The first book I am going to talk about is Last Stop on Market Street by Matt de La Pena.
La Pena, M. D. (2015). Last Stop on Market Street. G.P. Putnam’s Sons.
Summary: Story about a little boy and his grandma who get on a bus after they get out from church. The little boy, C.J., complains about a lot of things such as the rain, the fact they don’t have a car, not having earphones for music, going to the location where they are headed, etc. His grandma has good reasons for what they are doing and what he is complaining about, In addition, she focuses on the good side of things. Along the way to their stop, C.J. listens to a man playing music on the bus and starts to lose himself in good thoughts. By the time they get to their destination, a soup kitchen, C.J. feels much better and is glad that they came to their weekly stop on the bus.
Strengths: This is a good story to teach students the theme: Be glad for what you have.
The next book I am going to talk about is Strega Nona by Tomie de Paola.
De Paola, T. (1975). Strega Nona. Simon and Schuster Books for Young Children.
Summary: Folktale about an old woman with powers called Strega Nona. She cured people of their ailments but needed some help around the house. A young man named Big Anthony agreed to help her and Strega Nona told him about all of his duties. He was not allowed to touch her pasta pot but one day he saw Strega Nona saying some words to the pot. The pot boiled by itself and created pasta. Big Anthony told all the people in town about the pot but they didn’t believe him. So, one day when Strega Nona left to go to another town, he went to the pot and said the same words to make it produce pasta. It worked and he told everyone to come over. They ate and ate and then Anthony said the words to make it stop. However, it didn’t work, and the pasta kept coming and coming, overtaking Strega Nona’s house and then the town. Nothing stopped it until Strega Nona came back and saw what was happening. She said the magic words and then blew 3 kisses. That is the part that Big Anthony forgot. The pasta stopped but the townspeople were very angry. Strega Nona decided that Anthony’s punishment should be that he eat all the extra pasta.
Strengths: This book is good for teaching the concept of cause/effect and also sequencing.
My next book up for discussion is Planting Stories- The Life of Librarian and Storyteller Pura Belpre‘.
Denise, A. (2019). Planting Stories- The Life of Librarian and Storyteller Pura Belpre’. HarperCollins.
Summary: This is a biographical account of Pura Belpre’. The author tells how she came to New York and started to work at a library. Pura struggled to find books that represented her culture and the stories that her grandmother had told her, so she wrote her own book. It was
published and soon many librarians used her stories to teach children about the culture of Puerto Rico.
Strengths: The illustrations in this book are beautiful and really add to the story about Pura Belpre’.
Rosa by Nikki Giovanni is the next book I will discuss.
Giovanni, N. (2005). Rosa. Scholastic.
Summary: This is a biographical account of what happened when Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat on the bus to a white person. She was arrested and then many women made posters telling people to boycott riding the buses. People listened, marches occurred, and then finally, the Supreme Court ruled that segregation on buses was illegal. Rosa proved that it is important to stand up for what is right and that all people should be treated equally.
Strengths: This is a good book to teach about character development as well as to talk about the theme “It is important to stand up for what you believe in.”
It’s So Amazing by Robie H. Harris is the next book I will talk about.
Harris, R. H. (1999). It’s So Amazing. Mass: Candlewick Press.
Summary: This is an informational book for kids about the process of reproduction and everything that goes along with it. The author uses colorful cartoon characters of a bird and a bee to describe the parts of a male or female body, the process of intercourse, the process of fertilization, the process of pregnancy, the process of birth, and so on. The Information is clear and direct yet gives the reader a lot of description. The bird and bee characters are funny and comment on all the different pieces of information.
Strengths: I think the author was clever to incorporate the bird and bee characters to help readers feel more comfortable. Additionally. there are lots of diagrams that are detailed and informative.
The next book I will discuss is Comics Squad-Detention.
Holm, J. L., Holm, M., Hatke, B., O’Connor, G., Jamieson, V., Phelan, M., . . . Krosoczka, J. J. (2017). Comics Squad-Detention. New York: Random House.
