Welcome!

Dear Book Lovers, Welcome! I am delighted that you have found The Through the Looking Glass blog. For over twenty years I reviewed children's literature titles for my online journal, which came out six times a year. Every book review written for that publication can be found on the Through the Looking Glass website (the link is below). I am now moving in a different direction, though the columns that I write are still book-centric. Instead of writing reviews, I'm offering you columns on topics that have been inspired by wonderful books that I have read. I tell you about the books in question, and describe how they have have impacted me. This may sound peculiar to some of you, but the books that I tend to choose are ones that resonate with me on some level. Therefore, when I read the last page and close the covers, I am not quite the same person that I was when first I started reading the book. The shift in my perspective might be miniscule, but it is still there. The books I am looking are both about adult and children's titles. Some of the children's titles will appeal to adults, while others will not. Some of the adult titles will appeal to younger readers, particularly those who are eager to expand their horizons.

Wednesday, April 22, 2009

Happy Earth Day! A book review and book giveaway

Happy Earth Day Everyone! In honor of this important day I have a review to share with you and some book giveaways. A few years ago I came across the Sleeping Bear Press alphabet books, and since then I have been a real fan of these terrific books. Last month I reviewed S is for Save the Planet: A How-to-be-Green Alphabet. Here is my review:

S is for Save the Planet: A How-to-be Green Alphabet
Brad Herzog
Illustrated by Linda Holt Ayriss
Non-Fiction
Ages 6 to 9
Sleeping Bear Press, 2009, 1-58536-428-2
Today, perhaps more than ever before, people around the world are growing to appreciate that “every little bit helps” when it comes to protecting the environment. There are many things that children and their families can do to make this world a cleaner, greener, and healthier place to live.
To help children to see that there are so many things that they can do Sleeping Bear Press put together this clever alphabet book. For each letter of the alphabet, the author has found an environmental topic to explore. Many of the topics include suggestions that show children how they can make green choices every day. For example, on the C page we see a child riding to school so that fuel is conserved and so that less pollution ends up in the air. The L page talks about eating food that is grown locally. Eating food that is fresher and that does not have to travel many miles to get to us is a good strategy.
For every letter of the alphabet, the author gives his readers a poem to enjoy. Younger children will like listening to or reading the two rhyming stanzas that compliment the artwork. In addition to the poems, the author has also written a longer piece of descriptive text. This explores the highlighted topic in more detail. This format allows children of a variety of ages to appreciate this valuable title.
This is just one in a series of informative alphabet books published by Sleeping Bear Press.

The people at Sleeping Bear Press have very kindly donated five copies of this book to offer as giveaways. If you would like a copy drop me a line.

No comments:

Bookmark and Share