September Storytime Briefly

I love Thursdays because that is when I get to read stories to first- and second-graders at my local elementary school.  Here are some of the highlights from September:

We talked about predators and escaping danger.  We read

• Oh No! by Candace Fleming, illustrated by Eric Rohmann
• Ol' Mama Squirrel by David Ezra Stein
• Swimmy by Leo Lionni
• What Do You Do When Something Wants to Eat You? by Steve Jenkins

Oh No! is a favorite book at our house; my three-year-old loves to recite it, especially the kudzu vine and banyan tree parts.  The other day as we were driving down the road she said, "Wow! Look at that cloud--it's a 'whopping big branch.'"  Yep, guess she picked up that vocabulary.

We talked about making friends and read

• Sophie's Squash by Pat Zietlow Miller, illustrated by Anne Wilsdorf
• Hello, My Name is Ruby by Philip C. Stead
• My Name Is Elizabeth by Annika Dunklee, illustrated by Matthew Forsythe

I brought a butternut squash to class, and after we read Sophie's Squash, we took a vote--eat it, or name it and put a face on it? . . . Meet Bentley.

After we read Hello, My Name Is Ruby, I turned to the illustration of the little birds flying in an elephant-shaped formation.  In each of the classes students recalled the little fish making a big fish in Swimmy.  We talked about similarities and differences in the two illustrations.

We read about sharks and trains.

• Shark vs. Train by Chris Barton, illustrated by Tom Lichtenheld
• Crossing by Philip Booth, illustrated by Bagram Ibatoulline 
• Carnivores by Aaron Reynolds, illustrated by Dan Santat
• "About the Teeth of Sharks" by John Ciardi

The kids loved the poem by John Ciardi (and I love my Folkmanis shark puppet).  The second-graders even requested an encore.  But here is the interesting thing: When I first memorized this poem, I took it from National Geographic Book of Animal Poetry: 200 Poems with Photographs That Squeak, Soar, and Roar! edited by J. Patrick Lewis, but later my daughter was reading You Read to Me, I'll Read to You, and the version there is different.  What a difference a word makes.

tara recommends Steelheart by Brandon Sanderson

Every once in a while, it is nice to turn your brain off, sit back with a comfortable pillow and enjoy a summer action movie.  Are they formulaic?  Yes.  Are they even a bit mind-numbing?  Yes.  But, in the end, you usually walk out with the satisfaction that you enjoyed a break from reality for 2 hours.  Books can give you that same escape - and in some cases they are actually well-written enough to stimulate some of those brain cells in the process.

Steelheart, by Brandon Sanderson, reads just like you are sitting in the theater with some popcorn enjoying the latest action flick (without the mind-numbing effects) - it is fast-paced, interesting, often-times funny, and has unexpected twists to keep you entertained.  To seal the icing on the cake, it also has well-developed characters - most of which are actually quite likable - and there is a just a touch of romantic tension to break up the action.

One day, Calamity came (a burst that appeared in the sky and started giving ordinary people incredible powers) - and now, what used to be Chicago, is ruled by one of these transformed humans, called Epics.  Some Epics have minor powers, like "Curveball" who could fire a handgun without ever running out of bullets.  Other Epics, however, are much more powerful and use that power to control and manipulate those without powers.  The most dangerous and powerful of these Epics, is Steelheart.  He has superhuman strength and is impervious to bullets or swords - and as an added bonus, he is able to control the elements.  All Epics have a weakness, if you can find it - but, can anybody defeat Steelheart?

David watched Steelheart kill his father ten years ago, and has been on a mission to defeat Epics ever since.  He does have one advantage - he saw the invincible Steelheart bleed.  He has used every resource he can to compile a list of Epics around the city and to uncover their weaknesses.  Now, he only has one problem, he can't do it alone.  So, he searches out the one group of people who are willing to take on these superheroes - the Reckoners.

Brandon Sanderson excels in bringing his characters to life and this book is no exception.  The Reckoners are a diverse group.  Some of the characters include:  Abraham, the muscled weapons man; Tia, the red-haired scholar; Cody, the southern boy who provides fire-support (but, who also pretends he is from Scotland and always has a tall-tale story to tell - and consequently establishes comic-relief throughout); Megan, who is the point-person in the team and also David's romantic interest; and the Professor, the serious leader and founder of the group.

In a world of humans vs. superhumans, there seems to be no end to the conflict.  But, if they can defeat Steelheart, they may have a chance to get their lives back.  As the first in a series, the ending of this book furnishes an appropriate twist that will make you ready for book two.

I would definitely recommend this book to any lover of fantasy/action/adventure/fun.

Review copy received from the publisher.

Steelheart
by Brandon Sanderson
published by Delacorte Press
September 24, 2013
Recommended for ages 12 and up

How to Engage a Reader

I spent Thursday and Friday attending Utah Valley University's Forum on Engaged Reading in Park City.  Two days of talking about books and ideas to get kids reading is my idea of a holiday, and this conference was exactly that.  Keynote speakers included Sarah Pennypacker, Marla Frazee, and Jim Murphy.

One of the things that has been bouncing around in my head since the conference is the idea that what is NOT in a book is just as important as what IS in a book.  I took years of piano lessons, and one of the hard lessons I had to learn was the importance of rests in music.  As a kid, I wanted to rush through the rests (and the half notes and whole notes, for that matter) and get to the important part of the music--the part I actually played.  I learned, of course, that by not playing--by creating space--I was making music. So, I've been thinking about the words a writer doesn't write, and the illustrations the artist doesn't draw in relation to rests in music.  Rests are an essential part of music; they give the audience a little break, provide time to reflect, and build anticipation.  Silence sets a phrase apart, punctuating it and adding emphasis, and it frames the entire composition.  Music requires silence.  The parts that aren't included in books do much the same thing.

