"The Giver" By: Lois Lowry

I read The Giver when I was in 7th grade. I only vaguely remember some parts from this book, but reading this book again was interesting because I would remember little clips of class conversations and parts that stood out to me the first time. I think this book is fascinating. It's told through the eyes of an 11 year-old boy, Jonas. Jonas is a great narrator because as the reader we get to learn about this very odd futuristic community that he lives in, while at the same time get to hear his thoughts and feelings.
I think that this was a great book to read when I was in 7th grade, and depending on the students I think that 6th graders would really enjoy this book. I love that this book forces the reader to reflect on the world around us. As flawed as our world is, I think this book helps us appreciate what we have. Every time I read this book I am bothered by the blandness of Jonas's community. I think this book helps its readers realize that for all the bad things in our world there are so many wonderful things, and to fully appreciate the good you have to experience the bad. At first this was a tough concept to grasp because as a 7th grader all good seems like a wonderful idea. But this book shows us that what one person thinks is good isn't necessarily good for all.
Reading this book a second time I'm able to catch things that I missed when I was younger. For example, the cover never really made sense to me when I was in 7th grade but I now understand that the old man on the cover is the giver. The picture of the giver on the cover is black and white representing the people's colorless community. But next to the giver's picture is an almost torn looking picture of a colorful forest. The colorful forest represents the ideas of change and the colorful memories that have been forgotten. But as displayed on the cover these ideas and memories are just being uncovered.
I think this is a great book, and I would recommend reading it. It's interesting even the second time around!

"Land of the Blindfolded" By: Tsukuba Sakura

The Land of the Blindfolded was the first manga that I have ever read. Manga's are the Japanese style of comic books. There were a few things that I needed to get used to when reading a manga. The first was that it reads from left to right, and the second is that the boxes in mangas are sometimes different shapes and sizes. Because of the various types of boxes it took me a while to get used to this reading style. I would sometimes read the page out of order, but by the end of the story I had no problem reading the book.
This specific manga is about a girl in high school, Kanade, who can see the future. Contact with other people will induce her random glimpses of the future. At first it's hard for Kanade to deal with seeing the future because she can't always stop the events from happening. While Kanade can see the future, Arou, a boy in her grade can see a person's past. Like Kanade, Arou's glimpses happen when he makes contact with another person or even an object. But unlike Kanade, Arou sees glimpses of the past all the time. Arou and Kanade become friends, and their friendship allows them to talk with someone about their visions, which can sometimes be a lot to handle.
I thought this manga was interesting, and I can see why some students might really enjoy reading these books. I would definitely recommend this manga to older students, such as fifth and sixth graders. I think that this manga is geared more towards a girl audience, but I think that boys might also enjoy this story.

"Abuela" By: Arthur Dorros

The book Abuela is a very cute book. It is about a grandmother and her granddaughter and their crazy adventures, both real and imaginary. This book is neat because it includes both Spanish and English words. Even though it includes words from two languages it isn't difficult to understand what is happening in the story because it is repeated in the other language. For example, people in the book say 'buenos dias' and then after that it says 'good morning'. I think this book would be really helpful to use with Spanish speaking ESL students. This book would help them because they could read the words in their primary language, and then see them in English. In addition to being helpful to ESL students I think that little kids would enjoy this book. Kids enjoy learning Spanish words from the "Dora the Explorer" show so they would most likely enjoy learning some Spanish through a colorful picture book.
This book has beautiful illustrations, which were done by Elisa Kleven. The colorful pictures highlight the little girl's fun imagination. The illustrations are really neat because they are made using various mediums such as, watercolor, pastels, and cut paper. I think this was a very cute book, and I could see kindergarteners and first graders really enjoying it.

"Rapunzel" By: Paul O. Zelinsky

This book tells the story of Rapunzel, the classic fairytale that many of us grew up hearing in school, from parents, or other books. Most children's books that tell the story of Rapunzel leave out some of the darker details of the fairy tale. This book includes many of the details of the original fairy tale, but still keeping it appropriate for children. This is also an interesting version of the fairy tale because at the end of the story there are a few pages that describe the history of the story Rapunzel. It also talks about the various versions of the story Rapunzel. For example, one of the tales was, Petrosinella, which tells a tale like Rapunzel but instead the wife steals parsley from the witch's garden.
In addition to the interesting story of Rapunzel the illustrations in this book are very intricate and fun to look at. Even the end pages of this book are detailed pictures of the land in which the characters live. This book was arranged very well. Even the ISBN on the back of the book has an old paper background that fits the setting of the story. There are also many images of the rapunzel flowers throughout the story.
I think this book is very interesting and I can definitely see using it in my future classroom. I would probably use this when discussing the different versions of fairy tales. I think that this would be a great version to use because it isn't as sugar coated as other Rapunzel stories.

