One Giant Leap by Robert Burleigh

One Giant Leap by Robert Burleigh

My Thoughts:

One Giant Leap is the story of the first man to step on the moon. The text is written as if it is actually happening, in present tense, and adds a sense of immediacy to the story. Or it did for me.

The paintings were rich and as realistic as a photograph. I loved the beauty of the words and the pictures in this book.

The children liked the cover of the book a lot. They didn’t really like a lot of the other pictures. The story seemed to move too slowly for them.

A Sample:

“Armstrong knows that back on Earth,
Hundreds of millions of people are watching.
He jumps to the landing leg’s round footpad.
He holds on. He pauses. He points his foot and steps off.
The surface is as fine as powdered charcoal.
The treads of his boot leave a perfectly crisp print in the dust.
On the weatherless moon, it will last for millions of years.”

Children’s Comments:

Colt, 6, said, "I liked when they put the flag in the moon."
Sammy, 6, said, "I liked when the rocket was floating down into the water."
Juan Pablo, 7, said, "I liked where they were worried if the rocket ship wouldn't work."

Children’s Ratings: 5, 1, 5, 5, 5, 1, 1, 5, 3, 3, 5, 3, 5, 4, 1, 5

The Fantastic Undersea Life of Jacques Cousteau

The Fantastic Undersea Life of Jacques Cousteau by Dan Yaccarino

My Thoughts:

The text of this book wowed me. I could not stop reading to see what would happen to Cousteau. I liked its simplicity and its clearness. I liked how accessible the text was, even for the youngest of readers.

The illustrations were fun and cartoonish. I didn’t like the colors the Yaccarino used for the water at first, every color except ocean blue, I think, but the colors grew on me, and I grew to love them. I was very surprised how much the children liked this book and how much they were interested in this man’s life.

The book also included a table of Cousteau’s life and sources for further study.

A Sample:

“The fish off the coast of Africa were friendly and curious and did not swim away. Cousteau was the first human being they had ever seen.”

Children’s Comments:

Alexis, 6, said, "I liked how he went down in the ocean."
Vanessa, 6, said, "I liked how he made a camera all by himself."
Jony, 6, said, "I liked how he saw the seahorse."
Melanie, 6, said, "I liked when he went down in the ocean."
Tabitha, 7, said, "I liked how he was on tv."
Joey, 6, said, "I liked how he got sick and had to go under the water."

Children’s Ratings: 5, 5, 5, 5, 5, 5, 5, 5

Down Down Down by Steve Jenkins

Down Down Down by Steve Jenkins

My Thoughts:

Jenkins starts at the surface of the ocean. He goes deeper and deeper, telling about the animals and plants that live at every level.

I liked the book, but I thought the text would be too challenging for the primary students at my school.

I was wrong. This was an unequivocal favorite among the young children to whom I read this book. We had a large group of children of both kindergarteners and first graders and they all unanimously loved it. The pictures kept them enthralled. I read bits of the text here and there, and, though I’d anticipated that the text would be daunting for the children, I was wrong. They seemed to follow it well. I can only surmise that the vivid pictures and the movement of the book, going deeper and deeper down into the ocean with every page, kept them going.

A Sample:

“Near the surface the water is warm and brightly lit by the sun. Light-loving plants, algae, and bacteria---most single-celled and too small to see with the naked eye---are found here in uncountable numbers. Almost all life in the sea depends on these microscopic organisms, which use the sun’s energy to help them manufacture their own food. They themselves are food for billions of animals….”

Children’s Comments:

Sheridan, 6, said, "I liked the last page."
Shelby, 7, said, "I liked the part where it got darker and darker."
Jacobe, 6, said, "I liked the very end."
Edwin, 6, said, "I liked the sharks."
Ariana, 7, said, "I liked the dolphin jumping in the water."
Kali, 5, said, "I liked all the neat creatures."

