(4) 4-6 Setting the Stage for Fluency series. Illustrated by Siri Weber Feeney. These plays could be done as readers' theater or staged as a full dramas, although the dialogue is stilted in both. In Gourd, two fugitive slaves learn about the Underground Railroad. Sequoyah makes clear the historical significance of a syllabary for the Cherokee language. The prosaic illustrations may offer costume and setting ideas. Reading list, websites. Glos. Review covers these Setting the Stage for Fluency titles: Follow the Drinking Gourd and Sequoyah and His Talking Leaves.

Reviewer: Melinda Greenblatt