Liz

Liz's Book Selections

Math Curse by Jon Scieszka: Math Curse is a book about a boy whose teacher says that anything can be turned into a math problem. When he wakes up the next morning, all he can do is think of everything as a math problem. His morning schedule, school subjects, bus ride, classmates, lunchtime, afterschool, and even his dreams when he goes to bed that night. He says that he thinks he is going crazy and that he can't stop thinking about everything as a math problem. He finally ends the curse in his dream, but then an interesting thing happens the next day in science class that ends the book in a very open way. This is a great book, because it is funny, it has good math vocabulary (it could be used as an anticipatory set for a math lesson), and the students can sometimes relate to the craziness of thinking of everything as a math problem.

You Are Special by Max Lucado: You Are Special is a story about a village of Wemmicks who, in my opinion, spend their days doing some very silly things. The only thing they do all day long is try to impress eachother. When they do something impressive, the other Wemmicks give them a star, and when they are not very good at anything then they are given a dot. These stars and dots were the Wemmicks' way of judging each other. One day, a certain "unimpressive" Wemmick named Punchinello (who happened to have a lot of dots) ran into another Wemmick who does not have any dots or stars. She explains that they just won't stick to her and it's because she goes to see Eli the woodcarver. So, Punchinello goes to see Eli, and Eli tells him that he was made special and that he shouldn't let the others make him feel worthless. In the end, Punchinello, accepts himself for who he is. This is a great book to read to kids to teach them about bullying or self-worth. It is important that they know that they have value, and this is a great book to express that.

The Greedy Triangle by Marilyn Burns: The Greedy Triangle is a book about a triangle that gets tired of being the same shape all the time. At first, he loved all of his triangle jobs, but eventually he got sick of doing all the same things. So, he went to the shapeshifter and asked him to change him into a different shape, and so he did. Eventually he got sick of that shape, so he asked the shapeshifter to change him again, and he did. This cycle went on and on changing shapes and getting sick of them until finally he had so many sides and angles that he could barely stand without falling. In the end, the triangle learned that it was good to stay the way you are, instead of greedily wanting to have more and more changes. This would be a great book to talk about being greedy or even self-image and how it doesn't pay to always want more, because the "empty space" cannot be filled no matter how much stuff they have.

Rotten Ritchie and the Ultimate Dare by Patricia Polacco Rotten Ritchie and the Ultimate Dare is a true story about a young girl (Trisha) and her brother (Richie) who butt heads every second that they are together. This time around, Ritchie has been making fun of Trisha for being in ballet, but Trisha was also making fun of Ritchie playing hockey, saying that it was stupid and easy. One day, Trisha gets sick of being teased by her brother, and she dares him to dance in her ballet recital. After she finally raises the stakes to a triple dog dare, Ritchie agrees, with the condition that Trisha play a hockey game and practice with his team for a week. It turned out that Trisha did a great job with the hockey team. She shot the game-winning goal when almost all of the other players were in the penalty box at the end of the game. Ritchie, on the other hand, had nothing to do but complain about being in ballet. Not to mention, he did a terrible job in the recital. However, in the end, Ritchie came through for Trisha, and the two agreed to respect eachother's pasttimes, even if they didn't like them. It is a great book, and my students all really enjoyed it when I read it to them.

Hey, Al by Arthur Yorinks Hey, Al is a book about a janitor named Al and his dog, Eddie, who live in an apartment in the city. Eddie complains about the small, dirty apartment that they are living in, and Al agrees that they have to constantly struggle, but that Eddie should stop complaining and be grateful. One day, a bird sticks its head through Al's window and tells him that he shouldn't have to work so hard, and that he can take Al and Eddie to a place where life is easy and relaxing. So, the next day, the bird comes back to Al's apartment and takes him and Eddie to this island in the sky where they relax and enjoy life at ease. At the end of the story, the two hard workers learn that sometimes living easy isn't always the best! I really enjoyed reading this book together with my students and it sparked a great discussion with them about being grateful for what you have and making the best out of any situation.

The Three Little Wolves and the Big Bad Pig by Eugene Trivizas This book is a spin on the well-known tale of the The Little Pigs. The three little wolves go out on their own and build themselves a house of bricks, but the big bad pig comes along with a sledgehammer and knocks it down. They move on to concrete and then steel, but the pig uses a jackhammer and dynamite to blow those houses up as well. In the end, the wolves end up using flowers, which makes the pig decide to be good and they all live happily ever after. I really liked this book because both my students and I did not expect the book to end the way that it did. It gives a great message that sometimes it takes an open attitude to change someone else's heart.