Children’s Ratings: 5, 5, 5, 5, 5, 5, 5, 5, 5, 5, 5, 5, 5, 5, 5, 5, 5

14 Cows for America by Carmen Agra Deedy

14 Cows for America by Carmen Agra Deedy

My Thoughts:

Whew! What a life-affirming story! It gives you hope for the world.

The pictures are up close and personal. The text is vivid and rings with compassion for the world.

Here’s the story, if you don’t know it: A Kenyan wins a scholarship to go to America and become a doctor. While he is there, he experiences 9/11. He returns to his people, a tribe once renowned as warriors but who are now known as master cow herders. The tribe feels great sorrow when the young man tells them of the tragedy in New York City and the members of the tribe want to do something to help America. Thus, fourteen cows for America.

The young children I read the book to were very moved by the story. They were happy when the tribe gave the cows to America and danced for America. Some of the story was over their heads, but they got the gist of it.

A Sample:

“Because there is no nation so powerful it cannot be wounded, nor a people so small they cannot offer mighty comfort.”

Children’s Comments:

Aryn, 6, said, "I did not like how their heads look red."
Stevie, 6, said, "I liked the pictures."
Joaquin, 6, said, "I liked the picture of the tribe."
Kaylin, 6, said, "I liked the picture of the cows."

Children’s Ratings: 5, 5, 5, 1

You Never Heard of Sandy Koufax?!

You Never Heard of Sandy Koufax?!
by Jonah Winter and Andre Carrilho

My Thoughts:

I loved this book and couldn’t wait to share it with the children at my school. As I’d expected, they loved the cover, a wonderful lenticular picture of Koufax pitching.. They also loved the way the illustrator used gold on the pictures here and there.

The story was a little too hard for them. They were confused with the author’s use of first person plural. They did not get the way the author used the vernacular voice to tell the story. They needed more background information about Koufax.

But they loved that it was about a baseball player. They liked the voice of the author and thought it was fun. When it came down to voting, the room was clearly divided: Children who loved baseball rated it a 5 and those who did not like baseball rated the book a 1.

It is a book with wonderful facts about a fascinating man. I would suspect that ten and eleven year olds would enjoy the book a bit more than my young students, but I bet that a lot of the cleverness and fun of the book would elude even them.

Maybe we need to create a new category of books: Picture Books for Grownups. I loved this book and would definitely recommend it to parents or teachers to read with their kids who love baseball. Not sure many children would really hang in there with the book on his own. Not even a big baseball fan. Not even a big baseball fan living in NY.

A Sample:

‘One day one of our scouts, Al Campanis, invites Sandy to Ebbets Field---home of our team, the Brooklyn Dodgers---so’s he can see the hotshot pitch. After battin’ just one time against him, Campanis has seen enough. He says to Sandy, “Kid, how’d you like to play for us. Don’t think too hard.” Quick as you can say “Jackie Robinson,” this nineteen-year-old squirt was wearin’ Dodgers blue and earnin’ more dough than some of us old-timers.’

Children’s Comments:

Elyssa, 6, said, "I liked how the words were written."
Chloe, 6, said, "I liked how he did the glove."
Sylvia, 5, said, "I liked the front cover.
Jase, 5, said, "I liked the pictures."
Children’s Ratings: 5, 1, 5, 5, 5, 5, 1, 5, 1

Gertrude is Gertrude is Gertrude is Gertrude

Gertrude is Gertrude is Gertrude is Gertrude by Jonah Winter

Thoughts:

Go ahead and call it a children’s picture book, but I think you are wrong; the children I read this book to looked at me in bewilderment. It looks like a picture book. It reads like a picture book. But reading it to young children is like asking junior high students to read Great Expectations; it can be read, but it should be saved for those old enough to really appreciate it.

I loved it. It would probably be among my top picks for best nonfiction picture book. It’s bright and colorful. The text mimics the style of the subject, poet Gertrude Stein. It’s funny.

As Gertrude Stein might say, A picture book is a picture book is a picture book is a picture book. But sometimes it’s not.

A Sample:

“Talk talk talk talk. Laugh laugh. More talk.

