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.

All Along the Dinotrain

All Aboard the Dinotrain by Deb Lund is about a group of dinosaurs who say goodbye to their families and set off on a train ride adventure. Unfortunately many things go wrong for the dinosaurs along the way. In the end they crash the train and conveniently land in the water. They are forced to turn back home on foot and decide they will never take a train ride adventure again. The book ends letting the reader know that the dinosaurs are still eager to travel again but next time they plan to take an airplane. This book would be cute for any child who has an interest in dinosaurs and trains. Many kids I babysit love to play with both train sets and dinosaurs. They may also enjoy having a book like this one read to them.

Year of Impossible Goodbyes

Year of Impossible Goodbyes by Sook Nyul Choi is a true story told from the perspective of a young Korean girl in 1945. She lived during a time when the Japanese military occupied Korea followed by the Communist Russian troops occupation of North Korea. This was a really good book that grabbed my attention after the first 40 pages or so. I eagerly read more to find out when this poor girl and her family would be finally be free. I was so relieved for Sook Nyul and her family when the Japanese finally left and they were given a huge bag of rice. I can’t imagine not being able to have plenty of food for my next meal. The Koreans were practically starved by the Japanese during this time. It makes me so sad to hear stories like this, I can’t imagine treating other people this way. It must have been terribly disappointing when the Communist Russian troops took control of North Korea right after the Japanese had left. It must have been hard to celebrate being free and then all of a sudden have to go back to living a controlled life again. I was worried about their trip to the border. I had a bad feeling about their tour guide when Sook Nyul mentioned that she thought he was just a greedy farmer. I can’t believe he left her and her brother all alone after promising to get them safely to the border. Sook Nyul and Inchun, her brother must have been frightened to be on their own. I was relieved when they made it to the border and reached the red cross tents. Thankfully, their mother made it across the border months later as well. I was worried that she had been killed. I was so happy for their family when they were finally reunited but sad that the aunt and Kisa had been killed. I wish this story would have had a happy ending but that is just not always the case in real life, especially during a war. I would definitely recommend this book and I plan to use it in my own classroom one day.