An update from our eighteenth and nineteenth Book Club meetings! Important Note: Starting in September, Book Club is moving to Saturdays at 9am PST. It will take place only on the last Saturday of each month. Please check Stone Soup’s Newsletters and the Book Club page in the coming days and weeks for more information. Over the past two weeks, the Stone Soup Book Club has been discussing The War that Saved My Life by Kimberly Brubaker Bradley. The book is about a girl, Ada, who has a clubfoot. During World War II, she and her brother Jamie are evacuated from their unloving mother in London, and end up in Kent, under the care of a kind woman named Susan. As the book progresses, Ada overcomes some of the trauma of her childhood, and most importantly, finds a place where she belongs. Additionally, the Book Club was lucky enough to participate in an email interview with the author, Kimberly Brubaker Bradley, which is discussed further below. In our first week of discussions, we started by simply sharing out whether we liked the book so far; it was very interesting to hear everyone’s opinions. We then split into breakout rooms which talked about both the setting and characters in The War that Saved My Life. We discussed what we thought of certain characters, and what the different settings in the book represented. All in all, we thought that London, the place where Ada was kept locked in the apartment she shared with Jamie and their mother (Mam) represented a cage, while Kent, the place where Ada was free to go outside, where she made friends and rode horses, signified freedom. Following those breakout rooms, we began to talk about how we would come up with a list of questions for Kimberly Brubaker Bradley to answer. We split into several breakout rooms, each of which came up with five questions, and then shared the questions out in the whole group. We managed to narrow down our list to ten questions, and then emailed them to Bradley, eagerly awaiting her answers for the next week! In our second week of discussions, we began by talking about the end of the book; first, where Ada and Jamie are quite happy and content, and then where they discover that they were not as free from Mam as they thought. We discussed how this reunion–albeit not a happy one–gave Ada the chance to stand up to Mam, and prove that she would not be mistreated again. Next, we broke into three breakout rooms to speculate what the sequel to The War that Saved My Life might be about. We thought about certain plot points, and whether they could carry over to the next book, and also about the book’s themes, such as Trust and a Sense of Belonging. It was really fun to hear what everyone guessed. Finally, we read out Kimberly Brubaker Bradley’s answers to the questions we had sent her. As we read about which characters and events had been inspired by her life, and how she decided to write The War that Saved My Life, we talked about whether we had expected the answers she gave, or whether they were a surprise. Overall, it was great fun to have had our own interview with Kimberly Brubaker Bradley, and we thank her tremendously! We also chose the next book for Book Club, which is listed below. Our Next Book: The War I Finally Won, by Kimberly Brubaker Bradley Another Note: The War I Finally Won is the sequel to The War that Saved My Life (WtSML). Please note that you do NOT have to have read WtSML in order to join our discussion. Of course, you are welcome to, but it is not required. The Stone Soup Book Club is open to all Stone Soup contributors and subscribers, age 9-13. Starting in September, we will meet on the last Saturday of every month at 9am PST (12pm EST) via Zoom to discuss our chosen book. Join us!
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Book Club Report: Paint the Wind, by Pam Muñoz Ryan
An update from our sixteenth and seventeenth Book Club meetings! Over the past two weeks, the Stone Soup Book Club has been reading Paint the Wind by Pam Muñoz Ryan. The novel is about a girl, Maya, who has lived a very sheltered life with her grandmother after her parents’ death–that is, until she goes to live with her mother’s family in Wyoming, people who love horses and the great outdoors. Both of our sessions started with a “social breakout room,” inspired by the ARTT room in one of our previous books, Harbor Me. Since we have very fascinating discussions in Book Club, we figured that it would be nice if we could get to know each other better. In these breakout rooms, participants are in groups of 2 or 3, and are welcome to just talk to each other for 5-7 minutes. Most everyone seems to enjoy these social breakout rooms. Our first week of discussions included breakout rooms in which we talked about character and setting in Paint the Wind, both what we think about them and what role they play in the plot. We decided that the characters seemed to mirror the setting they were in, and that the settings provided a strong contrast between a sheltered life and an open life. Next, we talked a bit about the role of wild horses in the book. The horses play important roles, as they are something that connects Maya to the mother she never really knew. We also talked about how the horses, who live in the wild, relate to the fact that Maya wants to live a more open, less rigid, life. In our second week of discussions, we first split into two breakout rooms to discuss the end of the book. There are several dramatic situations near the end of Paint the Wind, and we talked about how they caused Maya to grow as a character, as well whether we found those situations plausible. Furthermore, we brainstormed about themes for the book, which we shared out in our whole group. We came up with: family, freedom, and change. Next, we read sections of an interview with Pam Muñoz Ryan about Paint the Wind. It was fascinating to hear the author’s thought process. Finally, since the idea of change, and of expanding our horizons, is so important in Paint the Wind, we all thought about times when we had tried something new and expanded our horizons, and then shared out. It was cool to hear what everyone had to say! We will begin discussing our next book (see below) on August 19. Our Next Book (To be discussed on August 19 and August 26): The War that Saved My Life by Kimberly Brubaker Bradley The Stone Soup Book Club is open to all Stone Soup contributors and subscribers, age 9-13. We meet every Wednesday at 1 p.m. PST (4 p.m. EST) for one hour via Zoom to discuss our chosen book. Join us!
Book Club Report: Harbor Me, by Jacqueline Woodson
An update from our fourteenth and fifteenth Book Club meetings! Over the past two weeks, the Stone Soup Book Club has been reading Harbor Me by Jacqueline Woodson. The story is about six children in Brooklyn, NY, who end up talking to each other in the old art room without any adult supervision (they end up calling the room the “ARTT Room” (A Room to Talk)). The kids–Haley, Holly, Estaban, Amari, Tiago, and Ashton–become friends as the year goes on, and they share their problems with one another, helping each other through all of their issues. In our first week of discussion, we focused on themes and characters. We discussed how we found the characters to be relatable, and how the interactions between the characters seemed very real, as well as talking about major themes–such as immigration, bullying, racism, incarceration, friendship, and family–and what roles they play in the book, as well as how they affect the lives and actions of the characters. Next, we talked about what it means to be a harbor to someone, as is suggested by the title of the book. We also shared experiences of either harboring someone, or being harbored by someone, and how meaningful both of those were. In our second week of discussions (our fifteenth week of Book Club!) we started out with a very fun activity! We split the group up into breakout rooms of two or three, and let each group be its own ARTT room. The participants talked about whatever they wanted, and were not required to report what they discussed. Reflecting on their experience, it seemed that most people thought it was fun to talk to people they didn’t really know, and find out what interests they held in common. It seems that the Book Club participants would be interested in participating in more ARTT rooms! Next, we discussed the end of the book; overall, we all agreed that it was very ambiguous. This led to a brief conversation where we discussed if there was a sequel, what we would want it to be about. Most people agreed that they would want a sort of reunion between the characters. Other ideas included: the characters must save the ARTT room from being destroyed, or even having an entirely different set of characters who bond in the room. Finally, we chose our new book, which is listed below! IMPORTANT: Book Club is taking a week off, and will not meet on Wednesday, July 29. We will resume Book Club on August 5. Keep reading in the meantime! The Stone Soup Book Club is open to all Stone Soup contributors and subscribers, age 9-13. We meet every Wednesday at 1pm PST (4pm EST) for one hour via Zoom to discuss our chosen book. Join us! Our Next Book (August 5 & August 12): Paint the Wind by Pam Muñoz Ryan