At the conference, Marla Frazee talked about an illustration in her book, Boot & Shoe where the picture of the dogs is small in relation to the page.  The white space--the nothingness--that surrounds them creates a feeling of vulnerability.  She also talked about the effectiveness of leaving some moments in the story off the page.  As an example she pointed to one of Lisbeth Zwerger's illustrations for The Gift of the Magi where Jim stops inside the door and Della, who has cut her hair and sold it, goes to him.  The characters are obscured behind the half-closed door, we can't see their faces, only their embrace.  Zwerger leaves the poignancy of the moment in our imaginations, she allows us to create that moment and to see it for ourselves.  Brilliant.

Sara Pennypacker said, "A book is not a monologue, it is a conversation," and to demonstrate her point she read the first page of Clementine.  (If you don't know how that book starts, go read it--as soon as possible--because it is one of the best opening pages in children's literature.)  The entire page exemplifies that author-reader conversation, but let's look at just one sentence:  Clementine tells the reader, "Someone should tell you not to answer the phone in the principal's office, if that's a rule."  Without being explicitly told, we know that Clementine answered the phone in the principal's office, and we understand that she got into some sort of trouble for answering it.  We engage in the story because we are now part of the story.  Pennypacker explained that she leaves things out so the reader has to connect point A and point B and not just get the joke, but make the joke themselves.  And that's how you engage a reader.

Because sometimes what is not said makes the biggest statement.

Also, learning that Jim Murphy hates to write brings me great comfort, but that's a subject for another day.

danyelle recommends Xander's Panda Party by Linda Sue Park

Remember practicing tongue twisters as a kid--giggling as words with percussive consonants, gliding vowels, and rhythmic syllables twisted around in your mouth, and concentrating on making the sounds come out right?  Xander's Panda Party by Linda Sue Park is that kind of fun.

Xander is planning a panda party, but he is the only panda at the zoo, so he changes his plans and invites all the bears.  But, when Koala points out that although she has been invited, she is not actually a bear, but a marsupial, Xander decides to invite all the mammals.  Soon other animals ask to be included and Xander worries that his party plans might fall through.  Fortunately, Amanda Salamander offers to help, and together, Xander and Amanda plan a party for all the animals at the zoo.  A truck that arrives just as the party is about to begin brings Xander a surprise that makes the party perfect.

Park's lively text trips along through a playground of sound with clever rhyme and liberal use of alliteration, assonance, and internal rhyme.  Read these lines out loud:

"Xander planned a panda party."

"Xander didn't understand her."

"Xander's party preparations took great pains and perspiration."

"He wasn't sure what he should do.  He chewed a slew of new bamboo; he nibbled, gnawed, and thought things through."

My one quibble is that, according to the text, the name Zhu Zi is pronounced "like saying 'zoo' mixed up with 'shoe.'"  But Zhu Zi--Chinese for bamboo--is pronounced "jū dz" which doesn't sound, to my ear, like "zoo mixed up with shoe."

Matt Phelan's ink and watercolor illustrations complement the energetic story.  Expressive faces imbue the animals with personality, particularly those peeking above strong horizontal lines--Rhinoceros, Crocodile, and Xander when he is looking into the crate.  The colors remind me of a box of multi-hued green crayons I saw while shopping for school supplies this year.  While spots of  bright color contrast Xander's black and white, it is the gorgeous variations of green that caught my eye.  (Love, love, love the picture of Xander chewing bamboo!)

This celebration of sight and sound is like . . . a party.

Xander's Panda Party
by Linda Sue Park
illustrated by Matt Phelan
published by Clarion Books
September 2013
Recommended for ages 4 and up

When Work Is Fun

This is me:

This is why:

Cybils 2013 Easy Readers/Early Chapter Books Judges

I am serving working as a Cybils panelist this year, so I've managed to convince my family that, at least for the next two months, my reading will officially be classified as work--not recreation, but really fun important work.

Aaaah . . . I think I'll go work.

Trailers to Watch

My three-year-old has recently discovered book trailers. She likes to sit on my lap while I'm at the computer, and when a book jacket or spread appears on the screen, she points to it and says, "Let's watch that one."  As soon as the music starts, I usually end up with a couple other curious kids watching over my shoulder.  Book trailers are magic.

Oh No, George! by Chris Haughton is currently one of my daughter's favorite books, and she loves the trailer as well.

Here are a few book trailers from this year that we enjoy.

Sing! by Joe Raposo and Tom Lichtenheld

The Dark by Lemony Snicket, illustrated by Jon Klassen

That Is Not a Good Idea! by Mo Willems

Journey by Aaron Becker

Xander's Panda Party by Linda Sue Park, illustrated by Matt Phelan

Carnivores by Aaron Reynolds, illustrated by Dan Santat  (My preschooler doesn't understand Shark's humor, but my older kids laughed so hard, we had to play it twice to catch what we missed.)

Back in Season

It's that time of year when two of my favorite book blogs start up again.  Which of this year's new crop of books do you think are most distinguished?  Read along or join in the discussion of Newbery-worthy books at Heavy Medal.  And look at some of the best picture books of the year at Calling Caldecott.  Also, I've recently updated our Reading About Reading page, so if you're looking for something new, check it out.