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7,100 | 7 | Vivian Vande Velde has written many books for teen and middle grade readers, including Heir Apparent, User Unfriendly, All Hallow's Eve: 13 Stories, Three Good Deeds, Now You See It ..., and the Edgar Award–winning Never Trust a Dead Man. She lives in Rochester, New York. Visit her website at www.vivianvandevelde.com.; Title: A Hidden Magic | [
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7,101 | 13 | Grade 3-6?First impressions can be somewhat deceiving. This handsomely designed title features an inviting layout: boxed captions; crisp, full-color photographs; and compressed information presented in double-page spreads. Varying type sizes lead the eye from headings to descriptions. Frequent diagrams illustrate where each group of instruments is seated in the orchestra, and fascinating trivia bites will intrigue browsers without overwhelming them. Organization of information could not have been better orchestrated. The accompanying compact disc, Benjamin Britten's classic The Young Person's Guide to the Orchestra, sonorously narrated by Ben Kingsley, paired with The Sorcerer's Apprentice, makes this package almost irresistible. Unfortunately, the scope of the presentation is just too vast. While the author glances at instruments and music of the world and peeks at learning about running an orchestra, she doesn't give a complete enough picture of the generic orchestra. There are only two very small color photos of orchestras, and the gorgeous, large, detailed illustrations of the seven highlighted instruments lack labels. The inadequate glossary does not define the cor anglais, which is mentioned, but not pictured. Neil Ardley's Music (Knopf, 1989) has pictures and diagrams of more instruments and covers the world of music, including rock, but has no information about composers or the orchestra. Betty Lou English's You Can't Be Timid with a Trumpet (Lothrop, 1980; o.p.) provides a grand, personalized tour of instruments and musicians.?Marilyn Payne Phillips, University City Public Library, MOCopyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.Gr. 4^-6. Accompanying this book on orchestral music is a CD featuring Britten's A Young Person's Guide to the Orchestra (ably narrated by actor Ben Kingsley) as well as Dukas' The Sorcerer's Apprentice. The book begins with an overview of the orchestra and then centers around groups of instruments, explaining a bit of their history and their sound's distinctive quality. Small photographs show several instruments within the group, and one or two large photos highlight individual instruments with their parts clearly labelled. Oddly, the instrument is named only in the small group photo, not where it is shown alone. The book also introduces eight famous composers, world music, Benjamin Britten, and the background of The Young Person's Guide to the Orchestra. A space for the CD is embedded in the book's front cover, a practical solution to the problem of keeping the book and music together, as long as the plastic holder is intact. Handsome and useful. Carolyn Phelan; Title: The Young Person's Guide to the Orchestra (Book & CD) | [
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7,102 | 15 | MARY LYN RAY has written many acclaimed books for children, including A Violin for Elva, illustrated by Tricia Tusa; New York Times best-seller Stars, illustrated by Marla Frazee; Pumpkins, illustrated by Barry Root; and Red Rubber Boot Day and Mud, both illustrated by Lauren Stringer. She lives in South Danbury, New Hampshire. Visit www.marylynray.com.; Title: Pumpkins: A Story for a Field | [
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7,103 | 17 | "No one expected such a tiny girl to have a first birthday," begins this inspiring biographical sketch of a legendary track stars. Born in 1940 in Tennessee, the chronically sickly though "lively" Rudolph contracted polio just before her fifth birthday. Though not expected to walk again, the fiercely determined girl persevered with her leg exercises; by the time she was 12, she no longer needed her steel brace. Eight years later, Rudolph represented the U.S. in the 1960 Olympics in Rome, where, despite a twisted ankle, she became the first American woman to win three gold medals during a single Olympic competition. Krull's (Lives of the Musicians) characteristic, conversational style serves her especially well here. Through her words the nearly superhuman Rudolph seems both personable and recognizable. Rendered in acrylic, watercolor and gouache, Caldecott Medalist Diaz's (Smoky Night) imposing, richly hued illustrations have a distinctive, cubist feel. The artist's bold design superimposes this art against sepia-toned photographs of relevant background images: playground sand, wooden fence slats, the gravel of a running track. This juxtaposition yields busy, effectively textured pages, flawed only by the text's curiously embellished font-the letters look as though they have been speckled with either ink blots or dust. A triumphant story, triumphantly relayed. Ages 7-12. Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.Kindergarten-Grade 5?The story of Wilma Rudolph, the prematurely born black child who, despite suffering from polio, became the first woman to win three Olympic gold medals. The narrative could very easily slip into sentimentality. It is to Krull's credit that though her telling is affecting, it is also crisp and matter of fact, very much in the spirit of Rudolph's deep day-to-day determination. However, the real impact of this book lies in the potent melding of powerful prose with Diaz's stunning artwork. His watercolor and acrylic illustrations with definite black outlining create a stained-glass effect, and the paintings themselves are backed on sepia photographs that relate to the text. For example, narrative about Wilma's bus trips to Nashville is matched with an illustration showing the girl and her mother at the back of the bus. This in turn is superimposed over a photograph of a bus tire. Children will listen raptly to this inspirational tale, which is especially appropriate for this Olympic year.?Ann Welton, Terminal Park Elementary School, Auburn, WACopyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.; Title: Wilma Unlimited: How Wilma Rudolph Became the World's Fastest Woman | [
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7,104 | 1 | Even arachnids get in the holiday spirit in Bodkin's (The Crane Wife) warm tale of a kindness repaid. All seems hopeless after a humble cobbler loses his workshop and home to fire just before the holiday and must sell his cherished heirloom Christmas ornaments. But when the cobbler and his family take shelter in a nearby shack and are careful not to disturb the cobwebs ("spiders' homes"), the grateful spiders spin lacy "ornaments" for all to enjoy. Widener (The Babe and I) trains his contemporary style on the old-fashioned proceedings with sturdy, flattened compositions. Ages 3-7. Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.reS-Gr 1-When a fire destroys a cobbler's house, he is able to save his family and a box of Christmas ornaments that came from their German homeland. He moves his wife and children to an old shack and must sell the keepsakes in order to replace his tools. On Christmas Eve, while the family sleeps, spiders come down from the rafters and fashion delicate cobweb ornaments for their bare Christmas tree. Although the messages (home is where the heart is, and don't forget to be nice to spiders) are fine ones, the story never really comes alive, a flaw that isn't alleviated by the glowing but rather flat acrylic illustrations. Pleasant but not a first purchase.-E. M.Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.; Title: The Christmas Cobwebs | [
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7,105 | 15 | Grade 1-6. How does water dance? From rain, to river, to lake, to sea, to cloud, with half a dozen more sidesteps in the circle. Each step is dramatized here with one of Locker's romantic Catskills wilderness landscape?or seascape?paintings. Changes in season, atmosphere, time of day, or weather alter the light and the palette, which is fairly subdued until the final crimson sunset. Each facing page has a haiku-like text describing the specific phenomenon ("In thousands of shapes I reappear/high above the earth in the blue sky./I float./I drift.") followed by an italicized identification ("I am the clouds"). This riddlelike format could spark reader interaction. The paintings reappear, twice postage-stamp size, on the final three pages, each accompanied by a scientist's brief explanation of the water cycle's stages. This book is a happy marriage of art and science, although there is never a doubt as to the dominant partner.?Patricia Lothrop-Green, St. George's School, Newport, RICopyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc.Gr. 3^-5. "Some people say that I am one thing. / Others say that I am many. / Ever since the world began / I have been moving in an endless circle . . . I am the rain." So begins the text of this unusual introduction to the water cycle. The book features a free-verse narrative illustrated by landscape and seascape paintings that show water in various forms referred to in the text: "I am the waterfall," "I am the clouds," or "I am the thunderhead." At the end of the book each picture appears in miniature accompanied by a paragraph explaining that particular phase of the water cycle. Those attracted to Locker's handsome artwork will find many beautiful and dramatic paintings here. Teachers may want to try this as a different approach to the water cycle. Although CIP places the book in the fiction collection, librarians may find it more useful in nonfiction collections, whether science or poetry, or shelved with Locker's other picture books. Carolyn Phelan; Title: Water Dance | [
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7,106 | 5 | PreSchool-Grade 3. Young presents a Chinese variant of the "Mouse Bride" tale to demonstrate the importance of recognizing the value of what is in one's own backyard. He uses heavy paper to create an accordion-fold format, and the first page is attached to the front board. One side of the story is told in white ink with black, cut-paper mice scurrying over a collage background of golds, browns, and reds. Watercolors and pastels, and the resulting wrinkles and bumps, add interest. When the father learns that it is the tiny mouse, with his ability to cause the mountain to crumble, that is the mightiest, and the daughter hears the news, the pages explode into glorious magenta. The reverse side of the foldout has a telling of the story in Chinese characters. When folded, the book is tied with raffia, although it will stay together when the raffia wears out. The story would be most effective displayed and told on a very long shelf or table. Young has considered the linear quality of the quest in his design, making viewing at a slight distance the optimal way to experience his creation. On the wedding day, the mice understand that "when they had a question, they knew that to find an answer they had not only to look?but also to see." Everything about Young's retelling works together to convey the joy of recognition.?Wendy Lukehart, Dauphin County Library, Harrisburg, PACopyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc.The mouse-parents of a cherished mouse-daughter seek the greatest and most powerful suitor for her; the sun begs off, for it humbly admits it can be eclipsed by a cloud. Each potential groom is just as honest: The cloud can be blown by the wind; the wind can be blocked by a mountain; the mountain can be nibbled to crumbs--by mice. Young (Genesis, p. 148, etc.) illustrates the story in an unconventional application of colors combined with a collage technique, featuring choices such as the lined green paper for the leaf of what looks like an iris plant. The mice are left in silhouette, but humor and personality are conveyed in their shapes and postures. The most unusual aspect of the story is its accordian format: A strip of heavy, coated cardboard has been folded into the picture-book format. Every turn of a fold brings readers to a discernible spread, but every spread blends into the next: The result is that the entire story can be unfolded into one long continuum. On the reverse side, in white calligraphy on a black background, the story appears in Chinese. It's a polished, effective presentation, for lap-sharing or story hours, and evidence that Young continuously redefines his role as a picture-book creator. (Picture book/folklore. 5-9) -- Copyright ©1997, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.; Title: Mouse Match: A Chinese Folktale (English, Chinese and Chinese Edition) | [] | Train |
7,107 | 13 | Wombat is a cute and lovable character with a passion for the stage and a desire to be in the nativity play. The popular illustrations of Kerry Argent are well loved by children, and this book could easily become a Christmas classic.The show must go on?and the annual Nativity play is no exception. Ready to break a leg, Wombat eagerly auditions for every part in the production, only to find that he's not quite suited for any of them. When fussy director Emu brilliantly suggests that Wombat accept the important role of baby Jesus, the play is finally ready for opening night. In her humorous and understated watercolors, Argent's (One Woolly Wombat) beguiling bunch of Australian animals embodies a refreshing all-for-one Christmas spirit. Fox's (Time for Bed) title is one of the few this season to take a playful approach to Christmas and its pleasures are infectious. Ages 4-8. Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.; Title: Wombat Divine | [
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7,108 | 2 | Grade 1-4. A story singular in its originality; its artwork; and its contemporary, multilayered theme that is ultimately filled with joy and peace despite its stark setting. On Christmas Eve, a homeless boy and his mother share their small cardboard-box home with an elderly stranger. The next morning, she is gone. And outside, the child thinks?but cannot believe?he sees an angel like the one on his December calendar page. The story ends a year later, when his situation has changed. His mother has a job and they have moved to a small apartment. It is then he observes that his calendar angel wears a rose just like the one the stranger had put on his Christmas tree. The message of charity as a risk worth taking in a dangerous world is a sobering, thoughtful holiday message. So deft in her writing, Bunting creates a mood or expresses an emotion with a simple sentence or phrase. Diaz's now-familiar angular, almost stained-glass figures dominate illustrations that are set against backgrounds so striking in their creativity and complexity that they would overwhelm a lesser story. The artist uses a mix of media and repetitive patterns to create unusual designs that give each backdrop a multidimensional look. One of a very few holiday books that has both art and writing so strong that they effectively mesh to create a truly unique title.Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc.An understated holiday story with dazzling art, by the duo behind Smoky Night (1994) and Going Home (1996). Simon and his mom live in a cardboard box, but they have a scrap of a Christmas tree, some found decorations including Simon's toy soldier, and an angel on the wall, named December, torn from an old calendar. On Christmas Eve, an old woman begs them to share their box, and they let her in, where Simon offers her one of the two cookies he is saving for Christmas day. In the morning, the old woman is gone, and the angel herself, singing softly, seems to fill the doorway before fading away. The next Christmas Eve finds Simon and his mother in a real apartment. She has found a job, and the December angel is on their new wall. Diaz's acrylic, watercolor, and gouache paintings have the monumentality and intensity of stained glass, with their flat planes of color and black outlines. The agitation of some of his work has been subsumed into a gentler and more emotionally resonant style, set against collage backgrounds full of roses and angels. The angel, with the wings of the feathered cloak of a Mesoamerican goddess, is a glorious creation. Seen in almost every spread in a glowing palette of rose and gold, she draws the eye and the heart again and again. (Picture book. 5-8) -- Copyright ©1997, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.; Title: December | [
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7,109 | 0 | "For my birthday I was hoping my parents would give me a bicycle. They only gave me a dime."So begins David Adler's inspired tale of the challenges and magic--yes, magic--of a depression-era childhood spent in the Bronx, New York. Disappointed, but not surprised by his present, the young narrator in The Babe & I spends his birthday afternoon wandering neighborhood streets with his best friend Jacob, discussing--as always--the New York Yankees and the world's greatest baseball player, Babe Ruth. The boys may have little in the way of monetary goods, but they do live within walking distance of Yankee stadium. They get a special lift from their proximity to this golden team of graced athletes, even if they can never go inside the gate. On this day, however, the stakes are raised significantly when the narrator discovers a difficult, saddening secret about his father. In response, he decides to join Jacob and become a newspaper boy--a decision that helps his family through these tough years and leads the narrator into the best, most unbelievable encounter of his life--better than any bike or birthday or anything.Adler's honest, vivid reflection of 1930s life is perfectly complemented by Terry Widener's evocative, earth-toned illustrations. Reminiscent of WPA murals, Widener's images help Adler transport the reader to another time and place in a symbiotic pairing that makes this tender book a true work of art. (Ages 5 and older) --Jean LenihanIn the Bronx in 1932, a boy out walking with his friend discovers that his ostensibly employed father is actually selling apples on the street. Shocked, the boy numbly follows the friend, a "newsie," to work and ends up learning a great strategy for selling papers: go to Yankee Stadium and shout the latest about Babe Ruth. Adler, previously paired with Widener for Lou Gehrig: The Luckiest Man, creates an empathic but unsentimental portrait of life during the Depression. He conveys the father's humiliation and pride, but the boy's satisfaction in his own job and the family's general happiness keep their lot from seeming pitiful. After selling a paper to the Babe himself, the boy feels new kinship with him: "He and I were a team.... His home runs helped me sell newspapers." But baseball isn't really what drives the bookAmore importantly, "I knew Dad and I were also a team. We were both working to get our family through hard times." Widener's acrylics have a striking presence: their massy forms and jaunty, exaggerated perspectives achieve a look that's both nostalgic and edgy. Adler and Widener score bigAtheir book reads like a labor of love. Ages 5-9. Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.; Title: The Babe & I | [
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7,110 | 2 | Frazee's (The Seven Silly Eaters) dark but nimble illustrations flesh out more of a story line for the old folk song, with mixed results. A scowling older sister starts the baby crying by abruptly shoving its cradleAa clever, tangy interpretationAand the family spends the rest of the book trying to placate the infant. Cast as Appalachians of yore, the characters include a bonneted mother, a burly father, the barefoot, gap-toothed sister and a bushy-bearded peddler. The words of the song are blazoned across the bottom of the spreads in large type, and the pictures, heavily shaded with black pencil and brightened somewhat with colored inks, often appear as multi-panel sequences. Vignettes on one spread, for example, show the girl whispering to the father, then leading him to the peddler's wagon, then buying a mockingbird, then carrying it home. A few scenes of the father and daughter are beautifully expressive: her poses, leaning against him or happily perched on his shoulders, are perfectly natural, as is a scene in which the parents exchange woeful glances over the baby's head. But a few too many exaggerated gestures and bugged eyes send the illustrations from the animated toward the cartoonish, and while the style is very deliberate, the gloomy tones and the hyped-up, caricatured figures sit uneasily together. All ages. (Sept.) Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.PreSchool-This creative interpretation has all of the elements of a perfect picture book: playful illustrations that extend the text dramatically and tell an additional story all their own; an attractive page layout that makes it ideal for use in a storyhour; and a satisfying conclusion that brings the story back to its beginning-a sleeping baby. Even before the text begins, a 19th-century rural family is shown returning home as the sun goes down, the couple walking ahead with a sleeping baby while their older daughter lags behind, intrigued by a peddler's cartload of goods. When they reach their cabin, the girl, jealous of the attention lavished on her young sibling, makes her displeasure clear by giving the cradle a shove. The resulting howls from the now-awake infant set in motion a series of visits to the peddler's wagon, where the youngster persuades her father to buy, one by one, the familiar items mentioned in the song. But does she really hope such items as a looking glass and a puppy will hush the crying child, or does she have her eye on them for herself? The story is rendered in acrylic artist's ink and black Prismacolor pencil, mostly in two-page spreads with one line of the song in large type across the bottom. The complete lyrics, with musical accompaniment, are appended. Even libraries with other picture-book versions of this song in their collections will want to add this unique, imaginative interpretation.Ginny Gustin, Santa Monica Public Library, CA Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.; Title: Hush, Little Baby: A Folk Song with Pictures | [
