Review Bone # 9: Crown of Horns

The Bone series does not disappoint with its grand finale, "Crown of Horns"!

Quick Overview:

Bone # 8 Treasure Hunters leaves us on a cliff-hanger, with Gran'ma Ben watching Briar's approaching army and realizing she has not yet managed to rally the city's troops. Problems with the city's interim leader, Tarsil, are removed immediately as Briar coldheartedly chops him in half when she arrives at the city gate. It is now up to Gran'ma Ben to pull the rest of the soldiers together and defend what she can. In the meantime, Thorn has a vision of her mother telling her to "seek the crown of horns." Thorn, Fone Bone, and Bartleby leave the fighting to find the crown that will save all of their lives. Meanwhile, Mim--ancient "creator" dragon gone crazy--has woken up from her sleep and is threatening to annihilate everyone.

Phoney Bone takes a change of heart and actually fights in the battle, and then helps Gran'ma Ben confront Briar. Lucius comes in with his army to aid them, just in time, but as Thorn and Fone Bone touch the crown of horns, Briar erupts in a ball of light and Lucius, who is grappling her, dies as well.

Finally, the red dragon comes to save Thorn and Fone Bone from the other dragons' anger for trespassing in their territory. The dragons end up chasing them all the way to Mim, who is just rising out of the ground. At the same moment, the dragons decided to face Mim (who is massive) each grabbing a piece of her and dragging her back into the earth. The war is over. Thorn reigns as queen and the bones return to Boneville.


Graphics

The story is fast-paced with scenes weaving in and out of each other raising the sense of tension and suspense. The graphics are the best yet, with the scene of thousands of dragons dragging Mim back into the earth evoking horror, shock, and fascination.


Maturity

-The reality of physical suffering and physical loss are shown in a temperate way with Fone and Thorn both losing a tooth. The tooth is replaced at the end by the red dragon, and is made out of the same crystal that the crown of horns is composed of.

-When Tarsil removes his hood, his face is hideously scarred by the dragons.

-Tarsil's body is shown being chopped in half, then the bloodstained face of Briar is seen (though I am considering now that she looks more ridiculous than frightening with her large bulbuous eyes and greenish skin).

-Smiley continues to smoke his cigar


Amusing Segments

Smiley Bone decides to cook the two mischievous rat creatures some quiche, which they love. Just as he is about to serve it to them, he gets an urgent message and leaves it just outside of their reach from the cage where they are being kept. After the war is over, Fone Bone serves them some quiche on "Christmas" day.


Points to Ponder

At the end, the characters celebrate winter solstice, which is basically depicted as a secular Christmas party. Thorn brings in an evergreen that she explains brings life in the dead of winter. Smiley asks Phoney if they celebrate winter solstice in Boneville. Phoney answers they do, but for different reasons: "Different reasons... Different names... It all comes down to th' same thing... business picks up, an' I make  a lotta money! I love this holiday!" (emphasis from text). Thorn brings out some instruments and Smiley says, "As long as we're gonna make music, it don't matter to me if we celebrate for different reasons!"

Later, when Fone Bone takes out the quiche to the two silly rat creatures, he tells them "Peace on earth, fellas!"


Conclusion

Great series, definitely one that I would recommend, even for adults.

Overall maturity: 9 and up.

Review : Mother Nature Takes a Vacation

I just came across this book in my library and was struck by the beautiful illustrations by Sylvie Daigneault. It also struck me as a timely fairy tale--and a Canadian one too.

Quick Synopsis:

Mother Nature leaves the "kingdom" because they do not take care of her, ie. pollute, ruin soil, and put garbage in oceans. A clever girl named Sue takes the situation into hand and tries to take over for Mother Nature while she is gone. She cannot do everything, so she asks the king permission to go search for Mother Nature. Sue finds her, but Mother Nature refuses to return until everyone has cleaned up the kingdom. Mother Nature returns and makes everyone promise to continue keeping everything clean. Everyone lives in peace and harmony.


Amusing Canadiana:

-Mother Nature escapes and goes to--Florida.

-When Mother Nature returns, she is escorted by a Canadian Goose, a rabbit, a robin, a deer, and a raccoon.


About the Author and Illustrator:

Lydia Bailey was born in Memphis, Tennessee but now lives in Toronto. Her books reflect her interest in ecology, myth, and fantasy.

