Month: November 2015

Review: How to Share with a Bear by Eric Pinder

| Tasha

How to Share with a Bear by Eric Pinder

How to Share with a Bear by Eric Pinder, illustrated by Stephanie Graegin

Thomas made a pillow cave on a cold day. But when he went to get a flashlight to read by, he noticed that something big had taken over the cave. Something with two brown eyes looked back at him when he looked inside. It was a bear! To get the bear out of his cave, Thomas laid a trail of blueberries down the stairs and sure enough, the bear followed eating them up. Thomas ran to get books to read in his cave, but he was too late and the bear had already returned. He tricked the bear with a back-scratching stick and then got inside the cave, but stray bear fuzz had him sneezing and running for a tissue. In the meantime, the bear returned. Thomas tricked the bear again and again into leaving the cave, but when the bear returned finally and Thomas was already in the cave, something happened. The bear started to cry, revealing himself to be Thomas’ younger brother. There was only one thing to do!

Pinder has created a book sparkling with creativity. His young protagonist who is battling the invasive brother bear comes up with clever ways again and again to trick the bear into leaving the cave. Pinder keeps each of the tricks appropriate for both a bear and a little boy, keeping the audience entirely fooled until his reveal. I was completely convinced of this being a little bear and expected the book to end with a teddy bear of some kind. It was a delight to discover a different twist that speaks to how to be a good older sibling.

The illustrations from Graegin are key to keeping the audience convinced of the bear being real. She subtle makes sure that the face is not shown until that moment of reveal. The book glows with a yellow warmth that invites curling up under a blanket or in your own pillow cave to read it.

A great pick for bear story times, this picture book shows how hard sharing can be. Appropriate for ages 3-5.

Reviewed from copy received from Farrar, Straus & Giroux.

Review: Drowned City by Don Brown

| Tasha

Drowned City by Don Brown

Drowned City: Hurricane Katrina & New Orleans by Don Brown (InfoSoup)

This powerful graphic novel tells the story of Hurricane Katrina from the very beginning as the hurricane forms and grows in power to the slow recovery of New Orleans in the aftermath. As the winds and rains of the storm breach the levees around the city, readers will see the devastation that occurs as 80% of the city floods. The book tells the true story, one where everyday people are heroes, where supplies and help are not sent in a timely way, where presidents make appearances but don’t remedy the problems, and where people looking for help just find more death and despair. It is also the story of selfless people who come in and make a real difference, of rescues and saved lives. It is in short, a true story that unflinchingly tells the story of a storm and a city.

With an enormous list of references and sources at the back of the book, this graphic novel is based entirely on facts and first-person accounts. Brown tells the tale without any need to make it more dramatic, just offering facts about what happened and what went wrong to make it even worse. Brown’s account though is also filled with humanity, offering glimpses of the horrors that people survived, of the losses as they mounted, and of a world turned upside down for people trying to escape the city.

Brown’s art in this graphic novel is done mostly in browns and greens. There are striking pages that stop a reader for awhile, such as the art on pages 30 and 31 which has dead bodies floating past in purple water, even as survivors are being hauled up to a roof. Brown conveys the heat and the desperation of survivors, the desolation of the flooded city, and then the slow rebuilding process.

A riveting and powerful look at one of the worst disasters in American history, this graphic novel is a way to talk with children about Hurricane Katrina. Appropriate for ages 8-12.

Reviewed from library copy.

Review: North Woods Girl by Aimee Bissonette

| Tasha

North Woods Girl by Aimee Bissonette

North Woods Girl by Aimee Bissonette, illustrated by Claudia McGehee (InfoSoup)

A girl tells about her grandmother who is not like other grandmas. She dresses in Grandpa’s old flannel shirts and she’s bony. She doesn’t bake cookies or pies, but she does take long walks out in nature. With her trusty walking stick, the two of them explore the little paths near Grandma’s house. Every season there are new things to see, things in the garden to do. The two love winter best of all, especially winter nights with a full moon when they explore the snowy woods. Grandma may not be like other grandma’s but she’s pretty special and a north woods girl to the quick.

Bissonette captures the spirit of a north woods woman beautifully in her picture book. From the no-fuss long grey braid, the flannel shirts, the stout boots to the way that nature speaks to her and that she knows it so well. This book is a celebration of the north woods too, the ways that the woods changes in different seasons, the animals that fill it, and the glory of a winter woods.

McGehee’s scratchboard illustrations have a rustic beauty. The colors are deep and lovely, and they capture the spirit of the woods. In fact, there are moments when you can almost smell the pines and the grass. There is a subtle multiculturalism here too with the little girl’s darker skin tone and curly hair. The pages are crowded with details of the woods, filled with animals and insects.

A lovely look at the northern woods, this picture book celebrates unique grandmothers living in a unique place. Appropriate for ages 3-5.

Reviewed from copy received from Minnesota Historical Society Press.

