What is a Level M?

Posted on March 3, 2015 by Mrs.N

Some of you might be asking What is Level M?

Here’s some background information about book levels that might help.  Every school district uses a reading program and measures to determine the progress students are making as they learn to read.  One of these reading programs, Guided Reading, was developed by Fountas and Pinnell.  They also developed a system to compare texts to determine what made some harder and some easier.  Level M is the reading level that typically correlates to the end of second grade or the beginning of third grade.

Many teachers use something called the DRA (Developmental Reading Assessment) to test students’ reading abilities.  Students read the text provided, provide a summary and answer questions about the plot.  Based on their fluency (how smoothly they read); the effectiveness and variety of strategies they employ use to solve for unknown words; their ability to retell a story with specific details in the proper order while focusing on the key parts of the plot; and their ability to answer questions about the text, they are assigned a reading level. There are many charts out there that will correlate DRA reading levels to Fountas and Pinnell’s letter system, because many school districts use the DRA for assessment while they use Fountas and Pinnell’s reading program.

There are many places to find book leveling information, but it can be hard to find anything comprehensive and definitive. Fountas and Pinnell have a website that will tell you the level of all the books that they have officially leveled.  They currently charge $25 for a yearly subscription.  The site is found at: http://www.fountasandpinnellleveledbooks.com.  But just because they developed the system, it doesn’t mean they are the only players in the game.  Scholastic notes the Guided Reading level (that would be Fountas and Pinnell’s system) and/or the DRA level for many books via their Book Wizard site.  Scholastic charges no fee.  There are lots of other online resources where you might be able to dig up reading levels as well. But book leveling is a tricky science.  I frequently run into books leveled by Scholastic or even the experts, Fountas and Pinnell, which don’t quite seem to line up with others of the same letter or level.  For example, I often see Matt Christopher’s longer chapter books about sports listed as a Level M but in my experience they are harder than that.  If you compare one of these books to another Level M book, you will see why!  The text is smaller, the book is longer.  There are no illustrations and there is a lot of difficult vocabulary which is highly specific to the topic he’s writing about.

Based on a snap analysis I’m going to say that Scholastic tends to rate things as a harder reading level than I’ve seen elsewhere and what I would, in my professional opinion, assess. For example, they show the Cam Jansen series as a Level N, rating it harder than Junie B. Jones or Magic Treehouse.  In my experience, I’ve always seen it rated as a Level L, a bit easier than those two series, which makes a lot more sense to me given the text and my observations of students’ ability to read it.  Update 3/22/15 – I found Scholastic’s Leveling Chart which explains some of the discrepancies I noted.  For example, they list an M as a DRA 20-24 whereas I’d usually seen it as corresponding to a DRA 24-28.  They list an N as a 28-30.  So basically, some books they level as M are clearly what I would mark as an L and some of their Ns are really what I’d mark as an M.

You may have noticed that comparing books is one of the tools I use to draw my personal conclusions about a book’s level.  This is a really practical way and simple way to give yourself a basic idea of whether a book is suitable for your child.  I have found over years of teaching that students who have tested at a Level M are very successful with both Magic Treehouse and Junie B. Jones.  Therefore, I use my knowledge of those two series to help me determine the level of other similar books.  I look for the size of the text and words per page.  I look at the overall length of the book. I read a bit of it to determine the complexity of the sentences and vocabulary.  It’s surely not as precise as what the experts do, but it is something anyone can do while standing in a bookstore or library. I will do my best to provide you with choices that a student who is reading at a Level M could master.  By talking to your child and really looking at the books they are selecting, you will get more and more comfortable scanning a book and being able to tell if it is the right reading level.  In the meantime, help your children self-monitor by checking in with them about their comprehension.

Tomorrow:  Reading Comprehension…How Hard is Too Hard.

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“M” is for March

Posted on March 2, 2015 by Mrs.N

Way back in June, nearly 8 months ago, Sarah made a Reader’s Choice request for some book recommendations at a Level M (DRA 24-28 depending on which equivalency measure you use).  Although I am certain that Sarah’s daughter must be far beyond Level M books by now, her quest for quality books at that level is one I believe many parents and teachers share.

