Reading to Rabbits, Monsters Under the Bed and Chicken, Pig and Cow

How Do You Read to a Rabbit? by Andrea Wayne von Königslöw

Stars: *****

Annick Press (2010)
Picture Book
32 pages
Ages 2-5

Summary: How do you read to different animals? What would happen? This is explored with humour in this book.

This book is along the same lines as one of her other books, Toilet Tales.

Some Quotes:

"If you read a bedtime story to a hippopotamus, he might want to sit on your lap."


"And why can't you read a book to owls? Because they'll keep asking.... whooo????"

The book is really cute and can inspire talk about how other animals would react to being read to.  If you want you could even pass along the neat fact that dogs are great listeners and in fact lots of children do read to them. At the end of the book we see who the best people to read to is.

As I posted about before, there is a Annick Press contest to go along with this book. Click the link for details, it's for kids and you could win a signed, original sketch by the author/illustrator.

Links of Interest: Contest,

Other Reviews: NONE YET

Buy How Do You Read to a Rabbit? at amazon.com and support SMS Book Reviews

Is There a Monster Over There? by Sally O. Lee

Stars: ***1/2

Create Space (2010)
Picture Book
36 pages


Summary: Mabel and her cat Tiffany are scared of monsters until Mabel wonders "what if monsters were just like us?" So Mabel and Tiffany test out their theory and get to be friends with the monster.

I've reviewed many other picture books by Sally O. Lee: Stop It, Cake Thief, The Rabbit and the Snowman and The Tutu Ballet.

This one would be good for a child already scared of monsters but if they aren't scared of monsters, I wouldn't read it. The monster is kind of scary looking and you don't want to put that idea into their head. That really goes with any monster book.

Once Mabel isn't afraid anymore and finds the monster friendly, they play dress up which I think is a good way of making the monster not scary anymore.

Links of Interest: Lee Publishing,

Other Reviews: Lost in Books,

Buy Is There a Monster Over There? at amazon.com and support SMS Book Reviews

Chicken, Pig, Cow and the Purple Problem by Ruth Ohi

Stars: *****

Annick Press (2010)
Picture Book
32 pages
Ages 2-5

Summary: The third book in the Chicken, Pig, Cow series. Cow is fed up with having purple spots when all the other cows have brown or gray spots so she goes off on a quest to change her spots. It's a story of self-acceptance.

See Chicken, Pig, Cow and Chicken, Pig, Cow on the Move.

Cow is the focus of this book and he learns the important lesson of being happy with who you are. He leaves his friends to find a way to not be purple. He finds gray mud and brown dirt and even new shoes. Will his friends recognize him?

As with all the Chicken, Pig, Cow books, this is so cute. My kids love the series and I can't wait to see what's next.

Links of Interest: Ruth Ohi, Featured on Gisele's Big Backyard,

Other Reviews: NONE YET

Buy Chicken, Pig, Cow and the Purple Problem at amazon.com and support SMS Book Reviews

* I received a copy of each of these books for review. All reviews are honest and are not affected by how I acquired the book.

The Book of Knowledge by David Michael Slater

Stars: ****

CBAY Books (2009)
Teen Fiction/ YA Fiction
10 and Up (the ages given but labelled as YA)

Summary: The second book in the Sacred Books Series. It continues right where the first book left off. Between the various attempts on their lives, the assault on their father, and a shocking discovery about their deceased mother, Dex and Daphna have endured enough for a lifetime. They barely have enough energy to stand, let alone save the world. Unfortunately, they don't have a choice. If they work together, the twins might stand a chance of discovering the truth about The Book of Nonsense. But are they really working together?

First I must caution that this book is controversial. I don't want to give the story away at all but the story gives an unusual explanation for a major bible story that certain people might find offensive. It's not bad in any way but if you are very devout in your Christian beliefs and believe every word of the bible to be exact truth, you may not like this book. You can read a bit more about that at Beaverton Valley Times.

Personally I found it interesting and thought-provoking. It truly has me thinking about my beliefs, even though that was not the intention of the book at all. I don't participate in book clubs because I generally have no interest in discussing books after I read them (other than to provide a review.) However this is one of the few where I'd like to exchange emails with another adult who has read this book.

