Silent Star

The Story of Deaf Major Leaguer William Hoy

This post is part of Nonfiction Monday hosted today by Wrapped in Foil and joins It's Monday! What are you reading? at Teacher Mentor Texts

Lee and Low Books Inc.

(pub. 4.1.2012) 40 pages 

A True Tale with A Cherry On Top

A uthor: Bill Wise

         Illustrator: Adam Gustavson

C haracter: William Hoy

O verview from the jacket flap: 

      "William Hoy loved baseball. Growing up in the 1860s and '70s, he dreamed of one day playing in the major leagues. A far-off fantasy for many boys, fulfilling this dream was even more of a long shot for William, who was deaf... A talented played with a standout record, Hoy is a shining example that success in life should not be measured by differences but by drive and determination."

        

T antalizing taste: 

   "Some children teased William or were afraid to play with him because he was deaf and did not use his voice to communicate. Adults could be thoughtless too, looking down on the boy or ignoring him altogether. Friendly and personable, William was confused, his feelings hurt. Everyone was different in some way. He wondered why people could not accept him as he was." 

and something more: I chose another baseball book for today because our family is in big-time baseball mode with the hopes that the San Francisco Giants will keep rolling. I like the photo at the back of Silent Star of a baseball signed by William Hoy -- there's just something about signed baseballs and signed books. 

The author, Bill Wise, learned about William Hoy when he was a boy, and now he's sharing this inspiring story with another generation of children -- not only readers, but his students. As a former 7th and 5th grade language arts teacher, I'm impressed that Bill Wise teaches 8th grade math and language arts! In an interview about writing and baseball, Bill Wise was asked How do you feel teaching affects the way you put together a story? He answered, "Because I am a teacher, I try to write stories that teach children about determination, tolerance, courage, and pride."

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Play Ball, Jackie!

This post is part of Nonfiction Monday hosted today by ...

Books Together and joins
It's Monday!  What are you reading?
at Teacher Mentor Texts

Millbrook Press (Lerner Publishing)

(pub. 4.11.2011) 32 pages 

A True Tale with A Cherry On Top

A uthor: Stephen Krensky

      Illustrator: Joe Morse

    

C haracter: Jackie Robinson

O verview from the jacket flap: 

      "April 15, 1947, is a big day for ten-year-old Matty Romano. His dad is taking him to see his favorite team - the Brooklyn Dodgers - on opening day!

        It's also a big day for the Dodgers' new first baseman, Jackie Robinson. Many white fans don't like the fact that an African American is playing in the major leagues. By putting Jackie on the team, the Dodgers are breaking the color barrier. How will Jackie respond to the pressure? Is he the player who can finally help the Dodgers make it back to the World Series?

T antalizing taste: 

   "Matty remembered hearing his grandfather's stories around the kitchen table. Everyone deserved a chance for a better life - his grandfather and Jackie Robinson too."

and something more:  As I'm writing this, my son is watching a San Francisco Giants baseball game. When I ask him about baseball commissioner Bud Selig, my son reminds me that in 2002 he got a baseball signed by him at a Giants' World Series Game. The reason I ask him about the commissioner is because the Author's Note of Play Ball, Jackie ends with this quote by Bud Selig made on April 15, 2004: "[B]aseball's proudest moment and its most powerful social statement came on April 15, 1947, when Jackie Robinson first set foot on a Major League Baseball field."

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A President from Hawai'i

President Barack Obama

This post is part of Nonfiction Monday hosted today by ...
The Swimmer Writer 
and joins It's Monday! What are you reading? at Teacher Mentor Texts

Candlewick Press

(pub. 7.31.2012) 32 pages 

A True Tale with A Cherry On Top

A uthors: Dr. Terry Carolan and Joanna Carolan
             and illustrator: Elizabeth Zunon

    

C haracter: President Barack Obama

O verview from the jacket flap: 

      "Take a trip to Hawai'i and catch a wave of aloha spirit in this fact-filled tribute to the birthplace of Barack Obama the first president of the United States born here.
       Growing up in Honolulu, young Barack was surrounded by the values of kokua (help), lokahi (unity), and 'ohana (family). Local authors Dr. Terry Carolan and Joanna Carolan bring the rich cultural diversity, breathtaking beauty, and welcoming spirit of the fiftieth state to young ones everywhere, providing a look into President Obama's childhood and the Hawaiian traditions and history that shaped him.
       Vividly painted scenes of the lush Hawaiian landscape by Elizabeth Zunon bring the natural beauty of the Aloha State to radiant life, while public and family photographs and quotations from the president give a firsthand perspective..." 

        

T antalizing taste: 

   "In Hawaiian culture, tradition plays a big part.
     Living with aloha means giving from the heart.
     It is a gesture of aloha to give a flower lei.
     Showing kindness always is the aloha way."