Laugh. Okay. Enough.

And now it’s time for tea.

Teatime is teatime.

And look who’s here,

in time for tea.

It’s Pablo Picasso the Spanish artist.

Pablo Picasso looks so angry but no.

Pablo Picasso is Pablo

Picasso.

He just invented Modern art

which is not the same thing as being angry

but then again maybe it is.

Maybe it is

and maybe it isn’t.

Then again maybe it is.

It’s so hard to invent

Modern art.

Maybe it is

and

maybe it isn’t.

Maybe.”

Children’s Comments:

Sydney, 6, said, "Never want to read. It's wacky."

Vanessa, 6, said, "It's weird because they have a dog named Basket."

Joey, 6, said, "The title was weird."

Jony, 6, said, "The bear was in a chair!"

Children’s Ratings: 3, 1, 4, 1, 3, 4, 5, 2

You Say You Don't Like Pumpkin? Try One of These Breads

A to Z Bread
Debbie Nance :-)

3 cups flour (white or whole wheat)
1 teaspoon each: salt and baking soda
1 tablespoon cinnamon or allspice
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
3 eggs
1 cup oil
2 cups sugar (can use part brown sugar)
2 cups A to Z ingredients (see note)
1 tablespoon vanilla
1 cup chopped nuts

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Sift flour, salt,
soda, cinnamon, and baking powder; set aside.
Beat eggs in large bowl. Add oil and sugar;
cream well. Add A to Z ingredients and vanilla;
mix well. Add dry ingredients; mix well.
Add nuts. Spoon into 2 well-greased 9 by 5 by 3
inch loaf pans. Bake 1 hour or until bread
tests done. Makes 2 large loaves; freezes well.

Note: A to Z ingredients include, but need
not be limited to, the following: apples (grated),
applesauce, apricots (chopped), bananas (mashed),
carrots (grated), cherries (pitted and chopped),
coconut (grated), dates (finely chopped),
eggplant (ground), figs (finely chopped), grapes
(seedless), honey (omit sugar), lemons (use only
1/2 cup juice) marmalade or jam (omit 1 cup of
sugar), mincemeat, oranges (chopped), peaches
(fresh or canned, chopped), peppermint candy
(use only 1/2 cup, chopped), pears (chopped),
pineapple (crushed, drained), prunes (chopped,
use only 1 cup), pumpkin (canned), raisins,
raspberries, rhubarb (finely chopped), strawberries
(fresh or frozen, drained), sweet potato (grated),
tapioca (cooked), tomatoes (reduce sugar to 1/2
cup), yams (cooked and mashed), yogurt (plain
or flavored), zucchini (ground or grated,
drained).

Challenge: Can anyone come up with an
ingredient for "i", "j", "k", "n",
"q", "u", "v", and "w"?

Join in to the Fall Recipe Exchange!

BOOk-ish October!

I'm loving October!

(1) I won a $100 gift certificate to Barnes and Noble for perfect attendance at school. I spent the day at B&N and brought home six great books. (Are you wishing I'd list the titles? They will surprise you....Okay, here they are: How to Cook Everything; Yellowstone Expedition Guide; Happiness; Haiku Mind; Poems to Read; and See It & Say It in Spanish. Satisfied?)




(2) I was chosen as a judge for the Cybils, children and young adult literary awards. I'll be reading books from one of my favorite categories, nonfiction picture books.





(3) I was part of a book tour for the first time. Make Ahead Meal for Busy Moms. A bit of a cooking fiasco, but quite fun.






(4) Next week will be the start of the school book fair.








(5) After the book fair will be Dewey's 24-Hour Read-a-Thon. I've got a stack of books set aside to read for the read-a-thon. Children's books, ya books, graphic novels, poetry, anthologies...these all worked well for me last time.





(6) And the weekend after that will be the Texas Book Festival. Some of the authors I hope to see are Brian Floca, Margaret Atwood, Elizabeth Berg, Rick Riordan, Richard Russo, Amanda Eyre Ward, Rosemary Wells, and Jon Scieszka. And I'll be bringing about thirty BookCrossing books to release at the festival.



