A Blogger's Reflection

Before taking this class, I had never blogged before. I knew what they were, but I never had any intention of even starting a blog. I didn't think I had anything to blog about. However, I think that this blogging thing was a really helpful way to express my feelings openly and casually about different children's books that I liked and disliked. This was definitely a better way to discuss children's books for this class. I think that writing papers becomes tedious; it eventually becomes work. But by blogging thoughts down without any boundaries, I was able to express my feelings without feeling boxed in. I would recommend using the blogs again, in future classes. I intend to continue to use mine to obtain feedback about literature I use in my classroom, and to get advice about how to use this literature in creative ways from other educators. While I have this idea to continue to use my blog right now, its actual use might change over time. I am going to remain open minded since that is what this blog has taught me to do - to remain open and to use this blank space to compile thoughts and reflections on things I continue to learn about teaching and children's literature.

The World's Worst Fairy Godmother

The World's Worst Fairy Godmother, by Bruce Coville

This was a book that I felt would be a great one to end my blog with for right now. I have had this book on my bookshelf for years but never read it. It is a HILARIOUS book for children to read! It is about Maybelle Clodnowski, who is, by the title, THE "world's worst fairy godmother." After she makes ANOTHER mistake with her spells, her boss, Mr. Peters, makes her turn a PERFECT little girl named Susan into a normal kid. As Mr. Peters and her overseer, Edna Prim, who was Fairy Godmother of the Year for 147 years, watch the class that Maybelle's assignment is in, she takes guesses based on the naughty little prank-pulling children in the class as they tease one another, however Mr. Peters wants Maybelle to turn Susan into a better child so she won't think she's so perfect anymore. However, there is an evil little creature named Zozmagog who is trying to end Maybelle's career as a fairy godmother, so he creates an "evil apple" to give to Susan instead of a "normal magic apple!" Susan eats it and tears apart the town, and takes all of her classmates with her. They are all HORRIBLE children. Meanwhile, Zozmagog has a secret... A BIG secret! He is in LOVE with Edna! And he wants help of his own becoming good from the woman he loves most. I think that readers should see what happens next in this fun HILARIOUS imaginative story, so the ending will be kept a surprise, but I LOVED IT!

Year of Impossible Goodbyes

Year of Impossible Goodbyes, by Sook Nyul Choi

Year of Impossible Goodbyes, the second book that was being compared in our class along with So Far From the Bamboo Grove, was another really, really good story. I actually like to consider it as a story within a story, because there are two plot twists in it. A big theme in this book was "spirit." The Japanese army endlessly attempts to tear Sookan and her family apart as they continue to take over Korea, changing Sookan's school, forcing her to work at a sock factory, make weapons for the Japanese army, and eventually Sookan's mother is forced to sell something precious of hers in order to pay for food since their family is struggling to survive. A similar struggle in this book; Sookan's mother also gets sick. Eventually, Russia takes over North Korea, which is where I felt that the second plot came into play, and Sookan and her family attempt to escape to South Korea where America is in control and they can be free. This book has a lot of great details which also draw the reader in, and I still believe that children in elementary schools should be allowed the option to read it. This is an important part in history that shouldn't be lost for being "too real."

So Far From The Bamboo Grove

So Far From The Bamboo Grove by Yoko Kawashima Watkins

This book was one of two books based in the same area of history that was discussed in our class. To begin the discussion of this book, we discussed parts of the story which we thought were important to us individually. I thought that this was going to be a challenge, but I pinpointed a specific instance where I was touched within the entire book; when Yoko's mother passed away. The passage was about how upset the two girls were that their mother passed away, and that she made it so far from where they first came from. The two girls discuss things that they wished they would have done and wouldn't have done while their mother was still alive, but it didn't change the fact that they were going to have to handle it like adults; which is what they did. Even as young girls, they had to overcome a lot, and this was certainly just another, if not the most terrifying, obstacle that they had to get through. I was touched by this part of the book, mainly because my own mother had a heart attack last year and it really made me wish and think in the same way that the girls did about their mother, particularly Yoko. It not only made me grow up a little bit more, but it really reminded me not to take my family for granted and to always tell them I love them no matter what we are all going through.

In terms of the content of this book, I thought that it was choppy but very accurate in terms of history. I think that's why these books get challenged in school classrooms, because they tell so much information and sometimes, that information is not what parents of children want to hear. I think that this book would be the better one of the two for children to read, because of the vivid pictures it paints in the reader's mind, and because it moved me so greatly. If you can find a book that does that, it is certainly worth reading and exploring.

Lights OUT

Lights OUT by Arthur Geisert

This book is about a little pig who is afraid of sleeping with the lights off. On the first page of the story, the only page with writing on it, the little pig explains that if he can figure something out, he can keep his lights on past 8 until he goes to sleep. The entire story is about the contraption he creates to make this possible. I felt like I was looking at pictures of a wordless manual. I didn't really like this book at all, and I felt as though it was clever, but not a fun read at all. I guess the only thing I enjoyed was the creativity of how he made his light cord extend throughout the house. Other than that, I didn't think it really would draw readers in, especially young readers.

The Yellow Balloon

The Yellow Balloon by Charlotte Dematons

This story is about a balloon that travels around the world, through time, and through imaginative worlds. The illustrations span out far beyond the space the pages give them. It travels through a busy city, a sky filled with UFOs, a witch on a broomstick, and cherubs singing on the clouds; rolling plains with colorful farm lands, Native Americans in teepees and a kingdom at battle; and a scene of mountains, ski hills, and volcanoes all in the same vicinity. When first reading this book, it is impossible not to look for the yellow balloon in every scene, which really takes away from the unbelievably colorful, detailed illustrations. This gave it too much of a "Where's Waldo" feel. However once I read it the second time, I actually took the time to pay attention to what was going on in the pictures, and I thought it was so cool to see all how busy every picture actually was. This would be a good book for a child to "get lost" in, since the illustrations are so detailed and really draw the readers in. This is a good independent reader book, just for fun.

Dancing Boy

Dancing Boy by Ronald Himler

On the inside cover of this book, the author compares the Dancing Boy in the story to a "mini Pied Piper." The story is about a single naked little boy who comes along and "frees" other children from their boredom so they may get a sense of liberation. Every time the children run into more children, they all remove their clothes and dance through the streets, however the adults on the streets continue on as if nothing out of the ordinary has happened at all. It is as if the children have frozen time and they are the only individuals who are experiencing their freedom. I like this book for ADULTS, because it reminds us to remember the child inside of us all, however not for children to read. This is a great example that some children's books are seemingly intended for adults, in terms of their overall message and content, and not for children to understand. After the children say farewell to their friend who started it all, he continues down the road in the buff, and each child returns to where he found them, put back on all of their clothes, and life picks up again as if nothing odd has happened. The author really makes a point to show that no one else has noticed that the children are all taking off their clothes on the page where a little girl gets off a park bench and quickly removes her dress. The illustration is divided in three parts, and her grandmother continues to look to the left even when the little girl walks naked to the right. I think that there is definitely a moral to this story, that I think is intended mainly just for adults; to never forget the free spirit youth that has shaped us all.