Module 10

Module 10:

Here Lies the Librarian

Summary:

 Here Lies the Librarian is about a young girl named PeeWee and her brother Jake trying to make it in a dead-end town in Indiana. Everything changes when four young librarians show up in the one horse town and revive the neighborhood library.

Citation:

Peck, R. (2006). Here lies the librarian. New York: Dial Books.

Impressions:

I enjoyed reading this book for the simple reason that it is about four strong female librarian characters. The book portrays women as strong and fantastic role models for Peewee (Eleanor) McGrath. It was a great story for especially young girls.

Review:

From Booklist

Gr. 5-8. Stubborn, fearless, and loyal, 14-year-old Peewee (Eleanor) McGrath, who dresses like a boy, lives with her brother, Jake, in Indiana, "way out in the weeds." Together, they run a struggling garage, where Jake is building a racecar. It's 1914, and the electric self-starter has made automobiles more accessible to women. One day, four female drivers, library students all, arrive in a Stoddard-Dayton in need of repair; later, they return to reopen the town library. With these young women as role models, Peewee comes to realize that being female and being independent aren't mutually exclusive. Peck's one-liners, colorful physical comedy, and country dialect, prominent in most of his recent novels, are great as usual. And his characters, if not fully developed, are wonderfully quirky. Yet even with some exciting scenes of old-time dirt-track racing, the pace lags, and the story is choppy. Young fans of Danica Patrick, today's "Queen of the Road," may want to read this, but it will probably be librarians who'll have the most fun. Peck recounts an incident in an endnote in which one of the characters appears at the Indianapolis 500 with Janet Guthrie; unfortunately, there's not enough explanation to know whether or not it's all true. Stephanie Zvirin 2006. (Retrieved from http://catalog.lapl.org/carlweb/jsp/FullRecord?databaseID=965&record=2&controlNumber=2007688)

Suggestions:

This book is a great example of historical fiction and such novels are always helpful during history lessons. I believe that historical can sometimes bring history alive.

Module 9

Module 9:

What happened to Cass McBride?

Summary:

Cass McBride is kidnapped and the main detective on the case is one of the alternating points of view. The story is told piece by piece as we (the readers) try to figure out what happened and how the characters got to where they are when the story begins.

Citation:

Giles, G. (2007). What happened to cass mcbride? Boston: Little, Brown.

Impressions:

I thought this was a great book. It was absolutely tragic book but it is good to show readers the severity of bullying and the violence that occur as a cause of it.

Review:

From School Library Journal

Grade 9 Up—Cass is that girl in high school who does whatever it takes to be popular-which means stomping all over everyone else. David is that awkward boy who painfully lurks on the outside of all of the social groups. When he commits suicide, his older brother is out for revenge against the girl whom he believes is responsible for David's death. Giles's characters are frighteningly believable. The story is part mystery, part psychological drama that involves dysfunctional families and abuse, and part crime investigation. It is told by Cass, her captor, and the police investigating her disappearance. Slowly, through these narrations, readers see what caused David's suicide and Kyle's anger and are given insight as to why Cass behaves as she does. This book will disturb readers, frighten them, and make them feel as though they are trapped like the characters. It is a thrilling, one-sitting read that they won't be able to put down.—Sherry Quinones Frederick County Public Libraries,  2010 (Retrieved from http://catalog.lapl.org/carlweb/jsp/DoSearch?databaseID=965&count=10&terms=what+happened+to+cass+mcbride&index=w)

Suggestions:

This would be a fantastic book on bullying and the seriousness that can occur at times.

Module 8

Module 8:

Impossible

Summary:

Impossible is about a 17 year old named Lucy who is raped at her prom and ultimately becomes pregnant. The entire story is based on the song “Scarborough Fair” in which Lucy finds out that she comes from a long line of cursed women. Lucy must break the curse before the birth of her daughter by performing three seemingly impossible tasks or she will go insane like all of her ancestors before her.

Citation:

Werlin, N. (2008). Impossible. New York: Dial Books.

Impressions:

This was a very unique book and I enjoyed reading it but a few of the elements of this book were a bit unbelievable. It’s great that Lucy was supported by not only her foster parents but also her best friend turned boyfriend. It was all a little too tidy though. Life is not that easy and you can’t always have your cake and eat it too. 

