Archive for 2011

Dead End in Norvelt

Written by Jack Gantos

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There’s a reason the Gantos boy won the Newbery Medal. He also won the Scott O’Dell Award for Historical Ficiton. The first book in the Norvelt series based on the author’s childhood is engaging and laugh out loud funny, though darkly funny in places. Miss Volker, Jack’s neighbor, is the elderly medical examiner and obituary writer for the town of Norvelt, established and named for EleaNOR RooseVELT. Miss Volker’s arthritis has gotten so bad, she must soak her hands in melted paraffin before they are of any use at all, so she enlists Jack’s help at every opportunity. Meanwhile Jack is in an extended grounding for accidentally shooting off his father’s Japanese rifle and for mowing down his mother’s corn at his father’s urging. His excitement grows as the old ladies of Norvelt start dropping like flies. After several deaths, the town newspaper publisher and the police begin to get suspicious. Is Miss Volker the culprit or is it the lone surviving original male Norvelter, adult tricycle rider Mr. Spizz? All the while, Jack is fighting constant nose bleeds, and Miss Volker is determined to help him with that.

And Jack’s father is building a runway for an airplane of questionable safety while Jack digs a bomb shelter by hand.

Fourth graders and up will enjoy the dry humor. The story will hold their attention to strengthen literacy and comprehension. Teachers, librarians, and parents will enjoy the fact that with each obituary comes a history lesson. A quick check of facts may be in order, though.

 

  • Dead End in NorveltTitle: Dead End in Norvelt
  • Author: Jack Gantor
  • Publisher: Square Fish/Farrar Strauss Giroux, 2011
  • Reviewer: Sue Poduska
  • Format: Paperback, 384 pages
  • Genre: Middle grade historical fiction, humor
  • ISBN: 978-1-250-01023-0

 

Pip and the Twilight Seekers – Book Two of the Spindlewood Tales

Written and Illustrated by Chris Mould

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If your students like dark and scary, there is plenty in this one to creep them out. In the walled city of Hangman’s Hollow, Jarvis, the evil city warden, looks for children. He is tall and skinny with a hook instead of a left hand. He hates children and is determined to get rid of them all. Not only have children been outlawed in the city, Jarvis, instead of locking them up, sells them to the woods folk in the magical forest at the edge of town. Witches and strange animals drool at the sight of tender human children. Jarvis has recently had a bad experience. Three children escaped from him (Pip and the Woodwitch Curse, book one of the Spindlewood trilogy) and he is driven by rage to find them again. Pip, Toad and Frankie are now hiding in an inn called Deadman’s Hand. They are cozy and warm by the fire and have plenty to eat, but they know that they are hunted. In addition, a mysterious wooden doll has the ability to tell children’s locations if a person knows how to ask properly. Jarvis knows how. When the doll falls into his hands, he finds the children with ease. Again he confronts Pip, Toad and Frankie. Jarvis almost captures the three, but then the townspeople attack him. They are fed up with his devious ways. Pip knows where the captured children are in the wild wood and talks the other two into rescuing them. The result is a hair-raising chase out of the woods. Even though the children return to Hangman’s Hollow, they know that Jarvis is still out there.

Even as scary as I found this book to be, it would be a good story for those older reluctant readers who need a compelling read. The chapters are short, the print is big and the illustrations make this look like a graphic novel. Story details are not clear, although there is some explanation in the excerpted part at the end. Because the setting is so vivid, literacy activities, such as making a diorama or a visual representation of the “world”, would extend the story in an interesting way.

  • Pip and the Twilight SeekersTITLE: Pip and the Twilight Seekers
  • AUTHOR AND ILLUSTRATOR: Chris Mould
  • PUBLISHER: Albert Whitman, 2011
  • REVIEWER: Risa Brown
  • EDITION: Hardcover, 170 p.
  • ISBN: 978-0-8075-6553-7
  • GENRE: Fantasy
  • LEXILE: 790

Fabulous Fashions of the 1960s

Written by Felicia Lowenstein Niven

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Go-go boots, beehive hair and bell-bottom pants!  The fashions of the 1960s were casual, breaking away from the formal looks of the older generation.  This book examines not only the fashions of the era, but some of the social conditions that contributed to styles.  The 60s were a time of change.  Designers experimented with advances in fabrics and other materials such as plastic, vinyl, and even paper.  They used bright colors and bold patterns.  Elements of Africa, Asia and India, as well Native Americans, appeared in clothing styles.  Some hairstyles were bigger than the bouffant of the 50s and some were straight even if a person’s hair was naturally curly.  Men’s fashions were more relaxed, too.  No more hats!  A man could wear a turtleneck sweater or a Nehru jacket and still be fashionable.  Designers got ideas from such things as the Beatles and Woodstock.  This was a time when small boutiques and individuals with artistic ideas could affect what was popular to wear.

An insightful look into how people looked in the 1960s and why.  A reading worksheet could be easily written using the table of contents and chapter subheadings as an outline to demonstrate the skill of writing from an outline as a literacy activity.  The photographs are a good representation of the time.  The book includes a timeline summarizing all the decades of the series, a glossary, a list of readings and internet addresses and an index.  Fun series.

