Evicted! : The Struggle for the Right to Vote by Alice Fay Duncan

Evicted!: The Struggle for the Right to Vote
Alice Fay Duncan; Art. by Charly Palmer
Calkins Creek. An Imprint of Astra Books for Young Readers. 2022

In 1965, the Voting Rights Act was signed into law by President Lyndon B. Johnson to eliminate discrimination in America’s political elections. “The law was passed to stop such criminal acts as racial gerrymandering, poll taxes, and economic reprisals.”  In Evicted!, Duncan tells the gripping true story known as the Fayette County Tent City Movement. She follows ten individuals to retell the events leading up to the trial of sharecropper Burton Dodson in 1959, and how that pivotal moment brought the Black community in Fayette County to stand together to demand their right to vote. 

“In 1950, Fayette County’s population of 28.000 was two-thirds Black, and the Black majority was made up mostly of unlearned sharecroppers living on cotton farms owned by white landowners.” To discourage Blacks from registering to vote, the white minority used fear of lynching and terror of fire. Each two-page spread, Duncan recounts the events that had families burned out of their homes and forced to relocate to a makeshift community of tents, called, “Tent City.” “Seven hundred Black families in both Fayette and Haywood Counties were removed from their farms where they had lived and worked for two or three decades.” 

Once Blacks registered to vote, their names were placed on a list, a “blacklist”, that was shared throughout the white community in Fayette County. They were denied groceries and gasoline, white doctors denied medicine, and insurance agents cancelled policies.

This well-documented narrative nonfiction includes an epilogue, timeline, list of resources, bibliography, and brief author and artist note. Charly Palmer’s illustrations, rendered in acrylic paint, capture the emotion of this time. 

An upsetting read given the present political situation, Evicted! is an important addition to all collections, a must read for middle and high school readers. 

Click here to listen to an interview with Alice Fay Duncan.

Post-ALA Report

We're back in Maine after four busy days of publisher previews, dinners, meetings, presentations, awards ceremonies, and time in the exhibit hall scouting out new books at the American Library Association's Annual Conference in Las Vegas. It's a wonderful opportunity to find out about new books and to talk directly with publishers and authors about their work.

Here are some upcoming nonfiction titles we're looking forward to reviewing on the blog this year.

Brown Girl Dreaming by Jacqueline Woodson

Publication Date: 8/28/14

Nancy Paulsen Books

Everybody Paints: The Lives and Art of the Wyeth Family by Susan Goldman Rubin

On shelves now

Chronicle Books

The Family Romanov: Murder, Rebellion, and the Fall of Imperial Russia by Candace Fleming

Publication Date: 7/8/14

Schwartz & Wade

Freedom Summer: The 1964 Struggle for Civil Rights in Mississippi by Susan Goldman Rubin

On shelves now

Holiday House

Ida M. Tarbell: The Woman Who Challenged Big Business- and Won!

 by Emily Arnold McCully

Publication Date: 7/8/14

Clarion Books

Ivan: The Remarkable True Story of a Shopping Mall Gorilla by Katherine Applegate

Publication Date: 10/7/14

Clarion Books

Little Author in the Big Woods: A Biography of Laura Ingalls Wilder

 by Yona Zeldis McDonough and Jennifer Thermes

Publication Date: 9/16/14

Henry Holt and Co.

The Right Word: Roget and His Thesaurus by Jen Bryant and Melissa Sweet

Publication Date: 9/15/14

Eerdman's

Star Stuff: Carl Sagan and the Mysteries of the Cosmos by Stephanie Roth Sisson

Publication Date: 10/14/14

Roaring Brook Press

Strike!: The Farm Workers' Fight for Their Rights by Larry Dane Brimner

Publication Date: 10/1/14

Calkins Creek Books

A Woman in the House (and Senate) by Ilene Cooper

On shelves now

Harry N. Abrams

While we were in Las Vegas we took part in a panel presentation, Common Core IRL: In Real Libraries, with our friends Mary Ann Scheuer from Great Kids Books and Alyson Beecher from Kid Lit Frenzy.

Our presentation focused on how to evaluate nonfiction and bring quality nonfiction books into the classroom to help students meet Common Core State Standards.

Here are the slides from our presentation.

