Figurative Language – Page 30 – Unleashing Readers

Battle Bunny by Jon Scieszka and Mac Barnett

December 22, 2013 by Kellee

Battle Bunny
Authors: Jon Scieszka and Mac Barnett
Illustrator: Matthew Myers
Published October 22nd, 2013 by Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers

Goodreads Summary: Alex has been given a saccharine, sappy, silly-sweet picture book about Birthday Bunny that his grandma found at a garage sale. Alex isn’t interested; until he decides to make the book something he’d actually like to read. So he takes out his pencil, sharpens his creativity, and totally transforms the story!

Birthday Bunny becomes Battle Bunny, and the rabbit’s innocent journey through the forest morphs into a supersecret mission to unleash an evil plan; a plan that only Alex can stop.

Featuring layered, original artwork that emphasizes Alex’s additions, this dynamic exploration of creative storytelling is sure to engage and inspire.

My Review: This book made me laugh out loud! What a perfect insight into the mind of a young boy (reminds me of so many doodles I’ve seen on papers over the year!). Also, I was blown away by the creativity of Sceiszka and Barnett. I wish I was teaching in a classroom because it would have been a book that I would have brought into the classroom to share with kids (yes, even my middle schoolers. Actually, definitely my middle schoolers.) because it is just so awesome!

Teachers Tools for Navigation: This picture book would be so much fun as a read aloud (original story than the modified one). Also, I can also picture bringing in picture books (maybe older ones or bought at a used book store) and letting the students modify their own! And so much creativity, vocabulary, cleverness, imagination, etc. are needed to transform a text the way Alex did–it’d be such a fun yet tough activity.

There is even a Battle Bunny website (http://mybirthdaybunny.com) where you can make your own story. They give you the original Birthday Bunny text and let you make your own. They actually provide PDFs of the entire text! Also on the website are educators information that includes a curriculum guide.

Discussion Questions: What other stories could you build around Birthday Bunny?; (Writing activity) Using the picture book you were given, create a new story by changing words and adding photos.

We Flagged:

Read This If You Loved: Scaredy Squirrel books by Melanie Watts, Bananas in my Ears by Michael Rosen, The Stinky Cheese Man by Jon Scieszka, You Will Be My Friend by Peter Brown

Recommended For:

Will & Whit by Laura Lee Gulledge

December 8, 2013 by Kellee

Will & Whit
Author and Illustrator: Laura Lee Gulledge
Published May 17th, 2013 by Abrams

Goodreads Summary: Wilhelmina “Will” Huxstep is a creative soul struggling to come to terms with a family tragedy. She crafts whimsical lamps, in part to deal with her fear of the dark. As she wraps up another summer in her mountain town, she longs for unplugged adventures with her fellow creative friends, Autumn, Noel, and Reese. Little does she know that she will get her wish in the form of an arts carnival and a blackout, courtesy of a hurricane named Whitney, which forces Will to face her fear of darkness.
Laura Lee Gulledge’s signature visual metaphors will be on full display in this all-new graphic novel, a moving look at shedding light on the dark corners of life.

My Review: This book was NOT what I thought it was going to be! I had read Gulledge’s last graphic novel, Page by Paige, so I knew that it was going to be unique, but if you look at the cover you assume Will & Whit are the main characters and there is going to be some sort of romance. That is so off track of what the book is actually about. Will is actually Wilhelmina, our main character, who is dealing with some darkness in her life and fights it by making lamps (some of them are really beautiful and I wish I could buy them). Whit, on the other hand, is not her love interest. Whit is Hurricane Whitney who hits Will’s town and causes Will to really face some of the darkness. So, where does the romance come in? There is a little bit, but you will be so surprised as to what the cover means! I was.

There are also a wonderful set of supporting characters who make the book even more special. I also love the inclusion of art (visual and performing) and antiques within the novel.

Teacher’s Tools for Navigation: The themes in this graphic novel are definitely worth talking about in the classroom. I also loved the nuances throughout that Gulledge uses to set the mood (the novel’s mood and Will’s mood). Gulledge is a skilled artist and Will’s darkness holding her back is so beautifully put into the story (like the summary says–visual metaphors).

