Oh Yes I Did

Because what good are you as a teacher of reading if you don't occasionally read the books your students are most excited about?

Diary of a Wimpy Kid: The Getaway
by Jeff Kinney
Harry N. Abrams, 2017

A humorous look at everything that could possibly go wrong on ditch-the-holidays family vacation, with a little bit of arachnophobia thrown in for good measure.

Dog Man and Cat Kid
by Dav Pilkey
Graphix, 2017

You can just about hear Dav Pilkey laughing out loud to himself as he writes these. I mean, really. Allusions to Faulkner? A robot named 80-HD? (say it out loud so you, too, can get the joke)

And in case you think Dog Man is all light fluff with no redeeming qualities, consider how Cat Kid reprograms his robot 80-HD (I can't even type that without cracking up) so that it has free will. "From now on, you can choose your own path." He tells it, "Thou mayest," so that it can choose whether or not to be loyal to Cat Kid. (It does.)

And then there's the part where Cat Kid admits he hasn't been perfect and, in a direct quote from Faulkner, the Italian actress tells him, "...now that you don't have to be perfect...you can be good."

Sure, there's Flip-O-Rama, but there's deep stuff, too.

Reading Without Walls

Revenge of the Green Banana
by Jim Murphy
Clarion Books, 2017
review copy provided by the publisher

The Reading Without Walls challenge gets you out of your reading comfort zones and introduces you to new characters, settings, genres, or formats.

A funny story set in a Catholic school in the late 1950's that features a group of 6th grade boys (and one wacko second grader) plotting a revenge of reciprocal humiliation on Sister Angelica, their teacher, is definitely not my bailiwick. I described some of the details and read aloud a couple of scenes to the resident Catholic School Lifer, and he thought it all rang very true (and was very funny). Would a reader without such a resource buy into the Catholic School setting? Are the references to the 1950s/1960s strong enough to give a clear sense of "historical" fiction? Perhaps, perhaps not, but any reader who wants to enjoy a funny story about an underdog who tries to get revenge, but who stumbles on his own foibles at every turn, will enjoy this book.

Jimmy is a troublemaker who has a reputation (and a big fat red folder of his misdeeds) preceding him. He wants to change this year, but there's no way to get a fresh start with a reputation like his. It definitely seems like Sister Angelica has it out for him, but with 62 in the class, I have just a bit of empathy for her. To survive the odds of 1:62, being a little bit proactive with the behaviors seems like a plan. In contrast to her apparent targeting of Jimmy in class, the scene where Jimmy teaches Sister Angelica to shoot a basketball lets her humanity and personality shine out, which is why I'm cutting her a bit of a break, although not enough to add her to our list of 100 Cool Teachers of Children's Literature!

Surprise Endings

The Book of Mistakes 
by Corinna Luyken
Dial Books for Young Readers, 2017
review copy from the public library

This book is a celebration of mistakes...mistakes that can be seen as good ideas if you don't get stuck thinking they are mistakes. Just when the book seems to be getting repetitive, it gets complicated, and then it takes your breath away. This will be a fabulous #classroombookaday.

XO, OX: A Love Story
by Adam Rex
illustrated by Scott Campbell
Roaring Book Press, 2017
review copy from the public library

What's it called when a book is told all in letters? Epistolatory. Yeah. That's what this is. Ox loves Gazelle and tells her so in adoring letters. Gazelle does NOT love Ox and tells him so in increasingly irritated responses. Until...

Make sure you study the endpapers before and after reading. What do you know about the two characters from the beginning end papers? (Ox loves lots of things; Gazelle loves...herself.) And what can you infer from the ending end papers? (Lives have been changed. Anything is possible.)

This will be another fabulous #classroombookaday.

The Three Billy Goats Gruff
by Jerry Pinkney
Little, Brown Books for Young Readers, 2017
review copy from the public library

Speaking of endpapers, here is another book with great rewards in the end papers. (And another to save for #classroombookaday!)

