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'The Book Thief'

A Book Review By Sue Brooke

At the same time "The Book Thief" by Markus Zusak is winning awards, it  is also gaining popularity through word of mouth. Death, the book's narrator, calls the novel "just a small story, really, about, among other things, a girl, some words, an accordionist, some fanatical Germans, a Jewish fistfighter and quite a lot of thievery."

When the story begins, Hitler is coming to power, and Liesel, 12, is bound for a foster home in Molching, a tiny town near Munich. Her brother, who was supposed to go with her, has died on the train. Despite the fact that she cannot read, she picks up a book she finds lying on his grave and takes it away with her. "The Gravedigger's Handbook" is the first of many books Liesel will "steal."

Words and books become the central force of the novel. It portrays Hitler, who inflamed the population with words, as a thief who stole words by banning them. He built bonfires to glorify himself on his birthday in 1940, calling on the populace to stoke the flames with any book that opposed his ideas.

Liesel, though illiterate, finds comfort in words. When she first arrives in the foster home, she often wakes up screaming but is comforted by her new "Papa," who comes to her and stays till sunrise. When at 2 a.m. on one such night he sees the little black book, "The Gravedigger's Handbook," tucked under her sheets, he asks, "Is this yours?"

When she responds that it is, he asks, "Do you want to read it?" Again she answers, "Yes, Papa." With a tired smile,
his metallic eyes melting, he says, "Well, we'd better read it, then." And so begin the reading lessons they share in the early hours of each day. Liesel is stealing back the words.

The narrator Death is everywhere in this beautiful tale of a horrible time. Tired and overwhelmed, Death hates having to take some of the souls. But he has a job to do, an order to fill. "In 1933, 90 percent of the Germans showed unflinching support for Adolph Hitler. That leaves 10 percent who didn't," says the author.

Liesel's new "Papa," though one of the 10 percent, is still obliged to salute and follow orders. Though the family is so poor they can barely feed themselves, when a Jew, the son of an army buddy, shows up on their doorstop, they immediately take him in.

The family will hide and protect - and come to love - him. And their shared words become their lifeline.

Evanston Celebrates Earth Month

Evanston's Rebuilding Together

In Evanston's Rebuilding Together (formerly called Christmas in April), members of American Legion Post 42, Boy Scout Troop 3, Beth Emet Synagogue, First Presbyterian Church, Sojourners, North Shore Electric, and Faith, Hope and Charity parish in Winnetka rehabbed three homes in Evanston. Greg Lisinski, one of the house captains, said, "When somebody says, ‘This is your neighbor,' this is what it's all about." Cheryl Scherer, volunteer coordinator, for the region said the volunteers have been attempting to help the elderly by rehabbing their homes.
In photo on left, Jack Stewart (left) and John Carlson  (peeking over the roof) tear off a roof to a basement stairwell.
In photo above, Boy Scouts Grant Bailey (right) and Paxton Mueller mix concrete to repair basement stairs as part of Rebuilding Together.

More photos here (PDF)

 

Council Chambers Gets a Face Lift From Kiwanis

At right, members of the Kiwanis Club of Evanston, joined by members of Organizacion Latina de Evanston (OLE) and students from Evanston Township High School and Campus Kitchens of Northwestern University, spent last week painting City Council chambers. Kiwanis member Stamata Blanas said the Kiwanis are looking for service projects to bring people together. Projects such as this one, she says, help engage kids in the community.

Girl Scouts Join In Earth Day, Trashbusters Events

The Evanston Environmental Association and Evanston Girl Scouts teamed up to host an Earth Day/Arbor Day Fair on April 19 at the Evanston Ecology Center.

More than 30 Girl Scouts hosted tables featuring crafts, recycling collection and educational materials centered on the theme of Reduce and Reuse. Students from Evanston Township High School along with representatives of other Evanston community groups joined in celebrating Earth Day.

State Representative Julie Hamos shared her enthusiasm and praise for contributions to reducing waste in Evanston. The nearly 180 guests who attended the fair walked away with bird feeders, new plants, new jewelry -- and a renewed commitment to do their share to make a difference. 
  
 In collaboration with Keep Evanston Beautiful, Girl Scouts also participated in Trashbusters Day earlier this month. Some 200 girls and their leaders picked up debris from parks and beaches throughout Evanston.

Green Ideas for Mothers' Day

By Mayre Press

Honor both Mom and Mother Earth by choosing green gifts this Mother's Day. A fine example is Organic Bouquet, the market leader in organic flowers. Their products are available online (organicbouquet.com) and in natural food stores, such as Whole Foods Markets, nationwide.

