Ready to Read with Ms. Reynolds

\   Title: Bruce’s Big Storm Author: Ryan T. Higgins Published by Disney Press (2015)   When the storm came, all of the neighbors went to Bruce’s house. As they were all crowded in the living room, Rupert the mouse spotted a bunny outside struggling against the wind. Nibbs, another mouse, went outside with an umbrella to help. But then the wind took him too. Later that night a tree fell on Bruce’s house and went through the roof. In the morning Bruce went outside to look. Do you think the neighbors will help with the damage?   This book was definitely full of ups and downs. Downs being a storm and house damage. And up being neighbors coming together, staying safe, and working together to repair damage! I think this book is a great way to introduce storms to children. Since it talks about the damage storms can cause or how strong the wind could be. I found it funny that all of the neighbors gathered at Bruce’s house, knowing how anti-social and grumpy he is all the time! But it just goe

  Title: Santa Bruce Author: Ryan T. Higgins Published by Disney Press (2015)   In this story, Bruce is still a mother to geese and a friend to the mice. Bruce wants to hibernate all through the winter, like any other bear. But he is not like the other bears. Instead, the geese and mice have other holiday plans for him …   Another great read and a great laugh! Higgins never fails to make you laugh while reading this series. Illustrations are on point, like always! In this book, there are a lot of jokes that connect more to the parents or adults reading the story. Somethings the children would not understand. I love how this book shows spending time with family on holidays. Even if they are animals!    I rate this book a five out of five. This would be a great book to read to students around Christmas time! Or holidays in general.

  Title: Be Quiet! (Mother Bruce) Author: Ryan T. Higgins Published by Disney Press (2015)   In this book, it is the mice’s turn to shine. Rupert and the other mice can’t decide what they want their book to look like. Rupert wants all pictures but no words, whereas the other mice want to tell him how it should be. All Rupert does is ask and ask and ask everyone to just “BE QUIET!” Hence, the name of the book.   I love how this book took a turn and let the mice have a turn! The first two books included the mice, but in this one it is all about them. I love the illustrations in this one. These illustrations are so wonderful for younger children, and they would have so much fun pointing certain things out. A great way to focus on paying attention to detail! I feel like the whole series of Mother Bruce is just so engaging for children.   I rate this book a five out of five.

Title: Hotel Bruce Author: Ryan T. Higgins Published by Disney Press (2015)   Bruce the bear lived with four geese, but he was their mom. Every winter, he migrated south with them. When he came home, he found out the mice had turned his house into a busy woodland hotel. He kicked the mice out, but that is when the trouble started.   I love all of the animal characters in this book. The illustrations are so detailed and pleasing to look at. I also love how this book expresses and shares different emotions. This is a great read for young children, so they can begin to recognize different emotions.     I rate this book a five out of five stars. Another great book in the series!

Title: The Lorax Author: Dr. Seuss Published by Random House, Inc. (1971)   In this book, the Once-ler describes the results of the local pollution problem.   This book has been banned because it was believed to portray logging in a poor light and would turn children against the foresting industry. Obviously, kids would never recognize this while reading, I know I didn’t. It is the adults and parents. Reading it now as an adult, I do see that in the storyline.   I rate this book a two out of five stars. The illustrations are fun, as they always are in the Dr. Seuss books. But again, the message it sends off is wrong. Reading it in your future classroom may spark some trouble with students’ parents if they don’t agree with this book.

Title: A Little Book of Sloth Author: Lucy Cooke Published by Simon & Schuster (2013)   The author tells us all about sloths in this book. All the sloths mentioned in the book are at Avarios Sloth Sanctuary in Costa Rica, the world’s largest sloth orphanage.   This book is so cool. And sloths are so cute!! This is a great book to introduce children to sloths. I absolutely love the pictures in this book. Makes me want to go buy a sloth! I also like how it introduces the sloths one by one. The names are so silly.   I rate this book a five out of five stars. This is a great informal book to have in your classroom. You could do so many fun lessons with it. 

