Picture Book 15

The Bravest of Us All by: Marsha Diane Arnold

Title: The Bravest of Us All
Author: Marsha Diane Arnold
Illustrator: Brad Sneed
Genre: Juvenile Fiction
Subgenre: Picture Book
Theme: Fear, Courage, Tornadoes
Primary & Secondary Characters: Velma Jean, Ruby Jane
Award(s): Marion Vannett Ridgeway Award
Date of Publication: 2000
Publishing Company: Dial Books for Young Readers


Summary of Book: 


This is a suspenseful picture book. I would use it to read to my classroom on a day that there are chances of a tornado. It is also a good book to read for just entertainment. It is a very good story about 2 sisters and their bravery. Ruby Jane uses all her courage to stand up to a tornado and save her sister's life. It is a great book that inspires bravery. 

Picture Book 14

Mom Says I Can by: Judy Cooley

Title: Mom Says I Can
Author: Judy Cooley
Illustrator: Judy Cooley
Genre: Juvenile Fiction
Subgenre: Picture Book
Theme: Imagination, Adventure, Love
Primary & Secondary Characters: Max and his mom
Award(s):
Date of Publication: 2008
Publishing Company: Deseret Book Co


Summary of Book:


This book is so sweet! In the classroom I would read this book as entertainment or around Mother's Day. It is a sweet story of a boy named Max and his search for the world's greatest treasure. It has a great message about how much moms believe in their kids. The illustrations are also fantastic!

Picture Book 13

Willy the Dreamer by: Anthony Browne

Title: Willy the Dreamer
Author: Anthony Browne
Illustrator: Anthony Browne
Genre: Juvenile Fiction
Subgenre: Picture Storybooks
Theme: Action and Adventure, dreams, animals
Primary & Secondary Characters: Willy
Award(s):
Date of Publication: 1998
Publishing Company: Candlewick

Summary of Book:


This is a book about a boy named Willy who is constantly dreaming. He dreams about being a movie star, a sumo wrestler, an artist, and many more. In a classroom, I would use this book for reading time. It is entertaining for both genders. It also has awesome pictures! 

Picture Book 16

Turtle Splash! Countdown at the Pond by: Cathryn Falwell

Title: Turtle Splash! Countdown at the Pond

Author: Cathryn Falwell

Illustrator: Cathryn Falwell

Genre: Juvenile Nonfiction

Subgenre: Counting Books

Theme: Counting, Animals, Mathematics

Primary & Secondary Characters: 10 turtles and their neighbors

Award(s): none

Date of Publication: 2001

Publishing Company: Greenwillow

Summary of Book:

This is a book full of colorful illustrations. In the classroom, I would use this counting book to help teach a lesson on counting. It promotes the kids to be interactive. It also has instructions for making leaf prints. It is a counting book. It counts down from ten to one. It is also interesting because it provides a helpful little section in the back of the book that has information about each animal mentioned while counting down. 

Picture Book 12

Who Likes Rain?




Title: Who Likes Rain?
Author: Wong Herbert Yee
Illustrator: Wong Herbert Yee
Genre: Interactive Books
Sub Genre: Juvenile Fiction
Theme: Guessing Games, Weather
Primary & Secondary Characters: little girl
Award(s):  none
Date of Publication: 2007
Publishing Company: Holt

Summary of Book:

This is a great book to use in the classroom to get the kids to be interactive. I would use it on the morning of a rainy day to wake the kids up and make the rainy day more exciting rather than gloomy. This book illustrates the day of a little girl who explores who likes rainy days and who doesn't. It shows how different animals and things are affected in different ways by rainy days.

Picture Book 11

No, David! by: David Shannon



Title: No, David!
Author: David Shannon
Illustrator: David Shannon
Genre: Juvenile Fiction
Sub Genre: Picture book
Theme: Children, Boys, Behavior, Parenting, Humor
Primary & Secondary Characters: David
Award(s): Caldecott Honor book
Date of Publication:1998
Publishing Company: Scholastic Inc

Summary of Book:

This is a great book! It is very fun to read and would be great to use in a classroom to encourage the children to be interactive in reading it. It is a great book to read to a classroom to show them how not to act. It is also a good book because it shows getting in trouble from a young child's point of view. David comes off as somewhat of a little terror, but all he ever feels like he hears is "no, David!!". It illustrates the little things that many young kids get in trouble for doing every day. It  is a very cute book with funny illustrations.

Picture Book 10

The Giving Tree by Shel Silverstein



Title: The Giving Tree
Author: Shel Silverstein
Illustrator: Shel Silverstein
Genre: Juvenile Fiction
Sub Genre: Picture Book
Theme: Generosity, Love, Emotional & Feelings
Primary & Secondary Characters: boy, tree
Award(s): none
Date of Publication: HarperCollins
Publishing Company: 2007

Summary of Book:

This is a book about a boy who visited the same tree every day. He would come to her and eat her apples, slide down her trunk, and swing around on the branches. The tree gave the boy anything he wanted because the tree considered the boy to be her best friend. It is a story of love between two friends and the affects of giving and receiving. In the classroom, this would be a great book to read aloud or have the children read. It is great to illustrate true friendship and the gift of giving.

