Month: November 2006

94

| Tasha

This meme is all over the kidslitblogosphere, and I have some time on a Friday to participate!  This is a list of the top books of all time for children (I think, though I don’t know for sure.  Certainly they have included some of my top books.)  The ones in bold are the ones I have read.  Then the ones with a star are the ones I liked.  Let’s see…  Looks like my score is 94!  Holy cow!  Now admittedly, a lot of these are from my reading to my own children, not from my childhood.  I would have scored far lower without two boys who love picture books.

*Charlotte’s Web by E. B. White
* The Polar Express by Chris Van Allsburg
* Green Eggs and Ham by Dr. Seuss
* The Cat in the Hat by Dr. Seuss
*Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak
Love You Forever by Robert N. Munsch
The Giving Tree by Shel Silverstein
* The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle
Where the Red Fern Grows by Wilson Rawls
*The Mitten by Jan Brett
*Goodnight Moon by Margaret Wise Brown
*Hatchet by Gary Paulsen
* The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe by C. S. Lewis
* Where the Sidewalk Ends: the Poems and Drawing of Shel Silverstein by Shel Silverstein
*Bridge to Terabithia by Katherine Paterson
Stellaluna by Janell Cannon
Oh, The Places You’ll Go by Dr. Seuss
*Strega Nona by Tomie De Paola
*Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day by Judith Viorst
*Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What do you see? by Bill Martin, Jr.
*Charlie and the Chocolate Factory by Roald Dahl
The Velveteen Rabbit by Margery Williams
*A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L’Engle
Shiloh by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor
* How the Grinch Stole Christmas by Dr. Seuss
*The True Story of the Three Little Pigs by Jon Scieszka
* Chicka Chicka Boom Boom by John Archambault
*Little House on the Prarie by Laura Ingalls Wilder
*The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett
*The Complete Tales of Winnie the Pooh by A. A. Milne
The Boxcar Children by Gertrude Chandler Warner
*Sarah, Plain and Tall by Patricia MacLachlan
*Indian in the Cupboard by Lynne Reid Banks
Island of the Blue Dolphins by Scott O’Dell
* Maniac Magee by Jerry Spinelli
The BFG by Roald Dahl
*The Giver by Lois Lowry
*If You Give a Mouse a Cookie by Laura Joffe Numeroff
*James and the Giant Peach by Roald Dahl
*Little House in the Big Woods by Laura Ingalls Wilder
*Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry by Mildred D. Taylor
*The Hobbit by J. R. R. Tolkien
*The Lorax by Dr. Seuss
Stone Fox by John Reynolds Gardiner
*Number the Stars by Lois Lowry
*Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of Nimh by Robert C. O’Brien
*Little Women by Louisa May Alcott
The Rainbow Fish by Marcus Pfister
*Amazing Grace by Mary Hoffman
*The Best Christmas Pageant Ever by Barbara Robinson
*Corduroy by Don Freeman
*Jumanji by Chris Van Allsburg
*Math Curse by Jon Scieszka
*Matilda by Roald Dahl
Summer of the Monkeys by Wilson Rawls
*Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing by Judy Blume
*Ramona Quimby, Age 8 by Beverly Cleary
*The Trumpet of the Swan by E. B. White
*Are You My Mother? by Philip D. Eastman
*The Chronicles of Narnia by C. S. Lewis
*Make Way for Ducklings by Robert McCloskey
*One Fish Two Fish Red Fish Blue Fish by Dr. Seuss
*The Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Juster
*The Snowy Day by Ezra Jack Keats
*The Napping House by Audrey Wood
*Sylvester and the Magic Pebble by William Steig
*The Tale of Peter Rabbit by Beatrix Potter
*Tuck Everlasting by Natalie Babbitt
*The Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum
*Anne of Green Gables by Lucy Maud Montgomery
*Horton Hatches the Egg by Dr. Seuss
Basil of Baker Street, by Eve Titus
*The Little Engine That Could by Watty Piper
The Cay by Theodore Taylor
*Curious George by Hans Augusto Rey
*Wilfred Gordon McDonald Partridge by Mem Fox
*Arthur series by Marc Tolon Brown
*The Great Gilly Hopkins by Katherine Paterson
*Lilly’s Purple Plastic Purse by Kevin Henkes
*Little House books by Laura Ingalls Wilder
*The Little House by Virginia Lee Burton
The Runaway Bunny by Margaret Wise Brown
*Sideways Storiesfrom Wayside School by Louis Sachar
*Amelia Bedelia by Peggy Parish
*Harriet the Spy by Louise Fitzhugh
* A Light in the Attic by Shel Silverstein
*Mr. Popper’s Penguins by Richard Atwater (don’t remember)
*My Father’s Dragon by Ruth Stiles Gannett
*Stuart Little by E. B. White
*Walk Two Moons by Sharon Creech
*The Witch of Blackbird Pond by Elizabeth George Speare
* The Art Lesson by Tomie De Paola
*Caps for Sale by Esphyr Slobodkina
Clifford, the Big Red Dog by Norman Bridwell
*Heidi by Johanna Spyri
*Horton Hears a Who by Dr. Seuss
The Sign of the Beaver by Elizabeth George Speare
* The Watsons Go to Birmingham-1963 by Christopher Paul Curtis
Guess How Much I Love You by Sam McBratney
The Paper Bag Princess by Robert N. Munsc

