Battle Bunny by Jon Scieszka and Mac Barnett

I realized the other day that I rarely blog about picture books, and I don’t know why.  I LOVE PICTURE BOOKS!!!  So, I decided that I am going to focus on some wonderful picture books.  When I was a kid Little Golden Books were very popular.  Recently, Jon Scieszka and Mac Barnett released Battle Bunny, a book that takes us back to the good old days of Little Golden Books.   Of course with about everything Mr. Scieszka does there is quite the twist.

Alexander received a lovely birthday book from his Gran Gran.  It is a sweet story about how Bunny celebrates his birthday.  Well, Alexander will have none of this.  Soon Bunny is transformed into Battle Bunny.  The real birthday boy crosses out words and lines and changes this cute bunny into a terrorist determined to destroy the forest.  It gets so bad in the forest that the President sends Air Force One to eliminate Battle Bunny.

I read this book to my third graders.  A funny thing happened on the way to enjoying the book.  First, the boys concern that Mr. Scieszka and Mr. Barnett were going to get into BIG trouble for writing in someone’s book, and passing it off as their own. Second, they thought it was disrespectful that they ruined Matthew Myers’ pleasant illustrations.  I was shocked that it took a while for these kids to get that Birthday Bunny is not the real book.

After the second read through the real laughter started.  Since that day the book has been in someone’s book box.  I have no idea what condition it will be in at the end of the year, but with every great book I end up purchasing another copy.

Ultra by David Carroll

I place running is in the same category as going to the dentist, so when I read the blurbs about the finalist for the Cybils Middle Grade award I thought “really with all the great books out there I have to read about ultra-marathons!”  We all know that you can’t always judge a book by the cover. 

Quinn, a new teenager, is an ultra-marathon runner.  (Yes, there are people out there that run 100 miles in 24 hours!)  When Quinn was younger he started running with his dad.  They soon found out that he had a larger than normal heart, and his body doesn’t produce much lactic acid, so he doesn’t get tired as easily as the rest of us.  David Carroll the author of Ultra uses a television interview and flash backs to tell this gripping story.  Through the race we learn about the relationships he has with his mom, younger brother, and best friend.  We find out the hardship of the war in Afghanistan.  Most importantly, I couldn’t put the book down.  When the second round judges started we wrote about what exactly are we looking for.  Michael wrote that we don’t want to pick a book that is like brussel sprouts or one like gummy bears, we want a book that is healthy and fun.  That is why Ultra by David Carroll was the clear winner. 

On a side note due to recent events a friend has formed a team for a race this spring in memory of Ethan, so I am training to run my first 5k.

Good-bye my sweet dear Ethan

Over the years I have taught many children. One student stood out amongst all the rest.  I met Ethan over six years ago when he was a little second grader walking down the hall with his nose deep in a book, and I had to grab a hold of his shirt before he fell down the stairs.  Last week a terrible accident happened and his young heart couldn’t take it anymore and he died at the age of 14.

I was Ethan’s third and fourth grade teacher, but during those two years our relationship changed more to family.  Over the years the bond that started with books grew to a very special friendship. We talked often about the challenges of being a young man that looks at the world through a whole different set of eyes. 

Ethan and Senator Bennet

Some time during that horribly day this picture of Ethan popped into my mind and comforted me.  In the picture Ethan is trying to convince Senator Michael Bennet to speak at the pro-equality rally he was planning.  At the time Senator Bennet would not commit to his cause.  I remember spending the week trying to explain to Ethan the reasons why Senator Bennet could not come.  Nine year olds can be very stubborn.  Later that spring when Senator Bennet and Secretary Arnie Duncan visited my classroom for a round table about education with kids I had to watch Ethan like a hawk to make sure the topic didn’t come up.

Ethan was always a reader.  Just recently he told me how he still freaked out whenever he thought about Carlos Ruiz Zafón’s book The Prince of Mist.  He loved that books made him think.  Ethan was and will always be the boy reader.

In fourth grade Ethan wrote the following poem.  It was used on the first page of Denver Public School’s poetry anthology.

Books are ways to escape reality,

ways to feel joy in times of pain

Books are portals to other worlds

waiting to be read

waiting to be enjoyed

waiting to be explored.

Good-bye my sweet boy.

The Real Boy by Anne Ursu

Creepy!  This word best describes the feeling I had while reading The Real Boy by Anne Ursu.  I don’t mean creepy in a bad way, but in the way that sends chills down your spin with your mouth hanging open.

Oscar is a small boy that works for the most powerful magician in the land.  Years ago the wizards disappeared, but their magic is still around.  The city and forest are filled with sinister magic. (Sinister is used on the book jacket because it best describes what is happening!)  Oscar is the hand of the magician Caleb, and Wolf is the apprentice who hates Oscar.  I found out that the hand does the grunt work for the apprentice.  Soon after the book begins something horrific happens to Wolf, and Caleb leaves to find “answers”.  This leaves Oscar and his Callie to deal with the evil that is happening to the children of the city.  If I write more it really does get into the whole spoiler alert realm.  I’m not doing that!

While I was reading this at home I was reading Noah Barleywater Runs Away to my class.  At one point in that book the old man says, “I should have never become a real boy.”  This line stuck in my mind, so I kept wondering if the same was true of Oscar.  Well, it’s not.  I had trouble putting The Real Boy down.  It is an engaging story where twists and turns kept me reading.  There were many times where I just wanted to take Oscar in my arms and hug him and tell him everything will be alright.  Of course that’s not possible with a character in a fantasy book.  I like the perseverance of both Callie and Oscar, and their true understanding of what is good versus evil.  I’m not quite sure on this for third graders, but definitely for 4^th grade and above.

The Magic of Jennifer A. Nielsen

Truth be told I usually only read the first book in a series.  It isn’t that I don’t want to it is that I have enough trouble just getting through my TBR stack. This changed over the weekend.  Over the past few months there has been a lot of press and chatter about The False Prince by Jennifer A. Nielsen. 

My friend Carol blogged about it and encouraged me to read it.  She told me about the time Ms. Nielsen visited her school, and how delightful she was with the kids.  I, so much, loved reading The False Prince last week that when I was at The Bookies last Friday I bought The Runaway King, and devoured it over the weekend.  Only difference between the boys and me in the class is that I didn’t beg my mom to get it.

Flash back to the middle of December.  The boys in Guys Read had picked The False Prince as their next book. The boys started the book and within two days a couple of boys stopped by my room to tell me they loved the book, had already finished, and got their mom to take them to Tattered Cover to buy The Runaway King (the next one in the series). 

Throughout the next week the discussion of The False Prince spread through my room.  It started with what happens in chapter 3.  The boys I think were in shock that a scene like that would be in a story they were reading.  I would watch boys walking over to other kids and say, “Here, listen to this part.”

The girls in the class were also talking about the book even though none had read it yet.  Given some of the girls in my class I’m sure many read it over break.

Every morning I could hear boys asking each other:

·       “What chapter are you on?”

·       “How far did you read last night?” 

·       “Wasn’t it cool when….”

I’m sure when we meet next week the boys will have nothing to talk about in book club because it is all they have talked about in class.

Daily I watch kids read books.  The share books, borrow books, and discard books very quickly.  It is that special writer like Ms. Nielsen that gets kids out of their chairs to share the her words.  Over the years I have watched boys read the books for book club.  Sometimes they are totally engaged, and sometimes they aren’t that interested in the book. The only other book with this much magic was The Lightening Thief. 

Thank you Ms. Nielsen for taking the joy of reading to an even higher level.