Summer Reading, Part One: Best Homework I've Ever Had

This summer, I'm taking a grad class on K-12 literature requiring me to read well over 50 books. I'm in bookworm heaven, mostly. The gritty part of writing bibliography entries and pulling out themes, well, that still feels like work. But mowing through the pile of books on the coffee table (currently, there are 41)? This is homework?! 

For all you fellow bibliophiles, here's what I read the past week. Stars (*) denote my personal level of recommendation. One: worth your time. Two: excellent and moving. Three: stunning (or I somehow just read it on a really good day).

How week one stacked up...

Picture Books
**The yellow star: the legend of King Christian X of Denmark by Carmen Agra Deedy. Story isn't exactly true, but inspiring nonetheless. And beautiful. Would be great to include in teaching about WWII at any age level.   
 
*The lion and the mouse by Jerry Pinkney. One of the most gorgeous, engaging wordless picture books I've seen.


Zarafa: the giraffe who walked to the king by Judith St. George. True story; the title says it all. Lovely illustrations.


The windigo’s return: a north woods story by Douglas Wood. Native American legend; Minnesotans could appreciate it on a few levels...


Snoring Beauty by Bruce Hale. Humorous, irreverent retelling of Sleeping Beauty. 

***The cats in Krasinski Square by Karen Hesse. Another powerful picture book relating to WWII. Would be excellent for older kids.


**Boxes for Katje by Candace Fleming. Yet another view on WWII and its aftermath. Based on a true story.


Why kings and queens don't wear crowns by Princess Martha Louise. Cute...


**Flotsam by David Wiesner. Wiesner is one of my favorite illustrators. This smirky, off-beat wordless book is a reason why. I can look at these pictures for hours.


Children's Literature
**Elijah of Buxton by Christopher Paul Curtis. Well-written story about a settlement in Canada of escaped or freed slaves. I really liked the interaction between the narrator, an eleven-year-old boy, with the adults of his community. Touches on difficult themes relating to slavery and freedom, but overall, hopeful and full of life.





Nory Ryan’s song by Patricia Reilly Giff. Intermediate-level book about the Potato Famine in Ireland. Sweet characters, sober plot, lots of historical connections to pull in.

*The lightning thief by Rick Riordian. Engaging story. Interesting twist related to Greek mythology. Lots of good action and characters I cared about. And though I predicted some of it (a knowledge of mythology "sets up" some of the scenes, making it more interesting), I didn't see it all. Will probably read the rest of the series...

**When you reach me by Rebecca Stead. Apparently, lots of people hate this book. I was not one of them. Was fascinated from the beginning.



Young Adult Literature
**I am the messenger by Markus Zusak. There's plenty of colorful language throughout the book that I could do without, but the story drew me in right away. Loved the plot and the characters.


**Out of the dust by Karen Hesse. Novel set in Oklahoma during the Dust Bowl, narrated in poetry. The sparse, rich text mirrors the setting and struggle of the characters. Quick read, but certainly worthwhile.


Page count this week: 1280, not counting the picture books or the 500 page Zusak book (since I read it a month ago).