The Library Gingerbread Man (Dotti Enderle)

This would be a great book to use at the beginning of the year when we teach kids how to use the library...or at least that is what I plan to do this next year! It would be a great way to introduce kids to the Dewy Decimal system.

Goodreads says: 

The Gingerbread Man ran into a crowd at 920, the biography section. Abraham Lincoln, Harriet Tubman, and Amelia Earhart tried to stop him. "Stop! Stop, Gingerbread Man! You're a long way from home."

The Gingerbread Man sped around them. "Run, run, as fast as you can. You can't catch me, I'm the Gingerbread Man! I ran away from the librarian, a Word Wizard, a giraffe, a robot, a paper bird, and a jokester, and I can run away from you, too."

Even Jesse Owens, a record-breaking Olympic runner, couldn't keep up.

I Wish I Could Draw (Cary Fagan)

This would be a great book to read when you're working on a writing project that you want your class to illustrate, especially with kids who say they don't draw well. This is a delightful story about creating a story.

Goodreads says:

The narrator of I Wish I Could Draw shares a name with creator Cary Fagan and has the same curly hair and glasses. Perhaps most interesting of all, though, the narrator believes he has no artistic talent — just like the Cary Fagan, who not only wrote but also bravely and exuberantly illustrated this book. Fortunately for readers, both Cary-the-narrator and Cary-the-children’s-book-creator refused to let self-doubt stop them from trying to tell (and draw) the funniest and most exciting story they could think of. The result is a book that delivers plenty of excitement, silly jokes, and fun — and also an important message about self-confidence and perseverance. Designed to look like a child’s notebook, I Wish I Could Draw will inspire readers to pick up a pencil and let their imaginations do the rest.

The Clever Boy and the Terrible, Dangerous Animal (Idries Shah)

The lesson: Just because you have never seen something before doesn't mean it is terrible or dangerous.

"And just think. It all happened because a clever boy was not afraid when a lot of silly people thought something was dangerous just because they had never seen it before."

Goodreads says:

When a boy visits another village, he is amazed to find the townspeople terrified of something that--just because they have not seen it before--they mistake for a terrible, dangerous animal. With his own knowledge and by demonstration, he helps them overcome their fears.



This tale is one of the many hundreds of Sufi developmental stories collected by Idries Shah from oral and written sources in Central Asia and the Middle East. For more than a thousand years this story has entertained young people and helped to foster in them the ability to examine their assumptions and to think for themselves.



Rose Mary Santiago's illustrations accentuate the surprise in this story in a clever way that will delight youngsters. This is the second book in this series illustrated by her, following the award-winning best seller, The Farmer's Wife.



This story is part of an oral tradition from the Middle East and Central Asia that is more than a thousand years old. In an entertaining way, it introduces children to an interesting aspect of human behavior and so enables them to recognize it in their daily lives.



One of the many tales from the body Sufi literature collected by Idries Shah, the tale is presented here as part of his series of books for young readers. This is the second book in the series illustrated by Rose Mary Santiago, following the award-winning bestseller, The Farmer's Wife. 

Ivan (Katherine Applegate)

I need to remember this book for when we do the novel in Grade 3 Book Club.

Goodreads says:

In a spare, powerful text and evocative illustrations, the Newbery medalist Katherine Applegate and the artist G. Brian Karas present the extraordinary real story of a special gorilla.
     Captured as a baby, Ivan was brought to a Tacoma, Washington, mall to attract shoppers. Gradually, public pressure built until a better way of life for Ivan was found at Zoo Atlanta. From the Congo to America, and from a local business attraction to a national symbol of animal welfare, Ivan the Shopping Mall Gorilla traveled an astonishing distance in miles and in impact.
     This is his true story and includes photographs of Ivan in the back matter. 

Who Says Women Can't Be Doctors? (Tanya Lee Stone)

This is a great book. It feels like you're talking to a friend when you read it. It has a fabulous message. It is amazing how things have changed for women. I love how kids are always surprised when they hear how things used to be for women. Everyone should know about Elizabeth Blackwell.

Goodreads says:

In the 1830s, when a brave and curious girl named Elizabeth Blackwell was growing up, women were supposed to be wives and mothers. Some women could be teachers or seamstresses, but career options were few. Certainly no women were doctors. 

But Elizabeth refused to accept the common beliefs that women weren’t smart enough to be doctors, or that they were too weak for such hard work. And she would not take no for an answer. Although she faced much opposition, she worked hard and finally—when she graduated from medical school and went on to have a brilliant career—proved her detractors wrong. This inspiring story of the first female doctor shows how one strong-willed woman opened the doors for all the female doctors to come.

Book of Big Brothers (Cary Fagan)

Everyone should write a story like this and share it with their kids. Fun!

Goodreads says:

In this episodic tale that's rich with Cary Fagan's characteristically dry humor, a boy tells the story of his life with two older brothers. When he is only a week old, his brothers argue over who can hold him first and drop him onto the porch. But they aren't all bad: they chase away the mean girls who call him names, and they perform a play starring the neighbor's dog to cheer him up when he has the measles. Later on these troublesome boys set fire to neighbor's tree, play football in the living room, and even attempt to ride their banana bikes all the way to the Rocky Mountains. Inspired by Cary Fagan's childhood experiences, this story is a spot-on portrayal of the crazy, mishap-filled, yet undeniably fun and affectionate life in a family with three boys. Luc Melanson's wonderfully lively and extremely funny retro-style illustrations are a perfect complement to the text.

Little Blue Chair (Cary Fagan)

This is a beautiful story. We loved how it came full circle. It reminded me a lot of The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane and would be a great introduction to it. It would be fun to read both and have a discussion comparing the two.

Goodreads says:

Boo's favorite chair is little and blue. He sits in it, reads in it and makes a tent around it...until the day he grows too big for it. His mother puts the little blue chair out on the lawn where a truck driver picks it up. The truck driver sells it to a lady in a junk store where it sits for many years until it's sold and put to use as a plant stand. In the years that follow, the little blue chair is used in many other ways -- on an elephant ride, in a contest, on a Ferris wheel, in a tree...until the day it flies away, borne aloft by balloons, and lands in a garden of daffodils where a familiar face finds it. 
A charming, beautifully illustrated read-aloud that follows the adventures of a little chair, beginning as the seat of a small child who loves books and circling back to that child's child many years (and bottoms) later.