When children continue their journey as readers they begin to enter the world of chapter books.  This transition usually occurs at the beginning of third grade, but for some it can happen earlier.  No longer are they expending as much energy on decoding words and making sense of the sentences.  Now they are ready for more characters, more plot and longer books.  Often children that age get caught up in the safety and security of a series.  They might binge read Magic Tree House books (click here for write ups of the first two in the series).  Or they might fall for wacky, smart-alecky Junie B. Jones (My write up of the first in the series is here.)  The benefits of getting a child interested in a series are many. Often a new reader will still be putting a lot of energy into reading and is loathe to choose something they fear they may not enjoy.  A series offers the promise of more of the same.  Reading a series can help a child learn about how to make predictions based on what you know of the character or what you know of the author.  And a series means there’s always something on hand to read, with no dreaded choices to make.

Sometimes it falls to parent, teachers and librarians to make suggestions to help guide their children into more varied, diverse or simply more interesting books (or hey, just a different series).  And this month I’ll do my best to help you with that.

Tomorrow: What is Level M?

 

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Dreaming in Indian: Contemporary Native American Voices

Posted on February 26, 2015 by Mrs.N

Dreaming in Indian: Contemporary Native American Voices Edited by Lisa Charleyboy , Mary Leatherdale

Take a minute and forget most of what you’ve heard about Native Americans.  Forget the sweeping John Ford westerns and the class Pilgrim play where someone who was most likely not Native American, much less Pawtuxet, pretended to be Squanto.  Forget about Disney’s Pocahontas and copycat little girls in braids and beaded moccasins.  Just come and sit with this collection of work from indigenous artists and let new images, new understandings unfold.

The collection is loosely grouped.  It’s best to approach each set of pages on their own as there is not continuity between them, but rather a shared feeling that emerges as you go through.  It’s almost difficult to read straight through, jumping between stories, poems and art work.  But the structure makes it ideal for excerpting.  Pull what you need to share and share it.  Teachers especially, take the time to hunt out what might interest your students , or if your class is mature enough, leave control in their hands.  You could allow groups of students to select which piece or pieces spoke to them the most and share why.

There are not enough Native American voices in literature today.  The recognition this volume is getting will hopefully open doors for more to be heard in the future.

Age Recommendation: Taken as a whole, this is a book best suited for high school students.  It deals with complex issues and mature problems.  However, individual stories, poems and personal tales could be appropriate for students as young as fifth grade if carefully selected.

Sex, Nudity, Dating – One author mentions his grandmother’s Irish husband abandoning her and talks about what kind of woman he wants to end up with.  There’s a poem that deals with gender.  A story describes a girl’s work as a prostitute.  A teen talks about love and how his heart was broken.  A photo shows a couple kissing.
Profanity – “ass”,
Death, Violence and Gore – Animal skins are softened by soaking them in brains (presumably, also from animals).  A girl is bullied which included kicking, slapping, shoving and punching in addition to verbal assaults. Students in residential schools faced physical, emotional and sexual abuse which often led to violence or suicide.  Sexual abuse is described.  One girl stabbed her abuser.  Suicide is mentioned multiple times. A father would “blacken” his son’s behind for skipping school to go to an arcade. An author hunts and kills animals.  There are a few black and white photos of his kills. A girl is beaten up by other girls. A girl was injured in a standoff with the government.
Drugs, Alcohol and Smoking – Abuse at the residential schools sometimes led to addictions.  A young man is shown smoking a cigarette.  One author talks about narcotics.  An author smoked weed and drank alcohol and did ecstasy, all while a teen.  She also used a fake ID to go to clubs underage.
Frightening or Intense Things – People have gone without food.  Students went to residential school, living away from their family, being denied their religion with the intention of destroying tribal society and assimilating “Indians”.  Some work dumping nuclear waste.  One author had friends who were associated with gangs.  In 1990 the Mohawks had a standoff with the Canadian government over land.  A mother reunited with the girl she gave up for adoption. She talks about wishing she could “push her back inside me”.

