Books about body parts, croaking and choking!

I love this book, it is delightfully creepy and gruesome!
I read this book as part of the Young Hoosier Book Award Program, it is nominated for the 2019-2020 school year.

Scholastic has a great book trailer in which Carlyn Breccia describes her book, readers will enjoy this tease of creepy information.

The author Carlyn Beccia does a great job of balancing macabre and the middle grade reader. Readers will enjoy the creepy subject matter and the mysteries surrounding famous body parts including:

The famous people and their body parts include:
Galileo Galilei / Fingers
Louis XIV / Heart
George Washington / Teeth
Franz Joseph Hadyn / Head
Beethoven / Hair
Abraham Lincoln / Body
Chang and Eng Bunker / Liver
Phineas Gage / Skull
John Wilkes Booth / Neck vertebrae
Sarah Bernhardt / Leg
Vincent Van Gogh / Ear
Mata Hari / Head
Albert Einstein / Brain
Elvis Presley / Wart
Thomas Edison / Last Breath



The book contains many illustrations that add humor and depth to the stories.





If this book entertains you I would also recommend these books by Georgia Bragg. Readers will be fascinated by these tales of famous people croaking, choking and being caught!




Coming in September 2019......

      

Readers Advisory Matrix - Primates: The Fearless Science of Jane Goodall, Dian Fossey, and Birute Galdikas

Readers Advisory Matrix - Primates: The Fearless Science of Jane Goodall, Dian Fossey, and Birute Galdikas

1. Where is the book on the narrative continuum? This is a graphic novel and reads like narrative nonfiction.
2. What is the subject of the book? The book looks at the study of primates and three female scientists that made major breakthroughs in this area.
3. What type of book is it? Graphic narrative nonfiction novel
4. Articulate Appeal

1. What is the pacing of the book? The pacing is quick, this might be in part due to it being a graphic novel.
2. Describe the characters of the book. The story focuses on Dian Fossey, Jane Goodall and Birute Galdikas and how they ended up in the field studying primates. All three of the women had many things in common. They were all very intelligent and dedicated to their work.
3. How does the story feel? Though these ladies experienced many trials and tribulations during their time the story focuses on the good.
4. What is the intent of  the author? To educate about the breakthroughs these women made in their field.
5. What is the focus of the story? Louis Leakey found these women and helped secure funding for their research, he was positive that women would make greater strides with primates than men, Goodall studies chimps, Fossey studied gorillas and Galdikas studies orangutans.
6. Does the language matter? Yes, it is written in language everyone can understand. As an introductory book on the topic, it is important that a layperson be able to understand the words used.
7. Is the setting important and well described? The setting is very important, the scientists studied the primates in their habitat. Good descriptions are given and graphics also add to the details about the habitat.
8. Are there details and, if so, of what? There are details about how each scientist worked hard to get close to the different kind of primates, their habitats and their discoveries.
9. Are there sufficient charts and other graphic materials? Are they useful and clear? It is a graphic novel so there are plenty of pictures, there aren’t any charts to support the story.
10. Does the book stress moments of learning, understanding and experience? The book focuses on these three things and on the breakthroughs the women made in the study of primates.
5. Why would a reader enjoy this book.
1. Rate appeal.
1. Great graphics
2. Good story
3. Educational

Primates: The Fearless Science of Jane Goodall, Dian Fossey, and Birute Galdikas

Primates: The Fearless Science of Jane Goodall, Dian Fossey, and Birute Galdikas

Jim Ottaviani & Maris Wicks

This nonfiction graphic novel tell the stories of  three of our greatest primatologists.

This graphic novel is the perfect introduction to the lives and work of these great women and their studies of primates. Louis Leakey found these women and helped secure funding for their research, he was positive that women would make greater strides with primates then men, Goodall studies chimps, Fossey studied gorillas and Galdikas studies orangutans. 

 Here is an illustration from the book where Jane Goodall first observes the chimpanzees using a tool. This was a major breakthrough in her research.

I think the graphic novel format is perfect for this story because it is an introduction to each of these scientists and their work. If you are wanting to go more in depth there are other resources available.

This book would be great for an Ecology unit, a study on animal behaviors, a project on scientists, a STEM/STEAM book club, or a graphic book club.

Age Range: 12-18

Grade 7-12

Publisher: Square Fish

Pages: 144

Recommendations:

                                                                                                                     

Stronger Than Steel

Stronger Than Steel: Spider Silk DNA and the Quest for Better Bulletproof Vests, Sutures, and Parachute Rope

By: Bridget Heos

Photographs: Andy Comins

First of all I hate spiders with a passion so for me to read a book that has anything to do with spiders is pretty unusual. Despite this fact, I found the book to be quite enjoyable.

The book takes us both in the field and lab to learn about the world of genetics through the study of spider silk. The book has a narrative approach and contains difficult science topics that are explained 

in a way young readers can understand. A wide variety of pictures are included that adds to the understanding of what is being explained. 

Randy Lewis takes spider DNA and injects it into goats, bacteria, silkworms and alfalfa in an attempt to discover a better way to produce spider silk. The books takes you through each of these process in detail. 

The strongest spider silk is five times stronger than steel, the possibilities for this are amazing! Spider silk could be used to produce a lighter but safer bulletproof vest and could be used to produce replacement tendons and ligaments in the medical field to just name a few of these amazing possibilities.

Publisher: HMH Books for Young Readers

Date: February 26, 2013

Lexile Level: 860L

Grade Level: 5-7

Educator Information:

I would recommend this book as a read aloud to introduce a unit on DNA or genetics, a topic for a book report or a book for a student that is very interested in spiders, DNA, or genetics. This book also addresses GMOs and could be used to start a discussion, a debate or introduce the topic to a class.

This book is part of the Scientists in the Field Series. This series introduces young readers what goes on in the field and the lab during various scientific studies in a way that is both entertaining and educational. The series covers a wide variety of scientific topics and would be a great resource in any science classroom.

http://www.sciencemeetsadventure.com/

The website provides an educators guide that is available for download.

Here are a few of the other books in the series I would recommend if you like this book.

My Friend Dahmer, A look at a nonfiction graphic memoir by Derf Backderf

My Friend Dahmer

by Derf Backderf

A student of mine recommended this book to me and this book is very popular at the school library. I love reading crime and mystery fiction but this was my first nonfiction book in that genre.

This is a graphic novel and I think this was the best format for this memoir.  The author was a classmate of the serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer and provides a unique perspective of what led up to Dahmer's killing spree.

I think case studies should be made about incidents like these to show teachers and school administrators that this really does happen. This is a sad story because he didn't get the help he needed as a student. I think students find this story interesting because they get insight on what caused him to end up where he did. It could be an interesting read and discussion for a Psychology class.

I found the book interesting but I think I would have enjoyed the book more if it had been focused on the crime, catching Jeffrey Dahmer, the evidence and the trial.


I would recommend the following books if you are interested in true stories about famous crimes.

NATIONAL BESTSELLER
2013 ALA/YALSA Alex Award
2014 Revelation Award at Angoulême
2015 ALA/YALSA Alex Award (Excellence in Narrative Nonfiction)

Publisher: Harry N. Abrams
Date: March 1, 2012
Grade Level: 7-12

Teacher Guide: https://www.abramsbooks.com/pdfs/academic/MyFriendDahmer_TeachingGuide.pdf