Summary: This is a graphic novel that is made up of several different stories. Each story focuses on a student at school that has received detention. Each author makes his/her section different by the illustrations, the plot, the age of the student, and the setting. This collection is funny, cute, interesting, and definitely touches on important lessons that kids should know.
Strengths: The fact that each story is by a different author is special and helps to lend a different insight with each each new section.
Gross as a Snot Otter by Jess Keating is my next book up for discussion.
Keating, J. (2019). Gross as a Snot Otter. New York: Alfred A. Knopf.
Summary: This is a nonfiction book about animals that look gross or do gross things. The author includes a color photograph, an explanation, and a list of specific facts about each animal in the book. Additionally, there are also cute cartoon illustrations for each animal to make the book fun and funny. Some of the animals in the book are the dumpy tree frog, the giraffe, the sea cucumber, the maggot, the star-nosed mole, and the hagfish. Included in the fact section for each animal are the name, the species name, the size, its diet, its habitat, and any predators it may have. At the end of the book is a glossary with different terms that might not be familiar to students.
Strengths: This is an excellent book to teach students about nonfiction text features.
The next book in this category is We are the Ship by Kadir Nelson.
Nelson, K. (2008). We are the Ship- The Story of Negro League Baseball. New York: Hyperion.
Summary: This is a non-fiction account of the history of Negro League baseball. The author tells about how it got started, the different teams, many of the most important players, the owners/managers, and the traveling. Kadir Nelson, the author, writes in first person, as if he was one of the actual players. This is a very interesting read with lots of facts.
Strengths: This book could lend itself to a compare/contrast lesson for students. They could compare what baseball was like back then to how it is now.
Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak is the next book I will talk about.
Sendak, M. (1963). Where the Wild Things Are. HarperCollins.
Summary: This is a story about a boy named Max who was acting up so his mother sent him to his room without supper. He was dressed up like a wild animal and started to pretend that he sailed away to another island where more wild things lived. They were very scary but he tamed them and became their leader. They acted silly and danced around and played until they all fell asleep. Max felt lonely and decided to sail back to his own home. There, he found his supper waiting for him.
Strengths: The pictures in this book are amazing and go well with the story.
My next book up for discussion is Mirror Mirror by Marilyn Singer.
Singer, M. (2010). Mirror Mirror. Dutton Children’s Books.
Summary: The author includes 2 poems about different fairy tales. Each fairy tale has one poem that describes what happens. Then, the second poem is the reverse of the first poem in that the same words are used but in reverse order. This creates a different meaning to what happens in the fairy tale but still makes sense. Very creative use of words by the author.
Strength: This would be a good book to not only teach about fairy tales but to compare the two different versions of each specific fairy tale.
The next book I will talk about is It’s a Book by Lane Smith.
Smith, L. (2010). It’s a Book. Roaring Brook Press.
Summary: This is an interesting book about 2 animals, a rabbit and a monkey. The rabbit sees that the money is looking at a book and starts asking him questions about what the book can do. (Can it make noises? Can you scroll? Does it have a mouse?). The monkey keeps telling the rabbit, “No, it’s a book.” He finally shows the rabbit a page out of the book and the rabbit says that he can condense the words from the story on his computer. The rabbit continues to ask questions about the book until the monkey lets him read it. After reading it for a long time, the rabbit refuses to give it back. The monkey decides to go to the library for another one. The rabbit tells him that he will “charge” the book for him.
Strengths: The pictures are very cute and the story itself is funny.
Next, I will discuss the book The List of Things That Will Not Change by Rebecca Stead.
Stead, R. (2020). The List of Things That Will Not Change. Wendy Lamb Books.
