Compare/Contrast – Unleashing Readers

Educators’ Guide for Fox + Chick: The Quiet Boat Ride and Other Stories by Sergio Ruzzier

May 30, 2023 by Kellee

The Quiet Boat Ride and Other Stories (Fox + Chick #2)
Author and Illustrator: Sergio Ruzzier
Published: March 5th, 2019

Summary: Opposite personalities attract for these two unlikely friends: In the second book of this lauded series, Fox and Chick are off on three new adventures involving a boat ride, a mysterious box, and an early morning trip to see the sunrise. Despite the antics ensuing from their different personalities, the contradictory duo always manages to have fun together.

Teachers’ Tools for Navigation and Discussion Questions:

Please view and enjoy the teachers’ guide I created for Chronicle Books for The Quiet Boat Ride:

You can also access the teaching guide here.

You can learn more about The Quiet Boat Ride and Other Stories on Chronicle’s page.

Recommended For:

Maps for Penguins and Other Traveling Animals by Tracey Turner, Illustrated by Hui Skipp

April 25, 2023 by Kellee

Maps for Penguins and Other Traveling Penguins
Author: Tracey Turner
Illustrator: Hui Skipp
Published January 1st, 2022 by Kane Miller Press

Summary: Follow the treks, long or short, made by ten different animals all over the world.

Animals don’t actually use maps, so how do they find their way without them? This book focuses on different animals, including elephants, penguins, tigers, and more, and maps of their migrations, territories, and routes to food. Along with discovering fascinating information about the animals and their amazing ability to navigate without GPS, readers will also learn about distances, geography, climate, and habitats .

Includes:

Migration paths plus lots of facts about ten animals and their varying habitats.
Introduction to maps and geography.
Glossary and index included.
Perfect STEM title.

About the Author: Tracey Turner is an author and editor has written more than 70 books that cover a wide range of topics. She lives in Bath, England, with her partner and son.

Review: This book is the perfect book for the scientist or animal lover kid in your life! It has so much information that readers will find interesting, even more than what is promised. In addition to maps and migration information, the author includes information about diet, mating, families, habits, and more! And the variety of the animals, from all over the world and habitats, are great also, so the reader takes a trip around the world. All accompanied by colorful and eye catching illustrations! All accompanied by colorful and eye catching illustrations!

Teachers’ Tools for Navigation: Teachers will find so much to use in classrooms! I would love to see this used in a jig saw where each member of a group is given one of the animals, learns all about them by studying the 2 spreads about the animal, then going back to their home group to share what they learned. It could also be used as a jumping off for an inquiry project about another animal using Maps for Penguins as a mentor text for creating their own maps and information spread. The book is also a great early introduction to geography and maps and the glossary and index in the back are helpful to the reader as well.

Discussion Questions:

Which animal migrates or has habitats near where you live?
Which animal would you like to learn more about?
What other animals do you know about that migrate or travel in another way?
Why do animals travel? What are some similarities/differences between the different animals and why/how they travel?
Which continents were represented in the book? Which oceans?

Flagged Passages:

Read This If You Love: Animals, Geography

Recommended For:

**Thank you to Lynn at Kane Miller for providing a copy for review!**

Hooray for DNA! How a Bear and a Bug Are a Lot Like Us by Pauline Thompson, Illustrated by Greg Pizzoli

April 18, 2023 by Kellee

Hooray for DNA! How a Bear and a Bug Are a Lot Like Us
Author: Pauline Thompson
Illustrator: Greg Pizzoli
Published April 25th, 2023 by Knopf Books for Young Readers

Summary: Bill Nye meets Green Eggs and Ham in this playful and rhythmic nonfiction picture book that introduces readers to the concept of DNA, and celebrates the similarities we share with all life-forms–and each other!

DNA is the ABC
of what makes you, you
and what makes me, me.

Did you know we share DNA with every living thing? Humans, bugs, bears, even a virus–we all have shared DNA hidden inside us!

From a debut author and an award-winning illustrator, here is a bouncy and playful picture book–perfect for the classroom or for story time–about the genetic code that makes up all living things, and reminds us that we’re all more alike than we think.

About the Creators:

About the author

PAULINE THOMPSON is a Toronto based artist and writer. Her work spans 25 years of creating, exhibiting, and incubation. Her love of popular science is the fuel for her children’s stories. In her spare time, Pauline facilitates writing workshops for Writers Collective of Canada.

About the illustrator

GREG PIZZOLI is the award-winning author and illustrator of many books for kids including the award-winning picture books The Watermelon Seed, Good Night Owl, and The Book Hog. He lives in South Philadelphia with his wife, two daughters, dog, and cats.

