Down the Winding Road

Title: Down the Winding Road

Author: Angela Johnson

Illustrated by: Shane W. Evans

Publisher: Dorling Kindersley Publishing 2000

Genre: Multicultural, fiction picture book

Age Range: K-2

Summary: A family travels down the winding road to visit her father's aunts and uncles. They all stand in a row and look just alike. They eat and laugh the whole time. The elderly ones take the children down for a walk down the winding road. They tell the stories about each other that they know by heart. Then they swing on tire swing down by the hanging willow. The tire takes you flying over a lake. Eventually the girl and Jesse let go of the swing and fly into the lake. As sad as it is, its their last day of summer vacation and they tell the old ones goodbye.

Response: I absolutely loved this book. It reminds me of my own family reunions and how relaxing and loving it is to share stories with one another. This book is great for children to read and to learn the morals about a family and the importance of it. I highly reccomend this book for young readers. I would love to have this book on my classroom shelf. This might even be a great read aloud right before school gets out.

If a Bus Could Talk

Title: If a Bus Could Talk: The Story of Rosa Parks

Author: Faith Ringgold

Publisher: Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers 1999

Genre: Nonfiction Biography Picture Book

Age Range: 3-5

Summary: Rosa Parks, an African-American girl had walked many miles to her one-room schoolhouse in Alabama while white children rode to their school in a bus. During her years of adulthood, she still rode a bus to and from work in a segregated city. They still were not allowed to sit in the same row as a white person. One day Rosa refused to give up her seat for a white man and her act of courage inspired others around the world to stand up for freedom. Rosa Parks is known as the mother of the Civil Rights Movement.

Response: I loved this book and I feel that children will love this book as well. I am a huge fan of history and this books presents a great theme about Rosa Parks and her experience on the bus. Children would love this book. It is made for upper elementary. There are some challenging words and sentences inside the book, but overall it is great for upper elementary students to read.

Title: Big Moon Tortilla

Author: Joy Cowley

Illustrator: Dyanne Strongbow

Publisher: Boyds Mills Press 1998

Genre: Realistic Fiction, multicultural, picture book

Age Range: K-2

Summary: Marta Enos had just finsihed her homework and the wind was beginning to blow across the dessert. Marta opened her window to watch her grandmother cook tortillas for the church supper, but most of all they were the best in the world. Marta was in such a hurry, she knocked her desk over, throwing her homework everywhere. The wind blew her papers outside and high into the air. Marta no longer smelt the tortillas from where she was so upset. Her grandmother rocked her and settled her down and eventually she got a tortilla.

Response: I enjoyed this book because of the great moral presented in the book. Marta's grandmother teaches her a few wise tails about how not worry so much and to let things handle themselves. It reminded me of times when my own family has reminded me of some morals from their own experiences. I would have this book on my shelf for students to read the morals and to also have a chance at reading a multicultural book.

Multicultural Realistic Fiction, Picture Book

Title: Cocoa Ice
Author: Diana Appelbaum

Illustrated by: Holly Meade
Publisher: Orchard Books 1997
Genre: Multicultural Realistic Fiction, picture book
Age Range: 3-5

Summary: This book compares the weather, culture, and scenary of Santo Domingo and Maine. Santo Domingo is where this girl works hard to pick fruit off of trees, gathers vegetables out of their garden, raises cocoa beans, and conches for meat. As they roast, dry, and turn the beans everyday, it forms chocolate. The family trades their vegetables and goods with Americans. Maine is presented as a cold wintery place where they book in the kitchen, use horses to clean off the snowy roads, and break up the ice on the river to sale to other men and women. The ice is made of big blcoks. Once the icehouse is full they wait again for another big snow to be bale to trade and sell their ice.

Response: Even though this book is a picture book, I feel that the cultural comparisons and some of the words fit along with the level of 3rd through 5th grade. I enjoyed reading this book, but it wasn't one of my favorites. I wouldn't suggest this to anyone unless they were doing a project of one of these countries or some other form of school-related activity.

Title: My Big Brother
Author:Miriam Cohen

Illustrator: Ronald Himler
Publisher: Star Bright Books, 2005
Genre: Fiction Picture Book, multicultural
Age Range: K-2

Summary: My Big Brother is about an older brother who has looked after his younger brothers since he was capable. They never had a father so the oldest brother always took care of the family. His big brother taught him how to play basketball, look after his mother, wash his car, go to church, read to him, and helped him learn several other things. One day his brother has to go to the Army because he can't afford to go to college and then the younger brother has to take care of the family while his big brother is serving the country.

