The Left Behinds series so far contains two different historical fiction novels with time travel adventures in which preteens must save the day. In The iPhone that Saved George Washington, three kids travel to 1776 to discover that George Washington has been shot. Can they reverse this alternate history before history is changed forever? In Abe Lincoln and the Selfie that Saved the Union, the same kids must stop a change in the Battle of Gettysburg. Will they be quick enough?Continue Reading
Picture Book Sunday: Three Monarch Award Nominees
In Illinois, there is a student vote on favorite books for Kindergarten through third graders called the Monarch awards. Although Raisin is not in public school in which the voting takes place, he has enjoyed browsing the shelves at the library for new favorites! Here are three that I really enjoyed too.Continue Reading
Caddie Woodlawn by Carol Ryrie Brink
Caddie Woodlawn by Carol Ryrie Brink is a 1930s Newbery Award Winner, based on the experiences of the author’s own grandmother. Caddie is a creative and active 11 year old, resistant to the demands her nineteenth century culture demands of her because she is a girl. In this fictionalized volume of adventures, Caddie’s fun occasionally brings her in to danger, although her courageous spirit refuses to worry.
Although her stories are fun ones, it is does not capture my heart in the ways Laura Ingalls’s adventures do, and it does not provide the ultimate growth at the end of the book that gives satisfaction. Caddie has supposedly embraced some of her roll as a girl in her culture, but I am not convinced. Continue Reading
Picture Book Sunday: Walk on the Wild Side by Nicholas Oldland
Walk on the Wild Side by Nicholas Oldland (Kids Can Press, 2014) is a delightful story about three friends (a bear, a moose, and a beaver) who love to have adventures together. The cartoon illustrations show the humor of these particular friends hiking together, but ultimately the message of “enjoying the journey” is a memorable one.