I recently had a long period of uninterrupted reading time presented to me while taking a family member to the emergency room. I had a sack full of books, and despite the odd looks from the odd collection of people in the room it certainly made the 6 hour wait a little more palatable. One of the books that I read during my wait was Elijah of Buxton. I enjoyed the book immensely - it has wonthe place of my favorite of Christopher Paul Curtis' since Watsons. I thought to myself - WOW - now this ought to win something, and sure enough, just a few days later it was announced as the Coretta Scott King award winner for the year. Congratulations Elijah!
I must also confess, while on the topic of Elijah, that I am no big fan of historical fiction. I say that almost reflexively since history was always my WORST subject in school, but then when I am being completely honest with myself, I can name a score of historical fiction novels that are among my favorites, and that I recommend to students all the time. Perhaps it is time to change my catch phrase to historical fiction is not my preference. I make exceptions for some because I enjoy a good story - historical or otherwise. If that good historical story has other genre elements blended in with it (like mystery or humor) AND the focus is on events or groups of people that did not pepper my history classes as a student, it stops being the historical enemy and usually crosses the line to historical friend.
Elijah of Buxton satisfied all of these requirements, and was told in Curtis' fabulous way. Just like Watsons I started out laughing, thoroughly enjoying and getting to know the plucky main character, Elijah. At the same time, I was introduced to a place I hadn't heard of before, the Elgin Settlement and Buxton Misson of Raliegh in Buxton, Canada. Founded by the Reverend William King in 1849 the settlement was intended as a place of freedom for escaped slaves. Elijah is the fictional story of the first child to be born into freedom in the settlement. Filled with humor, a good dose of rollicking action and rich secondary characters, the climax settles around the theft of money from a man in the settlement who was hoping to buy his family out of slavery with the money he had made. The transitions are haunting - you can be laughing until you ache one minute and then have your heart broken the second - much like life, making Elijah someone you will miss when you turn the last page of the novel. Definitely worth your time to pick up and enjoy!
Saturday, January 19, 2008
Friday, January 11, 2008
A few new picture books for 08
There's nothing so relaxing as sitting down to a stack of new picture books - these even had that "new" book smell that I think few people other than librarians and die hard bibliophiles appreciate. There were several to enjoy in the stack including:
Jazz on a Saturday Night by Leo and Diane Dillon (Blue Sky Press, 2007)
I've always been partial to the Dillons, and partial to jazz, so this made for a magical mix for me. The book comes with a CD featuring the Dillons explaining what jazz is, what instruments are used and a little of the background of the creation of the book, the second track is a musical rendition of the book, some of the lines done in song, the others instrumental. This is a beautiful, musical tribute to jazz and would make a perfect introduction to young children about the music, but also some of the major figures of jazz and their instruments of choice. The illustrations are rich and strong, and the inclusion of an artist in the audience ties in the rendering of the music to visual art. This has appeal with the very young for a read aloud, but because of the complexities to be explored, could easily be used as a picture book for older readers.
Oliver Who Would Not Sleep by Mara Bergman, illustrated by Nick Maland (Arthur A. Levine Books, 2007)
Oliver Donnington Rimington-Sneep does all sorts of things after being put to bed other than sleep. This is a fun, rhyming tale with Oliver playing with toys around his room, doing magic tricks, racing cars and finally deciding to blast off in his rocket ship to Mars. Oliver's imagination is reigned in at last by a vision of home as he heads back and tired out by his excursions finally falls asleep. A good bed time read aloud or rhyming story to share. Recommended for preschool to grade 2.
A Dog Needs a Bone by Audrey Wood (Blue Sky Press, 2007)
A cute dog's point of view rhyme about the desperate desire to have a bone. The dog begs and begs, promising all sorts of things to his mistress, but is depressed when she leaves. When she comes back toting bags from the store, after a bit of teasing from his mistress, his begging pays off. The illustrations are fun, and looking for the hidden bones in the pictures can serve as a Where's Waldo or Eye Spy for the very young. Recommended for preschool to grade 2.
How Do Dinosaurs Go to School by Jane Yolen, illustrated by Mark Teague (Blue Sky Press, 2007)
Another in Yolen/Teague's How Do Dinosaurs... series, How Do Dinosaurs Go to School follows the familiar pattern of asking if dinosaurs go to school with all sorts of disruptive behavior from rough housing to being rude in class. The pictures are fun as usual, my favorite being the Herrerasaurus who yells out in class when he loses his tooth, and the class all looking at him with gap tooth smiles shining. Of course, the author admonishes "No" to all of the disruptive behaviors going through all of the polite and mannerly things that a dinosaur really does when heading off to school. A good ice breaker/rules and procedures book for those first days of school in a familiar format that the students will enjoy. Recommended for preschool to grade 2.
