A Year Down Yonder

A Year Down Yonder

Richard Peck

Penguin Group (USA) Incorporated

Copyright 2002

Pages: 144

Reading Level: 10-14 years

Genre: Historical Fiction

Summary:

Mary Alice is sent to live with her Grandma during the Great Depression. Her first day of school in Grandma's town doesn't go so well, she gets on the bad side of the Mildred, the bully, who demands a dollar of her. Grandma turns the tables on her and Mildred ends up having to walk the five miles home barefoot. When Halloween rolls around, August Fluke Jr and his friends decide to knock down people's privies, but Grandma has a plan, she makes home-made glue and hides out in the shed by the privy, so she can throw the glue on the perpetrators. Grandma makes pecan and pumpkin pies for the school Halloween party. Armistice Day rolls around and the Legion Auxillary Ladies sell soup for a dollar a cup, but Grandma is cashier, so it's actually pay what you can afford. The money raised is given to Mrs. Abernathy and her son, a wheelchair-bound war veteran.For the Christmas pageant Mary is cast as the Virgin Mary, but the baby doll is switched out for the Burdick's newest member of the family that they can't take care of. Grandma is late to the pageant, but brings Mary's brother with her, she bought him a train ticket with the money from the furs of  the foxes she and Mary collected that winter. Royce McNabb moves into the small town and Carleen develops an instant crush on him. Mary and Ina-Rae set out to make Carleen think Royce has a crush on Ina-Rae for Valentines Day. Grandma hosts a tea for the Daughters of the American Revolution, and country bumpkin Effie Wilcox learns that the hoity-toity Mrs. L.J. Weidenbach is her long-lost sister.Grandma takes in a New York artist as a boarder and Mary Alice invites Royce over for a study-date. Grandma cameos as matchmaker, introducing the boarder (Arnold Green) to Mary Alice's English teacher, Miss Butler. Mary Alice survives her first tornado, and the school-year wraps up with a hayride that finds Royce and Mary Alice promising to exchange letters. “A year down yonder” leaves Mary Alice with a more tender-hearted view of country-life and Grandma Dowdel, and she hesitates to head back to Chicago. Mary Alice and Royce Marry at the end of World War II on Grandma's porch.

Recommendations and Conflict:

I would recommend this book to a sixth grader. The only conflicts I see in this book is having a grandma who didn't grow up all the way.

Reactions:

I enjoyed A Year Down Yonder, Grandma was a character I could relate to and had fun finding out what she would do next.

A Single Shard

A Single Shard
Linda Sue Park
Random House Children's Books
Copyright 2003
Pages: 192
Reading Level: 10 and up
Genre: Historical Fiction
Summary:
Tree-ear is an orphan boy who loves to watch Min make pottery, but lives with Crane-man under the bridge. One day, he goes up close to look at Min's work and breaks one of his pots. Tree-ear offers to work to pay off his debt, and Min puts him to work cutting wood for the communal kiln. After his debt is paid, Tree-ear asks Min if he can continue to work for him, and Min agrees, saying that he can't pay Tree-ear. Tree-ear starts to collect clay and his duties rotate between collecting clay and cutting wood. Tree-ear wants to learn how to make a pot, and one day Tree-ear asks Min to teach him, Min refuses because Tree-ear is not his son. Tree-ear takes two of Min's pots to the King's court to show off Min's work and on the way is ambushed by bandits. They break both Min's pots and leave Tree-ear without money. Tree-ear looks for the pots and all he can find is a pile of fine shreds and a shard that shows the beauty of Min's work that is the size of his palm. Tree-ear takes this shard to the Royal Emissary who gives Min a commission then and there. Tree-ear is given a ride home on a boat and when he gets there, Min tells him that Crane-man drowned, when he was pulled out of the river, he was holding the clay monkey that Tree-ear had made for him. Min and his wife adopt Tree-ear and rename him so that he is part of their family (and Min teaches him how to make pottery).
Recommendations and Conflict:
I would recommend this book to anyone who likes to read. The conflicts in this book is the main character seriously considering suicide, Crane-man dying, and Min's refusal to teach Tree-ear
Reactions:
I fell in love with the characters in this book, when Min refused to teach Tree-ear, I understood the feeling of loss that Min felt over the death of his son, Crane-man became a mentor to me and I cried when he died. Tree-ear fills me with hope and courage, because that is what he showed in the face of all his trials.