Response: I really enjoyed this book. It is a great multicultural book for younger students to read. This book is mainly for young children who are just beginning to read. It has simple words and sentences. This book made me think back to when I looked after my brother and I still do today even though he is 18. We have always had a great relationship. I would provide this book in my classroom for my students to read because it has a great moral involving a good relationship with your brothers and sisters. A lot of times younger children take for granted having a younger/older sibling.

Sarah, Plain and Tall

Title: Sarah, Plain and Tall ** Newberry Honor**

Author: Patricia MacLachlan

Publisher: Harper and Rowe Publishers, 1985

Genre: Traditional Literature (Based on a true family event)

Age Range: 3-6

Summary: This book is based on a true story about these two children searching for their love from their mother. Anna and Caleb are two motherless children, who live all alone with their father in an isolated, rural community in turn of the century America. Life is difficult on the farm for the three lonely family members and are going through hard times. There are no neighbors close by and Papa still doesn't feel any need to search for a new love. There are not many women for them to meet anyways due to the town being so isolated. Caleb is still young and needs the love from a mother. Their mama died after giving birth to Caleb, and he has never known the love of a mother. Anna's heart is broken because she can give Caleb the love he needs and deserves and also because she misses her mother whom she remembers.

Response: I absolutely loved this book. I think I remember reading this book when I was little, but never saw the good side of the story. Books are more sentiment to you as you get older and can relate it to your own life experiences. This book made me feel young again and blessed to have my whole family with me. I think young girls that are mature would love this book. It's a great lesson and has a good moral to it for the children to learn by. I wouldn't read this book to the class or have the class read it, but I would provide it for the children to read.

The Whipping Boy

Title: The Whipping Boy

Author: Sid Fleischman

Illustrator: Peter Sis

Publisher: Greenwillow Books 1986

Genre: Realistic Fiction **Newberry Award**

Age Range: 3-6

Summary: Prine Horace is a spoiled child and misbehaves just to aggravate his father and receive attention. He is always up to no good and is deserving of whippings. However, as is the royal custom, princes are not to be harmed in any way, which means he will never be truly punished, whipped, beaten, or slapped. Instead, the castle employs a common boy to be the whipping boy. Each time theprince does something wrong, the servants fetch the whipping boy. The son of a rat catcher, Jemmy tolerates the constant whippings without making a sound, which he is determined not to do. When he finds out that the prince really wants him to, he is resolved to keep his silence.

Response: This book was really entertaining. I enjoyed how it used humor and boys, which is pretty much an every day experience for teachers. Boys at younger ages would love reading this book. It has humor, realistic fiction, and many other characteristics that young readers enjoy. I would have this book on my classroom shelf for the children to be able to read on their free time. As crazy as it is I think that some of the children have the same mind and attitude as Horace. They can easily relate to it.

Theodore Roosevelt: The Adventurous President

Title: Theodore Roosevelt: The Adventurous President

Author: Editors of Time for Kids with Lisa Demauro

Publisher: Harpers Collins Publishers

Genre: Nonfiction

Age Range: 3-6 Intermediate

Summary: Each day of Theodore's life was adventurous. He grew up having frogs and turtles in his bathtub and around his house to becoming a president. Even when he was a president his life was adventurous because he loved hunting, riding horses, and exploring. Teddy came from a wealthy family and went to Harvard University. He loved hunting big animals such as deer, buffalo, etc. He eventually became interested in politics and became president.

Response: This book was really interesting. It is well written for children to read and be able to easily understand. It made me feel like a teacher as I was reading it. It would be a great lesson for teachers to do and teach their students about the United States History. Theodore was big during the "settling movements". I would use this book in my classroom and use lessons around this book. It presents useful information, interesting facts, and even questions for the students to answer.

Eleanor, Quiet No More: The Life of Eleanor Roosevelt

Title: Eleanor, Quiet No More: The Life of Eleanor Roosevelt

Author: Doreen Rappaport

Illustrator: Gary Kelley

Publisher: Disney Hyperiod Books (2009)

Genre: Biography

Age Range: K-2

Summary: Eleanor's parents were never really good parents for the short amount of time they lived during their life. Eleanor and her brother moved in with their grandmother and other family members in a big house. She had everything they needed, but love. When Eleanor turned 15 she went to England for school and found a great friend, her teacher, Marie Souvestre. When Eleanor turned 18, she came back home and saw the struggle of some Americans. She soon married Franklin D. Roosevelt and had children. She raised them and helped with the Americans who had been at war. Eventually Eleanor taught a girls' school in New York City and Eleanor's life became more of her own. She fought for freedom of religion, freedom of speech, and freedom from want.

Response: I remember learning about Eleanor Roosevelt when I was younger. She was pretty big in women's history. I enjoyed this book because I love history and the roles women have had in previous times. This book made me feel like a teacher and like I should read this book. Children can learn more when lessons are integrated and this would be a great way to integrate literature with social studies. I would definitely use this book in my classroom in the future. Its a great way for children to learn things they didn't know before.

