"Dazzling Pink Roses," a poem about Miss Fannie's Hat by Jan Karon

Black hats
Red hats
Green hats
White hats
Navy hats
Beige hats
Brown hats
Famous hat with Pink Straw Roses
Miss Fannie hides her hair
Under hats
Reading the Bible
Every morning
Ninety-nine years old
With God, all things are possible
Lots of hats
Each one her Favorite
DAZZLING PINK ROSES
Really...
Miss Fannie's Hat! 

by Emerson Pate, Pawleys Island


Thanks, Emerson!  Awesome!

This Place

Moonlight peeks through the leaves on the branches,
Wolves' howls echo against the closed space
Where campfires flames dance,
And the stars can be seen clearly from this place.

The river cuts through the old, round rocks.
My breath can be seen in the still moonlight
Where ice forms on my golden locks. 
I can't wait for the sun to end this night.

As the dawn is breaking and there is day
I see that shadows are not so real.
And as I move on, I am okay.
I run to home, I run to mom, and a meal.

Home, sweet, home is all too near and sweet.
I can't wait for my head and pillow to meet!

by Emory McClary, Pawleys Island


Not a fan of camping, Emory?!  I don't like camping, either!  LOL!  Really like your poem about it, though.   Don't forget to shop on Amazon to help build our new library! Click on any ad!   Top

I'm From

I'm from going to my friend's house, and talking to them about anything.

I'm from playing soccer with my dad.

I'm from a big country house with 2,000 windows, my own room, and yard as big as two football fields.

I'm from a no dishwasher kind of kitchen overlooking my backyard.

I'm from a wrap around porch and driving my sister's Barbie jeep all day long.

I'm from a place that has sunflowers taller than Abe Lincoln.

I'm from a church that I could go to a million times and never get bored.

I'm from a no care kind of town where everyone knows everyone.

I'm from a place where the only thing you can hear is people laughing and talking about the day and just living in the moment.

This is where I'm from.

by Anna Sandor
Pawleys Island


Thanks, Anna!  I love your poem! Top

I Am From

I am from Maryland and South Carolina
I am from a small town
From Tanea calling me a farming tree
From playing sports year-round
I am from watching baton competition
From telling my sister which place to go
I am from the beach and the snow

From baking with my grandma
To Poppy's great breakfasts
I am from doing scoreboard at volleyball games
I am from eating jelly and buttered toast
From hearing "wash your hands..."
I am from playing old arcade video games and pinball with my dad

I am from trips back to Maryland
I am from splashing in the pool with my grandpa
And playing on the swing set
I am from walking to the point
Just to play in the water
I am from playing in the pluff mud to play clams
I am from Maryland and South Carolina.

by Josie Mangialardo, Lowcountry Prep School


Awesome poem, Josie!  Keep writing!  Top

Keep Reading!

Keep reading this summer!  It's a great way to stay cool!!!!

The Palmetto Dream

I dream that I will reach Eagle Scout and hopefully Clemson will see me one day.

My Palmetto Dream is that this scout will become the governor of South Carolina.

I imagine what will be written in history books about me.

If I use what I am learning in boy scouts and my knowledge of history, political, and social problems,

The Palmetto State will be okay.

I dream of changing this state for the best interests of people.

So that this state can be a beacon of hope for the American Dream.

I wonder what my grandfather will say when he sees me making my way.

Maybe he will say that,

The Palmetto state will be okay.

I see my hands signing, shaking, making, and even breaking one day for this great Palmetto State.

I will stand tall and show them all what I can make happen with these actions of loyalty, honor, and hard work.

The Palmetto State will be okay.

My Palmetto Dream of becoming governor is about 20 to 30 years away.

Hopefully with my Clemson education one day I can work my way.

Lots of walking the pavement, government debates, and even holding babies will open the gate to the governor's machine.

Even if this nation doesn't prevail,

The Palmetto State will be okay.

       by David Fulton, Lowcountry Prep School, Pawleys Island, SC



Wow, David, when you're the governor, we'll come visit you in your mansion! Top 

We love our readers from the Mitney Project!

Welcome, readers!  There's a lot of information posted on the tab above.  Have a great summer, and keep reading! Send in your book reviews, essays, paragraphs, and poetry to LSBR!
--Top

Reach the Top! READ!

"Nothing Gold Can Stay" by Robert Frost

A Summary of “Nothing Gold Can Stay”

            The poem “Nothing Gold Can Stay,” written by Robert Frost, has many hidden meanings and literary devices you might not realize or recognize.  I found meaning in every line that isn't apparent at first glance. 

Take the first line for example: “Nature’s first green is gold.”  Robert Frost uses a metaphor here, saying that “green is gold.”  I also see a hidden meaning in this line that is apparent in pretty much the rest of the poem as well.  Robert Frost adds chronology to nature in an elegant form only apparent in poems.  He doesn’t merely say “The green went away,” but instead uses lines such as “Nature’s first green is gold, her hardest hue to hold.”  Not only is the progress of time apparent in these lines, but also personification, making an inanimate object act as a human, and alliteration, the repetition of the first consonant sound. 

