Amber’s Comments (group member since Oct 27, 2011)

Amber’s comments from the http://www.EDUG573Fall2011 group.

Poetry For Young People: Carl Sandburg Edited By: Frances Schoonmaker Bolin
This book is of poetry by Carl Sandburg. There is a variety of poems in this book that would appeal to a variety of readers. There is one about how to be polite when meeting a gorilla or if an elephant shows up at your door. However, there is also a longer poem about skyscrapers. It shares how they are built and how people interact with coworkers inside them each day. The poem I liked the most was called Arithmetic. It reminded me of the difficulties math can give students. It also talked about the things we must try to always remember when doing math like our multiplication tables.
This book is recommended for older students. Most poems would need to be discussed with other students or a teacher to determine what Sandburg is trying to say with the words in the poems. Each one may have different meanings to different readers. I would not use this book in my fourth grade classroom, because the vocabulary and symbolism of each poem would be difficult for most of my class. Perhaps sixth grade students on up could work together with the help of their teacher to interpret these poems. It was a good read, but was defiantly not for young readers like the title suggested.

No More Homework! No More Tests! Kids Favorite Funny School Poems Selected By: Bruce Lansky
This book is a collection of fifty funny poem selected by children around the country. There were many poems written by Bruce Lansky, the author of this book. I notice that there are many poems written about reasons for not doing homework, students not coming to school, test-taking, and the school cafeteria. One of my favorite poems that made it into this book was by Shel Silverstein called sick. It is about a young girl telling all of the reasons she cannot come to school that day. At the end of the poem, she is interrupted and realizes that it is actually Saturday. She then decides to go out and play.
This book is highly recommended for students in third through sixth grade. I think students will laugh at the different poems about school and realize that they may have had some of these thoughts about school too. I know that when I read them, I remember having heard some of the excuses for homework not being done in my own classroom. This is a wonderful book of poetry that all students can relate to.

Fables By: Arnold Lobel
This book is full of short fables. They each have talking animals that get into some sort of predicament. Each story ends with a moral or lesson that share with the reader what they should learn by reading it. For example, one story is about a set of ducks who are discussing taking a different route to the pond. One of them does not want to take a new route. However, there is a fox who sits along the path they usually take and one day he tries to grab them. The ducks both escape and fly home. The moral of the story is: “At times, a change of routine can be most helpful.”
Another story was about a bear who dresses up in what he thought was the latest style and is getting ready to head into to town. Along the way, he meets a crow who tells him he is dressing all wrong. He tells him that instead of a hat, people are wearing pans on their head. Also, they are wearing bed sheets instead of vests and paper bags on their feet instead of shoes. The bear goes home and change and then heads into town. Everyone laughs at him and he hurries home. On the way, he sees the crow again and is upset that he did not tell him the truth. The crow admits that he told him many things but he never once did he say he was telling the truth. The moral of this story is: “When the need is strong, there are those who will believe anything.”
I would use this book in my classroom to talk about the fable genre. I think that the stories are easy to understand and read. However, the morals may need discussed with the class even at the fourth grade level. I think children would enjoy reading about the funny situations these characters get themselves into. This story can be read by third through fifth grade students. However, they will be able to read the moral, but may need to discuss them with the teacher or classmates to make sure they understand what they mean. Overall, this is definitely a book I can start using in my classroom.

