Jennifer+D.

=Book Summaries:= Name: Jennifer Davies

1. Book Title: The Thin Executioner

2. Author: Darren Shan

3. Date of Publication: October 2010

4. What is the book about? Give brief plot summary in your own words.

This is the story of Jebel Rum, who is the youngest son of his town’s executioner, Rashed Rum. Being executioner is a great honor in Jebel’s culture, but he is very thin and weak and even his own father does not think he will make a strong candidate for the next executioner. Shamed by his father’s lack of acknowledgement, Jebel sets off on a quest for invincibility partnered with a slave named Tel Hesani. At first, Jebel treats Tel Hesani the way he would treat any slave, with disdain and disgust, but as they survive test after test, Jebel slowly starts to change his attitude. Jebel and Tel Hesani come face to face with their death many times throughout this story, and when Jebel comes to the end of his quest, he’s not the same person he was when he left.

5. How could a teacher use this book in the classroom? What instructional strategies might you choose to incorporate with this particular title?

This book would have to be used in a high school setting for sure, simply because it is very gruesome and raw in many places. It lends itself to a discussion about different cultures and religions. It also leads well into a discussion of character development. Students could track Jebel’s change throughout the story and compare the different groups of people he meets along the way to each other. There should also be some discussion about the development of Jebel and Tel Hesani. This book was inspired by the story of //Adventures of Huckleberry Finn//, so comparing and contrasting the two would be a great literary unit.

6. Write three higher level thinking questions that you might use in a culminating discussion of this book.


 * At what point during his travels do you think Jebel gives up on the idea of his quest? Why?
 * How did Tel Hesani change Jebel’s life?
 * How did Jebel use his power to change the world for the better at the end of the story?

Jennifer Davies

1. Book Title: The Hunger Games

2. Author: Suzanne Collins

3. Date of Publication: September 2008

4. What is the book about? Give brief plot summary in your own words.

Katniss Everdeen lives in a desolate district in a time after the land has been destroyed by war. She is a brave and talented hunter, and she has to put her skills to use when she finds herself participating in the Capitol’s Hunger Games. She represents her district with her fellow tribute, Peeta. Katniss and Peeta must fight the other districts’ tributes to the death to win food for their home district. This book is a thrilling combination of action and suspense.

5. How could a teacher use this book in the classroom? What instructional strategies might you choose to incorporate with this particular title?

I would have my students choose a district and create a commercial for the tributes from that district to gain sponsors. This would be a lesson in persuasive writing. I would also incorporate an art project where students would imagine that the Hunger Games were taking place today. They would have to design a tribute costume for somebody who would be representing their own city or state in the Hunger Games.

6. Write three higher level thinking questions that you might use in a culminating discussion of this book.
 * Use evidence from the book to describe the kind of person Peeta is.
 * What are the pros and cons of Peeta and Katniss being coached together?
 * Do you think Haymitch was beneficial to Katniss and Peeta? Why or why not?

Jennifer Davies

1. Book Title: Heaven is for Real

2. Author: Todd Burpo

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 115%;">3. Date of Publication: November 2010

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 115%;">4. What is the book about? Give brief plot summary in your own words.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 115%;">This book is a true story about a four year old boy from Nebraska who claims to have visited heaven during an emergency surgery. He survives and tells his family about visiting with relatives, seeing God and Jesus, and experiencing angels. The more unbelievable and seemingly impossible details he shares, the more his family believes him. It is incredible to read the description of a heaven told from a four-year-old’s point of view.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 115%;">5. How could a teacher use this book in the classroom? What instructional strategies might you choose to incorporate with this particular title?

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 115%;">This story might be difficult to incorporate into a public classroom because of its strong religious tone, but it could be a good lesson in descriptive writing. Four-year-old Colton gives an incredible description of heaven, talking about the colors and lights that he sees. Students could write a description of a place they’ve visited, focusing on the descriptive details they could include. They could also read other accounts of heaven and compare and contrast Colton’s version with others.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 115%;">6. Write three higher level thinking questions that you might use in a culminating discussion of this book.
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 115%;">Do you think the fact that Colton’s father is a pastor affected Colton’s heavenly experience?
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 115%;">Why might some people be skeptical of Colton’s story?
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 115%;">What was the most surprising detail of Colton’s story? Why?

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 115%;">

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 115%;">Jennifer Davies

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 115%;">1. Book Title: The Cardturner

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 115%;">2. Author: Louis Sachar

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 115%;">3. Date of Publication: July 2010

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 115%;">4. What is the book about? Give brief plot summary in your own words.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 115%;"> Alton is a high-school aged boy whose Uncle Lester has become blind due to diabetes. This means that Uncle Lester is no longer able to play his favorite card game, bridge, on his own. He needs someone to be his cardturner, person who reads the cards to him and then plays the cards he wants. Alton gets recruited to be his uncle’s cardturner even though he knows nothing about bridge and very little about his uncle. Throughout their experiences, Alton learns more about bridge, his uncle, and life’s little mysteries than he ever thought possible.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 115%;">5. How could a teacher use this book in the classroom? What instructional strategies might you choose to incorporate with this particular title?

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 115%;"> I would use this book to teach predictions. Students would stop every few chapters to predict what will happen to Uncle Lester and Alton next. This book would also be useful for math strategies, as there are several points in the book where the players are adding up what their bridge hand is worth.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 115%;">6. Write three higher level thinking questions that you might use in a culminating discussion of this book.
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 115%;">How would the tension in the book be different if Toni and Cliff had never met?
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 115%;">Do you think Toni was really schizophrenic if Alton was able to hear his Uncle’s voice just as clearly as she could hear her grandmother’s? Why or why not?
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 115%;">Why was Alton’s mother so uncomfortable with Toni’s family when Alton clearly was not?

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 115%;">

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 115%;">Jennifer Davies

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 115%;">1. Book Title: Small Steps

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 115%;">2. Author: Louis Sachar

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 115%;">3. Date of Publication: January 2006

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 115%;">4. What is the book about? Give brief plot summary in your own words.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 115%;"> Theodore Johnson, also known as Armpit, is trying to turn his life around after spending time at the corrupt juvenile detention center Camp Green Lake. After getting involved in a scheme with his old friend X-Ray, Armpit realizes that he can only take small steps in life to accomplish his goals. Other important characters include Ginny, his ten-year-old neighbor, Kaira DeLeon, a famous pop singer, and Debbie Newberg, a detective who is hot on Armpit’s trail. Armpit has to continue to make good choices to ensure that he becomes successful.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 115%;">5. How could a teacher use this book in the classroom? What instructional strategies might you choose to incorporate with this particular title?

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 115%;"> This book would be a good introduction to a unit on differences in cultures. Even though Armpit and Kaira are the same race, they come from very different backgrounds. Students could compare and contrast the two. This book also teaches tolerance because of Ginny’s disability and Armpit and X-Ray’s rough backgrounds.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 115%;">6. Write three higher level thinking questions that you might use in a culminating discussion of this book.
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 115%;">Was it good or bad that Ginny had a seizure at the concert? Why?
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 115%;">Does Armpit have a positive relationship with X-Ray? Give examples from the story to support your answer.
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 16px; line-height: 115%;">Predict what’s going to happen in the next five years of Armpit’s life.