Common Core IRL: In Real Libraries 2014 from Mary Ann Scheuer

http://www.slideshare.net/maryannscheuer/ccirl2014

Common Core IRL: Colonies and the American Revolution

In the latest installment of Common Core IRL: In Real Libraries, we focus our attention on books about  Colonial America and the Revolutionary War. 

Be sure to visit the following blogs this week to read all of the reviews.

 Great Kid Books: Life in Colonial America (gr. 3-5)

 Kid Lit Frenzy: Primary Sources (gr. 4-6)

 The Show Me Librarian: Historical Fiction (gr. 1-6)

Great Kid Books: Digital Resources (gr. 4-6)

George vs. George: The American Revolution As Seen from Both Sides  
by Rosalyn Schanzer
National Geographic, 2004.
60 pages
ISBN: 0792273494
Grades 5-6

Upper elementary classes usually study Colonial America and the American Revolution. Many books about the American Revolution are written from the point of view of the patriots who were upset with taxes and the way Great Britain governed the colonies. However, George vs. George is a more balanced look at the events leading up to the American Revolution and the consequences of the war. By writing from different points of view, Schanzer gives children a more accurate view of complex historical events.

The narrative writing style and picture book format of George vs. George make it a text that could be read aloud or used as an independent reading book in social studies classes. The lengthy bibliography and source notes might lead readers to other sources for further reading and research including a study of primary vs. secondary sources.

Classroom Connections:

R.I. 5.6 Analyze multiple accounts of the same events or topic, noting similarities and differences in the point of view they represent. 

Rosalyn Schanzer provides readers with two different points of view: one from George Washington and the rebels and the other from King George. George vs. George outlines the events leading up to the war while offering a balanced view of these events. Readers could compare and contrast the lives and motivations of King George to George Washington in a written assignment or in an oral presentation or speech. Readers might also identify how each side reacted to events and battles and use evidence from the text to explain why this was the reaction. For example, after Washington's troops defeated the British at Saratoga, "King George tried so hard to make merry in public that he embarrassed all his friends" (p.43).

R.I. 5.1 Determine two or more main ideas of a text and explain how they are supported by key details; summarize the text.

The book is organized into chapters that progress chronologically. Readers could identify the main ideas from each chapter using evidence from the text to support their thinking. Schanzer's folk art style illustrations painted on a textured canvas incorporate cartoon elements including speech balloons with actual quotes from historical figures. These quotes connect directly to the events on each page and may help readers interpret how different sides of the conflict viewed the events.


R.I. 5.3 Explain the relationships or interactions between two or more individuals, events, ideas, or concepts in a historical, scientific, or technical text based on specific information in the text.

Readers may explain the relationship between the British government to the government of the American Colonies based on the information on pages 16-17. Students could create their own graphic organizers comparing the government of England to the government of the American Colonies. Students could also explain the relationship between the Sugar Act & Stamp Act, the Boston Tea Party, and the closing of Boston Harbor. Some sections of the book provide readers with opportunities to compare and contrast, such as the equipment, size and tactics of British troops vs. Rebel troops.

Schanzer packs a lot of information into the pages of this informational picture book that will help readers see the American Revolution from different perspectives. By sharing texts that examine historical events from different points of view, we help our children become critical thinkers and consumers of information.

View a video of Rosalyn Schanzer reading aloud from George vs. George.

Common Core IRL: Baseball Edition

It's time for another installment of Common Core: IRL  (In Real Libraries), and we've turned our attention to baseball.  Our goal in writing this series is to shed light on quality books for children that educators can use in the classroom to help address the standards. The books reviewed on the four blogs feature books about baseball that increase in text complexity. Visit all of the blogs to read the reviews and learn how to use the books with students. 

• Amy Koester reviewed a book for early readers on The Show Me Librarian blog.
• Alyson Beecher reviewed picture books on the Kidlit Frenzy blog.
• Mary Ann Sheuer reviewed a book for upper elementary on Great Kid Books.

We Are the Ship: The Story of Negro League Baseball 

by Kadir Nelson

Hyperion, 2008.

ISBN: 9780786808328
Grades 5-8

In every generation there are movers & shakes, individuals who speak out to try to bring about social change. In the world of publishing there are those who write to ensure African Americans are represented in children's literature. There are many writers who come to mind including Virginia Hamilton, Rita Garcia Williams, Walter Dean Myers, Andrea Davis Pinkney, Christopher Myers, and Kadir Nelson. Over the past decade, Kadir Nelson has used his talent as a writer and artist to teach children about important people and events from African American history.

