Review x 2: Charlotte's Web and Dory Dory Black Sheep

For probably the last year or so, Bradley has listened to every single one of our readalouds. (Before then, he was a bit hit and miss--sometimes he'd listen, sometimes he preferred Mike to read picture books to him while I read to the older boys.)

It's been a joy to have him along for the ride, especially since he's one of my best snugglers. But I have wondered about how to make sure he doesn't miss out on books that a) I've already read to the older two or b) seem too young or babyish to Aaron or Max.*

And then, soon after the beginning of school, I stumbled upon the perfect solution. I could read those books to Bradley in the afternoons while his older brothers were at school.

These are the two books we've read so far, and I have to tell you, it's been nothing but a treat (but then, most things are with Bradley).

Charlotte's Web by E.B. White
We started with a classic--one that I would never be able to forgive myself for if I somehow omitted it in any of my children's childhoods. (Although, now that I've given it more thought, I'm pretty sure there's no way Max, who was two-and-a-half when I read it the first time, could possibly remember it, although he claims that he does. This is a grave oversight.)

I already wrote a thorough review of it when I read it to Aaron, but I wanted to add just a few things that made me dog-ear the pages this time:

First, this book feels so timeless . . . except when it doesn't. For instance, one morning Fern and Avery are rushing to catch the school bus. Mrs. Arable takes tiny Wilber out of Fern's hand and gives her a doughnut to eat on the way. Avery grabs his gun and another doughnut and runs out the door. Did you catch that? His gun! I'm still getting over the shock that Avery takes his gun to school, and its as natural a thing to take as another doughnut. Times have certainly changed.

Second, I find it so interesting that the only person who thinks it might be the spider, rather than the pig, who's extraordinary is Mrs. Zuckerman. Everyone else just believes the message in the web: "Look, it says 'Some Pig,' so he really must be some pig!" They don't even think that a spider might be capable of weaving words into her web. Rather, they're convinced it must be some supernatural miracle that just uses the web that's already there as its canvas. But the readers appreciate the silliness of all the adults because we know who the real truly brilliant character is.

Third, I think I felt more irritation with Wilbur than I have on previous readings. While his innocence and naivety are endearing, he's sometimes so self-centered in his wishes. For example, when Charlotte tells him that she can't go to the fair with him, he freaks out a little. Finally, after all his whining and begging and pleading, Charlotte agrees to try. Wilber says, "Oh, good! I knew you wouldn't forsake me just when I need you most," and I kind of just wanted to slap him up the side of the head. Charlotte has literally worn out her life in his service, and he is so completely blind to it. He is not unlike a small child. (Luckily, he redeems himself when he is willing to make great sacrifices to keep Charlotte's egg sac safe.)

Finally, this story just gets me, right here, every time. I was an emotional wreck during the second to last chapter. My voice tightened, and I could barely choke out the words. The tears just streamed down my cheeks. My heart was breaking. Bradley kept looking at me, totally dry-eyed himself. I asked him if he felt sad, and he said yes, but I think it's one of those things that, even though it's a children's novel, grows in poignancy with age and maturity. I have had amazing friends who have sacrificed a lot for me. I also know what it's like to lose someone I love. So this story touches an emotional soft place for me that Bradley doesn't have yet.

I just love this book so much. It will always be one of my favorites.

Dory Dory Black Sheep by Abby Hanlon
After loving the first two Dory Fantasmagory books so much, I actually pre-ordered the third one in the series. I gave it to Bradley for his fifth birthday, and although it's at just the right reading level for him to read on his own, I didn't want to miss out on it, so I read it to him.

In this installment, Dory's real and imaginary worlds continue to collide in fantastic and amusing ways. One day she sees her best friend, Rosabelle reading a big thick chapter book. Dory exclaims, "I love pretending to read chapter books, too!," not realizing that Rosabelle can, in fact, read it. When she finds out, Dory is mortified and frustrated--she is still struggling through the very simplest easy readers. When she tries to force herself to read these "baby books," she finds herself suddenly in the book, and her fairy godmother, Mr. Nuggy, is there too, and so is the evil Mrs. Gobble Gracker. Fighting off villains is way more fun than reading, at least until something finally starts to click and a whole new world opens up to Dory.

