Chapter Book #12--Black Potatoes

Title:  Black Potatoes: The Story of the Great Irish Famine, 1845-1850

Author:  Susan Campbell Bartoletti

Illustrator:  N/A

Grade Level Equivalent:  7.9

Lexile Measure:  1040L

Genre:  Children's Literature

Subgenre:  Information

Theme:  Survival

Primary and Secondary Characters:  Various

Awards:  NCTE Orbis Pictus Award (Won, 2002)

Golden Kite Awards (Won, 2001)

American Library Association Notable Books for Children (Won, 2002)

Carolyn W. Field Award (Pennsylvania Library Association) (Won, 2002)

Robert F. Sibert Informational Book Award (Won, 2002)
Date of Publication:  2001

Publisher:  Houghton Mifflin Harcourt

ISBN:  0618002715

Black Potatoes tells the story of the Great Irish Potato Famine that occurred from 1845-1850.  The weather in Ireland had never been 100% consistent, but things took an even stranger turn in 1845.  News reports started coming in about potato fields that had turned black overnight.  But these types of reports were not altogether unheard of.  Potato crops had failed in the past but it was never widespread and most people assumed their crops would survive.  When it came to potatoes, they were harvested twice each year: once in late August and again in October.  Some of the potatoes that were harvested were taken in to the houses to be eaten and others were stored in pits or cellars and covered up to keep them in supply for the winter.  During the fall of 1845, residents said the weather continued to be strange enough to cause some worry but too terrible to cause panic.  It was reported that winds and heavy rains brought a strange odor to the area.  Farmers watched their crops, but everything seemed okay with them.  It wasn’t until October, when one day the afternoon sky went dark and by nightfall, a thick, blue fog covered the area.  The next morning, residents were awakened by a smell so strong and foul it could only be one thing: rotten potatoes.  Sure enough, every potato field in the country was ruined, full of rotten potatoes.  Not only that, but the potatoes in the houses, pits, and cellars were rotten and inedible as well.  Over the course of the five year period, these “blights”, as they were called came and went.  In all, one million people died from starvation and disease and two million more were driven away from Ireland. 

This book would be great to have in a classroom.  It tells a story that is not often told, at least not around here.  I, myself, had heard of the Irish Potato Famine, but only the gist of the story.  The book itself reads like a text book so it may be hard for students to read this and stay interested and focused.  The story may be one that is told to the students as a lecture with pictures from the time period, news articles if any are available, and any other resources that could be used to make it more real and interesting to the students in this day and age.  This book would be great to have so that students could read about another culture and how they dealt with one of the greatest disasters in their history.  It would also be great to spark discussion about how they, in modern times, would react to having a famine in the United States.  How would they deal with it and what would they do to survive?  It’s a great way to get students thinking.

Chapter Book #11--Sojourner Truth: Ain't I a Woman?

Title:  Sojourner Truth:  Ain't I a Woman?

Author:  Patricia C. McKissack and Fredrick McKissack

Illustrator:  N/A

Grade Level Equivalent:  4.9

Lexile Measure:  960L

Genre:  Children's Literature

Subgenre:  Biography

Theme:  Never back down.

Primary and Secondary Characters:  Isabella/Belle/Sojourner Truth, the Hardenburghs, Mr. and Mrs. Dumont, Isaac and Martha Van Wagener, Soloman Gedney, Peter

Awards:  Coretta Scott King, 1993

Date of Publication:  1992

Publisher:  Scholastic, Inc.

ISBN:  0590446916

Sojourner Truth: Ain’t I a Woman? tells the story of Isabella, a girl born into slavery.  Her first master was Mr. Hardenburgh, who fell ill and gave her and her family to his son.  When the second Mr. Hardenburgh passed Isabella, who went by Belle, was auctioned off to a new man, Mr. Neely, whose wife was especially cruel to Belle.  When Belle, who spoke Dutch, could not understand the English speaking Mrs. Neely, Mr. Neely took her out back and beat her with a whip.  When Belle’s father, Baumfree, an old man who had recently been “turned out” or freed due to his old age, heard of the beating, he convinced a man by the name of Martin Schryver to buy her.  Mr. Schryver and his wife spoke English and, for the most part, were very kind to Belle.  She was able to learn some English during her time with the Schryver’s.  Later, Belle was sold to another master—her last master—Mr. Dumont.  During the time she spent on Dumont’s property, Belle was married to another slave, by the name of Tom.  Tom and Belle had five children together—four girls and one boy.  One day, Mr. Dumont told Belle that in a year’s time he would give her her freedom since she had been a loyal and faithful servant.  The law actually said that he had to give her up in two years anyways since she was born before 1799.  However, he would turn her out early for being such a hard worker.  But when the day came, Freedom Day, for Belle, Mr. Dumont went back on his word.  Angry, Belle left anyways, taking her infant daughter with her.  They ran to Isaac and Martha Van Wagener’s home and the couple kindly took them in.  When Dumont came looking for her, Mr. Van Wagener gave him twenty dollars for Belle, and five dollars for the baby.  That matter was settled.  It wasn’t long before Belle learned that Dumont had sold her only son, Peter, to a man who was to take him out of New York and all the way to London.  At the last minute, the man learned that Peter was too young to go to London, so he gave the boy to his brother, Soloman Gedney.  Gedney sold the boy to his brother-in-law, who had just married his sister, who lived in Alabama.  Infuriated, Belle did all she could to fight the sale, which included learning from the Van Wagener’s that the sale was illegal since the boy was now out of the state.  The Van Wagener’s got Belle a lawyer and she took Soloman Gedney to court for the custody of her son.  She won.  She was one of the first black women to ever take a white man to court and win.  After several more trials and tribulations, Belle would change her name to Sojourner Truth and start a mission to spread her story.  She succeeded.  Slavery was not the only thing Sojourner Truth would be famous for protesting. She made several appearances at feminist rallies, protesting the lack of rights for women.  Her speech “Ain’t I a Woman”, though not planned, turned out to be one of the highlights of her life.

