Book Review - One For The Murphys

Author: Lynda Mullaly Hunt
Publisher: Nancy Paulsen Books/Penguin (May 10, 2012)
Source: Copy for review
Read Aloud: Grades 4th to 8th
Independent Reading Level: Grades 4th to 8th
Fiction * Foster Care * Family 

Description from GoodReads:
A moving debut novel about a foster child learning to open her heart to a family's love

Carley uses humor and street smarts to keep her emotional walls high and thick. But the day she becomes a foster child, and moves in with the Murphys, she's blindsided. This loving, bustling family shows Carley the stable family life she never thought existed, and she feels like an alien in their cookie-cutter-perfect household. Despite her resistance, the Murphys eventually show her what it feels like to belong--until her mother wants her back and Carley has to decide where and how to live. She's not really a Murphy, but the gifts they've given her have opened up a new future.

My thoughts on the book:
This is a tissue book.  Yeah, just thinking about the book, I have to pull out the tissues again. *wipes eyes, starts again to write* This is also a good book.  It came highly recommended and after reading it I understand why.  I challenge someone to start this book and not finish it in one sitting?  I couldn't put it down.  As a reader, I was so drawn into Carley's story that I just had to keep reading.   

Lynda Mullaly Hunt has created a very special book.  Readers will be pulled in by Carley, her story and by the Murphys just like Carley is drawn in.  Carley's own family life has been far from stable.  Raised by a single mother, Carley has been taught street-wise survival skills but after a severe beating by her step-father, Carley is placed in foster care.  Carley has heard about foster care and she is fully prepared not to like the Murphys.  Initially, Carley is determined to use humor, sarcasm, and even some anger to keep the family at a distance.  Over time,  Carley learns that there may be more choices in life for her than she originally believed. 

Writing stories about children in tough home situations or foster care can be a dangerous road to walk for an author.  Finding the right message and the right balance between telling it like it is and writing a "happily ever after" story is not easy.  Hunt has created a touching, heart-warming story that still manages to ring true and not gloss over some of the more difficult issues and choices that children such as Carley face while in foster care.  As Carley grows and develops from her interactions with the Murphys and with some of the students at her school, the reader also sees how Carley changes their lives as well.   

Since I wanted to know if I should include One For The Murphys in my fall recommendations to students and teachers, I knew I had to read this one before the school year was too far in.  I am glad that I have read it and excited to share Carley and her story with students and teachers.  This will definitely be one book that I recommend over and over again.   
 
Check out the book trailer below:



For more information on author Lynda Mullaly Hunt: website | blog | twitter | facebook | 

It's Monday! What are you reading? From Picture Books to YA (37)

It's Monday! What are you reading? is hosted by Sheila of Book Journey. Jen & Kellee from Teach Mentor Texts have adapted this to focus on Picture Books to Young Adult Books.

I had a very slow reading week with the start of school this past week.  I had a number of late evenings and just did not get any real reading time.  I have also held off on a book so that I can add it to my Wednesday Nonfiction Picture Book post. 

Here are a couple of highlights from the past week:

Raining Cats and Detectives (Guinea Pig, Pet Shop Private Eye) by Colleen AF Venable - I checked out the Advanced Reader's Copy of the 5th book in Colleen AF Venable's Guinea Pig, Pet Shop Private Eye series.  I haven't read the first books in this series, but now I want to read them.  I think my students will enjoy this early middle grade graphic novel series.

Chuck Close: Face Book by Francoise Mouly - This middle grade nonfiction book focuses on the artist Chuck Close.  Through a series of Questions and Answers, the reader finds out about Close's life and how he creates his art.  Fascinating.

One for the Murphys by Lynda Mullaly Hunt - Check out my review of this tomorrow. 

So what are you reading this week?

Ivy & Bean Day Blog-a-Bration Week 2

And the count down to the 1st Annual International Ivy & Bean Day continues.  This week Chronicle Books is giving away a copy of Ivy & Bean Book 2: And the Ghost that Had to Go to one lucky winner and a set of mini-note cards to 3 other winners. Click here to check out the Ivy & Bean official page.

I went in search of a great video to show prospective readers about why you should read Ivy & Bean if you haven't.

