January 13, 2017 Hello ,
I'm a new grandma! This darling seven pound baby girl, Elisa Cassandra, was born to my son Brandon and his wife Clarice on January
6th. Everybody is healthy and happy. Now out in paperback!
This edition is published by Scholastic Books and is exclusively available through the school market.
Also this week, Irena's Children, Young Readers Edition was named an Sydney Taylor Notable book for older readers by the Association
of Jewish Libraries.
The award is named in memory of Sydney Taylor, author of the classic All-of-a-Kind Family series, and
recognizes books for children and teens that exemplify high literary standards while authentically portraying the Jewish
experience.
Researching last week's story on the 1930's student movement I became curious about young Americans who left family and country to fight the rise of fascism in Europe years before the U.S. joined the war against
Hitler and Mussolini. When Americans think of the Spanish Civil war, the name that usually comes to mind is Ernest Hemingway, pictured here as war
correspondent.
But nearly 3000 Americans went to Spain to aid the
Spanish Republic.They came to be known as the Abraham Lincoln Brigade.
One of them was Evelyn Hutchins Rahman, a young woman from my home state of Washington who arrived in Spain in April 1937. She served with the Republican Medical Services as an ambulance and truck driver.
Evelyn told a reporter, "They told me they didn't have any place for girl chauffeurs. Spain was a bad place for girls. I thought it over very carefully and decided they were
wrong."
Evelyn, pictured at right, drove all over Loyalist Spain in dangerous combat conditions and twisting, tortuous roads, sometimes for eighteen hours at a time.
"If it's moonlight that means it's a good night for bombing -and that means some town is going to get it, and maybe while you're going through. Since I've been in Spain I don't like moonlight nights."
Officials in the medical bureau tried to get Evelyn to leave Spain as conditions grew more dangerous, but she didn't want to. "I wouldn't like being home and reading the paper when there's a Rebel attack or a big push is on. I'd be reading it in the subway, and what could I
do? I'd be wasting my time."
Turned out my interview last week on America's Work Force Radio was not broadcast live, but rather recorded to air later. Appears they had some important political issues to discuss. I'll let you know when and where the interview is posted. Until next week... Have you read a great book? Tell me about it. Have a burning question? Let me know.
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