Book Summary
This book is about a young boy, James, whose parents died in
a freak accident. James goes to live with his two aunts, who abuse him and
treat him poorly. James meets a stranger who gives him a bag of magic beads.
The stranger tells James to boil them and then drink the juice and he will be
happy for the rest of his life. James accidentally drops them near a peach
tree. The beads make several critters as well as a peach grow larger than life.
James goes into the peach and meets the creatures. This begins a great adventure
that changes James life forever.
Citation
Citation
Dahl, R. (1961). James and the giant peach. London,
England: Penguin Book, Ltd.
My Impressions
My Impressions
I absolutely loved this book. I liked the creativeness of
the book and the story as well as the illustrations that were placed throughout
the book. I really liked that the book starts out with a young boy who has a
not so great life, but ends with him in a much better situation. I like that
the author presents several garden “pests” such as spiders, grasshoppers,
worms, centipedes, etc in a way that makes them likeable and makes you feel a
little bad for how you might treat them. I was glad that I picked this book to
read and that I gave it a chance. It made me laugh out loud several times and
that is a rare thing these days.
Review Excerpts
Review Excerpts
Bateman, T., & Mandell, P. (2003). James and the Giant
Peach (Book). School Library Journal, 49(11), 72.
(This review is for the audio book version): “Magic crystals change his humdrum existence, and soon he is off on a great adventure on a giant peach with new friends…. There are sharks, seagulls, and irate cloud people to add interest along the way and, of course, Dahl’s irreverent poetry…. Fans of Dahl will not be disappointed in this briskly paced tale that is a delight from beginning to end.”
(This review is for the audio book version): “Magic crystals change his humdrum existence, and soon he is off on a great adventure on a giant peach with new friends…. There are sharks, seagulls, and irate cloud people to add interest along the way and, of course, Dahl’s irreverent poetry…. Fans of Dahl will not be disappointed in this briskly paced tale that is a delight from beginning to end.”
James and the giant peach. (1997). The Reading Teacher, 51(2), 138.
(This review is for the picture book based on the movie):” “Never have centipedes, spiders, evil aunts, and, of course, James and his giant peach seemed so delicious.”
Suggestions for Use in a Library
This book could be the basis for an activity
where students create adventures. They could create posters and advertisements
for places and things that they could do. We could use it to talk about how the
most ordinary things could be adventurous and exciting if you give it a chance.
Chicka Chicka Boom Boom
Book Summary
Philbrook, J., Jones, T. E., Toth, L., & Suhr, V. J. (1989). Chicka Chicka Boom Boom (Book). School Library Journal, 35(15), 89.
“Martin and Archambault have produced an engaging rhyme with restless, exciting rhythms to convey the humorous adventures of the letters of the alphabet and a coconut tree…. Ehlert’s bright, primary color illustrations add to the fun … This goes further in making arid print more friendly and comfortable than other books of this genre.”
Suggestions for Use in a Library
Chicka Chicka Boom Boom
Book Summary
This book is about the lower case letters of the alphabet
climbing a tree. They then fall down and injure themselves in various ways.
They run to their parents, the capital letters, and get comforted. The book
ends with a climbing back up the tree.
Citation
Citation
Martin, Jr, B., & Archambault, J. (2000). Chicka chicka boom boom.
New York, NY: Beach Lane Books.
My Impressions
My Impressions
I really didn’t like this book too much. It is very
repetitious and I found that slightly annoying. However, I can see how it would
be a good book for young children who are learning their alphabet and/or
learning to read. It also would be a very good book for young children to use
to match up the lower case and capital versions of the letters. Children love
books with repetition, so, while it may be annoying to me, I think many
children would love it.
Review Excerpts
Review Excerpts
Crum, S. (2007, 03). Chicka chicka boom boom. Book Links,
16, 59.
“In this rollicking ABC classic, the letters of the alphabet are personified as they climb up the tree and get into trouble. After their cuts and scrapes are bandaged, will they be able to resist doing it again?”
“In this rollicking ABC classic, the letters of the alphabet are personified as they climb up the tree and get into trouble. After their cuts and scrapes are bandaged, will they be able to resist doing it again?”
Philbrook, J., Jones, T. E., Toth, L., & Suhr, V. J. (1989). Chicka Chicka Boom Boom (Book). School Library Journal, 35(15), 89.
“Martin and Archambault have produced an engaging rhyme with restless, exciting rhythms to convey the humorous adventures of the letters of the alphabet and a coconut tree…. Ehlert’s bright, primary color illustrations add to the fun … This goes further in making arid print more friendly and comfortable than other books of this genre.”
Suggestions for Use in a Library
I would use this book in an elementary school library, maybe
in a corner dedicated to kindergarteners. Pre-K and K level children are
learning their alphabet. My idea would be to create a large coconut tree out of
paper and attach it to the wall. I would have the Pre-K and K level children
create letters based on the book and color and illustrate them as they desire
to add to the tree on the wall.
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