Review: What a fun introduction to DNA for young children! The author’s rhyming and rhythmic text lends itself to a read aloud and Pizzoli’s illustrations are as eye catching as always. Along with a great message about humanity, the book delivers a solid introduction to the idea of DNA.

Teachers’ Tools for Navigation: After reading aloud this book, dive into the back matter! The author has some great resources including more about the science of DNA, an activity comparing and contrasting ourselves and other items, and resources, including videos, that can be used in the classroom. This would be a perfect addition to an early education lesson on DNA!

Discussion Questions:

How is DNA defined in the book?
What is something that you were surprised that we share DNA with?
What would we be like if we had no tissues or organs?
How closely related, DNA-wise, are all humans?
What does the book share that each of our unique DNAs lead to?

Flagged Passages:

Read This If You Love: Science books for children

Recommended For:

**Thank you to Cate at Nicole Banholzer PR for providing a copy for review!**

Nic Blake and the Remarkables #1: The Manifestor Prophecy by Angie Thomas

April 9, 2023April 4, 2023 by Kellee

The Manifestor Prophecy
Author: Angie Thomas
Published April 4th, 2023 by Blazer + Bray

Summary: Internationally bestselling superstar author Angie Thomas makes her middle grade debut with the launch of an inventive, hilarious, and suspenseful new contemporary fantasy trilogy inspired by African American history and folklore.

It’s not easy being a Remarkable in the Unremarkable world. Some things are cool—like getting a pet hellhound for your twelfth birthday. Others, not so much—like not being trusted to learn magic because you might use it to take revenge on an annoying neighbor.

All Nic Blake wants is to be a powerful Manifestor like her dad. But before she has a chance to convince him to teach her the gift, a series of shocking revelations and terrifying events launch Nic and two friends on a hunt for a powerful magic tool she’s never heard of…to save her father from imprisonment for a crime she refuses to believe he committed.

“All the brilliance you’d expect from Angie Thomas: a page-turning plot, pitch-perfect characters, heart and substance, and real stakes that real kids will care about—plus magic! This is one of those rare books that will instantly become the best friend you didn’t know you needed. Nic Blake and the Remarkables is nothing short of a triumph. When’s the next installment, please?” — Rick Riordan, #1 New York Times bestselling author of the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series

“Packed with humor and bursting with heart and imagination, Nic’s story will enchant readers of all ages!” — B.B. Alston, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Amari and the Night Brothers

“Exploding with heart, humor, and all things Black Girl Magic, Nic Blake and the Remarkables is a triumph of friendship and Black Southern folklore and history.’ — Dhonielle Clayton, New York Times bestselling author of The Marvellers

“This book is no-holds-barred, fly by the seat of your pants (and other methods) trip to the corner of Thrill Street and Wonder Avenue. Nic Blake is amazing!” — Kwame Mbalia, author of the Tristan Strong series

About the Author: Angie Thomas is the author of the award-winning, #1 New York Times bestselling novels The Hate U Give, On the Come Up, and Concrete Rose as well as Find Your Voice: A Guided Journal for Writing Your Truth. She is also a coauthor of the bestselling collaborative novels Blackout and Whiteout. Angie divides her time between her native Jackson, Mississippi and Atlanta, Georgia. You can find her online at www.angiethomas.com.

Review: This book is a dream of Angie Thomas’s. She wanted to create a book that was for a younger her who LOVED fantasy. This book allows her to world build, and she hopes to bring her readers the same joy that she felt reading fantasy (https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/childrens/childrens-authors/article/90215-pw-talks-with-angie-thomas.html), and I am happy to say, that she does just that (and more because she includes history, too)!

Although the world building is great and it is right up the alley for students who love middle grade contemporary fantasy adventures and the pacing is perfect, which keeps the reader reading, it was Nic Blake’s voice that truly sold me. It is fantastic! She is sassy and strong and witty! She is someone you root for right away and also trust as a character, which is important in these types of fantasy novels.

Discussion Questions:

How does Nic deal with her life turning upside down? What does this tell you about her character?
How does the author intertwine history within her fantasy novel? What do you think her purpose of doing this is?
What folklore influences Thomas’s story?
What are the different character traits of the trio? How do they complement each other? How do the three of them compare/contrast to the original trio of Nic’s mom, dad, and godfather?
How does Nic’s story compare to the hero’s journey?

