Looking Ahead to 2010

There will be some exciting activities at the library in 2010! First, on Jan. 2, we will do a Max & Ruby themed storytime at 10 a.m. Later that month, on Saturday the 30th, there will be a Diary of a Wimpy Kid party at 2:30. Call us or drop by if you'd like to sign up for either of these programs.

Later in the spring, I'm planning on offering a Percy Jackson & the Olympians program (Percy is the main character in the award-winning book The Lightning Thief), a Junie B. Jones program, and a Spiderwick Chronicles program. 2010 is gonna be a great year!

Best Books of 2009

People are already starting to compile end-of-the-year "best" lists, and I thought everyone here might be interested.

The New York Times has a list of the 10 best illustrated children's books of 2009, as seen here. We have almost all of these in our library.

Publisher's Weekly put out a more extensive list, with a wider range of books for all ages, illustrated and not. It can be seen here.

Booklist Online also made a list, seen here.

The ALA also put out its 2009 Teen's Top Ten list. This list was voted on by teens, not librarians or other adults. I find it particularly illuminated for that reason. It can be viewed here.

Take a look. See what you think. Were you surprised by any of the choices? Is there a title you think should have been included that was instead passed over?

Holiday Books

What better way to get into the spirit of the season than to read some nice, heartwarming holiday stories? This librarian says, "Of course, there IS no better way!" :P

I was utterly charmed when I first read Jane O'Connor's most recent offering, Fancy Nancy: Splendiferous Christmas. Nancy is as winning as ever as she enthusiastically helps her family prepare for Christmas. But an accident involving a tree topper threatens to ruin the holiday. Can Nancy bounce back? The illustrations by Robin Glaser are stunning in their beautiful, whimsical detail as well. You might want to go out and purchase a copy, because kids are going to want to look at this one again and again.

Elementary school age kids will love Barbara Robinson's classic The Best Christmas Pageant Ever. It tells the story of how the neighborhood misfits, the Herdman children, manage to land starring roles in the church's Christmas pageant. Their humorous and sometimes poignant reactions to the story of Christmas, which they have never heard before, will make kids and adults alike laugh and ponder the true meaning of the holiday. Plus, it includes one of the best quotes ever: "HEY! Unto you a child is born!"

Thoughtful older readers may appreciate Jacqueline Woodson's Newbery Honor book Feathers. Frannie, a sixth-grader in an all-black school in 1971, is startled with the rest of her class when a boy with white skin joins their class. The boy is almost immediately nicknamed Jesus Boy. Also, her friend Samantha is becoming more and more religious. Frannie has a lot to think about as the Christmas season approaches.


Also, if you are thinking about buying some books as presents, the Center for Children's Books at the University of Illinois has recently published its 2009 Guide Book to Gift Books, available here.

Christmas Events

Join us for Christmas events at the library! On Saturday, December 5th, there will be a Christmas storytime and craft for kids ages 3-6 at 10 a.m. We will hear Christmas stories and make candy cane Christmas ornaments to go with the parade's candy cane theme. There is limited space for this, so if you are interested you MUST register.

Santa will also be visiting the library on Monday, December 7th at 11 a.m. We will hear Christmas stories and all the kids will receive candy canes. Parents, bring your cameras! Registration isn't necessary for this one.

Celebrating Food

I don't know about you, but I have food on my mind for the entire month of November, in anticipation of Turkey Day. At Allerton Library we have lots of books about food for kids of all ages.

The picture book crowd will like Amy Krouse Rosenthal's Little Pea, about a small pea who hates eating candy for dinner, but looks forward to a dessert of spinach. Mathmatically-inclined youngsters might also like Matthew McElligott's Bean Thirteen, which is about two grasshoppers--one superstitious, one not--who try to divide up thirteen beans for their dinner guests. It proves difficult, but it all works out in the end.

Older kids might like to try out our selection of cookbooks in our juvenile non-fiction section. We have a couple of Paula Deen's cookbooks for kids, a Ratatouille-themed cookbook, a few international cookbooks, and at least one gross foods cookbook. Kids can (with an adult's help) make quiche, potato salad, mini pizzas, and more.


