Langston’s Train Ride, by Robert Burleigh

Published May 11, 2013 by Dagmar

S640SchLangstonjkt_0.tifThis is another wonderful book for African-American History month.  Langston’s Train Ride begins with Langston Hughes walking down a sidewalk celebrating the publishing of his first book of poems.  He then flashes back to the train ride he took to Mexico to see his father when he was 18 years old.  As the train travels, he reminisces about his childhood.  When the train crosses the Mississippi River, he thinks of what it means to his people, the slaves who were sent “down the river” and Abe Lincoln’s trip on the river “where he saw a slave auction and learned to hate slavery.”  His view of the Mississippi brings words to his head.  He thinks of other ancient rivers in Africa and begins to write down the words to his first poem: “The Negro Speaks of Rivers.”

This is a powerful book made more so by its incredible illustrations by Leonard Jenkins.  It is hard not to be moved by this book and the words of Langston Hughes’ first poem.

Story Painter, The Life of Jacob Lawrence by John Duggleby

Published May 10, 2013 by Dagmar

Story_PainterI love to read books about artists to my students.  This book is a particularly wonderful book about African-American artist, Jacob Lawrence.  I used this book for grades 1 through 6 during African-American History month.  It was wonderful to show my students Lawrence’s beautiful art depicting the Underground Railroad, Harriet Tubman, The Great Migration, and Toussaint L’Overture’s battle to liberate Haiti.

This book is also a jumping off point to talk about important points in history.  Like many African-American artists, Lawrence lived in Harlem.  His Theater series illustrates the shows in Harlem’s famous entertainment halls, like the Cotton Club, and the Apollo. Jacob Lawrence was also a part of the Easel Project, a government art program stated in the 1930s to help artists.  Jacob Lawrence was paid to paint and was paid more than many jobs during the Great Depression.

Jacob Lawrence painted on paper and cardboard using tempura paint.  Remarkably, Jacob Lawrence would create series of paintings about a subject, sometimes as many as 40 paintings, by painting one color at a time.  He would put up all the sheets of paper for the series on his wall and then would move among the panels until he had painted all the colors.

This book is really a non-fiction book, but the color panels of his paintings are so dramatic and beautiful in this book that it makes a wonderful book to use as you would a picture book with groups of students.

This book is won the Carter G. Woodson Book Award granted by the National Council for the Social Studies, an award given to books that “encourage the writing, publishing, and dissemination of outstanding social science books for young readers that treat topics related to ethnic minorities and relations sensitively and accurately.”

The Really, Really, Really Big Dinosaur, by Richard Byrne

Published May 9, 2013 by Dagmar

big dinosaurThis was a fun read.  Here’s your opportunity to use different voices, if you’re so inclined.  The illustrations are really cute and it was great watching my students smiling and then clapping at the end of the book.

Big dinosaur wants little dinosaur’s jelly beans.  Little dinosaur can’t give them away, because they belong to his friend.  Big dinosaur really wants those jelly beans… a lot.  The little dinosaur says his friend is really, really, really big. “Everyone knows I’m the biggest and strongest dinosaur around here!” Big dinosaur starts boasting about all the ways he is better than little dinosaur’s friend. Ooops. Big dinosaur gets his just desserts in a very funny way.

I Want My Hat Back, by Jon Klassen

Published May 5, 2013 by Dagmar

IwantmyhatbackI just love this book.  Jon Klassen is a fantastic illustrator.  His illustrations are quite distinctive.  While this book looks really simple, the humor is dry and there is just that touch of darkness that older readers love.

“My hat is gone.  I want it back.”  A big bear is looking for his pointy red hat.  He asks lots of animals if they’ve seen his hat.  A rabbit wearing a red, pointy hat suspiciously answers the bear’s query by saying that he did not steal a red hat.  The book goes on until the bear remembers where he saw his hat.  I won’t tell you what happens next, but let’s just say that the bear gets his hat back.

Such a great book.  Enjoy!

The Pencil, by Allan Ahlberg

Published May 5, 2013 by Dagmar

“Once there wThePencilas a pencil, a lonely little pencil, and nothing else.”  So begins the pencil’s drawing career.  First he draws a boy, named Banjo, then a dog, named Bruce.  When the boy asks the pencil to draw a cat, the pencil hesitates – and rightly so.  The dog chases the cat, named Mildred.  The cat asks for a mouse.  The Pencil says “no”.  The pencil draws a paintbrush, named Kitty, that colors everything in.  It’s not long before everyone the pencil draws needs something or complains about something.  So, the pencil cleverly draws… an eraser.  But then the eraser goes crazy and erases absolutely everything…until the pencil draws another eraser.  They were named Ronald and Rodney.

This very funny book was illustrated by Bruce Ingman.  Highly recommended for older readers.

Buying picture books for kids

Published May 4, 2013 by Dagmar

I’ve been a huge fan of children’s books since I was young.  I started holding on to my books as a child, started collecting my favorite titles as a young adult and haven’t stopped yet.  There is nothing like a great picture book.