In the large-format informational book, We are the Ship, Nelson describes the formation of the Negro League and how it provided those with a passion and talent for baseball with a venue to play. The story is narrated by an unnamed ballplayer who, according to Nelson, represents "the voice of every player." Nelson traces the start of the league by Rube Foster in 1920. The book features several players from the Negro Leagues and ends with Jackie Robinson as he joined the major league in 1947. Nelson's stunning, full-page illustrations convey the emotions of the players and bring history to life.

Common Core Connections

• Middle grade readers will immediately be drawn into the story of We Are the Ship as the narrator looks back upon his days in the Negro Leagues. This narrative style lends itself to examining point of view. Teachers could ask students in sixth grade to determine the author's point of view or purpose and "explain how it is conveyed" in the book.  R.I. 6.6.

• Teachers could also ask students to identify the central idea of the narrative and "how it is conveyed through particular details." R.I. 6.2

Click here to view the video.

• The Common Core State Standards want students to integrate information presented in different formats. Pair We Are the Ship with this video about the Negro Baseball League. Have students synthesize the information from the book with what they learn from the video. R.I. 6.7 

• Students could also compare and contrast the point of view of the narrator in We Are the Ship with the point of view of Negro League umpire, Bob Motley, in this radio interview. Click here to listen to the interview with Bob Motley.

Learn more by visiting the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum website, which offers teacher resources, player biographies, and a photo archive.

Common Core IRL: The Salem Witch Trials

As Halloween draws near, we thought it fitting that Common Core: IRL focus on scary stories. Be sure to visit the following blogs today to read reviews of frightening tales (both fiction and nonfiction) and see how they may be used in classrooms settings. 

Great Kid Books

Kidlit Frenzy

100 Scope Notes

Sometimes real life is more frightening than fiction, so today we're highlighting books from a terrifying event from our past: The Salem Witch Trails.

Witches!: The Absolutely True Tale of Disaster in Salem 

by Rosalyn Schanzer

National Geographic, 2011

ISBN: 9781426308703

Grades 6 and up

2012 Sibert Honor Book

The reviewer borrowed a copy of the book from her public library.

Rosalyn Schanzer packs a lot into the 144 pages of this small nonfiction book for young adults. It is evident from the detailed story and the extensive bibliography that Schanzer meticulously researched the mysterious events from 17th century Salem.

Chapter One, titled "Where the Stage is Set," provides background information about the Puritan religion and their beliefs about the Devil. The author ends the chapter by identifying three reasons why Salem's Reverend Parris was discontent with his current situation: he had not received the firewood he had been promised, he had not been paid his salary, and his daughter was sick with fits and seizures. His daughter's mysterious illness will prove to be just the beginning of a frightening and dark period in history when innocent people were accused, tried and hung for witchcraft.

Witches! is a rich, nonfiction text to use with students for several reasons.  Schanzer's description of the events coupled with excerpts from transcripts from the trials provide readers with sense of the severity of the accusations during the colonial era. The author effectively uses questions throughout the chapters to encourage readers to think and reflect as they read.

"And who else would rake coals over the reputations of Martha Cory, Elizabeth Proctor, and even Elizabeth's husband, a big burly tavern keeper named John Proctor? It was the Proctors' very own 20-year-old servant, Mary Warren. Now why would she do that? Was she truly ill? Was she terrified by shadows in her chambers? Or was she out for revenge against her hot-headed master?" (p. 43-44)

Black, white and red scratchboard illustrations are fitting for this story involving beliefs about witches, the Devil and demons; the Caslon Antique font appropriately reflects the 1600s.
Educators who use Witches! in literature or history class should ask students to identify the central ideas of the book and to develop theories about what caused the hysteria and the subsequent trials based on evidence from the text.  Witches! could also be used to provide readers with historical context before reading fiction titles such as A Break with Charity or The Witch of Blackbird Pond.

Witches!: The Absolutely True Tale of Disaster in Salem addresses the following 7th grade Common Core State Standards:

• ELA Literacy: Reading Informational Texts

• Key Ideas and Details
• 7.2 Determine two or more central ideas in a text and analyze their development over the course of the text; provide an objective summary of the text.
• Integration of Knowledge and Ideas 
• 7.8 Trace and evaluate the argument and specific claims in a text, assessing whether the reasoning is sound and the evidence is relevant and sufficient to support the claims.