Wackiest White House Pets

Title: Wackiest White House Pets

Author: Gibbs Davis

Illustrated by: David A. Johnson

Publisher: Scholastic Press (2004)

Genre: Nonfiction Intermediate

Age Range: 3-6

Summary: All of the white house pets were different. They were called the wackiest pets because they had the cleanest teeth, they were most grizzly, most talkative, snappiest, tiniest, biggest ears, luckiest pet, most secret pets, biggest menagerie, most wholesome, best gardener, most precious, most suspicious, and best selling. All of these pets had their own uniqueness with different presidents. Gibbs Davis pulled the wackiest pets together to go along with the wackiest presidents.

Response: This book was really funny and entertaining. Children will love this book and will enjoy the humor used with the animals. This book left me without any feeling. It is one of those books you can take it or leave it. I think this book is for younger boys with those humorous and crazy minds. I would have this on my classroom shelf, but I wouldn't take the time to read it to the class. The book was funny, but it wasn't a great learning experience for the children to read.

Big-Enough Anna: The Little Sled Dog Who Braved the Artic

Title: Big-Enough Anna: The Little Sled Dog Who Braved the Artic *True Story*

Author: Pam Flowers with Ann Dixon

Illustrator: Bill Farnsworth

Publisher: Alaska Northwest Books

Genre: Nonfiction Intermediate

Age Range: 3-6

Summary: Anna was the smallest puppy in her litter, but also the bravest. When she was just 3 weeks old she was already wondering outside of the doghouse just to see what all was going on while her brothers and sisters stayed in the dog house. As her owner Pam started to go on a trip, she decided to take Anna. Pam, the owner, would come across other travelers and they would always tell her Anna was too weak and wouldn't last, but Anna lasted the whole way. Anna also became the leader of the pack and led the other dogs and Pam back home.

Response: I really enjoyed reading this book. I also loved that the book was based on a true story. I love anything based on true stories, I feel like the book has more meaning to it. This book made me want to have a dog up here in Boone to play with. I think children would love this book because of the determination the dog had and the fact that it involves animals. When I was young I loved reading books like this. I think young children today would still enjoy this book. This book would be a great read aloud to keep students paying attention and wondering what is going to happen next.

Chicks and Chickens

Title: Chicks and Chickens

Author & Illustrator: Gail Gibbons

Publisher: Holiday House (2003)

Genre: Nonfiction Primary

Age Range: K-2

Summary: Chicks, hens, and roosters are all different and unique. Chickens originally came from Southeast Asia thousands of years ago. People used their eggs and meat to supply food for their families. Most chickens are raised on farms, but some are raised as pets and entered in contests. There are many types of chickens and roosters that live and eat in many ways. Farm raised chickens eat from chicken food belts and drink from the waterer. Pet chickens roam around and eat off of the ground. Chicks are made through eggs that come out of the chicken and then are put in incubation units to form chicks.

Response: I really enjoyed this book because my family used to raise chickens and it made me feel young again. Children would love this book because it is about animals. The information the book presents is really interesting and provides great visuals for the children to understand and comprehend even better. I would use this book in my classroom and might even read it to the class. It is a great nonfiction book to have on the shelf for the children to read and experience.

Life Cycle of a Dog

Title: Life Cycle of a Dog

Author: Angela Royston

Publisher: Reed Educational and Professional Publishing

Genre: Nonfiction Primary

Age Range: K-2

Summary: There are hundreds of different kinds of dogs. Each dog has its own unique lifespan and unique parts on each dog. It could be their hair color, their eyes, their smartness, and their personality. Dogs begin their lives as puppies and grow each day. While they are newborns they can only feel and smell. As they grow older they get vaccines, visit the vet, and become part of other families. While living with their other families they are trained to do certain activities such as play with toys, run, sit, stay, etc. Also, they can have their own litter of puppies when they are older.

Response: This book was very informative about the life cycle of dogs. I enjoyed reading it because I am a dog person. I have been since I was little and first introduced to them. I think younger children in grades k-2 would love reading this because it is about animals. Animals always interest children when they are young. The book made me want to get another dog and play with it. I think that children reading this book would love it and can also relate it back to their own pets at home. And it can be a learning experience for them on reading a nonfiction book.

Graphic Novel

Title: Diary of a Wimpy Kid: The Last Straw

Author & Illustrator: Jeff Kinney

Publisher: Amulet Books 2009

Genre: Graphic Novel

Age Range: 3-5

Summary: Frank Heffley wants his son, Greg to toughen up. Frank thinks that his son is a wimp and doesn't encounter enough "manly" endeavors. Eventually he threatens Greg to send him to a military academy making Greg become more of a man. Needless to say Greg never thought he would have to enlist in a military school because of his friends respectful and polite answers whom went to a military school. Greg going to the military school will change his attitude, but also a few other characteristics about him.

