CHARLIE MAY SIMON
READING LIST 2009-2010
The Charlie May Simon Children's Book Award for children's
literature has been presented annually since 1971 to an author
whose book has been selected through a vote taken by Arkansas
school children in grades four, five and six. The purpose of the
award is to promote better reading for children and to recognize
Mrs. John Gould Fletcher, an outstanding Arkansas author who
wrote under the pen name Charlie May Simon.
JACK PLANK TELLS TALES
by: Natalie Babbitt
Pirate Jack Plank is let go from the only job
he's ever known. Left in Jamaica with a small
bag of gold coins (so he can get a fresh start),
Jack finds shelter in a boarding house, where
he befriends owner Mrs. DelFresno, her
daughter Nina, and the other boarders. Nina
and the other boarders try to help Jack find a
new profession, but each time someone
suggests a job Jack responds with one of his
many high-seas adventure stories.
Jack's pirate stories whisk Mrs. DelFresno,
Nina, and the other boarders away to exotic
tropical beaches and dark angry seas -- places
where magic is possible and danger lurks
around every corner.
Through a process of elimination and careful
evaluation of Jack's talents, the group
eventually comes up with the perfect job for
their highly entertaining friend.
NO TALKING
by: Andrew Clements
•
•
Dave's fifth grade class is called "The
Unshushables" by their teachers because
of their constant talking. His grade is also
unusually immature when it comes to
boys and girls getting along with each
other.
When Dave reads that Gandhi didn't talk
for one day each week, he is intrigued and
decides to try it out himself. But he only
makes it until lunch before getting into an
argument with Lynsey, the leader of the
girls, and they end up making a bet: two
days of no talking, boys against girls.
Whichever side talks less, wins. Not
talking, though, is harder than it seems,
and has all sorts of unintended
consequences -- including a confrontation
with the principal, who has been trying to
get them to stop talking for years.
Many Rides of Paul Revere
by: James Crossin Giblin
•
Paul Revere is commonly remembered in the
Longfellow legend of his Midnight Ride before the
1775 Battles of Lexington and Concord. In this bright,
informative biography, Giblin follows Revere's life
from his humble beginnings as a French immigrant's
son to his work as a silversmith and a horse
messenger amid the mounting pressures of
revolution. In precise, accessible prose, Giblin
chronicles Revere's daring acts -- both the famous
and the overlooked. Along the way, he portrays a
brave, compassionate, multitalented American
patriot.
Paul Revere had a wide range of activities: Besides
being a rider for the Revolution, he was a famed
silversmith, engraved cartoons and paper money, and
practiced dentistry. He was an early American
manufacturer, and his silver business is still thriving
today. Connections to contemporary times can be
drawn from his being the son of a French immigrant,
and from his activities in the American insurgency
against Britain in the Revolution.
James Cross Giblin's major awards include:
HOW TO SAVE YOUR TAIL
by: Mary Hanson
•
How does a cookie-baking Rat named Bob save his tail from being
gobbled by two hungry cats? By serving them cookies and telling
them
fantastic fairy tales about his family, of course. There's the story
about great-grand uncle Mustard who upgrades his family to a lovely
three-bedroom brick house. (All's well until some wolves with snoutwarts show up.) And there's the one about how starving Grandma
Lois was forced to take a job spinning straw into gold. (Impossible to
do . . . until a hairy chimney troll comes along.) With allusions to
classic fairy tales, plus a storytelling rat to rival Scheherazade, this
book—which also includes black-and-white illustrations, a family
tree, and a map of Bob's neighborhood—is sure to hold both cats and
kids captive.
EDWARD’S EYES
by: Patricia MacLachlan
•
Jake is a part of an extraordinary
family.
•
He has a life filled with art, music,
and long summer nights on the
Cape. He has hours and days and
months of baseball. But, more than
anything in this world, Jake knows
he has Edward. From the moment
he was born, Jake knew Edward
was destined for something.
Edward could make anyone laugh
and everyone think. During one
special year, he became the only
one in the neighborhood who could
throw a perfect knuckleball. It was
a pitch you could not hit. That
same year, Jake learned there are
also some things you cannot hold.
A FRIENDSHIP FOR TODAY
by: Patricia McKissack
•
The year is 1954, the place is Missouri, and twelve-year-old Rosemary Patterson is
about to make history. She is one of the first African American students to enter the
white school in her town. Headstrong, smart Rosemary welcomes the challenge, but
starting this new school gets more daunting when her best friend is hospitalized for
polio. Suddenly, Rosemary must face all the stares and whispers alone. But when the
girl who has shown her the most cruelty becomes an unlikely confidante, Rosemary
learns important truths about the power of friendship to overcome prejudice.
