Book by Book

More than 900 books for preschool through high school have been organized by title into two sections, picture and chapter books; described; and assigned behavioral headings. Thematic clusters include making connections, emotional literacy, caring and effective communication, cultural competence and social responsibility, and conflict management and responsible decision making. Spiegel's annotations are descriptive, not evaluative. They range from short sentences to paragraphs the length of a professional book review. The list will be best for teachers with access to well-stocked libraries since a number of titles are out of print. Children's literature classics such as Munro Leaf's The Story of Ferdinand (first published in 1936) and Leo Lionni's Swimmy (Random, 1963) have been included along with many newer titles, up through 2007. Where appropriate, the bibliographic data includes the latest reprinting as well as other available formats including audio, video, and accompanying CDs. Grade levels are provided. The back matter offers an explanation of the clusters, a theme list, an index of authors and illustrators, and a thematic index that inexplicably omits some titles and duplicates others. Useful especially in elementary and middle schools where character education is part of the curriculum without the explicit mandate.—Kathleen Isaacs, Children's Literature Specialist, Pasadena, MD