Childrens Books

Parents, students, and teachers alike love the summer. It is a time to relax, recharge, and spend extra time with friends and family. However, it is not a time to forget about learning, especially through reading. I express during my spring conferences how important it is for students to read daily over the summer. As a teacher I know that reading every single day, is one of the most important parts of a child’s education. I also know as a parent that it is sometimes difficult to fit it in on some days. Whether your child’s school calls it “summer slide” or “summer slump,” it’s well known that children can lose some of their reading abilities and comprehension skills over the summer. Some students, and even parents, still don’t believe me when I tell them that not reading for two months can affect their overall reading ability come September. Here are some simple suggestions to keep reading a priority every day this summer no matter where you may travel. 1. Always have your child pack a book, or several books, when you prepare for a trip. Even if it is just a weekend trip, add books to your packing list. Chapter book readers may only need 1 or 2 books for short trips, but younger children may need more. My daughter always picks 5–6 books to pack even if we just visit family for a weekend. Now that we have Storia, we just pack the iPad and she has tons of books at her fingertips. 2. Make books a special souvenir! Whether you are visiting the zoo, an aquarium, or even Disney World, every gift shop I have been to sells books. Your child will be so excited from their exhilarating adventure, I am certain they would love to choose a book about it, and want to begin reading it that very day. If you find the gift shop to be too pricey, search Storia for books related to your adventure. 3. Grab brochures, fliers, magazines, and pamphlets in your hotel. Reading doesn’t always have to be just books. Many times these items are free in hotels, and can give your child information about all the exciting sights and events in the area. Your child can even help plan your vacation itinerary with you! 4. To make a reading and writing connection, have your child keep an adventure journal. They can use it to take notes or draw pictures about what they are learning when they visit different places. When they get home, they can use their notes and drawings to make their own nonfiction picture book to share with friends and family and talk about their trip. No matter what you have planned this summer, I highly encourage you make reading and a part of your everyday adventures. This will help your child maintain their reading ability, and they will be ready to share their amazing books and adventures with their new class in September. Happy eReading! Author Bio: Laura Murray is a fourth grade teacher in Paramus, New Jersey. This is her second year using Storia in her classroom and at home with her daughter, and she loves it!

Robot, Go Bot! by Dana Meachen Rau, illustrated by Wook Jin Jung In this most simple of graphic novels, a little girl builds a robot and when she presses the big red button, it comes to life.  The robot happily plays with bubbles with her, plays ball and floats in a boat.  But then, the little girl gets more demanding and has the robot sewing, being a horsie, planting a garden, and mowing the yard.  Finally, the robot has had enough and leaves.  While the girl searches for him, she realizes that she has to be a good friend in order to have a good friend.  Rau has written a very simple book here with only minimal words that often rhyme for even simpler reading.  It is the pictures that really tell this story completely.  Done in comic style, they have rounded panels.  Yet they also have the feel of picture book illustrations with their bright colors and playful feel.  The softness of the illustrations also invite very young children to read.  I appreciated the choice to have the main character a girl, since so many robot books have male characters. Simple and playful, this most beginning of graphic novels is inviting to little children and has the appeal of robots as well.  Appropriate for ages 4-6. Reviewed from digital galley received from Random House. Filed under: Book Reviews, Easy Readers, Graphic Novels Tagged: friendship, robots

