Mrs. C’s Magnificent March Suggested Book List 2010 Add Some Reading Excitement to your Spring!

1. Mrs. C’s Magnificent March Suggested Book List 2010 Add Some Reading Excitement to your Spring!

2. What’s the book for you? Here are some ideas to help you find a book. Genres are different kinds of stories….what interests you? • Do you like stories about people who seem like you? Who are dealing with real situations? Try realistic fiction. • Do you prefer stories with characters like you but have situations that could not happen in real life? Maybe something magical or unreal . Try modern fantasy. • How about stories that bring history to life, where characters are in historical settings telling their story. Try historical fiction. • How about books that talk about the real world and real people? Try informational books or biographies. • Do you like to read about other cultures and other countries? Try multicultural fiction. • Ever immersed yourself into poetry or a play? The following is a list of a variety of books from all of these areas of interest. I hope that you can find something that interests you.

3. Fiction Books The Book Thief By Markus Zusak • This story is set in Germany during WWII. After a chance encounter, Death becomes interested in the book thief, Liesel Meminger. He calls her “the book thief” because he sees her steal a dropped book from a graveyard. Death sees her twice more throughout her life and is able to fill in the blanks when he retrieves her autobiography after a bombing in her neighborhood. This is her story, and the stories of those close to her, who are the non-Jewish Germans who were not committed to the Nazis during the 1930s & 40’s. • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Markus_Zusak • Mark Zusak interview: http://www.amazon.com/gp/mpd/permalink/mUOAETYM6B5OC

4. Hoot by Carl Hiaasen • Roy’s the new kid in town or in Coconut Grove, FL. So the well-known school bully, Dana Matherson decides to give Roy a hard time. Then again, if Dana hadn’t been sinking his thumbs into Roy’s temples and mashing his face against the school-bus window, Roy might never have spotted the running boy. And then he would not have met Beatrice. Curiosity getting the best of him, Roy goes looking for the running boy. The chase introduces him to potty-trained alligators, a fake-fart champion, some burrowing owls, a renegade eco-avenger, and several extremely poisonous snakes with unnaturally sparkling tails. Maybe he doesn’t miss Montana as much as he used to. • http://www.carlhiaasen.com/books.html

5. No More Dead Dogs By Gordon Korman • Nobody understands Wallace Wallace. This reluctant school football hero has been suspended from the team for writing an unfavorable book report of Old Shep, My Pal. But Wallace won't tell a lie — he hated every minute of the book! Why does the dog in every classic novel have to croak at the end? After refusing to do a rewrite, his English teacher, who happens to be directing the school play Old Shep, My Pal, forces him go to the rehearsals as punishment. Although Wallace doesn't change his mind, he does end up changing the play into a rock-and-roll rendition, complete with Rollerblades and a moped! • http://gordonkorman.com/

6. Realistic Fiction Pictures of Hollis Woods by Patricia Reilly Giff • A story of a twelve year old foster girl who has a tendency to run away from her current home whenever there is tension and arguing. She sees herself as a mountain of trouble. Her pictures are a diary of her life and tell her story. After leaving the family that wants her to become a member of their family Hollis goes to the quirky artistic Josie. Something happens where Hollis needs to run again and this time take Josie with her to a special place. • http://www.randomhouse.com/features/patriciareillygiff/patriciagiff.htm

7. Monster By Walter Dean Myers • "Monster" is what the prosecutor called 16-year-old Steve Harmon for his supposed role in the fatal shooting of a convenience-store owner. But was Steve really the lookout who gave the "all clear" to the murderer, or was he just in the wrong place at the wrong time? The reader becomes both juror and witness during the trial of Steve's life. The story is told in a movie script format. • http://www.walterdeanmyers.net/

8. Seedfolks by Paul Fleischman Each chapter tells part of a story about people in an inner city neighborhood. It begins with the simple action of a young girl and how this act changes a community and the individuals in it. In this case, a young girl missing her father plants some beans in his honor. This sparks those in the neighborhood to join in. They create a community garden plot and in the process grow their own relationships and add value to their home lives. It is heartwarming and inspirational. Try also, Whirligig by Paul Fleischman http://www.paulfleischman.net/

