Elijah of Buxton

By Christopher Paul Curtis

One thing that I love about historical fiction is how much you can really learn from it. This book goes back to the mid 1800s when slavery was still in existence in the US. However, rather than being about slavery or about the Underground Railroad, this story is about Buxton, a Canadian settlement where runaway slaves could live free. Elijah is the first baby born in the settlement which means he is the first resident born into freedeom.

Reading about Elijah and his family, we learn much about issues of slavery and of the pain, physical and emotional, they all endured. We also learn much about the settlement, how it was run and how new people were brought into the community. This story is full of hope...for the people in Buxton have made new lives for themselves. Everybody, children and adults, learn to read and write...even in Latin. It was truly a place where dreams came true.

Elijah himself is a delightful character. Even though he is considered a fragile boy (often fainting), his one gift is being able to throw stones super accurately. He can catch fish without a pole, but by luring the fish to the top of the water with flies and them knocking them out with his stone throwing skill. It is a skill that gets him to a nearby circus show and into a barn guarded by a bear-fighting dog. In the barn, Elijah gets his first true sense of the horror of slavery, and he must muster up the courage to make the right choice and get back to Buxton.

Bud, Not Buddy

By Christopher Paul Curtis

Bud Caldwell is a ten year old orphan living in Flint, Michigan in 1936 and his real name is Bud, not Buddy. In fact, Bud reminds many people of this fact many times throughout the story, and some of those people even resort to calling him Bud, Not Buddy.

For a kid who lost his mother at six, never knew his father, and lives in an orphanage in the Great Depression, Bud has an optimistic view on life. He treasures the few items he owns and keeps them in an old ratty suitcase. He is writing "Bud Caldwell's Rules and Things for Having a Funner Life and Making a Better Liar Out of Yourself". And he is on a quest to find his father who he believes to be Herman E. Calloway..the leader of a jazz band called "The Dusky Devestators of the Depression".

The story is really all about Bud's adventures and misadventures once he decides to find his way from Flint to Grand Rapids in order to meet his father. Curtis has a way of capturing the language and spirit of the times through the people Bud meets along the way. (Much of the dialogue is written is dialect, so it is spelled as it sounds. I loved listening to this book on CD in order to get a sense of what the language really sounds like). Though Bud is often faced with dire circumstances, he faces each one with optimism and wins the hearts of most.

I love the humor in the story and the host of very "colorful" characters, especially the band members like "Steady Eddy", "Doug the Thug", "Doo Doo Bug", and "Mr. Jimmy". By the end of the story, they have given Bud his own nickname: "Sleepy LaBone". You will have to read the book to know what inspired that name!

A Picture for Mark

By Eric Kimmel
Illustrated by Matthew Trueman

Did you know that when Marc Chagall drew, actually traced, his very first picture he didn't even the know the words "drawing" and "art"? Marc soon tires of tracing and moves on to drawing the most imaginative pictures: his uncle on the roof, flying cows, and giant chickens. Pictures no one has seen before. I loved reading this historical fiction book because I really got a glimpse of Chagall's childhood during the 1800s in Russia.

Even though this is a beginning chapter book, it offers even the most advanced readers with a great story and intriguing information about the early life of Marc Chagall. I highly recommend it for those who want to learn more about this Chagall who went on to become one of the greatest 20th century artists.

The fictional part of the story really captures and reinforces the idea of holding on to one's dream. Marc's parents do not want Marc to waste his time drawing pictures and pursuing a career in art. They tell him it is a waste of time. But even though he does not have their support, Marc believes in himself and visualizes himself as an artist. It is a great message for all of us to remember. It is only fictional because Kimmel uses specific dialogue and circumstances that are not written precisely as they happened. Though it is true that Chagall's family is not supportive of his interest in art, what exactly was spoken and what exactly happened is not for certain; therefore it is considered fictional.

This truly is a great historical fiction book...one that gives accurate information in the context of an engaging and interesting story. And what a great way to introduce young children to the world of art!!

Being Teddy Roosevelt

By Claudia Mills

Have you ever had to learn about a famous person from history and then put your know how to the test by dressing up like them and pretending to be them? Riley O'Rourke does just this; he must read a biography about Teddy Roosevelt and then come to the 4th Grade Biography Tea as Mr. Roosevelt himself. For good students like his friends Grant and Sophie, who are reading about Mahatma Ghandi and Helen Keller, this is a simple enough project, but for Riley, who has a tough time in school and can't remember anything, it is a duanting task.

Nonetheless, he finds a book that teaches him some important information about Teddy Roosevelt...lessons that he applies to his school assignment and also to his own life. So inspired by his reading, Riley often asks himself, "What would Teddy do?" when facing tough decisions in his own life. Riley uses his new tenacity and persistance to get what he wants the most: music lessons and a saxaphone. His friends are also influenced by their subjects but not quite as much as Riley.

This is a short book, 90 pages, yet it is packed with a great story and a few tidbits about a few important people from history. Not really historical fiction, but a nice way to learn a little something about important people from the past. I especially liked the message about the transforming power of reading!!!

The Mysterious Benedict Society

By Trenton Lee Stewart

"Are you a gifted child looking for special opportunities?" Reynie Muldoon, a bright but lonely orphan, reads this advertisement in the paper one morning and undergoes a series of very strange tests. In the end, Reynie and three other children, whom are also "abandoned" in some way, are the only ones to pass the tests and find themselves working as a team to undertake a very mysterious assignment. The assignment requires them to work together to be successful as they all passed the test using very unique strategies.

Joining Reynie are "Sticky" who has an amazing memory for facts, Kate who has a bucket full of gadgets at her disposal at all times, and Constance who is very small and very stubborn. Together the children infiltrate The Learning Institute for the Very Enlightned and try to discover the director's secret plans and sabotage them before it is too late.

This book is a very wonderful adventure story of four young spies trying to uncover a sinister plan without blowing their cover. It is also very funny with many humorous scenes to make you laugh aloud. It is also a thought provoking book with themes that examine ideas of friendship, courage, loyalty, and leadership. All these abandoned children have been brought together by Mr. Benedict and they must learn to trust and work together in order to accomplish their mysterious task.

I thought this book was both interesting and intelligent. There is definately a sense of fun in both the action and the wordplay. The suspense of the story kept me reading until the very end...and this is not the shortest of books. If you enjoy the Harry Potter and Lemony Snicket novels, I know you will also enjoy this fun novel. Don't be daunted by its length!