Cinderella

Author/Illustrator: Marcia Brown

Genre: Traditional Literature

Grade level: K-3

Award: Caldecott Medal

A young girls mother dies and her father remarries. The woman her father remarried has two daughters of her own already. They are very envious of the girls beauty so they made her do all the chores and treated her very poorly. One day the king organizes a ball for his son to find someone to marry. Cinderella isn't aloud to go. She meets her fairy Godmother who helps her go to the ball. At the ball she meets the prince and he falls in love with her. When the clock strikes midnight the spell will go away so Cinderella runs away leaving only a glass slipper behind. The prince searches far and wide and despite all the efforts of the step mom and step sisters to hide Cinderella, he finds her and they eventually get married. 

This book can be used when talking about fairytales and discussing differences between several different genres. It can also be used as a guided reading tool or just a fun book to read during read aloud time. 

The illustrations are very interesting and whimsical. They are watercolored pictures and the setting seems to be taking place somewhere in the 14th century. They are delicate but detailed illustrations that help you feel as if you are a part of the time period. 

The Lion and the Mouse

Author/Illustrator: Jerry Pinkney

Genre: Traditional literature

Grade level: K-3

Award: Caldecott Medal

This book has no words in it. It is all illustrations in order to tell the story of Aesop's popular fable. A small mouse escapes the claws of a hungry owl. He finds himself in the trapped in the paws of a lion shortly after. The lion decides to let the mouse go. Soon after the lion is caught in a trap. The lion could not escape. The mouse comes to the rescue to repay the lion for what he had done for him and nibbles on the ropes in order to free him. In the final pages the lion and his cubs prowl around with the mouse family on their back. 

This book is a very interesting book that can be used to talk about kindness. It also is interesting to talk about how pictures can create a story. Students could create their own story using only pictures. 

The illustrations are very beautiful. They are color watercolor paintings as well as colored pencils. They are realistic paintings. The expressions are very unique to the story and still look realistic. Since the story has no words, the illustrations needed to convey emotion and expressions in them. 

Johnny Appleseed

Author/Illustrator: Steven Kellogg

Genre: Traditional literature

Grade level: K-3

John was a historical figure whose adventures were turned into legends. John was born in Massachusetts during the revolutionary war and he headed west as soon as he could. It shares a lot about his interest in apples. It shares many different stories such as how he walked hundred of miles through the Pennsylvania forest. He befriended many Native Americans by giving them seeds. It included many stories such as how he got bit by a rattlesnake, had a wolf as a pet, and hangout with a bear family. 

This book can be used to talk about autumn fruits. There can be a lesson based on all things autumn and children can have fun activities that are autumn themed. It can also teach a lesson about sharing. 

The illustrations are realistic colorful. They add to the story and make it memorable. They are very detailed and bold. It has a warmer color scheme since it is mostly taking place in autumn. 

Little Red Riding Hood

Author/Illustrator: Jerry Pinkney 

Genre: Traditional literature

Grade level: K-3

This is the classic story of little red riding hood. Her grandmother was sick and her mother wanted her to deliver a basket to help her feel better. She was supposed to go straight to her grandmothers house. On the way she got sidetracked by a sly wolf. The wolf thought that Red and her grandmother would make a nice snack. When the wolf arrived at the grandmothers house he gobbled her up and dressed up as the grandma in hopes to trick red riding hood. He gobbled up red as well. A lumberjack was walking by and hear the commotion. He saw the wolf and something moving in his stomach and cut out Red and her grandmother out and they shared the goodie basket with him in thanks.

This book can be used to teach us about following advice. It can also be used to teach new vocabulary words. Some of the words in this story are challenging words that can be used in a vocabulary building lesson. 

The illustrations are very realistic. Red looks more of African decent in these illustrations. There were hidden picture puzzles in the watercolor pictures. The illustrations give the book an antiquated feel. 

The Boy Who Cried Wolf

Author: B. G. Hennessy 

Illustrator: Boris Kulikov

Genre: Traditional literature

Grade level: K-3

A little shepherd is tending to his sheep one day and he becomes very bored. He decides to play a prank on his neighbors in order to have a little bit more fun. He decides to run and yell "Wolf!" so all his neighbors come running out. He does this and once he does he laughs and mocks at them when they run out and their is no wolf in site. He repeats it one more time. On the third day an actual wolf comes and no one in the town comes to help and the little boy is left to defend his sheep all by himself. 

This book can be used to learn a lesson about lying. A lot of children are often faced with many boy who cried wolf situations. This could be used to teach them how to be honest and make sure that we tell the truth so that we are trustworthy and people believe in our word. 

The illustrations are very fun. They are bold illustrations that are colorful and they show the characters emotions well. They are watercolor illustrations that portray a realistic looking character. The illustrations are obnoxious since the boy is meant to be portrayed as obnoxious. They fit very well with the story. 

