Module 8 - Inkheart by: Cornelia Funke

Summary:
A secret hidden so long from Meggie is about to fall into her world without her even being aware. As she and her father make their way through the an adventure full of characters from books and the real world their own character is challenged. An interesting selection of allies and enemies appear throughout the story until finally one of Meggie's lifelong problems is solved.

Bibliographic Citation:
Funke, C. (2003). Inkheart. New York, NY: Scholastic.

My Impression:
Well I should start of by saying that Inkheart the book was MUCH better than Inkheart the movie. There is just too much imagination to capture the true creativity of this story in a movie. From the first few pages I was enthralled in this story and it's characters and the conflicts and resolutions that occur throughout the plot. Although the book is clearly fantasy Cornelia Funke left me wondering what if... What if I could truly read the characters out of story, who would I choose, and would it be worth the risk of losing someone to the story??

Reviews:
Cornelia Funke, popular author of The Thief Lord, creates an astonishing magical world in this novel. When a mysterious stranger suddenly appears at Meggie's door, the quiet life she has led with her father, Mo, vanishes. This stranger is linked to her father's past, and Meggie discovers that Mo has been keeping a secret that involves the disappearance of her mother, a sinister man named Capricorn, and Meggie herself. As she and her father flee from their home, Meggie learns that when her father reads aloud, he is able to bring characters out of the pages and into their world. However, Mo's gift has a terrible price: every time something comes out of a book, something must go into it, even if it is something he loves. Now Capricorn wants to use Mo for his own nasty deeds and decides to use Meggie as bait. Hidden away, Meggie must wait for her father to save her from Capricorn and his hideous plan to bring an indestructible evil to Earth. In this magical world, Meggie has to discover that all actions have consequences and that sometimes the things we long for most are right in front of us. Beginning each chapter with a quote from a famous book, Funke gives the reader ample foreshadowing and creates a false feeling of what is to come. For example, when Dustfinger betrays Meggie to Capricorn, the quote for that chapter comes from C.S. Lewis' novel The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe: "The reason there's no use looking, said Mr. Beaver, we know already where he's gone! Everyone stared in amazement. Don't you understand? said Mr. Beaver. He's gone to her, to the White Witch. He has betrayed us all." This novel would be excellent for use in the classroom to assist with the task of teaching foreshadowing, though it is also a wonderful coming of age story in which the female protagonist has to find the courage to survive in the magical world in which she found herself. 2003, The Chicken House/Scholastic, $16.95. Ages 10 to 15.
Tiffany Burgess (Children's Literature)

How to use this book in your library:
This book is too long to read aloud, but many portions of it could be used for creative writing exercises. Of course that would probably be more appropriate in a school library, but in public library discussion of the questions I asked above would be a great way to gets kids talking about other books and sharing some of their favorites with you and other kids.

Module 7 - The Penderwicks by: Jeanne Birdsall

Summary:
When four singles and their father spend the Summer in a rented country cottage, they had no idea what the Summer would entail. As the sisters live their adventures and each grow in their own way through an interaction with a bull, an exciting friendship with a mysterious boy, and an intriguing crush on an older boy, the sisters soon realize that while they may make friends and share their experiences with others their father and the four of them are what really matter most in life.

Bibliographic Citation:
Birdsall, J. (2005). The Penderwicks: a summer tale of four sisters, two rabbits, and a very interesting boy. New York, NY: Yearling.

My Impression:
The Penderwicks is an incredible story that you will find yourself laughing out loud at throughout the entire story. The true beauty of this story, however, is the way real issues are seriously dealt with in a lighthearted story. The woes of adolescent girls is a struggle, and each of the Penderwick sisters have their own personality and problems. Jeanne Birdsall does an incredible job of helping these sisters through their struggles in a realistic way and encompassing the positive joy of life that is always present despite the tears a girl may have when she gets knocked down. I don't think boys would typically enjoy this story, but girls of many ages will love it, including adults, because sometimes we need to find the girl in ourselves all over again.

