Good Books For Kids

This Week's HOT YA READS

2013-06-14T10:47:00.000-07:00

Here is the New York Times BEST SELLING YA BOOKS --updated June 14, 2013. (You can find the original NYT list here but it won't have bookcovers or reading information ;) THE FAULT IN OUR STARS -- AR 5.5 DIVERGENT -- AR 4.8 THE MOON AND MORE -- AR 4.6 LOOKING FOR ALASKA -- AR 5.8 INSURGENT (Divergent book #2) -- AR 5.0 PERKS OF BEING A WALLFLOWER -- AR 4.8 THE 5TH WAVE

This Week's Top MIDDLE-GRADE Books

2013-06-14T10:00:00.001-07:00

Here are the Top 10 Books for Tweens and Middle-graders, updated June 14, 2013. (You can find the original NYT list here.) To Find Quiz numbers, brief descriptions and other information on ALL of 2013's Most Popular Middle-grade Books, check here. GEORGE WASHINGTON -- AR unknown WONDER -- AR 4.8 THE ONE AND ONLY IVAN-- AR 3.6 THE CARE AND KEEPING OF YOU 1 -- Lexile: 880L LEGO

THE SLIMY BOOK OF SPIT by Connie Colwell Miller

2013-06-14T07:04:00.000-07:00

Launch a loogie. Drool on your pillow. Wipe slobber on your sleeve. It seems like you can do a million gross things with your spit. But did you know that spit also helps your body do some pretty important stuff? Thus begins THE SLIMY BOOK OF SPIT. A kid-friendly book that gives readers the low-down on mouth moisture. Ms. Miller talks about the history of spit and how

DISGUSTING PLANTS by Connie Colwell Miller

2013-06-13T08:59:00.000-07:00

DISGUSTING PLANTS is part of Connie Colwell Miller's Disgusting series. These little 32 page books discuss disgusting foods, animals, bugs, jobs and places, as well as plants. Like in the Disgusting Jobs book, Ms. Miller uses a facetious Gross-O-Meter to keep kids turning those pages. It sort of like, 'oh, if that's only sort of disgusting, what must REALLY disgusting be like'. I've

DISGUSTING JOBS!

2013-06-04T06:40:00.001-07:00

DISGUSTING JOBS is part of Connie Colwell Miller's Disgusting series. These little 32 page books discuss disgusting foods, animals, bugs, plants and places, as well as jobs. Ms. Miller uses a facetious Gross-O-Meter to keep up interest. So that jobs run from 'Sort of Disgusting' to REALLY Disgusting. I like these little books because they are short, simple reads that can really

THE DEADLIEST JOBS ON EARTH

2013-06-03T09:40:00.000-07:00

THE DEADLIEST JOBS ON EARTH is part of Connie Colwell Miller's "Deadly Series". [Deadliest Animals on Earth, ...Deadliest Bugs, ...Places, ...Plants, ...Weather.] These are colorful, bright books that tend to appeal to kids who like factoids and non-fiction. This particular book is at the Lexile 730 level. As in her other books, Ms. Miller builds some 'tension' by sorting

FIRST POOCH - THE OBAMAS PICK A PET

2013-06-03T07:02:00.000-07:00

We loved FIRST POOCH. It's fun and upbeat, and the artwork from Amy Bates fits Carole Weatherford's story perfectly. [The focus is on the girls, with no heavy messages.] One thing I liked in particular was that the book shows other Presidents, in cameos by themselves, and with their own dog buddies. I liked this because it gives moms like me a chance to talk about the many

FIRST POOCH - THE OBAMAS PICK A PET (ADDITIONAL IMAGES!)

