Map of Maldives – Look for the red circle!

Every year I plan a Thanksgiving trip somewhere tropical and reserve a day out of my vacation to do a pro bono writing workshop / author school visit with kids. This year I chose the Maldive Islands off the coast of Sri Lanka. It took 19 hours in a plane, 1 hour in a seaplane, 13 hours in three different airports, a 45-minute Conrad Hilton sponsored speedboat, and a full bag of ginger chews to ward off sea sickness before I reached Dhigurah School where I was welcomed with fresh coconut water by Mrs. Shifana, the Australian-educated principal.

Welcomed with coconut water by the principal, Mrs. Shifana

Dhigurah is a local island (i.e. no resorts, no foreigners) with about 500 Sunni Muslim inhabitants. Despite it being the first day of summer vacation on the day of my scheduled visit, 25 kids—ranging in age from 9 to 14—participated in the writing workshop. Rather than chill on the beach, their parents sent them back to school for the opportunity to improve their English and future job prospects. As I popped into the only air-conditioned classroom in the entire school, the children’s thoughts seemed elsewhere and their

The girls’ side of the room

faces appeared less than thrilled. So with tempting turquoise seas on both sides of the school, I had to pull a few tricks out of my hat to keep the kids engaged. One of which was some writer-friendly competition of girls-against-the-boys.

We played a game developed by the Society of Young Inklings on building scenes and brainstorming details that evoke the five senses. Both teams were equally matched and highly competitive. So we ended up with a tie despite multiple tie-breaker attempts.

The boys side of the room

I was especially impressed with how competitive the girls were, how they duked out every point they earned, and by their expressed interest to one day study abroad.

Although the local language is Dhivehi, the kids had an excellent command of English due to a strong government-mandated English language curriculum that caters to the country’s economic dependence on tourism.

Shy girl

Unfortunately, the government doesn’t seem to share the same opinion of building libraries and filling them with books. So the Dhigurah School does not have a library beyond the two books I donated: my debut novel, LARA’S GIFT, and Chelsea Clinton’s book, IT’S YOUR WORLD. As a result, the kids were not familiar with any of the books I cited in my author talk unless they had been made into a movie. Not surprisingly, the principal admitted that the biggest problem continues to be getting the kids to read outside of their assigned homework.

Girls after they won a point

If you’re a teacher or librarian please do share the strategies your school uses to get kids to read more. I’ll be happy to pass them along to the principal at Dhigurah School.

If you’re an editor or publisher of children’s books and have some middle grade or older picture books to spare, would you be willing to send them to the children on Dhigurah Island?

School motto: Strive for Success with honesty

Mrs. Shifana’s mailing address is Dhigurah School in care of the Conrad Hilton Maldives Resort, Rangali Island, South Ari Atoll, 20077, Republic of Maldives.

I have no doubt the books will be put to good use and that new readers will be born.

Thank you for your support!

Nest stop: Thailand 2016!

Bangkok

If you ever find yourself in the Maldives …

I would highly recommend eating at the Ithaa Undersea Restaurant located at the Conrad Hilton Maldives resort on Rangali Island not only for its finest-of-fine dining, but also for the tropical aquatic scenery and friendly service.

ITHAA UNDERSEA RESTAURANT

Here is an up-close-and-personal photo of our neighbors, Bluestripe Snappers, as we dined:

BLUESTRIPE SNAPPER

The menu is fixed for each seating and is switched up regularly.

1^st course: fresh green pea soup, sage butter capellini, tomato confit, chamomile

GREEN PEA SOUP

2^nd course: green mango and papaya salad, seared sea scallops, carrot mousseline watercress and organic olive oil

SEARED SCALLOPS

3^rd course: grilled reef fish, lemon mashed potato, sautéed young kale tomato lemongrass essence

JACK REEF FISH

OUR DINNER’S COUSIN!

dessert: 57% dark chocolate mousse, rice crispy base & Valencia orange parfait

57% DARK CHOCOLATE MOUSSE

For a live tour experience of Ithaa Undersea Restaurant, check out this YouTube video.

