Feathers (Diversity Chapter Book)

Feathers, by Jacqueline Woodson, was a Newbery Honor Book in 2008.  The story is set in the 70s and the main character is an eleven-year-old girl named Frannie.  Even though segregation is over, the town where Frannie lives has self-segregated in a way.  Feathers explores the way Frannie struggles with and deals with her brother's deafness, her mother's miscarriages, her thoughts about religion, and the fact that a white boy has started attending her all black school.  Through several instances in the book, Frannie realizes that though we are different on the outside (a bully, stuck up, white, black, deaf, rich, poor) we all desire kindness, we all have things in common, and human nature is the same.

Finding a chapter book about diversity that I thought ALL libraries should have was the hardest task for this reading journal.  There are quite a few children's books that talk about how we are all different and yet all the same (like Let's Talk About Race from my previous post) but I couldn't find a chapter book that met the specifications I wanted.  I wanted a book that discussed all races so that it would be applicable in all libraries, no matter the demographics of the school and community.  I realized that was easier said than done so I finally just started reading Feathers, which was recommended to me in hopes that it would be "good enough".  As I read Feathers, I realized that even though the main story was about a white boy who starts going to an all black school and the difficulties that are faced, the overarching idea was that we are all the same inside (the same idea as Let's Talk About Race - exactly what I was looking for!).  Feathers is applicable for everyone because what you take away when you read the book is that we all have "stuff" in our lives that make us different - religion, race, parents, background, disabilities - but that we are all equal, no one is worth more or less than someone else.

Let's Talk About Race (Diversity Picture Book)

Let's Talk About Race (written by Julius Lester and illustrated by Karen Barbour) is a picture book about diversity that addresses diversity that I think should be in every elementary school library.  The book talks about how each of us has a life story: our birthplace, our religion, our hobbies, our likes and dislikes, and our race (to name a few).  Julius Lester points out that sometimes people say or think they are better than others for lots of reason: race, nationality, amount of money parents make, etc.  However, under our skin we are all the same.  The basic point of the book is that on the outside we are all different but on the inside we all look the same and that our race does not make us who we are.

Now, anyone who watches Bones knows that technically this is not true; in fact, Bones (Temperance Brennan, quirky anthropologist for the uninitiated) is usually able to determine sex and race just by looking at bones.  However, for the purpose of this book the idea that we are all the same under our skin is a great point.  All joking "technicalities" aside, I think this is a great book.  Let's Talk About Race is a wonderful way to teach children that they shouldn't judge someone because of how they look and that they aren't superior or inferior because of their race.  Actually, I think there a quite a few adults who could benefit from reading this book as well...  This book is a must-have for all libraries and I think the earlier we can teach children this lesson, the better off our world will be.

The Man Who Went to the Far Side of the Moon (International Literature #3)

The full title of this book is The Man Who Went to the Far Side of the Moon: The Story of Apollo 11 Astronaut Michael Collins.  This book was written by Bea Uusma Schyffert in 1999 and was originally published in Sweden.  Emi Gunter translated it and it was first published in the United States in 2003.  Then in 2004 it became a Batchelder Honor Book.

Wow, wow, wow this book is AWESOME!  I really only picked it because it was one of the few books my library had that were translated from another language.  I expected it to be a boring biography but boy was I wrong.  This book was fascinating!  The format of the book is almost like a scrapbook with snapshots, diagrams, brief facts, and copies of notes all from about about Buzz Aldrin, Neil Armstrong, and for the most part (as the name suggests) Michael Collins.  The focus is more about Michael Collins who was the third astronaut who went on the Apollo 11 mission to the moon but is rarely remembered because he didn't get to actually walk on the moon (someone had to fly the space shuttle!).  I read this book in the car and I kept reading parts of it aloud to my husband because I found them so interesting.  I ended up reading him almost the whole book because it was all so good!  The book was an easy, quick read but there everyone will enjoy it.  From the technical facts about the ship to the description of the food and how it's packaged to the gross details about bodily functions, children and adults will appreciate and learn from this book.  Of all the books I've read for this blog I think this is my favorite.

Check it out today!

Garmann's Summer (International Literature #2)

Garmann's Summer, written and illustrated by Stian Hole, was originally published in Norway in 2006.  Don Bartlett translated it into English and it was then published in the United States in 2008.  In 2009, it became a Batchelder Honor Book.  The story was good but the illustrations were creepy!  The story is about a six-year-old boy named Garmann who is about to start school.  Garmann is concerned that none of his teeth have fallen out yet; he talks to his mom, dad, and three elderly aunts who come visit every summer to see what they are scared of.  They all share their fears with him and help him to understand that it is okay to be afraid.  Garmann's Summer uses the characters of the aunts to address the issues of aging and death that are commonly avoided in children's books  These topics are discussed in a funny and light manner but effective manner.  Garmann takes things very literally, much like Amelia Bedelia, which adds another humorous element.

