A curse on cursive! Maggie doesn't really mean it when she vows never to read and write those wiggly, squiggly, roller-coaster letters. After all, she uses the computer. But everybody seems to be taking her revolt very, very seriously. Maggie's parents say she'll enjoy it once she starts. Her teacher doesn't want to listen when she points out how untidy grown-ups' handwriting can be. And her classmates think it's a riot when her first try at signing her name makes it look like "Maggie." Now Maggie is too embarrassed to back down. Why can't she just go on printing her whole life?
Captured by a giant! The BFG is no ordinary bone-crunching giant. He is far too nice and jumbly. It's lucky for Sophie that he is. Had she been carried off in the middle of the night by the Bloodbottler, the Fleshlumpeater, the Bonecruncher, or any of the other giants - rather than the BFG - she would have soon become breakfast. When Sophie hears that they are flush-bunking off to England to swollomp a few nice little chiddlers, she decides she must stop them once and for all. And the BFG is going to help her!
Ramona just wants everyone to be happy. If only her father would smile and joke again, her mother would look less worried, her sister would be cheerful, and Picky-picky would eat his cat-food. But Ramona's father has lost his job, and nobody in the Quimby household is in a very good mood.
Ramona tries to cheer up the family as only Ramona can -- by rehearsing for life as a rich and famous star of television commercials, for instance -- but her best efforts only make things worse. Her sister, Beezus, calls her a, pest, her parents lose patience with her, and her teacher claims she's forgotten her- manners. But when her father admits he wouldn't trade her for a million dollars, Ramona knows everything is going to work out fine in the end.
Gregory's family moves to a smaller house in a poorer part of town; the father has lost his factory job. There is no yard at the new house in which to play, but Gregory explores a nearly burnt-out building that formerly was a chalk factory. Gregory finds plenty of chalk in the debris as he cleans up, and the artist in him soars. Even though the kids at the new school don't accept him readily, Gregory is happy for him the blackened walls of the building become his giant canvas. Bulla has created a gem of a book, without a wasted word anywhere. He conveys the yearning and passion of a young artist and the healing power of friendship in a story that goes straight to the heart.
When we're on-track we read...
After the police come, the family is forced to flee their Caribbean island and set sail for America in a small fishing boat. Other refugees crowd the boat and the voyage is a long one, but when the family finally arrives they discover it's a special day in more ways than one.
Molly and her family have moved to America from Russia. Her mother says they moved to find freedom. But the children in Molly's third-grade class make fun of her accent and clothes. That doesn't seem like freedom to Molly at all. At Thanksgiving everyone has to bring a Pilgrim doll to class. The doll Molly's mother makes looks like a Russian peasant girl. It doesn't look at all like the Pilgrims Molly has seen in her schoolbook. Molly is afraid she'll never fit in with her classmates now.
These color photographs were shot on location at the Plimouth Plantation. Using first person narration, the author takes readers through a typical day of chores and events for Pilgrim youngsters. The devices used in each picture were recreated from actual accounts. Close-ups show the details of how clothes were laced, how fields were harvested, how fences were constructed. Nightcaps , muskets and cauldrons that were routine in yesteryear, now fascinate by their absurdity. Sarah was real child who arrived on the Mayflower. Sarah was nine in 1627 and she is mentioned in several Pilgrim journals, although there is no clear date of death.
Text and photographs follow a six-year-old Pilgrim boy through a busy day during the spring harvest in 1627: doing chores, getting to know his Wampanoag Indian neighbors, and spending time with his family.
Before a family trip to Plymouth Plantation (an exact replica of the first Pilgrim village), all Maggie knew about the Pilgrims was that they had "something to do with Thanksgiving." In her class report, Maggie compares the Pilgrims's Thanksgiving with her family's traditions today, and shows readers the importance of this very special holiday.
