Book Review: THE FRIENDSHIP DOLL by Kirby Larson

One of my favorite things about author, Kirby Larson, is her ability to make historical fiction come to life so you feel like you are living in that time period right along with the characters in the book. That's how I felt when I read HATTIE BIG SKY, and Kirby has done it again in her new book, THE FRIENDSHIP DOLL.

THE FRIENDSHIP DOLL begins with the creation of Miss Kanagawa, one of 58 friendship dolls that were sent to the United States in a gesture of friendship from Japan in 1927. Through Miss Kanagawa's eyes we meet four young girls; Bunny, Lois, Willie Mae, and Lucy--each living very different lives during the Great Depression. From Bunny's moral dilemma, to Lois' dreams, to Willie Mae's tragedy, to Lucy's triumph over poverty we get a picture of what life was like, especially for children, during a very difficult time in America's history. Their stories are told in a way that makes all the sights, sounds, and feelings of that time period feel very real.

MOM REVIEW:

This book is written for kids, (okay mainly girls), between the ages of 9-12. It is heart-wrenching and sweet and true to the time period. This is a good book for middle-graders to learn about the realities of the Great Depression, but also to learn about the strength of the people, especially the children, who lived through it. As the character Lucy was told in a letter"What one has to do, one can usually get done."

I would recommend this book to any girl (or boy) who likes reading about American History, or anyone who likes dolls, or anyone who just likes an intriguing, well-told story. In this case, really four intriguing, well-told stories. This would be a good book to read with your child(ren) to help them get a better understanding of what life was like for kids during the Great Depression. It could also open up a discussion about how a positive attitude can make a bad situation better for everyone involved.

I loved reading the historical notes at the end of this book to find out what pieces of this story were real. I love the story of dolls being exchanged between the United States and Japan in a gesture of friendship. Of course, I had to Google "Japanese friendship dolls" so I could see pictures of the actual dolls and find out more about them. You can read about the real friendship dolls and where they are now at this website.

I thoroughly enjoyed THE FRIENDSHIP DOLL. It was a beautiful story sprinkled with historic details, and a positive message throughout. Thank you, Kirby Larson for another wonderful book.


***NOTE: I'm leaving my blurb contest up for the rest of the week, so you can still enter to win THE FRIENDSHIP DOLL, or MY UNFAIR GODMOTHER, or CAYMAN SUMMER.

Kirby Larson Comes to Town

Last week I met Kirby Larson, an author who is (in my humble opinion) a master of the art of storytelling. Kirby came to visit my kids’ school. She got down on a personal level with them by sharing experiences from her childhood as well as the experiences she had writing her books. My favorite moment came after she signed my son’s book. He said in his shy, halting, little voice, “Thank you Kirby Larson,” and she answered back “You’re welcome Zach Wolf.”

As a writer I drank in her personal experiences and advice about what it takes to be an author (persistence, rewriting, persistence, rewriting, and did I mention persistence?). But what I was most impressed with was the stories she chooses to tell.

In her book TWO BOBBIES (co-authored with Mary Nethery), Kirby tells the true story of a dog and a cat lost in post-Katrina New Orleans and how they relied on each other to survive. In NUBS, THE TRUE STORY OF A MUTT, A MARINE, AND A MIRACLE, (also co-authored with Mary Nethery) we see how a dog of war lifted the spirits and stole the hearts of a group of Marines in Iraq and the incredible lengths that Nubs and the soldiers went to so they could stay together. I would recommend these two books to anyone. They are picture books, but I don’t care how old you are. I have a hard time reading either of them without getting choked up.

I also enjoyed, HATTIE BIG SKY, Kirby Larson’s 2007 Newbery Honor book. While this book isn't a true story, it is based on the experiences of one of Kirby’s relatives. I laughed and cried with Hattie through her battles with the weather, crops, the young and dashing rancher who lived (relatively) next door, and a cantankerous cow. (That part of the story I could totally relate to. I had to milk cows on my grandpa’s farm when I was a teenager—trust me, any bad words you say to a cow are completely forgivable).

