As we mentioned last week, several of us serve on literature award committees and noticed that in 2017 publishers released interesting books about foxes. We wondered if the representation or characterization of the fox had changed from the traditional portrayal as a sly personality in trickster tales, classics or modern tales. Are fox characters more empathetic? Last week we looked at The Fox and the Wild. This week we take on The Fox Wish by Kimiko Aman.
Books & Resources
MTYT: The Fox and the Wild
Several members of our group serve on literature award committees and noticed that in 2017 publishers released some interesting books about foxes. We wondered if the representation or characterization of the fox changed from the traditional portrayal as a sly personality in trickster tales, classics like Aesop’s Fables, Pinocchio and Three Little Pigs, or modern tales like Fox (Margaret Wild and Ron Brooks) and Rosie’s Walk (Pat Hutchins). Are fox characters more empathetic in recent publications such as Pax (Sara Pennypacker and Jon Klassen)? In week 1, we discuss The Fox and the Wild by Clive McFarland.
MTYT: After the Fall
For the last My Take/Your Take of this month (and this year!) Prisca and Ray share their take on After the Fall (How Humpty Dumpty Got Back Up Again) by Dan Santat, which puts a clever twist on the end of a familiar nursery rhyme.
MTYT: Her Right Foot
This week, Prisca and Ray return to a familiar face with Her Right Foot by Dave Eggers and Shawn Harris, and discuss who the Statue of Liberty really is for so many Americans.
MTYT: Leaving My Homeland: A Refugee’s Journey from Syria
This week we discuss Leaving My Homeland, a part of a series of informational books. The nature of this book helps children understand the refugee experience with facts about Syria that led to the civil war and its citizens finding ways to escape.
MTYT: The Journey
The Journey by Francesca Sanna is a picturebook about a family’s journey of refuge after their country is unsafe after war. The family bonds are powerful in both the illustrations and the words. This book discusses refugee struggles and what happens to families that are refugees. It also provides conversation about how to help refugees in America today.
MTYT: Adrift at Sea: A Vietnamese Boy’s Story of Survival
Adrift at Sea: A Vietnamese Boy’s Story of Survival by Marsha Forchuk Skrypuch with Tuan Ho and Brian Deines is the unbelievably true story of a refugees escape to America. We continue this month’s My Take Your Take with this story that invites readers to experience what it is to be a refugee. It also invites deeper conversation about refugees in America with more personal reflection.
MTYT: The Silence Seeker
We continue this month’s My Take Your Take theme of refugees with The Silence Seeker by Ben Morley and Carl Pearce. It is the story of a new friendship between a kind young boy and a refugee boy who has just moved in next door. This story promotes kindness and introduces a conversation to have with children about refugees in America.
MTYT: Books that Support Young Readers’ Understanding of Refugees
Flight is the story of refugees fleeing in the desert. At first, it appears to be the story about Mary and Joseph’s journey before the birth of Jesus Christ. It’s actually a much darker parallel to the original story. It is a picturebook that introduces the idea of refugees to children and highlights the importance of sheltering refugees. Sometimes shelter is not enough; we need to give them a home, too.
MTYT: The Rooster Who Would Not Be Quiet!
To wrap up October’s My Take/Your Take, we discuss The Rooster Who Would Not Be Quiet! by Carmen Agra Deedy. In a town where silence is law, a rowdy rooster enters the scene and demands to be heard. We will discuss how this playful picturebook illustrates individuality, voice and opposition in relation to the other stories we’ve explored this month.
