Birds and words and other back-to-school adventures

For young readers who are back in school already or headed there soon, USA TODAY recommends four books that deal with all kinds of classroom drama.

Send your kids back to school with 'Ralph Tells a Story,' 'Marco Goes To School,' 'Third Grade Angels' and 'My Teacher.


 Marco Goes to School

Written and illustrated by Roz Chast
Antheneum, 32 pp., $16.99, ages 4-8
* * * (out of four)Marco, a small red bird with big dreams in a world of humans, hopes his first day at school will answer all the questions chirping in his head, such as "Do trees think?" Instead, he ends up daydreaming while his teacher, who is wearing lovely flower pants (the only part of her that readers see), offers a lesson that sounds like, "Monday Tuesday Chewsday Chumday Humday Doo-Dah-Day." Marco doesn't realize his dream — to be the first bird on the moon — but finds a friend at school. Grown-ups may recognize the ironic humor of Roz Chast, a cartoonist for The New Yorker. Kids will laugh at and cheer for Marco.My Teacher

Written and illustrated by James Ransome
Dial, 32 pp., $16.99, ages 5-8
* * *An unnamed young narrator wonders why her aging teacher — who taught "my mama and my grandmama" — is still teaching at a school that lacks a library. Part of the answer is found in the way the teacher builds her own classroom library. She doesn't just talk about someone named Duke Ellington but plays his music and does the Lindy Hop. James Ransome offers a gentle multicultural lesson dedicated to "teachers who come in early, leave late, and give a little something extra for the students."Third Grade Angels
By Jerry Spinelli
Scholastic, 134 pp., $15.99, ages 7-10
* * *In a long-awaited prequel to his 1991 book, Fourth Grade Rats, Jerry Spinelli revists the world of George "Suds" Morton, an ambitious student who can't stand not to finish first in any competition. (He explains that his real name is "Suds," from his fondness for calming down in bubble baths, even if his teacher, the wise and funny Mrs. Simms, persists in calling him "George.") Her plan to award a cardboard halo to her best student — best-behaved, kindest, close to perfect — ends up teaching Suds a lesson that there's more than one way of finishing first.Ralph Tells a Story
Written and illustrated by Abby Hanlon
Amazon, 32 pp., $16.99, ages 5-9, on sale Sept. 18
* * * ½Ralph's teacher says, "Stories are everywhere," but Ralph contends, "NOTHING happens to me!" He can't get past staring at the blank sheet of lined paper on his desk. None of his classmates has the slightest hint of writer's block, which makes things worse, until Ralph discovers that all he has to do is answer a few simple questions. It's a promising debut by Abby Hanlon, a former first-grade teacher who does delightful childlike drawings. She offers writing tips from Ralph, including, "You can always write about what you had for breakfast" and "Eat lots of chocolate."For more information about reprints & permissions, visit our FAQ's. To report corrections and clarifications, contact Standards Editor Brent Jones. For publication consideration in the newspaper, send comments to letters@usatoday.com. Include name, phone number, city and state for verification. To view our corrections, go to corrections.usatoday.com.
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