For the most recent reviews of Ithaa, check out Trip Advisor.

Fun fact: Ithaa in the local language of Dhivehi means mother-of-pearl.

ITHAA UNDERSEA RESTAURANT

You won’t be disappointed!

It wasn’t turkey, but we were happy to have Thanksgiving dinner-Maldivian style at Ithaa Undersea Restaurant.

ANNEMARIE & GOOD CHUM, BEVERLY

iEMPOWER! Mission

Did you know that a child is lured or forced into trafficking

every 26 seconds?

That’s about 140 kids an hour!

Over 3 thousand kids a day!

And more than 1 million kids a year!

Did you know that child trafficking is a global problem?

It’s not just happening overseas, but also in every state across America.

iEMPOWER! was created

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and to support survivors.

Doesn’t every child deserve to sparkle?

How Can YOU Help? 

iEMPOWER! is launching two campaigns

where YOU can make a difference. 

Campaign #1: Buy a Star, Empower a Child! 

iEMPOWER! adopted a Destiny Rescue home in Thailand

where survivors heal and rebuild their lives.

Each child is offered vocational training of his or her choice

to transition out of the sex trade and secure future earnings.

iEMPOWER! has teamed up with the Destiny Rescue Jewelry Studio Artists

to find homes for their Holiday Star Ornaments!

Campaign #2: Be an Advocate, Make a Difference!

If you want to help fight child trafficking,

please consider buying a Star Kit

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Every Star Kit includes ten Holiday Star Ornaments.

By selling, gifting, or donating each of the ten Stars,

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Your purchase provides hope and gives children a chance to a new life and to sparkle.

Every Star is a one-of-a-kind treasure

handcrafted by a sex trade survivor.

Click here to make a purchase.

Extra Credit: Please support us in raising awareness of child trafficking by emailing us a photo of you and your Star to iEMPOWERkids@comcast.net and we will sing your praises in a video on our blog as a Star Advocate who empowered a child!

Help Aubrey reach her goal of 100 photos

by January 1, 2016!

Together we can do it!

PLEASE SHARE THIS POST AND HELP iEMPOWER!

RAISE AWARENESS OF CHILD TRAFFICKING.

This year I hope to read every book that Aubrey and Anjuli’s school teachers assign to them with the exception of their text books. To meet this goal I got a list from each of their English teachers on parents night, went to the local bookstore, and bought dozens of books that are now stacked a few feet high on one of the nightstands by my bed.

As part of the 7^th grade curriculum covering the Medieval period, BEOWULF was selected to support student learning and was among one of the first books I tackled.

To ground you with some background on BEOWULF, it helps to understand that it offers readers both fictional elements, as well as real historic events. It is the oldest surviving long poem in Old English and is often cited as one of the most important works of Old English literature. BEOWULF was written in England between the 8^th and 11^th century by an anonymous poet. Because the original manuscript had no title, over time the story came to be called BEOWULF after the protagonist.

BEOWULF is set in Scandinavia and includes a number of clans from all over northern Europe including the Geats, Jutes, and Frisians, for example. So it was a little confusing to follow where the clans resided or what territory they controlled until I found a map online to better plant me in Beowulf’s world.

Truth be told, this was my first time reading any version of BEOWULF and I’m glad I did until I went online and read reviews of Nye’s  new telling. According to a minority of the reviewers, Nye’s version does not “reflect the original text” of BEOWULF, nor does Nye “embrace the themes from the original manuscript.”

In Nye’s defense he does state on the very first page of his new telling that “there are literal versions of BEOWULF. I have not tried to compete with them. This is an interpretation, not a translation.” So for the naysayers out there, Nye gives his readers a disclaimer, as well as why and how his telling came about. The cover title also states “New Telling” which should clue potential buyers.

