Showing posts with label guest reviews. Show all posts
Showing posts with label guest reviews. Show all posts

Wednesday, March 12, 2014

Life on Mars

I'm struggling to maintain a reading life these days. I get 40 minutes a day in the car with my audio book, but LIFE has made it hard for me to read much with my eyes. Luckily, I have avid readers in my classroom. 

When I got this ARC, I knew exactly which student should read it. Her first apps on her new iPad were space apps. Her persuasive essay was about why she should go to space camp. Her passion is All Things Space, and if she doesn't wind up with a career in space science, I will be amazed. Here's W's review of Life on Mars.



Life on Mars
by Jennifer Brown
Bloomsbury USA Childrens, August 2014
ARC provided by the publisher


I really loved the book Life on Mars by Jennifer Brown. When I first saw the book I thought it will be a non-fiction book but when I started reading it I figured out it was fiction. This book is about a boy named Arcturus Betelgeuse Chambers, most people call him Arty. Arty was named after the Alpha star in the constellation Bootes. The Alpha star is the brightest star in the constellation. All of the Chambers family is named after stars. Arty’s sister Cassi is named after the star Cassiopeia. But Cassiopeia dosen’t like being called by her name she likes to be called Cassi.

Arty has been working on something to connect to Mars, and find Martians. The machine he has been working on is called CICM, it stands for Clandestine Interplanetary Communication. Arty and his friend Tripp thinks that Arty’s next door neighbor, who they call “ Mr. Death,” is a zombie, because every night he goes behind their house in his black hoodie with his trash bag and a box and comes out in the morning.

Aunt Sarin has to stay with Arty and his sisters while their parents go to search for house in Las Vegas (A really bright city where you can’t see stars because of the light pollution.) But when Aunt Sarin has to go to the hospital because she is having a baby, Arty has to stay with Mr. Death.

Arty discovers that Mr. Death loves space just like he does, and they become friends. Arty and Mr. Death work on CICM together and decide to name it HUEY instead of CICM. Arty soon discovers a terrible secret about Mr. Death.


Monday, February 17, 2014

Presidents' Day


JFK
by Jonah Winter
illustrated by AG Ford
Katherine Tegen Books, 2013
review copy provided by the publisher

I know it's supposed to be President's (singular possessive -- honoring George Washington) Day, but why can't we celebrate ALL the presidents on this day? We've had some great ones, and we've had some lousy ones, but either way, it's certainly not a job I would want to do!

When I received JFK, there was no doubt in my mind who should review it. Judy Hedge, a reading teacher in my building, is a passionate JFK fan. JFK came to visit her county in 1960. Judy's father, Robert Fulton, was a Wickliffe Councilman and running for County Commissioner and attended a fundraiser for Kennedy. Judy had to go to school and miss JFK riding in an open convertible through her community so she gave her father her autograph book. Her father got to shake JFK's hand and had him sign her autograph book. He had his picture taken with Kennedy, too. Judy has an extensive collection of Kennedy memorabilia: newspaper articles, magazines, political buttons and a signed photo from a letter she wrote to him after the election. He is her hero.

About Winter's JFK, she writes:

It’s hard for me to believe that fifty years have passed since the presidency of John F. Kennedy. To me, and many of my generation, the young president inspired us to serve the greater good; that hope and determination will always succeed over fear and uncertainty.

A lot has been said about the Kennedy legacy and “Camelot” in the years since. Some good, some bad and for a while it seemed like that legacy disappeared from an active role in our cultural life. Jonah Winter’s JFK gives me hope that children who will one day face the same issues that President Kennedy faced will know their historical legacy to guide their choices. While not a definitive volume, Winter touches on many of the defining moments of JFK’s administration.

AG Ford utilizes the technique of overemphasizing the light on the main subject’s face to make the illustrations look more dramatic. The illustrations are cartoonish so children can relate better to the events that they depict. My hope of this very well illustrated book is that it will inspire curiosity and allow the young minds to learn about the man and how his legacy still impacts them 50 years later.


EDITED TO ADD: Kindle Daily Deal for Kids has 5 books about presidents for $1.99 each...including George Washington, Abe Lincoln, and JFK!

