Literature and Language
Library Book, The
Although the title is a clever pun, this book recounts the history of storing language from tablets to information systems, highlighting famous libraries in the process. Side bars include additional facts and many web sites are included in the resources.
| Author: Sawa, Maureen |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies
|
Toad is the Uncle of Heaven
Illustrations draw on traditional Vietnamese figures. They may be foreign looking to Americans, but they are not childish.
Literature and Language > almanac
Dear Benjamin Banneker
The book tells the life story of Benjamin Banneker, an 18th-century African-American scientist. The book begins with two pages of data from the author, placing Banneker in an historical context.
| Author: Pinkney, Andrea |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies
|
Literature and Language > authors
Caribbean Dozen: Poems from Caribbean Poets, A
This book includes many short poems, some childish and some more complex, written by contemporary Caribbean poets. It also includes fascinating biographies on each author.
| Author: Agard, John & Nichols, Grace |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Dinosaurs of Waterhouse Hawkins, The
A story in three parts about a Victorian artist, Waterhouse Hawkins, who brought dinosaurs to life for all to see, originally in England and later in New York City He devoted over three decades to building the first life-size models of these giant creatur
| Author: Kerley, Barbara |
HSE Descriptors:
science | social studies
|
Dinosaurs of Waterhouse Hawkins, The
A story in three parts about a Victorian artist, Waterhouse Hawkins, who brought dinosaurs to life for all to see, originally in England and later in New York City He devoted over three decades to building the first life-size models of these giant creatur
| Author: Kerley, Barbara |
HSE Descriptors:
science | social studies
|
Divide, The
As a young girl in 1893, Willa Cather journeys with her extended family to relocate on the Nebraska prairie. Although unhappy at first, she learns to enjoy her new home as the seasons unfold. The beautiful illustrations are particularly well linked to t
| Author: Bedard, Michael |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading | social studies
|
Poetry for Young People: Edna St. Vincent Millay
Beautifully illustrated collection of Edna St. Vincent Millay's poetry. The volume also includes a sketch of the poet's life.
| Author: Francis Schoonmaker |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Richard Wright and the Library Card
This is a 'slice of life' biography about the author Richard Wright set in his late adolescence/ young adulthood. Events deal with discrimination, Richard's discovery of literature, and how he decided to become an author.
| Author: Miller, William |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading | social studies
|
Right Word: Roget and His Thesaurus, The
The story of Peter Mark Roget, creator of Roget's Thesaurus complete with his biography, time line of current events and wonderful illustrations. Both Robert F Sibert medal and Caldecott Honor Book.
| Author: Bryant, Jen |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading | social studies | language arts - writing | science
|
Where the Action Was
These somewhat uneven memoirs chronicle the experiences of women journalists and photographers during WW II.
| Author: Colman, Penny |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies
|
Literature and Language > authors > Angelou, Maya
Celebrate America in Poetry and Art
This is a collection of poetry (from more than 100 U.S. poets) and paintings, sculpture, drawings, photographs, and other works of art-- all from the National Museum of American Art, Smithsonian Institution. Biographical notes and an index conclude the vo
| Author: Panzer, Nora (Ed.) |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Life Doesn't Frighten Me
In this single poem, Angelou celebrates courage to face internal and external fears, the courage that grows out of a belief in ourselves. The contemporary art is bold and child-like but may have the power to scare children. The text is repetitive and ea
Now Sheba Sings the Song
This book consists of one long poem and dozens of sketches of African-American women. It is a sensuous book that celebrates the sexuality, the history, and the strength of Black women.
Soul Looks Back in Wonder, The
This lavishly illustrated book is a collection of 13 poems by African American poets such as Maya Angelou, Langston Hughes, and Alexis de Veaux.
| Author: Feelings, Tom |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Sweet Words So Brave
Narrated as a story told by a old, Black storyteller to a young child, the book relates the history of African American writers which is illustrated with beautiful, bold paintings by Jerry Butler. The use of different type faces may distract some readers
| Author: Curry, Barbara & Brodie, James |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Literature and Language > authors > Austen, Jane
Lives of the Writers: Comedies, Tragedies (and What the Neighbors Thought)
Organized chronologically, the book offers short biographies of famous writers with intriguing anecdotes to encourage readers to seek the literary works. The book includes a useful index, a glossary of literary terms and a short bibliography. Each biblio
| Author: Krull, Kathleen |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Literature and Language > authors > Baldwin, James
Sweet Words So Brave
Narrated as a story told by a old, Black storyteller to a young child, the book relates the history of African American writers which is illustrated with beautiful, bold paintings by Jerry Butler. The use of different type faces may distract some readers
| Author: Curry, Barbara & Brodie, James |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Literature and Language > authors > Brooks, Gwendolyn
Gwendolyn Brooks
This biography describes the influences and hardships of the early years and the political activism of the later years of the African American poet Gwendolyn Brooks. The book includes a chronology, archival photos, an index, a list of published works and
| Author: Hill, Christine M. |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading | social studies | language arts - writing
|
Poem of Her Own, A
A chronological collection of poems written by 25 American women poets from 1678 to the present. Brief biographies of each poet are included. An excellent essay by the editor describes the barriers and difficulties overcome by American women poets.
| Author: Clinton, Catherine, ed. |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Sweet Words So Brave
Narrated as a story told by a old, Black storyteller to a young child, the book relates the history of African American writers which is illustrated with beautiful, bold paintings by Jerry Butler. The use of different type faces may distract some readers
| Author: Curry, Barbara & Brodie, James |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Literature and Language > authors > Cather, Willa
Divide, The
As a young girl in 1893, Willa Cather journeys with her extended family to relocate on the Nebraska prairie. Although unhappy at first, she learns to enjoy her new home as the seasons unfold. The beautiful illustrations are particularly well linked to t
| Author: Bedard, Michael |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading | social studies
|
Literature and Language > authors > Cervantes, Miguel
Don Quixote and the Windmills
This retelling of the famous Spanish novel by Cervantes recounts Don Quixote's first adventure as a knight. An Author's Note contributes historical information about Cervantes.
| Author: Kimmel, Eric |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Lives of the Writers: Comedies, Tragedies (and What the Neighbors Thought)
Organized chronologically, the book offers short biographies of famous writers with intriguing anecdotes to encourage readers to seek the literary works. The book includes a useful index, a glossary of literary terms and a short bibliography. Each biblio
| Author: Krull, Kathleen |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Literature and Language > authors > cummings, e.e.
Celebrate America in Poetry and Art
This is a collection of poetry (from more than 100 U.S. poets) and paintings, sculpture, drawings, photographs, and other works of art-- all from the National Museum of American Art, Smithsonian Institution. Biographical notes and an index conclude the vo
| Author: Panzer, Nora (Ed.) |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
E. E. Cummings
This extensive biography of the American poet and artist, E. E. Cummings, also conveys the history of the times, especially of artistic movements. Drawings, archival photographs, and segments of poems expand the biographical information.
| Author: Reef, Catherine |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Literature and Language > authors > de Veaux, Alexis
Soul Looks Back in Wonder, The
This lavishly illustrated book is a collection of 13 poems by African American poets such as Maya Angelou, Langston Hughes, and Alexis de Veaux.
| Author: Feelings, Tom |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Literature and Language > authors > Dickens, Charles
Literature and Language > authors > Dickinson, Emily
Celebrate America in Poetry and Art
This is a collection of poetry (from more than 100 U.S. poets) and paintings, sculpture, drawings, photographs, and other works of art-- all from the National Museum of American Art, Smithsonian Institution. Biographical notes and an index conclude the vo
| Author: Panzer, Nora (Ed.) |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Emily
This book tells the story of a young girl's encounter with the reclusive poet Emily Dickinson and of her friendship with the author. Although the picture book is a fictional account, Cooney's oil paintings and the afterword with biographical information
| Author: Bedard, Michael |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Emily Dickinson's Letters to the World
This introduction to Emily Dickinson's best-known poems also contains biographical information in a fictional narration by her sister Lavinia.
| Author: Winter, Jeanette |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Lives of the Writers: Comedies, Tragedies (and What the Neighbors Thought)
Organized chronologically, the book offers short biographies of famous writers with intriguing anecdotes to encourage readers to seek the literary works. The book includes a useful index, a glossary of literary terms and a short bibliography. Each biblio
| Author: Krull, Kathleen |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Poem of Her Own, A
A chronological collection of poems written by 25 American women poets from 1678 to the present. Brief biographies of each poet are included. An excellent essay by the editor describes the barriers and difficulties overcome by American women poets.
| Author: Clinton, Catherine, ed. |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Winter Poems
This collection features 25 poems about different aspects of winter. Several very well known poets are included: Shakespeare, Wordsworth, Frost, Dickinson, Sandburg.
| Author: Rogasky, Barbara (compiler) |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Literature and Language > authors > Ellison, Ralph
Sweet Words So Brave
Narrated as a story told by a old, Black storyteller to a young child, the book relates the history of African American writers which is illustrated with beautiful, bold paintings by Jerry Butler. The use of different type faces may distract some readers
| Author: Curry, Barbara & Brodie, James |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Literature and Language > authors > Emerson, Ralph Waldo
Night Thoreau Spent in Jail, The
This two-act play is about Thoreau's nonviolent acts of civil disobedience and about his waning friendship with Ralph Waldo Emerson.
| Author: Lawrence, Jerome & Lee, Robert E. |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies | language arts - reading
|
Literature and Language > authors > Frost, Robert
Birches
On each page Ed Young illustrates trees and forests and the countryside, in browns and sepia tones, and presents them along with several lines of Robert Frost's well-known poem, "Birches." The poem is printed in its entirety again on the last two pages.
| Author: Frost, Robert |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Winter Poems
This collection features 25 poems about different aspects of winter. Several very well known poets are included: Shakespeare, Wordsworth, Frost, Dickinson, Sandburg.
| Author: Rogasky, Barbara (compiler) |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Literature and Language > authors > Giovanni, Nikki
Poem of Her Own, A
A chronological collection of poems written by 25 American women poets from 1678 to the present. Brief biographies of each poet are included. An excellent essay by the editor describes the barriers and difficulties overcome by American women poets.
| Author: Clinton, Catherine, ed. |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Rosa
Giovanni tells the story of Rosa Parks' infamous bus ride. In the telling, the author speaks to the strength of the African-American community in their struggle for equal rights. The author weaves other tales (Emmett Till) into the story to give the rea
| Author: Giovanni, Nikki |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies
|
Literature and Language > authors > Hansberry, Lorraine
Sweet Words So Brave
Narrated as a story told by a old, Black storyteller to a young child, the book relates the history of African American writers which is illustrated with beautiful, bold paintings by Jerry Butler. The use of different type faces may distract some readers
| Author: Curry, Barbara & Brodie, James |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Literature and Language > authors > Homer
Dateline: Troy
A compelling retelling of the Trojan War story is juxtaposed with newspaper clippings (WWI--Gulf War). The clippings help to develop context for the story. They also reveal powerful parallels between the world of Homer's Iliad and our own.
| Author: Fleischman, Paul |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Literature and Language > authors > Hughes, Langston
Block, The
This collection of Langston Hughes poems is complemented by the illustrations of Romare Beardon. An introduction by Bill Cosby precedes the collection, and biographies of the poet and artist conclude it.
| Author: Hughes, Langston |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Book of Rhythms, The
The chapters are essays by Langston Hughes on different aspects of rhythm. Wynton Marsalis wrote the introduction. In an afterword, Robert O'Meally places the book in the context of Hughes' involvement in the Harlem Renaissance and the McCarthy hearings
Coming Home
The book tells the story of Langston Hughes' lonely childhood, demonstrating that certain themes and ideas that later emerged in Hughes' poetry grew from his experiences as a child.
| Author: Cooper, Floyd |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Dream Keeper and Other Poems, The
A reissue of Hughes' poetry book with seven additional poems (total of 66). The poems are short and make appropriate reading for all levels of learners. Many of the poems deal with issues of the African-American experience.
| Author: Hughes, Langston |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Free To Dream
This book, subtitled The Making of a Poet: Langston Hughes, offers Hughes's poetry as well as a biography.
| Author: Osofsky, Audrey |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading | social studies
|
Langston Hughes: American Poet
This is a reissue of a picture book biography of Langston Hughes (originally published in 1974). The illustrations and Author's Note (a must read) are new.
| Author: Walker, Alice |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Langston's Train Ride
This easy-reading picture book focuses on one episode from Langston Hughes's life--his realization that he WAS a poet. Reference is made to "The Negro Speaks of Rivers" and of the way its ideas developed.
| Author: Burleigh, Robert |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Lives of the Writers: Comedies, Tragedies (and What the Neighbors Thought)
Organized chronologically, the book offers short biographies of famous writers with intriguing anecdotes to encourage readers to seek the literary works. The book includes a useful index, a glossary of literary terms and a short bibliography. Each biblio
| Author: Krull, Kathleen |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
My People
Beautiful sepia-tone photographs illustrate Langston Hughes' poem "My People"
| Author: Hughes, Langston |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading | language arts - writing | social studies
|
Negro Speaks of Rivers, The
E.B.Lewis depicts Langston Hughes' poem through beautful watercolor illustrations which help in the understanding of the poem.
| Author: Hughes, Langston |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Negro Speaks of Rivers, The
E.B.Lewis depicts Langston Hughes' poem through beautful watercolor illustrations which help in the understanding of the poem.
| Author: Hughes, Langston |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Snow Toward Evening
In this book 13 poets and the landscape painter Thomas Locker combine to invite us to enjoy nature's splendor through the changing seasons.
| Author: Frank, Josette (Editor) |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Soul Looks Back in Wonder, The
This lavishly illustrated book is a collection of 13 poems by African American poets such as Maya Angelou, Langston Hughes, and Alexis de Veaux.
| Author: Feelings, Tom |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Sweet Words So Brave
Narrated as a story told by a old, Black storyteller to a young child, the book relates the history of African American writers which is illustrated with beautiful, bold paintings by Jerry Butler. The use of different type faces may distract some readers
| Author: Curry, Barbara & Brodie, James |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Literature and Language > authors > Hurston, Zora Neale
Jump at de Sun
This interesting biography of the author and anthropologist Zora Neale Hurston emphasizes her unique celebration of black life and language at the turn of the century when such topics were unpopular. Her niece wrote the introduction.
| Author: Porter, A. P. |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Sorrow's Kitchen: The Life and Folklore of ZN Hurston
Part of the Great Achievers series, this book chronicles the life and writings of Zora Neale Hurston, the important African-American writer of the first-half of this century. The book is 121 pages and contains lots of photographs. The author has woven c
| Author: Lyons, Mary E. |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies | language arts - reading
|
Sweet Words So Brave
Narrated as a story told by a old, Black storyteller to a young child, the book relates the history of African American writers which is illustrated with beautiful, bold paintings by Jerry Butler. The use of different type faces may distract some readers
| Author: Curry, Barbara & Brodie, James |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Literature and Language > authors > Longfellow, Henry Wordsworth
Many Rides of Paul Revere, The
A biography of Paul Revere tha is not intended to refute history ( Longfellow's attempt to create an American hero). Rather this account contains some intriguing details of Revere's childhood, military career, family life and Revolutionary War leadership.
| Author: Giblin, James Cross |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies | language arts - reading
|
Paul Revere's Ride
Longfellow's famous poem tells the story of Revere's call to arms to his countryfolk in 1775.
| Author: Longfellow, Henry Wadsworth |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies
|
Song of Hiawatha, The
Excerpts from the long poem have been selected to tell the story of Hiawatha. Detailed illustrations accompany each excerpt.
| Author: Longfellow, Henry Wadsworth |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Literature and Language > authors > Maugham, Somerset
Appointment
This lavishly illustrated book is a distillation of the classic Somerset Maugham novella Appointment in Samarra. Not until the very end do we realize that the important appointment that the man must keep is an appointment with death. The illust
| Author: Maugham, Somerset |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Literature and Language > authors > Milton, John
Tale of Paradise Lost, The
An exquisitly illustrated prose retelling of John Milton's famous poem Paradise Lost.
| Author: Willard, Nancy |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Literature and Language > authors > Morrison, Toni
And Not Afraid To Dare
This is a collection of short (15-20 page) biographies of 10 African American women: Ellen Craft, Charlotte Forten Grimke, Mary Fields, Ida B. Wells, Mary McLeod Bethune, Clara Hale, Leontyne Price, Toni Morrison, Mae C. Jemison, and Jackie Joyner-Kersee.