The illustrations, on the other hand, are just plain weird.  They are completely unlike anything I have ever seen in a picture book.  The people all have really big heads on little bodies and they are a mix of realistic pictures with cartoons.  That may appeal to some people but it just bothers me.  My advice: read the story, avoid looking at the pictures (unless you like unusual art).

A Book Of Coupons (International Literature #1)

A Book of Coupons was written by Susie Morgenstern and illustrated by Serge Bloch.  This book was first published in France in 1999.  Gill Rosner translated it and in 2002 it became a Batchelder Honor Book.  A Book of Coupons is about a 5th grade class that returns to school after summer break to find that their new teacher is an old man, not the young handsome teacher they were expecting.  The old man, Monsieur Noel, gives them a coupon books full of coupons to use that year such as "one coupon for sleeping in class", "one coupon for clowning around", and "one coupon for being late to school".  He also teaches in a very non-traditional manner but it gets the students interested.  He teaches them  about patience, dancing, taking care of their teeth, Charles Dickens, and most importantly the "coupons" that life gives us.  The students didn't even want to use their coupons for not listening in class or not coming to school because the classes were so interesting.  Unfortunately the principal, Incarnation Perez, does not agree with Monsieur Noel's way of teaching and makes his job very difficult.

This book is a wonderful read for students because of the life lessons about using the "coupons" life has given us and learning as much as we can.  A Book of Coupons is also an excellent read for teachers to help us remember why we teach and how important it is to work to inspire learning in our students, even when facing opposition from other.  I highly recommend this book!

International Literature for Children

The Batchelder Award is awarded to an American publisher for a children's book considered to be the most outstanding of the books that are originally published in a language other than English and in a country other than the United States and are then translated and published in the United States.  The award is named after Mildred L. Batchelder who believed in the importance of good books for children that were translated from all parts of the world.  This award has been given by the ALSC  (Association for Library Service to Children), a division of ALA (American Library Association), annually since 1979 and serves to encourage American publishers to search out children's books from countries outside the United States.   More information can be found at http://www.ala.org/ala/mgrps/divs/alsc/awardsgrants/bookmedia/batchelderaward/index.cfm.

The Book of the Year for Children Award and the Amelia Frances Howard-Gibbon Illustrator's Award are two awards given in Canada for books published in Canada written or illustrated by a Canadian citizen or permanent resident.  The Book of the Year for Children Award can be given to any type of creative writing, including fiction, non-fiction, poetry, and collections.  The Amelia Frances Howard-Gibbon Award is given to books suitable for children up to twelve years of age.  More information about these awards and others for Canadian books and authors can be found athttp://www.cla.ca/Content/NavigationMenu/CLAatWork/AwardsScholarshipsGrants/default.htm.

The Marsh Award for Children's Literature in Translation is an award given every two years in the United Kingdom to the translator of an outstanding work of fiction for young readers translated into English.  More information and previous winners can be found athttp://www.marshchristiantrust.org/default.asp?V_ITEM_ID=519.

The Bisto Book of the Year Awards are given annually to writers and illustrators of children's books in Ireland.  The books can be written in English or Irish and the authors or illustrators must have been born in Ireland or be a resident of Ireland.  The awards first began in 1990 and consist of six total awards: Bisto Book of the Year Award, Eilis Dillon Award for a First Children's Book, Honour Award for Fiction, Honour Award for Illustration, Special Judges Award, and Children's Choice Award.  Visit http://www.childrensbooksireland.ie/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=312&Itemid=439 for more information and criteria about these awards.

The Hans Christian Anderson Literature Award is a Danish literary award established in 2010 and awarded to a living author whose work resembles that of Hans Christian Anderson.  The first recipient of this award was J.K. Rowling.  The Hans Christian Anderson Literature Award is not to be confused with the Hans Christian Anderson Award which is the highest international recognition given to an author and an illustrator of children's books.  The Hans Christian Anderson Award is known as the "Nobel prize for children's literature". This award is given by the International Board on Books for Young People and has been given since 1956.  See http://www.ibby.org/index.php?id=273 for more details.

Lastly, the Pura Belpre Award is given by the ALSC and the National Association to Promote Library and Information Services to Latinos and Spanish-Speaking to a Latino/Latina writer and illustrator whose work best portrays, affirms, and celebrates the Latino cultural experience.  This award was given biannually from 1996 to 2008 and is now given annually.  Find out more at http://www.ala.org/ala/mgrps/divs/alsc/awardsgrants/bookmedia/belpremedal/belpreabout/index.cfm.