  • Fabulous FashionsTITLE: Fabulous Fashions of the 1960s
  • AUTHOR: Felicia Lowenstein Niven
  • PUBLISHER: Enslow
  • REVIEWER: Risa Brown
  • EDITION: Paperback, 48 p.
  • ISBN: 978-1-59845-279-2
  • GENRE: Non-fiction, fashion

The True Story of Sea Feather

Written by Lois Szymanski

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As a new reviewer, I was hesitant to start out with a fourth grade level book. However, having read both Misty of Chincoteague, and Stormy, Misty’s Foal, I felt a connection to this book and decided to jump in with both feet. Although this is a chapter book, the chapters are short enough to make this a quick read aloud book.

Shannon and her family had visited Chincoteague Island every year for the annual Pony Penning. This year she had saved nearly four hundred dollars in hopes that she could finally buy a pony of her own. When her sister Ashley added her own money to Shannon’s they had almost five hundred and fifty dollars. Their hopes were dashed when they not only did not win the raffle pony, but when they were not able to buy that pony from the winner. At the auction, pony after pony was sold for more than what they could pay. What an incredible gift they were given when a lady they did not know wanted to help them buy a pony. Miss Carollynn was a cancer survivor and because her life had been given back to her, she wanted to give back to others. With Miss Carollynn’s help, they were able to buy the pony that the girls had decided was the perfect horse for them. Shannon and Ashley learned a valuable lesson and were quick to start looking for ways that they themselves could help make another child’s dream come true.

This precious story connects the history of Chincoteague Island portrayed in the previous Chincoteague horse stories to modern times. The glossary and horse information at the back of the book makes comprehension easier for the reader who has little knowledge of horses. It teaches about working hard and saving for the things you want as well as working together to achieve a goal. This would be a good book to kick off a class project where students must work together and pool resources.

More books about the Chincoteague ponies can be found at http://www.schifferbooks.com/newschiffer/search_results.php.

The US Fish and Wildlife Service Chincoteague National Wildlife Refuge website offers further information about http://www.fws.gov/northeast/chinco/ponies.html.

  • Sea FeatherTitle: The True Story of Sea Feather
  • Author: Lois Szymanski
  • Publisher: Schiffer Publishing Ltd.
  • Reviewer: Sandi Waymire
  • Paper back: 48 pages
  • ISBN: 978-0-87033-595-2
  • Genre: realistic fiction

Around One Log: Chipmunks, Spiders, and Creepy Insiders

Written by Anthony D. Fredricks

Illustrated by Jennifer DiRubbio

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Once a tree falls down it’s dead and gone, right?  Wrong!  It turns out that a fallen log can be a home, a hiding place, or even a tasty snack.

Using a variety of story telling devices, author and educator Tony Fredericks shows readers just how much can happen “Around One Log”.  The central narrative follows a class field trip, cleverly explaining why each new creature is introduced by “this is the…”  The field trip is only directly evident when a student appears at the very end to ask a question. This pushes the book out of strict non-fiction and into the category of creative non-fiction or informational fiction, while at the same time helping the reader connect to the action.

Told in cumulative verse, the near perfect rhyme and rhythm makes this part of the book an easy read aloud.  Unfortunately, the most often repeated lines are the weakest;

              From top to bottom, inside and out,

              Both friend and foe all ramble about.

This part of the book is a bit too simplistic for the average 4th grade reader who is more likely to appreciate the introduction – a letter from a roly poly which draws the reader into the animal’s world. There are also “Field Notes” at the end to provide more detail, including a “fantastic fact” about each critter.  Complicated words are defined in parentheses within the text, making the entire package accessible (and perhaps more appropriate) for children in the earlier grades.

Similarly, the section “Activities, Projects, and Lots of Cool Ideas” can be adapted by teachers and parents to suit the needs of both younger and older students.  Three additional activities are available to educators as a PDF download from the publishers website (http://www.dawnpub.com/downloadable_activities_book/)  Primarily writing exercises, they also include key concepts and additional resources.

Beautiful watercolor pictures accompany the text.  The log really does come to life with the art of Jennifer DiRubbio who makes great use of both texture and color, no small feat given that the setting is brown.  One word of caution – viewing the ebook version on my iPad separated the two page spreads.  This resulted in text heavy pages interspersed with image only pages and the  unfortunate decapitation of a salamander.

Fredericks and DiRubbio have collaborated on other books about communities of animals in various natural habitats.  With titles such as “Under One Rock” and “On One Flower” these books most certainly follow the same formula that has earned “Around One Log” an award winning reputation.  This book provides wonderful imagery and multiple approaches to learning, offering something different to students of all ages.

  • Around One LogTitle: Around One Log: Chipmunks, Spiders, and Creepy Insiders
  • Author: Anthony D. Fredricks
  • Illustrator: Jennifer DiRubbio
  • Publisher: Dawn Publications
  • Reviewer: Yolanda Ridge
  • ebook: 36 pages
  • ISBN: 978-1-58469-137-2 (hardback)
  • Genre: Nature

 

Captain John Smith’s Big and Beautiful Bay

Written by Rebecca C. Jones
Illustrated by Linda Shute

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Beautiful illustrations, interesting callouts, excellent paper and getup make this a book an upper elementary and middle school reader would like to read again and again.

