Title: Annie Was Warned by: Jarrett J. Krosoczka
Publisher: Alfred A. Knopf, 2003
Reading Level: 1.4
Genre: Picture Book
Pages: 29
Summary: On Halloween Night, a little girl named Annie decided to go up to the old Montgomery mansion. All of her family members tell her not to go because the mansion is haunted. Their warnings, though, didn't scare her because she was, after all, born on Halloween. All along the way to the mansion she thought that she saw the things that her family had warned her about, but they ended up just being everyday objects. As she got up to the mansion, there were signs all the way up to the stairs warning her not to go into the mansion. As she opened the door, her family and friends were waiting behind the door to throw her a surprise birthday party.
Recommended Readers: Any reader would probably enjoy this book, but I think curious children would especially love to read this book. Any child who sometimes does things they are not supposed to do because they just can't help but find questions to their answers would really enjoy this book.
Possible Problems: Parents might not like this book because on the first page the main character sneaks out of her house after being told not to go to the mansion.
Reaction: I thought that this book was very clever. I think that it would easily keep the attention of a child because the reader wants to know what is going to happen when Annie gets to the mansion. The illustrations are beautiful, and it is just a good book overall.
Title: Love You Forever by: Robert Munsch
Publisher: Firefly Books, 1986
Reading Level: ages 4-8
Genre: Picture Book
Pages: 31
Summary: This is a story that follows a boy as he grows from an infant in his mother's arms to a grown man with a child of his own. No matter how old the boy is, his mom always sneaks into his bedroom at night, picks him up, and rocks him back and forth. While she rocks him, she tells him that she will love him forever and like him for always. When the mother grows old, the son picks her up in his arms and repeats the same words that his mother recited to him for years. After leaving his mother's house, he picks up his own daughter, repeats those same words, and the cycle of love continues.
Recommended Readers: I believe that every child and ever adult should read this book. It's message about unconditional love is a priceless one that every person can benefit from.
Possible Problems: I don't see any problems that might arise from this book. It is a timeless story about love and growing up.
Reaction: I love and have always loved this story. I love how the pictures portray perfectly the different stages that we go through as human beings. I feel like it is really easy to relate to both the child and the mother. Every time I read this book, I get those words that she says to her stuck in my head, and I can't help but think about how much I am loved. I can't wait to read this story to a child of my own someday.
Title: You Are Special by Max Lucado
Publisher: Crossway Book, 1993
Reading Level: 4.1
Genre: Picture Book
Pages: 26
Summary: The Wemmicks are wooden puppets that live in village together. The Wemmicks have a tradition of giving stickers to one another. If a Wemmick does something wonderful, is incredibly talents, or especially good looking, then that Wemmick receives a star sticker. On the other hand, if a Wemmick does something embarrassing, says something funny, or looks kind of funny, that Wemmick receives a dot. Puncinello is a Wemmick who, try as he might, can't seem to avoid getting dots. He is always doing embarrassing things, and sometimes he will get dots simply because he has so many dots. One day Puncinello met another Wemmick, Lucia, who was unlike any other Wemmick he had ever met because she had neither stars nor dots. When someone tried to give her a sticker, it just fell right off of her. Puncinello asked Lucia why the stickers didn't stick to her. She told him to go see Eli, their maker. Puncinello did. Eli helped him to see that it doesn't matter what other people think of him. Eli told Puncinello that he need only trust in the love of Eli, and that would be enough. As soon as Puncinello determined to trust his make, a dot fell off.
Recommended Readers: Any child who particularly struggles with his or her self-esteem or who could just use a reassuring reminder that what other people think doesn't matter is urged to read this book.
Possible Problems: There are definite religious references in this book. Eli is a symbol for God, and the Wemmicks represent us. Some parents might not care for their children to read a book that is based off of the character of God.
Reaction: I never read this book when I was a child, but I wish that I had. It would have been nice to have read such a strong book that is intended to help children with self esteem. Not only does it have an amazing message, it is a beautiful book. The pictures look so realistic. The characters are all really easy to relate to.
