Notre Dame Returns!

A global-wide celebration begins today for the reopening of Notre Dame Cathedral after the devastating fire that closed it for three years. The opening of this faith center marks a substantial contribution to the history of this grand monument, but also shines a light on the crafting of every cathedral. These great cathedrals not only provided multi-generational employment for urban centers, but also spiritual and cultural centers for residents and visitors. It always confounds me that these cathedrals were dreamed and planned by dreamers and workers who would never see their completion. Do we begin ventures like this today? Perhaps we do when we plant trees, but in many cases our dreamers and planners do not think past their own lifespans. We need more of that. In any case, read more about cathedrals.

The Story Behind the Book

I just spent a wonderful weekend with educators at NCTE and had conversations about pairing fiction and nonfiction books in the classroom. While most of these discussions involved books about the environment an article this morning in Publishers Weekly Daily (PW Daily)reminded me of some other connections. I just had to share this with you all.

A Murder in Massachusetts is the story of the murder that inspired America's first crime novel -- The Scarlet Letter. It reminded me of two other books that have a similar connection -- A Northern Light by Jennifer Donnelly, which weaves the true crime story of Grace Brown, who also inpsired Theodore Dreiser's An American Tragedy.

I can already hear the classroom discussions!

The Story Behind Columbus Day

 There is a lot of controversy about whether or not our nation should be celebrating Columbus Day. Obviously, we know that Cristoforo Colombo did not discover America in 1492 because there were already people living on the land. The story of the holiday, though, is much more complex and doesn't have as much to do about the Italian explorer who sailed under the Spanish flag. It has much more to do with the history of Italian immigrants in the United States. 

From NY Public Library -- from 1892.

Between around 1880 and 1924, more than 4 million Italians, mainly from Southern Italy and Sicily, (my ancestors included) arrived on American shores looking for opportunities unavailable to them in their home country -- like all immigrants coming to America. 

Photo by Lewis Hine

Like other immigrants they were not met with open arms. Read the White House  Proclamation on Columbus Day from 2022. 

"Things have not always been easy; prejudice and violence often stalled the promisee of equal opportunity. In fact, Columbus Day was created in 1892in response to the anti-italian motivated lynching of 11 Italian Americans in New Orleans in 1891. During World War II, Italian Americans were even targeted as enemy aliens. But the hard work, dedication to community, and leadership of Italian Americans in every industry make our country stronger, more prosperous, and more vibrant." 

I'll be writing more about Italian immigration in upcoming books. In the meantime I hope that folks will explore the deeper side of this story to understand the hold this holiday has on Italians today and why it is meaningful to look at history. Take some time to celebrate Italian Heritage Month in the days ahead. 

Italian Heritage Month 2

 Are you looking for a few children's titles to enjoy this month during Italian Heritage Month? 

Here are some favorites to explore: 

Books by Donna Jo Napoli

Italian Heritage Month

 It's Italian Heritage Month and for the first time in my personal history I'm celebrating this month as a dual Italian American citizen, making this month even more meaningful for me. As part of the process of becoming a dual citizen I've been diving into the canon of Italian literature. I've read most in English, only diving into a few texts in the original Italian. 

I've loved all the books I've read - both for adult readers and children. Here are a few of the adult books: