August 4, 2009 Storytime

The storytime on Friday went well, I was nervous going back after having a month off but the kids and parents were very enthusiastic. I looked at my collection of storytime books I have been acquiring the last few months and decided to just do some of my new arrival favorites. Actually I find most of the time when you don't do a theme the storytime goes really well! Not sure why, but it is an interesting observation.

Here are the books:

Book One:

Little Beauty by Anthony Browne

An adorable book about the friendship of two unlikey animals a gorillia and a tiny kitten. Artwork is an added plus, perfect big clear pictures for the kids. 

Song One: I Can Dance by Ronno

Book Two:

Can You Make A Scary Face? by Jan Thomas
An interactive book, where children can participate with the actions in the book. Kids love the interactive part of the book a nice mix up from the sit still storytime routine.
Song Two: Do the Monkey
Book Three:
Put It On The List! by Kristen Darbyshire
All grownups will love this book especially moms. A family of chickens goes through a crazy week where they run out of all sorts of things including toliet paper. Finally Momma Chicken shows the kids to put it on the list any items that they run out of during the week. The book ends with the whole family going to the grocery store together. Super sweet and the kids laughed at the many funny parts.
Ending Song: If You're Happy and You Know It
Next Storytime: Opposites or Libraries

Wintergirls by Laurie Halse Anderson

Summary:

Cassie and Lia have been friends since elementary school developing a bond through their different eating disorder techniques. But of late Cassie has ruptured their relationship until the night of Cassie's death when she leaves Lia 33 voice messages. Lia's overbearing guilt for not listening to her messages and rescuing Cassie is matched with her fight to stay as skinny as possible. She is demanding her body to get back down to 90lbs. Then maybe 60lbs. Then maybe 40lbs. Then maybe 0lbs and then she can just disappear. The usual specialized treatment centers and constant weight monitoring forced Lia to get smart about hiding her obsession by using laxatives, drinking tons of water before her schedule weigh in, and visiting a secret blog where other girls encourage each other to become skinner, tinier, and smaller. Her life doesn't get any easier when Cassie decides to haunt Lia wooing her to do the same as her and finally ending her battle with her body by ending her life.

My Opinion:

"Wintergirls" is a heart wrenching story following Lia a young teenager who not only is fighting with her body but with the loss of her best friend who she later finds out died of complications with bulimia. Laurie Halse Anderson has created a genuine Young Adult novel. The text is illustrative and descriptive. So many young adult literature today is single layered and idealistic which teens are unable to relate to or extract any meaningfulness from the characters. Anderson has been successful in creating a beautiful novel that will ring true for teens, and has the depth and sincerity to fill the gap of idealistic stories for teens. The best attribute of the story is how relatable Lia's character is to teens in general, who are faced with many of the same misgivings. For instance Lia dealing with her parents divorce, absence of their attention for Lia, and the apprehension towards her numb and aimless life. Readers follow Lia's crisp and brutal journey through Anderson's illustrative narrative of repetition, blank pages, strikethrough words, and recurring hateful adjectives.