Oct 10
Mal Peet has won the British Guardian's fiction prize for his book Exposure. It is a novel that takes Othello and resets it into the world of South American soccer.
Peet won the Carnegie Medal for his novel Tamar.
Adding another book into my ever-growing MUST READ pile.
Oct 8
The Lion & the Mouse by Jerry Pinkney
In this almost wordless book, readers revisit Aesop's tale of the lion who spares the life of a mouse only in turn to be rescued by the mouse. The only words on the page are animal noises that bring the African setting to life. Readers follow the mouse right into the lion's paws, sigh in relief at the release, and will be riveted as the capture of the lion plays out.
Pinkney shows readers the world in focused images, revealing the view of the land the mouse has, the perspective of the lion, and foreshadowing the capture of the lion in the poacher's net. Each image is beautifully done, filled with details that bring the story to life and invite you to linger over them. His pacing is done with such skill that he can create suspense with a single page turn. From the moment of opening the cover, readers are in the hands of a master story teller who speaks through his art.
One of the best wordless picture books I have ever read, this book should be on every library's shelf. And with that cover, it is not going to sit there long! Make sure you face this one out!
Reviewed from copy received from publisher. Copy will be placed in library collection.
Also reviewed by
Collecting Children's Books,
100 Scope Notes,
A Patchwork of Books,
Pink Me, and
Fuse #8.
Oct 8
Star of the Week: a story of love, adoption, and brownies with sprinkles by Darlene Friedman, illustrated by Roger Roth
It is Cassidy-Li's turn to be star of the week in her Kindergarten class. She and her mom are making brownies with sprinkles and she also has to make a poster about herself. As she looks through photographs, Cassidy-Li's history as an adopted baby from China is told. Her parents holding her in China, the first person to meet her at the airport, her cousins, her best friends, and her pets. But she doesn't have any pictures of her birth parents, so there is a hole in her poster. She fixes it by drawing a picture of these people she has never met. She is nervous about her poster and about answering questions about her adoption. But by the end of the day, she realizes that she really is a star.
The beauty of this book is that Cassidy-Li is a wonderfully normal kid with the same sort of worries that others have about their star week. And yet she has a unique background, multicultural friends, connections to China, and a more complicated story to tell. Friedman does a great job in balancing the two, creating a character who is unique but universal. The story is told in very brief prose, with the illustrations telling a lot of the tale too. Roth's pictures also create a bridge between Cassidy-Li's special background and her being a regular American kid.
Recommended for all families, this book is about connections, understanding, and being special. Appropriate for ages 4-6.
Reviewed from library copy.
Also reviewed by
A Year of Reading and
A Patchwork of Books.
Oct 7
Winnie Finn, Worm Farmer by Carol Brendler, illustrated by Ard Hoyt
Winnie loves earthworms. She knows all sorts of facts about them, pulls them around in her wagon, and even races them. But when the county fair rolls around, she realizes that there is no category for her beloved worms to compete in. She speaks with three neighbors. One is growing corn for the fair and needs a good fertilizer. Another is raising chickens and needs the right feed to make them the best egg layers. And the third is raising puppies and needs something to get their coats shining. She makes a deal with each of them that if she finds the answer to their needs they will share the prize with her. Then she uses her worms to help with the corn, the corn to help with the eggs, and the eggs to help with the shiny coats. It's a clever solution from a bright, scientific girl.
I love any book that breaks with the stereotype of girls not liking worms, dirt or animals. Winnie is a great protagonist for a picture book because she shatters that myth. She holds and hugs worms with delight. I also appreciate how intelligent she is and how she solves her own problems by using her brain.
Brendler's text is fun to read aloud. She has taken a traditional tale format and modernized it. Readers will find themselves in a traditional format and be surprised, which is delightful. Hoyt's illustrations are funny, sometimes frenzied, and wiggly with worms. Any worm haters out there will love the reaction of Winnie's cat as it grimaces about the worms she loves.
A strong heroine in a modern picture book, this wiggly mass of worms is loads of fun. Appropriate for ages 4-7.
Reviewed from library copy.
Oct 7
Happy Belly, Happy Smile by Rachel Isadora
Every Friday night, Louie has dinner at his Grandpa Sam's restaurant in Chinatown. He watches the fish in the tank, visits with the chefs in the kitchen, and listens to the waiters calling to each other. Then it is time to eat. Louie and his grandfather use chopsticks to eat their rice, dumplings, egg rolls, and chow mein. The dinner finishes with a fortune cookie.
Children of all races and ages will see some of their favorite things about eating out at a Chinese restaurant. They will also be thrilled to glimpse the hidden, steamy world of the kitchen. Isadora tells a simple story in only a few words on each page. The book is very visual with her illustrations in collage and oils. Her interesting use of lines and texture are most impressive when dinner is served. The paper becomes mouthwateringly edible.
Recommended for story times on food, this book will have everyone sharing their own favorite Chinese meal. Appropriate for ages 2-4.
Reviewed from library copy.
Also reviewed by
TheHappyNappyBookseller.
Oct 7
A new study by
Robert Half Technology shows that companies are limiting employee access to social networking. The study polled 1400 Chief Information Officers in companies across the country with at least 100 employees.
54% of companies completely prohibit visiting social networking sites
19% permit visits for business purposes only
16% allow limited personal use
10% allow any type of personal use
My question is how this breaks out for libraries. I think it will fall along the same lines as email did over a decade ago. I remember having heated discussions about whether employees should even be given library email addresses and if they were given those addresses whether a time limit should be imposed!
Now social networking is the new kid on the block. Do you allow your staff to use Twitter, Facebook, and MySpace? I'm sure you can guess my answer. Yes! Please, please, please use them!
Thanks to
Brian Solis for his post on the study.
for a much smaller and cozier audience.
by Robert Fripp and Brian Eno
by Andrei Bely
