Victor and Linesi are twins in Malawi. Victor goes to school and plays with his friends, but Linesi has to collect water and do chores during the day. At school, Victor’s teacher asks them to think about equality and if boys and girls are treated equally in their own lives. Victor does not think it is fair that his sister does not get to go to school and is too tired from all of the chores to learn anything at the end of the day. He decides to take turns with his sister, so that she can go to school as well. This inspires others in the village to do the same.
This picture book is based on true events. The end of the book includes an author’s note about access to fresh water and a list of organizations for finding out more information about water scarcity and gender inequality. The author’s note also includes words to know and the pronunciation, since several Chichewa words (one of the languages in Malawi) are included in the story.
A humorous look at differently topics from parts of the body, animals, plants, and the earth. Cartoon panels introduce us to diary entries for different items. It is divided up into three different sections: Human Body, Animal Kingdom, and Earth and Science. The content is not in-depth, especially since each item is only discussed on one to two pages, but there are some interesting and funny facts. The topics and the focus will definitely appeal to children. Did you know wombat poop is cube shaped? Vampire bats throw up in other bats mouths? Some of the pages has me laughing out look, but I was disappointed to see that some of the humor came from making fun of others (the slug calling the snail stupid and a loser). A table of contents and glossary are included.
Caldecott Medal winner Brian Floca, does not disappoint with this beautifully illustrated book about keeping the city going during the time of closure because of the COVID pandemic. The pictures help to tell the story of children and families looking our their apartment windows at the eerily quiet city, except for the essential workers who are delivering food, picking up trash, driving taxis, US Post, utilities workers, emergency responders, doctors and nurses ect.
The story ends with the 7PM nightly celebration of pots and pans banging together, people clapping and cheering for our city heroes! This inspirational story with beautifully illustrated pictures is highly recommended.
Pickup trucks‘ basic information on nonmechanical parts and basic pickup truck uses provide young readers just that – basic information. The information is given in one or two sentences per page along with an appropriate photo of what is being read about dealing with pickup trucks. The book is well labeled where needed.
There is a table of contents, glossary, index, and web site ( www.factsurfer.com / keywords – pickup trucks) for those readers learning how to locate information or wanting more information. The web site includes much more advanced information of the workings of trucks by Chevrolet, a coloring page, and multiple video truck games.
Egypt’s location, a very brief bit of Egypt’s ancient history, and geography is presented for young beginning readers learning to search for information. ABDO follows its standard procedure of providing two or three sentences of facts in large font on the left hand side of the book with the right side entirely devoted to amazing full page photos.
There is a table of contents, index, glossary, and web site (abdokids.com / code CEK55o2).
The web site contains five of the photos and most of the text from this book. Further information is provide by National Geographic Kids World. Plus, there is a printable word search and maze.
This book is a work of art. It is pure poetic beauty. It is outstanding.
You receive amazing illustrations by Billy Renkl such as the imagery of our lungs being upside trees, with the comparison of the branches of trees to the capillaries in our lungs. As Diana Farid tells us,
“When you breath–whoosh–
breath fills
the upside-down tree
inside your rising chest.”
This book delivers a beautiful blend of poetry, science and art. Conveying the feeling that you, are connected, a part of, of the larger natural world. You breath in the sky and stardust and atoms of the universe! Every page has stunning imagery worthy of frame and display in home or institution. The marriage of wording and illustrations is perfectly lovely in this poetry book.
This is a poetry book about poetry. Our main character takes us on her journey of creating, or writing, her poem. Using poetic inspiration, we follow her as her words spill out, scatter, and even grow, until it reaches fruition as a POETREE.
This books is a creative, fun, active and full of rhyming words and puns to be deciphered by the reader. There is a great section in the back which asked the reader to identify rhyming and mixed up words. Also, additional websites such as www.poets.orge/national-potetry-month/poem-your-pocket-day and more.
The illustrations add to the magic of the book. Our young poet is a person of color who takes us through the city, an urban playground, and a lush garden. The magic of imagination and language combine with the lovely pictures to create a book that feels good and stimulates our brains. Recommended! Especially for teachers or parents who participate in National Poetry Month in April.
