What if

What If? by Laura Vaccaro Seeger

My rating: 2 of 5 stars

What Library Media says:
Library Media Connection (May/June 2010)

Choices?we all make them and they have consequences?both positive and negative. Often it is hard for students to see the impact of some of the decisions they make. Seeger?s book clearly paints a picture for students about what happens each time a different decision is made. Using beautiful illustrations from the beach and three simple seals, she shows students what happens as the ball is passed between the two groups. It is easy to see that when one group has the ball, the other is sad. However, if they all play together, everyone is happy. With little text, the focus is on the bright and colorful images used to teach students a difficult concept with an example that is easy to understand. This book will have many different connections and possibilities in using it with students, from character education to writing. Highly Recommended. Carl A. Harvey II, Library Media Specialist, North Elementary School, Noblesville, Indiana




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City Dog, Country Frog

City Dog, Country Frog by Mo Willems

My rating: 4 of 5 stars
K- 1 read aloud. Nice story about friendship. Beautiful illustrations.

Starred reviews in Horn, Booklist, and Kirkus. Good reviews in SLJ.

Booklist starred (March 15, 2010 (Vol. 106, No. 14))
Preschool-Grade 2. The book begins in spring. City Dog comes to the country, thrilled to run without a leash. Something stops him—Country Frog. Frog’s waiting for a friend: “But you’ll do.” After that the duo plays together, and Frog teaches Dog about splashing and croaking. In the summer, City Dog returns and runs to see Frog. Now it’s his turn to teach Frog games, replete with sniffing, fetching, and barking. In the fall, Country Frog is tired. “Maybe we can play remembering games.” And that’s what they do, remembering jumping and splashing, sniffing and barking. In the winter, snow is everywhere, but Frog is gone. When spring returns, a chipmunk comes across City Dog. “What are you doing?” she asks. City Dog replies sadly, “Waiting for a friend.” Then he smiles a “froggy” smile and adds, “But you’ll do.” It’s hard to imagine a picture book that more consistently (and touchingly) hits all the right notes. Willems, never one to overwrite, is gracefully spare here, making every word count. That leaves room for Muth’s watercolors, richly seasonal, which fill each page. The pictures are imbued with hope and happiness, leaving and longing. This wonderful collaboration makes a significant impact with subtlety and wit. Adults and children will each take away something of their own.

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Mr President Goes to School

Mr. President Goes to School by Rick Walton

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Silly book about the President. He runs away from his problems back to his kindergarten teacher. While visiting he is reminded that the Hokey Pokey is what it is all about. He goes back to Oval office to use his kindergarten solutions.

This is just a fun read aloud story without a lesson or moral. It does trivialize the ominous job of the President and the tasks and problems he must face.

Booklist (September 1, 2010 (Vol. 107, No. 1))
Grades K-2. The president in question has the hair of Ronald Reagan, the smile of Jimmy Carter, and Bill Clinton’s nose. Like his predecessors, he can have some pretty bad days. On one of them, he decides to leave the White House and go back to a happier time and place. Putting on a fake mustache and glasses, he heads to his old school, and soon his old teacher, Mrs. Appletree, has him finger painting, making castles out of blocks, and doing the hokey pokey. What might have turned into just a day off becomes more when Mr. President takes the lessons he’s learned about friendship, fun, and doing the hokey pokey back to the White House. Savvy kids will get the message that amicability and appreciation of others can overcome the most acrimonious situation. Adults may wish it was that easy but will certainly understand the rejuvenation a break can give. The art, which looks a bit like that of Patricia Polacco, scoops all the inherent silliness out of the story but has a tender side, too.







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This world we live in by Susan Beth Pfeffer

This World We Live In by Susan Beth Pfeffer

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


Not as good as the previous two books. I was a bit disappointed as it was more of the same. First two books gave you two different perspectives of the same occurrence. This one merged the two but frankly did not feel as realistic. Things seemed a bit too pat and of course worked out for the immediate intact family. It left off with them leaving and going out into the unknown which is what I thought part of this book would have been about.



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Busy Tree

The Busy Tree by Jennifer Ward

My rating: 3 of 5 stars
K-2
Beautiful illustrations, simple text. Tells the life story of a tree and how it helps the animals and wildlife that depends upon it for their shelter, food, and support.

Library Media Connection (November/December 2009)
The Busy Tree narrates its own story in rhyme in this picture book that combines science and art. Falkenstern?s paintings are life-like in realistic colors and intricate in detail, down to the hairs on a cocoon clinging to a twig on the tree?s limb. Most illustrations are imposed on a white background, accenting their deep hues. In the voice of the tree, the author explains the role of its roots and leaves. It explains the ecosystems that live in community with it, including ants that file in long lines around its trunk seeking food, squirrels that nibble its acorns, an owl living in a hole in the trunk, spiders spinning webs between its branches, and a woodpecker seeking bugs in its bark. Humans are part of this community as children use the tree?s heavy branches to hang a swing. The author also tells the life cycle of the tree when a child plants an acorn, and illustrations depict the stages of the tree?s growth. This is a gentle and enchanting book that both teaches and inspires. Recommended. Karen Sebesta, Children?s and Young Adult Librarian, San Antonio (Texas) Public Library
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Goal by Mina Javaherbin

3-4, picture-book--older, read, realistic--contemporary, world-culture

Goal! by Mina Javaherbin

My rating: 3 of 5 stars
multicultural, great illustrations,

Story set in Afica about kids playing soccer while watching out for local bullies who steal a ball from them, luckily not the new leather one won for being the best reader in class.

Room for lots of discussion with older kids. May need to practice names of the kids and players for pronunciation.

Library Media Connection (May/June 2010)

In this picture book, a group of South African boys have fun playing soccer while keeping watch for the bullies who may steal their new soccer ball. When the boys see the bullies approaching, Ajani taps the ball into an overturned bucket and another player covers the ball with the upside down bucket. The bullies get a ball, but it is the boys? old ball. Attractive oil illustrations capture the emotions and action of the story. The story portrays the dangerous and difficult circumstances for children in a part of the world many readers may not know much about. Suitable for reading aloud to younger children, students will cheer on Ajani and his friends. Additional Selection. Laura D?Amato, Library Media Specialist, Parma (Ohio) City School District

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Moon Bear

Moon Bear by Brenda Z. Guiberson

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Illustrations are dark and hard to see, except as a lap book. But their texture and paper on paper technique is very interesting.

Story about an Asian bear who goes through the seasons spring to spring.

School Library Journal (April 1, 2010)
Gr 1-3-The endangered Moon Bear, or Asiatic black bear, is the subject of this call-and-response tale created in partnership with the Animals Asia Foundation. Readers follow one female bear as she wakes from hibernation, explores the seasons, and awakens the following spring with new cubs. The story focuses on simple actions such as eating raspberries and swatting insects, giving young readers an idea of how these elusive bears behave. Much of the time, collage illustrations closely reflect the text, but occasionally elements are left to the imagination. For example, the Moon Bear is said to be eating near a red panda that appears nowhere on the page. Collage illustrations are a good fit for showcasing the Moon Bear's markings and large round ears. The threat of poachers and loggers is touched upon, and an author's note with photos and a Web site lets readers know how they can help this animal. A worthy effort highlighting a species in need.-Lisa Glasscock, Columbine Public Library, Littleton, CO Copyright 2010 Reed Business Information.

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