Brown Girl Dreaming

Woodson, Jacqueline. (2014). Brown girl dreaming. New York: Penguin Group.

Jacqueline Woodson writes about what her life was like growing up during the civil rights movement, discovering a passion for story telling and writing and growing up in the North and the South. She recalls her life through vivid poems that show the emotions that she and her family were going through. 

This book started a little slow for me but in the end I enjoyed it. It is a lovely novel for any young adult or adult to read. Jacqueline Woodson is a natural story teller and writer. 

We are the ship: The story of Negro league baseball

Nelson, K. (2008). We are the ship: The story of Negro league baseball. New York: Hyperion.

The background history of how African American baseball players were able to get into the major leagues. Players had to endure a lot of physical and mental hardships from other players. Jackie Robinson was the first colored person to get into Major League Baseball which eventually caused the end of the Negro Leagues due to owners signing other African American players. Throughout the book there are detailed paintings that show the emotions of these players.

 This is a good book to those of you who are interested in baseball! I enjoyed the illustrations but since I am not a baseball fan this book was little dry for me.

Good masters, sweet ladies! Voices from a Medieval Village

Schlitz, L. A. (2007). Good masters, sweet ladies! Voices from a Medieval Village. Boston, MA:                      Candlewick Press.

A book that consists of seventeen short skits for children to act out. Each skit depicts the lives of various people during the Middle Ages. There is good background information that clarifies the information for readers. Ever character in the book has a monologue. Schlitz does a wonderful bringing the characters to life.

This more enjoyable than I thought it would be. I actually pictured someone acting it out. Definitely a fun book for educators to use in their classroom.

Balloons over Broadway: The true story of the puppeteer of Macy's parade

Sweet, M. (2011). Balloons over Broadway: The true story of the puppeteer of Macy's parade. New                  York: Houghton.

Ever since Tony Sarg was a young boy he loved figuring out how to make things moved and worked. His brightness and imagination followed him to adulthood and he starting creating marionettes and a display for Macy's. When many immigrants were missing their own traditions, Macy's hired Tony to help put on a parade. Thus the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade was born and each following year Tony would come up with something new and exciting!! 

I enjoyed reading this biography and how this book gives you the back story of the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. I thought this book was interesting and it shows that even tho you grow up you can still do the things you love.

It's a Book

Smith, L. (2010). It's a book. New York: Roaring Brook Press

A monkey is sitting down and reading a book when a donkey comes by and starts mistaking the book for a laptop. The donkey starts asking him a series of questions such as can it text, tweet, or does it have Wi-Fi, the monkey continues to answer no and tells the donkey that it is a book. Eventually the donkey takes the book and starts reading it.

A very enjoyable book to read with children. I was smiling the entire time! This book shows the importance of just having a book in your hands and how that it depicts how society is very reliant on technology.

10 Graphic Novels

Allegri, N., Jackson, G. (2015). Bee and Puppycat #01. Los Angeles, CA: Ka-Boom!   Bee has trouble finding and keeping job and can’t figure out her life until Puppycat walks into her life. Puppycat has a powerful secret he is able to travel between reality and a fantasy fish bowl in space. Puppycat takes Bee on magical jobs assigned to them by a giant computer monitor. These jobs provide Bee with money to make a living. When they are not working they are laying around eating and pondering about life. This comic is based on the animated YouTube series. The illustrations are colorful and bring the fantasy to life.

Burks, J. (2015). Bird & Squirrel on the edge! New York: Graphix.                                      Bird and Squirrel are best friends on their way home when they hear a bear cub calling for help. They rescue the cub from a pack of wolves but during the rescue Squirrel accidently bumps Bird’s head with a rock! Now Squirrel who is usually timid one needs to figure out how to get all three of them home safe since Bird is no longer the brains of the operation. While travelling in the wilderness little do they know that wolves are following them! Can they make it home? This book is about the friendship and determination to succeed all while having fun.

Camper, C., Gonzalez R. (2014).  Lowriders in space. San Francisco, CA: Chronicle Books.                                                                                                                          A group of friends which include a fox, a mosquito and an octopus have dreams of owning their own car shop. Their favorite style are lowriders, cars that go low and slow but can be hip at the same time. They decide to enter a competition to win a car filled with cash so they can open their own car garage. They travel the universe to create their one of a kind lowrider. The illustrations are drawn in red, blue or black ink. This book captures the Mexican culture with the illustrations and Spanish vocabulary.

