Three Picture Books from ALA's List of Best Books from 2007

My new favorite picture book is That Rabbit Belongs to Emily Brown by Cressida Cowell. Crowell also wrote the Heroic Misadventures of Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III series which were masterfully adapted to audio by David Tennant. Emily Brown lives up to the brilliance of that series! It is one of those books that just begs to be read out loud. Cowell's voice comes through loud and clear, and it has the right amount of repetition for students to follow along. The queen covets Emily's rabbit Stanley...does everyone have their price?

Pictures from our Vacation by Lynne Rae Perkins is a great book for parents to use at the beginning of summer vacation. It would be a great impetus for elementary students to document their own summer vacations. It also has some great maps for social studies

Velma Gratch and the Way Cool Butterfly by Alan Madison and Kevin Hawkes is a great book to use at the start of a unit on butterflies or to counteract sibling rivalry. Velma is the youngest sister of a trio who is looking for her own special niche in the world. She finds it at a butterfly conservatory.

Becoming Naomi León

This book made me want to read more by Pam Muñoz Ryan especially Esperanza Rising, a book I have heard a lot about, but haven't yet picked up to read. Becoming Naomi León is a meaty book which would be ideal for a book discussion group since it covers wide ranging topics such as alcoholism, child abuse & child custody. Naomi León is a character who grows in her sense of self as she discovers her father's heritage and the importance of her sculpting ability. However, this book is geared toward approximately fourth grade readers...it is a bit heavy thematically for this age group, and I, as a parent, am not sure that I would recommend this book for independent reading for this age group. I think some adult guidance is necessary to navigate this very sad, but very hopeful book.

Two Gems for Curriculum Connections

Frindle by Andrew Clements may be my new favorite chapter book for elementary school students. The main character Nicholas rises to his 5th grade teacher's challenge of using the dictionary. Only problem is, he doesn't use it in the way she intended. Instead, he creates a new word and conducts an experiment showing how a word becomes part of the English language. Language purists beware! Frindle may not be for you, but for those of you who believe in the power of words or think language should be playful, you are in for a delight!

The Lemonade War by Jacqueline Davies can be used to teach math or business plans (in mini-societies as my son's 4th grade class did this year). Or, it can be used to make students sensitive to their peer's educational differences. The book switches point of view between people smart Evan and his math genius sister Jessie. Which of these two "intelligences" is better suited to selling lemonade? What happens when different strengths combine forces? A fun and funny look at sibling rivalry over one summer vacation.

Palestinian Childhoods

Tasting the Sky: A Palestinian Childhood by Ibtisam Barakat is the true story of the author's childhood. The author begins her memoir with an episode during her adolescence when she was detained by Israeli soldiers from returning to her home. The episode catapults her back to her life as a refugee during the Six-Day War in 1967. The story is eye-opening as it describes war through the experiences of a child.

I read this right after reading the fictional A Stone in My Hand by Cathryn Clinton. Tasting the Sky made Clinton's book much more real for me especially the different emotions displayed by the various characters when faced with life under Israeli rule. Malaak withdraws into silence and into the shadows of the wings of a tamed bird, her brother's anger explodes and her mother sees the humanity of the enemy and dismisses terrorism as a solution.

Teens may find in these books some understanding of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict which is still so prevalent in Middle Eastern politics. Of course, I would recommend reading both sides of the story, since both of these books are told from the Palestinian point of view! Some suggestions from my "to read" list (so I can't personally recommend them) might be How to Ruin a Summer Vacation by Elkeles, Habibi by Nye, or Real Time by Kass.