Bookworms Unite!

2007-07-30T22:25:00.000-07:00

Al Capone Does My Shirts!

2007-07-30T22:03:00.000-07:00

Al Capone Does My Shirts by Gennifer Choldenko tells the story of a family who moves to Alcatraz Island in 1935 so that his father can work as a prison guard and his siter, Natalie can attend a special school in San Francisco.

The story is written from the point of view of 12 year old Moose Flanagan who is saddened by the thought of leaving behind old friends and missing out on playing baseball. Creeped out by the fact that he is surrounded by criminals, Moose still tries to make the best of his situation by making friends. One frined is Piper, the warden's daughter. Piper crafts a scheme to make money by telling classmates, "Once in a lifetime opportunity! Get your clothes laundered by Al Capone and other world-famous public enemies!... Only costs 5 cents." Moose helps for fear of getting his family kicked off the island. Moose tries to stay on Piper's good side because he feels his older sister, Natalie's behavior could get them kicked off the island.

This book expertly handles historical accounts of the time. As well as being historically accurate, it shows the human side of a family struggling with difficulites.

"No pick flowers!"

2007-07-30T21:40:00.000-07:00

Bigfoot Cinderrrrrella by Tony Johnston, illustrated by James Warhola is a twist on the traditional Cinderella story. A stepchild, here known as "Rrrrrella" who lives in the old growht forest must win the heart of the Bigfoot Prince to escape her wicked step sisters.

The familiar plot is evident. Rrrrrella is mistreated and made to work day in and day out for her step mother and step sisters. She is described as "woolly" with large feet. She "loves nature and will harm no creature." When the Bigfoot Prince announces his annual "fun-fest" the step sisters plan to win his affections. Rrrrrella is, of course, excluded and goes to the river in sadness. At the river's edge she makes a wish on a fish and meets her "beary godfather" who gives her bark-clogs to wear to the fun fest. Does Rrrrrella live happily ever after? You must read the book to find out!

I enjoyed this story and have used it as a read-aloud in the library for students in grades K-4. Comments are always made about the terminolgy that is used that is specific to Bigfoots/Sasquatchs and the state of California. Students love the glossary of words and the fact that Rrrrrella's name is spelled with five R's. Students are known to roar or growl each time Rrrrrella's name is read aloud. The story is both full of humor and endearing.

Suggested grade levels: K-4

Keywords: Bigfoot, Cinderella, California, Prince, Step Sisters, Step Mother

The Fairy Tale Detectives

2007-07-30T21:20:00.000-07:00

The Sister's Grimm, Book 1 of The Fairy Tale Dectective series by Michael Buckley is a modern fantasy about two sisters who are orphaned after the mysterious disappearance of their parents. Several foster homes later, they are placed in custody of Mrs. Grimm, their grandmother that they have been told is dead! The sisters arrive at Mrs. Grimm's house and meet Mr. Canis and Elvis the dog. Mr. Canis rarely talks and acts oddly and soon the sisters discover things are not what they seem!

Grandmother Grimm tells the sisters they are the great-great-great-great- granddaughters of Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm, the collectors and re-tellers of Grimm's Fairy Tales. The story gets stranger still when Grandmother Grimm tells them that fairy tale creatures, known as Ever Afters live among the people of Ferryport! The oldest of the two sisters does not believe this could be true until evidence is shown to her that Ever Afters do live among them!

An adventure story, mystery, and classic fairy tale rolled into one, this story will capture reader's attention until the very last page! Creatively developed plot lines and representation of famous fairy tale characters such as "Prince Charming" and "The Three Pigs" is intriguing! The traditional elements of magic, and good versus evil are present in this story.

I could not put this book down! The mystery elements combined with the fairy tale elements left me wondering what would happen next. I am happy that there are 4 more books in this series. I am eager to share them with students!

The sky is falling?

2007-07-30T21:00:00.000-07:00

Henny Penny, told and illustrated by Paul Galdone is a fable about Henny Penny who is hit on the head by an acorn and decides she must tell the king "the sky is falling!" As she sets out on her journey she meets Cocky Locky, Ducky Lucky, Goosey Loosey, and Turkey Lurkey who will help her deliver her urgent message to the king.