Summary: This is a realistic fiction Chapter book about a girl, Beatrice, whose dad and mom are divorced because her dad came out as gay. In present time, her dad and his boyfriend Jesse decide to get married. Beatrice is extremely excited about this because she learns that Jesse also has a daughter around her age, and that they will become sisters once their dads are married. However, Sonia, Jesse’s daughter, doesn’t quite seem as excited, and when she comes to visit for a week, there are several instances where she is withdrawn and sad. Besides this, there are also some other worries in Bea’s life. Her cousin Angelica develops a facial paralysis, Bea can’t seem to ace any of her spelling tests for a chance to attend a special lunch, and her dad-to-be, Jesse, has a long-lost brother who might not come to the wedding. With the help of a journal and frequent visits to a therapist named Miriam, Bea allows herself to face her fears so that she can move on in her life.
Strengths: This is an excellent resource to have in a school library because of the different topics presented in the book.
Next, I will discuss a different version of The Three Little Pigs called The Three Pigs. It is written by David Wiesner.
Wiesner, D. (2001). The Three Pigs. New York: Clarion Books.
Summary: This story starts like the regular Three Little Pigs story but when the author writes that the wolf eats the first and second little pigs, the illustrations show them actually escaping. By the time the third pig’s house is being stalked by the wolf, all three pigs have escaped out of the story. They fold up the pages of the story into an airplane and fly away. They end up crashing and notice some new pages of a different story. They jump into and it is the nursery rhyme “Hey Diddle Diddle.” They don’t like it and jump out but not before a cat escapes too. Then, they jump into another story, which is a fairy tale with a dragon. They jump out and bring the dragon with them. They go back to their original story where the wolf is trying to blow down the brick house. To his detriment, he gets eaten by a dragon. The pigs brought their new friends back to their story and they all lived happily ever after.
Strengths: This is a very creative take on a classic fairy tale. Students can compare the two different versions and decide which one they like better.
The next book up for discussion is called Crown: An Ode to the Fresh Cut by Derrick Barnes.
Barnes, D. (2017). Crown: An Ode to the Fresh Cut. New York: Bolden.
Summary: This is a realistic fiction story about a boy getting his hair cut at a barber shop. The author explains the process and how getting a haircut always makes him feel as though he can accomplish anything. The author focuses on different people in the shop who are getting their hair cut/done in various styles. He imagines they are all important because of how their hair looks. At the end, the boy is done with his cut and walks out of the shop ready to attack the world.
Next up is a book by the classic author, Beverly Cleary. I will look at her chapter book titled Dear Mr. Henshaw.
Cleary, B. (1983). Dear Mr. Henshaw. New York: Morrow Junior Books.
Summary: This is a story about a young boy named Leigh who is fascinated by the author of his favorite book. He starts writing letters to the author, Mr. Henshaw, and asks him different questions about writing books. As Leigh goes from grade to grade, he continues to write to Mr. Henshaw, telling him things about his life. Since Leigh’s mom and dad are divorced and his dad is a trucker, he doesn’t see him very often, making Mr. Henshaw an important father figure.
Strengths: This is a good book to focus on how a character can change throughout a story.
Next, I will talk about a book titled Martina, The Beautiful Cockroach. It is written by Carmen A. Deedy.
Deedy, C. A. (2007). Martina, The Beautiful Cockroach. Atlanta, Georgia: Peachtree.
Summary: This is a tale about a cockroach named Martina who is ready to get married. Her grandmother gives her the advice that she should spill coffee on each of her suitor’s shoes to determine how each reacts when angry. She follows the advice and spills coffee on a rooster, a pig, and a lizard, each one reacting with a lot of anger. She declines all their offers of marriage. Finally, she spies a mouse in a garden. She gets excited because she likes the way he looks. When she talks with him he seems really nice but her grandmother still persuades her to do the coffee test. Before Martina can grab the pitcher of coffee, the mouse grabs it and spills it on Martina’s shoes. She didn’t get angry but was happy. She asked him why he did that and he confessed that he had a grandmother too!
Strengths: This is a very cute story and is a good example of a tale from another culture.
Bell, C. (2014). El Deafo. New York: Amulet Books.
