A troubled youth with cerebral palsy struggles toward self-acceptance with the help of a drug-addicted young woman.
See the review at WOW Review, Volume 5, Issue 1
Stoner and Spaz
Age
Catalog sorted by age group
One Crazy Summer
In the summer of 1968, after travelling from Brooklyn to Oakland, California, to spend a month with the mother they barely know, eleven-year-old Delphine and her two younger sisters arrive to a cold welcome as they discover that their mother, a dedicated poet and printer, is resentful of the intrusion of their visit and wants them to attend a nearby Black Panther summer camp.
See the review at WOW Review, Volume 5, Issue 1
Out of the Way! Out of the Way!
A young boy spots a baby tree growing in the middle of a dusty path in his village. He carefully places rocks around it as the local mango seller rushes past shouting, ?Out of the way! Out of the way!” As the tree grows bigger, people and animals traverse the path until it becomes a lane, flowing like a river around the tree and getting out of its way. Over time, the lane becomes a road, and a young man crossing the road with his children remembers the baby tree from long ago. By the time he is an old man, the tree has become a giant. The city traffic continues to rattle past, noisier and busier than ever, but sometimes the great tree works its magic, and people just stop, and listen. In this simple, lyrical story, a wide-spreading tree and a busy road grow simultaneously, even as time passes and the footsteps of people and animals give way to speeding cars, buses and trucks.
See the review at WOW Review, Volume 5, Issue 1
Carolina’s Gift: A Story of Peru
Today is a very important day! It is market day, and Carolina and her mother are going to the plaza to find a birthday gift for Carolina’s abuelita, or grandmother. But there are so many things to see and so many gifts to choose from! Would Abuelita like a pretty hat? No, these hats are not for Abuelita. Would Abuelita like a bird that chirps and sings? No, a bird might keep Abuelita up when she is trying to sleep at night. Finally, Carolina finds the perfect gift! Won’t Abuelita be surprised?
See the review at WOW Review, Volume 5, Issue 1
Never Fall Down
Cambodian child soldier Arn Chorn-Pond defied the odds and used all of his courage and wits to survive the murderous regime of the Khmer Rouge.
See the review at WOW Review, Volume 5, Issue 1
Looking For Marco Polo
After his anthropologist father disappears from the Gobi desert while tracing Marco Polo’s ancient route from Venice to China, 11-year-old Mark suffers an asthma attack. To distract the boy, Doc Hornaday tells Mark the tale of Marco Polo. Marco’s journey bolsters Mark’s courage and whets his appetite for risk and adventure. Illustrations.
Whittington
Whittington, a feline descendant of Dick Whittington’s famous cat of English folklore, appears at a rundown barnyard plagued by rats and restores harmony while telling his ancestor’s story.
My Name Is Jorge: On Both Sides of the River
A collection of 27 insightful poems that illuminates the migrant experience from the point of view of a grade school child from Mexico. Jorge doesn’t want to be called George. He thinks the name sounds strange. “What an ugly sound!/Like a sneeze!” His struggles to fit in result in a friendship with a boy named Tim; a tentative coming to terms with American society; and some degree of sadness when, upon his grandmother’s death, his family must cross the river again.
This book has been included in WOW’s Language and Learning: Children’s and Young Adult Fiction Booklist. For our current list, visit our Booklist page under Resources in the green navigation bar.
The Librarian Who Measured The Earth
Describes the life and work of Eratosthenes, the Greek geographer and astronomer who accurately measured the circumference of the Earth.
Dave The Potter
To us it is just dirt, the ground we walk on…But to Daveit was clay, the plain and basic stuffupon which he formed a lifeas a slave nearly 200 years ago. Dave was an extraordinary artist, poet, and potter living in South Carolina in the 1800s. He combined his superb artistry with deeply observant poetry, carved onto his pots, transcending the limitations he faced as a slave. In this inspiring and lyrical portrayal, National Book Award nominee Laban Carrick Hill’s elegantly simple text and award-winning artist Bryan Collier’s resplendent, earth-toned illustrations tell Dave’s story, a story rich in history, hope, and long-lasting beauty.