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Sauerkraut

Read by Ron Butler
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On sale Sep 10, 2019 | 5 Hours and 54 Minutes | 9780593104897
Age 8-12 years | Grades 6-8
A new quirky-funny book from the author of Unusual Chickens for the Exceptional Poultry Farmer about a boy whose plans for the summer go sideways when the ghost of his great-great-grandmother demands his attention.

HD Schenk is a maker--an inventor, someone who builds cool stuff. He's got a plan for the summer: he'll build his own computer and enter it in the county fair. Then everyone will know who he is and what he can do.

To earn enough money for the parts he'll need, HD has promised to clear out his uncle's overflowing basement. No big deal, right? But there's more in that basement than HD bargained for. On his first trip down there, a voice only he can hear starts talking to him. About...sauerkraut?

Who knew the ghost of his great-great-grandmother was haunting an old pickling crock? She's got a grand plan, too. She wants HD to help make her famous recipe for sauerkraut and enter it in the county fair so that she can be declared pickle queen.

After some initial shock, HD is willing enough to help. This ghost is family, after all. But only HD can really see and hear his Oma, which is going to make it hard for her to win on her own...

Kelly Jones spins a wonderfully goofy ghost tale that celebrates creative problem solving, family ties, and makers of every variety.
You know, there are a lot of ghost stories out there that just aren’t that realistic. Maybe somewhere there’s a ghost that wants to spend all their time clanking chains around or whatever. But I bet most ghosts have better things to do.
They’re busy people, after all, and they’re pretty focused on what they need to do.
Kind of like me. Only, more ghostly.
My full name is Hans Dieter Schenk. My dad’s name is Hans Peter Schenk. Before him came Hans Frederich Schenk, and before that came Hans Franz Schenk. (He wanted to be called Franz, because, come on, would you introduce yourself as Hans Franz? It would not be good, not even in olden times.) Before him came more guys back in Germany called Hans Something too. They all looked pretty much the same in old photos, with pale skin and pale hair and square chins and eyes that were probably blue, like my dad’s. All except for Hans Franz, who had a bigger nose than the rest.
They all fit their names exactly.
Mom says I got my chin from my dad. But honestly, I look a lot more like her and my little brother, Asad. I have short black locs, and medium- brown skin, and brown eyes, and no one ever thinks my dad is my dad unless they know us. (Sometimes they even think my dad is my best friend Eli’s dad, not mine, just because they’re both white. It’s . . . awkward.)
So, people call me HD.
My mom’s name is Kikora Davis Schenk. She has darker skin than me and much longer locs, and she is a no- nonsense person. She says that knowing where you came from is important, but so is knowing who you are, and what kind of person you want to become.
I’ve been thinking about that a lot lately.
Right now, most adults know me as “Kikora’s son— the older one” (because everybody knows my mom) or “Hans Peter’s son— the older one,” or “Gregor’s oldest nephew,” or “that boy who takes care of Mr. Ziedrich’s goats for him.” Most kids know me as “that Black kid with the white dad and the weird name— the older one,” or even “Asad’s older brother.”
But after they’ve seen the computer I’m going to build from scratch, old- school- style, they’ll know me as “HD, the maker.”
I like the sound of that.
  • NOMINEE | 2020
    Washington State Book Award
"A ghost story full of nuance and depth." —Kirkus Reviews

“This thoroughly quirky tale highlights the importance of mutual respect, community, and family heritage…. A ghost story about family heritage and obligations that will appeal to fans of family-driven, slice-of-life tales.” —School Library Journal

Ingenious, rascally, and still deeply empathic—will elicit knowing smiles.” Publishers Weekly 
© Susan Brown
Once upon a time, KELLY JONES was a librarian and a bookseller. Now, she writes novels for young people and takes care of a few hilarious chickens. She’s the author of Unusual Chickens for the Exceptional Poultry Farmer; Are You Ready to Hatch an Unusual Chicken?; Murder, Magic, and What We Wore; Sauerkraut; and Happily for Now. You can find her online at her website, curiosityjones.net, or on Twitter and Instagram @curiosityjones. View titles by Kelly Jones

About

A new quirky-funny book from the author of Unusual Chickens for the Exceptional Poultry Farmer about a boy whose plans for the summer go sideways when the ghost of his great-great-grandmother demands his attention.

