The Radium Girls

I read The Radium Girls: The Dark Story of America's Shining Women by Kate Moore while traveling after having it on my to-read list for awhile. The book description reads, "The Curies’ newly discovered element of radium makes gleaming headlines across the nation as the fresh face of beauty, and wonder drug of the medical community. From body lotion to tonic water, the popular new element shines bright in the otherwise dark years of the First World War. Meanwhile, hundreds of girls toil amidst the glowing dust of the radium-dial factories. The glittering chemical covers their bodies from head to toe; they light up the night like industrious fireflies. With such a coveted job, these 'shining girls' are the luckiest alive — until they begin to fall mysteriously ill. But the factories that once offered golden opportunities are now ignoring all claims of the gruesome side effects, and the women’s cries of corruption. And as the fatal poison of the radium takes hold, the brave shining girls find themselves embroiled in one of the biggest scandals of America’s early 20th century, and in a groundbreaking battle for workers’ rights that will echo for centuries to come."

This book was AMAZING. Sometimes nonfiction books can be slow reads, but this one was fascinating and engaging and easy to get through. I knew very little about radium and so was very interested in reading about what was understood about it at that time. It was heartbreaking to read about the girls' medical problems and how they could not find help and support--and yet so inspiring when they found people willing to put in the work to find them justice. I really enjoyed this read and would highly recommend it.

Rating: * * * (3/3 = Loved it)

We Are Displaced

I had We Are Displaced: My Journey and Stories from Refugee Girls Around the World by Malala Yousafzai on my to-read list for awhile and finally got to it on a recent flight. The book description says, "After her father was murdered, Maria escaped in the middle of the night with her mother.
Zaynab was out of school for two years as she fled war before landing in America. Her sister, Sabreen, survived a harrowing journey to Italy. Ajida escaped horrific violence, but then found herself battling the elements to keep her family safe. Malala's experiences visiting refugee camps caused her to reconsider her own displacement -- first as an Internally Displaced Person when she was a young child in Pakistan, and then as an international activist who could travel anywhere in the world except to the home she loved. In We Are Displaced, Malala not only explores her own story, but she also shares the personal stories of some of the incredible girls she has met on her journeys -- girls who have lost their community, relatives, and often the only world they've ever known."

This was a great read. I was inspired by the many different girls whose stories were shared and all that they have gone through to find safety and peace. The book begins with a quote that says, "No one leave home unless home is the mouth of a shark. You only run for the border when you see the whole city running as well." And then Malala explained her purpose in writing the book--that too many people don't understand that refugees are ordinary people who just found themselves in a situation where they had no choice but to leave home. I think the book did that beautifully--helping us see these girls as normal, everyday people who faced the unthinkable.

Rating: * * * (3/3 = Loved it)

The Scarlet Pimpernel

I read The Scarlet Pimpernel by Baroness Orczy for my (adult) book club. The book description says, "The year is 1792. The French Revolution, driven to excess by its own triumph, has turned into a reign of terror. Daily, tumbrels bearing new victims to the guillotine roll over the cobbled streets of Paris.… Thus the stage is set for one of the most enthralling novels of historical adventure ever written.
The mysterious figure known as the Scarlet Pimpernel, sworn to rescue helpless men, women, and children from their doom; his implacable foe, the French agent Chauvelin, relentlessly hunting him down; and lovely Marguerite Blakeney, a beautiful French exile married to an English lord and caught in a terrible conflict of loyalties—all play their parts in a suspenseful tale that ranges from the squalid slums of Paris to the aristocratic salons of London, from intrigue on a great English country estate to the final denouement on the cliffs of the French coast."

I ended up liking this book, but boy was it hard for me to get into it at the beginning! I had the book for more than a month and only read like 30 pages. Finally I was down to the wire in terms of the book club meeting coming up, so I forced myself to read more--and finally got into it and finished the rest of the book in just a few days. The old fashioned language was just hard for me to follow, and I just wasn't pulled into the story at first. But I ended up enjoying it and finding it very adventurous at the end. I'm proud of myself for getting through it. :) I also found on this blog that I read this book like 10 years ago (which I hardly remembered) and felt pretty much the same about it. :)

Rating: * * (2/3 = Liked it)

Emmy in the Key of Code

I read Emmy in the Key of Code by Aimee Lucido for my girls' book club. The book description reads, "In a new city, at a new school, twelve-year-old Emmy has never felt more out of tune. Things start to look up when she takes her first coding class, unexpectedly connecting with the material—and Abigail, a new friend—through a shared language: music. But when Emmy gets bad news about their computer teacher, and finds out Abigail isn’t being entirely honest about their friendship, she feels like her new life is screeching to a halt. Despite these obstacles, Emmy is determined to prove one thing: that, for the first time ever, she isn’t a wrong note, but a musician in the world’s most beautiful symphony."

