Encounter

Genre: Historical Fiction
Author: Jane Yolen
Illustrator: David Shannon 
Awards: none
Grade level: 2nd-5th grade

This is an amazing book that talks about Christopher Columbus discovering new land, yet there were already Native Americans inhabiting the land. The story is told through the eyes of a young boy who has a bad dream about these men coming, but none of his people listened to him because he was just a young boy. Throughout the story, we see how slowly but surely Christopher Columbus and his men take over the land, and at the end of the story, the young boy at the beginning has now grown into an old man. He talks about how they took on the strangers speech, soon forgetting their own.

This book is great, and I love how it shows the other side when Christopher Columbus set sail to find new land. I said this book would be appropriate for grades between 2nd-5th because I feel like at that level they really would understand what is happening in the book. This book would be great to read during history and learning about Christopher Columbus, as well as challenging the students to see if there are any other books that have a different viewpoint during the same time period.

The Princess and the Warrior

Genre: Historical Fiction
Author: Duncan Tonatiuh
Illustrator: Duncan Tonatiuh
Awards: Pura-Belpre
Grade level: 1st-3rd grade

This book is set a while back and tells the story about a young princess and a warrior. The warrior falls deeply in love with the princess, and even though he wasn't rich like the father wished, he was still allowed to marry the princess. After the warrior leaves to fight a war, the princess is poisoned, and when the warrior returns, he is devastated to find her body in a deep sleep. He takes his princess up to the mountain in hope that the cool air will wake her, but sadly it does not. The warrior promises to stay by the princess's side, and in time, two volcanoes emerge in their place, symbolizing that the warrior never left the princess.

This book is interesting because it is a mix of a myth and historical fiction. There are many aspects of the book that talk about Mexico City in previous times through this story, and it is very interesting to see how it is incorporated into the book. I would use this book in my class because it allows the students to view how a culture used to be through a fun story. I chose the appropriate grade level for 1st-3rd because some of the vocabulary is a bit challenging, but it would be a great read-aloud for younger students. An idea for a unit about this book could be using it as a read-aloud and having students discuss what they learned about how the culture used to be and what is different about it today.

The Rough-Face Girl

Genre: Historical Fiction
Author: Rafe Martin
Illustrator: David Shannon
Awards: none
Grade level: 1st-3rd

This is a book that has incorporated Indian traditions and values into a spin-off of Cinderella. In this story, there is an old village on the shores of a lake, and the book goes into great detail about how the village was decorated and how the huts looked. The story then talks about how a man has 3 daughters, and the 2 oldest daughters made the younger daughter tend to the fire, which caused her hands, face, and hair to become charred and burnt. The two older sisters teased the youngest, and told her she would never be able to marry the "invisible being", who could only be married by someone who actually saw him. At the end of the story, a "godmother" figure comes to the youngest daughter and tells her to bathe in a lake, which clears all her burns. She then sees the "invisible being" and is able to marry him. This book has aspects of historical fiction because it incorporates many of the aspects of Indian culture into the story.

I would definitely use this book in my classroom. It is a Cinderella story most children might know, but it also will teach children about Indian culture and how they used to live. I chose the age range between 1st-3rd grade because I believe it would be a good read-aloud for younger students, but older students would also be able to read this in a center. An idea for a unit in this class would be during a heritage week to show this book and talk about some aspects of Indian Heritage. 

Henry's Freedom Box

Genre: Historical Fiction
Author: Ellen Levine
Illustrator: Kadir Nelson
Awards:Caldecott Honor book
Grade level: 2nd-5th grade

This book is absolutely amazing! It is about a young boy named Henry and talks about the life of a slave. He is torn apart from his mother at a young age and goes through many challenges to begin his own family. Henry eventually grows older and has an amazing wife and children. Henry's wife, Nancy, was also a slave, but both of their masters agreed to let them get married. For a while everything was going great, but Nancy's master lost a great deal of money and had to sell Nancy and the children. This tore Henry's heart apart, and he was sad for many weeks. He then decided he wanted to try and become a free man, and with the help of a white man who disagreed with slavery, Henry squeezed into a box and was shipped to where he could be a free man.

This book is amazing, and I would definitely have it in my classroom! It teaches children about how times used to be very different previously, and how much the world has changed. I put an appropriate grade level to be 2nd-5th, because younger children might not be able to grasp the concept of slavery and what exactly it was. An idea for a unit on this book could be to discuss the book with the class and talk about their ideas about why they think Henry felt like he had to be in a box to be free, along with other topics. 

Will I Have a Friend?

Genre: Realistic Fiction
Author: Miriam Cohen
Illustrator: Lillian Hoban
Awards: none
Grade level: K-2nd Grade

This is an adorable book about a young boy named Jim who is headed to his first day of school and tells his dad that he wonders if he will make any friends. His dad reassures him that he will, and says goodbye to him for the day. Throughout the day, Jim is going through the school activities and is wondering where his friend might be. During nap time, he realized a boy named Paul is looking at him and holding something in his hand. After nap time, Paul comes up to Jim and shows him his cool toy car. After that Jim and Paul begin to play and then play with the rest of their classmates. At the end of the day when Jim's dad picks him up, he is pleased to hear that Jim made a friend.

