5th grade booktalks
2017-2018
April 2, 2018: good new(ish) books you might have missed
Greetings from Witness Protection by Jake Burt
- F BUR. mystery/suspense/adventure
- Nicki is in foster care and is a pick pocket, and she has been chosen by US Marshals to keep a family in the Witness Protection Program alive.
- As Nicki adjusts to her new identity, she also must keep that identity believable, dodging hitmen, cyberbullies, and standardized testing. And she must face her past that could be the biggest danger for her new family.
Ahimsa by Supriya Kelkar
- F KEL. historical fiction
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-1tc-XUG210
- In 1942 India, Mahatma Ghandi has asked each family to give one member to the "freedom movement." When Anjali's mother joins the movement (instead of her father like she assumed) life changes drastically.
- First she has to face her own prejudices about others, and then she has to decide how she is going to help her mom when her mom can't fight.
First Rule of Punk by Celia Perez
- F PER. realistic fiction, family relationships
- When Malu (short for Maria Louisa) has to move to Chicago from Florida with her mom, and away from her dad, she is pretty mad, and the first days at school don't make it better. But Chicago is not like what she thought it would be.
- When she puts together a band of other like-minded kids, she starts to feel at home and realizes that sometimes you have to follow the rules, sometimes you have to break the rules, and sometimes you have to make your own rules.
Clayton Byrd Goes Underground by Rita Williams-Garcia
- F WIL. realistic fiction, family relationships
- Clayton is most "at home" when he is with his grandfather and his band playing the blues. But then the unthinkable happens--his grandfather dies and Clayton's mother forbids him from playing the music again.
- Dealing with his grief, Clayton finally decides to run away to try to join up with his grandfather's band. On the subways of New York City, Clayton learns about himself and hope.
Animals By the Numbers: a Book of Infographics by Steve Jenkins
- 590 JEN. informational nonfiction, written using tables, charts, and graphs.
- "How many species are there across the globe?" "How much do all the insects of the world collectively weigh?"
- Not the kind of book you have to read from beginning to end, this book shares amazing facts on all kinds of animals in really interesting ways.
February 13, 2018: narrative nonfiction
Why'd They Wear That?: fashion as the mirror of history by Sarah Albee
- 391 ALB
- Ever wonder why some of the crazy fashions back in the day were popular? Read this book to find out!
- From togas to hair shirts, learn all about the fashions - and why they existed - from throughout history.
When Lunch Fights Back: wickedly clever animal defenses by Rebecca L. Johnson
- 591.47 JOH
- Be prepared to be a little disgusted...but maybe in a good way. :)
- Most animals have some sort of defense to protect themselves from predators--maybe sharp teeth, claws, or camouflage.
- This book is not about those kinds of defenses. In this book, meet some animals with the strangest defenses known to science.
Chasing Lincoln's Killer by James Swanson
- 921 BOO
- This book tells the story of the incredible twelve days when John Wilkes Booth was being chased and then captured after killing President Abraham Lincoln.
- From the beginning of the book: "This story is true. All the characters are real and were alive during the great manhunt of April 1865. Their words are authentic and come from original sources: letters, manuscripts, trial transcripts, newspapers, government reports, pamphlets, books and other documents. What happened in Washington, D.C., that spring, and in the swamps and rivers, forests and fields of Maryland and Virginia during the next twelve days, is far too incredible to have been made up."
September 27, 2017: student recommended books!
Tuck Everlasting by Natalie Babbitt
The Tuck Family lives a normal life, except that there is a spring nearby that offers them eternal life. They do a pretty good job keeping that a secret, until one day a girl wanders into their lives. They even do a pretty good job of taking her home and helping her understand that eternal life may not be the blessing it seems to be at first. Problems arise, though, when a stranger follows Winnie home and has plans that will expose the Tuck Family's secret to everyone.
A Week in the Woods by Andrew Clements
Mark doesn't really have any interest in getting to know people (students OR teachers) at Hardy Elementary because he figures his parents will send him to a fancy prep school next year anyway. But then, during the annual fifth grade trip into nature for a week, Mark decides maybe it's his chance to give a different first impression. Unfortunately, something goes wrong the first day of the trip, and not only does it make a not-so-good impression, it actually puts Mark and his teacher in danger. Will they be able to work together to save their lives?
Gregor the Overlander by Suzanne Collins
(By the author of Hunger Games!)
The first in the Underland Chronicles series. When Gregor accidentally falls through a grate in his laundry room in New York City, he discovers a world he didn't know existed. And a world he must be a part of if he is going to solve the mystery of his father's disappearance.
Book trailer: https://youtu.be/ekE8Uz9HnUY
Niagara Falls, Or Does It? by Henry Winkler and Lin Oliver
The first book in the Hank Zipzer series. Hank is smart, creative, and funny. He loves science but not science reports, and doesn't like writing at all. When he's supposed to write a five paragraph essay on "What You Did Over the Summer" and come up with a science project, things start going wrong and somehow he is in trouble, again.
Wolf Hollow by Lauren Wolk
Annabelle lives in quiet Pennsylvania during WWII, and mostly her life is good. Until Betty Glengarry begins school, and it becomes obvious that Betty is a bully. At first Betty's cruelty is sort of random, but then she begins picking on Toby, a WWI veteran. Even though most people think Toby is sort of strange, Annabelle has only known him to be kind. She must decide how she is going to stand up to Betty and have the courage to fight (with words) for justice.