Nail Soup Retold By: Harve Zemach
This folktale is about a man who has been traveling and is looking for a place to stay for the night. He runs into an old women and he tries to convince her let him stay with her. She eventually gives in and says he can sleep on the floor, but not to expect much since she does not have much herself. However, once the man got to her house, he saw that she was not as poor as she pretended to be. When he asked for something to eat, she said she had not eaten herself all day and could not feed him. He told her that he had learned while traveling that he could make nail soup. She reluctantly gave him a pot and wanted to watch him try. As he stirred the water and the nail, he began to make excuses about why the soup may not be as good as it had been other times he had made it. He then asked for different foods to improve its taste. Each time he asked he would say, “But we’ll have to do without it, and not think twice about it.” The woman didn’t want the soup to be bad and gave him the ingredients he asked for each time not realizing that the man was actually using her ingredients to make a good soup. After the soup was done, they ate, danced, and actually didn’t mind the man’s company. The woman even let him sleep in her bed while she slept on the floor. The women realized that since she now knew how to make soup with a nail she could always live in comfort.
This was a story that had a lesson to be learned from it. The man realized she was being stingy and wanted to teach her a lesson to show her that she really had everything she needed and did not have to pretend to have nothing. Everything was right there in her house, and she even could share it with others. I would share this story with my class when talking about the folktale genre and discuss the characteristics of this kind of literature. I also think that if the book had an updated cover and illustrations, it would appeal more to children. I recommend this story for second through fourth grade students.

Click Clack Moo: Cows That Type By: Doreen Cronin
This story is about a group of cows that have acquired a typewriter. They are making demands to Farmer Brown, who takes care of them. They refuse to give him milk until they get electric blankets. The next day, the chickens demand electric blankets and will not give eggs until they get them. Farmer Brown was really angry and typed a letter of his own and said he would not give them electric blankets. The duck was the neutral party and delivered the letter to the cows. All night, the cows talked about the farmer’s letter and decided to write him a letter back. They said they would give up the typewriter and send it over with the duck if they all got electric blankets. Farmer Brown decided this was a good idea and gave them all electric blankets. However, the story ends with the ducks typing a letter to Farmer Brown requesting a diving board for their pond.
This book would be a great read aloud to discuss the fantasy genre. One of the teachers I work with suggested I use it within our writer’s workshop to teach things like sound effects and repeated words. I could definitely see my class using this author’s craft in their writing. I can see students in grades 1-3 reading this book for enjoyment. Also, teachers from any grade level could use it as mentor texts during reading and writing blocks.

Jackie Robinson: Strong Inside and Out Edited by: Time for Kids
This book is about the life of Jackie Robinson. The book begins by discussing Robinson’s childhood and about how African Americans were treated differently as he grew up. He did not have as many rights due to his skin color. He played sports in college and did very well playing football, but he quit the sport when he realized that no professional teams would let an African Americans play. He eventually became a soldier and fought in World War II. After several years with the military, Jackie joined a Negro League baseball team in Kansas City. Soon, a man named Rickey Branch who was from the Brooklyn Dodger’s team recruited Jackie to play for the Montreal Royals, the Dodgers “farm” training team. He believed that Jackie could tolerate any criticism or hatred he would receive from fans or other baseball players. Rickey wanted Jackie to prove he could handle it, and he could then be moved to a National League team, the Dodgers. While he played, Jackie had to deal with other players refusing to play, not being allowed to stay in the same hotel as the rest of his team, and being purposely hit with the ball while at bat. Jackie overcame all of this and eventually began to be respected for his actions on and off the field. Jackie played baseball for 10 years and opened the door for many other African Americans to play baseball.
This is a great book to use in the classroom. Not only can you discuss the obstacles Jackie overcame in his life, but you can also talk about Civil Rights and the segregation there was during this period in history. There many themes of literatures that can be applied to this book and used with students. This is a great biography with easy to read information. Time for Kids created this book and included real pictures and timelines that help students understand what they are reading. I would recommend this book for third grade students on up due to some difficult vocabulary it does have in it. It would also be great to use with students in a small reading group.

