vol. 2, no. 1, page 3
RING!  YO? by Chris Raschka.  Dorling Kindersley Publishing Co, 2000.  Ages 4 to 7.
I despaired of reading this book to a class.  It consists of inscrutable 1- and 2-word responses from one end of a phone conversation.  At the back of the book, one possible account of both sides of the conversation is given.  It turns out the caller is angry that his friend has chosen to play with someone the caller hates.  Before the conversation is over, however, he changes his mind about rejecting his friend, and all is well.
I was going to mention this book without "kid checking" it but, like the boy in the story, I changed my mind.  Without input, I would have to be negative, and that didn't seem fair.  So I hit upon an idea.
I read the one-sided conversation to a class of first-graders.  Then, when it came to the repeat at the end, with both sides represented, I had the librarian read with me, giving the other half of the conversation.
The kids loved it.  I even let one of them give the initial "ring!" that started the whole thing off.  And because the text is so easy, even quite young children can read the brief side of the conversation, with a parent contributing the fuller part.  Or two slightly older kids can take turns playing the two parts, with a toddler sibling possibly supplying the "ring!"
AMELIA AND ELEANOR GO FOR A RIDE by Pam Munoz Ryan, ill. by Brian Selznick.  Scholastic Press, 1999.  Ages 4 to 12.
I had my doubts about this one, too.  It's about an evening that friends Amelia Earhart and Eleanor Roosevelt actually spent together.  After dinner at the White House, the two women decide to go for a flight over Washington D.C.  On their return, Eleanor takes Amelia out for a spin in her new roadster.
The car ride was made up and thrown in by the author to show the similarities between these two adventuresome women who were so willing to flaunt convention.  This was not the only liberty the author took with the historical record, but most of the details are authentic, from the dinner menu--a recipe is included for "pink clouds on angel food cake", Eleanor's favorite dessert--to the wallpaper design the illustrator supplied after careful research.
The artwork consists of flamboyant black-and-white line drawings, some of them with purple highlights. . .and they are breathtaking.  They really give a feel for the starry intimacy of a night flight in a small plane, the overpowering panorama of nighttime Washington from the air, the masses of spring cherry blossoms in our nation's capital.  A photo from the actual flight is included in the author's note at the end.
I was afraid some of the students--especially the boys--would be bored by this book, but all of the third-graders I read it to enjoyed it.
MARY GEDDY'S DAY--A COLONIAL GIRL IN WILLIAMSBURG by Kate Waters, photos by Russ Kendall.  Scholastic Press, 1999.  This book is also about real people, and the day on which it takes place--May 15, 1776--is a real page from history.  It is the day the Virginia Colony voted on the question of independence.
It is photographed in Colonial Williamsburg, with the title role played by a nine-year-old girl who now works as an interpreter in the house of the family in the story.  The narrative and pictures not only give a good idea of what daily life was like for the family of a late 18th Century tradesman--complete with slaves; they also give a good idea of the excitement of that momentous day in our country's history, and the heartbreak of separation for friends whose families were on different sides of the fence, with many loyalist families returning to England as a result of the vote for independence.
An interesting bit of information I learned from looking at the photos is that coins could be cut into halves or wedges to yield smaller values.  I also learned that some people used a 24-letter alphabet, with "i" and "v" serving for "j" and "u", as we see in Latin inscriptions.
Again, I wasn't sure the story would hold the interest of the students, especially the boys.  But I read it to a class of fifth-graders and they all liked it.  The boys, of course, liked the booming of the guns that announced the results of the voting.


DOLL BABY by Eve Bunting, ill. by Catherine Stock.  Clarion Books, 2000.  Ages 8 to 14.  The easy print and abundant illustrations make this look like a book for younger children, but the subject matter is clearly aimed at pre-adolescent and adolescent girls.  The intent is to show the realities of teenage motherhood.  The text is not preachy and it does a good job of conveying the ambivalence of a too-young mother as she experiences the impacts of what she has done.
ULTIMATE X-MEN by Peter Sanderson.  Dorling Kindersley, 2000.  Ages 8-adult.  This encyclopedic work looks like a great reference for comic book aficionados.  With index, it comes to 176 pages, and it's packed with glossy color illustrations.  Nostalgiaville for Marvel Comics fans.  I'm a little out of my element here, but I can tell you that it is frequently checked out of our intermediate school library.
The title does not lie.  This book is so crude I would probably not read it to anyone--and I am not known for my delicacy and refinement.  This does not mean I wouldn't recommend it, however.  It is, believe it or not, a science book.  So if you want to get the attention of kids who are into flatulence, excrement and sweaty socks, and have them learn scientific facts while grossing out their friends, this is the book to get.
THE TRULY TASTELESS SCRATCH & SNIFF BOOK by Andrew Donkin, ill. by Dan Green & Matt Denny.  Funfax (Covent Garden Books), 2000.  Ages 6 to 15.
Well, after that, what more is there to be said???
The rest of these are for older kids, and I did not read them to anyone, but they're worth a look.  (I can't always control what publishers send me.)