Bird in a Box

Title: Bird in a Box
Author: Andrea Davis Pinkney
ISBN: 978-0-316-07403-2
Copyright: 2011

While everyone knows that Fantasy is the hot genre right now, what you might have missed is that historical fiction is working hard to make a comeback.  Most new historical fiction is set between the great depression and the 1980's.  I know most people wouldn't consider 1980 to be historical, but trust me it is! 

Bird in a Box by Andrea Davis Pinkney, is one of my top picks for Black History Month.  This is a total "boy book" (forgive my stereotyping please!).  Joe Louis is absolutely famous during the Great Depression and in the small town of Elmira, New York Joe Louis is going to change the lives of three children: Hibernia, Willie, and Otis.  This is a story about the power of hope and the effect it can have on young children. 

Willie is living at the Mercy Home for Negro Orphans after his stepfather burned his hands so he couldn't box anymore and his mother gave him up.  Otis' parents are killed in a car accident leaving him no one to take care of him and all he has for memories is his dad's old radio and a handkerchief of his mothers.  Then there is Hibernia, the reverends daughter who dreams of following her mother who abandoned her to be a great singer in Harlem. 

Andrea Pinkney weaves a beautiful story that makes the reader feel as if he is taking a step back into the 1930's filled with all the good and bad that the era was filled with.  Plus she includes real live radio broadcast commentary of Joe Louis fights.  For those of us who weren't alive in the 1930's they are pretty amazing to read. 

Give this book to your favorite sports fan!

One Crazy Summer

Title: One Crazy Summer
Author: Rita Williams-Garcia
ISBN: 978-0-06-076088-5
Copyright: 2010

This book actually came out in 2010, the library didn't buy a copy until 2011 when it started getting nominated for numerous awards including:

2011 Coretta Scott King Award Winner

2011 Newbery Honor Book

2011 Scott O'Dell Prize for Historical Fiction

2010 National Book Award Finalist

Normally I don't push award winning books on this blog.  I assume that most people have heard of the books that have won awards.  Usually people who like books have already heard about the "good ones"  but occasionally we all need to make a change and this is mine.  I absolutely adore One Crazy Summer by Rita Williams- Garcia.  I was hooked by page two while describing an airplane ride eleven year old Delphine says "The last thing Pa and Big Ma wanted to hear was how we made a grand Negro spectacle of ourselves thirty thousand feet up in the air around all these white people."  With the words, "A grand Negro Spectacle" I knew that this was going to be a good book.  Vonetta, Fern, and Delphine get sent to live with their mother in Oakland, CA during the summer of 1968.

One Crazy Summer is for all the girls in the world who have a mother who doesn't love them.  Delphine and her sister aren't sure why Pa is making them stay in CA for the summer with their mother Cecile who abandoned the family.  Even more mysterious is what Cecile is doing in the kitchen with all the men with afros, and why suddenly the girls need to spend all their time at a summer camp run by the Black Panthers getting a "real education."

This is an elegantly written story which will leave readers wanting more.  More of Delphine, Vonette, and Fern, and occasionally even more of Cecile and the Panthers.  This book is an excellent introduction to the civil unrest that was taking place in California in the 1960's. 

Claudette Colvin Twice Toward Justice

Title: Claudette Colvin, Twice Toward Justice
Author: Phillip Hoose
ISBN: 978-0-374-31322-7
Copyright: 2009

Happy February and welcome to Black History Month.  Since I have really been enjoying the Children's Room biography collection I thought it would be worthwhile to include an excellent older book.

Claudette Colvin: Twice Toward Justice is one of the best stories about the Civil Rights Movement that most people have never heard before.  All children (and adults) have heard the story of Rosa Parks refusing to get off a city bus.  What if I told you that Claudette Colvin did the SAME thing 9 months before Rosa Parks?  Certainly makes the reader wonder why if Claudette refused to give up her seat on March 2, 1955 we have never heard of her.

In this biography written by Phillip Hoose readers will learn Claudette's story including how after her bus protest she was shunned by her classmates for causing trouble and deemed an unfit role model for the black community.  Phillip Hoose's book is based extensively on interviews with Claudette and other civil rights leaders.  4th-6th graders will love getting to learn more about the Montgomery bus protests as well as how Martin Luther King Jr and Rosa Parks became the leaders that they became.

So there is your educational book for the month.  Check back over the rest of the month to see different chapter books and picture books for Black History Month

P.S.  I hate this book cover - it definitely doesn't make me want to read the book, but please trust me that the story is awesome, and don't judge a book by it's cover!

Queen of the Falls

Title: Queen of the Falls
Author: Chris Van Allsburg
ISBN: 978-0-547-31581-2
Copyright: 2011

Chris Van Allsburgs stunning monochromatic drawings bring to life the story of Annie Edison Taylor, a retired charm school teacher.  As less and less students begin signing up to attend classes at Mrs. Taylors Charm School in Bay City, Michigan, Annie decided that it was time for a change!  Since apparently no one cared about "the correct fork to use at dinner, the usefulness of handkerchiefs, and how to properly waltz," perhaps they would care about action, adventure, danger, and recklessness.

Suddenly an idea came to Annie; she would make a fortune as the first woman to ever go over Niagra Falls in a barrel!  For anyone who hasn't visited Niagra Falls, it is huge!  The falls itself is as tall as a 17 story building and the rushing water draws tourists all year round.