This Week’s Tweets, Pins and Tumbls

| Tasha

Here are the links I shared on my Twitter, Pinterest, and Tumblr accounts this week that I think are cool:

~C.S. Lewis~:

CHILDREN’S BOOKS

Bibliography: A Fine Dessert #daily #feedly http://buff.ly/1OueBiJ #kidlit

Do black children’s lives matter if nobody writes about them? | Daniel José Older http://buff.ly/1NUxtUI #kidlit

Early Chapter Books with Fierce Female Characters | @denabooks @ReadBrightly http://ow.ly/Uxv6w

Get your children into the Thanksgiving spirit: http://on.nypl.org/1MZO6Bo

Kids are full of questions. Children’s book author/illustrator Marie-Louise Gay has answers http://buff.ly/1L6FPUS #kidlit

Lara Williamson’s top 10 goodbyes in children’s literature http://buff.ly/1MCX29z #kidlit

The Winter 2015–2016 Kids’ Indie Next List Preview | American Booksellers Association http://buff.ly/1iXQFpC #kidlit #yalit

YA author Jonathan Auxier on drawing in the ‘reluctant readers’ http://buff.ly/1QuYf8M #yalit

EBOOKS

Declining E-book Sales Hit Home http://buff.ly/1NFmzE6 #ebooks

Embedded image permalink

LIBRARIES

Bike-repair stations coming to 9 King County libraries http://buff.ly/1WS5w2p

Indianapolis Just Got Little Free Libraries Right http://buff.ly/1QuXnRB #libraries

King County Library System book-sorting crew reclaims ‘national’ title http://buff.ly/1MKAweU #libraries

NYC library defending title as fastest book sorter http://buff.ly/1WIIPCR #libraries

Public Libraries and At-Risk Teens http://buff.ly/1kfNyLo #libraries

Surf Like Snowden: Lebanon Libraries Offering Privacy-Friendly Flash Drives http://buff.ly/1lglzLy #libraries

For the fan who believes in magical minimalism. | 19 Magical Gifts To Get The "Once Upon A Time" Fan In Your Life

TEEN READS

10 Great Pre- and Post-Hermione Granger YA Heroines Whose Books You Should Read http://buff.ly/1NHBPQZ

Bill Konigsberg Guest Post: "The Lessons I Learned From the Trevor Project Awareness Tour" http://buff.ly/1WMExVU #yalit #lgbt

Black Girls Matter: A YA Reading List http://buff.ly/1GPfq34 #yalit #diversity

Please don’t air brush African teen fiction http://buff.ly/1iOg6Kg #yalit

Amazon Best of 2015 – Young Adult Books

| Tasha

Amazon has released their lists of the Best Books of 2015. They have two youth categories and offer a Top 20 in both. Here are the top 20 books according to Amazon in young adult books

 

TOP 20 YOUNG ADULT BOOKS

A Court of Thorns and Roses (A Court of Thorns and Roses, #1) Dumplin'

 The Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas

Dumplin’ by Julie Murphy

An Ember in the Ashes (An Ember in the Ashes, #1) Everything, Everything

An Ember in the Ashes by Sabaa Tahir

Everything, Everything by Nicola Yoon

Finding Audrey The Game of Love and Death

Finding Audrey by Sophie Kinsella

The Game of Love and Death by Martha Brockenbrough

Illuminae (The Illuminae Files, #1) Library of Souls (Miss Peregrine's Peculiar Children, #3)

Illuminae by Jay Kristoff and Amie Kaufman

Library of Souls by Ransom Riggs

Mechanica More Happy Than Not

Mechanica by Betsy Cornwell

More Happy Than Not by Adam Silvera

Mosquitoland Most Dangerous: Daniel Ellsberg and the Secret History of the Vietnam War

Mosquitoland by David Arnold

Most Dangerous: Daniel Ellsberg and the Secret History of the Vietnam War by Steve Sheinkin

Red Queen (Red Queen, #1) Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda

Red Queen by Victoria Aveyard

Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda by Becky Albertalli

Six of Crows (Six of Crows, #1) The Unlikely Hero of Room 13B

Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo

The Unlikely Hero of Room 13B by Teresa Toten

We Are All Made of Molecules Winter (The Lunar Chronicles, #4)

We Are All Made of Molecules by Susin Nielsen

Winter by Marissa Meyer

Wolf By Wolf (Wolf By Wolf, #1) The Wrath and the Dawn (The Wrath and the Dawn, #1)

Wolf by Wolf by Ryan Graudin

The Wrath and the Dawn by Renee Ahdieh

Amazon Best of 2015 Lists – Children’s Books

| Tasha

Amazon has released their lists of the Best Books of 2015. They have two youth categories and offer a Top 20 in both. Here are the top 20 books according to Amazon in children’s books:

TOP 20 CHILDREN’S BOOKS

Circus Mirandus The Day the Crayons Came Home 

Circus Mirandus by Cassie Beasley

The Day the Crayons Came Home by Drew Daywalt, illustrated by Oliver Jeffers

Echo The Full Moon at the Napping House

Echo by Pam Munoz Ryan

The Full Moon at the Napping House by Audrey Wood, illustrated by Don Wood

Goodbye Stranger Lenny & Lucy

Goodbye Stranger by Rebecca Stead

Lenny & Lucy by Philip C. Stead, illustrated by Erin E. Stead

The Sword of Summer (Magnus Chase and the Gods of Asgard, #1) The Marvels

Magnus Chase and the Gods of Asgard by Rick Riordan

The Marvels by Brian Selznick

Nerdy Birdy The Nest

Nerdy Birdy by Aaron Reynolds, illustrated by Matt Davies

The Nest by Kenneth Oppel, illustrated by Jon Klassen

Robo-Sauce Roller Girl

Robo-Sauce by Adam Rubin, illustrated by Daniel Salmieri

Roller Girl by Victoria Jamieson

Stick and Stone The Story of Diva and Flea

Stick and Stone by Beth Ferry, illustrated by Tom Lichtenheld

The Story of Diva and Flea by Mo Willems, illustrated by Tony DiTerlizzi

The Thing About Jellyfish Treasury of Norse Mythology: Stories of Intrigue, Trickery, Love, and Revenge

The Thing about Jellyfish by Ali Benjamin

Treasury of Norse Mythology by Donna Jo Napoli, illustrated by Christina Balit

Waiting 24905389

Waiting by Kevin Henkes

Who Done It? by Olivier Tallec

Winnie: The True Story of the Bear Who Inspired Winnie-the-Pooh The Wonderful Things You Will Be

Winnie: The True Story of the Bear Who Inspired Winnie-the-Pooh by Sally M. Walker, illustrated by Jonathan D. Voss

The Wonderful Things You Will Be by Emily Winfield Martin

2015 AAAS/Subaru SB&F Prizes for Execellence in Science Books

| Tasha

AAAS Logo

The winners of the 2015 AAAS/Subaru SB&F Prize for Excellence in Science Books have been announced. The prizes recognize newly published works that are “scientifically sound and foster an understanding and appreciation of science in readers of all ages.”

The winners are four categories as shown below:

CHILDREN’S SCIENCE PICTURE BOOK

Tiny Creatures: The World of Microbes

Tiny Creatures: The World of Microbes by Nicola Davies, illustrated by Emily Sutton

 

MIDDLE GRADES SCIENCE BOOK

Mission: Mars

Mission: Mars by Pascal Lee

 

YOUNG ADULT SCIENCE BOOK

Extreme Medicine: How Exploration Transformed Medicine in the Twentieth Century

Extreme Medicine: How Exploration Transformed Medicine in the Twentieth Century by Kevin Fong

 

HANDS-ON SCIENCE BOOK

The Kid's Guide to Exploring Nature

The Kid’s Guide to Exploring Nature by Brooklyn Botanic Educators, edited by Sarah Schmidt

Review: Nimona by Noelle Stevenson

| Tasha

Nimona by Noelle Stevenson

Nimona by Noelle Stevenson (InfoSoup)

When Nimona joins forces with Lord Ballister Blackheart, she brings organization and a need for real vengeance to the ongoing battle between good and evil. Her shape-shifting abilities add to her usefulness as a sidekick so even though Blackheart usually works alone, he agrees to let her join him. Good and evil aren’t so clear cut in this graphic novel where the bad guys help the downtrodden people and the good guys are in power and unwilling to let it go. The dynamics between Blackheart and his arch nemesis Sir Ambrosius Goldenloin also complicate the situation, since the two are clearly attracted to one another. As their small heists gain the attention of the Institution of Law Enforcement and Heroics, Nimona and Blackheart get into deadly battles where Nimona’s mysterious background may be what destroys them all.

Stevenson has created a graphic novel where nothing is as it seems. Readers will fall hard for this villainous duo, even when they think they are bad guys. As that morphs throughout the book and readers question what makes a villain or a hero, the book becomes more complicated and more interesting. Serious questions are asked about morals and right and wrong here, a depth that is great to find. Yet there is also humor to lighten up the situations, mostly provided by Nimona herself and her deadly yet playful approach to life and villainy.

I also applaud this graphic novel for having a romantic attachment between the two lead male characters. It is implied at first and then overtly shown. I love the dynamics of two men who both intended to be heroes but only one was willing to give up his principles to do so; the villain was not. Nimona herself is wonderfully curvy and filled with punk energy that shows in her hairstyles and their wild colors. I love a heroine (or is she a villain) who is far from a stereotype and who has incredible power.

Great art, a complex world, lots of feminism, and plenty of moral questions to grapple with create the teen graphic novel of the year. Appropriate for ages 13-17.

Reviewed from library copy.

Teens’ Top Ten

| Tasha

YALSA has announced the results of the voting for Teen’s Top Ten for 2015: