The Dragon New Year

The Dragon New Year: A Chinese Legend

David Bouchard, Illustrated by Zhong-Yang Huang

Peachtree Publishers, 1999

Pages: 32

Reading Level: 9-12

Genre: Picture Book

A young girl in China is frightened by all the noise and lights outside on New Year's, so her grandmother tells her the story of how the lights and noise of New Years keep her safe. She told the story of how long ago there was a dragon who lived in the sea named New Year. And once a year he came ashore to the village and would eat the people until he was full, and so the people learned to run into the hills until he was done feasting. One year there was a young man coming in from fishing, but because of the weather he could not make it to shore in time, and New Year ate him. His mother, who saw it all from where she was hiding on a cliff, was devastated. The next year, she did not go hide in the hills, because she had nothing left to live for. While she was home, Buddha came to her door and asked for some food. She said alright, but asked him why he wasn't hiding at this dangerous time. He told her that it was alright, that he would teach her a way to frighten New Year away. He told her that New Year had never seen fire or hear sound, since he lived under the ocean. So Buddha built a large bonfire, and he had mother chop meat and fish as hard and loud as she could. When New Year came to shore, he covered his ears because the sound was too much for him, and shrank away from the fire. Just then, they fire took the shape of the young man New Year had eaten the year before, and he took out a fishing net of fire and threw it over New Year. New Year struggled and was able to get free, but he dropped into the ocean and was gone. That, explained grandmother to her granddaughter, is why there is always lots of light and sound at New Year's.

I would recommend this book to anyone wanting to learn more about Chinese culture, or anyone wanting to know more about New Year's.

Problems: Children frequently believe in monsters in their rooms at night. If they read this book, they might try to get rid of it by creating a terrible ruckus, thus waking everyone in the house. Or worse, they might try to start a fire.

My reaction: I think this book is interesting. The paintings are beautiful, and have so much detail. They are very fun to look at.

My rating: ****

Flossie and the Fox

Flossie and the Fox

Patricia C. McKissack, Illustrated by Rachel Isadora

Dial, 1986

Pages: 32

Reading Level: 4-8

Genre: Picture Book

One day Flossie's mother sent her to deliver some eggs to a friend. This friend had been having trouble with a fox, and their chicken would lay any eggs. Foxes love eggs. Flossie's mother told her to protect the eggs so that the fox couldn't get them. On her way there, Flossie ran into the fox. The fox introduced himself as a fox, but Flossie didn't believe him, and refused to be scared of him. So the fox started looking for a way he could prove that he was a fox so that Flossie would be scared. He showed her his fox fur, but Flossie said it felt like a rabbits. Then he showed her his pointed nose, but she said it looked like a rats. They ran into a cat, and they cat pointed out that the fox had sharp claws and yellow eyes, but Flossie pointed out that so did the cat, and that both of them were cats. By now the fox was beside himself. The fox tells her that he has a bushy tail, and Flossie points to a squirrel who also has a bushy tail. Flossie tells the fox that he should be ashamed for claiming he is a fox, but not being able to prove it, and the fox begs for one more chance. He says that he has sharp teeth and can run exceedingly fast. Then Flossie says it doesn't matter anymore because the friends hound is behind the fox, and he has sharp teeth and can run fast too, and the hound has been looking for fox. The fox runs away because the hound knows that he is a fox. As he runs he yells that he isn't afraid of the dog because he is a fox. Flossie says that she knows, and takes the eggs safely to the friends house.

I would recommend this book to all young children; there isn't really a theme, but it is a cute book children would enjoy.

Problems: I can't think of any problems this book could cause.

My reaction: I thought this was a cute book. There isn't really any theme or point to it, other than it is simply a good read.

My rating: ***

Destination: Space

Destination: Space
Seumour Simon
Collins, 2006
Pages: 32
Reading Level: 4-8
Genre: Non-Fiction

The Hubble Space telescope has been orbiting the earth since April 1990, and has been taking many wonderful picture. This book uses those pictures to teach us about many things in space, including mars, Jupiter, star clusters, supernovas, nebulas, cometary knots, and many more. Mars has a spring, summer, fall and winter just like us. In the spring in the northern hemispere, the north polar cap which is dry ice rapidly disappears. Jupitars beautiful rings are made up of ice, and it has "northern lights" just like earth. Supernova's are exploding stars that give off enourmous amounts of light and energy, and then flicker out and die. Nebulas are where stars are born. They are great big clouds of hydrogen gas and dust. The pictures in this book help to understand what each of these do and look like.

