Teen Read Week 2009

Don't forget that October 18th to 24th is Teen Read Week in the U.S. This year's theme is Read Beyond Reality, which encourages teen readers to read something fantastical or science fictional, and to explore worlds that have never been. You can find some excellent book and media suggestions here, and more ideas and information about this even here and on the ALA website.

If you have a teen in the house, you might be interested to know that teens can vote for the 2010 Teen Read Theme. Click here to vote.

The National Book Award Finalists for Young People's Literature

The finalists for the 2009 National Book Awards have been announced by the National Book Foundation. For the children's literature category the finalists are:

Deborah Heiligman, Charles and Emma: The Darwins’ Leap of Faith (Henry Holt)

Phillip Hoose, Claudette Colvin: Twice Toward Justice (Farrar Straus and Giroux)

David Small, Stitches (W. W. Norton & Co.)

Laini Taylor, Lips Touch: Three Times (Arthur A. Levine Books/Scholastic)

Rita Williams-Garcia, Jumped (HarperTeen/HarperCollins)

The winner will be announced at the 60th National Book Awards Benefit Dinner and Ceremony in New York City on Wednesday, November 18th.

You can find out more about the awards and the National Book Foundation on the NBF website.

The Man behind the Nobel Peace Prize

Just last week my daughter and I were making breakfast when we heard, on the radio, that President Barack Obama won the Nobel Peace Prize. My daughter wanted to know what the prize is. Luckily I had just reviewed a splendid book about Alfred Nobel and I pulled it off my shelf for her to read. If you too have a child who wants to know about these prizes then take a look at the review I wrote about the book.

Alfred Nobel: The Man behind the peace prize

Kathy-Jo Wargin

Illustrated by Zachary Pullen

Non-Fiction Picture Book

Ages 6 to 10

Sleeping Bear Press, 2009, 1585362816

Years ago, when people wanted to build bridges or roads, they had to blast a path for their work using gunpowder - which wasn’t a safe material to work with. One day Alfred Nobel realized that a substance called nitroglycerin might be safer to use than gunpowder.

With the help of his brother and father, Alfred experimented with nitroglycerin until he came up with a solution that he was sure would work. Though his new invention did work well, it still wasn’t as safe as Alfred had hoped it would be. His brother Emil was killed went something went wrong in the lab. Surely there was something else that Alfred could do to make his invention safer still.

Eventually Alfred created something that was safe. It came to be called dynamite and Alfred became a rich and famous man because of his invention. Alfred had hoped that his invention would foster peace, and he was very distressed when he saw that it was being used to harm people. It saddened him to know that many people “saw him as the man who earned his wealth by inventing ways to injure and kill.” Thankfully, Alfred found a way to leave a legacy that would celebrate peace and reward those who gave the world new innovations in science, and who created memorable written works.

This thought provoking and memorable book celebrates the life and achievements of a truly great man.

Please visit this page to find an interesting and very useful teacher's guide for the book.

Return to the hundred Acre Wood - Pooh is back

I am a huge fan of Winnie-the-Pooh. He is one of those characters I fell in love with when I was around four or five, and I have been in love with him ever since. I was a little unsure of what to think of the new Pooh book when I heard about it. Would this book be a tribute to A.A.Milne's creations, or would it be a black spot on the name of all things Pooh?

Well, I now have a copy of Return to the Hundred Acre Wood, and I began to read it within fifteen minutes of recieving it. And within minutes I was chuckling, smiling and nodding my head. So far, the author, David Benedictus, has captured the essence of Poohness. I am only on page 25, but I plan on climbing into bed with the book shortly. Armed with a cup of tea and with my trusty sidekick sitting next to me - the Pooh my godmother made me when I was very little - I will read on. Watch this space for more.

Winter's Tail - An inspirational story - Prize Pack Giveaway!

Last week I read and reviewed a delightful book about a baby dolphin who has managed to overcome a severe physical handicap, the loss of her tail. The book is called Winter's Tail: How one little dolphin learned to swim again. This true story is not only inspirational, but it also shows young readers that even the worst of tragedies can have a happy ending.

