Darling, Mercy Dog of World War 1

I just finished reading a great book for dog lovers - young and old - Darling, Mercy Dog of World War 1. One of a series of new books from Peachtree Publishers called Dog Chronicles, this one sheds light on service dogs used during the First World War. Written by Alison Hart, author of numerous books for children and teens, it is perfectly suited for upper elementary, as well as older readers.

Told from the dog's point of view, we follow Darling from her family life in England to the trenches of war in France and Belgium. Just as the book (and movie) War Horse informed us of the plight of so many horses during this horrific war, this book shows another group of animals who were also useful. Personally, although I'm a huge dog and animal lover, I was largely unaware of dogs being used for messengers, scouts and mercy dogs during this time period.

Here's a short summary:

At home in England, Darling is a mischievous but much loved pet to Robert and Katherine. But when the British military asks families to volunteer their dogs to help the war effort, they send Darling off to be trained, even though it is very hard to say goodbye. Darling goes through training along with many other dogs and is ultimately used as a mercy dog, seeking out injured soldiers on the battlefield and leading the medics to them. After saving the lives of numerous soldiers, Darling is faced with a major challenge.

What I liked about this book: I learned something new. Mercy dogs were taught to go quietly through the battlefields, amidst the noise and chaos, to search for injured and wounded soldiers. Then they would return to seek help.

It has some great interior illustrations from Michael G. Montgomery, which lend an element of understanding to the text.

I also liked that although the horrors of war are touched upon, they are not dwelt on excessively in this book, making it (in my opinion) suitable for children. The story is mostly about what the dog Darling goes through in her ordeals, the human connections she makes along the way, and *Spoiler Alert* it has a happy (although not perfect) ending, which is one reason I am recommending it. And yes, I did shed a tear or two at the end. It got to me.

For more on Alison Hart and her numerous other books, please visit her website: http://www.alisonhartbooks.com/

Darling, Mercy Dog of World War 1 is available in hardback from your local independent bookstore, or from online retailers. It's definitely one to put on your Christmas list for young dog or animal lovers.

Cowboys in the Ghetto

Last night I finished a book I had really been looking forward to reading: Ghetto Cowboy by G. Neri.

Of course, as a horse lover, I'll read anything with a horse in it, but what had really appealed to me was that the setting was unusual - inner city cowboys keeping horses in an urban environment - so that kids who have never actually seen a prairie might get the feel of horses, and how to live by The Cowboy Way.

Things I Liked: 

I liked this book on many levels.

I loved the story of young Coltrane, who gets dumped off to live with his dad, Harper, who he has never met.

I loved the dialogue of the street kids, and how Coltrane slowly warms up to his dad.

I loved how he responded to one horse in particular who he names Boo, and how the horse brings out feelings of sensitivity in him. This part rings true, because all horse people understand how "the outside of a horse is good for the inside of a man" or a woman, or most especially a young punk kid with major problems in life.

I loved, loved the illustrations by Jesse Joshua Watson, and I wish there were more of them. They perfectly depicted the feelings of the novel and the actual "scenes," and put us right in the thick of the story.

Things that bothered Me:

Okay, at the risk of sounding petty - I am a horse woman, and there were certain things that just, well, bugged me because they weren't correct.

First off, one of the major elements in the story is that these horses, kept in decrepit corral and stalls (which the city is trying to shut down) are mostly rescued race horses.

Dad: "They're old racehorses that normally get sold off for meat. We pool our money to buy what we can at auction before the slaughterhouse gets 'em." . . .

Son: But my mind's stuck on the meat part. "People eat horses?" I ask.

Dad: "Dogs. They get sold for dog food."

But according to this article on Wikipidia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Horse_slaughter horse meat has been banned from pet food since the 1970's, and 90% of horsemeat goes for human consumption overseas. With all the intense discussion these days about the pros and cons of horse slaughter, how could an author get this fact wrong? In fact, several more times in the book there is talk about horses ending up as dog food. And now this book will sit on library and school shelves around the country for years to come perpetuating this misinformation. Are we dumbing this down for young people? Or did the author truly not know this? Surely, Candlewick, the publisher, should have checked this out.

Okay, a couple more petty little things. When Harp is getting Boo ready for Cole's first ride on a horse, he saddles him, then asks for "them stirrup straps," which he then attaches to the saddle. Well, maybe on a English saddle you'd do it like that. But on a Western saddle (which it obviously is, because not much later Cole grabs the "knob" on the top of the saddle to get on) the stirrups are already attached. (Trust me, I owned a saddle shop, I know these things.)

