Anastasia Krupnik

Oh, for Pete’s sake, we can’t fathom why this book was ever banned! While it didn’t live up to Hawa’s spicy expectations, we thoroughly enjoyed the first book in the Anastasia Krupnik series by Lois Lowry. Our charming protagonist may just be the president of the Precocious Children’s Club. 

In this episode we discuss the Krupniks’ parenting, the devastating effect of Alzheimer’s and our theories about what the heck is on Washburn Cummings’ T-shirt. 

These Books Made Me is a podcast about the literary heroines who shaped us and is a product of the Prince George's County Memorial Library System podcast network. Stay in touch with us via Twitter @PGCMLS with #TheseBooksMadeMe or by email at TheseBooksMadeMe@pgcmls.info. For recommended readalikes and deep dives into topics related to each episode, visit our blog at https://pgcmls.medium.com/.

Chapters

• 0:09 Intro
• 0:32 What did this book mean to you?
• 7:20 Summary
• 8:43 Author Bio
• 11:35 Discussion
• 11:50 Harriet the Spy homage?
• 12:27 Anastasia's grandmother
• 13:28 Difference between Anastasia and Harriet
• 14:00 Lists, likes, and dislikes
• 16:10 Krupnik parenting style
• 22:56 Krupnik baby
• 30:46 Mrs Westvessel & Anastasia's poem
• 32:17 The pedagogy of public humiliation
• 33:22 The redemption of Mrs. Westvessel
• 34:15 Names, Washburn Cummings, and One-Ball Reilly
• 37:37 Ill-advised hair-styles and Anne of Green Gables?
• 38:57 Becoming Catholic and saints names
• 44:51 Sweary controversy in class
• 46:54 SPICY and book bans
• 48:34 Anastasia's grandmother and the portrayal of dementia
• 58:56 Washburn Cumming's shirt
• 1:03:18 Perfume
• 1:04:55 Game segment
• 1:11:27 Bechtel test
• 1:12:15 Outro