The Man Who Walked Between the Towers (Video)

Shorts International. Michael Sporn (2006). The Man Who Walked Between the Towers. Short Film
    Based on the Picture Book The Man Who Walked Between the Towers by Mordicai Gerstein.

The Man Who Walked Between the Towers tells and shows the story of Phillipe Petit-a street performer, who in 1974 walked and danced on a cable between the Twin Towers in New York City.

This video is a short film by Michael Sporn that brings the Gerstein picture book to life.  The picture book--with the same title--is the winner of the Caldecott Award as well as the 2004 Boston Globe-Horn Book Award.  The film is also an award winner, taking home the Carnegie Medal for Excellence in Children's Video and the Audience Choice Award at the Heartland Film Festival.

This film is very fun to watch for viewers of all ages.  It is narrated by actor Jake Gyllenhal who speaks slowly and clearly to be easily understood.  Also, his dialogue is not so strong as to be hard to process for younger viewers.  He instead seems to be reading from the book by Gerstein and tells the story very well.

The artistry in the video is one of a kind and very well done.  The film mirrors the sketch and color drawings of the picture book but transfers them into motion to make the story line flow.  Each separate scene is a hand drawn image that works with pen strokes to darken for shade as well as water color paints to bring color into the page.  The different scenes flow very well and the action progresses smoothly, unlike if it were turning the pages of the picture book. 

The story itself is based on the man who did walk between the towers and brings to life his tale to a whole new generation of children.  It is a short film that does not drop in speed and will keep children interested to see if Phillipe makes it on his journey at the top of the world.

This is a short film that would be great for many educators.  It describes what one man did to achieve his dreams and while not everyone chooses to walk that high in the air, it is a great example of the hard work and dedication that goes into making your dreams come true.  At the end, it is also a history lesson as it mentions that the towers no longer stand, which can lead into a lesson of the changing horizon in the United States. 

Children 3-10 will enjoy this film and what it brings.  It is quick to hold attention and the narrator does a good job speaking to the children viewers and not at them.  It is an entertaining story to hear over and over about how Phillipe went for his dreams and so can you!

Snow (Easy Reader)

McKie, Roy and Eastman, P.D. (1962) Snow. Random House.

Snow tells the story of kids having a great day in the snow, building forts, throwing snowballs, skiing and many other adventures.

Snow is a visual adventure for the younger reader.  Each page uses bright reds, blues, yellows and of course white to depict the adventure that two kids, their dog and others have on a snow day.  Each drawing fills the page and pulls to the next scene and the continuing adventures that one might have in the snow.

Through all of this, the text is very simple for the reader and draws from the same pull of words.  Snow is often repeated and each sentence is written in a bright, quick manner to highlight the adventure of  a snow day.  The text is also built as a rhyme to be a quick paced flow and easy for the young reader to figure out and understand.  Most words in the book are five letters or less, making it more simple for those just learning to read.

Educators can definitely use this book and many like it to help their young and struggling readers learn not only how to read easy words, but understand simple sentence structure and begin putting words together in writing.  It is a great book for its simplicity--with the base of each page being in the same colors, it doesn't hid the words and allows it to be easy to see and follow the words for readers.  This book would be a great tool for the youngest students to learn how to read.

This book is well written for the early reader-it doesn't make it too simplistic and yet it strings small sentences together to make it easy.  Each sentence is small but it is combined with others to keep a flow so the reader does not stop to turn the page every few letters and then they are more able to pull it into a larger picture.  This book is simple and yet very fun for all readers.  Definitely a recommended book for anyone learning to read or just looking for a snow day!

Bats At the Beach (Picture Book)

Lies, Brian. (2006) Bats at the Beach.  Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin Co.

Bats at the Beach tells us of the bats that take advantage of a clear, moonlit night to have a fun adventure night on the beach, playing games and meeting new friends.

This book by Brian Lies is well written and has an easy flow to the words.  Each page has four lines written and each set of two rhymes with the previous.  This style of writing by Lies makes it an easy flow and fun to read for all ages.  The words are also smaller, easier words so younger readers have a better understanding as well of what is happening.

