Wednesday, October 10, 2018

October Grades 3-4 Book Club: Bat and the Waiting Game


For October's Grades 3-4 Book Club, we read Bat and the Waiting Game by Elana K. Arnold. This is a sequel to A Boy Called Bat, which we read for last month's book club. Hunter, Isaac and Mark were present for today's discussion. Here's a little of what we talked about.


Please use one word to describe your first impression of Bat at the beginning of this book:

-thoughtful
-caring
-helpful


Who was your favorite character in Bat and the Waiting Game? Least favorite? Why?:

-Lawrence was my favorite from A Boy Called Bat.
-I liked the skunk the most (Thor). 
-I disliked Israel the most.
-I disliked Cornelia. She was just going along with Janie at that point.




What's your favorite scene of the story?:

-When the skunk sprayed the auditorium. The face that Janie made was great.
-Ditto. It was really funny.
-When Bat was working with the clay.
-I liked the scene with Babycakes.



Have you ever felt like Bat did when he first visited Israel's house: anxious about all of the new sights, tastes and sounds? How did you deal with your feelings?:

-Breathe in, breathe out.
-If I started to do something new, I'd feel like trying it.



Would you have been able to forgive Bat if you were Janie and Bat and Thor ruined your school play?:

-Probably.
-Yes, because I don't like school plays.
-If I was forced to be in a play, I would hope this would happen.



Bat often has to wait for things, ie. his mother's decision about Thor, for Israel to get to school, for Janie's play to be over so things can go back to "normal." Do you think all of this waiting teaches Bat about patience and other people's feelings?:

-That waiting is annoying.
-He also had to wait at the baseball game. He learned about baseball.
-It was a lesson in that LIFE IS WAITING.
-He learned about being nicer to people.



How does Bat change by the end of the story? Is he a different person than when it started?:

-He learned to be patient. Don't do stupid stuff (like bringing a skunk to a play).



Do you think that there was a message in this book, beyond the story it told? What might the message be?:

-Be nice and patient.
-To be understanding of people different from you.



Please use one word to describe your last impression of Bat:

-Patient
-Nicer
-No
-Caring



What did you think about the ending of the book? Do you think there will be a sequel?: 

-Yes, because it ends with the play at home. There's a bunch of stuff they still need to tell us about.


There is a sequel! Will you be reading it?:

-Yes.
-Yes.
-Yes.
-I'm kind of done with his story.



Quote from Book Club today: What do you think that is? A rug wall???



For November's Book Club, we will be reading Stef Soto, Taco Queen by Jennifer Torres: 

"Seventh grader Estefania "Stef" Soto is itching to shake off the onion-and-cilantro embrace of Tia Perla, her family's taco truck. She wants nothing more than for her dad to get a normal job and for Tia Perla to be put out to pasture. It's no fun being known as the "Taco Queen" at school. But just when it looks like Stef is going to get exactly what she wants, and her family's livelihood is threatened, she will have to become the truck's unlikely champion. In this fun and multicultural middle grade novel, Stef will discover what matters the most, and ultimately embrace an identity that even includes old Tia Perla."--Publisher's website.


We will meet on Wednesday, November 14 at 3:00 p.m. Please be sure to register for book club at the Circulation Desk and pick up your copy of November's book!

Tuesday, October 9, 2018

November Grades 3-4 Book Club Suggestions


Full of Beans by Jennifer L. Holm

Grown-ups lie. That’s one truth Beans knows for sure. He and his gang know how to spot a whopper a mile away, because they are the savviest bunch of barefoot conchs (that means “locals”) in all of Key West. Not that Beans really minds; it’s 1934, the middle of the Great Depression. With no jobs on the island, and no money anywhere, who can really blame the grown-ups for telling a few tales? Besides, Beans isn’t anyone’s fool. In fact, he has plans. Big plans. And the consequences might surprise even Beans himself.



The Real McCoys by Matthew Swanson

Elementary school detective Moxie McCoy looks for a missing school mascot and a new best friend, with the help of her annoying little brother.



Stef Soto, Taco Queen by Jennifer Torres

Estefania "Stef" Soto is itching to shake off the onion-and-cilantro embrace of Tia Perla, her family's taco truck. She wants nothing more than for Papi to get a normal job and for Tia Perla to be a distant memory. Then maybe everyone at school will stop seeing her as the Taco Queen.

But when her family's livelihood is threatened, and it looks like her wish will finally come true, Stef surprises everyone (including herself) by becoming the truck's unlikely champion. In this fun and heartfelt novel, Stef will discover what matters most and ultimately embrace an identity that even includes old Tia Perla.

May Grades 3 & 4 Book Suggestions

One-Third Nerd by Gennifer Choldenko "Fifth grade is not for amateurs, according to Liam. Luckily, he knows that being more than one-t...