Read-4-Luck (PPBF): Little Red Monkey

If you missed the most recent Story Elements post, which focuses on the top ten elements of picture book writing, you can still read Monday's post about Story Element #3: Plot. 

READ-4-LUCK acts as a book recommendation, book review, teaching tip, and writing lesson for children, parents, teachers, and writers. This fun weekly feature began back in October 2010 with four books. It has since evolved into one book each week. In November 2011, I joined up with Susanna Leonard Hill and her Perfect Picture Book Fridays (PPBF).  

 = Not bad. Might read twice.
 = Fun read first few times. Would get from library again.
 = Very enjoyable. Wouldn't mind owning a copy.
 = Awesome! Multiple readings are never tiresome. May just have to buy it.

This week's Read-4-Luck pick is Little Red Monkey by Jonathan London and illustrated by Frank Remkiewicz. 

A story of a monkey who has lost his way. Does he belong in a circus, a zoo, or the wild? Follow his fast-paced humorous adventures to see where the dancing monkey ends up. Opening page says: "This is the story of Little Red Monkey, who was born in the jungle, captured when he was very young, and later performed in the circus."

Publisher: Dutton

Year: 1997

Word Count: 366

Book Level: 2.7?

Age: 4-8

Topic: monkeys, zoo, circus, jungles, dancing 

Theme: finding yourself, belonging

First Lines:

Little Red Monkey was feelin' kinda funky. 

He liked to dance in his underpants.

He liked to dance on a zebra's back

with his cape really flyin' all shiny and black

RATINGS

CHILDREN: 

The best part? You guessed it! "He liked to dance in his underpants!" That gets laughs out loud every time! I bet they would enjoy dancing in their underpants, with YOU!

PARENTS: 

I actually found myself choosing this book over and over again from our library stack (gasp! before I chose the others that haven't been read yet - it's that fun!) before the children had a chance to choose a different book. They never did oppose.

TEACHERS: 

Use in an animal unit. Mentions tigers, camels, zebras, lions, dogs, cats, mammals, and of course monkeys! Could integrate with a language arts lesson on fiction vs. nonfiction, plot, beginnings and endings, or characters and settings. Best suited for K-2.

WRITERS: 

Oh, the rhyme, the rhythm, the time, the smith him! Okay, so I have a little forced rhyme there. Seriously, this book is excellent for all you rhymers! The reading is fast-paced and high energy. Definitely a read aloud. I read it four times already and it seems like I caught something new in the story that I missed in the previous reading. For kicks, choose a farm animal and write a story using the same meter here. Not for publication, mind you, but I guarantee you'll put your skills to the test and come out stronger for rising to the challenge.

Which farm animal would you choose? I think I'd choose a pig because it seems like a fun one. 

Be sure to visit other "perfect picture books" at Susanna Leonard Hill's blog.

Keep on keepin' on...

Story Element #3: Plot

I just finished submitting my application to East Carolina University. I hope to attend this August, all online of course. Should I get accepted (I'm crossing my fingers), I'll be taking the Graduate Certificate program for Website Development. It won't be long (okay, maybe a year or two) until I'm designing your website! Hee-hee...

So today's story element is PLOT, and from the last two Monday's we have learned that plot, character, and conflict all go hand in hand. Did you know that the basic plot structure can be mapped out as a graph? (You'll find several more below.) Picture books often follow the three-act structure of the big screen. (More on that in a few months.)

Definition: n. A secret scheme or plan, usually illegal. n. The story that is told in a novel, play, book, movie, etc. According to about.com, plot is 

Plot concerns the organization of the main events of a work of fiction. Plot differs from story in that plot is concerned with how events are related, how they are structured, and how they [bring about] change in the major characters. Most plots will trace some process of change in which characters are caught up in a conflict that is eventually resolved.

Notice how "character" and "conflict" are both found in the definition of "plot". The plot is the action, the series of events in the story that help move the characters forward to resolve their conflict(s). When conflict enters a character's world, the plot is catapulted. 

Free Picture Book to Add to Your Collection

Just a reminder that the Lucky Clover Picture Book Contest - Spring 2012 session is still open for submissions. If you have a PB ms for which you'd like a critique, then submit it by June 30th to see if you will be the lucky winner. All the details are on my Contest Tab.


Hello everyone! It's time for another giveaway, and just in time for summer! The prize is a picture book about dolphins, imaginary friends, and fairies who want revenge. If you would like to own your very own copy of Zaira and the Dolphins by Mar Pavon, then here's how to enter:

• Just follow me and my blog through Google Friend Connect (GFC) and leave a comment below with your name and e-mail.

Click to read more to see WHAT BOOK IT IS.

