Books
& Booklists
Let's READ!
Check
out the 2008 Newbery and Caldecott award winners!
John
Newbery medal (link
to complete list)
by Laura Amy Schlitz
In “Good Masters! Sweet Ladies!
Voices from a Medieval Village,” thirteenth-century
England springs to life using 21 dramatic individual
narratives that introduce young inhabitants of
village and manor; from Hugo, the lord's nephew,
to Nelly, the sniggler. Schlitz's elegant monologues
and dialogues draw back the curtain on the period,
revealing character and relationships, hinting
at stories untold. Explanatory interludes add
information and round out this historical and
theatrical presentation.
“Schlitz adds a new dimension to books
for young readers - performance,” said Committee
Chair Nina Lindsay. “Varied poetic forms
and styles offer humor, pathos and true insight
into the human condition. Each entry is superb
in itself, and together the pieces create a pageant
that transports readers to a different time and
place.”
Newbery Honor Books
Elijah of Buxton by Christopher Paul Curtis
The Wednesday Wars by Gary D. Schmidt
Feathers by Jacqueline Woodson
Randolph
Caldecott medal by Brian Selznick
From an opening shot of the full moon setting
over an awakening Paris in 1931, this tale casts
a new light on the picture book form. Hugo is
a young orphan secretly living in the walls of
a train station where he labors to complete a
mysterious invention left by his father. In a
work of more than 500 pages, the suspenseful text
and wordless double-page spreads narrate the tale
in turns. Neither words nor pictures alone tell
this story, which is filled with cinematic intrigue.
Black & white pencil illustrations evoke the
flickering images of the silent films to which
the book pays homage.
Caldecott
Honor Books
Henry's Freedom Box: A True Story from
the Underground Railroad illustrated by Kadir
Nelson, written by Ellen Levine
First the Egg illlustrated and written by Laura
Vaccaro Seeger
The Wall: Growing Up Behind the Iron Curtain illustrated
and written by Peter Sis
Knuffle Bunny Too: A Case of Mistaken Identity
illustrated and written by Mo Willems
Coretta
Scott King Award
Honoring African American authors and illustrators
of outstanding books for children and young adults
Author award
November Blues by Sharon M. Draper
Twelve Rounds to Glory: The Story of Muhammad
Ali by Charles R. Smith
Illustrator
award
The Secret Olivia Told Me by N. Joy
Jazz on a Saturday Night by Leo and Diane Dillon
Coretta Scott
King/John Steptoe New Talent Author Award
is the Steptoe winner.
Sibert
Medal
In his deeply felt memoir set in mid-20th century
Prague, Sís contrasts the constrictive
walls of the communist state with his personal
quest for artistic freedom. Black & white
drawings accentuated with sharp punches of red
are brightened with splashes of color as hope
gradually takes hold. Sís takes us from
his childhood, when fear, suspicion and lies permeated
everyday life, to the “Prague Spring”
of 1968 and beyond, a time when “everything
seemed possible.”
“Sís combines the personal and the
political in a feat of visual and verbal storytelling,”
said Sibert Chair Caroline Parr. “Young
readers will learn about an extraordinary time
through the detailed, intricate art and the simple
but powerful text.”
Lightship written and illustrated by Brian Floca
Nic Bishop Spiders written and illustrated by
Nic Bishop
Take a look at the websites below.
Kid’s Place and the Spaghetti Book Club offer you the chance to
write a review online. Tell readers what you liked about your favorite
books. Be a critic - maybe you read something you didn’t like,
let everyone know what was bad or good about what you read.
Book Reviews by Kids for Kids.
http://www.spaghettibookclub.org/index.shtml
Book Reviews by selected young readers.
http://www.bravemonster.com/current_kidreview.htm
SurLaLune Fairy Tales features 47 annotated fairy
tales, including their histories, similar tales
across cultures, modern interpretations and over
1,500 illustrations.
http://www.surlalunefairytales.com/
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Springtime books for kids.
Skunk’s Spring
Surprise by Leslea Newman
 (PreK—K) Waking from her winter's sleep, ready for fun, Skunk eagerly
looks for her friends. She finally finds them
by the lake, waiting with a special treat--a talent
show, just for her. Turtle, in leaf skirt, dances;
Chipmunk juggles; Snake and Ladybug sing a song.
At the end of the show, Skunk contributes a surprise
of her own: an ode to spring and to her beloved
friends. With bouncy rhymes and a cheery animal
cast, this companion to Where Is Bear? (2004)
is sure to be a lively read-aloud. The colorful
watercolor-and-ink art has some clever details
(while Bear snoozes away underground, Skunk passes
overhead), and the bubbly prose incorporates occasional
witty references to skunk traits, though hibernation
isn't directly explained. Little ones will find
this merry animal celebration hard to resist.
(Review courtesy of Booklist)
Wake Up, It’s
Spring! By Lisa Campbell Ernst
 (PreK—K) A simple celebration of the coming of spring. The sun
warms the earth, the earth wakes the earthworm,
the earthworm sings to a seed, and so on, until
numerous creatures as well as the members of a
family and their pets are all dancing together
in the sunshine and rejoicing that winter has
ended. The appealing cartoon illustrations show
each of the characters reacting to the change
in the weather. Beautiful pastel shades infuse
the pages with the hues and happiness of springtime.
In a few words, the text perfectly conveys the
essence of the season.
(Review courtesy of School Library Journal)
Spring Things by Bob
Raczka
 (Pre-K—Grade 1) Enliven your theme lists for seasons, spring,
verbs, or just fun with this cheerful picture
book. Spring ends with "ing," and Raczka
takes children from winter's end to summer's beginning
with several befitting "ing" words.
