Stay by Bobbie Pyron

In Stay 11-year-old Piper Trudeau's family has recently become homeless. The story begins with the family moving into a homeless shelter in a new city. While her parents look for work, Piper must adjust to life without a home...standing in line to receive meals, sharing a bed with her younger brother Dylan, riding the "homeless" bus to her new school. One of the things she misses most about her former life is her Firefly Troop, the girl scout troop she belonged to back home.

Things begin to look up for the Trudeau family when they are accepted into a family shelter that sponsors Firefly Troop 423. Finally Piper is able to make friends who understand her situation because they are in the same situation themselves. She also begins to notice and even befriend some of the homeless people around the city, many of whom have pets. In particular, she befriends a little dog named Baby who lives in the park with his owner Jewel. One horrible day Baby and Jewel get
separated, and Piper realizes she must be the one to reunite them.

I like how the author tells her story by alternating between Piper's perspective and Baby's perspective because that helps the reader truly empathize with both characters. I also appreciate how Piper's experience with homelessness opens my eyes to the fact that people become homeless for a lot of different reasons, any one of us could become homeless during our life time, and whether we have a home or not, ALL people are worthy of love and respect.

I recommend this touching book about a compassionate hero to dog-loving students 4th grade and up.

Mrs. N.

A Bear Named Bjorn by Delphine Perret

A Bear Named Bjorn is a collection of stories originally published in France. (Of course, the text has been translated into English!) Readers will immediately notice the unusual colored pages of this book; they are mint green instead of the usual white. The only other color used is black for the line drawings included on each page. This book reminds me of both the Little Bear book series by Else Holmelund Minarik and the Winnie the Pooh stories by A.A. Milne. Each chapter is a separate story involving the same characters, Bjorn and his woodland friends. My favorite story, "Nothing," follows a day in the life of Bjorn. "Not much happens in a bear's life," the story begins, "Often Bjorn does nothing at all. But he's never bored." 

I recommend this story collection to young readers ready to take a small step into the world of chapter books. A Bear Named Bjorn has six brief, fully illustrated chapters that invite children to imagine what it might be like to live life as a bear.

Mrs. N.

We Could Be Heroes by Margaret Finnegan

We Could Be Heroes tells the story of two wanna-be heroes: 4th graders Hank Hudson and Maisie Huang. Hank is a quiet, rock-loving boy with autism, and Maisie is a bossy, dog-loving girl with epilepsy. Maisie charges into Hank's life with a mission to save Booler, her next-door neighbor's Rottweiler. Like Maisie, Booler has epilepsy. Because of his seizures, his owner keeps him chained to a tree in his backyard. Maisie is determined to set him free, but she needs Hank's help. And so the adventure begins.

Author Margaret Finnegan's spot-on portrayal of autism and epilepsy are based on her own daughter's experiences living with both. This book's theme of friendship and the concept that "different is not less" make for a sweet and satisfying read that is especially appropriate for 3rd - 4th grade readers. I recommend it to students who enjoy heart-warming adventures and who love dogs.

Mrs. N.

The Pigeon HAS to Go to School! by Mo Willems

As most of my young students know, I love Mo Willems! His illustrations are simple and easy to draw, his text is perfect for beginning readers, and his stories are funny. The Pigeon HAS to Go to School! is the latest in Mo's Pigeon series, which began with the beloved Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus! (By the way, that book was inducted in the Picture Book Hall of Fame!)

In this story Pigeon is pitching a fit about not wanting to start school. As the reader soon realizes Pigeon is really afraid...afraid his teachers won't like him, afraid he will not be able to learn everything, and afraid he won't know what to expect. The thing that finally turns the whole situation around is when Pigeon discovers that he will go to school on a bus! What a perfect ending that takes readers right back to the beginning of the delightful Pigeon series.

I recommend this book to early readers who either love or want to discover Mo Willems's Pigeon series. I also think teachers would enjoy reading the book aloud at the beginning of the school year because Pigeon is not the only one who gets stressed out starting back to school.

Mrs N.

Gross As A Snot Otter by Jess Keating

The subtitle for Gross As A Snot Otter is Discovering the World's Most Disgusting Animals. It is another addition to author Jess Keating and illustrator David DeGrand's "The World of Weird Animals" series.

