Thursday, August 11, 2011

Chamelia

ChameliaChamelia by Ethan Long

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


Chamelia likes to stand out, while most chameleons like to blend in. She just does things differently. Her parents tell her that sometimes its okay to blend in, and Chamelia finds a way to stand out and join in all at the same time.

A cute story about individuality and fitting in.



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Ladybug Girl

Ladybug GirlLadybug Girl by Jacky Davis

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


Everyone thinks Lulu is too small to help-especially her older brother. But Lulu sets off on an adventure and finds out she's not too little to help some ants, build a fort, face a shark and more.

A good self-esteem book.



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Tallulah!

Presenting...TallulahPresenting...Tallulah by Tori Spelling

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


For a "princess-y" book, this one was pretty good. Plus, ever since watching Cool Runnings, I've loved the name Tallulah. I even had a sock puppet named Tallulah.

Tallulah is different. She can't get dirty or make messes, because she is "not that kind of girl." Her parents remind her of this often.

The kids at school makes fun of her because she is different there, too: she arrives to school in a limo, wears fancy dresses and pretty shoes.

One day, she meets a new boy, Max, who was "different" too. He wore fancy clothes and didn't get muddy either. They come across a small dog, stranded on a log in the middle of a pond. Tallulah will has to use what she's got to try to save the dog--even though saving a dog isn't "something a girl like her should do."



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Chick 'n' Pug

Chick 'n' PugChick 'n' Pug by Jennifer Sattler

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Chick has read "The Adventures of Wonder Pug" 127 times. But there was no excitement in the chicken coop, so Chick set out to find some. Luckily for him, he ran into a real life Wonder Pug. But Wonder Pug seems to be concerned only with sleeping. When Mr. Snuggles comes, Wonder Pug doesn't know what to do, but luckily Chick has read "Wonder Pug" enough to know what to do.

Very cute, plus at a first grade level, which is hard to find.



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Otis

OtisOtis by Loren Long

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


Otis is a hard working tractor who loves his farmer and his farm. He works all day, then spends the evenings jumping bales of hay and playing ring-around-the-rosie with ducks or just sitting under the apple tree watching over the farm. When a new calf moves into the barn stall next to Otis, Otis's noise lulls the scared calf to sleep. From then on, they are best friends.

But soon, Otis is replaced with a big, shiny yellow tractor. Otis finds himself in the weeds behind the barn, and the calf is very sad without his friend. Then one day, the calf wanders into Mud Pond. Will the shiny new tractor be able to pull him out?

This is a beautiful book about friendship, and about farm life. (Catching a trend here? My students live on farms!) The pictures in this book are the perfect tone for the story and they really bring it to life.

My kids will love Otis.



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Three Hens & a Peacock

Three Hens and a PeacockThree Hens and a Peacock by Lester L. Laminack

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


Tucker's farm is a quiet place. Everyone has their job, and everyone gets things done. Until one day, a peacock shows up and gets the hens riled up. The peacock is able to stand at the road and screech all day long, causing cars to stop and buy produce, while the hens have to sit in the henhouse and lay eggs. The farm dog suggests a swap, and the hens get all fancied up in their best beads and bangles. They set out to the road the next day and do their best struts, while the peacock squeezes into the henhouse and tries to lay an egg. The hens and the peacock learn a valuable lesson this day.

The ending of this book is perfect, and the back cover made me laugh out loud! A great farm book for reading aloud, I'm sure my kids will love it!



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Everyone Needs a Good Monster

I Need My MonsterI Need My Monster by Amanda Noll

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


Ethan climbs into bed one night and finds a note under the bed from his monster: Gone fishing. Back in a week. -Gabe

Gabe is the perfect monster: he has perfect breathing, perfect claws and a great green ooze. How will Gabe ever sleep without a monster under his bed to keep him scared and tucked in?

He decides to get a replacement monster. The first replacement monster that comes in had claws that weren't long enough. Then came a monster with nail polish on his claws! Ethan goes through several more replacement monsters, but will he ever find one he likes and that scares him enough?

The concept of this story is great-perfect for monster lovers or bedtime! The illustrations and the text are perfect. Loved it.



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When a Dragon Moves In

When a Dragon Moves InWhen a Dragon Moves In by Jodi Moore

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


If you build a perfect sandcastle, a dragon will move right in. The boy in the story does just that, and spends his day roasting marshmallows, flying kites and blowing bubbles with the dragon. None of his family will pay attention to the dragon, though, and they tell him to stop pretending. Having a dragon is the best thing ever, until some things start to go wrong.

I kept waiting to figure out how the story would end, and it didn't end quite the way I would have liked. Or, if more would have been added to it, the ending would have been a bit better.

A great beach read!



