"I've seen the courage it takes to come here and the joy people take from the stories... I've never seen readers take so much from the stories."

–New Books New Readers Scholar/Facilitator

 

 

 

"Even reluctant speakers become leaders in linking literature to their hopes and aspirations."
–New Books New Readers Librarian

Series for use in New Books, New Readers Book Discussion Programs

For each session, there are three books, with the first at a low reading level, progressing to the third at a fifth-sixth grade level.

Becoming American

• The Long Way to a New Land by Joan Sandin
• The Memory Coat by Elvira Woodruff
• Dreaming of America: An Ellis Island Story by Eve Bunting

• When This World Was New by D.H. Figueredo
• How Many Days to America? by Eve Bunting
• Who Belongs Here? by Margy Burns Knight

• The Name Jar by Yangsook Choi
• A Gift for Gita by Rachna Gilmore
• Behind the Mountains by Edwidge Danticat

For discussion: Why do people leave their native country? What difficulties do they face in their journey? How easy is it to get used to a new culture? Can an immigrant be at home in America without losing his or her identity?

Biography

• Wilma Unlimited by Kathleen Krull
• El Chino by Allen Say
• Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes by Eleanor Coerr

• “Wanted Dead or Alive”: The True Story of Harriet Tubman by Ann McGovern
• Just a Few Words, Mr. Lincoln: The Story of the Gettysburg Address by Jean Fritz
• Rosa Parks by Eloise Greenfield

• Teammates by Peter Golenbock
• Harvesting Hope: The Story of Cesar Chavez by Kathleen Krull
• Who Was Eleanor Roosevelt? by Gare Thompson

For discussion: What makes a hero? Whom do we admire? What can we learn from stories of others that will affect our lives? What makes a "life well lived"? Do our lives have stories that others may learn from?

The Call of Ancient Stories

• Aesop's Fables by Michael Hague
• Fables by Arnold Lobel

• Adelita: A Mexican Cinderella Story by Tomie de Paola
• Mufaro’s Beautiful Daughters: An African Tale by John Steptoe
• The Golden Sandal: A Middle Eastern Cinderella Story by Rebecca Hickox

• The Girl Who Loved Wild Horses by Paul Goble
• Beauty and the Beast by Jan Brett
• The Dragon Prince: A Chinese Beauty and the Beast Tale by Laurence Yep

For discussion: Why do myths, fables, fairy tales, and folk tales seem to have an appeal for everyone around the world and in every culture? What do we learn about ourselves and our own lives? Are there stories from our families that get told over and over?

Carrying the Past

• Knots on a Counting Rope by Bill Martin Jr. & John Archambault
• So Far from the Sea by Eve Bunting
• The Heart of a Chief by Joseph Bruchac

• One Candle by Eve Bunting
• As Long as the Rivers Flow by Larry Loyie with Constance Brissenden
• I'm Still Scared by Tomie dePaola

• Sacajawea: Her True Story by Joyce Milton
• Uncle Jed's Barbershop by Margaree King Mitchell
• Margaret Chase Smith: A Woman for President by Lynn Plourde

For discussion: How are our identities shaped by our individual experiences? What is the role of tradition in building our awareness of ourselves? How do we try to preserve cultural or family memories? Do we repeat the past or choose to change our path? What makes people work intentionally to create their future?

Caught Between Cultures

• Home at Last by Susan Middleton Elya
• Grandfather Counts by Andrea Cheng
• In English, of Course by Josephine Nobisso

• Angel Child, Dragon Child by Michele Maria Surat
• Molly Bannaky by Alice McGill
• When Jessie Came Across the Sea by Amy Hest

• A Day's Work by Eve Bunting
• Hannah Is My Name: A Young Immigrant's Story by Belle Yang
• Coolies by Yin

For discussion: Have you ever found yourself "caught" between opposing cultural values (my holiday vs. yours, from Maine vs. "from away", cross-country skiers vs. snowmobiles, the "right" way to raise a child)? Immigrants may face these and more. What do immigrants find "alien" about America? What do immigrants value about America? How does America start feeling like home? How can you maintain the culture that you were born into and still become American?

Community

• The Other Side by Jacqueline Woodson
• A Symphony of Whales by Steve Schuch
• Seedfolks by Paul Fleischman

• Somebody Loves You, Mr. Hatch by Eileen Spinelli
• The Man Who Lived Alone by Donald Hall
• The Friendship by Mildred Taylor

• Roxaboxen by Alice McLerran
• Letting Swift River Go by Jane Yolen
• Two Old Women by Velma Wallis

For discussion: What makes a community? How do communities come together? How do we decide who belongs? How can we find our own place in our community? If we lose community, can we find it again?

