Jaclyn

Jaclyn Berry Mrs. Burdic Literature for Children and Adolescence

Picture Book #1 // Chanticleer and the Fox // Written by: Geoffrey Chaucer Illustrated by: Barbara Cooney This book is a colorful adaption of Chaucer’s original tale. The storyline has been preserved as has some of the language, which gives this book a delightfully old air. In the story, Chanticleer, a barnyard rooster who is widely thought to be the most beautiful and most musically gifted rooster in the land, has a nightmare about being stolen by a fox. His favorite hen-wife discounts the dream entirely and Chanticleer lowers his guard. When a fox does appear, the rooster is drawn in by his flattery and the fox carries him off. As the barnyard chases the fox, Chanticleer invite him to taunt them because the fox has outrun them. As soon as the fox opens his mouth though, Chanticleer flies up to a tree and refuses to listen to anything more that the fox has to say. Thus, the rooster’s keeper says, he has learned the dangers of flattery.

Picture Book #2 // Babar Comes to America // By: Laurent De Brunhoff Babar, elephant king of the elephant country where they speak French, was invited to the United States by the president. First, Babar sees the Capitol and dines with the president before he goes on to New York City to see the sights and visit friends. He is given an honorary Doctorate of Letters by Harvard University. He travels to Chicago and then over the Rocky Mountains to end up in San Francisco with his wife and three children and cousin. The six of them tour the West Coast and then Cousin Arthur and Babar leave to visit the Grand Canyon and Dallas before rejoining the rest of the family in New York. The illustrations give hints as to where Babar is and the book is a great survey of some of the famous sights and places in the United States.

Picture Book #3 // When Abraham Talked to the Trees // Written by: Elizabeth Van Steenwyk Illustrated by: Bill Farnsworth A biography of Abraham Lincoln’s childhood written in story form, this book makes the 16th president a person rather than another name in history. It tells of his hunger for knowledge and his love of words. He was an avid reader though he only had a few books to read, but after he had memorized them he would recite them to his family. Once he heard a preacher and it ignited a passion in his heart for the spoken word. He would repeat the sermons verbatim to his family and others around him until only the trees remained listening. However, he was training to become the skilled orator that he was known to be and his passion and persistence paid off.

Picture Book #4 // I Am Marc Chagall // By: Bimba Landmann The story of Chagall was interesting and was a good introduction to his work. He was an artist during the time of the Russian Revolution and a world traveler. However, the real gem of the book was the artistry of Landmann. The illustrations were photographs of her mosaics and collages. She put an amazing amount of time and energy into her scenes from the looks of them and they aptly capture the whimsical, impressionist feel of Mac Chagall’s artwork. The book is loosely based on Chagall’s autobiography, //My Life//, and at the end of the story, Landmann has included a timeline of Chagall’s life.

Picture Book #5 // Martin Luther: A Man Who Changed the World // Written by: Paul L. Maier Illustrated by: Greg Copeland This is an inspiring book that gives a brief overview of the major events in the life of Martin Luther as he entered the Church and then changed the history of the world. The story is told as more than just a list of facts, rather it reveals the greatness and magnitude of Luther’s actions and life. The artwork is beautiful and aids in the retelling of Luther’s biography. One of my favorite parts of the book was the map with all of the locations marked in which the events described in the book happened. This gave me a feel for where Luther went when and how everything unfolded.

Picture Book #6 // Anna’s Table // Written by: Eve Bunting Illustrated by: Taia Morley For a moment, the reader can step back into the mind of a child and see the wonder of God’s creation. This book is delightful! Anna has a table of natural treasures that she has found during her adventures with her family and she shows them off as though they were the most precious, exquisite riches in the world. And so they are, from the spiral shell to a piece of bark shaped like a hand to a shark tooth. It’s just that as e. e. cummings wrote, “down they forgot as up they grew.” Adults lose track of the beauty and intrigue of what God has made. //Anna’s Table// refreshes that curiosity.

Picture Book #7 // Silent Night: The Song and Its Story // Written by: Margaret Hodges Illustrated by: Tim Ladwig // Silent Night // is a beautiful retelling of the story behind the Christmas carol, Silent Night. The story begins one Christmas Eve in 1818 in Oberndorf, Austria when Franz Gruber, the organist, found that the organ was broken. The town loved music, and the priest, Father Joseph Mohr was distraught that the Christmas Mass would lack music. He decided to compose a song to tell the Christmas story and asked Herr Gruber to write a simple tune for it. That night the two men sang it accompanied by a guitar and inspired a new tradition. Eventually, it spread around the world and drew even war-torn enemies together for a brief time as they connected over this carol.

