"The Extraordinary Mark Twain (According to Susy)" by Barbara Kerley, Illustrated by Edwin Fotheringham

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Bibliographic Citation

Title: The Extraordinary Mark Twain (According to Susy)

Author: Barbara Kerley

Illustrator: Edwin Fotheringham

Year of Publication: 2010

Publisher City: New York

Publisher: Scholastic Press

ISBN: 9780545125086

Author Website: http://www.barbarakerley.com/Site/Welcome.html

Illustrator Website: http://www.edfotheringham.com/

Media Used for Artwork: Computer Generated

Copyright 2010/2011

My Top 10 Favorite Picturebooks for Older Readers

Awards

·         Publishers Weekly Best Children’s Books, 2010

·         School Library Journal Best Books, 2010

·         Washington Post Best of 2010: Books for Young Readers

·         California Reading Association’s Eureka! Nonfiction Children’s Books Gold Award

·         CYBILS Nonfiction Picture Book Award, 2010

Annotation

This book teaches how anyone can write a biography by providing the steps taken for Mark Twain’s biographer, his daughter Susy.  Readers also get a chance to read actual excerpts from Susy’s biography, spelling errors and all.

Personal Reaction

                This is a very creative how-to-write book that any writer will appreciate.  The fact that Kerley actually took excerpts from Susy’s biography of her father is wonderful.  She worked with the words written by Susy, while adding how Susy came to write the biography.  The book teaches by example, with the aid of illustrations and humorous text.  The small journal entries that are placed throughout the book are adorable.  After learning a lesson a reader can see an example of how this writing this work.

                The illustrations are amusing, continuing with the humor of the text.  The caricatures of Mark Twain show his eccentric nature through the endearing eyes of his daughter.  Take for example him throwing his shirts out the window because they needed buttons sewn on them.  An interesting addition is the swirls used throughout the text that symbolize the written word.  For example, when Susy’s parents find her biography swirls pour out of the book, symbolizing all the work she put into it.

Curriculum: Grade 10-English: Since students will be reading novels by Mark Twain in this grade, Kerley’s book will be a good introduction to the author and his family life.  In addition to learning about Twain, teachers can have students write a biography about him, using the recommendations Kerley wrote at the end of the book.  The students can even use material from his autobiography, which also has excerpts from Susy’s biography.