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Song of the Trees |
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| Author: |
Mildred D. Taylor |
 Book Review
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| Format: |
Paperback |
| ISBN: |
0142500755 |
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The New York Times Book Review
A triumphant book...A story truly told.
Book Description
With the depression bearing down on her family and food in short supply, Cassie Logan isn't sure where her next meal will come from. But there is one thing that she knows will always be there-the whispering trees outside her window. Cassie's trees are a steady source of comfort to her, but they also happen to be worth a lot of money. When Mr. Andersen tries to force Big Ma to sell their valuable trees, Cassie can't just sit by and let it happen. She knows that her family needs the money, but something tells her that they need the trees just as much. The beloved heroine of Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry enchants us again in this story of strength and pride.
Illustrated by Jerry... |
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Patchwork Quilt |
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| Author: |
Valerie Flournoy |
Book Review
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| Format: |
Hardcover |
| ISBN: |
0803700970 |
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School Library Journal, starred review
This story will leave children moved and satisfied.
Booklist
Pinkney interprets the story with warm family scenes that glow.
See all Editorial Reviews
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Rikki-Tikki-Tavi |
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| Author: |
Jerry Pinkney |
Book Review
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| Format: |
Paperback |
| ISBN: |
0060587857 |
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From Publishers Weekly
With this newly illustrated edition of the treasured classic--written in the 1890s as part of the Jungle Books --readers can once again be captivated by the tale of a mongoose who is taken in by a family of British colonials living in India. Although a few Victorianisms in the text will need to be explained to young readers, the story has held up remarkably well over a century's time. Rikki's fight to defend his family from the menacing cobras Nag and Nagaina remains as suspenseful and emotive as ever. The creatures of the Indian garden come truly alive in Kipling's expert prose--the birds sing out messages of joy and warning; the cobra rears and spreads his sinister hood; the brave mongoose leaps and springs, victorious at last. In Davis's ( The Jolly Mon ; Trouble Dolls ) acrylic paintings, dominated by the... |
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The Talking Eggs |
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| Author: |
Robert D. San Souci |
Book Review
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| Format: |
Hardcover |
| ISBN: |
0803706197 |
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| Availability: |
Usually ships within 24 hours. |
Book Review
Two sisters lived down Louisiana way long ago: Rose, who was unpleasant, mean, and the older of the two; and her younger sister, Blanche, who was "sweet and kind and sharp as forty crickets." Guess who has to do all the work for Rose and their mother? Blanche's kind and obedient nature finally pays off when she helps an old woman who has magical powers--and a chicken house full of talking eggs containing treasures for those who do as they're told: gold and silver, jewels, silk dresses, satin shoes, "even a handsome carriage that grew in a wink from the size of a matchbox...." Robert D. San Souci's lively, humorous retelling of this Creole folktale abounds with colorful expressions, and Jerry Pinkney's full-page illustrations make us believe in the marvels that Blanche finds, even the two-headed cow,... |
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Aesop's Fables |
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| Author: |
Adapted by Jerry Pinkney |
Book Review
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| Format: |
Hardcover |
| ISBN: |
1587170000 |
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From Publishers Weekly
Beautifully designed, this lush, oversize volume showcases Pinkney's (The Ugly Duckling) artistry in grand style. There's a king's ransom worth of material here, as Pinkney serves up more than 60 of the ancient Greek slave-philosopher's fables. Aesop's wisdom spills across the pages as freely as Pinkney's glorious watercolors, alight with the many creatures who people the tales, from fiddling grasshoppers and diligent ants to wily foxes, clever crows, brave mice and grateful lions. Each of the vigorous retellings concludes with the kind of succinct moral that centuries of readers have come to expect (e.g., "Don't count your chickens before they're hatched"; "You are judged by the company you keep"). And whether the homilies concern a wolf in sheep's clothing or sour grapes, the timeless virtues resonate as... |
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Mirandy and Brother Wind |
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| Author: |
Patricia C. McKissack |
Book Review
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| Format: |
Paperback |
| ISBN: |
0679883339 |
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| Availability: |
Usually ships within 24 hours. |
From Publishers Weekly
As a prefatory note explains, this picture book was inspired by a photo of the author's grandparents winning a cakewalk"a dance rooted in Afro-American culture"and her grandfather's boast that, in her dancing, his wife had captured the wind. In the book, Mirandy determines to catch Brother Wind and have him for her partner in the upcoming junior cakewalk. She tries a number of tactics springing from folk wisdom, and finally succeeds in trapping her prey in the barn. At the contest, Mirandy chooses to dance with her friend Ezelbut, with Brother Wind to do her bidding, the two friends win the cakewalk in style. Told in spirited dialect and rendered in lavish, sweeping watercolors, this provides an intriguing look at a time gone by. As a story, however, it proves somewhat disappointing. After the colorful... |
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Sam and the Tigers |
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| Author: |
Julius Lester |
Book Review
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| Format: |
Paperback |
| ISBN: |
0140562885 |
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Book Review
In the original story by Helen Bannerman, Little Black Sambo must tread carefully, lest his clothes be stolen from him by a gang of tigers. Today, it is the teller of the tale who must tread carefully, lest the forces of political correctness attack, charging racism. Because of the names she chose for her characters, the book has become a symbol of intolerance in the century since it was written. Strip away race, however, and the tale underneath is both simple and affecting. To make it more palatable to modern readers, Julius Lester has recast the tale in a "Southern black storytelling voice."
