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gymnerdreader's reviews
84 reviews
Eight Seconds to Ride by Ashley James
adventurous
emotional
funny
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
I went into this one a little unsure. Yeah I know what you are probably thinking: Jen you adore Ashley James, why wouldn’t you adore this one? Well, I’ll admit the setting, the cowboys, the Bronc riding gave me pause. I’m no western cowgirl and I went into this thinking bronc riding was the equivalent of riding those mechanical bulls at Texas Roadhouse on your birthday!
Well, it’s actually not apparently and I’m an actual idiot for thinking that.
🤠🤠cowboys on cowboys mmmm 😋 that sounds deliciously sexy right?
🤣Knee slapping dialogue and character banter.
🐎 Lots and lots of western vibes: I’m talking cowboys, traveling vets, ranches, shirtless cowboys, wranglers and chaps and um IM WEAK 🥵
Bump ⬆️
-Shooter’s character development/glow up: I feel like I’m probably in the minority with this, but I’m not a fan of asshole cocky characters. I find them annoying and they often grate on my nerves. Shooter was really no different at first, however towards the end I truly did feel for him and see him in a different light. I found myself connecting with him as a character which is something I didn’t originally think was possible. I thought I would just connect with Sterling more, which I did. I saw quite a bit of myself in him, but honestly, at the end I saw a bit of myself in both of these men and that’s quite a beautiful thing
-Shooter and Sterling were pure and utter magic together: there’s no better way to describe it. They just were amazing together. There was no one who was more of a fit for Shooter’s cocky, inferiority complex wearing self than Sterling. What I loved most about their romance and it’s honestly what Ashley does so well with her romances, is that their non-sexual moments are just as intimate as their sexual ones. I’m all for smut as much as the next gal and I know people pick up MM for the smut, but there’s just something special about an MM that has not only 🌶️, but heart as well.
-Hilariously fun: this one isn’t super angsty, cry a bucket of tears, puddle on the floor kinda book, but it was super fun. It was hilarious and found myself laughing quite a bit with the banter between not only Sterling and Shooter, but the Copper Lake gang as well. The best way to describe this would be just an overall fun freaking time
-Found family. I won’t spoil this one further, but this whole gang is special. This is my favorite trope by far because it’s just so dang heartwarming!
Bump ⬇️
-Kinda wanted more Copper Lake moments: I just loved the small town vibe so much. I would have loved to have seen more of the whole Copper Lake town! I’m not bummed though about what we got instead though because queer roadtrips honestly sound pretty fun too
-we need more cowgirls in the group: Daisy was prob one of my favorite female Ashley James characters so I think it’s only natural I’d want even more cowgirls in this story than there were.
Final Verdict?
An honest to god fun time. And while I think there’s are things that can be improved in the book, it didn’t take away from my overall enjoyment of the story and that makes all the difference for me when it comes to rating purposes. It’s been SO LONG since I’ve binged a book and it felt so good and honestly binging this one was so easy because I had a hard time putting it down!
GIF reaction:
Final Rating:
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
The Family Across the Street by Nicole Trope
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.5
Sheriyn Dale, I freaking did this for you! The things I do to feel apart of a book club y’all 🙄
📿Hostage situation~What?, im not gonna lie to you
👵Nosy, annoying old ladies who you could honestly do without
2️⃣Pretty cool redemption Arc
Let’s be real, there aren’t a lot of positives because this one ticked me off but I’ll give you one!
Bump ⬆️
-Logan: his POV, his character, his redemption ARC. I’m a firm believer in second chances and I believe people are more than the mistakes they made in their life and I believe even the most troubled are capable of good. Logan was the perfect dichotomy for the “villain” (I guess you could call him that? Idk) and I enjoyed reading about his backstory, watching him get his second chance. It made me happy. He was the real hero in this book despite what the characters’ want you to think.
Bump ⬇️
-This book DRAGGED on: this book may have only been 250 pages, but it’s amazing how LONG and tedious it was reading this. I mean half the book was filled with a bunch of nonsense crap so not surprising but my god when I was at the epilogue and realized it was a 20 min long chapter I made the loudest groan. I was OVER this book.
