New Fiction Book Review: The Dancing Pancake

By Eileen Spinelli
Best for grades 3-6
Call number: J Spinelli, E.
Copyright 2010


Bindi's whole life is changing. First her father, after months of frusterating unemployment moves out, then her aunt has a great idea to open a pancake restaurant with her mother as a partner. What follows is a novel in verse with a colorful cast of characters, from her little cousin and Inky, his pet rubber spider, to Grace a regular at the restaurant who pushes a cart with all the stuff she owns inside. Bindi must come to terms with her feelings about her parents, having to move, and the new responsibilities and relationships she finds herself in.

The Dancing Pancake is a first-person realistic fiction story set in short free-verse poems so it is easy to start and stop. It is a great choice if there is a reader in your life who only has a few minutes to read here and there, or who prefer short reading sessions, or anyone wanting to experiment with a novel in verse with a excellent storyline.

The following box contains notes to parents/guardians and teachers about The Dancing Pancake. Because it contains spoilers you must select (or "highlight") the box with your mouse to read the following text.

Parents and Teachers be advised: This book deals with the feelings of both the children and the parents when parents try separation. At the end of this story Bindi's Dad comes back to town, and while he's not quite ready to move back in with the family, it is implied that Bindi's parents will remain married and work out their problems. Because not every separation ends this way, children may want to talk about how theirs or their friends experiences are similar or different to the ones in The Dancing Pancake.

There's just enough time before school starts to sneak in a few more fun reads!

Check our catalog for this title.

-JW-

CONCRETE POETRY

What is it? Concrete poetry is different from regular poems. Some concrete poems are just a few words, or even one word written in letters to suggest the shape of what the poem is about. Some concrete poems use individual letters or colors, shapes, or sizes to give more meaning to the poem.
Where can you see it? Visit the Children's Section of the Beaverton City Library. Look for the large bulletin boards. You will find these poems and more:
"The Concrete Cat" by Dorthi Charles
"Popsicle" by Joan Bransfield Graham
"A Seeing Poem" by Robert Froman
We got the idea from a wonderful book, A Poke in the I: A Collection of Concrete Poems, written by Paul B. Janeczko and illustrated by Chris Raschka. Our awesome volunteer display artist, Aubrey, painstakingly enlarged and traced the poetry onto bold background colors.
What can you do to create your own concrete poetry? Borrow A Poke in the I or another concrete or shape poetry book from the library. Get ideas for writing and illustrating some very unusual and eye-catching poetry! (AB)