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[CCBC-Net] Favorites of the Year -- Part I
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From: Steward, Celeste <csteward>
Date: Thu, 6 Dec 2007 11:20:48 -0800
Ah, the Wednesday Wars also brought to mind another outstanding read,
"Schooled" by Gordan Korman.
"Homeschooled by his hippie grandmother, Capricorn (Cap) Anderson has never watched television, tasted a pizza, or even heard of a wedgie. But when his grandmother lands in the hospital, Cap is forced to move in with a guidance counselor and attend the local middle school. While Cap knows a lot about tie-dyeing and Zen Buddhism, no education could prepare him for the politics of public school."
In addition to Cap Anderson's voice, the story is told from both staff and student viewpoints, so it makes a lively read aloud. I shared this aloud to my 6th and 8th grade daughters...and they begged me to keep reading each night so they could find out how it ended. The story sparked quite a bit of discussion on middle school students, friendship and the political climate of the 60s.
Celeste Steward, Collection Development Librarian Alameda County Library 2450 Stevenson Blvd. Fremont, CA 94538
-----Original Message----- From: ccbc-net-bounces at ccbc.education.wisc.edu
[mailto:ccbc-net-bounces at ccbc.education.wisc.edu] On Behalf Of BudNotBuddy at aol.com Sent: Thursday, December 06, 2007 10:29 AM To: ccbc-net at ccbc.education.wisc.edu Subject: [CCBC-Net] Favorites of the Year -- Part I
Unfortunately, Alice Walker and Stefano Vitale's Why War is Never a Good Idea is not eligible for the Caldecott Medal. I sure hope that all sorts of other great recognition will come to them for this stunningly beautiful and profound book. I pray that it will be widely read. I know that if that happens then this book will be responsible for changing somebody's life and maybe even changing the world. It is, by far, my favorite picture book of the year.
Another picture book that I have totally delighted in is Previously by Allan Ahlberg and Bruce Ingman. I've now read it to second through sixth grade classes with unanimously enthusiastic response. Total fun and a perfect intro to timelines, cause and effect, and family trees.
The Wednesday Wars by Gary Schmidt is -- by a wide margin -- my favorite book for middle school this year. It goes right up -- way up -- on my all-time favorites list. Everybody who knows me knows that I am rooting loudly for this to be the next Newbery Medalist.
Another middle school novel that has stayed with me all year is Revolution is Not a Dinner Party by Ying Chang Compestine. I was scared as hell reading this one, knowing that -- with my big mouth -- I would undoubtedly have been long ago eliminated in such a society.
And Christopher Paul Curtis' Elijah of Buxton has been making for another of my current favorite booktalks. Just try to imagine, I tell students, what it would be like to be any one of the adults around Elijah; to have escaped from a life of being terrorized -- from being owned by someone else -- and to be waiting every waking moment for someone to grab you and drag you back into slavery. Curtis' ability to combine utter wackiness and dark soberness
here, as he did so well in Watsons is extraordinary.
In YA, I continue to feel -- after reading it three times now -- that Martha Brooks' Mistik Lake -- a story surrounding the secrets in the lives of three generations of females -- is the best piece of YA literature published this year. But that is not meant to take anything away from Sherman Alexie's The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian which deserves everything it wins. Go Junior! Go Junior!
I really, really love the graphic novel version of Eoin Colfer's Artemis Fowl.
My fun fantasy of the year is Royce Buckingham's Demonkeeper. I've gotten to read this one aloud once already and am going to find another audience soon because it was an absolute fun and scary page-turner. Is this bound for a future in graphic novel format, too?
**************************************Check out AOL's list of 2007's hottest products.
(http://money.aol.com/special/hot-products-2007?NCID=aoltop0003000000000 1)
_______________________________________________ CCBC-Net mailing list CCBC-Net at ccbc.education.wisc.edu Visit this link to read archives or to unsubscribe... http://ccbc.education.wisc.edu/mailman/listinfo/ccbc-net
Received on Thu 06 Dec 2007 01:20:48 PM CST
Date: Thu, 6 Dec 2007 11:20:48 -0800
Ah, the Wednesday Wars also brought to mind another outstanding read,
"Schooled" by Gordan Korman.