| Author: Bolden, Tonya |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading | social studies
|
Literature and Language > authors > Poe, Edgar Allan
Lives of the Writers: Comedies, Tragedies (and What the Neighbors Thought)
Organized chronologically, the book offers short biographies of famous writers with intriguing anecdotes to encourage readers to seek the literary works. The book includes a useful index, a glossary of literary terms and a short bibliography. Each biblio
| Author: Krull, Kathleen |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Literature and Language > authors > Sandburg, Carl
Carl Sandburg: Adventures of a Poet
An episodic biography of Carl Sandburg in which each episode is accompanied by a colorful illustration and an excerpt of his poetry or prose.
| Author: Niven, Penelope |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Hand in Hand
The collection of poems is organized by American historical themes rather than by chronology. There are many poems that are familiar patriotic songs.
| Author: Hopkins, Lee (Ed.) |
|
Lives of the Writers: Comedies, Tragedies (and What the Neighbors Thought)
Organized chronologically, the book offers short biographies of famous writers with intriguing anecdotes to encourage readers to seek the literary works. The book includes a useful index, a glossary of literary terms and a short bibliography. Each biblio
| Author: Krull, Kathleen |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Winter Poems
This collection features 25 poems about different aspects of winter. Several very well known poets are included: Shakespeare, Wordsworth, Frost, Dickinson, Sandburg.
| Author: Rogasky, Barbara (compiler) |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Literature and Language > authors > Shakespeare, William
Heroes
The author provides 12 biographies of important men throughout the world and throughout history that she illustrates in the art style of the time and place. An introduction, maps, and a list of further reading make this a useful book in the classroom.
| Author: Hazell, Rebecca |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Lives of the Writers: Comedies, Tragedies (and What the Neighbors Thought)
Organized chronologically, the book offers short biographies of famous writers with intriguing anecdotes to encourage readers to seek the literary works. The book includes a useful index, a glossary of literary terms and a short bibliography. Each biblio
| Author: Krull, Kathleen |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Othello, A Novel
The author retells Shakespeare's play Othello as a novel, relocating the setting to late 15th century England and changing the racial identities of Iago and Emilia to African. Boldface type calls attention to passages from Shakespeare. Iago manipulates
| Author: Lester, Julius |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Shakespeare, His World and His Work
This book explores the world of William Shakespeare through beautiful illustrations and diagrams, quotations from plays, a detailed timeline, a bibliography, and a closer look at five plays--A Midsummer Night's Dream, Macbeth, King L
| Author: Rosen, Michael |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Tempest, The
This is a prose retelling of Shakespeare's play The Tempest, a story of an exiled Duke and his daughter during their stay on an enchanted island. The book ends with an author's note.
| Author: Shakespeare, William (retold by Coville, Brice) |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Twelfth Night
This is a narrative retelling of Shakespeare's play. Many of the famous lines are embedded in the narrative.
| Author: Shakespeare, William (retold B. Coville) |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
William Shakespeare and the Globe
This is the story of William Shakespeare and the rebuilding of The Globe Theatre. This is a good reference book.
| Author: Aliki |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading | language arts - writing
|
Winter Poems
This collection features 25 poems about different aspects of winter. Several very well known poets are included: Shakespeare, Wordsworth, Frost, Dickinson, Sandburg.
| Author: Rogasky, Barbara (compiler) |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Literature and Language > authors > Stevenson, Robert Louis
Across America on an Emigrant Train
This nonfiction account of Robert Louis Stevenson's train trip from New York to California combines Stevenson's words from his letters and diary, a factual description of the railroad industry and the 19th-century U.S. West, and amazing old photographs an
| Author: Murphy, Jim |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies
|
Literature and Language > authors > Thoreau, Henry David
Coretta Scott
Coretta is a poetic tribute to the life of Coretta Scott King and the Civil Rights movement. This is an amazing biographical tribute in poetry which is most readable and offers all kinds of teaching opportunities.
The art work by Kadir Nelson really make
| Author: Shange, Ntozake |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading | social studies
|
Into the Deep Forest: With Henry David Thoreau
Thoreau's journal entries have been placed into a broader context and are accompanied by stunning paintings and pencil drawings in this 39-page book. The use of present tense verb form may be off putting for some readers.
| Author: Murphy, Jim |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Night Thoreau Spent in Jail, The
This two-act play is about Thoreau's nonviolent acts of civil disobedience and about his waning friendship with Ralph Waldo Emerson.
| Author: Lawrence, Jerome & Lee, Robert E. |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies | language arts - reading
|
Literature and Language > authors > Twain, Mark
American Boy: The Adventures of Mark Twain
This biography of Sam Clemens focuses primarily on his childhood. Readers will see many parallels between young Sam's adventures and those of his famous characters Tom Sawyer and Huck Finn.
| Author: Brown, Don |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Lives of the Writers: Comedies, Tragedies (and What the Neighbors Thought)
Organized chronologically, the book offers short biographies of famous writers with intriguing anecdotes to encourage readers to seek the literary works. The book includes a useful index, a glossary of literary terms and a short bibliography. Each biblio
| Author: Krull, Kathleen |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Literature and Language > authors > Verne, Jules
They Saw the Future
The author selects people throughout history who predicted the future. A bibliography provides further reading about the 12 seers included. There is an index.
| Author: Krull, Kathleen |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies
|
Literature and Language > authors > Whitman, Walt
Celebrate America in Poetry and Art
This is a collection of poetry (from more than 100 U.S. poets) and paintings, sculpture, drawings, photographs, and other works of art-- all from the National Museum of American Art, Smithsonian Institution. Biographical notes and an index conclude the vo
| Author: Panzer, Nora (Ed.) |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Hand in Hand
The collection of poems is organized by American historical themes rather than by chronology. There are many poems that are familiar patriotic songs.
| Author: Hopkins, Lee (Ed.) |
|
Walt Whitman: Words for America
This biography of Walt Whitman extends our knowledge of the poet, both in his growth as a poet and learning of the experiences that were the source of his poetry. Back matter contains more biographical and historical information, sources, and full poems
| Author: Kerley, Barbara |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Literature and Language > authors > Wordsworth, William
Winter Poems
This collection features 25 poems about different aspects of winter. Several very well known poets are included: Shakespeare, Wordsworth, Frost, Dickinson, Sandburg.
| Author: Rogasky, Barbara (compiler) |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Literature and Language > character development
Home of the Brave
An African refuge lives with his aunt and cousin in Minneapolis. He has problems adjusting and misses his mother (no one knows where she is). He finds comfort in an older lady and her cow whose name means family in his native language.
| Author: Applegate, Katherine |
HSE Descriptors:
literature and arts | social studies
|
My Great Aunt Arizona
Based on the author's great aunt, Arizona was born in a log cabin. All her life she dreamed of visiting far-away places. She became a teacher and never left the area, but taught several generations of children to share her dreams.
| Author: Houston, Gloria |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies
|
Literature and Language > classics
Literature and Language > classics > Paradise Lost
Tale of Paradise Lost, The
An exquisitly illustrated prose retelling of John Milton's famous poem Paradise Lost.
| Author: Willard, Nancy |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Literature and Language > codes
Unbreakable Code, The
A young Navajo boy, who must leave his Southwest home, draws courage from his grandfather's story about being a "Code Talker" during WWII.
| Author: Hunter, Sara |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies
|
Literature and Language > dialect
I See the Rhythm
The author and illustrator use different type faces, colors, a timeline, and paintings to involve the reader in the history, mood and movement of African American music. Types of music included are blues, ragtime, jazz, swing, bebop, cool jazz and gospel.
| Author: Igus, Toyomi |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
New Year Be Coming!
Through beautiful colored woodcuts and rhythmic gullah dialect, this book describes happenings for each month of the year in the South Carolina low country. A recipe, a glossary, and an introduction to the Gullah dialect are included. Some students migh
| Author: Boling, Katharine |
|
Slavery Time: When I Was Chillun
Excerpts from 12 oral histories from former slaves, gathered during the Depression by WPA workers, provide several perspectives about slave life as remembered by the people interviewed, who were in their 80s and 90s at the time of the interviews.
| Author: Hurmence, Belinda |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies
|
Song Shoots Out of My Mouth, The
This is an exciting collection of vibrantly illustrated poetry about music--classical, jazz, gospel, blues, opera, marching band. Backnotes extend learning about music, artists, and key works.
| Author: Adoff, Jaime |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Stories I Ain't Told Nobody Yet
A collection of 49 poems, these vignettes of Appalachian life are funny, sad, moving, and silly. Not all of them are of great quality; teachers may want to pick and choose among them. The poem (on pg. 50) on abuse is powerful and likely to provoke good
| Author: Carson, Jo |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies
|
Talking with Tebe
Editor Lyons collected these excerpts about Clementine Hunter, considered one of America's finest folk artists, from magazine and newspaper articles and tape-recorded interviews. The artist's work illustrates the book.
| Author: Lyons, Mary E. (Ed.) |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Literature and Language > drama
Bull Run
This is a fictional and personal account of the first great battle of the Civil War, as told from the points of view of 16 participants, Northern and Southern, male and female, black and white.
| Author: Fleischman, Paul |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies
|
Good Brother, Bad Brother
Subtitled "The Story of Edwin Booth and John Wilkes Booth," this long biography portrays their lives before and after the assassination of President Abraham Lincoln. This is a GED level book.
| Author: Giblin, James Cross |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies
|
Mind's Eye
This is a novel in play form. Courtney, 16 and paralyzed, learns about the power of the mind from an elderly blind woman and a game they play--taking an imaginary trip to Italy using a 1910 Baedeker's guidebook.
| Author: Fleischman, Paul |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies
|
Monster
16-year-old Steve Harmon is on trial for murder. This riveting book tells his story in the form of his journals and a film script he is writing.
| Author: Myers, Walter Dean |
|
Night Thoreau Spent in Jail, The
This two-act play is about Thoreau's nonviolent acts of civil disobedience and about his waning friendship with Ralph Waldo Emerson.
| Author: Lawrence, Jerome & Lee, Robert E. |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies | language arts - reading
|
Othello, A Novel
The author retells Shakespeare's play Othello as a novel, relocating the setting to late 15th century England and changing the racial identities of Iago and Emilia to African. Boldface type calls attention to passages from Shakespeare. Iago manipulates
| Author: Lester, Julius |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Raisin in the Sun, A
When an African-American family chooses to integrate an all-white neighborhood, all of their value systems and relationships come under pressure.
| Author: Hansberry, Lorraine |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Shakespeare and Macbeth
The reader learns about the writing and production of Shakespeare's play Macbeth. Sidebars contribute additional information to the narrative about the play as do a chronology of Shakespeare's life, one of his works, a description of the Globe T
| Author: Ross, Stewart |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Shakespeare, His World and His Work
This book explores the world of William Shakespeare through beautiful illustrations and diagrams, quotations from plays, a detailed timeline, a bibliography, and a closer look at five plays--A Midsummer Night's Dream, Macbeth, King L
| Author: Rosen, Michael |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Tempest, The
This is a prose retelling of Shakespeare's play The Tempest, a story of an exiled Duke and his daughter during their stay on an enchanted island. The book ends with an author's note.
| Author: Shakespeare, William (retold by Coville, Brice) |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Literature and Language > figurative language
And the Soldiers Sang
A fictional story about the 1914 Christmas Truce of WW I when Allied and German soldiers came together in friendship on the battle field. Illustrated in graphic novel style haunting artwork, the writing cuts through the gloomy circumstances with examples
| Author: Lewis, J. Patrick |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading | social studies
|
At Gleason's Gym
The story of Gleason's Gym in Brooklyn NY, and the many people who use it. It includes a brief story of Sugar Boy Younan, National Silver Gloves Champion 2006. The words and pictures tap into the senses. The illustrations demonstrate the rhythm to the mus
| Author: Lewin, Ted |
HSE Descriptors:
literature and arts | social studies
|
Autumn
Autumn, an alphabet book of acrostics with linoleum-cut prints, describes the seasonal sights, sounds, and colors.
Birches
On each page Ed Young illustrates trees and forests and the countryside, in browns and sepia tones, and presents them along with several lines of Robert Frost's well-known poem, "Birches." The poem is printed in its entirety again on the last two pages.
| Author: Frost, Robert |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Black Book of Colors, The
This book is written in Braille alphabet so the sighted reader can share the reading experience with the blind reader. The books is printed in black pages to further simulate the reading experience of the blind reader. This books has been printed around
| Author: Cottin, Menena |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading | social studies
|
Black Cat
A black cat explores an urban neighborhood. The stunning illustrations are a combination of painting and photography.
| Author: Myers, Christopher |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Book
This very simple and stunningly illustrated poem compares a book to a house, a treasure chest, a farm, and a tree.
| Author: Lyon, George Ella |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Books Speak!: Poems about Books
A delightful collection of poems about books and the joys of reading. This amazing collection of poems about all aspects of books and reading is a fun to read book.
| Author: Salas, Laura Purdie |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading | language arts - writing
|
Brown Honey in Broomwheat Tea
This well illustrated book of poetry uses the metaphor of nurturing tea for the extended family.
| Author: Thomas, Joyce Carol |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Cloudmakers, The
In A.D. 751 during a time of war, a Chinese grandfather and grandson have 7 days to prove that they can "make clouds" or risk being sold into slavery. The result is Chinese paper, which earns them their freedom and marks a turning point in human history.
| Author: Rumford, James |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies
|
Cool Moonlight, A
Lila, who has an allergy to sunlight, lives with her disability helped by her family and friends, real and imaginary. The author uses lyrical language deftly to tell the story with great sensitivity and lightness.
Divide, The
As a young girl in 1893, Willa Cather journeys with her extended family to relocate on the Nebraska prairie. Although unhappy at first, she learns to enjoy her new home as the seasons unfold. The beautiful illustrations are particularly well linked to t
| Author: Bedard, Michael |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading | social studies
|
Duke Ellington
This is the story of one of the greatest musicians and composers of the 20th century, Duke Ellington. (Coretta Scott King Award Winner; Caldecott Honor Book)
| Author: Pinkney, Andrea Davis |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
ellington was not a street
The poet lovingly remembers her family's recent history that was filled with stars of the African American firmament. Brief biographies of the people depicted add welcome information.
| Author: Shange, Ntozake |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Emily Dickinson's Letters to the World
This introduction to Emily Dickinson's best-known poems also contains biographical information in a fictional narration by her sister Lavinia.
| Author: Winter, Jeanette |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Etched in Clay: The Life of Dave Enslaved Potter and Poet
This imaginative volume of poetry is both a tribute to Dave the Potter and a positive biography of a potter who worked his artistic magic despite being a slave. It is poetic in style, autobiographical, written in more than one voice and each entry is jour
| Author: Cheng, Andrea |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading | language arts - writing | social studies
|
Flight of the Snow Geese, The
The 3,000 mile migration of the snow goose from the Artic to New Mexico is told with the aid of rhythm, meter, and beautiful watercolor illustrations.
| Author: King, Deborah |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies | science
|
Georgia's Bones
A biography of the artist Georgia O'Keeffe's early years "celebrates her fascination with natural shapes and 'common objects'" with rich text and color-saturated illustrations. The text explores themes including creativity, diversity (in ways of being in
| Author: Bryant, Jen |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Here in Harlem
Walter Dean Myers recreates the Harlem of his youth in poetry and populates it with colorful characters through their voices.
| Author: Myers, Walter Dean |
|
Home
Beautifully illustrated by Thomas Locker, the book contains poems and prose excerpts by well-known writers with a thumbnail sketch about each writer and his home. Endmatter includes a map of the U.S. with dates and locations of the writers.
| Author: Locker, Thomas & Christiansen, Candice |
|
Hoop Kings
A dozen NBA stars provide the focus for these poems. In endnotes, the author describes his writing process.
| Author: Smith Jr., Charles R. |
|
Hoop Queens
This is a collection of 12 poems about stars of the WNBA. An afterword explains how the poet found a focus for each poem by considering the woman's play.
| Author: Smith Jr., Charles R. |
|
I Live in Music
Each line of Shange's poem is placed with one of Romare Bearden's paintings. The book ends with the complete poem, and with short biographies of Shange and Beardon.
| Author: Shange, Ntozake |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Into the Deep Forest: With Henry David Thoreau
Thoreau's journal entries have been placed into a broader context and are accompanied by stunning paintings and pencil drawings in this 39-page book. The use of present tense verb form may be off putting for some readers.
| Author: Murphy, Jim |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Jazz ABZ
Each letter of the alphabet introduces a famous jazz musician in a different poetic form. Of particular interest to teachers and students are the biographical sketches of the musicians and excellent notes on the poetic forms. The phenominal art work is
| Author: Marsalis, Wynton |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Joyful Noise: Poems for Two Voices
These poems that celebrate the insect world were written to be read aloud by two voices, sometimes alternating, sometimes simultaneous.
| Author: Fleischman, Paul |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Katie's Trunk
This book, which provides a glimpse of the beginnings of the American Revolution, is based on a true incident that happened to one of the author's ancestors. It's set around the time of the Boston Tea Party and tells the story of what happened to Katie,
| Author: Turner, Ann |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies
|
Knock at a Star (Rev. Ed.)