Book Trailer:

Read This If You Love: The Marvellers by Dhonielle Clayton, Amari series by B.B. Alston, Tristan Strong series by Kwame Mbalia, Ring of Solomon by Aden Polydoros, Dragons in a Bag series by Zetta Elliott, Troubled Girls of Dragomir Academy by Anne Ursu

Recommended For:

**Thank you to Spark Point Studio for providing a copy for review!**

Global by Eoin Colfer and Andrew Donkin, Illustrated by Giovanni Rigano

March 16, 2023March 14, 2023 by Kellee

Global
Authors: Eoin Colfer & Andrew Donkin
Illustrator: Giovanni Rigano
Publishing April 11, 2023 by Sourcebooks Young Readers

Summary: Time is running out for Sami and Yuki. Sami and his grandfather live in a village along the Indian Ocean. They earn their living by fishing. But the ocean is rising and each day they bring back fewer and fewer fish. Yuki lives in the far north of Canada where warming temperature are melting the ice. Polar bears have less food to hunt and are wandering into town looking for something to eat. Yuki is determined to do something to help the bears.

Extras:

- Four pages, written in graphic novel format, that summarize the history of global warming and the climate change movement
- An author letter
- Character sketches

Plot Synopsis as put by the authors:

Book Trailer:

About the Creators:

Eoin Colfer is the author of Illegal as well as the internationally bestselling Artemis Fowl series. Eoin lives in Ireland with his family. Learn more at eoincolfer.com

Andrew Donkin is the author of more than sixty books and graphic novels for children and adults. He lives in London. Learn more at andrewdonkin.co.uk.

Giovanni Rigano is an artist and illustrator who has illustrated many graphic novels, including the Artemis Fowl series, The Incredibles, Pirates of the Caribbean, and Illegal. He lives in Como, Italy.

Review: Just like in Illegal, Colfer, Donkin, and Rigano do a beautiful job putting a narrative to a crisis to make it more accessible to children who may not understand how something so big is affecting their life and their world.

In Global, the two stories that are told are half a world apart but are tied in the young people who are willing to fight to make the world a better place amidst what many would find truly unlivable and treacherous times.

These three creators obviously have a mission that they have taken on in spreading information to young minds about about “man-made disaster(s) that most impact vulnerable children who had no hand in causing it,” and they do it so well. I look forward to their next collaboration.

Teachers’ Tools for Navigation: This book would be a great text to read in conjunction with the teaching of climate change because it gives a face and story outside of science to the problems our world is facing. Students could also write their own story in the vein of Global (see below in discussion questions) to connect the science to their life.

Discussion Questions:

How do the two stories told in Global relate to each other? Why would the authors choose to tell these two specific stories?
How do the authors tell the story of climate change without writing a informational nonfiction book?
What did you learn about the two settings that you didn’t know before?
How is climate change affecting your home? If there was a story like Global about you and your home, what would it be about?

Read This If You Love: Illegal by the same trio of creators, learning about plights faced in our world, graphic novels about serious topics

Recommended For:

**Thank you to Sourcebooks for providing a copy of the book to review!**

Educators’ Guide for The Marvellers by Dhonielle Clayton

February 28, 2023 by Kellee

The Marvellers (Marvellverse #1)
Author: Dhonielle Clayton
Published: May 3rd, 2022 by Henry Holt and Co.

Summary: Author Dhonielle Clayton makes her middle-grade debut with a fantasy adventure set in a global magic school in the sky.

Eleven-year-old Ella Durand is the first Conjuror to attend the Arcanum Training Institute, where Marvellers from all around the world come together to practice their cultural arts like brewing Indian spice elixirs, practicing Caribbean steel drum hypnosis, and bartering with fussy Irish faeries. Ella knows some people mistrust her Conjuror magic, often deemed “bad and unnatural,” but she’s eager to make a good impression—and, hopefully, some friends.

But Ella discovers that being the first isn’t easy, and not all of the Marvellers are welcoming. Still, she connects with fellow misfits Brigit, a girl who hates magic, and Jason, who is never found without a magical creature or two. Just as Ella begins to find her way at the A.T.I., a notorious criminal escapes from prison, supposedly with Conjurors’ help. Worse, her favorite teacher Masterji Thakur never returns from a research trip, and only Ella seems concerned about his disappearance.

As tensions grow in the Marvellian world, Ella finds herself the target of vicious rumors and growing suspicions. With the help of her new friends, Ella must find a way to clear her family’s name and track down her beloved mentor Masterji Thakur . . . before she loses her place at the A.T.I. forever.

Teachers’ Tools for Navigation and Discussion Questions:

Please view and enjoy the teachers’ guide I created for The Marvellers:

You can also access the teaching guide here.

You can learn more about The Marvellers on The Marvellverse website.

P.S. Number Two comes out in September!!!!!

Recommended For:

I Don’t Care by Julie Fogliano, Illustrated by Molly Idle & Juana Martinez-Neal

February 21, 2023 by Kellee

I Don’t Care
Author: Julie Fogliano
Illustrator: Molly Idle & Juana Martinez-Neal
Published November 22nd, 2022 by Neal Porter Books

Summary: Two Caldecott honorees—and real-life best friends— team up to illustrate a story of friendship from bestselling author Julie Fogliano.

