Monday, October 30, 2017

It's Monday! What Are You Reading?



It's Monday! What Are You Reading? is a meme hosted by Sheila at Book Journey as a way to share what you have read and/or reviewed in the past week. It's also a terrific way to find out what other people are reading.

Jen Vincent, of Teach Mentor Texts and Kellee Moye of Unleashing Readers have given this meme a children's literature focus: picture books, middle grade novels, etc. They "encourage everyone who participates to support the blogging community by visiting the other bloggers that link up and leave comments for them.




Well, this week finally started to feel like we're leaving summer behind! The temperature plummeted, the furnace came on in our house, and we lit the season's first fire in the fireplace. And yikes, yesterday the season's first snowflakes fell! There wasn't anything to shovel, yet. But it was certainly a reminder, that winter is not far away. It was a good week to gather up my books, sit by the fire with a cup of tea, and read. Here's what I've been reading this past week:



Adult Fiction






Lately I’ve taken an interest in finding out more about my Swedish American ancestors. I’ve been looking at my family tree from Ancestry.com, looking at family photos and other artifacts from the past, and conducting research into the way of life for the first-generation immigrants that traveled to America looking for a better life. During this research, I became aware of this memoir of life in a Swedish-American family in Chicago. Based on the description of this book, it looked like it could provide some good insights for me. This book certainly provided much for me to consider when thinking about my own family’s background, but it was also a compelling, heartbreaking, look at the struggles experienced by the author’s family members as they came to terms with the difficulties of surviving during the Great Depression, fitting into a society where many of the Swedish traditions weren’t appreciated, and personal tragedies related to poverty, alcoholism, divorce, and bullying. The writer’s style is conversational and personal, such that I felt like I was having a conversation with a friend or a family member about people that I knew. This is definitely an interesting read for anyone that is curious about life in Chicago in the past hundred years.



Picture Books






Learning how to graciously give and receive gifts is an important social skill, and this book uses Mr. Panda’s gift-giving spree to show that. Mr. Panda has decided to bestow gifts upon his friends, but each recipient has a complaint rather than a “thank you”. When it’s Lemur’s turn to receive a gift, young readers will appreciate his reaction and grace. This book might be a good one to share with young children coming into the season of gift-giving occasions and holidays. There are several opportunities to discuss why we give gifts and how we might feel if someone doesn’t like our gifts, and why it’s important to be gracious even if a gift isn’t perfect.







This picture book biography uses lyrical text and beautiful illustrations rendered in watercolor, oil pastel, china marker, printing ink, and newspaper collage to tell the life story of McKinley Morganfield, or Muddy Waters. Raised by sharecroppers in the Deep South, Muddy grew up playing the type of soulful guitar music that became known as the blues. He moved to Chicago in order to one day make recordings of this music. He didn’t have an easy time of it, and young readers will enjoy finding out how he eventually succeeded. There is an author’s note and a list of suggested records to listen to. I would suggest listening to his music along with sharing this book. It could be a great starting place for further research, or just a nice book to help develop a growth mindset.






This silly Halloween story is sure to get a giggle from young readers as they find out who’s going to win the scariest-cat contest at cat school. Splat seems to be afraid of everything and everyone, but he really wants to win the contest. Colorful, humorous illustrations help make this a fun book to share with kids as Halloween approaches.






A special day fishing on the lake will bring smiles and happy memories to the readers of this sweet picture book. The little girl and her father spend a lovely day looking for worms, fishing in a boat on the lake, and enjoying a wonderful meal with the rest of the family at home. Warm, inviting illustrations by Lauren Castillo help make this book a treat. It would also make a good mentor text to help kids write about their own special memories.






In the style of The Night Before Christmas, this picture book tells the story of a witch’s Halloween party in her haunted house. The rhyming text describes the creepy treats and scary decorations and what happens when the local children show up to collect treats. The digitally colored illustrations are very bold and detailed and will have young readers poring over the pages. If young children are particularly sensitive, you might want to be careful with this one, but I don’t think it’s too scary for most elementary-aged kids.