Kids who are reading the Rebecca Caudill books (grades 4-8) might want to try Rose Kent's book Kimchi and Calamari. It tells the story of Joseph, a Korean-born boy who was adopted by an Italian-American family. Joseph is asked to do a family history project for school, and ends up trying to satisfy his curiosity about his birth family while trying not to let his birth parents feel bad about it. Food is more of a metaphor in this book, but you still get lots of sensory imagery and flavor while reading it.

The Kidlitosphere

There are a huge number of children's librarians who, like me, maintain blogs. This month's issue of School Library Journal has featured 10 of them, in addition to mentioning the site Kidlitosphere, which is a gateway people can use to find more. Among the featured blogs are: Bookshelves of Doom, Editorial Anonymous, Read Roger, and Seven Impossible Things Before Breakfast. Take a look! See if you like 'em. But, don't forget to keep coming back here. :P

Scary Stories

Halloween is this weekend, and kids looking for a scary story should look no farther than the library! We have scary stories for kids of all ages. Even little ones will probably like the picture book Wolf's Coming! by Joe Kulka. In that story, several animals run and hide from a wolf, who stalks across the fields and into a house. It turns out that the animals were planning a surprise birthday party for the wolf, and the illustrations turn from dark and menacing to bright and cheery at the end.

Older kids can't go wrong with the classic Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark by Alvin Schwartz. Not only is that book (and its sequels) packed with ghostly tales for the elementary school set, but it's also graced with some of the creepiest illustrations I've ever seen. Great spooky fun.




Middle school kids will probably really like the Cirque du Freak series by Darren Shan, starting with Cirque du Freak: A Living Nightmare. Teenage Darren sneaks out of the house one night to go see a traveling freak show, and ends up becoming more involved with the performers than he ever thought he would be. The series is packed with creepy characters and has some blood and gore, but no sex or language, making it a pretty good choice for that age group.

Older teens can sink their teeth into the popular House of Night series by P.C. Cast once they're done with the Twilight books but want more vampire stories. In this series, starting with Marked, teen Zoe Redbird is marked as a vampire fledgling one day at school. She must go to live at the House of Night with other vampires and vampire fledglings, or else her body will reject the Change into a full vampire and she will die. And, as if starting out at a new school isn't stressful enough, Zoe starts to notice suspicious things at the House of Night.

We have all these books and more at the library, so come check them out!

Spotlight on Easy Readers

Learning how to read is an exciting adventure, and here at Allerton Library we are glad to make it as enjoyable as we can with a great selection of easy readers. Kids who are just starting out will probably enjoy the Fly Guy series, starting with Hi! Fly Guy, by Tedd Arnold. A boy named Buzz decides to keep a fly as a pet when the fly does all kinds of tricks for him, including saying Buzz's name. The words are large and easy to sound out, and the pictures are amusing.


Once kids have mastered those, they may want to try the Biscuit books by Alyssa Capucilli. They are all stories about a puppy named Biscuit. They are a little like the old Spot books, but a little more complex and much more cute and modern. The Elephant and Piggy books by Mo Willems are also a good bet. Starting with Today I Will Fly!, these books give the easy reader genre a nice graphic-novel spin, with all the text in speech bubbles.

The Henry and Mudge books by Cynthia Rylant are also definitely worth a look, once readers have grown tired of Biscuit, Elephant, and Piggy. This series is about a boy named Henry and his enormous, goofy dog Mudge. There is also a Puppy Mudge series for the Fly Guy crowd.



For more advanced readers who aren't yet ready for chapter books, you can't beat the classics like Frog and Toad by Arnold Lobel and Amelia Bedelia by Peggy Parish. Funny and touching, these books have stood the test of time for a good reason.

We have all these and more at the library, in our special Easy Reader section behind the chapter books. Check them out!

Star Wars Party!

In about 3 weeks we will be having a Star Wars party here at the library for kids ages 5+. It will be on Sat. Nov. 7th at 2:30. Younger kids are also welcome but will need a caregiver's help. We'll be doing lots of cool stuff at the party, including:


Testing Jedi light saber skills
Designing droids
Building paper airplane X-Wing fighters
Asteroid hunt (Starburt candies)
Coloring pages
Book raffle
Snacks like Yoda Soda, Princess Leia Cinnamon Buns, and Moon Pies
Dress up as your favorite Star Wars character

Registration is required and closes on Nov. 5th. Please call the library or email me with any questions! And may the Force be with you!

