5360 Literature for Children
June 12, 2020
Annotated Bibliography Assignment - List 3: Geisel Award
Adler, D., & Ricks, S. (2015). Don't throw it to Mo! New York, NY: Penguin Young Readers.
In this lovely book, Mo Jackson is head over hills about football. He plays on a little league team called the Robins even though he is much younger and smaller than the other players. People have the tendency to overlook the smaller of us, but that's a mistake when it comes to Mo. With the help of an ingenious plan from his coach, Mo just might win the game and show everyone that size and age have little to do with skill. The coach's plan will also keep young readers engaged in the story and guessing what the coach is up to, and although it would be easy for a kid to become discouraged when their coach tells the other plays to not throw the ball to him, Mo seems to trust his coach and that is a valuable lesson for readers: trust the adults that love and care for them. Of course, this book also shows readers that they can succeed no matter how small they are.
For the sports lover, try this book - There's No Crying in Baseball by Anita Yasuda.
Davis, E. (2008). Stinky. New York: RAW Junior.
The main character, Stinky Seymour is the smelliest monster who lives in the stinkiest, nastiest swamp.
He enjoys pickled onions and eats them like they're the best thing since sliced bread. Stinky absolutely
does not like kids because they take baths and eat apples. A boy named Nick moves to town and
builds a treehouse right in the middle of Stinky’s swamp! Stinky tries everything he can to kick
Nick out of his swamp, but fails. Stinky tried to scare Nick off by putting his toad in the treehouse
but that backfires because they became friends instead.
On another try, Stinky tried hiding Nick’s hammer and acting like a ghost, but Nick was not effected.
Stinky finally decides to give up trying to run Nick off and help return his hat he had lost. A
sudden turn of events happened and Stinky realized kids weren’t as bad as he thought.
He enjoys pickled onions and eats them like they're the best thing since sliced bread. Stinky absolutely
does not like kids because they take baths and eat apples. A boy named Nick moves to town and
builds a treehouse right in the middle of Stinky’s swamp! Stinky tries everything he can to kick
Nick out of his swamp, but fails. Stinky tried to scare Nick off by putting his toad in the treehouse
but that backfires because they became friends instead.
On another try, Stinky tried hiding Nick’s hammer and acting like a ghost, but Nick was not effected.
Stinky finally decides to give up trying to run Nick off and help return his hat he had lost. A
sudden turn of events happened and Stinky realized kids weren’t as bad as he thought.
Stinky was on the 2009 ALA Honor Book list for the Theodor Seuss Geisel Award. This book was Davis’ first published children’s book and is intended for ages 6-8. This book is humorous and the author’s story challenges conventional thinking. This graphic novel has fresh illustrations done in an old fashioned color palette for comics, but with a modern feel.
If you like this book you might also like, Benny and Penny in The Big No-No! by Geoffrey Hayes.
DiCamillo, K., McGhee, A., & Fucile, T. (2012). Bink & Gollie. Somerville, Mass.:
Candlewick Press.
Candlewick Press.
Characters Bink and Gollie are complete opposites and don’t have much in common
but they are the best of friends. Read as this adventurous pair go through discoveries
together while creating comprimises along the way. Whether it’s a new pair of socks, a
stack of pancakes, a random trip through the Andes mountains, or finding a fish a new home,
Bink and Gollie will find a way to come to an agreement most of the time even though they are
so different.
but they are the best of friends. Read as this adventurous pair go through discoveries
together while creating comprimises along the way. Whether it’s a new pair of socks, a
stack of pancakes, a random trip through the Andes mountains, or finding a fish a new home,
Bink and Gollie will find a way to come to an agreement most of the time even though they are
so different.
DiCamillo and McGhee won the Theodor Seuss Geisel Award for Bink and Gollie in 2011. This advanced picture book contains color symbolism throughout and is appropriate for ages 6 and up. Refreshing higher level vocabulary fits perfectly with the sarcasm of the main characters and welcomes a much broader age range than one would expect from a children's book.
If you like this book you might also like, Rabbit and Robot: The Sleepover by Cece Bell.
Grant, J. A., & Truesdell, S. (2008). Chicken said, “Cluck!” New York, NY: Harper Collins Publishers.
Two characters, Pearl and Earl decide to plant some pumpkins. While they are watering and caring for their new plants, a pesky chicken insists on being part of their plans. No matter what they try, he won't leave. In the end, however, the two kids are glad the chicken stayed around because it is able to achieve something that they were unable to accomplish on their own. This a series of events, the chicken helps to saves their prized pumpkins.
