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Book: 1, 2, 3 ... By the Sea: A Counting Book
Author: Dianne Moritz
Illustrator: Hazel Mitchell
Pages: 36
Age Range: 3-6 

1, 2, 3 ... By the Sea is a nice little counting book written by Dianne Moritz and illustrated by Hazel Mitchell. The story is a bit more advanced than that of many counting books, making this more a book for preschoolers and kindergartners than for babies and toddlers. 

A boy, his mother, and his dog bike to the beach for the day. As the day progresses, they count things. Like this:

"Big waves tumble onto shore...
crashing,
splashing.
We chase FOUR."

The "FOUR" is shown spelled out, but partially overlaid with a big number 4. 

I also liked:

"Surfers surf and do surf tricks...
lunging,
plunging.
We watch SIX."

I like when books for young children use strong, descriptive verbs.

Mitchell's illustrations bring the oceanside setting to life. They remind me a bit of Marla Frazee's illustrations in All the World (and that is a huge compliment), with a similar color palette and level of detail (though without the poetry of Liz Garton Scanlon's text). Mitchell doesn't convey quite the same diversity in characters that Frazee does, but some of that is due to differences in subject matter.

The beach in 1, 2, 3 ... By the Sea evokes small-town, coastal Maine to me, with shingled homes nearby, and a crusty fisherman teasing the boy with a lobster. (Although you'd have to be on a pretty serious peninsula to get a  perfect sunset over the water in Maine.)  

If you have a child who loves beaches (and what child doesn't), and is learning to count, 1, 2, 3 ... By the Sea would be an excellent choice. If you can find it, anyway. It's available from the publisher, but otherwise not all that widely distributed. Which is too bad, because this slim paperback would slip quite easily into one's beach bag this summer.  

Publisher: Kane/Miller Book Publishers
Publication Date: January 2013
Source of Book: Review copy from the publisher

FTC Required Disclosure:

This site is an Amazon affiliate, and purchases made through Amazon links (including linked book covers) may result in my receiving a small commission (at no additional cost to you).

© 2013 by Jennifer Robinson of Jen Robinson's Book Page. All rights reserved. You can also follow me @JensBookPage or at my Growing Bookworms page on Facebook. 

Book: Itch: The Explosive Adventures of an Element Hunter
Author: Simon Mayo (@SimonMayo)
Pages: 432
Age Range: 12 and up

Itch is a young adult thriller featuring an unusual hero. Itchingham Lofte (aka Itch) is a total science geek. His passion is collecting elements from the periodic table. When a fellow collector shares a very unusual rock with Itch, Itch soon finds himself, and his family, in grave danger.

Itch is in many ways a classic YA thriller. There are chases. There are over-the-top bad guys. There is a need for the hero to be brave. But there is also science. Instead of using conventional weapons, Itch turns to the elements when he's in a tight corner. He gets excited about watching a sample analyzed in a lab. He burns off his eyebrows in the first chapter, in a mishap with phosphorus. His sister Chloe and best friend/cousin Jack (short for Jacqueline) are more regular (and more mainstream popular) than Itch, but the hero's journey here belongs to the science geek. 

Itch, written by an English radio presenter, is set mostly in Cornwall. There's definitely a British feel to the book. Take this little exchange, from Chapter 1:

""Hello, Itchingham," said his mother. "Still no eyebrows, then."

There should be a law against parents using sarcasm, thought Itch as he poured his cereal." (Page 13)

I don't know about you, but I hear Itch's Mom with an English accent there. 

In addition to the details about the elements, there is quite a bit of information included in Itch about copper mining. And, just to keep things interesting, a bit about surfing. Who knew that surfing was a major pastime in Cornwall? Not me. But all of this is quite refreshing, together making Itch stand out from the pack. 

I did find the start of the book a bit slow, but the action picks up after a bit, and the end of the book is both fast-paced and high-stakes. Not realistic, perhaps, but definitely high-stakes. 

A sequel will be published in 2014. As Mayo left a couple of threads cunningly unresolved, I (and many others) will be waiting eagerly to find out what's next for Itch. With its green and black cover and blurb from Anthony Horowitz, Itch's target teen boy demographic is fairly clear. But I think that anyone who enjoys thrillers with teen protagonists could appreciate Itch. And I think that teachers and librarians will be happy to see a book that not only doesn't avoid but actually embraces science. Not science fiction, not high tech, but pure science. Rather refreshing that (despite the arsine gas accident and associated vomiting). Itch is well worth a look. 

Publisher: Splinter (@SterlingKids)
Publication Date: April 2, 2013
Source of Book: Review copy from the publisher

FTC Required Disclosure:

This site is an Amazon affiliate, and purchases made through Amazon links (including linked book covers) may result in my receiving a small commission (at no additional cost to you).

© 2013 by Jennifer Robinson of Jen Robinson's Book Page. All rights reserved. You can also follow me @JensBookPage or at my Growing Bookworms page on Facebook. 

Book: Splish, Splash, Splosh!
Author: David Melling (@DavidMelling1)
Pages: 22
Age Range: 2-5 

Splish, Splash, Splosh! by David Melling is a medium-sized board book with padded cover (part of a series from Tiger Tales Books). It's an appealing counting book featuring Splosh the duck (a character first introduced in a book published in the UK) and his nine duck friends. 

The text is bouncy and read-aloud-able, with rhymes for each pair of numbers. Like this (across two page spreads):

"ONE fluffy duck goes waddling
one day.

TWO fluffy ducks have found
a place to play! 

It's a fun book to read aloud. But it's Melling's illustrations that will delight toddlers. We see Splosh in an inner tube, hesitating to jump in to the pool. We see the other ducks, in swim caps, goggles, and even flippers bouncing around, bumping into one another. We see Splosh balanced in his inner tube, which hangs from a tree (after a diving board mishap), and a clearly irritated bird poking a hole in said inner tube.

The illustrations are just the right mix of silly and simple. There's a plain white background, and little texture to the illustrations. Melling's focus is all on the ducks, their swim paraphernalia, and the pool. And, on the last page, water splashing everywhere.

Splish, Splash, Splosh! would be a great bathtime book for two-year-olds, or just a fun counting book for slightly older preschoolers. The padded cover and brightly colored letters in the title will catch the eye of young children, who sense immediately that this is a book for them. The sturdy construction, not to mention the quiet humor, will appeal to parents and librarians. 

Publisher: Tiger Tales Books (@TigerTalesBooks)
Publication Date: March 2013
Source of Book: Review copy from the publisher

FTC Required Disclosure:

This site is an Amazon affiliate, and purchases made through Amazon links (including linked book covers) may result in my receiving a small commission (at no additional cost to you).

© 2013 by Jennifer Robinson of Jen Robinson's Book Page. All rights reserved. You can also follow me @JensBookPage or at my Growing Bookworms page on Facebook. 

Today I will be sending out the new issue of the Growing Bookworms email newsletter. (If you would like to subscribe, you can find a sign-up form here.) The Growing Bookworms newsletter contains content from my blog focused on children's and young adult books and raising readers. There are 1670 subscribers. Currently I am sending the newsletter out once every two weeks.

Newsletter Update: In this issue I have eight book reviews (three picture books, one early chapter books, two middle grade novels, and two young adult novels). I also have a one children's literacy roundup, and a post summarizing our experience with Screen Free Week. 

Not included in the newsletter this time around I have:

• A list of the Children's Choice Book Award Winners
• WordGirl's Word of the Month for May (Challenge)
• Links I shared on Twitter: May 10th
• Links I Shared on Twitter: May 2nd

Reading Update: In the past 2 weeks, I finished 2 novels for young adults, one novel for adults, and one adult nonfiction title. I read: 

• Cat Winters: In the Shadow of Blackbirds. Amulet. Young Adult. Completed May 6, 2013. My review.
• Rick Yancey: The Fifth Wave. Putnam Juvenile. Young Adult. Completed May 8, 2013. My review.
• Jacqueline Winspear: Leaving Everything Most Loved: A Maisie Dobbs Novel. Harper. Adult Mystery. Completed May 9, 2013, on MP3. I found the ending a bit drawn out on this one (almost like an end to the series, though I don't believe it is), but enjoyed it otherwise. 
• Nate Silver: The Signal and the Noise: Why So Many Predictions Fail — but Some Don't. Penguin. Adult Nonfiction. Completed May 14, 2013. This is a fascinating book, but quite dense. It took me nearly a week to get through. 

I'm currently reading Mojo by Tim Tharp and listening to Dead Ever After by Charlaine Harris (the final Sookie Stackhouse book). And, of course, I'm reading every day with Baby Bookworm. She, at age 3, has started asking to do "book reports". This actually involves playing with flashcards, and has nothing to do with books. I'm not sure where she picked up the term.

How about you? What have you and your kids been reading and enjoying? Thanks for reading the newsletter, and for growing bookworms. 

© 2013 by Jennifer Robinson of Jen Robinson's Book Page. All rights reserved.  You can also follow me @JensBookPage or at my Growing Bookworms page on Facebook. 

The latest Children's Literacy and Reading News roundup is now available at Quietly. The roundups are brought to you by Carol Rasco from RIF and Quietly, Terry Doherty from The Reading Tub and The Family Bookshelf, and me, here at Jen Robinson's Book Page. This particular roundup, which encompasses both the end of April and mid-May roundups, is chock full of news about literacy and reading-related events; literacy programs and research; and suggestions for growing bookworms.