LAWN BOY
by: Gary Paulsen
•
One day I was 12 years
old and broke. Then
Grandma gave me
Grandpa's old riding
lawnmower. I set out to
mow some lawns. More
people wanted me to
mow their lawns. And
more and more. . . . One
client was Arnold the
stockbroker, who
offered to teach me
about "the beauty of
capitalism. Supply and
Demand. Diversify labor.
Distribute the wealth."
"Wealth?" I said. "It's
groovy, man," said
Arnold.
If I'd known what was
coming, I might have
climbed on my mower
and putted all the way
home to hide in my
room. But the lawn
business grew and grew.
So did my profits, which
Arnold invested in many
things. And one of them
was Joey Pow the
prizefighter. That's when
RICKSHAW GIRL
by:Mitali Perkins
•
Naima excels at painting the traditional alpana patterns with
which Bangladeshi women and girls decorate their homes for
holiday celebrations. But she wishes she could help her father
earn money like her best friend helps his family by driving his
father's rickshaw. When Naima's rash efforts to help put the
family in deeper debt, she draws on her resourceful nature to
use her talents and follow the changing model of women's roles
in Bangladesh.
THE WEDNESDAY WARS
•
by: Gary D Schmidt
Seventh grader
Holling Hoodhood has
a tough year ahead of
him. First of all, his
teacher Mrs. baker,
keeps giving him the
evil eye. Second of all,
the class bully keeps
threatening to do
Number 167 (and you
don't even want to
know what Number
167 is). Third of all,
his father keeps
calling him the Son
Who is Going to
Inherit Hoodhood and
Associates. But things
are changing, and
while reciting his
favorite curses from
Shakespear's plays,
Holling might just find
the true meaning of
his own story.
EGGS
by: Jerry Spinelli
• Eggs is a quirky and moving novel about two very
complicated, damaged children. David has recently lost
his mother to a freak accident, his salesman father is
constantly on the road, and he is letting his anger out on
his grandmother. Primrose lives with her unstable,
childlike, fortuneteller mother, and the only evidence of
the father she never knew is a framed picture. Despite
their age difference (David is 9, Primrose is 13), they forge
a tight yet tumultuous friendship, eventually helping each
other deal with what is missing in their lives.
FEATHERS
by:Jacqueline Woodson
•
Nobody knows what to make of
the new boy in Frannie's class.
Not only does he look different,
but he's kind to everyone, he
refuses to fight, and he doesn't
even seem to mind when the
other kids nickname him Jesus
Boy. But as winter progresses,
Frannie realizes that she's
starting to see a whole lot of
things in a new light: her
brother's deafness, her mother's
fear, her friend Samantha's faith,
their classmate Trevor's anger,
and her own desire for hope—"the
thing with feathers." And it's all
because of Jesus Boy's
differences . . . and his friendship.
Charlie May Simon Children’s Book Award
2009-2010 Reading List
Children in grades 4-6 should vote on these titles by April 2010. Children must have read or heard
at least three of the books from this list in order to be eligible to vote.
Babbitt, Natalie. JACK PLANK TELLS TALES. Scholastic, 2007. Gr.2-6. ISBN: 9780545004961. $15.95
Clements, Andrew. NO TALKING. Simon & Schuster, 2007. Gr.3-6. ISBN: 9781416909835. $16.99
Giblin, James Cross. THE MANY RIDES OF PAUL REVERE. Scholastic, 2007. Gr. 4-7. ISBN: 9780439572903. $17.99
Hanson, Mary. HOW TO SAVE YOUR TAIL. Random House, 2007. Gr.2-5. ISBN: 9780375837755. $15.99
MacLachlan, Patricia. EDWARD’S EYES. Atheneum, 2007. Gr.4-6. ISBN: 9781416927433. $15.99
McKissack, Patricia. A FRIENDSHIP FOR TODAY. Scholastic, 2007. Gr.5-8. ISBN: 9780439660983. $16.99
Paulsen, Gary. LAWN BOY. Random House, 2007. Gr.4-7. ISBN: 9780385746861. $12.99
Perkins, Mitali. RICKSHAW GIRL. Charlesbridge, 2007. Gr.2-5. ISBN: 9781580893084. $13.95
Schmidt, Gary D. THE WEDNESDAY WARS. Clarion, 2007. Gr.5-8. ISBN: 9780618724833. $16.00
Spinelli, Jerry. EGGS. Little, Brown, 2007. Gr.4-8. ISBN: 9780316166461. $15.99
Woodson, Jacqueline. FEATHERS. Putnam, 2007. Gr.4-7. ISBN: 9780399239892. $15.99