Graphic Novel Attacks

| Tasha

An interesting AP article on the topic of increasing challenges to graphic novels in libraries, shows that people are finding graphic illustrations of adult themes much more provocative than the same actions in written form. They have some examples of adult graphic novels that are being questioned in public libraries.
When I went to library school, I learned that if a librarian is doing their job and truly selecting items that will serve even the marginal people in their community then you definitely can expect to have materials questioned. Sounds like this new director at the library has pushed the envelope a bit more than her predecessor. Complaints about materials aren’t the end of the world, they may just be the indication that you are doing your job extremely well.
Via LISNews.org

Too Small for Honey Cake

| Tasha

Too Small for Honey Cake by Gill Lobel, illustrated by Sebastien Braun.

I know that there are many books about new siblings and how older siblings have to cope.  Even in this crowded field, this book is a warm charmer that should be noticed.  Little Fox is finding that Daddy Fox has almost no time for him because of the baby.  His father won’t look at his block tower, he sings the baby Little Fox’s special song, and the baby sleeps in Little Fox’s cradle.  It isn’t fair!  So Little Fox decides that he is not living there anymore and moves into the space under the stairs.  He stays there angry and saying mean things until his father finds a way to make peace with a bit of honey cake.

I enjoyed this story of a father dealing with children.  So often we have stories of inept fathers who have to be helped with childcare.  In this case we have a capable father who can bake too!  The illustrations are warm depictions of a safe and cozy home.  Little Fox’s insults about the baby are right on target for that age and will have preschoolers and Kindergarteners giggling.

Share this with children expecting a new sibling, but also share it for a depiction of a single parent story or just a great warm book about brothers. 

Sold

| Tasha

Sold by Patricia McCormick.

The exquisite cover promises great things inside and does not lie.  McCormick has created a gut-wrenching, poetic, amazing verse novel of a young girl sold into sexual slavery.  Lakshmi is from a small village in Nepal where she has a loving mother, tiny baby brother and absent stepfather who gambles away any money they manage to scrape together.  One season after an awful drought, the monsoon returns with too much rain destroying their rice plantings for the next year.  Lakshmi is told that she is being sent to be a maid for a wealthy city family, so she is willing to leave to give her family more money, her brother a better life, and her mother a new tin roof.  But she is not headed for a family, rather an brothel in India.  This is the story of how a young girl uses her intelligence and courage to survive the unthinkable.

The power of the poems in this volume hits like a hammer right in the chest.  Amazingly many of them are complete enough to stand as single poems, but placed together in order they form a chain of poetry that is solid and strong.  They are a testament to what is happening to thousands of girls each year. 

