Pajama Press

“Giraffe and Bird run with the same crowd, but a friendship it is not, or at least not quite yet and certainly not in the traditional sense of the word. One way or another they manage to compete against each other for the title of most obnoxious throughout the course of any given day bit just because they don’t shared each others clothes and gossip all doesn’t mean that they don’t have mutual respect for one another. The truth of this matter is exposed when one average day at the watering hole turns into a moment of embarrassment that sends one slightly awkward friend away with his head hung low. What created this sad turn of events? The thoughtless words or rather giggles and guffaws of another… good thing he has a friend willing to show his true colors in order to set them straight.”

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Yesterday was Pink Shirt Day in Canada. To promote the anti-bullying campaign, Lost in a Great Book reviewed Creeps and Nix Minus One, both YA novels with a bullying thread. Here is what the reviewer had to say about Nix Minus One:

“Nix Minus One by the remarkable Jill MacLean tells us about Nix, a boy in rural Nova Scotia who is trying to find his place in the world. Nix used to be ‘the fat kid’ – the one that everyone teased – and while he may have lost weight, he still faces his bully every day. Things are a little better for Nix, but he still feels set apart from his peers, preferring to work in his father’s wood shop or to slowly build a connection with a neighbour’s abused dog instead of doing things with his classmates. Nix is a normal teen with realistic responses; when catastrophe strikes, he deals with his anger and grief in completely logical ways although it’s painful to read. MacLean writes teen boys incredibly well – last year’s Red Maple selection, Home Truths from the perspective of a school bully was equally as poignant, but with Nix she has gone even further, creating a wounded boy who seeks friendship and solace in alternative ways because he has been so badly burned before. The book is also written in free verse, lending a sense of lyricism to the narrative, and you quickly fall into Nix’s thoughts. There’s more to the story than just this plotline, but the bullying is an integral part of who Nix has become.”

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Gr 1-3–Kato, a young Ugandan boy, serves his family by filling jerry cans with a day’s worth of water each morning. His journey to the borehole takes him down hills, past cattle fields, and by soldiers standing guard. On this particular day, he pauses on his way back into town to peek inside an aid worker’s truck and sees that it is filled with shoes. While finishing his chores, he finds a white poppy in the field and picks it for the aid worker who gives the village children new shoes, the “good trade” of the title. The illustrations are bright and geometric, computer-generated but quite textural, appearing almost mixed media. The large images are full of subtle details that show the lifestyle and daily activities common in the small, lush village. The text is spare and poetic and the pictures capture the tone and supply the bulk of the information. Young readers will enjoy this sweet day-in-the-life snapshot.—Jennifer Miskec, Longwood University, Farmville, VA

The International Reading Association has published a series of book reviews about social justice-themed books for children of all ages. One of their selections is One Step at a Time: A Vietnamese Child Finds Her Way by Marsha Forchuk Skrypuch:

“This companion book to Last Airlift: A Vietnamese Orphan’s Rescue from War (2012) provides the chapters that follow in the life of young Tuyet, a Vietnamese orphan stricken with polio and raised in a Vietnamese orphanage until her adoption by a Canadian family. As Tuyet becomes part of her new family, she also faces the surgeries that are required to repair her inward-turning foot. Unable to speak much English, the young girl is frightened by the hospital and surgical lights, the doctors, the consultations and examinations since she is still dealing with the nightmares of war-torn Vietnam and near-death experiences with guns and helicopters. As the surgeries conclude and the painful physical therapy begins, her new life starts to take shape. The cover of the book and the red shoes pictured take on a very special meaning by the end of this heart-warming book that will leave readers in tears. Teachers can read an interview with the author on the back matter for her book.”

—Karen Hildebrand, Ohio Library and Reading Consultant

Click here to see the full social justice book review list.

In Jill MacLean’s YA novel Nix Minus One, protagonist Nixon Humbolt develops a relationship with his neighbour’s neglected dog, Twig. When Twig is sold to another owner who physically abuses her, Nix is determined to rescue her. But how?

Many of us have been in Nix’s situation. It can be daunting—how can you protect the animal without breaking the law yourself? Here is a good place to start:

Download the printer-friendly colour version
Download the printer-friendly black-and-white version

Infographic design by Sarfaraaz Alladin

Cross-posted at Pajama Party blog

“Beautiful verse, weirdly romantic, fantastic setting in Maritime Canada, violent, redemptive, sad, uplifting. I really loved this. I especially love the brilliantly simple cover and the woodworking motif that permeates the book. The cover is TEXTURED! Check it out!”

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“…In an interview Jill Maclean she said she writes character driven books. She hit the nail on the head with that statement, given the memorable characters she creates here…Nix, Roxy, Bryan, Twig, Chase, Loren and Blue, and Nix’s parents. Set in Newfoundland, this is his story about family, conflict, friendship, death, secrets, a dog and a budding romance. The characters who people the pages are expertly drawn: flawed, remarkable, and redemptive for the most part.

I love them for many reasons…their vulnerability, their strength, their unparalleled concern for others. Well, not Bryan…not at all, but there has to be a villain; or the men who own Twig and treat her so abominably. Sorrow, and an inability to deal with it, tears at the Humboldt family which is stoic, secretive, and who all have reasons for doing what they do…”

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Tuyet was born in Vietnam and raised in an orphanage until a family in the US adopts her.  Tuyet was stricken with polio which has left her leg weak and her foot twisted.  She needs to have a series of operations to help her walk again and this is her story.  Tuyet doesn’t speak English and is very scared about what is happening, but her parents find people to translate for her to help her along until she learns English.  This is a story of bravery, love, and courage.

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“…Alma Fullerton has written this simple but eloquent account of how giving is a boon to both the giver and the recipient. A wise Chinese proverb says: “A lot of fragrance always clings to the hand of one that gives roses.” That is certainly true of Kato. Hats off to Fullerton and illustrator Karen Patkau for this touching African tale about generosity and kindness!” —Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat

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“…Nix Minus One shows off Jill MacLean’s characteristic strong plotting that helped win countless awards and nominations for her other books: The Nine Lives of Travis Keating (Fitzhenry & Whiteside, 2008), The Present Tense of Prinny Murphy (Fitzhenry & Whiteside, 2009) and Home Truths (Dancing Cat Books, 2010).  She creates characters who would be considered ordinary, i.e., less than perfect, and has them deal with troubling, even tragic circumstances.  Roxy, Nix, Blue, and even Mom and Dad, are more reflective of Jill MacLean’s readership than the sterile but beautiful people of popular shows and movies.  By making Nix Minus One‘s characters into “real” people who make some wise decisions, some incredibly poor choices and some that fortuitously leave no permanent scars, Jill MacLean fosters understanding and empathy.

I would like to recognize Nix Minus One as Jill MacLean’s first foray into the novels-in-verse genre, heralding a new achievement in writing for her.  While her writing is strong and fluid but laced with vulnerability, Nix Minus One demonstrates the one-two punch nature of novels in verse:  the author’s word choice and sentence structure are now enhanced with the form of the writing.  The structure of the verse can intensify the text, or suggest confusion, weakness or apathy, though Jill MacLean always chooses wisely, never overworking her form or content.  So, while the title suggests a subtraction or loss, I believe Nix Minus One demonstrates that Jill MacLean has found the literary means, i.e., free verse, to add to the total experience of one of her stories.  As an equation, that would read,

Nix – 1 =  Jill MacLean²“

—Helen Kubiw

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