I would recommend that an elementary school teacher or science teacher read this book to their students. It is a great way to learn about space.

I can't think of any problems or conficts this book could cause.

My reaction: This book is a wonderful way for children to learn about space. The pictures are beautiful and informative.

My rating: ***

The Farmer and the Poor God

The Farmer and the Poor God: a folktale from Japan
Retold by Ruth Wells, Illustrated by Yoshi
Simon & Schuster Books For Young Readers, 1996
Pages: 24
Reading Level: 4-8
Genre: Picture Book

A long time ago in Japan there was a very poor farmer. He was not a very good farmer because he didn't work very hard. He was sad and his wife was sad and their children were loud and always fought. One day the farmer decided that they had a poor god in their attic, and this was true. People who had the Poor God living there could never truly be rich. They made a plan to leave that night while the Poor God was sleeping so they could escape their bad luck. But the Poor God heard them, and started making sandals out of stalks of rice for the journey. That night the farmer and his wife were very sad to find out that the Poor God found out about their plans, and they went back to bed. The Poor God kept on making sandals, for he thought it was a very good way to spend his time. He soon found ways to make dyes and make beautifully colored sandals. A man came by a commented on how beautiful the sandals were, so Poor God gave them some. Soon many people wanted them, and the farmer had the idea to charge for the sandals. He took them to the market and gave back with lots of rice and grain and chickens and things. He asked if Poor God could keep making sandals, and he said yes, but only if the family would bring him more rice stalks and make dye. The family began to work hard and became more and more happy, and the farmer learned how to make sandals and became an artist. On New Year's, the Poor God decided it was time to leave, for the family was becoming too rich for him. But they didn't want him to go, so when Rich God came to take his place, they pushed him out of their home. Eventually, Poor God simply faded away.

I would recommend this book to anyone who wanted to learn a little more about Japanese culture.

Problems: This book could cause people to blame their “luck” on something else, and not work hard for what they want.

My reaction: This book is okay, but not my favorite.

My rating: ***

Gertrude Chandler Warner

Gertrude Chandler Warner
Joan Wallner
Abdo & Daughters, 1996
Pages: 31
Reading Level: 4-8
Genre: Non-Fiction/Biography

Gertrude Chandler Weber grew up in Putnam, Connecticut. She loved to play with her dollhouse and reading when she was growing up. Both Gertrude and her sister wanted to write books when they grew up. Her house was across the street from the railroad, and Gertrude always wondered what it would be like to live in a train. Her whole life, Gertrude Warner suffered from very bad hay fever, and back then there wasn't any medicine for it. One day her house caught on fire and after the excitement was over she realized that her sneezing had stopped. She realized that excitement helped her allergy, so she was always looking for excitement and laughter. She traveled a bit, to find somewhere where her allergies wouldn't be as bad, but everywhere she went her allergies followed, so she moved back home. She got a job as a writer, but soon realized she needed more of an education so she took classes at Yale University. While in her classes, she became interested in teaching young children, and decided to write childrens books as well as teach children. She wrote a few books, but nothing too big. That is, until she got bronchitis. She was so sick that she couldn't work. So she spent her time writing, and wrote the first book in the boxcar children series. It was such a huge success that she got many letters from readers who wanted to hear more about the four children's adventures, so she started writing the series. She kept writing till he died at the age of 89, but her books continued to be very popular, and still are today.

I would recommend this book to any children who really like the boxcar children series.

I can't foresee any problems caused by this book

My reaction: The Boxcar Children series was my most favorite series as a child, and I thought it was interesting to learn about the woman who wrote them.

My rating: ***

Martin's Big Words

Martin's Big Words

Doreen Rappaport

Hyperion Book CH, 2001

Pages: 40

Reading Level: 4-8

Genre: Non-Fiction/Biography

This book takes the authors words and follows them on nearly every page with quote by Martin Luther King Jr. It starts out with him as a young boy seeing "white only" signs all over the place. He asks him mother about it, and she simply tells him that he is as good as anyone. His father is a minister, and Martin wants to use "big words" like his father someday, so he grows up to be a minister too. Martin wanted to teach the people that the way to get what they wanted was not with violence, but with love. Throughout his life he "walked with people, talked with people, sang with them and prayed with them." He finally accomplished his goal, and segregation was abolished. Immediately after, Martin Luther King Jr. was killed.

I would recommend this book to teachers who are teaching their class about segregation and Marting Luther King. It would be a great book for them to read to their classes.

I can't think of any problems this book would cause.

My reaction: I read this book with my 10-year-old sister, and we both loved it. We had a good discussion about it. It has great educational value.