Wednesday, January 29, 2014

Josephine


Josephine: The Dazzling Life of Josephine Baker
by Patricia Hruby Powell
illustrated by Christian Robinson
Chronicle Books, January 14, 2014
review copy provided by the publisher

I have a dancer in my room this year. She spends hours every week at dance. Was excited just before the holidays to get her toe shoes. One glance at this book and I knew she'd love it. She did, and agreed to write a guest review of it. Thank you, V!

I love the book Josephine by Patricia Hruby Powell. I read it to my sister and she liked it too. Before I started this book I didn’t think she would be famous for things besides dancing. Josephine was born in 1906, so she was alive when the color of your skin still mattered. Josephine loved to dance. Josephine performed in the streets with The Jones Family. The Dixie Steppers needed an extra act, and The Jones Family won the job. They got to perform on stage! Josephine was so good the Dixie Steppers asked her to join their group. They were going to leave on a tour to Saint Louis, but at the age of thirteen Josephine was too young. But she went anyway. She told her sister not to tell their mom, so Josephine went with the Dixie Steppers.

Josephine became famous after Caroline Dudley invited her to Paris to perform in La Revue Negre. The name Josephine Baker was up in lights. She became rich. People sent her shoes, perfume, dresses. Josephine was all the rage! She made records and starred in movies. She danced through Germany, Russia, Egypt, Sweden, South America.

Josephine became a stunt pilot. She met a millionaire and married him. But he wanted her to live at home so she divorced him. In 1939 war erupted in France. So Josephine joined the Red Cross. But Josephine got Pneumonia. Newspapers reported her dead, but she got better, well enough to perform for the U.S. troops. She helped win the war for France and became a hero. Josephine was awarded France’s highest honor.

She married Jo Bouillon and started to adopt children of different races and from different countries. Josephine adopted twelve children in all. She called them her rainbow tribe. They lived in a mansion with a farm and resort, where visitors could stay. But Josephine spent money faster than she could earn it. She left so she could tour the world and dance and sing. She sold her gowns, her art, her jewels, but not enough money. Josephine was evicted. They lived off of friends and fans. At sixty-seven, Josephine booked a performance in New York City. The audience loved her. That led her to starting a new show in Paris called Joséphine. Her doctors told her to rest, she couldn’t. One night Josephine went to sleep and never woke up.

I think it was very extraordinary when Josephine joined the Red Cross and adopted children. She really was an amazing person.

The book Josephine is really unique. Some words have all capital letters and there are quotes from Josephine throughout the book. There are beautiful drawings and the sentences are arranged in a very specific, artistic way. (For a peek at the way the text dances across the page and the energy-filled illustrations, click here.)


Monday, July 16, 2012

IT'S MONDAY! WHAT ARE YOU READING?

This week, IT'S MONDAY, WHAT ARE YOU READING? comes from Ana, my (Franki's) 12 year old daughter. Ana is a huge fantasy/fairy tale/dystopia reader. And she likes a little bit of romance in the books she reads. She is one of my best sources for good young YA stuff.  She's read several books lately that she's loved and wanted to share some of her favorites:-)


Wings by Aprilynne Pike
This book was written by Aprilynne Pike. I just read the book about 3 weeks ago. The book is about a girl named Laurel and how she starts to feel different. Then one day she looks in the mirror and sees she has wings on her back. While she tries to figure out what’s going on, she then meets two guys. One of the guys is named David and he is human but the other is named Tamani. Tamani is like Laurel, he’s not human. Throughout the story David and Tamani are fighting to get Laurel’s attention. Meanwhile, Laurel finds out that things are not what she thought they were. Things start to happen and Laurel realizes that she doesn't like to feel weak. She figures that out very soon in the book. She is also very stubborn. Soon, bad magical creatures start to show up in the human world. What will happen when her stubbornness gets her into trouble and danger?

Halo by Alexander Adornetto

Right now I’m reading Halo. I’m only about halfway done with the book but so far it’s great. The main character in the book is a girl named Bethany. She has an older brother, Gabriel, and sister named Ivy. Beth and her sister and brother are not normal. They are angels sent from heaven to protect the people on earth. While Beth is on earth she meets a guy named Xavier who she starts to have feeling towards. I like the book because the whole part of them being angels is really cool to me. The way Beth acts as a human is funny. Her brothers and sister have been to earth before but she never has so being in human form is all new to her. I hope to finish the book soon.

