The Gravity of Us

Stamper, Phik. The Gravity of Us. 2020. 314p. ISBN 9781547600144. Available as an audiobook from Overdrive.

Cal Lewis Junior has a promising career in front of him as a journalist. His online posts are generally viewed by thousands of people, and he's covered many events, both political and entertainment. At 17, Cal is looking forward to moving in with his best friend Debra, and go to college in Brooklyn. He's already attracted some attention from Buzzfeed and other social media companies. But when his father returns home one night and announces that he's applied to be the 20th astronaut on the Orpheus mission to Mars, Cal cannot believe it. His dad is a pilot, but he's never expressed an interest in going to space, at least that Cal can remember. Worse, his dat is actually selected, and the family has three days to move from New York City to Houston.

Cal is crushed. This will undermine his dream and life trajectory. Moving to Texas, Cal soon falls for Leon, the son of another of the astronauts on the Orpheus mission. And Cal discover that instead of being a death knell for this channel, this new opportunity brings more viewers. It helps that the whole experience is being recorded by a reality television company and is immensely popular on television. Soon Cal's takes on life find hundreds of thousands of people, and are even picked up by the mainstream media.

But as Cal gets into a fight with the reality television company, his relationship with Leon becomes more serious. With NASA's Orpheus mission in danger of being defunded, Cal will need to navigate the choppy waters of politics and best social media experts at their own game to avoid losing Leon.

Dealing with social media, depression, and emotional instability, the story incorporates elements of the space flight enthusiasm of the 1960s mixed with a more modern version of the world. Cal is a powerfully motivated character, but he is often unlikable. Leon, however, is more relatable, so readers will cheer when the two of them finally decide they are right for each other.

Secrets of the Casa Rosada

Temblador, Alex. Secrets of the Casa Rosada. 2018. 238p. ISBN  978-1-55885-870-1. Available at FIC TEM on the library shelves.

Martha and her mother only have each other. Martha refers to her mother's smiles as the Big Fake, when her mother is trying to convince others to do something for her. Martha is not abused or mistreated, she's simply ... ignored. They move constantly, never staying in one spot for very long, so Martha has never had the need to make friends. When Martha's mother tells her they're heading to Laredo, Texas to visit Martha's grandmother, Martha is puzzled. She's never met any of her extended family. Her mother, however, tells her very little about what to expect.

Once there, Martha is abandoned at her grandmother's pink house. Her Abuela doesn't speak English, and it is clear she and Martha's mother never got along. Known and respected in the community as a healer, or a curandera, Abuela is a powerful woman who is not to be trifled with. Enrolled in the local high school, Martha quickly realizes that she will need to learn Spanish to survive. Martha  is confronted by Marcella, a senior who wanted very much to learn the healing arts with Abuela but was rejected. Now, on top of being in what feels like a foreign land, Martha must be careful with such an enemy.

As time passes, Martha discovers that the pink house is full of secrets, secrets that concern her and her mother. When she begins digging, however, she uncovers information that could change her life forever, but which could alienate Abuela, the last direct link to her mother. Is discovering who she really is worth the risk to Martha?

Taking place in Laredo in the 1990s, Martha's story is one of family secrets that can redefine relationships and even one's understanding of oneself. Martha's emotions are raw but realistic, and her feelings of abandonment are in conflict with her happiness at a newfound family. Readers looking for family drama will enjoy this book.

Girls Like Us

Giles, Gail. Girls Like Us. 2014. 210p. ISBN 9780763662677. Available as an eBook on Overdrive.

Quincy and Biddy just graduated from high school in Texas. Biddy’s brain lacked oxygen at birth. Quincy was assaulted by her stepfather, who slammed a brick in her face, breaking an eye socket and leaving her permanently disfigured. Both of them have difficulty learning. Quincy can read slowly, but can’t write. Biddy can’t even read. Just because they are special ed students doesn’t mean that they don’t understand what is going on around them.

Since both of them are 18, they lose access to the foster care system for Quincy, and for her unforgiving grandmother for Biddy. In needs of housing, their social worker places them in the house of Miss Elizabeth, who has a small apartment for them next to her mansion. In exchange for food and lodging Biddy will help Elizabeth with her exercises and will keep house. Quincy will work at the market, and cook. Whereas Biddy is thrilled with the arrangement, Quincy is not enthralled. Everyone at school knew that Biddy was a “slut,” and she’s concerned that boys will come around calling on her.

A fighter, Quincy doesn’t put up with crap, but she is a hard worker. When she is raped by a co-worker who had previously assaulted her and gotten fired, Quincy doesn’t know how to deal. But Biddy does, because it happened to her too back in 7th grade. As both girls share details of their attacks, Quincy realizes that Biddy and Miss Elizabeth have truly become her family, and that she will never be alone again, moved from one foster home to another.

Told through diaries that both girls are keeping on recording devices, the reader is exposed to the bittersweet existence of those who think differently through no fault of their own. Compassion goes a long way to support those growing up in a violent and cruel world that doesn’t look beyond the superficial.

