Watermark Books & Cafe

Teacher Feature

November 18, 2003

In this issue:

A fieldtrip

Animals, animals

A noisy alphabet

Madonna's second book

Brian Jacques's new picture book

Eve Bunting adventure

"The Worry Web Site" by Jacqueline Wilson

Walter Dean Myers chases the Beast

A spunky new female character

Greetings,

Since last we talked, my family has shamed me into cooking Thanksgiving

dinner. It's been so long that I think they've forgotten how I get when I

have to do it. That means we can eat out next year.

__

Kristin Ford's second-grade class from Price-Harris came for a field trip

last week. We read a story, talked about the world of publishing and book

selling, and then toured the store. The kids were a delight and very

well-behaved. Thank you to Ms. Ford and her students. If any of you would

like to have a similar experience at Watermark, just let me know.

__

I have a book laying in front of me that is hard to describe, except to say

that it is verrrry large (about 12" x 18"--lap size). "Zoo-ology" by Joelle

Jolivet is a picture book of animals, but unlike any other that I've seen.

It is a collection of drawings of over 300 animals, arranged in

unconventional thematic groupings, i.e. black and white, feathered, spots

and stripes, horned. Each group covers two facing pages and consists of

labeled drawings of the animals without text. Information on all the

animals is included in notes at the end of the book. Children will have fun

looking for the chameleon which is hiding on every two-page spread.

Teachers, I would think you could use this book for a variety of activities.

The drawings are wonderful, and I would tell you the technique used if I had

any art sense. They almost look like woodcuts, but not. Someone with art

knowledge, help me out here. Come take a look at this incredible book.

(age ages 3 and up)

__

Here's a book you can make noise with. "Achoo! Bang! Crash! The Noisy

Alphabet" by Ross MacDonald is a rowdy, raucous romp through the sounds of

the alphabet. There are the sounds one hears when the man steps on the rake

and it smacks him in the face (FA-DWAP! FWIP!); when a knight riding a

horse, riding a dragon gets bucked off (KLANK! KLANG! KLOP! KLIP! KA-POW!);

and when the adult just keeps talking (YAK! YAK! YAK! YAK!...). Just

imagine the noise level you can build when your students add their own

nonsense noise words to these. The words were set in 19th-century wood type

and printed on a hand-press, a process described at the end of the book. So

you could add a dimension and have your own type-setting activity. (ages

4-7)

__

In "The Wichita Eagle" Sunday there was a review of Madonna's book, "Mr.

Peabody's Apples."

http://www.kansas.com/mld/kansas/entertainment/books/7271969.htm Samantha Critchell describes Madonna's second venture into the world of children's lit as "a little hokey" and "stale." I agree with her to a certain extent, but will the book be hokey and stale to a small child? I don't think it will be. The

language is straight forward and repetitive which young children like. The

illustrations are rich and heart-warming. The message is universal: gossip

hurts. I think this one deserves a look. It's so much better than the

first one; maybe they'll just keep improving. (ages 4-7)

__

Brian Jacques has taken a break from Redwall to write a picture book, "The

Tale of Urso Brunov, Little Father of All Bears," about a feisty thumb-sized

bear who is the wisest, strongest and bravest in the land and proves so when

he sets off across the world to rescue some tiny bears who have been

kidnapped. Urso's adventures are classic Brian Jacques and probably won't

be a surprise to the reader. But it's a good introduction to Jacques's

storytelling talents and one that any Brian Jacques fan will want to own.

