Lucky Ducklings

Author: Eva Moore
Publication Date: 2013
Type of Book: Picture Book

This picture book shares the true story of a family of ducks from Long Island, NY. The mother duck and her ducklings were taking a walk through town one day. The mama duck crossed over the storm drain and closely behind were her babies. The only problem was that her babies were a lot smaller than her and because of these each of them fell into the drain. Someone from he town saw what had happened and called the Fire Department. With the help of people from the town the ducks were rescued and taken back to their home in the park.

I really enjoyed reading this story. The illustrations were fantastic and really helped tell the story. The author included dialogue to represent what they thought the duck was saying. This was a really cute addition to the book and helped personify the characters that weren't human. Suspense was also another aspect of this story that was unique. The author made it so you had to continue reading in order to find out what happened next. I also liked how the author repeated the phrase, "That could have been the end of the story. But it wasn't, because..." throughout the story. Then at the end the author finally said, "And that is the end of the story".

This is a fantastic book to use in the classroom. You can use it for students in all grades. Since this book is based on a true story the teacher could find the news article from the day it happened. Students could read this article and take notes. They then can read the picture book and compare it to the informational text they had read. This book can also be used to teach students how to figure out unknown words using different reading strategies. The teacher can do this by covering up various words within the story and students have to determine what the words could be. Since the illustrations are so well done students could rely a lot on picture clues to help them.

Image References:
http://www.amazon.com/Lucky-Ducklings-Eva-Moore/dp/0439448611

Fairy Tale Comics

Editor: Chris Duffy
Publication Date: 2013
Type of Book: Graphic Novel

This book was a compilation of classic fairy tales. Each fairy tale was told using cartoons. Even though many of the fairy tales are well known they still had their own twist to them. There is a total of 17 fairy tale comics in this book.

I did not like this book at all. I am a huge fairy tale fan so I thought I would enjoy it but I was wrong. Many of the fairy tales were just plain odd. I was familiar with some of the stories and others I had never heard before. Some of the fairytales were written in a very dark and not kid friendly manner which I didn't like. I also did not enjoy reading the fairy tales in the graphic novel form. I felt that the stories didn't flow as nicely as they do when written in a traditional format. I will say that the cartoonists did do an amazing job with the illustrations. I wouldn't read this book again and it isn't one I would buy for my classroom library.

I personally wouldn't recommend this book to anyone. I think that there are better examples of graphic novels out there that students can read. This book wouldn't be the best to use during a fairytale unit since many of the fairytales are altered in ways that wouldn't be appropriate for young children.

Image References:
http://www.amazon.com/Fairy-Tale-Comics-Extraordinary-Cartoonists/dp/1596438231/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1447366743&sr=1-1&keywords=fairy+tale+comics

Owly & Wormy Bright Lights And Starry Nights!

Author: Andy Runton
Publication Date: 2012
Type of Book: Peer Recommended Picture Book

This book is about two friends, Owly and Wormy who want to see the stars in the night sky. They encounter many problems preventing them from seeing the stars. They go on an adventure to a big hill where they hope they can use their telescope to see the stars. Once at the hill they have some unforeseen circumstances that once again prevent them from seeing the stars. In the end with the help of some unsuspecting friends Owly and Wormy are finally able to see the beautiful nighttime stars.

I absolutely love the illustrations in this book. The cartoonish way in which the characters are drawn makes them so lovable. Even the bat was drawn in a way that made it look so cute and friendly. The thought bubbles throughout the pages really helped tell the story. Having the illustrations be set against a purple background was helpful in setting the nighttime scene. In the end I was happy that they finally got to see the stars because they had been through so much just to look at them.

I would recommend this story for students in all grade levels. Since it is a wordless picture book students in younger grades have the ability to read it regardless of reading level. Both younger and older students can use text features to help tell the story. This book can even be used as a way to prompt students to write their own wordless picture book.

Image References:
http://www.amazon.com/Wormy-Bright-Lights-Starry-Nights/dp/1416957758

Jack and the Night Visitors

Author: Pat Schories
Publication Date: 2006
Type of Book: Peer Recommended Picture Book

This wordless picture book shares the story of a young boy named Jack who one night encounters some out of town visitors. While laying in bed Jack saw a light shining outside of his bedroom window. Curious as to what was causing the bright light he went over to take a look. From there he saw a little space ship that was packed with aliens. They hopped out, came inside Jack's room, and started exploring. They were hungry so Jack went downstairs to grab some food for them. Everyone was having a great time until Jack took one of the aliens and trapped him inside of a glass jar. The alien in the jar was scared and so were the others. Jack was scared as well because everyone started panicking. He didn't realize that what he did was wrong and how his actions came across as scary to the aliens. When he let the alien go he quickly ran away and they left on their spaceship to return home.