Review:

From School Library Journal

Starred Review. Grade 9 Up—Werlin combines magic, romance, and a family curse in this 21st-century fairy tale based on the ballad "Scarborough Fair." On the night of her prom, Lucy, 17, is raped by her date and becomes pregnant. She decides to keep the child, and she is supported by her foster parents and Zach, her childhood friend whose love for Lucy changes from platonic to romantic as the story progresses. The teen discovers the curse on the women in her family when she reads her birth mother's diary. Lucy is destined for madness at 18 unless she can perform the three impossible tasks described in the song and break the curse of the Elfin Knight. She is determined to rid herself and her unborn child of the curse, and her family and Zach help her as she works to solve the riddles. This unique story flows smoothly and evenly, and the well-drawn characters and subtle hints of magic early on allow readers to enter willingly into the world of fantasy. As in The Rules of Survival (Dial, 2006), Werlin addresses tough topics. Rape, teen pregnancy, and family madness set the story in motion, but the strength of Lucy's character and the love of her family and friends allow her to deal with such difficult matters and take on the impossible. Teens, especially young women, will enjoy this romantic fairy tale with modern trappings.—Jennifer D. Montgomery, Western Kentucky University, Bowling Green (Retrieved from http://www.amazon.com/Impossible-Nancy-Werlin/dp/0142414913/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1291956756&sr=1-1)

Suggestions:

I love the musical element of this novel. I think it would be great to include this book in a lesson about music in books and the unit could also include other simply books. Some other examples could be Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater or the recently book turned movie Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist.

Doll People

Summary:

Doll People is the first in a series of books about a Victorian dollhouse and the inhabiting family that has been passed down for generations. The Doll family get new neighbors after 100 years in the Palmer house and a new dollhouse family appear called the Funcrafts. The families ultimately join forces to find the Doll family’s precious Auntie Sarah who disappeared 45 years old.

Citation:

Martin, A. and Godwin, L. (2000). Doll people. New York: Hyperion Books for Children.

Review:

From Publishers Weekly

Passed down from one generation to the next, the Doll family has lived in the same dollhouse, located in the same room of the Palmer family's house, for 100 years. While the world outside has changed, their own lives have not with two significant exceptions. First, Auntie Sarah Doll suddenly and mysteriously disappeared 45 years ago, when the Doll family belonged to Kate Palmer's grandmother. More recently, the modern, plastic Funcraft family has moved into Kate's little sister's room. Following the time-honored traditions of such well-loved works as Rumer Godden's The Doll's House, The Mennyms by Sylvia Waugh and Pam Conrad's and Richard Egielski's The Tub People, Martin and Godwin inventively spin out their own variation on the perennially popular theme of toys who secretly come to life. By focusing on Annabelle's and Tiffany Funcraft's risky mission to find Auntie Sarah, the authors provide plenty of action and suspense, yet it is their skillfully crafted details about the dolls' personalities and daily routines that prove most memorable. Selznick's pencil illustrations cleverly capture the spark of life inhabiting the dolls' seemingly inanimate bodies. The contemporary draftsmanship frees the art from nostalgia even while the layout which presents the illustrations as standalone compositions as well as imaginatively integrated borders and vignettes reinforces the old-fashioned mood of the doll theme. Doll lovers may well approach their imaginative play with renewed enthusiasm and a sense of wonder after reading this fun-filled adventure. Ages 7-10. (Aug. 2000) Retrieved from http://www.amazon.com/Doll-People-Ann-M-Martin/dp/0786812400/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1291956892&sr=1-1)

Suggestions:

This a great book for elementary students to read just for fun. It is similar to today’s Toy Story movie series. As children we often wonder if our toys come to life when we aren’t looking and so this is a great book about such a question.

Module 7

Module 7:

Stargirl

Summary:

Stargirl is a unique girl who arrives at Mica High School and turns the whole school around.  She is the epitome of a nonconformist and after many strange looks from her peers they, too, begin to follow her lead. She begins to lose herself when she begins to date Leo Borlock and he suggests that she may be a little too odd.

Citation:

Spinelli, J. (2000). Stargirl. New York: Knopf.

Impressions:

This is a fantastic story about the troubles of middle school and high school and being an individual. I  love the nonconformity of Stargirl and how the author decides to end the story on a not so happily ever after note.

