In A Dark, Dark Wood

In A Dark, Dark Wood was written by David A. Carter and was designed by Marc Cheshire. The book was published by Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing in 1991 and reprinted in 2002. This book is a great read for people of all ages. It's a old folktale set to new imagery, in this pop-up picture book. The main theme of the book is, basically, curosity killed the cat. There are no real characters, as the reader is meant to be involved in the story. The story explores different settings, going from the woods through the house and into greater deatil the furthur into the house you explore. The end of the book has a spooky pop-up surprise at the end. This doesn't have any real educational value, unless you are teaching alliteration, but it does teach foreshadowing very well.

Grandpa Gazillion's Number Yard

Grandpa Gazillion's Number Yard was written and illustrated by Laurie Keller. The book was published by Henry Holt and Company in 2005. This book is a counting book geared for kindergarten through third grade readers. The main theme of this story is learning how to count in new and interesting ways. The main character is Grandpa Gazillion and he takes the reader through an alliteration of the different and unusual ways you can use numbers, all the way to number twenty. The illustrations in this book are very cartoonish and vivid. This is a great book for children in kindergarten to teach counting.

The Giver

The Giver was written by Lois Lowry and was published by Bantam Books in 1993. The book also won a Newbury Medal in 1994 and an ALA Best Book for Young Adults Award, Notable Children's Books Award, and 100 Most Challenged Books of 1990-2000 Award. This chapter book was written for middle school students and deals with many of the issues of puberty. There are many themes at work in The Giver, but first and foremost, is the importance of memory to the human experience. In The Giver, only one person holds all the memories for all the other people in the community; and so as people have learned how to forget pain and suffering, they also have learned to forget how to feel happiness. The second major theme is individuality. Jonas, the book's main character is a child moving from childhood into adulthood, and learning how to become an individual in a community where everyone is the same. The story begins with Jonas turning twelve, and discussing strange events that Jonas is experiencing, seeing in color and having sexual urges. To him, this is strange in a community where everyone sees in shades of grey and feels apathy towards each other. He is then chosen to be The Receiver, which is an honored position in the community. Basically speaking, The Giver, who stores all the memories of life before the utopian society began, will transfer all those memories to Jonas. But as Jonas begins to gain memories, he starts discovering many things about this utopia that are morally wrong. The book culminates with Jonas stealing a baby that was scheduled to die, and leaving the community, where he discovers that life isn't what he thought it was outside of the community. This book is a great science fiction story for middle school children. It incorporates many of the emotional milestones that children go through at this time. It is a great story to delve into.

Bunnicula

Bunnicula was written by Deborah and James Howe and illustrated by Alan Daniel. This book was published by Pixel Press in 1979 and reissued in 2004. This book won many awards including: ALA Notable Children's Books, Bluestem Book Award Master List (IL) , CCBC Choices (Cooperative Children's Book Council), Dorothy Canfield Fisher Children's Book Award (VT), Emphasis on Reading Book Award (AL), Golden Sower Award (NE), Iowa Children's Choice Award, IRA/CBC Children's Choices, Land of Enchantment Children's Book Award (NM), Nene Award (HI), Pacific Northwest Young Reader's Choice Award, Sequoyah Children's Book Award (OK), South Carolina Book Award, and the Sunshine State Young Reader's Award (FL). It's written for 3rd through 5th grade students and is a fantay story about a vampire bunny. The theme of this story is learning how to accept individuals for who they are.The three main characters in this story are Harold the dog, Chester the cat, and Bunnicula the vampire bunny. When the Monroe family find a little bunny in the theatre while watching Drcula, they bring him home and call him Bunnicula. The two household pets soon discover Bunnicula drains the vegetables in the refridgerator dry, leaving them white. The story is very funny, one of the best parts in when Harold, and Chester grab the family dinner steak and attempt to stake the vampire bunny with it. This is a great story for children learning to read more serious vocabulary.

Why Mosquitoes Buzz in People's Ears

Why Mosquitoes Buzz in People's Ears was written by Verna Aardema and illustrated by Leo and Diane Dillon. This book was published by First Pied Piper Publishing in 1978 and reissued in 2001. The theme of this story is be careful what you say to others, because it may come back to you with bad consequences. The main character of this story is a mosquito, who tells a lie to the iguana. When the iguana gets annoyed, he sets off a chain reaction that ends with the death of an owlet. The consequences come back to the mosquito, who in fear of being judged in the wrong hides; thus the constant buzzing in the ears of people. What they believe the mosquito to be doing is asking if the other animals are still angry with it. This is a good book for teaching children about morals.

A Sick Day for Amos McGee

A Sick Day for Amos McGee was written by Phillip C. Stead and illustrated by Erin E. Stead. This book was published by Roaring Brook Press n 2010. It also won the Caldecott Medal in 2010 and the Best Illustrated Children's Book Award. This is a picture book geared to elementary school students. The theme of this book is the development of friendships. The main character in this book is a zookeeper named Amos McGee. He develops friendships with the aminals in the zoo, and learns how to be a good friend to each of them. When Amos is sick one day, his animal friends come to visit and care for him. I would use this book in a unit about animals and friendship.

