Ahlberg, Allan TITLE: Hooray for Bread RATING: R PUBLISHER: Candlewick Press, 2013 PRICE: $15.99
ISBN: 9780763663117 INTEREST LEVEL: Pre-K-2nd ILLUSTRATOR: Bruce Ingman PAGES: 28
Hooray for Bread is appropriately named. This book is a rhyming celebration for bread and its journey throughout the day. This is a great story for small children to research the day of bread. I would love to use this as a beginning book to the history of bread.
REVIEWER: Tyra K~Smith, LCC Head Start/EHS/ECEAP
Arlon, P. & Gordon-Harris, T. TITLE: Dolphins: Discover More RATING: R
PUBLISHER: Scholastic Inc, 2014 PRICE: $7.99
ISBN: 9780545627382 INTEREST LEVEL: K-6th
ILLUSTRATOR: N/A PAGES: 32
Chalked full of information about dolphins, this is a fantastic book for a large group of readers. As an adult, I learned things I didn’t know about dolphins, and students of all ages will learn and be entertained by these marvelous creatures. A cool feature of this book is that the reader can go on-line and enjoy the companion digital book, as well. Presented in an easy-to-read manner, this book also has loads and loads of pictures which make for an even more enjoyable experience. You can’t beat the price of $7.99 for a hardback either!
REVIEWER: Nikki Williams, Castle Rock Elementary
Armstrong, Kelley TITLE: Sea of Shadows RATING: R
PUBLISHER: Harper, 2014 PRICE: $17.99
ISBN: 9780062071248 INTEREST GR: 8-12
ILLUSTRATOR: N/A PAGES: 406
Age of Legends trilogy book 1. Twin sisters Ashlyn and Moria keep the Forest of the Dead at peace by putting the souls of exiled criminals at rest. Evil spirits overtake their village and the girls must journey to the Emperor and warn him of the impending trouble. The sisters discover that evil is building inside the empire and a war with the undead is on the horizon. A mixture of fantasy and romance this will surely appeal to high school girls.
Another hit for Tedd Arnold with Fly Guy this story will be checked out every day! Fly Guy has saved many beginning readers looking for a book they can read and enjoy. In this story Buzz wants to find a pet for Fly Guy. When visiting the pet store he brings out a dog that licks Fly Guy, a cat that swats him, a frog that chases him. Fly Guy tries to find his own friend like a slimy worm, a tangly spider, and a jumpy cricket. But not what he wanted. Fly Guy wanted a pet who likes to
play and do tricks just like Buzz. Aha! That who can be his pet, Buzz.With the larger size book this great friendship story this is to read aloud with kids and talk about what a good friend does.
REVIEWER: Debbie Johnson, Wallace Elementary School, Kelso, WA
Ashman, Linda TITLE: Rain! RATING: R PUBLISHER: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2013 PRICE: $16.99
ISBN: 9780547733951 INTEREST LEVEL: Pre-K-2nd ILLUSTRATOR: Christian Robinson PAGES: 29
The perspective makes all the difference to your day. Rain is a book with very simple text, but tells a story through the illustrations. Two people a elderly gentleman and young boy wake up to a rainy day. The elderly gentleman complains and the boy is exclaims RAIN! The day continues to have its up and downs for the boy and man, however in the end the boy teaches the man to enjoy the weather. The illustrations speak volumes in facial features and scenery. This was a great hit in the classroom and a fun read!
REVIEWER: Tyra K~Smith, LCC Head Start/EHS/ECEAP
Atwater-Rhodes, Amelia TITLE: Bloodwitch RATING: A
PUBLISHER: Delacorte Press, 2014 PRICE: $17.99
ISBN: 9780385743037 INTEREST LEVEL: 7th and up
ILLUSTRATOR: NA PAGES: 281
Bloodwitch is an interesting fantasy novel appropriate for middle school and up. Vince, our main character is a 14 year old shape-shifter (quetzal/human). I appreciated the journey Vince made from innocence to doubt, and finally, independent thinking. The book has an undercurrent theme of comfort vs exploitation, and the meaning of freedom. There were sections of the story that became a bit dark and bloody and the complex fantasy world was sometimes confusing to me. However, as a whole I found the story enjoyable.
The art of manners is a beautiful thing. This book expresses thank-you and no thank-you in such a delightful way. Alice wants a pet for her birthday and says no to the hat that her mother wanted to buy her. Her mother corrects her with “No, Thank-You.” She then receives a parrot for her birthday and gives the parrot the same type of instruction. Her parrot says “No, Thank-you Mama,” and “No Thank-you papa.” Alice tries to teach her pet “No, Thank–you Alice.” The parrot eventually learns his lines in the end when Alice gives him a kiss. The illustrations are very unique. The people are represented as if this they were antiques. The background has a modern flair while the people and the surroundings could step right out of a late 1800 photograph. Very well done and would purchase in a second.
