Fourth Grade Journey

A Fourth Grade Teacher's Journey Through the World of Books

Monday, May 31, 2021

An Inside Look #177 (Author Interview)

 An Inside Look with Holly Goldberg Sloan

(Author of The Elephant in the Room)

*Welcome to my favorite feature of my blog.  

*Season #ONE (June of 2016 to March of 2017)

*Season #TWO (Summer of 2017)

*Season #THREE (School Year 2017/2018)

*Season #FOUR (Summer/fall of 2018)

*Season #FIVE (School Year 2018/2019)

*Season #SIX (Summer 2019) 

*Season #SEVEN (Fall 2019) 

*Season #EIGHT (Winter/Spring 2020)

*Season #NINE (Fall 2020)

*I'm excited to be back for season #TEN with brand new interviews/authors.  


*It has been such an honor to connect with authors and "chat" about their novel, characters, and thoughts about the story.

*This is the Twentieth interview in which I'm calling Season #TEN.  

*Thank you to Holly Goldberg Sloan for being the One-Hundred Seventy-Seventh author I've had the pleasure of interviewing.  I truly appreciate it.




The Elephant in the Room

by Holly Goldberg Sloan

(March 2, 2021)

Tell us about the character of Sila.
Sila Tekin is a young girl who lives in Eugene, Oregon. She was born there. Her parents were born in Turkey. So Sila is an American citizen, with Turkish parents and she is fortunate to be able to experience some of Turkish culture through her parents. 


At the start of the novel Sila is outgoing. She has many friends, likes school, and hopes that one day her parents will move out of their apartment building so that she can get a dog or a cat. She loves animals. 

As the story begins, Sila's mother must return to Turkey because of an immigration issue. She is supposed to be gone for eight days. But the eight days turn into eight months. So waiting is what Sila does now. She waits for her world to return to normal.


What do you think is her most admirable quality?
Sila is an empathetic person and the circumstances of her life force her to become even more so. She misses her mother. She feels isolated. She retreats at school from her friend group. But then a chance encounter with an elderly man named Gio Gardino changes her world. 

Sila is able to adapt to change. This past year with Covid-19 and the pandemic all of us have been forced to make changes and adjust. When I wrote about Sila, I had no idea that I would be writing about things that would become so familiar to so many people. On the back of the novel it says: Emotions travel even when people can't. That pretty much sums up the last year.


So is the theme of the book separation?
That's one of the themes. But another equally important theme is friendship. This is the story of the friendship between a girl and elephant. A girl and classmate at school named Mateo, who also befriends the elephant. And a girl and a man who is like a grandfather. This book is about connections. And about expanding the idea of what it means to be there for someone else.


How is Sila different at the end of this story?
Well, she's a year older. She wiser. And yes, she is different. She sees the world in a bigger way. And she recognizes that everyone faces challenges. I don't want to give anything away, but this is a hopeful book.


You lived in Turkey when you were growing up. Is that why you made Sila from this country?
Yes. I loved the time I spent in Istanbul. The generosity of the Turkish people, and their deep, rich culture made a huge impact on me. There is so much history in this part of the world. The art, the food, the architecture--it's all permanently embedded in my brain.


Do you and Sila share any similarities?
I guess all of my characters are in part me. A writer probably can't help that. I do love animals and I do worry about their welfare, so we certainly have that in common. Growing up in Eugene, Oregon (where Sila lives) we had dogs and cats and at one time a goat. We never had an elephant, but I've spent time with them and I've been to Africa.


Can you tell us a little bit about Mateo?
Mateo is a boy in Sila's class. They obviously know each other, but they have never been friends. Mateo is on the spectrum and he's quiet in class, although outside of school he's a big talker. Sila and Mateo are paired in a program that the school is using wherein kids are placed together at the end of the day outside of the classroom in the hopes that they might form some kind of bond. Sila and Mateo in the beginning don't have much interest in that, but circumstances change when an elephant enters the picture.


