The Book Blog for Boys

White Fang

2008-09-29T10:05:00.000-07:00

I picked this book to read because of the cover. It had a big picture of a wolf. The wolf's name was White Fang. When White Fang was a baby all of his brothers and sisters died and White Fang's mom was always protecting him. One time she protected him from another wolf and she killed the wolf. Something happened to White Fang's mom and then he became a sled dog and he was in the back, but they said to put him in front because he was the strongest wolf in the pack and he started to get wiser and stronger. White Fang killed another dog though so they let him go, but he found some white people and he saw that they treated their dogs really nicely. He made friends with Gray Beaver. This guy came over and said I want to buy this dog, but he didn't have enough money. But then he became rich and he bought White Fang from Gray Beaver because Gray Beaver didn't have any food or money. But the guy put him in a cage and made him fight with other dogs and he would whip him. White Fang fought with a bulldog and the bulldog was biting White Fang's neck and they were rolling around and Gray Beaver came and stopped the fight and bought White Fang back. Then they had a dog that always followed White Fang around , but White Fang couldn't fight back because it was a girl and at the end they got married and had 6 babies.

I liked this book a lot because White Fang was really tough and he survived. I would recommend this book to other boys my age because it's about animals and it's a really good story about friendship and it's better than other books I've read. I heard there is a White Fang 2. I want to read it.

Success-For-All, including us!

2008-09-26T12:02:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was the happiest day in the history of the world!

Yesterday we were doing touch-down dances and shouting from the roof-tops!

Yesterday I became $40 poorer because my twins are officially READING AT GRADE LEVEL!

The gods of the GATES reading assessment test heard and answered our humble pleadings and that 40 days and nights of fasting paid off.

All joking aside, It was the most incredible feeling to watch my boys eyes light up when they heard the news. I could see the Hey-does-that-mean-I'm-not-dumb-anymore? look on their faces and it kinda sorta almost brought me to tears, just a little teeny tiny bit.

LIFE IS BEAUTIFUL!

Still awaiting answer to my humble prayers . . .

2008-09-25T12:27:00.000-07:00

Today, we find out if my 4th grade twins were finally able to break the shackles of their 2nd grade reading level. In my heart I know they already have, but I want to shout it from the rooftops, "Seeeeee! I told you so!" to all the teachers who send home after-school tutoring forms to be filled out and returned ASAP.

Yesterday, as soon as my twins walked in the door, I was all over them: How went the test? Was it hard? Did you know the answers? Yes, of course you can eat now, our 40 days and 40 nights of fasting is over.

"I think I scored an 8.0," said Garrett. He was totally serious. "At least I hope so because I really want that $1,000 you promised me if I scored an 8.0." (Did I say that?)

"Tell me tell me tell me all about it," I said.

"Well, it was scarey," he said. "My heart was pounding. Butterflies. I was really nervous . . . because I really want that $1,000." (I know I didn't say that!)

I just want a 4.0! Is that so wrong? I confess I did promise them $20 if they tested on a 4th grade level.

(But hey, if they can read at an 8th grade level, a dirt bike is not out of the question).

The GATES Reading Placement Test Prayer

2008-09-24T10:29:00.000-07:00

Dear Gates-Reading-Test-god,

I come before you, humbly, with fingers crossed (and arms crossed
and legs crossed and eyes crossed).

Almighty decider of fate, it's been 5 years since you have granted my twins
a star on the forehead for reading at grade level.

I have never asked anything of you before, but today they will meet you for
the first time as 4th graders, so I ask that you smile upon them
and make yourself clear, oh so transparently clear to them.

And please, please, please if they test at 2nd grade level again, don't
tell their teachers and their friends. I would never ask you to lie,
but a little fibbing never hurt anyone.

If it be thy will, please let them shine.
Please let them make their teachers scratch their heads in bewilderment.
May they do a touchdown dance and sing Nana nana boo boo for once in their life.

But if it be thy will that you remain an obstacle in their path, grant them the
serenity to use you as a stomping, I mean stepping stone and not a stumbling block.

Amen

Zach's Story: The Success (An ounce of effort goes a long way, and a gallon lasts forever)

2008-09-19T11:16:00.000-07:00

A few nights ago we went out to play tennis and didn't get to bed until 10:15 pm. My husband declared, "It's too late to read, get to bed!"

The boys brushed their teeth and shuffled off to their room. When I appeared in their doorway to say goodnight, guess what I found?

Wyatt reading White Fang and Garrett reading Crash!

(Secret HOORAY!)

I couldn't resist stretching out on the floor on my stomach and picking up a book myself. When Wyatt finally closed his book I asked him how the story was going.

"White Fang is getting stronger," he said. "And wiser."

(Secret sigh!)

The whole time we were reading Zach was zonked. He had obeyed his father. And I realized as I watched him sleeping that I had not finished telling you his story. I shared with you his reading struggles, but I never shared his successes. So this is Zach's Story Part II: The Success. Not because I want to brag.

Because I'm so proud of him.

And because I want you know there's hope.

And because he's NOT dumb. In fact he's a very critical thinker who as a little boy would ponder deeply important questions, like can Pokemon beat up Satan? and are Santa Claus and Jesus brothers? And yet there has always been this thorn in his side--his reading/writing/spelling.

But I wasn't about to let my son feel dumb because he was a slow reader.

Fourth grade was a turning point, and for two years we worked to help him overcome his self-doubt in his academic abilities by reading to him and pushing him to read.

In 6th grade he won the school science fair, competed in the district science fair competition and the state Math Bowl. At the end of the year he received the Presidential Academic Award, the Top Scholar Award, and the Citizen of the Year award. He won the state History Day competition, 5th place at the National History Day competition, and the History of Baseball award which landed him $500.

It was a gallon of effort, I confess, BUT the payoff is forever. Now he's in 7th grade and he's pulling straight A's in the honors program. He does all of his own homework on his own--researching, writing, developing ideas . . . Last week he asked me to check his current event report. I sat down at the computer and my mouth dropped. He had introducted his sources and used transitions to tie his points together. He had capitalized, quoted, punctuated.

The skills and confidence he has developed will last forever and best of all, he feels smart and capable.

And it all started with reading.

Don't give up!

Goosebumps (and a music lesson)

2008-09-19T02:18:00.001-07:00

I've always been curious about the appeal of R.L. Stine's Goosebumps series so I picked Let's Get Invisible up on my last trip to the thrift store. I only got to page 11 before throwing in the towel. Unfortunately this leaves me with absolutely no opinion of the plot, but I know exactly what's troubling me about the book--the way the sentences sound.

When you open a book the words make music. Gary Provost, author of several books on effective writing, says in Making Words Work, writing is not a visual art, it's a symphony. "It's the shattering, not the glass. It's the ringing, not the bell"

I know I've harped a lot on the importance of an interesting story, but I bet another reason boys get bored with reading is simply because of the way the sentences sound. The way the words fall on their ears is no different than the rhythms of a song that hooks them. If an author wants to hook a reader, he's got to have rhythm.

