Monday, August 31, 2015

Teacher's Choice…some old and new favorite picture books about school


I've been going through my shelves of books, getting ready to donate some of them to a good cause here in NYC, and realized I have a bunch of old and new books about school, probably because, as a classroom teacher, I love a good school story.  I thought since this is back to school time, I would share some favorites with you.  Today, I am looking at picture books: 

The Way to School by Rosemary McCarney
Second Story Press, 2015, 32 Pages (Age 5+)

With minimal text, and stunning full page photographs, young readers discover the different ways that kids around the world go to school in this nonfiction book.  Each photograph is labeled with the name of the country, but the photos speak for themselves - whether the kids are riding on a donkey or their school bus is a crowded ox cart, whether they are being pulled in a dog sled, climbing a high cliff, or walking across a collapsed bridge, each photograph shows how determined these children are to go to school and get educated, even if the way there is difficult and dangerous.  And some kids not only have a long walk, but must also carry their own water and desks to school every day.       


Rain School written and illustrated by James Rumford
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2010, 32 pages (age 4+)

It's September and the first day of school in a village in Chad.  Thomas is going to school for the first time and he can't wait to begin learning like the older siblings.  But first, Thomas and the other children must all help to build their school   The kids, under the guidance of the teacher, make bricks from mud, a frame from wood and a roof by weaving reeds together.  When it's finished, the children begin regular lessons, learning something new each day.  Nine months later, school is over for the year.  Just in time, too, because the annual heavy rains come and wash away the school.  Next September, Thomas and the other students will begin school again by rebuilding their school.  Rumford's illustration reminded me of brightly colored crayoned drawing, nicely depicting daily and school life in Thomas's village.  A nice addition to any classroom and library.  Kids can explore themes of diversity.teamwork, education, community, and self-reliance in Rain School.

Nasreem's Secret School, a True Story from Afghanistan
written and illustrated by Jeanette Winter
Beach Lane Books, 2009, 40 pages (Age 6+)

Forced to remain at home all day, every day once the Taliban takes over Afghanistan, Nasreen is no longer able to go to school.  After the Taliban takes her father away, and her mother disappears while looking for him, since women are not allowed out of the house without a male escort, Nasreem's grandmother becomes very worried about her granddaughter, especially after she stops speaking.  When she hears whispers of a neighbor running a secret school for girls, the two make their way to the neighbor's house, despite the danger.  Day after day, Nasreem does her work well, but never says a word to anyone in school.  Returning to school after the winter break, a classmate named Mina tells Nasreen that she had missed her, and Nasreem whispers back that she had missed Mina.  As she begins speaking more in school, Nasreem learns how to read, and learns all about her country's art and culture, and its scholars.  The nice thing about knowledge is that Taliban could never take it away from Nasreen and her classmates.  The acrylic illustrations are done in a folk art style using bright colors reminiscent of Middle Eastern art.

Ruby's Wish by Shirin Yim Bridges, illustrated by Sophie Blackall
Chronicle Books, 2002, 36 pages (Age 5+)

Living in her family's splendid home with more than 100 relatives, Ruby and her cousins enjoy the privilege of an tutored education.  Yet, becasue she is a girl, Ruby is expected to give up her education and learn how to be a wife, but she wants to go to the university like her boy cousins instead.  Ruby's poem about her feelings, Alas, bad luck to be born a girl/worst luck to be born into this house/where only boys are cared for, is shown to her grandfather who calls her to him to talk about it.  But grandfather is a fair man who loves his grandchildren and on New Year's Day, he presents her with an acceptance letter to university.  This is a charming story based on the author's grandmother and shows us that sometimes breaking with tradition is a very good thing and that hard work can pay off.  Sophie Blackall's beautiful watercolor illustrations help create the culture of a by-gone time in China while retaining the universal desire of girls to get an education.

Little Cliff's First Day of School by Clifton L. Taulbert, illustrated by E.B. Lewis
Penguin, 2001, 32 pages (Age 4+)

Little Cliff really does not want to go to school and leave Mama Pearl and Poppa Joe.  He doesn't want to put on his new school clothes or his new brown shoes or his new hat with the ear flaps.  He's scared of school and just wants to stay home with his toys and his great-grandparents.  On the first day of school, Little Cliff finds every which way to procrastinate, but after saying goodbye to everything in the house and on the farm, it is time to go.  Little Cliff decides maybe not and hides under the house.  When Mama Pearl finally gets him out from under there and brushes him off, the two of them set off for school.  When they arrive, Little Cliff is greeted with a big, happy surprise waiting for him there.  E.B. White's realistically rendered watercolor illustrations really help set the tone and mood of this charming story of a boy growing up in the South in the 1950s in this second book of Taulbert's Little Cliff trilogy.

The Name Jar written and illustrated by Yangsook Choi
Random House, 2003, 40 pages (Age 5+)

When young Unhei leaves Korea, her grandmother gives her a wooden block with her named carved on it so she will always remember who she is.  When she begins her new school, everyone wants to know who she is, but when Unhei realizes the kids have trouble saying her name, she decides to pick another one.  The kids set up a name jar for suggestions.  Running into a boy in her class at the Korean market, Joey discovers that her name is Unhei and that it means grace.  The next school day, the name jar was missing from her desk.  She announces to the class that she had decided to choose her real name Unhei.  Later, Unhei learns that Joey took the name jar hoping she would chose Unhei and not an American name.  This is a nice book about difference and identity and the importance of being just who you are.

My Name is Yoon by Helen Recorvits, illustrated by Gabi Swiatkowska
Square Fish, 2014, 32 pages (Age 5+)

Like Unhei, Yoon has also come to the US from Korea.  She is about to begin school, and her father wants her to learn to write her name in English.  When Yoon is reluctant to do that, he reminds her that her name means Shining Wisdom regardless of how it's written.  One the first day of school, Yoon is supposed to write her name on a piece of paper, but she decides to call herself CAT.  The same thing happens the next day, with the word BIRD, and yet again on the third day with the word CUPCAKE.  Yoon's teacher lets this happen each day, accepting it and smiling at the young girl.  Finally, on the fourth day, Yoon heads her paper with her own name - YOON.  Gabi Swiatkowska's beautifully rendered illustrations elaborate Yoon's feelings of discomfort and isolation in her new country, and her yearning daydreams to go back home to Korea.  

