My Name is Elizabeth!

My Name is Elizabeth! by Annika Dunklee and Matthew Forsyth is simply an adorable picture book. It would make a wonderful read for the first few weeks of school, and it would pair well with Kevin Henkes's book Chrysanthemum.

Elizabeth is very proud of her name, and she LOVES that it has NINE letters. What she doesn't love is when people try to shorten her lovely name.  Whether it is Lizzy, Beth, or Betsy, it simply won't do.

Although written for children in lower elementary school, this would be a cute read aloud of any grade when talking about names and nicknames.  After reading it, I asked my own Margaret what people call her besides Margaret.  Her first response, "Sassy."  After giggling, she also named off: Maggie, Mag, Dimple Face, and Alligator.

A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier

"In the more than fifty violent conflicts going on worldwide, it is estimated that there are 300,000 child soldiers, traumatized, hopped up on drugs, and wielding AK47s (from back cover)."  The writer of this memoir, Ishmael Beah, was just one of them.

This is definitely a book for students in high school up through adult -- definitely not a "children's" book, although it is a heart-wrenching book about Beah's childhood.  With his entire family killed during war, Beah had no choice but to join the fight when he was only 12 years old. He became adept at carrying his AK47, a bayonet, and extra ammunition throughout the jungles of his homeland -- until UNICEF workers rescued him and attempted to give him a childhood back.

This book was one I couldn't put down.  It made me incredibly thankful that my children are growing up in a country where this would never happen, but very sad that my children are growing up in a WORLD where this happens every day. Ishmael Beah is a symbol of the resiliency of children.

The Dollhouse Fairy

My five-year-old daughter LOVES fairies, princesses, and anything that sparkles, so when I saw this book in the library, I instantly thought of her.

The Dollhouse Fairy by Jane Ray is a whimsically illustrated picture book about a girl named Rosy, her father, and a magical, mischievous fairy named Thistle.

Rosy loves playing with her dollhouse with her father, but when he becomes ill and has to stay in the hospital, Rosy finds out she has a house guest in her dollhouse!  Thistle is a fairy who has broken her wing, so she stays in the dollhouse while Rosy nurses her back to health.

Close To Famous

I loved this book!  
     Close to Famous by Joan Bauer is about a young girl named Foster with big dreams of one day having her own cooking show.
     Well, let me back up a bit . . . the story begins with Foster and her mother racing away from an Elvis impersonator who just broke their living room window and is now chasing after them as they speed down the Tennessee highway. After losing the Elvis impersonator, Foster and her mother pull their car over during a rainstorm, only to find out the next morning that they barely escaped driving over a cliff.
     Rescued by a loving couple who run a tow-truck company in a small town that is only barely surviving now that a prison has been built inside the city limits, the couple offer Foster and her mother a place to stay -- a bullet-shaped trailer in their backyard.
     This small town is full of would-love-be famous citizens including Macon, who wishes to become a documentary film maker, Foster's mother Rayka who dreams of being a headlining singer instead  of always a back-up singer, and Miss Charleena -- a REAL famous person who has come to this small town of Culpepper to hide away.
     Although Culpepper is a sleepy, little town, some unexpected events begin to shake things up.  This is a book full of characters with dreams I simply couldn't wait to read about. I would recommend this book for kids grades 4-7, but I'm an adult, an I loved it, too!
     I can't wait to book talk this one!

The Penderwicks: A Summer Tale of Four Sisters, Two Rabbits, and a Very Interesting Boy

This book's cover immediately caught my eye.  The cover and even the title reminded me of one of the many books I read as a young girl.  After reading the entire book in about two days, it really did bring back fond memories of childhood books like The Moffits.  Does anyone else out there remember reading that one?  I still have my copy.  In fact, I may just have to reread it again.

The Penderwicks by Jeanne Birdsall really is a just as the title suggests -- a book about four sisters, two rabbits, and a very interesting boy.  It's a perfect summer read for girls from ages 9-12 -- although adults would enjoy it, too.  During three weeks of their summer, the Penderwick girls -- Rosalind, Skye, Jane, and Batty -- go to a New England cottage with their father for three weeks.  Those three weeks are full of many adventures, including a run-in with a bull, a fall into a frog pond, a kitchen fire, and more.

While on their adventures, the girls are joined by a young boy whose mother, a snooty, snobby, angry woman, becomes the antagonist throughout the story.

Although this book does not center around one clear conflict, it instead is made up of many different adventures -- one for each chapter.  It is, quite simply, a great story.  Although there is a mention of a computer on three different pages, aside from that, this story could take place any time within the last fifty years.

This would also make a great summer read aloud for parents who want to read to their younger children -- boys or girls.

This is actually the first book in a series, so readers who enjoy this book will have others to pick up as soon as they are done reading.

Milo: Sticky Notes and Brain Freeze

    

Jamie and Angus

I have to admit it.  I didn't find this book on my own.  Last school year, I suddenly had an incredible number of first graders requesting this book.  Having never heard of it before, I asked the classroom teacher about it.  She had been reading the book as a read-aloud.  I suddenly found myself on a mission to FIND THIS BOOK!

Jamie and Angus by Anne Fine is actually a book out of the UK.  In fact, at the time, I had to purchase the book from Amazon.com/UK!

Last week, my second-grade son checked this book out of the library.  I took it as a great opportunity to read the book together.

This book about a young boy named Jamie and his stuffed animal Angus is a great read-aloud for younger kids who can sit still for a chapter book.  We easily read it as a family in four days.  Well written, it is often easy for even an adult to forget that Angus isn't a little brother in the family, but a beloved stuffed animal that Jamie takes care of.

Recommended for students in grades K-2.