Book Review By E: "The Witch of Blackbird Pond" by Elizabeth George Speare

"The Witch of Blackbird Pond" is a really great book! it is about learning to live with change.

When Kit Tyler leaves her home in the Caribbean islands to live in Connecticut Colony, she must learn to live a simple Puritan life. Then she is accused of being a witch! She learns what it is like to have judgement passed on you by people who don't know anything about you.

I read this while we were on our way to Salem, Massachusetts, the home of the Salem Witch Trials. We visited a museum that told all about the girls and adults who were involved in the trials. This book gave me a different view of the story. It was especially interesting because we got to see the places that the story talks about.

This book has been around a very long time. My mom read it when she was a kid, too. School Library Journal lists it among the top 100 books!

Boys would not like this book because it is about a girl and boys wouldn't understand it. It is for ages 9 and up. There are tense places and scary things.

Book Review By E: "Johnny Tremain" by Esther Forbes

"Johnny Tremain" by Esther Forbes is a very exciting book about the hardships of living in Boston during the Revolutionary War.

Johnny is a silversmith's apprentice full of pride and bossy to the end until he burns his hand on molten silver. There is no place in Boston for a boy with a crippled hand, so he must learn to live without a craft and swallow his pride. He tries to forge a bond with a long-lost relative by giving a gift of a silver cup he has made, but the craftsmanship is so great that the man accuses Johnny of stealing it.

Through the book, Johnny learns about honesty, leadership and patriotism. We learn about life during the U.S. Revolutionary War.

This book is for boys mostly because it is about one, but girls will like it, too. Ages nine and up. There is some violence, gory bits, and it has a mixed ending.

Book Review By V: "Fighting Ground," by Avi (Edward Irving Wortis)

"Fighting Ground" is an exciting book about a boy who runs away to be a soldier in the Revolutionary War. He gets captured by the British and has to work with the British to stay alive. He has two choices: remain a captive or become a patriot.

This story is, clearly, about war. If you don't like stories about war, then this is not for you. It was assigned reading for me while we traveled through the Colony States.

I would advise this book for people 8 and older who like adventure. (P.S. It is written kind of like a journal!)

Book Reviews By V and E: "Guns for General Washington," by Seymour Reit

V, age 8, says:
This books a really exciting story about the Revolutionary War. In this story, the British are about to attack America, but America does not have enough canons. A group of people go on an adventure across hundreds of miles of rough terrain in the snow to bring back canons that way up to two tons!

"Guns for General Washington" is very exciting. I think it's a good story for readers ages and up because I'm 8. The only bad thing about it is that it's about war and I don't know if anyone should really ever have to read about wars.

E, age 11, entirely disagrees:
"Guns for General Washington," by Seymour Riet, is a terrible book! It is not well written and not interesting.

It is about the Revolutionary War. A group of General Washington's men take the nearly impossible journey to bring 183 canons from Fort Ticonderoga to Boson in the dead of winter.

If anyone could take this book, it would be boys. Ages 6 and older.

Book Review by E: "The Starving Time: Elizabeth's Diary Book Two, Jamestown, Virginia 1609" (Patricia Hermes)

This book is is one in the "My America" series, which is like the "Dear America" series but for younger readers. Both series are historical fiction about various periods in American history told in diary form. I've read almost all of the "Dear America" series and a couple of the "My America" series, so I thought I'd like this book as soon as I picked it up.

"The Starving Time" is the diary of a fictional girl named Elizabeth. It represents the period of history after the "Mayflower" passengers arrived in America. It's a story about the challenges the Pilgrims faced and the hope that carried them through a winter of hunger, disease and death.


I like historical fiction and I like this time period in particular because I find it interesting. Boys might be interested in this book, but there are probably more appropriate books for boys about this time period. For similar stories told from a boy's perspective, check out the "My Name Is America" series.

Book Review by V & E: "The Amulet of Komondor" (Adam Osterweil)

V says: "The Amulet of Komondor" is a really good book. It's a fictional story about a computer game that's based off a card game, but when you turn on the computer game, you get sucked into it so you're actually the person in there. So you can feel yourself and you're not just seeing the game on the screen. You're surrounded: surround sound, surround sight. I think I liked it because it's an adventure that drew me in. You can't judge the story by it's name and cover because the title doesn't sound that great. I picked up the book because we were in a hurry to leave the library and I was just grabbing books off the shelves. I randomly grabbed this one up, and I'm glad I did.

