Circus Ship (Chris Van Dusen)

 

I first got to love Chris Van Dusen's work from the Mercy Watson series. The more I read his books, the more I think I could do an author study with them! His illustrations are awesome. 

The back of the book says the idea for this story came from a real life incident when a ship sailing from St Johnson New Brunswick to Portland, Maine that had been carrying some circus animals sank. What could have happened to those animals? In this book, he presents one idea! 

Goodreads says:

With stunning artwork and a rhyming text, the illustrator of the Mercy Watson books tells a tale of human-animal connection full of humor and heart.

When a circus ship runs aground off the coast of Maine, the poor animals are left on their own to swim the chilly waters. Staggering onto a nearby island, they soon win over the wary townspeople with their kind, courageous ways. So well do the critters blend in that when the greedy circus owner returns to claim them, villagers of all species conspire to outsmart the bloated blowhard. With buoyant rhymes and brilliantly caricatured illustrations evoking the early nineteenth century, Chris Van Dusen presents a hugely entertaining tale about the bonds of community — and a rare hidden-pictures spread for eagle-eyed readers of all ages.

The Great Zapfino (Mac Barnett)

 

I love it when my students start to realize styles of an author. When I said we had read other Mac Barnet books and asked if they could recall, it made them excited about this one. They were confused as to whether the circus was a dream? Or was jumping out of the window a flash back? We never could really decide.

This book is mostly wordless. Zapfino never says anything. I had the students volunteer to tell the story on each page that was wordless. The things they notice are amazing. Not giving Zapfino any dialogue or text made it more relatable for the students, I think. They could be Zapfino.

This could make for a great discussion about how we need to face our fears eventually. 

My students are always taken by black and white illustrations and ask why the author made it look like that. Usually what they ask is why did he make it so old? 

Goodreads says:

From two Caldecott Honor–winning creators comes a sweet and inspiring picture book about a runaway circus performer who learns to face his fears and follow his heart.

When The Great Zapfino climbs to the top of the circus platform, all eyes are on him, waiting for his incredible leap. But Zapfino is afraid of heights! He can’t take the pressure and flees, boards a plane, and runs away to start a new life.

In the city, Zapfino starts work as an elevator operator in a tall building but soon learns you can never really outrun your fears. When disaster strikes, can Zapfino find the strength to be great?

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

Don't be afraid of new things! Great lesson. Also, we noticed after, that the outside is the colors of a melon, up close. In the words, it looks like there are watermelon seeds. The inside cover of the book is the inside of the watermelon. So clever!


Goodreads says:

A Sufi teaching tale of a boy who visits another village and helps the townspeople deal with their fear of something that they have mistaken for a terrible, dangerous animal.