Electric Girl Volume 2

by Michael Brennan

Graphic Novel 

Henry's Freedom Box

written by Ellen Levine 

Historical Fiction

Biopoem

Henry

Determined, Strong, Compassionate, Abolitionist

Husband of Nancy

Who desires freedom, equality, and humanity

Who feels despair, yet remains hopeful

Who fears separation, loss, and slavery

Who escaped slavery by delivering himself to freedom

Who wants to see families stay together and people as people, not property

Resident of God's creation

"Box" Brown

The Wretched Stone

written and illustrated by Chris Van Allsburg

Modern Fantasy

This book is yet another one of Chris Van Allsburg's creations that allows young readers to escape the realities of this world by creating a story filled with mysticism, thus readers are exposed to uncharted waters.  The book is a compilation of a fictional log from the Rita Anne, and is written by the fictional Captain, Randall Ethan Hope. The story is soothing as the reader flips the pages because the illustrations are soft and smooth, which is characteristic of many of Allsburg's books.  However, as the journal entries progress, the crew aboards an uncharted island where there is lush vegetation, yet no fruit, and no animals are present.  The crew finds a strange stone that is quite large and they board it onto the ship.  Strangely, the once lively crew over the next few days becomes quiet and begins to hunch over. The Captain believes the crew has caught a fever from the stone and decides to do away with it. However, the next day he awakens to the crew locked up with the stone, however, to his surprise they have turned into apes! The Rita Anne faces a horrible storm and the Captain is left to fend the ship for himself. The Rita Anne is destroyed but the crew and the Captain survive.  The Captain burns the stone and the crew is turned back to normal.  This story would be great to use in the classroom to show an example of how literature is also compiled through a series of journal entries.  I would introduce this book by having students read the story and then integrate writing by having students write a log like the one in the book.  This could be done by having students write  creative writing topics in which they are to create a fictional story or they could write historical fiction by using an historical event to center around their writing journals.  

Enemy Pie

by Derek Munson 

illustrated by Tara Calahan King

Fiction

This book is a story about a young boy who is beginning to think his should-be "perfect" summer is becoming the worst summer ever, and it's all thanks to Jeremy Ross.  Jeremy Ross just moved in down the street and is at the top of the boy's enemy list.  The boy tells his dad about the situation, about how he now has an enemy and doesn't know what to do.  His dad tells him he has the perfect solution, enemy pie.  The boy's dad tells him that the pie is top secret so he must go and play until it's ready. The boy's dad also says he needs to go spend the day with Jeremy Ross because that is the key ingredient to getting your enemy to eat "enemy pie."  The boy goes and spends the day with Jeremy Ross and ends up actually having fun. Jeremy goes over for dinner and his dad brings out the pie.  The boy shouts to not eat the pie, but his dad goes on eating along with Jeremy.  The pie was harmless! No more enemies for the boy, Jeremy Ross is not so bad after all.  I love this book because I think its a great way to show children how being nice to your "enemies" can really help the situation.  I would read this book during Morning Meeting in order to have a class discussion about how kindness is far more rewarding than acting cruel to those who may not like you.  I think every teacher should have this book in his/her classroom library because this is an issue that every classroom deals with and this is a great way to address the problem.

Revolutionary War on Wednesday

Magic Tree House #22

by Mary Pope Osborne

Historical Fiction

Novel

This book is part of the well-known children's series, Magic Treehouse.  In this particular book, Jack and Annie are given a task by Morgan (the magical librarian) to help save Camelot from trouble.  The children have already solved the first task. This book takes place on Wednesday, the day they are to solve the second task: to find something to send.  The children are to go back in time to the days of the Revolutionary War and complete their task.  Jack and Annie stumble upon Patriot soldiers preparing to cross the Delaware River which took them to defeat the Hessians on Christmas day, December 25, 1776.  Along the way they come in contact with the Captain, who needs a farewell letter sent home to his children in case their mission is to fail.  In the midst of gathering the letter, the children are pushed onto George Washington's boat and are both delighted and frightened to what may come of them.  As they are crossing the river, George Washington hears the children and accuses them of being spies because of their knowledge about the secret mission.  Jack and Annie explain that it was a mistake and share a bit of encouragement with George Washington to complete the task and to remember the speech he gave his men.  Jack and Annie are free to go and make it safely to their magic tree-house where they arrive home peacefully.  This book is a wonderful addition to any classroom library. The book is both a delightful read for children, and a great way for students to learn more about the Revolutionary War. I love how Jack writes down important information along their journeys in his notebook because it gives readers an example of how to take notes on important information that is given.  I would use this book in my classroom to integrate social studies and literature because it blends both so well.  There are great tidbits of information throughout the book that is given. The information is bolded so that readers can draw their attention to the new information.  At the end of the story, the author provides further historical information for the readers which is a great way to focus on the history that is addressed in the book.  