The world needs more books about Shirley Chisholm. This Ready to Ready book gives a solid background of the activist from her childhood in Barbados to her first run for Congress and her first run for President. The details and explanations were easy to follow and presented in a relatable way for even kids below a Level 3 who may have the book read to them. It contains all the important parts of Shirley’s life and quotes she is famous for.
The illustrations by Kaitlyn Shea O’Connor are great, colorful and eye-catching.
My one complaint is that the text is very close together and there are alot of words on one page. This is difficult for our leveled readers who might pick up the book.
I recommend this book if you don’t have any other biographies about Shirley Chisholm. It definitely has great information. It is not one that will fly off the shelf and the text spacing will make it harder to read for the younger kids.
The old adage, “you can’t judge a book by its cover,” may be true, but I was entranced by the intricacy of the cover, and it was a bit metaphorical for this story of a complicated, dysfunctional family. Three sisters, Eileen, Claire, and Murphy live in a small town in rural Oregon with their perpetually stressed-out mom, and have only the dimmest memories of their father who died before Murphy was born. Their mom works long hours to provide for the family and pay down a huge medical debt incurred with their dad’s illness, and she becomes more and more emotionally distant from the girls as they grow older. Each sister is facing a tough sequence of events, but none knows what the other sisters are actually going through. The tight, protective sisterly bond they used to share in years past has been completely shattered by the flawed way the sisters handle their individual challenges.
Eileen, the oldest, stumbles on a dark family secret and deals with the news by keeping it a secret, and drinking (a lot). She’s always been a talented artist, but her soul is being sucked dry by her inability to process this secret and her creativity withers away. Claire, meanwhile, has lofty plans of attending an Ivy League college and escaping the confines of her homophobic town. She follows a social media personality that espouses the concept of “excellers” and “settlers.” Claire considers herself an exceller, and effectively shuts herself off from her family, whom she thinks are all settlers: they settle for less, while she rises above. Murphy is a magician-in-training who loves attention, but feels abandoned by her family. To top it all off, she forgets to care for her pet turtle and it dies right before Christmas, which just amplifies her sadness. She has a theory that she is just the spare tire of the family…forgotten, unseen, and unheard.
None of the girls is expecting a warm or cheerful winter holiday, but what they really don’t expect is the cryptic news Eileen gets from a local law firm that they had an uncle (their dead father’s brother) in a seaside town in Oregon. Not only that, he very recently died and bequeathed his estate to the girls, each sister to receive a third of the estate upon their 18th birthday. What follows is a stormy trip, weatherwise and relationship-wise. The house turns out to be a mansion, and a bit spooky at that, but the tale never really gets to a nail-biting pitch.
Ormsbee writes in a 3rd person omniscient point of view, with chapters dedicated to each sisters’ thoughts and experiences, interspersed with chapters detailing the past, and it can be a bit tiring bopping back and forth between them all. However, readers can also glean from each chapter why each sister feels and acts the way she does, and it gives an opportunity for more understanding and empathy. Even though the somewhat ominous cover alluded to the story as being a thriller or gothic horror piece, it is neither. Rather, the mystery in this sister-tale is more about assumptions, relationships, and family secrets. It would appeal to those who enjoy reading about complicated family dynamics, with a nice twist or two in the telling. The reader who is anticipating a dark and suspenseful murder mystery might be aggravated by the slow pace and micro-detail of every interaction. We should be grateful that Ormsbee had this unknown uncle lurking in the background because without his posthumous nudging, these sisters (and their mom) would have apparently gone down their own destructive paths and flamed out, which would have made for a depressing read. As it is, the themes of redemption and resolution may be what redeem this story as a whole.
This is a story about a community of “Doomsday Preppers.” The narrator, Becca, is a third generation community member, she’s been born into the world of safety at all costs. Now, as a soon-to-be-graduate, Becca desperately wants to leave behind the craze she’s grown up in. Fortunately she finds an ally in Roy, the boy that her parents have pre-arranged her marriage to, both are keeping the same secret: they do not believe in Doomsday. The only thing really holding Becca back is her younger sister; she knows that her absence within the community will put her sister in a dangerous position. Becca and Roy work together to devise a plan to help Becca’s sister and escape from the community.