Personally, I enjoyed Nye’s story, especially the thread regarding the bees. It came full circle for me by story end. The bee thread also reminded me of the-overcoming-fear role the bats played in the Batman Begins movie when Bruce Wayne sheds his childhood fear of bats and actually leverages them as an adult to accomplish his mission of doing good for Gotham. Given that Beowulf means ‘bee wolf’, it was satisfying as a reader to watch Beowulf not only overcome his fear of bees, but to embrace it. As a storyteller, it makes logical sense to bring in and develop the bee thread. Anything otherwise would seem remiss and a lost opportunity. So I get why Nye developed the ‘bee wolf’ symbol in Beowulf’s journey.

Is it disappointing to learn that I haven’t really read the real BEOWULF?

Yes, but as a young adult author and mother, I’m more thrilled to hear Anjuli rave about the story Nye has written without my prompting. At her age, the joy of reading is more important to me than becoming a scholar on BEOWULF. Should she decide to major in Old English Literature, she will most certainly have a chance to read a truer translation of BEOWULF than the one she is currently reading. Until then, I plan on letting her enjoy the reading process in the same way I give Santa Claus all of the credit on Christmas morning year after year.

Over the what-I-prefer-to-call Native American Indian Day weekend, my daughters and I headed to the John Muir House in Martinez, California. Aubrey had an opportunity to earn extra credit in her history class by learning more about John Muir and his work as a conservationist and naturalist and then writing a report on it. That’s when I discovered STICKEEN written by John Muir and illustrated by Carl Dennis Buell in the museum bookstore.

From the back cover of STICKEEN:

The year is 1880. One stormy Alaska day, John Muir rises before dawn, puts a piece of bread into his overcoat pocket, and sets out to explore a glacier he has recently found. A little black dog named Stickeen trots along behind him, launching an adventure that Muir will later call “the most memorable of all my wild days.”

Together, Muir and Stickeen find a majestic ice-cascade two miles wide and a lake filled with icebergs. But when it comes time to turn back, they find themselves trapped on an island, surrounded by icy crevasses a thousand feet deep. The only way out is a narrow sliver-bridge that passes across a great crevasse and up a cliff of ice.

“A stirring tale, exquisitely told” is what Booklist says about STICKEEN and I couldn’t agree more. For one, though written in 1909 I found Muir’s language both accessible to a modern day reader, as well as beautifully, poetically descriptive in a non-over-the-top way. Secondly, I’m a huge fan of a good dog story and STICKEEN does not disappoint. But, most of all, Muir plants us on that sliver of a narrow ice bridge, and then with an ice pick chipping away at the ice cliff to form steps of all things to escape off of the ice island where he and Stickeen are trapped. It’s amazing Muir survived minus the kind of gear I suspect teams today would require before embarking on such an adventure. And with just a piece of bread in his pocket for nourishment no less!

Muir often talked about the little black dog and their adventures at parties and lectures. It is said that waiters, porters, and others would hide behind curtains or even under tables just to hear Muir share it. And I can understand why, having just read STICKEEN. It’s the kind of story that pulls you in from the first page and holds onto you until the very last word. I would highly recommend STICKEEN for both children and adults. Thankfully nobody need hide behind a curtain to enjoy Muir’s adventure with Stickeen.

If you’re a John Muir fan and happen to be in the San Francisco Bay area, I’d also recommend a visit to the John Muir home in Martinez. Be sure to visit the Giant Sequoia tree that John Muir planted in 1898 as a sapling he brought back from a trip to the Sierra Nevada Mountains. Today, the former sapling is about 70 feet tall and is infected with the fungus Botryosphaeria dothidea, a vascular disease that causes branches and tips to die. Seeing what is not native to the Bay area was a huge highlight for us, as you can see below.

For other great books about dogs, check out 101 Best Dog Books for Kids.

For published authors and unpublished authors, check out our writing contests.