Both The Name Jar and My Name is Yoon do an excellent job depicting the difficulty young people can experience after moving to a new country, feeling displaced yet being expected to assimilate all the while they are trying to hold on to the country and culture that had been so comfortable and familiar to them.

The Sandwich Swap by Queen Rania Al Abdullah
with Kelly DiPucchio, illustrated by Tricia Tusa
Disney-Hyperion, 2010, 32 pages (Age 4+)

Salma and Lily are best friends, doing everything together - playing, drawing, jumping rope, eating lunch in school.  Everyday, Lily brings a peanut butter and jelly sandwich and Salma brings a hummus and pita sandwich to school.  Each girl thinks that the other girl's sandwich looks awful, but neither says anything until the day Lily blurts out that Salma's sandwich looks yucky.  Surprised, Salma tells Lily her sandwich looks gross.  The two friends get angry at each other and stop speaking, playing, drawing, jumping rope, and eating lunch together.  News of the fight spreads, until one day, the other kids in the lunchroom begin taking sides and throwing insulting comments around and the result is a food fight.  Ashamed, Lily and Salma make up, try each other's sandwich and to their amazement, Lily likes hummus and pita and Salma likes peanut butter and jelly. The girls come up with an idea to educate and celebrate the diverse foods of all the student's cultures.  According to the Author's Note, the idea for this book came from an experience she had in nursery school.  Tricia Tusa whimsically colorful watercolor illustrations are expressive of the emotions the girls feel when they are friends and when they aren't.

Dad's First Day written and illustrated by Mike Wohnoutka
Bloomsbury, 2015, 40 pages (Age 4+)

Oliver and his dad had lots of fun playing together all summer long but now, it's the first day of school and Oliver is all ready - his lunchbox is packed, his crayons and pencils are bought and put into his shiny new backpack.  Oliver is so excited, but wait a minute - dad has a tummy ache, and now, he wants to finish doing a puzzle and uh oh! Oliver may be ready to start school, but is his dad?  Oliver's dad is sure going to miss him, but when he sees his son with his new friends, and sees how much fun he's having, maybe Oliver's dad is ready for for his son to go to school after all.  A really nice father/son book, and an interesting take on kindergarten empty nest syndrome.  Kids will like knowing they are missed at home, no matter how much fun school is.

Miss Nelson is Missing by Harry G. Allard, Jr., illustrated by James Marshall
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 1977, 1985, 32 pages (Age 5+)

What does a sweet teacher do when her class misbehaves so badly that she can't get them to do anything?  She doesn't come to school and the kids in Room 207 have  a substitute - the stern looking Miss Viola Swamp in an ugly black dress.  And the kids know immediately that Miss Swamp means business.  Pretty soon, Miss Nelson's class is working harder, behaving better and missing their sweet teacher.  What to do? Some kids hire a detective, other kids go to her house, day after day the whole class speculates about what could have happened to Miss Nelson and just when they begin to think she will never come back, she's back.  And so plaeased and surprised by her now well behaved class, but whatever happened to Miss Viola Swamp?  That's Miss Nelson's little secret.

The Art Lesson written and illustrated by Tomie dePaola
Penguin, 1989, 32 pages (Age 3+)

In this semi-autobiographical picture book, little Tommy loves to draw picture and wants to grow up to be an artist.  He is especially excited to begin school after his brother Joe tells him there would be art lessons.  But there are no lessons in kindergarten and Tommy must wait until 1st grade.  When 1st grade finally begins, Tommy has a brand new box of 64 crayons, but his 1st grade teacher tells him he cannot use them in class, all the kids must use the same box of 8 crayons.  When the art lessons finally begin, Tommy is disappointed to learn he must copy what the art teacher does instead of being creative, and when Tommy is caught with his 64 crayons, he is told he still cannot used them.  But a compromise is reached between the teachers and Tommy that allows him to finally be creative and use his  64 crayons.  This is a good story about following rules, handling disappointment, waiting, and compromise.

Penny & Jelly: The School Show by Maria Gianferrari, illustrated by Thyra Heder
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2015, 32 pages (Age 4+)

It's time for the school talent show, and everyone seems to have a talent except Penny.  No matter what she tries, she just isn't very good at it.  Penny makes list after list, trying to find some talent that will knock the socks off everyone at the school talent show.  She ever enlists the help of her faithful dog, Jelly.  But nothing seems to work out for her.  She can't dance or sing or juggle or do magic tricks.  Finally, Penny finds a solution - she and Jelly perform a duet - Penny on kazoo, Jelly on howling.  Talent shows can be a problem for lots of kids in elementary school who don't have the kinds of talent these shows require, and can result in some pretty hurt feelings.  Addressing this and showing that everyone is good at something is a step in the right direction.

And Two Boys Booed by Judith Viorst, illustrated by Sophie Blackall
Farrar, Straud , Giroux, 2014, 32 pages (Age 4+)

A young boy decides to sing in his class's talent show.  He's pretty confident, having praticed his song a billion times, beside, he's worn his lucky boots to school,  and is even wearing his pants with all the cool pockets on them.  What could go wrong?  Unfortunately, the young boy is last to go, and as the other kids perform, he begins to feel less confident and more disconcerted and nervous.  When it is finally his turn, after standing up and sitting down over and over again because he keeps changing his mind about "songing his sing" (yup,  the young singer begins to mix up his words), he finally sings his song and, when he's finished, two boys boo.  But the rest of the class claps.  The young hero survived his stage fright, survives the displeasure of two of his peers and lives to take his bow.  Sophie Blackall's whimsical illustrations really capture the many emotions the young singer goes through the morning of the talent show.  And because every story has two sides, this is a lift-the-flap book to see the other side of the story.  A lot of people didn't like this book because the booing was considered a mean thing to do to a kid, but I liked it because kids to run into these kinds of situations in school and they need to know that it's OK to have fears, they can get through them and be OK, even if it feels like the end of the world in the moment.   

