Book Talk: Janitor's Boy

We can all relate to having strong feelings toward a parent and not knowing how to act on that emotion.  Jack Rankin was feeling frustrated, and embarrassed , by his dad's job at his school as the janitor.  While we can all tell that the actions Jack took to "get back" at his dad who, of course, was not the person to blame weren't quite right, we can also tell, by the conclusion of the book that without such a sticky impetus Jack would not have otherwise learned so much more about who his dad is, as a person.  Andrew Clements does it again, writing about a sensitive topic both in school and within the family dynamic.

Extra Credit

As I mentioned yesterday, I recently finished "Extra Credit" by Andrew Clements. I loved SO many things about this book. Where to begin...

Teachers or school librarians can use this book to introduce a letter writing unit, either around the world or close to home, or a letter writing project to a character or an author. Another great book for author letter writing is Beverly Cleary's "Dear Mr. Henshaw."

Abby, the character who lives in America, loves to rock climb on the climbing wall in the gym at her school. We recently got a climbing wall at our school. It is not 30 feet tall like the wall at Baldridge Elementary School, but the kids here seem to like it just the same. My husband helped our physical education teacher set up the wall as he works at Doylestown Rock Gym and loves to climb himself. So, kids who enjoy or are interested in climbing will like to read why Abby chose to write to a student in Afghanistannimstead of one of the other two countries that were possible choices, how climbing makes her feel, and the technicalities of some of the knots and the names of different pieces of gear needed for climbing.

Anyone with an interest in current events will love this book as well. Details of some of the past conflicts in Sadeed's village are well constructed for middle grade readers. And events are portrayed realistically regarding how people in Afghanistan and in Illinois might feel about these two students writing to each other. Cultural norms are seamlessly woven into the writing to give both perspectives for each country.

Anyone who read Greg Mortenson's Three Cups of Tea, Stones into Schools, or Listen to the Wind will appreciate Clements' ability to tell a tale of education across the globe in Afghanistan and right here in the US. The similarities and differences are striking.

The growth of the characters is profound and the power of a pen pal is well portrayed.

I've enjoyed reading everything Andrew Clements has written that resides in our school library. Now it's on to what we don't have...yet. School Story, Janitor's Boy, and his newest book, Troublemaker, will be coming up on the blog soon.

Extra Books in Extra Credit

I recently finished reading Andrew Clement's "Extra Credit". As I have recently gotten into the habit of noting other books that are mentioned, I'd like to do that for this book as well. The main characters, Abby and Sadeed, both share a love of "Frog and Toad Are Friends.". Beyond that, we learn that Sadeed has read a few other books written in English with Christian characters, opening his mind to the Western world, "books that were not on the approved list from the Ministry of Education."

The books he mentions are:
* Robinson Carusoe
* The Adventures of Robin Hood
* Hatchet
* Kim

Readers may want to read in the footsteps of a character by checking these books out themselves, or a teacher might make an extra credit bulletin board showcasing these books. Either way, hearing a book character talk about how he felt while reading a book can hook others for that book. And realizing that a student in a country like Afghanistan might have such limited access to reading for pleasure can help our students develop a greater appreciation for their library and the access they have to its books and other materials. For teachers interested in reading aloud the excerpt that speaks to the books Sadeed's teacher, Mahmood, provided, check out pages 122-123 in "Extra Credit" by Andrew Clements.

Double Trouble

After recently finishing Andrew Clement's The Landry News, I thought I had figured out where the title of his book, Lost and Found had come from. It was the same as the title of the controversial short story featured in the challenged issue of the Landry News. The short story was about a boy having a hard time dealing with his parents' divorce. The book by the same title was not, as I had guessed, a continuation of the short story.

Instead, it was an incredibly imaginative (I hope) starting with the first day of school for Jay Gleason, twin brother of Ray Gleason. But on this first day at a new school, he is on his own (with his brother sick at home) and makes the surreal discovery that his brother's file has been lost, or rather, combined with his. For the first time in his life, he was an individual, not part of a pair. And he liked it. And he saw an opportunity. The brothers decide the risk is worth the experience of an individual identity. They realize it can't last forever, and quickly realize the complications involved in leading a double, or rather, single life. But every other day, one of the two brothers stays home from school. But they begin to realize that the real fun is...at school.

In reading the back cover jacket flap, I learned something new about a favorite author. Andrew Clements has 20 years of field observation experience of twins as the father of two of them himself. Frindle is his most well known title, but the more I read of Andrew Clements books, the more interested I become. As an author, his writing invites you in. As an educator, he helps you to question the way things are in a healthy and constructive way. And as a student, he may just give you a few ideas...and you can decide what to do with them.