This book would be great to have in a classroom.  It would spark so many discussions in a literature circle or just within the classroom.  I think that not a lot of people know the story of Sojourner Truth.  I may be wrong on that point, but we were never taught about her in school, so for me, this was very eye-opening.  It would be so great to have students read about the strength and the power that this one woman had in a time that it was dangerous for her to do so.  It is a very inspiring story.   I would love to hear what students had to say about this woman and what she went through during her time.

Chapter Book #10--The Forbidden Schoolhouse

Title:  The Forbidden Schoolhouse

Author:  Suzanne Jurmain

Illustrator: N/A

Grade Level Equivalent:  6.2

Lexile Measure:  920L
Genre:  Children's Literature
Subgenre:  Biography
Theme:  Don't give up on what you know is right.
Primary and Secondary Characters:  Prudence Crandall, William Lloyd Garrison, Samuel May, Andrew Judson
Awards:  Orbis Pictus Honor, 2006
Date of Publication:  2005
Publisher:  Houghton Mifflin
ISBN:  978-0-618-47302-1

The Forbidden Schoolhouse tells the true story of Prudence Crandall, a woman who attempted to open a school for black girls in 1833.  Crandall had already owned and operated a small boarding school for young, affluent white girls in Canterbury, Connecticut.  She had opposed slavery for quite some time but had never really entertained the idea of educating young black girls until one day in 1832, when Sarah Harris showed up at the door of the school.  All Sarah wanted was an education.  Prudence thought about it for a couple of days and finally decided that there was no way she could turn Sarah down.  Facing strong opposition from her neighbors and townspeople, Crandall sought out the advice of famous abolitionist William Lloyd Garrison.  Garrison agreed to help Crandall and in April, 1833, Miss Crandall opened up her school for Young Colored Ladies and Misses.  In the beginning, there were only two students: Sarah Harris and Eliza Glasko.  Eventually, though, the schoolhouse held around twenty students, not only from Connecticut, but also from Rhode Island and New York.  However, the task was not easy.  Crandall’s livelihood and the lives of the young black girls who attended the school were threatened on a regular basis.  At first, the threats were pretty benign.  Neighbors vowed to shut down Crandall’s school.  With help from Garrison, the Reverend Simeon Jocelyn, and Reverend Samuel May, Prudence Crandall was able to keep her composure—and more importantly, keep her school open.  Andrew Judson, a neighbor who strongly opposed the school, not only tried to shut Crandall down but went to the extensive lengths of having legislature drawn up that would keep black people who were not from Connecticut from entering the state, much less attending school there.  This, he knew, would shut down Crandall for sure since more than half the girls attending the school were from out of state.  Connecticut would eventually pass the law, named the Connecticut Black Law, on May 24, 1833.  For having black girls from out-of-state, Prudence Crandall was arrested and jailed before awaiting trial.  While Judson tried to convince the jury that Crandall was guilty of breaking a state law, Crandall’s lawyer, William Ellsworth, attempted to convince the jury that not only was Prudence Crandall innocent, but the Connecticut Black Law violated the U.S. Constitution.  The jury was hung and could not reach a decision.  Another trial took place and this time the jury ruled that Prudence Crandall was innocent—on a technicality.  Essentially, nothing changed.  The school endured a series of vandalism incidents and Crandall became an outcast in the town.  No grocer would supply her with groceries, no milk peddlers would deliver milk, and when her own well was vandalized with manure, no neighbors would allow her to have water from their own wells.  The breaking point came when one night, some men broke into the schoolhouse, smashed furniture, and broke windows, creating enough damage that Crandall broke down and closed the school.  Crandall moved from Connecticut and eventually settled on a farm in Kansas with her brother.  Some fifty years later, Crandall received a telegram that after much prodding from citizens—including Samuel Clemens, better known as Mark Twain—she would be receiving a pension of $400 a year until her death to help pay for the damages to her schoolhouse and to help recover some of the money she lost in the vandalism.  In addition, she received an apology from some of the citizens who had taken part in the problem and support from them and others who now saw the error of their thinking.

This book tells an amazing story of a woman who risked everything to teach young black girls and give them a proper education.  I would absolutely love to have this in my classroom.  Rather than illustrations, the book contains actual photographs of the people involved and of the newspapers that printed various stories related to Miss. Crandall’s school.  It would be perfect for students to read as a topic for a literature circle.  They could discuss why Prudence Crandall felt so strongly about educating young black students in a time when slavery hadn’t yet been abolished.  They could also discuss how they would have reacted in that situation.  The courage that Prudence Crandall exhibited is amazing and this book would be great for students to read to show them that it is so important to stand up for what you believe in, even if you are the only one standing.

