tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2862290299279388252024-03-05T13:58:42.526-05:00Comics in the Classroom - Kids' Book CornerCitChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03600126697399941891noreply@blogger.comBlogger33125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-286229029927938825.post-4796884377886829372010-07-23T08:29:00.005-04:002010-07-23T08:39:16.044-04:00Binky to the Rescue: A Mariah and Dad ReviewReview by <a href="mailto:comicsintheclassroom@gmail.com">Scott Tingley</a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvAAeyelkbqW09uw0KYM7fVVClOf3gRXYnhH6ywe3qHUrFImFXtfYO5xRNLFEnuvtJym2l8iYo_EDmevkOwmSZHCgmJ8W5NiEelu3RNOnS1T8ugk-VINqr3NpHI_K29CJOP8tWbXXaI-ow/s1600/binky_rescue1.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 194px; height: 253px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvAAeyelkbqW09uw0KYM7fVVClOf3gRXYnhH6ywe3qHUrFImFXtfYO5xRNLFEnuvtJym2l8iYo_EDmevkOwmSZHCgmJ8W5NiEelu3RNOnS1T8ugk-VINqr3NpHI_K29CJOP8tWbXXaI-ow/s320/binky_rescue1.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5497078542127419202" border="0" /></a><br />Actual conversation from tonight's bedtime: <a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvAAeyelkbqW09uw0KYM7fVVClOf3gRXYnhH6ywe3qHUrFImFXtfYO5xRNLFEnuvtJym2l8iYo_EDmevkOwmSZHCgmJ8W5NiEelu3RNOnS1T8ugk-VINqr3NpHI_K29CJOP8tWbXXaI-ow/s1600/binky_rescue1.jpg"></a><blockquote> <blockquote> <p><strong>Dad </strong> (me): I've got a new book for us to read tonight.</p> <p><strong>Mariah </strong> (daughter, age 5): <span style="font-weight: bold;">It's </span><a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://comicsintheclassroom.net/2009/reviews/binky.htm" target="_blank"><strong>another Binky book</strong></a><span style="font-weight: bold;">? Yay!</span></p> <p style="font-weight: bold;">We have the Space one where he always tooted (farted).</p> <p style="font-weight: bold;">Yeah…(sigh)...funny.</p> <p>Actual comment while reading the book:</p> <p><strong>Mariah </strong>: <span style="font-weight: bold;">“Human Litter Room, ” giggle, hahaha….giggle.</span></p> <p>Actual comment after reading the book:</p> <p><strong>Mariah </strong>: <span style="font-weight: bold;">I really like Binky books. </span></p> <p><strong>Dad</strong>: What was your favourite part?</p> <p><strong>Mariah</strong>: <span style="font-weight: bold;">The tooting. No.....when Binky saves Ted....and the tooting.</span></p> </blockquote> </blockquote> <p>Actual synopsis quoted directly from the publisher's website regarding <strong>Binky to the Rescue </strong>by <strong> Ashley Spires </strong>:</p> <p>While in hot pursuit of an alien invader (a bug), Binky accidentally falls out the space station porthole (bathroom window) and finds himself in outer space (outside) for the very first time. But just as Binky begins to explore, he discovers that his copilot, Ted (stuffed mousie), is trapped beneath an enemy warship (wasps' nest)! Binky must rescue Ted from the clutches of these evil aliens. Will he be able to save his best friend? Can Ted survive his ordeal? Does Binky still suffer from space gas? <strong><a href="http://www.kidscanpress.com/Canada/Binky-to-the-Rescue-P5934.aspx" target="_blank">KidsCanPress.com</a></strong></p> <p>The art is very nice and there are just enough words. Have you tried reading a comic to your kid at bedtime? Some of them can be very wordy, but <strong>Binky to the Rescue </strong>, and <strong>Binky the Space Cat </strong>, contain just the words necessary and will not make you want to hide the book away thus eliminating future readings (don't look at me that way – you know exactly what I am talking about. That <strong>Care Bears </strong> book that never seems to end didn't just walk away on its own). That isn't to say that the book is an unchallenging “Easy Reader”. The age recommended by the publisher is 7 to 10, but I think some of the vocabulary leans more towards 10 than 7. “Collateral damage”, “relentless pursuit”: great stuff. If you are going to read it to a child, I would get this for aged 3 and up.</p> <p>Ashley Spires has gone 2 for 2 in the “Can we read it again” category with her two Binky books and my kids and I are eagerly awaiting number three. This one won't be available for you until September 2010. Keep your eyes peeled, or pre-order it <a href="http://www.amazon.ca/Binky-Rescue-Ashley-Spires/dp/1554535026" target="_blank"><strong>here</strong></a>. </p> <p>Grades: 2 to 5<br />Ages: 7 to 10<br /><br />© 2010<br />4-color • 6 1/2 x 8 1/2 • 64 pages </p> <p>Hardcover </p> <p>978-1-55453-502-6 </p> <p>Paperback </p> <p>978-1-55453-597-2</p> <p>Hardcover<br />CAD $16.95</p> <p>Paperback<br />CAD $8.95<br /></p><p>Be sure to visit us at <a href="http://comicsintheclassroom.net/">comicsintheclassroom.net </a>for all-ages comic reviews, news and interviews.<br /><br />If you would like to submit your book for review, please contact us at <a href="mailto:comicsintheclassroom@gmail.com">comicsintheclassroom@gmail.com</a><br /><br />NEW! Check out my new/first webcomic: The Chess Comic<span style="font-size:130%;"><a href="http://www.thechesscomic.com/"><img style="margin: 0px 10px 10px 0px; width: 320px; float: left; height: 95px;" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFT83LENQFiWLL4T9Su2XjpXDTSSCrSrrfkydj1duWGrpS2d231bGmwmbqPG6xWobVhCf69bVpmM9FsgnNHu5F42Q1mfoMt_I3wAl9q1kGC0T1iiM5grmforcoC_an3A517Fo7AfvYVGOK/s320/banner2black_small.jpg" border="0" /></a></span></p><p><br /></p>CitChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03600126697399941891noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-286229029927938825.post-26431797537725140532010-02-14T19:57:00.002-05:002010-02-14T20:06:58.960-05:00Cousteau, Koufax and a Mouse: Comics in the Classroom Kids' Book Podcast<object classid="clsid:d27cdb6e-ae6d-11cf-96b8-444553540000" codebase="http://fpdownload.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=8,0,0,0" width="335" height="28" id="divplaylist"><param name="movie" value="http://www.divshare.com/flash/playlist?myId=10464809-729"><embed src="http://www.divshare.com/flash/playlist?myId=10464809-729" width="335" height="28" name="divplaylist" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" pluginspage="http://www.macromedia.com/go/getflashplayer"></embed></object><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzJjcvAQjUnblJouaU03epVplj-ROGCkiR7lNcS_6Oi9fOd5348nepkt4gQ9dkfb0rxBelZ5QM4cjpqoJHLjnytEt1jTg-2dR-ton74VmhPIQv02FGMGe7Imu3g-DuwRK3dHyyqq6-EwGL/s1600-h/littlemouse_book_big.gif"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 221px; height: 162px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzJjcvAQjUnblJouaU03epVplj-ROGCkiR7lNcS_6Oi9fOd5348nepkt4gQ9dkfb0rxBelZ5QM4cjpqoJHLjnytEt1jTg-2dR-ton74VmhPIQv02FGMGe7Imu3g-DuwRK3dHyyqq6-EwGL/s320/littlemouse_book_big.gif" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5437692009629579026" /></a><br /><br />Welcome to our second Comics in the Classroo podcast - our first focusing on kids books. I focused on some kids books that I had put off for far too long. Two of them are biographies with amazing art: The Fantastic Undersea Life of Jacques Cousteau and You Never Heard of Sandy Koufax?!. Then I change gears and review a book for younger readers (k-2), Little Mouse Gets Ready.<br /><br />Hope you hear something useful to you.<br /><br />Thanks,<br />Scott Tingley<br />_______________<br />Also, check out:<br /><br />The main site: <a href="http://comicsintheclassroom.net/"></a><br /><br /><a href="http://www.thechesscomic.com/">The Chess Comic</a> :<br /><br />And, my new site for the comics I create for - and about my kids: <a href="http://wefightrobots.blogspot.com/">We Fight Robots!</a>CitChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03600126697399941891noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-286229029927938825.post-40024944043072325612009-11-11T21:27:00.004-05:002009-11-11T21:48:40.414-05:00Proud as a Peacock, Brave as a Lion: A Remembrance Day Review<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAqNbArzIDC28Q9yxV5r6cTik-vCbXa_IyUVpjmu3oqeU1KkM7_Yq3qXjamjPlHXD7hUTB6B-ei2_5pbFOZmETyQ4TciA1ciDOP8Y7oD3D-c3cdymp7TmOP2ViC9oVS-bwJ9uRHpJy2kPT/s1600-h/proudasapeacock.jpg"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 200px; FLOAT: left; HEIGHT: 246px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5403042455013931250" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAqNbArzIDC28Q9yxV5r6cTik-vCbXa_IyUVpjmu3oqeU1KkM7_Yq3qXjamjPlHXD7hUTB6B-ei2_5pbFOZmETyQ4TciA1ciDOP8Y7oD3D-c3cdymp7TmOP2ViC9oVS-bwJ9uRHpJy2kPT/s320/proudasapeacock.jpg" /></a> Review by <a href="mailto:comicsintheclassroom@gmail.com">Scott Tingley </a><br /><br />“I really like this book.” -said by “K” in my grade 3 class this morning.<br /><br />There are a few Remembrance Day type books on the market aimed at Elementary aged school children - strong, well written and illustrated books that lend themselves to further research and writing projects. Books like <a href="http://comicsintheclassroomkidsbooks.blogspot.com/2008/10/remembrance-day-flower-story-not-about.html">this </a>and <a href="http://store02.prostores.com/servlet/cyberboutique/the-1730/In-Flander%E2%80%99s-Field-cln--The/Detail">this </a>are excellent examples of this and I recommend them highly.<br /><br />On the other hand, sometimes you are just looking for a book you can read to kids that will help explain what this whole Remembrance Day / Veteran’s Day thing is all about without having a lot of extra information. Sometimes you just want the story to speak for itself.<br /><br />Well, here it is: <strong>Proud as a Peacock, Brave as a Lion</strong>.<br /><br />This book is what many of us elementary teachers end up scrounging around for at the beginning of November: a well written and illustrated book that you can read to any of the age and sensitivity ranges that you find in elementary schools.<br /><br />The writer, <strong>Jane Barclay</strong> has done a great job of bringing out the feelings of war in a safe, but touching and real way. She focuses on the feelings and experiences of one WWII veteran but through this one man, the feelings and experiences of Veterans from many wars, past and present, can be felt. She uses similes brilliantly to help explain a difficult subject. Also, artist <strong>Renné Benoit</strong> brings out the imagination and memories of the book’s two principal characters in subtle and touching ways. The art completely fits the tone and feel of the story – very nice work.<br /><br /><em>As questions come from a young grandchild, his grandpa talks about how, as a very young man, he was as proud as a peacock in uniform, busy as a beaver on his Atlantic crossing, and brave as a lion charging into battle. Soon, the old man’s room is filled with an imaginary menagerie as the child thinks about different aspects of wartime. But as he pins medals on his grandpa’s blazer and receives his own red poppy in return, the mood becomes more somber.<br /><br />Outside, the crowd gathered for the veterans’ parade grows as quiet as a mouse, while men and women — old and young — march past in the rain. A trumpet plays and Grandpa lays a wreath in memory of his lost friend. Just then, the child imagines an elephant in the mist. “Elephants never forget,” he whispers to his grandpa. “Then let’s be elephants,” says the old man, as he wipes water from his eyes and takes his grandson’s hand. (From mcclelland.com)<br /></em><br /><br />While reading <strong>Proud as a Peacock, Brave as a Lion </strong>my own wife was brought to tears remembering what her own paternal grandfather shared with her and thinking of what her maternal grandfather would not. When she first read it, she came to me and couldn’t stop talking about it.<br /><br />I actually work with the writer’s sister (a fact I discovered when talking about a book I had to read to my daughter every night, which turned out to be <a href="http://www.flipkart.com/cold-jane-barclay-janice-donato/1894222032-k1x3f30rsc">one of her other books</a>) and she gets teary every time she reads it.<br /><br />If you are a teacher who has to deal with Remembrance Day / Veteran’s Day at all, then this is really a book you want to pick up and put on the shelf for next year. I think it would help Middle and High School students really understand why a teen would rush off to war.<br /><br />If you are a parent, this is a book that may help when your child comes asking difficult questions about the images seen on the news.<br /><br />I read a lot of new children’s books every year, and this is one I want to see news reports about and, and on special displays in bookstores and being pushed by Scholastic.<br /><br /><br />___<br /><br />Be sure to visit us at comicsintheclassroom.net for all-ages comic reviews, news and interviews.<br /><br />If you would like to submit your book for review, please contact us at comicsintheclassroom@gmail.com<br /><br />NEW! Check out my new/first webcomic: <a href="http://www.thechesscomic.com/">The Chess Comic</a>CitChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03600126697399941891noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-286229029927938825.post-6907302121072823042009-10-04T20:17:00.002-04:002009-10-04T20:32:15.379-04:00Binky The Space Cat: Protecting the World One Alien/Bug at a Time<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhks9mtVTZZv1bQ6TuiHOJft9KFg_umXOm5FC4EF-aFOlvKYQd13CWjB033WeN1vWmRqw753Z5FfCThGQfugFwruZ6hhuThT5ps1EgmjUpyycrnZV2RwxdIg9oEF2MFCXZjriLQRaH_Q-QA/s1600-h/binky.jpg"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 200px; FLOAT: left; HEIGHT: 259px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5388906914025492882" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhks9mtVTZZv1bQ6TuiHOJft9KFg_umXOm5FC4EF-aFOlvKYQd13CWjB033WeN1vWmRqw753Z5FfCThGQfugFwruZ6hhuThT5ps1EgmjUpyycrnZV2RwxdIg9oEF2MFCXZjriLQRaH_Q-QA/s320/binky.jpg" /></a> Review by <a href="mailto:comicsintheclassroom@gmail.com">Scott Tingley<br /></a><br />Now That’s Funny.<br /><br />I’m not sure if the book will actually turn out to be funny, but I am thirteen pages into Binky the Space Cat by Ashley Spires and I am amused. We meet Binky (the cat…pay attention) as he gets his Space Cat Certification in the mail. Now, I’ve been staring at the cover of this book for a couple of months and I assumed that it would be a space adventure comic/kids book – a reasonable assumption considering it has the words space and cat together in the title. While that could have been fun, the concept for this book is better than that. See, Binky is an indoor cat – his house is his space station and the outdoors is “outer space” (naturally).<br /><br />That’s funny.<br /><br />Hang on – I have to finish the book….There. Done.<br /><br />Okay, I’ve finished the book, and it stayed funny all the way through. Not only is Binky on his way to becoming a space explorer, he is already something of a superhero in his own house. See, he is vigilant in protecting his humans from aliens! Aliens = bugs, but he is not sure why his humans haven’t figure this out yet.<br /><br />If you have an aversion to comics (although, if you did you probably would have stopped reading by now) just forget I mentioned that it was a comic. It looks a lot like a traditional kid’s book, with text instead of word balloons (for the most part), but the pictures are presented in a way that moves the story on – the sequential art tells the story along with the words in a way that straight storybooks rarely do. It makes the book hard to read to a large group of kids, but it makes it delightful to read to a kid or two snuggled around you on the couch.<br /><br />Ashley Spires does a fine job with her first comic/graphic novel/storybook. The art is quirky and fun (hard-hitting journalism there) her writing is funny and clever, and she skillfully includes cat-tooting, cat poop, and a coughed up hairball in ways that will be hilarious to the book’s intended audience (6 years old or so, with some assistance, to 9 or 10 years old) and inoffensive to the suppliers of the book (YOU). Nicely done, Ashley.<br /><br />If you get and like this book, I would recommend another Kids Can Press book, Skaredy Squirrel. It is in between a traditional kids book and Binky in the way the story is presented – less comic, more storybook, but I think they would go well together.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.kidscanpress.com/US/Product.aspx?productId=3150">Binky the Space Cat</a><br />Fountas & Pinnell Reading level: N<br />Grade Level: 3<br />Hardcover<br />978-1-55453-309-1<br />Paperback<br />978-1-55453-419-7<br /><br />BTW, Kids Can Press has just become my favourite publisher for the fact that they include the Fountas & Pinnell reading levels. This can make planning guided reading lessons a lot easier. The teacher part of me thanks you.<br /><br />___<br /><br />Be sure to visit us at <a href="http://comicsintheclassroom.net/">comicsintheclassroom.net </a>for all-ages comic reviews, news and interviews.<br /><br />If you would like to submit your book for review, please contact us at <a href="mailto:comicsintheclassroom@gmail.com">comicsintheclassroom@gmail.com</a><br /><br />NEW! Check out my new/first webcomic: The Chess Comic<a href="http://www.thechesscomic.com/"><img style="MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; FLOAT: left; HEIGHT: 95px; CURSOR: hand" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFT83LENQFiWLL4T9Su2XjpXDTSSCrSrrfkydj1duWGrpS2d231bGmwmbqPG6xWobVhCf69bVpmM9FsgnNHu5F42Q1mfoMt_I3wAl9q1kGC0T1iiM5grmforcoC_an3A517Fo7AfvYVGOK/s320/banner2black_small.jpg" /></a><br /><br /><div></div>CitChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03600126697399941891noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-286229029927938825.post-74834748159853375712009-09-01T21:52:00.004-04:002009-09-01T22:05:37.563-04:00Things You May Not Know About Johnny Boo & the Happy Apples<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGKfAZfh_PSOUdFVfezGMPxoXHu91naOuoZ0Yxd96pS7zDyNM6-NKP8OhxjBhT1J6hNyunEfm96mnFwyOt8S3wEGdbrfQRFjdV8wXcygnx_5UgvWP9ICn-_fMDuclXC03qLA_VupXm6p5W/s1600-h/johnnyboo3.gif"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 150px; height: 225px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGKfAZfh_PSOUdFVfezGMPxoXHu91naOuoZ0Yxd96pS7zDyNM6-NKP8OhxjBhT1J6hNyunEfm96mnFwyOt8S3wEGdbrfQRFjdV8wXcygnx_5UgvWP9ICn-_fMDuclXC03qLA_VupXm6p5W/s320/johnnyboo3.gif" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5376684608680770594" /></a><br />Review by Scott Tingley, September 01, 2009<br /><br />Things I learned from reading Johnny Boo & the Happy Apples:<br /><br />1. Eating too much ice cream makes your muscles floopy.<br /><br />2. Eating apples makes you strong.