Summary: This is a cute graphic novel about a girl named Cece who is deaf. At first she goes to a school where all the other students are deaf like her, but then she transfers to another school where she is the only deaf one. She starts to feel strange about being different until she realizes that her powerful hearing aids allow her to hear everything her teacher is saying, even when the teacher is in a completely different place than Cece. She begins to feel powerful and decides to become El Deafo, a sort of superhero.
Strengths: This is a good book to teach the theme “Differences can only make us stronger.”
The next book up for discussion is Brown Girl Dreaming by Jacqueline Woodson.
Woodson, J. (2014). Brown Girl Dreaming. New York: Penguin.
Summary: This is a very interesting book as the story is told through a series of poems. The author uses poetry to describe what it was like for her to grow up in the South during the Civil Rights Movement.
Strengths: This book contains a lot of imagery and would be a good book to show how poetry can tell a story.
Lord, C. (2008). Rules. New York: Scholastic.
Summary: This is a story about a middle schooler named Catherine who has a brother that has autism. It is sometimes hard for Catherine because everything always seems to revolve around her brother. That is, until she meets some new friends and discovers that she does some strange things herself. Is she the one who isn’t normal?
Strengths: This is a good book to talk about the theme ” Everything is not always as it seems.”
The next book up for discussion is Bridge to Terabithia by Katherine Peterson.
Peterson, K. (1972). Bridge to Terabithia. New York: Crown.
Summary: This is a beautiful story about two friends, Jess and Leslie. They do all sorts of things together, including pretending to travel to a made-up place called Terabithia. Acting out this fantasy allows both kids to develop different strengths that help them with other problems in their lives. Things seem to be going along well for each of them until a tragic accident takes the life of Leslie. From then on, Jess has to figure out how to use his strength to get through this huge loss.
Strengths: This is a good book to touch on different topics such as friendship, bullying, loss of a loved one, and grief.
The first book I am going to talk about is Last Stop on Market Street by Matt de La Pena.
La Pena, M. D. (2015). Last Stop on Market Street. G.P. Putnam’s Sons.
Summary: Story about a little boy and his grandma who get on a bus after they get out from church. The little boy, C.J., complains about a lot of things such as the rain, the fact they don’t have a car, not having earphones for music, going to the location where they are headed, etc. His grandma has good reasons for what they are doing and what he is complaining about, In addition, she focuses on the good side of things. Along the way to their stop, C.J. listens to a man playing music on the bus and starts to lose himself in good thoughts. By the time they get to their destination, a soup kitchen, C.J. feels much better and is glad that they came to their weekly stop on the bus.
Strengths: This is a good story to teach students the theme: Be glad for what you have.
The next book I am going to talk about is Strega Nona by Tomie de Paola.
De Paola, T. (1975). Strega Nona. Simon and Schuster Books for Young Children.
Summary: Folktale about an old woman with powers called Strega Nona. She cured people of their ailments but needed some help around the house. A young man named Big Anthony agreed to help her and Strega Nona told him about all of his duties. He was not allowed to touch her pasta pot but one day he saw Strega Nona saying some words to the pot. The pot boiled by itself and created pasta. Big Anthony told all the people in town about the pot but they didn’t believe him. So, one day when Strega Nona left to go to another town, he went to the pot and said the same words to make it produce pasta. It worked and he told everyone to come over. They ate and ate and then Anthony said the words to make it stop. However, it didn’t work, and the pasta kept coming and coming, overtaking Strega Nona’s house and then the town. Nothing stopped it until Strega Nona came back and saw what was happening. She said the magic words and then blew 3 kisses. That is the part that Big Anthony forgot. The pasta stopped but the townspeople were very angry. Strega Nona decided that Anthony’s punishment should be that he eat all the extra pasta.
Strengths: This book is good for teaching the concept of cause/effect and also sequencing.
My next book up for discussion is Planting Stories- The Life of Librarian and Storyteller Pura Belpre‘.