Read-4-Luck (PPBF): Witches Handbook

If you missed Monday's post about the writing craft, I hope you'll take a minute to check it out. My new feature, Story Elements, focuses on the top ten elements of picture book writing. Monday's post talks about Story Element #2: Conflict. 

READ-4-LUCK acts as a book recommendation, book review, teaching tip, and writing lesson for children, parents, teachers, and writers. This fun weekly feature began back in October 2010 with four books. It has since evolved into one book each week. In November 2011, I joined up with Susanna Leonard Hill and her Perfect Picture Book Fridays (PPBF).  

 = Not bad. Might read twice.
 = Fun read first few times. Would get from library again.
 = Very enjoyable. Wouldn't mind owning a copy.
 = Awesome! Never tiresome for children, parents, teachers, or writers. May just have to buy it.

This week's Read-4-Luck pick is Witches Handbook written and illustrated by Monica Carretero. (Original title in Spanish: Manual de Brujas).

This handbook tells the story of a brother and sister and their Aunt Amarga. They wonder if Amarga is the last witch in the world. She proceeds to pull out a Witches Handbook and together they explore the secrets, geography, history, and nature of witches throughout the world.

 

Story Element #2: CONFLICT!

Welcome to the CONFLICT page of Story Elements. Here, you'll find all the picture books I've ever shared online about the learning of the craft of conflict. Enjoy!

1. The Secret Science Project That Almost Ate the School by Judy Sierra
2. Cook-A-Doodle-Doo! by Janet Stevens and Susan Stevens Crummell
3. 
   

Story Element #2: Conflict - The Secret Science Project that Almost Ate the School by Judy Sierra

I had a wonderful weekend racing around at my son's 8th birthday party. They rode bicycles and had a blast. Pizza for lunch and four cakes later, I can't believe he's EIGHT! Okay, there was technically only one birthday cake, but the first three were experiments. Did you know that Crisco and a light dusting of flour work wonders to get a cake to freely fall out of a nonstick pan? The "bad" cakes were gone by Sunday night... (Pigs!)

And for today's topic: CONFLICT. I read a great quote recently about conflict: "The heart of storytelling is conflict. Without conflict, a story is not a story." 

Definition: n. To be incompatible. A fight or war. Sharp disagreement, as of interests or ideas. Emotional disturbance due to conflicting impulses, ideas, etc. I know that you're not supposed to use the word in the definition of that word, but the dictionary DID!

The first three story elements on my Top Ten list are:

1. Character
2. Conflict
3. Plot

They all kind of go hand in hand. You can't have a story without any of them. Another quote, which I now can't find, goes something like this: Character creates plot and plot creates character. You know, the age-old question as to whether a book is more character-driven or plot-driven. Really a story needs to be both. I think sometimes when we hear that a book is more plot-driven, it means the characters weren't as fleshed out as the readers would have liked. When a character encounters conflict, the plot unfolds. Conflict creates plot by giving our story a purpose, a reason to be told. Conflict creates rising action, a very important part of plot. Conflict is the action the character takes. The sequence of several conflicting events becomes the plot by way of the character choosing to take action. A good story seamlessly weaves all three together. But, alas, today's focus is CONFLICT.

Conflict must be clear. We must know who or what is up against our main characters. We must understand what is at stake. Through the writing of our first drafts, we can journey through the conflict to find out where our character will end up. We must know the conflict. We don't have to know the ending, though many will argue. Or maybe we know the ending, but we have no idea how we'll get there. Enter CONFLICT. Deal with it. Help your character battle it. Through conflict, our stories will also have action and suspense. 

• Action = happenings
• Suspense = uncertainty

Read-4-Luck (PPBF): Zaira and the Dolphins

If you missed Monday's post about the writing craft, I hope you'll take a minute to check it out. My new feature, Story Elements, focuses on the top ten elements of picture book writing. Monday's post talks about Story Element #1: Character. 

READ-4-LUCK acts as a book recommendation, book review, teaching tip, and writing lesson for children, parents, teachers, and writers. This fun weekly feature began back in October 2010 with four books. It has since evolved into one book each week. In November 2011, I joined up with Susanna Leonard Hill and her Perfect Picture Book Fridays (PPBF).  

 = Not bad. Might read twice.
 = Fun read first few times. Would get from library again.
 = Very enjoyable. Wouldn't mind owning a copy.
 = Awesome! Never tiresome for children, parents, teachers, or writers. May just have to buy it.

This week's Read-4-Luck pick is Zaira and the Dolphins by Mar Pavon and illustrated by Cha Coco. 