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7,111 | 0 | PW's starred review described this "stirring" book as a look at the dark underside of Christopher Columbus's adventure. "The message is blunt but the language in which it is couched is vintage Yolen, lyrical and impassioned. Shannon's visionary style is an ideal complement." Also available in a Spanish-language edition, Encuentro ($6, -201342-3). Ages 6-12. Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.; Title: Encounter (Voyager Books) | [
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7,112 | 2 | Kindergarten-Grade 3-A beautifully written, lovingly executed trip down memory lane. Sepia-toned endpapers at the beginning of the book introduce readers to a freckle-faced girl in pigtails; endpapers at the conclusion feature colorful images of her daughter at the same age, years later. In between, the quiet refrain-"I wasn't always your mother"-gently reminds readers of the child that this adult narrator used to be. Pham's watercolor, pen-and-ink, and collage illustrations use warm tones throughout, but rely primarily on soft shades of brown and tan for the mother's childhood memories and brighter, crisper hues for those of her as a grown woman with her daughter. This fond tribute to loving mothers and daughters everywhere promises to become a bedtime favorite.Catherine Threadgill, Charleston County Public Library, SCCopyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.PreS-Gr. 2. In this sweet, honest slice of life, a mother talks to her daughter, recalling herself as a little girl (with a friend named Ruby and a brother named Freddy), a girl who put on a circus in her backyard and ate her mother's Jell-O. The mother assures her daughter that she was not always "the mother who tells you to shush when I'm on the telephone," and the accompanying picture shows the daughter, a boa around her neck, and her friends pretending to be singers. Another spread goes back in time to show the mother as a girl with her pal Ruby on a "starry, starry night" when they turned the garbage can lids upside down and tap-danced on them, "just to hear the rat-a-tat-tat bounce into the darkness." Adults may sense an almost melancholy dimension to the text, but that perception comes with age. Children will be charmed by the thought of mothers who were girls with exuberance and dreams much like their own. The watercolor and pen-and-ink illustrations, bursting with real life and remembrance, celebrate the story. Conversations galore will spring from this. Ilene CooperCopyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved; Title: Before I Was Your Mother | [
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7,113 | 7 | PreSchool-Grade 3?A pig-tailed, snub-nosed, African-American girl tells how an egg she finds on a "Sunday-before-supper walk" helps her discover her true calling?raising dragons. Out of the egg comes a hatchling that she names Hank, and until crowds and undue attention force him to leave, he and the girl share everything from bedtime stories to nighttime flights under the stars. Although the narrator boohoos a heap when forced to say good-bye to Hank, she leaves him in his tropical homeland with the hope of seeing him again?and with a wheelbarrow full of dragon eggs to care for. The warm, colloquial narrative has patterns and pacing reminiscent of the oral tradition. Clever supporting details are provided by the acrylic and pastel illustrations, beginning with the Old World-style map that depicts Dragon Island and Oceanus Dragonicus. The changing expressions on the creature's face, the dragon-shaped cloud after Hank has left, and the airline serving Dragon Island (Air Dragon, of course) are all illustrative details that enrich the text. That the girl brings new dragon eggs home to the exact location Hank was forced to vacate because of attracting so many crowds may puzzle some very astute listeners, but most will be absorbed by a joyous tale of friendship and adventure.?Faith Brautigan, Gail Borden Public Library, Elgin, ILCopyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.Ages 4^-7. Fantasy and realism blend nicely in a warm-hearted picture book with a title that attracts attention and pictures that dazzle with vibrant colors. In a comfortable, conversational, matter-of-fact tone, a little African American child tells about the dragon, Hank, that she raises on her parents' farm and the helping hand that Hank lends to her family--cooling Ma's tomatoes by beating with his large wings, blowing his fiery breath to pop corn in the fields, and giving the child a ride in the sky. Wise beyond her years, the child knows Hank can't stay, so she takes him to a dragon-shaped island to be with others like himself. She doesn't return empty-handed, however; she comes back with a wheelbarrow full of dinosaur eggs. The magical beasts know their progeny is in good hands. Children may be reminded of Steven Kellogg's Mysterious Tadpole (1977), though the story and pictures in this book are tender rather than wildly funny like Kellogg's. And the focus here isn't on the beast and its antics; it's really on the strong, smart, devoted little girl, who is willing to work hard to give substance to what most people think is strictly make-believe. A book that pushes children to look beyond the obvious. Stephanie Zvirin; Title: Raising Dragons | [
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7,114 | 15 | This book won the Minnesota Book Award, and, as the title may suggest, it's a Minnesota kind of book. Old Man Winter is an ornery ol' cuss in a rawhide hat, a kind of anti-Santa who spreads the fluffy white stuff across the land from the back of a magical flying truck. Stephen Gammell has won the Caldecott Medal and twice has been on the Caldecott honor list. His pastel-and-watercolor illustrations are richly colored, with a spiky quality that fits his grumbling hero perfectly. Purple and blue predominate--and white, of course--with the occasional smear of pale green. The text is extremely brief--rarely more than four or five words per double-page spread--and most of it is done by hand in a scratchy, irregular style that, like the illustrations themselves, are reminiscent of Ralph Steadman's deliberate messiness. Some will be amused, others perplexed by the surprise ending--Old Man Winter is no more (or less) than a young girl's doll! Either way, this exuberant romp is a vivacious, visually glorious tribute to winter. Click to see a sample spread. Illustration is from Is That You Winter?, copyright ©1997 by Stephen Gammell, reproduced by permission of Harcourt Brace & Company. (Ages 3 to 6)Kindergarten-Grade 3. It's time for Old Man Winter to go to work again but he wakes up late, misses breakfast, and climbs into his old truck feeling miserable and cranky. He gets busy flinging ice and snow throughout the atmosphere but he still wonders whether anyone cares about or appreciates his efforts. Having dumped a good-sized blizzard on the earth, he heads home for lunch but stumbles and tumbles to the ground, landing at the feet of a little girl. She picks up his doll-sized figure, gives him a kiss to thank him for the lovely snow, and runs off to play with her friends, leaving Old Man Winter decidedly sunnier in mood. Gammell's characteristic style is well suited to the wintry, wild setting. He splashes blues and splatters white across the pages with the energy of a full-blown snowstorm. The reds, yellows, and greens of Old Man Winter's cowboy outfit and the children's snowsuits heat up the action without detracting from the delicious chill of the snowy scenes. The story, reminiscent of Raymond Briggs's Father Christmas (Random, 1997), is less successful than the paintings. The fact that Old Man Winter appears to be a doll seems somewhat anticlimactic, but the premise of the book is fun and the illustrations leave wide room for interpretation on the part of young audiences.?Barbara Kiefer, Teachers College, Columbia University, NYCopyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc.; Title: Is That You, Winter? | [
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7,115 | 2 | So what if he's legally blind? Even with his bottle-thick, bug-eyed glasses, Paul Fisher can see better than most people. He can see the lies his parents and brother live out, day after day. No one ever listens to Paul, though--until the family moves to Tangerine. In Tangerine, even a blind, geeky, alien freak can become cool. Who knows? Paul might even become a hero! Edward Bloor's debut novel sparkles with wit, authenticity, unexpected plot twists, and heart. The writing is so fine, the story so triumphant, that you just might stand up and shout when you get to the end. Hooray!Grade 6-8. Paul starts seventh grade after moving from Houston to a ritzy new development in Tangerine County, FL. Legally blind following some repressed childhood incident, he nonetheless sees familial, environmental, and social anomalies of the local landscape with greater acuity than the adults around him. His intense mother quickly assumes a leadership role in the Homeowner's Association. His civil engineer father is obsessed with his older brother Erik's football career. Lurking beneath their suburban veneer are real dangers that deepen the disquieting atmosphere: smoke from an unquenchable muck fire casts a pall over the area; lightning kills a football player during practice; a sinkhole swallows the school's portable classrooms; and Paul's conflicts with Erik, a truly nasty, probably psychotic kid. Paul is determined to do whatever it takes to make it on the soccer field, in the classroom, and with his peers. The difference between local people with knowledge of the land and ignorant newcomers who are perplexed by it is powerfully portrayed. Equally clear is that class consciousness and racism have built fences through which Paul chooses to blast holes. Mix a sensitive male protagonist reminiscent of Asa in Bruce Brooks's What Hearts (HarperCollins, 1992), ratchet the soccer scenes from Joseph Cottonwood's The Adventures of Boone Barnaby (Scholastic, 1990) up several degrees of intensity, and enjoy this satisfying family/healing, coming-of-age struggle in which everyone takes some licks, but Paul keeps on kicking.?Joel Shoemaker, Southeast Jr. High School, Iowa City, IACopyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc.; Title: Tangerine | [
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7,116 | 11 | An award-winning fiction writer, playwright, and poet, Sherley Anne Williams (1944-1999) is best known for her widely acclaimed novel Dessa Rose. Her interest in children's literature was nurtured by story-telling sessions for her son, Malcolm, and his friends.Working Cotton is based on poems from The Peacock Poems, a National Book Award nominee, and his her first book for children.; Title: Working Cotton | [
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7,117 | 0 | Text: Spanish (translation) Original Language: EnglishJane Yolen is a highly acclaimed author who has written hundreds of books for children and adults and has won numerous awards. She and her husband divide their time between Massachussetts and Scotland. Visit her at janeyolen.com and on Twitter at @JaneYolen.  ; Title: Encuentro (Spanish Edition) | [
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7,118 | 7 | Singer/songwriter/author Jimmy Buffett has become a legend of popular culture as the composer of such classic songs as "Margaritaville" and "Cheeseburger in Paradise." He has recorded more than thirty albums, most of which have gone gold, platinum, or multiplatinum, and his sold-out concert tours are an annual rite of summer for his fans. In addition to his musical credits, Buffett is also one of only six authors who have had number-one New York Times bestsellers in both fiction (Where Is Joe Merchant?) and nonfiction (A Pirate Looks at Fifty).; Title: Trouble Dolls | [
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7,119 | 2 | Grade 4-7. These series titles feature beautiful full-color photographs and uncluttered, informative texts. Both define difficult terms and have two-page sections giving interesting facts about the professions. Veterinarian provides an overview of where vets work, including those who make housecalls or work at zoos, and interesting facts on holistic veterinary medicine. One double-page spread is devoted to famous veterinarians, and another to specialized vocabulary that includes terms like "hoof nipper." Astronaut introduces readers to the idea of a career in the space program with sections on space camps, training, and education. A section also discusses the Challenger Center Program founded by the families of the Challenger crew who died in the 1986 explosion. Attractive additions.?Denise Furgione, Atlantic County Library, Mays Landing, Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc.; Title: I Want to Be a Veterinarian | [
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7,120 | 2 | In Haseley's (Kite Flier) wistful tale of a bear beguiled by a woman he befriends one summer, inconsistencies render the events more puzzling than haunting. The narrative begins from the bear's point of view, as he first discovers "something lying on the ground," which readers can see is a letter. On the next spread, the narrative voice shifts: "Through the years, the bear looked at the paper with wonder it seemed as far away and mysterious as the moon." Next, the text switches to the main action: the bear observes a woman outside her cabin, carrying something he can describe only as "a mysterious square thing." However, in the next sentence he identifies it: "He [tried] to understand what she was doing as she held the book." The tug-of-war in point of view continues as the woman begins to read aloud to the bear. At the end of her stay, she leaves her books for him (even though he cannot read), and he takes them back to his cave, where they provide him with comfort all winter. LaMarche's (The Raft) shimmering pastel spreads go far to carry the tale over its rough spots. The artwork conveys the bear and the woman in growing intimacy, their heads drawing closer together over the shared books. Nature scenes chronicle the passing of the summer; in the sky behind them, geese fly south, hinting at her departure. Yet LaMarche alone cannot clarify the narrative. Some children may find the magic in this peaceable kingdom, but more will be left outside, wondering what to make of it. Ages 5-8. Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.Kindergarten-Grade 2--A young bear finds a piece of paper with black marks on it in the woods and keeps it for several years, wondering about its meaning. One summer, he wanders farther than usual and discovers a cabin in a clearing, and a woman holding a mysterious square thing in her hands. He returns day after day, his curiosity compelling him closer to her. One afternoon, she invites him to sit with her. Thus begins a daily routine of the woman reading aloud to the bear, who cannot understand the words, but is mesmerized by the tones and melodies of her voice. The bear is anthropomorphized, but still a believably realistic wild bear. LaMarche's illustrations, done in warm tones of acrylic and colored pencil on watercolor paper, back up this realistic tone. There are a couple of awkward elements in the plot, the most obvious of which is the letter that begins the story and reappears in the middle but is never explained. However, children are not likely to notice the snags, but will focus instead on the gentle warmth of the story.Heather E. Miller, Homewood Public Library, ALCopyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.; Title: A Story for Bear | [
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7,121 | 0 | A perfect springtime accompaniment to actual bugs, Insectlopedia swarms, buzzes, and slithers with poetry and paint. Douglas Florian, creator of the award-winning Beast Feast, On the Wing, and In the Swim, has succeeded again, this time with a delightful infestation of 21 spider and insect poems and paintings, awash in watercolor and collage on primed brown paper bags.Well-loved for his clever wordplay (complete with endearingly shameless visual and verbal puns), Florian manages to seamlessly blend science with pure whimsy. Take "The Praying Mantis," for example: "Upon a twig/I sit and pray/For something big/To wend my way;/A caterpillar,/Moth,/or bee--/I swallow them/Religiously." His rhythmic chant "The Weevils" begins, "We are weevils./We are evil./We've aggrieved/Since time primeval." Add a few inchworms, moths, and whirligig beetles, and you have the blisteringly funny, stingingly clever Insectlopedia, the perfect book for emerging entomologists and budding poets alike. (All ages)Grade 2-6?As he did in Beast Feast (1994), On The Wing (1996), and In the Swim (1997, all Harcourt), Florian offers 21 short, inventive poems and paintings that create playful images of animals. Here, the subjects are arthropods such as the mayfly, praying mantis, hornet, black widow spider, and weevils. The verse form is as varied as the creatures presented. Shaped or pattern poems about the inchworm, whirligig beetles, and mound-building termites work particularly well. The words are arranged in pleasing patterns and the rhythms fit the characteristics of the subjects. The design adds to the overall appeal. Each selection is given its own page, allowing for the use of large type and plenty of glossy white space, and paired with a full-page watercolor with a neat border of white. These portraits build on the imaginatively integrated realistic and anthropomorphic images created in the text. There are other books of poetry about insects and lots of collections of humorous verses about animals but none match Insectlopedia.?Carolyn Angus, The Claremont Graduate School, CACopyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.; Title: Insectlopedia: Poems and Paintings | [
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7,122 | 15 | Kindergarten-Grade 3. Yolen's short ode to evening touches upon the moon and fireflies, moths, an owl, and small nocturnal animals. Double-page paintings of a nighttime countryside feature flat figures of a boy, his mother, and their dog outside their lighted house. Hunter's simple scenes are nicely textured with cross hatching, and her homely animal portraits?a bat in flight, a squirrel asleep in a tree hole, a raccoon, an owl, and a sleeping dog?are appealing. The simple scheme of winding down the day ends first in the boy's bedroom?"Tucked up under eiderdown/I nestle down, wrestle down/my hullaballooning thoughts/and drift through dark into dreams." The concluding dreamscape places the boy's bed back in the outdoors amid the grasses, fireflies, and night sky. The pictures illuminate the poem and make it more concrete for younger children, adding setting and a cast of characters to tell their own small story. An appealing addition to the shelves of bedtime books.?Margaret Bush, Simmons College, BostonCopyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc.; Title: Nocturne | [
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7,123 | 7 | Mary Norton (1903-1992) lived in England, where she was an actress, playwright, and award-winning author of the classic Borrowers novels.; Title: Are All the Giants Dead? | [
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7,124 | 1 | Jane Dyer has illustrated many well-loved picture books, including Move Over, Rover!, a Geisel Honor Book written by Karen Beaumont; Oh My Baby, Little One, an ABA Pick of the Lists and Parent's Choice Recommended Book written by Kathi Appelt; and the bestselling classic Time for Bed by Mem Fox. She lives in Northampton, Massachusetts.; Title: If Anything Ever Goes Wrong at the Zoo | [
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7,125 | 1 | Janell Cannon's picture books have won many awards and are beloved around the world. She is the author and illustrator of the longtime bestseller Stellaluna, Verdi, Crickwing, Pinduli, and others. Before she became a full-time creator of books for children, she designed summer reading programs at her local public library. Born and raised in Minnesota, Ms. Cannon now lives in Southern California.; Title: Stellaluna: A Pop-up Book and Mobile | [
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7,126 | 2 | MEM FOX is the author of many acclaimed books, including Ten Little Fingers and Ten Little Toes, Possum Magic, Koala Lou, Time for Bed, and, for adults, Reading Magic: Why Reading Aloud to Our Children Will Change Their Lives Forever. She lives in Adelaide, Australia.; Title: Sophie | [
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7,127 | 1 | Verdi is a proud python, flourishing in the flower of his youth. He loves to swiftly slither around the forest, brandishing his bright yellow skin, and can't fathom why anyone would want to be sleepy and green like the adult snakes he knows. Verdi insists, as so many youngsters do, "I will never be lazy, boring or green!" Despite his resolve to stay young, one day he notices a patch of green spreading down the length of his body. Verdi does everything he can think of to erase this first sign of the inevitable tide of age. But in his frenzy of youthful, Icarus-like bravado, he nearly kills himself. Finally, Verdi learns that even though he can't stop the aging process, green skin won't keep him from being a fun-loving, young-at-heart, figure-eight-forming snake.Janell Cannon's illustrations are exquisite. As in her award-winning Stellaluna, not only are the animal drawings painstakingly accurate, they are also awash with movement and beauty. The countless shades of greeny-yellow and yellowy-green have the effect of a cool eye compress for the reader--calming, inviting, and enticing readers to reach into the lush environment of the pages. Verdi's lesson is never didactic, always compelling, and pleasantly surprising. (Ages 4 and older)Grade 1-3?Verdi, a python hatchling, is born a splendid, vibrant yellow with zig-zagging stripes and is determined not to turn green, as all his folk eventually do. His jungle-green elders seem boring and lazy to Verdi, who loves flinging himself from the treetops. He gets himself out of one scrape and into another, until a bad injury sobers him. He comes to enjoy the camouflaging green that eventually creeps over him, but he's still "Verdi"?maybe a little more sedate, but never dull. Cannon's layout and illustrations are similar to those in her popular Stellaluna (Harcourt, 1993), with stunningly realistic and vibrant pictures in acrylic and pencil that feature bright greens and yellows. Each full-page, color illustration faces a white page with text and a black-and-white spot drawing and border. Some double-page spreads provide breaks in the generally well-paced story. Verdi is an easy-to-like character, and the pictures convey his exuberance and carry the story where the text occasionally falters. A page of "Snake Notes" at the end provides background information. A great read-aloud or read-alone.?Nina Lindsay, Vista School, Albany, CACopyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc.; Title: Verdi | [
