Getting Out of Your Read-Aloud Rut: Suggestions for New Favorites
KORCOS @ Chadwick International School
March 9, 2012
Presenter: Tim Gardes, ES Librarian, SIS
Picture Books
Red Sings from Treetops: A Year in Colors by Joyce Sidman
This wonderful book is a new twist on seasons. More whimsical than didactic, the author uses colors to document the passing of time. The illustrations are fittingly colorful, fun, and packed with plenty of detail – kids will ask to look closer at every page. Typically less popular colors are also included to the benefit of the story, including gray, black and pink. This book is a recent Caldecott Award honor book.
Sleep, Big Bear, Sleep! by Maureen Wright
In the tradition of Amelia Bedelia, Big Bear just doesn’t seem to hear right. When Old Man Winter instructs him to go to sleep for the winter, he gets confused and delays his hibernation by doing things that rhyme with ‘sleep’ such as driving a jeep. It’s a cute, rhyming story with very appealing illustrations. Despite the unoriginal premise, students will love the bear and his silly behavior.
Lulu the Big Little Chick by Paulette Bogan
Lulu is tired of being little, and even more tired of being told she’s too little to go out into the barnyard alone. Taking matters into her own hands, she decides running away is her only option. As she traverses the barnyard, she gets into jams but her mother is not far behind. Not until a crow scares Lulu does she reconsider and agrees to go home, telling her mother that the next time she runs away she’ll take her mother with her. Perfect for students who are trying to be independent but still like the comfort of having an adult close by. Colorful, kid-like illustrations give it a homey and endearing touch.
Twenty-Six Princesses by Dave Horowitz
An ABC book at heart, Twenty-Six Princesses introduces children to a princess named after each letter of the alphabet. With its silly rhymes and vibrant illustrations, kids will be eager for you to turn the page to meet the next dippy princess. The princess-crazed girls in your class will love it. Boys will get a kick out it, if only for its sheer silliness.
A Boy Had a Mother Who Bought Him a Hat by Karla Kuskin
This story has Dr. Seuss written all over it. Kids will quickly latch on to this tale told in rhyme about all the things a mother might buy her son. While not as fluid as Seuss nor as inventive, it’s plenty silly to tickle kids’ fancies. Illustrations fill the pages and deftly support the story. The story repeats as it goes, so it’s a good choice for students who benefit from repetitive reading.
A Very Big Bunny by Marisabina Russo
When Susannah bunny, smallest in her class, tries to make friends at her new school, she turns to Amelia, a loner bunny who happens to be the biggest. Initially, the latter doesn’t want a friend -- she is happy to make dandelion crowns by herself at recess. With a keen sense of empathy, Susannah slowly works at becoming Amelia’s friend, specifically by calming her fears about the upcoming class picture. Kids will certainly identify with both characters. Illustrations are plain but plenty colorful enough to hold students’ attention.
Beautiful Yetta: The Yiddish Chicken by Daniel Pinkwater
This wacky tale of an escaped (Yiddish) chicken in New York City will have students scratching their heads and laughing simultaneously as Yetta adjusts to her new surroundings. In the process she makes friends with a colony of parrots in Brooklyn who teach her how to survive in the big city. This fun new title from the master of kid-friendly zaniness is meant to be read with accents. Yiddish text is included for the adventurous reader. And finally, yes, Yetta is an organic chicken!
The Worst Best Friend by Alexis O’Neill
When a new student arrives at their school, Mike and Conrad – best friends -- are in for a bumpy ride as the new boy tests their friendship in this oh-so-typical schoolyard scenario. When the new boy turns on his new best friend, Conrad, it’s up to Mike to decide to forgive him and get back to being best friends. The slightly frenetic pace of the text will appeal to kids as will the illustrations, which are bright, fun and easy to follow. The ending will satisfy all but the most jaded.