Although I think the Book of Knowledge (and The Book of Nonsense,) could perhaps use a bit of work, in general I really enjoyed the book and am looking forward to Book Three which says a lot as I don't normally read series. It keeps you thinking and wondering what's going to happen next and I can never guess correctly what's going to happen which I like.

If you're interested, I read this book during the Clean Away the Clutter Readathon but as part of an activity for Dewey's 24-hour Read-a-thon I talked about seeing the Sacred Books Series made into movies.

Links of Interest: My review of The Book of Nonsense (Book 1), David Michael Slater,

Other Reviews: NONE YET

Buy The Book of Knowledge at amazon.com and support SMS Book Reviews

Too Many Books & Miss Malarkey Leaves No Reader Behind

Too Many Books by Gilles Tibo

Stars: ****

Scholastic (2004)
Ages 4-7

The copy of this book that I read is a TD Canada Trust book courtesy of The Canadian Children's Book Centre

Over 500 000 grade one children received a copy of this book through TD Grade One Book Giveaway Program in celebration of TD Canadian Children's Book Week Nov 15-22/08 (it happens every year)


Summary: Every time Nicholas tries to do something - like brush his teeth or ride his bike - someone gives hima book on how to do it right. And he does. But when he's read too many books that tell him what to do, it's time for something new!

I enjoyed the illustrations by Bruno St-Aubin. They are slightly cartoon like, but too cartoon-like either. 

The story teach a book fact: Nicholas learns that not all books are nonfiction (although they don't use that word.)

Nicholas is shown attempting a task and then reading a book about the subject before attempting the task again. He does the task correctly and moves on to another task. He has trouble with that one, is given a book, reads it, and does better. He enjoys reading the books, so it's not that he doesn't like books, he just gets sick of how-to books and needs a friend to show him the fiction section.

Links of Interest: Canadian Children's Book Centre, TD Canadian Children's Book Week, Too Many Books at Scholastic,

Other Reviews: NONE YET

Buy Too Many Books at Amazon.com and support SMS Book Reviews


Miss Malarkey Leaves No Reader Behind by Judy Finchler & Kevin O'Malley

Stars: ****

Walker Books (2010) - part of Bloomsbury
Picture Book
illustrations Kevin O'Malley

This is a story about a school that is participating in an Everybody Reads in America program to get everyone reading. If the school reads 1000 books by June 12 the principal will dye his hair purple and sleep on the roof of the school. But one student doesn't like books. He can read just fine but doesn't see the point. The teacher does her best to help the students find a book they'll like and is able to find something for everyone except this boy. Every month he tries a new kind of book but he doesn't like any of them. Finally in June Miss Malarkey give the boy a book she is sure he will like. Does he? I'm not telling!

The story was great and the illustrations are cute. They are cartoon like, but still fairly detailed. I love the shadowing. Also each month while he's talking about the book he tried, it shows something in the picture about the holiday or season normally celebrated that month. E.g. bulletin board decorated for holiday or homework sheet on his desk with monthly theme etc....

It would have been nice if it wasn't USA specific since I'm Canadian but that's okay.. I think this would be a good book for a reluctant reader to remind them that there IS a book out there for them and they just have to keep trying to find the right one.

Links of Interest: NONE YET


Other Reviews: Crazy4KidsBooks,

Buy Miss Malarkey Leaves No Reader Behind at Amazon.com and support SMS Book Reviews

Born to Read by Judy Sierra and That Book Woman by Heather Henson

Stars: ***1/2

Knopf - Division of Random House (2008)

In this book, illustrated by Marc Brown (Think Arthur) a little preschool aged boy shows us how he loves to read and be read to and the many ways reading can come in handy.

The story starts when Sam is a baby and goes till he's four or five years old. Sam helps his father read street signs, helps his mother do the shopping, decides to sign up for a race and more. It's a cute book for ages 3-5.

Related Links: Judy Sierra,

Other Reviews: Well-Read Child,

Buy Born to Read at Amazon.com and support SMS Book Reviews

Stars: ****

Atheneum - Imprint of Simon & Schuster 2008

That Book Woman tells the tale of Pack Horse Librarians from American History. They helped bring books to children who otherwise may not have seen them or even read at all.

