The True Story of the Three Little Pigs

The True Story of the Three Little Pigs is another creative twist on a classic tale by Jon Scieszka. The story is told from the view of the Big Bad Wolf who's real name is Alexander T. Wolf. The story follows the same story line of the original tale but with some very interesting twists. Why was Alexander T. Wolf at the pigs house? How did he get the name the Big Bad Wolf? All of these question are answered in the most creative of way in this ALA notable book.

I think that this book is a great variation of the 3 Little Pigs tale. I think that the story line is familiar to children so it could be used in many different ways in the classroom. One way I thought of was using it with the original tale to show different point's of view through the main character. How the 3 Little Pigs remember the tale and how Alexander T. Wolf remembered it were completely different.

I also think that it could be used with other books from the same author as an author study in the classroom. Many of Jon Scieszka's books have classic story with a twist and would be interesting for children to look at the similarities. 

The Stinky Cheese Man and Other Fairly Stupid Tales

The Stinky Cheese Man and Other Fairly Stupid Tales is an original book on some classic tales. This book takes tales like, "The Gingerbread Man", "The Princess and the Pea" and "The Ugly Duckling" and makes them into tales that are sarcastic and funny.

I was introduced to this book by a friend and instantly fell in love. I think this is a great book for those naught little boys in our lives that would rather sing "Jingle Bells, Batman Smells" than the original. I think that this book taps into a little boys imagination of what he is really thinking when he hears the original tale. I think that the book also shows some creative writing by taking classic tales and making them into something new.

I don't think that this is a book I would read to my entire class because I don't think it appeals to a wide range of interests. I would definitely keep this book in my classroom library for all my "naughty" little boys to read when they are feeling mischievous. 

The Adventures of Polo

The Adventures of Polo is a wordless book by Regis Faller. The book is set up much like a comic book would be with full pictures on some pages and several on others. The book reminds me of looking at a story board for a movie. This is one book in a series of wordless books with Polo as the main character.

The book starts out with a dog, whom I assume is Polo, in his home which is a big tree in the middle of a body of water. Next to his house is what looks like a tightrope that he starts walking on. He travels through the pages using different methods like clouds, fishing line and an umbrella. On his travels he runs into others and usually waves in a friendly manner.

I like this book because I could use it in my classroom for a creative writing lesson. I could break up sections of the book and have students write what they think is happening. We could eventually make our own Polo book with the stories from the class. I also like the simplicity of the illustrations because the students could try and recreate them for a class book as well.

Geronimo and the Gold Medal Mystery

Geronimo and the Gold Medal Mystery is a cute book in a series of about a mouse, Geronimo Stilton, and his adventures being a publisher of The Rodent's Gazette in New Mouse City. This is book #33 in a series of 51 books. This book does not technically have an author because the original creator, Elisabetta Dami, created the pseudonym Geronimo Stilton to publish the books. This series was published by Scholastic starting in 2004.

In this book Geronimo is begged by his sister to cover the upcoming Olympic games in Athens, which he is not thrilled about. While on the plane to Athens Geronimo runs into an old friend trying to solve an Olympic mystery. Geronimo's friend convinces him to help and they are off. Do they solve the mystery? you will have to read and find out.

The book has great illustrations and has some words in the text illustrated as well. The best part of the book is the historical facts on the modern Olympics and some important athletes that have competed over the years. I think that this book would be a fun story to read to students when learning about historical facts on the Olympics. 

The Goosebumps Series

The Goosebumps series of books written by R.L. Stine was and still is one of my all time favorite series of transitional chapter books. The first of the series was "Welcome to Dead House" and has been followed by 61 classic Goosebumps books. R.L. Stine released a 2000 series and most recently a "Welcome to Horror Land" series. Each book is unique and tells a very different story that will chill you to the bone.

I like these books because it can give students a way to discover different genres of writing. The style of writing in these books borders on scary/mystery. I think that for children who like to discover the different types of writing and/or like these types of books will love that they are a part of a teachers library.

