Little House in the Big Woods: Back to a time where life is different

Title: Little House in the Big Woods
Author: Laura Ingalls Wilder
Illustrator: Garth Williams
Age Range: 5-12 (content-wise appropriate for young ages, reading level is a bit harder)
Genre: Autobiography

I had to put my foot down one day, when my oldest daughter continued to read only the Rainbow Fairy books.  Fortunately for me, the library was finally out of them (everyone else's child is reading them) so I had a reprieve as my daughter stomped around the house saying, she had nothing to read.  I quickly scanned my bookshelf (the one I use for teaching) and found my old copy of Little House in the Big Woods.  I handed it to her and said, "This was one of mommy's absolute favorite books growing up."

She looked at it, opened it up, studied the words, got stuck on one of the first words "Wisconsin" but looked intrigued.  I explained to her that it was a book about a time before cars, before cities, before email, computer, TV, DVD, telephones, cell phones and libraries.  Her eyes got bigger, and I think I got her attention.  I explained that she would be reading about a time and place more than 100 years ago.  The next comment was something like " older like you" and as she read the book, at one point she came downstairs and asked me if I had had TV growing up.  Hmph.

I have a habit of asking each child after they read a book, "Can you tell me what the book is about?" or "What does the main character of the book have to do?" and have my kids give me their answers.  As my daughter was way into the Rainbow Fairies, she was very used to a cut and dry plot summary.  She could give it to me in five sentences, stating the problem, the attempt at a solution and the resolution.  It was easy for her. With this book, she looked up, and said, "Mommy, I'm not so sure what this book is about."  I asked her, "You don't understand the words?" and she said, "No I understand.  I just can't explain."  I knew immediately that she was struggling with figuring out WHAT the story was...the plot if you will.  Since this book is primarily autobiographical, it really is just a collection of sweet stories and experiences of Laura as a child.  I explained to my daughter, "This book is really about a young girl growing up in a time totally different than ours. That is what this story is about."  Her eyes lit up and she looked happy to know that there was a way to explain the story, just not the way she had been conditioned to after the darn Rainbow Fairies.

I really encourage you, if your child is not yet a strong reader, this is a lovely book to read aloud to your daughter.  The stories of family, spending time together and working together to make a living is one that is wonderful and truly heartwarming.  Exposing children to a life different from the one they are living is also a valuable experience that makes for lots of interesting conversations, like the one where my daughter asked, "Where did Laura go to the bathroom?"

I really prefer this version of the book as the illustrations are so wonderful in color.  Garth Williams did the original illustrations and they add immensely to the stories told in the book.


This is a set of the first five of the books in color, but there are nine books in all.  The remaining 4 also exist in color.  I bought these for my girls, as it is a book worth having on the bookshelf.


#6


#7


#8


#9

Scat: Eerily appropriate in light of the BP oil debacle in the Gulf

Title: Scat
Author: Carl Hiassen
Age Range: Ages 9-12
Genre:  Fiction, environmental focus

The author of Scat, Carl Hiaasen is a native of Florida and writes both adult and children's books which focus on his native state.  He both celebrates and criticizes all the glory of his state, and concentrates his criticism on environmental issues of his state.  He creates such fascinating villains, usually a money-hungry-not-so-bright businessman.

I'm reading this book with two of my students and the environmental issues that is discussed is oil drilling and the problems it causes.  There is even a mention in the book how Floridians don't want off-shore drilling off their waters and one of my students asked what that meant.  I explained it meant drilling in deep waters off the coast, and used the current BP oil "mistake" to show what COULD happen.  Of course my students once they heard that, started really villain-izing Drake MacBride, calling him an oil-hungry idiot. 

The hero of the book is a middle school boy named Nick Waters, who unexpectedly ends up entangled in a web of mystery surrounding the disappearance of the most feared teacher at his school, the science teacher Ms. Starch.  Although she is an unpleasant teacher, he and his friend Marta take it upon themselves to figure what has happened to her.  Investigating her disappearance leads them on a trail of an endangered baby panther, unscrupulous oil people, and a radical hippie environmentalist who wants to save Florida from being destroyed by greed.

The book has multiple plot lines so there is quite a bit of bouncing back and forth.  That can be slightly confusing to readers, but eventually the rhythm gets established and it becomes clear who is whom.  In the end all the different plot lines get ironed out, wrapped up, and resolved in a most unexpected way.

Some things to watch out for - there is some violence as Nick's father, who is in the National Guard deployed in Iraq, gets his arm blown off and destroyed by an RPG.  There is the use of the word ass, dumbass, smartass, which not all parents are keen to read.  There are also images of adults drinking, smoking and getting drunk.



His 2nd book - the environmental issue is dumping waste in protected waters


The 1st book - the environmental issue is the destruction of the habitat of tiny owls that burrow into the ground.

Meet Mr. and Mrs. Green: The cute alligator couple that makes for great laughs

Title:  Meet Mr. and Mrs. Green
Author:  Keith Baker
Illustrator: Keith Baker
Age Range: 4-8
Genre: Beginning Chapter Books

You never met a cuter couple of alligators than Mr. and Mrs. Green.  They do many interesting things together and all the while have fun.  The stories are wonderfully heartwarming, thoughtful and have a great message.  I love the books because while they challenge the reader, they are so entertaining that my girls want to keep reading.  The book is divided into three chapters: Camping, 100 Pancakes, and County Fair.  Each chapter has a problem and resolves itself with some sort of wonderful or unexpected solution.  I love the drawings and the pictures are wonderful as each chapter is filled with many beautiful pictures.

Both my 4 year old and 5 year old daughter enjoy reading these and enjoy having them read to them.  In fact, my 4 year old loves it so much, she has begged to get the entire series of books, of which there are four.  As an adult, you won't regret reading about them as they are entertaining enough for you too.

This is a lesser known series (you can tell on Amazon by the scant number of reviews) but is a series that will be loved by both boys and girls.




The other books in the series - in order.
Second Book


Third Book


Fourth Book