I admit freely that I tend to cry at the end of books.  Sometimes it is the loss of these characters I have been living with other times it is the anguish of the story itself.  Rarely do I weep in the middle of a book, but I did when reading this.  The pain of the brothel and her bravery in overcoming the situation were so palpable and real that they seared right through me.  The eyes on the cover will stay with me for a long time, but the poetry is what is tattooed in my heart.  To say such evil things with such beauty and strength.  To not shy away from the truth of what happens took courage for the author as well.

All I have is applause for this novel.  It is a masterpiece of brevity and power.  This is one of my top books of the year.  I consider it a must read.

Picture Books Teach

| Tasha

CBS News has some study results that will not surprise any of us: Picture Books Really Do Teach Toddlers. I know that this is one of those, well duh! moments, but I do think that it is wonderful when studies support what we all intuitively know.
So, keep on reading to those kids! Whether they are 18-30 months old or not!

One Potato, Two Potato

| Tasha

One Potato, Two Potato by Cynthia C. DeFelice, pictures by Andrea U’Ren.

This is the story of an old couple who live in absolute poverty with only one chair, one coat to share between them, one blanket, one gold coin, and each day only one potato to eat.  When they run out of potatoes in the garden, the old man digs deeper hoping to find one, but all he finds is an old pot.  He places the last potato inside as he carries the pot back to the house.  But when he gets home, his wife finds that there are now 2 potatoes inside the pot.  The magical pot will duplicate anything placed inside.  Soon they have two tattered coats, two thin blankets, and many potatoes.  When the wife remembers the coin and they make copies, the husband heads to town to buy new things for them.  But it can never be quite that easy in fairy tales and the next twist will have children gasping.

Some picture books with this many words will bore children, but not this one.  The language is fresh, keeping the story vivid and wonderful.  I always enjoy when a storyteller allows her own love of language to come across in a book.  Add to it the illustrations with their vintage cartoon feel, and you have a great book for reading aloud to children from kindergarten through second grade. 

National Book Award Winner

| Tasha

National Book Awards have been announced and the winner of the Young People’s Literature award is M.T. Anderson for The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation, Vol I: The Pox Party. I have a copy at the top of my to-read pile and am looking forward to it!

Reading Aloud

| Tasha

Gregory K. at GottaBook has a great post on reading aloud to children: A little library business. I completely recognize the incredible feeling when a group of children are all listening as hard as they can, caught up in the story being told. It is quite a rush to realize not only the power of the reader but the power of the read-aloud.
A large part of this tingle and success is picking the right book for the right crowd at the right time. Another part is being a good reader. Now I love to read aloud to children, make silly voices, ask them to be silly too, sing along, and much more. But when I see a great reader I know that I am only a pretender. They can capture children with the wrong book, at the wrong time. They can make words that would be stilted in my mouth come out dancing.
But never fear! You need not be a master reader to be a success. You can be like me, a fairly good reader who really enjoys children and books and doesn’t fear being a fool. That is enough to create that magical tingle that those master readers can pull from nothing and we must wait for that perfect melding of audience and book. But what a tingle it is, definitely worth striving for.

Where's My Darling Daughter

| Tasha

Where’s My Darling Daughter? by Mij Kelly and Katharine McEwen.

Poppa Bombola looks in the bed for his darling daughter, but he can’t find her.  As he searches around the farm, he repeats, “I know I put her somewhere safe.  Oh where’s my darling daughter?”  On the second or third page, kids will notice the darling daughter dangling on her daddy’s back in a baby carrier.  All ends happily of course, but not until all the children will be able to chorus the refrain along with the reader. 

The writing has rhythm and rhyme, carrying the reader as you race around the farmyard.  The art is child-friendly, filled with color and action.  It will project well for a crowd of children, and plays equally well as a lap book. 

This one is great fun.  Perfect for reading aloud as a silly finish to a story time on fathers or farms.  I guarantee giggles galore!