CAN YOU TALK TO THE ANIMALS?

Meet Ellis Coffey. He's in 4th grade. He makes most of the other kids in class laugh. He's a hard worker. Oh, and he can communicate with animals...sort of. At least that's what he thinks is happening when he finds a "woolly worm" (also know as a caterpillar) that seems to understand everything Ellis says. With such a talent, Ellis thinks he can win the woolly worm race and pay for his dad's much needed back surgery. Will his woolly worm win? THE WORM WHISPERER by Betty Hicks is a cute, simple story with a bit of Christianity thrown in. 

For 3rd through 5th grades.

MARCH 2015

2014 PICTURE BOOK ROUND UP- CALDECOTT 2015?

The Huffington Post's contributor and Early Childhood policy analyst Minh Le compiled a list of what he considered some of the best picture books of 2014. After reviewing many of these, I thought I would share some of my favorites.

Considered by Le to be the "Best Overall" picture book of 2014, THE ADVENTURES OF BEEKLE: THE UNIMAGINARY FRIEND, written and illustrated by Dan Santat, is a cute story about an imaginary creature just waiting to make his first human friend. Tired of waiting around, his adventures begin when he sets out on a quest to find the perfect child for him. The illustrations are vibrant and charming, and the story will capture any kid's attention even if they don't have an imaginary friend of their own - but I bet they'll want one after reading this!

While Le did not rank this next title as the "Best Dark/Mysterious" picture book, it was listed as an honorable mention and is FANTASTICALLY GORGEOUS. A wordless story, the images in FOX'S GARDEN by Princesse Camcam are a mix of pen and ink drawing placed in three dimensional scenes of cut-outs will draw the eyes of many a curious reader as they attempt to unravel the story of a fox looking for a place to have her babies. An absolutely beautiful book!

Le and I are in agreement when it comes to the "Most fun/Silliest" story of 2014 - CHURCHILL'S TALE OF TAILS by Anca Sandu. This poor pig loses his beloved curlicue tail, and tries a number of other tails from meager mouse tails to splendid peacock tails as a substitute. Trying all the different tails transforms Churchill, and his friend's just don't recognize him anymore. Eventually he finds his own tail and re-finds his friendships, so all's well that ends well in this tale.

I love, love, LOVE Le's pick for "Most Touching/Heartwarming," as it sheds light on the sad truth about zoos. I KNOW A BEAR by Mariana Ruiz Johnson has a little girl tell all about a bear she's met who's told her about a "land of bears" that is full of wonderful things that bears love, and the little girl is sad the bear doesn't live there any more. She does what she can to listen to the bear, and even has her own revelation about the importance of freedom.

My honorable mentions would include THANK YOU OCTOPUS by Darren Farrell and DON'T PLAY WITH YOUR FOOD by Bob Shea (two very funny stories), as well as the adventure SAM AND DAVE DIG A HOLE by Mac Barnett (illustrated by Jon Klassen), and THE ACROBAT by Alborozo.

DECEMBER 2014

GOLDFISH ARE BARELY MENTIONED

Every once in a while, a book comes along that is like a perfectly wrapped present. THE FOURTEENTH GOLDFISH by Jennifer L. Holm is the big box wrapped in shiny paper with a fancy bow placed right in the center - full of anticipation of good things! Ellie is going through the usual middle school changes, with her best friend being super busy with volleyball, a cute, mysterious boy in a few of her classes, oh and of course her grandfather coming to live with her as a teenage boy! Ellie learns quite a lot about love, family, friends, and the intricate web that weaves it all together. It's a quick read that will appeal to boys and girls in the 4th-8th grades, especially those readers that like a lot of dialog.

