Three New Picture Books

978-146-771-1432

 

Stories about pets are usually a sure bet with children, and this is no exception. The little boy telling the story can't understand why his sister loves her guinea pig so much, when there are so many other, much more exciting pets to have! I can't call it a stereotypical conversation, when I see it played out so frequently in my own home. Taylor's illustrations are adorable - I want to reach into the pages and scoop up that adorable little guinea pig, while the dragon, on the other hand, is quite satisfyingly fierce.

 

978-146-771-1418

 

Speaking of adorable...you can't get much cuter than a panda, and here we have two. They live next door to each other, and both would like to be friends, but neither can quite work up the courage to say that first, "Hello!" The rhyme pattern is a bit awkward in places, so I probably wouldn't use this in a story time. I think the gentle encouragement towards making friends will be appreciated, however, by my younger patrons.

 

978-146-771-1555

 

A new Little Princess story! The LP is VERY big at our house, and she had her very own story time here at the library a few months ago. Her other titles all start with "I Want", a fact not unnoticed by commiserating mommies: now, we have the opposite.

 

The Little Princess has a lump in her nose, and while the General offers to get take care of it with his sword, the Doctor (who is always covered in spots), decides the hospital would be a better bet. The Little Princess does not want to go, but is eventually carted off...er...tied to her stroller. She recovers there quite nicely, and has so much fun, she decides her tonsils need to come out as well! It is never quite explained what the lump in her nose is, but I can't help thinking this seems a bit familiar.

 

Thank-you to Andersen Press for the review copies!

 

 

 



Review: The Cats on Ben Yehuda Street, by Ann Redisch Stampler and Francesca Carabelli

978-076-138-1235

 

Ben Yehuda Street is covered with cats - all kinds of cats, all smiling, and all happy to hang around Mr. Modiano's fish shop (go figure). He, on the other hand, is not happy to have them around, and when he ends each day by delivering two fish to his neighbor, Mrs. Spiegel, he is always clear that she is not to feed them to her cats. Mrs. Spiegel invites him in for tea, he says no and goes home, and she, of course, feeds her fish to the cats.

 

Until, one night tragedy strikes, and the gruff Mr. Modiano shows he's not quite as grumpy as he pretends to be.

 

Children will love the cheerful, sunny illustrations, and will enjoy picking up on the subtle clues to Mr. Modiano's changing opinion. A fun story to read all by itself, or as an introduction to this busy part of Jerusalem. Recommended for any elementary school library.

 

 

Review: Stardines Swim High Across the Sky and Other Poems, by Jack Prelutsky and Carin Berger

 

978-006-201-4641

 

Here is a concept sure to appeal to any imaginative youngster: Jack Prelutsky, "having returned safely from far-flung places", brings us a collection of strange new creatures. We have the Slobsters:

 

SLOBSTERS are slovenly,

SLOBSTERS are crude.

SLOBSTERS love mashing

And smushing their food.

 

Or, the Sobcat:

 

The SOBCAT is sad

As a feline can be

And spends its time crying

Continuously.

 

Those are just excerpts of each descriptive poem, byt he way. You simply have to grab a copy of this to read on your own, and then pore over the details of Berger's illustrations. They are all dioramas, shadow boxes, and cut-paper collages, made up of "catalogues, old books, receipts, letters, and ticket stubs". If Prelutsky's poetry doesn't inspire your child to create a new creature or two in words, Berger's artwork is sure to have them grabbing the glue and scissors.

 

This is another one of those books that (almost) makes me wish I was teaching again. An entire week's worth of lesson plans could spring from this one delightful volume. Science - find the real animals that were changed slightly, and find out what they are really like. Research animals that really are hybrids of two other animals, or look for ways animals have adapted. Reading - oh, the vocabulary! Aqueous! Copious! Lachrymose! Plight! Social studies - why would you want a JOLLYFISH around, but not a TATTLESNAKE? Math - just consider the pleasant little WEDGEHOGS.