"Zaira is a little girl with an imagination so big that she can see dolphins in the town square fountain. One day, she is shocked to find the fountain empty. The children who play in the square and make fun of Zaira for telling make-believe stories are shocked too—when a real fairy arrives to help her. This story, full of magic and fun, embraces the amazing imagination that breathes life into children’s games, and treasures the joy of imaginary friends."

 

Publisher: Cuento de Luz

Year: 2011 (originally printed in Spanish)

Word Count: 500-750?

Book Level: 3.1-4.2?

Age: 4-8

Topic: dolphins, imagination, bath time 

Theme: friendship

First Lines:

Just like she did every day, Zaira went to the fountain in the square to see the dolphins. She went with Spooky, her best friend. 

"Look! The dolphins are playing! They're balancing balls on their noses!" gasped Zaira, absolutely thrilled.

RATINGS

CHILDREN: 

Girls especially love the dolphins and water play. Imaginary friends are fun too.

PARENTS: 

The fairy, Takethat, is quite funny. Could be a fun book for bath time.

TEACHERS: 

Good opening to a lesson on character development.

WRITERS: 

Lots of good examples of dialogue.

Be sure to visit other "perfect picture books" at Susanna Leonard Hill's blog.

Keep on keepin' on...

Story Element #1: Character - Baloney (Henry P.) by Jon Scieszka

Happy Monday Morning everyone! I had a great time on Saturday with my husband celebrating our 16th anniversary. We went to the NC Transportation Museum. Had Subway for lunch, saw the Avengers, went to a steak house for dinner, then to a bookstore (where I got to read lots of new books)! It was a GREAT 16th!!!

Okay, so it's time to launch into my brand new feature, STORY ELEMENTS, that I began last Monday. Today's focus will be on Story Element #1: Character, as seen through the lens of Jon Sciezka's Baloney (Henry P.).

Since this is the first post of this new series, I feel it fitting to define character, first and foremost. Each time I post another CHARACTER entry, I'll try to provide more knowledge about how to create dynamic characters in our writing.

Definition: In fiction, the person you write about is considered the main character. Webster's New World Dictionary def. #8: "A person in a play, novel, etc." In picture books, there are still secondary characters, but not as many as in novels.

Sometimes there is also a villain (more on that when we reach 'conflict'). Without a character, even if it's the horrid inanimate object (rarely is it done well and no editor ever asks for it), there would simply be no story. Every story must begin with a character. The picture book, Patches: Lost and Found, has a teacher who teaches that every story must begin with the words, but the main character teaches her teacher that sometimes stories can begin with the pictures first and not the words. Perhaps a story could begin with a setting or a vague idea of plot, but before it ever becomes a story, you must add a character!

Characters must be:

• likable
• childlike
• imperfect
• believable
• active
• solves own problems

Title: Baloney (Henry P.)
Author: Jon Scieszka
Illustrator: Lane Smith
Publisher: Viking (Penguin Putnam)
Year: 2001
Words: 368

Today's example is Henry P. Baloney. He's likable because we feel for him for being late. He's childlike because he gives outlandish excuses. He's also imperfect because of the excuses. He's believable because of the excuses. He's active in his storytelling and active in what his story conveys. He also solves his own problem.

Henry P. isn't just a bunch of baloney, he's a cute little alien school boy. In order to avoid "Permanent Lifelong Detention" the teacher says he must provide "one very good and very believable excuse." 

Thus begins Henry's tale. In addition to character, this book could be an example of word play, too! At the end, there is a Star Wars-esque Afterword, then a DECODER with the meanings and origins of 20 "alien" words that all happen to be real words from the planet Earth.

The story is in the telling of the long excuse Henry gives, which tells quite a bit of his character, through his actions. The teacher finally says, "That is unbelievable. But today's assignment is to compose a tall tale. So why don't you sit down and get started writing." To which, Henry replies, "I'd love to, but ... I seem to have misplaced my zimulus." So the ending circles back around to the beginning, which is why he was late in the first place! 

Today's assignment: 
Examine a story you've written, whether brand new or one that's been revised several times. Compare your character to Henry P. Is your character likable? Childlike (acts like a kid)? Imperfect (makes mistakes or has a problem)? Believable? Henry P. would not have just sat down and started working. His character needed to give an excuse! Active? Henry P. DID things. And finally, does your character solve his or her own problem? Henry P. sure does! By telling what happened so his teacher knows why he is late, she accepts the excuse even though she doesn't really believe him, but only because the assignment for the day was to write a tall tale, which she believes his story falls under that category. However, Henry gets out of it again, or at least momentarily, because he didn't have anything to write with anymore. 

Hope you enjoyed my first installment. Be sure to check back next Monday for Story Element #2: Conflict. 

Keep on keepin' on...