Coraline
By Neil Gaiman

Summary
When Coraline steps through a door to find another house strangely similar to her own (only better), things seem marvelous.But there's another mother there, and another father, and they want her to stay and be their little girl. They want to change her and never let her go.Coraline will have to fight with all her wit and courage if she is to save herself and return to her ordinary life

Analysis
This is another great fantasy book to introduce young readers. Neil Gaiman tells a tale that mirrors Alice's trip down the rabbit hole. This is a great book to read around Halloween. The book's illustrations feature amazing usage of optical illusions. For an activity, students would create their own self portrait with a strange shadow. The final versions of these projects would be displayed all around classroom during Halloween. The book also mentions fortune telling. After talking with my students about its history and how it is still used today (for example astrology) I would have create their own fortunes and place them in a jar. The students would then reach into the jar and read a fortune from some one else. Students would then use this a story starter for a creative writing prompt.

The Lightning Thief
By Rick Riordan

Summary
An adventure-quest with a hip edge. At first glance, Perseus Jackson seems like a loser (readers meet him at a boarding school for troubled youth), but he's really the son of Poseidon and a mortal woman. As he discovers his heritage, his mother is captured and falls into mortal danger. The gods (still very active in the 21st-century world) are about to go to war over a lost thunderbolt, so Percy and sidekicks Grover (a young satyr) and Annabeth (daughter of Athena) set out to retrieve it. Many close calls and monster-attacks later, they enter Hades's realm (via L.A.). A virtuoso description of the Underworld is matched by a later account of Olympus (hovering 600 floors above Manhattan). There's great reviews of classic Greek myth and legend, and characters like Medusa, Procrustes, Charon, and the Eumenides get updates. Some of the Labors of Heracles or Odysseus's adventures are recycled, but excellently retold to capture the hearts and minds of a new generation.

Analysis
This is a great book that I personally enjoyed reading. The book falls into the fantasy genre and is an excellent way to introduce Greek mythology. I love how the author updated all of the myths while still staying close the to meaning of the original myths. I would have my students pick out some of their favorite myths in the book and do a research project on it. They would have the option of doing a written report, a diorama, or some kind of acting skit of their myth. Another activity I would have my students do is a creative writing assignment where they are a new arrival at Camp Half Blood. They would have to tell who their parents were and how did they got to Camp Half Blood.

Too Many Tameles

By Gary Soto

Summary

Maria was feeling very grown-up on Christmas Eve as she helped her mother prepare the tamales for Christmas dinner. When she slipped her mother's diamond ring onto her finger, she only meant to wear it for a minute. But suddenly, the ring was gone, and there were 24 tamales that just might contain the missing ring.

Analysis 

This is a multicultural book falls into the folklore and realistic fiction genres. The book features creative, colorful, and expressive illustrations.I would suggest this book to anyone who is looking to read a story to their child that is funny and well written book. I would have my students write a narrative essay from the viewpoint of Maria and what they would have in her shoes. Another lesson I would create based on this book would be to have my students create a book of their own based on their experiences and the book Too Many Tameles.