Goodbye, Beverly Cleary

Also this week: Sen. Tammy Duckworth, critics' picks and more by Petra Mayer [Beverly Cleary]( Terry Smith/Time There's so much important stuff to get to this week that it's going to be kind of an extended edition of this newsletter -- but we have to start with the sad part, the death of Beverly Cleary. Cleary, the beloved creator of characters like Ramona, Henry Huggins and Ralph S. Mouse, was 104. Generations of readers grew up with Ramona and Henry and their pals -- dealing with everyday joys, travails and humiliations, from learning to write in cursive to playing Brick Factory to the dreaded Biennial Beet. Her simple idea, to write about the kids in her own neighborhood, was what gave her books their enduring appeal. Reporter Zoe Chace has [an appreciation of Cleary and her work here]( and you can [click here]( to hear the crew at Pop Culture Happy Hour talk about the Cleary books that they consider essential. (But no one mentioned The Mouse and the Motorcycle or Ramona Quimby, Age 8, so I have my doubts about their list.) --------------------------------------------------------------- Newsletter continues after sponsor message --------------------------------------------------------------- [From a Whisper to a Rallying Cry, by Paula Yoo]( As the nation grapples with a new wave of anti-Asian racism, Code Switch's Karen Grigsby Bates [talks to author Paula Yoon]( about her new book on a crime that happened back in 1982: The murder of Vincent Chin by two white men apparently upset that Japanese carmakers were undercutting American automakers. (Chin was Chinese). Chin's case is little-known outside the Asian American community, but Yoon says it led to tangible legal changes, and "inspired a younger generation to get involved as activists, as writers, as lawyers going into politics, trying to effect policy change." [Every Day is a Gift, by Tammy Duckworth]( Senator Tammy Duckworth has made headlines lately for her epic clapbacks against Fox News's Tucker Carlson over his [comments on women's military service]( and for [holding the Biden administration's feet to the fire]( on Asian American representation in the Cabinet. But there's much more to her life story -- so much that if it were a movie, people might not believe it. She tells that story in a new memoir, Every Day is a Gift, and she spoke to All Things Considered's Michel Martin about it -- [check that out here.]( [Rodney Scott's World of BBQ]( James Beard Award-winning pitmaster Rodney Scott cooked his first hog at the age of 11, and he's been barbecuing ever since. His new cookbook, Rodney Scott's World of BBQ, features memories and classic recipes from his life in the Pee Dee region of South Carolina. "I want to take over the world with barbecue," [he tells Morning Edition's Steve Inskeep](. (Me, I'm a North Carolina BBQ stalwart but even so I support Scott's plan wholeheartedly.) [Fatima's Great Outdoors, by Ambreen Tariq and Stevie Lewis]( A ten-year survey released by the National Park Service shows that 77 percent of visitors to the nation's parks [were white](. It's that lack of diversity that inspired Ambreen Tariq to start an online community called Brown People Camping, and to write her new kids' book, Fatima's Great Outdoors, based on her own childhood camping trips with her family. Tariq [tells All Things Considered's Ailsa Chang]( that she hopes the book will inspire families of different backgrounds to get outside. "The outdoors is for everyone," she says. [Decoding Despacito, by Leila Cobo, and Music Stories from the Cosmic Barrio, by Betto Arcos]( We have a treat for you to finish out the week -- our pals over at alt.latino talked to two great storytellers, Leila Cobo and Betto Arcos, about their new books. Check out that conversation -- and some of the episode's featured songs -- [here.]( And finally, NPR Politics editor Ron Elving digs into Hunter Biden's new memoir [Beautiful Things]( which he says is "at times a harrowing journey." You may not have heard of the odd South American raptor known as the caracara, but reviewer Anna Morris says that after reading [A Most Remarkable Creature]( it might become your new favorite animal. And for the start of spring, our kids' books columnist Juanita Giles sings the praises of [The Tree in Me]( a joyous, pink-splashed celebration of kids in nature. [Beautiful Things, by Hunter Biden]( [A Most Remarkable Creature, by Jonathan Meiburg]( [The Tree in Me, by Corinna Luyken]( I hope books bring you what you need this week! -- Petra --------------------------------------------------------------- Stream your local NPR station. 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