First Grade Dropout by Audrey Vernick, Matthew Cordell
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2015, 32 pages (Age 4+)


I read this book on the bus coming home one afternoon, and I couldn't help laughing out loud.  A young boy, who feels he is pretty experienced in life (he's been hungry, crazy bored, four years old and mummified in toilet paper), now feels that the embarrassing gaffe he made in his first grade class, is humiliating enough to quite school over.  What happened?  After proudly responding to his teacher's query correctly, he accidentally called her "Mommy" instead of her name and everyone laughed, marching band loud laughter, even his best friend Tyler.  But wait, he would never laugh at his fellow classmates if they, perhaps, slipped on a banana peel or if their drink came out their nose.  Well, there was theat time Tyler's turtle costume fell off, and maybe he laughed a little or maybe even a lot.  After thinking of different ways to handle his embarrassment, he notices Tyler make a blunder in the school yard and finds it difficult not to laugh. But Tyler laughs at himself, and our embarrassed hero learns a valuable lesson about being able to laugh at yourself and about friendship.  Matthew Cordell's whimsical illustrations perfectly compliment the text and are spot on in conveying the young boy's changing emotions.
As his teacher tells him, calling a teacher Mommy happens every year, and I can vouch for that.

I hope you have enjoyed a look at these picture books and wish you all the best in the coming school year!

Friday, August 28, 2015

10 Years After Hurricane Katrina: Four New Books

It's hard to believe that it is already 10 years since Hurricane Katrina made landfall in New Orleans on August 29, 2005.  Katrina's impact on New Orleans and the people who lived there was catastrophic and later, during the rebuilding, it turned into a transformative expericnce for many.  But while the images of Katrina's devestation may still be seared into the minds of many of us, young readers probably have no memory of it at all.  There has already been a number of excellent books written about this storm to help them understand what happened and this year, there are a few new ones to add to the growing body of Hurricane Katrina literature:


Marvelous Cornelius: Hurricane Katrina and the Spirit of New Orleans by Phil Bildner, illustrated by John Parra
Chronicle Books, 2015, 44 pages (Age 5+)

Written in the spirit of good folklore and based on the life of an actual person, Cornelius Washington, Marvelous Cornelius is the story of a real New Orleans garbage collector.  Cornelius does his job with all the enthusiam and finesse of a dancer, greeting everyone as he goes along his route in tossing bags of garbage into the truck and keeping his part of the city clean as a whistle.  But when Hurricane Katrina buries his beloved city in all kinds of garbage, Cornelius makes it his mission to help clean it up.  And before he knows it, all this friends on his route, and even strangers from around the country are there to help bring New Orleans back to life with Cornelius.

Though based on Cornelius Washington, this is NOT a true story but rather a story about the kind of spirit New Orleans needed after Hurricane Katrina swept through leaving a wake of distraction and death.  The painted illustration carry the idea of folklore in style and the palette flat colors used.  Before the read the quote by Martin Luther King, Jr at the beginning of the book and Phil Bildner's Author's Note at the end.

Sadly, Cornelius Washington passed away in in 2008 at the age 48.


Finding Someplace by Denise Lewis Patrick
Henry Holt, 2015, 224 pages (Age 8+)

Living in the Ninth Ward in New Orleans, 12 year old Theresa Arielle Boone, or Ressie as her friends and family called her, can't wait for her 13th birthday on August 29, 2005.  She's made herself a beatiful skirt to wear, with matching shoes, thanks to an early birthday present from her older brother Junior.  Even after the mayor issues a mandatory evacuation noitice, and as her friends start to leave New Orleans with their families, Reesie stills holds on to hope of a celebration.  Her mother, a nurse, wants to leave, too, but ber father, a police officer, insists on remaining at home because of work,  Reesie is so excited, she ignores the warning words and weather reports of an oncoming hurricane that promises to be big.

On the evening before her birthday, Hurricane Katrina reaches New Orleans.  Reesie, home alone, goes over to pick up her birthday cake from an elderly neighbor, Miss Martine, known for her delicious coconut cakes.  As the storm picks up strenght, Reesie stays with Miss Martine who begins to tell her all about her illustrious past and gives Reesie a book of poetry she had written and published.  The next morning, stranded in rising waters and strong winds, a knock on the door brings the older brother of Reesie's best friend and his brand new wife.  Luckily, Dre is able to get the four of them up into the crawl space of Miss Martine's house and then, onto the roof, where a boat finally rescues them as the storm begins to let up.

As residents of New Orleans begin to realize that life as they had known it is gone, Reesie's mother whisks her away to New Jersey and away from her father.  Will she ever be able to return to New Orleans and everyone and everything she loves, including her father?

Finding Someplace is written in two partts, the first part covers the days before, during and right after Hurricane Katrina, the second part jumps to December 2005 and Reesie's life in New Jersey.  I didn't find the descriptions of the hurricane to be quite a harrowing as other novels I've read about about people stranded in New Orleans when it hit.  Even the roof rescue seemed to happen too quickly and easily, especially if you can remember those heartbreaking scenes of desperate people on their rooftops trying to get help.  What I did find poignant were the descriptions of the water destroying all the  memorabilia of people's lives, often the only things they owned of a beloved person.

But while I found the hurricane part lacking, I did like how Patrick dealth with the more long range aftermath of the storm and it's impact on Reesie's family.  That is something you don't see in too many of these stories.

I found Finding Someplace to be an interesting addition to the Hurrican Katrina body of literature that continues to grow.  For most of it's readers, Hurricane Katrina is history  and for that reason, it was nice that some of the chapters in Finding Someplace give the date and time to orient the reader, but I would have really liked a detailed Hurricane Katrina timeline to be able to refer to.  Going to the computer to check the chronology of the storm was really distracting.


Another Kind of Hurricane by Tamara Ellis Smith
Random House, 2015, 336 pages (Age 9+)

When Hurricane Katrina hits New Orleans, 10 year old Zavion and his father just barely excape from a second floor window in their home, jumping onto a door as the flood waters rise, destroying everything that he has known and loved his entire life.  But to add to that trauma, Zavion slips off the door into the oily, snake infested flood waters and almost drowns, a terrifying experience until his papa pulls him out.
Eventually, Zavion and papa get to Baton Rouge.  There, Zavion is given a bag of clothing, including a pair of jeans with a large marble in the pocket.  The marble becomes a kind of talisman for Zavion, who draws a particular kind of comfort from having it, as though it contains something magical.

Far away from New Orleans, in northern Vermont, Henry, also 10, is grappling with the accidental death of his best friend Wayne in a fall from a cliff on Mount Mansfield.  At his friend's funeral, Henry secretly removed a large marble from Wayne's coffin.  Slowly, through flashbacks, the importance of the marble is learned.  When Henry's mother donates the jeans with the marble in the pocket to Hurricane Katrina victims, Henry is compelled to travel to New Orleans with Wayne's father Jake, a long distance trucker, to find it.

