Peanut Butter & Cupcake by Terry Border

Peanut Butter & Cupcake by Terry Border.  Published (2014).  32 unnumbered pages 750 L AD. R.L. 2.1 K-3.  It's not always easy being the new "kid" in town.  Peanut Butter keeps trying to make a new friend in the town he just moved into, unfortunately, no one seems to be the perfect friend.

Kirkus Reviews (June 1, 2014)

The familiar theme of the challenges facing a new kid in town is given an original treatment by photographer Border in this book of photos of three-dimensional objects in a simple modeled landscape. Peanut Butter is represented by a slice of white bread spread with the popular condiment. The other characters in the story--a hamburger with a pair of hot dogs in tow, a bowl of alphabet soup, a meatball jumping a rope of spaghetti, a carton of French fries and a pink cupcake--are represented by skillfully crafted models of these foods, anthropomorphized using simple wire construction. Rejected by each character in turn in his search for playmates, Peanut Butter discovers in the end that Jelly is his true match (not Cupcake, as the title suggests),perhaps because she is the only one who looks like him, being a slice of white bread spread with jelly. The friendly foods end up happily playing soccer together. Some parents may have trouble with the unabashedly happy depiction of carbs and American junk food (no carrots or celery sticks in this landscape), and others may find themselves troubled by the implication that friendship across difference is impossible. Still, preschoolers will likely savor this mouthwatering treatment of a subject that looms large in many early school experiences. (Picture book. 3-6)

Since I have read this book to First Graders, I have felt the need to purchase two more copies.  There is a list of students waiting to take this book home.  Peanut Butter is very open to making new friends but doesn't have a lot of success.  This opens up a lot of discussion as children reveal their own frustrations involving making new friends.  One of the questions I like to ask at the beginning is: " How many friends do you think Peanut Butter will be able to make today?"  In every class the children feel he will make lots and are disappointed when he is turned away over and over.  But there is nothing like a great ending to make everyone love a fun book.  We also discuss at the end of the book how they think the characters were made.

Posted by Margo Irving

Eats, Shoots & Leaves Why, Commas Really DO Make A Difference.

Eats, Shoots and Leaves Why, Commas Really Do Make A Difference by Lynne Truss and illustrated by Bonnie Timmons. (Published 2006). L380. RL 2.1 Int Lvl. 3-6.  The only thing less exciting than grammar is teaching grammar.  This book changes that by making learning commas fun

Booklist (September 1, 2006 (Vol. 103, No. 1))

Among popular nonfiction titles for adults adapted for younger audiences, this picture book based on Truss'2004 best-seller about punctuation may be a surprise, considering most kids'indifference to the topic. Yet it proves very effective, thanks to entertaining repackaging that narrows the original's broad purview to the comma, and focuses on cartoonist Timmons'interpretations of humorous comma-related goofs akin to the one referenced by the title (the punchline of an old joke about a panda, here set in a library rather than a bar). While dissolving into giggles over the change in meaning between "Eat here, and get gas,"or "Eat here and get gas"(likely to be the most popular of the 14 sentence pairs given), children will find themselves gaining an instinctive understanding of the "traffic signals of language,"even without the concluding spread explaining the whys and wherefores. This is a no-brainer for language arts class, but also recommend it to fans of Jon Agee's books of palindromes, William Steig's delightful alphabet rebuses, or introductory grammar books by Brian Cleary.

Let's be real honest.  For people who get grammar, grammar is easy.  For those that struggle with grammar, it's not just hard.  It's torture.  I found Eats, Shoots and Leaves Why, Commas Really Do Make A Difference by Lynne Truss grabbed both my grammar experts and my novices.  It's a quick fun read aloud that reinforces the use of commas  The great thing is that the back includes an explanation of the meaning of the sentence changes based on how you use the comma.   The author also published a book about apostrophes called The Girl's Like Spaghetti.

Posted by Kellie Hale