The Loathsome Dragon

The Loathsome Dragon

by Kim Kahng & David Wiesner

Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2005

Summary:  In this fairy tale, the evil stepmother/queen turns the Princess Margaret into a loathsome dragon.  Only her brother Richard can save her (and the kingdom), if he can see beyond her appearance.

Lesson:  I read this book when I wanted to talk to the students about the Dewey Decimal system and where to find fairy tales.  We also talked about why something that was fictional was found in the non-fiction area of the library.  We listed popular fairy tales and folk

Level:  1st-4th grade

OFF THE SHELF -- Number the Stars

Number the Stars 

by Lois Lowry

Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 1989 Newbery Medal

Last year I had a fifth grader who was a ferocious reader.  She liked books that were realistic and gritty, but still was a Harry Potter fangirl.  I suggested Number the Stars, which is my favorite Lois Lowry novel.   This is not Anne Frank or The Book Thief: this is the story of a young girl growing up as she realizes that life is not a fairy tale.  Set against the Danish Resistance's drive to save the Jews from Hitler's machine, two 10-year old best friends see the world as a child where the Danish King lives well in his castle with his white horse and the Nazi soldiers are the big, bad wolves chasing small girls in red riding hoods.  As Annemarie's Danish family struggles to smuggle Ellen's Jewish family out of the country, the girls come to see the gritty underlying truth of war.  An excellent read for teens and adults.

Level:  4th and up

City Dog, Country Frog

City Dog, Country Frog 

by Mo Willems , Jon J. Muth (Illustrator) 

Hyperion, 2010

Summary:  Told in soft water colors, the City Dog visits the country and befriends the County Frog.  As the seasons pass, they play froggie and doggie games, until one disappears forever. It's use of parallel structure with each season makes it easy for younger readers to follow. 

Lesson:  I read this book as part of a book talk promoting new books in the library and the students loved it.  Several purposes jump to mind for its use in the library or classroom.  One is the seasonal changes that occur.  A second is the comparison with the original city mouse/country mouse tale.  Another is a biology lesson about animals and seasons/weather.  And a fourth is one about death being part of the cycle of life, and moving forward after it strikes a loved one.  Finally, that death is actually left up for interpretation, and so asking students what happened to the missing animal is a good discussion on reading between the lines. 

Level:  Kinder--3rd

OFF THE SHELF-- The Fairy Tale Detectives

The Fairy Tale Detectives (Sisters Grimm Series #1)

by Michael Buckley , Peter Ferguson (Illustrator) 

Harry N. Abrams, 2005

A mother was looking for a book to read as a bedtime story to her 8 year old boy and 5 year old girl.  I  suggested The Sisters Gimm series, as it has action and fairy tales.  In this fractured fairytale, two young sisters (surnamed Grimm) learn that fairy tale creatures are real.  Living with their grandmother, they learn their family's legacy in a world where Prince Charming is the town mayor and the three little pigs are the town police force.  But when Grandmother Grimm turns up missing, the sisters turn into detectives to find her.  There are 9 books in the series.

Level:  3rd-6th

The Uglified Ducky

The Uglified Ducky: A Maynard Moose Tale

by  Willy Claflin

August House, 2008

Summary:  In this delightful twist on the Ugly Duckling, Maynard Moose tells the tale of the moose who thinks he's a duck.  Hilariously told, it comes with a moose glossary.  Willy Claflin tells the tale on the accompanying audio-CD.  Winner of the 2010 Texas Bluebonnet Award.

Lesson:   Used to discuss self-esteem and believing in yourself. As I read, Students picked up on the bad grammar and started to correct Maynard, so I think it could also be used in a grammar editing unit.

Level:  PreK - 3rd

Wolf's Coming

Wolf's Coming

by Joey Kulka

Lerner, 2007

Summary:  A wonderful twist on the Big Bad Wolf, in this narrative poem, the local animals run and hide and the wolf gets closer and closer, until---Surprise!

Lesson:  I read this during National Poetry Month to the students as an example of poetry.  We then learned the types of books available in the 800's, such as Poetry, Jokes, and Tongue Twisters.  This book also makes use of highlighted adverbs, so I gave it to a student teacher creating a grammar lesson on adverbs. 

Level: 1st-4th