Book post: One Crazy Summer

Book cover from HarperCollins

Williams-Garcia, R. (2010). One crazy summer. New York, NY: Amistad.

*2011 Newbery Honor*

*2011 Coretta Scott King Author Award*

Delphine is only eleven years old, but must always take responsibility for her younger sisters, Vonetta and Fern. Her father decides that they will be going across the country, from Brooklyn, NY to Oakland, CA, to visit their mother, who left them six years earlier. The girls are swept up into a crazy summer. They try to get to know their mother but she wants nothing to do with them. They spend their days at a Black Panther-run day camp, and Delphine is not sure if they should be there. This book is a great look at a specific view of the civil rights movement, and a touching story of girls who need a mother but have a mother who doesn't know how to be one. It puts an interesting perspective on this time in American history, and could be used as a comparison with other novels set during the civil rights movement, particularly those set in other areas of the country, such as the south.

Book post: Hitler Youth

Book cover from Scholastic

Bartoletti, S.C. (2005). Hitler Youth: Growing up in Hitler’s shadow. New York, NY: Scholastic.

*2006 Newbery Honor*

*2006 Sibert Honor*

*2006 Orbis Pictus Honor*

World War II changed the world in so many ways, but none were so greatly affected as the young people of Germany. They were literally brainwashed, being taught only Nazi propaganda in schools and indoctrinated into believing that Hitler was their country's savior. Many children of Germany voluntarily joined the Hitler Youth, and others were forced to join when it became law. I love to learn about this period of history because it changed the world so profoundly, and I learned a lot from this book, especially about how the Hitler Youth was founded and about some of the key individuals. It gives  details about several interesting young people, following their lives from the beginning of the Hitler Youth to the end of the war (and some of them beyond the war). This is a wonderful history text about a very specific topic in World War II history; it is a great resource for research into what life was like in Germany during this time.

Book post: Out of the Dust

Book cover from Scholastic

Hesse, K. (1997). Out of the dust. New York, NY: Scholastic.

*Winner of the 1998 Newbery Medal*

Billie Jo is a young girl growing up in the Dust Bowl when she experiences a great loss. Her mother and baby brother die because of a household accident, and Billie Jo and her father both feel a responsibility for what happened. They have to learn to live with their pain and with each other in the aftermath. Written as a series of poems in free verse instead of traditional chapters, the format adds to creating Billie Jo's first person voice. This is a great text for studying elements of poetry and it would be fun to emulate the style in writing autobiographical narrative poems. It can also be used as an introduction to life in the Dust Bowl and the challenges that people endured during that time in American history.

Book post: Team Moon

Book cover from Houghton Mifflin Harcourt

Thimmesh, C. (2006). Team moon: How 400,000 people landed Apollo 11 on the moon. New York, NY: Houghton Mifflin Co.

*2007 Sibert Medal*

*2007 Orbis Pictus Honor*

The space race was an exciting time in American history. Many people were involved in getting men into space, landing them on the moon, and returning them safely to Earth. This book outlines some of the challenges they faced, showing amazing pictures of the entire process. It is a great history lesson, but also a lesson in engineering as it details how they designed and made the suits, how they calculated the amount of fuel needed, and how they engineered the landing chutes for re-entry. The book is laid out nicely with actual photos from the mission set on black pages with white type, making the reader a part of the journey into outer space as well.

Book post: From the Mixed-up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler

Book cover from Simon & Schuster

Konigsburg, E.L. (1967). From the mixed-up files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler. New York, NY: Aladdin Paperbacks.

*Winner of the 1968 Newbery Medal*

Claudia wants to be "different," and she thinks running away from home (temporarily) is the answer. She needs to experience something important, but doesn't want to inconvenience herself too much. The planning and scheming is her favorite part, and she enlists help from her brother Jamie to run away to the Metropolitan Museum of Art. I can't believe I had never read this book before, because it is so wonderful. Claudia and Jamie are so entertaining, and they encounter a mystery during their time living in the museum. This is a great book for talking about art, because it mentions many famous types of artwork as the resourceful brother and sister duo explore the museum. Readers can't help but be intrigued by the art of the Italian Renaissance, and especially Michelangelo, after reading this story.