Reviews:
Starred Review* The Penderwick sisters, who made a splash in their first eponymous novel (which won a  2005 National Book Award) return in another warm family story. An opening chapter, which might bring a tear to the eye, tells how the girls’ mother died right after Batty’s birth. Now, some four years later, Aunt Claire presents the girls’ father with a letter from his late wife, telling him it’s time to start dating. Rosalind, Skye, Jane, and Batty beg to differ and come up with a harebrained scheme to thwart Mr. Penderwick. But the girls aren’t just focused on their father. Rosalind has her own romantic entanglements; and Skye and Jane write compositions for each other, which leads to myriad problems. Meanwhile, little Batty has become enamored of the widow and her baby son who live next door. There’s never much suspense about where all this is going, but things happen in such touching ways that the story is hard to resist. As in the previous book, Birdsall seems to get inspiration from books like Sydney Taylor’s All-of-a-Kind Family and the movie Meet Me in St. Louis—just the sort of cozy fare that’s missing in today’s mean-girl world. Grades 4-7
Ilene Cooper (Booklist, May 1, 2008 (Vol. 104, No. 17))

How to use this book in your library:
Because The Penderwicks is set in Summer this book could be great start for an older audiences Summer Reading program. Summer adventures can be had by all, not just those who vacation to a country cottage, encourage children in your library to create adventures like Skye, perhaps by writing a book, or by dressing up like Batty. When the sun is shining and school is out the possibilities are endless.

Module 7 - Because of Winn-Dixie by: Kate DiCamillo

Summary:
Opal is new in town and when her father, the Preacher, sends her to the grocery store for a few things she finds more than she ever could have bargained for in a large dog whom she names Winn-Dixie on a whim. Opal slowly meets new people and mingles in the past searching for answers and an emotional calmness about her mother who abandoned she and her father. By the end of the story Opal again finds far more than she ever could have imagined and all because of Winn-Dixie.

Bibliographic Citation:
DiCamillo, K. (2001). Because of Winn-Dixie. Cambridge, MA: Candlewick Press.

My Impression:
I have always heard incredible things about Because of Winn-Dixie, but I hadn't read it until now and I certainly regret that I missed out on this story for so many years. Because of Winn-Dixie is a story, it is a story that so many people could relate to because of secrets they have in their heart and head- to be able to relate to the characters within this book and the transformations they all go through is part of what give a book its magic and Kate DiCamillo's story certainly has magic. Despite the fact that the main character is a girl, unlike many books of this type or genre, I think boys reading this would be able to find themselves in this story as well. Over all I really enjoyed this book and would recommend it to anyone of any age or gender!

Reviews:
The quick beginning, an essential feature of well-written children's books, carries Because of Winn-Dixie forward quite effectively. The stage is set in the first sentence: "My name is India Opal Buloni, and last summer my daddy, the preacher, sent me to the store for a box of macaroni-and-cheese, some white rice, and two tomatoes, and I came back with a dog." Ten-year-old Opal then proceeds to tell the funny story of a stray dog found in the produce department of the Winn-Dixie grocery store, where she calls him as if he were her own in order to save him from the pound. Because of Winn-Dixie is indeed a dog story, but it is also the story of a child, lonely yet resourceful, who has just recently moved to Naomi, Florida, with her father. It is the story of a motherless child, who longs for the love and comfort that a mother could provide. It is the story of a character finding her way in the world, a character seemingly tentative, yet as starkly defined as her red hair and the big, ugly, smiling stray dog she takes home, washes, and makes her own. And it is the story of Opal's developing friendships with distinctive, well-drawn characters--old Gloria Dump, who is almost blind; the librarian, Miss Franny Block; shy Otis at the pet store--encounters made possible, one way or another, because of the dog, Winn-Dixie. In twenty-six short chapters, DiCamillo has crafted a fine, economical story told in the authentic voice of a child, using regional language and vivid description in a clear, straightforward way. There is immediacy of feeling in this book, perfectly expressing the secret inner life that every child knows. Because of her resourcefulness, demonstrated in the opening chapter and throughout the book at every turn, Opal develops and grows as a character, in both her inner and her outer life. All of this is accomplished through a story worth telling. Children will enjoy Opal's abiding humor and Winn-Dixie's disarming and endearing ways, and the funny and important things that happen when the two of them get together. 2000, Candlewick, $15.99. Ages 9 to 12.
Kathie Krieger Cerra (The Five Owls, November/December 2000 (Vol. 15, No. 2))

How to use this library in your book: 
I think the best way to use this book would be to read it aloud. It is a quick and easy read, and could be read to children very easily. It would be a great book to kick off a Summer reading program, or to help kids in an after school program who deal with some of the issues of loneliness the characters struggle through.

 

Module 6 - The Lion & The Mouse by: Jerry Pinkney

Summary:
Can individuals who are so different one typically fears the other help each other? In this illustration only version of the Aesop's fable they can, and do. A lion shows pity on a mouse who then returns the favor by saving the lion's life in a way only he could.

Bibliographic Citation:
Pinkney, J. (2009). The Lion & The Mouse. New York, NY: Little, Brown and Company Books for Young Readers.

