MIRROR TO MIRROR: Book Review and Interview With Newbury Honoree Rajani Larocca + A Chance to Win a Copy!

It was my thrill and privilege to read an ARC for author RAJANI LAROCCA’s newest middle grade novel in verse MIRROR TO MIRROR. Rajani won the Newbury Medal Honorable Mention for her previous verse novel RED, WHITE, AND WHOLE. In her new book, she explores the connection between identical twins, not only in the physical sense, but the emotional connections as well.

Here is my review of this amazing and timely book:

This lyrical novel in verse captures the pressure and anxiety of striving to be perfect in order to live up to the expectations of others. Raw and spare verse cuts to the heart of alternating voices of the twin sisters who despite their love and devotion to one another, grow further apart as they try to give each other space to shine.

This story will open up dialogue regarding mental health and the importance of speaking up and sharing feelings with someone so we don’t feel alone. Silence can often hurt and do more damage than words shared in love and understanding. Highly recommended.

I asked Rajani some questions about MIRROR TO MIRROR . Here is the interview.

I love the idea of twins telling the story in alternating voices. How did you settle on this format and the title for the book?

I knew this book would be dual POV from the very beginning. Dual POV is challenging to pull off, especially with identical twin characters, because it’s important to keep the characters’ voices distinct and make sure that each POV moves the story forward. In my first draft, I wrote Maya’s voice in verse and Chaya’s in prose, but I felt jarred going back and forth, and found myself writing chunks of the story at a time rather than alternating the voices as I wrote.

In revision, my editor suggested that I write both POV’s in poetry . . . and she was right. I still had to work hard to make the voices different from one another using the content and attitude in the poems, as well as structure, imagery, and word choice. The book starts with a couple of short paired poems, each titled “She’s the One,” where the twins express how they think about each other. These poems were drafted during that first revision, and I thought they vividly set the tone of the book and established the viewpoints of each twin.

The name of this book changed while I was revising! It was originally called Switch, but the story isn’t only about the twins switching places. Given the importance of mirrors in the book, my editor suggested Mirror to Mirror, and I thought that title worked really well.

How did you decide the time was right for a story like this?

It’s not easy to write about anxiety and mental health. But given the events of the past several years, anxiety is something that many people, including children, have had to contend with. As a doctor, I’ve seen my patients with anxiety and depression have worsening symptoms in recent years, and even some of my patients without a prior history of anxiety have developed it. And rates of anxiety and depression among young people have skyrocketed.

I wanted to explore anxiety and mental health in a poetic way. I wanted to show that people can struggle not only with symptoms, but also with telling others that they are struggling. I wanted to depict the helplessness that comes with seeing someone you love going through something difficult.

I love the emotional contrast between the girls and their parents, how each seems to take after one even though they begin the story doing everything together/the same. What kind of research/reflection did you have to do in order to make Maya and Chaya’s voices ring true?

Thank you! I did a lot of research for Mirror to Mirror. I interviewed several sets of identical twin sisters, and it was fascinating! Not only were they closer than other siblings, but some described each other as “soulmates.” They told me stories about eerie connections they had, and how no matter what else was going on in their lives, their bond was unshakable.

But there is room for misunderstanding even in the closest relationships. I tried to create a story where each twin thinks she’s doing something to help the other, but instead drives a wedge between them.

What do you want young readers to understand about these complex and often scary emotional experiences we all have and you so artfully portrayed in this story?

I hope that young readers understand that we all go through difficult times, even when we are surrounded by friends and family. I hope they learn that although we may sometimes struggle with anxiety and depression, we don’t have to deal with these feelings alone, and it’s important to share with those we love and trust, because only through sharing can we start to get help.

What is one of the ways this book can be used in the classroom?

I have some ideas for using poetry in a classroom:

• Take someone you know well — a real person, or a character from a book or a movie — and write a poem about a secret or hidden side to that person
• Write a poem about a secret or hidden side to yourself

I also hope educators can use the story to start a discussion about mental health and self-care.

Anything else we should know about MIRROR TO MIRROR?

Music plays a prominent role in many of my books, including this one. I used the titles of some real pieces of classical music in the story, and I also made up my own musical—and had a great time doing so.

Rajani has agreed to give a signed copy of her amazing new book to one lucky reader of this post chosen at random. To enter, leave a comment. USA only.

