#20- John Henry: Hammerin' Hero

20) John Henry: Hammerin' Hero

Retold by: Stephanie True Peters

Illustrated by: Nelson Evergreen

Stone Arch Books

2010

32 pages

Traditional Literature

         I bought this book at a Scholastic Warehouse sale because I love the story of John Henry. This one is written in graphic novel form, so I figured it's kind of hard to go wrong. Of course, the story of John Henry is that he was the strongest and fastest rail worker back in the old days. Everyone knew him for his strength. He enjoyed doing things the old way, and when his bosses brought out a new machine that would replace people's jobs, he went up against the machine and worked better, harder, and faster than the machine itself! Unfortunately, that is also what killed him.

        The illustrations in this book are phenomenal. It is written as a graphic novel, so it's appearance reads like a comic book. All the pictures are dark and really do a great job of showing action. Most of the panels are black and white with just a touch of color for the sky or an article of clothing, etc. It really helps keep you in the right time period. 

        I would use this book for all students. I think Kindergarteners would have a bit of trouble learning how to read a graphic novel, but once they did everything would be great. This book is great to make kids who don't usually like books enjoy reading. Since it is written as a graphic novel, you sometimes forget you are reading a book. This would also be great in a lesson on history and the time period of the railroad building. You could also incorporate slavery into the lesson.

#19- Sleeping Beauty

15) Sleeping Beauty

Penguin Books USA, Inc.

2000

54 pages

Traditional Literature

        I chose this book because I had always enjoyed the Disney version of Sleeping Beauty as a child. This one is essentially the same rendition. This is the story of a Princess who is in the wrong place at the wrong time. She is cursed to sleep for ever, and the only thing that can save her is true love's kiss. In keeping with the "happily ever after" tradition, Prince Charming comes along and rescues her from her slumber. There are lots more details in this version, however.

       The illustrations in this book are all very brightly colored. They are done using computer animation. Usually the illustrations do not fill up the whole page. The words are really the focus in this story, so the illustrations kind of fell to the back burner for me. They are still beautiful, though! They really add to the sense of magic.

        I would recommend this book for students from Kindergarten up to fifth grade. While the story is one that everyone knows, the high word count would make this a great book for older students to read. It would definitely be a read-aloud for younger ones. This would make a great after lunch read aloud for a classroom. It could be used in a fairy tale unit. I would use it to talk about the difference between a fiction piece of literature and a nonfiction piece of literature.

#18- Tarzan

18) Tarzan

Retold and Illustrated by: Victoria Saxon

Edgar Rice Burroughs, Inc.

2000

60 pages

Traditional Literature

        I chose this book because I have always loved jungle stories, whether it was Disney's Tarzan or George of the Jungle or National Geographic. This book chronicles the life of Tarzan, a boy who's shipwrecked parents were killed by wild animals. Tarzan was then raised by a gorilla family who took him in as their own. This book tells of all his adventures, even noting when he was discovered by Jane and her family and the little romance that blossoms between them.

        The illustrations in this book are beautiful. They were done using a computer animation software. Each spread contains one page with a vignette and the words of the book around it, and the other on the opposite page has a whole-page illustration with a border. The pictures are all very green, portraying the jungle motif clearly throughout the book. The animals are done in a cartoon-like fashion with little realism. 

         This book is appropriate for all ages, in my opinion. The story is interesting enough to keep the attention of most any student. This story could be used in a character education lesson about families and diversity. I could also be used in a jungle unit. I would use this book as a writing prompt to get the students thinking about what it would be like to be raised by another type of animal. Maybe a snake or a giraffe? There are many ways to turn this book.

#17- The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore

17) The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore

Written by: William Joyce

Illustrated by: William Joyce and Joe Bluhm

Atheneum Books for Young Readers

2012

48 pages

Fantasy

        I chose this book because it inspired an Academy Award nominated short film. I know, it's a strange reason, but I had to read it! This is by far one of my top three favorite books. It tells the story of Morris Lessmore, a normal man who loved words. He wrote in his journal every day until a tornado came and scattered everything he knew around him. He was searching for his book pages when he noticed a woman flying by on a string of flying books. Thinking it was peculiar, one of the books told Morris to follow him! Naturally, he complied. He was taken to a library filled with flying, talking books. There, Morris lived until he was an old man with his books. He decided it was time to go. He flew away on his own string of books, while his own story caught the attention of a little girl. The story starts in the same way it ends, with the opening of a book.

