Annotated Bibliography

Red Kite, Blue Kite by Ji-Li Jiang, Illustrated by Greg Ruth Publisher: Disney Press, 2013 Genre:  Historical Fiction Format: Picture Book

Summary

Tai Shan and his father, Baba, love to fly kites and look at the city. Baba tells Tai Shan stories while they fly their kites. Set during the Cultural Revolution in China, a dark time comes about. People wearing red armbands shut down schools, search houses, and smash stores. Tai Shan is sent to live with Granny Wang and Baba is sent away. They continue to fly their kites until they are able to meet again.

Illustrations

This poignant story has beautiful, detailed watercolor illustrations. It is visually moving. There is a lot of color when Tai Shan or Baba is the focus and the more political aspect has more shadows and is muted.

Classroom Connections

The Lion and the Mouse by Jerry Pinkney Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers, 2012 Genre:  Fable Format: Wordless Picture Book Award: 2010 Caldecott Medal

Summary

A wordless twist on one of Aesop's well-known fables, an unlikely pair learn that no act of kindness is ever wasted. After a ferocious lion spares a cowering mouse that he'd planned to eat, the mouse later comes to his rescue, freeing him from a poacher's trap.

Illustrations

The saying "A picture is worth a thousand words" never was truer. The pencil and watercolor illustrations carry the book since it is wordless. The illustrations are vivid and beautifully show the landscape of the African Serengeti and the characters' faces are extremely expressive.

Classroom Connections

Surprising Sharks by Nicola Davies, Illustrated by James Croft Publisher: Candlewick Press, 2003 Genre: Nonfiction - Informational Book Format: Picture Book

Summary

The last thing you want to hear when you're swimming in the ocean is "SHARK!" But really, only 3 out of the 500 species of sharks attack humans. Sharks come in all kinds of shapes and sizes -- they can be as small as a chocolate bar! This informational book about sharks will teach you what makes a shark a shark and how different they can all be. 

Personal Response

This book is by the same woman who wrote Extreme Animals (a book I read earlier) and I purposely picked another book by her. Just as her other book, this was hilarious and taught me a lot of fun facts about sharks that I never knew before. She was also careful to use kid friendly language and define words she couldn't simplify which I thought was really important.

Illustrations

Yet again, this book's illustrations and text worked in harmony. The pictures matched the funny text, especially the fish wearing sunglasses and the fish in the bullseye. The acrylic and oil pastels gave the book a very simple feel but still made the reader feel like they were underwater. 

Classroom Connections

Extreme Animals: The Toughest Creatures on Earth by Nicola Davies, Illustrations by Neal Layton Publisher: Candlewick Press, 2006 Genre: Informational Book Format: Picture Book

Summary

This book talks about animals and bacteria that survive where no human ever could and how they do it. From emperor penguins keeping warm by huddling together in freezing cold temperatures to fish living at the bottom of the Mariana Trench with the pressure of 1100 atmospheres on them.

Personal Response

This is quite possibly one of the most entertaining informational books I have read in my entire life. The book uses "kid language" which would make it easy for anyone to understand. There is almost a perfect balance of humor while still providing the reader with accurate facts about these tough creatures. 

Illustrations

The illustrations in this informational book are just as funny and informational as the text. The illustrator utilizes a very childish method of cartoon drawing with outside-of-the-lines crayon coloring and spirals and the messy handwriting. It is absolutely perfect for a child. The book is just really fun. 

Classroom Connections

The Pirate of Kindergarten by George Ella Lyon, Illustrated by Lynne Avril Publisher: Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing Division, 2010 Genre: Realistic Fiction Format: Picture Book Award: Schneider Family Book Award

Summary

Ginny has just started kindergarten and she really loves it. However, she saw everything double and struggled to participate in reading words or numbers. She can't see very well and has to squint or close one eye to see. The nurse discovers that she has double vision and Ginny wears an eye patch to fix it. 

Personal Response

I thought this book would be great for students just starting kindergarten. Also, children who have vision problems would be able to relate to this book. I really liked it because Ginny's character was always optimistic no matter what she went through and even put a fun, positive spin on her eye patch. 

Illustrations

The chalk, pencil, and crayon drawings are very lively and accurately depict the double vision Ginny has with the real object being dark and its double be lighter. 

Classroom Connections

Too Many Tamales by Gary Soto, Illustrated by Ed Martinez Publisher: G.P. Putnam's Sons, 1993 Genre: Realistic Fiction Format: Picture Book

Summary

Maria was playing with her mom's ring and helping her mother cook Christmas dinner for her family which consisted of making tamales. She realized later on during the day that the ring was missing and she and her cousins ate all the tamales trying to find the ring but couldn't. When she went to tell her mother, she realized her mom had the ring on and the entire family made tamales together again. 

