Samantha Fummerton
Ed 230
Annotated bibliography
Newbery Award
3/13/2012
Choldenko, Gennifer. Al Capone Does My Shirts. New York: G.P. Putnam's Sons, 2004. Print.
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Al Capone Does My Shirts is a novel about a young boy named Moose Flanagan. Him
and his family move to Alcatraz Island, where Moose's father got a job as an electrician
and prison guard for the federal prison situated on the island. We soon realize that Moose
misses his friends back home. He is upset with his mother for moving the family to help
his sister Natalie be normal. His sister Natalie suffers from Autism and his parents want
her to go to a special school in San Francisco. Right after he moves, Moose finds himself
getting into trouble when the wardens daughter, Piper, draws him into a plan to make
money. They plan to tell kids that Al Capone a famous prisoner on the island will do their
laundry. Eventually Moose adjusts to life on the island. He also come up with a way to
help his sister and his family out.
I really enjoyed reading this book. It had an interesting plot with relatable characters. If I
was a child during this time that lived near San Francisco, I would definitely want Al
Capone to wash my laundry. I’ve visited Alcatraz and I do not believe the island would
be a very fun place to live. I can relate to Moose not wanting to live there and missing his
friends. I also know from my own life about how hard it is to love with a sibling with
disabilities. I could relate to Moose in that way as well. He does a great job handling his
sisters disabilities and finds ways to make her seem “normal”.
DiCamillo, Kate. Because of Winn-Dixie. Cambridge, MA: Candlewick, 2000. Print.
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This novel follows a 10-year-old girl named Opal who was abandoned by her mother
when she was just three years old. Opal moves to a small town in Florida with her father
who is a preacher. At the beginning of the story she adopts a stray dog whom she names
Winn-Dixie after the local supermarket that she found him in. Over the summer with the
help of her friendly dog, she meets a variety of townspeople including the local librarian,
Miss Franny Block, Gloria Dump, and Otis. She is also able to learn some information
about her mother and rekindle a broken relationship with her father.
This book I had read as a child, but after reading it again I remember why I had enjoyed it.
The young girl Opal goes through ha lot of trouble that I can relate to. She moves to a
new city and has to make new friends. I also had moved school at around her age and it
was pretty tough to make new friends. This story is an easy read that can be read by
children of all ages.
Fleischman, Paul, and Eric Beddows. Joyful Noise: Poems for Two Voices. New York: Harper &
Row, 1988. Print.
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This unique story is a collection of poems about different insects that are written to be
read aloud by two people at the same time. Each poem is written with two parts, one for
each reader. They are printed on the page so that each reader recites one column. They
verses are either read separately or simultaneously.
This approach to poetry definitely peaked my interest. It was hard to read this book in
my head, so when we read it in class I got a better understand of how the book is
supposed to be read. This book could be enjoyed by both young people and adults. The
poems written about different insects, and are quite witty. The story I read aloud in class
was about fireflies and how they are calligraphers of the night sky because of their bright
lights. This would be a great way to introduce poetry to a young class because poetry is
typically seen as being difficult or boring.
Spinelli, Jerry. Maniac Magee: A Novel. Boston: Little, Brown, 1990. Print.
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This novel follows a young boy named Jeffrey. His parents were killed in a trolley
accident when he was just three years old and so he was sent to live with his aunt and
uncle. He spends the next eight years in the dreadful house of his Aunt Dot and Uncle
Dan, who lived in the same house without speaking to each other. They used Jeffrey as
their go-between making him spend time with each of them separately. After eight years
of this he runs away in search for a real home. He ends up in the town of Two Mills
which is a town divided by race into East and West End. There Jeffrey becomes known
as Maniac Magee. He is the subject of legends that have lasted and are told ever since. In
his search for a place to belong he meets a lot of young characters and he eventually
succeeds in uniting the town of Two Mills by forcing at least some of the Blacks and
Whites to know each other.
I really enjoyed reading this book. I liked the way it was written with short chapters. This
is a book that I could enjoy and I could also see young kids enjoying. It feels like you are
flying through the book. The adventures that Maniac goes through are really interesting
to follow and keep the readers interest the whole time. This is a good book to read when a
class is talking about racial issues, or if the school is divided by race or issues of that sort.
I could relate to maniacs feelings and I could really put myself into the story.