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Princesses, Pink and a Story About Me

Not All Princesses Dress in PinkNot All Princesses Dress in Pink by Jane Yolen

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


I like this book because it shows how girls can do a wide variety of things without being "too girly" by wearing pink. As a girl who loves pink, but despises most things girly (I'd take my mesh shorts and cut-off t-shirt over a dress any day), I enjoyed the concept of this book. The girls play sports, use power tools, ride bikes, plant gardens and more, all while wearing their shiny crowns.

This book was a nice break from all the princess tales that the girls love. However, it did lack a story, it just showed girls doing different activities. And, I don't know how I feel about PINK being the root of all girly things. Like I said, I love pink, but am not a girly-girl by any means. Hopefully some girls at school will read this, and realize that being a "princess" can mean they can still get dirty and do things they love!


(Note: I love punk rock pink, not pansy pink. And no, punk rock pink has nothing to do with liking punk rock music, because clearly, I don't. Confused yet?)



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Huck Runs Amuck!


Huck Runs Amuck!Huck Runs Amuck! by Sean Taylor

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Huck is a goat, so naturally, all he thinks about is eating. But while other goats will settle for eating cardboard boxes (which taste like boring afternoons to Huck), wooly gloves (which get stuck between your teeth), and bird's nests (which make Huck sneeze), Huck prefers flowers. Lots and lots of flowers. His love of flowers leads him on several adventures, where he can't quite sink his teeth into a tasty bouquet. When Huck finally gets his chance, will he dive in or think of others first?

The illustrations really help bring this book to life, and the story is great. Kids will love it, because Huck finds himself eating toilet paper and trying to take a bite of someone's underpants. It's a very cute book!



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Wednesday, August 10, 2011

Memoirs of a Goldfish

Memoirs of a GoldfishMemoirs of a Goldfish by Devin Scillian

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


I laughed out loud twice and thought of an idea to use at school this year while reading this book--needless to say, I loved it!

Goldfish is content just living life, swimming around his bowl. Then, day after day, he finds more and more intruders in his little bowl. Eventually, he has had enough and tells them to leave. A whoosh, splash, clank and plunge later, he finds himself all alone in a fresh, clean, but very small, bowl. After swimming around happily, he begins to wonder about the others? Were they okay? Maybe they needed him after all! How could he help them now?

I'm so excited to share this with my students! And this year, I'm adding a small fish tank to the library, so I can't wait to have students write memoirs of our new fish!



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Charlie the Ranch Dog

Charlie the Ranch DogCharlie the Ranch Dog by Ree Drummond

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


Charlie the Ranch Dog has a LOT of responsibility around the ranch! Between taking care of business, napping and eating breakfast, the basset hound doesn't have time for anything else. In the end, will taking care of the ranch or napping benefit him most?

The illustrations in this book are cute. I do wish that there was more of a storyline to it, but I'm sure kids at school will love it because it takes place on a ranch.


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Splish, Splash, Splat!

Splish, Splash, Splat! (Splat the Cat Series)Splish, Splash, Splat! by Rob Scotton

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


"Water is horrible. It's scary and wet and makes me soggy."

The day is not looking promising for Splat. First, he has to take a bath. Then his mom informs him that Spike is coming over after school, which is bad enough, because Spike breaks his toys and makes fun of him. Then Spike finds out that they are doing swimming lessons at school. Even worse.

I love books in the Splat series, and kids do too. Very cute book with a positive message!



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Zombies! Love! Action!

The Forest of Hands and Teeth (The Forest of Hands and Teeth, #1)The Forest of Hands and Teeth by Carrie Ryan

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


The Forest of Hands and Teeth is where we find Mary living with her mother. It is after the Return, which was how so much of the human race was turned into Unconsecrated zombies. The Sisterhood who runs Mary's village has led everyone to believe that their village is the last village on Earth. The village is fully surrounded by a chain link fence that the Guardians built and continue to build and maintain. Outside the fence is the forest, full of Unconsecrated. If people get too close, they can become infected, like Mary's father already has been.



Mary's mother once told her about the ocean, and the dream of seeing the ocean is what leads Mary to believe that there is more to the world than their village. When their village is attacked by the Unconsecrated, Mary and who's left of her village must run, and fight in order to stay alive.



This book packs zombies, a love triangle, loss, and tons of action, all while keeping things friendly enough for 6th grade up.



Now, I have never before this read a book about zombies. Or vampires. So this book felt kind of like a "guilty pleasure" for me. I actually really enjoyed the plot of the book, and the pace was well executed by Carrie Ryan. There was a lot of "unfinished business" but this is the first book of a trilogy. A few places lacked detail too, but I'm assuming Ryan makes up for that in the next two books. I am eager to see what happens with Mary in the remainder of the series. There were also a few weird things, such as a chain-link fence protecting the whole city--why not something stronger? But again, I'm assuming those things will be taken care of later, or I'll just live with them because it is a fantasy book and odd things can happen in fantasy land.







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