Along the way they meet Foxy Loxy. Foxy Loxy will help them by showing them a shorter route to the king. Or will he?

The repetition of the writing makes this a great read-aloud for young children! They want Henny Penny to make it to the king even though the sky is clearly not falling! Through the illustrations we see Henny Penny's urgency and nervousness at her discovery. Once the acorn taps her head, her beak does not close. We feel her urgency and can almost hear her say "the sky is falling!" Finally, when they are lured to Foxy Loxy's cave we see in the illustrations that Henny Penny's beak is closed. Does she sense what might happen?

My favorite part of this story is how "simple" the text is, but that a great urgency is created in the reader or listener. This technique makes you root for Henny Penny against all logic!

Giant Lizards!

2007-07-15T20:00:00.000-07:00

Kalman, Bobbie. 2005. Endangered komodo dragons. New York: Crabtree Publishing Company.

Bobbie Kalman's, Earth's Endangered Animals Series acquaints students with the endangered komodo dragon and its habitat, physical characteristics, life cycle, eating habits, and endangered species information. This is a non-fiction title that is used by students for both entertainment and the purpose of learning information about the komodo dragon.

The use of factboxes, photographs, headings, sub-headings, and diagrams convey information about the komodo dragon. Colors behind the factboxes aid in "easability" of reading. Photographs throughout show komodo dragons in various scenarios such as hunting for food, hiding in self-dug burrows, and in various stages of growth. Bold text of glosary words further assist readers in attaining facts.

My favorite part of the book dealt with the explanation of Komodo National Park, a park built especially for the protection and conservation of the komodo dragon. This section of the book explains why komodo dragon's are endangered and the steps being taken by scientists to make sure that komodos are around for much longer.

Recommended for grades 2-4.

Keywords: Komodo dragon, Endangered species.

Baseball and World War II

2007-07-15T19:30:00.001-07:00

Mochizuki, Ken. 1993. Baseball saved us. Ill. by Dom Lee. New York: Lee & Low Books, Inc.

Ken Mochizuki tells the story of how one group of Japanese Americans survives the internment camps they were forced to live in as a result of treatment of Japanes Americans by the United States government during World War II. The story focuses on a boy whose love of baseball helps him survive during his time at the internment camp and in difficult situations after the war is over.

The book, inspired by actual events, describes the isolation, loneliness, and frustration of the Japanes Americans of the forced internment. They are forced from their homes and jobs and relocated to Idaho. In the book, the Father realizes the frustration and "that's when Dad knew we needed baseball." Illustrations created by applying encaustic beeswax on paper then scratching out images and adding oil paint over them, make the reader feel as if you are there in the dusty, desolate, camp. As Shorty begins to feel more comfortable and gain happiness from playing baseball, the illustrations began to change. More colors are added such as red, blue, green until the last celebratory illustration in the book. Written in short sentences, the text conveys the emotions of the characters.

Upon a first reading of the book, I thought more could have been added to the text. However, a second and third reading allowed me to see that the short, clipped sentences without elaboration allows the reader to sense the desperation, finality, and uncertainty of the real-life event.

Recommended for grades 2-6.

Keywords: Japanese Americans, Internment Camps, World War II, Courage.

Play with your words!

2007-07-02T19:24:00.000-07:00

Behold the Bold Umbrellaphant is a collection of poems by Children's Poet Laureate, Jack Prelutsky that introduces the value of playing with words through poetry. Familiar animals are poetically mangled together with everyday objects to create mythical-type creatures such as the Toadster, the Cloktopus, and the Umbrellaphant to name a few.

Combining animals with everyday objects to create new creatures will produce giggles in Prelutsky fans. Humorous creatures created give rise to the reader creating their own. After the last poem in the book, there is even a blank, lined, notebook page to encourage readers to write their own mixed up creature poem. Exquisitely crafted collage illustrations by Carin Berger bring the make believe creatures to life.

