Amal Unbound by Aisha Saeed

Quotable Quote (and maybe one of my most favorite EVER):  Without books, what was there to look forward to?

Amal Unbound by Aisha Saeed tells the story of a young girl in Pakistan who loves reading and learning and dreams of becoming a teacher.  When she accidentally insults a ruling member of her village, she is forced into servitude to work at the estate of the man she insulted.  With promises from her family that it will only be for a short time, Amal quickly realizes that returning to her home may not be as simple as her family had hoped.  Faced with giving up on all of her own dreams, Amal must navigate this new world full of new people and new experiences.

I am so excited to share this story with my fourth graders next year.  As the world becomes a smaller and smaller place, it is very important that we provide more opportunities for ALL of our students to see themselves, their families, and their cultures represented in legitimate realistic ways.  Ms. Saeed has crafted a story of hope, forgiveness, perseverance, family, and honor--a story that will connect to all students no matter their culture.  What a perfect mirror and window this book is for readers of all ages! 

The Wild Robot Escapes by Peter Brown

Having discovered and fallen in love with The Wild Robot when it was first published in 2016, this school year marked the second time I began my year with it as a read aloud.  Just like last year, my students fell in love with Roz, Brightbill, Chitchat, and all the other characters from the story.  This year was a little different, however, because my students knew that a sequel would be released before the end of this school year.  I can't tell you how many times I was asked about the release date.  Countdowns were conducted, and I was made to promise that I would not read it beforehand, but, instead, experience it firsthand with them (Thank you, Peter Brown, for giving me the opportunity to show students my "ugly cry").

As Roz attempts to make her way back to her beloved "family" and island, we meet a cast of characters that help to create an adventure unlike any other--some characters want to help, some characters want to destroy, but all play a crucial role in this lovely story.  Any fan of The Wild Robot will definitely not be disappointed in The Wild Robot Escapes.

As one of my students said during the read aloud, "How can he make us feel so much about a robot and a goose?"  I don't know, I really don't know, but he does.  I found myself with tears rolling down my cheeks as we read the last few chapters.  I am touched and will hold this story dear to my heart.

Several students have asked me if I think there will be a sequel.  Many students say there doesn't need to be one.  If there is one, I will relish in the continued tale.  If there isn't, I'm good.

Thank you, Peter Brown, for making us feel so much about a robot and a goose.

Good Dog by Dan Gemeinhart

                                                       

Quotable Quotes (too many to include all of them):  "...and you think you're alone, just for a few sleepy blinks, but then you realize that your mom is there, and she's looking at you, and she loves you, and you understand that you were never really alone at all?  That's what it feels like."
"He knew that sometimes just waiting and listening is the best kind of helping you can do."
"Because promises are funny things.  They stay the same, even when everything around them changes.  And when that happens, sometimes they get forgotten.  And a forgotten promise isn't exactly the same thing as a broken promise."
"Our souls don't just stay with us, _______.  They live in the ones we love, too.  And they live in the ones who love us."
"Here's what I don't get:  how the world can be so dark when there are hearts as heroic and souls as bright as Brodie's in it."

As I type the above quotes, I have tears rolling down my cheeks.  This book, this story, this experience...I didn't want it to end.  When Brodie finds himself in the afterlife, he can only think of one thing--getting back to the boy he left behind.  Through Brodie's courage, love, and devotion, we witness a truly "good dog" trying to return to earth to rescue his boy from danger.  As he makes his way back, he is joined by Tuck, a dog that himself was never able to move on, and Patsy, a cat with a dark secret.  These three will need to trust, sacrifice, and persevere to overcome what lies in their path.

If he is reading this blog, Dan Gemeinhart may be a little tired of me gushing about him this year; however, since reading Some Kind of Courage to them during the fall, my students have been obsessed with everything he has ever written .  They have been counting down the days until the release of Good Dog and have even mapped out our read alouds until the end of the year to make sure we read it--The Wild Robot Escapes by Peter Brown, The Care and Feeding of a Pet Black Hole by Michelle Cuevas, and Good Dog.  I am not at all sure that I can read this book aloud to them--I literally sat at my son's wrestling tournament today and sobbed as I finished the story!

Thank you once again, Dan Gemeinhart, for your wonderful storytelling.  You are a master of words, and it is my honor to share your work with my students. Now, will someone please pass me the tissues???