Here are some highlights from Carol's roundup:

• "Children’s Book Week, it’s this week! A time to celebrate the books we hold dear at The Roundup! In addition to the bookmark above by Grace Lin (complete with activities, also see the Brian Selznick posterfor this year as well!) Last evening was the Children’s Choice Book Awards Gala. Not being able to make it in person this year I was thrilled to have a clear, steamed version into my living room…what a fun evening as always. I mean, did you know Meg Cabot raps?  Check out the video of the program yourself, learn the results of the more than one million votes cast by young people!" [Note: I am not at all surprised that Meg Cabot raps. Seems totally fitting.]
• "MAY 29:  Paper Clip Day
  READ: SIX MILLION PAPER CLIPS: The Making of a Children’s Holocaust Memorial by Peter W. Schroeder." [I had to share this one, because one of my college professors, Henry Petroski, wrote a book about the evolution of the paper clip, among other "useful things".] 
• "Prettier Charts Can Be Harder for Students to Read Sarah D. Sparks starts this particular blog entry with “Graphics are often intended to engage children in learning otherwise dry material, such as data on a chart. Yet new research from Ohio State University suggests increasing charts’ artistic appeal can interfere with students’ ability to comprehend the information they represent.”  Read more about this study of 122 middle class 6- to 8-year-old students."

And here are a few additional tidbits from me:

• There was much sadness around the Kidlitosphere when MotherReader announced that she wasn't able to organize her 48 Hour Book Challenge this year (though of course people understood). Happily, however, Ms. Yingling has stepped in to manage the event, with help from Abby the Librarian. The show will go on, the weekend of June 7-9. I will not, alas, be able to participate this year, but I'll be there in spirit. 
• This is hardly unexpected, but a new Canadian report based on a meta-analysis of other reports confirmed the benefits of reading. There are some good soundbytes, like this: "“The research shows that choice, control, and the implementation of reading as a social activity are key to building a nation of those who love to read versus a nation of those who can read,” said the report’s author, Sharon Murphy, Associate Professor of Education at York University. “It also confirms the many long-term societal benefits associated with being a nation of avid readers, including increased civic engagement, empathy for others, and improved cognitive and academic development.”"
• This was an article that I found personally satisfying. A study found that the presence of book-lined shelves in the home give children an advantage in school. Yes, I do have that one covered. 
• The Scholastic Parents Blog Raise A Reader shares 3 Reasons to Read with Your Elementary Schooler Every Night. Scholastic has been posting a ton of good stuff as Summer Reading season approaches. 
• And just for fun, The Jenny Evolution just shared a list of 50+ Great Adventure Chapter Books for Girls. Because "Girls need more to read than princess books. They need to journey with daring, rough-and-tumble girls who seek out adventure or rise to the challenges thrown at them." Can't argue with that! 

And that's all we have for you today. But do check out the full roundup at Carol's. Carol will be back towards the end of the month with another roundup. And we'll continue to share literacy news as we find it @JensBookPage, @ReadingTub, and @CHRasco. Thanks for reading, and for caring about children's literacy. 

This post © 2013 by Jennifer Robinson of Jen Robinson's Book Page. All rights reserved.

Book: The 5th Wave
Author: Rick Yancey (@RickYancey)
Pages: 480
Age Range: 13 and up 

I enjoyed Rick Yancey's Alfred Kropp books (see reviews here and here), but somehow never made it through the first Monstrumologist book. Still, when I started seeing rave reviews of The 5th Wave, I simply had to read it. I purchased it on Kindle on publication day, and read it within 36 hours. In case this isn't already obvious from the huge marketing push, The 5th Wave is going to be big. I predict a movie, or movies (there are two other books planned). 

But let's talk about the book. The Fifth Wave is set in a near-term post-apocalyptic world in which aliens have decimated most of the world's population. The devastation occurred in waves. In the first wave, an electromagnetic pulse took out electricity, engines, computers, etc. The second wave toppled the population centers on the coasts. The third wave sent a deadly plague throughout the world, killing 3.5 billion people.

But the fourth wave is the one that shakes 16-year-old survivor Cassie to the core. Because the fourth wave reveals that the aliens can look just like humans. Which means that she can't true anyone. Well, except for her five year old brother, Sammy. But Sammy has been taken away from her, and it's up to Cassie to find him.

To say that The 5th Wave is suspenseful is an understatement. The narration shifts (via sections of the book) between Cassie and three other characters. This allows Yancey to ratchet up the suspense via the traditional cliffhangers, as well as through conflicting information. The 5th Wave is a book that readers will puzzle over, asking questions like "How can that be true?" and "But why would they do that?" and so on. It is certainly a book that readers will think about whenever they put it down. If they can put it down. 

Although the primary action reaches a resolution at the end of The 5th Wave, I was left with questions. It seems like these may or may not be resolved in the remaining books, but I can't share them here without risk of spoilers. I also felt that the choice to include narration from 5-year-old Sammy's point of view wasn't completely successful, even though it wasn't written in the first person. I understood why this was necessary (to convey certain information to the reader), but it's not easy to make narration as seen by a five-year-old feel authentic in a YA novel. Still, this was only a brief section of the book.

Cassie's voice, in the other hand, totally worked. And having the chance to see Cassie via the viewpoint of other characters clarified her image for the reader. She is delightfully sarcastic. While she doesn't really see her own bravery, she is otherwise insightful (if not always polished in her language). Like this:

"That's the hard part, the part that, if I thought about it too much, would make me crawl into my sleeping bag, zip myself up, and die of slow starvation. If you can't trust anyone, then you can trust no one. Better to take the chance that Aunt Tilly is one of them than play the odds that you've stumbled across a fellow survivor. That's figgin' diabolical." (Page 9)

"The unofficial boss of the camp was a retired marine named Hutchfield. He was a human LEGO person: square hands, square head, square jaw. Wore the same muscle tee every day, stained with something that might have been blood, though his black books always sported a mirror finish." (Page 58)

"We told the stories of our lives before the Arrival. We cried openly over the ones we had lost. We wept secretly for our smartphones, our cars, our microwave ovens, and the Internet." (Page 61)

I've always thought that I would really miss the Internet if there was an apocalypse. This sounds shallow, perhaps. But there's something about constant access to any sort of information that you might need that is very comforting. Now that we're used to that, I think it would be very hard to let go of. I was pleased to see Yancey touch on that. He also (and this is something one rarely sees mentioned in post-apocalyptic stories) addresses Cassie's worry about her dwindling tampon supply. Extra points for this realism coming from a male author. 

I found Yancey's post-apocalyptic world to be a bit harsher in the details than some, though the world-building is also pushed to the background a bit relative to the action. You mostly just get occasional snippets like this:

"You know how you can tell when you're getting close to one? The smell. You can smell a town from miles away." (Page 39)

There are also some grim scenes involving the use of children to dispose of bodies. Although there isn't a lot of language, and only a fairly tame romance thread, I think that these scenes make The 5th Wave more of a high school book than a middle school book. There are, as you might expect in a post-apocalyptic book about an alien invasion, plenty of guns and other weapons. 

Fans of post-apocalyptic novels will not want to miss The 5th Wave. It's a book that will make readers think, both in a "what's going on?" sense and in a larger "what is it that makes us human?" sense. It could be an interesting book for discussion with teen readers, with some parallels to the Holocaust, and the open questions that I wondered about after finishing the book. My only complaint is that I wish I had waited to read this after the second and third books were published, so that I could have immersed myself even more fully in Yancey's post-Arrival world.

Highly recommended for teen and adult readers.  

Publisher: Putnam Juvenile (@PenguinKids)
Publication Date: May 7, 2013
Source of Book: Purchased on Kindle

FTC Required Disclosure:

This site is an Amazon affiliate, and purchases made through Amazon links (including linked book covers) may result in my receiving a small commission (at no additional cost to you).

© 2013 by Jennifer Robinson of Jen Robinson's Book Page. All rights reserved. You can also follow me @JensBookPage or at my Growing Bookworms page on Facebook. 

Book: In the Shadow of Blackbirds
Author: Cat Winters
Pages: 400
Age Range: 13 and up 

In the Shadow of Blackbirds by Cat Winters is detailed, atmospheric historical fiction involving a ghost. In October of 1918, Mary Shelley Black is forced to travel from Oregon to her aunt's home in San Diego after her father is arrested for helping World War I draft dodgers. She faces the terror of the Spanish Flu epidemic, and is soon enmeshed in the local craze for spirit photography (in which photographers claim to be able to photograph ghosts). Mary Shelley is largely skeptical. However, when her soldier boyfriend Stephen is killed, she learns that ghosts do exist.

In the Shadow of Blackbirds has it all: a richly detailed historical setting; suspense; complex characters; and a puzzling mystery. It's not an upbeat book - the dark cover image picture above is representative of the overall mood of the story. But then, it wasn't an upbeat time. 

My favorite thing about this book was the way that Winters layered in the historical context. Everything feels organic to the story, and it's impossible to ever forget exactly what time period you are reading about. People are wearing face masks all the time, to guard against the flu. The eat onions and garlic (believing these to be protective), and cast sharp glances at anyone who utters a single cough. Anti-German sentiment runs so strong that people have burned any books or music they might have of even remotely German origin. And, in a time of epic loss of loved ones, between the flu and the war, Spiritualism runs rampant. Occasional black and white photographs included in the book add to the depth of the historical context.