Rose Blanche By: Roberto Innocenti
This book is about a young girl named Rose Blanche and her view of the Nazis during the time of the Holocaust. She watches men who are soldiers traveling through her town in tanks and wonders why they are there. Rose also sees a boy escape out of a truck but is soon caught by a man at gunpoint who puts him back in the truck. She follows the truck out of town and sees many children behind barbed wire (at a concentration camp). The children all say they are hungry. Rose begins to bring food from her house and visits the camp every day to feed them. Then one morning people were fleeing town and soldiers were going too. Many of the soldiers were hurt. Rose went into the forest again that day to visit the camp. When she got there, she sees it is empty and the camp is destroyed. Soldiers were moving among the trees and the enemy was all around her. There was a shot. Rose Blanche never returned to her home after that day in the woods. On that day, new soldiers came into town who spoke a different language.
This book could be read and used by teachers to discuss the Holocaust, World War II, and the Nazi government. There is not a lot of information given about the specifics of this historical time period. Research could be done to better understand the events that occurred during the book. This story would promote a lot of discussion with students despite the fact that it is a picture book. There are even historical elements that can be explored by looking at the pictures. This book is definitely recommended for older students who can deal with the difficulties that were experienced by people during this period of history.

The Lemonade War By: Jacqueline Davies
This book is about a boy named Evan and his sister named Jessie. They are close in age and really have always gotten along at home. However, Jessie finds out that she gets to skip a grade in school and that she will be in Evan’s class. Evan is very upset by this news and thinks that by having Jessie in his class that it will prove to his classmates how dumb he is and how smart she is.
During the story, Evan shows how upset he is with his sisters by not letting her hang out with him as he makes a lemonade stand. (This is a summer task they normally would do together.) To prove she does not need him either Jessie also makes a lemonade stand. After realizing this, Evan makes a bet with Jessie. Whoever makes $100 quicker wins and the loser has to give the winner their earnings. Jessie takes the bet. Over the next few days, they both try many different methods to sell as much lemonade as they can. They both go crazy thinking that the other might win and start to play dirty to make sure they are the winner. In the end, Evan and Jessie both lose/spend most of their money and they decide to call off the bet. It is then that Evan realizes that having Jessie in his class won’t be that bad after all.
I shared this book with my students as a book trailer and many of them said this was a great story that they had already read. I definitely wanted to check it out for myself. It has a problem in it that students may be able to identify with. They may not have had a sibling skip a grade, but they may have found themselves competing against a friend or family member because they thought they were not as good as them. The lessons learned by both of the characters would provide a great discussion amongst classmates. This book would be a good read aloud but also could be talked about in a literature discussion group. I recommend this book for students in grades fourth through sixth.

Deep, Dark, and Dangerous By: Mary Downing Hahn
This book is about a young girl named Ali who finds a picture of her mother and aunt as children that has someone ripped out of it. Ali questions her mother who instantly has a headache and does not want to talk about it. Ali is still questions herself about this mysterious picture and even considers asking her aunt who missing from it. She does not have to wait long to ask though. Her aunt Dulcie invites her to the cabin by the lake where the picture was taken. She wants Ali to take care of her daughter Emma while she paints. Reluctantly, Ali’s mom agrees to let her go. While Ali is there, she and Emma meet a girl names Sissy. This girl is a bad influence on Emma and is always talking about a girl named Teresa who died in the lake near their cabin. Eventually Sissy tells Ali and Emma that their mothers were the people responsible for Teresa’s death. She drowned as a child and their mothers were with her and never told anyone. After talking to her aunt and her mom, they admit they were there, but it was an accident. The try to make it right by telling the police and they do find Teresa’s bones in the lake. It is then that Ali and Emma learn that Sissy and Teresa were the same person, and she can now be at peace since her body was properly buried.
This is a good book for students who enjoy a good ghost story. It does not have all of blood and gore that some scary stories have, but there is a good story line that keeps you turning pages. I could not put this book down and read it a day and a half. I kept reading to find out who Sissy “the ghost” really was. This would be a great read aloud that would keep students interested. I would recommend it for fourth grade students on up.