Book post: Citizen Scientists

Book cover from Macmillan

Burns, L.G. (2012). Citizen scientists: Be a part of scientific discovery from your own backyard. New York, NY: Henry Holt and Company.

*Winner of a 2013 Orbis Pictus honor*

Citizen Scientists is a fantastic way to learn to be a scientist and learn about nature. It chooses a different population focus for each season: frogs, birds, monarch butterflies, and ladybugs. All of them tell about a national or international projects that anyone can join. Ladybugs are the focus for summer, and the Lost Ladybug Project has a website to upload photos, which has identified rare species all around the country. Getting involved in these types of projects are awesome ways for elementary and middle school kids to foster a love of nature and science. 

Book post: The Higher Power of Lucky

Book cover from Simon & Schuster

Patron, S. (2006). The higher power of Lucky. New York, NY: Atheneum Books for Young Readers.

*Winner of the 2007 Newbery Medal*

Lucky is trying to find her "Higher Power." She helps clean up at Hard Pan's Found Object Wind Chime Museum and Visitor Center, which serves as the meeting place for all sorts of twelve-step meetings, and she loves to eavesdrop on the stories of how people found their higher power. She lives with her father's ex-wife Brigitte since her mother died, and she is constantly worried that Brigitte will realize how much easier her life would be without Lucky. Therefore, she sets out on her own with her trusty survival kit. It would be fun to watch videos of desert dust storms and learn more about the desert ecosystem to get an idea of what the conditions are like when Lucky runs away. This story has a great message of love, family, and friendship, which makes it empowering for everyone, including those from broken homes. 

Book post: The Forbidden Schoolhouse

Book cover from Houghton Mifflin

Jurmain, S. (2005). The forbidden schoolhouse: The true and dramatic story of Prudence Crandall and her students. Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin Co.

*Winner of a 2006 Orbis Pictus award*

This biography of Prudence Crandall focuses on her venture to operate a school for young African-American girls in the early 19th century. Her school was run out of her home in Canterbury, Connecticut, and many residents of the town were not happy about it. They antagonized the students and tried to put Crandall in prison, enacting a law that banned black students from going to school in Connecticut. Crandall is now considered a hero when it comes to equal rights and education, but she had a rough time fighting for her cause. This is an excellent book for learning about the early struggle for equal rights for African-Americans, as it also gives background about what was happening in other areas of the country in regard to abolitionism. 

Book post: The Perks of Being a Wallflower

Book cover from Simon & Schuster

Chbosky, S. (1999). The perks of being a wallflower. New York, NY: Gallery Books.

Charlie is a wallflower. He sits on the sidelines observing life, but is trying hard to participate. He is starting high school having just lost his best friend to suicide, and when he starts making new friends again, they are a group of seniors who teach him a lot about life. Charlie is immersed into a world of music, books, drugs, alcohol, and sexuality. He doesn't know where he fits or what he's ready for yet, but tries to be a good friend and to be himself. Dealing with depression the entire year, Charlie is still optimistic about life as he makes observations about everything happening around him. Written as an epistolary novel, Charlie writes letters to an unnamed "friend." This would be a good exercise for all high school students; when you feel like there is no one to talk to who would truly understand, write anonymously to someone to tell them the types of issues you are dealing with. I love Charlie because he is a very dynamic character, who changes because of his experiences, the books he reads, the music he listens to, his reflections of his past, and his dreams for the future.

Book post: The House in the Night.

Book cover from Houghton Mifflin

Swanson, S.M. and Krommes, B. (2008). The house in the night. New York, NY: Houghton Mifflin.

*Winner of the 2009 Caldecott Medal*

The scratchboard illustrations in this book are detailed but in simple shapes to give the pictures a dreamy look. The art is beautiful with its black background and illuminations of gold on random objects. The gold focuses on items that should stand out and be familiar to small children as they observe the house getting ready for the night. I personally didn't find the story very engaging, but I can see this as a calming type of bedtime story. It would be a good art study for learning emphasis, one of the principles of design, since the illustrator does a great job of emphasizing with the gold watercolor details.