Chapter Book #9--Run, Boy, Run

Title:  Run, Boy, Run

Author:  Uri Orlev

Illustrator:  N/A

Translator:  Hillel Halkin

Grade Level Equivalent:  5.8

Lexile Measure:  570L

Genre:  Children's Literature
Subgenre:  Historical Fiction
Theme:  Stay strong, even through the most difficult struggles.
Primary and Secondary Characters:  Srulik/Jurek, Moishele, Yankel, Yoyneh, Shleymi, Avrum, Itsik, Yosele, the forester, Pani Nowek, Marisza, the pretty woman, Pan Wrubel, Pani Wrubel, Franek, Viktor, Zygmunt, Pan Wapielnik, German soldiers, Pani Herman, Werner, Marina, Grzegorz, Clara, Pan Boguta, Pani Boguta, Sasha, Pan Cherka, Pani Cherka, Christina, Pan Kowalski, Pani Kowalski, Pani Rappaport, Pani Staniak
Awards:  American Library Association Notable Books for Children (Won, 2004)
Garden State Teen Book Award (Nominated, 2006)
Mildred L. Batchelder Award (Won, 2004)
Date of Publication:  2003
Publisher:  Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
ISBN:   0618164650

Run Boy, Run follows a young Jewish boy, Srulik, as he escapes the Germans in the Holocaust era in Poland.  Living in the Warsaw ghetto with his mother, father, sister and brother, they decide to cross the fence and escape into German occupied Poland where they could have food and try to blend in.  Once over the border, the family is nearly caught by a couple of German soldiers.  Srulik’s father escapes but he, his mother, and his brother are caught and sent back to the ghetto.  One day, while digging for food in the dumpster with his mother, Srulik looks up to find that his mother has disappeared.  He looks everywhere for her and eventually comes to the conclusion that she is gone and he is on his own.  He is almost caught again by some German soldiers but is helped by a friendly farmer who helps him escape to the other side.  Once there, he meets up with some other orphaned Jewish boys who show him the ropes and teach him to survive in the forest.  They live together for a while until some men show up in the forest and the boys have to run away.  They get separated and Srulik finds a village.  He goes up to the door to ask for food.  The woman lets him in and her husband offers him some work around the farm.  However, when the man shows Srulik to the shed, he locks him in and leaves.  The woman lets him out and tells him to run.  It is then that he shows up on the doorstep of a kind woman who not only lets him in, but teaches him how to act like a Christian; how to pray, how to cross himself, how to act in front of others, and more importantly, Srulik changes his name to Jurek to throw people off of the fact that he is Jewish.  Jurek bounces around from house to house, finding pseudo-families in several places.  He never stays anywhere long as the threat of being revealed as a Jew and being turned over to the Gestapo is ever present.  Eventually, a man and a woman on a wagon pick Jurek up off the road, tell him they are taking him to safety, but end up turning him in to the Germans.  Once there, a German soldier cleans him up, locks him in a room and eventually takes him to live with and work for his sister.  Weeks go by and through a series of terrible incidents, Jurek is back on the run and living in the forest.  Another German solider comes across him but rather than turning him in, he decides to hide Jurek in his underground bunker.  The two become friends, even playing checkers together, until the soldier has to go.  Jurek is once again running through the villages, looking for work.  When he sees the Germans planting mines on the bridge, he tells a farmer before he crosses, and the farmer tells Jurek that the Russians are coming and he should stay put to inform them.  When the Russians arrive, they are so grateful for Jurek's help that they take him in.  He stays with the Russians for a while and becomes a translator for them.  But this, too, was shortlived as the Russians were heading to Berlin and the job became too dangerous for Jurek.  He eventually makes his way to the Kowalski’s, who take him in and have him work for them.  He stays with the Kowalski’s longer than expected until one day, he is picked up by some representatives of a Jewish Children’s Home.  Reluctantly, Jurek goes to the home, only to escape back to the Kowalski’s and be picked up once more.  The second time Jurek stays and is interviewed by a sweet, nice woman.  This woman ends up taking Jurek back to Blonie, his original hometown, where Jurek learns the fate of his mother, brother, and sister, as well as his hometown.  It is then that Jurek decides to stop running and stay with the Jewish Children’s Home.

This is an absolutely amazing story.  It has you gripped from the beginning to the end.  I think this book would be wonderful to have in a classroom setting—for older, more mature students—and would be a great book for them to read for a literature circle activity.  I think it would have to be approved first, if it would even be allowed in a school setting at all because it does deal with some adult topics.  A big part of the book is the fact that Jews are easily distinguishable by their circumcision and that plays a role in several scenes.  Sex, although not mentioned directly, is insinuated in a few of the chapters, as well.  Overall, though, the story is incredible and will stick with the students for quite some time.  It is a heartbreaking account of a child living through one of the worst times in human history, and it will definitely provoke discussion with the students throughout the literature circles.