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7,128 | 0 | A frog teaches her cohorts to dance; "Wide-eyed and wiggling, rendered in a fresh, focused palette and invitingly designed, these hip hopsters are a joy to behold," said PW in a starred review. Also available in a Spanish-language edition, Salta y brinca ($6, -201356-3). Ages 3-8. Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.PreSchool-Grade 2-"'It's always the same,'" complains Betsy, a green-speckled blue frog. She is tired of watching the others of her ilk engaging in their monotonous, "Hop jump, hop jump." Instead, she imitates leaves-leaping, turning, and twisting-as they float to the ground. "'It's called dancing,'" she says. The frogs at first reject the idea, and then all but one join her. Betsy declares, "'There's room for dancing and for hopping.'" This gentle lesson in diversity and tolerance is presented in direct, graceful prose. Although there are just a few words per page, the text flows smoothly and is perfectly coordinated with the cut-paper collage illustrations. The ever-changing positions and relationships of the frogs, speckled with yellow, green, and blue, hold readers' interest. The large, clearly seen figures and flowing language will make this book a popular and useful story time choice.Nancy Seiner, The Carnegie Library of PittsburghCopyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the School & Library Binding edition.; Title: Hop Jump (Rise and Shine) | [
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7,129 | 0 | The legend behind the ballet that has long captivated audiences is presented in storybook form. Siegfried is, of course, the headstrong prince who must choose a bride. Odette is the swan-maiden who appears to him on a moonlit night, captive of a cruel spell. The owl-magician who has her in thrall appears to make a mockery of their love, but the lovers, denied one another in life, plunge to the depths of the lake together--thus breaking the spell forever. In book form, as on the stage, this proves a magnificent story--an enchanted, romantic vision underlaid with powerful themes of good and evil, and of reality and illusion. Fonteyn's competent telling moves the plot along smoothly, but Hyman's illustrations--magical tableaux of mood and mystery, in which each detail and expression seem to have been perfectly attended to--make this extraordinary pas de deux soar. All ages. Copyright 1989 Reed Business Information, Inc.Grade 2-6-- Fonteyn's affection for Swan Lake is clear, especially in the interesting performance notes at the end of the book which include a sharp reminder to today's performers that Odette is more woman than swan. Although written in narrative form, the story of the doomed lovers and the evil magician is told with an eye on stage. The settings are described, the characters' movements are motivated, and the plot unfolds to its inevitable tragic conclusion. Unfortunately, Fonteyn does not trust the impact of the story and ends it with one of the rescued swan maidens spelling out the moral that "the power of real love is greater than all the forces of evil added together." Hyman's lush illustrations heighten the romance in night scenes awash in soft blues that contrast with the reality of the daytime and indoor scenes which almost glare with shades of yellow with green and red highlights. The idealized characters float through the tale in their good and evil forms. Details such as jewelry worn by the women of the court, wall sconces, and the ominous cloud formations contribute to the fairy tale atmosphere. Still available are Donna Diamond's Swan Lake (Holiday, 1980), a well-written full version with very ethereal gray and white illustrations, and Anthea Bell's more terse Swan Lake (Picture Book Studio, 1986) with watercolor illustrations by Chihiro Iwasaki. Many versions of the ballet plot are available in collections. This new Swan Lake , with its sophisticated color and design, picture book format, and straightforward telling, will appeal to a wide age range. --Amy Kellman, Carnegie Library of PittsburghCopyright 1989 Reed Business Information, Inc.; Title: Swan Lake | [
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7,130 | 2 | Set in the mid-1980s, a time when Ethiopia is hard-hit by drought and political strife, Kurtz's (Trouble) eye-opening novel charts the converging paths of two young natives fleeing from their country. Sahay, a Christian orphan, and Rahel, a blind Jewish girl, have been taught to be enemies, but discover they have much in common when they join a large group of refugees on their way to Sudan: both have suffered hunger and persecution, have been torn from their families and regret leaving their homeland. Through the girls' alternating points of view, Kurtz conveys how the fellow travelers' mutual mistrust of one another gradually grows into reliance upon each other for aid and consolation. When soldiers force Sahay's uncle and Rahel's brother to turn back, Sahay experiences her first pang of pity for the "blind Falasha" girl and offers to be her guide. In turn, Rahel soothes Sahay's lagging spirit with inspirational stories from the Old Testament. Besides presenting an historically accurate account of mass exodus from Ethiopia (additional information appears in an afterword), the story pays tribute to survivors who find the strength and courage to help others reach freedom. Ages 8-12. Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.Grade 5-8-This harrowing story set in Ethiopia during the 1980s features an unexpected friendship between two girls of different religious backgrounds. Threatened by war, famine, and drought, Sahay and her uncle set out from their small Kemant village to find safety in the Sudan. Rahel, a blind Jewish girl, and her brother also flee the country as part of a group of Beta-Israel planning to make an aliyah to Jerusalem. As part of the same band of refugees, the girls make a long, difficult trek across the mountains. When the men are turned back at the border, Rahel and Sahay are left on their own to finish the journey. They find that their common danger and need for one another allow them to overcome the generations of prejudice that separate Jews (called falasha or "alien strangers" in spite of generations of residence) and other religious and ethnic groups in this part of the world. Throughout the ordeal, Rahel comforts herself and Sahay with the stories that she learned from her grandmother, tales from the Bible and Ethiopian tradition that help the girls believe that they will survive. This moving novel about friendship also illustrates the power of story. Ethiopian words that are clear in context and also defined in the glossary help particularize the setting. An afterword explains something of the complex relationship between the girls' two different cultures. This ultimately heartening novel is a solid addition to the growing body of middle-grade books for a multicultural world.Kathleen Isaacs, Edmund Burke School, Washington, Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.; Title: The Storyteller's Beads | [
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7,131 | 0 | VIRGINIA HAMILTON (1936–2002) was one of the most highly acclaimed writers of her time. Her many awards included the National Book Award, the John Newbery Medal, the Coretta Scott King Award (twice), the Boston Globe-Horn Book Award (twice), the Edgar Allan Poe Award, the Ohioana Book Award, and two of her novels were cited as Newbery Honor Books. She was a Distinguished Visiting Professor at Queen College and the Ohio State University. Ms. Hamilton was married to poet/author Arnold Adoff and divided her time between New York City and Ohio.; Title: The Bells of Christmas | [
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7,132 | 2 | Every day Albert sticks his hand out the window of his apartment to check the weather. Every day he decides it's too cold, too hot, too wet, too breezy, and goes back to sitting at his table, drinking tomato juice, doing card tricks, or listening to baseball games on the radio. Until one day when he works his hand out through the grillwork over his window--plop! A cardinal drops a twig in his palm. Before he knows it, Albert is stranded, holding a brand new nest in his hand. The days go by, eggs are laid, the papa cardinal starts feeding berries to Albert, and, inevitably, chicks hatch. Meanwhile, Albert is slowly developing a different take on life. His previously protected world opens up as he witnesses the highs and lows of nature's course.In this odd little story, award-winning young adult novelist Donna Jo Napoli (Zel, Spinners, etc.) takes her first stab at writing a picture book. It's quirky, it's whimsical... It's a little perplexing. The moral, apparently, is that we need to seize life by the lapels, take the good with the bad, not hide our heads underground. But this message may apply more strongly to adults, especially as the protagonist himself is a young man. Still, children will love the idea of a bird building its nest in someone's hand. With colored pencils, Jim LaMarche creates luminous full-page illustrations with charming details and intriguing angles. (Ages 5 to 8) --Emilie CoulterNapoli's (Beast) first picture book spins a beguiling tale of a recluse forced out of his shell through unlikely circumstances. Sticking his hand through the window grillwork each day to check the weather, Albert invariably decides it's "too cold," "too damp" or "too breezy" to venture out. Instead of going for a walk he "listened to baseball games on the radio and cut pictures out of magazines and wrote postcards he never mailed." One day when he stretches his hand outside his window, a pair of cardinals build a nest in it. Reluctant to destroy the nest, Albert sleeps standing up and guards the eggs while the parents are foraging. He thus discovers that the world is not so forbidding, and decides it's time to test his own wings. Napoli effortlessly incorporates the twin metaphors of Albert reaching out to the world around him and baby birds learning to fly in flawless prose. LaMarche (The Rainbabies) luminescent colored pencil illustrations in turn reflect the tale's quiet charm. The artist is in complete control of his imagery from start to finish: A literal foreshadowing in the opening scene shows the shadow of the birds perched on grillwork crossbars projected onto the wall, symbolizing both imprisonment and freedom; in the final scene, Albert "flies" on a swing in a city park. The artist captures Albert's gentle eccentricity in his Edwardian haircut and oddly formal clothing. A magical marriage of art and text. Ages 5-8. (Apr.) Copyright 2001 Reed Business Information, Inc.; Title: Albert | [
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7,133 | 1 | Through a series of "interviews" with 14 farm residents, Arquette (Daddy Promises) and Hayashi (My Two Grandmothers) model a wide range of idiosyncratic responses to that ubiquitous question, "What did you do today?" A fish replies, "I went out swimming with my school. We visited a crystal pool Where water ripples clean and cool. That's what I did today." A pig "found some mucky, muddy ground. I wallowed deep and rolled around. I made my favorite grunting sound." Hayashi's watercolor cartoons capture the bucolic expansiveness of a rural landscape, and she endows the nonhuman characters with comic dashes of personality (a bee, for example, angrily glares at a honey-stealing bear). However, various inconsistencies in the illustrations undermine the book's strengths. In the opening spreads, a boy seems to be set up as the observer/interrogator but he's absent from the middle sequences. Another promising thread an animal appearing as a minor character in one scene generates the action in the scene that follows falls by the wayside for the final pages. Ages 3-7. Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.reSchool-On each spread of this lilting read-aloud, a child asks about an animal's activities: "What did you do today, little bee? What did you do today? A brown bear took my honey out. I buzzed and bumbled all about. And then I stung him on the snout. That's what I did today." The bee's annoyed expression and the bear's dismay are convincingly portrayed in the large, uncluttered illustrations. Other creatures that describe their day include a dog, cat, pig, chick, ant, fish, and spider. The repetitive question and response-"What did you do today? That's what I did today"-invites youngsters to join in the recitation. The book concludes with the child's day and bedtime. Hayashi's watercolor-and-pencil illustrations are competent and on occasion sweet and or funny, but are no match for the delightful, rhythmic text. This is unfortunate because a good picture book might have been a great one.Susan Weitz, Tompkins County Public Library, Ithaca, NYCopyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.; Title: What Did You Do Today? | [
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7,134 | 6 | Grade 3-6?This second entry in the trilogy begins with the 12-year-old Merlin burying his foster family after they perish in a fire. Devastated by guilt because he had not understood a prophetic dream, he leaves the ruined farm. As he wanders toward a nearby village, he continues dreaming?and the dreams keep coming true, albeit in an oblique and frightening fashion. After a narrow escape from a would-be kidnapper, the boy falls in with a traveling magician and his companion. The man nicknames him Hobby, after a small hawk species. Together, the three journey to Carmarthen, where the lad ends up relating one of his dreams to an audience at the palace. The magician interprets the dreams to a positive end, but the boy knows he has prophesied the duke's death. Later, abandoned by his companions, Hobby gets the chance to tell the truth, but the duke refuses to heed him, and Hobby continues alone upon his life's path. Though little information about Merlin's childhood appears in legend, this tale weaves in names and details that appear in adult versions of the wizard's story: Ambrosius (the magician); Vortigern (the unnamed duke); the vision of fighting dragons. The characters are well drawn and appealing. However, the action moves along so quickly that readers barely get to know them. At 104 pages, this title is maddeningly short. An additional purchase for libraries that own Passager (Harcourt, 1996) (the first installment) or with strong Arthurian collections.?Mary Jo Drungil, Niles Public Library District, ILCopyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.Gr. 6^-10. The second installment in the Young Merlin series is challenging and ambitious. It opens with a powerful scene as the beloved adoptive family of young Merlin is killed in a devastating fire. The grieving 12-year-old then sets out into the harsh medieval world. Taking the name of Hawk, he is held captive by a vicious rogue named Fowler. Then renamed Hobby (a raptor bigger than a merlin) by a charlatan, he joins the man's traveling magic show, whose performers try to use the boy's talent for seeing into the future. Like the slender first book, Passager (1996), Hobby has quiet beauty and strong imagery but has more characters, action, and dialogue. Yolen continues to explore such complicated and subtle issues as memory and identity, leaving questions surrounding Merlin's earliest experiences and ultimate destiny unresolved. The appearance of the book suggests a juvenile audience; however, given the sophisticated themes and style, this may be most accessible to teenage readers. Includes an author's note about "Arthuriana." Julie Corsaro; Title: Hobby: The Young Merlin Trilogy, Book Two | [
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7,135 | 15 | Grade 5-8. Meg Lowman is a scientist who has spent years studying the rain forest canopy. Lasky and Knight join her in the treetops of Belize to record the wonders of plant and animal life found more than 100 feet above the ground. Yet, this book is not simply another chronicle of rain forest ecology, although the exceptional full-color photographs document with clarity the teeming life to be found there. Lasky also explains the methods scientists use to conduct research in this environment, sometimes under extremely difficult circumstances. For example, to gather leaf samples in Cameroon, Lowman had to hang over the edge of an inflatable raft suspended beneath a dirigible. In Belize, she uses walkways high above ground and, for the first time, allows her young sons to join her in the canopy. The long hours the scientist devotes to her work are not minimized, but her love for her research is evident. Her story might encourage young women considering science careers. Lowman's reading to her sons at bedtime from Treasure Island and her private ruminations about Harriet Tubman seem a bit forced and extraneous, but they shouldn't discourage anyone from purchasing this unusual and effective book.?Kathy Piehl, Mankato State University, MNCopyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc.Meg Lowman has one of the world's most exciting jobs. She is a scientist who studies the rainforest canopy. The day she takes her son to work they strap on equipment and join her in the treetops. The writer's angle is unique and the photographs are spectacular. APPROVED -- From Parents' Choice; Title: The Most Beautiful Roof in the World: Exploring the Rainforest Canopy | [
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7,136 | 2 | Gr. 4-7. Coville takes a Norse poem called the Thrymskvitha and turns it into a delightful prose romp. The story centers on the theft of Mjollnir, the god Thor's magical war hammer, by the giant Thrym. Without the hammer, the gods are vulnerable to an attack from the giants, which means that Thor will do anything to get it back, including cross-dressing as Freya, the goddess of love, and presenting himself to Thrym, disguised as the giant's potential bride. Thor's story is told by Thialfi, Thor's goat boy, who manages to save the day. Coville fleshes out the ancient poem, plucking characters from other Norse myths and weaving them into this story. Throughout, he injects a modern sensibility while keeping the feel of the original myth. Children may want to move from this retelling to broader collections of Norse lore, such as Mary Pope Osborne's Favorite Norse Myths (1996). Todd MorningCopyright © American Library Association. All rights reservedBRUCE COVILLE is the bestselling author of dozens of books, including the enormously popular Magic Shop Books, Odder Than Ever, and The Monsters of Morley Manor. He lives in Syracuse, New York. ; Title: Thor's Wedding Day: By Thialfi, the goat boy, as told to and translated by Bruce Coville | [
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7,137 | 21 | Bathtime turns maritime, as a girl dreams of sailing the wide ocean. PW called this lilting tale "cozy enough for landlubbers, with sufficient adventure for incipient sailors." Ages 3-8. Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.No Bio; Title: My Blue Boat | [
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7,138 | 2 | LOIS EHLERT has created many picture books, including Leaf Man, Pie in the Sky, In My World, Growing Vegetable Soup, Planting a Rainbow, and the bestselling Waiting for Wings. She lives in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.; Title: Eating the Alphabet: Fruits & Vegetables from A to Z (Harcourt Brace Big Book) | [
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7,139 | 13 | "When I was twelve years old, I knew what I wanted--to be an artist." So begins My Name Is Georgia, Jeanette Winter's lovely picture-book portrait of American artist Georgia O'Keeffe. It is a portrait of a strong-minded young girl who liked to play by herself, dress differently from her sisters, and let her black hair fly when others wore braids. And it is the portrait of an artist who lived to be 98 years old, letting the world see things as she saw them through her remarkable paintings. This small book--with sparse, carefully chosen prose--traces O'Keeffe's life through her schooling in Chicago and New York, and her first trek to Texas: "And I painted the sunset and the sky and the wonderful loneliness and emptiness of the place. I painted day and night." From there she experienced the "canyons of steel" of New York City, "where other artists lived," then it was off to the New Mexico desert. Winter does an exquisite job of reflecting an artist's creative life--how she wanted others to see flowers the way she saw them, how she painted them "BIG, so people would notice." The author's illustrations, perfect squares on white pages with the occasional cloud or bird drifting out of the lines, make this small, powerful tribute shine. (Ages 6 and older) --Karin SnelsonWinter (illustrator of Diego) takes command of the picture book format to distill the essence of artist Georgia O'Keeffe. In prose as vivid as an O'Keeffe painting, Winter traces the life of this extraordinary woman who dedicated herself from childhood to her craft. The author captures readers' attention from the start by showing the creative seeds planted early on, as young Georgia rides by horse and cart from her Wisconsin farm to town every Saturday "to copy pictures from the stack in the art teachers' cupboard." Winter's poetic text carries readers effortlessly through the painter's years at art school in Chicago and New York ("I walked down in the canyons of steel") to her final home in New Mexico, where her subjects were the bleached bones, vast sky and red desert hills. Winter's compelling portrait depicts an artist whose laser-like focus allowed her to share her unique vision of something as expansive as the sky or as particular as a flower ("I painted it BIG, so people would notice"). Enhanced with selected quotes from O'Keeffe herself, this outstanding biography is easily one of Winter's best efforts to date. Visually, she pays homage to the artist with enough details to suggest the famous flower, skull and sky paintings, but wisely adheres to her own signature style to convey O'Keeffe and her environs. Winter's strength of line and saturated colors are a luscious blend of folk art simplicity and her singular paletteAskyscrapers of purple and plum; black clouds against a baby blue moon; desert hills of salmon pink outlined against lavender skies. A superb and inspiring introduction for children to an exceptional American artist. Ages 6-10. Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.; Title: My Name Is Georgia: A Portrait by Jeanette Winter | [