REVIEWER: Tyra K~Smith, LCC Head Start/EHS/ECEAP
Baskin, Nora Raleigh TITLE: Subway Love RATING: R PUBLISHER: Candlewick, 2014 PRICE: 16.99
ISBN: 9780763668457 INTEREST LEVEL: Gr 8-12 ILLUSTRATOR: none PAGES: 211
The jacket blurb says it all: “the soul’s ability to connect outside the bounds of reason.” In the mind and time-bending novel about love Laura boards a subway and ends up in a New York City years in the heyday of graffiti bedlam when authorities scrubbed away subway car art almost as fast as it was painted. She meets Jonas and an instant connection snaps between them. What I appreciated is that Baskin never editorializes on the bizarre connection through time and space. It just is. Laura endures a bizarre hippy mother, her abusing boyfriend, a mean brother and a distant father. The connection with Jonas is really the only positive in her life. He convinces her to confide all her hurts to her father. The effervescent love story continues. Zan, an artist of the subways, is planning the most expansive tag of the city: decorating an entire train with his art in one night. Having just attended a seminar on tagging, I now wonder what happened to Zan. The toxic cleanser used by the city killed many of the taggers of the 80s. Read it! Buy it! Book talk it! Romance readers will adore it. Quirky story readers will love it.
REVIEWER: Joan Enders, Librarian and Educational Consultant, http://bookbevy.wordpress.com
Bataille, Marion TITLE: Numero RATING: R PUBLISHER: Chronicle Books, 2013 PRICE:
ISBN: 978145212585 INTEREST LEVEL: Pre-K-K ILLUSTRATOR: NA PAGES: 22
This pop-up book is a creative way to present numbers 0 through 10. It is completely yellow with black writing for the numbers. The title in in Spanish, however it is just as acceptable for English speakers. There are no other printed language other than the title and the numbers.
REVIEWER: Tyra K~Smith, LCC Head Start/EHS/ECEAP
Bauer, Marion Dane TITLE: Celebrating Arizona RATING: R
Another book in the 50 States to Celebrate series, this leveled reader provides invaluable information about Arizona. Told like a story, the reader joins Mr. Geo on his journey across the state visiting many historical and interesting sights along the way. The illustrations are fabulous, really giving the reader a vivid picture of places in Arizona. Maps and Did You Know? trivia throughout the book lend to it being a great read and a great educational tool.
Bingham’s first book, Shark Girl, was an Oprah Winfrey pick, and because of my own personal biases, I wasn’t sure whether that was sufficient recommendation. I loved it! Apparently, so did a number of readers because Bingham decided to add a sequel to satisfy fans who fell in love with her character, Jane. Formerly Shark Girl was a worth successor to the first book about a teen who loses her arm in a shark attack. In this sequel, Jane is entering her senior year. Her older brother has gone to college, leaving her and her mother to rattle around the house. As with other seniors, Jane is wondering what she wants to do when she graduates, and she has two main choices: enter college to become a nurse or go to art school. Her experiences with nurses during her injury have inspired her to become a nurse—and the possibility makes for a feel-good story the press will eat up—but she is still devoted to her art. Readers will once again appreciate Bingham’s use of a variety of formats including the free verse musings of Jane interspersed with newspaper clippings, notes from admirers, and other forms of communication. It’s a quick read that will resonate with readers, and its ending is a satisfying conclusion to Jane’s story. Bingham also walks the difficult line of writing a character that is maturing without adding anything that would render the story inappropriate for younger readers.
REVIEWER: Jodi Kruse, R. A. Long High School, http://krusereviews.wordpress.com
Blankman, Anne TITLE: Prisoner of Night and Fog RATING: R+ PUBLISHER: Balzer & Bray, 2014 PRICE: $17.99
ISBN: 9781467732697 INTEREST LEVEL: 9-12
ILLUSTRATOR: NA PAGES: 389
Finding fresh perspectives on history can be a tough challenge, Anne Blankman was up to the task in her creation of Gretchen, a fictional character whose extended family embodies one of the most tyrannical personalities in history—Adolph Hitler. Gretchen, as a close family friend of the furor, sees his activities in a somewhat different light. The daughter of a man who was murdered in the putsch, Gretchen’s family appears to be teetering on the brink of poverty. Her older brother is a brute who finds his services appreciated in the new regime Herr Hitler is building, and no one seems willing to attempt to rein him in—even after he beats Gretchen horribly. Gretchen’s rescue comes from an unlikely source—a young Jewish journalist who is aware that a doctor has declared Hitler a psychopath. As Hitler’s agenda becomes more apparent, Gretchen must decide whether she will continue to support her furor and her family, or whether she will join the resistance. Her discovery about how her father died is the catalyst that changes everything. Carefully researched and beautifully written, Blankman kept me fascinated from the beginning to the end of her story, which is to be continued with another installation.