Captain John Smith was not like the other people who came over from the old land. They were in search of gold, so they could return to England rich men. Captain Smith was not interested in wealth gathering; he wanted to learn about the people, the crops and the animals of the New World. He explored the lands and woods around the river. The sparkling waters of the Chesapeake Bay beckoned, and finally he set off with a crew of fourteen, in a well provisioned shallop, to explore the bay.

Many adventures befell the crew. They weathered storms and extreme hunger; some people welcomed them, others tried to scare them away. But the lands were richly wooded; the skies teemed with birds, and the oceans were so filled with fish that John Smith said one could walk across the bay on their backs.

Captain Smith and his crew kept extensive journals. This story is based on those journals and is historically accurate. The back matter encourages young readers to go directly to the source material — telling them that the Captain was a lousy speller!

He was, however, an excellent map maker. So accurate are his maps that they were used for navigation for the next 300 years. As accurate as the maps are the illustrations in the book, especially the callouts that portray marine life. They provide information, made all the more memorable by the occasional flash of humor, and can provide hours of reading activities. This is a beautifully produced book.

John Smith returned to England, but never forget the rich and beautiful Chesapeake Bay.

Additional Information:

http://www.chesapeakebay.net/discover/bayhistory/johnsmith

Chesapeake Bay: http://www.smithtrail.net/the-chesapeake/

Interactive Game: Captain John Smith: http://kids.nationalgeographic.com/kids/games/interactiveadventures/john-smith/

  • Captain John SmithTitle: Captain John Smith’s Big and Beautiful Bay
  • Author: Rebecca C. Jones
  • Illustrator: Linda Shute
  • Publisher: Schiffer Publishing Ltd.
  • Reviewer: Anjali Amit
  • Hardback: 32 pages
  • ISBN: 9780764338694
  • Genre: Picture Book/ Non-Fiction
  • Lexile Score: 920

Only the Mountains Do Not Move

Written and photographed by Jan Reynolds

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What is it like to grow up in a culture that is radically different than your own? Children are fascinated by other ways of life, and introducing them to books and other representations of different cultures at a young age is a vital way to broaden their worldview and make them more accepting of other ways of life.

In Only the Mountains Do Not Move, author and photographer Jan Reynolds provides a vivid glimpse in the culture of the Maasai tribe of East Africa. Reynolds introduces readers to several members of the tribe and describes what their typical days are like. The Maasai are nomads whose life revolves around grazing cattle. However, as the amount of grazing land shrinks and the landscape becomes more barren, these people have been forced to change their way of life in order to survive. Reynolds looks not only at the people of the Maasai and their lives, but also at how their environment is changing and how they are also changing in order to keep their traditions alive.

I think Only the Mountains Do Not Move is a good choice for a fourth grade library. Although the reading level is likely to be above the average fourth grade student, the topic is fascinating and the photos are eye-catching. These elements make this a great book for a classroom read aloud. Reynolds does a wonderful job of bringing the Maasai people to life and showing the value of their culture. The book is sprinkled with Maasai proverbs, which could lead to an interesting classroom project or creative reading worksheets. A glossary, pronunciation guide, and source notes add to the value of the book. There is even a link to a website where students can connect with Maasai children and help build schools for them! Although the comprehension level of this book is advanced for fourth graders, the beautiful presentation, excellent writing, and appealing message make it a great addition to a classroom library.

  • Only the MountainsTitle: Only the Mountains Do Not Move
  • Author and photographer:  Jan Reynolds
  • Publisher: Lee & Low Books, 2011
  • Hardback: 40 pages
  • ISBN 978-1-60060-844-5
  • Genre: Social Studies, World Cultures
  • Lexile: 990L

The Adventures of Titch and Mitch: Trolls of Sugar Loaf Wood

Written by Garth Edwards
Illustrated by Max Stasyuk

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Titch and Mitch, two adventurous pixies, are back in this collection of stories featuring their magic flying bicycle. All they have to do is yell ‘up, up and away’ and they are pedaling through the air. One day, Titch and Mitch have a party. It begins to rain but, when the storm is over, there is a beautiful rainbow. Encouraged by their friends, Titch and Mitch ride in search of the treasure at the end of the rainbow. Instead of a pot of gold, they encounter a hermit. He shows them treasure of a different kind: books. » Read more

Addie Slaughter: The Girl Who Met Geronimo

Written by Susan L. Krueger

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If you’ve ever wanted to know what it was really like to live in the Old West, read this book about Addie Slaughter. She was born in the early 1880’s in Texas and lived in many places in the western part of the country before settling around Tombstone, Arizona. The family moved from Texas to Arizona to Oregon and back to Arizona. Written in first person, the text uses a lot of sensory detail to convey the story. For example, Addie describes the cold and wet snow while riding in a wagon. She talks about the smell of the buffalo robe they used to keep out that cold. She also describes the rubble created by the adobe bricks in an earthquake. » Read more