The Dinosaur Tamer

The Dinosaur Tamer was written by Carol Greathouse and illustrated by John Shroades. The book was published by Dutton Children's Books in 2009. This picture book is written for elementary school children and the illustrations are very lifelike. Written as a fantasy about dinosaurs and people living together, it describes the life of Rocky, the child dinosaur tamer, whose greatest challenge is taming the great T. Rex. One of the most interesting thing about the story is that during the fight to tame the T. rex, great historical landmarks, such as the Grand Canyon, and The Devil's Tower in Wyoming, were created by T. Rex fighting Rocky. I would use this as a fun story during my dinosaur unit in the second grade classroom.

Brachiosaurus and Other Giant Dinosaurs

Brachiosaurus and Other Giant Dinosaurs was written by Jinny Johnson and illustrated by Graham Rosewarne. The book was published by Smart Apple Media in 2008. This picture book is a non-fiction, fact filled book about dinosaurs. The theme of this book is relating facts about giant dinosaurs and how they lived. The main character of this book is the brachiosaurus and his friends, the other great sauropods. I would use this book during my unit on dinosaurs in elementary school, to describe in detail the sauropods and their differing features.

I'm Big!

I'm Big was written by Kate and Jim McMullan and illustrated by Jim McMullan. This book was published by Harper Collins in 2010. This is a picture book about dinosaurs. The main theme of this book is exploring the features of Sauropods. The main character is a young sauropod who finds himself seperated from his herd. He then questions the other dinosaurs that he meets along the way. When he encounters a group of predators, he is forced to find the feature he has that is most useful for surviving. I would use this book when discussing dinosaur features, and survival skills, which in the state of Tennessee, happens to be in the second grade.

Thirteen Little Blue Envelopes

Thirteen Little Blue Envelopes is written by Maureen Johnson. This chapter book is written expressly for high school girls and is an adventure novel. The book was published by Harper Collins in 2006.
The story is about a girl named Ginny, who is seventeen. When her Aunt Peg dies, she recieves a letter containing thirteen numbered envelopes. These envelopes contain instructions for an adventure through Europe. Ginny travels to Europe, where she meets the uncle she didn't know she had. As she opens each envelope she discovers frustrating things about her aunt, and things about herself. While she travels, she falls in with a boy named Keith, and he travels with her. As she gets closer to the end of her journey, her last envelope is stolen. The sequel to this book is called The Last Little Envelope, where the person who stole the last envelope decides to drag her on another adventure.
This book is about self discovery. As Ginny delves into her aunt's thoughts, she reflects on her own life. It is a greast story for young high school girls, however, in a classroom setting, it would be difficult to incorporate it.

Rapunzel's Revenge

Rapunzel's Revenge is a chapter book written by Shannon and Dean Hale and illustrated by Nathan Hale.This book is a graphic novel published by Bloombury U.S.A Children's Books and was publshed in 2008. This is a new take on the story of Rapunzel, in which the evil witch Mother Gothel raises rapunzel as her child. When Rapuzel is twelve, she gets curious about the world outside of the villa where she grows up. She discovers that Mother Gothel has enslaved her real mother, and all of the people outside of the villa work for the witch. The witch has magical growth powers, and has sucked the landscape dry with her powers. When Rapuzel confronts the witch about her mother, Mother Gothel locks her in a tower at the top of a tree. After four years, Rapunzel's hair, enhanced by growth magic, is long enough for her to escape the tree tower. She finds her way into a town, after a nast encounter with a wild boar, and mets up with Jack. Jack, who we later find out is from Jack and the Beanstalk, and Rapuzel become heroic outlaws. They travel from town to town, encountering many different problems, and Rapuzel finds new and interesting uses for her hair. In the end Rapunzel faces off against Mother Gothel to save her mother and the people who are stuck living under Mother Gothel's rule.
This book was an awesome story. The illustrations tell the story with minimal dialogue and really draw the reader in and make them feel like they are a part of it. This book is designed for middle school children, who are venturing into reading chapter books. I would definately ue this book in the classroom, if only to interest middle school children in reading.

The Eye, The Ear, and The Arm

The Eye, The Ear, and The Arm is written by Nancy Farmer. It was published by Orchard Books in 1994. In 1995, this book was selected for a Newbery honor. This chapter book is especially effective in the middle grades. It can be classified as science fiction, Afro-futurism, and African folklore.


This story is set in 2194 in Zimbabwe and revolves around three children, who are the children of the general of the army. They decide to leave the security of the fortified mansion where they live and have an adventure. While they are exploring they are kidnapped by a woman who wants to sell them to a deadly gang their father has been trying to eliminate. Their parents hire mutant detectives named The Eye, The Ear, and The Arm, respectively. They each have special abilities; The Eye has very powerful vision, The Ear has powerful hearing, and The Arm has extremely long limbs, like a spider, as well as empathic and psychic powers. The children escape and begin a series of adventures that lead them from a traditional African village "country", to a white settlement, and finally back to the city. There, they meet up with the detectives, who, in a final massive battle help the children and their father defeat the gang.

This book is a great book to capture the imagination of middle school boys. It is full of adventure, mystery, futuristic technology, and authentic African folklore, while also exploring the different aspects of political and social issues that children are exposed to outside of the classroom. In this book, the oldest son is forced to admit that while he longs for freedom, he has no idea exactly what the consequences can be. It's a great book for adults also!