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7,140 | 18 | Grade 3-6-The dramatic story of Chavez's 340-mile march to protest the working conditions of migrant farmworkers in California is the centerpiece of this well-told biography. Readers meet Chavez at his grandparents' home in Arizona where he lived happily amid a large extended family. His childhood was cut short when, due to financial difficulties, the family was forced to move to California to seek employment. After years of laboring in the fields, Chavez became increasingly disturbed by the inhuman living conditions imposed by the growers. The historic 1965 strike against grape growers and the subsequent march for "La Causa" are vividly recounted, and Chavez's victory-the agreement by the growers granting the workers better conditions and higher pay-is palpable. While sufficient background information is provided to support the story and encourage further research, focusing on one event makes the story appealing to younger readers. The text is largely limited to one side of a spread; beautifully rendered earth-toned illustrations flow out from behind the words and onto the facing page. A fine addition to any collection.Sue Morgan, Tom Kitayama Elementary School, Union City, CACopyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.Gr. 2-4. When Cesar Chavez was 10 years old, drought forced his family to leave its Arizona ranch and move to California. The family became migrant workers, poorly paid and badly treated. As an adult, Chavez organized a nonviolent revolt, culminating in a 300-mile protest march that produced the first farmworkers' contract. Krull's language demonstrates a poetic sensibility ("The eighty acres of their ranch were an island in the shimmering Arizona desert, and the stars were all their own."), but the vocabulary will challenge young children, and a few socio-cultural details aren't made clear: some kids will wonder about the "White Trade Only" signs and why Chavez couldn't speak Spanish in school. But Morales' gorgeous paintings, with their rounded, organic forms and lush, gemstone hues, more than make up for glitches as they draw children deeply into an inspiring picture-book account of a young boy who grew up to change the world. Traci ToddCopyright American Library Association. All rights reserved; Title: Harvesting Hope: The Story of Cesar Chavez | [
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7,141 | 2 | Love Is Forever -- Table of Poems from Poem Finder®JOAN WALSH ANGLUND’s books have been beloved by readers of all ages for more than forty years. Her classics include A Friend Is Someone Who Likes You, which was a New York Times Book Review Best Illustrated Book of the Year. She lives in rural New England.; Title: Love Is Forever | [
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7,142 | 5 | This classic Japanese folktale, accompanied by stunning paintings by award-winning illustrator Gennady Spirin, gently explores the nature of love, promises, and betrayal. Osamu was a sail maker who lived high above the sea. "As he pulled the warp and weft of his sail together, he would often think to himself, How beautiful the cranes are. Of all the birds, they are the most like sails. It is as if the wind is held in their wings." One blustery night, a large crane crashes into Osamu's door and lies stunned on his porch. The lonely sail maker nurses it back to health and watches the graceful bird soar away. When this crane returns to Osamu's door in the disguise of a beautiful young woman, the drama really begins. They fall in love, and marry, but there comes a time when there is no longer food for them to eat. Yukiko tells her husband that she can make a magic sail for him to sell in the village, but that he must promise never to look at her while she is making it, and later, that he must never expect her to make another one. Both promises are broken, and in the end, Osamu never sees her again: "He wove simple sails for the rest of his years, there at his window, gazing at the marsh and the white cranes. And each autumn, in the season of storms, he waited for a knock on his door." Spirin's moody, intricate watercolor illustrations evoke medieval Japan, and perfectly complement the spare, poetic prose of Odds Bodkin's skillful retelling. (Ages 5 and older) --Karin SnelsonBodkin (The Banshee Train) and Spirin (The Sea King's Daughter) turn to medieval Japan for this vivid retelling of a Japanese folktale. Osamu, a lonely sail maker, nurses an injured crane back to health. Not long afterward, a beautiful and mysterious woman arrives at his home and Osamu takes her in as well. As their love blossoms, she offers to weave Osamu a magic sail to sell at market, though she stipulates that he must not watch her work. Adults will anticipate the tragic outcome of this well-known tale. Bodkin's finely tuned version abounds with drama and emotion in its rich presentation of morals, and near-perfect pacing sets the stage for the pathos of the ending. Spirin's watercolor-and-gouache compositions, filled with Japanese motifs and period details, cast an otherworldly mood. Expanses of sky and clouds provide a sense of airiness, appropriate for a bird-inspired tale. Several gorgeous scenes showing trees in autumn and snowy winter and people draped in the elegant costumes of historical Japan are particularly memorable. Ages 5-up. Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.; Title: The Crane Wife | [
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7,143 | 21 | PreSchool-Grade 1. Charming, creative, and unique, this vibrant title celebrates and nurtures the efforts of young artists. Twice as wide as it is tall, the cover is sturdy cardboard in the shape of a bright yellow work glove with a red wrist band. Inside, pages are interspersed with smaller pages (some die-cut and fold-out) picturing projects and tools used in gardening and creating handicrafts. Written from the perspective of a young child, the narrative explains how mom and dad make things?from wood, paint, cloth, lace, even growing plants, and how they are teaching the narrator to do the same. At the end of the book, the child declares, "I want to be an artist"?that text is followed by a small cutout hand-print page superimposed on a larger work glove (green with white hearts) with the words, "Then I'll join hands with my mom and dad." This lavish, interactive book is a hands-down choice for gift-giving, but fragile for heavy library use.?Lisa Falk, Palos Verdes Library, CACopyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc.In a book that resembles work gloves, an unnamed child speaks of hands: the hands of parents, and the child's own. In pages of vivid, saturated colors, ``my father'' builds birdhouses and plants vegetables, while ``my mother'' sews quilts and plants flowers. Their roles are traditional, but the child works, with joy, alongside both of them, and wants to be an artist. The clever shapes--a tin box that opens to reveal screwdrivers, a flap that turns out to be the lid of the child's box of paints- -lead to a satisfying final overlay of a child's hand print, Mom's heart-patterned gardening gloves, and Dad's work gloves-- the book's cover. It's a work that looks simple, but encompasses at least as many grand notions as Ehlert's first book, Growing Vegetable Soup (1987). (Picture book. 4-8) -- Copyright ©1997, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.; Title: Hands | [
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7,144 | 0 | the poetry shelf A new crop of poetry books takes on a wild range of subjects, from pizza to the rain-making gods to the pleasures of milking a cow; they demonstrate how poetry can lend itself to joking, praying, yearning and simply experiencing the textures of life. A feast of odes to food, Food Fight: Poets Join the Fight Against Hunger with Poems to Favorite Foods, edited and illus. by Michael J. Rosen, benefits the anti-hunger organization Share Our Strength. The collection serves up a witty menu of verses, the light outnumbering the substantial: they include Jane Yolen's tribute to chocolate, Paul B. Janeczko's two-word "August Ice-Cream Cone Poem" ("Lick/ quick"), "Artijoke" by William Cole and W. Nicola-Lisa's "Salad Haiku." The art is rendered in a drab palette of unappetizing and unlifelike colors, however, undercutting the otherwise deft book design.Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.Grade 4-7. Children who pick this book by its title alone expecting lunchroom chaos within will be disappointed, unless they go on to read the subtitle (printed on two asparagus on the book jacket), which establishes the anthology's more serious nature. Thirty-three contemporary American poets contributed original selections about favorite foods and food-related activities in support of Share Our Strength (SOS), an antihunger organization. There are poems about mussels, chocolate, pretzels, pasta, artichokes, and other edibles. Most of the selections are rather bland. Some will evoke warm memories of special family celebrations, and a few will make readers chuckle. There are several tiny gems: W. Nicola-Lisa's "Salad Haiku," Liz Rosenberg's "The Fruit Bowl," and Paul B. Janeczko's "August Ice-Cream Cone Poem" ("Lick/quick"). Rosen's illustrations, done in watercolor and ink, are as erratic as the poems. At times, the artist seems to have tried to capture visually every image in a poem and has ended up overpowering the poem itself. The best illustrations are the small ones that leave lots of white space on the page. Well meaning, but uneven.?Carolyn Angus, The Claremont Graduate School, CACopyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc.; Title: Food Fight: Poets Join the Fight Against Hunger With Poems to Favorite Foods | [
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7,145 | 7 | Willard (The Tortilla Cat) brings her considerable storytelling powers to this enchanting tale of a girl with the wit and ingenuity to outfox a formidable opponent. Holly Go Lolly, thanks to a blessing from a fairy godmother, grows up unafraid of the dark and with a gift for making shadow figures with her hands. When the dreaded Ooboo gobbles up both her father and mother, she sets off for his mountain palace, armed with nothing but her imagination and her shadow artistry. The enterprising heroine handily conquers Ooboo and, in a tacked-on ending--the book's only misstep--converts his palace into a library. Willard's eloquent tale is alight with vivid images, including the shadowy fairy godmother "sidling along the wall" and "snip-snapping her shears--clip clap!" In illustrations reminiscent of his work in The Little Scarecrow Boy, Diaz unifies the images with shades of orange and green (at times, Holly, with her billowy orange skirt and green bodice, resembles a pumpkin). Drawing from the style he used so effectively in The Disappearing Alphabet, the artist creates spot art that resembles paper cut-outs and that emulates Holly's silhouetted figures. The world he creates is wholly original, as is his Ooboo--both fierce and comical, with an extra set of eyes at shoulder level and a single leaf sprouting from his bald pate. Both verbally and visually compelling, this splendid fantasy is one to be savored. Ages 5-10. (Oct.) Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.Grade 1-3-Holly Go Lolly, born on the Night When Shadows Linger, learns early to play with shadows and make them take any shape, and lucky she can do that, because there's no money for toys. Then the always-hungry Ooboo eats her father and then her mother, and Holly will be next unless she can do something about it. On her fairy godmother's advice, she goes to the Ooboo's palace and announces herself as the Shadowy One, the magician whom a thousand shadows serve, and the real test of her shadow-making skills begins with the making of the trick that will save her own life. This original fairy tale, a bit reminiscent of Carl Sandburg's "Rootabaga Stories" in the naming of its characters and its combination of the down-to-earth and practical with the fantastic and magical, has both a courageous and clever young heroine and a plot that lightens its frightening elements with comedic ones. The illustrations invite readers into the fantasy. The warm, glowing colors, the intentionally comic depiction of the Ooboo, and the snub-nosed marionettelike figure of Holly Go Lolly anchor the story in a world in which the rounded shapes and curving lines strongly evoke the realm of fairy tales. It is a world in which anything can happen, and all ends well. A remarkable melding of witty text and amazing illustrations.Marian Drabkin, Richmond Public Library, CA Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.; Title: Shadow Story | [
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7,146 | 0 | Grade 5-9This anthology pulls together six previously published and three new stories by this well-known fantasy and science-fiction writer. Most are richly satisfying, and there are a few surprises. The Golden Sail has none of Covilles trademark humor but is instead a wistful, timeless fantasy about a boys journey on a magic boat to find his father. In The Metamorphosis of Justin Jones, a mistreated and unwanted boy makes a difficult choice between eternal untroubled youth and a future filled with untold pain and promise. The rest of the tales range from shivery horror (Theres Nothing under the Bed) to tongue-in-cheek humor (The Giants Tooth) to a fractured fairy tale (The Stinky Princess). Am I Blue? envisions a hilarious solution to homophobia, a boy meets his inner demon in The Japanese Mirror, and interplanetary relations are explored from a kids-eye view in I, Earthling. The only less-than-successful story is Biscuits of Glory, which is just a little too fluffy. All in all, an immensely enjoyable and thought-provoking collection.Eva Mitnick, Los Angeles Public Library Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.This companion to Oddly Enough (1994) is an intriguing collection of nine short stories that will delight Coville's many fans and serve as a good introduction to readers unfamiliar with his work. Six of the stories have previously been published, including the poignant, witty "Am I Blue?" which appeared in an anthology of gay and lesbian stories of the same name. Two stories, "The Golden Sail" and "The Metamorphosis of Justin Jones," were commissioned by the Syracuse Symphony. In an endnote Coville talks about the stories, including his experience performing with the orchestra. From light fantasy to more thought-provoking themes, this has something for everyone. As with Oddly Enough, the collection shows Coville's range and versatility in a way his novels never can. Lauren Peterson; Title: Odder Than Ever | [
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7,147 | 5 | Jane Yolen is a highly acclaimed children's author who has written hundreds of books for adults and children and has won numerous awards. She and her husband divide their time between Massachussetts and Scotland.; Title: Tam Lin | [
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7,148 | 7 | "Slapstick adventure . . . funny."--The Horn Book"Vande Velde has created an intriguing story, using familiar facts about the Middle Ages and [her usual] sly humor."--Library TalkVivian Vande Velde has written many books for teen and middle grade readers, including Heir Apparent, User Unfriendly, All Hallow's Eve: 13 Stories, Three Good Deeds, Now You See It ..., and the Edgar Award–winning Never Trust a Dead Man. She lives in Rochester, New York. Visit her website at www.vivianvandevelde.com.; Title: A Well-Timed Enchantment | [
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7,149 | 1 | John Strickland Goodall was a British artist and illustrator best known for his wordless picture adventures, although his output has included more conventional pictures, and illustrations for a wide range of publications and books by Miss Read.; Title: Adventures of Paddy Pork | [
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7,150 | 1 | Ages 3-7. Every time Preston "suddenly!" deviates from his path, he just misses being gobbled up by the big, bad wolf stalking the pink, plump pig. Clueless, Preston safely negotiates the walk home from school, going to the grocery store, returning to school to collect his grocery money, stopping at the park to play, collecting the groceries at the store, and coming home to his mother's arms. The incompetent wolf ends up being carried off to Wolf Hospital. The humor is visual, the mayhem is of the "Coyote and Roadrunner" cartoon variety, and the soft and sunny pastel-colored pencil-and-watercolor illustrations keep the mood light and jolly. This one-joke picture book, from the author-illustrator of Making Friends with Frankenstein: A Book of Monstrous Poems and Pictures (1994), is deftly executed and designed to amuse a young audience that will appreciate being in on the joke. Annie Ayres (Booklist - Annie Ayres)PreSchool-Grade 1 Disaster waits in the form of a wild-eyed, drooling wolf, but you couldn't prove it by Preston the Pig. Children meet him on his way home from school, the wolf's shadow lurking ominously behind him "when SUDDENLY!" the young porker remembers his mother had asked him to go to the store. Many more hilariously breathtaking moments follow as he unknowingly foils the predator. McNaughton peppers the narrative with big, bold use of the word "SUDDENLY," and readers are sure they will turn the page to discover fat little Preston locked in the beast's mangy jaws. Instead, the wolf encounters one disaster after another: falling off the school roof; swallowing a big, tough bully; and crashing a steamroller into a wall. When the pig arrives home, it looks like he may meet his nasty fate as a strangely lupine silhouette lurks at the kitchen sink. True to Preston's luck, it is only his mother, who turns around to give him a big hug. Young readers will delight in knowing more than the happily oblivious porcine hero. The art is ideal for group sharing, on a much larger scale than Guess Who's Just Moved In Next Door? (Random, 1991; o.p.). This story will make a good combination with other fairy tales in which all the pigs might not experience such a happy ending, and is a refreshing relief from the classic tale where the only way to save your hide is to be smart, industrious, and build a very strong house. Zany fun that's perfect for young audiences. Lisa S. Murphy, formerly at Dauphin County Library System, Harrisburg, PA (School Library Journal); Title: Suddenly!: A Preston Pig Story | [
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7,151 | 15 | Kindergarten-Grade 3-Evolution is a ticklish topic. It is controversial to some for religious reasons; for others, it is a challenging concept to present to a young audience without losing scientific veracity. For one thing, young children have little concept of time-a million years might be the span between birthdays. For another, the idea of slow, evolutionary change still seems somehow equal to a magician's trick. So, accomplishing a reasonable explanation of a scientific concept and its progress through millennia is worthy of note. Peters's simple text uses the "we/us" format to place Homo sapiens in the "family" of life at its very beginnings. "All of us," she states in the first sentence of the book, "are part of an old, old family," going back to Earth's beginnings. "We've changed a lot since then." Through a simple progression, amply bolstered by Stringer's striking, large acrylics, she traces "our" family tree from unicellular organisms through amphibians, therapsids, and early mammals to early primates, hominids, and our distinct "humanness" today. Enriched by two pages of additional data and a colorful time line, the whole is rounded out by carefully written author and illustrator notes. Simpler than Stephen Webster's The Kingfisher Book of Evolution (2000) and Melvin Berger's How Life Began (Doubleday, 1990; o.p.), and perhaps easier than Joanna Cole's venerable Evolution (Crowell, 1987; o.p.), this book is a wonderful companion to Steve Jenkins's equally attractive Life on Earth (Houghton, 2002).Patricia Manning, formerly at Eastchester Public Library, NYCopyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.Gr. 4-7. It seems like a great idea: tell the story of the evolution of all living things by showing that "all of us are part of an old, old family" and that we can trace our roots back to "tiny round cells in the deep dark sea." But it's not that easy to explain the minutiae of DNA and the sweep of Earth's geology and biology to a young audience. This oversize picture book, with chatty text and elaborate, packed, brightly colored, double-page illustrations, may look child friendly, but it's sometimes confusing. Readers are told that the time line, which appears in tiny print, isn't drawn to scale, but it certainly looks as if microscopic bacteria haven't been around much longer than primates. The second part of the book works best, tracing the emergence of warm-blooded creatures right up to the excitement of walking upright. This is best suited to classroom use, where adults can turn to helpful notes at the back to discuss our connections with those first tiny round cells and how we've changed since then. Hazel RochmanCopyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved; Title: Our Family Tree: An Evolution Story | [
