Monday, January 26, 2009
February's Featured Book of the Month
We hope you’ve enjoyed our January Featured Book of the Month title. For a sneak peak at our February selection (which is also our community-wide On the Same Page title), click here!
Monday, January 19, 2009
Related Reading: More Childhood Memoirs Set in the 1950s
The Prize Winner of Defiance, Ohio: How My Mother Raised 10 Kids on 25 Words or Less by Terry Ryan
Written by her daughter Terry, Evelyn Ryan fights poverty and an alcoholic husband by entering and winning contests in which she writes short, rhymed jingles and advertising slogans for popular consumer products of the era.
Rocket Boys by Homer Hickham
In 1957, 14-year-old Homer “Sonny” Hickam watches Sputnik fly over his hometown of Coalwood, West Virginia, and sets out with his friends to learn all they can about launching rockets.
This Boy’s Life by Tobias Wolff
Young Toby Wolff grows up with an abusive stepfather in this award-winning, classic coming-of-age memoir.
Wait Till Next Year: A Memoir by Doris Kearns Goodwin
Set in the suburbs of New York, Goodwin pens a moving tribute to her father and their shared love of baseball and the Brooklyn Dodgers.
Written by her daughter Terry, Evelyn Ryan fights poverty and an alcoholic husband by entering and winning contests in which she writes short, rhymed jingles and advertising slogans for popular consumer products of the era.
Rocket Boys by Homer Hickham
In 1957, 14-year-old Homer “Sonny” Hickam watches Sputnik fly over his hometown of Coalwood, West Virginia, and sets out with his friends to learn all they can about launching rockets.
This Boy’s Life by Tobias Wolff
Young Toby Wolff grows up with an abusive stepfather in this award-winning, classic coming-of-age memoir.
Wait Till Next Year: A Memoir by Doris Kearns Goodwin
Set in the suburbs of New York, Goodwin pens a moving tribute to her father and their shared love of baseball and the Brooklyn Dodgers.
Related Reading: More Childhood Tales That Will Make You Laugh
A Girl Named Zippy: Growing Up Small in Mooreland, Indiana and
She Got Up Off the Couch: And Other Heroic Acts from Mooreland, Indiana by Haven Kimmel
Born in 1965, Kimmel humorously writes about her childhood and rural small-town life in Mooreland--population 300.
Me Talk Pretty One Day and Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim by David Sedaris
Sedaris' childhood dramas and his quirky family are often the topics of discussion in these hilarious essay collections.
Why I’m Like This: True Stories by Cynthia Kaplan
Often compared to David Sedaris, Kaplan's honestly frank essays recall summer camp, school crushes, and growing up into the world of adulthood.
She Got Up Off the Couch: And Other Heroic Acts from Mooreland, Indiana by Haven Kimmel
Born in 1965, Kimmel humorously writes about her childhood and rural small-town life in Mooreland--population 300.
Me Talk Pretty One Day and Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim by David Sedaris
Sedaris' childhood dramas and his quirky family are often the topics of discussion in these hilarious essay collections.
Why I’m Like This: True Stories by Cynthia Kaplan
Often compared to David Sedaris, Kaplan's honestly frank essays recall summer camp, school crushes, and growing up into the world of adulthood.
Monday, January 12, 2009
More Discussion Questions for The Life and Times of the Thunderbolt Kid
I hope you’re enjoying our Featured Book of the Month selection. Here are a few more discussion questions for you to consider. Join the conversation and tell us what you think!
Bryson paints the 1950’s as an innocent, almost idyllic time. Was it?
Which of the people Bryson introduces in his memoir would you most like to meet or spend time with? Were there any who particularly reminded you of someone you knew when you were younger?
If you were to assume an identity as a superhero, what would your powers be?
Discussion questions courtesy of www.litlovers.com, the Madison Public Library, and the Twin Falls Public Library
Bryson paints the 1950’s as an innocent, almost idyllic time. Was it?
Which of the people Bryson introduces in his memoir would you most like to meet or spend time with? Were there any who particularly reminded you of someone you knew when you were younger?
If you were to assume an identity as a superhero, what would your powers be?
Discussion questions courtesy of www.litlovers.com, the Madison Public Library, and the Twin Falls Public Library
Friday, January 2, 2009
Let's Get Started: Discussion Questions for The Life and Times of the Thunderbolt Kid
What is one of your favorite (or funniest) memories from childhood? Do you have any memories that are similar to Bryson’s?
What was your impression of Bryson’s father and mother?
Have you read any of Bryson’s travelogues? Do you prefer his travel writing or his memoir? Why?
What was your impression of Bryson’s father and mother?
Have you read any of Bryson’s travelogues? Do you prefer his travel writing or his memoir? Why?
Special thanks to the Madison Public Library in Madison, Wisconsin and the Twin Falls Public Library in Twin Falls, Idaho for sharing some of their discussion questions with us.
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