Keith Elliot Greenberg

I vaguely remember hearing about this case. The most mind boggling part of this whole case was not the act of the crimes but Daniel's demeanor towards the whole situation. He acted as if he was playing a part in a show, even when Mr. Greenberg went to visit him in prison. How, someone can be so distinct about taking innocent lives is mind boggling. Yes, Daniel did it for the money but in the end he really did not end up with a lot of money.

The way that Sam's military buddies bonded with his parents was sweet. Yet, on the other hand, I also saw the downside to a murder. For example, the theater where Daniel starred in; received so much bad publicity that the owners had to shut it down. You don't really think of all of the ripe effects a murder has on everyone involved. Mr. Greenberg did a very good job writing this book. I did not feel like anything was unbalanced in the details. Fans of true crime will enjoy this book.… (más)

The title of "An Armenian Family" belies the sweeping history of the Armenian people the author manages to stuff into 53 pages. Providing a brief history or cultural overlook of any one people is difficult, but the task becomes more daunting when the story begins with the birth Mesopotamia. Still, the story is effectively told through the vehicle of one Armenian family forced to first flee Artsakh, then Baku, and finally post-Soviet Moscow to the (presumed) safety of Brooklyn.

This book is a good introduction to the complex topics of refugees seeking asylum in America, Armenian history, and to a certain extent the history of Soviet Transcaucasia. Neither light nor obvious topics for children's literature, but that makes this book an even more important edition to any modern children's library.

My sole concern about the book is its willingness to frame Azeri-Armenian conflict along religious lines, when at its core, the conflict has more to do with ethnicity. This could potentially be problematic for readers with a preexisting confirmation bias regarding Christian persecution, or anti-Muslim sentiment.

I do think the book could have benefitted from mentioning that Stalin decided to create chaos in Transcaucasia between the Azeris and Armenians because he was himself Georgian, but this piece of information might have only unnecessarily expanded an already complex story, so I respect the author's decision.… (más)

I read most of this book, and it strikes me as a good introduction to the recent history of children's rights. However, the book was written about ten years ago. I think some of the information in the book may be dated, so I don't think it's particularly useful for understanding some of our current events. For example, the book noted that judges have supported schools' decisions to not let students attend prom dressed as their opposite sex. I hope with the advancements the transgender community has made in our country that this has been overturned or soon will be. I just recently read about a transgender male running for prom king at his high school. The principal switched his nomination to prom queen and his family is taking this issue to court. I realize that this book is just a short introduction to laws and court cases concerning teens, but the book lacks discussion on how some of these laws might change, and the suggestions for further reading don't seem to include anything about abortion rights or transgender rights.… (más)