Picture Book #19--Only Passing Through: The Story of Sojourner Truth

Title:  Only Passing Through: The Story of Sojourner Truth

Author:  Anne Rockwell

Illustrator:  R. Gregory Christie

Grade Level Equivalent:  4.4

Lexile Measure:  AD790L

Genre:  Children's Literature

Subgenre:  Biography

Theme:  Standing up for what is right

Primary and Secondary Characters:  Isabella/Sojourner Truth, John Dumont, Isaac and Maria Van Wagener

Awards:  NCTE Orbis Pictus Award, (nominated 2001)

Coretta Scott King, (nominated 2001)

American Library Association Notable Books for Children, (won 2001)

Date of Publication:  2000

Publisher:  Alfred A. Knopf
ISBN:  0679891862

Only Passing Through tells the story of a slave by the name of Isabella, a story I had not heard before this assignment.  As a child, Isabella was sold into slavery.  Even though she was tall and strong and would only grow to be stronger, no one bid on her.  Finally, the auctioneer threw in a herd of sheep so that Isabella would fetch a bid, which she did.  Her first master was cruel to her because she did not speak English at first.  Finally she was sold to John Dumont, who Isabella liked at first.  After some time, Isabella was given to another slave to be married.  They had five children together.  A few years later, John Dumont told Isabella that since she had been such a hard worker he would give her her freedom in a year's time.  A promise that he went back on.  Isabella ran away and stayed at Isaac and Maria Van Wagener's house, a white couple who believed that slavery was wrong.  When Dumont came looking for Isabella, Mr. Van Wagener offered him twenty dollars for her.  The Van Wagener's then set Isabella free.  Once she got her freedom, she went to get her children, only to discover that her son had been sold out of the state--which was illegal.  Using the knowledge about state laws she had gained from the Van Wageners', Isabella took Dumont to court and won, getting custody of her son back.  She was the first black woman--and first slave ever--to take a white man to court and win.  With this new power, Isabella changed her name to Sojourner Truth and set out to spread her story across the land. 

This book was so good.  I loved reading it.  I was never taught about Sojourner Truth in school so it was a new story all together for me.  I loved reading about a slave woman who had enough gumption to take a white man to court and fight for her rights.  This book would be excellent to have in a classroom.  It would do students good to hear the story of this amazing woman.  It could also spark a creative writing assignment.  Something like "What would you do if you were in Sojourner Truth's place?  Would you be as strong as she was?"  There are so many options for classroom use for this book. 

Picture Book #18--Rosa

Title:  Rosa

Author:  Nikki Giovanni

Illustrator:  Bryan Collier

Grade Level Equivalent:  5.1

Lexile Measure:  900L

Genre:  Children's Literature

Subgenre:  Biography

Theme:  Stand up for what you believe in, even if you're the only one standing.

Primary and Secondary Characters:  Rosa Parks, Jo Ann Robinson

Awards:  Coretta Scott King, 2006

Caldecott Honor Book, 2006

Date of Publication:  2005

Publisher:  Scholastic, Inc.

ISBN:   0312376022

Rosa tells the story of Rosa Parks, the woman who started a movement just by refusing to move to the back of the bus.  In the book, Rosa Parks is on her way home from work, thinking about what to make her husband for dinner, when the driver comes up and tells the colored people they need to move to the back of the bus.  Tired of putting up with the mistreatment from white people, Rosa took a stand and told the driver no.  After several of the white passengers on the bus say she should be arrested, the driver agrees and threatens to call the police.  Rosa Parks was arrested but this just reinforced the movement for the women and the colored people in the town.  They started a movement.  They boycotted the buses and walked wherever they needed to go, no matter the weather.  Rain, snow, heat--nothing could stop them.  Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. got involved and the movement spread.  In the end, because of Mrs. Parks refusal to get up, the Supreme Court ruled that segregation on buses--or anywhere--was illegal. 

This book would be great to have in a classroom.  Especially during Black History Month.  It is very well written and the illustrations are amazing and lifelike.  I would love to have this book in my class to further a lesson on Rosa Parks and the Civil Rights movement.  The story shows that one person can be very powerful.  This book would be a great precursor to a creative writing assignment, as well.

Picture Book #17--Moses: When Harriet Tubman Led Her People to Freedom

Title:  Moses: When Harriet Tubman Led Her People to Freedom

Author:  Carole Boston Weatherford

Illustrator:  Kadir Nelson

Grade Level Equivalent:  3.5

Lexile Measure:  AD660L

Genre:  Children's Literature

Subgenre:  Biography

Theme:  Listen and follow

Primary and Secondary Characters:  Harriet Tubman, God's voice

Awards:  Caldecott Medal (nominated, 2007)

Coretta Scott King Award (won, 2007)

Date of Publication:  2006

Publisher: Hyperion Books for Children

ISBN:  0786851759

This book is a ficionalized version of how Harriet Tubman escaped slavery and worked on the Underground Railroad freeing slaves.  In it, she hears the voice of God telling her the way and to believe in Him and herself.  He tells her who to trust and when she reaches Philadelphia, He tells her to follow her heart when she says she wants to go back to her family.  Th illustrations in this book are amazing. The pictures are very vivid and lifelike. 

I would love to have this book in my classroom.  It would be great to read to children to supplement a lesson on slavery and the Underground Railroad.  I think students would especially love the bright illustrations.  It would be great to spark a discssion on the Underground Railroad and Harriet Tubman.  I could read the book aloud to students and then split them into their book clubs and have them discuss the elements of the book.