My rating: ****

Anansi's Narrow Waist

Anansi's Narrow Waist
Len Cabral, Illustrator:David Diax
GoodYear Books,1994
Pages:16
Reading level:4-8
Genre:Picture Book

One day Anansi the spider smelled some yams cooking and wanted some. The people invited him to wait a minute and have some yams when they were done, but Anansi didn't want to wait, so he had the people tie a string around his waist and told them to tug it when the yams were done. He kept walking and soon came to fried rice and beans. He had them tie a string around his waist too. He kept walking, and eventually he had eight strings around his waist. Then the yams people tugged their strings, then the fried rice and beans people, and all the rest of the strings too. The strings kept pulling tighter and tighter, and making his waist smaller and smaller, until they snapped. That is why a spider has eight legs and a tiny waist.

I would recommend this book to people who want to learn about the African culture.

Children might believe this story and hurt themselves pulling strings that are tied around their waist.

I liked this book because it teaches children to be patient.

Rating:***

Anansi The Spider

Anansi The Spider
Gerald McDermott
Holt, Rinehart and Winston, 1972
Pages: 48
Reading Level: 4-8
Genre: Picture Book

Anansi is a spider who had six sons. These sons were See Trouble, Road Builder, River Drinker, Game Skinner, Stone Thrower, and Cushion. One day Anansi walked far from home and fell into the river and got swallowed by a fish. See Trouble saw what happened and yelled to his brothers that their father was in trouble. Road Builder built a road to get to him, River Drinker drank the river that the fish lived in, and Game Skinner skinned the fish that swallowed father. But the trouble wasn't over. Just then a bird flew by and picked up Anansi in it's beak. Stone thrower threw a stone at the bird and it dropped his father. Cushion helped father to land softly so he wouldn't get hurt. That night at home, Anansi found a great globe of light. He wanted to give it to the sun who had helped him the most, but he couldn't figure out which one had. So Anansi gave the globe to Nyame, the god of all things, and asked him to hold it until Anansi could figure out which son to give it to. They couldn't figure out which son to give it to, so Nyame took the light up into the sky for everyone to enjoy. The moon is still there today.

I would recommend this book to people interested in learning about the Ashanti people

The book could cause children to really believe that the moon really was placed in the sky because of a spider, which is not true.

My Reaction: I really like this tale of Anansi the Spider. It allows me to see into a culture I probably wouldn't have otherwise experienced

My rating: ***

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone
J.K. Rowling
Scholastic Press, 1998
Pages: 309
Reading Level: 9-12
Genre: Fantasy