Review:

Amazon.com Review

"She was homeschooling gone amok." "She was an alien." "Her parents were circus acrobats." These are only a few of the theories concocted to explain Stargirl Caraway, a new 10th grader at Arizona's Mica Area High School who wears pioneer dresses and kimonos to school, strums a ukulele in the cafeteria, laughs when there are no jokes, and dances when there is no music. The whole school, not exactly a "hotbed of nonconformity," is stunned by her, including our 16-year-old narrator Leo Borlock: "She was elusive. She was today. She was tomorrow. She was the faintest scent of a cactus flower, the flitting shadow of an elf owl."

In time, incredulity gives way to out-and-out adoration as the student body finds itself helpless to resist Stargirl's wide-eyed charm, pure-spirited friendliness, and penchant for celebrating the achievements of others. In the ultimate high school symbol of acceptance, she is even recruited as a cheerleader. Popularity, of course, is a fragile and fleeting state, and bit by bit, Mica sours on their new idol. Why is Stargirl showing up at the funerals of strangers? Worse, why does she cheer for the opposing basketball teams? The growing hostility comes to a head when she is verbally flogged by resentful students on Leo's televised Hot Seat show in an episode that is too terrible to air. While the playful, chin-held-high Stargirl seems impervious to the shunning that ensues, Leo, who is in the throes of first love (and therefore scornfully deemed "Starboy"), is not made of such strong stuff: "I became angry. I resented having to choose. I refused to choose. I imagined my life without her and without them, and I didn't like it either way."

Jerry Spinelli, author of Newbery Medalist Maniac Magee, Newbery Honor Book Wringer, and many other excellent books for teens, elegantly and accurately captures the collective, not-always-pretty emotions of a high school microcosm in which individuality is pitted against conformity. Spinelli's Stargirl is a supernatural teen character--absolutely egoless, altruistic, in touch with life's primitive rhythms, meditative, untouched by popular culture, and supremely self-confident. It is the sensitive Leo whom readers will relate to as he grapples with who she is, who he is, who they are together as Stargirl and Starboy, and indeed, what it means to be a human being on a planet that is rich with wonders. (Ages 10 to 14) --Karin Snelson 

(Retrieved from  http://www.amazon.com/Stargirl-Readers-Circle-Jerry-Spinelli/dp/0440416779/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1291956218&sr=1-1)

Suggestions:

Once again this book would be great in a middle school or even lower high school level as it teaches them about something that they must deal with everyday. Do you choose the opinion of everyone around you or the people you care about and in turn care about you?

Speak

Summary:

Speak is young a teenage girl named Melinda who is starting her freshman year in high school after becoming a social pariah during the previous summer.

Citation:

Anderson, L. (2001). Speak. New York: Puffin Books.

Impressions:

Speak was a very moving story about a young girl’s struggle with dealing with the horror and consequences of rape.  Melinda struggles silently unsure about who to confide or what she should even be feeling. It’s is heart wrenching at times but the reader will be satisfied with the ending. It is also an excellent movie starring Kristen Stewart before her Twilight debut.

Review:

From Publishers Weekly

In a stunning first novel, Anderson uses keen observations and vivid imagery to pull readers into the head of an isolated teenager. Divided into the four marking periods of an academic year, the novel, narrated by Melinda Sordino, begins on her first day as a high school freshman. No one will sit with Melinda on the bus. At school, students call her names and harass her; her best friends from junior high scatter to different cliques and abandon her. Yet Anderson infuses the narrative with a wit that sustains the heroine through her pain and holds readers' empathy. A girl at a school pep rally offers an explanation of the heroine's pariah status when she confronts Melinda about calling the police at a summer party, resulting in several arrests. But readers do not learn why Melinda made the call until much later: a popular senior raped her that night and, because of her trauma, she barely speaks at all. Only through her work in art class, and with the support of a compassionate teacher there, does she begin to reach out to others and eventually find her voice. Through the first-person narration, the author makes Melinda's pain palpable: "I stand in the center aisle of the auditorium, a wounded zebra in a National Geographic special." Though the symbolism is sometimes heavy-handed, it is effective. The ending, in which her attacker comes after her once more, is the only part of the plot that feels forced. But the book's overall gritty realism and Melinda's hard-won metamorphosis will leave readers touched and inspired. Ages 12-up. (Oct. 1999) Retrieved from http://www.amazon.com/Speak-Laurie-Halse-Anderson/dp/0374371520/ref=tag_dpp_lp_edpp_ttl_in)

Suggestions:

This is an excellent for any young teenage girl to read as it ultimately proves that a person is never alone and suffering in silence is never the answer.