Discussion Questions: How does Gulledge use images throughout the novel to show Will’s emotional state?; How does Whit help Will overcome her darkness?

Read This If You Loved: Page by Paige by Laura Lee Gulledge, Friends with Boy by Faith Erin Hicks, Anya’s Ghost by Vera Brosgol, Smile by Raina Telgemeier

Recommended For:

Millie and the Big Rescue by Alexander Steffensmeier

November 29, 2013 by Kellee

Millie and the Big Rescue
Author and Illustrator: Alexander Steffensmeier
Published August 13th, 2013 by Walker Childrens

Goodreads Summary: A game of hide and seek on the farm goes awry when Millie gets stuck in her hiding place at the top of a tree. But when the farmer and all the other animals try to help, they get stuck as well. Who will rescue Millie and her friends?

Millie’s charming comedy of errors is back in full effect, guaranteeing this new installment in the series will be a hit among young readers as it introduces essential members of the community: firefighters!

My Review and Teacher’s Tools for Navigation: The farm is full of animals that just want to have fun, but one interesting choice by Millie causes havoc. This book would be great for a read aloud. Students will have so much fun predicting what is going to happen next and guessing the effects of the different events.

Discussion Questions: Why was the tree a bad hiding place for Millie? Where else could she have hidden?; If you could have a picnic anywhere, where would you choose?

We Flagged: “Millie loved to play hide-and-see. So did her friends on the farm. even when all the good hiding places were taken, Millie somehow managed to find the best spot. Ready or not, here come the chickens. Millie was nowhere to be found.” (p. 2-3)

Read This If You Loved: The Night Horses by Anaka Jones, Fire Fuego! Brave Bomberos by Susan Middleton, Chicken Dance by Tammi Sauer, Click Clack Moo by Doreen Cronin

Recommended For:

**Thank you to Julie at Bloomsbury for providing a copy for review!!**

Skinny Little Tree by Jayme Martin

November 21, 2013 by Ricki

Skinny Little Tree
Author: Jayme Martin
Published June 30th, 2013 by Outskirts Press

Goodreads Summary: “All the seasons are worth living…” May Skinny Little Tree, Wiggly Worms, and Little Leaves remind you that all the seasons of life are worth living.

Review: This is a fabulous book to teach children about the changing of seasons. A little boy approaches Skinny Little Tree and asks her whey she is smiling, weeping, worried, etc., and she tells him why she is feeling those emotions. She responds with an answer that shows she doesn’t understand how her environment changes as the seasons change. After each season, there is a workbook page that asks the reader to draw a different element of the plot. I imagine that kids would have a lot of great fun with this interactive text!

Teacher’s Tools for Navigation: This would be a great book to pair with a unit about the changing seasons or the emotions that we feel. I think kids would have a lot of fun with the interactive drawing sections. I’d love to see students write their own books from the perspective of a different inanimate object as it responds to the seasons changing. For example, a student might choose to write from the perspective of a pond as it goes through the seasons of a year.

It is reminiscent of many Eric Carle books, so teachers might find it valuable to pair them to teach author’s craft.

Discussion Questions: What changes does Skinny Little Tree experience as the seasons change? Which was your favorite season? Why?; What does Skinny Little Tree come to understand by the end of the book?; How does the repetition in this book add to the story?

We Flagged: “‘Skinny Little Tree, / why are you smiling at me?’ / ‘Because Wiggly Worms / are tickling my toes'” (p. 3-4).

Read This If You Loved: Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See? written by Bill Martin Jr. and illustrated by Eric Carle, The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle, The Giving Tree by Shel Silverstein

Recommended For:

**Thank you to Jayme Martin for providing me with this copy for review!**

Harlem: A Poem by Walter Dean Myers

February 8, 2025November 8, 2013 by Kellee

Harlem: A Poem
Author: Walter Dean Myers
Illustrator: Christopher Myers
Published 1997 by Scholastic Press

Goodreads Summary: Walter Dean Myers calls to life the deep, rich, and hope-filled history of Harlem, this crucible of American culture.