Based on the true story of Mary Ann Goodnight and her husband, Charles, this historical fiction picture book tells the story of a woman’s love for animals and her determination to save the buffalo from extinction in the late nineteenth century. After hunters kill all of the buffalo around her ranch in Texas, Molly starts raising orphan buffalo calves. Eventually she sends four of her animals to Yellowstone National Park to help start herds there. This would be a good book to share with kids, especially as part of a study of pioneer days and westward expansion. The illustrations by Lauren Castillo are beautiful and really help bring this story to life.






This silly picture book will get a lot of laughs, as nearly everyone can relate to having a stubborn case of hiccups. The skeleton tries everything to get rid of his hiccups, but it’s up to his friend to help him out. Hilarious illustrations will make this a fun one to share with young kids leading up to Halloween.







This fun Halloween picture book uses rhyming text and terrific illustrations to tell a great story about friends helping each other. The witch in the story is flying around on her broom and constantly losing important items: her hat, her hair bow, her wand. When friendly animals help her find her things she pays them back by letting them ride around on her broom. But when a catastrophe occurs and the witch is in trouble, her friends are there to help her. This would be a great one to share with young children as Halloween approaches.







This colorful nonfiction picture book, helps young readers understand how pumpkins grow, the history of pumpkins as they relate to Halloween and Thanksgiving, and how to carve pumpkins and dry the seeds. The information is written in an easy-to-understand manner and the illustrations help support the concepts. This would be a good book to share with young readers during the fall holiday season.






This beautifully illustrated picture book tells the story of Lydia Grace, who, during the Depression, moves to the city to live with her uncle while her father looks for work. Uncle Jim runs a bakery, and he never smiles. Lydia Grace loves to plant flowers, and while she stays with her uncle, all kinds of flowers and relationships bloom. The story is told through a series of letters that Lydia writes back home to her family. This would be a terrific mentor text for telling a story through letter writing. It would also be great for developing a growth mindset, as the little girl’s circumstances only seem to inspire her to work harder and grow more flowers. The illustrations, which received a Caldecott Honor, really support the story well, as the colors grow more vibrant as the flowers and relationships bloom. This is definitely a wonderful book for any bookshelf.

















































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Monday, October 23, 2017

It's Monday! What Are You Reading?



It's Monday! What Are You Reading? is a meme hosted by Sheila at Book Journey as a way to share what you have read and/or reviewed in the past week. It's also a terrific way to find out what other people are reading.

Jen Vincent, of Teach Mentor Texts and Kellee Moye of Unleashing Readers have given this meme a children's literature focus: picture books, middle grade novels, etc. They "encourage everyone who participates to support the blogging community by visiting the other bloggers that link up and leave comments for them.








Even though we've had a nice warm spell and beautiful, sunny weather, it's beginning to look a bit like Halloween in our neighborhood. One of the neighbors has set up a temporary graveyard. Other neighbors are starting to set out their nighttime decorations, too. I haven't decorated, but I have succumbed to the temptation to get some Halloween candy early. I'm sure it won't last, as I've been enjoying it while reading my books this week. Here's what I've been reading:



Middle Grade Fiction







I had the opportunity to read a digital ARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for this review. This middle grade novel is an appealing blend of inspirational realistic fiction with a dash of science fiction. Alba has spent her entire life dealing with braces, crutches, and surgeries to correct a deformity in her left foot. Now she’s in sixth grade and nearly finished recovering from her final surgery. She wants nothing more than to be normal, and to her that means being able to participate in the big cross-country race at school. At the same time, she and her best friend, Levi, are pretty sure that there is an inter-galactic wormhole in the school librarian’s office. Between Alba’s dreams of running like the wind on her left foot, which she has nicknamed “Cleo” and the mystery of the librarian’s daily lunchtime disappearance, young readers will enjoy the quick-paced, engaging story in this book.