--This text refers to the
Hardcover
edition.
From Publishers Weekly
Troubled by the racist trappings?the characters' names and the stereotypical illustrations?of The... |
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Tales of Uncle Remus |
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| Author: |
Julius Lester |
Book Review
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| Format: |
Paperback |
| ISBN: |
0141303476 |
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| Availability: |
Usually ships within 24 hours. |
From Publishers Weekly
Lester juxtaposes a contemporary voice and settings (like shopping malls) with some dialect in these "wonderfully funny folktales," said PW. "For many purists, though, it will not replace the original stories." Ages 8-up. Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.
From School Library Journal
Grade 2 Up Recent retellings of Joel Chandler Harris' African-American folktales from former slaves have pruned the dialect and leave out Uncle Remus all together. Most notable of these is Jump!: the Adventures of Brer Rabbit (HBJ, 1986). This newest attempt brings together two distinguished children's book creators in a most unusual recreation. Lester has retold 48 of the folktales in standard English but with a strong feel for the dialect of the original stories. His retellings... |
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Rikki-Tikki-Tavi |
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| Author: |
Jerry Pinkney |
Book Review
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| Format: |
Hardcover |
| ISBN: |
0688143202 |
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| Availability: |
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From Publishers Weekly
With this newly illustrated edition of the treasured classic--written in the 1890s as part of the Jungle Books --readers can once again be captivated by the tale of a mongoose who is taken in by a family of British colonials living in India. Although a few Victorianisms in the text will need to be explained to young readers, the story has held up remarkably well over a century's time. Rikki's fight to defend his family from the menacing cobras Nag and Nagaina remains as suspenseful and emotive as ever. The creatures of the Indian garden come truly alive in Kipling's expert prose--the birds sing out messages of joy and warning; the cobra rears and spreads his sinister hood; the brave mongoose leaps and springs, victorious at last. In Davis's ( The Jolly Mon ; Trouble Dolls ) acrylic paintings, dominated by the... |
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Sarny: A Life Remembered |
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| Author: |
Gary Paulsen |
Book Review
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| Format: |
Mass Market Paperback |
| ISBN: |
0440219736 |
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| Availability: |
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Book Review
The Civil War is over, and Sarny has been released from the shackles of slavery. She's free, but what does that mean? This sequel to Gary Paulsen's acclaimed novel, Nightjohn, follows Sarny as she searches for her children after the war. Hope comes from surprising places, and soon Sarny finds herself in New Orleans, working, teaching, and building her life anew. Though the war is over, hatred and danger lurk around every corner, threatening her efforts to teach others to read. In Sarny, Paulsen creates a character that sparkles with heart and courage. His descriptions of her first days of freedom--her first lavender-scented bath, the sweet taste of canned peaches on bread--drip with immediacy. Sarny's story is so rich, so engaging that it's hard to say good-bye to her when the book is over. Readers will find... |
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John Henry |
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| Author: |
Julius Lester |
Book Review
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| Format: |
Paperback |
| ISBN: |
0140566228 |
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| Availability: |
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From Publishers Weekly
A great American hero comes fully to life in this epic retelling filled with glorious, detailed watercolors. From his momentous birth, when all the animals come to see him and the sun won't go to bed, John Henry works wonders. As a child he helps his father by adding "a wing onto the house with an indoor swimming pool and one of them jacutzis"-and that's just before lunch. Other episodes trace the growth of his generous spirit. His greatest feat is, of course, in his battle against the steam drill, as he races the machine to cut through "a mountain as big as hurt feelings." He dies ("he had hammered so hard and so fast and so long that his big heart had burst"), but the onlookers understand that "dying ain't important.... What matters is how well you do your living." This carefully crafted updating begs to be... |
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Uncle Remus |
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| Author: |
Julius Lester |
Book Review
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| Format: |
Hardcover |
| ISBN: |
0803724519 |
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| Availability: |
Usually ships within 24 hours. |
Book Description
The four award-winning Uncle Remus books--now in one volume with a new introduction by Julius Lester
Brer Rabbit is causing trouble again for his fellow creatures Brer Fox, Brer Wolf, and the rest--this time in an omnibus edition that brings together all the stories from Tales of Uncle Remus, More Tales of Uncle Remus, Further Tales of Uncle Remus, and Last Tales of Uncle Remus.