The Story of Ferdinand

by Munro Leaf

Fiction

 The Story of Ferdinand, by Munro Leaf, is a beloved children's classic. It is the story of Ferdinand, a peaceful bull who is unlike the other bulls in the pasture.  Ferdinand loves flowers and is perfectly content just sniffing the flowers under the cork tree rather than fighting with the other bulls. His mother is concerned and asks him why he doesn't go play, Ferdinand responds that he is perfectly fine enjoying the flowers.  As Ferdinand grows older, the other bulls in the pasture all train so that they will be chosen to fight in the coveted Madrid Bull Fights, however, Ferdinand continues to sit and enjoy the flowers, ignoring the possibility of being chosen to fight.  One day, Ferdinand is sniffing flowers when suddenly he lands on a bumble bee! Ferdinand reacts to the sting and goes crazy because it hurt him so badly.  Meanwhile, 5 men had come to visit the bulls to pick one for the fights in Madrid.  The men happen to see Ferdinand in the field going crazy and pick him! Ferdinand is driven to Madrid to fight; however, when he sees all the pretty flowers in the arena, he does not fight, he sits and smells the flowers. He is taken back to the pasture and is happy to sit and smell from then on.  This book is a classic, I would love to have it in my classroom library.  It offers children a sense of hope that though they might be different, its okay to "sit and smell the flowers".  I would read this story to my class possibly during morning meeting.  It is a great way to start the day to read children a book that is simple and offers a great message.  

Japan

by Gina DeAngelis

Nonfiction

Japan, is just one of the books found in the Many Cultures, One World series.  It is a wonderful resource geared towards readers on a 4th grade reading level.  The author breaks this book into chapters in which readers can easily find different topics involving the study of Japan.  The chapters include: Welcome to Japan, A Japanese Legend, City and Country Life, Seasons in Japan, Family Life in Japan, Laws, Rules and Concerns in Japan, Pets in Japan, and Sites to See in Japan.  The pictures found on each page are so valuable because it really allows readers to see a glimpse into another place and another culture.  Each page was filled with factual information that is both accurate and reliable.  I honestly studied this book pretty closely, having been to Japan the past summer and the summer before that, I wanted to make sure that the information was correct. It is so important to have reliable resources in the classroom that teachers can trust will provide factual information for his/her student.  The text is written in a way that is comprehendible for students who may struggle with reading; and at the same time offers readers who are above grade level, a chance to explore a new country through a brief overview. The pages are filled with maps and other helpful tools for students to gain a better understanding of where Japan is.  I really enjoyed how each chapter had a craft or activity students can do to place themselves further in the culture they are studying.  The activities included making traditional Japanese desserts, playing Japanese games such as "Fuku Warai," and creating Origami.  The book also offers pronunciations along with the Japanese words to aid the readers by implementing the actual Japanese language in the text.  This book is so valuable to have in the classroom. I plan on having a "Let's Travel To..." section in my classroom in which students can go and pick out books or other items to learn more about a particular country of the world. This book would be a perfect addition to that section in my classroom.  I would love to use this book when introducing world geography or possibly just using this book as a resource for a project I create in which students explore diversity by picking a country of interest on to write a report.  