Sylvie Daigneault was born in Montreal and now lives in Toronto. She is also the illustrator for Sarah Saw a Blue Macaw and Simon's Surprise. --Make sure to check out her other illustrations!

Review Bone # 7 : Treasure Hunters

Quick Summary:

The bones, Thorn, Gran'ma, and Bartleby make it to Atheia and secretly reconnect with Gran'ma's old friends and teachers. The city has turned against the dragons and so would be hostile to the dragon princess, Thorn. Meanwhile, Phoney's scalp is tingling and he feels there must be treasure somewhere in the city. By the end of the story, Thorn is neither revealed as princess, nor does Phoney find his treasure. The story ends with Briar's army approaching to attack Atheia and Gran'ma muttering, "We're not ready."

Points to Ponder:

Religion:

We learn in this book that the Atheian religion is based on the concept of balance. Mim, the first dragon, gives life to the world, however, she has a dark aspect, and may also be depicted as "The Lord of Death: The Lord of the Locusts." Thus she is both the creator and the destroyer. A character explains: "You cannot have life without death. The two are always together" What is needed then is balance between life and death.

The Crown of Horns is the tipping point, the point of balance.

Thorn's new mission now is to seek the Crown of Horns and to "restore balance" between life and death.

Moral dualism basically says:

Good and evil are equal to each other. This moral view does not conform to Christian, Jewish, and Muslim conceptions of God/Goodness as creator and evil as the absence of good. In these religions there is a hierarchy of life over death, good over evil. Eg. Manichaeism, a religion based on moral dualism, was declared a Christian heresy in the 4th century.

Compare the Atheian religion with:

Ancient Egyptian Religious Beliefs: the gods Set (disorder, death) and Osiris (order, life) (Wikipedia). This duality compares to the balance of Mim, giver of life, and the Lord of the Locusts, representative of death.

Zoroastrianism (mid-fifth century BC): a monotheistic religion that believes that Ahura Mazda is the eternal creator of all good things. Any violations of Ahura Mazda's order arise from druj, which is everything uncreated. From this comes a significant choice for humans to make. Either they fully participate in human life for Ahura Mazda or they do not and give druj power (Wikipedia). The ghost circles that declare the presence of the locust are also represented as "voids"--or, one could say, "the uncreated" as in Zoroastrian myth. Recall Rock Jaw telling the bones that they must choose sides in the war, between life and death. Some have gone on to accept the locust as leader, and this gives the locust power.

Taoism (yin and yang) Compare the yin and yang concept of a dot in the yin and a dot in the yang with Thorn having a "piece of the locust" within her.



Great Moments in the story:

Interactions between Smiley and Bartleby:

Bartleby: What did you bring me?
Smiley: I brought some of our dinner from last night. It's stinky and gross--just the way you like it! You know, Bartleby, I never had a pal like you before.
Bartleby (as he looks up at Smiley with green goop falling from his mouth): Me either!

Great Female characters with character who plan together to protect the city from war and corruption:

Thorn: Gran'ma, we don't have an army.
Gran'ma: Not yet.
Thorn: Are you sure this is a good plan, then?
Gran'ma: No... It only deals with the problems we have outside the walls... ....inside, we still have Tarsil the Usurper to deal with.

Review Bone # 7 Ghost Circles

Ghost Circle: Like invisible bubbles, these spaces are part of the void or nightmarish evil that was released in the world by the partial awakening of the locust. The bubbles spot the regular landscape and form spaces of destruction, and if someone were to enter into them, they would die.

Quick Summary: The story splits into two again, one part following the villagers and the stick-eaters as they head to war, the second following the bones, Thorn, Gran'ma and Bartleby, the pet rat creature who has returned to the group. There are scenes of war and destruction as the villagers face the rat creatures in battle. The entire valley is destroyed as the locust is semi-released from its lair in a volcano that spews ash and covers everything living. The Bone contingent decides to follow a treacherous path through ghost circles to arrive at the ancient kingdom of Atheia. The villagers convince the stick-eaters to leave Old Man's Cave and to travel to Atheia as well, their only chance of survival.

Thoughts: This was an excellent, exciting read. I especially enjoyed how the story took off from its original plot in a convincing way. Their travel to Atheia is unexpected and exciting. The passage through the ghost circles is intriguing and imaginative. We receive more of the back story about Lucius and his relation to the royal sisters, which adds a romantic twist. It's incredible to see the development of even tertiary characters like Jonathon, whose name dons the first chapter title.