I think the character development in this book is pretty good. Alba’s growing frustration with the seemingly slow pace of her recovery and her impatience to get rid of the crutches and other symbols of her “abnormality” is realistic. Young readers will be able to relate to her feelings and her interactions with her friends and her mother.

The symbolism of the hummingbirds is woven throughout the story. The hummingbird is unable to walk, because its feet are too small. Imbedded in the novel is “The Story of the Hummingbird and the Fire”. The message of the story dovetails with the theme of this book, the hummingbird is not discouraged because of what it can’t do, it does what it can. “The Theory of Hummingbirds is to just be who you are and do the best you can…LOVE who you are and LOVE what you can do.”

This is a good book to share with middle grade students from grades 4 – 8. It has appeal for most students. It also has a terrific message for the development of a growth mindset.



Adult Fiction







This is a continuation of the Legacy series. Lia has gone to Italy to run the restaurant Ari left her. But she has to work very hard to free herself from the past and move on with her life.



Picture Books








This is an absolutely gorgeous, nearly-wordless picture book that reassures all readers that there is a beautiful world that is waiting to connect with us. The story of this hope for connection is told through a little girl who sings the song in her heart and takes increasingly brave steps outside of her box into the world outside of it. Little by little, she ventures out and then retreats; but each time there is more of a connection to keep her coming back for more. The illustrations are stunning, and in themselves are a song beckoning readers to connect with it and with each other. This is a great time for a book like this, that teaches us that, with songs in our hearts, there are so many wonderful ways for us to connect with goodness and beauty, rather than the sadness, anger, and despair that threaten to chase us all back into our boxes.









Good descriptive writing tells young readers about a special experience for the little girl that’s telling the story. The little girl wakes up early on this special day. She’s excited about her fancy blue shoes that match her dress perfectly, getting her done, riding in a limousine, and posing for photographs. Not even a trip on the red carpet can dampen her spirit. The vibrant illustrations give readers a glimpse into what it must be like to be famous. For younger readers, you might need to share some background about awards shows like the Academy Awards. This could be a great mentor text to help young writers with their own descriptions of special events in their own lives.








This fascinating nonfiction picture book uses engaging informational text and wonderful illustrations to tell readers of an amazing strategy used by the Allied Powers during the First World War. Because the Germans were ruthless in attacking ships with their U-boats (underwater boats), the Allies were desperate to find a way to protect ships. This book explains how military officials decided to paint the boats in crazy patterns and designs, making it more difficult for submarine sailors to determine the ships’ direction and speed. In addition to explaining this strategy, the author makes a terrific point about the importance of trying new things and not giving up, making this a great history book to demonstrate a growth mindset. This book would be a great nonfiction resource to have in a classroom library.






For those wishing to travel through time, this nonfiction picture book will be a real treat. Detailing a trip from the north rim to the south rim of The Grand Canyon, this book shows the different rock layers and different ecologies of each part. By studying the fossils and rock formations, one can see what the area was like millions of years ago. The engaging text takes readers on a journey with a father and daughter as they hike along, shone with gorgeous illustrations. This is definitely a wonderful nonfiction resource for any classroom library.







There is a lot of work to do to prepare a busy farm for winter. Using poetic language and beautiful paintings to illustrate this family’s different tasks to transition the farm for the season, this book gives young readers a wonderful glimpse into the life of a farm. Children growing up in cities and suburbs often know very little about farm life, and this book does a great job describing it. I love the way everyone in this family works together.







This clever picture book would be terrific to share with children who are starting to become curious about where they come from and wanting to know more about their distant relatives. The narrative starts at both ends of the book, designed like a photo album. The front of the book shows the lineage from the narrator’s father’s side - starting with great great grandparents. The back of the book shows the lineage from the narrator’s mother’s side. Both sides work their way toward the middle, where there is a picture of the entire family. The illustrations use a somewhat limited palette that make the artwork look like older photographs. This might be a good book to use to start a discussion of genealogy and maybe even inspire young readers to find out more about their own families.