Harry Potter is an 11 year old boy whoes parents were killed in a car accident, or so he was told. Harry lives with his Aunt Petunia, Uncle Vernon, and cousin Dudley. They are terrible to him. One day Harry actually gets a letter in the mail. He is very excited about it, but Vernon sees it and takes it away. The next day more letters come, so Vernon nails the mail slot shut. Then things start to get weird. Letters start coming in eggs, and there is a downpour our of the chimney. Vernon decides to take the family away. He finds then an old run-down house on a little island. He is confident that no letters will find them there. That night at midnight, also Harry's birthday, a giant breaks down the door. His name is Hagrid. Hagrid pulls out a letter and gives it to Harry and tells him that he is a wizard, that his letter is an acceptance letter to Hogwarts: school of witchcraft and wizardery. And that his parents were killed by an evil wizard named Voldemort, not a car accident, and that he was destroyed when he tried to kill Harry and that Harry is famous. Harry is delighted to hear that he is a wizard and that he doesn't have to put of with the Dursleys anymore, and he leaves with Hargrid to buy his school supplies. After he buys his supplies he gets on platform 9 and 3/4 and meets Ron and Hermione. Ron and Harry become fast friends, but they think Hermione is a know-it-all. When they get to the school, all three are sorted into Griffindor, one of the four groups in the school. Soon after, the first-years are having their first flying lesson, and Harry gets into a fight while the teachers are gone with a boy named Draco Malfoy. Malfoy throws a glass ball that belongs to one of Harry's friends and Harry flys off to save it. He gets caught by a professor, but instead of getting in trouble, he gets made the seeker of his team in Quiddich, which is quite an honor. One night Harry, Ron, and Hermione are wandering the halls after curfew and they almost get caught by Filtch, so they magically unlock a locked door and hide there. That is, until they realize there is a giant 3 headed dog behind them. They leave, and in the days that follow, discover that the dog is guarding the sorcerers stone, which will make an elixer that will turn the drinker immortal and turn anything into gold. One day in class, Ron criticizes Herminone and hurts her feelings and she runs off to the girls bathroom to cry. At dinner, Professor Quirrell runs in a tells everyone that there is a Troll in the dungeon. Dumbledoor, the head-master, orders everyone to their dormitories. The two boys are on their way when they remember Hermione, they go to help her when they stumble upon the troll. It goes into a room, and the boys lock it in, hoping to trap it. Then they hear a girls scream and realize they just locked it in the girls bathroom with Hermione. Together the three of them beat the troll and become fast friends. After that they overhear Snape saying that he got bit my the three-headed dog, so they suspect him of trying to steal the stone. They want to tell Dumbledor, but realize that he is gone. Harry is worried that Snape is going to steal the stone that night while Dumbledor is gone, and Harry is going to thwart him. Harry, Ron, and Hermione manage to get past all the defenses that lie in their way, but Ron got hurt and in one of the rooms only one could progress so Hermione had to stay back. So Harry went on alone. He gets to the last room and finds Professor Quirrell. It was him who was the bad guy all along. He is standing in front of the Mirror of Erised, which shows the looker their greatest desire. Quirrell knows that the stone is in the mirror, but he doesn't know that DUmbledor designed it so that only one who wanted the stone, but didn't want to use it for personal gain could get it out. Quirrell made Harry look into the mirror, and Harry got the stone. Quirrell asked Harry what he saw, and Harry lied so that he didn't have to tell Quirrell that he had the stone. Then there was a voice that said that Harry had lied, and Quirrell took off his turban. On the back of his head was Voldemorts face; he wasn't dead after all. Vordemort commanded Quirrell to destroy Harry, but when Quirrell touched Harry his hands burned. Harry used this to his advantage and destroyed Quirrell, temporarily stopping Voldemort until he could find another body. Harry was rescued by Dumbledor, who told him that it was his mother's love that had saved him when he was a child, that kept Quirrell from touching him. Harry then left to spend the summer with the Dursleys.

I would recommend this book to all chilren. It sparks a love for reading.

Problems: This book might teach children that it is okay to not listen to the rules.

My reaction: This book is a classic and one of my favorites of all time.

My rating: *****

The Sea of Monsters

The Sea of Monsters

Rick Riordan

Disney-Hyperion, 2006

Pages: 288

Reading Level: 9-12

Genre: Fantasy

Percy is at the end of another school year at a new school. He is playing dodgeball with a bunch of seventh graders when he realizes they are actually monsters trying to kill him. They start throwing fireballs at him, but his is saved by his large friend Tyson, and Annabeth, another demi-god, who stabs a monster. They escape and head to camp half-blood. When they get there, camp is under attack because the tree that protects camp has been poisoned. Chiron has been fired because he suspects them of doing the poisoning. While there, they realize the Tyson is actually a cyclops, and Posiden claims him as a son. Percy asks the camp director if someone can please be sent on a quest, and the director agrees, sending clarisse. Percy is upset because he really wanted to help and go on the quest. He is at the lake when his father sends him help in the form of three hippocampi to take Percy, Tyson, and Annabeth. While they are in the water, they pass a cruise ship that Luke has taken over. They are captured and learn that Luke is trying to bring back Kronos, the evil titan. They escape and are saved by Clarisse. They head toward the "Sea of Monsters" which is also known as the Bermuda Triangle. They barely manage to get to the island, destroying Clarisse's ship in the process, with the help of Tyson and Clarisse. They save Grover from the giant cyclops who has him hostage and is about to eat him, and steal the fleece. They send Clarisse to take it back to camp, since Percy can't fly without Zeus killing him, and then Percy, Annebeth, Tyson, and Grover are captured by Luke. Percy tricks Luke into admitting to poisoning the tree, thus proving Chiron's innocence. Percy duels with Luke and barely gets out with his life. Back at camp, the fleece heals the trees, and out of it came Thalia, the daughter of Zeus who had been turned into the tree in a battle long before.

I would recommend this book to people/kids who feel like they don't fit in.

This book might cause kids to willfully disobey the orders their parents, teacher, and leaders have given them.

My reaction: I love this series! It teaches great values and is a wonderful story.