Boundless Grace by Mary Hoffman Boundless Grace is a sequel to the book Amazing Grace that was written by the same author. In this story, Grace is thinking about her family, and how it seems to be different from everyone else's family that she knew. She lived with her mom and nana in America, but her dad lived in Africa with a new wife and two new children. When Grace received tickets from her dad to visit him and his family in Africa, she was not sure what to think about it. Nervous but excited, Grace left for Africa with her nana. When they got there, she thought she recognized her father at the airport, but she wasn't sure about it until he came and scooped her up in his arms, and she felt familiar with him again. While she was getting to know her new family, she reluctantly began to get along with her new brother and sister, but she was adamant about refusing to get along with her dad's new wife. She still felt like her family was different, and now she also felt like she didn't even belong. Eventually, Grace's attitude changed, and she ended up realizing how special her family really is. I like this book because it confronts one of the main problems that children have to deal with today: differences in family styles. It doesn't make Grace sound like she is wallowing in self-pity, but rather it shows that differences are what make families unique.

Officer Buckle and Gloria by Peggy Rathmann Officer Buckle and Gloria is a great story of friendship. At first, Officer Buckle would go to the local school and make speeches about safety tips, and nobody would listen. One day, the police station got a dog, and she got to go with Officer Buckle to the safety speeches. When Gloria came along, the students would listen, because she did tricks while Officer Buckle was giving his speech--and he didn't even notice! One day, when a news crew came to the school that Officer Buckle and Gloria went to, and filmed the speech. When Officer Buckle watched the news that night, he saw the speech and got very upset. When the school called the next day, he said that he was not going to come and give the speech anymore. In the end, when Gloria could not do the show without Officer Buckle, everyone, including Officer Buckle, realized the importance of friendship.

Testing Miss Malarkey by Judy Finchler Testing Miss Malarkey is a book about a school that is preparing to take standardized tests. Told from the viewpoint of one of the students, he began by saying that one day his teacher said that there was a test coming up that wasn't that big of a deal, but she didn't look like it wasn't that big of a deal. The parents, teachers, and even the janitor were acting strange and seemed to be obsessed with the test. On the day of the test, the school was almost like a jail. It was quiet and the teachers were acting funny but very serious. According to the narrator, the test seemed like it was a pretty big deal, but after the test when things went back to normal, it didn't really seem like it was all that important. I really liked this book because it had a lot of funny little blurbs and little clever jokes in it. It would be a great way to prepare students for state testing.

Anna's Corn by Barbara Santucci This is a book about a young girl named Anna who had a special connection with her grandfather. He used to take her out into the cornfield and show her how to listen to the corn's song. He gave her some corn seeds and told her to plant them in the summer. Before summer came, Anna's grandfather died, and Anna was very sad. She did not want to plant her corn seeds because she didn't want the only remainder of her grandfather to disappear forever in the soil. Eventually, her mother convinced her that it would be a good thing to plant her corn seeds, so she did. Eventually, when they grew up, she was able to listen to their song and think about her grandfather. I had a love/hate relationship with this story. I loved it because it was a touching story, but I didn't really like it because it almost seemed depressing. However, I would probably still use it in a classroom

Pigsty by Mark Teague This is a book about a young boy named Wendell who has trouble keeping his room clean. When his mother tells him to clean his pigsty, he starts to clean, but he doesn't finish the job, and he notices that a pig has moved in. In fact, the dirtier and messier his room got, the more pigs there were that moved into his room. Finally, Wendell had enough. He asked all the pigs to help him and together they cleaned his room up spic and span. Because they didn't really like living in clean places, the pigs called up their farmers and told them to pick them up, because this room was too clean for them. And from then on, the only time there were pigs in Wendell's room was when they came over to play monopoly with him because they were all friends. I think that this is such a cute book, because it teaches a valuable lesson to the reader, and it is pretty funny as well. I would definitely read this in my future classroom.

Piggie Pie! by Margie Palatini This book is about a witch who is looking to make some piggie pie, but she doesn't have any piggies. So, she goes to a nearby farm--Old MacDonald's farm to be exact--and she tries to pick up some piggies. She sees them all while she is flying above the barn, but when she gets to the ground, there isn't a pig in sight. There are lots of other animals, but no piggies. So, the witch asks the different farm animals if they know where the piggies are, but they all say no. The funniest thing about this story is the fact that the piggies are actually dressed up as the other animals, so that when the talk to the witch, she doesn't recognize them. In the end, the big bad wolf from the story of the three little pigs shows up and tells the witch that she is wasting her time trying to find those piggies, because they are very good at hiding. So, the two head off to the witch's house, under the impression that they are going to be able to eat each other. This is a cute book and I know that my kids at work would love it. It is always fun to read a book that has a lot of humor or funny pictures associated with it.

