Baby Got Book discussion

So we've clearly all been busy bees this Summer! Jen, would you like to pick the book to read for August? I remember you had two suggestions, so which one would you like to read? I'm excited to read something different! :)

Well, they were both "kids" books. One 4th grade other 6th. I was thinking perhaps both, they are short. I'll post questions for both then you can choose what you want to do. Does that sound ok?

Well, they were both "kids" books. One 4th grade other 6th. I was thinking perhaps both, they are short. I'll post questions for both then you can choose what you want to do. Does that sound ok?

Even better. I LOVE children's books, so yes, let's do it!

What were the titles again, though? Just so we can have them on the August thread, and also because I'm too lazy to go back and find them. ;-)

Hitty: Her First Hundred Years by Rachel Field
The Midwife's Apprentice by Karen Cushman

Ok friends!!
Here are the questions. The first three are for both books and then each book gets two more.


1. What did you think of the books? Both were Newbery Award winners do you feel they lived up to the honor?

2. Midwife's Apprentice was written in 1995 and Hitty: Her first hundred years was written in 1929. Do you think they are still relevant today?

3. Midwife's Apprentice is a 6th grade reading level and Hitty: Her First Hundred Years is a 4th grade reading level and both are taught in schools today. Do you think they are age appropriate? Do you feel they should still be required reading?

4. In Midwifes Apprentice, how does Alyce change during the novel? Is there one person who has more influence on Alice than another? Why or why not?

5. Do you think there are the same type of opportunities today for girls to go from dung heap to a "needed" position with in the community?

6. In Hitty, what are some advantages of having these adventures narrated from the point of view of a doll?

7. It's been 86 years since Hitty was published, do you think her adventures during that time would be as significant as her first hundred?

Okay, so I read Midwife's Apprentice and LOVED it, but I just can't get into Hitty. I keep trying to give it 50 pages and I haven't even gotten there because I keep getting too bored. :( So I'll answer what I can!

1: Midwife's Apprentice I read in just a couple hours or so and it had me hooked. I didn't want to put it down. It was definitely deserving of a Newberry: it gives you a history lesson and also inspires empathy toward the poor and orphaned. It's an important social commentary about the worth of every human being. Hitty, on the other hand, didn't live up to the honor. I think in the 20s it was likely ahead of its time and incredibly interesting, but it's lost its luster over time. Or maybe I just didn't read far enough to be able to appreciate it...

2. I think books are always relevant, even outdated scientific ones! They teach us history, compassion, and often teach us about ourselves and human nature.

3. Yes, I'd say they're both age-appropriate, though I don't think they should be required reading. There are plenty of other books that kids will find easier to relate to and also be able to learn from at the same time.

4. In MA, Alyce becomes confident and finds her worth. That is mostly reflected when she gives herself a name: "Alyce". I think the one who has the most influence on her is the cat. It loves her unconditionally and is a constant friend. But I guess if you want a human the midwife will have had the most influence, not intentionally, but by trusting her and teaching her she's given Alyce a purpose and recognized her as having a talent. Their relationship reminds me of the one between Maggie Smith and the "untouchable" in "The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel." Maggie Smith is trying to be rude to her, as she is to everyone else, only to realize that the mere fact that she is speaking to her and acknowledging her is a kindness the woman has never known.

5. There are lots of opportunities today for girls to be empowered as Alyce was, and many of them have a similar life to Alyce's. In many third world countries, particularly in smaller villages, women do not have status or basic human rights. (You could argue that this is the main reason these countries REMAIN third-world---they do not use half of their talent) They are expected to have sex and have children and that's it. Many are forced to marry as children, or sold into sex slavery and prostitution, or raped and abused, and believe it or not, many die in childbirth, not simply because it takes so long to get them to a hospital, but also because when they do get there the doctors don't want to help them if they know they likely won't get paid the full amount. In any medical situation girls are more likely to die than boys, because parents and spouses wait longer to take them to the hospital as they don't see them as valuable enough to pay the fees for them. But DESPITE this, more and more organizations are developing local efforts to help empower women. They can get microloans to start their own business, they can get sponsored and receive an education, some countries are trying to train midwives to perform common medical procedures since there aren't enough doctors to go around for the c-sections and fistula repair surgeries that are too, too common. There is always hope, no matter the situation, but there needs to be MORE opportunities for girls like Alyce in the world than there currently are.

6 & 7: Sorry, I don't think I read enough to be able to answer these.

Thanks for picking these out and posting questions, Jen Jen! :)

Guyyyyyyyys I'm a failure and I just didn't get to these this month. :( It's been crazy. BUT the next book that Jenn picked out looks great! I'm excited to get started on that one! Please don't hate me for not getting to these books. I'd like to read them sometime in the future!

I totally agree with Tiff that I couldn't really get into Hitty. It took me forever to finish. Husband kinda made fun of me. I though that because I picked the books and was writing the question perhaps I should read it. I'm glad I finished though. I changed my stop reading policy to 50% of the book because some really great reads have slow beginnings.

1. I found both to be well written and agree that they deserve the award. The difference in style made me wonder about the change in audience and the difference a few generations makes. "Lost its luster" Is a great way of putting it. I did end up liking them both very much.

2. And 3.
I agree that "books" are always relevant and these are age appropriate. But is the "easier to relate" that gets me. I wonder on the topic of Hitty, a small simple ash doll not only surviving but being extremely well cared for and loved, being lost on today's children. Perhaps that's why it's important to keep teaching it. When our society is always bigger and better, newer and shinier; we lose the value of what it means to need and want and the importance a simple doll should have on a child.
When it comes to MA, so many youth have no real concept of working hard to better oneself. Or what it actually takes to give birth to a child. Again maybe that's why we should keep teaching it.

4.I agree with Tiff. The moment it when she names herself alyce, and about the cat. I love the analogy about Maggie Smith, but I think the man at the inn is a better example. He not only teachers her to read and write but does it with wanting anything in return, and through that allows her to realize that she is capable of anything she puts her mind to.

5. I do think that opportunities are out there but I feel they are few and far between. I'm not convinced that we in 2015 are where we need to be. I think Alyce's situation (rags to riches) is less "easy" then it was before.

6. There are a number of advantages from having the book narrated from the dolls point of view are. One we were able to follow Hitty for a hundred years, where people don't necessarily live that long. We were able to have an outside point of view on customs and lifestyles from someone who was not "raised" to believe in one thing, she mostly spoke in facts.

7. I think a number of significant things have happened in the last 90 years, but I am not sure that Hitty's adventures would be. If someone did buy her from the antiques shop I'm not convinced they play with her. It could be uneventful looking at nothing in a collection.