Both boys are haunted by their own traumatic memories and suffering from PTSD, but eventually their stories converge, offering the possibility of healing and hope despite overwhelming grief.

The novel centers on the marble, almost like it is a point of gravity pulling Henry and Zavion closer to each other.  At the same time, Tamara Ellis Smith moves her diverse cast of characters around like a well thought out chess game as the marble moves closer and closer to its destiny.  This is Smith's debut novel.



Drowned City: Hurricane Katrina and New Orleans written and illustrated by Don Brown
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2015, 96 pages (Age 12+)

This graphic non-fiction book is probably one of the most powerful Hurricane Katrina works I've read as it chronicles the storm from its very beginning as a swirl leaving Africa to the rebuilding of New Orleans.  In a sense, this is a biography of Katrina, and how it impacted every aspect of life that most vulnerable city - residents, building, homes, levees and more.  The illustrations are raw but honest, done in pen and ink and digital paint in monochromatic shades of brown, black, gray during the storm, with more color is added in the aftermath, as the rains subsided.  Brown has captured not just the living, such as people on their rooftops hoping for rescue, and others crowded into the Superdome, but also the dead who were left in the flood waters for days.  There is a lot to be said about Hurricane Katrina, including issues of racism, indifference, ineptitude and opportunistic crime, but there are also acts of courage and unadulterated kindness and Brown does ends on a note of hope and rebuilding.  But he never whitewashes any part of what happened in on August 29, 2005.  Drowned City is a work not to be missed but it is also a work of heartbreaking truth.

Other books to help young readers understand and explore the impact of Hurricane Katrina:
A Penguin Named Patience: A Hurricane Katrina Rescue Story by Suzanne Lewis, illustrated by Lisa Anchin, Sleeping Bear Press, 2015, 32 Pages, age 4+

Eight Dolphins of Katrina: A True Tale of Survival by Janet Wyman Coleman, illustrated by Yan Nascimbene, HMH, 2013, 40 pages, age 5+

Two Bobbies by Kirby Larson (Bloomsbury, 2008, 32 pages, age 4+


A Place Where Hurricanes Happen by Renee Watson, illustrated by Shadra Strickland, Random House, 2014, 40 pages, age 5+

I Survived Hurricane Katrina, 2005 by Lauren Tarshis, illustrated by Scott Dawson, Scholastic, 2011, 112 pages, age 7+

Upside Down in the Middle of Nowhere by Julie T. Lamana, Chronicle Books, 2014, 320 pages, age 8+


Ninth Ward by Jewel Parker Rhodes, Little, Brown, 2010, 217 pages, age 10+

Saint Louis Armstrong Beach by Brenda Woods, Penguin, 2011, 144 pages age 10+

Zane and the Hurricane by Rodman Philbrick, Scholastic, 2014, 192 pages, age 10+

Wednesday, August 26, 2015

The Perfect Percival Priggs written and illustrated by Julie-Anne Graham

My Kiddo had a teacher in 1st grade who seemed to demand perfection from her students.  She never really said anything about it, but one morning I could hear my Kiddo listing the names of the kids in her class and after each name, saying yes or no.  When I asked what she was doing, she told me that counting the kids the teacher thought were the best, and the kids she thought were not.

I had wondered where she has gotten her sudden perfection anxiety, and now I knew.  Somehow, in some subtle way, and without realizing it, the teacher had sent her students a message about her expectations.  It took a long time to get that early influence out of my Kiddo's head.  Just do your best was as far as I take striving for perfection.

Bur, wanting to be perfect is a real problem with kids these day (well, truth be told, it has always been a problem) and I wish I had a book like The Perfect Percival Priggs to give my Kiddo.  Luckily, today's parents to have it.

Young Percival struggles to be as perfect as his seemingly perfect, overachieving, competitive parents and grandparents.  They all have awards and degrees galore on their shelves.  So does Percival, but unlike his parents, he doesn't enjoy any of his pursuits, in fact, he finds them exhausting - because always having to be perfect is exhausting.  But if he isn't perfect at everything, Percival is afraid his parents won't love him.

So, Percival finds himself with a long list of competitive things to do, that requires multitasking.  But when something goes wrong with the rocket he's invented and it accidentally destroys his mother's perfectly decorated, multilayered cake, Percival is sure the worst is going to happen.  Instead, his parents just laugh and they have a real surprise for him - not only do they still love him very much, but they show him an attic full of their own failures.

In the end, Percival finds things to do that he loves doing, and some of those pursuits fail, but it's OK, because what is important to him now, is knowing his parents love him no matter what.

I think this is a good book about perfection and performance for kids.  Percival's parents just did what they loved doing, not bothered by their failures, but proud of their successes.  But somehow, like my Kiddo's teacher, they sent a message to their son to emulate them.  It never occurred to them that Percival also need to see their failures, so to him, being like his parents means being perfect.

This is a well-written story with digitally collaged illustrations done in soft colors, with the exception of the dark hair and dark oversize glasses the Priggs all wear.  The illustrations are also very detailed and humorous, with lots of elements for young readers to explore on each page.  I liked that many of the pages have a textile-like background, giving the book a homey feeling.   But, I also liked the irony of the book's cover - the text The Perfect Percival Priggs imposed over a very messy illustration.

The Perfect Percival Priggs is a light-hearted look at a serious topic and one that kids need to be reminded of often.  It's back to school time now, and this would make a welcome addition in any classroom book.  It would also work well in a homeschooling situation, where learning is often one-on-one or a small group.

This book is recommended for readers age 4+
This book was sent to me by the publisher, Running Press Kids

Sunday, August 23, 2015

Sunny Side Up by Jennifer L. Holm and Matthew Holm

It's August 1976 and 10 year old Sunny is looking forward to going to the shore for two weeks with her family mom, dad, older brother Dale and baby brother Teddy - and her best friend. Instead, she finds herself winging her way to Florida to stay with her grandfather for two weeks.

At first, Sunny thought it might be fun, maybe even a trip to Disney World was a possibility, but she soon realizes that life in a retirement community is, well, not what she had hoped for.  Instead, she finds herself going to the post office, the supermarket, the golf course with her grandfather.  Luckily, she meets a boy her age named Buzz, who's totally into comic books and superheroes.