Here is my review:

Winter’s Tail: How one little dolphin learned to swim again

Juliana Hatkoff, Isabella Hatkoff, and Craig Hatkoff

Nonfiction picture book

Ages 6 to 9

Scholastic, 2009, 0545123356

One winter morning a baby dolphin got tangled in a crab trap. The ropes of the trap were wrapped around the baby dolphin’s tail and the tail was severely injured. A local fisherman freed the baby from the ropes, and then he called for help when it was clear that she was not doing well at all.

A few hours later, a rescue team arrived. The baby, who was named Winter, was taken to the Clearwater Marine Aquarium in Florida. There she was fed with a milk mixture and her wounds were tended to. Unfortunately, Winter’s tail had been so badly damaged that it fell off. All Winter had to swim with was a stump. She did manage to learn how to swim with her stump, but she had to move her body from side to side like a fish, instead of up and down like a dolphin, and this movement started to affect her spine.

People all over th

e country heard about Winter and her accident, and the one person came forward with a solution for Winter’s problem.

Animal lovers of all ages will greatly enjoy this inspiring and moving story about a courageous dolphin who, with the help of human technology, has been able to overcome a severe physical handicap. Filled with wonderful photos, this is a story that is uplifting and full of hope.

The book's publisher, Scholastic, is offering one of my reader's a wonderful giveaway. Comment on this post and you will be entered in a drawing for the prize. Here is the information:

Winter’s Tail CHILDREN’S BOOK GIVEAWAY

A Winter’s Tail prize pack!

• Dolphin Plush
• Dolphin Key Chain
• Winter’s Tail game for Nintendo DS
• Copy of Winter’s Tail: How One Little Dolphin Learned to Swim Again Book

Prizing value is $81.99

Shipping Guidelines:

The Winter’s Tail book promotion is open to participants with a United States mailing address only (international readers can enter if they have a friend in the States who can accept their prizes by mail!)

Here are some links that you might like to explore:

The official Winter's Tail website

The Winter's Tail trailer on YouTube

Meet the Authors

Discussion Guide / Lesson Plan

Don't forget Jumpstart's Read for the Record.

On October 8th people all over America will be reading Eric Carle's book The Very Hungry Caterpillar. Consider holding an event in a local school, business or library to raise awareness about literacy issues, and to raise money so that Jumpstart can put books into the hands of children.

Here is more information about the event.

October 8th, more than one million children and adults are expected to team up with a single “Hungry Caterpillar” to help break a world record and draw attention to the early education crisis affecting millions of at-risk young children here in the U.S. and across the globe. The non-profit group Jumpstart and the Pearson Foundation today

announced Jumpstart’s fourth annual Read for the Record Campaign today at the International Reading Association convention in Minneapolis. On this one day in October in thousands of settings across the world, readers of all ages will be joining together to break the record for the number of people reading the same book on the same day.

This year’s official Campaign book is a special, limited edition of the Philomel Books classic The Very Hungry Caterpillar, by Eric Carle. The commemorative book includes a foreward with messages from Matt

Lauer and Meredith Vieira of NBC’s TODAY Show , award-winning actress Mary Louise Parker, and Grammy Award-winning recording artist/actor, LL Cool J. The special limited edition can be purchased online at www.readfortherecord.org/books, where people can also donate books to children in need.

The Pearson Foundation will donate more than 250,000 copies of The Very Hungry Caterpillar to children in need, and invites businesses and other institutions to sponsor additional book donations to children in low-income communities in the U.S. and abroad. Further information can be found at www.pearsonfoundation.org/rftr09. Schools, libraries, civic groups and organizations interested in securing their own commemorative copies can also visit this site to learn more. “The books we read as children provide us with treasured childhood memories,” said Jumpstart’s President James Cleveland. “Unfortunately, most children in low-income communities have few, if any, age-appropriate books in their homes. As a result, they miss out on the reading experiences that form the foundation for success in school and life. In fact, each year one third of America’s children arrive at their first day of school without the skills necessary to succeed. At Jumpstart, we’re remedying this problem by giving these young people important one-to-one attention, one child at a time.”