Can you give us some background on the title of the book?
I like titles that mean more than one thing. The Elephant in the Room is of course an expression meaning the big thing that no one is talking about. The obvious thing. In this story, there really is an elephant. But there are secondary meanings as well. Sila doesn't tell her friends that her mother is gone. Mateo has been the elephant in the room to Sila. Until she's placed in the school program with him, she hasn't tried to get to know him. The title can mean many things. I've just touched on a few.


What do you think Sila is doing as the present time?
I'd like to believe Sila and her family are right now having dinner with Mateo and his mom out at Gio's property. The animals are there, and they are eating Turkish food, which Alp and Oya brought. They are all sitting at a picnic table and they hear birds and the sound of the wind in the pine trees. They have each other and they are laughing....


*Here are links to the One Hundred Seventy-Six interviews...

SEASON #ONE (2016-2017)

























SEASON #FOUR (Summer 2018)






















SEASON #FIVE (2018/2019)













SEASON #SIX (Summer 2019)







SEASON #SEVEN (Fall 2019)




















SEASON #EIGHT (Winter/Spring 2020)

Interview #121 with Melissa Savage (Author of Nessie Quest)

Interview #122 with Tamara Bundy (Author of Pixie Pushes On)

Interview #123 with Lindsay Lackey (Author of All the Impossible Things)

Interview #124 with Tae Keller (Author of When You Trap a Tiger)

Interview #125 with Jamie Sumner (Author of Roll With It)

Interview #126 with Hena Khan (Author of More to the Story)

Interview #127 with Phil Bildner (Author of A High-Five for Glenn Burke)

Interview #128 with Leslie Connor (Author of A Home for Goddesses and Dogs)

Interview#129 with Gillian McDunn (Author of Queen Bee and Me)

Interview #130 with Jody J. Little (Author of Worse Than Weird)

Interview #131 with Jenn Bishop (Author of Things You Can't Say)

Interview #132 with Kaela Noel (Author of Coo)

Interview #133 with Rebecca Stead (Author of The List of Things That Will Not Change)

Interview #134 with Gae Polisner (Author of Jack Kerouac is Dead to Me)

Interview #135 with Emily Blejwas (Author of Like Nothing Amazing Ever Happened)

Interview #136 with Joy McCullough (Author of A Field Guide to Getting Lost)

Interview #137 with Kim Baker (Author of the Water Bears)

Interview #138 with Erin Entrada Kelly (Author of We Dream of Space)

Interview #139 with Jess Redman (Author of Quintessence)

Interview #140 with Melanie Conklin (Author of Every Missing Piece)

Interview #141 with Lindsey Stoddard (Author of Brave Like That)

Interview #142 with Gae Polisner and Nora Raleigh Baskin (Authors of Seven Clues to Home)



SEASON #NINE (Fall 2020)

Interview #143 with Jacqueline Woodson (Author of Before the Ever After)

Interview #144 with Sharon Creech (Author of One Time)

Interview #145 with Barbara Dee (Author of My Life in the Fish Tank)

Interview #146 with Kim Ventrella (Author of The Secret Life of Sam)

Interview #147 with Ellen Hopkins (Author of Closer to NoWhere)

Interview #148 with Alyssa Hollingsworth (Author of The Invisible Boy) 

Interview #149 with Rob Harrell (Author of WINK)

Interview #150 with Shelley Pearsall (Author of Things Seen From Above)

Interview #151 with Anna Staniszewski (Author of The Wonder of Wildflowers)

Interview #152 with Lorelei Savaryn (Author of The Circus of Stolen Dreams)

Interview #153 with Linda Sue Park (Author of Prairie Lotus)

Interview #154 with Lauren Wolk (Author of Echo Mountain) 

Interview #155 with Mae Respicio (Author of Any Day with You)

Interview #156 with Audrey Vernick (Author of After the Worst Thing Happens)

Interview #157 with Ernesto Cisneros (Author of Efren Divided)


SEASON #TEN (Winter/Spring 2021)

Interview #158 with Rebecca Ansari (Author of The In-Between)

Interview #159 with John David Anderson (Author of One Last Shot) 

Interview #160 with Tracy Holczer (Author of Brave in the Woods)

Interview #161 with James Bird (Author of The Brave) 

Interview #162 with Marcella Pixley (Author of Trowbridge Road)