 

Yes, this is a book that belongs in every elementary classroom, and while poetry books in general do not circulate well here, I predict this one will be safe from weeding for a long, long time. Thank-you to HarperCollins for the review copy!

F is for...

...Flowers and Friends and Fun!

 

With the weather getting warmer, we have spent a lot of time working on the yard. (Isn't it great when home schooling and housework coincide?) The kids had a blast breaking up clumps of dirt, and we practiced counting while planting seeds. Easter Sunday, we made a trip to a couple local stores for plants. C. has had his own garden bed for a couple years, and some of his flowers have already started coming back. This year he added more flowers, and some tomato plants.

 

 

S. and L. are sharing a garden bed this year, and they each picked out two Flowers and two pepper plants. Of three different kinds. This should make for some interesting cross-pollination.

 

I may add something viney to go up that trellis and around the angel. With their permission, of course.

 

The big project, though, was setting up areas to hang out and have Fun with Friends. These benches used to sit in the library's Children's Room, but they were massively in the way of wheelchairs. We put them on auction, and another librarian and I teamed up to outbid everyone else, and then split them.

Both Fire pits were yard sale finds

 

It looks a little drab at the moment, but we planted lots of Flowers, and are waiting for them to take over.

 

We have Flowers in the retaining wall,

 

 

Flowers in pots,

Flower bulbs in the ground,

 

With a baby bottle. I have no idea why.

And Flowers in the wagon.



This is jasmine, which will hopefully climb the handle and spill all over.

There is more jasmine hanging from various tree branches in the area.

 

We also planted Flowers along the house. We get more counting practice while watering, counting to twenty for each plant. There is much competition to see who gets to wield the hose!



Oops - remind me to take that price tag off.

We made and hung houses for our Feathered Friends, adding a little color to the side of the shed.

 

 

Hello, Feathered Friend!

 

 

The hummers won't actually live in the bird houses, they have nests up in our tallest trees. They will, however, buzz around your head and scold you, if their Favorite Feeder is not Full enough.

 

We are having more Fun with the letter "F", and still have a surprise on its way, so stay tuned!



Review: You're the Chef series from Lerner

I love to cook, and the kids love to help, so I was very excited to see his new series from Lerner, written by Jennifer Larson, photographed by Brie Cohen, and tested by Larson's children. I wanted to test it with my own children, however, and life kept getting in the way, so it wasn't until this weekend that we were able to try things out.

 

S. was first, choosing a lunch meal from:

 

978-076-316-6355

 

S. decided to make the dish featured in the cover photo, the Tortilla Tower.

 

The first few steps required chopping and shredding, something she hasn't done before. I avoided some of that, and used up some things I had sitting around, by using pre-shredded carrots:

 

 

and green bell peppers I had frozen in strips - S. was easily able to break them into small pieces.

The partially eaten chocolate chip cookie is not part of the recipe.

I sliced the green onions, and she sprinkled them on.

 

The cheese was also pre-shredded, so it was all very fast and easy to assemble, and she felt like she was doing all of it.

 

While it was baking, I noticed the sliced tomatoes that also needed to be used up, and we decided we could sprinkle those on top when it was done. I chopped some, and let her do two slices, so she did get to handle the knife after all.

 

(While taste testing a third slice)

 

Looks good:

 

 

Tastes good, too!

 

 

Everyone enjoyed the meal, and the steps were easy for her to follow, with the above mentioned modifications.

 

For supper, C. decided on the cover dish from his book, too:

 

 

978-076-136-6416

 

Now, I make a mean mac 'n cheese, mostly following The Pioneer Woman's recipe. It's hard for a cook to allow changes to a favorite recipe, but for the sake of education and review purposes, I made allowances.

 

Since he is older, he was able to do most of it by himself. This was fine, until the milk mixture boiled over (Mommy wasn't watching). No damage other than a messy burner, but that spooked him. I had a hard time getting him back to the stove to stir again, even after the heat was turned off!

 

See, the messy burner just makes it match the rest of the kitchen.

Sprinkling the bread crumbs on was a little less threatening.