Annie Edison Taylor at sixty two years old is brought to life by Chris Van Allsburg.  Children will be enthralled to follow the story through the images.  As it comes closer to the appointed time for Annie to go over the falls readers will be amazed to discover the true grit and stubbornness that a former charm school teacher can contain.  As person after person tells Annie that she can't possibly survive a trip over the falls Annie grits her teeth, smiles and tells them all that she will see everyone shortly. 

To discover whether or not Annie survives the trip, and whether she manages to become rich off of her adventure you will need to check out Queen of the Falls by Chris Van Allsburg.  Plus while you are checking out this book make sure to grab a few other picture book biographies to read at home!

With a Name Like Love

Title:  With a Name Like Love
Author: Tess Hilmo
ISBN: 978-0-374-38465-4
Copyright: 2011

"I'm Olivene Love, oldest daughter of the Reverence Everlasting Love" and this is her story.  Olivene Love is the daughter of a traveling preacher in 1957.  The Loves travel around the countryside preaching the love of God and holding tent revivals.  However, when they roll into Binder, Arkansas Ollie quickly learns that there is something not quite right in this town and she is determined to stay until the mystery is solved. 

With a Name Like Love is a delightful story, part historical fiction, part mystery, and just a hint of love (at thirteen Ollie is trying to figure out the difference between love and friends and which is better to have).  In Binder, Arkansas Ollie quickly learns that a young boys Mama has been put in jail for murdering her husband.  This wouldn't be so strange except the whole town knows that Jimmy Koppels mom is innocent, they just don't want to help her. 

Ollie's family is quickly targeted for trying to help the Koppels and Ollie and her sisters learn real quick what it means to be an outsider.  Ollie doesn't care if the entire town hates her, she is determined to be friends with Jeremy, free his Mama, and make sure that justice rules.  Only once she has done all that will she be willing to move on to their next destination. 

This is the sort of book that leaves a person feeling warm and fuzzy inside, and reminds everyone that their is still hope in this world.  It seems like a perfect book to read to kick off the new year!

Hooray for Amanda and Her Alligator

Title:  Hooray For Amanda and Her Alligator
Author:  Mo Willems
ISBN: 978-0-06-200400-0
Copyright: 2011

Mo Willems has created some of the most loved, and unusual picture book hero's in recent times.  He is well known for his Knuffle Bunny books, the Elephant and Piggie easy reader series, Pigeon, and Naked Mole Rat.  Now Mo brings us Amanda and Her Alligator!  What is not to love about an adorable (though lengthy) picture book about an Alligator. 

Don't be alarmed,this book is actually 70 pages long.  Most picture books are only 32 pages...  Luckily for all the parents who will need to read Amanda and Her Alligator out loud to their young children, the story is broken up into 6 1/2 separate tales.  Each tale has a very surprising title such as:

1.  A Surprising Surprise

2.  An Un-Surprising Surprise

2.5.  An Extra Surprise

3.  A Surprising Tickle

Well, I am sure you get the point.  I was sold with the first two pages:

"Amanda was at the library getting her books for the week. 

Her alligator was not.

He was waiting for Amanda to get back.

I do not like it when Amanda is gone, though Alligator. 

I am no good at waiting. 

He paced around the room. 

He fiddled with his tail."

This book is sure to be an instant hit for three reasons. 

1 - it features a thoughtful and intelligent female protagonist (Amanda is at the library after all what could be smarter)

2- It features an Alligator who recognizes his inability to wait (Lets be honest how many alligators or children are capable of waiting)

3-  The Alligator is not only a fun interactive friend, but he also contains surprising value.  (Ha now you will need to read the story to learn Alligators true value.) 

I'm not sure there is anything more that I can say to sell this book.  If you need further proof merely look at the picture below.

The Summer I Learned to Fly

Title:  The Summer I Learned to Fly
Author: Dana Reinhardt
ISBN: 9780385739542
Copyright: 2011

I know that The Summer I Learned to Fly is a summer book, however, sometimes in Maine the winters get too cold, and too dark, and too snowy.  That is precisely why I picked up Dana Reinhardt's book.  I just couldn't resist a new book about summer.  Now I have never actually read a book by Reinhardt, I have read many reviews of her books and they are always described as wonderful and enchanting.  The Summer I Learned to Fly is no exception. 

Drew Robin Solo, who used to be named Robin Drew Solo, until her father died and her mother legally changed her name has turned 13 and is currently living out the summer before eighth grade.  Drew's mother just opened a designer cheese shop in Los Angeles. Drew's friends call her Birdie, and then she meets a boy named Emmett Crane who is everything she has been looking for. 

As if your mom owning a cheese shop isn't weird enough, Birdie also happens to have a Pet Rat named Humboldt Fog, or Hum for short.  Birdie takes Hum everywhere with her in a backpack, to the park, the ocean, the grocery store, and yes even the cheese shop.  Then one day when Hum goes missing, Birdie literally runs into a boy named Emmett who is everything she is looking for in a friend and so much more. 

However, as the summer goes on Birdie learns that she really doesn't know anything about her new friend, and she needs to decide if she is willing to give up everything she knows in order to help him.