Mystery of the Haunted Playhouse By: Laura E. Williams
This book is about two children named Jen and Zeke who are living with their Aunt Bea in Mystic, Maine. They are both trying to be a part of the revival of a play called Werewolf in the Woods that will be presented at one of the old playhouses in their town. This is the same play that years before made one of Mystic’s local legends, Alania Shine, a famous star. However, Alania Shine disappeared while on a boat years ago and her body was never found. Many think she still haunts the playhouse. It is also revealed to us at the beginning of the story that the owners of the playhouse are not thrilled about opening this play again, but no one can figure out why.
Meanwhile, Jen and Zeke both become involved with the play and while practicing for opening night, dangerous things keep happening and props turn up missing. One night, Jen went back in to get something she forgot and hears eerie noise like moaning coming from inside the playhouse. Jen and Zeke come back a few nights later to investigate and realize the moaning is singing and they even see a woman on stage that looks a lot like their Aunt Bea. They make it their goal to investigate the supposed haunted playhouse and find out what really happened to Alania Shine. Reporters also want to get to the bottom of the supposed ghost at the playhouse and one even claims that Alania Shine is alive and well and living in their town. On opening night, a reporter announces that Jen and Zeke’s Aunt Bea is really Alania Shine. The whole town is shocked, but Aunt Bea proves she is really not Alania. After this announcement, Aunt Bea, Jen, Zeke, and the playhouse owners meet backstage. Jen and Zeke reveal that through their detective work, they found out one of the playhouse owner’s Alice, is really Alania Shine. She admits that they are right and tells them she did not want to be famous and faked her death years ago. Alania and her husband were responsible for the dangerous things happening at the playhouse and the singing they heard was her. Jen and Zeke swear to keep her identity a secret.
This story would be a great read aloud in all classrooms. Every chapters ends with suspense that makes you want read on to the next chapter to figure out what happens next. This would be a great story to discuss the plot and characters of mysteries. I know that even I thought that Alania Shine was Aunt Bea until I got to the very end of the story. It constantly kept me guessing at the outcome of the story. I would recommend students in second through sixth grade read this book. It is quite simple to read, but the plot makes you want to keep going until the very end.

14 Cows For America By: Carmen Agra Deedy
The story begins with a man named Kimeli returning to his village in Kenya after being gone for a long time. He has been in the United States learning to become a doctor. His tribe (the Maasai) is full of peaceful nomadic herders where their cows represent life. They ask him if he has brought back any stories to share with them. He remembers what happened on September 11th and retells the story to his people. They felt terrible for all of the suffering people went through and decided they want to do what they could to help. The tribe contacted the United States Embassy in Nairobi who sent a diplomat to speak with them. A ceremony was held when the diplomat arrived and they presented him with 14 cows for America. Since the cow represents life, this is what this tribe gave to the United State to show their support.
This is a wonderful story that has a great theme and proves that no matter who you are, comfort can be provided for those that are in need. This is a true story that I know I had never heard during the time after September 11th. It showed me that even though the tragedy happened in the United States, other countries empathized with us and provided support in the best ways they knew how. This book is recommended for students in third through sixth grade. It displays a powerful message as students they remember September 11th.

