Four New Reads...all good

Shakespeare Makes the Playoffs
by Ron Koertge

Baseball, poetry, and teenage love

Sequel to Shakespeare Bats Cleanup

Personal Thoughts: Well written and creative. There were types of poems I have never heard of before.



Out of My Mind
By Sharon Draper

Special Needs, Quiz Bowl

Connections: Stuck in Neutral

Personal Thoughts: I have enjoyed many of Draper's books, but this is my personal favorite. Excellent.




Mockingbird
By Kathryn Erskine

Special Needs~Asperger's Syndrome, School Violence, Healing, Communication

Personal Thoughts: Very good read.





Borrowed Names
by Jeannine Atkins

Poems about: Laura Ingalls Wilder, Madam C.J. Walker, & Marie Curie

Personal Thoughts: I did not think I could handle this book...I was very wrong. I was engaged the whole time.






Happy Reading,
Dr. Quinn

Meanwhile

By Jason Shiga

Desiring a creative "radical change" graphic novel? Then Meanwhile by Jason Shiga would be a great choice. This "choose your own adventure" style book has 3,856 different story possibilities. Your first choice is chocolate or vanilla ice cream, and then the adventure begins.

At this point I have only tried a few paths so I can't give you a lot of feedback about the book, but I can tell you that I like chocolate better than vanilla.

I love this quote from the author, "With perseverance and curiosity, you too can unlock the book's secrets and find your way home. Good luck and choose wisely!"

Grade level: upper elementary

Happy Adventuring,

Dr. Quinn

Dying to Meet You: 43 Old Cemetery Road

Written by Kate Klise
Illustrated by: M. Sarah Klise

The Klise sisters kicked off their 43 Old Cemetery Road series with this creative and unique mystery titled Dying to Meet You. The book introduces the three main characters of the series: I. B. Grumply - a children's book author, Seymore Hope - 11 year-old boy, and Olive C. Spence - the woman that built the home on 43 Old Cemetery Road (she died 97 years before the story opens). Together these three live in the old home; however, the living arrange is not a smooth one at all. One is self-centered and grumpy, one is abandoned, and one is a Ghost.

The book is composed of letters, notes, newspaper articles, and drawings which makes it so creative. I enjoyed it, and I am interested in the next title. However, I think I am more interesed in the format than the storyline.

Age level: 3rd through 5th grade

Keep Reading,
Dr. Quinn

The Lion and the Mouse

Jerry Pinkney's retelling of The Lion and the Mouse is fantastic. Masterful watercolor paintings combined the most simple text will provide the reader with a truly aesthetic experience.

I have read this fable many times, but I have never experienced it like I did this version. This book has moved to the top of my list in regards to Pinkney's work.

Keep Reading,
Dr. Quinn

Let's Do Nothing

Tony Fucile's Let's Do Nothing is fantastic. This picture book tells the story of two friends that think they have done everything there is to do. They have played every board game, read every comic, played every sport ever invented, etc. Then it hits them that they can now just do nothing, but this turns out to be more difficult than they could ever imagine. Finally, Eureka, they discover that there is NO WAY to do nothing so they decide to do SOMETHING!

A fun read aloud for those of us that think there is nothing to do.

Keep Reading,
Dr. Quinn

The Dunderheads

I have been a big fan of Paul Fleischman for years. I love his out-of-the-box thinking and his radical change approach to many of his books. Well his newest book, The Dunderheads, may not be so much of a radical change style book, but it is a different style for him.

This quick read is about a class of students with some unusual talents. Together the students combine their talents to outwit their mean teacher, Miss Breakbone.

A fun read aloud with neat illustrations by David Roberts. For those of you that have elementary-aged children, the artwork will resemble that of Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends, although the latter does not compare to The Dunderheads.

Keep Reading,
Dr. Quinn

The Cuckoo's Haiku and Other Bird Poems

Although I am not a bird person, I really enjoyed Micheal Rosen's collection of bird haiku. The book includes soothing haiku poetry, short informational details and soft watercolor paintings of the various birds. Some birds included in this text are cardinals, owls, kingfisher, hummingbird, etc.

Bottom line, I loved it.