REVIEWER: Jodi Kruse, R. A. Long High School, http://krusereviews.wordpress.com
Blechman, Nicholas TITLE: Night Light RATING: R PUBLISHER: Orchard Books, 2013 PRICE: $16.99
ISBN: 9780545462631 INTEREST LEVEL: Pre-K-2nd ILLUSTRATOR: same PAGES: 36
Night Light is a counting book where you can predicte what vehicle is on the next page by listening to the text and looking at the lights peeking through the cut outs. Night light is a simple book visually. This book is a fun read a-loud for children.
REVIEWER: Tyra K~Smith, LCC Head Start/EHS/ECEAP
Bliss, Harry TITLE: Luke on the loose RATING: R PUBLISHER: Toon book (Candlewick), 2009 PRICE: $4.99
This Toon into reading! Level 2 title is designed using easy comics of one to four panels per page to attract and encourage emerging readers with a limited numbers of words, short sentences, frequent repetition, and few characters. Luke, bored with his dad’s preoccupation with a grown-up conversation, fixates on Central Park’s pigeons and begins an adventurous and humorous chase—“Yaaah!” Harry Bliss includes asides from wise and startled animals, bystander pratfalls, cameo appearances by Olive Oyl and Tin Tin, and a timely rescue by the fire department, so there is much to see in every panel.
One of a series of books “Responsibility in Action,” this book tells how a young boy comes home from school and goes through the actions of organizing himself to do the work he has been assigned at school. He checks his work and puts it into his backpack to take back to school. Included are a glossary, a fun facts page, and an index.
Teachers could use this to share what doing homework looks like.
REVIEWER: Debbie Johnson, Wallace Elementary School, Kelso, WA
Boyne, John TITLE: Stay Where You Are & Then Leave RATING: R PUBLISHER: Henry Holt, 2013 PRICE: $16.99
This book has more relevancy than it first appears, since this is the 100th anniversary of the beginning of World War I. It opens with Alfie celebrating his 5th birthday on the day Great Britain entered the Great War. As a 5 year old, he is proud, scared and a little uncertain when his beloved father, Georgie, shows up one day in uniform. As the years go by and Alfie grows, he becomes more and more aware that his father might not come home. Alfie discovers letters his mother didn’t share; letters that tell of the awful conditions and the disillusionment of the war. Life is not so easy on the home front, either. Mother begins work at a hospital and Alfie starts skipping school to work as a shoeshine boy at the railway station to supplement the dwindling finances. His best friend is deported to the Isle of Man to wait out the war because her father was from one of the enemies countries. A few months before the end of the war, Alfie learns that his father is in a rural hospital where soldiers are treated for shell shock. He plots, with the help of a conscientious objector, to rescue Georgie and bring him home. This story, written by the author of “The Boy in the Striped Pajamas” is also one of a young boy coming to grips with the reality of war and its horrors. It tells of how civilians are affected and how life is forever changed. It is a good insight for young readers, as well as older students, to learn about what life was like during this period of history.
Reviewer: Linda Solberg retired, Castle Rock High School, Castle Rock, Washington
Bozzi, Riccardo TITLE: The World Belongs to You RATING: R PUBLISHER: Templar Books, 2013 PRICE: $14.99
Freedom comes with limits. You can choose to be happy or not you can learn although it might be painful. The world is full of idioms. In this book, the author highlights some of these for young children. The illustrations are of simple shapes with familiar colors. While the words have deeper complex meaning, the text is written in simple language. This is a great book to challenge your young children in thinking about how they fit in the world and how the world reflects them back.
REVIEWER: Tyra K~Smith, LCC Head Start/EHS/ECEAP
Brown, Don TITLE: He Has Shot the President! RATING: R PUBLISHER: Roaring Brook Press, 2014 PRICE: $17.99
ISBN: 9781596432246 INTEREST LEVEL: 3rd-6th grade
ILLUSTRATOR: Brown, Don PAGES: 64
This nifty little book will give children a first look at the events from just prior to the day that John Wilkes Booth killed President Lincoln and the aftermath. Opening with the morning of April 14, 1865, we are introduced to the two key players, Abraham Lincoln and John Wilkes Booth, and what they each were doing that morning. This is followed by an account of Booth’s preparations and the plans he made with a few of his followers. Without being too descriptive, the assassination of the president and the attempted assassinations of his cabinet are depicted. The last half of the book follows the story of Booth’s escape and capture and the execution four of his co-conspirators and the imprisonment of others. The book has wonderful watercolor illustrations on each page that complement the words and will give the reader a visual reference or memory of the events as they happened. This is a very accurate, informative and readable book and it would make a great read-out-loud book in a classroom studying this chapter of our history.
