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8th out of 76 books
—
91 voters
That Book Woman
Cal is not the readin' type. Living way high up in the Appalachian Mountains, he'd rather help Pap plow or go out after wandering sheep than try some book learning. Nope. Cal does not want to sit stoney-still reading some chicken scratch. But that Book Woman keeps coming just the same. She comes in the rain. She comes in the snow. She comes right up the side of the mountai...more
Hardcover, 40 pages
Published
October 7th 2008
by Atheneum Books for Young Readers
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May 20, 2012
Gundula
rated it
5 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
children who like to read about books and libraries, children who like history
Cal, who lives with his family on a remote farm in the Appalachian Mountains, has scant interest in books and reading (and considers his little sister Lark's voracious reading appetite a rather negative trait). But when Cal realises that the "Book Woman" who dispatches library books to his family's remote home (on horseback) will deliver her books even in the dead of winter, he yearns to know what makes "that Book Woman risk catching cold, or worse."
That Book Woman is an absolute delight, touchi...more
That Book Woman is an absolute delight, touchi...more
An understated but beautiful book about discovering the extraordinary value of reading, thanks to the dedication of "that book woman" who brings books to people rain, hail or shine. When she arrives with books in the middle of a snow storm, one young boy wonders what could possibly be so special about books that this woman will brave any weather to bring them. So he asks his sister to read to him... and then he reads for himself... and then he's hooked.
I think my life-long aspiration is to be "...more
I picked up That Book Woman, by Heather Henson, illustrated by David Small, reluctantly, thinking that it was undoubtedly a useful book for the beginning of the school year, when we librarians always choose books about books, but I was not expecting a Caldecott-quality picture book.
I decided to look at the book in the way that Kay Vandergrift suggested in her article on Picture Book Analysis, that is, to ‘read’ the pictures first without the text and then go back and see how well the illustrat...more
I decided to look at the book in the way that Kay Vandergrift suggested in her article on Picture Book Analysis, that is, to ‘read’ the pictures first without the text and then go back and see how well the illustrat...more
This is a soft, gentle story about a boy who doesn't understand his sister's love of reading until the "book woman" start delivering books every 2 weeks. After watching her go out in horrible weather and risking life to deliver the books he starts to realize that there must be something pretty amazing in books to make someone do what the book woman does. He asks his sister to teach him to read and offers the book woman the ultimate gift - he reads aloud to her. With historical notes in the back.
This is a wonderful tale, told in a southern dialect, of a young boy who learns to love reading due to the efforts of his sister and one of the "book women," who were librarians who traveled to remote locations bringing books to the masses. The story begs to be read aloud with an accent and the narrative is pure poetry. The story is engaging and I recommend it for young elementary school children, followed by a discussion of what life was like in rural Kentucky in the 1930s. The illustrations ar...more
This is a beautiful children's book about learning to love books. It highlights those who sacrificed to make them available (pack-horse librarians)--and reminded me of the bookmobile that would park at the end of my street every few weeks when I was a kid. It's written like a poem and I had to stop and explain a few words/phrases to my 5-year old, but we both enjoyed it.
After reading "The Friendship Doll," which mentioned the Pack Horse Librarians--who went out on horses in good and bad weather to deliver books to communites who didn't have access to libraries--I wanted to read more about these amazing Librarians. This book is one of the few listed about the Pack Horse Librarians and it's such a great picture book! The illustrations are simple yet show a range of emotions that all the characters go through. And I loved the ending...
Cal is not a reader. He would...more
Cal is not a reader. He would...more
Audience: This book is perfect for both boys and girls that may be reluctant to read. It helps open their eyes to the power of reading and the lengths people will go to spread the joy.
Appeal: This book has great illustration and is not written like other children books. It is written from the Cal’s perspective so his English is not always perfect which makes it all the more personable. The pictures are appealing and go along with the story well. Seeing the young boy as the speaker would be more...more
Appeal: This book has great illustration and is not written like other children books. It is written from the Cal’s perspective so his English is not always perfect which makes it all the more personable. The pictures are appealing and go along with the story well. Seeing the young boy as the speaker would be more...more
Reading That Book Woman, by Heather Henson I felt as I could relate to each character in a way through different stages of my life. I think this book would be perfect for kids in elementary school because smaller kids like to read however sometimes they would rather play with their friends than read a book. The illustrations in this book are similar the emotions the characters. For example Cals thoughts on reading were that he didn’t like it and it was boring to him and he had other things more...more
During the first few pages of Heather Henson's, That Book Woman, I thought this story would be useless in the classroom. At first. the little boy, Cal, explains how he helps "Pap" with the work outside such as plowing, fetching the sheep, and bringing the cows home. Then, Cal introduces his book worm of a sister Lark. Cal describes his sister as a bookworm who would read from dawn until dusk if his mother would allow it. One day when little Cal is helping his Pap outside, he spots an interestin...more
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it,
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it,
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That Book Woman is a novel based on a true story of “traveling” librarians in the Appalachian mountains of Kentucky. This story was in short motivational and I would definitely recommend sharing it with all students; especially students who may not necessarily like reading.
