Amber Brown Is Not A Crayon (original 1994; edition 2006)

I would use this book to have students connect to a friendship they have with someone.

realistic fiction: The story focuses on the friendship between Amber and Justin. They are about to become separated by thousands of miles as Justin is about to move.
Style: ( )

This is a great read for younger readers! The message of this book is wonderful because many young children may be able to relate to the events of this book. It’s about a girl named Amber Brown and her best friend Justin. Justin’s dad has just gotten a new job and they must now move. Amber of course is very upset and doesn’t want him to leave. They then begin to fight and decide that the only way to deal with these issues is to deal with it together. ( )

"Amber Brown is Not a Crayon" is an excellent transition book for readers just begginging to read chapter books. The language is simple enough for third graders and up to understand. This book is about a girl named Amber who has to deal with her best friend moving to another state far away from her. It shares with readers how she overcomes her feelings toward the situation and how she tries to just enjoy the time she has left with her best friend. Many children go through this situation everyday! This is a great book to have in a classroom library! ( )

"Amber Brown is not a crayon. Amber Brown is a person." Despite occasional teasing from her classmates, Amber Brown like her name. She also likes her teacher Mr. Cohen and the "trips" he takes their third-grade class on, to places like China and Australia, as well as her best friend Justin Daniels. (They go way back. To preschool, in fact.) But then Justin's dad get offered a job in Alabama and his family must move.

Amber Brown is an excellent choice for mid to upper elementary schoolers, ideally for third and fourth graders. Amber, who is also the books's narrator, is a fun character to read about, since you can tell right away that she'd make a great friend. She's funny and really insightful for her age, and loyal to the end. The prose is just about at the perfect level for this age group, not to difficult but still challenging enough to be interesting.