Another literary device present in the poem is a form of iambic meter.  Saying the poem aloud gives a rhythm similar to a heartbeat. As the poem carries on, nature’s degradation continues.  Later lines give more examples of the passage of time, and the poem ends with the most memorable line, not to mention the title of the poem, “Nothing gold can stay.” 

Clearly, this poem is full of hidden meaning and the passage of time in nature.  Frost’s literary devices fit well with the overall sad mood of the poem.  I can see why he is a beloved American poet.  
by Top Lee, 8th grade 

Reading is for Awesome People!

Really cool t-shirt!  More reviews to come.  I've been so busy reading and doing homework that I haven't written a review in awhile.  Does anyone have a review to share?!

Say Merry Christmas with a Library Card!

There is work to be done....

Libraries....

...and a woman's!  Grow your library a little every year! 

Think of something to buy on Amazon.  If everyone buys one item, we will raise a lot of money to help grow our new Waccamaw library for the students and people of Georgetown County!  

Some ideas of things you can buy on Amazon:  gift cards, ipads, ipods, laptops, shoes, clothes, jewelry, cat scratches, toys, CDs, DVDs, calculators for students, printers, printer ink, paper, running shoes, sporting gear, golf balls, basketballs, hard-to-find anything, nintendo games, Xbox games, cameras, Kindles, Thanksgiving stuff, food processors, other kitchen stuff, nail polish, yoga pants, beach stuff, flip flops, Christmas presents, end of year teacher gift cards, groceries even! 

Is there anything you CAN'T buy from Amazon?  The new library will be gifted 6% of your total!  Be sure to click on our ads first.  Our ads really add up on our blog with a mission!  

--Top

Hoot by Carl Hiaasen

Hoot, by Carl Hiassen, is about a boy, Roy Eberhardt, who moves to Florida.  When he was being bullied on the bus, he sees a boy running away from the bus with no shoes, no books or no book bag.  He was very curious.  After 3 days of looking for the no shoed boy, he finally sees the boy running past the bus, so he runs and chases after the boy.  He chased the boy to a campsite where he sees a bag.  It looks like it is full of tan ropes, but when he pours the bag out it was full of cottonmouths with sparking tails.  They call the boy, Mullet Finger, because he can catch a mullet fish in his hands.  Mullet Finger and Roy get into a lot trouble through out the book.

Then a man named Officer Delino enters the story  He meets a bald man named Curly.  Curly is the site manager for Mother Paula's All-American Pancake House.   Curly reports a vandalism on his construction site.  Someone has moved the property line stakes.  This caused construction to be stooped.   Office Delino learns there are burrowing owls living in the construction site.  

What do all these things have in common?  I suggest you read this awesome book and find out.

by Jordan Bristow

6th grader at Chapin Middle School,  Chapin, South Carolina 

Good job, Jordan.  This made me feel like I really should read this book to see what it's all about!  --Top 

Buy Hoot here and help build our new library! 

READING gives us a place to go when we have to stay where we are.  Keep reading!

100 Best Children's Chapter Books of All Time

Really great website! Shows jacket cover and a little paragraph describing each book.  Super list if you're out of ideas on what to read!  100 Best Children's Chapter Books of All Time

Artemis Fowl: The Last Guardian

Have you ever read an awesome book that seems like the story should never end?  Artemis Fowl: The Last Guardian by Eoin Colfer, is one of those.  Eoin is the author of many books and series, but his most famous is the Artemis Fowl series, now containing 8 books.  The Last Guardian, his latest novel, fits my definition of a book that should never end for many reasons; however, three really tand out. 

First, The Last Guardian has amazing characters, good and bad, that all contribute to the plot.  Artemis, Butler, and Holly are the main characters and they are all the kind of characters that a reader can become attached to.  Artemis is a rich, teen-genius who discovered a subterranean fairy species that use magic and have been hiding from humans ever since the fairy-human wars that drove them underground.  Butler, Artemis’s personal bodyguard and closest friend is another amazing person with all of his military know-how and weaponry skill.  Holly, the first fairy that Artemis captured, is now Artemis’s close friend and will follow him, and Butler, through time and space.  All of these characters, and many more other splendid people, make this novel one of the best I have ever read. 

The huge amount of ingenuity from the author is another reason that this plot is breathtaking. Every time you think that the good guys are going to win, another twist is added, making you on the edge of your seat not knowing what will happen next.  My favorite example is when Opal Koboi, the “supervillian” in the story, puts her own past self in danger so that she can become more powerful.  She does this by tricking Artemis with his own smartness.  He thinks that putting her in a natural nuclear reactor will keep her from blowing everything up, which is what happens when your past self gets destroyed, but really it turned her into the most powerful being on the planet.  What a twist!