I really enjoyed this book. The characters are well developed and the storyline is unique. As readers we root for Becca and Roy and wonder what the future holds for the two of them. You could hand this book to almost any student and there will be something for them to relate to.
Students see TEDTalks much like they view a teacher – sharing information to teach. But TEDTalks are the public speaking events of today that can reach massively more ears and eyes. Anderson and Oberweger smartly build this guide to public speaking by analyzing what goes into a great TEDTalk — starting with the premise that there is no one way to give a great talk. The best talks are “fresh” and innovative rather than stale. Instead one must “breathe, play, and practice, practice, practice”.
First there’s the foundation – what is the throughline, the connecting theme that ties the ideas together? This touchstone needs to be what holds the speech together, even if a diverse number of ideas are presented. One also needs to consider the audience – who is that one person that needs to acknowledged, accepted, invited via the speech — and consider the topic — is it a topic that you can handle well and your audience can digest.
Second there are tools – think of structures here – what is the journey, the story, or the truth to be told. Compare this to the foundation. More than likely they are naturally interconnected. If not, why not. And will that still work? It might.
Third, it’s time to prepare — whether scripted or unscripted, one needs to practice. Period. Lots of reasons why are discussed – from technology glitches to physical itches. Practice, practice, practice.
This is a nice, relevant addition to any school or public library.
I have experienced more than ten United States National Parks, but I never thought of putting Yosemite on my bucket list until now.
There are waterfalls and then there are giant waterfalls. There are big trees and then there are ancient, giant trees. There are rainbows and then there are ‘moonbows”. Rock climbing, hiking, camping, and a chance to see glaciers and animals in the wild are all waiting for visitors at Yosemite National Park.
John Wallace’s illustrations of Yosemite communicate more to very early readers than actual photograph could in this 9.5″ X 6.25″ book meant for smaller hands.
With the Seattle Kraken NHL team getting ready to hit the ice, Hockey in the Wild by Nicholas Oldland, is perfect for the young readers of the Pacific Northwest.
Waiting is always hard. Anticipation and eagerness to get started with ice hockey is all represented in this hilarious tale of waiting for the ice on the lake to freeze thick enough to hold bear’s, moose’s, and beaver’s weight.
Sparky & Spike: CHARLES SCHULZ and the Wildest, Smartest Dog Ever is just the right amount of biography for young beginning readers, not too much, just enough.
From his early school days, Charles, AKA Sparky, wanted to be a cartoonist. His teachers and fellow students all enjoyed his drawings. Every Saturday at 9 PM it never failed, Spike would remind Sparky’s father to go down to the store and pick up the Sunday comics. Then they would read them together.
Sparky would eventually send a drawing of Spike to the comic- Ripley’s Believe It or Not, with the caption, “A HUNTING DOG THAT EATS PINS, TACKS, SCREWS, AND RAZOR BLADES IS OWNED BY C. F. SCHULZ, ST. Paul, Minn.” After waiting for two long grueling months, Sparky saw his drawing printed in the Sunday paper.
And the rest is history, Charles Schulz would eventually become the multiple award winning cartoonist of the comic – Peanuts.
What is, also, rewarding to see is a photo of the letter Charles M. Schulz sent to Daniel Andreasen on July 7, 1975, giving advice to a young want to be illustrator. That young boy, in fact, grew up to be an illustrator, the illustrator of this very book.
Highland ponies are the short (13-14.5 hands tall), strong, sturdy, smart, docile horses native to Scotland. They are well adapted to the Highlands of Scotland’s harsh climate and rugged terrain. Highland ponies are shown in various activities such as pleasure riding, jumping, and show horses in the ten full page photos throughout the book, on the right page.
The large font text, in two or three sentences per page, is opposite the photo page, on the left side. The glossary words are highlighted in gray throughout the book, as they are used. The little horseshoes in the top left corner of each page of text is a nice touch.
The Abdo Kids Code comes in both a QR code and on a website (abdokids.com code HHK5649). All of the links worked on the website revealing the book’s text, a craft, a video, a word search, and many, many photos of show horses.