-Useless POV’s: I usually love multiple POV’s. I love seeing the perspective of multiple characters, but boy I could have done without with this one. NOT EVERY SINGLE CHARACTER IN A BOOK NEEDS A POV. IT IS NOT NECESSARY. This needs to be said louder for the people in the back.
-Gladys: A busybody, a nosy Nancy, a really freaking aggravating character who added very little to the story at the end of the day. I could go on about how annoyed I was with every POV chapter of hers but I’d be spoiling this book so I’ll spare you the details
-This book made me want to throw my kindle out the window
-I guessed the “insane plot twist” and that y’all is the kiss of death for me with any thriller
Final Verdict?
You ever read a book that dragged on for sooooo long and annoyed you so much that you stopped caring for even your favorite, most redeemable character by the end of the book? That was me with this one. I think me groaning when I reached the epilogue and realizing there were a good 20+ pages left describes just how I felt with this one.
GIF reaction:
Final Rating:
⭐️⭐️💫
Once Upon a Broken Heart by Stephanie Garber
adventurous
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
The long-awaited spin off of Caraval. As most of you know (because I never shut up about this), but my first ever completed series and trilogy was Caraval. I LOVED pretty much everything about this series so needless to say I had incredibly high expectations for this one. However what often accompanies high expectations is nervousness. I was really nervous about reading this because I was afraid of being disappointed although looking back on it I’m not sure how a book similar to Caraval could ever disappoint. Luckily, I ended up absolutely LOVING this one!
👍
📈Everything about this world: the magic, the fairytales, twists and turns. It is similar to Caraval in the sense of the world, but the introduction of the Northern Empire was so refreshing and I loved the extra magical elements to it. I can see why some thought some of these elements were “too out there” and “different” from that of the trilogy, but imo this aspect is what sets this apart from the trilogy and is a strength of these series as a whole. Every single book that Garber writes manages to transform into a different story than what is initially expected towards the end. I love not knowing what’s gonna happen or being able to anticipate it
🔥the tension between Evangeline and Jacks was everything!!! I was rooting so hard for these two throughout as well as screaming “just make out already” 😂😂 I won’t say much else because I’m not gonna spoil the joys of reading these parts, but I loved it!! I’m still a sucker for the men that Stephanie Garber writes.
🦊 The nicknames the guys call the female characters in all of these books are so damn cute like I actually can’t handle it. Write them on my tombstone please 😍🙏
👎
🤦♀️Evangeline could be a bit naive at times and overly trusting even when it was obvious she shouldn’t have been.
📈plot could be incredibly confusing at times and by the time the book ended I still wasn’t 100% sure I understood what was happening. Thank god for my friends lol 😆
Closing words: I NEED THIS FREAKING SEQUEL LIKE YESTERDAY!
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫
One Day in December by Josie Silver
emotional
funny
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
My first book of 2022!! AND it was a really solid read! 🎉🎉 It was such a cute romance, but it was more than that. It was a story of growing up and the trials and tribulations we face in life. I loved all these characters, I became so attached to them and this really put me through the ringer emotionally.
👍
🗓I loved how this book took place over the span of 10 years. It reminded me of One Day (this book is much better than that movie btw). This time span allowed me to become so attached to the characters towards the end, but it also allowed me to see the characters growth through the years. I watched Laurie go from awkward, creepy stalker to a grown woman. Not to mention are the trials and tribulations, growing pains adequately explored as well. Just phenomenal!
🥰Sarah and Laurie’s friendship is one for the books…So wholesome. Definitely one of the highlights of the book for me
😌The writing took me through more than just a walk through scenic, snowy London. It was so beautiful. I had to stop and admire the writing at times. It was funny, light hearted and just pulled at my heart!
❤️This was a really solid romance. I really enjoyed the mis-chances misopportunity romance trope or whatever it’s called. Def one I’m a sucker for. I loved the pining and soulmates aspect of it.
👎
📈Didn’t enjoy some of the plot points used in this book. Mainly the love triangles. I could have done without them. Of course, they were tolerable in this one, but overall just a trope I genuinely don’t like. Also, another plot point which I won’t say for spoiler reasons I could have done without
❤️While I enjoyed the romance I must say I would have liked there to have been a bit more resolution with the couples towards the end. There was so much pining for like a one page resolution. I felt the pining was too much throughout and it felt really drawn out towards the end. I was just waiting for the HEA but it took FOREVER to get to it.
