Month: October 2024

The Outsmarters

Sophie Rosen ,

Ellis, Deborah. The Outsmarters. Toronto: Groundwood Books/House of Anansi Press, 2024.
Twelve-year-old Kate lives with her grumpy grandmother on a dumpy piece of property. She can’t even remember the mother who dropped her off so long ago, but she decides to earn some money so that when her mother does return, they will be able to take off and begin a new life together. She opens a philosophy booth – “Get answers to life’s big and little questions – $2 a question” – next to her grandmother’s junk shop and discovers the answers to some big questions of her own. This emotionally compelling novel by an accomplished Canadian writer is highly recommended for readers nine to twelve years old.   

More stories about grandparents 

More books by Deborah Ellis

Orris and Timble

Sophie Rosen , ,

DiCamillo, Kate. Orris and Timble: The Beginning. Somerville, Massachusetts: Candlewick Press, 2024.
What a delightful little novel! Orris the rat is happily nested with his treasures – a red velvet slipper, a yellow marble, and a sardine can – in a hole in the wall. All is peaceful until he hears a call for help. An owl is caught in a mousetrap right outside Orris’s hiding spot. What would be the good and noble choice? In nine short chapters, Orris makes a brave decision and a friendship is formed.
This could have been a rather obvious retelling of the well-known fable of the lion and the mouse, but because Orris himself recalls it in the story, readers are humorously yet subtly shown how literature can guide our conduct in life. DiCamillo’s writing flows so smoothly that only skillful readers will notice the figurative language, foreshadowing, and other literary techniques including a quiet allusion to a raven and wolf myth. Only older readers will notice that the pronoun for Timble the owl changes from ‘it’ at the beginning to ‘he’ at the end.
Evocative illustrations by Carmen Mok help to tell this 76-page story most highly recommended for children up to nine years of age. A perfect choice for primary teachers looking for a novel study and a useful resource for middle school literature teachers. Definitely a book to buy for readers of any age who admire outstanding writing!

More stories by Kate DeCamillo

More stories about friendship

How to critique a story

Literary techniques

Because Barbara

Sophie Rosen

Mackenzie, Sarah. Because Barbara. Spokane, WA: Waxwing Books, 2024.
Barbara Cooney, winner of two Caldecott Medals, illustrated more than 100 books in her lifetime including Chanticleer and the Fox, Ox-Cart Man, and Miss Rumphius. This picture book summary of her life is full of five-senses details and would be useful as a read-aloud for children 6 to 9 years old. The softly whimsical illustrations by Eileen Ryan Ewen wonderfully suit the style set by Cooney’s own books. The notes at the end of the story provide additional details that will interest readers who already love Barbara Cooney’s work. But for those not yet acquainted with her books, I’m afraid the writing in this biography is a bit awkward, a bit stilted, a bit too carefully crafted to stand alone as a wonderful picture book. Nevertheless, if you already appreciate Cooney’s books, you’ll appreciate reading this book. Borrow it from a library.

More biographies of artists

More biographies of writers