The Classroom Bookshelf

2012 Pura Belpré Award for Illustration: Diego Rivera, His World and Ours

2012-03-04T10:49:00.009-05:00

Planting the Wild Garden Written by Kathryn Osebold Galbraith and Illustrated by Wendy Anderson Halperin Published in 2011 by Peachtree. ISBN. 978-1-56145-563-8 All Ages Review Beginning with the familiar concept of gardeners planting seeds in rows, Kathryn Osebold Galbraith’s nonfiction picture book extends children’s understanding of how plants spread and grow in

Junonia

2011-06-06T00:32:00.001-04:00

JunoniaBy Kevin HenkesGreenwillow Books, 2011ISBN: 978-0-06-196417-6 Grades 3-6 Book ReviewWhen on their annual winter holiday on Sanibel Island, Alice Rice and her parents commemorate each special ritual, from the first heron to the first step in the ocean to Alice’s birthday. Alice’s “family was small, but in Florida, she pretended that her family was big.” Except this year, her Florida

Queen of the Falls

2011-05-31T09:00:00.061-04:00

Queen of the Falls Written and illustrated by Chris Van Allsburg Published by Houghton Mifflin Books for Children, 2011 ISBN # 978-0547315812 All grades Book Review What is a poor 62-year old charm school teacher to do in 1901 when forced to close her school and lose her source of income? How about go over Niagara Falls in a barrel? In Queen of the Falls, multiple Caldecott Medal winner Chris

Miss Dorothy and Her Bookmobile and Biblioburro

2011-05-22T13:55:00.018-04:00

Miss Dorothy and her BookmobileWritten by Gloria Houston and Illustrated by Susan Condie LambPublished in 2011 by Harper, ISBN 978-0-06-029155-6All AgesReviewYoung Dorothy dreams of becoming a librarian in charge of a “fine brick library.” She pursues this dream, obtaining the education that she needs. When marriage takes her to the Blue Ridge

Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony: A Friendship That Changed the World

2011-05-16T08:01:00.003-04:00

Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony: A Friendship that Changed the World Written by Penny Colman Christy Ottaviano Books, Henry Holt and Company, New York, 2011ISBN 978-0-8050-8293-7 Grades 7 and Up Book Review As the world changes around us this spring, we witness political unrest as it unfolds, thanks to cell phones and laptops, Twitter and Facebook. In the context of near ubiquitous

Inside Out & Back Again

2011-05-08T23:13:00.001-04:00

Inside Out & Back Again Written by Thanhha Lai Published by HarperCollins Children’s Books, 2011 ISBN # 9780061962783 Grades 4 and up Book Review The last thing ten year-old Hà expects is that her life as she knows it will fall apart. But that is precisely what happens in 1975 as Saigon falls, and Hà, her mother, and her three brothers must flee Vietnam. Forced to leave behind the friends,

Me... Jane & The Watcher

2011-05-02T08:26:00.020-04:00

Me… JaneWritten and Illustrated by Patrick McDonnellPublished in 2011 by Little, Brown and Co., ISBN 978-0-316-04546-9All Ages.The Watcher: Jane Goodall’s Life with the Chimps.Written and Illustrated by Jeanette WinterPublished in 2011 by Schwartz and Wade Books, ISBN 978-0-375-86774-3All ages.Me.. Jane Book ReviewFrom an early age, Jane Goodall loved the outdoors, carefully observed the animals

Meadowlands: A Wetlands Survival Story

2011-04-25T09:13:00.002-04:00

Written and Illustrated by Thomas F. Yezerski Farrar Straus Giroux, New York, 2011ISBN 978-0-374-34913-4Grades 3-8 Book Review There are wetlands, and there are wetlands. For many adults, the Meadowlands of New Jersey can rouse certain images: chemical factories belching out smoke, Tony Soprano, the massive convergence of crowded highways leading in and out of Manhattan via bridge and tunnel,

