The Giver Movie Review

THE GIVER is based on Lois Lowry’s beloved young adult novel of the same name, which was the winner the 1994 Newbery Medal and has sold over 10 million copies worldwide.  Starring Jeff Bridges, Brenton Thwaites, Meryl Streep, Katie Holmes, Alexander Skarsgard, Cameron Monaghan, Odeya Rush, and Taylor Swift, THE GIVER will be in theaters everywhere August 15th.

SYNOPSIS:  
The haunting story of THE GIVER centers on Jonas (Brenton Thwaites), a young man who lives in a seemingly ideal, if colorless, world of conformity and contentment. Yet as he begins to spend time with The Giver (Jeff Bridges), who is the sole keeper of all the community’s memories, Jonas quickly begins to discover the dark and deadly truths of his community’s secret past. With this newfound power of knowledge, he realizes that the stakes are higher than imagined – a matter of life and death for himself and those he loves most. At extreme odds, Jonas knows that he must escape their world to protect them all – a challenge that no one has ever succeeded at before. THE GIVER is based on Lois Lowry’s beloved young adult novel of the same name, which was the winner the 1994 Newbery Medal and has sold over 10 million copies worldwide. 

Official Movie Trailer:

My thoughts on the movie:

Thanks to Walden Pond Press, my 13 year old niece and I had the opportunity to see the premiere showing of THE GIVER movie but without the crowds and noise of being in New York City.  It was arranged for us to see THE GIVER in Burbank.  For the first hour plus, the audience watched the taped interviews and Red Carpet moments of the cast as emceed by Ben Lyons.  

While we waited for the movie to begin, Jax and I chatted about what it would be like.  We have both read and loved THE GIVER book, but after seeing several movie trailers there was certainly some trepidation.  We settled on thinking about it as something completely different and not a book to movie adaptation. Leading up to the movie we also tried to think of an alternate name to reflect what we most certainly expected to be completely different from the book. However, no luck in renaming it.

Once the movie began, we settled in to watch.  I was glad that in some ways we had forbidden ourselves from comparing and contrasting the book to movie adaptation or we might have done it throughout the whole premiere.  At the beginning, there are things that though they are similar, they also appear quite different.  The age of the characters for one.  No longer is Jonas a twelve year old about to attend the Ceremony of Twelves but he is instead eighteen years old, about to graduate, and be assigned his job for the future.  And rather than ceremonies for the different age groups, there is now only  the Ceremony for 9's and the one for 18 year olds.  

Despite trying to to fight the inevitable making of comparisons, I focused on what I did love. The first time Jonas walks into the home of the Giver, I immediately fell in love with the spiral staircase and the shelves and shelves of books.  The conversation between the Chief Elder as portrayed by Meryl Streep's character, and the Giver portrayed by Jeff Bridges nearly gave me chills. And Jonas as played by Brenton Thwaites as he discovers the truth about his world and also learns about the world of emotions and feelings.  At one point, in the movie, I realized that I had become wrapped up with what was on the screen.  This was a good sign. 

Though different in some ways, the spirit of the book is maintained in the on-screen version and maybe even expanded on a bit. So, what is my verdict and Jax's verdict...It was worth going to see. 

Memories from reading THE GIVER:

Last November, while I was at NCTE '13 in Boston, Walden Media invited a number of authors, teachers and librarians to share about their memories of THE GIVER the book.  As a special treat, I am sharing the video that features Gary Schmidt, Laurie Halse Anderson, Andrea Pinkney, Jack Gantos and Anita Silvey.  If you watch till the end, you will also see some Nerdy Book Club friends.  

I leave you with the video of The Ordinary Human by One Republic - Theme Song for THE GIVER movie:

Nonfiction Picture Book Wednesday - Ben Franklin's Big Splash

Ben Franklin's Big Splash: The Mostly True Story of His First Invention

by Barb Rosenstock; Illustrated by S.D. Schindler

Calkins Creek/Boyds Mills (September 1, 2014)

Interest Level: Grades 2 to 5

Biographical * Inventors * History

IndieBound | WorldCat

Author's Website | Illustrator's Website

Description from GoodReads:

Ben Franklin loved to swim and, at the age of eleven, he was determined to swim like a fish--fins and all! This fascinating and lively account of young Ben's earliest invention follows the budding scientist's journey as he tests and retests his swim fins. That first big splash led Ben to even more innovations and inventions. Includes Franklin quotes, a timeline, bibliography, and source notes.

Official Book Trailer:

My thoughts on this book:

Yes, I am stretching it with this week's pick for Nonfiction Picture Book Wednesday, but once in awhile, I will throw in a historical fiction piece that I really enjoyed or had some particular merit that I felt important to share.

First, let me start with the end of the book. Rosenstock includes several features that are more typical of a nonfiction book than many historical fiction titles. She includes illustrations of Franklin's inventions, a detailed author's note about the true story behind the mostly true story, bibliography, source notes, and a timeline.  In her author's note, she includes Franklin's own words about the invention highlighted in this book. 

