Autobiography of an Author

My reading group read How I Came to Be a Writer by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor. I knew that Phyllis Reynolds Naylor had written the Shiloh trilogy, but I had no idea what a prolific writer she was. As it turns out, she has been publishing her writing since the age of 16. Naylor started with short stories in church publications and then moved on to stories and columns in newspapers. What I found most surprising is how many books she has published. I had actually never heard of any of her other books, except Shiloh. Naylor shares how her initial love for writing has developed into a craft and the ways that the her experiences have affected and shaped her craft.
This is a fairly easy read and would be perfect for an elementary level author study, perhaps as a companion to reading Shiloh. My caution for use in the classroom, is that the book is not terribly engaging. It is interesting but it is kind of flat. I found it to be much like having a conversation with some one and much less like reading a story.

Eli Whitney and the Cotton Gin

I was disappointed by some of the other books the elementary school librarian suggested, so I looked for some more engaging books. Eli Whitney and the Cotton Gin by Jessica Gunderson was one of the free gifts from the Agriculture in the Classroom presentation we had at the School of Education. This book, from the Graphic Library series published by Capstone Press, seems to be riding on the recent renewed interest in graphic novels among elementary and middle school students. Set up like a comic book, the book tells the story of the development of the cotton gin in the late 1700s. The book tells the interesting story about Whitney's attempt for a patent and the ensuing lawsuits. Much to my surprise, the book even talks about the cotton gin's effect on the proliferation of slavery throughout the southern United States.

The Graphic Library Series includes texts on a variety of important figures and historical events. There is even a Cesar Chavez book! This book and other books from the series can be an excellent companion to the study of history and can even be aligned with the Virginia Standard of Learning curriculum. According to the Capstone Press website, there are 32 books in the series and the series can be purchased for about $700, which makes it beyond my classroom budget, but perhaps not the school library's. (http://www.capstonepub.com/product/9780736865531#members)

How Many Ways Can You Catch a Fly?

From the award-winning authors of What Do You Do With a Tail Like This? comes How Many Ways Can You Catch a Fly? by Steve Jenkins and Robin Page. This is a beautiful book about the various ways animals do the same thing. The book is divided into six "how many ways can you..." sections: snare a fish, hatch an egg, use a leaf, catch a fly, dig a hole, and eat a clam. The pages shows several different animals methods for each of the tasks through a sentence about the animal's technique. The torn paper collage illustration method makes the animals somehow beautiful and realistic, not to mention adorable in their endeavors. The layout is simple and crisp, which deviates from the too crowded pages that are often in children's nonfiction books. At the end of the book, the authors include a page with more information about each of the animals included in the book. 

The animal featured on the cover, I found out, is the slender loris from southern India and Sri Lanka. The slender loris "moves slowly and carefully through the branches but can react quickly to snatch an insect or to avoid a snake," according to the information page at the back of the book. I loved the collage of the slender loris as he sneaks up on the fly on the page. I went looking for more pictures to see if these animals are just as adorable in real life. Turns out that they are! Also, according to Animal Planet and the International Union for Conservation of Nature, they are endangered by deforestation http://animal.discovery.com/guides/endangered/mammals/slender-loris.html. To learn more about the adorable slender loris and many other animals, read How Many Ways Can You Catch a Fly? and then do your own research. This could be an excellent research project lead in for students, as well.

"You Wouldn't Want to be..."

This was another book that the elementary school librarian pointed out to me. It is one of a fairly expansive series published by Salariya Publishing. I checked out and read You Wouldn't Want to Be a Worker on the Statue of Liberty  written by John Malam and illustrated by David Antram. The book takes the reader through the history of the idea and production of the statue of liberty. What is great about this book and the others in the series is that it takes the reader through the building of the statue of liberty from the perspective of a worker, a perspective this is not often discussed in our study of historical eras or events. While you get the larger picture, you also get to see all of the hard work and dangerous work that went into the various stage of production of this famous landmark. Every page is filled with information about what workers had to do to successful build, transport and construct the statue. When I learned about the Statue of Liberty, I was taught that the statue was constructed and molded in France before it was transported by boat, but what I didn't know was that as various parts of the giant Lady Liberty were constructed, they were displayed in various places. For the centennial celebration in 1876, only the right hand with the torch was completed, so that's what was displayed in Philadelphia. When the head and shoulders were completed in 1878, they were displayed at the Universal Exposition in Paris. The entire statue was constructed and displayed in Paris before it was taken apart and shipped to New York in 1884.