Through this book, children are taught that sometimes its better to have help tackling a problem than going at it alone. We also learn that persistence can be awarded if the intentions are good.
Duck in the Truck by Jez Alborough serves as another good book about learning to work together.
Kugler, T. (2016). Snail & Worm: Three stories about two friends. Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.
Worm and Snail are the best of friends and go on several fun adventures in their first book by Tina Kugler. Snail and Worm have a special outlook on their surroundings. Readers will get a kick out of the relationship between the two as they befriend inanimate objects or confuse spiders for dogs. The humor is on par for beginning readers and they will also get to experience the close friendship of two silly buddies. Kugler's illustrations convey the simple joy the two share and will surely spread to the readers of the book.
Need more of Worm and Snail? Check out this title - Worm & Snail Again
Litwin, E., & Dean, J. (2012). Pete the cat and his four groovy buttons. New York:
HarperCollins.
When you think buttons, think Pete! Pete the Cat has four cool buttons he sings a song about. But they keep popping off one by one! Pete doesnt stress about them becaue he knows that buttons come and go. When all the buttons are gone and Pete has no more buttons to sing about, he comes up with a clever song about his button that will never fall off. Pete the Cat is happy, even when he’s lost his groovy buttons.
Litwin and Dean won the 2013 Theodor Seuss Geisel Honor award for Pete the Cat and His Four Groovy Buttons that enraptured the audience of ages 3-6. This picture book is filled with brightly colored illustrations and incorporates numbers with math concepts. In addition, it teaches readers about choosing happiness no matter what obstacles life throws at you.
If you enjoy this book you might also like, It’s a Tiger! by David LaRochelle.
Ever had a sleepless night? If you have ever heard a noise in the middle of the night and were unable to decide what was keeping you from falling asleep, you will feel Owl's frustration as you read Good Night Owl. The story starts with a mouse who seems to be playing a trick on Owl by squeaking just as he begins to fall asleep. This is upsetting and Owl begins to tear apart his own house looking for the noise, only to find nothing each time...until the end of the story. Owl's hardships are brought to life through humor. This book teaches about frustrations in life that we all deal with on occassion.
If you like this book, you might also like Templeton Gets His Wish.
Pizzoli, G. (2013). The watermelon seed. New York: Disney/Hyperion.
What happens when you eat a watermelon seed? The crocodile in The Watermelon Seed will show you! He loves watermelon so much, he eats if for breakfast, lunch, dinner and dessert. He ends up accidentally swallowing a watermelon seed and gets worried the seed will turn into a watermelon inside his guts and start growing vines out his ears! Crocodile's worries subside when he finally burps and spits the seed out (until he eats another one.)
Pizzoli’s debut book won the 2014 Theodor Seuss Geisel Award and is great for the emergent reader. The book tends to stick with a 3 color scheme. His illustrations are simple but brightly colored and fun, just like eating a nice slice of cool watermelon. After reading this book to its intended audience of ages 4-8, it can address the fears of any child who has swallowed a watermelon seed.
If you enjoy this book you might also like, Ball by Mary Sullivan.
Snyder, L., & Hughes, E. (2017). Charlie & Mouse. San Francisco, CA: Chronicle Books. In this children's book, Charlie & Mouse is about two siblings whose relationship is similar to that of Frog & Toad. In their first collection of stories, readers will see the pair throw have their own neighborhood party, overcome and then fall once again to financial troubles, and swindle their mom into staying up just a little bit later with their genius ploy of asking for a bedtime banana. Readers of all ages will enjoy and relate to each of these stories because Snyder’s characters and story lines are great examples of innocent childhood trials. Emily Hughes’ illustrations help sell the please "idea" of the sibling pair as they journey down the street with their friends or stop choose to stop and dig for money.
Laurel Snyder has written two other Charlie and Mouse books as well as many others. Check this one out - Charlie and Mouse Even Better
Oops, Pounce, Quick, Run! is unique in the world of alphabet books. Mike Twohy is a mastermind with words. He manages to tell an entire story of a dog and mouse chase in single word entries, all in alphabetic order. This book would serve as a great tool to help teach sight words (especially since they are well paired with matching illustrations,) or it could be used to teach older students plot structure. Even while sticking to his alphabetic structure, the author creates a flowing story with a climax and resolution.
Another creative alphabet book is Z is for Moose by Kelly Bingham.
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