Manifest Destiny and the Mexican-American War

Deibel, Zachary. Manifest Destiny and the Mexican-American War. Part of the Primary Sources of Westward Expansion series. 2018. 64p. ISBN 978-1-5026-2643-1. Available at 973.62 DEI on the library shelves.

With the purchase of the Louisiana Territory and its exploration complete, the United States turned to surveying and occupying this new land. The idea of Manifest Destiny, that Americans were destined to control the continent from sea to sea, became anchored in the popular imagination. Who else was better suited to rule this space than White Protestants English speakers? As it continued to grow, the country began to encroach on European colonies, and acquisitions by peace or by force were inevitable. The new country acquired Florida, and open revolt in Mexico led to the establishment of Texas as a Republic. The conflict simmered and led to the Mexican-American War, where the United States army defeated the Mexicans. In the resulting peace settlement, the United States acquired Arizona, New Mexico, Nevada and California.

Relations with Native American groups encountered during the western expansion were also negative, with Americans stealing land and forcing Native Americans to move under duress. Manifest Destiny also impacted foreign relations, with the United States announcing that no European powers could dabble in the affairs of the American continents.

This period of expansion led to the country being what it is today, but also caused untold heartaches and destruction as whole ways of lives were irremediably changed.

Books in the Primary Sources of Westward Expansion series include Native American Resistance, Homesteading and Settling the Frontier, The Gold Rush, The Transcontinental Railroad, Lewis and Clark and Exploring the Louisiana Purchase, and Manifest Destiny and the Mexican-American War.

The Alamo

Nardo, Don. The Alamo. Part of the World History series. 2013. 103p. ISBN 978-1-42050861-1. Available at 976.4 NAR on the library shelves.

With Americans spreading westward in the 1830s and Mexico imposing its own law following its independence from Spain, the two powers were bound to confront each other. The spark that lit the fuse was the desire of the new Mexican dictator, Santa Anna, to disarm all state militias and collect weapons so only the federal Mexican government had an army. Texians, however, were opposed. The population of Texas having changed in the 1810s and 1820s as Americans moved in droves for free land, a majority now felt that the far away Mexican government was taking their rights away.

When a Mexican army entered the state, it headed to San Antonio, where it was switfly defeated in a siege by the local militia. Santa Anna himself took command of another army and marched to San Antonio. The Texians who had seized the town shored up the Alamo, an old Catholic mission, and were ready to defend themselves and their families. As Santa Anna’s army approached, messages were sent to request help, but none came.

Over the next thirteen days, the siege of the Alamo became widely known in the United States. Texians bravely resisted, but were eventually overrun and all defenders perished. The Alamo’s fall sparked outrage and galvanized the state militias, which, under Sam Houston’s leadership coordinated their efforts and successfully defeated Santa Anna. This led to the area’s independence from Mexico and the establishment of the Republic of Texas.

Many famous people, including Davy Crocket and Jim Bowie perished at the Alamo, leading to the battle cry “Remember the Alamo!” Though the memory of the event remained in the nation’s consciousness and was made into movies countless times, the building itself was not maintained and eventually fell in disrepair, until steps were taken to secure it for posterity. Though a defeat, the Alamo directly impacted American politics, leading to the spread of slavery in the southwest, and changed American culture to provide the model of rugged American individual standing up for his rights.

Blooming at the Texas Sunrise Motel

Holt, Kimberly Willis. Blooming at the Texas Sunrise Motel. 2017. 325p. ISBN 978-1-62779-324-7. Available at FIC HOL on the library shelves.

Stevie and her parents live on a farm in New Mexico, and they sell plants and flowers for a living. She is very knowledgeable about gardens, and enjoys watching the plants grow. Unfortunately, when a car hits their farm stand both of her parents are killed. Stevie finds out while at school. The closest relative available to take her in is her mother’s father, someone she has had no contact with, and who lives in Texas.

Her grandfather is too busy to get her at the bus station, so she is welcomed by Arlo and Roy, her grandfather’s handyman and his middle-school aged son. Arriving at the Sunrise Motel, which her grandfather owns, she discovers that the place is rather dilapidated and run-down. He welcomes her stiffly, and takes her to her new bedroom, her mother’s old room. Roy is excited to meet her, and so is every other staffer and permanent residents at the motel. Winston, her grandfather, does not appear to be happy she’s here, however. Life at the motel is very quiet

Stevie’s parents never told her anything about their past, so Stevie is discovering for the first time bits and pieces of information about her mother and father’s journey through life. Sent to be homeschooled with Mrs. Crump, a very old teacher who also taught her mother, Stevie beings to reconstruct her parents’ lives. She uses her money to plant a garden next to the motel sign, and she looks forward to it blooming.

But when a sister of her father gets in touch with her and offers her to spend time in Louisiana, Stevie agrees to go visit. Now with two possible places to live, where will Stevie choose to go?