         The illustrations in this book are absolutely mind blowing. They are painted in great detail. The texture is really what makes it stand out. The bushes and shadows, which would usually be a normal flat color, are brought to life by daubs of color that resemble a pointulism technique. Everything in the book is in black and white except the library, talking books, and those who have to do with the library. Creatively, the last page is a double page spread which looks like a young girl's hands placed on the book. 

        I would recommend this book for students from second grade up to sixth grade. I read it to my first grade practicum class last semester and there was a lot that was over their heads. This book makes for a great read aloud after lunch or to settle the kids back down. It also would be a great writing prompt for the kids to write their own fantasy story. This book could be used in a lesson about libraries as well. I love it for it's appreciation of books and the power of stories.

#16- Penguin and Pinecone

16) Penguin and Pinecone

Written and Illustrated by: Salina Yoon

Scholastic, Inc

2012

32 pages

Fantasy

        I chose this book because it seemed so cute! I was right. It is a story of a little Penguin who finds  this object he isn't sure about. When he asks his Grandpa, he tells him it is a pinecone that belongs in the forest. Penguin decides he needs to take Pinecone back to his home, sadly. They are such good friends! Penguin leaves Pinecone in the forest, wrapped up in a scarf. He hopes to come back and find out that the pinecone has grown big and strong. He does just that, except the pinecone became a tree! It is a precious story.

        The art in this book is done digitally using Adobe Photoshop. It appears to be done in some kind of crayon, though. The illustrations are very simplistic, adding to the storyline. The colors are very wintery; there are lots of blues and whites. Some pages are double page spreads, others have frames on a single page, while still some have up to four illustrations on a single page. Everything is very cohesive.

        I would suggest this book for students up to about the third grade. It is kind of juvenile for older students. This book would be great to leave out for the children to read during the winter months. It would also be great to use in a character education lesson on friendship. I would probably use it in a lesson on plants and how they grow from seeds. The pinecone would bee the seed that grew into a tree. There are plenty of follow up activities you could do as well.

#15- A Giant Crush

15) A Giant Crush

Written by: Jennifer Choldenko

Illustrated by: Melissa Sweet

Scholastic, Inc

2011

22 pages

Fantasy

       I chose this book because I did a book order around Valentine's Day and it looked very cute. It is the story of a bunny who is working on a Valentine's gift for his giant crush. It chronicles the struggle he faces when he thinks his crush has a crush on someone else. It also describes the joy in finding out his crush really does like him! It's a really precious story. I could see the younger kids being all worked up and saying "EW!" a lot.

        The illustrations are beautiful in this book. The end pages are done in solely craft supplies. There is a tape roll, some paper, glue, glitter, and other things we use to make Valentines. The pictures are done in watercolor and outlined in pen. Everything is done in a slightly sloppy style, which reinforces the idea of Valentine's Day with young children. There is a lot of the color red.

        I think this book would be good for Kindergarten to about third grade. It's a little juvenile for the older students. This book would be good to leave around the class during February for the children to read on their own. You could also use it as an intro to a Valentine making activity. I would probably use this book as a read aloud on Valentine's Day. It doesn't have a whole lot of meat to it, but I think it is a good piece of quality literature nonetheless. 

#14- Do You Do A Digeridoo?

10) Do You Do A Digeridoo

Written by: Nick Page

Illustrated by: Sara Baker

Make Believe Ideas

2008

34 pages

Poetry

 

        I chose this book because of the awesome cover illustrations, and because it seemed to have something to do with music. I soon found out that it did! This book is about a man who walks into a music store looking for an instrument called a digeridoo. He continually asks the store owner if he has one, while describing all the kinds of things he could do with it, as the store owner continually replies, "No, we digeridon't." At the end, the store owner finally finds one, but alas, the customer has changed his mind. It is a hilarious read.

 

        The illustrations in this book can only be described as comical. They are super busy, with so many details to look at on every page. They are also super colorful, making everything easily distinguishable.The pictures were done in bold watercolors and outlined with pen. Sometimes the text is part of the illustration, and other times it is in it's own negative space.

  

        I would suggest this book for up to about third grade. The repitition is a little juvenile for older elementary students. I recently read the book to my Kindergarten practicum class and they loved it! This book would be great to use in a poetry unit. It could also be used in tandem with a Dr. Suess unit, because of the parallels between this book and Green Eggs and Ham. I would use this book in a lesson on musical instruments. There are at least five different instruments in every illustration. Children don't get exposed to things like that as much anymore and I would love to take some time to show my students something musical.