Witch-Hunt: Mysteries of the Salem Witch Trials 

by Marc Aronson

Atheneum Books for Young Readers, 2003

ISBN: 9780689848643

Grades 9 and up

The reviewer borrowed a copy of the book from her public library.

Aronson, always meticulous in his research, covers the same information as Schanzer does in Witches!, but fills out his detailed narrative with actual historical transcripts or notes taken during the trials. He outlines the events, and indicates key questions that historians over the years have also raised.

Why did the good people of Salem cause nineteen people to be hanged and twenty-five more to die? Was it revenge? A silly teenagers prank out of boredom? Did the judge and the adults who attended the trials really believe the accused were witches? 

Written directly with teens in mind, the ten chapters are presented as a mystery and Aronson states, “the challenge of this book is to give you enough information to begin to think for yourself about what really happened in Salem, Massachusettes, 1692. If the study of the witchcraft accusations, and of the mythologies that have grown up around them, teaches anything, it is that we must be careful with evidence.” 

Aronson in his epilogue continues to provide insight in order to help make sense of current scholars differing views.  In the appendix, Aronson believes that Arthur Miller’s play, The Crucible and its compelling portrait of the Salem trials was influenced by his experience with the House Un-American Activities Committee that blacklisted hundreds of people in the motion picture industry during the late 1940s. Other back matter includes a timeline, source notes, bibliography, and index.


Witch-Hunt addresses the following Common Core State Standards for grades 9-10:

      Key Ideas and Details

    9-10.2 Determine a central idea of a text and analyze its development over the course of the text,   including how it emerges and is shaped and refined by specific details; provide an objective summary of the text.

      9-10.3 Analyze how the author unfolds an analysis or series of ideas or events, including the order in which the points are made, how they are introduced and developed, and the connections that are drawn between them.

Craft and Structure

9-10.6 Determine an author’s point of view or purpose in a text and analyze how an author uses rhetoric to advance that point of view or purpose.

Integration of Knowledge and Ideas                                                                                                                    

9-10.8 Delineate and evaluate the argument and specific claims in a text, assessing whether the reasoning is valid and the evidence is relevant and sufficient; identify false statements and fallacious reasoning.

This book trailer of Witches! includes examples of Schanzer's scratchboard illustrations.

Common Core In Real Libraries: Volcanoes

We're back with our second installment in our joint project with Alyson from Kidlit Frenzy, Mary Ann from Great Kid Books, and Travis from 100 Scope Notes.

This time we're looking at the topic of volcanoes, and we've identified a range of nonfiction texts for young readers. Be sure to visit all of Common Core IRL blogs to learn about the different volcano books featured today.

Great Kid Books

Kid Lit Frenzy

The Krakatau Eruption 

by Peter Benoit

A True Book published by Scholastic Inc., 2011

ISBN: 9780531206287

Grades 3-4

The reviewer borrowed a copy of the book from the public library.

The readers at my school love learning about science and nature, and they are especially interested in natural disasters such as earthquakes and volcanoes. In August of 1883 a powerful, volcanic eruption rocked the island of Krakatau, Indonesia. The Krakatau Eruption pieces together why it was "one of the most violent eruptions in world history" triggering tsuanamis, dropping ash on 300,000 square miles, and affecting "climate patterns all over the world." This is definitely an event in history and science that will fascinate children.

The Krakatau Eruption is part of the True Book series by Scholastic; readers are asked to answer two true/false questions at the beginning of the book as a way of accessing prior knowledge and engaging readers in the content. The book design is attractive for elementary age students. Text features such as bold print, maps, timelines, colorful photographs and captions will help young readers access the information.

Peter Benoit employs both a chronological and cause/effect format to organize the information. Students will be interested to read how scientists have pieced together clues about why the eruption was so violent. Earthquakes occurred a few months before the volcano erupted. Witnesses also reported seeing "thick, black clouds of smoke" over the island. The Krakatau Ertuption delves deeper into the "hows" and "whys" than the typical survey-style nonfiction book. 

Teachers and librarians could read The Krakatau Eruption with elementary classes and ask students to identify causes/effects based on evidence from the text. Back matter includes links to web sites, videos, and lists of books that could be used to extend learning.