Patterned as a parody of the celebrated Clement Moore poem, this story of eight baby turkeys unfolds with joyous abandon and crackling vitality, as eight children embark on a Thanksgiving field trip that will change their lives forever. They are breathless as they catch sight of Farmer Mack Nuggett for the first time: ``He was dressed all in denim, / From his head to his toe, / With a pinch of polyester / And a dash of Velcro.'' The exuberant turkeys--Ollie, Stanley, Larry, Moe, Wally, Beaver and Groucho--catch the children up in raucous barnyard antics until the merriment is quelled by the sight of the ax. Deeply touched by the turkeys' plight, the children--who have grown mysteriously fatter and have feathers sticking out from under their clothes--board the bus to go back to the city. The next night, family silhouettes can be seen--each with a grateful turkey guest--as ``They feasted on veggies / With jelly and toast.'' This humorous, lighthearted story is adorned with bold, bright illustrations that convey a sense of wacky high-spiritedness sometimes lacking in traditional holiday fare. Ages 4-7.
Kwanzaa is Kayla's favorite time of year. But this year, it looks as if a heavy snowstorm will keep her big brother, Khari, from getting home in time for the festivities! Will Khari miss the celebration completely? Or will Kayla and her brother somehow find a way to be together for Kwanzaa? A perfect introduction to Kwanzaa, this book will teach children all about the traditions and practices that make it special.
Olive is merrily preparing for Christmas when suddenly an old holiday favorite--about a certain red-nosed reindeer--takes on new meaning. "Olive the other reindeer?" thinks Olive. "I always thought I was a dog--but I must be a reindeer!" And while Santa and his reindeer are a bit surprised that a dog wants to join the reindeer team, in the end, Olive and her unusual skills are just what Santa needs.
Jeffrey Allon illustrates this fine picturebook story of Chanukah, which needs good reading skills and possibly parental assistance but presents a warm seasonal story of a stranger who shares a poor family's celebrations for the holiday. Lessons in faith and friendship evolve.
For so many, Christmas always evokes images of snow, decorated evergreen trees and snuggling by a roaring fire, but for a great number of people who celebrate the holiday, snow is not something they will ever experience. As Joseph and Stock so delightful reveal, Christmas in a tropical setting has all of its own customs: sorrel drink, currant cake, strolling musicians, alloe pies, hanging decorations on a bare painted tree branch, and soursop ice-cream. But for those who celebrate the true meaning of Christmas, one thing is constant, the trip to church with family and friends. A wonderful poem in dialect that will help children understand Christmas in the Caribbean.
The story of Jonathan Toomey, a widower who has withdrawn from the world, only to be brought back to rejoin life by a widow and her son, is a true Christmas treat. The touching story is made more poignant by Lynch's illustrations. His opening pictures of Toomey reveal a man in the shadows-grumpy and sad. As he and the young boy spend time together, the colors lighten and life brightens.
The Herdmans are absolutely the worst kids in the history of the world. They lie and steal and smoke cigars (even the girls). They talk dirty, hit little kids, cuss their teachers, set fire to Fred Shoemaker's old broken-down toolhouse, and take the name of the Lord in vain. So no one is prepared when the Herdmans invade church one Sunday-and decide to take over the annual Christmas pageant.
None of them has ever heard the Christmas story before. Their interpretation--the Wise Men are a bunch of dirty spies and Herod needs a good beating--has a lot of people up in arms. But the actual pageant is full of surprises for everyone, starting with the Herdmans themselves.
As this offbeat parody of ``The Night Before Christmas'' opens, the family is enjoying a Christmas feast of pizza, popcorn and microwaved eel and clam cakes: ``When all of a sudden, not the sound of reindeers, / But the mooing of Santa Cows came to our ear. / So we ran to the windows and opened the shutters. / We threw up the blinds to a sky full of udders.'' The Santa Cows, with eyes ``like Liz Taylor's,'' are coming and bringing with them a beautiful tree, a concert of carols and equipment for a Christmas Day baseball game. Lane's warm, slightly fuzzy illustrations, full of strange details and odd knickknacks, make this wacky fantasy seem possible, as they did in The Cherry Migration. At less than half the length of Moore's original, the story will leave readers who appreciate its irreverent humor wanting more but pleased with a refreshingly different Christmas offering. Ages 7-up.