For Younger Children:
The images of this story continue to be for mature readers 9+, according to parental discretion.

Images to note:
Briar "rises" again from the dead, as the locusts cover her two halves and allow her to stand upright again.

Ideas to ponder or discuss:

Thorn and Bone have a part of the locust inside them, and this allows them to pass unharmed into ghost circles. They pass into one and are met with voices. These are coming from a family who are not alive, but are changed by the ghost circle. Fone worries that they have turned into zombies, but this is not clear. The voices ask them for help, claim they feel pain, and say they have a message for Thorn from her dead mother, telling her to "seek the crown of horns." They warn of danger approaching, and tell Thorn to remove the piece of locust from Fone.

Great Quote:

"Great darkness falls across our generation. May we be equal to the burden."

Review: Bone # 6 Old Man's Cave

Quick summary: 

In Bone #6 Old Man's Cave, we seem to reach the climax of the story, but discover the end is only the beginning of a new twist in the plot. Thorn, Smiley and Fone Bone rejoin Gran'ma Ben in Old Man's Cave. Old Man's Cave has become a refuge for stick-eaters, the villagers, and Phoncible P. Bone. Rock Jaw is on a hunt to bring the bone creatures and Thorn (dead or alive) to the altar of the Hooded One for a sacrifice and so free the Lord of the Locusts. Phoney is captured and placed on the altar of sacrifice, but is saved just in time by Gran'ma Ben. We discover why the hooded one was chasing Phoney, and we discover that the "hooded one" is in fact Gran'ma Ben's sister, Briar, who died in the old war. She is being kept alive by the locusts.

Forewarning:

Younger children may be disturbed by certain gruesome images: Rock Jaw has previously pulled out Kingdok's tongue and one image shows the cats holding it down beneath his paw; when Briar pulls off her hood, she is shown with bulging eyes and green skin; the locusts escape from Briar via her mouth and stomach; and we see the top part of Briar's body disengaged from her legs, though there is no blood.

Commentary:

This book was entertaining like the other books have been, though the plot was not as tightly laid out as Bone # 5 Rock Jaw.

Review: Bone #5 Rock Jaw

Bone #5 Rock Jaw is one of the shortest books in the series. It follows Smiley and Fone Bone as they go on a separate adventure through the mountains to bring home a baby rat creature. The story is well-paced and introduces new characters and personalities, "Roque Ja" being one of the best.

I like the compassion that Smiley shows to the baby rat creature, whom he has affectionately named "Bartleby." The rat creatures are largely the enemy and have killed friendly animals in the forest. Instead of prejudicing the baby rat creature as a monster like the rest, Smiley takes him as he is, a cuddly baby. Naive, perhaps, but that compassion continues to be the paradox through the running line of this story. Other animals orphaned by rat creatures are less able to welcome in Bartleby, though eventually they begin to judge him on his own merits.

There are many humorous, laugh out loud moments in Rock Jaw. I especially liked the interactions with the two patrolling rat creatures. These two are so silly, that they off-set the darker, more disturbing parts of the story. It is commented on a couple of times that they have eaten Roderick the raccoon's parents, though this is never shown.


First Point to Ponder:

A medallion falls out of Fone Bone's bag pack and scares the cloud of "evil" locusts away. Fone Bone explains that the talisman is part of the local belief system related to dreaming, which Gran'ma Ben and Thorn participate in.

"You mean it's a religion?" Smiley asks.
"It's a religion for Gran'ma Ben and Thorn!"

The animals explain that dreaming is a human thing, and that they believe in something called "hum-hum"--the "hum of the earth." This is how they are able to learn to walk, talk or find food for themselves. The animals then talk about feeling the "hum-hum" near the ancient temple.

The hum-hum makes the whole group of bones and orphan animals hallucinate and see something that is not really there. They realize the power of the locusts, which has caused the dreaming. It is the locusts that have put Kingdok (king of the rat creatures) under its spell. A religious "man of dreams" who controls the locusts is Kingdok's advisor, and he is forcing Kingdok to follow him out of fear caused by the dreaming.


Second Point to Ponder:


Roque Ja argues that happiness is "just an emotion that can be induced" but the only thing of "substance" that matters is "power."

Possum argues: "What about good and evil?"

Roque Ja: "Bah! There is no good and evil. What is evil to you depends on what side you are on. What is good to you is evil to the rat creatures, and vice versa."

Beaver: "It's not true!"

