Annie and Snowball and the Prettiest House by Cynthia Rylant

Book Genre: Fiction

Publisher Information: Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing Division, 2007 (40 pages)

Summary: Annie and Snowball live next door to Henry and Mudge. Annie and Henry are cousins and best friends. Annie lives with her dad and is a very girly girl living in an ugly house. She knows her dad doesn't know how to make things pretty. She dreams of having a beautiful house and tells Henry about her dreams. Annie, Henry and Mudge return home and ask his mother if they could go through the attic to look for pretty things. The big attic is full of lovely things for Annie. Henry's family is kind enough to pack up just about every thing except Henry's father's tuba and take i t over to Annie's house, making her dreams come true. After the big move they all sit down for a wonderful dinner in the new pretty kitchen!

Personal Rating: ( *** Good) This was a good story about a little girl living alone with her father and I believe in a society where many children live in one parent households, the author was very sensitive to the feelings of the little girl. She is a character many children could relate to and to have relatives help out was not a charity act, but an act of kindness. These books must be loved by a lot of children because my son screamed, "A Henry and Mudge Book!" There must be a series of Henry and Mudge books and many fans of them.

Reading Level: 2.3
Interest Level: ages 5-7 ( and apparently 10 years old because my book has disappeared!)

Possible uses of the text in integrated units of study:

Reading: Since Henry and Mudge are series books, once the student's interest is captured, they will want to read all of them.

Writing: Once the students have become familiar with Henry and Mudge, students will write their own short story about a Henry and Mudge adventure or an adventure with their own self and their pet. If they don't have a pet, a class pet will suffice.

Art: The students will illustrate their books and make covers for them to take home for their own reading pleasure.

Potential Problems: None I can predict.

Beverly Ross