Great writing employs a variety of both sentence lengths and structures. For instance, the following numbers are the length of each sentence on a single page in Dan Gutman's The Million Dollar Shot: 17, 10, 6, 16, 9, 7, 10, 17, 12, 11, 12, 16, 5, 9, 6, 10, 12, 14, 12 4, 9, 13, 10, 14, 6

Notice how the sentences crescend and descrescend, creating a dynamic tone.

Here are the sentence lengths from a page in Stine's Let's Get Invisible: 9, 6, 6, 10, 8, 17, 8, 7, 9, 6, 9, 8, 6, 6, 12, 9, 4, 4, 8, 13, 6, 7.

Most of the sentences are approximately the same length--short, creating a choppy tone.

An author might be able to get away with this if he varies his sentence construction, but Stine's sentences are frequently structured the same way, subject/predicate/object, creating a monotonous tone.

Listen for youself. The following is a string of examples, all taken from the beginning of sentences on a single page in Let's Get Invisible:

Dad says, I turned, I grabbed, I hit, Lefty and I held, I think, He said, He thought, I knew, I started, He and I raced, He handed, Lefty grabbed . . .

A little switch-a-roo of the object and the subject, (to vary the structure) and maybe combining a sentence or two (to vary the length) could do wonders.

Like this:

Here's a real sentence from Let's Get Invisible.

The door had a rusted latch about halfway up. It slid off easily, and the warped wooden door started to swing open before I even pulled at it. The door hinges squeaked as I pulled the door toward me, revealing solid darkness on the other side.

SIDE NOTE: The word door is repeated 4 times and the word pulled, twice. (Redundant).

Why not make this sentence easier on the ears? Like this:

The rusted latch, about halfway up the warped wooden door, slid off easily before I even touched it. Hinges creaked as I pulled the door open, revealing solid darkness on the other side.

Viola!

(Am I sounding like your annoying high school English teacher yet?)

Zach's Story (and one more cheer for Dan Gutman)

2008-09-18T09:20:00.000-07:00

Last night, as we were winding down for the night, Wyatt grabbed White Fang and Garrett grabbed Crash, but it wasn't smooth sailing like the previous night. Settling down didn't come easy. And then when they did settle down, Wyatt kept trying to figure out who Gray Beaver was in his story. "Maybe it's a beaver, duh!" said Garrett. "Beavers can't keep up with Dogs, DUH!" Wyatt shot back. While they were batting that argument back and forth Zach was trying to decide what book he was going to read. I passed him some Andrew Clements, since I'm going to review his books later today (check back in) and some Jerry Spinelli. I passed him the sequel to Holes. I told him to try one of the sequels to Hatchet, or some Goosebumps? All books I want to review soon.

It's not the first time we've gone through this. You all know what I'm talking about. Chosing a book is half the battle and Zach is my hardest son to please. He has the most emotional baggage about books. He went the longest feeling dumb because he tested low and struggled to decode words. I wasn't tuned in to the angst of reluctant readers until his 3rd grade year. By that time he had been teased one too many times and felt humiliated over being placed in lower then grade level SFA reading groups. His test scores in other subjects were plummeting too because he was expected to read directions and instructions by himself.

I got serious about working with him over the summer before 4th grade, but it was next to impossible by that time. He was already convinced he was dumb. I bought Hooked on Phonics and Audiblocks. (great program, btw) I read books about Dyslexia and A.D.D. I counseled with school counselors, consulted Dr. Google and started reading out loud to my boys at night. (The twins were already complaining that reading was dumb and boring). I began with Magic Tree House (YAWN), and from there tried every series I could get my hands on. It was a looooooooong and thorny path to get him past the first sentence of a book.

Thanks heavens for Franny K. Stein and for Dan Gutman.

So last night I had a slight flashback. Zach picked up 6 or 7 books, read the first sentence, snapped the book shut and tossed it aside.

"Mom, I am NOT reading this book!" he said. "Listen to this: The minute the two friends saw each other they burst into tears."

"Not reading this either: Yesterday I left Lathbury behind. I traveled with father and he let me drive the cart on the way to Bridewell."

SNAP!

A testament to how critical that first sentence of a book can be.

Fianlly he grabbed a Dan Gutman book. The Million Dollar Shot! It was about basketball. "I always prayed to be on the Shirts because I'm real skinny and I don't like taking my shirt off in front of people. It's embarrassing." Now there was something he could relate to.

He read the first chapter out loud. I found myself listening to his story and smiling rather than concentrating on the book I was reading.

Have I mentioned yet that I just LOVE LOVE LOVE Dan Gutman? Because if I haven't . . .

Baby Steps and Big Leaps

2008-09-17T09:09:00.000-07:00

Last night I tested my soap box theory. I decided to encourage Garrett to give Crash, by Jerry Spinelli another chance, (even though the words on the page are teensy and he practically needs magnifying glasses to read it). If he didn't take the bait I was going to read a few chapters to him just to see if he enjoyed the story. Well, I didn't even have to suggest it. He tackled that book like a true linebacker. (Couldn't resist that metaphor since the book is about football).

He grabbed a baseball card to keep his place on the page and began reading out loud. I sat on the mushroom chair in the corner and listened, my mouth gaping open. He was incredible. He was smooth. He was . . . funny.

He kept pausing and laughing to himself. "Listen to this," he would say. And then he'd read me a passage with matching voice inflection. He was loving it. These passages had nerve.

"Mom, listen, when Crash was in first grade he was sitting in his yard digging with his little red shovel and this little runt comes walking up the sidewalk" . . . then he starts reading. I feel a lump in my throat. He's reading with . . . attitude:

It was coming from a funny-looking dorky little runt walking up the sidewalk. Only he wasn't just walking regular. He was walking like he owned the place, both hands in his pockets, sort of swaying lah-dee-dah with each step. strollllll-ing. Strolling and gawking at the houses and whistling a happy little dorky tune like some sneezy or snoozy or whatever their names are. A few minutes later:

"He stuck out his scrawny chest. It says "Hi, I'm a flickertail"

"What's a flickertail?"

"A flickertail is a squirrel. There are lots of them in North Dakota. That's why it's called the Flickertail state. What is Pennsylvania called?"

"The Poop State."

That line got repeated several times, as you can imagine.

But that was just Garrett. I haven't even started with Wyatt. He was laying on his bed, completely focused, reading White Fang under his breath.

On and on he read. Garrett finished chapter 1 and held his place at page 5, but Wyatt kept reading. Garrett brushed his teeth and climbed into bed, and still Wyatt read on. I checked the page, 58, before I started getting Zach to bed. He was still reading when my husband and I went out for a walk, page 66. When we returned he was asleep with the book beside him. I opened it to the book mark. Page 72!

I put on the Rocky soundtrack and went to bed with a smile.

Take THAT, GATES reading test!

Up on My Soapbox

2008-09-16T19:02:00.000-07:00

When I first started teaching Freshman composition courses, that was exactly what they were--composition. My job was to teach students how to write the various types of essays and a research paper. It was fine, but nothing to get a charge about. After a few years my boss gathered us teachers together and told us we were boring our students to tears and we needed to change things up. The university gave the whole program an extreme make-over and literature was added . . . hallelujah chorus!

