RE 5140 Children’s Literature- Connie Green
Summer 2010- Lucy Cook
Second Set of Book Critiques
When Marian Sang
Author: Pam Munoz Ryan
Illustrator: Brian Selznick
Publisher: Scholastic Press, New York, NY
Date Published: 2002
Robert F. Sibert Winner 2003
Question #6: What factual information did you learn? Did anything surprise you? How do you know this information is accurate?
Marian Anderson could sing, friends and family loved to hear her. She was encouraged to attended music school to develop her talent. When she tried to enroll, they ignored her and final told her she couldn’t get in because she was “colored”. Her love of music gave her the desire to persevere even in the face of adversity. Later when a music tutor didn’t have space to accept another student, instead to walking away, she opened her mouth and let her talent sway him. This lead to an opportunity to learn and grow in Europe that provided Marian with success and fame. Surprisingly, when she returned to the United States, segregation issues still interfered with her life and career. This time however, the first lady and others took notice. A march was held! Then the president of the United States invited Marian to sing. She never lost sight of her dream and pursued her passion despite all odds. From the early lessons of bitter rejection, she weathered a long journey that ended in sweet success. The author and illustrator validate the information with notes in the back of the book that include an actual photo of Marian with Eleanor Roosevelt, research based on a visit to the Marian Anderson Historical Society plus notable dates that timeline her life events.
Walt Whitman
Author: Barbara Kerley
Illustrator: Brian Selznick
Publisher: Scholastic Press, New York, NY
Date Published: 2004
Robert F. Sibert Honor Winner
Question #5: What did you learn about the time in which the book was set? Do you think the time period was described accurately? How do you know?
“The Voice of America”, what a unique ambition. As unique as the man himself and the life he led in striving to achieve this goal. Walt Whitman loved words and would “ramble” the country writing every experience he had or saw in a handmade notebook so it could later be added to his poetry collection. During his travels, he sensed the unease that threaten to separate our country.Walt Whitman was very moved and troubled by the Civil War. He was too old to fight in the Civil War but had a younger brother that went into battle. Can you imagine scouring the newspaper everyday reading lists of injured soldiers praying you don’t see your loved one listed? That is how Walt learned of his brother being injured and set out to search for him. What he found when he located his brother among tents on frozen ground, moved him to reach out and make a difference the best way he knew how; with words. He would spend time with the soldiers and talk with them and write about his experience. His dedication to serve the soldiers during the Civil War earns him the status of hero in my eyes because he served a cause bigger than himself. The illustrator notes at the end of the book details research conducted to authenticate the story.
Girl Wonder A Baseball Story in Nine Innings
Author: Deborah Hopkinson
Illustrator: Terry Widener
Publisher: Atheneum Books for Young Readers, New York, NY
Date Published: 2003
Jane Addams HonorWinner 2004
Question #10: How might you include this book in the social studies curriculum? Write about a specific activity you might do that relates to the content of this book.
Alta Weiss lived by “cans” and courage. In roles predominantly considered male only, she led the way for other women to follow. She was successful as a pitcher in baseball as the only female on the team and in medicine after attending an all male medical school. It’s no “wonder” that “girl wonder” was a success. She believed in herself and believed in practice makes perfect. You too can accomplish your dreams if you put your mind to it and work hard. This book would be a great start to a unit on “Famous First” in which students read and research about someone that lived by cans and courage. Students could then write about the accomplishments of their famous firsts and present to the class. Famous First examples: Rosa Parks, Wright Brothers. Benjamin Franklin, George Washington, Jackie Robinson, Amelia Earhart.
Henry and the Kite Dragon
Author: Bruce Edward Hall
Illustrator: William Low
Publisher: Philomel Books, New York, NY
Date Published: 2004
Jane Addams Honor Winner 2005
Question #12: Do you think the culture of the characters in this book was portrayed fairly? How do you know? What experiences did the author bring that would help him or her represent the culture fairly?
The author describes life in Chinatown and the illustrator highlights the Chinese kite with vivid colors. The Chinese children respect the elder and call him grandfather. He lets them help with the kites he makes. Once a kite is finished, Grandfather goes to the roof to fly it. It is long before the Little Italy kids that are playing in the park start to throw rocks at the kite. With a well aimed rock, the kite sinks to the ground and is destroyed by the Little Italy kids. Grandfather looks but says nothing and creates another kite. Again the kite goes down. The Chinese children are rallied to build Grandfathers greatest creation, a dragon kite, a respected Chinese symbol. It is huge and colorful. All the children run into the park, Italian territory to protect the kite only to find out the Little Italian are throwing rocks to protect their pigeons from the kites! Lack of communication due to segregation based on culture and location had created conflict. The Chinese and Italian children were able to find a peaceful resolution once they took time to talk and understand each other. I know that the Chinese have a great respect for their elders and that the dragon is an honored symbol so this is fairly depicted. The author note at the being states that this story is based on true events and that the authors’ father knew a man named Mr. Chi when he was a little boy growing up in Chinatown.