The Tale of Despereaux (Book vs. Movie #3)

  

The last book and movie that I decided to read, watch, and compare was The Tale of Despereaux. The book was written by Kate DiCamillo and illustrated by Timothy Basil Erving in 2003 and won a Newbery Medal in 2004.  An animated film based on the book was created in 2008.  First of all: have we not yet exhausted the topic of mice/rats that can talk and live like people?  I mean really, we've had The Mouse and the Motorcycle by Beverly Cleary (my teacher read that to us in 3rd grade), the mice in the Disney version of Cinderella, Ratatouille, Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH by Robert C. O'Brien, Templeton from Charlotte's Web, and Stuart Little.  When I saw that The Tale of Despereaux was another book about mice and rats I was not looking forward to reading it, however, I was pleasantly surprised that I liked the story.  The gist of the book is about a mouse, Despereaux, who is unlike other mice in that he likes to listen to music and read, and he is much smaller with much larger ears than the others.  He falls in love with the Princess Pea, whose castle he lives in, when he hears her father singing to her.  Roscuro, a rat in the castle is an odd rat who likes light rather than dark.  His attraction to light causes him to fall in the queen's soup and kill her.  Roscure decides to kidnap the princess, along with the help of a castle servant named Miggery Sow who wants to be the princess so Despereaux must save the princess from this fate.  The plot is much more complicated than that and I've left out lots of the characters and story, so you'll just have to read it for yourself.  The book is a very good read, though.

On the other hand, the movie is a different story. I was pretty bored when I watched it.  Like most book to movie adaptations, this one had too many variations from the book.  I thought book had a perfectly fine story, I just don't understand why they had to change it.  I also thought that the movie left out some of the main parts of the story.  The characters had different personalities than the ones in the book.  The movie makers tried too hard to make it a happily ever after story when the book had a perfectly good ending, even if it wasn't a cookie cutter happy ending. My recommendation: read the book, don't waste your time on the movie.

Side note:  It just happened to be a coincidence that I picked two books written by Kate DiCamillo; I chose The Tale of Despereaux and Because of Winn Dixie based on recommendations from friends, not even noticing they were written by the same person until I had already read them.  I find it pretty impressive, though, that she has written two popular, very different, Newbery winning books that were also turned into films.

Where the Wild Things Are (Book vs. Movie #2)

                                            

vs.

     

The second book/movie combo I decided to compare was Where the Wild Things Are.  This was one of my brother's favorite books growing up and so I decided to re-read it and then check out the movie version.  The book was written by Maurice Sendak in 1963.  The movie adaptation was then released in 2009.  I was curious as to how the producers were going to take a short children's book and turn it into a whole movie.  Overall, I was pretty disappointed.

The story lines are basically the same, with more being added into the movie. In the book, Max is portrayed as a mischievous little boy, being rambunctious and a little naughty like many young boys.  However, in the movie Max is incredibly angry, mean, and violent.  In both the book and the movie Max sails away on a boat where he meets some strange creatures and he becomes their king.  The one good thing I have to say about the movie is that they did a good job of making the characters in the movie look very similar to the illustrations in the book and they were semi-cute in a weird sort of way..  Unlike the book, the characters have all sorts of interpersonal problems they and Max learn things from each other - basically all just created in order to give the movie some length.

Like I said before, I didn't care for the movie at all.  I thought it was very boring and much too dark for a children's story.  They took a lighthearted book that kids everywhere can relate to - about getting in trouble for being mischievous and escaping into a fantasy world where you can tell everyone what to do - and turned it into a depressing, almost scary, story.  I would recommend the book but not the movie.

Because of Winn-Dixie (Book vs. Movie #1)

 

        








One task for this class is to read a book, watch the movie made about that book, and compare the two.  The first book I chose was Because of Winn-Dixie.  The book was written by Kate DiCamillo in 2000 and was awarded a Newbery Honor in 2001; the book was then made into a movie in 2005.  The story is about a young girl, Opal, who moves to Naomi, Florida with her father when he gets a new preaching job there.  Opal was abandoned her mother when she was three and her father spends more time with her preaching than with her.  Opal doesn't have any friends in her new town until she meets a stray dog that she adopts and names Winn-Dixie. That summer Opal and Winn-Dixie make friends with an eclectic group of people in town.  Winn-Dixie also brings Opal and her father closer together.  Through her new friends Opal learns about friendship, acceptance, and that we all have a little loneliness in our lives.

Because of Winn-Dixie was the most accurate movie based off of a book that I have ever seen.  There were a few minor details that were tweaked a little bit but for the most part the storyline, characters, and even the quotes were the same.  The movie adds a landlord and a sheriff that were not part of the original book but they have minor roles in the movie and didn't change much of the plot.  The biggest difference I noticed was that I thought the movie portrayed Opal's daddy as much more harsh and distant than the book did.  For example, when Opal first brought Winn-Dixie home in the book her dad protested a little bit but was quickly won over.  In the movie, her dad is much more stern and yells at her that she has to get rid of the dog.  Also, in at the end of the story Opal has a party for her new friends.  In the book her dad comes and is able to help her look for Winn-Dixie when he goes missing but in the movie her dad never shows up to the party and she has to go hunt him down to get him to help her.  In the book her dad was a single parent who was trying his best to be a good father but didn't really know how to relate to Opal; I wish the movie had done a better job of expressing that rather than making him seem like an unloving person.  Other than that, the movie was almost exactly like the book - so unusual!  I would definitely recommend both the book and movie.

