Park, L. (2010) A long walk to water.New York: Clarion Books





A Long Walk to Water begins as two stories, told in alternating sections, about a girl in Sudan in 2008 and a boy in Sudan in 1985. The girl, Nya, is fetching water from a pond that is two hours walk from her home: she makes two trips to the pond every day. The boy, Salva, becomes one of the "lost boys" of Sudan, refugees who cover the African continent on foot as they search for their families and for a safe place to stay. Enduring every hardship from loneliness to attack by armed rebels to contact with killer lions and crocodiles, Salva is a survivor, and his story goes on to intersect with Nyas in an astonishing and moving way.  I read this entire book while fishing with my two boys one Saturday afternoon. I wanted to cry many times during this book while watching my sons play with each other while fishing on the banks of the Mighty Mississippi. Okay, so it's pretty unusual for me to cry while reading a book; it's always the happy parts that make me cry and to think about if this were to happen to my family. This book is based on a true story, which makes it even better and more interesting.

This is my first book about the lost boys of Sudan, and this book is really good. I liked that it was short, to the point, had a wonderful ending, yet still captured the trauma of Salva's experience of fleeing his family and his village, walking hundreds of miles to Ethiopia, and then spending six years in a refugee camp only to be returned to Sudan.

The other character, Nya, played only a small role in this book, but her story is one that is so touching and interesting: walking eight hours a day, every day, to get water for her family. She cannot go to school since she spends her time getting water.

Salva and Nya's stories are told in alternating chapters. Nya's chapters are short (sometimes only a page or two) and in brown ink. Salva's chapters are longer and in black ink. And, of course, Nya and Salva are connected. They have to be or having them in the same book would be strange. About three quarters into the book the reader figures out how their paths will cross, but it still made me so happy.

The theme of this book would have to be being able to control anger and hurt. The pain that these two young children had to endure during this long journey would be enough to drive someone insane, but they were able to keep their composer and conquer their goal. The setting for both of the children are in the dry dessert and the heat was something that was unbearable at times. The story for both of them was told in first person point of view and gave descriptions of what was going on through out the book.   

The way that this book can be related to a real world situation would have to be that if you feel once there is no need of giving up. I f you look at the Roman empire they did not build Rome in a day it took a long time to build Rome and this was what these two young children were able to do was fight through trials throughout their life.

The Big Question?

How do you conquer your fears?

Coburn, Jewell Reinhart. 2000. Domitila: A Cinderella tale from the Mexican tradition. Auburn: Shen's books.

Summary:

Domitlia is an example of Latino literature, which the title of the book gives this away. Feminine diminutive of the Roman family name DOMITIUS. This was the name of the wife of the Roman emperor Vespasian and the mother of emperors Titus and Domitian in the Spanish culture Domitilia is what they use. This story appealed to me because of the title and the illustration on the title page and it keep me wondering what she looked like before. I wondered if the story would be anything like Cinderella. The age level for this book would be 6-12 years of age. My students would benefit greatly from reading this book because they would learn so much about the Mexican culture. I like how they used different words throughout the book to talk to each other in spanish. That also helps the reader get a sense of understanding of the Spanish language. The book is filled with various illustrations of how Spanish people live.

Domitila is not only "sweeter than a cactus bloom in early spring," she is also a talented cook and an amazing leather artist. Most of the classical elements of a Cinderella story can be found in Domitila. A gentle weaving of her mother's nurturing with strong family traditions is the secret ingredient for Domitila to rise above hardship to eventually become the Governor's bride. Moreover, with a firm belief in simplicity and realism, Domitila makes a lasting impression as a triumphant Cinderella in her humility, service, and unassuming modesty.

With love and care in every stroke, McLennan captured on canvas the warmth of relationships, the fondness for color and texture, and the versatile patterns characteristic of the Mexican people. Readers will soon fall in love with the shimmering light of the desert landscape and this well-told story of Cinderella-with-a-twist.
The theme of this story is how a person can change over time and that goodness is always rewarded. Jewell Coburn does an excellent job adapting this tale from a traditional Mexican story that was supposedly passed down for generations in the Rivero family of Hidalgo, Mexico. This story was particularly fascinating because of the authors focus on the male figure and his character transformation. The illustrations portrays the brilliant colors that are characteristic of the Mexican culture, and easily capture the reader’s attention. Many of the aspects of Domitila do not fall in line with the typical Cinderella story, yet this book gives the reader a glimpse of a realistic love story with some similarities between the well-know fairytale. 
The way that this book ties into a real life situation is that we should not judge a book by its cover. I always tell my students that you should not judge someone by their mistakes that they make because one day you my be in their shoes. Just lkie the govenor did when he got mad about the food.
The Big Question?
How would you change after reading this book would you want to help out the others that need help?