Colossal, E. (2015). Rutabaga: the adventure chef. New York: Amulet Books.            Rutabaga is a boy who loves adventure. He travels with his magical cooking pot and a kitchen on his back. He loves to create new recipes with different ingredients that he finds travelling. A few troubling things arise like fighting dragons or getting the king’s pet to eat but he solves these problems by creating exotic foods. This is a fantasy story containing humor and adventure while giving you Rutabaga’s recipes.

Dauvillier, L., Lizano, M. (2014). Hidden: A child’s story of the Holocaust. New York: First Second.                                                                                                              A grandmother tells the story of her living through World War II to her granddaughter. She explains how people started treating her different when they found out she was Jewish and how she was hidden by neighbors and friends. When her parents were taken away to concentration camps; she had to change her name and beliefs to be safe. This is a beautiful and moving story told through the eyes of a child who doesn’t know everything but knows enough to know that there is danger. This book introduces the Holocaust in a very gentle way for young readers.  

Hatke, B. (2010). Zita the Spacegirl. New York: First Second.                                         Zita finds a device that transports herself and her friend, Joseph, to a faraway galaxy. Joseph gets kidnapped so Zita goes to rescue him. She makes friends with a deceitful piper, a mouse, an Orb and a run-downed robot. The planet that they are on is going to be destroyed in three days’ time. She saves Joseph from being sacrificed. However in the end of story she can only send Joseph back home, while she stays in the alien world. This is a science fiction story with adventure and humor all shown by the colorful illustrations.

Kibuishi, K. (2001). Explorer: the mystery boxes. New York: Amulet Books.                       Seven fantasy stories based on the simple question what is inside the box. Some of these tales are mysterious while others are comical and thrilling. There’s a wax doll, messy closets, a butter thief, wizards and a friendly giant. Each story has a different author/illustrator who have different outtakes on what is inside the mystery box. The colorful art work throughout this book is simply amazing.

Nytra, D. (2012). The Secret of the Stone Frog. New York: Toon Books.                        Leah and Alan have an adventure when they awaken in an enchanted forest.  They meet a stone frog who gives them directions home, however they get sidetracked. They meet an old woman with giant bees, talking lions, giant rabbits and a person who pickpockets. They get into trouble and run away from the police to find a stone frog who inform them on what door to open to go home. This is a black and white fantasy story containing so much detail in the illustrations.

O’Connor, G. (2010). Zeus: King of the Gods. New York: First Second.                              An adapted version of the Greek story of Zeus, it starts with Gaea and Ouranos, the Titans rebellion and the battle of the Titans the first Olympians. Zeus was hidden on an island so his father would not swallow him like he did to his siblings.  Zeus is faced with the challenge of defeating his father Kronos to become king. A battle occurs and Zeus goes to Tartaros to claim his birthright. This story contains a lot of action illustrations while giving you the basic story behind the Greek God Zeus.

Santat, D. (2011). Sidekicks. NY: Arthur A. Levine Books.                                            Metro City’s Captain Amazing is looking for a new sidekick especially when he realizes he can no longer do it along. Since he is always busy fighting crime he doesn’t realize that his pets are lonely and develop superpowers of their own! They all decide that they want to be his sidekick. It isn’t until the end does Captain Amazing learn about his pets superpowers. Can they help Captain Amazing defeat the evil Dr. Havoc? A story where family and pets show you how to overcome differences and to work together.

New York Times Bestsellers Children's Picture Books

Beaty, A., & Roberts, D.  (2017). Rosie Revere, engineer. New York: Abrams Books for Young Readers.                                                                                                           The only true failure can come if you quit. Rosie is a curious child who invents things and has dreams of becoming the greatest engineer. After having other people including family laugh at her inventions she starts to doubt herself until another family member encourages her to continue inventing does she understand the concept of persevering. This book demonstrates the importance of not giving up and to continue learning from failed experiences.

Carle, E. (2015). Love from the very hungry caterpillar. New York: Grosset & Dunlap.  This is a simple and slow paced read where a caterpillar gives positive expressions on showing love. This book spreads the love and lets children know they are loved. This is a delightful book with bright and distinctive artwork brings the caterpillar to life. This book can be used for a short story time or given as a gift to that special someone.

Clinton, C., & Boiger, A. (2017). She persisted: 13 American women who changed the world. New York: Philomel Books.                                                                 Inspirational stories of thirteen American women who went against the norm and rose above adversity to make change happen. They continued to go against the naysayers to get the job done and fought for what they believed. These women give an empowering message to young girls that your dreams can make things happen you just need to keep pushing the limits.