Title: The Magic School Bus On The Ocean Floor Author: Joanna Cole Illustrator: Bruce Degen Published by Scholastic Inc. (1992)   On one of many field trips of Ms. Frizzle’s class, the students learn about the ocean and all of the different creatures that live there.    I love the Magic School Bus books! They are always so fun. One big critique for this book is that the pages are too much. There is a lot going on throughout each page. I feel like this is very over-stimulating and hard for readers to focus on the story line. Another critique is that this storyline is very un-realistic. Classes don’t take field trips to the ocean on a magic bus. Although, they can learn in class about the creatures that live in the ocean.   I would rate this book a three out of five. I think the pages could’ve been designed a lot better. It is still a fun read though. 

Title: Redwoods Author: Jason Chin Published by Flashpoint (2009)   This story follows the journey of a young boy. He is riding the subway when he finds an abandoned book about redwoods. Then strange things start happening. While holding the book, he emerges from the subway and enters the forest described in the book.   The book was a fun read as I was taken through all of the different adventures. I felt like I was in the same forest! The illustrations are so fun and eye-catching. I thought it was cool how the boy is holding the same book that the readers are. It gives a lot information regarding the forest, so I feel like this is a great book to do a lesson with.   I rate this book a five out of five stars. A great adventure book for young children!

  Title: Henry’s Freedom Box Author: Ellen Levine Illustrator: Kadir Nelson Published by Scholastic Press (2007)   This book is a true story from the underground railroad. Henry Brown wasn’t sure how old he was. He was a slave. Henry and his brothers and sisters worked in the big house where the master lived. Suddenly his master passed away, but that didn’t mean his family was free, they went to a new master. After a lot of hardships, Henry climbed into a wooden crate and mailed himself to freedom.    This book is a very powerful yet heartbreaking story. This is a well-written storybook for teaching younger children about slavery and the underground railroad. It also shows bravery in a person. While younger children may not be able to understand, older children will be able to learn about how slaves sometimes were sold from their family and lost their siblings or parents. The illustrations are very sad yet influencing. The illustrations are a very accurate portrait of how it looked bac

Title: Fry Bread Author: Kevin Noble Maillard Illustrator: Juana Martinez-Neal Published by Roaring Book Press, New York (2019)   This book walks us through what exactly Fry Bread is. Fry Bread is food, shape, sound, color, and so much more. But most importantly, Fry Bread is us.   This book is a Native American Family Story, but anyone can read it! The illustrations are so fun, and I love how it includes children of different ethnicities. The illustrations show the children helping to make the bread. This book is a great way to introduce a culture bread to children. And to show them that it can be made in their own homes, and it is everywhere!   I rate this book a five out of five stars! I want to put this in my classroom for a diverse book and to create a lesson with this. I would love to be able to make Fry Bread with my students.  

Title: The Art Lesson Author and Illustrator: Tomie dePaola Published by The Putnam & Grosset Group (1978)   A young boy Tommy knew he wanted to be an artist when he grew up. His artwork was hung all over by his families. Once Tommy got to kindergarten, he discovered that there were art lessons. He did not like this. He wanted to be his own artist, and that is exactly what he grew up to be.   This is such a cool book. I love how it shows the talent that a kindergartner has. Everyone has their own special talents, and the age ranges vary! The illustrations are so cool, and I love the pictures of his paintings on the pages. This book sends off the message that once you put your mind to something, you can do whatever you want!   I rate this book a five out of five. I will definitely put it in my future classroom, as I want to teach Kindergarten. Kindergarteners love to draw, paint, and color and at that age they are finding themselves and their talents! I feel like this book can encou

Title: When I Was Young In The Mountains Author: Cynthia Rylant Illustrator: Diana Goode Published by E.P. Dutton, Inc. (1982)   A girl walks us through her life as a young girl in the mountain. Where she lived with her Grandfather and Grandmother and younger brother. She was very close to them.    This book is a simple and sweet book! I love each short story and can sort of relate to some of them. The illustrations in this book are so heartwarming and comforting. I love learning about this girl’s life with her two grandparents and brother. Each illustration portrayed how happy they all were.   I rate this book a five out of five stars. I will put this book in my future classroom, such a good read for younger children!   