Read-A-Likes

Problem: I read everything by my favorite author, and now I have nothing else to read!

Problem: I really like this series, but I can't remember the titles or the author... I just know the name of the series... or wait, I actually just know the plot and characters. I need the next book though!

Problem: The library is closed and I can't ask the librarian for recommendations!

Solution: There's a great database we have called NoveList that helps people who are trying to figure out what to read next. It's available online through our website 24/7, and all you need is an Allerton Library card number to get in. Once you're in, you can search for books by author, title, series name, or plot/characters. The database also has articles on certain authors and books, which include suggestions for other authors to try when you've run out of books by your favorite author. These are called Read-A-Likes in the library business.

There are two versions of NoveList: one for adults, and one for kids called NoveList K-8. Here's how you get to them:
1) Go to our library's website, www.monticellolibrary.org. Make sure you have the latest version of Adobe Flash.
2) Click on Online Resources.
3) Click on NoveList.
4) Enter your 14 digit library card number. Only Allerton Library cards will work here.
5) Click either NoveList or NoveList K-8.

And now, in just 5 easy steps, you have a wealth of information at your fingertips. Enjoy, and call us if you have questions or problems.

Superheroes

What kid hasn't wished he or she had superpowers at one time or another? Well, with these books, kids can indulge their desires to fly around, striking fear into the hearts of evildoers.

A new picture book called Mighty Max by Harriet Ziefert caught my eye, and I really enjoyed reading it to one of my storytime groups. The story is about a boy named Max who runs around having fairly normal adventures, and when his dad yells, "You're not Superman, you know!" it makes Max imagine that his IS, in fact, Superman. The art is charming, looking very childlike with bold colors that pop off the page.

Elementary school kids who are reading chapter books might enjoy the Melvin Beederman: Superhero series by Greg Trine, which starts with The Curse of the Bologna Sandwich. Melvin Beederman, graduate of the Superhero School, is sent to Los Angeles to be their resident superhero. He isn't perfect, but does his best until he accidentally mixes up his cape with a costume belonging to a girl named Candace. They team up and defeat the bad guys, ready for the sequel. The text is full of action and humor, and will appeal to boys in grades 2-4 especially.

Middle school kids will probably like James Patterson's action packed Maximum Ride series, which starts with The Angel Experiment. Max is a genetically engineered human-bird hybrid teenager with wings, and in the first book she must rescue her kidnapped flock member, Angel, from the clutches of the evil School that created her and the rest of her flock. Max is a very likable heroine who can almost always muster up some sarcastic humor in the face of difficulty, making the books highly amusing.

So, if the mood strikes you, put on your masks and capes and head on over to the library!

Banned Books Week

Next week is Banned Books Week. At Allerton Library, we have a small display in the Teen section set up for people to learn about banned and challenged books, and to see a few examples. I have covered the books in brown paper, in hopes that they will catch people's eyes more. Most of the books in the display are for teens, but there are a couple over there for kids--and one is a picture book!

If you are interested in learning more about Banned Books Week, I encourage you to check out these websites:

Banned Books Week--American Library Association
Kids' Right to Read Project--National Coalition Against Censorship
Book Bans and Challenges Map

Celebrate your freedom to read!

Celebrate Monticello!

Make sure to come out to the Celebration on Saturday! My fellow librarians and I will be out on the square, helping kids paint suncatchers and raffling off children's books. We'll be there from 10-4.

Also, a side note: as you may know from my profile, I am a huge Harry Potter fan. I have recently discovered the Harry Potter audiobooks and I am COMPLETELY HOOKED. The drive to work (and anywhere, as a matter of fact) is fun again! Jim Dale is an incredible narrator and really makes the story come alive. I like the audiobooks much better than the movies in that respect, actually. So, come check out our collection of children's audiobooks, and pick out something you like!

Fancy Nancy Party!

I'm excited to announce our upcoming Fancy Nancy party, which will take place on Saturday, Oct. 10 at 2:30. It's open to kids 3+, and we'll have lots of great activities.

First we'll read a Fancy Nancy story (probably the one pictured at left) and play Dress Up the Un-Fancy Librarian. Then we'll have fancy snacks and do fancy crafts. There will also be raffle giveaways and activity pages from the HarperCollins website. Everyone is encouraged to wear their fancy clothes!