The 5th Wave by Rick Yancey The author of the Monstrumologist series returns with this riveting story of alien invasion.  The planet knew that the aliens had arrived, but the silence for days left them feeling hopeful.  Then the 1st wave took away electricity and cars.  The 2nd wave took out the coasts.  The 3rd wave brought the Red Death.  The 4th wave took away trust.  Cassie is one of the survivors of all four waves and just may be the only remaining human on earth.  She has seen her family die, her mother from the Red Death and her father killed right in front of her, but her little brother may still be alive, since he was taken to safety on a school bus.  But Cassie also knows that it is death to trust anyone at all, so she is not sure whether where Sammy was taken is safe or not.  Now she is alone, just her and her M16, trying to reach him.  Then Evan Walker enters her life, saving her from a gunshot wound.  Cassie knows to trust no one.  So how does she deal with a situation where she was to trust to heal and maybe even to save her brother. This is one incredible novel.  The pacing is what I have to talk about first.  There are moments where I could not turn the pages fast enough, then others where I had to walk away for a bit to deal with the latest heart-shattering reveal.  This book is a dance of hope and terror, trust and knowing better.  Yancey proves quickly that he is not afraid to shock, to kill, to maim.  This book is filled with death, filled with despair, yet it is also about strength, hope and humanity.  Yancey writes this perfectly, keeping readers on a razorblade of tension throughout.  A large piece of the success of this book are the characters and the book tells their individual stories.  Cassie is one strong heroine, who is willing to go through hell to get her little brother back.  She is not fearless but is always courageous and willing to do what has to be done.  Readers find out before Cassie herself does what happened to her little brother.  This adds to that tension, especially since one doesn’t trust Yancey not to do horrific things even to the littlest of children.  There is Zombie, a boy that Cassie went to school with, who has been trained to be a child soldier since the aliens came.  And finally, there is Evan, the farmboy heartthrob who is dangerous but delicious too. Expect this to be one of the big books this summer.  It would be a pleasure to booktalk, since the alien invasion in waves basically sells this.  Perhaps most telling of all is that this is now the only way that I see an alien invasion happening.  It is clever, chilling and deadly.  Appropriate for ages 15-17. Reviewed from copy received from Putnam. Filed under: Book Reviews, Teen Tagged: aliens, dystopian, science fiction

The winners of the 2013 CILIP Carnegie Medal and Kate Greenaway Medal have been announced: The Carnegie winner is: Sally Gardner for Maggot Moon   The Kate Greenaway winner is: Levi Pinfold for Black Dog Filed under: Awards

You’ve heard the saying, “It’s like looking for a needle in a haystack.” Well, in Jeremy Fink and the Meaning of Life by Wendy Mass, the two main characters are on a search for four keys in the city of New York — which seems like it would be at least as difficult as the needle-haystack scenario, if not harder! Why the quest? Jeremy is about to turn 13, and he learns that before his father died, he left Jeremy a locked box to open on his 13th birthday. The only problem? No keys. And wouldn’t you know it — the box was specifically designed to only accept four specific keys in four specific locks. And it can’t be forced open either! So Jeremy and his best friend, Lizzy, set off on an adventure that takes them all over the city and introduces them to all sorts of interesting people — from a man who questions the value of money, to an old woman who never got over betraying her best friend from childhood, to a scientist at the American Museum of Natural History, to a fortune teller on the boardwalk of Coney Island. Can any of these people help Jeremy and Lizzy find the keys to the box? Or if not, can they at least help Jeremy discover the meaning of life? Because according to the label on the box, that’s what Jeremy’s dad left inside of it… I loved this book. Loved loved loved it! And you will too, if you enjoy heartwarming stories about friendship and family with a little mystery thrown in. Also, if you’re already a Wendy Mass fan, this book is definitely for you! Already read the book — or seen the movie adaptation? Leave a comment with your thoughts! I’d especially like to know if I should see the movie! — Karen Karen has participated in scavenger hunts in San Francisco, but never in New York. Who wants to organize one for her? Anyone? More about Karen »

Since LEE & LOW BOOKS was founded in 1991 we have monitored the number of multicultural children’s books published each year through the Cooperative Children’s Book Center’s statistics. Our hope has always been that with all of our efforts and dedication to publishing multicultural books for more than twenty years, we must have made a difference. Surprisingly, the needle has not moved. Despite census data that shows 37% of the US population consists of people of color, children’s book publishing has not kept pace. We asked academics, authors, librarians, educators, and reviewers if they could put their fingers on the reason why the number of diverse books has not increased. That is the intro to the timely and highly informative piece, “Why Hasn’t the Number of Multicultural Books Increased in Eighteen Years?”  Highly recommended.

