Possibles
By Vaunda Micheaux Nelson
I know I said that the next book of the day would be The Lightning Queen but I found this book at the book store yesterday and I finished it last night and now I absolutely have to tell you about it.
The funny thing is I actually know the author! She used to be the librarian at our favorite library.
She also wrote many other books including Don't Call Me Grandma, The Book Itch, and No Crystal Stair. They are all very good books. Now I will tell you about Possibles. It is about a black girl named Mary Sheppard, but everyone calls her Sheppy. Her father has just died from cancer and her family has to work extra hard for money. And so, Sheppy gets a job "lady-sitting" cranky Constance Montgomery for the summer instead of going to summer camp with her best friend Tess. Before her father died, he was a poem writer. Sheppy's last words to her father were a Shel Silverstein poem. I will write it here.
Listen to mustn'ts, child,
Listen to the don'ts
Listen to the shouldn'ts
The impossibles, the won'ts
Listen to the never haves
Then listen close to me-
Anything can happen child,
Anything can be.
A few weeks after he died, Sheppy finds her father's writing tablet in the basement. In it is one of the most beautiful poems I have ever heard. I will write it here.
Are you ready to die?
Are you ready to go?
If you had no choice ,
and you couldn't say no?
Could you give it all up
with a wink of an eye,
and say, "Lord, take me
I'm ready to die"?
Can you go right away
and leave all behind?
Can you meet your Maker
with peace of mind?
Can you go as you are
and not ask why?
And mean it when you say
that you're ready to die?
This book is definitely going on my favorites list. I'm going to update my first post right now.
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