This was a nice read. It was written in verse and so pretty quick to get through, and I thought the author wrote it in a fun way (involving coding language/format in how she wrote some parts). The book was engaging with characters I rooted for. Not much else to say since it's been a couple months since I read it. :) I made a virtual escape room for the girls in the book club here: https://sites.google.com/view/emmyinthekeyofcode/home

Rating: * * (2/3 = Liked it)

Signs of Survival

I somehow heard of Signs of Survival: A Memoir of the Holocaust by Renee Hartman and Joshua M. Greene and got it from the library. The book description reads, "As Jews living in 1940s Czechoslovakia, Renee, Herta, and their parents were in immediate danger when the Holocaust came to their door. As the only hearing person in her family, Renee had to alert her parents and sister whenever the sound of Nazi boots approached their home so they could hide. But soon their parents were tragically taken away, and the two sisters went on the run, desperate to find a safe place to hide. Eventually they, too, would be captured and taken to the concentration camp Bergen-Belsen. Communicating in sign language and relying on each other for strength in the midst of illness, death, and starvation, Renee and Herta would have to fight to survive the darkest of times."

This was a great read. The accounts of Renee and Herta are from oral histories they recorded about their experiences in the Holocaust. Because of that format, it was different than a novel is written and so not quite as engaging, but it was a very quick read and a powerful story. It was also an approachable story that showed the horrors of the Holocaust without it being too much for children. I think my sensitive 11-year-old could handle this read just fine. Renee and Herta are pretty incredible people who endured so much, and I'm glad I read their story.

Rating: * * (2/3 = Liked it)

The War I Finally Won

Emmeline and I recently read The War That Saved My Life by Kimberly Brubaker Bradley for the girls' book club I run. (I had read it previously, but she hadn't.) She read the sequel afterward, so I decided to re-read it too: The War I Finally Won. Here's the book description: "When Ada’s clubfoot is surgically fixed at last, she knows for certain that she’s not what her mother said she was—damaged, deranged, crippled mentally as well as physically. She’s not a daughter anymore, either. Who is she now? World War II rages on, and Ada and her brother, Jamie, move with their guardian, Susan, into a cottage with the iron-faced Lady Thorton and her daughter, Maggie. Life in the crowded home is tense. Then Ruth moves in. Ruth, a Jewish girl, from Germany. A German? Could Ruth be a spy? As the fallout from war intensifies, calamity creeps closer, and life during wartime grows even more complicated. Who will Ada decide to be? How can she keep fighting? And who will she struggle to save?"

This is such a beautiful read. I didn't remember all the details from the last time I read it, so it was fun to re-read. I loved the return of all the characters from book one, and I love how the author creates such well-developed characters. The book was full of difficult things that Ada and the other characters had to face, but I loved watching Ada grow and change. I also loved the ending so much. Such a good read.

Rating: * * * (3/3 = Loved it)

Christy

I read Christy by Catherine Marshall for book club. It is a historical fiction book originally published back in the 60s, and I'd heard of it for years but was excited to finally take the time to read this classic. Here's the book description from Amazon: "In 1912, and against the wishes of her parents, nineteen-year-old Christy Huddleston leaves her life of privilege and ease to become a missionary teacher in an impoverished and isolated valley in the Smoky Mountains. The job turns out to be more difficult--and rewarding--than she had anticipated, as she comes to know and care for the wild mountain people with their fierce pride, terrible poverty, dark superstitions, and their yearning for beauty and truth.Her faith is severely tested--by her students and by the suffering of the people she comes to love. When her dearest friend is taken by a typhoid epidemic, Christy questions the sovereignty and power of God.And when two remarkable young men fall in love with her--the pastor who is drawn to her courage and independence, and the non-Christian doctor who is drawn to the light of Christ shining through her--her heart is torn between love and desire."

I loved this book! It made me so glad to be in this book club because it's a book I probably would never have read otherwise. The story was super engaging (and even more fascinating because it was based on the real experiences of the author's mother). The author made the characters feel so real. I also loved the Christian/spiritual side of things--so many deep thoughts and meaningful experiences scattered throughout the book. Such a great read.

Rating: * * * (3/3 = Loved it)