Roque Ja: "Isn't it, my little orphan? Do you think the sun cares if your momma and poppa were eaten by rat creatures? It doesn't. The sun will set tonight and rise again tomorrow whether you and I are here or not. Anything these miserable wretches do is utterly insignificant. There is no good or evil... only nature. And in nature, the only thing that matters is power!"

Fone and Smiley look shocked.

Raccoon: "You're wrong, Mr. Rock Jaw! There's other stuff that matters! Like friendship and trust!"

Roque Ja: "Friendship and trust are merely earthbound sentiments that only lead to trouble. Trust no one. That's my motto."


Roque Ja puts forward a convincing (and contemporary) argument about the absence of good and evil and its replacement with the power-slave struggle. Raccoon's quip about friendship and trust throws Roque Ja's argument to the wind. The cat's weak response "trust no one" tells the mature reader which is the right argument to follow.

What a great moment of depth.

Review: Bone #4 The Dragonslayer

Bone # 4: The Dragonslayer adds maturity to the Bone series like The Goblet of Fire adds maturity to the Harry Potter series. Dragonslayer is better than its predecessors, the pace is faster, but there is an exponential increase in violence.

Of course, the amount of violence is appropriate to a certain age level. For that reason after having read this book, I would not recommend the series to a child under 9 (Grade 4).

Plot Summary:

Phoncible P. Bone, Fone Bone's conniving cousin, has convinced the town that he is their only hope against the red dragon. Meanwhile, Thorn, Grandma Ben, and Fone Bone escape the farm and head to the town for safety. They are intercepted by none other than Kingdok, the king of the rat creatures. Thorn cuts off Kingdok's arm (the scene is rather graphic). All are saved, and mostly unhurt, though Fone Bone is bleeding from his head. Grandma Ben tells Thorn that she is the "awakened one" and prophecies a terrible path ahead of her. Grandma Ben disappears. Thorn and Fone Bone return to the town and smuggle in a baby rat creature that they have found. Thorn is afflicted by dreams, through which the dark enemy is trying to reach her. The "dragonslayer", Phoncible, is forced to go catch his dragon. The whole town leaves to witness the slaying, and they actually catch a dragon, but Thorn releases it. Down below, they suddenly see that their town is being attacked.

Mature Aspects:

-Thorn cuts off Kingdok's arm
-Fone's bloody cut
-Fone inspects Kingdok's arm, which lies unattached and bleeding
-The enemy meetings--hooded figure, locusts, rat creatures--could be compared to an orc scene in the Lord of the Rings

I liked:

-The run of the plot
-The bravery of the characters (Thorn, Fone Bone, Grandma Ben)
-The suspense and the buildup to the next book

Review: The 6th Grade Nickname Game by Gordon Korman

"The 6th Grade Nickname Game" was checked out by a student in one of my "struggling reader" classes and that piqued my interest. The book starts at a running pace and carries you through with the momentum of plot build-up, character development, and suspense. 

Two friends, like brothers, have a knack for giving their fellow students (and teachers) nicknames. 

(spoiler alert): 

I thought that the moral of the story would be that nicknaming is unjust stereotyping, but Korman cleverly twists the theme into a more positive light. I have never seen an author more compassionately regard his main characters. Jeff and Wiley are a lot of trouble, but are portrayed as playful, well-intentioned, and still in the process of growing up.

The only strong moral consequence to their nicknaming is that it backfires on them in a funny, endearing way. One boy, who dislikes his own nickname "Snoopy," argues that you can make any name stick if you say it often enough. He then dares the nicknaming duo to prove their ability by making an unfitting nickname for someone. Snoopy chooses a boy who is so uninteresting that Jeff and Wiley feel stuck, but finally they agree on the "Iceman."

As the story progresses, both boys are forced to test their friendship for the first time when they both fall in love with a girl named Cassandra. In the end, Cassandra doesn't choose either of them for the Sadie Hawkin's Dance, but chooses... the Iceman--who has gone from being an uninteresting, unpopular boy to the "coolest" boy in the school, thanks to his new nickname.

Snoopy wins his bet, but decides in the end to keep his name. I was surprised at this, but on the positive side it is meant to show that Snoopy begins to accept himself as he is--and I felt a little strange about that choice. He could have gotten a new name that still meant something similar, but more positive, like "Sleuth." 

This book does a great job portraying how quickly you can change the perception of someone by stereotyping and prejudicing, but what a great way to show this through humour. 