Second, I love the emphasis on Franklin's attitude about failure.  Rather than consider his attempts as failures, he would say that "he was not satisfied".  What if children today thought about their own failures as being something that they "were not satisfied" with or an opportunity to reflect and try again? As we prepare to go into a new school year, I have been thinking a lot about how we encourage students to persevere, observe, and try again? Stories that embody this and that do so in a humorous way are ones that I can easily share with students as examples. 

Third, I have been thinking a lot recently about picture book biographies. Most of the books in this type of format are limited to about 32 pages. Really, a very small number of pages in which to convey such important things about a person, especially someone so talented as Ben Franklin. I enjoyed how Rosenstock took one aspect of Franklin's life and developed it but also used it to convey so much about his personality and skills.  This made me think about how I could use this as a mentor text for writing biographical stories in class. 

Look for a copy of Ben Franklin's Big Splash: The Mostly True Story of His First Invention at your local independent bookseller or community library.

Don't forget to link up your nonfiction reviews:

It's Monday! What are you reading? From Picture Books to YA - August 11, 2014

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

Last week, I read a number of nonfiction books around the topic of space, and also, catching up on books that I have been looking for. 

Here is what jumped out of the stack this week....

Jane Brocket's Clever Concept Books (Millbrook Press 2011-2014) -  I really love these early concept books and plan on doing a full review soon.

Miscellaneous books related to Space - I still have a stack of space related books to read.

One World, One Day by Barbara Kerley (National Geographic Kids, 2009) - A day in the life of children all over the world. Despite our differences, we are also very much alike. 

Sleep Tight, Anna Banana by Dominique Roques; Illustrated by Alexis Dormal (First Second, June 17, 2014) - A fun early graphic novel about a little girl, bedtime, and her bedtime buddies. 

Telephone by Mac Barnett; Illustrated by Jen Corace (Chronicle Books, September 9, 2014) - An interesting twist on the telephone game coming soon from Chronicle Books. 

The First Drawing by Mordicai Gerstein (Little Brown Books for Young Readers, 2013) - A wonderful story about what it might have been like to draw the first cave drawings. 

So, what are you reading?

2014 Picture Book 10 for 10: New and Old Favorites to Start the School Year

Cathy Mere of Reflect & Refine: Building A Learning Community and Mandy Robek of Enjoy and Embrace Learning are hosting the 5th August's Picture Book 10 for 10 event.  This is my third year participating in this event and I can't wait to check out everyone's posts. 

Recently, I was speaking with a principal friend, and talking about the importance of picking the right read alouds for the first few days of school.  I was able to share how a read aloud can set a tone and support a classroom in the direction that they have agreed is the right one. Additionally, I like to give out books at the beginning of the year to principals or teachers and work hard to select ones that will have meaning to the a particular administrator or instructional coach or teacher.

As a result, I began to think about books that I would use to with classes (regardless of the age group) and here are my top 10 (well if you count the covers there may be 11, but I won't tell if you don't) in no particular order.

Each Kindness by Jacqueline Woodson; Illustrated by E.B. Lewis (Nancy Paulsen Books, October 2012) - Every time I have read this book, I am struck by the fact that you can indeed be too late in responding with kindness.  However, I do hope that students, like Chloe, will chose kindness and friendship every day.

Oliver by Birgitta Sif (Candlewick Press, October 2012) - Oliver is a little different.  He does not quite fit in, but there is a friend out there for everyone. I love Oliver and children like Oliver need to be supported in celebrating their differences but also in making connections to others. 

Enemy Pie by (Chronicle Book, September 2002) - Every year children have classmates that they have trouble friending or even being in the same class with.  Enemy Pie deals with this issue in a fun but thoughtful way.  It remind others about how to treat other people and how to make new friends.

New Girl...and Me by Jacqui Robbins; Illustrated Matt Phelan (Atheneum, July 2006) - This is the first of several that I discovered through Carrie Gelson at There's a Book for That. This book looks at the ups and downs of of learning how to make a new friends, especially with the new student in the class.

The Story of Fish and Snail by Deborah Freedman (Viking Juvenile, June 2013) - This story by author/illustrator Deborah Freedman is about friendship but more so about courage and taking risks needed to learn.

Bluebird by Bob Staake (Schwartz & Wade, April 2013) - Though this is wordless, there is so much that students can discuss about what does it mean to care and be kind to one again.

The Invisible Boy by Trudy Ludwig; Illustrated by Patrice Barton (Alfred A. Knopf, October 2013)- The perfect story to talk about how some children are very shy and even at times feel invisible; however, I enjoyed when Brian pairs up with Justin to collaborate on a project and how that provides success and a lesson for others.

Inside My Imagination by Marta Arteaga; Illustrated by Zuzanna Celej (Cuento de Luz, April 2013) - This is another recommendation from Carrie Gelson.  In a time, when we talk about creativity as a critical part of learning, we still don't always know what to do with it when children's thinking goes outside the box.  Great book for discussing imagination and creativity.