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The Misadventures of the Family Fletcher

Posted on February 24, 2015 by Mrs.N

The Misadventures of the Family Fletcher by Dana Alison Levy

Dad and Papa certainly have their hands full with their four boys.  Sam is in sixth grade, trying to figure out how to be true to himself and keep his friends.  Eli is starting at a new school for the gifted leaving behind Jax, his almost the exact same age brother.  Jax misses Eli, but also misses his best friend Henry who is newly interested in girls, and in trying to be “cool”.  And little Frog is starting Kindergarten and hopefully making some real (as opposed to imaginary) friends.  Of course, there’s also a new neighbor who seems immune to their collective slightly wild charms.

This book somehow evokes more old-fashioned family novels like The Moffats or the newer but vintage feel Penderwicks but with a thoroughly modern take.  It does not focus on any one brother, but moves among them while also sharing just enough about their fathers. The topics covered are certainly contemporary ones and Levy’s cast also reflects how diverse families can be, with two dads, two caucasian adoptees, one African-American son and one Indian.  The family celebrates both parents’ religions (Christianity and Judaism) while trying to honor holidays important to the birth cultures of their sons.

When reading this book, I immediately thought of Malinda Lo’s “Perceptions of Diversity in Book Reviews” specifically the first point “Scarcely Plausible” (that link is worthwhile read if you have the time).  Levy has indeed provided an incredibly diverse cast of characters, but it does not feel contrived to me.  While teaching, I never once surveyed my class and thought “Well, this is awfully contrived.  What are the odds of an adoptee, a kid with a peanut allergy, an Asian student, a student with ASD, an athlete with theatrical tendencies and an African American all being in my room?”  While I know not everyone lives in an area where a class like this is a reality, perhaps, when we encounter such diversity in a book we can all take a moment to smile and appreciate how many readers may have the chance to see themselves, or their classmates, their families, their friends, reflected in a book.

One of my favorite parts of this book was that Levy made the decision to have characters grow apart.  While the end features some resolution to difficulties faced in the book, it also acknowledges the permanent changes that occur in friendships and relationships over time.  I also think it’s great that characters trusted their parents enough to share their troubles with them, but also had other adults reaching out to them as well.  We should all be so lucky as to have such a support system.

My one complaint, and as a former teacher of the gifted, I am perhaps unduly upset by this, but the gifted school that Eli attends does not seem to have any notion of what best practice is in terms of teaching gifted children.  No wonder he is miserable.   It is disappointing though to show students that there is no middle ground between a regular classroom placement with zero differentiation and a special school that would suck all of the joy out of learning.  Currently, it is a struggle in many places for gifted students to receive the type of education they deserve.  I very much hope that in the sequel Levy is able to show the adults in Eli’s life advocating for him so that his public school education consists of more than sitting by himself and reading.  Public schools can and should meet the needs of gifted learners through special programs or at a bare minimum, differentiation of course work.

Age Recommendation: Grades 3-5.  The reading level and the content will probably hit a sweet spot right around Grade 4, but will be accessible to advanced Grade 3 readers. Because the story checks in with family members ranging from kindergarten to sixth grade, this may work for a family read aloud.

Sex, Nudity, Dating – The Fletcher family has two dads. When someone asks if the Fletchers have a mother, Frog begins to explain that it takes a man and a woman and an egg.  A boy says that a girl is hot and asks his friend for an introduction.  The boys joke that one of their friends is in love.  Jax is feeling pretty left out as his male friends become more interested in girls.
Profanity – “jerk”, “doofus”,  “craaa…napple” the dad says as he stops himself from saying a worse word. Sam says “ass…assinate”.  “heck”, “stupid”, “nimrod”, “moron” is used multiple times,  Papa swears “a big, loud, four-letter word”, “poop the bed”, “shut it”, Jax makes a “rude gesture”, “darn”,
Death, Violence and Gore – Dad has an uncle who died in combat.  Jax gets clawed a bit by the family cat.  Dad’s Halloween costume involves an axe in his head and fake blood and brains down his back.  Sam tells a ghost story, few details are given, just that a man was killed and his ghost still haunts the area.  He continues to tell ghost stories.  We learn that one is about a drowned girl; another is about a girl whose doll came to life and tried to stab her.  A boy has a dog that bit his sister. Jax has been researching a veteran of the Vietnam War and in researching saw pictures of dead people, which upset him a lot.  Jax deliberately throws a football at someone’s head.  Sam is offered a crowbar to use in self-defense.  An adult neighbor’s (very old) parent dies and the boys see body covered in a sheet being taken from the house.
Drugs, Alcohol and Smoking – A group of boys who appear to be high school students are smoking cigarettes.
Frightening or Intense Things – Sam is verbally and physically bullied by a group of older boys.  He is able to escape and get to help.

