Bud, Not Buddy

Written by: Christopher Paul Curtis

Bud, Not Buddy is another story that I remember reading in my elementary school. It is a story about an African American boy who is living in Flint, Michigan during the Great Depression. Bud goes on a journey to find his father, but the only key to his final destination are papers he found from his mother.

Writing Style
This language in this text is digressive so we can get into the head of a ten year old. He has many thoughts that are repetitive, but that is typical for a ten year old. The style is also young and simple to help the reader think as a ten-year-old just as before. But, my favorite part about Christopher Paul Curtis' writing style is his use of similes and metaphors to make the text engaging.

Awards:

• John Newbery Medal 
• Dorothy Canfield Fisher Children's Book Award
• Golden Kite Award for Fiction 
• Coretta Scott King Award for Authors

Code Name Verity

Written by: Elizabeth E. Wein

It would not take a reader long to discover why this story by Elizabeth Wein is a New York Times Best  Seller. I very much enjoyed reading this book. It is about a secret agent named Verity who is arrested by the Gestapo and ordered to tell them the truth about her mission. Verity unveils her past which is not what they were expecting to hear. On every piece of paper she writes down more of a confession and fights to save her life. It is a great story of courage that student would find thrilling. 

Writing Style

One aspect about this novel that makes it unique is the shift of perspective. At the beginning of the Novel it is from the viewpoint of Julie, but the second half is from the viewpoint of Maddie. This style allows the reader to make meaningful connections with both characters so the reader is interested in both. 

Awards:

• UK Literary Association Award Winner
• Edgar Award Winner
• Printz Honor Book
• Boston Globe/Horn Book Award Honor Book
• Shortlisted for the 2013 CLIP Carnegie Award
• Golden Kite Award Honor Book
• Shortlisted for the Scottish Children's Book Award
• Catalyst Book Award Winner

Esperanza Rising

Written by: Pam Muñoz

Esperanza Rising is actually a story that the students in a fifth grade classroom I am observing are reading. Their interest is what initially got me interested in the book! It is about a girl named Esperanza who thought she would always live on a ranch in Mexico until one day she was forced to flee. She and her family left to go to California during the Great Depression and work in a camp for Mexican farm workers. Esperanza loved her big fancy dresses, home, and servants that she had in Mexico. She was far from ready to work hard and deal with the financial struggles she now faces. On top of that she is having difficulty fitting in. This is a great story about how Esperanza was forced to rise above her circumstances and change her perspective in order to change her and her mother's life.

Awards:

• Jane Addams Children's Book for Older Children 
• Pura Belpré Award for Writing

Lesson plan ideas:

The teacher's guide from scholastic offers great materials in order to teach a unit on this novel. 

http://www.scholastic.com/teachers/lesson-plan/esperanza-rising-teachers-guide

All the Light We Cannot See

Written by: Anthony Doerr

This story is of a French girl and a German boy with very different backgrounds. The two unlikely friends cross paths in France as they are both trying to survive the devastations of WWII. Part of what makes this story so powerful is the intellect behind the writing. Doerr creates beautiful images through her detail of the physical space. She also writes with many beautiful metaphors that help the reader to picture just what she is trying to depict. This book is historical, yet it includes emotion that children today can relate to. 

Awards: 

• Pulitzer Price for Fiction
• Goodreads Choice Awards for Best Historical Fiction 

Below is a link for high school appropriate lesson plans:
http://www.bookrags.com/lessonplan/all-the-light-we-cannot-see/#gsc.tab=0

Number the Stars

Written by: Lois Lowry

This book by Lois Lowry is about a family in Denmark that is trying to hide a Jewish friend from the German troops. The story is told from Annemarie's ten-year-old perspective. Throughout much of the story she witnesses almost the entire Jewish population escape arrest in Denmark by crossing the sea to Sweden. During such a terrible time in the world's history, it is comforting to see a perspective that offers hope for young people. In this book we see that there were humans that recognized the evil that was happening and tried to show love and compassion. These people that saved so many Jews can be an example of the good that still happened amongst the hatred.

Awards: 

• John Newbery Medal 
• Dorothy Canfield Fisher Children's Book Award
• National Jewish Book Award for Children's Literature 

Lesson plan ideas for this topic range among many ages. Here is an example of a lesson that can be used in third to fifth grade classrooms:

http://fcit.coedu.usf.edu/holocaust/activity/35plan/number1.htm