I don’t normally use this blog to promote new releases. I’m
making the exception for several reasons. Part of it is that you don’t usually
see spouses publishing separate books at around the same time. Additionally, the
authors are my friends, although I wouldn’t do it for that reason alone.
Mostly, I’m doing it because the proceeds from Janine’s book are going to a
good cause, and because Mike deserves to be recognized for his first attempt at
middle-grade fiction.
Weight of Silence
(WordPool Press, 2019) is a poetry collection based on Janine Harrison’s volunteer
experiences in Haiti in 2012 and 2017. All of her profits go to the
not-for-profit organization Haitian Connection, which assists Haitians—and especially
women and children—in need.
Janine’s collection is part personal experience, part history
lesson, part cultural reality, and all advocacy for the underpriviledged people
of Haiti. Much is lost without the context given by a full poem, and it is
impossible to do justice to any of them by quoting a single stanza. Still, I
will try my best to give you the flavor of the book. You will have to buy it to
get the broader context.
The first example is a verse from a poem called “Izole Chen”
(stray dog). In this selection, Janine uses the many homeless dogs that roam
the country to give her perspective on Haiti’s politican situation.
Whether
in the rural west
or
Port-au-Prince,
after
darkness descends
packs
of dogs become
phantasms
of corrupt governments
and
revolutionaries,
of
armies and
ravaged
innocents,
growling
both as
predator
and prey,
within
a slate gray history.
A
last yowl
punctures
the late night
and
I, who lie awake,
mourn a starving brown
dog.
The second example comes from Janine’s experience trying to
teach English language lessons during Hurricane Sandy. The guest house
mentioned in this poem is where Janine, her husband, and her daughter were
staying at the time. Titled “Pierre,” the poem pays homage to one student’s dedication
to learning even in the most difficult circumstances. It begins with a brief picture
of Pierre’s eagerness and then describes the hurricane’s effect on classes
during Tuesday and Wednesday. This verse is next:
No
class Thursday
anywhere
across the country.
Two
Haitian teachers and the dean
drove
away on Wednesday,
to
check on a grandmother
in
a local fishing villiage
and
have not returned.
A
visiting teacher loses roofs
on
his family’s home and business
in
Cuba and stops smiling—
no
airplane to take him home.
Everything
in the shabby-chic
Bourbon
Street-style guest house
verges
on liquifying.
Every
odor the old abode
ever
imbued resumes.
Electricity
at night by generator.
No
water for showers.
We
host class unoffically
at
the guesthouse.
Six
students come,
Pierre
one,
his homework done and
dry.
Life in Haiti can be dark, and many of Janine’s poems reflect
that. Since I don’t know who might be reading this blog, I have chosen not to
quote the most disturbing ones, but they have their place in this collection,
too.
You will learn a lot about Haiti by reading this book. Janine
even teaches us about the country’s most notorious leaders by putting a poem’s
words in their mouths. But you will have to buy the book to read it.
Two Girls, a Clock, and a Crooked House (Random House Books for Young Readers, 2019) is Michael
Poore’s third book but the first one that I would let a tweenager read. The
other two are humorous, irreverant, and clearly aimed at adults. His third is
also humorous and sometimes irreverant but fits solidly within the middle grade
category.
Mike’s book tells of two girls whose travels back in time
resolve a problem occuring in the present. Beyond calling it humorous fantasy,
it is hard to classify. I could try to compare Mike with Lemony Snicket or Adam
Gidwitz, but the comparison would be misleading because Mike has a style all
his own. Still, if you like those authors’ voices, you will like Mike’s, too.
Like most books, Two Girls, a Clock, and a Crooked House isn’t
perfect. One of the girls is nicknamed “Moo,” and at one point we discover what
made her the way she is. I found that event too serious to fit with the lighter
tone of the book. I also got confused when Amy and Moo discarded their filthy
clothes at the school nurse’s office but somehow retained their hoodies. A bit
more detail and explanation during that scene would have smoothed out some
bumps later on.
In spite of a few imperfections, Two Girls, A Clock, and a
Crooked House is an entertaining read. I recommend it to anyone—adult as
well as middle-grade—who enjoys humorous fantasy written for this age group.
__________
Weight of Silence and Two
Girls, A Clock, and a Crooked House are available at amazon.com.