Interview #163 with Barbara O'Connor (Author of Halfway to Harmony)

Interview #164 with Alan Gratz (Author of Ground Zero) 

Interview #165 with Lisa Fipps (Author of Starfish)

Interview #166 with Ann Braden (Author of Flight of the Puffin)

Interview #167 with Kimberly Willis Holt (Author of The Ambassador of NoWhere Texas) 

Interview #168 with Elana K. Arnold (Author of The House That Wasn't There) 

Interview #169 with Erin Soderberg (Author of The Great Peach Experiment)

Interview #170 with Donna Gephart (Author of Abby, Tried, and True)

Interview #171 with M. Evan Wolkenstein (Author of Turtle Boy)

Interview #172 with Lindsey Stoddard (Author of Bea is for Blended)

Interview #173 with Jess Redman (Author of The Adventure is Now)

Interview #174 with David Levithan (Author of The Mysterious Disappearance of Aiden)

Interview #175 with Chris Grabenstein (Author of The Smartest Kid in the Universe)

Interview #176 with Ali Standish (Author of The Mending Summer)

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It's Monday! What Are You Reading? (5/31/

                               

Thanks to Jen and Kellee for hosting this idea on their site.  Here is a link to the site...
                


Books I Will (continue to) Read this Week...  


Finding Junie Kim by Ellen Oh

*My Middle-Grade Novel (Audio)






The Plot by Jean Hanff Korelitz

*My Novel Published for Adult







The Law of Entanglement by Laurinda Lawrence

*My Young Adult Novel







365 Days to Alaska by Cathy Carr

*My Middle-Grade Novel







Books I Read this Past Week...

*Being the last week of school, I didn't have much time to read.  Looking forward to my summer reading time! 
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Wednesday, May 26, 2021

Wonder Wednesday #278 (Blog Tour Stop)

Wonder Wednesday - Brave in the Woods by Tracy Holczer 

*I'm thrilled to be part of the blog tour for the new novel by Tracy Holczer.  

*Brave in the Woods has become one of my new favorite middle-grade novels.  

*I've reposted by review of the novel and my interview with Tracy.  






Brave in the Woods by Tracy Holczer

How I Heard About It:
*I'm a huge fan of Tracy Holczer.  I can remember reading her first novel The Secret Hum of a Daisy and being blown away.  I was thrilled when Tracy's second novel won a Charlotte Huck Book Award.  Hearing about an upcoming third novel made this reader quite pleased.  After being granted an electronic ARC of the story, I began to read immediately and couldn't put the book down.  Tracy never disappoints and sure knows how to write a middle-grade story.  


What It Is About - FIVE Things You Need to Know:
*Juni is missing her older brother Connor who has gone missing in action in Afghanistan.  

*She comes from a family full of curses, along with a miracle or two.  

*When Juni's parents decide not to keep Connor's beloved dog, Juni goes on a journey that will not only change her life, but also those people closest to her. 

*During her quest, Juni learns of her grandmother's "curse" and "miracle" and relives a trek very similar to the one her dear grandma took.  

*With a family dealing with the greatest possible loss, Juni finds the courage, strength, and determination to face her own loss and comes to terms with both the past and her current situation.  


What I Thought Of It - Five Observations/Reflections:
*I'm so pleased to have been granted access to an electronic ARC of Tracy's newest work of fiction.  My TBR pile is bigger than ever, but I put them all aside to read from one of my favorite authors.

*As soon as I began, I knew I was in for a special treat.  Tracy has a way with words that force me to reread sentences, paragraphs, and whole pages.  I want to take in, absorb, and appreciate the language she presents on the page.  

*Juni was one special character and will remain in my heart for quite some time.  I could feel her pain, frustration, and revelations.  

*There were a few occasions when I had tears streaming down my face.  If that isn't a sign of a powerful, meaningful, and thoughtful story, than I don't know what is.

*I always say, add a dog to a story, and I'm 100% in.  Connor's dog brought such joy and depth to the story.  I'm not sure who I loved more, the dog or the people in the dog's life.  