Finally the students actually had something to think deeply about, grapple with and write about. The level of intellectual engagement shot through the roof and students sprang to life in class. Surprisingly, (and not surprisingly) so did the level of writing. I began to enjoy grading (as much as it's possible to enjoy grading) because the papers were no longer mindless and hum-drum. Best of all, the students began to find (a little bit of) joy in writing.

I remembered this this morning when I suggested in my Cam Jansen post that beginning readers may not really need story, and that perhaps decoding words was enough.

Words are magic, but they have no power without ideas. The story is the hook. Without story, our reluctant, hesitant readers will never catch the spirit.

My mission for this blog is to find excellent, stimulating stories that have the power to infuse the joy of reading, thinking, feeling, learning, pondering and virtual traveling into all those boys out there who are distracted by X-Box, gameboys, Ipods and Phinnaues and Ferb.

The earlier the better, right?

More to come . . .

Cam Jansen

2008-09-16T11:16:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I picked up a dozen or so used books at a thrift store. Before I put my twins to bed, I dumped them on the floor and they eagerly rummaged through the pile to choose which ones they would claim for their own. Among them were three Newbery books and three Cam Jansen's. Surprisingly, neither of the twins picked any of these books.

Wyatt is an animal lover so I wasn't shocked when he chose White Fangby Jack London (the dumbed down version--the Young Collector's Illustrated Classics.) Garrett chose Crash, by Jerry Spinelli which shocked me a bit because he loves mysteries and he's reading Cam Jansen at school in his SFA group--Success For All. (SFA is a program that tests and then catagorizes students according to their reading level. My twins have been testing poorly since 1st grade--consistantly below grade level--which bewilders me because even though they're not crazy about reading, they seem to decode the words quite well).

I've never read any of the Cam Jansen series by David Adler so I chose one and stretched out on my stomach across the floor. The twins made use of me as their pillow and we all cracked open our books and began reading. Garrett was immediately intimidated by the super small words on the pages of his book so it wasn't long before he traded for a Cam Jansen. The books are a quick read at approximately 60 pages per book, with illustrations. I was nearly finished when I said, "Garrett, how come you read these books at school?" Without hesitation he said "Cause I suck at reading."

Hmmmm. Not exactly the way you want your kid to feel about the books he's asked to read at school.

"Do you like Cam Jansen books?" I asked. "No, they're boring," he replied.

Hmmmm.

I don't always trust my children when they say a book is boring. Sometimes a book may be boring because they don't understand it, or because they are impatient and want to get to the point right away. Other times they just don't give it a chance. But sometimes a book may be boring because . . . it's boring.

After reading three Cam Jansen's last night, I think the latter may be the case. The Cam Jansen series is a cute idea and has been in circulation for 28 years, so there's obviously an appeal. A 10 year old girl has a photographic memory which helps her solve mysteries. But the mysteries I read didn't feel very mysterious, and the reader doesn't really get to help solve them. I kept trying to figure out why the book is so bogged down with extraneous (yawn) details--a lot of time standing in line to buy food. I thought the details might be clues worth paying attention to in order to solve the mystery, but there is no payoff for remembering what animal shape was stamped on Cam's hand when she entered the amusement park, or why the lady in line to buy popcorn was wearing a pink jogging suit. I suspect Adler is trying to help readers learn how to muddle through details to figure out which ones will help solve the case, but this is a risky method, which may likely confuse readers and turn them off. Details must move the story along as well as provide information. I found this series to be tedious.

It may however work well for beginning readers who are learning to decode words and are less concerned about story. (Not sure I totally agree with what I just said, but there must be a place for Cam Jansen somewhere out there beyond my book shelf). I just don't see it as a stimulating option for a 4th grader, even one who scores below grade level on the GATES reading test.

The Million Dollar Putt

2008-09-15T00:49:00.000-07:00

Reviewed by Zach

The Million Dollar Putt by Dan Gutman was the first book I read all the way through by myself. I started it because my mom read all of his Baseball Adventure Series books to me so I know I like Dan Gutman. The book is also set in Hawaii, which I liked because I live in Hawaii.

The story is about a blind kid who loves golfing so his nickname is Bogey. Both of his parents were good golfers, but hand he happens to be really good at it. One day he went to a driving range with his friends and found out he was really good at it. He used to sneak into the golf course and play rounds with Birdie. His dad used to be a professional golfer and his mom too, but his mom died so his dad didn’t want him to golf. Now his dad’s job is diving for golf balls.

My favorite part of the book was the last shot for the million dollar putt. He curves it around this tree with his dad’s advice and he the ball goes through a lot of obstacles and you’ll have to read the book to see if he makes it or not. This is a really great book!

Calvin and Hobbes: Weirdos from Another Planet

2008-09-13T11:56:00.000-07:00

Reviewed by Garrett

I like reading Calvin and Hobbes. They are weird. Once they were digging for bones, but they just found old trash and stuff. But they still built a dinosaur out of the cans. The thing I really like about Calvin and Hobbes is that it's really funny how he talks to his tiger. Once when he came back from school his tiger was hiding and he said "I'm home." And when the tiger jumped out his eyes got really big and his hair got all spikey. The tiger scared Calvin so many times, but then the last time Calvin scared the tiger.

The pictures are so funny. I also like it because there are a lot of cartoons on each page and each one is different. I feel happy when I read it. I'm on page 32 out of 130 pages. I'm glad I still have a lot of cartoons to read. I like to read it every night. The end.

Cheers, Dan: an interview with my favorite children's author, Dan Gutman

2008-09-05T14:49:00.000-07:00

As you know, my favorite children's book author is Dan Gutman. I love love love (did I mention love) anything and everything written by him. Besides Franny K. Stein, I give him credit for getting my oldest son, Zach to read. His Million Dollar Putt, from his Million Dollar series, was the first book Zach ever read without being prodded. It was also the only book he's read in which he pretended he couldn't play so he could finish. Gutman's Baseball Adventure series hooked us from the start, and they are the only books I buy in hard cover as soon as they're released. I read all of them to my sports fanatic boys because as soon as I'd crack the cover and open my mouth, they would freeze (highly unusual). At times Zach couldn't handle the pace and would read ahead on his own.

Gutman's series books are all targeted for different age groups and audiences, and though you're guarenteed to adore them all, you wouldn't even know they were written by the same author.

Not only is Gutman a great author, he's also a really nice guy, who granted my son an interview for his history day project about Jackie Robinson. He also granted us an interview for this blog.

My kids and I came up with a list of questions and . . . drumroll, here are Mr. Dan Gutman's answers:

Q. What is your writing process/schedule?
Dan Gutman: After my kids leave for school in the morning, I head upstairs to my office and try to write for a few hours. Then I'll come down for lunch. The afternoon is usually spent on paperwork, email, research, busy stuff like that.

Q. How much time do you spend writing each day?
Dan Gutman: About 2 hours. After that, my brain stops working.

Q. Would your kids say you are a funny dad?
Dan Gutman: I'm not sure. They claim my jokes are lame. But I don't stop making them. It's not like living with Henny Youngman (which wouldn't be much fun, because he's dead), but I try to keep things light when possible.