Denise, A. (2019). Planting Stories- The Life of Librarian and Storyteller Pura Belpre’. HarperCollins.
Summary: This is a biographical account of Pura Belpre’. The author tells how she came to New York and started to work at a library. Pura struggled to find books that represented her culture and the stories that her grandmother had told her, so she wrote her own book. It was
published and soon many librarians used her stories to teach children about the culture of Puerto Rico.
Strengths: The illustrations in this book are beautiful and really add to the story about Pura Belpre’.
Rosa by Nikki Giovanni is the next book I will discuss.
Giovanni, N. (2005). Rosa. Scholastic.
Summary: This is a biographical account of what happened when Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat on the bus to a white person. She was arrested and then many women made posters telling people to boycott riding the buses. People listened, marches occurred, and then finally, the Supreme Court ruled that segregation on buses was illegal. Rosa proved that it is important to stand up for what is right and that all people should be treated equally.
Strengths: This is a good book to teach about character development as well as to talk about the theme “It is important to stand up for what you believe in.”
It’s So Amazing by Robie H. Harris is the next book I will talk about.
Harris, R. H. (1999). It’s So Amazing. Mass: Candlewick Press.
Summary: This is an informational book for kids about the process of reproduction and everything that goes along with it. The author uses colorful cartoon characters of a bird and a bee to describe the parts of a male or female body, the process of intercourse, the process of fertilization, the process of pregnancy, the process of birth, and so on. The Information is clear and direct yet gives the reader a lot of description. The bird and bee characters are funny and comment on all the different pieces of information.
Strengths: I think the author was clever to incorporate the bird and bee characters to help readers feel more comfortable. Additionally. there are lots of diagrams that are detailed and informative.
The next book I will discuss is Comics Squad-Detention.
Holm, J. L., Holm, M., Hatke, B., O’Connor, G., Jamieson, V., Phelan, M., . . . Krosoczka, J. J. (2017). Comics Squad-Detention. New York: Random House.
Summary: This is a graphic novel that is made up of several different stories. Each story focuses on a student at school that has received detention. Each author makes his/her section different by the illustrations, the plot, the age of the student, and the setting. This collection is funny, cute, interesting, and definitely touches on important lessons that kids should know.
Strengths: The fact that each story is by a different author is special and helps to lend a different insight with each each new section.
Gross as a Snot Otter by Jess Keating is my next book up for discussion.
Keating, J. (2019). Gross as a Snot Otter. New York: Alfred A. Knopf.
Summary: This is a nonfiction book about animals that look gross or do gross things. The author includes a color photograph, an explanation, and a list of specific facts about each animal in the book. Additionally, there are also cute cartoon illustrations for each animal to make the book fun and funny. Some of the animals in the book are the dumpy tree frog, the giraffe, the sea cucumber, the maggot, the star-nosed mole, and the hagfish. Included in the fact section for each animal are the name, the species name, the size, its diet, its habitat, and any predators it may have. At the end of the book is a glossary with different terms that might not be familiar to students.
Strengths: This is an excellent book to teach students about nonfiction text features.
The next book in this category is We are the Ship by Kadir Nelson.
Nelson, K. (2008). We are the Ship- The Story of Negro League Baseball. New York: Hyperion.
Summary: This is a non-fiction account of the history of Negro League baseball. The author tells about how it got started, the different teams, many of the most important players, the owners/managers, and the traveling. Kadir Nelson, the author, writes in first person, as if he was one of the actual players. This is a very interesting read with lots of facts.
Strengths: This book could lend itself to a compare/contrast lesson for students. They could compare what baseball was like back then to how it is now.
Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak is the next book I will talk about.
Sendak, M. (1963). Where the Wild Things Are. HarperCollins.
Summary: This is a story about a boy named Max who was acting up so his mother sent him to his room without supper. He was dressed up like a wild animal and started to pretend that he sailed away to another island where more wild things lived. They were very scary but he tamed them and became their leader. They acted silly and danced around and played until they all fell asleep. Max felt lonely and decided to sail back to his own home. There, he found his supper waiting for him.
