PICTURE BOOKS FOR OLDER READERS AND BIOGRAPHIES

FLY FREE
ROSEANNE THONG

This book has beautiful water-like color illustrations. This book refers to the Buddhist religion where they believe in reincarnation; that we are reborn many times until we reach nirvana or perfect wisdom. The book is about people paying acts of kindness foward as a result of helping someone, that person does a good deed for someone else. It is a Charlotte Award nominee and the older grades loved this book. It reminded me of the movie "Pay It Forward". Repitition is found throughout the story.

MIRROR MIRROR
MARILYN SINGER

This book is a collection of reverso poems. Reverso poems are about any tpoic that can be read top to bottom or bottom to top without the meaning being changed. THe only thing that can be changed is the punctuation. The poems in this book is based on different fairy tales. A great book for older readers to introduce a new type of poetry that most students have not hear of before. Beautiful illustrations depicting both sides of the reverso poem.

THE CAN MAN
LAURA E. WILLIAMS

This is a must read!! This was also a Charlotte Award nominee and then it recently won the Charlotte Award for grades 3-5. A heartwarming story of a man who lost his job and now is often found collecting cans for money. Tim, a next door neighbor wants a skateboard for his birthday but does not have enough money to buy it himself. Tim starts collecting cans to save up for a skateboard at the same time The Can Man is trying to save up for a new winter coat before the snow starts falling. Well, Tim realizes that he should give the money he saved to the "Can Man" instead of using it for a skateboard. A lovely story of appreciating what you have, helping others, and realizing the difference between needs and wants.

THANK YOU MR. FALKER
PATRICIA POLACCO

Trisha is very excited about going to school. These feelings change when she realizes that she is having trouble learning to read. Unfortunately, her classmates begin to make fun of her and begin calling her names. Then finally, in fifth grade, she gets a wonderful teacher Mr. Falker who sees all the potential that Trisha has inside of her. He helps her realize that she does not see the words like other students do. With his help and support Trisha becomes a reader.

MARTIN'S BIG WORDS
DOREEN RAPPAPORT

A biography of Martin Luther King Jr that is written in kid friendly terminology. Beautiful illustration to go along with the story. Th e last two pages are important dates in his life such as the day of his speech and the Montgomery Bus Boycott.

MUHAMMAD ALI CHAMPIONS OF THE WORLD
JONAH WINTER

A biography of Muhammad Ali with colorful illustrations of what he did when he was a young boy. Large bold print to accentuate some of the dialogue. The book also describes his appreciation for his African roots and his Muslim faith. Much of the writing is poetic verses.

JUMANJI
CHRIS VAN ALLSBURG

Detailed and beautiful illustrations. Judy and Peter are playing a game called Jumanji. The game takes the two of them on fantastic journeys. Every picture has portrays an animal representing the place where they are visiting. Some of the animals they encounter are: a rhino, monkey, lion , and python.  An adventurous story showing the place your imagination can take you.

THUNDERCAKE
PATRICIA POLACCO

This is a story of how Babushka (grandma) helps her grand daughter overcome the fear of thunderstorms.  She tells her granddaughter that in order for them to make a Thundercake, they need to pay attention to the lighting and the thunder to know how far away the storm is from them. She put all the ingredients on a piece of paper and then went out into the barn to get the eggs, milk, etc.
 Her grandmother kept her busy making thundercake that she never feared another storm again.
Very descriptive language and onomonapia.

Multicultural Perspectives/Coretta Scott KIng

BEAUTIFUL BLACKBIRD
ASHLEY BRYAN

This book is about the birds of Africa that were colorful and beautiful; all the birds wanted to have black markings like the blackbird. THe blackbird explained to the colorful birds that they cannot be like him becasue we are all different. Eventually the blackbird, said it is color on the inside that matters. THe blackbird shares some of its "culture" with the birds by painting black markings on them.Beautiful illustrations with some poetic verses throughout.