The main character Cal was “not born to sit so stoney-still” like his sister Lark, “the readeness child you ever did see”. This all changes during the harshest winter; on a fierce winter night the book woman comes to Cal’s fa...more
The main character Cal was “not born to sit so stoney-still” like his sister Lark, “the readeness child you ever did see”. This all changes during the harshest winter; on a fierce winter night the book woman comes to Cal’s fa...more
I picked this book up in the Kentucky Author's section at Joseph Beth. The vibrant water-color paintings and smooth cover grabbed my attention. The story was inspired by real life events that took place in Appalachia Kentucky. "Book Women" would go around on horses despite the weather and give books to the people of Appalachia in hopes of inspiring them to learn to read.
"That Book Woman" is a book about a hard-working boy named Cal who has no interest in books or reading, but would rather be pl...more
"That Book Woman" is a book about a hard-working boy named Cal who has no interest in books or reading, but would rather be pl...more
Let's give honor to all the librarians horse back riders. It is a beautiful book about discovering the extraordinary value of reading, thanks to the dedication of "That Book Woman" who brings books to people rain, hail or shine. When she arrives with books in the middle of a cold snowy storm while the whole family is sitting in front of the fireplace keeping warm. To take that risk in life to deliver the books he starts to realize that there must be something pretty amazing in books. He asked hi...more
That Book Woman gives the reader a glimpse of what life is like beyond city limits in Appalachia through the eyes of a young boy named Cal. The mood is set with painted illustrations set with a sepia and cool background. These backgrounds tell the reading there is a lot of open nature and that Cal and his family live in a very small house. The author, Heather Henson, does an exceptional job at giving hints to the reader that Cal is illiterate even before it is revealed in the story. What I found...more
Readers of all ages can relate to Cal, a young boy growing up in the mountains of Kentucky during a time when reading and school where not a priority. Instead, Cal is learning how to take care of the land like his father. Cal is bewildered by his sister's love of books and rejects her attempts to teach him to read. As the seasons change, Cal begins to take notice of the Book Woman, who rides a horse from miles away through rain, cold, and snow to bring his sister books. Suddenly books seem more
...more
Cal is a young Kentucky boy growing up in the Appalachian hills with his family. Unlike his sister Lark, Cal places little value in literacy and would much rather be out in the fields helping his Pap than reading the 'chicken scratch' in books. When a book woman rides in on her horse with a sack of books, she explains to the family that she will be returning every two weeks to exchange the books out for new ones. Cal does not understand the joy that this news brings to Lark, and is skeptical of...more
The book is about a young boy from the countryside (Cal) that hates that his sister (Lark) loves to read! Cal wants nothing to do with reading and learning and just doesn't understand why his sister loves it so much. He just doesn't understand how a this brave older woman comes to give his sister books every two weeks. This woman would go through awful weather just to give Lark the books. But one day, Cal wanted to see why his sister was in love with reading, so he started to read her book. Then...more
The book, That Book Woman by Heather Henson, is about a rural family who does not live near the school and is not very well educated. This is illustrated through incorrect grammar and slang words. For example, "So we sit tucked 'round the fire, no thought to howdy-do's this day." The oldest boy, Cal is focused more with helping his father around the farm than reading. "I was not born to sit stony-still a-staring at some chicken scratch." A woman on horseback delivers books to their family every...more
"That Book Woman" by Heather Henson takes place in the Appalachian Mountains where a young boy named Cal would rather help his father out in the yard with plowing or bringing in the sheep than to learn how to read. The Book Woman continues to make trips to Cal's house bringing books for his younger sister, Lark, no matter the weather. As the story progresses, Cal begins to realize that it must be difficult for the Book Woman to travel up and down the mountain just to lend Lark some books. The bo...more
This book is a beautiful story that tells of a young, poor, southern, country boy (Cal) that despise his sister's (Lark) love for reading, he refuses to learn nor does he understand why his sister wants to learn. He just can't fathom the idea of a brave woman coming every two weeks to deliver books to his sister, even in the rain and snow, just so Lark can read them. Eventually Cal is curious about what is inside these so-called "books" and asks his sister to teach him how to read and he comes t...more
That Book Woman, by Heather Henson, was a book that I enjoyed more the second time I read it. The language seems as if it would be challenging for a young reader to comprehend. But it is fun to apply the kind of voice you believe the little boy has while reading. The southern vocab. was fun to read, but could cause some struggle for some younger readers. The pictures in my opinion were not the best. I felt as if they should be more children friendly. More cartoon than realistic. The flow of the...more
“Not me. I was not born to sit so stoney-still a-staring at some chicken scratch.”
