Literature Discussion: A Long Way from Chicago by Richard Peck

Choosing books can be both exciting and challenging. In some ways, looking at the possibilities is like looking at a line of presents ready to be opened on Christmas morning. On the other hand, the sheer number of books out there is somewhat overwhelming. For that reason I do sometimes get a bit discouraged when looking for the "perfect" book to dig into. After all, reading is an investment in time and energy. Many books also draw you into the story and truly make you "feel" things right along with their characters.

I find it helpful to hear what other people have to say about books I might be interested in. Good friends and family give me great ideas. I also use reviews on Amazon and Goodreads. I have also found it helpful to peruse notated suggestions from books like Honey for a Teen's Heart by Gladys Hunt and Barbara Hampton. This book in particular gives some of the authors' favorite books as well as synopses and some notes which help the reader find books compatible with their interests and values.

I recently read one of the books which was highly recommended by Hunt and Hampton: A Long Way from Chicago by Richard Peck. Overall, it also got high reviews from both Amazon and Goodreads.

One thing to keep in mind about reviews (including mine) is that each person brings his or her own life experience to a book. This means that there will often be widely varying, even strongly divided opinions about some books. 

Some of the positive things about the book:

*One of its biggest strengths is the humor. Some scenes between the grandmother and her grandchildren are quite funny. 

*It's a pretty short book at around 150 pages and it flows pretty quickly. I could see this, in combination with its humor, as something that would attract even reluctant-reading teens.

Some of the negative things about the book:

*Not all people will appreciate the type of humor in the book. The way the narrator and Grandma talk about other people is less than flattering. 

 In the end, most adults would probably enjoy it and parents know their children well enough to be able to decide together whether this book would be for them.

Questions to discuss:

*How do the characters change by the end of the book? 

*Would you like to spend a week with a Grandma like this? Why or why not?

*Why do you suppose the children's parents sent them to Grandma's for a week each summer?

*Does Grandma enjoy having the kids for a week? Back up your opinion with text from the book.

*The book takes place mostly in the 1930's. How do the events of this time period shape Grandma's values? How do the events shape the types of activities the children experience while at Grandma's?

*Could you turn the tables on Grandma? What if you brought Grandma to Chicago for a week? What could the kids teach her?

Top 10 Quotes to Spark Discussion: Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte

 Discussing books can truly be one of the great joys of time spent with others! Sometimes, though, it's difficult to know where to begin. The following quotes from Jane Eyre are not only some of the "gold nuggets" of the book, still applicable today. They also provide a window into the plot and characters.  For instance, after reading the quote you can discuss the circumstances surrounding the encounter, as well as how the quote backs up or contradicts the character's usual manner. This can be an extremely enlightening exercise in delving into the literature.



#1 In Chapter 4, Mr. Brocklehurst visits the house. Mrs. Reed says some pretty negative things about Jane. Jane feels that Mrs. Reed is "sowing aversion and unkindness along her future path".


#2 In Chapter 10, the typhus outbreak has shed light on the harsh conditions at the school. The author encourages a balance in extremes: "combine reason with strictness, comfort with economy, compassion with uprightness".


#3, #4, #5 In Chapter 14, Mr. Rochester alludes to the fact that he made some wrong turns in life when he was about Jane's age. Mr. Rochester warns Jane against such folly, saying that "Remorse is the poison of life." Jane counters by reminding him that "Repentance is said to be the cure." He argues that "It is not..." though "Reformation may be..." (Note: these three quotes really say more when considered separately, and have been divided for this reason.)


#6 Chapter 21 includes this quote, upon Jane's return to visit the ailing Mrs. Reed: "Feeling without judgment is a washy draught indeed; but judgment untempered by feeling is too bitter and husky a morsel for human deglutition." Who said this quote and what does it show about their character? (And what is "deglutition"?)


#7 Chapter 23 includes a purposeful scene between Jane and Mr. Rochester in which he states, "I sometimes have a queer feeling with regard to you...especially when you are near me, as now. It is as if I had a string somewhere under my left ribs, tightly and inextricably knotted to a similar string situated in the corresponding quarter of your little frame. And if that boisterous (English) Channel, and 200 miles or so of land came broad between us, I am afraid that cord of communion would be snapt; and then I've a nervous notion I should take to bleeding inwardly..."



