Passages of the Heart
Kimberly Shalit
The following theme list is organized by genre. All of the texts listed are related to the heart, either in a literal or a figurative way. There are nonfiction books and books of poems. Classics to fantasy, children will be engaged in learning about the heart.
Nonfiction
Uses for the following nonfiction texts: Teach text features and structures, reading diagrams and charts, develop content knowledge, develop vocabulary, determining importance, finding information.
| Year published: | 1995 |
| Title: | How It Works: The Human Body |
| Author: | Kate Barnes |
| Publisher: | Horus Editions Limited, ISBN 0-7607-0428-7 |
| Reading level: | 3/4 |
| Synopsis: | This large book contains detailed descriptions, great text features, and easy-to-comprehend passages. There is an index and a table of contents to help students locate information about the heart. Illustrations and diagrams are enlarged as well. The author is a general practitioner from England and has written other books for children in the area of health and sciences. |
| Year published: | 1993 |
| Title: | I Wonder Why I Blink and Other Questions About My Body |
| Author: | Brigid Avison |
| Publisher: | Kingfisher Publications, ISBN 1-85697-662-9 |
| Reading level: | 3 |
| Synopsis: | This is a great Q & A text with bright illustrations. Important facts are bulleted and clearly written. The heart section is only two pages, but worthy of reading. A table of contents and index are included. |
| Year published: | 1994 |
| Title: | Reader’s Digest How the Body Works |
| Author: | Steve Parker |
| Publisher: | Dorling Kindersley Limited, ISBN 0-89577-575-1 |
| Reading level: | 6 |
| Synopsis: | Every nonfiction text feature is included! This is a large hardcover book that covers EKGs and detailed descriptions of every part and usage of the heart. Diagrams are extremely detailed! Experiments for kids are included on almost every page, with sequenced, easy-to-understand directions. The table of contents, index, and glossary are beautiful as well, with photographs and diagrams to support the text. |
| Year published: | 1993 |
| Title: | Human Body |
| Author: | Steve Parker |
| Publisher: | Dorling Kindersley and Eyewitness Books |
| Reading level: | 5/6 |
| Synopsis: | This book includes intriguing photographs that make sensitive stomachs churn. Diagrams are detailed with great descriptions, and illustrations portray various angles of the heart. Students will treasure their findings and will learn something new each time they read this book. There are various pages available to learn about the heart. There is a table of contents and index. Students will enjoy discovering on their own with this one! |
| Year published: | 1997 |
| Title: | How Will They Get That Heart Down Your Throat? |
| Author: | Karen Walton |
| Publisher: | EM Press, ISBN 1-880664992 |
| Reading level: | Ages 9 to 12 |
| Synopsis: | This 48-page hardcover book explains surgery to a young audience. A kindergarten teacher takes the reader through the process of waiting, surgery, recovery, and the resumption of activities that she herself goes through. Illustrations are bright and are intended to look as if a child drew them. |
| Year published: | 1997 |
| Title: | The Heart and Circulatory System (The Human Body) |
| Author: | Carol Ballard |
| Publisher: | Raintree/Steck Vaughn Press, ISBN 0-817248005 |
| Reading level: | Ages 9 to 12 |
| Synopsis: | This book is easy to read and has uncomplicated sentence structures. It has easy-to-read text features and colorful illustrations and photographs with great descriptions. There is a glossary as well. However, discussion is very general, especially in the area of disease. |
| Year published: | 2001 |
| Title: | 101 Questions About Blood and Circulation: With Answers Straight From the Heart |
| Author: | Faith Hickman Brynie |
| Publisher: | Twenty-first Century Books, ISBN 0-761314555 |
| Reading level(s): | Young adult, 176 pages |
| Synopsis: | Great for reading for information, skimming, and scanning. Questions published were student driven. Answers are informative. Diagrams are clear yet black and white. Includes 3 supplementary tables: the immune system, endocrine glands, and vitamins. |
| Year published: | 1998 |
| Title: | The Heart: The Kids’ Q & A Book |
| Author: | J. Willis Hurst, et al. |
| Publisher: | McGraw-Hill |
| Reading level(s): | Ages 9 to 12 (paperback, 32 pages) |
| Synopsis: | This book was written by Dr. Hurst, a cardiologist and former president of the American Heart Association. These questions were actually asked by Dr. Hurst’s grandson, the inspiration behind this informative text. The children in the text ask the camp doctor how the heart works. Illustrations are accurate as well. |
| Year published: | 2000 |
| Title: | Across America, I Love You |
| Author: | Christine Loomis |
| Publisher: | Hyperion Books for Children, ISBN 0-7868-0366-5 |
| Reading level(s): | 2/3 |
| Synopsis: | This beautifully written book describes various landscapes across America from beaches to deserts to mountain tops. A mother relates her love for her child through each setting. The moral: always listen to your heart. Illustrations are oil-based paintings that come alive through impressionism. |