Books, books, books...Gee, I wonder if, with all this book busy-ness, I'll actually have any time to READ?!

Make Ahead Meals For Busy Moms Virtual Book Tour

I've never done a virtual book tour. And I'm a terrible cook. But I'm a mom, I suppose (do you ever lose that moniker once you've reproduced?) and I am definitely BUSY.

So the idea of a virtual book tour with a cookbook intrigued me. I could do that, I thought.

So, way back in September, I agreed to join in this virtual book tour, Make Ahead Meals for Busy Moms. Send me a recipe, I told the publicist. I'll cook it up and post my results here.

The publicist liked the idea. She sent me a recipe. Here is what the author sent:

OK...for Deb Nance, I'm giving you my easy Teriyaki Chicken Recipe. You marinate it overnight and pour the entire contents into a baking dish at dinner time. Couldn't be easier!

Teriyaki Chicken

This is one of those meals I like to keep on hand in the freezer.

1 tablespoon cornstarch
2 teaspoons water
¼ cup sugar
¼ cup light brown sugar, packed
½ cup less sodium soy sauce
¼ cup cider vinegar
¼ cup fresh orange juice
1 teaspoon garlic powder
½ teaspoon ground ginger
8 - 10 skinless, boneless chicken thighs

In a gallon freezer bag, combine all of the ingredients except the chicken. Mix thoroughly. Add the chicken and seal. Refrigerate up to 24 hours before cooking or freeze in a labeled freezer bag up to 3 months.

~Cooking Directions~

Remove the chicken from the refrigerator 30 minutes before cooking. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Place the chicken and all of the liquid in a 13 x 9 x 2-inch baking dish (uncovered). Bake for 30 minutes, turn the pieces over, and bake for 30 more
minutes. This chicken can also be grilled on medium heat about 12 -14 minutes on each side. It is done when the juice runs clear. Serves 4 - 5.

This sounded pretty easy. I could do this, I thought.

But somehow I got it in my head that I needed to post this on SEPTEMBER 10. Of course, September 10 was also Meet the Teacher Night at school. I dashed into Kroger and snagged the ingredients and zipped home and set to work.

I had a few problems:

(1) I had zero time; I had to be back at school in minutes.
(2) I forgot to buy brown sugar. And soy sauce. (And, no, before you ask, I don't keep those on hand....I told you: I'm a terrible cook.)
(3) I spilled the orange juice all over the counter when I was measuring it. Orange juice is sticky when it dries. I was in a hurry. I found lots of sticky spots the next day.
(4) The orange juice spilled all over the recipe. The words blurred. I wasn't quite sure how much garlic power and ginger to put in so I just poured a big pile of it into the plastic bag and hoped for the best.
(5) My refrigerator was packed and I could barely find a place to leave the bag overnight. Someone apparently came through in the night and bumped the bag (Why would someone do this?!!) and the bag leaked out into a huge puddle at the bottom on the refrigerator. More stickiness.
(6) I was so tired the next day, after shopping for ingredients and preparing this meal and going to Meet the Teacher Night, that it was all I could do to put the chicken into the oven and bake it.

But it was good. Really good. Delicious actually, especially when you imagine how good it would be if I had actually used soy sauce instead of Worchestershire and brown sugar rather than honey. And if I'd known how much of the spices to include.

So I can't speak for anything but this single recipe as I never received a copy of the book. But this one recipe was quite good, very good for this busy mom, this terrible cook.

Come In! Let the Cybils Nonfiction Picture Book Judging Begin....

Come in!
It's time.


Everything is ready.


The fountain is flowing.
The candle is burning.
Classics for Reading is playing on the stereo.


Inspirational posters are on the walls.


Pith helmet.
Both computers operational.


Cybils shirt and cup.


The books have begun to arrive.


Let the Cybils Nonfiction Picture Book judging...


...BEGIN!

(Don't I have the most wonderful reading room ever?!)