2013-06-03T07:00:00.001-07:00

FIRST POOCH THE OBAMAS PICK A PET by Carole Boston Weatherford illustrated by Amy Bates Presidents with their furry buddies I'm not sure the Queen would like a wet kiss. Back to the review

DISGUSTING ANIMALS! (That's Wild!: A Look at Animals)

2013-05-23T09:12:00.002-07:00

DISGUSTING ANIMALS by Julie Murray (Abdo Press) is a fun little book that came out in 2010. It's written at the 3rd Grade level and I think it's got just the right level of grossness for it to be an engaging read for children that prefer non-fiction. The book talks about 10 different animals: opossums, skunks, horned lizards, owls, foxes, vultures, eagles (in brief, seems they like

BOATS! Speeding! Sailing! Cruising! by Patricia Hubbell

2013-05-22T09:54:00.002-07:00

BOATS! Speeding! Sailing! Cruising! is part of Patricia Hubbell's THINGS THAT GO series. In previous books, she covered cars, horses, trucks, and planes. Now boats and ships! BOATS! is a natural fit for me, seeing that I love books that are layered and have things to point at, discuss, and teach. And that I love books that rhyme. And the rhyme is perfect. It's one of

100 Totally Free Popular E-Books for Kids

2013-04-30T10:40:00.002-07:00

Here are 100 free ebooks for Kindle. They can be read on Kindles, ipads, phones, computers, and more. Parents should note that they need to peruse the books and the reviews to make sure that they are "age appropriate". Enjoy. **The Star Ratings (average) and numbers of reviewers are as of 4.30.13. 1. The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett -- 4.6 Stars from 1005 reviewers

BOOK DU JOUR - Planting a Rainbow

2013-04-08T06:52:00.000-07:00

PLANTING A RAINBOW is a wonderful little book from Lois Ehlert. I think it captures the wonder of Spring beautifully. Moms and teachers can use this colorful book to teach about colors, the seasons, counting, and how plants grow. So colorful and cheerful! We order seeds from catalogs and wait all winter long... We sow the seeds and set out the plant in the soil, >>each

CBC TEEN Book of the Year NOMINEES

2013-04-04T13:01:00.002-07:00

The Children’s Book Council is the national nonprofit trade association of children’s book publishers. Since 2008 they have sponsored The Children’s & Teen Choice Book Awards. The following books are the TEEN nominees for 2012. The 2013 winners will be announced live at the Children's Choice Book Awards gala in New York City on May 13. CINDER (The Lunar Chronicles, Book 1) by Marissa

The 2013 YA CONTENDERS

2013-03-22T17:05:00.002-07:00

The New York Times used to list the Top 10 sellers and that was it. But beginning in January of this year (2013) they began to list an additional 5 books that I've labelled as 'contenders' for the top spots. At first I didn't consider including them on a list, but then I began to think that we might be missing out on some great reads. Well, can't have that. So here are the books that are

CALENDAR of YA RELEASES - April

2013-03-22T07:40:00.002-07:00

Here's a calendar of Teen and YA book releases that we're looking forward to. If you have a book you're excited about that's isn't on the list, please add it in the comment section. 1st Jaclyn Moriarty A Corner of White (The Colors of Madeleine #1) 2nd Anna Carey Rise (An Eve Novel) R.L. LaFevers Dark Triumph (His Fair Assassin #2) Cornelia Funke

CALENDAR of YA RELEASES - March

2013-03-15T17:07:00.003-07:00

Here's a calendar of Teen and YA book releases that we're looking forward to. If you have a book you're excited about that's isn't on the list, please add it in the comment section. 18th BradyGames Tomb Raider: The Art of Survival James Patterson and Lisa Papademetriou Neil Swaab (Illustrator) Middle School: My Brother Is a Big, Fat Liar 19th Cassandra Clare

BOOK DU JOUR - Green

2013-03-14T08:18:00.001-07:00

GREEN by Laura Vaccaro Seeger is the book du jour. **Starred Review** School Library Journal **Starred Review** Publisher'sWeekly **Starred Review** ALA BookList **Starred Review** Kirkus **Starred Review** Horn Book 2013 Caldecott Honor Book GREEN by Laura Vaccaro Seeger Page Count: 36 no reading information available Pam