The Bracelet by Yoshiko Uchida

The Bracelet is written by Yoshiko Uchida and illustrated by Joanna Yardley.  The story is set in 1942 during World War II.  Emi, a seven-year-old girl, and her family are being sent to a prison camp since they are Japanese-Americans.  As they pack up, Emi's best friend Laurie comes to say goodbye and give Emi a bracelet.  Emi loves the bracelet and promises to wear it all the time but between home and the prison camp she loses it.   She looks all over but cannot find her bracelet.  She finally realizes, though, that she can still remember Laurie even without a bracelet.

I thought this book did a better job of explaining what Japanese-Americans went through during WWII than any of the history lessons I've ever been taught.  The focus of the story is really about friendship and and family, but we also get a glimpse of the unfair and harsh treatment that many loyal Americans endured all because of prejudices.  The Bracelet doesn't go into great detail about prison camps or the reasoning behind them, but it provides enough background to get readers interested learning more.  Seeing these experiences through the eyes of a child takes history and makes it personal.  This would be a great book to use to introduce students to a lesson on internment camps.  A note in the book says that Yoshiko Uchida uses her own experiences of being a Japanese-American during WWII to influence her writing of The Bracelet and some of her other books.  Other works by Yoshiko Uchida include The Invisible Thread, New Friends for Susan, Takao and Grandfather's Sword, and The Rooster who Understood Japanese.

The Lion & The Mouse by Jerry Pinkney

Jerry Pinkney takes the Aesop's fable story about a lion and a mouse and makes it come alive with his illustrations.  The only words in The Lion & The Mouse are the sounds such as "squeak", "grr", "screech", and "roar".  Yet, the book needs no words to get the story across.  Especially for people who have heard this particular Aseop's fable will recognize the story within a few pages.  The Lion & the Mouse contains some of the most beautiful and detailed illustrations of any book I have ever seen.  This is not a book to be read aloud to a large group but one to be held close and examined to catch all the details.  I just wanted to sit and soak in all the magnificent artwork.

On one of the first pages, Jerry Pinkney dedicates this book to his first great-granddaughter.  When I read that I was surprised that someone with great-grandchildren was still writing and drawing books (I'm not really sure why that caught my attention, it's not like there is an age limit on creativity).  When I went to his website to look for more books he had written I saw that he had been writing and illustrating books since at least 1964, and that since 1964 he has created 86 children's books - amazing!  In many of his books he takes stories that are quite old and gives them his own drawings.  Some of his books include The Patchwork Quilt, New Shoes for Silvia, Strange Animals of the Sea, The Little Match Girl, The Ugly Duckling, The Jungle Book, and Little Red Riding Hood.  He has also illustrated several novels, provided the art for book covers, created posters, designed stamps, and produced some independent art.

The First Part Last (Coretta Scott King Award)

The First Part Last, written by Angela Johnson, was the Coretta Scott King Award Winner in 2004.  The story is about Bobby, a sixteen-year-old young man living in New York City.  His girlfriend, Nia, gets pregnant and after giving birth falls into an irreversible, vegetative coma.  Bobby is left to raise their baby girl, Feather, on his own.  He struggles to raise her while also balancing school; he truly loves her and wants to give her the best life possible but he still misses his old life and as a result gets into a little trouble with the law.  The book alternates chapters between before Feather was born (finding out about the pregnancy, doctors appointments, deciding what to do with the baby) and after Feather's birth and Nia's coma (babysitters, school, visiting Nia in the nursing home, sleepless nights).

Although Bobby is a minority in race, the book is really not about racial diversity.  I think that real diversity issue The First Part Last is about teen pregnancy and that fact that teen parents, especially teen, male, single parents are definitely a minority.  The book address the love that Bobby feels for Feather but doesn't over glamorize his teen parenthood.  There are heartwarming scenes where Bobby expresses his desire to give Feather a wonderful life and there are also scenes where you can just feel Bobby's exhaustion and stress.  The First Part Last is definitely a book written for older children, but considering how many pregnant middle school students we are now seeing I would say that we shouldn't reserve this book just for high school.  There is definitely a place in the middle school library for a book that address the reality of being a teen parent.

Newbery vs. Caldecott Book Awards

One of the tasks for my reading journal is to describe the differences between Caldecott and Newbery awards as well as to determine if one award is better than the other.  Before this class I knew they were both about children's books but I didn't know anything about them.  As I've been reading my five Caldecott books and my two Newbery books for this class I had come to my own conclusion that the Caldecott award was for picture books and the Newbery award was for children's/pre-teen chapter books.  When I started doing some research I found that my assumption was pretty close.