Subtitled "A Child's Introduction to Poetry," this book is an anthology of poetry for children (many are also appropriate for adults) organized to make several points about poetry: typical contents, common poetic devices, types of poetic formats, etc. The
| Author: Kennedy. X, & Kennedy, D. (Eds.) |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
My Mama Had a Dancing Heart
In simple poetic language, a ballet dancer recalls how she and her mother welcomed the seasons by dancing outdoors and being together.
| Author: Gray, Libba Moore |
|
My Ol' Man
Patricia Polacco once again uses her rich family background to tell the story of her father, a traveling salesman, and the magic, hope, and dreams he inspired. (Photos of the author and her family adorn the inside covers.)
| Author: Polacco, Patricia |
|
Once Upon a Poem: Favorite Poems that Tell Stories
About a dozen narrative poems are included in this collection. Some will work better in adult literacy situations than others, so teachers will want to excerpt.
| Author: Crossley-Holland, Kevin (compiler) |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Poet Slave of Cuba, The: A Biography of Juan Francisco Manzano
This true story of 19th Century Cuban poet Juan Francisco Manzano, who was born a slave, is told in free verse from various points of view--the boy, his mother, his father, and his owners.
| Author: Engle, Margarita |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading | social studies
|
Pond God and Other Stories, The
This unusual book of one-page pourquoi stories--of how things came to be--follows the tradition of Rudyard Kiplilng's Just So Stories and Aesop's Fables.
| Author: Keyser, Samuel J. |
|
Raising Yoder's Barn
After a fire destroys Yoder's barn, the Amish community gathers to build a new one. The gorgeous illustrations extend the reader's view of Amish life. One reader found a "blackface" depiction of a boy, dirty from the ashes, negatively suggestive.
| Author: Yolen, Jane |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies
|
Relatively Speaking
Centered around a family reunion, a boy speaks about his older brother, his parents, grandparents, and extended family in short, easily accessible free verse.
Romare Bearden
This biography of the multi-talented artist Romare Bearden is vibrantly illustrated with reproductions of his work. An author's note, a timeline, a bibliography, a glossary, and a list of the locations of art works make the book as useful in the classroo
| Author: Greenberg, Jan |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Song of the Water Boatman
Employing varied poetic forms and beautiful woodcut illustrations, the book invites the reader to visit the land, water, and underwater life of a pond throughout the seasons.
| Author: Sidman, Joyce |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading | science
|
Soul Looks Back in Wonder, The
This lavishly illustrated book is a collection of 13 poems by African American poets such as Maya Angelou, Langston Hughes, and Alexis de Veaux.
| Author: Feelings, Tom |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Stone Bench in an Empty Park
This is a concise introduction to classic and modern haiku poetry with lovely photographs and accessible poetry.
| Author: Paul B. Janeczko |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading | language arts - writing
|
Sweet Corn
The poet writes mostly of summer things and illustrates with black pen and watercolor images. One reader found the use of varied type faces disconcerting.
Tai Chi Morning: Snapshots of China
The travel journal and poems of the author and the travel sketches of the illustrator combine to depict China a decade ago.
Tale of Paradise Lost, The
An exquisitly illustrated prose retelling of John Milton's famous poem Paradise Lost.
| Author: Willard, Nancy |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Taste of Salt
This gripping novel tells the story of two teenagers in Haiti, Djo, one of Aristides' orphaned boys who is hospitalized with terrible injuries, and Jeremie, a convent-educated girl who visits Djo to hear his stories and who begins to fall in love with him
To Go Singing Through the World
The childhood of one of Chile's most famous poets is told through a juxtaposition of the author's narrative and Neruda's own words. This beautifully illustrated biography includes excerpts of poems, maps, a time line, and a concise full-life biography.
| Author: Ray, Deborah Kogan |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Tree Is Older Than You Are, The
In the introduction to this bilingual anthology of Mexican poems, stories, and paintings, the author relates her personal ties to Mexico, "a country of spirit where miracles feel close and possible." The author also includes an excellent index and a Note
| Author: Nye, Naomi (comp.) |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Twilight Comes Twice
The author describes in poetic prose the transition from dusk to night and night to dawn and the activities that take place during this quiet time.
Uptown
Colorful collage and an easy-reading text belie a very sophisticated tour of Harlem including the Metro-North train, brownstones, shopping on 125th street, a barbershop, summer basketball, the Harlem Boys' Chois, and sunset over the Hudson River
Wagon, The
At the time of Emancipation and Lincoln's death, a young boy, born into slavery, looks back on his anger at slavery and the support of his family as he helps his father build a wagon for the master which later carries them to freedom.
| Author: Johnston, Tony |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies
|
Waiting for the Evening Star
This beautifully illustrated book is about Berty, a small boy who lives a happy life in a Vermont farming community. Berty's life changes when his older brother, Luke, decides to leave the family farm to become a soldier in WWI.
| Author: Wells, Rosemary |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies
|
Water Dance
Told in a first-person poetic narrative with illustrations that elicit emotional responses, water is described in its many forms--clouds, mist, rainbows, and rivers. A separate section explains the water cycle.
| Author: Locker, Thomas |
HSE Descriptors:
science
|
Whales, The
Part poem and part science lesson, this easy-to-read picture book "celebrates the joy and quiet dignity of these gentle giants of the deep" (dust cover).
| Author: Rylant, Cynthia |
HSE Descriptors:
science | language arts - reading
|
Winter
This beautifully illustrated alphabet picture book presents an acrostic poem for words relating to Winter. It is set in the far north and follows the season from the first heavy snowfall to the coming of spring.
| Author: Schnur, Steven |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - writing | language arts - reading
|
Winter Poems
This collection features 25 poems about different aspects of winter. Several very well known poets are included: Shakespeare, Wordsworth, Frost, Dickinson, Sandburg.
| Author: Rogasky, Barbara (compiler) |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Words with Wings
This riveting collection of paintings, prints, and sculpture by African-American artists enrich poems by outstanding African-American poets. The book includes a beautifully written introduction about the role of art and poetry and brief biographies of th
| Author: Rochelle, Belinda ed. |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
World According to Dog, The
This is a charming collection of the author's poems and short essays about dogs written by teens.
Literature and Language > figurative language > acrostic
Autumn
Autumn, an alphabet book of acrostics with linoleum-cut prints, describes the seasonal sights, sounds, and colors.
Spring: An Alphabet Acrostic
Description of spring using acrostic poetry and in alphabetical order. This is one of a series of acrostic books of the seasons. Illustrations are linoleum cuts that are colored by hand. The illustrations support the wonderful language used to show spri
| Author: Schnur, Steven |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading | language arts - writing
|
Spring: An Alphabet Acrostic
Description of spring using acrostic poetry and in alphabetical order. This is one of a series of acrostic books of the seasons. Illustrations are linoleum cuts that are colored by hand. The illustrations support the wonderful language used to show spri
| Author: Schnur, Steven |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading | language arts - writing
|
Summer: An Alphabet Acrostic
Description of summer using acrostic poetry and told in alphabetical order. This is one of a series of books on the seasons. Illustrations are hand-colored linoleum block prints which support the text very well.
| Author: Schnur, Steven |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading | language arts - writing
|
Summer: An Alphabet Acrostic
Description of summer using acrostic poetry and told in alphabetical order. This is one of a series of books on the seasons. Illustrations are hand-colored linoleum block prints which support the text very well.
| Author: Schnur, Steven |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading | language arts - writing
|
Winter
This beautifully illustrated alphabet picture book presents an acrostic poem for words relating to Winter. It is set in the far north and follows the season from the first heavy snowfall to the coming of spring.
| Author: Schnur, Steven |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - writing | language arts - reading
|
Literature and Language > figurative language > allegory
Dreamer, The
A tale or allegorical story in which an artist creates the earth, sky, water, animals, and people, who are artists "in his own image." This simple well known story will be familiar and appreciated by many readers.
Old African, The
a beautifully told and illustrated story that, according to the dust jacket, is "based on legend." The Old African has magical powers. This is the story of his capture and enslavement as a young man and ultimately, his plan to free his fellow slaves.
| Author: Lester, Julius |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies
|
Pond God and Other Stories, The
This unusual book of one-page pourquoi stories--of how things came to be--follows the tradition of Rudyard Kiplilng's Just So Stories and Aesop's Fables.
| Author: Keyser, Samuel J. |
|
Riding the Tiger
This is an allegory that features a bored, lonely 10-year-old's who is offered a ride by an exciting and somewhat scary tiger and discovers that it is easier to get on the tiger than to get off.
| Author: Bunting, Eve |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading | social studies
|
Secret-Keeper, The
This is a fairy tale about Kalli, the secret-keeper, who takes others' secrets on so that they can be released from them. All the bad secrets threaten to make her ill until the townspeople come to her rescue.
Sir Gawain & the Green Knight
The author retells this famous tale of one of the knights of King Arthur's famous Roundtable, in which Gawain accepts a challenge of a giant green knight that leads to further trials at the end of one year. Vivid illustrations contribute to the sense of
| Author: Morpurgo, Michael |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Literature and Language > figurative language > flashbacks
Holes
This story-within-a-story tells of Stanley Yelnats (and his distant relatives, one of whom "cursed" the family), mistakenly sent to a juvenile corrections camp in Texas. At the corrections camp, Stanley finds a real friend, a treasure, and a new sense of
Song of Be
When Be was a child, she and her mother left their people--the Namibian Bushmen--to work on a white man's plantation. Spending time with her grandfather helps her forget how much she misses others. With Namibia on the verge of freedom, Be finds the cour
| Author: Beake, Lesley |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies
|
Literature and Language > figurative language > imagery
Big Talk
Three poems are presented graphically with four color-coded bars to represent four voices for choral reading. The rhythms of the poems progress from easy to more difficult. The author provides a section on "How to read this book" and "Helpful hints."
Black Cat
A black cat explores an urban neighborhood. The stunning illustrations are a combination of painting and photography.
| Author: Myers, Christopher |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Black Swan White Crow
The book introduces the reader to Haiku poetry that is accompanied by delicate and suggestive woodcut illustrations.
| Author: Lewis, J. Patricia |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Blacker the Berry, The
The author explores all the warm colors of skin tones in delicious to the tongue words and images.
| Author: Thomas, Joyce Carol |
|
Blacker the Berry, The
The author explores all the warm colors of skin tones in delicious to the tongue words and images.
| Author: Thomas, Joyce Carol |
|
Books Speak!: Poems about Books
A delightful collection of poems about books and the joys of reading. This amazing collection of poems about all aspects of books and reading is a fun to read book.
| Author: Salas, Laura Purdie |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading | language arts - writing
|
Butter Man, The
The father of a young child recalls a time of poverty and famine in Morocco. Written in descriptive language, this is a story within a story. Rich author's note and glossary help support this read to become a literary event. Folk art paintings by Julie
| Author: Alalou, Elizabeth |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading | social studies
|
Edna St. Vincent Millay
This beautifully illustrated collection of poems by Edna St. Vincent Millay includes an introductory biography and an index of the poems.
| Author: Schoonmaker, Frances (ed.) |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Flight of the Snow Geese, The
The 3,000 mile migration of the snow goose from the Artic to New Mexico is told with the aid of rhythm, meter, and beautiful watercolor illustrations.
| Author: King, Deborah |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies | science
|
Fortune's Bones
A powerful poem, written in the form of a requiem, recovers the life and reconstructed history of a skeleton used by a Dr. Porter to teach anatomy in Waterbury, Connecticut. The format places author's notes across from sections of the poem told by differ
| Author: Nelson, Marilyn |
HSE Descriptors:
science | social studies
|
God Went to Beauty School
An unusually humorous and poignant collection of poems places God in everyday situations as suggested by the title. Some devout Christians may find this book offensive for the light-hearted portrayal of God; some non-Christians may find it annoying.
Heavenly Village, The
This is subtitled "A Novel," but it's really more a loosely connected set of short stories, all of which take place in the "Heavenly Village," a place for those who have died but are not quite yet ready to leave earth behind. (Note: religious overtones, i
| Author: Rylant, Cynthia |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Home of the Brave
In a dream-like story and illustrations, Allen Say captures the infamy, dislocation, and loss experienced by Japanese Americans in the internment camps during World War II.
| Author: Say, Allen |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies
|
Hoop Kings
A dozen NBA stars provide the focus for these poems. In endnotes, the author describes his writing process.
| Author: Smith Jr., Charles R. |
|
Hoop Queens
This is a collection of 12 poems about stars of the WNBA. An afterword explains how the poet found a focus for each poem by considering the woman's play.
| Author: Smith Jr., Charles R. |
|
Hoops
The author and illustrator capture the feel and movement of playing basketball.
In November
As trees, animals, birds, and insects prepare for winter, people gather in warm homes to give thanks. Beautiful illustrations.
| Author: Rylant, Cynthia |
HSE Descriptors:
science
|
In the Shadow of No Towers
Part personal reaction to 9/11 and part history of newspaper comics, this book is a bit like a graphic novel. It is raw in tone and difficult to follow at spots.
| Author: Spiegelman, Art |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies | language arts - reading
|
Knock at a Star (Rev. Ed.)
Subtitled "A Child's Introduction to Poetry," this book is an anthology of poetry for children (many are also appropriate for adults) organized to make several points about poetry: typical contents, common poetic devices, types of poetic formats, etc. The
| Author: Kennedy. X, & Kennedy, D. (Eds.) |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Langston's Train Ride
This easy-reading picture book focuses on one episode from Langston Hughes's life--his realization that he WAS a poet. Reference is made to "The Negro Speaks of Rivers" and of the way its ideas developed.
| Author: Burleigh, Robert |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Moby-Dick
Melville's classic tale of Ahab's obsessive hunt for the great white whale Moby Dick is retold in a format that includes excerpts from the original, summarized passages (each in a different type face), a very helpful glossary, a labeled cross-section of t
| Author: Melville, Herman/Needle, Jan |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Once Upon Ice
The author and 16 other poets respond in a variety of poetic forms to beautiful photographs of patterns created by ice.
| Author: Yolen, Jane |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Right Word: Roget and His Thesaurus, The
The story of Peter Mark Roget, creator of Roget's Thesaurus complete with his biography, time line of current events and wonderful illustrations. Both Robert F Sibert medal and Caldecott Honor Book.
| Author: Bryant, Jen |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading | social studies | language arts - writing | science
|
River of Words, A: The Story of William Carlos Williams
This relatively easy-reading biography of the American poet and doctor, William Carlos Williams, includes lovely collage illustrations of a few short simple poems, a timeline, and helpful notes from the author and illustrator.
| Author: Bryant, Jen |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Shakespeare, His World and His Work
This book explores the world of William Shakespeare through beautiful illustrations and diagrams, quotations from plays, a detailed timeline, a bibliography, and a closer look at five plays--A Midsummer Night's Dream, Macbeth, King L
| Author: Rosen, Michael |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Song Shoots Out of My Mouth, The
This is an exciting collection of vibrantly illustrated poetry about music--classical, jazz, gospel, blues, opera, marching band. Backnotes extend learning about music, artists, and key works.
| Author: Adoff, Jaime |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Spring Thaw
In this deceptively simple and beautifully illustrated book, the sights and sounds of the first thaw come alive.