In the past few years, middle grade superhero books have sprung up like crazy, and I am rather impressed at how varied and interesting they are in their take on the subject. The latest such book to come my way is Sidekicked, by John David Anderson (Walden Pond Press, June 25, 2013), and it brings a new emotional twist to the genre.The Highview Environmental Revitalization Organization (H.E.R.O.) is not your typical school club. The kids who slip off to its meetings are not ordinary kids. They are Sidekicks, the superheros of the future. Each one has a unique talent, each one is matched with a Superhero mentor.But though Andrew has a superpower--preternaturally enhanced senses-- it is hard to be a Sidekick when your Superhero has no interest in your, or the Cause of Justice. In fact, the legendary Titan is just about the worst mentor a Sidekick could have. On the other side of the scale, Andrew's best friend Jenna, ak The Silver Lynx, is almost ready to take her place fighting in public at the side of her hero, The Fox.But when a dastardly villain from the past, thought to have been annihilated by the Titan long ago, re-emerges, will the Superheros of the present be enough to stop him? Only the Fox seems to stand a chance, with Jenna fighting at her side. But Andrew, though he doubts how useful his own powers can be, isn't ready to give up on the Titan...and the bad guys haven't given up on revenge. Andrew must figure out who he can trust, and if he can trust himself, or else the bad guys will win.What makes this one stand out is that the hero, Andrew, isn't the sort of person who's going to charge out and save the day with stupendous superhero deeds of daring. Instead, he's a kind of awkward, uncertain type of 13 year old, who worries that his powers are not ever going to have that much point, who worries that he might never find his way socially, who worries that even though he's "special," he's going to be left behind. And these anxieties are, of course, exacerbated by the fact that his "mentor" the Titan wants nothing to do with him, and instead of using his titanic powers for good, spends his time in a seedy bar. Unlike the Fox, darling of the public....Which raises the question of obligation--if you have the power to do good, do you have to? And what if one person's path to perfect justice involved killing innocent people along the way? What does it mean to be a hero? So it's not just a book about middle school angst with superpowers, but it also gives a nod to Bigger Philosophical Questions.My one disappointment is that I wanted more of Andrew using his super-sensory powers. He does put them to good use in a useful way on more than one occassion, and I guess I wouldn't have liked him to suddenly be Saving the Day and becoming the Hero of the Hour, because that would have felt contrived, but it didn't feel like quite enough. I wanted there to be more heavy underlining to the realization on Andrew's part that he can contribute...and so the ending felt a tad flat to me.That being said, Sidekicked is a fine addition to the ranks of middle grade Superhero books--entertaining and interesting, with emotional depth.disclaimer: review copy received from the publisher.

Jane the Fox and Me By Fanny Britt Illustrated by Isabelle Arsenault Translated by Christelle Morelli and Susan Ouriou Groundwood Books ISBN: 978-1-55498-360-5 $19.95 Ages 9-12 On shelves September 1st Isn’t it strange how few children’s graphic novels are published in a given year? This is one of those phenomena that defy the basic tenants of capitalism. The need, as anyone who has ever fielded reference questions from 10-year-olds will attest, is vast. Yet the product sputters out of publishing houses so sparsely and randomly that you can’t help but be baffled. The only justification I can come up with is that graphic novels are bloody expensive to produce. That would certainly account for how many settle for single colors or black and white. Then there’s the fact that they take forever to create. Even if a kid adores the first book in a series, if the art is really well done it could easily take an artist seven years to produce a sequel. Seven years is a long time if you’re ten. Taking all of this into account, I am understandably wary when a new GN hits bookstore and library shelves and I feel my pulse pick up. Am I excited about this book because it is good or because it’s a rarity? With Jane, the Fox & Me by Fanny Britt the answer is clear. I am excited about this book because this book is exciting. In the awe-inspiring sense, of course. So many kids in school wish they weren’t considered invisible. For Helene, the opposite is true. Everywhere she goes she runs into cruel comments about her weight or that she smells or equally childish accusations. Most of these are from the girls she used to hang out with, before they decided to suddenly make her into a pariah. Her only escape is a copy of Jane Eyre which she dives into at every available moment. When her class wins a special “treat” of going to a nature camp for four nights nothing could be more unwelcome. At the camp Helene finds herself in the outcast cabin, and even the sight of a wild fox can’t break her out of her depression. It isn’t until she meets Geraldine and finds herself in the thick of a new, true friendship that things start to subtly take a turn for the better. Originally published in Quebec as Jane, le Renard & Moi, reading the book is a clear trip into another culture. For the United States-born child reader, some of the elements in the story may strike them as unusual. The fact that the student Lucia Munix “can’t speak French yet because she just moved to Montreal” will be a tip-off, or else the names of the characters (Geraldine, Gerard, Marthe, Genevieve, etc.). My suspicion, however, is that the bulk of U.S. readers aren’t even going to notice. At its heart, this is a universal story. You relate to the bullying, the ability to identify with a fictional character (even as we identify with Helene), and the school setting. I certainly identified with those moments when Helene will pretend to tie her shoe or do something similarly minor to look busy. They’re small moments, but remarkably real. With its original French roots I have to give translators Christelle Morelli and Susan Ouriou full credit for a remarkable job. Not enough people in this world understand how crucial the writing is in any given graphic novel. It’s what separates the wheat from the chaff. And because this is a quiet school story, so much of the book depends on Helene’s singular voice and observations. There’s a section near the beginning of the book when Helene recounts a day when she woke up to find that her mother had sewed a crinoline dress for her in the night. Looking at it she can’t help but list everything her mother does for the family, from the laundry to meals to the sewing. She imagines her mother so exhausted at the end of the day, yet still working on this dress, that she says, “to herself out loud so just maybe someone will hear her, even though by now everyone’s in bed, ‘I’m so tired I could die’.” Thinking of all this she continues to stare in the mirror. H