Response: I found this book rather interesting. It reminded me a lot like the book, 5th Grade Comedian. It has similarity between the characters and their struggles in life. This graphic novel was easier for me to read than the class book we read. The sentences weren't scatter. It was set up like a normal book with paragraphs, a sentence, or a word, but with a picture around it. It was easier for me to see which sentence was next because it was staggered. I would have this book on a shelf in my classroom. Children can relate their behaviors to this book and hopefully learn about how Greg needed to become more mature.

Poetry

Title: In Aunt Giraffe's Green Garden

Author: Jack Prelutsky

Illustrator: Petra Mathers

Publisher: Greenwillow Books-Harper Collins Publishers

Genre: Nonfiction, poetry, picture book

Age Range: 1-3

Summary: In Aunt Giraffe's Green Garden, there are over 25 poems that are involving animals, the outdoors, children, seasons, and certain big cities. A few of my favorite poems are The Snow Fell In Billings, In Aunt Giraffes Green Garden, and This is What Happened. This is What Happened is about a duck and a donkey playing on a hot summer day. The Snow Fell in Billings is about snow in May, in the mountains, and children come out to play. In Aunt Giraffes Green Garden is about the giraffe being just as tall as the flowers and the bugs rest on the flowers being careful and trying not to fall. All of the poems are interesting and show a variety of different themes in each of them.

Response: I never really like poetry and I have thoroughly enjoyed this book. The poems describe nature, animals, seasons, etc. All of the themes are important for children to learn as they mature throughout their school ages. These poems would be great for elementary education students because of the easy reading and interesting ideas provided in them. I would have this book on my classroom shelf because it is not just a typical literature book, but it involves poetry and interesting themes that children at young ages love.

Realistic Fiction

Title: Ramona Quimby, Age 8

Author: Beverly Cleary

Publisher: Harper Collins Publisher; 1981

Genre: Realistic Fiction *Newberry Honor*

Age Range: 3-5

Summary: Ramona Quimby's third grade experience is one she will always remember. Her older sister, Beatrice is in junior high now so she rides the bus all by herself, Ramona throws up in front of everyone in the classroom, she smashes a egg on her head thinking it is boiled, but its not, struggles to make her teacher like her and many more incidents. While all this action is going on her father is taking college classes to become a teacher and struggling to give Ramona the time she wants, along with Beatrice and her mother. Ramona eventually gets the hang of third grade and also the adjustment of her family being busy all the time.

Response: I really enjoyed this book. I remember reading it when I was in the 3rd or 4th grade and absolutely loved it because I could relate it to my own life. The book made me feel young and want to be in the third grade again. This isn't the best book, but its a good book for children to read this in the classroom or outside of the classroom. It illustrates someone at a similar age going through hard times and they can relate back to their own experiences as well. This book is an easy reader, so I would recommend this book for 3rd and 4th graders.

Utopia/Dystopia: Dintopia-First Flight

Title: Dinotopia: First Flight

Author & Illustrator: James Gurney

Publisher: Harper Collins Publishers

Genre: Utopia/Dystopia, picture

Age Range: 3-6

Summary: A boy named Gideon is an orphan and finds trouble fitting in dinotopia. He finds a hurt pterosaur, Razzamult, and decides to escape the dinotopia. Gideon takes Razzamult and other pterosaurs with him by flying a skimmer. Gideon finally reaches the new world he wanted to reach and ran into triceratops in this island. All of these different dinosaurs helped him reach highnest on the island he had been looking for. As they reached the highnest they Gideon and the other dinosaurs were being attacked by Drones and people from Dinotopia where he used to live. Finally the people from Dinotopia brought the air scorpion out and caught Gideon. Gideon's friends (other dinosaurs) chewed up wires and caused the flying scorpion to ignite. The pterosaurs took Gideon and his friends back to land safely.

Response: I did not enjoy this book at all. It is very complex and uses so many imaginative ideas. I would not recommend this book, but it would be interesting for boys to read because of their creativeness and imaginative brains they have. The book made me feel bored and uninterested. I don't think I would ever read this book to my class, but I would leave it on the shelf for the students to read if they wanted to.