Mary Shelley is a strong character. She is intellectual at a time when women aren't supposed to be interested in learning. She is loyal to what her aunt considers to be a fault. She worries about her fate, but avoids being bitter. She craves books, when her family's books have all been burned. She's even brave enough, in the middle of a flu epidemic, to volunteer at a home for wounded soldiers. 

Here's a snippet of the text, to give you a feel for Mary Shelley's voice:

"While my bathwater roared through the downstairs pipes, I wandered around my new room with the compass, checking to see whether the walls behind the gilded paper contained any metal strong enough to move the needle. And for a short while, the lure or scientific discovery blotted out the sea of masked faces on the train ride south, the purplish-black feet rattling the back of that cart, my father getting punched in the gut in front of my eyes, and the first boy I'd ever loved fighting for his life in a trench in France." (Page 25)

The plot regarding Stephen's ghost is decidedly creepy, and not for the faint of heart. But people who enjoy chilling ghost stories will not want to miss it.

The flu details (ambulances racing away with neighbors, caskets piling up outside funeral homes) actually reminded me of more modern apocalypse novels, in which broad swaths of the population succumb to plagues. And because In the Shadow of Blackbirds is based on actual events, it's in some ways more scary (making one wonder would happen, and how people would respond, if a drug-resistant virus came around today). 

In the Shadow of Blackbirds is dark in tone, and complex in plotting and structure. But for those readers willing to invest the time, it is both rewarding and illuminating. It's a book that made me very happy NOT to be living in 1918. It's also a book that I won't soon forget. Highly recommended for teens, and anyone who enjoys historical fiction or ghost stories. 

Publisher: Amulet Books (@AbramsKids)
Publication Date: April 2, 2013
Source of Book: Review copy from the publisher

FTC Required Disclosure:

This site is an Amazon affiliate, and purchases made through Amazon links (including linked book covers) may result in my receiving a small commission (at no additional cost to you).

© 2013 by Jennifer Robinson of Jen Robinson's Book Page. All rights reserved. You can also follow me @JensBookPage or at my Growing Bookworms page on Facebook. 

Book: Night Light
Author: Nicholas Blechman (@NBlechman)
Pages: 48
Age Range: 3-5 

Nicholas Blechman's Night Light is a counting book that makes practical use of die-cut technology to increase interactivity. Night Light uses transportation-themed examples, which also makes it particularly preschool boy-friendly. Alternating page spreads contain only a number, a question, and some number of die-cut openings, against a black background. Like this:

"1 LIGHT,
SHINING BRIGHT?"

up to

"10 LIGHTS,
FUELING FOR
A FLIGHT?" 

The location of the die cut openings on the right-hand page and the color shown through each hole are hints as to what lies on the next page. In the first example, a fairly large, white circle resolves, when the page is turned, into the light on the front of a"TRAIN". The die cut opening is cleverly repurposed on the now left-hand side of the page into a tunnel opening from which the train has just emerged.

I think that preschoolers will have fun guessing what lies on the next page, as they look at the question pages (though most will be pretty tricky to guess the first time around). They'll also enjoy figuring out what Blechman has mapped to the die cut holes on the solution pages. As an adult reader, I was quite impressed with the artist's use of space and proportions to line these openings up correctly in two different pictures, one a mirror image of the other. For example, the holes that show three lights on a taxi cab end up corresponding to the mouths of three people hailing the taxi. 

I also liked the professional graphic arts feel of Blechman's digitally created illustrations. He uses a slightly muted color palette, and demonstrates a pleasing use of symmetry in most of the illustrations.  

Night Light offers kids several opportunities to count up to each number. First they can count the die cut holes on the black pages. Then they can count the lights on the transportation item revealed when each page is turned. And then they can look to their left and count the back sides of the die-cut holes. It's educational without feeling educational.

The last page goes back to number 1, with a cozy night-light, and shows all of the items from the other pages as toys in a boy's room (while he reads Night Light in bed). This is only misleading in that I don't see Night Light as a quiet bedtime book. I see it as a book that preschoolers will read more actively, first with parents, and later alone, as they practice identifying the vehicles, and counting up lights. It would make a great addition to any preschool classroom library, or the perfect birthday gift for a three or four year old. Recommended.  

Publisher: Orchard Books (@Scholastic) 
Publication Date: April 30, 2013
Source of Book: Review copy from the publisher

FTC Required Disclosure:

This site is an Amazon affiliate, and purchases made through Amazon links (including linked book covers) may result in my receiving a small commission (at no additional cost to you).

© 2013 by Jennifer Robinson of Jen Robinson's Book Page. All rights reserved. You can also follow me @JensBookPage or at my Growing Bookworms page on Facebook. 

Book: Starring Jules (As Herself)
Author: Beth Ain
Illustrator: Anne Keenan Higgins
Pages: 160
Age Range: 7-10 

Starring Jules (As Herself) is the first book in a new early chapter book series by Beth Ain. I've been hearing good things about this series, and after reading the first book, I think that Jules is going to join the ranks of Clementine and Ivy and Bean as early chapter book staples.   

As you can see on the cover image, seven-year-old Jules is full of joy. As the book begins, she sings a jingle about fizzy ice cream to her family in a cafe, catching the attention of a casting director for a mouthwash commercial. After that, realistic and over-the-top worries about her audition mix with friendship dynamics, as we spend a week in the life of Jules. 

Jules makes witty lists. She rails against the former best friend who has become too interested in sparkly, girly things. She loves turquoise. She defends her four-year-old brother (and does n-o-t call him by vegetable names, like some protagonists we know). She has a mother who is an artist, and a father who is a chef. While I don't find her quite as authentic as Clementine, she's more dramatic, and I think that kids who pride themselves in not being mainstream will particularly enjoy her. 

Here are a couple of examples of Jules' voice:

"To me, Teddy is kind of like a bouncing Super Ball. The kind that bounces so high and crazy you have to cover your head once you've let it go just so it doesn't hit you when you aren't looking. Right now, the bouncing ball is coming right for Charlotte, and Teddy bumps right into her as he comes to a stop." (Take Two)

"Both my parents talk about palates a lot, but when my dad says it, he means taste buds, and when my mom says it, she means colors. Sometimes, wonder if they know they are not talking about the same thing." (Take Three)

Fun, yes? 

The advanced  copy that I read of Starring Jules (As Herself) didn't have most of the illustrations yet in place. But if the picture on page 3 of Jules and her little brother, Big Henry, blowing bubbles in their milk is any indication, the illustrations will be as lively and vivacious as the cover image (though the interior art is not in color). Jules' quirky sense of style comes across (striped leggings, sneakers, a short skirt, and a polka-dotted shirt), as does her apparent need for constant movement. I look forward to seeing the final version, with all of the pictures. 

From talking with parents of voracious new readers, I have the impression that there is a boundless need for early chapter books with strong characters and relatable adventures. Starring Jules (As Herself) will be a welcome addition to the genre, with a likable, energetic heroine. Kids who enjoy school plays, and are enraptured by the idea of being on television, will be particularly pleased with Jules. The second book in the series, Starring Jules (in Drama-Rama) will be out in late August, just in time for the new school year.  

Publisher: Scholastic (@Scholastic) 
Publication Date: March 1, 2013
Source of Book: Advance review copy from the publisher

FTC Required Disclosure:

This site is an Amazon affiliate, and purchases made through Amazon links (including linked book covers) may result in my receiving a small commission (at no additional cost to you).

© 2013 by Jennifer Robinson of Jen Robinson's Book Page. All rights reserved. You can also follow me @JensBookPage or at my Growing Bookworms page on Facebook. 

Book: Seeds, Bees, Butterflies, and More!: Poems for Two Voices
Author: Carole Gerber
Illustrator: Eugene Yelchin
Pages: 32
Age Range: 4-8 

Seeds, Bees, Butterflies, and More!: Poems for Two Voices is a picture book designed to be read aloud by two people, alternating portions of each poem. Written by Carole Gerber and illustrated by Eugene Yelchin (Breaking Stalin's Nose), Seeds, Bees seems tailor-made for classroom use. It gives kids the chance to perform poetry out loud, in pairs, while also containing quite a bit of informational content about plants and insects. 

Each poem is told from the perspective of two plants or creatures, using different colored text for each part. Lines meant to be read by both participants use both colors, switching letter by letter, including the titles. Indentation is also used to make it clear which lines belong to which reader. 

There is often a bit of humor incorporated into the poems. For instance, a new green shoot asks a bunny to stop blocking its sunlight, and the bunny says "Relax. That doesn't matter. / You'll be gone in just one bite." Two plants lament the feel of snails leaving "icky, sticky trails." I do think that this humor will work well for kids reading the poems aloud in class. 

The nature of the informational content necessitates the occasional use of relatively difficult vocabulary words, though Gerber clearly tries to keep this to a minimum. But we still get stanzas like this:

"We'll gather all their nectar
and also pollinate,
with little tongues and little feet.
            Want me to demonstrate?" 

(the last line is recited by the second person).  

Yelchin's graphite and gouache illustrations are a riot of colors and textures. He often repeats a key texture from the plant or creature of interest as part of the background. So, for example, the texture of the sky reflects back the pattern of the bunny's fur. His insects and flowers tend to be large-scale on each page, really bringing the subject matter to life. 

In truth, information poetry isn't really my personal cup of tea. But I think that Seeds, Bees, Butterflies, and More! could be very useful in first through third grade classrooms, due to its combination of perform-ability, bright, realistic illustrations, and informational content. Many kids are fascinated by plants and bugs, making Seeds, Bees, Butterflies, and More! a great companion book for units on nature, gardening, spring, etc. This would be a good choice to gift to your child's classroom, or for library purchase. 