Registration is required and closes on Oct. 8. If you're not sure if you will come, but think you might, please register anyway. There is no penalty for no-shows or cancellations, and I would much rather have too many cookies and craft supplies than too few. You can email me, call the library, or stop by to register or get more information.

Notable Books

The Publisher's Weekly website has an article called "The Stars, So Far" which talks about children's books that have earned starred reviews this year in journals like Booklist and Library Journal. Take a look at the article, found here. Have you read any of the books listed? Do you agree with the reviewers' opinions? If some look interesting, please stop in--we have most of the books mentioned in the article at our library.

School!

Today is the first day of school for Monticello students. This can be tough, but never fear! The library is here with lots of stories to help kids cope.

For elementary school students, we have a couple of funny series: the My Weird School series by Dan Gutman, and the Bailey School Kids series by Debbie Dadey. I also recommend My Teacher is an Alien by Bruce Coville and its sequels. If you think YOUR teacher is bizarre, you should take a look at some of the teachers in these stories!

Middle school kids could pick up anything by Gordon Korman, but especially his awesome book Schooled. In this story, a kid named Cap who was raised on a farm by his hippie grandma, Rain, suddenly has to attend a regular public middle school while Rain is in the hospital. His strange clothes and his total ignorance of pop culture (this kid has never watched TV!) makes him a target for bullies and pranksters. However, Cap is a strong and resilient kid and he has a way of winning people over.

High school kids, especially kids who are just starting high school, might like Sleeping Freshmen Never Lie by David Lubar. An alternative with much more mature content (and a lot more laugh-out-loud humor) is Brent Crawford's Carter Finally Gets It.

Long story short, we have something for everyone. So stop in and pick up a book, before the homework starts piling up!

Celebrate Curious George

Join us this Saturday for a Curious George-themed storytime! We will read Curious George stories, play games, and do coloring sheets. It starts at 10 a.m., and please sign up if you are interested. At the library, we want everyone to be curious!

I was re-reading the original Curious George story the other day to prepare for the program, and I noticed one thing that really showed how old the story is. It was published in 1941, and I could really tell because on one page, it says, "After a good meal and a good pipe, George was very tired." There is a picture of George sitting in an armchair and smoking a pipe, looking very content. I'm sure that this was originally meant to be amusing--monkeys can't smoke pipes! How silly!--but of course, with everything we know today about the consequences of tobacco use, you would never see this in a contemporary children's book. However, with classic stories like this, you run into this kind of thing from time to time.

Thoughtful Picture Books

I think the book One by Kathryn Otoshi should be required reading for any child about to start school or preschool. It is simple enough to be absorbed by 3-year-olds, but the lesson is something that children can use their whole lives. The story is about how Red teases Blue all the time, and none of the other colors defend Blue or stand up to Red. Then One comes along, and does both. Not only does One stand up for himself and puts an end to Red's bullying, but he also invites Red to play instead of shutting him out. It's a great little story; simple and timeless.


The Black Book of Colors by Menena Cottin uses simple metaphors to try and convey how a blind person might experience life, and how they might interpret color through their other senses of touch, taste, hearing, and smell. The book has no colors besides black pages and white text, but the text is accompanied by Braille and raised black line drawings that are meant to be felt rather than seen. The text contains lines like, "Thomas says that yellow tastes like mustard, but is as soft as a baby chick's feathers." It's a wonderful and interesting book.

For Kids Who Like Science

Chapter book readers who are interested in science would probably like Phineas L. MacGuire... Erupts! by Frances O'Orark Dowell. Phineas (known as Mac) is very scientifically interested in mold and explosions. His best friend, Marcus, has moved away and an annoying new kid named Mac R. has joined his fourth-grade class. Mac is unfortunately partnered with Mac R. for the fourth-grade science fair project, and has to figure out how to work with someone he'd rather avoid. There are lots of great (and messy) ideas for scientific experiments in the book that kids will be itching to try.

Another good pick for the scientifically-minded is the Franny K. Stein series by Jim Benton. Franny isn't like most little girls, since instead of flowers and ponies, she likes bats and slime and does amazing scientific experiments at home. In the first book, called Lunch Walks Among Us, Franny tries to fit in by faking an interest in dolls and such so she can talk with the other girls in her class. But a horrible Monstrous Fiend attacks the class and Franny's gross experiments may be the only thing that can save the day.