In my opinion, this book isn't quite as good as the first two in the series, but it comes close. The other two made me laugh out loud at some point, and this one, for whatever reason, never did. It could have been that the endearing six-year-old-humor is mixed together with the obnoxious six-year-old humor, and since I already live with my own six-year-old, who seems to get more obnoxious by the day, it hit a little closer to home than before. For example, one afternoon Dory gets home from school and starts jumping on a chair while swinging around two hammers and yelling at the top of her voice. Her mom rushes in and yells, "Dory, what are you doing? DON'T! STOP!" Dory says, "Okay . . . you said, 'Don't Stop,'" and she keeps on doing it. My resident six-year-old did and said something almost like that just yesterday (can someone please tell me how to stop the stupid Christmas songs with first grade lyrics? I'm about to go crazy).

But the very fact that Dory's so obnoxious at times is also the reason why these books are so good. Somehow Abby Hanlon has entered the six-year-old psyche and nailed it perfectly. And the clash between Dory's two worlds is so extremely clever. Dory is visited by Mary or Mr. Nuggy or Mrs. Gobble Gracker at wildly inappropriate times, which makes for some funny and awkward situations.

But I think my favorite moment was this one, when Dory is all alone, with no distractions from real or imaginary friends: "The next morning, I wake up extra early. One by one, I take my favorite books off the bookshelf. All alone, in the quiet of my room, I lie on the floor with my books. As the morning light slowly shines brighter and brighter through my window, I turn the pages and look carefully at the pictures. I look at the words carefully, too, and some of the words . . . I read."

I guess six-year-olds can be unbearably sweet sometimes, too.

*My kids will actually listen to just about anything, so this is probably not a truly legitimate concern. In fact, I might have thought Aaron would think Dory was too young for him, but he thinks she's hilarious and read this whole book one night before bed.

Dory Fantasmagory by Abby Hanlon (or, How I Tricked Maxwell into Reading a Book, Part 2)

Okay, so before you all think that I'm some extremely controlling mother who monitors every single word my children read, let me just defend myself by saying this: I am totally fine with letting my kids choose (some of) their own books. However, the library can be a very overwhelming place (I know that all too well myself), so if they don't have some sort of plan going in, they end up coming home with stuff that just sits untouched in the library basket because they weren't actually interested in reading it--they just wanted to choose something.

So, meanwhile, I choose my own books for them and then place them strategically around the house or make rather blatant suggestions. Sometimes it works, but, more often than I'd like to admit, it doesn't, and then I'm left with books like Dory Fantasmagory hanging out at our house for weeks until we finally use up all our library renewals and have to take them back.

After I read Dory and the Real True Friend for the Cybils, I went back and checked out the first one because I'd found the second one so funny and delightful. I thought for sure it was a book Max would like. So every time he was looking for something new to read, I'd say, "How about Dory?" You can imagine that it didn't take very many times before that got really old, like, "Really, Mom? Do you only have one book you can recommend?"

Finally, with it's due date looming, I decided to just read it myself. I was in between books at the time, waiting for some of my holds to come in at the library, and even if all my kids were rejecting Dory, that didn't mean I had to.

Within just a few pages, I was laughing . . . like, really laughing, out loud. I couldn't help myself. Dory's imagination is just too amazing. She's the youngest in her family and regularly gets left out of Violet and Luke's games. She usually doesn't mind because she has Mary, her imaginary monster, to play with, but sometimes she just really wants to be included. One day, in another attempt to get her to stop acting like a baby, Luke and Violet tell Dory about Mrs. Gobble Gracker, who is five hundred and seven years old and loves to steal baby girls. In fact, she's actually been looking for Dory.

Instead of being frightened into acting more mature, Dory is fascinated. Her head is buzzing with questions about Mrs. Gobble Gracker, and pretty soon, she is off on an adventure to defeat this evil opponent.

A couple of night after finishing it, the boys were getting ready to go to bed. We had just finished a chapter of Rascal, and Aaron and Max were trying to decide what they should each read in bed.

I decided to make one final attempt . . .

"So, I just read Dory, and it was so funny. I seriously could not stop laughing. Maybe you should try it."

"Really?" Max said suspiciously. "Why was it so funny?"

"Yeah," said Bradley. "Tell us about one of the funny parts."

