Gifts from the Gods: Ancient Words and Wisdom from Greek and Roman Mythology

Victory, echo, fate, mortal, furious, Grace, grateful, janitor---these are just a few everyday English words that take their origin from ancient Greek and Roman mythology.  The brief stories in this collection introduce readers to the ancient myths, and explain how the stories are related to today's common words.  It's a wonderful introduction to Greek and Roman mythology for intermediate and middle school readers, and is a great resource for the English classroom.  Lise Lunge-Larson is the Minnesota author behind this clever book, and the action-filled illustrations by Gareth Hinds bring the stories to life.

West of the Moon

Astri is a thirteen year old Norwegian girl who has been lent (sold?) to a cruel goat
herder. She is determined to escape and travel to America to join her widowed father.  The story is told in three parts:  service to the goat herder; the daring escape to the coast; and travel to America.  Several Norwegian folktales are woven into the story, and they inspire Astri to hold onto hope despite her dire circumstances. The story is conceived from a statement in the diary of the author's great-great-grandmother.  Minnesota author Margi Preus, has written another winner for intermediate and middle school readers.  It might be a good read-aloud to accompany immigration units.

Three Bird Summer

Summer will be different this year for twelve year old Adam.  Since his parents divorced, he will spend the summer at Three Bird Lake in northern Minnesota with just his mother and grandmother.  He's not even interested in Alice, the girl next door, at first, but she will become his ally in solving a mystery. 

Grandmother's memory problems are getting worse as she starts leaving strange notes for Adam to find.  One day Adam finds a very unusual treasure map, and he and Alice work together to solve a family mystery.  The setting, characters, and activities are nicely described by author Sara St. Antoine, in this gentle well-written first novel.  A good summer read for junior high/middle school readers.

Scaly, Spotted, Feathered, Frilled: How do We Know What Dinosaurs Really Looked Like?

Not your ordinary dinosaur book, this new title by Catherine Thimmesh, looks at how paleoartists try to figure out what dinosaurs actually looked like?  Did they have scales?, feathers?, maybe both?  As scientists learn more about how and where dinosaurs lived, the new evidence changes how artists portray them.  Filled with historic and current illustrations, this fascinating book will appeal to dinosaur enthusiasts, and young artists alike.  It may be a resource for science classes studying dinosaurs.

Surviving the Hindenburg

The giant airship, Hindenburg, was cruising along the East Coast of the United States on May 6, 1937.  Werner Franz was the cabin boy on board making his first trip to the United States.  Suddenly, as the ship came in to land at Lakehurst, NJ, something terrible happened and the great airship was destroyed.  Many people know the general story of the Hindenburg, but they may not know that 62 people survived the disaster, including Werner.  This picture book account is written by Larry Verstraete, with oil painting illustrations by Minnesotan David Geister; and it could be a classroom resource for upper elementary or middle school social studies classes.

Wild Boy: The Real Life of the Savage of Aveyron

In 1798, woodsmen in southern France captured a seemingly wild boy in the woods and marched him to the town square.  So begins the story of the Savage of Aveyron.  Who was this boy? How old was he? Why didn't he speak? No one knew the answers.  Eventually the boy was taken to Paris where he lived in a home for deaf children. He attended the Institute of Deaf-Mutes, where a doctor tutored him intensely.  Although he never learned to speak, he was always drawn to the outdoors and to the woods; and it became clear that he did feel emotions.  Written by Mary Losure, with black and white illustrations by Timothy Ering, this very readable story will interest students at intermediate and middle school grades.

Sparrow Road

Twelve year old Raine lives with her mother and grandfather in Milwaukee, and she's never known her father. Her life is happy until one day her mother takes a job as a cook and maid at Sparrow Road, a remote colony for artists.  Raine resents the move, and especially all the rules ("no talking" during the day, except for Sundays, is really hard!). Gradually the enchanting aspects of Sparrow Road grow on her as explores the grounds, swims in the lake, explores a nearby town, and hangs around with the artists.  New questions arise when she learns that Sparrow Road used to be an orphanage; and as she searches for answers to those questions, she learns a secret about her own life.  Written by Minnesotan, Sheila O'Connor, this book was selected by the International Reading Association as its Intermediate Fiction Award winner in 2012.  It's a very nice "growing-up" story (not quite the same as coming-of-age) for middle school and junior high readers.

City Chickens

In this book, readers will learn about a unique animal shelter in North Minneapolis, called Chicken Run Rescue.  It provides shelter to chickens who may have been abandoned, maltreated, or have escaped from someone's yard.  Written by Christine Heppermann, this book tells the story of several chickens who have lived (or may still be there) at Chicken Run.  It also describes how the shelter got started, and how it operates each day.  Excellent color photographs and a colorful layout enhance the enjoyment of this book.  It could be used in classes studying farm/city animals; or as a model text for writing nonfiction at the upper elementary or middle school level.  It even offers food for thought for educators with a page discussing alternatives to baby-chick hatching units.  Overall, it is an excellent book on a unique subject.

Minnesota in the Civil War

 

The exhibit at the Minnesota History Center entitled Minnesota and the Civil War will be ending soon (September 8).  Hurry and see it if you haven't.  After it ends, here is an excellent resource for American and Minnesota history classes. The book includes many contemporary accounts of the war from diaries, letters, newspaper accounts, photographs, portraits, and pictures of many artifacts from the War that are in the Minnesota Historical Society collection. A great resource for social studies classrooms. 

Shadow on the Mountain

The setting is Norway in 1940.  Although Norway is a neutral country, the Germans invade and take control under the guise of protecting it from invasion by the British or Russians.  This book tells the story of Espen, his family and friends, as they join the resistance movement.  Espen becomes a skiing courier who delivers food, secret documents, guns, illegal radio parts, and more to resistance workers in hiding. The story has elements of a spy thriller, a coming-of-age story, and is a tale of bravery against difficult odds. It is based on real events, and a real young man, Erling Storrusten, who was a teenager in Lillihammer during the years 1940-1945. This is excellent historical fiction for middle school students, and could be used as a classroom resource when studying World War II.  Written by Margi Preus, it was a finalist for the Minnesota Book Award in 2013 (young people's literature category); and was selected for the Notable Books for a Global Society list (IRA) in 2013.