There's a nonfiction offering for older kids that recently came out called Are You Afraid Yet? The Science Behind Scary Stuff by Stephen O'Meara. This book uses an appealing graphic novel-style format to explain stuff like guillotines and beheading, monsters, bugs, and lots of other creepy things. It also explains fear's physical effects on the body and why we are afraid of certain things. This would be great for kids age 10-12 who like scary stuff and/or science.

Last Week of Summer Reading!

Now is the time to turn in your minutes for the summer reading program. The program ends on Friday, at which time kids stop recording their minutes. The sooner you bring in your log sheets to get prizes the better, because they're only available while supplies last.

This year, there was a significant increase in participants compared to last year, which is fantastic! More kids signed up for the program and got log sheets for minutes, and more kids came to our programs in June. We loved seeing everyone here!

I hope everyone who participated had fun. If you have any questions or comments about the program, please let me know. I am always looking for new ways to get families involved in the library.

The Teen Mystery Section

Yes, we have one! And it's chock-full of goodness.

I recommend The Case of the Missing Marquess to younger teens. It's a mystery that takes place in Victorian London, and the first of the Enola Holmes mystery series. As you might have guessed from Enola's last name, she is actually the younger sister of the famous Sherlock, and has just as much crime-solving brainpower as her brother. In this story, Enola is trying to figure out what happened to her mother, who has suddenly disappeared without an explanation.

To older fans of Meg Cabot who also like mysteries, I present Bad Kitty by Michele Jaffe. Jasmine is a typical though klutzy teen who is on vacation in Las Vegas with her family when she stumbles onto the trail of a killer. She and her friends try to track him down, with lots of joking around and well-intentioned plans that turn out to be disasters. It's a fun, light read.

Jon Scieszka

As a librarian, I love Jon Scieszka, even though I can't pronounce his name. He is the leader of the wonderful Guys Read! movement, which not only encourages guys to read, but encourages teachers and librarians to let guys read what they want to read. He is the author of some great picture books and board books, such as The True Story of the Three Little Pigs and the Trucktown series.

One of his greatest offerings, though, is the Time Warp Trio series. This series seems to be too-often overlooked at Allerton Library and so I wanted to get the word out about it. It's a chapter book series that's a wonderful merging of Captain Underpants humor with Magic Tree House-type plots. Three kids from Brooklyn get a mysterious book that can transport them anywhere in time or space... while almost no time passes back at home. Like Jack and Annie in the Magic Tree House books, they encounter knights, pirates, cowboys, etc., and fend off gassy giants, cavemen with rotten taste, and much more to keep the laughs coming. Sure to be a hit with kids who have finished all the Captain Underpants/Magic Tree House and want more.

Independent Kids

There are a couple of books in our new nonfiction section that would help older kids who want to be more independent. I liked A Smart Girl's Guide to Staying Home Alone, published by the American Girl publishers. The book is full of great tips for staying safe, comfortable, and constructive, and it includes activities and quizzes that make it fun for kids to look through. It has everything, even no-bake snack recipes and fun activity ideas!

I also liked A Kid's Guide to Earning Money by Tamra Orr. It covers the pros and cons of all kinds of work that kids can do, from mowing a neighbor's lawn to setting up their own business to working for another person or company. It also includes information on things like labor laws, taxes, etc. Great for curious and enterprising kids.

See Stuffed Animals...

...on our brand new Flickr site!

I posted the pictures from the Stuffed Animal Overnight Party this past weekend on a new Flickr site, which you can view here. They had a great time sleeping over in the library on Saturday night.

Here they are, listening to a story.

They all got along very nicely with one another and were very good listeners.

Manga Musings

I'm hearing a lot about manga lately. It seems that this national trend is really catching on here. Kids are talking about One Piece, Azumanga Daioh, Hibiki's Magic, Naruto, Death Note, and some other ones I can't think of right now.