Title: How I Became a Pirate by Melinda Long and David Shannon
Publisher: Harcourt Inc,
Reading Level: 2.3
Genre: Picture Book
Pages: 31 pages
Summary: One day while at the beach with his family, Jeremy Jacobs is invited onto a Captain Braid Beard's pirate ship. He agrees and quickly becomes accustomed to the life of a pirate. He thinks that it is great that pirates don't have a bed time and don't have to eat food they don't like. He feels like he could really get used to the life of a pirate, until he realizes that pirates also don't get tucked in or have anyone to run to if a storm should arise. He decides that the life of a pirate might not be so great after all and decides to live his life instead. The ways of the pirate aren't completely lost with him, though, because he lets the pirates bury their treasure in his back yard.
Recommended Readers: This is definitely a book for little boys. It has everything that little boys would enjoy: action, adventure, and an absence of manners.
Possible Problems: The content of this book might not be what every parent wants their child to read. The biggest problem I see with this book, though, is that one of the pictures might be a cause for alarm for some parents. It shows the boy snuggled up right next to the pirate. It made me do a double take because it just doesn't look exactly right.
Reaction: I don't normally like to read books about pirates, but I didn't mind this book too much. It wasn't my favorite, but I think that it is a very fun book. The pictures, minus the one slightly sketchy picture, are all beautiful and really fun. This book received the Caldecott for its illustrations, and it is apparent why. I think that this would be a fun book to read to a little boy.
Title: A Bad Case of the Stripes by David Shannon
Publisher: Scholastic, 2004
Reading Level: 3.5
Genre: Picture Book
Pages: 31
Summary: Camilla Cream loves lima beans, but she won't eat them because she is worried about what her friends will think. She also worries about what they will think about what she wears. On the first day of school, Camilla tried on 42 different outfits. While trying on one of her outfits, she discovered that she was completely covered in stripes. The doctors couldn't figure out what was wrong with her, but they soon found out that she would change colors and patterns depending on what other people said to her. If they mentioned polka dots, a whole batch of purple polka dots would soon appear all over her body. She soon became the spectacle of the town. Everyone wanted to see the amazing changing girl. Doctors and specialists, neighbors and friends all tried to give Camilla advice about how to get rid of her condition. After things got completely out of control and Camilla melted into her house, a quiet old lady came by and offered Camilla some lima beans. Once she ate them, Camilla came back to normal. She was never worried about what others thought about her choices again.
Recommended Readers: I think that this is a good book for everyone. It has fun pictures and a great message for all to hear. Children who are particularly worried about what others think about them would especially benefit from reading this book.
Possible Problems: Some of the pictures towards the end of the book might be a little bit scary for younger children. They are also a little bit hard to understand because not many little children know what a virus looks like.
Reaction: I really enjoy reading this book. I think that it is really easy to relate to Camilla because every person at one time or another had worried about what other people think about them. I think that children especially would be able to relate to her character. The pictures are really inventive, and it is fun for me to see how Camilla will change next.
Title: Sherman Crunchley by Laura Numeroff and Nate Evans
Publisher: Dutton Children's Books, 2003
Reading Level: 3.3
Genre: Picture Book
Pages: 30
Summary: Sherman Crunchley is a deputy who can not say no to anybody. He is constantly getting stuck with the bad jobs and letting people get away with things because he can't seem to tell anyone no. With his dad's retirement quickly approaching, Sherman tries everything he can think of to tell his dad he doesn't want to take his place when his dad retires. He tries self-help books and even hypnotism to help him learn how to say no. When that doesn't work, he decides to use his passion, decorating hats, to tell his dad. Sherman makes hats for each of the guests at his dad's retirement party and puts a couple letters of the "I don't want to be chief" on each of the hats.
Sherman's dad ends up laughing because he was only retiring because he thought that Sherman wanted to take his place. His dad doesn't retire, and Sherman is able to quite being a deputy and open up a hat shop of his own.
Recommended Readers: This book would be great for any child who likes police things or animals. It would also be good for children who struggle, as Sherman does, with disappointing others.
Possible Problems: The plot of this book doesn't have any real depth to it. It gets its message across, but it is done in such an obvious way that it might be seen as too straight forward of preachy. Also the end is not very realistic. Children might have a hard time relating to the story because it ends so perfectly for Sherman.
