Readability: 3 Pretty easy.
Teachability: 3 This is more of a independent reading book. As much as I would like to teach it, it has little academic merit.(Suggested grade level: 8 and up. See Post on Lioness Rampant)
Did I like it: Yes. I liked it for the same reasons I liked Lioness Rampant. It has a strong female character and I really like that.
Summary: Veralidaine can communicate with animals. For the most part, they are the only living things she talks to, until she gets a job moving horses to Tortall with Onua. Soon Daine finds herself immersed in a world of Riders in training (boys and girls) and magic. She also finds herself spending a lot of time with a mage, Numair who is convinced that her "knack with animals" is more than just a talent, but magic.
Suggested for: Girls. Its kind of a "femmy" book.
Saturday, December 10, 2011
Lioness Rampant by: Tamora Pierce
Readability: 3 This was a page turner for me.
Teachability: 3 I wouldn't necessarily teach this book to a whole class. I would definitely have it available, though, in the classroom library for anyone who would want to pick it up. (Suggested grade level: 8 and up though it might be a little too easy for more advanced readers it is still a good pleasure-read)
Did I like it?: Yes, very much. I personally love stories with strong female characters.
Summary: Alanna, the first female knight Tortall has seen in centuries, doesn't feel welcome at court so she has decided to be a roving Knight. That way she can do great deeds without having to face the tension she causes at court. She decides to go to the Roof of the World and retrieve the Dominion Jewel. The Dominion Jewel would give the king the power to turn the very soil of Tortall against an enemy. Who could hate her after that?
Recommended for: Girls mostly. Though there is a lot of action, there is also a lot of romance.
Teachability: 3 I wouldn't necessarily teach this book to a whole class. I would definitely have it available, though, in the classroom library for anyone who would want to pick it up. (Suggested grade level: 8 and up though it might be a little too easy for more advanced readers it is still a good pleasure-read)
Did I like it?: Yes, very much. I personally love stories with strong female characters.
Summary: Alanna, the first female knight Tortall has seen in centuries, doesn't feel welcome at court so she has decided to be a roving Knight. That way she can do great deeds without having to face the tension she causes at court. She decides to go to the Roof of the World and retrieve the Dominion Jewel. The Dominion Jewel would give the king the power to turn the very soil of Tortall against an enemy. Who could hate her after that?
Recommended for: Girls mostly. Though there is a lot of action, there is also a lot of romance.
Wednesday, December 7, 2011
Love That Dog By: Sharon Creech
Readability: 0 Very, very easy. I read it in about half an hour.
Teachability: 8 It would be a good book to open a poetry unit with. It addresses some of the forms that poetry can take and it also addresses the feelings that a student might have toward their own work. Also it is a good example of a novel in verse. I know that the genre is a little underrepresented in classrooms right now. It might be a good idea to fix that.(Suggested grade level: 3-6 for independent readers, 1-12 for read-alouds)
Did I Like It?: Yes. It was sweet.
Summary: This is a book about Jack, a beginner poet. at first he doesn't like or want to write poetry, let alone share it with the whole class; but he soon gets over that with the help of his teacher and his dog.
Recommended For: Anyone, really.
Teachability: 8 It would be a good book to open a poetry unit with. It addresses some of the forms that poetry can take and it also addresses the feelings that a student might have toward their own work. Also it is a good example of a novel in verse. I know that the genre is a little underrepresented in classrooms right now. It might be a good idea to fix that.(Suggested grade level: 3-6 for independent readers, 1-12 for read-alouds)
Did I Like It?: Yes. It was sweet.
Summary: This is a book about Jack, a beginner poet. at first he doesn't like or want to write poetry, let alone share it with the whole class; but he soon gets over that with the help of his teacher and his dog.
Recommended For: Anyone, really.
Friday, December 2, 2011
The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie by: Alan Bradley
So, here's the thing, I couldn't make myself keep reading this book. Here are the reasons why:
1.) I couldn't relate to the main character... at all. she was a little too far fetched for me.
2.) I couldn't get into the story. For some reason or another the story's pace was just too... meander-y ( I know, that's not a word) for me.
3.) I don't have time for it. It's the week before finals, my friends, and I won't make myself trudge through a book that I'm getting nothing out of.
Maybe I'll try again when I have more time and patience.
1.) I couldn't relate to the main character... at all. she was a little too far fetched for me.
2.) I couldn't get into the story. For some reason or another the story's pace was just too... meander-y ( I know, that's not a word) for me.
3.) I don't have time for it. It's the week before finals, my friends, and I won't make myself trudge through a book that I'm getting nothing out of.
Maybe I'll try again when I have more time and patience.
Maus: A Survivor's Tale By Art Spiegelman
Readability: 4 Format-wise it was easy to read, content-wise it was a little bit difficult in parts.
Teachability:9 Super teachable. Most schools have a Holocaust unit somewhere in the curriculum. This is a good alternative or supplement to other Holocaust literature that's out there. It also is a good book to introduce allegory with, because the characters are represented as animals. If I were to teach it with any book I might teach it with Animal Farm By: George Orwell. It might be easier to get students in tot he mindset of using animals as symbols for people (status, belief system, race, etc.) and how that effects the story. (Suggested grade level: 11-12. I know it might look like a good one for younger grades but the visual content is really geared toward older students)
Did I like It?: Yes. as much as anyone can like reading about the Holocaust.