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7,152 | 2 | A contemporary Italian-American family living in New York City makes its annual pilgrimage to Liberty Island to celebrate the birthday of the Statue of Liberty in this poignant picture book. Young Mike thinks a picnic in blustery October is just plain dumb ("Why do we always have to do this?"); he's embarrassed by his grandparents' unflagging enthusiasm for this outing. But when Mike observes a family of new Americans who have also come to pay their respects to Lady Liberty, he gains insight into this symbol of freedom--and his Italian grandparents' gratitude at arriving in the United States. Bunting's (So Far from the Sea) patriotic story includes several hallmarks of now-familiar immigrant stories but never grows soppy, due in large part to Mike's lightly irreverent voice. Carpenter (Twinnies, with Bunting) captures a touch of the "huddled masses" as she depicts crowds on the subway and on the ferry in her vibrant acrylics. Ages 5-10. (Oct.) Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.Grade 1-3-Every year on October 28th, Tony's extended family packs a picnic, lawn chairs, blankets, and a birthday cake, and heads to the Statue of Liberty to celebrate Lady Liberty's "birthday." Despite Tony's annual embarrassment, Grandma's need to express her emotions over her long-ago acceptance by her chosen country is paramount, and the family respects that. This year, a chance encounter with a family of new emigres opens Tony's eyes to just what the statue symbolizes, and he joins openly in the final toast, proud and unashamed. Carpenter's colorful acrylics are realistic but soft edged, conveying in their slightly blurred edges the feeling of a chilly, blustery day in New York Harbor, seen through eyes moist with tears (brought on by the wind, the emotions, or both). Bunting warmly captures the lasting emotional impact that the first sighting of the statue can have on hopeful new arrivals. (One slight slip-the text calls the statue "white"-but the illustrations show Liberty in her coppery-green patina.) An excellent choice for an October 28th read-aloud (along with Emma Lazarus's poem), and for a rousing rendition of "Happy Birthday to You."-Patricia Manning, formerly at Eastchester Public Library, NY Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.; Title: A Picnic in October | [
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7,153 | 2 | Text: Spanish (translation) Original Language: English; Title: El da en que t naciste | [
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7,154 | 0 | Grade 1-2-Told in four chapters, this gentle tale exudes warmth and understated humor. Mr. Putter embarks on a spring porch-painting project, only to be foiled when Tabby chases an inquisitive squirrel and Mrs. Teaberry's dog pursues a chipmunk, resulting in pink and blue footprints all over. Later, they all have a good laugh when a pink squirrel and a blue chipmunk run by. The text and illustrations convey the affectionate relationship between Mr. Putter, his cat, and their neighbors. The clearly rendered illustrations primarily done in greens, pinks, and yellows and outlined in pencil make this easy-reader a perfect choice for any weather.Diane Janoff, Queens Borough Public Library, CLASP Office, NY Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.Rylant's (Bear Day, 1999, etc.) good-timing Mr. Putter and Tabby return with more of their gentle antics for young readers. This particular caper finds Mr. Putter and his old cat setting out to paint their porch. Mr. Putter rustles up some pink paint from the basement and starts to lay brush to wood when a squirrel invades the workspace, setting Tabby off like a rocket. Round and round the porch they scamper and the resulting paint job cannot be said to be exquisite. Next day Mr. Putter's neighbor Mrs. Teaberry and her dog Zeke come to help cover the pink with blue, when a chipmunk detonates Zeke's composure, with a resulting blue disaster. Finally a coat of yellow gets laid down and dried before further mishap. Another fully cheering and self-contained story from Rylant, couched in language that is just enough of a challenge for early readers and with a story that has momentum to carry them on. And Howard's (100th Day Worries, 1999, etc.) affable illustrations continue to smoothly convey the story to the reader's eye, adding his own comic touches. (Easy reader. 6-9) -- Copyright ©2000, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.; Title: Mr. Putter & Tabby Paint the Porch | [
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7,155 | 0 | Marissa Moss, author of the popular Amelia's Notebook series, moves into new territory with Rachel's Journal, the story of a spirited 10-year-old pioneer girl who must leave her childhood home in Illinois and travel by covered wagon to the wilds of California. Rachel is entrusted by her grandfather to chronicle the long journey in the form of a handwritten journal. Through her journal entries, we are transported into a world of new adventures and fearsome challenges as Rachel's family and the others in their wagon train make their way along the Oregon Trail in search of a homestead in the Sacramento Valley.Rachel is refreshingly unconventional: she dons her brother's shirt and britches when one of the oxen makes "a nice meal" of her only wool dress, learns to crack a whip, and makes friends with a young American Indian brave. Children will delight in the day-to-day accounts of life on the trail, enhanced by the notes and colorful drawings Rachel has added to the journal's margins. Based on real diaries kept by courageous pioneers between 1846 and 1868, Rachel's Journal is an excellent choice for third graders and older, and can also be successfully read aloud to younger children, who will enjoy imagining themselves as pioneering adventurers. An intimate look at a momentous journey, this book will not fail to move and inspire readers of all ages. --Aimée DammanMoss extends the format she perfected in Amelia's Notebook and Amelia Writes Again to cover historical fiction in this solidly researched and wholly captivating illustrated diary "by" a 10-year-old girl who travels with her family along the Oregon Trail in 1850. The excitements and hardships of the seven-month journey spring vividly to life, whether Rachel is crossing the eerie, skeleton-strewn Nevada desert by moonlight, trading her long red braids for an Indian pony, eating flour soup when provisions get low, or awakening one morning to greet a new baby sister. Character sketches?of the shiftless Mr. Bridger; the oh-so-perfect Prudence Elias, bane of tomboy Rachel's days; sourpuss Mr. Henry Sunshine, whose wife, Louisa, providentially drops her dentures during a tense encounter with the Pawnee, frightening them away?are a sheer delight, adding depth, texture and, of course, humor. The language is equally colorful. One of the smaller children in Rachel's wagon party, for example, is "no bigger than a bar of soap after a week's wash." Moss shoehorns in an amazing amount of information, giving readers an excellent understanding of life on the trail. Lined sepia-toned pages give the book the look of an antique diary; and, in the style of the Amelia books, hand-lettered text and cleverly captioned thumbnail illustrations with a childlike sensibility add to the authentic feel. This engrossing glimpse of the westward movement is as good a choice for pleasure reading as it is a valuable classroom resource. Ages 8-12. Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.; Title: Rachel's Journal: The Story of a Pioneer Girl | [
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7,156 | 2 | As autumn turns to winter, the wind blows, the ground turns cold and the "white frost creeps," forcing animals to find protective shelter. "When the snow falls/ over the freshwater pond,/ where do the ducks go?/ Across the sky,/ southward they fly." Seuling's (The Teeny Tiny Woman) text sets up a rhythm of simple questions on one spread, answered with the turn of a page by rhyming couplets that may well lull youngsters into a participatory drowsiness. Children can repeat the easily memorized, sing-song verses in response to an adult reading the questions. Newbold's broad scope of variously lit, softly rounded rural scenesAfrom farm to forest to desert to mountain valleyAbrings soothing balm to day's end. Ages 3-6. Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.PreSchool-Grade 2-This picture book addresses the curious disappearance of nature's summertime animal population when the weather turns cold. Bees head for their hives, bats go to their caves, and birds fly south toward kinder climates. Seven animals in all, including humans, make their escape to warmth. The poetic text consistently puts forth a free-verse question ("When ice covers/the mountain lake like a crust,/where do the fish go?") followed by a rhymed-couplet answer ("They swim below,/where warm streams flow") on the next double spread. The literary qualities-subtle alliteration and assonance as well as rhyme-work well for reading aloud. A three year old may not immediately grasp that a "Breeze [blowing] the petals off the flowers" is an obvious indication of a change of season, but Newbold's illustrations explain it nicely with a pared-down realism of bold but not overly bright acrylic paintings. The artist's pallet complements the text well. Warm-tinted oranges and yellows highlight the waning summer days, while winter's tones are cool blues, whites, and grays. The landscapes depicted seem to be the same rural American countryside, but the insertion of one desert setting interrupts the regionally flavored flow. As a whole, the format seems just a bit haphazard, despite the fine words and pretty pictures.Peg Solonika, Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh, Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.; Title: Winter Lullaby | [
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7,157 | 18 | Grade 3-6?The story of Joseph Cinque, leader of the African mutineers who seized the Amistad in 1839, is the focus of Chambers's dramatic picture-book narrative. By eliminating the many details of the frustrating two-year legal history of the Amistad case, and the many complex issues of states' rights and Cuban-American relations discussed in the courts, the role of Cinque takes on heroic and legendary status. Brief mention is made of the support of the abolitionists and the important participation of John Quincy Adams in arguing the case before the Supreme Court, but Cinque's bravery and inspirational leadership are the heart of the book. His speeches and feelings are the only elements of fiction in this story from history, for he was indeed a celebrity in the public eye and certainly the leader of the Africans seeking justice. The figures of the man and his followers are heroic in size in Lee's action-filled acrylic paintings. The dark tones and earth colors dramatize the violence, despair, and patient nobility of the Africans as they fight for freedom and the right to return to their homeland and are forced to wait through many months in a New England town. Amistad Rising serves well as an introduction to this chapter in American history. The brevity of facts and the poetic quality of emotional description make the book a fine read-aloud choice.?Shirley Wilton, Ocean County College, Toms River, NJCopyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.Gr. 3^-6. Like the Spielberg movie, this picture book is partly fictionalized. There is an inflated voice-over commentary about the "changing winds of fortune" and destiny's plans, but Chambers' narrative of the heroic rebellion is spare, from the facts of slavery ("Many slave traders had grown rich from selling human beings and they were reluctant to give it up") to Cinque's words in court. Lee's extraordinary acrylic paintings contrast the wild, stormy ocean with the tight confinement of people below deck. He focuses on Cinque's yearning, his restlessness. The close-up of the captive's hands as he picks open the lock of his shackles is as powerful as the portraits of Cinque and Adams on either side of a barred cell window. Hazel Rochman; Title: Amistad Rising: A Story of Freedom | [
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7,158 | 0 | Houston's (Year of the Perfect Christmas Tree) preface and afterword emphasize several facts and convictions that inform her at times ponderous novel: chiefly, she sees a connection between the experience of indentured servants in this country and their willingness, once freed, to help slaves escape. Bright, the heroine of her novel, is the daughter of one such former servant, Charles Cameron. Charles fled a cruel master (long before the story opens in 1853) with the help of a fellow worker, Marcus, an African sold into slavery. Marcus has safely crossed into Canada, but he returns periodically to the Camerons' North Carolina farm, a safe house on the Underground Railroad, to act as a guide to escaping slaves. Despite significant doses of stiff dialogue designed to impart historical details and weigh moral issues, Houston shapes an affecting family portrait. At its heart is Bright's growing awareness of her parents' dangerous work. There are some sad, and sadly realistic, moments here: Bright finds a half-dead slave?younger than she?who was attacked by his master's dogs, and later she learns that he and his master's daughter, who had run away with him, have been caught and killed. But she also works in some unlikely coincidences, including an incident straight out of The Sound of Music (Toby, a former apprentice of Cameron's with whom Bright has had a flirtation, is one of the Confederate soldiers who stops Bright and Marcus as they drive escaped slaves to freedom; Toby vouches for them). Despite its weak spots, this novel effectively illuminates relatively obscure but intriguing angles of American history. Ages 10-up. Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.Grade 5-8-At the age of six, Bright Cameron sees what she believes is a "devil" in the hen house. This devil turns out to be Marcus, an escaped slave who is her father's friend. As the girl grows up, she is introduced to her parents' secret work: helping the runaway slaves who arrive at their North Carolina smithy travel through the Appalachian Mountains. Bright's father, who was kidnapped and brought to America as an indentured servant, feels strongly about helping others to freedom. As the Civil War approaches, the "bundles" appear with more regularity. When she is 15, Bright's father falls ill, and she and Marcus take off to make a delivery to a nearby farm. This event opens the novel and captures readers' attention. The story then backtracks to Bright's first encounter with Marcus and follows her emotional growth and understanding of the complex issues of slavery and her courageous conviction to help. Focusing on the daily routine of a family involved in the Underground Railroad, this book offers a glimpse into the danger of their situation. Though Bright's mother and Marcus are flat characters that serve to drive the plot, Bright is well drawn as a dedicated daughter and tough young woman and her father as a man who is driven to help others. Readable and well-researched historical fiction.Angela J. Reynolds, West Slope Community Library, Portland, ORCopyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.; Title: Bright Freedom's Song: A Story of the Underground Railroad | [
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7,159 | 2 | It is the year 2407, when everyone wears a mask to emphasize conformity, and tranquility has been implemented via genetics, drugs, and therapy. It is also the year 1348, the time of the Black Death in Strasbourg, France, and 16-year-old Gemm has been sent back from the future to cure his nonconformist desire to create music. In the past he is known as Johannes, the son of a wealthy moneylender in a small Jewish community that finds comfort and strength in the daily rituals of Judaic faith. But as the plague sweeps the land, terrified people in city after city scapegoat the Jews as the cause of their problems. Officials find it convenient to have someone to blame, and realize that they can wipe out their debts by torturing and burning the moneylenders and their families--but they play music all the while to make the horrible scene less dismal.Sonia Levitin, whose exceptional young adult novels are often based in Jewish culture and identity (Escape from Egypt and The Singing Mountain, among others), draws on historical fact for this story's powerful emotional impact. The vivid details of ghetto life in the Middle Ages--the Sabbath peace, the enforced humiliations of moneylenders, Johannes' joy at his betrothal to his love Margarite--make the final holocaust scene overwhelmingly real, with layers of meaning that apply to our own times. The futuristic framing device adds additional flavor, evocative of Lois Lowry's The Giver. This is a book that both fantasy fans and pragmatic young readers will devour, and one that's rich with thoughtful ideas about racism, conformity, and the lessons of history. (Ages 10 and older) --Patty CampbellLevitin (The Singing Mountain) handily combines futuristic science fiction and late-medieval Jewish history in a story reminiscent of Lois Lowry's The Giver. In the year 2407, societal tranquillity is maintained by ample servings of serotonin drinks to the genetically engineered population and by careful monitoring to suppress all expressions of individuality or creativity. When the boy Gemm 16884 somehow feels moved to make music, an extinguished art, he is given a choice between being "recycled" (killed) or sent into virtual reality to experience the bad old days as a cure for his deviant desires. Opting for the latter, he finds himself living as Johannes, the 16-year-old son of a Jewish moneylender in 1348 Strasbourg. In steadily more harrowing chapters, Levitin shows a thickening climate of anti-Semitism. As the bubonic plague spreads from the ports of Sicily across Europe, the Jews are accused of poisoning the water supply; whole communities of Jews are massacred. Will Gemm's experience as Johannes deaden his craving for art? That everything about the plot seems inevitable, from Johannes's dreadful martyrdom to Gemm's last-page embrace of humanism, only magnifies the tension: much of the horror of Johannes's plight, for example, comes from the audience's superior awareness of Johannes's certain doom. The author pulls off a nifty featAshe makes a low point in human history the prelude to a crescendo of idealism. Ages 10-up. Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.; Title: The Cure | [
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7,160 | 2 | "On the eve of your birth ... the Earth and her creatures with the Sun and the Moon all moved in their places, each ready to greet you the very first moment of the very first day you arrived." Every child loves to hear the story of how he or she came into the world, but usually very little attention is paid to how the world was in that magical moment. For any family who feels a special connection to nature and the flow of life, On the Day You Were Born will help baby understand how each of us is received not just by our family, but by the universe and its gentle ways. The simple, bright pictures in Debra Frasier's book recall Matisse, and they won the book a Parents' Choice Award for illustration. In the final pages, each illustration and theme in the book (migrating animals, gravity, glowing moon, rising tide, etc.) is explained in simple and direct language that can be used to teach older children how nature works on our planet, and how Earth works in the universe.This beautiful hardcover book is accompanied by a washable, soft rattle that has a donut-shaped yellow handle with "Welcome" embroidered on it in blue thread. The head of the rattle is a round, blue sky embroidered with yellow stars and a red figure of a child dancing. (From birth) --Katherine Ferguson; Title: On the Day You Were Born | [
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7,161 | 0 | Most American children know the story of the Pilgrims and the first Thanksgiving, but the Native American side of the tale is far less familiar. Joseph Bruchac, a prolific and award-winning author of Native American descent (The First Strawberries, A Boy Called Slow) describes life in 1620 for a man who was destined to save the Pilgrims even as he was losing his family and tribe. Told from Squanto's point of view, this historically accurate and detailed story brings to life one of the most important moments in America's past. Demonstrating how much his people (the Patuxet, the People of the Falls) value honor, Squanto befriends English traders, even after being kidnapped and taken to Spain. After much hard work, Squanto manages to sail back to his homeland, where, in spite of his discovery that many of his people have died from disease brought by white people, he acts as envoy between the English and his own people, and helps the pilgrims survive in their new world.Throughout this moving tale, Squanto's belief that "these men can share our land as friends" poignantly shines through. Greg Shed's gouache illustrations capture the warmth and dignity of Squanto and his friends. Young readers will be fascinated by this lesser-known perspective on the Thanksgiving tradition that remains strong today. (Ages 6 to 10) --Emilie CoulterGrade 2-5-A picture book that focuses on the young Indian who helped the Pilgrims survive the brutality of the New England winter. When he was 24, an English captain abducted Squanto along with 20 of his tribesmen and took them to Spain to be sold as slaves. Spanish friars helped him escape to England where he learned the language and dreamed of going back to his native land. When he finally returned, he served as translator and mediator between the English colonists and the other Indian tribes. He convinced Samoset, a sachem of the Pemaquid, to accept and work with the white settlers. It was this cooperation that helped the tiny Plymouth Colony to survive. Many authors have given the Native American credit for his role in the survival of the colony. What distinguishes this first-person account is the authenticity of detail. In his author's note, Bruchac describes the research that he used to flesh out the story with dates and names. However, because of the wealth of facts, the text has a stilted quality. Shed's full-page gouache illustrations are beautifully executed in golden, autumnal tones. There is a richness of detail in the pictures that echoes the passion for historical accuracy in costume and interior-and-exterior dwellings. However, the full-bled illustrations tend to overwhelm the text and the uniformity of their size and placement can become somewhat tedious. Still, most libraries will want to own this version.Barbara Buckley, Rockville Centre Public Library, NY Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.; Title: Squanto's Journey: The Story of the First Thanksgiving | [
