El Deafo

A new category of memoir has appeared on stage in children's literature: graphic novel memoirs. I first saw what an effective medium this could be in Raina Telgemeier's Sisters. El Deafo is another perfect example of how fascinating and funny a memoir can be when it's delivered in graphic novel form.

El Deafo narrates author Cece Bell's childhood from age 4, when she loses her hearing as a result of meningitis, to about 5th grade. Bell uses anthropomorphic bunnies to represent herself, her family and friends. This is really a fabulous idea as bunny ears are very noticeable, and Bell clearly feels similarly about her hearing aids. As Bell begins school and realizes that lip-reading is not quite adequate, she receives a phonic ear which allows her to hear the teacher through a special microphone around the teacher's neck. Bell spends the next few years with a secret: she can hear every conversation, every action of her teacher while the microphone is turned on, including her teacher's private discussions with other teachers in the hall and her teacher's um...bathroom activity. Bell clearly finds this amusing, and because of her newly discovered superpower, she nicknames herself El Deafo. Intertwined in her story is her struggle to feel normal and to find true friends. Many children who feel different in a variety of ways will identify strongly with Bell's feelings here. Parts of Bell's story are difficult and sad, but her strength and perseverance shines. You will not be able to resist rooting for El Deafo!

Brown Girl Dreaming

Jacqueline Woodson's expertly written memoir of a young African American girl's journey through a childhood in Ohio, South Carolina, and eventually Brooklyn during the Civil Right's movement should be in every 5th to 8th grade classroom, every school library, every "Must Read" shelf at the local library, every family bookshelf. Initially I was surprised by her choice to write Brown Girl Dreaming in free verse, but the quiet simplicity creates stark contrasts. Each verse explodes in turn with joy, heartbreak, circumspection, nostalgia. Even the briefest statement can have huge impact in this form. The entire book is amazing, but part of the beauty of Woodson's book is that individual chapters, verses, even lone sentences could easily fit alongside many Language Arts or American History curricula. In today's world of Common Core with snippets of a variety of texts, many teachers will rejoice to include Woodson's work among the required reading.

Electric Ben

The life of Benjamin Franklin is covered in many-a children's book, some I've even posted about previously. But never has Ben Franklin been presented to children quite like this: bold, unconventional, witty, and decisive. From Ben's boyhood in Massachusetts through his various jobs as a printer, publisher, editor, writer, thinker, inventor, statesman, and diplomat, Electric Ben journeys through Ben's life in great detail infusing bits of information not generally found in other children's biographies about him. Covered in these oversized pages are many of Ben's inventions, depicted through text and illustration, as well as his many contributions to the formation of our country, including his many trips abroad and the letters and pamphlets he wrote to aid the cause.

This book is recommended for K-3, although I'm not quite sure I agree with that assessment. The text is rather dense for a kindergartener, even if it is read aloud. My first grader enjoyed listening to it read aloud last year, although not all first graders would. My fifth grader chose this, at my urging, for a biography last year, and he very much enjoyed that he found plenty of information that he needed, while the illustrations kept his interest visually. Whatever ages decide to read this will definitely find a gem of a biography, and I foresee Electric Ben being read often in our household for many years to come!

On a Beam of Light

On a Beam of Light had me at the first flip through: Albert Einstein made accessible to early elementary ages through whimsical illustration and simple, yet appealing, text. What a novel concept!

On a Beam of Light starts with Albert's early childhood, his lack of early speech, through his hardships in school (skips over his flee from Nazis in WWII), then moves through his adult life and accomplishments. Actually, the book doesn't over-emphasize any specific accomplishments, which wouldn't mean much to a 6-year-old anyway. Einstein's theory of relativity is better left for middle-to-high schoolers. Instead, On a Beam of Light focuses on Albert's innate curiosity and penchant for pondering the mysteries of the natural world. It explains his captivation with magnetism, light, and gravity and delves slightly deeper into his discovery of atoms, but never rises above what could be easily understood and enjoyed by younger students.

The illustrations are equally as appealing as the text. Wispy sketching and broad strokes of color bring an air of light and flighty thinking and are the perfect accompanying illustration to this text.