The two become friends and are soon earning comic book money by retrieving golf balls from gold course water hazards and getting a nickel for each one from the guy in the pro shop.  Later, they begin earning a dollar for finding the lost cats of some of the elderly residents.  Suny's visit is more interesting with a friend, but she is also aware that her grandfather is smoking on the sly.  Instead of just owning up to the fact that he is addicted to cigarettes, Grandpa claims he has finally quit, but Sunny finds packs of cigarettes hidden all over the house, including in the cereal box.

Interspersed in Sunny's present are flashbacks that begin in September 1975.  As the new school year begins, she begins to realize that her older brother may have had some problems there - he was disliked by the teacher she now has.  Each flashback adds more information about her older brother Dale, as he changes from a fun older brother that Sunny looked up to to a scary, violent drug addicted stranger who is in with a bad crowd.

It's while reading a Hulk comic that Sunny suddenly makes the connection between the changes in her brother brought on by drugs and alcohol and Bruce Banner's exposure to gamma radiation that poisoned him and causes him to become the destructive Hulk when he's angry.

Realizing that she has been sent to Florida while her parents deal with Dale and his drug problem, and afraid she might become like him and/or the Hulk, Sunny makes a big decision that will change her life and really improve her visit to Florida.

I have to admit that when I received this book, I thought it was going to be a fun book about a young girl's summer vacation, with best friends and maybe a crush or two.  Boy, was I taken aback.  Though not without many humorous elements, this is a serious book and although it takes place in the 1970s, it easily resonates in today's world.

Despite the flashbacks, the majority of the story takes place in the present.  There is the reminder that 1976 was a bicentennial year, with lots of different celebrations, and the people were really into the space program then.  One particularly poignant chapter involved Sunny and Grandpa going to dinner at Buzz's house and meeting his father, a Cuban immigrant without papers, a chemist who must work as a gardener.

Grandpa's cigarette addiction and Dale's drug problems are nice paraelles to each other, reminding us the addiction is addiction, even if your drug of choice is legal.  But, it also reminds us that dealing with an addiction is difficult in real life.  Like Sunny, kids tend to love their siblings but so often don't understand what's happening and often no one really talks to them about it.  It took a comic book to make Sunny admit to what was going on around her.  Holm and Holm have managed to portray the changes in Dale, and Sunny's confusion about what she was seeing, and her sense of betrayal by some of Dale's actions so evocatively that a middle grade reader will certainly feel empathy for Sunny, and perhaps even be able relate to her predicament within their own family.

The graphics for Sunny Side Up, drawn by Matthew Holm, were colored in by Lark Pien.  She chose a palette of bright, sunny summertime hues, contrasted with the Dale-involved flashbacks which become darker and darker as he sinks into his troubling lifestyle.

The storytelling in Sunny Side Up is simple without moralizing, clear and to the point.  Sunny Side Up is one of those graphic novels that makes my appreciation for what they can do so succinctly grow with each one I read.  It tackles a difficult problem but never loses that all important note of hope.

This book is recommended for readers age 8+
This book was provided to me by the publisher, Scholastic Press

Marvelous Middle Grade Monday is a weekly event hosted by Shannon Messenger at Book Ramblings, and Plenty of Shenanigans

Friday, August 21, 2015

The Night World by Mordicai Gerstein

The night world outside their door isn't one with which many young children have much experience.  In fact, lots of kids are afraid of the dark and would never venture out to explore it by themselves, even in the comfortable, familiar confines of their home or yard.  But, Mordicai Gerstein has written a book for children about a boy who does just that - and experiences a whole new world of unknown wonders, right in the middle of his comfort zone.

Late one night, a young boy is awakened by a meow.  It seems his cat Silvie wants to go out, and even though he thinks it may be too late or perhaps too early, the boy gets up and tiptoes past his sleeping parents and sibling and down the stairs.

The whole house is dark and unfamiliar to the boy.  "It's like a different place" he says as he and his cat creep along to the front door.  But opening the door, under a sky of dazzlingly bright stars, lies a world of shadow, familiar, yet unfamiliar at the same time.  Nestled in the shadows of trees and bushes, you can see the silhouette  of the boy, the cat, even the boy's bike.

Looking at the roses and sunflowers, the boy wonders what happened to their color.  Soon animals, a porcupine, a rabbit and a deer and others appear and seem to be whispering to the boy "It's almost here."  Then, birds everywhere begin to sing the same thing, and even Sylvie joins in - each speaking their own particular animal language.

Before long, the darkness gives way to a glow, and as dawn arrives, the animals leave - daytime is their time to sleep.  As the sun rises and colors the world once again, a look of wonder crosses the boy's face as the birds sing "It's going to be a beautiful day."  Hearing stirrings and yawns in the house, the boy sings, too.

Using a mix of pen, ink, colored pencils and acrylics, Gerstein begins his celebration of nightly secrets and the arrival of dawn with shadowy blacks and grays on gray paper with touches of white.  As dawn arrives, the dark paper give way to lighter paper and more color.


And I love how Gerstein took the same perspective and showed the world going from night to bright morning, adding more color to each picture, as the boy and Sylvie watch.

I first read this book like I do all picture books, slowly and exploring each illustration and the text to make sure they compliment each other.  Then I read it again, looking at the details of each illustration.  But for The Night World, I got out my magnifying glass and read it yet again.  Then I commandeered a young reader and we read the book together.  She loved it, but she isn't afraid of the dark.  But her younger brother is, so we read it with him and although there was some reservation at first, but the time we finished it, he was hooked.  As for myself, I noticed different things each time I read it, making The Night World a better book with each reading.

The Night World would, of course, make a great bedtime story, but don't be surprised if your young readers want to get up early and greet the dawn.  I remember doing that with my Kiddo at the beach when she was young and it was definitely worth it - she still brings it up.  And be sure to read the Author's Note at the back of the book, telling how The Night World came about - he put it right in the middle of the Milky Way for you celestial enjoyment.

This book is recommended for readers age 3+
This book was borrowed from the NYPL

Monday, August 17, 2015

Piper Green and the Fairy Tree by Ellen Potter, illustrated by Qin Leng

If you lived on Peek-a-Boo Island just off the coast of Maine, you would have to take a lobster boat to and from school every day until it was time to go to high school.  Then you would have to leave the island and go to boarding school on the mainland.

