The green teen is a compact book with a subtitle of the eco-friendly teen’s guide to saving the planet. Author Jenn Savedge has done a nice job of compiling information that teens can use to change their habits, if they want. There are a number of do-it-yourself projects like making your own personal care products or simple things to do around the house to save energy. Included are text codes so teens (or anyone else) can get info on the go. For example, text BUYORGANIC to 4-INFO to get a list of food that might be best to purchase organic. Plus, there are a lot of websites included for further reading if a teen becomes especially interested in a particular project.
I thought some of the most interesting parts to read were the real life stories of teens who have done something in their community to go green. Some examples include starting an environmental club at school or converting a regular car to an electric one. I was most inspired by the group in New York City led by 15-year-old Avery Hairston. This group raises money to purchase compact fluorescent light bulbs and then hands them out to low-income families. I liked this idea because it seemed manageable, yet could really make a difference. A few more ambitious projects are also described such as working to save a lake or to clean up the water supply in India. Some practical help in the form of a recycling plan to propose to your school is included.
I also appreciated the sections where teens received suggestions on how to get their parents to go along with their plans to go green.
For example, “Be Their Guide: Save your parents time and money by researching their options for them.” The book then goes on to point out how to do that and includes some useful websites.
I especially liked this suggestion:
“Take the Hit: If it is going to cost $20 more each week for your parents to buy organic groceries at the store, offer to absorb the costs by paying for them with your allowance or giving up something you’ve been begging for but don’t really need. Make it a family effort so that your parents will know how important this is to you.”
I do have a copy of the green teen to give away to one reader. Post a comment below and I’ll do a random drawing on June 3rd. To learn more about the author visit her site at www.thegreenparent.com or click here to purchase the book.
Thursday, May 28, 2009
Thursday, May 14, 2009
Unaccustomed Earth by Jhumpa Lahiri
Unaccustomed Earth is a collection of short stories dealing mainly with second generation Indian Americans. The main characters in each story are well-defined and thoughtful young adults. There is drama including breakdowns, death, and alcoholism, but it is a very quiet and understated kind of drama. In many of the stories the family initially appears to be a model stereotypical Indian immigrant family with the fathers working in science-related careers and the mothers staying home to take care of the children. The children do well in school and attend well-known colleges, but it is when these children reach adulthood and make different choices from their parents that the stories resonate.
One of the stories that will stick with me is “Unaccustomed Earth.” It is told from the third person points of view of both Ruma, a young mother, and her father. It is an uncomfortable time for them both after the death of Ruma’s mother. Ruma’s father visits her in Seattle where she is expecting her second child. She is hesitant to ask him to move in with her family, although if it had been her father who passed away first her mother would have moved in immediately. Her father doesn’t know how to tell her he’s met someone else and has no intention of moving away from Pennsylvania. Ruma finds him unexpectedly helpful with her son and around the house and does decide to ask him to live with her family. Here are her father’s thoughts:
“A part of him, the part of him that would never cease to be a father, felt obligated to accept. But it was not what he wanted. Being here for a week, however pleasant, had only confirmed the fact. He did not want to be part of another family, part of the mess, the feuds, the demands, the energy of it. He did not want to live in the margins of his daughter’s life, in the shadow of her marriage. He didn’t want to live again in an enormous house that would only fill up with things over the years, as the children grew, all the things he’d recently gotten rid of, all the books and papers and clothes and objects one felt compelled to possess, to save.”
Another story, “Only Goodness”, tells of Sudha and her younger brother, Rahul. Sudha attends and graduates from U. Penn. and heads to graduate school in London. Meanwhile Rahul fails out of Cornell and it becomes obvious to Sudha that he is an alcoholic. Her parents attempt to ignore his alcoholism for a long time. And, then, are powerless to do anything about it. Sudha attempts a reconciliation with Rahul after the birth of her first child. This failed reconciliation and the guilt she feels over being the first one to give him a beer, back when he was in high school, are powerful to read. Here she attempts early on to lend advice when he is having trouble in college:
“His words silenced her, cut to the bone. She’d always had a heavy hand in his life, it was true, striving not to control it but to improve it somehow. She had always considered this her responsibility to him. She had not known how to be a sister any other way.”
Lahiri does an excellent job at dissecting relationships between family members whether parent and child or spouses. I focused here more on the parent-child interactions, but her other stories are also well worth reading. I’m inspired to add her novel, The Namesake, to my reading list.