Module 6

Module 6:

The Year the Swallows Came Early

Summary:

This story is about a young girl named Eleanor but everyone calls her Groovy, who witnesses her father being arrested and must come to terms with her mother’s explanation of it.

Citation:

Fitzmaurice, K. (2009). The year the swallows came early. New York: Bowen Press

Impressions:

I really enjoyed reading this book. It was a beautiful story about family and forgiveness. It is also about growing up and the responsibilities that come with it.

Review:

From School Library Journal

Grade 4–7—Watching helplessly as her father is taken off to jail, Groovy Robinson, 11, is convinced that there has been a terrible mistake. When her mom admits that she turned him in because he gambled away the $25,000 savings account that Groovy's great-grandmother left her, the child shrinks into herself-disappointed, hurt, not caring about anything. Not until Groovy-now wanting to be known as Eleanor-heeds the advice of the homeless old sailor Mr. Tom does she grasp that people we love can hurt us, but that only through forgiveness can we become whole again. This first novel is peopled with three-dimensional characters whose imperfections make them believable and interesting. Groovy's big-talking, ne'er-do-well dad donates a trailer to Mr. Tom. Her beautician mom is guided by astrology, but her boundless love for Eleanor is totally grounded. And Groovy's perceptive friend Frankie is unable to grasp the real reasons that his immigrant mother left him in his stepbrother's care. The well-structured plot is underscored by clear writing and authentic dialogue, and short chapters keep the story moving. The book draws a parallel with the birds of Capistrano, and a novel that encourages understanding, tolerance, and forgiveness is as welcome as the returning swallows.—Nancy Menaldi-Scanlan, formerly at LaSalle Academy, Providence, RI (Retrieved from http://www.amazon.com/Year-Swallows-Came-Early/dp/0061624977/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1291956099&sr=1-1)

Suggestions:

This would a unique book to incorporate with a food unit. There is a recipe at the end of the book for Groovy’s homemade chocolate covered strawberries.

Module 5

Module 5:

A Bad Case of Stripes

Summary:

This book was a little girl named Camilla who always worried about what people thought about her. One day as she worries what she should wear to school that day he looks into the mirror to find herself covered in stripes. Nothing seems to cure her and Camilla only seems to make it worse until she realizes why such an odd occurrence happened.

Citation:

Shannon, D. (1998).  A bad case of stripes. New York: Blue Sky Press.

Impressions:

I thought this book was great. It was filled with great illustrations and a great moral lesson about being true to who you are. Most books about individuality can be trite sometimes but this book was fresh and funny.

Review:

School Library Journal
(c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

K-Gr 2‘A highly original moral tale acquires mythic proportions when Camilla Cream worries too much about what others think of her and tries desperately to please everyone. First stripes, then stars and stripes, and finally anything anyone suggests (including tree limbs, feathers, and a tail) appear vividly all over her body. The solution: lima beans, loved by Camilla, but disdained for fear they'll promote unpopularity with her classmates. Shannon's exaggerated, surreal, full-color illustrations take advantage of shadow, light, and shifting perspective to show the girl's plight. Bordered pages barely contain the energy of the artwork; close-ups emphasize the remarkable characters that inhabit the tale. Sly humor lurks in the pictures, too. For example, in one double-page spread the Creams are besieged by the media including a crew from station WCKO. Despite probing by doctors and experts, it takes "an old woman who was just as plump and sweet as a strawberry" to help Camilla discover her true colors. Set in middle-class America, this very funny tale speaks to the challenge many kids face in choosing to act independently.‘Carolyn  Noah, Central Mass. Regional Library System, Worcester, MA, 2010. (Retrieved from http://catalog.lapl.org/carlweb/jsp/DoSearch?databaseID=965&count=10&terms=a+bad+case+of+stripes&index=w)

Suggestions:

This book would be great in an early elementary setting in a lesson about individuality and being yourself.