Christopher Myers’ boldly assembled collage art resonates with feeling, and tells a tale all its own. Words and pictures together connect readers -of all ages – to the spirit of Harlem in its music, art, literature, and everyday life, and to how it has helped shape us as a people.

My Review & Teacher’s Tools For Navigation: After reading this book the first time, I knew I was going to have to tackle it differently than just reading a picture book. I wanted to make sense of it and I knew that I didn’t have the background knowledge so I knew that the power of all of the words had not sunk in yet. So, I typed up the poem in Google Drive and began doing my very own close reading of the poem. I started with research of terms and names that I didn’t know, building my knowledge of the culture and history of Harlem. Through this build up of knowledge, I began to understand the beauty behind Myers’s poem. The voice of this poem is one of heartbreak, but strength; proud of not only what he has become, but where he came from. This poem is a celebration of the history of Harlem and its citizens—a celebration of its religion, music, poets, authors, and everything that made/makes it a hub for the civil rights movement and African American culture.

This book would be a great one to use across many different subject areas- history, literature, and art.

Discussion Questions: What references to Harlem’s history did Myers intertwine into his poem?; How did Christopher Myers’s illustrations take the poem to another level?; (Writing) Do research about your ancestors and your heritage. Through this research, find people, places, literature, art, musicians, etc. that helped shape who you or your family are. Use this research to construct a poem about your heritage. Find a piece of artwork to accompany your poem.

We Flagged:

The uptown A
Rattles past 110th street
Unreal to real
Relaxing the soul

Shango and Jesus
Asante and Mende
One people, a hundred different
People
Huddled masses
And crowded dreams

Read This If You Loved: Duke Ellington: The Piano Prince and His Orchestra and Ella Fitzgerald: The Tale of a Vocal Virtuosa by Andrea Davis Pinkney, The Complete Poems including Harlem by Langston Hughes, Harlem Summer by Walter Dean Myers, Nonfiction books about Harlem

Recommended For:

Halloween Hustle by Charlotte Gunnufson

December 27, 2013October 31, 2013 by Kellee

Halloween Hustle
Author: Charlotte Gunnufson
Illustrator: Kevan J. Atteberry
Published September 3rd, 2013 by Two Lions

Goodreads Summary: In the dark, a funky beat. / Something white with bony feet. / Skeleton dancing up the street, / Doing the Halloween Hustle. Skeleton is dancing his way to a Halloween party but as he grooves across town, he keeps stumbling, tumbling, and falling apart! Can Skeleton stay in one piece long enough to make it to the party?

Kellee’s Review: This is a perfect Halloween book for young readers who want to get into the spirit yet do not want to be scared. The colorful illustrations add an extra element of fun to the book which will suck the readers even more into the book. My favorite part, though, is the rhyming and rhythm. It adds something special to the book that makes it different than other Halloween books.

Ricki’s Review: This is the first book I read to my pregnant belly. My future son was kicking the entire time! It was such an entertaining story, and my husband even listened in. My favorite aspect of this book would easily be the great examples of figurative language. For example, this alliteration: “Gets up and grooves with ghoulish grace” (p. 7), or this consonance: “Bones scatter / What a clatter / Spine is like a broken ladder!” (p. 4). You may also notice the simile in that last passage! Like Kellee, the colorful illustrations also drew me in, and I also loved all of the famous scary characters in the book, like Frankenstein’s Monster and Dracula.

Teacher’s Tools for Navigation: This book is made for reading aloud! It rhymes, has a great rhythm, and has repetitive text for students to read aloud with the teachers. It also has a great message to students and has opportunities for discussion about cause and effect, imagery, and rhyming. Teachers of any level would it beneficial to use this book to teach alliteration, assonance, consonance, similes, and other types of figurative language.

Discussion Questions: What characteristics does the Skeleton have that makes it so he is able to get to the party? What characteristics does the Skeleton have that would make him a new friend?; How does the author use rhymes to convey her message effectively?; Is this book a poem? Use textual evidence to defend your answer.

