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What a fun assignment. Imagine there’s been some sort of catastrophe. Your family, friends, and pets are safe. Now… pick one thing, doesn’t matter the size, shape, or even it’s weight, that you would save. What would that one thing be? This is the question in “The One Thing You’d Save”. Newberry Medalist Linda Sue Park brings us this question inspired by the Korean poety form sijo.
The Basic Facts
The One Thing You’d Save by Linda Sue Parks takes a singular question and allows many different voices to answer it. Voices raised in discussion and thought about what they deem most important to save. This 3-7th grade read is published by Clarion Books, a division of Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. Encompassing 72 pages of lively discussion found in carefully written verse. You can almost hear the students talking with each other.
More Details on The One Thing You’d Save
Oh, I laughed at times. Kids bantering with each other, pushing each other a bit, and learning from each other. It was just so real! It wasn’t all laughter though, sometimes hard things happen when you’re a child and even fun exercises like this can bring that out.
The teacher’s words are always in a different font as well as darker in colour.
Just are the words of the children affected me, they also affected her. The things we learn about each other influences what we think and feel doesn’t it?
Simple grayscale pencil drawings highlight the thoughts of the children. Sometimes joining the words on the page, and sometimes following after, letting you absorb the words spoken.
All in all, such a well done book.
Add it to your bookshelf?
Oh, this is a hard one to answer.
I think as a one time read I’d rather borrow from the library. BUT if I wanted to keep it to share with multiple children, or use it in a co-op class, or a classroom situation, then I’d definitely want to have my own copy. It would be an exercise I think would be well worth doing several times with different classes/groups.
I really enjoyed reading The One Thing You’d Save and would happily read it again. Part of that is I love books that encourage the reader to think. I’ve been pondering all night, what would I save if my house was on fire? And I still don’t know, but I have ideas….
I wonder what yours might be?
Sounds like a unique and fun little read. I don’t think I would read it over and over but fun to look at once.
I really liked this one! 🙂