Lies also includes amazing drawings that highlight the story and enhance the text rhymes to make the story a visual experience for the reader.  The illustrations are crafted to bleed from page to page and draw the reader to turn the page and see what the bats will do next.  The pictures do tell a story all their own, without the text included but without the pictures, the text would not be as meaningful.

Lies never highlights any specific bats, but gives them all a feeling of personification in that they grab their moon-tan lotion and picnic baskets to head to a night at the beach, surfing and building sandcastles.  This element really makes the reader jump into the pages as it may be similar to activities they have experienced at the beach and therefore makes the book a fun adventure to see what the bats will get into next.

This is a great book for educators to highlight different experiences that people have and also to use rhymes as a teaching method to learn new information.  It could also be used as a comparison activity for students to draw parallels on what Lies' bats do and what they do at a similar outing to the beach.  There is also a lesson in the differences between bats and people such as bats can only come out at night and people travel to the beach during the day.  It also makes reference many times to the different types of characters that come to experience the adventure and shows that no matter what someone looks like, all are welcome to join in different activities.

For young readers, this book definitely hits the mark.  It is a simple read that is targeted to ages 3-6 and for those just learning to read, the easy word choice and the rhymes make it easier to understand.  This book is great for just learning to read as well as to share with parents and practice reading skills. I highly recommend it. Lies tells an entertaining story that will really draw readers into the pages and make them want to have their own adventure, just like the bats. 

Read Alikes:
For this book, there are many similar read-alikes.  To start, this is not Lies' first book about the bats.  To be entertained by the bat adventures look into both Bats at the Ballgame and Bats at the Library.

 












Another great read alike is the Froggy series as well as Clifford books:

Boy: Tales of Childhood (Non-fiction)

Dahl, Roald.  (1984).  Boy. New York, NY: Puffin. (Non-fiction; autobiography)



Boy is an autobiography written by the great children's author, Roald Dahl about his early years of school and growing up in South Wales and England and the many adventures that young students get into during their formative years.

Dahl brings his gift of storytelling alive in this non-fiction account of how he grew up in Cardiff, Wales and then going to different schools as he grew up.  There are adventures to the Sweetshoppe, playing games with friends, his first time moving from home for school, and many trips to see the headmaster for disobedience.  One aspect that Dahl clearly explains are the punishments that are leveled upon students in this time and his own feelings and experiences.  He does write with the knowledge that children will be reading it, however he does not attempt to gloss over what happened during school days if rules were broken.

Dahl also works to include drawings and photographs that represent memories and give explanations to different portions of text.  He does a great job providing the detail necessary for the reader to picture what event he is discussing and be able to picture themselves alongside as if a part of the action itself.

As it is an autobiography, much of the perspective is how Dahl perceived it and yet it holds a strong sense of accuracy for the reader while still alowing them to draw their own conclusions about the actions happening.

This book would be a great tool for educators to compare and contrast school back in the early 1900's with school today.  It is also an excellent view into a similar yet very different culture of the British kingdom and would be a great source for seeing the differences even in those that seem so the same.  Educators could also use this book for older readers as an introduction to non-fiction or biographies.  While it does show the violence of the schools very clearly, Dahl works to keep a positive tone throughout the novel that make it an easy-going read, especially for those students that have not experienced non-fiction work before.

This book is targeted for readers aged 8 and up.  While I do believe it is mostly appropriate for readers of this age range, readers must be aware and prepared for the mentions of violence within the pages as regards to the canings of students for infractions.  It is at times a very somber book, detailing the truth without seeing a happy ending or the headmaster villains receiving discipline for their own actions.  It is a very well written depiction of Dahl's life and many readers will enjoy seeing how this famous author grew up and what school was like back in the early 1900s.

Read alikes for Dahl's Boy include its sequel: Going Solo (also by Dahl), Looking Back: A Book of Memories (Lois Lowry) and Blister (Susan Shreve).