This is a fantasy book about a vain unicorn who likes to look at her reflection in the light of the moon. One night the moon does not come out becaus This is a fantasy book about a vain unicorn who likes to look at her reflection in the light of the moon. One night the moon does not come out because it is trapped between two hills. After seeking help from other friends and a few tries herself, the unicorn tricks the hills by throwing mirrors into the sky. The moon then gets free and the unicorn is able to admire her beauty once again. She hangs onto some of the mirrors just in case the moon gets trapped again in the future. I started out really liking this book, but changed my mind a bit. I liked the fact that it is a mystical story but I thought there should be a moral to it or some way the unicorn could learn that beauty is not everything. I would have this book available in a 2nd-5th grade classroom for independent reading. I would not use it as a read aloud simply because of the fact there was not a satisfactory ending in my opinion. The one other aspect I did like was at the beginning was a short note describing what unicorns, griffins, and alchemists are to help familiarize the reader with these fantasy characters....more
This book is about a middle child, Martha, who doesn't feel special because she is the middle child. Because of this,Martha decides to run away to th This book is about a middle child, Martha, who doesn't feel special because she is the middle child. Because of this,Martha decides to run away to the far end of the garden where she meets a frog. The frog points out to Martha many good things that come from the middle ( e.g.the juiciest part of the watermelon).Martha then agrees that being in the middle is not so bad and she is proud to be a middle child and returns home. I would have this book available as an independent reader for grades K-2 or as a read-aloud for Pre-K -2. This book would help middle children feel important and may help older or younger siblings help to see the importance of their middle sibling and perhaps be more aware of their feelings....more
This is a fantasy picture book where a boy goes on a train ride and picks up various animals along the way. Each time a new animals gets on board, th This is a fantasy picture book where a boy goes on a train ride and picks up various animals along the way. Each time a new animals gets on board, the other animals yell "Hey, Get off our train." The various animals then plead their case why they should be allowed on ( the elephant is afraid they are coming to cut his tusks off, a seal wants to come because of water pollution, etc). I would use this book as a read aloud to introduce children to the idea of protecting the Earth, most likely on Earth Day. I would then have a class discussion to choose one of these animals and write to the appropriate agency about protecting the animal/habitat. Perfect for use in a K-3 classroom....more
I gave this book 5 stars because it has diverse characters and relates to current events. This story stems from President Obama's speech where he toldI gave this book 5 stars because it has diverse characters and relates to current events. This story stems from President Obama's speech where he told his daughters he could get a dog. Soon all the animals, even ones that were not dogs wanted to be chosen to be the first dog. After all the animals put in their thoughts on what kind of dog the first family would want, they held a lottery. The dog that won the lottery had rigged it, so he did not get to go to Washington. A guinea pig and two dogs were the ones choses to go since combined they had the characteristics of a "first dog." Finally the two puppies and a guinea pig arrived at the White House only to find they had already chosen a dog. They were disappointed but Sasha and Malia wanted them to at least stay for awhile and play with their puppy. I would use this book as a read-aloud to a K-3 class and perhaps to a comparison between different breeds of dogs or different pets....more
I liked this book and rated it only a "3" even though I liked the story (reason is described when I discuss the illustrations). It is about a family I liked this book and rated it only a "3" even though I liked the story (reason is described when I discuss the illustrations). It is about a family who goes to a rescue shelter to get a dog. They see all kinds of dogs but eventually decide on a puppy named "Dave." After choosing Dave. they see an older dog named Rosy. Although sad, they decide to stick with their first pick. After a sleepless night, they decide to return to the shelter and get Rosy as well. Rosy and Dave get along great and complete the family. I would use this book as a read-aloud for a K-3 class. The mom in the book has a tattoo and nose piercing, which I have never seen in a children's picture book before. Since these things are more mainstream today, I did not have an issue with it. However, Dad had a picture of a cigarette on his t-shirt, which I did not think was appropriate for a children's book....more
This is a historical picture book that takes place during the era of the Great Depression. A boy realizes his dad is out of typical work so he sells This is a historical picture book that takes place during the era of the Great Depression. A boy realizes his dad is out of typical work so he sells newspapers with a friend to help make ends meet. This is the time period in which Babe Ruth is excelling in baseball and by him doing well, it helps the boy sell more newspapers. I would use this book as a read-aloud to a 2-5th grade class perhaps as an introduction to the time period of the Great Depression. This book is great because it encorporates the history of sports into the story as well so this would help broaden the audience who would enjoy the story....more