Smile

2011-04-18T08:28:00.000-04:00

Smile Written and illustrated by Raina Telgemeier Published by Graphix, an imprint of Scholastic, 2010 ISBN # 978-0545132060 Grades 4 and up Review In this hilarious autobiographical tale by author-illustrator Raina Telgemeier, a series of dental disasters provides an appropriate analogy for the trials, tribulations, and triumphs of adolescence. One clumsy fall in the sixth grade damages Raina’

Gabby & Grandma Go Green

2011-04-05T13:45:00.017-04:00

Gabby & Grandma Go GreenWritten and Illustrated by Monica WellingtonPublished in 2011 by Dutton Children’s Books, ISBN 0-525-42214-5Grades PreK – 6ReviewFrom the recycling symbols on the endpapers to the “Green Tips” in the back matter, the latest offering from Monica Wellington sends a consistent message: take action to protect your environment. In Gabby & Grandma Go Green, eager Gabby and

Night Flight and Amelia Lost

2011-04-03T20:55:00.000-04:00

This week, The Classroom Bookshelf reviews two new biographies about Amelia Earhart that we felt deserved attention in today’s classrooms. This is our first experiment blogging about two related books concurrently, Night Flight, a picture book, and Amelia Lost, a chapter book. There are two separate reviews; our Teaching Invitations for the primary and intermediate grades focus on Night Flight,

Underground: Finding the Light to Freedom

2011-03-28T08:45:00.066-04:00

Underground: Finding the Light to Freedom Written and illustrated by Shane W. Evans Published by Roaring Brook Press, 2011 ISBN # 978-1596435384 All grades Book Review “The darkness.” “The fear.” “We run.” With these succinct opening statements, award winning illustrator Shane Evans provides an intimate portrait of a family’s nighttime flight from slavery in his new picture book, Underground.

The Secret Box

2011-03-17T14:04:00.022-04:00

The Secret BoxWritten and Illustrated by Barbara LehmanPublished by Houghton Mifflin, ISBN 978-0-547-23868-5Grades K-8ReviewA postcard that states “Greetings from the Seahorse Pier;” a token and some ticket stubs; sepia photographs of a uniformed schoolboy and his mates; and a map with a route marked in red pencil... These are the contents of The Secret Box hidden beneath the floorboards on the

Built to Last

2011-03-13T21:41:00.000-04:00

Built to Last Written and Illustrated by David Macaulay Published by Houghton Mifflin Books for Children, 2010 ISBN # 978-0-547-34240-5 Grades 5 and up Book Review As its title implies, deconstructing the construction process of some of history’s most incredible architectural feats is the topic of celebrated author and illustrator David Macaulay’s Built to Last. In this compelling collection,

Little White Rabbit

2011-03-07T11:07:00.003-05:00

Written and Illustrated by Kevin HenkesGreenwillow, 2011ISBN: 978-0-06-200642-4 All Grades Book Review Perhaps Kevin Henkes’s greatest gift as an author and illustrator is the simultaneous depth and breadth of his work, his ability to vacillate in and out of the worldviews of preschoolers, seven-year-olds, and preteens, to write a picture book of deceptive simplicity or a novel layered with

2011 Pura Belpre Illustrator Award: Grandma's Gift

2011-02-28T09:20:00.029-05:00

Guyku: A Year of Haiku for Boys Written by Bob Raczka and Illustrated by Peter H. Reynolds Published by Houghton Mifflin. ISBN 978-0-547-24003-9 Book Review: “If this puddle could / talk, I think it would tell me / to splash my sister.” Following the traditional seasonal organization of collections of haiku, this picture book of twenty-four poems, aimed at a boy audience

Tiny Little Fly

2011-01-03T10:12:00.009-05:00

Book ReviewRosen, M. (2010). Tiny little fly. Ill. by K. Waldron. Somerville, MA: Candlewick Press. ISBN: 978-0-7636-4681-3All Ages Shifting perspectives, vibrant pencil and gouache illustrations, and a large book format, paired with rhythmic, rhyming, patterned language create a made-to-order picture book for preschool and primary grades. Readers will want to trace Tiny Little Fly’s circuitous