The fourth in Jerry Pinkney's retellings of fables and folktales, this one is (again) nearly perfect in every way. Pinkney doesn't just give us another predictable retelling. He adds several twists that make the story even bigger than the original. In his version, the ogre gets a taste of his own medicine, highlighting the recurring nature of verbal bullying. But the ending holds a surprise. There are clues, subtle in the last spread of the story as well as the final spread with the author's note, but obvious in the final endpapers, that the billy goats' hearts are big enough for forgiveness, and the ogre's is open for redemption. That's a surprise ending worth replicating!

Laughing Out Loud

If Apples Had Teeth
by Shirley Glaser
illustrated by Milton Glaser
Enchanted Lion Books, August, 2017
review copy provided by the publisher

You will want this book. It might change the way you look at the world.

Some of the IFs are practical:

"If apples had teeth, they would bite back."
"If a kangaroo was fond of you, he could carry your books home from school."

Some of the IFs rhyme or have alliteration:

"If a rhinoceros wore a sweater, he would look a lot better."
"If horses had hat racks, they would be reindeer."

But some of the IFs make you drop your chin:

"If eggs were made of glass, you could count your chickens before they hatched."
"If trees were pink, they would be nevergreens."

Did I mention the art? Very whimsical and fun!

Did I mention that this is a reprint from 1960, a year that may or may not have significance in my life? Here's a bit from Enchanted Lion about why they've brought this book back:

"Enchanted Lion's catalog currently pursues three different acquisition routes: origination, translation, and reissues. It feels important, especially in this moment, to bring back books that might otherwise be lost to time. We've published some treasures, including three André François books, this Glaser book, and our upcoming Jacqueline Ayer books. We're currently looking at another Glaser book and have begun working with out of print Remy Charlip books, which we're thrilled about. 

IF is a book that needed to be brought back. It's playful, smart, beautiful...we're so glad it hasn't been lost.

In terms of the art, the illustrations are hand drawn ink illustrations. A part of why they're so vivid and visually stunning is due to Pantone spot coloring process."

Excuse me while I open my notebook and see if I can write some IFs of my own!

Two Silly Books

The Legend of Rock Paper Scissors 
by Drew Daywalt
illustrated by Adam Rex
Balzer + Bray, 2017
review copy provided by the publisher

So fun to read aloud! So fun to know the back story behind the popular game!

And isn't it true that everyone wants a worthy opponent?

Rodzilla
by Rob Sanders
illustrated by Dan Santat
Margaret K. McElderry Books, 2017

review copy provided by the publisher

There are plenty of visual clues to help readers predict the true identity of Rodzilla. By the time the truth is revealed, it is not really a surprise, but still fun, all the same.

This book is sure to be a favorite of the toddler set, and anyone who once was one!

My New Favorite Nonfiction Series

Welcome to my new favorite nonfiction series, the Disgusting Critters series, or, as originally published in French, Les petits dégoûtants.

You can see that I tagged these books "nonfiction should be fun." Along with information about the critters' bodies, eating habits, and all the nasty things they do, each book also contains off-the-wall comments by the narrator and the critter, and delightfully goofy illustrations.

Franki texted me, "Your nonfiction post that I sneaked a peek at just cost me $37.00." These books are perfect for third grade. I checked out the whole series from the library and will read one to my fifth graders for #classroombookaday (the one they vote as the most disgusting critter), and then I will keep them in the room for a couple of weeks.

That's what I'm thinking right now, but based on my students' response, this post might cost ME $37.00, too!

My Dad Thinks He's Funny by Katrina Germein

I happened to see My Dad Thinks He's Funny  by Katrina Germein while visiting Cover to Cover around Father's Day. It isn't a new book but it looked fun.  I'm so glad I picked it up because it will be perfect for minilesson work in Writing Workshop. I love the format of this book to show young writers how authors let us get to know a character by telling details--not with adjectives necessarily but by telling stories. In this very predictable book, a child is talking about how his dad THINKS he is funny (with the implication that he really isn't:-). On each two page spread, there is a little example of this.  One such example is..."Whenever I say, 'I'm hungry,' Dad says, 'Hello, Hungry. Pleased to meet you.'" Kids will love the humor and the illustrations add to the fun. This is a perfect example to kids about including examples that let their reader really know their characters when writing. I can see using it early in the year for some notebook play.  This is a fun book that kids will remember.