The Salariya Publishing website offers free web versions of several of the books in the series, which could be used for in class nonfiction projects or even as a free-time activity. (http://www.salariya.com/index.html) While these books are packed with facts, they are also funny and engaging as well. David Antram's illustrations make the books more fun and engaging. The cartoon style and the use of speech and thought bubbles allows all readers to enjoy these books.

The Truth About Poop

Last week, I asked my school librarian for assistance finding some really good non-fiction books for elementary students. She started pointing out some favorite series and showing me the layout of the Dewey decimal system. Then she stopped. She said, "the kids love this one!" and pulled out The Truth About Poop by Susan E. Goodman and illustrated by Elwood H Smith. This book present hundreds of facts about the taboo subject of excrement. While reading it, I was chuckling and thinking, "hmm, I had no idea." From strange but true animal traits to the history of toilets and toilet paper, this book is packed full of information about a topic I'm sure everyone wonders about, because as we learned in Taro Gomi's book, Everyone Poops. Elwood Smith's illustrations perfectly compliment the multitude of facts with drawings that bring the facts to life in funny but not gross ways.

When I went to Amazon to see reviews and more information about the book, I found that Susan Goodman is quite the prolific children's nonfiction writer. She seems to publish books about all sorts of topics, including where all the ingredients of grandma's cookies come from or her Ultimate Field Trip series about students visiting other places. She has even published a companion book to this one: Gee Whiz! It's All About Pee, which is another collaboration with Elwood Smith. Their most recent collaboration is called See How They Run, which looks at American political campaigns and elections.  Check her site to see more of her interesting books (http://www.susangoodmanbooks.com/books/books.html ).

I am debating ways to use this book. I think it is funny and interesting, so I think it's a great book for students; however, I am not sure that I want to expose myself or their parents to unending conversations about poop that would probably develop after reading this book. However, Susan Goodman includes an afterword  about research and further investigation, which I think sheds light on the process of writing nonfiction for students, so perhaps the book can be used to get students interested in research and nonfiction. As of now, I just know I love it and I'm glad the librarian pointed it out to me.

Henry's Freedom Box

What struck me most about this book when I saw it at Barnes and Noble was the beautiful illustration of a young black boy staring back at me.  I picked it up and read the title: Henry's Freedom Box: A True Story from the Underground Railroad. The author, Ellen Levine, tells the heartbreaking story of Henry, a young slave who doesn't even know his birthday. But the true magic of this book lies in the illustrations. Kadir Nelson makes this story come to life, the illustrations are captivating and enhance the feeling of the story. It is no surprise that this book was a 2008 Caldecott Honor book.  Henry escapes slavery by mailing himself to Philadelphia and Nelson captures the discomfort Henry must have endured as the box is turned and flipped throughout the journey.

At the end of the book, the author's note explains that Henry "Box" Brown was a real person who escaped slavery in Virginia in this amazing way. As a consistent skeptic, I googled Henry Box Brown. The Virginia Historical Society even has a collection dedicated to the man, with an image online that must have inspired Nelson for one of the closing illustrations in the book. (http://www.vahistorical.org/boxbrown.htm)

I think this picture will be a valuable asset to teaching about slavery in the United States. Sometimes I think the discussion often steps away from individuals and their experiences. We know that slavery is bad, but do we know what it feels like or how it hurts the individual? I think not. This picture book captures some of the pain and hurt that Henry endures while enslaved, and with beautiful illustrations to enhance the feelings evoked.

A Wrinkle in Time

A Wrinkle in Time by Madeline L'Engle is a whirlwind journey through space and time in which love must conquer hatred and fear. L'Engle beautifully crafts a tale of the power of friendship and family to carry a child through trying times. The tale empowers the main character to believe in herself and love her gifts, without comparing herself with others. This book is great for those difficult adolescent years where you're not sure who you are or what you're worth.

The actual plot is much more complicated. The book opens with the fears and disappointments of young Meg Murray. While Meg's whole family is smart and talented, Meg feels average and is quite hostile about it. To make matters worse, Meg's father has been gone for quite some time on some top secret government business related to his physics background. Meg's baby brother, Charles Wallace, is wise beyond his years and seems to have the ability to know what Meg is feeling. During a dark and stormy night, a strange old woman appears at the Murrays' door. The woman turns out to be Mrs. Whatsit, a friend of Charles Wallace. The next day, Charles Wallace and Meg set out to visit Mrs. Whatsit and meet a new friend, Calvin O'Keefe.  Calvin becomes a source of comfort and companionship for Meg. By the end of the day, Charles Wallace, Meg and Calvin are travelling through spacetime to rescue their father from the darkness of the universe with the help of Mrs. Whatsit and her companions Mrs. Who and Mrs. Which.