This is a heartwarming story about being lost, and then being found. There’s a hungry, lonely cat that used to be loved by a little girl. Now everyone chases him away. But then a ferocious dog chases him right into a dinghy boat which winds up drifting out to sea during a storm. Young readers will enjoy finding out if the cat can find his way to a new home. The paintings that illustrate the book are beautiful, especially the pages that show the cat sailing on the water.






Nearly every child, at one time or another, decided to run away from home. Alfie has decided to leave because his mom wants to get rid of his favorite red shoes. When he declares his intentions, his mother helps him get his things together and puts an extra hug in the bag. He doesn’t get very far before he wants that hug. This story is very sweet, and all kids will definitely be able to relate. Young writers might even be inspired to write their own runaway stories. Lauren Castillo’s heartwarming illustrations help make this book extra special.






This is a silly picture book about a turn-of-the-century lady who tries to chase a naughty pig out of her flower bed. The result is a wild ride that takes her all through the city, creating a chaotic mess in its wake. The warm, colorful illustrations by Lauren Castillo make this book a treat to check out. This book would be a good way to share a cumulative tale with young readers and to illustrate cause and effect/chain of events in literature. 







This book is a terrific resource for anyone (not just kids) interested in learning more about their family history and/or starting a genealogy project. With easy-to-follow directions and illustrations, the author takes readers through the steps of tracing and organizing the pieces of family history (photos, letters, and other artifacts), interviewing relatives, and using the Internet to help with research.






When there are so many pumpkin treats around this time of year, it’s a good time to share books about where pumpkins come from. This book uses easy to read and understand text, along with welcoming, cheerful illustrations to show how pumpkins grow from seeds to the full grown fruits we know and love. There are nice diagrams explaining the science behind growing these plants, and there are directions for further activities to extend the book.






This is a pretty good picture book aimed at primary-aged children who are curious about their roots. A little girl is making a family tree, and as she creates each part, she explains who these people are and why they belong in the picture. I like the way the illustrations consistently show common physical traits throughout the book. For example, the narrator’s brother has an upturned mouth and so does her father, and you can see a bit of a resemblance in the father’s father, her grandfather. This might be a good book to share with children before starting a genealogy project.







With fun, rhyming text and kid-friendly, colorful illustrations, this book of Halloween poems would be a lot of fun to share with young readers. The book includes poems about pumpkins, trick-or-treating, ghosts, goblins, and witches. But the poems are not too scary for sensitive children. They might even help inspire some seasonal poems among young writers. This book would be great to include in poetry collections in elementary classroom libraries.         




With simple, rhyming text and colorful illustrations, this sweet picture book tells about the change of seasons from the tree’s point of view. The tree believes the other seasons are easy, but because of the crazy changes that take place in its leaves colors, fall is the most difficult. This might be a good companion book to Wishtree by Katherine Applegate. It also could serve as a good mentor text for young writers to write from a different point of view.         





































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Monday, October 16, 2017

It's Monday! What Are You Reading?



It's Monday! What Are You Reading? is a meme hosted by Sheila at Book Journey as a way to share what you have read and/or reviewed in the past week. It's also a terrific way to find out what other people are reading.

Jen Vincent, of Teach Mentor Texts and Kellee Moye of Unleashing Readers have given this meme a children's literature focus: picture books, middle grade novels, etc. They "encourage everyone who participates to support the blogging community by visiting the other bloggers that link up and leave comments for them.






Fall is still working it's way in. While it hasn't been particularly cold the last few days, it has been awfully gray and dreary. My trees are still clinging to their leaves, but they're starting to drop faster and faster. The coming rainstorms will help start knocking them down, for sure. At any rate, I'm starting to move the reading indoors. Curled up on my sofa, here's what I've been reading this last week:



Middle Grade Fiction







I had the opportunity to read a digital-ARC of this middle grade novel from NetGalley in exchange for a review. As someone who grew up reading and loving the Little House on the Prairie series of novels by Laura Ingalls Wilder and watching the television show, I can appreciate the idea of making a pilgrimage to Walnut Grove, Minnesota.

