Elections, presidency, the Constitution: clarity for kid readers
Kids can’t vote, no, but these times are a terrific lesson in the Constitution, elections and more. Here are some books that can help younger readers get perspective on the news. It’s from Cicely Lewis, a school librarian in Norcross, Georgia.
“Lillian’s Right to Vote: A Celebration of the Voting Rights Act of 1965” by Jonah Winter, illustrated by Shane W. Evans (Schwartz & Wade, 2015; grades one through four). The story of a 100-year-old Black woman on her way to vote who remembers what her ancestors dealt with to get to the polls.
“For Which We Stand: How Our Government Works and Why It Matters” by Jeff Foster, illustrated by Julie McLaughlin (Scholastic, 2020; grades three through seven). The AP government teacher at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, on how voting works, the powers of the president, and how young people can make a difference.
“We the People: The United States Constitution Explored and Explained” by Aura Lewis and Evan Sargent ( Wide Eyed Editions, 2020; grades five through eight). The Constitution may be over 200 years old and full of old-fashioned language, but this book shows how it is still relevant and confronts the challenges of interpreting it. (Atlanta Journal-Constitution)
The first printing of John Grisham’s “A Time for Mercy”
contained some defective copies. Publisher Doubleday says it’s shipping replacements. (Publishers Lunch)
Bill Bryson is retiring. The author of “A Walk in the Woods,” “The Life and Times of the Thunderbolt Kid” and more, told The Times of London, “I don’t know how much of this is pandemic-related [but] I’m really quite enjoying not doing anything at all. For the first time in literally decades I’ve been reading for pleasure and I’m really enjoying it. Whatever time is left to me on this planet I’d like to spend it indulging myself, rather than going out and trying to cover new territory.” Alison Flood cited this in her tribute to Bryson and other retired authors in The Guardian.
Barnes & Noble said some of its systems were hacked, exposing not financial information but potentially customer emails, phone numbers and shipping addresses. (Publishers Weekly)
Publisher
Thomas Nelson was ordered to pay $3 million
in compensatory damages to a printer, EPAC Technologies, in an eight-year-long suit that alleged breach of contract and fraud. The amount, much less than originally awarded, was reduced on appeal. Thomas Nelson is a division of HarperCollins Christian Publishing. (Publishers Weekly, Law360)
Hank Phillippi Ryan’s novel “The Murder List” is deemed best novel of the year by Bouchercon, the world mystery convention. Best first novel: Tara Laskowski’s “One Night Gone.”
New and recent
“White House, Inc.: How Donald Trump Turned the Presidency Into a Business” by Dan Alexander (Portfolio, 320 pp.). The Forbes magazine staff writer offers “the definitive accounting of the business dealings of America’s first billionaire president,” says reviewer Benjamin C. Waterhouse, a history professor and author of “Lobbying America: The Politics of Business from Nixon to NAFTA.” Alexander explores how the operations of President Trump’s business empire since 2016 have influenced his decision-making and U.S. policy. He’s “unflinching” and “explicit” in calling out how “Trump’s business decisions variously violate the emoluments clause, campaign finance and anti-corruption law, or basic standards of democratic accountability,” but also “committed to the truth over partisan point scoring.” For example, he disputes theories common among Trump’s critics. (Washington Post)
Ray Stith III, a Newport News native, West Point alum and former football player who now lives in Texas, has self-published “SelfReflect to Self-Correct” (158 pp.) about being positive, looking closely at one’s self and being resolute in changing. The start: “Tomorrow is a gift, not something that is owed to you.”
Also: Donna Andrews’ “The Gift of the Magpie,” a Meg Lanslow mystery.