Strengths: The pictures in this book are amazing and go well with the story.
My next book up for discussion is Mirror Mirror by Marilyn Singer.
Singer, M. (2010). Mirror Mirror. Dutton Children’s Books.
Summary: The author includes 2 poems about different fairy tales. Each fairy tale has one poem that describes what happens. Then, the second poem is the reverse of the first poem in that the same words are used but in reverse order. This creates a different meaning to what happens in the fairy tale but still makes sense. Very creative use of words by the author.
Strength: This would be a good book to not only teach about fairy tales but to compare the two different versions of each specific fairy tale.
The next book I will talk about is It’s a Book by Lane Smith.
Smith, L. (2010). It’s a Book. Roaring Brook Press.
Summary: This is an interesting book about 2 animals, a rabbit and a monkey. The rabbit sees that the money is looking at a book and starts asking him questions about what the book can do. (Can it make noises? Can you scroll? Does it have a mouse?). The monkey keeps telling the rabbit, “No, it’s a book.” He finally shows the rabbit a page out of the book and the rabbit says that he can condense the words from the story on his computer. The rabbit continues to ask questions about the book until the monkey lets him read it. After reading it for a long time, the rabbit refuses to give it back. The monkey decides to go to the library for another one. The rabbit tells him that he will “charge” the book for him.
Strengths: The pictures are very cute and the story itself is funny.
Next, I will discuss the book The List of Things That Will Not Change by Rebecca Stead.
Stead, R. (2020). The List of Things That Will Not Change. Wendy Lamb Books.
Summary: This is a realistic fiction Chapter book about a girl, Beatrice, whose dad and mom are divorced because her dad came out as gay. In present time, her dad and his boyfriend Jesse decide to get married. Beatrice is extremely excited about this because she learns that Jesse also has a daughter around her age, and that they will become sisters once their dads are married. However, Sonia, Jesse’s daughter, doesn’t quite seem as excited, and when she comes to visit for a week, there are several instances where she is withdrawn and sad. Besides this, there are also some other worries in Bea’s life. Her cousin Angelica develops a facial paralysis, Bea can’t seem to ace any of her spelling tests for a chance to attend a special lunch, and her dad-to-be, Jesse, has a long-lost brother who might not come to the wedding. With the help of a journal and frequent visits to a therapist named Miriam, Bea allows herself to face her fears so that she can move on in her life.
Strengths: This is an excellent resource to have in a school library because of the different topics presented in the book.
Next, I will discuss a different version of The Three Little Pigs called The Three Pigs. It is written by David Wiesner.
Wiesner, D. (2001). The Three Pigs. New York: Clarion Books.
Summary: This story starts like the regular Three Little Pigs story but when the author writes that the wolf eats the first and second little pigs, the illustrations show them actually escaping. By the time the third pig’s house is being stalked by the wolf, all three pigs have escaped out of the story. They fold up the pages of the story into an airplane and fly away. They end up crashing and notice some new pages of a different story. They jump into and it is the nursery rhyme “Hey Diddle Diddle.” They don’t like it and jump out but not before a cat escapes too. Then, they jump into another story, which is a fairy tale with a dragon. They jump out and bring the dragon with them. They go back to their original story where the wolf is trying to blow down the brick house. To his detriment, he gets eaten by a dragon. The pigs brought their new friends back to their story and they all lived happily ever after.
Strengths: This is a very creative take on a classic fairy tale. Students can compare the two different versions and decide which one they like better.
The next book up for discussion is called Crown: An Ode to the Fresh Cut by Derrick Barnes.
Barnes, D. (2017). Crown: An Ode to the Fresh Cut. New York: Bolden.