Q. Which authors or books did/do you like?
Dan Gutman: None of them. No, just kidding. A few favorites: Dave Barry, Mark Twain, Carl Hiassen, Gary Paulsen, Robert Benchley.

Q. Who were your inspirations?
Dan Gutman: The Beatles, Woody Allen, Mad Magazine, Laugh-In, Get Smart, Picasso, Edison. But mainly, The Beatles.

Q. How do you get all your crazy ideas?
Dan Gutman: They're beamed to me from outer space. Also, my kids, my wife, and reading the newspaper every day. Reality is weirder than anything I could ever make up.

Q. Do you have any hobbies?
Dan Gutman: Riding my bike, photography, music, movies.

Q. You said Johnny Hangtime was your favorite work so far? Why is that your favorite?
Dan Gutman: Because sometimes you have a good idea and poor execution, and sometimes you have a bad idea and great execution. But on that one, I think it was a great idea and great execution. So why is it one of my worst selling books?

Q. Do you plan on writing any more of your current series books? What can your fans look forward to from you in the future?
Dan Gutman: My Weird School will extend to 30 books. There will be 11 baseball card adventures. After those two series are finished, I plan to have a nervous breakdown and then start all over again.

Q. How much time do you spend doing research? I notice all of your books are
more than just entertaining, they are very informative and even touch on some
important social, political and emotional issues.
Dan Gutman: It's about time somebody noticed! I spend a LOT of time learning all about my subject. If I can sneak a little learning in there while I'm telling a good story, and the kids don't even notice, well, I've achieved my goal.

Cheers,
Dan

For more information about Dan Gutman and his books visit: http://www.dangutman.com/

Diary of a Wimpy Kid

2008-09-04T16:24:00.000-07:00

Unhinging hilarity. A laugh-out loud novel. Should keep the readers in stiches. These are all bits of reviews on the back of the Diary of a Wimpy Kid series. An excellent choice for reluctant readers, it says. (So, if my boys didn't like it does that mean they're not reluctant readers anymore?)

I pinned my summer reading hopes on Diary of a Wimpy Kid. Garrett enthusiastically picked it out at the school book fair and, after seeing it was the #1 New York Times Bestseller, I didn't protest. In fact I was excited. There was a buzz about it--my friends were talking, boys were reading, it was flying off the shelves, and when I went back to the book fair the next day to buy book II in the series, it was already sold out. This was golden.

Each night I would hand it to Garrett as he was getting into bed, but instead he'd reach for Weirdos from Another Planet, a collection of Calvin and Hobbes cartoons. I brought it on our family vacation, anxious for our boys to have something fun to read on the plane or during the down time. Whenever I pulled it out, Garrett would say, Did you bring my Calvin and Hobbes?

We've been back in school for a month and it's still unopened next to Garrett's bed, so last night I decided to read it for myself.

SIGH! I almost cracked a smile on page 44, but the rest just made me cranky. That's not a good sign. So this morning I cornered Garrett and Wyatt about it. They were quiet, evasive, passive.

OUT WITH IT! I finally commanded.

That book's not even funny. Wyatt finally said. Everyone thinks it's so funny, but it's just dumb.

Garrett hung his head, I didn't like it, Mom. Sorry. I thought it was boring.

I think I'm changing my views about reluctant readers. They need stimulation!

(And if a book has glowing reviews plastered across the back cover . . . be skeptical!)

Tom Sawyer--some books are worth the challenge!

2008-09-04T12:22:00.001-07:00

Some books are better when read aloud. Some books need to be experienced.

If a book is difficult, but well worth the read, it may take a lot more effort and energy than a child is willing and able to exert. That's where a parent or teacher can step in and impress a story upon a child's heart forever.

When I was a child my parents gathered us around regularly and read J.R.R. Tolkiens The Hobbit, and then The Lord of the Rings Trilogy. It's the warmest coziest family memory I have and because of it I harbor a deep emotional connection to Bilbo and Gandolf and Frodo and Sam, and I've never forgotten the lessons they taught me about loyalty and courage and struggle.

I teach Freshman literature and composition at a small liberal arts college and I always begin the semester with Hamlet, mostly because it's my favorite Shakespeare play, but also because my class theme is Complex Ethics and Simple Truths, and Hamlet is chock full of moral complexity. But it's a difficult read, particularly for second language students. (This semester, out of my 44 students, only 9 are from the U.S. The rest are from Tonga, Samoa, the Philippines, Korea, Japan, China, Hong Kong, Mongalia, Australia, New Zealand, Fiji, Thailand, Cambodia and even Austria.) I get a lot of complaints that Shakespeare is too hard, but I don't buy that. I know my students are up for the challenge.

To prepare my students for Hamlet, I show an inspiring film about a teacher named Rafe Esquith who teaches 5th grade at Hobarth Elementary School in Los Angelos, and has this magical ability to get results and teach kids morals, partly by using difficult and challenging texts, like Hamlet. After watching The Hobarth Shakespeareans for the first time I realized I was underestimating the power a challenging book can have on even the most hesitant reader and decided to change my approach at home to match my approach in the classroom.

I made a book list of difficult, but classic stories I wanted to read aloud to my kids and started with Tom Sawyer.

It took us 6 months to get through it. Not an easy journey, but an interesting and rewarding one. Not only is the vocabulary difficult, but the dialect is completely foreign--much like Shakespeare. I had to stop often to explain vocabulary and context. There were times when the boys got fidgety and complained that they didn't understand what was going on. Often, in the beginning, they would sit and play with their gameboys or look at baseball cards while I read. But I plugged away at it and it paid off. The boys began asking me to read Tom Sawyer to them every night. When I finished a chapter they would ask for another and then another.

The story is compelling and the characters are multi-faceted--nothing cardboard or fast-food about this book. You rarely find round characters like Tom Sawyer and Huck Finn in children's books today. These boys aren't always well-behaved, but they are real, and Mark Twain doesn't make them misbehave for the sake of entertaining a bored audience. He gives them real emotions and fears, which are often humorously complex and intense. They don't like doing chores or sitting through church. They ditch school, twist the truth and say rotten words. All the things we forbid our boys to do, but they do anyway. My boys sleep through church, pass blame to each other and laugh hysterically anytime someone mentions words about bodily functions. I don't love this about boys, but it's real, and I love real.

The conflict is serious and dramatic. Tom and Huck witness a murder. That's big-time. But the subplots and subsequent conflicts made my boys laugh and think and question and wonder. Tom and Huck are superstitious and quirky and charming and Mark Twain is smart and witty and insightful. Reading it was an experience. A memory.

After we finished we rented the one version of the movie I could find. (The musical with Jodie Foster). Interestingly, My boys watched it over and over and over again.

Now we're on to Huck Finn. My daughter is reading it in her English class and thinks it's the most pointless, boring book in the world. She feels so sorry for the boys that they have to listen to me read it. But I can't help but believe if she were to listen in and read it with us slowly so we could digest it and experience it together, she'd probably fall in love with Huck Finn.

It's worth the challenge anyway!

