Book Review Portfolio: My Garden by Kevin Henkes

For this assignment, you are expected to read broadly within children’s literature and to become familiar with critiques of text and with significant conversations in the field. You are expected to read and review at least 10 children’s picturebooks, which you think are exceptional. In your reviews, you should utilize criteria informed by scholarly resources and your developing knowledge of authoring and visual composition techniques. Your collection should
* Only include books that have received at least a rating of 3 by the Horn Book or a starred review by the Kirkus Book Reviews.
* At least 7 of your books should be books published over the past 10 years (first publication!).
* Represent variety in genres, book creators, aspects of diversity. Special attention will be given to the detection and discussion of bias.
SUBMIT:
Annotate and review the 10 books in your collection providing all information indicated in the table below and submit your Book Review Portfolio in the appropriate drop box on Canvas.
Annotation
Title:
Author:
Illustrator:
Publisher:
Year of Publication:
Genre:
Horn Book or Kirkus Reviews rating:
Experience Represented: [ethnic, racial, national, religious, sex, age, geographic, gender identity, sexual orientation]
Review (aprox. 300 words)
Discuss the literary merits of the book. In your review, you should identify and explain elements of the book that worked and any weaknesses you noticed. Your review must explicitly discuss:
a.     Aspects of the linguistic components of the book.
b.     Aspects related to the visual components of the book
c.      The book as a multimodal, aesthetic composition
Your review does not need to have separate sections for each of these aspects, but explicit attention to all is expected.
Ideas to consider:
Linguistic Components Visual Components Multimodal, Aesthetic composition
·     Plot, content
·     Organization
·     Language
·     Back matter

·     Illustrations
·     Font
·     Design/format
·     Page turns
·     Borders

·     How the linguistic and visual aspects of the book work together
·     Meaning and emotions evoked
·     Experiences represented
* • General Education Objectives: Critical and Analytical Thinking
* GA Student Learning Criteria:
* Demonstrate competence in analysis, critical thinking and interpretive reasoning through the exploration of creative works
* Identify and explain the aesthetic, historic, social, and cultural significance of important works of art and critically assess creative works, their own or others’, through evaluative processes of analysis and interpretation.
* GH Student Learning Criteria:
* Demonstrate competence in critical thinking about topics and texts in the humanities through clear and well-reasoned responses.
* Critically evaluate texts in the humanities– whether verbal, visual, or digital– and identify and explain moral or ethical dimensions within the disciplines of the humanities
* Become familiar with groups, individuals, ideas, or events that have influenced the experiences and values of different communities