Reaction: This is definitely not my favorite book. I found it a little bit boring and hard to stay focused on. I also found it hard to relate to the main character because his problem was a little overdramatized. The pictures, though, are beautiful and creative.
Title: Curious George Rides a Bike by H.A. Rey
Publisher: Scholastic, 1952
Reading Level: 2.9
Genre: Picture Book
Pages: 45
Summary: In honor of Geroge's third year with the man in the yellow hat, he is given a brand new blue bicycle. He loves his new bike and learns new tricks on it. George decides to use his bicycle to help a boy with his paper route, but gets distracted and makes paper boats instead. While he is floating the paper boats in the water, he rides right into a rock and bends his front tire. He figures out that he can ride with the front tire in the air all the way home. While doing that, the leader of the traveling animal show sees George and invites him to be in their show. Before he can make it to the show, he gets into trouble and has to sit on the bench instead. One of the baby bears from the show escapes his cage and gets stuck in the cage, so George climbs up the tree and saves the day.
Recommended Readers: I think that Curious George books would keep the interest of almost any child. George always has some new sort of adventure to go on, and he always ends up getting himself into trouble. I think that makes him a character that most children could easily relate to.
Possible Problems: The biggest problem that I see with this book is the illustrations. They are drawn with very minimal detail, and they are almost entirely void of color. Although the content of the book is good, some children might have a hard time looking past the pictures.
Reaction: I loved Curious George as a child, and I still love him now. He is a really cute character that I just can't help but love. I don't remember ever reading this particular series, but I love it just the same. I loved to see where he started out at the beginning of the story and where he ended up at the end of the story.
Title: If You Give a Pig a Pancake by Laura Numeroff
Publisher: HarpersCollinsPublishers, 1998
Reading Level: 2.8
Genre: Picture Book
Pages: 30
Summary: This book is in the same series as If You Give a Mouse a Cookie and If You Give a Moose a Muffin. It tells a story of a girl who invited a pig to have a pancake with her. Once the pig was eating the pancake, she wanted some syrup with it. The syrup got her all sticky, so she wanted to take a bath. Each thing she wanted reminded the pig of something else that she wanted, and the little girl is left to keep up with all the wishes of the pig. In the end, the pig is painting and gets sticky which reminds her of the maple syrup, which reminds her of the pancakes.
Recommended Readers: This book is great for young children who are learning about cause and effect or who are learning about making inferences while reading. The child can guess what the pig will want next.
Possible Problems: I don't see any problems that would be associated with this book. It is a clean and cute story.
Reaction: I personally get exhausted after reading this book. It makes me tired to watch the pig go from one activity to the next. Other than that, I think this story is really funny and really cute.
Title: The Car Washing Street by Denise Lewis Patrick
Publisher: Scholastic, 1993
Reading Level: 3.5
Genre: Picture Book
Pages: 30
Summary: Saturday morning means it is time to wash the cars on the urban street that Matthew lives on. Matthew's family does not own a car, but he still likes to go outside and be a part of the festivities. All of Matthew's neighbors come out and wash their car in their own way. The car washing inevitably ends in a big street-long water fight, with everyone using hoses, sponges, and even the fire hydrant to get each other wet. Once the water fight is over, everyone gets an icy from one of the local vendors and sits around the stoop talking.
Recommended Readers: I think that this book has something for every young reader. The characters represent a wide variety of cultural backgrounds and economic level, so I think that every reader could find a character to relate to.
Possible Problems: Because this book represents people from different cultural backgrounds, there is a risk of people seeing stereotype in the characters. I didn't see any stereotypes in this book, but somebody might find one. The other problem with this book is that it has no conflict or central problem to speak of. That might make it a little boring for young readers.
Reaction: The story line of this book isn't exactly the most exciting one I have ever read, but there is still something intriguing about a book that shows people of all ethnicities working together. The ending with everyone sitting on Matthew's stoop shooting the breeze like one big happy family is a little overdone, but I am a sucker for happy endings, so I liked it.
