Archive for 2013

Arctic Aesop’s Fables: Twelve Retold Tales

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Written by Susi Gregg Fowler
Illustrated by Jim Fowler

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These fables vary from tales of understanding our self-perceived importance, to selfishness and greed. The reader will learn how working together we can accomplish what we can’t do on our own. Another tale tells how a problem was solved; while yet another reminds us not to expect from others what we are unable to do ourselves. You will also be reminded that sometimes slow and steady will get you farther in the long run. These are just some of the wonderful fables to experience in this book.

Aesop’s Fables have always been excellent tales to help children learn important morals and “rules” of life without realizing they are actually learning anything. This book is an excellent adaption of twelve of the hundreds of fables attributed to Aesop. By using native animals from the Great Northern Tundra, and the Arctic landscape and culture, you not only to get to enjoy the tale, but you can experience a little of what Alaska is like.

The illustrations are excellent renderings that bring the landscape to life and help to visualize the story.

These are excellent tales for young and old readers alike, however, it may require at least a fourth grade level of maturity to fathom the morals behind the fables.

  • Arctic Aesops FablesTitle: Arctic Aesop’s Fables: Twelve Retold Tales
  • Author: Susi Gregg Fowler
  • Illustrated by: Jim Fowler
  • Publisher: PAWS IV, Sasquatch Books
  • Reviewer: Carole Robishaw
  • Paperback: 32 pages
  • ISBN-10: 1570618615
  • ISBN-13: 978-1570618611
  • Genre: Fables, Literature, Fiction, Culture
Posted in 2013, Contemporary

World Rat Day: Poems About Real Holidays You’ve Never Heard Of

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Written by J. Patrick Lewis

Illustrated by  Anna Raff

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What is your favorite holiday?  Christmas?  Independence Day?  National Skunk Day?  What?  You have never heard of National Skunk Day?  Why, it comes around every year on June 14.  To commemorate this momentous day, J. Patrick Lewis wrote this poem.  “If the skunk did not exist, then the skunk would not be mist.”

National Skunk Day not your cup of tea?  What about Dragon Appreciation Day on January 16?  “At every meal, bow your head, fold your wings, and say ‘Graze’.”  Still not ringing your bell?  What about National Hippo Day or Bulldogs are Beautiful Day?

Whichever new holiday you find to your fancy, you will certainly find many, many uses for this hootin’,  hollerin’ book in your classroom library.  Children can connect what they read with their own lives.  For instance, cats on Happy Mew Year for Cats Day may eat Mice Crispies while the children eat rice crispies.    What about when they play “mewsic”?  Pulling several of these out would provide loads of fun reading activities.

Our language can be a little frustrating to fourth grade children.  Good and food should rhyme.  Why don’t they?  Well, before you get too frustrated, turn to page ten and read about World Rat Day.  “The Rat Is…the mous-tache in the trache, the wrong-doer in the soer.”

Too often creative writing is stifled due to fears of breaking grammar rules.  Reading this book to your children should give them more confidence in writing what is in their heads without worrying about grammar mistakes.  We have textbooks to help with that part.

The illustrations are adorable and appealing to readers of all ages.  But beware.  This is a book that should be read by the teacher before being read to the class.  All kinds of hysteria might erupt if the teacher were to celebrate Limerick Day (May 15) by reading, “A mother baboon is a beauty, her baby baboon is a cutie and the whole baboon troop starts to whistle and whoop when the baby starts shaking her booty”.  Oh so much fun.  Pump some poetry into your day with this book.  You won’t be sorry.

J. Patrick Lewis attempts to visit 50 elementary schools each year.  For more information about both him and his schedule visit http://www.jpatricklewis.com/ .

More illustrations by Anna Raff can be found at http://www.annaraff.com/World-Rat-Day .  Her blog (http://annaraff.blogspot.com/ ) is full of fun stuff and information.

  • World Rat DayTitle:  World Rat Day:  Poems About Real Holidays You’ve Never Heard Of
  • Author:  J. Patrick Lewis
  • Illustrator:  Anna Raff
  • Publisher: Candlewick Press
  • Reviewer:  Sandi Waymire
  • Hardcover:  36 pages
  • ISBN: 978-0-7636-5402-3
  • Genre:  Humor
Posted in 2013, Contemporary, Fiction, Humor

A Place for Turtles

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Written by Melissa Stewart

Illustrated by Higgins Bond

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Beautifully painted and poetic, this picture book is part of “A Place For” series that follows different animals. In this case, Stewart and Bond focus on the eleven different species of turtles and they make the book work on several levels. It can be a read aloud for children who haven’t yet reached the fourth grade reading level, and it can be a resource for older children researching environmental issues.

At the top of each spread Stewart writes about a threat turtles are facing. Some turtles, for example, cannot make nests because invasive plants change their habitat. The facing page has the solution: “When people find ways to control new plants, turtles can live and grow.” The solution is very important because otherwise this becomes another depressing problem book. With the solution, the book empowers the readers.

