LaMarche, J. (2000). The Raft. Harper Collins.
I have to start out by saying that the cover art of this picture book drew me right in to being intrigued by the story, with the warm, earth tones and very appealing drawn animals of nature standing in comfortable company with a young boy on the front cover. I had felt like I had seen his illustrating before, with its illuminesence, and upon reviewing the back cover, connected him to being the illustrator of The Rainbabies (which was one of those picture books my pre-schoolers in college wanted me to read everyday, and I saw it so much, I had the text and details memorized!) I shared The Raft with my second graders, and they (as usual) expected me to show the end pages, back cover, title and dedication page, because they have come very accustomed to predicting and getting their palette whet for what’s to come. I announced with relish that “Ooh! This book has an author’s note before the story!” Well, they were all about hearing that as well. “That will help us have some more prior knowledge before we start the main text, Ms. Melzer!” (No, I mean it. My students do talk like this! Sometimes, I get so wrapped up in our deep talking that my assistant or a volunteer will make “Oh my God!” faces in the back of the room, making me stop to be in awe of them myself. Sometimes, my kids knock me for a loop, making points or connections I hadn’t really thought of myself. Read aloud is one of my favorite times of the day for those moments!) Anyways, I enjoyed the author’s opening line discussing the impetus and his personal connections to the main character Nicky in the book:
“This story is like the cigar box I kept as a boy – it’s full of bits and pieces of my boyhood summers.” He ends the note after explaining his specific connections by stating: “This story is a little about all of those things-a summer in the woods, a special grandparent, becoming a river rat, and becoming an artist.”
Any one of those four points on their own could be a basis for a great story, but LaMarche magically ties all four in together with gorgeous illustrations to make a wonderful picture book.
The grandmother that Nicky stays with for the summer has her own quiet, round about way of showing Nicky the magic of nature and the country, a life polar opposite his in the big city, with amenities that grandma doesn’t have. I always enjoy stories where grandparents share a love and appreciation for something, especially when it involves the big meanings in life or for nature, and LaMarche does both here. I shared with my students my personal connections about how my Grandpa and Granny Melzer gave me a great appreciation for “the water” and the beach, with its critters and wildlife always outside of their back door. I was at their house daily while my father readied his workboat for his next day of crabbing, and I learned through them to find interest and awe in observing and loving the coast. I learned my love of gardening from my Granny and Grandpop Fox, who lived in York County (two minutes from my current residence.) My Grandpop kept a vegetable garden all my childhood, on land that had been in the family for at least five generations. My Granny Fox’s flowers were transplanted to my yard and my mother’s yard, and my granny Fox lives on because she nurtured those same plants my mother and I nurture today.
My students especially liked the “point of view perspective” of being underwater on one full page spread, with Nicky wearing a swimming mask to see underwater from the side of the raft and feeding the otters, as well as the magical, adventurous feeling conveyed in the spread where Nicky is camping overnight with a tent on the raft, with the moonlight glistening off the water and animals so comfortably surrounding him, giving us a safe feeling as an observer and on behalf of Nicky. I highly recommend this book for read aloud!
I have to start out by saying that the cover art of this picture book drew me right in to being intrigued by the story, with the warm, earth tones and very appealing drawn animals of nature standing in comfortable company with a young boy on the front cover. I had felt like I had seen his illustrating before, with its illuminesence, and upon reviewing the back cover, connected him to being the illustrator of The Rainbabies (which was one of those picture books my pre-schoolers in college wanted me to read everyday, and I saw it so much, I had the text and details memorized!) I shared The Raft with my second graders, and they (as usual) expected me to show the end pages, back cover, title and dedication page, because they have come very accustomed to predicting and getting their palette whet for what’s to come. I announced with relish that “Ooh! This book has an author’s note before the story!” Well, they were all about hearing that as well. “That will help us have some more prior knowledge before we start the main text, Ms. Melzer!” (No, I mean it. My students do talk like this! Sometimes, I get so wrapped up in our deep talking that my assistant or a volunteer will make “Oh my God!” faces in the back of the room, making me stop to be in awe of them myself. Sometimes, my kids knock me for a loop, making points or connections I hadn’t really thought of myself. Read aloud is one of my favorite times of the day for those moments!) Anyways, I enjoyed the author’s opening line discussing the impetus and his personal connections to the main character Nicky in the book:
“This story is like the cigar box I kept as a boy – it’s full of bits and pieces of my boyhood summers.” He ends the note after explaining his specific connections by stating: “This story is a little about all of those things-a summer in the woods, a special grandparent, becoming a river rat, and becoming an artist.”
Any one of those four points on their own could be a basis for a great story, but LaMarche magically ties all four in together with gorgeous illustrations to make a wonderful picture book.
The grandmother that Nicky stays with for the summer has her own quiet, round about way of showing Nicky the magic of nature and the country, a life polar opposite his in the big city, with amenities that grandma doesn’t have. I always enjoy stories where grandparents share a love and appreciation for something, especially when it involves the big meanings in life or for nature, and LaMarche does both here. I shared with my students my personal connections about how my Grandpa and Granny Melzer gave me a great appreciation for “the water” and the beach, with its critters and wildlife always outside of their back door. I was at their house daily while my father readied his workboat for his next day of crabbing, and I learned through them to find interest and awe in observing and loving the coast. I learned my love of gardening from my Granny and Grandpop Fox, who lived in York County (two minutes from my current residence.) My Grandpop kept a vegetable garden all my childhood, on land that had been in the family for at least five generations. My Granny Fox’s flowers were transplanted to my yard and my mother’s yard, and my granny Fox lives on because she nurtured those same plants my mother and I nurture today.
My students especially liked the “point of view perspective” of being underwater on one full page spread, with Nicky wearing a swimming mask to see underwater from the side of the raft and feeding the otters, as well as the magical, adventurous feeling conveyed in the spread where Nicky is camping overnight with a tent on the raft, with the moonlight glistening off the water and animals so comfortably surrounding him, giving us a safe feeling as an observer and on behalf of Nicky. I highly recommend this book for read aloud!
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