Month: February 2009

Cybils Winners

| Tasha

The winners of the Cybils have been announced.  And what a great list it is!  Of course, I am completely unbiased as the organizer of the Science Fiction/Fantasy category.  😉

It is a thrill to see such great books honored, but what I really love about the Cybils is that so many people are able to be involved.  The process may not work seamlessly, the nominations can be muddy and confusing, but in the end the awards go to books that we are all proud to stand behind.  And that is because so many people participate in the nominations, read so many books in a short period of time, and are willing to discuss books at length. 

A huge thank you to everyone who helped on the SF/F category.  It was an honor to work with you.

Nominating Panel:

Laini Taylor Growing Wings
Charlotte Taylor Charlotte’s Library
Alyssa Feller The Shady Glade
Em Em’s Bookshelf
Lynette The Puck in the Midden
Tizrah Price The Compulsive Reader
Amanda Blau Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs

Judges:

Anne Boles Levy The Cybils
Eisha Prather Seven Impossible Things Before Breakfast
Tanita Davis Finding Wonderland, Readers’ Rants

Babies Don't Eat Pizza

| Tasha

Babies Don’t Eat Pizza by Dianne Danzig, illustrated by Debbie Tilley.

Stop right here if you are looking for a perfect book to tell children about their new little brother or sister.  Done in a light-hearted but also matter-of-fact style, this book will answer all of the questions new big siblings have.  The book ranges from what babies look like to what they eat to what they can do plus all of the hair pulling and stinky bottoms too.  The mix of the sweet with the annoying will prepare children well.

Danzig’s text is spot on, offering just the right amount of information and leaving nothing to a child’s imagination.  The tone is exactly right too, filled with humor but staying up front and informative.  Tilley’s illustrations add a friendly approachable feel to the information, keeping the book light rather than intimidating.

A great book for public libraries to have on hand to inform all of the new big brothers and sisters.  This would also be a great gift for the new sibling when the pregnancy announcement is made.  Appropriate for ages 4-6.

Adventures of Riley: South Pole Penguins

| Tasha

Adventures of Riley: South Pole Penguins by Amanda Lumry and Laura Hurwitz, illustrated by Sarah McIntyre.

This is the latest in the Adventures of Riley series that mixes illustrations with photographs in an inviting way.  The book is packed with scientific facts offered in bite-sized pieces, digestible and interesting.  The story is told through the eyes of young Riley who heads out with his scientist aunt and uncle and their daughter to the South Pole to study the effect of air pollution on krill, the foundation of the food supply for many Antarctic creatures.  This focus on the environment is part of the Riley series, making it all the more current and interesting to today’s youth.

The book can be read in two ways.  One would be simply reading the story itself.  The other way, you read the story and the accompanying facts, making it more of a science book than a story book.  Because of this flexibility, the book works for a variety of ages.

The illustrations are inventive and offer the ease of a cartoon paired with the beauty and grandeur of real photographs of the region and its animals.  The science facts come identified with the scientist who said it, offering children the opportunity to understand not only the need for science but the many areas of speciality available. 

Recommended for budding scientists to peruse of their own, these books are better used in small groups than large because of the details shown.  They are useful as discussion starters about the environment and science in general.  Appropriate for ages 6-8.

Crocodile Safari

| Tasha

Crocodile Safari by Jim Arnosky

Journey with Jim Arnosky into the mangrove swamps and learn all about the American crocodile, its habitat and its life.  This nonfiction picture book is accompanied by Arnosky’s paintings that capture the wonder and grandeur of this animal.  The reader follows Arnosky through the swamps and into hidden corners where crocs swim and bask in the sun.  Readers will feel the thrill of exploration and discovery along with the author.

The paintings and language ask children to stretch a bit and think when reading, something that is good to see in a children’s picture book.  Because of this, the book can be used with older elementary children very successfully.  This is not a book that talks down to the reader.  Rather like an exploration of its own.  Arnosky’s art ranges from quite simple to almost lifelike detail as seen on the cover image. 

This is a winning nonfiction picture book that focuses on an animal that children find fascinating already.  Filled with facts, the book brings them to life wonderfully.  Appropriate for ages 6-9.

Audrey, Wait!

| Tasha

 

Audrey, Wait! by Robin Benway.

When Audrey decides to break up with her self-obsessed musician boyfriend, she has no idea how her life will suddenly change.  The song, Audrey, Wait! is played that very night and suddenly Evan and his band are rising on the charts and Audrey is being stalked by fans.  All Audrey wants is to be able to go to concerts, hang out with her best friend, and have a normal life.  But suddenly nothing is normal anymore and Audrey is forced to make choices that no normal teen has to make. 

