Kiyoshi's Walk by Mark Karlins illustrated by Nicole Wong

 After observing his grandfather write a haiku, Kiyoshi asks him where poems come from. His grandfather, Eto, suggests they take a walk. Through the encounters on this walk, Kiyoshi learns how poems are inspired.

I would use this book when introducing poetry to elemenatary-age students and when learning about haiku.

-Borrowed from the library.

Hot Dog by Doug Salati**

 Winner of the 2023 Caldecott Medal

An adorable book! A dog and his owner leave the blistering heat of the city for a day at the beach. The illustrations enhance the story and relate the emotions.

**Highly, highly recommend.

-Borrowed from the library.

Afraid of All Things by Scarelt Hiltibidal

With humor and vulnerability, Mrs. Hiltibidal shares fears she has had over the years and how God has met her where she is to bring healing and comfort.  Her testimony reinforces the importance of reading the Word, knowing it and believing it. 
Mrs. Hiltibidal writes in a very personal manner, which makes the reader feel like one is interacting with a friend.
Throughout the book, I was confronted with my inaccurate views of God.  An easy read yet a challenging read!
-Borrowed via Inter-Lib. Loan (Libraries in my county do not own it.)

The Grumble-Free Year by Tricia Goyer

I heard Mrs. Goyer speak on Focus on the Family about their grumble-free year.   I requested that the library purchase this book, and they did!
As I read this book, I felt like Mrs. Goyer was sitting in the room and was telling me personally about the challenges and celebrations as she and her family of ten (including her grandmother) decided to try not to complain or grumble. 
Practical advice is woven into the stories.  At the end of each chapter she lists questions and ideas for the reader to ponder and apply.  I liked how she recognized that the only way anyone can change is if it is heart change through God.
-Borrowed from the library.

Christmas Cheer for the Grouchy Ladybug by Eric Carle

Christmas means joy, right?  Not for the grouchy ladybug.
Throughout the short text, the narrator points out the joyous events that occur during the Christmas season.  By the end of the book, the ladybug is smiling!
-Borrowed from the library.

After the Fall by Dan Santat

How Humpty Dumpty Got Back Up Again
Mr. Santat takes a deeper look into the psyche of Humpty Dumpty and how he resolves his fear of heights and conquers it.
A good book to read to someone who is trying to conquer a fear.
-Borrowed from the library.
 

Nothing Rhymes With Orange by Adam Rex

As various fruits create rhymes about each other, orange laments the fact that "nothing rhymes with orange".  Apple perceives his despair and makes up a word so orange is included.
-Borrowed from the library.

What are You Glad About? What are You Mad About? by Judith Viorst illustrated by Lee White*

Poems for When a Person Needs a Poem
These poems voice the feelings and thoughts of upper elementary children well.  Several of them could be used as mentor poems for writing a similar format.  Others of them could be used as a writing prompt.
Favorite ones: What are You Glad About?  What are You Mad About?; And We Call It Home; About Time; all of the poems from the section: Song of the Seasons.
The poem In Between really mirrors the feelings of this age group well but I did not like the mention of R rated movies (I usually do not watch R rated movies and don't see it as a goal to be reached). Otherwise the poem is superb.
-Borrowed from the library.
*Highly recommend for 4th-6th grades (and junior high).

The Darkest Dark by astronaut Chris Hadfield illustrated by The Fan Brothers*

Chris loves space and dreams of being astronaut.  He, however, is afraid of the dark which he discovers one night when he watches a televised showing of  Neil Armstrong on the moon will be a huge problem!  "Space was the darkest dark ever."
This book explores fear in a honest way and offers hope to anyone's whose fears may interfere with his/her dreams.
The Fan Brothers' illustrations are superb (We love their book The Night Gardener.  We own it.).
*Highly recommend.
-Borrowed from the library.

