Ms. Kunkel presents an overview of Barbara Cooney's life, from her childhood through her dedication to financing a library for her town in Maine. I love the book's endsheets-purple for lupines and the illustration of Greece. An afterword from her son Barnaby is a special feature!
Read this one and Because Barbara by Sarah Mackenzie to compare/contrast. Because Barbara seemed more personal for some reason??
*Highly recommend.
-Borrowed from the library.
Ms. Lavelle presents how James Earl Jones struggles with speaking (stuttering & also becoming mute when trying to speak), how he decides to remain silent for eight years, and how a teacher helps him finally speak again. He then pursues degrees and careers that require speaking. I love the role poetry has in his success!!
I like how the author includes tips how to interact with someone who stutters.
*Highly recommend.
-Borrowed from the library.
50 Mindful Moments in Nature
When I read the word "mindful" in a title, I cringe. Yet this beautifully illustrated book does not focus on the "mindfulness movement" but on the consistently amazing creation around us each day. The author refers to it as nature and does not attribute the miracles to God, but Christians reading this collection will praise Him.
Two-page spreads delve into moments in creation, encouraging readers to view the world around them with renewed amazement. I liked how the author focused on the science in an approachable presentation with enthusiasm and awe. Readers could read a two-page spread each day or before/after interacting with a specific topic.
Some topics are: dew collecting on a leaf, the dawn chorus performs,a snowflake falls, an ocean wave forms, crests, and breaks, a sunflower tracks the sun, a snake sheds its skin, fiddleheads unfurl in the sunshine, a sea star shuffles across the ocean floor and many more!
Mindfulness is addressed at the very end but vaguely. In the resource section, the author recommends some mindfulness websites.
*Highly recommend because it can cause the reader to celebrate God and His creativity.
-Borrowed from the library.
A delightful, poetic book celebrating the demae who would deliver soba via bicycle. Photographs of these men from 1937 & 1959 offer proof of this incredible feat.
Children narrate the story, which adds to the simplistic marvel of this skill.
**Highly, highly recommend.
When cholera breaks out in the neighborhood along Broad Street, London, England, in 1854, Dr. John Snow is convinced it is not the stinky air causing the illness. Can he provide enough evidence to stop the outbreak from killing more people?
*Highly recommend. I did not care for the illustrations.
Pair with The Great Trouble by Deborah Hopkinson, her middle grade historical fiction novel about the same subject.
-Borrowed from the library.
Maria Ann Smith is a hard working laborer in England, attempting to utilize her skills to earn enough to feed her family. At last she finds employment at an orchard where she learns about harvesting and grafting apples. When an opportunity arises to travel to Australia with a free passage and a job waiting for them, Maria Ann and her family decide to join the venture. In this new country she and her family are able to buy their own land and plant an orchard. It is here that Maria Ann develops a new apple-The Granny Smith.
I loved the additional text boxes with interesting facts.
*Highly recommend.
-an inter-library loan
House recalls the day it was built and the various families who have lived in it. Left empty for years, it longs for a family once more to reside within and to appreciate the joys of the countryside.
Pair with Farmhouse by Sophie Blackall and The Little Blue Cottage by Kelly Jordan (With the three books, readers will be able to make connections and compare/contrast.) I could also see writing prompts emerge from this book or being used as a story starter (older elementary students).
*Highly recommend.
Beautiful illustrations. Full of yearning
-Borrowed from the library.
My parents recently visited Alaska. My mom asked me to request this picture book for her to read.
Susan, a musher, loves her sled dogs. People say she will never win the Iditarod because she babies them. When Granite was born, his knock-knees and timid nature seem like hinderances to becoming a sled dog. Over time he develops into a strong lead sled dog, winning the Iditarod three times. This book relates the trials he and Susan to endure to accomplish this feat.
Sadly in 2006 Susan died of leukemia.
*Highly recommend.
-Borrowed from the library.
Full-page, sweet illustrations accompany poems about each of the months. A few poems/rhymes to help remember the order of the months, days of the week, and numbers on a clock begin this delightful anthology.
