Ottoline Goes to School - a fun, quirky graphic novel (win a free copy!)

My daughters love, love, love graphic novels. I've been exploring stories that are written as novels, but have lots of illustrations - a blend between usual fiction and comic strips. My kids love the way the pictures help develop the story; they love how visual these books are, how you can read them again and again, discovering something new each time.

Their favorite book this summer was Ottoline Goes to School, by Chris Riddell, the second in the Ottoline series. It's a great book for kids who like something a little quirky, a little mysterious, a little out of the ordinary. Best yet, the kind folks at HarperCollins have offered a free copy of Ottoline Goes to School - see below for details.

Ottoline Goes to School
by Chris Riddell
NY: HarperCollins, 2009. 176 pages
ages 7 - 10

Ottoline is an independent young girl who likes solving mysteries and exploring the world. One day, Ottoline meets a new friend, Cecily Forbes-Lawrence III. Both of the girls spend a lot of time on their own - in fact, they are basically orphans since their parents are so busy with their own lives. Ottoline admires Cecily tremendously - she's so confident and self-assured. So Ottoline sends her parents a letter asking if she can go to Cecily's school. At the Alice B. Smith School for the Differently Gifted, a mystery unfolds: it soon becomes clear that the school is haunted. Ottoline isn't fazed by the bizarre events, and she starts to investigate the source of the hauntings.
Ottoline reminds me of the characters in Lemony Snicket's Series of Unfortunate Events, which kids love. She's confident, and figures things out for herself because she really can't rely on anyone else. There's a certain quirkiness to both of these series as well. They give kids a sense that they can solve problems on their own, that they are smart in ways that grown-ups are not. It would be great to talk with children about the gifts they think they would discover for themselves at the Alice B. Smith School for the Differently Gifted.

Above and beyond the story, Chris Riddell's drawings fascinated my daughters. They loved the intricate nature of his illustrations, the hidden surprises in the pictures. When I told my 8-year old that there are eight ghosts hidden in the drawings, she had to read the book all over again! My 10-year old liked Riddell's style so much that she started reading the Far-Flung Adventure Series (a series of novels written by Chris Riddell and Paul Stewart) (PS: Amazon is running a Bargain Price discount on one of these right now).

If you're tempted by this, look at HarperCollin's website. You can look at the first two chapters in full.

Does this sound like something your child would like? Enter to win a free copy of Ottoline Goes to School. Leave a message, and let me know what other graphic novels or illustrated novels your child has fun reading. For an extra entry, become a follower (or let me know that you already follow) of Great Kid Books. For another extra entry, share the word - you can email friends with the link, post it on your Facebook account, or Twitter about it. Contest deadline: Saturday, September 12th.

The review copy was provided by HarperCollins. You can find this at your local public library or at Amazon.

Good Question - early readers with children of color

I've been searching for some good books for early readers that have children of color as the main characters. Our wonderful librarian Dawn, at the Claremont Branch of the Berkeley Public Library, helped me find a few. Here are some great suggestions. These are for very early readers. I'll do a post later with books for slightly more advanced readers.

Hamster Chase (Easy-to-Read, Puffin)
by Anastasia Suen
illustrations by Allan Eitzen
NY: Puffin Books, 2001
ages 4 - 7

When Peter takes his class hamster out of the cage, the little guy escapes! Peter and his friends Archie and Annie search the classroom for Mikey the hamster, but every time they get close Mikey escapes. Children love pets and this story will hook them from the beginning. How will they be able to get the hamster back to his cage? The illustrations are full of color, realistic and engaging. They help the children read the text and pull them into the story. Hamster Chase is a Level 2 Puffin reader. Here's the text from the first page:

Peter took the hamster
out of his cage.
"I'm going to miss you
next week, Mikey," he said.
"Why?" asked Archie.
"It will be Amy's turn
to take care of him," said Peter.

My 5 year old daughter loved Hamster Chase - she wanted me to read it to her three times the first night! This is part of a series of early readers called Peter's Neighborhood, based on the beloved characters created by Ezra Jack Keats. Other titles include: The Loose Tooth and The Clubhouse. If you like this, be sure to check out Anastasia Suen's blogs: Picture Book of the Day and 5 Great Books. She's the author of over 100 books for children.

