Good Rosie! by Kate DiCamillo. Illustrated by Harry Bliss. unpgd. Candlewick Press, September 4, 2018. 9780763689797. (Review from finished copy courtesy of publisher.)
First things first, I am a sucker for a dog story. Especially if the dog doesn't die. But, it's not a deal breaker if it does. Second, I think Kate DiCamillo is a brave author who is unafraid to take risks and experiment.
Rosie is a good dog. She lives with George and has a nice life. But, truth be told, she is a bit lonely. Maybe George is too. When George takes a bit of initiative and takes Rosie to a dog park, she really doesn't know what to do! Even though she is lonely and would really want a friend, she is not sure what to do! This is all so strange!
When Maurice lumbers over, Rosie is not pleased. When Fifi yips over and tries to play, she ends up in Maurice's mouth and he shakes Fifi like his bunny. Not a good start. Maurice and George intervene. Phew!
My, my. This. Is.The. Best. Book! If you are a teacher looking for books about friendship, look no further. This is the book for you. There is not one wasted word and every illustration enhances those words. Making friends is an art form that not all master. Kate DiCamillo helps crystalize what it takes in a loving way
While it's a picture book, it's also an introduction to the graphic novel format. Bliss' watercolor illustrations perfectly portray Rosie's life - with George and with her newfound friends realistically and adorably.
Make some time to share Rosie with your favorite child, your favorite class, or your favorite storytime group. Good Rosie is meant to be shared. Loved this so much!
Bat Citizens: defending the ninjas of the night by Rob Laidlaw. 48 p. Pajama Press Inc., May, 2018. 9781772780390.
Fact Friday features Bat Citizens: defending the ninjas of the night by Rob Laidlaw. This expository non-fiction is jam-packed with photos and information about bats. This is the book for you if you're needing to do some research. The author discusses bat anatomy, bat habitats, bat diet and factors that endanger the bat population. This is also the book for you if you love bats and want to help in conservation efforts. The author highlights the work of many citizen scientists, all of whom are children and teens. He also lists fourteen ways all of us can help this important creature survive and thrive.
Practical and positive, this book is bound to please, though some may find the layout cluttered. Some quibbles: a few of the photos are not the highest quality. In one, captioned as a butterfly bat, it is so cropped as to be useless as an identification tool. There are no source notes, bibliography or suggestions for further reading but there is a list of organizations and their websites.
No, David! by David Shannon. unpgd. Blue Sky Press/ Scholastic Inc., September, 1998. 978590930024. (Own.)
Welcome back TMS Readers! This is going to be the best school year yet! In the spirit of #nevertoooldforpicturebooks, #tbt features No, David! by David Shannon. It has been 20 years since the irrepressible David appeared and tickled the funny bones of kids and adults alike. When David Shannon was five-years-old, he wrote a book about a little boy who broke all the rules. In 1997, grown-up David Shannon came across his book and wrote and illustrated a book about that little boy. No, David! was published in September of 1998 and went on to win a Caldecott Honor, a New York Times Best Illustrated Book award, was named a Notable book by the ALA and was a School Library Journal Best Book. It sure was a favorite at my house. There were nine more David books published over the years, with the tenth, Grow Up, David!, written from the POV of David's older brother. Grow Up, David! released in late August. I will review it either later today or tomorrow in its own post.
Fat Angie: Rebel Girl Revolution by e. E. Charlton-Trujillo. 352 p. Candlewick Press, March 5, 2019. 9780763693459.
Publisher synopsis: More trouble at school and at home — and the discovery of a missive from her late soldier sister — send Angie and a long-ago friend on an RV road trip across Ohio.
Sophomore year has just begun, and Angie is miserable. Her girlfriend, KC, has moved away; her good friend, Jake, is keeping his distance; and the resident bully has ramped up an increasingly vicious and targeted campaign to humiliate her. An over-the-top statue dedication planned for her sister, who died in Iraq, is almost too much to bear, and it doesn't help that her mother has placed a symbolic empty urn on their mantel. At the ceremony, a soldier hands Angie a final letter from her sister, including a list of places she wanted the two of them to visit when she got home from the war. With her mother threatening to send Angie to a “treatment center” and the situation at school becoming violent, Angie enlists the help of her estranged childhood friend, Jamboree. Along with a few other outsiders, they pack into an RV and head across the state on the road trip Angie's sister did not live to take. It might be just what Angie needs to find a way to let her sister go, and find herself in the process.
I absolutely adored Fat Angie, which was published in 2013, and cannot wait to visit with Angie again.
Thunderhead by Neal Shusterman. Arc of a Scythe #2. Unabridged audiobook on one MP3 CD, hours, minutes. Read by Greg Tremblay. Brilliance Audio, April, 2018. 9781978614307. (Review from purchased audiobook.)
Happy Tuesday and first day of school for me, TMS Readers! Enjoy your lovely day off while we teachers prepare to welcome you back on Thursday! Teen Tuesday features Thunderhead by Neal Shusterman. Thunderhead is book two in the Arc of a Scythe series and you definitely should read book one, Scythe, first.
The series is set in the future when death and disease have been eradicated. Not only can one live several hundred years, but should one desire, he or she may "reset" their body to a younger age. Governments and most countries as we know it no longer exist. Crime is nearly non-existent. Life is good, if a bit boring. Everything is watched over and controlled by the Thunderhead. But the planet cannot support an unlimited population so Scythes are tasked with culling the population. Unlike the Thunderhead, Scythes are all too human, and being above the law, a faction has split off and seems to take pleasure in the killing.