Stone Bench in an Empty Park
This is a concise introduction to classic and modern haiku poetry with lovely photographs and accessible poetry.
| Author: Paul B. Janeczko |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading | language arts - writing
|
Sweet Corn
The poet writes mostly of summer things and illustrates with black pen and watercolor images. One reader found the use of varied type faces disconcerting.
Twelfth Night
This is a narrative retelling of Shakespeare's play. Many of the famous lines are embedded in the narrative.
| Author: Shakespeare, William (retold B. Coville) |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Way We Work, The
A beautiful book that illustrates the way the human body works. Text adds details. A "coffee table" book with scientific facts that one can read a page at at time or use as a reference. With the help of co-author Richard Walker David Macaulay applies his
| Author: Macaulay, David |
HSE Descriptors:
science
|
Literature and Language > figurative language > metaphor
Big Jabe
This tall tale relates how Jabe helped slaves.
Black Cat
A black cat explores an urban neighborhood. The stunning illustrations are a combination of painting and photography.
| Author: Myers, Christopher |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Black Swan White Crow
The book introduces the reader to Haiku poetry that is accompanied by delicate and suggestive woodcut illustrations.
| Author: Lewis, J. Patricia |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Blacker the Berry, The
The author explores all the warm colors of skin tones in delicious to the tongue words and images.
| Author: Thomas, Joyce Carol |
|
Blacker the Berry, The
The author explores all the warm colors of skin tones in delicious to the tongue words and images.
| Author: Thomas, Joyce Carol |
|
Book
This very simple and stunningly illustrated poem compares a book to a house, a treasure chest, a farm, and a tree.
| Author: Lyon, George Ella |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Brown Honey in Broomwheat Tea
This well illustrated book of poetry uses the metaphor of nurturing tea for the extended family.
| Author: Thomas, Joyce Carol |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Edna St. Vincent Millay
This beautifully illustrated collection of poems by Edna St. Vincent Millay includes an introductory biography and an index of the poems.
| Author: Schoonmaker, Frances (ed.) |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Heart to Heart
Contemporary poets create poems in response to works of modern American art. The reproductions are very good. An introduction, index, and biographical notes of poets and artists extend the scope of the book. The poems are uneven in quality.
| Author: Greenberg, Jan (Ed.) |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Hoop Kings
A dozen NBA stars provide the focus for these poems. In endnotes, the author describes his writing process.
| Author: Smith Jr., Charles R. |
|
Hoops
The author and illustrator capture the feel and movement of playing basketball.
I Dream of Trains
This is the story of an African-American boy who lives in the South before the Great Migration, who loves trains, and who stands in awe of Casey Jones.
| Author: Johnson, Angela |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies
|
Josepha
A boy narrates the story of his friend and protector, the immigrant young man Josepha, who had to leave school to work.
| Author: McGugan, Jim |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies
|
Knock at a Star (Rev. Ed.)
Subtitled "A Child's Introduction to Poetry," this book is an anthology of poetry for children (many are also appropriate for adults) organized to make several points about poetry: typical contents, common poetic devices, types of poetic formats, etc. The
| Author: Kennedy. X, & Kennedy, D. (Eds.) |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Leaving and Other Stories, The
The nine short stories in this collection all feature young people on the brink of adulthood. Although themes vary according to story, most are written as reminiscences. Since the author is Canadian, readers will learn about Canadian culture.
Mississippi Mud: Three Prairie Journals
Three pioneer children recount their trip across the prairie in a series of easy-to-read poems.
| Author: Turner, Ann |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies
|
Moby-Dick
Melville's classic tale of Ahab's obsessive hunt for the great white whale Moby Dick is retold in a format that includes excerpts from the original, summarized passages (each in a different type face), a very helpful glossary, a labeled cross-section of t
| Author: Melville, Herman/Needle, Jan |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
My Ol' Man
Patricia Polacco once again uses her rich family background to tell the story of her father, a traveling salesman, and the magic, hope, and dreams he inspired. (Photos of the author and her family adorn the inside covers.)
| Author: Polacco, Patricia |
|
My Own True Name
This partially bilingual collection of uniformly thoughtful and accessible poems includes many verse forms.
Night Rainbow, The
Simple poetic verse describes the Aurora borealis or northern lights from the perspective of legends of several cultures.
| Author: Esbensen, Barbara Juster |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading | science
|
Now Sheba Sings the Song
This book consists of one long poem and dozens of sketches of African-American women. It is a sensuous book that celebrates the sexuality, the history, and the strength of Black women.
Once Upon Ice
The author and 16 other poets respond in a variety of poetic forms to beautiful photographs of patterns created by ice.
| Author: Yolen, Jane |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Rabbits, The
A myth/allegory about rabbits who take over a country and destroy the environment. The illustrations are simultaneously thought-provoking, beautiful, and ominous. The type face may confuse new readers although it is large and easy to read.
Song of the Water Boatman
Employing varied poetic forms and beautiful woodcut illustrations, the book invites the reader to visit the land, water, and underwater life of a pond throughout the seasons.
| Author: Sidman, Joyce |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading | science
|
Song Shoots Out of My Mouth, The
This is an exciting collection of vibrantly illustrated poetry about music--classical, jazz, gospel, blues, opera, marching band. Backnotes extend learning about music, artists, and key works.
| Author: Adoff, Jaime |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Spring Thaw
In this deceptively simple and beautifully illustrated book, the sights and sounds of the first thaw come alive.
Way We Work, The
A beautiful book that illustrates the way the human body works. Text adds details. A "coffee table" book with scientific facts that one can read a page at at time or use as a reference. With the help of co-author Richard Walker David Macaulay applies his
| Author: Macaulay, David |
HSE Descriptors:
science
|
Literature and Language > figurative language > palindromes
Go Hang a Salami!
The author has created and illustrated humorous palindromes, or phrases that read the same backward and forward.
Literature and Language > figurative language > symbolism
America's White Table
A simple story about a family's Veterans' Day dinner preparation is used to tell the true story of the white tables set for POWs/MIAs.
| Author: Raven, Margot |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies
|
Black Swan White Crow
The book introduces the reader to Haiku poetry that is accompanied by delicate and suggestive woodcut illustrations.
| Author: Lewis, J. Patricia |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Butterfly, The
During the Nazi occupation of France, Monique discovers that her mother is a member of the Resistance, and that a secret trap door conceals a Jewish family in hiding. Monique and the secret "guest" become nighttime playmates until terror threatens.
| Author: Polacco, Patricia |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies
|
Catskill Eagle, A
The book quotes a few lines from Melville's classic, Moby Dick. The art is beautifully evocative and turns the book into more of a coffee table art book than a typical picture book.
| Author: Melville, Herman |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Follow the Drinking Gourd
Peg Leg Joe travels from plantation to plantation teaching slaves the song "Follow the Drinking Gourd," which conceals directions for the route north to freedom. The book follows one slave family as they are directed north to the Underground Railroad and
| Author: Winter, Jeanette |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies
|
Fortune's Bones
A powerful poem, written in the form of a requiem, recovers the life and reconstructed history of a skeleton used by a Dr. Porter to teach anatomy in Waterbury, Connecticut. The format places author's notes across from sections of the poem told by differ
| Author: Nelson, Marilyn |
HSE Descriptors:
science | social studies
|
Freedom's Fruit
Mama Marina, a conjure woman in the Low Country of the Carolinas in the time of slavery, uses a magic spell to free her daughter and the man she loves. The book includes an Author's Note that compares the American folktale with the Greek myth of Persepho
Give Me A Sign
This colorfully illustrated book explores the universality of the language of signs from uses of signs in everyday life to wordless pictograms. A glossary provides useful definitions.
| Author: Samoyault, Tiphaine |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies
|
Home of the Brave
In a dream-like story and illustrations, Allen Say captures the infamy, dislocation, and loss experienced by Japanese Americans in the internment camps during World War II.
| Author: Say, Allen |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies
|
I Dream of Trains
This is the story of an African-American boy who lives in the South before the Great Migration, who loves trains, and who stands in awe of Casey Jones.
| Author: Johnson, Angela |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies
|
Knock at a Star (Rev. Ed.)
Subtitled "A Child's Introduction to Poetry," this book is an anthology of poetry for children (many are also appropriate for adults) organized to make several points about poetry: typical contents, common poetic devices, types of poetic formats, etc. The
| Author: Kennedy. X, & Kennedy, D. (Eds.) |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Langston's Train Ride
This easy-reading picture book focuses on one episode from Langston Hughes's life--his realization that he WAS a poet. Reference is made to "The Negro Speaks of Rivers" and of the way its ideas developed.
| Author: Burleigh, Robert |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Last Giants, The
During the days of sailing ships a European gentleman buys a mysterious tooth with a map on it which takes him on a long adventure to a land of peaceful giants. When he writes a book about his travels, tragic events occur. The illustrations are reminisc
| Author: Place, Francois |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies
|
Musicians of the Sun
This beautifully illustrated book of an Aztec myth of the beginning of the earth celebrates Native American folktales.
| Author: McDermott, Gerald |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Mysterious Thelonious
Chris Raschka has blended musical notes with glorious color to make the reader see how Thelonious Monk's music would appear on paper. Reading the words on the page resembles reading musical notes on a scale rather than the traditional left-to-right, top-
| Author: Raschka, Chris |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
One Yellow Daffodil: A Hanukkah Story
Morris Kaplan, a Holocaust survivor, owns a flower shop that two children visit each Friday to buy Sabbath flowers. The children are surprised to learn that their friend Morris hasn't celebrated Hanukkah since his childhood. They insist that he join the
| Author: Adler, David |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies
|
Pledge of Allegiance, The
This book illustrates the phrases in the Pledge of Allegiance with photographs. Included is a description of what the pledge means (literally), dates to diplay the flag, and some basic flag history.
| Author: No author cited |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies
|
Riding the Tiger
This is an allegory that features a bored, lonely 10-year-old's who is offered a ride by an exciting and somewhat scary tiger and discovers that it is easier to get on the tiger than to get off.
| Author: Bunting, Eve |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading | social studies
|
Secret-Keeper, The
This is a fairy tale about Kalli, the secret-keeper, who takes others' secrets on so that they can be released from them. All the bad secrets threaten to make her ill until the townspeople come to her rescue.
This Land is My Land
By telling his own story in words and in art, Littlefield describes what it is to be Native-American in the United States. He pays tribute to his ancestors and to the Native-American culture and history.
| Author: Littlechild, George |
|
Through the Mickle Woods
The king is grieving for his dead wife, but with the help of a wise bear and a young boy learns the three lessons about living and loving.
Tin Forest, The
An old man living in a wasteland of scrap metal dreams of a green forest full of birds and animals. This charming, beautifully illustrated modern legend extolls the benefits of dreaming and ideas in accomplishing change.
Veil of Snows, The
In the absence of her husband who has not returned from battle, the queen prepares her city for assault. Aided by a small force of loyal soldiers and the Singer of Tales who narrates the story, the queen escapes the besieged city and heads for the safety
| Author: Helprin, Mark |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading | social studies
|
Wagon, The
At the time of Emancipation and Lincoln's death, a young boy, born into slavery, looks back on his anger at slavery and the support of his family as he helps his father build a wagon for the master which later carries them to freedom.
| Author: Johnston, Tony |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies
|
Literature and Language > hieroglyphics
Secrets of the Sphinx
Beautiful illustrations and extensive supplementary material accompany this well-researched history of the Egyptian Sphinx from prehistory to the present.
| Author: Giblin, James Cross |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies
|
Literature and Language > language
Baboon King, The
Set in Africa, this powerful book explores the themes of the importance of community through the exile of Morengaru from his tribe and survival, not against but with nature, in his life with a group of baboons.
Birds on a Wire
Renga poem (meaning linked verse in which one poet writes a verse and the other poet adds another verse, and so on) built around the day to day happenings of a small town. The authors trade stanza and bounce around the town as though they were observing
| Author: Lewis, J. Patrick & Paul Janeczko |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading | social studies
|
Hero Beowulf, The
This prose retelling of the first part of the earliest poem in English (Anglo Saxon, actually) has strong, vibrant illustrations and helpful supplementary material.
| Author: Kimmel, Eric A. |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Jabberwocky
With his wonderfully bright, energetic illustrations, Myers gives an Mezo-American and African American spin to the famous poem by Lewis Carroll.
Myer's "reimagined" famous poem by Carroll is unique in its contemporary setting of an urban street basket
| Author: Carroll, Lewis |
HSE Descriptors:
literature and arts
|
Miss Spitfire
Using real letters and records, the author vividly imagines the early days of the relationship between Helen Keller and Anne Sullivan from the teacher's perspective.
Miss Spitfire
Using real letters and records, the author vividly imagines the early days of the relationship between Helen Keller and Anne Sullivan from the teacher's perspective.
Moses
The author's note describes this book on Harriet Tubman as a "fictionalized spiritual journey" comparing her answering the call of God to lead her people out of slavery to Moses leading the Israelites out of bondage in Egypt. The author includes a forewo
| Author: Weatherford, Carole |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies
|
Quest for the Tree Kangaroo
Subtitled "An Expedition to the Cloud Forest of New Guinea," this is the story of a team of scientists (and others) who trek to wilderness to study and save this unusual animal.
| Author: Montgomery, Sy |
HSE Descriptors:
science | social studies
|
Right Word: Roget and His Thesaurus, The
The story of Peter Mark Roget, creator of Roget's Thesaurus complete with his biography, time line of current events and wonderful illustrations. Both Robert F Sibert medal and Caldecott Honor Book.
| Author: Bryant, Jen |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading | social studies | language arts - writing | science
|
Walt Whitman: Words for America
This biography of Walt Whitman extends our knowledge of the poet, both in his growth as a poet and learning of the experiences that were the source of his poetry. Back matter contains more biographical and historical information, sources, and full poems
| Author: Kerley, Barbara |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Literature and Language > language > semiotics
Give Me A Sign
This colorfully illustrated book explores the universality of the language of signs from uses of signs in everyday life to wordless pictograms. A glossary provides useful definitions.
| Author: Samoyault, Tiphaine |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies
|
Literature and Language > letters
Coming On Home Soon
A kitten comforts a young African American girl as she and her grandmother wait for the mother's return from working in Chicago during World War II.
| Author: Woodson, Jaqueline |
|
Love You, Soldier
This touching story about the effects of WW II on one family is told through the eyes of seven-year-old Katie. (NOTE: This is a short chapter book that will be very easy for students to read.)
| Author: Hest, Amy |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies
|
Mercedes and the Chocolate Pilot
During the occupation of Germany after WW II, a young girl writes a letter to an American airlift pilot who drops chocolates to children. The author includes a biography of Col. Halvorsen, "the chocolate pilot" of the title.