Science Fiction: The Diary of a Wombat

Title: Diary of a Wombat

Author: Jackie French

Illustrator: Bruce Whatley

Publisher: Clarion Books, 2002

Genre: Science fiction, picture book

Age Range: K-2

Summary: Diary of a Wombat is about a wombat that lives in Australia that eats and sleeps for a living. The creature looks like a bear, but it much smaller. The wombat sleeps during the day, but eats, scratches, digs holes, and asks for carrots at night. The wombat lives around a family, but he doesn't really come in contact with them till the end. The wombat begs for carrots everyday by banging on the metal trashcan, chewing its way to the house, or eating them out of the garden. He eventually gets tired of the carrots and receives oats instead. After several more days of carrots, the wombat sees how warming and nice the family it so he digs his hole under the house to be closer to the family and sleeps there.

Response: The book wasn't one of my favorites, but it was good for reading to younger children in classrooms. Teachers could use the moral of the story and talk about the importance of family and friends. The book made me feel speechless. I didn't really have an emotions or feelings after reading the book. It's one of those books that wouldn't effect you if you ever read it again or not. Teachers could integrate this book into their lesson when talking about animals or their daily schedules. The book presents the wombat's daily schedule by morning, afternoon, evening, and night.

Fantasy: Raising Dragons

Title: Raising Dragons

Author: Jerdine Nolen

Illustrator: Elise Primavera

Publisher: Silver Whistle, Harcourt Brace & Company, 1998

Genre: Fantasy, Picture Book

Age Range: K-2

Summary: A girl helps work on a farm with her mom and dad. She knew everything about raising dragons, just like her father knew everything about farming. She found this "rock" at Miller's cave and watched it for days. Finally the rock became an egg and cracked open with a baby dragon inside. The girl raised the dragon. She would feed it, read to it, play with it. Eventually Hank, the dragon got big enough and helped the farm out more than ever. The people wanted the "dragon vegetables" and "dragon popcorn". Hank grew older and knew it was time to leave. He went to a dragon island where there were many other dragons. Hank told the girl goodbye and left her with several more "rocks" and she lived her life raising dragons.

Response: This book was really interesting and I thoroughly enjoyed it. The girl's imagination, curiosity, and determination were really interesting throughout the book. I would use this book in my future classroom and possibly even on days that the students are writing or learning to write. This book would help get the children's minds set on creativity or imaginative thinking. This book made me feel young again and wish that I was creative and could still play with imaginary things, like I did when I was little. Overall, its a great book for children to read and some will really enjoy it.

Fairy Tale: Fanny's Dream

Title: Fanny's Dream

Author: Caralyn Buehner

Illustrator: Mark Buehner

Publisher: Dial Books for Young Readers, 1996

Genre: Fairy tale, picture book

Age Range: K-2

Summary: Fanny Agnes has worked on a farm all of her life waiting for her dream to come true. Her dream was to marry a prince, which would be the mayor who is tall, handsome, and would give her everything she ever dreamed of. The night of the ball at the mayors house, Fanny waits outside for her fairy godmother to come and rescue her, but instead Heber comes. It was a short fellow who loved Fanny. Heber ended up being Fanny's prince and all that she dreamed of. She had a roof over her head, a wonderful husband, three children, and a farm. The fairy godmother arrives late and Fanny decides she already has her prince, she doesn't need the mayor.

Response: I loved this book and I think all female young readers should read this. This book has an excellent moral behind it and I think all girls should read this. Girls do not need a prince to live happily ever after. This book is a great example of that. I would definitely use this in my future classrooms. I really enjoyed it and it made me realize that I don't need a fairytale ending with a prince. Overall, the book wouldn't be so much for boys, but the girls would really enjoy it and understand that life isn't about waiting for a fairy tale to happen.

Traditional Literature: The Ugly Duckling

Title: The Ugly Duckling

Author & Illustrator: Hans Christian Anderson (adapted & illustrated by Jerry Pinkney

Publisher: Morrow Junior Books 1999

Genre: Traditional literature, picture book

Age range: K-2

Summary: A mother goose lays 5 eggs. The ugly duckling happens to be the odd egg out of the group of eggs. He is the last one born and the one that is left behind because of hunters. The ugly duckling suffers because no one will take him in except for a lady, hen, and cat, but he leaves there after a while because its not the kind of home he needs. He barely survives the winter because of lack of food and a home to live. Finally he finds his home and looks just like all the other birds, except his colors and beak is shinier. He has a family and is no longer the ugly duckling.

Response: I remember reading this book when I was younger. I always felt sad about it, but it really has a good moral behind it. I would use this book in my classroom has an example of students including everyone. There isn't a ugly duckling, everyone puts on their pants the same way. I really enjoyed this book and it makes me feel happy and want others to realize that people should include everyone. Growing up I experience these situations and noticed some people that were the 'ugly duckling' in the classrooms and honestly I would include them majority of the time. My parents raised me on the quote "everyone puts their pants on the same way" so it wasn't a big deal to me.

