Jessica H. second book review

Long, Melinda. How I became a pirate. San Diego: Harcourt, 2003. Print.

                One day while at the beach with his family, Jeremy Jacob spots a pirate ship. He tries to tell his parents, but they are too busy and Jeremy ends up having a pirate adventure!

                For me, this book was a little too predictable, starting with the front cover. The illustration on the front cover clearly depicts a stereotypical pirate (pirate hat, missing teeth, ear ring, red jacket, beard, and a parrot…the only thing missing is an eye patch and a hook). The book continues on with the stereotypical adventure.  Jeremy’s parents are too busy to notice him because his mother is taking care of the baby (typical female role) and the father is trying to put up the umbrella (maybe he didn’t read the directions?) so Jeremy runs off on a pirate adventure and his parents never notice. Overall, this book is way to stereotypical and predictable for me, but a child may like it because it deals with pirates and a child actually gets to become a pirate; a child can easily use their imagination and have a similar adventure.

Mcnamara, Margaret. Too Many Cooks (Ratatouille). New York: Disney, 2007. Print.

                The rats are working hard in the kitchen in order to prepare their food perfectly. Their challenge is to impress the world’s toughest food critic, can they do it?

                I thought this book was adorable, and not only because I love Disney. This book is a great way for younger children to relate to the movie on a level they can better comprehend. I really liked the illustrations in the book; you can easily relate them to the characters in the movie and know who they are. The illustrations are also fun and colorful, perfect for younger children. There are some French words and cooking terms used in the book, but they are all explained in a section in the back which is also colorful and easily relatable for children. This book would be perfect to use in the classroom as part of a French culture lesson because of the terms, or as part of a cooking unit (or even for children who help their parents cook) or as a tie-in with the movie.

Primavera, Elise. Louise the big cheese and the la-di-dah shoes. New York: Simon & Schuster for Young Readers, 2010. Print.

                Louise is a little girl who has a very big problem, all she wants is a pair of la-di-dah shoes like her sister, but all she gets is the brown squeaky ones. How will Louise ever be a big cheese without her la-di-dah shoes?

                I was attracted to this book starting with the cover, it involves shoes everywhere and glitter (pretty cool!). As I continued to read the book, I figured out that the illustrations were actually my favorite part. The end pages, first of all, are very cute and creative if you just take the time to sit and read them. My favorite illustration takes place in the shoe store when Louise’s mother buys her the ugly brown shoes, which are called Trainers: Jimmy Choo Choo, there is also a sign by a familiar type of boots with their name (UGGLY) displayed prominently. I would not use this book as a read aloud, a book like this with so many detailed illustrations really needs to be sat down and looked at.

Goode, Diane. The Most Perfect Spot. Harper Collins, 2006. Print.

                Jack thinks that he has found the perfect spot for him and his mama to have a picnic. However, suddenly, things keep happening!

                For me, this was funny in a realistic kind of way. Jack starts out by being all cute and innocent by making his mother breakfast in bed and wanting to take her on a picnic; he knows the perfect spot. However, when Jack and his mom get to the park, they seem to encounter a lot of interruptions. This book was appealing to me because it shows the reality of life. Things don’t always go as planned and you have to learn to roll with the punches, which Jack finally figures out. I would use this book in a classroom perhaps in a lesson contrasting with a fairy tale with happy ever afters and all that jazz or to let students know that it is okay to not have everything go perfect; you can still have a good day. 

 Tomie., De Paola,. Stagestruck. New York: G.P. Putnam's Sons, 2005. Print.

                Miss Bird’s class is putting on the play Peter Rabbit and Tommy is sure that he will get the part of Peter, but when he won’t stop talking; Miss Bird gives the part to someone else! Tommy doesn’t know if he will ever get the attention he wants, until he gets an idea.

                I have mixed feelings about this book. First of all Miss Bird is a horrible name for a teacher and she’s not very nice! In the book, she tells Tommy to be quiet, gives his part to someone else (and tells him in front of everyone!) and doesn’t say anything to Tommy after the show. Tommy is a pretty clever kid; he figures out that if Miss Bird is going to take his part away then he’s going to be a drama queen on stage.  The kid who was playing Peter just could have easily stolen the show. But I guess in the grand scheme of obedience and good children, Tommy should have done what he was told and been a good, quiet little rabbit. I would use this book in the classroom to foster a debate between students on whether what Tommy did was right or wrong. This would be a good way to get students to get involved and discuss the book openly.