Module 6: Not a Box

Citation:

Portis, A. (2006). Not a box. New York, NY: HarperCollins Children’s Books.

Summary:

This book is about a rabbit with a large imagination. The rabbit insists that he/she is not just “standing on, squirting, or wearing” a box. Instead he is putting out a fire, or riding in a space ship or standing on top of a mountain.

My Opinion:
This book has such a simple idea and very simple wording but it speaks volumes. The illustrations help to convey the story clearly. I read this book to my own children and they just loved the imagination behind this. I will definitely use this book for lessons in my library.

Reviews:

McClelland, K. (2007, January, 1). [Review of the book Not a Box by Antoinette Portis]. School Library Journal Online. Retrieved by http://titlewave.com/search?SID=ca52adf923e23f42ecc6d793f5721453

School Library Journal (January 1, 2007) PreS-Gr 1-In bold, unornamented line drawings of a rabbit and a box, the author-illustrator offers a paean to the time-honored imaginative play of young children who can turn a cardboard box into whatever their creativity can conjure. Through a series of paired questions and answers, the rabbit is queried about why he is sitting in, standing on, spraying, or wearing a box. Each time, he insists, "It's not a box!" and the opposite page reveals the many things a small child's pretending can make of one: a race car, a mountain, a burning building, a robot. One important caveat: the younger end of the intended audience is both literal and concrete in their approach to this material. The box itself, drawn as a one-dimensional rectangle, will be perceived by preschoolers to be flat and not readily understood as three-dimensional. Furthermore, those children are likely to interpret the "box's" transformation to be "magic," while five- and six-year-olds are able to make the cognitive conversion from flat rectangle to three-dimensional box and to understand that the transformation has been made by the rabbit's own imagination. Both audiences will enjoy the participatory aspect of identifying each of the rabbit's new inventions. Knowledgeable adults will bring along a large box to aid in understanding and to encourage even more ideas and play.-Kate McClelland, Perrot Memorial Library, Old Greenwich, CT Copyright 2007 Reed Business Information.

Uses for the library:
This would make a great read aloud for my younger students. I would also like to have 2^nd graders write their own version of this book.

Module 5: Ninth Ward by Jewell Parker Rhodes

Citation:

Rhodes, J. (2010). Ninth Ward. New York, NY: Little Brown Books for Young Readers.

Summary:

A 12 year old, orphan named Lanesha, who currently lives with the midwife who delivered her, named Mama Yaya. Lanesha lives in the 9^th Ward area of New Orleans. Lanesha sees ghosts and Mama Yaya is known as a Metaphysical type of a person. Mama Yaya has raised Lanesha and taken care of her since the day she was born. Lanesha is a curious, thoughtful and mature teen. Lanesha gets trapped in the hurricane Katrina storm and survives with her friend, but Mama Yaya doesn’t. Throughout this ordeal she becomes stronger and leads Spot (her dog) and her friend to safety with her strength, courage and a row boat.

My Opinion:
This is such an amazing read. The character development in the story is descriptive and you feel as though you know the characters. The storyline is adventurous and fun. This is a must read for an older student and anyone who may want to know what hurricane Katrina was like. The survival and change that Lanesha goes through is a wonderful transformation. I feel that this books is well written and a wonderful story.

Reviews:

Auguste,M. (2010, August, 1). [Review of the book Ninth Ward by Jewell Parker Rhodes]. School Library Journal Online. Retrieved by http://www.libraryjournal.com/slj/printissue/currentissue/885752-427/grades_5__up.html.csp