My Impression:
There is something magical about a picture book that is just that- pictures. This visual retelling of the classic fable by Jerry Pinkney is incredible, his illustrations show power where there is power in the world, and cunning where there is cunning. Emotions are expressed as one would imagine them to be found in a jungle animal's face and the story is told with only world to show sound and enhance what the reader sees happening. I would share this book with anyone.

Reviews:
The art of Jerry Pinkney’s new picture book is commanding enough to do without the author’s name or even the title on the front cover. A jacket with no words at all? It’s been done before, but not often — probably most notably with Fred Marcellino’s “Puss in Boots” (1990), which won a Caldecott Honor. That cover featured a big cat, too, but here Pinkney gives us a lion’s head with a magnificent mane, filling the entire frame. The Sun King demeanor is somewhat diminished by the uneasy glance the lion is casting stage right, toward the back cover, where a mouse looks up with a question in its eye. Which creature will be the hero of the tale within? This is Pinkney’s second go at “The Lion and the Mouse,” the first being a brief entry in his “Aesop’s Fables” of almost 20 years ago. But that first pair were only supporting players to Aesop’s text, 200 or so words plus a moral: “Even the strongest can sometimes use the help of the smallest.” The new book has only seven distinct words, all sound effects — an owl, stalking the mouse, “whoooo” and “screeeech”; the mouse, “scratch” and “squeak.” Providing the plot is the “putt-putt-putt” of the jeep bearing humans into the Serengeti landscape (a note says).
And you don’t even need the sounds to see exactly what’s going on. Wordless picture books require great cunning not only to provide a recognizable pantomime but also to lead readers from one scene to the next: how do you know when to turn the page when there are no words to pull you forward? Pinkney’s story begins with a mouse pausing alertly in —what is this? — a big paw print in the sandy ground, one of a set tracking across the title-page spread. We turn the page, dawn is (beautifully) breaking, the mouse is poised, apparently listening. . . . Good thing there is a hole in that fallen tree on the far right, because on the next page the mouse barely dives in when the owl swoops. The mouse moves on, coming to rest on — “Is that a snake?” asked the 4-year-old I was sharing the book with. Pinkney’s sly use of nature’s camouflage causes us to look more closely. Nope: it was a tail, then a furry back, and before you know it the lion has the mouse by its tail, his “GRRR” seeming more puzzled than threatening, the mouse’s squeak an “Oops!”
Winner of five Caldecott Honors, Pinkney has always seemed happier drawing animals than people. Look, in his 2007 retelling, at his studied Little Red Riding Hood next to his lively Wolf. His beasts are not humans in disguise; while both the lion and the mouse have emotions and intelligence in their eyes, they are animal in nature. We don’t know why the lion lets the mouse go free or why the mouse nibbles the lion out of the net planted by the men (poachers? wardens?) from the jeep. But it’s actions in this case that count. That’s the moral of the story.

Roger Sutton is editor in chief of The Horn Book Magazine.
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/08/books/review/Sutton-t.html

How to use this book in your library:
Fables and Fairy Tales are an excellent way to engage readers because most children are familiar with one or two of them anyway. Use Pinkney's version of The Lion & The Mouse to explore lesser known fairy tales and fables and encourage children to create their own or their own version of their old favorite.

Module 5 - My People by: Langston Hughes Photographs by: Charles R. Smith Jr.

Summary:
In 30 words Langston Hughes celebrated his people, and accompanying these 30 words in this book are the photographs by Charles R. Smith Jr. that do just that. "My people" are beautiful and throughout the poem we see just that.

Bibliographic Citation:
Hughes, L. (2009). My People. New York, NY: Atheneum Books for Young Readers.

My Impression:
Hughes' poem was written in the 1920's but this version with modern day pictures to help emphasize the words is breathtaking. I would say that this book should be in every library and every classroom, because it proves the power of the statement. In 30 words Hughes expressed what so many people have not and there is not a word that could be added to enhance his work. The photographs in this book emphasize and provide examples of the words and Charles R. Smith Jr.'s notes at the end of the story left me speechless.

