I’m on my way to ALA!

I’m on my way. The girls have been dropped off at Sniff Dog Hotel, where they will be well cared for.

I have  a couple of books in my carry-on, but I plan on reading Unspeakable by Caroline Pignat.

Last summer, when I was visiting Ottawa with my sister & her family, we went to the Canadian Museum of History. They had a special exhibit about the Empress of Ireland , which sank in the St. Lawrence River on  May 29, 1914.  Of the 1,477 people on board, 1,012 died. It was an incredibly moving exhibit and I am getting teary-eyed just thinking about it.

Well, Unspeakable  is a YA novel set on the Empress of Ireland during her last voyage.

From the publisher: Working as a stewardess aboard the Empress of Ireland allows Ellie Ryan to forget about why she has been banished from the family home, why her great aunt ultimately had to find her this job. On her second voyage, Ellie finds herself drawn to the solitary fire stoker who stands by the ship’s rail late at night, often writing in a journal.

Jim. Ellie finds it hard to think of him now, after that awful night. She tries to tell herself that he survived, but it’s hard to believe when so many didn’t.

So when Wyatt Steele, journalist for The New York Times shows up at her door in Liverpool, England, and asks for her story, Ellie refuses. But when he shows her Jim’s journal, she jumps at the chance to be able to read it herself, to find some clue of the man she had fallen in love with, perhaps a clue to what happened to him. There’s only one catch: she will have to tell her story to Steele and he’ll “pay” her by giving her the journal. One page at a time.

Guided by Steele, Ellie slowly opens up. But more lies at the heart of her story than even Ellie knows, and as she spends more time with Steele and Jim’s journal, she discovers what was once unspeakable — for both her and Jim.

The Clothing Dilemma

Today, I’m packing my bag for my trip to the ALA conference in San Francisco.

Portland is expecting a heat wave, with temps hitting 100ºF by Saturday. UGH. Fortunately, San Francisco is expecting lovely, normal temps in the 60’s & 70’s.

Packing means thinking about what events I have to attend, how much walking I’ll be doing, a jacket for morning and evenings, clothes I can mix and match but still feel as though I’m not wearing the same thing day after day.

Sarah Albee has a new book out through National Geographic, entitled  Why’d There Wear That? Fashion as the Mirror of History.

Publisher’s Summary: Move over Project Runway. Get ready to chuckle your way through centuries of fashion dos and don’ts! In this humorous and approachable narrative, kids will learn about outrageous, politically-perilous, funky, disgusting, regrettable, and life-threatening creations people have worn throughout the course of human history, all the way up to the present day. From spats and togas to hoop skirts and hair shirts, why people wore what they did is an illuminating way to look at the social, economic, political, and moral climates throughout history.

You can see some details in this trailer:

This is a book you can read cover to cover or by dipping into things that catch your interest, especially after perusing the amusing chapter titles.

Chapter 1 That’s a Wrap: The Ancient World 10,ooo B.C. – A.D. 1000

Chapter 2 Keeping the Faith: The Middle Ages 1000 – 1400s

Chapter 3 Going Global: The Age of Exploration 1400s -early 1500s

Chapter 4 Ruff & Ready: The Renaissance 1500s -early 1600s

Chapter 5 Lighten Up!: The Age of Reason 1600s – 1700s

Chapter 6 Hats (and Heads) Off: revolutionary Times mid-1600s – early 1800s

Chapter 7 Growing Pains: Marching Toward Modernity mid-1700s – early 1900s

Chapter 8 Labor Pains: The Industrial Revolution mid-1800s – early 1900s

Chapter 9 Class Dismissed: World at War The 20th Century & Beyond

Fact boxes and sidebars are off-set in blue and yellow, which doesn’t interrupt the flow of the main text.Back matter includes a timeline, a lengthy bibliography, author’s notes, an index and a list of the images used.

Tons here to interest kids with a wide range of interests.