RHODES, Jewell Parker. Ninth Ward. 217p. Little, Brown. Aug. 2010. Tr $15.99. ISBN 978-0-316-04307-6. LC number unavailable.
Gr 5-8–Communicating with ghosts, including the spirit of her mother who died giving birth to her, is a gift that Lanesha, 12, has had for as long as she can remember. The girl's beloved caretaker, Mama Ya-Ya, a midwife and healer, has a gift that allows her to predict the future. When she begins to sense that a big storm is coming to their much-loved New Orleans neighborhood, both she and Lanesha must trust in their senses and in one another to survive. Lanesha is a wonderful character who exudes resilience and fortitude in the face of a catastrophe as well as a personal vulnerability in terms of her status as an orphan and an outsider. Words, numbers, and colors as seen through her eyes show the magic and wonder that exist in everyday things. The unique writing style even allows the unlikely combination of elderly Mama Ya-Ya's heady scents of Vicks Vapor Rub and Evening in Paris perfume to seem wonderful and inviting. Although the outcome of Hurricane Katrina is known, the clever writing allows the unavoidable tragedy to unfold in such a haunting and suspenseful manner that the extreme sense of foreboding and ultimate destruction is personalized and unforgettable. Heartbreak and hope are reflected in Lanesha's story, which will capture even reluctant readers due to the inventive storytelling and the author's ability to bring history to life.–Margaret Auguste, Franklin Middle School, Somerset, NJ

Green, B. (2010, October). [Review of the book Ninth Ward by Jewell Parker Rhodes]. Library Media Connection. Retrieved by http://titlewave.com/search?SID=cad11c6c0f98469632be59ce2df939f7

Library Media Connection (October 2010) Released in time for the fifth anniversary of Hurricane Katrina, Ninth Ward is the story of a young girl, Lanesha, who lives in the Ninth Ward neighborhood of New Orleans. Ninth Ward is set over nine days (chapter headings are days of the week). Lanesha decides to ride out the storm as many of the residents of New Orleans did. Lanesha prepares food, making sure to board up the windows and get bottled water and other provisions, since folks in New Orleans are sure that this storm will ?be like all the others.? The spirit of Lanesha?s dead mother comes to her assistance when Lanesha is forced to leave her home once the floodwaters have overtaken it. Rhodes has done a wonderful job of giving young readers a personal look into what happened in New Orleans during August 2005. This would be an excellent resource to use when students are researching different types of weather, especially since the main character is younger, and her point of view is one that many children can identify with. Recommended. Beth Green, School Library Media Specialist, Wappingers Junior High School, Wappingers Falls, New York [Editor?s Note: \Also available in eBook format.]

Uses for the library:
This would be a wonderful book to introduced and then later discuss in a book club. I would love to be able to sit with a group of students and discuss their feelings and see what they thought about the character development and the role that the characters play in each others lives. I would also like to discuss the elements of the storm and the death of Mama Yaya.

Module 5: Chato's Kitchen by Gary Soto and Susan Guevara

Citation:

Soto, G. (1995). Chato’s Kitchen. New York, NY: G.P. Putnam’s Sons.

Summary:

A new family of mice moves into Chato’s (a cat) neighborhood. Chato sends a letter over to invite the mice family to dinner and the mice family accepts but asks if they can bring a friend. Chato and the mice family cook dinner. Chato and Novio Boy (Chato’s friend who is also a cat), are excited and prancing around talking about how they are going to eat the mice for dinner. When the mice family shows up they bring Chorizo (a dog) and scare the cats. Eventually they all end up eating dinner together.

My Opinion:
This is a wonderfully colorful book, not only is the text rich and fun the artwork is brilliant. There are many Spanish words scattered throughout the text. The pictures are so vivid and tell the story well. This book would make a wonderful read aloud. This would also be a great story for a student who is learning Spanish or one who is bilingual. (and I not just say this because my last name appears on the back cover in the illustrations)

Reviews:

Rochman, H. (1995, March,1). [Review of the book Chato’s Kitchen by Gary Soto]. Booklist Online. Retrieved by http://www.booklistonline.com/ProductInfo.aspx?pid=632513