The rich paintings of Alexi Natchev add to the appeal of this book. (ages 5

and up) Take a look at http://www.redwall.org/dave/ursobrunov.html

__

Eve Bunting has another new one. How does she do it? "Snowboarding on

Monster Mountain" is an action-packed adventure story for middle readers

about friendship and fear. Drawings by Karen Ritz add to the excitement of

this story of tension on the slopes. (ages 8-12)

__

"The Worry Web Site" by Jacqueline Wilson is a collection of interrelated

short stories centering around a web site devised by Mr. Speed, a cool

teacher who sets up the site in lieu of Circle Time. In Circle Time,

everyone gets squirmy and embarrassed, but at the Worry Web Site, students

can discuss their problems and get advise while remaining anonymous. The

stories are warmhearted, but some of the problems faced by the students are

very realistic. (ages 8-12 for readability, but some mature themes)

http://www.randomhouse.com/teachers/catalog/display.pperl?isbn=0-385-73083-0

__

I love Adrian Fogelin's winning female character, 12-year-old Rox,

protagonist in "Sister Spider Knows All." Rox has always been happy with her

unusual family: grandmother Mimi, older cousin John Martin, her three

friends and all the vendors at the flea market where she and Mimi spend

their weekends working to make ends meet. She would like to know more about

her mother, but Mimi insists "the three of us together...are family enough

for anyone." Still Rox wonders. Why won't Mimi talk about her mother?

What is there to hide? Then, Rox's world is shaken. First, John Martin

brings home a new girlfriend, Lucy, who forces Rox to examine herself. Then

a devastating tornado hits the flea market. And finally, Rox finds her

mother's diary. To learn the answers to all her questions, all Rox has to

do is read it. (middle school and up)

To read about the author, visit http://www.adrianfogelin.com/,, but be

warned, it hasn't been updated to include this new book.

__

In "The Beast," by Walter Dean Myers, 17-year-old Spoon is apprehensive

about going away to a prep school in Connecticut after having lived his

entire life in Harlem. But Spoon has dreams: go to prep school, go to

college, marry Gabi. In his absence, Gabi's letters to Spoon become fewer

and when Spoon returns to Harlem for the holidays, he is dismayed to find

Gabi in the hands of the "Beast"--drugs. Spoon is caught between two worlds

in this poetic and passionate story about love and dreams and community.

(teens) Read an excerpt at

http://www.scholastic.com/titles/features/fiction/thebeast.htm

__

I've been enjoying a peanut butter milkshake as I've been writing this, and

now I'm experiencing the blood-sugar plunge. Why do I always forget about

the plunge? Have a safe and happy Thanksgiving, and send me all your good

cooking thoughts.

Carolyn

Teacher Feature Archives
Peruse back issues of teacher feature since its inception in April 2003.