Auntie Claus is just another eccentric New Yorker-or is she? Young Sophie has often wondered about her unusual great-aunt,Auntie Claus. She lives in penthouse 25C at the Bing Cherry Hotel and is so curioso! After all, Auntie Claus serves Christmas cookies all year long and her tree is always the best-decorated in the city. And then there's her annual "business trip," right around the holidays. This year Sophie is determined to get to the bottom of Auntie Claus's mysterious ways. Put on your mittens and bundle up for an adventure beyond your wildest dreams. Ho, ho, ho!
Fifth grader Nicholas Allen finds out that dictionaries were actually written by people. He realizes that someone, somewhere, must have decided what certain words meant and wrote them down. But what would have happened if a different word had been chosen to represent, for instance, the instrument we write with? You know, the one with the ink in it, that you push the button and the point comes out? What if it was called a frindle? Nicholas and his friends experiment with frindle until the word has a life of its own.
Beautiful it its simplicity, this small biography of Martin Luther King shines forth. Rappaport's text portrays King's childhood in two pages with his discovery that in spite of the "whites only" signs, his mother's words that "You are as good as anyone" would sustain him. When he sang hymns and read from the Bible in church, he vowed that he would grow up to "get big words." His career as a minister, being influenced by Gandhi, participation in the Montgomery Bus Boycott and subsequent civil rights marches, winning the Nobel Peace Prize, threats to his family and his death are touched upon. Each short paragraph ends with a memorable quote relevant to the subject of the page and many are familiar to adult readers. Instead of drawing from the "I have a dream" speech the quote about judging people by the content of their character, the author has selected--"I have a dream that one day in Alabama little black boys and black girls will join hands with little white boys and white girls as sisters and brothers." It is more accessible to the intended audience, if less ringing and memorable to the adult reader. Collier's stunning collage and bold watercolor illustrations are layered with meanings, textures, light and shadow. Stained glass windows, which appear in many of the illustrations, serve multiple symbolic purposes including providing light and a way of looking past where you are, says the illustrator in a front note. This is obviously a work of great care and love for the subject, a fine introduction and a fitting tribute to the Dr. King and his work. A chronology of important dates includes 1986 when Dr. King's birthday became a national holiday, and a fine selection of additionalreadings and web sites are suggested.
Marvin is shunned by his classmates, best friends, and teacher after he is unfairly fingered as a nose-picker by the class bully. "It will be an underground classic, an easy reader that kids are dying to read."--(starred) Bulletin, Center for Children's Books.
After Casey Happleton tells him that if he kisses his elbow he will turn into a girl, nine-year-old Marvin experiments and finds himself very confused about his identity.
There are some pretty weird grown-ups living in Bailey City. But could the new cook in the school cafeteria really be Cupid cooking up love potions for lunches? The Bailey School Kids are going to find out!
The beloved--but confused--pup Olive is back! But this time she's not heading off to the North Pole to help Santa. . . . This time she's out to return a one-of-a-kind lost object: a heart. And not just any heart, but a heart as large as Olive's own.
In her search to find its one, true owner, she makes the acquaintance of a cast of characters who show her what it truly means to give all of one's love.
Sam Krupnik, younger sibling of the noted Anastasia, presents his side of the story as he shares his views on major issues such as life, growing up and haircuts
Each of five children lucky enough to discover an entry ticket into Mr. Willy Wonka's mysterious chocolate factory takes advantage of the situation in his own way.
Living with his little brother, Fudge, makes Peter Hatcher feel like a fourth grade nothing.
Whether Fudge is throwing a temper tantrum in a shoe store, smearing smashed potatoes on walls at Hamburger Heaven, or scribbling all over Peter's homework, he's never far from trouble. He's a two-year-old terror who gets away with everything--and Peter's had enough.
When Fudge walks off with Dribble, Peter's pet turtle, it's the last straw. Peter has put up with Fudge too long. How can he get his parents to pay attention to him for a change?
This is the story of a little girl named Fern who loved a little pig named Wilbur - and of Wilbur's dear friend Charlotte A. Cavatica, a beautiful large grey spider who lived with Wilbur in the barn. With the help of Templeton, the rat who never did anything for anybody unless there was something in it for him, and by a wonderfully clever plan of their own, Charlotte saved the life of Wilbur, who by this time had grown up to be quite a pig.
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