Controversial Picture Books

"Rose Blanche"
 is a controversial picture book written by Roberto Innocenti and Christophe Gallaz.
I give this book 5 ***** out of 5 stars.

Summary: Rose Blanche is a school age girl in Nazi Germany. She sees the soldiers in the streets with tanks. She is very descriptive of the sights and sounds she experienced. One day she witnesses a young boy jump out of the back of a truck and try to run away. Soldiers with guns stop him (pictured below) and force him back into the vehicle. She is interested in where the tank is going and decides to follow it. She follows it to a concentration camp where she becomes friends with the children inside. Over the course of the next few days, she steals food and feeds the children. One day, Rose left school early to run to the concentration camp. She saw the soldiers driving the opposite direction from the camp, confused she runs to the camp where nothing stands. In the scene, Rose places a flower on the barbed wire and there are soldiers in the background shooting. These soldiers are dressed different than the Nazi's she is used to seeing. The next scene shows a damaged town and Rose's mother is awaiting Roses return. The seasons begin to change with no return. The last image is the flower rose once held, wilting away on the barbed wire.

This book is extremely controversial. The images are very vivid. You open the book and the first thing you see is Nazi Germany with swasticas plastered everywhere. When Rose finds the concentration camp the children are very thin and only become thinner as the story progresses. Although the images and content are controversial I believe the story it tells allows children to visualize what happened during that time period. We can teach them fact after fact but this story, although fictional, gives them a perspective from someone who would have been around their age. It is also rather educational and can be used as a "mini-lesson" when talking about this time period. Parents may disagree with your choice to use this book in your curriculum and you need to be prepared to defend your choice.





"Where Did I Come From?"
is written by Peter Mayle, illustrated by Arthur Robins and designed by Paul Walter.

I would give this book 2 ** out of 5 stars.

Summary: This book explains to children how babies are made. They begin by the mother and father loving each other very much (pictures included) and explain the act of making love. What happens when making love is over and how a baby progresses throughout the nine months they are inside the mother. This book also describes the labor process and why children have belly-buttons.

This book is helpful for parents whose children are asking questions such as where do babies come from? But I do not believe this book has a place in an elementary education classroom. The content is not vulgar but the pictures that accompany are a little inappropriate for children in first or second grade to see. This book may also send some parents into an up roar. Parents may not be ready to tell their children about this process and may believe that a classroom at this age is not appropriate either. This book would be helpful for children of all ages who ask these types of questions but I am not sure if it is right for the classroom.