A Wordless Book for All Cat Lovers

Franki and I were just talking about how much we both love wordless books. The possibilities for use in the classroom are endless, spanning from enjoyment and appreciation of the ability of the artist to communicate the story without words, right through differentiation for students who are striving text readers and ELLs.

I have been a fan of the Simon's Cat videos on YouTube since the first one came out in 2008. You've never seen them? Okay, take a minute and watch this:





Simon Tofield, the cartoonist, does so much with gestures, facial expressions, and, of course, a deep and personal knowledge of cat behavior.

Tofield, who struggled with dyslexia as a child and who was constantly urged to quit drawing and focus on getting a "proper job," created the first animation when teaching himself to use some animation software. He is now adding new videos to the Simon's Cat website on a monthly basis, and there are all kinds of Simon's Cat items for purchase, a soft toy and a newspaper strip. And there are books.

Simon's Cat in Kitten Chaos  

by Simon Tofield

Akashic Books, on shelves April 16, 2013

review copy provided by the publisher

In this book, Simon finds a kitten, abandoned in a rainstorm in a cardboard box. He brings it home and every manner of chaos ensues. There is the getting-to-know-you phase, the competing-for-attention phase, the I-terrorize-you-you-terrorize-me phase, and finally, the I-guess-we-can-get-along phase.

As much as this book is about a single-cat family with a new kitten, this can probably also be read as a single-child family with a new sibling. Kids will be able to relate; parents (and cat owners) will giggle, chortle, and sometimes laugh until tears stream down their faces.

Move over, Garfield. Simon's Cat is the new funny fat cat in town!

The Adventures of Ook and Gluk: Kung-Fu Cavemen From the Future

The Adventures of Ook and Gluk: Kung Fu Cavemen From the Future
The second graphic novel by George Beard and Harold Hutchins,
the creators of CAPTAIN UNDERPANTS (aka Dav Pilkey)
Scholastic (Blue Sky Press), 2010
Review copy purchased with my very own money.

I'm sorry to have to tell the Newbery Committee this, but I'm afraid that while this book will never even be considered for the Newbery Medal, it is likely to be the most popular book in my fourth grade classroom in the first weeks of school.

As a public service to all nervous teachers, parents, librarians and grandparents, I have read this book cover to cover and I pronounce it to be hysterically funny.  Laugh out loud funny. I also would like to assure the above audiences that I do not believe that the spelling mistakes that George and Harold make in their comics will in any way cause children's brains to rot and impair their ability to learn to spell correctly or write coherently. If the children who read this book don't know that there are misspelled words, they'll still be able to understand and enjoy the story. If the children who read this book DO know that there are misspelled words, well, hooray that they can recognize the misspellings. They'll still be able to understand and enjoy the story.

And while we're on the subject of spelling, phonics, and understanding a story, Pilkey totally rewards his readers for sounding out long (but not hard) words. One character is named Chief Goppernopper.  He is variously referred to as Chief Grasshopper, Gobstopper, and Gumwrapper (to name a few).  Pilkey goes off on extended riffs of rhyming with Gluk's name (rhymes with duck, stuck, truck...) and Ook's name (rhymes with duke, spook, kook...).

There are kid-level allusions to popular culture: the whole section where they learn Kung Fu in the future hearkens back to Karate Kid, and there are chapter title pages that are Star Wars and Jurassic Park take-offs.  There are puns, like on Flip-o-rama #8:  "Mechasaurus Wrecks!" (Tyrannosaurus Rex?) where the robot dinosaurs destroy a tower. There are, as in the Captain Underpants books, billboards that get their meaning changed, in this case when they are zapped by futuristic ray guns in a chase scene. For example, "I went to BOB'S POOLS to buy my pool! Now I dive in my pool, swim under the waves, and wear a BIG smile!!!" becomes "I went POO poo in my underwear".  Besides the potty humor, there is a decent amount of barf humor. Kid humor. Spot-on kid humor.

Find out more at Dav Pilkey's website, and at the Scholastic website. But most of all, don't be afraid of this book.