EDUC 432: Childrens Literature in the Writing Classroom

Book Talk Presentation

Group Members: Jesse ONeill and Pat OBrien

Title: Library Lion
Author: Michelle Knudsen
Illustrator: Kevin Hawkes
Publishing Information:
Somerville, MA: Candlewick Press. 2006

Summary: Library Lion begins when a lion pays a visit to the
library -- quite literally, the opening line is One day, a lion came
to the library. Miss Merriweather is the head librarian, and she
is assisted by Mr. McBee. Both of these characters are adamant
about following the rules but, as readers will learn, their rationales
are quite different. When the lion arrives at the library, no one,
including at first, Miss Merriweather, is sure what to do. There
aren't any rules about lions in the library, or even at story time.
Fortunately for the Library Lion, adherence to the existing library rules (e.g. no running, use your library voice)
is enough to allow his continued presence. The Library Lion quickly adapts to the rules of the library, and is
even put to work by Miss Merriweather. But when something terrible happens, the lion quickly comes to the
rescue in the only way he knows how -- but has to break the rules of the library to do so. In the end, the reader
learns a valuable lesson about why we have rules, and why we (should sometimes) break them!


Genre/Age: picture book, 4+ years
Red flags: grown men will weep
Mini-Lessons:
Dialogue (quotation marks)
Characterization, character development
dynamic and static, round and flat characters (Miss Merriwether and Mr. McBee - evolution as
characters, and complexity of the character)
Third-person omniscient narration
Conflict (person vs. person; person vs. self)
Repetition (e.g., He looked. He looked. He looked.)
Sentence fragments/sentence variety (e.g., Even in the library.)
Juxtaposition (of old and new) (e.g., card catalog vs computer)
Problem/Solution (e.g., lion roars in the library; lion agrees to be quiet)
Personification (lion, to an extent, interacts as human)
Mood/tone, setting: nostalgia to create mood/tone and to enhance reader identification with setting (i.e.
card catalog, hard bound encyclopedias)
Nuance (e.g. Complication of seemingly easy concept of rule following, being willing to change ones
mind, virtue of empathy; McBee is so eager to enforce the rules, he runs, thereby breaking a different
rule)
Power of appealing to emotions of reader (as well as intellect, as mentioned in prior bullet)

Model of brief mini-lesson writing activity spawned from mentor text:

lesson: on character development--particularly, dynamic vs. static and round vs. flat
characters
Read the text
Notice and talk:
notice how Mr. McBee and Miss Merriweather are characterized early in the
story (strict, rule-abiding, rule-enforcing, inflexible) and how they develop by the
end of the book (conscious of exceptions, aware of nuance, flexible within
broader framework)
what names can we use to describe these characters (dynamic? static? round?
flat?)
ultimate complexity of the characters points to the complexity of existence
Intertextual connections:
Jot list: where else have you seen dynamic characters, particularly those that
may initially seem to be static? where else have you seen round characters,
particularly those that may initially seem flat?
Share out/brief discussion
Guided practice: shared writing
Give students this starter: There once was a ____ named _____ (see below)
Each student writes a line, with intention of adding complexity to a
person we all know (e.g., the teacher, the principal, or someone else
everyone in the class knows). Read the finished product and discuss
the characterization, with special attention to dynamic vs. static, round
vs. flat
Independent writing:
In a history classroom, a potential option for independent writing would include:
Identify an historical figure/event/era who/that is often depicted in a
simplified or decontextualized way. Engage in research and produce a
final product that demonstrates the complexity of the figure or event.
e.g. Steffens on political bosses; industrial statesmen vs. robber
barons
In an English classroom, a potential option for independent writing would
include:
Annotate a narrative piece of your own writing for character
development--in particular, for attending to the details that illustrate
someone as round or flat, static or dynamic
Revise accordingly.