Chato thinks he’s the cool cat of East Los Angeles, and when a family of small mice moves next door to him in the barrio invites them over for dinner--to be his dinner. With his flashy pal Novio Boy, Chato cooks a delicious spread to go with the tasty morsels of mice. But when his guests arrive with their friend from the old neighborhood, the tables are turned: Sausage turns out to be a long, low-riding, skinny dog, and it’s the cats who quake in fear. Kids will get a lot of fun out of the sweet reversal and the comic storytelling. There’s a glossary of Spanish words, but it’s the characters and their talk that give the story its special flavor. Guevara’s very bright illustrations extend the situation comedy with zany details of magic realism. These animal characters are very human: the mouse teenager talks on her mobile phone; Chato’s friend mambos to his boom box. Best of all is the fun with scale, especially in a story where the small creatures win. (Reviewed Mar. 1, 1995)— Hazel Rochman

Turner, M. (1998, Novemver,3). [Review of the book Chato’s Kitchen by Gary Soto]. Publisher Weekly. Retrieved by http://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/childens/childrens-book-news/article/3196-children-s-book-reviews-.html

Guevara's (Chato's Kitchen) gentle acrylics temper 26 poems about war by Johnston (P Is for Piñata, reviewed above), whose imagery pulls no punches. Many of her poems are set squarely in the middle of combat, addressing victims (“Child on the other side of the world.../ I am calling”) or describing their surroundings. The poet sharply invokes the products of war: poverty (of a dog: “His ribs are the slats of a small ark”), violence (“ The body remains,/ crumpled in the street”) and grief. Guevara, painting on rough canvas, declines to show the most frightening scenes. Instead of the child on the other side of the world “in your little torn shirt,” she paints a small girl clinging to the back of a flying dove; instead of the crumpled body, she paints an angel. Quick brushstrokes and pastel shades soften the blow, and the images register as memories or dreams. The final poems pray for peace, but Johnston's sobering portraits make forgiveness unexpectedly difficult to imagine. Ages 10--up. (Dec.)

Uses for the library:
I would use this story to do a puppet show or a readers theater. This would be a fun story for the students to act out. I would also discuss the use of Spanish and the setting where this story takes place.

Module 4: Dear Mr. Henshaw by Beverly Clearly

Citation:
Cleary, B. (1983). Dear Mr. Henshaw. New York, NY: Harper Trophy.

Summary:
Leigh Botts starts off as a second grader who writes Mr. Henshaw, whom is the author of his favorite book, “Way to Amuse a Dog”. He continues to ask question and write letter to Mr. Henshaw. Mr. Henshaw responds a couple of times. After a while Leigh decides to keep a journal and still writes, using Mr. Henshaw as the person he is writing to. Through his letters the audience is told that his parents are divorcing, there is someone stealing part of his lunch and he is a bit of a loner. His Dad is a trucker and has a hard time keeping his promises to call. In the end of the story Leigh is a 6^th grader who finds his way with friends by making a lunch bag alarm. He also comes to terms with his parents divorce when his dad comes by to drop off his dog.

My Opinion:
I truly enjoyed this book. This story is so easy to read and the writing style is fun. I feel that struggling reader would be more likely to give this chapter a shot because of the letters format. The story is very sweet and Leigh is charming. I really enjoyed how he was able to show his emotions. I would recommend this to any reader.

Reviews:

Babbit, N. (1983, October 23). [Review of the book Dear Mr. Henshaw by Beverly Clearly]. The New York Times. Retrieved by http://www.nytimes.com/1983/10/23/books/children-s-books-229920.html?ref=bookreviews