The Uncle Remus tales, originally written down by Joel Chandler Harris, were first published over a hundred years ago, and serve as the largest collection of African-American folklore. In this four-book series, Julius Lester masterfully retains the flavor of the tales, while dropping the heavy dialect of the Harris originals and adding contemporary language and references-- ensuring that the stories... |
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Music from Our Lord's Holy Heaven with CD (Audio) |
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| Author: |
Gloria Jean Pinkney |
Book Review
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| Format: |
Hardcover |
| ISBN: |
0060007680 |
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| Availability: |
Ships within 3-4 days. |
From School Library Journal
PreS Up–This superb collection of lyrics for 22 African-American spirituals (musical scores are not included) is divided into three thematic groups: Adoration, Spiritual Wayfarers, and The Good Shepherd. The finely crafted volume contains a variety of favorites, including Glory, Glory, Hallelujah! We Are Climbing Jacob's Ladder, and Go, Tell It on the Mountain. The selections are accompanied by pertinent lines from corresponding psalms and further illuminated by distinctive illustrations painted in swirling shades of blue and gold, or poignant color photographs of children. The songs are framed by essays written by Troy Pinkney-Ragsdale and Gloria Pinkney, both of whom speak eloquently of the magical influence music can have on adults and children. Gloria Pinkney sings the songs in her pleasant alto to... |
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Ugly Duckling |
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| Author: |
Hans Christian Andersen |
Book Review
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| Format: |
Hardcover |
| ISBN: |
068815932X |
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| Availability: |
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Book Review
Three-time Caldecott Honor artist and four-time winner of the Coretta Scott King Award, Jerry Pinkney doesn't disappoint with this lovely, old-fashioned, richly textured watercolor adaptation of Hans Christian Andersen's The Ugly Duckling. The mother duck knew from the very beginning that one of her babies would be different from the rest... the sixth egg was large and oddly shaped. When it finally hatches that summer, she thinks the "monstrous big duckling" must be a turkey chick! Other ducks are appalled by the ugly duckling, and he is chased, pecked, and kicked aside. When he can't stand it anymore, he runs away from the pond, eventually taking refuge in the warm cottage of an old woman with a cat and a hen. Missing the delicious feeling of the water too much to stay, however, he heads out again into the wide,... |
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The Hired Hand |
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| Author: |
Robert D. San Souci |
Book Review
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| Format: |
Paperback |
| ISBN: |
0142404500 |
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| Availability: |
Usually ships within 24 hours. |
Book Description
As water pours over the wheel of a busy sawmill in Virginia, a stranger tells Old Sam, the owner, that he wants to learn the trade. Old Sam is happy to take on a hired hand, and Young Sam, his son, is glad to have someone to boss around. One day, an old farmer complains about a misery in his back. The New Hand offers to fix him up, and when he does, the farmer is not only cured, he’s young again! But when conniving Young Sam tries to do the same, he finds himself in big trouble. Can the New Hand set things right?
About the Author
Robert D. San Souci lives in the San Francisco Bay area. Jerry Pinkney lives in Croton-on-Hudson, New York.
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Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry: 25th Anniversary Edition |
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| Author: |
Mildred D. Taylor |
Book Review
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| Format: |
Hardcover |
| ISBN: |
0803726473 |
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| Availability: |
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Book Review
In all Mildred D. Taylor's unforgettable novels she recounts "not only the joy of growing up in a large and supportive family, but my own feelings of being faced with segregation and bigotry." Her Newbery Medal-winning Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry tells the story of one African American family, fighting to stay together and strong in the face of brutal racist attacks, illness, poverty, and betrayal in the Deep South of the 1930s. Nine-year-old Cassie Logan, growing up protected by her loving family, has never had reason to suspect that any white person could consider her inferior or wish her harm. But during the course of one devastating year when her community begins to be ripped apart by angry night riders threatening African Americans, she and her three brothers come to understand why the land they own means so... |
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