"The Usual Rules"

Students in Mr. Graham's class can click on the comments link below to post their journals.

"The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian

Students in Mr. Graham's class can click on the comments link below to post their journals.

"Touching Snow" by M. Sindy Felin

Thirteen-year-old Karina is barely making it at school. What her teachers don't know is that she and her sisters spend every night trying to avoid beatings from their stepfather -- "The Daddy" -- who uses open hands, fists, or a belt for every little infraction. One evening, older sister Enid takes the fall when the kids fail to eat every bite of the huge meal their mother left for them before going to work. The Daddy ends up beating and burning Enid very, very badly. He goes to jail, but things are complicated. Karina's large Haitian family -- especially her mother -- expect her to take the blame for hurting Enid so "The Daddy" can come back home.

"47" by Walter Mosley

Don't be fooled. This incredible book is not a simple historical account of a slave boy living on a southern plantation where everyone is known by a number. It's so much more, and it's actually science fiction.

Forty-seven is a young slave with a cruel master and the prospect of a tortured, harsh life picking cotton 14 hours a day, 365 days a year. One day, a mysterious runaway slave runs into Forty-seven (literally) on a path,

"When our eyes met the boy seemed to be looking for something inside me. He peered closer, frowning and straining as if he saw something familiar. Then he broke out into a broad grin. He walked up to me, put out a helping hand, and pulled me to my feet.

"There you are at last," he said as if we were playmates just come to the end of a game of hide-and-seek. "I've been looking high and low for you."

Tall John has been looking for Forty-seven for 3,000 years. He brings to him the idea of freedom and equality, and the idea that a fourteen-year-old young man in bondage is the person who can save the universe. The author, Walter Mosley, promises that "47" is the first in a long series. I can't wait until the next one comes out. In the meantime, here's a podcast of an interview with Mosley about this book.

"Little Brother" by Cory Doctorow

Little Brother is one of my favorite books this year (and I like a lot of books). I'm a fan of the author, Cory Doctorow, who is one of the creators of the website BoingBoing.com. A big proponent of loosening copyright laws, he's made his entire Little Brother book downloadable for free on the internet.