#8 Chapter 24 continues on a similar subject when Jane says, "I am not an angel...Mr. Rochester, you must neither expect nor exact anything celestial of me-for you will not get it, any more than I shall get it of you; which I do not at all anticipate." 


#9 Chapter 27 includes something of  a climactic moment in which Jane must reason with herself in order to decide her next move. "Who in the world cares for you?" (Jane asks herself). "Or who will be injured by what you do?"..."I care for myself" (she decides) "Law and principles are not for the times when there is no temptation; they are for such moments as this, when body and soul rise in mutiny against their rigour..."


#10 In Chapter 34 Jane contemplates a very different offer of marriage from a very different man. She realizes, "He asks me to be his wife, and has no more of a husband's heart for me than that frowning giant of a rock, down which the stream is foaming in yonder gorge." 


Bonus: So much is said at the end of the book between Jane and Mr. Rochester, a conclusion of so many belated thoughts and words. Each reader might find that they have a favorite quote from the final chapters which would be really great to share.

10 WAYS TO EXPLORE LITERATURE: ACROSS FIVE APRILS

Reading a book with someone else can be very rewarding! When discussing the book, though, sometimes it's difficult to know where to begin. Here are some things to consider about Across Five Aprils by Irene Hunt. The story is set in America during the Civil War and follows the struggles of one Illinois family.

(I've included some thoughts on the questions at the end of the post.)

1. What gave the author, Irene Hunt, the inspiration for writing the book?

2. Briefly describe the main event(s) of the "five Aprils".

3. Is anything left "up in the air" at the end of the book.

4. Is any character untouched by the war? Back it up with details from the story.

5. Pick one (or two) characters and explain how they are forever changed or touched by the Civil War.

6. The book mentions numerous important battles in the war. Plot them on a map. Re-create Shadrach's "line of x's" in which he sets up the geography behind the strategy.
Look into some of the the battles that are mentioned. Especially keep an eye out for first-hand accounts (especially letters) from people living at the time.

7. In the book, Jethro writes a letter to President Lincoln. Why? Choose a current issue that you are familiar with. Write a letter to the current president about this issue.

8. Do you see anything of yourself in the main character, Jethro? In what ways are you similar and different? Is there another character that you connect with?

9. Toward the end of the book, Jethro is contemplating what post-war "peace" will look like. Briefly research Reconstruction. Did it achieve the long-awaited peace?

10. Many of the characters and people mentioned in the book must grapple with the idea of right and wrong. (Wilse debating Jethro's family, Lincoln and the deserters, Jethro helping Eb are just a few). In several cases, a back-and-forth debate is given. Choose an issue which you are familiar with. Can you set up the back-and-forth arguments of both sides of the issue?

Bonus: The act of "writing" is so central to this book. Letters are used to help characters communicate with one another, newspapers bring news from the war, and the editor's English grammar book educates young Jethro. Has writing always been this important in people's lives? Is it still as important today? In a time when we can receive instantaneous text and e-mail, can we appreciate the agony of waiting weeks for news of our loved ones? When was the last time you wrote an old-fashioned letter to someone?


Notes: 
#1-The author's note in my copy explains how her Jethro's family was modeled after her grandfather.
#2-A sample answer: The First April-Fort Sumter and the beginning of the war, preceded by much talk, debate, and anticipation/The Second April-Jethro had just "left his childhood behind him" the week before, when his father became ill/The Third April-Jethro received his letter from Lincoln just recently which explained his April 1 plan regarding the deserters/The Fourth April-Much talk of the presidential election of 1864/The Fifth April-End of the Civil War and assassination of Lincoln
 #3-A few things left uncertain by the end of the book include Bill's final fate, the '49er son, and the state of the United States. Many readers will have their own questions which they are curious to know, which are not stated in the book.
#4-I would like to hear other people's answers to this one. Most, if not all, characters seem quite affected by the war. Even the ostracized Burdow family sees something of a change because of all this war has brought with it.
#9-The success or failure of Reconstruction is somewhat "up in the air" itself. Since it depends upon who you ask, be sure to seek more than one source of information on this topic.
#10-I find with many students that it's the process that's important here, even if we disagree on the right answer. "Can you back up your case?" "Can you do it respectfully?" "Can you do it without an ad hominem?" Knowing what the "other side" argues is also helpful in honing your own case.