According to the ALA, the Newbery Medal honors the author of the "most distinguished contribution to American literature for children.  The Caldecott Medal honors the artist of the "most distinguished American picture book for children".  In summary, that means the Newbery Medal is for the story and the Caldecott Medal is for the illustrations.  A book can actually be nominated for both awards although it can't win both.  Both awards stipulate that that book is published in the United States and that the author or artist is a citizen or resident of the United States as well.

I don't think that one award is any better or worse than the other since they measure two totally different things.  The illustrations can be just as important (or maybe even more so) as the words in children's books.  I'm actually glad they created two awards because there are many books for young children that probably never would have been recognized as a Newbery winner.  How can you really compare the literary value of a book written for pre-teens with the visual and literary appeal of a book written for young children?

Information about the Newbery and Caldecott awards found athttp://www.ala.org/ala/mgrps/divs/alsc/awardsgrants/bookmedia/index.cfm.

Al Capone Does My Shirts (Newbery #2)

Al Capone Does My Shirts was an excellent read!  This book, written by Gennifer Choldenko was a Newbery Honor book.  The premise of the book is that Matthew Flanagan (called Moose) and his family move to Alcatraz where his father works as an electrician and guard.  At the time Moose and his family are living on the island (1935), Al Capone is also being housed in the prison on Alcatraz.  Moose's sister, Natalie, has autism and a lot of the book deals with how they and society viewed children with autism at that time.  The warden's daughter, Piper, cooks up a scheme to make money by adding the laundry of other children at school to their own laundry which was watched by the convicts.

I had so many strong emotions as I was reading this book.  I hated Piper; she was rude, self centered, and spoiled and it made me so mad that she called Natalie stupid and retarded.  I also didn't like Moose and Natalie's mom.  I'm sure a lot of her behavior and denial stemmed from the fact that she just didn't know what to do with Natalie and that she was trying to help her but it made me so mad that she forced so much responsibility on Moose and tried to force Natalie to live like a "normal"person.  Even though Moose sometimes got frustrated with Natalie, he was so caring and understanding with her and you could tell that he really loved her and just wanted her to be happy.  I think that Al Capone Does My Shirts hit the nail on the head when portraying life with an autistic family member.  I read in the author's notes that Gennifer Choldenko's sister had autism and inspired the character of Natalie.  Moose was a character you just wanted to root for - he wanted so badly to do what was right, follow the rules, and have friends.  Theresa, a seven year old who befriends Moose and Natalie, was another one of my favorite characters who is funny and caring and who seems to understand Natalie better than anyone else.

The book also does a good job of showing what life on Alcatraz was like.  For me, Alcatraz has always been something that was talked about in passing but never really taught about in school.  Al Capone Does My Shirts teaches about Alcatraz through the use of a fun story.   Since the story was set in 1935 there are also some small things that refer to that time period such as the language, terminology, and school structures.  I think that reading this book provides a history lesson within a good novel.  In that vein, I think this book is definitely for middle school age students.  Younger children probably will miss the history lesson plus there are a few hints of mature topics in the story.  I would definitely recommend this book to my friends!

Pictures of Hollis Woods (Newbery #1)

When I was in college at TTU, we had our big, normal college library but there was also another little library specifically for the education majors that had school, curriculum, children's books, and other teacher resources.  For a while they were doing a promotion where they would ask a trivia question from a children's book and if you answered if correctly your name was put in a drawing.  One week my name was drawn and my prize was the book Pictures of Hollis Woods.  I was happy to win (who doesn't like to win things?) but didn't really have much use for a children's book at the time so I just stuck it with the rest of the kid's book I had and figured I would need them someday when I had my own children.  However, when I started this assignment and saw that Pictures of Hollis Woods was a Newbery Honor book and fit the criteria I decided it was about time to read the book I had won.

Pictures of Hollis Woods, written by Patricia Reilly Giff, is a story about a young girl who is in the foster care system.  The book alternates between pictures Hollis has drawn or remembers from her past foster family and "the time with Josie" which is the present (Josie is her current foster mom).  Hollis loved her previous foster family, the Regans who were planning on adopting her but something happens (it is alluded to through the whole book but we don't find out until the end) that causes Hollis to run away from them.  Since she left the Regans she gets places with Josie Cahill, a retired art teacher.  Hollis enjoys living with Josie but she realizes quickly that Josie's memory is degrading that that if the foster care people find out they will remove Hollis.  Hollis goes to elaborate lengths to run away with Josie so they can stay together but she ends up realizing that Josie is happier back home.  She also finds out that what happened with the Regans was just a big misunderstanding and that they still want to adopt her.

I had absolutely no idea what this book was going to be about, I have never heard of it and there wasn't a summary or anything written on the back like many books have.  When I started reading I really had no idea what to expect.  It quickly became apparent that the story was about a girl in foster care.  Some of the review I read after finished the book said that they thought it was confusing how the book alternated between the past and the present, but so many young adult books are written in the same manner that it wasn't at all difficult for me to follow.  Also, the book I have made it very obvious with labels and font differences which time period Hollis is talking about.

