Dying to Meet You

Dying to Meet You

43 Old Cemetery Road

            After reading the first in the series of 43 Old Cemetery Road, I couldn’t help myself but go and find more books in the series. I absolutely fell in love with the characters in the first book, Dying to Meet You written by Kate Klise. The series revolves around an old dilapidated Victorian home that is supposedly haunted by an old ghost. In the first of the series, Mr. Ignatius Grumply needs to find residence for a few months so he can overcome his writers block and write his newest novel which is a part of a series. Not knowing much about the old Spence Mansion in Ghastly, Illinois, Mr. Grumply takes the home and soon realizes funny and peculiar things are going on inside the house. Not willing to listen to the real estate agent, He meets Seymour the child of famous paranormal professors who left their son in the house while they went on tour in Europe. Mr. Grumply finally learns and befriends Seymour and the ghost in residence.

            If there’s one thing I’ve learned in working with children is that they love ghost stories. Dying to Meet You is an excellent graphic novel that combines both graphics and a fun and haunting story. Like previously mentioned graphic novels are a fun way to help children become engaged readers if they don’t necessarily enjoy reading for pleasure. Combine illustrations and a spooky tale, children will immediately be hooked with this series. Although not necessarily from the prospective of Seymour (the young boy who lives in the Spence Mansion with Mr. Grumply), using his character and his best friend who happens to be a cat makes the story more fun and light hearted for children. 

(image via pinterest)

Smile

Smile

            The graphic novel, Smile by Raina Telgemeier is an excellent true story of growing up and going through the changes of life as a young adult. This graphic novel is based on the true events of the author going through her teen years and dealing with the struggles and embarrassment children are faced with orthodontia. It begins after a Girl Scouts Meeting when Raina is chasing her friend and trips and falls knocking her front teeth out, one completely falling out while the other is jammed up into her gum. Embarrassed and humiliated, the story spans four years, the crucial years of middle school and transitioning into high school. If orthodontia wasn’t her biggest problem in this novel, Raina grows up realizing her friends are bullies, facing rejection of boys and the ups and downs and the struggle of becoming a young adult.

            When it comes to reading at a young age, it is very common that children don’t find the pleasure of reading. They are being forced to read in school and at home, this is where I think graphic novels become a good thing. For children who don’t naturally pick up books and read for pleasure, Graphic Novels are a great way to get them to start reading. With illustration and graphics, it may be easier for kids to start taking interest in reading. Helping children find an interest and encouraging them to find graphic novels or comics is an easy way to fix that “I don’t want to read” phase for children and young adults. Finding stories like Smile, that deal with day to day life and struggles of being a young adult is certainly more entertaining to children who can relate to the story.

(images via pinterest)  

The One and Only Ivan

The One and Only Ivan

            One of the greatest works of Children’s Literature, The One and Only Ivan written by Katherine Applegate is one of the greatest stories I have read in a long time. Winner of the Newbery Award last year, The One and Only Ivan focuses on the life of a silverback gorilla named Ivan and his friends that remain caged up in a mall. Ivan grows up and spends most of his life in a small habitat where he can watch television (with a particular liking of old westerns) and drawing for his visitors. Most of his time is spent either in seclusion or talking with his friends who aren’t exactly other gorillas. His friend Bob is a dog and Stella is an elephant. Throughout the story, we learn Stella has passed away due to living her life in small quarters and not living with her family and other elephants in the wild. Before Stella dies, a new younger and spunky elephant named Ruby joins the gang and is relentless when it comes to questions. Before Stella dies, she wishes that Ivan takes care of Ruby and find her a better and more suitable home than being locked up in a mall. Then there’s Julia, a little girl who is the daughter of the Mall’s janitor who often comes and spends time watching and talking with the animals. With Ivan’s promise to help Ruby, Ivan is persistent and finally is able to communicate with Julia that he must free and find Ruby a new home. With Julia’s help, Ivan, Ruby and the other animals at the mall are finally freed and taken to a zoo where they can live a better life.

            After reading and looking over the criteria and terms for the Newbery Medal and thinking about the story of The One and Only Ivan, there’s no question why this novel won the award. The author paints a beautiful and quite clear picture of this gorilla and his life in a very small cage in a mall. The detail and description creates a clear picture in the readers mind of what is going on behind the cage of each animal that is presented in the story. It’s a story that in a simple and fresh tone explains the life of a caged animal and away from their natural habitat. With a complicated concept of understanding the lives and characters of these animals, the author does a wonderful job describing the loneliness and sadness each animal is faced within this story. This particular novel is written at a third grade reading level making easy for young readers to really engage in the story and really learn about each character.

(image via pinterest) 

Harriet the Spy

Harriet the Spy

            After reading for a second time, Harriet the Spy by Louise Fitzhugh remains not only a timeless piece and fine work of children’s literature, I still consider this novel one of my absolute favorites from my childhood. The story revolves around a precocious sixth grade girl who is on a mission to see everything and meet as many people as she can, so she can scribble away in her infamous composition notebook with the word PRIVATE plastered on the front in all caps. Following in the words of her nanny (Ole Golly) to always speak and write the truth, Harriet’s hurtful words and spy work ends up costing her friendships, several worried parents and a club dedicated to catching spies. After receiving a letter from her beloved old nanny, Harriet turns herself around and become editor of the sixth grade newsletter; speaking the truth in a careful and polite tone and wins back her friends.

            This book was written in the early sixties but continues to be considered a classic for many children in our current younger generations for many reasons. It offers the perspective of a smart and talented young girl who is far from wanting to play dress up with tiaras and tutus. It follows the story of a girl who wants to pursue writing and is curious about the world around her. Sure it leads to Harriet coming across trouble once her notebook is taken from her and briefly losing her friends, but her character is very relatable to the children reading this book and children her age. Intended for a fourth grade reading level, Harriet’s characters is open to the world around her, she teaches young mind to embrace independence and curios

(images via pinterst)