Picture Book #16--A is for Abigail

Title:  A is for Abigail, An Almanac of Amazing American Women

Author:  Lynne Cheney
Illustrator:  Robin Preiss Glasser
Grade Level Equivalent:  4.6
Lexile Measure:  AD1030L
Genre:  Children's Literature
Subgenre:  Biography
Theme:  An alphabetical list of amazing women in American history
Primary and Secondary Characters:  Various
Awards:  Arizona Young Reader's Award, (nominated, 2006)
Date of Publication:  2003
Publisher:  Simon and Schuster Books for Young Readers
ISBN:  0689858191

I like this book because it gives an alphabetic view of a lot of incredible women who pioneered their way in American history.  It starts with Abigail Adams and tells of what a bold and brave woman she was during her husband's presidency.  It moves on to Elizabeth Blackwell, the first woman to earn a medical degree in 1849, Evelyn Cameron who moved out west with her husband in 1889 and helped to create valuable historical records through the photography of people, landscapes, and wildlife in the area, and many, many more women who left their imprint on our country.  Some of the other women mentioned are Emily Dickinson, all the First Ladies of the United States (up to Laura Bush), Laura Ingalls, Anna Jarvis--who founded Mother's Day in 1914, Sandra Day O'Connor, the women of Hollywood, among many others.

This book is so interesting and full of information that I literally could not put it down!  The only problem is that it is so full of information.  The words go every which way.  Not only do the words read left-to-right in the middle of the page, but they go around the edge of the page, and in little bubbles, and every other way you could imagine.  It may be hard for children to read themselves without getting mixed up from time to time. However, I think this would be a great book to have in a classroom.  Students could read through it, pick their favorite person from the book and do a short paper on that person, learning and researching all about her life and accomplishments.

Picture Book #15--Henry's Freedom Box

Title:  Henry's Freedom Box

Author:  Ellen Levine

Illustrator:  Kadir Nelson

Grade Level Equivalent:  1.9

Lexile Measure:  AD380L

Genre:  Children's Literature

Subgenre:  Biography
Theme:  Never give up.
Primary and Secondary Characters:  Henry, Nancy, James, Dr. Smith
Awards:  N/A

Date of Publication:  2007

Publisher:  Scholastic, Inc.

ISBN:  043977733X

Henry's Freedom Box tells the story of Henry, a slave who is separated from his mother when his master falls ill and sells him to his son.  Later, Henry meets Nancy, another slave, and eventually the two get married and have three children.  One day, while Henry is at work, a friend tells him that Nancy and the kids have been sold.  He runs out onto the street just in time to see his wife and children being carted away, too late to stop them.  Hearbroken, Henry comes up with a plan to get out of slavery.  He places himself into a big, wooden crate and has two friends, James and Dr. Smith--a white man, nonetheless--mail him to Pennsylvania. 

I loved this book and think it would be great to have in a classroom for children to read during a lesson on the Civil War and slavery.   I hate that there was no resolution with Henry's family and that would be a hard thing for students to grasp nowadays, but they have to understand that this sort of thing happened all the time.  Children were ripped away from their families to be sold into slavery.  It's a hard fact of the history of this country.  But I think this would be a beneficial story for students to hear.  There are so many writing activities that could come from this book.  Students could write about what they would do if they were Henry sitting in that box, waiting for freedom or they could write from the perspective of Henry's children.  What would you do and how would you feel if you were in that situation.  It is a perfect writing assignment for children that will force them to think creatively and build up their empathy, having to relate to what others have gone through in the past.

Picture Book #14--So You Want to Be President

Title:  So You Want to Be President

Author:  Judith St. George

Illustrator:  David Small

Grade Level Equivalent:  N/A

Lexile Measure:  730L

Genre:  Children's Literature

Subgenre:  Biography

Theme:  How past presidents of the U.S. got the job.

Primary and Secondary Characters:  the 42 Presidents of the United States

Awards:  Caldecott Medal (Won, 2001)

Pennsylvania Young Reader's Choice Award (Won, 2002)

Show Me Readers Award (Nominated, 2003)

Bluegrass Award (Won, 2002)

Volunteer State Book Award (Nominated, 2003)

School Library Journal Best Books of the Year (Won, 2000)
Garden State Children's Book Awards (Won, 2003)

American Library Association Notable Books for Children (Won, 2001)

Dorothy Canfield Fisher Children's Book Award (Nominated, 2002)

New York Times Notable Books of the Year (Won, 2000)

Publishers Weekly Best Children's Books (Won, 2000)

ABC Children's Booksellers Choices Awards (Won, 2001)

Prairie Pasque Award (Nominated, 2003)
William Allen White Children's Book Award (Nominated, 2003)

Bluebonnet Award (Nominated, 2002)

Date of Publication:  2000

Publisher:  Penguin Group

ISBN:  0399234071

So You Want to Be President tells how each of the first forty-two presidents of the United States (up to Bill Clinton) came to get the job.  It lists different attributes each man had, pros and cons to being president (pro: bowling alley in the White House; con: sometimes people throw cabbage at you), and trivia facts about the forty-two men, such as there were six presidents named James, four named John, four named William, and two named George, Andrew, and Franklin.  It tells how many presidents served in the military, and other jobs the men held before being elected, what kind and how many pets the presidents had living with them in the White House, and how many Vice Presidents succeeded into the Presidential role and under what circumstances.  At the end of the book, there is a list of the presidents, in order in which they served, along with biographical information such as birthdate and place, date of death, and something significant that each man did during his presidency.

