The Girl Who Drank The Moon (Kelly Barnhill)

 

It took me a while to get into this book. After about 100 pages, I was entranced It took me a while to get into this book. After about 100 pages, I was entranced by the writing and by the story. There's something really special about it! It made for a great Children's Lit book club discussion as well.. There's something really special about it! It made for a great Children's Lit book club discussion as well.

Goodreads says:

Every year, the people of the Protectorate leave a baby as an offering to the witch who lives in the forest. They hope this sacrifice will keep her from terrorizing their town. But the witch in the forest, Xan, is kind and gentle. She shares her home with a wise Swamp Monster named Glerk and a Perfectly Tiny Dragon, Fyrian. Xan rescues the abandoned children and deliver them to welcoming families on the other side of the forest, nourishing the babies with starlight on the journey. 

One year, Xan accidentally feeds a baby moonlight instead of starlight, filling the ordinary child with extraordinary magic. Xan decides she must raise this enmagicked girl, whom she calls Luna, as her own. To keep young Luna safe from her own unwieldy power, Xan locks her magic deep inside her. When Luna approaches her thirteenth birthday, her magic begins to emerge on schedule--but Xan is far away. Meanwhile, a young man from the Protectorate is determined to free his people by killing the witch. Soon, it is up to Luna to protect those who have protected her--even if it means the end of the loving, safe world she’s always known.

Love and Roast Chicken (Barbara Knutson)

 

Perfect for our Peru unit! 

Goodreads says:

One day, high in the Andes Mountains, Cuy the Guinea Pig is searching for wild spinach to eat when Tio Antonio the Fox comes in search of Cuy to eat! Tio Antonio thinks he's found dinner, but crafty Cuy has other plans. Quick-witted Cuy fools Tio Antonio not once, but three times. Combining striking wood block artwork with an authentic South American voice, this sly trickster tale shows that clever thinking is key when you're out-foxing the fox. Discover more about this title and Barbara Knutson at www.barbaraknutson.net.

The Warlord's Puzzle (Virginia Walton Pilegard)

Amazing illustrations! Great way to introduce tangrams.

Goodreads says:

A young peasant boy convinces his poor but wise father to enter a contest to solve the warlordis puzzle, which is actually the original tangram
 

Fly, Eagle, Fly! (Christopher Gregorowski)

This story felt like a First Nations' legend, but it is an African tale. It's a great story about realizing your potential and not settling.

Goodreads says:

After a stormy night, a farmer searching for his lost calf finds a baby eagle that has been blown out of its nest. He takes it home and raises it with his chickens. But when his friend comes to visit one day, he tells the farmer that an eagle should be flying high in the sky, not scrabbling on the ground for grain. How the farmer's friend proves that the bird is an eagle and destined to fly to the sun, is humorously retold by Christopher Gregorowski. Niki Daly's bright water colour illustrations breath life into this powerful and uplifting tale.

The Beatryce Prophecy (Kate DiCamillo)

 

I really wanted to love this book. It just doesn't feel like a book that kids would get at all though. Are kids really the audience? Or adults? I enjoyed the interviews of Kate DiCamillo talking about the book and the concepts more than the book itself. Maybe I need to read it again. I did love the idea that stories save the family.

‘What does, then, change the world?
If the hardheaded goat Answelica could speak, she would answer with one word: “Love.”
And if you were to ask Beatryce of Abelard?
She too would answer “Love.”
Love, and stories.’

Goodreads says:

From two-time Newbery Medalist Kate DiCamillo and two-time Caldecott Medalist Sophie Blackall comes a fantastical meditation on fate, love, and the power of words to spell the world.

We shall all, in the end, be led to where we belong. We shall all, in the end, find our way home.

In a time of war, a mysterious child appears at the monastery of the Order of the Chronicles of Sorrowing. Gentle Brother Edik finds the girl, Beatryce, curled in a stall, wracked with fever, coated in dirt and blood, and holding fast to the ear of Answelica the goat. As the monk nurses Beatryce to health, he uncovers her dangerous secret, one that imperils them all--for the king of the land seeks just such a girl, and Brother Edik, who penned the prophecy himself, knows why.