  Title: Penny From Heaven Author: Jennifer L. Holm Published by Random House (2006)   Penny turns 12 years old during the summer of 1953. As she is growing up, she gains new insights into herself and her family while also learning a big kept secret about her father’s death. Throughout the book the truth of her crazy family becomes revealed.    The author includes stories about World War II, Italian Camps, diseases such as Polio. There are a lot of historical events in this book. This book also shows connections from Penny to her extended family. I’ve never been into historical fiction, but this was a very well-written story to read. I wanted to get through every chapter as quickly as possible due to the interest.   I rate this book a four out of five. A great read for older children, since there is some heavy history events mentioned and explained. Other than that, it didn’t take terribly long to read and definitely kept me on my toes at the end of each chapter! 

  Title: The Lions of Little Rock Author: Kristin Levine Published by The Penguin Group (2013)   This book tells the story of 12-year-old Marlee who lives with her family in Little Rock, Arkansas. The year is 1958, Marlee begins seeing her family and city divided over school integration. She meets a new friend Liz, and together they let their voices be heard.   This book is so powerful!! The author does an amazing job capturing different viewpoints during a rough time. Some of the situations addressed in this book are written very well. I love how this book revolves around friendship, of two people with different dynamics.    I rate this book a five out of five. This is a great book to have in an intermediate/middle school classroom to talk about civil rights and segregation. Also, about friendships!!  

Title: Hoot Author: Carl Hiaasen Published by Alfred A. Knopf (2002)   This book tells the story about Roy, a young boy who moved to Florida. One day on the school bus he notices something mysterious and decides to investigate. After a lot of investigating, he helps another young boy attempt to save a colony of burrowing owls from a big construction site.   This book speaks a lot on bullying and domestic violence. Roy used to be bullied at his other schools, and even the one he moved to in Florida. His family also doesn’t seem to be concerned with what he is doing most of the time. The book also doesn’t give a helpful message for bullying as other books do. I feel like other books show that there are people and places you can go to for help if you are in a bullying situation. In this story, when Roy defends himself from getting bullied, he receives a punishment from the school. So, they are basically telling the readers that if you are in a troubled situation and you go to the school f

Title: Because of Winn-Dixie Author: Kate DiCamillo Published by Candlewick Press (2000)   India Opal Buloni is 10 years old. Her father is a preacher, and they move to Naomi, Florida. One day, she goes to the store for a box of macaroni and cheese, white rice, and two tomatoes, but she comes back with a dog. She names this dog Winn-Dixie because that is the name of the supermarket. She instantly connects with the dog. Her mother left her and her father when Opal was three years old. She tells her father that Winn-Dixie will be her friend, since their family has been lonely. Throughout the story, Opal and Winn-Dixie become inseparable and go on many adventures together. The two of them start making more friends and good things start happening to them.   I love this book! I always have loved Winn-Dixie growing up. But I will say I appreciate the movie more than I do the book. Just because the movie brings this whole story to life, and it is fun to be able to the Opal and Winn-Dixie in r

Title: The Bruce Swap Author: Ryan T. Higgins Published by Disney Press (2015)   The goose found a letter in the mailbox. Bruce’s cousin was coming for a fun visit! Bruce didn’t like anything fun. The next morning, Bruce woke up to go on a fishing trip. When Bruce came back, he was different. All of the mice and geese thought their wishes came true, and Bruce was finally fun. Until the bear turns out to be the cousin, Kevin. But the animals didn’t mind, they were ready to have fun. When Bruce returns, the grumpiness comes back.   Higgins does it again! I can’t get enough of these books, seriously. I could read them all day. I love how this book introduces another bear. And this book is full of fun and adventures. The other animals deserved to finally have fun, after being with grumpy Bruce all of the time.    I give this book a five out of five stars. A great read-aloud with fun and adventurous illustrations. 