Wright Sister, The,
Often portrayed through letters, this biography, of Katherine Wright, the sister of Orville and Wilbur Wright, is told against the historical background of the restrictions on women.
| Author: Maurer, Richard |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies
|
Literature and Language > literature
Literature and Language > literature > American literature
American Boy: The Adventures of Mark Twain
This biography of Sam Clemens focuses primarily on his childhood. Readers will see many parallels between young Sam's adventures and those of his famous characters Tom Sawyer and Huck Finn.
| Author: Brown, Don |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Birches
On each page Ed Young illustrates trees and forests and the countryside, in browns and sepia tones, and presents them along with several lines of Robert Frost's well-known poem, "Birches." The poem is printed in its entirety again on the last two pages.
| Author: Frost, Robert |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Cycle of the Werewolf
Short mystery/horror story depicting the sequence of events as a werewolf terrorizes a small town in Maine over the course of a year. A ten year old parapalegic uncovers the mystery and slays the beast with the help of his fun loving uncle. Short chapte
| Author: King, Stephen |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Emily
This book tells the story of a young girl's encounter with the reclusive poet Emily Dickinson and of her friendship with the author. Although the picture book is a fictional account, Cooney's oil paintings and the afterword with biographical information
| Author: Bedard, Michael |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Emily Dickinson's Letters to the World
This introduction to Emily Dickinson's best-known poems also contains biographical information in a fictional narration by her sister Lavinia.
| Author: Winter, Jeanette |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Great Stone Face, The
The author retells a famous Hawthorne story about how a New England village interprets a mountain's "face" over the years as fulfilling the prophecy of revealing the noblest person of the time.
| Author: Schmidt, Gary/Hawthorne Nathaniel |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Henry David's House
These seamlessly woven excerpts from Thoreau's Walden and the beautiful watercolor illustrations together describe constructing and living in the house at Walden Pond.
| Author: Schnur, Steven (ed.) |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Into the Deep Forest: With Henry David Thoreau
Thoreau's journal entries have been placed into a broader context and are accompanied by stunning paintings and pencil drawings in this 39-page book. The use of present tense verb form may be off putting for some readers.
| Author: Murphy, Jim |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Paul Revere's Ride
Longfellow's famous poem tells the story of Revere's call to arms to his countryfolk in 1775.
| Author: Longfellow, Henry Wadsworth |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies
|
Shimmy, Shimmy, Shimmy Like My Sister Kate
Noted author Nikki Giovanni has selected and comments on poems by some of the greatest African-American writers of this century.
| Author: Giovanni, Nikki |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies | language arts - reading
|
Song of Hiawatha, The
Excerpts from the long poem have been selected to tell the story of Hiawatha. Detailed illustrations accompany each excerpt.
| Author: Longfellow, Henry Wadsworth |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Words with Wings
This riveting collection of paintings, prints, and sculpture by African-American artists enrich poems by outstanding African-American poets. The book includes a beautifully written introduction about the role of art and poetry and brief biographies of th
| Author: Rochelle, Belinda ed. |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Literature and Language > literature > classics
Androcles and the Lion
This book retells the fable of Androcles, a runaway Roman slave, who befriends a wounded lion.
| Author: Nolan, Dennis |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Appointment
This lavishly illustrated book is a distillation of the classic Somerset Maugham novella Appointment in Samarra. Not until the very end do we realize that the important appointment that the man must keep is an appointment with death. The illust
| Author: Maugham, Somerset |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Catskill Eagle, A
The book quotes a few lines from Melville's classic, Moby Dick. The art is beautifully evocative and turns the book into more of a coffee table art book than a typical picture book.
| Author: Melville, Herman |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Hero and the Minotaur, The
This retelling of the Greek hero Theseus' journey to the island of Crete to slay the minotaur and his return to become King of Athens is magnificently illustrated in the style and colors that recall Greek pottery designs. Stylized maps decorate the end
| Author: Byrd, Robert |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Hero Beowulf, The
This prose retelling of the first part of the earliest poem in English (Anglo Saxon, actually) has strong, vibrant illustrations and helpful supplementary material.
| Author: Kimmel, Eric A. |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Moby-Dick
Melville's classic tale of Ahab's obsessive hunt for the great white whale Moby Dick is retold in a format that includes excerpts from the original, summarized passages (each in a different type face), a very helpful glossary, a labeled cross-section of t
| Author: Melville, Herman/Needle, Jan |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Literature and Language > literature > classics > Iliad, The
Black Ships Before Troy
This beautifully illustrated book retells Homer's epic poem The Iliad about the Trojan War. A glossary of names is included.
| Author: Sutcliff, Rosemary |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Dateline: Troy
A compelling retelling of the Trojan War story is juxtaposed with newspaper clippings (WWI--Gulf War). The clippings help to develop context for the story. They also reveal powerful parallels between the world of Homer's Iliad and our own.
| Author: Fleischman, Paul |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Literature and Language > literature > Moby Dick
Black Hands, White Sails
This book is mostly about the Atlantic whaling industry and the contributions of African American whalers. But it's also about abolition, the Underground Railroad, the Fugitive Slave Act, and the Civil War. And it's about U.S. economics in the 18th and 19
| Author: McKissack, Patricia, & McKissack, Frederick |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies | science
|
Catskill Eagle, A
The book quotes a few lines from Melville's classic, Moby Dick. The art is beautifully evocative and turns the book into more of a coffee table art book than a typical picture book.
| Author: Melville, Herman |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Moby-Dick
Melville's classic tale of Ahab's obsessive hunt for the great white whale Moby Dick is retold in a format that includes excerpts from the original, summarized passages (each in a different type face), a very helpful glossary, a labeled cross-section of t
| Author: Melville, Herman/Needle, Jan |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Literature and Language > literature > theater
All Around Town
Columbia, South Carolina of the 1920's and 1930's is chronicled by photographs by Richard Roberts and text by the author. One reader thought the text was too childish.
Children of the Dust Bowl
The book recounts the migration of the "Okies" during the Great Depression to the camps in California. School Superintendent Leo Hart began the Weedpatch School where children of the migrants escaped the ostracism of the locals in a model learn-by-doing
| Author: Stanley, Jerry |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies
|
Dear Mr. Rosenwald
This is a fictionalized story of one community's efforts to build a school based on the historical Rosenwald schools. These schools in the American South were financed by Julius Rosenwald of Sears Roebuck and required collaboration of black and white com
| Author: Weatherford, Carole Boston |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies
|
Kamishibai Man
The award-winning author/illustrator introduces the reader to the street storytelling tradition of the "paper-theater man" from his Japanese childhood.
Sixteen Years in Sixteen Seconds: The Sammy Lee Story
Faced with discrimination for being Korean-American in the 1930s did not deter Sammy Lee from wanting to become an Olympic diver - a dream he realized with great determination.
| Author: Yoo, Paula |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies
|
Sixteen Years in Sixteen Seconds: The Sammy Lee Story
Faced with discrimination for being Korean-American in the 1930s did not deter Sammy Lee from wanting to become an Olympic diver - a dream he realized with great determination.
| Author: Yoo, Paula |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies
|
Sky Pioneer
This biography of American aviatrix Amelia Earhart traces her interest in aviation from childhood to her disappearance on a round-the-world flight in 1937. Photographs, journal entries, maps, a chronology, an afterword, a bibliography, and an index sugge
| Author: Szabo, Corinne |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies
|
Literature and Language > literature > world
Literature and Language > literature > world > Arabian Nights
shadow spinner
1
| Author: fletcher, susan |
HSE Descriptors:
literature and arts | literature and arts | literature and arts | literature and arts | literature and arts
|
Literature and Language > lyrics
Auld Lang Syne
Told from first person perspective, this life story of Robert Burns from childhood to adulthood highlights the poets efforts to keep alive Scottish songs and verses. Most familiar to many will be the song of the book's title.
| Author: Findon, Joanne |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Blues Journey
Father and son team up to celebrate the blues in beautiful illustrations and lyrics. A short essay introduces the reader to the history and structure of blues. A timeline and glossary enable the reader to immerse himself in the form.
| Author: Myers, Walter Dean |
|
Literature and Language > Macbeth
Shakespeare and Macbeth
The reader learns about the writing and production of Shakespeare's play Macbeth. Sidebars contribute additional information to the narrative about the play as do a chronology of Shakespeare's life, one of his works, a description of the Globe T
| Author: Ross, Stewart |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Literature and Language > mythology
Aida
The opera diva Leontyne Price retells this classic operatic tale made famous by the 19th century composer Giuseppi Verdi. The princess Aida is captured and forced into slavery by Egyptian soldiers, but she and rival army leader Radames fall in love. The
| Author: Price, Leontyne |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Ancient Cliff Dwellers of Mesa Verde, The
The Anasazi, "the ancient ones" in Navajo, had a unique and well developed culture. Around 1300, they simply vanished. Today, their home (Mesa Verde) is a national park. This carefully researched text recreates the Anasazi's way of life and explores th
| Author: Arnold, Caroline |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies
|
Androcles and the Lion
This book retells the fable of Androcles, a runaway Roman slave, who befriends a wounded lion.
| Author: Nolan, Dennis |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Atalanta's Race, A Greek Myth
This retelling of an ancient Greek myth describes Atalanta, abandoned by her royal father who wanted a son. Atalanta is raised by a woodsman and becomes a great hunter and athlete; the latter is tested in a race when the gods intervene.
| Author: Climo, Shirley |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Big Mama Makes the World
A simple text and colorful illustrations retell the creation story with a mother as the creator. Some readers might be offended by the non-traditional creation story. Others could find the illustrations childish.
Black Ships Before Troy
This beautifully illustrated book retells Homer's epic poem The Iliad about the Trojan War. A glossary of names is included.
| Author: Sutcliff, Rosemary |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Cycle of the Werewolf
Short mystery/horror story depicting the sequence of events as a werewolf terrorizes a small town in Maine over the course of a year. A ten year old parapalegic uncovers the mystery and slays the beast with the help of his fun loving uncle. Short chapte
| Author: King, Stephen |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Dateline: Troy
A compelling retelling of the Trojan War story is juxtaposed with newspaper clippings (WWI--Gulf War). The clippings help to develop context for the story. They also reveal powerful parallels between the world of Homer's Iliad and our own.
| Author: Fleischman, Paul |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Dogs of Myth
Here are 13 tales about dogs from myths and legends from around the world.
| Author: Hausman, Gerald, & Hausman, Loretta |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Drylongso
Drylongso, which takes place west of the Mississippi in 1975, is the story of a poor farming family's battle with a drought. Drylongso, "a youth imbued with simple human kindness . . . a folk hero" (author's notes) arrives, and with him comes ho
| Author: Hamilton, Viginia |
|
First Strawberries: A Cherokee Story, The
A quarrel between husband and wife is resolved when strawberries begin to grow.
Freedom's Fruit
Mama Marina, a conjure woman in the Low Country of the Carolinas in the time of slavery, uses a magic spell to free her daughter and the man she loves. The book includes an Author's Note that compares the American folktale with the Greek myth of Persepho
Golem
Illustrated with beautiful cut-paper collages, the author/illustrator retells the legend of the Golem (a man created from clay), who saves the Jews of 16th Century Prague from persecution. A lengthy endnote recounts the history of the Golem and the perse
| Author: Wisniewski, David |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
John Henry
This beautifully illustrated, award-winning book tells the tale of the ex-slave John Henry who outraced the steam engine in digging a tunnel through the side of the Allegheny Mountains. The book begins with introductory notes from both Julius Lester and
Last Giants, The
During the days of sailing ships a European gentleman buys a mysterious tooth with a map on it which takes him on a long adventure to a land of peaceful giants. When he writes a book about his travels, tragic events occur. The illustrations are reminisc
| Author: Place, Francois |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies
|
Lugalbanda
This retelling of the oldest recorded story ever found from Sumer (now Iraq) recounts the journey of a young prince as he crosses the mountains to join a war and find his brothers, overcoming obstacles on his way. The book includes interesting historical
| Author: Henderson, Kathy |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Night Rainbow, The
Simple poetic verse describes the Aurora borealis or northern lights from the perspective of legends of several cultures.
| Author: Esbensen, Barbara Juster |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading | science
|
Noah's Ark
Well-known author-illustrator Jerry Pinkney retells the story of Noah and the ark that survives the flooding of the earth in a simple narrative and wonderfully detailed pictures.
Pond God and Other Stories, The
This unusual book of one-page pourquoi stories--of how things came to be--follows the tradition of Rudyard Kiplilng's Just So Stories and Aesop's Fables.
| Author: Keyser, Samuel J. |
|
Rabbits, The
A myth/allegory about rabbits who take over a country and destroy the environment. The illustrations are simultaneously thought-provoking, beautiful, and ominous. The type face may confuse new readers although it is large and easy to read.
Sacred Places
This collection of 12 poems and accompanying paintings celebrates 12 holy and magical places around the world. End notes provide more information about the locations.
| Author: Yolen, Jane |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies
|
Secret-Keeper, The
This is a fairy tale about Kalli, the secret-keeper, who takes others' secrets on so that they can be released from them. All the bad secrets threaten to make her ill until the townspeople come to her rescue.
Sir Gawain & the Green Knight
The author retells this famous tale of one of the knights of King Arthur's famous Roundtable, in which Gawain accepts a challenge of a giant green knight that leads to further trials at the end of one year. Vivid illustrations contribute to the sense of
| Author: Morpurgo, Michael |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Swan Lake
An expanded retelling of the story of Tchaikovsky's ballet Swan Lake.The author retells the story of Swan Lake within his narrative of the Damavand empire. Van Allsburg's illustrations highlight the events of the story.
| Author: Helprin, Mark |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Timelines Flight: Fliers and Flying Machines
This nonfiction book contains information related to aviation and aviators (starting with Daedalus and Icarus). The book is densely illustrated; all illustrations are captioned, and some are labeled. A time line, a glossary, and an index conclude the bo
| Author: Jefferis, David |
HSE Descriptors:
science
|
Unexplained
The author explores several categories of unexplained phenomena from Stonehenge to Roswell, N. M. UFO sightings, suggesting origins of superstitions and possible explanations. Sidebar information, photographs, and paintings illustrate the text and back m
| Author: Allen, Judy |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies
|
Literature and Language > mythology > Greek mythology
Adventures of the Greek Heroes
The simple vocabulary and simple sentence structure of this retelling of several Greek myths makes this a useful text in a multilevel classroom. The black and white illustrations imitate the style of painting on Greek pottery. An introduction and a pron
| Author: McLean, Mollie & Wiseman, Anne |
HSE Descriptors:
literature and arts
|
Cupid and Psyche
This is a retelling of the classic Greek myth.
| Author: Craft, M. Charlotte |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Hero and the Minotaur, The
This retelling of the Greek hero Theseus' journey to the island of Crete to slay the minotaur and his return to become King of Athens is magnificently illustrated in the style and colors that recall Greek pottery designs. Stylized maps decorate the end
| Author: Byrd, Robert |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Persephone and the Pomegranate
The Persephone myth explains the seasons. The daughter is kidnapped by the ruler of the underworld, Pluto, who makes her his queen. But Persephone's mother, Demeter, grieving, refuses to let Spring return until she is again with her daughter. In the en
| Author: Waldherr, Kris |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Literature and Language > play
Shakespeare and Macbeth
The reader learns about the writing and production of Shakespeare's play Macbeth. Sidebars contribute additional information to the narrative about the play as do a chronology of Shakespeare's life, one of his works, a description of the Globe T
| Author: Ross, Stewart |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Shakespeare, His World and His Work
This book explores the world of William Shakespeare through beautiful illustrations and diagrams, quotations from plays, a detailed timeline, a bibliography, and a closer look at five plays--A Midsummer Night's Dream, Macbeth, King L
| Author: Rosen, Michael |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Twelfth Night
This is a narrative retelling of Shakespeare's play. Many of the famous lines are embedded in the narrative.
| Author: Shakespeare, William (retold B. Coville) |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
William Shakespeare and the Globe
This is the story of William Shakespeare and the rebuilding of The Globe Theatre. This is a good reference book.
| Author: Aliki |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading | language arts - writing
|
Literature and Language > poetry
All the Colors of the Race
A collection of poems celebrating the family and minority heritages. The poems are spoken in the voice of a girl, the child of an African-American mother and Jewish father.
At the End of Words: A Daughter's Memoir
What happens "at the end of words"? The author faced this difficult question as a teenager. Through alternating narration and poetry, she shares her anger, sorrow, confusion, and healing after her mother's death from breast cancer.
Auld Lang Syne
Told from first person perspective, this life story of Robert Burns from childhood to adulthood highlights the poets efforts to keep alive Scottish songs and verses. Most familiar to many will be the song of the book's title.
| Author: Findon, Joanne |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Autumn
Autumn, an alphabet book of acrostics with linoleum-cut prints, describes the seasonal sights, sounds, and colors.
Bearing Witness
This selection of powerful personal stories of the Holocaust in various literary and artistic forms gives testimony of the extraordinary bravery of ordinary people. A map of concentration camps, a bibliography, and brief introductory notes for each excer
| Author: Rochman, Hazel & McCampbell, Darlene (Eds.) |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies
|
Big Talk
Three poems are presented graphically with four color-coded bars to represent four voices for choral reading. The rhythms of the poems progress from easy to more difficult. The author provides a section on "How to read this book" and "Helpful hints."