Overall Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Meet Danitra Brown by Nikki Grimes
5.0
Annotated Bibliography Poetry Entry #1: Meet Danitra Brown by Nikki Grimes
Summary:
Meet Danitra Brown is a children's poetry book that features a young African American girl, named Zuri who uses each poem to introduce us to Danitra Brown and their friendship. As readers we get to know a lot about Danitra from Zuri, such as she likes purple and desires to win the Nobel Prize. Besides the concept of friendship this book touches on other important topics, such as single parent homes, race and bullying. It is not surprising to me that this poetry book is still popular among children today (This was read to me when I was a kid). It's poems and various themes truly are timeless.
Personal Response:
I absolutely loved this poetry book when I was in elementary school because the poems rhyme and are almost musical when you read it, which was extremely appealing to me as a kid (In fact when I was a kid, if poems didn't rhyme it wasn't poetry). However from a future educator's perspective I like how it touches on complex and difficult themes, such as race, bullying and single parent homes, which is often not explored in depth for the younger ages. Definitely an engaging read that will appeal to young children
Descriptions of Illustrations:
The dark, often fuzzy shades really bring the characters and the setting to life. The shading and style of illustration definitely gives off both a realistic and vintage (book was published in 1995) feel. When I was looking through at the illustrations I was struck by how realistic they were! I feel like such illustrations really bring you into a story.
Classroom Connections:
This is a perfect book for a read aloud and a perfect book for a poetry unit. I feel that students could easily write their own poems based off of these poems. Students could write poems introducing the class to their friends and they could use these poems as inspiration for what to write about. This activity could be beneficial in strengthening literacy skills and comprehension and it could teach students about the importance of friendship as well. In terms of read aloud, this book could lead into great discussions about friendship and the meaning of friendship.
Summary:
Meet Danitra Brown is a children's poetry book that features a young African American girl, named Zuri who uses each poem to introduce us to Danitra Brown and their friendship. As readers we get to know a lot about Danitra from Zuri, such as she likes purple and desires to win the Nobel Prize. Besides the concept of friendship this book touches on other important topics, such as single parent homes, race and bullying. It is not surprising to me that this poetry book is still popular among children today (This was read to me when I was a kid). It's poems and various themes truly are timeless.
Personal Response:
I absolutely loved this poetry book when I was in elementary school because the poems rhyme and are almost musical when you read it, which was extremely appealing to me as a kid (In fact when I was a kid, if poems didn't rhyme it wasn't poetry). However from a future educator's perspective I like how it touches on complex and difficult themes, such as race, bullying and single parent homes, which is often not explored in depth for the younger ages. Definitely an engaging read that will appeal to young children
Descriptions of Illustrations:
The dark, often fuzzy shades really bring the characters and the setting to life. The shading and style of illustration definitely gives off both a realistic and vintage (book was published in 1995) feel. When I was looking through at the illustrations I was struck by how realistic they were! I feel like such illustrations really bring you into a story.
Classroom Connections:
This is a perfect book for a read aloud and a perfect book for a poetry unit. I feel that students could easily write their own poems based off of these poems. Students could write poems introducing the class to their friends and they could use these poems as inspiration for what to write about. This activity could be beneficial in strengthening literacy skills and comprehension and it could teach students about the importance of friendship as well. In terms of read aloud, this book could lead into great discussions about friendship and the meaning of friendship.
The Adventures of Beekle: The Unimaginary Friend by Dan Santat
5.0
Annotated Bibliography Entry: The Adventures of Beekle: The Unimaginary Friend by Dan Santat
Summary:
Beekle, an unimaginary friend is born on a fantasy island where imaginary friends are born and they spend their entire life waiting for children to imagine them. Beekle patiently waits for his life's calling, however that day never comes. Determined to become a child's imaginary friend and fulfill his own purpose, Beekle sets out to the real world where he tries to search for a friend. At first, his efforts seem in vain as he does not encounter a whole lot of children, just adults. However he runs into some luck when he comes across a little girl in need of a friend of her own. The two strike up a friendship, Beekle fulfills his ultimate purpose and the little girl has a friend of her very own. All was right in the world! :)
Personal Response:
This book made my heart happy. It is just so cute and I could definitely imagine children falling in love with this story. I really love the fantasy aspect of the story and the thing I love most of all is that the fantasy world of Beekle and the real world connect seamlessly together, which makes for a compelling fictional story. My favorite part about the story were the illustrations, which made me fall in love with the story even more.