<br /><br />3. Apples come from trees.<br /><br />4. Wednesdays are SCARY.<br /><br />5. Ice Cream Monsters are not to be trusted – no matter what day of the week it is.<br /><br />6. Monsters have magic tummies, but it is undetermined whether they have satelite or basic cable.<br /><br />7. Johnny Boo & the Happy Apples is a comic story written and drawn by a professional cartoonist (James Kochalka) in a way that makes it read like it was actually written by a very clever six year old. No self-respecting grownup would ever create a book as awesomely silly and fun this.<br /><br />8. My own kids (4 ½ and 2 ½ ) thought it was silly (which means good).<br /><br />9. I (Scott Tingley) am actually quoted (from a review I did on book 1) on the promotional literature provided by the publisher – on the same sheet of paper as a quote from BOOKLIST and from DJ Lance Rock from Yo Gabba Gabba. Very nice - that's a keeper.<br /><br />10. Johnny Boo & the Happy Apples (Book 3), out now, is a full color hardcover comic (6”x9”), costs 9.95 (a good price compared to other kid's storybooks) and is published by Top Shelf Productions (publisher of great kids graphic novels/comics like: SpiralBound, Grampa and Julie: Shark Hunters and Owly).<br /><br />Things I already knew about Johnny Boo:<br /><br />1. Boys in my grade three class last year really liked Johnny Boo (book 1): The Best Little Ghost in the World.<br /><br />2. They liked the short story in 2008's Top Shelf Free Comic Book Day issue<br /><br />3. They will like this one as well.<br /><br />4. This newest book (book 3) and the other two are perfect for about ages 4-9. My little girl wasn't crazy about the Ice Cream Monster loosing his cool and eating Johnny Boo and his pet ghost Squiggle, but since it all ends silly she was okay with it. Some 9yr olds might feel too cool for the cartoony art, but the cool kids in my grade three class liked it – so there.<br /><br />5. James Kochalka is awesome. My class wrote to him a couple years ago and he wrote back. Very nice indeed.<br /><br />6. It costs $9.95 (US), it's ISBN # is 978-1-60309-041-4, and you can see a preview and order it <a href="http://www.topshelfcomix.com/catalog.php?type=12&title=644">HERE</a>.<br /><br />Note: Johnny Boo says “what the heck?” once. Thought you might want to know.<br /><br />Be sure to visit us at <a href="http://comicsintheclassroom.net/">comicsintheclassroom.net </a>for all-ages comic reviews, news and interviews. <br /><br />If you would like to submit your book for review, please contact us at comicsintheclassroom@gmail.com<br /><br />NEW! Check out my new/first webcomic: <a href="http://www.thechesscomic.com/">The Chess Comic </a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhRUF-kSmBAXzNv8dj1RDJkpaqOR7VQu_oIzHgXcOWKAeAjIaHQGY4psY5qn3lfD0fZ56am4RJmZ2YPhoavewblFSfeot-S_PfNxLSdTm7_N7JI7WB8IWuJ2Dlm0jk6RTsH2xHNBtx5Tk7/s1600-h/banner2black_small.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 95px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhRUF-kSmBAXzNv8dj1RDJkpaqOR7VQu_oIzHgXcOWKAeAjIaHQGY4psY5qn3lfD0fZ56am4RJmZ2YPhoavewblFSfeot-S_PfNxLSdTm7_N7JI7WB8IWuJ2Dlm0jk6RTsH2xHNBtx5Tk7/s320/banner2black_small.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5376684384861186802" /></a>CitChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03600126697399941891noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-286229029927938825.post-53192454067909849602009-08-19T20:48:00.003-04:002009-08-19T20:56:01.702-04:00Boys of Steel: An INTERVIEW With Siegel and Shuster Biographer <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDoURVDWFLkujQjTohI_qbOUyWJLsn_USmhwZuXe8tDGJqCul1LvAJnbHIING2kO5G5wU8CrJimDvfv93ALJD6UWWWqsUavQftR9t8Ft6Em-OPmkGdTQdujiCHIZlkE_in9JCAzM_27ixJ/s1600-h/boysofsteel.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5371842551626565346" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 200px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 258px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDoURVDWFLkujQjTohI_qbOUyWJLsn_USmhwZuXe8tDGJqCul1LvAJnbHIING2kO5G5wU8CrJimDvfv93ALJD6UWWWqsUavQftR9t8Ft6Em-OPmkGdTQdujiCHIZlkE_in9JCAzM_27ixJ/s320/boysofsteel.jpg" border="0" /></a>
<br /><p>Interview by <a href="mailto:comicsintheclassroom@gmail.com">Scott Tingley</a></p>
<br /><p>While there are plenty of storybook biographies of history's most famous and important people, never have I seen one that fits both of my two book sites so perfectly (<a href="http://comicsintheclassroom.net/" target="_blank">Comics in the Classroom</a> and <a href="http://comicsintheclassroomkidsbooks.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">The Kid's Book Corner Blog</a>): Boys of Steel: The creators of Superman . This new storybook biography, written by Marc Tyler Nobleman and illustrated by Ross MacDonald, explores Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster creation of Superman. Marc was kind enough to join us for an interview.
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<br />Scott Tingley – Comics in the Classroom : Marc, thank you for answering a few questions for us. We'll get to your new book in a moment, but please start by telling us about your career up to now.
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<br />Marc Tyler Nobleman : My first job after college was in book marketing. My first published book came out in 1996. Since then, I've written more than 70 other books for young people (and marketed many of them as well!). Much of it is nonfiction though I have done some fiction, and some of it involves humor (even some of the nonfiction). I've also written for magazines including Nickelodeon. One of the most rewarding aspects of my job is that it brings me before groups of students in schools, where I get to share with them the behind-the-scenes of an author.
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<br />CitC : Why this book? What drove you to write a story book about comics in general and about the creators of the comic book superhero specifically? Were you a comic reader growing up – are you still a comic reader now?
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<br />MTN : I chose to write on this subject on for several reasons. My fondness for Superman goes back to when I saw Superman: The Movie at age six (in my pajamas, front row). He's one of the most iconic fictional characters in the world so it's astounding how so few know who created him or when or where or why. Any setup like that—a recognizable entry point but a mystery backstory—has great potential for a book! It fills a gap in the marketplace, and luckily, it's an engaging story. I grew up reading DC Comics (and watching Super Friends cartoons) and I still do read certain comics.
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<br />CitC : When I first heard of your book I kind of assumed that it would be in the form of a comic book, but instead, for the most part, it is in the form of a traditional story book biography. Did you and artist Ross MacDonald intend for it to be like this from the beginning or was the decision to go this way made later in the creative process?
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<br />MTN : Picture books and comic books are first cousins, of course, but I wrote Boys of Steel to be a picture book. Some editors who rejected it suggested I reimagine it as a graphic novel, but I felt that was too obvious. In my mind, a comic book about comic book creators would not stand out (based on that alone), but no comic book creators had been the focus of an illustrated picture book before. That said, I did want one particular spread to resemble a comic book—the scene in which Jerry Siegel was kept awake one night by ideas that would coalesce into Superman. By having only that spread look like a comic, I was hoping it would signal to readers “Okay, this is a significant moment” and propel them with even more enthusiasm through the second half of the book.
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<br />CitC : Was this book written like a comic or like a more traditional story book? What I mean by that is, as the writer, did you control the visuals as a comic writer does or was it more like how a traditional storybook gets made with the writer just providing the words with the artist filling in the visuals (at least that is how I understand the process usually works).
<br />I ask this because many comic fans understand the basics of how a comic is created: the writer writes and the artist follows the writer's instructions. This varies, of course, but this seems to be the basic model and I think comic fans are surprised when they find out how different kid's books / story books are created.
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<br />MTN : I tried to write the book so that the illustrations would convey some of the information. For example, the story proper (the illustrated main part of the book, not the text-only author's note) does not contain the word “ Superman ” even once—after reading it you may think it does, but you'd just be remembering the images of Superman in the book. After I sold the book and the publisher hired the illustrator, the wonderful Ross MacDonald, I was able to pass on to Ross my suggestions for art. He was under no obligation to take those suggestions, but in many cases he did, which I was thrilled about. I also passed on to Ross many historical images for reference, and he used those as well. And I got to weigh in on the sketches. But I did not have final say on the art.
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<br />CitC : Did you have a hard time selling the publisher on this idea for a biography? Were they open to this idea or did you need to convince them (which betrays my naiveté – for all I know every book is a hard sell).
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<br />MTN : The book was rejected by 22 publishers, so I'd say I didn't have the easiest time selling it! But it takes only one yes. I didn't have to convince them—they read it and either they wanted it or they didn't. I did try to be strategic about which editors I approached. I focused on ones who had experience with picture books on pop culture subjects (as opposed to what I call “textbook names,” like Ben Franklin or Rosa Parks) because I figured they'd be more open to a book on the creators of a superhero. And sure enough, it was an editor who did a book on Dr. Seuss who took on mine.
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<br />CitC : In your research for this book did you have the opportunity to speak with any members of Siegel or Shuster's family.
<br />
<br />MTN : I tried but I did not hear back. In only the few short years since then, I've become much more determined in my research!
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<br />CitC : The main part of the books tells the story of two young men sticking with their creations and making it big. However, the final three text pages tells of their battle with DC comics to get some recognition and royalties for Superman - something comic creators were not given at the time. Why leave it to the end like this? Why not do a couple of illustrated pages to get this information across?
<br />
<br />MTN : Great question. Two-part answer. Part 1: I probably wouldn't have had room, plain and simple, given the conventions of the format. Part 2: Comics people know the story. It's widely regarded as the industry's most profound tragedy. And most every time the story is told, it ends on a sad note: two creators who've spent much of the second half of their lives suffering. For once, I thought it would be nice to let their story end on a high note. So I ended when things were never higher: right after Superman debuted and had become an instant phenomenon. I wanted to remind people that the legacy of these two guys is not that they were martyrs but that they were visionaries, and they did get to enjoy that. To be clear, I did it this way only because I did address their hardships in the author's note—if that wasn't there, I would have had to mention it in the story proper or else it would be hugely misleading. But I feel it was a great compromise—end on a high note yet still discuss the rest of their lives in an “optional” afterword.
<br />CitC : Is there anything else you would like to tell the readers here? Anything else about the book or about new projects coming up?
<br />
<br />MTN : Don't get me started! Well, for those interested in the research and the promotion of the book, my blog shares many behind-the-scenes stories: http://noblemania.blogspot.com. I've got several more nonfiction picture book manuscripts in the works. One is about the secret co-creator behind Batman. Thanks for your interest!
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<br />CitC: Thanks for your time. Boys of Steel is available now and would be a great addidtion to any library, classroom or home.
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<br />ISBN: 978-0-375-93802-3 (0-375-93802-8) </p>
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<br /></p><p class="MsoNormal">Be sure to visit us at <a href="http://comicsintheclassroom.net/">comicsintheclassroom.net</a> for all-ages comic reviews, news and interviews.
<br />
<br />If you would like to submit your book for review, please contact us at <b dragover="true">comicsintheclassroom@gmail.com</b></p><b dragover="true">NEW! Check out my new/first webcomic: <a href="http://www.thechesscomic.com/">The Chess Comic</a></b><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.thechesscomic.com/"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5260920819955568514" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: pointer; HEIGHT: 95px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFT83LENQFiWLL4T9Su2XjpXDTSSCrSrrfkydj1duWGrpS2d231bGmwmbqPG6xWobVhCf69bVpmM9FsgnNHu5F42Q1mfoMt_I3wAl9q1kGC0T1iiM5grmforcoC_an3A517Fo7AfvYVGOK/s320/banner2black_small.jpg" border="0" /></a>
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<br />CitChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03600126697399941891noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-286229029927938825.post-83269449417415669152009-05-06T18:16:00.003-04:002009-05-06T18:28:00.170-04:00Duck and Goose: How Are You Feeling?...KaChow!<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMqMy007K9fuUn4cqd8CMAQoOkWXd1bRx-yVBQ4bg5Aoz-Z8lXeSTn9Z7CvwNC71K1yyJcgsBvICzYfLqO5CQ-ODVGbrj-lUWKpme9olqwojcOKVZQXk4xyjjz_z63SRdYEYIBY0lS6Nla/s1600-h/duck_goose_feeling.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 185px; height: 204px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMqMy007K9fuUn4cqd8CMAQoOkWXd1bRx-yVBQ4bg5Aoz-Z8lXeSTn9Z7CvwNC71K1yyJcgsBvICzYfLqO5CQ-ODVGbrj-lUWKpme9olqwojcOKVZQXk4xyjjz_z63SRdYEYIBY0lS6Nla/s320/duck_goose_feeling.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5332839866714067074" border="0" /></a><meta equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8"><meta name="ProgId" content="Word.Document"><meta name="Generator" content="Microsoft Word 11"><meta name="Originator" content="Microsoft Word 11"><link rel="File-List" href="file:///C:%5CDOCUME%7E1%5CCOMPAQ%7E1%5CLOCALS%7E1%5CTemp%5Cmsohtml1%5C01%5Cclip_filelist.xml"><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:worddocument> <w:view>Normal</w:View> <w:zoom>0</w:Zoom> <w:punctuationkerning/> <w:validateagainstschemas/> <w:saveifxmlinvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid> <w:ignoremixedcontent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent> <w:alwaysshowplaceholdertext>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText> <w:compatibility> <w:breakwrappedtables/> <w:snaptogridincell/> <w:wraptextwithpunct/> <w:useasianbreakrules/> <w:dontgrowautofit/> </w:Compatibility> <w:browserlevel>MicrosoftInternetExplorer4</w:BrowserLevel> </w:WordDocument> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:latentstyles deflockedstate="false" latentstylecount="156"> </w:LatentStyles> </xml><![endif]--><style> <!-- /* Style Definitions */ p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal {mso-style-parent:""; margin:0in; margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:12.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";} @page Section1 {size:8.5in 11.0in; margin:1.0in 1.25in 1.0in 1.25in; mso-header-margin:.5in; mso-footer-margin:.5in; mso-paper-source:0;} div.Section1 {page:Section1;} --> </style><!--[if gte mso 10]> <style> /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ansi-language:#0400; mso-fareast-language:#0400; mso-bidi-language:#0400;} </style> <![endif]--> <p class="MsoNormal">
<br /></p><p class="MsoNormal">Review by <a href="mailto:comicsintheclassroom@gmail.com">Scott Tingley</a>
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<br /></p><p class="MsoNormal">I have a just-turned two year old boy obsessed with all things that in any way resemble a form of motorized transportation.<span style=""> </span>In the fall we had to keep pulling him off the tiller which he was climbing and calling a tractor.<span style=""> </span>He got the movie CARS for his birthday a couple of weeks ago and he has watched it EVERY MORNING SINCE THEN.<span style=""> </span>He is a boy obsessed.</p><p class="MsoNormal">
<br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">You need to understand that to understand this:</p><p class="MsoNormal">
<br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">As I was putting him to bed this evening he made me stop reading his favorite book, Busy Wheels so we could read the board book <b style="">Duck and Goose: How Are You Feeling?, </b>by<b style=""> Tad Hills</b>.<span style=""> </span>There is really noting else I could say that would be higher praise.<span style=""> </span>We just got it today and it is now at the top of the rotation.<span style=""> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">I could go on about the very cute pictures and expressive features of the birds, but why?<span style=""> </span>My son made me stop reading a car book to read it.<span style=""> </span>That should be enough.</p><p class="MsoNormal">
<br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">Thanks for reading.</p><div class="product-list-info"><ul><li class="publisher">Publisher: Random House Children's Books</li><li class="pubDate">Pub. Date: January 2009</li><li>ISBN-13: <a class="isbn-a">9780375846298</a></li><li class="ageRange">Age Range: For infants or children in preschool</li><li>22pp board book
<br /></li></ul></div><p><span style="font-size:100%;">___ </span>
<br /></p><p class="MsoNormal">Be sure to visit us at <a href="http://comicsintheclassroom.net/">comicsintheclassroom.net</a> for all-ages comic reviews, news and interviews.