I write about a lot of picture books from the perspective of my newest role as a children’s librarian at a public pre-k through middle school in Oakland, CA.  For those of you reading my reviews as parents, grandparents or friends buying books for children, it’s important to note that reading to children one on one gives caregivers the chance to explain concepts and gauge comprehension.  One on one, children can absorb concepts at a much higher level.

Reading aloud to large groups of students is challenging.  Read aloud books need to be able to keep students engaged despite distractions created by folks walking in and out of the library, students wiggling and so on.  A read aloud book also needs to be satisfying to students at all different levels within a class.  Read aloud books also sometimes, optimally, allow for interaction with students.

I only write about picture books that have really worked in a group setting.  There are incredible books that I read to my son that did not work at all with my students.  My hope is that if you’re buying books for your own or a friend’s children or grandchildren, that you’ll know that these books made a big group of children laugh, look thoughtful and/or clap and that you can probably read a book that I’ve written about at the 1st grade level to a preschooler or a 3rd grade book for a 2nd grader.

I hope that you’ll enjoy that books I’m recommending and that you’ll pass along this blog to other friends who might also be looking for books for kids.  www.kidslitcorner.com

All the best,

Dagmar

First the Egg, by Laura Vaccaro Seeger

Published May 4, 2013 by Dagmar

FirsttheeggThis is a Caldecott Honor Book and a Theodor Seuss Geisel Honor Book. I am drawn to this book, because the simple life cycle concepts and great illustrations.  The illustrations appear to be oil paint on canvas.  Not only are the colors really vibrant and attractive, but cut outs on the page create additional visual interest.

The book starts with “First the Egg” and on the next page “then the Chicken”.  Each life cycle covers three stages, so we start with the egg, then then chick, then the chicken.  The book goes on to include frogs, flowers and butterflies.  I like the page that turns words into stories and paint into pictures.  The final page brings the book full circle by saying “First the chicken” followed by “First the Egg”.

This book makes an great read aloud, because there are so many opportunities to interact with students.  I really like that the book shows three stages of the life cycle.  I highly recommend this book for prek through first grade as a read aloud.

Aesop’s Fables, by Jerry Pinkney

Published May 2, 2013 by Dagmar

Caldecottaesop-winning author and illustrator Jerry Pinkney’s Aesop’s Fables appear with Pinkney’s incredible illustrations.  I’ve seen a many versions of Aesop’s Fables and can honestly tell you that this is my favorite version.

It’s hard to deny the appeal of fables to children.  My students tend to want to read the most familiar fables, “The Shepherd Boy and the Wolf”, “The Tortoise and the Hare” and the “The Lion and the Mouse”; but, there are so many wonderful fables to explore in this book.  I love that this book appeals to children of all ages.

The Lion & the Mouse, by Jerry Pinkney

Published May 2, 2013 by Dagmar

lionThis Caldecott Medal winning book is superb.  I have always been a fan of Jerry Pinkney’s illustrations, but this book is truly beautiful.  The Lion & the Mouse is a wordless retelling of  Aesop’s fable of a lion who spares a mouse’s life and then has his life saved by the mouse.  The moral of the story? “Even the strongest can sometimes use the help of the smallest.”

The illustrations in this book are breathtaking.  I love watching my students intently look at each page and then listening as they recount the story to me.  Pinkney says in his author’s note at the end of the book, “My curiosity and reverence for animal life has grown over the years, and my concern for them grows in equal measure.  It seemed fitting, then to stage this fable in the African Serengeti of Tanzania and Kenya, with its wide horizon and abundant wildlife so awesome yet fragile – not unlike the two sides of each of the heroes starring in this great tale for all times.”  It is clear that Pinkney loves animals, because I honestly believe that the detail is so wonderful in these pictures, that I can read the animals’ expressions.

This is a book that would be an incredible addition to any child’s library.

Swirl by Swirl, Spirals in Nature by Joyce Sidman

Published May 2, 2013 by Dagmar

This swirlmay be one of the most beautiful books in my library.  Swirl by swirl is full of illustrations by Beth Krommes (winner of the Caldecott Medal for The House in the Night)  that look as if they have been etched.  The colors are vibrant and really “pop” against the black background.  I use this book with my older grades to show them the incredible art work and talk about seeing shapes in nature.  I use the book in my younger grades to show the students all the ways that swirls exist in nature.  Either the way, the book is always a hit and would make a great gift for any young child at all interested in nature.  The words are simple, but the concept has lots of room for discussion.

“A spiral is a snuggling shape.  It fits neatly in small spaces.  Coiled tight, warm and safe it waits.”  The pictures show a woodchuck, an eastern chipmunk and a bull snake curled up in their burrows underground. “A spiral is a growing shape.  It starts small and gets bigger, swirl by swirl.”  This page includes a swimming nautilus and a cross section of a nautilus shell.  As the book progresses, we see ferns, snails, hedgehogs, millipedes, the horns of rams, octopi, seahorses, elephants’ trunks, spider webs, ocean waves, flowers, the Milky Way.  There are endless things to talk about.

This is an incredible book worthy of any school library or any bookshelf at home.  It’s a favorite of mine.  I hope you enjoy it!