Penguin Problems by Jory John illustrated by Lane Smith

My boys and I did not like this book at all.
A penguin spends most of the book complaining why he does not like being a penguin.  His bad attitude and pessimistic outlook are quite overwhelming.  Mr. John certainly does an excellent job portraying a whiny, spoiled kid (although in this case, a penguin).
I could see using this book to show a child who has a continual bad attitude how it may feel to be around him/her.
My youngest thought the book was boring.
The cover is adorable.
-Borrowed from the library.

Unglued by Lysa Terkeurst*

"Making Wise Choices in the Midst of Raw Emotions"

Mrs. Terkeurst writes in such a fashion that the reader feels like she is sitting across from her, talking and sharing.
With poignant examples from her own life, Mrs. Terkeurst reinforces how emotions can cause damage and create many regrets.  She, however, builds a case for imperfect progress by encouraging her readers to change their thought patterns and also by identifying the four "unglued reaction" categories with suggestions how to transform their tendencies.  The four unglued reactions are: 1. Exploder Who Shames Herself 2. Exploder Who Blames Others 3. The Stuffer Who Builds Barriers 4. The Stuffer Who Collects Retaliation Rocks.
*Highly recommend.
-I own this book.

Can I Tell You a Secret? by Anna Kang illustrated by Christopher Weyant

Monty has a startling secret.  He is a frog but he is afraid of water.
This book delves into the importance of being honest about one's fears and overcoming them with the help of others.
-Borrowed from the library.

The Lemonade War by Jacqueline Davies*

My six year old really wanted me to read this aloud to him and his older brother (his older brother could have read it to himself no problem) so I did.
Evan Treski is mad.  His eight year old sister,  Jessie,  is so smart while he struggles in every area at school.  Now, with five days until school begins for the year, he discovers that his sister is skipping third grade, will be entering fourth grade and will be in HIS class!  His jealousy and insecurities mask themselves in anger and meanness.  He says some cruel words and begins The Lemonade War.  Whoever sells the most lemonade by Sunday, takes the loser's earnings.
The competition becomes really fierce and both Evan and Jessie have to live with the severe consequences to their actions.
The chapters alternate between the two sibling's point of view.
An economics/business word is each chapter's title.  The word is defined too.
Guided Reading Level: S (4th grade)
Grade Level Equivalent: 4.1
Points to discuss/warnings: Evan and Jessie's dad left them and their mom a couple of years ago.  Both of them say really mean words to each other and are quite cruel to each other ("I hate you" and words like "stupid" "dumb" "jerk" are frequently used). Lying occurs and keeping things from their mother is frequent.
I was able to discuss the importance of not jumping to conclusions and the importance of communicating with my sons through this story.  I also pointed out how jealousy fosters anger and horrible acts.
My oldest son did not enjoy how meanly the siblings treated each other.
*Highly recommend but be prepared to discuss warnings above.
-We own this book.
*First book in a series. http://www.lemonadewar.com/

Step into Reading-Arthur's Back to School Surprise by Marc Brown

Arthur and D.W. are school shopping with their mother.  To Arthur's horror, D.W. selects the same Bionic Bunny backpack.  His horror increases on the first day of school when he realizes he has taken D.W.'s backpack WITH her Mary Moo-Cow!  How embarrassing!
My six year old read this book to himself.
Points to discuss: I do not care for how Arthur and D.W. treat each other at times.  His classmates tease him about Mary Moo-Cow.
Guided Reading Level: K (second grade)
Grade Level Equivalent: 2.5

Parachute by Danny Parker illustrated by Matt Ottley

Toby always wore his parachute.  Life, after all, is scary and full of uncertainties.  Will fear dominate Toby's life?  His love for his cat Henry just may be the key in overcoming his fears.
-Borrowed from the library.

Horrible Bear! by Ame Dyckman illustrated by Zachariah OHora

A bear breaks a girl's kite.  As she has temper tantrum, she has an epiphany and quickly decides to seek forgiveness instead of revenge.
Strategy: predicting.
*Borrowed from the library.