The Story of Ruby Bridges

The Story of Ruby Bridges
Robert Coles
Scholastic, Incorporated
Copyright 2004
Pages: 32
Reading Level: 4-8
Genre: Biography
Summary:
Ruby lives in the south and is selected to start integration. She goes to school, but all the white kids don't go because their parents don't want them to go to school with a black girl. Every day, Ruby stops before she meets the mob and says a prayer for them, one day she forgets until she is in the middle of the mob. Her teacher (the only person in the school except for Ruby) sees her stop and wants to know what she said to the people (because it looked like she was talking to them) Ruby responds that she prayed for them every morning before school started and everyday after school ended. Eventually, some kids started to go to school with Ruby and the parents one by one allowed their kids to go as well.
Recommendations and Conflict:
I would recommend this book to the young and old. The conflict in this book is the racism of the people towards Ruby.
Reactions:
I really liked this book, it told Ruby's story in a way that I would be satisfied letting young children read it.  It told of the problems Ruby faced, but in a way that wouldn't scare children.

Love That Dog

Love That Dog
Sharon Creech
Harper Collins Publishers
Copyright 2003
Pages: 112
Reading Level: 8-12 years
Genre: Poetry
Summary:
This is the diary of a young boy who is assigned to write poetry and he doesn't want to. It shows his progression from this isn't poetry to yea you can put my name on that poem. Jack's yellow dog died in a hit and run with a blue car, and he writes a poem about it after reading the poem about the blue car. Every poem that the teacher puts on the board of Jack's, he asks her to put it up on yellow paper. His teacher reads Walter Dean Myers poems and he asks Mr Myers to come to their class, and he does come. Jack wrote a poem based off Myers poem Love That Boy and called it Love That Dog.
Recommendations and Conflict:
I recommend this book to all fourth grade classrooms. The conflict I see in this book is that Jack's dog died.
Reactions:
I enjoyed this book, it is a good example of a guy writing poems and they are good. I enjoyed the blue printing and how Jack liked yellow.

Children Just Like Me

Children Just Like Me
Anabel Kindersley and Barnabas Kindersley
Dorling Kindersley Publishing, Incorporated
Copyright 1995
Pages: 80
Reading Level: 9-12 years
Genre: Juvenile Nonficion
Summary:
This book tells the stories of children from five different continents and show their differences and similarities. It tells of the day to day lives of these children with out judgment and with out saying "this is how it should be." Uniceff sent a teacher and a photographer to meet all of these children and to learn from them. We can all learn from this book about not judging others simply because they look different. Some of the biggest differences in the lives of these children were between children living in the United States.
Recommendations and Conflict:
I would recommend for this book to be in every elementary classroom. I do not see any conflicts in this book because of how it was written
Reactions:
I really enjoyed reading about the lives of so many different children and seeing how much their lives were similar.

Lincoln A Photobiography

Lincoln A Photobiography
Russell Freedman
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Trade & Reference Publis
Copyright 1989
Pages: 160
Reading Level: 8-12 years
Genre: Biography
Summary:
Freedman tells the life of Abraham Lincoln, but he tells the bad with the good. Lincoln struggled with depression, but he worked through it everytime it came back. He was disorganized, but he knew where all his things were. Lincoln was a country boy who taught himself, he had very little formal schooling, but was a lawyer and when he was president, he taught himself battle tactics and took an active role as executive chief of the armies. At Ford's theater, his body guard was watching the performance and not the president, Boothe shot him and was eventually shot himself. The people of the west stood silent as the train passed that carried his body to it's final resting place. Years later the contents of Lincoln's pockets was unsealed, they were a pocket knife, a handkerchief, a button, a fob watch, two pairs of glasses, a pencil, a wallet, newspaper clippings, and a confederate $5 bill
Recommendations and Conflict:
I would recommend this book to a student who would be able to relate to Lincoln better because of his faults and that he was able to live with them and become a great man in history. The conflict I see with this book is its openness with the faults of Lincoln and not allowing children to have a role model with out faults, also the pictures of the battle field are graphic
Reactions:
I enjoyed this book. Seeing the faults of a great man will have one of two effects 1) less respect of him for the faults, or 2) more respect for him because he worked through his faults. I fell under the second category.

