January has really flown by this year. I realized I hadn’t posted yet about our latest treasures from the library. There are always so many great finds at from the library and we are always packing a full bag home. In fact, I think the bag counts as weight lifting because we usually ended up with so many. When picking books out I try to look for books that I think have a great message, can teach us something new, just simply look interesting, or have beautiful illustrations. Many of the books in our stack are worth a mention.
The first one was chosen as it is the anniversary of the Challenger Explosion tomorrow. I loved learning about one astronaut’s role in paving the way for change in the US. Learn all about Ron McNair’s big mission in 1959 to change the policies in one US library.
Ron’s Big Mission by Rose Blue and Corinne J. Naden and illustrated by Don Tate.
This book tells us of an event in the life of astronaut Ron McNair. A member of the team that tragically lost their life in the Challenger Explosion of 1986. The story itself is a fictionalized account of a real event which happened in young Ron McNair’s life. In 1959, a young Ron McNair had a dream so he would spend countless hours in his local library reading as much as he could about flying and space, however, he was never allowed to sign the books out. Only white children were allowed. On this day in 1959, young Ron makes a stand that all kids should be allowed to sign books out of the library regardless of colour. A brave boy standing on a desk in the library refusing to leave unless he could sign the books out and take them home. Ron got his library card that day. The first Black boy to receive a library card from Lake City Public Library.
Later Ron McNair would go on to become an astronaut fulfilling his dream and inspiring hope among many to follow their own dreams. On January 28th, 1986 I remember distinctly watching the images of the Challenger exploding in the air. I was 10. At 10, it leaves in impression. Back then I didn’t really know about the astronauts themselves. I just remember them as a group. Until I read this book with my kids I didn’t know about this significant event in astronaut Ron McNair life and the impact that it had on American History. He truly is a hero in many ways. This book gave me lots to talk about with my kids from challenging the status quo, fighting for your dreams and following them. I would definitely recommend this book as it is a wonderful tribute to a man who undoubtedly inspired many more to follow their dreams.
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| From the book Ron’s Big Mission by Rose Blue and Corinne J. Naden |
The next book I couldn’t resist, as my children’s rooms are quite often messy, and I field this question all the time ‘Why do I have to make my bed?’ So here is a book that takes the reader on a journey through time to find the answer to this age old question.
Do I Have to Make My Bed? by Wade Bradford and Illustrated by Johanna van der Sterre
It starts in a present day bedroom with a little boy who asks his mom, ‘Do I have to make my bed?’ and the mom responds with ‘this reminds me of the time your grandmother…’ and she describes how her grandmother asked the same question of her mom when she was a little girl, and when that little girl ask her mom that same question her mom responds with:
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| From Do I have to make my bed? by Wade Bradford and illustrated by Johanna van der Sterre |
‘I remember the time your great grandfather…’ basically asking the same question of his mother in 1911. (See pic below) We are taking on a historical journey of chores and daily life through the ages all the way back to the Romans, Egyptians and where we eventually end up with the Cave mother answering her son’s question with ‘because I told you so!’ Ha! That is the answer to satisfy a mother. Then I turn to my kids and ask them ‘so that does that answer your question?’ I am met with sullen and grumpy faces. I guess I probably enjoyed this book more then they did, but only because they didn’t like the answer, but moms will.
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| From Do I have to make my bed? by Wade Bradford and illustrated by Johanna van der Sterre |
At the back of the book the author has more in depth descriptions of what daily life and chores would be like for children during that time period. We could compare their life to the daily life a child would have lived in the past. There were a lot of shocked faces with many aspects of daily life. I would recommend this book for that reason as it is a great opener for discussion on how our lives are different from previous generations. We did enjoy how the author structured the story as well because we were left in suspense with each turn of the page to find out what the answer would be.
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| From Do I have to make my Bed? by Wade Bradford and illustrated by Johanna van der Sterre |
Cheers and happy treasure hunting in your local library,
Bonnie