While I think these books are suitable for young children I think that teachers should still warn students that they are scary and if a child doesn't like that then they may not be ready to read these books. For the students who are ready I think that they would be a great book to have as an author study or book club.

The Invention of Hugo Cabret

The Invention of Hugo Cabret is a wonderful and imaginative book by Brian Selznick. The book has received the 2008 Caldecott Medal and has been made into an award winning movie by Martin Scorsese. The book takes place in a 1930's Paris train station. Hugo Cabret is an orphan boy who lives in the walls of the train station. Hugo starts out as his uncles apprentice, who keeps the clocks at the train station, until his uncle goes missing. After his uncle goes missing Hugo continues his uncles job and tends to the clocks in the train station. Hugo spends most of his time trying to fix an automaton that his father was working on before he died. Hugo tries to fix the automaton by stealing parts to fix it. One day he is caught by a to store owner in the train station and the owner takes Hugo's notebook, that has his fathers instructions on how to fix it, as punishment. This leads to a friendship with the toy store owners goddaughter, Isabelle. Isabelle holds the "key" to fixing Hugo's fathers automaton. Do they find out who created the automaton and why? This is a must read to find out. 

Nearly a third of the book is pencil drawn pictures. This chapter book is a cross between picture book and chapter book and I think is a great way to transition young readers. I think that this story can be used as a read aloud in sections or as a classroom book students can read independently. The format and the wording are not to complicated for young readers and the pictures aid in telling the story. 

I think that this book could be used as a way to have a creative writing session. Because it is unknown who made the automaton and why you could have the students write their own story about what they think will happen when the automaton is fixed. 

I think that the book is engaging and will keep student readers on their toes and eager to find out what happens. When the movie is released I think it could be a treat for the kids to view and make comparisons between the two.

Blue Chicken

Blue Chicken is a cute little book about a painting and a chicken in that painting who just wants to help paint the barn. The chicken gets into the blue paint and spills it all over the painting turning the other animals blue! And they are mad. Can this little helpful chicken fix things?

I think that is a creative book that has great watercolor artwork. I think that this book would be great to read to children in class and talk about mistakes. In the book [SPOILER] the chicken is able to fix the problem and I think that a teacher could use this to spark discussion about problem solving.

I also think that the book could be used to show how to use different shading in painting. The blue shades used can be pointed out and a teacher can point out the technique and model it. The drawing of the animals is also really cute and I think it would be a hit for children in kindergarten through second grade.

                                                    

You Are a LION! And Other Fun Yoga Poses

You Are a LION! And Other Fun Yoga Poses is a great little book that introduces easy yoga poses in a literary way. The book give children the chance to do yoga poses that are named after animals like lions, frogs, butterflies and more. It is written like a story and I think that it would be fun for young children in kindergarten through first grade.

I think this book would be a fantastic way to introduce literacy into content areas like PE. I think that this book could be used by a PE teacher to have the kids stretch or by a classroom teacher who would like to incorporate movement into her classroom. I think that the yoga move would be fun for children as well as a way to relax them.

Magic Dogs of the Volcanoes/ Los Perros Magicos de los Volcanoes

The book Magic Dogs of the Volcanoes/ Los Perros Magicos de los Volcanoes is an English/Spanish book about the cadejos, a protective animal of the people who lived in a village at the base of the volcanoes. The cadejos are an El Salvadorian folkloric animal. The story is about how they protect the people in the village at the base of the volcano. The magical animals are said to be the great, great grandchildren of the volcanoes. In the story there is a man, Don Tonio, and his 13 brothers who do not like the cadejos because they feel that the cadejos make the people lazy, when really they take care of the people. Don Tonio and his 13 brothers called in lead soldiers to go and hunt the cadejos. The soldiers go into the mountain and.....

This story is printed in both English and Spanish and is a great way to include diversity into the classroom. I think that it could be used when teaching students about American tall-tales and incorporating folklore from other countries. I think that it contrasts well will American folklore and can also be used in a creative writing piece for students. 

The artwork in this book is also interesting and culturally diverse. I think this is a great book and would love to have this as a part of my classroom library.