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How Tia Lola Came to (Visit) Stay

Posted on February 20, 2015 by Mrs.N

How Tia Lola Came to (Visit) Stay by Julia Alvarez

I recently recommended this to someone and was all set to send a link to my review, only to be shocked that I’d never written it up! It’s a great family read if you’re in one of the frozen parts of the country right now.  Tia Lola will bring plenty of warmth and excitement to your house, just as she brightened snowy Vermont for her niece and nephew. I taught this in my third grade class for years as part of an immigration unit and it was a hit.  It was great having a modern option that was really accessible to third graders.

Juanita and Miguel’s parents are getting a divorce.  They’ve ended up in rural Vermont with their mother, while their father remains in New York City.  Now their Aunt, Tia Lola is coming for a visit.  Miguel is not exactly thrilled.  Back home, he had lots of friends who looked like him. Here in Vermont people make fun of his last name, Guzman.  He just can’t help feeling that he stands out and Tia Lola makes him even more noticeable.  As time goes by, Miguel slowly gets used to his new life in no small part, thanks to Tia Lola. The adjustments that Tia Lola makes in her move to America are echoed on a smaller scale by Miguel’s experience moving from a largely Dominican neighborhood in NYC to rural Vermont.  The book culminates in a trip to the Dominican Republic, where Miguel gets to meet his extended family and realizes just how much he would lose if Tia Lola doesn’t choose to return home to Vermont with them.

Age Recommendation: Grades 3-5.  As the content on this is very clean, this would also be a good choice for younger readers who are looking for books with a greater difficulty level.  Alvarez has peppered the book with Spanish phrases but translates them or makes their meaning clear by context.  This is a great reading experience for kids to have as it prepares them for more difficult works that rely on context alone for foreign language inclusion.  Alvarez also helps younger readers by not leaving things unsaid.  When A friend says that Miguel will have no trouble making the team because he’s Dominican and baseball comes naturally to Dominicans, Miguel’s father points out to Miguel that the friend is stereotyping and Miguel will make the team with hard work.  When children read independently, it can help when authors spell out exactly what is and isn’t acceptable rather than rely on the children to infer it all.

Sex, Nudity, Dating – None.
Profanity – “heck”, “fundillo” (which if you look up in a translator online will say “bum, backside or ass”),
Death, Violence and Gore – Mami’s mother died when she was only 3.  Tia Lola ended up taking care of Mami.
Drugs, Alcohol and Smoking – They see an ad that shows a cowboy smoking a cigarette.
Frightening or Intense Things – Miguel tells his sister that Tia Lola could be deported if people find out that she’s there.  He’s lying to her, but that might not be immediately apparent to readers.  Miguel has some difficulties coming to terms with his parents divorce.  In the Dominican Republic Miguel sees children dressed in rags who clean your car’s windshield for change.  He learns many of them don’t have parents.

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The Crossover

Posted on February 18, 2015 by Mrs.N

The Crossover by Kwame Alexander

I can’t help feeling that if more books were like The Crossover more kids would become and stay readers. This book is easy to read. I don’t mean that in the sense of it being a book without complexity or without depth or without complicated vocabulary, because it has all of those things. I mean that the pages just fly by. That the things that should be hard to follow, like the writing style that flows through many types of poetry, or hard to read, like the frustration of brothers growing apart and the pain and worry for a father whose health is in jeopardy, just aren’t. Reading this, even the parts that make your heart hurt, is pure pleasure. It’s a Newbery that I fully believe kids will read and love. Not one that adults can appreciate but will miss its aim with its intended audience.

