Summers in Vermont might be a bit short, but afternoons are a perfect time to climb a tree, get comfortable, and spend a few hours reading. Zane, age 8, from Vermont offers two of his favorite books to include on your summer reading list: Title: NEVILLE! Author: Norton Juster Illustrator: G. Brian Karas Who might enjoy this book? Boys… Read more »
Book Room
A girl with crazy thoughts … magic wands and fairies … dogs, dogs, and more dogs …
Ellie and Natalie are sisters who live in Colorado and who love to read. They recommend several books for the summer. First up, Ellie, age 8: I recommend the “Dear Dumb Diary” series by Jim Benton. Jaime Kelly is the main character and she thinks a lot of crazy thoughts. She wishes animals would attack… Read more »
Genre Connections: POETRY
Like her previously published, Comprehension Connections (Heinemann, 2007), Genre Connections: Lessons to Launch Literary and Nonfiction Texts by Tanny McGregor (Heinemann, 2013) is a great go-to resource for teachers looking for concrete, hands-on lessons that introduce students to “Big Idea” concepts. I particularly love Tanny’s idea of launching a unit of study on poetry by asking, “How is a poem like a… Read more »
SNOOK ALONE by Marilyn Nelson, poet and story-teller
If you haven’t explored Marilyn Nelson’s poetry and narratives, you are in for a literary feast. Her new picture book reads soft and soothing – with surprises and delights with phrasing that is part poetry, part narrative. SNOOK ALONE tells the story of a faithful little rat-terrier dog, Snook, who dutifully catches the mice and… Read more »
The Poetry of Animals
PUG AND OTHER ANIMAL POEMS by Valerie Worth, pictures by Steve Jenkins (Margaret Ferguson Books, 2013) Fans of Valerie Worth’s all the small poems and fourteen more will enjoy her second posthumous collection. I have many favorites, each with Worth’s striking observations. Here’s a snippet – from “Toads”: Wells around the Cellar windows… Holding a clutter… Read more »
New and Notable: Concept Books
Enjoy this peek at three new concept books, recently out from Chronicle. INSIDE OUTSIDE by Lizi Boyd (Chronicle 2013) Inside his cozy home, a boy works at a desk, a dog hides, two mice play together on the floor. Through the window (a die-cut), the reader watches two snowmen. What are they doing? Turn the page…outside,… Read more »
My Father’s Arms Are a Boat
My Father’s Arms are a Boat, by Stein Erik Lunde, illustrated by Oyvind Torseter. A little boy, unable to sleep, crawls into his father’s arms on a quiet winter’s night. Will his mother come back? the boy asks. “No, not from where she is now,” his father says, and then the wise man carries the… Read more »