Teachers you will love this one produced by Chronicle Books:



And I loved this one as an introduction to Ivy & Bean:



Other Bloggers celebrating Ivy & Bean Blog-a-Bration:

                     Media Darlings                                  

                     There's A Book                                  

                    In the Pages                                      

                      The O.W.L.                                         

                  Coquette Maman                            

                   Ruth Ayres Writes                           

Watch. Connect. Read.

                 One Page to the Next                    

                 Van Meter Library Voice               

               The Family That Reads Together

                Roundtable Reviews for Kids      

                 Sharpread                                    

                                                               The Children's Book Review        

This week's giveaway will run from August 23rd to August 26th.  Don't forget to enter the giveaway by filling in the form at the bottom of the page.

The Winners of this week's giveaways will be entered into the Grand Prize Giveaway.  Thanks Chronicle Books for this great prize pack:

A complete set of Ivy and Bean hardcover books signed by Annie Barrows 

1 set of Ivy and Bean Paper Dolls 

1 Ivy and Bean Button Factory 

1 Ivy and Bean READ Poster signed by Annie Barrows 

Set of Ivy and Bean Silly Bandz · Set of Ivy and Bean stickers 

AND – a super-secret really cool prize we’re working on (stay tuned!) 

Non-fiction Picture Book Wednesday - Bird Talk

Author/Illustrator: Lita Judge
Publisher: Flash Point/Macmillan (March 13, 2012)
Source: Personal Copy
Read Aloud: Grades 1st to 4th
Independent Reading: Grades 2nd to 5th
Nonfiction * Communication * Birds

Description from GoodReads:
A gorgeously illustrated tribute to birds of all kinds and the fantastic, funny, fascinating things that they do.

Birds have lots of ways of communicating: They sing and talk, dance and drum, cuddle and fight. But what does all of the bird talk mean?
Filled with gorgeous illustrations, this fascinating picture book takes a look at the secret life of birds in a child-friendly format that is sure to appeal to readers of all ages - whether they're die-hard bird-watchers or just curious about the creatures in their own backyards.

My thoughts on this book:
Since I have been keeping an eye out for nonfiction picture books, I have been looking for this book for several months.  I was so excited when it finally showed up in my local bookstore this past week.  From the title and the cover, I was curious to discover what the book would entail.  Would it be funny? Easy to read? Dry and boring? I am happy to report that the illustrations are gorgeous watercolors.  You must check out the link below where Lita Judge has posted examples of the pages.
  

This is one of my favorites in the book (apologies for the bad photography).  Don't you just love that illustration of the Blue Bird hanging upside down and showing off? 

The pairing of various colored birds on a page or the featuring of one bird on a stark white background catches the eye and draws the reader in.  Isn't this picture of a Palm Cockatoo gorgeous? 

As for the text, I enjoyed how Judge set up each section before going into further explanation.  The book looks at various forms of communication that birds use.  For example, "Parents and chicks learn the sound of each others voices." is then followed by several examples of how this occurs with various birds.  

What I also enjoyed about Bird Talk is that it didn't fall into the heavily technical end of nonfiction.  It reads well, provides just the right amount of information about bird communication to help younger readers develop a basic understanding which will hopefully propel them into further reading on the topic.  I liked the pages at the end where the list of birds is provided.  However, I would have loved to see a suggestion for further reading for children included at the end.  

Judge's Bird Talk would make a beautiful addition to a school's or classroom's library.  Look for this book at your local school or public library, or consider purchasing it at your local independent bookstore.

Click here to read a blog post where Lita Judge discusses Bird Talk.  Check out the examples of the artwork, click here. 

For more information about Lita Judge: website | blog | YouTube | twitter  

Don't forget to link up your nonfiction picture book reviews below: 

Book Review - Three Times Lucky

Author: Sheila Turnage
Publisher: Dial Books for Young Readers/Penguin (May 10, 2012)
Read Aloud: Grades 4th to 8th
Independent Reading: Grades 5th to 8th
Source: Review Copy; Personal Copy
Fiction *

Description from Penguin:
A hilarious Southern debut with the kind of characters you meet once in a lifetime.

