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Our favorite books for April teach some important lessons!
One celebrates the human body and diversity, while others teach kindness and the keys to a true friendship. You’ll find a story that will help foster kids’ sense of empathy and understanding and an award-winning novel that tackles the topics of prejudice and police brutality.
For Pre-K –K (Ages 3-6):
Happy in Our Skin written by Fran Manushkin and illustrated by Lauren Tobia
This affirming and informative book is a charmer and a true celebration – both of diversity and of the human body! Kids will enjoy poring over the diverse faces and hidden details on these pages as they learn about the important role skin plays in their lives.
For 1st and 2nd Grade (Ages 6-8):
My Best Friend written by Mary Ann Rodman and illustrated by E.B. Lewis
Friendships and healthy relationships – those are two key themes of this read-aloud that will have your students’ undivided attention. Honest and relatable, it perfectly illustrates the confusion kids experience when they want to be liked but set their targets on the wrong person. This book will help them understand that a true friend treats others the way we all want to be treated – with kindness.
Hilarious and heart-warming, this chapter book is a perfect pick for kids wanting a laugh-out-loud funny book to read on their own. It also makes a perfect family read-aloud!
Empathy, understanding, and a clearer sense of right and wrong – these are just some of the lessons kids will take away from this wonderful, highly accessible book about a well-intentioned girl whose frustrations get the better of her when her family loses their apartment and is forced to live out of their car.
Teens will be both won over and bowled over by this tremendous novel about prejudice, power, and police brutality. Fantastic fuel for discussion, it’s A 2016 Coretta Scott King Author Honor book and the recipient of the Walter Dean Myers Award for Outstanding Children’s Literature!
This week, we decided to share a book that we've both read recently, On the Road to Mr. Mineo's by Barbara O'Connor. On the Road to Mr. Mineo's is the story of a one-legged pigeon. It is also the story of summer in a small town in the South. We both LOVED the book and have passed it along to other friends who have loved it too. Because the plot defies simple summarization, we'll try to give you a feel for the story by interviewing each other about it.
FRANKI'S QUESTIONS FOR MARY LEE:
If you were going to sum up this book in one word, what would it be? And why? My word is CONVERGE. Each strand of this story is like one of those thin strips of plastic that we wove together into keychains once upon a time at summer camp. Every character's separate story converges with the others at the end. Each character's life becomes woven with the lives of the others at the end. Plus, converge sort of rhymes with Sherman, who is the one who brings everyone together. It also sort of rhymes with journey, which (although I was only supposed to pick one word) is my second pick for the one word that sums up this story.
What do you think Sherman was up to? Why wouldn't he go home and why did he finally decide to go home? Great question! Sherman is a homing pigeon. He is hardwired (supposedly) to fly away, and then fly home again. Maybe this is a story about all the amazing things that might happen when we act unpredictably, when we break out of our molds. Or maybe it's just a story about a pigeon who doesn't go home, and who unintentionally weaves a story out of all the lives he touches. Why did he go home? That's easy. Why do we all go home in the end? The ones who love us most are there.
MARY LEE'S QUESTIONS FOR FRANKI:
Who was your favorite character, and why? Favorite character is hard in this one because I felt like I knew and loved every character by the end. But I think I loved Stella first. So I'll go with that as my answer if I have to pick a favorite. I liked Stella immediately. I liked that she was kind but tough. I liked that she so committed to that pigeon, no matter what that involved. I loved that she had the spunk to stand up to her brother and to take charge of almost everything. She is a tough girl with a soft heart.
And I want to pick another favorite. I loved Mr. Mineo. I loved how much he cared about the pigeons. I loved the way he talked to his dog. I loved the patience he had and how well he seemed to understand Sherman.