Franny K. Stein--Mad Scientist (book 1 reviewed by Garrett)

2008-09-03T09:51:00.000-07:00

Review by Garrett--Sept 2008

I finished the first Franny K. Stein last night. My friend read it 7 times and now he's reading the 2nd one. Franny K. Stein is easy to read for a 4th grader because it has a lot of pictures in the pages. The pictures are funny. The vocabulary is harder than Boxcar Children though, but the Boxcar Children takes longer to read. I like Boxcar Children more because it has more mystery, but Franny K. Stein is more funny than Boxcar Children. I laughed so hard when the little kid peed in his pants.

There is a monster in this book because of one of Franny's experiments and a guy put a pumpkin and another guy spit his gum out and another guys put an old shoe in the garbage can and then one guy put unstable industrial waste in too. Then a monster popped out and it was a cool monster with a pumpkin head on it. He grabbed miss Shelley and climbed the flag pole. Franny asked all the people in her class to bring her all their lunches and then she got the meat and a needle and string and sewed it together and made a meat creature. They also made a pile out of the peanut butter and jelly sandwhiches if Miss Shelley fell. When she fell it was the loudest poof in the world. The next day at school Franny thought that everyone was going to hate her. But right when she came in to the class everyone said hip hip hooray.

The lesson Franny learned was about friendship. She learned how to get along with the people at school. She also learned that she could be herself and it's okay to be a mad scientist.

The happiest mom in the world!

2008-09-02T11:27:00.000-07:00

No, that's not a book title, (but it should be). It's just me, writing a follow up to yesterday's Shel Silverstein post.

Last night I sent the boys to bed with a promise I'd tuck them in when I was finished helping my daughter with her homework. As soon as I opened their bedroom door here is what I saw:

(None of these photos are staged, cross-my-heart-and-hope-to-die, double swear on the Holy Bible).

Zach was reading Shel Silverstein again. Out loud! When I came in he asked me to help him find the poem about the beard so we looked through the glossary together and then he read it over and over, laughing out loud each time as if it was the funniest thing in the world. I just have to share it:

It's probably a boy thing, but whatever works.

I stretched out on my stomach on the floor and listened to him read and laugh over silly poems about thumbs and jump ropes and boa constrictors. Then he asked me to read to him, so I took the book and read about the magical eraser and the dancing pants and the recipe for a hippopotamus sandwich, feeling warm fuzzies each time he'd chuckle at a funny line. Soon I looked over and he was fast asleep.

I went to bed feeling like the happiest mom in the world.

Where the Sidewalk Ends

2008-09-01T08:02:00.000-07:00

I bought Shel Silverstein's Where the Sidewalk Ends years ago at a school book fair when I read somewhere that the best way to help your child learn to read and love to read is to recite poetry to them while they're young. It seemed like odd advice, but I was desperate and willing to pluck hairs and burn wax if I had to. Apparently the magic is somewhere in the way repetitive rhymes bend the brain.

It was worth a shot, I had read a lot of Dr. Suess and Mother Goose to my daughter and she was a reader, but my boys had come into this world on top of each other and I'd spent most of their childhood on my knees changing diapers and sending pleas for patience to the big man upstairs.

So I bought Shel Silverstein because they were past the Mother Goose years and because I had chuckled over it myself as a child. For some time I read it to them each night as they'd drift off to sleep with visions of similes and metaphors dancing in their heads.

Okay, that's a lie. I'd read it to them as they were smacking each other, giggling, crying (oh, wait, that was me) bouncing on the beds and begging me to let them sleep with the radio on. After several deep inhalations and interuptions I'd finish a poem and snap the book shut. What'd ya think? I would say. Thoughtful pause. Can I have a drink of water?

So that was that. Reading poetry was a sham, I decided. But last night I tucked them in, in characteristically grumpy fashion, and one of them said, Will you read something to us? They were holding up Shel Silverstein. Not tonight I said, I'm too tired. (Bad mom, I know!) Maybe Wyatt can read Shel Silverstein to you. And this is where my jaw hit the floor. Okay, he said, Zach read it last night, so I'll read it tonight.

Wait, what? They were reading behind my back? Poetry? Words? Books? Yes, they said. We read when you're not looking. We crack open Shel Silverstein and we actually read him. What was your favorite poem? I asked Zach, still skeptical. The one about the beard, he said without hesitation and then they all started chuckling and high fiving each other while they recited the funniest parts of the beard poem.

It was a hallelujah moment! All you worried, tired, anxious moms, go put Shel Silverstein on your book list.

The Boxcar Children

2008-08-26T23:24:00.000-07:00

Review by Garrett--August 2008

The Boxcar Children is about four children and their names were Benny, Jessie, Violet and Henry and they have a grandfather that doesn't like children so they don't want him to know they're alive because their mom and dad died. They traveled and traveled and suddenly they found a boxcar and then they went to a dump and found cups and bowls and Benny found a pink cup and once they got to the boxcar they found a dog and he was a watch dog so they called him Watch. Once they fell asleep Watch was barking and Jessie and Henry woke up and heard him barking and then they heard a stick crack. Later in the book they found out that it was Dr. Moore that was in the woods. He was the one who helped Violet when she was sick. Later in the book, Henry was in a race and he won $25 and a silver cup.

My favorite thing about this book was when Henry and Benny and Jessie and Violet were so hot that they wanted to make a pool so they built a dam and the boys got to swim in the pool. I like this book because it's about people surviving without their mom and dad and it's cool that the grandfather is looking for them but can't find them. I was interested to see how they would survive.

This book is good for a 4th graders to read. It's not that hard to read. I really like this book a lot because it's about children and a dog. Now I'm almost done with The Mystery of the Stolen Boxcar.

Adventure Book Series--ONE mom's opinion

2008-08-20T11:52:00.000-07:00

I'm a believer that if you can't say anything nice, don't say anything at all, so I wasn't going to post a follow-up review on Mountain Cabin Mystery, but something keeps nagging at me. It's not so much this series as much as it is my mistrust of book reviews. I realize everyone has differing opinions, but I have found time and again that marketing and promotion often lead to misleading book reviews. So, for the sake of honesty, I have to put pen to paper here and spill my pent up guts.

Mountain Cabin Mystery, is part of a series called Adventure Books, which is self published and self promoted by the author, Max Elliot Anderson, and is targeted to reluctant reader boys 8-12. If you search the web for books that will get your boys reading, Max Elliot Anderson will pop up. He markets himself, dare I say, shamelessly, as a bored-with-books-kid-turned-adventure-author who now writes exciting books with the type of action, adventure, suspense and humor he couldn't find as a kid.

He claims his adventure books are constantly compared by readers and reviewers to Huck Finn, Tom Sawyer, Harry Potter, The Hardy Boys, Nancy Drew, Star Wars, Tom Swift, Scooby-Doo, Lemony Snicket, and adventure author, Jack London. (He had me at Huck Finn!) These excellent reviews for Adventure Series completely sold me and I now have the whole set in my library.

But they're just collecting dust.

I really wanted to love them, I did. And even more, I wanted my boys to love them. I even passed them to kids in the neighborhood and at my son's book club, but they just didn't catch on. This lack of interest concerned me, but for the sake of a fair review I read 3 of the books in the series, Mountain Cabin Mystery, Newspaper Caper and North Woods Poachers. To be honest, I've had more adventure, suspense and humor in Sunday School.