City Dog, Country Frog by Mo Willems
One of the freshest and funniest voices in current children’s literature, Mo Willems departs from his usual wackiness (Don’t Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus) and writes an endearing story about two friends: Dog and Frog. A city dog gets loose in the country and makes friends with a frog. The story follows their friendship from season to season, culminating in winter. Think Charlotte’s Web and you’ll figure out what happens to Frog at the end. Like his predecessor, Mo Willems provides a silver lining to the story that ultimately removes some of the sting.
Twelve Terrible Things by Marty Kelley
The twelve terrible things in this clever book turn out to be things that scare the dickens out of kids, like being kissed by old people, having your mom give you a haircut, and long car trips. Short on text but long on beautiful, realistic illustrations, students will return to this book over and over. It would be a great launching point for having students create their own version of the Twelve Terrible Things. Even if you don’t read this to your students, read it to yourself for all the ‘terrible’ childhood memories it evokes.
The Butt Book by Artie Bennett
Let’s hear it for a little bit of tuchas humor! If the weight of the world is getting you and your class down, break open this book for non-stop laughs from cover to cover. The text is clever and holds interest till the end. The illustrations are fun without being vulgar. It may well become the most requested read aloud in your repertoire. Remember, laughing hysterically can be therapeutic.
The Louds Move In! by Carolyn Crimi
This is a funny story for all students, but a perfectly funny story for that student who will never have an indoor voice. He or she will grin from ear to ear as the ridiculously quiet neighbors get used to their new, louder-than-life neighbors, all the while discovering that being loud can be exciting. The author does a bang up job of making the quiet neighbors seem awfully petty and silly, including their tongue-in-cheek names, e.g. Miss Shushermush. This will be a crowd pleaser, but make sure to read the bold text LOUDLY for full effect.
Historical Fiction
Bear Dancer by Thelma Hatch Wyss
Based on a true story, Bear Dancer is the fictional account of Elk Girl, a Ute teen growing up at the time the American settlers were pushing farther and farther west into Indian country. In addition to handling the tension with white settlers, the author also includes Elk Girl’s time spent as a slave of the Arapaho tribe. She eventually escapes and makes it back to her own tribe where she goes on to become a leader. For those looking for an alternative to Walk Two Moons or other similar stories, this is a realistic version of life for a Native American youth caught in the crossfire of her turbulent time.
Al Capone Does My Shirts by Jennifer Choldenko
Take a typical kid issue, i.e., moving, and add a wonderful twist, namely your new home is on an island in the middle of San Francisco Bay. Such is the case for Moose Flanagan whose father has just gotten a job as prison guard at Alcatraz. This story traces Moose’s adventures and misadventures in his first year living on the island, with criminals and civilians alike. The setting is 1935, hence the title, as Al Capone was also a ‘resident’ of the island at that time and worked in the prison laundry. The book has extra value as a ‘boy book’.
The River Between Us by Richard Peck
Richard Peck has written some wonderful children’s books over the years and this is one of the best. In fact, it won the Scott O’Dell Award for historical fiction as well as being a finalist for the National Book Award. Set during the Civil War, this story involves the usual combination of intrigue and mystery often associated with wartime stories. Peck addresses the issue of race in a way that moves the story beyond the expected slave versus plantation owner conflict of a Civil War story, and on to something equally compelling but more elusive. The author was kind enough to include a surprise ending. Rich discussions guaranteed to ensue!
Shadow Spinner by Susan Fletcher
A retelling of the familiar One Thousand and One Nights, this story is told from the point of view of Marjan, the poor girl who brings Sheherazade a new story every evening, thereby saving the latter’s life, as the sultan will kill her the minute she runs out of stories. Partake in a suspenseful adventure as we follow Marjan’s attempts to sneak in and out of the palace to deliver the stories. The stakes couldn’t be higher for Marjan or Shereherazade. Kids will be rooting for both women from the beginning.
Crispin: The Cross of Lead by Avi
Master storyteller Avi brings to life Crispin, an illegitimate son of a medieval English lord, who has led the life of a peasant since birth. When his mother dies, his world is turned upside down. Crispin finds himself running from those with royal connections who would like to kill him to eliminate his ever assuming the throne. This is a riveting story that combines both daring-do and the harsh reality of medieval life. This book won the Newberry Award in 2003.