Reviewer: Linda Solberg retired, Castle Rock High School, Castle Rock, Washington
This is the sad story of another war, soldiers killing villagers, a child escaping alone into the jungle to travel to his Grandmother's village when everyone else is killed. It could be any of dozens of places around the globe right now, and perhaps that is why it is so sad. It is told in small free verse snippets, sometimes with shape to the words on the page, capitals and spacing all blending to create the feelings and sounds. The note to the reader in the beginning explains this conflict, in 1954 in Guatemala, when soldiers fought guerrillas who would disappear into the jungle and villages were caught in the middle of the hunt for communists. Carlos is sent into the jungle to find mushrooms and soldiers who had visited before return to teach the village a lesson or some such madness. He remember his mother's directions and is able to make it up the mountain to his grandmother's village. At the end of the book it is present day and he learns he wasn't the lone survivor, but the tragic overtone remains. An interview with the author in the back, along with a glossary of the terms from his language help to explain the book, but a child who must decide how to behave because of war will always be a puzzle we wish we did not have to resolve. Reviewer: Lisa Sudar, Mark Morris High School
Callery, Sean TITLE: Titanic RATING: R PUBLISHER: Scholastic, 2014 PRICE: $15.99
This Scholastic Discover More nonfiction title is full of double page spreads of photos, tables, maps, biographical sketches, timelines, eyewitness quotations, schematics, and facts about the ill-fated liner. It is organized in these major sections: “Crossing the Atlantic”, “Building the ship”, “The voyage”, “Sunk”, and “Lost and found”. Multiple sizes of fonts, bright accent colors on top of the mostly b/w or sepia-toned photos, and boxed information help make the pages pop visually. Especially interesting are the timeline showing the series of decisions that had the Titanic steaming at full speed through an ice field, and a map showing the location of the ice field that kept closer ships from coming to the rescue. An especially poignant bar graph illustrates the number of survivors and dead by gender, age, and social class. Includes a glossary, index, and source credits.
REVIEWER: Carol Blix, Cathlamet Public Library
Cameron, Anne TITLE: The Lightning Catcher: Storm Tower Thief RATING: R
This book is a fantasy tale in a series of tales about the Perilous Exploratorium for Violent, Weather and Vicious Storms. Three young people are being trained to predict, warn and clean up after vicious weather occurs. Angus, Dougal and Indigo run into all types of weather developed by Indigo’s uncle who has kidnapped Angus’s parents. Angus meets an uncle he never knew about and finds that he, Angus, can predict the weather. These are just a few settings a long with the horrible weather and Indigo’s uncle whom the children must try to cope with.
REVIEWER: Ginny Flegel, Beacon Hill Elementary
Castaldi, Elicia TITLE: The food parade: healthy eating with the nutritious food groups
Each page is a description of the food groups and how they help your body. Text is simple and bold with colorful fonts. The illustrations make this book enjoyable. With a cut paper collage look, the foods march in a town parade. Teachers will find this book useful to enhance teaching their nutrition unit.
REVIEWER: Debbie Johnson, Wallace Elementary School, Kelso, WA
Cervantes, Angela TITLE: Gaby, lost and found RATING: R
Gaby is a young girl who must live with her father because her mother has been deported back to Honduras. The situation with her father is not ideal and she is alone a lot. Her father changes jobs often and barely provides for Gaby. Gaby must do a school project and volunteer at an animal shelter where she becomes attached to an abandoned kitten. Worried that the cruel owners will return to take Feather she takes her from the shelter and hides it. After her father discovers the cat she
has to return her to the shelter. She receives a consequence that she must write profiles for all the animals to help advertise them for adoption. The profiles increase the number of adoptions and Gaby has proven she is a vital part of the shelter. Gaby struggles with the loss of her mom being around and her father who is inattentive to her. The ending is all good when Gaby is able to live with her best friend’s family and Feather is adopted by the Gomez family. This story is filled with many twists and changes in the plot keeping the reader turning pages.
REVIEWER: Debbie Johnson, Wallace Elementary School, Kelso, WA
Cinotto, Laurie TITLE: The Itty Bitty Kitty Committee RATING: R
If you are a cat-lover, you cannot help but enjoy this book. Each page is filled with beautiful pictures of kittens and the accompanying text tells the life story of many kitten families that are taken in as foster-pets. Your heart will go out to all these adorable babies, and will be filled with admiration for the families that care for them. If you have ever had a house full of kittens, you know how their antics and personalities steal your heart. Our students will love this book.