Originally published in Sweden in 1927. Naturally all the children look Swedish.
*Highly recommend, especially for those who enjoy old-fashion illustrations.
-Borrowed from the library.
My son read about Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's poem in history. I had him read the picture book version by Susan Jeffers and page through the one illustrated by Margaret Early. I read both versions. We also paged through the original poem to appreciate how long it is!!
Living at the Mostly Silent Monastery for all of her life, Bicycle needs to develop frienships with children. Sister Wanda, who has raised her and homeschooled her, decides to send her to the Friendship Factory in Nevada. Knowing this is a bad idea, Bicycle leaves the monastery on her bicycle called "Clunk" to form a friendship with her bicyclist hero, the Polish man Zbig. The feat of riding "Clunk" from Washington, D.C. to San Francisco, where Zbig will be for the Blessing of the Bikes is daunting. As she crosses the United States, Bicycle forms friendships with interesting individuals.
The plot was a bit unrealistic, but I don't think being realistic was the author's main focus. Younger elementary children may enjoy hearing this chapter book read aloud since their expectations on what is real tend to be lower. It all ended a bit too neatly for me . . .but sometimes it is relaxing to read a book where everything works out perfectly!
Jonathan Bean illustrated the cover and drew the map that depicts Bicycle's cross country route. He grew up in the same county as me and also worked at the same business as me when I was a teen/college student. I always like seeing his work published!
Points to discuss: running away, luck is a big focus, Clunk is eventually haunted by a ghost
A sequel was published in 2023 about Bicycle's travel with Zbig from San Francisco to the east coast-A Few More Bicycles.
-Borrowed from the library.
A girl and her mother visit the beach. The girl imagines all of the things a shell can be. Real shells are part of the illustrations. Ms. Sicuro offers ideas how to make art with shells after the main text.
*Highly recommend.
-Borrowed from the library.
1966 Caldecott winner
Based on a Scottish song preserved through oral tradition, Sorche Nic Leodhas wrote it down for children all over the world to enjoy! Lachie MacLachlan invites all who pass by his home to share what he, his wife, and ten bairns "got". When his house "explodes" with so many people, his guests offer to build him a bigger home, so there is "always room for one more".
A delightful book!
*Highly recommend.
-Borrowed from the library.
When reading an introduction to a section in my son's geometry book, Anno's Hat Tricks illustrated by Mitsumasa Anno was mentioned. Out of curiosity I requested some of his books. He is quite the intriguing illustrator!
The Magic Pocket Selected Poems by Michio Mado translated by The Empress Michiko of Japan decorations by Mitsumasa Anno-very simple poems with simple decorations. I liked how the original Japanese version was on the left with the English translation on the opposite page.
A short biography about Pieter Bruegle the Elder begins this informative, interesting book. The rest of the pages feature several of his paintings, analyzing them and sharing their back stories.
**Highly, highly recommend. Other artists are included in this series.
-Borrowed from the library.
Mr. Schmidt develops characters so well. As a reader you are drawn to them and care about them. Jupiter Rising is a sequel to Orbiting Jupiter. I recommend reading the books in order. I loved this book. I also enjoy seeing characters from previous Schmidt novels pop up in other ones (Doug Swietek's brother, who is now a Coach and PE teacher,appears in this book).
Jack loves Jupiter, Joseph's three-year-old daughter. Jack's parents are in the process of adopting her when Jupiter's grandparents (Madeleine's parents) decide that they want her. Jack cannot take losing another person he loves. But it looks like the law will side with the grandparents. Then Jack's running buddy Jay is hit by a truck while he is running. How much more can an eighth grade boy handle?
I love how Mr. Schmidt advocates the sanctity of life through these two novels. He does not shield the reader from the pain and suffering involved with teens having a baby, with foster care, and with the adoption process. I also love the supportive, wise adults that influence the young people.
*Highly recommend for mature junior highers or older. See warnings/considerations.
