.  But I did not think of "my" morgue as quiet.  Even in the wee hours, a symphony of sounds reverberated throughout this place.  First heard was the thump as one weighty volume was slid from its shelf, followed by the satisfying thump as it was placed on the library table. Then the whisk-whisk refrain of pages being turned enhanced the concerto.  One last set of sounds rounded out the music of a city's memories; each time I delved into those huge leather books, each time I traced my finger over the yellowed columns of newsprint, each time I studied a worn and faded photograph, papery whispers spoke to me of things that had happened long ago, and in so many places it would take an entire atlas to contain them all.  These stories were as irresistible to me as the Italian nougats one of Maude's suitors had brought her.

At the door, he took my hand.  When his palm slid next to mine, it was like a key slipping into my heart.  

Lacy clouds frothed around the seaplane like spun sugar.  We continued to push through to the clear sky above, and I pushed myself up in my seat, worries dissolving like the clouds.  There was no room for fear when faced with such a vista.  From my ever-ascending perch, I could take the city in all at once:  the Palace of Fine Arts, the wharves, Nob Hill.



In an interview Kirby Larson said, of Hattie Big Sky,  the story caught my heart when explaining her purpose in writing about Hattie.  She then goes on to say readers will know if a story is from your heart.  When continuing to tell the tale of Hattie's life after leaving Montana, the fullness in Larson's heart for this character has filled the pages of this remarkable new title, Hattie Ever After.  I have read it twice; receiving an ARC earlier, again after it's release and many of the treasured marked spots repeatedly.  This is historical fiction at its very finest.  Hattie Inez Brooks will become part of your story.

To listen to Kirby Larson's earlier podcasts follow this link to the Hattie Big Sky home page.  Here is a link to some resources at the publisher page for Hattie Big Sky. This link will take you to the Educator's Guide for Hattie Ever After.  A link to Kirby Larson's website is embedded in her name above.