The Wind and the Willows Book Review

When I was in the fifth or sixth grade, my reading teacher had me read The Wind and the Willows, by Kenneth Grahame. Back then, if you asked me what the book was about, I probably would have told you it was about a group of animals that acted like humans...not a very good description. My poor teacher would be rolling her eyes right now if she heard me say that, especially after all of the time we spent studying the book. Believe it or not though, I actually have always thought of this book as one of my favorites, even though I never read it again. I could not tell you why I thought it was a favorite, except for the fact that the animals were very funny.

Tonight while I was checking out one of the library's databases, the Tumblebook Library, I found a copy of this book! I clicked on a button, and found that it is actually an audiobook, which means that you can let someone else read it to you! It wasn't too long before I was mesmerized by the reader's voice, enjoying the different tones that she used for the various characters. I soon realized why I liked this book so much. I began to remember the true enjoyment that I experienced as a child, how the author's writing style drew me into the story, and how it came alive for me. Pretty soon, I was hooked, and now I am sitting here writing to you about my experience, while still reading...I mean listening to one of my favorite books.

Thoughts about The Wind and the Willows:

• This book may be old, but Mr. Grahame's writing style still shows me how life should be enjoyed.
• My favorite character is Mr. Toad.  I think he represents the common man who loves life a lot, makes many mistakes, but is a precious treasure to his friends.  
• This would be a great book to read if teachers are teaching personification or descriptive writing.  
• Parents and teachers, remember that some of the language may be kind of old, so you may have to explain what some words mean (especially words that had a different meaning today than they did back when the book was written).
• If I come to school tomorrow, talking in a British accent, you will know why.

Unfortunately, we do not have a paper copy of this book at Welborn right now, but I am going to see if I can order one. If you want to read it right now, you can go to the same place where I was reading... I mean listening to it. Go to http://usd500libraries.kckpl.org/elementarydb.html and click on the Tumblebooks Library link at the bottom of the page. Ask your child for the username and password for the databases, and click on the orange "Read Along" tab (that turns red when you hover over it) at the top of the screen. Scroll down to find the book. When you open it, you will see the words of the book. In the bottom left-hand corner of the screen, there is an arrow button. Click on in it and you can hear this fabulous book read out loud.

ENJOY READING!

Last Stop on Market Street

Last Stop on Market Street, by Matt De La Peña is a beautiful book about a young boy who begins to see the beauty of the world through the eyes of his grandmother. This book won the 2016 Newbery Medal award, a very prestigious award for children's books. It was also a Caldecott Honor Book and a Coretta Scott King Illustrator Honor Book.

 Kansas City Kansas Public Libraries is hosting an event, Library in the Park on September 17, 2016, where Mr. De La Peña will be available to visit with people who are interested in his book. The first 1000 people to attend will get an autographed copy of the book. This event is being held at Big Eleven Lake from 10:00 AM-2:00 PM. 

If you would like to learn more about the Library in the Park, please visit http://library.booksite.com/5366/nl/?list=CNL1&group=EB87. There is a video of the author on the public library's website, as well as information about the other activities taking place that day.

New Ebooks

The Welborn Library's Ebook database called the Magic Wall just got some new books!

Please see my June 25, 2016, post to learn more about how to access these resources.

Teachers, I will be giving a presentation on September 14th, explaining how you can access the Magic Wall on both your IPads and laptops. Until then, if you would like your usernames and passwords, please contact myself or Mr. Bonner.

I am really excited because some of the new titles are the William Allen White nominees that we are currently promoting in the library. Check them out and see if there are any titles that can be used in guided reading groups once the Ipads are set up.