"Terrific" - Free Choice/ Fiction

"Terrific", written by Jon Agee, is a very funny fiction book. A man named Eugene wins an all-expenses-paid cruise to Bermuda. Eugene is very negative, and says that he will probably get a sunburn. He had no idea that something worse would happen. His ship sinks and he ends up stranded on a tiny island. That's were he meets a parrot who happens to know about building boats. The two castaways team up and make their escape. I really enjoyed this book. I think that it would an appropriate read for any students third through fifth grade. It shows students the importance of thinking positively and working with others to be successful.

"Cinderella's Rat" - Free Choice/ Fiction

"Cinderella's Rat", written by Susan Meddaugh, is a very cute fiction book. This book tells the Cinderella folktale from the rat's perspective. The rat was very happy when Cinderella's fairy godmother changed him into a coachman. But the coachman was not satisfied he wanted his sister to be changed from a rat to a girl. So they went to a wizard and asked for help. Instead of turning his sister into a girl the wizard turned her into a cat that barked like a dog, and then he turned her into a girl. The only problem is she still barked like a dog. The hours pasted and then it turned midnight and the coachman turned by into a rat, but his sister was still a girl that barked. I think that this would be a great book for a third grader to read. A teacher could also have the studens read the book and compare it to the original Cinderella folktale.

"Sleep, Black Bear, Sleep" - Free Choice/ Fiction

The following is a wordle that was created for the fiction book, "Sleep, Black Bear, Sleep", written by Jane Yolen.

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    alt="Wordle: Sleep Black Bear Sleep - fiction"
    style="padding:4px;border:1px solid #ddd">

"Angry Dragon" - Free Choice/ Fiction

"Angry Dragon", written by Thierry Robberecht, is a very interesting fiction book. This boy describes a situation of a little boy who's mother told him no. Like many kids, he did not like to be told no and got very upset. He got so upset that he turned into a dragon. He would not listen to his parents, he destroyed anything in site and acted very bad. At the end of the story the little boy realizes that how he has acted is very inappropriate and feels very ashamed. He goes to his parents and apologizes. This book would be great for students in third grade to read. It shows a wonderful job of illustrating how the power of our emotions can sometimes tend to overwhelm us and transform us. It reminds us that we all have dragon in us, it is up to us if we let the dragon get angry.

"Queen of the Class" - Free Choice/ Fiction

"Queen of the Class", written by Mary Engelbreit, is a cute book that describes a little girl named Ann Estelle and a school play. Ann wants to play the Queen in the play, but is chosen by the teacher to be the stage manager because she is responsible. But Ann did not like her job, she wanted to be Queen. Little did Ann know that she would have to step in at the last minute and fill a role. At the end of the play she felt like a queen. I really enjoyed this book and think that it would be a great read for any third grader. It is very important to teach students that just because they are given something different to do than what they might have wanted to do, it does not mean that they are any less important.

"Chobits" - Fantasy

"Chobits", written by Clamp, is a very exciting fantasy chapter book. The following is a link to a wordle created for this book.

    title="Wordle: Chobits - Fantasy">    src="http://www.wordle.net/thumb/wrdl/699753/Chobits_-_Fantasy"
    alt="Wordle: Chobits - Fantasy"
    style="padding:4px;border:1px solid #ddd">

"Emily Windsnap and the Castle in the Mist" - Fantasy

"Emily Windsnap and the Castle in the Mist", written by Liz Kessler, is a very exciting fantasy chapter book. In the beginning of the book Emily, a half human half mermaid girl, believes that everything is going to be all right, but then her parents start fighting. Later in the story Emily finds a ring and puts it on. Emily son learns that there is something very special about the ring. For one think it will not come off of her finger and if anyone tries to remove it something unfortunate happens to them And for another, the ring seems to be able to sommunicate with her in some strange way. Emily faces many tough times in this book from her parents fighting to her feeling like she does not belong to either the human world or the ocean world. I really liked this book and think that any youngers will also. The story has a great message to the reader, that no matter what tough times you are going through, love and forgiveness will undo all the damage that has been done.