One of my favorite poems in the book is the "Tweasels of the Forest." A wonderful rhyme scheme is utilized to enhance the sound the tweasels make in the mind of the reader. I could almost hear them as they "tweasled" across the forest. The "Pop-Up Toadsters" stands out and the illustrations of green hopping toasters will bring smiles to faces of readers. The ability of Prelutsky to bring together two seemingly incongruent objects such as a toad and a toaster is heightened by the play on words technique of the poem.

Recommended for grades 2-6.

Keywords: poetry, imaginary animals, word-play.

Hummingbird visits

2007-07-02T19:06:00.000-07:00

Award winning author-poet, Kristine O'Connell George crafts a book of poems based on a real life event at her California home entitled, Hummingbird Nest: A Journal of Poems. The book is a chronicling of a hummingbird and its activities through the course of its stay in the nest it built on George's porch.

The chronicling of the hummingbird visit is reflected both through the poems and watercolor illustrations. Each illustration is dated. Readers understand that the activities of the hummingbird and the keeping of the poetry journal lasted aproximately two months; from February 3-April 1st.

I like the idea that the hummingbird activities were monitored for a certain time and written about through the format of poetry as poems can be expressions of moments in time. The water color illustrations by Barry Moser add a depth and appreciation for the natural world that also comes through in the words chosen for each poem. Added information through the author's note, informative and interesting facts about hummingbirds, and further reading about hummingbirds will create future birdwatchers along with the book's poems.

Recommended for grades 3-6.

Keywords: poetry, hummingbirds, nature journal.

Love that poetry

2007-07-02T18:55:00.000-07:00

Love that Dog by Sharon Creech is the story of Jack who keeps a journal for his teacher in the form of free verse poetry. Surprisingly, he does this even though he does not like poetry. His teacher, Miss Stretchberry introduces Jack to poets like Robert Frost, William Carlos Willliams, William Blake and Walter Dean Myers. A special reward awaits Jack at the end of the school year as a famous poet visits his school and inspiration strikes.

Despiste Jack's belief that he doen't like poetry and poetry isn't for boys, poems of famous male poets inspire him to attempt his own poem based on a tragic personal loss. Readers will relate to Jack's loss and his attempts to express his feelings through poetry.

Creech's choice to write about the topic in a free verse novel format adds a hightened sense of emotional intensity to the story. Jack's feelings were more poignantly expressed through the format of free verse rather than the novel format. The format of the verse novel allows readers to connect with their own emotions of tragedy and loss.

Recommended for grades 4-6.

Keywords: free verse novel, poetry, dogs, famous poets.

My favorite squirrel (and yours, too!)

2007-06-25T19:01:00.000-07:00

Is someone you know a "Scaredy Squirrel?" Scaredy Squirrel is scared of ...everything! Scaredy Squirrel by Melanie Watt is a story about a squirrel who never ventures out of his own tree for fear of the unknown. He even has an emergency kit which includes objects that will protect him from the unknown. He looks out of his tree with binoculars to make sure nothing is out of order and everything is "normal". He relies heavily on his schedule. Scardey Squirrel could not prepare and plan for everything. One day a "killer bee" flies into his tree, he drops his emergency kit, and his life changes forever.

This is one of my most favorite books as of late. I can identify with Scaredy Squirrel's fear of the unknown. The cartoon like illustrations created with charcoal and acrylics add depth to the humorous character of Scaredy Squirrel. The "potato cut" font style, the use of panels, and illustrations as asides add so much to the plot. We see that Scaredy Squirrel can reflect on his own behaviors. This makes him so human. I can't wait to read this to students!

Recommended for grades 1-4.

Keywords: squirrels, adventure, fears.

Eggs and more eggs!

2007-06-25T18:49:00.000-07:00

An Egg is Quiet introduces eggs of all sizes, shapes, and colors. From the Atlantic Salmon to the Ostrich egg, readers will glean differences between the eggs of various creatures. Scientific facts regarding the eggs are combined with poetic statements. Readers learn that eggs aren't always what they seem.