HD Schenk is a maker--an inventor, someone who builds cool stuff. He's got a plan for the summer: he'll build his own computer and enter it in the county fair. Then everyone will know who he is and what he can do.

To earn enough money for the parts he'll need, HD has promised to clear out his uncle's overflowing basement. No big deal, right? But there's more in that basement than HD bargained for. On his first trip down there, a voice only he can hear starts talking to him. About...sauerkraut?

Who knew the ghost of his great-great-grandmother was haunting an old pickling crock? She's got a grand plan, too. She wants HD to help make her famous recipe for sauerkraut and enter it in the county fair so that she can be declared pickle queen.

After some initial shock, HD is willing enough to help. This ghost is family, after all. But only HD can really see and hear his Oma, which is going to make it hard for her to win on her own...

Kelly Jones spins a wonderfully goofy ghost tale that celebrates creative problem solving, family ties, and makers of every variety.

Excerpt

You know, there are a lot of ghost stories out there that just aren’t that realistic. Maybe somewhere there’s a ghost that wants to spend all their time clanking chains around or whatever. But I bet most ghosts have better things to do.
They’re busy people, after all, and they’re pretty focused on what they need to do.
Kind of like me. Only, more ghostly.
My full name is Hans Dieter Schenk. My dad’s name is Hans Peter Schenk. Before him came Hans Frederich Schenk, and before that came Hans Franz Schenk. (He wanted to be called Franz, because, come on, would you introduce yourself as Hans Franz? It would not be good, not even in olden times.) Before him came more guys back in Germany called Hans Something too. They all looked pretty much the same in old photos, with pale skin and pale hair and square chins and eyes that were probably blue, like my dad’s. All except for Hans Franz, who had a bigger nose than the rest.
They all fit their names exactly.
Mom says I got my chin from my dad. But honestly, I look a lot more like her and my little brother, Asad. I have short black locs, and medium- brown skin, and brown eyes, and no one ever thinks my dad is my dad unless they know us. (Sometimes they even think my dad is my best friend Eli’s dad, not mine, just because they’re both white. It’s . . . awkward.)
So, people call me HD.
My mom’s name is Kikora Davis Schenk. She has darker skin than me and much longer locs, and she is a no- nonsense person. She says that knowing where you came from is important, but so is knowing who you are, and what kind of person you want to become.
I’ve been thinking about that a lot lately.
Right now, most adults know me as “Kikora’s son— the older one” (because everybody knows my mom) or “Hans Peter’s son— the older one,” or “Gregor’s oldest nephew,” or “that boy who takes care of Mr. Ziedrich’s goats for him.” Most kids know me as “that Black kid with the white dad and the weird name— the older one,” or even “Asad’s older brother.”
But after they’ve seen the computer I’m going to build from scratch, old- school- style, they’ll know me as “HD, the maker.”
I like the sound of that.

Awards

  • NOMINEE | 2020
    Washington State Book Award

Reviews

"A ghost story full of nuance and depth." —Kirkus Reviews

“This thoroughly quirky tale highlights the importance of mutual respect, community, and family heritage…. A ghost story about family heritage and obligations that will appeal to fans of family-driven, slice-of-life tales.” —School Library Journal

Ingenious, rascally, and still deeply empathic—will elicit knowing smiles.” Publishers Weekly 

Author

© Susan Brown
Once upon a time, KELLY JONES was a librarian and a bookseller. Now, she writes novels for young people and takes care of a few hilarious chickens. She’s the author of Unusual Chickens for the Exceptional Poultry Farmer; Are You Ready to Hatch an Unusual Chicken?; Murder, Magic, and What We Wore; Sauerkraut; and Happily for Now. You can find her online at her website, curiosityjones.net, or on Twitter and Instagram @curiosityjones. View titles by Kelly Jones