Katie’s Comments (group member since Jan 31, 2018)

Katie’s comments from the Munoz Ryan author study group.

For my last book, I chose Becoming Naomi Leon. I absolutely loved this story. Two themes that have run throughout the three books I have read are: Perseverance to overcome difficulties and overwhelming love for your family.

Becoming Naomi Leon is about a girl, her brother, and her grandmother. They live in a trailer park. They do not have many material things, but what they do not have, they make up for it with love. Their neighbors are also family (kind of like Esperanza Rising.) Their mother dropped them off with their grandmother when they were young and one day she comes back into the picture. She has a very manipulative boyfriend, that convinced her to get her daughter (but not her son because he is "weird and defective.") Grandma took the kids to Mexico to try and find their father to see if her will help the grandmother win full custody over the kids so their mother will not seperate them.

This book is a level V. I teach 4th grade and would be able to have my two highest groups read this book in a literature circle. After they have read and discussed the book, I would have them use Google Maps to create a map of their journey from California to Mexico, and back again. I would have them plot dates and what big event happened on that date. (We did this with our Lewis and Clark unit, so the students would be familiar with this task and be able to complete independently.)

One way I could use some ideas from the book is to have my students carve something out of soap. That was Naomis's talent and she had that in common with her father and she got to compete in a competition in Mexico, carving ginormous radishes. For our animal habitats unit, we usually have the students create an animal for their exhibit out of clay, we could give our students the options to carve their animal out of soap with a popsicle stick.

I could also use this book as a read aloud and then we could do the maps as a whole class.

I felt sorry for Esperanza when she saw that the money orders were gone because she had worked so hard to save them. This was her contribution to her family. When she instantly thought Miguel took them, I blindly followed her thinking as the reader. But it did seem to add up that he took them, but I figured it was for a new life for himself.
I would have been in disbelief at the sight of seeing Abuelita. It had been so long, and she was starting to lose hope. I have liked Miguel from the beginning, but now I really love his character. He has always loved Esperanza, and this was his way to really show her.
Now that Esperanza has her family back together and she was able to feel the earth, I think she has found her happiness there.
I really enjoyed this story. I would like a follow up story as to where the families ended up and how each character grows. I want to see Esperanza's life now that her mother and Abuelita are all back together.

I feel for Esperanza right now because she has to work to support her family but she can still understand the needs of the picketers. I am proud of the girl that Esperanza is becoming. She has stepped up and is doing what needs to be done to take care of her family. My heart breaks for her everytime she buys a money order. I know how desperate she is to get Abuelita to California. She needs her, and Ramona desperately needs her mother, too.
I hope she can feel the heartbeat of the earth, because if she can, I think she will feel like California is home. I also hope she feels the heartbeat of the earth so she can stay connected to her papa.
At this point, I feel so sad for Esperanza. She has lost so much, and has been forced to adjust to her knew life so quickly. Her dad passed away, she has had to carry her own weight, her Abuelita is still in Mexico, her mother is in the hospital, Marta is being unkind. She has a lot on her plate for being a young girl, but she is really taking it all in stride.

I am excited to see how Esperanza's character evolves throughout this book. I think she is a very taken care of girl, but suddenly her life is turned upside down. I was heartbroken for Esperanza when her father died. He adored her and he was a very kind landowner. That was not a typical man for the times. I was completely disgusted by the uncles actions. He didn't even give them time to grieve before he courted her mother for power. (I worry that the uncles with figure out how to sabotage their new life in California.)
Her mother seemed to adjust to their new life quickly, out of necessity, to doing whatever you have to do to survive.
You can tell that her mom is a strong woman and is going to do anything to protect herself and her child. Miguel and his family are their family now, and I hope they all take care of each other in California.
I felt sad about how rude Esperanza was to the peasant girl that was admiring her doll on the train. She couldn't even comprehend that they were on the same level. She was appalled that her mother would talk so personally to a peasant woman.
I think Esperanza will evolve and realize how mentally strong she is. She has been taken care of her entire life. We will now get to see if she is made of grit.

I absolutely loved this book. I loved the intertwining of music, family, love, heartache, hope, and trying to follow their heart/dreams. I loved Part 4. I didn't know how the author was going to piece it all together, but I love how seamless and believable everything was. I am guessing/hoping that Ivy and Kenny ended up together. I was really hoping that Elisabeth would finally come back to her family, but I loved that Kenny and Elisabeth did meet. I was happy that Kenny could see the three girls that "cared" for him while he was in the hospital. That was a clue the spell had been broken. I feel relieved that Mike was okay, and he and Frankie got to stay together.
This was a book that I did not want to put down, and I can't wait to read more from this author.

I felt bad that the Yamamato house was graffitied. For awhile, I did think it was Mr. Ward that either did the graffiti or had someone do it for him.

I feel like Mr. Lopez wanted to clean up the graffiti because it wasn't right for someone to deface someone else's property, but I also felt like he did it because he wanted to impress Mr. Yamamato's son so he would sign the document.

I had no idea what was in that hidden room and then when we found out it was musical instruments, it really started to piece all three of the stories together. I also like that Ivy's dad promises to get the flutes to the Yamamato girls.

I do not want bad news to be in the letter. I do not think the author would let him die. If it has to be bad news, I hope it is that he is wounded and will return home soon.

I am still very attached to Friedrich, Mike, and Frankie. I need to have closure with all of these characters.
I have no idea what part 4 has in store for us, but I feel like the harmonica with the M on will will come full circle, somehow.