Cal can't understand why this woman would risk riding her horse in heavy rain, snow and up the mountainside just to bring books to his sister every few weeks. He thinks she must be foolish until one winter day he decides he should figure out what's so special about books that this woman would do this.

This book is designed for ages 4-8 and I thought it was a really lovely story. You get a peek at life in the past and learn a little about early librarians. This would be a good story to read to someone (especially a boy) who isn't really interested in books too much. I don't know if it would help but at least the boy could identify with Cal at first.

Related Links: That Book Woman Reading Group Guide, Heather Henson Books,

Other Reviews: The Reading Zone, Lesa's Book Critiques, Kids Lit,

Buy That Book Woman at Amazon.com and support SMS Book Reviews

The Book Whisperer by Donalyn Miller

Stars: *****

Jossey-Bass (March 2009)
Adult Nonfiction
Education, Reading, Literature Study

This is one of the few books published in 2009 that wasn't a review book. I actually picked this up at the library, obviously it was the title that caught my eye.

This book's general audience is teachers and anyone else who teaches reading and a love of reading to children and so could include homeschoolers and parents in general. Although it is mostly for teachers, I learned a lot in this book. I'm probably not going to be able to homeschool like I'd planned but I do plan on doing what I can to supplement what my children learn at school when it comes to reading and I will be using what I learned in this book to do it. I must also add that I think every English class in every school around the world should change how they teach reading and literature to this way. Below I highlight some important and favourite sections.

Making Time for Reading. (emphasis mine)

"At first, this reading time is my mandate for them. They read because I tell them to. I want to instill in them the daily habit. Like brushing their teeth, reading is a responsibility that my students understand I expect them to assume. Yet time spent reading feeds more reading. The more my students read, the more they want to read." - pg 50

It's crazy how much teachers teach HOW to read and HOW to apply certain methods of understanding but little time is given to actually read.

"No matter how long students spend engaged in direct reading instruction, without time to apply what they learn in the context of real reading events, students will never build capacity as readers. Without spending increasingly longer periods of time reading, they won't build endurance as readers, either. Students need time to read and time to be readers." - pg 51

"The question can no longer be, 'How can we make time for independent reading?' The question must be 'How can we not?'" - pg 51

Genres

I loved this section because I learned a bit more about genre distinctions and it made me think about how I'd classify books. The students keep a chart where they list usual characters, settings and rules of each genre.
I always have trouble explaining what a memoir is (autobiography that focuses on a specific time period in the author's life.)

Reader's Notebooks


I think this is a great idea and is similar to what I do with my blog here. The author (and teacher) holds regular conferences with the students to discuss where they are at in their reading (because each child is reading a different book.) This is done with the help of the reader's notebook. They write response entries once a week and turn them in. The notebooks show the teacher if someone is finishing books or avoiding particular genres or having problems of any kind. The teacher writes a response back as well. The book also has a section for listing books read, a list of books they'd like to read (from recommendations or browsing) and keeps track of how many books from each genre they read.

Miscellaneous

In this following paragraph, the author is explaining how and why she lets students use their memory of movies they've seen to help them identify genres of books and stories and their characteristics:

"During this conversation, we have discussed scores of books and even some movies in order to provide evidence that supports our opinions. Students may not have had enough reading experiences to illustrate the genre discussion with book examples but they know stories. Basic story grammar is found in the movies and television shows that they watch too. Encouraging students to give examples based on knowledge they have, not just from books, prevents the avid readers from dominating all of the early discussions we have about books and shows students that I value what they do understand." - pg 90

Now we talk about how books are traditionally studied in school:

"My student Skylar told me during a conference, 'What makes reading painful is when it takes longer to do a reading worksheet about a book than to actually read a book.'" - pg 122

I can identify with that. I am one of the few who actually enjoyed reading in school, however, no matter how much I enjoyed the book after reading it, when we started "studying" it I disliked it more and more until I was beyond sick of it. I've since re-read some books from grade and high school and I like them now that I don't need to do spelling words from them, write essays on their characters and find hidden meaning. I actually wrote a short blog post on required reading in school.
My Reviews: Lord of the Flies, Island of the Blue Dolphins, ...

