February 2007 Archives

CCBC Choices is always one of my favorite lists of the year.  Not only does it not pick a winner, but it offers such a range of multicultural, multiethnic, multi-everything books that no other list can quite compare.  I always find myself placing more books on hold at the library than with any other list, and each one is an amazing book. 

Now that I am no longer doing children's programming, I have given up attending most of the continuing education about children's services.  The one that I simply can't give up is the presentation by the CCBC where they come and hand sell the books they have selected.  I hope to be there again this year.

Later drafts of the list will have annotations and recommended ages for all of the books, but this first glimpse is the most exciting! 

Here are some of my faves from the list:

Move! by Steve Jenkins and Robin Page.
An Island Grows by Lola Schaefer.
Summer Is Summer by Phillis Gershator.
Winter Is the Warmest Season by Lauren Stringer.
One Potato, Two Potato by Cynthia DeFelice.
The Little Red Hen by Jerry Pinkney.
The Magic Horse of Han Gan by Chen Jiang Hong.
Dizzy by Jonah Winter.
Meow Ruff by Joyce Sidman.
Superhero ABC by Bob McLeod.
Black? White! Day? Night! by Laura Vaccaro Seeger.
Bebe Goes Shopping by Susan Middleton Elya.
Boo and Baa Have Company by Lena Landstrom.

This is obviously going to go on forever!  I have read more titles on the list this year than ever before.  Usually I recognize only a handful and am lead to a myriad of great reads.  This year I seem to have read and enjoyed more than I missed.  I am amazed.

Anyway, it is a super list.  Filled with great reads for all ages.  Check it out!

Nibble Nibble by Margaret Wise Brown, illustrated by Wendell Minor.

Yes, yes, I know that I should save this for Poetry Friday, but I just adore this book.  It is one of those that if I had gotten a galley copy of it, I would have kept it all for myself and not shared with my library. 

These five rabbit poems were first published in 1959.  Margaret Wise Brown's poetry demonstrates what children's poems should be about, being both accessible and broadening at the same time.  My favorite is Nibble Nibble Nibble which repeats and repeats using different heartbeat sounds.  Here is the opening stanza:

Nibble Nibble Nibble
Goes the mouse in my heart
Nibble Nibble Nibble
Goes the mouse in my heart
Nibble Nibble Nibble
Goes the mouse in my heart
And the mouse in my heart is
You

The structure of the poem is both simple and powerful, but it also allows children to jump right in and create their own poetry on the spot.  At the end of sharing this with my five-year-old, I was being told that Snap Snap Snap, Goes the crab in his heart.  And it went on and on with new sounds and new animals.  This is exactly what I want books and poetry to do for children, given them a form to hold on to and then the opportunity to make it their own and use their own imagination and creativity.

And then let's talk about the art!  What makes this version special are the incredible paintings by Minor which capture rabbits in all of their cute, fuzzy glory.  His paintings are naturalistic and vivid, erasing all of those too saccharine bunnies from your mind, you return to what rabbits are all about.  Fur, long ears, and jumps.  Lovely stuff.  I want that painting of the end of summer rabbit next to the milkweed.  Sigh.  Makes me think of my childhood playing in the tall grass.  Perfection.

Share these poems, love the language, appreciate the artistry.  This one is an absolute winner.

The Bunnies Are Not in Their Beds by Marisabina Russo.

Three sweet little white bunnies are tucked in bed, warm and cozy.  All is quiet while Mama and Daddy sit reading downstairs.  But then they hear an odd noise coming from upstairs.  "Sounds like the bunnies are not in their beds."  The parent bunnies put the children back to bed again, resume their quiet time downstairs, but are again interrupted by noise from above.  This happens again and again with the parents getting more and more irate at the behavior.  The ending is a fun twist for children who also hate to go to bed.

I love many things about this book.  First, there are the quiet moments of the parents downstairs, reassuringly dull and normal for children who assume that once they are in bed the parents start having real fun.  Then there are the odd noises from above that lead to the parents heading upstairs and then the page turn occurs where children listening to the story have a chance to guess what is causing the ruckus this time.  Nicely done to create a little intrigue and participation.  I also appreciate that while the parents are very patient at first, they do hit the end of their rope and finally list all of the things in a loud voice (or at least in capital letters) that the little bunnies are not to do at bedtime. 