This book would be great to have in a classroom to read to the students around Presidents Day.  It gives a lot of factual knowledge about each man and has a lot of bright, funny illustrations of the presidents, done in a caricature-type style.  The only problem with the book is that it is not up-to-date.  It only goes up to Bill Clinton and does not include anything about George W. Bush or President Barack Obama.  It also states that there has never been a President of color, which was true at the time of publication but is irrelevant now.  On any note, this would be an excellent book to read to children.  They will get a good laugh out of the pictures and some of the stories involving the men who have led our country.  It would also be a great book to spark a creative writing assignment, something like "What would you do if you were President of the United States?". 

Chapter Book #8--95 Pounds of Hope

Title:  95 Pounds of Hope

Author:  Anna Gavalda

Illustrator:  N/A

Grade Level Equivalent:  3.4

Lexile Measure:  640L

Genre:  Children's Literature

Subgenre:  Realistic Fiction

Theme:  Never give up on yourself.

Primary and Secondary Characters:  Gregory, Grandpa Leon, Grandma Charlotte, Gregory's mother and father

Awards:  N/A

Date of Publication:  2003
Publisher:  Penguin Group
ISBN:  0670036722

95 Pounds of Hope follows Gregory on his journey through school and through life.  Gregory is having a pretty rough go of it.  He is not doing well in school, not even a little bit.  He has been held back twice—once in third grade and a second time in sixth grade.  His parents constantly fight and argue with each other and with him.  They tell him that he and his bad grades and lack of determination are the reason they fight and yell all the time.  And on top of all that, doctors have diagnosed him with ADD, which he thinks is bologna since he doesn’t have a problem concentrating on anything other than school.  But Gregory has a talent.  He can build just about anything he sets his mind to.  And his grandfather, Grandpa Leon, is the one person who stands behind him no matter what.  His favorite place in the world is in Grandpa Leon’s workshop.  The time comes for school to start back—a time Gregory is dreading—but because he has been expelled so many times, no school in the area will take him, and the one that finally does is a horrible school.  The teachers don’t care about homework, students get mugged on a regular basis, and groups of students sneak outside during school hours to smoke marijuana.  Gregory’s mother decides she and her husband cannot let their son go to this school so they go for the only available option they have left—boarding school.  They allow Gregory to choose the one he wants to attend, which just so happens to be a technical school with a lot of hands-on classes.  Before Gregory leaves to attend the school, he gets some bad news:  Grandpa Leon has fallen ill and is in the hospital.  Knowing that his grandfather is struggling just to live gives Gregory renewed determination at school.  He even successfully completes the rope climb in gym class, something he has never done before.  He decides that he needs to turn over a new leave and becomes more focused and determined in his efforts.  That is, until he learns that Grandpa Leon has taken a turn for the worse and fallen into a coma. 

This book would be great for students to read in a literature circle.  It does contain some profanity and other language so it would only be suitable for mature, older students; fifth or sixth grade.  But the content is very on task with what students at this age are going through, making it interesting and relatable for young readers.  Problems with bickering parents, trouble at school, and grandparents getting sick are some of the biggest problems faced by pre-teens.  Having a book that covers all of these on their level would be beneficial for them to read and discuss among themselves in a literature circle-type environment.

Chapter Book #7--Olive's Ocean

Title:  Olive's Ocean

Author:  Kevin Henkes

Illustrator:  (cover) Cleo Sullivan

Grade Level Equivalent:  4.8

Lexile Measure:  680L

Genre:  Children's Literature

Subgenre:  Realistic Fiction

Theme:  Life is short.  Treat others kindly while you have the chance.

Primary and Secondary Characters:  Martha, Godbee, Vince, Jimmy Manning, Tate Manning, Lucy, Martha's mother and father

Awards:  Newbery Medal (Nominated, 2004)

Virginia Reader's Choice Awards (Nominated, 2006)
Bluegrass Award (Nominated, 2005)
North Carolina Children's Book Award (Nominated, 2005)
Young Reader's Choice Award (Nominated, 2006)
American Library Association Notable Books for Children (Won, 2004)
Garden State Teen Book Award (Nominated, 2006)
Los Angeles Times Book Prizes (Nominated, 2003)
Dorothy Canfield Fisher Children's Book Award (Nominated, 2005)
Publishers Weekly Best Children's Books (Won, 2003)
Charlie May Simon Children's Book Award (Nominated, 2006)
Bluebonnet Award (Nominated, 2006)
Nene Award (Nominated, 2005)
Burr/Worzalla Award (Nominated, 2004)