I thought Hollis was a very well-developed character.  She had a very tough attitude but underneath that she was sweet and just wanted to be loved.  I liked how she uses her artistic ability to describe her past experiences in picture format, that is a unique element that I haven't seen in a book before.  I think if I had read this book as a child that much of the story would have been lost on me since I didn't really know what the foster system was and wouldn't have been able to understand Hollis' experiences.  I still can't relate to her but after being a teacher and dealing with several students who are in the foster care system I am more able to understand some of her reasoning and thoughts.  It is obvious that Hollis has a hard time believing that someone would want her and thinks that she is to blame for everything; I would imagine that that type of thinking would be common in a foster child.  Patricia Reilly Giff does an excellent job of putting us in the mind of a child, Hollis perceives things in ways that as adults we know are inaccurate but that make sense to children.

It was interesting to me that throughout the book Hollis has to take over caring for Josie.  Really the only thing that I didn't like about the book is how quickly Josie turned from slightly forgetful to incredibly confused.  I couldn't tell exactly how long Hollis lived with Josie but I know it was less than six months. I haven't experienced Alzheimer's or dementia (those are my guesses on what is wrong with Josie - the book never actually says) but I would think it would be more of a gradual process than the book portrays.  When Hollis first comes to stay with her it appears that Josie is in early stages, occasionally forgetting things but able to hide that fact from the foster care people.  However, by the time Hollis and Josie leave town a few months later, Josie is very childlike and dependent on Hollis.  Again, maybe this is realistic but it didn't feel that way to me.

Overall, I thought Pictures of Hollis Woods was a great book.  I don't think younger children would be able to read it on their own and appreciate all the nuances, but I think that reading this book would open up lots of great discussion about what foster care is, how children in the system are affected, and Alzheimer's.  I many children probably know someone (grandparent, member of their church) who are dealing with memory loss and this book is a great way to help them understand that.  I give this book two thumbs up!

The Hello, Goodbye Window (Caldecott #5)

The Hello, Goodbye Window was the 2006 Caldecott Medal award winner.  It is written by Norton Juster and illustrated by Chris Raschka.  The story is about a little girl who goes to visit her Nanna and Poppy.  Their house has a kitchen window (that looks like a regular window but isn't, according to the little girl) called the Hello, Goodbye Window.  You can peek in the kitchen through the window, at night the window acts like a mirror, before bed you can look out the window to tell the stars goodnight, you can look through it to tell the garden good morning, anyone might come by the window (a T-Rex, the pizza delivery guy, or the queen of England), and you can blow goodbye kisses through the window.

This book perfectly captures the magical relationship between grandparents and grandchildren, or at least it is reflective of my relationship with my grandparents.  Juster does an excellent job of capturing the wonder that a child has toward all the stuff in their grandparents house such as glass jars on the shelves or pictures from the olden days.  Things such as helping Nanna in the garden, listening to Poppy play the harmonica, or eating Poppy's "specialty" breakfast are normal activities that are that much more fun just because they are at Nanna and Poppy's house.  I loved how the little girl says that when she takes her nap "nothing happens until I get up".  That is such a perfect example of how young children aren't quite able to comprehend that things are happening when they are not around, such as the fact that Nanna and Poppy might actually do things while she naps - contrary to her belief.

My favorite quote in The Hello, Goodbye Window was "You can be happy and sad at the same time, your know.  It just happens that way sometimes."  This quote is in reference to the little girl getting picked up by her parents and being glad to go home but sad to leave her grandparents.  I think that mixture of feelings is very hard for children to understand or identify, and yet being happy and sad at the same time is a state of emotions that many people experience.  This book helps to show children that being happy and sad at the same time can happen and that is is ok when it does.

At first glance I didn't like the cover of the book because it had a lot of yellow and I just don't like yellow.  However, the pictures inside are excellent.  They are drawn/colored/created in a way that make it look like a child drew them.  They appear to be a mixture of markers, watercolors, and pastels.  In spite of their child-like quality the pictures are quite detailed.  I actually didn't notice until someone else pointed this out, but the girl is mixed - her mom is black and her dad is white; also Nanna is black and Poppy is white.  So even though the book never says anything about the race of the family it still portrays the family dynamic of multiple races that I feel isn't addressed often in children's books.  On a bit of a tangent, this also made me wonder about how an author and an illustrator work together.  Does the author tell the illustrator what he/she is envisioning for the pictures of does the illustrator just read the story and draw what they think it should look like.  Since the book never talks about the multiple races, I wonder if Norton Juster imagined that has he wrote the characters or if Chris Raschka decided on the race of each character.  Either way, I liked seeing a book that hints toward this diversity.

This was by no means my favorite children's book of all time but I definitely liked it.  I thought The Hello, Goodbye Window did a great job of capturing the whimsy and magic of visiting with grandparents.