Sylvia Long's journal-like illustrations and Diana Aston's poetic language of facts are a refreshing take on a traditional non-fiction topic. Ink and watercolor illustrations with hand-lettered text have the feeling of a nature journal as opposed to a scientific text. End papers decorated like the shell of an egg allow the reader to feel as if we are looking inside an egg that has just cracked open. Simple text combined with scientific fact add a poetic feel to the language.

Upon reading this book I felt as if I had stumbled upon someone's personal nature journal. The hand-lettering and ink and watercolor illustrations connected the scientific topic of eggs with the artistry of the egg's appearance. This was a refreshing look at a non-fiction topic. The depth of the content was constructed instead of just a random repetition of facts.

Recommended for grades 2-6.

Keywords: eggs, nature, embryology.

What you always wanted to know about your favorite illustrator

2007-06-25T18:39:00.000-07:00

Conversations with fourteen children's book illustrators allow readers to get answers for questions such as where do you get your ideas? who influenced you? and do you have any pets? gives an entertaining glimpse into the lives of favorite children's book illustrators.

Seventeen chapters plus an introduction, glossary, and a "book by the artists" page, encourage readers to think about illustrations and illustrators. Each illustrator that is highlighted in a chapter gives a brief explanation of how they became an artist known as , "My Story." Eight questions with answers follow. Illustrations created by the artist when they were young are included as well as illustrations from their books.

Students will enjoy hearing artists responses to how their day is, birthday information, and see drawings done by artists when they were young. Structuring the book in interviews allows readers to make personal connections with well-loved illustrators.

Recommended for grades 2-6.

Keywords: children's book illustrators, artists, biography.

"I think someone's out there."

2007-06-18T19:54:00.001-07:00

David Wiesner's 2001 Caldecott Award winning picture book, The Three Pigs is an ingenious rendering of what happens with the wolf from the pig's point of view. The first pig is blown out of the pages of the story as the wolf huffs and puffs to blow his house down. With help from the first pig, all three pigs escape their fate in the world of their story and go tumbling in and out of the pages of other well-known tales.

David Wiesner's illustrations force the reader to interact with the words and pictures on the page. Are their houses blown down? Does the wolf eat the pigs? The reader must pay close attention to the illustrations and to answer these questions. Sometimes, even the wolf does not know what is happening. For example, his page gets folded into a paper airplane and later in the story we see the wolf crouching outside of the third pig's home, wrinkled and confused. Blank pages encourage readers to use their own imagination. And imagine you will when you read this story!

My favorite part of the book is when a pig, looking out at the reader, says, "I think...someone's out there." This story is a wonderful example of how interactive a picture book can be. It will encourage readers everywhere to tumble into all the different worlds a story provides.

Recommended for grades 1-4.

Keywords: pigs, wolves, adventure, transportation.

Mais, Oui! The mouse can read!

2007-06-18T19:35:00.000-07:00

The Tale of Despereaux written by Kate DiCamillo and illustrated by Timothy Basil Ering is a tale of Despereaux Tilling, the smallest mouse in a family of mice who are not interested in things outside of their mouse existence. Despereaux enjoys music and can read. This marks him as different and distances him from his mice peers. He falls in love with the princess named Pea and allows Pea to hold him. Because of his actions he is banished to the dungeon where the rats live. Despereaux's adventure is only beginning as he meets an angry rat named Chiaroscuro, a peasant girl named Miggery Sow who wants to be the princess, and works to gain the affections of the princess.

DiCamillo's Newbery-award winning work is a Disney-esque fairy tale with short chapters and wonderful illustrations throughout by Timothy Basil Ering. The author interacts with the reader by asking pointed questions, encouraging readers to look up unfamiliar words, and through the sprinkling of simple French vocabulary words.

The technique of questioning the reader was tiresome at first. As the story progressed, the way of interacting with the reader became less patronizing. However, the story is filled with deep themes and a beautiful, often times, poetic command of the language.

Recommended for grades 2-5.

Keywords: mice, rats, princess, newbery award, fairy tales, castles, dungeons.

To the rescue!

2007-06-12T08:30:00.000-07:00

Superdog: The Heart of a Hero written by Caralyn Buehner and illustrated by Mark Buehner is a wonderfully written and illustrated story about Dexter, the diminutive dachshund who is teased by the neighborhood dogs and cats because of his size. This bothers Dex, but fuels his desire to become a superhero! He decides to begin training at once and prove that he can be "big" outside and inside.

