I enjoyed this book by Yoshiko Uchida. Young Rinko wants nothing more than to be like everyone else. A local laundry owner insults Rinko and her brother and when Rinko's mother opens her own laundry, the situation gets much worse. Rinko's family is full of dreams, but they don't believe they could really come true.
The family really isn't sure what to expect when they learn that Aunt Waka is coming to visit from Japan. Her presence turns out to be just what the family needs, and gives Rinko the courage to embrace her heritage and become a better person.
Yoshiko Uchida also wrote Best Bad Thing, The Happiest Ending, Picture Bride, Two Foolish Cats, and many other books before his death in 1992.
Saturday, November 8, 2008
The Star Fisher
I wasn't really sure what to expect when I checked out this book by Lawrence Yep. I know very little about Chinese culture so that aspect was interesting. Lawrence Yep has written many other books about Chinese culture, including Dragonwings, The Journal of Wong Ming-Chung: A Chinese Miner, Dragon's Gate, and his most recent work includes Mia (American Girl).
The story centers around fifteen-year-old Joan. Her Chinese-American family has just moved from Ohio to Clarksburg, West Virginia to continue their laundry business. The story takes place in 1927, so this book was a bit different than most prejudice stories I've read. The story centers around a Chinese folktale and how it mirrors Joan's new life. Despite the trouble that comes their way, the Lee family does not give up, and eventually Joan realizes she's not the only one in town who can see herself in the Star Fisher story.
This was not the best book I've read throughout this journey, but I thought it was good for learning a bit about Chinese culture. I found that the story was a little slow for me in some places.
The story centers around fifteen-year-old Joan. Her Chinese-American family has just moved from Ohio to Clarksburg, West Virginia to continue their laundry business. The story takes place in 1927, so this book was a bit different than most prejudice stories I've read. The story centers around a Chinese folktale and how it mirrors Joan's new life. Despite the trouble that comes their way, the Lee family does not give up, and eventually Joan realizes she's not the only one in town who can see herself in the Star Fisher story.
This was not the best book I've read throughout this journey, but I thought it was good for learning a bit about Chinese culture. I found that the story was a little slow for me in some places.
Tuesday, November 4, 2008
The Lorax
I had never read this book before so I was very curious to find out what it was about. It is not whimsical like The Cat in the Hat, but I enjoyed it nonetheless.
The Lorax is didactic because it intends to teach children a life lesson. It's interesting how a book written in 1971 is still incredibly relevant today. The book deals with the negatives of commercialism and encourages children to think about the consequences of their actions.
I think there are still didactic children's books today. My first thought was the story of The Boy Who Cried Wolf, even though it is not a new story. I also thought of Kevin Henkes's Chrysanthemum, which I read to my students recently. Both stories attempt to teach children a lesson.
The Lorax is didactic because it intends to teach children a life lesson. It's interesting how a book written in 1971 is still incredibly relevant today. The book deals with the negatives of commercialism and encourages children to think about the consequences of their actions.
I think there are still didactic children's books today. My first thought was the story of The Boy Who Cried Wolf, even though it is not a new story. I also thought of Kevin Henkes's Chrysanthemum, which I read to my students recently. Both stories attempt to teach children a lesson.
The Cat in the Hat
I hadn't read this book since I was a child, so I couldn't quite remember everything that happened in it. I had forgotten how brilliant it is. I am so impressed by Dr. Seuss's ability to write such an interesting story using such simple words.
There is an incredible amount of tension in this book between the cat, the fish, and the children. Since I haven't read much children's literature prior to this class, I am not aware of any contemporary books that have the same type of tension in them.
This book absolutely appeals to today's children, and I believe it will appeal to children for many years to come. The story is simple to read and it is full of whimsy and fun. Children can relate to the story - they want to have fun and bend the rules but they must be responsible for their actions. I am happy that I was reintroduced to this story. I can't read it to my son, who will be born any time now!
There is an incredible amount of tension in this book between the cat, the fish, and the children. Since I haven't read much children's literature prior to this class, I am not aware of any contemporary books that have the same type of tension in them.
This book absolutely appeals to today's children, and I believe it will appeal to children for many years to come. The story is simple to read and it is full of whimsy and fun. Children can relate to the story - they want to have fun and bend the rules but they must be responsible for their actions. I am happy that I was reintroduced to this story. I can't read it to my son, who will be born any time now!
Monday, November 3, 2008
The Talking Eggs
I just loved this book by Robert D. San Souci and illustrated by Jerry Pinkney. It was completely different than what I expected.
This book is a typical fairy tale type story. It kind of reminded me of Cinderella because Blanche's mom and sister mistreated her but she was able to overcome that thanks to a little bit of magic. The story also reminded me of the story of the Samaritan woman in the Bible because Blanche shares water with an old woman at the well. The woman eventually helps Blanche because of that. I also thought of when Jesus fed 5000 people because the old woman was able to feed herself and Blanche with just a little bit.
To summarize the story, Blanche helped the old woman at the well. When her mother and sister got angry with her for taking so long to get the water, Blanche ran away into the woods and went with the old woman who made her promise not to laugh at anything she saw. Blanche kept her promise and she was richly rewarded. When her sister, Rose, tried to go to the woman's cabin, she laughed at what she saw and was punished.
This book has a fantastic moral and I really enjoyed the illustrations. They made the story. Jerry Pinkney has illustrated many books, including Little Red Hen, The Old African, The Song of the Trees, and The Nightingale.