My rating: *****

The Lightening Thief

The Lightening Thief

Rick Riordan

Disney-Hyperion, 2005

Pages: 384

Reading level: 9-12

Genre: Fantasy

Percy Jackson is a twelve year old boy who has always had a hard time in school. He has dyslexia and ADHD, and has never managed to make it a full year without being expelled. Weird things always seem to happen to him. One day when his class is on a field trip, one of his teachers turns into a monster and tries to kill him. Then afterwards, no one can seem to remember that it happened. Then Percy goes on a trip with his mother, and it is then that his best friend Grover tells percy that he is a demi-god, which is half god half human, and that grover himself is a saryter. They need to get to camp half-blood, but on their way they are attacked by a minotaur who grabs Percy's mother who dissolves into golden light. Percy gets away and makes it to camp. He is placed into another God's cabin, Hermes, because he doesn't know which god is his father. During a game of capture the flag, he steps into a river and a trident appears above him. It turns out that his father, Posiden, had broken an ancient oath to not have any half-blood children. Percy is given a quest to go and find the master bolt, which is Zues' main weapon. While he is on the quest he is set up. Another god, Ares, makes it look like Percy has stolen the bolt by putting it in Percy's backpack, plus Hades thinks Percy has his Helm of Darkness, which Ares has. Percy, who was in the underworld looking for his mothe, is forced to flee from Hades wrath. He finds Ares and fights him to get the Helm. He wins and returns the Helm to Hades. He then takes the Bolt to Zeus and learns that his mother is still alive. When he gets back to camp, Luke, a boy from Hermes who befriended Percy, admits that it was he who stole the Bolt for a bad titan named Kronos, and told Percy that he had gotten in the way. Luke called up a scorpion to sting Percy and kill him. Percy almost died, but Chiron, the leader of the camp, saved him. Then Percy went home to his mother until next summer.

I would recommend this book to children who feel as if they don't belong.

Problems: I'm afraid that this book would condone fighting among children.

My reaction: I absolutely LOVED this book. It is fantastic!

My rating: *****

The Mitten

The Mitten
Jan Brett
Putnam Juvenile, 1989
Pages: 32
Reading Level: 4-8
Genre: Picture Book

Nikki is a little boy who really wants white mittens. His Baba said she didn't want to make him white mittens, because she was afraid he would drop one in the snow and not be able to find it. But Nikki really wanted white mittens, so Baba made them for him. Sure enough, he soon lost one mitten. Soon a tired mole finds the mitten and climbs inside to rest. Then a rabbit has the same idea and gets in too. Then a hedgehog.., and an owl and a badger and fox and bear all climb in one at a time. The knitten mittin stretched and pulled and buldged without breaking, because that's how good Baba's knitting was. Then a mouse came along and got in the last space available, which was on the bear's nose. This made the bears nose itch, and he sneezed. When he sneezed it shot the mitten up into the sky and they animals fell everywhere. Then Nikki saw his white mitten in the air, caught it, and went home.

I would recommend this book to kids who just want a good read.

Problems: This book could cause children to think it's okay to lose things

My reaction: This book has been a favorite since childhood.

My rating: ****

Lincoln: A Photobiography

Linclon: A Photobiography
Russell Freedman
Sandpiper, 1989
Pages:160
Reading Level: 9-12
Genre: Biography


This book is a biography of Lincoln's entire life. It starts with him as a young boy, and works all the way up to his death. Lincoln's father was a simple farmer, and his family was poor. Since he had to help his father with the farm, he went to school by "little's" He said that if you added up all his schooling, it was probably less than a year. But this doesn't mean that he was stupid; on the contrary. Lincoln was a brillant man. They say he was never seen without a book. He could have intelligent conversations about shakespere and loved to quote him. He never went to college, but rather read lots and lots about law, and after three years of study he went and passed the bar examine. Although Lincoln was brilliant, he definitely wasn't perfect. He argued with his wife a lot, and suffered from drepression quite badly. After he had been a lawyer for a while he decided to get into politics. He actually lost his first campain, but kept trying. After a while in politcs, he decided to quit for a while, but when he heard about what was going with the new territories and slavery, he decided to run for president. He won, and soon thereafter the civil war began. This was very difficult on Lincoln. In the pictures, one can see that he aged very much in those 4 years. The civil war was hard on him for one reason because he didn't have any good war generals. Lincoln had to train himself in the ways of leading an army. In the end, they won the war, but only after hundreds of thousands of men died. Immediatly after it was over, Abraham Lincoln was shot to death.

I would recommend this book to students studying the civil war or presidents of the united states.

Potential Problems: The only problem I can foresee with this book is that some children will be upset about Abraham's shortcomings.

My reaction: I thought this book was interesting, and the pictures were great and added to the knowledge.