This book is good for boys and girls who are interested in adventures. The dragon on the cover makes you think it might be a dragon story, but the dragon is just a small part of the story. The story includes fighting (mostly just odd magical spells), magical creatures and monsters who call each other names that might not be appropriate for younger kids. (I'm 8.) There are some big words, but not a lot.

E says: I really liked this story because it was captivating and unique and very imaginative. There are boyfriends and girlfriends in the story, but that's not critical to the story. It had some good plot twists and it would be difficult to compare with any other book because it's so much different from anything I've ever read. It's fiction, but it could go with science fiction. Both boys and girls would enjoy this book because it follows both a boy and a girl. The writing is for a lower reading level, but the story makes up for it.

Book Review by E: "Portaits: Dancing Through Fire" (Kathryn Lasky)

I really, really liked this book! "Dancing Through Fire" is a captivating story about a 13-year-old dancer in France during the Franco-Prussian War. The main character is a student at the Paris Opera Ballet. She wants to advance, but she's not tall enough. But when war breaks out, she finds out that there is life beyond ballet.

If you've been reading my reviews, you know I'm a dance fanatic and I like historical fiction. I also like art, so this story is an obvious choice for me. "Dancing Through Fire" is based on painter Edgar Degas' painting  L'etoile (La danseuse sur la scene) [The Star (Dancer on Stage)] which he made in 1878.

Of course, it all depends upon the reader, but I think this book is good for readers ages 10 to 15. There's some scary parts and death, but nothing very inappropriate given that the story is about wartime. But war is not the central focus of the story, and author leaves the reader satisfied in the end.

Book Review By E: "The Mermaid's Mirror" (L.K. Madigan)

"The Mermaid's Mirror" by L.K. Madigan is a good book probably best for teenagers. It's the story of a 16-year-old girl named Lena who discovers her mother was a mermaid. Then she has to decide whether to continue living with her dad on land or to live with her mother under the sea, where the girl has also made a special friend.

The story grabbed my attention because of the mermaids, but I can't relate much because the main character is 16 and I'm only 11. She has a boyfriend. Her parents don't live together and she has a stepmom. All of these things are a lot different from my life. But I still liked it. Maybe I shouldn't have been reading it this young. There might have been some kissing, but I don't see anything wrong with that. Maybe this book is better for someone older, but I liked it.


 

Book Review by E: "Ribbons" (Laurence Yep)

"Ribbons," by Laurence Yep, is about an 11-year-old girl who lives in Los Angeles. Ballet is pretty much her life. She dances all the time. But when her parents decide to save up money to bring Grandma over from Hong Kong, they can't afford the girl's lessons anymore. This story is about the relationships between family members, cultural misunderstandings and learning to understand each other.

I really liked this book because I could totally relate. I'm also 11. I dance all the time. ALL. THE. TIME! But I think it's a very good, educational, quick read that would be good for girls like me. Boys probably wouldn't like it since it's about ballet. I think the book is for readers age 10 and older. Grownups might like it, too, but younger readers would be able to relate more.

Book Review by E: "Bloomability" (Sharon Creech)

"Bloomability" is a very good book about a girl who travels to Italy against her will to attend her uncle's school. I liked the book because it grabbed my attention and held it clear to the end.There were believable conversations
between realistic characters. I could imagine that they were real people, for sure. There was a good balance between funny and serious bits. The ending to this book doesn't feel like an ending, but leaves room for pretty much a whole new story. It's supposed to leave room for your imagination, but it leaves too much room. It makes you want to read more!

For me, it was a pretty quick read. It's about a girl, so girls would probably be more interested, but boys might like the story, too, because it's not entirely about girls. One character is always whiny and indecisive. Otherwise, there isn't anything objectionable, although for younger kids it's kind of tense when some of the people in the story are stuck in an avalanche. I could have read it anytime from age 8 on, but it really depends upon what the child finds scary and reading skill.

Book Review by E: "Hear My Sorrow" (Deborah Hopkinson)

"Hear My Sorrow" by Deborah Hopkinson is the diary of Angela Denoto, a fictional Italian girl who works in a shirtwaist factory in America in 1909. She is in the strike against the different shirtwaist and cloak companies for better working conditions. Her older sister works at the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory when it burns down. Her sister was one of the survivors, but two of Angela's friends died in it. Angela was outside the building when it burned.