New York Times

DEAR MR. HENSHAW By Beverly Cleary. Illustrated by Paul O. Zelinsky. 134 pp. New York: William Morrow & Co. $8.50. (Ages 8 to 11) By NATALIE BABBITT Beverly Cleary has written many very good books over the years. This one is the best. It is a first-rate, poignant story in the form of letters and a diary - a new construction for a Cleary book - and there is so much in it, all presented so simply, that it's hard to find a way to do it justice. Mrs. Cleary knows the voices of children. Dialogue has always been one of the strongest parts of her work. And here, where all is dialogue, that strength can shine alone and be doubly impressive. The story line has several threads, woven neatly together. There are first of all Leigh Botts's letters to a children's author, Boyd Henshaw, letters that soon, at Henshaw's suggestion (but we don't see his replies - we only hear about them), become a diary. There is the problem, and its solution, of how to deal with a lunch box thief. There is the difficulty of making friends in a new school. And through all of this there is the pain of Leigh's parents' divorce and his longing for his father's presence or, failing that, a letter, a phone call, some indication of love returned. What makes ''Dear Mr. Henshaw'' so special is Leigh's candid acceptance of all that happens to him. He hasn't the least idea how brave he is. One letter to Henshaw ends this way: ''I don't think Dad is that much interested in me. He didn't phone when he said he would. I hope your (new) book wins a million awards.'' Leigh is a normal boy with a life full of things to occupy his attention. If his parents' divorce is giving him pain, it has not made a monomaniac of him - he can still care about Henshaw's books. A P.S. to a later letter says, ''I bought a copy of (your book) 'Ways to Amuse a Dog' at a garage sale. I hope you don't mind.'' That's wonderful. It clangs with reality. The story closes as it should. There will be no reunion between Leigh's parents; he has come to understand that and accept it. Wisely, Mrs. Cleary does not fix things so that the lunch box thief is caught; she does not arrange a meeting between Leigh and Henshaw; and she never allows Leigh's writing to slide a millimeter away from the natural humor and unconscious pathos that make it work so honestly. What a lovely, well-crafted, three-dimensional work this is. And how reassuring to Mrs. Cleary's fellow writers to see that a 27th book can be so fresh and strong. Lots of adjectives here; she deserves them all. Paul O. Zelinsky's drawings, and his jacket illustration, are unpretentious and effective. DAPHNE'S BOOK By Mary Downing Hahn. 177 pp. New York: Clarion Books. $10.95. (Ages 9 to 13) By BARBARA CUTLER HELFGOTT There are two things you don't need when you are 12 and treading water: To have a best friend who's growing away from you and a teacher who thinks you're ''a sensitive person.'' Jessica has both. Tracy, her friend since kindergarten, has taken to sharing eye shadow and secrets with two of the seventh grade's leading airheads, while her English teacher has seen fit to pair Jessica off with ''Daffy'' Daphne, the class pariah, who hasn't said a word to anyone since the day she arrived. Mr. O'Brien has entered the class in the county ''Write- a-Book'' contest and is convinced that a story by Jessica, illustrated by Daphne, would stand a good chance of winning. But how, Jessica wonders, will she manage to collaborate with someone so withdrawn? As they work on their book and their fragile new friendship, Jessica learns the reason for Daphne's reticence: Her parents have died and she and her small sister are living with a grandparent too senile to care for them. Fearful of what will happen if even this semblance of a family is disbanded, she swears Jessica to silence - a vow that must be broken if Daphne and her sister are to survive. Though at one point in ''Daphne's Book'' Jessica's mother cautions her against tacking happy endings onto any sad stories she might write, Mary Downing Hahn has provided one that is happy, if a bit pat: The girls do win the contest, and some second cousins are found to give Daphne and her sister a home. But this isn't a book in which endings signify. Its vitality derives from a convincing respect for hopeful beginnings and hard choices - two conditions for growth, no matter what your age. THE NIGHTGOWN OF THE SULLEN MOON By Nancy Willard. Illustrated by David McPhail. Unpaged. San Diego: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich. $11.95. (Ages 4 to 7)

Uses for the library:
I would use this book to show the students how books can be written in a different format. I would show them how this book is written using letters and how much fun that is to read. I may have them write a short story writing letters through a pretend email.