The series centers around two teens, Citra and Rowan as they are chosen to become scythe apprentices but eventually end up as political pawns. Neal Shusterman is a master worldbuilder and storyteller. He keeps the reader off-balance and guessing. The ending of Thunderhead will leave the reader panting for the next installment, The Toll, which as yet, has neither a cover nor an expected due date!
I read both books in this series with my ears and thoroughly enjoyed Greg Tremblay's narration. While his pacing occasionally lags, he manages to maintain distinct voices for the large cast of characters. I especially like that his female voices are not breathy caricatures that many male narrators tend toward.
If you are a science fiction fan, you should definitely check this series out as well as Neal Shusterman's Unwind Dystology!
The Girl with More Than One Heart by Laura Geringer Bass. 240 p. Amulet Books/ Abrams, April, 2018. 9781419728822. (Review of finished copy courtesy of publisher.)
Happy Labor Day Monday, TMS Readers. Well, Tomorrow is back to school for me. I had a wonderful summer filled with gardening, yoga, walks with my dogs, a bit of travel and lots of reading. I can't wait to see you all on Thursday!
Middle Grade Monday features The Girl with More Than One Heart by Laura Geringer Bass. Life with a special needs brother sure is complicated for eighth grader Briana. It doesn't leave her mother with a lot of time or energy for Briana; but that is fine with her because she has her dad. He's her favorite parent and, she has a sneaking suspicion that she's his favorite. When he dies suddenly, it is Briana who discovers him slumped over his exercise bike. She also discovers the presence of a second heart right near her stomach. One that talks to her in her father's voice acting as her conscience and saying cryptic things such as, "Find her." As her mother slips into a grief-induced depression, care of her brother falls increasingly to Briana, leaving her no time to do anything for herself. Luckily, she has her grandpa Ben and his stories.
This tender story of healing is perfect for readers who love sad books. The story flashes from past to present and back and the writing is lovely. Eighth grade drama is spot on, as is the heartbreak of grief on a young family.
Stacking the Shelves is a weekly meme hosted by Tynga's Reviews. Hop on over there to ogle what other bloggers got this week.
For review: I came home a day early from vacation and found these in my mailbox!
The Brambly Head Complete Collection by Jill Barklem. 248 p. HarperCollins Publisher, October 23, 2018. 978008282820.
Publisher synopsis: Celebrate the world of Brambly Hedge with this exquisite slipcased volume containing all eight well-loved, classic picture books plus a special introduction from the author.
The mice of Brambly Hedge made their first appearance in 1980 when the four seasonal stories were published. Ever since, readers have loved exploring the miniature world of the hedgerow and meeting the families that live there.
In this collection the mice have many adventures, but they always have time for fun and relaxation too. Whatever the season, and whether they are by the sea, in the High Hills, or simply at home by the fire, there is always someone ready to lend a helping hand.
Contains 8 complete stories: Spring Story, Summer Story, Autumn Story, Winter Story, Poppy’s Babies, Sea Story, The High Hills, The Secret Staircase.
The Person You Mean to Be by Dolly Chugh. 320 p. HarperCollins Publisher, September 4, 2018. 9780062692146.
Publisher synopsis: Many of us believe in equality, diversity, and inclusion. But how do we stand up for those values in our turbulent world? The Person You Mean to Be is the smart, "semi-bold" person’s guide to fighting for what you believe in.
Dolly reveals the surprising causes of inequality, grounded in the "psychology of good people". Using her research findings in unconscious bias as well as work across psychology, sociology, economics, political science, and other disciplines, she offers practical tools to respectfully and effectively talk politics with family, to be a better colleague to people who don’t look like you, and to avoid being a well-intentioned barrier to equality. Being the person we mean to be starts with a look at ourselves.
She argues that the only way to be on the right side of history is to be a good-ish— rather than good—person. Good-ish people are always growing. Second, she helps you find your "ordinary privilege"—the part of your everyday identity you take for granted, such as race for a white person, sexual orientation for a straight person, gender for a man, or education for a college graduate. This part of your identity may bring blind spots, but it is your best tool for influencing change. Third, Dolly introduces the psychological reasons that make it hard for us to see the bias in and around us. She leads you from willful ignorance to willful awareness. Finally, she guides you on how, when, and whom, to engage (and not engage) in your workplaces, homes, and communities. Her science-based approach is a method any of us can put to use in all parts of our life.
Whether you are a long-time activist or new to the fight, you can start from where you are. Through the compelling stories Dolly shares and the surprising science she reports, Dolly guides each of us closer to being the person we mean to be.
Purchased: I usually try to pop into local indies when I am away. The Bookworm is a sweet little shop in Surf City. I popped in with #3 son because he was looking for a book to read. I was tickled to see a dad and his two kids troop in, bike helmets in hand to pick up their reserved copies of Dog Man: Lord of the Fleas and the latest Bad Guys, which I have already read. I decided I couldn't wait for my school book order to read Dog Man.
Dog Man: Lord of the Fleas by Dav Pilkey. Captain Underpants Dog Man series #5. 256 p. Graphix/ Scholastic Inc. August 28, 2018. 9780545935173.
Publisher synopsis: When a new bunch of baddies bust up the town, Dog Man is called into action -- and this time he isn't alone. With a cute kitten and a remarkable robot by his side, our heroes must save the day by joining forces with an unlikely ally: Petey, the World's Most Evil Cat. But can the villainous Petey avoid vengeance and venture into virtue?
That's what's new with me. What's new with you? Leave a link to your haul in the comments and I will stop by.