Birches
On each page Ed Young illustrates trees and forests and the countryside, in browns and sepia tones, and presents them along with several lines of Robert Frost's well-known poem, "Birches." The poem is printed in its entirety again on the last two pages.
| Author: Frost, Robert |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Birds on a Wire
Renga poem (meaning linked verse in which one poet writes a verse and the other poet adds another verse, and so on) built around the day to day happenings of a small town. The authors trade stanza and bounce around the town as though they were observing
| Author: Lewis, J. Patrick & Paul Janeczko |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading | social studies
|
Black Swan White Crow
The book introduces the reader to Haiku poetry that is accompanied by delicate and suggestive woodcut illustrations.
| Author: Lewis, J. Patricia |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Block, The
This collection of Langston Hughes poems is complemented by the illustrations of Romare Beardon. An introduction by Bill Cosby precedes the collection, and biographies of the poet and artist conclude it.
| Author: Hughes, Langston |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Book
This very simple and stunningly illustrated poem compares a book to a house, a treasure chest, a farm, and a tree.
| Author: Lyon, George Ella |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Books Speak!: Poems about Books
A delightful collection of poems about books and the joys of reading. This amazing collection of poems about all aspects of books and reading is a fun to read book.
| Author: Salas, Laura Purdie |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading | language arts - writing
|
Brown Angels: An Album of Picture and Verse
This book is a collection of very short poems and photographs of African-American children. Many of the photos are from the turn of the century.
| Author: Myers, Walter Dean |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Brown Honey in Broomwheat Tea
This well illustrated book of poetry uses the metaphor of nurturing tea for the extended family.
| Author: Thomas, Joyce Carol |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Buried Alive
This collection of linked poems explores the rich, puzzling and painful experiences of love from teenagers' points of view.
| Author: Fletcher, Ralph |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Caribbean Dozen: Poems from Caribbean Poets, A
This book includes many short poems, some childish and some more complex, written by contemporary Caribbean poets. It also includes fascinating biographies on each author.
| Author: Agard, John & Nichols, Grace |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Carolina Shout
A young girl wanders the streets of Charleston from sun up to sun set capturing the vendors' calls and the sounds of the street. The book begs to be read aloud.
Casey at the Bat
This is the famous baseball poem told in scrapbook form with illustrations and "news clippings".
| Author: Bing, Christopher |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Celebrate America in Poetry and Art
This is a collection of poetry (from more than 100 U.S. poets) and paintings, sculpture, drawings, photographs, and other works of art-- all from the National Museum of American Art, Smithsonian Institution. Biographical notes and an index conclude the vo
| Author: Panzer, Nora (Ed.) |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Chess Rumble
Since his sister died, Marcus is in trouble all the time at school. Then he meets CM and learns to take control of his life through the game of chess. This book was inspired by inner-city chess enrichment programs.
Chess Rumble
Since his sister died, Marcus is in trouble all the time at school. Then he meets CM and learns to take control of his life through the game of chess. This book was inspired by inner-city chess enrichment programs.
Coretta Scott
Coretta is a poetic tribute to the life of Coretta Scott King and the Civil Rights movement. This is an amazing biographical tribute in poetry which is most readable and offers all kinds of teaching opportunities.
The art work by Kadir Nelson really make
| Author: Shange, Ntozake |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading | social studies
|
Dave the Potter: Artist, Poet, Slave
Dave is an amazing artist, poet and potter who lived in South Carolina in the 1800's. His artistry was all the more amazing because of his slave status. The writing is spare and poetic and the illustrations are truly amazing and make the text come alive f
| Author: Hill, Laban Carrick |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading | language arts - writing | social studies
|
Django: World's Greatest Jazz Guitarist
In descriptive, poetic, rhythmic (8 count meter per line as the rhythm of music) text the life story of Django Reinhardt is sketched for the reader. The illustrations offer a glimpse into the life of gypsies and the challenges this guitarist endured to be
| Author: Christensen, Bonnie |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies
|
Django: World's Greatest Jazz Guitarist
In descriptive, poetic, rhythmic (8 count meter per line as the rhythm of music) text the life story of Django Reinhardt is sketched for the reader. The illustrations offer a glimpse into the life of gypsies and the challenges this guitarist endured to be
| Author: Christensen, Bonnie |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies
|
Dream Keeper and Other Poems, The
A reissue of Hughes' poetry book with seven additional poems (total of 66). The poems are short and make appropriate reading for all levels of learners. Many of the poems deal with issues of the African-American experience.
| Author: Hughes, Langston |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
E. E. Cummings
This extensive biography of the American poet and artist, E. E. Cummings, also conveys the history of the times, especially of artistic movements. Drawings, archival photographs, and segments of poems expand the biographical information.
| Author: Reef, Catherine |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Edna St. Vincent Millay
This beautifully illustrated collection of poems by Edna St. Vincent Millay includes an introductory biography and an index of the poems.
| Author: Schoonmaker, Frances (ed.) |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
ellington was not a street
The poet lovingly remembers her family's recent history that was filled with stars of the African American firmament. Brief biographies of the people depicted add welcome information.
| Author: Shange, Ntozake |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Emily Dickinson's Letters to the World
This introduction to Emily Dickinson's best-known poems also contains biographical information in a fictional narration by her sister Lavinia.
| Author: Winter, Jeanette |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Followers of the North Star
These poems present a profile of African-American heroes in an historical and cultural context. Heroes and heroines include Benjamin Banneker, Harriet Tubman, cowboy Deadwood Dick, George Washington Carver, Jackie Robinson, Leontyne Price, and Martin Lut
| Author: Altman, Susan & Lechner, Susan |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies
|
Fortune's Bones
A powerful poem, written in the form of a requiem, recovers the life and reconstructed history of a skeleton used by a Dr. Porter to teach anatomy in Waterbury, Connecticut. The format places author's notes across from sections of the poem told by differ
| Author: Nelson, Marilyn |
HSE Descriptors:
science | social studies
|
Glorious Angels
The author has collected photographs of children and families from around the world to illustrate his prose-poem about children.
| Author: Myers, Walter Dean |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
God Went to Beauty School
An unusually humorous and poignant collection of poems places God in everyday situations as suggested by the title. Some devout Christians may find this book offensive for the light-hearted portrayal of God; some non-Christians may find it annoying.
Good Masters! Sweet Ladies!
This Newberry Award winner gives voice to residents of a medieval English village circa 1255. Poems in monologue form interspersed with explanatory passages bring the village to life. The book includes a map locating the characters in the village and an
| Author: Schlitz, Laura Amy |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies
|
Gwendolyn Brooks
This biography describes the influences and hardships of the early years and the political activism of the later years of the African American poet Gwendolyn Brooks. The book includes a chronology, archival photos, an index, a list of published works and
| Author: Hill, Christine M. |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading | social studies | language arts - writing
|
Hand in Hand
The collection of poems is organized by American historical themes rather than by chronology. There are many poems that are familiar patriotic songs.
| Author: Hopkins, Lee (Ed.) |
|
Harriet and the Promised Land
The text, consisting of a single rhyming poem, is an accompaniment to Lawrence's contemporary and vivid paintings. The poem tells the story of Harriet Tubman, a slave who led other slaves to freedom.
| Author: Lawrence, Jacob |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies
|
Heart to Heart
Contemporary poets create poems in response to works of modern American art. The reproductions are very good. An introduction, index, and biographical notes of poets and artists extend the scope of the book. The poems are uneven in quality.
| Author: Greenberg, Jan (Ed.) |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Home
Beautifully illustrated by Thomas Locker, the book contains poems and prose excerpts by well-known writers with a thumbnail sketch about each writer and his home. Endmatter includes a map of the U.S. with dates and locations of the writers.
| Author: Locker, Thomas & Christiansen, Candice |
|
Hoop Kings
A dozen NBA stars provide the focus for these poems. In endnotes, the author describes his writing process.
| Author: Smith Jr., Charles R. |
|
Hoop Queens
This is a collection of 12 poems about stars of the WNBA. An afterword explains how the poet found a focus for each poem by considering the woman's play.
| Author: Smith Jr., Charles R. |
|
Hoops
The author and illustrator capture the feel and movement of playing basketball.
How I Discovered Poetry
Marilyn Nelson describes her childhood in America in the 1950s, as the daughter of an African American Army officer. The poems span from her fourth to fourteenth year and touch aspects of civil rights, "Red Scare," atom bomb and the stirrings of the femin
| Author: Nelson, Marilyn |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading | social studies | language arts - writing
|
I Have Heard of a Land
A hardworking African American woman stakes a homestead claim in the Oklahoma Territory in the period after the Civil War. Told in rich, lyrical language, the beautifully illustrated story reminds us that African Americans were a part of the settlement o
| Author: Thomas, Joyce Carol |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies
|
I Live in Music
Each line of Shange's poem is placed with one of Romare Bearden's paintings. The book ends with the complete poem, and with short biographies of Shange and Beardon.
| Author: Shange, Ntozake |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
I Never Saw Another Butterfly
This book consists of poems and drawings done by children living in the Terezin Concentration Camp in Czechoslovakia during World War II, a solid introduction, and historical information stating the fates of the children authors/artists. Students and tea
| Author: Volavkova, Hana (Ed.) |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies
|
I Saw Your Face
Sketches from Tom Feelings's sketch book are used to frame a simple yet powerful poem about the "face game" played by the author with his mother that celebrates African-American heritage.
| Author: Dawes, Kwame |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies | language arts - writing
|
I See the Rhythm
The author and illustrator use different type faces, colors, a timeline, and paintings to involve the reader in the history, mood and movement of African American music. Types of music included are blues, ragtime, jazz, swing, bebop, cool jazz and gospel.
| Author: Igus, Toyomi |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
I, Too, Sing America
This is a collection of poetry, arranged chronologically, by African-American poets. Biographies of the poets accompany their poems.
| Author: Clinton, Catherine (comp.) |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading | social studies
|
If: A Fathers Advice to His Son
Sports themed photographs accompany Kiplings poem about the qualities that make up a mature person.
| Author: Kipling, Rudyard |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
In Flanders Field
Fascinating information about Word War I is interwoven with the poem "In Flanders Field" and details about its author and the soldiers who inspired it.
| Author: Granfield, Luida |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies | language arts - reading
|
Jabberwocky
With his wonderfully bright, energetic illustrations, Myers gives an Mezo-American and African American spin to the famous poem by Lewis Carroll.
Myer's "reimagined" famous poem by Carroll is unique in its contemporary setting of an urban street basket
| Author: Carroll, Lewis |
HSE Descriptors:
literature and arts
|
Jazz ABZ
Each letter of the alphabet introduces a famous jazz musician in a different poetic form. Of particular interest to teachers and students are the biographical sketches of the musicians and excellent notes on the poetic forms. The phenominal art work is
| Author: Marsalis, Wynton |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Joyful Noise: Poems for Two Voices
These poems that celebrate the insect world were written to be read aloud by two voices, sometimes alternating, sometimes simultaneous.
| Author: Fleischman, Paul |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Keep on Singing
The story of the life of the singer Marian Anderson is told in ballad form. The author's notes at the end of the book include additional biographical information.
| Author: Livingston, Myra Cohn |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading | social studies
|
Knock at a Star (Rev. Ed.)
Subtitled "A Child's Introduction to Poetry," this book is an anthology of poetry for children (many are also appropriate for adults) organized to make several points about poetry: typical contents, common poetic devices, types of poetic formats, etc. The
| Author: Kennedy. X, & Kennedy, D. (Eds.) |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Knoxville, Tennessee
This brief and beautifully illustrated poem celebrates a young child's summer in Knoxville, TN.
| Author: Giovanni, Nikki |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Langston Hughes: American Poet
This is a reissue of a picture book biography of Langston Hughes (originally published in 1974). The illustrations and Author's Note (a must read) are new.
| Author: Walker, Alice |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Langston's Train Ride
This easy-reading picture book focuses on one episode from Langston Hughes's life--his realization that he WAS a poet. Reference is made to "The Negro Speaks of Rivers" and of the way its ideas developed.
| Author: Burleigh, Robert |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Library for Juana, A
This beautifully illustrated imaginative biography (little is known) focuses on the early life of Juana Ramirez de Asbaje, who became the first and one of the greatest Mexican poets known as Sor Juana Inez de la Cruz. The author includes a glossary, furt
| Author: Mora, Pat |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies
|
Life Doesn't Frighten Me
In this single poem, Angelou celebrates courage to face internal and external fears, the courage that grows out of a belief in ourselves. The contemporary art is bold and child-like but may have the power to scare children. The text is repetitive and ea
Locomotion
Lonnie, a.k.a. Locomotion, is encouraged by his teacher Ms. Marcus to write poetry. His poems, in many, many forms but all accessible, tell his story of losing parents in a fire, separation from his sister, group homes, and foster care.
| Author: Woodson, Jacqueline |
|
Miss Crandall's School
In innovative sonnet form, the authors tell the story of Prudence Crandall who ran a school for "young ladies and little misses of color" in Canterbury, Connecticut, in 1831 until boycotts, vandalism and persecution forced the school to close. An introdu
| Author: Alexander, Elizabeth & Nelson, Marilyn |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading | social studies
|
Mississippi Mud: Three Prairie Journals
Three pioneer children recount their trip across the prairie in a series of easy-to-read poems.
| Author: Turner, Ann |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies
|
More Spice Than Sugar: Poems about Feisty Females
All the poems in this collection are about women and girls, some famous and some not. The three sections of the book are "When I Am Me," "She's a Winner" (about sports), and "Against the Odds." Work from some famous poets is included.
| Author: Morrison, Lillian (comp.) |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies | language arts - reading
|
My Own True Name
This partially bilingual collection of uniformly thoughtful and accessible poems includes many verse forms.
My People
Beautiful sepia-tone photographs illustrate Langston Hughes' poem "My People"
| Author: Hughes, Langston |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading | language arts - writing | social studies
|
Navajo: Visions and Voices Across the Mesa
Shonto Begay's artwork has been celebrated throughout the southwestern U.S. for decades. Twenty of his paintings are the illustrations for this book. Each painting is accompanied by a poem.
Negro Speaks of Rivers, The
E.B.Lewis depicts Langston Hughes' poem through beautful watercolor illustrations which help in the understanding of the poem.
| Author: Hughes, Langston |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Negro Speaks of Rivers, The
E.B.Lewis depicts Langston Hughes' poem through beautful watercolor illustrations which help in the understanding of the poem.
| Author: Hughes, Langston |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Now Sheba Sings the Song
This book consists of one long poem and dozens of sketches of African-American women. It is a sensuous book that celebrates the sexuality, the history, and the strength of Black women.
O Jerusalem
This book is a tribute to Jerusalem in honor of its 3000th year. Each poem is accompanied by a wonderful illustration and a paragraph of information about the history or traditions of Jerusalem.
On the Wings of Peace
This is a collection of illustrations and various types of text, all provided by noted authors and illustrators, that focus on issues related to peace. Many cultures are represented among characters and in illustrations.
| Author: Hamanaka, Sheila (comp.) |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading | social studies
|
Once Upon a Poem: Favorite Poems that Tell Stories
About a dozen narrative poems are included in this collection. Some will work better in adult literacy situations than others, so teachers will want to excerpt.
| Author: Crossley-Holland, Kevin (compiler) |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Once Upon Ice
The author and 16 other poets respond in a variety of poetic forms to beautiful photographs of patterns created by ice.
| Author: Yolen, Jane |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Other Side, The
Spurred by a letter from her grandmother saying that "they're pulling Shorter down," the poet returns to the people and places of her childhood in Shorter, Alabama. The poems are accessible and concise but filled with powerful feeling. Photographs from
Out of the Dust
Set in Oklahoma during the Dust Bowl years of the Depression, this powerful book tells in unobtrusive blank verse the story of personal tragedy and community hardship through the experiences of Billy Jo, a 15-year-old girl. The book is so credible that
| Author: Hesse, Karen |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading | social studies
|
Paul Revere's Ride
Longfellow's famous poem tells the story of Revere's call to arms to his countryfolk in 1775.
| Author: Longfellow, Henry Wadsworth |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies
|
Peace, Locomotion
This book is a collection of the letters and poems Lonnie, hero of the book Locomotion, writes to his sister Lili, who lives with a different foster parent than Lonnie does. The book is remarkably upbeat while dealing with the family issues that Lonnie an
| Author: Woodson, Jacqueline |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - writing
|
Peace, Locomotion
This book is a collection of the letters and poems Lonnie, hero of the book Locomotion, writes to his sister Lili, who lives with a different foster parent than Lonnie does. The book is remarkably upbeat while dealing with the family issues that Lonnie an
| Author: Woodson, Jacqueline |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - writing
|
Poem of Her Own, A
A chronological collection of poems written by 25 American women poets from 1678 to the present. Brief biographies of each poet are included. An excellent essay by the editor describes the barriers and difficulties overcome by American women poets.
| Author: Clinton, Catherine, ed. |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Poet Slave of Cuba, The: A Biography of Juan Francisco Manzano
This true story of 19th Century Cuban poet Juan Francisco Manzano, who was born a slave, is told in free verse from various points of view--the boy, his mother, his father, and his owners.
| Author: Engle, Margarita |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading | social studies
|
Poetry for Young People: Edna St. Vincent Millay
Beautifully illustrated collection of Edna St. Vincent Millay's poetry. The volume also includes a sketch of the poet's life.
| Author: Francis Schoonmaker |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Relatively Speaking
Centered around a family reunion, a boy speaks about his older brother, his parents, grandparents, and extended family in short, easily accessible free verse.