Coral Reefs 

by Susan H. Gray

Nonfiction

Coral Reefs, written by Susan H. Gray is one among many of great reference books for children that this author has written.  This particular book is written for readers on a 4th grade reading level; however, the plethora of pictures provided allows even young readers to visually see examples of coral reefs. The first page includes a table of contents in which readers can easily find the chapters that are specific to certain topics about coral reefs.  The chapters include: Where in the World?, Coral Animals, How Do Polyps Eat?, Types of Coral Reefs, Life around a Reef, Crawling on the Reef, Living as a Team, Coral Bleaching, Hunting the Reefs, and Threats from Humans.  Each chapter correctly introduces facts about coral reefs while using bold print for key words such as algae.  The author does a great job of allowing students to become aware of what exactly a coral reef is and then challenging them with the last chapter to protect these wonders of nature.  In the last chapter of the book, readers are given information on how humans have damaged the reefs and that by becoming aware of these harmful acts, we can prevent further damage by becoming knowledgeable.  I would certainly use this book in my classroom library as a nonfiction piece, specifically in the Oceans section.  I would use this book in my classroom to integrate Science and literature by having students examine what coral reefs are and how they affect the world in which we live.  

Beyond the Spiderwick Chronicles

Book 1 The Nixie's Song

by Tony DiTerlizzi and Holly Black

Modern Fantasy

Novel

Beyond the Spiderwick Chronicles is the sequel series to the beloved children's fantasy, The Spiderwick Chronicles.  The Nixie's Song, is the first book in this sequel series and serves as an introduction to the new adventures that await children who have the "Sight".  The setting takes place in Florida where Nick Varcas's world has changed right before his eyes.  Nick is forced to move in with his hip, older brother Julian after his dad marries Charlene who brings along her daughter, Laurie who is about Nick's age.  Nick hates the change and decides to hate Laurie too.  Nick claims that Laurie is a freak because all she cares about is magical faeries and reads all sorts of books about them.  One day, Nick is forced to show Laurie the neighborhood. Along the way, Nick finds a four leaf clover and can suddenly now see all the faeries Laurie had mentioned. Laurie realizes Nick has the "Sight" because of the four leaf clover so she takes it to see the faeries as well.  They find a nixie lying almost dead and they drag the nixie back to the water.  The nixie gives both of the children the "Sight" without having to have the clover.  The nixie instructs the children to find her sisters because they are lost. The children find themselves in a lot of trouble because of this newfound "Sight". While looking for the nixie's sisters they are attacked by a Giant.  The only way the giant can be stopped from breathing fire all over the neighborhood is if the nixie sings. The nixie is losing her voice so it is up to Nick and Laurie to save everyone.  Along their journeys they find helpers to fight and kill the giant.  They are victorious; however, Noseeum Jack explains that the giants will awake every 500 years and its been 500 years since they last awoke.  Jack and Laurie are left with a lot of responsibility this summer, and it is up to them to work together to save Florida.  I would use this book in my classroom as an example of Modern Fantasy.  I truly think books like this offer children a great opportunity to use their imaginations and really delve into thinking in a nontraditional way that is often times neglected in schools.  I would love for students to take books like this one and read it more as a pleasure read; however, a great way to integrate writing with this book is to have students read the book and then write what they think might happen next.  I would love to have this book in my classroom library. 

The Magician's Nephew

by C.S. Lewis

Modern Fantasy

Novel

C.S. Lewis's modern fantasy, The Magician's Nephew, is the first book in the series, The Chronicles of Narnia. Being that this book is the predecessor to the following books found in the series, Lewis uses this book to explain how the magical land of Narnia was created simply by the presence of Aslan, the magnificent lion who Lewis uses to portray a Christ-like figure in his series.  The beginning of the story begins with the tale of two young children, Diggory and Polly who find themselves in an exciting adventure that will change their lives.  Due to his mother's illness, Diggory has recently moved in with his uncle and magician, Andrew Ketterly. It is at his uncle's house where he meets Polly, the girl next door.  Diggory and Polly decide to have an adventure one afternoon by exploring the attic of her house to see if they find a way into the mysterious empty house found between their houses.  Instead, they stumble upon Diggory's uncle in a secret room.  His uncle coaxes Polly to try on a new shiny ring he has created which ends up sending her into another world.  Diggory follows and by using a combination of two rings, they are taken in and out of different worlds.  It is in one of the worlds they visit, where an evil Queen is awakened and many of the children's troubles here begin.  After many struggles, the Queen, the magician, and the children, a cabby and his horse Strawberry, find themselves in a dark and lifeless world.  Suddenly a beautiful voice begins to sing through the darkness and the world of Narnia is then created.  As the world is created by the singing of Aslan, he appoints certain animals as leaders and instructs them that though the world is young, evil has already entered in the form of the Queen.  Diggory and Polly are given a task to ensure that evil does not overtake the world by taking a silver apple from a magical tree to plant in Narnia to keep the evil Queen from coming to the land.  The silver apple is one that will give unending life, however, if taken and eaten for oneself, the apple will give an unending life of evil. The Queen has already eaten this apple. However, Diggory and Polly take the apple back to Aslan to plant in the land of Narnia.  Aslan gives Diggory an apple to cure his mother from her illness.  After Diggory and Polly return to their world, Diggory feeds the apple to his mother and then throws the core in the ground.  A tree grows and eventually Diggory cuts the tree down to be made into a wardrobe.  Thus, there is another tale involving that same wardrobe.  This story is quite captivating, I would certainly have this book in my classroom library.  I would like to have this piece maintained as a pleasure read, however, this book would be great to read in older grades (4-5) as a literary piece that involves a myriad of imagery and symbolism.  