The voice of this novel is perfection.  Audrey is a great combination of sarcastic and vulnerable, a tone that is just right for the situation she finds herself in.  Benway’s pacing is also well done, from the bedlam of concert backstage to the quiet moments with friends.  So are the secondary characters, including Audrey’s parents and her friends.  This is one of those books that will have you snorting with laughter as you read it, longing to read entire passages to your friends and family. 

Fans of Nick and Norah’s Ultimate Playlist will love this book too.  It has the same great mix of music and wit.  Appropriate for ages 16-18.  

Put It on the List!

| Tasha

Put It on the List by Kristen Darbyshire

Though they are supposed to put things on the shopping list, everyone in the family forgets.  So the chicken family runs out of a lot of things and other times have to get creative.  Pancakes but no syrup means that ketchup may just be the solution!  But when the family runs out of diapers, band-aids, and toilet paper, that’s enough.  So they hold a family meeting and come up with a new plan to really use the list and to help with the shopping.  And the final golden rule, that in an emergency they order pizza!

Every family has faced this sort of disorganization, frantic runs to the store and the attempts to be creative when feeding a family.  The chicken family face it all with a quirkiness and silliness that make the book really work.  Darbyshire’s illustrations and words are simple but immensely fun. 

The round-headed chicken family will capture children’s attention and the giggles will keep them listening.  Appropriate for ages 3-6.

Tillie Lays an Egg

| Tasha

Tillie Lays an Egg by Terry Golson, photographs by Ben Fink.

Tillie is a hen who doesn’t lay her eggs in the nesting boxes provided for the hens.  The other hens nicely take turns laying their eggs and then head outside.  Tillie doesn’t wait for her turn, but instead finds interesting spots to lay her eggs.  She wants to eat worms, so an egg is laid in the dirt.  Then she ventures onto the farmhouse porch and from there into the house, each day exploring more and laying her egg in a different spot.

Vivid photography makes this book special.  From the shots of the hens in their house to the quizzical close-ups of their faces, the photos are crisp, clear and vibrant.  The photos also have a timelessness that really works with the farm tale.  Additionally, children will enjoy trying to spot Tillie’s eggs in each setting.  Golson captures a sense of lightness and fun in her brief text that reads aloud very well. 

The combination of a silly chicken and missing eggs is made modern and interesting by using photographs rather than illustrations.  Great fun for the youngest readers, this book is appropriate for ages 2-5. 

Moon Over Star

| Tasha

Moon Over Star by Dianna Hutts Aston, illustrated by Jerry Pinkney.

Journey back to 1969 and the lunar landing seen through the eyes of Mae, a young girl who has lots of dreams of her own.  Aston’s poetry pairs flawlessly with Pinkney’s illustrations as we see a group of children celebrate the landing in their own way.  They build a rocket of their very own with scraps from the yard and gather together with rapt faces watching the landing as it happens.  All are caught in the moment of history except Gramps who isn’t sure it has anything much to do with him.  But even he is captured when the landing itself is on TV, and he begins to recall his own dreams as a boy.

Both author and illustrator capture the same tone, something not easily done.  They both linger on images that unite us all.  Youth and age, hard work and dream, family both small and large.  Through Aston’s gem-like poetry we can experience the wonder of the day.   Through Pinkney’s illustrations we can see and also feel the heat, the closeness, the amazing moment.

An amazing achievement in cooperation, just like the lunar landing, this book truly brings the landing itself and its importance to modern children.  Appropriate for ages 4-7, it will be most appreciated by older children who can understand the beauty of the book.

Happenstance Found

| Tasha

Happenstance Found by PW Catanese.

Happenstance awakens with no memory of his past at all.  Ragged and blindfolded, he can hear the enormous worms outside the room he is kept in.  When Lord Umber arrives to take him, Happenstance discovers that his eyes are very special.  Bright green and sparkling, they can see in the dark and see farther than normal human eyes.   Taken home with Lord Umber, after escaping a labyrinth filled with man-eating worms on a erupting volcanic island, Hap finds himself encountering one wonder after another.  But there is something coming after Hap, something hunting him, something that will not give up easily.

An eerie, often scary, always gripping romp of an adventure novel, this book keeps readers guessing and enthralled to the end.  Catanese is a master of hair-raising escapades which make the book nearly impossible to put down.  His characters can sometimes be a bit stiff and cardboard, but they can also surprise with their depth.  Hap is an intriguing lead character filled with questions and few answers but also engaging in his quest to understand the world he finds himself in. 

Get this in the hands of tweens looking for a wild ride of an adventure novel and you will have them clamoring for the next book in the series.  Appropriate for ages 11-14.