Beauty: A Retelling of Beauty and the Beast

Beauty: A Retelling of Beauty and the Beast
Robin McKinley
HarperCollins Publishers
Copyright1978
Pages: 336
Reading Level: 12 and up
Genre: Fairy Tale
Summary:
Faith, Hope, and Honor are three sisters, but no one calls Honor by her name, what everyone knows her as is Beauty, a nickname she got when she was five. They are the daughters of Mr. Huston, a well off Merchant who owns his own shipping business. Faith fell in love with Robbie, one of her father's Captains. They were to be married as soon as Robbie came back from a two year trip so that he could support her and their future family. A year after Robbie left, Mr. Huston received word that all of his ships had run into a bad storm and were all severely damaged if not destroyed. His business was destroyed and Robbie was probably dead. Ger, one of Mr. Huston's blacksmiths, and Hope have fallen in love and were about to talk to Mr. Huston before the news came. Ger comes to Mr. Huston and proposes a deal with him, they throw their resources together and move to the country until they can get their to their feet again, making sure that there was no pressure on Hope to marry him. The family auctions off most of their things to pay their creditors, and move with Ger to the country. Hope and Ger marry and are happy, which helps Faith move on without Robbie. News comes to the family that one ship has limped into the harbor and Mr. Huston goes to see what he can find out about it and to take care of the finances. On his way home he gets lost and finds a castle full of magic, after spending a night there, he comes home, but takes a rose to give to Beauty. This angers the master of the castle, who is a beast, Beast demands that Mr. Huston comes back in one month with a daughter (to be the beast's companion) or on his own to die. Beauty demands that her father take her to the beast at the end of the month because the rose was for her. Beast had sent Mr. Huston home with saddle bags full of fine things, including rose seeds for Beauty. The end of the month comes and Beauty goes to the castle to be the companion of the Beast. They become friends and both love books. Beauty has a dream of Robbie and wants to go tell her family so Faith doesn't marry the preacher. She goes home and stays a day longer than she promised the beast and her return to the beast was difficult and long. She entered the castle and couldn't find the Beast, after searching long and hard, she finds him and tells him she loves him and wants to marry him. Magic fills the castle and the beast is changed into a prince who is magnificent. Beauty says she can't marry him because he deserves a princess, which she is not. He shows her what she looks like in the mirror and she is more than beautiful, she is magnificent. Her family arrives at the castle dressed as lords and ladies and Robbie is with them.
Recommendations and Conflict:
I recommend this book to teenagers who need to get a new point of view on a story they thought they knew. I would also recommend this book to all girls who need a definition of what love is, because there are four different loves shown in this book, all with their own happily ever after. I don't see any conflicts in this book.
Reactions:
I loved this book. I spent a month in high school reading every version of beauty and the beast I could to re-find this book.

The Wind Singer

The Wind Singer
William Nicholson
Hyperion Books for Children
Copyright 2000
Pages: 358
Reading Level: 9-12 years
Genre: Science Fiction
Summary:
The Hath family consist of Hanno, Ira, Bowman, Kestrel,  and Pinto (who's nickname in Pinpin). It's the day of Pinpin's first examination, when she will first contribute to their family's rating, even though she is only two years old. Pinpin doesn't open up to the examiner, and because she doesn't answer a single question, she recieves a zero. The family's rating is effected and they move down a color in the rating system and have to move. Kess gets fed up with the rating system in school and ends up in the center of the city shouting profanities into the wind singer (which projects her voice). She gets sent to a special school, which is full of old children, and runs away, ending up in the emperor's chambers. The Emperor sends Kess on a quest to find the voice of the Wind Singer (which had been given to the Zars to prevent war, but was then given to the Morah [who feeds off dispair]). Kess sneaks back home and gets council from her father before she and her twin, Bo, leave to retrieve the voice. Mumpo follows them into the under city, where they find that life can be very different than it is in Amarath. On their journey, they meet the Ombaraka who, after convincing, help them get closer to their destination. Mumpo ends up getting turned into an old child and races into the fire that is the entrance to the Halls of the Morah. Bo and Kess follow him and find the voice of the Wind Singer in the hair of the Morah. Bo pulls it out, but wakes the Morah when he pulls a strand of her hair. Bo gets caught up in the eyes of the Morah and starts to think like the Zar. Kess snaps him out of it, they find Mumpo, who was turned into a Zar, and get him to go home with them. The three friends have to race the Zar to Amarath so they can put the voice of the Wind Singer back and, by doing so, stop the Zar, and end the effects of the Morah on the people of Amarath. The kids get to Amarath during the high examinations and have to doge the Examiners to get the voice back where it belongs. As soon as it is in place, the Zar freeze in place and age rapidly, leaving the people of Amarath to come back to their senses and be free of the Morah. At this point, the Chief examiner claims Mumpo as his son, as he was ashamed to do while the Morah ruled, and the Emperor was able to leave his tower to rule his people on his own.
Recommendations and Conflicts:
I recommend this book to advanced readers who want to read a book that will challenge them, but still entertain them. The conflicts that I see in this book are the "profanities" which are nonsense words, the government of Amarath, which controls everything the people of Amarath are allowed to do, the cruel way in which Mumpo is treated in the first half of the book, the old children who  suck away your youth, the army of young soldiers who sing "kill" over and over again, and the fact that a father refused to recognize his son as his own.
Reaction:
I enjoyed this book, Kess, Bo, and Mumpo are realistic characters, and you want to know what's going to happen next to them.