Now it's the first day of school, and second grader Piper is missing her older brother Erik, who has just started boarding school.  To feel closer to him, Piper decides to wear his old monkey earmuffs 24/7, even in school.

New teacher Ms. Arabella may look like a princess to her students, but, unfortunately for Piper, she has some very definite idea about where her students will sit in class and what they may or may not wear in school, and that includes monkey earmuffs.  But when Piper refuses to take them off, she must stay in at recess and discovers when she get home, that a phone call to her parents has been made.

And even though they tell her no earmuffs in school, Piper is determined to keep them on and Erik close.  The next morning on her way to the lobster boat, Piper decides she done with second grade.  She decides to hide in a tree, and sitting on a branch, she watches as the lobster boat heads to school.  But when things quiet done, Piper hears an odd sound - like the tree is crying.

While Piper is sitting in the tree, hearing it cry, along come neighbor Mrs. Pennypocket, who immediately knew what to do when she heard the tree crying - and it was just the solution to help Piper give up her earmuffs.  As she saws off a small tree branch, Mrs. Pennypocket and Piper talk about how much Erik is missed and the reason for the earmuffs.  But after the branch is off the tree, Piper finds two kittens, who had gotten stuck after the mother cat had hidden them in a hole in  the tree.  Mrs. Pennypocket tells Piper the tree is a fairy tree, one she has been searching for ever since her grandmother had told her about it.  If you take a treasure from the tree, you must leave a treasure.  Yup, that's right, Piper took two little kittens and left Erik's earmuffs, but not her feelings about missing him.

Piper Green and the Fairy Tree is a new early chapter book series with a sweet, spunky, but stubborn main character that young readers won't be able to resist and a setting that offers endless unique possibilities for more Piper Green stories.

Though the idea of having a magic tree in one's front yard is a lot if fun, the real problem in this first book of the series is that Erik was away at boarding school and Piper is missing him more than the people around her realize.  Until Mrs. Pennypocket talked to her about her feelings, no one asked why she was wearing Erik''s earmuffs, not even her teacher, who just punished Piper by taking away recess.

Inked Black and white full page and spot illustrations by Qin Leng are scattered throughout the book adding a light, humorous touch to the story and serve as excellent visual cues to the action for young and beginning readers, like seeing Piper and her friend Jacob on the lobster boat instead of a school bus,  but then seeing the familiar school yard and classroom.

There just aren't enough good early chapter books for kids, but fans of such classics as Junie B. Jones, Judy Moody, Bink and Gollie, and Amber Brown are sure to add Piper Green to this list of favorites.

This book is recommed for readers age 6+
This book was an EARC received from the author through NetGalley

Friday, August 14, 2015

Poetry Friday: The Popcorn Astronauts: And Other Biteable Rhymes by Deborah Ruddell, illustrated by Joan Rankin



Poetry Friday is a weekly meme, hosted this week by Heidi at my juicy little universe.  Thank You for hosting this week, Heidi. 


Two good things happened to me this week: 1- I had a birthday and celebrated with my favorite Chimichanga dinner from my favorite Mexican restaurant in Manhattan - El Paso Taqueria; and 2- I received a copy of The Popcorn Astronauts: And Other Biteable Rhymes by Deborah Ruddell.

The Popcorn Astronauts is a collection of 21 witty poems all centered around food and the changing seasons.  The watercolor illustrations match the goofy playfulness of the poems perfectly, 
and I knew this was the book for me when I read the poem called A Smoothie Supreme, which reminded me so much of my Kiddo's own strangely concocted  healthy(?) smoothies:


And, I thought, here is the perfect birthday cake poem just in time for my b'day:


The Popcorn Astronauts: and Other Biteable Rhymes will have you and your kids laughing out loud.  This is a wonderful classroom/home schooling book for teachers who are starting to teach their students poetry.  Kids will love the silliness of the poems, and the whimsical illustrations.  There are different poetic forms to explore, and as well as different literary devices, such as alliteration, metaphor, satire, and simile.  

Have you read The Popcorn Astronauts yet? 

This book is recommended for readers age 6=
This book was borrowed from the NYPL

Wednesday, August 12, 2015

Lois Lane: Fallout by Gwenda Bond

When Lois Lane, 16, and her family moved to Metropolis, she promised her Army General dad she would be good.  An Army brat, Lois has moved and attended a lot of schools resulting in a lot of phone calls home from the Principal's office.  The plan now is for her to not make waves, to fit in, to make friends, but she no sooner enters her new school's administrative office on her first day to pick up her program and you know the plan isn't going to work.

Lois overhears as young girl named Anavi telling Principal Butler that she is being bullied by a group of students called the Warheads, that they are messing with her mind, and making it hard to do her work.  When the Principal waves away her complaints, threatening her with a psych evaluation, Lois can't restrain herself - wanting to know what the school's policy on bullying is.

Learning her reputation has preceded her, Lois isn't taken any more seriously than Anavi, at least not by the Principal, but his guest, Mr. Perry White, feels differently.  He hands Lois a business card and tells her there's a job for her as a reporter for the Daily Scoop, an stylized  online teen-oriented magazine that's part of the Daily Planet, if she's interested.

Interested? You bet, and Lois can't wait to share this news with her online friend (crush?) SmallvilleGuy, someone she has never met, never seen and only knows he lives in a farm in Kansas.  The two met in a chat room and have been messaging each other ever since.

Managing to get through her first day at East Metropolis High, Lois heads over to the Daily Planet. There she meets three friend possibilities: Maddy, the style editor and music lover, James Worthington III news writer and son of a former infamous mayor of Metropolis; and Devin, web designer and "master of all things computronic" who is also an avid Worlds War Three gamer.  Here, Lois is clued in about the Warheads and how they are part of the Worlds War Three game, along with Anavi.  Lois decides the first story she does will be about the bullying Anavi is experiencing and the Principal's blind eye to it.

What would seem to be a simple story about high school bullying, however, turns into a much more complex one about cyberbulling than she, a non-gamer, could ever have imagined.  And what results for the reader is a exciting, fascinating look at ethics or rather the lack of them among school administrators, game designers, and game players.

Worlds War Three is a game played with a device called a holoset that is placed over the ear and the player is immediately immersed into this virtual world that feels more real than reality simply becomes visual right before the players eyes.  The developers of the game have been experimenting with the Warheads in mind control, creating a hive-mind where all members act in perfect sync.  But the Warheads are getting stronger than even they expected and they're looking to recruit the best gamers to strengthen themselves even more.  Is novice-gamer Lois up to the task of breaking the Warheads mind control ability that can now reach into another person's mind and mess with it?  