Olivia (Caldecott #4)

Of these four books, Olivia is the first one I hadn't heard about before reading it.  One of my friends recommended it and I'm so glad she did!  Olivia is written and illustrated by Ian Falconer and is a Caldecott Honor book.  Olivia is about a pig named Olivia who is busy, busy, busy.I think part of Olivia's personality was modeled after me and my life.  Let's look at some similarities:

-Olivia loves to sing loud, I had (and still have) a song for everything...usually very loud

-Olivia has a little brother who is always copying her (in the picture it shows him trying to put on lipstick while she plays dress up), I have a little brother who always wanted to play dress up with me

-Olivia loves to play dress up and has to try on all her outfits, I had THREE huge tubs of dress up clothes

-Olivia isn't sleepy when is time to nap, I never understood why I had to sleep when there were so many fun things to do

-Olivia's favorite painting at the museum is of ballerinas, I wanted to be a ballerina so bad as a little girl I couldn't stand it!

-At night time Olivia is not sleepy and wants her Mommy to read five books, I always wanted my Mom or Daddy to tell one more story or for me to have "10 more minutes" to stay up and read

I will have to say, I never painted on the walls (I'm sure my parents are so thankful for that!)

I think Olivia is the little girl who everyone was or knows.  I loved reading about Olivia and her spunky antics.  There wasn't really a theme or hidden "moral" like many children's books have (or people infer from them), but it was a feel good, fun story that made me smile.  At first glance this book reminded me of Chrysanthemum by Kevin Henkes, about a little girl mouse.  Really, though, the main similarity is that they are both about girl animals that live like real people; Chrysanthemum isn't quite as spirited and carefree as Olivia, but they are both whimsical and sweet stories.  Olivia also reminded me a little of the Eloise books by Kay Thompson.

The illustrations are mostly black in white, with accents in red (a jump rope, an outfit), and a few full color pictures sprinkled in.  The two pictures that Olivia looks at in the museum are real paintings (a Degas and a Jackson Pollock) and they are in full color rather than the black, white, and red. Even though there isn't an actual mention of ballet in the book, there are several things that have a ballet feel to them as well as a picture of ballerinas that Olivia looks at while in the museum.  When I got to the end and read about the author, Ian Falconer, I saw that he designed sets and costumes for the New York City Ballet.  I could definitely see how that previous work influenced his book!

I absolutely loved Olivia!  This is a must read for anyone who is a girl or knows a girl.  Yes, that means you.

(Mom, I know of a certain little cousin, much like myself, who needs to get this book for Christmas!)

Knuffle Bunny: A Cautionary Tale (Caldecott #3)

The next book I chose to read (per my many elementary-school-teacher-friends recommendations) was Knuffle Bunny: A Cautionary Tale, written and illustrated by Mo Willems (who also wrote/illustrated Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus! that I discussed a few posts back).  Knuffle Bunny is about a little girl named Trixie who goes to the laundromat with her daddy.  On their way back to their house she gets agitated and tries to tell him something but he doesn't understand because she is speaking baby gibberish.  When they get home, her mommy notices that Trixie's stuffed bunny is missing.  The family runs back to the laundromat and searches until they find the bunny.  Trixie then says her first words, "Knuffle Bunny!".

I just have to say that I think Trixie is creepy and looks like a boy.    I'm not really a huge fan of the way Mo Willems drew the cartoon characters of Trixie, Knuffle Bunny, her daddy, her mom, etc. on top of the real pictures of places in Brooklyn, BUT I do think it's a very unique way to illustrate a book, something I haven't seen before.  I definitely like the way Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus! is illustrated versus Knuffle Bunny, but it is interesting to see the different styles that Mo Williams demonstrates in these two books.  Even though I don't really like the cartoon characters mixed with the real life pictures I do think he was very skillful in the way he made the cartoons fit perfectly with the photographs.  That is something that I think adults would appreciate more than children.  In my experience it is also unusual (or at least in the minority) to see a child's book that is set in a city the way Knuffle Bunny is set in Brooklyn with the family visiting the laundromat.  That is nice to have a variety from so many kid's books.

I think the part that kids would like best are all nonsense words that Trixie says.  I bet that hearing "aggle, flaggle, klabble, wumby, snurp" would make kids laugh and laugh.  Although I don't remember the frustration of trying to talk and not being understood I can relate to Trixie's daddy when he is trying to figure out what she is saying.  I worked in a daycare during college and I teach Sunday school at church and there have been several times when a child is "talking" to me and I can't understand what he or she is saying because they're speaking their own language.  I'm also assuming that the "cautionary tale" is

Overall this is my least favorite book of the three I have read and reviewed so far.  I don't hate it but it wouldn't be one that I would hope my kids picked to read over and over and over.