Stargirl

Stargirl
Jerry Spinelli
Random House Children's Books
Copyright 2002
Pages: 208
Reading Level: 12 and up
Genre: Science Fiction
Summary:
Leo Borlock got a porcupine necktie as a goodbye present from Uncle Pete as Leo's family moved to Mica Arizona. He decided to start collecting porcupine neckties, but was never able to find any until one birthday two were left on the doorstep for him. In Leo's junior year in high school, Stargirl showed up. She was as different from normal as you could get. She sang Happy Birthday to students during lunch, wore costumes to school, and made her desk into a personal space for each class. The whole school falls in love with her and wake up from the hibernation they had been in. Students started to go to sporting events, they developed their own personal styles, and they were excited about life. Stargirl was invited to join the cheerleading squad and she cheered for everyone, she even cheered when the opposing team scored a point. The school began to loose spirit when Stargirl ran to the aid of the opposing team's star player. They turned on her when they lost. Stargirl was invited to be on hotseat and it turned into a bashing contest, everyone on the jury tried to put her down the best. After this, Leo and Stargirl start to date. Leo finally realizes that nobody talks to him when he's with Stargirl (which is most of the time). He talks to Archie who asks Leo who's opinion does he care about more, the school's or Stargirl's. After this, Leo talks Stargirl into trying to be normal for a while. She does her best, using a normal name, wearing name brand clothes, acting normal, doing things that normal kids do, winning the speech contest, but to no avail, still nobody will talk to her or even look at her. The next Monday, she goes back to being Stargirl. Leo doesn't ask her to the last dance of the year, and she goes on her own. She starts the bunny hop and leads almost everybody around, they've warmed their hearts to her again. After the bunny hop is over, Stargirl leaves the dance and is never seen by anyone in Mica again, but she does send Leo a porcupine tie for his birthday long after graduation.
Recommendations and Conflict:
I would recommend this book to every kid in the sixth grade. The conflict I see in this book is the shunning.
Reactions:
This book is about being yourself even if nobody else appreciates it. When I read it, I wanted to cry for all that Stargirl went through and I wanted to yell at Leo and the rest of the kids in the entire high school. The thing is though, you have to remember where you were in your life when you went through high school and understand what part you would have played in this book.

