Bridge to Terabithia

Author: Katherine Paterson

Publisher: HarperCollins

Publication Date: 1977

Genre: Realistic Fiction

Audience: Gr. 3-6

Overview: This is a story about a boy named Jess Aarons who befriends a tomboy girl who moves in next door, Leslie Burke. Together they create a secret kingdom known as Terabithia where they are the king and queen. The only way to get to it is by swinging on an enchanted rope across a gully. They are able to find a place of sanctuary until a tragic event happens that changes one of the characters lives.

Activity: Have the students come up with their own type of sanctuary. What would they name it? Where would it be? Have them also draw a picture of what their secret place would look like.

Reviewer’s Name: Erin Mazzatta

Amelia Bedelia's First Day of School

Author: Herman Parish

Publisher: Greenwillow Books

Publication Date: 2009

Genre: Realistic Fiction

Audience: Gr. K, 1, 2, 3

Overview: Amelia Bedelia is a great book for beginner readers. Her mishaps make the book enjoyable to read. There are a lot of different books, but this one is about Amelia’s first day of school. 

Activity: Have the students think back to their first day of school. How were they feeling? What did they hope would happen?

Reviewer’s Name: Erin Mazzatta

Now One Foot, Now the Other

Author/Illustrator: Tomie dePaola
Publisher: Sandcastle
Publication Date: 1980
Awards: ALA Booklist
Genre: Realistic Fiction – picture book
Audience: Gr. Pre-K+

Overview: This story is about a boy named Bobby and his grandfather, Bob. Bobby and Bob were best friends; Bob even taught Bobby how to walk. The pair did all sorts of things together, but one day Bob had a stroke. When Bobby finally gets to see his grandfather again, he cannot walk or talk, or do any of the things he used to. So Bobby takes on the challenge to make his grandfather well again.
Activity: Ask students to write a story about a person in their life who has made a difference to them. Include how the person made a difference.

Reviewer’s Name: Nikki Palmer

Letters from the Inside

Author: John Marsen
Publisher: Bantam Doubleday Books for Young Readers
Publication Date: 1991
Awards: A School Library Journal: Best Book of the Year
The Horn Book Fanfare; A Publisher’s Weekly Choice of the Year’s Best Books; ALA Quick Pick for Young Adults.
Genre: Realistic Fiction
Audience: Mature Young Adults

Overview: Letters from the Inside is not a happily ever after type of story. It is instead, a riveting story of two fifteen-year-old girls living in Australia who strike up a powerful friendship through letters they write back and forth to one another. Over the year the story takes place, the girls go from hiding who they are behind masks of happiness, to spilling their hearts out to one another in a desperate attempt to have someone understand them. This story is a heartbreaking tale of the harsh reality that these girls call “life”. The letters become a dependency for the girls; they need more than anything to have some one hear what they have to say. This story describes an ill fated friendship and leaves the reader breathless and looking for more.

Activity: The story ends abruptly leaving a number of unanswered questions still up in the air. Have my students first describe the questions they want answered, and then make up their own endings to what they think happens next. Because of the intensity of this book, it may make some students uncomfortable to discuss it out loud. Instead, students might keep a reflection journal to jot down their thoughts, questions, and emotions throughout the story.

Reviewer’s Name: Nikki Palmer

Grandma’s Scrapbook

Author: Josephine Nobisso
Illustrator: Maureen Hyde
Publisher: Gingerbread House
Publication Date: 1990
Genre: Realistic fiction, Picture Book
Audience: Gr. K-3
Overview: This story in this beautifully told and illustrated through the scrapbook made for a young girl by her grandmother, highlighting their special times together.

Activity: A wonderful spark for readers to realize their grandparents will not be in their lives forever. This book lends itself to creating personal scrapbooks, to cherish the memories they have spent with grandparents or other loved ones.

Reviewer’s Name: Deb Marciano

The Patchwork Quilt

Author/ Illustrator: Valerie Flournoy / Jerry Pinkney
Publisher: Dial Books for Young Readers
Publication Date: 1985
Genre: Realistic Fiction
Audience: Gr. K-3
Awards: Coretta Scott King Award

Overview: In this story, Tanya learns about the idea of a patchwork quilt from her grandmother. She learns how each patch represents something meaningful to someone in their family. As her grandmother becomes ill, Tanya takes it upon herself to finish the patchwork quilt. At the end of the story, Tanya’s grandmother gives Tanya the patchwork quilt.

