BOOGER INSPIRED

Billy's Booger: A Memoir (sorta) by William Joyce and his younger self

Once upon a time there was a boy who loved the Sunday comic strips, drawing and creating all kinds of things.  he entered a book writing contest at the behest of his school librarian.  He included all the things he thought would be interesting:, space travel, mucus, meteor, and more in his book hoping to win.  

Readers in 3rd - 6th grade should read this fantastic story illustrated by award winning author William Joyce and be inspired.  

BAD KITTY VS. THE AUTHOR

Bad Kitty is at it again in Bad Kitty Drawn to Trouble by Nick Bruel. This wacky entry in the series doubles as a primer on story writing and structure in addition to being a hilarious tale in its own right. Over the course of the story, young readers will learn about protagonists (the one and only Bad Kitty, of course), antagonists (Puppy, the long-suffering and none-the-wiser foil to our main character), conflict (time to go on a diet Bad Kitty!), and plot points (a frequently-interrupting turnip, giant octopuses, and creepy zombies to name a few). But what kind of ending should a story have? When kids are the authors of their own stories, it will be up to them decide! 


Not only will this Bad Kitty book leave second through fourth graders literally laughing out loud, it might just inspire them to write a story of their own. 

Fans of Bad Kitty take note: There will be a Bad Kitty Library Hunt the week of March 20th, in addition to a Bad Kitty Party on Saturday, March 26th. Come join us in the Children's Room for activities and crafts celebrating the wild and wonderful world of Bad Kitty! 

FIBONACCI TO FIBS

Everyone in Greg's family loves math and lives for math.  The only math thing he gets is pie not pi and he has to deal with daily grilling and teasing from his family for his lack of mathematical apptitude.  Greg loves writing but he has to hide this from his family because they just don't get why his world doesn't involve math, too.  

All is coming to a head now that Gregory wants to go to a writing camp with his best Friend, Kelly, because she is moving away but in order to go, he has to pass his math class and enter the City Math, a long family tradition.  The camp, the contest; all lies as part of his plan but the lies keep piling up and he will have to come up with something fast or else.  
For readers in 4th-8th grade.  

WHAT LIFE LESSONS CAN A PERSON LEARN FROM BULLYING?

After a brief suspension, Julian Twerski is exempt from writing a Julius Caesar report.  Instead, his English teacher and father ask him to journal the events of his middle school life.  Since academic success comes so easily to Julian, he thinks this project will be a breeze.  When he starts, he focuses on journal basics: who, what, when, where, why and how.  He documents his time with his best buddies and his best friend's feelings towards a girl at school.  As the days pass, his writing starts to change when he journals about his discovery of first love, or his experiences with the neighborhood loner, Stanley Stimmel.   Julian reflects more frequently and more intensely about his interactions with his best buddies, Stanley, and the irresistible Jillian, and he learns a great deal about empathy, remorse, and heartbreak.  

The reader cannot help but get drawn in to his reflections, regrets, and growth.

From first time junior novelist, Mark Goldblatt, Twerp sheds light on how a group of middle schoolers can be friendly towards some and be troublesome for others.  Twerp is best for 7^th grade and up.

DOGS CAN SAVE YOUR LIFE IN SURPRISING WAYS!

Sugar Mae Cole has a father who's never there.  Her mom keeps taking him back, and then he just breaks her heart again and again. After her grandfather died, things have been getting worse for her and her mother, but at least Sugar Mae has a positive attitude and can let her thoughts flow in her writing.  The best day to come along is when Sugar Mae is given Shush, a shy puppy who's owner couldn't keep her. The worst day is when Sugar Mae, Shush, and her mother get evicted from their home and have to live in their car.  ALMOST HOME by Joan Bauer is an emotional story, with a lot of entertaining characters weaving in and out of Sugar Mae's life.  Despite all the things that go wrong, though, everyone tries to look on the bright side and make the best of things. 

For grades 4 and up.

MARCH 2013

ALLIE FINKLE’S RULES

This book is number 3 in the series (Allie Finkle's Rules For Girls) but if you haven’t read the first two, no worries, you will still be amused and entertained.