Esperanza Rising
Author/Illustrator: Pam Munoz Ryan
Publisher: Scholastic, Inc., New York, NY
Date Published: 2000
Pura Belpre’ Medal Winner 2002
Question #9: What is the theme of this book? Do you think it is a worthwhile theme to share with elementary children? Explain.
The theme of the book is expectations and learning not to be afraid to start over. This is the lesson that Esperanza is being taught by the Grandmother as she is learning to crochet a pattern of mountain and valleys. Life will have its up and downs. As a young child living on a wealthy ranch in Mexico, she sees this as a crocheting lesson that is not going so well, especially when Grandmother undoes her attempt. But when bandits kill her father and her family escapes to America and becomes migrant workers, she lives out the lesson. As her life takes this new path, she is constantly challenged to readjust her expectations and depend on friends and family. For Esperanza, the readjusting doesn’t come without some growing pains, yet she comes out stronger in the end. This would be a great book for literature circles in middle school;in fact, my daughter read it in middle school and loved it. As for elementary school, it would work well as a read aloud for upper elementary. Rich classroom discussions could develop about the characters and challenges they faced; learning to not be afraid to start over, migrant work plus geography lessons on where Esperanza lived in Mexicoand where is ending in the U.S.
Juan Bobo Goes to Work
Author: Marisa Montes
Illustrator: Joe Cepeda
Publisher: Harper Collins, New York, NY
Date Published: 2000
Pura Belpre’ Honor Winner 2002
Question #3: Describe the artwork in terms of style and media. What elements of the illustrations appealed to you?
The illustrator, Joe Cepeda, had to have fun when working with this book because the cartoon like characters smile on almost all the pages and so will you when you read the “mis” adventures of Juan Bobo Goes to Work. Juan is given simple jobs with simple directions, but always manages to turn things around. This story is a Puerto Rican folktale and reads like a modern day Amelia Bedlia. Cepeda’s color palette is as vivid and crazy as the main character Juan Bobo (purple skies and blue mountains). Each page is full of eye popping color which gives the book personality that matches the cheerful Juan Bobo. This is definitely a book to be enjoyed again and again. I was not certain of the style and media. The bright color and shading lead me to think possibly chalk but there is evidence of brush wisps in places. I looked up information about the illustrator and found he uses oils and acrylics.
Dad, Jackie, and Me
Author: Myron Uhlberg
Illustrator: Colin Bootman
Publisher:Peachtree Press, Atlanta, GA
Date Published: 2005
Schneider Family Book Winner 2006
Question #11: What values were conveyed through this book? How were these values or social views conveyed to the reader?
The issue of discrimination is presented from a unique perspective in this book. Typically, we think of skin color as related to this issue, but this book points out that people that are handicap endure discrimination of some sort as well. When Jackie Robinson is signed to the majors, a deaf father and son become avid supporters and follow him throughout the 1947 season. The deaf father relates to the discrimination Robinson is enduring and becomes his biggest fan. The author describes the hardships that Robinson had to endure on the ball field. His deaf father would take him to the ball park, always with seats near Robinsons position to encourage him, cheering “AH-GHEE, AH-GHEE.” He would cheer loud and hard not knowing what he sounded like all the while others around would be staring. Later in season, the author has Jackie throw a ball to his deaf father. I felt a bond and been forged if even for a brief moment as the author was having Jackie say “Thanks”. The author’s notes added a lot of insight into the story as well. The son learned valuable life lessons from signing with his father over baseball. “Jackie will show them that his skin color has nothing to do with how he plays baseball. He will show them all that he is as good as they are.” His father applied this same philosophy to his life, “I show them every day I am as good as they are.”
The Deaf Musicians
Author: Pete Seeger and Paul Dubois Jacobs
Illustrator: R. Gregory Christie
Publisher: G. P. Putman’s Sons/ Penguin Group, New York, NY
Date Published: 2006
Schneider Family Book Winner 2007
Question #7: Respond to the design and layout of the book. What do you think of the cover design, size of the book, font, spacing, and visual elements?
When a musician loses his hearing, he enrolls in a school for the Deaf and learns that he doesn’t have to lose his passion too. He learns he can sign his song! Now instead of performing music for people to hear, he performs a show for people to see. This book is definitely a visual book. The cover is full of alternating colors and multiple fonts. The contemporary artistry is also a visual element. The book uses a combination of linear and non linear formats to engage the reader visually.The words that represent sound flow like music across the pages in various fonts and color. I like the movement of the words, the changing fonts and colors. I find it interesting that the illustrator chose to depict people as purple, blue and green. This would be a good point to explore with students-contemporary art or deeper meaning, or both. We may all have different skin tones, abilities and talent but there are some things that bring us all together, like music. This would be good to pair with the previous book, Dad, Jackie and Me, to build empathy and awareness with students.