Great story, quick read, funny, life lessons, and great plot development. I thoroughly enjoyed this story.

Great for: boys and girls 10-12

Best Books for Girls 9-12

My original post prepared for this blog "Best Books for Girls 9-12" has been published by Mercatornet and can be accessed here.

Review: The Spyglass

This children's book attracted me first because of its beautiful illustrations, but the story itself is very moving.

There are two neighbouring kingdoms, one rich and one poor. One day an old man goes to visit the poor kingdom and stays at the king's castle, which is in shambles. In exchange for the visit, the old man gives the king a spyglass. With it he can look out on his ruined fields and weeds and see "what could be"--prosperity and beauty.

The king wonders what use such a thing would be to him, but quickly he discovers once you envision a change, you can make it happen.

As he passes the spyglass from villager to villager, amazing things happen to the kingdom.

The moral of the story is that the poor kingdom was not lacking in anything that the rich kingdom had, except for faith.

Beautiful images, a touching story, my 7-8 year old students loved it!

Review: Nancy Drew and Hardy Boy Graphic Novels

This is a 21-st century version, Manga-style, of the Nancy Drew series. All the stories are new, and so are the gadgets. It's a great idea on the cover, but the content of these books is wanting. 

My first contention with the books (I want to say as usual) is the scandalously clad main character in #5, #18, #17. The style is certainly manga-Japanese, but with numerous shots of cleavage, innapropriate dress, Nancy Drew is a bit mature looking for the 9-12 year old students in my libraries. 

Passable:

- #8 - Global Warning: I like the theme of this book, a mystery that relates to the environment and teaches about the effects of global warming. 

-#7 - The Charmed Bracelet: Nancy's boyfriend Ned is put into suspicion for stealing a camera, but really to blame is a friendly kleptomaniac, who's trying to help solve bigger problems. 

-#16 - What Goes Up... Nancy shows bravery and courage as she leads a group of bandits out of danger through a mountain pass.

Papercutz is an American publisher for graphic novels and issued this series beginning in 2005. Papercutz is an imprint of NBM (Nantier Beall Minoustchine Publishing Inc.) which also publishes erotic materials. Papercutz seeks to publish only family-friendly material, but I do not agree that Nancy Drew and Hardy Boys graphic novels are always family friendly. I do, however, enjoy some of their publications, for example, the Geronimo Stilton graphic novel series.

The Hardy Boys graphic novel by Papercutz does a poorer job of portraying women than the Nancy Drew graphic novel series. I have found all of the books in the Hardy Boys series contain inappropriate images.

Review: Bone #3 Eyes of the Storm

In Brief:

Bone #3 picks up the story and the excitement again that was left in Bone # 1. We have some exciting plot twists and strong subplots that develop the characters of Thorn and Gran'ma Ben. There are also a few laugh out loud moments.

Areas of Contention:

-Showy pictures of Thorn: Her dress is sometimes has trouble covering her completely, at the beginning too low at the top, later, so short that it is more of a shirt. Fone Bone tries to write her a love poem and wants to find something to rhyme with "smooth brown thighs."

-Scenes in the bar: depictions of drinking, no characters get drunk.

-Inappropriate Language: Lucius says "You two better not crap around like this th' whole way to Barrelhaven"

Review of "Because of Winn-Dixie"

This is a heart-warming read with short, quick chapters. Each of the  mini-chapters holds a small episode so that the story moves along quickly and enjoyably with every sitting.

Opal, the main character, is an endearing protagonist who asks honest questions about life's difficult situations. Her mother is an alcoholic who has abandoned her and her father, who is a preacher. Though this story is about loss and "letting go"--it is exactly this "letting go" that leads the characters to acceptance and to rediscovering hope.

The other characters are sketched as tongue-in-cheek caricatures: for example her father "the preacher" is often referred to as a "turtle" who "likes to hide in his shell." These characterizations reflect young Opal's impressions of people: "pinched-face Amanda" soon becomes "less pinch-faced" as Opal comes to sympathize with her.

With the help of the dog Winn-Dixie, Opal makes friends with secluded people and draws other characters, who once appeared snobbish or bullied her, into her circle of friends. It's a lesson about people's first impressions as much as it is about finding compassion for them once we get to know them.

There are so many things that I liked about this story, but the main reason why it touched me was that it shows that happiness and sadness can live together. They can be all mixed together and tasting sweet, just like a Littmus Lozenge.

