CB #4: Shiloh

Shiloh
Author: Phyllis Reynolds Naylor
Illustrator: Phyllis Reynolds Naylor
Genre: Fiction
Subgenre: Realistic
Theme: friendship, companionship, caring, dogs, mans best friend
Primary Characters: Marty, Shiloh
Secondary Characters: mother, father
Awards: Newberry medal, Blue Bonnet
Date of Publication:  1991
Publishing company:  Simon and Schuster
What so you do when a dog you suspect is being mistreated runs away and comes to you?  When it is someone else's dog?  When the man who owns him had a gun?  This is Marty's problem, and he finds it is one he has to face alone.  When his solution gets too big for him to handle, things become more frightening still.  Marty puts his courage on the line, and discovers in the process that it is not always easy to separate right from wrong.  Sometimes, however, you do almost anything to save a dog.  This is a wonderful chapter book to read to children or have them start reading.  This is just enough challenge for children who need more experience with chapter books.  Such a wonderful, easy read!

CB #3: The Last Bit Bear

The Last Bit Bear
Author:  Sandra Chisholm de Yonge
Illustrator:  Ellen Meloy
Genre:  Fiction
Subgenre:  Fable
Theme:  animals, bears, pollution, life, careing
Primary Characters:  Clover, bit-bear
Secondary Characters:  other animals
Awards: N/A
Date of Publication:  2004
Publishing Company:  Roberts Rinehart Publishers
This special all-color edition of a classic children's environmental fable tells the story of Clover, the last bear of his kind, and his search for the leaves of the oak tree--the food upon which his life depends!

CB #2: The Updise-Down Reader

The Upside-Down Reader
Author:  Wilhelm Gruber
Illustrator:  Marlies Rieper-Bastian
Genre:  Fiction
Subgenre: behavioral challenge
Theme:  school, brothers and sisters, help, literacy
Primary Characters:  Tina, Tim
Secondary Characters: mother, teacher, friends
Awards:N/A
Date of Publication: 2000
Publishing Company: North-South
Tim's big sister Tina goes to real school and she is learning to read.  Tim is stuck in playschool, where all he learns is tumbling.  He wants to read too and he tries to catch up with Tina by sitting across from her while she words on her reading.  As Tina sounds out each word, Tim follows along from the opposite side of the table.  Soon, they're both reading--but Tim does it upside-down.  This is a great book to read to children who are just starting to read.  This is a wonder addition to any school library.  It is made for ages 6-9 and would be perfect for literacy lessons.

CB #1: The Whale

The Whale
Author:  Cynthia Rylant
Illustrator:  Preston McDaniels
Genre: Fiction
Subgenre:  Fable
Theme:  friendship, caring, love, kindness
Primary Characters: Whistler, Lila, Pandora, Seabold, Huck
Secondary Characters: Sebastian, Honey, Tiny, Whale Pod
Awards: N/A
Date of Publication:  2003
Publishing Company:  Simon and Schuster
Pandora, Seabold, Whistler, Lila, and Tiny have all been enjoying the love and comfort that being a family brings.  It is a comfort they are unexpectedly reminded of when Whistler and Lila hear the cries of a lonely beluga whale names Sebastian.  When they learn that he has lost his mama, the Lighthouse Family, with the help of a cranky but noble old cormorant named Huck, does all it can to reunite mother and child.  This book is a great way to teach children responsibility to someones feelings and how to care for someone in general.

PB #8: Beautiful Blackbird

Beautiful Blackbird

Author:  Ashley Bryan
Illustrator:  Ashley Bryan

Genre:  Fiction

Subgenre:  Folklore

Theme:  country, ethnic, zambia, birds, color

Primary characters: blackbird

Secondary characters:  other birds

Awards: Coretta Scott King Award

Date of Publication: 2003

Publishing Company:  Atheneum Bookf for Young Readers

Coretta Scott King Award winner Ashley Bryan's adaption of a tale from Ila-speaking people of Zambia resonates both with rhythm and the tale's universal meaning-- appreciating one's heritage and discovering the beauty within.

