my outside reading summaries

Ok so I forgot that I was supposed to be talking about the books I've read outside of the assigned books so I will take this opportunity to catch you up.

Number the Stars by Lois Lowry: My mom read this book to us when I was younger, I remembered liking it because it was about WWII but I couldn't remember the exact story. Reading it this time was great I had a different take on the story of two young girls that are friends during WWII. I can't imagine the fear of Annemarie and Ellen as they ran from the Nazis. The scene at the end where Annemarie has to take the package to her uncle had me worried for her. :-D I love the way Lois Lowry paints pictures with words.

Noah's Ark: Wow! Where to start with this book! It is AMAZING I love that it is one of those picture books that is completly sans words and yet says so much. The way the expressions are played out on the faces of the people and the animals speaks volumes. I would DEFINITLY reccomend this book. (And I have to lots of people) The only part people have had a problem with is that there is a picture where there are animals standing outside the ark as the water gets deeper and deeper and that could cause kids to aske questions that parents don't want to answer yet.

Beatrix Potter's Nursery Rhyme Book: Ill. by Beatrix Potter: This is a great book! It's full of Nursery Rhymes that I'm not familiar with, accompanied with illistrations by Miss Potter. Who wouldn't love this book?? My favorite part was the riddles. Riddle me, Riddle me, rot-tot-tote was my particular favorite.

The Princess and The Pea; designed by Lauren Child, Photographed by Polly Borland: This is a classic fairy tale told with a twist. There are little interjections in the way it is written and the pictures are adorable. The illistrators made little people and cloted them with real cloth. Then the made whole little sets. They took pictures of this and made adorable images to cover a good story.

Half a World Away; by Libby Gleeson, Ill. by Freya Blackwood; This book deals with people you love moving away. It is about two kids (Amy and Louie)that are best friends that are together all the time. Then Amy has to move away to the city "Half a World Away." It shows the greif that comes and it shows how people deal with that grief. I liked this book alot.

The Royal Diaries of Elizabeth I; By Ketheryn Lasky: This is one of the books in the "Royal Diaries" series. I loved these books growing up because it was a fun and entertaining way to learn about history. Also, I found that everything I learned from reading these books stayed with my longer. I think this is because the characters aren't just some name in a book. They become a real person with a real life and stories to tell. This story was about (obviously) Elizabeth I. Daughter of King Henry VII and Anne Boleyn. After re-reading this book I kind of wanted to see "the other Boleyn girl" But then I decided that I didn't really want to see it.

The Theif Lord; by Cornelia Funke: This is one of my favorits that I read this semester. The story takes place in Venice among the homeless kids that have banded together and made their own way of living. The main charecters are two brothers, Prosper and Bo. The mysterious charcter is the Theif Lord. He always provides for the kids in mysterious ways. It is discovered at the end of the book that the Theif Lord isn't like the other kids at all. He isn't homeless he is actually from one of the priviledged families and he is stealing things from his own house to pay for the needs of his scraggly gang. :-D it's a great read and I HIGHLY reccomend it!

My Many Colored Days; By Dr. Seuss: I LOVE this book! It is such a great way to give kids a voabulary to expess their emotions. This could be a good tool that would help relieve some stress and frustration on the kids part. I love the pictures and vibrant colors. :-D