Doodle: "I'M BORED!"Pony: WE COULD GO TO TOWN!"Doodle: NO WAY. I HATE GOING TO TOWN. THERE ARE TOO MANY PEOPLE IN TOWN. THEY ALL RUN AROUND AND RING BELLS AND EAT PIES AND THEN THEY YELL AT EACH OTHER TO STOP RUNNING AROUND AND RINGING BELLS AND EATING PIES. THERE IS NOTHING GOOD TO DO IN TOWN.Pony is clearly bored, too, and a day in town looks a lot better than hanging around with a cranky Yankee who harangues on and on about everything.Pony suggests that Doodle could shop for a feather for his hat and call it macaroni--which he adds means fancy. Doodle is not convinced."SAYS YOU. THAT'S THE SILLIEST THING I EVER HEARD. IT'S... MACARONI!YOU KNOW WHAT'S FANCY? LASAGNA. LASAGNA IS FANCY. LASAGNA HAS ALL THOSE RIPPLES ON IT, AND THEN IT GETS BAKED WITH CHEESE AND TOMATOES AND VEGETABLES. THEN YOU CAN EAT IT WITH SOME GARLIC BREAD.NOW THAT'S FANCY!"Doodle's plaint rants on and on. He doesn't like to shop! &He has too much stuff already! The new stuff breaks. It's too far to town and, furthermore, Pony smells too terrible to ride!. Yada Yada Yada.It's a cranky Yankee Doodle temper tantrum.Pony and Doodle glare at each other.Stalemate.Then Pony tries another approach."HEY! I SMELL LIKE A PONY! AREN'T YOU THE ONE WHO IS SUPPOSED TO GIVE ME A BATH? BUT NOOOOOOO! BOO HOO HOO! SNIFF. SOB. SNORT."Tom Angleberger's and wife Cece Bell's Crankee Doodle (Houghton Mifflin Clarion, 2013) pits a curmudgeonly Yankee Doodle against a persistent pony desperate for a change of scene. Angleberger's narrator cleverly delineates his comic contrarian and his pony boy with the urge to shop till he drops, in dialogue that will ring familiar to parents of young shopaholics. Designed in cartoon panels with quirky characters who speak in thought balloons, this one trots along merrily, paralleling the back story of that inevitable trip to town that the old patriotic song describes. Hysterically and historically funny!"A historical hoot full of goofy, eye-rolling goodness," quips Kirkus in its starred review.

It’s fire sale time here at the 100 Scope Notes Graphic Novel Barn – everything 100% off!! Fill out the form to win your choice of the books below. But you gotta enter by 11:59 p.m. EST tonight (that’s June 19) to be eligible. Winners will be announced tomorrow. Best of luck! The Big Wet Balloon by Liniers Bluffton: My Summer with Buster Keaton by Matt Phelan ChickenHare by Chris Grine Tommysaurus Rex by Doug Tennapel