Remember the Bridge
Illustrated by prints and black-and-white photographs and bracketed by two "bridge" poems, the poetry relates the experience of African Americans from Africa to the Civil Rights Movement.
| Author: Weatherford, Carole |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies
|
Roots and Blues
Adoff uses a shaped speech style to create images of the birth of jazz and its rhythms of life in the South from ancestral drumbeats to sounds of everyday life and work.The unique poetry prances across the page making it as unique as the American form of
| Author: Adoff, Arnold |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Sacred Places
This collection of 12 poems and accompanying paintings celebrates 12 holy and magical places around the world. End notes provide more information about the locations.
| Author: Yolen, Jane |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies
|
Science Verse
Repeating the success of Math Curse, the author and illustrator describe the "poetry of science" through parodies of famous poems. A CD is included.
| Author: Scieszka, John |
HSE Descriptors:
science
|
Shaker Hearts
A series of poems--Shaker mottos--are accompanied by lovely paintings by Wendell Minor. The book begins with an historical note on the Shakers and ends with explanations of terms and concepts. It is a celebration of the lifestyle and contributions of th
Shimmy, Shimmy, Shimmy Like My Sister Kate
Noted author Nikki Giovanni has selected and comments on poems by some of the greatest African-American writers of this century.
| Author: Giovanni, Nikki |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies | language arts - reading
|
Snow Toward Evening
In this book 13 poets and the landscape painter Thomas Locker combine to invite us to enjoy nature's splendor through the changing seasons.
| Author: Frank, Josette (Editor) |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Something Permanent
Walker Evans' photographs of southern United States during the Depression years are stark and haunting, and Cynthia Rylant's short poems describe their stories beautifully.
| Author: Rylant, Cynthia |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading | social studies
|
Song of Hiawatha, The
Excerpts from the long poem have been selected to tell the story of Hiawatha. Detailed illustrations accompany each excerpt.
| Author: Longfellow, Henry Wadsworth |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Song of the Water Boatman
Employing varied poetic forms and beautiful woodcut illustrations, the book invites the reader to visit the land, water, and underwater life of a pond throughout the seasons.
| Author: Sidman, Joyce |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading | science
|
Song Shoots Out of My Mouth, The
This is an exciting collection of vibrantly illustrated poetry about music--classical, jazz, gospel, blues, opera, marching band. Backnotes extend learning about music, artists, and key works.
| Author: Adoff, Jaime |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Soul Looks Back in Wonder, The
This lavishly illustrated book is a collection of 13 poems by African American poets such as Maya Angelou, Langston Hughes, and Alexis de Veaux.
| Author: Feelings, Tom |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Spirit Walker
This stunningly illustrated book of poetry celebrates a physical relationship with the earth and the philosophies, vision, and perspectives of Native Americans, especially the women.
| Author: Wood, Nancy |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Spring Thaw
In this deceptively simple and beautifully illustrated book, the sights and sounds of the first thaw come alive.
Spring: An Alphabet Acrostic
Description of spring using acrostic poetry and in alphabetical order. This is one of a series of acrostic books of the seasons. Illustrations are linoleum cuts that are colored by hand. The illustrations support the wonderful language used to show spri
| Author: Schnur, Steven |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading | language arts - writing
|
Spring: An Alphabet Acrostic
Description of spring using acrostic poetry and in alphabetical order. This is one of a series of acrostic books of the seasons. Illustrations are linoleum cuts that are colored by hand. The illustrations support the wonderful language used to show spri
| Author: Schnur, Steven |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading | language arts - writing
|
Star Walk
Simon explains in the introduction that the excerpts of famous poems selected to accompany the colorful telescopic photographs of planets, stars, and meteors do not "illustrate" but provide "a different way of looking at the same thing." Captions of the p
| Author: Simon, Seymour |
HSE Descriptors:
science
|
Stone Bench in an Empty Park
This is a concise introduction to classic and modern haiku poetry with lovely photographs and accessible poetry.
| Author: Paul B. Janeczko |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading | language arts - writing
|
Summer: An Alphabet Acrostic
Description of summer using acrostic poetry and told in alphabetical order. This is one of a series of books on the seasons. Illustrations are hand-colored linoleum block prints which support the text very well.
| Author: Schnur, Steven |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading | language arts - writing
|
Summer: An Alphabet Acrostic
Description of summer using acrostic poetry and told in alphabetical order. This is one of a series of books on the seasons. Illustrations are hand-colored linoleum block prints which support the text very well.
| Author: Schnur, Steven |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading | language arts - writing
|
Swan Song
The poet and artist collaborated to create poetic, humorous post-mortems for extinct creatures. A timeline crawls across the bottom margin and back matter provides more information about the creatures and their habitats.
| Author: Lewis, J. Patrick |
HSE Descriptors:
science
|
Sweet Corn
The poet writes mostly of summer things and illustrates with black pen and watercolor images. One reader found the use of varied type faces disconcerting.
Sweethearts of Rhythm: The story of the greatest all-girl swing band in the world
The 16-member, all-woman, racially diverse swing band The International Sweethearts of Rhythm from the war years of the 1940's are brought to life by the idiomatic speech and rhythms of Nelson's poetry and by Pinkney's vibrant illlustrations. The individ
| Author: Nelson, Marilyn |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading | social studies
|
Tai Chi Morning: Snapshots of China
The travel journal and poems of the author and the travel sketches of the illustrator combine to depict China a decade ago.
This Is the Dream
Accessible poetry and vivid illustrations portray the dreams and accomplishments of the Civil Rights Movement. The illustrator uses interesting collages for some borders and the endpapers.
| Author: Shore, Diane & Alexander, Jessica |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies
|
To Go Singing Through the World
The childhood of one of Chile's most famous poets is told through a juxtaposition of the author's narrative and Neruda's own words. This beautifully illustrated biography includes excerpts of poems, maps, a time line, and a concise full-life biography.
| Author: Ray, Deborah Kogan |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Tree Is Older Than You Are, The
In the introduction to this bilingual anthology of Mexican poems, stories, and paintings, the author relates her personal ties to Mexico, "a country of spirit where miracles feel close and possible." The author also includes an excellent index and a Note
| Author: Nye, Naomi (comp.) |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Twilight Comes Twice
The author describes in poetic prose the transition from dusk to night and night to dawn and the activities that take place during this quiet time.
Vherses: A Celebration of Outstanding Women
Beautiful woodcuts and brief biographical paragraphs accompany poems about Rachel Carson, Emily Dickinson, Gertrude Ederle, Ella Fitzgerald, Anne Frank, Jane Goodall, Martha Graham, Fannie Lou Hamer, Anne Morrow Lindbergh, Georgia O'Keefe, Eleanor Rooseve
| Author: Lewis, J. Patrick |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies
|
Voice of Her Own, A
This biography of Phillis Wheatley, a American Revolution era slave who became the first Black woman poet, includes excerpts of her poetry, an epilogue, and notes by the author and illustrator.
| Author: Lasky, Kathryn |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies | language arts - writing
|
Voices from the Fields
Photographs, poems, and interviews capture glimpses of life for today's migrant children.
| Author: Atkin, S. Beth |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies
|
Walt Whitman: Words for America
This biography of Walt Whitman extends our knowledge of the poet, both in his growth as a poet and learning of the experiences that were the source of his poetry. Back matter contains more biographical and historical information, sources, and full poems
| Author: Kerley, Barbara |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
War and the Pity of War
This large collection of powerful poems and very moving illustrations on war ranges over time and place and level of difficulty. The editor includes an index of writers, and index of poems, and an introduction thate gives his reasons for selecting partic
| Author: Philip, Neil |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading | social studies
|
Water Dance
Told in a first-person poetic narrative with illustrations that elicit emotional responses, water is described in its many forms--clouds, mist, rainbows, and rivers. A separate section explains the water cycle.
| Author: Locker, Thomas |
HSE Descriptors:
science
|
Way a Door Closes, The
Told in a poetry format, a teenage boy describes his reaction to his father's leaving the family, and then to his return.
| Author: Smith, Hope Anita |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading | language arts - writing
|
Way to Start the Day, The
This is a hard book to categorize. The simple text is written like blank verse. The content is basically true. The text focuses on how people around the world celebrate or acknowledge the sunrise.
| Author: Baylor, Bryd |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies
|
Welcome to the World
This poetry book also includes stunning photos from all over the world, from a Seminole poem written in the U.S. to poetry from Southeast Asia. It ends with two pages of information on birthing traditions.
| Author: Siegen-Smith, Nikki (compiled by) |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Whales, The
Part poem and part science lesson, this easy-to-read picture book "celebrates the joy and quiet dignity of these gentle giants of the deep" (dust cover).
| Author: Rylant, Cynthia |
HSE Descriptors:
science | language arts - reading
|
When Thunder Comes: Poems for Civil Rights Leaders
This book features 17 figures who fought against injustice and oppression all over the world. Against overwhelming odds and heartbreaking loss, they stood, they hoped, they spoke! These well and lesser known leaders are portrayed in poetry as heroes who h
| Author: Lewis, J. Patrick |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading | social studies | language arts - writing
|
Where the Buffalo Roam
An expanded version of the words to the song "Home on the Range" and watercolor illustrations portray the geography, petroglyphs, plants, and endangered wild animals of the American Southwest.
Why War Is Never A Good Idea
This beautifully illustrated poetic essay uses images of water and earth to communicate the destructiveness of war. Dscribes war as a "something which has grown old, but not wise as it destroys beautiful things and nice people."
| Author: Walker, Alice |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies
|
Winter
This beautifully illustrated alphabet picture book presents an acrostic poem for words relating to Winter. It is set in the far north and follows the season from the first heavy snowfall to the coming of spring.
| Author: Schnur, Steven |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - writing | language arts - reading
|
Winter Poems
This collection features 25 poems about different aspects of winter. Several very well known poets are included: Shakespeare, Wordsworth, Frost, Dickinson, Sandburg.
| Author: Rogasky, Barbara (compiler) |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Words with Wings
This riveting collection of paintings, prints, and sculpture by African-American artists enrich poems by outstanding African-American poets. The book includes a beautifully written introduction about the role of art and poetry and brief biographies of th
| Author: Rochelle, Belinda ed. |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Work Song
Oil illustrations and simple rhyming text depict people doing all kinds of work.
| Author: Paulsen, Gary |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies
|
World According to Dog, The
This is a charming collection of the author's poems and short essays about dogs written by teens.
Wreath for Emmett Till, A
Told in a poetic form known as heroic crown sonnets, the thoughtfully illustrated poem causes the reader to experience the murder of 14 year old Emmett Till in Mississippi. The author provides an introduction to the poetic form, biographical information
| Author: Nelson, Marilyn |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies | language arts - reading
|
Literature and Language > porquoi stories
Dragon New Year, The
A beautifully illustrated, imaginative tale about why the Chinese celebrate New Year with firecrackers. A bereaved mother is helped by Buddah to thwart the New Year dragon. The author includes the background information for his created myth.
Great Race, The
A grandmother helps her granddaughter arrange paper cutouts of the Chinese zodiac by telling her a story of how 12 animals race to reach the Jade City. The author includes an appendix with information about the Chinese zodiac.
Pond God and Other Stories, The
This unusual book of one-page pourquoi stories--of how things came to be--follows the tradition of Rudyard Kiplilng's Just So Stories and Aesop's Fables.
| Author: Keyser, Samuel J. |
|
Literature and Language > rhythm
Autumn
Autumn, an alphabet book of acrostics with linoleum-cut prints, describes the seasonal sights, sounds, and colors.
Big Talk
Three poems are presented graphically with four color-coded bars to represent four voices for choral reading. The rhythms of the poems progress from easy to more difficult. The author provides a section on "How to read this book" and "Helpful hints."
Django: World's Greatest Jazz Guitarist
In descriptive, poetic, rhythmic (8 count meter per line as the rhythm of music) text the life story of Django Reinhardt is sketched for the reader. The illustrations offer a glimpse into the life of gypsies and the challenges this guitarist endured to be
| Author: Christensen, Bonnie |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies
|
Django: World's Greatest Jazz Guitarist
In descriptive, poetic, rhythmic (8 count meter per line as the rhythm of music) text the life story of Django Reinhardt is sketched for the reader. The illustrations offer a glimpse into the life of gypsies and the challenges this guitarist endured to be
| Author: Christensen, Bonnie |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies
|
Here in Harlem
Walter Dean Myers recreates the Harlem of his youth in poetry and populates it with colorful characters through their voices.
| Author: Myers, Walter Dean |
|
Jazz ABZ
Each letter of the alphabet introduces a famous jazz musician in a different poetic form. Of particular interest to teachers and students are the biographical sketches of the musicians and excellent notes on the poetic forms. The phenominal art work is
| Author: Marsalis, Wynton |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Relatively Speaking
Centered around a family reunion, a boy speaks about his older brother, his parents, grandparents, and extended family in short, easily accessible free verse.
Song Shoots Out of My Mouth, The
This is an exciting collection of vibrantly illustrated poetry about music--classical, jazz, gospel, blues, opera, marching band. Backnotes extend learning about music, artists, and key works.
| Author: Adoff, Jaime |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
This Jazzman
Using vibrant colors, typeface, and onomatopoetic words, the author and illustrator introduce readers to types of jazz musicians. Back pages provide biographical information on jazz greats.
| Author: Ehrhardt, Karen |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Tour America
The poet chooses to write about 26 favorite locations in the United States, pairing the varied poetic forms with mixed media that reflects the essence of the site. Maps and a list of art works enchance this combination of history, geography, art, and poe
Literature and Language > sayings
Lost: A Story in String
Using string figures, a grandmother tells a story of the uses of imagination and resourcefulness. Beautiful black-and-white clayboard and ink illustrations and clear diagrams and resources encourage readers to try the string figures.
Signers, The
A companion to The Founders, this book tells short 2-3 page stories of the Declaration of Independence and the people who signed it. It is organized by state by state.
| Author: Fradin, Dennis |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies
|
Literature and Language > shouts
Carolina Shout
A young girl wanders the streets of Charleston from sun up to sun set capturing the vendors' calls and the sounds of the street. The book begs to be read aloud.
Literature and Language > sign language
Miss Spitfire
Using real letters and records, the author vividly imagines the early days of the relationship between Helen Keller and Anne Sullivan from the teacher's perspective.
Miss Spitfire
Using real letters and records, the author vividly imagines the early days of the relationship between Helen Keller and Anne Sullivan from the teacher's perspective.
Literature and Language > speeches
Change Has Come
Pencil drawings accompany excerpts from several of Barack Obama's speeches.
| Author: Obama, Barack |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies
|
Change Has Come
Pencil drawings accompany excerpts from several of Barack Obama's speeches.
| Author: Obama, Barack |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies
|
Civil War
Illustrations include photographs, posters, and paintings from the archives at the Library of Congress. Quotes from speeches and letters are sprinkled throughout. This book presents information about battles and soldiers' lives as well as the impact of
| Author: Sandler, Martin |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies
|
Gettysburg Address, The
The book uses Lincoln's actual words, which he spoke when consecrating the Pennsylvania cemetery. Each line is illustrated in black and white illustrations. It includes a foreword and afterword.
| Author: Lincoln, Abraham |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies
|
I Have a Dream
The text of the "I Have a Dream" speech is accompanied by illustrations from noted Coretta Scott King Award and Honor Book artists. The Foreword by Mrs. King explains the project, and notes from each artist explain details of the illustrations.
| Author: King, Dr. Martin Luter, Jr. |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies
|
Martin's Big Words
Brief and easy-to-read biographical statements are accompanied by MLK's words and award-winning illustrations. An abbreviated Civil Rights chronology and bibliography conclude the book.
| Author: Rappaport, Doreen |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies
|
Literature and Language > storytelling
47
In this part fictional slave narrative and part science fiction story, 47, a young slave without a name, learns from mysterious Tall John how to "neither a master nor a nigger be".
| Author: Mosley, Walter |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies
|
Adventures of the Greek Heroes
The simple vocabulary and simple sentence structure of this retelling of several Greek myths makes this a useful text in a multilevel classroom. The black and white illustrations imitate the style of painting on Greek pottery. An introduction and a pron
| Author: McLean, Mollie & Wiseman, Anne |
HSE Descriptors:
literature and arts
|
Androcles and the Lion
This book retells the fable of Androcles, a runaway Roman slave, who befriends a wounded lion.
| Author: Nolan, Dennis |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Anno's Magic Seeds
A wizard gives Jack magic seeds, which he cultivates, and he reaps ever increasing harvests until a storm forces him to begin all over again. The reader is encouraged to predict Jack's progress.
| Author: Anno, Mitsumasa |
HSE Descriptors:
math
|
Bearskin
A bear with magical powers raises a foundling who grows up to marry a princess, fulfilling an old prophecy. An Afterword directs the reader to sources for the tale.