Traditional Literature: The Three Billy-Goats Gruff

Title: The Three Billy-Goats Gruff

Author: Paul Galdone (rewritten by Scholastic)

Illustrator: Ellen Appleby

Publisher and Date of Publication: Scholastic 1984

Genre: Traditional Literature, Picture Book

Age Range: K-2

Summary: Three billy-goats named Gruff wanted to move to a mountain where they could get fat. In order to make it to the mountain they had to cross a bridge. The youngest gruff goat went across and ran into a troll. The troll wanted to eat him, but the goat told the troll that the next goat was much bigger, so the troll decided to wait for the second goat. The second goat came across and did the same thing that the first goat gruff did and told him that the third goat was the biggest, so the troll let him by. The third billy goat gruff came across the bridge and the troll threatened to eat him, but the goat told him that he would used his spears and crushed his body into bits. Then all the goats were on the mountain and lived happily ever after.

Response: This book wasn't what I thought it would be. It was a typical book that wouldn't effect me if I read it again or not. The book was really good for younger children to read. It provided larger font in bold that represented the goats stomping across the bridge and it got bigger as the goats got bigger. I thought that was a great example for the children to understand the noise difference. I would have this book in my future classroom for my students to read and understand that there are different stories behind the titles. There were very many versions of this book and some of the children may enjoy it, while others don't.

Historical Fiction: Following the Drinking Gourd

Title: Follow the Drinking Gourd

Author & Illustrator: Winter, Jeanette

Publisher: Dragonfly Books, 1988

Genre: Historical Fiction, Multicultural, Picture Book

Age Range: K-2

Summary: Follow the Drinking Gourd is based around the Civil War and slavery. Slavery was very popular back then and they worked on farms for farmers that owned all of these plantations. Peg Leg Joe did all he could do to help free all the slaves. He would sing them a song that was based on following the drinking gourd. He would travel from plantation to plantation singing this song in front of slaves hoping they would listen and pay attention to the worlds. When it came time for a slave to be sold a family sang "Follow the Drinking Gourd" for weeks till they arrived safe in Canada. They were not the only families that Peg Leg Joe had taught that song too. There were many families running away from these farms across the Ohio river to free themselves from slavery. Peg Leg Joe saved many families and helped them get out of slavery.

Response: Follow the Drinking Gourd was an excellent book. I would recommend this book for all classrooms studying the Civil War and slavery. It provided fiction based around the historical event that helps children learn more about history. I highly recommend this book, especially for younger ages when they are just starting to learn about history. The book even provides the song in the back of the book for the class to sing. This book made me feel happy and grateful that my family hasn't ever had to experience anything like that before. This book doesn't relate to my own experiences, but I am sure it does to many other families. This is great multicultural book to share with the classroom when demonstrating the racism and slavery that took place in our history of the United States. Children's minds will be pulled into this book and will understand more about the situation because of the illustrations and involvement of children their age and families.

Historical Fiction: Following the Drinking Gourd

Challenge Book

Title: Where The Wild Things Are

Author: Maurice Sendak

Illustrator: Maurice Sendak

Publisher: 1963, 1991 Harper Collins Publisher

Genre: Challenge, picture fiction **Caldecott Award**

Age Range: K-2

Summary: Max always seemed to be in a lot of mischief and was forced to go to his room without supper because of it. That night his room became a forest with real vines and trees. He was provided a private boat and sailed for almost a year to find where the wild things are. As he arrived, he saw the wild things and they were roaring, gritting their teeth, and showing their claws to show they were wild. Max forced them to be still and became the most wild thing of all. All of the other wild things allowed him to be the king of all wild things. They played till they were tired, bored, and hungry. Max left the wild things and sailed back for over a year till he was back in his room with supper waiting for him.

Response: I love this book and always have since I was little. I think this book still entertains children today, even though it is considered to be a challenge book. The book made me feel young again and I enjoyed every minute of it. This book provides children with imaginary lives and experiences they should have in their minds as a young child. For example, I used to imagine there being monsters and we would hide in the tree house and fight them off. If I can use this book in my classroom, I will definitely use it and present my class with my own experiences reading the book. I would use this on days where my students are doing writing and use their creative ideas to complete their writing.

Picture Book-Primary

Title: Out of the Ballpark
Author: Rodriguez, Alex
Illustrator: Morrison, Frank
Publisher: Harper Collins Publishers, 2007
Genre: Fictional Picture Book
Age Range: K-2, Primary

Summary: Alex was born to be a baseball player. Since he was a little kid he would wake up before the sun was up, practice before school, practice after school, and practice on his free time. He was dedicated and determined to become a good ball player. Alex's teacher noticed his mind was on baseball more than his schoolwork. Alex struggled during the first two games and made more errors than anybody, but when the championship game came up, he hit a home run into the pool. Alex won the game for this team.