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7,162 | 1 | In Asch's (the Baby Bear books) latest picture book, Baby Bird falls out of her mother's nest one night and manages to return with the help of new friend Little Frog. The nest of the title refers to a new one that the two pals build together; it is almost immediately abandoned, but it helps Baby Bird get her first taste of independence. It also sets the stage for her later escape from a raccoon, as she hops to a tree branch, just out of the raccoon's reach. From there, Little Frog coaches her, by example, to make her way to her mother's nest ("Take it one hop at a time," he says). Asch's illustrations, done in pen and ink and then computer-colored, are skillfully done and infused with moonlight; they resemble intricate sun-catchers. The frog is a charmer, with expressive gestures and a bubble-gum-pink tongue; and a menacing close-up of the raccoon gives way to a pleasing image of Baby Bird hovering safely above the villain. A slim but reassuring tale for toddlers just beginning to strike out on their own. Ages 2-5. (May) Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.PreSchool-Grade 2A satisfying read-aloud with just enough adventure, wit, and common sense to engage listeners and vocabulary easy enough for beginning readers. When Baby Bird falls out of her nest, Little Frog leaps to the rescue. The bird rejects his offer of a moonlit swim but accepts his help building a place to sleep for the night. The two complete a handsome nest just as a hungry raccoon arrives, sending frog to water and bird onto a tree branch. Though too young to fly, the fledgling discovers that she can hop rather well when sufficiently motivated. When the danger passes, Little Frog shows her how to utilize her newfound skill to get back to her mamas nest. Friendship, industry, and courage are the themes woven throughout. Aschs trademark pen-and-ink drawings have been colorized in Adobe Photoshop. The technique is very effective with deep, rich color fading to lighter shades when the moonlight glows or a firefly flutters. Another gem for Aschs many fans to treasure and a treat for the uninitiated.Jody McCoy, The Bush School, Seattle, WA Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.; Title: Baby Bird's First Nest | [
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7,163 | 2 | During the winter of 1984-1985, nearly 3,000 beluga whales were trapped in the Senyavina Strait of Siberia--and saved by the bravery and persistence of villagers and the crew of a passing icebreaker. Schuch, a musician, turns this episode into a picture book by casting a child as heroine. Glashka has always been able to hear music in her head, and the "old ones" of the village tell her she hears "the voice of Narna, the whale. Long has she been a friend to our people." Glashka uses this talent to find the trapped whales and then to discover the secret of saving them. The plotting and diction are a little trumped-up, but on balance the text is tender and moving, and debut illustrator Sylvada's heavy oil paintings readily transport readers to the bitter winter days of Siberia. Emphasizing the changing light and the textures of characters' clothing instead of individual expressions, the illustrations cast a mood that reinforces the sober issues of the text. Ages 6-10. (Nov.) Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.Grade 2-5-During the bitter winter of 1984-85, the people of the Chukchi Peninsula and the crew of the Russian icebreaker Moskva labored to save thousands of beluga whales trapped by encroaching ice in the Siberian Senyavina Strait. Schuch has taken this event and fleshed it out to include young Glashka, who can hear the voices of these animals in her visionary dreams. As the fearful creatures crowd away from the ship and its fractured path to freedom, it is Glashka who urges the crew to add human music to the whale calls they are broadcasting to reassure and entice the belugas, and to try again as folk music and rock and roll fail. Finally, a classical symphony for strings sounds a chorus that the animals join in, and singing, they follow the huge icebreaker out to the open sea. This fictionalized account is enriched by soft-edged oils in winter tones, picturing the laboring Chukchis, the white whales, the dark bulk of the Moskva, and the small determinedness that is Glashka. Team this inspiring work with Giles Whittell's more factual The Story of Three Whales (Gareth Stevens, 1988; o.p.), Dyan Sheldon's lyrical The Whales' Song (Dial, 1991), and Frances Weller's moving I Wonder If I'll See a Whale (Paperstar, 1998) and you'll have kids clamoring to go whale watching.Patricia Manning, formerly at Eastchester Public Library, NY Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.; Title: A Symphony of Whales | [
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7,164 | 14 | No Bio; Title: Carnaval | [
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7,165 | 0 | With the hushed, assured tone of a seasoned fireside storyteller, debut author Strand frames a stirring tale within a tale to explain a family's cherished holiday tradition. A grandfather flashes back to 1886 to describe how his own parents, then young and settling new territory in Colorado, prepare for the imminent arrival of their first child as blizzards howl. In a desperate moment, the couple refrain from cutting the spruce that could heat their home, in favor of letting a wild goose family use the tree's shelter. The act of kindness is commemorated in a homemade wood carving of the geese that the grandfather's descendants still place on the branches of the spruce each Christmas. Strand emphasizes strength, not sentiment, while Locker's darkish oils, characteristically sweeping nature studies, evoke a fresh, wild and awe-inspiring time and place. Ages 4-8. (Oct.) Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.Grade 1-3-A young man and his wife move to Colorado in the spring of 1886 and build a home in a remote area half a day's wagon ride from the nearest town. Severe blizzards in November and December force them to chop down some sheltering spruce trees to heat their frigid cabin. The two discover a pair of geese taking shelter under the lone remaining spruce and they agonize over whether to cut it down. Despite their troubles, the woman gives birth to a healthy baby boy, and the family manages to survive until the next big winter storm arrives. After a night of "hoping and praying for a miracle," they awaken on Christmas morning to find a change in the weather. Although the text reads smoothly, the couple's dire circumstances are repeatedly emphasized to the point that they bog down the narrative. Locker's characteristically beautiful oil landscapes and, in the nature scenes, breathtaking use of color draw readers' attention. Strand ties up his tale with a holiday tradition that commemorates that fateful winter, which may spark children to inquire about their own family customs. For read-aloud programs, this title could be paired with Gloria Houston's The Year of the Perfect Christmas Tree (Dial, 1988) for a historical approach to Christmas.-M.M.H. Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.; Title: Grandfather's Christmas Tree | [
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7,166 | 2 | Janell Cannon, best-known for her award-winning picture books Stellaluna and Verdi, departs from the world of bats and snakes and turns her attention to... cockroaches. None of these are particularly cuddly creatures, but seen through Cannon's anthropomorphizing glasses, they are ones we can sympathize with. Crickwing, cruelly named for his twisted wing, is a lonely food stylist. He builds sculptures out of roots, leaves, and petals... and then eats them. But artistic serenity is not possible in the dangerous forest. The melancholy insect is constantly faced with cockroach-eating lizards, ocelots, and worse, food-stealing monkeys: "'Another masterpiece--ruined!' Crickwing panted. 'I'm starving and my wing aches. I don't know if I can take this much longer.'"Bemoaning his fate as a "mere exoskeleton," Crickwing wakes up with thoughts of vengeance. As he watches thousands of leaf-cutting ants busy at work, he wonders, "Why isn't anyone bothering these little twerps?" He sticks his spiny leg out to trip one of them, and delights in taunting them further. Of course, the ants don't take this well. They swarm him, drag him into the dark corridors of their anthill, and bury him up to his neck--all the while whispering about how his mother must be heartbroken to have produced such an awful menace. Just as they are about to fork him over as their annual peace offering to the army ants, they have a crisis of conscience. "Nobody deserves that, not even this big bully," says one of the ants, and, risking the wrath of their queen, they release him and flee. Now it's Crickwing's turn to have a conscience. He races after the leafcutters with his creative plan to keep the warring army ants at bay. The story ends in a festive explosion of flower confetti, and a valuable lesson in compassion. The concluding "Cockroach Notes" and "Ant Notes" crawl with fascinating facts about our six-legged friends. (Ages 5 to 8) --Karin SnelsonTired of being bullied, an artistic cockroach with a crooked wing and a penchant for culinary sculpture ("I just like to play with my food") begins picking on creatures even smaller than himselfAleafcutter antsAand is taken prisoner by the colony. Crickwing is sentenced to be served up as a peace offering to the army ants, but a few brave rebels have a change of heart and set him free. The grateful (and penitent) cockroach repays their kindness and saves the colony by scaring off the army ants with his best sculpture everAa giant green anteater made of leaves. The tale ends with Crickwing joining the leafcutters as their chef; the celebration that follows includes flower confetti and dancing (the "six-step," naturally). Cannon (Verdi) works her picture book magic once again, producing an amusing tale lightly rooted in natural history (notes on cockroaches and ants follow the story). Reeling in her audience with saucy characters and an engaging plotline, she hooks them with her vibrant visuals. Whether depicting Crickwing creating an edible mouse from a root, leaves and berries, an ocelot peering at him as he hides under a stone or a herd of leafcutter ants falling into one his traps, Cannon's illustrations skillfully blur the line between fact and fancy, and add another feather to her well-decorated cap. Ages 6-9. (Sept.) Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.; Title: Crickwing | [
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7,167 | 16 | "In a dark, dark wood there is a dark, dark house..." So begins this tongue-in-cheek rodent tale of intrigue. Four brave and curious mice follow the trail of a big, scary beast, down the dark red stair, into the dark blue cellar, inside the dark green bottle in the dark purple cupboard. Young readers will squeal in delighted fright when the yellow-eyed monster ("A BEAST!") flies out and across the cellar, up the stairs, out of the house, and into the night. The perpetually rhyming, color-obsessed mice follow in hot pursuit. But is the beast really as horrible as it seems?Two of the best-loved creators of children's books have collaborated on this utterly charming picture book. Using repetition, color progression, and rhymes, Bill Martin, Jr. (Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See?) and Steven Kellogg (A-Hunting We Will Go!) conjure up a story that will beguile any small reader in search of a thrill. Comical, cartoonish illustrations depict shadowy figures and deep, rich colors, leading up to the spooky surprise ending. (Ages 4 to 8) --Emilie Coulter"Nick's Tricks and Hank's Pranks, Incorporated" are the words painted on the side of a truck rolling through the forest on the front endpaper of this mischievous caper; mice Nick and Hank themselves surface on the title page, offering observant youngsters a clue to the plot that lies ahead. In large type well geared to beginning readers, the text sets the scene for each spreadAand reinforces knowledge of colors: "In a dark, dark wood there is a dark, dark house./ In the dark brown house there is a dark, dark stair." Appearing in speech balloons within the whimsical illustrations, the ingenuous, rhyming dialogue of four wide-eyed mice supplements the narrative. The intrepid mice venture into the shadow-filled house and creep down a dark, dark red staircase to a cellar with dark, dark blue walls, and so forth, until they find a dark, dark green bottle. The "beast" that floats out of it is only the first of the book's surprises. A high-spirited balance of concept book and adventure tale, this should find an enthusiastic reception among the many fans of Martin (Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See?) and Kellogg (Is Your Mama a Llama?). Both artist and illustrator shine as they playfully illuminate this "dark, dark" setting. Ages 3-7. (Aug.) Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.; Title: A Beasty Story | [
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7,168 | 1 | "Down by the station, early in the morning," before any visitors arrive, who exactly is riding that zoo train? Hop aboard and find out! See the elephant calf waving good-bye to Mommy and Daddy. And there's a pink flamingo chick, ready to ride. Who's this sleepy black-and-white cub? Still wrapped in a blanket, the panda isn't quite awake yet. The train chugs merrily along, picking up baby animal passengers. But beware! There's danger in the pond beside the tracks. Will the seal pup and baby penguin escape from the circling crocodiles?Will Hillenbrand, illustrator of Counting Crocodiles and The House That Drac Built, has always been curious about what goes on in a zoo before opening hours. Adapting a traditional children's song, Hillenbrand depicts his charming vision, and presents a parallel journey of a school bus approaching the zoo while the train is making its rounds. Children, as diverse as the chicks and cubs and kits, bound out of the bus to seesaw with the elephant and play kickball with the seal. And the napping panda? He's found his match in a blanket-toting boy. "Puff, puff, toot, toot, off we go!" Basic song notation is included in the back for budding musicians. (Ages 4 to 8) --Emilie CoulterHillenbrand's (The Golden Sandal) whimsical interpretation of a familiar song offers preschoolers a ticket to ride on an enjoyable excursion through a children's zoo. As an engineer makes repeated stops along the tracks, baby animals board a rainbow-tinted train. Each adds his or her own sound to the cumulative refrain: "Puff, puff,/ Toot, toot,/ Off we go!" from "Thrump, thrump" for the elephant calf to "Flip, flop" for the seal pup, building up a symphonic chorus that begs for audience participation. Hillenbrand shapes the simple song into a full-bodied story with a visual narrative populated by characters such as a kangaroo joey that jumps rope and a monkey that rescues a woman in the alligator pond via an upturned umbrella. The artwork foreshadows the creatures to come (e.g., a sign pointing to "Seal Island" appears on the spread before the seal pup's introduction), and the lyrics point up the unusual names of the animal offspring. Softly shaded but brightly colored, Hillenbrand's mixed media illustrations embrace an abundance of droll detail and gently outline landscapes in which the sky gradually changes from the pink hues of early morning to a glorious blue studded with cotton-candy clouds. All aboard for fun. Ages 3-6. (Sept.) Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.; Title: Down by the Station | [
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7,169 | 11 | This simple prose poem describes, in broad strokes, how corn is harvested and made into tortillas while rough, warm-toned paintings set the scenes. All ages. Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.GARY PAULSEN has written nearly two hundred books for young people, including the Newbery Honor Books Hatchet, Dogsong, and The Winter Room. He divides his time between a home in New Mexico and a boat on the Pacific Ocean.; Title: The Tortilla Factory | [
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7,170 | 1 | "Ehlert illustrates the simple story with bold, stylized cutouts . . . that are dazzling. . . . Altogether outstanding."--Kirkus Reviews (starred review)"Visually dynamic . . . The storytelling in both languages is succinct and fluent. . . . A fine choice for reading aloud."--Booklist (starred review)"Ehlert's cut-paper illustrations are striking. . . . The characters have personality and verve. . . . A fine purchase for folktale and picture-book collections as well as for ESL programs."--School Library Journal (starred review)LOIS EHLERT is the creator of many award-winning picture books, including Growing Vegetable Soup; Planting a Rainbow; Red Leaf, Yellow Leaf; In My World; and the New York Times Book Review bestseller Waiting for Wings. She lives in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. ; Title: Moon Rope/Un lazo a la luna | [
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7,171 | 2 | Every little bunny should have a brother as kind and thoughtful as Willa's big brother Willoughby. When Willa can't sleep because she is so afraid of bad dreams, her brother leans down from the top bunk to encourage his little sister to think happy thoughts... about her chicken slippers, her blue-and-white jumpsuit, and tomorrow's anticipated pleasures. That very night, Willoughby takes Willa on a piggy-back ride around the cozy tree house to check on her breakfast food, her toys in their basket, and the quiet world sleeping outside, all the while explaining in soft, soothing tones how everything in their snug little world is waiting for the next morning to unfold. He tells her that the morning is waiting "For grass to grow, flowers to bloom, and leaves to flutter. For clouds to float, wind to blow, and sun to shine. For birds to fly, bees to buzz, and ducks to quack." "'That's a lot of happy things,' said Willa." Joyce Dunbar knows just how to set the scene for sleep, and Debi Gliori's charming, expressive bunnies are very, very cute. (Click to see a sample spread. From Tell Me Something Happy Before I Go to Sleep by Joyce Dunbar, illustration 1998 by Debi Gliori, reproduced by permission of Harcourt Brace & Company.) (Ages 3 to 6) --Marcie BovetzPreSchool-Willa can't go to sleep, so she enlists the help of her big brother Willoughby. He tells her to "think of something happy," but the toddler bunny can't think of anything on her own. Patiently, Willoughby points out happy things that await her in the morning: her chicken slippers and blue-and-white jumpsuit, breakfast food in the kitchen, toys in the living room, and the morning itself. Satisfied, Willa goes to sleep in his arms. This is a perfect book for wide-awake toddlers. The simple but beautifully crafted text has a soft rhythm to it, and paints a touching picture of the warm and loving relationship between the siblings. This is again reflected in the lovely illustrations, which radiate a sense of peace and coziness, and have all sorts of wonderful details to discover. The expressions on the bunnies' faces are just right. Their tree house has decorative accents throughout, and Willa has footie pajamas with carrots and lettuce printed on them. The oversize format insures that the book can be used in storytimes as well as for bedtime read-alouds. This is a winner in the tradition of Sam McBratney's Guess How Much I Love You (Candlewick, 1995) and Margaret Wise Brown's Goodnight Moon (HarperCollins, 1947).Judith Constantinides, East Baton Rouge Parish Main Library, LACopyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.; Title: Tell Me Something Happy Before I Go to Sleep | [
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7,172 | 2 | Bunting (Smoky Night) tackles an aspect of divorce not usually discussed in children's books with this tale of two sisters whose grandparents decide to split up. Thunderstruck, five-year-old Jo-Jo announces, "I'm never going to eat again, until Grandma and Grandpa get undivorced"; later, she offers to pay her grandmother not to go through with it. Nora, the fourth-grade narrator, worries about the kind of changes her grandparents' decision will bring ("After my friend Fiona's parents got divorced, she never saw her dad again. I couldn't bear it if we never saw Grandpa"). With a great deal of reassurance, love and support from their family, the girls gradually adjust to the idea. Bunting sets her story during that bittersweet transitional time of year right before school starts, an effective device that creates an additional emotional layer (Nora, for instance, feels "doleful" not only about her grandparents, but also about the last ice cream of the summer, the last visit to the duck pond, etc.). Even with the sensitivity of the prose, however, the story has the engineered feeling of a "problem" book and is too wordy for the format. Low's (Chinatown) Photoshop-generated illustrations resemble an artful blend of watercolors and acrylics, and are as carefully and effectively lit as a stage setting. Ages 5-8. Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.K-Gr 4-A beautifully illustrated picture book about coming to terms with divorce. As summer ends, Nora, a fourth grader, and Jo-Jo, a kindergartner, are upset when they hear about their maternal grandparents' impending divorce. Nora describes her own feelings as "doleful," a new word she has looked up. When they go to visit Grandma, the girls speak to Grandpa on the phone and make plans to see him. After talking to both grandparents, the sisters begin to adjust. Throughout the story, Bunting sensitively portrays the feelings and needs of all of the family members. The realistic illustrations, created using Photoshop, capture the vibrant colors of late-summer days and convey the closeness of this family. The strong emotions the girls are experiencing are reflected in their facial expressions and in the way they interact with one another. Although at times Nora seems a little too wise for her age, and the text is a bit long, this book will be helpful for adults who are looking for stories about divorce.-Marilyn Ackerman, Brooklyn Public Library, NYCopyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.; Title: The Days of Summer | [