The Great Gilly Hopkins

The Great Filly Hopkins
Katherine Paterson
HarperCollins Publishers
Copyright 1987
Pages:192
Reading Level: 10 and up
Genre: Realistic Fiction
Summary:
Gilly is a tough ward of the state. Her mother is her one source of hope of getting out of the system. Gilly does her best to get moved out of the homes she is placed in as soon as she can. Her newest foster mother is Trotter. Trotter lives next door to an elderly blind black man named Mr Randolph, who eats dinner with them every evening. William Earnest (or W.E. as Gilly calls him) is another of Trotter's foster children. Gilly schemes of a way to get to California where her mother lives. She writes a letter to her mom explaining how horrible life is with Trotter, trying to get her mom to come get her. Gilly finds money in one of Mr. Randolph's books and decides to steal it and look for more latter when she has more time. She goes back later under the pretense of cleaning and finds out that Mr. Randolf doesn't have any more money in his books than Gilly already took. She finds Trotter's paycheck and goes to the bus station to get a ride to San Fransisco. The ticket guy gets suspicious and calls the police about a runaway. They pick her up and call Trotter and Trotter is disappointed in Gilly. She makes Gilly pay Mr. Randolf back and forgives her. Thanksgiving rolls around and Trotter, W.E., and Mr. Randolf all get sick and Gilly runs around trying to take care of all of them. Gilly's grandmother rings the doorbell during all of this (Gilly's mom wrote to her mom to get Gilly) and is shocked by what she sees. Grandmother writes to Social Services and gains custody of Gilly, by this time, Gilly has learned to love Trotter, W.E., and Mr Randolf and doesn't want to leave them. Grandmother and Gilly learn to get along with each other and  Gilly's mom comes for Christmas, but she makes it obvious that she doesn't intend to stay.
Recommendations and Conflict:
I would recommend this book to any young kid who is having a hard time in life to show them that life can be what you make it to be. This book has language problems, lying, an uncaring mother, and at first racial issues.
Reactions:
I had a hard time relating to Gilly at first because she was so hard, by the time I could try to start getting into her head, I was at the end of the book. I enjoyed the story and the progress that Gilly went through, but I couldn't relate to her.

Bedtime in the Southwest

Bedtime in the Southwest
Mona Hodgson

Northland Publishing
Copyright 2004 

Pages: 32

Reading Level: 2-3 years

Genre: fiction

Summary:

This book is about animal children not wanting to go to bed. They squirm and fidget and try to distract their parents so that they don't have to go to bed.

Recommendations and Conflicts:

 I would recommend this book to parents to read to their young children. I didn't see any possible problems in this book.

Reaction:

This book has good illustrations and is a nice way of telling kids to go to bed. I would read this book to my kids at bedtime. It is also a easy read and there isn't much plot to it.

My Friend Rabbit

My Friend Rabbit
Eric Rohmann
Roarubg Book Press
Copyright 2002
Page Number: 32
Reading Level: 4-8 years
Genre: Fiction
Summary:
Rabbit tries to help Mouse get a good start on his flight on his plane, but ends up throwing the plane, having Mouse fall out, and getting the plane stuck in a tree. Rabbit has an idea; he gets an elephant, a rhino, a hippo, a deer, an alligator, a bear, a goose, and a squirrel, and stacked them all up, but the plane was still out of reach. Finally, Squirrel held Mouse who grabbed the plane, but then all the animals fell and weren't happy with Rabbit. But Rabbit meant well, and did get the plane back, even if he made Mouse crash after the plane got down.
Recommendations and Conflicts:
I would recommend this to a kindergarten or first grade class with some imagination.
Reactions:
I enjoyed this book, especially since the storyline requires the pictures. I liked having pages where you had to come up with your own words for what was happening.

The Story of the Statue of Liberty

The Story of the Statue of Liberty
Natalie Miller
Childrens Press
Copyright 1965
Pages: 30
Reading Level: 11 and up
Genre: Non-Fiction
Summary:
In 1865 There was a meeting of artisans in France to discuss a gift to the USA. Auguste Bartholdi decided that he wanted a statue of his design to be the gift. Soon there was war and Bartholdi had to fight, but he didn't forget his plan. After the war, he visited his mother, who had to share her home with German soldiers, and was impressed by the respect she was given by the enemy. After his visit, he went to the US and on the boat, he sketched ideas for the statue, but threw them all over board. When they were about to arrive, he saw Bedloe's Island and decided that is where he wanted his statue to go. He ran to his cabin and before they were docked, had the statue of Liberty drawn out. He showed his plans to the president who agreed to come up with the base, if France came up with the statue.  Bartholdi went back to France and the committee who had originally met approved his idea. Bartholdi was asked if the statue could be completed for the 100th anniversery of the US, but the rough model was no where near completion, but he promised to have the arm and torch completed in time. Miss Liberty's head went to the Paris World Fair in 1878. Mr. Eiffel's men built a framework so that Miss Liberty wouldn't fall over in the wind. The statue was finished in 1884, but the base wasn't due to conflict over funding. Joseph Pulitzer published in the World that Lady Liberty was for all America, and he got other newspapers to run the same article turning the public view and gaining the needed funding. The statue of liberty was packaged in 214 crates and shipped to the US in 1884. It wasn't finished and dedicated until 1886 when Bartholdi unveiled it too soon, cutting off Mr. Evart's speech. Today, it stands as a symbol of freedom for the whole world.
Recommendations and Conflicts:
I would recommend this book to fifth graders because it would be a challenge for fourth graders. I don't see any possible conflicts in this book.Reaction:
This book had a good story and was simplified so that younger students would be able to understand it, but it is still too complicated for young children. I thought it was interesting that the book only five colors: had black, white, green, gold, and blue.