The Rain Stomper by Addie Boswell illustrated by Eric Velasquez*

It is the first day of spring and Jazmin is excited to welcome it with a parade in which she will twirl her baton.  To her dismay, a thunderstorm quickly squelches any hope for a parade.  With plenty of onomatopoeia and personification, Ms. Boswell portrays the intensity of the storm.  Jazmin reveals her frustration and also her spirited-personality by venturing out into the storm and becoming a "rain stomper".
Mr. Velasquez exhibits Jazmin's intensity well and also depicts her active stances in a realistic manner.
*Highly recommend.
*Borrowed from the library.
Strategies: connections (T-S), figurative language (personification, onomatopoeia) 

Pax by Sara Pennypacker illustrated by Jon Klassen

This book's tone is a switch from Ms. Pennypacker's humorous Clementine series.
War is about to begin and Peter's father enlisted.  This means Peter must live with his caustic grandfather who seems to simmer with anger.  This also means Peter must abandon his pet fox, Pax, in the wild.  He and Pax have inseparable since he was seven years old.  Pax is the only comfort he has had since his mother died.
As soon as Peter leaves Pax in the woods, Peter regrets his actions.  Only in his grandfather's joyless home for a few hours, Peter sets out in the middle of the night to travel over two hundred miles to rescue his pet fox.  Meanwhile, Pax is confused and tries to learn the ways of the wild.  During Peter's journey he also encounters a hermit woman who teaches him a few things about life and before he leaves her, he helps her to face life.
A powerful, compelling story.  Well-written.
Chapters alternate between Peter's point of view and Pax's point of view.  Mr. Klassen has drawn silhouettes of either Peter or Pax to indicate whose point of view the chapter is.
*Highly recommend.
*Borrowed from the library.
Guided Reading Level: T (4th grade)
Grade Level Equivalent: 4

A Confident Heart by Renee Swope*

"How to Stop Doubting Yourself and Live in the Security of God's Promises"
This book was encouraging and really deserved more study than what I was able to give it.
Each chapter Mrs. Swope engages the reader in a personal way and offers hope and promises from God's Word to overcome any insecurity or doubt (not good enough, such a failure, don't have anything special to offer, worry, inconsistent walk with God).
I especially liked the resource in Chapter 12 where she pairs what we may say to what God says and the promises in the Word.
I gained new insights about Mary and Martha and Gideon.
Other tidbits:
WORRY= worry only robs rest from you
Mary had a listening heart while Martha had a listing heart (where she told Jesus what to do)-pg. 170
I like this statement by Mrs. Swope on pg. 174, "Sometimes we can get into the habit of serving God more than we are seeking Him and we end up distracted and depleted."
She quotes a story from Zig Ziglar's book Raising Kids in a Negative World about Carnegie and how he looked for the gold nuggets in each person who worked for him (pg. 119).
She also includes insight from Lysa TerKeurst's book Living Life on Purpose how God utilizes each experience in our lives for His perfect purpose.  Mrs. TerKeurst compares our individual life events to baking ingredients and how some taste yummy by themselves while others taste gross/bitter by themselves.  But mixed together, they rise into a beautiful cake.  So Jesus wants to use all of our experiences to make us complete and used for His glory. (pgs 150-151)
Beautiful prayers with Scripture woven in them at the end of each chapter
Study guide questions are included after each chapter so a perfect choice to discuss with a small group.
*Highly recommend.
I borrowed this book from a friend.

The Good-Pie Party by Liz Garton Scanlon illustrated by Kady MacDonald Denton

Posy does not want to move and resists any good-bye parties.  She and her two friends are lamenting the upcoming separation when they decide to bake a pie.  The process of making a pie becomes therapeutic.  They decide to host a "good-pie" party, not a good-by party.
Strategies: connections
Borrowed from the library.