BOOK DU JOUR - A Ball for Daisy

2013-03-13T04:44:00.001-07:00

A BALL FOR DAISY is an award winning wordless book from Chris Raschka. NYTimes 10 Best Illustrated Children's Books of 2011 **2012 Randolph Caldecott Medal Winner** **Starred Review** School Library Journal **Starred Review** Horn Book **Starred Review** Kirkus A BALL FOR DAISY by Chris Raschka 32 pages by Pam

BOOK DU JOUR - TUMFORD

2013-03-11T06:36:00.000-07:00

Nancy Tillman's artwork is warm and adorable. And Tumford, that beautiful kitty, is exceedingly charming despite his mischievous nature. Tumford the Terrible Reading Information: Word Count: 585 Page Count: 32 Accelerated Reading level: 3.1 / points AR: 0.5 quiz: 144308 --sample pages available Tumford's Rude Noises Word Count: 445 Accelerated

BOOK DU JOUR - The Story of Snow

2013-03-08T09:28:00.002-08:00

THE STORY OF SNOW by Mark Cassino is a wonderful book that explores the magic that is snowflakes. Check it out this weekend and share the science and art that is snow. ** Starred Review BookList** ** Starred Review Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books** The Story of Snow: The Science of Winter's Wonder by Mark Cassino with Jon Nelson, PhD Nora Aoyagi (illus.)

BOOK DU JOUR - Fifty Cents and a Dream

2013-03-07T09:27:00.001-08:00

Young Booker T. Washington The BOOK DU JOUR is supposed to be about artwork. In this case Bryan Collier's wonderful drawings. But I have to say that I love this book. Jabari Asim really captures the magic of wanting to better yourself. Of struggling to better yourself. And he gets across the power of education. This is a book that has the power to get across to children how

2012 Nebula Award Finalists Announced

2013-03-06T09:26:00.002-08:00

Andre Norton Award for Young Adult Science Fiction and Fantasy Book Here are the Finalists: IRON HEARTED VIOLET by Kelly Barnhill Iacopo Bruno (Illustrator) Reading Information: Word Count: 68,742Accelerated Reading level: 5.3 / points: 11.0 ARquiz: 155950 BLACK HEART [Curse Workers Vol. 3] by Holly Black **Starred Review** Kirkus Reading Information: Word Count: 74,995 Accelerated

BOOK DU JOUR - MINETTE'S FEAST

2013-03-06T03:55:00.000-08:00

**Starred Review** ALA BookList **Starred Review** Kirkus **Starred Review** SchoolLibraryJournal Amy Bates' illustrations in Minette's Feast are luscious and warm. And isn't it wonderful to have a book about someone who cooks to share with our children. Minette's Feast The Delicious Story Of Julia Child And Her Cat by Suzanne Reich and Amy Bates, illustrator Reading

BOOK DU JOUR - The Snowy Day

2013-03-05T02:34:00.000-08:00

THE SNOWY DAY by Ezra Keats is the 1963 Caldecott Medal winner. Keats tells the tale of a boy waking up to discover that snow has fallen during the night. The book beautifully captures the childhood wonder of snow; and it was notable at the time because it presented the reading public with a child with dark skin in an urban setting. THE SNOWY DAY by Ezra Jack Keats Word

BOOK DU JOUR - Red Knit Cap Girl

2013-03-04T04:36:00.000-08:00

The RED KNIT CAP GIRL was named to the New York Times list of the 10 Best Illustrated Children's Books for 2012. Written and illustrated by Naoko Stoop the book tells the story of Red Knit Cap Girl and White Bunny set on on a quest to talk to the Moon. Word Count: 577 Page Count: 40 Accelerated Reading level: 2.6 / points: 0.5 AR quiz: 151892 --sample pages available