Dear Mrs. LaRue Letters from Obedience School

Dear Mrs. LaRue Letters from Obedience School
Mark Teague
Scholastic Press
Copyright 2002
Pages: 32
Reading Level 5-8 years
Genre: Fantasy
Summary:
 Mrs. LaRue sends her dog, Ike, to obedience school because he has behavior problems. Ike writes Mrs. LaRue every day and tells her how bad it is and tries to get her to come take him home. Ike makes up all the horrible things that he tells Mrs, LaRue about Obedience school and runs away on the tenth day of "incarceration."  He goes to America, still writing Mrs. LaRue, and decides that the place that he really wants to be is home with Mrs. LaRue, so he returns home. When he arrives in town, he sees Mrs. LaRue crossing the street with a truck barreling down towards her and he pushes her out of the way. Mrs. LaRue throws a welcome home party for Ike with all his favorite dishes.
Recommendations and Conflicts:
I recommend this as a classroom book for first and second grade teachers. The conflict I see in this book is that Ike lies about his situation, runs away, and then is rewarded.
Reaction:
I enjoyed reading this book and being able to look at the pictures and seeing the difference in the words in the letters and what is actually happening in the story.

Where the Wild Things Are

Where the Wild Things Are
Maurice Sendak
Harper Collins Publishing
Copyright 1963
Pages:48
Reading Level: 2-8 years old
Genre: Fiction
Summary:
Max was getting into trouble and was sent to bed with out dinner. Trees started growing in his bedroom, until his room became a forest world. Max hopped on a boat that was waiting for him in the ocean by the forest and sailed to where the wild things are. The wild things made a display of how wild and ferocious they were, but all Max did was to tell them to be still and to tame them with a magic trick. The wild things made Max their King. And they were all wild, that is until Max sent them all to bed. All Max wanted was some one who loved him for him, and not because he was the king, so he decided to go home. The wild things were sad that Max was leaving and tried to get him to stay. Max got back into his boat and sailed to the forest that had been his room and found a hot dinner waiting for him.
Recommendations and Conflicts:
I recommend this book to parents and teachers to read to their kids, because every kid wants to be wild, then they remember someone loves them and wants them home. The only conflict I can come up with is the kid becomes the wildest thing.
Reaction:
I love this book because Max is being a kid and gets into trouble for it, but at the end we see that his mom still loves him.

Libertry Street

Liberty Street
Candice Ransom
Walker Publishing Company, Inc
Copyright 2003
Pages: 28
Reading Level: 6-9 years
Genre: Fiction
Summary:
 Kezia was born into slavery before the civil war. Her dad was sold to pay off her owner's debts. Every day of the week, there was a specific job to be done, and that job was always done on that day. Sunday was the day they had off after dinner was made for the owners. They would walk down Liberty Street to so visit their friends. Before Kezia's dad was sold, people would come visit their family and have fun. One day, Mama told her about a secret school taught by a free woman. Kezia loved school and learning, she would practice the ABC's and spelling while Mama did laundry. Mama was doing laundry one Tuesday (laundry day is Monday) and Kezia asked why. Apparently Missus Grace (their owner) was planning on lending Kezia to her sister in Richmond for an indefinite amount of time and Mama was working hard to try to buy Kezia's freedom.
At school, they hide in the back room to learn their letters and one day the constable stopped outside the door suspicious, but went on his way. Mama put a white shirt on the line, eventhough it was going to rain, she still hadn't saved enough to buy Kezia and Kezia was to leave the following week. The following day, the constable knocks on the door of the house holding school and they all have to be silent in the hidden room so they wouldn't get caught. After the constable left, all the students except Kezia went home. Her teacher tells Kesia about Canada and a secret tunnel that leads under the streets and to the river. That night, with a red shirt hanging from the clothes line, Mama tells Kesia of the same tunnel and tells her that she (Kesia) will be leaving that night through this tunnel and onto a waiting boat to go to Canada, but that she couldn't go with her. That night Kesia is led to the tunnel adn she meets the others who are on their way to freedom. She makes a promise to work hard and to earn enough money to send for Mama
Recommendations and Conflicts:
One possible conflict I see in this book is slavery, and thence racism. I would recommend this book to young readers because the story line is good and the pictures are amazing.
Reaction:
I enjoyed this book because it has good art work and an excellent plot. I didn't realize that Mama was part of the organization to get slaves onto the underground railroad until Kesia recognized it.