Children will enjoy the caricature-characters, the silly Winn-Dixie, the quick pace of the plot, and of course, the ending.

This book would appeal to readers aged 9-13 for girls, and 9-11 for boys, especially if it is read out loud.

Kate DiCamillo is also the author of The Tale of Desperaux and The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane.

Review of Bone # 2 : "The Great Cow Race"

The first book of this series, Out From Boneville, which I reviewed recently, was a fast-paced, exciting read with lots of action and intriguing plot lines. In comparison, "The Great Cow Race" runs at a turtle's pace and allows little plot surprise.

The story is good enough for mild entertainment, and keeps readers interested in continuing the series, which I certainly was. I think my students approach it like another episode in a TV series, it just moves the whole plot forward, slightly.

As for plot content:

- Phoney Bone tricks all the villagers into placing a false bet on a "mystery cow" so that he can make great wins at the town cow race. He gets his due reward by losing heavily and being kicked out of the town.

-Fone Bone continues to be in love with Thorn, and begins writing her love poetry.

Mature aspects:

-Thorn flirts with a young man who is more interested in showing off his muscles than wearing a shirt. He eventually brushes Thorn aside for another girl. The scenes are very mild, and meant to be slightly humorous. (Fone Bone is compared to the young, muscular man).

-Other parents have complained that some characters are smoking in the story (the dragon smokes a cigar), that some scenes occur in a bar, and that characters engage in gambling. My response is that the main characters, Fone and Thorn, do not engage in these activities. In some ways, the dragon "smoking" is meant to be an off-hand joke. The scenes that occur in the bar are contextual; there are no restaurants in Boneville, and the main characters--Fone and Thorn--are shown eating and drinking tea. Phoney Bone's gambling always proves itself disastrous, so its presence is more moral than than condoning.

My only true complaint with the series so far are the subtle sexual innuendos, the suggestion of Thorn being attractive because of her sexual appeal. I think the flashes of too much skin takes away from her strength of character and demeans her. It would be better if (boys) reading the story could admire her for her.
  

Review Bone # 1 : Out From Boneville

"Bone: Out From Boneville" was a quick and easy read that had an amusing plot line and great graphics.

This series is extremely popular with my elementary aged students, especially G. 2-7 boys,  some girls are also interested in the series. Its popularity stands next to the Amulet series, which has more female followers.

I liked all the characters, especially the moral "Fone Bone", who is the main character. He plays foil to his friends Smiley Bone and Phoney Bone, who are often up to no good.

What is he? That was also a question I had in mind. Jeff Smith originally drew his characters with a telephone receiver as reference. These eventually developed into the
"bones" we see today. Though exactly what they are is not really relevant.

My main hesitation with the story is Fone Bone's romantic interest in Thorn, a human girl. There are several showy images of her legs, and one a slight show of her breasts, as her clothes are titillatingly ripped off by rat creatures. At another moment, she invites Fone Bone to go bathing with her and it's implied that she is naked, but he willingly jumps into the pond with her and swallows the soap. It's a little bit weird, but it's meant to come off as funny because he is well, a small strange creature, and she is a regular human being. There is one image that is too showy, though, in my opinion, and it almost makes me hesitate to recommend the book to young boys because of the focus on Thorn's body.  

The evil rat creatures are frightening looking, but their funny dialogue off-sets their grotesque appearance, making them seem mostly ridiculous.

All in all, I enjoyed it. It's unfortunate for the one image, or else I would wholeheartedly recommend it.

Review: Percy Jackson: The Lightning Thief

I just finished reading my first book from the Percy Jackson series. Entertaining at times, predictable at most (from an adult's perspective), but it's definitely an accessible read for G.5-9 readers.

Great issues dealt with: ADHD, dyslexia. The main character has these disabilities, and although they do provide some difficulty for him in succeeding with his mission, they don't impede him, or let him feel like he is not good enough to complete the task.

Not so great issues dealt with: marital problems. Although I can imagine a G. 5-9 reader would skip over this part, Percy's mother's relationship with "Smelly Gabe" is dysfunctional and unconvincing. The argument is that she must live with "Smelly Gabe" in order to protect Percy from being detected by monsters. But I think the real reason is entertainment value; Gabe is basically a comical relief punching bag. Percy's mother "kills" him in the end, though a close reader might miss this (she petrifies him by showing him Medusa's head). Problematic on some levels.