Add this one to a spring storytime on bunnies or your pajama storytime about heading to bed.  Preschoolers will enjoy it most of all.

(In the interest of full disclosure, this was sent to me by the publisher.)

Nominees for the 2006 Andre Norton Award for Young Adult Science Fiction and Fantasy have been announced! And what a great list it is!

  Magic or Madness by Justine Larbalestier.

Midnighters: Touching Darkness by Scott Westerfeld.

Peeps by Scott Westerfeld.

Devilish by Maureen Johnson.

The King of Attolia by Megan Whalen Turner.

Life As We Knew It by Susan Beth Pfeffer.

Lady Friday by Garth Nix.

This is book five in the Keys of the Kingdom series, which is a series perfect for kids who appreciate unique settings, quirky characters and fantasy. 

This fifth book is set in the Middle House.  Arthur now has four of the Keys and is seeking the fifth.  He is trying not to use the power of the fourth key on his quest because if he continues to use the power of the House then he will not be able to return to Earth and his family.  Leaf, one of Arthur's human friends, has been captured by Lady Friday who delights in drinking the experiences of humans, leaving them without their memories.  Arthur's own mother has been captured as well, driving him to confront Lady Friday and attempt a rescue. 

As always the settings of the series are amazingly creative and unique.  I loved the idea of charged water that carries items with writing on them ever higher up a series of locks.  The action in this piece of Arthur's journey is slower and less frantic than in previous novels, but it is a relief after the battlefields of the 4th book in the series.  Nix seems always able to finesse the pacing of the novels to suit the setting. 

This is a must-read for those following the series.  It is also a series that should be recommended for kids who enjoy Harry Potter and are looking for an alternative.  The Keys series has its own sense of humor, lots of darkness, plenty of action, yet is entirely different than any other series.  It is not derivative at all.  Rather it is a flight of unfettered imagination bottled for fantasy lovers.

Green As a Bean by Karla Kuskin, illustrated by Melissa Iwai. 

If you were green what would you be?  A bean, a leaf, a blade of grass?  What?  Filled with language that is strong and evocative, this book features illustrations that are equally strong and vibrant.  Again and again the question is asked about what you would be. If you were square?  If you were loud?  If you were small?  What would you be?  The choices listed are just the tip of the iceberg and are varied and interesting enough to get children's own imaginations going. 

This picture book is one that creates discussion when it is being read.  If you read it to a group, be prepared to hear all sorts of ideas and thoughts spontaneously shared.  I would encourage using it with an art project where kids could use the different colors and shapes and qualities in the book to create a picture of what they would be. 

Terrible Storm by Carol Otis Hurst, illustrated by S. D. Schindler.

This is the story of two of Carol Otis Hurst's grandfathers who grew up near one anther and were friends since boyhood.  They couldn't have been more different.  Walt is outgoing and happiest when in a crowd while Fred is quiet and enjoys being home alone working on projects.  Then a blizzard hits and Walt finds himself alone in a barn with only cats and farm animals for company while Fred is stuck in an inn filled with all sorts of people.  Both of them are horrified by where they are trapped.  Even as old men they still reminisce about the terrible storm.

I so enjoyed this book with its old-fashioned feel and great quiet sense of humor that is present in every picture.  The use of almost comic-like panels really emphasizes the juxtaposition of the two men and their discomfort with their predicament. 

Add this to your snowy story times, especially if you are sharing stories with kindergarteners or older.  They will appreciate it more than preschoolers. 

Silly Billy by Anthony Browne.

Anthony Browne is one of my favorite picture book authors.  He has a wonderfully skewed perspective and his art is unique and great fun. 

With Silly Billy, Browne introduces Billy who is a bit of a worrier.  He worries about everything while trying to fall asleep.  And I mean everything from hats to shoes to giant birds.  Even though his father and mother try to reassure him, it doesn't work.  Then when he is staying over at his grandmother's house, she gives him some worry dolls.  And they work at least for a little while, until Billy begins to worry about the dolls being worried.  In the end, Billy solves that problem and moves on with a lot fewer worries.