Comic book characters are among some of the most organic characters ever written.  They are re-imagined every decade, updated to make they appealingly relevant to a new generation.  And Lois Lane is not different.  Gone is the conniving, manipulative Lois of the past, always trying to discover Superman's secret identity and getting him to marry her, a damsel in distress always needing to be rescued as she rescued as she pursued stories for the Daily Planet.

In her place, Gwenda Bond has written a real kickass teenage Lois, who still gets into dangerous situations, but she is no damsel.  She is a budding investigative reporter, willing to accept help from her friends when she needs it and has a strong moral sense, which is why she decides to take on bullying.

Lois Lane: Fallout is an exciting novel, the first in a series.  It's smart, up-to-date and, I was happy to hear, the first in a series.  There are some things in the novel that are wonderfully understated.  For one, it is nicely, quietly diverse, and even though you know who SmallvilleGuy is, it's never actually mentioned.  Bond keeps her focus on her main character, developing who Lois is and what her new life in Metropolis is like; who her family is (overbearing General Lane, smart, sweet gamer little sister Lucy, quiet mom), who her new friends might be, and on her budding journalistic skills.

If you are looking for a fun, smart, well-written novel about a favorite comic book character, Lois Lane: Fallout is the book for you.  I can't wait for Book 2.

Already read Lois Lane: Fallout, loved it and want more?  Or haven't read it, but are just curious about Bond's Lois? You can download two short Lois Lane stories on Gwenda Bond's official website HERE

This book is recommended for readers age 12+
This book was received from the author at BEA 2015

Monday, August 10, 2015

Introducing Lois Lane, teenager - two short stories by Gwenda Bond


I knew the minute I read about the new Lois Lane: Fallout novel by Gwenda Bond way back in the cold days of winter, that this was a book for me.  But even before the novel was published, Bond had given us a taste of what was to come in two Lois Lane teaser short stories.

Bond's Lois Lane is a teen aged military brat, the daughter of an Army General.  The family has moved around a lot and Lois may not have time to make friends and settle into a school routine, but she has excellent powers of detection and deduction, ideal for solving the mysteries that keep coming her way.   Lois does have one "best friend" though, a boy she only knows as SmallvilleGuy, whom she met in a secure online chatroom.

In the first teaser short story, "A Real Work of Art," Lois is once again starting a new school and discovers that she has third period ART, but art is something she is really not good at.  As she walks into the studio art room, she notices five students, but more importantly, the unframed museum quality paintings hanging on the wall.  The teacher is a pretentious little man called Professor Jacques,  and his teaching technique - imitate the painting masters because "originality is highly overrated."

But something about Professor Jacques and his imitated paintings doesn't sit right with Lois.  She had just read an article about an art forger in one of her mother's magazines and her suspicions begin to climb, especially when she notices the same particular signature on the paintings in the school studio as the infamous art forger in the article used.

Downloading a cleverly designed phone app that does brushstroke analysis, Lois sneaks back into her classroom after school and activates the app.  Waiting for the analysis, she follows Professor Jacques to the post office and discovers more evidence that he is exactly who Lois thinks he is.  Is she right?  Has Lois uncovered the whereabouts of a famous art forger?  Or has she made a terrible mistake?

In the second teaser short story, "Cloudy with a Chance of Destruction," Lois and her family have moved once again, and she finds herself in yet another high school.  Because she began the semester late, she doesn't have a partner in chemistry class.  Working alone gives her time to observe what is going on at the workstation next to hers between studious cheerleader Sophie and basketball bench warmer Mike.   Sophie is breaking up with Mike, who refuses to accept that.  But Mike won't do the work and Sophie needs to keep her grades up.

Trying her best to mind her own business, Lois can't help but try to make Mike understand that Sophie in no longer interested in him.  Finally, Mike vows to help Sophie with their experiment the next day, but the smug look on his face when he says that makes Lois wonder what he is up to.

The next morning on the bus, Mike is carrying a bag containing a mysterious device and with the logo of the Atomic Heights National Laboratory on it.  He's nervous and sweaty, but won't let Lois see what's in the bag, just claims that it's a big surprise for Sophie.

Suspicious, Lois sends a text message to SmallvilleGuy telling him about Mike's mysterious device.  Trouble is, however, that the device is a mystery to Mike, too.  All he knows is that is will cause a reaction, one that people have been trying to do for a long time.  So when Mike enters the code to start the device, Lois notices some hazard signals light up on it.

Questioning Mike, she learns his father is a nuclear scientist.  Suspecting she needs to evacuate the class, and maybe the whole school, Lois decides to make an explosion of her own.  But will it work in time?

Most of us know Lois Lane as the female reporter for The Daily Planet.  But Bond has imagined a younger Lois, and a smarter, more independent person than the character we are accustomed to from comic books, TV, and movies.  But trouble still manages to find her, just like her adult counterpart, so there's always excitement in Lois's life.  I really like this Lois Lane and I think that these two short stories are nice introductions to her.  Both stories take place before Lois and the Lane family move to Metropolis, a move that they are hoping will be permanent.

The best part is that you can download, read and enjoy both of these short stories for free right HERE on Gwenda Bond's website.

Up next: my review of Lois Lane: Fallout, Gwenda Bond's first LL novel (and if you like it, you will be happy to know that the next book, Lois Lane: Double Down, will be out in May 2016.

These short stories are recommended for readers age 14+ though I think some savvy middle grade readers will enjoy them as well.
Both short stories were downloaded and are available to anyone who wants to read them.


Thursday, August 6, 2015

My Life in Dioramas by Tara Altebrando

Kate Marino, 12, truly loves living in her rambling red farmhouse, affectionately known by everyone in her small Hudson Valley town as Big Red.  But when her parents tell her that they are forced to sell Big Red because of money problems, Kate has a hard time accepting this stinging blow.

So, without doing her homework, a diorama about a scene from life, Kate goes to bed, clothes and all.  Next day, when her teacher asks for her diorama, she promises to make two to make up for being unprepared.  What Kate really needs, though, is a plan to thwart any potential buyers and best friend Naveen is there to help.  He suggests that she make the house smell badly and to do that they collect some recently made cow pies.  And it works for the first open house.  But soon the realtor is on to her.