Worse yet, when Cole's horse spooks at a plastic bag, Harp attaches a "leash" to him (a rope that runs to the spooky horse's saddle) as if that will help. No, no, no, and NO. I could see him attaching a rope to the horse's halter and ponying him through a spooky neighborhood. That's a common thing you might do for the safety of a beginning rider. But if you attach a rope from one horse to another's saddle, you are only inviting a wreck. (Don't ask me how I know this.) 

I will shut my mouth and not mention how three inner-city boys (two of which have never been on a horse before, and one only once) can steal three horses from a barn, jump on them bareback during the night, with no halters or gear of any kind, and guide them through a corral, out a gate, and away through the park in the dark.

Now granted, I am a sixty-something white woman and not the intended audience for this book. Hopefully, it will still appeal to reluctant-reading boys who are looking for a bit of an adventure, and probably girls who are attracted by a horse on the cover (as I was.)

The story itself was great, the setting unique, and I believe it is still a worthwhile read.

But I know lots of horse lovers are going to read this book, and some things are going to bother them. So authors, if you're going to write about something you are totally unacquainted with, please get all your facts straight. Okay, I'll shut up now.

For more about how G. Neri was inspired to write this story, read here http://cynthialeitichsmith.blogspot.com/2011/08/guest-post-g-neri-on-on-trail-to-ghetto.html

Readers, find this book, and tell me what you think. Regardless of all my petty grievances with the facts of the book, I still give it: 4 out of 5 stars.

September 12th

I had intended to write a post on September 11th, in which I waxed eloquently about how the events of 9/11 affected me deeply, and also helped me to focus my writing and start my career as a children's author. (Which is all true.)

Alas, I was too busy reading a book about a boy escaping Afghanistan to write that post. Here's the book I read on September 11th, and it's the best middle-grade novel I've read all year:

Shooting Kabul, by N.H.Senzai

Simon and Schuster Books for Young Readers/ 2010

Shortly before the events of 9/11/2001, 11 year old Fadi escapes from Afghanistan with his family to America, as the Taliban close in. But his little sister Mariam is left behind, and lost. How can Fadi adjust to his new life in the United States, when he suffers enormous guilt over losing his six-year-old sister? How can he possibly explain to the bullies at school that he's not a terrorist? Will he ever see Mariam again?

This heart-wrenching story really grabbed me. Find a copy and read it. That is all.

Should we Rename Middle Grade?

When someone outside of the publishing industry asks me what kind of books I write, I used to answer "children's books."

"Oh, that must be so fun," they might say, naming off some of their favorite picture books. Then I'd amend my answer to say, "No, I write Middle Grade," at which point my well-wishers would look at me blankly. To a large portion of the general public, there are only two kinds of books - children's picture books, and everything else.

So now when people ask me what I write, I say "novels for children." They get that -sort of. "Like Black Beauty?" they might answer.

In the publishing industry, the names for book genres for young readers make sense, up to a point. Picture books, easy readers, early chapter books, middle-grade, tween (is this a new classification?) YA. But where in the world did the term Middle Grade even come from?

When I try to explain to anyone outside of the industry that I write Middle Grade books, they think of middle school, junior high, grades 7-8, so it makes no sense to them when I say that Middle Grade means grades 4-6, and up.

Publisher age ranges further compound the problem. Some are labeled 8-12 (which means no 13-14 year old kid would want to read it, even though they might Love. It.)

Our library system uses J for junior and YA for young adult books, and has them shelved in completely different areas of the library. This is unfortunate, because there are great middle grade books shelved over in the YA section that fifth graders will never find. And Junior itself is a term that seems kind of secondary in nature anyway, don't you think?

There are a couple of great new blogs right now that champion Middle Grade books: Middle Grade Ninja and
From the Mixed-Up Files of Middle Grade Authors.

At the moment, all the buzz is about YA. Young Adult. When blogs run contests (including mine) offering a YA books as a prize, I get easily double the entrants than if I offer a Middle Grade book. Why is this? Does this mean that Middle Grade authors feel they have to push their writing, adding more romance and older themes in order to get a coveted YA title on their books and perhaps make them more attractive to the general public, or sell more?

I hope not. What I think we need is a new name. A new name for the genre of book for 8-12 year old. Those kids who (because of the influence of television, movies, and the internet) are not nearly so innocent as they were even a decade ago. I don't particularly care for Tween, because of the connotation of being In-between, not this and not that.

But I truly feel that if a New Name (for middle-grade) was developed - one that more accurately portrays a novel filled with plot lines that kids would relate to, but not necessarily nitty-gritty sex stuff - then this genre of book would:

a) be easier to describe to the public
b) be more willingly grabbed up by kids and parents, and
c) maybe finally garner the respect that it needs.

Thoughts? Comments? New Names or Suggestions for the Middle Grade Genre?