Book post: Bomb

Book cover from Macmillan

Sheinkin, S. (2012). Bomb: The race to build—and steal—the world’s most dangerous weapon. New York, NY: Roaring Brook Press.

*Winner of the 2013 Sibert Medal*

Bomb is a nonfiction book all about the creation of the atomic bomb during World War II. It follows the stories of Americans, Brits, Soviets, Norwegians, and Germans, focusing on how the discoveries were made and how spies found out the Americans' secrets. I love that it makes the entire ordeal seem personal by telling the stories of specific people involved, like Robert Oppenheimer and Harry Gold, for example. This is a great book for learning about World War II history, so it would make a great history text, but it also teaches some science (physics and chemistry). I think this could be an excellent text for a collaborative project for world/American history and chemistry/physics.

Book post: Wonderstruck

Book cover from Scholastic

Selznick, B. (2011). Wonderstruck. New York, NY: Scholastic Press. 

*Winner of a 2012 Schneider Family Book Award*

Ben has lost his mother and has lost his hearing when he goes on a journey to find out who his father is. Rose is deaf and dreaming of life in New York City. This book melds pictures and text to make an extremely engaging story. It follows a similar format as his bestseller The Invention of Hugo Cabret. A difference in this one is that the text is a story of its own (Ben's) and the pictures are another (Rose's). The stories run parallel to one another and then merge as the book progresses. A fun activity to do with this book would be to start "curating" a story of your life to share, as a memory box or even in digital form with photographs. Ben collects things that are important to him, and realizes he is like a museum curator, putting together the story of his life, and that this quality is central to who he is. I love Ben's journey of discovery and how the stories fit perfectly together by the end. 

Book post: Pete the Cat and His Four Groovy Buttons

Book cover from HarperCollins

Dean, J. and Litwin, E. (2012). Pete the Cat and his four groovy buttons. New York, NY: Harper.

*Winner of a 2013 Geisel Honor*

Pete the Cat is stoic as always in this story, in which Pete starts losing his buttons but just keeps singing. He teaches that we have to take what life throws at us, and keep a positive attitude through it all: a great message for kids and adults alike. This is a great book for early readers because of its repetition. One of the librarian aides at my local public library says the Pete the Cat books are like the new Dr. Seuss, and I am inclined to agree with her when it comes to books that are great for new readers. The book also teaches basic subtraction; when the first button pops off, it asks how many are left and answers "4-1=3" on the next page. One of the great features that is not to be missed is the free song included. There is a web address included on the book to go to HarperCollins Children's to watch Pete's song about his four groovy buttons and other videos featuring Pete.

Book post: Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe

Book cover from Simon & Schuster

Saenz, B.A. (2012). Aristotle and Dante discover the secrets of the universe. New York, NY: Simon & Schuster.

*Winner of 2013 Pura Belpre Award*
*Winner of 2013 Printz Honor*

Ari is a Mexican-American teen who is trying to figure out who he is as he deals with family secrets. He is a loner, and likes it that way, until he meets Dante at the local pool one summer and they become fast friends. Dante is more confident, and tries to bring out that side in Ari as well. They are always laughing together, and grow very close. When Dante reveals to Ari that he is gay, Ari is surprised but remains loyal to and protective of Dante because he realizes that Dante is one of the most important people in his life. This book has strong characters who feel very real. I love Dante's passion for life, and Ari's struggle to find himself. Dante wants to be an artist, and he mentions some favorite paintings that he loves. He writes in a letter to Ari, "See the thing about artists is that they tell stories. I mean, some paintings are like novels." It would be fun to take this concept and find an interesting painting to write a story about, focusing on creating a common theme.

Book post: Little Mouse Gets Ready

Book cover from Toon Books

Smith, J. (2009). Little mouse gets ready. New York, NY: Toon Books.

*Winner of a 2010 Geisel Honor*

This funny comic is about a little mouse getting ready to go to the barn with his family. As he gets dressed, he tells the reader all the fun things they will do when they get there. The surprise ending made me and my daughter laugh. This book would be an excellent introduction for how to make a simple comic, since it is done all in comic panels. It displays only one or two panels per page to make it easy for young readers to read themselves, making it a fun and quick read.