Keep Reading,
Dr. Quinn

Higher! Higher!

I loved Leslie Patricelli's Higher! Higher! Throughout the book she uses the phrase Higher! Higher! along with some fantastic, simplistic, child-like acrylic paintings to tell this story. It's the classic demand of push me higher on the swing Daddy mixed with a young child's imagination that takes this story to new heights.

A fun read for the young child, but a text-to-self connection for many of us.

Keep Reading,
Dr. Quinn

The Swamps of Sleethe: Poems from Beyond the Solar System

If you are looking for a out of this world book of poetry, then here it is...Jack Prelutsky's The Swamps of Sleethe. From nonsense words to crazy adventures, young space fans will enjoy this collection of wacky poems. Here are a few titles for you: "The Cold of Drifig Prime," "The Globulings of Wolvar Sprod," "The Monopods of Odgofod," etc. Not only do some titles play on words (when unscrambled), but Prelutsky also includes a pronunciation guide as well.

A fun book of poetry.

Keep Reading,
Dr. Quinn

Our Children Can Soar

Michelle Cook created this wonderful story that celebrates history and how it has impacted today. Our Children can Soar can best be summed up by the subtitle on the front cover...A celebration of Rosa , Barak, and the pioneers of change.

The simple but powerful text is supported by outstanding illustrators such as Bryan Collier, E.B. Lewis, James Ransome, Leo & Diane Dillon, and more.

Keep Reading,
Dr. Quinn

A Book

Mordicai Gerstein's A Book is a creative and unique picture book. A young girl wakes up from her sleep when the reader opens the book. Throughout the story she searches for "her" story. Her parents each have a story and her brother has a story, but she doesn't know her own story. Via text-to-text (intertextual) connections, she visits various characters from other stories...all trying to help her find her story.

From the concept of the book, to the illustrations, to the mix of speech bubbles and traditional narrative, Gerstein has put together a fun read.

Keep Reading,
Dr. Quinn

Falling Down the Page: A Book of List Poems

Falling Down the Page: A Book of List Poems is a fun collection poetry. Since we all make lists and most of us do this daily the book promotes a natural connection. Georgia Heard has collected a variety of list poems that readers will enjoy. Titles include: In My Desk, Lost & Finds, Things to Do If You Are A Pencil, Test Day, and many more. Poets include: Lee Bennet Hopkins, Rebecca Kai Dotlich, Eileen Spinelli, Jane Yolen, and more.

After reading this collection, I would bet many young writers will want to create their own list poems.

Keep Reading,
Dr. Quinn

The Witch's Guide to Cooking with Children

I have always been intrigued by the the fairy tale "Hansel & Gretel". So recently I started collecting various versions of the story (primarily in picture book format)...please note that it is a very small collection, so feel free to send books my way.

About a week ago I was sent The Witch's Guide to Cooking with Children by Keith McGowan. So off course I was very excited to receive this modern version of the tale to read and add to my collection. Here were some of my initial thoughts: great looking cover, creative title, & fantastic potential. I was anxious to get started.

However, it took me a little while to get into the book. Of course I understand that McGowan needed to set the stage for this story, but it just wasn't working for me. Although the book is only 176 page, it actually took me several days to finish it. I'm sure it is because it was not what I was expecting. The book did have some creative and interesting parts, but overall I found it very average. I am glad that I read it, but I do not think I will do much with it.

Keep Reading,

Dr. Quinn

Anything but Typical

Nora Baskin's Anything but Typical is just what the title states...anything but typical. The story is told by the protagonist, Jason Blake, a 12 year old autistic boy. Through his words Jason shares his thoughts, feelings, and emotions. He gives the reader a glimpse of his world as he describes excitement, anxiety, love, frustration, embarrassment and so much more.

The jest of the storyline is that Jason is an excellent communicator when it comes to writing stories. He often posts his work on a storyboard computer site. As a part of these postings, he connects with another writer from a different state. As part of a reward for not getting sent home from school for behavior, Jason's mother takes him to the storyboard convention where he will have the opportunity to meet his distant friend. Of course this is easier said than done because she is NT (neurological typical) and he is anything but typical. Ultimately Jason learns to except who he is..., "This is who I am. This is me."