Publisher: Henry Holt (@MacKidsBooks)
Publication Date: February 5, 2013
Source of Book: Review copy from the author

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This site is an Amazon affiliate, and purchases made through Amazon links (including linked book covers) may result in my receiving a small commission (at no additional cost to you).

© 2013 by Jennifer Robinson of Jen Robinson's Book Page. All rights reserved. You can also follow me @JensBookPage or at my Growing Bookworms page on Facebook. 

I posted last Wednesday about our early progress with Screen Free Week (which was April 29th through May 5th). Baby Bookworm ended up having a quite successful Screen Free Six Days.This doesn't quite have the same ring to it as Screen Free Week, but it was the best we could do. She woke up with a cold yesterday and was miserable and in need of the comfort of Mary Poppins (plus I was in need of the comfort of a shower and time to fold the laundry). But I did still distract her from watching television by taking her on a Barnes and Noble run yesterday. So all was not lost.   

In the end she had a week without any iPad or iPhone use, not even looking at pictures. And she had six days with no television (at least at home - not sure if she saw any when she was at her friend's house). As I mentioned last week, this resulted in:

• More time for creative play (e.g. pretending to be on airplane, or camping).
• More books read.
• More direct interaction with my husband and myself. 

These are all good things. And the whining over not having the iPad or being able to watch TV definitely declined over the week (though the requests did not cease completely). I found that I was able to use my iPhone in front of her - she seemed to accept that as a different thing, and didn't ask for it. Of course this was a bit hypocritical on my part, but I was doing my best.

I'm sure that we'll try Screen Free Week again next year. And I'm considering only allowing television on weekends going forward (we do all love to watch movies together). How about all of you? Did anyone else attempt Screen Free Week? What were your outcomes? 

This post © 2013 by Jennifer Robinson of Jen Robinson's Book Page. All rights reserved.

Book: Platypus Police Squad: The Frog Who Croaked
Author: Jarrett J. Krosoczka (@StudioJJK)
Pages: 280
Age Range: 8 and up 

I'm a huge fan of Jarrett J. Krosoczka's Lunch Lady series of graphic novels for early middle grade readers. So I was interested to see what he would do with a middle grade novel. The Frog Who Croaked is the first book in the new Platypus Police Squad series. As I expected from Krosoczka, it is quite entertaining.

The Frog Who Croaked is a noir-ish detective story, liberally illustrated by the author, and aimed at readers 8 and up. As you might gather from the title, the primary protagonist, Rick Zengo, is a platypus. Even more unusual in middle grade protagonists, Zengo is an adult, albeit one who still lives at home with his parents and sometimes acts like a 10 year old.

As The Frog Who Croaked begins, Zengo is about to head off for his first day of work as a detective with the Platypus Police Squad. He is partnered with a gruff veteran detective named Corey O'Malley. The two experience friction, due to their vastly different approaches to crime-solving. But, as they investigate the case of a missing frog (a respected teacher who may have been involved with the illegal fish market), they come to value on another's strengths. 

Krosoczka's writing style is a kid-friendly version of hardboiled detective fiction. The violence and cynicism are toned down to be kid-appropriate, and there isn't any profanity. Humorous substitutions occur throughout the book, like characters drinking root-beer floats instead of beer. But in tone, The Frog Who Croaked feels like noir fiction. Like this:

"This is the city. Kalamazoo City.Population: 75,000. By day, it's a bright, vibrant metropolis, the kind of city where dreams come true... But it is a different city once the sun goes down. The criminal element, asleep by day, haunts certain dark corners at night. Especially the run down old docks on the south side of town, perhaps the darkest corner of all." (Page 1)

The illustrations weren't final in the version of the book that I read, so I'll just say that the frequent black and white illustrations help make The Frog Who Croaked accessible to younger readers. They also fill in certain details that are not always directly spelled out in the text (as one might expect from someone with a graphic novel background).

For example, Krosoczka often neglects to spell out exactly what animal each character is (there's a wide range, not just platypuses). He implies it through descriptive text sometimes (like a boy who "scuttles" away), but often leaves the reader to determine this via the pictures. I wonder if this technique is a subtle lesson in taking diversity as it comes. We don't always need to spell out characters' "ethnicity". Either way, I like it

I also like that while there are human aspects to the characters' behavior (it would be hard to write the book otherwise), Krosoczka also includes animal-specific details. Like this:

"Zengo brushed his mouth plates, polished his bill, and then opened the vanity mirror, selecting one of the neatly placed bottles of fur product. He squeezed a dab out onto his webbed flipper and with a quick flip of the tufts of his coiffure, he was ready for his day." (Chapter 1)

There's a funny moment in which one of the Zengo laments working "at a snail's pace", and gets a disgusted look from a passing family of snails. 

Zengo himself is a well-developed character, enthusiastic about his job, struggling to feel independent while still living at home, and just beginning to be aware of the advantages that his well-off upbringing has conveyed. He talks when he shouldn't, and makes mistakes that a more politically seasoned detective would be able to avoid. And he is deeply suspicious of the city's magnanimous benefactor, Frank Pandini, Jr. Zengo's relationship with his partner evolves plausibly, and not too quickly.

The Platypus Police Squad: The Frog Who Croaked is a great introduction to the detective novel genre for middle grade readers (or book-resistant middle schoolers). It has enough pictures to lend plenty of scaffolding for younger readers, but also doesn't shrink from using relatively advanced vocabulary words ("facade", "animosity"). It has distinctive characters and settings, and a nice mix of deadpan humor and ridiculous details (like the cops using boomerangs instead of guns). In short, The Frog Who Croaked is a lot of fun. Recommended for readers 8 and up. 

Publisher: Walden Pond Press (@WaldenPondPress)
Publication Date: May 7, 2013
Source of Book: Advance review copy from the publisher

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This site is an Amazon affiliate, and purchases made through Amazon links (including linked book covers) may result in my receiving a small commission (at no additional cost to you).

© 2013 by Jennifer Robinson of Jen Robinson's Book Page. All rights reserved. You can also follow me @JensBookPage or at my Growing Bookworms page on Facebook. 

Book: Lenny Cyrus, School Virus
Author: Joe Schreiber
Illustrator: Matt Smith
Pages: 288
Age Range: 9 and up 

Lenny Cyrus, School Virus is a middle grade novel about a geeky middle school boy who figures out how to shrink himself down to the size of a virus. Instead of calling the news cameras, Lenny uses this scientific breakthrough to insert his miniaturized self into the body of Zooey, a girl he's had a crush on for five years.

The story is told in alternating chapters from the perspectives of Lenny, Zooey, and Lenny's best friend, Harlan. These alternating viewpoints are necessary, given that, you know, Lenny can't see what's going on outside of Zooey's body for much of the story. The voices of the three kids aren't incredibly diverse, but their situations are so different that I only once had trouble remembering who was narrating a given chapter (this was late in the book, where the chapters become quite brief as the action ramps up). 

Despite the characters being in middle school, Lenny Cyrus, School Virus feels like a middle grade novel. The plot is a fun ride, though it does require a certain suspension of belief. Lenny and Harlan are able to communicate by cell phone, for example, while Lenny is miniaturized to the size of a virus. The other viruses and cells and what-have-you inside of Zooey have faces and personalities and active social lives.

[Personally, the detail that I found most implausible was that Lenny's parents could be high school sweethearts, and both have IQs above 187. How could there be two super-geniuses like that in one high school? And if there were, how could they be normal enough to function and marry? But that is a quibble.]

There are crushes, and one ludicrous attempt at a kiss, but there's no serious dating or anything like that. There is bullying, but even that is rendered more in humorous than serious vein. (Remember that scene in A Christmas Story where Ralphie beats up the bully? Yeah. Like that.)

Schreiber's writing is witty, albeit with a scientific bent. I flagged quite a number of passages. Like:

""Are you crying?"

"What? No. No. I'm just ... sweating."

"From your eyes?"

I gazed at her, unable to speak. I was only eight years old, but I knew true beauty when I saw it. She had smooth hair that swung down past her shoulders and the kind of scratchy voice that made it sound like she'd just stopped laughing or was about to start again. Behind her glasses, her eyes were that mure methylene blue that you only see in perfectly balanced chemical solutions." (Page 4, Lenny)

And this:

"The moment they saw us--saw me--a predatory glint flashed through Mick's expression. Anybody who doubts that middle school is like a Discovery Channel documentary on natural selection just hasn't been paying attention." (Page 10, Lenny)

And finally (though I could go on):

"He can't help it. You try growing up with two Nobel Prize-winning scientists sitting across the breakfast table from you. Lenny doesn't like to talk about it, but he's at least as smart as his mom and dad, probably smarter. And let's face it: You can't be that smart without being extremely dumb in other ways. It's like the universe strapped this jet-pack on his back, then Gorilla-glued his sneakers to the floor. He's constantly reaching out too far and falling flat on his face." (Page 13, Harlan)

I especially loved that last bit, about the jet-pack and the Gorilla glue. But lots of other passages made me smile, too. 

Lenny Cyrus, School Virus includes occasional black and white illustrations by Matt Smith. Small drawings of each narrator mark the start of each chapter, and are helpful in conveying the different personalities of the three kids. Other illustrations bring to life Lenny's inner-world mission. The funniest, I thought, was of a curvaceous molecule located inside Zooey's ovary - but I really can't describe it. An astrovirus who befriends Lenny is pretty cute, too. 