If this were all Stewart wrote, it would be a short, albeit, pretty book. And for a kindergarten class, the top section might be all one reads  — students would soon join in on the refrain: “turtles can live and grow.” But each spread also has a short sidebar highlighting specific species from different parts of the continental United States.  Stewart explains how the Western Pond Turtle was near extinction, but with managed care, is coming back. She also tells about loggerheads, who died in fishing nets, but are doing better since Congress required fishing nets to have a turtle excluder device.

This type of specific information will work well for early-elementary reports. More specifics cover the front and back flyleaves, where each turtle’s habitat is shown in a colorful map. With that kind of information, parents and teachers could devise reading activities, asking, for example, which turtle lives close to us? The book closes with “Turtle Tidbits,” showing the bone and shell structure, as well as a bibliography and list of more resources.

Other Resources

Visit Melissa Stewart’s website: www.melissa-stewart.com

Visit Higgins Bond’s website: www.higginsbond.com

For another story of rescuing turtles look at the Smithsonian:

http://news.neaq.org/2010/04/smithsonian-look-at-sea-turtles.html

  • Place for TurtlesTitle: A Place for Turtles
  • Author: Melissa Stewart
  • Illustrator: Higgins Bond
  • Publisher: Peachtree Publishers
  • Reviewer: Amy S. Hansen
  • Hardcover: 32 pages
  • ISBN: 978-1-56145-693-2
  • Genre: nonfiction: science, nature

 

 

 

Posted in 2013, Contemporary, Nature, Nonfiction

Ivy Takes Care

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Written by Rosemary Wells
Illustrated by Jim LaMarche

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Despite some incredibly exciting passages, this book was written about a quieter time and place. It has a lot to say about responsibility and following your dreams.

Ivy lives on a 1949 Nevada ranch, where the guests are all people awaiting divorce decrees. Her one true love is animals. Her best friend is away for the entire summer vacation at a fancy camp in the East, so Ivy’s only companion is the incredibly annoying and irresponsible Billy Joe, son of the ranch’s maid. When the local vet encourages her to work toward becoming a vet herself, Ivy realizes she’ll have to save for college. She starts looking for jobs taking care of animals. Her first assignment is to care for a horse while the owner vacations. She discovers a mother fox in the barn and attempts to help her. Of course, Billy Joe learns about the fox and wants to kill her for her pelt. Next, Ivy and Billy Joe help a ranch resident train a puppy. Billy Joe lets out the prized German shepherd, who is attracted to a porcupine. Last, Ivy encounters a blind former jockey and a thoroughbred at a local ranch. Written as three short stories which could be read separately, the text nevertheless holds together well. LaMarche’s gorgeous and realistic drawings of Ivy and her animal friends help make this a winner.

The fourth grade reader will particularly enjoy the excitement caused by Billy Joe’s rattlesnake hunting. The text would fit in well with reading activities related to the American West and the era following World War II or even pet care.

  • Ivy Takes CareTitle: Ivy Takes Care
  • Written By: Rosemary Wells
  • Illustrated By: Jim LaMarche
  • Publisher: Candlewick Press,
  • Reviewer: Sue Poduska
  • Hard Cover: 200 pages
  • ISBN: 978-0-7636-5352-1
  • Genre: Historical Fiction, Animals, American West
Posted in 2013, Contemporary, Fiction, Nature

Sir Gawain the True

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Written by Gerald Morris
Illustrated by Aaron Renier

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An entertaining adaptation of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, this is the second book in the Knight’s Tales series. In this story, King Arthur’s court is struggling with how to behave. They have skills like bashing each other with long pointy sticks called lances. But more and more the knights are expected to be polite. Being courteous is an idea that doesn’t make sense to the men of action. When Gawain rescues a woman from a dragon and boasts about his feat, he is confused by her irritation. Then, when King Arthur is also annoyed, Gawain begins to examine his behavior for ways he could have reacted differently. Then a green giant crashes King Arthur’s New Year’s Eve party, although he is polite about it, and offers a strange game. Trade blows with his axe. He will take the first axe-strike and Gawain will get his turn this time next year. Gawain accepts the challenge and promptly chops off the giant’s head. The giant simply picks up his head and says, “See you this time next year.” Through a series of unexpected meetings, Gawain is able to redeem himself with the lady he first offended and trick the giant while still honoring his word and learning a few manners along the way.

Told with humor that will appeal to young readers, the story is accessible and can even teach a thing or two about the value of courtesy and friendship without being preachy. The black and white drawings pick up the humor to illustrate the story with the same sassiness that is found in the text. This is a good class read aloud or appropriate for a fourth grader to read to a younger reading buddy. The plot twists and turns are well-laid out. A possible literacy activity would be to make a chart of turning points and then pose the question, “What would change if Gawain made a different decision?” Students could write their own discussion questions for this one because of the great discussion potential.