"You Can't Eat Your Chicken Pox, Amber Brown" By: Paula Danzinger

You Can't Eat Your Chicken Pox, Amber Brown is a really cute book! It is a quick read, and good beginner chapter book. I think that both third and fourth graders would enjoy this quick read. Amber Brown has just finished her third grade year, and she is going on a trip to London with her Aunt Pam, and then to visit her dad in France. Amber's parents are going through a divorce, and her dad has just moved to France for his new job. Throughout the book Amber talks about the difficult time she is having with her parents' divorce, and how she wants them to get back together. In addition to her parents' divorce Amber's best friend, Justin, has moved away. To add to Amber's luck, she gets the chicken pox while in London.
This book is a great book, and it is written through the eyes of Amber Brown. Her thoughts and comments throughout the book will make you laugh. She is a sweet kid who loves disgusting things, like vomit and scabs. There are pictures throughout the book, and she also includes the letters she receives and writes to her friends and family.
I would recommend this book to my students because it is a fun read. There is an Amber Brown series, so if they like this book they will probably like the other Amber Brown books. I really enjoyed reading this book, and I think that many kids will also enjoy Amber's goofy stories.

"Cinderella Skeleton" By: Robert D. San Souci

Cinderella Skeleton is an interesting book with a creepy twist to the classic Cinderella story. It tells the story of a Cinderella Skeleton who lives in a mausoleum in the graveyard with her stepsisters and stepmother. The entire story rhymes, but some lines don't always rhyme with the one that follows so there isn't a flowing rhythm to the text.
Although the text was sometimes a bumpy read the illustrations were really neat! The illustrations are very detailed, and contain lots of made up creatures. They are filled with detail, and make the story very fun to follow. These illustrations were done in pencil, and watercolors. The illustration on the title page has a dead leaf covered in cobwebs, and then the last page has a blooming dandelion on it which is symbolic of Cinderella Skeleton's journey.
I thought this book was entertaining. I would read it to my class if I was doing a unit on the various versions of classic fairytales.

"Owl Moon" By: Jane Yolen

Owl Moon is a very cute book about a tradition called owling. After having gone owling with his two sons it's now the little girls turn to go owling with her dad. This book has great details! It's told from the little girl's perspective. She describes all the sights, sounds, and feelings of being out in the cold night owling.
The illustrations also help the reader feel like they are outide in the cold winter night too. The illustrations are done by John Schoenherr. The illustrations start on the title page where there is a picture of the little girl opening the door to the dark cold night. The various details of this book are all tied together well, even the end pages go nicely with the theme of the book. They are a navy blue which is the dark color of the winter night.
I really liked this book, and could see using in my classroom for a mini-lesson during writing workshop. I would read it to 1st graders, and I would also read it to 5th graders. We would then either have a mini-lesson on setting or about using details in our writing. I hope to add this book to my classroom library in the future!

"Jimmy Zangwow's Out-of-This-World Moon Pie Adventure" By:Tony DiTerlizzi

I really enjoyed reading Jimmy Zangwow's Out-of-This-World Moon Pie Adventure. It was a really creative book, and the story is very cute. Jimmy wanted his favorite snack, moon pie and milk, but his mom wouldn't let him have any because it would ruin his appetite for dinner. Jimmy went outside to go work on his secret invention in the backyard when it took off, and flew to the moon to get moon pies. He has all sorts of adventures while in space.
The pictures in this book are really neat, and I love all the made up creatures. There are also a lot of cute little details on the title page and the acknowledgements page. I also thought it was really neat how the illustrations on earth are different than those in space. When Jimmy is on earth the illustrations have a white boarder, but when he's in space the illustration takes up the entire page.
I loved this book, and it sends the wonderful message to "never abandon imagination". I could also see reading this book before having my students jump into creative writing. I plan to add this book to my classroom library someday!

