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(Multicultural)

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I love Saturdays y Domingos by Alma Flor

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I love Saturdays y Domingos by Alma Flor

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(Multicultural)
This book is about a little girl who spends the weekends visiting her grandparents. Her grandparent’s on her father’s side of the family speak English, and her grandparents on her mother’s side of the family speak Spanish. The book has alternating pages that go back and forth between her experiences with each set of grandparents. When describing her Hispanic grandparents, some of the words are written in Spanish. Even though they come from different backgrounds, both sets of grandparents are very similar and plan the same activities for their granddaughter, such as cooking breakfast, playing with pets, counting things, learning about the circus, looking at fish, etc. At the end, the girl’s whole family gets together to plan a special birthday surprise for the little girl. The Hispanic culture is represented by the words written in Spanish and by some of the activities described, such as playing with piñatas and singing “Las mañanitas,” a popular Spanish song, on her birthday.

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(Autobiography)
https://www.buffalolib.org/vufind/Record/1972453/Reviews

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The Wright Brothers by David McCullough 

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The Wright Brothers by David McCullough 

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(Biography)
Review by Choice Review

Two-time Pulitzer Prize winner McCullough exhibits his artist's touch in re-creating the lives of the Wright brothers, their father, and their sister Katharine from historical documents. Mining their letters, notebooks, and diaries, McCullough shows the Wright brothers (snubbed by the British as mere bicycle mechanics) for the important technoscientists they were. With only high school educations, they personified self-reliance and ingenuity, making their own calculations and testing their mechanical skills as they experimented with gliders. Their solution to controlling the gliders' flight was wing warping, enabling the gliders to bank like a bird's wings. As early engine designers and mechanics, when they couldn't find a light enough engine, they designed one that their mechanic built in six weeks. A few days after Langley's $70,000 failure, the Wright brothers made several powered flights--for less than $1,000--to prove that humans could fly. When the US military rejected their services, the Wrights signed a contract with a French syndicate. From 1910 on, the brothers were much occupied by business and patent infringement lawsuits. Wilbur contracted typhoid and died in 1912, but Orville lived until 1948. The brothers were remarkable for their analytical minds, their skiIl as early pilots, and their brilliance as experimental scientists. This work is their great, eminently readable story. Summing Up: Highly recommended. All readership levels. --Robin Higham, emeritus, Kansas State University

Copyright American Library Association, used with permission.

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(Traditional Literature)
Elya presents a modern twist on a familiar fairy tale in her signature style using rhyming, predominantly English text that skillfully incorporates Spanish words and phrases.

Red travels through the woods to take hot soup to her sick abuela. Along the way, she is tricked by a sly wolf. Roja must act quickly to rescue Grandma, and then the two devise a technologically enhanced plan to prevent visits from unwelcome predators in the future. The playful illustrations elevate the book, blending a whimsical fairy-tale land with contemporary Latino-American life. In the kitchen, where Mamá watches telenovelas while chopping peppers and garlic, three blind mice scamper about, a pair of mischievous goblins lurk outside the window, and symbols reminiscent of milagros, or prayer charms, rise up in the steam from the clay pot of bean soup. As Red travels through the forest, the birds call out warnings to her in Spanish—“¡Cuidado!” Throughout the text, the Spanish words appear in bold and italicized print. Context and an opening glossary provide the definitions rather than simultaneous translation. This results in a story that avoids becoming repetitive for bilingual readers and that readers who do not speak Spanish will also easily understand.

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The True Story of The Three Little Pigs by Jon Scieszka

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The True Story of The Three Little Pigs by Jon Scieszka

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(Traditional Folk)
http://browsingbookshelves.blogspot.com/2012/03/true-story-of-three-little-pigs.html

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All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr

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All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr

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(Historical Fiction)
Analysis

The novel begins in medias res, a Latin phrase that means “in the middle of things.” The novel intersperses the description of the bombing of Saint-Malo with the characters’ narratives up until this point to mirror the confusion and chaos of the city as the bombing begins. While the narration will eventually explain how Marie-Laure and Werner got to where they are now, Part Zero is intentionally tense and uncertain.