The Girl of Fire and Thorns by Rae Carson

Elisa is 16 years old and a princess and so is her sister Alodia. Alodia is the heir to the thrown. Elisa is not the prettiest or skinniest of girls but there is something remarkable about her. She is the bearer of the god stone. There is only one person who bears the god stone once every century and she was chosen. Elisa is about to get married to a man she has never met. This man is named Alejandro and he is king of Joya. They are hoping that if Elisa is the queen that the city will go back to how it was in the beginning and the kingdom will come out of there hard times. Though that is not what happens. Elisa is taken to a city where their people are in a bad time. Along the way she falls in love and they have to run away from people that are trying to get Elisa for her god stone. This is a great story about love, adventure and finding out who you really are.

Gone by Michael Grant



What if in one second your life could change forever? What would you do if there no longer were any adults? If you were trapped from the outer world by a wall that surrounded you? How would you cope when the once safe world ruled by adults was now ruled by bullies? That’s what happens to Sam and the kids that live in Puerdo Beach, CA. Sam, his friend Quin and a really smart girl named Astrid from his school try to set things right while the adults are gone. Along the way the three of them meet some friends and make some enemies. Throughout the story you get to see the story from a bunch of characters' points of views and see how they deal with their new life. Michael Grant did a great job at putting a bunch of twists and turns in the story and describing everything that happens well. There is violence, sadness, love, mystery, and creepy things that go on in the book. It’s kind of like The Hunger Games when they get thrown into the arena but more violence in a way. Within the first chapter I was hooked and had to keep reading so I could find out what happened to the characters. The GONE series is one of my favorite books and is an intriguing series.

Divergent by Veronica Roth



16 year old Beatrice has come to a point in her life where she has to make a choice that will change her life forever. In the world Beatrice lives in, the people are divided by factions. The factions are Candor: the honest, Abnegation: the selfless, Dauntless: the brave, Amity: the peaceful, and Erudite: the intelligent. Beatrice and her brother Caleb were born in the faction Abnegation. Now they both have to choose if they want to stay in Abnegation or join another faction. One of the hard things about being in a faction is that once you chose there is no going back and you are only allowed to socialize with people in your faction. Beatrice ends up choosing to join the faction Dauntless. Before she can be Dauntless, she has to go though a camp were she learns what you need to know to become Dauntless. The camp is not easy though. People who get eliminated from the camp become faction-less.

Entwined by Heather Dixon

If you like stories about the Twelve Dancing Princesses, then you will like this book. Azalea is the oldest of all her sisters. During the story, the twelve sisters lose their mother and they have to go into a time of grieving. During this time they are not allowed to do any thing that is remotely happy like dancing. All the sisters want to find a way to escape the grieving in the castle, so they find a mysterious place. But, when the sisters meet a mysterious and dashing man named Keeper that lives in the mysterious place things start to change. Azalea also meets a handsome young man during the story who happens to take a liking to Azalea. Will anyone be able to find out where the Twelve Dancing sisters go at night and why their shoes are always torn up and beaten the next morning? During the story you see how one thing lead to another and how things get entwined with each other.



Thanks to Jen and Kellee for hosting this great weekly event at TEACH MENTOR TEXTS!


Thursday, June 16, 2011

THE GREAT WALL OF LUCY WU

The Great Wall Of Lucy Wu

The Great Wall of Lucy Wu
by Wendy Wan-Long Shang
Scholastic Press, 2011
review copy provided by the publisher

An ancient Chinese commentary states that “Harmony is like making congee. One uses water, fire, vinegar, sauce, salt and plum to cook fish and meat, and burns firewood and stalks as fuel for the cooking process. The cook blends these ingredients harmoniously to achieve the appropriate flavor.” In this enthralling book, we get to watch Lucy Wu take the disparate ingredients that have come her way at the beginning of 6th grade and, with some guidance from idioms that she learns in Chinese school, blend them together to make it her best year ever.

When we meet Lucy, she is focused on her love of basketball and the prospect of having a room to herself after her sister, Regina, goes off to college. But then her much-loved recently-deceased grandmother’s previously-unknown sister comes to visit from China for several months, and shares her room. Her parents insist that she go to a new Chinese school that is at the same time as her beloved basketball league’s practice. And an underhanded arch-nemesis at school works hard to find ways to make her give up on her dream of being the 6th grade basketball team captain.

Lucy’s relationship with her great aunt is central to the story. They get off to a rocky start, with a “great wall” of furniture between them down the middle of Lucy’s room, and it is heartwarming to watch their relationship become warm and loving through shared experiences.