A Chick Called Saturday by Joyce Dunbar This is a book about a young chick named Saturday that was born with a curious spirit. His mother taught him about all the things that he was not supposed to do, and because he didn't like doing what he was supposed to do, he tried to do those things anyway. Instead of finding excitement, he didn't do very well at any of the things that he was not supposed to do, and he always got in trouble to top it off. One day, Saturday saw a rooster sitting on the fence in the barn. When he went "cock-a-doodle-doo", Saturday tried it, and he did it too! His mother was so proud that he finally found his place! I thought this was a cute book, but it was kind of boring and repetitive. I would probably read it to a very young class.

David Gets in Trouble by David Shannon This is a book about a young boy named David who gets in trouble a lot. It goes through all of the different excuses for doing bad things like not doing your homework and saying "My dog at it!" I like the ending of the story because he says that he is sorry and it shows the forgiveness from his mother, even after all of the things that he did wrong. I think that this is a great message to send to the kids that we will be working with, because many times they may not have that luxury at home of consistent forgiveness no matter what they do wrong. I would definitely read this in my classroom, and it is an easy read, so even if it was in a very young grade, they could most likely read and understand the words.

Before You Were Born by Nancy White Carlstrom This is a book that is told from the perspective of two parents, as if they are talking to their child. Basically, the parents are telling the child about all of the things before he was born and how those things changed after he was born. It talked about how pleased that God was with the child, and how all of the rest of the people and the world around them seemed to center their attention on him when he was born. Because this book is very centered on the idea of God bringing a person into the world, I do not know that it could necessarily read to a student in a public school, but I really like the way that it talks about how God made us very special and that the birth of each person is significant to him.

Sweet Dream Pie by Audrey Wood Sweet Dream Pie is the story of Ma and Pa Brindle, who were having trouble sleeping one night. So, Pa asked Ma if she would make her famous sweet dream pie. Reluctantly, Ma agreed, and began the process of making the pie. As Ma was making the pie, weird things started to happen. After a very strange day for the people on their street, Ma and Pa Brindle finished making the sweet dream pie. They invited all of their neighbors over to eat some of the pie, and even though Ma warned everyone to only eat one piece, they all went back for more. That night, Ma was prepared for the worst. Just as she had expected, the dreams started to come out, but they were not sweet dreams, because everyone had eaten too much of the pie. Eventually Ma got it all cleaned up and got rid of the dreams, and everyone on her street was finally able to get a good nights sleep. I loved this book because it was very silly, but it also taught a lesson about eating too many sweets. I think it would be fun to read this book and then try to make some kind of sweet dream pie.

A Bad Case of Stripes by David Shannon Camilla Cream was just like any other girl her age. She wanted people to like her. One thing that Camilla never told anyone, not even her parents, was that she likes lima beans. On the first day of school, as Camilla was getting dressed, she looked in the mirror and screamed in astonishment. Much to her surprise, she was covered in stripes. This book is about the different things that happened to Camilla while she had the stripes, like growing roots, changing colors, and changing shape. All of the best doctors could not figure out what was wrong with her. Finally, when the stripes had reached their worst and turned Camilla into her own bedroom, a little old lady came along with some lima beans and cured Camilla. My favorite thing about this story was the ending. I really liked how the author developed the character of Camilla, and in the end she was not worried at all about what other people thought of her, because she was just glad that she was normal. This would be a great book to read in the classroom because there are a number of different topics of discussion that could be used in connection with this story. Students could find their own pattern or object that they would have Camilla grow, or they could write about a time that they were sick and what some of their "symptoms" were.

Zin! Zin! Zin! a Violin by Lloyd Moss This is a counting book that introduces the concept of different instruments and musical groupings using poetry and rhyming. It begins with the trombone as just a solo, and it goes all the way up to a variety of instruments such as the cello and the flute that play altogether in a chamber group that has ten people. What I really like about this book is the way that it uses a number of complex words that could be taught as vocabulary, and it also teaches a new way of counting: musically. This is a great book because it could be used in a few different disciplines rather than just reading it for the sake of reading.

