The Humming Room

By Ellen Potter

Potter, Ellen. The Humming Room. New York: Scholastic, Inc., 2012.

Roo Fanshaw is a young girl sent to live with her eccentric uncle when her father dies.  Living on Cough Rock Island is not anything like she expected.  The house she lives in is full of strange noises.  Even though she claims to not believe in ghosts, she hears things in the house and constantly wonders about the boy who lives on the river.  She knows that those around her are lying to her and she becomes determined to discover the truth.

This is an enchanting tale inspired by The Secret Garden.  A garden hidden in a mansion helps to bring a broken family back together.  Potter writes a beautiful tale filled with mystery and new friendships.  Each of the characters brings a certain nuance to the story that delivers a tale that falls in line with ghost stories and fairy tales.

Book Trailers

Here is a list of links to personally made book trailers for some of these fabulous Texas Bluebonnet books.  All of these trailers were made through http://animoto.com.  All of the images used came from the Britannica Image Quest database and are royalty free to the school district.

Ghetto Cowboy - http://animoto.com/play/T0zSraY6V1SbC7agVYKLZQ

10 Rules You Absolutely Must Not Break if You Want to Survive the School Bus - http://animoto.com/play/zGqIE6csu4SrvegVZlOJeg

Barnum’s Bones - http://animoto.com/play/DfpW94oPgMn958aXi06XHQ

Looking at Lincoln - http://animoto.com/play/YXTQNrQYuP6wkoSeHcjepA

Balloons Over Broadway - http://animoto.com/play/clxhqswwNNSGwrSWQGhLZw

Coral Reefs - http://animoto.com/play/vOS6CLfZFH70w8ZV94KJvg

The One and Only Ivan - http://animoto.com/play/CA8MJIvx41OShR0YkXqw5A

Jangles - http://animoto.com/play/c0NzJd8TxU9576mz6nB25Q

Flying the Dragon - http://animoto.com/play/So71XgcrU817CUbk6aXwaA

Tua and the Elephant - http://animoto.com/play/QXvA4IgUpQnICqdH0NnBkA

Tua and the Elephant

Tua and the Elephant

By R.P. Harris

Harris, R. P., and Taeeun Yoo. Tua and the elephant. San Francisco: Chronicle Books, 2012.

Tua is a young girl living in Chiang Mai, Thailand. She spends her days running around the market until she makes a new friend. This new friend happens to be an elephant she rescues from two mean mahouts.  Tua names the elephant Pohn-Pohn.  She and Pohn-Pohn go on adventures as they travel to the elephant sanctuary. Tua wants to keep Pohn-Pohn safe from the bad mahouts.  

Harris writes an enchanting tale about life in Thailand.  The innocence of the characters truly brings the story to life.  Yoo's illustrations help the reader to visualize what Thailand might look like in certain areas.  The pictures reinforce the characters' emotions.  This is a beautiful story of a girl and an elephant that work together to save the day.

"Pure adventure. " - The New York Times

" A charming story sure to capture the hearts of young readers" - School Library Journal

"A gem!" - ReadKiddoRead.com

"A rousing adventure." - Kirkus Reviews Starred Review

"Charming" - Education.com

"Enchanting. . . A strong read-aloud choice. " - Shelf Awareness for Readers, starred review

Coral Reefs

Coral Reefs

By Jason Chin

Chin, Jason. Coral reefs. New York: Roaring Brook Press, 2011.

Coral reefs are sometimes known as the cities of the sea.  Coral reefs are teaming with life. A reef starts with coral. certain types of fish come to eat the coral. Other predators follow the fish. Every animal that lives in the reef has different types of adaptations to protect itself against predators.  All of the plants and animals in the reef have different types of relationships.  Each depends on the other.

Chin provides facts and information about coral reefs in a colorful way.  He talks about how they are made, the types of animals that live in the reefs, food chains, predator and prey relationships, and adaptations.  His illustrations provide a second story as well as what the reefs look like.  As Chin describes coral reefs and the animals that live there, his illustrations tell the story of a girl who pulls the book off the library shelf and falls into this world of coral reefs.  She discovers all the facts about the animals and how they live.  Chin also provides information about the threat to coral reefs.  

“Information and fantasy collaborate in this imaginative introduction to coral reefs.” --BCCB

 

“Chin offers a colorful and inventive introduction to coral reefs.” --School Library Journal

 

"Chin, who pioneered this hybrid form of straightforward nonfiction text and fanciful pictures with Redwoods (2009), offers another a statement about the power of reading for an imaginative child with this appealing introduction to a complex world." --Kirkus Reviews, starred review 

 

"Chin’s detailed illustrations capture the dappled light of shallow water and the bright tropical colors and patterns in the featured flora and fauna…. Readers shouldn’t skip the information at the back, which explains the serious problem of coral bleaching due to global warming.” --Horn Book Magazine

 

"Chin’s latest book offers a straightforward text discussing coral reefs, while the well-composed illustrations create an imaginative narrative running in parallel.” --Booklist

Jangles: A Big Fish Story

Jangles: A Big Fish Story

By David Shannon

Shannon, David. Jangles: a big fish story. New York: Blue Sky Press, 2012.