So what we have here is, yes, another quasi-science-themed book featuring a smart but geeky male hero (see also Itch by Simon Mayo). But Lenny Cyrus, School Virus is a lot of fun. The shifting perspectives also, I think, help to make the book both boy and girl-friendly. Which is quite an accomplishment for a book in which a pivotal scene takes place inside of an ovary. 

Lenny Cyrus, School Virus is not going to be for everyone. But if you know any middle grade or middle school-age kids who like science and/or adventure, and have a good sense of humor, I think they'll enjoy this book. Definitely worth a look for library purchase, and especially recommended for a young friend of mine who lives in Newton, MA. 

Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Books for Children (@hmhkids)
Publication Date: April 2, 2013
Source of Book: Review copy from the publisher

FTC Required Disclosure:

This site is an Amazon affiliate, and purchases made through Amazon links (including linked book covers) may result in my receiving a small commission (at no additional cost to you).

© 2013 by Jennifer Robinson of Jen Robinson's Book Page. All rights reserved. You can also follow me @JensBookPage or at my Growing Bookworms page on Facebook. 

Book: Windblown
Author: Edouard Manceau
Pages: 32
Age Range: 3-7 

Windblown by Edouard Manceua is a concept book, part book about shapes, part book about animals, and part cumulative text. Several tiny scraps of paper are blown, one by one, onto the early pages of the book (as shown on the cover). Then a chicken declares ownership of the scraps, which are magically assembled to form a chicken's head.

"They're mine!" said the chicken.
"I saw them lying around!"

A fish takes exception to this, having cut the paper into pieces before the chicken saw them lying around. The pieces are used to form a fish in the picture. Then a bird claims to have made the paper, and so on. Each animal goes further back into the process of creating paper, even as the illustrations show the same shapes used to render the different animals.

Some of the illustrations work better than others, but it's a nice trick that the same seven shapes can be used to draw several different creatures. At the end of the book, the author suggests that the reader use the shapes to do something else. 

Both text and pictures are quite minimalist in Windblown, making it rather remarkable that the author is able to do so much with so little. We have counting, shapes, animals, and (in a very simplified fashion) the process by which paper is made. All in a book in which all of the illustrations are made with only minor additions to the seven basic shapes (most of which are circles). 

Windblown is a book that could work for very young children, who just like to look at the shapes. But I think that the primary audience is probably kids who are learning how to draw. You could use it as a predecessor to books that more directly given drawing instruction. I can also imagine tracing the shapes and cutting out copies, so that my child could move them around herself. (Librarians beware - I can also imagine kids let loose with scissors just cutting the shapes right out of the book.) 

For those looking for something a bit different, with a modern art sort of flavor in picture book form, Windblown is well worth a look. Recommended for home and for preschool use. 

Publisher: Owlkids Books (@OwlKids)
Publication Date: April 9, 2013
Source of Book: Review copy from the publisher

FTC Required Disclosure:

This site is an Amazon affiliate, and purchases made through Amazon links (including linked book covers) may result in my receiving a small commission (at no additional cost to you).

© 2013 by Jennifer Robinson of Jen Robinson's Book Page. All rights reserved. You can also follow me @JensBookPage or at my Growing Bookworms page on Facebook. 

Today I will be sending out the new issue of the Growing Bookworms email newsletter. (If you would like to subscribe, you can find a sign-up form here.) The Growing Bookworms newsletter contains content from my blog focused on children's and young adult books and raising readers. There are 1670 subscribers. Currently I am sending the newsletter out once every two weeks.

Newsletter Update: In this issue I have six book reviews (four picture books, one middle grade graphic novel, and one young adult novel). I also have a post listing eight picture books that Baby Bookworm has been enjoying, and a post about our success so far with Screen Free Week. 

Not included in the newsletter this time around I have:

• A post about School Lunch Superhero Day (this Friday)
• Links I shared on Twitter: April 26
• Links I shared on Twitter: April 19

Reading Update: In the past 2 weeks, I finished 5 novels for middle grade readers, 3 novels for young adults, and one adult nonfiction title. Most of this reading was done over a weekend during which my husband took my daughter on a trip, so that I could have some reading and resting time. I read: 

• Joe Schreiber (ill. Matt Smith): Lenny Cyrus, School Virus. Houghton Mifflin Books for Children. Middle Grade/Middle School. Completed April 18, 2013. Review to come. 
• Beth Ain: Starring Jules (As Herself). Scholastic. Early Chapter Book. Completed April 21, 2013. Review to come. 
• Kate Saunders: The Whizz Pop Chocolate Shop. Delacorte Books for Young Readers. Middle Grade. Completed April 21, 2013. Review to come.
• Rob Buyea: Because of Mr. Terupt. Delacorte Books for Young Readers. Middle Grade. Completed April 21, 2013. Review to come. 
• Rob Buyea: Mr. Terupt Falls Again. Delacorte Books for Young Readers. Middle Grade. Completed April 24, 2013. Review to come. 
• Kirsten Miller: Kiki Strike: The Darkness Dwellers. Bloomsbury. Young Adult. Completed April 20, 2013, on Kindle. I liked this one very much. When my daughter is old enough, I hope very much that she reads the Kiki Strike books, because they are full of wonderful tidbits for celebrating strong girls. 
• Mary Pearson: Fox Forever (The Jenna Fox Chronicles). Henry Holt and Co. Young Adult. Completed April 20, 2013. I found this to be a satisfying conclusion to the Jenna Fox saga, and a recommended read for anyone who enjoys speculative dystopian futures. 
• Dave Cousins: 15 Days Without a Head. Flux. Young Adult. Completed April 30, 2013. Review to come. 
• Lenore Skenazy: Free Range Kids, How to Raise Safe, Self-Reliant Children (Without Going Nuts with Worry). Adult Nonfiction. Completed April 19, 2013. I enjoyed this book, too. I found it a good reminder to relax a bit as a parent. I do want my daughter to grow up to be self-reliant, after all. I've been enjoying the Free Range Kids blog, too. 

I'm currently reading In the Shadow of Blackbirds by Cat Winters and listening to Leaving Everything Most Loved: A Maisie Dobbs novel by Jacqueline Winspear. And, of course, I'm reading every day with Baby Bookworm.

How about you? What have you and your kids been reading and enjoying? Thanks for reading the newsletter, and for growing bookworms. 

© 2013 by Jennifer Robinson of Jen Robinson's Book Page. All rights reserved.  You can also follow me @JensBookPage or at my Growing Bookworms page on Facebook. 

Book: The Originals
Author: Cat Patrick (@seecatwrite)
Pages: 304
Age Range: 12 and up 

The Originals is a young adult novel about three identical-looking girls forced to live a single life. One of them goes to school in the morning, another in the afternoon, and the third goes out in the evenings. Whenever one of them is out of the house, the other two have to remain hidden at home. No one can suspect that Elizabeth Best is actually the combined front for Lizzie, Betsey, and Ella. Their mother has her reasons for making them live like this, they believe. But as the girls approach their 17th birthday, two of them fall for different boys at school, and their carefully constructed existence begins to crumble. 

I found this an intriguing, if not entirely plausible, premise. Like Lizzie's boyfriend, Sean, I didn't fully understand why the girls would put up with living such an odd, segmented life. But Patrick sprinkled in enough suspense regarding the mother's secrets, another look-alike in a different city, and possible enemies tracking the girls down, to keep me up late reading. 

In truth, much of The Originals reads more like a young adult romance than the speculative fiction / suspense suggested by the premise. This is not a bad thing. I liked Lizzie and Sean's relationship - particularly a chapter in which they just spend the afternoon at his house. She meets his mother. They take pictures of each other. He loans her socks. It's all very ordinary and sweet. But it's definitely a contrast to the girls' normally bizarre and stressful situation. 

Lizzie is a strong character. Her situation magnifies typical teen self-reflection. She isn't always sure who she is, except in relation to her sisters. She bubbles over with anger sometimes, but has a delightfully snarky humor, too. Like this:

"And I hate chicken," I add, which is among the most untrue statements ever uttered. But I'm still mad at her, and I'm boycotting chicken to prove it. Or at least I'm telling her I am; you never know what'll happen when dinnertime rolls around." (Chapter Eight)

Patrick does a good job of giving the three girls distinct personalities, despite their outward similarities. Their interactions with one another come across as surprisingly realistic (given, you know, the not so everyday setup). Lizzie's relationship with Sean is a little ... rose-colored, but nice to see. 

The Originals is an enjoyable romp, with an unusual premise, and an interesting perspective on a teen's developing sense of self. It's a bit of a romance / speculative fiction hybrid, falling on the tamer end of the spectrum relative to books like Altered, Yesterday, or Beta. I think it could be a bridge book for younger teens, preparing them for some of these other books. There's no sex or violence in the Originals (only some kissing, a not-particularly-scary kidnapping, and some sneaking around behind the mother's back). Which, now that I think about it, is kind of refreshing. The Originals is well worth a look. 

Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers (@LBKids)
Publication Date: May 7, 2013
Source of Book: Advance review copy from the publisher

FTC Required Disclosure:

This site is an Amazon affiliate, and purchases made through Amazon links (including linked book covers) may result in my receiving a small commission (at no additional cost to you).