	November 18, 2003 In this issue: A fieldtrip Animals, animals A noisy alphabet Madonna's second book Brian Jacques's new picture book Eve Bunting adventure "The Worry Web Site" by Jacqueline Wilson Walter Dean Myers chases the Beast A spunky new female character Greetings, Since last we talked, my family has shamed me into cooking Thanksgiving dinner. It's been so long that I think they've forgotten how I get when I have to do it. That means we can eat out next year. __ Kristin Ford's second-grade class from Price-Harris came for a field trip last week. We read a story, talked about the world of publishing and book selling, and then toured the store. The kids were a delight and very well-behaved. Thank you to Ms. Ford and her students. If any of you would like to have a similar experience at Watermark, just let me know. __ I have a book laying in front of me that is hard to describe, except to say that it is verrrry large (about 12" x 18"--lap size). "Zoo-ology" by Joelle Jolivet is a picture book of animals, but unlike any other that I've seen. It is a collection of drawings of over 300 animals, arranged in unconventional thematic groupings, i.e. black and white, feathered, spots and stripes, horned. Each group covers two facing pages and consists of labeled drawings of the animals without text. Information on all the animals is included in notes at the end of the book. Children will have fun looking for the chameleon which is hiding on every two-page spread. Teachers, I would think you could use this book for a variety of activities. The drawings are wonderful, and I would tell you the technique used if I had any art sense. They almost look like woodcuts, but not. Someone with art knowledge, help me out here. Come take a look at this incredible book. (age ages 3 and up) __ Here's a book you can make noise with. "Achoo! Bang! Crash! The Noisy Alphabet" by Ross MacDonald is a rowdy, raucous romp through the sounds of the alphabet. There are the sounds one hears when the man steps on the rake and it smacks him in the face (FA-DWAP! FWIP!); when a knight riding a horse, riding a dragon gets bucked off (KLANK! KLANG! KLOP! KLIP! KA-POW!); and when the adult just keeps talking (YAK! YAK! YAK! YAK!...). Just imagine the noise level you can build when your students add their own nonsense noise words to these. The words were set in 19th-century wood type and printed on a hand-press, a process described at the end of the book. So you could add a dimension and have your own type-setting activity. (ages 4-7) __ In "The Wichita Eagle" Sunday there was a review of Madonna's book, "Mr. Peabody's Apples." http://www.kansas.com/mld/kansas/entertainment/books/7271969.htm Samantha Critchell describes Madonna's second venture into the world of children's lit as "a little hokey" and "stale." I agree with her to a certain extent, but will the book be hokey and stale to a small child? I don't think it will be. The language is straight forward and repetitive which young children like. The illustrations are rich and heart-warming. The message is universal: gossip hurts. I think this one deserves a look. It's so much better than the first one; maybe they'll just keep improving. (ages 4-7) __ Brian Jacques has taken a break from Redwall to write a picture book, "The Tale of Urso Brunov, Little Father of All Bears," about a feisty thumb-sized bear who is the wisest, strongest and bravest in the land and proves so when he sets off across the world to rescue some tiny bears who have been kidnapped. Urso's adventures are classic Brian Jacques and probably won't be a surprise to the reader. But it's a good introduction to Jacques's storytelling talents and one that any Brian Jacques fan will want to own. The rich paintings of Alexi Natchev add to the appeal of this book. (ages 5 and up) Take a look at http://www.redwall.org/dave/ursobrunov.html __ Eve Bunting has another new one. How does she do it? "Snowboarding on Monster Mountain" is an action-packed adventure story for middle readers about friendship and fear. Drawings by Karen Ritz add to the excitement of this story of tension on the slopes. (ages 8-12) __ "The Worry Web Site" by Jacqueline Wilson is a collection of interrelated short stories centering around a web site devised by Mr. Speed, a cool teacher who sets up the site in lieu of Circle Time. In Circle Time, everyone gets squirmy and embarrassed, but at the Worry Web Site, students can discuss their problems and get advise while remaining anonymous. The stories are warmhearted, but some of the problems faced by the students are very realistic. (ages 8-12 for readability, but some mature themes) http://www.randomhouse.com/teachers/catalog/display.pperl?isbn=0-385-73083-0 __ I love Adrian Fogelin's winning female character, 12-year-old Rox, protagonist in "Sister Spider Knows All." Rox has always been happy with her unusual family: grandmother Mimi, older cousin John Martin, her three friends and all the vendors at the flea market where she and Mimi spend their weekends working to make ends meet. She would like to know more about her mother, but Mimi insists "the three of us together...are family enough for anyone." Still Rox wonders. Why won't Mimi talk about her mother? What is there to hide? Then, Rox's world is shaken. First, John Martin brings home a new girlfriend, Lucy, who forces Rox to examine herself. Then a devastating tornado hits the flea market. And finally, Rox finds her mother's diary. To learn the answers to all her questions, all Rox has to do is read it. (middle school and up) To read about the author, visit http://www.adrianfogelin.com/,, but be warned, it hasn't been updated to include this new book. __ In "The Beast," by Walter Dean Myers, 17-year-old Spoon is apprehensive about going away to a prep school in Connecticut after having lived his entire life in Harlem. But Spoon has dreams: go to prep school, go to college, marry Gabi. In his absence, Gabi's letters to Spoon become fewer and when Spoon returns to Harlem for the holidays, he is dismayed to find Gabi in the hands of the "Beast"--drugs. Spoon is caught between two worlds in this poetic and passionate story about love and dreams and community. (teens) Read an excerpt at http://www.scholastic.com/titles/features/fiction/thebeast.htm __ I've been enjoying a peanut butter milkshake as I've been writing this, and now I'm experiencing the blood-sugar plunge. Why do I always forget about the plunge? Have a safe and happy Thanksgiving, and send me all your good cooking thoughts. Carolyn
	Teacher Feature Archives Peruse back issues of teacher feature since its inception in April 2003.