Archive for October, 2006

The (Wonderful) Wizard of Oz - L. Frank Baum (1900)

Published by Scott on October 12, 2006 in Books, Chatter and Fiction. 1 Comment

n15441.jpgI’ve been missing out! For some reason I never read this book before. I was of course familiar with the movie but it never occurred to me to check out the story it was based on. I don’t recall anyone ever recommending it and even my wife, who in a lifetime of reading has probably read a hundred books for every one that I have, only vaguely suspects she read it when she was younger. I’m glad I finally stumbled across it because it is truly, ahem, wonderful.

Let me back up a bit and give a little context as to how I finally got around to it. We recently checked out the movie from the library and watched it as a family. My seven year old boys had seen it a few years earlier but didn’t really remember it. I was a little concerned about how my two year old daughter would react because there are a couple of somewhat intense parts for younger viewers. At least the boys were a little scared when they first saw it, but then again they were afraid of a lot of things like motorcycles and vacuum cleaners. Anyway, she was fine and we were all equally enthralled.

It was funny because my boys are used to better special effects. They were quick to point out that Munchkinland looked like it was made of plastic. They also noticed the wires that made the monkeys fly and held up the Lion’s tale. It didn’t diminish their enjoyment at all, but they definitely picked up on it. I had never noticed the wires before but that may have been because I had only seen it on a crappy tv or perhaps the digital restoration made such flaws noticeable. I realize they were probably pretty groundbreaking at the time, but I couldn’t help imagining Beavis and Butthead complaining, “These effects aren’t very special.”

So it was after seeing how much my lads enjoyed the movie that I thought I’d read the book to them. We were very impressed. I mainly read them a couple of chapters before putting them to bed each night but we wanted to know what happened next so badly that we’d occasionally sneak a few chapters in during the daytime.

If you’ve never read it, it’s quite different from the movie. The main characters and their quests for home, brain, heart, and courage are the same but they visit more of Oz’s locales, meet even stranger residents, and face numerous additional obstacles in the course of their adventure. The more whimsical touches, like the Tin Woodman slaughtering forty wolves while the others sleep peacefully nearby, are admittedly quaint. And some of the language, like referring to Oz as a “humbug,” is a bit dated. It’s such a thoroughly engrossing adventure though that such quibbles are barely worth mentioning.

The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, as it was originally titled, is in the public domain and available for free as an ebook through Project Guttenberg. You’d be doing yourself a disservice reading it that way. Borrow the book from the library or grab a copy from Amazon so that you can also appreciate W. W. Denslow’s fantastic original illustrations. We enjoyed it so much that we’ve moved on to its first sequel, The Marvelous Land of Oz.

Columbus Day Books

Published by Scott on October 9, 2006 in Books, Chatter and Non-Fiction. 3 Comments

Continuing with the Columbus theme, and coinciding with the national holiday, I snagged a few books about the explorer at the public and school libraries. All are in the 2nd to 3rd grade reading level range. Some thoughts on each:

A Book About Christopher Columbus
By Ruth Belov Gross, Illustrated by Syd Hoff (1974)

This is an easy to read, basic story about the initial journey. Syd Hoff’s friendly cartoon illustrations are somewhat disturbing though. In his own books animals are thrilled to be taken from their wild habitats to live in a zoo. The indigenous people are similarly receptive to Columbus and his men in these pictures. Especially sinister is the picture of the smiling Native Americans on board Columbus’ ship along with the text, “Some Indians came back with him, too.” This is a pretty sanitized version of events since they were forced to return to Spain with him! Still, it’s not a bad little introduction for primary readers.

051644204x01_ss500_sclzzzzzzz_v1057191382_.jpgChristopher Columbus: A Great Explorer
By Carol Greene (1989)

I’d never read anything from the “Rookie Biography” series but I’m really impressed. Children often have difficulty reading non-fiction, especially content area text books, because they must employ different strategies for comprehending than they do with fiction. The other Columbus books I’m mentioning today more or less follow a traditional narrative story arc. This one is true expository non-fiction with a table of contents, chapters, tons of pictures from various sources with accompanying captions, and an index. And as befits the term “rookie,” all of these elements are laid out in an uncluttered, easy to read manner. The main text in particular is in nice blocky chunks, impossible to miss amidst the photos and drawings.

christopher_columbus-krensky.jpgChristopher Columbus
By Stephen Krensky, Illustrated by Norman Green (1991)

This one jumps right into the 1492 expedition and stays there, barely referring to Columbus’ life before then and completely neglecting what happened next. It does serve as a nice overview of that journey however. I like how Krensky gives a little respect to the native people: “(Columbus) names the island San Salvador. He says it now belongs to Spain. But the island really belongs to the people who live there.” There’s also a reference to the kidnapping incident mentioned above, but Krensky correctly relates that the Indians were “forced” to come along. Norman Green’s colorful illustrations provide a nice visual rendering of the incidents described.

082340949x.jpgA Picture Book of Christopher Columbus
By David A. Adler, Illustrated by John & Alexandra Wallner (1991)

What’s interesting about this brief book is that a considerable portion of it is devoted to Columbus’ pre-1492 life, with an emphasis on how difficult it was for him to receive a royal sponsor. The Portugeuse king refused, as did King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella of Spain initially. Apparently Christopher’s brother Bartholomew also hit up the kings of France and England for funding, but alas he was also turned down. A handy time line is included.

Three Ships for Columbus
By Eve Spencer (1993)

I did not like this one at all. It’s an extremely simplistic, patronizing view of the 1492 voyage. And if that wasn’t bad enough, the illustrations are kind of creepy!

