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Dario and the Whale

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Author: Cheryl Lawton Malone

Illustrator/ Photographer: Bistra Masseva

Publisher and Year: Albert Whitman and Company, 2016

Number of Pages: 29 pages

Genre: Fiction

This book tells of the tale of Dario’s adventures at the shore every spring. Dario and his mother move to the shore every spring so Dario’s mom is able to work. Dario, a boy of Brazilian culture, struggles to fit in except when he befriends a whale in the ocean. This story serves as a window for the intended audience because it tells of Dario’s struggles to fit in at the seashore due to his cultural differences. For example, when Dario went to the shore, no one wanted to play with him because he wanted to play soccer while the other boys were playing baseball.

In the beginning of the story, Dario’s mother holds the power because she brought Dario to the shore for her job. In addition, Dario does not fit in with the other children because his cultural likes are different from the other children’s likes. At the same time, the reader sees a parallel of a whale struggling to fit in with its atmosphere and fish in the ocean as well. The story follows the bonding of Dario and the whale throughout the rest of the story so that by the end of story, Dario gains power and confidence in realizing that he does indeed have a friend at the seashore. The story begins by stating that Dario and his mother come from a Brazilian background, which causes a struggle for Dario to fit in at the beach. Because his Brazilian traditions and culture is different from the other children at the beach, the other children do not want to interact with him. Regardless of Dario and the whale being different, they both manage to establish a positive friendship with each other. Through this book, my understanding of culture has not really changed from what I have already learned. Instead, it reiterates the importance and acceptance of diversity. It shows that though people have different cultures, it does not mean that all groups have to stay segregated. Dario and the Whale shows that people can have different interests and likes but can still be friends.

There is very little text while the images take up most the page to show the artwork speaks more than the text. The intermingling of Brazilian words with English honors two identities of Dario: Brazilian and American. For example, Dario holding a soccer ball stands for the importance of soccer to the Brazilian culture. At the same time, he wears the colors of the Brazilian flag, honoring the Brazilian culture. Dario’s struggles parallel with the whale’s struggle to fit in showing Dario is not alone in the struggle to feel welcomed. The text is next to the living figure in the story indicating that the character is completing what the text is saying. Colors and images are bright and cheerful to represent the excitement of Dario in finding a friend while also symbolizing the beautiful nautical colors of the ocean. This storybook conveys the messages that friends can be found in unlikely places, the ocean can connect people with nature, and differences among people make an individual special.

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Just Like Josh Gibson

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Author: Angela Johnson

Illustrator/ Photographer: Beth Peck

Publisher and Year: Simon and Schuster Books for Young Readers, 2004

Number of Pages: 29 Pages

Genre: Historical Fiction

The story of this book is about an African American girl who wants to play baseball just like Josh Gibson, “the Babe Ruth of the Negros Leagues” (Johnson, 2004). Grandmama tells the story in flashbacks of her growing up loving baseball but never getting the chance (with the exception of one time) to play in a real game because she was a girl.

This text serves as a door, window, and mirror all at the same time. First, it serves as a window because the reader sees a story of a girl of color surpassing societal norms of the time and proving she can play baseball as well as the boys. This aspect of the story not only breaks racial stereotypes, but also gender stereotypes that girls cannot be as good as boys at sports. Second, it serves as a mirror to call upon the reader to reflect on how he/she handles stereotypes among different groups of people. Thirdly, it serves as a door to show that women have the opportunity to do the same sports and activities as men.

The entire tale of this story is Grandmama referring back to her childhood playing baseball. Jack Gibson was an African American baseball player that unfortunately never made it to the major leagues for baseball (Johnson 2004). With Grandmama already being a woman, an African American, and the setting of the flashback in the 1940s, Grandmama had no power. But, that did not stop Grandmama’s father from teaching her how to play baseball so that she could be just like Josh Gibson. Two cultures are noticeably identified and represented in this story: women and African Americans. As a woman, Grandmama was able to overcome barriers and show she was just as good as the boys in a male dominated activity, baseball.

At the same time, this book gives respect to the African American community by acknowledging their culture, contribution, and love for baseball as well. In regards to my understanding of culture, this story speaks and represents African Americans in a sport favored by America but also, it shows girls that they are not limited to anything simply for being a girl. Though the images take up most of pages, the words on the page are easy to find showing that the images and text are both important to the story as a whole. The characters of Josh Gibson and Grandmama (as a little girl) are looking to the right, symbolizing them both breaking gender and racial barriers and moving forward. The colors in the story are dull and faded possibly representing the whole flashback, and/or the disappearance of racial and gender stereotypes in sports. The dialect of Grandmama speaks represents her African American culture. The words and images mirror one another, showing a clear picture of the flashback Grandmama is trying to convey to her granddaughter (in the present time). The biggest ideologies of this storybook are girls can play with the boys, race does not make someone inferior or superior, and girls are not to be limited to things simply because they are girls.