This book is part of the Dear America series which are fictional diaries based on historic events. Like all the Dear America books, this one is from the perspective of a girl. And like many of the books in the series, the girl is an immigrant. There is also a series called My America which are very much alike, but from a boy's point of view.

I think this book wouldn't be good for readers younger than age 10 because it does describe the fire and how the people were treated in the strike. Would be good for girls who like exciting books with tragedy. You don't have to like history, but it sort of makes you like history, so if you're set on not liking history, don't read it. Boys might find it interesting, but not as interesting as girls will because it's a girl's point of view.

Book Review by E: "Take Me With You" (Carolyn Marsden)

"Take Me With You" by Carolyn Marsden is a good book, but not super exciting. The story is about two 11-year-old girls, Pina and Susanna, who live in a convent in Italy. In the convent, the nuns take care of the children who were abandoned as babies after the war. Pina and Susanna have always been friends, but now that the war is over, they're trying to find their parents. Susanna's father finds them, but Pina still can't find her parents. The end of the story isn't very final. I don't really like it when that happens. If a good story really has to come to an end, I want it to have a conclusion, whether or not I like that ending.

This book is good for girls ages 8 to 13, but kids who are 11 would appreciate it most because they're the same age. There's nothing really for boys because they wouldn't be able to relate in any way, unless they're 11 and live in a convent. If you're not Christian you probably wouldn't appreciate it, either, because nuns are very Christian. There's nothing particularly scary, but there are some social issues that might be hard for a younger reader to understand. There's some peer pressure, but I don't think there's any bad language or name calling.

I liked it. It was very interesting. But it wouldn't be something I'd read over and over to catch the details I might have missed the first time because it wasn't very detailed. And I know how it's going to end, so I don't feel like I need to read it again.

Book Review by V: "Dealing with Dragons" (Patricia Wrede)

This is a very good book that is actually a pretty fast read. It's about a princess who gets bored when doing her chores and taking her classes. Then her family wants her to marry a prince who she does not like. So she runs away to the dragon's kingdom where she becomes a dragon's princess. But then wizards start attacking the dragons and the princess must stop the wizards, with the help of a witch and a few friends, before all the dragons are killed. This is the first book in the Enchanted Forest Chronicles and is listed as a young adult fantasy novel.

I'm 8 years old and a good reader. I think the book is good for readers 8 and older because it's a very interesting story about a teenage girl, but the dragons get angry and are scary and the wizards are very mean and there's some monsters in there that try to kill them.

I would recommend this book to boys and girls who have an interest in dragons, princesses and maybe even cats because the witch's house is full of cats.

Book Review by V: "Ghost Dog Secrets" (Peg Kehret)

"Ghost Dog Secrets," by Peg Kehret is a very good book about a boy named Rusty who tries to save this dog whose owners do not take care of him, but leave him chained to a tree in the rain with no food or water. It's an adventure kind of mystery thing. Rusty has to save the dog by taking him to his secret fort with his friend, Andrew. But every time he goes to see the dog before he can take him to the secret fort, something that he cannot see touches him.

I think this book is appropriate reading for readers 8 and older because Rusty has to steal the dog and he has to keep it a secret from his mom and everyone else he knows. Younger kids might not understand the stealing or name calling. There is also Gerald who is a very mean boy.

I would recommend this book to boys and girls because it's about a boy, but it's interesting to me and I'm a girl. The reader should have an interest in dogs, mysteries and secrets and ghosts.

Book Review by E: "The Thirteenth Princess" (Diane Zahler)

I read the first couple of chapters a few months ago while I was at the library, but I didn't get to finish it that day. This week, I looked for it again so I could bring it home because I wanted to find out what would happen. The author roped me in quickly and I just had to know what happened!

"The Thirteenth Princess" is kind of a retelling of the classic fairytale "The Twelve Dancing Princesses," but in this version there was one more princess and when her father found out she wasn't a boy, he sent her to be a scullery maid. Her sisters all know she's a princess and let her sleep with them every Sunday, but then the first twelve start to get sick because they're all so tired and they hardly eat and can't pay attention, but the thirteenth princess discovers the real source of their "illness."