The Need for Reading Role Models (What I think is MOST important)

The author makes a good point I'd never thought of on my own. Who here has ever seen their English or Literature teacher reading? Are they readers? Do you know? Does it really make sense to be taught reading and literature from someone who barely reads themselves and even if they do and the students never see, how will they know?

"My credibility with students and the reason they trust me when I recommend books to them stems from the fact that I read every day of my life and that i talk about reading constantly. I am not mandating an activity for them that i do not engage in myself. I do not promote reading to my students because it is good for them or because it is required for school success. I advocate reading because it is enjoyable and enriching. When my students think about me in the future, I want them to remember me as a reader with a book in my hand and a recommendation on my lips.  - pg 106

Throughout the book we see that this is true. She recommends a book to a student and they try it out and like it. She knows books and she knows her students and she puts two and two together. The teacher and students spend actual time discussing books. There is no question if their teacher is a reader or not. Not only that but she also reads their books! Teacher borrows from student and occasionally student borrows from teacher. I think having a teacher who reads and talks openly about being a reader is VERY important.

Links of Interest: The Book Whisperer's Blog, Donalyn Miller on Twitter,  Jen Robinson's Book Page (children's book blog mentioned in the book a few times)

Other Reviews: The Reading Zone, Jen Robinson's Book Page, Book Chase, Once Upon a Time,

Buy The Book Whisperer from Amazon.com and support SMS Book Reviews.

The Book of Nonsense by David Michael Slater

Stars: ****


Summary: The book is ancient, ravaged and full of utter nonsense. But the moment it enters Daphna and Dexter's lives, bizarre things begin to happen. Why is their father, who found the book, suddenly so distant? Is the old man who took it from him some kind of hypnotist? Why is a giant, red-eyed boy menacing them? And what does their thirteenth birthday have to do with all this? Daphna and Dexter can't stand each other, but they'll have to work together to learn the truth about the Book of Nonsense - before their lives come apart completely.

I'm sure most of you have seen reviews of this book already on other book blogs. I didn't get my copy along with everyone else, I got one later from the author, the last hard copy actually.

If you don't know, this book is designed for ages 10 and up but is considered teen fiction, probably because of the violence. There's not a whole lot but there is some for sure.

The story is quite different from what else I've read and I for sure the plot gets a 5/5 but it wasn't as well written as I was expecting which is why it has a 4/5. I'm not sure I can pinpoint anything wrong with it per say, it's just not amazing which is what a 5/5 is.

I like how it alternates between being told by Dex and by Daphna so that you can see what each is thinking. There is a lot of talk about books and book collecting and if the reader doesn't like books much and this is one of few books to read, they might get bored with the book talk. However those interested in magic and unusual things would like it.

I read this a few weeks ago so I'm having trouble remembering what to write as I'm sure any fellow book bloggers who may be reading this will understand. Be sure to check out the other reviews listed below for more opinions, they're not all good!

Links of Interest: David Michael Slater's Website, Interview with David Michael Slater at Breeni Books

Other Reviews: Lesa's Book Critiques, Cheryl's Book Nook , A Reader's Respite, A Bookworm's World, Bobbi's Book Nook, Sharon Loves Books and Cats, Sophisticated Dorkiness, Breeni Books, Berger's Book Reviews

Buy The Book of Nonsense at Amazon.com and support SMS Book Reviews 

* I received a copy of this book from the author for review. All reviews are honest.

Library Lion by Michelle Knudsen

Stars: *****

This is one of the cutest picture books I've seen in a long time although I have that deja vu feeling that I may have read it once before.

It's the perfect book for us book lover parents who want to instill the love of libraries in our children.

Summary: Miss Merriweather, the head librarian, is very particular about rules in the library. No running allowed. And you must be quiet. But when a lion comes to the library one day, no one is sure what to do. There aren't any rules about lions in the library.

I'll spare you the long summary and just tell you that the lion turns out to be a big help until one day when something terrible happens and the lion helps in the only way he knows how, which breaks a rule. Is it okay to break a rule for a good reason??

The illustrations are by Kevin Hawkes and are absolutely adorable. The lion looks SO cute and adorable, not scary at all. The illustrations are done in acrylic and pencil and the book is by Candlewick Press (which is fast becoming my favourite children's publisher.) At least the copy I have, it is a large hardcover book with about 10 lines per page average.

I HIGHLY recommend this book.