Monday Reading - Sharing Great Books

Visit Kellee and Ricki at UnleashingReaders and Jen at Teach Mentor Texts to see what they've been reading, along with everyone else who post their favorites. 

       If you are interested, I'm writing a poem a day for poetry month, posting a second post on the days that I share reviews. It's nearly the end!

              


               Thanks to Candlewick Press for the following three wonderful books!

            In addition to Paul B. Janeczko's love of poetry and teaching poetry, he also was highly interested in the secrets of World War II. Earlier, he published 'Top Secret' about codes and ciphers and more recently, 'Double Cross', deception techniques in war. This time, the focus lies on the Twenty-Third Special Troops whose complex and challenging goal was to create camouflage in various areas, sound and sight. Sadly, Janeczko passed away earlier this year, and I am grateful for everything he has written for his readers. Thanks to Candlewick Press for this Advanced Copy, full of details and a celebration of the innovative work done by these smart soldiers. They were sworn to secrecy for fifty years and only recently has the story become de-classified and able to be told. Extensive source notes are given at the back. This will be a terrific book for those interested in the details of this secret war against the Nazis. 

       A boy from New York and a girl from Mexico City are sad as they tell of the things they will miss when they move to the new city their parents have told them about. The girl to New York City, the boy to Mexico City - trading places! In the same brief text (it will be a surprise when reading aloud) the special things and places emerge. One example is: "But what if there is nowhere for me to play in my new city?" shows the boy ice-skating at Central Park and the girl riding her bicycle at Bosque de Chapultepec (Chapultepec Forest). Watercolor, gouache, and colored pencil set the stage for more, and begin to show the similarities of the new homes for each. There is also a page for noisy traffic and one for homelessness. 

        The backmatter gives information on both the landmarks the children visit—such as Lincoln Center, Palacio de Bellas Artes, and the Museo Nacional de Antropología—and the cultures and issues that surround them. It would be fun also to see a more contemporary book similar to this between city and rural living.

         When it's a wordless picture book, it's time to choose just how much to tell and how much to keep secret. I was fooled by this deception more than once as to my imagined "inside" and/or "outside". The illustrations dare the reader to do just that: What is inside? What is outside? Anne-Margot Ramstein and Mattias Aregui have created an amazing book!

        With complex relationships and comparisons to today's world of those "others" who are left behind, this book tells a story of a fighter, seventeen-year-old Zélie, her family and friends who do not stop fighting for what is right, in this case, lives of the magi in the country of Orïsha. I missed it last year, perhaps should have read it then, but it leaves readers breathless with a cliffhanger, so now I have fewer months to wait until December when the next book arrives! It's a stunning heart-breaking and heart-lifting book! And it's another from my #MustReadin2019 list!

       I've visited Ellis Island and it is an inspiration to read the stories and see the artifacts that are displayed there of the people who came to the U.S. through Ellis Island. This story is based on a couple of stories in Leslea Newman's past. It's hard to imagine young children like Gittel making this long journey alone! But they did, and you can read this story now, illustrated with soft-hued paintings by Amy June Bates that remind one of pictures from the past. Leslie tells more about her own stories in the backmatter and adds special photos, too! There is also a glossary and a bibliography. It's a 'just-right' story for today considering the stories around the world of other immigrants trying so hard to make new lives.

        I've been reading John Burningham's books for a long time and when I found out he had died, I was sad, but began re-reading some old favorites, like Mr. Gumpy's Outing. Then I found this one at the library, only two years old, a story of mice in a house and the children who also live there. One night, one of the boys sees a mouse and calls attention to it. Immediately, the father calls 'the mouse catcher'. The children write a note to the mouse family that they're in danger, they must flee. It's a simple story of kindness, with Burningham's simple and delightful text and illustrations. One illustration shows a boy going to bed with a book to read. That book is Borka, another favorite!

         If one is a naked mole rat and in the midst of those who all look similar, one stands out, it's a tough time. Fitting her 'square peg into a round hole' is simply not easy, is often sad, but Sweety perseveres to be herself, to keep her own ideas, not bend to others. I imagine great conversations with young children after reading this one. My younger granddaughter (1st grade) and I enjoyed it very much. Illustrations are full of realistic scenes of children (young mole rats really) and enjoyable, too.

What I'm Reading: I have started an adult book shared by a blogger friend and thus far, it's so interesting: The President's Kitchen Cabinet, The Story of the African Americans Who Have Fed Our First Families, from the Washingtons to the Obamas by Adrian Miller. And on my stack, The Benefits of Being An Octopus by Ann Braden.