Reviews:
Starred Review. K Up—Smith's knack for pairing poetry and photography is well documented in books such as Hoop Queens (Candlewick, 2003) and Rudyard Kipling's If (S & S, 2006). Here, his artful images engage in a lyrical and lively dance with Langston Hughes's brief ode to black beauty. Dramatic sepia portraits of African Americans—ranging from a cherubic, chubby-cheeked toddler to a graying elder whose face is etched with lines-are bathed in shadows, which melt into black backgrounds. The 33 words are printed in an elegant font in varying sizes as emphasis dictates. In order to maximize the effect of the page turn and allow time for meaning to be absorbed, the short phrases and their respective visual narratives often spill over more than a spread. The conclusion offers a montage of faces created with varying exposures, a decision that provides a light-filled aura and the irregularities that suggest historical prints. A note from Smith describes his approach to the 1923 poem. This celebration of the particular and universal will draw a wide audience: storytime participants; students of poetry, photography, and cultural studies; seniors; families. A timely and timeless offering.—Wendy Lukehart, Washington DC Public Library
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
http://www.amazon.com/My-People-Langston-Hughes/dp/1416935401/ref=cm_cr_pr_product_top

How to use this book in your library:
The best use of this book is simply to share it. Share it with everyone because "My People" does two very powerful things: it encourages understanding of those who are different and it encourages artistic expression in two different ways. Use this book to encourage artistic expression with your students perhaps with something they don't understand as the medium.

Module 5 - The Firefly Letters by: Margarita Engle

Summary:
Fredrika a Swedish woman beyond her time travels to study and write of the daily life on the island of Cuba. There she is hosted by a wealthy family with a young daughter, Elena, and a slave girl, Cecilia. Fredrika develops relationships with both girls which results in changing all three of their lives.

Bibliographic Citation:
Engle, M. (2010). The Firefly Letters. New York, NY: Henry Holt and Company.

My Impression:
I thoroughly enjoyed The Firefly Letters. Margarita Engle wrote this story in the form of short poems based on the true life of Fredrika Bremer, the first Swedish female novelist and believer and encourager of women's rights. This story is far beyond it's time and Engle portrays that is an entrancing way. This story is a quick read, partially because of the short poetry format of each chapters, but also because it is easy to get lost in the story and the perspectives of each character who is able to share a little piece of themselves. I think it would be an excellent book to read aloud or to encourage more timid readers with.

Reviews:
"I absolutely loved The Firefly Letters. I found it so amazing, so beautiful, so right. This isn't the first Margarita Engle novel I've read--she writes verse novels set in Cuba; all historical. (I've read The Poet Slave of Cuba, The Surrender Tree, and Tropical Secrets.) But I must admit that this one is definitely my favorite so far."
Becky
http://blbooks.blogspot.com/2010/06/firefly-letters-mgya.html

"The short chapters alternate between the viewpoints of these three women, with a few brief interjections from Cecilia’s husband that did show another side of life in Cuba, but did not especially add to the story of Bremer’s visit.  Engle is at her best when she stays close to the story of Frederika and Cecilia.  It is the moments where these two women discover each others’ history that are most illuminating.  Despite their wildly different circumstances, they forge a connection based not on similar life experiences, but on the similar feelings of loneliness and constraint that their experiences have engendered."
Laura Koenig
http://biblauragraphy.wordpress.com/2010/03/13/the-firefly-letters-a-suffragettes-journey-to-cuba-by-margarita-engle/

How to use this book in your library:
As I mentioned above this book could be magical read aloud to children. I would follow up however, with other books about slavery and Cuba. I would also lead into poetry, because Engle's book is a perfect example of the ways poetry can change the way a story is read.

Module 4 - Johnny Tremain by: Esther Forbes

Summary:
Set in pre-Revolutionary War, Johnny Tremain is a skilled silversmith, in fact the best apprentice in his trade. An accident strips Johnny of his skill and forces him to try to reconnect with his family... Johnny's situation goes from bad to worse and result in his participation in the Boston Tea Party and the revolutionary political activities. Johnny learns to become a man in a time when even grown men were questioning everything they  believed, he loses his ability to make a name for himself, and his best friend, but in the end learns what it means to live.

Bibliographic Citation:
Forbes, E. (1987). Johnny Tremain. New York, NY: Dell Publising, Co., Inc.

My Impression:
The Summer between 3rd and 4th grade my family took a trip through what I would consider "Historical" New England. Throughout our travels my mother read this book to us all aloud. I loved the story then especially within the setting we were, but even now rereading this terrific story brought to life the reality of the Revolutionary period through the eyes of a young boy. Johnny Tremain is a must have for any book shelf, and in my opinion would appeal to almost any reader!

Reviews:
" Johnny Tremain is a classic, one that has presented an important part of our history, expressed the importance of moral virtues, and shown us a life different from our own, but complete with the same variations and complexity."
Jeremy Bost
http://www.brighthub.com/arts/books/articles/88038.aspx

How to use this book in your library:
While the Revolutionary War is still studied in school, the sociology of the average American during that time is not, Johnny Tremain is a great way for students to get to know this portion of our countries history and of course reading this book could lead to a variety of other titles about American History.