This is only the beginning. Although I found this book somewhat confusing and would worry about its accessibility for young readers, it is a wonderful book. As a lead character, Meg is excellent. Almost any reader can find common ground in her sorrow, her fear or her need for affirmation. Although I found the ending abrupt, it left me feeling empowered by love and affirmation for believing in myself and my own power to do good. (My what a cheesy ending, right?)

The edition that I read (published by Square Fish in 2007) included a short interview with the author and then the author's Newberry Medal speech. In her speech, L'Engle calls authors to action, to plead with them to continue writing fantasy for children because fantasy is part of  a "universal language" that children need to become a part of.

While looking for more information, I was excited to find teaching materials for the book from The Glencoe Literature Library. I accessed it as a pdf (http://www.glencoe.com/sec/literature/litlibrary/pdf/wrinkle_in_time.pdf) and the document includes guides for mapping the characters and the main events, as well as background information on the author, the concepts, new vocabulary and more. If you are interested in using this book in your classroom, check this information out.

The Watsons Go to Birmingham-1963

I bought and started reading The Watsons Go to Birmingham-1963 by Christopher Paul Curtis because I am interested in how the Civil Rights movement of the 1950s and 60s gets presented to young readers. I noticed the Newbery Honor and the Coretta Scott King Award, thinking it would be a good example of how this topic is addressed. I was not disappointed; this is an excellent book!

The Watson family lives in Flint, Michigan, huddling for warmth during the cold winters. The book is written from Kenny Watson's perspective. Kenny is the middle child. His older brother Byron was "a god" at the elementary school, controlling everyone with his bullying friend, Buphead. Most of the time this worked to Kenny's benefit, but sometimes Byron and Buphead turned on Kenny. Kenny's younger sister, Joetta (Joey for short), cries over almost everything. In the first half of the book, Kenny tells us about several of Byron's acts of delinquency. Mr. and Mrs. Watson decide it's time for Byron to go live with his maternal grandmother in Birmingham, Alabama. After the car, the Brown Bomber, has been spruced up and cleared for the trip, all 5 Watson's pile in the car for the long drive. Momma has prepared a detailed itinerary of stops and planned every cent to be spent, but Dad has different plans. He drives for 18 hours straight to Birmingham. The children realize that while Birmingham is different, it's the backwoods place they thought it would be. In Birmingham, Kenny is confronted with two tragedies in a row and quickly the family rushes back to Flint, where Kenny is trying to deal with the fear and pain inside of him. The book wraps up with Byron being a caring and healing influence for Kenny, a drastic change of pace for him.

Curtis leaves the major Civil Rights commentary for his epilogue. A good summary of the movement and the events allows readers to connect the Watson's experience with the real life events. This book is engaging from start to finish, and would probably encourage a young reader to want to know more about the events of the 1960s Civil Rights Movement. I think the book would be good to use in conjunction with historical study of the time period, but based on reading level and subject matter is probably better suited for middle school age students and above.

As I was reading, I wondered what inspired Christopher Paul Curtis to write a book like this, one that covered such an important moment in history and about such a quirky family. Was this his family? Did he experience these events? After reading a few interviews (http://www.kidsreads.com/authors/au-curtis-christopher-paul.asp and http://www.powells.com/authors/curtis.html), I found out that the most inspirational moment for Curtis was his own family's 24 hour drive to Florida.
"That's how the story got started. It was about a family taking a trip and the year was 1963, but the story was called The Watsons Go to Floridaat the time. Then I went back and worked on it, but once I got the family to Florida, nothing happened. So I set it aside for a while, until my son brought home a poem by Dudley Randall called "Ballad of Birmingham" about the bombing of the 16^th Street Baptist Church. As soon as I heard it, I said, 'Ah! The Watsons want to go to Birmingham!' and I wrote the rest of the story" (From the powells.com interview).


So, teachers, just keep in mind that someday your assignment may inspire a Newbery author!

Getting Near to Baby

Getting Near to Baby is a touching book that captures the pain and confusion of death of a young sibling, not to mention the hurt of being taken away from one's own mother because she isn't fit to take care of you. Willa Jo must deal with both levels while managing to be the voice of her younger sister as well. While it brought tears to my eyes several times, it also made me chuckle at Willa Jo's resiliency and stubbornness. It's a beautiful book and a great read for the intermediate to middle school age reader.