Title:
Fancy Nancy: Bonjour Butterfly by Jane O'Connor
Publisher: HarpersCollinsPublishers, 2008
Reading Level: 2.5
Genre: Picture Book
Pages: 30
Summary: Nancy is a little girl who likes to do everything fancy. She always dresses in the beautiful clothes with ample accessories, and she uses big, fancy words to describe what she is doing and what she is feeling. Nancy's friend, Bree, is having a butterfly-themed birthday party, and Fancy Nancy is so excited to go because she loves butterflies. When she finds out that she has to go to her grandparents' party, instead of the birthday party, Nancy is furious. She lets everyone know how upset she is and complains the whole way to the city. Once she gets to the city and plays enjoys the luxuries of the hotel and has fun at her grandparents' party, though, she realizes that it isn't so bad. Nancy excitement is complete, though, when her parents take her on a surprise trip to the zoo where she gets to go to the butterfly house. Surrounded by beautiful butterflies, Nancy decides that she is no longer upset about having to go to the city.
Recommended Readers: This book is definitely recommended for little girls who love everything girly. It would also be good for girls who need to be reminded that it is ok to be fancy sometimes. This book could be used for a whole class of children to explore how playing around with big words can be fun.
Possible Problems: The biggest problem with this book is that little boys would not even consider reading it on their own because it is just dripping with the color pink. The content, though appropriate, isn't something that would interest boys.
Reaction: I have never read a Fancy Nancy book before, but I wish that I had. I must be all girl at heart because I absolutely love this book! I also really like to play around with words, and I think it is so fun to read about a character who likes to do the same. As fitting with the book, all of the pictures have a lot of detail and style.
Title: Froggy Gets Dressed by Jonathan London
Publisher: Penguin Books, 1993
Reading Level: 1.5
Genre: Picture Book
Pages: 28
Summary: In the middle of his winter hibernation, Froggy wakes up and wants to play in the snow. His parents are still sleeping, so he has to get dressed all by himself. He puts on his clothes, and then his mom reminds him that he forgot to put on his pants. Froggy goes back inside, takes off all of his layers, and tries again. The next time he forgets his coat, then his thermal underwear. By the time he gets all of his clothes on, he is so exhausted that he just goes back to bed.
Recommended Readers: This book is perfect for children who are in the independent stage of life. Those children who insist on doing everything themselves would really enjoy to see Froggy try to do things all by himself.
Possible Problems: The only real problem that I see with this book is that some children might get embarrassed that the word "underwear" is written in such large letters in the middle of the page, but I think, chances are, most children would love that part.
Reactions: I love the Froggy books. He is such a funny character. This is a book that is really fun to read out loud to children because it makes it easy to make different voices for the characters. The pictures do a really good job of helping people understand Froggy's emotions.
Title: Jingle Bells, Homework Smells by Diane de Groat
Publisher: HarperCollinsPublishers, 2000
Reading Level: 1.9
Genre: Picture Book
Pages: 28
Summary: Christmas vacation is quickly approaching, and Gilbert has no patience for school, especially for homework. When his teacher assigns his class to draw a picture of their favorite character from a book over the weekend, Gilbert puts off doing it and focuses, instead, on doing seasonal things like decorating the Christmas tree. Monday morning rolls around, and Gilbert discovers that he didn't do his homework. He tries talking his mom into letting him stay home from school, but it doesn't work. He and another boy who never does his homework, build a snowman to represent the character in their favorite book. His teacher decides to give each boy half a smiley face sticker because it took two of them to do the work, but she tells him he will get the other half if he does the assignment over that night. That is exactly what Gilbert does.
Recommended Readers: I can't imagine a child who would not be drawn to this title because most children don't like homework. I think it would be especially fun to read to an entire class the week before Christmas break when everyone is getting antsy for the upcoming holiday.
Possible Problems: There are a couple of problems that I found with this book. The first problem is that it is a book about Christmas. Because it is not all students celebrate the holiday, it might not be a good choice to promote in the schools. The other problem is that the message of the book, whether the author intended it or not, is that you can get the same results from procrastinating as if you do your work when it is really due.