The Chinese Mirror retold by Mirra Ginsburg

 illustrated by Margot Zemack

Folk Literature, Multicultural Fiction

This retelling of the Korean folk tale, The Chinese Mirror, tells the story of the first mirror in which a Korean village had ever come in contact. One villager journeys all the way to China and stumbles upon a strange new circular object he has never before seen. He looks into the mirror and sees a man's face looking back at him, he is amazed and buys the strange object immediately.  The man loves his new purchase and delights in looking into the mirror, however, he hides the mirror from everyone because he is afraid it will lose its magic. The man's young wife sees him hiding something and one day finds the mirror in his trunk.  The young wife is distressed because she sees a young beautiful woman staring back. The young wife is afraid her husband is being unfaithful to her.  She takes the mirror to her in-laws and they see other people in the mirror, an old woman and the neighbor's grandpa.  Each villager takes a look into the mirror and believes there to be another person staring back.  Eventually the mirror is shattered into a million pieces, and so are the people they saw in the mirror. This book is a great read for students because the text is not overwhelming and the pictures do a great job of complementing the text which allows readers to visualize what the characters are experiencing. I would use this book in my classroom as a multicultural piece of literature.  In my classroom library I plan on having a section of books that are specifically divided into different literature from around the world.  I plan on having a "traveling section" in which my students can go and select a book from a particular country in order to learn a little more about different nations of the world.  

Journey To Freedom: Frederick Douglas 

by John Passaro

Nonfiction: Biography

Chapter Book

Journey To Freedom, is a valuable biography of the great African American leader, Frederick Douglas.  The book is divided into small chapters in which the reader can easily peruse through the book in order to find factual information.  The chapters include: Growing up in Slavery, Escape from Slavery, An Abolitionist, A Nation at War, and The Fight for Civil Rights.  The end of the book is completed with a wonderful timeline of Frederick Douglas's life, a glossary of terms, and a thorough index.  Each chapter informs its readers with a plethera of information covering his childhood through his hardships of being a slave to gaining his freedom and becoming an abolitionist, the chapters also include his role in the fight for civil rights in which he was oppressed to the extent of having his house burnt down. The book does a really great job of highlighting his failures and his accomplishments.  I find this book to be a great resource for students.  I would use this book in my classroom as a supplement to a social studies book.  The text is an easier read than most textbooks and the pages are filled with great paintings and photographs.  Each picture has a caption with information about the painting or photograph.  I would love to have this book in my classroom library because I believe this book offers a lot of factual information in an appealing way for students. 

Abraham Lincoln 

by Ingri and Edgar Parin D'Aulaire

Historical Fiction

This book tells the life story of one of the most beloved United States Presidents, President Abraham Lincoln.  The authors do a wonderful job telling the stories from President Lincoln's birth through the end of the Civil War.  As each page is turned, children are given more and more information of how President Lincoln became who he was, that he came from humble beginnings and later found himself as President of the United States.  Due to the narrative nature of this book, although it is considered a biography of Abraham Lincoln's life, it lends to more of a historical fiction piece.  Reading through the book I found that the authors would tend to embellish some of the events to make the reading more interesting for children and appeal to the audience in more of a story format rather than non fictional facts. For instance, the authors have Abraham Lincoln speaking to his parents when in reality these statements are not factual conversations.  However, I do believe the authors do a wonderful job by embedding so many facts about President Lincoln's life within the text that students are able to read this book with ease and learn a lot about one of the United States' most influential presidents.  I would use this book in my classroom to introduce President Lincoln and his influence as President of the United States during the Civil War. This book gives students the opportunity to learn a lot of great information about the president's life in a way that is more interesting and exciting for students.  

