Visit Kellee and Ricki at UnleashingReaders and Jen at Teach Mentor Texts to see what they've been reading, along with everyone else who post their favorites. I'm grateful to Candlewick Press for these first two books!
In Jo Knowles' new story, the pressure before eighth grade fills up the main character Rachel's life. Starting with her thirteenth birthday and the first day of summer, she's ready for all the wonderful things summer can bring, like being with her best friend since kindergarten, Micah. As the days go by, each one brings new questions, both personal and in her family. She's excited about a new job caring for the farm animals for neighbors who've built a fancy house on the hill and field next door, but it is not so easy since the chickens peck and the pig charges. She notices that there is not always a full refrigerator anymore and her parents seem to be arguing a lot, over the bills. Then, Micah, whom she does love but only as a friend, seems to want more. And she wants to feel that way, but cannot make herself feel that way about any boy. Jo Knowles tells this story through Rachel's eyes, beautifully showing that confusion over change that young adolescents try hard to figure out, and often alone. Luckily for Rachel, Micah stands by her no matter the conflict. I imagine readers will connect with this story and whether the hard things are the same or are different, they will meet someone they recognize.
Rachel's family have named the place where they live as Bittersweet Farm, after the bittersweet that grows in one place there. Her story lives in that name, both bitter and sweet.
This board book includes the colors you see above, page by page cells are added accompanied by poetic text, showing simply and beautifully how our world of light works, including "you". I've taken one picture of the first page, not as good as what one really sees, but you can understand the idea. My favorite line: "It sips the sea to make the rain." This is a book you must see and savor.
When I was a lit coach, I took a suitcase of musical things like different clackers and horns, a small drum, and so on to liven up our poetry writing. Oh, how I wish I had had this new poetry book to Boom! Bellow! Bleat! with the kids. It's a new delight by Georgia Heard with "out loud" collaged illustrations by Aaron DeWitt. It can be read, as the cover says, by two or more voices, and I found it wonderful to read with my youngest granddaughter, an emerging reader. Serendipitously, we had just visited our zoo and came home to read this new book together. It opens with a fun page of "Animal Songs" including Alligators that Hiss, all the way to Humans, who Talk, Talk, Talk, Talk, etc. It also includes frogs who don't say "Ribbit!", instead, they quonk, waaa, jug-a-rum, beeeee, peep, twaang, errrrgh, growl, trill, and yeeeeeoooow. There was much to learn about frogs (and toads) just from this page. Imogene loves insects and her favorite page is the honeybees, who bzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz as they perform all their other tasks.In addition to the poetic text, Georgia has included small bits of information for some of the animals. And added at the back is expanded information in a "Nature's Notes" section.
Each page's text are in blue, red and sometimes black (for that third voice). It was great fun to read aloud. For groups, a page titled "Forest Orchestra" gives instruction and a script for fourteen parts to perform together. She includes tips like "Keep in mind that animals have adapted different sound tones so when singing together they don't drown each other out." From large to small, land to ocean, animals Boom! Bellow! Bleat and more. One only needs to listen!