© 2013 by Jennifer Robinson of Jen Robinson's Book Page. All rights reserved. You can also follow me @JensBookPage or at my Growing Bookworms page on Facebook. 

Book: Snippet: The Early Riser
Author: Bethanie Deeney Murguia (@aquapup)
Pages: 40
Age Range: 3-7 

Though it introduces a new set of characters, Bethanie Deeney Murguia's new picture book, Snippet: The Early Riser comes across very much as a companion piece to her earlier book Buglette: The Messy Sleeper. Snippet is an ordinary young snail, drawing on the sidewalk, chewing leaf sculptures, and getting piggyback rides from his parents. Snippet's problem is that he wakes up much earlier than the rest of his family. Desperate to have his family members to play with, Snippet tries everything his friends can think of to wake his family up. He finds, however, that the solution lies in understanding what his family members really love. 

I love Murguia's understated humor. Like this (after Snippet fails several times to rouse his family):

"Hmph. How did I end up with a family of slugs?" wondered Snippet. 

Or this:

"I could stink them out," offered Stinkbug.

"We'll have none of that," declared Caterpillar. And then he turned back to his breakfast.

The text and illustrations together enable the reader to completely inhabit Snippet's snail and insect world. Snippet draws on the sidewalk by making slime trails (though Murguia renders them in white to make them more visible). He makes leaf sculptures by chewing patterns into the leaves. A pill bug gets used as a soccer ball. Murguia does a great job of taking some real attribute and then making it fun and quirky, and completely kid-friendly.

Murguia's distinctive illustration style (Snippet is clearly a book-sibling to Buglette) completely works for this story. The plants and leaves are over-sized and realistic, while the insects and snails are charmingly quirky. Snippet himself wears a patchwork shell. His mother's is flowered. There is plenty of white space in the illustrations, but also enough greens and yellows to make the reader get a sense of the outdoors.  

Snippet is funny, creative, and lacking in didactic messages. I hope that Murguia and Random House add more to this semi-series. I also adore Murguia's Zoe Gets Ready (with a human protagonist), and look forward to the coming sequel, Zoe's Room: No Sisters Allowed. Snippet: The Early Riser is a great choice for preschoolers and up, for home or library use. Recommended! 

Publisher: Knopf Books for Young Readers (@RandomHouseKids) 
Publication Date: March 12, 2013
Source of Book: Review copy from the publisher

FTC Required Disclosure:

This site is an Amazon affiliate, and purchases made through Amazon links (including linked book covers) may result in my receiving a small commission (at no additional cost to you).

© 2013 by Jennifer Robinson of Jen Robinson's Book Page. All rights reserved. You can also follow me @JensBookPage or at my Growing Bookworms page on Facebook. 

Book: Tiger in My Soup
Author: Kashmira Sheth
Illustrator: Jeffrey Ebbeler
Pages: 32
Age Range: 4-8

Tiger in My Soup is a picture book about a boy who is left home in the care of his older sister. He tries again and again to get his sister to read to him, but she is immersed in her own book. Finally, over lunch, he conjures up a tiger rising from the steam of his soup. Eventually, his imaginary adventures break through his sister's self-absorption, and she reads him his book (about tigers, of course). 

I think that this book might be a little confusing for younger kids. The narration and pictures both convey the tiger in the soup and related actions as if they were real, not imaginary. This makes for some rather stunning visuals, but younger readers may well wonder how the sister could avoid noticing the tiger battle just a few feet away. It's definitely a book that's going to require a bit of extra explanation.

But for those who can follow the subtleties of the plot, or who are young enough to just accept the story as-is, Tiger in My Soup offers a breathless narrative. Like this:

"I have to protect myself. I stab at him with my spoon. Some tiger spit lands on my face.

This means war!"

The acrylic illustrations in Tiger in My Soup are gorgeous. The siblings' house is on a rocky island, up a huge, twisty flight of wooden stairs, Ebbeler uses different perspectives (like looking up, and then down the stairs) to maintain visual interest. When the boy is fighting with the tiger, he puts a metal colander on his head, and brandishes a sword and belt. Angles and points of view shift with the battle. The characters (boy, sister, and tiger) are all rendered with an ever so slightly exaggerated realism. The boy is priceless, with his round glasses, spiky hair, and range of expressions. The tiger practically leaps from the page. 

And oh yes, the siblings are African American. This doesn't affect the storyline in any way that I can see, but it's nice to have a picture book that matter-of-factly incorporates non-white characters. 

Of course the thing that I personally love most about this book is that the entire storyline keys off of the love of books. The boy wants his sister to read his book to him. He tries to look at the pictures on his own, but it's just not the same. The reason that the sister won't read to him is that she's lost in a book herself. Delightful. 

Tiger in My Soup, with its seamless mix of reality and imagination, may not work for the very youngest of readers. But for early elementary school kids, especially anyone fascinated by books and/or tigers, Tiger in My Soup is a fun visual treat. The fact that it adds a bit of diversity to the picture book section is a nice bonus. Recommended for home or early elementary school use. 

Publisher: Peachtree Publishers (@PeachtreePub)
Publication Date: April 1, 2013
Source of Book: Review copy from the publisher

FTC Required Disclosure:

This site is an Amazon affiliate, and purchases made through Amazon links (including linked book covers) may result in my receiving a small commission (at no additional cost to you).

© 2013 by Jennifer Robinson of Jen Robinson's Book Page. All rights reserved. You can also follow me @JensBookPage or at my Growing Bookworms page on Facebook. 

Book: The Lucy Variations
Author: Sara Zarr (@sarazarr)
Pages: 320
Age Range: 12 and up

The Lucy Variations is a coming of age story about a 16-year-old music prodigy who, eight months earlier, gave up playing the piano. The Lucy Variations is about Lucy's (often strained) relationships with her family, her adjustment to attending school, and her attempts to figure out (inspired by her brother's new music teacher) whether or music still has a place in her life. In short, she is figuring out who she is and who she wants to be. Whether readers themselves are interested in music or not has little to do with whether or not The Lucy Variations will have relevance for them. Figuring out what you love and how you're going to do it should resonate with all teens (and adults, for that matter). 

Sara Zarr is phenomenal at creating three-dimensional characters. Lucy is talented and imperfect. As a reader, I sympathized with the things she lost out on while practicing and performing throughout her entire childhood. And I envied her the escape the music could provide. I also worried about her constantly, as though she was real. I was on edge for much of the book, because Lucy experiences friendships with / crushes on two different adult men. I kept wanting to tell her, "Stay back! Be careful."  

The other characters are fully realized, too, particularly Lucy's best friend and Lucy's grandfather. Here's a window into Lucy's wealthy, music-obsessed, Type A family:

"Generally, Lucy didn't mind. It would be nice, though, once in a while, to be the kind of family that on a crap day like this would order a pizza and eat it in the kitchen. Maybe even talk about the fact that it was kinda sad and awful that someone who mattered to them had died in their house that afternoon." (Chapter 2) 

Even Lucy's Grandma, who died 8 months earlier, is rendered through by Lucy's reminiscing. Like this:

"It reminded Lucy of Grandma Beck and how she always touched whoever she was talking to. Lightly, and with a calmness. Not clutching or intense. Lucy missed that." (Chapter 6)

Zarr's prose is simply lovely. Like these quotes, both from Chapter 9:

"To the right the Pacific sparkled deep blue, and the midday light cut depth and shadow into the crags of the bluff. Mesmerizingly. Gorgeously." 

"The world was full of beauty. She wanted to grab hold of it and take it all down into her bones. Yet it always seemed beyond her grasp. Sometimes only be a little, like now. The thinnest membrane." 

But The Lucy Variations is filled with down-to-earth details, too. Being late for school. Craving caffeine. The tedium of reading about the Middle Ages. What it's like to live in the San Francisco Bay Area.  

The Lucy Variations is about figuring out who you are (as distinct from your family) and what you love. It's beautifully written, with complex characters and realistic interactions. While the world of competitive piano playing may not be familiar to most readers, nor the trappings of Lucy's well-off family, The Lucy Variations at its heart explores universal truths. It also offers some nice parent/child opportunities for discussion, I think. Recommended for readers 12 and up, particularly girls.  

Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers (@LBKids)
Publication Date: May 7, 2013
Source of Book: Advance review copy from the publisher

FTC Required Disclosure:

This site is an Amazon affiliate, and purchases made through Amazon links (including linked book covers) may result in my receiving a small commission (at no additional cost to you).

© 2013 by Jennifer Robinson of Jen Robinson's Book Page. All rights reserved. You can also follow me @JensBookPage or at my Growing Bookworms page on Facebook. 

Welcome to the latest children's literacy and reading news roundup, now available at The Family Bookshelf. The roundups are brought to you twice a month by Carol Rasco from RIF and Quietly, Terry Doherty from The Reading Tub and The Family Bookshelf, and me, here at Jen Robinson's Book Page. For this mid-month roundup, Terry has highlights regarding litercay and reading-related events; literacy programs and research; and suggestions for growing bookworms.

Here are some highlights from Terry's roundup:

"National Poetry Month is still going gangbusters! There are lots of activities.

• One of our favorites is 30 Poets 30 Days at Gottabook, poet Greg Pincus’ blog. 
• TOMORROW is Poem in Your Pocket Day. If you’re looking for a poem, be sure to visit Poets.org. They have “thousands of poems” that you can read and print. PLUS you get to read a bio of the poet."

