Free Books? Free Food? Sign Me Up!

 Denise Keogh

Tipton Middle School

What a winning combination. Who could pass up a summer of free books and free food? Certainly not the staff of Tipton Middle School. During the school year, the TMS teachers participate in a book club designed to familiarize ourselves with the YA literature that fills our shelves. With a one-time only summer reading program, we experienced the joy of reading adult books for a change. And what a wonderful time we had.

We began with Jim Lynch’s The Highest Tide, a story about a young boy struggling with his parents’ rocky marriage, his devotion to Rachel Carson, a hormone-driven best friend, and an infatuation with the older girl next door. Most of us loved the book so much that it inspired us to seek out Rachel Carson’s The Sea Around Us and Anthony Doerr’s The Shell Collector, both related to the novel. Since I’m never one to pass up an opportunity to share a picture book, we reviewed the children’s biography, Rachel Carson: Preserving a Sense of Wonder by Thomas Locker and Joseph Bruchac.

            We enjoyed a picnic lunch in the park highlighted by short book talks. Titles included Neil Gaiman and Terry Prachett’s Good Omens, Karen Kingsbury’s Fame, Anne Rover Siddons’s Sweetwater Creek, Strivers Row by Kevin Baker, and Saving Fish from Drowning by Amy Tan.

We had originally planned to meet for two hours, but our enthusiasm for sharing insights and opinions kept us for nearly four. Some staff members really appreciated the one-time-only commitment; others enjoyed it so much they plan to join our YA group in September. Participants already in the YA book club enjoyed hearing what others were reading so much that we decided to ask one member each month to prepare a book talk about a title of his or her own choosing.

            All in all, it was a perfect summer day. Beautiful weather, an afternoon in the park, lively discussions, delicious coconut-pineapple bread pudding, and books, books, books. What more could anyone want?

Recipe for Coconut - Pineapple Bread Pudding

1 loaf day old Italian or French bread, cubed

1/2 cup butter, softened

2 cups sugar

8 eggs

2 20-oz cans crushed pineapple, drained

1 cup macadamia nuts, chopped

1 cup shredded coconut

3 tablespoons lemon juice

 In very large mixing bowl, cream butter and sugar. Add the eggs, one at 

time, beating well after each egg. Stir in pineapple, nuts, coconut, and

lemon juice. Gently fold in bread cubes. Pour bread mixture into a greased

9x13 baking dish. Cover and refrigerate at least one hour. Bake at 325

degrees 40-50 minutes or until golden brown