Date of Publication:  2003

Publisher:  HarperCollins
ISBN:  0060535431

Olive’s Ocean tells the story of Martha, a girl who finds out that a classmate of hers that she had never really known has passed away in an accident.  It isn’t until after Olive’s death that Martha realizes how much they had in common and that they could  have been really good friends if Martha had ever taken the initiative to get to know Olive.  Martha is disconcerted by the realization that she and Olive had the same hopes of being a writer, Olive had always wanted to see the ocean—something Martha got to do every summer when she went to visit her grandmother, Godbee—and that Olive had really wanted to be Martha’s friend.  Martha sits on this quietly, thinking it over throughout the summer.  It is during this time that Martha evolves from the kid she was into the more grown-up, mature version of herself.  She realizes that she has feelings for Jimmy Manning, a boy who lives down the street from Godbee.  Jimmy tells Martha that he likes her and they hold hands while walking on the beach.  He tells her that he needs her help filming his movie that he has been working on.  When they get to the place where the film is to be shot, Jimmy kisses Martha—her first kiss from a boy ever—and then loudly exclaims that he got the shot and explains to Martha that the kiss had been a bet with his brothers to see if he could do it and get it on tape.  Crushed, Martha runs back to Godbee’s house and thinks about all the things that have happened to change her over the summer.  When she asks Godbee for some advice on what she should do when she is sad, Godbee tells her to think of someone who is worse off than she is and try to do something nice for that person.  This gets Martha to think about Olive and how she had always wanted to see the ocean but never got the chance.  With a bottle in hand, Martha decides to bring the ocean to Olive’s mother—Olive’s Ocean—so that she will have a piece of it.  When Martha gets back home, she looks up Olive’s mother’s address and heads over to give her the ocean.  When she arrives, she discovers that in grief, Olive’s mother has moved away. 

This book would be great for students to read in a literature circle.  It does have some light profanity, so it would have to be used for mature students.  The topic at hand is very deep and meaningful so it is something that students could read and discuss and get a lot out of.  Dealing with the death of a classmate (or loved one, as not all students have had to deal with the death of a peer) and getting your heart broken is something that all students can relate to, especially at the pre-teen age.  Martha goes through a transformation of sorts and this can correlate to what students at the pre-teen age are going through on a personal level.

Chapter Book #6--Rules

Title:  Rules

Author:  Cynthia Lord

Illustrator:  N/A

Grade Level Equivalent:  4.5

Lexile Measure:  780L

Genre:  Children's Literature

Subgenre:  Realistic Fiction

Theme:  Love and acceptance of others has to come from within yourself, not others.

Primary and Secondary Characters:  Catherine, David, Jason, Kristi, Ryan, Catherine & David's mother and father

Awards:  Newbery Honor Medal (2007)

Schneider Family Book Award (2007)
Mitten Award (Michigan Library Association)
Great Lakes Great Books Award (Michigan)
Maine Student Book Award
Dorothy Canfield Fisher Award (Vermont)
Kentucky Bluegrass Award
Great Stone Face Award (New Hampshire)
Buckeye Children's Book Award (Ohio)

Date of Publication:  2006
Publisher:  Scholastic, Inc.
ISBN:  0439443822

Rules tells the story of twelve-year-old Catherine who is struggling to deal with her brother, David’s, autism.  Their mother is a tax preparation agent who works from home and their father is a pharmacist who works all the time.  Catherine has created rules for David, things like “Say ‘thank you’ when someone gives you a present (even if you don’t like it)”, “No toys in the fish tank”, and “Sometimes people laugh when they like you.  But sometimes they laugh to hurt you”.  She thinks these rules she has created are to help David—and some of them do—but really it’s to try to keep David from doing things that might embarrass her.  When a new girl, Kristi, moves in across the street, Catherine’s insecurities about her brother and his disability really take off.  She becomes almost hyperaware of the smallest of David’s quirks, such as his tendency to open and close every door in every house he goes in.  The fact that her parents allow David to engage in small behaviors like this angers Catherine to no end.  Then she meets a boy, Jason, a paraplegic, at David’s occupational therapy appointment.  Jason cannot talk but uses a communication book to communicate with others.  Catherine strikes up a friendship with him and creates new cards with new words to put in Jason’s book.  But even with her new friend, she cannot shed the embarrassment she feels towards the disabled people in her life.  When she tells Kristi about Jason, she conveniently leaves is disability out of the story.  When Kristi suggests that Catherine invite Jason to the upcoming dance, she makes excuse after excuse.  When Jason hears about the dance he asks Catherine and when she says no, Jason fears that Catherine is embarrassed by him and his disability.  It takes this deep, hurtful feeling to snap Catherine out of her embarrassment and learn, slowly but surely, that she is the one with the problem and she needs to be more accepting and understanding of the people she truly cares about and worry less about what others may think.

I think this book is a must-have for a classroom.  It is ideal for older students who have loved ones with disabilities.  The struggle for Catherine to come to terms with her brother’s autism and her friend’s disability is something that, I’m sure, almost every student in the same situation can relate to.  It can help students who face the same problem learn to see that the embarrassment or lack of acceptance they feel towards the person in their life who is faced with autism or any other disability is their struggle and one that they will have to come to terms with and does not reflect the person with the disability.  I just think it is a wonderful story that can resonate on so many levels with young students who face a similar situation.

Chapter Book #5--Pictures of Hollis Woods

Title:  Pictures of Hollis Woods

Author:  Patricia Reilly Giff

Illustrator:  N/A

Grade Level Equivalent:  4.5

Lexile Measure:  650L

Genre:  Children's Literature

Subgenre:  Realistic Fiction

Theme:  Nothing is more important than family.