Unfortunately for Charlotte, the main character of this book, her mom has uprooted the family and moved to this small town on the edge of the prairie looking for the inspiration to write the next great prairie novel. Charlotte, her twin brother, Freddy, and her younger half-sister, Rose are used to being uprooted whenever their writer-mom gets the urge to find new fuel for her creativity. So, when they arrive in Walnut Grove, Charlotte is very reluctant to settle in and make friends, while Freddy and Rose seem to have no trouble meeting people and becoming popular.

While it isn’t necessary to have been a big fan of the popular Little House on the Prairie books, having some familiarity with the Ingalls family story would help the reader gain an appreciation for the setting of this novel. The family references On the Banks of Plum Creek when they visit the grounds of the Laura Ingalls Wilder Museum and the site of the sod house that Charles Ingalls built. Throughout the novel, the family reads and refers to passages in Little House in the Big Woods, Little House on the Prairie, The Long Winter, and By the Shores of Silver Lake.

I like how the author uses the backdrop of Walnut Grove and the life story of Laura Ingalls Wilder to tell a contemporary story of a twelve-year-old girl and the stress that comes from being new to a school and community, dealing with the change in family relationships that come with growing up, and learning how to trust others in the context of caring relationships. I also liked the sneaky way the author teaches young readers about the history of westward expansion along with critical thoughts about the unintended consequences of such.

The characters evolve as they also learn about accepting friends for who they are and not making assumptions about people and their intentions. There’s also uplifting moments as Charlotte learns to look at life and its circumstances through the rainbow lens that her mom encourages her to use.
This is a nice middle grade novel. I would recommend it to readers who have read and/or enjoyed the books in the Little House on the Prairie series.






I had the opportunity to read a digital-ARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for this review. Just in time for Halloween comes this spooky story that will have readers listening for things that go bump in the night.

Tessa, a seventh grader, is already miserable to be moving from her home in sunny Florida to cold and rainy Chicago. The new house is old and creepy, and Tessa has reason to believe that it’s haunted. There are too many strange things happening: unexplained power outages, strange drawings appearing on her sketchpad, and real tears coming from her younger brother’s doll. There’s a lot for Tessa to learn in her new neighborhood, and thankfully, she’s made a few friends that are willing to help her get to the bottom of this mystery.

I think that this will be a popular book with middle grade readers. This book mixes the fun of a spooky ghost story with the normal adolescent stressors of a new school, a new neighborhood, and new friends. I think that kids will be able to relate to all of these things. The story moves along quickly, and the unfolding drama of these strange occurrences will have readers engaged throughout.



Picture Books






In a world where so many crazy things happen, and it seems like there’s danger everywhere you look, it might seem like a difficult task to teach young people resiliency and how to move on after a setback. This wonderful picture book, teaches a wonderful lesson about that through the eyes of Humpty Dumpty. In a clever epilogue to the story of the famous fall, we see that Humpty had a difficult time overcoming his sense of fear and self-doubt. Young readers will really enjoy finding out how he pulls himself together again. This could definitely generate some great discussions, especially when teachers are trying to help develop a growth mindset. It could also be a nice mentor text for young writers to try to write epilogues to other favorite stories.






With lyrical, poetic narrative and beautiful illustrations, this wonderful picture book tells the life story (in verse) of Miguel de Cervantes, the author of Don Quixote. I think Cervantes’ story is relevant to kids’ lives today, because we live in such a chaotic world where young people sometimes pay the price for choices the grownups in their lives make. Cervantes’ father struggled with a gambling addiction, and as a result the family was constantly struggling to survive and had to move around a lot. Through all of this turmoil, Cervantes continued to dream and to imagine stories that would one day come to life in his writing. This is an awesome book to have as part of any classroom library.






Kids have a lot going on and it seems like there is always something to worry about. This picture book gives young readers the basic steps to calm oneself into a state of mindfulness. The simple, warm, and welcoming illustrations reach out to all and make it seem like an easy thing to let go of worry and stress and focus on peacefulness and kindness. I know that mindfulness and meditation is something I’d like to learn more about, and this book is a terrific resource for classrooms and households.