Like me, Terry was taken with Gail Gauthier’s post about Book Train, "a literacy nonprofit that gives books to foster children. Currently, Book Train distributes books in Colorado and Connecticut, and is looking for social workers in other states to distribute books.” 

This is interesting. "Scientific American recently had an article about changes in our “reading brain ” in this modern age. The Reading Bran in Digital Age: the Science of Paper vs. Screens shares research in how our brain needs “physicality” in reading to help with comprehension, a sense of control, and other sensory development. It is fascinating research."

But do click through to read the full roundup. And here are a few additional tidbits from me:

Screen Free Week is coming April 29th - May 5th. I wrote about Screen Free Week previously (including some things I've observed about screen time in my own daughter). Today I came across a fun article by Bob Staake (one of Random House's ambassadors for Screen Free Week) in the The Huffington Post. Staake (whose picture books I adore) shared a tongue-in-cheek 31 Things Parents and Kids Can Do Without a Screen. Like "Go on a hike -- and ask random woodland creatures to friend you." Fun stuff! (See also this list of 7 great picture books for Screen Free Week from Erica at What Do We Do All Day?)

Earlier this month, Trevor H. Cairney shared a useful post on Getting Boys Into Reading: Ideas, Books & Resources. He lists four fundamental building blocks to get boys reading, and goes on to give some specific ideas for reading with boys, as well as book suggestions. 

Our friend Susan Stephenson shared an important post on letting kids read the books that they want to read, rather than pushing them to read ever-more-difficult titles. Here is her conclusion (but do read the full post):

"Sometimes it seems to me there are forces at work that want to rob our kids of their childhood. By trying to push them into learning they are not ready for, by making everything a competition and comparing our kids to some so-called norm, we are doing them a huge disservice. I believe we must do our best to help our kids love reading. That is the number one priority in my mind. I urge every parent to make it a priority too."

And that's all we have for you today. But Carol will be back towards May 1st with the end of April roundup. And we'll continue to share literacy news as we find it @JensBookPage, Growing Bookworms, @ReadingTub, and @CHRasco. Thanks for reading, and for caring about children's literacy. 

This post © 2013 by Jennifer Robinson of Jen Robinson's Book Page. All rights reserved.

Today I will be sending out the new issue of the Growing Bookworms email newsletter. (If you would like to subscribe, you can find a sign-up form here.) The Growing Bookworms newsletter contains content from my blog focused on children's and young adult books and raising readers. There are 1663 subscribers. Currently I am sending the newsletter out once every two weeks.

Newsletter Update: In this issue I have seven book reviews (four picture books, one early reader, one middle grade novel, and one young adult novel). I also have a children's literacy roundup (more detailed post at The Family Bookshelf), a post introducing Screen Free Week, and a quick post with a literacy milestone for Baby Bookworm. 

Not included in the newsletter this time around I have:

• A post about Drop Everything And Read (D.E.A.R.) Day, which was April 12th. 
• Links I shared on Twitter: April 12th
• Links I shared on Twitter: April 5th
• A list of our Favorite Birthday Books (with mini-reviews), posted in honor of Baby Bookworm's third birthday.

Reading Update: In the past 2 weeks, I finished 3 novels for middle grade readers, and 6 novels for young adults. I'm not quite sure how I managed that! I read:  

• Jarrett J. Krosoczka: Lunch Lady and the Video Game Villain. Knopf Books for Young Readers. Early Middle Grade. Completed April 17, 2013.
• Ellen Potter: Otis Dooda, Strange But True. Feiwel and Friends. Early Middle Grade. Completed April 13, 2013. Review to come. 
• Kristen Kittscher: The Wig in the Window. HarperCollins. Middle Grade. Completed April 6, 2013. Review to come.
• Dan Wells: Fragments (Partials #2). Balzer + Bray. Young Adult. Completed April 3, on Kindle. While I read this one quickly, and even dreamed about it, I didn't enjoy it as much as I did the first Partials book. I found the "humans are bad and will eventually destroy the planet" messages both heavy-handed and repetitive. Which is too bad, because Wells has built a compelling dystopian world full of witty characters and interesting ethical challenges. I'll still read the next book, though.
• Maureen Johnson: The Madness Underneath (Shades of London, Book 2). Putnam Juvenile. Completed April 8, 2013, on MP3. Love it, but I don't typically review audiobooks, since I use them as an escape. This book left me very eager for Book 3. 
• Simon Mayo: Itch: The Explosive Adventures of an Element Hunter. Splinter (Sterling Publishing). Young Adult. Completed April 9, 2013. Review to come.
• Amber Kizer: A Matter of Days. Delacorte Press. Young Adult. Completed April 10, 2013. Review to come (this one is fabulous!).
• Sara Zarr: The Lucy Variations. Little Brown. Young Adult. Completed April 12, 2013. My review.
• Cat Patrick: The Originals. Little Brown. Young Adult. Completed April 16, 2013. Review to come.

I'm currently reading Lenny Cyrus, School Virus by Joe Schreiber (ill. Matt Smith) and listening to Free Range Kids by Lenore Skenazy. And, of course, I'm reading every day with Baby Bookworm. I'll have a post tomorrow highlighting some of her recent favorites.

Lately Baby Bookworm has been highly tuned in to any packages that I receive in the mail (many of which are from publishers). Her eyes light up as she sees me opening something that looks like a book. And if picture books (or early readers, or sometimes even graphic novels) come out, she says, delighted: "For me!". I then have to sneak off with the ones that I intend to read for review. She definitely views our letter carrier and UPS driver as people who bring books to us, lucky child that she is. 

How about you? What have you and your kids been reading and enjoying? Thanks for reading the newsletter, and for growing bookworms. 

© 2013 by Jennifer Robinson of Jen Robinson's Book Page. All rights reserved.  You can also follow me @JensBookPage or at my Growing Bookworms page on Facebook. 

This post is the third of a series (here are number one and number two) in which I have been highlighting some of my daughter's favorite reads. She just turned three, and her tastes do not always coincide with mine (as highlighted below). Here are eight books that she has been especially enjoying over the past month:

1. Kiss! Kiss! Yuck! Yuck! by Kyle Mewburn (ill. Ali Teo & John O'Reilly). Peachtree. Reviewed here. This is a book that I've had for years, ever since reviewing it back in 2008. It pops in and out of favor with Baby Bookworm, but she's been requesting it lately. It's about a little boy who runs away from the sloppy kisses of his Auntie Elsie, but then misses those kisses when Elsie is unable to visit for a while. It's funny, and a bit touching at the end. I think that Baby Bookworm is just at the right age to find the idea of kisses being "yucky" entertaining. 

2. A Bedtime for Bear by Bonny Becker (ill. Kady MacDonald Denton). Candlewick. Reviewed here. The grouchy Bear and "small and gray and bright-eyed" Mouse are always popular with Baby Bookworm. Lately she's been requesting A Bedtime for Bear at bedtime. Could be because it's a relatively long picture book, or because she is just starting to appreciate the humor in Bear being scared of the dark. 

3. Nini Lost and Found by Anita Lobel. Random House.Reviewed here. This is a book that I love, despite not being at all a cat person. It's about a housecat who sneaks outside. Nini enjoys exploring the woods until things become a bit scary after dark. She makes it home safely, of course. I think Baby Bookworm likes the fact that this book is scary in the middle, but ends up safe and cozy at the end. 

4. If You Give a Moose a Muffin by Laura Numeroff (ill. Felicia Bond). HarperCollins. Baby Bookworm was introduced to this series (which starts with If You Give a Mouse a Cookie) by her cousins. She received a boxed set of five small books in the series, and she requests them constantly. In truth, I find them hard to read aloud without falling asleep, due to the repetition. But Baby Bookworm loves them, especially If You Give a Moose a Muffin (she is partial to muffins herself). 

5. The Peace Book by Todd Parr. Little, Brown. This is a book that Baby Bookworm picked up from the library. It lists various definitions of things that are related to "peace" in some way (some of them quite tangential). For instance, wearing different kinds of clothes. The book shows children of various (and unearthly) skin colors. Baby Bookworm quite enjoyed it, but I found it a little too overtly message-y for my taste. 

6. The Dark, by Lemony Snicket (ill. Jon Klassen). Little, Brown. Review coming next week. This book is fabulous, and is a favorite with our whole family. I won't be at all surprised if it turns out to be award-winning. Not only is it a great read, with gorgeous illustrations, but I think it actually has helped Baby Bookworm in coping with fear of the dark. At the very least, it inspired me to buy her a night light. 

7. The Teeny-Tiny Woman by Paul Galdone. Sandpiper. This is another library book that Baby Bookworm became fascinated with. I was a little surprised, frankly, because it's kind of a creepy story. It's about a "teeny-tiny woman" who goes for a walk, finds a bone in a graveyard, brings it home, and is subsequently hounded by a ghost. But it's fun to read aloud. "Teeny-tiny" is repeated almost enough to make it a tongue-twister.  

8. The Three Bears, by Byron Barton. HarperFestival. Another library book, this 1991 edition of the classic story is very straightforward, with uncomplicated illustrations. It was a nice introduction for Baby Bookworm to the three bears (she also has a doll that shows Goldilocks one way and the bears another way, but she hadn't known the story until now). We read it over and over again. Rather than buying her this version, though, I think we'll just try out some others, and see which ones she likes best. 

What books have your children been enjoying lately? Do you find them clamoring for you to buy them copies of favorite library books? We had to do this once lately, after my daughter would not let me return Soup Day by Melissa Iwai. Fortunately, she had a birthday coming up! 