I believe that Baskin did an excellent job of sharing Jason's thoughts with the reader. This book had some strong intertextual connections to Terry Trueman's Stuck in Neutral and Cynthia Lord's Rules...two other books that I enjoyed.

I highly recommend this book for upper elementary.

Keep reading,
Dr. Quinn

Scaredy Squirrel at Night

If you haven't read the original Scaredy Squirrel by Melanie Watt, then I highly recommend that you do. Believe it or not, Scaredy Squirrel is ready for another adventure...night.

In this book, Scaredy Squirrel worries about bad dreams and the creatures that might be in those bad dreams...ghosts, dragons, polka-dot-monsters, etc. So he decides to make a plan so he can stay up all night; however, he will have to deal with side effects such as energy loss, moodiness, hallucinations, etc. As you can imagine, it will be an adventurous night for Scaredy Squirrel.

Once again, Watt stays consistent with her usual layout and strong illustrations.

I definitely recommend this fun book.

Happy Reading,
Dr. Quinn

Chicken Cheeks

Let me just get to the bottom line, Chicken Cheeks is a funny book kids will enjoy; however, I'm not sure that parents will find it appropriate...although I'm okay with it. This comical book shares various names for the posterior end of various animals.

The storyline is about a bear who wants to get some honey, but he is not tall enough. So the bear gets some help from various animals. Animal are stacked on top of each other until they reach the honey.

The author is comedian Michael Ian Black and the Illustrator is Kevin Hawkes. Black's word choice is creative (i.e., duck-billed platypus gluteus maximus, polar bear derriere), and Hawkes illustrations humorous.

Recommendation: I say yes, butt not for everyone!

Happy Reading,
Dr. Quinn

The End

A Friend

We all need friends and sometimes we need certain friends for certain situations. This is the premise of Anette Bley's picture book titled A Friend.

This book will encourage students to think about all their friends and what makes each friend so special.

Bley's illustration formatting is very clever and often changes (i.e., part of an illustration may be on one page, while the completion of the illustration is on the next page).

Overall I enjoyed this book and would recommend it for the elementary classroom. Although the text is simple and more appealing to younger students, the underpinning of the story will impact all ages.

Happy Reading,
Dr. Quinn

Living Sunlight

If you are looking for a good picture book about photosynthesis, then take a look at Living Sunlight: How Plants Bring the Earth to Life by Molly Bang & Penny Chisholm.

This book has strong information and wonderful illustrations to accompany the simple text. More detailed information about photosynthesis can be found at the end of the book. A winner all around.

Happy Reading,
Dr, Quinn

Dork Diaries: Tales of a Not-So- Fabulous Life

Rachel Russell's Dork Diaries is an entertaining read for upper elementary and middle school students. Many readers will easily connect with the protagonist Nikki Maxwell. Nikki is an eighth grade girl going through all kinds of typical middle school scenarios; however, her biggest problem is MacKenzie Hollister...the most popular girl in eighth grade.

Russell does a great job of integrating current pop culture into the book...current musical artists and YA authors, tattoos, TV shows, and more.

The storyline here is be yourself, a universal theme that many teenagers need to hear over and over.

Fans of the Diary of a Wimpy Kid series will also enjoy this book.

Personally, I found it a fun read, and the illustrations complimented the text well. I would recommend this book.

Happy Reading,
Dr. Quinn

Dragonbreath

Ursula Vernon's Dragonbreath is a book that both late bloomers and procrastinators will be able to connect. The protagonist is Danny, a fire breathing dragon; however Danny has not matured enough to breathe fire. Danny also hasn't matured enough to complete his homework on time. After earning an "F" on a science paper, Danny decides to do some firsthand research for his "Ocean" report. Both Danny and his best friend meet up with Danny's uncle, a sea serpent, to explore the sea. During this exploration the two youngsters run into a little trouble.

Vernon mixes cartoons, illustrations, and narrative to tell this story. This book would fit under the radical change category. It is a light read that will appeal to 3rd and 4th graders.

Happy Reading,

Dr. Quinn