My rating: ****

Henry's Freedom Box

Henry's Freedom Box
Ellen Levine
Schilastic Press, 2007
Pages: 40
Reading Level: 4-8
Genre: Non-Fiction/Biography

Henry is a little boy who was born into slavery. While he was still a young boy his master died and he was sold to another man and separated from his mother. He worked hard for his new master, and when He got older he met a girl with whom he fell in love with. They got permission from their masters and got married. They were lucky because their masters let them live together even though they had different masters. Henry and his wife had three children, and they loved them very much. Henry's wife was worried because her master's business wasn't doing very well and she was afraid that the children would get sold. One day while Henry was working his friend came and told him that his wife and children had just been sold. He was devastated. He decided to try to get free. He burned his hands on purpose so that his master would let him stay home from work, then he got a white man who believed slavery was wrong to put him into a big crate and mail him North to freedom. It was a long hard trip, but Henry made it. From that day on he had the middle name of "Box."

I think all children should read this book. It teaches how slavery ruined lives and that discrimination against race is wrong, which I believe is important to learn at a young age.

Problems this book could cause: I'm afraid this book might convince children to get a friend to help them mail themselves somewhere! That would be terrible.

My reaction: I thought this was a great biography. If no one had told me it was a true story I would have thought it was just a good fiction story

My rating: ****

A Single Shard

A Single Shard

Linda Sue Park

Clarion Books, 2001

Pages: 160

Reading Level: 9-12

Genre: Historical Fiction

Tree-ear is a boy who has grown up living with a man named Crane-man. Crane-Man raised him, and they enjoyed their life together very much. Most of their day is taken up with hunting for food, but one day Tree-ear discovers that if he hides in the trees, he can watch the potter min work. One day when Min doesn't come out to work when Tree-ear expects, Tree-Ear decides to get a closer look. He accidentally breaks one of the pieces of pottery, and Min catches him. In order to repay him, Tree-Ear offers to work for Min. Min accepts, much to Tree-Ears delight, and puts Tree-Ear to work. Tree-Ear, who thinks he is going to learn to make wonderful pottery, is actually put to work chopping wood and performing other menial tasks. After a while of this, he gets upset and asks Min when he is going to learn to make pottery. Min says never, for Tree-Ear is not his son. Tree-Ear is devastated. Around this same time, the emperors assistant comes to town to find a potter to give a commission to. He chooses a different potter, who has discovered a new way to inlay designs in his pottery. The commissioner asks Min to make a piece of pottery with the new kind of inlay and bring it to the capital, but Min says he is too old. Then Tree-Ear volunteers. They make a special basket for the pottery, and Tree-Ear starts on his way. He is almost there when he is attacked by bandits. They are upset when he has no money, so they throw his pottery off a cliff. Tree-Ear gets to the bottom and find only a single shard that is intact. He decides to take the shard to the capital, even though it is probably hopeless. When he gets there, the emperors assistant is so impressed with the beauty of the shard, that he gives him the commission anyway, but to the surprise of everyone.

I think everyone would benefit from reading this book. I would recommend it to all, young and old, male and female.

This book makes living under a bridge look like fun. It might convince some children to run away and try to live on their own.

My reaction: I really really liked this book. I think it is wonderfully written.

My rating: *****

Love That Dog

Love That Dog

Sharon Creech

Harper Collins, 2001

Pages: 112

Reading Level: 9-12

Genre: Peotry

This story is from the perspective of a boy named Jack. It's as if you are reading a notebook that he has to write for a class. At the beginning, his teacher has asked everyone to write poems. He replies that he doesn't want to, and that poems are for girls. He also says that to him it seems as if poems are just normal words written in very short lines. His teacher gives him some inspiration, and he discovers that he likes poems and is actually kind of good at them. He really likes the poems of a man name Mr. Walter Dean Myers. Mr. Deans poems help Jack get his feelings out about his dog, Sky, who was hit by a car. He is so happy about his poem, that Jack invites Walter Dean Myers to his class... and guess what?! He comes!

I would recommend this book to children in Jr High. I think it would be a good way to get them re-interested in poetry.

I can't think of any problems or conflicts this poem could cause.

My reaction: I don't really like poems, but this one was still pretty good. I liked reading a poem that I didn't have to analyse after. But for some reason I have a hard time retaining what I erad when I read poems, even this one.