Response: I thought this book was alright. It was my least favorite of all the picture books, but it did have a good moral to the story. I wouldn't recommend it too much, but if a child is struggling at something he enjoys, this would be the book to give to him/her. The illustrations were really good and used great detail to give the story more support. The book made me wish I was playing softball still, but then also boring. There wasn't enough excitement throughout the story to keep me entertained.

Response:

Picture Book: Primary

Title: Duck on a Bike
Author: Shannon, David
Publisher: Blue Sky Press 2002
Genre: Fiction Picture Book
Age Range: K-2, Primary

Summary: Duck on a bike is about a duck being brave and trying something new. All of the other farm animals thought it was pointless, that the duck was just showing off, that it was cool, or that they wanted to eat it. Well, the duck didn't care what anyone else thought and he just went right ahead and rode his bike. A bunch of kids showed up on bikes at the house. While they were inside the other farm animals decided they wanted to ride like duck. By the end of the day the duck had everyone riding the bike around the house and farm. And everyone enjoyed riding the bike and thought that the duck was cool.

Response: This book is definitely for younger ages and could be used for teaching about animals, teaching about being a leader, and teaching children not to worry about what other people think. I enjoyed reading the book and the illustrations were amazing. They were bright, big, and exciting. It drew my focus towards the book when I picked it out. The book made me feel young, happy, and relaxed because of the motivational story behind the duck wanting to ride the bike. The duck didn't care what anyone else thought.

Response:

Picture Book-Intermediate

Title: River Day
Author: Mason, Jane B.
Illustrator: Sorensen, Henri
Publisher: Macmillan Publishing Company, 1994
Genre: Fiction Picture Book
Age range: 3-6, Intermediate

Summary: River Day presents a special relationship between a grandpa and his granddaugther. They spend a day out on the river canoeing and hoping to spot a bald eagle. Alex is so excited that she could hardly wait to get down to the river. "Grampa" is what Alex call him and he let her be the scout for rocks and shallow water. Needless to say those weren't the only things she spotted. Alex found rainbow trout as well and as they were canoeing back Alex and her grandfather spotted the bald eagle they were going to see. Alex thought she wasn't going to get to see the bald eagle and then all of the sudden it flew down to the water and caught a fish.

Response: I enjoyed this book because of the special love that you receive from grandparents. There isn't anyone else like it and when you get to spend time with them, its special and something you will remember forever. This book made me feel happy and wish that I got to see my grandparents more often. I still have all of those memories as a child when they took me to special places like this. The books illustrations are great and shows great detail in each of them. I would use this book in my classroom when holidays are close by that relate to love, family, and being close to people. When I was in elementary school, we always had grandparents day and they would come and eat lunch with us. I really enjoyed that and this book could be used near that special occasion.

Response:

Picture Book

Title: City of Snow-The Great Blizzard of 1888
Author: High, Linda Oatman
Illustrated by: Filippucci, Laura Francesca
Publisher: Walker and Company, 2004
Genre: Nonfiction Poem and Picture Book
Age Range: 3-6, Intermediate

Summary: A blizzard comes through New York for days right as spring had begun to roll around. It snowed for 3 days straight causing power to go out, people to run short on bread, milk, and meat, and for a girl to possibly miss "The Finest Assembly of Trained Animals Since Noah". There was so much snow that horses couldn't get around, no one would come outside, they couldn't see any sidewalks or roads, and no newspapers. The girl begged her father and mother to walk her to Madison Square to see if the show was still going to happen and it was. The girl saw lions, tigers, bears, girls on trapeze, and clowns. It continued to snow for days, which is why that snow storm is called the Great Blizzard of 1888.

Response: This book was very interesting and used great illustrations to make the story even better. I think this book should be read in the winter time to classes and talk about snow. It was really good and I don't recall ever reading a nonfiction story-poem type of book. It was based on the Great Blizzard of 1888 allowing it to even have somewhat of a historical background to it. As I read the book, I noticed the rhyming. When you glance at it, it doesn't look like a poem or any form of poetry. This book made me feel cozy and anxious for the snow to get here. Snow creates a lot of good memories and activities to do.

Easy Reading Book

Title: We Go in a Circle
Author: Peggy Perry Anderson
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Company
Genre: Nonfiction picture book
Age Range: K-3

Summary: We Go in a Circle is about everyone being a winner. A racehorse used to be the best one out there till he broke his leg. The horse knew that once he left, his career was over, and he would be at a new location. But, he didn't know that he could be a winner at this place. The horse providing riding, enjoyment, and often a change in these children's lives he let ride on him. The horse became a therapy horse, in which he rides children around that are handicapped, mentally ill, autistic, blind, etc. The horse then knew that he was a winner no matter if he was the slowest of fastest.