Holes

Holes
Louis Sachar
Random House Children's Books
Copyright: 2000
Pages: 240
Reading Level: 10-11 years
Genre: fiction
Summary:
Stanley Yelnats is an over weight boy who gets accused of stealing "Sweet Feet's" shoes that were on auction to raise money for the poor. His sentence is to go to Camp Green Lake instead of going to jail. Green Lake used to be a lake with a thriving town, but it started to dry up 110 years ago. Now it is a juvenile correction camp where each boy digs a hole six feet deep and six feet wide every day. Every boy had a nickname which they went by instead of their given name. Louis, or Caveman, has a hard time adjusting to life digging holes everyday with a limited amount of water and only a four minute shower. Stanley finds a lipstick tube with the initals KB on it and gives it to one of his friends who plants it the next day to get the whole day off of digging. Group D digs in the same area for quite some time, but eventually the warden gives up hope of finding anything else in that area. Stanley gets a letter from home and Zero asks him what it says and asks Stanley if he would teach him how to read. Stanley says no at first, but after he takes the blame for stealing sunflower seeds, Zero digs part of his hole for him. Stanley and Zero make a deal where Zero digs part of Stanley's hole for him and Stanley will teach Zero how to read. They go on in this arrangement and one day the other guys in group D get fed up that Stanley doesn't have to dig all of his hole. Emotions rise and they get into a fight. Zero ends up hitting their councilor with his shovel and running away. The warden, Mr. Sir, and Mom (their councilor) ask Stanley if he knows where Zero ran off to, but when he denies knowledge, they plan on destroying the record of "Hector Zeroni," Zero's real name. A few days later, Stanley decides to steal the water truck, but ends up running it into a hole. He gets out of the car and runs away to find Zero. He comes across a boat called the Mary Lou and underneath is Zero, hiding from the sun and surviving off Kissin' Kate's home made peaches. They decide to go to the top of a mountain that looks like a thumb, which is where Stanley thinks his great grandpa survived after he was robbed by Kissin' Kate. Stanley and Hector go to the mountain, but Hector gets sick from the germs that have been living in the peaches. Stanley has to carry him up the rest of the way (which breaks his great, great grandpa's curse for not carrying madam Zeroni up the mountain after getting one of her pigs). Stanley and Hector live off wild onions for  a week and decide to dig one last hole and go back to camp to dig up Kissin' Kate's buried treasure. After they dig up the treasure, the warden shines a light on them and demands that they give her the treasure. When the light is on them, the warden sees yellow spotted lizards hanging out on their clothes and in their hair. She decides to wait the lizards out since she believes Stanley and Zero will eventually be killed by the lizards, but is disappointed when Stanley's lawyer shows up and the two are still alive. The lawyer came the day before to get Stanley, but the warden told her that he wasn't fit to leave and that the lawyer didn't have the proper paperwork. The warden spins the situation and tells the lawyer that Stanley and Zero stole her suitcase from her room that morning and ran into the hole to hide. The lawyer doesn't believe this especially after Hector says that the suitcase has Stanley's name on it. Stanley and Hector both get out of camp and go home (Hector is able to find his mom) and are rich.
Recommendations and Conflict:
I would recommend this book to a fourth grader who hasn't read holes. One conflict I see in this book is that the adults want to kill the kids to get the money. Also it talks about Hector living on the streets as a five year old and having been abandoned by his mom.
Reactions:
I enjoyed this book  better than the movie. It was believable, but many of the images in my head were contradicted by what was written.

George Washington

George Washington
We the People
Houghton Mifflin Company
Copyright 1997
Pages: 12
Reading Level: 6-7 years
Genre: Biography
Summary:
George Washington was a great leader as our first president. There are lots of coins that commemorate this event. Before Washington became president he was a surveyor, a colonel, and he loved music. He was also the general of the US army during the American Revolution.  He is called the father of our country. He and his wife lived at Mount Vernon
Recommendations and Conflicts:
 I recommend this to a first grade classroom because it is too simple for older children.
Reaction:
I think that this is very informative for young children who haven't studied Washington, but that it doesn't give much new information for someone who knows anything about him.