My rating: ***

A Year Down Yonder

A Year Down Yonder
Richard Peck
Dial, 2000
Pages: 130
Reading level: 9-12
Genre: Historical Fiction

Mary-Alice's family has been hit hard by the Great Depression, and her family can't afford to have Mary-Alice around for a while, so they send her off to Grandma Dowel's house. Mary-Alice is very afraid, because grandma is a very scary person. She is big and tall, and wears mens clothing. When Mary-Alice first gets their, she gets on the bad side of a bully, who demands a dollar from her. Mary-Alice doesn't have a dollar, so she takes the bully home to have grandma give her a dollar. When they get their, grandma is very nice and gives the bully food and talks to her really nice. Then while she is eating, grandma goes and unties the horse. It turns out that the horse was stolen, and grandma knew it would go back to it original home. Another time, grandma poured glue all over a boy who was trying to tip over her outhouse. Yet another time, she plowed into a neighbor's tree to knock the walnuts out so she could gather them for her pie. Although Grandma Dowel might see rough on the exterior, she had a gold heart. She is the only friend of a grumpy old man, she makes pies for community events, raises money for a poor family, and she saves money for Mary-Alice to go home for Christmas to see her family. Although at first Mary-Alice is afraid of Grandma, she soon sees this heart of gold, and starts to warm up to her. She realizes that Grandma Dowel doesn't do things without a reason. Mary-Alice starts to gain confidence around her grandmother and others. One day, she asks a boy whom she likes to help her with math, but when he comes over, a naked lady runs out from upstairs. Grandma had an artist renting a room from her, and he had asked a local lady to come pose nude for him. She did, but soon saw the snake grandma kept there to eat the mice, and fled. While the woman was running around screaming, grandma opened the door. The woman ran out, and grandma got her gun and let out a shot. This alerted the neighbors immediately. When asked why she did that, grandma said, "That's too good a show to keep to ourselves." Mary-Alice was devastated that this happened when the boy was over, but he was amused. He liked her grandma. When it was time for Mary-Alice to leave, she didn't want too. She liked living with Grandma. But grandma told her she needed to be with her family, and the boy told her he would write her while he was at college. Mary-Alice left, but many years later came back to be married to the boy in her Grandma's house.

I would recommend this book to everyone, because I feel it is an all-around good-read.

Problems: This book might allow people to believe that the sometimes rash and rude things that grandma does are okay for everyone to do.

My reaction: I liked this book. It was very creative and funny.

My rating: ****

Beauty

Beauty

Robin McKinley

Harper Collins, 1978

Pages:256

Reading Level: 9-12

Genre: Fantasy

This book is a retelling of the classic story The Beauty and the Beast. In this story, Beauty is not beautiful at all. In fact her real name is Honour, but she doesn't like it. She tells her father one day that she would rather be called Beauty, so from then on she was. She grew up to be a rather plain girl. She was small with big hands and feet, and a splotchy face and dull hair. One day, her father's ships came upon a terrible accident, and Beauty and her family were forced to leave their beautiful mansion and live in the country. The adjusted well. One day they got word that one of Father's ships may have returned. Father went to find out, and on the way back he got lost in the "enchanted" forest. He came upon the Beast's castle. He was well fed, his horse groomed, and sent on his way by invisible servants. On his way out, he decided to pick a rose for Beauty. It is then that the Beast showed himself. He was furious that Father stole a rose. He told him that in one months time, if either Father or one of his daughters didn't come to live with the Beast, that the Beast would come find him. Father told his daughters this, and Beauty volunteered. She went to live with the Beast. At first she thought he was terrible, and was disturbed by his continuous asking of her to marry him. But eventually she comes to enjoy his company, and starts to think of him as a good friend. One day she discovers that her sister's lost fiance, presumed to be dead, is alive. She begs the Beast to let her go tell her sister. The beast allows it, but tells her that if she isn't back in one week, that he will die. She goes, and is almost too late in coming back. The Beast appears to be dead. He starts to come back to life, and Beauty tells him that she will marry him. Then the beast transforms into a handsome prince. Beauty now thinks that he is to handsome for her, a plain girl. But the beast shows her that she too has changed over time, and that she is now beautiful. The get married and live happily ever after.

I would recommend this book to young girls. It teaches them to not worry if they aren't beautiful.

This book could cause children to believe that there is always going to be a happy ending in life. But this isn't always true.

My reaction: This has been my favorite required book so far. I think it was beautifully written, and tells a wonderful story.

