Rocks in His Head (Avenues)

Children's author Carol Otis Hurst turns to the life story of her own father in this delightful picture-book biography, chronicling his life-long love of rocks, and how this obsession eventually led to his dream job, despite the nay-saying of all those who claimed that there "wasn't any money" in it. A collector since childhood, Hurst's father always had time to work on his rocks - polishing them, building display shelves for them, trading them for new specimens - even while running a filling station, or, during the Great Depression, looking for work. When the curator of mineralogy noticed him haunting the rock room at the local science museum, she struck up a conversation, and, learning of his passion and knowledge, offered him a job. show more It was only a position as a night janitor, but soon, despite his lack of a college degree, better things were to follow...

An inspirational reminder that, sometimes, with both luck and dedication, one's private passions can be transformed into a career, Rocks In His Head was an absolute joy to read. The historical setting - the booming car business of the 1920s, the hardships and mass unemployment of the 1930s - are worked seamlessly into the narrative, which focuses on Hurst's easy-going father, and his utter absorption in his area of interest. The artwork by James Stevenson, done in watercolor and black pen, is immensely expressive, and accentuates the humor of the story. My only complaint is that there is no informative afterword to give further details, as there so often is with books like this. We learn from the author's dust-jacket blurb that her father eventually did earn a college degree - after obtaining a job as curator - but facts like these might have been better presented in a brief "what happened next" addendum. Leaving that aside, this is just a wonderful book, and a moving tribute from an author daughter to her rock-hound father. show less

This is...I can't decide. Technically, I think it is a biography because it is about the author's father, but when I was reading it, there was no indication of his name or that he was even a real person. I had to read the summary to figure out it was the author's actual father in the story. So I think I would classify this as historical fiction and a good example of historical fiction. It focuses on someone who is not a public figure, but talks about how the events happening in those years (invention of the Model T, The Depression, etc.) effected the father and his family.
The theme of this story is definitely "do what you love." Throughout the story you see people laughing at or ignoring the father's love and knowledge for rocks. But show more he kept looking for them and thinking about them and was able to get a job in a museum working with rocks. Sometimes people asked about rocks and he could tell them stories, but a lot of times people just thought he was strange. So the author, I think, highlights the importance of standing by what you love to do and pursuing it, no matter what other people think.
Age Appropriateness: Primary, Intermediate
Media: Watercolor and ink show less

I did not like this book for a few reasons. Primarily, the content of this book was not up to par. The plot was boring and there was not much of a story line to follow. The story first introduces his father and his adoration for rocks. The author then goes on to tell the story of his father’s business in rock collecting, and its lack of success. In the end, his father gets a job at a science museum, even though he is under-qualified. From that, the reader can pull out the main message, being to always persevere, no matter how many attempts it takes to get to where you want to be. In my opinion, there could have been more substance to the plot and more of a climax and resolution. I also think some of the references in the story were show more too advanced. For instance, the book references the crash of the stock market, without going into any explanation of what that means. I do not think children in grades k-3 know much about the economy and what that has to do with job security. Additionally the phrase “rocks in his head” is used a lot and the book does not do a good job of revealing what that idiom means, in relation to the story. This book does not push readers to broaden their horizons and see things from a different view point, neither does this book evoke much thought. The language itself was pleasing, as there was a lot of good dialogue, and the language was descriptive. For example there was great imagery in this paragraph, “One day my father picked up the chess set and carefully packed it in a big box. He took down each mineral, wrapped it in newspaper, and carefully placed it in a wooden box.” I enjoyed reading that segment because I could vividly picture what was being described in the text, and children could do the same. The illustrations were also well done, and each picture gave a clear message that correlated with the supporting text. show less

This is a true story of the author's father, whose passion for rocks (even when other people teased him gently about it) eventually led him to become director of a museum and, in her own words, "probably the happiest man I ever knew".

I love this one beyond belief. It's very sweet and nostalgic. Don't let it pass you by.

I will say that it's probably better suited for the older end of the 4-8 range. It's a bit wordy, and some of the details about their lives - much of the book takes place during the Depression - are going to go right over the heads of the younger ones.

A dad is so in love with rocks, and collecting rocks, that he finds himself a job as a janitor at a museum. The woman who hired him is so impressed with his willingness to learn about rocks that she asks the museum to send him to college. I found this book very refreshing because it embraces the power of knowledge.

Not everyone is meant to own a gas station, but sometimes those with rocks in their head just do. From a young age, Mr. Otis loved rocks. Every where he went he was in search of the best rocks. He built shelves for them in his home and his gas station to proudly display his treasures. After the Great Depression, Mr. Otis had to sell his gas station and look for work. He spent some of his time admiring the rocks at the science museum. While there, a curator of the museum inquired about his fancy for the rocks on display. He explained to her that he has always had rocks in his head. She offered him a position as a janitor in the museum and he was delighted to be able to spend more time with the rocks at the museum. After a while, despite show more his lack of a college degree, the curator offered him a job as her assistant. Sometimes it doesn't hurt to have what you love occupy your head. Even if it's rocks! show less

I really enjoyed this book and the illustrations that went along with it. This story would be great to use in a science lesson about rocks and minerals because many of the illustrations were the rocks that her dad collected and they were labeled. This book would also be good to introduce science vocabulary to students, such as minerals, mineralogist, and the specific names of rocks and minerals. You could also use part of this story in a history lesson about the Great Depression and the effects it had on the economy and the way people lived.