The Story of the Constitution

The Story of the Constitution
Marilyn Prolman
Scholastic Library Publishing
Copyright 1995
Pages: 32
Reading Level: 8-12
Genre: Non-Fiction
Summary:
The Declaration of Independence was signed on July 8, 1776. The colonists realized that they couldn't fight for rights as Englishmen any more and had to become a new and independent country. At first, the colonies were able to work together because of the war, but after they won, they pretty much became thirteen different countries. The Articles of Confederation were limited by the rights and powers of each state. Many things happened during the Confederation, but the national government had little power. Each state minted it's own coin and didn't always accept the coin of other states as payment. Shay's Rebellion showed the country that the government needed to be stronger. A convention was called to fix the Articles of Confederation. This convention ended up writing a new constitution. Madison earned the title of father of the constitution because of all the work he put into it. Washington came out of retirement to work on the constitution, and Benjamin Franklin worked on it even though he was eighty one.
Washington was elected president on the meeting and sat on a chair with half a sun on it. At the end of the convention, Franklin stated that he had wondered if the sun was setting or rising, but he now knew that it was rising on the new nation. During the convention one major issue was how each state was to be represented. It ended in what we have in article one of the Constitution. Each state gets two senators and the number people in the House of Representatives would reflect the population in the state. Article two deals with the executive branch, or the president. Article three deals with the supreme court. Article four deals with the relationship between every state. Article five is how to change the constitution. Article six the new government will pay the country's debts. Article seven stated when the Constitution would become law.
The government was formed, it just needed the support of the people and received enough support that in July of 1788, it became the Constitution of the United States of America. It had the ten amendments added on by June of the following year (which became known as the Bill of Rights). The  Constitution was set up so that it could withstand the test of time and adjust to the needs of the people.
Recommendations and Conflicts:
I would recommend this book to fourth graders because the words and concepts would be challenging for third graders. I don't see any possible conflicts in this book.
Reaction:
I enjoyed this book because it broke down the constitution in words that were easy to understand. The pictures in this book are interesting because they are all blue, black, and white.

Mufaro's Beautiful Daughters

Mufaro's Beautiful Daughters
John Steptoe
HarperCollins Publishers
Copyright 1987
Page Number 32
Reading Level 3-8 years
Genre: Folk Tales
Summary:
Manyara and Nyasha are the two daughters of Mufaro. Manyara treats Nyasha horribly because of her jealousy of Nyasha's kindness. Nyasha loved to work in her garden and the people said it was magnificent because she sang to it. One day in her garden, a garden snake rested beneath a plant. Nyasha welcomed the snake because it wouldn't hurt her and would be a help in her garden. A messenger came and told their village that the king wanted a wife. Manyara and Nyasha both were to go meet the king. Manyara left before her sister did selfishly wanting to meet the king first. Along the way, Manyara met a little boy who was hungry and refused to give him food. Then she met an old woman who warned her of what she would meet on the path. Manyara ignored her advice and laughed back at the laughing trees and ignored the man who held his head in his hand. In the morning, Nyasha and her father went to meet the king. On the way Nyasha saw a little boy and offered him food. They met an old woman and she gave them directions, Nyasha gave her sunflower seeds as a thanks. Trees bowed down to her and she saw the city as beautiful when she came to the top of the hill. As they entered the city, they heard Manyara scream as she ran from a building in the center of the city. Manyara begged Nyasha not to go into the king, because he was a five headed snake who almost ate Manyara. Nyasha left her sister to be comforted by their father and went in to meet the king. All she saw was the garden snake who had been her friend. The snake transformed in to the king and he told her that he had been the snake, the hungry boy, and the old woman. He knew that she was the most worthy and beautiful of all the women in the land. They got married and Manyara was a servant to the queen.
Recommendations and Conflicts:
I don't see any conflicts in this book. I would recommend this to a second grade teacher to read to their class.
Reactions:
I enjoyed this book the first time I read it five years ago and again when I just re-read it. I love that the king was able to find a bride who was worthy of being a queen by meeting them before they met him.