Compare (or contrast) this book to another of Barbara O'Connor's books. Greetings from Nowhere is one of my very favorite Barbara O'Connor books. I loved it immediately and read it aloud to my class the month it came out. I am a character-baesd reader and this book was character based. It was about many different people--every one of which I loved--who were on their own journey. But people who somehow connected when they needed each other most. I loved everything about this book and I see Mr. Mineo as being similar. There are differences--Greetings is a bit quieter of a book. But both books are about individual people trying to find their way, individual people who are on different journeys. But in both books, something connects these people in a way that changes each of them. And I love that. This idea probably is the idea in every one of Barbara O'Connor's books ( a reason I love her work:-) but these two stand out for me.
0 Comments on It's Monday! What Are You Reading? On the Road to Mr. Mineos as of 1/1/1900
This looks great. I really want to start looking for book trailers to add to my blog. I think kids will respond really well to them, but I also think teachers might choose different books after watching a trailer.
Fun! I haven't read this book yet but I've seen it here and there. It sounds so interesting! I love books with lots of characters and where their stories intertwine by the end of the book. Definitely going to bump this up on my TBR. :)
I’m not telling you anything new by bringing this up now, but for those of you who may yet be unaware, the great Brian Jacques of the Redwall books passed away last weekend. I only had the pleasure of meeting Brian once at an event at the Campbell Apartment, and he was charming. I determined that the best way to speak to him was to bring up The Wind in the Willows, a book he adored. When I mentioned the Pan chapter he became wildly enthused, quoting whole passages verbatim. Later in the evening he would tell tales of fellow author and friend Paula Danziger (also deceased) and how she once leapt into a ball pen where she got firmly stuck. There are a couple obits worth mentioning of the man. Over at The Guardian Alison Flood recalls her talking animal phase while Julia Eccleshare writes his obit. The Telegraph gave their two cents. The Liverpool Echo had a great obit too, though it left me wanting to know more about the schoolteacher that taught Jacques, Paul McCartney, and George Harrison, so thank you @PWKidsBookshelf for the link. Even the Audubon Magazine had a sweet take on the Jacques legacy (thanks to @MrSchuReads for the link). Can’t say I’m the world’s biggest fan of this British cover, though. A bit too symbolic for me.
Needs more fur.
Speaking of British covers, I was a little surprised to see that the British edition of When You Reach Me (which they seem to have only just now brought over there in paperback) sports the same Sophie Blackall cover as the one we have here in the States. Almost the same, I should say. Can you spot the difference?
Someone explain that one to me, please. I’m baffled. Anyway, I think I like the Aussie cover best an
0 Comments on Fusenews: Fauns, Jackets, and Happy Meals as of 1/1/1900
I loved playing in creeks as a child. I spent many happy hours building dams, catching minnows and crawfish, wading in the icy water of a fern-lined mountain creek.
I also knew there would be a motor home in the story.
I walk my dogs near a wonderful motor home park. It’s located on a peninsula with a view of the ocean on all three sides. Every spring, an eclectic group of motor homes pulls into the park and the families set up camp for the summer. I love to watch the park come alive with children and dogs and barbecue grills and tomato gardens.
In the fall, they all pack up their motor homes and drive away.
I always wonder about those motor home families. Where do they come from? Where do they go?
In my post from Monday, I also left out that I did some satisfying reading over the summer. At ALA, Barbara O'Connor came to find me during my signing of Operation Yes, and since I couldn't leave to come to her booth, she kindly brought and signed for me an ARC of her latest novel, The Fantastic Secret of Owen Jester. Here we are together (looking somewhat color-coordinated, I must say):
I immediately devoured the ARC in June and posted my initial thoughts on Goodreads, but now that the actual novel is available for sale, THIS is the time to tell you all to go read it!