For those of you that don't know, manga is a kind of Japanese graphic novel that reads back to front and from top right to top left on a page. It takes some getting used to. For the most part, I think the translations are really well done (on the ones I've read, anyway), and I can see why kids would like the One Piece story (it's about pirates... what's not to love? :P )

Anyway, we don't have any of these series in Allerton Library right now, for three reasons: 1) Cost, 2) Space restrictions, and 3) Lack of demand. Since #3 is no longer the case, I'm wondering now if maybe I could find the money and the space for at least one series. The question is, which one?

I need help, everybody. Please, let me know what kind of manga you want, or what kind your kids/friends/whoever reads.

Read-A-Thons Start Tomorrow!

Come to the library tomorrow for our first Thursday morning read-a-thon! When kids read in the library between 10 and 12, they can earn double minutes. Older kids can read upstairs independently, and younger ones can listen to me read downstairs in the story room. No registration required, but of course you have to be signed up for the summer reading program in order to log reading minutes. Please let me know if you have questions!

Also, I decided to take down the poll and add an Astronomy Picture of the Day. Enjoy! :D

Amy Krouse Rosenthal...

...is truly one of my favorite picture book authors. See her website here. I look forward to her new books and lately I have been getting a lot of them. Recently I read Duck! Rabbit! to a storytime group and they really enjoyed it. It's about two kids who look at the same drawing, but one kid sees a duck and the other sees a rabbit. Each tries to convince the other that he's right.

I also really love Little Pea, Little Hoot, and Little Oink. They are such cute stories that all feature a fun reversal: Little Pea hates candy but has to eat it for dinner, Little Hoot wants to go to bed early but his parents insist they stay up late, and Little Oink would like a clean room but has to make it messy. The illustrations are lovely as well in all three books.

Any kid suffering from jealousy should read Spoon. Spoon is jealous of his friends Knife, Fork, and Chopsticks. At the same time, his friends are jealous of Spoon. Who else but Spoon could dive headfirst into a bowl of ice cream, or relax in a cup of hot tea? It's a sweet, comforting story.

A Fun Read

Recently I've been thinking about the chapter books I will pick to read to the kids during our upcoming weekly read-a-thons (starting Thursday, June 4 at 10 a.m.). I decided on Sara Pennypacker's hilarious book Clementine to start with. I challenge anyone to read the first five pages of the book without laughing. I will seriously give you a prize if you can do it.

Clementine is a very impulsive girl who has trouble staying focused on the teacher when she's in school. She always means well, but usually ends up getting into trouble because she doesn't think things through very often. Anyone would like this book, but I think it would be especially fun for kids in grades 2-5.

School Visits and Summer Fun

Last week I visited several Monticello schools to talk to the kids about our upcoming summer reading program, which starts in just two weeks! I am hoping that everyone will find something to enjoy at the library this summer, whether it's the luau and other kids' activities, the Teen Book Club, or just hanging out and reading for fun (and getting prizes to do it!)

We're going to have a Library Safari, Animal Bingo, crafts, and presentations with live animals through the course of our 8-week program. Leave a comment or call the library if you are interested in learning more about the activities.

Those of you who read this also know that I read A LOT of books for kids. I am always, always reading and I usually have lots of good recommendations. I have recently finished reading all 20 of the 2010 Rebecca Caudill books, and I'm glad to talk to kids about those as well as any other book they might like to read. Note: we do not do AR testing at the library, so if you're reading something and want to take a test later, you might need to take notes or have some other kind of refresher as the next school year approaches.

Nonfiction on the Rebecca Caudill List

Freedom Walkers by Russell Freedman is a really wonderful nonfiction book that was honored by inclusion on the 2010 Rebecca Caudill list. I just finished reading it last week and I truly enjoyed it. (I love anything with a lot of Martin Luther King Jr. quotes!) I thought it gave a really balanced account of the Montgomery Bus Boycott, and a lot of really interesting information about Rosa Parks and the other major players. It was well-researched and told in a narrative format, making it accessible to kids. Check it out!

Books for Older Teens

There are a couple of books I've read recently that I think older teens would really enjoy. I picked up Laurie Halse Anderson's Twisted because it made the Teen's Top Ten list and because I have heard good things about her other book, Speak. Twisted was an incredibly absorbing read. I couldn't put it down and I stayed up way past my bedtime to finish it. It was about this guy who used to be labeled as a nerd at school, until he spends a summer doing lots of manual labor as part of his community service punishment for defacing school property. When he comes back to school he attracts the attention of one of the girls in the popular crowd, and all of a sudden his life starts to spiral out of control.