Picture book #8 // Frog Went A-Courtin’ // Written by: John Langstaff Illustrated by: Feodor Rojankovsky //Frog Went A-Courtin’// is a delightful Scottish folksong that has been transcribed to a picture book. Frog courts Miss Mousie, who refused to marry without her Uncle Rat’s permission. Uncle Rat, however, has a list of wedding preparations that Miss Mousie must have squared away before he will agree. Later, the song tells about how each small creature in the woods helped with the wedding preparations- or wreaked havoc on them. Each person to sing it had the freedom to change what Uncle Rat’s list was or how each creature changed the wedding, either by helping or by messing things up. At the end, the singer says, “If you want anymore, you must sing it yourself,” and the next person would then pick up the song and continue.

Picture Book #9 // Alfred // Written by: Janice May Udry Illustrated by: Judith Shuman Roth This is a neat book about overcoming fear and prejudice. Henry is terrified of dogs and he must walk past them every day on his way to school. His parents did not understand, but it did not matter how big or small the dogs were, Henry was still afraid of them, so much so that he lost his appetite. Then one day, Alfred, a giant, red dog steals his book bag. Henry goes to school distraught, when Alfred pushes his way into the classroom, returns the bag, and stays the rest of the day. On the way home, Henry comes to love Alfred because all the other dogs leave him alone while Alfred is there.

Picture Book #10 // Lon Po Po // Translated and illustrated by: Ed Young This tale from China is reminiscent of our fairytale of Red-Riding Hood. In this story, however, the children stay home and the mother goes to visit the grandmother, or Po Po. The wolf bids his time once in the house with the children, but unfortunately for him, the children figure out what is going on and trick him into desiring gingko nuts from the top of the tree. The wolf cannot climb, however, so the children pull him up in a basket. When he is almost to the top, they drop him and he dies so the children are safe.

Picture Book #11 // The Sea King’s Daughter: A Russian Legend // Retold by: Aaron Shepard Illustrated by: Gennady Spirin It seems fairytale themes span cultures because this one reminded me of some of the Grimm brothers’ tales. Sadko is a poor musician in Novgorod, Russia and none of the maidens will marry a poor man. One evening, the King of the Sea asks him to play under the water in his court. Sadko played so well that the king offered a daughter for Sadko’s wife. The Sea Queen warned Sadko that if he kissed or embraced the king’s daughter, he would never return to his home so, even though she was beautiful, he did not kiss or embrace her. In the morning, he woke up by the river and wept with joy and grief. However, he made enough money later to marry, but every once in a while he would slip down to the water again to play, and some may say that a girlish figure would rise to listen.

Picture Book #12 // Raisel’s Riddle // Written by: Erica Silverman Illustrated by: Susan Gaber This particular tale, in keeping with the pattern, reminded me of Cinderella. Raisel’s grandfather educated her before girls received any formal education, but when he died she had to seek work in the house of a respected rabbi. The cook was cruel, but Raisel never complained. The morning of the Purim play, she heard the rabbi’s son exchanging riddles with guests, but was forced back to work before she could add her own. Raisel received some wishes and wished for a Purim costume, a carriage, and a clean kitchen and attended the play. She told the rabbi’s son the riddle, but left before he answered. He later discovered it was her and married her.

Picture Book #13 // Family Reunion // Written by: May Quattlebaum Illustrated by: Andrea Shine Jody’s weeklong family reunion is told through poems that range in style, including haiku, free verse, sonnet, ballad, and more. The poetry, combined with the whimsical, light watercolor illustrations combine to let readers see the reunion on the beach through the eyes of a young elementary or middle school aged child. She wonders at the fact that old toys seems so small now and describes the joy of eating watermelon in summer. In the end, she writes Nana a letter, asking if she can begin planning next year’s reunion even though she just barely walked through the door after returning from this one.

Picture Book #14 // A Wreath for Emmett Till // Written by: Marilyn Nelson Illustrated by: Philippe Lardy This is a heroic crown sonnet, fifteen sonnets in which the first line of one sonnet is an echo of the last line of the preceding sonnet and the fifteenth sonnet is composed of the first lines of each of the previous fourteen. Each sonnet is rich with symbolism and allusions to events, people, or literature. The illustrations contain an equal wealth of symbolism. Lardy uses all of his resources when illustrating to create just as much depth and emotional appeal as Nelson’s words concerning Emmett Till’s race-based martyrdom at the hands of a lynch mob. Incredible book; one I would love to purchase.