Who Should Read It:
*EVERYONE!  This is one of those stories that needs to be read by young, teen, and adult readers alike.  I already know this is going to be a class read aloud during the 2020/2021 school year.  The novel will be out in the world in January 2021 and I can't wait to get my hands on a physical copy of the book.  Happy Reading!  


Rating:  5 STARS out of 5 Stars



An Inside Look #160 (Author INTERVIEW)



An Inside Look with Tracy Holczer
(Author of Brave in the Woods)

*Welcome to my favorite feature of my blog.  

*Season #ONE (June of 2016 to March of 2017)

*Season #TWO (Summer of 2017)

*Season #THREE (School Year 2017/2018)






*Season #FOUR (Summer/fall of 2018)

*Season #FIVE (School Year 2018/2019)

*Season #SIX (Summer 2019) 

*Season #SEVEN (Fall 2019) 

*Season #EIGHT (Winter/Spring 2020)

*Season #NINE (Fall 2020)

*I'm excited to be back for season #TEN with brand new interviews/authors.  


*It has been such an honor to connect with authors and "chat" about their novel, characters, and thoughts about the story.

*This is the THIRD interview in which I'm calling Season #TEN.  

*Thank you to Tracy Holczer for being the One-Hundred Sixtieth author I've had the pleasure of interviewing.  I truly appreciate it.


*Here is my Review of the Novel..





Brave in the Woods

by Tracy Holczer

(January 5, 2021)

How did you come to know Juni?
Some characters come in really clear and strong from the beginning. Juni wasn’t one of those characters. I think maybe because I had the idea for some of the plot first. So Juni came into focus as I wrote her into scenes. What would she do if this happened? That? Decision by decision crystallized her character for me.


What do you think is Juni’s most admirable quality?
Juni is very loyal. She would go great distances, quite literally, for the people she loves.


Is there anything you wish she would have changed or done differently in her story?Katherine Paterson speaks of “inevitable endings.” That they may not necessarily be the ones you want, but they are the ones that need to be. Without giving too much away, I had a very different ending in mind for Juni. A fairy tale ending. And that was how I originally wrote the first few drafts. Then I gave it to my writing group and editor and they gently suggested I had the wrong ending. As soon as they pointed this out, I knew they were right. But I don’t know that I could have written the whole novel any other way. I was protecting myself, I suppose, much as Juni does.



What do you think she can offer to other children that are experiencing similar situations to what she went through?
I think Juni offers an example of resilience. I hope kids will connect to her because she’s been through something unimaginable and come out the other side. I also hope they know its okay to have messy feelings and are encouraged to find those people in their lives who can help them sort it all out.



How did you research Juni and the circumstances she found herself in?
Early on, I read a quote that stuck with me from Marina Warner, who wrote Once Upon a Time, a Short History of the Fairy Tale, “A fairy tale is a map.” And it really is. So I did a lot of research on fairy tales and read through most of the Grimm stories. I found common threads and tried to play them out through Brave in the Woods. I used names and symbolism from those tales in the form of trees, animals and objects. I thought a lot about what I loved about the Grimm tales when I was growing up – how they didn’t pull any punches. I knew that life could be grim and found validation in those stories. I also read about military service animals, how they are trained and what happens when they are retired from service. I always seem to be writing about change and the accompanying grief that goes along with it, so I read more on that subject, too.


Do you and Juni share any similarities?
We are both very sensitive people, and turn to storytelling for comfort. I tried to write about that for Juni. So kids can see they have power over the stories they tell themselves about who they are. It’s never too late to change your story.


What was the hardest scene to write about her?
Technically, the scene where Anya finally tells Juni about their family history. I re-wrote that scene a bajillion times as this is the final catalyst to send Juni on her quest. Emotionally, it was the last few pages; Juni’s final understanding of the truth and that she couldn’t run away from it any more. I had always envisioned the buck as a part-real/part-magic piece of the story. Is he really there? Or does she only see him as a representation of her brother? In either case, the final scene between them was difficult to write.