OCTOBER 2014

MAGICIANS AVAILABLE WHILE SUPPLIES LAST

Jennifer Strange - eh, what's in a name - is responsible for finding jobs for all the magicians and wizards of the world. Oh, and she's also the last dragonslayer in the history of the world. Also, there is only one more dragon and he's going to die. Rumor has it that once this dragon dies, "BIG MAGIC" will return. Because magic lately has been pretty hard to come by. So it is up to Jennifer to determine the fate of magic whether she wants to or not. Luckily, this story is very funny because if it wasn't it would be very sad. But you will laugh a lot. Especially if you liked Adam Rex's True Meaning of Smek Day or anything in Brian Sanderson's Alcatraz series. 

THE LAST DRAGONSLAYER by Jasper Fforde is sure to delight the fantasy/science fiction fan who like a little comedy here and there to lighten things up. For grades 5 and up.

AUGUST 2013

THE CURE FOR BORING BOOKS

MRS. PIGGLE-WIGGLE (a book by Betty MacDonald) lives in an upside-down house and loves children. Many of the kids in her town don't like doing their chores, talk back to their parents, and misbehave in many other ways. Rather than scolding the children, the parents turn to Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle for her miraculous cures and antidotes for these rare childhood "diseases" their children seem to have, such as "Won't-put-away-toys-itis." 

Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle's healing methods are so funny and different, you may even read the other books in the series, just to make sure you don't have any of these strange childhood problems. Other books in this series include HELLO, MRS. PIGGLE-WIGGLE, MRS. PIGGLE-WIGGLE'S MAGIC, and MRS. PIGGLE-WIGGLE'S FARM, and are great for readers in 3rd grade and up.

JULY 2012

WHERE'S THE BOOV??

Adam Rex writes about the weirdest, most unbelievable things. But his books are funny. And interesting and entertaining. In fact, it will be hard for you to put down one of his books without finishing it first.

His latest book for kids, COLD CEREAL, is about a young boy named Scottish Play Doe. Yes, his middle name and last name form a common toy for toddlers involving a clay-like substance. So, he prefers to go by the name Scott and just not tell anyone the part about his middle name. He moves to a city where the main source of income is a cereal factory. But it's not just any cereal factory. Strange and mystical creatures reside inside and appeal to Scott to save him from the treachery within!

While this is in no way similar to his first children's book, The True Meaning of Smek Day, it will appeal to anyone who loved that book as much as me. For 5th grade and up.

TRIALS AND TRIBULATIONS OF MIDDLE SCHOOL

In this sequel to Claudia Mills’ Losers, Inc. Julius Zimmerman is stuck in French class. He’s sworn never to love a girl. He’s never going to be good in school like his brother. In fact, he’s just going to baby-sit all summer and deal with being twelve. Against his wishes, he starts to like Olivia, but only because of her beautiful singing voice, and excels at caring for three-year-old Edison Blue. YOU'RE A BRAVE MAN, JULIUS ZIMMERMAN deals with a boy whose mother has huge expectations, and she pushes him to succeed in those areas without acknowledging the strengths Julius demonstrates and things he does well. Julius tries to meet her expectations while still becoming his own person, as he transitions into adolescence. For grades 5 and up.

GEORGE CLOONEY FOR A FATHER?!

Her parents divorced and are now living separate lives. Her father has moved on and is living the good life in L.A. with a whole new family while she is left with her lonely mother, who has a knack for always picking the wrong guy.

Dudley Wiener is just the absolute last straw. How can her mother possibly date a man with that name, plus his jokes are horrible. It is time for Violet to take action and get the perfect man for them... George Clooney.

Dear George Clooney Please Marry My Mom by Susin Nielsen is a funny and heartfelt story about the messiness of love and family for readers in 6th-8th.

ABRACADABRA!

This is a story of two boys, Darren Jackson and Jamie Jenks, who are looking for the quickest way up the millionaire ladder. Darren works as a giraffe at a nearby pizza joint, miserably dealing with rude, abusive children. Jamie works at a nearby deli, annoying patrons with his great puns and catchy rhymes. When one of the boys' inventions goes crazy, it looks like a pretty dim future. One day, when things are at their worst, the boys stumble upon something that sends their magician careers soaring into fame and fortune! JACKSON & JENKS: MASTER MAGICIANS by actor Dan Frischman is a hilarious book for grades 4 and up.