McMullan,K. (1997). Revenge of the dragon lady.New York,NY: Bill Basso

Wow! I thoroughly enjoyed reading this Modern Fantasy chapter book. Revenge of the Dragon Lady fits into the Modern Fantasy genre in the Quest Stories category. This chapter book is set in medieval times. The things that I liked the best about this book was that it really got me involved with the book and I enjoyed reading it and would recommend it to read to young children that love fantasy books about dragons and castles.

The way that McMullan made this fantasy book seem realistic is by the way that she made it seem to be that the students where in a school for knights and that it made it appears to a reader that this was a real setting for them. The way that the author was able to use humor in the book is how she talked about nursery rhymes and how the young dragon slayer was able to kill the dragon by telling jokes. My favorite character throughout the book would have to be Wiglaf whom the dragon was searching for. The setting of this story was in a make believe school for children that where learning to be dragon slayer’s. Throughout the whole book it discussed how the boy had killed the son of Gorizil and that he was her darling boy. The dragon was in search of her son’s slayer and would do anything to catch him.
The way that this book could be used to help young readers is by showing them that as a young person never give up trying to do your best. When the boy felt that he was going to be defeated by the dragon he called upon a wizard to help him fight the dragon. This goes to show you that young people in grade school can always call upon someone to help them when in trouble.

Big Question:

1. The boy used a spell from a wizard to achieve his goal of defeating the dragon. Is this cheating or use of the brain?

Hungry Hungry Sharks

Cole, J. (1986). Hungry, hungry sharks. Random House Books for Young Readers.

This introduction to sharks keeps within a first-grade reading level without sacrificing information. Cole tells about different kinds of sharks, and facts on their food consumption and innumerable teeth. The text makes clear that few sharks eat people and that sharks come in a variety of shapes and sizes.
I realy enjoyed reading this book I also enjoyed the illustrations on the pages and the useage of color. The way the illustrtor is able to use the color of the ocean and the color are in greys, blues, blacks, and browns. I think the illustrator uses these colors because those are the colors that are found in the waters where sharks live. Almost all the drawings take up most of a page. I think the illustrator did this so that you could see the details of the sharks and other sea creatures. The pages were able tyo come to life for me and that is what young eager readers want to see, so that they can feel like they are part of the book.
When disussing millions and millions of years ago the author talks about how the planet was and about the dinsourars and different reptiles roamed the planet and how that the shark was part of many years ago and how it is still around today. The idea to do this really gives the readers attention to want to learn about something that has been around for a while. When discussing this book with young children I would allow them to draw a picture of a shark and let them tell about it and give me great details of what a shark might eat and what a shark might do throughtout the day.

BIG Question?
1.Where do sharks live? Would you like to live with them?
2.What do sharks eat and why do they eat this?
3.How big can sharks grow to be?

BULLY TROUBLE

Cole, J. Bully trouble. Random House Books for Young Readers.1989

   
  This book is a book enjoyed by many. This book is illustrated in full color and gives the affects of kids actually being involved in the book. "Bully Trouble" is by far one of the best books I have seen and read to introduce young children to. The book illustrates what a bully might look like and what a bully might do to harm someone. The book is a good introduction book for 2nd or 3rd graders because it is longer but not too long.


  I personally enjoyed reading this book. I would use this book to tackle a bullying problem that may be happening in my classrooms. Reading this book to young students could show students how it hurts to be bullied and what people feel when they are bullied. However I would make sure to discuss that when you are bullied you're not supposed to react back rather get help from an adult.


  This book is great for primary, intermediate, and upper grades because it involves all areas of students. The book details about how the one young boy was bullied and how older kids and adults reacted when he was bullied. Every day we hear of a kid being bullied and nothing really being done about it. I believe if this book was to be read to all students at an early age bullying would be something that people would not want to do because of fear of what may happen to someone.


BIG Question


1. Have you ever seen someone being bullied?


2. Have you been a victim of bullying or are you a bully?


3. How do you solve bully problems?

Cole, J. The magic school bus on the ocean floor. New York. by Degen, B. Scholastics. 1994

While teaching her class about the ocean, Ms. Fizzle drives the school bus as it turns into different things on the ocean floor.They begin their studies by taking a field trip into the ocean and their first lessons are about the tide pools and the continental shelf. They put their scuba gear on and continue on their journey while learning about the different fish, how they breath, plankton, and the underwater food chain. After a while they get back on the bus and explore the deep ocean floor and the many plants and creatures  She explains to the students real facts about everything they see in the ocean.

This book is also a tv show, which helps the children compare it to the book and enjoy it more if they have seen the show.

Rohmann, E. Time flies. New York. Crown Publishers, 1994

This book is a story with no words.  The story takes place in a dinosaur museum.  A little bird flies into a window and explores the bones.  Slowly the bones come to life and a dinosaur swallows the bird.  The bird then goes through the body of the dinosaur and out the end of the bones and flies back out the window.

This book is a great way to do several activities with children. Students will also like that it is a book with no words and the teacher can tell the story as they want to, instead of reading word for word. The way children could use this book is to write their own story to go along with the pictures.