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The Ugly Dumpling

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Author: Stephanie Campisi

Illustrator/ Photographer: Shahar Kober

Publisher and Year: Mighty Media Kids, 2016

Number of Pages: 27 Pages

Diversity, Fiction, Dorning

Genre: Fantasy

The Ugly Dumpling is a storybook about a dumpling in a restaurant that struggles to fit in and find a friend. The dumpling befriends a cockroach and they find the “beauty of the world” together (Campisi, 2016).

Besides the unlikely friendship of a food (dumpling) and insect (cockroach), this story serves as a mirror for the audience to reflect on how people view diversity. In this story, the dumpling is ignored and excluded from participating in the restaurant’s business (no matter how hard it tried) because the dumpling looked different. Not until it befriends and goes on adventures with the cockroach, does it realize the beauty in being different. By the end of the story, the dumpling and cockroach find the power and confidence to accept whom the other is and walk away from those who do not appreciate their beauty in being different. As fantasized as the story and artwork is, this storybook serves as a window to all cultures to practice the virtue of acceptance. In regards to my understanding of culture, this story shares the message of the vital importance of acceptance because regardless of sex, religion, or gender, everyone wants to be included and wanted.

This book attempts to convey this message to such an extent that on the last page of the story is the quote, “Every dumpling needs a friend” (Campisi, 2016) with a website at the bottom of the page. After looking on the website, I found that it was Facebook campaign that promoted against stereotypes and labels of all groups of people (https://www.facebook.com/friendsofdumplings). This continued to further the message of understanding and acceptance of all kinds of people and that being “different” is a wonderful and unique concept. Perceptually, the images take up most of page, which shows that the artwork is more important than seeing the text the author wrote. At the same time, the images and words mirror one another, which allows the reader to visually see what the text is saying. The diversity of people in restaurant shows continuation of people accepting all kinds of people. Structurally, certain words and phrases are bolded or quoted to add emphasize on the theme of the story. For example, the words “beautiful”, “one”, and “own” highlight the importance of individuality. The facial expressions of dumpling change as it befriends the cockroach, showing that the dumpling is accepting its differences and beginning to love itself for whom it is. The main themes of this storybook are it is okay to be different, stay true to yourself, friends can be found in unlikely places, individuality, and do not judge by looks or first impressions.IMG_2823IMG_2824

The Turnip

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Author & Illustrator: Jan Brett (author and illustrator)

Publisher and Year: Penguin Random House LLC, 2015

Number of Pages: 30 Pages

Genre: Fantasy

Badger Girl comes across the biggest turnip she has ever seen in her vegetable garden. She asks for the help of family and friends to help her get the turnip out of the ground so the community can enjoy and eat the turnip.

The story serves as a window into how teamwork can accomplish many things. Even though it is unrealistic that animals perform these tasks, they represent how a community with a diverse group of individuals brings strength to the group. In the beginning, the turnip has the power because it will not come out of the ground. Badger Girl continues to fail because she is trying to pull the turnip out of the ground by herself. As the story continues on, other characters in the story attempt to help Badger Girl get the turnip out of the ground. Finally, the turnip finally comes out the ground when the power to help is distributed among all members of the community.

All the animals represent a different type of culture in society (not explicitly stated but they represent diverse groups of people in communities). The story shows that when all kinds of cultures come together to collaborate, things can be successfully accomplished. This theme can be applied to my understanding of culture as a whole because the more diverse cultures involved in a community, the better tasks can be completed. In addition, all animals had respect for one another’s differences. This is an important contribution to my understanding of culture because getting to know other cultures allows for barriers to be broken, which benefits the community as a whole. The pictures are very detailed, colorful, and large, which engages the reader into the artwork of the story. Also, all the animals have elaborate outfits, making them relatable to a human being. The borders include foreshadowing of the next images, which allow the reader to be creative and make predictions as to what will happen next in the story. The images are framed which make reader an observer of this fantasy world in the middle of the forest. The wide range of forest animals symbolizes different cultures among all kinds of people. The images and text once again mirror one other to allow the reader to follow along with the story visually and textually. The turnip symbolizes problems in a community that need teamwork of all members to be solved. Important ideologies from this story are teamwork, using differences to help one another, everyone offers a unique talent to help the group, and problems are not difficult to solve if everyone is involved to help.IMG_2821IMG_2822

