Dog Day

Hayes, Sarah. 2008. Dog Day. Ill. by Hannah Broadway. New York: Straus Giroux.

Imagine going to school and finding that your teacher is a dog! That's the premise of this amusing new book. Ben and Ellie's new teacher, Riff, shows the class such useful skills as sniffing, tail wagging, barking and more. The children take P.E., nap, and receive a surprise visit from the principal, Mrs. Pink.

The humor in Dog Day is completely in the artwork. This is Hannah Broadway's first picture book. Her style is simple and funny. There is no description of the medium used in the front or end papers, but she appears to use pen and acrylics, each character outlined in black. The features are mere dots; the children's moods are understood by their word bubbles and goofy mannerisms as they shake, pant, and wag their bottoms. Some collage art is used, in depicting denim jeans, wood flooring, and other textured surfaces. Hannah Broadway should have a good future in children's' book illustrations.

This would be a great choice for storytime. It invites participation, as children can act like dogs with Ben and Ellie. Only the choice of the word "poo" ("What's that smell? It smells like poo.")might deter me from reading this very cute story to a crowd.

One Hen, etc.

Milway, Katie Smith. 2008. One hen: How one small loan made a big difference. Ill. by Eugenie Fernandes. Tonawanda, NY: Kids Can Press.

Vacation is over and it's back to business...I have a canvas bag full of new books to look over. I'll start with One Hen.

One Hen is the true story of how a small micro-loan to a young African boy, Kojo, enables him to sell eggs, buy chickens, pay for school, go to college, and eventually become a successful businessman in his own community, helping others on his way to success.

Micro finance seems an unlikely subject for a picture book, however, One Hen does a fine job of introducing a complicated subject in an uplifting manner that children of many ages will understand. On the simplest level, the book may be read as a picture book to small children, employing only the large print text and colorful, busy, acrylic paintings. The large print text is only one line per double spread, and tells the story in a cumulative style, "This is the hen that Kojo buys with the loan he got. These are the eggs that Kojo sells from the hen he bought..."
Smaller print, enclosed in text boxes tells the story in more detail, " Slowly, slowly, Kojo's egg money grows. After two months he save enough to pay his mother back. In four months he has enough to buy another hen. Now Kojo can sell five eggs a week, and he and his mother have more to eat." Fernandes' artwork is busy, bright and cheerful, depicting life (even a poor life) in Ghana as colorful and purposeful.

The story is followed by a photo and biography of the real Kojo, a page listing suggestions of how children can help others in Kojo's situation, a listing of other people who have been helped by micro loans, and finally a glossary of unfamiliar African (calabash) and financial (profit) terms.

This is a book that may have a limited audience but it's worth checking out.

So You Want to Be President

St. George, Judith. 2000. So You Want to Be President. Ill. by David Small. New York: Philomel Books. ISBN 0399234071

Plot Summary:
So You Want to Be President is a collection of facts about our nation's presidents. Some of the facts are well-known - Abraham Lincoln was born in a log cabin; some are not - Andrew Johnson couldn't read until he was fourteen. The book also offers a glimpse into the duties of the president and shows the great variety and humanity in the men who have inhabited the White House.

Critical Analysis:
So You Want to Be President is chock full of the kind of fun facts that will interest young readers. Heights, weights, dancing ability, speeding tickets and duels are all covered. The facts are presented in a way that engages the reader and brings history to his level. (e.g. "Do you have pesky brothers and sisters? Every one of our Presidents did.")

The front and end papers are decorated with caricatures of the presidents, and much of the bibliographic information is located at the end of the book. This gives the reader the opportunity to enter directly into the fun, without paging through the copyright and publishing information.

The substantial text is in a smaller typeface which leaves plenty of room for busy illustrations, making use of positive space. The Presidents are drawn in caricature style, and are shown in both formal and embarrassing situations. Double-page spreads are used frequently to show a humorous situation or to depict many Presidents in the same setting. Readers will likely want to go through this book again and again, just to be sure that they haven't missed anything in these cartoon-style illustrations.

The only negative to this book, is that it may be passed over by older readers who will view the cover and assume that it's not meant for the independent reader. In truth, this book's engaging facts and illustrations should be able to satisfy readers as old as fifth or sixth grade.

Review Excerpts:
In the July/August 2000, Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books, Kate McDowell wrote, "While accounts of particular presidents abound, rarely are they as entertaining as this collective biography of chief executives."

Connections:
This book makes a great introduction to Presidential biographies. Children's interest in lesser known presidents may be piqued by the little-known facts.

Follow up a reading of this book with a reader's theater performance of "The Field Trip to Remember," http://www.education-world.com/a_curr/reading/ReadersTheater/ReadersTheater016.shtml or "Ask the Presidents," http://www.education-world.com/a_curr/reading/ReadersTheater/ReadersTheater007.shtml

Visit the official White House site for kids, http://www.whitehouse.gov/kids/

The Hello, Goodbye Window

Juster, Norton. 2005. The Hello, Goodbye Window. Ill. by Chris Raschka. New York: Hyperion Books. ISBN 0786809140

Plot Summary:
The plot in this Caldecott Medal winning book is simple. The story is an account of a child's day spent at her grandparent's home while her parents are working. She relates a typical day, focusing on the "hello goodbye" window, the window in the front of her grandparent's home through which she enjoys the view from both the inside and the outside throughout the day and early evening hours.

Critical Analysis:
This tale is told in the first person in a tone that should be quite believable to small children. The little girl says "I get tired I come in and take my nap and nothing happens until I get up." This is one of my favorite lines in the book because I remember my own daughter being absolutely shocked to find out that Mom and Dad ate ice cream while she was sleeping! Norton Juster clearly understands a child's perspective.

The "hello goodbye window" is an integral part of the setting, both in the text and illustrations. The window represents reality, fantasy, and imagination. She sees her grandparents through the window as her parents prepare to drop her off. She sees the Queen of England coming to visit for tea. Her grandfather amuses her by talking to her nighttime reflection in the window as if she is actually outside the window.

The illustrations are bright and cheery and busy and serve to set the book's mood. They are done in the impressionistic style. The blended colors and somewhat out of focus characters make this apparently mixed-race family relative to readers of any ethnicity. It's culturally inclusive in an understated manner. The lively colors and curly lines set the tone for an upbeat look at a mundane experience.

Review Excerpts:
Writing for School Library Journal, Angela Reynolds praised the artwork in this Caldecott award winning book,noting "The artwork is at once lively and energetic, without crowding the story or the words on the page; the simple lines and squiggles of color suggest a child's own drawings, but this is the art of a masterful hand."

Connections:
This book can be a great jumping-off point to entertain and interact with a child confined inside due to illness, injury, or bad weather. With a sign created in the likeness of the book's artwork, any window can be designated the "hello goodbye window" or the "rainy day window" or even the "chicken-pox window." From that point, with pencil and lined paper or crayons or paints the possibilities are endless - bird watching, people watching, or fantasizing and even creating the perfect view from the window.

An Innocent Soldier

Holub, Josef. 2005. An Innocent Soldier. New York: Arthur A. Levine. ISBN 0439627729.

PLOT SUMMARY

The year is 1812, and Napoleon is gathering his Grande Armée for an assault on Russia. When a privileged farmer’s son is sought as a new recruit, the farmer sends his unwitting farmhand, Adam, to serve in his stead. The poor servant boy is exposed to grueling conditions –depravity, deprivation, and the horrors of war as he struggles to survive the ordeal and make sense of it all.

CRITICAL ANALYSIS

An Innocent Soldier is a historical fiction novel best suited for a YA audience due to its mature subject matter. The book is the 2006 winner of the Mildred Batchelder Award for an outstanding children's book first published in a foreign language. The story by Josef Holub and translated from German by Michael Hofmann, tells the story of Napoleon's grand march to Russia and subsequent retreat, through the eyes of an uneducated, though not unintelligent, teenaged farmboy, Adam. Betrayed by his master and forced to substitute for the master's son, Adam travels with the army through the Germanic Kingdoms, Prussia and Poland and finally to Moscow itself. French spellings (Armée and troupe) are scattered throughout the text to remind the reader that Adam has been thrust into a foreign army, while the names of the soldiers in his troop are indicative of Adam's home in Wurttemburg (Konrad Klara, Kleinknecht, Krauter). Adam tells the story in a kind of musing format, with sparse dialogue. "On the street lies an upset barrel. Thousands of kopek pieces have spilled onto the dirt. What riches! But no one is interested. If only it were bread. What would we do with metal coin?" This format suits his position and condition; an innocent farmhand assigned as a lieutenant's servant in a cold, miserable, and eventually pointless military campaign.

Although set amidst a tragic military campaign, the overriding theme of Soldier is one of friendship. Through shared hardships, Adam becomes the friend and confidant of the noble-born, Konrad Klara, and becomes respected in his own right. Ironically, Adam receives succor from an elderly Russian woman, and his greatest enemy is a sadistic member of his own regiment, underscoring the perplexities of war and the transforming power it has over human nature.

The story of An Innocent Soldier is timely despite its 1812 setting. The weapons, tactics, and adversaries may change, but the moral questions of war remain constant throughout the years. Young teens should relate to Adam as he grows in maturity and overcomes adversity. A period map and historical notes precede the book.

REVIEW EXCERPTS

"Arthur A, Levine Books has been awarded the 2006 Mildred L, Batchelder Award for its publication of An Innocent Soldier, The award is given for the most outstanding children's book originally published in a foreign language and subsequently translated into English for publication in the United States, The book was written by Josef Holub, translated from the German version by Michael Hofmann."

2006. "Mildred L. Batchelder Award." Teacher Librarian 33, no. 4: 12-12. MasterFILE Premier, EBSCOhost (accessed June 7, 2007).

"This is a well-wrought psychological tale that might have a difficult time finding an audience, but has a lot to offer to those seeking to build a deep historical fiction collection."

Stenson-Carey, Christina, Jones, Trevelyn E., Toth, Luann, Charnizon, Marlene, Grabarek, Daryl, and Dale Raben. 2005. "An Innocent Soldier." School Library Journal 51, no. 12: 148-148. MasterFILE Premier, EBSCOhost (accessed June 7, 2007).

CONNECTIONS

This book is an obvious choice for an integrated curriculum based on this period in history. The rich historical details of daily wartime struggles can add life to the study of this era.

Though it may be a difficult sell because of its unappealing cover art (Adam appears too feminine and childlike to be a battle-weary soldier, and Konrad Klara appears more as an "add-on" than an integral part of the cover *), this book has great possibilities for a book discussion group. The themes of friendship, war, and morality are sure to engage older teens.
Read Thura's Diary: My Life in Wartime Iraq (2004) by Thura al-Windawi for a view of the current war through the eyes of a teen.

* since I first reviewed this book, an alternative cover has been designed