My review of the class

  I switched my major to art education, so I don't technically need to be taking this class anymore, but the class is so enjoyable I wouldn't want to drop it. Children's picture books have been mesmerizing and it's like walking into a whole other world of literature I new nothing about. There are so many great picture books to choose from! When I started reading them and would find an author I liked, I imagined that this author was one of the best, that there were not other authors as good like her/him, but I was proved wrong, there are lots of great authors. The subject also relates perfectly to being an art teacher because of the combination of art work and literature. I want to read children's books in my art classes now. I also enjoy reading the literature. I haven't read a regular novel for a long time, and it is really enjoyable and fun. Getting to read what my student's would be reading is also giving me a new perspective that will be beneficial when I am a teacher. 

The Misfits

 I absolutely loved this book. I liked it for multiple reasons, the biggest reason being the characters. I think everyone reading this book could find someone in it to love or feel attached to. I loved Addie's passion and zeal. I liked reading about someone who is a doer-not just a talker-a real mover and a shaker. I believe that young kids could be inspired by reading this book. I also really like how the gang of five are so completely different from each other and yet are best friends. Similar to the movie's Now and Then and The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants, the concept of completely different people having such a tight, unique and free relationship, is something I craved for as a kid. I had something similar to it when I met my best friend Amelie in 8th grade, but I would have liked our "group" to include more people. I never really had that. The theme of really different kids being friends creates for such an interesting dialogue between characters and also reflects the underlying message that people are really complicated and unique, not objects you can label. The diversity in this book and the questions of racism and prejudice it brings up make it an enriching book for the classroom. The overall theme of the book is inspiring (to see people as more than a label), and that reflects Jame's Howe purpose in writing the book-to inspire change among young people. I think it is really a brilliant book and it feels so true and original I could easily believe it was based on a true story. Also, I have never laughed out loud so many times reading a book before! Bobby Goodspeed is an unforgettable character. Personally, I think the book would have been better if the part about Joe and Colin could have been left out. I don't think it was really necessary to the overall message of the book. 

White Wash by Ntozake Shange

  This book has gorgeous art work with swirling colors and shiny pages. It's a heartbreaking story about how an African American girl has her face painted white by a mob of white men on her way home from school. Her brother who is walking with her gets beat up pretty bad too. After the incident, the girl will not come out of her room and feels like a complete loser until all her friends from school come and tell her how much they missed her. It could be a good book for discussing controversial issues like racism and bullying.

I Never Knew Your Name by Sherry Garland

   This book is also another heart breaker. It is pretty powerful to. This is a great book for kids because of the issues it brings up. It tells the story of a boy who always thinks about befriending this other boy who is sort of an outcast in the community. The narrator watches him from a distance- playing basketball late at night and feeding the pigeons on the roof at school. The tragedy is that the boy ends up committing suicide in the book before the narrator ever has a chance to befriend him. This book is well written and the artwork is also noteworthy. It's a good book for fostering awareness of the importance of reaching out to people and not being afraid to befriend people who are different than you. 

Hiroshima No Pika by Toshi Maruki

   This book will break your heart. After I read it, I had to look at it again, examining the pictures and words, amazed that this really did happen. The authors note in the back tells how this story came to be written. The author was having an art show about Hiroshima in Japan, I think it was, and a very angry woman, walking among the crowd of people, could not evade her attention. Finally the woman came and spoke directly to the artist that she wanted her to tell her story. She then proceeded to grab one of the microphones at the opening and tell her story to the surprised audience. A few people ended up weeping after hearing her speak. She survived the bomb on Hiroshima along with her daughter and her husband, whom she carried on her back for a very long distance, including across multiple rivers. The fires were ranging everywhere in the city and spreading fast and they had to escape but her husband had been badly burned in the fire and couldn't walk. It is an amazing story and yet devastating to read. I don't know how it would affect young children.

Arlene the Sardine by Chris Raschka

    This book is about a personified fish Arlene who wants to be a sardine. The contrast of the sing-song voice and vibrant exploding pictures with the suicidal message makes this book somewhat grotesque. The author begins by treating this little fish like a human being and then describes her death in an unemotional, flippant way. It is sort of shocking and could startle or confuse children. I suppose the author thought it would be humerus...? But I have hard time grasping it. Maybe his idea was more complex, I just don't know. 

I Dream of Trains by Angela Johnson

   This book is beautiful. Details like: "As the Mississippi morning gets hotter and red dirt sticks to my feet, making them heavy..." make this book read like an old African American spiritual song. It is based on the true story of Casey Jones Train that ran by plantations where many African Americans worked in the south. The blow of his train whistle was the sound of freedom to many African American slaves and Casey's tragic death one night on the railroad sent tides of sorrow through the black communities. Casey, a big Irishman, worked side by side with a black man named Webb and this also added to the fuel of people's imaginations. This is a heartbreaking tale but also beautiful and full of hope.