Josh Bell, sometimes known as Filthy McNasty, and his twin brother Jordan know their way around a basketball court.  Of course they do.  Their father is none other than Da Man, Chuck Bell, who once was a championship winning basketball player.  His support and encouragement of them is constant, pushing them to succeed now that he can no longer play.  Things become complicated between the brothers when Jordan meets the pretty new girl at school.  They are also constantly balancing their desire to please their dad with their concerns about his health.

Age Recommendation: Grades 5 and up.  I think boys that have some interest in girls/girlfriends will find this a lot more interesting and relevant than those that don’t, but it really doesn’t have a lot of romance in it.  There’s some information in the spoiler that may also be necessary when trying to decide if this book is appropriate for a reader.  It is foreshadowed throughout, but I don’t think most readers will expect that to be the final outcome.

Sex, Nudity, Dating – He hits his brother in the head with a jockstrap. His dad says that back in his day he kissed a lot of pretty ladies. A teenage boy kissed a girl.  Boys discuss if a girl is a hottie or a cutie.  Josh hears his parents argue and his father tell his mother to “come kiss me”.  Later they stop talking and he writes “I know what that means.  Uggh”. That happens more than once.  Obviously, some readers may interpret that as intercourse, while younger or more innocent readers might just assume kissing.  A boy is frustrated with his brother’s interest in a girl.  A boy has a girlfriend.  A couple holds hands. The couple kisses.  Other boys get girlfriends.
Profanity – Supposedly his grandfather cursed a lot. “jerk”,
Death, Violence and Gore – The boys are told that their grandfather died from a fall (this is a bit that feels off – evidently the grandfather really died of a stroke, but it’s not clear at all why anyone would lie about that to their kids). A boy is hit in the face with a basketball and bleeds a lot.  After an outburst a man bleeds from the nose profusely.  

Spoiler Inside SelectShow
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Drugs, Alcohol and Smoking – Mom’s younger brother smokes cigars.
Frightening or Intense Things – The boys’ father has an episode where he coughs, clutches his chest and can’t speak. Later he vomits and is clutching his chest.

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Brown Girl Dreaming

Posted on February 16, 2015 by Mrs.N

Brown Girl Dreaming by Jacqueline Woodson

There is no way I could possibly do this book justice, so I’ll just say that it is amazing and often beautiful. Through incredibly evocative poems, Woodson manages to capture the mood of her childhood, its formative events, the weight and importance of the times. Born in 1963, Woodson grew up knowing the Civil Rights struggles of the South and the more subtle prejudices of New York City.  She experienced her grandmother’s intense devotion to the Jehovah’s Witnesses as well as her uncle’s conversion to Islam following his time in prison.  She recognizes her teacher, a self-identifying feminist as a someone who is also part of a revolution.   Woodson’s words are gently powerful, drawing you into her world, her life.

I won’t fool myself into thinking that this will fly off library shelves into the hands of waiting children.  I know that it’s the kind of kids’ book that adults love but that may not fare as well with a younger audience.  That said, it’s an important book and its structure makes it incredibly easy to excerpt.  It would be a wonderful book for classroom use in its entirety, but if there are time constraints, or content concerns, certain chapters could be pulled out for discussion without losing their value.

Age Recommendation: Grades 5 and up.  Do I know fourth graders who could read and understand this? Of course I do.  But there’s something about the writing, about the references to the time period, that makes it a book that will be better understood and liked by more mature readers.  There were sections of this I could have easily read with my third graders, but taken as a whole, I don’t know many who would have truly comprehended the book.