Reactions: Based on the title, I was expecting this book to be really funny, but that is not really the case. I think that it is a cute story, though. The pictures do a great job of helping the reader feel the same emotions that Gilbert is feeling.
Title: Dimity Dumpty: The Story of Humpty's Little Sister by Bob Graham
Publisher: Candlewick Press, 2006
Reading Level: 3.1
Genre: Picture Book
Pages: 39
Summary: We all know the story of Humpty Dumpty who sat on a wall. This story takes that great nursery rhyme and looks at it from the perspective of Humpty's sister, Dimity. In this story, the Dumpty family is part of a traveling circus. Humpty and his parents are acrobats who take center stage, but Dimity doesn't participate because she doesn't like to be in the spotlight. She would rather just play her flute in the quiet of the hills. One day, Humpty, who is a little bit of a rascal, is spray painting his name on a wall and accidentally slips and falls. Everyone who passes Humpty doesn't stop to help him because he is only an egg. So it is up to Dimity to save the day. She uses her flute as a splint for her brother's broken leg and rushes to the big top of the circus tent, where she had to stand in the spotlight and let everyone know that her brother needed help. Because of Dimity's great courage, her brother was saved. She never went into the spotlight again but was glad to do it to help her brother.
Recommended Readers: I think that this book would be great for readers who loved nursery rhymes but are a little old to be reading them. It would also be good for students who have always wondered why Humpty Dumpty is famous for doing nothing but falling off of a wall.
Possible Problems: This story might make some people upset because it makes Humpty Dumpty look like a bad egg. Some readers might prefer to just see Humpty the way that they have always pictured him.
Reactions: I really enjoyed reading this. I love when authors take traditional tales and make a whole new story out of it. I love how this story incorporates all of the aspects of the nursery rhyme and puts them into a clever story. The pictures are very detailed and help us see the different aspects of the character's personalities.
Title: The Berenstain Bears and the Blame Game by Stan and Jan Berenstain
Publisher: Random House publishers, 1997
Reading Level: 4.2
Genre: Picture Book
Pages: 31
Summary: Mama Bear has about had it with Brother and Sister Bear's constant arguing. Every time something goes wrong in the Bear Family tree house, a hurricane of blame erupts from the mouths of Brother and Sister Bear. Papa Bear steps in before Mama Bear goes crazy and helps his children see that simply working together to take care of the problem is a much more effective way of dealing with the problem than blaming each other. They work together and discover that it doesn't matter whose fault it is.
Recommended Readers: I recommend this book to any child who has a sibling. Almost every child I know who has siblings has had countless fights with those siblings and would benefit from reading this story.
Possible Problems: The Berenstain Bears books show definite stereotypes in the family roles. Papa Bear is the provider and Mama Bear stays home and cares for the children. Sister Bear wears a girly pink outfit, and Brother Bear wears the typical boy outfit, jeans and t-shirt. This book probably would not be considered politically correct in our day.
Reactions: I have always loved these books. I grew up reading them. Even though the ending is pretty cliché, I still think it is a good book. The message might seem a little overdone, but I think that it is a good message for little children to hear.
Title: Diary of a Spider by Doreen Cronin
Publisher: HarperCollinsPublisher, 2005
Reading Level: 2.4
Genre: Picture Book
Pages: 32
Summary: This sequel to the book Diary of a Worm explains the day to day events in the life of a young spider. He keeps a diary of all the things that happen to him and the things he learns throughout the day. His grandpa teaches him all of the things that are necessary to thrive as a spider. He learns that spiders used to be at war with flies, but they are now friends. At school, he learns things like what to do if you hear a vacuum and how to catch the wind just right in order to fly. The life of a spider is pretty exciting. There is much to do and many adventures to be had.
Recommended Readers: Because this book is all about insects and the gross things that they do, I feel like it is more geared towards little boys. Girls who are interesting in keeping journals or making scrap books would also like to read this book.
Possible Problems: I honestly don't see any problems that might come as a result of reading this book. It is cute and gives little facts about the life of a spider.