Use The Krakatau Eruption to address the following 4th grade Common Core State Standards:

ELA Literacy- RI 4.3 
Explain events, procedures, ideas, or concepts in a historical, scientific, or technical text, including what happened and why, based on specific information in the text.

ELA Literacy- RI 4.6
Describe the overall structure (e.g., chronology, comparison, cause/effect, problem/solution) of events, ideas, concepts or information in a text or part of a text.

Reviewed by Cathy

The Day the World Exploded: the Earthshaking Catastrophe at Krakatoa 

by Simon Winchester

Collins, 2008

ISBN: 0061239828

Grades 4-8

The reviewer borrowed a copy of the book from the public library.

The Day the World Exploded, adapted by Dwight Jon Zimmerman from Simon Winchester's adult book Krakatoa, chronicles the first rumblings to the final explosion of the volcano Krakatoa. The author uses a combination of straight narration interspersed with eyewitness accounts to give readers a ‘You are there’ feeling. The addition of illustrations, a combination of photos, engravings, and illustrations, helps break up the text, which can be choppy at times. This is a good source for information on events leading up to, and the results of, Krakatoa's eruption.

Winchester also includes in the narration the after effects of the eruption. Thousands of people lost their lives from ash, lava, and tsunamis. As explained in Eruption by Elizabeth Rusch, the destruction and loss of lives on Krakatoa was the direct result of the lack understanding on how volcanoes erupted back in 1883.

Another plus for older readers is the inclusion of how inventions, such as the telegraph and the founding of the news agency Reuters, helped the world, "see for the first time that a natural event occurring in one corner of the planet had effects that spread over the entire world. The world was now suddenly seen to be much more than an immense collection of unrelated peoples and isolated happenings."

Teachers and librarians could read The Day the World Exploded to upper middle and high school students and compare how scientists track volcanic eruptions then, and now.

Back matter includes a glossary, suggested volcano websites, suggested reading, and index.

CCSS ELA-Literacy RI 8.2
Determine a central idea of a text and analyze its development over the course of the text, including its relationship to supporting ideas; provide an objective summary of the text.
 
CCSS ELA-Literacy RI 8.3
Analyze how a text makes connections among and distinctions between individuals, ideas, or events (e.g., through comparisons, analogies, or categories).

Reviewed by Louise

Don't miss the middle grade volcano book, Eruption!: Volcanoes and the Science of Saving Lives by  Elizabeth Rusch (reviewed by Louise in July).

Common Core State Standards that could be applied to Eruption!

CCSS ELA- Literacy RI 6.3 
Analyze in detail how a key individual, event, or idea is introduced, illustrated, and elaborated in a text (e.g., through examples of anecdotes).

CCSS ELA- Literacy RI 6.6
Determine an author's point of view or purpose in a text and explain how it is conveyed in the text.

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Common Core IRL: In Real Libraries- Frogs!

We are excited to launch Common Core IRL: In Real Libraries, a new series with Kid Lit Frenzy, Great Kid Books, and 100 Scope Notes. Today we're exploring several books about frogs written for a range of readers. Our goal is to help libraries build their nonfiction collections as they support teachers in the implementation of the Common Core State Standards. Head over to these blogs to read all of today's reviews:

Kid Lit Frenzy

Great Kid Books

100 Scope Notes

The Frog Scientist

Scientists in the Field series
by Pamela S. Turner
Photographs by Andy Comins
Houghton Mifflin Books for Children, 2009.
ISBN: 9780618717163
Grades 4-6

The reviewer borrowed a copy of the book from her school library.

The Scientists in the Field series has made a name for itself as quality nonfiction for middle grade readers. In The Frog Scientist, readers are introduced to Dr. Tyrone Hayes, a charismatic biology professor at UC Berkeley. Pamela S. Turner takes readers into the field as Tyrone and his students catch leopard frogs from a pond in Wyoming. Tyrone is an amphibian expert, and he's testing his theory about how atrazine (a pesticide used in the U.S.) affects the development of frogs. Tyrone's research takes him from the pond into the lab where he and his students care for tadpoles and dissect frogs to examine under a microscope.

Turner incorporates sensory details and dialogue into the narrative to make the science story a pleasing read.

"This corner of Wyoming seems untouched by humans. The water, air, and sweet-smelling grass are abuzz with life. You wouldn't know it, but even in a place like this there can be pesticides that can harm wildlife" (p. 3).