And so it is that a girl with a head full of stories--powerful tales-within-the-tale of queens and kings, mermaids and wolves--ventures into a dark wood in search of the castle of one who wishes her dead. But Beatryce knows that, should she lose her way, those who love her--a wild-eyed monk, a man who had once been king, a boy with a terrible sword, and a goat with a head as hard as stone--will never give up searching for her, and to know this is to know everything. With its timeless themes, unforgettable cast, and magical medieval setting, Kate DiCamillo's lyrical tale, paired with resonant black-and-white illustrations by Caldecott Medalist Sophie Blackall, is a true collaboration between masters.

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.

The Chinese Emperor's New Clothes ( Ying Chang Compestine)

Since I have many Chinese students in my class, they were really keen to read this book. They all listened attentively. The story moves quickly enough but still is a good story for a substantial read at the carpet. I wondered if it really is a Chinese legend or just the creativity of the author. The author's note at the end was fascinating. The author loved to read forbidden books. It was a way to trick the rulers in China who banned certain books. She said due to the lack of books and other entertainment, she and her friends would pass the time by reciting stories from the illegal books they had read. This story is one she made up, adding her own twist to it, after hearing The Emporer's New Clothes by Hans Christian Andersen. The picture of the author at the end, taken during the Cultural Revolution in China, is delightful!



Goodreads says:

Ming Da is only nine years old when he becomes the emperor of China, and his three advisors take advantage of him by stealing his stores of rice, gold, and precious stones. But Ming Da has a plan. With the help of his tailors, he comes up with a clever idea to outsmart his devious advisors: He asks his tailors to make “magical” new clothes for him. Anyone who is honest, the young emperor explains, will see the clothes’ true splendor, but anyone who is dishonest will see only burlap sacks. The emperor dons a burlap sack, and the ministers can’t help but fall for his cunning trick.

Just So Stories (Rudyard Kipling)

So this is where all those tales came from that I have heard. I remember hearing many of these stories, but they were lost to me. So glad to have found them again. The words are beautiful - poetic and magical. I found myself wanting to write down phrases and lines from the book. I loved that it is a man and his daughter in many of the stories.

I especially liked one person's review on Goodreads:

...my personal favorite was about Elephant's Child. Sometimes 'satiable curiosity doesn't kill you; it gets you a very practical appendage with which you can spank your bossy Relatives and hove them into a wasp's nest. And let's face it, O Best Beloved, we've all had that impulse.

Goodreads says:

Twelve stories about animals, insects, and other subjects include How the Camel Got His Hump. The Butterfly That Stamped, and How the Alphabet Was Made..

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. 

The Legend of Rock Paper Scissors (Adam Rex)

This is hilarious. Great illustrations. Fabulous word play. We got a lot of good laughs out of this book. We especially loved that our AP came in to read it to us! Afterwards, spontaneous games of rock paper scissors broke out all over the place.

Goodreads summary:

From New York Times bestselling creators Drew Daywalt, author of The Day the Crayons Quit and The Day the Crayons Came Home, and Adam Rex, author-illustrator of Frankenstein Makes a Sandwich, comes a laugh-out-loud hilarious picture book about the epic tale of the classic game Rock, Paper, Scissors.

You’ve played the game. Now read the legend of how it all began . . .

Long ago, in an ancient and distant realm called the Kingdom of Backyard, there lived a warrior named ROCK.

Meanwhile in the Empire of Mom’s Home Office, a second great warrior sought the glory of battle. And his name was PAPER.

At the same time, in the Kitchen Realm, in the tiny village of Junk Drawer, lived a third warrior. They called her SCISSORS.

These three were the strongest, smartest, and fastest in all the land. Time and again they beat the most fearsome opponents they could find: an apricot, a computer printer—even frozen, breaded, dinosaur-shaped chicken nuggets! But when the warriors finally meet each other, the most epic round of battles begins . . . and never ends. That is why, to this day, children around the world honor these worthy adversaries by playing ROCK, PAPER, SCISSORS! 

The Girl With a Brave Heart - A Tale from Tehran (Rita Jahanforuz and Vali Mintzi)

Wow! This is a powerful book.

We had had some incidents in our classroom about making good choices. This book was a great conversation starter about how we need to take responsibility for our choices and what the fall out of our choices can be.

The story is kind of long, but my students didn't have trouble sitting still for it. It is a great story.

Goodreads summary:

After showing kindness to a strange old woman, Shiraz receives the gift of beauty but her lazy and unkind stepsister, Nargues, suffers a less pleasant fate in this adaptation of the Grimm's fairy tale, Mother Hulda, reset in Tehran, Iran.