<br />
<br />If you would like to submit your book for review, please contact us at <b dragover="true">comicsintheclassroom@gmail.com</b></p><b dragover="true">NEW! Check out my new/first webcomic: <a href="http://www.thechesscomic.com/">The Chess Comic</a></b><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.thechesscomic.com/"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 95px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFT83LENQFiWLL4T9Su2XjpXDTSSCrSrrfkydj1duWGrpS2d231bGmwmbqPG6xWobVhCf69bVpmM9FsgnNHu5F42Q1mfoMt_I3wAl9q1kGC0T1iiM5grmforcoC_an3A517Fo7AfvYVGOK/s320/banner2black_small.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5260920819955568514" border="0" /></a> CitChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03600126697399941891noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-286229029927938825.post-85648344985410754592009-01-26T22:07:00.003-05:002009-01-26T22:11:33.400-05:00Benny and Penny in The Big No-No - Reviewed By My Four Year OldReview by <a href="mailto:comicsintheclassroom@gmail.com">Scott Tingley</a> and Mariah<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgT2tmT18UK7mbbbSSDNjfp4BhyphenhyphengiPneI3IfpRDB9l78yG3u_0Uy0ujTvcIevuf4a8Ysi3LKq4b4ODlx25tcF71aRThxOaa47ZdbUXKWc9-VEBKsXb6824Jti0sMto7rQXO56PhlxvztTjY/s1600-h/bignono.gif"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 132px; height: 198px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgT2tmT18UK7mbbbSSDNjfp4BhyphenhyphengiPneI3IfpRDB9l78yG3u_0Uy0ujTvcIevuf4a8Ysi3LKq4b4ODlx25tcF71aRThxOaa47ZdbUXKWc9-VEBKsXb6824Jti0sMto7rQXO56PhlxvztTjY/s320/bignono.gif" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5295805545922363026" border="0" /></a>I am a terrible at telling true stories because I have an unnatural aversion to exaggerating. I say this so you will understand that what I say here is the 99.9% truth. <p>I wanted to write a review of the <strong>Toon Books</strong> comic for new readers <strong>Benny and Penny in The Big No-No</strong> by <strong>Geoffrey Hayes</strong>, but my daughter won't let me.</p> <p>I got a copy of this upcoming release from Toon Books in the mail a few days ago and it has been in my four year olds room ever since. I have read it at least a dozen times by now. I tried sneaking it out this evening to help me with this review, but she wanted to read before going to sleep so I had to sneak it back. I guess I will have to quote the website for help on this one.</p> <p><em>Benny and his sister Penny know it's wrong to sneak into someone else's backyard but their mysterious new neighbor—or is it a monster?—may be a thief. They go snooping and discover a lot about themselves and…a new friend. </em>(From toon-books.com)</p> <p>I like the cute characters (I love how the little platypus girl looks as she is preparing to throw a mudball…I can't remember her name and I don't have the book, remember?) and the effective storytelling. The smallish comic panels would make it a hard book to read to a group of kids, but it is perfect for reading with one or two kids gathered around you.</p> <p>That's all I can say without having the book so I will quote my daughter:</p> <p><strong>This is my favorite book ever </strong>. – Mariah Tingley, age 4, reviewer for <strong>ComicsInTheClassroom.net</strong></p> <p>That sums it up perfectly. </p> <p>The book is due out on May 05, 2009 and would be perfect for grades 1 and lower (on the other hand, some of my grade 3s last year really enjoyed the first book - even thought the reading level was not challenging for them, they still liked the art and story).</p> <p> ISBN 13: 978-0-9799238-9-0<br />ISBN 10: 0-9799238-9-0<br /><br />LEXILE LEVEL: GN 30<br /></p><p><span style="font-size: 100%;">___ </span><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal">Be sure to visit us at <a href="http://comicsintheclassroom.net/">comicsintheclassroom.net</a> for all-ages comic reviews, news and interviews.<br /><br />If you would like to submit your book for review, please contact us at <b dragover="true">comicsintheclassroom@gmail.com</b></p><b dragover="true">NEW! Check out my new/first webcomic: <a href="http://www.thechesscomic.com/">The Chess Comic</a></b><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.thechesscomic.com/"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 95px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFT83LENQFiWLL4T9Su2XjpXDTSSCrSrrfkydj1duWGrpS2d231bGmwmbqPG6xWobVhCf69bVpmM9FsgnNHu5F42Q1mfoMt_I3wAl9q1kGC0T1iiM5grmforcoC_an3A517Fo7AfvYVGOK/s320/banner2black_small.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5260920819955568514" border="0" /></a>CitChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03600126697399941891noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-286229029927938825.post-47198423947240087162008-12-26T19:47:00.005-05:002008-12-26T20:05:19.679-05:00Moxy Maxwell Does Not Love Writing Thank-you Notes <meta equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8"><meta name="ProgId" content="Word.Document"><meta name="Generator" content="Microsoft Word 11"><meta name="Originator" content="Microsoft Word 11"><link rel="File-List" href="file:///C:%5CDOCUME%7E1%5CCOMPAQ%7E1%5CLOCALS%7E1%5CTemp%5Cmsohtml1%5C01%5Cclip_filelist.xml"><o:smarttagtype namespaceuri="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" name="City"></o:smarttagtype><o:smarttagtype namespaceuri="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" name="place"></o:smarttagtype><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:worddocument> <w:view>Normal</w:View> <w:zoom>0</w:Zoom> <w:punctuationkerning/> <w:validateagainstschemas/> <w:saveifxmlinvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid> <w:ignoremixedcontent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent> <w:alwaysshowplaceholdertext>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText> <w:compatibility> <w:breakwrappedtables/> <w:snaptogridincell/> <w:wraptextwithpunct/> <w:useasianbreakrules/> <w:dontgrowautofit/> </w:Compatibility> <w:browserlevel>MicrosoftInternetExplorer4</w:BrowserLevel> </w:WordDocument> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:latentstyles deflockedstate="false" latentstylecount="156"> </w:LatentStyles> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if !mso]><object classid="clsid:38481807-CA0E-42D2-BF39-B33AF135CC4D" id="ieooui"></object> <style> st1\:*{behavior:url(#ieooui) } </style> <![endif]--><style> <!-- /* Style Definitions */ p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal {mso-style-parent:""; margin:0in; margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:12.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";} span.booktitle {mso-style-name:booktitle;} span.authorname {mso-style-name:authorname;} @page Section1 {size:8.5in 11.0in; margin:1.0in 1.25in 1.0in 1.25in; mso-header-margin:.5in; mso-footer-margin:.5in; mso-paper-source:0;} div.Section1 {page:Section1;} --> </style><!--[if gte mso 10]> <style> /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ansi-language:#0400; mso-fareast-language:#0400; mso-bidi-language:#0400;} </style> <![endif]--> <p class="MsoNormal">Review by <a href="mailto:comicsintheclassroom@gmail.com">Scott Tingley</a></p><p class="MsoNormal"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimqdEnIvNVoAwdFVzSAgV2WhhxSuXXaShyphenhyphen1ESYY9L5jef-a_ZUqol_-F8OYQPVfTr-SKiYnzycz4_t58OjLJbn1SeA20TuSr6NRFlaHmCGOpbG0ebnllYupHqpKcPwCGkCSvUbMW3X7C6Y/s1600-h/moxymax2.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 294px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimqdEnIvNVoAwdFVzSAgV2WhhxSuXXaShyphenhyphen1ESYY9L5jef-a_ZUqol_-F8OYQPVfTr-SKiYnzycz4_t58OjLJbn1SeA20TuSr6NRFlaHmCGOpbG0ebnllYupHqpKcPwCGkCSvUbMW3X7C6Y/s320/moxymax2.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5284266392195330786" border="0" /></a></p><p class="MsoNormal">
<br /></p><p class="MsoNormal">I would love to go on and on about the finer points of the second <b style="">Moxy Maxwell</b> book, <span class="authorname"><b style="">Peggy Gifford</b></span>’s <span class="booktitle"><b style="">Moxy Maxwell Does Not Love Writing Thank-you Notes</b></span>, but I can’t.<span style=""> </span>Even though I found the book to be very funny, fresh and surprisingly dark (more on that in a moment), I just can’t shake this feeling of dread.</p><p class="MsoNormal">
<br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><i style="">IT ISN’T AS though Moxy isn’t grateful for her Christmas presents. She is. She’s just not thrilled that she has to write a thank-you note for each one by tomorrow . . . or she will not be allowed to fly to <st1:city st="on">Hollywood</st1:city> to attend a star-studded <st1:place st="on">Hollywood</st1:place> bash with the father she hasn’t seen in three years. And writing thank-you notes is not something that a world-class Creative Type relishes doing</i>.(from RandomHouse.com)</p><p class="MsoNormal">
<br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">My feeling of dread does not come from anything found in the above synopsis.<span style=""> </span>No, it comes from the fact that my two little kids combined equal the destructive power that is contained within Moxy Maxwell.<span style=""> </span>My four year old girl is wonderful and precocious and my two year old boy is happy and very physical and together they will probably find some way to sink our house into a bottomless pit or make a beautiful collage for some Father’s Day by cutting out a single picture from every one of my many comics and graphic novels cluttering our soon to be sunk-in-a-bottomless-pit house.</p><p class="MsoNormal">
<br /><span style=""> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">Seriously.</p><p class="MsoNormal">
<br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">But, I will try to soldier on...</p><p class="MsoNormal">
<br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">One of the reasons I have enjoyed this Moxy Maxwell, and the first Moxy book, <b style=""><i style="">Moxy Maxwell Does Not Love Stuart Little </i></b>is that in it there is a nice balance of impending doom and real life family dynamics.<span style=""> </span>In <b style="">Thank You</b> there is the familiar destruction of family property that you can see coming from a mile away - and there is some wonderful frustrations that accompanies this knowledge – but there is also a darker, more troubling doom coming.<span style=""> </span>This doom, unfortunately, involves the family dynamics in a way that readers will also see coming.<span style=""> </span>It involves Moxy and her twin brother Mark’s absent biological father and another terribly timed let down.<span style=""> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">I was surprised that this book went in the direction it did.<span style=""> </span>Here I thought the Moxy series would continue on as just a nice thing for <b style="">Junie B. Jones</b> fans to move on to when they got older.<span style=""> </span>I thought that the books would just be about the wacky adventures of a young girl and the family that tries to contain her – but this is not so.<span style=""> </span>Amongst all the fun there are real issues being dealt with in real ways – it is like the comic series <b style="">Amelia Rules</b> in this way.<span style=""> </span>Where I to read this to my own grade three class I know that it would hit close to home for some of them – which can be a very good thing.</p><p class="MsoNormal">
<br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">But, I didn’t read it to my grade three class.<span style=""> </span>I handed my copy off to the grade four teacher (who teaches the grade threes I had last year).<span style=""> </span>I read the first Moxy to last year’s grade three class in September and some of the turns-of-phrases used went over their heads, but when I read it again in June they loved it.<span style=""> </span>So I think this book is perfect for late grade three and up.</p><p class="MsoNormal">
<br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">I truly hope that there are more Moxy Maxwell books coming, and if you or the young readers in your life have a book store gift card burning a hole in you pockets this holiday season, this is the perfect reading material to fill in the last week of the school holiday.</p><p class="MsoNormal">
<br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">By the way, I didn’t fit it into the review, but I wanted to mention the fun photos by <b style="">Valorie Fisher</b> that are spread throughout the book.<span style=""> </span>They are meant to be by Moxy’s twin brother and they tend to punctuate the events that are then happening.</p><p class="MsoNormal">
<br /></p><p class="MsoNormal"><strong>ISBN:</strong> 978-0-375-84270-2 (0-375-84270-5)
<br /> <strong></strong><strong>Price:</strong> $14.99</p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;">____ </span>
<br /></p><p class="MsoNormal">Be sure to visit us at <a href="http://comicsintheclassroom.net/">comicsintheclassroom.net</a> for all-ages comic reviews, news and interviews.
<br />
<br />If you would like to submit your book for review, please contact us at <b dragover="true">comicsintheclassroom@gmail.com</b></p><b dragover="true">NEW! Check out my new/first webcomic: <a href="http://www.thechesscomic.com/">The Chess Comic</a></b><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.thechesscomic.com/"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 95px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFT83LENQFiWLL4T9Su2XjpXDTSSCrSrrfkydj1duWGrpS2d231bGmwmbqPG6xWobVhCf69bVpmM9FsgnNHu5F42Q1mfoMt_I3wAl9q1kGC0T1iiM5grmforcoC_an3A517Fo7AfvYVGOK/s320/banner2black_small.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5260920819955568514" border="0" /></a> CitChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03600126697399941891noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-286229029927938825.post-41654633225176372362008-11-21T22:57:00.004-05:002008-11-21T23:06:52.424-05:00Piggybook: A Review<meta equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8"><meta name="ProgId" content="Word.Document"><meta name="Generator" content="Microsoft Word 11"><meta name="Originator" content="Microsoft Word 11"><link rel="File-List" href="file:///C:%5CDOCUME%7E1%5CCOMPAQ%7E1%5CLOCALS%7E1%5CTemp%5Cmsohtml1%5C01%5Cclip_filelist.xml"><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:worddocument> <w:view>Normal</w:View> <w:zoom>0</w:Zoom> <w:punctuationkerning/> <w:validateagainstschemas/> <w:saveifxmlinvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid> <w:ignoremixedcontent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent> <w:alwaysshowplaceholdertext>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText> <w:compatibility> <w:breakwrappedtables/> <w:snaptogridincell/> <w:wraptextwithpunct/> <w:useasianbreakrules/> <w:dontgrowautofit/> </w:Compatibility> <w:browserlevel>MicrosoftInternetExplorer4</w:BrowserLevel> </w:WordDocument> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:latentstyles deflockedstate="false" latentstylecount="156"> </w:LatentStyles> </xml><![endif]--><style> <!-- /* Style Definitions */ p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal {mso-style-parent:""; margin:0in; margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:12.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";} a:link, span.MsoHyperlink {color:blue; text-decoration:underline; text-underline:single;} a:visited, span.MsoHyperlinkFollowed {color:purple; text-decoration:underline; text-underline:single;} @page Section1 {size:8.5in 11.0in; margin:1.0in 1.25in 1.0in 1.25in; mso-header-margin:.5in; mso-footer-margin:.5in; mso-paper-source:0;} div.Section1 {page:Section1;} --> </style><!--[if gte mso 10]> <style> /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ansi-language:#0400; mso-fareast-language:#0400; mso-bidi-language:#0400;} </style> <![endif]--> <p class="MsoNormal">Review by <a href="mailto:comicsintheclassroom@gmail.com">Scott Tingley</a></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEij9Ze5m9JQ9M2rWQvJey64E2vC45BUWRs62rzFshi1rm6cOgQTsRTeT7CbC7AiFJTIb-4sWPbTMJktZw6QmSubg1xYP-iAO1CgPu62R6rMOsSjxPbVU4gYNYP3EY0RQzFBecTH52yauXzh/s1600-h/piggybook.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 267px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEij9Ze5m9JQ9M2rWQvJey64E2vC45BUWRs62rzFshi1rm6cOgQTsRTeT7CbC7AiFJTIb-4sWPbTMJktZw6QmSubg1xYP-iAO1CgPu62R6rMOsSjxPbVU4gYNYP3EY0RQzFBecTH52yauXzh/s320/piggybook.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5271326811439747906" border="0" /></a>I am a grade 3 teacher and I was at a Professional Development session on Guided Reading this afternoon and the teacher giving the session was one of my supervising teachers when I took my teaching degree twelve years ago (my, how time flies!).<span style=""> </span>I respect this teacher a great deal, so when she started pulling out story books that we could use for specific comprehension activities I paid close attention.
<br />
<br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">Then she took out one of the ugliest books I have ever seen.<span style=""> </span>It had an interesting illustration in the middle of a couple of boys and a grown man on the back of a woman (obviously the males on the back of the mother), but the when coupled with the awful looking border, I was turned off on the book right away.<span style=""> </span>Yea, I was judging the book by the cover – it was so ugly, I had no choice.<span style=""> </span>I wouldn’t have even read it on my own, but this teacher was bound and determined to read it to all of us.