LET IT SHINE
ASHLEY BRYAN

This book is also written by Ashley Bryan. Similar illustrations and color pallete that was used in Beautiful Blackbird. The book takes 3 popular songs: This Little Light, When the Saints, In his hands, and creates colorful paintings that display african american slaves.




THE OTHER SIDE
JAQUELINE WOODSON

This is one of my favorute books for teaching equality in the classroom. It is about 2 girls who live next door to each other and are seperated by a fence. The fence represents the barrier between the the white side of town and the black side of town. When all the girls really want is to play with one another and be friends. The girls eventually broke the barrier.  A must read... I love this book!!!





NATHANIEL TALKING
ELOISE GREENFIELD

Beautiful written by poetry about a 9 year old boy named Nathaniel who rymes about his world. Sketches that are in black and white really capture Nathaniels feelings. Very simplistic yet heartwarming poems that bring you back to your childhood. Definetly a book I will share for a unit on poetry.

Multicultural Perspectives

LET IT SHINE
ANDREA DAVIS PINKEY

Detailed descriptions of ten black women who fought for freedom. Each story has a picture representing the famous African American. The stories represent the journey that each women took, and the obstacles that they encountered fighting for freedom. Some of the women represented are: Sojourner Truth, Biddy Mason, Harriet Tubman, and Rosa Parks. A great resource to use during Black History Month or for the students to use as a resource for writing a biography.



SOJOURNER TRUTH'S STEP STOMP STRIDE
ANDREA DAVIS PINKEY AND BRIAN PINKEY

This is a book describing the life of Sojourner Truth. I received this book this year as a nominee for the Charlotte Awards. It was listed as a 3-5 book and was well received by the students who heard it as a read aloud. The book is written on the students level and is easy to understand.  It provoked lots of questions about slavery. She was a woman of power who would not let anyone speak for her. She was a young girl, when she fled from her owners and became free. Ever since she became free, she has been working toward speaking against the right of African Americans.




TAR BEACH
FAITH RINGGOLD

This book is a memoir based on a little girl who lived with her family in the city and spent her
 summer nights on the rooftop of her apartment building. Up on the rooftop she would dream of a world where their would be no prejudice and her mom would have an easier life. They called these buildings, Tar Beach and since rooftops are paved it tar they called it Tar Beach. . The activities that took place on the rooftops were those that take place at a sandy beach such as picnicing, sunbathing, playing cards, etc.



THE PATCHWORK QUILT
VALERIE FLOURNOY

A beautiful book about family and the importance of our culture and traditions. The grandmother wants to make a quilt for her family. The young girl does not understand why she just doesn't buy one from the store. She shows her that each square represents something special about their family. When the grandmother becomes ill, the daughter and granddaughter continue to work on the quilt until is is finished. A great book for building classroom community;have each student create a piece of the quilt that represent them and put it together.

NEWBERY AWARDS

1. HATCHET

GARY PAULSEN

An adventure story of a boy who is on his way to see his father and gets into a plane crash. He is stranded in the wilderness with only his Hatchet. He fights to survive and has many encounters with the animals in the wilderness. Excellent vivid descriptions. Great read aloud to 4th and 5th grade students.... They love this book!

2. SHILOH 

PHYLLIS REYNOLDS NAYLOR

Wonderful story of a boy who develops a strong friendship with a beagle. Marty is a young boy who lives with his parents out west. Judd, his alcoholic neighbor who abuses his dogs is on Marty's radar. Marty decided to secretly steal the dog so that Judd can no longer harm it. An insightful story of a boy who would put his own life in danger to save his best freind. Great read aloud for 4th grade!!

3. WALK TWO MOONS

SHARON CREECH

Fantastic story about taking journeys. It is a book filled with a mix of different emotions. A thirteen year old girl travels to Idaho with her parents. On this journey she tells them the story of Phoebe Winterbottom who recieved messages and whose mother dissapeared. It has many layers to it and is told in such a way that you feel that you are on the journey as well.

4. NUMBER THE STARS

LOIS LOWRY

A great read to do to enhance the curriculum of World War II. I would say that it should be read as a read aloud to students. There is some descriptive language that should be explained to younger students(4th and 5th grade). It is about a brave young girl who smuggles her Jewish friends to safety in Sweden.