 

 

And, eating it was no problem at all!

He still doesn't like having his picture taken:)

 

Both of these recipes included shredded carrots, which is an easy way to add a vegetable. It didn't really change the taste, but the kids didn't like the crunch - too different from what they are used to. The adults liked it just fine. This had a milder taste than the recipe I use, but was still good - Daddy and C. both had two helpings!

 

I liked that the recipes were so easy to adapt to different ages. A more independent reader could be a more independent cook, using the clear lists of ingredients and supplies to get everything out himself. There are great tips and basic instructions that would even be good for adults newly on their own - as one from the mandatory Home Ec. generation, I still find it surprising when people don't know the difference between dry and liquid measuring (not that I actually measure anything myself.)

 

The recipes lean towards the healthy side, but are still simple and tasty - something kids will actually eat! Most important for any cookbook, the pictures (both photographs and illustrations) show most of the steps, as well as the finished product. The photos are bright, and laid out nicely, while the illustrations serve to clarify rather than clutter.

 

All in all, a very well-put-together series, perfect for the intended audience. Recommended for elementary and middle school libraries, as well as home. This set would make an excellent gift for budding chefs!

 

For more wonderful books, check out today's Nonfiction Monday round-up, at A Wrung Sponge.

 

 

 

 

 

 



E is for Easter!

Of course, I totally planned for S. to be learning the letter "E" around the time of "Easter" and "eggs". Mmm-hmm. And, if you believe that I'm that organized, this is obviously the first post you have ever read on this blog.

 

It did work out nicely, though! We, of course, decorated eggs - using flavored drink mix instead of dye and vinegar.

 

We made our list of "E" words, adding to it throughout the week.

 

 

We colored the eggs with an e in them. And then we colored the others, but with a different color. I didn't argue, because she usually won't color at all!

 

We even had a visit from the Easter Elk!

 

I wanted to do more tactile things with the letter shapes, since identifying those is our main goal right now:

 

 

L. kept eating the dry pasta, but S. managed to get some glued down.

 

We went for a walk to get some exercise

 

 

and found some "e"s

 

 

and evidence of elk.

Then, after a thorough hand scrubbing, we searched through a box of Scrabble crackers and ate all the "E"s!

Believe it or not, we do occasionally comb her hair.

 

We didn't do a whole lot with "E", because she picked it up quickly. Besides, we have an exciting surprise ahead for the letter "F", so stay tuned!

 

 

 

 



Review: A Dress for Me by Sue Fliess

Somehow, I have ended up with a girlie-girl. Oh, she will happily play in the mud and climb trees, and looks like a grubby little street-urchin by the end of the day. In the morning, however, we take great pains to pick out our clothing:

 

 

By "we", I mean S. Sparkly red shoes, mis-matched (but equally cool) socks, pink capris, and sophisticated black shirt, accessorized by braided belt, blue watch bracelet, pink movie star shades, and matching cell phone. Not an outfit I would put together myself, but she can sure make it work! (It's all in the attitude).

 

Don't even get me started on dresses. Hers is not a lifestyle that requires much dressing up, yet she has more pretty dresses than I do. We have a couple that are reserved for occasions when she actually does need to look nice, and the rest she can play outside in. That does not mean they are interchangeable, though! Oh, no, ma'am! Choosing the right dress to roll down the mountain in is treated with the same seriousness as the mothers of the brides on Say Yes to the Dress.

 

So, I knew this book was sure to be a big hit at home:

 

978-076-146-1487

 

I reviewed Shoes for Me a while back, and this follows our same little hippo on a similar search for just the right dress. All the things my girlie-girl would love - sparkles and sashes and beads and bows - fill the bright and cheery illustrations by Mike Laughead. The text follows a bouncy rhyme that would be just right for reading aloud, whether during a story time or one-on-one lap time. It could even serve as preventative maintenance before a shopping trip - or help sooth ruffled feathers after an unproductive one! Most obvious, of course, this could be given as a gift with a brand new, just-right dress!