From "Melting, dripping, cold's grip slipping"
to "buzzing, humming—summer's coming!"
readers will remember all of the things they love
to do when the weather changes. Using a spring
palette, Stead's paintings add an entertaining
element and useful clarification to the active
text. "Trees leaf-outing" and "lemonading"
provide humor and fit the rhyme pattern but might
hamper the book's value as a verb-teaching tool.
The book includes a four-question rhyming quiz
that has the same uplifting spirit as the book.
(Review courtesy of School Library Journal)
Books
about moms for young people
Your Kind of Mommy
by Marjorie Blain Parker
 (Pre-K—K) In comparing a human mother and child to their animal
counterparts, this book finds a way to be original
and sweet without being sappy. A repetitive pattern
in the text is given dynamic form through the
drama of the turning of the page. Throughout the
book, the first of two spreads presents an animal
in its natural setting, in one case a stream in
the jungle: "If I could be an elephant, /
my trunk would sprinkle you…." The
following pages then show the mother and child
together, "But I'm not THAT kind of mommy,
/ and I know my baths will do." The illustrator
makes connections between the two spreads so that,
in this example, a toy elephant sits on the edge
of the bathtub. In another pairing, timber wolves
are depicted howling at the moon on a starlit
night. On the next page, the mother sings lullabies
to her child, the same sky behind them, as they
snuggle on a porch swing. The art is vibrant and
expressive, with the mother and child making a
friendly and secure duo. The text is printed in
a curve, adding to the fluidity of the page; it
encapsulates the book's theme with a final statement,
"No—I am not an octopus, / I'm not
a wallaby / but I am YOUR kind of mommy, / And
that's the best thing I could be!" This celebration
of mothers will get young listeners thinking about
some of the basic connections among all creatures.
(Review courtesy of School Library Journal)
My Mommy is Magic by
Carl Norac
 (Pre-K—K) In this companion title to My Daddy Is a Giant (2005),
a little girl praises her mom's seemingly supernatural
greatness. On each double-page spread, the girl
lists a new way that her mother is amazing: Mommy
can chase monsters from the closet, guess secrets
before they are told, swim faster than a dolphin,
and make hurts disappear. The brief, simple words
pair nicely with uncluttered, bold-lined illustrations
that amplify the tenderness between the child
and her mother, who is portrayed as a large, strong,
capable, and loving presence. Best of all is the
girl's realization that she has talents of her
own: "When I sing and dance, I always make
my mommy laugh." As in the team's previous
title, this warm picture book encourages kids
to notice and feel the small family moments which
add up to love.
(Review courtesy of Booklist)
Pirate Mom by Deborah
Underwood
 (Pre-K—Grade
2) From the Step into Reading series comes this
amusing take on the ever-popular pirate theme.
When Pete and his mother attend a magic show,
the Amazing Marco hypnotizes Mom and convinces
her that she is a pirate. Before bringing her
back to normal, the magician is called away by
an emergency. Meanwhile, Pete has his hands full
with Mom, who calls an inoffensive neighbor a
"bilge rat," attacks the mailman with
her wooden spoon, and conducts a bizarre PTA meeting.
Children will relish the role switch as Mom shows
her dark side and Pete makes desperate attempts
at damage control. With clean lines, muted colors,
and comic-style exaggeration of the characters'
features, Gilpin's illustrations make the most
of the humorous situations in the simply written
text. Fun for independent readers and for reading
aloud to younger children.
(Review courtesy of Booklist)
Love, Lizzie: Letters
to a Military Mom by Lisa Tucker McElroy
 (Grades 1-3) Lizzie's mom is a soldier with an overseas posting. The
location is not mentioned, but the woman is shown
in combat uniform, wearing a helmet and goggles
and holding binoculars. The story is told as a
series of letters from Lizzie to her mom, from
the time she leaves until she returns home. Childlike
crayon, marker, and watercolor illustrations and
what looks like hand-written print make Lizzie's
letters appear as though a child really did write
them. The illustrations depict the youngster's
activities and often include a map she has drawn.
Written especially for military families, the
book includes an introduction by U.S. Senator
Dianne Feinstein thanking military families for
their sacrifices and a page of suggestions for
adults such as taking advantage of the programs
that the military offers, keeping one's routine
as regular as possible, and connecting with other
military families. Most readers will appreciate
the authentic feel of Lizzie's letters as she
asks all those inevitable whys about Mom's separation
from the family. A worthy addition on a topic
about which little has been written.
(Review courtesy of School Library Journal)
Mom for Mayor by Nancy
Edwards
 (Grades 3-5) Imaginative fifth-grader Eric is running through a slushy
Michigan park, trying to escape aliens. He rejoins
the real world when he meets brainy Jon, his best
friend. When they spot the for sale signs for
Lenox Field, Eric decides that he must save the
park and decides that the best way to do so is
to get his mother elected to city council. With
Jonathans help, he gets the necessary petitions
and organizes the campaign, all while keeping
his plan a secret from his mom. When his parents
finally figure out what is going on, they decide
that shell go ahead and run for office. Readers
will identify with Erics good intentions, his
frustrations, and his rivalry with know-it-all
Caitlin, the mayors niece. The characters are
well drawn, and the inherent civics lesson demonstrates
democracy in action. Full-page, humorous drawings
appear throughout.
(Review courtesy of School Library Journal)
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ones! 
Good
Masters! Sweet Ladies!: Voices from a Medieval
Village
The
Wall: Growing Up Behind the Iron Curtain,” written
and illustrated by Peter Sís