Sex, Nudity, Dating – A neighbor ran off with the church pastor, abandoning her family.  Her mother is pregnant out of wedlock.
Profanity – “dang it”, shoot”.   The words “stupid”, “dumb”, “jerk”, “darn”, are given as examples of words Jackie and her siblings were never ever allowed to say.
Death, Violence and Gore – The book mentions that people are fighting, marching and getting killed. An ancestor was is dead, likely killed fighting for the Union in the Civil War. Her uncle was killed in a car accident. People are sometimes beaten and questioned when leaving the South.  There are some Biblical references to death/killing such as how much rain it took to kill sinners and Salome wishing for a man’s head on a platter.  Her brother is beaten with a willow switch.  Grandmother was one of thirteen children, three of whom died as babies.  A beloved aunt falls and dies.  A neighbor’s father died.  Sometimes Jacqueline tells people her father died.  Her Grandpa that she didn’t really remember died.  A girl is slapped and pinched.  A girl’s braids are pulled.  A girl swings her fists.  Her beloved grandfather passes away.  There’s a funeral for an aunt.  A boy gets beat up for walking in the wrong neighborhood in New York.
Drugs, Alcohol and Smoking – Grandfather smokes a cigarette.  He also drinks cold beer.
Frightening or Intense Things – The book covers a lot of history, much of which includes difficult times.  It tells of Ruby Bridges, just six years old, being yelled at and spat on by white people while under armed guard escort to attend school.  There is talk of slavery.   In speaking about peaceful protests, their grandfather warns them to “be ready to die for what is right”.  The treatment of the protestors is described, how they are cursed at, had food and drinks poured over them.  A high school is set on fire during a dance.  Neighbor children tell her that the Devil is going to come for her and her God won’t protect her.  We learn that Jehovah’s Witnesses believe “that everyone who doesn’t follow God’s word will be destroyed in a great battle called Armageddon.”  Her brother is hospitalized, sick from eating lead paint.  His situation is very scary. Her grandfather is too sick to work and later too sick to get out of bed.  Police come to her apartment looking for her uncle.  Her uncle ends up in Riker’s Island prison.  He is transferred to another prison and they visit him there.

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On Two Feet and Wings

Posted on February 12, 2015 by Mrs.N

On Two Feet and Wings by Abbas Kazerooni

During the war with Iraq, Iran has continuously lowered the age of conscripted soldiers. When they begin to take boys as young as eight and nine, Abbas’s father knows he must take immediate action.  Having been wealthy and powerful and allied with the now deposed Shah of Iran, he knows his son will soon be a target.  Abbas and his mother must leave and try to reach England.  When his mother is stopped at the airport, Abbas must continue to Istanbul alone.  In Istanbul he must try to survive, and obtain a coveted British visa.

This book is pretty amazing, as it tells a true story of the author’s struggles as a child.  It’s simply written and I believe that it really reads as an autobiography in a way that draws attention to the fact that it’s not fiction.  The ending was a bit abrupt, but that wouldn’t have bothered me if I didn’t want to know more!  I wanted to know more about his parents and about what happened to him next.

Great for: This would make an excellent pairing with books about Jews fleeing Russia at the time of the pogroms or Europe during World War II.

Age Recommendation: This seems to be commonly shelved as YA, but I do believe it would of interest to students in Grades 5 and up.  There is some violence, but not too much and while Abbas’s situation is serious, it’s not often scary.  Since Abbas is nine at the time of the book, I believe it would be eye opening for readers who are similar in age.

Sex, Nudity, Dating – A woman has left Iraq to avoid an arranged marriage.  She had a boyfriend but he ran off with another woman.  A woman kisses Abbas on the cheeks.
Profanity – “crap,”
Death, Violence and Gore – Iran and Iraq are at war.  People were executed when the ayatollahs came into power. The recruitment age for the war is 8.  A woman’s 12 year old was returned to her in a coffin.  Children are told they will go to paradise if they die in the war.  People are caned until the bleed, whipped, thrown in prison for speaking out. A man was tortured, his legs broken for looking like criminal.  A man hits his son so hard he falls down.  Then he beat him with his belt.  His father told Abbas stories of children being killed for their organs.  At a crime scene a man’s corpse is bloody, his face sliced.  A hotel’s sheets have crimson stains.  A man walks down the street with a bloody face.  A man slaps a boy and spits on his head.  A man grabs Abbas and holds a knife to his neck.  He throws him against a wall.  Abbas is saved but his neck is cut and bleeding.
Drugs, Alcohol and Smoking – Abbas finds a used syringe in a hotel bathroom.  A man takes a cigarette and offers one to Abbas.  Abbas refuses. Another man smokes.  Abbas sees two men that are high on something.
Frightening or Intense Things – A boy must leave his family behind and travel to a new country.