Taking a Holiday Break

2010-12-27T08:04:00.003-05:00

The Classroom Bookshelf is taking a holiday this week. Look for a new post on Monday, January 3rd.Best,Mary AnnErikaGrace

The Moomin Books

2010-12-19T23:02:00.004-05:00

The Moomin Books Written and illustrated by Tove Jansson Translated by Elizabeth Portch, Kingsley Hart, and Thomas Warburton Published by Square Fish, 2010; originally published in the U.S. by Henry Z. Walck, Inc., 1951 Grades 3 and up #1 Comet in Moominland, ISBN 978-0312608880#2 Finn Family Moomintroll, ISBN 978-0141328607#3 Moominpoppa’s Memoirs, ISBN 978-0312625436#4 Moominsummer Madness,

O Christmas Tree

2010-12-12T15:01:00.005-05:00

O Christmas Tree: Its History and Holiday TraditionsWritten by Jacqueline Farmer and Illustrated by Joanne FriarPublished by Charlesbridge Publishers, 2010ISBN 978-1-58089-238-4Grades K-6‘Tis the season to find brightly decorated trees outdoors and indoors almost everywhere you go. But how did the Christmas tree as we know it come to be, and why is it a longstanding symbol for this holiday?

Forge

2010-12-06T06:51:00.013-05:00

ForgeBy Laurie Halse Anderson ISBN: 9781416961444Published by Atheneum Books for Young Readers, 2010Grades 6 and UpBook Review In book two of the trilogy that began with National Book Award Finalist Chains, Curazon, the perhaps-free, perhaps-still enslaved African-American soldier liberated from a British prison in Manhattan by Isabel at the end of the first book, picks up the narration and the

Mirror

2010-11-28T21:57:00.107-05:00

Mirror Written and illustrated by Jeannie BakerPublished by Candlewick Press, 2010ISBN #978-0763648480All grades The everyday similarities and differences of two worlds oceans apart are at the center of Jeannie Baker’s latest stunning picture book. Reflecting the book’s title, parallel stories about the lives of two boys sit opposite each other—one on the left and one on the right, one in

Emily's Fortune

2010-11-21T20:17:00.011-05:00

Emily’s Fortune Written by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor with illustrations by Ross Collins. Published by Delacourt Press, 2010. ISBN 978-0-385-73616-9Grades 2-6 Peppered with humorous characters, lively language, and Collins’ expressive illustrations, this fast moving novel set in the Wild West employs the comedic exaggeration and outrageous happenings characteristic of a tall tale. Eight-year old

Sugar Changed the World

2010-11-14T12:14:00.000-05:00

Sugar Changed the World: A Story of Magic, Spice, Slavery, Freedom, and Science Written by Marc Aronson and Marina BudhosPublished by Clarion Books, 2010ISBN: 978-0-618-57492-6 Grades 7 and Up Of the over 2 million slaves shipped from Africa during the trans-Atlantic slave trade of the 17th-19th centuries, only 4 % came to the United States. The other 96% were sent to the Caribbean, Brazil, and

Rain School

2010-11-08T00:21:00.002-05:00

Rain School Written and illustrated by James RumfordPublished by Houghton Mifflin Books for Children, 2010 ISBN 978-0-547-24307-8 “Will they give us a notebook?... Will they give us a pencil? Will I learn to read like you?” Thomas is bursting with questions as he follows the older children, heading to school for his first time, in the country of Chad. When he arrives, Thomas finds a teacher,

Poetrees

2010-11-01T12:28:00.002-04:00

PoetreesWritten and illustrated by Douglas FlorianPublished by Beach Lane Books, 2010ISBN 978-1-4169-8672-0 All Grades Celebrate the autumn season with Poetrees, a picture book collection of poems by beloved author and artist Douglas Florian. This brightly illustrated collection celebrates not just the incredible diversity of species of trees across the world’s terrains, but also the diversity of