These three books show how an author can bring bits and pieces, images, and family stories together to touch the lives of the people who read them.

Thank you Kirby for writing inspiring stories, for taking the time to inspire the students at my sons’ school (and me), and for forgiving me for spelling your name wrong in Ann's book trailer. (Note to everyone, double-check the spelling of any award-winning authors you might end up meeting.)

I want to know... What books have touched you and why? What is it about the story that stayed with you?

Wolf Trailers

Yesterday while I celebrated the launch of my little blog, (I treated myself to a licorice tea between laundry loads), my mentor, sounding board, crying shoulder, and darling sister-in-law, ANGELA MORRISON, celebrated the launch of her second book, SING ME TO SLEEP. She began her official release in London, Ontario (that's Canada, not England), with the family of the boy who inspired her to write the story and with AMABILE, the amazingly talented youth choir featured in her book (and also in the book trailer, but more about that later).

I won't review SING ME TO SLEEP here except to say it's an awesome, beautiful, sweetly-sad, satisfying read. Check it out. You won't be disappointed.

I couldn't be with Angela, except in spirit, so I spent the day doing the next best thing--meeting another incredible author, KIRBY LARSON. (Kirby's visit to my kids' school will be the topic for another post.) Interestingly enough, Kirby Larsen was a writing teacher for an author named Ann Gonzalez who was my writing teachers. And that segues nicely (shameless plug alert) into another part of my life and writing I wanted to post about.

First, I have another mental health related confession to make...I see visions. Okay, before you hit the little x in the corner of this post and write me off as a nut job, let me explain. Besides being a mom/blogger/aspiring novelist I do BOOK TRAILERS. "What is a book trailer?" you might ask, or "Why do I care?" or even, "Why am I still reading this when I have homework to do, dinner to cook, or reruns on the CW to watch?"

For those of you that are scratching your head (and not reaching for the mouse and/or the remote control) I'll enlighten you. A book trailer is a lot like a movie trailer--showing you all the best parts, ruining the best jokes, making the plot look way more interesting than it usually is. (Oh, wait, that’s movie trailers. A book trailer would never do that.)

Simply, a book trailer is a short video that introduces and promotes a book. Do a search on "book trailer" on YouTube and you'll find a bunch of them. They're all the rage. Seriously. Go look. I'll wait...

Saw a few? Any good ones? Okay, back to me. Since I have a degree in broadcasting, doing a book trailer seemed like a natural way to help my friend and writing teacher, Ann Gonzalez, promote her book. And hence I started to see visions--visions of what scene would pique a reader's interest and best sum up the book, and visions of how I could use book trailers to further my own writing career. (I know I promised this wouldn't all be about me, but I am writing this, so I get a few shameless plugs, right?)

So with way more fanfare than necessary, I introduce another part of my life...MY BOOK TRAILERS. The first is for RUNNING FOR MY LIFE, by ANN GONZALEZ--a story about a girl dealing with her mother's metal illness. The second is for THE RING by BOBBIE PYRON, about a girl boxer, (I got to hang out with some very tough girls at the Tacoma Boxing Club for that one.) And the third is for SING ME TO SLEEP by ANGELA MORRISON, it features a beautiful song written by Angela and sung by the real Amabile choir. (See how I tied everything back to Angela and the beginning of this post? Nice circular plotting on my part.)

My trailers are at jen18wolf on YouTube.

Later, I'll post the entire first scene from SING ME TO SLEEP, the way I shot it. I couldn't fit the whole scene into a two minute trailer.

Now that you've watched my trailers, (and a bunch from YouTube), I’d like to know...what do you love or hate in a book trailer? (Feel free to be kind/brutal with mine.) Do they give a good idea of what the book is about? Do you think they're a good way to promote a book?