Summary: This is a realistic fiction story about a boy getting his hair cut at a barber shop. The author explains the process and how getting a haircut always makes him feel as though he can accomplish anything. The author focuses on different people in the shop who are getting their hair cut/done in various styles. He imagines they are all important because of how their hair looks. At the end, the boy is done with his cut and walks out of the shop ready to attack the world.
Next up is a book by the classic author, Beverly Cleary. I will look at her chapter book titled Dear Mr. Henshaw.
Cleary, B. (1983). Dear Mr. Henshaw. New York: Morrow Junior Books.
Summary: This is a story about a young boy named Leigh who is fascinated by the author of his favorite book. He starts writing letters to the author, Mr. Henshaw, and asks him different questions about writing books. As Leigh goes from grade to grade, he continues to write to Mr. Henshaw, telling him things about his life. Since Leigh’s mom and dad are divorced and his dad is a trucker, he doesn’t see him very often, making Mr. Henshaw an important father figure.
Strengths: This is a good book to focus on how a character can change throughout a story.
Next, I will talk about a book titled Martina, The Beautiful Cockroach. It is written by Carmen A. Deedy.
Deedy, C. A. (2007). Martina, The Beautiful Cockroach. Atlanta, Georgia: Peachtree.
Summary: This is a tale about a cockroach named Martina who is ready to get married. Her grandmother gives her the advice that she should spill coffee on each of her suitor’s shoes to determine how each reacts when angry. She follows the advice and spills coffee on a rooster, a pig, and a lizard, each one reacting with a lot of anger. She declines all their offers of marriage. Finally, she spies a mouse in a garden. She gets excited because she likes the way he looks. When she talks with him he seems really nice but her grandmother still persuades her to do the coffee test. Before Martina can grab the pitcher of coffee, the mouse grabs it and spills it on Martina’s shoes. She didn’t get angry but was happy. She asked him why he did that and he confessed that he had a grandmother too!
Strengths: This is a very cute story and is a good example of a tale from another culture.
Next, I will discuss El Deafo by Cece Bell.
Bell, C. (2014). El Deafo. New York: Amulet Books.
Summary: This is a cute graphic novel about a girl named Cece who is deaf. At first she goes to a school where all the other students are deaf like her, but then she transfers to another school where she is the only deaf one. She starts to feel strange about being different until she realizes that her powerful hearing aids allow her to hear everything her teacher is saying, even when the teacher is in a completely different place than Cece. She begins to feel powerful and decides to become El Deafo, a sort of superhero.
Strengths: This is a good book to teach the theme “Differences can only make us stronger.”
The next book up for discussion is Brown Girl Dreaming by Jacqueline Woodson.
Woodson, J. (2014). Brown Girl Dreaming. New York: Penguin.
Summary: This is a very interesting book as the story is told through a series of poems. The author uses poetry to describe what it was like for her to grow up in the South during the Civil Rights Movement.
Strengths: This book contains a lot of imagery and would be a good book to show how poetry can tell a story.
Next, I will talk about Rules by Cynthia Lord.
Lord, C. (2008). Rules. New York: Scholastic.
Summary: This is a story about a middle schooler named Catherine who has a brother that has autism. It is sometimes hard for Catherine because everything always seems to revolve around her brother. That is, until she meets some new friends and discovers that she does some strange things herself. Is she the one who isn’t normal?
Strengths: This is a good book to talk about the theme ” Everything is not always as it seems.”
The next book up for discussion is Bridge to Terabithia by Katherine Peterson.
Peterson, K. (1972). Bridge to Terabithia. New York: Crown.
Summary: This is a beautiful story about two friends, Jess and Leslie. They do all sorts of things together, including pretending to travel to a made-up place called Terabithia. Acting out this fantasy allows both kids to develop different strengths that help them with other problems in their lives. Things seem to be going along well for each of them until a tragic accident takes the life of Leslie. From then on, Jess has to figure out how to use his strength to get through this huge loss.
Strengths: This is a good book to touch on different topics such as friendship, bullying, loss of a loved one, and grief.