Descriptions of Illustrations:
The illustrations are very cartoon-esque and for me, it made the story come alive. It was like watching a animated movie crossover where the animated character comes to life in a real world setting, but maintaining his cartoon appearance. That is what the illustrations reminded me of and I felt that aspect made the illustrations more vibrant. You could tell how the strange the world was to Beekle because the illustrations made you feel that sense of strangeness. Awesome illustrations that enhanced the story and made the story come to life.
Classroom Connections:
This is a perfect read aloud and a perfect book to introduce to children about fiction and non-fiction books. This is book blends both realistic and fantasy elements it would be a good book to use to introduce children to the elements of fantasy and character traits. Children discuss the fan stash elements present in the story and they could also list the character traits of Beekle and the other characters. Then they could create their own stories to illustrate that concept. I feel like children having the opportunity to create their own stories is a great opportunity for children to practice their writing skills and express their creativity at the same time. Besides this activity, children could make their own imaginary friends to go along with their stories, which would be a way to integrate the arts in with this particular lesson. Then the whole thing could be put on display, which kids love. It would be a great opportunity for children to show off their creativity. This is the perfect book to build that foundation!
Summary:
Beekle, an unimaginary friend is born on a fantasy island where imaginary friends are born and they spend their entire life waiting for children to imagine them. Beekle patiently waits for his life's calling, however that day never comes. Determined to become a child's imaginary friend and fulfill his own purpose, Beekle sets out to the real world where he tries to search for a friend. At first, his efforts seem in vain as he does not encounter a whole lot of children, just adults. However he runs into some luck when he comes across a little girl in need of a friend of her own. The two strike up a friendship, Beekle fulfills his ultimate purpose and the little girl has a friend of her very own. All was right in the world! :)
Personal Response:
This book made my heart happy. It is just so cute and I could definitely imagine children falling in love with this story. I really love the fantasy aspect of the story and the thing I love most of all is that the fantasy world of Beekle and the real world connect seamlessly together, which makes for a compelling fictional story. My favorite part about the story were the illustrations, which made me fall in love with the story even more.
Descriptions of Illustrations:
The illustrations are very cartoon-esque and for me, it made the story come alive. It was like watching a animated movie crossover where the animated character comes to life in a real world setting, but maintaining his cartoon appearance. That is what the illustrations reminded me of and I felt that aspect made the illustrations more vibrant. You could tell how the strange the world was to Beekle because the illustrations made you feel that sense of strangeness. Awesome illustrations that enhanced the story and made the story come to life.
Classroom Connections:
This is a perfect read aloud and a perfect book to introduce to children about fiction and non-fiction books. This is book blends both realistic and fantasy elements it would be a good book to use to introduce children to the elements of fantasy and character traits. Children discuss the fan stash elements present in the story and they could also list the character traits of Beekle and the other characters. Then they could create their own stories to illustrate that concept. I feel like children having the opportunity to create their own stories is a great opportunity for children to practice their writing skills and express their creativity at the same time. Besides this activity, children could make their own imaginary friends to go along with their stories, which would be a way to integrate the arts in with this particular lesson. Then the whole thing could be put on display, which kids love. It would be a great opportunity for children to show off their creativity. This is the perfect book to build that foundation!
The Day the Crayons Quit by Drew Daywalt
5.0
Annotated Bibliography Entry: The Day the Crayons Quit by Drew Daywalt
Summary:
Duncan just wants to color one day, but those desires are put on hold when he opens his crayon box and finds letters addressed to him from each of his crayons in his crayon box. Most of the crayons in the box are unhappy in some sort of way. For example, some of them feel overused, overworked and others feel empty and not used nearly as much as they should. Duncan does want to color, but he realizes that he also wants each of crayons to be happy too. So he makes a compromise and draws a picture using all of his crayons in some sort of way so they don't feel left out.