Sorry, gotta keep it real.

The books were mediocre, sure. What else is new? There are plenty of ho hum books in the world, and kids read them and like them all the time. (Magic Treehouse, for example). The thing that bothers me is the misrepresentation of the calibar of the books. It's highly unlikely that anyone who has ever read Jack London (Call of the Wild flashbacks etched in my brain!) Tom Sawyer and Huck Finn (Classic!), or Nancy Drew and Hardy Boys (read them all over and over--okay, I'm starting to sound like a book nerd), would compare these beloved books to the Tweener Press Adventure Series.

So what is my final word on the series?

It's fine, though the moral and educational overtones and undertones are extremely heavy handed and the writing is extremely safe. Even though I personally don't dig it, I do concede there is a place and an audience for this kind of series.

Call me Simon, but these books fall far short of the bold, creative, risky and genuine characters and plotlines of the aforementioned books and simply shouldn't be classified in the same catagory.

Moral of the story: Don't believe everything you read!

Mountain Cabin Mystery

2008-08-14T12:34:00.000-07:00

Review by Wyatt in 2007

The reason I picked this book by Max Elliot Anderson is because I like mysteries and I liked the cover because there was a guy tied up in a chair.

The thing I like most about this book is that it’s about animals.

There weren't any funny parts in the book, but the best part of the book is when they were walking on the trail and there was fog and then they thought they saw a deer. And then they got lost. Then they were waiting for a couple minutes and then they saw this black bear. Al brought food in his pocket so he dropped it for the bear. Then he saw a path with two big rocks and then Benji noticed it was an old path. Then they ran and hid between two rocks because it was narrow and the bear couldn’t fit between it. But then I got a little bored.

Hatchet

2008-08-14T12:05:00.000-07:00

In Gary Paulsen’s Newberry Honor book, Hatchet, he shows—as opposed to tells--exactly what survival is like as he leads the reader through thirteen-year-old Brian Robeson’s mental and physical struggle for survival after his plane goes down in the middle of the Canadian wilderness.

Hatchet is one of the few, if not only, books that appears on practically every recommended reading list for boys, so I had to find out if this book is worth all the fuss. It definitely is! This realistic fiction is absolutely everything it’s cracked up to be. The book begins with the main, and pretty much only, character, Brian, in a single engine plane on his way to spend summer vacation with his father. Brian’s parents are recently divorced and he harbors a secret about why they split which sets up the internal struggle reflective of the physical struggle he’ll endure after his pilot has a heart attack and dies in mid-flight. Brian’s one saving grace comes ironically from his mother—the target for his bitterness--who gives him a hatchet as a going-away present. The hatchet is what allows Brian to survive.

For the observant reader, the hatchet and all of Brian’s harsh encounters with nature are metaphors for what Paulsen calls “the art of survival,” whether it be “getting through heavy traffic, facing an illness, or living in a rough neighborhood." Paulsen says, “The tools for survival are in all of us, just waiting to be used.” In Hatchet the reader gets to watch as Brian figures out how to dig deep and use those tools.

Paulsen crafts every detail with such painstaking patience that you feel as if you are right inside Brian’s world, the world of nature which is right under our noses and yet as unfamiliar to most of us as outer space. But Brian’s mind is as much the setting as the wilderness, and Paulsen's writing style--short, choppy, incomplete sentences--makes you feel like you're right inside his mind as he works through his challenges. Overall, the novel is crafted so carefully, you not only see it, but hear it, smell it, taste it and feel it all.

One of the greatest achievements of Hatchet is Paulsen’s ability to completely engage readers with a bare-bone plot and a one-man show. There are no glittery gimmicks or over-the-top antics. In fact, when you turn the last page and close the book, I guarantee you’ll miss Brian and his simple, but far from easy, existence in the woods. Luckily, there are several sequals to this novel. Brian's Winter, Brian's River and The Return. (Brian's winter is especially interesting because it continues the story of Hatchet as if the ending never happened).

This book is ultimately about making mistakes, rebuilding, growing, changing and healing. It is the kind of material I want shaping the minds and hearts of my boys.

The Janitors Boy

2008-08-14T12:00:00.000-07:00

Reviewed by Tatum in 2007

Have you ever put gum under a desk before? Jack Rankin, the main character in Andrew Clements, The Janitors Boy, sure has, which gets him into a lot of trouble. This is where the story bursts to life when Jack gets mad at his dad for being a janitor and decides to get back at him by filling a desk with gum. Little does he know that by getting caught and having to work off his debt might be what’s best for his relationship with his dad.

Jack hates the fact that his dad is a janitor and is completely embarrassed by it. People are always telling him how much he looks like his dad and has the same personality and this makes Jack even madder. Then having to work for his dad for three weeks after school makes matters worse but, through out the story, he learns how great of a guy his dad is and how he tries his best to help people.

The thing I loved about this book is you can see how the character grows the whole time. You can see that Jack is frustrated with his dad and isn’t hidden. At the beginning Jack thinks mean things towards his dad, but by the end he wants to know more about his dad and spend more time with him. Andrew Clements did a great job of describing this situation and I think boys 10-12 would really enjoy this book and would fly thorough it.

The Report Card

2008-08-14T11:52:00.000-07:00

Reviewd by Tatum in 2007

Have you ever tried to get D’s on your report card? Have you ever pretended you didn’t know the answers or done crappy on the quarter’s final project on purpose? The main character, Nora, in Andrew Clements The Report Card is professional at almost failing on purpose even if she knows her parents will yell at her, ground her, and be greatly disappointed in her.

Nora is actually a genius, but doesn’t want anyone to know and make a big deal of it. All her life she has been hiding her true potential from everyone. Then, the librarian finds out, a test determines her genius, and everyone knows her secret. She doesn’t know what to do and when the librarian asks her “Why are you so smart?” It’s the first time she doesn’t know the right answer. It causes her to think about if she’s doing the right thing. Read the book and find out the rest.

Andrew Clements writing is so clear and easy to process. This story is great for boys and girls. When you read this book you aren’t overwhelmed with big words or fancy language. When you read some books they are so descriptive and get really boring but this book gets to the point and keeps you interested. This is why I really loved the report card and I think it’s a great book for 4th through 7th grade kids.

Frindle

2008-08-14T11:45:00.000-07:00

Reviewed by Tatum in 2007

I have read all of Andrew Clements books because I really love him as an author. This story, Frindle, by Clements is about a boy named Nick who makes up the word “frindle” for pen. It causes a lot of commotion in his town and all over the world.

I really enjoyed this book. Boys would really enjoy it because the author makes you really believe it’s a boy talking, not a grown man. All my brothers seem to get in trouble in school and the same thing happens to Nick. When his fifth grade teacher puts Nick in line, the story comes alive. It shows a fifth grade boy trying to out-smart his teacher in English. During the book, it refers to Nick and all the kids in a war against Ms. Granger. Everyone eventually uses the word Frindle instead on pen and it becomes a phenomenon. Nick becomes a millionaire just by being the inventor of a new word.

