Bibliographic Information (APA): Bunting, E. (1994). Smoky night. Illus. David Diaz. Orlando, FL: Harcourt Books.
Brief Annotation: A young boy and his mother witness riots in the street below his apartment. Smoky Night challenges children and adults in this thought provoking book and the message it entails. Daniel, the young boy, is terrified at the anger and violence of the people around him. As a fire burns through their apartment, Daniel is worried sick about his cat, Jasmine. In his journey to find Jasmine, he innocently sends a message to his family and neighbors that will change the way they think and act toward eachother.
Author Requirement: Eve Bunting book
Grade Level: 3-6
Readers who will like this: children who are learning about violence, children learning right from wrong, teachers who want to teach equality and fairness, parents teaching about racial history
Response/Rating (1-4): 4
You noted that this book "challenges" readers. What do you mean?
ReplyDeleteIf you ask your pre-reading question, what will you do if few students have background knowledge for witnessing violence? Will the question serve its purpose in terms of preparing kids to listen to you read (or to read on their own)?
I think the story challenges readers in the sense that the story is not 'sugar coated' and teaches about the real world. Unfortunately, there are people that dislike others and commit to violence. I think it is a teaching stone for young children learning about some of these hard topics.
ReplyDeleteI think the pre-reading question would serve its purposes in getting children to think about a time they witnessed wrong, and we could discuss why it was wrong and how we can act and treat people to help distinguish this violence.
Was I off track on this one?