This Little Light of Mine...

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Let it Shine

by Ashley Bryan

published by Atheneum Books for Young Readers, NY, 2007

Summary: Illustrated versions of three well-known hymns.

Strengths: The amazing illustrations in this book are extremely colorful and intricate. The words go well with the pictures and the illustrations provide an interesting context for these classic songs. I like that the music of the songs are shown at the end of the book.

Concerns: The concept of religion is present throughout the book, although the book does depict a variety of places of worship on one of the pages.

Classroom Use/Other Comments: Older children can be introduced to the concept of "Spirituals" through this book. Art classes can learn a lot from the designs and cut outs used in this book. Ages 3 and up would enjoy this colorful book!

Simple Pleasures

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Sky Sweeper

by Phillis Gershator

pictures by Holly Meade

published by Farrar, Straus and Giroux, NY, 2007

Summary: "Despite criticism for his lack of 'accomplishments,' Takeboki finds contentment sweeping the flower blossoms and raking the sand and gravel in the monks' temple garden. Includes a note on the art and beauty of Japanese gardens."

Strengths: Readers discover the message of finding pleasure in simple things and insight into Japanese culture through the beautiful illustrations and repetitive text. I really liked the double page spreads of how Takeboki takes care of the garden during the four seasons. The importance of nature is seen in the intricate Japanese garden.

Concerns: Some parents may be concerned if teachers introduce this book to young students because of the book's element of religion.

Classroom Use/Other Comments: This book would be appropriate for ages 5 and up. Teachers can use this as an introduction to the Japanese culture or just as an interesting book to read aloud. If children live in New York, they could visit the Brooklyn Botanist Garden that is described in this book and compare it's garden with the Japanese garden in this book.

Peaceful Night in the City

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At Night

by Jonathan Bean

published by Farrar, Straus, and Giroux, NY, 2007

Summary: "A sleepless city girl imagines what it would be like to get away from snoring family members and curl up alone with one's thoughts in the cool night air under wide-open skies."

Strengths: The calming pictures and peaceful tone in the easy-to-read text provides readers with a fun read. Readers can relate to not being able to fall asleep. This can provide an insight to life in the city.

Concerns: Older children may find this book not extremely interesting, but I have no concerns if this is read by children for whom it is intended.

Classroom Use/Other Comments: This book would be good for children aged 3-6. Older children can try to read this book on their own, but younger children would enjoy hearing the story.

A Girl's Best Friend...

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Fred Stays with Me!

by Nancy Coffelt

illustrated by Tricia Tusa

published by Little, Brown and Company, NY, 2007

Summary: "A child describes how she lives sometimes with her mother and sometimes with her father, but her dog is her constant companion."

Strengths: This simple book with earth-toned illustrations has a message of constancy through divorce. Children learn how parents can work with their kids to problem solve or compromise if there is a situation. This is an excellent introduction to divorce and may provide a mirror to children with parents going through a divorce.

Concerns: I think that the font used in this book would make it difficult for children to read by themselves. The letter, k, for example looks like the cursive letter k.

Classroom Use/ Other Comments: This book is an excellent book to read aloud to children aged 4 and up. Students may be able to make self to text connections through the narrator's love of her dog and through her experience with divorce.

Swirl and Whirl Away a Bad Day

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Mrs. Biddlebox

by Linda Smith

illustrated by Marla Frazee

published by Harper Collins, 2002

Summary: " With baking magic, Mrs. Biddlebox uses fog, dirt, sky, and other ingredients of a rotten day to transform it into a sweet cake."

Strengths: The dynamic illustrations and rhyming text make this book a memorable tale sure to change any bad day into a day full of laughter. Younger children will enjoy finding Mrs. Biddlebox's duck that is along for the adventure. The imagery and delightful pictures make this story a fun read. Children can imagine following Mrs. Biddlebox's actions in order to improve their own bad days.

Concerns: Students may not understand at first what exactly is being baked. Readers will need their imagination hats on!

Classroom Use/Other Comments: This book would be a great book to read aloud and to discuss rhyme. Only the second and fourth lines have an end rhyme, which is something that students can discuss. Children aged 4 and up would enjoy listening to the book and older students would be able to read this book on their own. This book could be a good introduction to imagery and figurative language. Children can write their own story about making something into a cake without using tangible, normal ingredients.

Growing Plant Vocabulary

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Red Leaf, Yellow Leaf

by Lois Ehlert

published by Harcourt Inc, Florida, 1991

Summary: "A child describes the growth of a maple tree from seed to sapling."

Strengths: This book is beautifully illustrated with very unique depictions of nature. The pictures are very well coordinated with the words and show unique perspectives of the tree as it grows and moves. This book offers a unique perspective of how the tree grows from seedling and then is moved to the nursery. I think that children would be able to relate to the child narrator and the word choice is great for children learning to read. Many of the pictures are labeled with words describing parts of the picture, such as maple tree roots, garden glove, and Black-capped Chicadee, which promotes science vocabulary development. I also liked the bright background colors used on each double page spread. I also like how the illustrations involve different mediums, such as string, foil, twigs, and cut outs, which allow the pictures to stand out.