Rajani LaRocca was born in India, raised in Kentucky, and now lives in the Boston area, where she practices medicine and writes award-winning books for young people, including Red, White, and Whole, which won a 2022 Newbery Honor, the Walter Dean Myers Award, Golden Kite Award, and New England Book Award. Her other books include: Midsummer’s Mayhem (2019), Seven Golden Rings (2020), Bracelets for Bina’s Brothers (2021), Much Ado About Baseball (2021), Where Three Oceans Meet (2021), My Little Golden Book About Kamala Harris (2021), The Secret Code Inside You (2021), I’ll Go and Come Back (2022), and more. She’s always been an omnivorous reader, and now she is an omnivorous writer of fiction and nonfiction, novels and picture books, prose and poetry. She finds inspiration in her family, her childhood, the natural world, math, science, and just about everywhere she looks. To connect with Rajani and learn more about her and her books visit her at http://www.RajaniLaRocca.com and on Twitter and Instagram @rajanilarocca.

Advertisement

ODDER by Katherine Applegate: Book Review

Katherine Applegate has an affinity with nature’s creatures. She seems to possess an uncanny ability to inhabit the soul of an animal, so we feel what the creature feels. It’s no wonder her books THE ONE AND ONLY IVAN (gorilla), THE ONE AND ONLY BOB (dog), CRENSHAW (imaginary cat), and her Animorphs books are so popular. They teach us empathy, compassion, loyalty, friendship. And maybe, a bit of what it’s like to BE that animal.

ODDER, her latest middle grade novel in verse is a heartfelt and magical journey in the life of an otter who lives off the coast of the Monteray Bay Aquarium. Like Ivan, ODDER’s story is inspired by the otter program at the aquarium. A program that teaches baby otters how to be otters so that when they are released into the ocean, they will succeed and thrive.

ODDER  – the female otter in the story- is a bit different from the rest of her kind. She is more adventurous, takes more chances. She is fearless. When she swims away from the kelp cover of the coastline, and into the bay, she comes face to face with a great white shark. From that moment on, her life takes an unexpected turn. Everything ODDER believes about herself is turned upside down. She then comes face to face with humans. Humans her mother warned her not to trust. Humans who save her life. Change her life.

Readers will feel an instant connection to ODDER and the changes taking place in her world. They will cheer for otters, for the dedication, love, and care provided by the aquarists at the Aquarium, who work tirelessly to give otters the best chance they can have to live and swim free in the waters off the California coast.

You can check out the program and see a live cam of the otters at: https://www.montereybayaquarium.org/animals/live-cams/sea-otter-cam

ODDER is destined to became a classic. Thanks you Katherine Applegate, for bringing ODDER into the world.

Book Review: AFRICAN TOWN by Irene Latham and Charles Waters

Every now and then I come across a book that leaves me breathless and awed by its storytelling and power. AFRICAN TOWN by Irene Latham and Charles Waters is just such a book. Here is the blurb from the publisher:

Chronicling the story of the last Africans brought illegally to America in 1860, African Town is a powerful and stunning novel-in-verse.

In 1860, long after the United States outlawed the importation of enslaved laborers, 110 men, women and children from Benin and Nigeria were captured and brought to Mobile, Alabama aboard a ship called Clotilda. Their journey includes the savage Middle Passage and being hidden in the swamp lands along the Alabama River before being secretly parceled out to various plantations, where they made desperate attempts to maintain both their culture and also fit into the place of captivity to which they’d been delivered. At the end of the Civil War, the survivors created a community for themselves they called African Town, which still exists to this day. Told in 14 distinct voices, including that of the ship that brought them to the American shores and the founder of African Town, this powerfully affecting historical novel-in-verse recreates a pivotal moment in US and world history, the impacts of which we still feel today.

Here’s my review:

This YA novel-in-verse, inspired by the true story of the last African slave ship Clotilda, is not to be missed. Stunning in scope and breathtaking in detail, readers become part of the group of survivors who endure captivity aboard the ship, suffer brutality and deprivation as slaves in an unfamiliar country, and never forget their African roots. Told in alternating points-of-view, by characters named for the actual people who were kidnapped and brought to Alabama before the start of the Civil War, even though slavery was then illegal…on paper. At times heart-wrenching and uplifting, the spirit of survival and freedom resonates and endures in the hearts and minds of these courageous souls who create a new home away from home in a place they never chose to be. Beautifully written and respectfully told, this story will stay with you long after the reading is done.