Activity: As a family collect multiple shirts, fabrics, costumes, old clothes or other materials that has meaning to someone in the family. Together create a family patchwork quilt with these items.

Reviewer’s Name: Becky Gray

Esperanza Rising

Author/ Illustrator: Pam Munoz
Publisher: Scholastic Inc.
Publication Date: 2000
Genre: Young Adult Novel
Awards: Jane Addams Peace Award, ALA Best Books for Young Adults
Pura Belpre Award, Smithsonian Notable Books for Children 2000, Publishers Weekly Best Book of the Year 2000
Audience: Gr. 4+

Overview: This is a tale of a young girl who lived a fairy-tale life of wealth and grandeur in Mexico until her father’s death. At the age of thirteen, Esperanza and her family are lead across the boarders to America to escape her Uncle’s evil attempts to take over their land. This is a story of despair, strength, and triumph.

Activity: Discuss how Esperanza has changed throughout the story: work ethics, determination, and friendships. Have the students write how they might end the story, including include details about what the future may be for the characters because of these changes.

Reviewer’s Name: Kimberly Freeman

Turtles In My Sandbox

Author/Illustrator: Jennifer Keats Curtis / Emanuel Schongut
Publisher: Sylvan Dell Publishing
Publication Date: 2006
Genre: Realistic Fiction
Audience: Gr. Pre-K+

Overview: This is a story of a diamondback terrapin mama that swims to shore along the Chesapeake Bay to lay her eggs. A young girl finds these eggs in her sandbox and decides to help make sure that the eggs survive. Maggie and her mom did some research to make sure that they did everything that they could to help the eggs. This book gives professional advice and detailed explanation about many features of the diamondback terrapin turtle. This author travels around to different elementary schools, reading to the student’s and/or doing writing workshops.

Activity: Before reading: A power point presentation is a great way to introduce some vocabulary concepts and background knowledge on the diamondback terrapin to the students.
After reading: The students can write a follow-up letter to the author having them comment on interesting facts they learned or turtles.

Reviewer’s Name: Kimberly Freeman

Coming On Home Soon

Author: Jacqueline Woodson
Illustrator: E.B. Lewis
Publisher: Penguin Group
Publication date: 2004
Awards: Caldecott Honor Book, Booklist Editor’s Choice 2004, and ALA Notable Book 2005.
Genre: Realistic Fiction
Audience: Gr. K-3

Overview: Ada Ruth’s mom is off fighting in the war. She stays at home with her grandma and writes letters to her mom, hoping that she will come home soon. The story ends when the mailman delivers a letter to Ada Ruth. It is from her mom, and it makes her so happy! Her mom returns home safely a few days after Ada receives the letter.

Activity: As a class, write letters to the soldiers in Iraq. Take a field trip to the post office, ask for some addresses, and mail them!

Reviewer’s name: Amie Lauriello

Ziba Came On A Boat

Author/Illustrator: Liz Lofthouse/Robert Ingpen
Publisher: Kane/Miller Book Publishers
Publication Date: 2007
Genre: Picture Book – realistic fiction
Audience: Gr. 2-college

Overview: Based on real events, this touching story is told in present and retrospect. As the small girl, Ziba, reminisces about the things she has left behind, her way to a new life is as rocky as the boat on which she is traveling. The incredibly dramatic watercolor illustrations depict vivid images of her war-torn land, the choppy sea she must cross, and the hopeful freedom her family hopes to find.

Activity: The story evokes memoir – an opportunity for students to write one part of their own lives. The gorgeous illustrations offer readers a place to examine and perhaps understand the hope for new life that is demonstrated by Ziba and her fellow refugees.

Reviewer’s Name: Deb Marciano

Roxaboxen

Author: Alice McLerran
Illustrator: Barbara Cooney
Publisher: Lothrop, Lee & Shepard Books, New York
Publication Date: 1991
Awards: 1992 Minnesota Book Award, Southwest Book Award
Genre: Realistic Fiction
Audience: Gr. K-3

Overview: A fantastic tale of a town created by a group of neighborhood playmates; how it was created and the adventures that happened there. The story, as well as the illustrations, encourage imagination and creativity in children.

Activity: Have students create their own town and give it a name. You may have them describe it in a paragraph, draw a picture, or even write a story about how it was created or something that went on there.

Reviewer’s Name: Laura Messerly