Tag Archives: History

MG Review ~ HOW I BECAME A SPY

27 Monday May 2019

Posted by in Book Reviews, Middle Grade, Mystery, Reading

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

By Deborah Hopkinson ~ A Mystery of WWII London

How I Became A Spy coverBertie Bradshaw never set out to become a spy. He never imagined traipsing around war-torn London, solving ciphers, practicing surveillance, and searching for a traitor to the Allied forces. He certainly never expected that a strong-willed American girl named Eleanor would play Watson to his Holmes (or Holmes to his Watson, depending on who you ask).

But when a young woman goes missing, leaving behind a coded notebook, Bertie is determined to solve the mystery. With the help of Eleanor and his friend David, a Jewish refugee–and, of course, his trusty pup, Little Roo–Bertie must decipher the notebook in time to stop a double agent from spilling the biggest secret of all to the Nazis.

This suspenseful WWII adventure reminds us that times of war call for bravery, brains and teamwork from even the most unlikely heroes. [Cover Synopsis]

Danger and daring wrapped in a page-turning mystery

I chanced upon this book while browsing in a local indie bookstore. Everything about it intrigued me and I bought it on the spot.

Bertie Bradshaw volunteered as an air-raid messenger to redeem himself for a past mistake and stumbles onto a mystery of national importance. Hopkinson weaves historical facts through a masterfully plotted mystery, bringing the characters, time, and place to life.

Five things that kept me turning the pages:

  • The first lines: “I wasn’t thinking about becoming a spy that night. I was trying to be brave, do a good job, and stay out of trouble. It wasn’t going well.”
  • The dog: Little Roo, the black spaniel, is a service dog who’s skill is finding people trapped in bombed out buildings. However, Roo’s bond with Bertie runs much deeper and plays an important role in solving the mystery.
  • The history: Real-life facts, such as the Special Operations Executive (SOE) Manual quotes, food rationing, air-raid sirens, General Eisenhower and his dog, bring WWII London—and all that happened there—to life.
  • The cryptography: Ciphers used in espionage during WWII are realistically woven throughout the story. We see how they’re used and learn how they work as our characters break them.
  • The friendships: Bertie, Eleanor, and David, a Jewish refugee, form a kindred bond as they struggle to crack the ciphers in the mysterious notebook, in the race to save the nation, and world, in its darkest hour.

Praise for “HOW I BECAME A SPY”

“This middle grade mystery novel starts with a bang and sends readers on a breakneck journey through World War II London.” —School Library Journal

“Hopkinson has written a cleverly plotted, page-turning mystery that vividly evokes wartime Britain… Fans of puzzles, mysteries, and historical fiction will be delighted by Hopkinson’s latest.” —Booklist 

“Red herrings, a poignant Bradshaw family backstory, ciphers to decode, a subplot regarding a young Jewish refugee friend of Bertie’s, cameos by real-life historical figures (General Eisenhower and his dog; cipher expert Leo Marks)—there’s certainly no shortage of entry points for young readers, and never a dull moment.” —The Horn Book

Weird things I wonder about: WHY butt pockets?!!

13 Saturday Apr 2019

Posted by in Fun Facts, History, Humor

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Wonder is the seed of knowledge.
—Francis Bacon

Well…if this is true…I’m in trouble, because I wonder about some pretty weird stuff sometimes.

Like WHY are butt pockets standard issue on jeans? Seriously, WHY??! You’re just going to sit on whatever is in those pockets…eventually. Nowdays that’s likely to be your smart phone! It makes no sense.

I must admit that wondering about the absurdity of this design decision is what prompted my research into the history and origin of blue jean pockets. So, maybe the knowledge-thing applies here after all. Francis Bacon didn’t say how valuable the knowledge had to be.

The Method Behind Butt Pocket Madness

To understand the reasoning behind (no pun intended) the nonsensical placement of jean pockets, we have to go back to when blue jeans—as we know them today—were first created.