Each disgusting animal featured in this nonfiction book is given a two-page spread. One page is a color photograph of the animal, and the opposite page is an explanation of the creature's most odd and disgusting traits. A column of facts is also provided, which includes names the animal is known as, size, diet, habitat, and threats. While choosing a grossest animal is difficult, I would have to say the Surinam Toad freaked me out the most. The male basically plants the female's eggs onto her back. where her skin grows around them as protection. The toadlets hatch by punching through their mother's skin, approximately 100 at a time. EWWW!

I recommend this book to students with an interest in animals, a strong stomach, and an appetite for learning new things they can use to gross out their friends and family.

Note: While the book is full of photographs and cartoon illustrations, younger readers will need assistance reading it.

Mrs. N.

Smell My Foot! by Cece Bell

My first Cece Bell book was El Deafo, an Newbery Honor book in the graphic novel section of our library. Smell My Foot! is the first in Bell's Chick and Brain series, and it was selected as one of this year's Geisel Award Honor books. It is an early reader book divided into four chapters. The writing is simple and repetitive, perfect for students beginning to read on their own!

Chick is, as you might have assumed, a young chicken. Chick is obsessed with good manners and insists that everyone use them all the time. Brain is a human who wears nothing but boxer shorts. Brain appears rather dimwitted on the surface but is actually smarter than you think. This story, which also involves a dog named Spot, is sure to make you laugh! Young fans of graphic novel style will enjoy the clear, colorful illustrations, which are divided into panels like a comic book.

I recommend Smell My Foot! to early readers who like a good laugh.

Mrs. N.

This Is Not That Kind Of Book by Christopher Healy

Most readers develop preferences for certain genres (or types) of books. For example, I like to read realistic fiction the most, but I also enjoy a bit of light fantasy and even some nonfiction too. In This Is Not That Kind Of Book author Christopher Healy plays with mixing different types of books together. The story's characters are each from a different type of book (alphabet book, fairy tale, joke book, and so on), and they are on a mission to discover exactly what type of book they are in. What they discover is that there are no rules or limitations to a writer's imagination.

I recommend this book to lower grade students who enjoy reading humorous picture books. I also think teachers could make good use of this story when introducing the topic of literary genres.

Mrs. N.

Douglas by Randy Cecil

Douglas is the illustrated story of a mouse who lives in a movie theater and survives on popcorn people drop when they miss their mouths. One day she takes a nap in the pocket of a young girl's sweater and finds herself away from home for the first time in her life. (In case you think I've made a mistake; I haven't. Douglas is indeed a female mouse!) In her quest to return home, Douglas faces many obstacles (hungry street cats for one) and makes a new friend.

While this book may appear lengthy for a young reader, it is actually written more like a picture book with illustrations on every page and limited text. Cecil breaks his story into four acts which are subdivided into very short chapters. I recommend this book to young readers who are ready for beginning chapter books and who appreciate quirky but beautiful illustration work.

Note: Randy Cecil's book Lucy comes before this book and is considered a companion book. I have added it to our library wish list!

Mrs. N.

White Bird by R.J. Palacio

For those of you who liked the book Wonder, R. J. Palacio continues the theme of kindness in her new book White Bird.  Besides theme, the only thing White Bird has in common with the Wonder story is the character Julian. (As you may remember Julian is the main kid who bullies Auggie Pullman.)

At the beginning of the story Julian "Facetimes" his Grandmere (grandmother) who lives in France. He needs her help with a school project. From that point on, the story is narrated by Grandmere. She tells Julian the fascinating story of her survival as a Jew in Nazi-occupied France. The story also beautifully explains how Julian got his name.

I was surprised to discover that this amazing graphic novel was both written and illustrated by R. J. Palacio. The tale Grandmere tells, while fictional, is based on much research of real events that occurred in WWII France.

I recommend this book to students in 4th-6th grades. You will especially enjoy it if you have a little background knowledge about WWII and are interested in that time period. Because it is a graphic novel, I found it quick and easy to read. This was also because the story is so interesting that I had a difficult time putting it down.

Mrs. N.