"Okay," I said. And so I told them about the part where Dory goes to the doctor for a check-up, but she's disguised as a dog because she's trying to outsmart Mrs. Gobble Gracker. Her mom is trying to get her out the door so they'll make their appointment on time. She's saying things like, "Dory, did you hear me say we are in a rush??? We have an appointment. We can't be late." But Dory says, "it just doesn't mean anything to me, because I'm a dog!" At the doctor's, Dory answers all of the questions with "woof-woof!" and Dory's mother is so embarrassed. And, as if that isn't enough, Dory gives the doctor a "shot" at the end by jabbing her sucker stick into the doctor's thigh."

My kids laughed and laughed at this retelling, and then Bradley said, "Please just read the first chapter?"

And so I did. And then my biggest problem was not trying to get them to read the rest of it but breaking up the fight between Max and Aaron because they both wanted to take it to bed with them.

I ended up reading the rest of the book to Bradley the next day, the last two chapters of which were in the car on our way to our family's cabin. Mike kept chuckling, but when we got to the part where Dory keeps getting out of bed because her imagination has gotten away from her and she thinks Mrs. Gobble Gracker is actually real, Mike and I were dying. Our kids looked at us like we were crazy because we were laughing like maniacs in the front seat. (Actually, we were laughing as only parents who have experienced the exact same scenario can laugh, right down to the part where Dory's father says, "Stay. In. Bed! Because it's not safe for you to come out." And then Dory hears him laugh a tiny bit as he closes the door.)

Besides her brilliant imagination, I also just love Dory's story for its honest, candid look at family life. Dory's parents get frustrated (her mom has a little breakdown when she finds Dory's giant fort in the living room); Violet and Luke are jerks (they ignore Dory, call her names, and tattle on her). If it only showed the tension and bickering, I wouldn't have liked it at all. But, just like in a real family, there are some really sweet moments too, and those counterbalance the others and make everything more meaningful and realistic. Her family has a strong foundation of love and friendship, even if the day-to-day moments don't always reflect that super well.

So my ploy worked. I've made Dory converts out of every single person in my family, even Mike. I think we'll be talking about Mrs. Gobble Gracker for years.

Have there been any books that took your kids some convincing before they read them? And . . . are there any other Dory fans out there?

Thoughts on the 2015 Cybils (and What it was Like to be a Judge)

Way back in August, I did something brave. I applied to be a judge for the 2015 Cybils Awards. (For those who might not know, the Cybils is an annual literary award given by bloggers of children's and young adult literature. I believe this was its tenth year.)

It was brave simply because it was outside my comfort zone. I had to fill out an application and link to a few blog posts that demonstrated why I was "qualified" to judge children's literature. I didn't want to be turned down, but I also worried about the time commitment I was signing up for if I made it onto one of the panels.

I shouldn't have worried. I wasn't rejected, and I had such a wonderful time serving as a Round 2 judge for the easy readers/early chapter books category (along with Emily, Freya, Teri, and Kurt).

I loved being a part of the process. All five judges brought different opinions, preferences, and personal biases to the table, but we were still able to have thoughtful, respectful discussions about each finalist. I always like to say that there is such a variety of books out there because there's such a variety of people reading them. We don't all have to like the same book because there's truly something for everyone. I could see the truth of that in our own little group. We had different favorites and different least favorites, but in the end, we came to a consensus we all felt happy about, and that was pretty thrilling.

Because these books took up a big chunk of my reading time in January (but I couldn't divulge any of my thoughts until after the winners were announced), I thought I'd give a brief summary/recap on each of the finalists before I move onto other things.

First up, the seven easy readers:

Sofia Martinez: Picture Perfect by Jacqueline Jules
I'm not exactly sure how this one made it to the group of finalists. Sofia is a cute girl, and it's nice to see a Latino main character, but the story was bland, and the inclusion of Spanish words felt gimmicky (but maybe just because they were bright pink).

Slither Snake (National Geographic Readers) by Shelby Alinsky
I love all of the National Geographic readers, and I was particularly impressed with this one because it was very simple (it's a pre-reader), but it still managed to share some interesting facts. And of course, the photographs were wowing.

Rosa Parks (National Geographic Readers) by Kitson Jazynka
I was inspired by Rosa Parks' quiet dignity and desire to make a difference in the equal treatment of all people. Although an easy reader, I learned new things about her life (such as that she had a history of not giving up her bus seat, even before that fateful day that everyone remembers). The photographs made it all come to life.