For the fourth consecutive year, the Pearson Foundation is underwriting the cost of the Campaign’s official book, ensuring that more than 100% of the proceeds from sales of this edition directly benefit Jumpstart’s work with at-risk children. From now through the fall, The Pearson Foundation and Jumpstart will be working with teachers,

district superintendents, government officials, libraries, businesses, parent groups, and educational organizations to organize reading events on October 8 and to donate copies of The Very Hungry Caterpillar to Head Start and other early learning centers, elementary schools, and other places that serve low-income children. “Focusing everyone’s attention on one book for a single day is a great way to highlight the importance of reading as the foundation for all

other learning,” said Pearson Foundation President Mark Nieker. “Additionally, the Read for the Record Campaign shines the spotlight on the critical role Jumpstart is playing in closing the gap in school readiness between children from low-income communities and their middle income peers.” Over the past three years, more than one million people have taken part in this record-breaking Campaign. Jumpstart’s Read for the Record has raised more than $3 million to support Jumpstart’s mission and more than 500,000 books have been donated to children in need.

In addition, Jumpstart and Pearson’s innovative Read for the Record collaboration has been awarded a coveted Cause Marketing Halo Award. The campaign is further supported by national campaign sponsors American Eagle Outfitters and Sodexo. For more information, visit www.readfortherecord.org and www.pearsonfoundation.org. In addition to information on how to participate, the websites provide information about donating books to Jumpstart children, as well as hosting and joining shared reading events across the nation.

Waiting for winter - A Review

Here in Oregon we sweltered our way through most of September until this week. Now fall is here, all of a sudden. Indeed it landed on us with a thump! There even was frost on the hills above town yesterday, and some places at higher elevations got their first snow. Hearing about the snow I was reminded of a book that I reviewed a week or so ago. It is called Waiting for Winter. I know I am jumping ahead a little, season wise, but this book charmed me so much that I just have to tell you about it. Here is my review.

Waiting for Winter

Sebastian Meschenmoser

Picture Book

Ages 5 to 7

Kane Miller, 2009, 1935279041

Winter is on its way and Deer tells Squirrel that it will soon snow. Squirrel, who usually sleeps through winter, has no idea what snow is. This year he is determined that he will get to see snow. There is a problem though, the snow does not arrive straight away, and squirrel waits and waits. What if he falls asleep and misses the snow?

Squirrel decides that he should run around to get some fresh air and exercise. That should keep him awake. All the noise he makes running to and fro wakes up Hedgehog. Hedgehog decides that he too will stay awake to see the snow. To keep awake, Hedgehog and Squirrel sing sea shanties. There is nothing like a good song to keep one awake. Unfortunately, Bear is trying to have a nap nearby and he cannot possibly sleep when Squirrel and Hedgehog are singing. Bear decides that he might as well stay awake to see the snow too.

This hilarious picture book will have readers of all ages laughing out loud. The wonderful pencil illustrations are vibrant and beautifully expressive, and the mistakes the animals make as they try to find snow are deliciously silly and funny. This is a book that cannot fail to entertain and delight.

Be warned, this book will really make you laugh!!

Fall is here - I think

Though the first day of autumn (for the northern hemisphere) was a week ago, it has been so hot here in southern Oregon that it has felt like high summer. To top it off, we have had numerous wildfires in the area, and the valley has been flooded with smoke. Yesterday, finally, it began to cool off and the smoke dissipated. I was able to see the mountains again, and I actually noticed that some of the trees in town are starting to lose their leaves. Today it might even rain!

In honor of these changes, I am going to share a review with you. The book, Leaf Trouble, is a delightful title about a squirrel who experiences his first fall.

Leaf Trouble

Jonathan Emmett

Illustrated by Caroline Jayne Church

Picture Book

Ages 4 to 7

Scholastic, 2009, 0545160707

One morning, when he smells the fresh breeze blowing around his tree, Pip Squirrel realizes that “something’s changed.” For the first time Pip sees that the leaves on his oak tree are no longer green. They are yellow, orange and red. The sight surprises the little squirrel so much that he literally falls down to the ground. He becomes quite distressed when he sees that the leaves are not only changing color, but they are falling off the tree.