Personal Response

I thought this book was really great! I can relate to helping my mom cook Christmas dinners every year although I never lost anything in the food! It's a great story that kids could relate to because everyone has spent time with their family or played with their parent's things.

Illustrations

The oil paintings used for the illustrations and colors and patterns used in this book give the book a very warm and Mexican feel. The emotions on the characters faces are very lively in this book. 

Classroom Connections

Marisol McDonald Doesn't Match/Marisol McDonald No Combina by Monica Brown, Illustrated by Sara Palacios Publisher: Children's Book Press, 2011 Genre: Realistic Fiction Format: Picture Book Award: Pura Belpré Illustrator Honor Book

Summary

Marisol McDonald is a Peruvian-American girl who likes to do things differently. Her red hair doesn't match her darker skin, her stripes and polka dot clothing, and putting peanut butter on her burritos all makes her different. Her classmates make fun of her for the weird things she does so she changes and follows everyone is but is unhappy. Her art teacher writes her a letter and tells her not to change for anyone so Marisol goes back to the way she was and is happy again. 

Personal Response

This book would be excellent to teach students to embrace the things that make him/her unique! Children can be really concern about what is or isn't cool so reading this book would let them know that being different is great. This is also a great book for biracial or children of other cultures to have someone to relate to and see that there are others who might have trouble finding where they fit.

Illustrations

The acrylic paintings used for the illustrations and colors give this book a very vibrant feel. I liked the colors and how everything was mismatched just like Marisol. 

Classroom Connections

I Love Saturdays y Domingos by Alma Flor Ada, Illustrated by Elivia Savadier Publisher: Atheneum Books for Young Readers, 2004 Genre: Realistic Fiction Format: Picture Book Award: 2003 Notable Books for a Global Society 

Summary

This bilingual story is about a girl who spends Saturdays with her grandparents and Domingos (Sundays) with her abuelitos (grandparents in Spanish). She compares the things she does with her set of grandparents and how they are similar or different, but still knowing they share the same amount of love for her.

Personal Response

This book would be wonderful to read to children who are biracial. I enjoyed reading this story and seeing how these two distinct families and cultures were so different but the same. 

Illustrations

The watercolor paintings used for the illustrations give the book a very childish feel. The illustrations are a bit messy (I'm not the biggest fan of watercolor) but they match the story well. 

Classroom Connections

26 Fairmount Avenue by Tomie DePaola Publisher: G.P. Putnam's Sons, 1999 Genre: Autobiography Format: Chapter Book Award: Newberry Honor Award

Summary

This nine-chapter book is about the author's, Tomie DePaola, childhood stories about his life before he moved into the house on 26 Fairmount Ave. It starts off with Tomie experiencing a hurricane and seeing a child holding an umbrella floating down stairs like Mary Poppins! He goes through some funny situations like accidentally eating chocolate laxatives, starting kindergarten and wanting to skip it because he doesn't learn how to read, taking the struggles of the building the house, and just having a good time with his family. 

Personal Response

I can remember reading this book in elementary school and loving it so much. I started to read a lot of biographies after this book. I think I liked it so much because I had read Strega Nona and he is also the author of that book so finding out more about his life as a child was really intriguing to me. I still find the book funny after all these years. 

Illustrations

The illustrations are all done by Tomie DePaola and they are very minimal, just using black and white drawings on the corners of the page or at the bottoms. Most of the drawings are really cute and it makes the characters even more likable. 

Classroom Connections

Before Reading: Describe the similarities and differences between a biography and an autobiography to students.

After Reading: Have students write their own autobiography. They could write about things they have done and funny stories like DePaola and also illustrate like he did. Provide the students with some sample questions like: 

Where do you live? Did you always live there?

Just Like Josh Gibson by Angela Johnson, Illustrated by Beth Peck Publisher: Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing Division, 2004 Genre: Historical Fiction Format: Picture Book Award: Coretta Scott King Award

Summary

A girl is telling the story about her grandmother who loves baseball. Her grandmother told her about a time when there was a baseball player in the Negro League named Josh Gibson who hit a ball so hard it didn't come down. Her grandmother was born the day that happened and she loved baseball even though it was a boy's game. In the 40s, all she was able to do was stand and watch the boys play even though she was great. One day, she was able to step in for a boy who got hurt and she played just like Josh Gibson. 

Personal Response

I absolutely adored this book. It is great for introducing students to gender norm breaking books and having girl power in a class but in a way that boys won't completely tune out of the story either. It was fantastic. 

Illustrations

The oil pastel drawings were really well done and added to the feel that the book was a memory but they were really detailed at the same time. 