The Blue Jackal 

retold and illustrated by Mehilli Gobhai

Fable, Multicultural Fiction

This retelling of the ancient Indian fable, The Blue Jackal, is a story that has been passed down in Indian culture since 200 B.C. The story is a tale of Long Howl, a Jackal who is scared of many of the other animals and spends a lot of time hiding by himself. However, his one great quality is his long and loud howl.  One day he decides to go into the village marketplace to look for some food.  The village dogs sniff the Jackal hiding in the thicket and chase him into a vat of indigo dye.  The story progresses as each page is turned. The author chooses to illustrate the pages from the Jackal's perspective in black and white and the pages from the others' perspective as beautifully colored illustrations.   The Jackal is worshipped as King by the other animals because they fear his beautiful coat.  The other Jackals leave the forest because they do not want to have another Jackal as their King. One night, Long Howl hears the other Jackals in the distance howling, Long Howl cannot resist and howls a great big howl at the moon.  The other animals realize he his nothing more than a Jackal and chase him out of the forest.  I would use this story in my classroom to share a message: that you should be humbly confident in who you are and to not try to be someone you are not.  Another great use of this book would be to introduce Indian culture to the classroom.  Throughout the book the author includes Indian words within the text and at the end of the book offers a Indian vocabulary page.  I would place this book in my classroom library in the multicultural section because it allows children to step into another culture and learn valuable lessons along the way. 

The Egyptian Cinderella

by Shirley Cimo illustrated by Ruth Heller

Multicultural Fiction, Traditional Literature

This Egyptian version of the tale Cinderella is actually one of the world's earliest Cinderella stories.  This book is a retelling of the tale of a young girl named Rhodopis from Greece who though sold into slavery in Egypt, ends up marrying Pharaoh Amasis.  In this retelling of the story, Rhodopis is teased by the female servants because she is nothing more to them than a poor slave. They also are spiteful towards her because she is Greek and not a true Egyptian.  Rhodopis' master see her dancing one night and rewards her beautiful feet with rose-red slippers.  One day a falcon snatches one of her slippers, her prize possession.  The flacon takes the slipper to the Pharaoh and he decides the falcon was a sign from the gods that he is to marry the girl whose feet fit the slipper.  Rhodopis is the only girl in the kingdom who fits the slipper.  Pharaoh marries Rhodopis and makes her queen of the land.  I would use this story in my classroom as a comparison piece.  I would have my students read the traditional story of Cinderella and compare the story to various versions from different countries, including this particular version.  

Show Way 

by Jacqueline Woodson illustrated by Hudson Talbott

Historical Fiction, Multicultural Literature 

Show Way is a beautiful narrative in which the author tells the stories of her female ancestors from slavery to the Civil Rights movement.  The book begins by telling the story of the author's earliest female ancestor she knows of, being sold into slavery at the age of seven.  She is given hope that one day freedom will come, so she sews patterns into a quilt that will one day lead slaves to the north for freedom, the Show Way.  The quilt sewing is passed from generation to generation.  In the end of the story, the author explains how now women in her family have become teachers and even she has become a writer.  This story offers hope and shares a wonderful story about the path African American women have taken  to freedom and what opportunities have come.  I would use this book to integrate social studies and literature by reading this while learning about the Civil War or the Civil Rights Movement, or possibly during Black History month as well.  