Fast, diving, predators of the sky dominate this factual account of Falcons for upper primary readers. There are thirty-five kinds of falcons. This means falcons can be found almost worldwide. They “prefer open spaces and high perches near water.” (8) Falcons are a midsize bird, aerodynamic with long pointed wings and tail. They are one of the fastest animals alive, some reaching speeds of 200 mph.
This book in the EPIC series is filled with eighteen action photos of varies falcons, along with two or three sentences per page. The glossary words are highlighted in yellow throughout the book as they are used.
When I went to the www.factsurfer.com section on the web, only one of the three choices was available for immediate access due to a security password being wanted.
From the Science Adventurers series comes Animal Conservationists, a look at six different facets in protecting different animal species of life. Chapter 1 begins with a hook — the work around saving something that creeps many people out– bats! After a end chapter covering the history of animal conservation, the author begins to drill down into the realities of the task. First, is the reclaiming/protection of habit, because if the habitat is not hospitable, the animals will die. Second is the issues around breeding and how humans help in this realm. A special chapter is reserved for breeding in water as well. Then time is given for the process of bringing a creature back to or introducing it to its native habitat, called “reintroduction”. The technology employed by conservationists as well as the human actions to help fight off predators help round out the text until a final chapter of “the future” is warranted. Abdo does such a nice job with its series topic choices, layout of text and sidebars, as well physical print/binding quality. The sidebars of this text in particular were very intriguing, leading this reader to wander there often before focusing on the main content as pages were turned. This will be a worthwhile addition to the 500’s in any school library.
This is a text that could easily be incorporated into middle school or high school classroom curriculum. This is a text that could be adapted for a school theater program. This is a text that will stick with you for awhile. Kent State, by Deborah Wiles, is the telling of the four days of protesting from May 1st – 4th on the campus of the university. Various voices share their chronological recollection building up to the deadly shootings by Ohio National Guard troops. But it is the positioning of the text on the page that makes this worthy of its multiple starred reviews. The voices come to the reader in snippets of text, much like a discussion, and are arranged based on likely political affiliation. Student protester voices more left justified, to National Guard troops right justified on the page. There are other voices of citizens caught in the middle that are situated on the page somewhere between the two based on their content. The anger, the frustration, the anxiety, the outrage, the disbelief –it can all be captured by the use of these various voices. The book jacket says, this text show the “human truth” in this tragedy. This text should be in every middle and high school library for its lessons in history, in the craft of writing, and in the depiction of humans reacting crisis.
I first enjoyed reading Quick as a Cricket 25 years ago to my now grown, little boys. Between Audrey Wood’s twenty-two similes of eleven opposite adjectives and Don Wood’s whimsical illustrations this book is still a winner! My first copy is worn out, I need to buy another copy. Here is a book that should not go ‘out-of-print‘ for generations to come!
“I’m as small as an ant, I’m as large as a whale.” with Don Wood’s illustrating the boy measuring himself as small as an ant and then on the next page having the boy swimming next to a grey whale his same size is brilliant.
Rambuctious Rollo the bulldog is off to the park with his boy. They play catch the ball. Bouncing ball, slobbering Rollo, and ball hiding in the tall grass. Finally, Rollo returns to the boy with the slobbery ball and ready for a nap.
People, who love their drooling dogs, will feel in tune with Rollo and his drooling antics.
Rollo is a ‘rambuctious bulldog’ whose little boy is searching for him so Rollo can be given a treat. What the boy does not know is, illustrator Keith Frawley has Rollo hiding in all twelve places the boy is looking while Rollo is dragging a box of dog biscuit along with him. Finally, the boy finds Rollo on his own dog bed taking a nap. “Were you here the whole time…? You must be very hungry. Would you like a treat, Rollo?”
Keith Frawley’s facial expressions on the boy and Rollo are spot on!
The Hero Two Doors Down: Based on the True Story of Friendshipbetween a Boy and a Baseball Legend is the outstanding story of friendship and mentorship. I am sorry to say I put off reading this 2016 copyrighted book for so long because of the cover illustration. I am not a sports person. The cover illustration shows a baseball player, sitting on a park bench next to a young boy. This book is not so much about baseball, but as the subtitle in tiny print states, about friendship. READ this book because it is baseball season or Black History Month or because you need a fill-good story, just READ this book!