Classroom Connections

The Man Who Walked Between the Towers by Mordicai Gerstein Publisher: Roaring Book Press, 2003 Genre: Biography Format: Picture Book Award: 2004 Caldecott Medal

Summary

This book tells the story of a French street performer named Philippe Petit who walked across the Twin Towers in 1974. He realized one day that he had to walk across the towers; he had already walked across the Notre Dame Cathedral. When he asked for permission, police and the WTC owners refused so he decided to sneak in at night and do it by pretending to be a construction worker. He walked, danced, and ran across the wire until he finally went over to the tower and allowed himself to be arrested. When in court, the judge sentenced him to performing in the park for children.  

Personal Response

I lived in New York for the first 10 years of my life and whenever we went into the city, I would always look at the towers. I still remember the first time we drove over to the city and I didn't see them. Most children these days won't remember the Twin Towers as they fell before many of them were even born. This book is a great tribute to them and the man who daringly walked across them.

Illustrations

This book won a Caldecott which means the artwork is absolutely stunning. The illustrations really draw you into the story. His paintings really show things from the perspective of a person a quarter of a mile in the sky. The middle pages open up to show a 3 page illustration of Petit walking through the sky with all of the buildings and cars looking very tiny and the opposite on the next page with a ground view and Petit looking very tiny in between the two towers.   

Classroom Connections

My Name is Yoon by Helen Recorvits, Illustrated by Gabi Swiatkowska Publisher: Frances Foster Books, 2003 Genre: Realistic Fiction Format: Picture Book Award: 2004 National Books for a Global Society

Summary

Yoon is a young girl from Korea who has just moved to the United States. She loves the way her name is spelled in Korean (윤) but hates the way it looks in English. She goes to school and her teacher tells her where to write her name but instead of her name, she writes different things she would like to be like a bird or a cat. Eventually, she comes to terms that her name is still her name even if it is spelled with letters and she is happy.

Personal Response

I found this book really relatable. Yoon is unfamiliar with her new home and just wants to go back to Korea where she has friends. Anyone who has ever moved from one place to another has experienced that time where all they want to do is move back. She also wants to make her parents proud and know that she is liked by her teacher. I think this is a 

Illustrations

The illustrations are very surreal and while they are very nice, faces look really creepy. The landscapes in the background are really beautiful and show beautiful hills and trees. Despite that, this style of art might be very unappealing to children. 

Classroom Connections

Me... Jane by Patrick McDonnell Publisher: Little, Brown and Company, 2011 Genre: Biography Format: Picture Book Award: 2012 Caldecott Honor Medal

Summary

This book tells the story of a young Jane Goodall who would grow up to be a well known primatologist. Jane Goodall had a toy chimpanzee name Jubilee that she would take everywhere with her while she learned about all kinds of animals and the environment around her. One day, she decided that she would move to Africa to fulfill her dream of a life of living with, and helping, all animals.  

Personal Response

Like many other people, I know who Jane Goodall but it was really nice to read about her as a child. I think children would really like this book because she is know a famous primatologist and knowing what she was like as a child would probably interest them, especially since her greatest dreams came true. This story is really inspirational.

Illustrations

This book has a Caldecott Honor medal and it is well deserved. The illustrations are really adorable. The book is set up where one page will have words with that page having what appears to be stamps of animals or more sophisticated drawings and more childlike drawings on the opposite page. The drawings really help add to the story and you can feel the love and happiness Jane has around animals. There are two pages that include real drawings that Jane Goodall drew as a child! There is a part where she watches a chicken lay an egg and later on in the story, you see the same chicken with chicks behind her which I thought was quirky. 

Classroom Connections

Big Red Lollipop by Rukhsana Khan, Illustrated by Sophie Blackwell Publisher: Viking, 2010 Genre: Realistic Fiction Format: Picture Book

Summary

Rubina was invited to a friend's birthday party but Rubina's little sister, Sana, wants to go to. Their mother makes Rubina take her and Sana is a pest at the party! She cries if she doesn't win all of the games and she eats Rubina's big, red lollipop that she got as a part favor. Rubina doesn't get invited to parties for a long time after that. One day, Sana comes home with an invitation and their youngest sister Maryam wants to go. Rubina convinces their mom to not let Maryam go with Sana so that she doesn't have the same problem and when Sana comes back, she gives Rubina her big, green lollipop.

Personal Response

If anyone has a younger sibling or family member, they know how annoying they can be. In the end, they are still your family and you love them. I think this story shows the family dynamic really well and the characters are really relatable, even as an adult. Being a first generation American, you have to frequently explain how American culture is to your parents and Rubina had to do the same in the story.

Illustrations

The illustrations and the story matched really well because they were really fun and colorful. The best one was were Rubina was chasing Sana around the house because she ate her lollipop. The family's culture was also accurately depicted with the girls' mom wearing a shalwar kameez. 

Classroom Connections