Adventure
How to Train Your Dragon by Cressida Cowell
With a narrator named Hiccup Horrendous Haddock the Third, how can one resist? It turns out that this is actually a classic story of a boy hero who, despite many false starts, manages to save the day and his tribe from a fearsome, marauding dragon named Green Death. The slightly sarcastic narration is especially appealing. Kids will also love the generous dose of dragon snot thrown in for “ick” appeal.
Island of the Aunts by Eva Ibbotson
Somewhere in the waters off the coast of England lives a group of sisters who care for magical sea creatures -- mermaids, selkies, and boobries. They’re getting on in years and realize they’ll need help. The sisters decide their best bet is to train children to take over. Having no children of their own, they very naturally decide to go kidnap some. Ending up with a mixed bag of naughty and nice boys and girls, they sort it out in the end. The aunts can look forward to retirement, knowing they’ve got just enough of the nice ones to look after the creatures. A really fun read!
The Capture (Guardians of Ga’Hoole series) by Kathryn Lasky
Coming off her huge successes with the Dear America and Royal Diaries series, Lasky has embarked on a new series with owls in leading roles. In this first installment in what is a classic good versus evil tale, a young owl, Soren, is pushed out of the nest by his nest-mate and so begins his journey to save his beloved forest kingdom. He is kidnapped by emissaries from St. Aggie’s owl orphanage –the latter’s benign name belies its sinister purpose. As he uncovers the plot to train the orphans to help take over the forest, he must figure out a way to escape and alert the other owls. No shortage of adrenaline to keep students on the edge of their seats -- escapes, near misses, and hot pursuits abound. Not all escape or survive so be prepared for a possible Lion King-type discussion. Your class will be hooked and begging for the next one in the series.
A Single Shard by Linda Sue Park
Set in medieval Korea, this is a story about a poor boy’s journey to become a potter’s apprentice and his ultimate errand: to deliver a masterpiece of celadon to the Korean emperor. Waylayed by robbers along his route, the boy continues on to the royal palace with only shards to show. What happens at the palace when he finally arrives? Kids won’t be able to wait to find out. This book won the Newbery Award in 2002.
The Underneath by Kathi Appelt
This novel has been described as The Incredible Journey meets Holes, which is not far off. A finalistfor the National Book Award and a Newbery Honor winner, this is the story ofan alligator, a snake, a mangy hound dog, and a couple of cats. It is about good and evil, and how even a small amount of love can make a big difference. This novel reads as though you are sitting on a porch listening to someone spin a good yarn--you have to slow down to enjoy this story, which makes it a great read aloud. There is some alcoholism and abuse of animals--just so you know. (A. Erickson)
Where the Mountain Meets the Moon by Grace Lin
This re-imagined folktale from China is a true adventure story. Young Minli desperately wants to change the poor fortunes of her family and her fellow villagers. When asked how, her father tells her she must ask the Old Man of the Moon. Running away to find him, she meets mythical creatures, diabolical humans, and kind strangers along the way. When she meets the Old Man at last, she must choose between improving her own fortune or that of her new best friend, a dragon. Grace Line professes not to write books “that teach a lesson”, but this one contains many – the nice thing is that the reader is not hit over the head with them. Many students will also recognize the similarity between this tale and the Wizard of Oz story. This was a Newbery honor book in 2010.
Fractured Fairy Tales
Leaping Beauty and Other Animal Fairy Tales by Gregory Maguire
Maguire, author of the wildly popular Wicked series, has taken on fractured fairly tales and we’re better off for it. He turns eight traditional fairy tales on their heads and ends up with tales such as Rumplesnakeskin, Hamster and Gerbil, and of course, Leaping Beauty. Each tale runs 20-40 pages, so they are meaty without having to take an entire trimester to finish. Not the best choice for those who are beginning to understand fairy tales, but rather for those that know the traditional ones by heart and can follow the ‘fractures’ in the story lines.