Get The Ball, Slim
a Real Kids Reader, Level 1
by Marcia Leonard
photographs by Dorothy Handelman
CT: The Millbrook Press, 1998.
ages 4 - 7

Get the Ball, Slim is a great book for very beginning readers. Tim and his twin Jim are two real kids who want to play ball with their dog Slim. When they hit their ball too far, Slim has to chase it down and find it. I love the photographs that are in this book - they are vivid, clear, full of emotion and so real.

Part of me asks, what crazy family calls their kids Tim and Jim, and their dog Slim? But this is important for kids who are working on reading certain patterns. The text contains short, easy words - both with phonics patterns and site words. Here's the text from the first 10 pages - it's spread out with lots of pictures, and is easier for new readers to tackle.

I am Tim.
My twin is Jim.
We play ball with our dog Slim.
I get my mitt, the ball and bat. I get the dog....
Jim gets his hat.

This is a great series that shows children of today. I really want to see Best Friends. Here's what School Library Journal says about it: "Best Friends, the most successful title, includes two girls who describe their differences and similarities, concluding with a statement of strong friendship."

A series that I would like to read is the Just For You! series by Scholastic. They are early readers that feature African-American children. Has anyone read these? I'm tracking them down. Here are a few titles: Low-down Bad-day BluesThree's A Crowd



I'd like to finish with a thought. No matter our race or background, we need to share with our children books with all people of all races, ethnicities and backgrounds. Our books at home and in our schools need to reflect all our kids. I loved the way the illustrator Jesse Joshua Watson said it recently, "When someone reads a story with a black character and begins to empathize with them and crawl into their skin and their problems, major construction has been done in the heart of the reader." See his interview on Writers Against Racism.

These books came from my local public library. Find them at your local public library on Worldcat or at Amazon.

Tess's Tree - a sweet book about losing something you love

While we want to protect our young children from grief, we need to find ways to help them deal with losing something or someone they love. Tess's Tree is a wonderful, beautiful new book that does just this is a sweet, gentle way.

Tess's Tree
written by Jess M. Brallier
illustrated by Peter H. Reynolds
NY: HarperCollins, 2009
ages 4 - 8

Tess loved her tree with all her heart. She looked out at her tree from her bedroom window. She swung its sturdy branches and read stories in its shade. But after losing branches in a big storm, the tree had to be cut down. Oh, how Tess was angry. Sad. Despondent. She cried for a long time, but then she decided to have a funeral for her tree - to celebrate the life of her tree.

Brallier was inspired to write this story after a friend's daughter held a funeral for a tree. “I think it’s difficult for kids to deal with loss,” he says. “It can be scary and lonely. They watch trusted adults being sad. I thought a tree was a softer way to explore that.” (Publisher's Weekly) Reynold's illustrations are perfect - bringing out all of Tess's emotions. I also love the multicultural community that she lives in - it helps us see ourselves in her story. This is a truly gentle book - it's one that will help children feel connected to the earth around us, and to people, pets and things they love.

My daughters have really liked Tess's Tree. My 5 year old listened with complete attention, with little smiles, frowns and sighs at the happy and sad places. The feelings came through so well in this book. My 8 year old said, "It's such a sweet book. But sad, too. It makes me think of Grandpa." She went on to talk about how she wished she could have gone to her grandfather's funeral (it was too far away) so she could have met some of the people who knew him when he was younger. It was a very touching moment, to have her recall her grandfather. His passing had a huge impact on her.

An interesting back story to this book: Tess's Tree started as an on-line book on the website FunBrain. You can now read the whole book online at the FunBrain site. Peter Reynold's company Fablevision created a TeleFable (FableVision's signature on-line book format). If you like reading books online, check out their site - they have great stuff!

Tess's Tree is available at your local independent bookstore or at Amazon.

Purple Heart, by Patricia McCormick

It's impossible for a civilian to really understand what it's like to fight in a war, but we need to try to put ourselves in the shoes of young soldiers. Policy-makers declare war and set strategy based on global politics, but these decisions affect the lives of ordinary young people. Stories we read can help us understand what soldiers go through. I will always remember reading Heart of Darkness and watching Apocalypse Now in high school. Young adults want to read about lives far away from their own. Purple Heart, by Patricia McCormick, is a new novel that explores the impact the Iraqi War has on a young American soldier. I highly recommend it for middle school students.