PB #7: Blueberries for Sal

Blueberries for Sal
Author:  Robert McCloskey
Illustrator:  Robert McCloskey

Genre: Fiction

Subgenre: Fairytale

Theme:  motherhood, obedience, love, adventure

primary characters: Sal, Little Bear

Secondary Characters: Mother, Mama Bear
Awards:  Caldecott Honor Book
Date of Publication:  1987

Publishing Company: Scholastic

Kuplink! Kuplink! Kuplink!  Sal and her mother are picking blueberried to can for the winter.  But when Sal wanders to the other side of Blueberry Hill, she discovers a mama bear preparing for her own long winter.  Meanwhile, Sal's mother is being followed by a small bear with a big appetite for berries.  Will each mother go home with the right little one?

PB #6: Once Upon a Time

Once Upon a Time

Author: Niki Daly
Illustrator:  Niki Daly

Genre:  Fiction

Subgenre:  Realistic

Theme:  reading, friendship, self-esteem

Primary Characters:  Sarie, Auntie Anna

Secondary Characters:  Mr. Adonis, Emile

Awards:  n/a

Date of Publication:  2003

Publisher: Macmillan

Niki Daly's illustrations set Sarie's tale under the vast and beautiful skies of the South African Karoo, and his encouraging story shows daunted young readers the power and magic of a good book-- and the joy of having a good friend to share it with.

PB #5: Those Shoes

Those Shoes
Author:  Maribeth Boelts
Illustrator:  Noah Z. Jones

Genre:  Juvenile Fiction

Subgenre: Realistic

Theme:  Social Issues, friendship, peer pressure

primary characters:  Jeremy

secondary characters: Mr. Alfrey, Grandma, Antonio

Awards: n/a

Date of Publication:2007

Publishing Company:  Candlewick Press

This book is a great book to read to a classroom.  Not only does it have great illustrations, but it also has great themes to show people that you do not eed everything everyone has.  It teaches great lessons and also has great pictures that coincide with the story it is telling.  It talks about a boy who is haunted by this pair of shoes he has been wanting, that everyone else wears at school.  He trys to convince his Grandma how much he wants them, and meets a new friend along the way!

PB #4: The Drowsy Hours: Poems for bedtime

The Drowsy Hours: Poems for Bedtime

Complied by: Susan Pearson
Illustrator:  Peter Malone

Genre: Fiction

Subgenre:  Poem

Theme:  sleeping, night time, poetry

Primary Characters:  many in all stories

Secondary characters:  many in all stories

Awards:  n/a

Date of Publication:  2002

Publishing company:  HarperCollins

This book is a great reference to show what poetry is to students.  Not only is it about poetry it is great to utilize to students about themed poetry as well.  I enjoyed reading this book because everything had a purpose for being in a book about lullabies and bedtime stories.

PB #3: Lies and Other Tall Tales

Lies and Other Tall Tales

Compiled by: Zora Neale Hurston
Illustrator:  Christopher Myers

Genre:  Juvenile Fiction

Subgenre:  Fairy Tales & Folklore
Theme:  Unites Sates, Afircan American, People and Places
Primary Characters: many in each story
Secondary Characters: many in each story
Awards:  n/a
Date of Publication:  2005

Publishing Company:  HarperCollins

This book would only be sufficent when talking about different types of stories in the classroom.  This is a great book about tall tales and stories that describe things that are not true.  There are many reviews that say a teacher should not tell these stories in a classroom, but I think telling a couple of stories out of this book would not hurt a thing.

PB #2: The Featherless Chicken

The Featherless Chicken
Author:  Zhiyuan Chen
Illustrator: Chih-Yuan Chen

Genre:  Juvinile Fiction

Subgenre:  picture book; animals, birds

Theme:  self-acceptance

Primary Characters:  the Featherless chicken

Secondary Characters:  the feather chickens

Awards:  n/a

Date of Publication:  2006

Filled with bold illustrations and wry humor, this twist on the ugly duckling tale places a chicken in the lead role. The chicken has no feathers and he longs to play with the other beautiful chickens in the yard, but they turn him down, ridiculing him for his bare skin. When he discovers a creative camouflage for his paltry plumage, however, the other chickens allow him to join them on a boat ride, never expecting that a surprising accident will change the way they see themselves and the (formerly) featherless chicken.