Chapter Book 8-- Coretta Scott King Award

Day of Tears by: Julius Lester




Title: Day of Tears
Author: Julius Lester
Illustrator: No illustrations
Genre: Historical Fiction
Sub Genre: African American
Theme: Social Issues, Civil War Period, Racism
Primary & Secondary Characters: Emma, Pierce Butler, Fanny Kemble, daughters
Award(s): Coretta Scott King Award
Chicago Public Library Best of the Best Books 2005
2006 Bank Street Best Books of the Year List
New York Public Library Books for the Teen age List
Date of Publication: 2007
Publishing Company: Perfection Learning Prebound

Summary of Book:

This is a historical novel that is told through dialogue. It is a story of a man named Pierce Butler who has to sale of hundreds of slaves just so he can pay off gambling debts. The book has many characters who tell their stories through dialogue. They consist of slaves and owners. It is based on an actual slave auction. The story is very realistic in that it is historical fiction. I would use this book in the classroom while studying slavery. It helps the children see slavery from several different points of view. It is emotional and heart touching but also very informative. Great book!

Chapter Book 7-- Newberry Award

Shiloh by: Phyllis Reynolds Naylor



Title: Shiloh
Author: Reynolds Naylor
Illustrator: No illustrations
Genre: Juvenile Fiction
Sub Genre: Social Issues
Theme: Animal Welfare, Human-Animal relations
Primary & Secondary Characters: Marty, Shiloh, Judd
Award(s): Newberry Award
Date of Publication: 2009
Publishing Company: Baker & Taylor, CATS

Summary of Book:

This a great story of friendship. It is about a boy who finds a dog that he would love to keep. The dog already has an owner, but the owner is a mean drunk who the boy does not want to return the dog to. His family insists that he return the dog. Instead, he hides the dog from his family until an incident occurs where he is forced to take the dog back to his owner. This is when he makes a deal with the owner so he can keep the dog. However, the deal does not work out as planned. This is a great book to read aloud to a class. It has great examples of loyalty and honesty. It is also a great book to bring up discussions of morals and the treatment of animals.

Picture Book 9 -- Orbis Pictus Award

Balloons Over Broadway: The True Story of the Puppeteer of Macy's Parade by: Melissa Sweet




Title: Balloons Over Broadway: The True Story of the Puppeteer of Macy's Parade
Author: Melissa Sweet
Illustrator: Melissa Sweet
Genre: Juvenile Nonfiction
Sub Genre: Picture Book
Theme: History, Holidays, Parades
Primary & Secondary Characters: Tony Sarg
Award(s): Orbis Pictus Award
Date of Publication: 2011
Publishing Company: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt

Summary of Book:

This is a very colorful and amazingly illustrated book about Tony Sarg. Tony Sarg is the amazing puppeteer who invented the first balloons for the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. I loved this book! This will definitely be one that I will read to my classroom before they go on Thanksgiving break. The Macy's Day Parade is something that almost all children and their families wake up to watch. This book is interesting even to parents because it is true and gives some information that you may not gain just from watching the parade.

Chapter Book 6 -- Newberry Award Winner

When You Reach Me by: Rebecca Stead



Title: When You Reach Me
Author: Rebecca Stead
Illustrator: No Illustrations
Genre: Juvenile Fiction
Sub Genre: Chapter Book, Historical
Theme: Fatherless Families, Friendship, Lifestyles, Preteens
Primary and Secondary Characters: Miranda, Sal, Marcuss
Award(s): Newberry Award
Date of Publication: 2010
Publishing company: Random House Digital, Inc

Summary of Book:

Miranda lives in New York and spends most of her time with her best friend, Sal. One day, Sal randomly gets punched by a guy on the street, and he completely stops talking to Miranda. Then, letters start arriving to Miranda. They are odd and do not say who they are from. Miranda starts to think that the person sending her these mysterious letters can tell the future. The book illustrates Miranda's life as she receives these letters and tries to figure out who they are from and why she is getting them. It is very interesting in that it shows the idea of time travel. In the classroom, this would be a great book for entertainment. It could also spark many journal entries because every reader is going to have their own opinion or guess at what is going to happen next.

Chapter Book 5 -- Newberry Award Winner

The Higher Power of Lucky by: Susan Patron




Title: The Higher Power of Lucky
Author: Susan Patron
Illustrator:Matt Phelan
Genre: Juvenile Fiction
Sub Genre:  Family, General
Theme: Abandoned Family, Interpersonal Relations, Social Issues, Friendship
Primary & Secondary Characters: Lucky, Brigitte, Miles, Beagle (dog), Lincoln
Award(s): Newberry Medal
Date of publication: 2006
Publishing Company: Simon and Schuster

Summary of Book:

Lucky's mother died when she was 8 years old. Therefore, her father's first wife, Brigitte, took care of her and was her guardian. Bridgitte came from France to take care of her, and Lucky has a constant fear that she wants to move back to France. Lucky eavesdrops on 12 step meetings and realizes that she wants to find her "higher power". Both of these things make Lucky decide to run away to find stability in her life. This is a very good book about an honest child confronting her fear of abandonment. I would use this book in my classroom as entertainment along with delivering a powerful message. It is a message about complex issues in life that they will confront, but they just have to keep moving.