The Nancy Drew movie comes out this Friday. You can find all sorts of articles about the film, the real author of the series, Nancy’s fashion, and star Emma Roberts.
Visit the movie’s homepage to view a trailer, see photos, download wallpapers, screensaver or buddy icons, or read Emma’s blog.
Michael Rosen has been named the British Children’s Laureate. An author for over 30 years, Rosen has written some of the all-time favorite books of many. Story times just wouldn’t be the same if we couldn’t read restless toddlers We’re Going on a Bear Hunt. And if you haven’t read Michael Rosen’s Sad Book, then run run run and get your hands on it. It is a treat to see an author with this range of quality writing get an honor like this.
Got an email today from Cheryl Rainfield, who does a great job of providing book reviews of picture books and books for teens. She has great taste in books, clever titles, interesting subject grouping, and a friendly written style. She gives each title a star rating, but so many of her choices are winners that it is hard to go wrong.
ReadingRockets is a very useful site for getting children ready to read. They offer strategies for struggling readers that allow parents and teachers to find answers to specific issues, techniques for teaching reading, a collection of recommended authors and books, plus links to podcasts, webcasts and blogs. This is the place to go even if your child isn’t struggling with reading.
This site has digital copies of almost 400 rare books. You can find books by Galileo, Copernicus, Einstein, and Shakespeare. There is also the complete Poor Richard’s Almanac by Benjamin Franklin and rare editions of the Gutenberg Bible. Towards the top, under category, those of us interested in children’s lit can choose just those titles. You will find many Lewis Carroll titles in a variety of languages as well as titles from the Bodleian Library in Oxford. Very interesting and you don’t have to sneeze from the dust this way.
Lucas County in Ohio is starting an initiative to distribute books to children who attend subsidized child care in the county. They plan to give out 2400 books to 800 children! In addition, the county will provide early literacy training for child care providers who have county contracts.
Think of the niche for librarians here! We already know about early literacy and how to train parents and child care providers. We know what books to use. Anyone else feel a grant coming on?
Comets, Stars, the Moon and Mars: space poems and paintings by Douglas Florian.
What a winner of a book! A combination of space and poetry! The subject lends itself to the imagery of poetry, the rhythm of it, the dance. Each planet as well as the sun and moon get their own poem, explaining their unique feature in a quick verse with a clever little ending. Florian’s accompanying illustrations are equally accessible and evocative, a gateway to complexity just as his poems are.
Share these great poems with children who are not necessarily poetry lovers. The popular subject will allow us to sneak in the poetry to scientific, logical children who may not yet have allowed the muse into their hearts. What a great way to tie literature and science together.
Cures for Heartbreak by Margo Rabb.
This is the story of Mia whose mother died twelve days after finding out she had cancer. Now fifteen-year-old Mia, her older sister and her father must find their ways to a life without her mother. Mia struggles with the loss and along the way encounters a series of characters who offer moments of levity. Mia’s voice is strongly written and believable. I enjoy that she is the type of teen who likes shopping, makeup and clothes. She is not an intellectual, but doesn’t have to be to make razor-sharp comments about those around her.
Her battle to overcome the loss of her mother is filled with laugh-out-loud moments that blend into sober, dark times filled with grief. I found this to be a powerful device, emblematic of the real tumult of loss. The characters such as Mia’s sister and father are well-drawn and developed. Though Mia and her sister are opposites in most ways, they come together in the humor they both see around them.
Recommended for teen girls who enjoy romances, stories of loss, and most of all a good laugh through the tears.
Badger’s Fancy Meal by Keiko Kasza.
Badger has a den full of food, but he wants something fancier, so he heads out to look for it. He sees all sorts of yummy-looking animals as he explores, but they all escape him. What he doesn’t realize is that they are all escaping into his food-filled den. Only when he has lost it, does he realize the value of what he already had.
This is a clever book that will be very familiar to adults, but is fresh for children. The device of using a turning page to hide from badger what happened on the last page but allows children to view it is very clever and fun. As always, Kasza’s illustrations are winningly done and will project well to a group of children.
I would recommend this for a thanksgiving story that is free of Pilgrims. It shows not only a love of food but offers a device to really talk about what we should be thankful for.
Waking Brain Cells 