Response: I really enjoyed this book because of the real life situations that children and adults are in with the illnesses they have. I myself have seen Therapy Riding places and there is one close to my hometown. A boy went and rode there one day, who was very autistic and never said anything before. And this boy said his first words at the age of 13 while riding a horse at a therapeutic riding center. I feel like this book also provides a lesson in life, which is that everyone is a winner. This book made me feel happy, blessed, and just amazed at what life can bring you at any moment. This book wouldn't really be involved with a curriculum that I know of. It could just be interesting for children to learn about the difference in people and how good their life is.

Predictable Book

Title: The Very Busy Spider
Author: Eric Carle
Publisher:Philomel Books
Genre: Fiction
Age Range: K-3

Summary: A spider seems very independent and busy with making her a spider web. Many pets, farm animals, and an owl come up to the spider asking her to do something with them, but she never did till she caught a fly. I think that meant that the spider was all by itself till the right person came along and its a lesson for readers of the book. The spider turns down everyone and never says anything back to none of the animals because she was very busy, even in her sleep.

Response: This book is for younger children so that they can engage on the sound the animal makes and also predict on that the spider is "busy". I think its really cute and appropriate for younger elementary because it has a lesson about how to talk to everyone and not leave everyone out, as well as animal sounds, names of animals, and short sentences. Young readers would love to be able to sound the animal noises out and that helps them pay attention and actually try and read the book. The book made me wish I was young again and had a life without stress. I would love to be back in kindergarten or first grade and be able to yell out animal noises. It was fun and an enjoyable book to sit and read. I would use this book when it came to learning about animals such as their names and what sounds they make. This could also be a way to calm children down by allowing them to make the sounds and be noisy.

Counting Book

Title: Aaron and Gayla's Counting Book
Author: Eloise Greenfield
Illustrator: Jan Spivey Gilchrist
Publisher: Writers and Readers Publishing
Genre:Fiction-Multicultural
Age Range: k-3

Summary: A boy and girl are going out to play and they count everything they see, such as 1 boy, two boots, three steps,etc. The children walk in the rain, walk to the library, walk to the playground, and walk back home, but provide counting in all there traveling with different objects. Greenfield used a story, but added counting within the story. This book illustrates a variety of people, reading, playgrounds, and nature. It allows readers to experience different objects, words, and numbers. Children can count the amount of pictures there are to show the quantity of the object, read the sentences, learn new words, and even have hands-on activities with it. This book also provides a song at the end for when teachers, parents, or students finish they can sing and count as an overall summary of the book.

Response: As I read the book I noticed the story besides the counting. I do not recall reading a counting book where the author provides a story with it. I think this might interest more children into reading the book, as well as learning to count, spell, and pronounce words. This book made me feel more energetic. I was excited to see the next object we would count and what the illustrations would be like. This relates to my own experiences by reminding me of when I was learning to count. I would just get dolls out and count them, or I would count my fingers, toes, shoes, and how many toys I had. It was fun learning how to count and once I did it gave me confidence. Teachers could easily integrate this into their classrooms by providing a multi culture book, learning to count, learning to read, and possibly learning about rain.

Alphabet Book

Title: The Alpha Kids Alphabet Book
Author: Alpha Kids
Publisher: Houghten Mifflin Company
Genre:
Age range: Preschool, K-1)

Summary: The Alpha Kids Alphabet book uses multiples words with different meanings throughout all the letters in the alphabet. It shows children interacting with the letters such as, "Kim is in the Kitchen" (Alpha kids 2000). It names food, names, activities, objects, and animals to allow younger children mainly in kindergarten and first grade apply these in communication, reading, and writing. Some children could learn their own names, learn names of foods, learn names of objects, and any word they have never heard before. Illustrations are shown in the book to help the children have a better understanding of what the word means and what it is. This book is a little more challenging than some of the ABC books I have read before. It has complete sentences, which makes it challenging for kindergarten, and possibly right at first grade level.

Response: I think this book would really help children at young ages. It could possibly be used for advanced Kindergartner's and possibly slower first graders. It uses many words for one letter, then provides a sentence to allow a broader learning experience for young readers. At the end of the book it provides short "Alpha jingles" that teachers could sing to provide letter sounds, more words, and sentence structure. I noticed that it was more complicated than most ABC books that a typical preschool or kindergartner student would read. It made me laugh, relax, and also think back to when I was reading ABC books and how now I am at college reading ABC books. This would definitely fit into younger elementary curriculum with the pronunciation of words, spelling, sentences, etc. I think its a good book to use for younger children.