Like the two stars of this story, illustrators Molly Idle and Juana Martinez-Neal know that differences only make a good friendship stronger. In this bouncy, rhyming story, two best friends think about all the little things that don’t matter– and the big things that really, really do.

Mostly I care that you’re you and I’m me,
and I care that we’re us,
and I care that we’re we.

With each artist designing and drawing one character, and collaborating on the scenery and details, Molly Idle and Juana Martinez-Neal transformed this sweet story into a celebration of friendship– including their own– and a unique artistic vision.

Working remotely, they swapped drawings across the country, using a limited palette of teal and yellow over graphite. As artwork passed back and forth between their mailboxes, childhood versions of each artist came to life and came together on the page into one unified creation.

Award-winning author Julie Fogliano’s rhythmic rhymes bring it all together, expressing the unconditional love any best friend can relate to.

Praise:

★ “Fogliano’s sprightly, rhythmic text sets a fun tone for exploring what really matters in friendship. While effective picture books grow from the combining of words and images, this book takes the collaboration a step further by drawing on the talents of real-life best friends and Caldecott honorees Idle and Martinez-Neal. . . . The result is a warm, loving celebration of how to be a friend, and a successful artistic experiment.”—Booklist, Starred Review

★ “A psychologically acute tally of friendship’s most solid foundations, worth sharing with audiences large or small and tailor-made for reading aloud.”—School Library Journal, Starred Review

★ “A friendship book made by friends. . . . Fogliano’s deftly rhymed verses, which never miss a beat in their cadence or in their emotional resonance, help readers realize that while the friends don’t care about surface matters like appearance, attire, or possessions, they do care about each other. Compositionally, they end up occupying shared space on the spreads and will doubtlessly take up residence in readers’ hearts, too. . . . Show you care by sharing this book with others.”—Kirkus Reviews, Starred Review

About the Creators:

Julie Fogliano is the New York Times bestselling author of, among other titles, And Then It’s Spring and If You Want to See a Whale, both illustrated by Erin Stead, and When Green Becomes Tomatoes, illustrated by Julie Morstad. Her first book for Holiday House was Just in Case You Want to Fly, illustrated by Christian Robinson. Recipient of the 2013 Ezra Jack Keats Award and two Boston Globe–Horn Book Honors, her books have been translated into more than ten languages. Julie lives in the Hudson Valley with her husband and three children.

Molly Idle is the author and illustrator of the Caldecott Honor–winning book Flora and the Flamingo. She is also the creator of Tea Rex, the mermaid tales Pearl and Coral, and Witch Hazel. Molly lives with her fabulous family in Tempe, Arizona—where she can most often be found with a cup of espresso in one hand and a pencil in the other, scribbling away on her next book. To learn more about Molly and her work, visit IdleIllustration.com.

Juana Martinez-Neal is the author and illustrator of the Caldecott Honor–winning book Alma and How She Got Her Name. She also illustrated New York Times bestselling picture book Tomatoes for Neela by Padma Lakshmi; Fry Bread: A Native American Family Story by Kevin Noble Maillard, which won a Robert F. Sibert Medal; and La Princesa and the Pea by Susan Middleton Elya, for which she won a Pura Belpré Illustrator Award. Juana Martinez-Neal lives in Connecticut with her family. Visit her online at www.juanamartinezneal.com.

Review: What a beautiful book to celebrate how friends don’t have to be exactly the same and instead it is about the type of person you are that lends to the type of friend you are. The text was also done quite cleverly switching from what the young children don’t care about to what they do care about in a contrasting structure.

The illustrations are BEAUTIFUL, which I am sure you assume if you know Idle & Martinez-Neal’s work. And I love how the illustrators are in real life Best Friends and Molly Idle had to get Juana Martinez-Neal to do it with her to make it truly authentic.

Teachers’ Tools for Navigation: This text is a wonderful way to introduce compare and contrast, of friends, like the book, or of characters.

Also, there is a wonderful edition of Ready Set Draw! with all three creators where viewers get to see how the collaboration worked. It would be a great deep dive into the book and could lend itself to having students work together to create their own stories comparing and contrasting the students working on it.

Discussion Questions:

How are your best friend and you alike and different?
What is most important for you when it comes to finding a friend?
What are some things you DON’T care about when it comes to a friend?
What are the similarities and differences between the two characters in the book?
What is the theme of the book?

Flagged Passages:

Read This If You Love: Books about friendship and how people with differences can still get along

Recommended For:

**Thank you to Sara at Holiday House for providing a copy for review!!**