Zathura

by Chris Van Allsburg

Science Fiction

Two quarrelsome brothers find themselves in a game where they are forced to work together to survive.  The story begins with Walter wrestling his younger brother Danny. Their parents instruct them to play nicely as they leave to go to an event that night and are left alone.  Danny finds a game called "Jumanji" tucked under a nearby tree in their backyard and as he opens the game finds another game called "Zathura." As Danny rolls the dice the two brothers find themselves in a world galaxies away from Earth.  The brothers are forced to keep playing the game together if they are going to survive meteor showers, robots, and aliens. At the end of the book, Walter is swallowed by a black hole and then finds himself back wrestling with his brother. Walter realizes what happened and when Danny finds the game once again, Walter decides to throw the game away.  Walter embraces the fact that he loves his brother and asks him to go play ball in the backyard.  Allsburg does a great job by allowing readers to blend science and fiction in a way that maintains children's interest as science is mixed in with the fictional story.  I would use this book by integrating literature and science.  Although this book is science fiction, some of the terms are scientifically accurate and reading this story to the class would allow discussion about meteor showers and gravity.  Furthermore, this story offers a great lesson to readers of all ages: that life is precious and we should show others how much they mean to us.  This would be a great book to add to my classroom library. 

Tim O'Toole and the Wee Folk 

an Irish tale told and illustrated by Gerald McDermott

Folk Literature, Multicultural Fiction

This Irish tale tells the story of Tim O'Toole and his wife, Kate.  The story begins with describing the extent of poverty that this couple is experiencing and how Kate demands that her husband go and find some work.  Tim eventually goes out to find some work when he luckily finds a group of little people and demands their treasure.  The little people tell Tim to go home with his treasure, but he ends up staying with the McGoon family for the night. The McGoons trick poor Tim by switching his golden egg laying goose with one of their own. Tim is astonished when he realizes his goose does not lay golden eggs. He finds the little people and angrily demands their treasure, they again tell him to go directly home. However, Tim once again stays at the McGoons home and is tricked by them a second time. The following day the little people tell Tim of the evil McGoons and how he should have listened to them by going directly home. The little people raid the McGoons house and Tim is given is treasure back.  The end of the story closes with the O'Toole family resting happily with their treasure.  I would use this book in my classroom as a piece of folk literature.  Children enjoy stories where the main character is given opportunity for fortune, especially when the characters do not have much. This story is exciting for many young readers because it includes mystical tales of little people and a golden egg laying goose.  The illustrations are vivid and allow children to really put themselves into the story.  Furthermore, this story offers a great lesson to teach children: to always listen to directions. The little people again and again tell Tim to go directly home and he continually goes to stay the McGoons who end up tricking him.  I would certainly place this book in my classroom library.  

Mike Fink 

retold and illustrated by Steven Kellogg

Folk Literature

This retelling of the tall tale, Mike Fink, is quite an exciting and captivating story.  The illustrations coupled with the text give readers a clear picture of the elaborate tale of this rugged American frontiersman.  The tale tells the story of Mike Fink who is a strong and superhuman boy who sets out to become a Keelboatman. Keelboatmen were cargo men notoriously known for their strength and rowdiness.  This tall tale like every tall tale, is larger than life and tells stories of impossible occurrences, such as Mike being "hurled hundreds of miles into the heart of the Rocky Mountains." I would use this piece of literature to integrate literature with social studies in the classroom.  Tall tales are great ways for children to become familiar with historical events through an over-the-top fictional story.  Tall tales also allow children to use their imagination by allowing them to think about the impossible.  Yet another way I could use tall tales in the classroom is to use it as a platform for descriptive and creative writing.  I may have students read Mike Fink and then have them write their own tall tale to explain a historical event.  

The Bicycle Man

by Allen Say

Multicultural Fiction

This book gives readers a chance to step into the lives of a post World War II Japanese school house.  The school house sits high upon a mountain in a south island of Japan.  As the students are eagerly awaiting a school sporting competition, two American soldiers interrupt the event by casually walking up to the school playground.  The students are unsure how to react because they have never seen American soldiers.  The soldiers begin to put on a show for the children by performing amazing bicycle tricks. The children are amazed and the principal awards the soldiers for their performance.  This book is a great way for children to see how though America and Japan had just been at war with one another, the children did not show hatred towards the American soldiers. Although the children were hesitant, they welcomed the Americans in their competition.  I would use this book in my classroom to show how hatred is not the answer, that each person on this earth is valuable and we are to be accepting of one another.  I would also use this book to offer my students a different point of view by placing themselves in a different cultural mindset.