Writing Style is quick, focused, witty, and fast-paced. The plot was forgivingly predictable because I was not bored as I was reading, even though I knew what was going to happen. The characters are well-developed and Percy is so well-shaped I felt like I could meet him.

Thematic issues: to present the Greek gods as gods, Riordan had to come up with some clever ways of incorporating them into our Western culture, while remaining politically correct. The Greek religion is presented as something "older" than Christianity (he compares the Greek sign to the sign of the cross). The Greek religion does, however, supersede Christianity since Percy prays only to his father-greek god for help.

When the main characters arrive in the underworld, Percy expects to find the pearly gates, but the underworld looks more like "a cross between airport security and the Jersey Turnpike." As a Christian reader, I always hesitate about any re-interpretation of the Greek underworld. Objectively, it is simply not heaven, and cannot be since it is ruled by Hades, who is generally described as evil, and not God, who is good. So it is difficult to attempt to compromise, as Riordan does, the two world views. But he manages to find a way:

"But if he's a preacher," I said, "and he believes in a dif-ferent hell... ."
 Grover shrugged. "Who says he's seeing this place the way we're seeing it? Humans see what they want to see. You're very stubborn—er, persistent, that way."

The answer is that some humans "see" a different heaven or hell according to their beliefs. In this way, Riordan accommodates all worldviews of the underworld. All, except, those who disagree with relativism (which is everyone who has a belief).

My feelings about the book are mixed, but I will keep it on the shelf. It's a fun adventure that is engaging, imaginative, and fun to read. It doesn't offer much more than that in terms of life lessons or virtues.


Favourite quote:

"The River Styx," Annabeth murmured. "It's so ..."
 "Polluted," Charon said. "For thousands of years, you humans have been throwing in everything as you come across—hopes, dreams, wishes that never came true. Irresponsible waste management, if you ask me."

Storybooks about Art and Artists

Laurence Anholt's picture book series, "Anholt Artists," tells the stories of art and artists from a child's perspective. In his "The Magical Garden of Claude Monet", we follow Julie as she visits Monet's enchanting garden. The story is based off a real Julie who frequently visited with her dog, "Louie." 

Julie was the daughter of great impressionist Berthe Morisot, and niece of Edouard Manet. And her pet dog was a gift from another famous impressionist, Renoir.

The illustrations of the book mix interpretations of scences from Monet's life, with real presentations of his paintings. There is one spectacular fold-out centre-piece that depicts Monet's lily pond--it garnered a real wow from the students!

Check out the other books in the series:

Leonardo Da Vinci

Edgar Degas

Pablo Picasso

Vincent Van Gogh

Anholt Artists website: http://www.anholt.co.uk/anholts-artists/

Books for Easter

A recent article in Maclean's confirmed for me the need to read religious and spiritual books to children. In "The Science is in: God is the Answer" Brian Bethune and Genna Buck cite a study that claims children (whether atheist or religious) feel a need to belong to something larger than themselves. A spiritual connection helps children through the tougher times of life, that is, adolescence! They claim adolescent teens are more at risk for depression than other demographics.

Long story short: if you are Christian, take advantage of Easter to read some Christian texts. Kids love bible stories. 

Here are some favourites:

K-2 Reading level

These are simple, quick bible stories that are written in an engaging way.

There is dialogue and lots of action!

Boys really like stories about the Old Testament. They couldn't believe the story about Daniel in the Lions' Den and were eager to take out the book.

This is a great Easter fable that follows the story of Simon of Cyrene.

G. 1-3

This one is not specifically Christian, but it has a great message of stewardship and generosity.

Also, beautiful images by Patricia Polacco!

G. 3-4

The Medieval World

Medieval worlds haven't ceased to tickle the imagination, especially Medieval-esque worlds, like Frozen. Here are some of my favourite medieval "worlds."

Midnight Magic

AVI


I must have picked this up as a young student because I was looking for a romance, but the story is certainly more of a mystery. If you know AVI, you know that his endings always beg a longer conclusion, but his stories are so engaging that it almost doesn't matter.

Reading Level: G. 5 and up

Knight at Dawn

Mary Pope-Osborne

The Magic Tree House series has continued to be immensely popular among emerging readers for obvious reasons.

First, the writing style. Mary Pope-Osborne keeps short sentences and reduces the text on the page. She asks questions first and answers them later.