Personal Response:
I have heard a lot of good things about this book and it did not disappoint. I found the book incredibly humorous and there were definitely points in which I was laughing out loud (sometimes I really do feel like a kid at heart). This book was awarded the B.W. White Reading Aloud Award and I can see why. I can envision children laughing along with each of the crayon's letters. While this is an incredibly light and funny read, it also teaches a strong lesson: to stand up for what you believe in (though this was handled in an incredibly light and humorous way). Each of the crayons believed in something and they decided to do something about it (and they did so in a very peaceful way). Love this underlying message and children can learn a lot from it!
Descriptions of illustrations:
The illustrations feature crayon colored drawing that ties directly in with what each of the crayon's letters are saying. The drawings definitely feel very cartoonish to me, which I thought enhanced the nature of the story. It really did go perfectly together with the letters on the left and the drawings that illustrated it on the right. Such illustrations can really draw a young reader in because it looks like something someone may draw on paper. Loved that aspect of connection and reality that was present with the illustrations. It gives children something to relate to.
Classroom Connections:
As I mentioning earlier this would be a good book to introduce the idea of sticking up for what you believe in, which is an important and basic human right. So I think that it is essential that we are teaching our students messages that this book promoted. Although this subject matter is complex and may be hard to understand for younger students I feel that this book introduces this in a very light-hearted manner. This book could be used to promote basic discussions on this topic and students can write their own letters about something they would like to change. Teachers can then facilitate a discussion about how students could perhaps change this issue. This may be a little advanced for younger grades so it can be modified if necessary. However I do feel it is important to introduce this aspect early as it is essential to living in a democratic society.
Summary:
Duncan just wants to color one day, but those desires are put on hold when he opens his crayon box and finds letters addressed to him from each of his crayons in his crayon box. Most of the crayons in the box are unhappy in some sort of way. For example, some of them feel overused, overworked and others feel empty and not used nearly as much as they should. Duncan does want to color, but he realizes that he also wants each of crayons to be happy too. So he makes a compromise and draws a picture using all of his crayons in some sort of way so they don't feel left out.
Personal Response:
I have heard a lot of good things about this book and it did not disappoint. I found the book incredibly humorous and there were definitely points in which I was laughing out loud (sometimes I really do feel like a kid at heart). This book was awarded the B.W. White Reading Aloud Award and I can see why. I can envision children laughing along with each of the crayon's letters. While this is an incredibly light and funny read, it also teaches a strong lesson: to stand up for what you believe in (though this was handled in an incredibly light and humorous way). Each of the crayons believed in something and they decided to do something about it (and they did so in a very peaceful way). Love this underlying message and children can learn a lot from it!
Descriptions of illustrations:
The illustrations feature crayon colored drawing that ties directly in with what each of the crayon's letters are saying. The drawings definitely feel very cartoonish to me, which I thought enhanced the nature of the story. It really did go perfectly together with the letters on the left and the drawings that illustrated it on the right. Such illustrations can really draw a young reader in because it looks like something someone may draw on paper. Loved that aspect of connection and reality that was present with the illustrations. It gives children something to relate to.
Classroom Connections:
As I mentioning earlier this would be a good book to introduce the idea of sticking up for what you believe in, which is an important and basic human right. So I think that it is essential that we are teaching our students messages that this book promoted. Although this subject matter is complex and may be hard to understand for younger students I feel that this book introduces this in a very light-hearted manner. This book could be used to promote basic discussions on this topic and students can write their own letters about something they would like to change. Teachers can then facilitate a discussion about how students could perhaps change this issue. This may be a little advanced for younger grades so it can be modified if necessary. However I do feel it is important to introduce this aspect early as it is essential to living in a democratic society.
Last Stop on Market Street by Matt de la Peña
5.0
Annotated Bibliography Entry: Last Stop on Market Street b:y Matt de la Pena
Summary:
CJ is walking along with his grandmother and they are on their way to the soup kitchen where both CJ and his grandmother volunteer once a week. While walking CJ notices the various things that sets him a part from his friends. For example: his friends' parents have cars and can drive them places, while CJ and his grandmother do not have such luxuries and have to take the bus everywhere they go. While on the bus he encounters a diverse group of people and these people (and his grandmother) help him change his view of the world. CJ begins to realize the beauty all around him: his neighborhood, being able to hear live music (from the guy on the bus) and he begins to realize that maybe his life is not that bad after all. The bus lets them off on market street where CJ and his grandmother are excited to start volunteering at the soup kitchen and he is filled with joy when the familiar people smile at him in appreciation.