Although both Marie-Laure and Werner know the bombs are coming, neither one flees the city. They appear to be victims of chance—in the wrong place at the wrong time—and helpless against the power of war. This helplessness raises a question that appears repeatedly in the novel: How much power do individuals have to make choices during a war? Could Marie-Laure and Werner have made choices other than the ones they make, or is their fate predetermined by the situations they are in?

Another question this part raises is the nature of “shelter.” Just before the bombs fall, Marie-Laure’s and Werner’s thoughts turn to their respective families, and each seems to find comfort in them. Marie-Laure, who is still in her bedroom and hasn’t physically taken shelter, says her father’s name as she holds the diamond he left for her. Because the stone is rumored to keep alive whoever possesses it, Marie-Laure turns to it both as a substitute for physical shelter and for her father.

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Who Was Harriet Tubman? Yona Zeldis McDonough

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Who Was Harriet Tubman? Yona Zeldis McDonough

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(Historical Fiction)
I really like how this book is nonfiction and it's interesting too! Most nonfiction books don't really seem that interesting to me, but this book was more like a story. This series is great for all ages! I also thought that some of the parts of the book were kind of sad, but not too sad for younger children to handle. I can't wait to read more of the "Who Was" series--plus I love learning about black history!

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(Graphic Novel)

https://dragonsbeware.com/

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What's Wrong with This Book? by Richard McGuire

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What's Wrong with This Book? by Richard McGuire

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(Post Modern Picture Book)
Professional Recommendation/Review:

Publishers Weekly (Publishers Weekly)
McGuire (What Goes Around Comes Around) shows a knack for illusion and a punning wit in this book of visual games. The artist builds his characters and landscapes from smooth, geometric forms that would look at home on a computer screen, and selects a kitschy yet crisp palette of minty blue, chartreuse, pine green and cool pink. He links his puzzles with a circus theme, including a startled-looking clown who clambers through almost every spread. Die-cut holes offer peeks into other scenes, and these windows deliberately mislead: with the turn of a page, animal heads seen through cut-outs become shadow figures formed by human hands. Elsewhere, an elephant-shaped silhouette is revealed on the next spread to be something else entirely: a fat snake lounging with the clown in an easy chair. And, when the book is turned upside-down, portraits on a gallery wall take on different facial expressions ("Which side is up?/ I don't have a clue!/ There's two sides to each story, and both of them true"). McGuire's rhymes, unobtrusive if at times ungrammatical, offer hints on viewing the illustrations. He playfully acknowledges the cut-outs, for example, with the couplet "So the story has holes. Well what can I say?/ It makes the book better to look through that way." Readers will need to stay on their toes to catch all the surprises in this inventive volume. All ages. (Mar.)
(PUBLISHER: Viking (New York N.Y. U.S.A:), PUBLISHED: 1997.)

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The Stinky Cheese Man and Other Fairly Stupid Tales by Jon Scieszk

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The Stinky Cheese Man and Other Fairly Stupid Tales by Jon Scieszk

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(Free Choice)
Back in 1989, “The True Story of the Three Little Pigs” was the most popular children’s book ever written and that’s where the Jon Scieszka and Lane Smith team made their famous trademark as children’s book writers. In 1992, a new children’s book, made by the Scieszka/Smith team has proclaimed its hallmark of fame as one of the funniest books ever written. That book is called “The Stinky Cheese Man and other Fairly Stupid Tales,” and has became a classic in its own right and won numerous awards, including the 1993 Caldecott Honor Book.