I really felt for Ivy when she went to get off the bus with
Susan. She had never had to be seperated from her peers before, and there was no reasonable reason for it. It was almost as if she was blindsided, because everyone knew it was this way and no one thought to mention it. When her dad went to talk to the principal's, "this is how it's always been." I also hate the Ivy has to put up with the boys singing Old McDonald Had A Farm.

I am so intrigued with what in behind that locked door in the closet. I do not think they are spies, I think they are being punished for being Japanese; the same as the first story where being Jewish was a crime.

I can totally see how they were suspicious because no matter how educated we get as a society, there are people and races that still feel superior.

I was happy the first family didn't want them. They were just wanting children to work for them. I liked that Frankie sabotaged their chances of getting fostered/adopted by that family because they weren't the right family for them because they couldn't stay together.
I think Mr. Howard is a kind hearted man and didn't want to see the boys separated. He loves Eunice and I think he had dreams of them all being a family. He did say that he would adopt them if he could. (I would enjoyed reading individual books about part 1 and 2 so far, I think there would be a lot to learn about.)
I think Mike is willing to do anything so Frankie is safe and taken care of. He is willing to sacrifice his own well being so that his brother will have a nice life. Frankie adores his big brother and wants to be with him, but he is so young and unassuming that he would have stayed with Eunice and believed that Mike was with the band, if he was or not.
I had already mentally prepared myself for a cliff hanger so I wasn't as frustrated at the end of this section. I really feel like the girls are going to help them in this situation since he could hear the music that all three of them played while he was laying on the ground, unconscious.
Both parts are really similar even though their story lines are different. Music has played a huge role in both stories. They are both based on loving your family, and do anything to protect them. Poverty plays a role in both stories. Kind characters are in both stories. Wanting a better life/ or protecting the life you have is relevant in both stories.
I am excited for the 3rd and 4th parts of the book. I am intrigued to find out what characters are in part 3, but really curious how all of these stories will connect with the girls.

I was a little frustrated with the ending of Friedrich's story because I felt so invested in his life, and the welfare of his whole family. It took me two chapters to mentally move on to a new section of the book.
I love Mike and Frankie's bond. Mike will do anything to protect Frankie. This part started a lot like the last, Friedrich and his sister has the same bond. She wanted to protect him from the mean things people would say about his birthmark. Since the harmonica had a sound that most harmonicas do not, I am hopeful that it was the harmonica Friedrich shipped to America.
I am hopeful that we will learn more about the mystery of Mrs. Sturbridge and she will take a liking to the boys. I would hate to see them sent back to Bishops. Before the boys got adopted together, I was really worried if Frankie was going to do something to ruin it so he could stay with Mike. I am so happy that Mr. Howard chose both boys to be adopted. I feel like Mr. Howard will play a large role in the outcome of this section. Mrs. Sturbridge trusts him and the Potters, so I am hopeful that they will be well taken care of until she comes around.
Both stories have music as their underlying story line. Music has been in all of their hearts. None of these families have been well off. All of the families love each other very hard, and they love each other the best way they know how. Friedrich's dad took him out of school because he loved and wanted to protect him. THe boys granny chose Bishops because of the piano.
I feel like Part 2 will leave us hanging like the first part did, so I am mentally preparing myself for that. I can't wait until Part 4 because I also want to know what happens to the girls from the prelude. I am so hooked on this book.

As of right now, I do not think Friedrich's father was aware of the repercussions of having the two men over to play music. I think he was more concerned about the great opportunity for his son.
I wish Friedrich and his dad would have gone to his uncles house and then waited to leave in the middle of the night.
I was relieved to find out that the sister may not be as big of a Nazi supporter as she lets on.
There has to be some importance of the harmonica and how he left it up to chance of where it will end up. I can't wait to see what comes of the harmonica.
As of right now, I was not thrilled with how this section ended. I hope he does not end up in the asylum, but I fear he will for a little while.
What do you think the significance of the W on the harmonica is? I feel like the W will be very important later in the book.

I completely agree with Friedrich's father for taking him out of that school. As a father, his job is to protect his son, and he did not feel that school was the best choice for him. I was worried what would happen to Friedrich now that he would no longer be going to school. I love that his father worked at a place that accepted Friedrich, and some employees went out of their way to give him a proper education.
I definitely think Friedrich was being led to the harmonica. He can hear music, and we know that the girls were very talented musically. The sound was different than other harmonicas, I can't wait to find out who led him to the harmonica.
I have fortunately been able to visit Dachau and was aware that only pure and perfect Germans were accepted.
I think Elisabeth is brainwashed right now, but I am hoping that the spirits and Friendrich will be able to bring her back to the girl her family knows and loves. I do not want to believe that Elisabeth is a Nazi supporter. I want to believe that she will ultimately come to her senses.
Friedrich has to make his dream come true (he feels music in his heart and I am a sucker for happy endings) and I hope the girls spirits will be able to help him as he will be able to help them. I worry for Friedrich's safety right now because I feel that Elisabeth may be so brainwashed that she will turn in her family if her father doesn't go and speak to the doctor.
I do have to say, I am so hooked on this book and I can't wait to tell my students about it tomorrow at Morning Meeting.

I loved this prologue. At first, I was a little annoyed with the black pages with the white writing because I found it kind of hard to read/focus on. Once I realized what the author was doing, I was hooked. I want to know how the blank pages of the girl's book get filled out. I love the character of Otto, and I look forward to seeing how he changes/grows throughout this book as the girl's messenger.

Hi! My name is Katie and I am a first year teacher. I am teaching 4th grade in Bismarck.