NUMBER THE STARS

• BIBLIOGRAPHY
  Lowry, Lois. 1989. NUMBER THE STARS. Boston: Houghton Mifflin. ISBN 0440227534
  
  PLOT SUMMARY
  Set in Nazi-occupied Denmark in 1943, this 1990 Newbery winner tells of a 10-year-old girl who undertakes a dangerous mission to save her best friend. On September 29, 1943, word got out in Denmark that Jews were to be detained and then sent to the death camps. Within hours the Danish resistance arranged a small task force to herd 7,000 Jews to Sweden. The experience is shown through the eyes of 10-year-old Annemarie Johannesen, whose family harbors her best friend, Ellen Rosen, on the eve of the round-up and helps smuggle Ellen's family out of the country.
  
  CRITICAL ANALYSIS
  The vivid setting immerses the reader into the frightening world of a Nazi occupation. Lowry brings the rationing of electricity, tea, sugar, coffee, butter and the concept of missing Jewish neighbors to the forefront. The reader quickly sees that life in this time was harsh at best. The theme of standing up for what you believe in and protecting your friends is something that any reader of any age can understand. The bravery that a ten year old girl displayed in the face of certain death is admirable and shows how anyone in any given moment can do the right thing. The character of Annemarie is realistic as she learns about the power of family and unseen evils in the world. Lowry has researched the subject extensively. In the afterward, she reveals the facts that are behind much of the story's events. She tells how the Danish people were actually devoted to their king, how the Danish fleet was burned in the harbor to prevent use by the marauding Germans, and how the dog-repellant "handkerchief" was a weapon of the Resistance. This is an excellent read for children on the harshness of war without the gore.
  
  
  REVIEW EXCERPTS
  SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL: “Readers are taken to the very heart of Annemarie's experience, and, through her eyes, come to understand the true meaning of bravery.”
  
  CONNECTIONS
  Contact the Houston Holocaust Museum about the available curriculum trunks.
  Incorporate geography by finding maps of prewar and postwar Europe. Map the routes escaping Jews took from each country.
  Have a guest speaker from the Jewish community explain the significance of the Star of David since it is such an importance piece of this story.
  Other books about the Holocaust:
  Abells, Chana B. CHILDREN WE REMEMBER ISBN 0688063721Adler, David. A. WE REMEMBER THE HOLOCAUST ISBN 080503715

WORTH

BIBLIOGRAPHY
LaFaye, A. 2006. WORTH. New York: Simon and Schuster. ISBN 0689857306

PLOT SUMMARY
After being crippled by a tragic farming accident, eleven year old Nathaniel is angry and hurt when his father brings home a boy off the Orphan Train to take his place on the farm. Nathaniel quickly becomes jealous of John Worth, who has also taken his father’s attention. Nathaniel now has the chance to go to school for the first time, but his sense of “worth” is hurt as he is behind the youngest children in the school. John Worth is still grieving over the loss of his family and is repeatedly reminded of his “worth” as he sleeps in the lean-to fit for dogs and is yelled at by Nathaniel’s mother. John is resentful of the education Nathaniel doesn’t want since John realizes that an education is the ticket to a better life. John knows he has no future on this farm. Nate will inherit the farm that John has worked to keep alive. When the boys finally come to blows, they realize “each of us hating the other for being what we couldn’t be” was a waste of time. Overtime, each boy realizes that they are not so different and eventually come together to save the farm.

CRITICAL ANALYSIS
LaFaye does an excellent job depicting the hardships in nineteenth century Nebraska concerning the ongoing battle between herders and ranchers for control of land. The adolescent characters of John and Nate illustrate that even the young can be heroic as is the case of the boys catching the fence cutters and warning the town. The boy’s showed great maturity in putting aside their differences to put others first to eventually become a family. The theme involving the power of family love is beautifully shown through the tear-stained eyes of the young men longing for a family in John’s case, and longing for his father’s attention once again in Nate’s. WORTH is an excellent read for kids and adults alike.

REVIEW EXCERPTS
BOOKLIST starred review: "[The] Narrative is brutally honest."
KIRKUS REVIEWS: “It's a lively story of two boys set against a backdrop of the Orphan Trains, range wars, lynchings, drownings, and sheep killings. Something for everyone.”

CONNECTIONS
Students could research the Orphan Train
Guest speakers are available through the National Orphan Train Complex www.orphantraindepot.com
Picture credit: Amazon.com

MATILDA BONE

BIBLIOGRAPHY
Cushman, Karen. 2000. MATILDA BONE. New York: Clarion Books. ISBN 0395881560

PLOT SUMMARY
Accustomed to the good life in a medieval manor, thirteen year old Matilda has been raised by an intolerant priest that has taught the girl to live beyond worldly pleasures. Since the young girl has been educated in the likes of reading, writing, French, and Latin, she finds adjusting to her new home as a bonesetter’s apprentice difficult. The snobbish girl continually alienates herself as she randomly throws in a Latin phrase or brags about her now impractical education. On more than one occasion Matilda burns the porridge or spills a potion in her quest to pray and think about saints ceaselessly. Over time she realizes that helping those less fortunate or ill, even if it means hard dirty work, is pleasing to God. With Peg the Bonesetter’s guidance, Matilda finds her way and recognizes her gift in helping others.