We Flagged:

“In the dark, a funky beat,
Something white with bony feet.
Skeleton dancing up the street,
Doing the Halloween Hustle.

Bony thumbs and fingers snap.
Bony heels and toes tip-tap.
Knees knock-knock and elbows flap,
Doing the Halloween Hustle.” (p. 2-3)

Read This If You Loved: Spider and the Fly by Mary Howitt, Dragon’s Halloween by Dav Pilkey, Goodnight Goon by Michael Rex, Monster Mash (Babymouse #9) by Jennifer L. Holm, Scaredy Squirrel Prepares for Halloween by Melanie Watt; Man Made Boy by Jon Skovron

Recommended For:

and

**Thank you to Charlotte Gunnufson for providing us copies for review!**

The Chatswood Spooks #1 & #2 by Notti Thistledore

October 27, 2013 by Kellee

The Chatswood Spooks
Author: Notti Thistledore
Illustrator: Nela Krzewniak
A Frightful Recipe published January 15th, 2013 by CreateSpace Independent Publishing
Sheets and Ladders published February 17th, 2013 by Crooked Chimney Books

Goodreads Summary (A Frightful Recipe): The Chatswood Spooks are in trouble. If they don’t improve their scare tactics they’ll have to find somewhere else to haunt. But the spooks have lived their entire afterlives at the Chatswood Manor, and are determined to show just how scary they can be.

Unfortunately, they haven’t counted on having to scare Ivan the Fearless…

The Chatswood Spooks: A Frightful Recipe is the first in the Chatswood Spooks series. Each story is illustrated with detailed line drawings and is bursting with silliness.

Goodreads Summary (Sheets and Ladders): With his sheets, chains and pet spider, Jingo likes to look the part of the classic ghost. So when someone puts their red knickers in with Jingo’s favourite white haunting sheets, Jingo is devastated.

Feeling hurt and unloved, he decides to run away to join the local Carnival. But what Jingo has in spooking skills he lacks in street smarts, and he soon finds himself in trouble…

My Review: A cute (non)scary ghost story early chapter book that features 3 very different ghost personalities. I loved the vocabulary throughout this book that was not overwhelming yet showed that the author was obviously not writing down to her readers. She also had allusions to fairy tales, word play, and onomatopoeias making the narrative more interesting. I also found the author’s humor really rang throughout.

Teacher’s Tools for Navigation: I could definitely see these books being used as a read aloud in a classroom as well as a great mentor text to introduce narrative elements since it has a perfect plot arc, conflict, and interesting characters as well as an introduction into figurative and descriptive language and allusions.

Discussion Questions: Book 1: What do you think the ghosts are going to do to be scarier?; Book 2: Do you think Jingo did the right thing by running away?

We Flagged: “On Tuesday evening Toby, the caretaker of Chatswood Manor, called a meeting. All three Chatswood Manor ghosts were there, as well as two crows and a stone gargoyle.
“That gargoyle is worse than Hansel and Gretel,” muttered Winifred as she swept a trail of rocks from the carpet.
“Ahem!” Toby adjusted his half-moon spectacles and consulted a sheet of paper with a squiggly graph on it. Now, listen up, spooks. You’re here because my research shows that you’re all lazy to the bone!”” (Book #1, Location 5)

“Hauling his battered suitcase along behind him, Jingo wandered out onto Bridges Road. All the way he kept telling himself that the Chatswood ghosts were very disrespectful and didn’t deserve to work with him.” (Book #2, Location 34)

“The moon was starting to drag across the sky when the Ghost Bus appeared. Jingo stuck out his thumb to flad it down. The Ghost Bus was the sort of old-fashioned car that had to be started with a hand crank, and its headlights could only be turned on with a switch near the grille.”(Book #2, Location 40)

Read This If You Loved: Scaredy Squirrel Prepares for Halloween by Melanie Watts, The Witches by Roald Dahl, Ivy Bean and the Ghost that had to Go by Annie Barrows

Recommended For:

**Thank you to Notti Thistledore for supplying copies of these books for review**