Caralyn Buehner utilizes a strategy of the hero plot known as the training sequence. To develop strong muscles Dexter runs to the corner and back , climbs the huge garbage bag pile, and drags a sock full of sand as he runs. Through the use of the captions on various illustrations the comic book format comes alive.

I laughed out loud and cheered Dex on as he circled the garbage pile five extra times and dragged the sock full of sand everywhere to develop strength. Dexter, much like Humphrey from The World According to Humphrey is courageous and dreams big. Both characters desire more for themselves and those that surround them.

Recommended for grades K-3.

Keywords: dogs, cats, heroes, superheroes, courage.

The Joys of Friendship!

2007-06-11T21:06:00.000-07:00

Owen and Mzee: The True Story of a Remarkable Friendship by Isabella Hatkoff, Craig Hatkoff and Dr. Paula Kahumbu with photographs by Peter Greste tells the true story of Owen, the baby hippopotamus, famous around the world for becoming stranded in the Indian ocean after the tsunami of 2004, and Mzee the 130 year old Aldabra Tortoise who helps him recover.

Six year old Isabella Hatkoff sees a picture of a baby hippo and a giant tortoise nestled together and asks her Dad to help her write a story about their friendship. The book is the result of Isabella and her father researching the lives of Owen and Mzee by contacting the sanctuary where the animals live to learn their story. Intrigued by the father/daughter interest, Dr. Paula Kahumbu, Director of the sanctuary decides to write the authorized account of Owen and Mzee's companionship with the father/daughter team. Fantastic photos of Owen and Mzee, as well as adorable drawings by Isabella Hatkoff are included in the book.

What struck me was Craig Hatkoff's amazing parental insight in finding out the facts behind the relationship of Owen and Mzee. He does not dismiss his daughter 's curiosity. Instead, he has given his daughter an invaluable experience by understanding her desire to find out more about the two friends. It is a perfect opportunity for delving into the process of research. When Isabella encounters research assignments at school, she will already have first hand experience. In reading the story of Owen and Mzee we understand the value of events that happen far from home and the interconnectedness of the human experience is highlighted.

Recommended for grades K-5.

Keywords: friendship, hippopotamus, Aldabra Tortoise, Kenya, tsunami, families.

See also: Owen and Mzee: Best Friends, Owen and Mzee: Language of Friendship

by Isabella and Craig Hatkoff
Mama: A True Story in which a baby Hippo loses his Mama during a Tsunami,

but finds a new home, and a new Mama by Jeannette Winter

If you like hamsters, you'll love Humphrey!

2007-06-08T16:49:00.000-07:00

The World According to Humphrey by Betty G. Birney is a delightful book written from the point of view of Humphrey, the pet hamster of Ms. Mac and her students in Room 26, Longfellow School. Humphrey's story begins when Ms. Mac leaves and Mrs. Brisbane (who calls him a rodent!) takes her place. Who will take Humphrey for car rides, watch TV, and listen to music with him now? He finds solace in a gift from Ms. Mac; a tiny notebook and pencil from the doll shop.

Sprinkled with humorous anecdotes and tips on hamster (and people) care, the novel's main focus is on the bond between humans and pets, friendships, and the idea of a hero. Humphrey is a lovable character and readers can easily identify with his urge to help find happiness for the people he loves. Kids will cheer as Humphrey changes the lives of everyone he comes in contact with-even the reader.

When I taught 1st grade we had a class pet that was a hamster. He, like Humphrey, was an escape artist. We always wondered what he did at night and just how he got out of his cage when it was locked. Betty G. Birney's creation of Humphrey's escapades made me giggle and smile in remembrance of my class pet. This novel would be an incredible springboard for writing activities on various topics, especially "What happens at night in your school?"

Recommended for grades 2-5.

Keywords: hamsters, friendship, pets, pet-care, families, schools, heroes.

2007-06-07T19:04:00.000-07:00

Happy Reading!