Using the same well-organized and well-researched text style that she used in Neighborhood Sharks, Katherine Roy's newest book takes a look at African elephants. A baby elephant has so much to learn in order to survive, and this book takes each lesson as a way to help young readers understand an elephant's way of life. Gorgeous illustrations and informative diagrams go together with helpful resource information in the back to make this a terrific nonfiction resource to have in an elementary classroom.






Learning how to read can be so empowering for young children. This beautiful book of poetry celebrates the freedom that comes with finally being able to access stories, road signs, cereal boxed, and comics pages independently. The colorful, inviting illustrations and poignant, heart-warming poems can definitely be used to inspire a love of reading with children, and should definitely be a part of every library!






This Latin twist on The Princess and the Pea fairy tale is a real treat for readers! The rhyming text incorporates Spanish words into the story of a queen trying to find the best wife for her son. She sets up a tricky test to see if she truly has the makings of a princess, but readers will be delighted to see the queen isn’t the only trickster around. The warm, cultural illustrations really draw readers into the story and wraps us up in the beautifully designed textiles, which were inspired by the artful creations of the indigenous people of Peru. This is definitely a book that you won’t want to put down!





With spare, poetic text and beautifully rendered illustrations, this book examines a common existential question that children and adults have tried to answer for a long, long time. As the narrator moves along a busy city street and onto a train full of fellow travelers, the question is posed and the answer seems to be everywhere around, and yet, there is no one correct answer. But in posing the question, and really taking a close look we see how there are no two people exactly the same, and at the same time there are so many commonalities. The art, which was created with paints, pencils, and collage techniques, draws readers into the minutiae of this community in a way that is spirit-lifting. This book could generate so many great discussions, that it would be a wonderful addition to any bookshelf.






Beautifully orchestrated collage illustrations and text inspired by the classic novel, Moby Dick by Herman Melville, come together to make this lovely picture book. This would be a terrific book to share with young readers as a mentor text to make their own twists on favorite stories.





This cute picture book uses the story of a grumpy dragon and a rambunctious little boy to share the message that laughter can be powerful in turning thing around and helping good relationships to grow. The grumpy dragon just wants to sit quietly in his cave and be left alone. When the tenacious little boy keeps roaring and poking him, that changes everything. Clever, colorful illustrations and simple, narrative text make this a fun story to share with young readers.





This is an awesome picture book that helps readers see a day in the life of a homeschooler. With the same family and warm, inviting illustrations from the book Building Our House, the narrative describes the day by showing each part of it as it would be in a traditional school setting. The boy’s classmates and teacher are also his sisters and his mom. The classrooms are also his living room, basement, and kitchen. I love that this book is one that homeschoolers will recognize themselves in and one that kids in traditional school can use to learn about how other kids learn. And I think it’s also a great way for all kids to see the potential to make all sorts of situations at home into opportunities to learn, no matter where they attend school.






This sweet picture book would be fun to share with young readers in the weeks leading up to Halloween. The author takes a fun, spooky twist on the classic lullaby “Hush Little Baby”. The father monster lulls his little monster to sleep with a son about werewolves, ogres, witches, zombies, and more. The rhyming text seems to fit the framework, and might even be fun to try to sing. This could also be a fun mentor text for writers trying to make fun twists on their own nursery rhymes or songs.






This Caldecott honor book shows the differences in how people view their world with the seasonal example of snow. The little boy and his dog see something exciting and magical in the snow that has begun to fall. But the busy adults barely notice, and if they do, they are certain that it won’t amount to much. The illustrations are simply beautiful; the cold, gray world of this town on a day when it’s about to snow is contrasted with the warm, inviting colors of the little boy and his home. As the snowfall becomes heavier, the white blanket that washes over the pages is amazing. This is definitely a book that should be on the shelf as autumn starts to give way to winter.






































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