If you haven’t read this book yet, I encourage you to do so and to pass it along to your friends and family.

Author Rajani LaRocca Talks About Her Verse Novel RED, WHITE, AND WHOLE + A Chance to Win a Copy.

---

To celebrate Poetry in the Schools Month and National Poetry Month, I am featuring two give-aways for books written in verse. Today is a MG book RED, WHITE, AND WHOLE  by Rajani LaRocca. Next week I will feature a rhyming PB.

I recently did a Q&A with author Rajani LaRocca to talk about her wonderful MG novel-in-verse, RED, WHITE, AND WHOLE. Here’s Rajani:

Tell us three things we should know about the main character Reha.

1. It’s 1983, and 13-year-old Reha feels torn between the worlds of her Indian immigrant parents and her friends at school. She adores her parents and wants to make them happy, but she also wants to fit in with her friends.

2. Reha loves 80s pop music (especially Cyndi Lauper) and feels music connects those two worlds.

3. She wants to be a doctor, but she faints at the sight of blood.

How did you know Reha’s story should be told in verse?

This story idea first came to me as a metaphor—the metaphor of blood, and all that it means in terms of heredity, community, and biology—and so it seemed right to tell in verse. But I’d never written a novel in verse before, so I did a lot of research and learning before I started writing.

In your Author’s Note you mention that the story has an autobiographical element. Would you care to share some of that with readers?

Like Reha, I was a teen in the 1980s and loved the music of that time. I was also an only child and an Indian immigrant, and the emotions Reha feels of being torn between worlds were very familiar to me. I also knew I wanted to be a doctor for a very early age, although luckily for me, I don’t faint at the sight of blood! My mom was injured in a car accident when I was a teen, and I shared Reha’s ambivalence about joining the world of medicine once I experienced what it was like to have a seriously ill family member.

Beyond the multi-cultural component, what other themes are important in the storyline?

Other themes include the nature of the parent-child, and especially the mother-daughter, relationship; how to deal with a loved one’s illness, and how to find hope, even when the worst happens; and the notion of belonging, and who decides that. RED, WHITE, AND WHOLE is a story about being caught between here and there, before and after, and finding a way to be whole.

What do you want young readers to take away from this important story?

I want young readers to know that although they may feel divided, that they can still become whole. I want them to know that their stories matter, and they should tell them, in whatever way seems best to them—in writing, or in the classroom, in a performance hall, or on a sports field. I want them to understand that those who love us understand us better than we might think. And finally, I want them to know that ultimately, we decide where we belong, and we find the people and communities who appreciate and love and support us.

Anything else you’d like to add or want us to know?

Music is a big part of this book. While writing, I listened pretty much nonstop to music from 1983-1984. I made a playlist that people can find on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/5XAcxzLHYS4Y4gLAgHZeLK?si=1526a10349ea4671

and a music video playlist on YouTube: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLukL07PFxukPEStAGGRYKWGxCOabmlAl7

Reha thinks that song lyrics are poetry set to music, and I agree. One fun way for readers young and old to start trying to write their own poetry is to look at song lyrics and try writing their own.

Rajani LaRocca was born in India, raised in Kentucky, and now lives in the Boston area, where she practices medicine and writes award-winning novels and picture books, including Midsummer’s Mayhem (2019), Seven Golden Rings (2020), Red, White, and Whole (2021), Bracelets for Bina’s Brothers (2021), Much Ado About Baseball (2021), and more. She’s always been an omnivorous reader, and now she is an omnivorous writer of fiction and nonfiction, novels and picture books, prose and poetry. She finds inspiration in her family, her childhood, the natural world, math, science, and just about everywhere she looks. To connect with Rajani and learn more about her and her books visit her at www.RajaniLaRocca.com and on Twitter, Instagram, and Clubhouse @rajanilarocca.

Rajani has agreed to give away one signed copy of RED, WHITE, AND WHOLE to one lucky reader chosen at random from those who leave a comment on this post. Let me know if you share it on social media and I will give you a second chance to win.

Three Recent Middle Grade Novels in Verse I highly Recommend.