Hooray for Diffendoofer Day! by Jack Prelutsky and Lane Smith This book is about a school that learns about a lot of things that many other schools do not learn about. The students love the school, they love what they are learning, and they love their teachers. All of the teachers teach things that are useful and helpful, instead of going through the motions and just teaching whatever the important people tell them to. One day, the students at Diffendoofer school and all the other students at all the other schools had to take a test to see what they were learning. Even though they were nervous about it, the students at Diffendoofer got the best score out of all the schools. What I like about this book is that it teaches that students will learn better when they are learning about fun things instead of just taking notes or doing worksheets. The students who are the most prepared are the ones that are taught in an engaging way. It is a great message for teachers, because many times we get so caught up in our own issues that we don't remember why we do what we do.

The Kissing Hand by Audrey Penn This is a book about a racoon named Chester and his mother. He is having some issues with wanting to go to school because he does not want his mother to be home alone and because he does not want things to change. His mother assures him that it will all be okay, and then she tells him about the kissing hand. She kisses his hand and tells him that whenever he felt sad or missing her, he could just put his hand on his cheek and that kiss would jump right onto his cheek and make him feel all better. That night, before chester went to school, Chester gave his mother a kissing hand, and reminded her that she could put it on her cheek to remind herself that he loves her. I like this story because it would be a good way for students to interact with their parents. I know that when we read books in class when I was in gradeschool, I wanted to do whatever it was that the person in the book was doing. I think that this would be a great book for young students on a first day of school or something of that nature.

The Rainbow Fish by Marcus Pfister This is a great book to use in the classroom. It is a story about a fish who is very beautiful because he is covered in shimmering, shining scales. Even though he is beautiful, he still feels very lonely. When he goes to see the wise octopus, she tells him that in order to make friends, he needs to share his scales with the other fish. At first, the rainbow fish did not like this idea at all, but when a little blue fish came and asked him if he could have a rainbow scale, he thought about it, and carefully gave him one. He could already feel better. By the time he had given all but one of his scales away, he truly felt like he belonged and like the other fish really liked him as their friend. The only thing that I do not like about this book is that it kind of has the connotation that if you bribe people you will make good friends. If this is read in the classroom, the teacher needs to clarify that sharing is what makes you friends, not bribing.

Beezus and Ramona by Beverly Cleary Beezus and Ramona is a book about two sisters and the conflicts that they have each day. Beezus is the older sister, which obviously makes Ramona the younger sister. Beezus is constantly complaining that Ramona is immature and she is always ruining everything. Ramona is constantly complaining that Beezus is no fun and that she never pays attention to her. What I really like about this book is that no matter what the conflict, the two sisters always come back to eachother and accept eachother and love eachother. This is a great book to read if a student has older or younger brothers and/or sisters because it will teach them that they really aren't that bad.

Forever Amber Brown by Paula Danziger Forever Amber Brown is a book about a girl in fourth grade who is trying to get used to all of the changes that are going on around her. Her mom and dad got a divorce, and her mom is dating a new guy named Max. Max asked her mom to marry him, and she really wants to. Amber is also having some trouble getting used to having friends that live far away and she is trying to deal with the pressures of growing up. She is not a kid anymore, but her mom says that she is not an adult. She wants to have the benefits of growing up, but she struggles when it comes to dealing with the hard stuff. Basically, the book is about how she copes with each of these issues and what changes her and makes her character develop throughout the course of events in the book. It is a great story, and I would recommend that it be read to a fourth grade class, because they will be able to more easily understand the topics and situations in the book, because that is the age of the main character. I thought it was interesting that a book for a fourth grader is talking about divorce, but I also thought that it was good that it confronted the concept of different kinds of families.

Kristy Thomas, Dog Trainer by Ann M. Martin (Babysitter's Club #118) This book is a part of the series written by Ann Martin about a group of young teenage girls who run a babysitting club, and deal with a number of different issues throughout their babysitting adventures. In this book, the main topic is blindness and guide dogs. There is a local girl, Deb, whom the girls in the babysitters' club all know who has become blind because of a hereditary illness. The club babysits for her family fairly often, so they all have a chance to deal with her and how she is coping with her predicament. Meanwhile, Kristy, the president of the club, is taking part with her family in a program with the Guide Dog Association where they get to raise a dog named Scout and train him to be a guide dog when he is older. Each of the girls somehow tries to help Deb with her situation, and eventually Deb ends up more optimistic about her situation, excited that one day she might be able to get a guide dog. I liked this book because it dealt with something that many people may not necessarily come across. I think that it is important for students to learn how to deal with blind people, or any other person with that kind of predicament for that matter, and this book shows the feelings of the blind person, as well as the feelings of the person who is learning to deal with the blind person.