<br />
<br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">She loved this book for a lot of reasons.<span style=""> </span>She loved all of the lesson ideas a teacher could get out of it.<span style=""> </span>She loved how it could be used for a grade 4 and 5 art lesson (famous paintings morph as the story progresses).<span style=""> </span>She loved how even though there are amazing changes happening within story, no explanation is given, which makes the questions the kids can ask and answer richer.<span style=""> </span>She really loved the vocabulary the book offered.<span style=""> </span>She really loved a lot of stuff about the book.</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">
<br />I hated the cover. </p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">
<br />I even hated the back cover.</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">
<br />Then she read the book.<span style=""> </span>She was almost giddy that she had the opportunity to share this ugly looking book.<span style=""> </span>I was not impressed.</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">
<br />Then she read the book.<span style=""> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">
<br />Piggybook turned out to be one of the most stunning and troubling kids books I have ever had the fortune of reading.<span style=""> </span>Basically the book is about a husband and two young boys that treat their wife/mother like the hired help.<span style=""> </span>Like hired help that can’t ever quit…but then she quits.<span style=""> </span>Left for themselves, the other three slowly morph into the pigs that they are.<span style=""> </span>The house changes, the language in the narration changes.<span style=""> </span>That’s the clever stuff.<span style=""> </span>Anthony Browne does a really nice job of writing and illustrating these changes.
<br />
<br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">The troubling part is in how none of this really seems to be played for laughs.<span style=""> </span>There are four panel scenes early on showing the mother at work – never with her family – always at work.<span style=""> </span>The boys are in full colour, but the mother is always in this sepia yellow – and alone.<span style=""> </span>And you never really see the features on her face.<span style=""> </span>She is a non-entity – she is unimportant in her own life.<span style=""> </span>She has no ears or mouth and her eyes are only slits.<span style=""> </span>This is a woman beaten down.<span style=""> </span>Then she leaves.<span style=""> </span>The guys fall apart. She comes back – they are pigs and with her rights asserted she is the beautiful young mother she always was supposed to be.
<br />
<br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">This is a book rich with possibilities. <span style=""> </span>I imagine that it might spark some hard conversations about inequalities and divorce.<span style=""> </span>Some of the teachers made jokes about their husbands being like the man but that sort of thing should not be acceptable when using this book.
<br />
<br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">I don’t have a copy of Piggybook in front of me, so I may have gotten a couple of details wrong.<span style=""> </span>Also, I always review brand new books on this blog, but this one came out in 1990, so you may have a copy in your school or library already, but if not, Random House has it for sale <a href="http://www.randomhouse.ca/catalog/display.pperl?isbn=9780679808374">HERE</a>.</p><p class="MsoNormal">
<br /></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;">____ </span>
<br /></p><p class="MsoNormal">Be sure to visit us at <a href="http://comicsintheclassroom.net/">comicsintheclassroom.net</a> for all-ages comic reviews, news and interviews.
<br />
<br />If you would like to submit your book for review, please contact us at <b dragover="true">comicsintheclassroom@gmail.com</b></p><b dragover="true">NEW! Check out my new/first webcomic: <a href="http://www.thechesscomic.com/">The Chess Comic</a></b><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.thechesscomic.com/"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 95px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFT83LENQFiWLL4T9Su2XjpXDTSSCrSrrfkydj1duWGrpS2d231bGmwmbqPG6xWobVhCf69bVpmM9FsgnNHu5F42Q1mfoMt_I3wAl9q1kGC0T1iiM5grmforcoC_an3A517Fo7AfvYVGOK/s320/banner2black_small.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5260920819955568514" border="0" /></a> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> CitChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03600126697399941891noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-286229029927938825.post-33158066466262961312008-10-24T22:46:00.011-04:002008-10-24T23:17:26.564-04:00A Remembrance Day Flower Story Not About Poppies: A Bloom of Friendship ReviewReview by <a href="mailto:comicsintheclassroom@gmail.com">Scott Tingley</a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivNgrw4cTjWDXeyI5IiRZVyN2ToD-_p0Lj0Jxj_HBoi3EIbvERGZiiq2zBRFgPKSrSmQhlN8kWrcJJDf0XFu-_hMXa-CnrCF2p0ve3v3g656yNjyfOz7bsrrFxCNqF2Hng8duB6jh80mYb/s1600-h/bloom.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 156px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivNgrw4cTjWDXeyI5IiRZVyN2ToD-_p0Lj0Jxj_HBoi3EIbvERGZiiq2zBRFgPKSrSmQhlN8kWrcJJDf0XFu-_hMXa-CnrCF2p0ve3v3g656yNjyfOz7bsrrFxCNqF2Hng8duB6jh80mYb/s320/bloom.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5260918264620646290" border="0" /></a><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:arial;"></span> </p>Yay, PRIMARY DOCCUMENTS!!<br /><br />I’ll come back to that.<br /><br />Tomorrow night my wife and I plan on attending the new Canadian movie, Passchendaele. If you are Canadian and you aren’t sure if the movie is going to be set in World War I or WWII, the rule of thumb is that if you have heard the name of the battle, and that battle isn’t Dieppe, then it was in WWI.<br /><br />That really annoys me. I may not have encyclopedic knowledge of Canada’s military heritage, but the majority of us Canadians have little or no understanding of what our countrymen (and women) have endured on the world’s battlefields and at home. We were feared. We were loved. In the past few years (10?) there has been a push to get people out to Remembrance Day celebrations, but I still don’t find that knowledge of specific events has gone up.<br /><br />A Bloom of Friendship: The Story of the Canadian Tulip Festival by Anne Renaud and Ashley Spires does a nice job of filling a little part of this void for teachers and the young readers they...teach.<br /><br /><p class="MsoNormal" style="" face="arial"><o:p></o:p></p> <p face="arial">Basically, <b>Bloom</b> tells this story that I got from <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canadian_Tulip_Festival">Wikipedia</a><i>: In 1945, the Dutch royal family sent 100,000 tulip bulbs to <st1:city st="on"><st1:city st="on">Ottawa</st1:city></st1:city> in gratitude for Canadians having sheltered Princess Juliana and her daughters for the preceding three years during the Nazi occupation of the <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on"><st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">Netherlands</st1:place></st1:country-region></st1:place></st1:country-region>, in the Second World War.<u1:p></u1:p></i><o:p></o:p></p> <p face="arial"><i>The most noteworthy event during their time in <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:country-region st="on">Canada</st1:country-region></st1:country-region> was the birth in 1943 of Princess Margriet to Princess Juliana at the <st1:place st="on"><st1:placename st="on"><st1:place st="on"><st1:placename st="on">Ottawa</st1:placename></st1:place> <st1:placename st="on"><st1:placename st="on">Civic</st1:placename></st1:placename> <st1:placetype st="on"><st1:placetype st="on">Hospital</st1:placetype></st1:placetype></st1:placename></st1:place>. The maternity ward was declared to be officially a temporary part of the <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on"><st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">Netherlands</st1:place></st1:country-region></st1:place></st1:country-region>, so that the birth could formally be claimed to have occurred on Dutch territory. In 1946, Juliana sent another 20,500 bulbs requesting that a display be created for the hospital, and promised to send 10,000 more bulbs each year.<u1:p></u1:p></i><o:p></o:p></p> <p face="arial">In telling <i>this</i> story the book tells a big part of the story of WWII and <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on"><st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">Canada</st1:place></st1:country-region></st1:place></st1:country-region>’s part in it.<o:p></o:p></p> <p face="arial">When I fist saw the cover of Bloom, I was hoping it would be a storybook that I could use with early elementary kids, but instead I got so much more. Primary Documents! I didn’t know what a primary document was until University, but this book is full of them. Newspaper clippings and photos are interspersed with chunks of text and “Instant History Facts” to tell the story of the Dutch royal family, <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:country-region st="on">Canada</st1:country-region></st1:country-region>’s battle experience in <st1:place st="on"><st1:city st="on"><st1:city st="on"><st1:place st="on">Holland</st1:place></st1:city></st1:city></st1:place> and the whole war in general. <o:p></o:p></p> <p>I am very impressed with this book, and I am going to ask my principal to order multiple copies for next year’s <b>Rembrance Day</b> studies (and if I get them this year we will use it whenever). <o:p></o:p></p> <p><u1:p style="font-family: arial;"></u1:p>I will be using the book with my grade 3 class over the next few weeks and I would highly recommend it for upper elementary and middle school students. Even though the cover and format will likely come across as too kid-ish for the middle schoolers it can still be a good teacher resource. As much as I like the internal pictures by <st1:place st="on"><st1:place st="on">Spires</st1:place></st1:place>, I wish a different cover image was used. I wonder if older elementary and early middle school students will be receptive to a book that, at first glance, looks like a primary storybook.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="">ISBN: 978-1-897073-35-3, Non-fiction, Ages: 9 – 12, paperback and hardcover, 24 pages, Reading level: 7.4 (AR)<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><br /><span class="label"></span><span style="font-size:100%;">____ </span><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal">Be sure to visit us at <a href="http://comicsintheclassroom.net/">comicsintheclassroom.net</a> for all-ages comic reviews, news and interviews.<br /><br />If you would like to submit your book for review, please contact us at <b dragover="true">comicsintheclassroom@gmail.com</b></p><div style="text-align: left;"><b dragover="true">NEW! Check out my new/first webcomic: <a href="http://www.thechesscomic.com/">The Chess Comic</a></b><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://www.thechesscomic.com/"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 95px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFT83LENQFiWLL4T9Su2XjpXDTSSCrSrrfkydj1duWGrpS2d231bGmwmbqPG6xWobVhCf69bVpmM9FsgnNHu5F42Q1mfoMt_I3wAl9q1kGC0T1iiM5grmforcoC_an3A517Fo7AfvYVGOK/s320/banner2black_small.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5260920819955568514" border="0" /></a><br /></div><b dragover="true"><br /></b>CitChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03600126697399941891noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-286229029927938825.post-16273434209140501792008-10-03T22:34:00.007-04:002008-10-03T22:52:07.740-04:00A Review of Wilbur and the Moose, and an Accidental Review of Bubba the Cowboy Prince - Or - Get Ready for All Kinds of Cowboy Awesomeness!Review by <a href="mailto:comicsintheclassroom@gmail.com">Scott Tingley<br /></a><br /><p dragover="true" class="MsoNormal"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDEPxqep6leE962kvRD8r7227upvso0tduuKsVeQhLdI-zQcqF02IMTXDr6VFIdyha0ZdfimxDZBzKs_HtlrNBMAgREbLb-YlXgv2J208sw8G0XidFCeOOZwfZBzZC6AHjCUaZH3BjJALw/s1600-h/wilbur.gif"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDEPxqep6leE962kvRD8r7227upvso0tduuKsVeQhLdI-zQcqF02IMTXDr6VFIdyha0ZdfimxDZBzKs_HtlrNBMAgREbLb-YlXgv2J208sw8G0XidFCeOOZwfZBzZC6AHjCUaZH3BjJALw/s320/wilbur.gif" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5253124700365425074" border="0" /></a>I teach third grade.<span dragover="true" style=""> </span>I have a new batch of students this year and I have to decide something.<span style=""> </span>When will I treat them to the greatest story reading of all time?<span style=""> </span></p> <p dragover="true" class="MsoNormal">I think most teachers have something they secretly think they are amazing at.<span style=""> </span>Maybe one thinks that no one teaches sentence structure like them, or that they teach Trigonometric Functions like a rock star.<span style=""> </span>I’ve got a couple of things I do pretty well (keeping my desk clean is one of them….lying on the internet, apparently, is another), and reading <b style="">Bubba the <em><span style="font-style: normal;">Cowboy</span></em> Prince</b> is another.<span style=""> </span>I put on my black cowboy hat, my dark green bandana and my silver bolo tie; then I pull out the awful cowboy accent (including a truly horrendous John Wayne impression I use for the Fairy God Cow) – it’s awesome.</p> <p dragover="true" class="MsoNormal">But, this is not a review for <a dragover="true" href="http://www2.scholastic.com/browse/book.jsp?id=1898">Bubba the Cowboy Prince</a>…well I guess it sort of is, isn’t it?<span style=""> </span>Bubba the <a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiewt_FWuyx0hnY5pheRgntUU2lGwPIC3lqD3kfqT8T5QBJ2_VehiaDtE4NdPnwdHjpv7tRRd4QwxT9C3WAuEefEsRMgUU8Q8tYYnuyNN6tRyM3nS8snOoXSsFhMJkUDcDZRv4x29z_1zFN/s1600-h/buba.jpg"><img dragover="true" style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiewt_FWuyx0hnY5pheRgntUU2lGwPIC3lqD3kfqT8T5QBJ2_VehiaDtE4NdPnwdHjpv7tRRd4QwxT9C3WAuEefEsRMgUU8Q8tYYnuyNN6tRyM3nS8snOoXSsFhMJkUDcDZRv4x29z_1zFN/s320/buba.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5253124354342112722" border="0" /></a><em><span dragover="true" style="font-style: normal;">Cowboy</span></em> Prince, by Helen Ketteman and James Warhola is an amazing book to read out loud, with crazy cowboy slang and plenty of silly details in the art to keep the kids giggling every time you or they read it. </p> <p class="MsoNormal">The dilemma I am facing is that I have all the gear: hat, tie, bandana, Roy Rogers six-shooters even…but only one cowboy themed book to read.<span style=""> </span>I’ve tried.<span style=""> </span>There have been some very valiant efforts by some very big names in the children’s book universe, but none have met my exacting standards…basically, if a John Wayne or Walter Brennan impression doesn’t fit in while reading it, then no go.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">The question is, will the newest printing of the 1989 book, <b style="">The Ballad of Wilbur and the Moose </b>by John Stadler make it or not?<span style=""> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal">Well, does the song Big Bad John mean anything to you?<span style=""> </span>If not, <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mR9dDdUmdtU">listen here</a> and come back.<span style=""> </span>You’re reading this on a screen, It’s not going anywhere.<span style=""> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal">Okay, so basically if you add a chorus of “Big Blue Moose” to every page you have a cowboy kid’s book at least on par with Bubba.<span style=""> </span>I think the reading calls for something a little subtler than John Wayne; more <st1:place st="on"><st1:state st="on">Tennessee</st1:state></st1:place> Ernie Ford <span style=""> </span>– just channel your inner cowboy-poet and you will be fine.<span style=""> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><a href="http://www.randomhouse.com/catalog/display.pperl/9780375841743.html"><b style="">The Ballad of Wilbur and the Moose</b></a> is a cowboy story-song about Wilbur Little and his Big Blue Moose.<span style=""> </span>They have cowboy adventures involving boxing matches, trains, deserts, a bad guy with one of those little mustaches perfect for twirling, a crooked card game and a gang of pig-rustlers. Oh, and lots of lime juice.<o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">Final words?<span style=""> </span>I can’t wait to read this to my students in a week or so….now if I can only train them to do the chorus…”Big Moose, Big Moose, BIG BLUE MOOSE…Big Moose.”</p> <p class="MsoNormal">It will be like <st1:place st="on">Rio Bravo</st1:place> meets The Good The Bad and The Ugly meets, I don’t know, Yo! Gabba Gabba – and that adds up to all kinds of cowboy awesomeness.</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Symbol;">·</span><span style=""> </span>$14.99 us<br /><span style="font-family:Symbol;">·</span><span style=""> </span><b>ISBN:</b> 978-0-375-84174-3 (0-375-84174-1)</p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 100%;">____ </span><br />Be sure to visit us at <a href="http://comicsintheclassroom.net/">comicsintheclassroom.net</a> for all-ages comic reviews, news and interviews.<br /><br />If you would like to submit your book for review, please contact us at <b dragover="true">comicsintheclassroom@gmail.com</b></p><b dragover="true">NEW! Check out my new/first webcomic: <a href="http://www.thechesscomic.com/">The Chess Comic</a></b>CitChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03600126697399941891noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-286229029927938825.post-87616448438309377512008-09-09T19:42:00.005-04:002008-09-09T19:57:35.823-04:00Two Chinese New Year Picture Books: A Short Review<meta equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8"><meta name="ProgId" content="Word.Document"><meta name="Generator" content="Microsoft Word 11"><meta name="Originator" content="Microsoft Word 11"><link rel="File-List" href="file:///C:%5CDOCUME%7E1%5CCOMPAQ%7E1%5CLOCALS%7E1%5CTemp%5Cmsohtml1%5C01%5Cclip_filelist.xml"><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:worddocument> <w:view>Normal</w:View> <w:zoom>0</w:Zoom> <w:punctuationkerning/> <w:validateagainstschemas/> <w:saveifxmlinvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid> <w:ignoremixedcontent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent> <w:alwaysshowplaceholdertext>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText> <w:compatibility> <w:breakwrappedtables/> <w:snaptogridincell/> <w:wraptextwithpunct/> <w:useasianbreakrules/> <w:dontgrowautofit/> </w:Compatibility> <w:browserlevel>MicrosoftInternetExplorer4</w:BrowserLevel> </w:WordDocument> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:latentstyles deflockedstate="false" latentstylecount="156"> </w:LatentStyles> </xml><![endif]--><style> <!-- /* Style Definitions */ p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal {mso-style-parent:""; 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margin:0in; margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:12.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";} a:link, span.MsoHyperlink {color:blue; text-decoration:underline; text-underline:single;} a:visited, span.MsoHyperlinkFollowed {color:purple; text-decoration:underline; text-underline:single;} @page Section1 {size:8.5in 11.0in; margin:1.0in 1.25in 1.0in 1.25in; mso-header-margin:.5in; mso-footer-margin:.5in; mso-paper-source:0;} div.Section1 {page:Section1;} --> </style><!--[if gte mso 10]> <style> /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ansi-language:#0400; mso-fareast-language:#0400; mso-bidi-language:#0400;} </style> <![endif]--> <p class="MsoNormal" style=""><o:p></o:p>Review by <a href="mailto:comicsintheclassroom@gmail.com">Scott Tingley</a> - August 09, 2008<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style=""><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="">