Daywalt, D., & Jeffers, O. (2013). The day the crayons quit. New York: Philomel Books. Duncan decides he wants to color however instead of seeing his crayons he receives a stack of letters from them. The majority of the crayons are complaining that he uses them too much and that they need a break. The green crayon doesn’t have much to complain about, the blue one is tired of being used for water and the pink one is upset that she never gets used. The orange and red crayons are not speaking to each other because they want to be the color of the sun. So Duncan decides to color a picture using all the colors to make them all happy!

Martin, E. W. (2015). The wonderful things you will be: a growing-up poem. New York: Random House Children’s Books.                                                                              This book captures the love; thoughts and feelings parents have for their child. Some children in the book are dressed as animals others are not. This book engages children with the colorful and humorous illustrations. There is a rhythm in this book which makes it calming and relaxing to read. A child has the freedom to become what they want to in life and this book portrays that.

 

Moore, C. C., & Bell, B. (2011). The night before Christmas. New York: Sky Pony Press.   A classic Christmas poem that needs to be read to young children every year. Set in New England village St. Nick with eight reindeer goes to a house and awaken the parents. The father of the household goes downstairs and sees St. Nick in front of his tree dropping off presents. He is amused on how St. Nick looks and describes him the funniest way. The illustrations in this version of the book are very colorful and vivid.

O’Reily, B., & Patterson, J. (2016). Give please a chance. New York: Jimmy Patterson Books.                                                                                                                       This book is great for introducing the idea of saying “please” to young children when they are asking for something or for help. Each page has a simple statement said by a child then shows when you should say please. The illustrations are very eye catching throughout and each picture has a different illustrator.

Rinker, S. D., & Lichtenheld, T. (2011). Goodnight, goodnight, construction site.  California: Chronicle Books.                                                                                    As the sun sets in a construction site several big trucks are shutting down for the day. They are hard at work throughout the day so they need to rest.  The pictures are very detailed and interesting with the personified construction equipment.  This book has a nice rhythm making it easier to read. Children who are fascinated with work sites will definitely love this book.

Rubin, A., & Salmieri, D. (2012). Dragons love tacos. New York: Dial Books for Young Readers.                                                                                                                      A young boy decides he is going to host a taco party for dragons. He researches on what they like and dislike. He prepares everything for them however he forgot one little thing, jalapeño peppers! Dragons cannot eat spicy tacos. They start having smoke come out their noses, their throats get scratchy and they blow out fire. The dragons accidentally burn the house, but hey help him fix it especially when the boy serves tacos during their breaks.

Yamada, K., & Beseom, M. (2013). What do you do with an idea? Seattle, WA: Compendium Inc.                                                                                                        An inspiring story of a child who has an idea but does not know what to do with it.  When he tells people about it they laugh at him, it isn’t until he realizes that it is his own idea that he starts to believe in it.  He gains confidence and so his idea grows until something amazing happens. The child realizes that you can change the world with a simple idea even when nobody believes in it.

Coretta Scott King Award and Honor Books

Dragonwagon, C., & Pinkney, J. (1986). Half a moon and one whole star. New York: Macmillian PublishingCompany.                                                                              Susan is in bed not yet asleep she can’t help but listen and think about the world.  She thinks about what everyone else is doing. When Susan does fall asleep the crickets, owls, possums and raccoons start to wake up. The illustrations are so vivid with color it brings the scenes to life. The rhythm of the poem has a lullaby feel to it. It is a great read for children.

Greenfield, E., & Gilchrist, J. S. (1991).  Night on Neighborhood Street. New York: Dial Books for Young Readers.                                                                                       Stunning! A book of poems that show the lives of people who live on Neighborhood Street. Some families were getting ready to sleep, putting babies to sleep and family discussions. It also depicts the lives of children and what they do before they go to bed, it gives a reader a deep understanding of what their lives consist of. Each poem has an illustration that captures the emotions of the people.

Grimes, N. (2013). Words with wings. Honesdale, P.A.:Wordson                                          Gabby is a dreamer, she spends every minute of her day daydreaming.  It is her escape from reality. She daydreams more often now that her parents are divorcing.  She gets into trouble with her mother, school teachers, and other kids at school bully her. She tries to keep it at bay but she isn’t herself and everyone notices until her teacher Mr. Spicer encourages her to continue.

