Nonfiction Picture Book Wednesday 3.30.16 The Wildest Race Ever

Every Wednesday I join Alyson Beecher from kidlitfrenzy and other

kidlit bloggers to share wonderful nonfiction picture books.

The intention of today's blog is to give educational professionals

new nonfiction reading material and ideas to use 

with students to promote a love of reading nonfiction materials.

I still don't know what made me sign up for my first marathon.  I was hooked by the running swag bag.  Don't know about the swag bag?  Or expos?  Or medals?  That's the dangling carrot for me.  What gets me signing up for races again and again.  On the weekends, I often have on a sweatshirt that came from one of my many races.  It's fun to buy those at the expos.  I have a wall of medals that I proudly display.  It's in a room I rarely go in, but that's ok, I know they are there.  The medals that come from races held at Disney are the best.  I run ridiculous amounts of races there just to get the super cool medals.  And while I was racking up the 13.1 mile medals and sweatshirts, I guess I really needed one that said 26.2 on it.  The nifty bumper stickers for your car are sweet swag too.  I switched out the 13.1 for the 26.2 real fast!  And after I did that first marathon, you would think I learned my lesson, but no.  I signed up for two more.  I think three is a nice number.  I'm content with that.  I obviously like running, right?  Nope.  Really don't.  I don't get that runner's high, but I've heard about it.  For me it's all about having a goal and working towards it.  And when I finish those races, I get the same thing as the people who came in fourth place (because sometimes the runners who win really do get a "purse"/cash prize).  

The Wildest Race Ever

by Meghan McCarthy

published by Simon & Schuster Books

When I read Meghan McCarthy's newest book, The Wildest Race Ever, I loved it because of the connection I had with it.  There's something that makes you feel good when you can relate to other people putting their bodies through this crazy torture.  My favorite line was at the end of the book, "He claimed he would not run again.  But like all good long-distance runners, who are compelled to keep running, Hicks did the same."  Been there, done that.

This is a book that I will put in my classroom library.  I think young readers will enjoy reading about the competitive part of this sport.  They will enjoy the back and forth between the runners, never knowing for sure who will win.  McCarthy has a layout early on showing some of the key players in the race.  I would flip back to this page frequently so I knew who was who.

McCarthy talks directly to the reader at times, asking the readers opinion over something that could be considered controversial.  What a great opportunity for students to come up with an opinion and use textual evidence to support it.  

I love the end of the book.  McCarthy wraps up the book with a perfect conclusion that brings the theme and the events of the book together.

Check this book out soon!  I think readers will run away with it (ha, see what I did there?).