Noodle soup also has a key role in the story, and Lucy’s feelings about Chinese food and American food reflect her struggles to integrate her Chinese heritage into her American life. At the start of the book, her sister Regina, who founded a Chinese Culture and Language Society in the high school, calls her a “banana … yellow on the outside and white on the inside.” But we see her gradually embrace this side of herself as she improves her Mandarin skills, learns more about Chinese and Chinese-American history, and gets to know her great aunt better.

Parts of the story brought back strong memories for me. Unplanned dumpling making at Lucy’s birthday party perfectly evoked Chinese New Year in Harbin with my partner’s mother. Lucy’s older brother is heavily steered by his parents towards math and engineering, since he has shown some talents, even though he is more interested in history. And I could really relate to the class outcast, Talent, who (unlike me in 6th grade) is eventually brought into the fold by Lucy and her friends.

In summary, the author has blended her ingredients harmoniously to achieve a wonderful book. I loved it, and recommend that everyone read it!

*********

A note from the guest reviewer, Dave Hahn: I'm Mary Lee's brother and I loved this book. But why should you pay attention to me? Unlike Mary Lee, I don't teach elementary school, I don't have a master's in children's literature, I'm not the outgoing president of the Notables committee, I'm not the coauthor of a long-running children's literature blog, and this list could go on for quite a while. But I have always loved reading, it is hard for authors to impress me, and I have had a lot of experiences that parallel Lucy's. In particular, I am learning Mandarin, and love all kinds of Chinese food.

Sunday, October 21, 2007

Guest Reviews

A former student sent me these reviews of a couple of new books I passed along to her to read.

Letters from Rapunzel
Review by Eye Red Abook

When you open the pages of Letters from Rapunzel, you will be entranced into the average world of, you guessed it, Rapunzel! This young tween is despairing because of her Homework Club and of her father’s clinical depression “Evil Spell," so she writes to a Post Office Box number to confide her troubles to an unknown stranger. This is a hilarious and heartwarming tale that should now be in your hands, as you sit, spellbound, on the davenport, reading.

Into the Wild
Review by Fan Tasy

Imagine a world in which you are doomed to repeat, over and over, the same old fairy tale, and you have to be the same character. This is the world Julie encounters as she tries bravely to retrieve her mother, Rapunzel, her adopted brother, Puss-in-Boots, and her adopted grandmother, Gothel. This fast-paced tale has twists and turns every way you look, so beware. The Wild bites, even harder than Julie knows.

Saturday, July 28, 2007

Snow Baby


The Snow Baby: The Arctic Childhood of Admiral Robert E. Peary's Daring Daughter
by Katheri Kirkpatrick
Holiday House, 2007
Guest review by A.J. Wald, resident Arctic and Antarctic expert

I do so love a surprise. That is probably why I gladly read Katherine Kirkpatrick’s The Snow Baby, even though I have shelves groaning under the weight of books on Arctic and Antarctic exploration. Book after book of determined adventurer’s and scientist’s tales of grim survival under the trials of cold, darkness, fear and, sometimes, madness. Not a single one of these volumes, however, tells the story of the sweet-faced little tyke born to Robert E. Peary and his wife Josephine Diebitsch Peary on September 12, 1893 on the shores of Smith Sound, Greenland.

Other books on the Arctic barely mention the birth of Marie Ahnighito (the woman who sewed Marie’s fox skin coat and caribou skin trousers also provided the baby’s middle name) Peary. Marie’s story is important, however, within the context of Arctic exploration and in light of her own, unique experiences.

It will come as no shock that Marie Peary did not have a stereotypical childhood. Beginning her life in Greenland, she was taken south to Washington D.C. at age 11 months. There, the Snow Baby lived with her mother and her maternal family while her explorer father continued to strive to reach the North Pole. A pattern developed that brought Marie and Mrs. Peary back to the Arctic for periodic reunions with Robert Peary, interspersed with time in ‘civilization’.

During the Arctic episodes, Marie meets a who’s who of North Pole exploration, from the indispensable Inuit, to the ice pilot Bartlett, to Mathew Henson. Marie has her own adventures too, skidding across glaciers, literally by the ‘seat of her pants’.