“The Stinky Cheese Man and other Fairly Stupid Tales” is one of the few books that contain so much humor. The humor is sarcastic as it is witty and the humor gives each character in the story a very unique personality that makes the reader want to be like them. Jon Scieszka’s storytelling is probably the book’s major strong point as he fills the book with witty humor such as, the Little Red Hen continuously popping up as an interlude to the other stories and the giant trying to make his own story by sticking together an odd assortment of pictures and words together. Lane Smith’s illustrations are fantastic and humorous, especially of the image of the wolf and Little Red Running Shorts leaving the story as it seems that they were cut out of the image of the house and the woods leaving two white spaces in the image.

“The Stinky Cheese Man” is a pure classic that will make people laugh for many years. Its good sense of humor and creative drawings by the dynamic duo, Jon Scieszka and Lane Smith has made this book an international success. I would highly recommend this book to anyone interested in good humor and creativity from the Scieszka/Smith duo.

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(Free Choice

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(Traditional Literature)

Book Critic:
From Publishers Weekly

In this adaptation of a Creole folktale, Blanche is kind, loving and patient, but her older sister Rose takes after their mean, sneaky mother. One day Blanche befriends a hideous old "aunty" on a path near her home and is rewarded with magic eggs. Of course, Rose and the girls' mother are beside themselves with envy, and Rose sets out to snag some eggs of her own. But greedy Rose's cruel nature gets her into trouble. She torments the old lady, grabs the wrong eggs and ends up "angry, sore and stung." Pinkney's exquisitely wrought illustrations are close cousins to those in his Caldecott Honor Book Mirandy and Brother Wind , with similar woodlands and soft farmyard settings of the rural South. When the magic begins, the witch takes off her head, dressed-up rabbits do the Virginia reel and eggs begin to chatter. There are some spectacular scenes here. Ages 4-8.

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A Light in the Attic by Shel Silverstein

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A Light in the Attic by Shel Silverstein

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(Poetry)
Last night, while I lay thinking here,
Some "What ifs" crawled inside my ear
And pranced and partied all night long
And sang their same old What if song:
What if I flunk that test?
What if green hair grows on my chest?
What if nobody likes me?
What if a bolt of lightning strikes me?

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Brown Girl Dreaming by Jacqueline Woodson 

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Brown Girl Dreaming by Jacqueline Woodson 

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(Multicultural Book)
I recommend this book to middle grade readers, especially girls, girls of color, girls who don't think themselves to be great at school, or girls who don't have an easy life at home.

Woodson writes excellent verse here, and the way she talks about herself, her place in social/political history, and her place within her family are absorbing and moving.

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(Fantasy or Science Fiction)

Theme: Technology

By means of telescreens and hidden microphones across the city, the Party is able to monitor its members almost all of the time. Additionally, the Party employs complicated mechanisms (1984 was written in the era before computers) to exert large-scale control on economic production and sources of information, and fearsome machinery to inflict torture upon those it deems enemies. 1984 reveals that technology, which is generally perceived as working toward moral good, can also facilitate the most diabolical evil.

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(Historical Fiction)

https://thinkbannedthoughts.wordpress.com/2014/01/30/the-book-thief/

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(Fantasy or Science Fiction)

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(Realistic Fiction)

Theme: The use of colors in a black and white world. Adolescents have a tendency to embrace people and events as absolutes. For example, someone or something is either right or wrong; there can be no middle ground. The characters in The Outsiders are either Socs or greasers. People are either rich or poor, good or bad. Hinton descriptively uses color throughout the book to define and add depth to the characters in their environments.

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(Realistic Fiction)

-What words helped you picture the setting?
People sit outside to eat peanut butter sandwiches, ride bikes, and even bring their own chairs to church, so it feels like "watching a parade or sitting at a barbecue"
This explanation helps the reader imagine the setting and the events that take place there.

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(Realistic Fiction)

http://vocaroo.com/i/s13jQfxcegoS

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(Informational Text)
"Through the night the engine runs.
Those up late hear her whistle,
her wild and lonesome cry.
It echoes on far hills and homes,
it sounds in distant dreams."