This year, I specifically was looking for books that would embrace the characteristics of 21st Century Learning.  The three books listed below will be books that I try to get into the hands of many teachers and administrators this year.

What Do You Do With An Idea? by Kobi Yamada; Illustrated by Mae Besom (Compendium, February 2014) - What happens when you attend to and feed your idea? This is a lovely book about nurturing an idea and watching it take wings.

The Most Magnificent Thing by Ashley Spires (Kids Can Press, April 2014) - Probably one of my absolute favorites on this list.  It looks at creativity, communication, collaboration, and critical thinking and also gives us some lessons on how to deal with our own frustration during times of great creativity.

Going Places by Peter and Paul Reynolds (Atheneum Books for Young Readers, March 2014) - Peter Reynolds joined by his identical twin in writing a story about critical thinking, communication, creativity and collaboration.  Below is an animated video celebrating those traits. 

Hopefully with posts like this we will be able to encourage more and more teachers to use picture books with older students and to also think about what books we select and how they set the tone for our year of learning.

Book Review: Secret Diary of Lizzie Bennet

The Secret Diary of Lizzie Bennet

by Bernie Su and Kate Rorick

Touchstone (June 24, 2014)

Interest Level: Young adult/Adult

Fiction * Classic Retellings * Sisters

Indiebound | Worldcat

Description from Goodreads:

Based on the Emmy Award–winning YouTube series The Lizzie Bennet Diaries.

Twenty‑four‑year‑old grad student Lizzie Bennet is saddled with student loan debt and still living at home along with her two sisters—beautiful Jane and reckless Lydia. When she records her reflections on life for her thesis project and posts them on YouTube, she has no idea The Lizzie Bennet Diaries will soon take on a life of their own, turning the Bennet sisters into internet celebrities seemingly overnight.

When rich and handsome Bing Lee comes to town, along with his stuck‑up friend William Darcy, things really start to get interesting for the Bennets—and for Lizzie’s viewers. But not everything happens on‑screen. Lucky for us, Lizzie has a secret diary.

The Secret Diary of Lizzie Bennet takes readers deep inside Lizzie’s world and well beyond the confines of her camera—from the wedding where she first meets William Darcy to the local hangout of Carter’s bar, and much more. Lizzie’s private musings are filled with revealing details about the Bennet household, including her growing suspicions about her parents’ unstable financial situation, her sister’s budding relationship with Bing Lee, the perils of her unexpected fame, and her uncertainty over her future—and whom she wants to share it with.

Featuring plenty of fresh twists to delight fans and new readers alike, The Secret Diary of Lizzie Bennet expands on the web series phenomenon that captivated a generation and reimagines the Pride and Prejudice story like never before.

About the vlog:

Back in 2012, Hank Green (of the Vlogbrothers fame) proposed to his viewers the idea of telling a classic story through modern media; specifically, he wanted to tell a modern Pride and Prejudice through a series of scripted vlogs. His idea became The Lizzie Bennet Diaries, a Primetime Emmy Award winning web series with video views over one million.  

With the success of The Lizzie Bennet Diaries, Pemberley Digital has gone on to create similar web series. So far, in addition to the Lizzie Bennet Diaries, Pemberley digital has produced 4 other series: 2 spin-offs starring Gigi Darcy (Domino and Welcome to Sanditon), a series based off of Jane Austen's Emma (Emma Approved), and a show based on Mary Shelly's Frankenstein (Frankenstein, MD) is slated to premiere this autumn.

Carolyn's thoughts on the book:

I first discovered the Lizzie Bennet Diaries about a year ago and fell in love with them. I watched all of the videos (about 100) over the course of a couple days. I have always been a fan of Pride and Prejudice (as well as all other Jane Austen novels), but I had never seen any modern adaptations that worked for me until stumbling upon the vlogs.

Consequently, when I heard several months ago that a companion book was to be released, I was thrilled. I picked up a copy as soon as I could and devoured it just as enthusiastically as I ate up the vlogs. The book perfectly fit in with the videos. Since most of the action of the story happened off camera and was later relayed to the viewer through reenactments (or costume theater, as Lizzie Bennet prefers to describe it), the story flowed more clearly through the book for me. The reader receives more of the story and more details, as Lizzie recorded two or three minute videos twice a week on her vlog but wrote 4 or 5 page entries often 3 or 4 days a week in the book. Additionally, the story in the book is less biased than what viewers get, because in the videos, as Jane Bennet says, "Lizzie sees what Lizzie sees". 

The Secret Diary of Lizzie Bennet is perfect for fans of the video blogs or fans of Pride and Prejudice. I would highly recommend reading each entry in the book and watching the corresponding video(s) for readers who haven't seen or read this adaptation of Pride and Prejudice. I sincerely wish that I had the opportunity to read the book when I first binge-watched the vlogs.