Wheels of Change

WHEELS OF CHANGE by Sue macy. National Geographic, 2011.

Macy explores not only the evolution of the bicycle but also how their evolution paralleled the increase in freedom for women. Archival photographs, newspaper clippings, and more primary resources make this not only an informational but an entertaining examination of how the bicycle changed the landscape. With the demand of narrative nonfiction, teachers and librarians should be familiar with this and other works by veteran author Sue Macy. <476>

Narrative Nonfiction Par Excellence

Generally speaking, I gravitate toward fiction if given the choice. However, after years of working with kids of all ages and a stint on the YALSA EXCELLENCE IN NONFICTION FOR YOUNG ADULTS COMMITTEE plus having encountered more than a few terrific examples of nonfiction, I am a convert. The 2012 winner of the YALSA EXCELLENCE IN NONFICTION AWARD is THE NOTORIOUS BENEDICT ARNOLD by Steve Sheinkin (Roaring Brook, 2011). I knew little about the life of Benedict Arnold. Most of what I knew was that his name was synonymous with treason and traitorous actions. What I learned in the reading, though, was the backstory, the important details that compelled Arnold to act as he did. And is that not the power of nonfiction: to give us the big picture instead of the snippet that goes into the history books in this case? Thanks Jennifer Huber Swan and committee for selecting this incredible book as your winning title. <426>

Narrative Nonfiction Gold

THE GIANT AND HOW HE HUMBUGGED AMERICA by Jim Murphy. Scholastic, October 2012.

New nonfiction by Jim Murphy is always welcome. Never more so than in the era of CCSS which calls for more and more nonfiction use in the classroom. And even in non-adopting Texas, there is a need for nonfiction and to demonstrate to kids who to approach nonfiction text. So open to the first few pages of THE GIANT and you will be drawn in immediately to the tale of an archaeological find on the grounds of William Newell's farm. A giant is unearthed and declared to be an ancient fossil of a perhaps undiscovered tribe of Native Americans. It is 1869, and faster than you can say SUCKER, Newell has erected a tent and is charging admission to see the giant resting in the ground (he was digging a well when this was discovered). Murphy pulls you in to the tale and then, bit by bot, lets you in on the scam. Absorbing narrative, era photos not just of the giant but of other parts of the social milieu of the time, and short chapters all combine to make this one kids will want to read. <407>