Levi Strauss followed the Gold Rush to California in 1853, where he established a dry goods store. One of the items he carried was blue industrial strength cloth known as denim. A Nevada tailor, by the name of Jacob Davis, bought some of Strauss’s denim and put rivets at pocket corners and other stress points to make them stronger. Davis couldn’t afford to patent the idea on his own, and contacted Strauss with a business plan. The patent was granted to Jacob Davis and Levi Strauss & Company on May 20, 1873, and blue jeans were born.

Prior to Levi Strauss’s blue jeans, people wore overalls for messy jobs and manual labor, such as construction, farm work, and painting. These jobs were generally performed while standing, so pocket placement was intended to make it easy to carry and retrieve tools. Blue jeans were originally intended to be worn for the same type of work, and initially were called waist overalls.

Form follows function. No sitting on jobs, where you carry tools in your pockets. Blue jeans were solely used for doing tough jobs for 80 years, until the mid 1950s.

From Work-Horse Wardrobe to Fashion Forward Fame

What happened to change the fate of the work-horse blue jeans?

James Dean happened.

The blue jeans fashion craze caught fire with James Dean’s signature t-shirt, leather jacket, and blue jeans look in the movie Rebel Without a Cause (1955). Young men across the country copied it immediately.

How did the blue jean fad catch on with young women in a time of poodle skirts and pearls?

Marilyn Monroe started the feminine blue jeans trend when she wore them in the movie The Misfits. Her character joined up with a group of cowboys, and she sported the quintessential female version of James Dean’s Rebel Without a Cause outfit.

In the following decades, Elvis Presley, Marlon Brando, and Henry Winkler (as The Fonz in Happy Days) fanned the flame of the blue jeans fashion frenzy. A trend that’s still burning bright.

THAT my friends is WHY we wear jeans with pockets on our backside.

I wonder what Levi Strauss would think of us carrying a computer—with more power than the one that put the first man in space (and took up an entire floor of a building)—in one of his back jean pockets? I think he’d probably design a more functional garment for that purpose. But that’s just me.

Road trip! ~ Who paved the way for the American tradition?

15 Sunday Jul 2018

Posted by in Adventure, Nonfiction

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Car on a mapSummer and road trips are synonymous, with millions of Americans taking to the road in the spirit of unbridled adventure. Jack Kerouac’s 1957 novel, On the Road, fueled a generation with the romance of the open road.

But HOW did it all start?

WHO was the first to pave the way for this American tradition, WHEN, and WHY?

A Bet, Two Men, and a Dog in Goggles

On May 19, 1903, a heated debate at the exclusive University Club in San Francisco resulted in a $50.00 wager taken by Horatio Nelson Jackson. Horses and carriages were the main mode of transportation, and many thought the horseless carriage was a passing fancy of the well-to-do. Certainly not reliable enough to withstand a dangerous cross-country journey. Jackson had a grander vision and recruited Sewall Crocker to prove the automobile nay-sayers wrong.

Horatio Nelson Jackson in the VermontOn May 23, 1903 they set out to complete the trip from San Francisco to New York City in less than 90 days. [Horatio Nelson Jackson in the Vermont]

They packed a second-hand 20 horsepower, cherry red, Winton touring car (dubbed the Vermont) with sleeping bags, cooking gear, and supplies, then started on their daring journey. Crocker was a former bicycle racer and gasoline engine mechanic, skills they would need in the days ahead. At the time there were fewer than 150 miles of paved roads nationwide, no road signs, or gas stations. With the rigorous terrain, automobiles often breakdown. The Vermont was no different.

The Winton crossed streams and traversed winding mountain roads better suited for Bud the dog, with gogglesmules than man. They suffered mechanical failures early and often, and had to rely on stagecoaches to ferry new parts and blacksmiths to make repairs. In short, their trip was one obstacle after another, devoid of the amenities we take for granted on cross-country journeys today.

With mechanical fiasco after fiasco, it took 19 days to reach Idaho. There they met a bull-terrier named Bud, fitted him with motoring goggles to protect his eyes from dust, and hoped the new addition to their party would bring them luck. Bud wore his goggles, navigating from the front seat for the rest of the journey, but luck wasn’t quick to follow. [Bud sporting his motoring goggles]

Throughout bad directions that sent them days out of their way, getting stuck in a swamp, then lost in the Wyoming badlands, the team maintained a spirit of optimism. Possibly, due to the tremendous receptions they received along the way. For many, it was their first encounter with an automobile.