This book is a typical fairy tale type story. It kind of reminded me of Cinderella because Blanche's mom and sister mistreated her but she was able to overcome that thanks to a little bit of magic. The story also reminded me of the story of the Samaritan woman in the Bible because Blanche shares water with an old woman at the well. The woman eventually helps Blanche because of that. I also thought of when Jesus fed 5000 people because the old woman was able to feed herself and Blanche with just a little bit.
To summarize the story, Blanche helped the old woman at the well. When her mother and sister got angry with her for taking so long to get the water, Blanche ran away into the woods and went with the old woman who made her promise not to laugh at anything she saw. Blanche kept her promise and she was richly rewarded. When her sister, Rose, tried to go to the woman's cabin, she laughed at what she saw and was punished.
This book has a fantastic moral and I really enjoyed the illustrations. They made the story. Jerry Pinkney has illustrated many books, including Little Red Hen, The Old African, The Song of the Trees, and The Nightingale.
Sunday, October 12, 2008
Freaky Friday
I ran across this movie on digital cable as well, so I thought it would be a good choice for my final book into feature film selection. As with the other two selections, I read the book first.
This was an interesting book - much darker than I thought it would be when I checked it out. The story is about a girl named Annabel and her family. The story begins with Annabel waking up in her mother's body. She isn't nearly as shocked or alarmed by it as I thought she should be. She goes through a day as her mother and learns a lot about herself in the process. She has to be responsible for her annoying kid brother Ben (aka Ape Face) and learns that he doesn't hate her. She also attends a parent-teacher conference and finds out what her teachers really think about her. At the end of the book, we learn that Annabel's mother is responsible for the switch and they trade identities. Annabel decides to change her ways.
Believe it or not, I actually preferred the movie to the book on this one! I watched the modern version with Jamie Lee Curtis and Lindsay Lohan. The writers made the story much more interesting because they explored the reactions of both Anna and her mother. The movie is really funny and they tie everything together nicely. I did notice that there are several subtle references to the book, such as the boy falling for the mother, Ben actually liking Anna, and Anna's realization that she needs to change her ways. The movie stuck to the general story but made it better, in my opinion.
This was an interesting book - much darker than I thought it would be when I checked it out. The story is about a girl named Annabel and her family. The story begins with Annabel waking up in her mother's body. She isn't nearly as shocked or alarmed by it as I thought she should be. She goes through a day as her mother and learns a lot about herself in the process. She has to be responsible for her annoying kid brother Ben (aka Ape Face) and learns that he doesn't hate her. She also attends a parent-teacher conference and finds out what her teachers really think about her. At the end of the book, we learn that Annabel's mother is responsible for the switch and they trade identities. Annabel decides to change her ways.
Believe it or not, I actually preferred the movie to the book on this one! I watched the modern version with Jamie Lee Curtis and Lindsay Lohan. The writers made the story much more interesting because they explored the reactions of both Anna and her mother. The movie is really funny and they tie everything together nicely. I did notice that there are several subtle references to the book, such as the boy falling for the mother, Ben actually liking Anna, and Anna's realization that she needs to change her ways. The movie stuck to the general story but made it better, in my opinion.
Wednesday, October 8, 2008
Bridge to Terabithia
I noticed that this movie was on one of my digital cable channels a couple of weeks ago, so I recorded it so I could watch it for this course. I had never read the book before, so I was hoping our school library would have it. Luckily for me, it did.
Just like the last entry, I read the book before watching the movie. This book by Katherine Paterson won the 1978 Newbery Award. In the book, a young boy named Jess makes friends with his new neighbor named Leslie. Both children are picked on and they don't have many other friends. Together they discover a secret place in the forest, accessible by a swinging rope over a creek. Leslie encourages Jess to use his imagination and they create the magical land of Terabithia. One day, Jess doesn't go to Terabithia with Leslie and a terrible tragedy occurs. Jess has to figure out how to move on using the inner strength his friend helped him find.
The movie was actually quite similar to the book. A few details were changed but not enough to alter the main points of the story. At first, I wasn't sure what to make of the computer animation of the creatures of Terabithia, but it did make the movie interesting. I think children would enjoy that part. I prefer the imaginative language of the book, however, because you can create your own picture in your mind. I enjoyed the young actors, although I thought the character of Leslie was not enough of a tomboy. I pictured someone different from the description in the book.
Overall, I enjoyed both the book and the movie. Although I didn't get this feeling from the book, the movie reminded me a bit of the movie My Girl. Both are stories about a best friend dying and leaving the other person to find their inner strength and move on.
Just like the last entry, I read the book before watching the movie. This book by Katherine Paterson won the 1978 Newbery Award. In the book, a young boy named Jess makes friends with his new neighbor named Leslie. Both children are picked on and they don't have many other friends. Together they discover a secret place in the forest, accessible by a swinging rope over a creek. Leslie encourages Jess to use his imagination and they create the magical land of Terabithia. One day, Jess doesn't go to Terabithia with Leslie and a terrible tragedy occurs. Jess has to figure out how to move on using the inner strength his friend helped him find.
The movie was actually quite similar to the book. A few details were changed but not enough to alter the main points of the story. At first, I wasn't sure what to make of the computer animation of the creatures of Terabithia, but it did make the movie interesting. I think children would enjoy that part. I prefer the imaginative language of the book, however, because you can create your own picture in your mind. I enjoyed the young actors, although I thought the character of Leslie was not enough of a tomboy. I pictured someone different from the description in the book.
Overall, I enjoyed both the book and the movie. Although I didn't get this feeling from the book, the movie reminded me a bit of the movie My Girl. Both are stories about a best friend dying and leaving the other person to find their inner strength and move on.
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