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Boys Without Names

Posted on February 10, 2015 by Mrs.N

Boys without Names by Kashmira Sheth

Gopal’s family has fallen on hard times.  His father owes more to the moneylender than he can hope to repay.  They have lost the family farm that was their main source of income and the jobs they do now do not earn enough money.  They set out for Mumbai believing jobs and a better life await them, but it is not long before they learn that thousands of others have the same idea.

At 11, Gopal is old enough that he must help his parents.  They cannot read and are unsure of themselves in the bustling city.  But he is too eager and too trusting and when a boy offers him work, he follows.  Soon he is imprisoned with a group of other boys, working long hours with little food and no hope of escape.  Gopal dreams of returning to his family but he must first find a way to gain the trust of the others.  Without them there can be no hope.

This story about child labor and loss is very different from what most Americans experience.  It really draws you into another world.  I worry that the topic might not interest all readers, but it would make an excellent assignment or read-aloud as well.  At the risk of spoiling things, the book turns out all right in the end, probably better than most in these situations can hope for, but as it is a middle grades book and not YA I am okay with that choice.  Sheth offers a glossary and links at the end to help readers who want to know more.

Age Recommendation:  Grade 4 and up. The handling of the subject matter here is very age appropriate, so it comes down to the difficulty of the text. I have very advanced third and fourth grade students who would have enjoyed it, but I expect the main audience for this would be slightly older – probably fifth and sixth grade.

Sex, Nudity, Dating –None.
Profanity– None.
Death, Violence and Gore –Someone’s father killed himself because he could not pay off his debt.  Gopal is kicked in the stomach by a policeman.  Storms can bring flash flooding and death.  A boy says he will get slapped if he doesn’t find his uncle.  A man hits a boy.  He grabs him and leaves welts on his arms.  A man hits many boys.  Boys fight. Boys are whipped and made to stand in a difficult position for a long period of time.  A boys father beat him.  A boy’s mother died when he was three.  One boy had two brothers who died before they were one.  A boy is slapped across the face.  A man beat his wife.  A boy is beaten until his back bleeds. A boy’s grandmother died; she was the only family he had.
Drugs, Alcohol and Smoking –  A boy is drugged.  A boy’s father returned home “smelling bad”, the implication being that he was drunk.  It is later mentioned that he was drunk.
Frightening or Intense Things – People are hungry, nearly starving.  When a child is sick, the family must sacrifice everything to pay the doctor’s bills.  A family must leave without paying off their debts.  A child fears what the moneylender will do in retribution if he is not paid.  Gopal’s father leaves to find his uncle and does not return.  A boy is kidnapped.  Boys are made to go without meals.  Boys are held captive and forced to work.  A boy has a fever and no one to care for him.  The boys are threatened with beatings and that their family will all be punished if they do something wrong.

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Ruby Lu, Brave and True

Posted on February 6, 2015 by Mrs.N

Ruby Lu, Brave and True by Lenore Look

It’s often a challenge to find beginning chapter books that are interesting and well-written, but Ruby Lu, Brave and True manages it easily.  It’s a teacher’s dream with metaphors appearing on the very first page and following with more figurative language throughout including similes and idiomatic expressions.  The chapters are loosely linked stories, which will make comprehension easier for children who are developing the ability to sustain reading for longer periods of time.

Ruby herself is a character.  She’s tight with her neighbors, adores her baby brother, except for when she doesn’t, does magic tricks, has a father who is an excellent knitter and of course, borrows her parents car to drive to school.  The stories were cute and I would definitely recommend this to young readers.

Age Recommendation: Scholastic lists this as a DRA 30/Level N which puts it on level for third grade readers.  It will appeal to some third graders but is actually ideal for first and second graders who are reading above grade level.  Ruby is nearly 8 and skews a bit young, so this is more likely to be a win with younger readers.

Sex, Nudity, Dating – None.
Profanity – Ruby’s father lets loose a string of four letter words (but Ruby says they’re ones he learned for scrabble, so maybe not profanity??)
Death, Violence and Gore – None.
Drugs, Alcohol and Smoking – None.
Frightening or Intense Things – A girl gets pneumonia and there’s a mention that she “has one foot in the grave”.   She makes a full recovery.

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