The text and illustrations work well together, as they always do in Browne's books.  His deep colors work especially well when contrasted with the almost colorless worry pages.  The blissful pictures of Billy fast asleep are perfection. 

So many kids carry worries around with them and this gives a creative solution to dealing with those overwhelming worries.  Pair it with Wemberly Worried by Kevin Henkes, and you have the start of a bibliotherapy session.  Just kidding!  But they do make a nice pairing.

I have found an incredible resource for reading lists for kids that feature lists by genre, read alikes, recommended read alouds for all ages, themed lists, and much much more. atn-reading-lists simply rocks! They are now a wiki, so that everyone can help contribute to and update the reading lists. This is definitely a place to have bookmarked if you are creating your own lists for your library. What a resource!

I wasn't going to address the infamous scrotum issue, because it is everywhere! AND I find it horribly disappointing and embarrassing that LIBRARIANS are reacting this way. How very very very sad for our profession. Anyway, Gelf Magazine has done some research and found that Youth Literature is Filled with Scrotums.

These librarians causing the fuss need to grow a backbone, stand up for books for children, oppose any sort of censorship based on a single word, and know that there are many things in our profession worth fighting for and freedom to read is certainly one of them!

Librarians are often heard wondering why the general public doesn't understand our passion for service, books and people. Perhaps it is things like this? Grow up, get professional, take a deep breath, share this great book with children, and remember that books have great power. Power that is worth getting damn angry about when it is not defended.

Link to article via Bookslut.

ALSC (The Association for Library Services to Children) has selected the 2007 Notable Computer Software and Online Subscription Services for Children.  The focus is on high-quality programs for children 14 and younger.  It is a great place to find software for children, especially if you are building a circulating collection of software.  There are many on the list that I haven't heard of before, which is just wonderful.

NPR has an interview with author Katherine Paterson and her son David, who wrote the screenplay for the movie of Bridge of Terabithia.  It is an interesting look at how Bridge came about and David's reaction to it. 

Big A Little a links to an interview of Philip Pullman by the Guardian. As thrilled as I am to hear that he loves the Moomin books too, and as lovely as the rest of the interview is, the big news is at the very end.  He says that he is writing a sequel to His Dark Materials!  Amazing!  Thrilling!  And he says that it is long too!  Even better!

Hop!  Plop! by Corey Rosen Schwartz and Tali Klein, illustrations by Olivier Dunrea.

This toddler-friendly book features elephant and mouse who decide to head to the playground and play together.  But each thing they try doesn't work.  The seesaw won't move up and down with mouse on one end and elephant at the other, even when mouse eats an entire watermelon!  Elephant pushes Mouse too hard on the swings, and when Elephant tries they break under his weight.  When they are just about to give up, Elephant offers Mouse his trunk as a slide.  It is a perfect solution.

The text of this book is perfect for toddlers who will recognize all of their favorite playground toys and will enjoy the slapstick humor.  The illustrations by Dunrea are very child-friendly and even when Mouse falls or bumps there is no fear of him being hurt because the illustrations are so soft and welcoming. 

Share this in toddler storytimes.  They will enjoy it!

Who's Hiding by Satoru Onishi.

This wonderfully fresh and friendly "I Spy" type book offers a chance for the youngest readers to hunt and find.  At first the book has you finding the animal that is hiding, or crying, or angry, but then at the end of the book it changes to be more challenging when all you are given are the animals' eyes and you have to remember which order they were presented in.

The artwork is lots of fun with animals who look like Fisher Price beasts but with a lot more character.  The colors are bright, the premise is clever, and it is a book that both adults and children will enjoy.

This is a lap book to share with any preschooler.  It iwll not project well to a group of children.  Read to individually, children will love the colors and animals.

The Magic Horse of Han Gan by Jiang Hong Chen.

Oh how I love this book!  It is an amazing story combined with amazing art work that mesh together to create a whole that is well, amazing!  (I promise to come up with another adjective in the next paragraph.)