CRITICAL ANALYSIS
Through Matilda’s eyes we experience what life in medieval Europe was like. The entertaining story uses vocabulary of the time period to educate the reader on the primitive topic of medieval medicine and it’s sometimes strange ideas of the ways in healing (leeches, soporific sponges). The descriptive setting fully engulfs the reader into the world of apprenticeship and struggle for survival on Blood and Bone Alley. The young protagonist, Matilda, grows and matures along the way as she learns to love others and find a sense of belonging. Anyone that has ever been the new kid in town has surely felt “like a duck living with chickens.” The list of bibliographic sources used offers the reader an opportunity to find out more about medieval medicine as well as defines the accuracy in the novel.

REVIEW EXCERPTS
SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL: “This humorous, frank look at life in the medical quarters in medieval times shows readers that love and compassion, laughter and companionship, are indeed the best medicine.”
BOOKLIST: “Readers will find much of interest here.”

CONNECTIONS
Other novels by Karen Cushman taking place in medieval Europe:
Cushman, Karen. CATHERINE, CALLED BIRDY. ISBN 0064405842
Cushman, Karen. THE MIDWIFE’S APPRENTICE. ISBN 006440630X
Picture credit: Amazon.com

LEONARDO DA VINCI

BIBLIOGRAPHY
Krull, Kathleen. 2005. GIANTS OF SCIENCE:LEONARDO DA VINCI. Ill. by Boris Kulikov. New York: Viking. ISBN 067005920

PLOT SUMMARY
Leonardo, the illegitimate son of a wealthy man developed his love of learning from his kind uncle that raised him. His unsavory beginnings kept Leonardo from gaining an education, respect, or a notable profession. After finally becoming an apprentice to a leading Florence sculptor and painter, Leonardo blossomed as an artist. From him Leonardo learned that "an artist should be capable of rendering anything in nature." This lesson created the link between art and science that would last a lifetime. Leonardo was encouraged to study anatomy in order to accurately portray humans in paintings. This quickly led to a new found in interest in the sciences. Later he left for Milan, where he designed weapons of destruction for a Duke. The Black Plague soon struck, Leonardo designed a city that would be clean and disease free. The plans went no where, but he was promoted to engineer-architect for the Duke of Milan. Leonardo was now financially stable and informally adopted a son. Leonardo began keeping notebooks on his ideas and discoveries; he even wrote the information in a mirror-image so no one could steal his ideas and receive credit for his work. He became more and more interested in science. During his lifetime, he studied astronomy, zoology, geology, botany, and paleontology. He only continued to accept art commissions to finance his experiments and his assistants completed those. He had notions of using steam and solar power and of humans one day taking flight. At the end of his life, Leonardo realized that he must incorporate all of his notebooks into one encyclopedia so that his ideas and findings could educate others. Leonardo said, “Avoid studies of which the result dies with the worker.” The pages of his notebooks were very disorderly and many times random thoughts on different areas or topics would appear on the same pages. Organization would be a daunting task. After his death, he left all of his notebooks to his dear friend, Melzi. Melzi did not fully realize the importance of what he had been given. He took them to his family home where he allowed visitors to come read the notebooks and take away pages for souvenirs. The notebooks quickly disappeared. In the years to come, many scientists took Leonardo’s work as the basis for their own and received the credit for it. The notebooks are said to be all over the world and many have not yet been re-discovered. Bill Gates of Microsoft fame is said to own one book about water.

CRITICAL ANALYSIS
This is a well-written piece on the life of Leonardo da Vinci. It leaves out his career as an artist to focus on his life as a scientist. The author’s matter-of-fact style would engage a young reader, and the information on life in the Middle Ages is interesting. However, there is not a list of sources used for this work and accuracy is a key point when evaluating a biography. The book jacket says it is recommended for ages 10 and up, but the accusations of Leonardo being homosexual and the arrest for allegedly having sex with a male prostitute may offend many readers and their parents. The book's organization follows the life of the genius and the index at the back allows the reader to find a subject of interest easily. Boris Kulikov’s line drawings are great and the drawing on the cover with Leonardo attempting flight with his own drawings making up the wings goes right along with the very subject matter at hand. Each drawing included in the book perfectly compliments Leonardo's accomplishments.
Krull does manage to convey the man as a brilliant scientist nearly 100 years ahead of his time. Young readers will surely express a new found interest in science.

REVIEW EXCERPTS
SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL: “she [Krull] shows the workings of a scientific mind and the close connection between science and art. Kulikov's stylish and exacting line drawings are engaging and incorporate many of the items and interests found in Leonardo's notebooks.
BOOKLIST: “A very readable, vivid portrait set against the backdrop of remarkable times.”

