The list below represents the nominees for the Texas Bluebonnet Award 2009-2010. At our local elementary school, in third grade the students may vote for their favorite if they have read at least 5 books from the Master List.
My daughter learned in third grade that all the books nominated are great. They also cover a wide variety of fiction and non-fiction writing including novels, poetry, picture books and chapter books. Some of the stories can be extremely controversial and bring out some strong emotions.
We have been known to laugh out loud or cry when reading some of these books. We have even become so outraged and upset that we wanted to stop reading a book, but we were so pulled in and invested in the story, we could not stop. Several of these have started some of our best discussions. These are the kind of books I love.
I have added several to my Books to Read list. I hope you look through the list below and choose to read some yourself or to your children. If you do, please comment below and let me know what you thought.
Texas Bluebonnet Award 2009-2010 Master List
The Penderwicks on Gardam Street by Jeanne Birdsall
The Penderwick girls discover that before their mother died, she left instructions with her sister to make sure her husband, their Dad, remarries. The girls come up with a “Save Daddy Plan” so they will not have to have a stepmother. The plan: get him dates with women they know he will detest. Each girl also deals with her own situations such as Jane doing Skye’s writing assignments, and Batty spying on the new neighbors.
Surprises According to Humphrey by Betty Birney
Humphrey loves being the classroom pet at Longfellow Elementary–Room 26 in Mrs. Brisbane’s classroom. All the children, including Don’t Complain-Mandy Payne, Sit-Still-Seth Stevenson, and Lower-Your-Voice-A.J. Thomas, are his friends. There are some strange happenings going on, however, and Humphrey is worried about his friends. Especially frightening is the fear that Aldo the janitor is being replaced by an alien. For Humphrey it’s SCARY, SCARY, SCARY.
Frogs by Nic Bishop
The reader can almost feel the slime in this photographic volume on frogs. The pictures are not only vastly informative, but the text also gives fascinating information on these amphibians. The combination of the two make for a book that increases one’s knowledge and has the reader making a multitude of verbal responses when turning the pages-”Yuk!”; “How interesting”; “I didn’t know that!”; and “WOW!”
Martina the Beautiful Cockroach: A Cuban Folktale by Carmen Agra Deedy
It is time for Martina Josefina Catalina Cucaracha, the beautiful muchacha, to find a husband. Her abuela tells her that she needs to give each suitor the “coffee on the shoes” test in order to find a good husband. Who will Martina choose? Will it be Don Gallo the rooster, Don Cerdo the pig, Don Lagarto the lizard or Perez the mouse? How does coffee help Martina? All these are questions answered in this delightfully illustrated Cuban folktale.
The Gollywhopper Games by Jody Feldman
Gil’s father has been falsely accused of embezzlement while working at the Golly Toy and Game Company. Gil grabs his chance to redeem his pride by getting the opportunity to compete in the Gollywhopper Games. Puzzle fans will enjoy the ride as Gil must solve puzzles with his sometimes, not so nice, team partners in this fast-paced adventure.
The Luck of the Loch Ness Monster: A Tale of Picky Eating by A.W. Flaherty
“Picky eaters unite!” will become the rallying cry for kids after reading this book. Katerina-Elizabeth’s parents send her on an ocean voyage to Scotland to visit her grandparents. Every morning on the ship she has the same thing for breakfast–oatmeal. Every morning she slyly tosses the oatmeal into the ocean. A little sea worm begins following the ship to get the tasty treat each day. He grows from thumbnail size to giant size on the trip across the ocean. Upon arrival in Scotland the worm followed the water, up a river, to Loch Ness. Can you guess what happens next?
Piper Reed: Navy Brat by Kimberly Willis Holt
Piper, a fourth grader, is the middle child of the girls in the Reed household. She loves the fact that her father is in the Navy. She gets upset with her sisters because they actually refer to him as Dad, not Chief. As in all military families, moving is a part of their life. This time they are moving from San Diego to Pensacola. Piper’s older sister Tori thinks the Navy is ruining her life, and her younger sister Sam is a genius. Piper who loves the Navy life and has dyslexia sometimes feels that she does not fit. Despite all the differences there is plenty of love in this family.
What To Do About Alice?: How Alice Roosevelt Broke the Rules, Charmed the World, and Drove Her Father Teddy Crazy! By Barbara Kerley
Teddy Roosevelt famously said, “I can be President of the United States, or I can control Alice. I can’t possibly do both.” Alice Roosevelt, his oldest child, was hard to contain. She wanted to “eat up the world.” Her idea of watching her siblings in the White House was to teach them how to slide down the stairway on trays. She had a pet snake and monkey that she showed off to visiting dignitaries, and despite her father’s admonition to stay out of the news, she did just the opposite. Her father “was not amused.” Just as Alice “ate up the world,” reader’s will eat up this book about Alice Roosevelt.
Savvy by Ingrid Law
Each member of Mib’s family gets a special gift upon turning thirteen. They learn what their Savvy is. Mib’s brother Fish has a powerful effect on water, her brother Rocket is electric, and her Great Aunt Jules steps back in time twenty minutes each time she sneezes. Now Mib is about to turn thirteen. On her big day, her father is in a serious car accident and rushed to the hospital. Now Mibs thinks her Savvy will be the ability to save lives. Since her mother is at the hospital with her dad, Mibs, her brother Fish, and the town’s preacher’s kids, hitch a ride on a bus with a traveling Bible salesman to make it to the hospital. Though Mib’s Savvy is not what she thought, she learns something on the crazy bus ride with a most unusual group of people.
Alvin Ho: Allergic to Girls, School, and Other Scary Things By Lenore Look
For the reader who likes to LOL, Alvin Ho is here to save the day. Alvin is scared of most things, including Wasabi. He packs his PDK (Personal Disaster Kit) to take to school each day. He has never said one word at school-ever-even though he talks at home. When he gets angry, he cusses in Shakespeare since that is what his father teaches. There are many hilarious scenes, including the chapter entitled “The Best Way to Avoid School” in which the entire class sneaks in to visit their classmate with chicken pox. Reading this book will cheer up the worst of days.
Two-Minute Drill by Mike Lupica
Football, friendship, and faith in oneself are played out in this addition to Lupica’s Comeback Kids series. Sixth grader Scott loves football, but as he says, football does not love him. Chris his classmate is the best player on the team, but he has a struggle of his own. The two boys develop a strong friendship and find that their individual talents, teamed with practice, can help both of them reach their potential. You won’t have to tackle your boys to read this one.
¡Yum! ¡MmMm! ¡Qué Rico!: America’s Sproutings by Pat Mora
What do haiku, information on native American foods, and bright, colorful illustrations have in common? This book-¡Yum! ¡MmMm! ¡Qué rico!: Americas’ Sproutings-that’s what. This book is the perfect recipe for information, poetry, and art, while bringing all the Americas together for the fun.
The Hound of Rowan by Henry Neff
Max has always had something deep within him that he did not understand. That “something” feels like it comes alive when he ducks into a small gallery at Chicago’s Art Institute to hide from a strange man who has been following him. In the gallery, there is an old Celtic tapestry hanging on the wall that begins to quiver and glow. Max discovers that he, along with a few other children, have an ancient Celtic magic called Potential. As Potential children are being kidnapped, he and his fellow students at Rowan, the school for Potentials, must act to save the world from the powerful Evil. This is the first installment in The Tapestry series.