Picture Book #15 // The Story of the Star-Spangled Banner // Written by: Natalie Miller Illustrated by: George Wilde Miller retells the familiar story of the composition of //The Star-Spangled Banner//. However, usually the story goes until the battle is won at Fort Henry, but Miller continued to tell about the life and popularity of the song as it grew through the decades and centuries. She described how Key never thought that its popularity would persist, but that it did and even grew when the South attempted to change it to make fun of the North during the American Civil War. Finally, she discussed the debate that ensued when it was proposed to become the national anthem and how editors answered the objections.

Picture Book #16 // Leonardo: Beautiful Dreamer // Written /illustrated by: Robert Byrd Fantastic book! It is an excellent resource for a lesson or unit on da Vinci or just for people interested in the colorful details of Leonardo’s life and thoughts. The main text gave his biography and achievements while excerpts from his notebooks or additional explanations peppered the pages between the pictures. The illustrations were colorful and highlighted the main points, or at least the interesting points of the page. The book holds a wealth of information and is terribly interesting to read and provokes questions about life, nature, and about a person’s own choices concerning talents, gifts, abilities, and time.

Picture Book #17 // The Camel Who Took a Walk // Written by: Jack Tworkov Illustrated by: Roger Duvoisin A camel set out to take a walk and would have become a tiger’s breakfast if he had crossed a tree’s shadow. The monkey saw the tiger and decided to drop the coconut on the tiger’s head before he pounced on the camel. The squirrel must have had a vendetta against the camel because he decided to bite the monkey’s tail so he would not drop the coconut so the tiger could get the camel. Thankfully, the bird liked the camel so he decided to pounce on the squirrel so he wouldn’t bite the monkey so he could drop the coconut so the tiger would not pounce on the camel. But just as the camel reached the shadow, she turned around to go home- so nothing happened!

Picture Book #18 // It’s Absolutely True! // Written by: Hans Christian Anderson Illustrated by: Toril Marö Henrichsen An entertaining tale, this book reveals the evolutionary nature of tidbits of gossip. What started as a joke became a monstrous tale in which a hen was behaving indecently or catching her death of cold. Eventually, the story had morphed into two or three hens dying from exposure, and finally, five hens pulling out all their feathers to show who loved the cock most and then pecking one another to death. Of course, the story had changed so drastically that the original jokester did not recognize it and published in the newspaper as factual. This story is used to warn children about the dangers of gossip.

Picture Book #19 // The Best Cat in the World // Written by: Lesléa Newman Illustrated by: Ronald Himler Victor is very sad when his cat Charlie dies and does not want a new one. The vet called though to ask if he would take an abandoned kitten and he agrees. At first, Victor is upset that Shelley, the new cat, does not do all the things that Charlie used to and does not react to him in the same way. After a few days, however, as Victor continues to try to make friends with Shelley, she surprises him with her personality and helps him come to grips with the loss of his old cat so that he can learn to love and enjoy his new cat.

Picture Book #20 // A Little Old Man // Written by: Natalie Norton Illustrated by: Will Huntington “It is not good for man to be alone” and one little old man on an island was and was very lonely. He wanted a cat for company, but he could not leave his island and no body visited. Then one day, a great storm arose and just as the little old man stepped outside, a giant wave washed his house out to sea. He watched it grow smaller and smaller until he couldn’t see it anymore, but then he realized that as he watched his house, the waves had born a boat to his island. Inside the boat was as cheery as his old house, and then from under the stove came a cat and three kittens, and the little old man was never lonely again.

Picture Book #21 // The Shine Man: A Christmas Story // Written by: Mary Quattlebaum Illustrated by: Tim Ladwig This story is about a Scrooge-like shoe-shiner in 1932 who was called, Shine Man, traveled around looking for work. In one town, a young boy keeps bothering him, and against his will, he keeps giving his winter clothes away because the boy had none. Finally, the boy breaks through his barriers and the shoe-shiner gives him the last gift he could, a shoeshine. As the man shined his shoes, the boy’s face began to glow with an unearthly light until the man finally looked up and recognized him as the Light of the World, but the boy introduced Himself as another “Shine Man.” Then, together they rose above the cold streets on their way to Heaven.

Intermediate Reader #1 // The Rumpelstiltskin Problem // By: Vivian Vande Velde Vande Velde introduces the book by exploring how absurd the fairy tale of Rumpelstiltskin is. The goblin received nothing of value and vanishes with the verbalization of his name, and the other characters made a host of foolish choices. In response, Vande Velde rewrites the tale six different ways. In one, the goblin tricked everyone in an attempt to eat the girl’s baby. In another, a father boasted too much about his daughter and then had to pretend to be a goblin to rescue her. In a third, the king was so self-centered that Rumpelstiltskin tried to threaten the life of his daughter to get the king to notice her; when the king ignored the threat, the queen and child followed Rumpelstiltskin into another dimension. And so on, in three other versions designed to make sense of and spice up the tale.