Rising sixth grader Miss Moses LoBeau lives in the small town of Tupelo Landing, NC, where everyone's business is fair game and no secret is sacred. She washed ashore in a hurricane eleven years ago, and she's been making waves ever since. Although Mo hopes someday to find her "upstream mother," she's found a home with the Colonel--a café owner with a forgotten past of his own--and Miss Lana, the fabulous café hostess. She will protect those she loves with every bit of her strong will and tough attitude. So when a lawman comes to town asking about a murder, Mo and her best friend, Dale Earnhardt Johnson III, set out to uncover the truth in hopes of saving the only family Mo has ever known.

Full of wisdom, humor, and grit, this timeless yarn will melt the heart of even the sternest Yankee.

My thoughts on this book:

"Trouble cruised into Tupelo Landing at exactly seven minutes past noon on Wednesday, the third of June, flashing a gold badge and driving a Chevy Impala the color of dirt.  Almost before the dust had settled, Mr. Jesse turned up dead and life in Tupelo Landing turned upside down." - Three Times Lucky, Sheila Turnage

Thus begins the opening paragraph of Turnage's debut middle grade novel set in the fictional town of Tupelo Landing, North Carolina.  Are you hooked? I was.  

The story is told from the perspective of Miss Moses "Mo" LoBeau, rising sixth grader.  Mo is spunky and has a penchant for getting into her fair share of trouble along with her best friend, Dale Earnhardt Johnson III.  This middle grade mystery has several layers to uncover not just "who killed Mr. Jesse".   Readers soon discover that Mo has been trying to find her "upstream mother" for years.  She was rescued as an infant by the Colonel during a hurricane when he found her attached to a raft floating downstream.  Mo lives with the Colonel and Miss Lana who have been her guardians and the only parents she has known her whole life.  However, the Colonel and Miss Lana seem to have some secrets as well.  As Mo and Dale seek to discover who killed Mr. Jesse, where the Colonel has disappeared to, and more, pieces of everyone's stories are revealed.

Three Times Lucky hits all of the things that I like about a story.  Great characters that you find yourself wanting to know in real life, lots of things that make you laugh, just enough mystery and action to keep the story moving and some absolutely great one lines (and I am certain I didn't even pick the best ones).

"He's dead." he said promptly. Dale has a nose for the obvious.

"Dale can choose not to worry like he chooses not to wear socks. Miss Lana says I have more of a Jack Russell brain. I think things apart for sport.”

I shook my head. "Our drink du jour is Mountain Dew," I said. "I got a two-liter breathing in back."

For as many laughs in this book, there are also some serious issues such as Dale's father who drinks heavily and is physically abusive to his wife and son.  This does have a more hopeful resolution than I suspect is true for most cases of domestic abuse.

In looking at the comments/reviews of other individuals, I noticed that some had concerns with the portrayal of people from the south.  It might be easy to dismiss this story as just another one of those books that portray all Southerners as backwards, ignorant, and foolish. I am reminded of the TED talk The Danger of a Single Story,  Chimamanda Adichie warns "that if we hear only a single story about another person or a country, we risk a critical misunderstanding".  It is a powerful speech and one worth listening to.  Educators should take heed in that if the only books we shared with students were stories about poor, ignorant Southerners living in small towns, then we too would be "in danger of a single story".  However, there are Southerners (just like there are northerners) that live in small towns filled with eccentric, quirky characters.  Our responsibility as educators and reading leaders is to provide students with a rich variety that represents all types of people living in a specific region or during a designated time period.

Since I listened to the audiobook, narrated by Michal Freidman, I may have been struck more by the language Turnage uses to describe things.  There are tons of sayings and phrases that would keep a teacher of English Language Learners busy for weeks exploring what they all mean.  I quickly realized that if I (a Northern Yankee) tried to read this one aloud students would miss the cadence and rhythm of the story which is essential to understanding the setting and feel of the story, and to appreciating various aspects of the characters.  From this, I think I was struck by the importance of sharing a story like Mo LoBeau's with students.  

Though I admit that I truly enjoyed Three Times Lucky, I recognize that others may not have the same feelings.  I respect their choice to include or not include this in their classroom selections, but I do hope that they would give either the book or audiobook a chance before making that decision. 

For more information about Sheila Turnage: website | blog | facebook