Book post: The Spider and the Fly

Book cover from Simon & Schuster

Howitt, M. and DiTerlizzi, T. (2002). The spider and the fly. New York, NY: Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers.

*Winner of a 2003 Caldecott Honor*

This treacherous poem of a cunning spider trying to trap an innocent fly was written by Mary Howitt in 1829, but is modernized somewhat by DiTerlizzi's illustrations. They are all black and white and silvery. The book has panels that are reminiscent of silent movie captions with growing spider webs in the background, and the characters have a 1920s style of dress. I love the look of this book, and think it could be used to teach about early film because of the setup of the pages. Students could create their own silent films using this as an example. It also has a strong rhythm and rhyme scheme and would be great for studying poetry. The story behind it warns children against listening to flattery, because we know what happens to the fly in the end.

Book post: Son of a Gun

Book cover from Eerdmans

De Graaf, A. (2012). Son of a gun. Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans Books for Young Readers.

*Winner of a 2013 Batchelder Honor*

Nopi and Lucky are a sister and brother who lived through war in Liberia. They had to experience things as child soldiers that children should never have to know about. Nopi is 10 and Lucky is 8 when war enters their lives, and they try hard to escape it for years. Unfortunately, child soldiers are common in many places around the world, and de Graaf has written this story, based on interviews of Liberian children she met post-war, primarily to teach children what this kind of life can be like. The narrative addresses children in the Western world, and has a section at the end devoted to facts about Liberia. It is a great teaching tool for children to see another world view from the perspective of other children. While the book centers on war, the author is careful not to make the scenes too graphic for her audience; she focuses on the emotions of the characters and their love for their family.

Book post: A Wrinkle in Time

Book cover from Macmillan

L'Engle, M. (1962). A wrinkle in time. New York, NY: Farrar, Straus and Giroux.

*Winner of the 1963 Newbery Medal*

Three children (Meg, Charles Wallace, and Calvin) travel through time and space to rescue Meg and Charles Wallace's missing father and possibly save the earth. They meet all sorts of interesting beings on their adventures, and find out that they have powers they never knew. I cannot believe I had never read this before. It was one of those books that I always meant to read and never got around to, but I am so glad I finally did. Meg is a wonderful protagonist as she struggles and learns more about herself. This book can easily be categorized as both science fiction and fantasy. It has many learning opportunities, such as the allusions to famous historical figures that Mrs. Who quotes. The quotes are always important to what is happening in the story, and help guide the children along the way. 

Book post: Rapunzel and the Seven Dwarfs

Book cover from August House

Claflin, W. (2011). Rapunzel and the seven dwarfs. [Tumblebook version]. Retrieved from tumblebooks.com

I watched the Tumblebook version of this book, which was an interesting format for this one. The book was read by the author, so it sounded more natural than some of the other Tumblebooks I listened to, and he even does voices. I liked how the Tumblebook zoomed in on details sometimes, and animated some of the pictures. It is a fractured fairy tale, and combines elements of other stories, along with a moose for a narrator, and a moose who saves the day in the end. The language of the story was interesting; I think the moose is supposed to sound like a simple country bumpkin (think Gomer Pyle). For example, he messes up his subject-verb agreement ("he don't") and says the witch was "distremely angrified" instead of "extremely angry." This would be a great book for teaching fairy tale elements, because it still has many of them, and mixes them around in crazy ways. I think that most children familiar with fairy tales would find this one funny.

Book post: Olivia

Book cover from Simon & Schuster

Falconer, I. (2000). Olivia. New York, NY: Atheneum Books for Young Readers.

*Winner of a 2001 Caldecott Honor*

Olivia is a spunky pig who is always on the go. This book introduces us to the character and her favorite things. She loves playing dress up, going to the beach, and going to the museum. Art students could learn about strategically chosen color from the artwork in Olivia. Every page is in black and white, with touches of red throughout. It leaves plenty of white space on each page, which makes the book feel very clean and well planned. Olivia is very playful and ambitious, which makes her adventures fun to read.