McKissack, P. C., & Pinkney, J. (1988).  Mirandy and Brother Wind. New York: Alfred A. Knoph, Inc.                                                                                                                  Mirandy is determined to have the best dance partner to win the junior cakewalk. She tries several ways to catch Brother Wind but without success. Mirandy finally catches him in the hen and tells him that he has to do whatever she tells him! When another girl speaks unkind things about her friend Ezel she makes her wish to make Ezel dance elegantly with her. They win the junior cakewalk and everyone was amazed at their performance.

Price, L., Dillon, D., & Dillon, L. (1990). Aida. New York: Gulliver Books.                        Aida is a royal Ethiopian princess. Her country is at war with Egypt so as protection her father has very confining accommodations of how far and where people should go. Aida being very curious decides to disguise herself and sneak out of the palace. She goes too far and is caught by Egyptian soldiers. During her time as a prisoner she falls in love with the captain of the Egyptian army.  She cannot choose between her true love and the loyalty to her country. The illustrations in this book are very rich with color and depict how Aida’s life has changed.

Reynolds, J. (2016). As brave as you. New York: Atheneum Books for Young Readers.     Ernie and Genie are two Brooklyn brothers who are sent to live with their grandparents for a month in Virginia so their parents can work things out. Ernie is all about looking cool whereas Genie is always asking questions. As they get to know their grandparents they discover family secrets. Several things happen to them during their stay. In the end they learn the importance of telling the truth.

Smith, H. A., & Lewis, E. B. (2008). Keeping the Night Watch. New York: Henry Holt and Co.                                                                                                                       Thirteen year old C.J. has so many unanswered questions on why his father walked out on his family. Now that his father came back into the picture C.J. is not going to forgive him so quickly. C.J. feels that he still needs to be the man of the house and he is not ready to give that up. He has a lot of anger inside of him making him become distant to his own family.  A book full of powerful poems shows the true feelings of a family learning how to heal. 

Steptoe, J. (1987). Mufaro’s beautiful daughters. New York: Lothrop, Lee & Shepard Books.                                                                                                            Manyara is very ill tempered and selfish whereas Nyasha is very sweet and humble. When the Great King decides that he wants to marry he sends an invite to the most worthy and beautiful daughters in the land to meet with him. Mufaro decides to take both of his daughters to the city for a chance at becoming queen. However, only one of them is worthy of becoming the King’s Queen.  

Taylor, M. (2001). The land. New York: Speak.                                                                  Paul-Edward Logan is a young boy whose father is a prosperous white man and a mother who is colored.  He learns the truth of living in time of racism, slaves and the disrespect of being a black man in the 1800s. All Paul wanted and dreamed about was to own a beautiful piece of land that he can call his own.  Paul has the determination to make his dream a reality by doing hard work and making daring decisions. This book takes you back to a time when people had to treat others with respect but at the same time let them mistreat you.

Woodsen, J. (1994). I hadn’t meant to tell you this. New York: Delacorte.                       We’re all just people here. The stories of two girls from different backgrounds become best friends. Marie is the popular girl at her school she befriends the new girl, Lena. Lena is considered white trash, while Marie is black and comes from a very well off family. They are drawn to each other once the find out they both lost their mothers but they also have to deal with the racism surrounding them. Lena shares a dark secret about how her father treats her with Marie making her promise not to tell anyone.

Last stop on market street

De la Pena, M. (2015). Last stop on market street. NY: Penguin.

A little boy, CJ and  his grandmother go out on a rainy Sunday. They go to church, walk, take a bus ride and walk to a soup kitchen. Throughout the day CJ has numerous questions such as why don't they have a car, why do they have to walk in the rain and etc CJ and his Nana also see other people who have more or less than what they do. CJ doesn't see the beauty in life whereas his Nana does. Nana always explains to to CJ that they are already rich with what they have when he asks questions about why they don't have certain things. The illustrations are heartwarming and go along with the story perfectly.

I was a bit skeptical when reading this book, not knowing where it would lead. After a few pages I was then beginning to understand what Nana was telling CJ through her words without ever really telling him. It's about finding beauty in the most unlikely places. I definitely recommend this book for children.

Mirror Mirror

Singer, M. (2010). Mirror, Mirror. NY: Dutton.

There are two sides to every story or in this case two poems. Mirror, Mirror is a collection based on famous fairy tales. You will read about Snow White, Goldilocks and the Three Bears and Beauty and the Beast and many others. However, each poem has two different sides with two different meanings because the poems are written in reverse. When read one way you get the perspective of the character but when reading the opposite poem you get the perspective of the opposing character. Children will definitely enjoy reading this book.

I honestly never knew reversos existed until I read this book. My favorite one in the book is called "Longing for Beauty." I cannot believe that the author herself created reversos, very creative!