Andrew Clements has a good way of teaching lessons in his books. It draws you in and iteven though it's harder to get boys to sit down and read a book, this one keeps you interested. This book even got an award. It’s so clever the way everything fits together in the end. It really shows kids to speak their ideas and follow through with their plans. I definitly recommend this book for boys.

Miss Lazar is Bizarre--My Wierd School

2008-08-14T11:13:00.000-07:00

Reviewed by Garrett in 2007

A.J. told a secret to his best friend,Ryan that he never told anyone before. The secret was that sometimes he would pretend he had to go to the bathroom so he could skip a few minutes of school. I liked that because sometimes I do that too. Even though he didn't have to go to the bathroom he flushed the toilet. Then the water overflowed. He called for help and Miss Lazar (the school custodian) came to the rescue. A.J. got blamed for putting crayons down the toilet even though he didn't do it.

I like the book because Miss Lazar is always using toilet plungers to rescue people. I can't think of anything I don't like about the book.

Mr. Docker is Off his Rocker--My Weird School

2008-08-14T11:10:00.000-07:00

Reviewed by Garrett in 2007

Mr Docker is A.J.'s science teacher. A.J. hates science at first, but Mr. Docker is so cool that at the end he thinks science is so cool. Mr. Docker rides into class on a rolling thingie and he eats bugs and accidentally lights his hair on fire. When A.J. and Andrea (he hates Andrea) went outside for recess and Andrea said "guess what?" and then A.J. said, "Your butt!" He says that's the first rule of being a kid. Everytime someone says "guess what?" you should always say "your butt." So then A.J. went on vacation and he forgot to do his science project so Andrea said "you're going to be in trouble!" And A.J. said "So's your face!" He says that's the first rule of being a kid. If someone says something rude to you you should always say "so's your face!" I liked that part cause it was funny. It was awesome.

I liked this book because I think this is the funniest book I ever read. There's nothing I don't like about it. Amen.

Maniac Magee

2008-08-14T10:53:00.000-07:00

Reviewed by Zach in 2007

I had to read it for SFA at school because it's a Newbery Medal book. I thought it was really good because of all the things the main character, Maniac Magee does. I like to do a lot of the same things he likes to do, like run. He’s really athletic.

The main conflict in the book was that his mom and dad died and he had to live with his uncle. His auntie and uncle hate each other but won’t get divorced because they’re Christians. So he runs away. Everybody thought he was strange because he ran everywhere and he would say hi to everyone he passed. He did all these amazing stunts that everyone thinks are so cool. Like once he ran in the middle of a high school football game and caught the ball and made a touchdown and he was so fast that no one could catch him.

He’s super good at tying knots and he’s allergic to pizza. There was a contest in the newspaper that if you untie a knot bigger than a volleyball you get a prize. He did it but the prize was pizza and he’s allergic to it so he gives it to the McNabb kids. He lives with them but they were really messy and dirty and out of control. They wouldn’t go to school. So he tells them he’ll do stunts if they went to school. He threw a rock at a telephone pole 67 time in a row. He stayed in a scary backyard for 15 minutes. All to get them to go to school.

Maniac does a lot of amazing things. When he played baseball, he hit a homerun every time. He kept getting more and more famous. My favorite part of the book was when John McNabb was playing baseball and he ran to the creek to pee real fast. He comes back with a frog and he pitches it to Maniac Magee. Maniac bunts the frog down the third base line. John McNabb had an idea to push the frog out of bounds so it would be a foul ball. But the frog kept jumping away from him and no one could catch him so Maniac made a home run with the frog.

But even though he did amazing things, he got so depressed because he doesn’t have a family so he kept running away until he found the right family, the Beals. He lives with the Beals in the East end. But the East end of town is where the blacks live. It was a book about race. One day a man came and wrote “Fish Belly go home” because he didn’t want a white boy living with the blacks. So Maniac didn’t want to cause trouble to the Beals so he ran away and started living in the deer pen in the Zoo.

I like this book a lot.

The Kid Who Ran for President

2008-08-13T21:13:00.000-07:00

Twelve-year-old Judson Moon is running for President of the YOU-nited states of America. This is no joke. His friend and eventual campaign manager, Lane Brainard comes up with the idea and works out all the angles. In typical Dan Gutman style, the campaign is a delightful journey for the reader. The thing about Gutman is that he somehow always makes even the most far-fetched idea seem like it really could happen. He is slick so don’t be fooled by his clever wit and quick laughs because if your kid reads this book he'll be learning a lot about the political system of America without even realizing it.

Franny K. Stein

2008-08-13T15:34:00.001-07:00

The Franny K. Stein series by Jim Benton, consisting of 6 books, is a fun read for all elementary school age kids. It appeals to both male and females, as well as reluctant readers and book lovers alike. Zach picked the first one up at a school book fair when he was 8-9 yrs old and we've been Franny fans ever since. Even though the vocabulary was advanced for my boys, it hasn't deterred my boys from ploughing through each book and waiting anxiously for the next one to hit the shelves.

Franny's conflict is that she's a girl. A girl living in a bright and cheery pink house with lovely purple shutters on Daffodil Street. The trouble is there is nothing bright or cheery or lovely about Franny. She's a little girl mad scientist with a spooky, creepy bedroom/laboratory, complete with bats, snakes and spiders, where she builds and creates all kinds of crazy-clever concoctions like zero-gravity dog food and cannibalistic broccoli.

At the beginning of the series Franny is completely misunderstood at her new school. None of the other kids can understand why a girl wouldn't want to play with pretty dolls and eat peanut butter sandwiches. With the help of her new teacher, Miss Shelly, (gotta love that) Franny thinks of an experiment to try to fit in, which results in a totally transformed Franny, a sweet Franny with adorable shoes and cute hair. Thank goodness, in the end, after a whole lot of catastrophe, Franny learns to be herself.

Besides the smart, witty story line there are two things I love about this series: First, the spunky illustrations, also created by Benton, serve as the punch lines to the jokes. They finish Benton's sentences with a smirk. Second, there is a subtle (never heavy handed) moral to each story. Benton knows how to give ordinary conflicts and lessons an extrordinary twist.

If you can't tell, I highly recommend this series.

For more information, check out this link:

http://www.jimbenton.com/franlab.html

Franny K. Stein--The Invisible Fran

2008-08-13T15:20:00.000-07:00

Reviewed by Wyatt in 2007

Franny K. Stein has a problem. She built a robot in the science lab, but 3 other kids changed it. They made it come alive and it became really dumb. It started ripping up all the books and slobbering all over the library. Franny tried to stop them, but the robot had a big hand and he smacked her and her tongue was sticking out and her whole body was red. The Robot smacked her like 4 times. Read this book to find out how Franny solves this problem.

What I liked about this book is that she’s a mad scientist and her assistant, it’s weird, but it is a dog and he wants to be a mad scientist and after the Robot died the dog made an oven and this guy in Franny’s class liked pretty and colorful cookies and he made cookies and the dog ate 10 or 5. It made me hungry. They had frosting and sprinkles on them. They looked so good. You should make it. It is so good. My friend gave me one once and it was so good. You should read this book. It’s the best book I read in my life. I’m serious, but maybe not to you. To me, but not you.