Since the publication of my own MG novel in verse WISHES, DARES, AND HOW TO STAND UP TO A BULLY (Creston) in 2020, I have been reading a number of verse novels.

Sometimes I read them to get inspiration. Or to see how the rhythm moves the story. Others I read for pleasure and the sheer joy of raw emotion and the heartfelt urgency this art form provides. These stories use words sparingly, cutting to the deep and essential truths we all struggle with and search for.

Here are three recent verse novels I recommend:

BEFORE THE EVER AFTER by Jacqueline Woodson chronicles the events in ZJ’s life as he comes to terms with his pro football dad’s mood swings, forgetfulness, headaches, and inability to continue playing football. Seen as a hometown hero, ZJ’s dad’s puzzling symptoms seem to be linked to the numerous concussions he received while playing the sport he adored.

With the help of his three friends – together know as the Fantastic Four – ZJ tries to find a new normal beyond football and learns that life for all of them still goes on. Even though it’s not all sunny, with the love and support of family and friends, there is much to celebrate.

RED, WHITE, AND WHOLE by Rajani LaRocca  (Blurb taken from the Amazon book page)

 

For the most part, Hannah’s life is just how she wants it. She has two supportive parents, she’s popular at school, and she’s been killing it at gymnastics. But when her cousin Cal moves in with her family, everything changes. Cal tells half-truths and tall tales, pranks Hannah constantly, and seems to be the reason her parents are fighting more and more. Nothing is how it used to be. She knows that Cal went through a lot after his mom died and she is trying to be patient, but most days Hannah just wishes Cal never moved in.

For his part, Cal is trying his hardest to fit in, but not everyone is as appreciative of his unique sense of humor and storytelling gifts as he is. Humor and stories might be his defense mechanism, but if Cal doesn’t let his walls down soon, he might push away the very people who are trying their best to love him.

Told in verse from the alternating perspectives of Hannah and Cal, this is a story of two cousins who are more alike than they realize and the family they both want to save.

Reha feels torn between two worlds: school, where she’s the only Indian American student, and home, with her family’s traditions and holidays. But Reha’s parents don’t understand why she’s conflicted—they only notice when Reha doesn’t meet their strict expectations. Reha feels disconnected from her mother, or Amma, although their names are linked—Reha means “star” and Punam means “moon”—but they are a universe apart. Then Reha finds out that her Amma is sick. Really sick. Reha, who dreams of becoming a doctor even though she can’t stomach the sight of blood, is determined to make her Amma well again. She’ll be the perfect daughter, if it means saving her Amma’s life.

Here’s my review: Heartbreaking, heartfelt, and realistically, and authentically told in the voice of a thirteen year old Indian-American girl. I recommend this novel for anyone who wonders what is like to suffer the loss of a parent, and anyone who feels torn between two different worlds.  

 

 

Another book that has made an impression on me is : CLOSER TO NOWHERE by Ellen Hopkins.

While a popular author of YA novels in verse, this is Ellen’s first MG in the format she excels in and she hits all the right notes. Here’s the blurb from the book:

 

For the most part, Hannah’s life is just how she wants it. She has two supportive parents, she’s popular at school, and she’s been killing it at gymnastics. But when her cousin Cal moves in with her family, everything changes. Cal tells half-truths and tall tales, pranks Hannah constantly, and seems to be the reason her parents are fighting more and more. Nothing is how it used to be. She knows that Cal went through a lot after his mom died and she is trying to be patient, but most days Hannah just wishes Cal never moved in.

For his part, Cal is trying his hardest to fit in, but not everyone is as appreciative of his unique sense of humor and storytelling gifts as he is. Humor and stories might be his defense mechanism, but if Cal doesn’t let his walls down soon, he might push away the very people who are trying their best to love him.

Told in verse from the alternating perspectives of Hannah and Cal, this is a story of two cousins who are more alike than they realize and the family they both want to save.

I loved this book because of the honest and raw voice of Cal who won my heart from page one. He is the kid who drives you crazy because you can’t quite figure out what’s going on. But he is also the kid who makes you swell with pride when he opens his heart and does what he is capable of. A story of family and what it means to belong. Highly recommended.

I hope you’ll consider reading these amazing books. Also, feel free to share your favorite middle grade novels in verse. Happy reading!