Conflict

• The Upstairs Cat by Karla Kuskin
• Feathers and Fools by Mem Fox
• Sami and the Time of the Troubles by Florence Parry Heide & Judith Heide Gilliland

• It's Mine! by Leo Lionni
• Smoky Night by Eve Bunting
• The War with Grandpa by Robert Kimmel Smith

• The Lion's Share: A Somali Folktale by Said Salah Ahmed
• Beautiful Warrior: The Legend of the Nun's Kung Fu by Emily Arnold McCully
• The Trail of Tears by Joseph Bruchac

For discussion: Is conflict part of human nature? Can or should we avoid it? How do our own inner conflicts contribute to conflict with others? What escalates conflict? What part does power play in creating and resolving conflict?

Resolving Conflict

• When Sophie Gets Angry – Really, Really Angry... by Molly Bang
• Muskrat Will Be Swimming by Cheryl Savageau
• Rickshaw Girl by Mitali Perkins

• Hey, Little Ant by Phillip & Hannah Hoose
• Pink and Say by Patricia Polacco
• Eagle Song by Joseph Bruchac

• The Hunterman & the Crocodile: A West African Folktale by Baba Wagué Diakité
• Mr. Lincoln's Way by Patricia Polacco
• Circle of Gold by Candy Dawson Boyd

For discussion: What happens when a conflict can't be resolved? What do people need to bring to the table for getting along peacefully? Is conflict necessary for growth? Do we learn from it? What happens when there's an unfair resolution?

Courage

• Frederick by Leo Lionni
• Sidewalk Story by Sharon Bell Mathis
• Lost on a Mountain in Maine by Donn Fendler

• Brave Irene by William Steig
• Stone Fox by John Reynolds Gardiner
• On My Honor by Marion Dane Bauer

• Mirette on the High Wire by Emily Arnold McCully
• The Gold Cadillac by Mildred Taylor
• Tuck Everlasting by Natalie Babbitt

For discussion: What do we mean by “courage”? Does courage imply the absence of fear, or are there other components to courage? Can courage be displayed by ordinary people in everyday pursuits? How is courage connected to personal conviction and making choices? Is courage always exercised for good ends? Is it always met with admiration?

Differences

• The Story of Ferdinand by Munro Leaf
• Crow Boy by Taro Yashima
• The Ugly Duckling by Lorinda Bryan Cauley

• Wings by Christopher Myers
• Chester’s Way by Kevin Henkes
• The Gold-Threaded Dress by Carolyn Marsden

• William’s Doll by Charlotte Zolotow
• How My Parents Learned to Eat by Ina Friedman
• When the Circus Came to Town by Laurence Yep

For discussion: Is being different good or bad? Who decides who is different? Why do we judge by appearance? Should we change if we or others think we are different? Do differences have an important role in society? Are they valuable?

Freedom

• Night Cat by Margaret Beames
• Cheyenne Again by Eve Bunting
• Riding Freedom by Pam Muñoz Ryan

• Zora Hurston and the Chinaberry Tree, by William Miller
• The Ballot Box Battle, by Emily Arnold McCully
• Samuel's Choice, by Richard Berleth

• The Village That Vanished, by Ann Grifalconi
• The Carpet Boy's Gift, by Pegi Deitz Shea
• Snow Treasure, by Marie McSwigan

For discussion: Is freedom a right? What are the differences between an individual's freedom and the freedom of a group of people? What are we willing to give up in order to have freedom? What are other ways to have freedom besides fighting for it?

Friendship

• A Chair For My Mother by Vera B. Williams
• Now One Foot, Now the Other by Tomie de Paola
• Ramona and Her Father by Beverly Cleary

• Frog and Toad Are Friends by Arnold Lobel
• The Hundred Dresses by Eleanor Estes
• Bridge to Terabithia by Katherine Paterson

• Thy Friend, Obadiah by Brinton Turkle
• The Mushroom Man by Ethel Pochocki
• Charlotte’s Web by E.B. White

For discussion: Who are our friends? Are friends in the family different from friends “outside?” What responsibilities does friendship bear? How do we honor our friends? How is friendship represented in stories?

Giving

• The Teddy Bear by David McPhail
• The Story of Jumping Mouse by John Steptoe
• A Penny for a Hundred by Ethel Pochocki

• Beatrice’s Goat by Page McBrier
• The Giving Tree by Shel Silverstein
• The Three Questions by Jon Muth

• The Legend of the Bluebonnet by Tomi dePaola
• Miss Rumphius by Barbara Cooney
• Annie and the Old One by Miska Miles

For discussion: What is giving? How does giving relate to receiving? Does it matter how we give? Can we give to someone we don’t even know? What makes it easy or hard to give? Does giving cause people to change?