5. JOYFUL NOISE
PAUL FLEISCHMAN

A delightful poetry book of nature and simple illustrations. Poems are about crickets, fireflies, grasshoppers, etc. There are two sides to each poem and they are supposed to be read as a duet...interesting..poems with two voices. Lovely poems that can be introduced to students in a variety of ways.

6. SARAH, PLAIN AND TALL

PATRICIA MACLACHLAN

This is a great book to use as a mentor text. She uses many different writing techniques. The story is about a family who mama has passed away and the dad has not been the same since she died. The children place an ad in the paper to find a new mama. A great story about family and hope. 

7. The Giver

Lois Lowry

Jonas lives in a society with no pain, no crime, and no unhappiness. He receives a life assignment to be the receiver of memories and discovers secrets about the past. There are manny other Lois Lowry books that I would rather read than this one. For older students;some topics such as mild sexual references.

8. LINCOLN A PHOTOBIOGRAPHY
RUSSELL FREEDMAN


A book about Abraham Lincoln's life with real photographs and prints. It begins with his life as a young boy to his assassination.  Real documents such as his marriage license and Republican victory poster. A great book for students to use for a biography on Lincoln. For older students because the language is quite mature.

Caldecott Winners

  

1. Madeline's Rescue

Ludwig Bemelman's 

Another fantastic Madeline book with hand drwan sketches. Madeline is off to Paris and full of mischief. The girls get a dog and fight over where the dog would sleep and who would take care of it. There is a solution to the problem; the dog had puupies, enough to go around. Dialogue and repitition is found throughout the book. 

 

2. The Snowy Day

Ezra Jack Keats

A story about a little boys experience with snow. From making snow angels to smacking a snow covered tree. Each page is covered in snow. Onomonopias are used in the story to describe the snow such as crunch. Repitios is another style found in the story.

3. A Ball for Daisy.

Chris Raschka

A beautiful book with no words about a dog and her ball. The story shows the dog and everything it does with the ball until it deflates. Of course there is a happy ending!! The dog meets another dog, who has a ball that he shares... Cute story......Teachers and librarians  can use this in so many ways!!

 

4. My Friend Rabbit

Eric Rothman

 This is a book with a great message written in simple text. The message that are being sent through this book is how to solve problems, how to share, and play with big kids. Great characters such as Mouse and Rabbit that children can relate to. A must have in the easy reder section of the library.

 

5. Where the Wild Things Are

Maurice Sendak

A classic childrens book that every child must experience. The illustrations create a lasting effect on young readers. The story is based on real and fantasy consequences of Max's mischief. Max's imagination creates a bedroom of a land full of wild things. 

6.Kittens' First Full Moon

Kevin Henkes

3. Simple black and white illustrations, this book. The story is about a little kit who thought the moon was a bowl of milk for her to drink. She tried many times to reach the bowl full of milk, each time with a dissapointment. THe theme of this story is perseverance. The little kitten never gave up. A the end of the story the little kitten finds her bowl of milk on the doorstep.

7. Owl Moon

Jane Yolen

A beautiful book of writing and illustrations. A little girl and her father go for a owl walk.  The words are very descriptive and the use of similies is found throughout. A great book to use as a mentor text in your reading workshop.

 8. The Lion and the Mouse

Jerry Pikney

This is a wonderful story told without words, except for the sounds of the animals.  The illustrations are beautiful. It is about nature and  friendship. This wordless version really sparks the imagination. I love this version of a classic Aesop fable.

BOOK FROM CHILDHOOD

As a child, I found author, Judy Blume, to be the source of my reading interest. “Are You There God It’s Me, Margaret?” answered the questions that a young preteen girl had, such as periods, breast size, and how they fit with God and the universe. This book began my journey into reading, and I enjoyed reading books with which I was able to connect in so many ways. I can still remember reading and talking about this book with my best friend who lived across the street. It reminds me now of an after school special; topics that were not usually spoken about at the dinner table. I recall it making me feel more confident and comfortable knowing that there were other girls thinking about boys, appearance, etc. I also remember l the book touching briefly about Margaret's faith.