"The Popcorn Book" By: Tomie de Paola

The Popcorn Book is a nonfiction book. By looking at the cover I would have expected it to be a realistic fiction book. This was a very interesting book. It talks about the history and other fact about popcorn. I never would have thought that popcorn had so much history to it. For example, did you know that out of the three main types of corn popcorn is the oldest. I would have thought that field corn, which is used to feed animals and sweet corn which is the type we eat would have been older than popcorn. I also wouldn't have guessed that the Indians discovered popcorn.
I thought this book was very interesting, and it had a cute little story of two brothers making popcorn to go along with all the facts. I also like how the text is incorporated into this book. The entire book is told through word bubble discussion. The facts are printed in a standard font, while the conversational words are written in a handwritten font. I enjoyed reading this book, and would recommend it to others, especially if you're curious about popcorn.

"You Are Special, Little One" By: Nancy Tafuri

This book is for young children, ages 2-5. It is a very sweet book. It goes through a lot of animals, and every animal baby asks "How am I special?". The animal's parents reply by telling the kid what makes them special. This book was very cute. I like how the author chose to show that each individual animal is special in its own way. The one thing I thought was interesting was that all the animals, and the child at the end of the story always have two parents.
The illustrations in this book were very good. The animals have lots of details and depicted very realistically. The illustrations were created with a mixture of watercolors and color pencils.
Overall I thought this was a cute book, and I could see reading it to little kids one day. I think it's a cute book that reminds us that everyone is different in their own special ways.

"All I See" By: Cynthia Rylant

The book All I See is a very cute story about a boy who befriends a painter. He is a very shy boy who finds entertainment in watching an artist during his free time in the summer. One day while the artist is buys taking a break, the boy paints him a picture. They communicate through the paintings until the artist convinces the boy to stay and paint with him. He teaches the boy what he knows, and they become friends.
The book focuses on painting so it fits that illustrations would be beautiful watercolor paintings. The end pages are a cream yellow that have a similar texture to watercolor paper. Another cute detail are the whale painting die stamps on the front cover.
Whales are important theme throughout this book. The artist, George, seems to only paint whales. When the boy asks him why he only paints whales, he replies that it's "All I See". The artist's easel is set up in front of a lake. Although there are no whales in the lake his imagination allows him to see more than what meets the eye.

"I Lost My Tooth in Africa" By: Penda Diakite

I lost my tooth in Africa is a cute book about family, and the different traditions of other cultures. It's about a family that travels from the US to Africa. They travel to Africa to visit the dad's family. Just as their trip begins the little girl finds out she has a loose tooth, and her dad tells her that if she loses her tooth in Africa she will get a chicken.
The book contains some of the many languages spoken in Mali. At the very back of the book there is a glossary of all the words that are in Bambara, the language the girl speaks when she's in Africa
. It also contains the author's Grandma N'na's goodnight song, and her Aunt Kadja's African Onion Sauce recipe. I really like how the author includes some of her family's culture at the end of the story.
The book shows the different lifestyles and ways of living in Africa through the various pictures. The illustrations were very neat. Each big picture page is surrounded by a boarder. The boarders contain little images that reflect what is going on in the larger picture. For example, when the little girl lost her tooth the boarder had teeth around it. The illustrations are also very colorful, and were created through ceramic tile.
This book really emphasizes the importance of family. It is also very cute because the author's father illustrated this book.

"Frindle" By: Adnrew Clements

The book Frindle was recommended to me by a good friend of mine. She raved about how much she enjoyed this book when she was younger. I remembered hearing about the book, but never got around to reading it. After finishing Frindle I now understand why my friend was so adamant that I read it. Frindle is a very cute book that inspires creativity and fun among its readers. It is also funny because the main character, Nick, is full of wonderful ideas but he hates homework. He is the king of distracting his teachers during class so that they forget about the homework they were about to assign. But Nick's new 5th grade teacher seems to know all the tricks of the trade, and instead of falling for his attempt to distract her he gets himself stuck with a little report on how words are created. Nick's report on words gets him thinking, and before he knows it he has created a new word!
This book has a very sweet message about teachers and how they work to inspire their students' ideas and work. It also shows the reader that with dedication and a good idea you never know what might happen!
This is a great book that both boys and girls would enjoy. I could see advanced 4th graders reading Frindle all the way to 6th graders. I definitely plan on adding this book to my classroom library!