Primary and Secondary Characters:  Hollis Woods, Josie Cahill, Steven Regan, "Old Man" Regan, Izzy Regan, the mustard woman

Awards: Newbery Medal (Nominated, 2003)

Mark Twain Award (Nominated, 2005)

Christopher Book Awards (Nominated, 2003)

California Young Reader Medal (Nominated, 2006)

Wyoming Indian Paintbrush Book Award (Nominated, 2005)

Iowa Children's Choice Award (Nominated, 2005)

Young Hoosier Book Award (Nominated, 2005)

Pennsylvania Young Reader's Choice Award (Nominated, 2005)
Virginia Reader's Choice Awards (Nominated, 2005)
Land of Enchantment Book Award (Nominated, 2006)
Black-Eyed Susan Book Award (Nominated, 2005)
North Carolina Children's Book Award (Nominated, 2004)
Volunteer State Book Award (Nominated, 2005)
Colorado Children's Book Award (Nominated, 2005)
Golden Sower Award (Nominated, 2005)
Nevada Young Reader's Award (Nominated, 2004)
SCASL Book Award (South Carolina) (Nominated, 2005)

Buckeye Children's Book Award (Nominated, 2004)

Massachusetts Children's Book Award (Nominated, 2005)

American Library Association Notable Books for Children (Won, 2003)

Nutmeg Children's Book Award (Nominated, 2006)

Sequoyah Book Award (Nominated, 2005)

Iowa Teen Award (Nominated, 2005)

Charlie May Simon Children's Book Award (Nominated, 2005)

Prairie Pasque Award (Nominated, 2005)

William Allen White Children's Book Award (Nominated, 2005)

Great Stone Face Children's Book Award (Nominated, 2004)

Rebecca Caudill Young Reader's Book Award (Nominated, 2005)

Beehive Children's Fictional Book Award (Nominated, 2004)

Nene Award (Nominated, 2004)

Rhode Island Children's Book Award (Nominated, 2004)

Date of Publication:  2002

Publisher:  Random House Children's Books

ISBN:  0385326556

Pictures of Hollis Woods tells the story of Hollis Woods, a young girl who was abandoned as a baby, just hours old, and is named after the place authorities found her.  The story is told in two different ways:  first, through flashbacks of pictures that tell what she has been through that led her to where she is now and second, through the chapters that tell about her current situation and what she thinks and feels after her past has led her to her present.  In her past, Hollis has run from every home she has ever been placed in.  She just never seems to fit in anywhere.  That is until she is placed in the home of the Regan’s.  Here she feels loved and safe and as if she belongs.  But after an accident lands her and the Regan’s biological son in the hospital, Hollis blames herself and copes the only way she knows how—by running away.  After several failed attempts at getting Hollis back, the Regan’s leave for their winter home, hoping she will return.  It is then that the agency places Hollis in the care of Josie, an aging retired art teacher who lives with her cantankerous old cat, Henry.  Josie and Hollis get along great but soon it is Hollis who is taking care of Josie as Hollis begins to realize that she is facing the early stages of Alzheimer’s.  When the agency realizes Josie’s condition they find another family that is willing to take Hollis in.  Before that can happen, however, Hollis runs with Josie and Henry in tow.  Hollis takes Josie to the only place she knows they will be safe—the Regan’s summer home in Branches.  But deep down, Hollis is really running back home to the only place she has ever belonged.

This is a great book and would be a wonderful addition to any classroom.  The story is compelling and draws you in effortlessly.  The fact that the story is told from the perspective of flashbacks and the present lends a different tone to the story and allows the reader to gain a broader understanding of who Hollis Woods is and why she is the way she is.  I think that a lot of students would be able to relate to the character of Hollis Woods in that she often feels alone and as if no one really understands her, which is a feeling a lot of middle-schoolers can understand.  The story also taps in to a feeling that all students and adults, even, can relate to:  wanting to be needed and loved.  This would be a great book for students to read and discuss in a book club or literature circle.

Picture Book #13--The Legend of the Indian Paintbrush

Title:  The Legend of the Indian Paintbrush

Author:  (retold by) Tomie dePaola

Illustrator:  Tomie dePaola

Grade Level Equivalent:  2.8

Lexile Measure:  840L

Genre:  Children's Literature

Subgenre:  Traditional Literature

Theme:  Follow your dreams.

Primary and Secondary Characters:  Little Gopher

Awards:  N/A

Date of Publication:  1988

Publisher:  Penguin Group

ISBN:  0698113608

The Legend of the Indian Paintbrush is a Native American tale that follows Little Gopher on his quest to find his true calling.  He is not like the other boys in the tribe.  He cannot keep up during hunts or athletic events so he sets out to the highest hill to await a Dream-Vision that would tell him what he was meant to do.  When he finally recieves his Dream-Vision, Little Gopher knows that he is supposed to be a great artist who captures his peoples' stories and legends with the colors of nature so that all the people can remember them.  His main mission is to find a pure white buckskin and paint the colors of the sunset.  After finding the buckskin, he struggles to find the right colors to paint it.  It is then that Little Gopher heard a voice telling him that since he had been true to his Dream-Vision he needed to go to the highest hill at sunset and there he would be rewarded with the colors he needed.  The next night, he followed the voice's instructions and he was given paintbrushes filled with the colors of the sunset.  After painting his buckskin, he took it back to show his people, leaving the paintbrushes behind.  The next morning, and every following spring, the paintbrushes bloomed into beautiful flowers. 

This would be a great book to have in a classroom when studying about Native Americans and their legends.  It gives insight into how the people of this culture discovered their true paths in life.  It is told in a very kid-friendly way and the illustrations by Tomie dePaola are very bright and colorful.