This early introduction into the wonderful world of words was a turning point in my education and approach to life. When necessary, I could “escape” from the trials and tribulations of adolescense and lose myself in fantasy and fiction. This mode of entertainment has lasted my entire life and I often miss the opportunity to relax and read for hours on end. As a mother, working full time outside the home, to three very active young children, my free time is limited and these days most of my leisure reading involves bedtime stories. However, I very much look forward to sharing this special book with my two daughters when the time is right.

EASY READERS

1. How do dinosaurs say goodnight?
Jane Yolen and Mark Teague

This is a great book to use as a read aloud and bedtime story. In the beginning of the story dinosaurs display actions that are not good routines for bedtime. As the story proceeds, the dinosaur starts doing the right thing during his bedtime routine. It has repition and rhyme. On almost every page, the dinosaurs name is hidden somewhere on the page.

2. Should I share my ice cream?
Mo Willems

Another fabulous book by Mo Willems. It is one of the newest books in the Elephant and Piggie series. Gerald buys an ice cream cone and when he is just about to take a bite, he wonders if he should share it with Piggie.  Unfortunately, he looks down and his ice cream cone has melted. Piggie finds a way to cheer him up.  The expressions that Gerald makes throughout the story are precious.

3. Fly High, Fly Guy!
Tedd Arnold

Fly Guys mom and Dad will not let him go on the family vacation because they are afraid he will get lost. Dad accidentally put him in the trunk. Fly Guy has many adventures on the family vacation. The family is headed home, but they can't find their way. Fly Guy is sent to the rescue and leads the family home. Great illustrations with easy to read text.

4.Arthur's Eyes
Marc Brown

Artur is having trouble seeing clearly when he realizes he needs glasses. When he wears them to chool, everyone starts making fun of him. Arthur decides that he shoudl go to school without his glasses. Well, this choice leads Arthur into a lot of embarassing moments. He realizes that he needs his glasses and is accepted by his friends. 

5. Alexander and the terrible, horrible, no good very bad day.
Judith Viorst

This is a fantastic story with a simple plot of a child who is simply having a really bad day. Alexander trips on his skateboard, drops his sweater in water, gets reprmanded by the teacher, discovers a cavity and many other terrible things happen to Alexander. He reallyjust can't wait for the day to end.

6. Biscuit and the Baby

Alyssa Satin Schories

In this story, Buscuit wants to mee t the new baby. Biscuit becomes impatient as the baby is sleeping, and he is having trouble waiting. The curious puppy finally gets to meet the new baby and he has made a brand new friend. 

7. Hop on Pop

Dr. Seuss

This is a classic Dr. Seuss book with much ryhme and repition. It contains short poems with many different characters. A popular book to introduce basic pphonics concepts. The illustrations are classics. This book is known for the all time best selling hardcover books for children.

8. Old Hat New Hat

Stan and Jan Bernstain

While Bear is out shopping one day he is amused with all the different hats that are out there. He finds, silly hats, bumpy, and lumpy ones. This book teaches simple concepts of size and shape. Great descriptive language for young readers. 

9. Pinkalicious

Victoria Kann and

Elizabeth Kann

Pink, Pink, Pink, and more Pink.  a little girls dream book of everything and anything that can be pink. When Pinkalicious decised to eat too many pink cupcakes, she turns pink. The book is filled with  pink bubblegum, peonies, cotton candy and princess dresses. The series does not end there, she has Silverlicious and Purplelicious and even Goldenlicious!!

10. Henry and Mudge under the yellow moon.

Cythia Rylant

This book has cartoon style illustrations. In this book there are 3 easy to read stories about celebrating the fall season with jack o lanterns, ghost stories, and Aunt Sally. THe language is very descriptive throughout this book. Henry and Mudge tackle Henry's fears of ghost stories. 



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