You can find On a Beam of Light in the Picture Books - Nonfiction section of The Book Children Store

The Tree Lady

When I visited Books of Wonder for the Medal Winners' book signing at the end of March, I happened to meet a most interesting fellow as I was standing in line with my books. As we talked for the half-hour or so that we were in line, I discovered that he was also a children's book author, and he too had the fortune of being in NYC at the right time to catch this event. After my books were signed, I found his book, The Tree Lady, in the store and decided to add it to my already enormous pile of purchases.

The Tree Lady is the story of Kate Sessions, who in the late 1800s became the first person to graduate from the University of California with a science degree--a woman, no less! Following graduation, she became a teacher in southern California and was stunned by the lack of trees and greenery in the landscape. She resolved to bring trees to the San Diego area, even though the locals though this would be an impossibility. She left teaching, became a gardener, researching trees through letters all over the world requesting seeds that she might try to grow in a sunny, dry climate. Eventually, her trees were growing all over San Diego, particularly in City Park (later named Balboa Park) which was soon to house a great fair. When the fair opened, the people who attended were grateful to Kate for the shady trees that kept them cool. Kate Sessions continued gardening and planting trees in San Diego until her death at age 82.

The Tree Lady does an excellent job of telling the history of Kate Sessions while keeping the information fresh and accessible. This book is a perfect first biography for the early elementary age. And upper elementary schoolers will find additional information including names for many of the trees featured and microscopic illustration of the tree parts. In addition to the strictly scientific benefit, The Tree Lady depicts a positive representation of community involvement, gender assumption, societal expectation, and personal confidence.  The illustrations are dynamic and beautiful. After the pages of dusty brown desert, I could practically breathe the cool, green of the trees in the final pages.

You can find The Tree Lady in both the Picture Books--Nonfiction section and the Picture Books--Books with Strong Females section of The Book Children Store.

A Long Walk to Water

I read this book in one evening about two weeks before Christmas when I needed a break from the craziness. Short, at little more than 100 pages, it could be a good book for a reluctant reader. Although it isn't a long book, it is packed with action, and every chapter has another major event.

The book follows 2 parallel stories, both in Sudan, one in 2008, the other beginning in 1985, and is based on true events. Both of the main characters are inspiring and resilient in their respective walks. This book could certainly bring some much needed perspective to today's youth.

Both stories are incredibly difficult, although one is definitely fraught with more anguish, hardship, and death than the other. The end is redeeming and ties the stories together nicely leaving an inspiring taste in one's mouth. Although I highly recommend this book for middle-to-high school aged children, I probably wouldn't recommend this for the under-12 set unless you have a particularly mature child. The action can be intense and difficult at times.

Who's Benjamin Franklin?

Benjamin Franklin has always fascinated me. A Founding Father of the United States, he possessed a vast array of talents as an author, printer, politician, inventor, scientist, and soldier. One of the first introductions to Ben Franklin that we bought for our kids was the Step Into Reading book below. I generally think of those books as being kind of cheesy, but this one really appealed to Paulie with it's advertisement of *magic*. Paulie has a wide interest in math and the description of mathematical process of the numbered squares and the magical outcome really caught his attention and quickly made Ben Franklin one of his first biography interests. There are several websites, including this one, with more information about Ben Franklin's magic squares if you're interested.

Now & Ben focuses on more of Ben Franklin's inventions, shown in picture book format, with an invention we now take for granted shown beside the idea that Ben came up with to facilitate the invention. A nice synopsis for the slightly younger set to familiarize them with the enormous amount of inventions we have now because of Ben's ideas.

{timeline of Ben's inventions}

Ben and Me is more of a tongue-in-cheek biography, to use that word loosely, of Ben Franklin and his pet mouse, Amos. The story is told from Amos's point of view, and according to Amos, most of Ben's inventions came largely from Amos's ideas. Although some critics don't appreciate the way the writer makes Ben sound less than intelligent and the mouse sound sometimes derisive toward his master, I really appreciated the more humorous approach to the historical telling of Ben Franklin's inventions. I also liked the language of the book, which was kind of typical of the 1930s when the book was written, and the more robust vocabulary than you often find in current children's biographies.

{inventing the Franklin stove}

{sending poor Amos up on the ill-fated kite flight}