The Tale of Peter Rabbit

Author/Illustrator: Beatrix Potter

Genre: Traditional literature

Grade level: K-3

Petter Rabbit and his siblings were always warned to stay away from Mr McGregors garden. Their father was captured there and turned into rabbit pie. Peter can't help himself and he goes to the garden anyways. He enters the garden and starts to eat all the delicious things in his Garden. Mr McGregor comes out and catches him and Peter must try to escape to save his life. He eventually escapes an when he gets home he is punished by his mother and sent to bed early. 

This book could be used to enforce rules. It can be read in the beginning of the year when rules are being told in order to show an example that every choice we make has consequences. There are also some new vocabulary books that can be useful. 

The illustrations in this book are very beautiful. They don't cover the entire page and are simple realistic watercolor paintings. The colors are not very bold but it is still a vibrant book. 

Paul Bunyun

Author/Illustrator: Steven Kellogg 

Genre: Traditional Literature

Grade level: K-3

Paul was born in Maine but his family moved West. He saves an ox from a blizzard and decides to call him Babe. They travel across the United States and is credited to making a lot of the different landforms in the U.S such as digging the St. Lawrence River, the Great Lakes, and gauging up the Grand Canyon. The story says that he is probably still wandering around the Alaskan wilderness to this day. 

This book is a good book to introduce during a geography unit to have a fun way to say how those things came to be. Then we would learn about how they actually came to be in the unit. It can also be used as a guided reading book. 

The illustrations are very detailed. They are colorful but lightly colored with what seems to be colored pencils. The illustrations are very humorous and add a lot of humor to the story. It helps children know that these things are not actually real or fact. 

Goldilocks and the Three Bears

Author/Illustrator: James Marshall 

Genre: Traditional Literature

Grade level: K-3

Award: Caldecott Honor Medal

This is the re-telling of the traditional story of goldilocks. Goldilocks is sent on an errand by her mother and her mother specifically tells her to not take the shortcut. She decides to not follow her mothers orders and takes the shortcut and she stumbles across a house that she just decides to go inside. She see three bowls of porridge and takes a sip from each bowl since one was too hot one was too cold and the last one was just right. She did the same thing with the rocking chairs and ended up breaking one of the rocking chairs that was just right. After all this she goes and does the same thing with the beds and ends up falling asleep. Three bears come home and see that their porridge has been eaten and their chairs have been sat in and broken. Papa bears voice woke Goldilocks up and she ran away never to be seen again. 

This book is a good book to teach young children about manners. This teaches that we should respect other people's belongings and we should always ask before using anything that is not ours. It can also be used as a prompt for a journal to help students brain storm a time where they did not use their manners. 

The illustrations are fun colorful cartoon characters. The expressions of the characters reveal their true characters and add to the descriptions given of exactly what it going on in the story. 

Rapunzel

Author/Illustrator: Paul O. Zeilinsky 

Genre: Traditional Literature

Grade Level: K-3

Award: Caldecott Medal

This book is a retold version of the traditional story of Rapunzel. There is a husband and wife who had everything they wanted in life except for a chid. One day they find out that the wife is pregnant and they are filled with joy. She is overcome with the craving of some herbs she sees from outside her window and she tells her husband she will die if she doesn't have some. He goes down to get some for her but it isn't enough and so the next day he goes again and is caught by the sorceress. She tells him that he can take the herb in exchange for the baby when she is born and he agrees and she raises Rapunzel in isolation in a big tower when she turns 12. A prince comes and sees how the sorceress goes up by calling her to let down her hair and he goes up and eventually they become lovers and she falls pregnant. The sorceress punishes Rapunzel and cuts off her hair and pushes her out of the tower to go and die in the wilderness. She doesn't die and has twins. The prince is deceived by the sorceress and she pushes him down to die but he doesnt die and eventually he finds Rapunzel in the woods and they live happily. 

This book can be used to teach children about folk tales and traditional literature. This can also be used to learn new vocabulary words. The language in the book is very detailed and advanced for young readers and could really help them learn new vocab. 

The illustrations are very colorful. They are very realistic and romantic. They are similar to an Italian paintings. The pictures don't necessarily convey emotions very well, but they give the student something to keep their interest on. 

The Ugly Duckling

Author: Hans Christian Andersen

Illustrator: Jerry Pinkney

Genre: Traditional Literature

Grade Level: K-3

This book is a new adaption to the traditional story of the ugly duckling. It is a survival story of an awkward and ugly little bird who travels through life being made fun of, hunted, and cruel seasons. He was born and everyone in the farm had started to pick on him. Eventually he had enough and ran away. He roamed far and wide and was never accepted anywhere. He become more and more unhappy and lonely as time went on. He eventually blooms into a beautiful and graceful swan and everyone who had not believed in him or made fun of him were in shock. 

This book is a good book to teach children about patience. It is also a good anti-bullying book. It puts into perspective how being mean to someone over something they can't control can drive them away and make them be sad. 

The illustrations are beautiful watercolor pictures. They are colorful and elegant and give the book a traditional yet modern vibe.