First of all, isn't that an eye-catching cover? Love it! But just wait until you read the story. I think Barbara's books are hard to write about because so much of their appeal has to do with her vigorous use of language, and the quiet accumulation of detail which soaks in almost unnoticed but results in a feeling of having dived down deep into another world. This is how I tried, on Goodreads, to capture the saturated goodness of The Fantastic Secret of Owen Jester:
I loved how she built the novel around key sounds---of the passing train, the "fantastic secret's" bumpy arrival, the captured frog's throaty calls, the irritated housekeeper's carping (reminiscent of the faceless adults in Charlie Brown), the one-way conversations with the ill grandfather, the recurring verbal battles between the boys and the lone girl---and many more subtle acoustic details that give the book the wondrous feeling that you are underwater where sounds are magnified.
What's funny is that I didn't even notice the acoustic emphasis until I finished reading and was in the middle of trying to analyse the story. It was like being clued in to a magician's trick. Ohhhhhh. So that's it! Except with each book, Barbara O'Connor seems to conjure up a fresh and intriguing "it."
Go trap your own copy and tell me what you think her "fantastic secret" to writing book after great book is. I wanna know!
2 Comments on The Fantastic Secret of Owen Jester, last added: 9/18/2010
Oh, you are more than welcome, Barbara! I can't wait to read your book. I can't believe I never write on my blog anymore but I still read all the time. I also still read everyone else's blogs everyday. Guess that is why I ran out of time to write my own blogs. ;) Love...
by Barbara O'ConnorFSG 2009A small slice of life on a backroad of South Carolina with perhaps the most passive main character I've read in a long time.Popeye, so nick-named when a b-b gun left it's mark on his left eye, is the kind of quiet, withdrawn kid who would hunger for an adventure if he had the gumption to do so. So when a mobile home gets stuck in the gravel road in front of Popeye's
2 Comments on The Small Adventures of Popeye and Elvis, last added: 2/17/2010
I'm glad you are posting again. I enjoy your honest reviews and was about to start complaining that you hadn't posted in a while. Thanks for the latest and keep'em coming.
Look at this!!!! Look at all my friends! I am so excited for all of you who are listed. If you check out my sidebar, you will find MANY of these blogs listed as the Best 100 Book Blogs for Kids. I think it is WONDERFUL! (I tried to tag all my cyber buds, but there were too many!)
0 Comments on All my Friends! as of 10/29/2009 9:23:00 PM
After returning from vacation and finding 422! posts in my Google Reader, I sifted through and picked out some of my favorite blogs to read. I hope I am not too late to present to you a book trailer for Barbara O'Connor's new book, The Small Adventure of Popeye and Elvis. Humor me and watch it again if you have seen it already, if not... What are you waiting for???
Now who is with me? Get on over there to Amazon and pre-order your copy. Ya know ya want to!
2 Comments on Barbara O'Connor's Newest Book Trailer, last added: 6/30/2009
Hey, guys, cyber kid 303 has written another review of a very interesting-sounding book:
How to Steal a Dog by Barbara O'Connor is a great book. It is about Georgina Hayes, her brother, her mom and her dad. Her dad left the family and her mom can't pay the bills. They get kicked out of their apartment and are living in their car. Georgina hatches a plan to steal a dog and collect the reward money. Does their dad come back? Does their mom get a job? Do they move out of the car and into a house? Is the dog mean and dangerous? Do evil spiders take over the world? Read and see what happens.
OK, guys, go check this one! cyber kid has not been wrong yet.
Sorry my posts are so short these days--we're pretty busy. I'm reading a REALLY good one now--The Roar by Emma Clayton. I'm only in chapter 3 and already there's been an escape from a space station, a pod fighter chased by police pods, a deep dark Secret, and two spectacularly-bad bad guys! I'll let you know all about it when I'm done.
Carl
0 Comments on This One Sounds Good as of 4/21/2009 9:47:00 AM
If you’re in the mood for the type of book that just gives you the “feel-goods,” Greetings from Nowhere may be what you’re looking for.
Aggie, an elderly woman hesitantly puts the motel she’s run with her husband, now deceased, for years up for sale. She doesn’t want to but sees no other way.