Jangles is a big fish that has become legend. Everyone wants to catch him. Everyone has a story about how close they came to catching him.  Jangles is unmistakable for his jangling hooks and lures. Jangles says, "I am more than a fish. I am a storyteller, and a story."

David Shannon writes an amusing tale about the fish that got away.  It is told from the perspective of a young boy who is out late fishing.  His story takes an interesting turn and he is left with a decision to make.  Shannon's illustrations add another dimension, and it lets the reader dive deeper into the story of the fish that got away.  his illustrations tell the story as much as his words.

"The boy in the story catches Jangles—he claims—but few will foresee what happens next, in a series of events that owe both to folklore and suburban legend. Picture-book art doesn't get much more rousing than this; for anglers in particular and adventure lovers in general, it’s a slam-dunk." -- Publisher's Weekly starred review

Flying the Dragon

Flying the Dragon

By Natalie Dias Lorenzi

Lorenzi, Natalie Dias. Flying the dragon. Watertown, Mass.: Charlesbridge, 2012. 

Skye is a young Japanese American girl who loves to play soccer.  She is upset when she finds out she made the All-Star team but cannot play due to Japanese classes she must take.  She has family moving to Washington, DC from Japan.  She is expected to show her cousin Hiroshi around.  

Hiroshi is Skye's Japanese cousin.  He has been waiting a long time to fight in the rokkaku kite fighting contest held every year in Japan.  He spent a long time building his kite with his grandfather.  He is upset when he learns he is going to move to America and miss the contest that his family has won every year for generations.  Grandfather needs treatment he can only receive in America.  

Through kite flying, Hiroshi and Skye start to get along with each other, thanks to Grandfather.  When they discover there will be a rokkaku  in Washington DC, they work diligently to finish the kite for the fight with the hope that Grandfather will hang on long enough to see the kite fight.  

Lorenzi's story is a moving tale of adapting to change and how it affects us all.  Each chapter moves back and forth between Skye's point of view and Hiroshi's point of view.  Each child has his or her own feelings about what is important and how that affects them at school and at home. Through the story, the cultural differences come alive.  

"A quiet, beautifully moving portrayal of a multicultural family." --Kirkus Reviews, starred review

"Debut novelist Lorenzi offers an emphathetic and quietly affecting fish-out-of-water story, with both children struggling with disappointments, prejudice, language difficulties, and being caught between cultures."  

-- Publisher's Weekly

Ghetto Cowboy

Ghetto Cowboy

A novel by G. Neri

 

 

 

Neri, G. Ghetto Cowboy. Performed by JD Jackson. Grand Haven, MI: Brilliance Audio, 2011.

 

When Cole's mother dumps him in Philadelphia with his father, a father he has never met, he is left to figure things out on his own.  Cole is a young man trying to find his way in the world.  He had gotten himself into so much trouble in Detroit that it drove his mother to the point she could no longer handle him. 

 

Cole's father works horses on the north side of Philly.  As Cole learns about the horses, he also learns what it means to fight for something you believe in.  It is up to him to fight for the stables the city wants to take over and bulldoze.  He also has to fight for the horse he comes to love as his own.

 

Neri writes a story of courage and willfulness.  His story is inspired by the real life inner city horsemen from Philadelphia and Brooklyn.  His urban western brings black cowboys to light.  JD Jackson's performance is inspiring.  He brings the characters to life.  Cole's resentfulness can be heard in Jackson's performance of Neri's words.  

 

A fascinating glimpse of a culture most readers will not have heard of.
—Kirkus Reviews

Neri's story is original in theme and inspirational in tone and content.
—Booklist

 

Honors:

• 2012 Horace Mann Upstanders Children's Book Award
• 2012 ALA Odyssey Award Honor
• 2011 Junior Library Guild pick
• 2013 Texas Bluebonnet Master List
• 2012 ALSC Notable Recording
• 2012 YALSA Amazing Audiobook pick
• 2011 Cybil Award finalist
• 2012 School Library Journal Best Audio for Middle School
• 2011 AudioFile Earphones Award
• 2011 NYPL's 100 Titles for Reading and Sharing
• 2011 100 Magnificent Children's Books
• 2011 VOYA Top Shelf for Middle School Readers
• 2012 Pennsyvania Young Readers' Choice List
• 2012 Tennessee's Volunteer State Award Finalist
• 2014 Rebecca Caudill Young Readers' Book Award finalist
• 2013 Maine Student Book Award finalist
• 2014 Evergreen Young Adult Book Award finalist
• 2014 South Carolina Book Award finalist