Meanwhile, Kate's dancing teacher announces that her dance class will be particpating in a dance competition in Albany at the end of the school year.  It's a problem for Kate, who may be gone by then, but who refuses to say anything to the teacher, even when her other best friend Stella urges her to.  In fact, sabotaging the sale of Big Red just becomes even more imperative, at least until after the dance competition.  Stella, who is well off, also wants to enter the indivudual dance competition as well and can afford hire a teacher and chorographer to help her.  Luckily, Kate, who would be real competition for Stella, has no interest in doing that.  Kate and Stella are growing apart anyway, as Stella's attentions turn to boys and Kate isn't interested in them yet.

While all this is happening, Kate finds herself making dioramas of each of the rooms in Big Red, each one depicting a meaningful memory for her that happened there.  The dioramas help Kate deal with leaving the only home she has ever known and stepping into rootlessness with her parents who don't seem to know where they will go or what they will do and aren't particularly worried about it.  Kate's parents work freelance, so they able to accept that kind of insecurity.  In fact, sometimes they seem totally disconnected with reality, including Kate's love of dance and her strong desire to be in the competition.  And to make matters worse, her mother seems to be suffering from clincial depression.

When the house is finally sold, Kate discovers she must say goodbye to more than Big Red as she steps into the unknown.  On the day the family moves, the old family dog Angus dies.  It was like the dog was letting Kate know it is time to make a fresh start.  But will she be able to?

This was an interesting coming of age story.  Kate is a convincing 12 year old, although I think the first sabotage using the fresh cow pies went on a little too long for my taste (but kids probably won't be too bothered by that).  I know that lots of kids must deal with a seriously depressed parent, and it was refreshing to see that this wasn't just treated as an unimportant aside or plot device to move the story along.

Change is never easy, but as Kate learns, it can open new doors and that is the message of this novel.  But don't get me wrong, there is plenty of humor in in My Life in Dioramas, and Naveen is one of my favorite characters.  But, for me, the best part is that it reminds us that sometimes people really do hear you and pay attention and then they do something.

Oh, yes, and I loved the setting.  I used to go to camp every year in the Hudson Valley so I know how really beautiful that area is.  But I did not like the cover - it's just too dark and you can barely make out Big Red.

This book is recommended for readers age 9+
This book was borrowed from the NYPL


Monday, August 3, 2015

Goodbye Stranger by Rebecca Stead

When Bridget Barsamian was 8 years old, she was hit by a car while roller skating with her friend Tabitha Patel.  When she woke up in the hospital, badly injured, the doctor said she shouldn't be alive, and then she told her mother she didn't feel like Bridget any more and wanted to be called Bridge instead.  When she was finally being discharged, a nurse said she must been put on the earth for a reason to have survived such a terrible accident.  Now, starting seventh grade with her two best friends Tab and Em, Bridge still wonders what the reason could be.

But seventh grade brings changes.  Bridge begins wearing a headband with furry cat ears every day to school; Tab is exploring hidden messages in language under the guidance of her English teacher, Ms. Berman a feminist who insists on being called Ms. Berperson; and Em has physically developed more over the summer than her friends, and has started an intense relationship with an eighth grader named Patrick done entirely in selfies of different body parts.

Seventh grade also means mandatory clubs, but Bridge dislikes clubs.  Instead she joins the Tech Crew, where she runs into Sherman Russo from her English class; Tab joins the Hindi, French and Human Rights clubs; for athletic Em it is the soccer club.

As seventh grade gets underway, Bridge and Sherm begin to become good friends, and even though every one else thinks that they are more than friends, Bridge isn't quite ready for that; Tab starts radicalizing her thinking along the lines of the Berperson and applying what she learns outside of class, sometmes not very well; and Em makes a tragic mistake sending a selfie of herself in her bra to Patrick that soon is circulating about school.

In alternating chapters, the reader learns more about Sherm as he writes letters to his estranged grandfather, Nonno Gio, who has left his wife after 50 years of marriage because he has become a stranger to himself.  The letters are never mailed, and although Nonno Gio makes repeated attempts to get in touch or to see Sherm, they have all  met with failure.  Sherm and his grandfather had been very close to each other, but now, he is feeling angry, bewildered and betrayed by this changed Nonno Gio.

And in still other alternating chapters, the reader goes through one particular Valentine's Day in the near future with a mysterious high school girl, who is cutting school.  Who this character is and why she is avoiding school becomes clearer with each Valentine's Day entry as she grapples with coming to terms with the changes in a former friend and her own betrayal of another friend.   Interestingly, her story is told from a second person point of view.

So, without having to resort to any more spoilers about the three narrative threads running through Goodbye Stranger, and that would most certainly ruin this excellent book for everyone, what is this book about?  Yes, it is a coming of age story, and it is about change, relationships , and betrayals.  But let's circle back to the Berperson because Goodbye Stranger is also about exploring the hidden messages in language - whether these messages are in the form of flirtations, text messages, voice mail, selfies, cat ears, unsent letters, even the message sent when a former best friend erases you from their life - and what these messages say about who these characters really are as their lives begin to transition.  For Bridge, Tab, Em and even Sherm, seventh grade is a year of leaving their child selves behind and  discovering their new teenage selves, it's a time when "life didn't balance anymore" (pg 17), and begs the same question that Sherm asks his grandfather: "Is the new you the stranger or is the stranger the person you leave behind?" (pg 213).

And leave it to Rebecca Stead to explore all narrative points of view in one book, not an easy feat to make work.  But she does make it work, and brilliantly.  Second person point of view not easy to pull off, to begin with, and especially not when the majority of the book is written in third person, except for Sherm's first person letters to his grandfather.  If this is a novel about exploring the hidden messages in language, the change of narrative person drives home the idea that we change all through life and with each change we become a new stranger to ourselves, and consequently, we leave behind another stranger.

What more can I say without spoiling Goodbye Stranger for readers?  In my humble opinion, this is Rebecca Stead's best work to date.  I know she won the Newbery in 2010 for her novel When You Reach Me and she certainly deserved that.  But Goodbye Stranger shows that her writing just gets better with each new book.  Her themes are timely and relevant, her characters full-bodied even as they change and her writing is emotional, humorous and lyrical.  What more could you want?

This book is recommended for readers age 10+
This book was an EARC received from NetGalley

 
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