Intermediate Reader #2 // Pocahontas // By: Mari Hanes This book traces the story of Pocahontas in close and realistic detail. A lot of research went into making sure that the story was accurate, as far as history tells us, and as a result the girl became alive. Everything from the cartwheels that she would turn in joy or boredom to the hardship of being the liaison between the two peoples was retold in such a way that by the end, the reader had fallen in love with the girl-princess without whom this country would have had a very different history. This would be a marvelous book to use in a classroom when studying the beginning of the Europeans exploration of the Americas because it will capture students’ imaginations while educating them.

Intermediate Reader #3 The Hunger Games By: Suzanne Collins A futuristic dystopian story of a girl, Katniss, who is committed to living when she is sent to an arena that echoes the gladiator fights of ancient Rome. The other tribute from her district, Peeta, clings to his humanity and continuously lays down his life for Katniss even at the risk of his own life. As he constantly rises above the animalistic behavior of the other tributes, Katniss included, she has to decide for herself if staying alive is truly more important than staying human and protecting what good is left in her world. More hangs in the balance of her decision than she realizes.

Intermediate Reader #4 Catching Fire By: Suzanne Collins Katniss and Peeta have survived the arena, but can they survive the fury of the slighted Capital? As they travel along their victory tour, crowds are agitated and look to them for deliverance from the oppressive Capital who has privately threatened the lives of their loved ones. When sent back to the arena, Katniss must once again decide if she will live for herself by protecting only the ones she loves or if she will continue to push the Capital and refuse to play their game even if it means pain for herself, but ultimately freedom and safety for her countrymen.

Intermediate Reader #5 Caddie Woodlawn By: Carol Ryrie Brink The story of a girl on the brink of becoming a woman in the 1860’s follows Caddie as she runs through the woods, learns to fix a clock, steps in the midst of a brewing racial conflict to protect the innocent, walks in the tiny shoes of her sister, and reacts to a letter that could change everything. She learns and grows and does so with all the sweet, pure childlike wonder, mischief, and seriousness that an eleven-year-old raised in the backwoods of Wisconsin can muster. In the end, though her Bostonian mother despairs of her ever becoming a lady, she becomes a whole-hearted young woman.

Intermediate Reader #6 Nightshade City By: Hilary Wagner The underground city of intelligent rats was overthrown by a gang of evil rats who become dictators. Two brothers, Vincent and Victor, in their attempt to escape the city with their lives, accidentally ignite a rebellion and, young as they are, begin to lead alongside old friends of their father’s who was one of the last standing in opposition to the evil gang. Juniper, the leader of the rebellion, has a niece and old friend still in the city and between the appearance of the brothers and the threats to the safety of Juniper’s loved ones, the rebellion ignites and the evil regime is overthrown.

Young Adult #1 // Red // By: Ted Dekker The second in the Circle Series continues the fantastical tale of a young man, Thomas, who jumps between two realities. In the other reality, the Horde (the bad guys) are becoming a bigger threat to the forest dwellers (the good guys) because of the tactics of a new Horde general who used to be a former friend of Thomas. Also, there’s Justin who used to be Thomas’ right-hand man before he started trying to change the Great Romance. In the end, both the Horde and the Forest Dwellers have to decide who Justin is and what to do with his claims. Meanwhile, in this reality, Thomas races to outwit terrorists who have just infected the world with a deadly virus.

Young Adult #2 // White // By: Ted Dekker The third book in the Circle Series, Thomas, in the other reality, is imprisoned by the Horde and falls in love with the Horde princess which threatens the end of the Circle, the remnant of Elyon-followers. The princess is kidnapped multiple times by both the Circle and the Horde as two men fight for her hand. When the Horde discovers that they are in love, both are sentenced to death by drowning. At the same time, in this reality, Thomas finds that he holds the key to saving Earth’s population from the virus and defeating the terrorists, but he can only do it at a great cost.

//Young Adult #3// Green // By: Ted Dekker // //// The fourth book (or the first) of the Circle Series// simultaneously tells the end of the story and the beginning and seamlessly weaves them together. Thomas returns to this reality but allows two other characters into the other where they align themselves with Teeleh, the evil one, and plot the destruction of not only that reality, but this one also. Samuel, Thomas’ son has also found his way into the embrace of evil and as the Circle disintegrates and the world ends, Thomas must fight for the salvation of his son as Chelise does for the salvation of her father.////