                   "That's why we pass on the values of empathy
                    and kindness to our children by living them."
                    -Barack Obama, Chicago, Illinois, 6/1/08

and something more:  This weekend marked the one year anniversary of the release of the picture book I wrote, My Hands Sing the Blues - Romare Bearden's Childhood Journey, (Marshall Cavendish) illustrated by the incredibly talented Elizabeth Zunon. Liz is not only the illustrator of My Hands Sing the Blues and A President From Hawai'i, but has illustrated three other books this past year --  Lala Salama - A Tanzanian Lullaby by Patricia MacLachlan, The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind by William Kamkwamba, and How Many Spots Does A Leopard Have? (An African Folktale). Warmest congratulations to Liz!
         Liz kindly shared with me some of the background for creating the illustrations for A President from Hawai'i: "After a lot of sketching and re-sketching scenes with multiple characters for the book, the publisher decided to simplify the illustrations to allow Obama family photographs to be included in the spreads. I LOVE tropical flowers and landscapes, and this was my opportunity to try and emulate the tactile elements that I imagine take center stage in Hawaii. Many of the tropical flowers that grow in Hawaii also grow in my childhood home in the Ivory Coast (West Africa), so it was a thrill painting and making them out of paper. Note: The flowers on the glossary page (Bougainvillea and Hibiscus) are the flowers that grew on our balcony back home in the Ivory Coast :)"  
         Thanks, Liz, for not only giving an insight into the background of the illustrations, but also sharing your personal connections. I can't wait to share this book with the second graders in the classroom in which I have the privilege of volunteering every week. I know they will love it!

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Marcel Marceau

Master of Mime

This post is part of Nonfiction Monday 

hosted today by SimplyScience and joins
It's Monday! What are you reading?
at Teacher Mentor Texts

Kar-Ben Publishing

(pub. 9.1.2011) 32 pages 

A True Tale with A Cherry On Top

A uthor: Gloria Spielman

     and Illustrator:  Manon Gauthier

C haracter: Marcel Marceau

O verview from the jacket flap: 

      "From the age of five, little Marcel Marceau knew he wanted to be a silent actor, just like Charlie Chaplin.  World War II came, changing Marcel's life. But it didn't stop his dream of becoming a mime artist and entertaining the world."

        

T antalizing taste: 

   "But in many places, ordinary men and women were secretly working to fight the Nazis. Limoges was a center of the French Resistance. Alain [Marcel's older brother] joined, and 16-year-old Marcel, using his drawing skills, began to help.

     In secret, with crayon and ink, Marcel carefully altered photos and changed birthdates on identity cards so the children would seem to be too young to be sent to labor camps...

     Marcel was scared, but he hid his fear as he guided the children across the border into Switzerland and safety ...

     Though the war continued, Marcel was able to study at Dullin's drama school in Paris. He worked under the famous mime Etienne Decroux who taught him how to use movement and facial expressions to tell stories without speaking."    

      

and something more: Gloria Spielman, the author of Marcel Marceau - Master of Mime, features interviews of people related to the art of mime on her blog, including Lorin Eric Salm, an American actor and mime instructor and student of Marcel Marceau. With the beginning of  a new school year, I particularly liked this tribute by Lorin Eric Salm to his teacher:  
         "I found Mr. Marceau to be a wonderful teacher. Of all the teachers one may have in one's life, it is an unusual thing to study with one who is world-famous for his work, and considered the master of his art ... "

       "He was very patient in his dealings with students, taking all the time necessary to help students understand and learn.  He was kind and diplomatic even with the most challenged students.  One of the things that made him a particularly great teacher was his ability to incorporate all his worldly knowledge into his lessons.  He would make references to all the other arts -- dance, painting, sculpture, music, etc. -- and to religion, politics, sociology, psychology, and anything else that was useful in helping us understand that mime calls on all of these aspects of human experience as its material."

       Isn't it wonderful to learn about those at the pinnacle of their art who share their expertise and passion as a teacher, especially as a "patient" and "kind" one?

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Words Set Me Free

The Story of Young Frederick Douglass

This post is part of Nonfiction Monday 

hosted today by Jean Little Library

and joins It's Monday! What are you reading? at Teacher Mentor Texts

Simon & Schuster - Paula Wiseman Books

(pub. 1.3.2012) 32 pages 

A True Tale with A Cherry On Top

A uthor: Lesa Cline-Ransome

     and Illustrator:  James Ransome

C haracter: Frederick Douglass

O verview from the jacket flap: 

      "Born to a slave mother and a father he never knew, Frederick Bailey had few prospects as a six-year-old boy in Maryland in the 1820s. The turn of his fate was the kindness of Missus Auld, the wife of his master. She took the time and care to teach young Frederick first his letters and then how to read them. Opening doors he could not have even imagined, words set young Frederick free.

       What life held for Frederick was to change the world - Frederick changed his name to Frederick Douglass and became one of the first leaders of the antislavery movement. Based on Frederick Douglass' own Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, this is the inspiring story of the power of the individual."

        

T antalizing taste: 

   "I may not have known how to read, but I knew that if learning made me no longer want to be a slave, then I would secure my freedom one letter at a time...

    With a brick and a lump of chalk was first how I practiced my letters. Scratched them all along the bricked streets and wooden fences of Baltimore. P looked like a sail on one of the ships, L was a leg with a big foot. Two sticks crossed in the middle, that was X."

          

and something more: Lesa Cline-Ransome includes a wonderful tribute to libraries in the dedication of this book: "Thanks to all of the libraries - Malden Public Library, New York Public Library, Adriance Memorial Library, and Starr Library - that have opened my world to words and books and freedom."

     And, on Lesa Cline-Ransome's website, she writes about her mother and early influential trips to the library: "I consider myself very lucky to have grown up with a mother who loved to read. Each week my mom would take me with her to our local library so that she could stock up on books. As I grew older I would venture off into the children’s section and gather up on my own collection to check out. Through my mother I realized that reading could become a wonderful escape and writing even more so."

     I too was very fortunate to have a mother who often took me to the library and shared her love of reading with me. Here's to libraries and librarians and people in our lives who share with us their love of books and reading!

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