This book is a non-fiction picture book about the lives of polar bears. The illustrations are beautiful and it contains a ton of information on polar This book is a non-fiction picture book about the lives of polar bears. The illustrations are beautiful and it contains a ton of information on polar bears. Each page contains part of the "story" and also includes facts about polar bears. At the end is a page breifly describing how polar bears are endagered and simple tips on what we can do to help. This book could be used as a read-aloud for a K-4 class, but the activities/discussions would vary greatly depending on the age range. For the younger children, I would have a class discussion and make a list of a few more ways we could help with global warming. For the older students, I would have them write a letter to a longer legislator urging them to help protect an endagered animal of their choice, or to do more to help prevent global warming....more
This book is eloquently written about a father and son who visit the Vietnam Memorial Wall in Washington, D.C. It accurately describes the pride and This book is eloquently written about a father and son who visit the Vietnam Memorial Wall in Washington, D.C. It accurately describes the pride and sorrow that occur when loosing a loved one to war, or just simply seeing all those who were killed in action. This would be a nice book to use to show a personal account to the Vietnam War or when discussing Veteran's Day with students. It would be appropriate to use in a K-3 class....more
This is a fantasy picture book about a family who has a dinosaur for a pet, Bob (they found him in Africa). They go on many adventures with Bob, but This is a fantasy picture book about a family who has a dinosaur for a pet, Bob (they found him in Africa). They go on many adventures with Bob, but most of all they enjoy going to baseball games and Bob likes to play. Initially the mayor decides to make the Lazardo's get rid of Bob, but Bob helps the Pirates (who never win) win a game. Bob promises to cause no more trouble to the community and is able to stay. I would use this book as a read aloud for a K-3 class, although it is a little lengthy for younger listeners. After reading the story, I would have the students try to write their own fantasy short story, or for the younger children a sentence or two about what "fantasy" pet they would like....more
This is a fantasy children's picture book about a little girl who eats too many pink cupcakes and turns pink. She is advised to eat lots of green foo This is a fantasy children's picture book about a little girl who eats too many pink cupcakes and turns pink. She is advised to eat lots of green food from the doctor to return to normal. Although reluctant, she follows the doctor's advice and then returns to normal. However, her brother ends up eating the cupcakes and turning pink as well. This book uses inventive language such as "Pinkalicious" and "Pink-a-boo." The author also makes good use of descriptive language when describing the main character eating the green food (for example says "burped up brussel sprouts." I would use this book as a read aloud for a K-2 class and have available as an independent reader for the same age ranges....more
This book is a fractured fairy tale about a postman delivering letters to various classic fairy tale characters. The book is cleverly designed with p This book is a fractured fairy tale about a postman delivering letters to various classic fairy tale characters. The book is cleverly designed with pages that look like envelopes and they open up and there is mail for the different characters in it. The pieces of mail range from a birthday card with "money" in it, an ad for witch supplies, a note from an attorney for the BIg Bad Wolf, and an apology letter from Goldilocks (this piece even uses typical children's spellings for words). I think this book is great because children would get a kick out of opening the envelopes and seeing what is inside. It even exposes children to how an addressed envelope is to look, and exposes them to different genres of writing through the pieces of mail. I would use this book in a K-2 classroom as a read aloud and then have the children write their own letter, card, etc. to a fairy tale character of their choice. I would also have them address an envelope with a pretend address on it....more
This is a nice fractured fairy tale book based on "Cinderella." The characters are all changed to ducks, but it follows the same story line as Cinder This is a nice fractured fairy tale book based on "Cinderella." The characters are all changed to ducks, but it follows the same story line as Cinderella. On example of how the story is changed is instead of a glass slipper, the prince is seeking whoever laid the glass egg. The book uses creative language to help make the story unique to chickens. For example, uses eggtravagant. The illustrations are very colorful and would be considered silly for most children. I would use this book as a read-aloud to a K-3 class and also have it available for independent reading....more
This book is an informational text but also has a fictional story occurring at the same time. Each page has a dollar bill with facts about dollars/mo This book is an informational text but also has a fictional story occurring at the same time. Each page has a dollar bill with facts about dollars/money on it while the other illustrations go along with the fictional text. Although I found this information to be somewhat boring, this would be a great informational text for a child who is interested in money. I probably would not use this book as a read aloud in a classroom but would have it available either for guided reading or independent reading. The text does not directly address any social or diversity issues but the illustrations do show multicultural characters....more
