Martin Luther King Jr. once wrote: “Whatever your life’s work is, do it well. A man should do his job so well that the living, the dead and the unborn could do it no better.
“If it falls you lot to be a street sweeper, sweep streets like Michelangelo painted pictures, like Shakespeare wrote poetry, like Beethoven composed music; sweep streets so well that all the hosts of heaven and Earth will have to pause and say, ‘Here lived a great street sweeper, who swept his job well.’”
Today’s reviewed books reflect Martin Luther King Jr.’s words and serve to remind us that we are all capable of great things in life. Now that’s worth reading about.
Books to borrow
The following book is available at many public libraries.
“The Boy Who Saved Cleveland: Based on a True Story” by James Cross Giblin, illustrated by Michael Dooling, Henry Holt, 64 pages
Read aloud: age 5 and older.
Read yourself: age 8 and older.
In 1798, Cleveland was nothing more than three log cabins and a small cornfield in the middle of a forest. Young Seth Doan and his family lived in one of the cabins, and despite the constant work that needed to be done, Seth’s favorite activity was reading.
The only book the family had room for when they moved from Connecticut was the family bible, and Seth pored over the stories time and time again. Yet Seth had no choice but to put his reading aside when his family and the other few settlers fell ill with a form of malaria. Their very survival depended on Seth.
Based on a true story, this fast-paced, absorbing book is full of courage and heroism.
Librarian’s choice
Library: Monroe Library, 1070 Village Way, Monroe
Director: Jonalyn Woolf-Ivory
Children’s librarian: Kate Johnson
Choices this week: “Olive’s Ocean” by Kevin Henkes; “Eragon” by Christopher Paolini; “Chet Gecko Mystery” series by Bruce Hale
Books to buy
The following books are available at favorite bookstores.
“One Hen: How One Small Loan Made a Big Difference” by Katie Smith Milway, illustrated by Eugenie Fernandes, 32 pages
Read aloud: age 6 to 9.
Read yourself: age 8 to 9.
In Kojo’s poor village in Ghana, Africa, money and food are scarce. When Kojo is given a small loan, he has an idea. Kojo buys one brown hen so his family will have more to eat. He saves a few of the precious eggs and sells them, repays his loan, and soon sells enough eggs to buy another hen. Eventually Kojo’s one small loan changes the lives of his family, his community, his town and his country.
Based on the true story of Kwabena Darko, “One Hen” demonstrates how change happens in the world: one person, one family, one community at a time. Filled with hope, courage, and determination, “One Hen” is thoroughly inspiring.
“Time for Kids: Clara Barton — Angel of the Battlefield” by the Editors of Time for Kids with Anna Prokos, 48 pages
Read aloud: age 7 to 9.
Read yourself: age 8 to 9.
Clara Barton wanted to help people from the time she was a little girl. When the Civil War broke out, Clara knew it was her time to help people who needed her the most.
From the moment she saw the wounded soldiers get off the train in Washington, D.C., Clara and her sister made food for the soldiers, bought clean clothes for them, and enlisted women from around the country to send food and supplies to help. Eventually, Clara left the hospitals and went directly to the battlefields to assist the wounded and dying. Clara’s clear sense of purpose, excellent organizational skills, and experience helping others led to her greatest accomplishment of all as the founder of the American Red Cross.
A fascinating look at the life of an extraordinary woman, this briskly written biography is certain to captivate readers.
Nationally syndicated, Kendal Rautzhan writes and lectures on children’s literature. She can be reached via e-mail: kendal@sunlink.net.
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