Allie is a typical fourth grader who after the winter school vacation is really excited to go back to school and be with her friends again. When she finds out that in addition to her usual friends, there is going to be a new girl, she becomes even more excited. Unfortunately as she starts her regular week at school, she realizes that the girl, whom she hoped could have become one of her own friends, is the exact opposite of her.  Cheyenne, the new girl, is rude, angry all the time and has the tendency to bully people around her. She tries to replace Allie‘s and her friends’ innocent recess games with inappropriate games such as chase and kiss, hoping to ‘recruit’ friends.  Allie of course, being the smart and kind person finds many ways to fight her rival.

You will fall in love with Allie and her friends and would want to read the entire series…

BEST FRIENDS AND DRAMA QUEENS by MEG CABOT For grades 3rd-5th. 



TOFU QUILT

The story of TOFU QUILT by CHING YEUNG RUSSELL is written in a free verse format that is quick, fun and easy to read. It's about a little girl who is told that there are a lot of things in life that she can not do because of the simple fact that she is a girl. However, this little girl knows that she has a special talent and that in her life, no matter what happens she can do great things. Her talent lies in her own hands and mind, she can write wonderful and inventive stories and letters. She starts writing letters for her illiterate aunts until she is told that at least she will not be hungry in life, since she can write. However, she is lucky in a sense that her mother thinks very highly of her and supports her in sending her to a private school where she gets exposed to great books and literature. This is a semi-autobiographical story by the author Ching Yeung Russell that is inspiring, empowering and uplifting, especially for girls.

For grades 4th and older.

PLEASE WRITE IN THIS BOOK

Ms. Wurtz has a great group of kids in her class and each one has a unique personality and style. There's Milton-- he's really smart; Luke (whose name rhymes with puke) is the class clown; Lizzy, who tends to be a bit bossy; and Yoshi, a dedicated friend. To get the class to practice their writing skills, Ms. Wurtz puts a class journal in the Writer's Corner. Unfortunately, the messages, thoughts and drawings in the class journal get way out of hand. What starts off as creative and fun, then turns into broken friendships, tears, and jeer. Will Ms. Wurtz intervene and make everything right or will the class have a creative solution?

Students in the 3rd thru 5th grades, as well as teachers who are interested in adding a journal to their writing center, will find Mary Amato's book delightful, sometimes gross, and fun! Eric Brace's illustrations bring the story to life.

TOM TRUEHEART FANS!!

The writer from the Land of Stories has written stories that lead the great Trueheart adventurers to talk about their triumphs. Their grand stories show the villagers that beginning and ending an adventure in the Land of Stories is courageous and exciting, especially, to Tom, the youngest of the seven brothers. Unfortunately, the rogue writer secretly changes the stories that lead the brothers to danger. Tom is just about old enough to enter the Land of Stories, but is he ready to complete one adventure of his own, or how about six adventures?
The Secret of the Tom Trueheart is a fun read. I know that other Glendale readers are ready to continue the adventure, too! Click on the book cover and reserve your copy of the next adventure story, Tom Trueheart and the Land of Dark Stories.

QUEEN OF THE FOXES

"I met the Queen of the Foxes in 1972, when my family moved from Connecticut to California," states the narrator of THE WILD GIRLS by Pat Murphy and so begins the story of the friendship of two girls. Joan and Sarah who meet by chance in the middle of the woods that separate their two houses and begin an adventure that involves building a tree house, writing stories, a contest and families.

For grades 4 and older.

LETTERS FROM A MOUSE?

Have you ever written to a Pen Pal? Or, do you know someone who is just starting to learn English? Well, Jenny's dealing with both. In DEAR WHISKERS by Ann Whitehead Nagda, Jenny's class must write letters to the second grade pretending to be mice. Everyone gets a response except for Jenny. She learns that her pen pal, Sameera, is from Saudi Arabia and is just starting to learn English. At first this is discouraging for Jenny, but she thinks of some creative ways to help Sameera learn English and return her correspondence. Perfect for 1st - 3rd graders, or those just starting to read chapter books.