9. Modern Fantasy The Giver by Lois Lowry • Jonas's world is perfect. Everything is under control. There is no war or fear of pain. However, there is also an absence of choice. Every person is assigned a role (job) within the community, and everyone must comply with the rules of their given role as-well-as with the rules of the community. When Jonas turns 12 he is singled out to receive special training from The Giver. The Giver alone holds the memories of the true pain and pleasure of life. Now, it is time for Jonas to receive the truth. Jonas is suddenly faced with the concept of choice, and he must make a decision between right and wrong. Once this is done, there is no turning back. • http://loislowry.com/

10. Historical Fiction Out of the Dust by Karen Hesse • This historical fiction novel (a Newberry winner) is written in verse and tells the story of Billie Jo, a girl living on a wheat farm in Oklahoma during the Dust Bowl years. Along with the normal hardships of the time and place, Billie Jo suffers an accident that changes her relationship with those around her and with herself. Through the short verses, readers witness her recovery from the accident and the simultaneous return of rain to the family wheat fields. • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Karen_Hesse • Another recommended verse style books is Locomotion by J. Woodson

11. Bat 6 by Virginia Euwer Wolff (Portland Author) • This story is set in post-World War II Oregon. The story is about sixth grade girls from rival towns who are preparing for the 50th annual Bat 6 softball game. Two of the players--a Japanese American who spent the war in an internment camp and a girl whose father was killed at Pearl Harbor--collide with tragic results on the day of the big game. In each chapter a different girl from one team talk and give their perspective on things happening around them. • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Virginia_Euwer_Wolff

12. Graphic Novels American Born Chinese by Gene Luen Yang • This powerful graphic novel begins by telling three unrelated stories: one the Chinese fable of the Monkey King, one a sitcom style story about an extreme Chinese stereotyped character who ruins his white cousin’s social status, and the third about Jin Wang, an American-born Chinese student and his life at school. The three stories connect in a surprising way and in the process, illustrate the life of a student who is not part of the dominant culture in the United States struggling with his identity. The story looks at identity, culture, fitting in, and staying true to one’s self. A very effective book as a graphic novel. • http://www.humblecomics.com/comics.htm

13. Persepolis: The Story of a childhood by Marjane Strapi • It is a wise, funny, and heartbreaking memoir of growing up in Iran during the Islamic Revolution. Persepolis's is a coming of age story in a very difficult time. The reader finds that the author was not so different than other young girls who are trying to find their way and grow up. Very eye-opening and real. The Graphic Novel format shows the authors work in a realistic and intriguing way • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marjane_Satrapi

14. Multicultural 145th Street: Short Stories By Walter Dean Myers First Part Last By Angela Johnson • A book of ten short stories of the people who live on 145th street in Harlem. The characters are captured by the author in an honest and very human way. Easy to read chapters that pull you into their lives. • http://www.walterdeanmyers.net/ • Bobby is a teenage boy who finds out on his 16th birthday that he is going to become a father. His life of hanging with friends, school, parties, and normal teenage life is changed forever. He struggles with trying to do the right thing. Then finds that he is in love with his baby daughter. A powerful look at the male side of teen pregnancy. • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Angela_Johnson_(writer)

15. Information Books We Are The Ship: The story of Negro League Baseball by Kadir Nelson This is a story of the Negro Baseball League. It tells of the athletes and their stories. There is discrimination, segregation, and the affects of these conditions on these men who wanted to play baseball. The author shares the rich history of the league from the 1920's through it's eventual decline. Who Was First? Discovering the Americas by Russell Freedman This book questions who was really the first to discover the Americas. The old belief that Christopher Columbus discovered America in 1492 is rebuffed with new evidence that there were others long before the European explorers.

16. Poetry Walking on the Boundaries of Change: Poems of Transition by Sara Holbrook Wonderful poetry that relates to emotions and to what it feels like to be young. That Sweet Diamond: Baseball Poems By Paul B. Janeczko A fun anthology of baseball poems that touch on themes from players, umpires and fans all with the spirit of the game.