<br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style=""><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3cSeuT-xWcpP_i6PnkgzxwgoDrww7e1cegZmft_xIJOauW5uTwKq00nMZkveB1z0UfalPLViVcCrZmFBdRSbCOiPs45uogqa3ZuFpV0uRwJml3ShL5ht9ntJth_zig-DC8S8CxYd3ftcg/s1600-h/BringinginNewYearBIG.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3cSeuT-xWcpP_i6PnkgzxwgoDrww7e1cegZmft_xIJOauW5uTwKq00nMZkveB1z0UfalPLViVcCrZmFBdRSbCOiPs45uogqa3ZuFpV0uRwJml3ShL5ht9ntJth_zig-DC8S8CxYd3ftcg/s320/BringinginNewYearBIG.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5244174782138922962" border="0" /></a>I have no idea why, but my-oh-my does my not-yet-four-year-old girl like reading story books about Chinese New Years. It is bed time for her; I just read <b>Bringing in the New Year</b> by <b>Grace Lin</b>, <b>My First Chinese New Year</b> by <b>Karen Katzby</b> twice each, and she is in her room right now reading the two of them again. She loves books, but there is something that is drawing her to these books lately.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style=""><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style=""><u1:p></u1:p>
<br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="">The sense of family is strong throughout both of these beautifully illustrated and lavishly colored picture books, which seems to appeal to my daughter. Both are jammed packed with illustrations, with <b>Bringing in</b> getting the edge. Both are informative, with <b>My First</b> getting the edge. Also, and just as importantly, they are both fairly quick reads <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCsUafY67fRLBRuq4Pp50uSP_Mwtl2kJKQjxW6vLVKa6mCQCVSvA4mLFuw3LHWJ3yjq1ykUGv8T5hweaP-fA1l2B1KlQWC_1G2Lzbh9eTq4t9uLgsxhRQjqbDPDbQLqc70eCsBMg4nOQPQ/s1600-h/firstchinesenewyear.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><!--[if gte vml 1]><v:shape id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5244172799666018898" spid="_x0000_i1026" type="#_x0000_t75" alt="" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCsUafY67fRLBRuq4Pp50uSP_Mwtl2kJKQjxW6vLVKa6mCQCVSvA4mLFuw3LHWJ3yjq1ykUGv8T5hweaP-fA1l2B1KlQWC_1G2Lzbh9eTq4t9uLgsxhRQjqbDPDbQLqc70eCsBMg4nOQPQ/s1600-h/firstchinesenewyear.jpg" style="'width:112.5pt;height:128.25pt'" button="t"> <v:imagedata src="file:///C:\DOCUME~1\COMPAQ~1\LOCALS~1\Temp\msohtml1\01\clip_image002.jpg" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCsUafY67fRLBRuq4Pp50uSP_Mwtl2kJKQjxW6vLVKa6mCQCVSvA4mLFuw3LHWJ3yjq1ykUGv8T5hweaP-fA1l2B1KlQWC_1G2Lzbh9eTq4t9uLgsxhRQjqbDPDbQLqc70eCsBMg4nOQPQ/s320/firstchinesenewyear.jpg"> </v:shape><![endif]--><!--[if !vml]--><!--[endif]--></span></a>(something that is very important for evening readings).<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj85jroYjHnzgMnf8FslVCxT3Mga43yONBmNYKBV3ykx35LsRpLuCMR9dgxT7rZVUz7IN8mBNjIuRWVeHx5FHHoRuG2T1uuQFewjInUvUdGRNl6JwPudxh1x51VQ_Sb9502CA1ehJ9hG_2z/s1600-h/firstchinesenewyear.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj85jroYjHnzgMnf8FslVCxT3Mga43yONBmNYKBV3ykx35LsRpLuCMR9dgxT7rZVUz7IN8mBNjIuRWVeHx5FHHoRuG2T1uuQFewjInUvUdGRNl6JwPudxh1x51VQ_Sb9502CA1ehJ9hG_2z/s320/firstchinesenewyear.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5244174896016344034" border="0" /></a><o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style=""><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style=""><u1:p></u1:p>
<br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="">These are both terrific and informative picture books, and I don’t really think you could go wrong choosing one over the other. They would be perfect for introducing Chinese New Years to an elementary class, and they would be nice additions to any home’s library.<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style=""><u1:p>___________
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<br /><!--[endif]--><o:p></o:p></u1:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="">Be sure to visit us at <a href="http://comicsintheclassroom.net/">comicsintheclassroom.net</a> for all-ages comic reviews, news and interviews.
<br />
<br />If you would like to submit your book for review, please contact us at <st1:personname st="on"><b dragover="true">comicsintheclassroom@gmail.com</b></st1:personname><o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style=""><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style=""><b dragover="true">NEW! Check out my new/first webcomic: <a href="http://www.thechesscomic.com/">The Chess Comic</a></b><o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> CitChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03600126697399941891noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-286229029927938825.post-77066713024573208412008-07-25T21:38:00.004-04:002008-11-13T16:18:32.764-05:00Michael Recycle: A Review - or - We Rock and That Other Grade 3 Doesn’t Rock Quite As Much - or - They Won’t Take the Cans Here If We Crush Them First<span class="style74">Article by <a href="mailto:comicsintheclassroom@gmail.com">Scott Tingley</a></span> - July 25, 2008<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuZ5iHGNWyKTcjgyNFWwEsqTo0noqXE0Mzhqp7Kmz8i6gazTjWwe49BLB3c2uva1ZcsQJnTsUMtA8Ssgr6akVOWOEE51NCeBmri07QuUh6PtB7dW0d-Dh4s2Wpytt4MfuBjV2rDCxlBMSl/s1600-h/michaelrecycle.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuZ5iHGNWyKTcjgyNFWwEsqTo0noqXE0Mzhqp7Kmz8i6gazTjWwe49BLB3c2uva1ZcsQJnTsUMtA8Ssgr6akVOWOEE51NCeBmri07QuUh6PtB7dW0d-Dh4s2Wpytt4MfuBjV2rDCxlBMSl/s320/michaelrecycle.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5227133358635784850" border="0" /></a>This year my grade three class turned about a fifth of our classroom into a class-garden.<span style=""> </span>We had tomatoes and green and jalapeno peppers, basil and cilantro, cosmos and five-foot + sunflowers, very tiny carrots and corn from Orville Redenbacher corn kernels (which made tiny, but real ears of corn).<span style=""> </span>We didn’t start until after the Christmas break, and curriculum responsibilities and an unusual number of snowstorms meant that we were not able to transplant the small plants in a timely manner, but we ended up with a pretty impressive spread.<o:p> </o:p> <p dragover="true" class="MsoNormal">The grade one teacher at my school from this past year is transferring to a grade three class at another school.<span style=""> </span>We were talking back and forth about 3<sup>rd</sup> grade stuff and the idea of having competing class gardens came up.<span style=""> </span>The idea, I think, will be to grow enough peppers, tomatoes, and maybe even onions/garlic to make a pot of class grown – homemade spaghetti sauce.<span style=""> </span></p> <p dragover="true" class="MsoNormal">We are going to win, by the way.<o:p> </o:p></p> <p dragover="true" class="MsoNormal">This teacher was in charge of our school’s recycling program and that job is passing to me this coming year, so I’m thinking of including a mulch challenge to our competition.<span style=""> </span>We’ll make our own fertilizer and grow some awesome plants.<span style=""> </span><st1:city st="on"><st1:place st="on">Worms</st1:place></st1:city> and rotting produce = a well rounded education. We are going to wipe the floor, in a very friendly way, with that other class.<span style=""> </span><o:p> </o:p></p> <p dragover="true" class="MsoNormal">I mention all this for a couple reasons.<span style=""> </span>Firstly: Any longtime readers will know that it takes me a log of meandering to actually get to a review.<span style=""> </span>I sort of take my time portaging my way around my stream of thought before finishing off with something resembling a review.<span style=""> </span>Secondly: <b style="">Michael Recycle</b>, by <b style="">Ellie Bethel</b> and <b style="">Alexandra Colombo</b> inspired the concept of our little two-school competition….that we are going to win.</p> <p dragover="true" class="MsoNormal"><b style=""><i>Michael Recycle</i></b><i dragover="true" style=""> is set in a grimy town that has been overtaken by trash - that is, until a green-caped crusader, Michael Recycle, arrives, declaring "You must stop this now! You've got to act soon. The towers of trash reach up to the moon!" Inspired by the "super-green hero," town members react by creating a "Be Greener Campaign," which includes recycling, growing their own vegetables and collecting rain for reuse. (From IDWpublishing.com)<o:p></o:p></i><o:p> </o:p></p> <p dragover="true" class="MsoNormal"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwJNGIcsBodU4674fELGsnPQVVsMnRQF6yGM758T_DjIEgGZ8A5kQJ3B7rU6nUuppPJGjZZhHG5cvXKsP3O8EnoZo2E9u_qEiw8Z4NIuy-dxYR7YRWbQ1bCH0YBiUF973P1eGITvHQcoAk/s1600-h/plant.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwJNGIcsBodU4674fELGsnPQVVsMnRQF6yGM758T_DjIEgGZ8A5kQJ3B7rU6nUuppPJGjZZhHG5cvXKsP3O8EnoZo2E9u_qEiw8Z4NIuy-dxYR7YRWbQ1bCH0YBiUF973P1eGITvHQcoAk/s320/plant.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5227135798091930114" border="0" /></a>The title character doesn’t really do a whole lot in the story, which is actually kind of nice, and because of this it gets a higher recommendation than it would if the hero fixed all the problems, or if the hero “held the hands” of the townsfolk while they made the changes.<span style=""> </span>Michael provides the inspiration by telling the town that they need to change, and the town does the rest. This is what is happening now.<span style=""> </span>We are being told to change by reliable sources and then it is up to us to listen and change.<span style=""> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal">The common sense lesson that I take away is that we can’t expect anyone to be the hero besides us.<span style=""> </span>We can make a difference.<span style=""> </span>I like it.<o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">Michael Recycle was actually out in time for this past Earth Day, but I never got around to it until now….I mean I left it until now so that you interested teachers could pick up this book over the summer and make a plan to implement the concepts and ideas into your own class and/or school.<span style=""> </span>Recycle cans and paper?<span style=""> </span>Of course.<span style=""> </span>Reuse old junk?<span style=""> </span>What teacher/school doesn’t find uses for everything until it falls apart?<span style=""> </span>But we can maybe do more.<span style=""> </span>Grow food?<span style=""> </span>Great idea, especially if you have windows in the right spot, or the right climate for a school garden.<span style=""> </span>Save rainwater to water plants?<span style=""> </span>What a great idea!<span style=""> </span>It wouldn’t take much, and snow, for us, would be even easier to collect.<span style=""> </span>A general change in attitudes?<span style=""> </span>It’s worth a try.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">I thought it was clever of the book to include GREEN ideas after the conclusion of the story.<span style=""> </span>Some are pretty obvious, but there are some that are pretty obvious and often ignored: like turning off the faucet while brushing your teeth, or turning off the computer when you are not using it (are the computers shut off in your school when everyone goes home?).</p> <p class="MsoNormal">I like this book, and it is going to be one of the first ones I read to my class this September.<span style=""> </span>Collecting rain water at school.<span style=""> </span>Brilliant!<span style=""> </span></p><o:p></o:p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="">IDW Publishing<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Symbol;">·</span><span style=""> </span><b>ISBN-10:</b> 1845392817 </p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Symbol;">·</span><span style=""> </span><b>ISBN-13:</b> 978-1845392819</p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;">____ </span><br />Be sure to visit us at <a href="http://comicsintheclassroom.net/">comicsintheclassroom.net</a> for all-ages comic reviews, news and interviews.<br /><br />If you would like to submit your book for review, please contact us at <b dragover="true">comicsintheclassroom@gmail.com</b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b dragover="true">NEW! Check out my new/first webcomic: <a href="http://www.thechesscomic.com/">The Chess Comic</a><br /></b></p>CitChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03600126697399941891noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-286229029927938825.post-83591009731525069082008-05-10T15:41:00.003-04:002008-11-13T16:18:32.874-05:00Nit-Pickin’ -or- My Wife Is Not Allowed to Read This Book.<span class="style74">Article by <a href="mailto:comicsintheclassroom@gmail.com">Scott Tingley</a></span> - May 10, 2008<p dragover="true" class="MsoNormal"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyTSwH_OIXhHZfQieMDOFrDLzKxKFQijkLaGBLU8PJKQSVIMaHmsCqlo1_Z9wb6p5rkCb-rCdtG677CyQQEneDdqEMN4RSy4E9jOBXf5e6Fi14sP4XhQnPdm54f3Moi8OaVumiz65pFLvu/s1600-h/nitpickin.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyTSwH_OIXhHZfQieMDOFrDLzKxKFQijkLaGBLU8PJKQSVIMaHmsCqlo1_Z9wb6p5rkCb-rCdtG677CyQQEneDdqEMN4RSy4E9jOBXf5e6Fi14sP4XhQnPdm54f3Moi8OaVumiz65pFLvu/s320/nitpickin.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5198909492620336722" border="0" /></a>My wife is not allowed to read this book.</p> <p dragover="true" class="MsoNormal">When he gets married, the responsible, yet tricky husband will grab up all the jobs that need doing – but that he doesn’t really mind doing. <span style=""> </span>The big chores I snapped up were: dishes, laundry and cooking; leaving my wife the various floor jobs and a few other things that I am horrible at.<span style=""> </span>It has worked out for us pretty well over the years.<span style=""> </span>Unintentionally this time, I did the same thing when our kids were born.<span style=""> </span>I am now the main ‘accident’ and throw-up cleaner.<span style=""> </span>But my wife is in charge of all hair related duties.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">My wife is not allowed to look at this book.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Ever.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Well, maybe not NEVER ever, but certainly not until after.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">After what?<span style=""> </span>After she has to pick and wash and pick and wash all the nits out of our little girl’s hair.<span style=""> </span>See, change its colour from red to blonde and the girl in Nancy Van Laan and George<span style=""> </span>Booth’s, <b style="">Nit-Pickin’ </b>looks pretty much the same as my own daughter.<span style=""> </span>Curlier than curly hair with easy to tangle ringlets.<span style=""> </span>This would be like a horror book for my wife. She truly dreads that first batch of lice that our kids will inevitably get at some point in their school careers.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">I am bringing this book to work and I will bring it home <u>after</u>. </p> <p class="MsoNormal">I had a lot of fun reading <b style="">Nit</b> out loud to my students.<span style=""> </span>The text is written as a poem or a song and its beat made for a good reading experience.<span style=""> </span>The art is kinetic and funny, but I almost missed the best part.<span style=""> </span>All along the top border we see what is happening at nit-level as they are picked out, smeared out, and washed out.<span style=""> </span>This leads to a funny and slightly…troubling final page. </p> <p class="MsoNormal">Teachers and parents, you will want to have this one on hand during the inevitable school nit season.<span style=""> </span>It may actually take away some of the fear of lice kids and parents/teachers have.<span style=""><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="">Available </span><span style="font-size:100%;">July 1, 2008</span></p><p><span style="font-size:100%;"> By Nancy Van Laan<br />Illustrated by George Booth <a href="http://www.simonsays.com/content/destination.cfm?tab=2&pid=357406"></a><br /><strong>This Edition:</strong> Hardcover<br /><strong>Publication Date:</strong> July 1, 2008<br />ISBN-10: 0-689-83898-0<br />ISBN-13: 978-0-689-83898-9<br /> Ages: 4 - 8 <br /> Grades: P - 3 </span> <br /><span class="price"></span> </p>CitChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03600126697399941891noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-286229029927938825.post-81102508562298623992008-03-24T20:14:00.005-04:002008-11-13T16:18:33.045-05:00The Clouds Above: A Comic Review....Or Not<span class="style74">Article by <a href="mailto:comicsintheclassroom@gmail.com">Scott Tingley</a></span> - March 24, 2008<br /><p dragover="true" class="MsoNormal"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgS6DfmDa6rwqp0f8Elq1o0vrwNbGl_LB0ZzgomtP4sYMkLt1p7HvtkdRgDGCNjmHYodtoZCqgD72wWaK3YA741KMKXX4tHxUjgS1_UZF0hrokAzMThUHXBkPmjc7IPxVJU2B-HVlMC0ulZ/s1600-h/clouds.