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We've curated a list of some truly wonderful and entertaining bug books for kids ages 4 to 99. We've also included the game Bug Bingo, and it's the bees-knees.

Hot New Releases & Popular Kids Stories It's important to keep up on the hot new releases and popular kids' books as we enter the gift giving season!

Hot New Releases & Popular Kids Stories We think our list of the best new kids books for October is sensational! It highlights some amazing books from many different genres: non-fiction, reality fiction, and fantasy. Take a gander and let us know which titles and covers catch your eye ... Read the rest of this post

Our list of the best new kids books for September highlights some amazing books from many different genres: non-fiction, reality fiction, fantasy, and even a beautiful picture book that addresses gender identity. Take a gander and let us know which titles and covers catch your eye ... Read the rest of this post

It's true TCBR readers are fans of Star Wars! That's why, this month, Star Wars: The Complete Visual Dictionary - The Ultimate Guide to Characters and Creatures from the Entire Star Wars Saga is The Children's Book Review's best selling middle grade book.

The Children's Book Review strikes back with the return of the Star Wars book list. Grab your favorite little droid and treat them to a galactic read—the force is strong in these books.

Best Selling Books for Kids This month, DK Readers: Star Wars are on top of The Children’s Book Review’s best selling kids series list.

Star Wars books were a hot commodity this month on The Children’s Book Review—even more than usual. LEGO Star Wars: The Visual Dictionary was our best selling middle grade book this month. Returning to our hand selected titles from the nationwide best selling middle grade books, as listed by The New York Times, is Sharon M. Draper's Out of My Mind.

Michelle Rafferty, Publicity Assistant

During our “Place of the Year” celebration we challenged all former Carmen Sandiego gumshoes to a South African geography challenge. The winners and answers are announced below.  Thanks again to the prize contributions from our friends at DK Publishing. You can check out a compilation of our “Place of the Year” posts here.

(And for anyone fighting a case of mid afternoon cubicle blues, try a “Do it, Rockapella!” fist pump. It feels so good.)

Congratulations to…

First place: Steven Lee, winning  Oxford Atlas of the World, 16th Edition

Second place: Erica Wong, winning The Rough Guide to South Africa 5 and Top 10 Cape Town & the Winelands

Third place: Katy Petershack, winning South Africa: DK Eyewitness Travel Guide

Quiz Answers:

1. South Africa has how many official languages?
a.3
b.11
c. 2
d.6
e.14

2. South Africa has a nickname, what is it?
a. The Rainbow Nation
b. The Divided Nation
c. New Africa
d. The Continent’s Capital
e. The Second Africa

3. True or False: South Africa is roughly 3 times the size of Texas.
False, South Africa is roughly twice the size of Texas.

4. How many capital cities does South Africa have?
a. 1
b. 4
c. 3 (Cape Town, Bloemfontein, and Pretoria)
d. None
e. 5

5. South Africa has coastlines on which two major bodies of water?
a. The Atlantic and the Pacific Oceans
b. The Indian and the Atlantic Oceans
c. The Pacific and the Southern Ocean
d. The Mediterranean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean
e. The Southern Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea

6. Who, or what, are “The Big Five”?
a. A group of influential political Afrikaner leaders
b. The five major African tribes found in South Africa
c. The five symptoms of malaria
d. The nickname for five of Africa’s greatest wild animals (Elephant, lion, leopard, rhino, and buffalo)
e. The five driest months of the year

7. South Africa’s population has increased by 5 million people in the last year. What is the current population of South Africa?
a.48,783,000
b. 40,491,000
c. 21,129,000
d. 52,476,000
e. 40,218,000

8. True or False: South Africa has more people infected with the HIV virus than any other country.

Michelle Rafferty, Publicity Assistant

Still have some unfinished after-school business from the 90s? Was it your dream to be this kid? Do the words “Do it, Rockapella!” elicit an involuntary fist pump? Take a stab at redemption with the “Place of the Year” challenge—created in conjunction with our friends at DK Publishing. The rules are simple and would make Carmen Sandiego seem like child’s play if it weren’t already:

1. Answer the ten questions below.
2. Submit answers to [email protected] by November 27, 2009.

Gumshoes with all ten correct answers (the equivalent of 1,000,000 ACME crime bucks) will then be placed in a raffle for prizes which include: Atlas of the World 16th edition, South Africa: DK Eyewitness Travel Guide, The Rough Guide to South Africa 5, and Top 10 Cape Town & the Winelands. Winners will be announced November 30, 2009.

One entry per contestant. All cheaters will immediately lose all crime bucks and be subject to the wrath of the Chief.

Questions:

1. South Africa has how many official languages?
a.3
b.11
c. 2
d.6
e.14

2. South Africa has a nickname, what is it?
a. The Rainbow Nation
b. The Divided Nation
c. New Africa
d. The Continent’s Capital
e. The Second Africa

3. True or False: South Africa is roughly 3 times the size of Texas.

4. How many capital cities does South Africa have?
a. 1
b. 4
c. 3
d. None
e. 5

5. South Africa has coastlines on which two major bodies of water?
a. The Atlantic and the Pacific Oceans
b. The Indian and the Atlantic Oceans
c. The Pacific and the Southern Ocean
d. The Mediterranean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean
e. The Southern Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea

6. Who, or what, are “The Big Five”?
a. A group of influential political Afrikaner leaders
b. The five major African tribes found in South Africa
c. The five symptoms of malaria
d. The nickname for five of Africa’s greatest wild animals
e. The five driest months of the year

7. South Africa’s population has increased by 5 million people in the last year. What is the current population of South Africa?
a.48,783,000
b. 40,491,000
c. 21,129,000
d. 52,476,000
e. 40,218,000

8. True or False: South Africa has more people infected with the HIV virus than any other country.

9. Who was elected president of South Africa in 2009?
a. Thabo Mbeki
b. Nelson Mandela
c. Frederik Willem de Klerk
d. Jacob Zuma
e. Kgalema Motlanthe

10. Ke Nako. Celebrate Africa’s Humanity is the official slogan for the South Africa Fifa 2010 World Cup. What does Ke Nako mean?
a. A time to make friends
b. It’s time
c. Let friendship shine
d. Be a good sport
e. Let’s be friends

Now that your done, be sure to check out more “Place of the Year” posts here.

At googlealert.com, you can pick three search terms and have the top 50 results emailed to you once a week for free. [Full disclosure: They try to get you to buy a better package, but I’m too cheap.] I would love to know if Shock Point is named to any state lists or put on a suggested summer reading list. Or anything else good.

Here’s what I’m currently using:
- “April Henry” [Full disclosure: I get a lot of "In April, Henry went to his castle."]
- “Shock Point” +April +Henry [I don’t put the April Henry in quotes because sometimes they list it as Henry, April]
- “Shock Point” –ecco +reading +list [The Ecco shoe brand has a type of shoe called “Shock Point."]

Got any suggestions for any better ways to do this? What do you use?

I also use “April Henry” in Yahoo Alerts, which is usually only good for getting links to the reviews I write for the Oregonian, or to get every article written by this reporter in Ohio named April Henry.

And is there a way to do it automatically at Technorati? Like a Technorati alert?

Are there other ways I could be obsessing?





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