Han Gan was a poor child who loved art but could not afford the supplies.  When a famous artist sees him sketching horses in the sand, he offers to fund his supplies.  Han Gan drew all day long, loving especially to draw horses.  Han Gan's drawings grew so very lifelike that they almost seemed ready to jump right off the pages.  When Han Gan is approached to really create horses that come to life, he puts his heart and soul into it and finally does just that, creating a horse that didn't need sustenance or rest. 

This book is a perfect melding of art and subject with homage being paid to traditional Chinese art and a traditional Chinese story.  It is illustrated using the same techniques that Han Gan himself used.  As a reader, I wasn't aware of that until I read the final page, but instinctively I knew that something special had been created here that truly drew upon the art of this legendary person.

This is a picture book for elementary age children.  I would recommend it for art classes, units on legends, or as a glimpse into China.  It is so very lovely that it needs to be recommended to children who love art, horses, or just a great read.

One Naked Baby: counting to ten and back again by Maggie Smith.

Toddler books can either be frighteningly saccharine or a joyous romp.  This one is firmly in the second category but remains sweet.  The book starts with one naked baby dashing down the hall.  It counts along as the child is dressed, fed, and then out the door into the yard.  Once outside it counts back down to one and a return to the bath. 

This is a bright, friendly book that celebrates toddler loves like goldfish crackers, feathers, sticks and of course, puddles and mud.  It is a perfect fit for a spring toddler storytime.  Makes me want spring to come so that I can stomp in some puddles myself.

The 2006 Cybils are as follows:

Fantasy & Science Fiction:
Ptolemy's Gate by Jonathan Stroud (HURRAH!!!)

Fiction Picture Books:
Scaredy Squirrel by Melanie Watts. (Which has a sequel that is coming out soon or just released)

Graphic Novels:

Ages 12 and Under:
Amelia Rules! Volume 3: Superheroes by Jim Gownley.

Ages 13 and Up:
American Born Chinese by Gene Yang

Middle Grade Fiction:
A Drowned Maiden's Hair by Laura Amy Schlitz

Non-Fiction Middle Grade and Young Adults:
Freedom Walkers by Russell Freedman

Non-Fiction Picture Books:
An Egg Is Quiet by Dianna Aston (HURRAH! I adored this picture book and am SOOO looking forward to their next effort, A Seed Is Sleepy out next week!)

Poetry:
Butterfly Eyes and Other Secrets of the Meadow by Joyce Sidman.

Young Adult:
Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist by Rachel Cohn and David Levithan. (HURRAH! Oh wait, I was a judge...) :)

Make sure you check out the winners of the Cybils today, 2:00 pm central time.  I am very thrilled to have been a judge on the YA committee.  We picked a great book as the winner and did it with a real shared spirit of love of books and appreciation for teen readers.  It was so much fun to participate! 

If you didn't sign up to be on a nominating committee or judging committee this year, make sure you join us next year.  And if you don't blog, this is a great reason to get started.  :)

A gorgeous website is at the heart of a new online book community, readergirlz.  Starting on March 1st, they will be featuring one book a month with at least one strong female character.  Hurrah! 

The divas behind this are four authors of teen books, Dia Calhoun, Janet Lee Carey, Lorie Ann Grover, and Justina Chen Headley.  Visit their MySpace page and leave comments. 

This is a great idea by a great group of strong females.  My only request is an RSS feed for new content. 

I love it when a publisher goes all out and really builds a site around a book.  This is especially effective for teen readers.  The new thriller by Kevin Brooks has gotten this treatment with a debate, large excerpts from the book, news, and promises of more content as the March release date gets closer. 

Whose Chick Are You? by Nancy Tafuri.

I am a fan of Tafuri who manages to create picture books for the smallest children without being saccharine or condescending.  This book is about a gray chick that doesn't seem to belong to anyone.  But the chick's parents know and come immediately to find him once he calls. 

The text is large and simple, filled with animal noises that toddlers and preschoolers will love to help make.  The illustrations are large, bright, and child-friendly. 

Perfect for a read aloud for spring, ducks, birds, and many more.  Share this with a group of toddlers or with a beginning preschool class.  Tafuri scores another "croo" with this one.