Peanut by Linas Alsenas (Scholastic Press, 2007)
Poor old Mildred is lonely, and very blind, as she finds a new "dog" in the park that she takes home with her and names "Peanut." Peanut isn't like the other dogs, and doesn't fetch or roll over or enjoy dog bones. Peanut does love peanuts and is good at watering Mildred's plants, but then, Peanut is really a baby elephant. At the park one day the circus master sees Peanut and thanks Mildred for finding their elephant. Mildred is sad until she goes to the circus and sees how happy Peanut is in his real home. We start to end on a sad note for Mildred, until she finds a new "pet" in the park and sets the stage for more near-sighted fun. Best enjoyed one-on-one where students can see the jokes embedded in the pictures or where you have a large screen with which to share the pictures. This could make a cute writing assignment to have students finish out the pictures or story from the last image in the book. Recommended for K-3.
Jazz on a Saturday Night by Leo and Diane Dillon (Blue Sky Press, 2007)
I've always been partial to the Dillons, and partial to jazz, so this made for a magical mix for me. The book comes with a CD featuring the Dillons explaining what jazz is, what instruments are used and a little of the background of the creation of the book, the second track is a musical rendition of the book, some of the lines done in song, the others instrumental. This is a beautiful, musical tribute to jazz and would make a perfect introduction to young children about the music, but also some of the major figures of jazz and their instruments of choice. The illustrations are rich and strong, and the inclusion of an artist in the audience ties in the rendering of the music to visual art. This has appeal with the very young for a read aloud, but because of the complexities to be explored, could easily be used as a picture book for older readers.
Oliver Who Would Not Sleep by Mara Bergman, illustrated by Nick Maland (Arthur A. Levine Books, 2007)
Oliver Donnington Rimington-Sneep does all sorts of things after being put to bed other than sleep. This is a fun, rhyming tale with Oliver playing with toys around his room, doing magic tricks, racing cars and finally deciding to blast off in his rocket ship to Mars. Oliver's imagination is reigned in at last by a vision of home as he heads back and tired out by his excursions finally falls asleep. A good bed time read aloud or rhyming story to share. Recommended for preschool to grade 2.
A Dog Needs a Bone by Audrey Wood (Blue Sky Press, 2007)
A cute dog's point of view rhyme about the desperate desire to have a bone. The dog begs and begs, promising all sorts of things to his mistress, but is depressed when she leaves. When she comes back toting bags from the store, after a bit of teasing from his mistress, his begging pays off. The illustrations are fun, and looking for the hidden bones in the pictures can serve as a Where's Waldo or Eye Spy for the very young. Recommended for preschool to grade 2.
How Do Dinosaurs Go to School by Jane Yolen, illustrated by Mark Teague (Blue Sky Press, 2007)
Another in Yolen/Teague's How Do Dinosaurs... series, How Do Dinosaurs Go to School follows the familiar pattern of asking if dinosaurs go to school with all sorts of disruptive behavior from rough housing to being rude in class. The pictures are fun as usual, my favorite being the Herrerasaurus who yells out in class when he loses his tooth, and the class all looking at him with gap tooth smiles shining. Of course, the author admonishes "No" to all of the disruptive behaviors going through all of the polite and mannerly things that a dinosaur really does when heading off to school. A good ice breaker/rules and procedures book for those first days of school in a familiar format that the students will enjoy. Recommended for preschool to grade 2.
Peanut by Linas Alsenas (Scholastic Press, 2007)
Poor old Mildred is lonely, and very blind, as she finds a new "dog" in the park that she takes home with her and names "Peanut." Peanut isn't like the other dogs, and doesn't fetch or roll over or enjoy dog bones. Peanut does love peanuts and is good at watering Mildred's plants, but then, Peanut is really a baby elephant. At the park one day the circus master sees Peanut and thanks Mildred for finding their elephant. Mildred is sad until she goes to the circus and sees how happy Peanut is in his real home. We start to end on a sad note for Mildred, until she finds a new "pet" in the park and sets the stage for more near-sighted fun. Best enjoyed one-on-one where students can see the jokes embedded in the pictures or where you have a large screen with which to share the pictures. This could make a cute writing assignment to have students finish out the pictures or story from the last image in the book. Recommended for K-3.
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