43 Old Cemetery Road: Dying to Meet You By: Kate Klise
This story is about an old man named Ignatius B. Grumply (I.B. Grumply) who moves into a house on 43 Old Cemetary Road for the summer. He is a struggling author and moves here in order to write the next book in the Ghost Tamer series he has been writing. However, his publisher, Paige Turner, has been waiting for this book for a long time and his lawyer, E. Gadds, has been covering for him so he does not get into any more trouble with her. After moving into this house, Ignatius learns that a boy, Seymour, and his cat already lives here with his friend (a ghost) Olive C. Spence. Olive used to live in this house and was an author herself. She died never having had a book published. She now haunts this house which is now owned by paranormal experts, Les and Diane Hope (Seymour’s parents). They left Seymour here since he claimed he saw Olive the ghost, and since she never showed herself them, they thought he was making it up. They had written in the housing contract that the next person who rented the house would be the one to take care of Seymour.
Ignatius at first is upset that Seymour lives there and “makes noise” when he is trying to write. Seymour tries to tell Ignatius that it is a ghost, but Ignatius does not believe in them. However, over time, he soon learns that Olive is the one making the noises and she begins talking to him. She tells him she understands his troubled past, and they become friends. She agrees to write his book with him. After many bumps along the way, the book is finally completed, and the money earned is put towards buying the house for Olive, Ignatius, and Seymour.
This is a wonderful book that could be used for a read aloud. I chose to read this book, because it is one of the Bluestem book nominees for 2012. I looked in the book and saw that the entire thing is written as letters from character to character. The humorous names of the characters also intrigued me. I could see this book being a real hit with the class as they listen to the communication between the grumpy Ignatius, Seymour, and Olive the ghost. There is a second book in the series that I will be ordering next. This book is recommended for third through sixth grade students. It is written in the form of letters and appears easy. However, there are several difficult words in it that even I was curious about and had to look up.

Amulet Book One: The Stonekeeper By: Kazu Kibuishi
This book is about girl named Emily and her brother Navin who have had their father pass away recently. Their mother can’t afford their current home and decides to move them all to a new home that used to belong to her grandfather who used to make puzzle/machines. While exploring one of the rooms in the house, Emily and Navin discover an interesting necklace. Emily decides to wear it despite Navin’s warnings that they should tell their mother what they found. That night, the necklace woke Emily up to tell her that her family is in danger. All of a sudden, they all wake up to a strange noise in the basement. When their mother goes to explore, a creature captures her and takes her through a strange door. When Emily and Navin realize that their mother is gone, they go in after her.
Once in the door, they are taken into a peculiar world with creatures and animals that talk. It is here where they end up meeting their great grandfather who tells Emily that the amulet necklace was give to her to inherit its powers. There are other evil creatures who want the amulet and it is her job to protect it. Emily and Navin embark on a journey to battle the creatures that took their mother and she uses the amulet along to way to help them. In the end, they get their mother back, but she had been poisoned. The book ends with Emily and Navin leaving on a search for an antidote to cure their mother.
This book was recommended to me after we read Stitches in class. I had never read a children’s graphic novel before this one, and I really enjoyed it. The pictures say enough that the authors did not have to use words in each one. I kept turning pages and couldn’t wait to see what happened next with Emily and Navin. I can see students really enjoying the simplicity of the words in the text, and also being drawn to the plot of the story just like I was. I want to get the next book in the series just to see what happens next. This book is recommended for children in grades 2 through 6.

The Legend of Spud Murphy By: Eoin Colfer
This book is about two young boys named Marty and Will whose parents want to give them something to do for the summer since they are getting into too much mischief at home. Their parents decide that they should join the library to enjoy reading for a few hours a day. The only problem is the librarian who has been nicknamed Spud Murphy by all of the local children is one mean lady. It is rumored that she has a gas-powered spud gun under her desk for any child who misbehaves or does not returns books on time.
Despite their best efforts to get out of going, Marty and Will’s mother forces them to go to the library. During their visits, they try to outsmart “Spud” by going to other sections of the library and causing mischief. However, true to her reputation, Spud puts both boys in their place. Eventually, there is nothing else to do but read. In the end, both boys end up enjoying reading and going to the library. In fact, they even begin to “get along” with Spud Murphy.
This book is recommended as a read aloud in everyone’s classroom. There are so many parts that I cannot wait to read to my students so I can hear them laugh just like I was. I think some second grade students could read this, but it is definitely for third grade to about sixth grade students. It might be a little too young for junior high students, but an easy read if they are interested in something comical. This book was recommended for my classroom a few years ago at a district meeting I attended. I purchased it right away, but have only had a few students read it. This was one book I knew I had to read as one of my self-selected books. I recommend that you pick it up for your classroom too.

Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing By: Judy Blume
This story is about a young boy named Peter who spends his time during the story dealing with his younger brother Fudge. Fudge tends to get all of the attention from his parents and he seems to do no wrong in their eyes. Peter is used throughout the story to get Fudge to do things that he should already be doing like trying on new shoes or letting the dentist check his teeth. Peter always is asked by his parents to show Fudge how to do it first. Peter does not seem to like being used in this way, but his parents insist that he help.
One topic that comes up quite often is Peter’s pet turtle. He is very protective of him and throughout the story Fudge gets in to Peter’s room and messes with the turtle. The last straw comes when Fudge actually and eats Peter’s turtle. Peter is upset with his brother, but his parents seem more concerned with Fudge being ok rather than Peter’s feelings after losing his pet. At the end of the story, Peter’s parents get him a dog for a new pet. They began to really feel sympathy for the loss of Peter’s pet, and he was happy they remembered about his turtle. He decides that he’ll have to learn to live with his brother and they way his parents treat him.
I would recommend this story because it seems a lot like real situations students may have to deal with at home. I see that many connections can be made throughout the story as the class recalls events about their own little brothers or sisters and the problems they can create. This book would also be good to explore the social/emotional issues Peter goes through as he thinks his brother gets all of the attention at home and his parents do not seem to care about him. This book can be use to discuss the genre realistic fiction and students can point out how many of the events could happen even though these are make believe characters. This book would be great for third or fourth grade students in literature discussion groups or discussed as a read-aloud.

Dolley Madison Saves History By: Roger Smalley
This book discusses the life of Dolley Madison and her time as first lady in the White House. It begins with the marriage of Dolley to James Madison. It explains that she was a wonderful host at parties at the White House and very courteous as she had conversations with others and met new people. She was admired for her hospitality and generosity. In 1812, the British started taking over American ships and making their crew work for them. Because of this, the United State declared war on the British. Soon there was word that the British were invading towns close to Washington. As Dolley’s husband James went off to join the troops, she stayed behind and began to collect anything of importance and send it away from the White House. Not long after, Dolley received word that the British were in the city and she must clear out. She saved one last picture of George Washington before she left. The British did reach the White House and destroy many of the things left inside. The next day, Dolley and James met back up and eventually they both returned home. As the White House was repaired, Dolley set up a home for children whose parents were killed in the war. She showed courage during a scary time in America and helped save many historical artifacts for future generations.
This is a great book to share a piece of history in an interesting way. Written in this comic book format, it has much more appeal to students than a regular history book that can be drowned in facts and details. Even I learned something new from reading this graphic novel. I think I could use it to discuss the theme of a book. Students would easily be able to pick out the theme of courtesy and bravery shown by Dolley throughout the story. I could see using this text with an extended response question as well. Students could write about the different ways she showed courtesy and bravery and connect to times they had to show these characteristics in their lives. This is a must read for any classroom that is discussing this part of our country’s history.