Summary: Art Speigelman takes us in to his father's experiences in the concentration camps in Hitler's Germany. He also shows us the after effects of those experiences by showing us his experiences with gathering the story from his father.
Recommended For: The strong of heart (also those of age 15 and up). This story got pretty heavy at times.
Teachability:9 Super teachable. Most schools have a Holocaust unit somewhere in the curriculum. This is a good alternative or supplement to other Holocaust literature that's out there. It also is a good book to introduce allegory with, because the characters are represented as animals. If I were to teach it with any book I might teach it with Animal Farm By: George Orwell. It might be easier to get students in tot he mindset of using animals as symbols for people (status, belief system, race, etc.) and how that effects the story. (Suggested grade level: 11-12. I know it might look like a good one for younger grades but the visual content is really geared toward older students)
Did I like It?: Yes. as much as anyone can like reading about the Holocaust.
Summary: Art Speigelman takes us in to his father's experiences in the concentration camps in Hitler's Germany. He also shows us the after effects of those experiences by showing us his experiences with gathering the story from his father.
Recommended For: The strong of heart (also those of age 15 and up). This story got pretty heavy at times.
Stargirl by Jerry Spinelli
Readability: 2 Really quick, easy read. I finished it in a day.
Teachability: 4 Like any decent book it has some characteristics that are teachable (characterization, voice, setting, etc.) but I wouldn't necessarily choose it as a whole class book. If I had to chose something to teach from it I would take it in to the larger community of the school and talk about bullying and acceptance. (Suggested grade level: 5-12)
Did I like It?: Yes, very much. I originally had this book read aloud to me by my fifth grade teacher, so it brings back some really fond memories of her. As for the book itself, I liked the characters mostly. I particularly liked Stargirl, she was so great. Leo, though, I got really mad at him. I can't tell you why I got mad at him without spoiling the story.
Summary: At Mica High School, in Arizona, the students are all more or less the same. they all wear the same brands of clothes, listen to the same kinds of music, you get the picture. Ever day was the same at Mica High, until Stargirl came and set everyone on their ears with her unrelenting kindness and her infectious individuality. Everyone wonders who she is, where she came from, and why, why, why does she act the way she does. By the end of the book Leo has the answers to most of the questions that circulate about Stargirl, but he doesn't really understand her any better than anyone else.
Recommended For: Everyone. It's a great book.
Teachability: 4 Like any decent book it has some characteristics that are teachable (characterization, voice, setting, etc.) but I wouldn't necessarily choose it as a whole class book. If I had to chose something to teach from it I would take it in to the larger community of the school and talk about bullying and acceptance. (Suggested grade level: 5-12)
Did I like It?: Yes, very much. I originally had this book read aloud to me by my fifth grade teacher, so it brings back some really fond memories of her. As for the book itself, I liked the characters mostly. I particularly liked Stargirl, she was so great. Leo, though, I got really mad at him. I can't tell you why I got mad at him without spoiling the story.
Summary: At Mica High School, in Arizona, the students are all more or less the same. they all wear the same brands of clothes, listen to the same kinds of music, you get the picture. Ever day was the same at Mica High, until Stargirl came and set everyone on their ears with her unrelenting kindness and her infectious individuality. Everyone wonders who she is, where she came from, and why, why, why does she act the way she does. By the end of the book Leo has the answers to most of the questions that circulate about Stargirl, but he doesn't really understand her any better than anyone else.
Recommended For: Everyone. It's a great book.
The Forest of Hands and Teeth by: Carrie Ryan
Readability: 5 Not terribly difficult.
Teachability: 5 This is more of a independent reading book. It has it's merits for action writing, suspense, a little romance and plot development, but other than that it really lies in the realm of leisure reading. (Suggested grade level: 9-12)
Did I Like It?: Yes. It was a pretty good fit for me. Zombies, evil nuns, a little romance, mystery, and a lot of adventure.
Summary: Mary has always wondered what lay beyond the forest of hands and teeth. The Sisterhood says that there is nothing, that their community is all that's left of the world. Mary wonders if they are hiding something. The forest of hands and teeth is filled with the unrelenting unconsecrated. They have to come from somewhere... Don't they?
Recommended for: Anyone over the age of 13. There is some pretty suggestive stuff in there so I wouldn't want anyone younger than that to be reading it. But as far as gender interest, I think there is plenty of things in this book for both the guys and the gals.
Teachability: 5 This is more of a independent reading book. It has it's merits for action writing, suspense, a little romance and plot development, but other than that it really lies in the realm of leisure reading. (Suggested grade level: 9-12)
Did I Like It?: Yes. It was a pretty good fit for me. Zombies, evil nuns, a little romance, mystery, and a lot of adventure.
Summary: Mary has always wondered what lay beyond the forest of hands and teeth. The Sisterhood says that there is nothing, that their community is all that's left of the world. Mary wonders if they are hiding something. The forest of hands and teeth is filled with the unrelenting unconsecrated. They have to come from somewhere... Don't they?
Recommended for: Anyone over the age of 13. There is some pretty suggestive stuff in there so I wouldn't want anyone younger than that to be reading it. But as far as gender interest, I think there is plenty of things in this book for both the guys and the gals.
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