Classics, Nonfiction, and Children's Literature
When I saw Faces from the Past on the Netgalley catelogy, I was excited, since my recent read about forensic anthropology was such a delightful read for me. My son and I have been studying early American history as well, so it fits in well with my current interests. Once again, I have to say how
It’s a Tiger! by David LaRochelle and illustrated by Jeremy Tankard (Chronicle, 2012) is a story of a child telling a story, and somehow a tiger keeps appearing, hidden amid the branches of the jungle. The bright ink illustrations give the jungle and the tiger a friendly cartoon-like feel, and the fact that the tiger
Oh, No! by Candace Fleming and illustrated by Eric Rohmann (Schwartz & Wade, 2012) features a tiger in a jungle, and this tiger is not friendly. Animals are trying to escape him. Fleming’s story has a perfect read-aloud rhythm as the various animals (a frog, a mouse, a sloth, and a sun bear, among others)
Railroad Hank by Lisa Moser and illustrated by Benji Davies (Random House, 2012) is a story of a train engineer who wants to help his granny feel better. Hank is rather slow, however: when Missy May suggests making a yummy plate of scramble eggs, Hank takes the chickens with him, and so forth. By the
Train Man by Andrea Zimmerman and David Clemesha (Henry Holt, 2012) is a part of a series of books that also includes Fire Engine Man and Digger Man. In Train Man, a young boy tells his younger brother about trains and how he cannot wait to grow up so he can work on a train.
Oh No, George! by Chris Haughton (Candlewick, 2012) is a book I can’t quite bring myself to like, and yet my son loves it! Part of my dislike relates to the computer-rendered modern images: the bright orange and red illustrations remind me of computer drawings I attempted years ago and the typeface is also rather
I personally love poetry anthologies, and I have searched for something my son would also enjoy so he could learn to appreciate poetry as I do. We may have found a winner! Julie Andrews’ Treasury for All Seasons: Poems and Songs to Celebrate the Year (Little, Brown and Company, 2012) is a poetry anthology organized
For our Thanksgiving homeschool unit, we learned more about Squanto by reading Joseph Bruchac’s masterpiece Squanto’s Journey (Harcourt Children’s Books, 2000). Illustrated by Greg Shed, this gorgeously illustrated book tells the story of Thanksgiving from the perspective of a young man who had grown up in the area that became Plymouth Bay. Squanto was kidnapped
Alice Dagliesh’s The Thanksgiving Story (illustrated by Helen Sewell) is nonfiction picture book about a child’s family traveling to Plymouth. Because it is has dated illustrations, it was not a favorite for my son. Ironically, The Thanksgiving Story won a Caldecott Honor for its illustrations. The Thanksgiving Story has lots of details, and we read it over
My son (age 5) and I learned about the departure of the pilgrims and the voyage of the Mayflower in Tattered Sails by Verla Kay and Dan Andreasen. Although Kay never mentions either the Mayflower or the pilgrims by name, in her book, she depicts children in a crowded and dirty city, a crowded and dirty boat, and then
I couldn’t resist picking up Joseph Bruchac’s Pocahontas. Although fictionalized, it is obvious from the complexity of the story that Bruchac did research into the John Smith and Pocahontas story. I loved the alternating viewpoints: one chapter was Pocahontas’ narration, and the next would be Captain John Smith’s. Their voices were unique. I really enjoyed seeing
To accompany our history studies in our homeschool, I read Pocahontas and the Strangers by Clyde Robert Bulla. But, although I had intend to read it aloud to my son (age 5) as well, but we didn’t get to it. Bulla’s story is the romanticized story of Pocahontas saving John Smith’s life. I liked reading it, but
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