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgS6DfmDa6rwqp0f8Elq1o0vrwNbGl_LB0ZzgomtP4sYMkLt1p7HvtkdRgDGCNjmHYodtoZCqgD72wWaK3YA741KMKXX4tHxUjgS1_UZF0hrokAzMThUHXBkPmjc7IPxVJU2B-HVlMC0ulZ/s320/clouds.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5181467934454732162" border="0" /></a>This is not a comic.<span style=""> </span>Comics don’t belong on this site, so that must mean that this book, <b style="">The Clouds Above</b> is not a comic book. Comic books belong on my <a href="http://comicsintheclassroom.net/">other site</a>…This is not a comic book.<span style=""> </span>It has one illustration per page, meaning there are no panels, meaning this is not a comic.<span style=""> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal">So there.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">…..Except, that in the Clouds Above, by Jordan Crane, the words that tell the story are encased by white bubbles that point at the speakers….Wait a minute!<span style=""> </span>Those are word balloons!<span style=""> </span>This is a comic book.<span style=""> </span>There is no text along the bottom or top of the beautifully, Maurice Sendak-like illustrations, only word balloons.<span style=""> </span>Tricked!!<span style=""> </span>This is a comic.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Nonsense! </p> <p class="MsoNormal">Blast it!</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Bear with me reader(s ??? is there anyone out there?), I’ve had this wonderful little hardcover on my shelf for well over a year, and every month or so I flip through it or maybe read it again, all the while wondering if I am ever going to find a hook that would allow me to write this piece.<span style=""> </span>I knew when I started this kid’s book review site that I was one step closer to being able to do something with this book.</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><b style="">Clouds</b> is an edgy little (its dimensions, not its page count.<span style=""> </span>It is actually 208 pages long) book featuring Simon and his boy-sized pet cat, Jack.<span style=""> </span>Think: <b style="">Calvin and Hobbes</b> meets <b style="">Where the Wild Things Are</b>.<span style=""> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><b style=""><i style="">On the way to school, Simon and his cat Jack take shortcuts that lead them through the kind of fantastic world that lurks just around the corner from reality and that only children believe exists. </i></b>From Fantagraphics.com </p> <p class="MsoNormal">There is a fairly evil teacher, an odd bunch of classmates, a magic staircase, evil storm clouds, and a scene right out of <b style=""><a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0056869/">The Birds</a></b>.<span style=""> </span>This book is kind of weird and kid-friendly, and dark.<span style=""> </span>Kids like a bit of darkness in their literature.<span style=""> </span>Everyone knows the thing about all of the big Disney movies featuring the loss of a main character’s parent, but even writers like Robert Munsch have a bit of an edge to them, if you look for it (Come on!<span style=""> </span>Dad almost freezes to death in <b style="">50 Below Zero</b>, and don’t even get me started on <b style="">A Promise is a Promise</b>.)</p> <p class="MsoNormal">This is a surreal book with images and conversations that will intrigue and engage readers young and old; reluctant or eager.<span style=""> </span>How can you pass up a kid’s book that contains the lines: “Do we still exist?”<span style=""> </span>“I’m starting to wonder.”<span style=""> </span>I want that on a t-shirt!</p> <p class="MsoNormal">I just bought a copy for my grade three class, and I will pass on what the reaction to it is.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">It has been available in hard cover for a while ($18.95), and it is available now in soft cover ($16.99).</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Oh, and it’s a comic.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Author: Jordan Crane, Pages: 208 Dimensions: 6.25" x 6.75" Colors: full-color Publisher Fantagraphics ISBN-10: 1-56097-627-6</p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:100%;">____ </span><br />Be sure to visit us at <a href="http://comicsintheclassroom.net/">comicsintheclassroom.net</a> for all-ages comic reviews, news and interviews.<br /><br />If you would like to submit your book for review, please contact us at <b dragover="true">comicsintheclassroom@gmail.com</b></p>CitChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03600126697399941891noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-286229029927938825.post-24499194493967153612008-03-15T21:24:00.008-04:002008-11-13T16:18:33.250-05:00DUCK!!<span class="style74">Article by <a href="mailto:comicsintheclassroom@gmail.com">Scott Tingley</a></span> - March 15, 2008<br /><p dragover="true" class="MsoNormal"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7Wjwl9qXv2DuebFvqPv8cEk8Gqs1zjJOxlu9lqy5-i16dnxSnFi3DWjylZyRLJ823D5LSrLAXUxfDCy5egNqoa1_s18gpLrHlX5410Atv4MlE8xmRTJiSURuEf1Rkfde19azKlF2vv-N5/s1600-h/duck.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7Wjwl9qXv2DuebFvqPv8cEk8Gqs1zjJOxlu9lqy5-i16dnxSnFi3DWjylZyRLJ823D5LSrLAXUxfDCy5egNqoa1_s18gpLrHlX5410Atv4MlE8xmRTJiSURuEf1Rkfde19azKlF2vv-N5/s320/duck.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5178146787023915138" border="0" /></a>“Jack likes the Ducks.”</p> <p class="MsoNormal">“Jack likes the Ducks,” she says.<span style=""> </span>That is the sole contribution by the other senior staff member of this blog.<span style=""> </span>I’m not sure if the Mom is pulling her weight on this one, but she speaks the truth.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">My son is 14 moths old.<span style=""> </span>He has been walking since 9 ½ months, running since 10 ½ months and climbing EVERYTHING since 12 months.<span style=""> </span>I went to the bedroom for 15 seconds last Saturday and I come back to find him standing in the middle of the kitchen table.<span style=""> </span>Not a chair in sight!<span style=""> </span>I have no idea how he does it.<span style=""> </span>My older daughter didn’t even start to walk until about 14 months, but she was chattering away at 9 months.<span style=""> </span>They are sort of opposites that way.<span style=""> </span>My boy, Jack is really picking up steam with the talking though.<span style=""> </span>In just the last couple of weeks he has begun to say the usual beginner stuff, but his favorite word is <b style="">DUCK</b>.<span style=""> </span>Most things are “duck”.<span style=""> </span>His toy motor bike is “beek”.<span style=""> </span>Trucks (his favourite thing – how do boys know this?<span style=""> </span>I couldn’t care less about trucks.<span style=""> </span>He has lots around, but where does the obsession come from) are “ucks”.<span style=""> </span>But everything else is a duck.<span style=""> </span>Actual ducks, however, are “<b style="">DUCK</b>!!!” </p> <p class="MsoNormal">With that in mind, when a book comes along called, <b style="">What’s Up, Duck?</b> I have to show it to the junior member of the staff to see if it passes muster.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">He said, “DUCK!”</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Sold!</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Really though, <b style="">Tad Hills’</b> follow-up to his bestselling <b style="">Duck and Goose</b> and <b style="">Duck, Duck, Goose</b> (neither of which I have read though) is brilliant.<span style=""> </span>The previous two are storybooks, while this newest is a board book for very young children, which I think is a very good move for publishers.<span style=""> </span>I know my daughter loved the David Shannon <b style="">David</b> board books, which paved the way for her to fall in love with the regular series.<span style=""> </span>Hills’ art style is perfect for young readers.<span style=""> </span>The vibrant colors and adorable birds should make this a favorite for anyone that comes across it.</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><b style="">What’s up Duck?</b> is a book of opposites (with a <b style=""><i style="">near-far</i></b> page that should make fellow <b style="">Grover</b> fans smile) and while I know there are plenty of those around, this one set itself apart by sheer adorableness.<span style=""> </span><b style="">Duck</b> reminds me a bit of the graphic novel series, <b style="">Owly</b> by <b style="">Andy Runton</b>. <span style=""> </span>Hills, like Runton, has a strong ability to convey the emotion of his characters through a few simple lines.<span style=""> </span>It is a skill not every illustrator has, <span style=""> </span>but it seems so simple to Hills and Runton, which is important since there is no dialogue in <i style="">Owly</i> and no words to help with emotions in <i style="">Duck</i>.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">I see from Hills’ page at <a href="http://www.randomhouse.com/author/results.pperl?authorid=69148">Random House.com</a> that he has another board book coming out in August.<span style=""> </span>I say give this newest one a try if you have appropriate aged kids in your life, and you may just find that you want to pre-order the next one.</p> <h2><span style="font-size:85%;">Written/ Illustrated by Tad Hills; <span style=""> </span>Board book, 22 pages; Price: $6.99; ISBN: 978-0-375-84738-7 (0-375-84738-3)</span></h2><span style="font-size:100%;">____ </span><br />Be sure to visit us at <a href="http://comicsintheclassroom.net/">comicsintheclassroom.net</a> for all-ages comic reviews, news and interviews.<br /><br />If you would like to submit your book for review, please contact us at <b dragover="true">comicsintheclassroom@gmail.com</b>CitChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03600126697399941891noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-286229029927938825.post-3101345385083393162008-03-02T21:50:00.008-05:002008-11-13T16:18:33.539-05:00The Girl In the Castle Inside the Museum<!-- this div is most of the page --><span class="style74">Article by <a href="mailto:comicsintheclassroom@gmail.com">Scott Tingley</a></span> - March 02, 2008<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiK0DZMkST05Tu7wVlYPraD-IlfYS5JHzmaWZw6-f9Zav7qnYQxKA8pOKlgfgXZuo1AeSseO_ax9pM52fmFr8ZQ7ESnggDQy2Lz2R6ZzEvEGAemjQ4f203-1Mi0YRTsT6ESvQLuHuauQe4o/s1600-h/girl+inside+castle+museum.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiK0DZMkST05Tu7wVlYPraD-IlfYS5JHzmaWZw6-f9Zav7qnYQxKA8pOKlgfgXZuo1AeSseO_ax9pM52fmFr8ZQ7ESnggDQy2Lz2R6ZzEvEGAemjQ4f203-1Mi0YRTsT6ESvQLuHuauQe4o/s320/girl+inside+castle+museum.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5173347707890750242" border="0" /></a><span style="font-size:100%;"><b style=""><span dragover="true" style="">The Girl In the Castle Inside the Museum</span></b></span><span style="font-size:100%;"> is one of the most beautifully illustrated children’s books</span> I have seen in an awfully long time.<o:p> </o:p> <p class="MsoNormal">I usually don’t cut to the chase like this, but sometimes I don’t need to get cute with a book.<span style=""> </span>In this instance I will put the goofiness aside and say that in a million years I would not be able to tell you how artist <b style="">Nicoletta Ceccoli</b> created these amazing pictures.<span style=""> </span>They look like photographs of porcelain dolls (really pretty ones, not the really creepy ones) specially manufactured just for this one book.<span style=""> </span>I could also say that Ceccoli found a portal to another world inhabited by beautiful, living porcelain dolls, but that would be too comic-booky for my kid’s book blog and it would let in too much goofiness, and I said there would be no goofiness.<span style=""> </span>Ceccoli has illustrated a magnificent world with a magical castle filled with living toys and one lonely girl.<span style=""> </span>Magnificent.<o:p> </o:p></p> <p dragover="true" class="MsoNormal">So I like the pictures. <span style=""> </span>So what? <span style=""> </span>Any elementary teacher that has been around for a while knows that you can get really well written books with sub-par pictures and beautifully illustrated books written with grinding dullness. <span style=""> </span>No fancy pictures can make up for a boring story. <span style=""> </span>So, has <a href="http://www.randomhouse.com/author/results.pperl?authorid=2150"><b dragover="true" style="">The Girl In the Castle Inside the Museum</b></a> writer <b style="">Kate Bernheimer</b> created a tale worthy of <a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhedJnQCxRDuLhoqltgEbH3Az5-30JMbKzxd5R2eiV_rq9qqRAFYFLmL2TFbTAiMe7MSxWD8SLkVhv6SW8NKp0wjXIYoMyaHS_2iwgFgLBUfxZdQ-Y2jChdAKlH6hseV11yN01RUNJudOXc/s1600-h/girlcastlemariah.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhedJnQCxRDuLhoqltgEbH3Az5-30JMbKzxd5R2eiV_rq9qqRAFYFLmL2TFbTAiMe7MSxWD8SLkVhv6SW8NKp0wjXIYoMyaHS_2iwgFgLBUfxZdQ-Y2jChdAKlH6hseV11yN01RUNJudOXc/s320/girlcastlemariah.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5173346831717421842" border="0" /></a>its pictures or not?<span style=""> </span>Sort of, yes.<span style=""> </span>It is hard to compete with the pictures, but I like the story a lot, and so does my little girl.<span style=""> </span>It is nearly as haunting as its pictures.<span style=""> </span>It is an imaginative new fairy tale that uses a couple of clever tricks to engage its young readers (for instance, here is the picture my three year old daughter drew of herself to put in the frame in the book. It was a nice touch that she enjoyed).<span style=""> </span>The whole thing is a little disturbing in an <b dragover="true" style="">Alice in Wonderland, Wizard of Oz</b> sort of way.<span style=""> </span>I think when I share this with my grade three class that will actually be one of the main draws.<span style=""> </span>Kids like a bit of edge, a bit of darkness every now and then in their literature and movies.<span style=""> </span>It helps them make sense of the world around them and they will be able to relate to the loneliness of the <b style="">girl</b>.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Wild, creepy, good stuff.<span style=""> </span>It looks like a book only girls would like, and they may be the <span style=""> </span>target audience, but this thing is so odd that I think boys would be drawn in as well.<span style=""> </span>A sure hit with girls, and maybe a bit more of a hard-sell with the guys.</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Symbol;">·</span><span style=""> </span><b>Price:</b> $19.99 </p> <span style=";font-family:Symbol;font-size:100%;" >·</span><span style=""><span style="font-size:100%;"> </span><span style="font-size:100%;"><b>ISBN:</b> 978-0-375-93606-7 (0-375-93606-8)</span><br /></span>____ <p class="MsoNormal" style="">Be sure to visit us at <a href="http://comicsintheclassroom.net/">comicsintheclassroom.net</a> for all-ages comic reviews, news and interviews.<br /></p>CitChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03600126697399941891noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-286229029927938825.post-76201010628417855252008-02-14T19:41:00.004-05:002008-11-13T16:18:33.986-05:00I DON"T WANT TO GO and OLIVER HAS SOMETHING TO SAY<span class="style74">Article by <a href="mailto:comicsintheclassroom@gmail.com">Scott Tingley</a></span> and Mariah, February 14, 2008 <p dragover="true" class="MsoNormal"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZlgXmAAB7kUvfEhuydfxu_WbYxpg0XlaGBE1ZjtGIz09z5PfkphCZNcibX-UVo5fptIf9Yqu9N7HGFF3on-5nGZ0b_3ZKvsnJ9uy-oaG1Wt23SAoX35MyRn0ix52yvLJBZ_mej2Xa6VBR/s1600-h/oliver.jpg"><img dragover="true" style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZlgXmAAB7kUvfEhuydfxu_WbYxpg0XlaGBE1ZjtGIz09z5PfkphCZNcibX-UVo5fptIf9Yqu9N7HGFF3on-5nGZ0b_3ZKvsnJ9uy-oaG1Wt23SAoX35MyRn0ix52yvLJBZ_mej2Xa6VBR/s320/oliver.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5167001515196304370" border="0" /></a>I really, REALLY need to learn this lesson.<span style=""> </span>I’ve already used this hook in an earlier review, BUT I CAN”T SEEM TO BE ABLE TO LEARN THIS VERY SIMPLE LESSON:<span style=""> </span>Do NOT introduce brand new books to a three year old right before bed time!<span style=""> </span>I know what will happen, because it happens every time.<span style=""> </span>I will end up reading the thing three or four times before my daughter will go to bed.</p> <p dragover="true" class="MsoNormal">See, this is a pretty simple thing to learn.<span style=""> </span>So, instead of learning it, tonight I compounded it.<span style=""> </span>I am pretty well educated and although I have a terrible grasp of English grammar I think that I am a reasonably intelligent person (smarter than a few, dumber than many), so what did I do this evening?<span dragover="true" style=""> </span>I didn’t introduce a new book, that’s for sure.<span style=""> </span>No, I didn’t introduce A new book.<span style=""> </span>I introduced TWO new books to my book-loving daughter right before bed time!</p> <p dragover="true" class="MsoNormal">Three readings each, plus two bible stories and a couple already on the regular rotation and I get out of there way too late.<span style=""> </span>It’s my own fault.</p> <p dragover="true" class="MsoNormal"><b dragover="true" style="">I Don’t Want to Go</b> by <span dragover="true" style=";font-family:Verdana;font-size:10;" >Addie Meyer</span><span dragover="true" style=";font-family:Verdana;font-size:10;" > Sanders and Andrew Rowland, and <b dragover="true" style="">Oliver Has Something to Say</b> by Pamela Edwards </span><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhx6EecElby3nwIm8S46RKNq141kwPERaKVBFHU4owQpyL9vhnBLXRXIhpcPqKCMLRY0wlcBPEq3rhObs61Im9ghFHEHcirUcakdeUfnAJNbGP73ej9_hO7RROd35_pnz1KuLGZb06UAENS/s1600-h/I-Dont-Want-to-Go.jpg"><img dragover="true" style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhx6EecElby3nwIm8S46RKNq141kwPERaKVBFHU4owQpyL9vhnBLXRXIhpcPqKCMLRY0wlcBPEq3rhObs61Im9ghFHEHcirUcakdeUfnAJNbGP73ej9_hO7RROd35_pnz1KuLGZb06UAENS/s320/I-Dont-Want-to-Go.