A Single Shard

A Single Shard - Linda Sue Park
Dell Yearling - 2001

Reading Level: 8+  Number of Pages: 148 Genre: Fiction

Summary: Tree-ear, an orphan, lives under a bridge in Ch’ulp’o, a potters’ village famed for delicate celadon ware. He has become fascinated with the potter’s craft; he wants nothing more than to watch master potter Min at work, and he dreams of making a pot of his own someday. When Min takes Tree-ear on as his helper, Tree-ear is elated–until he finds obstacles in his path: the backbreaking labor of digging and hauling clay, Min’s irascible temper, and his own ignorance. But Tree-ear is determined to prove himself–even if it means taking a long, solitary journey on foot to present Min’s work in the hope of a royal commission . . . even if it means arriving at the royal court with nothing to show but a single celadon shard. The emissary is able to see Min's great skill, even from the small, broken piece, and grants him a commission. After Tree-ear returns to Ch'ul'po, he learns from Min that Crane-man has died. Min and his wife adopt Tree-ear, giving him a new name and finally teaching him the art of pottery.

"Tree-ear was so called after the mushroom that grew in wrinkled half-circles on dead or fallen tree trunks, emerging from the rotten wood without benefit of parent seed."

My Impressions:This is a pretty good book, and deserves the Newberry award. Interesting to tell a story by discussing pottery.

Parents' Guide:None

Recommendations:Good book!

The Very Hungry Caterpillar

The Very Hungry Caterpillar - Eric Carle
World Publishing - 1969
Reading Level: 3+  Number of Pages: 184 Genre: Fiction
Ten Best Picture Books of the Year in 1969; an American Institute of Graphics Arts Award in 1970; the Selection du Grand Prix des TreizeNakamori Reader's Prize in Japan in 1975

Summary: The caterpillar is very hungry, so he eats through a series of different foods. When he eats through a bunch of junk-food, he gets a stomachache, so he eats through a leaf to make him feel better. He then goes into a cocoon and becomes a butterfly!

 

My Impressions:The accolade to Carle belongs to his fabulous illustrations. The pictures are beautiful and inventive, and captivate readers. The story is a fictional fantasy which teaches the reader that junk food will give you a stomachache.

Parents' Guide:No issues.

Recommendations: Little kids will love this book.

Charlotte's Web

Charlotte's Web - E.B. White
HarperCollins - 1952
Reading Level: 8+  Number of Pages: 184 Genre: Fiction

Summary:
The book begins when John Arable's sow gives birth to a litter of piglets, and Mr. Arable discovers one of them is a runt and decides to kill it. However, his eight year old daughter Fern begs him to let it live, and she names it Wilbur. Wilbur gets lonely on the farm. Eventually, a warm and soothing voice tells him that she is going to be his friend. The next day, he wakes up and meets his new friend: Charlotte, the grey spider.
Wilbur soon becomes a member of the community of animals who live in the cellar of the barn. When the old sheep in the barn cellar tells Wilbur that he is going to be killed and eaten at Christmas, he turns to Charlotte for help. Charlotte has the idea of writing words in her web extolling Wilbur's excellence ("some pig", "terrific", "radiant", and eventually "humble"), reasoning that if she can make Wilbur sufficiently famous, he will not be killed. Thanks to Charlotte's efforts, and with the assistance of the gluttonous rat Templeton, Wilbur not only lives, but goes to the county fair with Charlotte and wins a prize. Having reached the end of her natural lifespan, Charlotte dies at the fair. Wilbur repays Charlotte by bringing home with him the sac of eggs she had laid at the fair before dying. When Charlotte's eggs hatch at Zuckerman's farm, most of them leave to make their own lives elsewhere, except for three: Joy, Aranea, and Nellie, who remain there as friends to Wilbur; but none of them can replace Charlotte.

"Why did you do all this for me?" he asked. "I don't deserve it. I've never done anything for you."
     "You have been my friend," replied Charlotte. "That in itself is a tremendous thing. I wove my webs for you because I liked you. After all, what's a life, anyway? We're born, we live a little while, we die... By helping you, perhaps I was trying to lift up my life a trifle. Heavens knows anyone's life can stand a little of that."

 

My Impressions:This is a touching story, ruined only by its film counterpart. This book calls to mind the idea of friendship, devotion, and life. We ought to read this book and learn how to make our lives happier, for death is a real thing.

Parents' Guide:Charlotte dies at the end. That is very sad.

Recommendations:Everyone should experience this book at least once.