  • Sir GawainTITLE: Sir Gawain the True
  • AUTHOR: Gerald Morris
  • ILLUSTRATOR: Aaron Renier
  • PUBLISHER: Houghton Mifflin/Sandpiper
  • REVIEWER: Risa Brown
  • EDITION: Paperback, 118 p.
  • ISBN: 978-0-544-02264-5
  • GENRE: Adventure, Historical Fiction, Classic adaptations
Posted in 2013, Contemporary, Fantasy, Fiction, Humor

Yummy Soup and Salad Recipes

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Written by Jennifer S. Larson
Illustrated by Brie Cohen

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Ready to cook? This book shows how! Recipes include Wonton Soup, Chili, Corn Chowder, Cucumber Soup, a fruit dessert soup, Salad Rollups, Taco Salad and others. The photographs are so mouth-watering that anyone will want to get in the kitchen and start cooking. The recipes use fresh ingredients and, even though there is an allergy alert in the opening, the recipes are mostly free of those allergy foods. The author developed these recipes with her boys, so they are plenty kid-friendly.

Even the youngest cook can follow the diagrams and recipes. The safety tips and advice about cooking are smart without talking down. There are definitions about everything a young cook needs to know: a informational graphic of cooking tools, a section of how-to diagrams of cooking techniques, and a glossary of special ingredients in case a young reader doesn’t know something like bok choy or egg roll skins. There is an index and a section of other reading and websites. A solid recommendation for those “how-to” units, especially if the literacy activity is to make or do the thing described in the book.

The publisher has an additional recipe and other downloads on their website with a log-in: https://www.lernerbooks.com/products/t/11663/9780761366331/yummy-soup-and-salad-recipes. The series has several other titles.

  • Yummy Soup and SaladTITLE: Yummy Soup and Salad Recipes
  • AUTHOR: Jennifer S. Larson
  • ILLUSTRATOR: Brie Cohen
  • PUBLISHER: Millbrook/Lerner, 2013
  • REVIEWER: Risa Brown
  • EDITION: Hardcover, 32 p.
  • ISBN: 978-0-7613-6633-1
  • GENRE: How-to,  Cooking
  • LEXILE: 870
Posted in 2013, Contemporary, Nonfiction

Something to Prove: The Great Satchel Paige vs. Rookie Joe DiMaggio

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Written by Robert Skead
Illustrated by Floyd Cooper

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Imagine being a rookie baseball player and the coaches put you up against the best pitcher in the sport. That actually happened in 1936. Joe DiMaggio was a hot-shot player who wanted to be in the New York Yankees. To see if he was ready for the big leagues, the owners decided to test him. They asked him to play on a team called Dick Bartell’s All Stars, a team that would go where ever they could set up a game. They also called the Satchel Paige All Stars, a team of African Americans who could not play in the all-white National Baseball League. Joe DiMaggio, a rookie who hadn’t even been hired, going up again Satchel Paige, perhaps the best pitcher of all time, had to be scary for the young man especially as the hype around the game grew. Paige’s very first pitch hit DiMaggio and was meant to undermine his confidence. For much of the game, the score was tied. DiMaggio really wanted to hit one of those pitches. In the tenth inning, with a runner on first, DiMaggio’s savvy playing and base hit allowed the runner to score and won the game.

Great story for boys. The message here is to keep your confidence no matter how much the odds are against you. Boys can’t hear this too much and it is all the more powerful because “sports” is a language they understand. This is an inspiring class read aloud. For top readers, this would make an excellent script for a DIY audio book or PowerPoint presentation as a literacy activity. It could be used as part of a biography or history unit, even an example of sports stories in a genre unit. The illustrations are muted and create a sense of a by-gone era by award winning illustrator Floyd Cooper.

There are activities on the publisher’s website with a log-in: https://www.lernerbooks.com/products/t/11693/9780761366195/something-to-prove. The author has baseball related activities on his website: http://www.robertskead.com/funstuff.php.

  • Something to ProveTITLE: Something to Prove: The Great Satchel Paige vs. Rookie Joe DiMaggio
  • AUTHOR: Robert Skead
  • ILLUSTRATOR: Floyd Cooper
  • PUBLISHER: Carolrhoda, 2013
  • REVIEWER: Risa Brown
  • EDITION: Hardcover, 32 p.
  • ISBN: 978-0-7613-6619-5
  • GENRE: Sports
  • LEXILE: 890
Posted in 2013, Contemporary, Nonfiction, Sports

Lemonade Wars: The Candy Smash

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Written by Jacqueline Davies
Illustrated by Cara Llewellyn

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Valentine candy hearts mysteriously appear at each desk in Room 4-0. Day is hard enough between decorating their boxes and all the mushy stuff. Top it off with Mrs. Overton’s poetry study and weirdness is the order of the day. Evan finds that he actually likes the poetry and looks forward to the Poem of the Day. Jessie, his sister, would rather write top-notch newspaper stories like their reporter father. She has started a fourth grade newspaper and is looking for her front-page story. Then the candy hearts show up and she decides that solving the mystery will be the blockbuster lead story she is looking for. The hearts seem to be the only clue to who has a crush on who. While Evan is busy writing poems and hiding them, Jessie is investigating (some might call it sneaking around). She decides to do a survey since the “crush” angle is the only one she has. Jessie seems to be on a collision course to embarrassing everyone in Room 4-0, especially her own brother. » Read more

Posted in 2013, Contemporary, Fiction, Humor
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