For moms who like to be green and stylish, try these ideas. Oregon Sewn finds leather and upholstery remnants and uses those reclaimed materials to create beautiful and useful products such as handbags and decorative pillows. Their Rainstone shoulder bags are designed and handcrafted by Oregon women and available at oregonsewn.com in a variety of exterior leather colors and interior fabric patterns.

Jewelry designer Stefanie Wolf recently introduced her Recycled Elements line featuring handmade objects. Her reincarnated glass pieces are from reused soda and beer bottles, window panes, and industrial scraps. The reclaimed silver comes from old jewelry and chemical and industrial processes such as film developing. All of the rings and wire in this collection are 100 percent recycled silver. The chains and other clasps contain mixed recycled content. Visit stefaniewolfdesigns.com to see her eco designs.

Greenheart, an eco and fair trade store, is located in Chicago's River North District at 746 N. LaSalle St. (312-264-1625). Convenient to both CTA Brown and Red line el stops at Chicago Avenue, Greenheart carries fun, unique and contemporary products that customers will feel good about buying. Shop for a variety of goods including recycled accessories and handbags, home goods, gourmet treats, cook books, glassware, jewelry, travel gear, personal care, organic t-shirts and more. Check out the merchandise at greenheartshop.org.

New moms will love a comfortable all-cotton Moby Wrap from Punkin-Butt, an online retailer (punkinbutt.com) that sells cloth diapers and other products for babies. The Moby Wrap is designed to use a mother's entire back and shoulders to carry the weight of the baby. There are no buckles, snaps or other fasteners. It is easy to adjust the fit of a Moby Wrap by varying how tightly it wraps mother and baby.

To shop locally for Mothers' Day gifts, visit Evanston's eco-friendly stores. Healthy Green Goods, 702 Main St. (847-864-9098) offers organic and natural clothing, tableware and gifts, personal care items, bags and totes, and books. Browse these items and more online at healthygreengoods.com. A bit farther north is Ethical Planet, 1110 Davis St. (847-866-2088), which promotes itself as "all vegan, all the time." Among the gift ideas there are vegan shoes, accessories, clothing, jewelry, candles and more. Shop online at ethicalplanet.com.

For a Mothers' Day outing, attend the no-fossil-fuel annual Mothers' Day House Walk offered by the Evanston History Center. Get an inside look at some of the finest private homes in the Ridge Historic District on May 11, 12-5 p.m., rain or shine. Call the EHC at 847-475-3410 to order tickets: $35 in advance, $40 on Mothers' Day (note: children 12 and over require tickets); Visa, MC and checks are accepted. Tickets are available for pick-up at the History Center, 225 Greenwood St., starting at 11 a.m. on May 11.

Moms, spouses or friends who are green-living devotees will enjoy the Green Festival, May 17-18, at Navy Pier, 600 E. Grand Ave. It is accessible by public transit, and the $15 entry fee covers all activities for one day or the whole weekend. In addition to more than 300 exhibits of eco-friendly goods and services, there
will be presentations, special program-ming and healthy foods. For details, go to greenfestivals.org.

Contact Eco Gal at info@evanstonroundtable.com or ecogal247@yahoo.com.

ETHS Softball to Round Up Old Computers, Electronics

Unload that e-junk for a good cause. The Evanston Township High School girls softball team is collecting unwanted electronics for safe and secure disposal from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. on May 3.

Folks are encouraged to drop off old PCs, laptops, printers, monitors or cell phones - but no televisions - during those hours at the northwest parking lot behind ETHS at 1600 Dodge Ave. No wheels? Call to arrange an at-home pickup that day.

A previous collection on March 1 brought out scores of families who disposed of obsolete gear in this eco-friendly way.

Drop-offs will be charged 50 cents per pound (a typical PC CPU weighs 10 to 15 lbs.) and pickups 75 cents per pound, with a minimum donation of $5. Pickups outside Evanston Township will incur a small ($1/mile) surcharge. The team will accept cash or checks only (no credit/debit cards), with proceeds to benefit "ETHS Softball."

Data will be secure. Asset Recyclers of Lake Geneva, Wis., will wipe re- usable hard drives clean using Defense Department software and will shred non-reusable data storage devices for total security.

Varsity softball Coach Amanda Carlson said, "It's a chance to keep [hazardous materials such as cadmium and mercury] out of landfills, to recycle useable material and to help a good cause."

Schools, governments, hospitals and businesses are welcome to participate.
For more information or for at-home pickup, contact Coach Carlson at 847-648-4757.