CONNECTIONS
There are numerous websites and other books on Leonardo da Vinci included in the back of the book to further explore.
Other books in Krull’s Giants of Science series:
Krull, Kathleen. MARIE CURIE. ISBN 0670058947
Krull, Kathleen. ISAAC NEWTON. ISBN 0670059218

Picture credit: Barnes and Noble.com

GUTS: OUR DIGESTIVE SYSTEM

BIBLIOGRAPHY
Simon, Seymour. 2005. GUTS: OUR DIGESTIVE SYSTEM. New York: HarperCollins. ISBN 0060546522

PLOT SUMMARY
In this well-organized and fascinating book, Seymour Simon explains what happens to all the “pizza, sandwiches, and milk” we eat everyday. Simon manages to clarify the digestion process and all parts involved in taking food and transforming it into energy, nutrients, and waste. His step-by-step approach is easy to follow and understand. This book will answer how is it that the hydrochloric acid, which is a gastric juice the helps to soften food, does not eat away the walls of our stomachs? The answer is that the stomach is lined with a coating of protective mucus that is replaced every three or four days. Simon even manages to educate the reader on the importance of a healthy diet.

CRITICAL ANALYSIS
Simon is able to take a clearly technical and scientific process and make the concepts easily understood by any reader. The 19 full-color photos, X rays, and computer images pasted on a stark black background force the reader to take a second glance as to what exactly they are looking at. Each photo is clearly labeled so that the reader knows exactly what they are seeing. The representations are definitely for those with an interest in science and not the fainthearted. The photos allow the reader to fully understand exactly how our digestive system works and gives great insight into what exactly is going on within our bodies. Simon has obviously researched this subject and organizes the content to follow the path that ingested food takes. The cover photo will surely engage anyone to open this wonderful book. Simon also uses the technical vocabulary to accurately describe what is occuring. GUTS removes the mystery in exactly what occurs in our body on a daily basis.

REVIEW EXCERPTS
KIRKUS REVIEWS:"… the author has perfected the art of boiling down the complexities of science into a simple, declarative sequence …”
SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL:” Students will find the book fascinating …”

CONNECTIONS
Invite the school nurse or a local health care provider to speak on the importance of a healthy diet.
Other books about the human body by Seymour Simon:
Simon, Seymour. EYES AND EARS. ISBN 0060733020
Simon, Seymour. MUSCLES: OUR MUSCULAR SYSTEM. ISBN 0688177204

Picture credit: seymoursimon.com

THE FORBIDDEN SCHOOLHOUSE: THE TRUE AND DRAMATIC STORY OF PRUDENCE CRANDALL AND HER STUDENTS

BIBLIOGRAPHY
Jurmain, Suzanne. 2005. THE FORBIDDEN SCHOOLHOUSE: THE TRUE AND DRAMATIC STORY OF PRUDENCE CRANDALL AND HER STUDENTS. Boston: Houghton Mifflin.

PLOT SUMMARY
In 1832, Prudence Crandall opened up an all-girl’s school in Canterbury, Connecticut. Shortly thereafter a young African American girl wished to join the school. When the wealthy white townspeople refused that their daughters attend school with these girls, Crandall shut the school down to serve “young Ladies and little Misses of color.” Irate neighbors turned to threats, violence and harassment to get the school to close. Crandall stood her ground. Finally, they had the legislature conceive a new law, Crandall was arrested. Eventually after numerous proceedings she was finally found innocent. But after the school was caught on fire and vandalized, she married and moved away. Some fifty years later, the state of Connecticut decided to pay her a pension of $400 a year until her death to make amends for the wrongdoings she was shown. Crandall continued to fight for women’s and African American’s rights until her death. Crandall once told a reporter, “I am earnestly engaged in…every reform for the good of the human race.”

CRITICAL ANALYSIS
This is a very well-researched book. The extensive bibliography depicts the sources used and allows the curious reader to further examine this woman and this issue. The Appendix of the book lists the students that attended Crandall’s school and what became of them. It mentions people that helped Crandall in her fight for African American rights and how they carried on with the battle after Crandall. The original photos of Crandall’s school and people she encountered added an authenticity to the story as well as break up the text. It is organized into a logical sequence of the events. The resource aides of a table of contents and indexhelp move thee reader along. Jurmain does a good job of depicting the tensions and emotions exhibited during this time. Jurmain adopts a storyteller's voice to tell to the emotional heart of the conflict. Ms. Crandall’s own words exemplify the heart of this book, “I said in my heart, here are my convictions. What shall I do? Shall I be inactive and permit prejudice…? Or shall I venture to enlist in the ranks of those who…dare hold combat with prevailing iniquity?”


REVIEW EXCERPTS
KIRKUS REVIEWS: “This makes for a fast-paced read; well-placed images depict both the principal players and the interior of the Crandall school (now a museum).”
SCHOOL LIBRARY JOURNAL: “This book offers a fresh look at the climate of education for African Americans and women in the early 1800s.”

CONNECTIONS
Students wishing to learn more about Prudence Crandall and her fight against injustice can explore: The Kansas Historical Society or the Prudence Crandall Museum.
Picture credit: Barnes and Noble.com