Frantically Pip and his sister Blossom collect up the fallen leaves and they try to stick them back on the tree. Alas, this does not work and Pip and Blossom are a loss. What can they do to save their beloved tree.

Through the eyes of a charming little squirrel, Jonathan Emmett shows young children that change can be a good thing. Wonderful things happen as the seasons unfold, and we can both look forward to what is happening now, and we can look forward to what is to come.

Jonathan Emmett’s story is beautifully complimented by Caroline Jayne Church’s warm multimedia illustrations, which have a unique three-dimensional component.

Johnny Appleseed's birthday

On September 26th, 1774, a little boy was born in New England who would become the stuff of legend. He was called John Chapman, but he came be known as Johnny Appleseed, the man who planted thousands of trees around the country.

I have reviewed several books about this interesting man, and one of the best is a title that I reviewed recently. Written by one of America's great children's book writers, Jane Yolen, it is a book that is both entertaining and informative. Here is my review:

Johnny Appleseed

Jane Yolen

Illustrated by Jim Burke

Non Fiction Picture Book

Ages 6 to 8

HarperCollins, 2008, 0060591358

Many of us have heard about Johnny Appleseed, the folk hero who, it is said, traveled around the country planting apple trees. The real story of John Chapman is even more impressive than the legends that came to be associated with his name.

After his father returned home from serving in the revolutionary war armies, John (Johnny) Chapman went to live in Longmeadow, Massachusetts, with his family. Being the son of a poor man, Johnny was not able to stay in school as long as perhaps he would of liked. Instead, he was apprenticed to a local farmer. Johnny learned how to plant and care for apple trees on the farmer’s land, and he grew to love the trees that are so useful and so beautiful.

When he was in his twenties, Johnny decided that he wanted to follow the teachings of Emanuel Swedenborg, a philosopher who believed that people should “do good and spread the doctrine of God’s goodness and bounty.” And so Johnny traveled around the countryside living simply, preaching, and selling people small apple trees that he grew from seed.

In this delightful picture book, Jane Yolen gives her readers a picture of what the real Johnny Appleseed was like. Though verse and prose she tells the story of a man who was often considered “crazy,” but who loved to travel, to share stories, and to give people apple trees. At the end of the book, Yolen also talks about the legend of Johnny Appleseed. She helps young readers to appreciate that this legend is based on the real life story of a man who did indeed do remarkable things.

Blog Book Tour - The Listeners by Gloria Whelan

Yesterday I read and reviewed a wonderful picture book called The Listeners. The author, Gloria Whelan, has written numerous books for young readers of all ages. Her books have won numerous awards, and she frequently uses her considerable writing skills to bring the past alive, weaving together fact and fiction to give her readers a compelling story.

Here is my review of The Listeners:

The Listeners

Gloria Whelan

Illustrated by Mike Benny

Picture Book

Ages 6 to 10

Sleeping Bear Press, 2009, 1585364193

Ella May has to work in the cotton fields all day and it is hard work for a child. In the evenings she has another important job to do, she goes to the great house where the Master lives and she sits under one of the windows to listen. None of the white folks bother to tell the slaves what is happening on the plantation, so they send the young children to listen under the windows. Then the children report back to the adults about what they have heard.

One night Ella May and her two friends Bobby and Sue hear that the Master is going to hire a new overseer “to boss” them. This is good news because the current overseer is a cruel man. On another night Ella May’s father gets a feeling that change is in the air. He tells Ella May that “dangerous times are coming,” and he needs Ella May to listen extra carefully. The news that she brings home that evening is joyous, and everyone has high hopes that real change lies ahead of them.

In this powerful and moving book, Gloria Whelan helps her young readers to see what it was like to be slave child on a southern plantation. She also shows readers that sometimes it pays to listen to what is being said around you, because information can be empowering.

With a simple text and rich illustrations, this picture book will take readers back in time, opening a window to the past.

This is one of the titles in the excellent Tales of Young Americans series.