History

• Who Came Down That Road? by George Ella Lyon
• Ox-Cart Man by Donald Hall
• Sign of the Beaver by Elizabeth G. Speare

• Katie’s Trunk by Ann Turner
• Why Don’t You Get a Horse, Sam Adams by Jean Fritz
• Lyddie by Katherine Paterson

• Dakota Dugout by Ann Turner
• Sarah, Plain and Tall by Patricia MacLachlan
• Little House in the Big Woods by Laura Ingalls Wilder

For discussion: What is history? Who determines history? Can history be made by ordinary people? What is the meaning of freedom, loyalty, treachery? How is history changed by acceptance or rejection of new ideas and values? How does one’s cultural heritage define a sense of self and place? Can individual acts change history? What about our own acts?

Home

• What You Know First by Patricia MacLachlan
• Little Bear by Else Holmelund Minarik
• The Not-Just-Anybody Family by Betsy Byars

• The Little House by Virginia Lee Burton
• An Angel for Solomon Singer by Cynthia Rylant
• Grandfather’s Journey by Allen Say

• Make Way for Ducklings by Robert McCloskey
• Train to Somewhere by Eve Bunting
• The Great Gilly Hopkins by Katherine Paterson

For discussion: What does home teach us about ourselves and our place in the world around us? What are the expectations we have for home? What happens when our needs are not met by our experiences at home? How do we go about shaping our personal conceptions of home?

Journeys

• Follow the Drinking Gourd by Jeanette Winter
• Just Us Women by Jeannette Caines
• The Journey by Sarah Stewart

• Hey, Al by Arthur Yorincks
• The Field Beyond the Outfield by Mark Teague
• Catwings by Ursula Leguin

• The Treasure by Uri Shulevitz
• The Gold Coin by Alma Flor Ada
• The Goats by Brock Cole

For discussion: What sort of journeys have we taken? How did we get where we are today? Can we see our lives as a journey? How have we changed during our journey? Did the journey end as we expected? Are we still on a journey? What is our next journey?

Justice

• Sam, Bangs & Moonshine by Evaline Ness
• Liang and the Magic Paintbrush by Demi
• The Tale of the Mandarin Ducks by Katherine Paterson

• The Little Red Hen by Margot Zemach
• Old Henry by Joan Blos
• Shiloh by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor

• Miss Nelson is Missing by James Marshall
• A Bargain for Frances by Russell Hoban
• Weasel by Cynthia DeFelice

For discussion: What is justice? Who controls it? Does it come from within ourselves or from outside? Does everyone understand justice in the same way? What responsibilities do we each have to uphold it?

Memories

• Wilfrid Gordon McDonald Partridge by Mem Fox
• Quilt Story by Tony Johnston
• The Hundred Penny Box by Sharon Bell Mathis

• Owl Moon by Jane Yolen
• The Lost Lake by Allen Say
• The Wall by Eve Bunting

• The Lotus Seed by Sherry Garland
• Island Boy by Barbara Cooney
• The Winter Room by Gary Paulsen

For discussion: Are memories significant in our lives? What keeps them alive for us? How “true” are our memories, and does this make a difference? Is it important to pass memories on? Do memories alter when we share them? How do our memories make us who we are?

Real Life

• Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day by Judith Viorst
• Fly Away Home by Eve Bunting
• What Jamie Saw by Carolyn Coman

• Could Be Worse by James Stevenson
• Julius, The Baby of the World by Kevin Henkes
• Make Lemonade by Virginia Euwer Wolff

• Harry the Dirty Dog by Gene Zion
• The Relatives Came by Cynthia Rylant
• Amber Was Brave, Essie Was Smart by Vera B. Williams

For discussion: What are the everyday experiences, for better or worse, that make up life? What do we mean when we say “That doesn’t happen in real life” or “That’s life!”? What is it about our families, our friends, ourselves, that makes us laugh or cry or just keep going?

Telling Our Stories

• When I Was Young in the Mountains by Cynthia Rylant
• Miz Berlin Walks by Jane Yolen
• Leon’s Story by Leon Walter Tillage

• Tong Ting Finds a Family by Elizabeth Cooke
• The Raft by Jim LaMarche
• Journey by Patricia MacLachlan

• When Clay Sings by Byrd Baylor
• Family Pictures by Carmen Lomas Garza
• Dia’s Story Cloth: The Hmong People’s Journey of Freedom by Dia Cha

For discussion: How do we tell our own stories? Why are they important? How do we decide what to tell? What do we learn from telling our own stories? From reading others’ stories? How and why do we share our stories with others? How do our personal stories connect to the stories of our communities and country?

Why Read?

• The Wednesday Surprise by Eve Bunting
• More Than Anything Else by Marie Brady
• Nightjohn by Gary Paulsen

• Mr. George Baker by Amy Hest
• Just Juice by Karen Hesse
• My Name is Brain Brian by Jeanne Betancourt

• Rudy's Wish by Shirin Yim Bridges
• Tomás and the Library Lady by Pat Mora
• Richard Wright and the Library Card by William Miller

For discussion: Should everyone learn to read? How does the world discriminate against the non-reader? If reading is hard, is it worth the effort? Does becoming a reader change you? How can you pass on the joy and power of reading?

 

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