Module 4

Module 4:

The Giver

Summary:

This story is about a young boy named Jonas who appears to live in a perfect world. He lives in a controlled community where there seems to be no negative aspects of life. Everything changes when he is named the next Receiver and given the memories and past history of life. Jonas finds out a truth too shocking to ignore despite the dangerous choices he must make.

Citations:

Lowry, L. (1993). The giver. Boston: Houghton Mifflin.

Impressions:

Reviews:

loved this book. I had been meaning to read this book ever since I was in elementary but I never got around to it. Many of the elementary schools assign this book for class assignments. I thought it was an excellent dystopia. I am a big fan of dystopia and I thought this was a unique version of humanity.

School Library Journal
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Gr 6-9-- In a complete departure from her other novels, Lowry has written an intriguing story set in a society that is uniformly run by a Committee of Elders. Twelve-year-old Jonas's confidence in his comfortable ``normal'' existence as a member of this well-ordered community is shaken when he is assigned his life's work as the Receiver. The Giver, who passes on to Jonas the burden of being the holder for the community of all memory ``back and back and back,'' teaches him the cost of living in an environment that is ``without color, pain, or past.'' The tension leading up to the Ceremony, in which children are promoted not to another grade but to another stage in their life, and the drama and responsibility of the sessions with The Giver are gripping. The final flight for survival is as riveting as it is inevitable. The author makes real abstract concepts, such as the meaning of a life in which there are virtually no choices to be made and no experiences with deep feelings. This tightly plotted story and its believable characters will stay with readers for a long time. --Amy Kellman, The Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh, 1993 (Retrieved from http://catalog.lapl.org/carlweb/jsp/PresentTitles?databaseID=965&index=n&terms=lowry%2C+lois&count=10&mapid=-1&refid=-1&tagid=-1&aid=-1&tagNum=-1&page=6&initialbrowse=null)

Suggestions:

This is one of my favorite books and I just recently discovered that is the first in a trilogy. I think this would be a great series to use in the class in order to compare different theories on the future and how it differs from the present or the past.

Jellicoe Road

Summary:

This young adult book is about a teenage girl named Taylor who was abandoned by her mother at a gas station when she was eleven years old. She now attends a boarding school and is the leader of the boarding schools six different houses. After her friend and closest thing she has to a mother disappears she discovers a book manuscript and begins to try to piece together the puzzle of her life and figure out why all of the people around her seem to be connected. 

Citations:

Marchetta, M. (2008).  Jellicoe road. New York: HarperTeen.

Impressions:

I really enjoyed reading this book. It was a little confusing at times as I tried to follow the two different stories going on in this book and trying to capture every clue.

Reviews:

Library Journal
(c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

When she was 11, Taylor Markham was abandoned by her mother at a convenience store. At 17, she resides in a boarding school on Jellicoe Road. The closest person to her is Hannah, a nearby resident and would-be foster mom to the school's misfits. Now Hannah has disappeared when Taylor needs her most. She has been chosen to lead the school in its war with the local "Townies" and visiting "Cadets"-the cadets being led by a smoldering Jonah Briggs, with whom Taylor has a past. Looking for a clue to Hannah's whereabouts, Taylor reads a manuscript she left that tells the story of five friends united by a fatal accident on Jellicoe Road 22 years earlier. Why It is a Best: Set in rural Australia, the story of Taylor and of the five friends is permeated by a sense of place and time. Readers will smell the trees and taste the dust. Why It Is for Us: This is rich and layered domestic fiction that requires patience and careful attention as it spins a story of parents, children, and the legacy of tragedy. Readers of Anita Shreve and Wally Lamb will find much to enjoy here.-Angelina Benedetti, King Cty. Lib. Syst., WA. 2008. (Retrieved from http://catalog.lapl.org/carlweb/jsp/DoSearch?databaseID=965&initialsearch=true&count=10&finish=search_page.jsp&mode=manual&terms=jellicoe+road&index=w)

Suggestions:

This novel is very complicated at times but I think readers will be satisfied in the end. The entire novel takes place in Australia and it isn’t often that many youth fiction books take place in foreign countries. The language is different which could be an interesting method of introducing a foreign country that many teens don’t really think about very often.