Who's Got Game: The Ant Or The Grasshopper by Toni and Slade Morrison

This book is a graphic novel based on the classic Aesop Fable about the ant and the grasshopper. I was immediately drawn to this book because it was written by Toni Morrison and I've always enjoyed her novels. The illustrations and layout of the pages are very reminiscent of a comic book. In fact, I would probably argue that the only thing that actually separates this graphic novel from a comic book is the amount of text in the book. The text itself has a very loose rhyming scheme that is very similar to a simple melody or piece of poetry. Also, the story is told in a very laid back way that resembles actual talking. For example, the book begins with the line "Foxy G and his ace Kid A..." The story is actually quite sad, and the main character Foxy G is homeless. At one point in the story Foxy G is even living in a cardboard box in the park in the dead of winter. Foxy G, homeless and hungry, goes to his best friend Kid A for food and a place to stay. The narrative is extremely complicated and may not be appropriate for younger students. For example, some of the themes I found in this book were the integrity of being an artist, betrayal, selfishness, etc. Overall, I really enjoyed this graphic novel and found it to be a very original, unique read. I would certainly recommend this graphic novel to an older reader.

Pinky And Rex Get Married by James Howe

This was a very short picture/chapter book that was classified and sorted in the picture book section of the curriculum library. The entire book is comprised of only five chapters and forty pages The two main characters in the story, Pinky and Rex, are a young boy and girl who are best friends and decide to "get married." I thought it was interesting that the name of the boy in the story was Pinky and the girl's name was Rex. When i first picked up this book to read I thought for sure that the girl's name would be Pinky, but I was wrong. The book is certainly more narrative based than illustrated, and there are only some very simple illustrations about every other page or so. After Rex gets home from a wedding Pinky has an idea and tells her the following: "Let's get married." Rex agrees, and her and Pinky go about some steps of setting up a wedding. They invite their friends (stuffed animals), get music (a C.D. player), and even obtain rings (made out of grass). I thought the story itself was not very engaging or interesting, and there was almost no use of humor whatsoever (something I always enjoy in picture books). In summary, I don't think I would reccomend this book to many readers because I found it quite dry and not very enjoyable.

Spuds by Karen Hesse

I really enjoyed this particular picture book because it is so much different than any children's book I have ever read. The story is extremely unique and original: it is about a family in poverty and without enough food. I'm positive that this is only one of a few picture books I have ever read where the main characters face such struggles. Specifically, the mother character is much different than most picture books. In Spuds the mother is a single mom who works the night shift, and simply can't properly provide for her three children. Usually, picture books are extremely idealistic and stereotypical, but Spuds is quite the opposite. The dialogue of the characters is written and spoken in a sort of slang that helps convey the particular situation the family is in. For example, in one part of the book the narrator says "Me and Maybelle, we layered on a heap a' clothes." The story is sincere and touching, and there is a part of the book where the three children decided to to steal potatoes from a farm because they don't have enough to eat. They even refer to themselves as "tater-snatchers." To complement the dark narrative, the illustrations are very simple and refined, and made up of mostly earth tones. Overall I thought the story was quite sad, but I would definetely recommend the book to any reader due to the fact that it is such a different type of story and certainly worth reading.

Lilly's Big Day by Kevin Henkes

As an aspiring teacher I found the premise of this book to be very interesting. The main character, Lilly, has a teacher named Mr. Slinger who is marrying the school nurse. I thought it was very intriguing that the author would choose to make a picture book about a teacher marrying another member of the faculty. I immediately wondered if this is an appropriate topic for students. The illustrations are very simplistic, and I can understand why this book would be classified in the Fantasy genre. All of the characters are mouses, yet they display human characterisitics such as wearing clothes, getting married, and talking. Another part of this book I found interesting was the way Lilly's father was depicted. There is a particular illustration in the book where her father is holding a bottle of red wine, two wine glasses, and wearing a purple yin-yang shirt. Lilly's father is portrayed as a very modern and laid back dad in this story. Admittedly, this book does have a good sense of humor. For example, there is a particular scene where Lilly dreams of being a flower girl, draws a self portrait, and then claims to be "Better than the bride!" In the end, the story is very encouraging and has a theme of being a good person. I would recommend this book to all readers because it was quite entertaining and a fun read.

Come Fly With Me by Satomi Ichikawa

This book is definitely part of the Fantasy genre, as only two characters in the book are a talking stuffed dog named Woggy and a talking wooden plane named Cosmos. The story itself is about two best friends, Woggy and Cosmos, and the adventure they have in Paris. The illustrations are very soft and colorful and work to complement the story perfectly. The story is extremely simplistic and childish, and would be perfect for younger children and extremely young readers. My personal favorite part of the story were the lush illustrations of the city of Paris. I also enjoyed how on some pages the text is laid out to complement the narrative. For example there is a page when Woggy and Cosmos are in a tailspin and flying towards the ground, and the text goes vertically down the page. The book has a very predictable, yet cheery, ending. In summary, the narrative itself is extremely simplistic and is all about friendship. I would recommend this book only to young readers, as fluent or advanced readers would most likely find it too simple for their taste.

My Friend The Starfinder by George Ella Lyon

Immediately after I finished reading this book I was positive that it had the my favorite illustrations of any picture book I have ever read. The illustrations are a joy to look at and I even went back through the book a couple of times looking at just the pictures without even reading any of the text. The illustrations are extremely colorful and rich, done in watercolors, and seem to be dripping off the page. However, there is some very nice contrast in the illustrations as well due to the fact that some of the illustrations are done in a very stark black and white watercolor theme. The story/narrative itself is a very touching story about a young girl who befriends her neighbor who is an old man and lives by himself. Interestingly, there is very little actual text in the book, and the story seems to revolve around the illustrations. Much of the text is extremely descriptive and rich though (i.e. "glassy, blackish green like puddles around a coal pile."). The story is very surreal and I would definitely classify this book as falling in the Science Fiction or Fantasy genre. Overall, I would definitely recommend this book to any reader. Also, this book would be great for classrooms, where there seems to be a real shortage of Science Fiction and Fantasy books.

Mary Marony Hides Out by Suzy Kline

Mary Marony Hides Out is a short novel/chapter book that is about eighty pages in length. The narrative is about a young student, Mary Marony, who loves reading and finally gets a chance to meet her favorite author, Jan Berry, when she comes to visit Mary's school. The main character, Mary, has a stuttering problem and sometimes gets made fun of at school. I thought this was an interesting aspect of the story because so often the main character in childrens books is a completely unflawed "perfect" boy or girl. Mary, however, struggles with her speech impediment and has to deal with getting made fun of at school. Also, Mary sees a speech therapist at school. I also liked this portion of the book because so many children receive special education and/or extra help at school. However, childrens books so rarely depict that side of education and children. The book also makes good use of simplistic black and white illustrations to help compliment the storyline. I also enjoyed the fact that the book reolves around Mary's love of reading and her favorite author. I think it helps to encourage children to read when they themselves read about a character in a book that already has a passion for reading and literature. The ending of the novel is very encouraging and fit well with the story. In summary, I would definetely recommend this book and I throughoughly enjoyed it.