Book of the Day

Katie Woo is a lively little girl. When she and her friends Pedro and JoJo go to the beach, Katie has a hard time remembering that her friends are trying to have fun too. Instead she is “a meanie”, demanding that they carry water for her sandcastles, and hogging the french fries. But when her friends turn the tables on her, Katie realizes her mistakes and tries to be friendlier.

This easy reader book is somewhat didactic in its message, but considering the constraints of the early reader format, this book is by far not the most blatantly preachy book I’ve seen. Katie is likable and will probably win over some fans despite the messages.

The book contains a glossary at the back, in addition to discussion questions and writing prompts. I’m not entirely sure who the intended audience for these are, since I very much doubt first and second graders are going to spontaneously start doing homework, and a teacher would probably be using the book in a way that would more closely align with what s/he was teaching.

Duke is a sad dog, sitting in the pet store. When Sam comes to take him home, he is ecstatic. But then he realizes that, unlike the other dogs near the farm, he doesn’t know how to dig, having lived on a cold stone floor his entire life. Once he does learn, though, he finds out the meaning of too much of a good thing.

This book suffers a bit from being dated. Originally published in 1967, the book features a few off-handed lines that might raise the hackles of modern parents, such as a suggestion that Duke has caused so much trouble that he should simply be allowed to drown. I did not much care for the attitude that when Duke does not meet the expectations of his new owner – first because he can’t dig, then because he digs too much – he should be summarily abandoned to the pet store. Since Duke is digging in part “to please my master”, this betrayal is all the more distressing.

The text is rhyming, and the rhythm is sometimes strained in order to make the words rhyme. The illustrations are slightly old-fashioned, but in a charming, rather than a dated, way. The thought of the dog digging up the entire town is funny, even if the rest of the book might have some weak spots.

Henry has no brothers and sisters. There are no kids on his street. So when he begs his parents for a dog, they say yes. Henry picks out a small little puppy, but he doesn’t stay small for long. When Mudge is done growing, he weighs 180 pounds! But Mudge is the best thing that ever happened to Henry, and vice versa.

Henry and Mudge are an unbeatable team that have become stock favorites of beginning readers. First written in 1987, this first book about the winsome duo has aged very well. The clothing is simple enough that major fashion changes aren’t an issue, and while Dad’s mustache is a bit out of date, this small detail is not glaringly anachronistic. I doubt many kids today will even realize that the book is over twenty years old or that (scary thought!) their own parents may have learned to read on this series.

Moffie and Morgie are twins. Moffie is very bossy, so Mama declares that Morgie needs to be able to do what he wants. The next day Morgie is declared boss for the day. Moffie is more than happy to show him how to be a boss, but in doing so, she takes over completely, such that nothing has really changed.

This is an All Aboard Reading book, level 1, intended for children Pre-K through First grade. There are one or two sentences on each page. Contractions and dialog are used.

I liked that the reader was left to recognize that Moffie is still being bossy, even in the guise of helping Morgie learn to be in charge. Some books would have hit the reader over the head with this. Instead, the author simply makes it obvious through the character’s actions, which is quite a bit funnier. Tomie DePaola does not have heaps of awards and accolades for nothing.

Buzz has a pet fly, which he brings to school. Fly Guy’s favorite part is the lunchroom, where he makes friends with the lunch lady, Roz. But the principal doesn’t want flies in the cafeteria, so he fires Roz and hires a terrible cook. What can Buzz and Fly Guy do to save the situation?

This book has two to three sentences on each page. There are no contractions. The illustrations are largely against a white background, leaving plenty of room for the black text.

The story is cute, and ends happily. The image of Fly Guy drinking a soup of fish heads and sour milk is gross enough to make any first grader grin. The cartoon illustrations match the tone of the book very well. This is an excellent choice for children beginning to read, particularly for boys. If you enjoy this book, look for more titles about Fly Guy, of which there are several.

A new boy named Albert joins Oliver’s class. He is very tall, and can already read! Some of Oliver’s friends make fun of Albert, becuase he can’t kick or catch or run fast. But Albert and Oliver both like bugs, so they become friends.

This is a Dial easy-to-read book. It is appropriate for more advanced beginning readers. There are 6 to 10 sentences on each page. Dialog is used. Contractions are used.

The illustrations reflect the text. It did annoy me, however, that after the boys discuss how big Albert is, the picture of Albert is about the same size as all of the other children in the classroom.

I liked that the boys have a friendship based on scholarship and mutual interest in insects, rather than one based on sports. (Not that there is anything wrong with a friendship based on sports, but those are a dime a dozen when it comes to early fiction.)

Biscuit the puppy is going to learn a new trick. His girl wants him to fetch a ball. But Biscuit is more interested in chewing on his bone, chasing cats, and making mischief. Will he ever learn the trick?

This is a My First I Can Read book, intended for emergent readers. There are one to two very simple sentences on each page, with a lot of repeated words, making the book accessible to even the most beginning readers. The very cute illustrations reflect the text.

While the commands “Fetch the ball, Biscuit!” and so on are presumed to be dialog, they are not presented as such in the text, i.e. there are no quotation marks used. This could possibly be confusing in terms of who is talking, as when the command to fetch the dog is followed by “Woof, woof!” However, I’m pretty sure that even beginning readers will be able to sort out that the dog is barking and the girl is talking.

Dirk Bones, skeletal reporter is back in another beginning reader adventure. When Dirk shows up to interview an author, they discover that one of his books is missing. A clue is found in the form of a strange leaf, so Dirk goes to the library to find out more about plants. There he discovers that more books have gone missing, and more leaves have been found. What could possible be stealing the books?

This is an I Can Read Beginning Reader Level 1 book intended as “simple sentences for eager new readers.” Some pages are half illustration/half text with two to three sentences. Other pages are full text, with a full page illustration opposite. The sentences are simple, though the earliest readers may be daunted by what at first appears to be a lot of text.

I love that Dirk’s first impulse upon finding a strange leaf was to head to the library to research it, though I could wish that he had been able to locate more information there. As in the previous book, Dirk’s investigative success owes quite a bit more to coincidence than it does to detecting. I would have liked to see more of a traditional mystery that kids could try to follow along with, predicting the solution to the puzzle.

Houndsley loves to canoe, but he does not like to canoe with his best friend Catina. Whenever she steps into the canoe, she starts talking and just won’t stop, while all Houndsley wants to do is paddle in silence. Meanwhile, Catina is frustrated because Houndsley is strangely reluctant to go bike riding with her. What could be wrong with the friends?

This book, while part of a series about Houndsley and Catina, is not a part of a larger Early Reader series. No contractions are used, but dialogue is present. The number of sentences per page varies from two or three to a page filled entirely with text. I would recommend it for a more accomplished beginning reader. The illustrations, done in watercolor, pencil, and collage, are sweet.

Dirk Bones is a skeleton. He’s also the newspaper reporter for the Ghostly Tombs. He’s put on assignment: find out about a haunted house were the ghosts are being haunted by a creepy noise!

This is an I Can Read! Beginning Reading Level 1 book labeled as having “simple sentences for eager new readers”. There are five to ten sentences on each page. Some pages are half text, half pictures while other pages are filled with text with the facing page filled with a picture. No contractions are used, but dialog is abundant.

The story is remarkably fresh for a beginning reader. These books can quickly become stale and repetitive. This particular example manages to create some tension and give clues to the possible solution of the mystery. The idea that werewolves and ghosts are frightened by noises that are not ghostly also adds a touch of humor to the story.