Bedtime is Canceled By Cece Meng

 

Maggie shares her idea with her brother.  Her brother shares it with a journalist and suddenly its breaking news! Hilarity ensues! 

  For storytime, I love funny books and this will be a great addition.  I also love stories where the kids are much smarter than the grown ups! This would be a great book to pair with David LaRochelle's The Best Pet of All.

Moxie and the Art of Rule Breaking

Moxie has big plans for this  summer, her last before high school- exploring the city of Boston (unsupervised) with her friend and trusty side kick Ollie. Moxie's plans are abruptly changed when a stranger appears on her doorstep claiming to be a representative of Sully Cupcakes, a dangerous criminal and former "business associate" of Moxie's Grandpa, who she lovingly refers to as Grumps.  The mysterious stranger wants Sully's property returned, or else. 

Unfortunately, Grumps now suffers from Alzheimer's and is not revealing any clues.  Could Grumps know where the art stolen from the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum is hidden? 

Moxie and Ollie set out to find the truth and over 14 days race across Boston, tangle with dangerous criminals, break into some historical landmarks, and deal with their own family dynamics. 

I also enjoyed the setting of Boston and the storyline surrounding one of the cities biggest real life mysteries.  Boston itself feels like a character. 

Some may say some of the plot lines are a bit far fetched, but not me, I think the strong characters portrayed here and great writing  make it all pretty plausible. 

Light hearted, fun and fast paced, Moxie kept me on the edge of my seat.  She is smart and funny and completely lives up to her name and reminiscent of Harriet the Spy or Sammy Keyes. This is a perfect book for someone who loves adventure and is maybe not ready for likes of Kiki Strike. 

I found this in the teen section but I would recommend it to good 5th or 6th grade readers.  Especially ones visiting Boston!

Doll Bones by Holly Black

Doll Bones

by Holly Black 

I would recommend for strong 4th grade reader and up.  But it is scary! 

 In first grade I had an obsession with Dare Wright's The Lonely Doll, which I knew was usually found right above the "W" shelf marker in my school library.  I checked this book out so much that I was told by the school librarian that I wasn't allowed to have it anymore and that I needed to find other things to read.  

So I picked up Holly Black's Doll Bones with great curiosity.  I am not a fan of horror, or a huge fantasy buff, but I do love a good ghost story.  

The bones in question belong to the doll queen, the ruler of the imaginary kingdom that Poppy, Zack and Alice created and continue to act out with discarded Barbies and thrift store finds. Their imaginary world is multifaceted and has been developed over years of play.  The Queen rules over this world from Poppy's mother's china cabinet-  and they are forbidden to touch her or take her from the glass case.  

When Zack's father suddenly reappears, he determines that Zack would be better off shooting hoops with the guys then playing dolls with girls and throws away Zack's beloved action figures who act as the main characters in most of the storylines for the game.  Devastated and ashamed, Zach would rather lead Alice and Poppy to believe that he is no longer interested in their game than admit the truth.  

In an effort to tempt Zack back to the story for at least a grand finale, Poppy takes the Doll Queen from the shelf and here the trouble begins.  

Poppy begins to have strange dreams about the doll and odd things begin to happen.  Things disappear and reappear in odd places. After some minimal library research (love it) on the doll manufacturer, Poppy explains to the others that the doll maker's daughter died in 1912 and her body was never discovered.  Poppy convinces them that the doll contains the ashes of this dead girl and strange things will continue to happen to them, unless they can properly bury her in the family plot in the next state. 

Is the doll really haunted?  Or has Poppy created a real life action adventure game for her friends to act out in a desperate attempt to keep their game going?  

This is one creepy, scary story.  I will never look at a china doll the same way again.  And this is not just a ghost story.  It's about dealing with your family- Zack's constantly disappointed by his dad who is in and out of his life  and  Poppy's parents are struggling with money and virtually absentee while Alice's grandmother is overbearing and barely let's Alice out of her sight.  

 And at its heart, this is a story about the cyclical life of friendships; the dull ache of being on the cusp of adulthood and saying good-bye to childhood with the knowledge that it may also mean growing away from those you love best.   

  

Long Time, No See!

I am sorry to have been away for so long!

 Book reviews will resume this week! 

Children's Book Week Part Deux!

In celebration of Children's Book Week, here is a few of my favorite books for storytime! 

Book! Book! Book! By Deborah Bruss

So sweet!  What are the animals to do when their boy goes off to school? They go to the library!

Little Bear's Boat By Eve Bunting

What's a bear to do when he is too big for his little boat? 

Bringing Rain to Kapiti Plain By Vera Aardema

I wish for rain and a wonderful rhyme!  

Room on the Broom By Julia Donaldson

My very favorite Halloween book!  Such a fun rhyme that lends itself easily to  audience participation!

Library Lion By Michelle Knudsen

Everyone is welcome in the library! As long as there is no running!

Rattletrap Car by Phyllis Root

A fun, family adventure!  

Shark in the Park by Nick Sharratt

Another fun one for eliciting lots of participation!  

Daffodil by Emily Jenkins

Everyone should be able to chose their own party dresses! 

Stella Luella's Runaway Book by Lisa Campbell Ernst

I can't imagine doing a school visit without Stella!  Everyone loves a good mystery. 

Kitten's First Full Moon by Kevin Henkes

My favorite book to take to teach storytime techniques to the child development class at the high school. Perfectly sweet! 

  Duck on a Bike by David Shannon

What's funnier than a duck riding bike?  A whole barnyard of animals riding bikes!

Little Red Hen by Paul Galdone 

The best interpreter of folktales for storytime that I've come across and this is my very favorite.  


I could go on and on but then what would I post tomorrow?

Children's Book Week!

Happy Children's Book Week!
It's the perfect time to re-read an old favorite or learn some great new titles and authors- especially if you know, work with, or are related to some children!

In honor of the occasion I will recommend some of my personal favorites this week.

So in no particular order, here are just a few (I have hundreds!) of my favorite middle grade novels.

 

Walk two Moons- by Sharon Creech

 

On My Honor- by Marion Dane Bauer

 

Fever 1793 by Laurie Halse Anderson

 

Everything on a Waffle- by Polly Horvath

 

When you reach me- by Rebecca Stead 

 

House of Tailors- by Patricia Reilly Giff 

Lizzie Bright & the Buckminster Boy- by Gary Schmidt

What are some of yours?

A Pair of Picture Books!

Julie Fogliano and Erin E. Stead have created a delightful tale about waiting patiently for spring.  This story is gentle and thoughtfully paced, and the promise of spring and all her beauty is fully realized.  Erin Stead's illustrations are a perfect compliment to Fogliano's prose.  And Then It's Spring is great new addition to my spring story-time collection and well deserving of the Caldecott Award that was bestowed upon it and its creators this January.

  

Boot & Shoe written and illustrated by two time Caldecott Honoree Marla Frazee is the story of 2 dogs content to live together, but exist separately- Boot is a back porch kind of dog and while Shoe prefers the front porch.  This arrangement seems to be working out fine, until a squirrel comes to the yard and causes quite a calamity.  A sweet, fun and funny book for my dog story-time! I am a big fan of Frazee's work and Boot & Shoe are a great addition!