The Miseducation of Cameron Post

The Miseducation of Cameron Post  

By Emily M. Danforth  

Cameron Post is a girl from Montana. She loves to swim, watch movies, and hang out with Irene, her best friend. One night Irene and Cameron share a kiss. Sadly a few days later Cameron’s parents die in an accident. This leaves Cameron to live with her grandmother and Aunt Ruth.  The book chronicles her life as she gets older. After Cameron is outed, she is sent away to a conversion therapy camp called “God’s Promise”. There, she is put into therapy sessions and makes friends with other ‘sinful’ teens. It’s a very horrible place as one may expect and after an incident when one teen is badly injured, Cameron and two other teens make a plan to run away. The book ends with the reader not knowing what will happen to the teens, only that Cameron has made peace with her parents. While it is a good ending the reader wants to know more. It is easy to see why this book has gotten banned a lot. There are scenes with sex, drinking, and drugs in them. The main character is a lesbian girl struggling with her sexuality and abuse. These are all very popular reasons books have gotten banned. This book could also be very triggering to some. However, this book can also be very therapeutic to read. So many people have tried to change who they are because they think they are ‘wrong’ or because someone else thinks they are ‘wrong’ as well. This book should be in libraries, but it may not be appropriate for every student to read, because of its triggering elements. It is up to the librarian to know the students and help them decide if it’s the right book. This book is a great addition to a High School or public library. 

BIBLIO: 2013, Blazer Bray, Ages 15-17, $12.99- $22.80 

REVIEWER: Ella Frey  

FORMAT: Young Adult  

ISBN: 978-0062020574 

 

 

Ella Fitzgerald: The Tale of a Vocal Virtuoso

Ella Fitzgerald: The Tale of a Vocal Virtuoso  

By Andrea Davis Pinkey  

Illustrated by Brian Pinkey  

The Tale of a Vocal Virtuoso is a picture book about the legendary singer Ella Fitzgerald. It has an interesting format and narrator. It is narrated by a cat named Scat Cat Monroe. Scat Cat Monroe says he knew Ella and got his name from her. The book is told in 4 ‘tracks’ like a chapter book with an index. The book goes from Scat Cat’s introduction to the track that shows Ella growing up in Yonkers. It talks about how she was discovered after starting to win musical competitions and perform even though she was originally anxious about it. She is discovered by Bardou Ali, who works for the Chick Webb Orchestra.  In 1937, The Savoy Battle of the Bands occurred. It pitted the Benny Goodman orchestra against the Chick Webb Orchestra. The contest lasted five hours but Ella’s orchestra eventually won. According to the book, this was Ella’s big break and she soon landed record deals and nightclub spots.  She soon met Dizzy Gillespie, another singer, and performs at Carnegie Hall. The book concludes, rather abruptly, with Scat Cat Monroe talking about how he knew Ella. There is a section in the back that has a biography and sources. The art is beautiful and well done. There is a fantastical element to some of the images, like when Ella is seen flying over New York in a scene where she sings. This book tries to accomplish a lot in a short number of pages. The author could have focused on one point in her life, such as the Carnegie Hall performance instead of trying to trace most of her career. This would be a good introduction to Ella Fitzgerald but there are some more current works about her life that would be better suited for a library's collection.  

BIBLIO: 2002, Hyperion Books for Children, Ages 4-10, $6.99-$26.63 

REVIEWER: Ella Frey  

FORMAT: Picture Book 

ISBN: 978-1439591604  

 

 

Displacement

 

Displacement  

By Kiku Hughes  

Displacement is a semi-autobiographical graphic novel. Kiku is a 16-year-old girl on vacation in San Fransisco. Her Grandmother had lived in Japanese internment camps but died before Kiku was born so she does not know a lot about that aspect of her culture. When she hears Trump talking about banning Muslims from entering the US, she is ‘displaced’ in time and ends up waiting for her number to be called to enter an internment camp. She stays as one in California before being taken to a The Delta Internment Camp in Topaz, Utah. In the first camp, Kiku lives with a young woman named May. May is involved in resistance efforts, Kiku mentions that she never learned about resistance because all she was taught was that the people just took what was happening to them. This book teaches a lot of important history that is not taught in schools. It discusses a Loyalty Questionnaire that if two specific questions were both answered no, you would be sent to another camp. A throughline throughout the book is Kiku’s grandmother, Ernestina. She is at the same camps as Kiku and while they do not interact Kiku feels very connected to her. After she tries to contact her grandmother, Kiku is whisked back to the present day where no time has passed. She talks to her mother and her mother reveals she went through the same ‘displacement’. They end up diving into family history and they learn a lot. This book has themes of generational trauma, love, loss, and hope. It ties back to the recent past when republicans were trying to ban some religious groups from coming to the US. The book discusses the children being held at the Mexican border. This book is essential reading and needs to be in libraries.  

BIBLIO: 2020, Macmillian, Ages12-18, $17.99 

REVIEWER: Ella Frey  

FORMAT: Young Adult  

ISBN: 9781250193537