"Silent Music: A Story of Baghdad"

This book is about a boy named Ali from Baghdad.  He loves calligraphy and describes writing in an eloquent way.  He describes what it is like to write certain words and names.  His hero is Yakut, the most famous calligrapher in the world.  Yakut went to a high tower in the year 1258 when Mongols attacked Baghdad.  Ali wrote all over his room one night in 2003 when there was death and destruction just as Yakut did.  He describes the easy process of writing the word war and the difficult process of writing peace. 

I would have the students write a personal narrative after reading this about something they love doing, yet presents difficulties for them at times.

"June 29, 1999"

This science-fiction book is about a girl named Holly Evans who launches vegetable seedlings into the sky on May 11, 1999.  One June 29, Robert Bernabe, a hiker, discovers gigantic turnips.  Other vegetables fall from the sky in many other states as well.  Holly is confused.  She didn't plant the vegetables that are falling from the sky.  In a place completely elsewhere, another species has just caused the entire food supply from the starcruiser  he is touring on to fall towards Earth.  The fascinating part- he receives Holly's seedlings the same day as the huge vegetables fall from the sky.  I would use this book to teach students about alliteration and have them come up with a vegetable that starts with the same letter as a verb, then a state they choose to go after it.  For example, peppers plunge towards Pennsylvania.

http://www.wordle.net/show/wrdl/3247669/Untitled

"The Whipping Boy"

http://ccsomody.glogster.com/glog-7285/

The Whipping Boy is about a prince who people call "Prince Brat" behind his back.  The prince is always playing pranks for which his whipping boy has to pay the price by getting whipped.  However, much to the prince's agitation he never yells out in pain when he is getting whipped. One night, the prince convinces the whipping boy to come with him to run away.  The whipping boy doesn't want to go, because he is afraid of getting punished.  The prince is determined to go, though, because he is "bored."  Jemmy and the prince get caught by two villains who want to demand a ransom from the King.  They become convinced that Jemmy is the real prince, not Horace.  This is due to his ability to write.  Jemmy's plan is to help Prince Brat return, but the prince doesn't want to.  The two boys end up fleeing from the villains and along the way they meet a coach and a girl with a talented bear.  They are in great danger, though, because they are being pursued by the villains and the whipping boy has been falsely accused of a scheme involving the prince.  The prince ends up placing his trust in Jemmy and Jemmy does the same with the prince.  They return home and Jemmy does not receive a punishment.  I would ask students to predict what this book is about and do a read-aloud with it. In the situations before Horace betrays Jemmy and before he shows true loyalty and friendship, I would ask the students to predict which of the two it will be.  I would also ask them to infer why the prince doesn't want to return.  I also think this would be a great book to use for a book report.