Purple Heart
by Patricia McCormick
NY: Harper Collins, 2009
ages 12 and up

When Private Matt Duffy wakes up in an army hospital in Iraq, he's honored with a Purple Heart - the army's medal for those wounded in battle. But he doesn't feel like a hero. He can't quite remember what happened in the Baghdad alley where he was hurt. Matt has suffered a traumatic brain injury and must slowly work to recover his memory and his ability to function. He wants to get back to his squad in the field. The first half of the book is not action packed, but pulls you into a soldier's struggles. The second half of the book follows Matt as he returns to his squad to patrol the streets of Baghdad.

I was pulled into this story by Matt's likable character and how McCormick reveals his thoughts about his squad. While Matt recovered in the hospital, he thought about his squad a lot. One time, Wolf (a buddy) got a care package with Silly String in it and "the whole squad ran around the barracks, hiding and ambushing one another." What really struck me was Matt's thoughts about his buddies:

As he (Matt) watched Wolf squirt Silly String down the back of Figueroa's shirt, he remembered thinking, This is what war is all about. It wasn't about fighting the enemy. It wasn't about politics or oil or even about terrorists. It was about your buddies; it was about fighting for the guy next to you. And knowing he was fighting for you. (p. 53 ARC)

This novel clearly shows that war is not full of easy answers, that soldiers struggle with their conscience and each person has to decide how they're going to deal with it. It would be a great novel to read with your middle school children - either as a read aloud, or each of you reading it.

Publisher's Weekly gives Purple Heart a starred review: "McCormick raises moral questions without judgment and will have readers examining not only this conflict but the nature of heroism and war."

Would you like to read some of Purple Heart? Harper Collins, the publisher, has put the first 40 pages on their web site - go take a look!


This review copy was provided by Harper Collins in ARC form (Advance Readers Copy). Purple Heart goes on sale on September 1st. Order your copy now from your local independent bookstore or Amazon.

Books for early readers

What do you look for in a book for an early reader? I look for short sentences and simple vocabulary, but I also look for humor, stories and illustrations that grab readers. One of the problem that many parents talk about is that their children love listening to much longer, more compelling stories than they can read. This seems particularly true of 1st and 2nd graders who are working hard on decoding.

Dinosaur Hunt (Max Spaniel) is a fun book that really does work for 1st graders. It is funny and silly, and the pictures make you want to keep reading. There are only one or two sentences on each page. The winners of my contest have just been notified: Erika, Marie, Carol, Taralazar and Dawn will receive copies from the publisher soon! Thanks to everyone who entered!

Some other great books for early readers that come to mind are:

Elephant and Piggie series, by Mo Willems. Are You Ready to Play Outside? makes us laugh every time. Mo Willems creates such fun characters, and packs so many emotions into very few words. He's a true genius. Here, Piggie becomes despondent when she wants to play outside and rain threatens to ruin her plans. Her true friend Elephant tries to help her, but it's really two little worms who show her how much fun playing in the rain can be. Every time I read this it makes me laugh.

Henry and Mudge series, by Cynthia Rylant. I love reading about this friendship between Henry and his big dog Mudge. It is so real, so comforting, so funny in a gentle way. We've had fun reading about sleepovers, camping trips, visiting relatives - all through these books. Henry and Mudge books have more text than the Elephant and Piggie books. They have about 4 sentences per page, and four chapters per book. I also really enjoy Cynthia Rylant's Mr. Putter and Tabby series, about the friendship between an older man and his cat. If you're looking for a book for an earlier reader, try the Puppy Mudge books, also by Cynthia Rylant.


Do you have other early readers that you love? One of my biggest frustrations is finding early readers that feature children of color and multicultural schools. I would love any suggestions you have.

Best wishes for the start of school!

I am one who...

A poem for the start of the year - a little about me:

I am one who loves to help children find books that excite them, engage them and inspire them.

I am one who loves to explore new worlds in books, in pictures, and in person.

I am one who loves to stay up late, late, late getting caught up in a great story that I can't put down.


The beginning of the school year is a special time - a time for sharing, for getting to know one another, for discovering new friends and new teachers. Wishing every child and family a great start to the new year.