In this Newbery Honor book, Audrey Couloumbis tells the tale of young Willa Jo coming of age in the midst of a family tragedy. After the baby sister dies and the next youngest stops speaking, Willa Jo must cope with her mother's overwhelming grief alone. That is until her aunt steps in and takes the children away from the mother so she can get her life back together. Willa Jo's own grief manifests in anger and stubbornness to the point that even she doesn't understand what she's feeling. One morning Willa Jo decides to sit on the roof until the sun comes up, much to her aunt's dismay. Willa Jo doesn't come down all day, neither does Little Sister, and then the whole family is up there, sitting together.

Couloumbis shares that her family lost a baby when she was Willa Jo's age and it inspired her to write about the feelings and relationships she had at the time. In trying to find out more about the author, I found a page where she described her process for coming up with characters. She said that for each character she tries to think of "10 observations this character would make, 10 things he or she would fight for, 10 decisions he or she would make, what he or she thinks about when daydreaming ..." (see more at http://www.kidsreads.com/authors/au-couloumbis-audrey.asp) While I'm not sure how or if I would incorporate this book into my classroom because of its serious subject matter, using her list of ideas for coming up with characters could be a great brainstorming activity for my future students.

The Tree That Time Built

Compiled by Mary Ann Hoberman and Linda Winston, this poetry collection is subtitled "a celebration of nature, science, and imagination." It definitely is just that. . When I saw this in the bookstore, I just couldn't put it down. While some might be turned off by the topic of science, it only piqued my interest further. Within its pages, this book offers almost 200 poems selected for their special attention to the natural world.

The book is divided into sections, to talk about the various wonders of life. For instance, the first section is called "Oh, Fields of Wonder," which is taken from a Langston Hughes poem (the first one in the section) about the birth of the stars, moon, sun, and even Hughes himself, and the other poems draw attention to the connection of life on earth to the stars and to the vastness, yet smallness of our existence. While some of the poems in the collection can seem too dense or "deep" for children, I think that teachers and students alike can gain a lot of inspiration and meaning from them, even if the "author's meaning" is not reached. Hoberman and Winston provide commentary at the beginning of each section and often include questions that go along with the poems, to guide or inspire new thinking about poetry and science. At the end of the book, there is a glossary of some of the complex science and poetry ideas introduced in the book, suggestions for further reading and research, a short blurb about each of the poets included, and an index of the poems and authors.

Not only does the book have so much beautiful, inspiring, and thought provoking poetry, it comes with a CD of 44 of the poems read either by the authors themselves or by other readers. I haven't explored the CD much yet, because I've been so captivated with the text itself, but it seems like a great companion, and a great asset for poetry teaching, especially for teachers who, like myself, feel self-conscious about their poetry reading. Further, it can allow students for whom the language may be too difficult to enjoy the poetry on their own.

There is not much in the way of illustrations, but in a way I think that is a testament to the beauty of the poetry itself. Where illustrations do appear, they are line drawings like the one featured on the cover or silhouettes of animals. If used in the classroom, perhaps allowing the students to illustrate the poems for themselves can be a way to engage their imaginations in interpretation of the poems.

I wanted to post a favorite poem on here to show examples of what beautiful poetry is included, but it is far too difficult to choose. I haven't finished the book because I've been savoring each poem individually (and annoyingly reading aloud to my friends), this beautiful poetry collection has so much to offer, maybe I'll update  with a favorite later.  I have only one word of caution with this collection, the compilers focus heavily on Darwin and evolution in their commentary in the book, which should be used knowledgeably by teachers. However, the poems can stand alone without any commentary, so I think this is still a great collection and asset to a teacher's library. Hoberman, the US Children's Poet Laureate, includes some of her own poetry, but with Winston, they select and bring together an excellent collection of poetry that sparks imaginative thought about the wonders that surround us. Interestingly, Winston, the co-compiler, is a cultural anthropologist and teacher. She has written about using family stories in the classroom to build a multicultural curriculum. This background is evident in the (somewhat) multicultural poetry selections. (See more about Linda Winston and her book Keepsakes here http://www.heinemann.com/products/07235.aspx  or more about Mary Ann Hoberman, famed children's poet here http://www.poetryfoundation.org/journal/article.html?id=182334)