This book is definitely for girls, probably ages 9 to 13. Younger kids might like it, but there are some scary parts involving potential tragedy, deep enchantments, and evil people. There's some light name calling, but only in teasing.

Book Review by E: "Alanna, The First Adventure" (Tamora Pierce)

"Alanna, The First Adventure" is the first in the "Song of the Lioness" series by Tamora Pierce. It's about a girl who wants to be a knight in a mythical world where the gods are magical. Her father wants to send her to a convent to become a lady. He wants to send her brother to become a knight, but the brother wants to receive the magical training the convent provides boys. So the kids trade places so each of their dreams can come true. But being a knight turns out to be a lot more difficult than she had expected.

This story seems geared more toward girls because it follows Alanna's story, not really her brother's story. The book is probably good for readers ages 9 and older. Some adults may also enjoy it. It's not really appropriate for younger children because there's fighting and name calling.

I would recommend this book to adventurous girls who aren't in a hurry. It's not a quick read and there are some pretty big words. If you were just getting into chapter books, you probably wouldn't understand most of it.

Since the book was first published in 1983, the cover art has varied. So make sure you're spelling the title correctly when you type it in the library or internet search tool. You can read more about the book at the author's website here. Here are some of the covers, but go to her website if you want to see them all:

Book Review by E: "The Night Fairy" (Laura Amy Schlitz)

"The Night Fairy" was a very good book, especially for young girls. It's a quick read about a fairy who is born an hour before midnight, but she loses her wings and has to survive in the garden of a human. She is used to being out at nigh,t but she has to become a daytime fairy to survive the nighttime creatures.

I would say the book is appropriate for ages 6 to 12. There aren't any really big words, but it's not a super-low reading level either.

There's not really anything scary or rude about this book. There's a spider who threatens to eat the hummingbird, and a squirrel who could use some manners, but other than that, it's pretty tame.

There may be some boys who would be interested in this book, but since it's about fairies, and more specifically a girl fairy, girls may be more attracted to the story.

I would recommend this book to young readers who are interested in fairies that aren't particularly glittery.

Comparative Literature in Elementary Grades? You bet!

When our daughter was 9, she read the Harry Potter series repeatedly. She's always been one for a long, involved story, particularly one with colorful characters. The adventure, mythology and magic J.K. Rowling provided in her books were equally compelling to E. But in January 2010, we had her put the series aside. There are other books to be read, we told her, and there were other issues that created a need for changes in reading and activities here at home.

Fast forward to January 2011. E asked if she could pick up the series again. We made a deal: for each Potter book, she needed to read one book from which the Potter stories have purportedly been derived, or which Rowling has claimed in public interviews have provided inspiration for her writing in general. I didn't even think about what I was doing, that this was the beginning of something pretty big for a little kid: a comparative literature course for the Harry Potter set.

I researched some articles and interviews online to which I felt E could safely refer. (We still don't allow free access, even to Google search, because of the weird and random stuff that pops up. I've seen things, thanks to the Internet, that no one should ever have seen.) We began with these:

Harry Potter & Me

Rowling Official Site

Harry Potter Influences and Analogues

General Google Search

We'll also be reading:

Pilgrim's Progress

Illustrated Pilgrim's Progress

E chose to begin with Shakespeare, but in short order discovered that the Bard was some awfully heavy reading, particularly for a modern American. She moved on to a more child-friendly list and the hunt for books in our local library began.

We talked about reading The Legend of Rah and the Muggles and Larry Potter and His Best Friend Lilly,  the author of which filed suit against Rowling when the Potter books were published. Indeed, the titles lead to some questions. However, after viewing the website I started to have reservations. There are LOTS of fantastic books in this world, and only so much time. If the writing in the books were at like the writings online, certainly these titles wouldn't rank. Still, it was up to E. She checked out the site, too. She couldn't wade through the complete introduction the author has made available there. "This is really bad, Mom." And she read the reviews. "I think we can skip these."