Second, the content: who wouldn't be intrigued by finding a secret tree house that opens doors to other worlds? There are so many imaginative possibilities here.

Third: there is a larger story that binds all the smaller stories together that gets kids hooked on reading them all.

Reading Level: G. 3 and under

Ella Enchanted

Gail Carson Levine


 This classic that was made into a movie is considerably less popular today than it has been, but it's still a great read and wow, Newberry Honor!

Gail Carson Levine has a quick, easy way of writing that lets you enter the story fairly quickly. The characters are mostly predictable, but if you have a student looking for a romance, this is a great story.

Reading Level G. 4 and up










If we want a rendition of Cinderella, my personal favourite is....




Just Ella

Margaret Peterson Haddix

Definitely this is a more mature version of the story, but there is nothing in the book that is innapropriate for younger readers. Margaret Peterson Haddix weaves a convincing, compelling, and very convincing story that leads you on a more emotional ride than Levine's Ella Enchanted. I think for this reason, that it has more "adult sentimentality" that I give it an older rating.

Haddix is also just a brilliant writer!

Reading Level G. 7 and up

Ancient Civilizations

Did you ever wish as a child that you could travel back in time to Ancient Egypt or Greece?

Children's imaginations today still sparkle when you tell them about how Egyptians were mummified, Roman gladiators fought, and Greek temples were built. And there is so much more to tell about the ancient world: samurai warriors in Japan, forbidden silk secrets in China, and the haunting empire of the Aztecs.

Here's some great books for 10-12 year olds that read like a story book--with a quick pace, dialogue and even great pictures:

This is such a fun and intriguing way to learn about the Aztecs. It's extremely informative, but also riveting at the
same time! The students were really into it as I read the excerpt. The book in length is like a short novel, but there are
a number of photos and artful renditions of events.
By Shelley Tanaka

Follow the events of this great historical disaster with a young
boy named Eros. Real photos of artifacts are also shown.
By Shelley Tanaka

"The room is dark, even though it is early
afternoon. Heavy curtains have been
pulled across the tall windows, blocking
out light and noise from the busy city
street outside...The guests are waiting,
their voices hushed."
Excerpt from book, by Shelley Tanaka 

This series follows two modern characters as they
get lost in different historical periods!
By Linda Bailey

 

Reading for Science: Space

I am a firm believer that the primary purpose of library time should be about expanding the imagination, not teaching information. However, I am a big lover of learning.

So here's my compromise:

"The library is a place for love of reading and independent learning."

Let's face it, the library is the only unstructured learning environment in the school!


Even so, it's still not usually very interesting to read a non-fiction book out loud to classes. Better, I will read through the non-fiction text on my own, and then give the students a guided reading, speaking ad-lib about the subject and pointing out the pretty pictures.

My theme of the week is accompanied by a display table with a number of topical books, non-fiction and fiction. It's not enough to leave the books there. I find the most effective way of encouraging children to try new books is to take the first step myself . So I give a short phrase about a few of the books, and then open some up (some kids are hesitant to do this!) I find this introduction is enough of a hook to have a few kids crowding around the table to check the books out for themselves.


Read-alouds should be either interesting, or fun, or both. Even a simple, easy-to-read book like, "Going Around the Sun: Some Planetary Fun" is enough of an appetizer to get some students interested about bringing a book home about space.

This book by Marianne Berkes and illustrated by Janeen Mason gives some information, but the rhyming made it a great favourite with my kindergarten and Gr. 1 classes. The kids enjoyed counting along with me too as we named each planet.

Here's an example of a page from the book:

 

Great Books for Literacy Week

There are some fun grammar books like "To Root, to Toot, to Parachute" by Brian P. Cleary that reads like a fun rhyming story.

Students can read the book to each other and then make up a list of verbs on their own.

One activity you can do is set up stations with one of these books at each table: verbs, adjectives, adverbs, pronouns.

In small groups, the students move from one table to the next, reading the book and then making a list.

The students have 5 minutes at each table, and its a competition to see which group can come up with the greatest list of words at each table.

I had a Gr. 5/6 class that really enjoyed this activity!

My Gr. 1/2 class were surprised when I read them this book by Jo Ellen Bogart:

Not very many students know that there are people in the world who cannot read or have not gone to school. "Jeremiah Learns to Read" was very eye-opening for them.

Here is a more modern version of "Jeremiah Learns to Read." What a great way to open children's minds to situations in our world today:

This book can be bought through Scholastic!