Wednesday, November 25, 2015
Little Melba and Her Big Trombone by Katheryn Russell-Brown
Russell-Brown, K. (2014). Little Melba and
Her Big Trombone. GA. Lee & Low Books
Winner of the Coretta Scott King Award in 2008
author Russell-Brown has captured the true story of a little girl in the 1920s
of Kansas City. She Melba chose her first instrument from Joe's Music Truck and
teaches herself how to play at the age of eight and plays professionally at age
seventeen with the help of her grandfather and mother. Along the way she
encounters racial discrimination and hardships that discourage her to play any
further but her family and friends encourage her to continue. Fantastic oil
pictures add to this uplifting story and her wonderful use of onomatopoeia will
make this book a must read.
Owen by Kevin Henkes
Henkes, K. (1993). Owen. NY. Greenwillow Books.
Caldecott Honor book by Kevin Henkes that is appropriate for
young readers filled with wonderful illustrations that make it easy to follow
the main character dilemma. Owen is about to start school and is attached to
his blanket. The neighbor Mrs. Tweezers informs the parents that Owen needs to
get rid of the blanket before starting school and gives the parents some ideas
to help but Owen seems to find a solution to not get rid of his favorite
blanket. Finally mother gets to cut the blanket into little handkerchiefs for
him to have every day of the week at school.
Bossy Gallito
Gonzalez. L.M. (1994). The Bossy Gallito / El Gallo de
Bodas: A Traditional Cuban Folktale. NY: Scholastic
A Cuban folktale and Pura Belpre Award winner about a
rooster who finds a corn in the mud but he is on his way to his uncles wedding
and doesn’t want to get his beak dirty. Without much hesitation he eats the
corn and gets mud on his beak. He goes to grass to clean it off, but the grass
does not want to help him. Then he asks a goat to eat grass but goat does not
want to help either. Therefore he goes to sun for help and he is delighted to
help because every morning rooster greets him with a crow. Finally the rooster
gets his beak cleaned in time for his uncle Perico’s wedding. A delightful
story written in both English and Spanish with the setting done in watercolors
that gives a taste of Little Havanan, Cuba.
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