A Big Guy Took My Ball!

Willems, M. (2013). A big guy took my ball!. New York: Hyperion Books for Children.

About the Book

Elephant and Piggie are great friends. Elephants name is Gerald. Piggie tells Gerald about a big ball he has found. Then he complains that someone took the ball from him. Piggie becomes very emotional. Gerald gets all worked up and sets out to stand up for his friend. Until he realizes the guy who took the ball is a "big guy." The whale has the ball and is sad because no one will play with him. Piggie and Gerald decide to make friends and have a fun time playing whale ball.

El Deafo

Bell, C. (2014). El deafo. New York: Abrams.

About the Book

El Deafo is a Newberry Honor Winner and a Kirkus Prize Finalist. The graphic novel is about a little girl who gets sick at the age of 4 and becomes deaf. The little girl is the author and she tells her childhood story through a bunny. Her feelings about what it was like to grow up with a disabilities is portrayed in the book. CeCe pretends to be a super hero with super hearing powers, which puts a unique twist on this autobiographical novel.. 

Similarities and Differences to Love That Dog, Brown Girl Dreaming, Wonderstruck

What makes El Deafo different? -  Autobiography about the author growing up deaf.
Written in the form of a graphic novel with a super hero bunny.

     What are some similarities between the 4 books? - All four books have won multiple literary awards. The audience for all the books is the middle grades, 3-8. Each books premise is based on real world issues (realistic fiction)

What might appeal to a reader in “your library”?

A reader in my library might like: That it is a graphic novel. That is an autobiography. That it incorporates a super hero rabbit. That it is about a child who is different from them, or similar to them (a deaf child). 

How would you sell these books?  I would make a display of graphic novels in the library and include this book. I would ask kids who have read it to write me a short blurb about how it made them feel or what it made them think about. Creating a book review board.

Brown Girl Dreaming

Woodson, J. (2014). Brown girl dreaming. New York: Penguin.

About the Book

Jacqueline Woodson tells the story of her childhood from her perspective during the Civil Rights movement. She tells about her time in Ohio, South Carolina, and Brooklyn, New York. Throughout the book you learn that she always wanted to be a writer of poetry, even though learning how to read was a struggle for her. She has written the book in poetic verse, which provides a different twist on the Biography format which tells the story in a fast passed entertaining way.

Similarities and Differences to El Deafo, Love That Dog, Wonderstruck

What makes Brown Girl Dreaming different? -   Autobiography of the authors childhood experiences during the civil rights movements. Written in verse poetry.

     What are some similarities between the 4 books? - All four books have won multiple literary awards. The audience for all the books is the middle grades, 3-8. Each books premise is based on real world issues (realistic fiction)

What might appeal to a reader in “your library”?

A reader in my library might like: That it is about an African American girl. That the book is about the author’s childhood.  That it is written in verse, which is not very common for Biographies. That it takes place during the Civil Rights movement in the South. The Setting is in the South and New York City.

How would you sell these books?   Setting up a display on Biography’s and including this book and several others on people from many different backgrounds. Students studying American history of the Civil Rights movement could be encouraged to read a personal account from that time period. Making a display on book winners for the Coretta Scott King Honor Books in February for Black history month.

Love That Dog

Creech, S. (2001). Love that dog. NY: HarperCollins.

About the Book

Love that Dog is written in poetic verse. A boy named Jack is writing back and forth with his teacher. He begins the book hating poetry and writing very simple poems about his dog. Over the course of the book he begins to really appreciate the art of poetry and attempts to write his own. He is also eager to meet a real live poet and invites his favorite to come speak at his school.

Similarities and Differences to El Deafo, Brown Girl Dreaming, Wonderstruck

What makes Love That Dog different? - Written as a series of free-verse poems.

A boy struggles with an understanding poetry and becomes a poet by the end.

     What are some similarities between the 4 books? - All four books have won multiple literary awards. The audience for all the books is the middle grades, 3-8. Each books premise is based on real world issues (realistic fiction)

What might appeal to a reader in “your library”?

A reader in my library might like: The Novel is written in poetic verse. The silly poems are about the dog. The real feelings the boy expresses in his poems to his teacher. That it is a short book.

How would you sell these books? I would display it during a poetry display/unit. I would encourage reluctant readers/struggling readers to give it a try. Let them know that the text of the story is written in short simple poems, which is very different from most fiction books.

Wonderstruck

Selznick, B. (2007). Wonderstruck. NY: Scholastic.

About the Book

Ben recently lost his mother. He was living with his Aunt and Uncle, when one night he returned to his home and was struck by lightning through the phone. He never knew his father and decided to set out to find him in New York City. Running parallel with his story is the illustrated story of a deaf girl from 40 years earlier. During Ben's adventure he makes a friend and makes new discoveries. He comes to learn that the his grandmother is the deaf girl whose story runs parallel to his through pictures. In the end he is able to find out who his father was and learn about his extended family.

Similarities and Differences to El Deafo, Brown Girl Dreaming, Love That Dog

What makes Wonderstruck different? - Two stories woven together. The book is written in two formats, one traditional words and the other illustrations. About a boy dealing with the loss of his parents and his hearing.

     What are some similarities between the 4 books? -   All four books have won multiple literary awards. The audience for all the books is the middle grades, 3-8. Each books premise is based on real world issues (realistic fiction)

What might appeal to a reader in “your library”?

A reader in my library might like: That it is a different format than most fiction books, with the pictures telling a parallel story to the text part.That it is by the same author as Hugo Cabret. A struggling reader might like that they were able to read a big book with a lot of pages and it did not take them forever. A student who is struggling with a death of a parent might like make connections with the main character Ben.

How would you sell these books?

Making a display highlighting specific books written by Selznick. Some readers are encouraged to read more books by the same author if they enjoyed one of that authors books. Asking the art teacher to contribute by utilizing the style that the illustrator is using to portray the story. Allowing students to tinker around with the technique. In the library an illustration station could be set up with different illustrators and their books displayed for the students to practice the techniques