Who do you think was her biggest supporter and why?
I think it was Luca. I just surprised myself by writing that. But his name just jumped into my head. I think because Luca saw her, understood what she was going through from the very beginning, and set out to help her figure it out. Her mom and dad were too lost, Anya was too close to the situation. And her best friends were too young to really understand enough to help. But Luca. He stepped in and did what Connor would have done.


Why do you think some young people, like Juni, are able to create their own answers/solutions to difficult life situations?
I think when kids go through tremendous hardship, it shifts something inside of them. It widens their lens on the world and makes them a little more wise than their years. Plus, there are just some kids who don’t give up. But I think most kids are naturally curious about life and want to understand better how it all works. Some just have more motivation, through hardship, to figure it out sooner rather than later.


What do you think Juni is doing as the present time?
I think Juni is enjoying eighth grade as best she can. It will be a tough year for her. But she has the love of best of friends and family to help her through it. 


*Here are links to the One Hundred Fifty-Nine interviews...


SEASON #ONE (2016-2017)

























SEASON #FOUR (Summer 2018)






















SEASON #FIVE (2018/2019)













SEASON #SIX (Summer 2019)







SEASON #SEVEN (Fall 2019)




















SEASON #EIGHT (Winter/Spring 2020)

Interview #121 with Melissa Savage (Author of Nessie Quest)

Interview #122 with Tamara Bundy (Author of Pixie Pushes On)

Interview #123 with Lindsay Lackey (Author of All the Impossible Things)

Interview #124 with Tae Keller (Author of When You Trap a Tiger)

Interview #125 with Jamie Sumner (Author of Roll With It)

Interview #126 with Hena Khan (Author of More to the Story)

Interview #127 with Phil Bildner (Author of A High-Five for Glenn Burke)

Interview #128 with Leslie Connor (Author of A Home for Goddesses and Dogs)

Interview#129 with Gillian McDunn (Author of Queen Bee and Me)

Interview #130 with Jody J. Little (Author of Worse Than Weird)

Interview #131 with Jenn Bishop (Author of Things You Can't Say)

Interview #132 with Kaela Noel (Author of Coo)

Interview #133 with Rebecca Stead (Author of The List of Things That Will Not Change)

Interview #134 with Gae Polisner (Author of Jack Kerouac is Dead to Me)

Interview #135 with Emily Blejwas (Author of Like Nothing Amazing Ever Happened)

Interview #136 with Joy McCullough (Author of A Field Guide to Getting Lost)

Interview #137 with Kim Baker (Author of the Water Bears)

Interview #138 with Erin Entrada Kelly (Author of We Dream of Space)

Interview #139 with Jess Redman (Author of Quintessence)

Interview #140 with Melanie Conklin (Author of Every Missing Piece)

Interview #141 with Lindsey Stoddard (Author of Brave Like That)

Interview #142 with Gae Polisner and Nora Raleigh Baskin (Authors of Seven Clues to Home)



SEASON #NINE (Fall 2020)

Interview #143 with Jacqueline Woodson (Author of Before the Ever After)

Interview #144 with Sharon Creech (Author of One Time)

Interview #145 with Barbara Dee (Author of My Life in the Fish Tank)

Interview #146 with Kim Ventrella (Author of The Secret Life of Sam)

Interview #147 with Ellen Hopkins (Author of Closer to NoWhere)

Interview #148 with Alyssa Hollingsworth (Author of The Invisible Boy) 

Interview #149 with Rob Harrell (Author of WINK)

Interview #150 with Shelley Pearsall (Author of Things Seen From Above)

Interview #151 with Anna Staniszewski (Author of The Wonder of Wildflowers)

Interview #152 with Lorelei Savaryn (Author of The Circus of Stolen Dreams)

Interview #153 with Linda Sue Park (Author of Prairie Lotus)

Interview #154 with Lauren Wolk (Author of Echo Mountain) 

Interview #155 with Mae Respicio (Author of Any Day with You)

Interview #156 with Audrey Vernick (Author of After the Worst Thing Happens)

Interview #157 with Ernesto Cisneros (Author of Efren Divided)


SEASON #TEN (Winter 2021)

Interview #158 with Rebecca Ansari (Author of The In-Between)

Interview #159 with John David Anderson (Author of One Last Shot)

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