Her life, both in the far North and in the urbane strictures of Victorian America, fascinates and informs the reader about the history and the society of the times. Ms. Kirkpatrick does not shy away from the recognition of Robert Peary’s ‘other’ children, produced by his liaisons with Inuit women. Her frank, tasteful explanation of the historical existence of Marie’s half-brothers and sisters was refreshing in its tact and honesty.

There is a truly excellent map of Robert Peary’s expeditions and delightful photographs of the Pearys and the extended family, the Inuit of Greenland, the ships, dogs and characters that were part of Marie’s life. A fine bibliography of research works and a useful index round out this very worthwhile fifty page edition.

Upper level 4th and 5th grade readers, girls or boys, will be able to glean a great deal from The Snow Baby, as will anyone who delves into the exciting and complex life Marie Ahnighito Peary.

Tuesday, July 24, 2007

The Cat Master


The Cat Master
by Bonnie Pemberton
Marshall Cavendish, 2007
review copy courtesy of publisher

Remember my former student who is the Warriors series expert? She's the one who read and reported on the new (then) Warriors graphic novel last spring.

When the box of books came from Marshall Cavendish and I came across The Cat Master, I knew Warriors Girl was the one who should read and review it. Here is a loosely reconstructed transcript of our discussion of The Cat Master over ice cream at Graeters:

Me: So tell me a little about the book.

Warriors Girl: Well, it's the author's first book, and it took about 10 years for her to write. I know this because I googled her and read her website.

The two main characters in the book are Buddy and Jett, cats who are brothers. Jett is greedy and ambitious. When the Cat Master dies -- he's their father, but they don't know it -- Buddy is chosen to be the next Cat Master, but he doesn't know it because Jett intercepts the message. Jett wants to kill Buddy before Buddy becomes the master.

Me: Is this book at all like the Warriors books?

WG: It's like Warriors in that there are indoor and outdoor cats, but they are named differently (feral/indoor). It's different because there are other animals besides cats in the story (dogs, a possum, a lizard). Both have good and evil characters. The Cat Master feels really different than Warriors -- the chapters alternate between characters.

Me: Which series do you like better?

WG: It's too soon to tell, but I will definitely read more books by this author if she writes more. It seems like she will. You can kind of tell that the next book will be about Soot, Buddy's son, becoming Cat Master.

She dedicated the book "In Memory of Buddy" and in the acknowledgments she says Buddy was "a stray cat who changed my life forever." She has lots of cats and she really gets cat behavior. She even has a business that sells anti-scratching stuff that keeps cats from scratching on furniture.

Me: Anything else?

WG: I think I'm going to start reading prologues. If you skip them, you miss out on some pretty important information. I've always read epilogues; they give a summary and some good hints.

Me (in my mind): It's good to know that she's still growing as a reader! It's never too late to learn that prologues are pretty important!

Wednesday, February 28, 2007

EGGS by Jerry Spinelli

Today, we have a guest review by Larry Swartz. This weekend, we had our Dublin Literacy Conference. This conference is a teacher conference put on by the Dublin City Schools run by a committee of teachers. We had lots of great speakers--children's authors, professional authors, teachers, and more! It was a great day. Larry Swartz was one of the speakers. 