The Adventures of Max and Pinky:  Best Buds by Maxwell Eaton III.

Looking for a book that is pure silly fun?  Well, this is it.  Max is best friends with Pinky the pig.  They both love marshmallows but not sharing them.  They love doing things together, but sometimes do things separately.  And on Saturdays they have an adventure together.  When Max can't find Pinky on Saturday, he searches for him everywhere until a polar bear reminds him where Pinky is sure to be. 

This is a silly, silly book.  There are running gags about marshmallows, great asides from animals in the background, and wonderfully funny scenarios like Pinky being abducted by evil bunny rabbits. 

This is a lap book because of the silliness and the asides, as well as the fact that children will want to hear it again and again.  The text is very brief but the humor makes it most appropriate for kindergarteners and older who will appreciate it most.

The Invention of Hugo Cabret by Brian Selznick.

Let me add my voice to the large chorus of appreciative sounds from readers all over.  This book is something special.  Hugo is a boy who lives in the walls of a train station in Paris.  He keeps the intricate clocks of the station running ever since his father died and his uncle disappeared.  He can't cash his uncle's paychecks, so he is forced to steal from throughout the train station.  Hugo's world revolves around an automaton that his father discovered in a museum attic.  Hugo discovered the automaton half-destroyed after a fire at the museum that killed his father.  Hugo devotes all of his extra time restoring the automaton to see what message it holds.  As he transverses the station, he encounters a grumpy elderly toy seller who creates intricate toys and a girl his age who loves books and wants to know Hugo's secrets. 

This book is an amazing combination of art and story, where the art sets a tone and tells a large part of the story.  The art is black-and-white and done with such skill that it is very lifelike and beautiful.  The art is as much a part of the story as the words themselves.  It is impossible to think about this book without the illustrations which are done so vividly that my memory has changed them into full color almost photographic images.

The book is large at over 500 pages, but reads very quickly and is made accessible by the amount of white space as well as the illustrations which are primarily done on double-page spreads.  The language of the writing is fresh and makes the reading quick and fun.  Readers will be caught up in the mystery of the automaton and his creator. 

The entire book, story and images, are a complete work of art.  I look forward to more books by this author with high hopes that he will continue to illustrate them this richly.  Recommended for readers who enjoy graphic novels, boys who may not usually warm to full novels, and children who still want some pictures in their books.  But also warmly recommended to all readers of all ages who want a glimpse of art combined with some magic all its own.

Surrender by Sonya Hartnett.

If you are looking for a dark, deep, disturbing read for teens, look no further.  Hartnett's latest is a psychological study of a dying boy.  Gabriel is slowly dying and remembers his strange childhood growing up in a small town but being shunned by the majority of the community because of his strange parents.  He lives under their cruelty and does not find freedom until he meets Finnegan, who volunteers to be the bad boy while Gabriel strives to be perfectly good.  Finnegan is a wild boy, who has no family and lives on his own in the forest.  He begins to exact revenge on people who are mean to Gabriel and over the course of several years burns down buildings, sets fire to cars, and eliminates the welcome sign to the town.  He is never caught even though the police and Gabriel's father, the town attorney, devote years to it.  The relationship between the two boys is always a struggle, and never a real friendship though they are like two sides of a coin.

Psychological thrillers are always hard to review, because they rely on the surprises and twists to be thrillers.  I don't want to reveal too much about the plot and lose some of the tortured thrill of the novel.  The book reveals its secrets slowly and revels in the twists and turns of the plot.  It is a book that drags the reader into a web and leaves them there, fighting to figure out what is really happening.  I can't think of another book that does this so very well.

I do need to mention that the writing is exquisite.  Hartnett uses words to hide, reveal, puzzle and shock.  She is a master.  Her art moves this book to another level.  It is a horror of a novel, but written with beauty and art.  A true conundrum that really functions well. 

Recommend this to good readers who enjoy horror or thrillers.  The cover is wonderful and will lead the right readers straight to the book. 

Babies in the Bayou by Jim Arnosky.

This book is filled with evocative illustrations of bayou animals.  The illustrations are deep colored, naturally accurate, and reveal the hidden life of the bayou.  They are combined with text that is simple but also has hidden depths.  Together the words and pictures form a perfect match that will be welcoming to small children.

