An update from our twentieth Book Club meeting! Last Saturday, September 26, was the Stone Soup Book Club’s first Book Club meeting at its new meeting time: 9am PST on Saturdays. The Book Club ran for around an half-and-a-half and was attended by thirty participants from across the US, as well as in the UK. The book we discussed was The War I Finally Won by Kimberly Brubaker Bradley, which is the sequel to our previous read, The War that Saved My Life. In The War I Finally Won, Ada and Jamie continue living under the care of kindly Susan in rural England during World War II. Our first activity was splitting into “ARTT rooms” which are social breakout rooms of three or four people. In these breakout rooms, people introduced themselves and were able to share out and talk about their favorite books. The ARTT rooms are a great way to get to know people! Next, we split into two groups, each of which discussed the similarities and differences between The War I Finally Won and The War that Saved My Life. It was really cool to hear what people thought of the two books, and which one they liked better! We then went into discussion groups to talk about the characters and settings in The War I Finally Won. It was great to get everyone’s perspectives on these topics (as well as to hear who their favorite characters were!), and to explore how all of the people and places in the book are connected. We also talked about themes in The War I Finally Won; we discussed what elements of the book impacted the themes, such as places, actions, and people. Some of the themes we came up with are these: bravery, trust, friendship, acceptance, and finding a home. Finally, before we chose our next Book Club book, we read an email interview that author Kimberly Brubaker Bradley did- just for us! When we discussed The War that Saved My Life, we sent her ten questions about the book. Then, we were able to send her three more about The War I Finally Won. We read out the answers to all of these questions in our meeting. It was extraordinarily cool to hear Ms. Bradley’s thought process on different parts of the book, as well as her advice about writing; and of course, we thank her immensely for answering our questions about the book! Please, if you attended this Book Club meeting, we would love it if you would write a thank-you note to Ms. Bradley. You can send them to me at anya@stonesoup.com and I will forward them along to Ms. Bradley. Lastly, we chose our new book. There were ten options, and the one we chose is: Keeper of the Lost Cities (book 1) by Shannon Messenger. We will be discussing this book at our next meeting on 10/31. And, since that meeting will be on Halloween, we are inviting all of our Book Club participants to dress up as their favorite book character for Book Club (and bring candy, if they wish)! Our Next Book (to be discussed on 10/31): Keeper of the Lost Cities, by Shannon Messenger Special Halloween Book Club Activity! Since our next meeting is on Halloween, we are inviting all of our Book Club participants to dress up as their favorite book character for Book Club, and bring candy, if they wish! The Stone Soup Book Club is open to all kids ages 9-13. We will meet on the last Saturday of October and the first Saturday of December at 9am PST via Zoom. Registration is required. It is $10 per class–and half off for all subscribers. You can sign up for Book Club here.
Kimberly Brubaker Bradley
Book Club Report: The War that Saved My Life, by Kimberly Brubaker Bradley
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!
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!