This is a great book for K-2nd because it is definitely a book geared towards younger children with the simple vocabulary and it might settle nerves on the first day of school about finding a friend, especially if some children don't know anyone else. Many children can relate to being nervous on the first day, so reading this book might help calm some children's nerves. I would definitely use this book in my classroom, and I think it is a great book to read on the first day.

Love You Forever

Genre: Realistic Fiction
Author: Robert Munsch
Illustrator: Sheila McGraw
Awards: none
Grade level: 1st-4th grade

This is a very touching book about the life of a baby boy and his mother. At the beginning of the book, the boy is just a baby, and throughout the book, he continues to grow and grow until he is a young man. Each time the boy is talked about, the reader can tell how much he is growing and changing, and the book really makes the boy a relatable figure in the book. Towards the end, the boy is getting older, as well as the mother. She calls him one day and says that she is very sick, and the boy goes to visit his mother one last time. Throughout the story, the mother always sings her boy a song, but in the end, while the mother is in her son's arms, he sings her the song. The son then goes home at the end of a long day, and picks up his baby girl and sings the same song his mother always sang to him.

This book is very touching, and really shows the life of a mother and her son. It was very relatable because it described the boy at many different ages, and it definitely felt like real life. It was sad at the end when the mother passed, but I was happy at the end when he went home and sang the same song to his baby girl. I put the grade level at 1st-4th because I feel like the concept of the book would be hard to grasp for young kids. I would definitely have this book in my classroom, and I would have it in the classroom library so students could explore the book and read it on their own.

The Night Before Mother's Day

Genre: Realistic Fiction
Author: Natasha Wing
Illustrator: Amy Wummer
Awards: none
Grade level: K-2nd Grade

This is an adorable book about two children getting ready for mothers day! It is a spin-off of the night before Christmas and includes many of the literary aspects from that book. During the book, the two children and the father do things such as made cake, cards, and got their mom a gift. The next day they all awake on mother's day and pamper their mom with a spa day and everything else they did for her. 

This is a great realistic fiction book because most children(not all) will know what mother's day is and celebrate it with their mom. I put the grade level between K-2nd because there is simple vocabulary for young children to understand throughout the book, and I think younger children will really enjoy reading this around mother's day since they can relate to it. In my classroom, I would probably read this book and then the students could do an art activity based off of the book for their mothers/guardians in their life.

Sky color

Genre: Realistic Fiction
Author: Peter H. Reynolds
Illustrator: Peter H. Reynolds
Awards: none
Grade level: 1st-3rd grade

This book is about a young artist named Marisol. She loved to paint many different things and even had her own "art gallery" on the fridge at home. She learns that her art class has been assigned to paint a mural on the wall for the library. She is beyond excited and while everyone is choosing which part to paint, she says she will paint the sky. She begins looking in a box of colors but is upset because she can't find any blue paint. That night, she watches the sunset and is in awe by the amazing amount of different colors in the sky. The next day, she goes to class and makes a sky out of many amazing and beautiful colors. 

I really enjoyed this book! Most children love to draw or paint, and can easily relate to the love and creativity of drawing. I would definitely have this book in my classroom because it motivates children to be creative and think outside of the box. I chose this book for 1st-3rd grade because it has vocabulary that is simple enough for students to read. In my class, I would use this book to influence creativity before an art activity and encourage students to think outside of the box when it comes to drawing and different colors.

The War That Saved My Life

Genre: Historial fiction

Author: Kimberly Brubaker Bradley
Awards: Newberry honor book
Grade level: 3rd-7/8th grade

This book is a truly amazing book about a young girl named Ada set during the time of World War II. Ada was born with a clubfoot and was unable to walk much without assistance. Ada's abusive mother saw her as an inconvenience and never allowed her to go outside and made her stay locked up in the family's apartment. One day, Ada's leaves London with her brother Jamie because of the war going on. Ada's mom didn't intend to send Ada away, but Ada was able to sneak away with Jamie early one morning. After they leave the country, they are taken in by a lovely woman named Miss Susan Smith. Miss. Smith helps Ada realize that she is wanted, and she shows Ada what love truly is. Ada is able to do so many things such as ride a pony, learn to walk, and even make friends. Sadly, Ada's mother shows up because she received a letter saying if the kids were to stay in that country she would have to pay, which she definitely didn't want to do. When the children arrive back home in London, it is obvious that their mother hasn't changed, but Ada is more confident and stands up to her mother. She tells her that they will go back to Miss Smith and she won't have to pay, and Ada's mother agrees because she never really wanted them. Before the children can leave, bombs begin to strike London. They safely make it to a bomb shelter and to their surprise, Miss. Smith is waiting for them when they get out. They go back to Miss Smith's house only to find out that her house had been bombed, and she is grateful because she believes the children saved her life.

I absolutely love this book! It is very sad, but I think it is a great book to have in the classroom. I put the grade range between 3rd-7/8th grade because World War II is an intense topic, and I think this book would be better understood by children in late elementary school-middle school. In my classroom, I would probably use this book during a History unit and have it was the main part of discussion through class. I also think it would be great to do a book club over this book as well.

