Hey Jack! The Scary Solo written by Sally Rippon, illustrated by Stephanie Spartels. Kane Miller, 2012. ISBN 978-1-61067-122-4
Reader's Annotation: Jack and his best friend, Billie, try out for their school concert, but when Billie gets the solo part, Jack is jealous. When things go wrong on the night of the concert, Jack has a chance to be a true friend.
Summary: Jack is feeling jittery. He is about to try out for the school concert, and he really wants to sing the solo. When his best friend Billie gets the part, Jack is angry and shouts at her. Later, Jack realizes he was wrong, and apologizes. Billie asks him if he will help her practice her solo, and Jack happily agrees. They practice every chance they get during the next two weeks, and finally, the day of the concert arrives.
Jack takes his place in the chorus, but when Billie suddenly freezes with stagefright and cannot sing, Jack sees an opportunity to help his friend. This is just one book in the Hey Jack! series, which can be partnered with the Billie B. Brown series centering on Jack's friend Billie.
Critical Evaluation: For newly independent readers, these beginning chapter books are ideal, particularly for boys interested in reading, but who struggle to find books that they can identify with. They are shorter in length than a typical chapter book, and have a larger typeface, which can encourage less than confident readers to give the book a try.
It is worth noting that Rippon draws attention to Jack's emotions in each of the Hey Jack! books, even providing illustrations about how his feeling are expressed physically. This demonstrates clearly to children that everyone shares similar emotions, and through Jack's resolution of his problems, young people are provided with an example of working through their own feelings.
Spartels' illustrations are scattered throughout the narrative, and provide welcome breaks for new readers who tire quickly. The images of Jack and Billie perfectly represent their experiences and emotions in a cartoon-like style.
Age or Interest Level: Ages 6 to 8
Lexile Level: 420L
Awards: ---
Why Included? It can sometimes be difficult to find early chapter books for boys, and this series is a good fit for this age group. With themes centering on soccer games, friends, and sleepovers, boys will be sure to find a few titles in the Hey Jack! series that appeal.
Waiting is not Easy! an Elephant and Piggie Book written and illustrated by Mo Willems. Hyperion Books for Children, 2014. ISBN 978-1-4231-9957-1
Reader's Annotation: Patience may be a virtue, but it is rarely easy, especially for an excited elephant who is waiting for a surprise.
Summary: Piggie has a surprise for his best friend, Gerald, who just happens to be an elephant. The surprise, however, is a surprise, and is not ready yet. Gerald tries to be patient, but his groans grow increasingly louder as the day goes on, because waiting is not easy at all. He tries persuasion, anger, conciliation, and exasperation, but Piggie remains zen like and assures Gerald that the waiting will be worth it.
As it begins to grow dark, Gerald panics and shouts that they have wasted the whole day. It is only then that Piggie's surprise is revealed. Willems triumphs yet again with this installment in his Elephant & Piggie series. The two lovable characters exemplify the ups and downs of childhood friendships and emotions. The next volume in this series is scheduled to be published in June of this year, and I'm sure it will be worth the wait.
Critical Evaluation: For children beginning to read independently, the Elephant & Piggie books are not only very funny, but are easy to follow with their large typefaces and well-defined bubbles of text. Gerald's dialogue is always in a gray bubble, and Piggie's in pink, which is helpful to children unfamiliar with the comic book style of storytelling. Willems varies the tone and volume of the dialogue through differences in the capitalization, size, and thickness of the letters.
The two characters are drawn simply, with a minimum of lines, but Willems still manages to convey a great deal of their thoughts and feelings through their expressions and body positions. Following up on the hugely successful Knuffle Bunny and Pigeon books, Willems has now written over twenty titles in this series, each focusing on a different topic such as sharing or friendship, but all of them relevant to children.
Age or Interest Level: Ages 4 to 7
Lexile Level: BRL
Awards: 2015 Theodor Seuss Geisel Honor Winner
Why Included? I have been a fan of everything Mo Willems for many years, and am so glad that he has written this series for children who are moving out of picture books and into independent reading.