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7,173 | 0 | Grade 1-3-Mr. Putter and his cat, Tabby, are friends and neighbors of Mrs. Teaberry and her bulldog, Zeke. When Mrs. T suggests taking a train ride, they load up games, binoculars, doggy lollipops, and a blanket for naps, only to discover that pets are not allowed. Undaunted, Mr. Putter and Mrs. Teaberry go home and return to the train station, having hidden Tabby and Zeke in a picnic basket and knapsack. They sneak the animals onboard and enjoy a wonderful trip. The charm and whimsy of this story are marred only by the devious behavior of the adult characters, which sends the message that it is acceptable to disregard rules that are not to one's liking. If the friends did not want to leave their creatures at home, they could have found another activity. That said, the narrative is endearing for its humor and for the lively illustrations that capture both the lovable personalities of Tabby and Zeke and the affection showered on them by their indulgent owners.Diane Janoff, Queens Borough Public Library, NYCopyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.Elderly Mr. Putter has mixed emotions about elderly Mrs. Teaberry's ideas, which are sometimes rather peculiar, involving "running fast or wearing feathers." But this time her suggestion of a train ride, with their respective pets in tow, seems perfect. Unfortunately, the ticket agent isn't enthusiastic: "Pets can't go on trains." Is this the end of what could be a wonderful day? Certainly not. Mr. Putter comes up with a mischievous idea of his own. As in their previous books together, Rylant and Howard accomplish a lot in a few pages--good comedy, good characterizations (wonderfully depicted in Howard's sprightly art), and a nicely controlled vocabulary, all of which combine to make this a delightful easy-to-read choice. Stephanie Zvirin; Title: Mr. Putter & Tabby Take the Train | [
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7,174 | 11 | The "spare simplicity" of this tale about a Vietnamese refugee is "richly amplified by arresting, light-filled paintings," said PW in a starred review. Ages 6-10. Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.; Title: The Lotus Seed | [
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7,175 | 0 | Armageddon Summer provides a front-row seat for the type of event most of us only witness on a TV screen. Reverend Raymond Beelson is gathering 144 "Believers" atop Mount Weeupcut in Massachusetts to camp out, pray, and await Armageddon--July 27, 2000--when he predicts that his faithful flock will be saved as the rest of the world is set ablaze in fire and brimstone. We experience the month leading up to this climax through the eyes of two teenagers who have never met before, Jed and Marina, each of whom have come to the compound out of a sense of responsibility toward their families. Young Jed is only on the mountain to watch over his father who "went a little crazy" after his wife left the family: "When my father told me that the world was going to end I figured he was making some sort of weird joke." Jed's sarcasm, humor, and flippancy toward the Believers does not erase the love he feels for his newly devout father, nor his capacity for empathy toward members of the congregation. Marina is a Believer, or so she tries to be, in the hope that somehow her faith will restore harmony to her family. She has traveled to the mountain with her younger brothers at her mother's fervent insistence, but her fear that her father will remain below with the rest of the nonbelievers to burn alive unnerves her.Coauthors Jane Yolen and Bruce Coville artfully sculpt the alternating voices and perspectives of Marina and Jed, and readers will be swept up in the thoughts and emotions of these complex young people. The skillful writing raises this novel above others--these characters are immensely believable as they struggle with matters of family and faith, while maintaining a smart, convincingly adolescent outlook. Excerpts from sermons, FBI files, camp schedules, and e-mails keep the story lively and suspenseful, as the Believers begin to stockpile weapons and the media adds fuel to the flames. But perhaps more resonant than the apocalyptic ending are the careful, distinct portraits of the two teens, thrust into a frightening situation that shuttles them suddenly into adulthood. (Ages 12 to 16) --Brangien DavisOn the heels of Paula Danziger and Ann Martin's P.S. Longer Letter Later (Children's Forecasts, Feb. 16) comes another novel (on a very different subject) co-written by a pair of popular YA authors. The two alternating narrators, Marina and Jed, are both children of religious fanatics, so-called Believers who dedicate themselves to the Reverend Beelson. The Believers have brought their families to the top of a mountain to prepare for the end of the world, only two weeks away, according to Beelson. Marina and Jed are instantly attracted to each other, even though Marina believes the world really will end and Jed thinks the whole thing is a hoax. Their different points of view?and occasional interleaved "memos" from FBI agents, excerpts from sermons, etc.?yield a multidimensional description of cult dynamics and dangers. As Beelson predicts, there is a type of Armageddon on July 27, 2000 (Marina's 14th birthday), but, as Marina sadly concludes, it is one "made by man. Not by God." Yolen's and Coville's styles and narrative voices, though different, complement each other well, so that both protagonists emerge with the same depth and the action builds smoothly and steadily. Providing action, romance and a provocative message, this novel could well get teens talking. Ages 12-up. Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.; Title: Armageddon Summer | [
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7,176 | 15 | PW found that "lavish illustrations are the high point" of this eco-fable about a unicorn who befriends a princess and helps save an endangered forest. Ages 6-10. Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.Breathtaking. . . This compelling tale ensures Cherry's place as a leading author of environmental stories.—Booklist ; Title: The Dragon and the Unicorn | [
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7,177 | 1 | PreSchool-K?Lovable Kipper is back, this time in four concept books. The beauty of these titles is in their simplicity?bright primary colors and simple forms make them very appealing. In Colors, the brown-and-white dog flies a blue kite and eats red strawberries. In Numbers, he feeds four hens and digs holes with six moles. Opposites captures the happy-faced pup with a big balloon and his sad expression when it pops. Weather shows him basking in the sun and splashing in the rain. The lively watercolor illustrations lend themselves to simple one-on-one interaction or to use in toddler story hour. While concept books abound, Inkpen's engaging character and clear, clean presentations make these charming offerings stand above the crowd.?Helen Rosenberg, Chicago Public Library, ILCopyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc.MICK INKPEN's books starring Kipper have sold millions of copies worldwide and have been translated into more than twenty languages. His more recent titles include Kipper's A to Z, a Publishers Weekly Best Book of the Year and an ABA's Pick of the Lists, and Kipper and Roly. Mr. Inkpen lives in Suffolk, England.; Title: Kipper's Book of Weather: Kipper Concept Books | [
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7,178 | 2 | www.fidosopher.com; Title: Elijah's Angel: A Story for Chanukah and Christmas | [
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7,179 | 2 | Slapstick comedy frees this lesson on "bad" words from didacticism; "A comic but sensible book," said PW. Ages 4-8. Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.Audrey Woodis theauthor ofmany beloved books for children, including the bestselling classicThe Napping House, its companion The Full Moon at the Napping House, Caldecott Honor Book King Bidgood's in the Bathtub,HeckedyPeg, Piggies,and Piggy Pie Po, all of which wereillustrated by her husband,Don Wood.The Woods divide their time between California and Hawaii.; Title: Elbert's Bad Word | [
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7,180 | 2 | "Altoona Baboona / flicks peas with a spoon-a. / She dances all night / and sings songs to the moon-a." And that's not all. She gets bored on her dune-a and takes to the skies in her hot air balloon-a! Her real adventures begin when she flies south to Cancun-a, blows east to Rangoon-a, and picks up a couple of new friends along the way. Children will revel in the silly read-aloud rhyme and sketchy, colorful, detail-rich baboona cartoon-a in Janie Bynum's buoyant flight of fancy. (Ages 2 and older) --Karin SnelsonThis one-joke, disjointed text does not measure up to the humor of Bynum's artwork: it is the first book she has both written and illustrated. Altoona Baboona travels by hot air balloon-a to Cancun-a and Rangoon-a, bringing home Raccoon-a and Loon-a to live with her on her dune-a. The digital pen, ink and watercolor illustrations are fresh and lively, with airy landscapes and a pleasing gracefulness of line. But without any character or plot development, the book never really takes off. One can only hope to see Bynum's artistic talents applied to more of a story very soon-a. Ages 2-6. Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.; Title: Altoona Baboona | [
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7,181 | 0 | PreSchool-Grade 1The question-and-answer structure of this text (How does a pig walk? Snuffle root, snuffle root.) and the large illustrations make Wiggle Waggle ideal for use with very young children and for beginning readers. The flat pictures done in colored pencils make the book easy to use with storytime groupseven when children are scattered across the roomand theyre sure to enjoy imitating the Flop! Flop! Flop! of the frog, the Bumble Roll, Bumble Roll of the bear, and more. The layout includes some variation of font size and style to mirror the animals gait. An action-packed winner for toddler and preschool storytimes.Gale W. Sherman, Pocatello Public Library, ID Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.There is no story here but plenty of action, and in the right situation (for instance, a preschool story time), there's the potential for lots of fun. Each two-page spread features an animal--duck, horse, elephant, camel, to name a few--and the question, how does the particular animal walk? Then, in large letters, is the answer. Flop, flop for the frog, bumble roll, bumble roll for the bear, and so forth. The book finishes with a flourish: a roundup of all the animals on the last couple of pages. The colored-pencil depictions of the animals, done with computer software, take up most of the spreads, just the right size for a group to focus on. Little ones will have fun waddling, clippety-clopping, and wiggle-waggling through this one. Ilene Cooper; Title: Wiggle Waggle | [
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7,182 | 5 | When a pair of raucous giants try to eat Beatrix's beloved cow, she teaches them a lesson in manners. Ages 3-7. Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.Kids will be clamoring for this one.-Booklist; Title: Rude Giants | [
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7,183 | 5 | This "splendid" adaptation of a Zuni folktale, PW said, is "perfectly paced for an amusing read-aloud, with illustrations that are equally accomplished." Ages 4-8. (May) Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.“Kids will love the action and the brilliantly colored art.”—Sesame Street Parents“A splendid tale, perfectly paced for an amusing read-aloud.”—Publishers Weekly“This is great for story-telling: kids will love the slapstick action and the bright, comic art.”—Booklist“Lively, visually splendid, and sure to appeal.”—Kirkus Review ; Title: Coyote: A Trickster Tale from the American Southwest | [
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7,184 | 6 | Big, beefy trucks in a big, beefy book. There are only five double-page spreads in Richard Fowler's Pop-Up Trucks--"Dump Truck," "Forklift," "Tow Truck," "Delivery Truck," and "Fire Engine"--but each one bustles industriously. The pop-up dump truck actually dumps, the moving forklift really lifts, and the delivery truck slides from one end of a row of pop-up shops to the other. The lively, colorful illustrations (both two- and three-dimensional) are surrounded by a story, so readers can perform the various activities as they are described. "Fred drives an electric counterbalance forklift. It carries loads from different places in the warehouse to the loading bay, where they are placed on special carts and wheeled into delivery vans.... Joe's delivery truck sounds an alarm when he carefully backs up to the loading bay." It's hands-on fun! An excellent addition to the library of any machine-obsessed small child. (Ages 3 to 7) --Richard FarrNo Bio; Title: Pop-up Trucks, U.S. Edition | [
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7,185 | 2 | Following their Robin of Sherwood and Arthur, High King of Britain, Morpurgo and Foreman turn their talents to historical fiction about the Maid of Orl?ans. Morpurgo frames his chronicle of Joan of Arc within a contemporary story about Eloise, a 17-year-old French girl who has set her heart on playing Joan in the annual tableaux in Orl?ans, where Eloise's family has just moved. When Eloise narrowly loses a contest to portray Joan, she seeks the solace of the sparrow she has befriended down by the river. There a voice from on high ("from deep inside the light, deep inside the silence") tells her the complete story of Joan of Arc, including Joan's lifelong companionship with a white sparrow ("He was her best friend on this earth"). Told in smooth, expansive chapters, the narrative skirts some of the more searching questions about Joan's voices and vocation (such as those raised in Diane Stanley's recent picture-book biography, Joan of Arc) and accepts Joan's religious visions at face value. Indeed, with the introductions of a supernatural narrator and of a sparrow that enjoys an almost mystical relationship with Joan, Morpurgo signals that his storytelling is premised on faith. Foreman, too, adopts only the look of realism. His deceptively sunny palette offsets the often brutal matter of the narrative, and his familiar, informal, representational style balances his allusions to religious imagery. If the work is not as provocative as Stanley's, its polish and panoramic scope will lure and hold readers. Ages 9-14. (Mar.) contemporary story set in Devon and focusing on a storytelling grandfather and his grandson (Pavilion [Trafalgar, dist.], $16.95 paper 80p ages 7-10 ISBN 1-86205-192-5; Mar.).-, $16.95 paper 80p ages 7-10 ISBN 1-86205-192-5; Mar.).Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.Grade 6-8-As in the earlier books by this author and illustrator team, this tale begins in the present day with a young person searching for historical truth. When her family moves to Orleans, France, 17-year-old Eloise Hardy studies the legends of Joan of Arc, visits the 15th-century locales, and longs to be selected for the annual pageant honoring the city's most famous figure. One day she hears a voice telling the saint's story, from her childhood to her martyrdom. Morpurgo is an accomplished writer and storyteller. Facts and popular beliefs, history and legend are drawn upon to create an exciting tale. In order to give immediacy to his story, he creates an eyewitness to Joan's life in a small bird-a white sparrow she calls Belami-who comforts and consoles her, and witnesses her cruel death. The device is contrived but succeeds in showing Joan as a real person, buoyed by her belief in her divine mission, troubled by human doubts and fears, and full of compassion for her fellow soldiers and love for God and country. Foreman's dramatic, sweeping watercolor illustrations in shades of blue, gold, and earth tones mark the high points of the plot with full-page visual representations. Readers will enjoy comparing this story of Joan of Arc with Nancy Garden's novel Dove and Sword (Farrar, 1995) and will appreciate Diane Stanley's nonfiction picture book Joan of Arc (Morrow, 1998) as well.Shirley Wilton, Ocean County College, Toms River, NJ Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.; Title: Joan of Arc | [] | Train |
7,186 | 2 | At the end of each summer, the principal of Tremont Elementary School "walks down the hall to Mrs. Spitzer's room and gives her a packet of seeds." The cheerily appointed classroom (stocked with a gerbil, a rug with real hopscotch squares and a "dress-up corner") seems to augur a run-of-the-mill kindergarten tale, but Pattou (Hero's Song) soon launches her story into the realm of metaphor. Mrs. Spitzer's "seeds" are duly planted and tenderly nurtured, and while some "grow quickly, pushing upward, eager, impatient," others "grow more slowly, unfolding themselves bit by bit." As the seasons progress, the little plants grow sturdier, until finally the school year comes to a close and Mrs. Spitzer's job is done. Pattou relates her parable in straightforward yet gentle prose, leaving the whimsy to Tusa's (Maebelle's Suitcase) pen-and-watercolor illustrations. Giving the flowers eager little faces and different personalities, she amplifies the theme so that even youngest readers will understand the true identity of Mrs. Spitzer's "plants." Whether outlining the happy clutter of classroom and garden or the flowers themselves, Tusa's artwork is almost infectiously merry. Paying visual homage to typical kindergarten art, this sweet story will shore up beginning students' expectations of classroom life. Ages 3-7. Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.K-Gr 2-Mrs. Spitzer, a teacher, spends her days tending her flowers. Cheerful cartoon scenes follow her progress as the principal gives her a packet of seeds at the end of summer, and she takes up her garden tools to tend the soil, plant and water the seeds, fend off pests and weeds, and happily watch the progress of the sprouts. "Some of the plants grow quickly, pushing upward, eager, impatient.-Some are silvery and quiet, the color of the earth." Birds, bugs, and plants are personified with faces, hats, and kerchiefs. Congenial Mrs. Spitzer works energetically through the seasons-though there is no winter-and at the end of the year hangs her hat on her wheelbarrow and puts away her calendar and plan book to wait for the new school year. The closing view of the classroom includes children's artwork depicting the flowers, animals, and pumpkins. The garden is intended as a metaphor for the classroom; the carefully tended plants represent Mrs. Spitzer's students. It's hard to say who will recognize the analogy. Children of an age to identify with the kindergarten-style classroom are apt to see this literally as a garden story. Some will recognize that the seasonal scheme is backward. Some teachers may use the euphemistic scheme to introduce the idea of symbolism, but most kids this age prefer their lessons to be a bit more grounded in reality.-Margaret Bush, Simmons College, BostonCopyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.; Title: Mrs. Spitzer's Garden | [
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7,187 | 2 | PreSchool-The statement "Our earth is where I live" appears under a picture of a suburban home with dandelions on the lawn. On the opposite page, a picture of the planet is labeled, "It is a big, round globe." So begins this first look at the development of the earth and its geographic components. Simple sentences state very basic information about the North and South Poles, how an island is born, the path water takes to the sea, hot deserts, damp caves, high mountains, and tropical forests. Grasslands are not included. The watercolor-and-gouache illustrations are colorful, in Rockwell's typical flat, uncomplicated style. The pictures extend the text with appropriate details-an ocean teeming with brightly colored coral and fish, a tranquil cow pasture with rock walls and a red barn, lizards in the desert, and bats in a cave. After such an introduction, preschoolers can move on to Jack Knowlton's Geography from A to Z (Crowell, 1988).Martha Gordon, formerly at South Salem Library, NYCopyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.Rockwell takes on an ambitious project as she introduces the earth to young children. Although the illustrations succeed in suggesting the variety of physical features and landscapes on the earth, the text is a mundane accompaniment. The subject is so large and complex that writers attempting to express it in a picture book must chart a course between two hazards: telling too much and losing the audience, or telling too little and sounding simplistic. Rockwell veers toward the latter, and the result is a sentence like this: "Some islands are coral reefs that grow and grow until they poke above the water, and birds bring seeds to them." Children who have no idea what coral is, how or why birds bring seeds to the coral, or what seeds have to do with making an island will need further interpretation. However, the watercolor-and-gouache illustrations are very accessible. The pictures should provoke questions; parents and teachers can use the answers to provide kids with more information. Useful for many library collections. Carolyn Phelan; Title: Our Earth | [
