Kids, Camels & Cairo (Tales of an International Educator Book 2)
Author: Jill Dobbe
Publisher: Amazon Digital Services LLC
Publication Date: May 29, 2016
Length: 174 Pages
About the Author
Jill Dobbe is an international educator and published author who writes about
her experiences living and working in schools and countries around the
world.
She currently lives in her seventh country, Honduras, with her husband, Dan, and her Yorkie-Poo, Mickey.
The Good, Bad and Ugly in Cairo, Egypt
Jill and Dan Dobbe were experienced educators and worked in international schools around the world for ten years.
When their daughter was a senior in high school, Jill and Dan decided to leave their jobs, family and home in Wisconsin and seek employment in an international school again.
They accepted positions at an international school in Cairo, Egypt. Dan would be a high school principal and Jill would be an assistant principal in an elementary school. Their daughter would spend her senior year of high school in an international high school in Cairo.
All for the Love of Adventure...and the Money Wasn't Bad Either
The author made it clear from the beginning that her life in Cairo was far from glamorous and luxurious. The family's apartment was small and they had a long commute each day to get to work in a van. The atmosphere was rather depressing with dead bodies along the road and often witnessing animal cruelty and neglect.
Mrs. Dobbe found very few positive things about her job at the international school. The students were undisciplined and the parents were not supportive. She struggled with the language barrier and the extreme cultural and religious customs of the teachers and students.
The one highlight of living in Cairo was the opportunity to travel.
The Dobbe family traveled many times during the two years they were in Cairo. They had memorable trips to the Pyramids, Mount Sinai and the Red Sea. The author gave a wonderful description of an unforgettable hot air balloon ride with her mother who came to Cairo for a visit and some Egyptian sightseeing. The book is illustrated with color photographs.
The author briefly mentioned the financial advantages of working abroad.
"During our previous years, we also experienced the extra perks of tax free salaries, furnished housing, moving allowances, and complimentary plane trips back to the U.S. Those perks made working abroad a fruitful, unique and exciting lifestyle for all overseas teachers and administrators. We were excited to have it all again."
This book should be required reading for anyone considering employment at an international school in a foreign country. Mrs. Dobbe was very candid about the problems and obstacles that she faced in Cairo. Kudos to the author and her husband for their perseverance, grit and love of adventure.
MY RATING: 4 Starts Out Of 5.
FYI ~ The author contacted me via email and invited me to read her book and provide an honest review. I borrowed the book with my Kindle Unlimited subscription.
Thank you for visiting my blog and reading this book review. Please share your thoughts in the Comments Section below.
Dream Something Big [The Story of the Watts Towers]
Author: Dianna Hutts Aston
Illustrator: Susan L. Roth
Publisher: Dial Books For Young Readers
Date: August 18, 2011
About The Author
Dianna Hutts Aston is the author of many books for children. In addition to writing for children, Dianna has established an annual Teen Writer’s Workshop for underprivileged Mexican teens and manages her non-profit foundation, The Oz Project.
The Towers
Between 1921 and 1955, Italian immigrant Simon Rodia transformed broken glass, seashells, pottery, and a dream to "do something big" into a U.S. National Landmark. Readers watch the Watts Towers rise from his little plot of land in Watts, California, through the eyes of a fictional girl.
The story is illustrated with beautiful collages made from cut and torn paper, cloth, fibers and other "found" things.
My Thoughts
I had never heard of The Watts Towers until I read this picture book. I am astounded and amazed that one man could accomplish this task. Simon Rodia was a pioneer in reusing and recycling discarded items to create something new and unique. He worked on this project for over thirty years! I can just imagine what his neighbors were thinking.
The towers are now a National Historic Landmark and are considered an example of non-traditional vernacular architecture and American folk art.
This book does a great job presenting American history, art and architecture in a way that children will find interesting and fun. There is a section at the end of the book that shows children how to create their own Watts Tower from pipe cleaners, assorted beads and buttons, magazine clippings and foam shapes.
This is an excellent story of possibility and perseverance for children of all ages.
Highly Recommended.
My Rating: 5 Stars Out Of 5
FYI ~ I checked-out this book from my local public library. I {{heart}} my public library!
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C is for China
By Robyn Chance
Publisher: Rhemalda Publishing
(March 1, 2012)
About The Author
Robyn Chance lives in Olympia, Washington. She is a teacher and an artist. Over the years she has developed a real passion for telling stories about the enchanting world in which we live. Her goal is to help children explore and become curious about the world around them.
Rhymes and Pictures
"C Is For China" is a beautiful picture book that features some of China's history, mythology, language and character. The author wrote this book for her adopted daughter and for all children. She used rhyming text and beautiful watercolor paintings to illustrate the geography, history, people and culture of China.
This book consists of several lines of rhyming text and an illustration for each letter of the alphabet. Here is an example of the rhyming text;
G is for the Great Wall, which took years to create.
It was built for protection, and is anything but straight!
It careens through the mountains and dives through the valleys.
It was made from strong stone and it has many alleys.
The author encourages the young readers to look for Chinese characters that appear on each illustration. The Chinese character that appears on each page represents the main idea presented in that narrative.
My Thoughts
This ebook is a real visual feast. The watercolor illustrations are superb and the rhyming text is an excellent way to engage children in facts and fun.
I viewed this book on the small screen of a Kindle 3 with black-and-white illustrations. The illustrations were printed on the top 1/3 of the page and the text appeared under the picture. The formatting was good and I could easily view the picture and text on each page. I also read the book on my Kindle for PC application on the big screen of my laptop computer. The large color illustrations were outstanding on the larger screen and I enjoyed seeing the details that were not visible in the smaller images on my Kindle.
It really is a small world and a book like this is a great way to make learning an enjoyable experience for kids. I loved this ebook and I think it is a valuable resource for children of all ages. Highly recommended.
My Rating: 5 Stars Out Of 5
FYI ~ I ordered this book when it was offered as a free download from Amazon.Com. Please check the price before ordering.
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I am always pleased when I find a children's book that motivates me to do some research and learn new facts about our country's history. I recently found a copy of A Gullah Alphabet, by Margie Willis Clary, at a Friends of the Library Sale. I read
the book and then started searching the Internet for more information on the Gullah culture.
I learned the Gullah are African Americans who live in the lowcountry region of South Carolina and Georgia, which includes both the coastal plain and the Sea Islands. It is said that the Gullah language originated around 1700 among the Africans who were brought to America to work. The Gullah are known for preserving more of their African linguistic and cultural heritage than any other African-American community in the U.S. They speak an English-based creole language containing many African words and significant influences from African languages in grammar and sentence structure.
Over the years, the Gullahs have attracted many historians, linguists, folklorists, and anthropologists interested in their rich cultural heritage. Many academic books on that subject have been published. The Gullah have also become a symbol of cultural pride for blacks throughout the United States and a subject of general interest in the media. This has given rise to countless newspaper and magazine articles, documentary films, and children's books on Gullah culture, and to a number of popular novels set in the Gullah region.
The book provides a Gullah word for each letter of the alphabet (except X and Z). There is a sentence in Gullah and then the translation in English. Each word is illustrated with a full-page pencil drawing. Here is an example of one page from the book;
C iz de chillun, ney Mudda fut dey play.
C is for the children, at Mama's feet they play.
The author states, "A Gullah Alphabet is written to introduce children to the beauty of the Gullah language. My hope is, it will encourage further research and study of the language and culture."
This book will be a good addition to your language, social studies, African-American, American history, cultural studies and children's book collections. Children of all ages will find this book entertaining and educational.