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5167001712764800002" border="0" /></a><span dragover="true" style=";font-family:Verdana;font-size:10;" >and Louis Pilon (both from Lobster Press) have become immediate hits in my house.<span style=""> </span>I need to mention, we don’t reread books unless they are good (in her opinion and mine, but mostly hers).<span style=""> </span>We don’t even make it through books she doesn’t like….those don’t tend to get reviewed here (unless they are just over her head, of course).<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><b style=""><span style=";font-family:Verdana;font-size:10;" >Oliver Has Something to Say:</span></b><span style=";font-family:Verdana;font-size:10;" > <i style="">Meet Oliver. He loves trains and fears dogs. Or does he? How do we know, when he never talks? At four years old, Oliver is a big boy, ready to start prekindergarten, but each time he opens his mouth to speak, his chatty parents and bossy sister answer for him. On a walk, in the bathtub, even at his own birthday party, he can't get a word in! What does Oliver really want to say? He may surprise you! (from LobsterPress.com)<o:p></o:p></i></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><b style="">I Don’t Want to Go:</b> <i style=""><span style=";font-family:Verdana;font-size:10;" >It's time to go? OH NO! Joey is visiting his grandparents on his own for the very first time. Nervous about being far from home, sleeping in a strange bedroom, eating new foods, and leaving his favourite toys behind, Joey is absolutely positive this will be the worst trip <span style="">ever</span>. Little does Joey know what fun Grandma and Grandpa have in store for him if he can find the courage to try something new.<br /><br />Gathering his courage, Joey takes a train ride, visits dinosaurs at the museum, goes fishing, attends a party where he meets new friends, camps out in the backyard, discovers a secret recipe for spaghetti sauce, and learns just how exciting new experiences can be. (from LobsterPress.com)<o:p></o:p></span></i></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=";font-family:Verdana;font-size:10;" >Both of these books have important messages that are presented in ways that young will understand and embrace.<span style=""> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style=";font-family:Verdana;font-size:10;" >Oliver Has Something to Say<br />Product Code:</span></b><span style=";font-family:Verdana;font-size:10;" > 978-1-897073-52-0<br /><b>Author:</b> Pamela Edwards<br /><b>Illustrator:</b> Louis Pilon<br /><b>Binding:</b> Hardcover with dust jacket<br /><b>Page Count:</b> 24<br /><b>Age Range:</b> 3+<br /><b>Pub Date:</b> March 2007<br /><b>Also available in French:</b> <b>Les mots d'Oscar</b> (see Books in French for details)<br /><b>List Price:</b> $18.95 CDN, $16.95 US<o:p><br /></o:p></span><br /><b>I Don’t Want to Go<br />Product Code:</b> 978-1-897073-80-3<br /><b>Author:</b> Addie Meyer Sanders<br /><b>Illustrator:</b> Andrew Rowland<br /><b>Binding:</b> Hardcover with dust jacket<br /><b>Page Count:</b> 24<br /><b>Age Range:</b> 3+<br /><b>Pub Date:</b> April 2008<br /><b>Note:</b> Also available <b>without</b> the tear-out recipe card, ISBN 978-1-897073-75-9.<br /><b>Also available in French:</b> <b>Je ne veux pas y aller</b> (see Books in French for details)<br /><b>List Price:</b> $18.95 CDN, $16.95 US<br />____</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="">Be sure to visit us at <a href="http://comicsintheclassroom.net/">comicsintheclassroom.net</a> for your all ages comic book needs.</p>CitChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03600126697399941891noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-286229029927938825.post-81373763995363750002008-02-14T14:11:00.006-05:002008-11-13T16:18:34.378-05:00I am a Ballerina: an interview/review by 3 year old Mariah<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzQ5-5TKeYBtc1txJEaMbzWVF5K8YZzL2uKw1F1SSPk7_J6yihiccW4Bhz-bb55ylVNofLLLoL90rjt3C6HZUKNB3TFvT4Br4Rcpy1emrs0baBEmU0anIjpZylQ-QOhZOE1reqW5rHnXcH/s1600-h/ballerina.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzQ5-5TKeYBtc1txJEaMbzWVF5K8YZzL2uKw1F1SSPk7_J6yihiccW4Bhz-bb55ylVNofLLLoL90rjt3C6HZUKNB3TFvT4Br4Rcpy1emrs0baBEmU0anIjpZylQ-QOhZOE1reqW5rHnXcH/s320/ballerina.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5166921018919242722" border="0" /></a><span class="style74">Article by <a href="mailto:comicsintheclassroom@gmail.com">Scott Tingley</a></span> and Mariah, February 14, 2008 <p class="MsoNormal"> </p><b>I am a Ballerina</b><!-- prod_picture ballerina.jpg --><!-- prod_thumbnail ballerina.jpg --> - The endearing story of Molly's dream to fly through the air like a real dancer, from her first shaky lessons to the dazzling Christmas recital. (from <b style="">LobsterPress.com</b>) <p class="MsoNormal">Presenting, for the first time ever, an interview with the three year old female member of the <b style="">CitC – Kid’s Book Corner</b> staff, Mariah.<span style=""> </span>Today I will be interviewing her about the book <b style="">I am a Ballerina</b>.</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Comics in the Classroom –Kid’s Book Corner:</span> What’s the book about?</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=";font-family:Verdana;font-size:10;" ><span style="font-size:100%;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Mariah</span>: The ballerina.<span style=""> </span>She is dancing and twirling and she falls.<span style=""> </span>She’s almost a ballerina.</span><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-weight: bold;">CitC-KBC</span>: What do you like about the book?</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Mariah</span>: I like it, it’s good.<span style=""> </span>I like the almost part.</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-weight: bold;">CitC-KBC</span>: What do you think of the pictures?</p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Mariah</span>: They are beautiful.<br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-weight: bold;">CitC-KBC</span>: What is your favorite part?</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Mariah</span>: The almost page [The oft-mentioned page where the girl is fist pretending to be a ballerina in front of a mirrior].</p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-weight: bold;">CitC-KBC</span>: What do you think about the ballerinas? </p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Mariah</span>: I like the dancing on the stage.</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-weight: bold;">CitC-KBC:</span> Would you like to be a ballerina?</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Mariah</span>: I would!</p> <p class="MsoNormal">And then she danced.<span style=""> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal">She is still dancing as I write this…and she is pulling me away to dance.<span style=""> </span>Really.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Having to read the book three times in a row and then dancing for 30 minutes.<span style=""> </span><span style=""> </span>Sounds like the perfect parent/daughter experience to me.</p> <p><span style="font-size:85%;"><b><span style=";font-family:Verdana;" >Product Code:</span></b></span><span style=";font-family:Verdana;font-size:85%;" > 978-1-897073-20-9<br /><b>Author:</b> Valerie Coulman<br /><b>Illustrator:</b> Sandra Lamb<br /><b>Binding:</b> Trade paperback<br /><b>Page Count:</b> 32<br /><b>Age Range:</b> 3+<br /><b>Pub Date:</b> Fall 2005 (softcover edition)<br /><b>List Price:</b> $10.95 CDN, $6.95 US</span><br />____<o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="">Be sure to visit us at <a href="http://comicsintheclassroom.net/">comicsintheclassroom.net</a> for your all ages comic book needs.<o:p></o:p></p>CitChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03600126697399941891noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-286229029927938825.post-35946250947268587692008-02-02T23:36:00.000-05:002008-11-13T16:18:34.588-05:00The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian: a review of a Young Adult novel<span class="style74">Article by <a href="mailto:comicsintheclassroom@gmail.com">Scott Tingley</a></span>, February 03, 2008<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIKEciNs0U5OwS_CFeqmCJuAPg9IidKDl2EMhi6btSaUZGWui4-u7ZzemdTzYPnY6VUaOq5xTjwh0taSQispXrFrUDkBYCuJadyGfiSDBZiPgs7fChMPCvF8VROs7SYWgwWl-EOeYUAR9W/s1600-h/indian.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIKEciNs0U5OwS_CFeqmCJuAPg9IidKDl2EMhi6btSaUZGWui4-u7ZzemdTzYPnY6VUaOq5xTjwh0taSQispXrFrUDkBYCuJadyGfiSDBZiPgs7fChMPCvF8VROs7SYWgwWl-EOeYUAR9W/s320/indian.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5162608963842013378" border="0" /></a>This book has one of the most racist jokes I’ve ever read in my entire life.<span style=""> </span>It is not meant to be funny, but the internal monologue that comes next is hilarious – buffalo, ha! <p class="MsoNormal">What an awful way to start a review.<br /><o:p></o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">I had a whole paragraph about my time on a far north reserve (technically an off-reserve, but I don’t think anybody has ever cared when I try to explain the difference).<span style=""> </span>It was a pretty good paragraph too.<span style=""> </span>But, I don’t think I am a strong enough writer to walk the line between sharing powerful experiences I had as a young teacher and <span style=""> </span>sounding like one of the two types of teachers mentioned at the top of page 30 in <b style="">The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian</b> (although I would like to add to the list of reserve teachers: “brand new teachers that have no idea what they are getting into but figure it has to be better than supply teaching”, which it was for me, and “teachers running away from their problems in the real world”.<span style=""> </span>There were a few “mobster informants” in the District that I taught in.<span style=""> </span>Sorry, to fully get that you will have to read the book. You may want to skip to the end of this review to see if I think it’s any good though).</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">Okay, I will share this – only to drive home my point, not to make me seem like a guy that “understands what it is like to be an Indian on a reserve”. <span style=""> </span>No, I am a very white guy from a small town that had one family that wasn’t also white and I have never known anything like real hunger or poverty.<span style=""> </span>But this is one thing I have seen that ties in well with Sherman Alexie’s first Young Adult novel.<span style=""> </span>I have seen some things. <span style=""> </span>Arnold (also called Junior), the main character and narrator of <b style="">The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian</b> endures some incredible hardships and talks about things that may make the reader uncomfortable, and the reader may think that things are being exaggerated for effect.<span style=""> </span>Upon my return from my time teaching away I would talk to family members and other teachers about my experiences in <st1:place st="on">Northern Saskatchewan</st1:place> and they would look at me and listen intently, because they were interesting (and at times shocking) stories.<span style=""> </span>But, they always had that tilt of the head that tells you, the teller of the tale, that they don’t really believe a thing you are saying.<span style=""> </span>They don’t believe that a place in Canada exists where a pick-up truck filled with grown men would actually slow down just so they could yell at an eight year old boy about what a whore his mother was – knowledge they gained first hand.<span style=""> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">Other stories are worse and I’m not sharing them at this time.</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">Alexie has written a terrific novel, one in which it at times it feels like the main character is sitting with you telling you all of his secrets.<span style=""> </span>I mean that it is like a 15 year old is telling you ALL of his life story, which includes pain, humor, swearing and masturbation.<span style=""> </span>Yeah that last one may make you think twice about including it on your high school class’ summer reading list, but what 15 year old doesn’t have lust and hormones leading him around?<span style=""> </span>This is an honest book.<span style=""> </span>It is an important book.<span style=""> </span>If you don’t know about the world <st1:city st="on"><st1:place st="on">Arnold</st1:place></st1:city> lives in then you should read it and recommend it to young adults that may need a similar awakening.<span style=""> </span>If you and those around you know what it is like to lead the life the people living in Arnold’s community lead, then it might just make you feel a little more understood and connected, and maybe those around you could use a little of that feeling.<span style=""> </span>I may personally wish those few masturbation parts were left out, but I don’t think it would keep me from letting my own kids read it if they were in high school.<span style=""> </span>And I think this is tame compared to what most are being exposed to anyway, but I thought you could use fair warning.</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">In some ways, Part-Time Indian reminds me of <b style=""><a href="http://comicsintheclassroom.net/oa2008_jan19_essexfarm.htm">Essex County:<span style="font-weight: normal;"> Tales From The Farm</span></a></b><strong><span style="font-weight: normal;">.<span style=""> </span>For instance: being a different kid in a small town apparently means you get called homophobic names a lot.<span style=""> </span><o:p></o:p></span></strong></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><strong><span style="font-weight: normal;"><o:p> </o:p></span></strong></p> <p class="MsoNormal">I must mention that this book is heavily illustrated by Ellen Forney.<span style=""> </span>Apparently Alexie and Forney worked quite closely on these illustrations and cartoons, which are meant to be those of the main character who is an aspiring cartoonist.<span style=""> </span>They are used to show what <st1:city st="on"><st1:place st="on">Arnold</st1:place></st1:city> is thinking in the situation presented in the text.<span style=""> </span>They really add a lot to the book.</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal">In summary: Great book.<span style=""> </span>Read it. If some of the content I have pointed out makes you hesitate recommending it to a teen, read it yourself. I'm glad I did.<br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-size:85%;">Young Adult Fiction<br />ISBN:0316013684<br />9780316013680<br />Hardcover </span></p> <p><span style="font-size:85%;"><span style="font-family:arial;">$16.99/U.S.</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">$21.50/CAN</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">256 pages</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">5-1/2 x 8-1/4</span><br /><span style="font-family:arial;">LITTLE BROWN FOR YOUNG READERS</span></span><br />____</p><p class="MsoNormal">Be sure to visit us at <a href="http://comicsintheclassroom.net/">comicsintheclassroom.net</a> for your all ages comic book needs.</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=""> </span></p>CitChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03600126697399941891noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-286229029927938825.post-18434531043061917992008-01-28T21:40:00.000-05:002008-11-13T16:18:34.811-05:00Hermie and Friends: Buzby and the Grumble Bees-A Review....or.... The thing that kept my daughter from going to bed tonight<span class="style74">Article by <a href="mailto:comicsintheclassroom@gmail.com">Scott Tingley</a></span>, January 28, 2008<br /><p dragover="true" class="MsoNormal"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5keElaQggM6cflgiKldDRTXWdNms_tXy5qytNWhCG8X-OMKiET8vkJQ57IcKebs0YIMM7i_tqRwi3oRW-a8QYzez_J_imN2SvE20H3TSsUbUi8XWeQ8rQHESn9hOBRss0nALKPxzI8KDy/s1600-h/hermiebeehaving.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5keElaQggM6cflgiKldDRTXWdNms_tXy5qytNWhCG8X-OMKiET8vkJQ57IcKebs0YIMM7i_tqRwi3oRW-a8QYzez_J_imN2SvE20H3TSsUbUi8XWeQ8rQHESn9hOBRss0nALKPxzI8KDy/s320/hermiebeehaving.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5160724074494490802" border="0" /></a>It has been a common theme on this blog for me to use some cute little story involving my three year old daughter.<span style=""> </span>It is a hook that comes in handy for these kinds of reviews and I think it ads a nice touch.<span style=""> </span>That was then.<span style=""> </span>Now all that I can think about is the hour I just spent sitting on my daughter’s bedroom floor trying to convince her that she, in fact, did not need to “read” me the book again after I had just read it three times; and NO, she did not have to call her Grammy to thank her for the book again [Note to self: all new books are to be given in the morning so that the girl has time to get used to it.<span style=""> </span>No new books at supper time!]</p> <p class="MsoNormal">In summary, I would like to thank Superstar Christian grown-up book writer <b style="">Max Lucado</b> for keeping me from getting to my marking and planning.<span style=""> </span>Thanks a lot for a series of books that keeps my daughter interested and excited about reading.<span style=""> </span>Thanks a lot!</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><b style="">Review redo:<o:p></o:p></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal">Remember those episodes of <b style="">The Cosby Show </b>where the whole family goes into “Lesson Teaching Mode”?<span style=""> </span>You remember the ones – when someone needs to be reminded about what kind of person they really are so the rest of the family play-acts to draw attention to a certain quality a family member is forgetting they have?<span style=""> </span>Great stuff.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Now picture that instead of comic genius Bill Cosby and an ensemble cast of talented actors you have the talents of comic geniuses Tim<span style="font-size:10;"> </span>Conway and Don Knotts (<a href="http://turnerclassic.moviesunlimited.com/product.asp?sku=D85274">together again!</a>) providing the voices for a couple of odd looking caterpillars (now picture that you can’t actually hear them because this is a book.