She Loves You: Yeah, Yeah, Yeah

By Ann Hood

Penguin Random House, 2018. Fiction p. 252

Set in the height of popularity of The Beatles, “She Loves You: Yeah, Yeah, Yeah” is a truly delightful historical fiction that explores the summer of 1966 from our main character’s point of view as she obsesses over The Beatles and seeing them in concert while simultaneously dealing with her own personal struggles.

Trudy shares a love of The Beatles with her dad, and her closest friends. But as their concert quickly approaches, she finds that her life is changing all around her, and she doesn’t seem to have any control over it. Trudy is convinced that if she just sees The Beatles in concert and meets Paul McCartney, her father will be more present, her best friend will start actually acting like her best friend, and her life will make sense again.

Hood does an excellent job making Trudy a protagonist that sometimes isn’t perfectly likable, but who is always relatable. Her problems are the same ones that all kids growing up are able to connect with, even though they weren’t alive in the sixties during Beatlemania. Although young readers will not have experienced the cultural phenomenon of The Beatles, they will still see themselves reflected in the universal struggles of family and friendship that even kids in the sixties went through. The effect that music has always had on tween culture will resonate with kids even if they don’t experience nostalgia for the decade represented.

Comments

Dude, That's Rude! (Get Some Manners) by Pamela Espeland & Elizabeth Verdick

If there's one book today's kids need to read, it is Dude, That's Rude! (Get Some Manners) . The authors provide a fun format for teaching etiquette to children. They discuss proper behavior at home, at school, at other people's homes and in public places. The information is completely up-to-date with cellphone manners and netiquette included. Fun, cartoony illustrations are on practically every page giving the book great visual appeal. This book is perfect for boys and girls in the fourth grade or older. WARNING: Bodily functions are discussed.

Funny Farm by Mark Teague 2009

There are things I liked about Mark Teague's newest book, Funny Farm , and things I didn't like. Where should I start? I'll do the "didn'ts" first. The illustrations show animals personified. Well, some of the animals are. The main characters, Edward, and his farm family relatives, all dogs, are humanized. They stand upright, do farm chores, eat at a table, wear clothes, knit (yes, with paws) and sleep in beds. Most everybody else on and around the farm, who are also animals, act like animals. They are outside, roll in mud, live in the barn, and require care from their owners. It struck me the most on the page spread where there are pigs playing in puddle in the rain and Edward, a black and white boxer, watches from inside the house. I thought "You're a dog! Go play with them!" But, alas, he can't, seeing as how he goes through his entire visit to the farm wearing a suit and red bow tie. Another picture that bothered me was the maple syrup pa...

Faces of the Moon by Bob Crelin

Faces of the Moon by Bob Crelin Illustrated by Leslie Evans Charlesburg; 2009; unpaged Faces of the Moon is a short nonfiction book that describes the different phases of the moon and why the moon appears like it does on certain nights. This book is short and sweet so even the youngest of moon lovers will enjoy it. The layout is simplistic and easy to follow. I don’t know much about the moon so I found it very interesting.

Provo Library Children's Book Blog

Search This Blog