Giants Beware!

Giants Beware!

Written by Jorge Aguirre, Illustrated by Rafael Rosado. First Second. 
(April 10th 2012) 208 pages

Giants beware, Claudette the Giant Slayer is about to begin her journey.  

           

Claudette starts stirring up controversy from the first pages of the book. She lives in a safe and orderly little town, but unlike her fellow citizens, Claudette is thirsty for adventure. She sets out on her journey with 2 reluctant sidekicks in tow. Her brother, an aspiring chef, would really much rather be cooking, and her friend, Marie, would rather be a princess and living in a castle. Along the way, all 3 characters make discoveries about themselves.

Claudette is a spunky little character. The text, the tone, and the captivating illustrations will speak to the middle grade reader. I’m looking for more books in this series, and I’m happy to see that the authors have plans to add to Claudette’s adventures. Here is an interview with the authors.

I love graphic novels and the middle grade readers in my class love them, too. What graphic novels are the young readers in your life reading? Add this one to your bookshelf this spring. I give this novel 5 giant footsteps.

Bad Kitty for President

Bad Kitty for President Nick Bruel. Roaring Brook Press. (January 17th, 2012) 128 p.

Bad Kitty has decided to run for president of the local cat club. As Bad Kitty tries to woo all the other cats, we learn about the stages in the election process. Bad Kitty teaches us some very important lessons, including "every vote counts".



I am a Canadian, so I can't attest to the absolute accuracy of the text, but this seemed like a very good explanation of the American political system. I know this would be a fun way to help students learn about the electoral process.

Bad Kitty is one of the homeliest and charming cats you will ever meet, and Nick Bruel has taken a not so exciting topic and made it very entertaining. I found this book to be laugh out loud funny. Once again, Bad Kitty gets my vote.

The Missing, Book One: Found

Found 
Margaret Petterson Haddix.
Scholastic Books 
314 Pages


Almost every kid, at one point or another, has thought that they were adopted. Jonah knows it's true though. In fact he's known his whole life. He hadn't questioned it too much ever. For him it's alway been a fact. Like 2+2=4, or, the Earth revolves around the sun.
One day he receives a letter in the mail. It says "You are one of the missing." Naturally he's freaked out by this, and decides to tell his new friend Chip, who just moved in a few months before. It turns out that Chip got a letter too. It says the exact same thing. Then they both get a second letter. This one reads "Beware! They're coming back to get you."

Jonah, Chip and Jonah's little sister Katherine are thrown head first into the mystery of the "Missing", which involves an FBI investigation, a mysterious man who always seems to be around, and a plane that suddenly appeared out of no where, with no pilot, and no crew.

Although I love this book, and I love the concept, I found it a bit hard to follow at first. In the beginning, each clue that the kids found seemed unrelated, and disconnected. They brought up more questions than answers, for both me, and the characters. But as time went on all the different clues came together and wove the facts they compiled into the answer. That seemed so obvious once I knew it.

In a way though, I'm glad the book kept me guessing. Sometimes, if an author makes the main answer to a mystery obvious, I tend to get bored and feel tired.

All in all, I found it an amazing book, and whenever one of my friends is searching for a good book to read, this is always one of the first ones that I recommend.

I give this book 4 pilotless planes out of 5.

Sidekicks

Sidekicks 

Dan Santat. Arthur A. Levine Books. (July 1 2011). 224 pages

Thank you, Dan Santat, for Sidekicks.  It was such a fun read, a graphic novel with strong comic book leanings.  Sidekicks has great comic book features including sounds in all caps - CRUNCH! CRASH! POW!  Even better, it has evil villains with maniacal laughs –HAHAHAHAHA!

I loved the amazing illustrations and all the comic aspects of this book, but the story is equally compelling. Naturally, there is the requisite conflict between good and evil, but there is also conflict within Captain Amazing’s own family. 

Our hero Captain Amazing has been undone by his weakness – a peanut allergy. While he is recuperating and auditioning for a new sidekick, his pets, Shifty, Fluffy and Roscoe , shift into action to try and develop their own superpowers. Along the way, they learn teamwork and perseverance. They learn that brains can be better than brawn, and most importantly, they learn forgiveness.

Santat’s charming drawings will appeal to a younger comic audience and will be perfect for my middle grade readers.  I am predicting that this will be a very popular read in my classroom, or should I say, “ WOW! GAH! AAAHHMAZING!"