This is a perfect book to share with intermediate readers, especially in this day of civil unrest-BLACK LIVES MATTER. Here is the story of a young Jewish boy, whose Russian grandparents escaped Russian oppression, and a ‘Negro’ (43) baseball player, Jackie Robinson, who was changing the face of American baseball forever.
Little Steve wanted to meet Jackie in the worst way. “The closer I came to actually meeting Jackie Robinson, the more worried that I’d be disappointed. I really wanted to like him and to have Jackie like me. But what if he was too busy to notice me? Or what if he saw me and didn’t care to get to know me better? Was it even possible for a boy to have a famous man as a friend? I was driving myself nuts trying to figure out who Jackie was… ” (62-3) Jackie Robinson was just the guy next door. Fame did not change his friendliness towards others.
The world needs more lasting interracial friendships like this one, whether or not one of the people is famous.
Helga yearns to be a Viking, just like Ingrid the Axe. She begged for stories all the time – at bedtime, during her monthly bath and even fish-pickling time. Her parents tried to calm her ambition, telling her that she was a ‘farmersdotter’ and wouldn’t become a Viking. But, Helga didn’t let that squash her dreams – she and her pet wolverine spent their days doing all kinds of Viking stuff (at least she thought it was Viking stuff). One day, she heard that Ingrid the Axe was coming to town to recruit new members for her Viking crew. Ingrid and her wolverine headed down to town to pursue her dreams. She competed against other would-be Viking recruits and almost made it several times. She finally won a competition and just as Ingrid was about to speak, Helga’s parents ran up to apologize for their daughter’s silliness. Ingrid announced that Helga the Howler was invited to join her crew! The rest, as they say, is history. Helga the Howler and her trusty wolverine plied the oceans of the flat world, gaining fame and fortune as a might Viking Warrior!
This is a wonderful story of perseverance and following your dream, no matter how unlikely. Illustrations are cartoon-like and bright. The story moves along at a face pace with several chuckle-inducing asides along the way. There is also an author’s note and bibliography in the back that includes titles for further consideration and websites for exploration. Highly Recommended.
Protagonist, Peyton King, has been the target of taunts, teasing and bullying throughout her school career; she is lonely and looking for something to connect with. Fortunately she has her art that allows her to process the world surrounding her. At seventeen, she sets off on a journey that takes her from her home town in England to the western shores of Canada. Although her family does not approve of this, Peyton is determined to make a new start and meet some longed-for friends along the way. Readers learn, though flashback, about the types of bullying and self harm that Peyton must go through to be accepted by her peers. The tipping point and ultimate reason for Peyton’s escape to Canada is revealed slowly throughout the chapters. Present day Peyton’s journey is much more than one of escapism; she learns who she is and wants to be – she demonstrates true strength in her self by the end of the novel.
Author, Sara Barnard, brings together a likable cast of characters from all over the world; they are all travelers at heart, but the reasons for traveling are widely different. This is a quick read that even the most reluctant would be able to pick up and connect with. There is sex, drinking, and drug use; therefore it is best suited for high school libraries.
I was drawn to this book because I found it on a list of books that honor an Asian voice. While the protagonist is White, secondary character Sun Joo has admirable characteristics and Patti Kim, the author, is Korean.
On to the story line — Mickey is down on her luck in many ways: her family is living paycheck-to-paycheck, her father has just left them, her only friend moved away and she is bullied by the popular crowd. But Mickey is bold, speaks her mind, and above all else, is funny! She has a heart of gold and when she is nice to the new girl, Sun Joo, she gets a handmade friendship bracelet in return. This new friendship is what both girls desperately need, but this is middle school and drama comes on the scene in the form of the popular girls trying to steal Sun Joo from her.
Readers will love Mickey, whose personality is larger than life. With her heart in the right place, she is there to save everyone’s day, even those who are not always kind to her.
In a letter to her friend, Mickey writes “What does it mean to succeed? Is it getting good grades? Is it getting money? Is it being popular? Is it having fun? Is it having friends? Is it getting applause? Is it about helping people? ….I think it’s a mix of all those things. One thing I do know for sure is that it’s about getting back up and not staying down when you do fall.”