Reactions: I think that this book is really cool. It does a great job of showing life from the perspective of a spider. I love the voice of the story and how it is so easy to read but interesting. The pictures are phenomenal. The way that Harry Bliss, the illustrator, decided to set up the pictures is very unique and extremely interesting to look at.
Title: The Eleventh Hour by: Graeme Base
Publisher: Abrams Books, 1993
Reading Level:
Genre: Picture Books
Pages: 30 (without the secret helps at the end)
Summary: Horace, the elephant, is turning 11 and decides to invite his friends to a birthday party to celebrate this momentous occasion. He invites eleven of his friends and makes a cooks a grand feast. When his friends arrive in their various costumes, Horace shows them the feast that he made for the party. They are all amazed at his feast. He tells them, though, that they have to wait until 11:00 to eat the feast. Until that time, they play party games like a sack race, snakes and ladders, poker, pool, tennis, and musical chairs. Finally the time comes to go to the banquet hall and eat the feast. Once they arrive there, though, they realize that someone has stolen the entire feast. Each animal then gives the reasons why he or she could not have possibly stolen all of that food. Horace does not despair and goes into the kitchen and whipped up some healthy sandwiches and brought out the cake that he had saved in the kitchen. In the meantime, the reader is left to use all of the many clues that are woven into the book to figure out which of the animals stole the feast. The book has an insider story with a page by page look at all of the clues in the book that show that Kilroy, the mouse, really did steal the food.
Recommended Readers: This book would be great for children who love to figure things out and solve problems. Any child who is really detail-oriented would like this book. Also children who are a little hyper-active would enjoy this book because there is so much going on and so much to look at. They would not get bored.
Possible Problems: The hidden clues in this book might be a little bit difficult for a really young reader to understand. It might also be a little bit difficult for readers to keep track of the characters because there are so many of them. It is hard to remember not only the names of the characters but also which character did what. It also may be hard for some children to focus on because there is SO much detail on every page.
Reaction: I absolutely love this book!!! I think that the layout of the book is ingenious. The way the author uses rhyme makes it flow easily. The pictures are brilliant in the detail and the clues that are woven into that detail. Above all of that, though, I love how interactive it is. Once the reader finishes the actual story, their work has only just begun. They have to figure out who stole the food and look back through the book to see the evidence that Kilroy really did steal the food. I think that it would be a great tool to use to show students the literacy techniques of inference and making connections. I would recommend this book to any reader, young or old.
Title: Heckedy Peg by Aubrey Wood
Publisher: Harcourt Brace and Company, 1987
Reading Level: 3.9
Genre: Picture Book
Pages: 30
Summary: A mother and her seven children, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, all live together in a small cottage. The children's mother goes to the market one day and allows each child one request for an item that they want her to pick up for them at the market. Before she leaves, she reminds the children not to open the door to strangers and not to play with fire. Soon a witch named Heckedy Peg knocks on the door of the children. They forget about their mother's rules and let the witch into their house. Heckedy Peg quickly turns them each into a different type of supper food and takes them back to her house to enjoy her meal. The mother returns to find her cottage empty. A crow tells her where she can find her children, so she goes to hunt for the witch. The mother is able to outsmart the witch and get into her house. Heckedy Peg tells the mother that she must correctly identify which food item each of her children is or else she won't turn them back. Using the items that she bought for her children at a market as a guide, the mother is able to correctly identify who each of her children is. Heckedy Peg turns the children back to normal, and the little family chase Heckedy Peg all the way to a little bridge where she jumps off and dies.
Recommended Readers: I think that every child would benefit from and enjoy reading this book. It is entertaining, has a good moral, and has beautiful pictures.
Possible Problems: Some of the pictures and content of this book might be scary for some children. Also it shows that the family causes the witch's death in the end, which might be a message that parents wouldn't want their children to read about.
Reaction: I didn't think that I would enjoy this book at first, but I ended up really enjoying it. The story is cute, and it was fun to be able to match the child up with the item they requested at the market. As much as I liked the story, though, it is the pictures that I fell in love with. The way the artist portrays light is beautiful. Every page just glimmers as if the light really is reflecting off of the page. Also, the children are given detail like I have not seen in any other book. Each of their pictures looks like a portrait.
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