Warnings/considerations: Jupiter is the result of a teen pregnancy, both of her parents died in the previous novel, swearing, hit/run accident, neglectful parents (BUT, Jack's parents are wonderful-a realistic portrayal of families-some wonderful, some horrible/selfish), the grandfather smokes
-Borrowed from the library.
-A 1967 Caldecott winner
Sam, a fisherman's daughter, utilizes her vivid imagination to create stories. Only Thomas, her neighbor, believes her stories and asks her each day to see her baby kangaroo. Each day she sends him a wild goose-chase to search for the baby kangaroo. When one day she sends Thomas to the rocks near the lighthouse to find her baby kangaroo and a storm arrives, she realizes how detrimental her lying is.
Considerations/points to discuss: lying, Sam's mother is dead, Sam sends Thomas into a perilous situation, the reader thinks Sam's cat, Bangs, is dead for a short bit
-Borrowed from the library.
I could have read this book in one sitting. Mr. Schmidt writes with clarity. His perfect word choice allows the reader to visualize and to experience the story through the senses.
Eighth-grader Joseph is a father. He almost killed his teacher. He has been incarcerated. When the Hurd family fostered him, they knew his back story and embraced him and his past. Slowly, through the Hurd family's love and the comfort found on a Maine farm, Joseph opens up and allows love to soften him. Then his biological father decides to interfere . . .and Joseph is determined to find his daughter, Jupiter.
A very sad ending enfused with hope
Categorized as "young adult"-warnings: teen pregnancy (Joseph's premarital encounter with Madeleine is not described in detail), death of a beloved character, abusive father
*Highly recommend for high school and older.
-Borrowed from the library.
I love the endpapers in this picture book-actual leaves with their labels.
Ms. Sicuro guides the reader in imagining what different leaves could be.
Perfect book to simulate creative art projects. She even includes instructions the best way to preserve leaves so little artists (or big artists!) can create art with them.
*Highly recommend.
-Borrowed from the library.
#1 in the Eliot Chronicles (a trilogy)
Initially, I almost stopped reading this novel. I did not agree with David's romantic relationship. Then I remembered how Ms. Goudge usually displays the reality of mankind's fallen state and then has her characters realistically come to grips with sin and repent of it. So I continued reading. I am glad I did!
Lucilla Eliot has created a comforting safe-haven for her children and grandchildren in the estate Damerosehay located in Hampshire, England. After her son George's divorce, she is raising his three children while he serves the military in India. His young ex-wife, Nadine, is not involved with their children. Lucilla does not like her. David, her older grandson, is her favorite. When he comes for a visit to Damerosehay, the dogs, his much younger cousins, Lucilla, and Ellen, Lucilla's long-time "maid"/friend, all rejoice and anticipate. This time, however, David has news that he knows will break Lucilla's heart. His little cousins may not regard him in such high esteem.
Will Lucilla be able to reveal to David his grave mistake and how his choice could destroy the family unity she has spent a lifetime creating?
God is mentioned a few times but not as the sole answer to the characters' problems. A question to ponder-Can you really force yourself to learn to love a spouse when you were told to marry them? With God all things are possible. . .
I could relate more to Hilary and Margaret, Lucilla's less glamorous children. I liked yet did not like Lucilla & David-they almost seemed too beautiful and charming!
Little side stories about the history of the estate were intriguing.
Considerations (if giving to teen): the one dog's name is Bastard, a cousin falling in love with a former aunt, some use of word d**n
*Highly recommend.
-Borrowed from the library.
Readers interact with the bunny as he picks, huals, and delivers apples to his mother in their rabbit hole. Readers utilize a red ribbion attached to the book's spine to act as the bunny's scarf. Readers also shake and tilt the book to help the bunny in various situations. Cliches are sprinkled throughout the narrative.
*Highly recommend.
-Borrowed from the library.
A young girl thanks various things in nature, which all contribute in some way to the ability to make an apple cake. A gluten-free cake recipe is included. It involves some extra steps that makes me not want to try it.
-Borrowed from the library.