This is a nice informational text that is written in a rhyming poetic fashion that will help to grasp children's attention. There are simple penguin This is a nice informational text that is written in a rhyming poetic fashion that will help to grasp children's attention. There are simple penguin facts such as their diet, where they live, and the fact they can't fly, and many other facts. It is written very simply so this book would be appropriate for grades Pre-K to grade 1. I would use this book as a read-aloud for an introduction on penguins. This book is a must read for any young penguin lover! This book has a nice page at the end with pictures labeling each type of penguin....more
This book is a story about numbers wanting to climb the number tree with the number 0 always asking "Chicka chicka 1,2,3...will there be a place for This book is a story about numbers wanting to climb the number tree with the number 0 always asking "Chicka chicka 1,2,3...will there be a place for me?" The book counts up to 99 and eventually all the numbers have to come down without 0 ever getting the chance to climb the tree. As they come down number 10 is missing so 0 hops to the top of the tree to join number 10 to make 100. This would be a great read aloud book for a Pre-K-K classroom where children are learning about numbers. The pictures are big and colorful and the story uses a lot of repetition and rhyme. This book is very popular with young children....more
This book is about a baby bear who sees different animals. Each page asks the animal what do you see and they answer and on the following page is a p This book is about a baby bear who sees different animals. Each page asks the animal what do you see and they answer and on the following page is a picture of that animal. This would be a great guided reading book or an independent book because it uses a lot of repetition and the pictures on the following page would help a reader tremendously. This would also make a nice read-aloud to a Pre-K class or young child learning about their colors....more
This book is about two ladybugs trying to eat bugs from the same leaf, one of which is friendly, the other is grouchy. Not wanting to share, the grou This book is about two ladybugs trying to eat bugs from the same leaf, one of which is friendly, the other is grouchy. Not wanting to share, the grouchy ladybug offers to fight the friendly ladybug for food but then declines because the ladybug claims the friendly one is not big enough to fight. The grouchy ladybug flies off and encounters many different bugs and animals at different time intervals and wants to fight them but later declines because they too are "not big enough."After being slapped back to land by a whale's tale the grouchy ladybug ends up right where it started from and the grouchy ladybug took up the friendly lady bug's offer and they shared bugs from the same leaf. This book uses A LOT of repetition so this would be great for an independent reader who needs reassurance. Another nice aspect of this book is as the grouchy ladybug encounters the different animals, there is a small analog clock showing the time in the right-hand corner so this would be a great tool for helping children tell time. I would use this book in a classroom to assist in this manner. The social issue of being greedy is addressed in this book and would be a nice way to address this issue with children. I would use this book most likely as a read-aloud in a kindergarten to second grade class and have it available as an independent reading book as well....more
I rated this book a "5" because it is a classic book with such a great message to children. Both little boys and girls can enjoy this book and apprec I rated this book a "5" because it is a classic book with such a great message to children. Both little boys and girls can enjoy this book and appreciate the message in it. This story is about a train carrying goods for children but it breaks down and is unable to get the goods to the children. The train asks several trains that pass by for help, but they all decline for various reasons. Eventually a little engine helps although she thinks she is not strong enough to pull the train over the mountain because she has never done anything like this before. She chants "I think I can, I think I can," and she succeeds. The "message" in this book is priceless and timeless. Children always need to hear they are able to succeed, no matter how unlikely it may be. Too often children are told what they cannot do, rather than be told they can succeed if they just continue to try. I will definitely read this book in my classroom. It would be great for a Pre-K to grade one class....more
This book would be a great tool to address the issue of bragging and teasing because in this story the bear continuously brags because he is so much This book would be a great tool to address the issue of bragging and teasing because in this story the bear continuously brags because he is so much bigger and stronger than the other animals. In fact, in order to prove how great he is he bets a squirrel that he can make the sun not rise. Of course this does not happen so squirrel teases him. As the squirrel ran to escape from the bear, the bear reached his claws out and scraped down his back, giving him his stripes. He now was a chipmunk. I would have this book available for an independent reader or as a read-aloud for a K-1 class. I would then have the children write a brief sentence or draw a picture describing their experiences with teasing or bragging....more
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