The Way to Bea by Kat Yeh

Quotable Quotes

"But then I guess you never really know what happens next.  You can only do the best you can while you're in the moment."

"...the more you walk down a path, the more you start to feel that you can probably handle whatever it is you find at the end."

"...don't think being scared should stop you from something--big and important."

"...it's not worth it to be with people who make you feel like you can't say what you want to say.  Or be the way you want to be."

"You can't wait for someone who isn't going to be there for you."

"...every path is as new as the day you walk it."

"I'm the only one who gets to walk my path..."

Recommended for anyone who has ever felt left behind or different or unseen or human

When Bea finds herself losing her friend group, she retreats and questions everything about herself.  As the new poetry director of the school newspaper, she meets new people and discovers that maybe, just maybe, she is enough, just by being her true self.

This story...these characters...I know these characters...they walk through the doorway of my classroom every single day.  The Beas who suddenly find themselves on the outskirts of friendships they've had "forever", trying to figure out what happened, what went wrong, and how to repair it.  The Briggs filled with positivity and light and energy--willing to help and stand up and be themselves.  The Wills never quite fitting in, staying in their own world, sensitive to everything and everyone around them.  The S's feeling pulled between two worlds and not really being sure where they belong, trying to circumnavigate many different roles, losing themselves.

The Way to Bea by Kat Yeh is a true mirror to children--no, not just children--humans everywhere.  I see so much of myself in Bea.  In elementary school, I went to a different school EVERY year--with each move, I had to decide who and how I was going to be--sometimes I could just be my quirky, strange self; other times I became someone whom I didn't recognize.  How many of us as adults still struggle with this???

Thank you, Kat Yeh, for your honesty and beautiful words.  I can't wait to put this into the hands of the Beas, Briggs, Wills, and S's of the world.

Now, if you will excuse me, I need to go download a few songs from Bea's playlist. Ch-ch-ch-ch-changes...

A Whisper of Horses by Zillah Bethell

Before I begin raving about this book, I must first share a little information about how I came to know about it.  I will start off my saying that Dan Gemeinhart has somehow become my fourth grade classes' "spirit animal" this year.  After reading Some Kind of Courage aloud to my students, they have become somewhat obsessed with him.  At least once a week someone asks me if I have heard whether or not Some Kind of Courage is going to be made into a movie or have a sequel AND when he will write more books (I have since added both The Honest Truth and Scar Island to my classroom library, AND we are not so patiently awaiting Good Dog).  With every writing minilesson I present, students refer to Dan Gemeinhart's writing as "perfect examples" of the concept--no matter what the concept seems to be.  With all this being said, when I saw a Twitter recommendation for this book by him, I knew I had to add it to my collection.  To say I was not disappointed is an understatement.

Recommended for those who enjoy stories of dystopia, adventure, and friendship

A Whisper of Horses by Zillah Bethell is a dystopian novel written for middle grades.  Serendipity lives in a walled city where people have been separated into very unequal classes.  When Seren's mom dies, she finds herself in possession of a map that she believes shows the last place on earth where horses still exist.  Her journey to find this place is an adventure that introduces Seren to new places, new people, and may just help her find her place in the world.

The cast of characters in this book are so well developed that they lingered with me even when the book was closed, and I continued to wonder about them after the final page.  Ms. Bethell has accomplished something truly amazing in that even though the main character is a girl, both boys and girls will want to read this book (I can testify to this based on what is going on in my classroom).

It is quite difficult for me to believe that this is Ms. Bethell's first children's book.  What a fresh voice for children's literature!

P.S.  I have already purchased her next book, The Extraordinary Colors of Auden Dare.  

Zinnia and the Bees by Danielle Davis

Note:  I received a copy of this book in an author sponsored giveaway on Twitter.

Zinnia is having a very bad day.  First, her "yarn bombing" prank goes awry, then her brother disappears, and, to top it all off, bees move into her hair! As she deals with one problem after another, she learns the true meaning of friendship, trust, and home.  

This clever story is told intermittently through Zinnia's voice and the voice of Bee 641 who is in charge of finding a new home when an accident forces (or allows) her bee family to find a new hive.  It is witty, clever, and just really, really good.

I don't knit, but I feel the need to learn how to do so in order to create some of my own "yarn bombs".

Congratulations, Danielle Davis, on this wonderful debut novel.  I can't wait to not only share Zinnia's and Bee 641's story with my students, but to also see what you produce next.