I thought that this was a really adorable story. Since it was wordless I liked how I was able to interrupt what happened using the illustrations to help me. The illustrations were well done and did a fantastic job in telling the story. I didn't expect Jack to capture one of the aliens because he seemed to really like them. I then realized that he wasn't being mean by capturing one. He liked the alien so much he wanted to keep it but didn't take into account how this would make the alien feel.

This would be a great story for younger children. Since it is wordless they wouldn't encounter problems with not knowing the words. Students can create their own story based on the illustrations. The teacher can also use this story to teach them about nature/wildlife. Many children love playing with creatures they find outside such as butterflies and caterpillars. When they capture these creatures they end up dying because that is not their natural habitat. Students can learn that they can play with these creatures as long as they let them return to where they came from in the end.

Image References:
http://bookcarousel.blogspot.com/2006/04/jack-and-night-visitors-by-pat.html

The Dot

Author: Peter H. Reynolds
Publication Date: 2003
Type of Book: Peer Recommended Picture Book

This story is about a young girl in art class who refuses to work because she claims she can't draw. The art teacher suggested she make any mark and then she can work from there. Vashti make one dot on her paper and called it quits but her teacher still had her sign it. When she came into art the following day she saw her dot framed and hung up behind her art teachers desk. She couldn't believe her art teacher had hung up her silly little dot. She then realized that she knew she could make an even better dot. From there Vashti created a ton of dots of all different sizes and colors. Her artwork was eventually displayed in the schools art show. When a little boy came up to her and said how much he loved her artwork and he wishes he could draw, Vashti knew just what to do. She asked him to draw a line for her and then had him sign it.

I really enjoyed this story and the idea that it only takes one little idea to create something wonderful. Many times people are afraid to start something because they don't believe they're good enough or know how to do it properly. By allowing someone to start small you provide them with the potential to create something they didn't know they could. My favorite part of the story was the ending when Vashti helped another little boy who didn't have confidence in himself, just like her teacher had helped her.

I would recommend this story to children in any grade level. Students in younger grades may need this story shared as a read aloud or they could read it themselves if it is at their reading level. Teachers in upper grades could use this story as well to show students the important message it shares. They could create a project where they draw a series of dots of varying sizes. Each dot could represent an idea that they have and as they add onto their idea the dot can get bigger. Students could sign their work in the end and the teacher can display it for everyone to see.

Image References:
http://www.thedotclub.org/dotday/get-inspired/making-a-mark

Seedfolks

Author: Paul Fleischman
Publication Date: 1997
Type of Book: Novel

This book shares the story of a local community in Cleveland who builds a garden in an abandoned lot.  Each chapter of the book shares the story of a different member of the community who is somehow tied to the garden. You learn the unexpected ways in which this garden ties the people who once lived separately together. The story takes readers through the gardens journey showing it as an empty lot in the beginning, to slowly being transformed into a small garden, to its final form of a huge community garden that ends up positively impacting the local community in ways they couldn't have imagined.

I still do not know how I feel about this story. It was an easy read and the I kind of liked the way the book was set up. I liked how each chapter shared the story of a person from the community, but at the same time I wish there was deeper character development and I could read more about certain characters. However I did like that throughout the story you learned the significance of the garden by reading the different stories. This isn't a story that I would elect to re-read for the fun of it.

I would recommend this story for older students. The content and set up of the story is too challenging for young readers. Teachers could use this story as a way to teach students how separate pieces of writing can be tied together for a larger purpose. The class could do a project where they have a topic and each student works on writing one chapter of the book. In the end they could have a book that is written in the same unique style at the book Seedfolks.

Image References:
http://www.scholastic.com/teachers/book/seedfolks

Me Gustaria Tener...

Author: Alma Flor Ada
Publication Date: 1989

This is a Spanish story that shares the narrators desire to have something difficult to believe. Each page of the story is another unbelievable thing the narrator would like to see such as a bird with a pocket watch, giraffes with glasses, or rats buying pants.

I had a slightly difficult time reading this story because it was all in Spanish. I knew some of the words from taking Spanish in middle and high school, but I was still uncertain on some words. Using the illustrations helped me better understand the story even without knowing each word. I then had my roommate who studied abroad in Spain to help me figure out the parts of the story I didn't know. Reading this story was an interesting experience because it isn't very often I read books in a foreign language but I still enjoyed the challenge.

This story would be a good addition to a classroom library. All students could have the opportunity to look at and and try to read this story, not only those students who know how to read in Spanish. A foreign language teacher could easily incorporate this story into their class. Since students may not understand the words in the text this book can be used to help them use other textual clues, such as illustrations to help develop meaning.

References:
http://www.delsolbooks.com/howhappyiwouldbe.htm