TERRIBLE LIES?

Have you ever made up stories about yourself to try and impress someone? How do you think people feel when they know you have told them a lie about yourself? What would you do to make a new kid more comfortable? It is always hard being the new kid, especially when you go to a new school right in the middle of the year. In the book HEY NEW KID! by Betsy Duffey, Cody decides he is going to be the most exciting, adventurous, brave new kid anyone has ever seen and makes up stories about how crazy and exciting his life is, when it's really not all that action-packed. In the end, it turns out all the kids like him, even though his great new image falls apart one day at a party, and they see Cody for who he truly is. It's a great book for anyone in 2nd - 4th grade.

WHO LIKES COCKROACHES?

CLARENCE COCHRAN, A HUMAN BOY by William Loizeaux is a very strange boy indeed. He's not really supposed to be a boy, he's supposed to be a cockroach. In fact he comes from a fine family of cockroaches he cannot believe he's somehow turned into a tiny human boy over night! At first Clarence is humiliated, but as the story continues, Clarence learns a little more about himself and the world around him. For 4th-6th grades.

FEAR CREATES MANY THINGS

That's right. Fear created singing and transportation and the handshake. Don't believe it? Then you need to read THE 2000 YEAR OLD MAN GOES TO SCHOOL by Mel Brooks and Carl Reiner. This is one of the funniest books you will read in your young life! A 2000 year old man makes a visit to a classroom near you, and tells the kids all about his life, and the life of others he's met throughout the years like Shakespeare and Einstein. And words started because of onomatopoeia: the word "egg" comes from the noise a chicken makes while laying it - "eeeeeehhhhhhgg"! There are many funny things that made the world what it is today, and you will laugh at every one! Second grade to adult!

IS YOUR TURKEY CHICKEN?!?!

In this funny story called A Hoboken Chicken Emergency by Daniel Pinkwater, a young boy named Arthur is sent to get the Thanksgiving turkey. Unfortunately there aren't any, so he's sent home with a huge, living chicken. Arthur grows attached to the chicken and many adventures take place as he tries to prevent the chicken from becoming Thanksgiving dinner. If you find yourself laughing at books like Captain Underpants or Junie B. Jones, you are really going to giggle at the crazy, silly things that happen to Arthur in this book! Ages 6-10.

TIME TRAVEL TO THE FUTURE!

It's 1995. Three adventurous boys set out on a typical field trip to the museum. They innocently try making their day more interesting, when suddenly...out of the blue...they end up 100 years in the future! They encounter annoying robots, anti-gravity flying discs and accidentally run into their granddaughters which could alter their futures forever! Exciting and fast-paced, good for boys and girls, 2095 by Jon Sciezka is another hilarious installment in the Time Warp Trio series. If you like this, try some others in the series like THE NOT-SO-JOLLY ROGER, YOUR MOTHER WAS A NEANDERTHAL, and DA WILD, DA CRAZY, DA VINCI! There's even Time Warp Trio in comic book style! For grades 3 and up.

FUNNY FOX SHOWS OFF!

Sometimes animals seem a lot like humans. In the book FOX BE NIMBLE by James Marshall, the human-like character is Fox, and he has three chapters of funny happenings. Fox really thinks he's hot stuff. But apparently not everyone knows just how great he is, so he makes a point of showing everyone! First he must babysit for the Ling children who are hard to keep still and end up getting Fox on the evening news. Next, Fox injures himself falling on a skate and makes a big deal out of it, even though he wasn't very hurt, just because he is such a show off. He finally puts his antics to good use as the baton-twirling leader of a parade. This is good for 1st - 3rd graders who are almost ready to read chapter books, but aren't ready for anything too long.