Flying Lessons & Other Stories

Great stories

I absolutely adored this anthology. Each of these stories features a marginalized kid and the stories address and incorporate their identity without being exclusively an "issue" story. They were all enjoyable reads with thought-provoking themes. My personal favorites were The Difficult Path by Grace Lin, in which a poor servant girl who loves to read finds an unexpected way to use her skill; Secret Samantha by Tim Federle, which involves a queer/gender-nonconforming kid developing a crush on the new girl in their class and drawing her name for Secret Santa; and Flying Lessons by Soman Chainani, in which a shy Indian American boy goes on vacation to Europe with his grandmother and finds unexpected friends.

This is a fantastic book for middle grades. It gives a voice to people who do not see themselves in literature frequently enough. It also addresses situations and opportunities that don't get portrayed in literature enough, things like living out of a hotel room, watching a parent do something you didn't think was right, having feelings about someone new, family storytelling, playing pick up basketball at the municipal gym, being a person of color in an all white community, and playing basketball when you're confined to a wheelchair. Every voice is different. But every voice is also important. They tell their own stories, but they tell our stories too. Because we all have an experience where we're new or where we want to get into a group and don't know how. We've all had a crush on someone and don't know how to get their attention. We have younger or older siblings, friends who move away, teachers who understand us, and those who don't. We're embarrassed by our parents, and we love them, and we support them, and we miss them, and we're ashamed by them, and sometimes all at the same time. This book is full of stories. But the stories need to be told. And they need to be read.

As an adult, I share my love and commitment to reading and life long learning. I try to find books to recommend that provide meaningful information and encourage dialogue. I look forward to more diversity in books for our youth. It’s important that books are diverse and represent all of our reading community. It not only empowers and equips, it also provides essential lessons that are inclusive.

I can't say enough good things about these stories! First of all, the writers are all excellent in their own right, and I've read a couple of their full novels before, so I was expecting good things, but not to this level! The first story is PERFECT for reluctant male readers who like basketball, or any reader who needs a good story about persistence in getting to your goal. I had to re-read several of them multiple times, only because they were THAT good. The diversity in this collection is there without being exclusive. Meaning anyone can enjoy the story, but those who have experienced what the character is going through (example, living in a hotel room/homelessness/racism, etc.) will find themselves in at least one of these stories. The stories are short enough for anyone to finish rather quickly, but still fully complete in their plot line. I have recommended this to several other teachers who have purchased it for their classrooms.

The book created a stir in Litchfield County, Connecticut with parents if schoolchildren who objected to its content as reported in a local newspaper. As a retired educator, this piqued my curiosity and prompted me to order this book to see what all the hoopla was about. I read it and enjoyed every wonderfully written story. I found nothing objectionable about the stories with the theme focus of diversity and inclusiveness. To me, this book is an honest and tactful approach to celebrate the unique and common traits we all share as Americans regardless of cultural differences or sexual orientation. It’s reality! It’s a slice of contemporary America in the 21st century!

I am a "read aloud" volunteer at the school my son goes to, and good short stories for grades 3-5 can be hard to find. The first two in this book work well. In fact, I was stunned by the quiet attention afforded the first story by Matt de la Peña. "Beans and Rice Chronicle ..." is good too, though I'd have to excerpt it some to fit in the half hour slot I get. (de la Peña's story I managed by reading quickly, but that added intensity to the story.) Sol Painting is good material, but IMO the writing is just a bit clumsy -- sort of like I might write if I made the time to. I personally did not "sign on" for the message in the title story, "Flying Lessons". There are particular situations which might warrant deceit, but I felt the deceitfulness depicted in this story was gratuitous, so I would not use this.

This book packs a whole lot of feeling in the short stories from empathy to happiness. It also talks about diversity, which is good for young readers. I liked this book because it talks about situations you might be in and how to overcome them. I think authors shouldwrite more of these diverse books to teach young reading about it. This is a very thoughtful, good book! -Alexander H. 11 years old