Vacation Under the Volcano by Mary Pope Osborne (Magic Tree House #13) Vacation Under the Volcano is a book about two kids, Jack and Annie, who go on an adventure to ancient Roman times in order to save a lost book before it will be gone forever. They are about to leave for a family vacation when they decide to check one last time before they leave to see if the treehouse is there. When they find it there, Morgan LaFay, the keeper of the treehouse, sends them on a mission to find the ancient story of Hercules. When they get to the Roman city of Pompeii, things all seem a little off. They begin to look for the book, and they are warned by a soothsayer who tells them that they need to get whatever they came for and then leave as soon as they can because the end is near. When they finally find the book--which is actually a scroll--in the house of Brutus, they turn to leave. Before they realize what is happening, the ground starts to shake and rocks are falling from the sky. They look up and see that Mount Vesuvius has erupted and they know from reading that the city will soon be buried by volcanic rocks. They are able to escape and they return to the treehouse with the book in hand. This is a great story, and so is the rest of the series. They are great books to use in the classroom because they contain information about each of the places that Jack and Annie go. I would read this book or any other book from this series in my classroom. They are probably best for a second to fourth grade reading level.

Junie B. Jones and Her Big Fat Mouth by Barbara Park This is the story of a young girl in Kindergarten named Junie B. Junie B.'s class is having a career day, and she doesn't know what she wants to be. Everyone else seems to have some great ideas about what they want to be when they grow up, but all Junie knows is that she wants to unlock things, paint, and save people from danger. She deals with a number of things throughout her predicament such as an annoying little brother who hogs all of her parents' attention, a mean boy in her class, a best friend who is no longer her best friend, and a teacher that just doesn't understand that she can't be quiet. What I like about this book is the style in which it was written. The author wrote it from the perspective of Junie B., and I don't know how many Kindergarteners use correct grammar and manners, but Junie B. doesn't either. I read it to some students and they all really liked it because I made my voice sound like a 5-year-old girl and I tried to be really obnoxious as I was reading. This would be great for almost any grade. I enjoyed reading it and my students enjoyed listening to it.

Diary of a Wimpy Kid by Jeff Kinney Diary of a Wimpy Kid is the story of a young boy named Greg, who is dealing with the stresses of being in middle school with an overbearing mother, a bully for a big brother, and a best friend that has no idea what it means to be cool. He receives a shock when his best friend, Rowley, all of a sudden gets to be popular because he broke his arm. As he tries to find ways to be popular like Rowley, he discovers more and more what the true meaning of friendship is, and that some things (like popularity) are not worth sacrificing a good friendship over. This is a great book for almost any age, because it has illustrations and humor for younger children, issues that are relatable for intermediate level readers, and humor for the older readers. I really enjoyed reading this book, and I am probably going to finish the series at some point.

Uglies by Scott Westerfeld Set in a dystopian future, this is the story of a young teenage girl who dares to be different. In the world which she lives, everyone is required to have extensive cosmetic surgery at the age of 16 in order to be turned "pretty". The girl, Tally, rebelled against this conformity after her friends convinced her that it was a bad idea. They told her that not only did the surgery change a person's appearance, but it also changed their personality. The book has an air of resistance to the government because of its threat to remove individuality and personality. What I liked about this book is that it discussed the issue of personality change that comes with appearance change. This is a great book for students in middle school or high school.

Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson This is the story of a young girl named Melinda who goes to a high-school party with a friend and meets a guy who takes her into a secluded part of the woods and rapes her. She calls the cops on the party and then she walks all the way home. She doesn't tell anyone about it and becomes depressed. When school starts, everyone is upset at her for wrecking the party, and she receives a lot of grief from her peers. As her depression worsens, Melinda begins to spend more and more time away from everyone and everything. She is failing all but her art class, in which she spends the majority of her time. Melinda uses her art as a way to slowly heal from her scars. The book has a surprisingly optimistic end which I am not going to spoil. This was a great book and I thought that it was interesting to read about the different issues that this book discussed. I would say that it would be okay for high school because of the graphic content, but I wouldn't go any lower than that.

The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins This is the story of a young girl named Katniss Everdeen who lives in a post-apocalyptic world where the government controls the country. As a repercussion to rebellion against authority, each year the government chooses a young person from each of the twelve districts of the country to take part in a televised, gladiator-style battle where the participants fight to the death and only one will come out alive. I like that this book is futuristic in a different way that what many people would expect. Instead of being like the Jetsons, it almost seems as if the country has fallen back to a barbaric, authoritarian nature. This would be a great book for high school, but I don't think I would put it in any lower grades than that because of the violent content.