In! Over! and On! (the Farm) by Ethan Long
This one was high on everyone's lists. The text is simple, the story is funny, but it's the pictures that take the cake. I don't think there are many kids who could resist this one (my kids have not been able to). At the same time, it's at the very easy end of the easy reader scale, so most kids will be able to breeze through it in twenty seconds. Still, I love an author who can tell an engaging story with only a few words, and Ethan Long definitely does it here.

Don't Throw it to Mo! by David A. Adler
I think I was the only one on the Round 2 panel who loved this one. But love it I did, and I'm sticking with my original impression. The story shows hard work and success, and there are a lot of really delightful details that help the reader get to know Mo. (One of the Round 2 judges took issue with its happy ending, and I've been giving that a lot of thought and will probably write a longer post about it at some point.) Plus, it won the Geisel Award recently, so at least my liking of it was backed up by good company.

A Pig, a Fox, and a Box by Jonathan Fenske
This was my personal favorite. It was clever, creative, and oh, so funny. I love easy readers that confine the text to speech bubbles because it makes it easy to take turns reading ("you be Fox, I'll be Pig," etc.). Bradley loved reading this one. My only criticism is that it was too short. I felt like it needed one more chapter in the middle.

Ling and Ting: Twice as Silly by Grace Lin
And here it is! The winner of the easy readers! I've been a fan of Ling and Ting ever since I discovered them when Max was first learning to read, and they charmed every single one of us on the Round 2 panel. Each story ends with a little twist or joke, and the final story ties everything together. Ling and Ting approach life with an enthusiasm and energy that is contagious.

And then, here are the seven early chapter books:

My Pet Human by Yasmine Surovec
This was a clever idea (a stray cat finds a human he thinks will do fine as a pet and begins training her), but the execution was rather flat. There were lots of pictures (in some places it read almost like a graphic novel), but they didn't engage me much either. I think this is a book plenty of kids will like, but it wasn't one that could hold up to adult scrutiny.

Ranger in Time: Rescue on the Oregon Trail by Kate Messner
I love historical fiction and had high hopes for this book since there isn't much (of quality) for this age group. Sadly, this is just another one to add to the pile of formulaic, dull books about events in history. It has an interesting premise (a dog goes back in time to help a family on the Oregon trail), but it felt like the author started with a list of disasters, checked off each one, and then called it good.

West Meadows Detectives: The Case of the Snack Snatcher by Liam O'Donnell
As with the two above, I think this book will definitely find readers among its targeted audience, but it didn't feel finalist-worthy to me. Except for Myron and his best friend, Hajrah, every other character seemed stereotyped, and the mystery itself was both predictable and unbelievable (the teachers and parents were conveniently stupid, if you know what I mean). All of this could have been forgiven if the writing had been outstanding, but it wasn't.

Big Bad Detective Agency by Bruce Hale
Overall, I liked this one. Sometimes the humor and puns felt a little overdone and trite, but I enjoyed the fairy tale references throughout the book. Both Aaron and Maxwell read it after I did and enjoyed it.

The Magical Animal Adoption Agency: Clover's Luck by Kallie George
With such a title, I had low expectations but was pleasantly surprised on every point. The writing was tight and well done. The story was interesting and unique. And the ending was spot-on perfect. It's definitely on the upper end of early chapter books but, content-wise, still seems to fit into this category very well.

Lulu and the Hamster in the Night by Hilary McKay
I know a lot of the judges felt about this one like I felt about some of the ones mentioned above. They thought it was boring, but I actually quite liked it. Perhaps it was that I set out with low expectations (I have a low tolerance for pet books, and you may have noticed that the majority of the books on this list are pet books), but I thought it was well done, and I especially loved the characters, who felt very real to me.

Dory and the Real True Friend by Abby Hanlon
Dory was in a category by herself. With the other books, some were mediocre and some were pleasantly enjoyable, but Dory was the only one that made me laugh. (Several weeks later, when it was time to deliberate the final decision, I reread several passages from Dory and laughed all over again.) The imaginary friend theme is not a new one, but it felt fresh in the hands (or rather, the imagination) of Dory. It was an easy choice to select Dory and the Real True Friend as the winner.

I am definitely hooked on the Cybils and plan to apply to be a judge again next year. I loved judging the easy reader/early chapter books category because it introduced me to new books I could pass along to my kids, but I would definitely be up for trying another category as well.

Have you read any of these books? I'd love to hear what you thought about any (or all!) of them.