How I Became a Pirate

How I Became a Pirate - Melinda Long
Scholastic - 2003
Reading Level: 6+  Number of Pages: 17 Genre: Fiction

Summary: Jeremy Jacobs tells the story of how he became a pirate. He was building sandcastles when a pirate ship came by. They saw he was such a good digger that they wanted him to come join their crew. Jeremy learned what it is like to be a pirate, and discovered that pirates do whatever they want! He is happy about this until he discovers that people don't pay the kind of attention to him that he wants, such as bedtime stories and tuck-ins. And when there is a big storm, Jeremy is afraid. He tells the pirates he has the perfect place to bury the treasure: his backyard! And so the treasure is buried in his yard and Jeremy makes it home in time to soccer practice. He has a map, just in case.

"Pirates sleep with one eye open--just in case. And they don't change into pajamas--unless they want to."

My Impressions:I thought this was a funny, enjoyable book with a lot of great illustrations. There were some great jokes and a good lesson, I thought. It talks about brushing teeth and being responsible, as opposed to acting like a maniac. I think a lot of kids would like to let their inner maniac out once in a while, but have to learn to keep their cool.

Parents' Guide: No issues.

Recommendations: This would be a great book for younger kids.

Alice's Adventures in Wonderland

Alice's Adventures in Wonderland - Lewis Carroll
Macmillin - 1865
Reading Level: 10+  Number of Pages: 148 Genre: Fiction

Summary: A summary of this book is challenging, as we all seem to be familiar with the story, yet there is so much nonsense that occurs in wonderland. Alice encounters this strange world by chasing a rabbit and following him down the rabbit hole. There she encounters several memorable characters, such as the Mad Hatter, the Mock Turtle, and the Red Queen of Hearts. Most of the characters make absolutely no sense. They read absurd poetry, tell outrageous tales, and draw puns from every line of dialogue. Eventually Alice is brought to court, where she accidentally begins to grow quite large. The queen commands her to quit growing, but she replies that she can't simply stop growing, for that's what every living thing does. The queen shouts "off with her head!" and her playing card soldiers swarm her. Alice wakes up to find herself outside, sleeping on the grass.

"It would be so nice if something made sense for a change."

 

My Impressions: This is an enjoyable book, and the nonsensical way in which it is told makes it all the more enjoyable.

Parents' Guide: No real issues. The caterpillar smokes a hookah.

Recommendations: This is a real piece of classic fairy-tale that everyone should read at least once.

George Shrinks

George Shrinks - William Joyce
HarperCollins - 1985
Reading Level: 5+  Number of Pages: 13 Genre: Fiction

Summary: George wakes up and discovers that he has shrunk! The story reads as a letter to George, and the pictures demonstrate what George does when he is an inch tall. He plays with his brother, cleans his room, and does the dishes. The illustrations show how much fun he is having. He turns back to normal size just as his parents get home.

"One day, while his mother and father were out, George dreamt he was small, and when he woke up he found it was true."

 

My Impressions: A fun picture book. It looks like everything is more fun when you are only an inch tall.

Parents' Guide: No problems.

Recommendations:Little kids will love this book. There exists an animated cartoon series with the same premise.

Hatchet

Hatchet - Gary Paulsen
Bradbury Press - 1987
Reading Level: 10+  Number of Pages: 196 Genre: Realistic Fiction

Summary: Brian is flying in a small prop plane when his pilot has a heart-attack. Brian steers the plane until it runs out of fuel, and then crashes into a small lake, far off course of its intended destination. Jarred from the crash, Brian finds himself lost in the middle of the forest, with a small hatchet strapped to his belt the only possession he has. The hatchet had been a gift he had taken just before getting in the plane, and became his only tool for survival. After pitying himself, crying, and contemplating suicide, Brian figures out how to survive. He builds a fire, he catches fish. He eats turtle eggs. He survives a tornado and a moose attack, and learns how to survive on his own. When the tornado moves the plane in the lake to a reachable spot, Brian builds a raft and hopes to salvage materials from the plane. Inside he discovers the dead pilot, and salvages an emergency kit from inside. The kit contains a radio, a gun, and several food packets. Brian sets down to eat, and accidentally triggers the emergency locater on the radio. A small plane with pontoon floats lands in the lake and Brian is rescued.

"Fire. The hatchet was the key to it all."

 

My Impressions: This book fascinated me as a kid, and I still enjoyed it. I found the idea of trying to live in the wilderness to be interesting, and sometimes I still wonder what I would have done in Brian's circumstance.

Parents' Guide: In desperation, Brian contemplates suicide, but he recovers.

Recommendations:I would strongly recommend this book, but particularly to kids who don't read much. I think a lot of people would enjoy it because it is a simple, short, fascinating read.