Click, Clack, Moo: Cows That Type (Caldecott #2)

Click, Clack, Moo: Cows That Type is another Caldecott Honor Book written by Doreen Cronin and illustrated by Betsy Lewin.  This book is about a group of cows on Farmer Brown's farm who start typing him notes on a typewriter.  They ask for electric blankets for themselves and the chickens and when Farmer Brown denies the request they refuse to give milk or eggs.  They then compromise with Farmer Brown and tell him that if he gives them electric blankets they will give up the typewriter, sending it via the duck.  However, the ducks start typing their own notes to Farmer Brown asking for things rather than giving him the typewriter.  The book ends with the cycle starting over.

To me, especially when I first read the book, this was basically just a silly, kids story.  While I've been reading these books I've really wished I had a young child at home or a classroom full of kids I could read this to so I could see their reaction.  I'm having to really try hard to put myself in the brain of a preschool or lower elementary student in order to see what the appeal is.  I can see how they would think it is funny that cows and chickens are typing and I also imagine they would think it was hilarious at the end that just when Farmer Brown thinks he is getting a break the ducks start typing notes, too.

Some of the reader reviews from Amazon.com talk about how Click, Clack, Moo appeals to the rebel in children and teaches them negotiation skills.  Also, Click, Clack, Moo is mentioned in the article "9 most subversice children's books ever written" that was posted on our class website.  This article says that Click, Clack, Moo encourages kids to "stick it to the man".  Maybe that was the author's intention but honestly, I just think it was written to be a funny book about the juxtaposition between farm animals and them communicating through type.  I also think it follows a common theme that occurs in children's books where animals participate in human behaviors like wearing clothes, going on picnics, talking, going to school, etc.

Again, like with Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus!, I really enjoyed the illustrations and the fact that they don't look computer-generated.  When I first read Click, Clack, Moo I thought the pictures looked like they were painted with watercolors.  I saw that inside the book there was a note from the illustrator saying that she did indeed create the pictures out of watercolors.  I think they were beautifully done.

Like I said before, I wish I could experience this being read to young children and get to watch their reaction.  I think that would help me better appreciate the humor and irony of Click, Clack, Moo: Cows That Type.

Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus! (Caldecott #1)

The book I have chosen to read and review is Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus! written and illustrated by Mo Willems.  Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus! is a Caldecott Honor Book.  When I was in college for my undergraduate in secondary education, my friend Anne was getting her undergrad and masters in elementary education.  She LOVES this book and I heard her talk about it a lot!  Even after her rave reviews I never got around to reading it, so when I saw it was a Caldecott book I knew it was one of the ones I would pick.

After being in college, teaching high school, reading adult or young adult books recommended by my librarian, and finishing my young adult lit class at WKU, reading a children's book was a big change.  I really haven't read a children's book since I worked at a daycare 2 years ago and even then I was in the toddler room so our books were still very young.  I had forgotten how refreshing books for children can be.

Simplicity was the word that kept popping in my head as I read Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus!.  I think I have become so used to seeing computer-generated pictures and graphics that looking at the obviously hand-drawn pictures in this book was fascinating.  It looks like Mo Willems just picked up a crayon quickly sketched a story, but that's not a criticism.  I think it is wonderful!  Seeing how each page would have just one or two items drawn with a blank background was a little strange, and yet the story didn't NEED to have lots of busy, colorful pictures.  It was perfect just the way it is.

The story is kind of weird to read quietly in your head; it was definitely written to be an interactive book.  The idea is that a bus driver has to step away from his bus and tells the reader/listener to make sure not to let the pigeon drive.  Of course, as soon as he walks away the pigeon starts begging to drive the bus.  I've never actually read this book around kids but I can imagine that they would love to yell "NO!" every time the pigeon asks.  This part reminds me of a book that I loved as a child called Are there Hippos on the Farm? by Ethel and Len Kessler.  The book names several different animals that live on the farm but each time the same question is asked: Are there hippos on the farm?.  I remember saying loving the fact that I got to say "No!" after they asked the question.

I thought Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus! was a great book; it is interactive and would definitely get children involved in the story.  There is also an underlying "moral" to the story is that it helps kids practice saying no to someone who is asking to do things that are wrong.  In fact, the back of the book even says "Finally, a book you can say "no" to!".  I loved this book.  Thanks, Anne!

Title

Coming up with a title for this blog was hard - I'm much better at math than thinking up catchy phrases!  My title was inspired by the stories that my dad used to tell when I was little.  My parents read us tons of books and told us bunches of stories growing up, that's probably part of why I decided to go in to library education.  When Daddy would tell stories my brothers and I always insisted that the stories include "once upon a time", "all of the sudden", and "the end".  Sometimes Daddy would tease us and just say "once upon a time all of the sudden the end" all strung together really fast and then say that the story was finished because he included those three phrases - we would get so upset that he didn't tell a "real" story!  I decided that saying would make a cute title for my blog.

Introduction

I created this blog as part of an assignment for the children's literature class that I am taking this summer.  I'll be using it to review children's book and talk about various topics that we are assigned.