Finding Winnie: The True Story of the World's Most Famous Bear by Lindsay Mattick Published by Little, Brown and Company, 2015. Age Range: 4-8 (PK-3) Lexile Score: AD590L Publisher's Weekly and School Library Journal Starred Reviews This book tells the story of a man, Harry, and the bear he rescued, Winnipeg (Winnie). The book is a story within a story, which may prove to be a bit confusing for younger readers. The story frame is a mom telling her son a bedtime story. The frame is designated in the text by italics. It is interwoven with the real story, which is true to life: many children interrupt their parents while they are reading to them. However, even I got confused at times on which was the frame and the actual story, so I can see younger readers getting lost. I think young students, and even older readers, will be intrigued by this story. Most people have heard of Winnie-the-Pooh, but they probably have no idea that he was based on a real bear. This book would be a good real-aloud, and I can imagine it would generate many questions for young listeners: "Where did the bear sleep? Were the humans scared of the bear? How did Christopher Robin get to play with the bear at the zoo?" The illustrations by Sophie Blackall accompanying the text are beautiful and add a lot of depth to the story. My favorite is a spread of the train ride across Canada. I love how you can follow the train through the mountains and the different times of the day: This book is a valuable addition to any elementary school and possibly middle school library. The story is interesting and a good introduction to nonfiction for young readers. One thing that the book is lacking is a bibliography. I wish there were articles or websites where someone could go to find more information about Harry and Winnie. I guess the lack of that is because the author is telling the story from memories that have been passed down to her through the generations. I do like the additions of photographs of Harry and Winnie. I think students would appreciate the proof that Winnie was a real bear. I found several resources related to Finding Winnie, including this educator's guide: http://media.hdp.hbgusa.com/titles/assets/reading_group_guide/9780316324908/EG_9780316324908.pdf. This guide includes ideas to integrate the book into many subjects: social studies, science, language arts, math, and the arts. There are a couple other books written about Winnie, that can be read to students and used to compare and contrast the accounts:
Watch the book trailer below, narrated by the author, Lindsey Mattick:
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorMy name is Kayla Taylor. I am currently taking LIS-S672 Seminar in Youth Literature - Nonfiction. These are the books I have read this semester and my reviews. ArchivesCategories |