The Giver

Title: The Giver
Author: Lois Lowry
Age Level: 5th grade and up
Rating: 4 out of 5

I remember reading The Giver in high school but never really got into the book.  When we were assigned to read this in class this year, not much came to mind about the book.  I guess you can say that my first time reading this didn't make that much of an impact in my literary life.  Now that I have read this book again, I am able to see the depth and uniqueness that this book has to offer.  What I liked about this book that I never really took into account when I read it previously was how different the lifestyle Jonas and his neighbors where living.  When reading this book now, I found myself trying to put myself into the shoes of the people living in that "utopian" society and seeing what a life like that would really be like.  I couldn't imagine living in a society that valued "sameness" and definitly wouldn't like it.  I think that this book really makes the reader think and challenges the views that the reader has about societal beliefs and values.  I also liked how the book was left open for interpretation.  Having the ending not be specifically layed out encourages group discussions about what may or may not have happened and I think that these types of discussions are essential to have in order to develop a greater understanding of the novel.  I think that this book would be a great book to read in school because the literature is so rich and allows for great discussion and interpretation by the reader.  In my opinion, students will enjoy reading about a world that is different from their own and conversing about their opinions and interpretations of the novel.

I Can Do It Myself

Picture Book
Title: I Can Do It Myself
Author: Emily Perl Kingsly
Illustrator: Richard Brown
Age Level: 2-5
Rating: 2 out of 5

Summary
This book is about all the things that children can do independently.  This is a Sesame Street book and has all the different muppet characters in it.  Some of the things that they do are make the bed, put away toys, pour their juice, comb their hair, water their plants, write their name, etc.

Opinion
This book would be very appealing to children because it deals with the Sesame Street characters that most kids are familiar with and comfortable and excited to read about.  I do think that the writing in this book is very simplistic and boring.  It is very repetitive and each line begins with I can...  This book would be for younger ages but I think that children may get bored while reading this book.  The cartoon illustrations within in the book are very nicely done and represent the Sesame Street characters very well. This book would not offer these young readers a chance to use any literary elements while they read and would not be able to practice these skills.

This book would be a good read for children who are working to be independent and trying to start to do things on their own.  Reading this book may give children the confidence boost they need to feel like they are able to do things by themselves.  I would keep this book in my classroom library for pre-schoolers but I do not think I would use it any sort of lesson.

http://www.journeyofhearts.org/kirstimd/kingsley.htm

Arthur's Teacher Trouble

Picture Book
Title: Arthur's Teacher Trouble
Author: Marc Brown
Age Level: 5+
Rating: 4 out of 5

Summary
This book is about the first week of school that Arthur experiences in the third grade.  He gets stuck with Mr. Ratburn, who is a very tough teacher and gives the class homework the very first day of school.  He then assigns a spelling test that the students must take and the two students who get 100% will be in the all-school spellathon.  Arthur studies very hard for this while all his other friends are out playing because they dont have homework.  They take the test and Arthur and The Brain are the two who get 100%.  They compete in the spelling bee and Arthur ends up winning the spelling bee.

Opinion

I used to love reading Arthur and D.W. books growing up as well as watching their show on the CW.  I was always very excited to see the next adventure that they would find themselves in.  I came across this book when I was at home looking through my old books I used to read as a child.  I thought that the cartoon illustrations were done extremely well and with a lot of detail which made this book very esthetically appealing.  The story line in this book was a little difficult for you readers to read; I read this with my child study student and she had some troubles, however, this would be a great book for those students who are in second grade or higher.  I think that this book is something that students can relate to and will find interesting and fun to read.  Some students get frustrated in school because they get more homework than expected or they get stuck with the teacher that they did not want.  This book tells the story of how this situation may not be as bad as one might think.  With hard work and motivation, which is just what Mr. Ratburn gave the students, you can succeed and do things you may not have thought you could.

I would have this book in my classroom library as a future teacher because I think that children will find this book very appealing to read.  Arthur is a character that many children are familiar with and having these types of books in my classroom will motivate students to pick up a book and get engaged in reading.

http://kids.aol.com/KOL/2/KOLJrStories/FlashHolder/arthurs-teacher-trouble
http://www.kidsreads.com/authors/au-brown-marc.asp

My Five Senses

Picture Book
Title: My Five Senses
Author: Aliki
Age Level: 3+
Rating: 3 out of 5

Summary
This book explains the five senses that we have to the reader, taste, touch, hear, smell, see.  It also gives examples of how we use our five senses, such as when we eat an ice cream cone we use our sense of taste.  It goes through different situations when you would use more than one sense at a time such as playing with a puppy, you use your sense of seeing, hearing, smelling, and touching.

Opinion
I think that this book is sort of unappealing and boring in a sense.  The illustrations are bright and large but the dialouge is very simple.  This book does not have that much depth to it and would not be quality literature in my opinion.  This type of book would not provide children a chance to use literary elements to find deeper meaning within the text and gain as much information and knowledge as possible.  The lesson that this story has to offer is of importance, though.  Children need to learn about their five senses and I think this is an introductory book that would help students become aware of the different senses we have and how we use them in our daily life.