 

A Dog Day for Susan

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Author: Maureen Fergus

Illustrator/ Photographer: Monica Arnaldo

Publisher and Year: Owlkids Books, 2016

Number of Pages: 31 Pages

Genre: Realistic Fiction

This book tells of Susan, Spencer’s Great Aunt Alice’s dog. Great Aunt Alice comes to visit Spencer’s family and treats Susan as one of the humans. Finding this odd, Spencer and his dog Barney are on a mission to teach Susan how to be a real dog.

The story serves as a window and mirror into how humans see animals and the idea of individuality. Alice views Susan as an equal and even shares how she refuses to go anywhere that treats dogs as “second class citizens” (Arnaldo, 2016). At the same time, Spencer wants to show Susan what a “real” dog is supposed to act like because he feels that Susan did not sound like him and Barney’s “kind” of dog (Arnaldo, 2016). The moment that Great Aunt Alice arrives, Susan is treated as one of the humans. So, Susan and Alice hold the power over Spencer and Barney. In response, Spencer goes on a mission to show Susan how to be a real dog so that by the end of the story, Spencer has gained power by showing her how to be a real dog at the park.

The illustrator depicted the family in the story as Caucasian so not much diversity is involved in the story. Instead, the culture represented in this book is the relationship of humans and their pets. Alice cares for her dog Susan and wants to make sure she is treated with kindness and respect. Great Aunt Alice’s attitude reflects as a mirror that shows how people in society now see pets as more than just an animal, but as a friend. In addition, another theme comes into play as to who Susan really is. She acts one way with Alice but another with Spencer and Barney. This can symbolize the attempt to influence who an individual is supposed to be. This story has shown me that it is acceptable to be more than just one type of person; an individual can have many personality traits that make him or her unique. The text is clear to find on the page which shows that what is being said is important. At the same time, there are more images than text showing that the artwork is very important to the story and should be paid attention to. Also, communication between two characters is a closer-up image meaning the dialogue is significant to the plot. The text correlates with the image on each page, allowing the reader to hear and see the story. Flashbacks are represented in a dark blue color, which can stand for times that were not good for Great Aunt Alice. This storybook portrays core themes such as the bond between animals and humans, and the importance of self-discovery and individuality.

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Abracadabra, It’s Spring!

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Author: Anne Sibley O’ Brien

Illustrator/ Photographer: Susan Gal

Publisher and Year: Abrams Appleseed, 2016

Number of Pages: 42 Pages

Genre: Poetry, Realistic Fiction

This story tells of the reawakening of nature and its inhabitants when the spring season comes around. The snow and cold melt away and the blossoming of flowers, sunshine, and green engulf the world.

The story serves as a window for the audience to show the beauty of the spring season. In the spring, nature and all the animals reawaken to beautiful and lively colors. At the same time, humans can be outdoors once again with fresh air and sunshine on their faces. The book also serves as a mirror to remind the reader how beautiful the spring season is. If humans want to enjoy the beauty depicted in this book, then humans have to care for the Earth and protect it. The book has a unique approach to the distribution of power in the sense that nature has the power. Each year, the Earth allows the spring to bring all plants back to life and animals out of hibernation after a long and cold winter. The author and illustrator focus on the “magic” of the spring season that brings the community of animals and people together to enjoy the wonders of nature. In this story, the artwork speaks more than the text because the elaborate and detailed pictures depict the liveliness spring brings to all. By the artwork of the illustrator, my understanding of culture has broadened to mean more than just people. Nature can be its own culture as well.