Scored Some Kids’ Books For Cheap!

Published by Scott on October 8, 2006 in Books and Chatter. 0 Comments

I’m always on the lookout for inexpensive books to add to my children’s collection at home or my classroom library at school. I’ve inherited tons of books from teachers retiring or moving up to higher grade levels. My mom works at a public library and has passed on some choice discards. Garage sales and warehouse sales have also been great sources. And my local public library occasionally will have some gems for sale on the “Friends of the Library” racks. That’s where I nabbed ten great soft cover books this weekend for a mere five spot. Sure, a couple of them need a little extra tape on their spines but I’m still thrilled with my purchase. Check out these winners:

The BFG by Roald Dahl
This one will stay at home. I’ve actually never read it but you can’t go wrong with Dahl.

The Turnip by Pierr Morgan
We read a version of this story by Tolstoy in the anthology series my school district uses.

Verdi by Janell Cannon
I haven’t read this but she also wrote the great Stellaluna.

A Story A Story by Gail E. Haley
Winner of the Caldecott Medal. It’s an African folk tale about the trickster spider, Anansi.

Anansi Goes Fishing by Eric A. Kimmel
A different Anansi story with wonderful illustrations by Janet Stevens.

Big Anthony and the Magic Ring by Tomie dePaola
Another entry in the fantastic Strega Nona series.

Madeline’s Rescue by Ludwig Bemelmans
This one was also a Caldecott winner. One of the series about the charming but mildly mischievous French boarding school student.

Berlioz the Bear by Jan Brett
A big part of the fun in Brett’s books are the detailed border illustrations that complement the main story.

Mr. Putter and Tabby Pick the Pears by Cynthia Rylant
Great timing here. This week’s anthology story for my second graders is a chapter from another Mr. Putter and Tabby story.

Dinosaur Bob and His Adventures With the Family Lazardo by William Joyce
A whimsical tale about a baseball playing dinosaur from the creator of George Shrinks. I love Joyce’s style. It’s got kind of an anime vibe.

Pre-Columbus Day

Published by Scott on October 5, 2006 in Books, Chatter and Non-Fiction. 0 Comments

columbus_c.jpgWith Columbus Day approaching, I thought I’d see what books I could dig up about him. National holiday notwithstanding, it’s kind of questionable as to whether we should celebrate his famous “discovery.” After all, the immediate effects of his voyage included genocide and the enslavement of native peoples. That’s some pretty deep subject matter for children. Still, it was a bold and courageous expedition and to say that its repercussions changed the world would be a gross understatement. So rather than glossing over or dwelling upon the atrocities, the challenge is to present children with a balanced look at that chapter in history.

I found the following two books at my local public library and think they serve as a fine way to build some background knowledge before really getting into the specifics about Christopher Columbus and his famous voyage. You may not be able to track down the exact same titles but there are probably similar books to help set the scene.

Explorers of the Americas Before Columbus
by George DeLucenay Leon (1989)

The title says it all, really. Leon’s book gives a brief look at the people who came to the Americas before 1492, starting with the early Asians who crossed the land bridge across the Bering Straight during the Ice Age. In addition to proven visits by the Vikings, he offers the possibility of journeys to the Americas by the Irish St. Brendan as well as the ancient Phoenicians and Egyptians. It’s not the greatest book but it does an adequate job of making young readers aware that Columbus was not the first person to reach the so-called New World. And I didn’t realize until reading it that Columbus never knew he hadn’t landed in the Far East.

0689822413_01_mzzzzzzz.gifIf You Were There in 1492
by Barbara Brenner (1991)

Brennar does a fantastic job describing what life was like in Spain at the tail end of the fifteenth century. Each chapter tells about some aspect of the daily routine, like food and education, or gives historical context, such as the Moors’ presence and cultural influence. She ties it all nicely to Columbus with little sections at the end of the chapters telling how the topic relates to him personally. For example, at the end of “Sickness and Health,” which tells about the generally squalid living conditions of the Spanish people and their reliance on herbal remedies if they became ill, there is a part that tells how Columbus and the other Spanish explorers inadvertently brought disease to the people of the New World and may themselves have brought syphilis back to Europe. The most heartbreaking part of the book was to learn some wonderful things about Queen Isabella, such as that she truly made herself available to her subjects and believed that women should be educated, and then find out that her Christian fanaticism was the impetus for the appalling practice of persecution through the Inquisition and the full-scale expulsion of Jews from Spain. It’s really a fascinating book and Brennar’s chatty writing and contagious curiosity make it a pleasure to read.

Welcome To Groovy Kid Stuff!

Published by Scott on October 4, 2006 in Chatter. 2 Comments

I have two purposes in mind for this blog. First, I’ll use it to document my exploration of media aimed at children. This includes the good and bad in music, movies, television, video games, web resources, and especially kiddie lit. Second, I want to promote quality multi-media edu/entertainment with a definite pro-literacy bent through recommendations of things that I have already “discovered” in over nine years as an elementary teacher and almost eight as a parent. I’ve come across a lot of great stuff in that time, a significant amount dating from between when I was a kid and then later a parent and teacher. I’m sure many people have a similar gap and maybe I can point out some things you may have missed that your kids will like.

So parents, teachers, and anyone else who works with children, I hope you enjoy reading my posts and find something on occasion that you can use. I welcome your comments and recommendations. And if you think this blog would be of interest to someone you know, please spread the word!