If fantasy adventure is more your thing, you absolutely should not pass up Kristin Cashore's phenomenal first novel, Graceling. Katsa is a teenager who has been widely feared as a killer since childhood because of her unusual Grace (superhuman talent). Her uncle, King Rada, puts her to work as a violent thug in his service, but she secretly fights back by organizing a resistance effort. A foreign visitor named Po, who is also Graced with fighting ability, convinces Katsa to openly rebel against the king and to join him on a quest to find his kidnapped relative. This book has a little of everything: fantasy, adventure, romance, and mystery. Reader beware: at the end you will be desperate for the sequel, which won't be released until later this year.

I Met Candace Fleming!

Candace Fleming visited Lincoln School on Tuesday night for a Family Reading Night event organized by librarian Patty Barr and others. I would really like to thank Patty and Lincoln School for getting Candace to come over! It was a wonderful presentation and event, and I walked away smiling.

In case you're not familiar with Candace's work, she wrote the popular picture book Muncha! Muncha! Muncha! and its sequel, Tippy, Tippy, Tippy... Hide! about the bunnies and grumpy old Mr. McGreely's attempts to outsmart them. Her book Boxes for Katje also made the Monarch award list recently.

Anyway, it was great to meet her, and she was kind enough to sign the three books I mentioned above, which are part of Allerton Library's collection. So, anyone who wants to check them out will (temporarily, at least) have a signed copy!

Saturday Events for Kids

On Saturday, April 18 we will have a Craft Day. There will be a storytime and craft at 10 a.m. for children ages 3-6, and another craft for children ages 7+ at 2:30 p.m. Sign up at the library if you are interested.

We will also be having a Library Luau on Saturday, May 30 from 2-4 for children of all ages. Activities include a bean bag toss, coconut bowling, a chocolate trivia game, fishing, sand dollar painting, snacks, drinks, and music. Kids who sign up in advance will be able to pick a prize from the Treasure Box. The sign-up sheet will become available in the last week of April.

New from Brian Selznick

Brian Selznick, author of the Caldecott-award-winning The Invention of Hugo Cabret, has produced another great book called The Houdini Box. This one is much slimmer than Hugo, but just as absorbing, with the same wonderful artwork. It is the story of a boy named Victor who loves Harry Houdini and finally gets to meet the great man. This is recommended for all kids who like magic and mystery.

New Feature

To go along with the summer reading theme, Read on the Wild Side, I have added a new feature to the blog. You can now see the National Geographic Picture of the Day as one of the widgets on the left-hand side of the page. (Can you tell I just went to a technology workshop today and learned a few new things? :D ) Enjoy!

Amazing finds in Nonfiction

The nonfiction section isn't just for reports! Fiction lovers like me will find lots of interesting things in there--like Jon Scieszka's new memoir, Knucklehead. Full of hilarious stories in short chapters, plus illustrations and drawings, it's a really fun read, especially for boys, who will relate to the madcap stories about living with brothers and goofing off with buddies down the street.

You can also find all the folk and fairy tales in the nonfiction section. One of my favorite children's authors, Margaret Read MacDonald, has books in the folk tale section. She wrote some great picture books like The Squeaky Door, Little Rooster's Diamond Button, and Go to Sleep, Gecko!. Guaranteed fun for 3-6-year-olds. Actually, they're all fun for adults too, in a wonderful Pixar-movie-like way.

If you liked The City of Ember...

...you will definitely like First Light by Rebecca Stead, which is one of the 2010 Rebecca Caudill books. In First Light, a boy named Peter gets a chance to accompany his mother and father to Greenland, where his father studies ice sheets and the effects of global warming. While he is there, he discovers a settlement of people that have been living inside a huge glacier for decades, never seeing the outside world. Half the story is told from Peter's point of view and the other half is told from the point of view of Thea, a girl who lives in the underground settlement.

I've read 9 of the 20 books on the 2010 Rebecca Caudill list so far. Most of them have been ok, and a few of them have been good, but none so far have stood out to me like The Lightning Thief, which was the 2009 winner and also my favorite of the 2009s by far. I'm hoping I'll feel the same way about one of the 2010s as I did about The Lightning Thief.