She's already lead the Narnia series, and the Tolkien series, and many of the others to which our research pointed. So we settled on these titles for the project reading list. I don't know if she'll read them all, but she'll certainly read six of them. They are, after all, her gateway to the "next book" in the coveted HP series:

Matilda (Dahl)

James & The Giant Peach (Dahl)

Book of Three (Alexander)

Groosham Grange (Horowitz)

Wizard of Earthsea (LeGuin)

Worst Witch (Murphy)

Charmed Life (W. Jones)

Wizard's Hall (Yolen)

Secret of Platform 13 (Ibbotson)

Tom Brown's School Days (Hughes)

E whipped through Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone (aka book 1) in a day. She was trying to draw it out, but she's just a fast reader and hardly put it down. Then she selected from the list. She tried to read James and the Giant Peach, but said she didn't like it. "It's not very interesting," she explained. There's no depth to the characters, and for her, that's typically the death knell for any title. She set Dahl aside and picked up Wizard's Hall. Here's her take:

Harry Potter and Wizard's Hall are very similar, but I like Harry Potter better. Harry Potter is a little more advanced than Wizard's Hall. Here are some comparisons. 

The main character in Wizard's Hall has no talent for magic, unlike Harry Potter. Tansy is a lot like Hermione: smart and kind of bossy, but nice. Will is a lot like Ronald Weasly, down to the looks, even.

The schools themselves are a lot alike with doors that are one style Sunday, and by Monday, they're different. Also, Wizard's Hall seems to be a lot smaller than Hogwarts.

The storylines are a lot different. Wizard's Hall is a lot simpler, and Thornmallow wins completely, without losing anyone he so much as likes. In Harry Potter, Harry wins, but loses lots of friends.

Basically, I like Harry Potter better, but they're both very good. They are both very alike and very different. I would recommend Wizard's Hall to younger kids, and Harry Potter to older ones.

On to explore the Chamber of Secrets...

Holling Clancy Holling - a genius in children's literature

Earlier this week we were visiting another homeschooling family. Our host mom is one I've seen around for several years now, but we've never really had an opportunity to sit down and visit. This time, however, her daughter and mine were busy practicing their shared interests of drawing clothes and shoes and silly people, talking about books and playing in puddles, so we had a few minutes to chat.

Our conversation turned to literature, and our hostess asked if I'd ever heard of Holling Clancy Holling. Well, I should have known who she was talking about; we have one of his books on our shelves thanks to my third-grade teacher and lifelong friend. Still, on the fly, the name didn't ring a bell. She began describing one of his titles, explaining the wonderful artwork, the interesting story and the academic subject areas it covers ( ie. history, geography, biology, botany, zoology, not to mention literature). Finally, she excused herself to retrieve one of the titles from her library.

When she put Minn of the Mississippi on the table in front of me, it reminded me immediately of that book on our own shelves. I asked if she'd ever heard of Pagoo. Turns out not ONLY is Pagoo written by Holling Clancy Holling, too, but she had just ordered it. And WHAT should turn up in the mail AS WE SPOKE but her newly purchased Pagoo!

I begged to borrow Minn. It's not something we NORMALLY do, but we know we'll see them next week, and we're avid readers. I'm certainly not disappointed we've dedicated bedtime reading to this work that first hit the shelves in 1951. The history is intact, the science is still good, and the story holds as true to today's turtles (and children) as it did half a century ago.

Minn tells the tale of a snapping turtle from its nest at the headwaters of the Mississippi through its adventures down the waterway to its Gulf outlet. While weaving a story that's interesting enough to keep my daughters begging for more, HCH manages to work in the history of the river, from Ice Age through exploration and on to modern developments, with colorful descriptions of the route. Pagoo follows similar style while weaving the story and substance of the life of a hermit crab. Both books include intricate pencil drawings along the margins depicting interesting facts related to the story as well as colorful paintings throughout.

But what brought me to the keyboard to share his works, really, is the prose. Holling was clearly an artist in the true meaning of the word. Rather than simply tell the effect cold has on turtles and reptiles, Holling take every opportunity to SHOW the reader.

"Towns drifted to Minn. Still sleepy, dazed and stiff in the cold flood waters, she scarcely could see the strange clusters of buildings barging into her vision. Towns sat at old steamboat landings in prim dignity; or drew back frayed skirts from the old-fashioned waterway to stare at railroads; or strode up the bluffs to watch shiny cars whoosh by on a highway. Between towns, bare woodlands scrawled on the sky gray pencil scribblings. Meadows were smeared green crayon, plowed fields were brown chalk-rows, orchards were white-spattered bloom."

Check it out at your local library, or borrow a copy from a friend, or just grab a copy for your own library. You won't be sorry.

Photo courtesy Squidoo.

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