This is a quote from the historical-fiction book I read titled, “That Book Woman.” It is a tale that is inspired by true events and told from the perspective of a young man named Cal—southern accent included. Cal lives way up high in the Kentucky Appalachian Mountains with his family, in a rural area, where the majority of people live in poverty. He is hard-working, and always ready to help his father with chores t...more
This is a quote from the historical-fiction book I read titled, “That Book Woman.” It is a tale that is inspired by true events and told from the perspective of a young man named Cal—southern accent included. Cal lives way up high in the Kentucky Appalachian Mountains with his family, in a rural area, where the majority of people live in poverty. He is hard-working, and always ready to help his father with chores t...more
I absolutely love a story written in verse, but a story about the dedication and bravery of a “book woman” written in verse is even better :-).
Cal and his family live way up in the mountains, isolated from others, schools, and books. A “book woman” comes on horseback in all sorts of weather to exchange books with Cal’s family. At first Cal is resistant to the books and only sees the strength of the horse that travels through the rough mountains and cold winter…eventually he sees that the rider...more
Cal and his family live way up in the mountains, isolated from others, schools, and books. A “book woman” comes on horseback in all sorts of weather to exchange books with Cal’s family. At first Cal is resistant to the books and only sees the strength of the horse that travels through the rough mountains and cold winter…eventually he sees that the rider...more
My boyfriend, Ian, often asks me why I want to be a librarian, especially sense it will mean leaving work to go back to school in the nearish future. Stories like this are the reason why.
This is the story based on the Pack Horse Librarians, a project founded in the 1930s with a mission of bringing books to areas where schools and libraries were rare or didn't exist at all. I had never heard of this particular organization before and will absolutely be tracking down some of the books listed in t...more
This is the story based on the Pack Horse Librarians, a project founded in the 1930s with a mission of bringing books to areas where schools and libraries were rare or didn't exist at all. I had never heard of this particular organization before and will absolutely be tracking down some of the books listed in t...more
Great book. At first, Cal can't understand why his sister Lark is such a bookworm. He thinks writing looks like chicken scratch and he can't understand why the woman comes on her horse and leaves a book for them... without making them pay. But he is even more surprised when she returns. The illustrations show her coming in all kinds of weather, throughout each of the seasons. Slowly, Cal learns to love reading and to admire this brave Book Woman who climbs the Appalachian Mountains through snow...more
That Book Woman is based on a true story. The narrator is a young boy, Cal, that lives in the Applachian mountains of Kentucky. His family and he live high on a mountain where there is no school close by. His sister, Lark, loves to read. Cal does not understand the point of reading when he can work. He is a hardworker and enjoys chores. A woman riding horse back comes up the mountain. His family is intrigued to see what she is selling. Cal is disappointed to find out it is books. Lark lights up...more
Heather Henson's "That Book Woman" is an very heartfelt and interesting tale about a boy named Cal who lives in the mountains of Appalachia. The story goes on about a woman on horseback who visits Cal and the rest of his family and how she delivers books to them weekly. As the story begins, Cal does not care for reading and sees books as nothing more than a nuisance, but when Cal sees when the woman on horseback delivers to them in harsh winter conditions, he realizes that her job is very import...more
In Heather Henson’s "That Book Woman," Henson tells the story of a young boy, Cal, growing up in the Appalachian Mountains. Cal detests reading and refers to books as nothing more than “chicken scratch.” However, his sister, Lark, loves reading and is delighted when a woman who travels the mountains brings books to their doorstep one day. “That Book Woman,” as she comes to be known, braves all types of weather conditions to exchange the books Lark has already read for new books. The woman’s ded...more
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“Come here, Cal," she says real gentle, and I come close.
Read me something."
I open up the book I'm holding, a new one brought this very day. Just chicken scratch, I used to figure, but now I see what's truly there, and I read a little out.
That's gift enough," she says, and smiles so big, it makes me smile right back.”
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3 people liked it
More quotes…
Read me something."
I open up the book I'm holding, a new one brought this very day. Just chicken scratch, I used to figure, but now I see what's truly there, and I read a little out.
That's gift enough," she says, and smiles so big, it makes me smile right back.”
Dec 30, 2008 05:13am