The Book Club Shelf

Out of the Dust

Author:  Karen Hesse

Lexile Score: ?

Genre:  Prose Novel (free verse)

Maturity Level:  Third grade and up

Pages: 227

Theme:  Hope, Family Responsibility, Charity

Project Ideas:  Free verse as summarizing tool.  Students rewrite a chapter from another book in sparse prose style.  Science:  Why did the dust bowl happen? 

First Line:  As summer wheat came ripe, so did I, born at home, on the kitchen floor.

Main character:  Billie Jo Kelby, though I'd say the pervasive dust warrants a character study.

Review in 25 words or less:  Brilliantly executed novel form.  Incredible depth of plot with minimal text.  Powerful themes.  Perfect book club book, quick read but requires discussion to process.

Grade: A+

Welcome

The Book Club Shelf would like to welcome a new posting author, Miki.  Literacy Coordinator to the Stars, a real Bud (not buddy) and Goddess of Children's Literature, she will be a wonderful asset and motivator for the bookclubshelf project with her True Confessions of kid-lit.  Welcome Miki!

Moose Crossing

Author: Stephanie Greene

Lexile Score: 410

Genre: Fantasy

Maturity level: 1st grade

Pages: 56

Theme: Friendship, Selfishness, Self-centeredness

Project ideas:  make a moose crossing sign - make a [yourself] crossing sign

First Line: Moose was getting out of the tub when he heard the noise.

Main Character: Moose (Hilde the pig is almost equally mentioned)

Review in 25 words or less:  Wonderful beginner chapter book.  Easy theme to pick up on, hilariously strange characters and situations.  Best friends Moose & Pig?  I mean COME ON.

Grade: A (not for an adult, but 3rd graders seem to love it)

The Wednesday Wars

Author: Gary D. Schmidt

Lexile Score: not yet scored?  My guess: 800

Genre: realistic fiction

Maturity level: 5th grade+ (?)

Pages: 264

Theme: Believe in yourself?

Project ideas:  Shakespeare!

First Line: Of all the kids in the seventh grade at Camillo Junior High, there was one kid that Mrs. Baker hated with heat whiter than the sun. (Classic!)

Main Character: Holling Hoodhood

Review in 25 words or less:  This book is so much fun to read!  It made me want to reread Shakespeare, but I was too busy cheering for Holling to win his "wars." 

Grade: A