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(Informational Text)
Puerto Rican parrots, once abundant, came perilously close to extinction in the 1960s due to centuries of foreign exploration and occupation, development, and habitat destruction. In this compelling book, Roth and Trumbore recount the efforts of the scientists of the Puerto Rican Parrot Recovery Program to save the parrots and ensure their future. Woven into the parrots’ story is a brief history of Puerto Rico itself, from before the first human settlers to the present day.

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(Informational Text)
What Do You Do With a Tail Like This? by Steve Jenkins and Robin Page is a picture book intended for readers in preschool through grade two. I gave it four stars. This book is a book full of guessing and predicting as readers learn new and interesting facts about different animals’ noses, ears, tails, eyes, feet, and mouths. The pages follow a pattern of “What do you do with a…like this?” and “If you’re a…you…”, beautifully intertwining factual information and illustrations to teach the reader about all of the different body parts of animals. The format and layout of the text is non-uniform, sometimes vertical to showcase the monkey’s hanging tail or pointed to showcase the eagle’s fierce and powerful eyes. The illustrations are beautifully drawn and colorful, interestingly drawing the reader in and drawing their attention to specific animal details and body parts. Notes at the end of the text give even more in-depth factual information about a wide variety of animals and their unique body parts and functions. This book can teach readers that even if we are all animals, we all have different and unique features that set us apart and make us special and fascinating—a concept young children can easily connect to

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(Poetry)
In English my name means hope. In Spanish it means too many letters. It means sadness, it means waiting. This quotation, from the section “My Name,” occurs before Esperanza says her name for the first time.

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(Texas Bluebonnet Award)

http://vocaroo.com/i/s0JMCZldhh99

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Newberry Award Winner

Dear Dr. Solomon,
When I was in Junior High I can remember always looking at the "horror" section of the library when it came to books. Something about the spookiness and eerie feeling that I got when reading a horror book really intrigued me. This is why I chose Neil Gaiman's The Graveyard Book. When I first started to read it, I was shocked at how intense it was. By that I mean that it was pretty heavy for being a children's book. It talked about the main character's family getting murdered and how the child was left to be raised by a man who at the time, could not reveal what he was exactly. He was neither human nor ghost, like the rest of them. Bod, the main character, lives in the graveyard with Silas and is to face living among the dead and the living. The story goes on to tell situations that Bod faces. Overall, I liked that this book had a lot of mystery and suspense.

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"Some years ago," The Giver told him, "before your birth, a lot of citizens petitioned the Committee of the Elders. They wanted to increase the rate of births. They wanted each Birthmother to be assigned four births instead of three, so the population would increase and there would be more Laborers available."

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A 2014 Caldecott Honor Book
This charming story is a wordless lift-the-flap book. Sparely illustrated, its full-spread white backgrounds with baby pink borders emphasize the actions of the two protagonists. A lone flamingo begins this short story. Soon, it is joined by a little girl named Flora, who provides a sweetly round counterpoint to the angular bird. She competitively imitates the flamingo's moves with concentration and extremely funny poses until it catches on and squawks angrily, driving her away in anger. Friendship triumphs in the end, and the unlikely couple dance together and joyously cannonball into water on the last double foldout page.

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Finding Winnie: The True Story of the World's Most Famous Bear

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Finding Winnie: The True Story of the World's Most Famous Bear

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1 New York Times Bestseller and Winner of the 2016 Caldecott Medal This historical fiction book is very entertaining! In 1914, Harry Colebourn, a veterinarian on his way to tend horses in World War I, followed his heart and rescued a baby bear. He named her Winnie, after his hometown of Winnipeg, and he took the bear to war. Harry Colebourn's real-life great-granddaughter tells the true story of a remarkable friendship and an even more remarkable journey--from the fields of Canada to a convoy across the ocean to an army base in England and finally to the London Zoo, where Winnie made another new friend: a real boy named Christopher Robin. This is the remarkable true story of the bear who inspired Winnie-the-Pooh.