Picture Books for Young and Old

Here are a few of my new favorites...

How Rocket Learned to Read by Tad Hills is a read-it-every-night sort of story.  A plucky bird claims a reluctant young dog as her student.  Wooing him with an appealing story (obviously chosen for his interests) she gets him excited about reading.  My Kinders loved this story - yours will, too. :)






It's A Book by Lane Smith is a slightly saucy sass that extols the virtues of plain old print.  Even though I LOVE my Kindle and would be LOST without my iPad, I still cherish a good old fashioned paper-bound BOOK.  Lane, apparently, does too.
Language alert: this book has a jackass for a character...and he's called by his name (though it is tastefully done, in a sort of sarcastic way).

So Long Overdue! Oh, the irony!

School has been buzzing and readers have been reading full steam ahead at my school for almost two months now, and I've neglected to post any new reading recommendations. Shame on me!

Sorry for the delay - I hope you enjoy these recommendations.

My favorite fiction read this summer was Crunch, by Leslie Connor.
This book follows a talented and charismatic family of five children as they manage without their parents for a week during a nationwide fuel "crunch".  Mom and Dad didn't abandon them - they got caught in the "crunch".  While the folks are away the kids do all sorts of play, of the productive, life-learning, creative sort.  Running a bike shop, the two middle children (teen boys) learn a lot about competence and hard work.  Acting as parent is their 18 year old sister, who learns that she does have limits and that is OK.  Rounding out the family are the young twins, who learn that things work out in the end with patience, perseverance, and the assistance of good neighbors.

 

My favorite nonfiction read this summer was The Mystery of the Lost Colony by Lee Miller.  There have been a lot of wonderful books written about the lost colony at Roanoke; this one offers evidence of an answer to the questions, "What happened to the colony?  Why did it fail?".  Miller offers an evidenced based narrative that hooked me and kept me turning the pages.  I've had a few students take my recommendation and read this book already - they loved it!  

Folkore Recommended by 4th Graders

My 4th graders are learning about folklore.

Here are some of the books they think everyone should read.

Bruh Rabbit and the Tar Baby Girl, a folktale retold by Virginia Hamilton and illustrated by James Ransome

Glass Slipper, Gold Sandal a fairytale retold by Paul Fleishman, illustrated by Julie Paschkis

The Elves and the Shoemaker, a fairytale retold and illustrated by Jim LaMarche 

Between Earth and Sky, a legend retold by Joseph Bruchac and illustrated by Thomas Locker

Racoon's Last Race, a folktale retold by Joseph Bruchac and James Bruchac, illustrated by Jose Aruego and Ariane Dewey

Turtle's Race With Beaver, a folktale retold by Joseph Bruchac and James Bruchac, illustrated by Jose Aruego and Ariane Dewey

Library Lil, a tall tale by Susan Williams, illustrated by Steven Kellogg

The First Strawberries, a legend retold by Joseph Bruchac, illustrated by Anna Vojtech

Paul Bunyan, a tall tale retold and illustrated by Steven Kellogg

Young Guinevere, a legend retold by Robert D. San Souci and illustrated by Jamicheal Henterly

The Lion and the Mouse, a wordless retelling of an Aesop fable by Jerry Pinkney. This book was the 2010 Caldecott winner.

Stone Soup,  a folktale retold and illustrated by John J. Muth

The Dog and the Wolf, and The Boy Who Cried Wolf,  both retellings of Aesop's fable by Eric Bair and illustrated by Dianne Silvermann

Little Red Riding Hood, a fairy tale retold and illustrated by Jerry Pinkney

Henny Penny, a folktale retold and illustrated by Jane Wattenburg

Clever Beatrice, a tall tale by Margaret Willey

Pandora, a  myth retold by Robert Burleigh

Rapunzel, a fairy tale retold and illustrated by Rachel Isadora

A Tasty Comic Served Up With Action and Conviction!

   Yes, she's a lunch lady and she serves more than lunch. In this action-and-gadget packed mini tome you will find a heroine worth setting the table with the good silver for. Lunch Lady notices strange happenings after a famous author visits her school. After serving up lunch, she investigates with aplomb and hilarity, saving the day at the end.

High brow literature? Um, not so much.
A great fun read with an ending everyone can enjoy? You bet.

Serve up some fun, Lunch Lady!


This book is available to the students and families of Greensboro Day School from the Lower School Library.

Nancy Farmer's masterpiece trilogy

For any fan of mythology, Nancy Farmer's trilogy coming-of-age novels about Jack and Thorgil are a must.  The three books are The Sea of Trolls, The Land of Silver Apples, and The Islands of the Blessed.

                    

Throughout the series, readers follow Jack, an apprentice Bard, as he travels (by means of being kidnapped, sent on exciting missions, or searching for lost relatives) a pre-Renaissance Europe. He meets many mythological beings (indeed, he is challenged to vanquish at least one troll, must outwit fairies, and stands his own in a mental match with Odin),  learns compassion for a seemingly unthinkable enemy, learns magic as it applies to those with an affinity for nature and the arts, and makes friends both worldly and unworldy.

In addition to being fantastic narratives that move quickly and with a rich tapestry of character development and action, these books introduce Norse and early European mythologies while also offering a look at early European Christianity.  There is enough fact in them to consider them historical fiction.

I recommend this trilogy to any very advanced 3rd grade reader and all ages above (even adults!).

These books are available to students and families of Greensboro Day School from the Lower School Library.