Loretta, a young girl receives an anonymous package containing the only worldly possessions of her birth mother who has recently died. The package contains clues as to places the birth mother may have visited during her lifetime, and the girl’s loving adoptive parents set upon a trip to visit some of the places.
Kirby, a young boy in much need of love is on the way to reform school when his mother’s car breaks down.
Willow, a lonely and heartbroken young girl whose mother suddenly left her and her father is surprised when her father decides to buy the motel and start a new life.
In Greetings from Nowhere, these four people’s lives connect at the Sleepy Time Motel, forming a heartwarming story that provides a bit of elixir to the soul.
Barbara O’Conner does an exceptional job with getting inside the head of four very believable and likeable characters. What is most impressive is that fact that in one short book, she was able to tell the story of these four characters from their own points of view AND connect them through their loneliness and need for love.
It’s a story of hope, a story of healing, and a story about finding friendship when you need it the most and least expect it.
Highly recommended.
What Other Bloggers Are Saying:
Carol's Corner: "GREETINGS FROM NOWHERE is also a story of hope and redemption- of people who need and find and care for each other. I know so, so, so many kids who need books like that too. " (read more...)
Abby (the) Librarian: "And the setting is another thing I loved about this book. I could see the mountains, the dried-up swimming pool, the weedy parking lot, the musty rooms, the tomato garden... it all really came alive for me." (read more...)
Eva's Book Addiction: "...thanks to some wonderfully understated writing and a keen knowledge of how people think and talk, it all comes together in a satisfying package. " (read more...)
More info:
Reading level: Ages 9-12
Hardcover: 208 pages
Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux (BYR) (March 18, 2008)
Announcing 2008 Writing Goals & Inspiration Contest!
(Brought to you by: Write What Inspires You ~ Donna M. McDine, Children’s Author)
The guidelines are quite simple:
To enter please submit a personal essay of no more than 500 words on the topic: “2008 Writing Goals and What Inspires You to Keep Writing.”
Please include your essay in the body of your email (NO ATTACHMENTS WILL BE ACCEPTED) and send it to: [email protected].
Only send in one entry please and make sure to put your name, email address, and word count in the top right hand corner on the first page of your story.
Contest ends: March 1, 2008
The ONE winner will be contacted via email by March 15, 2008.
If you are selected as the winner you will receive:
Book Markets for Children’s Writers™ 2008 published by Writer’s Institute Publications.
Description as quoted from the Writer’s Book Store website: “Getting published requires more than a great manuscript—you also need a publisher that matches your personal style. Book Markets for Children’s Writers is designed to help you get published faster by targeting your submissions to the right editor. Current listings are provided for more than 574 children’s and young adult publishers in North America, ranging from small, niche markets to the major New York houses, and include details on:
Happy in Our Skin written by Fran Manushkin and illustrated by Lauren Tobia
My Best Friend written by Mary Ann Rodman and illustrated by E.B. Lewis
Toys Go Out: Being the Adventures of a Knowledgeable Stingray, a Toughy Little Buffalo, and Someone Called Plastic written by Emily Jenkins and illustrated by Paul O. Zelinsky
How to Steal a Dog written by by Barbara O’Connor
All-American Boys written by Jason Reynolds & Brendan Kiely
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If you are selected as the winner you will receive:
It sounds terrific, Franki & Mary Lee, & thanks for the interesting way you told about it.
That sounds like an interesting book, and i like that you interviewed each other about it.
I enjoyed reading this so much! Thank you for such thoughtful insight.
This looks great. I really want to start looking for book trailers to add to my blog. I think kids will respond really well to them, but I also think teachers might choose different books after watching a trailer.
Fun! I haven't read this book yet but I've seen it here and there. It sounds so interesting! I love books with lots of characters and where their stories intertwine by the end of the book. Definitely going to bump this up on my TBR. :)
Cannot wait until I can get hold of a copy of this book! And I love this "dual-review" style.