The Three Billy Goats Gruff

Genre: Fantasy/Science Fiction
Author: P.C Asbjornsen and J.E. Moe
Illustrator: Marcia Brown
Awards: none
Grade level: K-3rd

I actually discovered this book this year and fell in love with it! It is about three billy goats crossing a bridge, and they can't get across because this big mean troll wants to eat them. The first billy goat convinces the troll not to eat him because he is very tiny, and the billy goat after him is bigger. Then the second billy goat crosses and convinces the troll not to eat him because the billy goat after him is the biggest and strongest. When the third billy goat tries to cross and the troll stops him and claims he is going to eat him, the big and strong billy goat charges at the troll and uses his big horns to knock the troll right off the bridge, and the big billy goat and the other two billy goats enjoy the grass on the other side of the bridge.

I would read this book in my class, I think it is a fun book to read to children. It is also repetitive with each billy goat, and I think the children would enjoy repeating the words as the story goes along. I think a good range for this book is K-3rd because children will enjoy reading or hearing this through a read aloud. In my classroom, I might introduce the book as a read-aloud or have children explore the reading on their own and write about it in their reading logs.

Monster's Lunch Box

Genre: Fantasy/Science Fiction
Author: Marc Brown
Illustrator: Marc Brown
Awards: none
Grade level: 1st-3rd 

This book is about children playing on a playground and coming across a huge, mysterious lunch box. They all open it up, and assume it is a monsters lunch box and list all of the nasty, gross things found inside this lunchbox. I enjoyed this book because it is actually shaped like a lunch kit, and I just found that really creative. I also enjoyed that throughout the entire book, there were little manipulatives, and even some pop-ups, on each page to really make the monsters lunch box come alive.

I would definitely use this book in my classroom because I think it will really spark children's creativity, and I think they would love feeling all of the different items in the books. I think a good age range is between 1st and 3rd grade because younger children are able to explore the book and enjoy the manipulatives more. In my classroom, I would probably read the book to the students and have them write and draw what they believe they would find in a monsters lunch box.

Mockingjay

Genre: Fantasy/Science Fiction
Author: Suzanne Collins
Illustrator: N/A
Awards: Nebula Award
Grade level: 5th-early high school

The hunger games series books are some of my favorite books! I chose Mockingjay just because it was the last one, and is definitely one of my favorites in the series. The book series set in a dystopia where there are different districts, and they have an annual "hunger games", where each district sends one boy and one girl to fight in the arena, and the last person standing is the victor. The main character, Katniss Everdeen leads the rebellion and fights the capital on their rules, and eventually gets everything overthrown. This book is filled with many twists and turns and is a book that has the reader hooked and makes them not want to stop reading.

If I was teaching secondary, I would definitely have this book in my classroom! It is definitely not a book for younger children, but older children will love it. I think a proper age range would be 5th grade(maybe)- all the way up to high school. This book can be a bit gruesome, and I know some 5th graders will enjoy that and be able to maturely read it, but others aren't quite there yet. I also know that high schoolers will love these books as well! In my classroom, I would probably introduce the book series and allow students to explore it if they want, and then talk about how different their society is from ours.

Duck in the Truck

Genre: Fantasy/Science Fiction
Author: Jez Alborough
Illustrator: Jez Alborough
Awards: None 
Grade level: K-2nd 

Duck in the Truck is a hilarious book! It is about a duck driving around, and he goes through some obstacles on his way home, which includes getting stuck in some mud. Throughout the story, we meet many characters, all animals, who try to help this duck out of the mud. At the end, he eventually is able to get out of the mud, but with doing so, he leaves everyone else stuck in the mud.

I love this book and would definitely use it in my classroom. It is great because there are rhymes throughout the story and it allows children to think creatively. I gave the age range K-2nd because the vocabulary is very simple, but I still think children would enjoy this book mid-elementary school. An idea for a unit on this book would be to have the children focus on the different rhyming words, and have them create their own rhyming story. 

Charlotte's Web

Genre: Fantasy/Science Fiction
Author: E.B White
Illustrator: Garth Williams
Awards: Newberry Honor, Laura Ingalls Wilder Award
Grade level: 2nd-middle school

I absolutely love Charlotte's Web! I remember reading it when I was younger, and it is still one of my favorite books to this day! It is mainly about the friendship and love between a spider and a pig on a farm, and all the ups and downs that come between this friendship. Fern is the daughter of the farmer, and without her, Wilbur the pig wouldn't even be alive. In the end, Charlotte the spider passes of old age but leaves her children, and Wilbur becomes very close with them. None of them can replace Charlotte in Wilbur's heart, but Wilbur loves them just as much.

I would definitely use this book in my classroom. This book would be a great read-aloud for younger children who can't read this book on their own. It teaches great lessons about friendship and love. I think the appropriate grade level is so broad because it could be used as a read-aloud or it would be a great story for children to read through on their own and discuss it. An idea for this book in the classroom would be to have the students read through the book and create "book club" groups and have them talk about what they read in the book and what they enjoyed about it.