  Title: Bruce’s Big Move Author: Ryan T. Higgins Published by Disney Press (2015)   In this book, Bruce is a bear who lived with four geese because he was their mother. He also became the mother to three mice because they would not leave. All of these animals, left big messes in the house for Bruce. He tried and tried to get rid of these animals. So, Bruce decided to move, and finally there were no mice in this house. But the geese became sad because the mice were their friends. So, Bruce tried and tried to cheer them up, but nothing would work. Until the day the moving truck arrived, and it was the mice again.   Another hilarious book in the series! I like the illustrations in this story better. I love how this book shows that Bruce cares for the geese still, even though they aren’t his own. He tries to cheer them up when they are sad and always watches out for them. This book really shows that even if someone doesn’t look like you do, you can still care and raise them!   I rate this

  Title: Mother   Goose   Bruce Author: Ryan T. Higgins Published by Disney Press (2015)   Bruce was a grumpy bear who lived by himself. He didn’t like, well, pretty much anything. He did like one thing though and that is eggs! He would collect them from all over the forest. He didn’t eat raw eggs like the other bears, instead he cooked them into fancy recipes from the internet. One day he went out for ingredients, when he brought the eggs back and started cooking … the eggs hatched! They were not hard-boiled. The young goslings became attached to the bear and followed his every move!   This book is hilarious! Such a fun book for young children. I love the creative and silly illustrations. While it is un-realistic, there are some real things. For example, bears can eat eggs-but they don’t cook them into fancy recipes. When eggs hatch without the mother, the duckling or goslings will become attached to the first thing they see. I found it funny how it mixed bears with geese! Such a stra

  Title: Really, Rapunzel Needed A Haircut! Author: Jessica Gunderson Illustrator: Denis Alonso Published by Picture Window Books (2014)   In this story, the witch gives us her side of the story. Everyone knows the classic story of Rapunzel. But this is a very twisted perspective.    This is another story, that has another side told. I really enjoy these types of books because I like hearing both sides to a story. This book is a great way to teach point of view as well. I would recommend this book to older children. A very good twist on the story. The paragraphs on the page are a bit lengthy. I love the illustrations, very cool!   I would rate this book a four out of five. Not something I would keep in my classroom, since I am teaching young children. It is a good story for older children though!

  Title: You Don’t Want a Unicorn! Author: Ame Dyckman Illustrator: Liz Climo Published by Little, Brown and Company   A young boy is trying to convince the readers that you don’t want a unicorn. From all the messes and pooping cupcakes. But he seems to really like the unicorn.    This is a fun book for young children! As a young girl, I know I have always wanted a unicorn. Even though, they aren’t real. My only critique with this book is, although it’s fantasy, a fascination with unicorns is real! And after reading this book, children may become disappointed when they find out they aren’t real. Other than that, the illustrations are fun.   I would give this book a three out of five. It’s not one I would keep in my future classroom. It may be a better read for older children, who know it’s make-believe.

  Title: The Ugly Duckling Author: Hans Christian Andersen Adapted and Illustrated by: Jerry Pinkney Published by Morrow Junior Books (1843)   A mother duck was sitting at the pond on six eggs, five small eggs, but the sixth egg was oddly shaped and larger than the others. A couple days later, the give eggs hatched, but the sixth one still laid there. All the duckling were yellow, tiny, very similar ducklings. Finally, the sixth egg cracked, but the duckling looked completely different than the others. Mother duckling was surprised by the big and white duckling. The other ducklings in the family were ashamed and spoke poorly of the new duckling. They said he was an ugly duckling. The duckling was constantly taunted by others. The duckling couldn’t do what the others could. After many failed adventures, the duckling swims in a pond with swans. He tells them that he is ugly, and he doesn’t know why he was hatched. When all the sudden, he turns into a beautiful swan.   This book gives off