<span style=""> </span>Remember?<span style=""> </span>They do the voices for the videos, but I’ll get to that).<span style=""> </span>In my daughter’s favorite new obsession – I mean book - the two friends help Buzby Bee teach his niece and nephew about manners.<span style=""> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><b style="">Hermie and Friends: Buzby and the Grumble Bees</b> is a lot like all of the other Hermie books and videos I have come across in the last couple of years.<span style=""> </span>It has a very clear lesson that gets taught in a not very subtle way.<span style=""> </span>The first time I saw one of the books I thought that there was no way it was going to be any good – just a money grab by a company that thinks they know what parents want their kids to read.<span style=""> </span>Then I watched one of the videos and realized to my joy that one of my favorite comedy teams was providing the voices.<span style=""> </span>That allowed me to have an open mind and I realized that I was looking at the series all wrong.<span style=""> </span>I was not doing what I am able to do with most books.<span style=""> </span>I was not able to keep in mind that these books and videos are not written for me.<span style=""> </span>They are written for 2 year olds up to maybe 4-5 year olds [note that the videos are fun for older kids as well and the <b style="">Christmas Fruitcake</b> one has a great <b style="">Deputy/Landlord</b> joke).<span style=""> </span>My daughter does not need subtlety in her morality plays.<span style=""> </span>The value needs to be presented and the misbehavers need to learn the lesson.<span style=""> </span>The behaving lesson of this book is the only reason that I was able to convince her to go to bed.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">This is a Christian book, but I don’t think it is only for devout, or even practicing church goers.<span style=""> </span>The uncle bee prays for help on one page.<span style=""> </span>It is right there but to me it does not feel in-you-face.<span style=""> </span>If you don’t have a problem with someone praying then you should be alright with it.<span style=""> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal">The 3D art is not a style I tend to enjoy, but kids love it, so what do I know?</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Would I be a bad father if I hid <a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1400309131/thomasnelsoni-20">this book</a> tomorrow?<span style=""> </span>Never mind.<span style=""> </span>I know.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">By the way, this board book comes with “<i style="">an interactive CD-ROM with read-along story, song,coloring pages, computer game, wallpaper, and screensaver for use onWindows® PCs. The read-along story is also playable on a CD player</i>.” (from hermieandfriends.com) I haven’t checked it out yet, but it sounds like something my kids will really enjoy.<br />____</p><p class="MsoNormal">Be sure to visit us at <a href="http://comicsintheclassroom.net/">comicsintheclassroom.net</a> for your all ages comic book needs.</p>CitChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03600126697399941891noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-286229029927938825.post-2917827827755511412008-01-20T01:00:00.002-05:002008-11-13T16:18:35.339-05:00Ma! There's Nothing To Do: a Review.....or...."Mommy. What's That?"<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_-pOodmlhuiw/R5Ll1SV96zI/AAAAAAAAACw/9b33oJrhRSM/s1600-h/www.randomhouse.com.gif"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_-pOodmlhuiw/R5Ll1SV96zI/AAAAAAAAACw/9b33oJrhRSM/s320/www.randomhouse.com.gif" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5157437226912443186" border="0" /></a><p class="MsoNormal" style=""> </p><span class="style74">Article by <a href="mailto:comicsintheclassroom@gmail.com">Scott Tingley</a></span>, January 20, 2008<br /><br /><p dragover="true" class="MsoNormal" face="arial"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgJOxv2_aKyxWdYc2BgIXibCctM9Hr3PjlTGr4h7eXRToc2EmdYuCDWax90FX_MhFVn-LyBNNTHSBM83nG_TDtdcnk551uylUlbxVknZHyVugWF7UWuAjJEx5WuA4MIBBnhYlQqpxb58ob/s1600-h/ma_nothingtodo.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgJOxv2_aKyxWdYc2BgIXibCctM9Hr3PjlTGr4h7eXRToc2EmdYuCDWax90FX_MhFVn-LyBNNTHSBM83nG_TDtdcnk551uylUlbxVknZHyVugWF7UWuAjJEx5WuA4MIBBnhYlQqpxb58ob/s320/ma_nothingtodo.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5157710498501618498" border="0" /></a><span style="font-size:100%;">Quote #1<br />My ambition is to interview Neil Armstrong without mentioning the moon landing and observe his reaction. <span style=""> </span>- <i>Ardal O’Hanlon</i></span><span style="font-size:100%;"><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-size:100%;">Quote #2<br />Every mother would love to get this book at her baby shower. – <i>Comics in the Classroom Kid’s Book Blog contributor Nancy T.<o:p></o:p></i></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-size:100%;"><i><o:p></o:p></i></span><span style="font-size:100%;">Quote #3:<br />I wouldn’t read it to a three year old unless you want some questions – like about the chord. – <i>Comics in the Classroom Kid’s Book Blog contributor Nancy T.<o:p></o:p></i></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-size:100%;"><o:p>COMMENT: </o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-size:100%;">Quote #1:<span style=""> </span>You will either get it or you won’t (and I really don't mean for it to sound like an in-joke, because it isn't really) <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:arial;"><span style="font-size:100%;"><o:p></o:p>Quote #2:<span style=""> </span>I might as well stop there, because it can’t get any better than that.<o:p></o:p></span></p><span style=";font-family:Bembo-Italic;font-size:11;" ><span style=";font-family:arial;font-size:100%;" >Quote #3: Yikes!<br /><br /></span><o:p></o:p></span> <p style="font-style: italic;" class="MsoNormal"><span style=";font-family:Bembo-Italic;font-size:11;" ><o:p> </o:p></span>“<span style="font-weight: bold;">Ma! there’s nothing to do here!</span>” complains the precocious protagonist of this rhyming tale set entirely in utero. It’s not exactly a scintillating experience spending nine months in your mother’s womb. You’re just stuck there at the end of that dumb bungee cord (a.k.a. the umbilical cord), with nothing whatsoever to do but slosh around. But, oh, the endless joys you have to look forward to as you listen to the tick-tock of ma’s happy heart clock and await that happy day when you finally come out to play. (from RandomHouse.com)</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style=""><o:p></o:p>Yes, this is a book about a yet to be born baby stuck hanging a round a boring womb.<span style=""> </span>It is not hard to understand the sentiments of my wife in that this is a book any mother would love to have right before the little bundle of joy is born.<span style=""> </span>What expectant parents wouldn’t chuckle at the sight of a baby canoeing around the uterus, or attempting to play tag alone in such a confined space?<span style=""> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style=""><o:p></o:p>But the big question is: Will kids like it?</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="">Well, I know that my daughter liked it.<span style=""> </span>She is three and even though she watched her mother’s belly get bigger and bigger for nine months; and even though she can tell you that her baby brother came out of that tummy, she doesn’t get it.<span style=""> </span>Of course she doesn’t.<span style=""> </span>She’s three!<span style=""> </span>But she knows what she likes, and she thought <u>Ma! There’s Nothing To Do Here!</u> was hilarious.<span style=""> </span>BUT, please refer back to quote #3.</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="">Also, this would be a fine book read to grades five or six, whichever grade is about to begin sex-ed (I know!<span style=""> </span>Can you believe it?<span style=""> </span>And not a moment too soon for some).<span style=""> </span>Sort of deals with the whole baby issue in a silly, fun and real way.</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="">Veteran children’s writer Barbra Park and illustrator Viviana Garofoli have done a very nice job on a special book that will likely be around for a long time and be given to new mothers as a companion to Munsch’s <b>Love You Forever</b><b><span style="font-size:10;">.</span></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="">This will be available on January 22, 2008<span style=""> </span>- get it for the expectant moms and the confused preschoolers in your life.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Written by <a href="http://www.randomhouse.com/author/results.pperl?authorid=23194"><nobr>Barbara Park</nobr></a><br />Illustrated by <a href="http://www.randomhouse.com/author/results.pperl?authorid=60001"><nobr>Viviana Garofoli</nobr></a><o:p></o:p></p> <ul type="disc"><li class="MsoNormal" style="">40 pages<o:p></o:p></li><li class="MsoNormal" style=""><b>On <st1:city st="on"><st1:place st="on">Sale</st1:place></st1:city>:</b> January 22, 2008<o:p></o:p></li><li class="MsoNormal" style=""><b>Price:</b> $18.99 (hardcover)<o:p></o:p></li><li class="MsoNormal" style=""><b>ISBN:</b> 978-0-375-93852-8 (0-375-93852-4)</li></ul><span style="font-family:Georgia;"></span><p class="MsoNormal">____</p><p class="MsoNormal">Be sure to visit us at <a href="http://comicsintheclassroom.net/">comicsintheclassroom.net</a> for your all ages comic book needs.</p>CitChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03600126697399941891noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-286229029927938825.post-77350614479997969972008-01-09T20:15:00.000-05:002008-11-13T16:18:35.515-05:00Princess Baby: 30 Reads and Counting<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNyE4qk1wVbindF7jqTI2GejlQ_lC0aqydhHitZPx7ITGfTctdBJdJuGE9XlpS5Ik8ysJKgFdTRAifTzsBBKVc9kOIENPdVA8Cj29rpuPqVhfpm7psX9OtQevzK4zh_Rx7-72QDKBkudD7/s1600-h/princessbaby.gif"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNyE4qk1wVbindF7jqTI2GejlQ_lC0aqydhHitZPx7ITGfTctdBJdJuGE9XlpS5Ik8ysJKgFdTRAifTzsBBKVc9kOIENPdVA8Cj29rpuPqVhfpm7psX9OtQevzK4zh_Rx7-72QDKBkudD7/s320/princessbaby.gif" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5153651239010822930" border="0" /></a><span class="style74">Article by <a href="mailto:comicsintheclassroom@gmail.com">Scott Tingley</a></span>, January 09, 2008<p class="MsoNormal"><br />My daughter is clumsy.<span style=""> </span>I was going to name the article that, but my wife wouldn’t let me.<span style=""> </span>However, the fact remains that my daughter is clumsy – she is a lot like her dear old dad that way.<span style=""> </span>Fortunately I got the new children’s book <b style="">Princess Baby</b> on Friday, because on Sunday my daughter fell down pretty hard.<span style=""> </span>The only thing that would get her to stop crying was to show her the book for the first time and twenty minutes and five readings later she had stopped crying, but I was not allowed up. <span style=""> </span>We had to read it again. </p> <p class="MsoNormal"><i style="">“Poor baby, no one calls her by her real name! “I am not a buttercup, or a giggly goose. I am not a cupcake. Please don’t call me Little Lamb, and never ever Gum Drop,” she insists. With a curtsy and a twirl, again and again our protagonist makes it abundantly clear who she is.”</i> (from <a href="http://www.randomhouse.com/kids/catalog/author.pperl?authorid=76548">Randomhouse.com</a>)</p> <p class="MsoNormal">My wife and I have read this book at least thirty times this week so far (It’s only Wednesday!).<span style=""> </span>I was thinking of calling this review “Don’t Buy This Book If You Know What’s Good For You” but I thought that might be misleading to you an therefore a little annoying to author / writer <a href="http://www.karenkatz.com/index.html">Karen Katz</a>.<span style=""> </span>My three year old daughter loves this book so much – we actually have to keep it out of sight so we can get something done around the house without her demanding to have it read once again.<span style=""> </span>If you as a parent have to read a book over and over again, at least you hope that it is a well crafted and clever book. <span style=""> </span>As I said in an earlier review on this blog, “<span style="font-family:Georgia;">there are only so many times a man can read <b>Care Bears What Makes You Happy? </b>before contemplating the positive merits of book burning.” <o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family:Georgia;"><o:p></o:p>Princess Baby is one of those well crafted ones that you won’t mind reading over and over and over and over.<span style=""> </span>Or, at least won’t mind so much.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal">The book’s topic is relevant to little girls, the art is appealing and the pacing is perfect. <span style=""> </span>I highly recommend this book.<span style=""> </span>And <span style="font-family:Georgia;">Mariah gives this one 544 out of 544 “read it again”s<br />____</span></p><p class="MsoNormal">Be sure to visit us at <a href="http://comicsintheclassroom.net/">comicsintheclassroom.net</a> for your all ages comic book needs.</p>CitChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03600126697399941891noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-286229029927938825.post-58665692709256563432007-12-03T22:51:00.000-05:002008-11-13T16:18:35.747-05:00Back Off - Leave Me Alone: A GRUMPY BIRD Review<span class="style74">Article by <a href="mailto:comicsintheclassroom@gmail.com">Scott Tingley</a></span>, December 03, 2007<br /><p dragover="true" class="MsoNormal"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbrKZI0M1-PLX8S5oSYGKnWMPme1YNlI1yPtdMadKeyZwMvcTZkg5p8BoPJr6TLKp53Q5sq-q2Af7nWfpqA5EYti1-6OVh-_Ta3R2qdUP4GfKF2x6S0f1YbfEOCHJ_SNJJvC0n1V9X10hQ/s1600-r/grumpy_b.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOVFR1J-U7RkA19b8ofhWHAwB8UegjviYGqlWQ70YdOJeIlWLHXKUu_lSarvJolUKY8pLTM5bcWmXlpb2TUTSZkXiGxBLyFqnrJMUpGdfi6m4amocCmpcRbA1duURVb5udZ6oSyHY6vsfe/s320/grumpy_b.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5139961919551350866" border="0" /></a>Holy cow I’m in a bad mood.<span style=""> </span>And the only cure is cute, colourful animals.</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p>That’s what I said.</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p>Cute colourful animals.</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><o:p></o:p>A few months ago, I had the good fortune to be able to observe artist Jeremy Tankard give a comic creating workshop to a group of middle and high school students during the Fry [Literature] Festival.<span style=""> </span>The hour or two he did with <a href="http://lambiek.net/artists/b/beaulieu_jimmy.htm" target="_blank"><strong>Jimmy Beaulieu</strong></a> (<a href="http://www.pastis.org/mg/jimmy.html">a better site, but in French</a>) was a pretty big influence on how I have conducted my comic creating workshops ever since.<span style=""> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal">But the only thing that has to do with what I am talking about here is the part where I was introduced to Mr. Tankard’s children’s book, <b style="">Grumpy Bird</b>.<span style=""> </span></p> <p><b style=""><i style="">Bird wakes up feeling grumpy. Too grumpy to eat or play -- too grumpy even to fly. “Looks like I'm walking today,” says Bird. He walks past Sheep, who offers to keep him company. He walks past Rabbit, who also could use a walk. Raccoon, Beaver, and Fox join in, too. <o:p></o:p></i></b></p> <p><b style=""><i style="">Before he knows it, a little exercise and companionship help Bird shake his bad mood. </i>From <a href="http://www.jeremytankard.com/books.html">jeremytankard.com</a><i style=""><o:p></o:p></i></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal">This is everything I look for in a kid’s storybook.<span style=""> </span>It’s got: goofy, wildly colourful art; a funny cast of characters (Canadian Tankard included a beaver!<span style=""> </span>Yay <st1:place st="on"><st1:country-region st="on">Canada</st1:country-region></st1:place>!); and a grumpy protagonist looking like a dork (my life <span style="font-family:Wingdings;"><span style="">J</span></span> ).<span style=""> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal">Alright!<span style=""> </span>I can’t take it any more!<span style=""> </span>I am a complete sell out!<span style=""> </span>After Tankard’s workshop I hung around and had him draw a sketch for both my class and for me (I have one in my class and one hanging behind me as I type right now).<span style=""> </span>My only regret is that I didn’t have him draw me a sketch of the little girl superhero he has on his business cards for my daughter.<span style=""> </span>I’m such a sell out.<span style=""> </span>Sigh.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">I don’t care.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">I like my sketches, and I wouldn’t have wasted my time if I didn’t like what I saw….So there.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">I like <b style="">Grumpy Bird</b>.<span style=""> </span>You might too.<span style=""> </span>You can find it in <st1:country-region st="on"><st1:place st="on">Canada</st1:place></st1:country-region>’s November PreK-K (<b style="">which you can still order from</b>) Scholastic order form for 5$ each.<span style=""> </span>A good deal for a book you can get a lot of mileage out of in an early years guidance/health class (Grumpy behaviour and how to beat it.<span style=""> </span>The lesson practically writes itself).<span style=""> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal">Even if you are not a sell out like me, you will probably enjoy <b style="">Grumpy Bird</b>.<span style=""> </span>I promise nothing though.<span style=""> </span>So back off chump……See what I did there?<span style=""> </span>I ended on a grumpy note.<span style=""> </span>I’m clever like that.</p><p class="MsoNormal">-------</p><p class="MsoNormal">Be sure to visit us at <a href="http://comicsintheclassroom.net/">comicsintheclassroom.net</a> for your all ages comic book needs.<br /></p>CitChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03600126697399941891noreply@blogger.com0