The final reason that I wanted this book to go on forever is the fact that so many different characters with all of their different situations are described.  Artemis has his own feelings and plans in most parts, and the reader gets a look into the future through those.  Then in the next chapter, another character's mind is peered into, revealing his or her suspicions and ideas about what is going on, sometimes completely ignorant of another person’s thoughts!  Another thing that happened often is that another person’s situation, an entirely different one, is explained in his or her mind.  In this way the reader can use many different parts of the world to put together the whole plot.

Clearly, reading a novel such as The Last Guardian with great characters, ingenuity, and many different situations makes a plot that you'll never want to end.  I definitely, without a doubt, recommend the Artemis Fowl Series.  You will really enjoy the characters and will ask for more!

--Top Lee, 8th grade, Pawleys Island

Buy this awesome book now from Amazon and help build our NEW LIBRARY!!!!!!!!!!!!

I.Q. Books 1 & 2

I.Q. book one and two are awesome novels by Roland Smith.  These books are for adventurous readers and kids who love reading about the secret service and other mysteries!  I.Q. books are also good for school reports and projects.  I don't know about other Roland Smith books but I bet they are good also, because of the great experience I had with the I.Q. books.  So if you are bored of reading the same old mystery books then consider reading I.Q. books one and two!



Rucheer Dave
Duke T.I.P. 4-6
Antioch Elementary
Charlotte, North Carolina


Another great submission!  I think things are really starting to pick up now that school is on the horizon!
p.s.  A teacher wrote this comment about the I.Q. books - I have ten copies of I,Q One and I,Q Two in my classroom. Once school starts I never see them again until the final week of school (when I collect the books). Students love the suspense and the clever characterization. I love all the literary elements that make this a perfect read for 10-15 year olds!! We are all highly anticipating the Kitty Hawk addition. Please, please, hurry!!!

67 Books to Read Before You're 10

Thought everyone would like this article from Wired:
67 Books to Read to Your Kids Before They are 10

Please share this website with your friends and family.

Help build our new library!!!

12-year-old buys B-17 flight with 1,392 Eggs!

 I know this isn't a book review, but my friend Seth up in NC just did the coolest thing by selling 116 dozen eggs from his very own chicken farm!  Click the play button above to watch his 2-minute video.  Awesome, Seth!!

Evergreen

                          It all started one Tuesday morning in April...

            

                I woke up to find my mom and dad sitting on my bed

                talking in hushed voices.  They saw I had woken up and my

                mom said, "Good morning sweetie!  I'm afraid you won't be

                going to school today."  "Why?" I asked. "Because," my dad said

                "you have a very high fever." That's when I noticed the lilies.

                My favorite lilies had wilted and the leaves were falling off.  I

                gasped and started to cry.  "What's wrong?" My dad asked.

                "Look." I sobbed and pointed to the lilies. "Oh..." he said. "I

                guess you forgot to water them."No!" I cried.  I did it last night!"

                          Later when I was feeling better and the fever was

                 gone,  I went up to my room and saw that the lilies were all

                 better and the petals were white and the leaves were a

                 beautiful green.  Weird,I thought...

                                    "Mom!" I called.She came up the stairs and I showed her 

                           the flowers.  "What happened?" I asked."Maybe your father got 

                           you new ones" she said. "Maybe,"  I said, but that's not what I thought...

                            

                                                        Violet Robertson
                                                            6th Grade
                                                   Kimberton Waldorf School
                                                           Pennsylvania

                                                       Great short, short story, Violet!  Keep up the cool mystery writing!

There is no enjoyment like READING!

Where I am From

Where I Am From

I am from pecan trees
and many dogs.
From big blue bedrooms
and video games.
I am from many friends
spending the night and
staying up late.
From fresh picked apples
and giant steaks.
I am from the big
white house with all
the trees.
From riding 4-wheelers in
the mud.
From my grandpa taking
me to the park every weekend.
I am from Monopoly and
race cars.
From smoothies and riding
bikes with friends.
I am from my new born sister.
Her tender skin and soft eyes.
From basketball and baseball
games.
I am from the world
all around me.
From running head on
into whatever's next.

Zach McKinley
8th grade
Lowcountry Prep School
Pawleys Island SC

Zach, awesome poem!  TL

Google Search Tips

Search Tips 

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Announcing this year's recipient!

Little Squirrel Book Review is proud to announce that this year's recipient of our ad commissions will be the Friends of the Waccamaw Library for our new library!  

Please click on our Amazon ads and then shop for everything you need on Amazon.  The new Waccamaw Library will get 100% of our ad commissions - which average about 6% of everyone's total.  Our ads add up on our blog with a mission!!!!  Last year we gave almost $600 to the Mitney Project in Georgetown.  Let's see how much we can raise this year for our library!!! 

HELP BUILD OUR NEW LIBRARY!!!  

TEACHERS and STUDENTS:  send us your writing!  See your name in lights!