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7,188 | 2 | A steamy, swampy Florida setting and the threat of a repressed memory are two of the elements in Edward Bloor's first young adult novel, Tangerine, that made it an instant suburban gothic classic. His follow-up, Crusader, delves even deeper into the dark side of suburbia, exposing racism, virtual violence, and even murder behind the sunny facade of a Florida strip mall.Fifteen-year-old Roberta works hard every afternoon and weekend in the family business, a virtual reality arcade in the West End Mall. She keeps her mind off the fact that the arcade is slowly going under and that her father ignores her existence, but she cannot ignore the fact of her mother's brutal murder seven years ago. Roberta's quest to find her mother's killer weaves together several skillfully constructed subplots, including a shady political scheme to ruin the mall, real and imagined hate crimes against an Arab store owner, and how the Crusader itself, a virtual reality game, serves as the catalyst that ignites and unites these seemingly unrelated factors in Roberta's life. Bloor's brooding, densely plotted page turner is an incredibly original novel that will engage teens on several levels. Though it is almost 400 pages long, the nonstop action and many startling revelations will keep teens transfixed until the very last sentence. (Ages 12 and older) --Jennifer HubertAlthough the jacket and flap copy play to readers interested in virtual reality, cyber-adventure is only a very small component of this ambitious second novel from the author of the acclaimed Tangerine. Fifteen-year-old Roberta spends her time at a mall, working for her alcoholic Uncle Frank in a virtual reality arcade that features "experiences" for xenophobic violence-mongers: in the war game Crusader, for example, players kill Arab "Infidels." Everything around Roberta is skewed, from the misfits who work at the arcade for no pay (just getting to play the games is enough) to the mall, where the businesses are struggling and the management is corrupt. Home is even stranger. Her mother is dead and her father neglects her, spending all his time with the horrible Suzie, the mall manager. Roberta herself is an oddball, often mistaken for a boy and slow to emerge as a strong characterAreaders will have to be patient to see her personality take shape. The story is long and packed with subplots, veering from local politics (hate crimes and environmentalism) to teenage suicide, the inner workings of a TV studio and Roberta's quest to uncover the truth about her mother's death. A scheme to expose a dishonest politician is baroque and anticlimactic. Nonetheless, the characters are sharply drawn (racist Hawg is not an entirely bad guy; shallow teen beauty Nina helps out in a pinch), and Roberta is full of surprises. While flawed, this novel is deeper, denser and more complex than most YA fare, and serious readers will appreciate it. Ages 12-up. (Oct.) Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.; Title: Crusader | [
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7,189 | 5 | "Buoyant watercolors, full of poignancy and subtle merriment, more than do justice to Thurber's beloved tale of a princess who asks for the moon, and the wise jester who presents her with it," said PW. Ages 4-8. Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.[Simont's] buoyant watercolors, full of poignancy and subtle merriment, more than do justice to Thurber's beloved tale.-Publishers Weekly ; Title: Many Moons (A Harcourt Brace Contemporary Classic) | [
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7,190 | 1 | Grade 1-3-Heads up, readers! Preston's got the ball and his aim is right on target. While en route to the grocery to get bread for his mother, the young pig plays out a glorious soccer game with himself as star. Oblivious to the world around him, he is completely involved in his play. However, when his skillful maneuvers and accurate hits find unsuspected targets, the blame is put on a hungry wolf who has been following the pig with an eye on dinner. Even in the store, which Preston nearly demolishes with his "GOAL" antics, Mr. Wolf is once more the loser. McNaughton uses a light palette and easy lines that work well in a story remindful of the shenanigans and fast pace of Saturday morning cartoons. This chuckle-filled comedy with a twist at the end is sure to score points with young sports fans.Barbara Elleman, Marquette University, Milwaukee, WICopyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.Ages 3^-8. In the fourth adventure of bold and brash Preston, the intrepid pig takes his soccer ball when he's sent to get a loaf of bread. A most brilliant player, Preston scores one goal after another, totally oblivious of anyone or anything, including his nemesis, the wolf. As Preston dribbles along his merry way, destroying a flower garden here, knocking a bully down there, and sending the supermarket displays flying, the wolf takes the heat. Steamed at being a furry fall guy, the wolf pounces on the pig and the loaf, and in a double-page spread, he's seen smacking his lupine lips. Could this be the end of Preston Pig? Get this winning book, with enough slapstick fun for every young soccer fan, and find out. Shelley Townsend-Hudson; Title: Preston's Goal!: A Preston Pig Story | [
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7,191 | 16 | A cat who knows how to tell time? "How else could I keep my busy day on schedule?" asks Big Mama Cat. Harper, in his first book, cleverly employs the cat narrator to recount a grueling schedule of napping, stretching, "prewashing" the dirty dishes and lingering nearby if a snack seems forthcoming. A page featuring a clock with movable plastic hands shows through the die-cut cover, and folds out so readers can move the clock hands to the times cited in the book. The handsome illustrations, composed by Cara Moser and painted in watercolors by Barry Moser (the father-daughter team also illustrated Eagle Boy: A Traditional Navajo Legend), capture expressions and poses that will be familiar to cat lovers: looking unrepentant as she is "helped down" from the forbidden new chair and licking her chops at the dinner table ("I'm not invited, but I grab a seat and look hungry"). One humorous spread shows the sly feline at the door, on the left, wanting to go outside at 10:30 a.m.; on the right, at 10:45 (displayed on a cat clock), she peers in from the outside and wants in?a tiny mouse pictured inside the house provides the explanation. With activities every hour, and sometimes more often, Big Mama Cat will likely succeed in teaching young cat lovers to clock their days with confidence. Ages 4-8. Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.PreSchool-Grade 2-A feline claims, "Some people think cats don't know much-but I, Big Mama Cat, know how to tell time. How else could I keep my busy day on schedule?" Readers quickly discover the irony in this assertion, as illustrations soon reveal that her busy day consists of napping, eating, or waiting to do one or the other. Her proprietary interest in the goings-on of her domain are manifest in her awareness of the humans' schedule, from the morning rituals of baby feedings and the school bus to the family's evening routine of dinner and a bedtime story. The simple, consistent arrangement of text and pictures on each page gently frames the humor and perfectly captures the everyday dramas of naptime and tea parties. Humor is furthered by visual details, including birds and mice of which the proud feline narrator seems completely unaware. Clocks showing the times noted in the text are clearly visible on every page and can be supplemented by a clock with moveable plastic hands that is part of the front cover. The tongue-in-cheek tone of the story and high-quality art are so engrossing, however, that the cover clock might be entirely ignored. Buy several copies; this combination is guaranteed to please those learning to tell time as well as their younger siblings.Tana Elias, Meadowridge Branch Library, Madison, WICopyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.; Title: Telling Time with Big Mama Cat | [
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7,192 | 1 | Coville's (Into the Land of the Unicorns) sometimes moving but ultimately puzzling picture book is constructed a bit like a film drama that rolls a documentary-style addendum at the end. One afternoon, a flock of migrating monarch butterflies surrounds 11-year-old John. The green field where the flock had stopped on its path south has been bulldozed for a development. They beg John ("not in words but quite clearly nevertheless") to show them the way to a new resting place, and they transform him into a butterfly ("brushing him with their wings, dropping their tiny scales on... his two legs, four legs, six legs") so that he can lead them there. Both the experience of flying and the privilege of saving the monarchs elate the boy. Clapp's (The Stone Fey) uncannily lifelike watercolors feature close-ups of butterflies and aerial shots. The story's second section follows "John Farrington" as he grows up and becomes an activist who helps pass legislation to preserve monarch habitats "The Butterfly Road" bill. Of course, there is no such activist, and no such legislation, either. In the end, Farrington is surrounded by another flock of his beloved monarchs, which, for one last time, transform his aged body into a butterfly's. The shifts between fantasy and accurate details give the story sophisticated, screenplay-style impact; whether younger readers will understand the blurred boundaries between fiction and fact is less clear. Ages 6-up. Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.Kindergarten-Grade 4-This sentimental tale was originally published in a slightly different form in Disney's Big Time (May, 1995). A flock of monarchs finds an ally in 11-year-old John Farrington as he helps them locate the diminishing green spaces along their migratory path. They cluster around his body and turn him into a butterfly so that he can lead them to places with grass and trees in his part of the world. Before he turns 17, the butterflies visit each spring and he continues to assist them. As an adult, he becomes a lepidopterist and persuades Congress to pass "The Butterfly Road" bill to set aside migratory resting places for the monarchs. Finally, when he is aged and wheelchair-bound, the butterflies return to transform John for the last time. (An author's note explains that while the character is fictional, the threat to the monarchs and their habitats is real.) The narrative adopts a brisk, documentary tone, and Clapp's watercolor illustrations capably deal with the text, but little is conveyed overall of the awe or magic the story's events would imply.Kathie Meizner, Montgomery County Public Libraries, Chevy Chase, MDCopyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.; Title: The Prince of Butterflies | [
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7,193 | 11 | In Moonbeams, Dumplings & Dragon Boats: A Treasury of Chinese Holiday Tales, Activities & Recipes by Nina Simonds, Leslie Swartz and the Children's Museum, Boston, illus. by Meilo So, each of a quartet of holidays includes a brief background and introduces a bevy of crafts, recipes and legends. "The Story of the Kitchen God" kicks off the section on the Chinese New Year (and the reason behind serving the traditional tanggua, or candied melons); a recipe for Five-Treasure Moon Cakes stuffed with apricot preserves, pitted dates, sweet coconut and raisins helps youngsters celebrate the Mid-Autumn Moon Festival. Step-by-step illustrations aid in food preparation or crafts such as New Year Prints or Good Luck Characters in this elegantly designed volume. Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.Grade 4-7-This book features five holidays: Chinese New Year and the Lantern Festival, Qing Ming, the Dragon Boat Festival, and the Mid-Autumn Moon Festival. Each section begins with a one-page description of the history and customs of the festival and is followed by a four- to six-page story, from one to three recipes, and two or three crafts or games. The headings on each page appear in both English typeface and Chinese calligraphy; a guide to Chinese pronunciation is included. The ample white space surrounding the text is filled with small, whimsical watercolor illustrations. Each of the four sections is introduced by a dynamic, detailed watercolor painting on a double-page spread. They include a dragon parade complete with fireworks, kites flying above a family honoring ancestors at a grave, a dragon boat race, and preparations for a moon ceremony. A two-page resource section is divided into three parts: of interest to adults, of interest to young readers, and Internet sources. Most books for young readers about Chinese holidays stress Chinese New Year; only two others feature the full range of annual festivals. Carol Stepanchuk's Red Eggs & Dragon Boats (Pacific View, 1994) is a shorter book with a similar scope, but fewer recipes and crafts/activities. Judith Karen Gee's A Book of Chinese Festivals (Steam RR, 1989; o.p.) offers a brief description of each holiday but no recipes or other activities. Moonbeams is a useful, visually appealing addition to any holiday collection.Ginny Gustin, Sonoma County Library System, Santa Rosa, CACopyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.; Title: Moonbeams, Dumplings & Dragon Boats: A Treasury of Chinese Holiday Tales, Activities & Recipes | [
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7,194 | 8 | Eve Bunting has writtenover two hundredbooks for children, including the Caldecott Medal-winning Smoky Night, illustrated by David Diaz, The Wall, Fly Away Home, and Train to Somewhere. She lives in Southern California.; Title: Smoky Night | [
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7,195 | 0 | DOUGLAS FLORIAN is the creator of many acclaimed picture books including zoo's who; bow wow meow meow, a Parents Magazine Best Book of the Year; lizards, frogs, and polliwogs, a Bulletin Blue Ribbon Book; mammalabilia, an ABA's Pick of the Lists; insectlopedia, an ALA Notable Children's Book and Publishers Weekly Best Book of the Year; and omnibeasts, a gift collection of his best-loved animal poems. He lives with his family in New York City. ; Title: Beast Feast: Poems & Paintings | [
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7,196 | 16 | PreSchool-Grade 3-Using his characteristic thick-lined cartoons, Most incorporates the ever-popular dinosaur motif into this concept book in which an alphabet-loving T-Rex eats each letter in turn. Using mostly adjectives instead of nouns, the author describes the qualities of each letter as T-Rex devours it: "I was irresistible, "J was juicy." The accompanying illustrations highlight the ravenous reptile as he feasts, surrounded by foods and objects that begin with the featured letter. While readers will enjoy spotting these items, some of the adjectives will be challenging for young children, such as "luscious" and "quenching." Additionally, the unnamed objects are sometimes hard to identify, such as "quart jars" for the letter Q. The author does provide an appendix of "Some extra things to look for," arranged alphabetically, which will help children to make the connection between letter and word when the text does not. Purchase for fans of Most's work or of Jean Marzollo's "I Spy" titles (Scholastic) more than for the alphabet concept.Holly Belli, Bergen County Cooperative Library System, West Caldwell, NJ Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.A young dinosaur, living a comfortably suburban lifestyle, eats his way through the alphabet in this genial ABC picture book. Each page (except for the double-page spread for "W"), features a new letter and a new setting for the hero, who in one scene wears footed pajamas and a bib, but in another operates a barbecue grill on his own. Oh well, who can say what's age-appropriate for the young of an extinct species? In any case, young humans will enjoy little T-rex's enormous gusto, plowing through a variety of foods, although "U upset his tummy" and slows him down for the denouement. On a typical page, "F was feast" finds him forking down French fries, fried chicken, and the letter "F" itself, while fruit salad, fish, fried chicken, and fudge wait to be devoured. Heavy black lines define the cartoonlike drawings, brightened with a colorful palette emphasizing shades of green, purple, and orange. Fun for alphabetically inclined preschoolers. Carolyn Phelan; Title: ABC T-Rex | [
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7,197 | 2 | Cannon (Stellaluna) returns to the land of the Fuzzheads for this tale with an ecological message. Little Yau longs to become sufficiently accomplished at mixing plants into healing medicines that the Wise Ones, the eldest Fuzzheads, will invite her to the mountains to teach her "the great secrets." After bungling her exam in the medicine cave, Yau goes in search of her best friend, Trupp, who encountered the human world in the inaugural volume about the Fuzzheads and has been away a long time. She finds him unconscious, and summons the Wise Ones. Cannon paints the triumvirate perched on the "Great Arch," a terra cotta stone that arcs against a mystical blue sky, overlooking the mountains. The arid landscape calls to mind breathtaking vistas such as the Grand Canyon or Sedona, a worthy perch for these spiritual leaders. The Wise Ones help her determine that he has fallen ill to "poison from the human garden." Only the thumbfoot leaf will cure the ailing young patient, but when Yau (camouflaged in human garb) goes to retrieve the plant, she discovers human developments in place of the thumbfoot's usual habitat. These paintings pale when compared to the Fuzzheads' homeland, and the message here tends to overshadow the story. But Trupp's fans will likely enjoy seeing his further adventures through the eyes of his best buddy. Ages 5-8.Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.JANELL CANNON is the award-winning author and illustrator of picture books about unappreciated and fascinating creatures. Some of her books--including Crickwing, Verdi, and the beloved bestseller Stellaluna--feature characters that can be found in the natural world. The Fuzzheads in Trupp and Little Yau often are thought to be imaginary, but no one really knows for sure. Ms. Cannon lives in Southern California.; Title: Little Yau: A Fuzzhead Tale | [
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7,198 | 16 | Who hops? Does a cow hop? A giraffe? And if not, what do they do instead? These simple questions are answered in Katie Davis's fanciful Who Hops? Exploding with color, this engaging read-aloud book takes a fun-filled look at the world of animal movement. Introducing animals that really do hop or fly or swim, Davis ends the sequence with one that certainly doesn't. Birds fly. Bats fly. Flies fly. Rhinos fly. NO THEY DON'T! (At that point, a bedraggled purple rhino, complete with tiny pink wings strapped to his huge body, says, "Great. NOW you tell me.") The cartoonish animals will delight preschoolers, and the bold, black type encourages even the youngest children to attempt reading. Moving quickly through various modes of transportation, Who Hops? finishes with the question, "Who hops and flies and slithers and swims and crawls?" "Why, you do, of course!" Kids are sure to giddily shout out answers, and they may learn a few things about the flying, leaping animal kingdom through their giggles. (Ages 2 to 6) --Aimee DammanThe silly premise of this entertaining book follows a list of three animals that hop, fly, swim or crawl with one that obviously does not, enabling kids to participate by catching the "mistake." For example, the response to "Who slithers?" includes "Salamanders slither./ Snakes slither./ Snails slither./ Elephants slither." The next page sets the record straight?"NO THEY DON'T! Elephants have hairy babies and wiggly trunks, but they don't slither"?and the elephant is rolling on the ground in laughter, saying "Me? Slither? C'mon! You're cracking me up." Debut author-artist Davis juxtaposes pages with two words of text against those pages bearing lengthier, lighthearted explanations of why certain animals are misfits in a given grouping. The illustrations feature oversize, heavily outlined and extremely simplified shapes (the spider and crab are almost identical), in loud solid colors including goldenrod, hot pink, red, kelly green and purple. For kids, the book's main pleasure is likely to be shouting out "NO THEY DON'T!" before the adult reading aloud to them can turn the page. Ages 2-6. Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.; Title: Who Hops? | [
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7,199 | 13 | Words and art harmonize in this creatively imagined account of the first meeting between a teenage Miles Davis and celebrated saxophonist Charlie "Bird" Parker. Los makes a sparkling children's book debut here: his paintings create visual riffs that complement the jazz musicians and setting he salutes. Based on a true story, Burleigh's (Hoops) lyrical narrative follows the young Miles as he wanders through New York City in search of Parker. As he traverses the streets, Davis plays his trumpet: "Notes came to me,/ as jagged as the city skyline,/ and far away as where the sun goes down,/ 'cause I wanted my music to soar as high as his,/ and I had to be ready." Los's paintings capture the mood of the music plus the energy and vibrancy of Manhattan at daybreak, twilight and under overcast skies. He mingles blazing color and dramatic shadowing and inventively juxtaposes natural and neon light. Observant youngsters will realize that several times Davis's path just misses crossing Parker's and will pick up on the intermittent presence of a snow-white bird in the sky (as well as evidence of such jazz greats as Dizzy Gillespie and Billie Holiday). Even without the strains of bebop ("Zip-de-ba, dip-dip-dip, de-beoo-de-boo") that float across these pages, readers would appreciate the deep resonance of this fine collaboration. Ages 6-9. Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.Gr. 2-4, younger for reading aloud. Who would have thought that the hip jazz musicians who created bebop in the 1940s would eventually be celebrated in children's picture books? Certainly not Charlie Parker (Charlie Parker Played Bebop), Thelonious Monk (Mysterious Thelonious), nor Miles Davis, the hero of Burleigh and Los' entry in the jazz-for-toddlers sweepstakes. Burleigh tells a fictionalized version of Davis' teenage journey to New York to meet his idol, Parker, with whom he later performed. (Unlike many fictionalized biographies, though, this one establishes in the beginning that the story represents only what "might have happened.") Complemented superbly by first-time illustrator Los' evocative paintings, done in pencil, oil, and watercolor and finished in Photoshop, the text captures the young Davis' openness to the sights and especially the sounds of the city. Los' impressionistic two page-spreads convey the intimidating magnificence of Manhattan as seen from rooftops and bridges, as well as the neon energy of city streets lined with jazz clubs. Like all of the jazz picture books, this one will most appropriately be read to children and used as an entree into the music and its history, but the detail-rich pictures and bouncy text will hold kid's interest nicely. Bill OttCopyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved; Title: Lookin' for Bird in the Big City | [
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