The Best Place

The Best Place by Susan Meddaugh is about a wolf that has not traveled much but after a suggestion from a bird decides he should see other places before he gets too old. He always thought the view from his screened in porch was the best place in the world but he hadn’t ever seen any parts. The next day the wolf sells his house and begins his adventure around the world to places like London and the desert. After his travels he returns home and wishes he had not sold his house. Unfortunately, the rabbit family who moved in does not want to sell his house back to him. The wolf spends the night in a tree and when he wakes up he sees the sun rising right over the trees. He realizes he did not have to travel the world to see other beautiful things; he just needed to get outside of his old screened in porch. He builds a new house in the tree and decides he has now truly found the best place in the world. This is a cute story about moving outside of your comfort zone to discover new things in life. Many people get stuck in their daily routine and refrain from trying new things and being active. This is a good story that reminds us of the simple joys in life that can be found by simply stepping outside your comfort zone.

Tiny's Hat

Tiny’s Hat by Ann Grifalconi is a book inspired by the life of Billie Holiday. Billie Holiday spent most of her childhood longing for her father because he was a musician and therefore always on the road. Tiny the main character in the story is also the daughter of a musician who struggles with the absence of her father. Times are good for Tiny when her father is around and he plays his music. When he leaves the loneliness sets in for her and her mother. Tiny finally finds comfort when she begins to sing. This story represents the effect that music can have on our lives. A good song can bring you right out of a bad mood or turn your day around. I can relate to Tiny’s feeling of missing a loved one and a good song can certainly brighten a mood. This was the first children’s book I found that presents the power of music.

Around the World

Around the World by Lindsay Barrett George Is a book about a teacher’s travels around the world for nine months. The pages of the book are letters to her students back home. The way this book was set up was really unique. Each page included a letter of everything she did and certain things she saw. For example, in Australia she saw a kangaroo, a wombat and a kola bear. At the end of the story the kids have a welcome back party for their teacher and they from the looks on their faces you can tell they’re a excited. What a cool thing for a teacher to do, travel the country and write students. I hope that I can travel a lot so that I have many experiences and stories to share with my students one day. I really liked this book and I would definitely recommend it to anyone interested in traveling!

Pictures from our Vacation

Pictures from Our Vacation by Lynne Rae Perkins is a book about a young girl who takes a road trip with her brother, mom and dad to visit her grandparents. Before they leave the house her mom gives both kids a Polaroid camera to snap pictures with their camera. Throughout the book their snapshots of their vacation are pictured. I really liked this touch to the illustrations; it gave the book a lot of character. There were also dialogue and thinking bubbles in the book. This made the book similar to a graphic novel. Although at first the vacation was not turning out to be what the young girl thought it would be she ended up satisfied with it in the end. She met many family members and enjoyed relaxing with her family. We have all had those vacations that don’t exactly meet our expectations but still turn out great. I thought this was a really good book and I plan to use it in my text set about traveling/vacation.

Travels With My Family

Travels With my Family by Marie-Louise Gay is about a young boy and his family vacation. Although him and his brother would rather go to Disneyland they are forced to venture in North America and Mexico. This book reminds me of the Goofy Movie when Goofy and his son, Max go on a road trip. Max really wants to go to a concert but Goofy insists on making him go to run down tourist stops. I know some family vacations do not always go well but I always had good experiences when vacationing with my family. We all get along really well and my dad always tried to go do things that interested everyone. I’m fortunate to have had these experiences because like the story told in this novel not all families have successful vacations.

We're Saling Down the Nile

We're Sailing Down the Nile by Laurie Krebs

is a book about traveling to Egypt. The narrator walks us through various places one would see if they were in Egypt. At the end of the story, the places that were visited in the book are listed along with factual information. There is also a map of Egypt included followed by the history of Ancient Egypt. This book was really interesting and I learned some cool facts about Egypt. This would be useful to anyone wanting to learn more about Egypt.

Off We Go To Mexico!

Off We Go To Mexico by Laurie Krebs is a book filled with information about what a person would encounter if they visited Mexico. Every page is filled with bright illustrations and English as well as Spanish words. The narrator takes us through various places to travel. At the end of the book, facts about Mexico are listed. Mexico’s festivals such as Independence Day and Mondays of the Hill are also listed in the back. Finally the history of Mexico is presented. I found this book to be really interesting. I took 5 years of French so it is exciting to be familiarized with the Spanish language, the history of Mexico, and interesting facts. I think children would also really enjoy this book because it includes a lot of fun facts and the illustrations are bright and appealing.