Throughout the book readers are asked to ponder questions and think like scientists as Tyrone searches for answers to how pesticides affect frogs and toads. When the samples from the study are analyzed, the results are "puzzling" which shows readers that science isn't black and white. Often scientists must make adjustments to their theories and try again. The author also provides readers with the pros and cons for using pesticides on crops; this could lead to some thoughtful discussions and debates with students.

Stunning, close-up photographs of amphibians with detailed captions make this book a perfect blend of informational text and visuals. Back matter includes a glossary, a page identifying different species of frogs, a list of websites and selected bibliography.

The Frog Scientist would make an interesting read aloud with a fourth grade class or an independent read for fifth and sixth grade students. The structure and ideas presented in the book connect to the following Common Core State Standards:

6.RIT.6 (Informational Text)
Determine an author’s point of view or purpose in a text and explain how it is conveyed in the text.

6.RIT.8 (Informational Text)
Trace and evaluate the argument and specific claims in a text, distinguishing claims that are supported by reasons and evidence from claims that are not.

Pair this book with The Case of the Vanishing Golden Frogs to compare/contrast environmental and human impact on two different species of frogs.

Reviewed by Cathy



The Mystery of Darwin's Frog  
by Marty Crump
Illustrations by Steve Jenkins and Edel Rodriguez
Boyds Mill Press, 2013.
ISBN: 9781590788646
Grades 4-6

I checked out a copy of this book from my local public library.

Frogs! Some are harbingers of spring (spring peepers), while others keep us company during the hottest part of summer ‘ribbiting’ in slimy ponds(bull frogs). According to an article in National Geographic Extreme Explorer (Mar2010, Vol. 3 Issue 5, p2-9) there are over 5400 kinds of frogs which can be found all over the world, as long as they have access to water. (After all, they are amphibians!)

Usually, frogs deposit their jelly-like eggs in water. They hatch into tadpoles and within a few weeks those tadpoles grow four legs and lose their tails. (Remember Swimmy by Leo Lionni?)  

But did you know there is one frog where the male swallows the tadpoles and keeps them inside his vocal sac until they come crawling out, fully developed? 

Sound weird? In The Mystery of Darwin’s Frog, behavioral ecologist Dr. Marty Crump, Ph. D. tells of the story of a very unusual frog that lives in the forests near Valdivia, Chile.

Rhinoderma darwinni, the Darwin’s frog, was first recorded by Charles Darwin on his now-famous voyage on the HMS Beagle from 1831 to 1836. Darwin saw an unusual frog with a flap of skin on its nose in December 1834, while on the island of Lemuy in southern Chile. A few months later, in February 1835, Darwin sees the same frogs, but this time in a ‘thick & gloomy forest near Valdivia, Chile.’ Darwin described these frogs as “very pretty & curious.” This unusual frog was given its name in 1841. 

Crump takes us on a 175-year journey and describes in very simple, straightforward language how scientists finally discovered that it is the father, not the mother, who incubates the polliwogs until maturity. The story doesn’t end there. Now Darwin’s frogs, and many others, are being threatened by extinction because of a killer fungus: Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis, or Bd. Bd was first discovered by scientists back in late the 1990s and scientists know of no way to rid environments of Bd. 

The book is handsomely illustrated with photos, and illustrations by award-winning artist Steve Jenkins, and Cuban-born artist, Edel Rodriguez. The book ends with a glossary, books and websites and a bibliography to learn more, an author’s note, and index. The Mystery of Darwin’s Frogs is an excellent example of quality nonfiction for children.

Place The Mystery of Darwin’s Frog in a display with other nonfiction titles: Growing Frogs by Vivian French, Red-Eyed Tree Frog by Joy Cowley, Face to Face with Frogs by Mark W. Moffett, The Case of the Vanishing Golden Frogs: a scientific mystery by Sandra Markle, and Frogs by Nic Bishop.

Fiction: Tuesday by David Wiesner, 999 Tadpoles by Ken Kimura, the Frog and Toad books by Arnold Lobel, Froggy books by Jonathan London, Green Wilma by Tedd Arnold, In Memory of Gorfman T. Frog by Gail Donovan, The Fantastic Secret of Owen Jester by Barbara O’Connor, and The Frog Princess by E.D. Baker. 

Reviewed by Louise