My Weird School

2008-08-11T17:53:00.000-07:00

As usual, Dan Gutman does not disappoint. I'm a fan of everything he writes, but the My Weird School series is particulary delighful, especially for 8-9 year olds. The wacky teachers at Ella Mentry school are presented through the eyes of a off-beat second grader who wants to be a pro football player, or dirt bike racer because they don’t have to know how to read or write. He thinks school is dumb and boring and all the important things you need to know, like which breakfast cereal tastes best and which shampoo leaves your hair shiniest, you can learn from T.V. The zany principal and teachers will leave you giggling, if not laughing out loud. Gutman capitalizes on the exaggerated gullibility of childhood, making it so fun to eavesdrop on A.J. and his friends as they try to make sense of their world. A world of misperceptions, myths and mystery. A world where the adults are often aware they are being misunderstood, but play along anyway.

One thing I love about Dan Gutman is that he never entertains the reader for the sake of entertainment. In ironic fashion, this series is infused with the joy of learning--the excitement of science, music, art, and even P.E. But it is subtle enough that your kids won’t even know they're learning.

This series is a must-read!

Flat Stanley

2008-08-11T09:54:00.000-07:00

Flat Stanley is anything but flat. (Gee, I wonder if that line's ever been said before?) I admit I was pleasantly surprised, as I tend to approach series books with a skeptical eye. But once you get used to Jeff Brown's understated style, there's something charming, almost cozy and comfortable about the read.

Stanley's parents, Mr. and Mrs. Lambchop, are endearing as they deal with absurd situations in polite, deadpan style. In the first book, when they find out their son, Stanley has been flattened by a bulletin board, Mrs. Lambchop suggests they have breakfast and then see what their family doctor has to say about it. The doctor suggests they keep an eye on the "young fellow" and takes his measurements to have his clothes altered. Once Stanley gets used to being flat he enjoys it. In fact he does all kinds of useful things that round people can't do, including travelig to see his relatives via an extra large envelope. His little brother, Arthur, even becomes envious and tries to flatten himself with piles of the Encyclopedia Britannica. Eventually Stanley gets tired of being flat and in a touching scene between he and his brother, Arthur helps Stanley round out again.

This series will make you smile and warm your heart.

I enjoy the Flat Stanley series. The conflicts are subtle. The adventures are creative. The relationships are sweet. And the illustrations by Scott Nash are exceptional. I definitely recommend this series.

The Time Warp Trio

2008-08-10T19:38:00.000-07:00

Because Jon Scieszka's, The Stinky Cheese Man was so clever, I didn't hesitate to pick up book No. 1, Knights of the Kitchen Table, of his The Time Warp Trio series. On the back cover one review promises that the "tongue-in-cheek humor makes for laugh-out-loud reading." That's a hefty promise, and unfortunately The Time Warp Trio doesn't deliver.

Not that it's completely dull, though it's pretty close, but laugh-out-loud? Weird School, by Dan Gutman, that's laugh-out-loud. Time Warp isn't much more than snicker-n-smirk reading. The basic premise is anything but fresh. Three friends, Fred, Joe and Sam, travel back in time when a magic book is opened to a picture of a medieval knight (let me guess, each page of the book will whisk them away to a new adventure--viola, you've got yourself a stock series).

It appears Fred, Joe and Sam, are almost as bored as I am when they suddenly find themselves in a medieval adventure being charged by a black knight (maybe because they've read Magic Treehouse too).

I will say, though it's a been-there-done-that series idea, I do like Schieszka's premise. He brings together classic characters from King Arthur, to Merlin to Smaug the dragon. Older readers like me will even recognize famous lines from The Holy Grail and The Princess Bride. Unfortunately these characters have been dumbed down considerably. They are far too easily outsmarted by the likes of 3 pre-teen boys and reading about them is like eating the carboard cereal box for breakfast rather than the cereal itself.

There was a clever plot twist at the climax, involving a confrontation between a dragon, a giant and Sam, but overall, the writing is simply lazy. Rather than showing us what's going on, Scieszka often cops out by writing things like "It was too disgusting to describe," "I won't even describe it because it would ruin your appetitie for a week," or "he answered in a way too rude to describe." A few more careful revisions could have made a mediocre tale, magical.

This series won't boost your child's brain cells, but if they're into dragons, knights and time travel they may tolerate this read.

Black Lagoon Adventures

2008-08-10T18:07:00.000-07:00

On his website, Mike Thaler is referred to as "America's Riddle King." After reading his Black Lagoon Adventure series I suspect this is a self-appointed title because, although his books clearly revolve around word play, "Riddle King of America" is a a bit of a stretch.

In the spirit of The Dumb Bunnies or Ameilia Bedelia, Black Lagoon Adventures relys partly on situation comedy, but mostly on puns, double entendres, rhymes and alliteration to get a laugh. Sometimes it worked and made me crack a half-hearted smile, but mostly, for me, it fell flat. For instance, in book #3, The Class Election, the main character, Hubie, campaigns for class president with the slogan, "Don't be a Booby, vote for Hubie." (Keep in mind I am an English teacher, and probably more critical than the average 7+ year old).

I will give Thayer credit for his energetic approach to humor--he does try to be clever and create a dynamic plot--but much of the word play made me go, huh? The off-beat illustrations by Jared Lee lend strength to the series and are integral to the jokes, but even they don't always put the punch in punch-line.

Overall, it's not a horrible series. It's kinda cute and kinda witty, so I guess I'll kinda recommend it.

Geronimo Stilton

2008-08-08T15:00:00.000-07:00

Geronimo Stilton is pretty stilted despite its novelty. The book’s strength lies in the creative and colorful splash of fonts, making some words jump off the page at you. While the fonts are fun, they are sometimes hard to decode for young readers. I’ll admit the aesthetics of it attracted me and my 9 year old twins to the series. They wanted to buy several of the books, but we settled on one: It’s Halloween You Fraidy Mouse. The twins and I curled up together on the couch—one on each side of me—and we began to read. Within 10 minutes one twin jumped up and said “I’m gonna go out and play, Mom.” Five minutes later the other twin was zzzzzonked.

Published by Scholastic, the book appears to have no author, other than the fictional Geronimo Stilton, who is also the narrator and main character. Unfortunately the story, characterization and dialogue are overshadowed by the fun fonts and cheesey cheese cracks. Geronimo is an annoying bachelor mouse who publishes his own newspaper, The Rodent’s Gazette. He’s a ‘fraidy mouse who obsesses about food and hates snakes, spiders and getting dirty. Riding on planes, trains, boats, and walking too fast make him sick. He crumples like a used “Cheesey Chew Wrapper,” over the slightest fright. In It’s Halloween, You Fraidy Mouse, the female characters are flat and tiresome, either bossing the males around or doting on/stalking them. The humor in this series is lazy and relies heavily on corny mouse-isms, and not-so-clever word-plays like famouse and fabumouse.

This book is definitely a thumbs down for me. I won’t waste my time reading any more Geronimo Stilton!