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© 2013 by Jennifer Robinson of Jen Robinson's Book Page. All rights reserved. You can also follow me @JensBookPage or at my Growing Bookworms page on Facebook. 

Book: The Dark
Author: Lemony Snicket
Illustrator: Jon Klassen (@burstofbeaden)
Pages: 40
Age Range: 3-6 

The Dark is going to get a lot of attention in the coming weeks. That's because it's written by Lemony Snicket (of A Series of Unfortunate Events fame) and illustrated by Jon Klassen (who just won the Caldecott for This Is Not My Hat). The Dark also fits into a well-established niche in children's books: books to help kids to deal with something. In this case, that something is fear of the dark. I am personally quite suspicious of the "books to help kids deal with something" genre. So many of these stray into didactic territory. Fortunately, I don't think that either Snicket or Klassen could be didactic if he tried. As a result, The Dark is a winner. 

The Dark is about a young boy named Laszlo who is afraid of the dark. He views "the dark" as a vaguely menacing thing that lives in his basement during the day, only spreading throughout the house at night. Laszlo keeps a flashlight nearby at all times. Naturally, he sleeps with a glowing night light. But when his night light burns out one night, Laszlo must face his fear head-on. Well, sort of head-on, anyway. Snicket continues the device of treating "the dark" as an entity, lending a fantasy quality to the story. The suspense of Laszlo's encounter with the dark will keep kids reading. And the mildly cryptic treatment of the means by which Laszlo overcomes his fears will keep them from feeling manipulated.

Klassen's illustrations are, as usual, brilliant. While somewhat spare (hardly any furniture is shown in Laszlo's house, for example), and with a limited color palette, they do a fine job of conveying the size of a big creaky house as perceived by a small, scared person. Klassen shows a lot of old wooden flooring, and angled staircases.

Although this is a book about fear, the only thing that is scary in the images is the presence of the dark, rendered as pure black. Laszlo's night light, however, and his flashlight, stave off the dark admirably. And the scenes in which the night light burns in this room as he curls up beneath a patchwork quilt are coziness personified. 

I especially love the subtlety of the book's final page, in which Laszlo plays with a couple of toys as the sun is setting. This picture mirrors a page early in the book. The only difference is the lack of a flashlight nearby. Laszlo has conquered his fear. 

I recommend The Dark to fans of Snicket or Klassen, and to anyone with kids in the three to six or so age range who are battling with fears of the dark. I haven't tried it on my own daughter yet, but I do plan to. I'm not sure if I would use this as a storytime book or not - I think it might be better suited to home and the comfort of one's own night light. But for home use, The Dark is going to be big. 

Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers (@LBKids)
Publication Date: April 2, 2013
Source of Book: Review copy from the publisher

FTC Required Disclosure:

This site is an Amazon affiliate, and purchases made through Amazon links (including linked book covers) may result in my receiving a small commission (at no additional cost to you).

© 2013 by Jennifer Robinson of Jen Robinson's Book Page. All rights reserved. You can also follow me @JensBookPage or at my Growing Bookworms page on Facebook. 

Book: Giant Dance Party
Author: Betsy Bird (@FuseEight)
Illustrator: Brandon Dorman
Pages: 32
Age Range: 4-8 

Of the many books that arrive on my doorstep, few fall into the "sit down and read it immediately" category. The second Hunger Games book comes to mind, and not much else. But when I received an advance copy of Giant Dance Party, written by Betsy Bird and illustrated by Brandon Dorman, I set everything aside and opened it up.

If you don't know why, you haven't been following Betsy's blog, A Fuse #8 Production. Betsy is a tremendous force in the field of children's literature. Her lengthy, in-depth reviews are humorous and insightful. Her Top 100 Picture Books and Top 100 Children's Novels poll results are widely used and highly regarded. She was the primary host for last year's Kidlitosphere conference (and is a regular host for other NYC kidlit events). Giant Dance Party is Betsy's first published picture book. Much attention will be paid.

But let's talk about the book, shall we? Giant Dance Party is about a little girl, Lexy, who loves to dance, but is afraid to perform in front of an audience. Instead of performing herself, Lexy decides to start offering dance lessons. She'll let her students perform, while she basks in the joy of dance from behind the scenes. When the only ones to take Lexy up on her offer are a group of fuzzy blue giants, however, things get a bit more complex. And a lot more fun.

Giant Dance Party features a breezy voice, with short sentences and fun words to read aloud. Like this:

"So she tried hypnotism.

She tried pretending Moore and Caroll and Anne were people.

She practiced for her parents every night while they tried to watch TV.

And every time she was sure her stage fright was gone, along came another recital, and blammo! Ice pop." 

Those who have read Betsy's reviews for years will recognize her voice, particularly in that last paragraph. Giant Dance Party also reveals a surprisingly subtle humor (surprising given the over-the-top nature of the plot). For example, when the giants are waiting for Lexy to agree to teach them, we have:

"They folded their arms, crossed their legs, and sat down. 
They stuck out their lower lips. Birds perched on them."

I love "birds perched on them." I also laughed at:

"When the big night arrived, Lexy felt the familiar butterflies in her stomach. But at least she wouldn't have to dance. Instead, she gave her giants a big smile, patted them on the heels, and said, "You can do it!""

Get it? She patted them on the heels, because they were too tall for her to pat on the head. Just a little gem tossed in there for the alert reader.  

Brandon Dorman's exuberant illustrations add to the humor, and the general bouncy feel, of Giant Dance Party. When Lexy is practising for her parents as they try to watch TV, we see her leaping across the television set, ribbons flying, clearly blocking the parents' view. When she stands there on stage, frozen with stage fright, she looks rather like a wide-eyed, tutu-wearing ice pop, if such a thing is possible.

I think my favorite illustration is a little vignette from when Lexy is trying to interest people in her dance lessons, and blasts "snap-happy mambo music from the porch." Her posture, eyes, and clothing all match up perfectly with "mambo." In general, her huge brown eyes capture her many moods, windows to her trials and tribulations. Dorman also makes nice use of perspective to show Lexy's tiny size relative to that of the blue giants. 

Giant Dance Party is told in a mix of short and long paragraphs, and of small vignettes and full-page illustrations. While there are quite a lot of words in the book overall, there is also plenty of white space, making the book a good, unintimidating fit for individual readers or library storytimes. I do think it's more of a book for the 4 to 8 crowd than for the youngest readers (who won't understand stage fright, and might find the movement conveyed in the illustrations a bit overwhelming). 

Giant Dance Party is eminently read-aloud-able, the perfect mix of the practical (overcoming stage fright, solving problems) and the absurd (umm, furry blue giants dancing). Lexy, as conveyed in both words and pictures, is a delight. I am expecting Giant Dance Party to fly off the shelves. Highly recommended. 

Publisher: Greenwillow Books (@HarperChildrens)
Publication Date: April 23, 2013
Source of Book: Advance review copy from the publisher

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This site is an Amazon affiliate, and purchases made through Amazon links (including linked book covers) may result in my receiving a small commission (at no additional cost to you).

© 2013 by Jennifer Robinson of Jen Robinson's Book Page. All rights reserved. You can also follow me @JensBookPage or at my Growing Bookworms page on Facebook. 

Book: Lunch Lady and the Video Game Villain: Lunch Lady #9
Author: Jarrett J. Krosoczka (@studiojjk)
Pages: 96
Age Range: 7-10 

Lunch Lady and the Video Game Villain is the ninth in Jarrett J. Krosoczka's Lunch Lady series of graphic novels. There is a lot going on in this installment. The main plotline involves Lunch Lady and Betty investigating a rash of technology thefts from around the school (including Hector's X-Station Mobile). This is set against Hector's battle with bully Milmoe in the election for class president. Milmoe has mysteriously deep-pocketed support, and his friends discover that an enemy from a previous book may be involved. Meanwhile, Principal Hernandez is concerned about an upcoming tour of the school by the new, reform-minded superintendent, a tour which turns out not to bode well for our heroic Lunch Lady. The book ends on a cliffhanger regarding Lunch Lady's future. 

In Lunch Lady and the Video Game Villain, Krosoczka spends a bit more time on plot, and a bit less time on cafeteria-themed inventions than the previous books in the series. Or so it seemed to me. There is a "Crazy-Straw Earpiece", but the spork phone is missing in action. There are also, instead, various other, more traditional, forms of technology mentioned (many of them missing), like "the latest ePad" and a "stepometer." 

However, the book still has the same feel that young readers will expect. Milmoe is still a bully, surrounded by sycophants. He says things like:

"HA! That twerp? The only thing he can beat is the latest video game of "Nofriendo"!"

There's a funny scene in which Lunch Lady and Betty set up a sting operation, and tumble out of a locker. There is byplay with the grouchy janitor, and a battle with a villain near the end of the book. It's all vintage Lunch Lady, albeit with slightly fewer gadgets, and slightly more continuing plotlines. I think that young fans will enjoy it. I know I did. Recommended!

Publisher: Knopf Books for Young Readers (@RandomHouseKids) 
Publication Date: April 23, 2013
Source of Book: Review copy from the publisher

FTC Required Disclosure:

This site is an Amazon affiliate, and purchases made through Amazon links (including linked book covers) may result in my receiving a small commission (at no additional cost to you).

© 2013 by Jennifer Robinson of Jen Robinson's Book Page. All rights reserved. You can also follow me @JensBookPage or at my Growing Bookworms page on Facebook.