Is my Tooth Under Your Table?

George Washington’s Teeth

Written by Deborah Chandra & Madeleine Comora

Illustrated by Brock Cole

Published by Farrar Straus Giroux

Copyright 2003

34 Pages

Historical Fiction

 

            I chose this book about George Washington, because it is about our very first president. Since it is around election time, this book easily caught my attention. I flipped through the book to see the random text and picture placement. I have not yet blogged about a book like this, therefore I was sold. This book is about George Washington having problems with his teeth. All of his teeth became rotten and fell out over a period of time. He was distraught about losing all of his teeth. He was afraid that everyone would make fun of him. He believed he looked like a grandmother. After losing every last one of his teeth, he makes the decision to find all of his teeth to make a mold for dentures. Surprisingly, he finds them all just in time to make it to the ball. This book was very comical and interesting.

            The text placement in this book is informal. The text is arranged to fit above, below, between, and around the pictures. The illustrations are intriguing. The outer edges are not defined by a line of any sort. The pictures mostly fade away at the edges. The illustrations are surrounded by a large amount of negative space in order to make the pictures pop out more. In the beginning of the book, the colors used in the pictures are all dark and dreary. Towards the very end when George regains a set of teeth the pictures are colorful. The colors exemplify more of a pastel style. The images might possibly be done in crayon or something similar.

            This book could be used in a classroom in an enormous amount of ways. First it would be great to use in a history lesson about Presidents and the Revolutionary War. In the back of the book is a timeline of events of George Washington’s life. This would be a great way to discuss the true historical facts of his life. This book could also be used for a literacy lesson. There is a rhyming theme throughout the whole book. The teacher could do a lesson on rhyming words in a lower grade level classroom. Also in this book, George counts down as he loses his teeth. The teacher could use this for a math lesson. It would be more appropriate for lower grade levels, but the teacher could focus on counting down or subtraction.