The Many Hats of a School Librarian

by Phil Bildner Illustrated by John Holyfield This is a book that is based on a man, James Banning, who was the first African American man to fly a plane across the United States.  He asked people who helped him along the way to sign the tip of the airplane wings so everyone who helped could really be a part of the journey.  James and his co-pilot, Thomas Allen, run into some trouble but eventually make it to their destination.  The pictures are beautiful, and the story is full of inspiration and hope.  If they can do what they set their mind out to do, so can I!

by Tim Green If you understand or like football you will love this book!!  I enjoyed reading this because the story was pretty good, though all of the descriptions of complex football plays went over my head.  If you love to dream about meeting football players and being part of a professional team, you will be in your happy land reading this book.

by Gordon Korman I liked this book, but I wasn't sure about it when I read the description if it would be ok for my Elementary students.  It's about three boys that found themselves in Juvenile Detention for committing major crimes.  A man who wants to start a program to help these young men turn their lives around, takes them from their jails and brings them to an apartment in New York City to live with him.  The boys each have very different ideas of why they have made bad choices, and this book helps to share the struggles that go on in their heads.  This book really shows that every kids want to do well for themselves, sometimes, they just don't know how.  I think that 6th grade students could read this book and pull out the morals of the story and enjoy the reading at the same time.

by Tom Lichtenheld Bridget loves to draw and she only draws when she is wearing her beret (a hat). One day as she is drawing outside, her beret gets swept away by the wind.  How will she ever draw again? I really liked this book a lot. It makes me want to learn to draw and buy a beret!

by Rukhsana Khan. Ill. by Sophie Blackall A young girl named Rubina is invited to a birthday party, but her mom doesn't really understand American birthday parties and insists that Rubina bring her little sister with her to the party.  If you have ever had a fight with your brother or sister, gotten mad that your little sister or brother is bothering you, or wanted to be just like your big brother or sister, you will like this book.  If you are an only child and don't have a brother or sister, you might be glad after reading this.  In other words, this book is for everyone.

by David Almond. Ill by Polly Dunbar This is a book for someone with a big imagination.  A young boy who lives in a basement apartment in England wants to touch the sky so he takes the elevator (lift) to the top of the apartment building.  That's where his strange adventure begins.

by Markus Zusak This book is about a 12 year old girl that lives in Germany in 1942 - during World War II under Hitler's reign. It is a Nazi Germany story like you have never read before and it gave me just a little taste of what it would be like to live in a little town with a war in my country. It's narrated by Death, which seemed very strange at first, but as I got further into the book, I appreciated the point of view because of the lack of grief when deaths were explained.  This is not a happy book, but there are lots of happy parts.  If you like historical fiction or beautifully written novels, I definitely recommend this book to older readers. I have to admit that it took great discipline for me to finish this book. I started it last year and had read a few chapters here and there, but it mainly sat untouched on my night stand. It seems fitting that I would decide to finish it and read about war on Memorial Day. (Though the German soldiers in the book were the sol...