"I Am the Mummy Heb-Nefert" By: Eve Bunting

I thought this book was really interesting. It is told from the perspective of the mummy Heb-Nefert. She begins with her life, and how she was once beautiful. She talks about how she became the wife of the pharaoh's brother, Ti. The story continues to talk about her life, but it then goes on to talk about the traditions of her burial, and how her life continues after her death.
I thought this was a really neat book. The story was interesting, and the illustrations were beautiful. The illustrations, which were done by David Christiana, are intricate and very beautiful. I also think that the color chosen for the end pages of this book is really interesting. The end pages are a stone gray color. I find this interesting because it almost seems like the end pages are the stone sarcophagus that contains the mummy.
I really enjoyed this book, and I think it would be a great book to use when learning about mummies and ancient Egypt. I would definitely find a way to incorporate this book into my lesson because it talks about the life of the person, and then the burial process. I think this book puts into perspective that mummies were once living people.

"The Memory Coat" By: Elvira Woodruff

The Memory Coat is a story about two cousins' journey to a better life. This book is very interesting and very informational. The author's note is neat because it gives the reader a little insight into the thought process of the writer. This book is based on actual events, but the characters are not real. The coat, which is a symbol throughout the book, caught the author's attention while she was visiting Ellis Island. At the beginning of the book the narrator brings up the poor condition of Grisha's tattered wool coat. Despite what all his family members think, he keeps the coat because it is lined with the wool from his mother's coat. Grisha, lives with his cousin, Rachel, because his parents died from an epidemic. As the family's luck starts to change, and their hopes for a better life start to come true the coat is described as special. I like how the coat seems to represent the family's journey, and the turn in their luck.
The book also neat illustrations. The illustrations were done by Michael Dooling. He used oil paints on canvas for the book's pictures. The canvas made some of the pictures look like they had texture to them which was neat becasue it gave more life to the image.
I really enjoyed this book because the story related to many things I've learned. Having been to Ellis Island it was neat to put an image to the place, and have some background knowledge about what Rachel and Grisha's expereince was like. It was also an interesting story because I remember learning about the pogroms, and hearing this story reminded me that many Jews had to make a similar journey to that of Rachel and Grisha's.

"Train to Somewhere" By: Eve Bunting

This historical fiction book takes place somewhere between the mid-1850s to the late 1920s. During this time orphans journeyed by train from New York to the Midwest in hopes of finding homes. It is about an orphan girl's journey to find a home.
I thought this book was really interesting especially because I didn't know that families were able to adopt orphans for free during this time. I also didn't know that the Children's Aid Society tried to find homes for these children by train. Unfortunately not all of the orphans found a better life from this train trip, but this book shows that many orphans found new homes and loving families. I thought this book was sweet and I liked its story.
The book also has beautiful illustrations, which are done by Ronald Himler. They are done with watercolor and gouache. Gouache is a type of paint where the pigment is suspended in water. The ratio of pigment to water in gouache is much greater than that in watercolors.

"Pink and Say" By: Patricia Polacco

Pink and Say is a really touching story. When I began reading this book I didn't expect it to be so full of emotion, but it tells the story of two boys of different color who befriend each other during the Civil War. It is a surprisingly intense story for a children's book, but also very interesting. This story was written so that Pinkus Aylee's memory would live on.
In addition to really enjoying this story the illustrations are very distinct. While I was reading this book I noticed that the illustrations seemed familiar. Once I finished Pink and Say I realized that I had also read Babushka's Doll. I think it's neat that the author illustrates her own books because then they can not only be recognized by the writing style, but also by the illustrations.

"Judy Moody Gets Famous!" By: Megan McDonald

For my series book, I read one of the Judy Moody novels. I have never read a Judy Moody book, but I thought this one had a very cute story! Even though Judy Moody is a series book, it had a page at the beginning of the book that introduced who's who. I think this is a very important thing because having never read a Judy Moody book it was nice to know who the characters were while I was reading. It's a very cute story about a girl, Judy, who wants to be famous after a girl in her class gets her name and picture in the newspaper. It seems as though everyone Judy knows has been famous in some way except for her.
In addition to a cute story there are also some cute little details to this book too. The die stamp on the front cover is a picture of Judy moody, and this little picture is seen through a cut in the dust jacket. The die stamps looks like it is part of the newspaper Judy is holding on the front cover. There are some full page illustrations throughout the book to show Judy's many attempts at becoming famous. This is a cute book, and I could see young girls enjoying the Judy Moody series.