Personal Response:
Pretty powerful book with an important message. A message that is a must for people of all ages really. This book teaches kids to appreciate the beauty that is all around them in terms of where they live or even what they have in life. In regards to these messages I think it is important for children to learn that they do not need material items to be happy and that they can help make a difference in their community. Too often we measure are happiness in the items we have and we feel sorry for ourselves when we do not have all the material things we would like to have. We compare ourselves to our friends and feel deflated when they have more than us. This is habit that is not just common in children, it is common for all ages. The fact that this book was able to tackle such an issue is amazing and it is one of my favorite children's books for that reason.
Descriptions of illustrations:
The illustrations in this book are rather simplistic, there aren't a whole lot of details in terms of setting or even people. The characters in the story look like glorified stick figures almost, but I feel that it fits in with the story. I think the illustrations could be appealing for young children because it is relatable. The pictures look like something little kids would be able to draw. It is very simplistic and I could see children being able to almost duplicate them, which I think is great because children need something to relate to when they read a book.
Classroom Connections:
This book is a perfect read aloud book to get children thinking about a variety of important topics, such as helping out in their community, diversity, being thankful in what you have and seeing the beauty in the things around you. Teachers could easily use this book to fuel conversations about their own communities and the diversity they see all around them. Teachers could use this book for journal writing where students could write about their communities, their families and how they can help make change in their own neighborhoods. Teachers could also use this book to discuss ways that students could become agents of change in their own neighborhoods and the things they could do to make their communities a better place to live in. Students could also draw (or paint) the neighborhoods they live in and use adjectives to describe it. Students can then write about how they can make their neighborhoods better and the types of things they can do to help out the people that live in their communities. I think this book is a perfect way for students to see that they can make a difference in their communities and can easily appreciate the beauty that is all around them!
Summary:
CJ is walking along with his grandmother and they are on their way to the soup kitchen where both CJ and his grandmother volunteer once a week. While walking CJ notices the various things that sets him a part from his friends. For example: his friends' parents have cars and can drive them places, while CJ and his grandmother do not have such luxuries and have to take the bus everywhere they go. While on the bus he encounters a diverse group of people and these people (and his grandmother) help him change his view of the world. CJ begins to realize the beauty all around him: his neighborhood, being able to hear live music (from the guy on the bus) and he begins to realize that maybe his life is not that bad after all. The bus lets them off on market street where CJ and his grandmother are excited to start volunteering at the soup kitchen and he is filled with joy when the familiar people smile at him in appreciation.
Personal Response:
Pretty powerful book with an important message. A message that is a must for people of all ages really. This book teaches kids to appreciate the beauty that is all around them in terms of where they live or even what they have in life. In regards to these messages I think it is important for children to learn that they do not need material items to be happy and that they can help make a difference in their community. Too often we measure are happiness in the items we have and we feel sorry for ourselves when we do not have all the material things we would like to have. We compare ourselves to our friends and feel deflated when they have more than us. This is habit that is not just common in children, it is common for all ages. The fact that this book was able to tackle such an issue is amazing and it is one of my favorite children's books for that reason.
Descriptions of illustrations:
The illustrations in this book are rather simplistic, there aren't a whole lot of details in terms of setting or even people. The characters in the story look like glorified stick figures almost, but I feel that it fits in with the story. I think the illustrations could be appealing for young children because it is relatable. The pictures look like something little kids would be able to draw. It is very simplistic and I could see children being able to almost duplicate them, which I think is great because children need something to relate to when they read a book.
Classroom Connections:
This book is a perfect read aloud book to get children thinking about a variety of important topics, such as helping out in their community, diversity, being thankful in what you have and seeing the beauty in the things around you. Teachers could easily use this book to fuel conversations about their own communities and the diversity they see all around them. Teachers could use this book for journal writing where students could write about their communities, their families and how they can help make change in their own neighborhoods. Teachers could also use this book to discuss ways that students could become agents of change in their own neighborhoods and the things they could do to make their communities a better place to live in. Students could also draw (or paint) the neighborhoods they live in and use adjectives to describe it. Students can then write about how they can make their neighborhoods better and the types of things they can do to help out the people that live in their communities. I think this book is a perfect way for students to see that they can make a difference in their communities and can easily appreciate the beauty that is all around them!