Fanfare swelled to a crescendo as they rolled into Chicago on July 17, and then Cleveland a few days later. In spite of the hoopla the adventure ignited along the way, the epic road trip ended as humbly as it began. The Vermont, and its three passengers, quietly rolled down Fifth Avenue in Manhattan on Sunday, July 26, 1903, at 4:30 am. The 4,500-mile journey had taken 63 days, 12 hours, and 30 minutes. Jackson won the $50.00 bet, but it cost him close to $8,000.00—including the price of the Winton, and all its repairs along the way.

Jackson, Crocker, and the adorable Bud in his motoring goggles became celebrities, pictured in newspapers across the country and featured in Winton advertisements for years to come. They proved a cross-country road trip was an attainable American dream, even if (at the time) it was beyond the means of any but the wealthy.

Route 66 became a reality decades later. After World War II, the American highway infrastructure expanded to support cross-country travel and cars became affordable for the average person. The dream of free spirited independence lived on, becoming a cultural ideal and American tradition. Vintage Route 66 poster

The whole truth about The Pentagon Papers: Most Dangerous + The Post

17 Saturday Feb 2018

Posted by in Film, History, Nonfiction

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Film and fiction bring their own strengths to storytelling. The secrets behind The Pentagon Papers requires both to fully understand the people and events that shaped this turning point in American history and culture.

Most Dangerous, by Steve Sheinkin, reveals the how and why The Pentagon Papers were stolen and released to the press by Daniel Ellsberg. The Post (starring Tom Hanks and Meryl Streep), is the story of the Washington Post’s role in exposing the lies behind the Vietnam war to the American public.

Most Dangerous, by Steve Sheinkin

Daniel Ellsberg and the Secret History of the Vietnam War

Most Dangerous, coverDaniel Ellsberg was the obscure government analyst who became “the most dangerous man in America” by risking everything to expose decades of government deception and lies.

The Pentagon Papers—the top-secret history of the Vietnam war—had been kept under lock and key for over a decade, with only the highest ranking government officials aware of their existence. On June 13, 1971, the New York Times blew open the government’s tightly kept secret, exposing The Pentagon Papers to the American public and the world. Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara had documented the government’s actions in the Vietnam War, revealing lies that spanned four presidencies. Sheinkin’s page-turning narrative provides direct insight into the people and political events that brought Ellesberg—a self-proclaimed patriot—to commiting what many would call treason. Sheinkin interviewed Ellsberg and others who were involved in shining the light of truth on The Pentagon Papers. The result is a front row seat to what the New York Times deemed “the biggest story of the century”, as if you are experiencing it unfold in real-time. Thought provoking and emotionally stirring, Most Dangerous delves into the true meaning of patriotism, freedom, and integrity.

Sheinkin’s insightful investigation of The Pentagon Papers was the 2015 National Book Award finalist and winner of the 2016 YALSA Excellence in Nonfiction Award.

The Post

The Post, in comparison, focuses on the unprecedented battle between the press and the The Post, movie postergovernment regarding the right print The Pentagon Papers. Katharine Graham, the country’s first female newspaper publisher and her hard-driving editor Ben Bradlee were the force behind bringing the truth behind the Vietnam war to the American people.

The Washington Post’s legal team advised Graham against publishing the stolen documents, as Nixon would surely slam them with criminal charges. If they lost the legal battle, Graham risked destroying the newspaper that was her family legacy. If they won, she’d the Post would become a national journalistic institution. She was a fighter. She ran the story.

The White House retaliated with full force, and the Post and Times went before the Supreme Court to plead their First Amendment stance. Newspapers across the country rallied the story in solidarity, and the court ruled in favor of the newspaper and the people’s right to know.

Meryl Streep’s performance provides a movingly nuanced reflection of the societal inequality professional women of the time faced. For this reason, The Post is as much a statement about the turning tides of equality as it is about freedom of the press and the American people’s right to know.