"Homeschooled by his hippie grandmother, Capricorn (Cap) Anderson has never watched television, tasted a pizza, or even heard of a wedgie. But when his grandmother lands in the hospital, Cap is forced to move in with a guidance counselor and attend the local middle school. While Cap knows a lot about tie-dyeing and Zen Buddhism, no education could prepare him for the politics of public school."
In addition to Cap Anderson's voice, the story is told from both staff and student viewpoints, so it makes a lively read aloud. I shared this aloud to my 6th and 8th grade daughters...and they begged me to keep reading each night so they could find out how it ended. The story sparked quite a bit of discussion on middle school students, friendship and the political climate of the 60s.
Celeste Steward, Collection Development Librarian Alameda County Library 2450 Stevenson Blvd. Fremont, CA 94538
-----Original Message----- From: ccbc-net-bounces at ccbc.education.wisc.edu
[mailto:ccbc-net-bounces at ccbc.education.wisc.edu] On Behalf Of BudNotBuddy at aol.com Sent: Thursday, December 06, 2007 10:29 AM To: ccbc-net at ccbc.education.wisc.edu Subject: [CCBC-Net] Favorites of the Year -- Part I
Unfortunately, Alice Walker and Stefano Vitale's Why War is Never a Good Idea is not eligible for the Caldecott Medal. I sure hope that all sorts of other great recognition will come to them for this stunningly beautiful and profound book. I pray that it will be widely read. I know that if that happens then this book will be responsible for changing somebody's life and maybe even changing the world. It is, by far, my favorite picture book of the year.
Another picture book that I have totally delighted in is Previously by Allan Ahlberg and Bruce Ingman. I've now read it to second through sixth grade classes with unanimously enthusiastic response. Total fun and a perfect intro to timelines, cause and effect, and family trees.
The Wednesday Wars by Gary Schmidt is -- by a wide margin -- my favorite book for middle school this year. It goes right up -- way up -- on my all-time favorites list. Everybody who knows me knows that I am rooting loudly for this to be the next Newbery Medalist.
Another middle school novel that has stayed with me all year is Revolution is Not a Dinner Party by Ying Chang Compestine. I was scared as hell reading this one, knowing that -- with my big mouth -- I would undoubtedly have been long ago eliminated in such a society.
And Christopher Paul Curtis' Elijah of Buxton has been making for another of my current favorite booktalks. Just try to imagine, I tell students, what it would be like to be any one of the adults around Elijah; to have escaped from a life of being terrorized -- from being owned by someone else -- and to be waiting every waking moment for someone to grab you and drag you back into slavery. Curtis' ability to combine utter wackiness and dark soberness
here, as he did so well in Watsons is extraordinary.
In YA, I continue to feel -- after reading it three times now -- that Martha Brooks' Mistik Lake -- a story surrounding the secrets in the lives of three generations of females -- is the best piece of YA literature published this year. But that is not meant to take anything away from Sherman Alexie's The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian which deserves everything it wins. Go Junior! Go Junior!
I really, really love the graphic novel version of Eoin Colfer's Artemis Fowl.
My fun fantasy of the year is Royce Buckingham's Demonkeeper. I've gotten to read this one aloud once already and am going to find another audience soon because it was an absolute fun and scary page-turner. Is this bound for a future in graphic novel format, too?
**************************************Check out AOL's list of 2007's hottest products.
(http://money.aol.com/special/hot-products-2007?NCID=aoltop0003000000000 1)
_______________________________________________ CCBC-Net mailing list CCBC-Net at ccbc.education.wisc.edu Visit this link to read archives or to unsubscribe... http://ccbc.education.wisc.edu/mailman/listinfo/ccbc-net
Received on Thu 06 Dec 2007 01:20:48 PM CST