Interrupting Chicken by David Ezra Stein
5.0
Annotated Bibliography Entry: Interrupting Chicken by David Ezra Stein
Summary:
It is Little Chicken's bedtime and Papa Chicken has a daunting task ahead of him: he has to try to get Little Chicken to sleep and Little Chicken has a habit of interrupting every story that papa reads. Papa tries reading her Hansel and Gretel, Little Read Riding Hood and Chicken Little and Little Chicken gets so involved with each story and interrupts all three. This frustrates Papa as he realizes that Little Chicken is wide awake and is not even tired. He then decides to lay and bed and have Little Chicken read him a story, which she does and eventually Papa and Little Chicken fall asleep together.
Personal Response:
Interrupting Chicken is a wonderful book and I feel like it is definitely an appealing book for children. I love the idea of the book more than anything, especially the concept of intertextuality with the multiple classic stories included. I also loved that when the chicken interrupted the story it almost seemed as if she was in the story herself. Even though she was not in the story itself, I loved how it felt like she was and really contributed to the intertextuality in the story. David Ezra Stein is also a nice guy and a great writer, it truly was lovely getting the opportunity to meet him.
Descriptions of Illustrations:
There is a sort of hidden complexity present in Stein's illustrations and I loved the little nuances that can be seen under closer examination. I personally love the perspective with the lines and the big book that is used to read to Little Chicken. It really gives it a genuine feel and I love that aspect. The drawings are cartoons, which I feel will interest children as well, although they may not be able to pick up on the little nuances present in his illustrations.
Classroom Connections:
There is a lot of ways teachers could incorporate this book into their lessons. In fact, I am incorporating this book into my practice lesson plan about key details. I thought this book would be useful to introduce them to key details in a text. I also thought it made for a good theme as well, which I decided to explore in my own lesson plan. Of course, another thing you could do with this story doing readers theater and assigning parts to students that they could read aloud and even act out. We, personally tried doing this in one of our classes and it worked out pretty well. I think readers theater is a fun way to boost literacy and kids seem to enjoy it. Kids could also make their own chicken puppets and use those puppets to act out the story. I have tried making chicken puppets and they are not very hard to make. I think children would have a fun time making them.
Summary:
It is Little Chicken's bedtime and Papa Chicken has a daunting task ahead of him: he has to try to get Little Chicken to sleep and Little Chicken has a habit of interrupting every story that papa reads. Papa tries reading her Hansel and Gretel, Little Read Riding Hood and Chicken Little and Little Chicken gets so involved with each story and interrupts all three. This frustrates Papa as he realizes that Little Chicken is wide awake and is not even tired. He then decides to lay and bed and have Little Chicken read him a story, which she does and eventually Papa and Little Chicken fall asleep together.
Personal Response:
Interrupting Chicken is a wonderful book and I feel like it is definitely an appealing book for children. I love the idea of the book more than anything, especially the concept of intertextuality with the multiple classic stories included. I also loved that when the chicken interrupted the story it almost seemed as if she was in the story herself. Even though she was not in the story itself, I loved how it felt like she was and really contributed to the intertextuality in the story. David Ezra Stein is also a nice guy and a great writer, it truly was lovely getting the opportunity to meet him.
Descriptions of Illustrations:
There is a sort of hidden complexity present in Stein's illustrations and I loved the little nuances that can be seen under closer examination. I personally love the perspective with the lines and the big book that is used to read to Little Chicken. It really gives it a genuine feel and I love that aspect. The drawings are cartoons, which I feel will interest children as well, although they may not be able to pick up on the little nuances present in his illustrations.
Classroom Connections:
There is a lot of ways teachers could incorporate this book into their lessons. In fact, I am incorporating this book into my practice lesson plan about key details. I thought this book would be useful to introduce them to key details in a text. I also thought it made for a good theme as well, which I decided to explore in my own lesson plan. Of course, another thing you could do with this story doing readers theater and assigning parts to students that they could read aloud and even act out. We, personally tried doing this in one of our classes and it worked out pretty well. I think readers theater is a fun way to boost literacy and kids seem to enjoy it. Kids could also make their own chicken puppets and use those puppets to act out the story. I have tried making chicken puppets and they are not very hard to make. I think children would have a fun time making them.