Larry Swartz is an instructor in the Elementary Pre-service Program at OISE/UT and the Principal of Dramatic Arts Additional Qualifications courses at OISE/UT. He is frequently called upon to share his expertise with children's literature, classroom talk, and anti-bullying strategies. Here is his review of EGGS by Jerry Spinelli. I’ll start off by saying that I think Jerry Spinelli is one of the best authors for readers 10 – 13 years old. I would say that his books appeal to boys and girls. His characterization is always rich. The problems that he presents in his books connect to his readers because they can easily identify with them (i.e., peer pressure in Wringer, belonging in Loser, outcast in Star Girl, heroism in Maniac Magee). The stories have just enough of an imaginative twist to take readers into an imaginative world that is the stuff of fiction (Does a community exist that forces boys to wring the neck of pigeons?). Milkweed aside, there is a veneer of humour in Spinelli’s novel events, in the dialogue and in character quirks. A student teacher recently gave me an advance copy of his newest novel EGGS and since I was heading off on a plane, I was thrilled to have a new Spinelli to keep me company. A good read it was. As I was reading, I couldn’t help thinking about the novels that I recently read that featured characters whose parents have died. . Give me a fifth grade class and I would love to organize Literature Circles (when all titles are available in paperback) around THE HIGHER POWER OF LUCKY, JEREMY FINK AND THE MEANING OF LIFE, WING NUT and EGGS, not only because one or more character has a missing parent, but because they get inside the skin and hearts of these kids who are coping with life’s rotten eggs and hoping to make omelets out of life’s dilemmas-large and small. Take David and Primrose. David lost his mother to a freak accident. His father is often away on business and so the young boy lives with his grandmother. Primrose only knows of her father from a photograph. She lives with a mother whose talent is telling fortunes and whose outlook on life is a little less mature than her daughter’s. David and Primrose are friends, despite an age difference of four years (Primrose is older). It’s very tempting to use an egg metaphor as a review of this book (hard boiled, scrambled, over easy, poached) but here I’ll pay tribute to the egg carton and offer a dozen reasons for admiring and respecting Spinelli’s new work. 1. Boy and girl protagonists. I’m a bit concerned about boy reads and girl reads. Yes, enjoyed the Newbery winner, but few boys are going to choose this book by the cover, by the title and because of its female protagonist. Spinnelli’s strength is in boy characters, but here he has a friendship between a boy and a girl. How clever too to make Primrose an ‘older’ friend. Without reading the book, can’t you imagine how a character named ‘Primrose’ might behave? 2. 224 pages. 42 chapters. Book is divided into sections (Eggs, The Waving Man, Nightcrawlers, Painted Windows, Who Cares, Only Children). I like / many kids like short chapters. 3. The “Ha Ha” factor. When David first meets, Primrose’s fortune-telling mother, she predicts his future by reading the soul of his bare foot. 4. The Gross factor. David and Primrose have a tug of war fight over a nightcrawler. Each wants to capture the twelve-inch worm to raise money. Primrose pulled. David pulled - Thp. Each then held six inches of flailing nightcrawler. Gross! 5. A moment to touch-your-heart factor. Memories of David’s dead mother linger throughout. On the day she died in a bad fall, David decided to never break any rules. David believe if he went long enough without breaking a rule. sooner or later his mother would come back and they would together see the sunrise, that she promised they’d see together. In one episode, David clings to Primrose, sobbing. “I’m not her you, she,” she whispered hoarsely. “I’m only me. Primrose.” He nodded against her. “I know.” (Goosebumps.) 6. Great dialogue… “Are we gonna be out all night?” “Yerp.” “You don’t even care. Do you? “Nerp.” 7. This-only-happens-in-books episode. David first meets Primrose during an Easter Egg Hunt. While on his search, he comes across the still body of a girl hidden amongst the leaves. He takes a yellow egg from the mouth of the body and asks, “Are you dead yet?”. The girl does not answer. Later we learn, that the body belonged to Primrose who was just playing a trick on the boy, just like Spinelli was playing a trick on the reader. This is not a murder mystery. 8. A quirky character (or two). Spinelli’s short descriptions of a character paint a wide portrait in a sentence or two. Refrigerator John, “who was neither as tall nor as wide as a refrigerator. “His own right leg had been withered since birth. When he walked, the leg flapped out sideways, as though he were shaking a dog loose. Madame Dufee. Her body was lost in a robe of flowers, birds, and dragons with flaming tongues. Golden hoops you could pitch a baseball through hung from her earlobes.” 9. Two characters, so different, so the same. They plot together. They argue. “What was with these two? The thirteen year-old girl, the nine year old boy. What brought them together? Sometimes they acted their own ages, Sometimes they switched. Sometimes they both seemed to be nine, other times thirteen. Both were touchy, ready to squawk over nothing.” (note to publisher: Terrific passage for a book jacket blurb). 10. The omelets-out-of rotten-egg factor. David and Primrose take the bad things that life offers and learn to make the best of them. They learn from each other. They need each other. They take care of each other. They’re going to be all right! 11. A touch of symbolism giving readers lots to think about. Eggs figure into the plot (early in the book, David goes on an Easter Egg Hunt, vandals splatter eggs against Primrose’s bedroom window, the sunrise is described as crisp and sharp and beautiful and smooth as a painted egg.). I would love to ask ten year-olds what the title makes them think about: Does it tell the truth of the story?Why six eggs on the cover? How are David and Primrose like eggs? What kind of egg dish might each character be? 12. Great cover. No boys. No girls. Just six eggs resting in a robin’s egg blue carton.