Julie Zwillich

Phoebe is a young girl who hates waiting, especially for tomorrow. Every good thing she wants to do, she is told it will happen tomorrow. The author showed Phoebe's emotions and frustration. She was not told these feelings were wrong or chastised for them, that often happens. She was given a solution that was realistic and from someone she loved and trusted. Many children have this same problem and this book is a great one to use when dealing with this type of frustration. As an addition to the problem solving, this book showed a diverse classroom without making that anything other than a normal part of the book. The illustrations were cute, showing the emotions correctly. A great addition to a family, class or school library. The publisher generously provided me with a copy of this book via Netgalley.
… (mere)

In the age of computers with spell check, spelling is becoming a lost art. Unfortunately, it is still necessary. When Phoebe's class works on writing their names, she tries every avoidance tactic she can think of. You see, her name is not spelled the way it sounds. She has seen her name written, but knows that can't be right. The letter P does not say "f". When Ms. April sings, "Just sound it out" Phoebe finally gives it a try. I love how Julie Zwillich writes about her thought process while looking at the letter chart. She finally comes up with her completed name spelled phonetically and even thought it is not correct, she is still given a smile and made to feel that she accomplished something. A cute story with great illustrations. They show a good example of a classroom without a lot of extraneous items and good expressions on Phoebe's face. A good book for a primary classroom. The publisher generously provided me with a copy of this book via Netgalley.… (mere)