Title: The True Story Of The 3 Little Pigs! Author: Jon Scieszka Illustrator: Lane Smith Published by Penguin Young Readers Group (1996)   Everyone knows the story of the Three Little Pigs and Big Bad Wolf…or they think they do. But not everyone has heard A. Wolf’s side of the story. He tells us that all this mess started from his baking his granny’s birthday cake. Once he ran out of sugar, he went to his neighbor pig’s house. He had a cold, and once he sneezed the straw house fell. He saw the pig laying inside, so he decided not to leave it. He ate it. Like a cheeseburger. He still needed that sugar. Can you guess what happened next? It is the REAL story!!!   I absolutely love this book! It is such a fun read-aloud. The illustrations are a perfect touch to bring this story to life. Kids will get a great life from this book. I love how it tells the other side to a story, especially when the other one is a well-known one. It shows that there is always another side to every story.   I ra

  Title: Love That Dog Author: Sharon Creech Published by HarperCollins (2008)   Jack is learning how to find his voice with the help of paper, pencils, his teacher, and his dog.    This book was a great read! I feel like this book can relate connect with its readers. Jack being a young boy in school, goes through a lot of the same things other boys do in real life. This book can also influence kids to write poetry. In the beginning of the book, Jack says that only girls write poetry. But then he changes his mind set and enjoys writing poetry.   I would rate this book a five out of five stars. Very well written from a young boys perspective!

Title: There Was An Old Lady Who Swallowed A Fly Author: Simms Taback Published by Penguin Young Readers Group (1997)   There was an old lady who swallowed a fly, by she didn’t stop there. She kept swallowing different things … until …. can you guess what happened next?   Absolutely love this book! The pictures and layouts are just so fun! This book is a great repetition and guessing game. Every time she swallows something, you can try to guess what you think she will swallow next. This is such a fun read-aloud book for young children. The stomach cut-out in the book is so cool, once you flip the page you can see what is in the old lady’s stomach.    I rate this book a five out of five stars. The energy and enthusiasm you can have to book is great for young and even older children! I know I still enjoy it. 

Title: The Rainbow Fish Author: Marcus Pfister Published by Simon & Schuster (1992)   A beautiful fish lived in the deep blue sea. The other fish called him “Rainbow Fish” because of his blue, green, purple, and sparkling silver scales. The other fish wanted his scales. From being the most popular fish in the sea, he became the loneliest. A starfish guides him to find the wise octopus. The octopus tells him to be happy, he needs to give away his glittering scale. But will this lead him to happiness?   This book is a classic picture book.  The illustrations are so bright and vivid. I love how the silver scales are holographic. But the story line … I don’t like.   The rainbow fish is introduced and shown what he looks like. He seems to think he is better than the other fish, just because he is more colorful and shinier. He lives a life of where he wants the other fish to stop and admire and praise him, in my opinion. It throws me off when the octopus tells him in order to be happy, h

  Title: Where the Sidewalk Ends Author and Illustrator: Shel Silverstein Published by Harper & Row (1974)   This book is full of wacky people, and things! From people turning into strange things to a girl who just won’t take her garbage out! There is no predicting this one…   While these may be some weird poems, they are so engaging! Once you start the first one, you just can’t stop. The book may feel thick, but I promise you will fly through it. I loved Silverstein’s books growing up. The illustrations are very fun to look at, and I feel like they match the texts very well! I also think these poems are a great way for children to explore their imagination!    I rate this book a four out of five. You can’t go wrong by reading this classic. But, you may do some weird things after! 

  Title: D iary of a Wimpy Kid Author: Jeff Kinney Published by Amulet Books (2007)   Greg Heffley is in middle school, where he is learning that being a kid can really stink. After getting pushed and shoved around, walked over, getting called names … Greg just can’t get away from the madness. It is always one thing after the other. Greg goes through fights with his best friend Rowley, has to deal with his little brother, and is always in-between with his older brother.    The whole Diary of a Wimpy Kid series has always been popular. I feel like it draws kids in because of how relatable it is, and the movies are an awesome portray of the book! However, even though it is relatable there is a couple of things that go too far in my opinion. For example, “the cheese touch,” if someone touches the cheese lying in the ground the book describes them as gross or no one can be around them. The ‘cheese touch’ is something that kids use in real life. Why? I don’t exactly know; they think it’s fu