| Uses: | This picture book has beautifully written text that can be used as a model to show students examples of figurative language. Students can discuss how the mother makes connections between the love in her heart and the various settings. |
| Year published: | 1989 |
| Title: | The Magic School Bus: Inside the Human Body |
| Author: | Joanna Cole and Bruce Degen |
| Publisher: | Scholastic, Inc., ISBN 0-590-41427-5 |
| Reading level: | 3 |
| Synopsis: | A teacher takes her class through the human body, literally, explaining all of the parts and functions along the way. There is a small section on the heart with very general descriptions, although vocabulary is presented in a fun way with many illustrations. Text is easy to understand as well as diagrams. The captions in the heart section are spaced clearly as well. There is a true/false test provided in the back of the book as well as the answers on a separate page. (This is a fantasy combined with nonfiction selection.) |
| Uses: | Students can create a book using the same concept. They can choose another organ or object and write about it from a different perspective. |
| Year published: | 1994 |
| Title: | Clifford, I Love You |
| Author: | Norman Bridwell |
| Publisher: | Scholastic, Inc., ISBN 0-439-36774-3 |
| Reading level(s): | PP |
| Synopsis: | This is a typical Clifford (large red dog) story except it has pop-out illustrations containing 2 lines per page. Lines are repetitive and predictable which may be used to establish fluency and students may find it fun to read. Geared towards a younger audience, yet perfect for February...the month of hearts! |
| Uses: | Discuss personification, fantasy genre, main ideas, and make books. |
| Year published: | 1991 |
| Title: | Ooh-La-La (Max in Love) |
| Author: | Maira Kalman |
| Publisher: | Penguin Books, ISBN 0-670-84163-3 |
| Reading level(s): | 4 |
| Synopsis: | Illustrations in this text are very busy and colorful. Text features are overwhelming and creative simultaneously. Words are written all over the place vertically, horizontally, and even in spirals. This may be difficult for some students to follow without discussing these features first. The passages appear to be in a lyrical format; it looks like a poem is written on each page due to sentence structure. The plot is humorous as a poetic and artsy pooch goes to Paris in search of love and happiness. The author incorporates French within the dialect. Students would need to infer the meaning of these words through context clues. |
| Uses: | Poems, text structures, writing lyrics (heart inspired). |
| Year published: | 2001 |
| Title: | Heartsongs |
| Author: | Mattie J.T. Stepanek |
| Publisher: | Hyperion , ISBN 0-7868-8809-1 (New York Times bestseller) |
| Reading level: | 5/6 |
| Synopsis: | This is a collection of works by Mattie, an eleven-year-old boy who struggles with muscular dystrophy. Despite his many unfortunate circumstances, such as losing his three siblings to the same disease he is presently fighting, he has compiled and published the most enlightening and delightful poems about angels and love. Most of all, his poetry came from his heart and has touched so many others. Poems such as these may inspire other young writers and teach them to see the light through the darkest of clouds. Mattie has been recognized for his courageousness and motivation by Oprah [Winfrey] and [on] other national [U.S.] talk shows. He is also being given the title of Maryland State Goodwill Ambassador for the Muscular Dystrophy Association at both the national and state levels. |
| Uses: | Poems, text structures, writing lyrics (heart inspired), author study, memoir, point of view. |
| Year published: | 1995 |
| Title: | Love Bugs |
| Author: | David A. Carter |
| Publisher: | Simon & Schuster Children’s Publication Division, ISBN 0-671-86629 |
| Reading level: | PP/1 |
| Synopsis: | The book is designed like a heart-shaped box of candy, with doilies and all. Illustrations are pop-up and there are 2-3 lines per page which rhyme. All of the text is written in italics to portray a fancier font like a love letter or Valentine’s Day card. This is a perfect “Would you be mine?” book that young girls would find delightful to read. They may even transfer it into their own writing depending on what they are writing about. |
| Uses: | Poetry, rhyme, text features, Valentine’s read-aloud. |
| Year published: | 1990 |
| Title: | Tales of Mystery and Terror, “Tell Tale Heart” |
| Author: | Edgar Allen Poe |
| Publisher: | Puffin Books, ISBN 0-14-036720-9 |
| Reading level(s): | 6 |
| Synopsis: | This is a classic collection of Edgar Allen Poe’s 13 short stories. A man who is mentally ill decides to kill his father. Later he grows more and more disturbed as he becomes haunted by the beat of his dead father’s heart that gradually becomes louder and louder. This is a short story filled with symbolism and imagery that engages readers through suspense and may motivate them to reread this mystery/classic. |
| Uses: | Teach suspense, prediction, inferencing. |
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View other booklists: Genre - Biography or Genre - Multicultural Cinderella stories
From “Mixing It Up in Middle School: Themed Booklists to Entice Struggling Adolescent Readers” by Dana L. Grisham. Reproduced by permission of the author, Kimberly Shalit.
Reading Online, www.readingonline.org
Posted September 2002