My rating: *****

The Story of Ruby Bridges

The Story of Ruby Bridges

Robert Coles, Illustrated by George Ford

Scholastic Press, 1995

Pages: 32

Reading level: 4-8

Genre: Biography

This book is the true story about a girl named Ruby Bridges. Ruby Bridges was 6 years old when the court ordered desegregation in schools. Ruby was one of four children chosen to go to the previously all-white school. The other three went to the other nearby elementary school, while Ruby went by herself to another elementary school. Everyday she would walk with federal marshals to school. They protected her from all the mobs that gathered outside of the school everyday. Ruby was threatened many times, but managed to keep a brave face. Ruby went to school by herself. All the other boys and girl's parents took them out of school as a protest against Ruby being there. All the teachers except one left too. That one remaining teacher, who was from the North, agreed to teach Ruby Bridges. One day on her way to class, Ruby stopped on the fronts steps of the building. She was saying a prayer that God would forgive all the people. This made the people very mad. When her teacher asked her why she stopped, Ruby replied that she prayed every day, but had forgotten this morning until she got to the steps of the building. The next year, parents were tired of keeping their children home without an education. They realized that their children were the only ones being hurt by them not going to school. Eventually, the students and teachers came back, and the mobs dissipated.

I think that EVERYONE should read this book, not just children. This book would be good for adults too. It teaches tolerance and acceptance, which everyone needs to know.

This book could make children angry about how Ruby Bridges was treated by the white people.

My reaction: This book is wonderful. It teaches a great lesson, and the pictures are beautiful!

My Rating: *****

Children Just Like Me

Children Just Like Me

Kindersley, Anabel and Barnabas

DK Chilren, 1995

Pages: 80

Reading Level: 9-12

Genre: Non-Fiction

This book teaches us about the lives of children all around the world. There are children from France, America, Africa, Canada, Poland, Hungary, Greece, and many many more. It talks about each child's home, their family, what they like to do for fun, school, and other aspects of their lives. It shows us that even though we come from different places, we all have likes and dislikes, homes and families. The pictures are very interesting. One child in the book is Omar, from Mexico. Omar is 8 years old. He lives with his Mami and Papi, grandma, and brother. When he grows up he wants to play football and work with computers. His favorite food is a fruit called tuna. He likes to eat it with ice on hot days. He thinks it is very refreshing.

I would recommend this book to all children. It helps to understand differences in culture, which i think is important for children to gain at early ages.

I can't think of any problems this book could cause.

My reaction: I was surprised with how much I enjoyed this book. I didn't think I would because it is non-fiction, and I generally don't like non-fiction. This book was very well written.

My rating: ****

The Great Gilly Hopkins

The Great Gilly Hopkins

Katherine Patterson

Harper Collins, 1987

Pages: 160

Reading level: 9-12

Genre: Realistic Fiction

Gilly Hopkins is an eleven-year-old foster car child, who wants dearly for her mother to come and get her. She has been to a few different homes already, and it has taught her that to survive she needs to be tough. Then she gets sent to Trotters home. Trotter is unlike any foster mother Gilly has ever had. Trotter is fat, religious, and weird. At first Gilly hates her and the boy who live there. Gilly tries to manipulate Trotter, but Trotter isn't someone who can be manipulated, so Gilly bullies the little boy, William Earnest. She writes a letter to her mother, telling her how terrible things are, and to please come save her. In the meantime, Gilly devises a plan to get out on her own. She has her mothers address from a former letter, and decides to steal money and buy a train ticket to her mother. She steals from Trotter and the nice blind neighbor, Mr. Randolf. She is successful at stealing to money, but the man at the ticket office at the train station calls the police, and Gilly goes back with Trotter. Over time, Gilly starts warming up to Trotter and William Earnest. She even starts teaching the boy hoe to defend himself so he won't get teased anymore. When everyone in the house gets sick except Gilly, she becomes nursemaid. She realizes that she loves these people and wants them to get better. While Gilly is nursing everyone back to health, the house gets trashed. With all her taking care of the sick, she doesn't have time to clean, and Trotter is so sick she can't either. It is then that Gilly maternal grandmother shows up. Gilly's mother sent the letter about Gilly to her grandmother. Grandma sees the house in shambles, and is gets Gilly out. Gilly is devastated. It wasn't her grandmother she wanted, it was her mother! And besides, she doesn't want to leave anymore, because Trotter and William Earnest have become her family. But she has no choice, and has to go with Grandma. One day her grandma tells her her mother is coming, and Gilly is very excited. But when she arrives, it is not what Gilly expects. It turns out her mother really doesn't want her. Gilly thinks about running away, but her time with Trotter taught her that she can't just run away from her problems, so she stays with her grandmother.

I would recommend this book to children in the foster care system.

This book could cause children to think that it is "cool" to not try hard in school, and to be disrespectful.

My reaction: I LOVED this book. It is a wonderful book

My rating: *****