Read Aloud History::Titanic/Civil War
POLAR*The Titanic Bear
This is one of those events that I have the hardest time reading about.. The account of the sinking shared in this book gives a gentle introduction to the story. As an adult, I understood the implications, but for younger children, I am sure it would go over their heads.
I read this book with James (9yo) and Mark (12yo). They were both mesmerized! By picture book standards, it is a long read. Adding in the introduction and the epilogue, it is over 60 pages.
The story, as implied by the title, is told through the eyes of a toy polar bear. That may sound trite, but this story is meaty. Written by a mother for her son about their world travels (that his trusty bear accompanied them on) and ending with their harrowing voyage on the titanic, this book gives a personal and intimate look at the event. Adding to the personal feel of the story are actual photos of the family on their travels through the years, including Polar himself.
(SAD) SPOILER ALERT-
We were all very caught up this story. We read all the photo captions and on to the epilogue (which is a must read!). On page 62 of the epilogue, it mentions that the young boy in the story was killed in an auto accident at age 9. James felt he could have done without this information. If you have a sensitive child (or perhaps a child who is sensitive when his mom starts to cry when reading! ;)), you could easily skip this part.
My sister has been on a quality history book hunting mission at our local library and "Polar" was just one of her finds.
During the time we did the picture book challenge, I blogged about another Titanic story- Titanicat by Marty Crisp. Also a good read.
Another fantastic library find from my fellow homeschooling sister:
The Yankee at the Sedar
Also a different and personal look at another time- of the south as the Civil War was at its end. It is a touching story of a Yankee soldier joining a Southern family's dinner for the passover. Expect a few tears with this one too.
I am looking at the recommended age range on the amazon site and it is given as 3-7 years old. I think that is selling this book very short. Not to mention that I cannot imagine most children of that age understanding the implications of this story. I would give it through high school age. And this 50 year old (old lady;)) loves the story.
This is one of those events that I have the hardest time reading about.. The account of the sinking shared in this book gives a gentle introduction to the story. As an adult, I understood the implications, but for younger children, I am sure it would go over their heads.
I read this book with James (9yo) and Mark (12yo). They were both mesmerized! By picture book standards, it is a long read. Adding in the introduction and the epilogue, it is over 60 pages.
The story, as implied by the title, is told through the eyes of a toy polar bear. That may sound trite, but this story is meaty. Written by a mother for her son about their world travels (that his trusty bear accompanied them on) and ending with their harrowing voyage on the titanic, this book gives a personal and intimate look at the event. Adding to the personal feel of the story are actual photos of the family on their travels through the years, including Polar himself.
(SAD) SPOILER ALERT-
We were all very caught up this story. We read all the photo captions and on to the epilogue (which is a must read!). On page 62 of the epilogue, it mentions that the young boy in the story was killed in an auto accident at age 9. James felt he could have done without this information. If you have a sensitive child (or perhaps a child who is sensitive when his mom starts to cry when reading! ;)), you could easily skip this part.
During the time we did the picture book challenge, I blogged about another Titanic story- Titanicat by Marty Crisp. Also a good read.
Another fantastic library find from my fellow homeschooling sister:
The Yankee at the Sedar
Also a different and personal look at another time- of the south as the Civil War was at its end. It is a touching story of a Yankee soldier joining a Southern family's dinner for the passover. Expect a few tears with this one too.
I am looking at the recommended age range on the amazon site and it is given as 3-7 years old. I think that is selling this book very short. Not to mention that I cannot imagine most children of that age understanding the implications of this story. I would give it through high school age. And this 50 year old (old lady;)) loves the story.
Now I think these seem so ORIGINAL. Don't you? Thank you so much for the recommendations!!
ReplyDeleteI always love your book recommendations. Thank you for sharing them.
ReplyDelete