I don’t recall reading a book in which the main character is being “kept back” a year in school. Maple Mehta-Cohen is told by her fifth grade teacher that she will repeat fifth grade because she’s not reading at grade level.
I’ve seen many questions on social media, asking which books teachers will read aloud to their classroom during the first week of school. I don’t teach in a classroom but I’ve thought about this question anyway.
It is no secret that I have a passion for libraries. Here is an author who shares that passion in a glorious, inventive, and enthusiastic story!
This book about evolution is so interesting that I recommend it as a read-aloud in middle grade and high school classes and certainly at home. Perfect for a car trip.
No matter the reader’s familiarity with agriculture Borlaug’s story is exciting. He affected the entire world with his dedication to changing world Hunger. And he did it!
We’ve all seen horrendous reports from the schools that have experienced mass shootings. How do the students go back to any kind of normal? What are they thinking? Feeling? Fearing?
For the sports-minded young people in your life, hand them this book. For the activist young people in your life, hand them this book. For the square-dancing young people in your life … wait … what?
This is a buoyant book, organized by month, celebrating the things Arab kids make and the time they spend with family and friends. As the flyleaf says, it is a portrait “of the rich culture and the blend of old and new that exists throughout the Arab diaspora.”
This is a page-turner. Children and adult readers will need to know what happens next. And the humorous tone of much of the book will keep them riveted.
In Starfish, Ellie is never far from thinking about her weight, thanks to the relentless bullies around her.