What Makes a Great Read Aloud?

At least some of it is beautiful language. Words that just flow and invite you into the story. Some of it is characters you want to know more about as soon as you meet them. And some it is a plot that leads you to unexpected places. In The Year the Swallows Came Early by Kathryn Fitzmaurice, I was seduced by her use of language. Listen to this, "Inside the smell of flour tortillas and cinnamon greeted me. Add to that all the onions, peppers, and chilies heating up on the stove, and you could tell it was the kind of place people liked coming to." I love it. Easy to read aloud. Fills the senses. And invites you right into the story. Now you just have to wait until February for the rest. On sale 2/3/09.

Alvin Ho

Looking for a great read aloud? Like funny books? Ones with pictures and a distinctive voice? Maybe you're a fan of Junie B. Jones or the Time Warp Trio? Well, here's the book for you:

Alvin Ho Allergic to Girls, School, and Other Scary Things by Lenore Look.

And yes, that really is the whole title. Alvin doesn't talk at school. Doesn't talk at all. Fortunately, he has friends who help him out, a very understanding family and a great sense of humor. This would be a perfect read aloud for 1st - 3rd grade.

History, More or Less

This last week everything I've read seems to have a historical bent. Nat Turner by Kyle Baker is an amazing graphic novel about the life of Nat Turner, leader of a slave rebellion. His story is a powerful one and telling it through this medium makes it even more so. The images are haunting. Recommended for teens and up.

I also read Karen Hesse's upcoming book, Brooklyn Bridge. If you are looking for a book to illustrate the idea of voice, this would be perfect. Joe lives in Brooklyn in 1903 and you can hear the Brooklyn accent in your head as you read. My favorite line comes when he meets a young woman who will be staying with his family for a while and he describes her with, "Pauline Unger looked like a girl who never bought on sale." A story about family, hard work, and opportunity in a new world. Available in September.

Finally I read Heroes of the Valley by Jonathan Stroud, the author of the Bartimaeus Trilogy, a series I found somewhat dark. Heroes is lighter in tone than the Bartimaeus but it's not all laughs either. Set in a fictional world that owes a lot to Scandinavian mythology, this is a classic hero's journey story. Halli has never fit in at home, sets out to avenge his uncle's murder, grows and changes as he travels, and finally comes home where he must protect his home and everyone he cares about from a deadly threat. Perfect for readers of The Sea of Trolls by Nancy Farmer. Available in January.

Frankenstein Takes the Cake or Why I Think Adam Rex is a Genius

A few years ago, Adam Rex wrote a book called Frankenstein Makes a Sandwich, a perfectly fine set of poems perfect for Halloween. Now he's taken the gag one step further and it is genius. Frankenstein Takes the Cake starts out with a comic strip on the end papers in the front and a "list of poems that do not appear in this volume in the back." In between there are poems, comic strips about Frankenstein meeting his bride's parents, the Headless Horseman's blog (entitled "Off the Top of My Head" and my favorite of all the bits), fake advertisements, sight gags and a nice little bit about Dracula accidentally getting some garlic bread from the buffet at the Frankenstein wedding. I laughed and laughed. Take a look yourself. It's available now.

Heart of a Shepherd

Rosanne Parry's book, Heart of a Shepherd, made me laugh and cry. Brother (and you might choose to be called Brother too if your given name was Ignatius) is the youngest of five boys in a ranching family in eastern Oregon. He is the only one still living at home and when his father's reserve unit is called up to go to Iraq, he's left in charge along with his grandfather. When the unit goes, it impacts the whole community--ranchers, the school bus driver, teachers and many other important members of the community go too. Heart of a Shepherd looks at the way military service affects family and community as well what service, duty, community and faith mean and how many different ways there are to serve. Brother, his Quaker grandfather and everyone in their community will find a place in your heart by the end of this book.

Rapunzel's Revenge by Shannon and Dean Hale

Everyone's trying their hand at graphic novels these days. Shannon Hale, writer of great girl power novels, and her husband have teamed up illustrator Nathan Hale (no relation) to create this reimagining of the story of Rapunzel. Rapunzel grows up with Mother Gothel in great luxury but when she starts to ask too many questions, Gothel exiles her to a giant tree from which their is seemingly no escape. While she's there, Rapunzel's hair grows and grows and she learns to use it as a lasso. By using it as a rope, she gets out of the tree and finds herself working with a mysterious outlaw in a wild west setting to right the many wrongs that Gothel has perpetrated. Fabulous girl power, an appealingly klutzy heroine and true love's kiss at the end. Highly recommended. Available August 19.

The Tomorrow Code

The Tomorrow Code, by Brian Falkner
Tane and Rebecca are all that stand in the way of the end of the world, but they don't know it yet. All they know is that they seem to be getting cryptic messages from the future. They start out trying to decode strings of 0's and 1's using Tane's computer and before they know it, they're buying a winning lottery ticket, sneaking into a highly secure genetics laboratory and researching buying a submarine. The New Zealand setting is at once exotic and familiar and the details about Maori culture are woven seamlessly. Science fiction and adventure--a great combo. Coming in October.