Before I Was Your Mother
A mother tells her daughter stories about herself before she became a mother who does many things.
Big Jabe
This tall tale relates how Jabe helped slaves.
Big Mama Makes the World
A simple text and colorful illustrations retell the creation story with a mother as the creator. Some readers might be offended by the non-traditional creation story. Others could find the illustrations childish.
Big Talk
Three poems are presented graphically with four color-coded bars to represent four voices for choral reading. The rhythms of the poems progress from easy to more difficult. The author provides a section on "How to read this book" and "Helpful hints."
Blues Singers, The
The author tells his granddaughter about the origin of blues in America through 10 stories of great blues musicians he and his father had known. The interesting illustrations are done in a thick line, solid color style. A bibliography and a recording li
| Author: Lester, Julius |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Butter Man, The
The father of a young child recalls a time of poverty and famine in Morocco. Written in descriptive language, this is a story within a story. Rich author's note and glossary help support this read to become a literary event. Folk art paintings by Julie
| Author: Alalou, Elizabeth |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading | social studies
|
Christmas Tapestry
While seeking to renovate their church, a minister and his son help reunite a Jewish couple separated in World War II.
| Author: Polacco, Patricia |
|
Cloudmakers, The
In A.D. 751 during a time of war, a Chinese grandfather and grandson have 7 days to prove that they can "make clouds" or risk being sold into slavery. The result is Chinese paper, which earns them their freedom and marks a turning point in human history.
| Author: Rumford, James |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies
|
Code Talkers
After attending a white boarding school where his Navajo language and culture were belittled and punished, Ned Begay served as a code talker with the US Marines during operations in the Pacific during World War II. The narrator tells his story to his gra
| Author: Bruchac, Joseph |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies
|
Coyote Makes Man
In this Native American creation myth, when coyote calls all the animals together to create the first human being, each animal models man after himself, causing coyote to resolve the dilemma. The illustrations are beautiful examples of collage.
Dragon New Year, The
A beautifully illustrated, imaginative tale about why the Chinese celebrate New Year with firecrackers. A bereaved mother is helped by Buddah to thwart the New Year dragon. The author includes the background information for his created myth.
From Miss Ida's Porch
People from the street gather on Miss Ida's porch to hear stories, especially stories about important Black musicians (Lena Horne, Duke Ellington, Marian Anderson) and their personal connections to them. These I-remember-when stories are both heartfelt a
| Author: Belton, Sandra |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies
|
Gifts from the Sea
The lives of a lighthousekeeper and his daughter are changed by the discovery of a baby washed ashore after a shipwreck on the coast of Maine in the 1850's.
| Author: Kinsey-Warnock, Natalie |
|
Golem
Illustrated with beautiful cut-paper collages, the author/illustrator retells the legend of the Golem (a man created from clay), who saves the Jews of 16th Century Prague from persecution. A lengthy endnote recounts the history of the Golem and the perse
| Author: Wisniewski, David |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Great Race, The
A grandmother helps her granddaughter arrange paper cutouts of the Chinese zodiac by telling her a story of how 12 animals race to reach the Jade City. The author includes an appendix with information about the Chinese zodiac.
Great Stone Face, The
The author retells a famous Hawthorne story about how a New England village interprets a mountain's "face" over the years as fulfilling the prophecy of revealing the noblest person of the time.
| Author: Schmidt, Gary/Hawthorne Nathaniel |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Growing Up in Coal Country
Based on primary documents and oral histories, this book tells the stories of life in the coal mines in eastern Pennsylvania around the turn of the 20th century.
| Author: Bartoletti, Susan |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies
|
Hero Beowulf, The
This prose retelling of the first part of the earliest poem in English (Anglo Saxon, actually) has strong, vibrant illustrations and helpful supplementary material.
| Author: Kimmel, Eric A. |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Hired Hand, The
When Old Sam hires a new hand to work at the sawmill, the hired hand teaches Sam's lazy son a lesson when the son tries to con an old man. Retold from an oral African American tale, the story is beautifully illustrated by Jerry Pinkney.
| Author: San Souci, R. |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Last Leaf First Snowflake to Fall
Part creation myth, part father/son initiation story, the book beautifully depicts a journey through the woods as the scene changes from fall to winter.
| Author: Yerxa, Leo |
HSE Descriptors:
science
|
Legend of Sleepy Hollow, The
This book is a wonderfully retold version of the classic story by Washington Irving. The illustrations contribute to the mysterious mood.
| Author: Irving, Washington |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading | social studies
|
Lost: A Story in String
Using string figures, a grandmother tells a story of the uses of imagination and resourcefulness. Beautiful black-and-white clayboard and ink illustrations and clear diagrams and resources encourage readers to try the string figures.
Lugalbanda
This retelling of the oldest recorded story ever found from Sumer (now Iraq) recounts the journey of a young prince as he crosses the mountains to join a war and find his brothers, overcoming obstacles on his way. The book includes interesting historical
| Author: Henderson, Kathy |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Morning Milking
Although one OLRC reviewer was concerned that urban readers might not recognize the relevance of this quiet, reflective book, we found this gentle story of a farm child wishing she could make time stand still a lovely celebration of life, of barns and ani
| Author: Morris, Linda Lowe |
|
My Great Aunt Arizona
Based on the author's great aunt, Arizona was born in a log cabin. All her life she dreamed of visiting far-away places. She became a teacher and never left the area, but taught several generations of children to share her dreams.
| Author: Houston, Gloria |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies
|
Noah's Ark
Well-known author-illustrator Jerry Pinkney retells the story of Noah and the ark that survives the flooding of the earth in a simple narrative and wonderfully detailed pictures.
Once Upon a Poem: Favorite Poems that Tell Stories
About a dozen narrative poems are included in this collection. Some will work better in adult literacy situations than others, so teachers will want to excerpt.
| Author: Crossley-Holland, Kevin (compiler) |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
People Could Fly, The
These collected folk tales that were told by slaves fall into four categories: animal stories, tall tales, the supernatural, and tales of freedom. The author includes an introduction and a bibliography.
| Author: Hamilton, Virginia |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Pink and Say
This long picture book tells the story of Pinkus Aylee, an African-American soldier in the Civil War, and of his mother, Moe Bay and of his friendship with a young White boy. A moving book that may be more appropriate for adults than for children, it cel
| Author: Polacco, Patricia |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies
|
Pond God and Other Stories, The
This unusual book of one-page pourquoi stories--of how things came to be--follows the tradition of Rudyard Kiplilng's Just So Stories and Aesop's Fables.
| Author: Keyser, Samuel J. |
|
Rabbit, the Fox, and the Wolf, The
The three creatures of the title confront each other in this wordless book with an unexpected conclusion.
Roots and Blues
Adoff uses a shaped speech style to create images of the birth of jazz and its rhythms of life in the South from ancestral drumbeats to sounds of everyday life and work.The unique poetry prances across the page making it as unique as the American form of
| Author: Adoff, Arnold |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
School for Pompey Walker, A
At the dedication of a school named for him, Pompey Walker tells how he and a white friend, Jeremiah, raised money to build a school for ex-slave children. With the help of his friend, Pompey allows himself to be sold over and over again, escaping each t
| Author: Rosen, Michael J. |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies
|
Show Way
Simple text and stunning illustrations tell the intergenerational story of Woodson's ancestors.
| Author: Woodson, Jacqueline |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies
|
Silver Packages
A man returns to his childhood home in Appalachia to thank the benefactor on the Christmas Train. The story originally appeared in Rylant's book Children of Christmas: Stories for the Season.
Stitching Stars: The Story Quilts of Harriet Powers
The book recounts both the story of Harriet Powers during the century of the Civil War and the story of her two "story quilts" that now reside in museums. The book is illustrated with photographs of Bible stories from the quilts with explanatory captions
| Author: Lyons, Mary |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies
|
Story of the Three Kingdoms, The
This colorfully illustrated fable celebrates the gift of storytelling.
| Author: Myers, Walter Dean |
|
Swan Lake
An expanded retelling of the story of Tchaikovsky's ballet Swan Lake.The author retells the story of Swan Lake within his narrative of the Damavand empire. Van Allsburg's illustrations highlight the events of the story.
| Author: Helprin, Mark |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Taste of Salt
This gripping novel tells the story of two teenagers in Haiti, Djo, one of Aristides' orphaned boys who is hospitalized with terrible injuries, and Jeremie, a convent-educated girl who visits Djo to hear his stories and who begins to fall in love with him
Time to Love, A
Beautifully illustrated and ably introduced by sons of the author, this book retells six Bible stories from different perspectives, all revealing aspects of love--father/son, friends, brothers, lovers, and daughters-in-law. Teachers can promote religious
| Author: Myers, Walter Dean |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Veil of Snows, The
In the absence of her husband who has not returned from battle, the queen prepares her city for assault. Aided by a small force of loyal soldiers and the Singer of Tales who narrates the story, the queen escapes the besieged city and heads for the safety
| Author: Helprin, Mark |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading | social studies
|
Walking the Choctaw Road
A collection of twelve stories from the Mississippi and Oklahoma branches of the Choctaw People, including traditional lore arising from beliefs and myths, historical tales pased down through generations, and personal stories of contemporary life.
| Author: Tingle, Tim |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies | language arts - reading
|
War, The
A young prince, who dislikes war, cleverly provides an alternative to fighting.
Weave of Words, A
A young king uses his literacy and weaving skills to send a message to the queen who frees him from his captors. The copyright page contains information on the origins of this Armenian tale.
| Author: San Souci, Robert |
|
White Wave
Retold from ancient sources, this Chinese tale of a lonely peasant's discovery of a magic shell relates the changes in his life that follow. The delicate pencil drawings by Ed Young complement the text. The author includes a note on the evolution of the
| Author: Wolkstein, Diane |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Winter Room, The
This book tells the story of Eldon, a boy growing up in the mid-20th century in rural Minnesota. He and his brother Wayne work hard to help out on the farm, but have time for fun and adventures too. After a short introduction, the book is structured in
Wolf of Gubbio, The
A legend tells the story of a wolf who terriorizes a community until the boy who became St.Francis of Assisi, negotates an agreement.
Year of Fire, The
Grandpa tells granddaughter about the worst fire he has ever known, a fire that happened when the grandfather was a child. (based on a true story)
Zoom
The pictures tell the story in this clever book. Perspective changes as each picture is a zoom-in or zoom-out of the preceding one.
Literature and Language > tone
Literature and Language > world literature
Androcles and the Lion
This book retells the fable of Androcles, a runaway Roman slave, who befriends a wounded lion.
| Author: Nolan, Dennis |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Cupid and Psyche
This is a retelling of the classic Greek myth.
| Author: Craft, M. Charlotte |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Don Quixote and the Windmills
This retelling of the famous Spanish novel by Cervantes recounts Don Quixote's first adventure as a knight. An Author's Note contributes historical information about Cervantes.
| Author: Kimmel, Eric |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Lives of the Writers: Comedies, Tragedies (and What the Neighbors Thought)
Organized chronologically, the book offers short biographies of famous writers with intriguing anecdotes to encourage readers to seek the literary works. The book includes a useful index, a glossary of literary terms and a short bibliography. Each biblio
| Author: Krull, Kathleen |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Shakespeare, His World and His Work
This book explores the world of William Shakespeare through beautiful illustrations and diagrams, quotations from plays, a detailed timeline, a bibliography, and a closer look at five plays--A Midsummer Night's Dream, Macbeth, King L
| Author: Rosen, Michael |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Tempest, The
This is a prose retelling of Shakespeare's play The Tempest, a story of an exiled Duke and his daughter during their stay on an enchanted island. The book ends with an author's note.
| Author: Shakespeare, William (retold by Coville, Brice) |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Twelfth Night
This is a narrative retelling of Shakespeare's play. Many of the famous lines are embedded in the narrative.
| Author: Shakespeare, William (retold B. Coville) |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Literature and Language > writing
Adventures of Marco Polo, The
The author recounts the 13th Century life and exploration of the famous Venetian, Marco Polo. The fascinating illustrations reflect the style of the time and place of each segment of the story. The author includes ample supplemental information on the a
| Author: Freedman, Russell |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies
|
Autumn
Autumn, an alphabet book of acrostics with linoleum-cut prints, describes the seasonal sights, sounds, and colors.
Books Speak!: Poems about Books
A delightful collection of poems about books and the joys of reading. This amazing collection of poems about all aspects of books and reading is a fun to read book.
| Author: Salas, Laura Purdie |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading | language arts - writing
|
Go Hang a Salami!
The author has created and illustrated humorous palindromes, or phrases that read the same backward and forward.
Language of Doves, The
On her sixth birthday, Julietta's grandfather gives her one of his homing pigeons and tells her about his experiences raising and training doves for military use in Italy during WWI.
| Author: Wells, Rosemary |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies
|
Library Book, The
Although the title is a clever pun, this book recounts the history of storing language from tablets to information systems, highlighting famous libraries in the process. Side bars include additional facts and many web sites are included in the resources.
| Author: Sawa, Maureen |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies
|
Matchbox Diary, The
An Italian immigrant grandfather uses objects he's preserved in matchboxes to tell his granddaughter the story of his life. He created this unique diary because he could not read or write.
| Author: Fleischman, Paul |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading | social studies
|
Mighty Miss Malone, The
Newberry Award winning author Christopher Paul Curtis has written a heart wrenching historical novel about one unforgettable family during the turbulent days of the Great Depression. Each family member has his/her own drama and the plot centers around a
| Author: Curtis,Christopher |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Mr. Lincoln's Whiskers
Grace, an 11 year-old girl writes a letter to Abraham Lincoln suggesting that he grow whiskers to help him win the election.
| Author: Winnick, Karen |
HSE Descriptors:
social studies
|
Romeo and Juliet, (The Most Excellent and Lamentable Tragedy of)
This lively, clear, prose retelling of
Shakespeare's play Romeo and Juliet follows the original story very closely.
| Author: Shakespeare, William |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Song Shoots Out of My Mouth, The
This is an exciting collection of vibrantly illustrated poetry about music--classical, jazz, gospel, blues, opera, marching band. Backnotes extend learning about music, artists, and key works.
| Author: Adoff, Jaime |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
Tai Chi Morning: Snapshots of China
The travel journal and poems of the author and the travel sketches of the illustrator combine to depict China a decade ago.
Ubiquitous: Celebrating Nature's Survivors
This book offers a unique perspective on the biological "survivors" found in our environment by combining informational text passages with poetic verses. Check out the wild and crazy timeline on the end pages.
| Author: Sidman, Joyce |
HSE Descriptors:
science | language arts - reading
|
Voices of the Heart
The author-illustrator creates stunning collages of Chinese characters and the Western symbol for the heart. The text reflects on the wisdom expressed by the components of the ideogram.
| Author: Young, Ed |
HSE Descriptors:
language arts - reading
|
With a Hammer for My Heart
When 15-year-old Lawanda befriends a WW II veteran living in an old school bus, she sets in motion events that will change her life and all those around her. The well-written story unfolds with each chapter telling the story from the point of view of eac
| Author: Lyon, George Ella |
|
Worldwide Check into In the flavour this generate
| Author: ydif66 |
HSE Descriptors:
science | social studies
|
|