The book symbolizes the magic and joy that spring brings to the world. At the same time, it sends a message to current generations to protect the earth and its exquisiteness so that spring can continue to bloom flowers with many bursts of color for future generations to enjoy. Just as the last page of the story shows, nature is able to bring children and adults of all types and cultures to enjoy the magnificence of the season. Nature welcomes all and does not exclude based on race, religion, or gender. The artwork is more important because the text is small, and one page opens to another flap to reveal the artwork of spring season. In addition, the animals are noticeably large and close up, which allows the reader to pay attention to the artwork portrayed in the story. The text is simple with words such as “presto change”, “alakazam”, and “open sesame.” This shows that the season of spring is like a magic trick and can bring wonderful things out of the seemingly impossible. This is emphasized by the artwork being very colorful and busy, just like the season of spring. In the end, the main themes of this book are nature reawakens in the spring, humans must protect the Earth to allow spring to continue, spring brings color to the Earth, and spring weather brings people of all kinds outdoors to come together.      IMG_2815IMG_2817

Cakes and Miracles: A Purim Tale

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Author: Barbara Diamond Goldin

Illustrator/Photographer: Jaime Zollars

Publisher and Year: Marshall Cavendish Corporation, 2010

Number of Pages: 30 pages

Genre: Realistic Fiction

This book is a storybook of a tale based on the Jewish holiday, Purim, which celebrates the biblical story of Ester. The main character, Hershel, is a blind boy that uses his imagination and special talents to help his mother bake cookies to sell at the local market for the Purim holiday. I believe that this story serves as a door because regardless of Hershel’s blindness, he has the opportunity to accomplish the same exact activities as people who can see. At the same time, the story serves as a window into the Jewish tradition by exposing and explaining to the reader the importance of the Purim holiday.

In the beginning of the story, Hershel was not given much power because he was blind and doubted by his mother. After Hershel’s visit by the angel, he gained power by proving he was helping his mother make beautiful cookies even though he could not physically see them. This story represents two cultures: the Jewish religion and people with disabilities. Purim is an important holiday that celebrates the survival of the Jews from persecution. This book honors and exposes the reader to the Jewish tradition and culture that might be unknown to many people. In addition, this story highlights the community of people with disabilities. Hershel was able to complete a task that was not “normal” for a blind child. For the reader, this book breaks the social norm that people with disabilities are incapable of contributing to the community. This story has shaped my understanding of culture by broadening my understanding of a new Jewish tradition that I was not familiar with. Through the illustrations, I was able to see interpretations of the Purim holiday, such as the cookies that are baked. In addition, the story illustrates a synagogue. By adding a picture of the synagogue, the reader is able to connect with the message of the story and emerge in the Jewish holiday of Purism visually as well as textually.

Perceptually, the text is on one side of the page suggesting the image is more important than the text. All images are unframed and close up which allows the reader to engage that much more into the story. The opening sentences of the story boldly state Hershel does things as the normal children do, foreshadowing that disability does not make a person with a disability incapable of every day tasks. Structurally, Jewish symbols such as the Star of David and menorah are used to honor and understand the Jewish culture. The mud symbolizes Hershel’s imagination and ability to have creativity. Dull and simple colors are used in the images, which can explain the hardship of Basha, Hershel’s mother, to take on both roles as a mother and father. It can also represent Hershel’s blindness of him not being able to see, but also explains the simplicity he experiences except in his dreams. In addition, the visual images of Hershel completing chores show he does not let disability stop him. The author of the book conveys these themes in the story through Hershel: disability does not limit an individual, holidays bring families and communities closer, and i imagination with determination can bring success.IMG_2812IMG_2811

The Bracelet

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Author(s): Yoshiko Uchida

Illustrator/Photographer: Joanna Yardley

Publisher and Year: The Putnam & Grosset Group in 1996

Number of Pages: 29

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This book is about the journey of a Japanese-American girl, Emi, who is sent to a prison camp with her mother and older sister. Before she leaves her home, her friend Laurie stops by to give her a bracelet, which Emi swears she will never take off. At the racetrack, or prison camp, Emi loses her bracelet but soon realizes that she does not need her bracelet to remember Laurie, because she will always carry her memories in her heart.

I believe that this story is a great way to teach children about a less talked about tragedy in U.S. history, the imprisonment of Japanese-Americans during WWII. This also gives the audience the chance to not only learn about and discuss this historical event, but also to discuss and learn about racism throughout history. This book clearly represents white people as having power over the Japanese-Americans and how the rest of the country no longer views them as American citizens but people who are a threat to the country. However, I believe that this story is an accurate depiction of the event and the Japanese culture. This is because it does not stereotype the Japanese people, but rather explains the way they were treated, good and bad, by the rest of the U.S. population. The illustrations throughout the story help the reader to feel the emotions of Emi. For example, at the beginning of the story while Emi is still at home, the images are all brightly colored which is a symbol of her freedom and her happy memories with friends and family. But after she leaves home the colors in the images begin to get darker, especially after realizing she lost her bracelet, which symbolizes how she is losing her freedom and beginning to find it difficult to remember happy memories. After she realizes that she does not need her bracelet to remember happy memories, the images begin to brighten up again.

