Readers usually grossly underestimate their own importance.  If a reader cannot create a book along with the writer, the book will never come to life. Creative involvement:  that's the difference between reading a book and watching TV.

In watching TV, we are passive - sponges; we do nothing.  In reading we must become creators, imagining the setting of the story, seeing the facial expressions, hearing the inflection of the voices.  The author and the reader "know" each other; they meet in the bridge of words.  

Madeleine L'Engle

STUDENTS FAVORITE BOOKS

READ ON TO SEE WHAT SOME SEDGWICK STUDENTS SAY ABOUT THESE BOOKS:

The Trumpet of the Swan, by E.B.White
"suspenseful and funny"

Among The Hidden, by Margaret Peterson Haddix
"I liked the whole book."
"A movie should be made about it."
"A family's 3rd child is kept hidden."
"The 12 year old boy seemed so real."

The Cay, by Theodore Taylor
"The characters try to stay alive."
"A dangerous storm kills someone."

Don't You Dare Read This Mrs.Dunphrey, by Margaret Peterson Haddix
"Tish is just about my age."
"She's forced to write in a journal."
"She writes about her problems."
"I could really relate to Trish."
"The reading was easy to follow."

The Giver, by Lois Lowry
"good for 6th, 7th or 8th graders"
"Jonas finds out a terrible truth."

Where The Red Fern Grows, by Wilson Rawls
"It's about a boy who loves his dogs."
"A boy has adventures with his dogs."
"a heartwarming and sad story"
"The boy and his dogs hunt together."

Behind The Bedroom Wall, by Laura E. Williams
"A young Nazi discovers her parents have been hiding Jews behind her bedroom wall."
"It makes you wish this story never had to happen."
"I recommend it because of its great emotions."
"It seemed true."

Something Upstairs, by Avi
"There's a ghost in a boy's new house."
"The boy has to help the ghost."
"I liked the story because it was descriptive."

Letters from Rifka, by Karen Hesse
"A girl and her family try to escape from Russia to come to the U.S."
"They do not want to get caught."
"I could picture what was happening, like it was a movie."

Roll of Thunder Hear My Cry, by Mildred D. Taylor
"Because of racism, the Logan family has to fight to keep their land."
"I'm enjoying reading this book."

Cinderella 200, by Mavis Jukes
"Ashley has an interfering stepmother and bratty stepsisters."
"Will Ashley get to spend New Years with her (hopefully) soon-to-be boyfriend?"
"I like books with girls who have cruel mothers."