One of the stories that will stick with me is “Unaccustomed Earth.” It is told from the third person points of view of both Ruma, a young mother, and her father. It is an uncomfortable time for them both after the death of Ruma’s mother. Ruma’s father visits her in Seattle where she is expecting her second child. She is hesitant to ask him to move in with her family, although if it had been her father who passed away first her mother would have moved in immediately. Her father doesn’t know how to tell her he’s met someone else and has no intention of moving away from Pennsylvania. Ruma finds him unexpectedly helpful with her son and around the house and does decide to ask him to live with her family. Here are her father’s thoughts:
“A part of him, the part of him that would never cease to be a father, felt obligated to accept. But it was not what he wanted. Being here for a week, however pleasant, had only confirmed the fact. He did not want to be part of another family, part of the mess, the feuds, the demands, the energy of it. He did not want to live in the margins of his daughter’s life, in the shadow of her marriage. He didn’t want to live again in an enormous house that would only fill up with things over the years, as the children grew, all the things he’d recently gotten rid of, all the books and papers and clothes and objects one felt compelled to possess, to save.”
Another story, “Only Goodness”, tells of Sudha and her younger brother, Rahul. Sudha attends and graduates from U. Penn. and heads to graduate school in London. Meanwhile Rahul fails out of Cornell and it becomes obvious to Sudha that he is an alcoholic. Her parents attempt to ignore his alcoholism for a long time. And, then, are powerless to do anything about it. Sudha attempts a reconciliation with Rahul after the birth of her first child. This failed reconciliation and the guilt she feels over being the first one to give him a beer, back when he was in high school, are powerful to read. Here she attempts early on to lend advice when he is having trouble in college:
“His words silenced her, cut to the bone. She’d always had a heavy hand in his life, it was true, striving not to control it but to improve it somehow. She had always considered this her responsibility to him. She had not known how to be a sister any other way.”
Lahiri does an excellent job at dissecting relationships between family members whether parent and child or spouses. I focused here more on the parent-child interactions, but her other stories are also well worth reading. I’m inspired to add her novel, The Namesake, to my reading list.
Sunday, May 3, 2009
The Mao Case by Qiu Xiaolong
Detective Inspector Chen works in Shanghai in the 1990’s. He gets an assignment to take personal leave, but it is a cover for him to work on a case that Internal Security is also working on. It involves Mao and something he may or may not have left with a dancer during his lifetime. The dancer’s granddaughter has recently come into good fortune and the speculation is that it must be an item from Mao that is behind this. Internal Security is involved in case it is something potentially damaging to Mao’s reputation.
This book, one of a series, by Qui Xiaolong is interesting for many reasons beyond unraveling the mystery. The society is still recovering from the Cultural Revolution. For example, Detective Yu, Chen’s assistant, and his wife, Peiqin are solidly middle class with two stable paying jobs. They live in one room with their son and struggle to make ends meets. Both were impacted by the Cultural Revolution as illustrated by this passage:
“Peiqin had been a straight-A student in elementary school, wearing the Red Scarf of a proud Young Pioneer, dreaming of a rosy future in the golden sunlight of socialist China. Everything changed overnight, however, with the outbreak of the Cultural Revolution. Her father’s ‘historical problem’ cast a shadow over the whole family.”
Detective Chen is also a poet and a translator of poetry. This case involves examining some of Mao’s poetry. That adds another dimension to this mystery novel. I don’t really know of the tradition behind Chinese poetry or whether Mao’s is any good. Here’s an example of a poem written supposedly for Madame Mao:
“Against the gathering dusk stands a pine, sturdy, erect / in composure with riotous clouds sweeping past. / What a fairy cave it is, born out of the nature! / Ineffable beauty comes at the perilous peak.”
My favorite part of the book is the descriptions of life in Shanghai and Chen’s trip to Beijing. I especially appreciate all the meetings that take place in restaurants and describe the various dishes. I spent some time in Asia and definitely miss the food – hard to get in the middle of Oregon.
This book, one of a series, by Qui Xiaolong is interesting for many reasons beyond unraveling the mystery. The society is still recovering from the Cultural Revolution. For example, Detective Yu, Chen’s assistant, and his wife, Peiqin are solidly middle class with two stable paying jobs. They live in one room with their son and struggle to make ends meets. Both were impacted by the Cultural Revolution as illustrated by this passage:
“Peiqin had been a straight-A student in elementary school, wearing the Red Scarf of a proud Young Pioneer, dreaming of a rosy future in the golden sunlight of socialist China. Everything changed overnight, however, with the outbreak of the Cultural Revolution. Her father’s ‘historical problem’ cast a shadow over the whole family.”
Detective Chen is also a poet and a translator of poetry. This case involves examining some of Mao’s poetry. That adds another dimension to this mystery novel. I don’t really know of the tradition behind Chinese poetry or whether Mao’s is any good. Here’s an example of a poem written supposedly for Madame Mao:
“Against the gathering dusk stands a pine, sturdy, erect / in composure with riotous clouds sweeping past. / What a fairy cave it is, born out of the nature! / Ineffable beauty comes at the perilous peak.”
My favorite part of the book is the descriptions of life in Shanghai and Chen’s trip to Beijing. I especially appreciate all the meetings that take place in restaurants and describe the various dishes. I spent some time in Asia and definitely miss the food – hard to get in the middle of Oregon.
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