This story has a number of themes and ideological features some themes that one might originally notice are that it is important to stay positive and hopeful even in the toughest of times and material items are not as valuable as friendship and memories. However, I think the deeper meaning of the book is to recognize the injustice that has occurred to many minority groups, specifically the Japanese Americans.

 

The Other Side

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Title: The Other Side

Author: Jacqueline Woodson

Illustrator: E.B. Lewis

Publisher: G.P. Putnam’s Sons, 2001

Number of pages: 32 Pages

Tags: Culture, Diversity, Emotion, Friendship, Historical Fiction, Picture Book, K-5, Stephanie Prentice

Genre: Historical Fiction

Analysis

Clover’s mother will not allow her to cross the fence that separates the African-American side of town from the White side of town where Anna lives because she claims it is not safe. After spending the summer wondering why she is not allowed to cross the fence, Clover gets closer and closer to the fence. Eventually, Clover begins talking to Anna and their friendship grows despite Clover’s moms wishes.

This text allows readers to tap into the realities of African-Americans during the Civil Rights Movement. Clover’s mother is hesitant to allow her to cross into the White part of town because of safety concerns. The depictions of African American as well as American girls allows readers to see themselves and their culture. Despite the common belief that all African Americans during this time period are poor and unprivileged, the illustrations shows Clover and her mother nicely dressed while walking through town. The pictures are very realistic, which mirrors the idea that racism and prejudice is a very realistic problem. The author also discusses the fact that Clover’s mother has bought her toys to play with inside on rainy days. The story seems to take place in a rural setting, which was usually where segregation was heavy during this time period. The power seems to lie in the hands of the White side of town because of Clover’s situation. This story acts as a door because it inspires readers to knock down the fences in their own lives.

Perceptually, the images are usually only one page with the text on the other. The first and last pages have images that cover a double page spread. Especially on the last page, the double spread picture symbolizes the growth that took place within the story. The growth of Clover and Anna’s friendship is symbolized in the pictures. At the beginning, there is tension and distance IMG_5984between both girls. As they continue to talk, the girls move closer together. In the story, the fence is a physical barrier between the interaction of the African American and the White populations. It also symbolically represents the barriers that people, especially African Americans, face in their lives. This title, The Other Side, also refers to another aspect of the story. This story features a main character that questions why racism and prejudice are ruling people’s lives. In this case, the character is the person on the other side of the powerful race during this time. This powerful theme carries into other aspects of life. Readers will benefit from the tolerance displayed in the story.

 

Back-to-School Rules

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IMG_5985Title: Back-to-School Rules

Author: Laurie Friedman

Illustrator: Teresa Murfin

Publisher: Carolrhoda Books, 2011

Number of pages: 32 pages

Tags: Fiction, Picture Book, K-5, Stephanie Prentice

Genre: Fiction

Analysis

During this story, Percy offers his rules for going back to school for the year. He explains what not to do during class in order to be successful. Percy claims that if someone follows his ten rules that they will have a lot of fun during school.

This book can act as a window for children to see themselves in the story. For example, children can imagine themselves in their own classroom and reflect on their behavior. However, the lack of diversity does not allow for children to see cultures that are different from their own. The images create a humorous depiction of school, showing students doing very silly things such as swimming in the fish tank. In some cases, the images contradict the text.

The images are very colorful and vibrant, grabbing the reader’s attention. The beginning of the book begins with Percy walking to school through his town. The images often mirror the text, IMG_5986depicting the behaviors that Percy claims you should not do . Percy’s rules are often a different color in the text. The illustrator uses different techniques to display the information. For example, on one page, she uses arrows to display the order of which it appears in the text. On the next page, she uses a thought cloud to display the rules. The illustrator also uses a chalkboard to display the rules of Percy. Structurally, the text has a slight rhyming scheme. However, it is sometimes forced, making it difficult to hear the rhyming.

This book is a funny way of discussing class rules; however, it is displayed in a very negative way. This book lists many things that students should not do, rather than stating what the students can do in a positive manner. For example, Percy claims that a student should not arrive late because teachers do not like to wait. Sometimes when a student is late it is out of their control. This list of behaviors to avoid can make children afraid for what can happen if they were to break one of these rules. This book does a good job of opening the discussion for classroom rules, but should not be used to tell children how to act in school. Many of the rules limit the children’s creativity and abilities because of the harsh negativity.