I appreciated the fact that the book comes full circle, demonstrating the cycle of nature in a subtle way without being heavy handed.  I also enjoyed the various perspectives of the illustrations which often reveal the relationship between two species without words. 

The book is simply lovely.  Don't save it for a swamp unit, instead share this one whenever you do a story time on alligators, ducks, or turtles.  It is too lovely not to share.

Duck Duck Goose by Tad Hills.

Oh what joy!  A new Duck & Goose book!  I was very partial to the first in the series, and consider this a wonderful sequel.  Duck and Goose are still friends, but when a new duckling, Thistle, is added to the mix the threesome just doesn't work.  Goose tries to play along with Thistle's competitive games, but eventually heads off alone to look for butterflies.  It isn't much later that Duck also gives up playing with Thistle and looks for Goose.  In the end, the two of them discover that they enjoy quiet times together after Thistle wins one last game.

The illustrations are as nice as the first, switching between white backgrounds and lush greenery.  The wording is equally child-friendly and made to read aloud. 

Perfect for a preschool storytime on ducks or friendship, I would also use this for a filler in any story time at all.  It is a winner!

Every Sunday, the great comic strip Unshelved focuses their comic on a specific book. On February 4th, their choice was one of my faves of last year, Kiki Strike! You can see the strip here. Enjoy!

ALSC now has a wiki for children and technology: ALSC ChildTech Wiki. The use of technology with children specifically is vastly more complicated that using it with adults. There is filtering, questioning whether promoting technology moves children further from reading books, questioning whether use of technology is good for developing minds, and much more. To get a better handle on the ongoing discussion, read the wiki. If you have strong opinions of your own, contribute!

The Edgar Nominees have been announced by the Mystery Writers of America.  They do awards for everything from adult novels to TV episodes to films.  And of course they have both a juvenile book category and teen category.  The nominees for those two categories are as follows:

JUVENILE

Gilda Joyce: the Ladies of the Lake by
 Jennifer Allison.

The Stolen Sapphire: a Samantha Mystery by Sarah Masters Buckley.

Room One: a mystery or two by Andrew Clements. 

Snatched by Pete Hautman.

The Case of the Missing Marquess: an Enola Holmes Mystery by Nancy Springer.


YOUNG ADULT:

The Road of the Dead by Kevin Brooks. 

The Christopher Killer by Alane Ferguson.

Crunch Time by Mariah Fredericks.

Buried by Robin Merrow MacCready.

The Night My Sister Went Missing by Carol Plum-Ucci. 

I love finding great book lists online, and this is one of them!  Weapons of Mass Instruction is a collection of anti-war books done on a wiki, so you can add any titles that you think should be part of the list.  Browse through titles by age, Spanish and Japanese titles, graphic novels, manga, and links to other online resources. 

Boy, we should be doing this for all sorts of booklists.  I love the wiki idea where we can pool together our knowledge of children's literature.  Beware, the gears in my head are turning! 

Unicorn Races by Stephen J. Brooks, illustrated by Linda Crockett.

Unicorn Races arrived in my mailbox this weekend.  I added it to the large pile of books waiting to be reviewed.  But my son had a different idea and asked me to read it to him immediately.  I know that the sparkling lettering and amazing unicorns had a lot to do with it. 

The book is about a young girl, Abigail, who instead of going to sleep at night after being tucked in, goes out into the night with a unicorn to the unicorn races.  She dresses and acts as a princess throughout the night, judging who has won the race, dining on sweets, and flying on the back of her unicorn friend.  The book is illustrated in deep purples and pinks and filled with sparkling unicorns, fairies and elves.  One of the big appeals of this book is that there is no scariness to the night that Abigail goes out into.  There is only magic, wonder and a feeling of safety. 

This book is not one that will win any awards on literary merit, new subject matter, or breaking boundaries.  However, it is filled with child appeal.   From the sparkling title to the very colors and language used, Brooks knows his audience.  This book will fly off of library shelves into the hands of girls who dream of being princesses and befriending unicorns.  Recommend it to any small girl entering the library with a My Pretty Pony and they won't be disappointed. 