Frindle By: Andrew Clements
Frindle is a story about how a boy challenges his new teacher by inventing a new word. Nick is beginning a new school year and knows he will have Mrs. Granger for a teacher. She teaches all about words and grammar and always finds a way to get in every part of her lessons each day. Nick is a creative boy who uses this characteristic to get into what some adults consider mischief. While questioning Mrs. Granger about how words are made, she told him words become words because we consistently use them in certain ways. This gives Nick the idea to start calling a pen a frindle. He gets all of his friends to begin using the word. Mrs. Granger begins to punish students for using the word and they have to stay after school. Eventually, parents begin to complain and the principal has to get involved. The principal speaks to Nick’s parents and they begin to realize that even if Nick tells other kids to stop using the word, it will not stop being used. It was becoming a real word.
As time goes by, a reporter hears about this word and from here news about the word Frindle begins to spread around the country. Soon, Nick kind of become afraid of his new fame and begins to fear any new ideas he has. At the end of the school year, Mrs. Granger speaks to Nick and encourages him to continue to use his new ideas and not hide them. Years later, Nick receives a letter from Mrs. Granger with a dictionary with the word frindle in it. Mrs. Granger’s letter shares that she was rooting for his word the whole time and was simply acting as a “bad guy” so his word would get noticed more and draw more controversy. Nick send a return note to Mrs. Granger which indicates that he used the money he gained from his publicity from the word frindle to create a scholarship in Mrs. Granger’s name.
This is a wonderful story that warmed my heart. It kept me turning pages, because I wanted to know what happened with the word frindle in the years that Nick was growing up. I can see that this book would promote a lot of discussion with my students. We could debate about Nick being a trouble maker or just a creative kid. I can also see having conversation about the end of the story that shares why Mrs. Granger tried to be the “bad guy” when it came to Nick’s word. We could talk about character traits as we discuss how Nick is a very bold character at the beginning of the story and eventually begins to keep things to himself more often. I see much potential to use this story with fourth grade students in literature discussion groups.

Wayside School is Falling Down By: Louis Sachar
This story is about a group of students in Mrs. Jewels’ class at Wayside School. All sorts of wacky things happen to the students and staff at Wayside. Their classroom is on the thirtieth story and there is no twenty-ninth story. However, we find out that Mrs. Zarves, teaches on the twenty-ninth story, but there is no Mrs. Zarves. We question things like this as we read throughout the entire book. Each chapter is about one of the students and a crazy story about him/her or it is about an event in Mrs. Jewels’ class that ends up going wrong. You’ll read about a basement that you are never supposed to travel to, a principal who interrogates his students, a ballroom dance instructor who tossing children in the air while doing the tango, and a student who gets a tattoo of a potato. You will never guess what will happen next at this mixed up Wayside School.
I would highly recommend this book to teachers and students of all ages. This is one of my favorite read-alouds that I use in my classroom. I find myself laughing each time I read it, and I enjoy watching the expressions on my students’ faces as they hear me read each crazy chapter. Every chapter brings up new conversation about why things happened the way they do and we discuss what we would do in these situations. I always have students who get hooked on the series after I read it and want to explore the other books that come before and after it. Students are always requesting I read another chapter even when we are done with our read-aloud time for the day. I recommend that you check out this book if you are looking for comedy in your classroom.

Mailing May By Michael O. Tunnell
This is a historical fiction book about a little girl named May who wants to visit her grandmother, but her parents do not have enough money to send her by train. The little girl tries to get a job herself to help pay for the trip. However, no one will hire her. Discouraged, the little girl headed home. That night her parents put her to bed very early. In the morning, they woke her up while it was still dark and took her to the post office. Her mother’s cousin Leonard worked in the mail car on the train and they thought they would “mail” May to her grandmother’s house. The rules stated they could not mail anything over fifth pounds and May and her luggage weighed less than that. Stamps were put on her coat and she got on the train with Leonard. She watched her uncle work and enjoyed the train ride and all of the destinations she saw as she traveled since this was her first train ride. When the train conductor saw May, he demanded a ticket from Leonard. However as soon as he saw the May was “mail,” he laughed and let her continue her ride to her grandmothers. At the end of the story, May arrive at her grandmothers very excited that her parents were able to make her wish come true.
I would recommend that young and old students read this picture book. It gives background knowledge of 1914, how mail was delivered, and how much items cost back then. This book also has pictures of many things from this time period that are very different than how we live now. You could use this book to not only talk about the historical fiction genre, but also to compare and contrast this time period with ours. It also contains a few similes you could stop and talk about as you read. It could be revisited as a mentor text as you teach more about figurative language. Although it is a picture book, there are many ways it can be used with all ages to teach about different reading strategies and to explore characteristics of the historical fiction genre.

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