Using this book as an attention getter to this topic would be my only use for this book.  I would read this book to my kindergarten students and then have them describe what each sense is and how we use them.  I could also have them make a chart with each sense as a box header and then have them write in examples of how they would use each sense. This activity will open their eyes to the many, many different ways we use our senses and how they are a part of our everyday lives.

http://www.teachervision.fen.com/body-parts/curriculum-planning/6209.html

The River

Picture Book
Title: The River
Author: Gallimard Jeunesse and Laura Bour
Illustrator: Laura Bour
Age Level: 3+
Rating: 4 out of 5

Summary
This book is about plant and animal life near the river.  It describes many different animals and insects that you can find near or in a river and it tells the lifecycles of some bugs and amphibians that you may find.

Opinion
This was also a book that I liked to read while growing up.  I loved learning about different plants and animals and this was always a fun book that I liked to read.  The representational art really makes you feel like you are down by the river experiencing all of the great wildlife that it holds.  Throughout this book there are also many transparent sheets that are painted with pictures that cover up something on the next page.  This is a great added affect to the book that makes reading it more exciting in my opinion because you can see how one page works with the next page.  The illustrations are also very detailed and done in vibrant colors which make the wildlife in and around the river stand out dramatically.

This book has so much rich information about plants, animals, and insects that it would definitly be used in my classroom as a future teacher.  I would use this book when we are talking about either different ecosystems or different landscapes or if we are learning about birds, amphibians, or insects.  This book would be a fun attention getter and opener activity to get students excited to learn about this type of science.  I would gather the children on the rug and read the book, followed by a discussion of what things were familiar to them or what they have seen before.  It also might be fun to bring the children to a river by the school and see how many things from the book we are able to find and then we can use that knowledge to state information we know about them.

http://www.paperbackswap.com/River-First-Discovery-Books/book/0590471287/

If You Give A Mouse A Cookie

Picture Book
Title: If You Give A  Mouse A Cookie
Author: Laura Joffe Numeroff
Illustrator: Felicia Bond
Age Level: 3-7
Rating: 4 out of 5

Summary
This book is about the dominoes effect that happens when you let a mouse into your house.  When you give him a cookie he will ask for some milk, and if you give him milk he will want to look in the mirror to make sure he doesn't have a milk mustache, and the story goes on and on in this manner.

Opinion
When I think back to my childhood and the reading that I enjoyed to do, reading, If You Give A  Mouse A Cookie, is one of the books that I remember most vividly.  I would  read this book over and over again because I was so intrigued by all the things that the mouse wanted to do.  I think the cartoon like illustrations are extremely playful and inviting for the reader.  The layout of the story is also done in a way that keeps the reader on his/her toes and hightens the anticipation that they have to find out what comes next. It also helps that the title and front cover have cookies on them, we all know that children love cookies so this makes the book even more appealing for them to read.  I think that students can also use their five senses while reading this book which is an activity and lesson that is extremely important.

I would definitly keep this book in my class library because I think that all students will enjoy reading it.  I do not think I would use this book in a particular lesson but having it available to students would be my main focus.

http://www.atozteacherstuff.com/Themes/If_You_Give_a_____Books/index.shtml

The Higher Power of Lucky

Novel
Title: The Higher Power of Lucky
Author: Susan Patron
Illustrator: Matt Phelan
Age Level: 9-11
Rating: 5 out of 5

Summary
This book captures the journey of Lucky, a ten-year-old girl living in Hard Pan California.  She has experienced many hardships in her life, her dad leaving her, her mother dying, and she becomes very concerned and sure that her guardian, Brigitte, is planning to leave her and go back home to France.

Opinion
While reading this book, I never realized how much discussion could be drawn from the context within its covers.  I always love discussing books and I was surprised at how well the literary elements played a vital role in reading and understanding the story and journey that lucky takes.  Point of view becomes an important part of this story and allows us to see what is going on in the third person.  We were able to see the story through Lucky's perception and this gave us little insight into the minds of the other characters in the story.  Consequently, we became very caught up in Lucky's struggles and emotions and experienced anticipation and wonder with Lucky, searching for the answer to the question of Brigitte leaving.  Theme is also another literary element that is very evident in this story.  Patron is able to convey the theme in her book that family can be with you without actually being there.  Her mother is dead and her father chose to not raise her but she has other people in her life that are just as faithfull and important to her.  I also thought that this book was rich with metaphors and symbols that provide depth to the text and allow for students to construct deeper meaning and challenge themselves a bit.

This book is one that I think would be very beneficial for students to read because it provides literature that is filled with a lot of meaning and can make students really think.  Great classroom discussion can branch from the topics encountered in this book and that is something that is important if students are going to develop an understanding of the literary elements.