Concerns: The book does not have a very moving plot, but does have a story described by a child to whom the student can relate.

Classroom Use/Other Comments: This book would be great for children aged 4 to 8, depending on the use of the book. Younger children could use this book as they are learning to read, as they develop their vocabulary, and as they learn about plants and seasons. A recipe and directions for making a bird treat is located at the back of the book, which would be a fun activity for children. Older children can use this book to learn about the process of tree growth and observation, as a lesson integrating literature with science. The end of the book also has a lot of information about different elements of maple trees, which can be useful for older students.

A Tear for a Red Balloon

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My Red Balloon

by Eve Bunting

illustrated by Kay Life

published by Boyds Mills Press, Pennsylvania, 2005

Summary: "A young boy waits with both excitement and apprehension for his father to disembark from the aircraft carrier returning to port after many months at sea."

Strengths: This picture book is full of emotion and provides realistic images that correlate with the realistic story. I liked that the people in the book were diverse and that the story explicitly stated that a father was waiting for a daughter as opposed to a son, which helps children understand that both men and women serve in the military. Children who are read this story that are at the same age as the boy will definitely relate to the way he talks and how he is feeling.

Concerns: The topic of this story could be a touchy subject for children whose parents are serving in the military and are not coming home very soon. The story may create sad emotions, which is okay if the class is mature enough to have a discussion of that nature.

Classroom use/ Other comments: Teachers could read this story for children to consider the military and the lives of families in the military. Teachers can suggest this book to older children who have parents in the military to read individually or with a parent at home. This book could be used as a tie into a community service project of writing letters to men and women in the military. This book is useful for children ages 4-8.

Chuckles for the Chicken Chaser

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The Chicken-Chasing Queen of Lamar County

written by Janice N. Harrington

pictures by Shelley Jackson

published by Farrar, Straus and Girous, New York, 2007

Summary: "A young farm girl tries to catch her favorite chicken, until she learns something about the hen that makes her change her ways."


Strengths: This picture book contains beautiful illustrations with a hilarious, but thoughtful message to which children can surely relate. I enjoy the variety of materials, such as cloth, buttons, paper, and letter cut-outs, used in the illustrations. This variety of materials provides texture and depth to the page which draws in the reader. The storyline in this book has an obvious plot of the "Chicken Chasing Queen" trying to catch her favorite hen. The ending adds a surprise and lesson that will delight readers. The characters have very distinct personalities and their thoughts and ideas provide much amusement. One of my favorite parts of the story is when the main character of the story pretends that she is a chicken so that they will not notice her and shares her thoughts of what a chicken thinks.


Concerns: Although I really enjoyed the story because of the unique illustrations, children may have difficulties reading the words that are cut-out and colorful, like some of the chicken sayings, because they do not standing out over the illustrations.

Classroom use/Other Comments: This book can be read to children as a fun and silly story to teach students about why things may not be as they appear. The students can also discuss self to text connections about when they discover something and then change their behavior or when they don't do what their parents tell them to do. The story uses many noises that the chickens "say", like "pruck", "squawk", and "pee-o", which can help students learn the relationship of sounds and words. I think this story would be good as a Reader's Theater project for children to create with the characters of the main character and Big Mama. This story could also be used as an art project and lesson for practice using different types of fabric and material in illustrations. Children aged 4-10 would enjoy this book.

So Much Learning, So Few Words

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Anno's Counting Book

by Mitsumasa Anno

Published by Thomas Y. Crowell Company, New York, 1975

Summary: "Introduces counting and number systems by showing mathematical relationships in nature."

Strengths: This wordless, but simply and meaningfully illustrated book provides a wonderful visual and basis for learning or reinforcing number knowledge. Each spread shows a scene on a hillside with different objects, such as children, buildings, and trees, which are all in sets of the number on which that page focuses. I like that all of the sets of objects are not placed together, but that you need to look around and count all of the objects in each set. Each number also is expressed numerically and then with blocks, so that children can count the blocks and visualize how many a certain number is in comparison to a larger number. The book also shows the changing seasons and the development of a town throughout a year. Children may even notice that the number also corresponds to the month in which the picture takes place. I also really like how the clock on the church steeple shows the time based on the number of the page, so when there are sets of three on the page, the clock shows that it is three o'clock.

Concerns: This book needs to be used in a specific context because it does not have words or a plot. Children may wonder about certain things not being in sets of the number on the page, like the number of windows not corresponding to the number because the focus is on the number of buildings.

Classroom Use/Other comments: This is a great book to learn about "one to one correspondences", which the author mentions at the end of the book along with other instructional information. Children will enjoy finding each set of objects and this is a great integration of math. Teachers can have children write a story to go along with the story in order to provide a context for writing. Children can read this individually to practice counting and to work on their observation skills. This book would be enjoyed by all ages, but would be great for children learning to count, around ages 3-7.