Space Leftovers: a book about comets, asteroids, and meteoroids by Dana Meachen Rau, illustrated by Denise Shea.

My five-year-old is loving space nonfiction right now.  The books vary amazingly in quality for such a young reader.  But this book by Rau hits the mark perfectly as a readaloud all about space rocks. 

The pictures are very child friendly and the text is exactly the right amount for kindergarteners and first graders to absorb.  Add in the fun facts on each page, and you have all of the interesting details that fuel the love of astronomy in children.  Share this with a class studying outer space or hand it to a space-loving child. 

G Is for One Gzonk: an alpha-number-bet book by Tony DiTerlizzi.

This book, written by Tiny DiTerlooney aka Tony DiTerlizzi, is an homage to Dr. Seuss with wildly imaginative creatures named amazing names who follow in alphabetical order (kind of).  DiTerlizzi offers his own special mix of language, humor and illustration that modernize the classic format.  I enjoyed that this was an alphabet book for older children where only the creature matches the letter being featured and DiTerlizzi takes pains to point out how nothing else on the page matches.  I also appreciated how the narrator of the book is drawn in a realistic style while the other illustrations appear flat and drawn.  This changes over the course of the book, which is just charming.

This is not an alphabet book for preschoolers.  This is one to share with first graders and older.  It is very silly, full of laughs, and rather sophisticated.  It will be enjoyed as a lap book or a book to be read to one's self rather than a read aloud for a crowd. 

Tudley Didn't Know by John Himmelman.

This picture book's illustrations immediately drew me in.  The turtles basking in the sun on logs and trailing their limbs in the water captured completely the mood of a summer's day.  But that mood doesn't last long with Tudley around.  When a bird drops a piece of lichen into the pond, Tudley helps out by picking up the lichen and flying it back up to the nest.  Yes, flying.  Tudley doesn't realize what he can and can't do, so he is able to do all sorts of amazing things that turtles don't normally try.  Finally, he is faced with having to do a turtle sort of thing in order to survive, but he has to be shown how to do it. 

I loved the message of this book.  Try to do something before you tell yourself you can't.  I know that it will speak to children who are often told that they can't do something even though deep inside they know that they can.  This book is a great read aloud and will be a wonderful addition to turtle storytimes as well as units on self-esteem. 

I know, I know, I'm the last blogger in the bunch to post that the Last Potter Book is to be Released July 21st. Sigh. Such is the life of a blogging library director.

Anyway, our library is planning a library sleepover where a copy of the book will be opened at midnight and read aloud from. Hurrah! This will be a huge year for Potter fans with not only the final book being released, but also the 5th movie will open on July 13th. That's only a week before the book comes out. Think of the frenzy!

The sixth movie is scheduled for Thanksgiving 2008 release. Whew!

So what do your libraries do for Harry Potter frenzy? At the smaller library I worked at, we had a grand party one year where we created wands. I had dowels and all sorts of doo dads. Each kid created their wand out of whatever they liked and then I had assigned meanings to the different components. The kids loved it! Most of the meanings were complimentary, but some I made just plain silly to get the giggles. Even the cool older kids got caught up in the laughter.

Dimity Dumpty: the Story of Humpty's Little Sister by Bob Graham.

The Dumpty family is part of a traveling circus. They do a high trapeze act, but Dimity is not like the rest of her family.  She is quiet and has no interest in joining the family act.  In fact, her favorite thing is to head for a still place and play music on her flute.  It isn't until her brother Humpty takes a bad fall that she finds her voice and her place.

I enjoyed this story of a quiet child who remains true to herself.  My favorite illustrations are the ones where Dimity is playing her flute surrounded by listeners.  The language used to describe Dimity's playing is also evocative: "soft as a snail on a cabbage leaf, quiet as the grass growing on the hill, gentle as a beetle's breath."  They are a joy to read aloud and really create a sense of who Dimity is by showing and not telling.  It is a lovely thing to find in a picture book. 

Use this with other take offs on nursery rhymes or for units on siblings.  Quiet children, or even noisy ones with a gentle soul will enjoy this book.